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
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Book the Third - The Track of a Storm
6. VI. Triumph
The passage to the Conciergerie was short and dark; the night in its
vermin-haunted cells was long and cold. Next day, fifteen prisoners
were put to the bar before Charles Darnay's name was called. All the
fifteen were condemned, and the trials of the whole occupied an hour
and a half.
"Charles Evremonde, called Darnay," was at length arraigned.
His judges sat upon the Bench in feathered hats; but the rough red
cap and tricoloured cockade was the head-dress otherwise prevailing.
Looking at the Jury and the turbulent audience, he might have thought
that the usual order of things was reversed, and that the felons were
trying the honest men. The lowest, cruelest, and worst populace of a
city, never without its quantity of low, cruel, and bad, were the
directing spirits of the scene: noisily commenting, applauding,
disapproving, anticipating, and precipitating the result, without a
check. Of the men, the greater part were armed in various ways; of
the women, some wore knives, some daggers, some ate and drank as they
looked on, many knitted. Among these last, was one, with a spare
piece of knitting under her arm as she worked. She was in a front
row, by the side of a man whom he had never seen since his arrival at
the Barrier, but whom he directly remembered as Defarge. He noticed
that she once or twice whispered in his ear, and that she seemed to
be his wife; but, what he most noticed in the two figures was, that
although they were posted as close to himself as they could be, they
never looked towards him. They seemed to be waiting for something
with a dogged determination, and they looked at the Jury, but at
nothing else. Under the President sat Doctor Manette, in his usual
quiet dress. As well as the prisoner could see, he and Mr. Lorry
were the only men there, unconnected with the Tribunal, who wore their
usual clothes, and had not assumed the coarse garb of the Carmagnole.
Charles Evremonde, called Darnay, was accused by the public
prosecutor as an emigrant, whose life was forfeit to the Republic,
under the decree which banished all emigrants on pain of Death.
It was nothing that the decree bore date since his return to France.
There he was, and there was the decree; he had been taken in France,
and his head was demanded. | <urn:uuid:f8ecf05e-b9d0-41fe-802c-31bc9247c555> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.literaturepage.com/read.php?titleid=taleoftwocities&abspage=304&changesize=4 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988339 | 568 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Landscape design is both an art and a science. The collaborative relationship between our Landscape Architects and members of a design team is becoming more important. That is one reason our professional Landscape Architects are involved early in a project as the relationship between the project and its environment are critical to the overall project success. In doing so, our Landscape Architects, in particular, are codifying their role and taking on additional responsibilities. Additionally, our Landscape Architects work closely with clients in developing sustainable design and cost effective maintenance for their sites and facility campuses. | <urn:uuid:997d6dbc-afbc-4201-b3e4-8ececa019b89> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.craftontull.com/index.php/division/architecture/landscape-architecture | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975979 | 110 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Britain's Independent Police Complaints Commission has initiated a criminal investigation into police misconduct in a 1989 tragedy at a soccer ground where 96 people died.
The investigation follows a private inquiry that found serious failings by police and emergency services.
The private report, released last month, reviewed thousands of documents and cast doubt on the original inquest's finding of accidental death.
The crush at Sheffield's Hillsborough Stadium on April 15, 1989, has cast a lasting shadow over Liverpool and the surrounding Merseyside area.
The panel that compiled the private report also found evidence that indicated as many as 41 of those crushed could have survived.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission, which oversees police complaints in England and Wales, said Friday that last month's report "revealed extremely serious and troubling issues for the police."
"Its contents provoked a demand for those responsible for the actions revealed in the report to be held to account," it said.
The commission is reviewing hundreds of thousands of pages of evidence, and is paying special attention to allegations that police tampered with statements and that misleading information was passed to the media, among others.
"We have learned details of the run-up to the disaster including the unheeded warnings from previous incidents, the disaster itself, and its aftermath, including what appear to be attempts to distort the truth," the commission said.
It said it does not know how many officers and retired officers will be investigated. The commission can investigate both criminal and misconduct offenses, even after an officer's retirement.
The tragedy occurred when thousands of fans were let through a gate into an already crowded standing area, leading many to be crushed against metal fences and concrete walls.
Horrifying images from the scene showed panicked men, women and children pushed and trampled with nowhere to go as police lost control of the crowd. Of some 25,000 Liverpool fans who had traveled to Sheffield to watch their team play, 96 never came home. | <urn:uuid:c347a8cc-5243-41de-8e44-0abbcc31a4de> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ksat.com/news/New-probe-opened-in-1989-UK-soccer-deaths/-/478452/16962856/-/7ygl1q/-/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969062 | 393 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Share this page
Secondary schools in your area - Selby
Welcome to North Yorkshire County Council's guide for admission to secondary school in the Selby area. This page will help you apply for a place at the school you would prefer your child to attend and is supported by information in the summary guide.
When allocating school places we divide the County into five geographical areas: Craven; Harrogate; Northallerton; Scarborough and Ryedale; and Selby.
This guide gives further details about the different types of secondary schools available in the Selby area, where they are, how you can get more information about them and crucially, how and when to apply for a place for your child. It also includes tables showing admission details for each school.
The location of each school can be seen on the map below. You can pan the map around, zoom, and click on the spots for information about the school.
Secondary school admissions - frequently asked questions | <urn:uuid:fd0e48ff-763e-46d9-a0b3-fd62c02ee72f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.northyorks.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=16732 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930926 | 200 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Just reading over this thread has got me wondering.
What if we took the number of white crew people with speaking parts and considered the fraction of them who got killed versus the number of black crew people with speaking parts and considered the fraction of them who got killed.
What would the results be? In other words, among the crew, would the black people who spoke be more likely to die than the white people who spoke?
(I'm restricting this question to speaking parts just so that we don't have to sift through all the extras walking through the background.) | <urn:uuid:1386ad18-df68-4688-84b1-77f26ae7a2ba> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.trekbbs.com/showpost.php?p=7724947&postcount=11 | 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 | 0.976458 | 115 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Remember the days when you could get to the airport 20 minutes before your flight, run across the terminal and somehow still catch your plane? You didn't have to take off your shoes, or throw away your bottle of water, and you definitely didn't have to check your bags just because you wanted to bring a bottle or two of wine home for the holidays. Now, not only do you have to wait at baggage claim, but most airlines charge you for the "luxury" of checking luggage, which means those bottles of wine are now at least $25 more expensive.
Well, according to ABC News, researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico are working on a new scanner for the TSA that could not only determine whether or not the liquids passing through are explosive, but are so sensitive as to determine whether a bottle of wine is red or white. The devices, still in development, are now about the size of a small refrigerator, but are too slow to be practical (taking 15 seconds per scan). The devices are still at least three years away from any "practical application"--which means it might be a while before we can toss that bottle of Chanteduc into your carry-on, but at least it offers a glimmer of hope to the wine-loving traveler. | <urn:uuid:c3ff3612-2659-47bc-9e59-784a63798550> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.klwines.com/httpblogklwinescomuncork/2010/10/22/traveling-with-wine.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 | 0.965218 | 262 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Longmont, Colorado was given the title as one of the "Best Places to Live" in 2006 and 2008, and was also awarded "All-American City" in 2006. Named for its panoramic views of Longs Peak, Longmont is conveniently located 16 miles from Boulder and 37 miles north of Denver. With a population of approximately 82,000, this fantastic city offers many diverse employment opportunities, especially in the high-tech industries with companies like IBM, Seagate, Xilinx, and Maxtor.
Outdoor and recreation enthusiasts can enjoy the seven greenways (sanctuaries) throughout the city, over 1500 acres of parks and open space, and six golf courses in or near the city. The newer Longmont Recreation Center offers many wonderful programs and features for just about everyone. Real estate is also diverse in Longmont. From affordable starter homes, to lovely golf course communities, to charming and historic Old Town Longmont, one should easily be able to find the perfect home for their needs. One of Longmont’s “jewel” neighborhoods is Prospect New Town, a new urbanist project, which is the first of its kind in Colorado and was designed by renowned architect Andres Duany.
More Information about Longmont
At an elevation of
5,017 feet sits the city of Longmont, Colorado. The approximate population of Longmont is
86,270 residents. There are currently
647 properties for sale in Longmont, CO.
Longmont residents have a median household income of
$62,828; compared to the surrounding county’s median household income of
$67,104, and the national median household income of
The median age for residents of Longmont is 36.6 years.
less family-centric than the surrounding county. In Longmont, 35.35% of households contain married families with children; compared to 36.14% in the surrounding county.
fewer single residents than the national average, with 9.24% compared to the national average of communities with 12.73% of single residents.
The average high temperature in July for Longmont is 89 degrees. The average low temperature for Longmont in January is 11.9 degrees. Longmont sees an average rainfall of approximately 13.4 inches per year, and a snow accumulation of 34.2 inches per year. There are an average of 247 days of sunlight each year in Longmont; compared to an average of 253 days across the state, and 205 days across the nation.
RE/MAX Alliance Colorado offices in or near Longmont
Nobody in the world sells more homes than RE/MAX. Nobody in Colorado's Front Range sells more homes than RE/MAX Alliance. Thanks for reading the bottom of the page! Don't forget, if you ever need to talk to us, we're a phone call, email, tweet, instant message, or smoke signal away. | <urn:uuid:41063c61-a27c-4022-b760-189d3ba2c782> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.homesincolorado.com/CO/Longmont | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951259 | 598 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Is it bad to cut onions and other vegetables on the same cutting board? Does the type of cutting board matter? For example, do wooden cutting boards that are regularly used to cut onions (or other potent veggies, garlic, etc.) start to smell permanently like onions?
Assuming that you'll soon be cooking the vegetables in the same pan as the onions/garlic, you have little to worry about in terms of 'contaminating' the former with the latter.
Softer boards will accumulate scores and grooves from knives which will trap oils and juices from onions and garlic which may eventually start to make them smell. However, it's a good idea to replace your cutting boards every few months anyway to guard against bacteria build up, so it shouldn't be too much of an issue.
No it ain't bad. You would probably not end up in hell for this :-)
It's all a matter of flavor, i don't really mind getting some onion juiced into my next dish, unless i'm making something sweet like fruit salad - in this case i would rinse the board before moving on.
My advice to you about boards is: Get your self a proper wooden or bamboo board or butcher's block, treat it with care (clean it an soak it with mineral food grade oil every now or than...) and that's all you'll even need.
I've been using my favorite board for over 10 years now. And it doesn't smell of onions :-) | <urn:uuid:541c095b-5aa6-4039-b2cd-b3084a78abb9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/20298/is-it-bad-to-cut-onions-and-other-vegetables-on-the-same-cutting-board/20299 | 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 | 0.96496 | 298 | 1.59375 | 2 |
In a move to further thwart the will of California voters, San Diego’s legislature is looking to approve a virtual ban on legal marijuana dispensaries within city limits. The Council aims to make legal access impossible by placing unreasonable restrictions on where dispensaries can operate.
The proposed ban requires all legal marijuana dispensaries to be at least 600 feet from schools, parks, churches, libraries and each other. Dispensaries will be restricted to mostly industrial areas far from where most consumers live. Meanwhile, the 165 already legally operating dispensaries in San Diego will be closed until they can relocate and reapply for a new permit, a process estimated to take more than a year. Many will be unable to reopen because the ban effectively limits the number of legal locations for dispensaries to operate.
This flies in the face of the voter-approved Proposition 215, which guarantees safe and legal access to medical marijuana. If the new laws are enacted, legal users will be forced to drive far out into heavily industrial areas. Not only can terminally ill patients who rely on medical marijuana simply not make that kind of a trip, but there are also other risks present. Fewer dispensaries mean more predictability, and more susceptibility to patients being followed and robbed. Even further, if legislators are actively trying to place barriers between legal users and dispensaries, it’s only logical medical users may instead turn to illegal dealers in closer proximity.
With this proposal, legislators have once again ignored the potential benefits dispensaries contribute to the city. Working to put every roadblock possible to prevent a legally functioning enterprise only wastes valuable tax dollars. Much like cigarettes and alcohol, taxing medical marijuana could contribute millions of dollars to a stagnant and suffering city budget. San Diego is on the verge of bankruptcy; we’re laying off teachers, “browning out” our fire and police departments and have potholes the size of Smart cars. But naturally it’s medical marijuana that represents the greatest threat to “America’s Finest City,” right?
We should instead look up to Oakland, which in 2009 was the first to institute a tax on medical marijuana sales. In just one year, the modest tax of $18 for every $1,000 of medical marijuana sold brought in an estimated $300,000 in new revenue. A similar tax could easily be enacted in San Diego, which accounts has far more dispensaries than Oakland. Annually, a 10 percent tax on gross marijuana sales could easily result in millions of dollars in new tax revenue.
We’re in the worst budget crisis our city has ever seen, with a legal, untapped source of revenue. Can anyone tell me why we’re not capitalizing on this?
This common sense approach is a win–win for everyone involved. The city gets a much-needed new revenue stream, dispensaries and business owners are allowed to stay open and medical users can continue to purchase marijuana in a safe, legal way. Unfortunately, the ideology of a few city councilmen is keeping the city legislature from a simple and smart solution.
I’m not claiming everyone with a medical marijuana card is a cancer patient or even seriously ill. Many sufferers of “headaches” and “insomnia” have applied for and received cards. But there are still many users with a legitimate need for medical marijuana. Many patients have vocally defended their right to safe access by attending rallies and delivering speeches to the city council. But fears of kush-crazed 20-somethings roaming the city streets with bloodshot eyes and a hunger for Mexican food have drowned out all else. Ironically, it’s our city council that has reefer madness in this situation.
The actual demographics of cardholders shouldn’t even make a difference. When voters took to the polls in 1996, they understood the risk of medical marijuana abuse. Yet they voted to approve medical marijuana anyway. To pretend the abuse is a new phenomenon that justifies a de facto ban on a legal industry is disingenuous and ignores the clear will of California’s voters.
City legislators worry that if we allow medical marijuana to remain legal, crime and vandalism will skyrocket. However, the only real crime on the rise has been the shameless manipulation of laws by the San Diego City Council. It has driven the city to the ground for its own gains. Here is a chance for it to solve part of our budget crisis. Whether our legislators can sober up and do the right thing, however, remains to be seen.
— Leonardo Castaneda is an economics and journalism freshman.
— The views expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Daily Aztec. | <urn:uuid:0374c0f3-f515-4f9e-b84c-7d7584e13273> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thedailyaztec.com/2011/04/city-council-attempts-to-circumvent-voters/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937763 | 952 | 1.84375 | 2 |
From: Peter Heslin (Peter.Heslin at domain ucd.ie)
Date: Thu 07 Oct 1999 - 10:14:09 IST
On Wed, Oct 06, 1999 at 09:49:15AM +0100, Donncha O Caoimh wrote:
> I quite like OOP, but the Perl implementation is as you describe below.
> Still, I'm reliably informed by people with greater minds than I that
> it's actually quite elegant once you get your head around it!
The process of getting your head around it is not made any easier by the Camel
book, which on this subject is unusually vague and lacking in example code
-- comments like `An object is just a referenced thingy that knows what class
it has been blessed into' and such seem more like Zen poetry than help for the
If you have not looked at it yet, you should try Tom Christiansen's Perl OO
tutorial -- it gives lots of basic examples: type `man perltoot'.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.6 : Thu 06 Feb 2003 - 13:04:41 GMT | <urn:uuid:83499fd7-b96e-4205-903c-77c493d3e758> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.linux.ie/old-list/7022.html | 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 | 0.952402 | 237 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Razor Pocket Rocket Mini Electric Motorcycle
Although we usually talk about cars here at FutureCars, occasionally we look at the other alternative vehicles that are out there. The Razor Pocket Rocket is a sort of entry-level electric vehicle (EV) that can get many people involved and interested in electric propulsion - especially if they're convinced that they can't be "powerful" enough.
The Pocket Rocket is not just a kid's toy. Most are probably owned by adults, in fact. The diminutive European-style motorcycles have a very high-performance motor that moves the bike up to 15 miles per hour and can carry a rider of up to 170 pounds in weight.
Similar to other mini-bikes, the Pocket Rocket has air-filled tires, low handlebars to facilitate a low center of gravity for the rider - essential on such small vehicles - and it runs for up to 30 minutes continuously.
These bikes only weigh 42 pounds and stand only 20 inches high and about 36 inches long. They are charged through a regular wall outlet with the converter included.
These cool little machines are available in most major retail outlets that sell general merchandise and electronics.
These motorcycles are the subject of many YouTube videos, conversation both online and off, and have been extremely popular gifts since they were first introduced. One ride on a Pocket Rocket is usually enough to convince people that they want an EV for themselves.
This site follows the emergence, application and development of transportation innovation. Reference to manufacturers, makes and models, and other automotive-related businesses are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement by FutureCars.com.
In order to view the content on this page, you will need the latest version of Adobe’s Flash Player. Click here to download it. | <urn:uuid:fd9b8c90-5b35-4d4c-8268-34b7a9a1c2bc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.futurecars.com/articles/electric-vehicles/razor-pocket-rocket-mini-electric-motorcycle | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955591 | 362 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Gallup: 18% Won’t Vote For A Mormon
Bias the same as 1967.
The exact percentage of Americans who resist the idea of voting for a Mormon has varied slightly over the eight times Gallup has asked the question, typically when a Mormon was running for president, including George Romney (1968 campaign), Orrin Hatch (2000 campaign), and Mitt Romney (2008 and 2012 campaigns). The percentage opposed to a Mormon president has averaged 19% since 1967 — from a low of 17% at several points to a high of 24% in 2007. The current 18% is down from 22% a year ago. | <urn:uuid:cd89610b-62a6-4be7-92db-87433555812b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.alan.com/2012/06/21/gallup-18-wont-vote-for-a-mormon/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963546 | 126 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Russian reporter claims Tucson shootings the result of American freedom
posted at 9:30 am on January 14, 2011 by Ed Morrissey
You know what this country needs after a week of insanity on display in Tucson and inanity on display in the American media? We need someone with whom we can all be angry — a handy whipping post to berate and mock. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you our figure of unity … Russian reporter Andrei Sitov from TASS, assigned to the White House press corps, courtesy of Ann Compton:
“[M]any people outside would also say — and the quote, unquote “freedom” of a deranged mind to react in a violent way is also American.” Sitov called it “the reverse side of freedom, unless you want restriction, unless you want a bigger role for the government in their lives.”
“No, no, I would disagree vehemently with that,” shot back Gibbs. He went on with considerable force.
“There are — there is nothing in the values of our country, there’s nothing on the many laws on our books that would provide for somebody to impugn and impede on the very freedoms that you began with by exercising the actions that that individual took on that day. That is not American. There are — I think there’s agreement on all sides of the political spectrum: Violence is never, ever acceptable. We had people that died. We had people whose lives will be changed forever because of the deranged actions of a madman. Those are not American. Those are not in keeping with the important bedrock values by which this country was founded and by which its citizens live each and every day of their lives in hopes of something better for those that are here.”
Compton says that some members of the White House press corps briefly considered this a “return to the Cold War,” apparently offended that Sitov would frame a mass murder in Tucson as somehow indicative of American values. It does have that Soviet-era flavor, too — when the Kremlin (and doesn’t that term take you back?) would routinely use any single crime, tragedy, or outrage as somehow emblematic of the corrupt and decadent West, especially in the US. Since Russia today isn’t exactly a paragon of laissez-faire democracy, it’s easy to see how veteran reporters at the White House could find something very, very familiar in that question.
However, it’s also possible that Sitov just fumbled his vocabulary a bit. Sitov’s clarifying addendum sounds as if he meant that while we try our best to prevent these tragedies through intervention when possible, in a free country one cannot guarantee that they won’t happen. Mass murder isn’t an American value, but the American value of freedom prevents us from creating a massively large police state that could prevent these tragedies, but would also prevent free expression and choice.
If that’s what Sitov meant and just clumsily argued, then he is right. In fact, that’s exactly what John Green said to NBC on Monday, that the murder of his precious daughter by a lunatic was part of having “a free society,” and that “I prefer this to the alternative.”
Update: My apologies; I got bit by the assumption that it was Jake Tapper who wrote this, but it was Ann Compton.
Breaking on Hot Air | <urn:uuid:e8082b05-6aa7-4654-9729-0f6bd5b23dda> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hotair.com/archives/2011/01/14/russian-reporter-claims-tucson-shootings-the-result-of-american-freedom/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970687 | 727 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Hitler, Crazy Golf And the Nazi Salute
TASTELESS was the word heard by a Blackpool art gallery last month following an exhibit featuring Adolf Hitler in a Crazy Golf hole green.
The Jake and Dinos Chapman work is a statue of the Nazi dictator which gives a Nazi salute when a ball passes through it, reported the BBC.
It forms part of the Grundy Art Gallery’s Adventureland Golf exhibition, which features artworks as holes on a crazy golf course. Curator Stuart Tulloch said the work was a chance to “ridicule” Hitler – but the British Jewish organisation does not agree.
Michael Samuels, of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said it had “absolutely no artistic value whatsoever. He’s not somebody that you would make a joke of – Hitler was responsible for the murders of many millions of people,” he said.
“If I were the gallery, I would give it back to the artists and tell them to keep it in the shed.”
Tulloch said Hitler had been defeated and the statue “gives us the chance now to ridicule him”.
He added that visitors to the exhibition had “taken it in the spirit that it is intended”
Other holes depict an animated statue of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, a boarded-up library and a desert island. | <urn:uuid:d824b10d-eeed-4be1-87ba-f990df2ccad7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ujnews.com/hitler-crazy-golf-and-the-nazi-salute/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974302 | 292 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Pictured left to right; Rich Kolodziej, President of NGV America, Mayor Lozeau and Doug Horne, President of the Clean Vehicle Education Foundation.
NASHUA, NH – The City of Nashua, N.H., was recognized by the Natural Gas Vehicle Association (NGVA) for its natural gas program for its City fleet vehicles. The City’s Mayor Donnalee Lozeau accepted the award at the NGVA’s National Conference on Oct. 5, which was held in conjunction with the 2012 Green Fleet Conference in Schaumburg, Ill.
The mayor outlined the City’s program in a State of the City address earlier this year. She said the City’s Solid Waste department has seven new trucks that run on compressed natural gas (CNG) and had four more on the way at the time of the address. The City also received a grant from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services for $700,000 to cover the cost difference between CNG and traditionally fueled vehicles for 16 public works vehicles, three for the police department, and three for the fire department.
The City also has access to a CNG fueling station through a public/private partnership with Alternative Vehicle Service Group (AVSG). | <urn:uuid:eb113bd1-cebf-4dbe-b449-76479bd04e88> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.government-fleet.com/news/story/2012/10/nashua-recognized-for-natural-gas-fleet-program.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959625 | 258 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Give Abboud the Boot
Why does Syria need two ambassadors in Washington?
Mar 12, 2007, Vol. 12, No. 25 • By DAVID SCHENKER
It's been two years since the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri caused the United States to withdraw its ambassador from Syria. But even as the U.S. embassy in Damascus continues to function without its senior diplomat, Syria maintains not one but two ambassadors to Washington. Officially, Syrian president Bashar Assad's top diplomat in the United States is Ambassador Imad Moustapha. Assad's second, unofficial--but reliably pro-Syria--envoy is Lebanon's ambassador to Washington, Farid Abboud.
The absence of a Lebanese ambassador to Washington who is accountable to his own government reflects the ongoing Syrian influence in Lebanon and the fractious nature of Lebanese politics. While the Bush administration has adapted to this dynamic by finding alternative interlocutors to Abboud, the situation remains problematic for Lebanon.
Abboud has been in Washington for eight years, a remarkable tenure given the typical ambassadorial rotation lasts only four years. He was appointed by the pro-Syria Lebanese president Emile Lahoud--who himself was chosen by Assad. And despite the tectonic shift in Lebanese politics away from Syria following the assassination of Hariri, the unabashedly pro-Syria, pro-Hezbollah Abboud remains ensconced in the embassy. The anti-Syrian Lebanese government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora has thus far been incapable of dislodging him.
Not that they haven't tried. Last summer, during the Hezbollah-Israel war, Abboud was recalled to Beirut for condoning Hezbollah's attacks on CNN. Instead of returning to Beirut with his tail between his legs, Abboud stayed in Washington. Lebanon's strife-ridden parliamentary politics have allowed Abboud to remain ensconced in the ambassador's residence.
Abboud has been, in effect, protected by the ongoing power struggle between Hezbollah and the so-called March 14 forces, the anti-Syria alliance led by Siniora. In November 2006, after Hezbollah cabinet ministers--including Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh--withdrew from the government in a gambit to attain more political power, Siniora tried to appoint 58 new ambassadors, all of whom had already been vetted. The move was blocked by pro-Syria president Lahoud, who refused to approve the new diplomats in the absence of the Hezbollah foreign minister's consent. Months later, the deadlock continues, and Abboud's title remains.
But Abboud's ability to function as a diplomat has been seriously eroded. Essentially, Abboud has spent the last six years of the Bush administration largely isolated, having little or no contact with executive branch personnel. Since 2003 Abboud has met with only one senior administration official--then Deputy Secretary of Defense-designate Gordan England--but the meeting happened only because of negligence on the part of one of England's junior staffers. As a matter of policy, the administration has treated Abboud as a Syrian official and has studiously avoided contact.
The ongoing quarantine of Abboud has thrust the Lebanese deputy chief of mission Carla Jazzar--a longtime foreign-service professional unaffiliated with Syria and not beholden to President Lahoud--to the forefront of Lebanese diplomacy in Washington. Much to the chagrin of Abboud, for the past few years Jazzar has surfaced as the de facto charge d'affairs, the primary senior Lebanese diplomatic contact with the U.S. government. And by all accounts, she has proven an outstanding interlocutor. Indeed, many had hoped that after Abboud, Jazzar would be appointed ambassador.
In October, however, it was announced that Antoine Shadid, a veteran Lebanese professional diplomat, would replace Abboud. (Abboud has been reassigned to Tunisia.) Rumors abound as to when Shadid will finally be posted, but given the crisis in Lebanon, it can't be soon enough. Jazzar has done a fine job representing her country both with the U.S. government and in the media, but the uncertain dynamic of a deputy chief of mission loyal to Lebanon and a lame duck ambassador beholden to Syria has not advanced Lebanon's interests in the United States.
The challenges facing the pro-democracy government of Prime Minister Siniora are extremely complex and daunting. Making matters worse is the fact that Beirut's senior representative in Washington neither represents nor advocates on behalf of the elected government in Lebanon. While the Bush administration has long considered Abboud a problem, it has avoided taking any steps to expel him, lest unintended and potentially damaging consequences ensue. | <urn:uuid:3fa2923b-d668-46f9-8439-64a43fd58b53> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/365tfvmq.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951644 | 973 | 1.695313 | 2 |
|undetected viral count
Jul 19, 2004
I was infected with HIV in Dec 2003. In February, 2003 I tested positive by ELISA and Western Blot. However, my viral load in March 2003 was at 140, now I am undetectable under 50. My tcell count remains between 850 and 1100. What are the normal viral loads when a person first becomes infected? Also, does the viral load change, or does it remain overall constant over the years.
| Response from Dr. Holodniy
In your case, given your very high CD4 count, it is likely you will remain undetectable, or with a very low detectable viral load for quite some time. In almost all cases, the viral load is over 100,000 to > 1 million during the acute infection stage, particularly before antibodies to HIV are made by the immune system.
Get Email Notifications When This Forum Updates or Subscribe With RSS
This forum is designed for educational purposes only, and experts are not rendering medical, mental health, legal or other professional advice or services. If you have or suspect you may have a medical, mental health, legal or other problem that requires advice, consult your own caregiver, attorney or other qualified professional.
Experts appearing on this page are independent and are solely responsible for editing and fact-checking their material. Neither TheBody.com nor any advertiser is the publisher or speaker of posted visitors' questions or the experts' material. | <urn:uuid:02c73a08-e401-4f6a-abce-159daddef72b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Labs/Q158262.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946124 | 300 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Srisailam (Andhra Pradesh), Aug. 28: Krishna Pushkaram, dubbed the Maha Kumbh of south India, got off to a grim start as five persons drowned in the river — four of them flung into it by a stampede at Vijayawada.
The stampede was triggered on a dilapidated portion of a ramp adjacent to Prakasham barrage when devotees were heading for the showers after taking a holy dip at the Krishnaveni ghat. The newly installed steel barriers gave way under the crush of people who began pushing and shoving in panic. A part of the ramp, too, collapsed throwing several people into the water. A man, two women and a 14-year-old boy were drowned.
Over 20 persons were injured, said police officials, who have closed the ghat. “It is unfortunate that due to heavy rush in the early hours at the particular ghat there was a stampede. Now everything is under control,” said Krishna district collector K. Prabhakar Reddy.
The ghat was packed with devotees mostly from Vizianagaram, Srikakulam and Visakhapatnam who wanted to take the dip before sunrise at the auspicious moment of the confluence of Jupiter and Virgo.
Across the barrage, an engineering student who went into the river in a non-ghat area drowned. Police said he could not swim and was sucked in by the strong current.
Devotees are expected to take a dip at 192 ghats specially constructed along the 708-km course of the Krishna in Andhra Pradesh during the 12-day pushkaram.
The incident embarrassed the Congress government which was planning to put on a show on a par with the Godavari Pushkaram organised by the previous Telugu Desam Party government.
Chief secretary Mohan Kanda ordered the transfer of Krishna collector Prabhakar Reddy and Vijayawada police commissioner T. Krishna Prasad within hours after the chief minister admitted to human lapse. Over 10 junior level officers involved in the preparations of the pushkaram have been suspended.
“Nobody will be spared. It is definitely an unpardonable human error. The unfortunate incident should not have occurred at all,” said Y. S. Rajasekhar Reddy at Srisailam. The government has appointed senior IAS officer R.C. Samal, the chief commissioner of land records, to conduct a high-level inquiry into the stampede. “I have directed that the detailed inquiry be completed in seven days,” Reddy said.
The chief minister, who is heli-hopping across the districts criss-crossed by the Krishna to participate in the pushkaram, cancelled all his programmes in Vijayawada.
Soon after arriving at Vijayawada, the chief minister rushed to NTR Health University General Hospital and visited the injured. He handed over cheques for Rs 50,000 to each of them and announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the families of the dead. | <urn:uuid:a6f6fd7a-c51e-4942-a77f-3d7c604809b0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040829/asp/nation/story_3690357.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972117 | 644 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Author Recounts Bin Laden's DemiseMay 29, 2012
A smoke bomb, and an orchestrated call to the faithful.
Both were included among 38 scenarios that American intelligence officials theorized could ferret out occupants from a fortified, one-acre compound outside Abbottabad, Pakistan—including, they surmised, Osama Bin Laden.
In the end, said Peter E. Bergen, CNN’s national security analyst and a Fellow at Fordham Law School’s Center on National Security, American intelligence zeroed in on the world’s most wanted man in part because the compound had no internet connection.
In a Q&A with NBC Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel, Bergen, author of Manhunt: The Ten-year Search for Bin Laden From 9/11 to Abbottabad (Crown, 2012) recounted the quest to produce Bin Laden’s whereabouts. The May 18th event, which drew more than 200 to the McNally Amphitheatre, was sponsored by the Center on National Security.
Like the tarp that veiled the solitary acre from overhead surveillance, the lack of electronic links to the outside world insulated Bin Laden from peering eyes. It also isolated the scion of an exceedingly wealthy Saudi family, metamorphosed into the 21st century’s most notorious terrorist.
|Peter Bergen (left) and Richard Engel|
“He created a prison of his own making,” Bergen said of Bin Laden, who, 10 years after coordinating terror attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people on American soil, was living a hermit-like existence inside a walled-in, three-story structure on a hill overlooking Abbottabad.
But the most significant indication that Bin Laden in fact lived in the compound was his courier’s visits, said Bergen. Establishing the connection between Bin Laden and his courier took both technological prowess and human derring-do.
Although intelligence evidence pinpointed Bin Laden in Tora Bora, Afghanistan, in the days immediately after Sept. 11, political and military reluctance to expose hundreds of troops to a lethal counterattack let him slip away. From there, the trail grew cold, both because of Bin Laden’s and Al Qaeda’s keen awareness of the Americans’ electronic eavesdropping capabilities, and because those close to Bin Laden—thought to be a prophet of Islam—would never have turned him in, said Bergen.
As the 20th hijacker in U.S. custody, Mohammed al-Qahtani, and others yielded more information, the presumed courier, Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti, came into focus as a conduit to Bin Laden, Bergen said.
It would take until June 2010 for American intelligence officials to geolocate Kuwaiti’s cell phone and, eventually, the courier himself. Eventually Bin Laden’s courier (and confidant) unwittingly led CIA operatives to the compound.
But despite growing evidence of Bin Laden’s presence at the compound, Obama administration officials were divided on how to attack the compound.
“There was no definitive proof Bin Laden was even living there,” said Bergen, who toured the compound before it was razed.
For a year, the Americans watched the house, all the while coming up with schemes to arrive at certainty of his presence. As the smoke bomb scenario and dozens of others came into play, Obama’s cabinet members thrashed out potential ploys and their consequences, with some discouraging the raid (including Vice President Joseph Biden), others backing a drone attack (then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates), and yet others backing the raid (then-CIA Director Leon Panetta and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton).
Estimates on the success of a clandestine raid ranged from 40 percent to 90 percent, Bergen said. Eventually, Obama calculated any operation had even odds of succeeding and gave the orders for the ultra-secret mission.
Three weeks of rehearsals, in North Carolina and in Nevada, on quickly built models of the Abbottabad compound ensued. And on April 30, 2011, Obama—whom Bergen described as “very, very comfortable with the use of military power”—gave the green light to Operation Neptune Spear.
On a moonless night, dozens of Navy SEALS moved covertly from Afghani airspace and into Pakistan. About 90 minutes after the helicopters had lifted off from eastern Afghanistan, Bin Laden spoke his last words to his youngest wife, said Bergen, which were: “Don’t turn on the light.”
Moments later, he was shot once through the eye, and once through his chest.
He had never reached for his nearby AK-47.
Contact: Richard Khavkine | <urn:uuid:831a45f8-4444-4162-bebd-beb2be4dcdbc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://law.fordham.edu/newsroom/26683.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962675 | 982 | 1.796875 | 2 |
|Second Judicial District|
Judge Heringer was born in Wishek, North Dakota, May 28, 1914. He attended school at Wishek and Ashlely, North Dakota, where he graduated from high school in 1933. He then attended the University of North Dakota and graduated from the Law School in June, 1937. Shortly after graduating he opened his law practice in Rugby, North Dakota, he served as State's Attorney of Pierce County from 1939 to 1942 and again from 1947 to 1951. In 1955 he was elected President of the State Bar Association, due to ill health he resigned before completing his term. He was elected Judge of the Second Judicial District on November 8, 1960. He died on December 23, 1960, before entering the duties as Judge.
Biographical Sketches of the North Dakota District Court Judges | <urn:uuid:5f0fc772-d2c2-48b8-a2d1-029fc51a2995> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ndcourts.gov/court/bios/heringer.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988675 | 168 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Not to worry it could just be your metabolism playing up and needing a kick!
These boosters should help to get you back on track.
Aim to eat every three to four hours
Eat the same amount of food every day but instead of just having two or three meals a day spread them out. It will help to keep your blood sugar levels stable so your body can burn fat that much more effectively. Your blood sugar levels are incredibly important for the body as glucose which is its main source of fuel. Eating regularly and little and often remembering to include things like wholegrain and fibre rich foods will avoid too many fluctuations in blood sugar levels and help you to function better...... | <urn:uuid:089ed9b2-17a4-407b-ad07-1c9b74262cfb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.businessbiscotti.co.uk/community-home-page/bb-community/community-blog/tags/tag/lifestyle-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971578 | 136 | 1.554688 | 2 |
NASA, 9/11/01: "It's difficult to describe how it feels to be the only American completely off the planet at a time such as this. The feeling that I should be there with all of you, dealing with this, helping in some way, is overwhelming. I know that we are on the threshold (or beyond) of a terrible shift in the history of the world. Many things will never be the same again after September 11, 2001. Not just for the thousands and thousands of people directly affected by these horrendous acts of terrorism, but probably for all of us. We will find ourselves feeling differently about dozens of things, including probably space exploration, unfortunately. It's horrible to see smoke pouring from wounds in your own country from such a fantastic vantage point. The dichotomy of being on a spacecraft dedicated to improving life on the earth and watching life being destroyed by such willful, terrible acts is jolting to the psyche, no matter who you are. And the knowledge that everything will be different than when we launched by the time we land is a little disconcerting. I have confidence in our country and in our leadership that we will do everything possible to better defend her and our families, and to bring justice for what has been done. I have confidence that the good people at NASA will do everything necessary to continue our mission safely and return us safely at the right time. And I miss all of you very much. I can't be there with you in person, and we have a long way to go to complete our mission, but be certain that my heart is with you, and know you are in my prayers. Humbly, Frank." | <urn:uuid:a8ee0b5c-47ca-4d94-903e-3b90859d30f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/031273.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967881 | 338 | 1.523438 | 2 |
I stumbled upon this recent and interesting interview with Sir Charles Barlow, one of the great great grandsons of Charles Darwin. Darwin is the man who developed the theory of natural selection, the basic mechanism of evolution and who wrote the book, The Origin of the Species. Through the interview I learned some interesting things about Charles Darwin and what he really believed.
Sir James Barlow came to a personal relationship with Jesus in 1979 at the Manchester University in the UK-- Sir James has held positions within the business community as President of the Abbotsford ( a city about 1 and a half hours east of Vancouver) Chamber of Commerce and is now a Director of the BC Chamber of Commerce. In his personal life, Sir James serves as a deacon in his local Church, is involved in various wildlife organizations, and is also an ambassador for the Galapagos Conservation Trust.
Thanks to my readers who have said that the links I provided, take them out of my blog. I have now embedded Part 1 of the interview here rather than a link. However, clicking on the link for Part 2 of the interview will take you to youtube. To return to my blog you simply click the back button (arrow at the top left of your computer menu) and it will bring you back to my page).
The second part of the interview is here. | <urn:uuid:7ef1a0eb-14c2-474d-b9d7-3dd5b8bfa8ca> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.snapthatpenny.blogspot.com/2012/06/interview-with-sir-james-barlow-great.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954909 | 271 | 1.609375 | 2 |
The American Law Institute (ALI) is a private organization of establishment lawyers and law professors that seeks to influence the law by publishing “restatements” of the law. In its noblest work, it seeks to make the law of the 50 united states more uniform by “restating” the law in a cogent organized work. While it generally focuses on what the state of the law is now, it occasionally identifies areas where the law is trending to meet a developing or future need. One might make some inferences about the true loyalty of the ALI by examining where it chooses to venture from what is the law to what the law ought to be.
ALI is now engaged in restating employment law. Last year, ALI declined to see the trend away from employment-at-will and “restated” that employers are free to fire workers anytime, for any reason, or no reason, as long as they do not act for an illegal reason. It ignored the increasing number of laws that prohibit more and more of the most common and pernicious reasons for discharging workers. It ignored the emergence of some jurisdictions, such as Montana and New Jersey, that have effectively banned employment-at-will. ALI stuck its flag firmly in the past, choosing to use its influence to reject modern human resources standards that require documentation of grounds for discipline, and the use of progressive discipline.
This year, on the issue of loyalty, ALI has chosen to deviate from the law as it is and give employers new grounds to sue their employees when they reveal company documents. Last month the ALI approved a new chapter of its Restatement of Employment Law with a controversial section on loyalty left intact.
This section would, for the first time, create a duty of loyalty for all employees, not just those in management. While confidentiality agreements today are creatures of contract, ALI proposes to create a duty of loyalty for which employers could sue in tort when documents are disclosed. This change would ease that terrible burden employers have of proving their damages precisely when their documents are disclosed. It would also allow employers to sue even when they had no policy or contract that required the documents to be kept confidential. It broadly defines confidential information to include “all types of information,” “all forms of information,” and “all manner of information.” Prof. Charles Sullivan notes that ALI is exempting undefined “general” knowledge from the duty of confidentiality. He is concerned that what knowledge is “general” will vary under circumstances that will be hard to predict. I am concerned that ALI has not created an exemption for documents that evidence violations of law or dangers to safety, health or the environment.
The ALI's draft Restatement of Employment Law is bad news for whistleblowers. If states adopt the Restatement's duty of loyalty, then any whistleblower who uses the company's documents to show a violation would be subject to a lawsuit by the employer. Every whistleblower who sues for retaliation could face a counterclaim for breach of the duty of loyalty. This outcome turns existing law on its head. Judges of the Department of Labor have long recognized that calling whistleblowers disloyal is itself evidence of animus against protected activity. Haney v. North American Car Corp., 81-SWD-1 (ALJ Aug. 10, 1981). As Judge Campbell noted in Blake v. Hatfield Electric Co., 87-ERA-4 (ALJ Aug. 13, 1987), p. 24, “what may have seemed to constitute disloyalty from a corporate standpoint in this case was protected activity under the law.”
It remains to be seen what remedies ALI will recommend for violations of the new duty of loyalty. Tort remedies can include a broader scope of remedies than breach of contract would normally allow. In some egregious cases, courts have order workers to return their wages or profits. Would ALI recommend this for the garden variety cases of turning over documents to government investigators? These questions will remain unanswered until ALI completes the restatement of employment law in years to come.
The ALI draft restatement deviates from existing law to create this duty of loyalty that employees owe to companies, but it does not create any similar duty that companies owe to their employees. Companies remain free to discharge workers for any reason, or for no reason at all, as long as the employee cannot prove that the real reason was illegal. ALI's choice of where and how to deviate from existing law reveals something of its own loyalty. I observe that it is closer to the corporate interests that make the endowments to the university towers where professors work, rather than to those who toil in the universities' grounds.
Just because ALI adopts a rule in its restatement does not mean that states have to follow that rule. Still, this move by ALI underscores the need for a comprehensive federal whistleblower law. If federal law makes clear that companies have no right to conceal their wrongdoing, and that employee disclosures proving misconduct are protected, then companies will not be able to use state tort laws as a sword to punish whistleblowers. In NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co., 458 U.S. 886, 918-19 (1982), the Supreme Court reviewed a decision by the Mississippi Supreme Court to make the national NAACP liable in tort for a local branch's boycott. “The First Amendment ... restricts the ability of the State to impose liability on an individual solely because of his association with another.” If federal law can make clear what whistleblower activities are protected, then whistleblowers will be protected from employers who seek to use state tort law as a sword. | <urn:uuid:ede20322-67b9-4058-ae69-e31241db86fb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.whistleblowersblog.org/tags/restatement/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954341 | 1,166 | 1.703125 | 2 |
My question is about the Hadeeth of the prophet (PBUH):
Imam Ahmed Ben Hanbal narrated in his “Musnad” and Al-bayhaqi in his book “Al- I’tiqaad”, and classed as Saheeh by Al-Aswad Ben Saree’ that the prophet (PBUH) said:
“Four types of people will be tested on the day of judgement: a deaf man who cannot hear anything, a mad man, an old aged man and a man who died during fatrah (a period of time when no messenger was sent to people). The deaf man will say: “Oh Allah, Islam came while I cannot hear anything!”. The mad man will say: “Oh Allah, Islam came while the boys throw animals’ excrement on me!”. The old aged man will say: “Oh Allah, Islam came while I can understand nothing”. And the man who died during a fatrah will say: “Oh Allah, I witnessed no messenger from You”. Then Allah takes a promise from them to obey Him. Then He will command them to enter hell, and who enters it will find it peace and cool, and who disobeys will be dragged to hell”
My question is:
Will there be a test on the day of judgement? What I know is it is a day for bringing humans to account only, without testing.
This test to enter hell is very difficult, and it is not logical. As our minds know that fire is dangerous and it is natural that a human will fear getting into it. This is not like the tests we are exposed to in life, which we are obliged to by our straight forward Islamic teachings.
The scholars (may Allaah have mercy on them) differed concerning the people of the fatrah – who are those lived in the time when no Messenger came to them and were in a place where the call did not reach them – and those who come under the same rulings as them, such as the children of the mushrikeen. There are several points of view, the most correct of which is that they will be tested on the Day of Resurrection. Whoever obeys the command of Allaah will be saved and whoever disobeys Him will be doomed. There are many ahaadeeth from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) which support this view, such as that which was mentioned by the brother in his question, and which was quoted in full by Imam Ibn Katheer in his commentary on the verse (interpretation of the meaning): “And We never punish until We have sent a Messenger (to give warning)” [al-Isra’ 17:15]. The one who wants to know more may refer to the Tafseer of Ibn Katheer on this verse. These ahaadeeth strengthen one another, and show that this view is supported by the Sunnah. This is what was stated by Abu’l-Hasan al-Ash’ari who is a scholar of Ahl al-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa’ah.
Imam Ibn Katheer (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Among the ahaadeeth on this topic, some are saheeh, as was stated by more than one of the leading scholars, and some are hasan, and some are da’eef but are supported by the saheeh and hasan reports. When the ahaadeeth on any particular topic support one another in such a fashion, it provides strong evidence to prove the point.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer (5/58).
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, discussing the different points of view on this topic:
… They will be tested in the Hereafter by having a fire caused to appear before them. Whoever enters it will find it cool and safe, and whoever refuses will be punished. This was narrated by al-Bazzaar from the hadeeth of Anas and Abu Sa’eed, and it was narrated by al-Tabaraani from the hadeeth of Mu’aadh ibn Jabal. The issue of being tested has been proven in the case of one who is insane and the one who died during the fatrah (interval between two Prophets) via saheeh isnaads. Al-Bayhaqi stated in Kitaab al-I’tiqaad that it is the correct view.
This view was rejected by some scholars – such as Imam Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr – who said that the Hereafter is the place of recompense, not the place of testing; there will be no commands or prohibitions in the Hereafter. This objection has been refuted and dealt with in general terms and in detail. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah, Imam Ibn Katheer and others refuted it in general terms, and Imam Ibn al-Qayyim refuted it in detail, covering nineteen points.
A – As for the refutation in general terms, it may be summed up as follows: There is testing in the grave, and on the Day of Resurrection. As for the idea that the Hereafter is not a place of testing, this is true, but only after the people of Paradise settle in Paradise and the people of Hell settle in Hell.
1 – Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Accountability ends when one enters the abode of recompense, be it Paradise or Hell, or but when people are resurrected they may be tested as they are tested in al-barzakh. It will be said to one of them: Who is your Lord? What is your religion? Who is your Prophet? Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “(Remember) the Day when the Shin shall be laid bare (i.e. the Day of Resurrection) and they shall be called to prostrate themselves (to Allaah), but they (hypocrites) shall not be able to do so” [al-Qalam 68:42]. And it is proven in the books of Saheeh in more than one hadeeth that Allaah will appear to His slaves in the place of standing when it is said: “‘Let every people follow that which they used to worship.’ So the mushrikeen will follow their gods and the believers will be left. Then the Lord will appear to them in a form other than that which they know, and they will not recognize Him, then He will appear to them in the form that they know, and the believers will prostrate to Him but the backs of the hypocrites will remain like the horns of cattle; they will want to prostrate but they will not be able to. Then he quoted the verse (interpretation of the meaning): “(Remember) the Day when the Shin shall be laid bare (i.e. the Day of Resurrection) and they shall be called to prostrate themselves (to Allaah), but they (hypocrites) shall not be able to do so” [al-Qalam 68:42].
Majmoo’ al-Fataawa (4/303, 304).
2 – Imam Ibn Katheer (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Shaykh Abu ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-Barr al-Namari mentioned some of the ahaadeeth about testing that have been quoted above, then he said: The ahaadeeth on this topic are not strong, and cannot be taken as evidence. The scholars reject them because the Hereafter is the abode of recompense, not the abode of striving or testing, so how can they be commanded to enter the fire when that is not possible for created beings and Allaah does not burden any soul beyond its scope?
He answered that by explaining that the ahaadeeth on this topic are strong, as we have quoted from him above, then he said:
As for his saying that the Hereafter is the abode of recompense, there is no doubt that it is the abode of recompense but that does not mean that there will be no accountability in when people are resurrected, before they are admitted to either Paradise or Hell, as Shaykh Abu’l-Hasan al-Ash’ari narrated was the view of Ahl al-Sunnah wa’l-Jama’ah with regard to the testing of children. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “(Remember) the Day when the Shin shall be laid bare (i.e. the Day of Resurrection) and they shall be called to prostrate themselves (to Allaah), but they (hypocrites) shall not be able to do so” [al-Qalam 68:42]. And the Sunnah, in the books of Saheeh and elsewhere, proves that the believers will prostrate to Allaah on the Day of Resurrection, but as for the hypocrite, he will not be able to do that; his back will remain straight. Every time he wants to prostrate he will fall over backwards. In al-Saheehayn it is narrated concerning the man who will be the last of the people of Hell to be brought out therefrom that Allaah will take his pledge and covenant that he will not ask for anything more than he has, and he will repeat that several times, and Allaah will say: “O son of Adam, how treacherous you are,” then He will give him permission to enter Paradise.
As for saying: How can they be commanded to enter the fire when they are not able to do that? This does not mean that the hadeeth is not valid, for Allaah will command the people on the Day of Resurrection to cross over the siraat, which is a bridge over Hell that is sharper than the edge of a sword and thinner than a hair. The believers will pass over it according to their deeds, like lightning, or like the wind, or like the swiftest horses and mounts; some will run, some will walk, and some will crawl, and some will fall on their faces in Hell. What has been narrated concerning them is no less than this, rather it is greater.
Moreover, the Sunnah proves that the Dajjaal will have with him a paradise and a hell (or a garden and a fire) and the Lawgiver has commanded the believers who see him to drink from that which he thinks is fire, for it will be cool and safe for him. This is akin to that.
And Allaah commanded the Children of Israel to kill themselves, so they killed one another until seventy thousand were killed in a single day; a man killed his father and his brother. That was a punishment to them for worshipping the calf. This is also to difficult for anyone to do, and is no less than what is mentioned in the hadeeth quoted. And Allaah knows best.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer (5/28).
B – Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) discussed the answer to this question in detail, as we indicated, and he added other points such as the following:
· The implication of these ahaadeeth is in accordance with the Qur’aan and the basic principles of sharee’ah. It gives details of what is stated in the Qur'aan, that no one will be punished until proof is established against him. Proof was not established against these people in this world, and proof must be established against them. The most appropriate situation where proof must be established is the Day when witnesses are brought (on the Day of Resurrection) and cases are heard and proof is established, people dispute before the Lord and each one gives his proof and excuses; the excuses of the wrongdoers will not benefit them but they will benefit others.
· This view was narrated in saheeh reports from a number of the Sahaabah, and no other view was mentioned in saheeh reports from them. The view that they will be the servants of the people of Paradise was narrated in a saheeh report from Salmaan, and there is also a marfoo’ hadeeth concerning that, which has been quoted above, but the ahaadeeth which say that they will be tested are more numerous, sounder and more well known.
· The command to enter the fire will not be a punishment for them; how can they be punished if they did not sin? Rather it is a test and a trial for them to see whether they will obey or disobey. If they obey and enter it, it will not harm them and it will be cool and safe for them. But if they disobey and refuse to enter it, they will deserve to be punished for going against the command. Kings may test those who show outward obedience to them to see whether they are sincere in their obedience or not. So they may command them to do something that seems to be very difficult to see whether they are willing to do it or not; if they decide to go ahead and do it, they may let them off, but if they refuse and disobey, they may force them to do it or punish them with something more severe.
Allaah commanded al-Khaleel (Ibraaheem) to sacrifice his son, but His only aim was to train him to obey and submit, and to give love for Allaah precedence over his love for his son. When he did that, He waived the command to sacrifice him.
As for the idea that this is not something that people can do, this has been answered by Ibn al-Qayyim from two standpoints:
1 – That they are able to do that, even if it is difficult for them. You can see the worshippers of fire rushing to throw themselves into it in obedience to the shaytaan. They do not say “we are not able to do it” even though they feel such pain. The slaves of the Most Merciful, if they are commanded by the Most Merciful of those who show mercy to obey Him by jumping into the fire, how can they not be able to do that, when He is only commanding them to do that for their own benefit?
2 – If they force themselves to obey Him and seek His pleasure, that will bring them joy and will not harm them in the slightest.
He (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
The Sunnah, the views of the Sahaabah, and the basic principles of sharee’ah cannot be refuted on such grounds. And Allaah knows best.
See: Ahkaam Ahl al-Dhimmah (2/1148-1158).
This is a strong argument which explains the issue clearly. We ask Allaah to bless us with beneficial knowledge and enable us to do good deeds, and to cause us to die with strong faith.
And Allaah knows best. | <urn:uuid:7cc8597d-458a-41b3-9cd5-3900c35cdedf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://islamqa.com/en/ref/8341/doc | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974374 | 3,150 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Things to see or do
- Opening Hours: 24th May - 29th August: Daily 9.30 - 18.00 Last admission 45 minutes before closing. Average Length of Visit: 45 Minutes Restricted access for people with disablilities.
- Admission Prices: Free
Saint Mary's ChurchGowran Kilkenny - Ireland South
Built in the late 13th century, St Mary’s Church in Gowran, County Kilkenny was a large and elaborate structure comprising an aisled nave, long chancel and sculpture throughout. A college of clerics living in an adjacent house, now destroyed, served the church. They lived in community but were not governed by a monastery. Over the years, the structure underwent many changes, including the insertion of a massive tower between the nave and chancel during the late middle ages. This tower is now part of the Protestant church that stands in the place of the chancel and takes up about half of the building. Today, visitors can view the remains of St Mary’s, among them several finely decorated tombs and a Greek-inspired temple. There is limited access for people with disabilities.
ContactTelephone+353 (0)56 777 6894
Address: Gowran, Co Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland | <urn:uuid:da558666-1c18-4c54-8f41-0b84dfb88e3f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.discoverireland.com/us/ireland-things-to-see-and-do/listings/product/?fid=FI_8760 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950603 | 265 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Local Hospital Among Nation's Best, Survey Says
Hospital draws from South Orange and placed in top 5-percent of medical centers in America.
Morristown Medical Center is a major hospital and treatment center.
And now it's being recognized as one of the best in the nation, according to Healthgrades, a group of websites offering medical information since 1998.
In its annual ranking of the country's top 5-percent of medical centers, six of New Jersey's treatment facilities were named, with Morristown Medical Center being one of them.
The hospitals were ranked by Healthgrades after an extensive performance evaluation in 27 different categories. Centers receiving the company's Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence needed to garner approval in 19 of the 27 categories evaluated.
For a full list of the nation's top hospitals, read the PDF attached to this article.
Located at 100 Madison Avenue, Morristown Medical Center is home to Goryeb Children's Hospital, Gagnon Cardiovascular Institute and Carol G. Simon Cancer Center. It is the official hospital of the New York Jets, New Jersey Devils and offers a comprehensive sports medicine program, and is part of the Atlantic Health System. | <urn:uuid:efad91f9-2ff2-4656-b0d8-977532907021> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://southorange.patch.com/articles/local-hospital-among-nations-best-survey-says | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943244 | 241 | 1.554688 | 2 |
By Howard Meyerson
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Anglers will again be able to keep five salmon per day in 2013. Salmon fishing was that good this year. Many reported excellent Chinook salmon fishing throughout the summer on Lake Michigan.
But state officials remain concerned about a dwindling lake forage base. They suggest this year’s success may hint of trouble to come.
The five salmon limit will stay in place, they say, to reduce pressure on the alewife population which has been found to be at low-ebb.
“Typically we see catch rates go up when Chinooks are in prey search mode. They are more apt to grab a spoon than when there is a lot of bait out in the lake,” said Jay Wesley, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources southwest Michigan fisheries supervisor. “It indicates the fish are on the feed more, or that there are a lot of fish out there when there is not enough bait to support them.”
Michigan raised the salmon limit to five per day limit in 2010 after limiting anglers to three for many years following the late 1980’s Lake Michigan Chinook salmon crash due to bacterial kidney disease.
Whether the limit is five or three on any given year is based on two criterion. It stays at five if more than 13 percent of charter anglers catch three salmon per trip; also if the catch rate is .165 salmon per hour or better. If they catch less, the daily limit goes to three the following year.
“The bag limits got close to the benchmarks over the last three years,” Wesley said. “The catch effort per hour averaged .25 fish for 2009, 2010 and 2011. This year it jumped to .35 fish per hour and the catch per day average that was around 15 percent over those years jumped to 27 percent.
“It was a fantastic year and the best in the last 15 to 20 years, but is it sustainable? Probably not.”
The decision to maintain the 5 salmon limit was announced at the Lake Michigan Citizens Advisory Committee October meeting in Grand Haven. It got little fanfare, according to Wesley, but some charter anglers are concerned.
Ed Stowe, a 32 year veteran fishing charter captain from Ludington said he prefers a three fish limit. That’s plenty, he said, for a majority of his customers who return the next season and still have year-old salmon in the freezer.
But “the waste issue” as he puts it, is only part of his concern. Stowe disagrees with the DNR about the alewife situation.
“We have them all year-long. I don’t know about the southern part of the lake,” said Stowe, owner of Stowaway Charters. “We just had one of the best years we’ve had – limit catches and all of them were full of alewives that were six and seven inches long.
“In Ludington, Pentwater, Manistee and Frankfort, we have seen more bait fish of various sizes, not just the little one and two inchers.”
Captain Phil Retherford, owner of Catch-A-Bunch Charters in Grand Haven, agrees that salmon fishing was good in 2012. But he is indifferent about the daily limit.
“It doesn’t matter,” Retherford said. “Overall we had a good year and a lot of walk-on customers. A small percentage of them care (about the limit). They come on the boat and say: ‘How many can we catch?’ When they find out five, they say ‘Oh wow.’”
Other social factors that pushed the daily salmon limit from three to five in 2009, when the proposed change was discussed, are less of a concern these days, according Dennis Eade, executive director for the Michigan Steelhead and Salmon Fishermen’s Association, better known as the Michigan Steelheaders.
Gas prices were higher then. His membership is largely recreational anglers. They were concerned about the cost to travel from the east side of the state to Lake Michigan. They wanted to keep as many salmon as possible when they made the occasional trip.
“That’s not being heard as often as it was in 2009,” Eade said. “It’s not as big an issue.
“If you want to fish kings you can go north on Lake Huron. It’s not unusual to catch two or three different kinds of fish there. The walleye and steelhead fishery has come back so well they (the anglers) have reprogrammed themselves.
“We are pleased the limit remained five for next year,” he said. “We are concerned about the forage. If more adult salmon are removed, we are more likely to keep a forage base.”
Copyright © 2012 Howard Meyerson | <urn:uuid:db098d87-f5ba-4e01-bb01-fcdec2b17ecf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://howardmeyerson.com/2012/11/25/michigan-daily-salmon-limit-to-stay-at-five-in-2013/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=4b5b0dc21b | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968989 | 1,036 | 1.71875 | 2 |
The Stark County Ambulance Service has been upgraded to Critical Care Paramedic, the highest level of care available in the state.
It has taken just 18 months to upgrade the service from the basic level (the lowest license level for transport ambulances) to Critical Care Paramedic.
“I am proud of the advancements we have been able to accomplish to provide this level of care to the communities we serve,” said the director and CEO of Stark County Ambulance, James Roesner.
“This would not have been possible without the support of our current volunteer and full-time staff,” Roesner said. “Their unwavering drive and commitment to providing progressive pre-hospital care has manifested in this accomplishment.”
A Critical Care Paramedic service level enables Stark County Ambulance to perform more life-saving procedures and deliver more medications than before, Roesner said.
“Our staff, made up of men and women from our communities, has taken on the immense task of training and perfecting their skills to provide this unique and critical service,” said Roesner.
“Too often communities opt for basic emergency medical services and rely on others for advanced help,” he said. “Now, we are that help and can facilitate every level of pre-hospital care.”
Already the service was one of the most advanced rural services in the state with the advanced cardiac life support and cutting-edge technology. Now with the Critical Care Paramedic level of care, Stark County Ambulance is “truly in a class of their own.” Roesner said.
Patients at a medical facility can now request Stark County Ambulance for any type of transfer service.
Stark County Ambulance is available 24/7 to assist area communities. | <urn:uuid:39e7a5a9-54e4-4201-a97f-8d605fb02034> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.starcourier.com/article/20130312/NEWS/130319715/0/NEWS | 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 | 0.954488 | 383 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Right, so I've started working on a tower defense game!
I've reached a point where I want to implement pathfinding, so that the mobs can go from their spawner to the players base.
I've set up my map as a 2d grid, and I don't have any trouble doing pathfinding on it, but I don't want the mobs to skip a tile at a time, I want them to move in pixels.
So how to I go on about converting a path in a 2d map of 32x32px tiles to the next step the mob should take in pixels?
A ss to make it a bit more clear how my mobs move.
Red square on the left, is the monster spawner. Cyan square on the right is the base. Big black dots are mobs. Tiny red dot is a projectile. And the towers are well, towers..
Oh, and blue is water or other unwalkable terrain. | <urn:uuid:c666030d-652a-4568-9e57-bcc97ccbd639> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.java-gaming.org/index.php?topic=27646.msg248166 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961706 | 196 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Fines are too much
When it comes to crime and punishment, Mississauga’s bylaw enforcement is barking up the wrong tree.
City resident Jack Krzeminski is fit to be tied after being collared by a municipal security officer who issued him a $300 ticket. His crime? He and his two large dogs stayed 20 minutes too late in the neighbourhood leash-free park.
Krzeminski readily admits he broke the rules and was prepared to take his medicine — until he learned his indiscretion would set him back a grand total of $365.
The real problem here is a set of laws and penalties that are sadly lacking in common sense.
The fines laid out in the Provincial Offences Act for breaking the rules in Mississauga parks are rigid and, in many cases, ridiculous. A closer inspection reveals that this particular piece of legislation isn’t governed by rhyme or reason. The rules are wildly inconsistent. The penalties are not.
The fine for most offences in public parks is $300, with no room to consider the gravity of the violation.
Stay late in the dog run? That’ll set you back $300.
Engage in a violent riot in a park? The fine is $300.
Release a balloon or ride your skateboard in a non-designated area? Those are $300 infractions, too.
Get your wedding pictures taken in a park without getting permission first? You guessed it — you take a $300 hit to the wallet.
The point is, there needs to be a range of applicable fines that are commensurate with the severity of the offence. In itself, simply being in a public park past 11 p.m. is not deserving of a $300 fine. It’s swatting a fly with a hammer.
A lesser fine of, say $50, would easily be enough to send a message and deter repeat offenders.
Our city councillors need to review the current schedule of fines for poor park behaviour and institute more appropriate penalties. | <urn:uuid:16f0b1d0-0ac2-4d27-a3db-dd8291217041> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mississauga.com/opinion-story/3130517-fines-are-too-much/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958596 | 419 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Thirteen candidates for Egypt's upcoming presidential elections remain standing, out of an original 23 candidates, some of whom were later disqualified.
As they gear up for the campaign period -- slated to begin April 30th -- they must abide by a campaign spending ceiling and take modern means of advertising into consideration, officials said.
Egyptian television began taking steps to air the candidates' campaign advertising and will give all candidates equal screen time, said Alaa Abd Rabbo, editor-in-chief of political programmes for the Egyptian Radio and Television Union (ERTU), the governing body for Egypt's radio and TV programmes.
"Each candidate is allotted 30 minutes, five minutes for biographical information and the rest for the [candidate's] electoral platform, to be broadcast on nine TV channels as well as Radio Masr," Abd Rabbo said.
In addition to equal time slots allotted for the candidates, broadcasts will include instructional segments for citizens on the electoral process and how to vote, as well as news and follow-up reports on the work of the Higher Presidential Elections Commission (HPEC).
Media coverage of the presidential elections represents a major challenge for Egyptian media, especially since free elections are taking place for the first time in the country's modern history, Dr. Hammad Zaki, a media professor at Cairo University, told Al-Shorfa.
"Therefore, it is natural for some problems or violations of HPEC rules to arise, foremost among them being the period allotted for campaign advertising and campaign spending limits," he said.
The campaign advertising period is to run from April 30th to May 21st and the campaign spending ceiling has been set at 10 million Egyptian pounds ($1.7 million) for the first round, and 2 million pounds ($331,000) for the run-off round.
Many candidates believe the amount is too small, Zaki said.
He said a recent study prepared by one of his colleagues, Dr. Abdel Moneim al-Sayyid, argued that it is impossible for candidates to stay below the spending ceiling due to the high cost of advertising in newspapers and on satellite channels.
The study concluded that an earnest campaign by any candidate would cost no less than 100 million pounds ($16.5 million).
"The advertising period is too short considering Egypt's vast geographical area and especially the fact that it comprises 27 provinces, making it impossible for candidates to cover all provinces in that period of time. For that reason, many candidates started their campaigns early before the rules and conditions were announced, which created considerable disparities between candidates," Zaki said.
He said he expects media coverage to be decidedly disproportionate and unbalanced, especially on satellite channels and over electronic media, though he praised the plan adopted by Egypt's official television channel and called for it to be rolled out to all Egyptian satellite channels.
Setting spending limits for candidates has become difficult due to the emergence of new media and social networking sites, said Galal Yasser, director of the Yasser Publicity and Advertising Company.
"Election campaign advertising has moved from TV advertising or inundating the streets with posters to setting up Facebook pages, Twitter accounts and websites, and recruiting scores of young men to fill those sites with hundreds of daily news items about the candidate," Yasser said.
He said the presidential election has revived the advertising market in Egypt after a period of stagnation that began with the onset of Egypt's January 25 uprising.
Means of campaigning currently include cell phone text messages, social networking sites, street and wall posters, and old customs like affixing microphones to top of cars and roaming the suburbs and inner city streets, as well as holding elections rallies, replete with gifts and banquets, he said.
Some satellite channels have begun developing campaign advertising plans similar to Egypt's official television channel's plan and are working through their advertising agencies to persuade candidates to buy advertising time, Yasser said. | <urn:uuid:77e4bd5a-4727-443f-9fe1-14e9aae66090> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://al-shorfa.com/en_GB/articles/meii/features/main/2012/04/26/feature-02 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967937 | 796 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Location: San Francisco
Contractor: Dan Pelsinger and Dan Matarozzi, Matarozzi/Pelsinger Builders, San Francisco
Designer: Aidlin Darling Design, San Francisco
The structure of this turn-of-the-century brewing company warehouse serves as the framework for a new building envelope and interior that now houses offices and an organic restaurant/bar. “The intent was to keep and refurbish two of the things that had any value: the concrete foundation and the Douglas fir post-and-beam structure,” says Joshua Aidlin, who was on the project team.
Since the building is on the National Register of Historic Places, the city’s planning department placed strict limitations on the fenestration and on the corrugated siding. But light and air were needed. The solution: replace the original siding with a zinc skin perforated with small holes that allow light and air to pass through to new windows hidden behind.
Inside, a minimal number of elements were integrated into the existing structure. Metal and glass apertures inserted into the original frame open up the interior. The largest of these areas is a bridge traversing the two-story lobby terminating as a reception desk for second-floor offices. The designers also used a number of sustainable building strategies (see "Good Bones"). Judges praised the “exceptional design that retains the [original] materiality but reinvents it.”
—Stacey Freed, senior editor, REMODELING. | <urn:uuid:3e2d9808-6afe-4661-b7ff-e569d812efc4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.remodeling.hw.net/awards/grand-award-warehouse-to-wowhouse.aspx?rssLink=Grand+Award%3A+Warehouse+to+Wowhouse | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938539 | 313 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Though Sri Lanka is virtually unknown in the field of Golf, it has a long history dating back to 1895 when the Colonial Secretary, an ardent golfer himself in consultation with the then Governor of Sri Lanka, Sir Joseph West Ridgeway, offered the Alfred Model Farm-named after the son of Queen Victoria to the golf club. The course was opened by Governor Ridgeway and was first named Ridgeways and in 1896 was named the Royal Colombo Golf Club after much restructuring.
Sri Lanka boasts of having three of the finest 18 hole Golf courses comparable to those in Asia. The three courses are situated in Colombo, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya. The elevations and climatic conditions in each location differ to the extent that some golfers often comment that it is like playing in three different countries.
Apart from playing golf, the guests are offered the additional option of seeing some of the islands Cultural and World Heritage sites and its attractions.
Royal Colombo Golf Club
It is 125 years since the Royal Colombo Golf Club was first inaugurated and is the second oldest outside the British Isles next to the Royal Calcutta Golf Club established 175 years ago. The club remains a showpiece after being re-designed by architects of world repute, Donald Steel and Martin Ebert. The course is absolutely beautiful and the clubhouse is studded with comfortable foyers, a Coffee Shop named Ridgeways and it offers much privacy and fine Dining.
This 5770 m (par 71) golf course offers challenges through its many water hazards and bunkers which can test even the seasoned players. The sixth hole is supposed to be a treat where golfers encounter the Kelani Valley train which passes across the fairways.
Victoria International Golf and Country Resort
The Victoria International Golf and Country Club, popularly known as the Victoria Golf Club located 40 minutes from the royal city of Kandy- the ancient and historic hill capital. It is nestled within the Kandyan mountain range, an area of breathtaking scenic beauty surrounded by the Victoria Reservoir.
This 517 acre 6877m (par 73) course is one of the latest in Sri Lanka and was designed by the
famous British Golf Architects - Donald Steel and Company.. The course layout has taken full advantage of the terrain incorporating the undulating hillside, planted coconut and majestic Jak forests, together with the spectacular vistas of the surrounding mountain and reservoir to form one of the most picturesque courses in Sri Lanka and the Asian Sub-continent. This area with a moderate temperature of around 20 -30º C offer the best playing conditions.
This quiet location allows the golfer to become absolutely absorbed in his game, whilst if he takes a short break, he is liable to spot one of over several species of birds ; the White-bellied Sea Eagle, the Egret, the Red-wattled Lapwing, the Indian Roller ; along with the Deer, Mongoose, Fishing cat, and other wild life commonly found in the region.
The facilities include a charming clubhouse with full changing and showering facilities ; it has a bar and restaurant providing light meals and all beverages ; there is a Pro shop catering to all the golfers needs. There is a large practice putting green and driving range for the golfers to ‘warm up'. For the non-golfer there are plenty of activities to choose from ; a swimming pool, a horse riding school, mountain bikes, bird watching, a dip in the reservoir for a swim ; or a quiet stroll along the meandering pathways in the cool of the early evening.
When the new course in Pelawatte, Battaramulla near Sri Jayewardenepura is ready, Sri Lanka will have four courses to accommodate the ever increasing demand for world-class facilities.
Nuwara Eliya Golf Club
The Nuwara Eliya Golf Club built in 1891, It's located in the cool climes of Nuwara Eliya; once the favourite hill station of the British ; at the base of Mount Pidurutalagala, in the heart of tea country.
The 5520 m (par 71) course is situated about 1890m above sea level. It features fir lined fairways, bunkers and scenic surroundings. The 9th is an island green surrounded by bunkers. Water (rivers) come into play on 6 holes.
The fairways are long and narrow bordered by fir trees and thick bushes. The Nuwara Eliya Golf course demands respect from its players since the absolute up-hill and down-hill nature of the course requires skillful placement.
The club has been redeveloped with tremendous changes to the fairways and greens. The landscaping is amazingly splendid and is one of the most beautiful golf courses in the country. For the non-golfer, there are a number of activities to choose from : the clubhouse has a bar, dining room, badminton hall and billiard room; they could do a day tour of the Town or the Horton Plains and Worlds End, the Hakgala gardens etc. Accommodation and Restaurant assures the golfers of a pleasant and friendly service.
We at Ceylon Insight hope these informations are adequate to get an idea of Sri Lanka Golf and feel free to contact us directly via [email protected] or fill following enquiry form and submit in order to tailor your holiday with Golf as per your requirements and ideas. | <urn:uuid:f89435a4-cddc-464c-bb5b-879d07c2b505> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ceyloninsight.com/sri-lanka-golf.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948851 | 1,115 | 1.5 | 2 |
The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Baltimore
National Geospatial Intelligence Agency
Balfour Beatty Construction, Fairfax
Clark Construction, Bethesda, Md.
RTKL Associates Washington, D.C.
KlingStubbins , Philadelphia
At 2.4 million square feet, this $1.4 billion project is the largest military construction project since the Pentagon was built in 1943. It created a new home for the nation’s National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA), consolidating 8,500 employees from various locations throughout the Washington metropolitan area. Its timing couldn’t have been better, creating hundreds of construction jobs during the recession.
When NGA opened its new facility last September, it got a home custom built for its mission. The agency provides geospatial intelligence, including satellite imagery analysis, to support national security. The project’s centerpiece is a 2.2-million- square-foot, eight-story office building loaded with complex information technology and security systems. The main building consists of two curved office towers that define a 500-foot-long atrium in the shape of a lens — an appropriate metaphor for NGA, which serves as the nation’s eyes.
Besides the office, there’s a 146,000-square-foot technology center, a 105,000-square -foot central utility plant, a 5,100-space parking garage and a visitor control center. Improvements to what was a 130-acre site with aging buildings included nine lane miles of new roadways and three bridges. The project achieved gold certification under LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and is designed to be 45 percent more efficient than a building that meets standard code requirements.
One of the biggest challenges for contractors was meeting the congressionally mandated BRAC deadline of Sept. 15, 2011. Construction began on Sept. 6, 2007, and was completed by April 19, 2011. Activities were forced to overlap, with construction beginning 18 months before design was even completed. The project also required the collaboration of many partners charged with everything from construction to outfitting for security concerns. “Finishing the project six months early and meeting the BRAC deadline for a fully operational facility remains a testament to a truly integrated one team effort,” says Mike Phillips, a senior vice president for Balfour Beatty Construction.
What made it stand out
The new sprawling campus spotlights the dramatic change that occurred under the most recent government BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure Act) initiative, which moved 17,000 U.S. Department of Defense employees out of Arlington. Besides consolidating thousands of NGA employees, the project brought infrastructure improvements including new exits off Interstate 95 and created an economic boost in Springfield for retailers and restaurants.
There are no comments for this entry | <urn:uuid:275cb75e-1a26-416a-810c-34bfdaf0ff96> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.virginiabusiness.com/index.php/news/article/best-office-project/320102/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933585 | 580 | 1.765625 | 2 |
The Slow Demise of Offshore Outsourcing
Cecil is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.
Outsourcing contributes to a large chunk of export revenue in developing countries. Mainly India, in the past, has benefited from an offshore outsourcing boom. But now there may be several reasons for that chapter of outsourcing to close. Macro-economic factors combined with renewed competition from US based outsourcing companies may see a large chunk of revenue that would’ve gone to Indian based companies, to stay home in the US. Let’s take a look at why this is happening.
Infosys ) went on a tailspin earlier in the month. India’s second largest outsourcing company posted that revenue rose 22% year on year to 98.58 billion INR whereas analysts estimates were at 99.51 billion rupees. Net income rose 24% to 23.69 billion, while Wall Street was expecting 23.71 billion rupees, but another cut in earnings forecast didn’t leave investors too pleased. Earnings have been estimated at 160.61 rupees to a share as opposed to 166.46 rupees a share earlier, thanks to a weaker dollar vis-à-vis the rupee. Another hurdle that the company faces was the fact that there was a significant slowdown from China and the company also stated that Q3 visibility was limited and clients weren’t enthusiastic on committing.
One of the positives however, one should note is that underlying volumes rose by 4% when compared to the previous quarter, which suggests that Infosys is gaining some lost share. Another positive for the company is the integration of Switzerland based Lodestone Holding AG, which should bump up revenues from Europe to near the 40% mark.
Another company from India that provides outsourcing solutions is Wipro (NYSE: WIT) which is a provider of IT, which began in 1945 as a maker of vegetable oils. In August, HSBC securities upgraded Wipro from Neutral to Overweight. The last time Wipro Limited reported earnings, it reported a sales rise of more than 24% from a year earlier and 8% from the previous quarter to 106.20 billion rupees and a net profit rise of more than 18% to 15.80 billion rupees but the company also noted seeing uncertainty and delays in deal closures, however, it should be noted that its pipeline is quite impressive.
One of the challenges that are ahead for Wipro and Infosys, not including the ones already mentioned is the fact that wage inflation is happening in India. Inflation as a whole is fairly rampant in the country and this is bound to have an impact on wages, whereas wages in the west continue to stagnate due to lack of jobs and an uncertain economic climate. Back in July, Wipro Limited announced that it had raised wages for its employees in India by 8% and for its overseas employees by 2% to 3% at the mid year mark.
This could be one of the problems that Indian based companies will face as they may lose their competitive edge with regards to lower costs. Indeed, this may force most of these companies into providing a lot more innovative solutions due to the fact that its cost advantage is lost. This kind of competition may be a good thing for these companies.
Now let’s take a look at iGATE Corporation ) which is a US based corporation that provides information technology solutions, consulting and BPO services. iGATE Corporation recently reported a 2% revenue increase to $271.1 million and a net income rise from $7.4 million to $20.8 million. However the company also said that visibility is cloudy and that they had recently dropped a “relatively large” client. iGate corporation recently acquired Indian outsourcing firm Patni Computer Systems but the benefits of that deal are yet to be seen.
Another US based provider of IT and KPO solutions, Syntel ) seems to be doing better than its counter parts. Back in July, Syntel reported a 14% revenue rise to $179.0 million along with a net income surge of 57% to $43.4 million thanks in part to currency gains and growth in its applications outsourcing business.
With a volatile currency exchange and a weakened dollar at the moment, you’d imagine that a lot of US firms wouldn’t be too thrilled to send their outsourcing abroad. The economic situation in the US demands the current exchange rate in order to boost economic activity in the country. Similarly, the inflation in developing countries is a fall out from the stimulus packages that were introduced in the aftermath of the late 2000s recession. Combine the exchange rate with the fact that wage inflation seems to be increasing in India when compared to the West, you’d have to currently put your money on US based companies in the outsourcing sector to be really making headway in the outsourcing sector.
ceciljohn2002 has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. The Motley Fool has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.If you have questions about this post or the Fool’s blog network, click here for information. | <urn:uuid:7b0023be-84ef-486f-a08c-5578ba43a5ec> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://beta.fool.com/ceciljohn2002/2012/10/30/look-outsourcing/15243/?logvisit=y&source=eednaslnk0000001&published=2012-10-30 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97301 | 1,109 | 1.773438 | 2 |
LONDON, United Kingdom — Despite the well-documented technological advancements in the consumer-facing elements of the fashion value chain — marketing, PR and retail — there are still huge opportunities for optimising manufacturing and wholesale activities using technology, especially for smaller fashion companies which typically use Excel and other manual tools to stay on top of everything. So, when an enterprising start-up offers to do this in a way that is not cost-prohibitive, The Business of Fashion is bound to be interested.
I first met Ari Helgason last year when he introduced me to World on a Hanger, a London-based start-up focused on streamlining the manufacturing process for independent fashion companies (see explanatory video here). Since then, Ari and his business partner Tom Riley have gone on to develop Fabricly.com, an apparel sourcing marketplace which “connects independent brands with high quality apparel and accessories manufacturers.”
This latest idea caught the attention of Silicon Valley-based Y Combinator, which has provided critical early-stage funding to high-profile start-ups like Reddit (peer-to-peer news), AirBnB (peer-to-peer accommodations) and loopt (mobile-based information sharing), helping them to move through the critical phase “from idea to company,” and taking on average a 6 percent stake in return for its early-stage support.
Paul Graham, a Partner at Y Combinator, has become somewhat of a Silicon Valley legend and his “How to Start a Start-up” essay is a must-read for any technology entrepreneur. He told The Business of Fashion: “We funded Fabricly because connecting designers and suppliers seemed an obviously good application for the internet. And Tom and Ari seemed like they would be the right people to do it, because they had already built World on a Hanger, and so both had access to and an understanding of designers.”
“Fabricly is an instance of a pattern that is quite common among the 172 startups we’ve funded: enabling contacts in a peer-to-peer way that would not have been possible back in the pre-Internet days,” he continued.
BoF caught up with Ari Helagson to learn more about his plans for bringing technology to the unglamorous, back-office of the fashion business.
BoF: What led you to start World on a Hanger, and more recently Fabricly.com?
I was fresh out of university and had come across many of the problems we’re solving while doing sales for womenswear label Ostwald Helgason alongside my studies. My co-founder Tom Riley is an entrepreneur who has been involved with other internet startups and I knew him as a brilliant software developer who would be able to build the technology.
We built World on a Hanger because we had seen fashion businesses being run in a very haphazard, unstructured way. We were convinced that organising production and sales could be done much more efficiently online, drawing on web 2.0 ideas. The basis for the technology was out there, but it wasn’t really available to fashion labels. We set out to change that.
Fabricly solves a problem that almost all designers have – how do you find high quality, reliable manufacturers? Most manufacturers don’t have websites. A lot of the time you have to go with word of mouth. There are so many great suppliers, for example in Italy, but no easy way of getting to them. And once you have found them, checking up on them can take weeks. Fabricly speeds up that process by letting you research suppliers and instantly connect with them.
BoF: What value is offered to your customers?
Automation and collaboration. The beauty of software is that what takes hours to do manually can be done automatically in a few minutes. World on a Hanger cuts the time from when designers come up with their designs to when they ship to their customers. This is done by automating most of the processes involved. Time consuming things like calculating material needs, scheduling production and printing paperwork are are all automated.
Collaboration is the other big thing. You could say that we’re bringing web 2.0 to how design businesses are run. The kind of sharing seen on social networks is built into the software. This is what our customers are most excited about. People use Facebook all the time, so they’re used to that way of thinking. Instead of emailing information back and forth, everything is kept in one place. This means better organisation and more informed decisions.
BoF: Why did you choose to take funding from Y-Combinator?
Y Combinator is known for nurturing top internet startups. They are behind Silicon Valley success stories like Reddit, the social news site that was acquired by Condé Nast. I had heard about them because Paul Graham, one of the founders of Y Combinator, writes great essays on building startups. I had been a fan of Paul’s essays for years and knew that he was someone I would like to work with.
BoF: What synergies exist between Fabricly and World on a Hanger?
Because fashion shows are being streamed live and retailers like Zara bring out new styles every few weeks, there’s growing pressure on designers to deliver quickly. Fabricly gives designers the tools to go from design to finished product faster than ever.
BoF: Where you would like to take your businesses going forward?
Our vision is to help designers move faster, experiment more and be more creative. Everything we do is aimed at shortening the time from design to finished product. Fabricly is a big step in that direction.
We’d like to do more to support emerging designers. Most fashion graduates know all about designing a collection, but they are not well prepared to build a business around it. Our tools help them turn it into a business. That’s why we are working with the British Fashion Council’s NEWGEN programme and sponsoring their designers.
Finally, we will keep focusing on giving people what they want. The motto of Y Combinator is “Make something people want”. The best ideas come from listening to your customers. People bring you their problems, and all you have to do is come up with solutions.
Imran Amed is Founder and Editor of The Business of Fashion | <urn:uuid:ae95a7c3-3674-430b-810c-e2410a1a3460> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.businessoffashion.com/2010/03/bof-exclusive-uk-fashion-start-up-fabricly-secures-seed-funding-from-y-combinator.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968881 | 1,326 | 1.8125 | 2 |
1888 is an outdoor mural (8 metre by 5 metre) which I created for London, to celebrate the heritage and vibrance of its Chinatown. It was unveiled on 18.08.08 (18th August 2008). Today, it is 3 years old!
It is composed of 1888 photos which are related to Chinatown, donated by the public. ’8′ is a good figure in Chinese numerology – it symbolises fortune, so a triple eight is especially good. The number one, in Cantonese, sounds like the word for ‘every day’. When I created the mural, I wished that it would bring good fortune to Chinatown every day.
It started as an art competition, which I only discovered 6 days before the submission deadline. Even though I am an architect, I have never really entered anything like this – but I felt strongly about it and the ideas just kept coming. 1888 combined my passions (food, photography and event organising) with my attachment to Chinatown. The final idea came to me very quickly. And I won!
Here is a video showing how 1888 was created:
I felt that I, alone, would not be good enough to represent Chinatown. Chinatown is made up of communities from different parts of Asia. Together, our stories make Chinatown special. I love photography and photographs are a great way of telling stories. It was ideal to invite the public to donate photos taken in connection with Chinatown.
I was looking for an image to symbolise Chinatown, and it occurred to me that the reason so many people come to Chinatown is for food – either to visit restaurants or to buy ingredients. Rice is the main staple food among a lot of Asian communities. It enables us to appreciate a huge variety of tastes when they are put next to it. It is a simple but essential, just like Chinatown is to us.
I enjoyed the challenge of photo collection- how much can one person’s voice be heard? I raised the awareness through flyers, posters, talking to people on the street of Chinatown, and visiting 4 of the largest Chinese community centres in London. What started as just a photo contribution appeal turned out to be a fantastic collection of memorable experiences. For example, I was touched by the stories I heard when I talked to different elderly groups about the project. I was amazed how curious and supportive they were about the artwork!
All the photos were put together using Photoshop, one by one. Scanning and organising the photos required tremendous patience and care, especially I know some of them held precious memories of their owners. I did not know my friend’s family used to owe one of the supermarkets in Chinatown until I saw the photos! Through the photos I saw the family of an old hair-dresser, who used to run a salon there many years ago, grow. I felt that I l have developed a new insight about Chinatown through the making of 1888. Looking at the mural 3 years on, it still puts a smile on my face.
It was interesting to look back on the creation process to realise how much it represented me, without even noticing it at the time. For example, I created the design and worked with a contractor. To ensure quality delivery, the project was organised with a programme and cost plan that even covered contingency- just like an architect usually does in a construction project! This worked out perfectly in the end, even when I had to condemn the first print after it was mounted, as part of it was too green! That is the beauty of art in a way as each piece is unique to the creator’s background. Give it to someone else, like a professionally trained artist, it would have been handled in a different manner, and most likely delivered a different piece!
If I were 1888, the photo below would have been the view I am seeing: (Photo taken some the cherry picker while inspecting the work)
The enjoyment of 1888 is a journey of discovery – for a start, its location is not obvious from the busiest area of Chinatown, although you can get a glimpse of it when you are walking from Gerrard Street to Shaftesbury Avenue. According to local business, the public was quite often drawn towards the Horse and Dolphin Yard, where the mural is, as they were curious to see the bowl of rice surrounded by a golden glow. When they walked towards 1888, different stories began to unfold through the photos. Each photo is about the same size as a regular photograph and their details can easily be seen from the ground.
The mural was originally set to be up for only 2 years. It was such a great success that the Commissioner decided to keep it for even longer! It was also satisfying to know from local business that 1888 has become a must-see spot for tour groups around Chinatown!
If you would like to go and see 1888, here is the address:
Horse and Dolphin Yard, London W1D 5AZ- just off Macclesfield Street | <urn:uuid:11df91c3-2c17-4af9-bb5b-0fd04fb78c04> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://winkypedia.net/2011/08/18/1888-the-making-of-an-outdoor-mural-for-london-chinatown/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98138 | 1,009 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Zero tolerance for speeding boat users
Thursday, 27 September 2012
Following a successful prosecution on the 13 September 2012, the River Hamble Harbour Authority is reminding boat users to abide by the speed limit.
A Whiteley resident was fined £100 by Southampton Magistrates Court, after pleading guilty to a speeding offence. The motor-boat owner was caught at between 25 and 30 knots on the River where a 6 knot limit applies throughout. This is the equivalent of doing 125 -150 in a 30mph limit on the road. An application for court costs in the sum of £220 was also granted, together with a victim surcharge of £15.
This prosecution, brought by Hampshire County Council as the River Hamble Harbour Authority, sends a strong message that disregard for speed limits on the river will not be tolerated.
The Chairman of the Harbour Authority, Councillor Keith Evans said:
"This is a positive result and we hope this case will act as a deterrent to others in the future. Speeding can cause serious accidents and we encourage all users to be considerate of others' safety, while on the river." | <urn:uuid:6297e71b-3bf7-4109-8a40-ca00a9fe53d0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www3.hants.gov.uk/hantswebnewslist?id=553921&stdate=1350129069391&pagetitle=Zero%20tolerance%20for%20speeding%20boat%20users%20 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947636 | 227 | 1.507813 | 2 |
I received my copy of Color and Light today from Jim Gurney. I have to tell you you MUST get this book. This book is like nothing written on color before. Most books I have read on color are hard to understand and harder still to apply to your art. James has really sorted it out from a painters perspective AND explained the science of color too.
James Gurney is an illustrator and does mostly science fiction or fantasy work. He has worked for National Geographic, done book covers and published the wildly successful series of Dinotopia books that have been translated into about 2,900 different languages except that weird one with the clicks in it.
I have little interest in fantasy literature, but Gurneys drawing skills and his amazing abilities put him in a class all by himself. I don't think I know of anybody today who draws better. He is an amazing artist. Check THIS out. That image should be clickable, click it and stare. That friends, is an amazing tour de force.
He also has an insatiable curiosity that leads him into all sorts of research on the "why" of the things that we painters wrestle with.
Here is an example of one of his paintings that he uses to explain multiple light sources for instance. This book is filled with plates of his own works, the masters, great illustrators and the academics of the 19th century.
He also shows photographs of light effects the painter will encounter when painting skies, reflections, sunsets, and well........dinosaurs.Below is an explanatory photo about the color in skies for instance.
Below is a you-tube flip through of the book.
I think this is one of those books an aspiring painter needs. It is easy and fun to read and will equip you to deal with the problems of color in your painting and cheerfully explain the reasons why things look the way they do, all without being hard to read or tedious.
You can get a copy, signed if you like from Jim himself Here.
Or you can get it from Amazon or your local bookseller. Jame's last book was a New York Times best seller in the art instruction category and this one will probably be too. | <urn:uuid:6b45cf2e-42c1-4004-9ba5-9d292b69dd2a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://stapletonkearns.blogspot.com/2010/11/james-gurneys-color-and-light.html?showComment=1291056487734 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975532 | 454 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Over the weekend, both Intel and AMD reduced the prices of their processors, paving the way for the arrival of their new chips. Intel cut the prices of all its desktop Pentium 4 processors by as much as 21 per cent while, AMD, just a day later, cut prices on selected Athlon XP's by as much as 32 per cent.
This price reduction is the first for the two processor competitors since the beginning of this year while, it has been even longer since the last price cuts. Both AMD and Intel have had, in the past, regular price cuts but a bad spell in the PC market has forced them to focus on means of increasing revenue. It is however, claimed by analysts that they have left the cuts late but are still within their usual target, ordinarily, they look at cutting prices about once per quarter and this is about that, said Dean McCarron, an analyst with Mercury Research.
Intel's cuts were made in order to prepare the market for the arrival of the 3.2 GHz Pentium 4, expected in Q2, 2003, while further cuts upon the introduction of the chip are also expected.
Intel begun the cuts in style by reducing the 3.06 GHz Pentium 4 price by 8 per cent, from USD 637 to USD 589. They also cut 6 per cent off the price of the 2.8 GHz Pentium 4 chip, from USD 401 to USD 375.
Intel also dropped the prices of their 2.4 GHz, 2.5 GHz, 2.53 GHz, 2.6 GHz and 2.66 GHz chips by 21 per cent each.
The 2.6 GHz and 2.66 GHz chips were reduced from USD 305 to USD 241, while the 2.5 GHz and 2.53 GHz chips went from USD 243 to USD 193 and the 2.4 GHz from USD 193 to USD 163.
AMD were not quite as sweeping in their price cuts but instead tried to make strategic reductions in order to match their rivals actions. The Athlon XP 3000+ and 2800+ chips remain at USD 588 and USD 375, respectively. The prices of several desktop Athlon XP processors however, were reduced. In this way AMD are trying to make their mid-range processors, the ones that make up the bulk of the sales, more attractive to consumers and system builders.
The Athlon XP 2700+ fell from USD 349 to USD 267, a drop of 23 per cent. AMD also cut the price of the Athlon XP 2600+ chip from USD 297 to USD241, a 19 per cent reduction. The Athlon XP 2400+ price dropped 27 per cent, from USD 193 to USD 141. While the XP 2200+ chip received the record cut for the quarter by being reduced by 32 per cent, from USD 157 to USD 107.
AMD's next chip, the Athlon XP 3200+, is expected near the end of Q2 of this year at which time the company is expected to introduce further price cuts. | <urn:uuid:78bf5288-2ac8-4ac5-a94b-53b9af8a69f7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://megagames.com/news/amd-intel-are-having-sale | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970457 | 610 | 1.664063 | 2 |
In the wake of measured economic progress, President Obama and economists alike are careful to temper their optimism with low expectations, writes Mokoto Rich in the New York Times.
A year ago, the economy looked as if it were speeding down the runway, only to stall out in the spring.
Now tentative signs of a pickup are emerging across the country again. Factory production, retail sales and existing-home sales are rising, while unemployment claims are trending down. Companies like General Motors and Macy's have recently announced hiring plans, and bank lending to businesses is starting to expand. Investor sentiment is strengthening, as major stock market indexes climb to their highest levels since mid-2008.
This time, though, economists and business leaders are more measured in their optimism about the recovery. Growth is real, they say, though they remain unconvinced it will accelerate all that much. | <urn:uuid:b57347d3-9fe2-493d-8265-a451647d976c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cfr.org/economics/nyt-uncertainty-over-economy-clouds-obama-speech/p23883 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97222 | 176 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Google has released some stats around mobile internet and smartphone usage today that it commissioned from research firm Ipsos MediaCT, painting a largely predictable picture (with a couple surprises) about where the wireless world is headed. Tabulated once in early 2011 and again toward the end of the year, the data was culled from surveys polling citizens of five countries leading the wireless charge — the US, UK, France, Germany, and Japan — which found that the UK leads overall smartphone use at 45 percent followed by France and the US at 38 percent each. That figure is at odds with Nielsen's Q3 2011 figures which quoted 44 percent overall American smartphone penetration, but these surveys are never precise sciences, of course — Google's study polled 2,000 residents of each country "representative of the population."
In all five countries, feature phones appear to be losing their remaining ground rapidly to their smartphone counterparts: in the UK, for instance, Google's study suggests that smartphone penetration rose from 30 to 45 percent last year alone, while feature phone usage declined from 57 to 43 percent. Japan, meanwhile — well-known for its enormously high-spec domestic feature phone hardware — is just now making the smartphone leap with a jump from 6 to 17 percent. The most interesting data point might be PC usage: it's holding firm across the board, seemingly muting the belief that smartphones and tablets are already supplanting them. Browse all the findings in the gallery below. | <urn:uuid:41902bdf-8f50-46a0-8e32-4b8485e586ba> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theverge.com/2012/1/25/2732103/google-smartphone-usage-statistics | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955256 | 291 | 1.828125 | 2 |
You heard it here, if not first, then perhaps with the most enthusiasm: A Backyard Chicken Craze is Sweeping the Nation! Inspired by the Slow Food movement, the spreading (and, unfortunately, true) rumors about the conditions of factory chicken farms, and—I'm sorry to say—nostalgia, city dwellers are once again starting to keep chickens in their back yards. Also, I would not be surprised if the return of burlesque theater is causing a spike in the demand for feathers.
Friends of mine will tell you that I've been clucking about this for a few years, but I am happy to be beaten to the punch, as I am far too lazy to be a trailblazer in this regard. In fact, I am thrilled to have so many examples to follow.
For several years I heard tell of this only through assorted green magazines and the odd local newspaper article ("Neighbor Plays Fowl"). Imagine my delight when my brother mentions that his friends are starting a Chicago Chicken Co-op (not to be confused with Coop). But were they serious? These kids are full of fun. But evidently a few of them have actually been keeping chickens for several years. My brother belongs to the social milieu who seem to like stuff just before it becomes into a major trend, so I knew it was a good predictor of things to come. And when I saw the phenomenon written up in the New York Times this summer, I knew it was a done deal. Hardly even news anymore, really.
My friends Julia and Brian, two of my great role models for sustainable living, recently built a chicken coop in their back yard in Minneapolis. He posted the pictures on Facebook. Brian was very encouraging, saying that the chickens are really very easy to care for on a daily basis. And you only have to clean out the coop twice a year! This I found shocking, but Brian is very clean and conscientious, so I believe him. He said the hardest part was building the coop; he himself went the Fancy route (as the pictures attest) but recommends taking an easier route, like repurposing a dog house or, better yet, finding someone else's castoff coop.
Foodies and hipsters aside, we should also acknowledge that many immigrants have been quietly keeping chickens in their yards all along without any fuss. Well maybe a little fuss: in 2007, Chicago Alderman Lona Lane (D, 18th ward), tried to pass an ordinance banning chickens from her ward, citing health and sanitary concerns. One source in this article from the Chi-Town Daily News attributed some of the resistance to anti-immigrant feeling. The ordinance did not pass. If anti-immigrant feeling was not enough, one wonders if a rising tide of anti-bourgeois-foodie-hippie feeling might eventually become a factor? Actually, I think we will be fine until the avian bird flu strikes.
If you are ever looking for an enjoyable way to pass an hour, visit Backyardchickens.com. There you can find all manner of information on coop design, chicken care and feeding, as well as some pret-ty cute photos. But the best is the BackYardChickens Forum, where you can find out what makes a chicken-lover's heart go pitter-pat. Turns out they are quite a passionate bunch.
At the moment I am still too nervous (I hope you appreciate my restraint with the puns), or maybe just too lazy, to get my own chickens. My yard is not that big and I'm not sure how much precious space I'm ready to devote to a chicken run (although Brian tells me they don't need much). Also, what about my neighbors? On the one side they definitely wouldn't care (in fact, I'm sure it would win me favor with the little kids). When I mentioned it to my other neighbor in passing, he shrugged mildly and said something about rats. I think he already has his reservations about my compost piles (which also generally merits a roundabout mention of the rats). Roberto is a great neighbor and I would prefer not to alienate him.
Do they stink? Sometimes a little, says Brian, on a hot day.
But boy, that guano makes some great fertilizer. | <urn:uuid:12099c0e-8168-4f85-b461-683ab0d195eb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nestblog.typepad.com/nest/food_and_drink/ | 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 | 0.973839 | 887 | 1.5 | 2 |
This photograph would have been taken not too far from LeoDaVinci's (above), but many years earlier; from memory, sometime in mid 1980's.
It's London Bridge, a rock formation accessible from the Great Ocean Road. The sea that day was unusually calm.
In 1990, the centre span of London Bridge collapsed into the water, leaving some sight-seers isolated on the seaward section. A rather exciting helicopter rescue ensued! | <urn:uuid:a1cc7463-241b-4b1d-a34b-057a096f6f9e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.funtrivia.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/632868/Two_week_theme_Water | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947187 | 92 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Old Lyme Town Hall Meeting Room looked a lot like an emergency triage center yesterday, as local residents turned out in droves for the American .
There were people behind screens taking medical histories and people lying prone on gurneys with IVs in their arms, all happy to give their life's blood to help others.
"We are in emergency appeal right now," said American Red Cross Supervisor Tracy-Lee Klein. Over the summer, demand for blood typically rises, she explained, because there are more cars on the road, more boats in the water, and more people participating in outdoor sporting activities, all of which can lead to accidents.
At the same time, donations typically decrease, she said, because so many people are on vacation. That was not the case in Old Lyme yesterday, however. Klein said 78 people had made appointments and dozens more walked in after seeing the sign, many of them patiently waiting for half an hour or more to give blood.
"We're very busy," said Klein, adding that this was one of the best-attended blood drives in the area.
The Red Cross was offering coupons for Friendly's ice cream as a sweet incentive to attract donors but Jason Conroy, owner of , didn't need that kind of inducement. He said he always donates blood when he can.
Doug Whalen, president of Old Colony Beach Association, is also a frequent donor because his blood type is one that is most in demand. He heard about the blood drive when he attended the earlier this week.
"Hopefully I'll never have to use it but I'm glad it's available to people," he said. "I'm the universal donor. That's why I do it, because I know that universal donors are in demand."
Tain Vincent, 21, said he also gives blood because his blood type is considered universal. "I saw the sign yesterday," Vincent said. "I believe in giving blood. It really is a good deed."
David Shoemaker, 19, said he's been giving blood since he was 17. Sadly, his former classmate, Dan Coburn, might need it. Coburn, a 2012 graduate of , was diagnosed with leukemia in May.
First Selectwoman Bonnie Reemsnyder said this blood drive was officially dedicated to him. "It's one of those diseases where blood donations are very important," she said. | <urn:uuid:524dc780-f82b-4ea3-85d2-323aadd26354> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thelymes.patch.com/groups/breast-cancer-awareness/p/in-old-lyme-giving-is-in-the-blood | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987938 | 487 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Under an administration that has faced its share of criticism by free speech advocates and journalists’ associations over the past three years, news last week that a row between New Tang Dynasty Television (NTD) and Chunghwa Telecom had been resolved was reason to rejoice.
Following weeks of uncertainty over whether Chunghwa Telecom, Taiwan’s largest telecommunications operator, would reverse its decision not to renew the broadcasting contract for NTD once it switched transmission to a new satellite in August, officials confirmed that an agreement had been reached and that the 3 million or so people in Taiwan who subscribe to the channel would continue to be able to watch it.
Chunghwa Telecom’s initial reaction, which contained both contradictions over alleged technical limitations and signs of intransigence, only inflamed speculation that the decision to drop NTD, well known for its critical reportage on the Chinese Communist Party, may have been political. The fact that the initial decision coincided with news that Chunghwa Telecom was expanding into the Chinese market could only compound fears that the company had struck a Faustian deal for reasons of access to the huge market across the Taiwan Strait.
Facing a sustained campaign by journalistic organizations and the principals at NTD — some of whom flew in from New York, where the station has its headquarters — and with voices of support from within the legislature, the government — which owns shares in Chunghwa Telecom — eventually decided to intervene, with Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) calling a meeting of representatives and promising NTD that he would do his utmost to ensure a positive outcome.
Whatever the cause, pressure by the government and the relentless campaign organized by NTD supporters finally prevailed and Chunghwa Telecom agreed to accommodate the station once the ST-2 satellite becomes operational.
Not only is this development cause for celebration, it also demonstrates that when core principles, such as freedom of expression, are concerned, concerted pressure on companies or the government — which in this case even included threats by a US lawmaker to abandon his support for Taiwan if the decision were not reversed — succeed, even when such reversals can cause problems for Taipei or the companies involved.
There is little doubt that without the mobilization against Chunghwa Telecom and the pressure on President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration to intervene, NTD would have been dropped and an irritant to Beijing removed. Now that Chunghwa Telecom has agreed to continue carrying NTD, millions of Chinese will potentially be able to access, if only by illegal means, its programming, providing them with a precious alternative to the state-controlled propaganda they are otherwise forced to watch.
This also means that Chinese tourists visiting Taiwan can, should they choose to do so, watch NTD from the comfort of their hotel rooms.
Whoever, in government and at Chunghwa Telecom, was responsible for ensuring that Taiwan remains a country where freedom of expression is indeed expressed should be saluted for this outcome. Technical difficulties were surmounted and political pressure, which there undoubtedly was, was also overcome.
NTD’s victory should serve as an inspiration for all those in Taiwan and its supporters abroad who fight for its hard-earned freedoms in the face of what often appears an insurmountable challenge posed by authoritarian China. It also serves as a reminder that sometimes things we take for granted will be taken away by powers who abide by a different set of values, unless we fight for them. Not every round will be won, but we came out on top in this one. | <urn:uuid:81bab790-5cf5-4893-865e-a5f2398ca504> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2011/06/28/2003506856 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975966 | 732 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Washington's cumbersome state liquor monopoly is overdue for reform. Its perseverance speaks to an old truism: Hell hath no fury like a bureaucracy defending itself.
But the peoples' representatives -- our Washington State Legislature -- ought to do the job. Hence, seattlepi.com recommends that voters reject Initiatives 1100 and 1105, liquor privatization measures on the November ballot.
The public interest, and public coffers, stand to lose if "reform" takes the form of an initiative or initiatives placed on the ballot and promoted by special interests that stand to make (many) bucks.
The buck should stop, instead, with the Legislature. It is better positioned to evaluate revenue losses to state and local government and impacts on Washington's winemakers and microbrewries. And consideration must be given to public safety problems ginned up when convenience stores, neighborhood markets and gas stations sell booze until 2 a.m.
The Legislature has not acted, but two initiatives on the ballot should light a fire and kindle another old truism: There's nothing like a hanging in the morning to focus the mind.
Special interests have put Sasquatch-sized footprints on both initiatives. Initiative 1100 was put on the ballot thanks to a $1.2 million signature campaign underwritten by Costco. The initiative would privatize sales and distribution, both of which are now controlled by the state.
Next June, the liquor control board would begin taking liquor applications from businesses that already carry beer and wine -- Costco included -- as well as retailers. A big retailer, such as Costco, would be able to sell booze itself but also market liquor to bars, restaurants and liquor stores.
It's a formula that favors the big guys, and high volume sales. The protections and promotion that have encouraged Washington's wine industry and microbrewries would go out the window.
Initiative 1105 would privatize retail sales of liquor, but keep in place the current buying system: Distributors would purchase beer, wine and hard liquor, with retailers purchasing from distributors.
Not surprisingly, two big distributors antied up about $2 million to put I-1105 on the ballot.
Both initiatives are likely to cost the state money. State and local officials are naturally putting a gloomy face on revenue loss, while sponsors tout more sales from a greater number of outlets.
Of course, voters could pass both initiatives in November. The issue would be tossed to the Legislature, and possibly the courts. Would lawmakers favor the initiative that received the most votes? It's uncharted territory, complicated by possible passage of I-1053 -- which would require a two-thirds vote by both houses of the Legislature to raise taxes.
Voters turned thumbs down, five years ago, when insurance companies and trial lawyers fielded rival tort reform/medical malpractice initiatives -- and slugged it out in a media campaign that cost more than $20 million.
The lesson of that experience should be applied to Initiatives 1100 and 1105: Don't give victory to one special interest, but drive the Legislature to act in the public interest.
Sarajane Siegfriedt, Seattle: No on I-1100,1105
Patrick McGann, Twisp: No on I-1100,1105
Tracy Russell, Sammamish: No on I-1098
Jay Elder, Olympia: A Vote for a Washington Income Tax
Halei Watkins, Seattle: Washington needs I-1098. Vote yes!
Jason Benchimol, Seattle WA: Strong endorsement for I-1098
See our endorsement schedule here. | <urn:uuid:841626c2-36a3-4f17-98b5-35e44cba88ce> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.seattlepi.com/local/opinion/article/Seattlepi-com-Vote-no-I-1100-1105-Leg-should-892825.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942589 | 733 | 1.671875 | 2 |
At its meeting today, the FCC voted to require that television stations maintain most of their public inspection files online, in a database to be created by the FCC (see the FCC's Public Notice here). While the details about this obligation have not yet been released, from the comments at the FCC meeting, much is already evident. All TV stations will have to post their files to an online server to be maintained by the FCC. Proposals for new obligations to post information about sponsorship identification and shared services agreements have been dropped, at least for now. Most documents not already online at the FCC will need to be uploaded within 6 months of the rule becoming effective. And, in the most controversial action, broadcaster's political files will need to be posted to the new online database, though in a process that is to be phased in over time.
The political file obligation will apply at first only to affiliates of the Top 4 TV networks in the Top 50 markets. And only new information for the political file will need to be posted. Information in the file before the effective date of the order apparently will not need to be posted online, at least not initially. The requirement for posting the political file online will be reviewed in a proceeding to begin one year after the effective date of the new rules. As stations outside the Top 50 markets, and other stations in those large markets, will not need to comply with the political file obligations until July 2014, the FCC will be able to reexamine the impact of the disclosure obligations before the compliance obligation for the political file expands to all stations.
Issues about the posting of the political file dominated the conversation. Commissioner McDowell, the lone Republican Commissioner, suggested that the FCC missed an opportunity for compromise. Broadcasters concerned about the burden of uploading hundred or thousands of documents in the days before an election, and about the specific disclosure of their lowest unit rates in an on-line database available to anyone, anywhere, offered a compromise proposal that would have had them creating a summary of the candidate's purchases on the station, but would not have given the actual rate information. McDowell suggested that the FCC start with that level of disclosure, and examine in a further proceeding if specific information about lowest unit rates needed to be disclosed online.
Commissioner Clyburn seemed to acknowledge the competitive concerns of broadcasters having to give out their lowest rate online, where everyone, everywhere, can see it. From her days as a newspaper publisher, she stated that she knew how hard it was to negotiate with potential advertisers who were always looking for a better deal on rates. But the Commissioner said that she thought that the public demand for information - whether it be from candidates, regulators, public interest groups, whistleblowers or just people "with too much time on their hands" - outweighed the burden put on broadcasters. Commissioner Clyburn suggested that the review after the first year could determine if the publicity of the lowest rates really did cause problems.
FCC Chairman Genachowski was the least sympathetic to broadcaster's concerns, essentially saying that, as the information was already in the station's paper files, putting it online was just the modern way to do disclosure. He dismissed any claims that it would present a burden to broadcasters - claiming that it will actually save broadcasters money in the long run (query why the broadcasters would be objecting so much if the proposal really would save them money).
In fact, the theme that online disclosure was the modern way of doing things, and that it would save broadcasters money, was repeated throughout the presentation. The Media Bureau attorney who presented the FCC decision suggested that yearly compliance costs would be between $80 and $400 per station (a number that broadcasters I'm sure would find surprising). This question may well become one that will be crucial to the effective date of the proposal as Commissioner McDowell suggested that a Paperwork Reduction Act analysis of the order might prove troublesome.
More details of the proposal will be available when the FCC releases the full text of its order. We will update this summary when the text is out and we've had a chance to review it. | <urn:uuid:d3234718-fa03-4630-b61e-70e5730c81a3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.broadcastlawblog.com/2012/04/articles/public-interest-obligationsloc/fcc-votes-to-require-online-public-file-for-tv-stations-rejects-compromise-for-political-file/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BroadcastLawBlog+%28Broadcast+Law+Blog%29 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971788 | 823 | 1.773438 | 2 |
It all sounds so frightening, fiscal cliff, automatic tax hikes, devastating budget cuts.
Word out of Washington is that the White House and congressional republicans agreed to block those planned across the board tax increases. But the deal to avoid the fiscal cliff just isn't done.
As one member of Congress stated, there is something very wrong when the biggest threat to the American economy is the American Congress.
"Why did they let this happen? Why did it get to this point, why have we reached this fiscal cliff," asked Diane North of Tampa.
Because Congress can not agree on what is best for America, taxes, tax cuts, spending increases or spending decreases.
"I think Mitch McConnell is orchestrating all of this to embarrass the president and he's embarrassing himself in the process," said Joe Kendall of Flint, Michigan, who is in town for the Outback Bowl.
If nothing gets done by the start of the New Year, brace yourselves. Tax hikes totaling more than $500 billion dollars start going into effect. Another $109 billion will be cut from government budgets, including defense.
Kendall says he isn't all that worried about it.
"I don't think it means very much to me because I am a retiree, I'm 77 years old, I have pensions, social security. I don't think that they're going to be touched," he said.
Unless things change, beginning at midnight January first, at the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, higher taxes will mean an average 5 percent less take home pay.
Diane and Frank North of Tampa worry about cuts to medicare and other social programs.
"I'm definitely concerned it will decrease my paycheck, because there's be a bigger tax burden," Diane North said.
"There's going to definitely be an impact, how bad we just don't know yet," Frank North guessed.
The tax hikes coupled with the budget cuts equals the so called fiscal cliff.
Economists warn, together, they could dip the U.S. right back into a recession.
Joe Tinsey of South Carolina, also in town for the game, fears what's ahead.
"I have everything I own in the stock market. I understand it's going to hit bottom Wednesday, it's going to be bad for me," Tinsey speculated.
But Tampa C.P.A. Kristen Brand warns this is no time to panic.
Brand says once Congress decides what's changing and what isn't, you've got until 2014 to figure out how to pay for a tax increase.
"And there are ways to reduce your taxable income, net income through employer sponsored plans. For instance if you have a 401-K that will reduce that number down so you can pay yourself some of that money," Brand said.
But before you can plan, before you can prepared, Congress needs to get off its high horse and come up with a workable agreement.
200 South Parker Street, Tampa, FL 33606
Can’t find something?
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 Media General Communications Holdings, LLC. A Media General Company. | <urn:uuid:e453cea5-ced8-4cac-9e93-babad78f4ce1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wfla.com/story/20476773/fiscal-cliff-frightens-residents-and-tourists | 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 | 0.967634 | 641 | 1.8125 | 2 |
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
October 6, 2006
This journal entry corresponds to the group's trip to the Tauferhoule cave where the Anabaptists hid to avoid persecution.
What conviction the Anabaptists must have had.
Miles from any town, etched out of a hillside they met at Tauferhoule to worship in peace. Speaking, praying, and of course singing. How admirable this cause was ... is.
Being able to walk the same arduous steps that the Anabaptists walked to enjoy what I consider to be simple freedoms was more than humbling. As we stepped off the road and into the woods onto a single track trail, I hung to the back of the group. It seemed as though I could see the very stumps and rocks and ledges where my ancestors must have carefully hid and crept through the woods to their place of meeting.
The beauty of the day instilled in me a feeling of peace as I let the voices of our group trail away ahead of me. I began to wonder how I would act or not act in an age of religious corruption and persecution. Would I have courage to stand against an institution that had dominated religious thought to serve my Lord?
What would it be like to meet someone as dedicated as these early Anabaptists? Someone who searched for a cave miles into the hills in order to worship in a way that they believed was right an true. Someone who would unwaveringly continue to trek, without the aid of timely Swiss public transportation, day after day, week after week, to meet with fellow so-called rebels.
What would such a person be like?
My visit to Tauferhoule, the cave where many early Anabaptists congregated to worship without persecution in the hills 30 miles southeast of Zurich, was, to say the least, deeply humbling. I found myself hanging back and contemplating over and over again as we walked through the forest, "I am actually walking a path that was walked centuries ago to pave the way for my religious beliefs."
How can I describe the feeling justly? I truly can't, except to say that it was an experience that added immensely to the way that I will view my faith from now on. Such history has now been made very real to me.
To be able to worship and sing in the cave as they must have done hundreds of years ago will always remain in my heart and mind as part of my faith. As part of my story.-by Kyle Mast | <urn:uuid:349a79b1-05ac-4b60-96a2-d23816ed500d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://emu.edu/crosscultural/europe06/journal2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977806 | 519 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Book Bugs Book Group/Fall 2008
←Older revision | Newer revision→
- The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (met September 6)
Book Bug Consensus: The Book Bugs liked this book. It was the first Book Bugs meeting and this book gave them plenty to discuss.
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (met September 27)
Book Bug Consensus: This pulled in some new Book Bugs, as fans of the book and movie signed up. The Book Bugs got to make their own candy and this was definitely a hit.
- Millicent Min, Girl Genius by Lisa Yee (met October 18)
Book Bug Consensus: This was surprisingly popular. Most Book Bugs enjoyed Millicent as a main character.
- Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (met November 8)
Book Bug Consensus: This was a great book and sparked discussion. The Book Bugs got to make their own versions of a suitcase for their craft and that was a lot of fun.
- Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath (met November 29)
Book Bug Consensus: The Book Bugs enjoyed this book and thought that the recipes were an added bonus. Some Bugs even tried the recipes. | <urn:uuid:88b06683-f253-4502-9516-c1696fd3d22a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.jmrl.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Book_Bugs_Book_Group/Fall_2008&oldid=3419 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964907 | 257 | 1.742188 | 2 |
App Description"Experience human evolution in a new way.
Popular Science evolves you into one of eight hominids, from Australopithecines to Neanderthals. Take your own photo, and the newest 3D scanning technology shows you what you would have looked like millions of years ago. Evolver reveals what your life would have been like, with amazing art and photos and the most recent research from the top experts.
*How strong were you? As Homo heidelbergensis, you could have stabbed a rhino to death.
*Were you on the menu? As Homo floresiensis, you lived in mortal fear of the deadly Komodo dragon.
*How smart were you? As our earliest ancestor, Ardipithecus ramidus, you were barely brighter than a chimpanzee. (But you could have ripped a modern human's arms off.)
""An amazing new look at how incredibly lucky we are to be who we are today. Truly transporting."" - Jacob Ward, Editor-in-Chief, Popular Science"
May 24, 2013 New version 1.1
January 12, 2013 Price Decrease: $11.99 -> $5.99
December 12, 2012 Initial Release | <urn:uuid:c2c7fdcf-0b24-4dd2-8566-74af847964ef> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.148apps.com/app/585626683 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951687 | 250 | 1.625 | 2 |
Studying and Interning in Bavaria
The Keys to a Successful Experience Abroad
|Houses on the River in Bamberg, Germany.
Select Your Location
Ever since I took a short vacation to Germany at the age of thirteen, I knew that I wanted to return as a young adult to study. I ended up at Kalamazoo College, which has one of the best study abroad programs in the country, and where about 85% of the student body studies abroad.
Germany was my choice because I had been studying German for several years and wanted to improve my vocabulary and speaking skills. But I also wanted to take advantage of Germany’s position as a leader in environmental conservation, and I spent two months doing so via an internship with my host city’s environmental office. Finally, the country appealed to me because of its history, its public transportation, and its culture. I lived and studied in Erlangen, a rather small city of 100,000 people outside the metropolitan center of Nuremberg in Bavaria.
In choosing a foreign location, let your goals and experiences determine your path. If you are a college student, your institution may offer programs in collaboration with foreign universities. For many students enrolling in academic programs in a foreign institution, their major and/or professional goals may play a huge role in determining which country for which they are best suited.
Unfortunately, money is a major factor for most people traveling and living abroad, but do not let it be your primary factor. If money is an issue, then spend some time investigating the many forms of loans, grants, stipends, or scholarships for which you may be eligible to help cover costs.
If English is not the native language in your destination country, take the time to learn some basic phrases if that has not been part of your previous studies. If you have studied the language and will be required to take courses in it, it is a good idea to brush up on your vocabulary and understanding by reading books and articles, or even by watching movies—language immersion can take many forms. Furthermore, do a fair amount of research about your host country in the months leading up to your departure. Try to educate yourself about current events and politics.
Before You Leave
Give yourself a significant amount of time to prepare for your departure. If you are participating in a study abroad program through a higher education institution, you may receive guidelines to assist you in your preparation. On the other hand, if you are traveling to a foreign country as an individual without the assistance of a program, it will be your responsibility to investigate what you need to do before traveling to your specific destination.
Some of the most important things to think about are:
Important things to consider include:
- How will you bring money from the United States to your host country?
- Are there partnerships between your bank at home and a bank in your host country?
- Approximately how much spending money will you need for the duration of your stay?
As a general rule, all of your basic vaccinations need to be up-to-date, no matter where you go. Your medical requirements may differ from others, even if they are going to another city inside the same country. The university I attended in Germany required documentation of testing for some sexually transmitted diseases, for example. If you are traveling to a developing country, be aware that your vaccinations must begin several months before your departure and continue even after your re-entry into the United States. Visas vary from country to country, so make sure you understand the requirements several months in advance.
The one thing that required a fair amount of preparation for me was gathering all of the paperwork that I needed. Pack as lightly as possible, knowing that you will return home with more than you brought with you!
Enjoying Your New Life!
Study/work abroad is a psychological exercise. It starts with your acclimation and integration into your host culture’s society. When you first arrive, everything likely will be great as you take in your new surroundings. After this initial phase, you may start to have some more challenging days as you experience misunderstandings with natives, and other foreigners and are forced to deal with cultural and ideological differences. For me, some of the most difficult and frustrating experiences occurred in public places when I just could not understand what was being said to me. The last phase will be acceptance of your foreign culture, where you will learn to adjust to and appreciate all of the things that were once alien to you.
During your time abroad there will be conversations, people, and experiences that will shape you in ways you could have never expected. You will grow as a person, gain new perspectives about everything from diet and transportation to education and politics. Perhaps most importantly, you will begin to see yourself as a world citizen, as well as the roles that your host country and home country play in an increasingly globalized world.
Be respectful, professional, and cautious when interacting with people from your host and other cultures. Avoid beginning conversations with presumptuous remarks about a person’s country or culture and do not discuss politically charged or controversial topics until you have become fairly close. Do not be surprised if you are confronted with stereotypes about Americans or life in the United States. In an era of increasing globalization, many people have formed opinions about the United States (as well as other countries) based on the amount of information they have read or seen in the media. Try to address these remarks with what your experiences have been, but be courteous in dispelling or correcting their statements. I had the wonderful opportunity to take a class called “Intercultural Communication,” which explored everything from stereotypes to bridging differences across cultures. This helped me to understand the need for respectfulness and humility.
Take safety and security issues in your host country seriously. Be aware of attitudes toward and expectations of women and men. Minorities (racial, LBGT, religious) should be aware of how such people are viewed and treated. For example, neo-Nazism is a rising and growing movement in Germany. During my time there I met individuals who were victims of neo-Nazi violence.
I highly recommend that you explore more than just your host city if you have the money and the time. I was lucky because I was able to take several weekend trips with my program. I traveled to the Alps, the Rhein River, and several smaller villages. But my favorite trip was the one I took on my own to Berlin.
Take advantage of all of the opportunities available to you: attend cultural events, travel with friends, and dare to take social risks! If you are a naturally shy person, this is the time to step outside of your comfort zone and assert yourself! Living with a host family may be very advantageous in this respect. Having a host family can offer you more insight into your host culture and the way people in that society live. Although I did not have a choice, and had to live alone in a dorm room, given the culture and prevalence of native English speakers in Germany, I would have preferred to live with a family.
Coming Back: Reintegration of Your Host Culture into Your Home Culture
The first few months after the conclusion of your stay abroad should be a time for conscious reflection of your experiences, the personal growth you have achieved, and how you will integrate the experiences you have had abroad into your life at home.
One of the worst expectations after your return is that everything will be great. You will experience a period of disillusionment just as you did in your adjustment to your foreign culture. One of the hardest things for me was how to sum up my 6-month experience when people asked the dreaded question, “How was study abroad”?
It was also hard for me to deal with friends and family, because it often seemed that they were disinterested in my experiences and/or could not recognize how much I had changed. What I learned is that you must also be a listener, and demonstrate that you are interested in what your friends and family have done while you were away.
I recommend doing some journaling to deal with your transition to the United States. You may even surprise yourself as you realize how your perspective on personal values and your approach to relationships, for example, have changed.
I just recently returned home, but I already understand the importance of integrating my experiences from Germany into my life in the United States. I know that I will use some of the information I learned from my “Intercultural Communication” class in my personal and academic life. I hope to use Erlangen’s recycling system, which I studied as an intern at the environmental office, as a blueprint for how we can improve recycling on my college campus. I will continue studying German for at least the next couple of years and I will be keeping in touch with the friends I made in Erlangen.
Alison LaRose studied, interned at the city of Erlangen’s Environmental Office for Energy Questions and Environmental Protection, and traveled within Germany. She attends Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan and expects to graduate in 2012. | <urn:uuid:a8261b03-29cb-457f-aeec-64831947ff0f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/studentwritingcontest/intern-abroad-in-bavaria-germany.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973268 | 1,873 | 1.601563 | 2 |
The decision was made to conserve cash and resources on development on its cancer drugs.
GERN has 2 cancer therapies in or beginning the 2nd of 3 trials generally required for FDA approval. One treatment, called Imetelstat, is being tested in non-small cell lung cancer, breast cancer, the blood disorder thrombocythemia and multiple myeloma. The other, GRN1005, is being tested against brain metastases stemming from non-small cell lung cancer as well as from breast cancer.
GERN will cut 66 full-time jobs, or 38% of its workforce, and take cash charge of $5M in Q4/11 and $3M in the first half of FY12. GERN will end 2011 with $150M in cash and it had a net loss of about $65M in the first nine months of the year, according to its most recent quarterly report. Shares of GERN have dropped about 23.18% in trading, to $1.69, so far Tuesday.
Geron said that its move did not reflect a lack of promise for the controversial field. Rather, it said, with money scarce, it had decided to focus on its experimental cancer therapies, which are further along in development.
Still, the move is expected to be widely seen as a setback for embryonic versus adult stem cell research, because of GERN’s central and early role. There will be a lot of concern GERN’s exit, and speculation will create fits, rebounds and share price depreciation -- for a while -- for the stem cell universe. But it has cast a pall over existing research field. A specific issue that is still paramount: managing and controlling the cells, as well as the manufacturing capability.
I believe the FDA bears some responsibility in that it has inhibited research invoking “holds” and trial approvals. (I could have used another title -- “FDA Kills Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research” -- invoking The Buggles' 1979 hit "Video Killed the Radio Star." It celebrates the golden days of radio, describing a singer whose career is cut short by television.)
The biggest credibility hit could be taken by the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, which was supposed to provide matching funds to help GERN finance clinical trials of its experimental stem cell therapies. Yet another factor is the new CEO, John Scarlett, who was brought in at the end of September to replace longtime CEO Tom Okarma, who had to make some tough decisions.
At the end of the day, as enticing as the upside could have been, it was also impractical to carry cell therapy and cancer research programs. One has to wonder about Advanced Cell Technology (ACTC.OB) as the only stem cell company conducting active clinical trials on human embryonic stem cell-based products. That’s not to say that all stem cell research is toast; work continues in embryonic stem cells and “adult” stem cells treatments forged from cells that already have differentiated into specific functions, like heart muscle, as well as induced pluripotent stem cells, adult stem cells returned to an embryonic-like state and manipulated in the lab to form specific cells.
So how many other business plans are about to change and evolve?
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. | <urn:uuid:79d6cc83-0af5-4bd1-a9cc-b735fb0831a1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://seekingalpha.com/article/308150-geron-exits-stem-cells-to-focus-on-oncology | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96629 | 695 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Last mission to repair the Hubble telescope Hubble space telescope discoveries have enriched our understanding of the cosmos. In this special report, you will see facts about the Hubble space telescope, discoveries it has made and what the last mission's goals are.
For their own good
Fifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.
Fill out this form to email this article to a friend
High time to exercise more than just brains
By A TIMES EDITORIAL
Published May 9, 2007
One in six children in America is considered overweight these days, which is reason enough to get them back on the playground. Florida's new push for daily exercise in elementary schools, then, is at least a jumping jack or two in the right direction.
Children will be required to get at least 30 minutes of exercise each day, and they can thank their physically fit governor, Charlie Crist, for the opportunity. The legislative bill that provides this new directive, unfortunately, provides no new money to schools. That means the school day will remain the same length, and something else will give in its place.
As unfunded state education mandates go, though, this one is refreshing. After years of obsession with standardized testing, the state is considering the whole child again, and early physical education can lay a foundation for lifelong health. Growing up to be successful in life is not just about high FCAT scores. | <urn:uuid:e1a7cd12-11d9-4439-954c-3ef00e8d488a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sptimes.com/2007/05/09/Opinion/High_time_to_exercise.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958025 | 325 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Atlantic Council managing editor James Joyner asks in The National Interest, "Why Should Congress and the Courts Care About Snooping If Citizens Don't?"
J. Peter Pham, director of the Atlantic Council’s Michael S. Ansari Africa Center, was interviewed by Brian Todd on CNN’s Situation Room in a segment on the discovery of evidence in northern Mali that al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) may have acquired surface-to-air missiles.
Atlantic Council Managing Editor James Joyner published an editorial in The National Interest arguing it's better to "trust in those charged with safeguarding our nation's secrets to do so honorably than to make every disgruntled Army private or low-level contractor a de facto national classification authority."
Senior Fellow Frederic C. Hof of the Council's Hariri Middle East Center speaks with host Scott Simon of NPR Weekend Edition about the worsening crisis in Syria and the United States' limited military and political options.
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama today nominated Atlantic Council Chairman Senator Chuck Hagel to be the 24th US Secretary of Defense. Under Senator Hagel’s leadership since 2009, the Atlantic Council has grown significantly in its scope, size, and influence, adding new practice areas and regional centers that have expanded its global reach.
Upon Senate confirmation of Senator Hagel, General Brent Scowcroft, Atlantic Council International Advisory Board chairman and two-time US National Security Advisor, will serve as interim chairman of the Atlantic Council’s Board of Directors while a search for Senator Hagel’s successor is under way.
“Senator Hagel, during his two terms on Capitol Hill, famously said that he took an oath to the constitution and not to his party,” said Frederick Kempe, Atlantic Council president and CEO. “His approach to addressing crucial global challenges is to forge bipartisan support at home and deepen engagement with allies and friends abroad—the essence of the Atlantic Council mission. We praise President Obama for his wisdom in employing Senator Hagel's unique experience and talents.”
Said General Scowcroft, “Senator Hagel is one of the most well-respected and thoughtful voices on both foreign and domestic policy. At an uncertain time in America—with a significant debt burden, a polarized Congress, and a host of challenges facing the international community—we are confident Senator Hagel will be able to provide a vibrant, no-nonsense voice of logic and leadership to the United States.”
Senator Hagel currently serves as a distinguished professor at Georgetown University, as a co-chairman of President Obama’s Intelligence Advisory Board, and as a member of the Secretary of Defense’s Policy Board. During his two terms in the United States Senate (1997-2009) representing the state of Nebraska, he was a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations; Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; and Intelligence Committees. A decorated veteran with two Purple Hearts, he also serves as chairman of the United States of America Vietnam War Commemoration Advisory Committee.
Atlantic Council CEO Frederick Kempe is available to comment this week on Senator Hagel's nomination. To schedule, please contact Taleen Ananian at [email protected].
The Atlantic Council is a nonpartisan organization that promotes constructive US leadership and engagement in international affairs based on the central role of the Atlantic community in meeting today’s global challenges. | <urn:uuid:305f6ef1-8843-443b-b392-96582037943b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.acus.org/press/president-obama-nominates-chuck-hagel-atlantic-council-chairman-secretary-defense | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940104 | 695 | 1.515625 | 2 |
It’s never hip to trip: exercises to strengthen your hip flexors.
Alas, unlike wine, muscular strength does not improve with age.
From about age 30 onward, we lose strength at a rate of approximately 10% each year. Recent studies suggest that not all muscle groups are equally affected. In women, the loss of hip flexor and hip abductor strength is significantly more pronounced than that in any other muscle group.
The iliopsoas, rectus femoris and tensor fasciae latae (collectively referred to as the “hip flexors”), connect the lower spine and pelvis to the thigh bone, thereby allowing you to bend at the hip (for example, during a sit-up) and to raise and lower your legs (while standing or lying flat on your back).
While often the focus of intense stretching (most of us have chronically tight hip flexors from running, cycling, driving, sitting and heck, just engaging in 21st century life), the hip flexors are rarely targeted in strength training programs.
In fact, many of the courses I’ve attended as a personal trainer and group fitness instructor have specifically discouraged the inclusion of hip flexor strengthening movements in both group fitness and on-on-one training settings – “Stretch, not strengthen” being the main take home message.
Ironically, as we get older, the hip flexors are precisely the muscles we need to actively strengthen. They not only help with balance and postural stability, strong hip flexors can also keep us from tripping and falling. The stronger your hip flexors, the more likely you’ll be able to lift your leg to avoid tripping and the fewer the number of steps required to regain your balance during a fall.
Join me as I demonstrate my three favorite hip flexor strengthening exercises. Add them to your current strength training program, aiming for 12 to 15 repetitions of each move per side, two to three times per week.
Strengthen your hip flexors and I guarantee, the only trips you’ll be taking will be to warm, sunny climes!
Don’t forget to stretch when you’re done! Alexandra and Kymberly will be happy to show you the right and wrong way to perform a hip flexor stretch.
Tamara believes that exercise and healthy eating need to be part of everyone’s life and aims to inspire and motivate others by showing them that if she can do it, anyone can. She blogs about fitness, food, family and fiber (knitting fiber, that is) at fitknitchick.com and is always thrilled when you comment on her posts. Please follow her on Twitter @fitknitchick_1.
Photo Credits: Tamara Grand | <urn:uuid:85c3018a-c403-4c4f-b6a7-5fdd2366dc80> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://funandfit.org/exercises-to-strengthen-your-hip-flexors/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943541 | 576 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Here's an annotated list of things that are not quite libraries, not just books. Thanks for hosting me as a guestblogger this week as I've scooted around the country with a bag full of books and a laptop. - Shelf and ownership marks at the Princeton University library including a list of ownership marks of collections and libraries absorbed into the main collections (highlights). - Library of Dust - BLDGBLOG's review of a book of photography and essays.
an Oregon state psychiatric institution began to cremate the remains of its unclaimed patients. Their ashes were then stored inside individual copper canisters and moved into a small room, where they were stacked onto pine shelves.... Over time, however, the canisters have begun to react chemically with the human ashes held inside them; this has thus created mold-like mineral outgrowths on the exterior surfaces of these otherwise gleaming cylinders."- Publishing Food #2 - Edible Geography looks at miniature cookbooks and chocolate letters and robotic food chefs. - Fore-Edge book painting comes in classic and modern forms - Brian Dettmer's book art - American Woodworker shows people how to make a Lumber Library to show off fancy woods. Another Wood Book. - Typo of the Day for Librarians - a compilation of common library catalog typos. - The International Edible Books festival album pages always make me hungry, for words and snacks - A few more library mash-ups from an old MetaFilter post. And BibliOdyssey is always good for more biblioporn. In memory of Steve Cisler, Apple's digital librarian and all-around awesome guy. | <urn:uuid:3f19e468-9382-48b7-b7f1-2f9d086c1d04> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://boingboing.net/2010/01/31/the-edges-of-libraries.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942591 | 338 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Nurturing talent from the root
An international company door-stepped its new apprentices with congratulation cards, chocolates and champagne to tell them their job applications had been successful.
Harriet Harper, of Ashlyns School, and Tiffany Choules and Paige Cooper, of Tring School, were accepted onto Grass Roots apprenticeship schemes and surprised with the news when Grass Roots HR project manager Trish Breen and her colleague Karen Hodges visited their homes.
The schemes, which launched last year, aim to grow local talent and provide an attractive alternative to university.
The successful applicants learn while being part of an award-winning team and can study part-time towards a higher education qualification.
They earn a salary and receive a generous benefits package and, most importantly, they can look forward to a continued role with the company at the end of their apprenticeship.
Harriet, who started working in the digital marketing and loyalty department last Monday, said: “I couldn’t stop screaming when I found out. We just had this knock on the door and when they told us, I felt so happy and my mum started crying.
“I’m loving the job so my plans are to focus on the programme for the next two years.
“Grass Roots is a company I would love to stay working for.”
Ms Breen said: “We recognise how tough it is for pupils coming out of school to get on the job ladder and we are keen to develop the talent in our local community. It’s not just a benevolent gesture.”
Search for a job
Search for a car
Search for a house
Weather for Tring
Sunday 26 May 2013
Temperature: 6 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North west
Temperature: 7 C to 17 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: South west | <urn:uuid:15f3fdb0-47d4-4c65-a12d-1f156af87435> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tringtoday.co.uk/community/nurturing-talent-from-the-root-1-4358207 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949694 | 395 | 1.523438 | 2 |
This place is is known for its hot water springs. Tattapani is located at a distance of 51 kilometers from Shimla. The place is at an elevation of 655 meters above sea level.
Hot sulphur Springs
Tattapani is an ideal locale for enjoyment and recreation. The springs are found on the banks of river Sutlej covering an area of one square kilometer. People from all over the country visit the place to take a dip into the sulphur water of the spring. A dip into the water of the spring provides relief to the people suffering from joint pains, fatigue or any type of skin disease and hence has got a great medicinal quality. This natural sulphur spring is pure and has curative powers of various kinds. The temperature of the water keeps fluctuating depending on the water level of the river.
White river rafting in the Sutlej
The powerhouse at Chabba which is 18 kms from Naldehra provides a starting point for the 11 km river rafting stretch to Tattapani.
Peak season is during April to June
Grade II rapids are between Chabba and Tattapani, a 14 km course. It takes about one to one-and-a-half hour to cover the distance.
Grade IV rapids are between Pandowa to Tattapani, which is a 36 km course. It takes about three and half hours to cover the distance. A minimum of four persons are required for a rafting trip.
The following are required for river rafting. The same are available on rent at various shops around rafting sites or from the Himachal Tourism (HPTDC) offices
Apart from this you need to carry some personal belongings like sunscreen lotion, first aid kit, and shoes.
You can take up course on river rafting offered by HPTDC and private operators. It is very easy to learn this sport.
Tattapani is also famous for trout fishing. The season begins from 31st march-31st Oct. Fishing fees are nominal.
4 kms from Tattapani is a recently discovered Shiva Gufa which has created a lot of anxiety among local populace and researchers.
Sunrise Villa Shimla: Stay with nature @ Rs 1500 per day only. Stay in the lap of nature along with flowers and garden, forest walks, trekking, hiking and much more just 13 Kms before Shimla.
Click here to know more
Contact Us: Sunrise Travels, Sunrise Villa, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India | email: [email protected]
Chandigarh travel Guide | Guide to Himachal Pradesh | Manali | Kullu | Dharamshala | Dalhousie | Kasauli | Kangra | Palampur
® © Sunrise Internet Solutions 2006-2012 | a sunrise group enterprise| Link to us | site map | Sunrise Travels | Shimla Manali Travel Guide | <urn:uuid:a394fa1f-091a-4728-a1e2-8727df735bb4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sunrisevilla.in/shimla/tattapani.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934525 | 606 | 1.632813 | 2 |
It’s a law-and-order issue. But it’s also an issue about human dignity and common decency. And when we lose sight of either aspect of the issue, we harm ourselves as well as the people who wish to live here. Many people who come here illegally are doing exactly what we would do if we lived in a country where we couldn’t feed our families. If my kids went to sleep hungry every night and my country didn’t give me an opportunity to feed them, there isn’t a law, no matter how restrictive, that would prevent me from coming here.Well, what about you? Would you let your children die rather than violate the laws of a country to which you owe no citizen's loyalty? Or would you get on the ass and ride?
'The Law' is the Name of that Ass You Rode Over the Border
Senator Rubio, on illegal immigration:
By Grim on Tuesday, June 19, 2012 | <urn:uuid:679fde2a-ddf4-4949-96f1-19e712327f10> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://grimbeorn.blogspot.com/2012/06/law-is-name-of-that-ass-you-rode-over.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963151 | 201 | 1.640625 | 2 |
They are not keeping us active and alert and in shape. Therein lies the problem. Part of the economic apartheid in Scotland (and every country has its own form of economic apartheid, not just Scotland) is that in affluent areas you can buy fresh fruit and vegetables, raw unprocessed ingredients to make your own food with. In poor areas you quite often cannot, and if you can find them then the price is so high due to lack of competition that processed foods and carry-out foods are actually cheaper to buy than the ingredients to make them in the first place.Arkaeon wrote:If deep-fried foods keep you active and alert and in shape, that's fabulous.
This has resulted in areas of the country where people know next to nothing about cooking their own food, let alone planning a balanced and healthy diet. They don't know about vitamins and minerals, they don't know about fats and proteins, and if they do cook something it is usually straight in the frying pan because they don't know how to roast, steam or poach. Some of them can use a microwave oven. Many of them cannot.
Average life expectancies in some of these areas are 20 years less than in more affluent areas only a couple of miles away. More salient to your point about quality of life, there is much higher prevalence of long-term health conditions like coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke, COPD, asthma; and these all have a debilitating effect on the quality of people's lives. Let's not even get started on the smoking and drinking and taking drugs...
Scotland is now a post-industrial country. We are no longer the workshop of the world, all the steam trains and ships we used to build have stopped, the last Singer sewing machine has long since rolled off the production line. In fact the old Singer factory is now a retail park: that pretty much tells you what you need to know about Scotland's new economy. We are not doing so much physical work any more, and for the most part our diet has changed to reflect that. But in poorer areas (which, coincidentally, were hit hardest by the transformation to a post-industrial economy as it was unskilled labour that bore the brunt) that transformation of diet and lifestyle has not taken place. There are no fruit and veg shops, no gymnasiums, far too many fish-n-chip shops, far too many pubs, and shops that sell cheap and nasty booze at cut-throat prices, and make their profits on tobacco (by sourcing it tax-free through the black market? I couldn't possibly comment).
Bearing in mind that I am a socialist, and I consider it my place in society to look out for my fellow man, to safeguard their health through a free-at-the-point-of-access National Health Service, and to elect a government that is going to shape health policy to improve the quality of everyone's lives, especially those nearest the bottom of the pile, this is a very real problem that requires a very real solution.
Or a flippant thread on a forum about a pasta-based deity. Whatever. | <urn:uuid:0f97c256-0036-4951-8b33-aeb8ed5046ec> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.venganza.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=561876 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974801 | 641 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Keep It Warm: One-For-One, Warmth-For-Warmth
It used to be quite uncommon for businesses to have a social mission attached to their business model. Revenue was the main driver and all metrics were tied to growth. Luckily, our generation of innovators have shifted their priorities: Innovation through changing the world. Jeff Savio, founder of Keep It Warm and recent graduate from Villanova University, is a part of this generation of innovators looking to make a positive impact on the world. I am honored to have him on this episode of Start It Up TV!
Keep It Warm is a socially responsible apparel company specializing in winter wear. For every product sold, Keep It Warm will donate one to someone in need: one-for-one, warmth-for-warmth. Furthermore, Keep It Warm acts as a promoter of deprivation awareness by supplying happiness, hope, and comfort to underprivileged corners of the world.
Keep It Warm was born in 2011 because of a life experience Jeff had when he was a senior in High School. After going on a service trip to the Lakota Tribe in South Dakota – one of the poorest counties in the country – he knew that he had to do something to make a difference. Enjoy this episode as we dive into the business who is making a direct impact on the lives of those who have lost hope.
About Jeffrey Savio
Jeff Savio is a 2012 graduate from Villanova University, where he majored in Finance and International Business with minors in Political Science and Entrepreneurship. He is originally from Voorhees, NJ, where he attended Bishop Eustace Preparatory School. Passionate about helping others, Mr. Savio participated in many community service initiatives throughout high school, ultimately embarking on an outreach trip to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in Pine Ridge, SD. These experiences motivated Mr. Savio to begin his own initiative to help others.
In the Spring of 2011, Mr. Savio founded Keep it Warm with classmates at Villanova. In addition to having worked in financial services, Mr. Savio also has non-profit international experience through previous engagements with UK Sustainable Investment and Finance in London, UK, and the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Parliament in Rome, Italy.
Mr. Savio is extremely passionate about socially responsible business and entrepreneurship, and he hopes Keep it Warm will serve as another example that businesses can be successful while making a positive impact in the world.
Links to Connect with Jeffrey:
Feel free to connect with Jeffrey, browse his socially responsible products, or simply let him know you loved the interview!
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/keepitwarm
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/keepitwarmteam
- Jeffrey Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffreysavio
Show Some Love for Start It Up TV
Start It Up TV is still growing into what it needs to be. We are trying our best to make this site as awesome and legitimate for our viewers as possible. If you have any ideas on how to make this site better, want to do business with Start It Up TV, or would like to be interviewed for one of the episodes, please feel free to use our Contact Form or E-mail [email protected]!
A big thank you to Alek Rost for the intro to Start It Up TV. Check him out at AlekRost.com | <urn:uuid:cf3b2352-e973-4149-80c0-10a4c61227d7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.startitup.tv/2012/06/04/1083/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95758 | 711 | 1.710938 | 2 |
It was painful listening to Ira Glass’ retraction on NPR’s “This American Life” of performer?/monologist?/actor?/journalist? Mike Daisey’s story on working conditions at the Foxconn factory in China, which manufactures parts for Apple gadgets.
You can hear Glass trying to keep his cool, trying not to scream at Daisey, as Daisey parses the truth about what he did – and did not see – at the factory in Shenzhen.
Daisey was exposed when another NPR reporter working out of China noticed details in his story that didn’t add up, and tracked down Daisey’s Chinese interpreter, a woman named Cathy, who Daisey initially misidentified as “Anna.”
Cathy was with him the whole time.
Daisey says the guards at the gates of Foxconn carried guns.
Cathy says no.
Daisey says he met half a dozen underage workers, girls between 12-15.
Cathy says no.
Daisey says there were surveillance cameras in each of the factory dorm rooms.
Cathy says no.
Daisey says he met a man whose hand shook uncontrollably from the poisonous chemicals he was forced to work with.
Cathy says no.
And on and on.
And for a moment, I thought, well, maybe Cathy is the liar. Maybe she’s under threat of punishment from the Chinese government if she says anything critical about the factory.
But I didn’t need to entertain that scenario for very long, because Daisey ‘fessed up.
In the days after the story’s retraction aired, Daisey has alternated between humble contrition and defensive righteousness in discussing what happened.
“When I said onstage that I had personally experienced things I in fact did not, I failed to honor the contract I’d established with my audiences over many years and many shows. In so doing, I not only violated their trust, I also made worse art.”
Art. On stage. Right. Daisey’s “This American Life” podcast, the most downloaded in the show’s history, was excerpted from his stage show, “The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs.”
That should’ve been a big red flag for the producers. Before airing the initial show, Glass asked Daisey if the things he spoke about were true, and Daisey told him that yes, they were. But when your big scoop originates from a theater piece, and you allow some performer to adopt the mantel of “journalist,” you better have one hell of a fact checking department.
But I don’t fault Glass. A base level of trust is needed to make the world go round. And the onus for this mess lies with Daisey.
“This is not the place for me to try and explain my good intentions,” continued Daisey. “We all know where the road paved with good intentions leads. In fact, I think it might lead to where I’m sitting right now.”
More on those good intentions in a moment.
At a packed auditorium at Georgetown University, Daisey turned defensive, complaining, “I am the news cycle.” Referencing the generally bad working conditions in China, Daisey asked “How is that not the news cycle?” And finally, referring to his own embellished monologue, he asserted, “The truth of that story is very real.”
Which truth? Whose truth? Define truth.
And here, for me, is the fallout from Daisey’s relativism: in his quest to inject more drama into his story, he undermined whatever real drama exists out there at Foxconn, and I’m sure there is some. Massive lead poisoning in Shaanxi province? Melamine in baby formula?
It’s not a stretch to believe there was plenty of exploitation going on at Foxconn that Daisey could’ve written about.
But for any China apologists looking for credible cover with which to defend the country’s treatment of its workers, they now have it in this western monologist who made up stuff, stuff like the old man who worked at Foxconn assembling iPads, where his hand was mangled into an all but useless claw in an accident. According to Daisey, the man had never seen one of the machines he helped build actually turned on (presumably there was no time for that while he was being maimed). When Daisey handed him the tablet for the first time and he touched it, and saw icons moving, the old man, with eyes watering, pronounced it “magic.”
It’s tear jerking stuff, and it’s all bullshit. Daisey admits it. He describes it as some sort of amalgam of stories he heard from other people, his own experiences, and, I dunno, fairy dust.
Point is this: now people can say that any negative claims about working conditions in China are suspect because of Daisey’s fabrications. If he lied once, who knows how many times he lied? Who knows how many other “journalists” make stuff up?
“The essential idea is true,” counters Daisey.
And, well, grudgingly, I have to admit – he’s right. In a sense. We want our iPads cheap, and are willing to look the other way to get the right price point. And there are companies and governments out there which have no problem abusing workers to keep the gears turning. “If I wanted to make it up,” continued Daisey, “I wouldn’t have gone to China.”
And if he had just stayed at home and dreamed stuff up, that probably would’ve been less damaging. But the trip gave him a veneer of credibility, and tainted other journalists in the process.
In the end, his explanations seem to me like the garden variety rationalizations of a man who lied, got caught, and is trying to squirm out of it, but at each turn, some little factoid, like the plausible refutations of his interpreter, force him to divulge a little bit more, and a little bit more, and a little bit more. It’s just excruciating to listen to someone dance around his own lies.
But for some, it’s working.
Candice Davenport, a 27 year old D.C. resident, said after the monologue that she’d felt a “little bit betrayed” by Daisey when the retraction went public. But after listening to his case – the one about little “t” truth vs. big “T” truth – she said, “It all made more sense. He had me thinking about what’s more important – the facts or the truth.”
Not facts and the truth. Facts or the truth.
And the question is,
Is she right?
Is it okay to distort or make up facts in order to support what you believe to be some larger truth? And at what cost? | <urn:uuid:d190a38e-6741-46bd-909a-bbbaa10dd6d0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://youoffendmeyouoffendmyfamily.com/liar-liar-pants-on-fire/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972047 | 1,556 | 1.703125 | 2 |
The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort is so much a part of its surroundings, it occasionally threatens to become part of them. Kiawah officials have to continually monitor erosion; two years ago, they were forced to dig up a million cubic yards of sand from one area of the island and dump it on the beach near the golf course, as erosion was threatening parts of the layout.
Not to worry, the course and the new, $22 million clubhouse are still intact. The clubhouse, opened in time for this year's Senior Championship, does its job, blending in with the seascape and giving those inside, in the bar or restaurant, panoramic views of the beach and ocean.
"It was designed to look like it had been here for 60 or 70 years," says Head Professional Stephen Youngner. "It wasn't supposed to be a looming structure. We wanted it to fit into the dunes."
That it does - with its brick exterior, wood shingles and low-slung roof, it looks like a ritzy cottage on the beach, complete with wraparound porches. They're going to add a wind gauge, so you can have direct evidence of your excuse when you walk off No. 18.
Neither man nor nature have done much to change the course, which has been acknowledged as one of the best - and most difficult - in the world.
It's a typical Pete Dye design in that there are many visually intimidating elements and hazards - deep, nasty pot bunkers, trees in fairways, elevated greens that fall off the seventh level of hell - and you find yourself cowed, playing to safe spots.
The raised, rolling fairways, with their sharp edges dropping off to sand and dune vegetation, look like they were sculpted in the mad architect's back yard laboratory and dropped onto the sand, following the contours of the dunes.
Ocean officials have added another tee box, one that plays 6,400 yards, perfect for your average, decent, resort hacker. Before that tee was added, golfers were forced to choose between 6,000 and 6,800 yards, too short and too long for your mid-handicapper, especially when the winds howl off the Atlantic, as they so frequently do. | <urn:uuid:ed45f829-0787-47a9-bdec-1efc2f32cd7f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.worldgolf.com/photo-galleries/ocean-course-kiawah-island-golf-resort-south-carolina-6076.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977235 | 473 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Hockenbarger remembers listening as infamous preacher Fred Phelps chastised him for half an hour, calling Hockenbarger a wolf in sheep's clothing and a snake in the grass.
Phelps then asked his congregation whether anyone saw grace in Hockenbarger. No one defended Hockenbarger. Not his wife of 32 years. Not one of his seven children.
After a few minutes of silence, Phelps declared Hockenbarger excluded from the church.
Hockenbarger left the building as fast as he could.
"I was terrified," the 53-year-old Hockenbarger tells the Pitch. "The concept of exclusion is to allow Satan his way to the destruction of the body so the soul might be saved. My expectation was not to live long enough to get home. And this is not an indication of suicidal thoughts or desires, but I'd rather be dead than in this situation."
The Pitch learned of Hockenbarger's situation while reporting last week's cover story about Shirley Phelps-Roper, the daughter of Fred Phelps, who, for all practical purposes, now runs the Westboro operation ("The New Fred," November 2).
Getting kicked out of the Westboro Baptist Church cost Hockenbarger everything.
"My wife and family wanted nothing more to do with me," says Hockenbarger, who works as a manager at the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services.
Hockenbarger's unforgivable sin was lacking "grace." More specifically, he couldn't turn the other cheek when confronted by angry observers on the picket line.
"I've struggled greatly with controlling myself and trying to prevent others from getting hurt on the picket line," Hockenbarger explains. (Though Hockenbarger's slight stature makes him appear an unlikely fighter, he spent three years as a criminal-justice training coordinator at Washburn University.) "If someone was going to get hit, it was going to be me, not them," he says. "I do it almost instinctively or reflexively in order to protect the ones that I love."
Shirley Phelps-Roper tells the Pitch that Hockenbarger wasn't living up to God's standard.
"We stand on these streets, day in, day out, year in, year out, and hold these signs and talk to people and tell what the standard is, set by your God," Phelps-Roper says. "He said, if they hit you in the face, turn your other cheek and let them hit the other side. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal. This generation, this nation, would love nothing more than to say we're standing on these streets brawling. We are not going to stand on these streets and brawl. We do not do that."
If you don't live by the standard, Phelps-Roper says, you can't "be a member in good standing of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ."
Now, Hockenbarger says, his wife, Kay, won't return his calls. He hasn't seen his youngest children, Isaac, a sixth-grader, and David, a sophomore in high school, since his exclusion. He also hasn't heard from his oldest children: Charles Hockenbarger, who married Fred Phelps' daughter Rachel; Jennifer, who married Brent and Shirley Phelps-Roper's son Sam; and Katherine.
"The only contact that I have had is e-mail establishing how much my child support and spousal support is," Hockenbarger says. "That's the totality of it."
But Karl and Kay Hockenbarger won't seek a divorce. Westboro Baptist Church members don't believe in divorce.
"If there is a divorce, it will be on her part, and it will be absolutely contrary to every bit of Scripture that's ever been taught in that church," Hockenbarger says. "My wife is my wife. Even if she forsakes me, she is my wife. I took a solemn, holy vow to love and support her so long as we both draw breath. I will do that. My children are my children. To the maximum extent that I can, I will support them not only monetarily but in any way that I can. I still love the members of that church.... Whether they accept me or not, I still consider them my brethren."
Hockenbarger's son James left Westboro shortly after his father was excluded. Four months later, Hockenbarger's 17-year-old son, Michael, was also booted out of the church.
"Apparently, he was disrespectful, which would have been true to form," Hockenbarger says. "That was kind of the last straw."
Hockenbarger's fate is the same as that of his parents, Charles and Mary Hockenbarger, who joined the church in 1960, five years after Westboro's genesis.
Karl was baptized in the church when he was 9 years old and had been a devout follower ever since. About two years ago, Fred Phelps' children voted Charles and Mary Hockenbarger out of the church.
Charles says Fred Phelps' children pushed him out of the church for several reasons: He lacked enthusiasm for pickets; he didn't help remodel the homes of Phelps family members; church members told him to move closer to the church, but every house the Hockenbargers looked at was never good enough for the Phelpses. They also told him to cut ties with people outside the church's congregation, he says.
"I couldn't hardly swallow that, but we did try to abide by it," he tells the Pitch.
Charles says he was summoned to a meeting at Shirley Phelps-Roper's home. He says Phelps-Roper, Margie Phelps and Tim Phelps presented the case against him. "They had all made a list of charges, and so, being that we didn't show grace, they recommended to the pastor that we be put out of the church," he says.
The next Sunday, it was official.
Charles Hockenbarger is finished with Westboro.
"That church preached hate so deeply," he says. "Now we're in a church, and we find that Christ also loved."
Karl Hockenbarger cut ties with his parents when Westboro kicked them out. (He recently began speaking to them again.)
Now Karl's out, too. But unlike his parents, he desperately longs to return to the Phelps flock.
"I'd go back in a heartbeat," an emotional Hockenbarger tells the Pitch. He quotes Job. "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him."
Hockenbarger clings to hope, remembering the last words that Fred's son Tim Phelps said to him on the morning of his exclusion: "When we change our minds about you, we'll let you know."
Until then, he listens to Fred Phelps' sermons over the Internet. He reads summaries of the group's trips to picket at soldiers' funerals. And he searches God hatesfags.com for photos of his family. | <urn:uuid:82971ed0-fafc-4973-8a3d-a724b9d58a6c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pitch.com/kansascity/dead-to-fred/Content?oid=2183560 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983716 | 1,510 | 1.59375 | 2 |
REPORTING FROM PANMUNJOM, SOUTH KOREA -- President Obama landed in South Korea early Sunday, and his first stop was slated to be the heavily fortified military encampment facing the country's secretive neighbor to the north.
The visit will be Obama's first to the demilitarized zone that has divided the Korean peninsula for nearly 60 years, and the first for an American president in just over a decade.
Obama traveled to Seoul to attend a global summit on securing loose nuclear weapons. But as his Sunday schedule shows, the status of the rogue nuclear program in North Korea is likely to outshine the formal agenda.
Under the new and untested leadership of Kim Jong Un, son of the late dictator Kim Jong Il,the regime in Pyongyang has arisen as a fresh puzzle for the United States and its allies. Kim surprised many last month by agreeing to halt its long-range missile program in return for much-needed food aid. But the leader seemed to reverse himself soon after by announcing plans to launch a satellite in mid-April. Such a launch would break the deal, U.S. officials say. Japan has threatened to shoot it down.
Obama will try to enlist help from the Chinese in persuading North Korea to back off the plan. He's scheduled to meet Monday with Chinese President Hu Jintao.
But first the president was expected to trek north about 25 miles from Seoul to the military outpost looking out at North Korea. Obama was expected to meet with some of the roughly 60 U.S. soldiers posted at the DMZ, which is guarded by a joint security force made up primarily of South Korean soldiers. The 2 1/2-mile-wide stretch is protected by land mines, barbed wire fencing and armed troops able to look out at the faces of their North Korean counterparts on the other side.
A compelling backdrop and rare reminder of Cold War anxiety, the trip has been one that all of Obama's recent predecessors have made. (President George H.W. Bush visited as vice president.)
President George W. Bush visited the DMZ in February 2002, at another tense time in relations. Bush had just included North Korea in the "axis of evil," a remark that unnerved South Koreans worried about the increasingly bellicose rhetoric. Bush then delivered a toned-down speech and expressed sympathy for the plight of North Koreans.
Obama arrived on much firmer ground with South Korean leaders. During his three-day visit, he's expected to emphasize solidarity with Seoul and make his first comments on the status of food aid pact.
Obama is slated to meet with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Sunday.
-- Kathleen B. Hennessey
Photo: President Obama arrives at Osan Air Base in South Korea for a summit of world leaders to discuss nuclear issues. Credit: Ryu Seong-Il / Pool | <urn:uuid:50fe9d37-d369-496d-95ac-edf469021719> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/world_now/2012/03/panmunjom-south-korea-president-obama-north-korea-dmz.html | 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 | 0.964635 | 587 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Having an ill or uncomfortable pet can be very concerning to most pet owners. As our dogs and cats become more like family, we wish them to be happy and healthy members of our household. Trusty Vet is similar to a clinic where you would take your child for a mild illness. The most common reasons that pets visit the veterinarian include:
- Skin and ear problems
- Respiratory infections with sneezing and coughing
- Gastrointestinal upset like vomiting and diarrhea
- Urinary tract infections
- Strains, sprains and arthritis pain
- Cuts or hot spots
- Endocrine diseases like diabetes in cats and hypothyroidism in dog.
At Trusty Vet, our aim is to help your pet with these typical sicknesses. If a discovery is made that your pet has a more extreme illness or injury, a referral will be made to a more full-service hospital where critical care and hospitalization can be provided so that your pet has the best chance for recovery.
When your dog or cat is sick, diagnostic testing can provide additional information that may not be evident during the veterinarian’s physical exam. At Trusty Vet, we make every effort to provide a rapid diagnosis to ease your pet’s discomfort as quickly as possible.
Digital radiographs or “x-rays” help to identify changes in your pet’s chest, abdomen, and bones that may be causing them to be ill or uncomfortable. With the digital software, the radiograph images appear on a high resolution screen instantly. The veterinarian can then zoom in to get a better look at the image and also rotate it or change how dark or light an image appears to aid in diagnosis. If an image is difficult to interpret, it can easily be sent by internet transmission to a board certified radiologist who can further analyze the radiograph and present a report in a matter of hours.
Laboratory testing covers not only the traditional bloodwork you would expect for an ill pet, but also microscope analysis and other symptom specific testing. The veterinarian has the option to order blood testing to be performed in the hospital to receive results within an hour or to be submitted to an outside laboratory at a reduced cost with an expected turn-around of 1-2 days. The choice will be based on a discussion with the pet owner and the severity of the pet’s symptoms.
The microscope is a valuable tool in the veterinary setting allowing specific diagnosis of many skin, ear, intestinal parasite, and urinary problems. There are a number of additional tests that the veterinarian may perform at Trusty Vet including checks for glaucoma or corneal ulcers of the eyes and blood pressure monitoring to name a few.
Every effort will be made to allow you and your dog or cat to leave Trusty Vet feeling better. The diagnostic and treatment decisions will be made after a discussion with the veterinarian and we will aim to answer any questions you may have before you leave the hospital. | <urn:uuid:19de79e6-40a2-4904-a85b-4e21e7ca75f2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.trustyvet.com/your-pets-care/sick-pet-care | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94391 | 604 | 1.804688 | 2 |
The question I repeatedly get is “What will I tweet”, where will I get the content and how?!
In a study by San Antonio-based market-research firm Pear Analytics who analyzed 2,000 tweets (originating from the US and in English) over a two-week period in August 2009 from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM (CST) and separated them into six categories:
- Pointless babble – 40%
- Conversational – 38%
- Pass-along value – 9%
- Self-promotion – 6%
- Spam – 4%
- News – 4%
From the above stats you can tell that “Twitter” is all about “conversation” even the small talk “Pointless Babble” can lead to amusing conversations which will end up in engaging experience with another Tweep; for Example if I Tweet “I just saw a flying UFO” someone else maybe intrigued to “Tweet along” … the Twitversation may take nowhere but it will for sure effect the participants one way or another! This is exactly what you need to experience on “Twitter”!
So this is what I want you to learn is how to watch conversation flowing and pick up on them, whether you are tweeting as a person or company, you need to jump in and join the babble otherwise you are not only losing the fun but you are defeating the purpose of Twitter!
To answer the urging question, how do I come up with “Tweets” I would simply answer initiate and join conversations. Remember conversations are defined as exchange of thoughts, opinions, feelings; and information, an act that you brilliantly practice every day. Twitter is another platform to practice this natural human act.
Initiators of Tweets:
- Asking questions
- Sharing information
- Encouraging Dialogue
- Giving Opinions
- Intriguing interests
- Talk with everyone about everything
Keep those “Twitversation Going”…. | <urn:uuid:3554c499-ef6e-4bbf-8e32-fedf6df1d094> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dawseralhadidi.com/Blog/index.php/2011/12/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933871 | 426 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Questioning Obama's Real InterestsThe question has been, "Where was Obama born?" The answer has been Hawaii, of course. A lawyer in California has filed in the courts with new information of his birth . Obama's birth certificate, which hasn't ever been made public, is said to have been found in Kenya. It is a certified copy of the original made in February 1964. It says Barack Hussein Obama age 26 and a resident of Honolulu, Hawaii and Stanley Ann Dunham age 18 of Wichita, Kansas as parents on August 4, 1961 of son Mubarack (Barack is the shortened form) in the Coast General Hospital in Mombasa, Kenya. His father was a Sunni Kenyan Muslim. His home was the village of Eanyadhinng in Nyahea Province in Kenya, Africa. Kenya was independent in 1963. My question is, if the father was simply a resident of Hawaii and the mother was a citizen of the USA, does that make Obama eligible as a citizen of the USA even though he was born in Africa? To be the president of the USA, would you have to be born in the states or would this be considered legal?
In Islam, if the father is a Muslim, so is the son.
Of course this birth information hasn't come out in the main media as yet. If it did, Obama may not be eligible to be president. What would this country do? That's what Orly Tarty, attorney, wants to find out.
This is unlike Judaism where it is that if the mother is Jewish, the children are Jewish. The mother is usually the one overseeing the children's learning.
His mother, born a Christian, remarried another Sunni Muslim. He was from Indonesia. This information says that Obama attended a Madrassa, which is an Islamic school until age 11. That's far longer than I had supposed. I had thought it was until age 6. At age 11 a child might be in the 6th grade already. Here I see the male influence in instuction of the religion.
This all came up because Rachel has come up with some interesting information. Rachel Lipkin is an Israeli born in Egypt who immigrated to Israel in 1969. She has worked in Israel's radio service in Arabic for the last 25 years monitoring Arabic language broadcasts on TV and radio and newspapers.
During a TV interview with Gary Stearman, scholar, Rachel told of picking up broadcasts from 2004-2008 and hearing the Saudis saying, "We will have a Muslim in the White House in 2008". I know that President Bush was great friends with the Saudis, supposedly because they were both owners of oil wells. I always wondered about that relationship and its effect on Israel. Now I read that the Saudis were predicting this next president's religious affiliation. Obama bowed to the King of Saudi Arabia in 2009, shocking many. Since then he has continued the practice of bowing to other foreigners.
What is interesting is that Obama was almost an unknown politically until 2008 when he spoke in the Democratic convention, wowing everybody with his agility of speaking. He was mesmerizing. He was a senator for such a short time, then had to spend most of this time campaigning for President. He did not show his birth certificate and has been quite mum about his past. Because his mother had married two Sunni Muslims, I don't think she was really into her own religion, so Obama was not raised to be Christian. He remarked that he became Christian when he married Michelle. What religion he had had been with the Sunni Muslims, then.
Rachel picked up a broadcast on Nile TV from Egypt which was a discussion. The Foreign Minister of Egypt said he had had a meeting with Obama who swore to him that he is a Muslim. Obama continued, "As soon as I finish with the health care question, you Muslims will see what I will do for Islam regarding Israel." Obama had promised support when he spoke to Jews at an AIPAC meeting, but his policies since then have not followed suit.
Rachel's husband, Avi, added that in studying the Muslim religion, he found that it is a commandment in Islam to deceive the infidel, a commandment to lie-to say that he is a Christian when he is not a Christian. So the question is, whose interests will he look out for? Israel or Saudia Arabia's?
Saudi media in Arabic has said over and over that if America is their ally they must deal with Iran and the Shiites and then afterwards with Israel and the Jews. If America is not their ally they plan to withdraw their support from the US economy and deny their money and oil from them. (This is doubtful to me. They need our business.)
I don't know why this has been such a secretive birth certificate. I had to show either my birth certificate or passport which was not obtainable without my birth certificate in order to draw out my PERS money here in Oregon. PERS money was money taken from my salary for retirement and matched. I just retired and am trying to draw it out. If I need this proof, shouldn't the president, who had a background of supposedly being born in Hawaii and living in Indonesia also give proof to get the most important job in the USA? This is the prerequisite.
1:29pm: I just looked up the needs to be president and it looks like Obama is eligible to be president. If you're born outside the USA and one parent is an alien while the other parent is a citizen of the USA having lived here for 5 years, you are a citizen of the USA. Go to my last reference to read it. I have a nephew who was born outside the USA, but both his parents are USA citizens, so he is also a citizen of the USA and eligible to run as president also. For Obama, the fact that his mother was a citizen makes him a citizen. If she had given up her citizenship, that would be a different matter. | <urn:uuid:f2af1e7d-fd09-444c-8ebb-b034336e25e4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://jewishfactsfromportland.blogspot.com/2010/07/questioning-obamas-real-interests.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988237 | 1,216 | 1.617188 | 2 |
“It’s four days into the school holidays and I’ve had enough!” My friend has three kids and I can hear two of them fighting in the background as I talk to her. I laugh (but only after I’ve put the phone down).
Years ago, I would be secretly annoyed by my friends when they complained about their kids during the holidays. I used to think: “you have no idea”. But today I feel slightly smug, thinking of my son Ben, sitting quietly in his bedroom reading a book. (Don’t worry: it’s so rare for the parent of child with a disability to feel smug, I think I can live with it just this once.)
Nowadays, our school holidays involve visits to the beach, the pool, the museum, or a bookshop, riding on the train to the city or taking a bus around the suburbs, catching up with friends and spending lots of time at local parks and play grounds. Occasionally we take a “real” holiday, driving down to southwest WA to visit my sister.
Compare this to my friends with 12-year-olds, who seem to spend the school holidays driving their children around between sleepovers (girls) and sporting activities (boys), telling them to stop watching tv or playing computer games and arguing with them about bedtimes and whether they should be allowed a mobile phone!
Of course, things were different when Ben was younger. I have to admit, I did dread the school holidays because of those long days with no structured activities. Sometimes I took him to holiday therapy sessions for autistic kids, and then there was his anxiety about going somewhere new and meeting new kids and my worry about how to cover the bills. Much of the time, though, it was just the two of us, and long stretches of time to fill.
Ben just didn’t like doing most things other kids enjoyed. He couldn’t ride a bike or use rollerblades, didn’t like sport, didn’t like toys (not even Lego), didn’t like Nintendo or DS, wouldn’t watch tv. (Most of this is still true actually.) All he wanted to do was follow his latest obsession, whether that was counting letterboxes, collecting bottle tops, visiting “portaloos” (don’t ask), looking at swimming pool depths, reading Mr Men books, listening to the Wiggles, or writing lists. I remember one day begging with Ben to “just try” watching kids tv. I know, I must be the only parent in Australia who’s pleaded with her child to watch more tv!
When Ben was five, he was at the height of his number passion. That winter, he discovered that the ship bollards down at the wharf in Fremantle were numbered. He became desperate to go to there every morning to walk along the edge, reading off the numbers on the bollards. He was five; I was his mum; I really shouldn’t have given in to him. But there we were at 8am most mornings for weeks and weeks.
It was cold. It was windy. It was wet. It was boring (for me). We would wear our warmest coats, put on our gloves and hats and then fight our way through the weather to the end of the walk. Ben had a Dockers beanie and as we passed the few people fishing by the wharf, they would comment on how the Dockers had fared that week. I knew nothing about Aussie rules and Ben knew and cared less; he just happened to have been given that beanie. A friend told me that the Dockers rarely won and so all we had to do was shake our heads and do a thumbs down sign. And so we would pass the fishing contingent, pretending to shake our heads over the state of footy in WA, counting the numbers, time and again.
Ben and I laugh about that time now. I don’t think we laugh for exactly the same reasons, though. I’m not even sure why I think it’s funny. Am I laughing at my own foolishness in letting that become a habit? Or at the looks we used to get after we were recognised by the wharf regulars? Or just at the absurdity of life as a non-autistic mum with an autistic boy? And what about Ben – why does he laugh, I wonder? Is he amused that he managed to get me doing so often what he now realises I so disliked? Is he enjoying once more in retrospect the pleasures of counting those bollards? Or is it that he already has what it took me years to develop – that compassion for self that allows us to look back with fondness at our own idiosyncrasies?
At any rate, we tell each other stories about what we did in previous school holidays and make plans – in a vague way – for future holidays when we might go somewhere really exciting like Europe (“when you’re grown up and I’m rich,” I suggest). We have our problems, of course, as Ben still gets anxious about things and doesn’t have many friends – he likes other kids but doesn’t quite manage to bond with them. Unlike my friends’ kids, though, I have never once heard him complain that he is bored in the holidays.
We are still drawn to the water. Today was a blissful day of gentle autumnal warmth and so we went to the river. Ben played on the flying fox and then swam in the river, laughing with pleasure. Then we sat in the cafe, shared a slice of peach and raspberry teacake and watched two dolphins play only metres from where Ben had been swimming. “It is so beautiful here,” I say, “and we saw dolphins!” “Yes, mum,” says Ben, “it’s paradise.” | <urn:uuid:32d18cb4-9dbf-480b-bf98-5979f068236b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bubhub.com.au/hubbub-blog/autism-and-parenting-school-holiday-blues/?378-School-holiday-blues-Not-for-me!&bt=749 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983923 | 1,246 | 1.53125 | 2 |
With Pot Legal in Two US States, Latin American Leaders Call for Review of International Drug Policy
Photo Credit: Shutter Stock
Stay up to date with the latest headlines via email.
The election that legalized recreational marijuana in Washington and Colorado looks to be a historic moment in American democracy. It has already been widely regarded as the beginning of the end of marijuana prohibition in the United States, but recent developments suggest legal weed's importance could stretch beyond American policy to international significance. Today, Latin American leaders of four nations called for a review of international drug policies.
"It has become necessary to analyze in depth the implications for public policy and health in our nations emerging from the state and local moves to allow the legal production, consumption and distribution of marijuana in some countries of our continent," Mexican President Felipe Calderon said this afternoon after meeting with Honduran President Porfirio Lobo, Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla and Prime Minister Dean Barrow of Belize.
The US is currently backing a bloody war in Mexico, where marijuana is estimated to be a significant, if not majority, percentage of cartel profits. Since Calderon declared war on the cartels in 2006, more than 60,000 Mexicans, many of them innocents, have died in the carnage. Drug war violence has devastated much of Latin America, and prompted to many leaders to speak out in support of reform. Now, it seems, legalization in WA and CO will lend support to international voices for drug war alternatives.
Some leaders, such as Guatemalan President Otto Perez, have openly proposed legalizing or "decriminalizing" certain drugs. Others have pushed for less dramatic changes such as legalizing only marijuana or, like Mexico's Felipe Calderon, have spoken in vague terms of a "less prohibitionist" approach.
Uruguay has gone furthest, proposing a bill this year that would legalize marijuana and have the state distribute it. That move was regarded as too extreme by many in the region, although this week's decision by voters in Washington and Colorado states to legalize marijuana for recreational use showed that, even in the United States, the status quo is changing fast.
These shifts in policy may give progressives in the US some needed leeway to change policy.
Moises Naim, a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, told NewsMax.com
"The taboo is broken," adding that "2012 will go down as the year when Latin American governments became assertive and began making changes of their own accord."
Marijuana legalization in Washington and Colorado may very well provide the evidence of drug war failure and popular opinion necessary for the United States to recognize Latin America's increasing calls for change. | <urn:uuid:c9273a8a-bfff-4158-9f91-6b26b3797682> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.alternet.org/pot-legal-two-us-states-latin-american-leaders-call-review-international-drug-policy?qt-best_of_the_week=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953901 | 546 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Invite a friend
Summer Learning Loss Prevention
Summer is the best time to learn! Numerous studies have shown the importance of continued learning during vacations. Practicing math and reading over the summer are both essential for a child to prevent learning loss. Summer learning loss is why teachers have to spend the first few months of the school year just getting their students caught up!
The Tutoring Center will give a FREE assessment to determine how much your child has retained. Then we will put together an individualized program for your child’s needs. We guarantee our centers have a fun, positive environment and all hard work is rewarded with great incentives.
We have one-to-one programs in Reading, Writing, Math and Higher Level Math starting at $249 per month for 2 sessions a week. There are no contracts to sign and our tuition is month-to-month. For more information please visit www.algonquin.tutoringcenter.com
Sign up today for our no obligation, FREE assessment and see where your child is in his/her learning.
Call 847-458-1005 or email us at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:c9c4b181-0027-44ba-ad1e-d72fc34efd69> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://algonquin.patch.com/events/summer-learning-loss-prevention-165ddfd8 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934873 | 241 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Wazirpur is a charming village on the main highway connecting Jaipur to Kota. The nearest town is Tonk, which is 36 Km from Wazirpur. The village is easily reached from the main highway to Kota from Tonk. About 27 km from Tonk is the village of Chhan. Turn off here for Sakna and Wazirpur.
It is only a small village, so can easily be covered on foot.Another lake near Wazirpur is a famous bird breeding ground.On the way to Wazirpur there is a fomous Jain religion temple at sakna village.
The village is located on the shores of a beautiful lake, and has two traditional Hindu temples. The village people are still very simple; electricity was only introduced in 1992 and the village was connected to a road as late as 2005. It is a place where you can find traditional people, folk dancing and neat and clean mud brick houses.
A famous Jain temple is located in the nearby village of Sakna. The walk to Sakne from Wazirpur is very pleasant, passing a canel, a lake and fresh, green fields. | <urn:uuid:52350962-9a0d-4985-88c7-ba2869556191> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wikitravel.org/wiki/en/index.php?title=Wazirpur&oldid=422899 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97959 | 244 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Yes, it’s well done. Fine writing, acting, direction and all that. But if Kathryn Bigelow was going to bring torture into the capture-of-bin-Laden narrative, she should have been more truthful. Because following the narrative of partial facts and dead-end leads is difficult, most viewers, I fear, will come out of the movie assuming torture played a role in nailing Osama. They won’t know from the movie that the heads of the joint Intelligence Committees in Congress say torture had nothing to do with it. Because the actors playing CIA torturers say nothing out loud about whether the methods they are using are smart or dumb, legal or illegal, moral or not — in one scene they are shown watching an interview with the new president in which Obama declares torture must not be used, their expressionless faces revealing nothing — viewers don’t know that CIA torture was fiercely opposed by the FBI, the military and by strong voices inside and outside the Bush administration.
Bigelow says she took no position on torture. It was part of the story of the hunt for bin Laden, so it had to be in the movie.
The C.I.A.’s actions convulsed the national-security community, leading to a crisis of conscience inside the top ranks of the U.S. government. The debate echoed the moral seriousness of the political dilemma once posed by slavery, a subject that is brilliantly evoked in Steven Spielberg’s new film, “Lincoln”; by contrast, the director of “Zero Dark Thirty,” Kathryn Bigelow, milks the U.S. torture program for drama while sidestepping the political and ethical debate that it provoked. In her hands, the hunt for bin Laden is essentially a police procedural, devoid of moral context. If she were making a film about slavery in antebellum America, it seems, the story would focus on whether the cotton crops were successful. | <urn:uuid:ea9cceb1-5cdd-4e74-81dc-f280a0946e22> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.linncountyleader.com/article/20130114/BLOGS/301149962/0/police | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961745 | 407 | 1.585938 | 2 |
The S-word: Socialism
Socialism. The word has a recent emerging presence in the vocabulary of media folk, likely because leading Republican figures like John McCain and Mike Huckabee flaunted this word in opposition of any idea remotely associated with President Barack Obama or his budget plans.
“The stimulus, the omnibus, the budget — it’s all one big down payment on a new American socialism,” House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said according to some excerpts provided to ABC News Network.
Of course this is only a measure to diverge the true intent of universal health care and other presidential agendas. Republicans understand that the “anti-American culture” of Western Europe is the American sentiment of socialism, and rightfully so because most European countries have an active socialist party. Universal health care is the primary example of European socialism. Anti-universal healthcare propagandists use this adeptly-titled, name-calling technique to incite prejudices to construct a negative opinion about universal healthcare as opposed to a more fitting rational, merit-based argument.
Edward Louis Bernays, one of the public relations field’s founding fathers, combined the ideas of crowd psychology with the psychoanalytical theories of Sigmund Freud, his uncle. His work led to many of the techniques that presently seek to manipulate public opinion apart from an impartial assessment of facts. Bernays wrote that the manipulation of public opinion is an important element of the democratic process. His ideas suggested that human beings must cooperate, and therefore be in agreement, in a manner which promotes a soundly functioning society. In following such model, we are inadvertently governed by the ideas that result from the way in which information is organized and presented.
If universal healthcare is associated with socialism without a general understanding of either terms or their impact on current systems, it plays on our deductive instinct to assume that universal healthcare is wrong because socialism is supposedly bad, or so we think because we invalidly associate that with European totalitarianism.
But Socialism is as American as it is European. The American education system has been socialized, as well as transportation and retirement. None of which have been wildly successful but that is from failings in management and not principle. France has the largest socialized healthcare system with 100 percent of the population covered, but also boasts the highest global ranking and life expectancy of all industrialized nations. Besides, U.S. government-ran hospitals already provide services to those who don’t have insurance. Only now the country is lacking a centralized managed healthcare system to control medical cost inflation which is now four times the rate of monetary inflation. The U.S. spends six times more per capita with our current system than any of our Western Europeans peers do with theirs despite the fact that we have fewer people who are covered. According to the National Coalition on Health Care, the United States spends $480 billion more each year in comparison. Even still, hospitals endure $60 billion in losses each year. With healthcare spending expected to rise, surely that number will do likewise.
It is hard to argue against these numbers, however name-calling seems to do the trick. So, is universal healthcare a socialist idea? Absolutely. I never said the Republicans were lying. But using the socialism argument misdirects the nature of the debate away from whether or not universal healthcare works to whether or not a regulated socialist agenda could survive a free-running capitalist culture. This then turns the nature of information to be had from either supporting our healthcare model or theirs to capitalist principles versus socialist principles. Both of which dilute the intent of the debate, which is to fix healthcare. Unfortunately, this is the heart of democracy. There is an issue that you have some opinion of for some reason (logical or not), you choose a side, and then you vote. The crafty politician who gets elected is the one who can connect with the majority opinion, not argue theirs. So before we decide if government-run programs work, maybe we should decide if the way the government is running works.
By: Quinton Phelps | <urn:uuid:2ff2863d-9b89-4920-84b3-f37f205bfe10> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://novafortnightly.com/2009/10/01/socialism/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954757 | 828 | 1.796875 | 2 |
If you guessed the girl is Rapunzel you are right. If not,
well you know. We all know about the story of Rapunzel right? No? OKAAY we are
starting from square numero uno.
Once there lived a married couple. Wife (that was her name)
was pregnant. Her most common craving was rosemary. The only place you could
find rosemary was in the witch’s garden next door.
Day by day, week by week, her craving for rosemary
increased more and more. It finally got bad enough that if she didn’t have
some rosemary she felt she would die. So the husband made up his mind to fetch
some from the witch’s house. They made some salad and it was soooo delicious
that she wanted more. So that night the husband went back to the garden
to take some more. The witch caught him and yelled, "HOW DARE YOU STEAL MY
"Please," begged the husband, "Don’t hurt
me, I only did it for my wife."
"This is acceptable, but it will cost you. When your
child is born you must give it to me," said the ugly witch. The husband
was so frantic that he said ok.
Before long the young girl was born. About two weeks after
the baby was born, there came a knock at the door. Rappp. Rappp.
"Oh," said Wife, "We are so far from town. I wonder who that
The witch came bursting through the door. "Where’s
the baby?!" She shouted. The witch grabbed the baby from the bassinet
when she saw it. "…WAIT!" Husband shouted. He begged and pleaded
all he could but she wouldn’t let the baby go.
The witch took the baby to her castle and named her Rapunzel.
By the time she grew up Rapunzel was a very pretty young
girl. Rapunzel had long blonde hair and baby blue eyes. She was the most
charming girl in town. The witch didn’t want any boys to see Rapunzel or to
fall in love. She decided the best thing to do was lock her up in a tower.
This tower had no stairs, doorways and only window.
Everyday the old witch would come out and yell, "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, Let down your long hair."When Rapunzel heard these words she would let down her hair
for the witch to climb.
One day the prince was riding through the forest and he
heard her melodious singing. Day after day, week after week he returned to
hear her singing. About a month after he started listening, he was behind a
tree and he saw the witch climb up Rapunzel’s hair. He thought to himself,
"So that’s how you get up." The next day came and he yelled,
"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your long hair." Then her hair came
tumbling down. Rapunzel got so frightened when he came in but then got to know
him. Every day he came to see her.
One day the witch was climbing up her hair. Rapunzel
shouted down, "I wish you would climb as fast as the prince. He got up in
half the time!" "Oh? So the prince is coming to meet you?" The
witch said in anger. "Opps" said Rapunzel in fear. Opps is right Rapunzel.
The next day: "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your long
hair!" This was the witch talking.
"Coming, coming." Rapunzel knew that she was in
trouble so she said it in a really distressed voice. So the witch climbed up.
She took some scissors from her pocket and cut Rapunzel’s hair. She put it
in a braid and nailed it to the wall.
When the prince came up to the tower
walls, He shouted out, "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your long
hair." The witch tumbled down the hair. The prince started climbing up.
The witch cut the hair and then he fell to the ground in a patch of thorns. He
scraped his eyes and became blind forever. So he thought. Years went by with
the prince coming back to hear Rapunzel’s beautiful singing, since he couldn’t
see her anymore.
Then the witch let Rapunzel out. When she got out of the tower,
she saw the prince while
walking through the forest. She saw that he was blind. Rapunzel started singing and
he recognized it at once. He was so joyous. She shed a tear and it landed in
his eyes. He was forever healed from his blindness.
They got married in the Prince's castle and lived happily ever after. | <urn:uuid:d6a8672f-b877-4354-aa7f-d8b50a1335d8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://library.thinkquest.org/J0110463/rapunzel.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984586 | 1,057 | 1.765625 | 2 |
BEING THE GRADES AND RATES OF MORTALS AND ANGELS IN THE LIGHT OF GOD, AS THE WORD CAME TO ES, DAUGHTER OF JEHOVIH.
1. THESE are the words of Judgment by the will of God, Jehovih's Son, as rendered by Es, for the resurrection of man:
2. Hear the words of thy God, O man! I am thy elder brother of tens of thousands of years experience. Profit thou in my wisdom, and learn the discourse of thy God.
3. Jehovih, Creator of all things, spake to me, thy God, saying: Give ear unto Me, O God, My embassador of the earth and her heavens for this thy season. Obey My mandates, and teach mortals and the angels of thy lower heavens to know Me and to rejoice in My creations. The time is now come when the light of thy inspiration and thy angels shall extend around the whole earth and in her heavens also.
4. In all former cycles, My Gods had to deal with separate divisions of the earth; My revelations were unto each, for a special time, which is now at hand. I have prepared this land untrammeled with Gods and Saviors and Lords, enforced by the sword, so that My revelations of this day shall be published and not suppressed. And thou shalt reveal to mortals the plan of My worlds; and, as to who thou art, and the method of thy inspiration and dominion on the earth and her heavenly kingdoms.
5. Thou shalt keep open the gates of heaven for a season, and the spirits of the dead shall commune with mortals, good and evil, wise and foolish. And mortals shall see them, and talk with them, face to face; and they shall recognize their own kin, sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, the dead and the living.
6. And the angels shall demonstrate the subtlety of corporeal things, and the capacity of one solid to pass through another solid uninjured.
7. Yea, the angels shall bring forth from great distances heavy substances, and cast them down in the presence of mortals, who shall see these things done, and testify thereto.
8. And man shall understand, that, even as plants and trees and fish and serpents can be wielded by My angels, so also can virus and pestilence be carried by angels of darkness to cast mortals in death.
9. And thou shalt suffer evil spirits and all manner of drujas, and vampires and engrafters, to come, and manifest unto mortals, that they may know, whereof My revelations unfold the matters of earth and heaven.
10. For man shall understand what I mean by the words: As ye live on the earth, so shall ye reap in heaven.
11. And thou shalt suffer to fall in darkness such mortals as consult the angels in regard to riches, or to marriage, or to self,or for curiosity, or frivolity, or for anything of an earthly nature for profit's sake. They shall prosper for a season, but end in being confronted with folly and falsehood.
12. And whoso asketh for the spirits of great men, suffer ye him, to be deceived by drujas and all manner of lying spirits.
13. And whoso asketh of the sar'gis for great men, or for Moses, or Jesus, or Kriste, or for any well-known name, as applied to ancient times, suffer him to be answered by evil spirits and deceivers.
14. Whoso desireth the angels for profit's sake, and he have power in sar'gis, give unto him a band of drujas and vampires, and give them great power in signs and miracles.
15. And whoso consulteth the angels, without regard to becoming a better man himself, suffer him also, to become captive to lying spirits.
16. And to all men that feed on fish or flesh, suffer thou vampires to inhabit them.
17. And to such as drink to drunkenness, and smoke or take narcotics, suffer thou fetals and engrafters, to come upon them.
18. And in families, whose heirs are born from parents, wed for earthly considerations, suffer thou spirits of obsession, to enter and drive them mad.
19. For they shall be made to know the meaning of the word, hell, as applied to the lower heavens.
20. And to whomsoever worshippeth Gods or Saviors because of miracles, give thou them plentifully of miracles and signs through unclean spirits, and through mortal sar'gis (mediums) of low grade. Yea, thou shalt let spirits of darkness assume to be these very Gods, that mortals may be made to know what manner of evil spirits dwell in their churches and temples.
21. And to the rich man, who maketh pretence to righteousness, but who doeth not toward the poor as to himself, give thou him a host of spirits of hypocrisy and lying, that he may realize the company he is preparing his own spirit for in heaven.
22. Give thou signs and miracles to the unclean seer as well as to the clean; to the liar and deceiver, as well as to the truthful man.
23. For I will destroy the worship of all Gods and Lords and Saviors on the ground of miracles.
24. And thou shalt take great liars, and give them lying spirits to speak through them by inspiration and entrancement. And these spirits shall profess the names of great persons long since dead. And they shall manifest great oratory and wisdom and truth; but, nevertheless, their preaching shall be of little avail for righteousness sake, or for good works.
25. And their applauding audiences will not contribute to the poor, nor found any improvement on the doctrines of the ancients.
26. For the spirits, who speak through them, shall be the first resurrection, and know not Me nor the higher kingdoms. Verily shall they be of the same order as the spirits who minister in the churches and temples, being such spirits as have not yet been delivered up from the earth.
27. And some shall say: Hear thou me, for I am God! Some shall say: Hear thou me, for I am the Lord! Some shall say: Hear thou me, for I am Jehovih! And others shall profess the names of mortals who had great power on the earth. Suffer thou them to do these things.
28. For I will make man understand that he shall accept nothing from angels or men because of the name professed. On the merit only of wisdom and truth, and such good doctrines as raise men up out of darkness and poverty and crime, shall they accept either spoken or written words.
29. And they shall try to organize to carry out good works, but they shall fail. For many will desire to be leaders, being under the influence of selfish considerations, desiring the applause of men.
30. And they will profess freedom, but they will not pledge themselves to any sacrifice, either of money or opinion for sake of the public good.
31. And little good shall come out of their works, and even less peace of soul shall come unto them. For they shall dispute and quarrel, being divided in all their ideas and philosophies and sentiments and in their understanding of My kingdoms.
32. For, by this means, shalt thou show them they are under the inspiration of the unorganized es world; and of spirits who have not yet entered into My resurrections, which I created for them. But in the time of the light of My revelations, thou shalt raise up a few, here and there, capable of the All Light. And these, thou shalt cause to form a basis for My kingdom on earth.
33. And they shall forswear all Gods and Lords and Saviors, but profess Me, the Great Spirit, Jehovih.
34. And they shall pledge themselves unto one another in fullness, as brothers and sisters, holding their possessions in common.
35. To live for sake of perfecting themselves and others in spirit, and for good works.
36. They shall not eat fish nor flesh of any creature that breathed the breath of life.
37. And keep the seventh day as a day of communion with Me and My angel hosts.
38. With rites and ceremonies explanatory of all the doctrines in the world.
39. Practicing good for evil; non-resistance to persecution and abuse.
40. And abjure war; even, if necessary, by submitting to death rather than take part therein.
41. And they shall become an organic body in communities of tens and twenties and hundreds and thousands.
42. But they shall have no leaders, only their Creator; but be organic, for sake of good works.
43. But they shall not go about preaching for sinners to go to repentance.
44. Nor preaching for charity to the poor.
45. But they shall go themselves about gathering up sinners, and the poor and helpless and orphans; and bring them into comfortable homes, teaching them how to live, to be a glory unto Me and My kingdoms.
46. To such persons shall My angels from the second resurrection come, and minister in My name for the joy of the earth.
47. And when such people die, they shall be received into the second resurrection, escaping the first.
48. Neither shall any other people in all the world escape the place of the first resurrection.
49. Be they kings, or queens, or beggars, or Brahmins, or Budhists, or Kriste'yans, or Mohammedans, or any other pretenders in heaven or earth.
50. Behold, the day of preaching and professions is at an end. I will have practice only.
51. Whoso is not in My organic kingdoms on earth, shall go into My inorganic kingdoms in heaven.
52. Like unto like, created I the heavens and the earth, and all things therein. | <urn:uuid:0cf48244-579f-4a34-8495-572947b6fe3f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sacred-texts.com/oah/oah/oah564.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934238 | 2,098 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Scads of Scooters
Not just for kids anymore
New York businessmen depend on them, Japanese teenagers can't live without them, and they're all the rage among Israeli schoolchildren. The simple scooter is supreme.
The Little Toy that Could
When else has a toy been so many things to so many people? "Scooter-commuters" zip along New York City sidewalks. Policemen ride scooters in Berlin. At some Wal-marts, employees scoot down the megastore's endless aisles. Scooters are handy for restaurant deliveries. But lest you worry that scooters are too ordinary, consider this: Prince Harry is said to scoot the long halls of the royal palaces.
The streamlined silver scooters people are riding today debuted in Germany in 1993. These nifty new toys became a craze elsewhere in Europe, Australia, and Asia before reaching North American shores. By spring 2000, New York City, southern California, and Hawaii had become the U.S. scooter centers. Meanwhile, in Japan scooters are a national obsession.
A Yen to Scoot
In crowded Japan, people often bike between home and the trains that take them to work or school. At many train stations, bike parking has become a problem, and foldable scooters offer a perfect solution. An estimated 75,000 are sold each week, and people wanting to buy scooters may have to wait months.
Not just commuters but elderly people in Japan use scooters to make simple travel easier. Teenagers and kids use them for kicks (and sometimes gravity-defying tricks), while other fans have practically made scootering a sport.
Four years ago Naoya Nishinaga, now 23, traveled from one end of Japan to the other on his foot-powered scooter. He then did 5,000 kilometers (over 3,000 miles) along the coast of Australia before packing self and scooter off to Europe. On the road Nishinaga scoots about 70 kilometers (43 miles) a day, alternating legs every few pushes so as to build muscle evenly.
Putting on the Brakes
Foot-powered scooters travel about 4 m.ph., while motorized models can go closer to 15 m.p.h. That's just fast enough that some people consider the toys a nuisance—careless riders have knocked down pedestrians, and scooting criminals have made off with handbags and other loot.
Despite their widespread popularity, the sleek toys have sparked worries and complaints. They can be unsafe in the street but are often illegal on sidewalks or bike paths. No traffic rules apply to them, and few of their riders wear helmets.
Currently, scooters are illegal in Canada's Quebec province. Although police often ignore scooting, in theory scooting to work in Montreal could bring fines of up to US$90. And since several English policemen were knocked over by speedy scooters, there has been a movement to ban scooters within the City of London.
Once Upon a Scooter
Scooters were invented in Germany in 1817. In the United States, scooters first enjoyed wide popularity during the Great Depression, when many children built their own scooters from recycled wood. Scooters had a small surge of popularity in the 1950s and were trendy off and on until pretty much being replaced by skateboards in the 1980s.
Unlike bikes, scooters are portable—you can fold one up and stash it in a backpack. Unlike cars, they're relatively cheap and don't need to be fed. And they're safer and easier to use than skateboards or roller blades. The most popular U.S. model weighs 6 pounds and costs about $100. | <urn:uuid:8d268a40-9b2c-4bc0-bcd6-20cebd3950fb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.infoplease.com/spot/scooter1.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96209 | 755 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Roanoke College Upward Bound program not funded by federal government
Salem, Va. -- Roanoke College recently was notified by the U.S. Department of Education that our grant for the Upward Bound program has not been funded by the federal government for the coming five-year cycle. The summer residential program for 70 high school students was set to begin in June, but it has been cancelled due to funding issues.
Roanoke College Upward Bound staff members notified the teaching staff, students and their parents and have notified the seven area target high schools served by the program. Roanoke College officials are making every effort to appeal to the U.S. Congress for restoration of Upward Bound funding. However, due to the uncertainty of the funding situation, the College had to cancel the 2012 summer residential program. "We sincerely regret the cancellation of the summer program and had hoped to avoid this drastic step," Theresa Jackson, director of Upward Bound at Roanoke College, said.
If efforts to appeal the funding are successful and funding is restored, the program may continue with the academic year program. If the funding is not restored, target area high school students will no longer benefit from the services, support and enrichment provided by Upward Bound at Roanoke College.
Since 1965, Roanoke has hosted Upward Bound, one of the oldest federally-funded TRIO programs in the country, and has served hundreds of students in the Roanoke area. Upward Bound is a highly successful college bound program that assists socioeconomically disadvantaged high school students in developing necessary skills for success in college.
Typically 90-100 percent of the Roanoke College Upward Bound participants retained through 12th grade graduate from high school, and close to 90 percent of the students retained in Upward Bound through 12th grade enroll in college.
Since the beginning of the current funding cycle which began in 2007, Roanoke College Upward Bound has served more than 180 students. Of this number, approximately 116 entered college, and at least 55 percent of the 116 students were still enrolled during the fall of 2011.
Roanoke College Upward Bound alumni have earned degrees from:
Appalachian State University, College of William and Mary, East Tennessee State University, Ferrum College, George Mason University, Greensboro College, Hampton University, Hollins University, Howard University, James Madison University, Kent State University, Longwood University, Lynchburg College, New Mexico State University, North Carolina A & T State University, North Carolina Central, Old Dominion University, Radford University, Roanoke College, Shenandoah University, Spelman College, UNC-Chapel Hill, UNC-Greensboro, University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia State University, Virginia Tech, Virginia Western Community College, Winthrop University, and many other reputable institutions of higher education.
For more information about Upward Bound at Roanoke College, click here.
Roanoke College, a classic liberal arts college in Salem, Virginia, combines firsthand learning with valuable personal connections in a beautiful, undergraduate setting. Roanoke is one of just seven percent of colleges nationwide with a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation's oldest and most prestigious honor society. The Princeton Review lists Roanoke as the 18th most beautiful campus in its "Best 376 Colleges" 2012 guidebook.
- Public Relations
- (540) 375-2244; (540) 375-2242 | <urn:uuid:3b3efada-b470-4144-bfde-fbfcd7cb6acd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://roanoke.edu/News_and_Events/Campus_News/Upward_Bound.htm?site=mobile | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953198 | 709 | 1.53125 | 2 |
By Ian Gilson, CFA
Origin Oil (OTC Markets:OOIL)
has announced that its Solids out of Solution (SOS) technology is capable of significantly reducing the concentration of ammonia in water, achieving a 99% in ammonia concentration in a test sample containing 30 ppm of ammonia. Ammonia is produced in the putrefaction of animal (or Piscean , the fishy smell) matter. It is poisonous to fish and has to be removed in aquaculture.
The company has agreed to develop a cooperative partnership with WeFeedUs, a Pennsylvania based aquaculture company, to test and validate the control of ammonia and bacteria in aquaculture. This is a $100 billion plus industry worldwide and algae is currently used as a fish food.
This is another example of Origin Oil's strategy of providing unique applications of its technology across many industries. Unfortunately there is a lag between the inventions, their applications and the generation of royalty revenue to the company. This lag has had an impact of the stock price and this may continue. As a result we have decided to reduce our recommendation from Outperform to Neutral and we will reassess this as the applications move closer to revenue generation.
For a free copy of the full OOIL research report, please click here: OOIL 2-6-13
For additional research on small-cap stocks, please visit scr.zacks.com.
To become a subscriber to Zacks SCR and receive SCR blogs and research reports emailed directly to your inbox, please visit our Subscribe page. | <urn:uuid:7c05c21d-4b98-496f-b67c-76d3f69723cc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://scr.zacks.com/News/Press-Releases/Press-Release-Details/2013/OOIL-The-companys-technology-can-be-used-in-the-100-billion-aquaculture-industry-to--remove-toxins/default.aspx | 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 | 0.953498 | 319 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Presidential candidate Rick Santorum would like to see America on its knees — in prayer. The financial crisis has already left America in more of a prostrate position, so lifting the nation onto its knees is not entirely a bad idea.
However, there are a number of methods that could bring America to this position that do not involve Santorum’s narrow version of Christianity — secularism comes to mind.
Religion has no place in civil affairs, and it definitely has no place in presidential campaigns. Candidates on both sides of the aisle exploit religious Americans every election cycle because it is easy for them to do so. Religious Americans should be furious that this happens every cycle, but there is seldom any outrage. When you ascribe to theology that, when expressed radically, is so diametrically opposed to democracy, conflicts of interest are bound to occur.
Santorum has spent his campaign courting the Christian vote by capitalizing on this conflict of interest, blurring the line between church and state as he moves along the campaign trail.
On Sunday, Santorum told a Georgia audience that Obama’s agenda is not based on the Bible, but instead on “some phony theology.”
Santorum later clarified to CBS’s “Face the Nation” that he wasn’t talking about Obama’s Christianity when he mentioned his theology. He said he was talking about Obama’s worldview and “the way he approaches problems in this country.”
Santorum’s labeling of Obama’s worldview as his theology is beyond troubling. His inability to speak without relying on religious jargon should signal to skeptical Americans that something is amiss. Either he is trying to be quaint when he says things like Obama’s worldview “elevates the Earth above man,” as he said on “Face the Nation,” or he actually believes man was placed on earth to dominate it.
Santorum isn’t campaigning to be a member of the clergy — he’s running for president of the United States. He needs to remember that. | <urn:uuid:b52aa4d7-d796-4c8e-9fac-c99e038dcada> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thedailycougar.com/2012/02/20/religion-has-no-place-in-presidential-campaigns/comment-page-1/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970515 | 435 | 1.59375 | 2 |
By Taylor Gandossy
Adjust font size:
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- For 5-year-old Jackson Manford-Roach, Mother's Day means it's time to see his grandmothers.
"I don't need little lace gloves, which is what [Jackson and his classmates] made this year," Jeffrey Roach, one of Jackson's two fathers, said. "The other kids always ask who he's making the stuff for and he always makes his for his grandma."
Jackson is one of 65,000 adopted children being raised by same-sex parents in the United States, according to a March 2007 report compiled by the Urban Institute and the Williams Institute at University of California at Los Angeles School of Law.
The same report estimates more than 14,100 foster children were living with one or more gay or lesbian foster parent.
Roach and his longtime partner, Ken Manford, adopted Jackson from Guatemala in 2001 and say he is not overly bothered by the non-traditional character of their family. (Audio slide show: One family's experience)
"We worry about it more than he does," Roach said, although the two fathers acknowledged that Jackson had been asking about "mom" lately.
"We're pretty upfront about it," Manford said. "You just ...say, 'If you had a mommy, then you wouldn't have two daddies. Is that what you want?' And he says, 'No I want two daddies and a mommy.'"
"Well, there's not a mommy, you've got grandma, and granny and Aunt Jennifer. And he'll say, 'OK.'"
Though denied the right to marry in every state except Massachusetts, more and more same-sex couples are turning to adoption and foster care to form families, according to child adoption groups who study the issue.
Rob Calhoun and his partner, Clay Calhoun, of Avondale Estates, Georgia, have two adopted children -- 4-year-old daughter Rainey and son, Jimmy, who is 18 months old. The children share the same biological mother.
"We're not moms, we're not heterosexual. We're not biological parents," Rob Calhoun said. But "we're totally equal and just as loving as female parents, as straight parents, and biological parents."
"Love makes a family, not biology or gender," he added.
Facing prejudice, legal hurdles
Enduring the time-consuming adoption or foster care process is harrying enough for heterosexual couples, but gays and lesbians face additional complications.
Many states do not have specific laws or court decisions on gay adoption or gay foster parenting, according to Paul Cattes, director of public education for the American Civil Liberties Union's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender project.
Eleven states and Washington, D.C. either implicitly or explicitly state that sexual orientation cannot legally prevent gay and lesbians from adopting, according to the Urban Institute report. (See the fact box to the left.)
Three states have laws denying gays and lesbians the right to adopt or take in foster children.
Though Mississippi allows single gays and lesbians to adopt, it prohibits same-sex couples from adopting. Utah excludes same-sex couples indirectly through a statute barring all unmarried couples from adopting or taking in foster children.
Florida is currently the only state that specifically bans "homosexual" individuals from adopting, although the state does allow them to be foster parents.
In the remaining 36 states, gays and lesbians who want to adopt or take in foster care children are at the mercy of judges and adoption and foster agencies, according to the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, a non-profit organization that studies adoption and foster care.
And although the institute says about 60 percent of all adoption agencies accept applications from gays and lesbians, they are often confronted with prejudice during the process.
Paula Prettyman's partner, Kelly Schlageter, used a sperm donor and gave birth to twin girls about six months ago. But Prettyman cannot adopt them because of a Virginia law that prohibits second-parent adoption unless the couple is married.
"In the minds of a lot of policymakers and politicians, I'm an unfit parent, but we spent tens of thousands of dollars and many years and many hours and a lot of emotional expense to bring these two beautiful girls into the world," Prettyman said. "And they are loved."
Others face opposition after being approved for adoption or foster care. For the Manford-Roach family, difficulties arose when they first tried to hyphenate Jackson's last name.
The judge overseeing the legal procedure in Dallas, Texas, crumpled up the paper and threw it over her shoulder when she realized they were a same-sex couple, Manford said.
"Get out of my courtroom, I would never do this for you," the judge said, according to Manford.
While it has not galvanized opposition as forcefully as the issue of same-sex marriage, polls show the American public is divided about gay and lesbian adoption.
According to a March 2006 Pew Research Center poll, 46 percent of Americans support gay and lesbian adoption, up from 38 percent in 1999. (Read how a new poll suggests even more Americans approve of adoption by same-sex couples)
Some opponents argue that gay or lesbian households suffer from not having both a mom and a dad.
"Love alone is not enough to guarantee healthy growth and development," James Dobson -- the head of Focus on the Family, a socially conservative organization -- wrote in a commentary for Time magazine in December 2006.
"The two most loving women in the world cannot provide a daddy for a little boy, any more than the two most loving men can be complete role models for a little girl."
But there are millions of single heterosexual mothers and fathers and foster parents, legally raising children across the country. Some find it hard to see how children of same-sex couples or single gay parents are somehow worse off.
"There is no credible social science evidence to support that gay parenting -- and by extension, gay adoptive parenting -- negatively affects the well-being of children," said Adam Pertman, executive director of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute.
"It's quite clear that children do fine in homes led by gays and lesbians. That's a pretty basic bottom line."
Pertman says his organization is not particularly involved in gay and lesbian issues - they support gay and lesbian parenting because it "serves children's interests."
Several organizations -- the National Adoption Center, the American Medical Association, American Psychological Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics -- also say that having gay and lesbian parents does not negatively affect children.
Other proponents, like Rob Woronoff of the Child Welfare League of America, argue shutting off adoption and foster care to gays and lesbians adversely affects children because it narrows the pool of potential parents.
"There's no rational reason to exclude someone [who clears the vetting process]," he said.
"Anyone who clears all of those hurdles ... should be able to have a child."
Clay Calhoun, left, and Rob Calhoun adopted Rainey and Jimmy.
Eleven states and Washington, D.C. either implicitly or explicitly state that sexual orientation cannot legally prevent gay and lesbians from adopting. The list of states includes:
California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, New Jersey, Indiana, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Vermont.
Source: The Urban Institute
Quick Job Search | <urn:uuid:c74b9292-123f-4bcd-aba3-67d565030347> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/06/25/gay.adoption/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946734 | 1,545 | 1.828125 | 2 |
- Our Games
- Free RPGs
- Story Engines
- Cancer Fund Donation Items
- Game Systems
Original D&D -- Finding the Rules
TSR kept the Original D&D in print for the last six years of the 1970s. While they are now out of print, copies of the later printings are easy to get (and often very affordable) on eBay -- click here for more information on buying Original D&D items on eBay. Copies in PDF format are also available for US$5 or US$6 a book or set. A PDF of the Blackmoor supplement is even available for free on the author's web site. Click on each rules item in the right column to go to a page with more information on the item and how to obtain it.
Fan Rules Restatements
Fan "restatements" of older editions of D&D using the Open Gaming License and D&D SRD from Wizards of the Coast have become fairly popular in recent years. Such a retroclone of Original D&D is now available. It's called Swords & Wizardry and you can find out more about it here:
Also, one fan has put a hypertext version of the combined Original D&D Boxed Set and Greyhawk rules on the web. Unfortunately, this set leaves a number of important details out -- like how much damage a monster can take before it is dead -- which means it is really only useful for those who already have a copy of the rules.
What Rules Do I Really Need?
The original edition of D&D has a number of rulebooks, however, most are not necessary to play the game. All you really need is a copy of the White Box set of rules. The Greyhawk supplement adds quite a bit to the game and many OD&D players and Dungeon Masters use these additional rules. You will need a copy of Chainmail if you want to use the original combat system instead of the optional system. Everything else for OD&D is optional.
That said, I personally recommend starting with the Holmes Basic Set rules. They are a great introduction to Original D&D. As they are only about 50 pages, you can buy the PDF and print it out at very little cost. While the Holmes Basic Set rules only take you to third level, with the free four page pdf fan "Holmes Companion" you can go to sixth level with no additional purchases. You can then get copies of the White Box rules if you find you like playing OD&D. Pick up a pdf copy of either the B1 or B2 module (which work almost as well with Original D&D as classical D&D) and you are ready to play. Total cost, about US$10. | <urn:uuid:1a5d706a-2fc8-49fa-aa0b-a107e2d12efd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.retroroleplaying.com/book/odd-rules | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930638 | 563 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Five of J. D. Salinger’s short stories appeared the Post in 1944 and ’45: “The Varoni Brothers”, “Both Parties Concerned”, “Last Day of the Last Furlough”, a “Soft-Boiled Sergeant,” and “A Boy in France,” which will appear in the July/August 2010 edition of The Saturday Evening Post.
In the April, 1944, issue in which “Soft-Boiled Sargeant” appeared, the Post included this small vignette about the early life of the famous, highly talented, and reclusive writer.
A Thin Slice of College
J D. Salinger at the ripe-on-the-bough old age of twenty-five regards himself as the dean of college failures, having been in the freshman class of three colleges but never having quite got into a sophomore class. The apparent reason for this was an allergy to elm trees and ivy.
Mr. Salinger finally overcame his aversion to academy life long enough to take a short-story course at Columbia under Whit Burnett, editor of Story, who published a story of Mr. Salinger’s in his magazine four years ago.
Previous to that successful foray into education, Mr. Salinger had breezed through the grammar schools of his native Manhattan and the Valley Forge Military Academy. He went to Europe at the age of eighteen to learn the Polish ham business from the sty up, and actually spent two months at Bydgoszcz (Polish pigs are fed a daily ration of szcz mixed with a little wcyz), where he helped slaughter pigs and drove by wagon through the snow with a big slaughter master who amused himself between slaughters by popping with his shotgun at sparrows, light bulbs and fellow employees. Both before and after this tenuous apprenticeship, young Mr. Salinger spent his time in Vienna. All of this was, of course, prewar.
Mr. Salinger now has the same number of stripes on his sleeve as his soft-boiled sergeant. | <urn:uuid:867e26f3-a217-4c8f-838e-e4e15f09e8f4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2010/01/30/archives/classic-fiction/softboiled-sergeant-salinger.html/comment-page-1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972905 | 440 | 1.671875 | 2 |
A man hangs a poster in Tahrir Square several days before the second anniversary of the uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak. / Sarah Lynch for USA TODAY
CAIRO ‚?? The sun beat down on tattered tents throughout Tahrir Square on a recent afternoon as protesters prepared for new demonstrations two years after marching in those that ousted Hosni Mubarak.
"When our revolution started, it was something incredible," said Hossam Mostafa, 29, sitting in the square and remembering the days he demonstrated against the dictator. "We wanted to change the whole system and everything you can imagine."
Now, on the second anniversary of the nationwide uprising that began on Jan. 25, 2011, Mostafa believes that the rights he fought for during the subsequent 18 days ‚?? bread, social justice and freedom ‚?? have yet to prevail in Egypt.
"Nothing has changed, but instead things have gotten worse," he said. "The economy is down, tourism is down, life in general is down."
The divide was apparent Friday in giant rallies in Cairo and elsewhere in which protesters complained that the goals of the pro-democracy uprising have not been met and that Islamist President Mohammed Morsi was turning Egypt into another dictatorship.
Thousands of demonstrators filled Tahrir Square and outside the presidential palace in the city's Heliopolis district. Arab Spring chants of Leave! Leave!" and "the people want to topple the regime" could be heard. They demanded freedom of expression and an independent judiciary.
Despite stagnancy and setbacks, however, there have also been gains, and some optimism remains, as Egypt continues on its precarious path to stable democracy.
"One of the very important changes that has taken place is the participation of people from all ages, social backgrounds, in the political discourse today," said Walid Kazziha, a political science professor at the American University in Cairo. "In the future, perhaps, in five, 10 years' time, we will talk about the return of political consciousness to Egypt."
At a café in downtown Cairo, a handful of young revolutionaries sat night after night planning the Jan. 25, 2011, demonstrations that led to the overthrow of Mubarak. But in spite of their influence on the course of events that would change recent Egyptian history, liberal and secular groups have failed to effectively unite in the years since.
"They were unable to transfer their popular demands to real political action when they had the opportunity," said Robert Danin, Egypt expert at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Instead, the Muslim Brotherhood, founded in 1928, won the most seats of any party in parliament and later propelled Morsi to presidency. Other political parties with varying views and demands have also burgeoned in popularity and public presence, and demonstrations and protests continue in the streets, revealing a consistently vibrant political arena.
"People have been mobilized politically in a way that didn't exist previously," said Middle East analyst Michael Wahid Hanna of the Century Foundation, a think tank in New York. "There is a different sense of relationship between citizens and government."
In a major milestone last year, Egypt made the transition to civilian rule when it democratically elected a president, pushing the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces ‚?? which ruled in the interim after Mubarak's ousting ‚?? from power. Late last year, Egypt passed a new constitution.
According to Freedom House, a United States-based non-governmental group, Egypt moved from "Not Free" to "Partly Free" in a recent report that examines freedoms around the world. The nation saw a boost in respect for political rights and civil liberties.
But Egypt has faced formidable problems, the report said, including a crackdown on civil society, a judicial ruling that dissolved an elected parliament on legal grounds and a power grab by President Morsi that his camp framed as necessary to protect democracy. At the end of last year, local press reports said opposition figures were being investigated for treason.
Moreover, while there have been gains in procedural democracy, political mobilization and political life, these haven't yet translated into institutional reform and a radical overhaul of public policy, said Hanna of the Century Foundation.
"The future of the Middle East will depend in significant ways on the success of Egypt's democratic experiment, which in turn rests at least in part on the ruling Islamists' commitment to democratic norms," the Freedom House report said. "In light of the past year's developments, the outcome remains very much an open question."
A key debate as the nation seeks to define itself has been the role of Islam in the state and how that relates to personal freedoms. Women, youth and Christians ‚?? constituting 10% of the population ‚?? looked forward after the revolution with high hopes to redeem long-waited equalities, said Youssef Sidhom, editor of the Coptic Christian weekly newspaper, Watani. But now they stand together against the domination of political Islam.
"If I speak for Coptic Christians, I would say that nothing has changed for the better," Sidhom said. "On the contrary maybe their concerns and worries about the future of the country have grown aggravated."
One point of concern for many is the new constitution, which passed in a nationwide vote last year amid stark opposition.
Heba Morayef of Human Rights Watch's Cairo office said the new charter is "very discouraging," and that among other problems it only guarantees Muslims, Christians and Jews the right to worship. It also stipulates broad limitations on expression.
"At the moment, there is still a lot of political space for critical expression and for demonstrations," Morayef said, noting a gain of the post-revolution period. "But because police abuse continues with impunity and because there has been a failure to actually reform any of the existing laws, it's not clear whether this moment is sustainable."
Egypt is also witnessing ongoing criminal prosecutions against journalists, made possible by the repressive framework of Mubarak's era.
Two years after the revolution, women, too, continue fighting for rights. Articles in the new constitution could undermine prospects for gender equality, and women have largely been excluded from decision-making bodies.
Nehad Abu El Komsan, director of the Egyptian Center for Women's Rights, said that neither liberal nor Islamist parties are fighting for women's rights and that she expects little from the new government, although she remains optimistic.
"We have women's voices and they have grown up, they became mature," El Komsan said. "I expect in 2013 women will have lots of changes ‚?? because of women.
Yet, as various segments of society seek to assert their aspirations, all face a struggling economy that could lead to further instability.
Foreign reserves dropped from $36 billion to around $15 billion over a two-year period and the Egyptian pound keeps falling to record lows against the U.S. dollar. Foreign and domestic investments have drastically slowed, and tourism ‚?? a major industry in Egypt ‚?? has dramatically suffered. Those in Cairo also complain of rising prices.
"You find sometimes people talking about the revolution of the hungry, and I think one has to look more seriously at this," said Kazziha of the American University in Cairo.
Since November, dozens died due to state neglect ‚?? 70 were killed in two train accidents and another 28 last week in a building collapse. Security across the country also remains weak, leading to a rise of violent crimes that in places like the Sinai Peninsula, which shares a border with Israel, could affect stability in the region.
Copyright 2013 USATODAY.com
Read the original story: Two years later, Egypt revolution has not quieted | <urn:uuid:b0ecdcc7-38ef-44d7-8928-2ef958008930> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dnj.com/usatoday/article/1860033?odyssey=mod_sectionstories | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964004 | 1,564 | 1.804688 | 2 |
EU Offers Funding for 5G, Even Though Most of Europe Still has No 4G Service
Neelie Kroes promised a!50M to kickstart research into 5G wireless, but slammed national regulators' poor spectrum management
Tue, February 26, 2013
IDG News Service (Brussels Bureau) — Although 17 of the 27 European Union member states still have no 4G mobile network, the E.U. is pushing for the continent to take a lead on the development of fifth-generation technologies.
The E.U. will invest A!50 million (US$66 million) in research in 2013 to develop the architecture and functionality needs for 5G, E.U. Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes announced Tuesday. The money will be spread between a number of projects, with the METIS (Mobile and wireless communications Enablers for the Twenty-twenty Information Society) project alone receiving A!16 million.
The effort is needed because the E.U. is "shooting itself in the foot" when it comes to the mobile industry, Kroes told ministers and industry CEOs in a closed session at the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona, according to a transcript of her speech.
Allocation of wireless frequencies in the E.U. is still a mess, according to Kroes. "The E.U. spectrum allocation maps look like a bowl of spaghetti," she said.
Kroes puts the blame for that on national authorities, saying that some E.U. countries see auctions as merely revenue-raising, rather than for the public interest through network investment.
She was also scathing about member states holding back frequency allocation.
"We want 1200Mhz of spectrum for wireless broadband. We've already allocated 1000, but most E.U. countries have only made 650 or less available. That is a huge waste, it's inexcusable," said Kroes. The E.U. defines the applications to which particular frequency bands may be put, leaving it to national regulators to determine who receives the licenses to provide the services in their territory.
The European Commission says there is a A!27 billion investment gap between the current mobile networks and the mobile networks Europe needs.
Part of that investment needs to be in researching the next generation of wireless technology, which the E.U. is offering to help kickstart. But Kroes wants the industry to play a role too, warning CEOs that global competitors are already investing heavily in 5G. She asked the heads of E.U. industry to join in a public-private partnership "to help us reach our common goal more coherently."
Kroes admitted that while many member states support broadband targets and are committed to a digital single market, when it comes down to details, their instinct is often to resist, to maintain the status quo and to protect vested interests in both public and private sectors. | <urn:uuid:54a5f315-5521-4ab3-8070-b9d3d077ad17> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cio.com/article/729419/EU_Offers_Funding_for_5G_Even_Though_Most_of_Europe_Still_has_No_4G_Service?source=rss_all | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951665 | 592 | 1.773438 | 2 |
World-renowned peace activist speaks at SF College
Published: Friday, January 18, 2013 at 10:53 p.m.
Last Modified: Friday, January 18, 2013 at 10:53 p.m.
Michael Allard didn’t have any questions. Just a heart that felt touched.
After hearing the Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell’s speech at Santa Fe College on Friday night, he stood and raised his hand.
“I just want to say thank you,” he said. “I don’t have a question. It was a very moving ceremony.”
Allard, 51, had just watched in wonder with roughly 200 other students and community members at the “Charter for Compassion” ceremony as Campbell, an internationally renowned peace activist, explained why compassion is so necessary in a world of so many faiths.
She was greeted with a standing ovation when she finished. Then she presided over the ceremony while SF College president Jackson Sasser signed the charter.
“It is a high, high honor,” Sasser said as he smiled at Campbell, touched her shoulder and held the freshly penned paper out to the crowd.
As a dual enrollment professor at Santa Fe, Allard said he felt a closer sense of kinship after the ceremony.
“It was about connecting with people,” he said. “To me, that’s an important ideal. Stop seeing each other as strangers and know we are more alike than different. It’s wonderful to see something like that.”
Campbell spoke about the Charter for Compassion, a cooperative effort to restore compassionate thinking to the center of religious life and transcend ideological and national differences, and how important that mindset is for the future.
“God cannot be owned or contained in one religion alone,” Campbell said.
In explaining why global compassion is imperative, Campbell didn’t yell; she didn’t whisper. She spoke with determination, like a woman who has witnessed the tragedies of violence.
“How do we create a society of equality?” she asked the audience. “How do we deliver compassion in our own country?”
It’s no easy feat, she said.
She would know. During the civil rights movement, Campbell worked with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. On Friday night, she recalled his courage, his warmth, his kindness.
She said people used to tell King that his work was eventually going to get him killed.
“It may be so,” was always his reply.
That’s what makes correcting a violent world both heart-breaking and challenging, she said — the sacrifices that people have to make.
Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged. | <urn:uuid:22274267-a705-489e-a30a-165234264765> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.gatorsports.com/article/20130118/ARTICLES/130119546/1002/www.gatorsports.com | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972004 | 609 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Top 100 Teams
Texas League (Double-A)
By Bill Weiss & Marshall Wright, Baseball Historians
The new 1902 Texas League entry from Corsicana, while finishing with one of the top marks in professional baseball history, is noteworthy for two other achievements. One was a fabulous winning streak that helped carry them to the pennant. The other was a single-game outburst, unduplicated before or since in the annals of the game.
The Corsicana entry, called the Oil Citys after the predominant industry in the area, broke out of the gate in 1902 at a gallop. The team won the first half of the season with an incredible 58-9 record (.866), 22 games over Dallas, which was the only other team on the plus side of the .500 mark. Embedded in this tremendous stretch was a 27-game winning streak, baseball’s best to that point. It was later equaled by the Minor League Orioles in 1921, and shattered by the Salt Lake City Trappers in 1987, who won 29 straight. Corsicana’s streak began June 8 and ran through July 5. The team outscored its opponents 287-77, winning six games by shutouts. Just three pitchers worked all those games. Lucky Wright won 10, Bellmont Method, 9 and Bob White, 8. The streak ended July 6 at Waco, two days before the conclusion of the first half, when Wright lost a 3-1 decision. It was during this magnificent skein that one of the most memorable games in Minor League history was played.
On May 5, just two weeks after the start of the season, Sherman-Denison owner and playing manager Cy Mulkey transferred his team to Texarkana. The Twins had lost 10 of their first 11 games and attendance was dwindling. In June, he sold the club to C.B. DeWitt, but stayed on as manager. On Sunday, June 15, Corsicana met Texarkana in a home game that was played in nearby Ennis because of Corsicana’s blue laws. The Oil Citys drubbed the Casketmakers by the unheard of score of 51-3. Corsicana catcher Justin “Nig” Clarke made baseball history by hitting eight home runs in 10 at-bats driving in 16 runs. The team had 53 hits, 29 for extra bases, including 21 homers. Every Corsicana batter except Wright, the pitcher, had at least one homer and five hits. In addition to Clarke, second baseman William (Alec) Alexander and left fielder Ike Pendleton each had eight hits. In all, 127 batters came to the plate for the two teams, yet the box score said the game was played in two hours and 10 minutes. One pitcher, identified as C.B. DeWitt, pitched the entire game for Texarkana.
The batting records for the June 15 game are somewhat tainted. Some published reports indicate the right field fence, over which all of Clarke’s long balls were hit, was only 210 feet from home plate. However, Walter Morris, Corsicana’s shortstop that day, was quoted in a 1940 interview with Fort Worth writer Zeke Handler, published in The Sporting News, as saying: “The right field fence at Ennis wasn’t more than 40 feet back of first base. Nig just pulled eight short flies around and over that wall. I’m not taking anything away from old Nig’s batting prowess, but that’s the way he hit eight homers that day. Didn’t have to send the ball more than 140 feet at the most.” Regarding the identity of the battered pitcher, Morris recalled, “Just before the affair started, a strapping youngster sought out Mulkey in the ballpark at Ennis and told him he was owner DeWitt’s son and had been sent by his father to pitch that day’s game. That made old Cy pretty sore, but he started the young fellow on the mound anyhow. We made seven and eight runs an inning for several frames. After each inning, Mulkey would walk by me and whisper ‘So, his old man sent him down to pitch today. Well, he’s damn sure pitchin.'”
Texarkana and Waco dropped out of the league on July 8 and the second half started the next day. Early in the second half, Morris, White and third baseman George Markley quit the team to play independent ball. The Oil Citys finished first in the second half (30-14, .682), but only seven games ahead of Dallas. With Corsicana winning both halves, there was no need for a playoff. The team finished the full campaign with an 87-23 record (.791). The club won 24 of 27 decisions from the Paris Homeseekers. That team had received its nickname in July, when the owner made a deal to transfer the franchise to Houston before getting the approval of the other clubs. They later denied him permission to move -- and Paris played most of its remaining games on the road.
Corsicana was managed by first baseman “Big Mike” O’Connor. Standing 6-foot-5, O’Connor wouldn’t be noticed today, but 100 years ago he towered above the other players. He managed Fort Worth in the Texas League’s inaugural season, 1888, and played or managed in every season the league operated through 1905. He piloted nine different teams in all. O’Connor’s health began to fail in 1905, and he died in the state hospital at Austin in 1906.
Due to poor record-keeping, only the statistics for the second half were kept -- and rudimentary ones at that. These scanty records only document games played and batting averages for players with more than 20 games, with no pitching stats included. The team’s best averages posted in the second half included shortstop Hunter Hill (.361), outfielder Curley Maloney (.341) and O’Connor (.305)
Four members of the club went on to see action in the Major Leagues. Hill played for the Browns and Senators from 1903 to 1905, batting .216 in that span, while Clarke served in 506 big league games, mostly for Cleveland, hitting .254 with two fewer home runs (6) in 1,536 at-bats than his one-game total on June 15, 1902. In addition, pitcher Lucky Wright went 0-4, 3.21 for Cleveland in 1909, while shortstop Walter Morris batted .178 for the Browns in 1908.
Several of the 1902 Oil Citys were prominent figures in the early days of the Texas League. Maloney’s Texas League career spanned 24 years, from 1889 through 1912. He managed Dallas for seven seasons, 1905-11, and was playing as late as 1910. Pendleton played for five different clubs from 1899-1910. Alexander played 15 seasons with nine teams, and holds the Texas League record for the longest span between his first and last appearances, 34 years (1895, 1929). Infielder Ben Shelton, who joined Corsicana during the second half, played and managed in the league from 1899-1909.
J. Walter Morris, as he was always called in later years, joined the Oil Citys from the University of Texas law school. He played in the South Texas League and Southern Association from 1903-1905, beginning his managerial career at the age of 24 with Beaumont in 1904. He managed Savannah (South Atlantic League) from 1906-08, until he was bought by the Browns late in 1908. After the 1909 season, Morris purchased the Fort Worth franchise, and from 1910-1914 he was club president, manager and shortstop. He sold the club the next year and was out of baseball for several months. In October 1915, he was elected Texas League president and served until 1920. During that period, he also was the National Board member for Class B Leagues. In addition, in 1920-21, he was president of the newly organized West Texas League. In September 1921, Morris and a partner purchased the Dallas club. He was business manager until 1928 and managed the Steers on the field from 1922-24.
Morris sold his Dallas interests in May 1928, to take over the Akron club in the Central League. He was in private business from 1929-31, then returned to baseball as business manager of Shreveport in 1932 and Fort Worth in 1933. For several years, starting in 1934, he was a league organizer for the National Association. In 1936-37 he served as president of three leagues simultaneously, the Cotton States (Class C), East Texas (Class C) and Evangeline (Class D). Morris returned to the Texas League as business manager at Shreveport in 1938-39 and Fort Worth in 1940. The next three years he scouted for the Detroit Tigers.
After World War II, Morris again was a league president, for the East Texas League in 1946-47, the Evangeline League from 1946-48, and the Class B Big State League from 1948-50. He retired at the end of the 1950 season. Morris was credited with personally organizing 13 leagues, and was president of six leagues at one time or another.
Corsicana remained in the Texas League through the 1905 season, finishing no higher than second. On June 1, 1905, the "Oilers," in last place with a 10-30 record, dropped out of the league. Two years later, a team called the Desperados joined the Class D North Texas League for a short stay. The club was in first place on June 28, with a 38-21 record, when Greenville folded, causing the circuit to fold. In 1914, 1915 and 1917, Corsicana joined the Class D Central Texas League, fielding teams that did little to distinguish themselves.
In the 1920s, Corsicana entered three different leagues, the Texas-Oklahoma (1922), Texas Association (1923-26) and Lone Star (1927-28). The 1922 team carried the unique nickname of the Gumbo Busters. During these seven seasons, Corsicana won a pair of flags in 1924 and 1925. Following a fifth place finish in 1928, Corsicana left pro ball, never to return.
The 1902 Oil Citys are mostly remembered for their fantastic winning streak, as well as their unique dismantling of the Texarkana club in June. However, what is most important about this club is its record.
Of all the 20th century Minor League Baseball clubs that played full season schedules, only one managed to better Corsicana’s .791 single-season winning percentage.
|1902 Texas League Standings|
|1902 Corsicana Oil Citys batting statistics|
Pitching statistics not available. | <urn:uuid:9eabe08d-d1fc-40b2-8bf5-2fb29f2d9cbf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.milb.com/milb/history/top100.jsp?idx=51 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96905 | 2,254 | 1.570313 | 2 |
This year parents plan to spend 12% more for their back-to-school purchases this year, or an average of $675.00. Categories showing the most growth are where children show the most growth: shoes and clothing.
Along with the kids, spending has grown, but the time between back-to-school shopping and the first day of school has actually been getting shorter and shorter. Yes, there have been reports that consumers are out shopping, but that’s a view that has been exacerbated by retailers advertising good-better-best promotions over a longer and longer period of time. So, yes, people are looking, but timing is everything – in retail and in research.
When you interview consumers is very nearly as important as what you ask them. Ask too soon and you get exaggerated and illusory figures. You need to get the timing right and actually get measures of what consumers really think and do – and not what they say they’re thinking about doing. Do that and you also get figures you can take to the bank, so we interviewed 10,000 U.S. households with school-aged children, pre-school through 12th grade to discover what was really happening in the marketplace.
Unlike other major purchase events like Mother’s Day, there’s a more unbalanced distribution in terms of retail outlets benefiting from consumers’ back-to-school shopping that looks like this:
Discount Stores 92% (-3%)
Online 54% (+33%)
Department Stores 50% (-8%)
Office Supply 45% (-5%)
Specialty Retailers 30% (-10%)
Catalogs 29% (-6%)
The largest change in preferred retail distribution platforms occurred in the Online category, where more consumers indicated that they were going online to search out deals and promotions, rather than to specific brick-and-mortar outlets themselves. This year the top-10 list of retailers showing the greatest increases in consumer intent-to-shop includes:
While reported increases in spend will be welcome by all retailers, the money will be slower coming in than previous years. The genesis of a shorter back-to-school purchase cycle is a consequence of increased levels of consumer expectations. Retailers have spent more than a decade teaching consumers they can get something cheaper if they wait longer or look a little harder, so consumers are continuing to put off purchases until they absolutely have to buy or they feel there are no better deals to be had. This year’s survey showed that three-quarters of consumers (75%) were intending to wait till the end of August and shop just before schools open
Sure, every year consumers expect more, but it’s a serious error to suggest that the price-value equation is only about money. The economy always has an impact on overall spend and this year only 80% of consumers indicated that the economy was impacting their back-to-school shopping. That’s down 7% from last year, so given the ubiquity of merchandise range, overall quality, and pricing strategies, what brands get what piece of the academic pie will ultimately be determined by what retail brands actually stand for. | <urn:uuid:ff585db4-923a-45f2-b282-829a09dddd93> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare/2012/08/09/amazon-apple-and-zappos-teach-a-back-to-school-lesson-the-4th-r-real-brand-differentiation/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970191 | 645 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Read about students in the creative writing program.
Students who are passionate about writing can develop their interests at Point Park University through hands-on workshop classes and literary seminars. Undergraduates can pursue a creative writing major or a minor working in a variety of genres including:
Read a Q&A and watch a video interview with English/creative writing major Jesse Padjune.
- Creative Nonfiction
The creative writing program offers a series of workshop courses in which students focus on practicing and refining their craft. The seminars, from introductory to advanced, are based on the production of creative work and constructive feedback from faculty and fellow students. The workshops are the hallmark of Point Park’s writing program and are designed specifically for the University’s creative student population.
Undergraduates in the creative writing program will also take a slate of diverse literature courses so that they may constantly be engaging the life of a literary text at every point -- from the first draft's raw inspiration to the published work's ongoing vitality, apart from its author's vision or context. Students must complete one course in the form and theory, culture and tradition of creative writing. Students in the major will also complete a capstone seminar in which they write a 30-40 page manuscript in their selected genre.
More Hands-On Experience
Point Park offers students in the program rich opportunities for practical experience. In addition to the craft-oriented workshops, the University hosts a literary artists club and regularly welcomes nationally known authors to lecture and work with its writing students.
Students in the creative writing program:
- Analyze important works in the genres they study;
- Define the most important elements of genres they study;
- Apply their understanding of creative genres by writing their own creative works;
- Refine their voices as writers; and
- Prepare to pursue an MFA degree or a career in the arts or other profession.
You will receive a well-rounded education through Point Park's core curriculum and classes in your major. Some of the courses in the English/creative writing program include:
- Creative Nonfiction Workshop
- Major American Authors
- Fiction Workshop
- The English Novel
- Poetry Workshop
For a comprehensive list of program requirements and course descriptions, see the program guide and School of Arts and Sciences course descriptions. Students can also choose to minor in English/creative writing.
With a degree in English/creative writing, you will have the option to pursue various career opportunities, such as:
Point Park Writers' Series
The Department of Humanities and Human Sciences in the School of Arts and Sciences hosts Writers’ Series events on campus each year. These events include public lectures and master classes in the areas of fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Learn more. | <urn:uuid:9bad770d-04a1-40a3-a860-e24e0fb985f8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pointpark.edu/Academics/Schools/SchoolofArtsandSciences/Departments/HumanitiesandHumanSciences/EnglishwithConcentrationinCreativeWriting | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944355 | 565 | 1.742188 | 2 |
|| Email | Full Article (TrendHunter.com/id/147631)|
A dry marker often produces lines that aren’t desirable to look at, but Chun Fui Ng has managed to harness that faded ink look to produce fashion illustrations that are truly one of a kind. The Malaysian artist, who also works under the pseudonym Floyd Grey, uses various degrees of faint marker strokes to define value in his subjects and to produce patterns on their apparel. He couples that with a natural talent for using negative space to render images that are elegant and distinct to him and him alone. It should come as no surprise that Ng is a highly sought after artist by fashion houses everywhere.
Many will be surprised to learn Chun Fui Ng makes these illustrations entirely in Photoshop. To achieve the marker effect, he had to create his own custom brushes that taper off depending on his pen tablet’s pressure sensitivity. | <urn:uuid:145a6b54-d3cd-4268-813e-563d6bec196d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.trendhunter.com/printView/chun-fui-ng | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977533 | 184 | 1.695313 | 2 |
In London, Islamic Radicals Found a Haven
Sunday, July 10, 2005
LONDON, July 9 -- On the morning after bombs ripped through the London Underground and crumpled a double-decker bus, four security guards escorted a one-eyed, Egyptian-born cleric, his arms amputated below the elbows from Afghan war injuries, onto the elevated dock of Courtroom No. 1 in Old Bailey, the capital's principal criminal court.
Abu Hamza Masri, for years a blood-curdling preacher at a North London mosque allegedly visited by shoe bomber Richard Reid and hijacker trainee Zacarias Moussaoui, listened silently Friday as his lawyer argued about his indictment last January on nine counts of incitement to murder for speeches that allegedly promoted mass violence against non-Muslims. In one speech cited in a British documentary film, Masri urged followers to get an infidel "and crush his head in your arms, so you can wring his throat. Forget wasting a bullet, cut them in half!"
Masri's case is just one of several dozen that describe the venom, sprawling shape and deep history of al Qaeda and related extremist groups in London. Osama bin Laden opened a political and media office here as far back as 1994; it closed four years later when his local lieutenant, Khalid Fawwaz, was arrested for aiding al Qaeda's attack on two U.S. embassies in Africa.
As bin Laden's ideology of making war on the West spread in the years before Sept. 11, 2001, London became "the Star Wars bar scene" for Islamic radicals, as former White House counterterrorism official Steven Simon called it, attracting a polyglot group of intellectuals, preachers, financiers, arms traders, technology specialists, forgers, travel organizers and foot soldiers.
Today, al Qaeda and its offshoots retain broader connections to London than to any other city in Europe, according to evidence from terrorist prosecutions. Evidence shows at least a supporting connection to London groups or individuals in many of the al Qaeda-related attacks of the past seven years. Among them are the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania; the assassination of Afghan militia leader Ahmed Shah Massoud on Sept. 9, 2001; outer rings of the Sept. 11 conspiracy, involving Moussaoui and the surveillance of financial targets in Washington and New York; Reid's attempted shoe bomb attack in December 2001; and the murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in 2002.
The evidence in these and other cases describes al Qaeda connections here as remarkably diverse, ranging from the core organization's early formation through its phase of elaborately planned global strikes between 1999 and 2001, to its more recent period of diffuse franchises and younger volunteers to an attack this week that authorities here said bears al Qaeda's stamp. In the 1980s and 1990s, between 300 and 600 British citizens passed through Afghan training camps, officials here have acknowledged. Today, several recent cases suggest the seeding of a new generation of British residents who traveled as volunteers to fight with the insurgency in Iraq.
On June 15, 2002, at an Islamic community center in Milan, Italy, a cleric with alleged ties to al Qaeda was overheard in conversation with an Arab from Germany, according to a transcript of the wiretap later published in Italy. The Arab spoke of his 10-person cell in Germany and the group's "interest" in Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, Turkey, Egypt, Italy and France. "But the nerve center is still London," he reported.
A refuge and hub for Middle Eastern dissidents since the 19th century imperial era, the city has more recently attracted Islamic radicals with connections to Morocco, Egypt, Syria, the Persian Gulf and Pakistan. London's radical fringe draws in part from the alienated edges of Britain's large and overwhelmingly peaceful Muslim immigrant population. But it has been influenced, too, by Britain's ambiguous policies toward exiled radicals, a sometimes awkward blend of asylum offers, intelligence collection and criminal prosecution.
Masri, for instance, received asylum in Britain from Egypt in the late '70s and British citizenship in 1981. He volunteered to fight in Afghanistan in the 1990s, then returned to Britain to preach justifications for violence against those he perceived to be Islam's enemies. Throughout, Masri met periodically with Britain's intelligence services and anti-terrorism police, who were investigating his activities. The government moved to strip him of citizenship, but only in late 2004 did the Crown Prosecution Service conclude it had enough evidence to bring criminal charges, even though some of the speeches it relied on had taken place years before.
"We're not an investigative authority. We can only review evidence brought to us by the police," said a spokesman for the prosecutors, explaining the delay. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because Masri's case is scheduled for trial soon. "There must be a sufficient chance of successful conviction" before charges will be filed.
Radical Islamic exiles value London as a base in part because "the legal system is quite stable and it cannot be influenced by politicians or by public opinion," said Saad Faqih, a Saudi dissident accused by the U.S. Treasury Department of providing financial support to al Qaeda because of his alleged role in the 1998 purchase of a satellite phone used by bin Laden.
Faqih said he had no connection to al Qaeda or to violence and that his primary focus was the overthrow of the Saudi royal family through political advocacy and organizing. His British assets have been frozen because of the U.S. Treasury designation, but Faqih has not been charged criminally here. On Thursday, a previously unknown group calling itself the Secret Organization of al Qaeda in Europe asserted responsibility for the London bombings in a posting on a radical Islamic Web site allegedly connected to Faqih; he denied running the site, a bulletin board with the Arabic name for fortress that was registered just a week after the Sept. 11 attacks. | <urn:uuid:9498478d-4be6-4ee4-8f66-d3f91b007372> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/09/AR2005070901390.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966825 | 1,210 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Hi. I have an opportunity to buy a sennheiser hd600 for a good price. However, I keep reading online stuff about having an AMP. I plan on using the HD600 with my desktop speaker system (there's a 3.5mm jack). I currently have the HD515 and it works pretty well (the bass is very muddy though).
Anyway can someone tell me two things: in laymen's terms, what does an AMP bring to the table? And do I need one for use with a desktop? Thanks | <urn:uuid:371de81a-6272-4fad-a5e5-8d111d700a8d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/54885-6-sennheiser-hd600 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975955 | 112 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Searching for Friday's Child is the story of one young man and the closeness he shared with his family...a closeness which held them all together throughout the harrowing days of World War II in spite of their separation by many geographical miles.
Howard Irish, graduated less than a year from Michigan State College is called to active duty with the Coast Artillery branch of the Army in May of 1941. In August he is sent to the Philippine Islands in the Pacific to what seems at the time to be a country club assignment. Corregidor Island, lush and tropical, is filled with enviable recreational pursuits, friends, servants. Life takes on a relaxed easy air. Howard notes, however, that the West Point graduates who are his superior officers are much more sharp than any he has served under heretofore. Undercurrents of impending war causes him to naively think..."we sorta wish that if a war is going to start it would hurry up because it wouldn't take long." Howard enjoys many aspects of the Philippines but he misses his family and the girl he left behind who had so desperately wanted to marry him before he left.
Howard writes long detailed letters home to his family and girlfriend. His mother saved all of his letters. After December 7, 1941 when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and portions of the Philippine Islands she had no information at all as to what had happened to her son. She wrote tirelessly to anyone who might know him or know someone who might possibly have come in contact with him. More than fifty years later Howard's sister opens the letters, telegrams and clippings her mother saved and finds herself compelled to continue her mother's pursuit for information.
Searching for Friday's Child chronicles Howard's story in unexpected and rewarding ways. A story to touch your heart and remember.
Marjorie Irish Randell was born and raised on a farm in western Michigan in the pre-war years of the Depression. Her closely knit family was interested in music and the arts as well as the day to day work of a farm. An English teacher in her freshman year of high school planted the seed in her mind that she could write. Her first year in college was marked with extra English courses and Creative Writing classes at the YWCA. World War II called a halt to education and found her enlisted in the US Marine Corps Women's Reserve. She married newly commissioned Army Air Corps Pilot Edward Randell in 1943 and formal education was put off until retirement in the 1980's. Raising four sons filled the years but always long detailed letters kept flying between California where she made her home and Michigan where her parents still lived.
When she retired from selling real estate she began taking classes in creative writing and putting into words the short stories that had been living in the back of her mind. She enrolled in college again, but it wasn't until after her mother died when Marjorie found the letters, telegrams, clippings and pictures her mother had saved that she was stimulated to put her brother's story into a book. The Irish family...Marjorie, her brother Howard and her parents were a particularly close family and the loss of her brother has permeated her life. The writing of his story is a memorial to that family and to the young man who gave his life for us.
Marjorie has put together an anthology of her short stories which speak of another era that may otherwise be forgotten. At present she lives with her husband in the foothills of the High Sierras in California and is working on a new contemporary novel. | <urn:uuid:0263e26b-4b93-4688-943d-ce0b1e51347d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bookstore.trafford.com/Products/SKU-000148946/Searching-For-Fridays-Child.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988466 | 724 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Vegan - Vegetarian - Human Rights - Animal Rights - People - Animals - Love - Compassion - Peace - Justice - Righteousness - God - Bible - Jewish - Christian - Jesus - Christ - Holy Spirit - Soul - Spirit - Wisdom - Knowledge - Environment
Claudette Vaughan, Editor of Abolitionist Online, interviews Nita Hontoveros, May 2007
Nita Hontoveros – Lichauco is a formidable and gracious woman. She is President of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS). We first met her in Hong Kong at the 2003 Asia for Animals Conference. She told the conference then that, “the sight of agonising dogs ranging from 54 up to 300 can make you so angry that you lose all fear of facing the dogmeat traders and yelling at slow-moving police”. For years she agonised over what was the quickest and most economical way to teach the greatest number of Philippino people humaneness especially towards dogs. Then it dawned on her. In a predominant Catholic country why not try the blessing of animals in churches on the Feast of St Francis of Assisi? Here is her story.
Abolitionist: Please speak about the Blessings of the Animals. Why did you get this off the ground Nita?
Nita: In the Philippines, a 90% Catholic country, the Church wields a tremendous influence on society. The most powerful politicians woo the Church’s endorsement come elections time. As the years went on, there was increased cruelty to animals, specially to dogs, cats and horses. We searched for the fastest and most economical way of getting humane messages to our people, who were mostly ignorant that animals suffer like we humans do. Then, I hit upon the idea: Why not church Blessings? The Philippines is predominantly Roman Catholic, and almost anything linked to religion catches attention. It took me seven full years to get the parish priests of my parish to listen. But the moment my parish started the animal blessings, to honour St. Francis of Assisi, the idea took hold and many churches followed suit.
Today the PAWS animal blessings have a different theme every year, to keep the excitement high: a procession with a child holding up a statue of St Francis; dogs and cats with appealing “Please Take Me Home” tags because they had lost their families and homes in disastrous landslides; a baby orangutan ambling up the aisle; Dr Dogs carrying fruit and flowers to the alter during the Offertory; a stage actor in St Francis of Assisi garb appearing at the alter to give a brief message of love and care of the animals; a parade of 20 military service dogs with their handlers in full uniform, to honour the brave dogs who rescued the distressed during September 11 tragedy in New York. Every year there’s a different theme.
PAWS is a small group that dared, and continues to dare.
We have an obligation also to our volunteers. If the animal blessings were the spark that lit the flame, the next problem was how to keep the flame burning, and what other way than to have dedicated volunteers stroking it? Over the years, volunteers would come and go, mostly go. We found that those who stayed were the ones who were tapped for planning and preparations of our major activities. They were given the opportunity to use their talents at something that served the cause for animals. Those who knew how to draw did the humane education materials, those who could write did letters to government, or articles for newspapers, the entrepreneurs conceptualized fund-raising projects, even acting and singing were used to spice up our humane education and Dr Dog sessions for kids in schools and institutions.
Abolitionist: What is the Catholic Philippines like for animal advocacy?
Nita: Getting there, but more through animal lovers yet all the time there are more and more animal advocacy groups forming in this country. Sadly, though, many religious groups - priests and nuns- in the Catholic Church are still lacking in elevated consciousness about the rights of animals.
Abolitionist: Will you tell us the story about Cardinal Jaime Sin as he sounds like a character.
Nita: Indeed he is! Jaime Cardinal Sin (that's his official name) was loved and hated at the same time because he was a meddler in politics. He was a leading figure in the Edsa Revolution movement that unseated the dictator Ferdinand Marcos. Since he was so prominent in the public eye, I decided to write him a letter, asking for his endorsement of church blessings of animals every October. He addressed the endorsement to all parish priests, it was so beautifully worded that suddenly, so many parishes incorporated church blessings of the animals as an integral part of October that PAWS was swamped with requests to organize their activities. Jaime Cardinal Sin, whose birth name was Jaime Sin (of Chinese ancestry) enjoyed playing around with his name, and called his house THE HOUSE OF SIN. Jovial, and always joking, it was no wonder people flocked to his palace for almost every reason. Sadly, he passed away a few years ago.
Abolitionist: Where are you at now with the blessings?
Nita: So many churches are now blessing the animals come October, that it is impossible for PAWS to attend all the affairs. But because the blessings had been going on for many years (if memory serves, it is 8 years now) they have learned how to organise the blessings themselves. Then, the malls started asking for the animal blessings to be celebrated there so that families could bring their pets to be blessed, and all could go shopping afterwards. Now many malls have the blessings. They too, ask for PAWS to participate. Last October the blessings at Eastwood was a big affair, an evening ceremony with a full choir, celebrities singing solo numbers, the Holy Mass, a candlelight procession, lights/music background: the works!
Those who attended had tears in their eyes- and the pets behaved themselves splendidly. You can bet there will be more of this kind, which naturally will attract more families.
Abolitionist: What do they mean to you personally?
Nita: Small successes like these give us the energy to keep going, aware that PAWS although only being volunteer-based and lacking in funds, has somehow made a difference in the lives of the animals.
Abolitionist: How have attitudes towards animals changed over the years in the Philippines?
Nita: In the past, seeing cruelty towards animals, say in the streets, didn't bother a lot of people at all. Now, PAWS gets daily S.O.S. calls/visits for animals at the average rate of four here in my house, six to eight at the shelter, and that's not even including calls to the volunteers' homes and offices!!! Exhausting, but at the same time, exhilarating because at last, more people care. Even in the provinces we’re seeing more animal advocacy groups spring up these days.
Abolitionist: What campaigns are you currently working on?
Nita: Spay/Neuter, rescues, adoptions, maintaining our animal rehab center PARC ( PAWS Animal Rehabilitation Centre) humane education programs in schools & villages, fund-raising events, close links with government agencies ( to give them info re the importance of animal welfare and keep them on their toes), therapy dogs visits at hospitals & schools, advocacy and information via our website and e-mail site called "Whatsuppaws" which now has 500 members, last I heard.
By the way, just last March 31st, a military police unit, accompanied by 5 PAWS volunteers succeeded in making the first fully documented ARREST of dogfights aficionados, caught in the act, 14 of them, 2 are big guns and we confiscated the two pit bull fighters. The dogs are in a safe house now. I was part of the operation, doing the telephone/cellphone/fax networking that’s required when it takes several days and nights of working on these dog fight raids to eventually bring them to justice. At one point, I was left alone for a few minutes face to face with the 14 offenders who were detained at the military camp... whew! The media stayed in contact with us. Our lucky break getting media's interest was due to the fact that this happening was close to Holy Week and therefore there were very few newsworthy goings-on. Naturally, this raid took the country by storm.
Abolitionist: Can you provide us with the latest update on the dog meat markets in the Philippines?
Nita: The dog meat markets have expanded throughout this country. The low-income groups claim eating their pet is the only way they can get the benefits of meat. The unthinking engage in the dog meat trade because it is the easiest way of making a buck. Believe it or not, some uppity restaurants in Metro cities serve dogmeat for foreigners, notably from the Near/Far East who reportedly come to partake of puppy flesh.
But, animal advocacy groups are fighting back. What PAWS has been doing has been making sure that Administrative Orders (which have the effect of Law) regarding the dog meat trade are passed as soon as possible. .Administrative Order # 10 for instance," governs the apprehension and prosecution of persons transporting and/or trading dogs and cats". This is a great A.O. Administrative Order # 2, while emphasis is placed on slaughter animals, will deter the sea transport of dogs for meat. Admin Order # 43 will also deter air transport of dogs meant for the dinner table. Aside from PAWS, one of the most active organisations versus the dog meat trade is Animal Kingdom, which has the facilities to go after the dog meat traders.
Now, for the government agencies responsible for the implementation of these Admin Orders to do their duty.
Abolitionist: Should religion play more of a role in the life of animals?
Nita: Definitely!!! All religions have the obligation to teach that animals, created and loved by God, deserve respect and protection. We should all learn that praying while ignoring the plight of suffering animals is an insult to God's creation.
Abolitionist: Any last thoughts?
Nita: I wish and pray that in this new age, more humans would be humane. I can't understand the "religious" ceremonies in some countries which incorporate unspeakable cruelties to animals in the guise of tradition, to the point of blessing these horrible practices. As far as I know, at least here in the Philippines, we don’t bless cruelties. Wake up Religions! Set an example of honouring all of God’s Creation!!!
Abolitionist: Who are your favourite Saints and why?
Nita: Francis of Assisi, who regarded all animals as his brothers and sisters. And Francis is honoured by the religious, the atheists, writers, artists, etc. - he is a man for all reasons. And there's San Martin de Porres, who, commanded to get rid of the pests in his convent, instead gathered the rats and insects and brought them far away to a field where they could find sustenance. It hurts to see mice/rats/cockroaches scurrying towards a hiding place- always only at the defensive: It's tough being a "pest."
Return to Animals: Tradition - Philosophy - Religion Table of Contents
We welcome your comments:
If we REALLY want God to bless America and the earth, GO VEGAN!
| Home Page | Article Archives |
| Home Page | Animal Issues | Archive | Art and Photos | Articles | Bible | Books | Church and Religion | Discussions | Health | Humor | Letters | Links | Nature Studies | Poetry and Stories | Quotations | Recipes | What's New? |
Thank you for visiting all-creatures.org. | <urn:uuid:cbfd61fe-890f-49d5-aee0-e79c9a1d80e6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.all-creatures.org/articles/an-tpr-blessings.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962582 | 2,444 | 1.8125 | 2 |
How do you give Kansas manufacturers and their workers an edge in a global economy?
Gov. Sam Brownback’s administration is pushing one possible answer: more industry certifications for manufacturing workers.
Brownback and dozens of state, college and industry officials gathered Monday at the National Center for Aviation Training, 4004 N. Webb Road, to discuss the effort.
The idea is that state technical and community colleges would provide students with training and testing for the appropriate industry certificate, such as welding or composite work. Certification would come from outside industry groups.
Officials said the approach would address manufacturers’ complaints that they can’t enough competent workers for the jobs they have open – the “skills gap.”
“It’s all about getting the right skills on the right team on the right field, just like in football,” said Commerce Secretary Pat George.
The state hopes businesses would want workers with a guaranteed minimum standard of training, and pay them better as a result.
Officials argue that certified workers would get an edge over non-certified workers not only here, but around the world. And the state would get more competitive businesses and a better-paid workforce.
The effort is already moving forward.
Fort Hays State University received a $900,000 state grant to develop a coalition of colleges to provide manufacturing certifications.
The state’s technical and community colleges are now required to test for certification in many programs, said Blake Flanders, vice president for Workforce Development for the Kansas Board of Regents.
The regents are instituting a system where it reimburses member colleges more for more costly technical programs, eliminating a disincentive to offer expensive training.
And the regents have also adopted three measures for evaluating technical education programs: job placement rates, wages of graduates and the number of graduates who earned credentials.
The board has started collecting that information, but hasn’t started funding or de-funding programs based on the information yet, Flanders said.
The problem with certifications is that it’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation. Businesses won’t pay more for certified workers if they don’t see the value. And workers won’t go to the trouble of getting certified if businesses don’t reward it, say state officials.
So, the state is pushing the business community to embrace certification by holding up examples such as Spirit AeroSystems, Crossland Construction of Columbus, Kan., and Exide Technologies, which has facilities in Salina and Kansas City, Kan.. | <urn:uuid:60b16949-aa6a-4490-a455-111dcafe1e16> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kansas.com/2012/10/29/2550170/industry-certifications-proposed.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94854 | 535 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Youngsters invited to take part in Glenrothes photo competition
27 April 2012
Young people in Glenrothes are being asked to celebrate their town’s public art in a photo competition that will culminate in an exhibition in Rothes Halls this summer.
Historic Scotland has recently recognised the importance of Glenrothes public art by listing several sculptures, and the agency has also produced a free downloadable booklet offering maps and trails.
These unique art works are being recognised by Historic Scotland with a competition that aims to reflect the diverse and exciting range of 140 public sculptures, which have become integral to the town’s character.
Begun in the mid-1960s, public art was integral to creating a new community and Glenrothes Development Corporation decided to employ a town artist. This pioneering approach, which broke new ground in the United Kingdom, aroused widespread interest at home and abroad, and the artists that became involved were subsequently invited to take the Glenrothes message to countries including the USA, Japan and Australia.
Now the town’s youngsters can help celebrate this achievement by photographing their favourite sculptures, using cameras or mobile phones.
At Historic Scotland, Head of Listing and Designed Landscapes Elizabeth McCrone said: “Town art in Glenrothes is significant in both a Scottish and international context, and shows that art can be a key factor in creating a sense of place.
“The sculptures range from figurative to abstract, from humorous to contemplative. They are great fun, and make you smile. This is art for everyone, and we hope that local youngsters will join in with this fun spirit and take great photos for the competition.”
The collection ranges from naturalistic figures, such as “The Working Men” by Malcolm Robertson, to huge animal sculptures including “Feeding Hippos”, by Stanley Bonnar, and abstract works such as “Henge” by David Harding, a take on the Stonehenge theme which replaces the original stones with concrete panels decorated with symbols and quotations.
Historic Scotland’s project to create the Town Art Walk has also led to the agency’s first use of a “QR” tag for smartphones, which allows people carrying the booklet to download a video describing the art work.
The “My Place” photo competition is open in two categories, under 16 years old, and 16 and over, with prizes for all winners. Full details of how to enter can be found at http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/index/glenrothestownart.htm
Entrants must be aged eight years or over, and can submit up to three photos each, by email to [email protected]
, or on CD by posting to Glenrothes Art Photography Competition, Listing and Designed Landscapes Team, Historic Scotland, Longmore House, Salisbury Place, Edinburgh EH9 1SH.
Each category winner will receive a year’s membership to Historic Scotland plus £50 in vouchers redeemable at the Kingdom Centre in Glenrothes, with second place winners receiving £25 in vouchers for the Kingdom Centre and a free single entry to an Historic Scotland property.
The closing date has been extended to Friday, May 18th, and winners will be announced on June 1st on the Historic Scotland web site.
Images from the contest will be displayed in a public exhibition at the town’s Rothes Halls, from July 2nd until August 9th.
Notes for editors
- Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government charged with ensuring that our historic environment provides a strong foundation for a successful future for Scotland. The agency is fully accountable to Scottish Ministers and through them to the Scottish Parliament.
- The Year of Creative Scotland began on January 1, 2012 and will spotlight and celebrate Scotland’s cultural and creative strengths on a world stage. Through a dynamic and exciting year-long programme of activity celebrating our world-class events, festivals, culture and heritage, the year puts Scotland’s culture and creativity in the international spotlight with a focus on cultural tourism and developing the events industry and creative sector in Scotland. More information about the programme can be found at: www.visitscotland.com/creative
- The Year of Creative Scotland is a Scottish Government initiative led in partnership by EventScotland, VisitScotland, Creative Scotland and VOCAL. More information and resources to help businesses engage with Year of Creative Scotland are available at www.visitscotland.org/yearofcreativescotland-toolkit | <urn:uuid:a29c224d-b600-42dc-953d-645e9aab6bfb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/largertext/news_search_results.htm/news_article.htm?articleid=35974 | 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 | 0.944902 | 956 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Dating back to the late 19th and early 20th century, the Ibanez lineage can be traced back to Spanish luthier Salvador Ibanez. His guitars, mandolins, ukuleles and other stringed instruments, are still prized for their workmanship. After the workshop was destroyed during the Spanish Civil War in 1936, their Japanese distributor, Hoshino Gakki, purchased the highly esteemed trademark and began making acoustic and electric guitars in Japan.
In the mid-1970s Ibanez guitars gained popularity due to their excellent construction and a decline in quality of some famous U.S. brands. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, they began a long-term relationship with guitarist Steve Vai, leading to the JEM and Universe electric guitar models. The company released their first Artcore hollow-body guitars in 2002 in an appeal to entry-level guitarists. The Artcore line has since gone on to earn a reputation as one of the best guitar values available.
Ibanez produce a full line of amplifiers, including amp heads, speaker cabinets, combo amps and acoustic guitar amplifiers. Well-known amps include the Tone Blaster and Troubadour. Bassists are well served by Sound Wave combo amps. Ibanez' series of guitar effects pedals also equip you with powerful tools to bring out the expressive tone you're after. They released their first Tube Screamer effect pedal in the late 1970s. It featured an integrated circuit that made it one of the best solid-state pedals to simulate a tube guitar amp on overdrive. So popular are these pedals that they have reissued the TS-9 and TS-808 Tube Screamers to the delight of vintage gear hounds who know a good deal when they see one.
Fortunately for all of us, Ibanez has reissued some of the classic Tube Screamers, and has brought out some new pedals like the TS-808, TS9, and TS9DX. Other esteemed guitar effects include the AD9 Analog Delay Pedal, the WD7 Weeping Demon Wah, the DE7 Delay/Echo, the SB7 Synthesizer Bass Pedal, the CS9 Stereo Chorus Pedal, the Tube King High Voltage Tube Distortion Pedal, and more. | <urn:uuid:ad346933-e92c-45a5-a875-e3119c47b98a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.guitarcenter.com/Ibanez,100-200.gc | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963057 | 468 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.