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Just because animals are wild doesn't mean they don't need some TLC.
In the past year, the Peninsula Humane Socicety has rescued and rehabilitated more than 1,000 animals at its Center for Compassion, located at 1450 Rollins Road in Burlingame, which opened in September 2011.
Other highlights from the Peninsula Humane Society's annual data -- which celebrates the first full year the new shelter was opened -- include 3,547 animals placed into new homes in 2012.
That number, up from 2011's of 3,381 animals placed into new homes, was released along with other statistics Tuesday.
For the 10th consecutive year, the shelter found new homes for 100 percent of the healthy dogs and cats in its care.
“Our new center has absolutely transformed the adoption experience for the public,” said PHS/SPCA President Ken White.
“The fact that we were located at Coyote Point for six decades and, in just one year, have been embraced by the community in our new home and placed even more animals makes us feel proud and grateful for the community’s support,” he said.
Cats accounted for 1,704 adoptions and dogs, 1,210 adoptions in 2012. Small domestic animals including rabbits, pet birds, guinea pigs, rats and reptiles accounted for the remaining 633 adoptions.
Other year-end highlights:
- More than 6,000 spay/neuter surgeries performed at the shelter’s low-cost clinic plus an additional 700+ on the shelter’s mobile clinic which provides free “fixes” in targeted communities.
- 1,048 wild animals rehabilitated at PHS/SPCA, then returned to their natural habitats, including squirrels, ducklings and goslings.
- Four classes of dogs graduated from the TAILS program, a partnership between the PHS/SPCA and the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office which pairs dogs with inmates in a minimum security facility for eight weeks.
- PHS/SPCA rescued more than 1,000 animals from harm’s way, including dogs stuck in traffic, down horses, ducks trapped in storm drains, deer snared in fencing.
- 161,180 volunteer hours
- A few thousand children received our important messages through shelter tours, Animal Camp, classroom presentations and other programs.
- More than $400,000 in gross sales from the shelter’s secondhand store, Pick of the Litter, on Chula Vista Ave, in Burlingame.
Read more on San Mateo Patch:
- San Mateo Police Warn of 'Door-Knock' Burglars
- A Look at Restaurant Inspections in San Mateo
- To Montessori or Not to Montessori: Is That the Real Question?
- Man Who Killed Poodle Faces Three Years in Jail | <urn:uuid:e5d31041-ec53-477e-b0d6-4ca8cad1680c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sanmateo.patch.com/groups/politics-and-elections/p/humane-society-celebrates-milestones-in-new-center | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947865 | 600 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Mon. May 27 at 9 p.m. and Thur. May 30 at 10 p.m. on CPTV
The fascinating rags to riches story of Jay Gould, who built one of the Nation's most formidable business empires, and became the most daring and original entrepreneur of his age.
Weekdays at 8am and 2pm on CPTV
Based on the best-selling books by Margret and H. A. Rey, the daily series expands George's world to include a host of colorful new characters and original locales, and inspires kids to explore science, math and engineering in the world around them. Learn more >>
Support for Children After a Tragedy
Click here for PBS links to helping your child cope after a tragedy in the news or close to home.
Celebrating Fifty Years of Television Excellence
In 1962 the Connecticut Educational Television Station began broadcasting in black and white from the basement of the Trinity College Library in Hartford, Connecticut. The station’s motivated and eager founders had a vision: to enrich people's lives through high-quality, non-commercial, educational programming. Read more...
Where We Live with John Dankosky
Monday-Friday, 9-10am and 7-8pm on WNPR
Radio with a sense of place.
Colin McEnroe Show
Monday-Friday, 1-2pm and 8-9pm on WNPR
“Giving you something new to laugh about in your car and talk about over dinner…" | <urn:uuid:2f8d90ba-eceb-481d-a4c5-e06d2c78d81c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cpbn.org/?mini=calendar/2013/01/all | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00040-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937168 | 307 | 1.53125 | 2 |
About The Anaphylaxis Campaign - "helping people with severe allergies live their lives"
The Anaphylaxis Campaign is the only UK charity to exclusively meet the needs of the growing numbers of people at risk from severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) by providing information and support relating to foods and other triggers such as latex, drugs and insect stings.
Our ultimate aim is to create a safe environment for all people with allergies by educating the food industry, schools, pre-schools, colleges, health professionals and other key audiences. Our focus is on medical facts, food labelling, risk reduction and allergen management.
The Campaign provides a wealth of freely available information and also offers tailored services for individual and corporate members. Visit our website http://www.anaphylaxis.org.uk/. | <urn:uuid:fe3d62de-d793-4190-88ee-1012b45a4282> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aboutmyarea.co.uk/site/charity.asp?area=908&c=4 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94505 | 168 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Kodesh v'Chol- Holy- and Everyday
Posted on 07/22/2011 @ 10:48 AM
The theme of today was Kodesh v’Chol- Holy and Everyday. We began by making the transition from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, cities with decidedly Kodesh v’Chol reputations. Upon arrival in Tel Aviv we explored the idea of the “Altneuland” described by Theodore Herzl . The early Zionists developed Tel Aviv as a way of abandoning the special or otherness they felt in Europe and embracing a “normal” society by modernizing the reclaimed land.
We wrestled over the ideas of the strong New Jew described in the poetry of Chaim Nachman Bialik while sitting in his home. As we toured the neighborhood we could see the tension between new and old in the architecture of the city. The prevalence of International, cutting edge, modern design was highlighted through the many International style or Bauhaus style buildings.
We spent the afternoon exploring the artist market at Nahalat Binyamin. The crafts and their makers exuded Kodesh v’Chol as we investigated stalls with hand painted Challah covers, intricate stone and metal worked Judaica, jewelry and even children’s toys.
We met back at the hotel for a Hebrew class focused on the shoresh קדשbefore preparing for our first Erev Shabbat in Israel.
The group traveled to the boardwalk at the port of Tel Aviv to participate in an alternative Kabbalat Shabbat experience. While the sun set over the Mediterranean we listened to and sang a variety of old familiar tunes and new renditions of secular songs like It’s A Wonderful Life b’Ivrit. The contrast between busy Tel Aviv Friday night life and the Kabbalat Shabbat next to the sea were another example of Kodesh v’Chol.
We closed the evening with delicious Shabbat dinner back at our hotel and then everyone headed off in different directions to explore the Kodesh v’Chol of a Tel Aviv Shabbat. | <urn:uuid:950ce6b1-e03c-4d5b-a45d-6d31e38cccbc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bbyo.org/summer_blog/pdi2/kodesh_vchol-_holy_and_everyday/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934234 | 446 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Destiny vs. Choice
Hello, everybody. Today's topic is thought to be the second last of my little series on HP prophecies. (We'll see how well that goes
;-)) But, before we get to that, I'll run through the little argumentation task I set for you last week.
Okay, I'll call the two opposing sides "A" and "B" to make it easier to follow. Let's go.
(A) Don't forget that if a person picks up a prophecy that is not about him or her, he or she will go crazy. Harry picked up that prophecy and did not go crazy. Therefore, the prophecy is about him, not Neville.
(B) The prophecy only had Harry's name on it because the keeper of the halls of prophecies put it there after the attack on him as a child. It was renamed, thus the fact that Harry's name's on it might just be a human mistake.
(A) The wording is: "Only the people to whom it refers can lift them [the prophecies] from their shelves without suffering madness." "To whom it refers" can be interpreted "about whom it was made," making the labeling unimportant.
(B) The prophecies are only inanimate objects, and it's the MoM that puts the protective spell on them, making the one they think it's about the only person to retrieve it.
(A) We know nothing about how the protection works or how the records of prophecies get to the MoM. We only know that they are well protected, which could mean anything.
I'll stop there. As you see, in this argument, both sides are quite strong and we lack information to really settle the thing. Both sides can use these arguments in combination with other ones about whether Harry or Neville is the One, but they're not fully convincing just on their own. This kind of "weaker" arguments is often called "complementary arguments," meaning that, in a debate, you should use them to add weight to your theory, not as your main point. Okay, let's go on with today's topic.
Destiny vs. Choice
We stand now before a major problem, a great mystery. On one hand, we have the prophecies, which seem to be showing us the future, no matter what the characters do to stop it. On the other hand, we have the major theme in JKR's books of the importance of choice. How do these two things work together?
Choice is very important in the HP books. As Dumbledore put it in CoS, it is our choices that show who we really are more than the abilities we're born with. To think that the future is already decided and impossible to change is a very fatalistic perspective, in which the importance of choice would be very marginal. When it comes to foreseeing the future, what are the rules? Can the characters in HP really shape their own destiny?
The first situation I thought of where a prophecy and choice come in contact is in PoA when Harry saved Pettigrew's life in the Shrieking Shack. Harry made the choice to save him, thereby fulfilling the prophecy about Wormtail's escape and Voldemort's rebirth. Could he have chosen otherwise? Theoretically, yes - but really, when you look at what kind of person Harry is, the answer must be no. Harry is, as Dumbledore remarked in CoS a "true Gryffindor," meaning noble, courageous and good-hearted. He is also filled with empathy, the capacity of feeling for other people. He's not the kind of person who would consent to the murder of an unarmed man, unable to defend himself, no matter how horribly evil this person might be. That's more of a Slytherin thing to do. So, Harry did in effect make the choice that made the prophecy come true, but he couldn't really have chosen otherwise.
It seems that prophecies (at least if they're following the Greek tradition, which I think the HP ones do), always come true, and they often do so because of people's choices. I think this works mainly because they're fairly imprecise. In the PoA one, it only said that the servant will escape and return to his master, something that could come about in many different ways. Now, if it had said "and the servant will escape because Harry will be unable to kill him and Lupin will turn into a werewolf as they go back to the castle to turn him in," it would have been a different story. In that case, Harry would certainly have thought twice about sparing Pettigrew's life and would probably have told Lupin not to come with them back to the castle just then. He would have had a much greater chance of remembering the prophecy in that way. That was not the case, though, and the prophecy came true. [Editor's note: Harry would also have known that Lupin was a werewolf before the big scene in the Shrieking Shack, so a lot would have changed.]
The other situation that springs to mind is when Voldemort showed up in Godric's Hollow and killed Harry's parents. He went there because he'd heard the first part of the OotP prophecy and wanted to prevent it. By making this choice, he accidentally fulfilled the second part (the marking), which he knew nothing about. I believe that, if Voldemort hadn't made this choice, Harry would be nothing more than a normal wizard boy. I also believe that, if Voldemort had chosen to go to the Longbottoms' place instead, Neville would be the one having a scar on his forehead and the series would be called "Neville Longbottom and...."
The point is that true prophecies as well as the wisdom of Centaurs (or so it seems) are not like any other kind of divination. We've heard it many times: divination is a very imprecise branch of magic and that people's actions have so many unpredictable consequences that it's very hard to foretell the future. But, Dumbledore also said, "True Seers are very rare" (PoA), and Firenze said, "Professor Trelawney might have Seen, I do not know" (OotP), indicating that a true prophecy is something very different from ordinary ways of foretelling the future. Note the capitalization of "Seen," signifying the importance of the word and setting it apart from "seen," making "See the future" very differently charged from "see the future."
It seems like the wisdom of Centaurs and prophecies are connected. They're both ruled by something greater than the human world, by the Universe or some force behind it (yes, a parallel to God can easily be drawn here, but JKR doesn't really do that so neither will I; I'm just pointing at a possible interpretation). This force is the ultimate mystery, in the HP universe as well as in our own, and has been subject to people's thoughts and wonderings for millennia: is there something greater out there which knows (and decides) the fate of the world? Do we create our own destiny? And so on. As much as I'd love to go all philosophical on you, I'll stay away from those ones right now or we'll never see the end of this. :-)
My point is that prophecies work in a different time frame than "real time," very much like the time-turner. The prophecy is not formed before the actions take place; it is formed simultaneously before, during and after. Confused? Imagine that time is a road and that you're driving on it. You know where you are because you're seeing it (that's the present). You know where you have been because you've seen it (that's the past). You might be able to guess what lies ahead through signs that you've seen along the way (that's the future), but you'll never know. There might be a big rock blocking the way just behind a curve that you didn't foresee would be there. Divination would be what the driver's doing, trying to guess what lies ahead based on what is likely to happen (e.g., in their first class, Trelawney foresees that Neville will break a cup. She's probably heard tales about how clumsy he is and realizes that this is a probable event).
Now, imagine that someone else is driving the car and you're on a mountain seeing the entire road from above. You know 1) what lies ahead of the car and 2) how the driver will act along the way (because you're all-knowing too, isn't that cool?). So, you're not seeing only where the car is at a specific moment, you're seeing where the car is at every different point along the way. You see at the same time past, present and future, which is quite impossible for us humans to really imagine as we have a three-dimensional way of thinking. Now, say that you want to interfere with what the car is doing. Right now, it's going to get safely to the next town (and, at the same time, it's already there). You, on the other hand, want it to crash into a big rock lying on the road. So, you put up a warning sign saying, "Beware of big rock". You do not, however, say when this rock will appear and make sure that the driver is distracted from remembering the sign by putting up a big poster advertising an all-nude strip joint just before he arrives at it. This makes the driver jam into the rock, just as you foretold.
Same thing with Voldemort and Professor Trelawney's first prophecy. What's the one thing that would make Voldemort go over to the Potters' (or Longbottoms') and try to kill their son and thereby lose all his powers? Well, you create a prophecy stating a threat and don't let him hear all of it. It's like the Greek story about Oedipus. How do you make a guy kill his dad and marry his mom? You tell this to his dad, who'll send the boy away in self-protection, with the result that he'll not know who his real parents are and therefore have no problem with killing and marrying them (which he'd never done if they'd raised him themselves).
So, am I saying that the HP universe is interfering with the HP human world? Yes, I am. I base this partly on my theory concerning the balance of good and evil in the universe (NT3): how the pendulum always swings back after you push it to one side, trying to reach equilibrium. So, if there's a great push towards evil, there'll be a great force wanting to push it back in the direction of good and vice versa (e.g., if the evil driver of the car (that he's probably stolen from an old lady) has been able to get away from justice and is killing little birds with the exhaust from his car every mile along the way, the good side of the universe will make sure that there's a donut shop a bit further along with a cop inside).
Much more important, though: (this is my more cynical literary analyst view, the one above is my philosophical one) on the Harry Potter road, JKR is the person up on the cliff, and we're sitting in the back seat of the car. She's the boss in the HP universe and knows exactly what's going to happen and to whom. She wants Voldy to go attack Harry (or there wouldn't have been a story to write), so she lets him hear the beginning of the prophecy and make his choice between Harry and Neville (knowing that he will choose Harry because of his own background). She then wants Harry (and the readers) to know that Voldy's going to come back for real and that there'll be a huge fight ("and the Dark Lord will rise again, greater and more terrible than ever before," PoA). So, she lets Professor Trelawney get her second true prophecy, which Harry won't be allowed to remember when he is in a position to stop it from coming true. Also, by doing this, she creates the "mystical bond" between Harry and Pettigrew, which will certainly be very important to her storyline in the last books. I further believe that she lets Harry get to know Dumbledore's interpretation (note: interpretation, not necessarily correct) of the prophecy, knowing that if Harry believes that he or Voldy will have to kill the other in the end, it will influence his actions and lead things along the "right" path ("right" being where JKR wants them to go). She's the writer. She's the goddess of the HP universe. She alone holds the ultimate truth. She alone can see past, present and future at the same time. What we're doing, and what most characters in HP are doing, is divination - a very imprecise branch of magic. She alone can truly See.
In addition, this doesn't really conflict with the importance of choice for the following reason: it says that our choices show who we really are (or at least, how the HP characters are), not that they allow us to escape our destiny. According to my memory (which can be wrong; if so, please correct me on this), JKR hasn't addressed the problem of fate yet. It seems like the true prophecies and the wisdom of centaurs hold, and that that isn't a problem. The personalities of the characters are shown by their actions for the most part (which, by the way, is one of the classic methods of characterization), and this gives readers clues about what will come about and why. Little by little, we too will come to know the characters; and then, we might approach the place where JKR has been standing all along, up on the mountain, looking down at the HP road, seeing all points at once and understanding how it all works. I don't think we'll ever get the complete picture, though. After all, the only person who truly understands a work of literature is the person who wrote it.
I'll now go get my own Inner Eye started for next week's series finale: the End of Days, What the Prophecies Tell Us.
See you guys!
Discuss this article in the forums.
If you'd like to contact Maline, you may do so in the forums. | <urn:uuid:679e3c84-d481-4764-8906-ca94f17c0a91> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mugglenet.com/editorials/thenorthtower/nt05.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979144 | 2,999 | 1.539063 | 2 |
The Lichtenberg Figures, winner of the Hayden Carruth Award, is an unconventional sonnet sequence that interrogates the relationship between language and memory, violence and form. “Lichtenberg figures” are fern-like electrical patterns that can appear on (and quickly fade from) the bodies of people struck by lightning.
Throughout this playful and elegiac debut—with its flashes of autobiography, intellection, comedy, and critique—the vocabulary of academic theory collides with American slang and the idiom of the Old Testament meets the jargon of the Internet to display an eclectic sensibility.
Ben Lerner, the youngest poet ever published by Copper Canyon Press, is co-founder of No: a journal of the arts. He earned an MFA from Brown University and is currently a Fulbright scholar in Spain. | <urn:uuid:5a5a1b93-a269-4e51-9e7c-b4ff488e03a9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.americanpoems.com/store/node-1000-1556592116-The_Lichtenberg_Figures_Hayden_Carruth_Award_for_New_and_Emerging_Poets.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935902 | 167 | 1.804688 | 2 |
With it passage in Congress, health care reform dominated the news last week more than any story had in a year.
Fully 45% of the week’s news coverage was devoted to the bill, its passage, the political fallout and what the legislation would do, according to the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism. The last time a story received this much coverage in one week was in March of 2009, when outrage over the bonuses at insurance giant AIG put the economy at 53% of the newshole.
Nearly half of that health care coverage last week, 47%, focused on the political implications of the bill’s passage. A quarter of the health care coverage, 22%, focused on how the law would change health care. The ensuing threats to lawmakers and the coverage of the last minute lawmaking made up much of the rest.
All other subjects in the news paled by comparison to coverage of health care last week. The second biggest story line involved the economy, filling 9% of the newshole (that is, time on television and radio, and space online and in print). Third was the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, highlighted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip to Washington, also at 3%.That was followed by the recent controversy involving the Catholic Church and questions about whether Pope Benedict XVI, at various points in his career, had failed to properly address the actions of pedophile priests. It occupied just over 3% of the newshole. The fifth biggest story of the week was Google’s withdrawal from mainland China, at about 3%.
Read the full report Health Care Reform Sweeps Capital and the Media on the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism Web site | <urn:uuid:cd3038ee-3d0a-4af4-9841-c8e5d1867d79> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pewtrusts.org/our_work_report_detail.aspx?id=58232&category=456 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972177 | 354 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Yokine WA 6060, AustraliaHistory
14 older records found on this numberPhone Type
Local ServiceLatest Holder
Telstra Corporation LimitedNumbering Area
May 2013Other Formats
0893492187 / 9349-2187 / 93492187 / (08) 9349 2187Statistics for Yokine
In 2006, there were 19,724 persons usually resident in Yokine: 47.1% were males and 52.9% were females. Of the total population in Yokine 0.7% were Indigenous persons, compared with 2.3% Indigenous persons in Australia. more
80.8% of persons usually resident in Yokine were Australian citizens, 35.6% were born overseas and 0.9% were overseas visitors.
There were 4,787 families in Yokine: 29.6% were couple families with children, 48.2% were couple families without children, 18.1% were one parent families and 4.1% were other families.
36.1% of persons aged 15 years and over usually resident in Yokine were married, 41.3% never married, 15.1% separated or divorced and 7.4% widowed.
* statistcs taken from the 2006 Census for postal area 6060 conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics | <urn:uuid:16c64e47-f892-4574-913a-d2ea5883ead6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.reverseaustralia.com/lookup/0893492187/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980725 | 267 | 1.6875 | 2 |
The radio girl blog is a glimpse at a variety of topics. This is not, nor will it ever be, a solely intellectual and in depth look at anything. Instead, it will be a brief and often quirky glance at world events and my roaming life.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Thursday, November 26, 2009
BOOK REVIEW: "Stand the Storm" by Breena Clarke
BOOK REVIEW: "Stand the Storm" by Breena Clarke (2008)
I read this book for my reading group. But first the back story on getting the book.
I've been living in Cairo since August. At the time before I relocated, I did not have foresight to get the books for my reading group and have them shipped. And who knew that it would be such a challenge to get anything, let alone books, shipped into Egypt - even if I work at a university.
When my first visitors confirmed their visit, I went on a shopping spree via Amazon. I purchased several book including "Stand the Storm" for my friends to bring w/them. This turned out to be a good idea. Except for when my friends arrived and doled out the goodies, there were some books missing including "Stand the Storm". So I double-check the shipment info from Amazon, bugged my sister countless times because I'd sent everything to her house and fretted about where the books might be. Well, several days into their visit, turns out that my friend 'forgot' that he stashed some of the books in some compartment in his luggage. Whew, that was close.
I nearly started immediately on "Stand the Storm". I really enjoyed reading this book. At times, I could not put it down. It's a historical fiction about slavery; well, not so much about slavery as it about a family of freed slaves. or should I say free people. The terminology is interesting. But the plot resonates: they make a name and a life for themselves, but in some ways, they are always slaves.
There are many struggles that the primary family, The Coates', experiences. I like the way that Clarke intricately writes the details of their lives. They are a family that makes hand crafts: tailoring, knitting, embroidery and more. There are even some scenes from the Civil War that depict things in ways that I've never read about before. The story is set in Washington, D.C.; Georgetown in particular. And there is some mention too of how the government was struggling to deal with the issue of slavery.
I have not read Clarke's "River Cross my Heart," but I like her style of writing. She does a fairly good job on giving some depth to the characters.
The "Stand the Storm" Reading Group Guide is a good one.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
My Friends from the States Came to Visit me ...
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Minarets and More: A Walking Tour of Cairo
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Images of Cairo
Monday, November 16, 2009
The Vatican Embassy in Cairo
I came across a slideshow program called Vuvox recently. It seems dynamic and easy to use. Isn't that what we all want? An extraordinary platform to display and share images w/o all the hassle. Think we've found it.
This is a very quick example of what is possible.
Making Maps and More
I've become fascinated w/mapping and graphics and charts. Apparently I'm into data mashups. But it can be sooo complicated.
How to come up w/dynamic visualizations w/o all the hassle ... ? Well, lucky us. There are several options for doing this kind of thing. New software and online tools are popping up w/some frequency.
Since I'm now in the habit of keeping up w/this stuff, you could just check in on my Ohradiogirl Delicious bookmarks every now and then and see what's new in the data mapping world.
Here are two places where I've been getting some of my ideas lately. Still trying to implement them though.
10,000 Words: 5 ways to find, mix and mash your data
10,000 Words: Maps section
Cal Poly Map: Best places to take your laptop on campus
Go ahead and give one of them a try. Let me know how it works out.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Using Chartle: My Teaching Days
I'm giving Chartle a try. Chartle is an online tool that helps you generate interactive graphs, charts and more.
I created a pie chart that shows how I spend my days teaching. Please note that this is based on two full days or 48 hours.
You can click on a slice of the pie to get more information.
Short Films Galore
I discovered a Web site called Short Bay the other day. It's a Web site dedicated to film shorts. With my attention span, this is a good find.
I think the longest shorts that they host are ten minutes long.
Don't know how I came to check out "Surprise!", but I am recommending that you watch it as well. And let me know what you think of Short Bay.
Monday, November 09, 2009
Music Monday 43 :: "This Is It" by Michael Jackson
"This Is It" by Michael Jackson (2009)
I hate it when I am out of the loop. I'd heard about Michael Jackson's "This Is It" but I thought that it was a song/album that he was working on before he passed away. "This Is It" is actually a documentary about the making of Jackson's last concert (that never took place).
Well, I'm all caught up now and I even listened to an interview on NPR w/choreographer Debbie Allen. Allen talks about how much she enjoyed the doc. Keep in mind that Allen is a choreographer, has some history w/Jackson and she is currently in London (where the Jackson concerts were scheduled) working on a project.
Check out Debbie Allen's interview on NPR's "Talk of the Nation".
Monday, November 02, 2009
Music Monday 42 :: The Top 5 Kanye West Workout Songs
I know that it's the season to kick Kanye West, but I'm going in the other direction. I will (try to) ignore his personal life and appreciate his contribution to the music spectrum.
My recent workout calls for some uptempo tunes. Much to my surprise, I've found that my increased heart rate goes up when Kanye's songs are playing. Humm ... it's hard for me to ignore this fact. This woman here needs a good workout and a good song or two and Kanye fits the bill.
So without further ado ... here are the
Top 5 Kanye West Workout Songs
5. "All Falls Down"
3. "Gold Digger"
2. "Good Life"
1. "Touch the Sky"
Now, go ahead and load up the playlist and let the pounds drop. | <urn:uuid:417cfdce-bc56-4504-b3d6-d1c5fb36beda> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://radiogirlradiogirl.blogspot.com/2009_11_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966179 | 1,459 | 1.570313 | 2 |
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Another Tax Loophole
Just image, you are a small manufacturing company, business has been good, but yesterday you received a call from a customer who wants 50,000 widgets in 45 days. The customer is a large account and if you turn the business down, he may never call you again.
Problem: You need to hire more staff to meet the manufacturing needs of this customer. AND the customer said nothing about an advance payment. In fact he mentioned that he would be paying net 30 once shipment was received.
You need working capital and you needed it yesterday
You sit down and you start to think. Well let's see, it will take much needed time to apply to the bank for a loan, your wife threatens to leave with the kids if you refinanced the house one more time for business reasons and your credit cards are maxed out.
As you look around your messy yet effective office you wonder where you can get the working capital you need?
Sitting in front of you is your secretary mailing out invoices. You slowly walk over to her desk and you ask "What's the total amount of invoices that we have outstanding at this very moment?
Your secretary looks on her computer, moves the rat around a few times, clicks a couple of times, and then hits something that makes the printer start singing. She looks up at you with those "I want a raise" eyes" and says, "it's coming out on the printer"
You walk slowly over to the printer and pick up the sheet of paper. Just when you think you are ready to read and understand the page another page prints. She says very softly, "the second page will give you the total" You pick up the second page and allow your eyes to scroll down to the bottom of the page and much to your surprise the total amount is well over $300,000.
You don't want to call a Factoring company because, they will discount your Invoices and you won't get all your monies OR do you?
Your secretary reminds you that all the fees for Factoring the Invoices is tax deductible and in the end the Factoring will cost you nothing. (Your secretary is taking tax classes at night, something about becoming more valuable to the company and earning more money) She also reminds you that you can Factor the Invoices and be paid up to 92% of the total invoice amount within 48 hours. Plus, the Broker does not charge you.
It is at this point that you try to remember why you married your wife instead of your secretary?
You quickly change from that thought back to who should I call? There are so many Sharks in the water and about $200,000 of the invoices are Government Contracts.
You know you need a Factoring company whose rates are fair and who can deal with the endless paperwork that the Federal Government requires to Factor one of their Contracts.
Needless to say, he called me; the names have been changed to protect the guilty.
This article was written by C. Ingraham, Broker for Government and Corporate Invoice Lines of Credit at http://www.taxeswilltravel.com
Organizing Your Taxes
Does this scene sound familiar? It's April 7. You haven't seen the top of your dining room table in two weeks because of the piles of paid bills, receipts, canceled checks, and unidentified cash register receipts covering it. Your head pounds and your stomach churns as the countdown to April 15 begins.
Employment Taxes ? Depositing With The IRS
If your business has employees, you must pay employment taxes. The payment system can be a bit confusing, so this article discusses how to go about depositing employment taxes with the IRS.
Need an Offshore Sales Office in a Tax Free Environment?
More on the No-tax haven of Anguilla. Click onto the link below for the detailshttp://www.geocities.com/taxhavens123/caribbeantaxhavens.html A Tribute in Honor of: Bank Confidential Ordinances in the Caribbean http://www.geocities.com/taxhavens123/bank_confidentiality.html
Tips and Simple Guidelines on How to Calculate Payroll Taxes
Managing a business small, medium or big requires you to pay your taxes, as well as your employees taxes. Managing a payroll can be an arduous and taxing job, no pun intended. There are laws that require us to pay taxes and everyone have to comply with that. But keeping up with the payroll can give many people sleepless nights. There are so many deductions needed to be done and they have to be exact to avoid confusion and complications later on. State and federal taxes are very strict and you don't want the IRS pounding on your door because of some mistakes. Make sure that you do your calculations correctly to avoid a mess later on. Keep your payroll records and tax payments as your reference so you have proof of the deductions and payments you have done. Different states have different laws about records; check it out with your lawyer or accountant to make sure.
Euro Tax Haven Threat
Media reporting of a new EU savings tax directive has left many people wondering whether European tax havens could soon become obselete.
Identity Theft ? Impacting Your Taxes?
If your identity is stolen, your finances can quickly become a nightmare. A less obvious problem is the effect identity theft can have on your taxes.
Save Money on Taxes - Is the Only Way to Get Your Tax Savings is to Sleep With an IRS Agent?
Tilting the Tax Laws in Your Favor.
Tax Deductions - Mr. C.P.A. Can I Deduct a Pizza? You Too Can Deduct Your Fun By Using Tax Tips
Recently, I stumbled across a concept that could change your financial life. You can call it a paradigm shift or a new perspective or just a different way to look at things.
Business Tax Deductions
As we enter mid-March, taxpayers begin to become very interested in deductions. Following are a few that you may be entitled to claim.
IRS Offer-in-Compromise, Hype or Hope?
"Settle for Pennies on the Dollar! IRS debts settled for $20 Wipe out the Penalties with an Offer"-such is the language of Offer-in-Compromise promoters. What they fail to tell you is that one has to qualify for an Offer and few taxpayers will be able to meet the tough standards for an OIC.
Are You Overpaying Taxes If You Use Tax Preparation Software?
For many business owners the answer to this quandary is tax preparation software. Fill out a fairly simple interview, click "print" and out comes a completed return that will pass muster with the IRS. The answer to all your problems?or is it?
About Income Taxes; Tidbits
Rearrange Your Affairs For Maximum Tax Savings
One way to maximize your business profits is by reducing your taxes. Frequently, income and other taxes could be lowered significantly if only the taxpayer were willing to plan ahead. By taking some simple steps to rearrange your affairs, you could save a fortune!
To Tax or Not to Tax - This is the Question
To tax or not to tax - this question could have never been asked twenty years ago.
Taxation of Isle of Man Companies from April 2006
At the present time a company incorporated in the Isle of Man, owned by non-residents and which complies with the other statutory requirements, is not liable to Isle of Man taxation. Whilst locally trading companies pay tax at 18%, a qualifying offshore company pays a flat annual tax of £475 or £1,000.
Car Donation: An Easy Way to Support Your Favorite Charity and Get a Tax Deduction
Most people look forward to getting their tax return, but one of the downsides to filing taxes is that you may find yourself owing the taxman come April 15. What do you do when you realize that you not only owe money, but you owe more than you can pay at the time?
2005 Ford Escape Hybrid Certified For Clean-Fuel Deduction
If you are environmentally conscious and purchase a 2005 Ford Escape Hybrid vehicle that combines a gasoline-powered engine with alternative power methods, you are in line for a nice tax deduction.
Donating Cars To Charity - New Tax Rules
On June 3, 2005, the IRS released guidance on charitable deductions for donated vehicles. The American Jobs Creation Act (AJCA) radically changed the amount of the deduction taxpayers can claim for their donated car.
Amending Procedural Laws for Collection of E-taxation
The electronic transaction ordinance defines the certificated copies in which are to be presented for adjudication. Where any law requires or permits the production of certified copies of any records, such requirement or permission shall extend to print outs or other forms of display of electronic documents where, in addition to fulfillment of the requirements as may be specified in such law relating to certification, it is verified in the manner laid down by the appropriate authority.
SFR Substitute for Returns: IRS Action on Non-Filers
In the latest Star Wars episode, the evil empire executes a brutal revenge on the Jedi. While the IRS is not an evil empire (and due to the Revenue Reform Act of 1998 not very brutal anymore); it too is executing revenge on those who do not comply with filing their tax returns.
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Tuesday, May 21, 2013
PORTLAND - The Baxter Academy for Technology and Science received approval Friday to open next fall as Maine's third charter school.
The Maine Charter School Commission said Baxter Academy will become the state's first public charter school focusing on science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
While the school expects to emphasize the sciences, it will offer other typical high school courses, such as social studies and English, said John Jaques, the school's executive director.
He said it will also offer Mandarin Chinese as a foreign language.
Jaques said the charter school's classes will offer students "technology-rich project-based learning."
The school, which will be based at 54 York St. in Portland, will begin accepting applications Jan. 1 for students who will be ninth- and 10th-graders when the doors open on Sept. 3.
The school hopes to enroll at least 150 students for the first year and add a grade level for each of the next two years to create a four-grade high school.
For each student who goes to a charter school, public dollars follow the child. That means the money for students that would have gone to the school district where they live goes instead to the charter school.
Charter schools, which will accept students from throughout the state, are expected to do fundraising to augment the tax dollars.
Under Maine's charter school law, the commission can authorize as many as 10 public charter schools over the next decade.
Staff Writer Edward D. Murphy can be contacted at 791-6465 or at: | <urn:uuid:38ed693b-04dc-4b73-99e1-0671f871bbc2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pressherald.com/news/baxter-academy-wins-state-approval-to-be-third-charter-school-in-maine_2012-11-17.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952839 | 320 | 1.640625 | 2 |
(MENAFN - The Peninsula) Egyptian President Muhammad Mursi is completing hundred years in office. Hundred days is too short a period to pass judgment about a leader's performance, but it can give certain indicators about the future performance.
Mursi has taken over at a turbulent and critical period in Egypt's history. For the same reason, the expectations are very high, and a failure to deliver on the promises he mad can create both dissatisfaction and dissent. Initial reports from the country say that reactions are mixed. While some say that he has been able to make a good beginning and can build on it in the coming days, others believe nothing has changed and the status quo is likely to continue. The international community and regional leaders too are waiting and watching, and are hesitating to jump into any conclusions.
During election campaign, Morsi had prepared a 64-point plan to provide quick solutions to the country's chronic problems and make life easy for his people. He had promised action within 100 days in office and the issues he listed included traffic, security, waste disposal, bread and fuel etc. According to a group monitoring his performance, he had fully achieved four points and started work on 24 others in the list since taking office on June 30. An online survey said 43 percent of respondents were satisfied with his achievements.
One of the biggest challenges for the president to draft a constitution that reflects the values and status of the state and protects all its communities. The new constitution will define his powers and also that of the elected parliament. His supporters are saying one reason he hasn't achieved much is that he is waiting for the constitution. He does not intend to usurp the powers of others, particularly parliament, they say. At the same time, critics say this means the people will have to wait for a long time, which is very harmful for the country's economy and stability. The country is going through a political paralysis and the economy is in intensive care. Egyptians are suffering prolonged power cuts and there is fuel shortage. Food prices have soared and lives have become tougher. If the president fails to find solutions to these problems immediately, people's patience will run out and they will come out onto the streets.
On foreign policy, Mursi has tried to follow a path different from Hosni Mubarak. Relations with Israel are not good and Washington hasn't been very happy with the new leader. He wants to restore the rightful place for Egypt and wants to take an independent stance on issues, which is not influenced by outside forces.
Perhaps, the president could have tried to instill more confidence in Egyptians about his leadership. | <urn:uuid:90a37bae-fde7-4c12-ac3e-fb4170cd6a1e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.menafn.com/menafn/1093565992/Egypt-EDITORIAL-Challenges-ahead | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97778 | 528 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Rebeccah Haines teaches 6th grade science at Morehead City Middle School in Morehead City, North Carolina. She has been teaching for seven years (six in 7th grade and one in 6th grade), and achieved her National Board Certification in 2007. Rebeccah holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Notre Dame and a Master of Arts in Teaching – Middle Grades from East Carolina University.
Rebeccah absolutely loves teaching middle schoolers. While they are angst-y and oftentimes challenging, she doesn’t think there is another age group where the things they do can make you laugh so hard (with them, not at them, of course).
Rebeccah’s educational interests include inquiry-based science teaching and technology. In science, her interests include biology and environmental science. Rebeccah is in charge of a student wetland project at her school in partnership with the North Carolina Coastal Federation. She has also participated with Rice University as a consultant and by participating in studies about their online educational games.
Click here to read articles by Rebeccah Haines. | <urn:uuid:23e5d233-242e-4d66-94bf-fac2769e65a1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://instructify.com/rebeccahhaines/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966302 | 237 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Northampton Area School District residents will have an opportunity to voice their opinions about the district in general and curriculum specifically with a survey that will be mailed Sept. 3 to 13,000 residents.
This is the first time such a survey has been circulated to all district residents.
The survey will allow residents to voice opinions in addition to answering a series of questions. When complete, the survey is to be mailed back to the district office. In order to return it, all the respondent will have to do is fold the survey over, secure it with tape and put it into the mail. No postage is required. It will take about 15 to 20 minutes to answer the questions.
Robert Gilly, district director of curriculum, said the survey was designed by the Instructional Coordinating Council (ICC), a group composed of school personnel, students and community members. Gilly said the purpose of the ICC is to examine curriculum issues in all grades and provide data for implementing curriculum improvements.
The first page contains a series of 11 questions related to residence, age, school level completed, employment status, grade level of children in school, preschool and day care attendance. The final question asks "Do/did your children enjoy school?" and offers room for comments.
The second series of 15 questions deals with general school information including specific questions about truancy, the use of parent volunteers in the classroom, class size and emphasis on extracurricular activities.
The third series of 84 questions deals with curriculum. The questions regard a belief in the importance of students learning a subject and how well the schools are preparing the student in that area. For example, one of the questions deals with the understanding of the effect of drugs and alcohol on the body.
Residents will have until Sept. 15 to complete the survey. When the information from the survey is tabulated, district residents will be informed of the results, Gilly said. However, Gilly could not give a date for the results to be released, saying that would be determined by the number of surveys returned and the amount of time it takes to review the data. | <urn:uuid:03de6cc3-efaf-4fca-95ff-bd0e6dcf78d6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://articles.mcall.com/1986-08-21/news/2537544_1_survey-curriculum-extracurricular | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956291 | 426 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Memo backs U.S. using lethal force
ACLU calls document 'profoundly disturbing'
The U.S. government can use lethal force against an American citizen overseas if the person is a senior operational leader of al Qaeda or one of its affiliates, according to a Justice Department memo.
The document, provided to select members of Congress last year, provides insights into the Obama administration's policy of targeted killings carried out by the use of drone strikes against suspected terrorists.
Several of those strikes have killed Americans, notably Anwar al-Awlaki, the Yemeni American who had been connected to plots against the United States but never charged with a crime. Awlaki died in a drone attack in September 2011 in Yemen.
The 16-page white paper -- titled "Lawfulness of a Lethal Operation Directed Against a U.S. Citizen who is a Senior Operational Leader of Al Qaida or an Associated Force" -- is a policy paper rather than an official legal document.
The memo was given confidentially to members of the Senate Intelligence and Judiciary committees by the administration last June, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the intelligence panel chair, said in a statement.
NBC News first reported on the contents on Tuesday. A congressional source verified the document's legitimacy to CNN.
Details surfaced just days before the confirmation hearing for John Brennan, who has been nominated to head the CIA.
Brennan has served as President Barack Obama's top counterterrorism adviser and is considered to be behind the administration's dramatic rise in the use of targeted killings against suspected terror suspects.
Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee are expected to grill him on the policy at his hearing on Thursday.
The memo stated that Americans abroad retain their constitutional rights to due process, but the government can use lethal force against a citizen under certain circumstances.
- "Where an informed, high-level official of the U.S. government has determined that the targeted individual poses an imminent threat of violent attack against the United States."
- "Where a capture operation would be infeasible -- and where those conducting the operation continue to monitor whether capture becomes feasible."
- "Where such an operation would be conducted consistent with applicable law of war principles."
But the document also said the government is not required "to have clear evidence" that an attack against the United States will occur in the immediate future to determine that an imminent threat is posed by a U.S. citizen.
The memo cites both congressional authorization and judicial approval for the use of military force to counter the threat of terrorist attack by all individuals.
The Supreme Court has held that the military may constitutionally use force against an American who is a part of enemy forces.
The document dismissed arguments by commentators that the war against al Qaeda cannot extend outside of Afghanistan.
It asserted that "the United States retains its authority to use force against al-Qaeda and associated forces outside the area of active hostilities when it targets a senior operational leader of the enemy force who is actively engaged in planning operations to kill Americans."
The White House said questions around the issue are important and have been weighed against legal concerns and discussed publicly.
"The attorney general made clear that in taking such a strike, the government must take into account all relevant constitutional considerations. But that under generations-old legal principles, and Supreme Court decisions, U.S. citizenship alone does not make a leader of an enemy force immune from being targeted," White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Tuesday, recalling a speech last year by Attorney General Eric Holder.
The American Civil Liberties Union called the Justice Department document "profoundly disturbing."
Hina Shamsi, the director of the ACLU's National Security Project, said, "It summarizes in cold legal terms a stunning overreach of executive authority, the claimed power to declare Americans a threat and kill them far from a recognized battlefield and without any judicial involvement before or after the fact."
Shamsi called on the Obama administration to release the 50-page legal memo on which the white paper is based.
A group of senators also called for the administration to release its legal opinions on presidential authority.
"It is vitally important, however, for the Congress and the American public to have a full understanding of how the executive branch interprets the limits and boundaries of this authority so that Congress and the public can decide whether this authority has been properly defined and whether the president's power to deliberately kill American citizens is subject to appropriate limitations and safeguards," according to a letter the lawmakers sent to Obama on Monday.
The letter is signed by Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, Mark Udall, D-Colorado, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, of the Intelligence Committee as well as Mike Lee, R-Utah; Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa; Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon; Dick Durbin, D-Illinois; Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont; Tom Udall, D-New Mexico; Mark Begich, D-Alaska; and Al Franken, D-Minnesota.
Dianne Feinstein of California said in a statement that the Justice Department memo and other information has permitted the Intelligence Committee to conduct "appropriate and probing" oversight into the use of lethal force.
"That oversight is ongoing, and the committee continues to seek the actual legal opinions by the Department of Justice that provide details not outlined in this particular white paper," Feinstein said.
Copyright 2013 by CNN NewSource. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | <urn:uuid:869b8624-44e3-4660-98a8-bf14a485875d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wlwt.com/news/national/Memo-backs-U-S-using-lethal-force/-/9837944/18412458/-/view/print/-/deddeyz/-/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949001 | 1,129 | 1.78125 | 2 |
In the memorable Olivet Discourse, our Lord Jesus Christ answered the searching question of His disciples, “What shall be the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world?” (Matt 24:3). The major event predicted by the Lord as a sign of the second advent was the great tribulation. He urged those living in Palestine in that day “to flee unto the mountains” (Matt 24:16). He exhorted them, “Let him that is on the housetop not go down to take out the things that are in his house: and let him that is in the field not return back to take his cloak. But woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days! And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on a sabbath: for then shall be great tribulation, such as hath not been from the beginning of the world unto now, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days had been shortened, no flesh would have been saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened” (Matt 24:17-22).
For those anticipating eagerly the coming advent of Christ, these words are fraught wth tremendous meaning. Does there lie between us and the consummation of the age this awful period of trial? Must the church remain on earth through the great tribulation?
While Eschatology is at present enjoying revived interest among liberal theologians, the trend among conservatives seems to be to minimize its importance. It is frequently argued that in a day when the authority of the Bible as a whole is being disputed there is little profit in debating the fine points of Eschatology. If this is the case, an inquiry into the relationship of the tribulation to premillennialism is wasted effort. The question of whether the church must continue on earth through the predicted time of trouble, however, is neither trivial nor academic. It can be demonstrated that the issue is fraught with tremendous practical and doctrinal implications. While not as far-reaching in Biblical interpretation as premillennialism as a whole, the decision concerning the character of the tribulation is important to any detailed program of the future and is significant in its application of principles of interpretation far beyond the doctrine itself.
Importance of the doctrine of the tribulation. There are at least three reasons why the relationship of the tribulation to the coming of the Lord is important. It is first of all an exegetical problem. The many passages in the Old and New Testament, including the major part of the Book of Revelation, require an intelligent exegesis. The problem of the interpretation of the tribulation cannot be left in the area of suspended judgment without leaving these passages without exposition.
Second, it is a theological problem. It can be demonstrated that the interpretation given to the tribulation is integral to particular theological points of view, especially in the area of Eschatology. Questions such as the use of the literal method of interpretation as opposed to the nonliteral or spiritualizing method, the separation of divine programs for Israel and the church, and the larger issue of amillennialism versus premillennialism combine to make the doctrine significant beyond its own borders. To some extent the interpretation of the tribulation is predetermined by decision in other aspects of Eschatology.
Third, the doctrine is one of practical importance. If the church is destined to endure the persecutions of the tribulation, it is futile to hold the coming of the Lord before it as an imminent hope. Instead, it should be recognized that Christ cannot come until these predicted sorrows have been accomplished. On the other hand, if Christ will come for His church before the predicted time of trouble, Christians can regard His coming as an imminent, daily expectation. From a practical standpoint, the doctrine has tremendous implications.
Postmillennial attitude toward the tribulation. While there is a wide variety of interpretation of the doctrine of the tribulation, each form of millennial teaching can be broadly characterized by its own position on the tribulation. In the postmillennial point of view, as illustrated in the writings of Charles Hodge, the tribulation is viewed as a final state of trouble just preceding the grand climax of the triumph of the gospel. The national conversion of Israel and the national conversion of Gentiles is viewed as containing in its last stages a final conflict with Antichrist, which is equated with Romanism.1
It is characteristic of postmillennialism that it does not attempt a literal interpretation of the tribulation. Some less conservative than Hodge, such as Snowden, regard the tribulation as any time of trouble, now largely past or associated with the apostolic period. Hodge himself does not offer any specific system of interpretation, as illustrated in his comment on the Book of Revelation: “Some regard it as a description in oriental imagery of contemporaneous events; others as intended to set forth the different phases of the spiritual life of the Church; others as designed to unfold the leading events in the history of the Church and of the world in their chronological order; others again assume that it is a series, figuratively speaking, of circles; each vision or series of visions relating to the same events under different aspects; the end, and the preparation for the end, being presented over and over again; the great theme being the coming of the Lord, and the triumph of his Church.”2
While vague as to specific teaching, the postmillennial interpretation of the tribulation is clear, however, in its general characteristics. The tribulation is a time of trouble just preceding the second advent of Christ. The tribulation, however, is not very definite and its character is not sufficiently serious to interfere with the onward march of the church to a great climax of triumph at the second advent of Christ. The tribulation is a minor phase of the closing events of the age.
Amillennial attitude toward the tribulation. The amillennial interpretation of the tribulation does not differ essentially from the postmillennial although it has a different theological context. In Augustinian amillennialism, the present age is regarded as the predicted millennium, and inasmuch as the tribulation is said to precede the millennium, by so much it must already be past. Often it is identified with the troubles of Israel in connection with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
The fact that the Book of Revelation was written after this event, however, and that a time of trouble is predicted to precede the second advent, has led some like Berkhof to hold to a future tribulation, placing the fulfillment of Scripture dealing with the tribulation, to which is added the battle of Gog and Magog, after the millennium. Berkhof writes: “The words of Jesus [Olivet Discourse] undoubtedly found a partial fulfillment in the days preceding the destruction of Jerusalem, but will evidently have a further fulfillment in the future in a tribulation far surpassing anything that has ever been experienced, Matt 24:21; Mark 13:19.”3
The amillennial view, therefore, holds to a future tribulation period, but there is little uniformity concerning its exact character. The tendency in amillennialism is to avoid specific details in describing the tribulation. In effect, while admitting the fact of the coming tribulation amillenarians spiritualize the sequence of events which are prophesied. This is particularly true in the interpretation of the tribulation section of the Book of Revelation.
Premillennial attitude toward the tribulation. In general premillenarians interpret the coming tribulation with more literalness than either the amillenarians or postmillenarians. Within the ranks of premillenarians, however, there are three main types of interpretation. Some premillenarians hold the view that the coming of Christ for His church will be posttribulational, that is, that the church will remain on earth throughout the tribulation period.
In recent years there has arisen a modification of this, known as the midtribuational view, which holds that the church will be translated at a coming of the Lord for His church just before the great tribulation prophesied by our Lord, but in the middle of the seven-year period predicted by Daniel as preceding the coming of Christ (Dan 9:27). This view is rather recent and as yet has a limited literature.
The third view, which is very popular with premillenarians who have specialized in prophetic study, is the pretribulational position, Which holds that Christ will come for His church before the entire seven-year period predicted by Daniel. The church in this point of view does not enter at all into the final tribulation period. This teaching was espoused by Darby and the Plymouth Brethren and popularized by the famous Scofield Reference Bible. Generally speaking, the pretribulation position is followed by those who consider premillenarianism a system of Bible interpretation, while the posttribulational and midtribulational positions characterize those who limit the area of premillennialism to Eschatology.
An offshoot of pretribulationism, though seldom recognized as an orthodox point of view, is the partial rapture concept that only the godly Christians expecting the return of Christ will be translated before the tribulation, the rest continuing through it until the return of Christ to establish His earthly kingdom. It is obvious that only one of these four possible positions is correct, and it is the duty of the Biblical exegete to determine which is the proper interpretation of related Scriptures. It is the plan of the following treatment to deal with the pretribulation position, including a refutation of the partial rapture concept, then to consider the posttribulational view, and finally the midtribulational position. that the followers of Darby “sought to overthrow what, since the Apostolic Age, have been considered by all pre-millenialists as established results.”5
It must be conceded that the advanced and detailed theology of pretribulationism is not found in the Fathers, but neither is any other detailed and “established” exposition of premillennialism. The development of most important doctrines took centuries. If the doctrine of the Trinity did not receive permanent statement until the fourth century and thereafter, beginning with the Council of Nicea in 325, and if the doctrine of human depravity was not a settled doctrine of the church until the fifth century and after, and if such doctrines as the sufficiency of Scripture and the priesthood of the believer were not recognized until the Protestant Reformation, it is not to be wondered at that details of Eschatology, always difficult, should unfold slowly. It is certainly an unwarranted generalization to postulate a detailed and systematic premillennialism as in existence from the Apostolic Age.
The central feature of pretribulationism, the doctrine of imminency, is, however, a prominent feature of the doctrine of the early church. Wdthout facing all the problems which the doctrine of imminency raises, such as its relation to the tribulation, the early church lived in constant expectation of the coming of the Lord for His church. According to Moffat, it was the widespread Jewish belief that some would be exempt from the tribulation.6 Clement of Rome (first century) wrote, “Of a truth, soon and suddenly shall His will be accomplished, as the Scriptures also bear witness, saying, ‘Speedily will he come, and will not tarry;’ and, ‘The Lord shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Holy One, for whom ye look.’“7
The Didache (120 A.D.) contains the exhortation, “Watch for your life’ sake. Let not your lamps be quenched, nor your loins unloosed; but be ye ready, for ye know not the hour in which our Lord cometh.”8 It should be clear from this quotation that the coming of the Lord is considered as possible in any hour, certainly an explicit reference to the imminency of the Lord’s return.
A similar reference is found in the “Constitutions of the Holy Apostles” (Book VII, Sec. ii, xxxi): “Observe all things that are commanded you by the Lord. Be watchful for your life. ‘Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning, and ye like unto men who wait for their Lord, when He will come, at even, or in the morning, or at cock-crowing, or at midnight. For what hour they think not, the Lord will come; and if they open to Him, blessed are those servants, because they were found watching….”9 Here again is the doctrine of imminency taught without apology.
It should be clear to any discerning student of prophecy that this expectancy of the early return of the Lord was not always coupled with a systematic structure of Eschatology as a whole. The problems were frequently left unresolved. To say, however, that the doctrine of imminency, which is the heart of pretribulationism, is a new and unheard of doctrine is, to say the least, an overstatement. While the teachings of the Fathers are not clear on details, it is certainly beyond dispute that they regarded the coming of the Lord as a matter of daily expectancy. It is entirely unwarranted to assume as the posttribulationists do that the early church regarded the imminent coming of the Lord as an impossibility and that their expectation was the great tribulation first, then the coming of the Lord. If pretribulationism was unknown, in the same sense modern posttribulationism was also unknown. The charge that pretribulationism is a new and novel doctrine is false; that it has been developed and defined to a large extent in recent centuries is true. In any event, the thesis that the early Fathers were omniscient and once-for-all defined every phase of theology is an unjustified limitation on the liberty of the Spirit of God to reveal the truth of Scritpure to each generation of believers. The history of the doctrine of the church has always to this hour revealed progress in other areas, and it is to be expected that this will continue also in Eschatology.
The hermeneutical argument. It is generally agreed by all parties that one of the major differences between amillennialism and premillennialism lies in the use of the literal method of interpretation. Amillenarians, while admitting the need for literal interpretation of Scripture in general, have held from Augustine to the present time that prophecy is a special case requiring spiritualizing or nonliteral interpretation. Premillenarians hold, on the contrary, that the literal method applies to prophecy as well as other doctrinal areas, and therefore contend for a literal millennium.
In a somewhat less degree the same hermeneutical difference is seen in the pretribulational versus the posttribulational positions. Pretribulationism is based upon a literal interpretation of key Scriptures, while posttribulationism tends toward spiritualization of the tribulation passages. This is seen principally in two aspects.
Posttribulationists usually ignore the distinction between Israel and the church much in the fashion of the amillenarian school. The reason for this is that none of the tribiilation passages in either the Old or New Testament ever mention the “church” or the ecclesia. In order to prove that the church is in the tribulation period, it is necessary to identify key terms as equivalent to the church. Hence, Israel becomes a general name for the church and in some contexts becomes an equivalent term. The term elect becomes a general designation for the saints of all ages, regardless of limitation of the context. Saints of all dispensations are considered as members of the true church. In order to make these various terms equivalents, it is necessary to take Scripture in other than a literal sense in many instances—the use of Israel as equivalent to the church being an illustration. The proof that the church is in the tribulation requires a theological system which spiritualizes many of its terms, and posttribulationists brush off a more literal interpretation as too trivial to answer. through the Tribulation without being compelled to feel the full force of it, even as the Israelites went through the plague-period in Egypt? …The way of escape might take the form of a partial exemption from suffering…”12 Reese has a different slant on the same subject by declaring that “immediately before the Day of the Lord falls, God can call His saints to Himself, without the necessity of an additional advent a generation earlier.”13 He goes on to explain, “That is, the righteous shall first be removed and then the judgment shall fall.”14 In effect, Reese is denying that judgments will fall until the close of the tribulation when the Lord comes. Practically speaking, he denies that the tribulation will be a time of tribulation. For Reese the wrath does not begin at Revelation 6:13 but in Revelation 19. By such sophistry the teaching that the church will go through the tribulation but without tribulation is preserved. Of importance here, however, is the illustration of the principle of interpretation used by the posttribulationists—the avoidance of the literal interpretation of the major passage, the Book of Revelation.
The choice of a weakened tribulation is not an accident, however, but necessary to their position. Only by this device can passages picturing the hope of the Lord’s return as a comfort and joy be sustained. It is impossible to harmonize a literal interpretation of the tribulation with posttribulationism. It would nullify not only the promises of comfort, but also the imminency and practical application of the doctrine of the Lord’s coming. The controversy between pretribulationists and posttribulationists is, in miniature, a replica of the larger controversy of premillennialism and amillennialism as far as principles of interpretation are concerned. This is brought out more in detail in the Scriptural revelation of the tribulation itself to which we now turn.
(Series to be continued in the Oct-Dec Number, 1954)
This article was taken from the Theological Journal Library CD and posted with permission of Galaxie Software.
1 Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, III, 812-36.
2 Ibid., III, 826.
3 Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 700.
5 Loc. cit.
6 Cf. Expositor’s Greek Testament. s.v., Rev 3:10. “Rabbinic piety (Sanh. 98b) expected exemption from the tribulation of the latter days only for those who were absorbed in good works and in sacred studies.” For this citation and others which follow, cf. H. C. Thiessen, Bibliotheca Sacra, April-June, 1935, pp. 187-96.
7 l Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians, chapter 23.
8 Ante-Nicene Fathers, VII, 382.
9 Ibid., VII, 471.
12 McPherson, op. cit., pp. 22-23.
13 Reese, op. cit., p. 212.
14 Ibid., p. 213. | <urn:uuid:5d257a8f-a9e0-4795-a32c-d1edc4d712b6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bible.org/seriespage/millennial-series-part-22-premillennialism-and-tribulation | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94889 | 4,041 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Written by Senora Bicho
In 1975, Albert and David Maysles premiered Grey Gardens, a documentary that showcased the lives of mother and daughter, Edith “Big Edie” Ewing Bouvier Beale and Edith “Little Edie” Bouvier Beale, at the New York Film Festival. Earlier this year, HBO aired Grey Gardens, a 17-time Emmy-nominated television movie, which utilized portions of the Maysles’ documentary to tell a more complete story of these reclusive and eccentric women.
The movie starts in 1975 when Big Edie (Jessica Lange) and Little Edie (Drew Barrymore) are living alone in their dilapidated estate, Grey Gardens, located in East Hampton. As the women reveal themselves to the documentarians, the audience is transported through four decades of their lives and learn what took place. Their stories are interwoven together beautifully. We learn they did not always live in filth and squalor. Being relatives, aunt and first cousin respectively, of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, they were used to a much grander lifestyle. Struggles with men draw them together and eventually lead to their secluded lives and downward spiral.
One of the DVD’s special features is an audio commentary with director Michael Sucsy and executive producers Lucy Barzun Donnelly and Rachael Horovitz, which offers extensive information on the production of the film and additional background details. It is interesting to hear the research that was done and how they accomplished flushing out more about the women’s lives.
“Grey Gardens: Then & Now” is fascinating as it explores the differences and similarities between the film and documentary. Interviews with Albert Maysles along with the cast and crew of the film are included. This featurette illustrates the strong performances of Barrymore and Lange. Seeing the real women in the documentary is astonishing because it is hard to tell which is which. Lange’s impressive performance is reminiscent of her role as Patsy Cline in Sweet Dreams. She is charming and portrays Big Edie’s struggles genuinely; you can feel her joy and pain. Barrymore is solid but her performance feels more like an act. Her accent is extremely distracting. Seeing portions of the real documentary does bring an added appreciation for her portrayal of Little Edie. The scenes of Barrymore and Lange together are the real strength of this film. They are able to express the deep emotion and bond between mother and daughter. Jeanne Tripplehorn is fabulous in a small role as Jacqueline Kennedy. Daniel Baldwin and Ken Howard are also strong in their supporting roles. | <urn:uuid:cdc2ec0e-619f-4ffa-bde1-166a6307d6f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogcritics.org/video/article/dvd-review-grey-gardens-2009/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953182 | 547 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Delivering the opening remarks at the Turkey-European Union Joint Parliamentary Committee meeting [Feb. 14] in Ankara, Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek said: “Our goal is full membership to the EU. We will never accept any other status, or an alternative. If in fact there is any other preference, there is no need to keep Turkey waiting.” Turkey’s chief negotiator with EU, Egemen Bagis, also gave the same message with a strong emphasis. In return though, Ria Oomen-Ruijten, the European Parliament rapporteur on Turkey, asked for calm in rhetoric. “Bashing the EU, European Parliament and member states is not the way for constructive dialog,” she said.
Tulin Daloglu writes that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan could facilitate EU membership for Turkey by restraining from inflammatory rhetoric.
February 14 2013
Turkey’s ruling party, however, is expressing frustration with the EU process. During his official visit to Prague last week, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused the EU of being “disrespectful” to Turkey — at least. “We have been patient all this time. How far have we come? When you look, there is the Customs Union and Helsinki Summit [1999, when Turkey was given candidate status,] and the official start of Turkey’s negotiations,” Erdogan said. “Except these three, they only engaged us. Has any other country been treated like this? No. This is in essence disrespect to Turkey.”
Since Turkey officially applied to become a full member of the European family, a half-century has passed to no avail, and Turks by and large have lost their enthusiasm, or the notion as to why being a member of the EU can be important for Turkey. They perceive it as an old continent, crawling in economic crisis, yet still full of itself in a snobbish attitude that looks down to those considered different from them — religiously, ethnically, by birth, or whatever.
So, when Turkish prime minister asks, “What is more natural than us expressing this situation?” for Turks the answer is very clear: Nothing!
“Three out of every four constituents does not believe that Turkey will become a full EU member at the end of this process,” Aykan Erdemir, Republican People’s Party (CHP) Bursa deputy and a member of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, told Al-Monitor. “But we also know that more than 60% of the people was in favor of Turkey’s EU membership just a few years back.”
That takes us to a key point in Turkey-EU relations: Although it’s been that long, people still talk about this relationship as if they don’t have any depth, but like they have met yesterday. The public often makes up its mind based on the rhetoric coming from their leadership.
The point is not that Turkey’s opposition would have performed better in moving the accession talks. In fact, Erdogan argues that the opposition has stalked his efforts of moving the EU process, and that it was under his leadership that Turkey has taken the most important steps in this ideal, but CHP deputy Erdemir has a critical observation: “The Turkish public has always been negatively impacted by the prejudiced right-wing European politicians' statements on Turkey, but Turkey’s politicians and statesmen should be able to look through these handicaps and not get stuck in this populist politics,” he says.
“This process [Turkey’s EU membership] is surely a long one, but it’s also not true to claim that Turkey has done all its homework on its democracy, human rights, basic rights and freedoms concerns, as well as its cultural and social aspects.”
In public or media though, Turks don’t talk about these because they still mostly engage in a primitive relationship — one that really does not register a belonging. The EU unfortunately failed to reach out to the ordinary Mehmet or Ayse on the Turkish streets, but left them to think that they’re rejected because they’re Muslims, or have a darker skin texture than Europeans. This comes actually from my latest conversation with a cab driver and those chats are literally the most valuable to get the pulse of the street. One would have hoped that these days have passed, and Europe has a better recognition as a friend and ally.
Yet when Erdogan speaks with his definitive rhetoric, and asks, “What’s the fondness of these Europeans with terrorists?” and touches on the nerves of the street that European countries have supported those who wanted to harm this country in blood and treasure, he probably spurs the support of the nation standing tall right behind him.
These are, however, old tactics that belong to pre-Cold War, pre-9/11 era — where Erdogan claims that he saved Turkey from the opposition who could not make the change to adjust to the new world order. Maybe, therefore, it would be best to recall Norman Vincent Peale with one of his favorite quotes: Change your thoughts, and you change your world.
Or, in the words of Aykan Erdemir, “If you really want to become a member of the European Union because you believe you share the same values with them, and if you’re really determined to accomplish this ideal, then your responsibility is not to put fire on these populist sayings, but to calm the rhetoric, and invest in developing the understanding and appreciation of these common values — with a constructive dialogue — both domestically, and with EU partners.”
Tulin Daloglu is a columnist for Al-Monitor's Turkey Pulse. She has written extensively for various Turkish and American publications, including The New York Times, International Herald Tribune, The Middle East Times, Foreign Policy, The Daily Star (Lebanon) and the SAIS Turkey Analyst Report. She also had a regular column at The Washington Times for almost four years. In the 2002 general election, Daloglu ran for a seat in the Turkish parliament as a member of the New Turkey Party. She earned BS and MA degrees in international relations at the Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey, and completed an MA degree in journalism and public affairs at American University in Washington, D.C. | <urn:uuid:12e92462-ddf9-40f6-b11c-f437c323289b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/02/erdogan-akp-impede-turkey-eu-membership.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970307 | 1,321 | 1.617188 | 2 |
- THE MAGAZINE
- WEB EXCLUSIVES
When technology makes things easier-as it always does-it also comes with its own set of complexities. The development and widespread use of the personal computer is no exception. A computer can do in minutes what it used to take hours or days to accomplish, revolutionizing the way that data is reported and at the same time creating greater expectations about that data. Before personal computers changed everything, for example, weekly charts of accounts receivable were done by hand. Employees rooted through file cabinets, looked at invoices and jotted figures on sheets of paper.
Next, they used graph paper, perhaps splurging on color felt tip pens, to make rudimentary line charts. When the quality manager presented charts at the monthly meeting, imagine the sigh when the CEO asked the simple question “What does that weekly chart look like by month?”
Enter the PC, designed to make data readily available. Add quality analysis software, and the data is easily massaged. Or is it?
The Quality DomainIn almost every business today, data flows from the operations of the business into various software systems. Accounting, inventory, resource planning, contact management, patient health records, order fulfillment, quality management and other disciplines have been systematized. Each of these departments provides its own view of the data it manages. This view might be thought of as a domain-specific report. The report fetches and massages data, then formats it for presentation.
Many of these software systems allow reports to be customized, but the reports often leave more information to be learned from the data. The “accounts receivable” chart is a good example. A standard report might give a comparison of this month to the same month last year. What if you want to know the weekly mean over time? Can trends be detected? Is variation increasing or decreasing? Do signals exist that indicate problems or opportunities?
These are questions Six Sigma professionals are trained to ask. They are from the quality domain. Often, the questions are focused on quality metrics such as customer satisfaction, number of errors and number of defects. However, they can provide insight when asked more broadly about data flowing into other enterprise systems. But when the data to be analyzed for a Six Sigma project is flowing into other software systems, how do you chart it? This is a challenge for many quality-focused, variation-minded professionals.
Trap #1: Move the DataOne solution is an old stand-by. It has been around a long time and many people use it-it is called move the data. For example, one selects a Six Sigma project to reduce the number of accounts receivable over 60 days. The data resides in the accounting system but you want to make a control chart, using a quality software program. First search the accounting software’s help files and figure out how to export data from the accounting system. Then do the same to learn how to import that data into the quality charting software.
Along the way, the oddities of each program and the file formats they support are discovered. Eventually, the steps are remembered from week to week-but they remain as a manual process. Next is the desperate search for ways to automate the process. After all, this weekly task is time consuming. So a macro program is written or a scripting tool is used to automate the task.
Now it is working just the way it should. Life is good. Then, during a meeting, one of the team members asks a simple question. “I wonder what it looks like by month?”
Are we that much better off than when we used felt tip pens and graph paper? Yes, the software allows us to crunch a lot of data quickly, but the move-the-data approach involves three potentially deadly problems.
1) The data being analyzed is a copy of the original data. The copy can be obsolete within minutes of exporting it from the source system. Data may have been added or even changed in the original system. By the time the chart is presented to the CEO, the data is stale.
2) Moving the data causes repetitive work. Even if the work is mostly automated, it will have to be repeated each time a current assessment is needed. PCs facilitate this, but each step in a process is an opportunity for something to go wrong.
3) Finally, move-the-data systems are brittle. If the CEO wants an additional variable added to the analysis or a team member wants to stratify the data in some new way, the system must be reworked, often from scratch. Rework is tedious, time consuming and wasteful. This waste directly affects the bottom line.
Trap #2: The Wrong ToolWhen there is a question about data, we tend to go to the application that stored the data to ask the question. But is the spreadsheet or database that houses the data the best tool for quality analysis? If you’ve ever had the unfortunate experience of creating a control chart from scratch in Excel, you understand what it’s like to dig a ditch with a spoon. Twenty-seven steps later, a basic weekly X-bar chart of accounts receivable is created.
And then the CEO asks, “What does that weekly chart look like by month?” Or worse, he suggests, “Perhaps we should recalculate control limits beginning with the month we hired the collections officer.”
Want to create control charts in Oracle? This task will make 27 steps seems simple. It is better to use the right tool for the job. In this case, use a tool that has a quality mindset and understands quality management tools.
Trap #3: Do NothingGiven the work and potential hazards associated with the first two traps, one may be tempted to select another improvement project-one that is associated with the quality domain, where data already exists in the quality software programs. But in most organizations today, large amounts of data flow into databases. Operators enter data into a manufacturing program, bookkeepers into an accounting system, sales people into an order entry system.
What can be learned from that data? How can the data be used to save money or improve quality in the organization? Can signals be found in the data-signals that indicate there is a problem or an opportunity? After all, why have all this data if an organization does not plan to benefit from it?
Doing nothing means gaining nothing. Control charts are simple but powerful tools. They can help avoid two important mistakes: adjusting a process when it should be left alone, and not adjusting a process when intervention could probably help. The database is a repository and the chart is a tool that allows one to make sense of the current data to bring about data-based decisions and improvements.
If one is trained in quality, he is trained to focus on reducing variation. He looks for reasons behind the variation. He looks for patterns in the data, signals that can show the way to cost savings or quality improvement. A set of analysis tools includes control charts, histograms, scatter diagrams, run charts, trend lines and Pareto charts to help analyze various sets of data.
This mindset is primarily applied in the quality domain. However, as most Six Sigma professionals have learned, these tools are valuable outside of the quality domain. Whether managing inventory levels in a manufacturing setting or keeping track of medical supplies in a hospital, quality analysis tools can enhance the decision-making process.
So data is flowing into many domain-specific applications such as a laboratory information system or patient management program. All of that valuable data is essentially locked up, but think about the potential. What if the data could be unlocked by a quality improvement software application?
Data as a Free AgentCustomers often talk about moving the data into their quality applications. Some software features ease this work, but there is another option.
It would be better to understand the data in place. The data storage problem has already been solved, so customers may look for an easy way to understand this data from the quality improvement and Six Sigma point of view without getting tangled up in the mechanics of moving it around.
Software focuses on understanding data in place, the variation, the out-of-control signals, the capability indices and other statistics, all without moving the data. Quality and Six Sigma professionals are trained to look at data this way. Software can provide a tool to help accomplish this work.
The software workflow consists of defining a chart that links to data in some existing application. The link can be live and is always current. Each time the chart is viewed the most current data is retrieved. This allows one to define a chart once but use it often.
This eliminates the three problems associated with Trap #1, moving the data:
1) The data being analyzed is the original data. If data is added or changed, the software chart reflects the change. Charts are always up-to-date.
2) It eliminates repetitive work, and this in turn eliminates opportunity for errors.
3) It is flexible. Variables can be added to the analysis and data can be filtered or stratified with a few clicks of the mouse. Rework is eliminated, having a positive impact on the bottom line.
The right software can allow quality professionals to look at data from any part of the organization from a quality perspective with little or no effort. The data can reside virtually anywhere.
Just point the software to the Excel, Access, Oracle, .txt, or other file, select the type of analysis, and select chart.
Each time the chart is drawn, it will fetch the data, so that the charts are always current. It is that simple. And what about the CEO who wanted to see the accounts receivable chart by month rather than week? That’s now easily accomplished within a matter of seconds. Q
Quality OnlineFor more information on software, visit www.qualitymag.com to read these articles and find the latest in quality software applications and products:
- “How to Manage Quality Data Across a Global Enterprise”
- “The Year of the Recall”
- The Quality Magazine Software Selector Guide | <urn:uuid:afe54971-56a3-4c96-9500-e77fef564254> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.qualitymag.com/articles/85279-three-quality-data-traps | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938783 | 2,090 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Editor's note: Timothy Wolfer is a student at Pacific Union College and has worked around the world producing documentaries and TV shows. His latest film, "Adopting Haiti," will be available on Hulu on January 12.
(CNN) -- Last year, before the Haitian tragedy receded from the headlines in America, many of the major stories focused on orphans.
Unfortunately, "Haitian orphans" evokes images of the Idaho Baptist missionaries accused of trying to take children with living parents off the streets of Port-au-Prince. This embarrassment overshadowed the legal adoption of hundreds of Haitian children under emergency provisions implemented by the U. S. State Department.
That success is what I saw last January at a Haitian orphanage that got 80 children to America in a dramatic military airlift. Now, reflecting back on that bittersweet experience, some questions about adoption remain.
I had skipped my college classes to go to Haiti, arriving in Port-au-Prince at the Maison des Enfants de Dieu orphanage a few days after the earthquake. It quickly became a media hotspot, with a variety of cable news journalists reporting on the lack of food, water, diapers and formula for the 135 children.
Trying to capture the story, I trained my camera on a 14-year-old girl named Saintania whose eyes sparkled with happiness amidst the terror in her country. She told me that she was excited to be going to America soon, thanks to an Ohio family that had pledged to adopt her before the earthquake. But what she said next surprised me: Saintania's birth mother had just visited her yesterday.
After arriving back in America, with time to think, curiosity set in. What kind of parents would put their children in an orphanage? What kind of situation would lead parents to give up their children to adoption? Should Saintania be allowed to leave her country to live in America?
Adopting children mixes a variety of reasons and emotions. Adding in living parents and crossing international borders further complicates the moral questions.
I decided to learn more about Saintania's situation, so I made a second trip back to Haiti where I found her father, who is a pastor. He was living in the outskirts of Port-au-Prince in a one-bedroom house with a dirt floor. He had given up Saintania and another daughter for adoption because of the violence in the area, and it was clear that he and their mother could not care for them. I could see in his eyes that he thought that this was the best thing for them.
After my visit with her father, it was clear that he thought that going to America was in Saintania's best interest. But I wanted to be sure, so I flew out to Ohio to visit her new family and deliver a letter from home.
She and her sister were being home-schooled along with the family's four biological children, and there was plenty of laughter as they played together. And there were definitely some tears as Saintania read her father's words and began to write a letter home.
As I reflect back on this experience, I know that it would be irresponsible to deduce many answers to my questions about adoption from this one experience. Amidst this physical, social and moral tragedy, there is little that I can know for certain.
But looking into the faces of Saintania and her father, I know that they have asked and answered far more difficult questions then I, and many Americans, will ever face.
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Timothy Wolfer. | <urn:uuid:2f38ef97-b3ff-4c76-9b7f-4ab3dd99ec82> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www-cgi.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/01/12/wolfer.haiti.adoption/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980768 | 731 | 1.640625 | 2 |
In Baptism Jesus Is in Solidarity with Us
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The joy that flowed from the celebration of holy Christmas is fulfilled today in the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. A further reason for jubilation comes to us who are gathered here: indeed, in the sacrament of Baptism that I shall shortly administer to these newborn babies is expressed the living and active presence of the Holy Spirit who, enriching the Church with new children, vitalizes and develops her, and we cannot but rejoice in this. I would like to address a special greeting to you, dear parents and godparents who are witnessing to your faith today by asking for baptism for these children, so that they may be born to new life in Christ and become part of the community of believers.
The Gospel account of the baptism of Jesus which we heard in St Luke’s version shows the life of meekness and humility that the Son of God chose freely, complying with the Father’s plan to be obedient to his desire for love for man in all things, even to his sacrifice on the cross.
Having reached adulthood, Jesus began his public ministry by going to the River Jordan to receive from John a baptism of penance and conversion. What might seem paradoxical in our eyes actually happened. Did Jesus need penance and conversion? Of course not. Yet the One who is without sin put himself among sinners to have himself baptized, to make this act of penance. The Holy One of God joined those who recognized they were in need of forgiveness and asked God for the gift of conversion, that is, the grace to return to him with their whole heart, to belong totally to him. Jesus chose to join the ranks of sinners, to be in solidarity with them, expressing God’s closeness.
Jesus shows his solidarity with us, with our efforts to convert and to be rid of our selfishnesss, to break away from our sins in order to tell us that if we accept him in our life he can uplift us and lead us to the heights of God the Father. And Jesus’ solidarity is not, as it were, a mere exercise of mind and will. Jesus truly immersed himself in our human condition, lived it to the end, in all things save sin, and was able to understand our weakness and frailty. For this reason he was moved to compassion, he chose to “suffer with” men and women, to become a penitent with us. This is God’s work which Jesus wanted to carry out: the divine mission to heal those who are wounded and give medicine to the sick, to take upon himself the sin of the world.
What happened at the moment when Jesus had himself baptized by John? In the face of this act of humble love by the Son of God, the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit showed himself in the form of a dove, while a voice from on high expressed the pleasure of the Father who acknowledged his Only- Begotten, his beloved Son. This was a real manifestation of the Blessed Trinity, that bears witness to the divinity of Jesus, of his being the promised Messiah, the One whom God sent to set his People free in order to save them (cf. Is 40:2).
In this way the prophecy of Isaiah that we heard in the first reading came true: the Lord God comes with might to destroy the work of sin and his arm rules in order to disarm the Evil One. However, let us bear in mind that this arm is the arm stretched out on the cross and that Christ’s power is the power of the One who suffered for us; this is the power of God, different from the power of the world; thus God comes with power to destroy sin.
Indeed Jesus acted as the Good Shepherd who tended his sheep and gathered his flock, so that none might stray (cf. Is 40:10-11), and layed down his life so that it might have life. It is through his redeeming death that man is liberated from the dominion of sin and reconciled with the Father; it is through his resurrection that man is saved from eternal death and enabled to triumph over the Evil One
Dear brothers and sisters, what happens in the baptism that I shall shortly be administering to your children? Exactly this: they will be deeply united with Jesus for ever, immersed in the mystery of his power, of his might, namely, in the mystery of his death which is a source of life so as to share in his resurrection, to be reborn to new life. This is the miracle that is repeated today, also for your children: in receiving baptism they are reborn as children of God who share in the filial relationship that Jesus has with the Father, in other words who can address God, calling him with full confidence and trust: “Abba, Father”. The heavens are also opened above your children and God says: these are my children, children in whom I am well pleased. Inserted into this relationship and liberated from original sin, they become living members of the one body that is the Church and are enabled to live their vocation to holiness in fullness, so as to be able to inherit eternal life, obtained for us by Jesus’ Resurrection.
Dear parents, in asking for Baptism for your children you express and witness to your faith, to the joy of being Christian and of belonging to the Church. It is the joy that comes from knowing you have received a great gift from God, faith itself, a gift which not one of us has been able to deserve but which was freely given to us and to which we responded with our “yes”. It is the joy of recognizing that we are children of God, of discovering that we have been entrusted to his hands, of feeling welcomed in a loving embrace in the same way that a mother holds and embraces her child. This joy, which guides every Christian’s journey, is based on a personal relationship with Jesus, a relationship that directs the whole of human existence.
Indeed it is he who is the meaning of our life, the One on whom it is worth keeping our eyes fixed so as to be illuminated by his Truth and to be able to live to the full. The journey of faith that begins for these infants today is therefore based on a certainty, on the experience that there is nothing greater than knowing Christ and communicating friendship with him to others; only in this friendship is the enormous potential of the human condition truly revealed and we can experience what is beautiful and sets us free (cf. Homily at Holy Mass for the Inauguration of the Pontificate, 24 April 2005). Whoever has had this experience is not prepared to give up his faith for anything in the world.
Dear godparents, it is your important duty to sustain and help the parents in their educational task, supporting them in the transmission of the truths of the faith and in their witness to the Gospel values and bringing up these children in an ever deeper friendship with the Lord. May you always be able to offer them your good example, through the practice of the Christian virtues. It is not easy to express what one believes in openly and without compromises. This is especially true in the context in which we live, in the face of a society that all too often considers those who live by faith in Jesus as out of fashion and out of time.
On the crest of this mentality, Christians too can risk seeing the relationship with Jesus as restrictive, something that humiliates one’s fulfilment; “God is constantly regarded as a limitation placed on our freedom, that must be set aside if man is ever to be completely himself” (The Infancy Narratives: Jesus of Nazareth)
But this is not how it is! This vision shows that it has not understood the relationship with God at all, for as we gradually proceed on our journey of faith, we realize that Jesus exercises on us the liberating action of God’s love which brings us out of our selfishness, our withdrawal into ourselves, to lead us to a full life in communion with God and open to others.
“‘God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him’ (1 Jn 4:16). These words from the First Letter of John express with remarkable clarity the heart of the Christian faith: the Christian image of God and the resulting image of mankind and its destiny” (Encyclical Deus Caritas Est, n. 1).
The water which will sign these children in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit will immerse them in that “fount” of life which is God himself and will make them his own true sons. And the seed of the theological virtues, faith, hope and charity, sown by God, seeds that are planted in their hearts today through the power of the Holy Spirit, must always be nourished by the word of God and by the sacraments so that these Christian virtues may grow and attain full maturity, until they make each one of them a true witness of the Lord.
As we invoke upon these little ones the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, let us entrust them to the protection of the Blessed Virgin; may she always preserve them with her motherly presence and accompany them at every moment of their lives. Amen.
© Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013
This item 10150 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org | <urn:uuid:de907eb6-0c8f-42a8-81ea-c2ea69b02533> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=10150 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975599 | 1,951 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Business Travelers Prefer Wi-Fi to Food
May 27, 2009
When it comes to mobility, the only thing business travelers want more than Wi-Fi is electricity.
Hate it when you're notebook battery runs out of juice during a trip? You're not alone.
Having a dead PC battery or no place to charge it was the biggest complaint of frequent travelers in a survey sponsored by HP released on Friday. The survey was an American Airlines Customer Research online study conducted with more than 1,500 frequent travelers who log more than 20 trips a year on three or more airlines.
A combined 67.7 percent of frequent travelers surveyed said a dead battery (41.4 percent) and no place to plug in (26.3 percent) were their largest complaints. Power outlets also are in high demand at the gate and onboard the flight. Twenty-four percent said access to electrical power is the most important technology amenity aboard a plane.
The survey also indicated frequent travelers have a hunger for connectivity that exceeds their hunger for, well, food. More than 47 percent of business travelers surveyed indicated Wi-Fi was the most important airport amenity, outscoring basic travels needs such as food by nearly 30 percentage points.
If Wi-Fi were enabled onboard, 70.5 percent said they would choose their notebook as their primary device for conducting business-related work, with mobile phones (with telephony turned off) a distant second at 19.8 percent.
While some airlines, including American, have enabled in-flight Wi-Fi via third-party services, its use is still ramping up. Most business travelers in the survey say they're far less efficient in-flight than in an airport or hotel.
American said it plans to install the Gogo Inflight Internet on more than 300 domestic aircraft over the next two years. Like other airlines, American is expanding the available of power outlets beyond First Class and Business, to Economy seats as well.
More than 96 percent of respondents said they conduct work-related activities at their hotels. Eighty-five percent conduct work-related activities at the airport, but this number drops to 52.6 percent onboard a flight.
Many travelers say they scramble to conduct work-related items (for example, sending e-mails, making calls) at the gate before they take off (76 percent). Of course there are other considerations in a plane, like space and chatty fellow passengers (or screaming babies) that could make getting work done more difficult.
"Lack of Wi-Fi is not the one driver keeping us from a higher GDP," joked Kelly Davis-Felner, marketing director of the Wi-Fi Alliance. "But it would increase productivity on-board if you had that expectation it would be available," she said. Davis-Felner, a frequent traveler herself, says she organizes her "thinking work" on a flight when she knows she won't have an Internet connection.
"Business travelers expect connectivity and see it as a necessity, not a luxury," said Carol Hess-Nickels, director of marketing in HP's Notebook Global Business Unit, in a statement.
Davis-Felner noted Wi-Fi is expanding to other forms of travel, including cars. She said there's great potential for non-drivers to use Internet connectivity for entertainment as well as location and monitoring services including security and asset tracking. "The IEEE has a work group devoted to developing vehicular Wi-Fi standards," she added.
Article courtesy of InternetNews.com. | <urn:uuid:a245031a-efba-4682-b659-706f7d467c2d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/news/article.php/3821981 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97163 | 720 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Young Australians arrive at the Heywire Regional Youth Summit
Sunday, 03/02/2013The 15th annual Heywire Regional Youth Summit has begun in Canberra, with 32 young people travelling from all corners of the country to the nation's capital.
Isabelle Bolland is out to change the perception of living on Christmas Island - yes, she's Australian, yes she speaks English, yes it's a beautiful area, and no, she doesn't live in a mud hut.
And while it took eight hours of flights and about 5,500km to get to Heywire, she's ready to spread the message.
"I'm interested in getting my voice out there that Christmas Island isn't a massive detention centre," she said.
"You tell people [you're from there] and they categorise you like you're not human.
"I've always been around refugees and I hear the labels they get and it upsets me - I really want to change it."
Her winning Heywire entry reflected on the misconceptions of living on Christmas Island, and the things she loves about her home.
For Tooligie's Luke Siviour, living on the southern tip of South Australia near Port Lincoln on a sheep farming property means he's faced with the perennial issue of whether to stay working on the family farm.
He's one of the many young Australians tempted by city life and intends to study architecture when he leaves school.
He says he's 'sick and tired' of people assuming rural youth aren't interested in - or capable of - a metropolitan career.
"A lot more people are heading to the city, but we come from a very rural area and a lot of people want to stay there because it's what they've grown up doing - it's what they love and I respect that."
Travelling to Canberra for Heywire has provided an opportunity to see another part of the country - something he rarely has the chance to do because of his farm commitments.
"I've never really gone anywhere," he said.
"It still hasn't really sunk in that I'm here - Julia Gillard's probably just down the road somewhere."
Meanwhile, Elspeth Davey had her own seasonal work to finish before trekking south.
The 17 year-old comes from a mackerel fishing family in Nhulunbuy on the north east tip of the Northern Territory, and has just finished a fishing season in January.
The Heywire conference rooms at the Australian Institute of Sport are a long way from her traditional learning environment that would bob and sway in the hull of a large boat.
Most of her primary schooling was done by distance on the open water.
"It's a different classroom because there are no windows - it's under water and you get to hear dolphins and pilot whales - they're quite loud when they ride the bow wave," she said.
It's the sort of environment most kids only learn about in a nature documentary inside a suburban school.
She's grown up with aquaculture issues at the front of her mind, and she's looking to get the ear of environment minister Tony Burke during her stay in Canberra.
"We have three Green Zones [that indicate a marine national park] in the areas where we fish, and each time they put in a Green Zone it always expands from the original plan," she said.
"If they expand it more, we won't be able to fish in Queensland waters and that's our main productive area, so it's toying with our future."
Elspeth's family currently has fishing licences that allow access from Darwin to the top of Queensland and down part of the Queensland east coast.
"It's a hard subject to talk about because everyone has strong opinions, but we're struggling in the Gulf [of Capentaria]."
Day one of Heywire sees the young people discussing what issues are important to them before exploring parts of Canberra by bicycle.
Also tweeting via @heywire and #heywire13
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Check out the photographs on flickr.
Meet all of the 2012 Heywire winners and why not enter the 2013 competition now!
Heywire acknowledges the support of the Australian Government through the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, the Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport, the Department of Health and Ageing and the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.
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If you are selected as one of our winners your story will be featured on ABC Local Radio, triple j or abc.net.au. And you'll also score an all-expenses-paid trip to the Heywire Youth Issues Summit in Canberra in February 2012! | <urn:uuid:8d098f25-f47d-45f3-979b-74e935d9b758> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.abc.net.au/heywire/stories/2013/02/3681769.htm?site=southwestvic | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965839 | 1,009 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Publications International, Ltd.
Four-Oh-Nine! from its burbling throb at idle to it high-rpm scream, Chevy's 409 cubic-inch V-8 was a sensation. What was the magic in this new engine? Was it just cubic inches? Well, it was that, plus something else - that indefinable quality an engine has when everything in it is designed to match everything else.
The 409's magical power was evident almost from the day it appeared in 1961. For example, Dan Gurney tore around Riverside in a stock 409 Impala to beat Dave McDonald's lap record, which had been set with the hottest, fuel-injected 283 Corvette. Gurney raced his car in England that same year - but only once. He led the race, outpacing a pack of tuned 3.8-liter (232 cubic-inch) twin-cam Jaguar sedans, until his Chevy lost its wheel. But the 409 has been fast enough to make its mark on the European scene. It went on to a career in NASCAR oval-track events, and was a surprise winner at the 1961 NHRA Winternationals, where Don Nicholson's Impala was timed over the standing-start quarter mile at 13.19 seconds at nearly 110 mph. Thus began what would become a legend in Chevy performance history.
Actually, there had been a big-block V-8 before the 409. It was the type W, the most unlikely starting point for a big-inch powerhouse imaginable. To understand how the 409 came to be, you have to go back to 1958.
Chevy's 283-cid V-8 was hardly a year old when engineers discovered-to their great dismay-that it wouldn't be able to provide competitive performance for the larger, heavier models planned for 1958 and beyond. Chevy was going to need a lot more cubes in a hurry, way beyond the 302 that was the limit for that block and the-current crankshaft. Almost in desperation, they looked to the only bigger V-8 they had, a new 348-cid mill-wincing a little, because it was primarily intended for trucks. But there was nothing else to use as a starting point for a high-performance car engine, so the type W it was.
With its 4.125-inch bore and 3.25-inch stroke in a block having cylinder center-to-center spacing 4.84 inches, the 348 had plenty of room for enlargement. For car applications it was given the name "Turbo-Thrust" to distinguish it from the small-block V-8s, which were named "Turbo-Fire." It was designed by John T. Rausch as project leader, with Howard Kehrl and Donald McPherson working as his principle assistants.
Hotting up the 348 began in mid-1958. There were new and wilder camming, multi-carburetor setups, compression ratios that would have made Kettering proud, and many other little tricks to gain efficiency without losing reliability. This work was handled by Maurice Rosenberger, an ex-Cadillac engine man, assisted by Fred Frincke and Dennis Davis. After developing satisfactory 348s for both racing and street use, this team turned to developing an enlargement, which became the 409. | <urn:uuid:6c23523a-c909-4773-b2c5-3095b8029475> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://auto.howstuffworks.com/chevy-409-cid-v-8-engine.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97699 | 685 | 1.796875 | 2 |
So far, that might not seem like a big deal -- after all, signing up for Facebook has given you access some of the world's most popular free entertainment, such as games like FarmVille and the like. This weekend, however, an LA Times article warns that Facebook is now planning to cash in -- in a big way -- by getting more aggressive about selling ads against your personal data as the company prepares to go public in the not-too-distant future.
I'm not talking about standard profile items like your age or your location, but sell ads against things that you write about in updates or based on things that you 'like' on your fellow Facebookers pages.
If you're familiar with internet privacy, this type of targeted advertising isn't necessarily anything new. Google, for instance, has been serving up ads based on your searches and email discussions forever. But, the LA Times says Facebook will be able to take it to the next level -- its "unique trove of consumer behavior could transform it into one of the most powerful marketing tools ever invented.""For years, the privately held company founded by Mark Zuckerberg in a Harvard dorm room put little effort into ad sales, focusing instead on making its service irresistible to users. It worked. Today more than 600 million people have Facebook accounts. The average user spends seven hours a month posting photos, chatting with friends, swapping news links and sending birthday greetings to classmates.
Now the Palo Alto company is looking to cash in on this mother lode of personal information by helping advertisers pinpoint exactly whom they want to reach. This is no idle boast. Facebook doesn't have to guess who its users are or what they like. Facebook knows, because members volunteer this information freely - and frequently - in their profiles, status updates, wall posts, messages and "likes."
It's now tracking this activity, shooting online ads to users based on their demographics, interests, even what they say to friends on the site - sometimes within minutes of them typing a key word or phrase."
Then, there's the larger issue -- as in how many of the 600 million people on Facebook are really aware of how much info they're giving up to advertisers, as well as just how much Facebook stands to gain from selling off your personal data and interests.
So -- I throw the question to you -- does it bother you that Facebook will be selling more ads based on your private info? Or, do you see it as a necessary part of partaking in one of the world's most vibrant social networks? Take our poll below. | <urn:uuid:345eb0ad-e9ab-400e-812a-65ba974eb4b3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.games.com/2011/04/18/lunchtime-poll-facebooks-big-plans-to-cash-in-on-your-personal/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960524 | 520 | 1.609375 | 2 |
By Frances Whiting
It has been more than 70 years since the devil man came looking for Jack Muriata.
Then, he was a little boy playing with his friends on the sandy banks of the Tully River (pictured right). Today he is a much respected Girrigun elder but Muriata, 79, says time has not erased the terror of that moonless night all those years ago.
"Our mothers and grandmothers used to tell us not to go too far from camp in case the Devil Man came calling," Muriata said.
"Devil men, we Aborginals call them, or chic ah bunnahs.
"White people call them UFOs, and if you get caught by one, our grandmothers told us, you will die.
"One night I was with my friends and we wandered too far from our camp to the river.
"We were playing in the dunes when this great big ball of light, so bright, you have never seen such a light, came flying down from the sky above us.
"It lit up the whole river, and then it zoomed down low along the banks, like it was looking for us.
"My friends were yelling, 'Run! Run!' and we all took off as fast as we could back towards camp and our mothers.
"You don't want to get caught by the devil man."
Devil men, "chic a bunnahs", unidentified flying objects, call them what you will, believe in them or not but whatever they are, and whatever name they go by, they do seem to be particularly attracted to the small, picturesque north Queensland town of Tully.
About 180km south of Cairns with a population of about 3400, Tully would be like any other pretty sugar cane town in the far north, but for several factors.
First of all, there's the famous Tully Gorge, where white-water rafting enthusiasts from around the world gather to shoot down its rapids.
Then there is Tully's extraordinary weather with an average annual rainfall of 4252mm, it is officially Australia's wettest town and has decided to build a giant gumboot to celebrate the fact.
But if you believe the locals, Tully's most interesting claim to fame is that it is Australia's UFO headquarters, with hundreds of sightings every year.
Muriata says the Aborigines have known about Tully's strange visitors "since the beginning", and other, older locals such as 82-year-old cane farmer Albert Pennisi agree.
"Everyone who lives in Tully knows about the UFOs here," Pennisi says. "It's just that some folks choose to talk about it and some folks don't."
Pennisi is one who does and no wonder. It was on his 83ha farm that Tully's most famous UFO sighting took place.
On the morning of January 19, 1966, Pennisi's neighbour George Pedley was driving his tractor across his banana farm when he heard a strange hissing sound.
At first Pedley who no longer speaks publicly about his experience thought the hissing was from his tractor tyres, but Pennisi says the sound was instead coming from a medium sized, horseshoe-shaped lagoon on Pennisi's property.
"Suddenly George saw this machine rise up from our lagoon it rose about 30 to 40 feet (10-12m) and then it turned on its side and just shot away." Pennisi said.
"It was gone, vanished into thin air."
But Pennisi and others who have visited the site believe it left behind a souvenir of its visit.
"George went to the lagoon straight away and he saw the water still swirling, still churning around.
"I think it really shook him up, and he came to get me but I was away. Later on when I got back we went to the lagoon together and, by crikey, did I get a shock."
Floating on Pennisi's normally unremarkable lagoon was a UFO "nest", a 9m circular mass of reeds, tightly woven in an intricate design swirling clockwise and so strong, Pennisi says, it could easily support the weight of 10 men. (pictured above right)
Pedley's sighting of the blue-grey saucer was never repeated, but whatever made that first "nest" on Pennisi's dam kept making it.
"They came back in 1972, 1975, 1980, 1982 and 1987," Pennisi said. (pictured right and below)
"There was always the big one, but we also got about 22 smaller ones and, the strange thing is, while the big one always went clockwise, (the others) were always anti-clockwise."
Determined to explain the phenomena, Pennisi took to watching the lagoon at all hours of the night.
"I wasn't scared. I didn't take any weapons with me except my cane knife but I never did find out why they came to my farm or why they suddenly stopped coming, but I've got a fair idea why."
Pennisi believes interest in his lagoon (carloads of people came at the height of its fame) plus the attention of the police and the air force may have made whatever or whoever was visiting his farm, shy off.
"We had people from all over the world arriving: UFO researchers, police, the air force investigators were watching us 24 hours a day. It was all a bit much for a cane farmer."
After an extensive investigation by the police and the RAAF, a 1966 report by the Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organisation (CAPIO), concluded:
"There is no explanation for the visible phenomena reported but it could have been associated with or the result of 'down draughts', 'willy willies' or 'water spouts' that are known to occur in the (north Queensland) area."
Pennisi, a down-to-earth farmer not usually given to flights of fancy, laughs at the explanation.
"They also tried to tell me it was a low-flying helicopter, a mini tornado, even a crocodile. But anyone who saw it will tell you whatever made it was not of this world, my friend.
"Before this thing happened to me, I might have been a bit sceptical, too, but things change when you see things with your own eyes."
And for many Tully locals, seeing it with their own eyes is all that it takes to turn them from sceptics into believers.
Semi-retired handyman Les Holland, 60, reckons Tully is "crawling with UFOs".
"I think I would have had trouble believing it if I hadn't seen them myself," Les says. "There's a hell of a lot of activity here.
"If you look up in the night sky in Tully, you'll see them soon enough. Lots of very bright lights, moving quickly through the sky. They're par for the course, but occasionally you see something really mind-blowing.
"A few years ago I saw this massive one hovering above us you could see its lights: red, yellow, green. It was completely silent, just hovering there then, in a flash, it was gone."
Holland's son Morgan, 17, has also had his fair share of sightings. A keen fisherman, his late-night trips have yielded much more than the tasty jungle perch he is angling for.
"Morgan was out one night about 18 months ago looking out over Tully Heads when he very clearly saw a machine in the sky which looked like a pyramid with the top part cut off it.
"He could see bands across it . . . he could see the whole thing quite clearly. It didn't make any noise most of them don't, they're just silently hovering.
"It didn't bother Morgan and he didn't bother it. That's the thing about Morgan, all he wants to do is fish crocs, sharks, UFOs nothing gets in the way of his fishing."
But one young Tully mother's experiences with what she believes were UFOs were not so casual.
"I was living on a property just outside of town right on top of this hill," says the woman, who asked not to be identified.
"It had the most amazing view; you could see all the way to Hinchinbrook Island and the Great Dividing Range.
"My baby was really young at the time, so when I started seeing things like motherships hovering about 400m away with small discs being released out of them, I was actually terrified - really, really frightened
"One night there were five of them in the field behind the shed a few hundred metres away.
"I could not believe it, they were as plain as day with about 40 flashing lights all over them.
"But I guess the frieakiest one was this massive structure right above our house.
"It was about four or five hundred metres above us and the only way I can describe it is like a huge Eiffel Tower in the sky.
"It was massive, like a football field. I was pretty frightened and all I kept thinking was 'Why can't anybody else see this ?'"
A good question, and according to Tully's resident UFO expert Claire Noble, one with a simple answer.
Noble, who has spent 36 years putting together a dossier of more than 1000 UFO sightings from her home, believes that not only do the UFOs sometimes choose to make themselves known to only certain people, but "other people just don't know how to look up".
"There's a lot of ignorance unfortunately," say Noble, a grandmother of two.
"Some people just don't want to see, which is a shame because it's fantastic here. We've had every shape here, every size, every type of light.
"Disc-shaped ones, ones that look like a sombrero hat turned upside-down, rectangles, flotillas of triangular-shaped crafts.
"Ordinary garden-shaped size discs [no, I don't understand this either - pd], long torpedo-shaped ones, spinning tops, ice cream cone-type craft.
"I used to have a 360-degree view here before they built all these houses and the things I saw . . . once we watched them landing at the bottom of Mount Mackay for about 3.5 hours, just this constant buzz of activity."
Noble says that in 1966, she made contact with what she calls the "visitors".
"After one close sighting we went out into the bush with our torches and our car lights to welcome them and, yes, contact was made.
Noble does not wish to elaborate on her experience, but will say that Tully's extraterrestrial visitors mean no harm.
"They can teach us a lot, and I can say that big changes are coming.
"There was a lot of activity here during the '60s and then it dropped off, but since last September it's really been hotting up again.
"The skies above Tully are buzzing with activity if you only know wehre - and how- to look ."
Noble says that she knows some people might consider her crazy.
"I don't care, I', beyond caring what people think of me. I know what I know and I've seen what I've seen, and a lot of poeple have seen the same things so if I'm crazy, then we all are."
Farmer Alfio Cali certainly seems sane enough and he says what he saw late one night while working in his cane field is something he will never forget - no matter how hard he tries.
"We live out in the Lower Tully region near the beach'" Cali said. "We were working on the ground, I was going east on my tractor and a worker who was with me was going west.
"Suddenly out of nowhere this light just lit up the whole canefield, you could see all the way from one end to the other.
"It was just shining down on us. It would change colours every few seconds and then it just took off.
"I was frozen in shock and my mate jut said to me, 'I'm going home," and took off.
"Before that I didn't believe, but there's just no other explanation for it, other than, well, I guess it was a UFO.
"I've never seen anything like it again and I never want to."
But not all the locals are believers. Many just want the whole issue to go away.
One shop owner, who asked not to be named, had this to say about his town's unusual reputation.
"They're all nutters, the lot of them," he said. "It's not good for the town, makes us all look stupid, dumb, gullible country clowns if you ask me.
"Other towns get known for their scenery or their history; these people want it to be like, "Come to Tully, meet the local fruitcakes'."
And despite all the sightings, Tully's police say they've never heard of a single UFO being seen there.
Senior Constable Breet Humphreys said that if UFOs were targeting Tully, the police would have heard of it. "To my knowledge we have never had a single report," he said.
"We've never been called out to attend a job that involves a UFO and we've never been asked to investigate a sighting - so what does that tell you ?"
The Tully Nest | <urn:uuid:375ad4b8-36de-4ce6-b7a8-64adcadd7c53> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.circlemakers.org/tully.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985269 | 2,840 | 1.726563 | 2 |
(a) Definition.(1) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, a change of program consists of a change in the educational, professional, or vocational objective for which the veteran, reservist, or eligible person entered training.
(2) VA does not consider any of the following to be changes of program:
(i) A change in the type of courses needed to attain a vocational objective;
(ii) A change in the individual's educational, professional or vocational objective following the successful completion of the immediately preceding program of education;
(iii) A return to the individual's prior program of education following a change of program if the individual resumes training in the program without any loss of credit or standing in that program;
(iv) An enrollment in a new program of education when that program leads to a vocational, educational or professional objective in the same general field as the immediately preceding program of education; or
(v) An enrollment or reenrollment of a servicemember seeking to be paid tuition assistance top-up benefits to meet all or a portion of an educational institution's charges for education or training that the military department concerned has not covered under tuition assistance.
(b) Application. A veteran, reservist, or eligible person may request a change of program by any form of communication. However, if the veteran, reservist, or eligible person does not furnish sufficient information to allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to process the request, the Department of Veterans Affairs will furnish the prescribed form for a change of program to him or her for completion.
(c) Optional change of program. A spouse or surviving spouse eligible to receive educational assistance under 38 U.S.C. chapter 35 may make one optional change of program if his or her previous course was not interrupted due to his or her own misconduct, neglect, or lack of application.
(d) Other changes of program.(1) The following changes of program may not be made solely at the option of the veteran, reservist, or eligible person. The Department of Veterans Affairs must approve them before paying educational assistance allowance:
(i) A second or subsequent change of program made by a veteran or eligible person other than a child receiving educational assistance under 38 U.S.C. chapter 35,
(ii) An initial change of program made by a veteran or eligible spouse or surviving spouse if the first program was interrupted or discontinued due to his or her own misconduct, neglect or lack of application, or
(iii) Any change of program made by a child receiving educational assistance under 38 U.S.C. chapter 35.
(2) The Department of Veterans Affairs will approve a change of program listed in paragraph (d)(1) of this section if:
(i) The program of education which the veteran, reservist, or eligible person proposes to pursue is suitable to his or her aptitudes, interests and abilities,
(ii) In any instance where the veteran, reservist, or eligible person has interrupted, or failed to progress in his or her program due to his or her own misconduct, neglect or lack of application, there is a reasonable likelihood with respect to the program the veteran, reservist, or eligible person proposes to pursue that there will not be a recurrence of such an interruption or failure to progress, and
(iii) In the case of an eligible child receiving educational assistance under 38 U.S.C. chapter 35 the new program meets the criteria applicable to final approval of an original application. See § 21.4230.
(3) The Department of Veterans Affairs may approve a third or subsequent change of program if applicable conditions of paragraph (d)(2) of this section are met and the additional change or changes are necessitated by circumstances beyond the control of the veteran, reservist, or eligible person. Circumstances beyond the control of the veteran, reservist, or eligible person include, but are not limited to:
(i) The course being discontinued by the school when no other similar course leading to the same objective is available within normal commuting distance.
(ii) Unexpected financial difficulties preventing completion of the last program because of the overall cost of the program needed to reach the objective, or
(iii) The veteran, reservist, or eligible person being required to relocate because of health reasons in an area where training for the last objective is not available within normal commuting distance.
(4) Notwithstanding any provision of any other paragraph of this section, if a third or subsequent change of program occurs after May 31, 1991, VA will apply only the applicable provisions of paragraph (d)(2) of this section. If the applicable provisions of paragraph (d)(2) of this section are met, VA will approve the change of program. VA will not apply any of the provisions of paragraph (d)(3) of this section in determining whether the change of program should be approved.
(e) Adjustments; transfers. A change in courses or places of training will not be considered a change of objective in the following instances:
(1) The pursuit of the first program is a prerequisite for entrance into and pursuit of a second program.
(2) A transfer from one school to another when the program at the second school leads to the same educational, professional or vocational objective, and does not involve a material loss of credit, or increase training time.
(3) Revision of a program which does not involve a change of objective or material loss of credit nor loss of time originally planned for completion of the veteran's or eligible person's program. For example, an eligible person enrolled for a bachelor of science degree may show a professional objective such as chemist, teacher or engineer. His or her objective for purposes of this paragraph shall be considered to be “bachelor degree” and any change of courses will be considered only an adjustment in the program, not a change, so long as the subjects he or she pursues lead to the bachelor degree and there is no extension of time in the attaining of that degree. | <urn:uuid:c29a72c5-c2c7-47a2-8b49-f2631bbb788e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/38/21.4234 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941796 | 1,239 | 1.65625 | 2 |
The companies signed a memorandum of understanding and will begin detailed project planning based on the US company’s proprietary TCX ethanol technology, a thermochemical process based on its acetyl platform.
The earlier agreement covered potential production locations, coal supply options, and an ethanol-distribution strategy. The new agreement states the companies’ intentions to establish a partnership under which Celanese would maintain a majority share and license the technology.
The companies now will select the first of as many as four production locations, start permitting, and negotiate coal-supply and other industrial partner agreements. They expect to complete this phase of work by yearend.
They expect production to begin at an undisclosed rate about 30 months after final investment decisions and government approvals. | <urn:uuid:a8717313-18dc-450a-b002-117402708ad9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ogj.com/articles/2013/03/celanese--pertamina-advance-ethanol-pact.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94541 | 152 | 1.59375 | 2 |
(The following article was originally published in the German news magazine “Der Spiegel”. This is a translation into English that I wrote myself. I’m not certain if this is copyright infringement, but I do own the magazine in physical form, and one could argue that the entire text of this post is manually translated, as opposed to copy-pasted. Anyways, enjoy )
There is probably no other company in the world that is so easy-going and at the same time so powerful as the entertainment enterprise Apple. Its founder and CEO Steve Jobs, despotic and multiple times fallen severely ill, does not only determine what we buy – he wants to determine how we live.
It was hot, no shadow in the stadium of Stanford. The students had been drinking, they grinned and giggled, and that is why it took some time until they understood that over there was a ruler of the western world, stepping forward to confession.
His products, recognizable by the bitten apple, are products that mankind demands, because mankind apparently believes that these products alleviate the modern life, and even more: that the modern life consists of owning these products. But the ruler does not talk about himself, usually. He is shy, say some who know him well. He only says something, smiling kindheartedly, when he has something to sell, a new telephone (iPhone), a flat miracle device (iPad) or a new advertisement platform (iAd), or when he, like last week, announces new record earnings: 3.07 billion dollars in the latest yearly quater, 90% more than the previous year. Apart from that he keeps his silence, and he demands silence from all those who he lets into his contiguity, and he does not let others tell him why he, on that June day in Stanford, reveals what his drive is, what he fears, what he thinks – only there, this one time, and never again. Read MoreShare | <urn:uuid:55904430-5fa9-48da-bc77-6ca5bea27344> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thedolgion.com/?tag=imac | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980552 | 399 | 1.65625 | 2 |
If you believed only the headlines, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Afghanistan is a country at war and that nowhere is safe. These days that simply is not the case, writes Lieutenant Colonel Lorna Ward.
There are countless villages across different regions and districts where families live a perfectly mundane day-to-day existence and the most violence they witness is the occasional spat with their neighbour over livestock.
On the streets of the capital there may be more of a military presence than we are used to at home, with checkpoints policing access to the so-called ‘Green zone’ – the district that houses embassies and some of the ISAF camps – and armed guards outside key government buildings. But it’s also a colourful, bustling city with rush hour traffic that would drive even the most seasoned London cab driver round the bend.
And it’s at rush hour that the streets really come alive. On Ahmad Shah Massoud road, elegant ladies in delicately sequined headscarfs wend their way gingerly around the cars across the dusty road. As drivers career onto the roundabout with no obvious right of way, the traffic cop under a large awning advertising a fresh yoghurt drink and the Afghan United Bank tries – to no avail – to get the ever-increasing gridlock moving with frantic arm movements.
Further down, the road splits into a dual carriageway where cars jostle in and out of imaginary lanes honking their horns and narrowly missing the odd horse and cart piled high with watermelons. Every car, motorbike and minibus is packed with as many passengers as it can hold; suited men heading home from work, families visiting friends, and people heading to the huge neon-lit Afghan Cash and Carry.
It is noticeable how many more women there are out and about on the streets. Even a couple of years ago when I was here last, they were few and far between – and then most wore the eye-catching blue burkha. It’s striking how many now feel confident enough to express themselves more freely through their choice of bright and colourful clothes. One pioneering female journalist I met recently told me women feel safer and more enpowered now – and that they will not be giving up their hard-fought freedoms and ambitions. The next generation is clearly relishing the opportunity to learn and dream of careers too; at the end of the day swarms of girls in crisp white headscarves with blue uniforms chatter their way out of the school gates in pairs with their books under their arms.
There is of course still a security threat even on the streets of the capital and for every cluster of Toyota corollas – seemingly the car of choice on the roads here – there is an armoured SUV carrying a foreign official, a military commander or representatives of one of the many charities working here. But you no longer see the military foot patrols I went out on as recently as 2010 and military convoys are few and far between.
It is a shame that these bustling streets only seem to make the international headlines every few months; when they have been devastated by a violent attack or a suicide bomb. Because over the years I have been visiting, life in Kabul has changed; shopping malls have popped up, construction and parks projects have been completed, schools have reopened. And in between the horrific attacks, millions of Afghans refuse to be cowed and carry on with their lives. Street vendors sell their flatbreads, young men join the police force, kids look forward to the Eid holiday and like clockwork the rush hour traffic grinds to a halt on the Ahmad Shah Massoud roundabout.
Lieutenant Colonel Lorna Ward is media advisor to General Nick Carter, the Deputy Commander of ISAF who is also the Commander of UK forces in Afghanistan – the National Contingent Commander. | <urn:uuid:48571680-8c77-43ad-9a35-4c7f494357ac> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ukforcesafghanistan.wordpress.com/2012/11/14/rush-hour/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=58edc31406 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963088 | 784 | 1.726563 | 2 |
>Cross Training>dizzy after laps?
325th place or bust!
Any of you ever get dizzy after swimming laps?
I took a class in swimming earlier this year and never had any problem, but we had a 10-meter long lane. Last week and this week I did my first laps in a regular pool using 25-meter lengths (widthwise across the pool). (It's also possible it is 25-yards across but for this topic it doesn't matter.)
Last week I swam 8 laps for 200 meters total, with a rest between laps. After I got out and went to the locker room I was dizzy for a half minute. This week I swamp 10 laps and it was worse. I got out and dried off a bit before going to the locker room and had to sit on the bleachers for a minute until it went away. In both cases I didn't feel it until I was out of the pool.
I swam these laps freestyle, breathing every third stroke so I was alternating from side to side and that makes me wonder if my having to move my head from side to side like that for breathing could have caused it? But in that case I'm surprised it didn't bother me until I was out of the pool. It took me about 12-15 minutes total to swim the 250 meters today.
PR: 5K 22:41, 10K 51:05, HM 1:59, Sprint Tri: done!
Races for 2013:
Kluane Bike Relay (4 legs 70 miles)
Calgary 70.3 (72.3)
Aukeman Sprint Triathlon 8/6/2013
Pain is Temporary Pride is Forever
You could be lifting your head too much out of the water when breathing. Are you moving your body side to side rather than just lifting your head out of the water? The key to freestyle is moving your body to a good side balance position for each stroke. Try some side balance drills prior to swimming laps. It's good practice.
Well, how high is too high? I know that sounds funny but I don't really know how high is enough. I lift my head enough so I can get air and not water. I tend to get a tiny bit of water anyway sometimes... I'll see what I can do to check my balance, thanks.
Try swimming a few laps breathing every 2 strokes. Maybe you're not getting enough O2? I used to have the same thing happen, although I'd get dizzy if I would breath every 4 or 5 instead of 2 or 3.
I might try that to breathe on the same side each lap (and alternating sides). I don't think it's lack of O2 as I was in the pool relaxing for half a minute after the last lap and felt good then.
p.s. and I've also never felt that way even after my hardest 5K run effort that left me gasping at the end... That's why I think it has something to do with the breathing turning the head side to side.
If you need to, instead of resting between laps, kick with a kick board. Sounds like you've got a little vertigo from being in the water. Good work on swimming though! It's a great way to exercise with minimal impact on off days.
7. Have fun!
Are you at all prone to inner ear infections? I have had issues with vertigo ever since my first inner ear infection maybe a decade ago. I used to be able to do somersaults underwater and go on rollercoasters that go upside-down, but no more. Now if I do those things I get bad spins...like bed spins after drinking too much, but without the fun of alcohol.
I would think water in your ears could make matters worse.
'07: 1324.5 | '08: 1561 | '09: 1810.9 run ~ 208.7 bike | '10: 1,000.3 run ~ 3513.5 bike | '11: 710.3 run ~ 4157.9 bike '12: 659.9 run ~ 3365.6 bike (100% benched by ortho last 4.5 weeks while in long-arm cast)
• DON'T BREAK ANYTHING!!!
• get within 5#s of 130#s (and stay there, gotdammit!)
• 1st olympic distance duathlon
• 1st Iceman Cometh mtn bike race
• Half Fanatic
• punch Type 1 in the junk
That's why I'm suggesting the kick board. Be sure to kick with your head up. You'll stay steady on your tummy and be able to release a little bit of water from the ears.
I swim quite a bit, and sometimes I even feel like I've had my face/head in the water too long. When I do, I get a little bit nauseous and have to kick for a while before I can return to swimming.
If this is after you get out of the pool rather than during the swim then it could be the blood rushing back into your legs. If you have a lazy kick then when you finish the set and climb out of the water the blood rushes back into your legs and you go light headed. In triathlons the reccomendation for exiting the swim and getting vertical on dry land is to kick very hard during the last 50-100m. This helps the blood to circulate back into the legs and can reduce the effect.
If this is hard swim session (for you) then make sure you do a gentle swim at the end of the set and don't jump straight out of the pool take a minute.
That's me in the back.
There are several reasons.
It could be anything from a slight bout of motion sickness to what Tony said about the blood flow. Actually, any one of these post could be it. If it's related to ears.....then ear plugs may work.
As a regular swimmer there are two things that cause a dizzy spell for me. Cold Water and I have one set of goggles that I wear in open water. These goggles distort my view. Kinda like looking thru a clear glass of water and will make me dizzy for the 1st 50 to 75 yards until I get used to 'em.
My guess is chalk it up to inexperience. More time swimming, less time dizzy.
Best Of Luck......and check out the swimming forum too.
Cancer F'in Sucks
Thanks for all the suggestions, I'll see how it goes this week.
I don't get any water in my ears so I don't think that's the problem. I'll try to take a gentle swim cooldown after the laps and see how that goes.
Just a little update: I felt better with yesterday's swim. During the swim I took it a little easier with the arm work as I think I was probably working too hard on the swim (especially with the arms). Then at the end, relaxed a couple of minutes vertically before getting out. Got my towel and walked in to the locker room for a shower and felt much better. Had just the slightest touch of being out of balance for a minute. That was so much better!
Also, really loving the cool water swim on a hot summer day. Not sure I'm going to like it as much when the weather and water turn colder.
© 2013 RunningAHEAD, LLC. All rights reserved. | <urn:uuid:943231fb-3f6c-44bb-bce9-9e8235afb3d0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.runningahead.com/forums/post/87f1c5480e4b4c49a7fb95d108db7fad | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97296 | 1,556 | 1.710938 | 2 |
F.B.I. Data Mining Reached Beyond Initial Targets
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: September 9, 2007
The F.B.I. cast a much wider net in its terrorism investigations than it has previously acknowledged by relying on telecommunications companies to analyze phone-call patterns of the associates of Americans who had come under suspicion, according to newly obtained bureau records.
The documents indicate that the Federal Bureau of Investigation used secret demands for records to obtain data not only on individuals it saw as targets but also details on their ''community of interest'' -- the network of people that the target was in contact with. The bureau stopped the practice early this year in part because of broader questions raised about its aggressive use of the records demands, which are known as national security letters, officials said.
The community of interest data sought by the F.B.I. is central to a data-mining technique intelligence officials call link analysis. Since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, American counterterrorism officials have turned more frequently to the technique, using communications patterns and other data to identify suspects who may not have any other known links to extremists.
The concept has strong government proponents who see it as a vital tool in predicting and preventing attacks, and it is also thought to have helped the National Security Agency identify targets for its domestic eavesdropping program. But privacy advocates, civil rights leaders and even some counterterrorism officials warn that link analysis can be misused to establish tenuous links to people who have no real connection to terrorism but may be drawn into an investigation nonetheless.
Typically, community of interest data might include an analysis of which people the targets called most frequently, how long they generally talked and at what times of day, sudden fluctuations in activity, geographic regions that were called, and other data, law enforcement and industry officials said.
The F.B.I. declined to say exactly what data had been turned over. It was limited to people and phone numbers ''once removed'' from the actual target of the national security letters, said a government official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of a continuing review by the Justice Department.
The bureau had declined to discuss any aspect of the community of interest requests because it said the issue was part of an investigation by the Justice Department inspector general's office into national security letters. An initial review in March by the inspector general found widespread violations in the F.B.I.'s use of the letters, but did not mention the use of community of interest data.
On Saturday, in response to the posting of the article on the Web site of The New York Times, Mike Kortan, a spokesman for the F.B.I., said ''it is important to emphasize'' that community of interest data is ''no longer being used pending the development of an appropriate oversight and approval policy, was used infrequently, and was never used for e-mail communications.''
The scope of the demands for information could be seen in an August 2005 letter seeking the call records for particular phone numbers under suspicion. The letter closed by saying: ''Additionally, please provide a community of interest for the telephone numbers in the attached list.''
The requests for such data showed up a dozen times, using nearly identical language, in records from one six-month period in 2005 obtained by a nonprofit advocacy group, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit that it brought against the government. The F.B.I. recently turned over 2,500 pages of documents to the group. The boilerplate language suggests the requests may have been used in many of more than 700 emergency or ''exigent'' national security letters. Earlier this year, the bureau banned the use of the exigent letters because they had never been authorized by law.
The reason for the suspension is unclear, but it appears to have been set off in part by the questions raised by the inspector general's initial review into abuses in the use of national security letters. The official said the F.B.I. itself was examining the use of the community of interest requests to get a better understanding of how and when they were used, but he added that they appeared to have been used in a relatively small percentage of the tens of thousand of the records requests each year. ''In an exigent circumstance, that's information that may be relevant to an investigation,'' the official said.
A federal judge in Manhattan last week struck down parts of the USA Patriot Act that had authorized the F.B.I.'s use of the national security letters, saying that some provisions violated the First Amendment and the constitutional separation of powers guarantee. In many cases, the target of a national security letter whose records are being sought is not necessarily the actual subject of a terrorism investigation and may not be suspected at all. Under the Patriot Act, the F.B.I. must assert only that the records gathered through the letter are considered relevant to a terrorism investigation. | <urn:uuid:0b80a970-26ff-4826-bdd8-1f43355be7d8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40713F935550C7A8CDDA00894DF404482&fta=y&incamp=archive:article_related | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963879 | 1,001 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Larger than life comic strip characters are the highlight of ``News Adventures: Headlines, Deadlines & Funnies,`` an exhibit opening today at the Children`s Museum in Boca Raton.
Visitors young and old will be able to the trace development of the funny pages and the characters they grew up with.
They include The Yellow Kid, whom artist Richard Outcault drew at the turn of the century and still popular Little Orphan Annie, who came to life through the pen of Harold Gray.
Also featured are Beetle Bailey by Mort Walker, who made his first appearance in the 1950s; the Peanuts gang, which made its debut in the 1960s; then there`s Doonesbury from the 1970s and Cathy from the 1980s.
The funny pages probably are a child`s first introduction to newspapers. The exhibit takes visitors to the next step, with a slide show on a day in the life of a daily newspaper.
Reporters, editors, librarians, advertising representatives and delivery people are are integral parts of the process.
The paper is delivered in the early morning hours, only to start the cycle again the next day.
The exhibit includes blow-ups of photographs seen in the newspaper and information on the printing press.
Visitor also will learn about the cutting and pasting that went into putting together the newspaper before electronics came along.
A giant front page provides the backdrop for children to pose as their favorite heroes or villains and have their picture printed in the newpaper.
Visitors will have a chance to create their own comics during ``Comics Kids Fest`` on April 22 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
``Garfield will be there, in the fur,`` said Marci Million, an organizer of the exhibit.
The festival includes sidewalk painting, entertaining and sing-a-longs. Everyone will be able to try a hand at creating their own comic characters that day.
The exhibit is sponsored by the News and Sun-Sentinel Co. A special workshop will be offered at the museum for teachers on April 29 on how to use the newspaper in teaching.
The Children`s Museum is at 498 Crawford Blvd. It is open on Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. and admission is $1. Call 368-6875 for details. The exhibit will run from April 4 through June 4. | <urn:uuid:e94c03d9-0eb0-422d-ac66-a73e329d5249> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1989-04-04/news/8901170868_1_exhibit-opening-today-funny-pages-comic-strip-characters | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966411 | 495 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Health and Welfare
New Law Keeps Emergency Rooms Safer
Legislation passed during the 2012 General Assembly regular session will help keep patients and employees safer in Kentucky's emergency rooms. Senate Bill 58 was signed into law April 11 by Gov. Steve Beshear and takes affect July 12. A key point of the law is a police officer now will not have to witness an assault in an ER to place an individual under arrest. | <urn:uuid:5877321e-54d6-40d2-8922-cce91db78cc5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://weku.fm/post/new-law-keeps-emergency-rooms-safer | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961537 | 87 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Growing Up On Forest 44
The area seemed like a magical place to me, and I learned all I could about it. I'd discovered that General Ulysses S. Grant had cut logs on this land for his house, which still stands at Grant's Farm.
I learned that the same forest helped families survive the Depression, and that the area had long been used for nature study. The Missouri Department of Conservation bought the property in 1990 and named it Forest 44 Conservation Area. I was happy it had become public land because it meant that, in a way, I own it.
On a warm fall day, my dad took me to the forest and started talking about the past. He showed me the driveway to the house. I imagined my great-grandpa William riding his horse up to the house past the scattering chickens while his lovely wife, Anna, cooked dinner in the summer kitchen.
I wondered what it had been like as a child growing up in the 1920s. They had no running water, no electricity and no indoor plumbing. Their kids had to get up early to feed the chickens, cows and pigs and to milk the dairy cows. Then, they followed paths over the hills and valleys to Rankin School.
In the evenings, they sat in the flickering light of kerosene lanterns. They might have listened to the few programs that the battery-operated radio could receive. Soda, ice cream and other treats were rare.
Great-grandma Anna stood less than five feet tall and was stocky. She wore glasses and kept her hair in a shingle, a style of the time. She was mother to 11 children-eight boys and three girls. Only one of the girls lived past the age of one.
Anna rose before dawn every day to make eggs and pancakes for her family. On Saturdays, she baked bread and rolls. After breakfast, she worked in her flower and vegetable gardens until it was time to cook again.
They picked up their perishables on a weekly trip to Valley Park and went shopping once a month for bigger stuff. Anna's grocery list included things like 50 pounds of flour, 25 pounds of sugar and a "mess of coffee." They used 50-pound blocks of ice for refrigeration.
To wash their clothes, they brought water in from the cistern and heated it on a stove in a wash boiler. They hung the laundry outside to dry. It didn't matter if it was hot, cold or snowy. In winter, the clothes would freeze dry.
Great-grandpa William was 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighed more than 200 pounds. He was a farmer. He planted wheat, corn and, sometimes, oats and soybeans. All the planting was done by horse-drawn machines. He harvested the corn by hand and cut the wheat with a binder. He threshed the wheat with a steam traction engine and separator. In autumn, he butchered hogs and made sausage.
William and the boys hunted and trapped. Rabbits, turkey and deer weren't as plentiful as they are today, but foxes, raccoons and opossums were abundant and easily trapped. A pelt buyer would come to town to buy fur.
By most accounts, their life was a struggle. Their daughter, Doris, once told me she only had one dress that was good enough for church.
"We were poor, but we didn't know it," she said.
As we walked, my dad pointed out Bone Hollow. In the early 1930s, he said, mule or horse teams transported dead animals from miles around to this little valley, which became a popular hangout for coyotes and vultures.
Dad told me that cattle grazed throughout the forest, and we found the spring where they drank. Just as it did back then, the spring flowed for a bit then disappeared into the ground. It was a sinking creek.
When we left Forest 44 Conservation Area, a pair of hikers gave us their map of the area. When I opened the folded page. I found a drawing of myself in the brochure. It had been based on an old Conservation Department photo in which I had appeared.
"How eerie!" I thought at first, but the coincidence helped me understand that I have deeper roots in this place than I ever had imagined. I was already looking forward to my next visit.
Forest 44 Conservation Area is your forest, too. Even if your roots are elsewhere, you can start a history by coming here with friends or family.
As you hike through the forested hills and pass refreshing springs and streams, you can't help but feel renewed and connected
Forest 44 Conservation Area is the first big chunk of greenery one sees when leaving St. Louis on Interstate 44. Relicts remain in the hardwood forest to remind us of a time when people scraped a living from this land | <urn:uuid:59baf6a7-6f6d-4af5-b948-4d54d8cacd23> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/2000/12/growing-forest-44 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.986159 | 1,000 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Artist Rod Sounik talks about the spontaneity of glass blowing and shaping.
WOSU News Archives For: July 26, 2010
Would you go to a fat personal trainer? A schizophrenic therapist? How about a speech pathologist who stutters? Earlier this month, hundreds of people who stutter were in Cleveland for the National Stuttering Association’s annual conference. And many believe that speech pathologists who stutter have empathy and a perspective that other therapists do not. But as Dan Bobkoff station WCPN found out, the path to success is full of doubt and discouragement.
Mid-July is peak paving season in Ohio. Most road crews are laying asphalt or pouring concrete. But in Coshocton County, on some roads less traveled, the county engineer allows some formerly paved roads to return to gravel.
Job seekers over 50 may be hurting more in this tough economy as Ohio’s unemployment rate stands at 10 point five percent. And some experts say the jobless rate is worse than reported. Some organizations designed to help seniors find jobs are stepping up to provide needed help. | <urn:uuid:c9f1fc96-7f91-45cd-beb6-e3b84ae8402b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wosu.org/2012/news/2010/07/26/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951994 | 229 | 1.59375 | 2 |
I know that sometimes it seems like it is WAY to hard to bake from scratch, or just easier to use a mix, but really, it's not!
I been baking for 20 years (I like saying it that way, makes me feel "experienced"!) and although things sometimes still go awry. I think I am pretty good at it.. sooooooo here are a few tips and troubleshooting items.
~ use an oven thermometer- this is true no matter if you are baking from scratch or a mix. Ovens can be "off" so you want to make sure that you are baking at the proper temperature.
~ FOLLOW THE RECIPE- baking is alchemy, it is not like cooking where you can just substitute things all willy nilly in the recipe! (I tell my friend that all the time) If you want to try a recipe, try it the way it is written the first time. Once you get an understanding of what the writer intended then you can tweak it to your liking. Joyofbaking.com is a good reference for ingredients in baking and their purpose. Baking soda and baking powder are two different animals, you can't just sub one for the other.
~when making a "butter" cake (as in not a sponge or foam cake) there are multiple mixing methods you can use, the most common being the creaming method. I use room temp butter and eggs, but if you don't you will need to cream your butter and sugar for a longer amount of time. The butter/sugar mixture should be light in color and increased in volume. I also add my eggs on medium (4 on my 4.5 quart kitchenaid and 2 or 4 on my 5 quart kitchenaid). count for about 20 seconds between adding each egg so that it is fully incorporated. (the eggs, not being fully incorporated could result in a tough cake)
~when adding the dry ingredients, add them in at LOW speed on the mixer, you could even mix by hand, but I am usually making too much cake for that! you don't want to overmix which could result in a tough cake which brings me to troubleshooting
***My cake has pulled WAY away from the pan and kinda dips in the side****
this is usually caused by too much liquid. The recipe could be incorrect or your measurements could be off.
***My cake has big holes (or tunnels) in it***
This is usually the result of overmixing, which affects the cakes structure
*** My cake is 'gummy' or has a dark line in the middle***
the cake has "fallen" which means that the structure was not strong enough. this could be caused by many things such as overmixing/undermixing, oven too high, which caused the cake to rise but not be completely baked
the best advice I can give when baking from scratch is to pay close attention to the recipe and don't leave the kitchen to do other things.. (ASK ME HOW I KNOW)
Baking Tips by Samele Thorner
All rights reserved 2008 | <urn:uuid:c5244e0e-60e4-4015-83a1-8c0887f11f5b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sugarteachers.blogspot.com/2008_12_08_archive.html | 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 | 0.971985 | 641 | 1.625 | 2 |
Find a local acupuncturist
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Ask the Expert
Q: I have my leg in plaster would I still be able to have acupuncture for my sciatica?
A: The answer is 'yes.'
The strength of Chinese medicine is its flexibility in situations like yours. If the practitioner needs to move energy in the area where the sciatica manifests it is possible to do so either by using local points or what are called 'distal' points, points which often lie at the end of a channel or meridian which flows through/under the plastered area and which can have an effect on the area even when far away. This can often be confusing for patients when they have treatment for headaches and have needles stuck in their feet, or finding that a first aid point for haemorrhoids lies on the very top of the head, but when we show them our charts and diagrams they can see that it makes perfect sense.
In cases where a limb is in plaster it is very common to needle the opposite limb in the points where the plastered limb would have been needled. The channels of the body are bilateral, and the received wisdom is that there is a resonance between the two channels such that needling one will affect the other. For people in plaster this is the most common approach to treating a 'concealed' problem.
The only question we would want to resolve before treating someone for sciatica where they were in plaster was how much the injury was contributing to the condition. It may well be that the plaster is a major factor, in which case one might have to be slightly more cautious about making estimations about prognosis.
The evidence for the use of acupuncture in the treatment of sciatica is good, although not yet conclusive, as our factsheet shows
Q: I have recently been diagnosed with coronary artery disease and unstable angina, for which I have been prescribed a raft of drugs. Please can you advise me as to whether acupuncture would be appropriate treatment, and if it would whether it could offer an alternative route to all the drugs.
A: We have to say straight away that all of our members are under strict instruction not to interfere with prescriptions issued by a patient's GP, either by asking them to change or stop or, as importantly, supporting a patient's decision to stop taking a drug which may be life sustaining. There are, of course, a huge number of medications prescribed on a 'use as needed' basis, and if someone finds that acupuncture treatment means that they can do without the meds, so much the better.
In your case, however, both conditions carry a high risk factor if untreated, and it would be potentially very dangerous to stop taking your prescribed medications. That does not mean that acupuncture cannot help, and if you did decide to go ahead with treatment, you may well find that some of the symptoms are relieved. The problem you would then have is to convince a doctor who has made the prescription that the acupuncture, and not the medication, has had the desired effect. Most will conclude that the drugs are working, and be all the more reluctant to let you stop.
The best course of action is to discuss with your doctor what might be possible by way of a planned reduction over time, and what markers they would be looking for, whether these be achieved by medication or acupuncture. In this way it remains an open question as to what is working, but the end result is the same.
We have to say, though, that with both of these conditions, the chances are that the doctor will not entertain a reduction unless there were very significant and measurable changes in your heart function which made him or her confident that you were a very low risk.
As far as the symptoms themselves are concerned, there is a small amount of research for the use of acupuncture, but as this systematic review
clearly says, there would need to be many more trials of greater power and number to assess properly whether acupuncture is a viable treatment option.
It may well be worth talking to a BAcC member local to you, though, because a face to face assessment will be much more helpful than what we can offer at a distance, and we are understandably cautious when we have to work from brief descriptions of a problem.
A: We have a factsheet on our website
which outlines some of the research evidence for the treatment of herpes zoster (shingles) and makes encouraging noises.
However, from a Chinese medicine perspective, shingles is described in terms of being an 'external invasion of wind and heat', and there are protocols which are used for its treatment when it first appears. As in the equivalent western treatment, the taking of acyclovir, there is a strong correlation between early treatment and reduction in the severity of the symptoms. In Chinese medicine, there are many case studies which describe how rapid intervention to expel the pathogens seems to make a considerable difference.
Once the condition is entrenched, though, it becomes more difficult to shift, whichever system of medicine is used, and the best that one can hope for from acupuncture treatment is usually only the reduction in severity of the symptoms.
A great deal depends on where the rashes have appeared. Those of the face and head can be particularly uncomfortable, and many patients are happy to accept whatever relief they can get. We always counsel caution in cases like this, because relief can be transient, and prolonged treatment can become very expensive. If someone values the relief they get, whatever the expense, we like to ensure that they do so as a conscious choice and not simply rack up a large bill over time through habit. Our experience is that patients like to be in charge of this kind of process and can become upset if they aren't involved in regular reviews of progress and outcome.
A: We have to be very careful when answering questions of this nature. Our belief is that acupuncture treatment can help to optimise the functioning of the Organs as understood in Chinese medicine, and there is clearly an overlap between what the ancient Chinese saw as the functions and the functions as understood in conventional western medicine.
However, if by 'deteriorating kidney function' you are describing the degeneration which occurs when there is a serious kidney disease it is unlikely that acupuncture treatment will make a great deal of difference. The best that one could hope for, as a wise patient once said, is 'getting worse slower', and there is considerable anecdotal evidence which has accumulated over the years that disease conditions can appear to slow down and as importantly, the quality of life seems to improve. If the prognosis from a conventional point of view is poor, then it would be wrong to claim that acupuncture treatment can make a difference.
If, however, you are using the term 'kidney function' in a more colloquial sense to describe urinary problems, there is more evidence than acupuncture may be of benefit. If so, there are a number of fact sheets on our website
which provide useful background.
We think, though, that you probably mean advancing kidney disease, and some symptom relief is probably the best you could achieve. It is always worthwhile talking to a BAcC member local to you to get the benefit of a face to face assessment of what treatment may offer. With such little detail to go on we may be understating the potential benefits.
We are not quite sure whether there is a specific ranking system which you have heard of; we ourselves are unaware of any such system and can't quite imagine how it would work. Although Chinese medicine is a comprehensive system of medicine, there are areas of treatment with which it cannot deal, such as emergency medicine or surgery, and comparisons with other forms of treatment.
When asked about the WHO attitude to acupuncture we usually refer people to the following document
which outlines the WHO's assessment of the efficacy of acupuncture treatment over a wide range of conditions. The strength of this document is that it covers a broader range of 'proofs' than are usually accepted in the West. The standard used in conventional medicine, the so-called randomised control trial, is not an effective instrument for testing acupuncture, and this means we have ended up with a rather stark works/doesn't work contrast which sets the bar very high and discounts trials which, while not RCTs, show that there is a great deal of evidence that acupuncture works for conditions. The WHO has four grades of evidence, and assigns a wide range of problems to what it considers are appropriate points on this scale.
The document explains very clearly what these four standards of proof are, and many of our patients have been both helped and reassured by the comprehensive nature of the list and its assessment of problems for which they are considering acupuncture treatment. | <urn:uuid:388d68a8-dd9b-45c1-a402-263bec19e5db> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.acupuncture.org.uk/category/public-content/public-ask-an-expert/Page-2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969095 | 1,791 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Heads of the country's medical schools are lending support to a high school music teacher who has sounded an alarm over talented students ditching arts to pursue science studies.
Scots College director of music Andrew Stopps has backing from some of the country's top medical and legal minds for secondary students to keep taking humanities subjects at school.
The number of senior students taking subjects such as drama, music and art continues to decline as students chase fiercely competitive careers in medicine, engineering and law, and favour science and maths-laden studies.
Frustrated Wellington music teacher Stopps hoped a direct approach to key university scholars might help stem the tide.
He said music was always put up against a second science subject and he had a hard time convincing parents that music wouldn't harm their kids' chances at university.
To his delight, Stopps has drummed up support from six deans of Auckland and Otago University medical schools and Otago University Law School.
The endorsements have become a talking point among teachers in school music departments throughout the country.
Auckland University Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences Dean Professor John Fraser said some of the most successful and skilled doctors he knew had continued their musical interests.
They all spoke passionately about how arts helped with the constant pressures of practising medicine.
"To be able to tell your interviewers when applying for medical entry that you are a skilled musician does no harm at all.
"It tells us that you have other interests, you are focused and dedicated - lots and lots of practice - and you have a creative side.
"It doesn't guarantee you a place but is the sort of thing we look for in well-rounded medical students," said Fraser.
Dunedin School of Medicine Dean Dr John Adams said music might not have any direct advantage on students but interests and abilities outside the sciences and medicine contributed significantly to balance in a person's life.
"Caring for patients involves humanity and creativity as well as science. It would be a pity for someone with talent in a musical area to lose this in pursuit of admission to medical school. It should be treasured," said Adams.
He said all-round abilities outside medicine - such as sport, music or community leadership - added to someone's CV when scholarships and awards were being considered.
Both Auckland and Dunedin medical schools have established doctors' orchestras and music groups.By Lynley Bilby | <urn:uuid:47856bab-cb02-4229-9b13-1a6b49bf20dd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nzherald.co.nz/secondary-education/news/article.cfm?c_id=315&objectid=10865845 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976995 | 491 | 1.59375 | 2 |
The Question of Death
I don’t deal with death very well – any death. As a Christian, I think I should be able to handle it better than I do. I am not afraid to die, but I do not do deal well with the death of others. I am, we are, diminished by the death of anyone. John Donne, a 16th century Anglican Cleric, wrote in his meditation XVII, “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less…. Any man’s death diminishes me because I am involved in mankind….” So, the death of anyone affects me in some way.
Lately, death has been a frequent visitor in my world, and not entirely welcome. With each visit I am more keenly aware of how it affects me. I don’t like death. It makes me sad. It makes me angry. Why would or should it affect me in this way? I have asked myself this question many times. And, it seems to me that as a Christian I would be less affected by it. But, as a Christian I think it bothers me because, as I read scripture, I have come to the conclusion that death was never part of God’s original plan for man.
Genesis 2: 8-9 says, “Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden ; and there he put the man he had formed. And the Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground – trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”
In God’s original design death was not included. He planted the tree of life in the center of the Garden, then placed man alongside it. Also, in the middle of the Garden was the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and God told them not to eat of the fruit of that tree or they would surely die (Gen. 2:17). When Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, death was introduced into the world.
“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned,” Romans 5:12.
So, since death has entered this world, it is inevitable. We do not get out alive. We must all experience death, as it says in Hebrews 9:27, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” There is no other way. We will all die, unless Jesus comes again in our lifetime(s). The conclusion of this passage is, “so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of any people, and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” (v. 28)
In Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 the Teacher says there is a season for everything. In verses 1 and 2 we read, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die……” We have all been born and we will all die. It is inevitable.
But, that is not the end of the story. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 reads,
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
So, the question is not, “Will we die?” or even “Why do we die?” The question is “What’s next? or “Have you made provision for life after death?” Death is inevitable. It was introduced by one man Adam, because of his disobedience in the Garden. And, it was taken care of by one man, Jesus, on the cross. His sacrifice offers us the opportunity for salvation. “For it is by grace we are saved, through faith – and this is not from ourselves, it is a gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8)
Judy K. Williams | <urn:uuid:b69653e2-6987-4023-b3df-94e71cdec213> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.myplainview.com/lindadrake/tag/god/page/6/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979877 | 1,061 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Ground flax seed consumption may decrease breast cancer risk by slowing one’s menstrual cycle. It may also control prostate enlargement as effectively as the leading prescription drug.
Just the Flax, Ma’am,
Image thanks to waferboard.
Flax seed is one of the original health foods treasured for it's heeling properties throughout the Roman Empire. One of the original medicines used by Hypocrites. Mahatma Gandhi himself was right when he said "wherever flax seeds become a regular food item among the people there will be better health" Doctor Andrew Wile one of the more reputable alternative medicine physician says that if you can only make a single dietary change it should be to add flax seeds to our diet. Ok, but where do we find them and how should we eat them? Flax seeds are almost always in the bulk section of any natural food store. For about a dollar a pound you have got like a two-month supply. There are brown ones and golden ones they're the same nutritionally so pick your favorite color i guess. They come with nature's own finest packaging, a hard natural hull that keeps them fresh for up to a year in an airtight container. Unfortunately, nature's packaging is actually a little too good, if we eat flax seeds whole they are likely to pass right through us and come out the other end and not do us much good so chew them really well or grind them up in a coffee or spice grinder, a mini food processor or a good blender. After they are ground, store them in the refrigerator and they will last a few months. An easy way to get our daily intake is with a morning smoothie. Just put 2 tablespoons of flax seeds in a blender, grind them to powder, throw in some frozen berries, maybe a half of a frozen banana, soy milk or almond milk, any of the so called motherless milks. Flax seeds have this binding quality that makes for this thick rich kind of milkshakey type smoothies. In fact you can use ground flax seed to replace eggs in baking. Just blend 1 tablespoon of ground flax with 3 tablespoons water until it gets all kind of gooey for each egg in the recipe. Ground flax is better than the flax seed oil. The seeds are little nutrition powerhouses and we lose much of the nutrition when we just press out the oil. Not only are flax seeds the richest source of lignans, they are a great source of iron, zinc, copper, calcium, protein, potassium, magnesium, folate, soluble fiber which can lower our cholesterol and triglycerides, even boron a trace mineral important for optimum bone health. We don't get any of those though with just the flax seed oil. Another example of the importance of eating the whole plant foods. Flax seeds are incredibly powerful at dampening the effects of estrogen. Eating just a single tablespoon of ground flax a day extends the length of a woman's menstrual cycle, not the menses itself but the whole month long cycle, by an average of about one day. So you have fewer periods throughout your life which means less estrogen exposure and lower breast cancer risk. Interesting story behind this, we've known for a long time that young women who have frequent bladder infections were at an increased risk for breast cancer. Frequent bladder infections tied to breast cancer? It seems strange and used to be a big mystery but now we think that repeated antibiotic treatments for the bladder infections were probably wiping out all the good bacteria from the colon that take the lignans in our diet and turn them into these powerful anti-cancer compounds so eating flax, the world's best source of lignans may indeed help prevent breast cancer. It's good for men too. Flax seeds were recently compared to a leading pharmacological treatment for enlarged prostates. The standard drug costs about $300 versus only about $10 for daily flax. This new study found they both work just as well as each other but what about the side effects? The drug can cause headaches, dizziness, diarrhea and all sorts of abnormalities. Flax has some side effects too though, it improves our cholesterol and blood sugar, controls our blood pressure and helps control hot flashes though that's not usually a problem in sufferers of enlarged prostates.
To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by veganmontreal.
To help out on the site please email [email protected] | <urn:uuid:377071b9-76ca-4852-a3bc-1d9368f02897> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nutritionfacts.org/video/just-the-flax-maam/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948385 | 944 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Remember that famous picture of the sailor kissing the nurse in Times Square? Have you ever really looked at the picture? The uncomfortable placement of the sailor’s arm? The uncomfortable arching of the woman’s back? The stiffness of her arm? The clenched fist?
I’d never noticed those things, but apparently, it was as unwanted an act as it looks when you take a close, critical look at the photo. The woman in the picture, Greta Zimmer Friedman, said about the kiss: “That man was very strong. I wasn’t kissing him. He was kissing me.”
Just goes to show that a photo may be worth a thousand words, but the true story that goes behind them requires another thousand that are often never seen.
Posted in Politics | <urn:uuid:83ca5cff-71c5-4594-9350-75b6518ab669> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dailyping.com/archive/2012/10/01/the-iconic-photo-of-sexual-assault/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979128 | 165 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Photo: Matthias Clamer
The dream is a lifetime of smooth sailing, but the reality is that sometimes we run aground. Martha Beck helps three women find the power (they had it all along!) to discover what really floats their boats.
A couple of years ago, pretty much everyone I know became a huge fan of the television series Heroes. The show's premise is that people all over the world begin discovering that they have superpowers—they can hear thoughts, manipulate the time-space continuum, become strong enough to break through steel bonds, etc. The kinds of things that couldn't possibly happen on this planet. Except they do. I watch regular people make these kinds of discoveries just about every other Thursday. Here's a metaphorical but only slightly exaggerated version of my typical coaching process. Some nice, ordinary-looking person comes to me and says, "I'm Clark Kent, I'm Diana Prince—and somehow my life got off course." Sometimes they say that perhaps in childhood or perhaps at work they zigged when they should have zagged, sailed south when they should have sailed north. "One morning," they say, "I woke up thinking, 'Is this really what I'm supposed to be doing with my life?'" "The problem isn't your situation," I always tell them (because it's always true). "The problem is your lenses."
"My lenses?" the person says, looking at me as though the bloom is definitely leaving the rose.
"I mean the way you see," I explain. "Your psychological perspective." I don't mention (yet) that I'm also alluding to Clark Kent's eyeglasses, which disguised his real identity. I know that whenever I can help an "ordinary person" remove a set of distorting perceptual lenses—zap, pow, shazam!—I'll see them levitate right off the floor, flexing steely muscles under neon-colored outfits. When this finally happens, it doesn't surprise me. But it usually shocks the hell out of the client.
"Oh, my God!" says Superman or Wonder Woman. "Who am I? What am I doing? Holy transfiguration, Batman, what should I do next?"
"I have no idea," I say.
And at that point, we're finished.
Because I'm not Batman, or the Forecast Phenom, or the Psychedelic Psychic, or whatever. I was born with just one superpower: the ability to see other people's superpowers. So I can tell you that pretty much everyone (including you) is a superhero, and that every superhero (including you) has an incredibly important life mission. Figuring out what that mission is? That's up to every individual hero (including you).
I'm telling you all this because my assignment for this month was to life-coach three women who were unsure where they were supposed to be in life. Their path forward looked fuzzy. They thought this was because they were in confusing situations. But I saw each woman looking through her own particular sort of distorting lenses; the fuzziness wasn't in the surroundings but in the way they saw. At moments when your life appears bleak and the way forward indistinct, the same thing is almost certainly happening to you.
Most people try to think their way out of these kinds of problems. From my perspective, however, adding more ideas to these three women's heads would be like forcing Clark Kent to add assorted sweaters, parkas, and goggles to his nerdy suit and specs. Finding your purpose and power requires stripping certain thoughts away like street clothes until you hit Lycra. My job with the three women I'd be coaching was to help them peel away illusions until their superhero identities emerged. While we're following their stories, I'll throw in some hints that may help you, too, take off your "normal" disguise and liberate your true, superhero self.
Ordinary Person #1: The Self-Deprecator
Ordinary Person #2: Stymied
Ordinary Person #3: Thinking Small...Too Small
We Hear You! | <urn:uuid:ddb6a49f-27d5-464c-a8c8-d8f1889a4682> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Are-You-On-the-Right-Career-Path | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976507 | 847 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Andy Rooney, Who Once Sparked Controversy in Indian Country, Dies at 92
Andy Rooney, resident curmudgeon from iconic CBS newsmagazine 60 Minutes, has died at age 92. Rooney once caused a stir among American Indians when he suggested that Native Americans who made money from casinos weren't doing enough to help their own people. (Yahoo.com's Rooney obituary reminds us of this fact.)
But perhaps more galling was this passage from a 1992 column written by Rooney in which he addressed the controversial nickname of the NFL's Washington Redskins:
"The real problem is, we took the country away from the Indians, they want it back and we're not going to give it to them. We feel guilty and we'll do what we can for them within reason, but they can't have their country back. Next question." | <urn:uuid:84eaa933-0f14-41b5-9886-2ca8b2316f59> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/article/andy-rooney%2C-who-once-sparked-controversy-in-indian-country%2C-dies-at-92-61676 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9817 | 174 | 1.539063 | 2 |
The head of the US Air Force's Air Combat Command (ACC) has qualified to fly the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor.
Gen Mike Hostage started training to fly the stealthy fifth-generation fighter in solidarity with the Raptor pilots under his command. F-22 pilots have been experiencing a series of hypoxia-like physiological incidents which have yet to be explained.
"I'm asking these airmen to assume some risk that exceeds the norm in day-to-day training, and I have to be willing to do it myself and experience firsthand what they do," Hostage says.
According to the USAF, Hostage completed the initial F-22 transition course at the Raptor formal training unit (FTU) at the 43rd Fighter Squadron at Tyndall AFB, Florida, on 27 June. Once he returns to Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia, Hostage will undergo additional training in the Raptor, the USAF says.
Normally, pilots undergo basic aircraft qualification at an FTU before being assigned to an operation squadron. Once at an operational unit, a pilot has to undertake mission qualification training in order to be certified to go to war as a wingman.
However, because of the unusual circumstances under which Hostage ended up flying the Raptor, the general will be operating with a number of F-22 squadrons throughout the USAF.
Four-star general officers very seldom fly operationally with line units. | <urn:uuid:fa0d6fb6-7d36-4f87-9459-a62718bdc187> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/usaf-air-combat-command-chief-qualifies-on-f-22-raptor-373813/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958504 | 298 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Re-enactors at the Conrad Weiser Homestead in Heidelberg Township.
WATCH: Friends of the Conrad Weiser Homestead discuss the group's efforts
If any Pennsylvania historic figure deserves to have his homestead preserved, it's Conrad Weiser.
At least that's what David G. Sonnen says when speaking out against the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission's possible closure of the Weiser homestead near Womelsdorf.
"There probably isn't a person more important to the history of Pennsylvania than Conrad Weiser, besides William Penn," said Sonnen, president of the Friends of the Conrad Weiser Homestead.
The 26-acre park in Heidelberg Township includes the grave of Weiser, a Colonial-era Indian interpreter and treaty maker. Weiser also commanded a battalion during the French and Indian War and helped found both Reading and Berks County.
But now, his 18th-century homestead may fall victim to 21st-century budget cuts.
The Weiser home is one of six state-run historical sites in jeopardy of closing because of Gov. Ed Rendell's request to trim the museum commission's budget by $8.8 million.
Advocates are trying to drum up public support to keep the homestead open. They hope for help from legislators such as state Sen. Michael A. O'Pake, a Reading Democrat, who has asked the commission to pursue all ways of preventing the closure.
The Weiser Friends group believes a state employee must be on the site to keep it open and viable. The group has suggested the state cut costs by having the Weiser site share a full-time administrator with the Daniel Boone Homestead in Exeter Township or the Cornwall Iron Furnace in Lebanon County.
"We're trying to do our part and be as diplomatic as Weiser," said Lynn A. Otto, vice president of the Friends.
But the state believes the Weiser homestead has little potential for growth or to generate more income, according to a March report.
The homestead's 2006-07 budget was about $171,000, of which the Friends contributed $15,000, the report states. The next year, about 14,000 people visited the Weiser site, but revenue from admissions totaled just $1,722.
Kirk R. Wilson, a museum commission spokesman, said the state hopes that historic sites targeted for closing are taken over by local group such as the Weiser Friends.
A June 4 public meeting is planned to discuss the Weiser homestead's future.
Other options in the state report include discontinuing paid staff or renting out the Weiser visitors center as a house.
"These are all ideas for discussion," Wilson said. "We have not homed in on any particular one."
But some of the Friends said the commission's report is unfair.
The Weiser homestead, they said, doesn't have a full-time administrator anymore, a cost reduction that's not in the report. It has two part-time employees.
Also, the site's buildings are not open in winter, and Sonnen pointed out that most visitors come for special events when admission isn't charged.
"They're comparing our site to sites that are open year-round, and they're counting ticket sales, and we do a lot of free programming," he said. "The museum business is not a business for profit, to make money."
While the state says it can no longer support the Weiser site, the museum commission is planning a $550,000 addition to the Daniel Boone Homestead visitors center.
Wilson explained that the Boone project is a one-time expense using funding from a specific part of the commission's budget. Keeping a historical site open, however, is an ongoing expense.
Also, the commission has to maintain sites such as the Boone homestead that attract a lot of visitors, Wilson said.
About 72,000 people visited the Boone homestead in the 2007-08 fiscal year.
Several Weiser supporters, however, said Conrad Weiser's role in Pennsylvania history is more significant than Boone's, even though Boone is more famous.
"Boone has the cachet," said Alfred Achtert Jr., a Weiser descendant from Upper Darby Township, Delaware County. "Nobody made a movie about Weiser. Where was Walt Disney when we needed him?"
A closure would also be a blow to the Weiser Family Association, which plans a family reunion at the site in July 2010.
While the commission's report said Conrad Weiser may not have lived in the homestead's house, descendant Laura C. McQuaid said that doesn't matter much.
"He did live somewhere there," said McQuaid of Liverpool Township, Perry County. "He's buried there. That's what's important to us."
The family association has about 700 members, including former Pennsylvania Gov. George M. Leader, who believes homestead supporters should maintain the site themselves instead of relying on the state to keep it open.
"The governor is doing what he has to do to balance the budget because he's required to balance the budget," Leader said.
Contact Rebecca VanderMeulen: 610-371-5015 or [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:8804ae11-746d-4208-82da-4ba19f16f738> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=135359 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962856 | 1,093 | 1.632813 | 2 |
We had each been covering medicine and science for more than a decade, and we had come to realize that we shared an unusual obsession: Scientific retractions. We had both experienced what happens when, as a reporter, you peel back the curtains on a mysterious retraction notice. Sometimes, there’s a story so big, major newspapers have to pick up on your coverage, as The New York Times and others did when Adam broke the story of Scott Reuben, the anesthesiology researcher who was forced to retract 22 papers – and go to jail – thanks to fraud.
We also both felt strongly that most journals did a pretty terrible job of publicizing their mistakes. Those realities, taken together with the fun I had been having with my blog Embargo Watch, which I’d founded about six months earlier, prompted me to suggest that we start a blog to monitor retractions as a window into the scientific process.
Adam was enthusiastic, so we launched on August 3, 2010. We figured we’d post a few times per week, whenever we saw an interesting retraction notice and could dig into it. There were fewer than 100 retractions per year, after all.
We – and others who thought this would be an interesting but limited project — were wrong.
That’s because the first weeks we started, two stories broke that thrust retractions into the public eye. One was that of Harvard psychologist Marc Hauser. The other was a seemingly unimportant retraction – of a paper claiming that Jesus cured a woman with the flu – that nonetheless landed us on Colin McEnroe’s show on WNPR in Connecticut.
Unbeknownst to us, we had struck a journalistic gold mine. Our traffic grew quickly. Within a few months, we couldn’t even keep up with all of the retractions we were seeing, thanks to searches and eager tipsters. It turned out that we had launched just in time to report on what would be a record year in retractions in 2011, with some 400.
Retractions are clearly on the increase. And as the Wall Street Journal and Nature have reported, using Thomson Reuters data, they’re outpacing the rate of growth in publications. There are 44% more papers published every year than a decade ago, but at least 10 times the number of retractions per year.
Why the rise? It’s always dangerous to generalize from what are still very small numbers among the more than one million papers published every year – especially when nearly a quarter of the retractions in 2011 belong to one person, the German anesthesiologist Joachim Boldt. But a few trends have manifest themselves. Some of the increase is due to more visibility for papers thanks to online publishing, and to the advent of plagiarism detection software. But journal editors Ferric Fang and Arturo Casadevall have made convincing arguments that the harsh competitive environment in which scientists work today has tempted more researchers to cut corners and commit fraud. As much as that makes some scientists uncomfortable, Fang and Casadevall have received substantial support for their theory.
Retractions may make some scientists worry that their careers have hit a speed bump, but the effects on a body of work are sometimes more indelible than we’d like to think. A recent paper showed that retracted papers are usually only cited a third as often after they’re withdrawn – but there’s other evidence that scientists still tend to cite retracted work in support of their ideas.
Fortunately, some scientists, including Fang and Casadevall, are growing concerned about these trends. They come at a time when drug companies and others are finding that many results aren’t reproducible.
The fact that many notices are opaque – one journal publishes only “This paper has been withdrawn by the authors” or “This paper has been withdrawn by the publisher – contributes to the problem by hiding fraud or giving readers the impression that fraud happened when in fact there was honest error. All of that makes it extremely difficult to determine the real rate of misconduct.
In short, the much-vaunted self-correcting nature of science has some issues.
There are, however, some solutions, based on what others have proposed, and what we’ve seen in our work on Retraction Watch. Editors can:
— Use systems to detect image manipulation and plagiarism
— Require authors to disclose prior retractions and investigations
— Trust anonymous whistleblowers more
— Demand more of institutions, by forcing them to disclose the results of misconduct investigations
— Move more quickly to correct and retract
— Make retraction notices clearer
— Make such notices freely available
We’re grateful that so many readers are paying attention to what we’re doing – and helping us do it better. Some institutions are concerned enough about what’s going on in scientific publishing that they ask us to speak as part of research ethics curricula. We’re always happy to do that, and we’re thrilled to be able to continue our work at Retraction Watch, with the support of an army of scientists around the world. | <urn:uuid:b2bd3ef9-4231-492f-98ab-d40d12eadb01> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thenode.biologists.com/how-obsession-can-fuel-science-blogging-the-story-of-retraction-watch/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968706 | 1,057 | 1.617188 | 2 |
What to Look for on a Campus Visit
What's the typical class size for freshmen? For upperclassmen?
Asking about student:teacher ratio won't really give you the information that you want because it will vary from year to year. Ask about how large the specific freshmen classes are to get the best idea of what your child will experience.
At large universities, many 101 level courses have lecture sections of 100 students or more and small discussion groups where students become better known to those who will grade them. At larger schools, many of the discussion groups are taught by teaching assistants. If the school makes use of graduate or undergraduate students as teaching assistants, find out in what capacity and how often they serve. All schools say their professors are accessible to the students. See if this means just scheduled office hours or home phone numbers and coffee get-togethers.
Does the school provide tutors?
Inquire about the academic support facilities that the school provides, such as a writing center where a student can have a paper looked over before it is submitted. Is there a learning assistance service that provides workshops on study skills and time management? Within the specific college that your child is applying to as a major, there may be tutoring for technical courses which support that major. Is there a fee for such additional help?
Is housing guaranteed all for four years?
At large state universities be sure to inquire about early deadlines to secure freshman housing. Priority housing goes to incoming freshmen who return their contracts on time and to returning students who have had campus housing the previous semester. Transfer students and freshmen who turn in their forms late are likely to receive waiting list status for housing.
If the dorms are co-ed, is it by wing, floor, or every other room?
If your student is living in traditional freshman housing, it is usually by wing. If the floor is co-ed, what about the bathrooms? There is usually one bathroom per wing, one designated for females, the other for males. Yes, some small schools allow the students in a dorm to vote for co-ed bathrooms.
Are there fraternities and sororities?
Learn if there is a system of fraternities and sororities. What percentage of the student body gets involved? Do the Greeks have their own houses? When is rush? It can be as late as sophomore year or as early as a week before freshman classes begin. Are parties open or closed to the rest of the student body? Does the administration plan any major changes in the system in the near future? Can an independent feel comfortable on a campus with a significant percentage of students in fraternities and sororities?
How does he/she feel walking around the campus at night?
All tour guides are prompted to talk about the security issues even before you bring them up. They will point out the personal emergency response telephones on campus which signify the nearest phone patched in to campus security. Ask about escort services provided to ensure that students get safely back to their dorms after a late night of studying at the library or computer center. The campus and the town can only do so much to protect the student. It is their responsibility to take advantage of the resources available to them. | <urn:uuid:b2b5bf14-2a96-4c3a-8c76-4c2e3bcf231f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.infoplease.com/edu/collegebound/choosing/campusvisit.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97294 | 659 | 1.53125 | 2 |
For me, Robert G. Ingersoll takes the cake. His command of language and reason were impeccable, and his writings and recorded speeches never fail to inspire.
George H. Smith's "Atheism: The Case Against God" also agreed so well with my mind, that I'm reading it yet again for the sheer enjoyment of his crystal-clear logic and readability.
Who are some of yours?
Max More in 1990's for first helping me first learn of the dangers of religion ( I was agnostic and rather ambivalent at the time) and Paul Kurtz for introducing me to secular humanism.
Carl Sagan - definitely was amazing. A true hero.
Richard Feynman. Issac Asimov. And Thomas Paine, of course. "The Age of Reason" still resonates.
Richard Feyman...yes, yes! lol...and in regards to George Carlin as others have posted, I consider him a disgrace to the human race to be honest.
Carlin was great for ripping into religion but in his late sixties he became horribly cynical to the point of madness almost. He gave up on life. He said he divorced himself emotionally from humanity and campaigned for its demise. "I always hope it gets worse" was one of his disgusting quotes - referring to natural disasters, he wanted the destruction of the human race and was happy to see it. In my book, this cancels out all his years of truthful comedy as worthless.
He was a nut. He stated that he didn't care if the human race degenerated and vanished and was simply a miserable conspiracy nut. He was completely irrational, intolerable, and simply not a good person. He was anti-west, anti-American, and anti-democracy for oppressed people. He is someone who I would suspect suffered from personality or psychiatric disorders based on his demeanor, beliefs, and attitudes.
He suffered from addiction. That many drugs and that much alcohol will make anyone's personality paranoid, depressed, cynical...etc.
I think you guys may be conflating the man's personality with his on-stage persona -- his act. All Carlin's work was carefully scripted and meticulously rehearsed. He chose, like many artists, to push the boundaries of acceptability and to make people think.
I don't worship any gods, and Carlin was as flawed and mortal as the rest of us, but his talent and testimony was a gift that I will always cherish.
Carlin's black comedy had a philosophical bent to it. He took on the big issues which other comedians would rather leave alone - such as religion. abortion etc. His stage character and his real life persona were the same person. If you read some of his 'serious' type books - they were basically rehashes of his comedy routine, put into something a bit more intellectual. He has been on many interviews and panel type debates were his real life persona is indistinguishable from the comedy act - which leads me to believe he sincerely believed most of, or probably everything he said on stage. The man went all hateful and negative in his golden years - maybe it was the fame, who knows.
I agree with the first half of what you said. Yes, Carlin much denigrated humanity, but usually for good reason (people's credulity, this country becoming essentially a giant shopping mall, and general stupidity). He was a piercing social critic and directed people attention towards the odd, disturbing and altogether nutty things in our culture, while making them laugh. And that is the mark of a true comedian - pointing out the unfortunate truths and ills of society in a way that enables us to laugh about it. But everyone has their opinion. In my own humble opinion, the man was a comic genius. cheers
To me it is Brother Richard. I used to be a fundamentalist Christian, so I really relate to what he has to say and the funny way he does. I think he is one of the only ones who is actually building bridges and not burning them for us. | <urn:uuid:12ab273e-6f35-4324-b636-2cb70c8c6b03> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thinkatheist.com/forum/topics/your-favorite-atheist-agnostic-freethinking-thinker-writer-or?commentId=1982180%3AComment%3A815268&xg_source=activity | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987364 | 826 | 1.648438 | 2 |
I’ve bored friends and colleagues with my stories of discovering the power of MUDS in the early 1990s. I have a massive soft spot for the original virtual worlds (as pictured), but aside from sentimentality there remains a real role for these text-based worlds. Justin Olivetti over at Massively has a great article on MUDs that showcases some of the good ones and the people who play them.
The reason I believe these environments still have relevance is not just because of the dedicated community that still use them. They provide some great lessons in how to create engaging communities and content. Most people tend to think of MUDS as gaming-oriented platforms, which is essentially true. The thing is, their sibling the MOO (MUD, Object Oriented) has that real content creation focus that led to iconic communities such as LambdaMOO. My own experiences were with a MOO used to interact with music collaboration software and its power to engage people was incredible.
So, if you’re interested in getting people excited about a common purpose or just want a great social space, spend some of your development time wandering around a MUD or MOO. I’d also love to hear about your experiences: did you have or do you still have a favourite MUD / MUSH / MOO?
[via Metaverse Journal] | <urn:uuid:ab8c286a-4db1-4418-8910-b3d71cf77ab7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://culturedtech.com/tag/multi-user-dungeons-2011/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971239 | 278 | 1.59375 | 2 |
By Kevin Gray
MIAMI (Reuters) - Computer software pioneer John McAfee, who is wanted for questioning in Belize over the murder of a fellow American, arrived in Miami on Wednesday evening after he was deported by Guatemala, according to fellow passengers on an American Airlines flight.
After landing, McAfee, 67, was escorted from the plane by airport security officers, passengers said. Shortly afterward, he tweeted, "I am in South Beach," referring to the popular tourist area on Miami Beach.
"Some people felt uncomfortable that he was on our flight. ... We all knew the story," said Maria Claridge, 36, a South Florida photographer who was on the Silicon Valley entrepreneur's flight to Miami.
McAfee, who was seated in the coach section and had a whole row to himself, was wearing a suit and was "very calm" during the flight, she added.
"He looked very tired, he looked like a man who hadn't slept in days. I'd say he even looked depressed," said another passenger, Roberto Gilbert, a Guatemalan who lives in Miami.
McAfee had been held for a week in Guatemala, where he surfaced after evading police in Belize for nearly a month following the killing of American Gregory Faull, his neighbor on the Caribbean island of Ambergris Caye.
Police in Belize want to quiz McAfee as a "person of interest" in Faull's death, although the technology guru's lawyers blocked an attempt by Guatemala to send him back there.
Authorities in Belize say he is not a prime suspect in the investigation. McAfee has denied any role in Faull's killing.
The goateed McAfee has led the world's media on a game of online hide-and-seek in Belize and Guatemala since he fled after Faull's death, peppering the Internet with pithy quotes and colorful revelations about his unpredictable life.
"I'm happy to be going home," McAfee, dressed in a black suit, told reporters shortly before his departure from Guatemala City airport on Wednesday afternoon. "I've been running through jungles and rivers and oceans and I think I need to rest for a while. And I've been in jail for seven days."
Guatemala's immigration authorities had been holding McAfee since he was arrested last Wednesday for illegally entering the country with his 20-year-old Belizean girlfriend.
The eccentric tech pioneer, who made his fortune from the anti-virus software bearing his name, has been chronicling life on the run in a blog, www.whoismcafee.com.
He said he had no immediate plans after reaching Florida.
"I'm just going to hang in Miami for a while. I like Miami," he told Reuters by telephone just before his plane left. "There is a great sushi place there and I really like sushi."
BELIZE STILL WAITING
Residents of the Belizean island of Ambergris Caye, where McAfee has lived for about four years, said McAfee and Faull, 52, had quarreled at times, including over McAfee's unruly dogs.
McAfee says Belize authorities will kill him if he turns himself in for questioning. He has said he was being persecuted by Belize's ruling party for refusing to pay some $2 million in bribes.
Belize's prime minister has rejected the allegations, calling McAfee paranoid and "bonkers.
Belize police spokesman Raphael Martinez said the country still wanted to question McAfee about the Faull case.
"He will be just under the goodwill of the United States of America. He is still a person of interest, but a U.S. national has been killed and he has been somewhat implicated in that murder. People want him to answer some questions," he said.
Martinez noted that Belize's extradition treaty with the United States extended only to suspected criminals, a designation that did not currently apply to McAfee.
"Right now, we don't have enough information to change his status from person of interest to suspect," he said.
Residents and neighbors on Ambergris Caye said McAfee was unusual and at times unstable. He was seen to travel with armed bodyguards, sporting a pistol tucked into his belt.
The predicament of McAfee, a former Lockheed systems consultant, is a far cry from his heyday in the late 1980s, when he started McAfee Associates. McAfee has no relationship now with the company, which was sold to Intel Corp.
McAfee was previously charged in Belize with possession of illegal firearms, and police had raided his property on suspicions that he was running a lab to produce illegal synthetic narcotics. He said he had not taken drugs since 1983.
"I took drugs constantly, 24 hours of the day. I took them for years and years. I was the worst drug abuser on the planet," he told Reuters before his arrest in Guatemala. "Then I finally went to Alcoholics Anonymous, and that was the end of it."
(Writing by Dave Graham, Michael O'Boyle and David Adams. Reporting by Sofia Menchu and Mike McDonald.; Editing by Peter Cooney) | <urn:uuid:f0fca20c-bf09-4164-a851-549cd65e4d6b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wtaq.com/news/articles/2012/dec/12/guatemala-to-deport-software-pioneer-mcafee-to-us-official/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98715 | 1,075 | 1.523438 | 2 |
In his latest sermon, the Pharisee church pastor proclaimed that bed bugs are “God’s wingless angels to punish those who embrace homosexuality”.
“God’s anger is poured out over the sinful cities that have embraced the evil of homosexuality,” said the Pharisee church pastor. “As examples, when one reviews the top 10 cities with the worst bed bug infestations, one can clearly see that they are those cities that have allowed homosexual sin to flourish.”
Details of the correlation between bed bugs and homosexuality, as described by the Pharisee church pastor on various occasions, are as follows:
10. Denver, Colorado
“Denver is being punished because they instituted something called the Colorado Gay Rodeo,” said the Pharisee church pastor. “A rodeo is where true masculine men celebrate their maleness, but homosexuals have desecrated this activity by associating it with sodomy. It is for this evil that bed bugs were sent to destroy Denver.”
9. Chicago, Illinois
“Judgement is on Chicago through bed bugs, as they established the first officially recognized homosexual neighbourhood in the United States,” explained the Pharisee church pastor. “In addition, they host a disgusting homosexual parade every year. Even worse, there is a homosexual part of the city called Boystown, a most revolting name that betrays the secret agenda of homosexuals to corrupt pure and innocent boys into a life of homosexual debauchery.
“Fortunately, there are true men like myself who are dedicated and devoted to engaging boys intimately since when they are young, so they can be guided to the path of holy manhood and grow up filled with masculinity from, I mean like, myself.”
Pharisee church pastor, that last bit was…interesting.
8. Vancouver, British Columbia
“The greatest sin committed by Vancouver is the embracing of homosexuality,” declared the Pharisee church pastor. “During the winter when manly men, like me, are sharing physical body warmth to keep out the cold, Vancouver organizes a winter homosexual celebration and thus tainting masculine warmth-sharing with the overtures of sodomy.
“That is why bed bugs have been sent to punish Vancouver.”
The Pharisee church pastor then looked at me. “You know Andrew, I really enjoy sharing body warmth with masculine men during the wintertime,” he said, while wiping away some drool.
7. Durham, North Carolina
“Bed bugs were sent to Durham to punish them for their homosexual parade,” said the Pharisee church pastor.
That’s a pretty short explanation compared to the other cities so far, I replied.
“Well, that’s reason enough!” was the Pharisee church pastor’s reply.
6. San Francisco, California
“San Francisco calls itself the homosexual capital of the world,” proclaimed the Pharisee church pastor. “Not only are they indulging in their sin, they are actually filled with pride for being sinful.
“With an annual homosexual parade for the past 40 years, and being the self-appointed capital of homosexuality, it is fitting that large numbers of bed bugs have been dispatched to punish this modern-day Sodom. Bite away, wingless angels!”
5. Manchester, New Hampshire
“New Hampshire has abandoned its Christian heritage and instead embraced the evil of homosexuality,” roared the Pharisee church pastor. “They actually allow homosexuals to marry each other, in defiance of God’s design for marriage. For this, they already deserve a huge contingent of bed bugs.
“But even more, New Hampshire is also where that apostate sinner V. Gene Robinson, heretic homosexual Bishop of the satanic Episcopal Church, bases his diabolical operations. I am pleased, however, that the angelic bed bugs have succeeded in forcing Robinson into early retirement. I ask God to send even more bed bugs to Manchester, until New Hampshire’s sin of embracing homosexuality is sucked out of it.”
4. Bloomington, Indiana
“Bloomington is particularly sinful in its embrace of homosexuality, even declaring that it is homosexual everyday in Bloomington in its slogan,” declared the Pharisee church pastor. “Even worse, it is the home of the first student-sponsored homosexual competition held on any college campus.
“By flaunting their well-formed bodies to the public, each year the contestants engage in immoral seduction of me, I mean, ordinary wholesome men to the sinful trap of homosexuality. That is why Bloomington has a bed bug epidemic.”
Pharisee church pastor, since you somehow are always in Bloomington each year at the time of Miss Gay IU, you are obviously an expert in this event.
3. Toronto, Ontario
“Bed bugs have been sent by God to punish Toronto because it and the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey club have embraced homosexuality,” said the Pharisee church pastor. “As I have preached before, the Toronto Maple Leafs will not win the Stanley Cup because God is punishing them for embracing homosexuality. Since the entire city in now in sin, bed bugs have been sent as the next punishment.
“Until Toronto repents and everyone is held accountable through accountability partners in Christian accountability, more punishment from heaven will follow.”
2. New York City, New York
“The sin of New York, for which they are being punished by bed bugs, is their acceptance of homosexuality,” declared the Pharisee church pastor.
But, Pharisee church pastor, if we are discussing what could be the sins of New York, should we not be talking about greed and avarice?
“I don’t know anything about that. All I know is that homosexuality is the sin of all sins, and bed bugs have been sent to punish those who embrace it,” replied the Pharisee church pastor.
1. Columbus, Ohio
“Some have called Columbus one of the United States’ more underrated homosexual cities,” thundered the Pharisee church pastor. “But the sin of homosexuality cannot be hidden from the judgement of God, and Columbus cannot escape the punishment by bed bugs.
“Columbus has allowed itself to contaminate wholesome sports by hosting homosexual bowling and softball tournaments. What can be more sinful than the display of toned bodies, touched by homosexuality, in motion? Mmmm…I mean what an abomination!”
Thanks for your detailed explanations about bed bugs, Pharisee church pastor. Say, you have been scratching yourself quite a bit lately… | <urn:uuid:bbd47d14-1254-47d0-88af-ef4c4a294051> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://annefleetwood.wordpress.com/tag/accountability-partners/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939234 | 1,421 | 1.671875 | 2 |
The Blues is the umbrella title under which exists seven
distinct films, by seven independent film-makers. Originally Martin Scorsese
had planned to make a film outlining the history of this music, which he calls
"one of America's most unique and important art forms." That plan
changed as the depth and intricacies of the music were uncovered. The work
was shared among seven different directors, each of whom chose one aspect
of the blues to celebrate. The first film, (and they must be considered individually)
was broadcast one Sunday night in October.
Feel Like Going Home is the title of Scorsese's contribution. It is essentially a voyage of discovery by modern blues artist Corey Harris into the history of his genre. Harris is introduced playing his contemporary blues on stage. His music pays tribute to those who have come before him. He then sets off to visit players from previous generations, and eventually travels to Mali, in West Africa to meet the founding fathers.
Scorsese's film is a bit scattershot; the music is outstanding, the clips of the old bluesmen are marvelous to see. The footage of Son House appears to be taken from the German television broadcast of The American Folk Blues but from a different master, as it is nowhere near as crisp and clean as on the Folk Blues DVD. Son House is an unusual choice to present as a key player: in his later years he attacked his guitar, and is not as "user friendly" for non-blues-fans to get. He does, however, make the link to African music much simpler. John Lee Hooker's one-chord blues, Otha Turner's fife and drum meditations, and House's attack lead directly into the most fascinating part of the film. Corey Harris goes home. To Mali. He speaks with Ali Farka Toure about his ancestors being taken to America in the hull of a wooden ship. Toure talks about black Americans as being "Africans with two homes." The music they play together is stirring. The use of subtitles, while necessary for the African-French spoken by Toure and Salif Keita, seem a bit insulting when they "translate" the blues lyrics of Muddy Waters and House.
Wim Wenders, the German director who gave us The Buena Vista Social Club, directed part two, Soul of a Man. Titled after a Blind Willie Johnson tune, this film takes a surrealistic look at Wenders three blues heroes. Blind Willie Johnson was a preacher and a gospel singer. His guitar playing in open D tuning, bottleneck style, was haunting. His signature tune "Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground" inspired Ry Cooder to play bottleneck guitar, and was individual enough to be included on the record for aliens that was included in the Voyager space-craft. Wenders begins his film with a look at the launch of the Voyager, he follows it into the outer reaches of space and a voice (Lawrence Fishburne) tells the story of Blind Willie Johnson in first person narrative. The narration is clumsily written, and is in no way representative of the way Johnson spoke or the words he would have used...but it's an effective technique to move the film along. Wenders used a hand cranked silent movie camera, with black and white stock, to film the re-enactment scenes. Then he added sound effects and the original music, and synchronized audio and visuals using 21st century technology. The effect achieved is a bit like poorly dubbed silent film, various speeds and jerky motion included. Both Blind Willie Johnson and Skip James are portrayed by actors. They are reasonably effective portrayals.
A rare series of 16mm films of performances by J.B.Lenoir matches the quality set by the hand-cranked camera. Filmed on two occasion, with a rented camera, by two blues loving art students, the footage of Lenoir (pronounced Len-Or) is amazing. His high pitched, almost feminine voice, is offset by his rolling guitar licks. And his outfits (in the colour film he wears a set of tuxedos, with tails, tiger striped, gold, black and white with some delightful red socks) are amazing.
After each bluesman is introduced, and we hear him sing a signature song, Wenders cuts to digital footage of a modern artist interpreting the song. We see Lucinda Williams playing "Hard Time Killing Floor," Alvin Youngblood Hart doing "Illinois Blues," Bonnie Raitt "Devil Got My Woman," Jon Spencer Blues Experience, Cassandra Wilson, Beck, T-Bone Burnett, Los Lobos, Shemekia Copeland and others. Ever wanted to hear Lou Reed sing the blues? Here's your chance. Perhaps the most exciting performance is Marc Ribot locked in a fight to the finish with his guitar, as he struggles to wring out every emotion and sound he can in his rendition of "Dark Was the Night." Amazing.
The music is brilliant, the film courageous and deeply personal. Is it successful? Well...it kept me upright in a chair for ninety minutes. Fascinating stuff. One interview subject who is common to both episodes is the great blues scholar and champion Dick Waterman. Photographer, manager, and friend of some of the greats Mr. Waterman's breadth of knowledge and his charm adds an intimate touch to both films.
Road to Memphis is, as its title suggests, a road movie. It follows two blues-men, BB King and Bobby Rush. Bobby plays 250 gigs a year on the "chitlin circuit;" BB plays an equal number of shows, in ritzy hotels, and arenas. Bobby hopes to be where BB is "soon." He's 66 years old. They each travel in a bus. BB's is customized, with separate rooms, leather couches, flat screen tvs; Bobby's is plain, nothing fancy...he shares the driving.
The film, directed by Richard Pearce, is centred on Memphis, Tennessee, and the roads leading in and out of this blues mecca. Denizens include Sam Phillips, who spent four years recording blues before he struck gold with Elvis Presley; Rosco Gordon (in Memphis to receive a W.C. Handy Award); Rufus Thomas (like BB King, he began as a disc jockey on a Memphis radio station); and musician and producer Jim Dickinson who shares a story about the secret c'odes of the blues. "Codes" was what he heard, "chords" are what they were talking about.
Racism is discussed. Ike Turner and Sam Phillips have an interesting give and take which has to be seen. A white radio station owner confesses that the blues "made [her] uneasy...there were elements in this music that my listeners understood that I didn't." Bobby Rush explains the link between the blues and the church, "I want to be lifted up by my baby on Saturday night, and on Sunday morning I want to be lifted up by Christ." The footage of Rush's club date on the Saturday night, shows a dancer who really knows how to "maximize her gluteous!"
Pearce's film is personal, not as far reaching as Wenders' or Scorsese's, but moving in its own way. Rosco Gordon passed on just weeks after appearing on stage at the Handy Awards. His funeral closes the film.
The fourth film is a fictionalized semi-autobiographical tale of the journey of an eleven year old boy from California who is sent to Mississippi to visit his uncle (a preacher) so he will "get saved and baptized." Another uncle (a blues singer) picks him up at the train station and takes him on a voyage of self discovery through the history of the blues. The structure of this film is awkward, and the black and white archival footage is often more powerful than the colour saturated new footage. While the film looked beautiful, and the brief summary of women blues singers showed how little attention has been devoted to the distaff side in this series, it made its point in the first fifteen minutes and tended to be a bit redundant towards the end. Warming By the Devil's Fire was directed by Charles Burnett.
For the blues purist Godfathers and Sons will be the hardest film to take. Made by Marc Levin, it shows the meeting of Marshall Chess (whose father and uncle formed Chess Records) and Chuck D of Public Enemy. They discuss the influence of an album Marshall Chess produced for Muddy Waters in 1968. On this record, Chess was trying to make Muddy acceptable to the white rock audience. They added psychedelic guitar and floated Muddy's blues over top. The record was poorly received by most people, in fact a similar album made for Howlin' Wolf was called "dogshit" by Wolf...and that's just how Chess promoted it! Over the years these albums have had an influence on hip-hop artists, linking them to the blues, in ways strtaight blues never did. Chuck D and Marshall Chess put together the original Electric Mud band and took the blues for another ride, bringing it into the 21st century with a new spin. Another wealth of archival footage, and live shots of Magic Slim, Otis Rush and Koko Taylor give the film resonance. And the hip-hop spin on Muddy's "I'm a Man?" To these ears it just proves that Muddy made the deepest grooves possible!
The sixth film was made by British director Mike Figgis (Leaving Las Vegas). Red, White and Blues details the long rich history of the blues in the United Kingdom. It features new performances by Van Morrison, Tom Jones, Jeff Beck and Lulu and interviews with veterans Chris Farlowe, Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Eric Burdon and John Mayall. Wait a minute! LULU?! TOM JONES?! Blues singers? Well, they acquit themselves wonderfully, and prove there's lots of life left in those pipes! Britain bought into the blues much earlier than America did. Sailors, and travelers came back from the States with these marvelous treasures...records on such labels as Vocalion, Sun and so on...performers as exotic as Big Bill Broonzy and Sonny Boy Williamson. For many of us, these British blues rock bands were where we first encountered the blues, only then doing the research of delving into the back catalogue...the source of their songs. My first blues record was a John Mayall album -- my second was Muddy Waters' Real Folk Blues.
There is, however, a much richer history of British infatuation with American music, and Figgis's film covers the trad-jazz fad as well. Interviews with Humphrey Lyttleton, Chris Barber and George Melly show the birth of British blues in the New Orleans sound of Ken Collyer's band, among others. Skiffle (that uniquely British transitional music between folk/blues and rock) is mentioned in an interesting exchange taken from two individual interviews. Ramblin' Jack Elliot declares, "Skiffle is disgustin'!" and Lonnie Donegan retorts, "Ramblin' Jack is a fake!" Hilarious. This film was fun, and invigorating, again mixing new footage with archival films to achieve a sense of tradition and invention.
The seventh, and final film, was directed (and hosted) by Clint Eastwood. Piano Blues is an elegant and relaxed look at perhaps the broadest section of the genre. Eastwood interviews pianists Ray Charles, Jay McShann, Dave Brubeck, Dr. John, and Henry Gray in a series of intimate and very comfortable face to fact meetings. Sitting next to his subject on the piano bench, the interviewer and interviewee are shown framed by the top of the grand piano and the body of the instrument. Eastwood has an affinity with the piano (it's his axe of choice) and with these great players. He has spiced up his films for years with hot [and cool] jazz. He is shown in one clip playing piano behind a blues singer; is it Honkytonk Man?
The film begins with an appreciation for the instrument, a potted history, and a quote from George Bernard Shaw, "Its invention was to music what the printing press was to poetry." Eastwood illuminates the discussions with archival footage, but he allows the footage to run on long enough for these historical performances to achieve the resonance they deserve. There is a sameness to the new footage, each interviewee framed in the same way, but these conversations are so warm and friendly, and the pianists so open that you feel as though you're in the same room with them. Charles and Brubeck seem so fragile, that a good breeze might blow them away, until they begin to play and then they are rooted by the history that they represent, and their fingers display such a mastery of the keys, the music they create is more solid than they are themselves. This is my favourite film and my favourite moment is, at the conclusion of the Ray Charles interview, as they separate, Eastwood says, "Thank you, Raymond!"
The seven disc DVD package is a perfect souvenir of the series. Each film is awarded its own disc, set neatly in those new slim-line plastic cases, housed in a heavy cardboard box (a 16 page booklet describes the programmes), and for the most part filled out with up to an hour of bonus material. The film transfers are crisp and beautiful. The programmes have intuitive menus that allow for easy manipulation through the material. You can even skip through the film to find musical performances if you like. Most films contain interviews with the director, and promotional material too. The only film without all this bonus material is Eastwood's Piano Blues which stands alone save for a director biography, and filmography.
You may argue about weaknesses here and there. You may wish they had covered one aspect of the blues in more depth. For instance why not a whole film on Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, et al? Or why not more Robert Johnson, or Muddy Waters, or Lonnie Johnson? But on the whole this is an in depth and fascinating look at "one of America's most unique and important art forms," just as Scorsese said! I love it, and I recommend The Blues to anyone who wants to understand how three chords and a set of repeated lyrics can equal poetry and art! | <urn:uuid:5b3d7d78-99b2-435d-b807-8190a0274383> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://greenmanreview.com/film/film_scorsesesblues.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960694 | 2,995 | 1.765625 | 2 |
June 9 through Sept. 29, 2007
During their collaboration from 1985 to 1995, Kate Ericson and Mel Ziegler produced conceptual art projects, ranging from important public projects and site-specific installations to drawings and mixed media sculptures. Ericson and Ziegler, both alumni of the Kansas City Art Institute, redefined public art in a way that was welcoming to a diverse set of communities. They devised projects that altered sites subtly, using poetic language and wit to illuminate mainstream American contexts and highlight individual community issues.
This first retrospective exhibition of Ericson and Ziegler's career, the show provided a critical analysis of the artists' position in the history of 20th century art. The exhibition includes sculpture, installations, models and video documents of site-specific works.
The exhibition is a joint-project of the MIT List Visual Arts Center and the Tang Teaching Museum at Skidmore College, and is organized by Bill Arning and Ian Berry, in collaboration with Mel Ziegler. The exhibition and catalogue are sponsored in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; Peter Norton Family Foundation; The Judith Rothschild Foundation; and the Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation.
May 29 through June 4, 2007
Featuring work by members of the Surface Design Association, this installation was designed to showcase innovative uses of textiles. Included in the exhibition are 202 pieces which collectively illustrate surface design, weaving, quilting, knitting, stitching, three-dimensional work, non-traditional materials and many other techniques and processes.
April 21 through May 19, 2007
This exhibition included work by B.F.A. candidates from all departments at KCAI including: animation, art history, ceramics, creative writing, fiber, graphic design, illustration, interdisciplinary arts, painting, photography and new media, printmaking, and sculpture. The exhibition is organized by Heather Lustfeldt, assistant curator, and the Artspace.
March 3 through 31, 2007
Curated by Craig Subler
The exhibition was organized in conjunction with the Southern Graphics Council. Kansas City will host the council's annual conference from March 21 through 25. The conference will welcome thousands of visitors to Kansas City and include the participation and support of many local and regional institutions through a variety of exhibitions, public art presentations and workshops. Laura Berman, assistant professor of printmaking at KCAI, is the conference director.
Jan. 20 through Feb. 17, 2007
"It's Only Natural" featured work by 25 faculty members at KCAI from the departments of ceramics, fiber, foundation, graphic design, interdisciplinary arts, painting, photography/new media and printmaking. (Pictured: "Self-Portrait with Kenny," in-progress, Jessie Fisher, 2006, oil on linen, 28 inches by 32 inches.)
Oct. 28 through Dec. 20, 2006
Curated by Mark Bessire and Raechell Smith and organized by the Artspace and the Bates College Museum of Art, the exhibition featured work by Rachel Berwick, Sarina Brewer, Walmor Correa, Mark Dion, Sean Foley, Joan Fontcuberta and Jean Formiguera, Ellen Lesperance and Jeanine Oleson, Robert Marbury, Jill Miller, Vik Muniz, Rosamond Purcell, Alexis Rockman, Marc Swanson, Jeffrey Vallance and Jamie Wyeth, along with Loren Coleman’s Future Museum of Cryptozoology.
Sept. 9 through Oct.14, 2006
This exhibition showcased the work of the 2006 Charlotte Street Foundation individual artist grant award winners. Organized by guest curator Maria Buszek, assistant professor of art history at KCAI, the show featured new work by Anthony Baab, Deanna Dikeman, Justin Gainan, Elijah Gowin and Aaron Wrinkle.
The Kansas City Art Institute's viewbook provides an overview of KCAI's academic programs, students, faculty, alumni and campus. | <urn:uuid:8d3ef659-282f-4619-ba3c-a642ec59a7a8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kcai.edu/hr-block-artspace/exhibitions/2006-2007 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940089 | 812 | 1.609375 | 2 |
The Los Angeles Unified School District has moved to reconstitute another low performing high school. It's the 8-year-old Belmont High School just west of downtown L.A.
The move means that after the end of this school year all Belmont High teachers and staff will have to reapply for their jobs. The school district says the federal No Child Left Behind law gives it the authority to make such a drastic move.
Dale Vigil, the area superintendent overseeing Belmont, said that even though the campus has made strong gains in test scores in the last two years the vast majority of students are not proficient in English and math.
Vigil said charter school operators would not be brought in to run Belmont High as is planned for the forthcoming overhaul of Jordan High School. The teachers union said the district did little to work with teachers at Jordan High and opposed a similar overhaul of Fremont High a year ago.
The plan for Belmont High, Vigil says, is to keep the school’s three learning academies and teach students in Mandarin, Spanish and English. | <urn:uuid:6f3fb9e3-1b4a-4c01-97d8-6c03de718cfb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.scpr.org/news/2011/01/27/23424/l-unified-reconstitutes-another-low-performing-hig/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969012 | 221 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Well, here's a story not to think about next time you are in an enclosed space: A bank in Abbeville, La. that was undertaking renovations this year discovered a skeleton inside a chimney that had been closed for three decades.
The body's been identified as belonging to Joseph Schexnider, who went missing in January of 1984 while apparently evading arrest for stealing a car. Schexnider had disappeared before—once, according to his mother, he actually joined a circus—and cops eventually stopped looking for him.
But he was right nearby the whole time! He seems to have entered the bank chimney from the top, and, since he died of "dehydration and starvation," it seems fair to assume he got stuck while inside. If he was planning a robbery, it was a strange one—no bag was found among his effects—and certainly no one at the bank noticed he was there when the chimney was closed "in the 1980s." | <urn:uuid:2a2f7887-4b18-4999-a597-c9c9445b3a04> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gawker.com/5825440/mans-skeleton-found-in-chimney-27-years-after-disappearance?tag=banks | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.995413 | 201 | 1.632813 | 2 |
SAN DIEGOBased on preliminary test results, researchers at Kaiser Permanente Northern California and the University of California, San Francisco, believe that immunochemical fecal occult blood testing (IFOBT) would be a reasonable addition to a managed care plans flexible sigmoidoscopy colorectal cancer screening program, depending on patient preference, the practice setting, and cost constraints.
James E. Allison, MD, San Francisco General Hospital, reported the findings at an American Gastroenterological Association research forum held during the Digestive Disease Week conference.
He said that the study was conducted in an attempt to prospectively determine the added yield of advanced neoplasms IFOBT would bring to an established colorectal cancer screening program utilizing sigmoidoscopy alone.
Dr. Allison said that the study was conducted at three Kaiser Permanente facilities in Northern California. Average-risk patients who were referred for a screening sigmoidoscopy were offered screening with two IFOBTs, Dr. Allison said. These were FlexSure OBT and HemeSelect. Those testing positive on either test were offered colonoscopy. Those testing negative were referred for sigmoidoscopy.
More Than 6,000 Screened
Dr. Allison said that IFOBT cards were received from 6,079 patients, and interpretable test results were obtained from 5,944. Of those patients, 200 had a positive test. A colonoscopic examination was completed in 186 of the patients with a positive IFOBT (mean age, 61).
Advanced colonic neoplasia was found in 63 participants (positive predictive value, 34%). Advanced proximal neoplasia was found in 25 subjects, and proximal cancer in three (positive predictive value, 6.5%). The number of patients needed to screen to detect a single advanced neoplasm was 120; for advanced proximal neoplasia, 301, and for proximal cancer, 2,514.
Of the advanced proximal neoplasms, 12 lacked a distal marker lesion and therefore would not have been found with sigmoidoscopy screening alone. Two of the three proximal cancers also lacked a distal marker.
For these groups, the number of patients needed to screen to detect additional lesions was 628 for advanced proximal neoplasm and 3,771 for proximal cancer.
Reason to Add Test
We determined that immunochemical fecal occult blood tests do uncover a proportion of advanced proximal neoplasms that would not be detected by sigmoidoscopy alone, Dr. Allison said. That may be a reason to add the test to sigmoidoscopy in colorectal screening programs, even though a substantial number of people will need to be screened to detect cancers not detectable by sigmoidoscopy.
Dr. Allison acknowledged that the researchers were not sure as to the reasons behind the low yield of advanced colonic neoplasia beyond the reach of the sigmoidoscope in this study.
It may be that the IFOBT was more sensitive to distal lesions, he said, or it may relate to the age of the patient population.
The mean age of the population was 61, and therefore, we were screening a younger population, he stated. In an older population, we might have found more lesions beyond the reach of the sigmoidoscope.
The researchers next step is to look at the find rate of sigmoidoscopy, the miss rate of IFOBT, and the miss rate of sigmoidoscopy, Dr. Allison said. | <urn:uuid:ff919c24-8e31-4828-a0b8-f9e62bf92151> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/minimal-brain-dysfunction/content/article/10165/86078 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958956 | 735 | 1.789063 | 2 |
If we were to be blessed with a 21st century George Orwell, he would coin a new “speak” to apply to “support the troops.” Would he call this “Deceptive Speak”? Or would he be more clever?
The words certainly deserve an Orwellian name. The catch-phrase was rolled out the minute the war started, which makes one wonder about its public relations origin. Who can oppose supporting the troops, at least before we learned from WikiLeaks and Abu Ghraib of the intentional killing of civilians and torturing of whoever happened to be rounded up in the various sweeps? All for the fun and games of it.
“Support the troops” originated in the public relations department of the military/security complex. What “support the troops” really means is to support the profits of the armaments industry and the neoconservative ideology of US world hegemony.
“Support the troops” is a clever PR slogan that causes Americans to turn a blind eye to the brutal exploitation of our soldiers and military families for profit and for an evil ideology. | <urn:uuid:ebd07d2e-acbd-4bef-aabc-24d736bc3d99> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nasir-khan.blogspot.com/2011/03/p-c-roberts-our-time-of-universal.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952887 | 226 | 1.59375 | 2 |
by Kimberly Lovato
Preconceived notions and stereotypes melt like a summer ice cream cone.
“I’m lost. I’m late. I’m sorry,” I blurted into the phone, in French.
“So, Monsieur Manouvrier, if it’s ok I would still like to meet you today.”
“You are an hour late. Do you think I have nothing better to do? You Americans think you are so important?” he bellowed, barely breathing between salvos. “Do you think we are so honored to speak to an American that we will stop everything else in our lives?”
I wanted to shout, “You know nothing about me!” But since it was my last day in the Dordogne, and since I wanted to meet this man before I left, I pleaded, “Please, may I still come?”
“Fine,” he replied. The slam of the receiver reverberated in my ear before I could ask him for more directions.
As an American who had spent many years traveling in France, I sometimes felt like the honorary town piñata, enduring swing upon jab about my accent, nationality, and the political leanings of our President who, I had to remind people constantly, was not a personal friend of mine. But despite the occasional bashing, I also had become a defender of the French, charmed by the generosity of those who had welcomed me, a stranger, into their homes, and seduced by their pervasive and earnest joie de vivre.
So, alone in a three-chimney village in southwestern France, at a crossroads, literally and figuratively, I had two choices: I could abandon this meeting altogether or I could exemplify American perseverance. Though the first thought soothed me for a solid five minutes, I folded up my map and set out, knowing that the long road ahead was more than just the one I was lost on.
In France, as in many parts of the world, the best information arrives by word of mouth, or de bouche à l’oreille as they say, from mouth to ear. This is how I had learned of Roland Manouvrier, an artisanal ice cream maker—and the source of my navigational woes.
I had been in the Dordogne for nearly a month researching a culinary travel book. Having amassed a stockpile of classic recipes from local chefs and home cooks, I was in search of something, and someone, a little different. One of these people was Chef Nicolas DeVisch who had taken over his parents’ restaurant in the medieval village of Issigeac, and whose menu did not include a single serving of duck or foie gras—two mainstays of the regional cuisine. Nicolas had invited me to dinner and after several courses of his non-conventional cooking, he plunked a tub of ice cream down on the table, handed me an espresso spoon, and invited me to dig into the white creamy contents. Preparing my taste buds for vanilla or coconut, or some other sweet savor, I closed my lips around the mouthful. The cold burned my tongue then melted down the back of my throat. Nicolas’s eyebrows arched in question.
“Goat cheese?” I guessed.
“Yes, from the village of Racamadour,” he confirmed. “And you should really meet this guy before you go.”
After crisscrossing the Dordogne countryside for nearly two hours, I had pulled off the road to make that call to Roland. The prowess of the GPS had been no match for rural French addresses that delight in omitting street names and numbers, replacing them with titles like “The Sheep Barn” and “The Old Mill.” Finally, thanks to a helpful barista, I zeroed in on Roland’s address, given simply as “The Industrial Zone” in the village of Saint-Geniès.
When I arrived 20 minutes later, Roland met me at his office door wearing a white lab coat, a plastic hair net set askew atop his wavy brown hair, and a scowl. The archetypal mad scientist, I thought, and for a second the story of Hansel and Gretel popped into my head. I wondered if anyone would hear me scream as Roland shoved me into a cauldron over a hot fire. Would I be his next flavor—Glace à l’Américaine?
“How much time do you need?” he barked, bursting my reverie.
“As much as you’ll give me,” I answered. Roland corrected my French.
“Because you’re late, I’m late, and I must make deliveries.”
“How about I help you? We can talk on the road,” I offered.
“Pppffff…” Roland produced the classic French noise made by blowing air through one’s relaxed lips, often done to dismiss something just said.
I followed him through his stainless steel kitchen and helped him load frozen cases of ice cream into his delivery van. As I moved them into place, I noticed the flavors penned in black ink on the lid of each container: Tomato-Basil; Szechwan; Rose; Violet; Calvados. I asked Roland if I could include one of his unusual recipes in my book.
“What do you think? I have a formula like at McDonalds? I don’t write my recipes down. They are not exact, and depend on many influences.”
“Pppfff…” he added.
We coursed the serpentine Dordogne roads, past fields of sunbathing flowers and over oak-encrusted hills, delivering the frozen parcels every 15-20 minutes. Each time Roland got back in the car, he shelled me with questions. Do you like Andy Warhol? Have you ever been to New York? Have you ever seen a real cowboy? How about a real Indian? What is the point of baseball? Each time I answered, he corrected my French, which became irksome.
I finally took a sarcastic swing back at him. “If you prefer, we could speak in English. Would that be easier for you?”
“Why would I speak in English? I am in France and French is my language!” he yelled.
My face flushed and jaw tightened. Short fused from the incessant corrections and aching from the smile I had been faking for the last hour, I was ready to abandon this day and this ill-mannered ice cream man. I blew up.
“It’s people like YOU that give the French a bad reputation in my country. And in case YOU haven’t noticed, I am in YOUR country speaking YOUR language because YOU can’t speak mine.”
I braced myself for retaliation. Roland stared straight ahead, his hands clenching the steering wheel. After a tense ten-second interlude, he asked me about the reputation the French have in America. I told him that, though generalizing, we found them rude, arrogant, and hateful toward Americans. Roland’s belly-bouncing chuckle filled the air, but he said nothing more, not even to correct me.
We crossed a bridge and puttered down the main two-lane street of Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère, our final stop. The sun was low in the summer sky and cast an ochre glow on the stone buildings. Garlands of yellow and orange paper flowers strung between the steeply pitched rooftops swayed overhead, remnants of a recent festival. We parked and found a table in the sun at the town’s only café. Roland ordered me to wait while he delivered ice cream to his brother down the street. I watched him shake hands and kiss-kiss the cheeks of a few people along the way before disappearing into a doorway. When I saw him again, he was back on the street, handing out ice cream cones from the back of his van to lucky passers by. He waved me over.
I asked him if he lived in Saint-Leon-sur-Vézère.
“No. This is where I was born,” he said. He pulled out another familiar white container and scooped the bright orange ice cream into two cones and handed me one. The mandarin orange flavor couldn’t have tasted better if he had plucked it from a tree.
We drifted through the cobblestone streets of the riverside village and as I lapped up the frozen delight, Roland unlatched his memories. He pointed out the window he’d broken while trying to master a yo-yo; the home of a girl he once had a crush on; the church where he got married. We stopped in front of the brown wooden door of a village house and Roland told me a lady who had once lived there found a rusted American G.I. helmet in her garden.
“She gave the helmet to my father and we kept it displayed on top of an armoire in our house for many years,” Roland said.
“Why? What interest did your father have in it?” I asked.
“We didn’t know anything about the soldier. Did he come from Oklahoma? Wyoming? Did he have a family?” Roland said. Then he raised his finger in the air. “The only thing we knew for certain was that this anonymous American came here to liberate France. For that we are grateful.”
Tears pricked my eyes, in part because of the unexpected provenance of this story, and in part because of the image it conjured up inside my head: a black and white photo of my 19-year-old grandfather in his G.I. helmet.
We sat wordless atop a low rock wall for several minutes, feet dangling over the Vézère River.
“Thank you for sharing that story,” I eventually said.
“Thank you for coming today,” Roland replied, in English.
A hand written recipe for his Tomato-Basil sorbet showed up in my mailbox a month later.
Kimberley Lovato is a freelance travel writer whose work has appeared in Afar, National Geographic Traveler, Executive Travel, Delta Sky Magazine, Easy Jet Traveller, Conde Nast Traveller, and other print and online media. Her culinary travel book, Walnut Wine & Truffle Groves, was released in 201o and has won two awards. | <urn:uuid:59d72194-4dc1-4ee8-8b9a-58b1b539d377> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.besttravelwriting.com/btw-blog/great-stories/womens-travel-bronze-winner-lost-and-liberated/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970895 | 2,265 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Published on Monday, March 15, 2004 by Democracy Now!
Defying Washington: Haiti's Aristide Heads Back to the Caribbean
BANGUI, Central African Republic -- Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide is on his way back to the Caribbean. Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman is onboard a chartered Gulfstream jet with Aristide, his Haitian-American wife Mildred, and the delegation of US and Jamaican officials that is accompanying the Aristides to Jamaica, which has offered to temporarily host them. Goodman is one of only two journalists traveling with Aristide.
In returning to the Caribbean, Aristide is defying the Bush administration, which has stated clearly it does not want Aristide in the Western Hemisphere.
Preceding Aristide's departure, there was a several-hour-long stand-off in Bangui that raised serious questions about whether the Haitian leader would be permitted to leave Africa. The events also suggest that the US or other foreign governments may have attempted to prevent or delay Aristide from leaving. Aristide, who was democratically elected, has charged that he was "kidnapped" from Haiti on February 29 in a US-orchestrated coup. Aristide reiterated these allegations in a series of interviews with Goodman in Bangui.
Throughout Sunday, there were a flurry of meetings between Aristide and the president of the Central African Republic, Gen. Francois Bozize. Some of the meetings also included Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Jamaican parliamentarian Sharon Hay-Webster, who is representing Jamaica's Prime Minister PJ Patterson, as well as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). At one point, Aristide emerged from a meeting with Gen. Bozize inside the presidential palace. Amy Goodman reported that when he came out of the meeting, Aristide was "surrounded by military."
After the initial round of talks with Bozize, Aristide spoke briefly with Goodman. She reported that "Aristide thinks that President Bozize must consult with those who called Bozize before Aristide was taken to the CAR?the US, France and Gabon?to decide whether Bozize should allow Aristide to leave the country." These were the three countries that orchestrated Aristide's stay in the CAR.
It is not yet clear what possible role the US and other foreign governments played in the stand-off that preceded Aristide's departure from the CAR. In an interview with Goodman as the stand-off was underway, Aristide's lawyer Ira Kurzban questioned whether the Haitian president was being held prisoner because he was not being allowed to leave when he wanted.
Ultimately, after numerous meetings, the group was told they would be allowed to leave the CAR. Moments before they took off, Goodman conducted a brief, exclusive interview with Aristide. "Because they [the government of the CAR] were so gracious in welcoming us here, it is natural that while we are leaving the first thing we say is thank you," Aristide told Goodman.
She then asked Aristide for his thoughts on his impending return to the Caribbean. "In the Caribbean family, we find the African diaspora too," said Aristide. "Now that we are in Africa, moving toward Jamaica, we are moving from one big family to the same family somehow. That?s why we will continue to do our best to promote peace, friendship for all of us as members of the same family, as brothers and sisters."
Mildred Aristide told Goodman she is very much looking forward to reuniting with her two small daughters.
The delegation that traveled to the CAR to escort Aristide back to the Caribbean was led by Rep. Waters. "It has been been quite an experience," Waters told Goodman just before they boarded the plane in Bangui. "It has been a long day... We are very pleased to be getting on the airplane and he will be in Jamaica by tomorrow."
Sharon Hay-Webster, the emissary of Jamaica and CARICOM, told Goodman, "I can say that on behalf of the team, all of us who were here to represent President Aristide and CARICOM, all of his family within the diaspora of the US and the Caribbean, we are happy to meet with our family members here in Africa and to have a positive decision to be taken - that is for him to be returned to his family within CARICOM... and for him to be reunited with his children and all the family to plan together as to how they will proceed from here."
TransAfrica founder Randall Robinson, who is a close friend of the Aristides, is also a member of the delegation. "I am very pleased that President and Mrs. Aristide will be reunited with the children tomorrow in Jamaica," Robinson told Democracy Now!. "It is refreshing. I am extremely relieved. They have been out here for so long. To see them joining us, going home is a great joy and a great relief."
Before the Aristides departed Bangui, President Bozize presented them with two gifts--one a picture made of hundreds of butterfly wings, the other a piece of art made from rare wood from the CAR.
US OPPOSES ARISTIDE'S RETURN TO WEST. HEMISPHERE
Throughout Sunday, Goodman reported on the stand-off in the CAR over the fate of Aristide and his wife Mildred. She indicated that there was some question among the visiting delegation on what role Washington was playing in the situation. What is clear is that US officials have declared very publicly that they do not want Aristide to return to the Western Hemisphere.
"We think it's a bad idea," national security adviser Condoleezza Rice told NBC's "Meet the Press." "We believe that President Aristide, in a sense, forfeited his ability to lead his people, because he did not govern democratically."
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, on CNN's "Late Edition," said: "The hope is that he will not come back into the hemisphere and complicate [the] situation."
In Haiti, the chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, General Richard Myers, said, "As far as Aristide?s return to the region is concerned, if that increases the violence here, then that would be extremely unhelpful."
The US has also criticized Jamaica for offering to host Aristide. "Jamaican authorities are certainly taking on a risk and a responsibility," said James Foley, the US Ambassador to Haiti. "His coming within 150 miles from Haiti is promoting violence."
Jamaican Prime Minister Patterson, speaking as current chairman of the 15-nation CARICOM, has called for an international investigation into the circumstances of Aristide's removal from Haiti February 29. The 53-nation African Union echoed that call last week.
Earlier, Goodman reported that, as the stand-off ensued, the delegation's pilots were on-board the plane for a number of hours, awaiting word on whether the group would be allowed to leave. "That answer has come and it appears to be yes," said Goodman, just moments after the final round of talks between Aristide, Bozize and the US/Jamaican delegation ended.
Moments before the Aristides and the delegation left for the airport, the Director General of State Protocol of the Central African Republic, Stanislas Moussa-Kembe, told Goodman, who at the time was inside the Presidential Palace in Bangui, that the Aristides would be allowed to leave the Central African Republic immediately. He told Goodman, "You're headed to the airport."
Goodman was reporting from inside the Presidential Palace late into Sunday night. She is now with Aristide and the delegation that came from the US to escort him to Jamaica. They are expected to arrive in the Caribbean nation midday Monday.
NOTE: Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman has been in the Central African Republic with a delegation led by US and Jamaican lawmakers, where she has been reporting on the return of Aristide to the Caribbean. They are currently on a plane en route to Jamaica. The delegation includes Rep. Maxine Waters, TransAfrica founder and close friend of the Aristides, Randall Robinson, Sharon Hay-Webster, an emissary of the Jamaican prime minister, as well as Aristide's Miami-based lawyer, Ira Kurzban. Washington Post reporter Peter Eisner is also with the group.
This is a Democracy Now! global broadcast exclusive. Check the Democracy Now! website regularly for the latest news on this historic trip. | <urn:uuid:ed32f004-8e94-4bf9-8be0-b91f5b4dfea7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.commondreams.org/cgi-bin/print.cgi?file=/headlines04/0315-03.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978448 | 1,767 | 1.625 | 2 |
CDP can reduce data backup windows, meet RTOs
With rapid data growth, meeting backup windows is a challenge for storage managers. This problem can be addressed with continuous data protection. CDP eliminates the need for a designated backup window as changes are captured on an ongoing basis. Similarly, the need for more aggressive recovery time objectives (RTOs) and recovery point objectives (RPOs) can be met by CDP. "There's a clear need in the data protection market for more compressed recovery points and times, which CDP helps to achieve," said Dubois.
Data protection for branch offices has been a pain point for most companies. Inadequate data protection stems from the lack of IT staffing in remote offices, the need to deploy tape libraries and the use of non-IT staff for tasks such as tape changes. Unlike expensive array-based replication, continuous data protection has installed relatively inexpensive CDP agents on remote servers, replicating data changes back to a central data center. Because these changes are replicated as they occur, bandwidth requirements are modest.
CDP has been very successful in the disaster recovery (DR) market. In a typical DR setup, production data and applications are mirrored to standby servers in a DR location to which users can be failed over quickly. Unlike array-based snapshots and replication, which have been primarily used for this in the past, continuous data protection is less expensive and less complex to set up. As a result, continuous data protection enables smaller companies to put in place a DR strategy that only larger firms could afford in the past.
"We chose CA XOsoft High Availability [formerly CA XOsoft WANSync HA] as our DR solution, because it was relatively inexpensive and has built-in provision for DR testing," said Peter Haas, director of technology at the Supreme Court in Louisiana. Asempra Technologies Inc., CA XOsoft, Double-Take Software Inc. and InMage Systems Inc. have opted for CDP as the underlying technology to power their DR-centric data protection products. "A combination of local backups and DR with the ability for failover is the best way of ensuring 24/7 availability, and CDP is the most appropriate technology to achieve it," explained Rajeev Atluri, CTO and senior VP of engineering at InMage.
Some customers have been using continuous data protection for operational reasons. "Although the primary reason for deploying InMage DR-Scout was disaster recovery, it's a great tool for cloning production instances for testing of patches and other changes prior to production migration," said Matt Reynolds, CIO at the San Francisco law firm of Howard Rice Nemerovski Canady Falk & Rabkin.
Besides continuous protection of files, continuous data protection can protect a few critical applications. Almost all CDP products protect Microsoft Exchange Server and Microsoft SQL Server, but the level of recoverability varies with each product. While some products can only recover complete Exchange storage groups and databases, others can recover single mailboxes and even single mail objects.
"Besides being able to reduce the dependency on tapes for backup and recovery, the ability to provide low-cost local disaster recovery of our Exchange servers and the ability to restore single mailboxes were the main reasons for deploying Asempra Business Continuity Server," said Derek Kruger, IT and communications supervisor for the city of Safford, Ariz.
Application support beyond Exchange and SQL Server is sparse and varies by CDP vendor. Oracle databases, IBM DB2, MySQL, Active Directory and Windows SharePoint Services are among the applications supported by some vendors. The list of supported applications proves that Windows is currently the widest supported platform for CDP. While all continuous data protection vendors support Windows, support for Unix derivatives is mostly present in higher end CDP solutions such as EMC RecoverPoint, InMage DR-Scout and Symantec Veritas NetBackup RealTime Protection.
This article originally appeared in Storage magazine.
About this author: Jacob Gsoedl is a frequent contributor to "Storage" magazine. | <urn:uuid:63c940ee-a5c0-4fc5-9bc3-1a06b2a9d8fb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://searchsmbstorage.techtarget.com/news/1359422/How-continuous-data-protection-is-used-today | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93963 | 830 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Beliefs Supporting Creative Continuity
- Energy is information, experienced in awareness.
- Awareness is the opportunity for choice.
- Power is the movement of energy by choice.
- Open awareness maximizes available energy.
- The more energy available to choice, the more power.
- The more interconnected beings are,
the more energy available to them.
- Divinity is complete awareness of all energy.
- Divinity is always creating, embodying surprising new life.
- To participate in divinity is to create new life, to evolve.
- Fearful control is threatened by the unexpected,
and entrenches the status quo.
- Fearful control disallows some awareness,
losing vital information, lessening power.
- Fearful control is isolated power, inherently self-defeating.
- The energy fearful control disallows is held in the body as tension.
- Tension is the seed of possibility:
what you hold back is your potential.
- Divinity is the full potential of humanity.
A HUMANISTIC CREDO
- I believe in Soul, the one eternal center of awareness.
- I believe each Soul is on a recurrent sacred journey, out of the oneness, through individuality, and back to oneness with renewed wonder.
- I believe every loss and each connection is a vital moment in the individual Soul's journey out of and back to oneness.
- I believe each individual's life purpose is to support the cyclic journey of every Soul.
- I believe in the invisible, the mystery from which the life force, known as Spirit, continually emerges.
- I believe in Spirit, the energy which is information, available to the awareness of Soul.
- I believe the power of Soul is in the embodiment of Spirit by choice.
- I believe in Body, the abiding energetic structure created by Soul's choices.
- I believe in Mind, the medium between Soul and Body.
- I believe in the infinite wisdom that lives in the mystery, guides and teachers available to Mind.
- I believe in the necessity of inner silence where the wisdom from the mystery can be seen, heard, and felt.
- I believe Mind's every word is made flesh, that word thoughts and images take form in the Body.
- I believe contact between embodied Souls occurs through their exchange of Spirit.
- I believe each experience of contact is a meeting with otherness that stretches the boundaries of the individual Soul.
- I believe the challenge of otherness means letting go of limiting old ways in favor of a new, more inclusive way of being.
- I believe harmony is a sign of increasing inclusivity, the evolutionary growth of the individual Soul into communality.
- I believe the entire universe is known in the one Soul whose Spirit continually renews its Body, evolving through the epic journey of each individual Soul.
An Inclusive Catholic Creed
- We believe in the one God who is embodied in all that is, whose awareness and Spirit flow through all that is happening in every present moment.
- We honor this God as Mother and Father to us all, the Source of all life, the one who feeds and shelters us, and who provides whatever we truly need.
- We cherish our earth as the divine body within which we live, and move, and have our being. We respect the interdependence of all life in our glorious home.
- We recognize our God as the one who is honored by all people, whatever name they use to claim their God. Whoever you are, we believe that your God is our God too.
- We believe that every human being, and all forms of life, are a revelation of who God is, deserving honor and respect. We listen with care to each diverse embodiment of God.
- We reverence each of our bodies as the dwelling place of God, the source of experience by which we know our place in the universal body of God.
- We believe that God's creative act is ongoing, that all life forms are participants in what is coming to be. We value the contribution of all life, even when we don't understand it.
- We honor Jesus as the revelation of God, and challenge ourselves to see God’s self-disclosure in ourselves, in every other person, and indeed in every form of life.
- We believe that the God revealed in Jesus is love, the power that holds all that is just as it is. We claim that the meaning of life for each individual lies in learning how to love.
- We believe that all attempts to have power over others result from unacknowledged fear, and need to be held in love so that the healing truth may be discovered.
- We bless the poor in Spirit, those who seek no power over others, who are content to simply be aware in the present moment.
- We believe that we are challenged, in every present moment, to hold the truth in intimate relationship to each other. We honor the Spirit between us as our experience of God.
- We bless the pure in heart, those who accept the simple truth of Spirit as it presents itself within themselves, and from within each other.
- We believe the Church is the people of God, the ones who cherish equally every member, whatever their skin color, gender, age, health, or sexual orientation.
- We honor our Church leadership as the ones who listen most carefully to the ongoing revelation of God within the people. We confront their attempts to have power over us.
- We accept our share in the divine responsibility for everything that happens in our Church and our world. We are moved to act in concert with all who suffer.
- We believe that death is the way to new life, that familiar old ways need to die when they no longer hold the truth whose discovery promises exciting new life.
- We come together to celebrate the glory of the Mystery that fascinates and overwhelms us. We welcome each surprise as the gift of our God who wants to be known and loved.
Dream Weavers Creed
- We start with a Dream of love . . .
and eventually realize the love that is a Dream worth living.
- We embrace our lives as our works of divine art.
We create what we love.
- We welcome transformation: we recurrently choose to die and be reborn.
- We feel the meaning of the life force as it moves through our bodies.
- We fall in love with what is . . . and Dream of what it may be.
- We are inspired to gather the creative power that is shared by all.
- We grieve our addictive illusions of control even as we surrender them.
- We release our passion for what is as yet unlived.
We bring it to birth.
- We celebrate fulfillment when the Dream is happening.
We honor what has been given . . . and what we have done with it.
- We allow our Dreams to be refined into the Creator’s Dream of Love.
We join together in the evolutionary work of art, making all well.
CREATIVITY BELIEF SYSTEM
- I believe in the Creator who is always in the act of creating. Creation is not something that happened once in a long ago beginning. Creation is the new beginning in every present moment. The Creator is perpetually making all things new – and doing so in the eternal now.
- I believe that every movement of change throughout the universe is the act of the Creator. To me, Spirit is simply the purposeful energy of the Creator. The purpose is to make all things well, and then to make them better, and better. I understand evolution as the ongoing improvement of the way things are. It’s what the Creator is doing. It’s an act of love. The Dream of the Creator is an ever more complete expression of love.
- I believe in evolution having become conscious of itself. This means I get to join in on what the creative Spirit is doing. I get to be a participant in making things well, and then making them better, and better. I do this whenever I engage in creative process.
- I believe my life purpose is the part I get to play in evolution. I have a vocation to discover and be faithful to the uniqueness of my contribution. The Creator’s invitation is a promise that the best of who I am makes the world a better place. I am a living sacrament, making the divine present by joining in the activity of creation.
- I believe that when I’m on my creative path, the universe looks after me. It is not necessary to build my life around security in the future. When I give myself to the call to create, the universe conspires to support my needs. As I give myself to the Creator, all I need is given to me. This is the covenant by which the creative live.
- I believe that the creator Spirit is the Muse, is anyone, anything, anywhere, anytime – any moment of personal experience. Since the entire universe every now is the act of the Creator, my contact with whatever is happening is my connection with Spirit. I am being inspired anytime I allow myself to notice.
- I believe that creative renewal is always now. There is a risk I take when I join the Creator. Nothing new is born unless something old dies. Inspiration leads to Disillusionment. Old Dreams give way to new ones. Through every turn of the wheel, I am actively transforming myself, even as I am being transformed, even as the whole universe evolves.
- Every present moment holds the promise of something wonderful coming into being. The more I give myself to evolutionary participation, the more I discover the synchronicities confirming my participation. The more I open myself to creative process, the more energy becomes available to me. The more I surrender to the divine purpose, the more powerfully I become its embodiment. | <urn:uuid:c02035a7-acb3-412b-b8c8-ebd4295c5cf7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.feelingeverything.com/creeds.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944696 | 2,048 | 1.648438 | 2 |
In addition to applications for reprogrammable hardware and processors in the Internet of Things, it also seems as if there will be a growing need to embed pieces of FPGA-like fabric into SoCs.
Colors are simply names we give to specific wavelengths or combinations of wavelengths that are received by our eyes. Maybe we each see colors differently.
Now we are ready to bring all the parts together and construct the GPS-driven, FPGA-decoded Nixie tube speedometer for use in a 1953 International pickup truck.
Here's an image of the week and a joke of the week. Also, this week's live online chat takes place Thursday, June 20, at 1:00 p.m. ET (10:00 a.m. PT).
Duane is now poised to use his I2C interface to send commands to the driver boards controlling his robot avatar's motors. | <urn:uuid:651d33fb-ddfe-4013-8398-b3b1eec488ef> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.programmableplanet.com/messages.asp?piddl_msgthreadid=252117&piddl_msgid=708566 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966553 | 185 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Truth in Immigration
Human rights organization Breakthrough has released a video with a first hand account of the deaths of immigrants held in detention by ICE. The story of immigrant deaths in detention was also recently reported in The New York Times and The Washington Post.
When comprehensive immigration reform failed to pass in the summer of 2006, anti-immigrant sentiment pushed Congress to pass federal rules restricting undocumented immigrants from receiving government benefits. Recently, the Associated Press reported that these federal immigration rules have negatively impacted state budgets and have done little to reduce illegal immigration. MORE
NCLR’s We Can Stop the Hate campaign has produced a new video with the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) about the network of anti-immigrant organizations. The video begins with the question: "What if all the leading anti-immigration groups were founded by the same man, funded by the same organization, and [had] ties to White supremacy?" MORE
Granting state and local law enforcement greater authority to enforce immigration law is not a winning strategy. A recent New York Times article highlights disconcerting trends at the national level and highlights recent obstacles encountered by the Florida community of Milton. MORE
America’s immigration system has been hampered by the backlog of applications for visas and citizenship. A recent article takes a closer look at the problem. In addition to keeping apart families, individuals run into conflicts that could have been avoided if delays had not been so extended.. MORE
A TII subscriber recently faxed us a mailer he received from the United States Justice Foundation. The mailer contains a letter with alarming and false information about undocumented immigrants, and then urges the reader to sign a petition and send money to the organization. MORE
Increased local enforcement of federal immigration laws has had a negative consequence on the safety of immigrant communities, regardless of the legal status of their members. A new phenomenon called "Amigo Shopping" has sprouted, largely because burglars are confident that their crimes will go unreported. MORE
Columnist Ruben Navarrette, Jr. calls out the media personalities who are feeding the anti-immigrant and anti-Latino fervor in this country.
In a vivid and ironic demonstration of how essential immigrant workers are to the US workforce, Texas contractors doubt that we can build a wall to keep immigrants out without their labor. MORE
Someday, the country will recognize the true cost of its war on illegal immigration. We don’t mean dollars, though those are being squandered by the billions. The true cost is to the national identity: the sense of who we are and what we value. It will hit us once the enforcement fever breaks, when we look at what has been done and no longer recognize the country that did it. MORE
In an attempt to capitalize on anti-immigrant sentiment in this country, Congressmen Lamar Smith (R-Texas) advocates for the elimination of birthright citizenship, a bedrock Constitutional principle with roots over 400 years old. To support his argument, Representative Smith uses fear, incomplete data, and incomplete statements. MORE
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The tax system collects its due, even from a class of workers with little likelihood of claiming a refund and no hope of drawing a Social Security check.
Illegal immigrants are paying taxes to Uncle Sam, experts agree. Just how much they pay is hard to determine because the federal government doesn't fully tally it. But the latest figures available indicate it will amount to billions of dollars in federal income, Social Security and Medicare taxes this year.
Recent reports suggest that tougher border enforcement may be leading to increased corruption among Border Patrol agents MORE.
On May 15, 2008, Lou Dobbs claimed that a voluntary employment verification system, commonly known as Basic Pilot or E-Verify, “works,” despite mounting evidence the system contains major flaws, and despite contrary assessments from his own show and other news programs on CNN. MORE
Media Matters Action Network released “Fear and Loathing in Prime Time: Immigration Myths and Cable News,” a report documenting the rhetoric surrounding illegal immigration on some of the most influential cable news shows. MORE
From the May 20th edition of the Houston Chronicle:
If the 8.1 million undocumented immigrants who cut lawns, bus tables and perform other jobs disappeared overnight, the nation's economy would lose nearly $1.8 trillion in annual spending.
Immigrants of the past quarter-century have been assimilating in the United States at a notably faster rate than did previous generations, according to a recently published study. MORE
Latinos’ subordinate status in Georgia and in the Deep South bears more than a passing resemblance to that of African-Americans who were living under Jim Crow. Call it Juan Crow: the matrix of laws, social customs, economic institutions and symbolic systems enabling the physical and psychic isolation needed to control and exploit undocumented immigrants. MORE
In 2007, state legislators introduced more than 1,500 pieces of legislation related to immigrants and immigration.1 Many proposed laws were also introduced in local communities across the nation.2 The rise in state and local proposals was largely due to frustration at Congress’s failure to pass comprehensive immigration reform.
John Trasviña, President and General Counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) issued a letter on May 8 to conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh condemning his description of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa as “the shoe shine guy.”
Currently reading page 5 of 7. | <urn:uuid:b1f8d388-be46-4e0a-88da-6d16ec6f98a8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.maldef.org/truthinimmigration/index4.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94945 | 1,118 | 1.828125 | 2 |
I'm a Contractor. Do I Need WorkSafeBC Coverage?
As an independent, or self-employed, contractor it can often be confusing to understand who is responsible for obtaining WorkSafeBC coverage. Are you responsible? Or is your client? Whether you are a graphic designer working one-day-a-week in your client’s office or an electrician working on a build site, you will come across dangers in your day-to-day work, so it’s important to know who is responsible should something happen. We posed the following scenarios to WorkSafeBC to help understand the requirements of a self-employed contractor. Here’s what they said:
Scenario 1: I am a self-employed contractor. I have the opportunity to sign a contract with a client and one of the stipulations is that I have to have my own WorkSafeBC account. What are my options?
Based on the information you have provided you will not be considered a “worker”. You will therefore need to register as an independent business or operator. Personal Optional Protection (POP) coverage is voluntary, optional insurance that will cover lost salary and medical expenses in cases of work-related injury or disease. You can also apply for POP coverage on behalf of your spouse should it be relevant to you. For more information, go to www.worksafebc.com
and search “registration questions” to read the Frequently Asked Questions, or contact the Employer Services Centre, at 604-244-6184, for clarification.
Scenario 2: I am a self-employed contractor who has been asked to register and pay for WorkSafeBC myself. Why am I being made to pay for it when I really don’t want the personal coverage?
As you are not hired as a ‘worker’ of the company, you will not be covered under their WorkSafeBC account. Personal coverage insurance for self-employed contractors (not incorporated) is voluntary, but some larger businesses will require all of their sub-contractors to have their own WorkSafeBC insurance as well as other business liability insurance.
Scenario 3: I am a self-employed contractor who has never been asked by a client if I have my own WorkSafeBC coverage. Can I just assume that I am covered by my client? Or must I question my client about the coverage?
Yes, you should definitely discuss this with your clients. Only “workers” as defined by the Workers’ Compensation Act are automatically covered if injured at work. If you are running your own business as a sole-proprietor (for example, where you are in control of your own work, profit/losses and work for multiple employers) you can apply for voluntary coverage, but you would not be automatically covered in if you were to be injured at work. For more information, go to www.worksafebc.com
and search “self-employed”.
Understanding Who Should and Should Not Register
In general, we advise you adhere to the following guidelines:
Worker: if you are considered a “worker” as defined by the Workers’ Compensation Act, you do not need to and will not be permitted to register for WorkSafeBC coverage.
Employer: if you are an employer that hires other “workers” to work for you, you may be required to register for WorkSafeBC coverage for your workers.
Contractor: if you are a contractor, your requirement to register will depend on many criteria. The answers to your specific situation can be complicated depending on your circumstances. For detailed information, see the “Assessment Manual: Practice Directive 1-1-3 (A), Status – Distinguishing between a worker and an independent operator”
The answers provided in this article are intended to provide general guidance; they are not intended to provide answers to address specific situations, as each situation will vary depending on the circumstances of the employment relationship and the work being done.
Please consult the WorkSafeBC website or contact Employer Services Centre for specific answers to your situation.
Employer Services Centre contact details:
Lower Mainland: 604-244-6181
Toll Free: 1 888 922-2768 (toll-free)
The Employers Advisers Office, who has offices throughout BC, work independently from WorkSafeBC and offer their services are available to no additional cost.
WorkSafeBC is dedicated to promoting workplace health and safety for the workers and employers of this province. We consult with and educate employers and workers and monitor compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation. | <urn:uuid:d1f5f5b8-d374-42f5-acc2-bb4d342d516e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.smallbusinessbc.ca/starting-a-business/im-a-contractor-do-i-need-worksafebc-coverage | 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 | 0.96234 | 965 | 1.75 | 2 |
today i found a report about Peek-A-Booty also known as hacker-browser.at the moment it exist a running betaversion and more info how it works and the development: presentation
the browser is designed to let surfer access sites blocked from any restrictions.it should work over a distributed proxy network.it uses p2p model and masquerade the identy of each node.
in this way the surfer should be 100 percent anonym...
i'm thinking about can it really happen that you can surf anonym?all these services www.anonymizer.com.. and so on , don't really work anonym because the can log your ip and can create a profile from you.
what is your meaning about that? | <urn:uuid:45944fcb-3ef5-424c-8c57-341e71d4cabb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.antionline.com/printthread.php?t=219063&pp=10&page=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933203 | 151 | 1.6875 | 2 |
The 60s were a tough time in terms of news that sticks with me. Maybe it’s because I was young – I was born in 1959 – but mostly, what I remember are the low points when it seemed like my whole family, my neighbors, the world for all I knew, had stopped and were gathered around the television. I’ve experienced days like that since then, of course, most memorably 9/11 and when the Challenger space shuttle blew up in 1986, but by then we had grown somewhat used to the spectacle of continuous news coverage. Back in the 60s, it was much rarer, but I remember:
- The day Kennedy was shot in Dallas and the four days afterwards when the TV stayed on all the time.
- Lyndon Johnson’s announcement that he wouldn’t stand for re-election
- The assassinations of Martin Luther King and then Bobby Kennedy.
But I also remember the night of July 20th, 1969 when I played outside until it was dark and my parents called me in to watch Neil Armstrong step onto the moon and – we found out much later – bungle his lines. The picture was grainy, oversaturated black-and-white but for a kid who’d grown up on black-and-white and rabbit ears, it seemed pretty good to me. The event itself was magical.
Like a lot of us back then, I thought that by now – 40 years later – we’d have permanent colonies on the Moon and maybe Mars. The year before, Stanley Kubrick’s 2001 had shown us a vision of Pan Am space planes, orbiting Hilton hotels and more. It seemed very doable and natural, an extension of the settler impulse that had pushed us across a continent and out into space.
Unfortunately, things didn’t turn out quite the way we expected. Space is a lot more inhospitable to Earth-evolved humans than we realized back then and it’s very, very, very expensive to put people and stuff into orbit (much less to the Moon or Mars and back). The evolution of computing power and robotics means that it’s far safer and cheaper to send unmanned missions anywhere in the Solar system (and beyond) than it is to send fragile, bulky, needy humans.
But still…it seems like an awful big waste of space if we’re sentenced to this 3rd rock from a non-descript sun drifting in an out-of-the-way corner of a pretty unremarkable galaxy. “Look but don’t touch,” doesn’t sit well with a kid raised on Tom Swift and Andre Norton and Robert Heinlein.
Maybe, though, there’s still hope. In recent years, there’s been an expansion in the efforts of the private sector to get into space. Several teams are competing to develop reliable launch vehicles that are orders of magnitude cheaper than the government-run alternatives. This trend could accelerate if somebody figures out how to make money – preferably a lot of money – up there. If that happens, who knows? Some day, this old guy might just take a trip up there to see what its like.
Until then, though, let’s tip our hats to Messers. Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins for what they accomplished and the hope they took with them.
“They came in peace for all mankind.”
Filed under: Diversion | Tagged: 2001, Andre Norton, Apollo 11, Buzz Aldrin, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Mars, Martin Luther King Jr., Michael Collins, Moon, Neil Armstrong, Robert F Kennedy, Robert Heinlein, space, Stanley Kubrick, Tom Swift | 3 Comments » | <urn:uuid:1f375861-0f39-4929-9c3c-9f0cf4dc2b8b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thesamerowdycrowd.wordpress.com/tag/moon/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961611 | 776 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Fighting Crime with Astronomy at Inwood Hill Park
Thursday, June 23, 2011
On Friday night, a new tool will be used to fight crime in Inwood Hill Park: a $12,000 telescope. Following a string of sexual assaults in the area, the urban astronomer Jason Kendall will mix stargazing with discussions on community safety in what he's calling “Take Back the Park” nights.
“The park is there for the community. It’s our park,” said Kendall, adding that he did not want Inwood to cede the park to drug dealers, prostitutes, or criminals. “You got to use the park or lose it.”
Kendall rebranded his sky-watching tours as Take Back the Park nights after a 28-year-old woman was sexually assaulted in the park near the ballfields where he sets up his six-foot-tall telescope. The assault was one of three attacks in the neighborhood on June 10 and 11.
The astronomer said a telescope puts most anyone at ease, including a group of tattooed men in muscle shirts he recently encountered in the park late at night.
"All of a sudden they go, 'Wow, this is really cool,' and they call up a bunch of people and go, 'That's Saturn, I've never seen the rings before,'" he said.
Kendall's first "Take Back the Park" event last week drew about 100 people — a cross-section of the neighborhood that included more women than had been attending. Theater professional Clara Barton Green talked to the dozen or so teens and men and women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, some of whom were examining Saturn and the moon last week.
"I talked a lot about women's safety, how to protect yourself, but also not to live in fear," Green said. "I think that that's a really important principle."
The actor, director and producer was sexually assaulted several years ago but was able to fight off her attacker.
Inwood residents said that the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation and the police have stepped up enforcement since the June 10 attack in the park, though the suspect is still at large. Parks Enforcement Patrol (P.E.P.) officers, who are unarmed "quality of life" officers who keep the peace, give directions, and help sick people, have also been seen in the park. A parks department spokeswoman said crime was a policing issue but that P.E.P.s help with community morale.
“If people see a uniform, they feel more comfortable,” she said.
Residents said they had seen more foot and car patrols in the park and that a mobile unit has been stationed near the southern end of the park.
The New York Police Department did not respond to calls and emails for comment on extra policing measures. | <urn:uuid:a9a08432-ca1b-4acc-b4c3-6bc4adc71de2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wnyc.org/articles/features/2011/jun/23/inwood-hill-park-fighting-crime-astronomy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983698 | 591 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Continuing Education for Estheticians: Put Your Mind Where the Money Is!
By Douglas Preston
It's no secret that professional estheticians are education hounds! They love to learn and are hungry for new treatment techniques, products, and an advanced peek into the future of skin care. Education is an investment into one's personal and professional growth, and should be considered an obligation for maintaining career status. But how much of what we learn in classes transforms into increased clients and income? Do we actually measure the net benefit of a day in class in terms of dollars earned? And, while not all education will or need result in extra money, money is the foundation of all careers and I don't know many estheticians that claim to have enough of it. Not nearly enough even. While we may learn a new way to exfoliate the skin or perform a better facial massage most estheticians have discovered that the road to an adequate income is long, discouraging and, for most that enter the field, ultimately futile. The active professional shelf life of the average esthetician is not long: statistics differ, as they can be difficult to substantiate but, anywhere from 11-18 working months is a reasonable estimate. And the primary reason so many licensed people drop out of the profession: the impossibility or unwillingness to survive on a shoestring income early into the career. Here's a sketch of my first 3 years as an esthetician:
- Appointment schedule: 50+ hours per week (whether I had any appointments or not)
- Home makeup parties with our products 3 nights per week—about 16 hours total
- On-site makeup jobs for brides on weekends (6-8 hours including driving) when I could get the work
- Hustling around promoting our shop and services at businesses, clubs, church groups—anywhere!
- Praying that the car would start, the water heater wouldn't fail, a client check wouldn't bounce, and that I wouldn't get a cold or flu.
This is just the BIG stuff! And the money I earned from all of that? Don't make me laugh—that was to come later. I attended skin care courses of every description from any manufacturer that offered them, and spent my own hard-earned money on them, too. And, at long last when I was finally earning a handsome income a simple fact became brilliantly clear to me: it wasn't my technical skills that made successful but, rather, my communication and sales ability. Before I could serve and I had to attract people willing to be served, and that education wasn't in the curriculum of any school around at that time. In esthetics, politics, and entertainment: it's not the most talented or qualified that succeed, but always those that have the most compelling personality, charisma, or know how to immediately make others they meet feel good around them. The last of these skills can be learned, whether or not you were born with a sparkling charm or wit.
My point is this: if you want to advance your career in the shortest possible time then focus your education on learning what will impress people the most, even before they ever reach your treatment room. With that I offer my list of favorite learning topics for the success-minded esthetician:
Such a program would include professional conduct, sensitivity awareness, etiquette and proper, elegant communication. Great customer service is in knowing what makes people feel important, respected and cared for, and genuinely appreciated. Do you always treat customers in accordance with how you would want to be treated as a customer yourself? Visit enough spas and you'll eventually be forced to endure the drama or vapid behavior of the technician you're assigned to. In one well-known and expensive spa I was informed that my massage therapist had 13 years of international experience and trained all of the other therapists employed there. And yet, for all of her massive experience, I was asked nothing by her, learned nothing from her, received no instructions for post-spa care, and was not asked to return for another visit. She did finish by saying that it was nice working with me but I didn't feel as though she meant it. I felt like nothing, and I was disappointed. The therapist was technically focused, not people focused. And yet this was superior to employee complaints, juvenile conversation, and the unpleasant sense that you were an unwanted addition to one's late-in-the-day schedule. I've paid good money for all of the above, over and over again. Don't wait for your employer to offer this type of professional education. Look for these classes on the web or in trade magazines and shows. Most spa customers will be far more satisfied with people skills over hands-on technique any day of the week.
Here is the feared and loathed subject that most spa employees avoid if at all possible. Just say the word "sales" and spa the professional recoils with visions of predatory sharks and offended customers. Which is exactly why so many need this sort of training—to get that idea and impediment to success out of their head! Selling isn't, by definition, a dishonest and unpleasant act although that's certainly an option for those inclined to behave that way. Selling is making something attractive even more attractive through the presentation of it, whether by verbal or printed description, by sampling, or even by scent. Have you ever visited a spa where the lobby is devoid of exotic scent or soothing music? Something's clearly missing, and that fact alone can negate the chances for a second customer visit regardless of how wonderful the service treatment was. Selling is pleasing, it's seduction, it's the massing of desire in our potential customer so that they become a real and permanent one. And selling begins with your own demonstrated delight in the thing that you want others to want, too. Dishonesty doesn't sell, it fools. But your own enthusiasm and conviction for something you have to offer is all it takes for another to want it too. And when they do, and follow through by having it for themselves, you have a sale. Now, was that so bad? Spa educators are aware of how hard it is to fill a sales class with students, and it's one reason why spa personnel are still so poor at selling. Take another look at your paycheck. Too low? There's something that you can do about it...
Yes, even you can do more to market your services to the world around you. Why wait for the spa's institutional advertising to make the phone ring? I've never met a spa technician that's come close to maximizing their self-promotion potential. 20 years ago when I was a fairly new esthetician it was easy to stand out among my peers—there simply wasn't very many of us. But today the industry is flooded with experienced, new minted, and aspiring skin care professionals. We forget that it is a select and relatively unusual person that purchases the services of the esthetician, and those uncommon individuals have a lot of service selection these days. Waiting for business to grow is about the worst thing one can do to promote their career, that is, if the waiting is passive. Don't have the money to run print ads or launch a big mailing? Who said that you needed to? How much do you actually talk to others about the work you do? How often do you initiate such a conversation? How regularly do you create and work co-promotional relationships with people that can help you find customers—ones that need a certain customer of their own that they might find through you? What you need are ideas and the wherewithal to promote through them, ideas that you might discover in a marketing class, not another seminar on lymphatic drainage.
And there it is, Preston's prescription for advancing your career success faster than you are now. The next time you sign up for a professional class ask yourself the following:
- How will this class bring me more business and income?
- What will I do differently now to achieve the above?
- Has that plan really worked in the past?
- Who do I know that's truly seen their clients and income grow as a result of that education?
- Is there a better way than this?
Most licensed estheticians have almost all of the essential education that they'll ever need to perform competent skin care services but they severely lack the ability to sell them. They don't know how to compete in a crowded market and are short on the confidence required to "blow their own horn". If this in any way describes you then skip that next treatment class and spend some time on self-improvement education. It'll prove to be the better investment!
For information on Preston, Inc., visit www.prestoninc.net | <urn:uuid:36ec52bc-80a8-4d63-9139-d6e0cfe8b839> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.spatrade.com/spa-business/continuing-education-estheticians-put-your-mind-where-money | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977685 | 1,793 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Belarus has now ordered all Swedish diplomats out of the country, a week after expelling the Swedish ambassador for having contact with opposition groups.
“(President Alexander Lukashenko) is acting like the bully he is,” said Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, in an article in The Local. Swedish ambassador Stefan Eriksson had served in that post since 2008.
The action comes a month after an air-drop of several hundred teddy bears bearing free-speech slogans near the capital city of Minsk. The stunt was pulled off by a Swedish public relations firm. Belarus officials at first insisted it was all a hoax, but later conceded it had taken place.
Two Belarus citizens arrested for conspiring with the Swedes are still being held, even though the organizers of the drop insist the men had no part in the stunt. The Belarus KGB is demanding the two pilots who carried out the air-drop return to Belarus to face charges of violating Belarusan airspace, according to a Radio Netherlands report.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has also dismissed his country’s top border control official over the incident.
Sweden has retaliated by withdrawing residency permits for two Belarus diplomats and refusing to accept a new ambassador who had been recently appointed by Lukashenko, according to The Local.
According to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle, the European Union has expressed its concern over the matter. Belarus is already under several sanctions levied by the EU over its handling of political prisoners.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton is quoted as saying its members are “committed to the modernization of Belarus and the th spread of European values, in particular democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.” | <urn:uuid:d56e3afe-da47-4739-8b2a-344ba14a5166> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/330358 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973156 | 350 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Catherine Ashton, the EU's foreign policy chief, welcomed the release of former Presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov and his campaign aide Dmitry Bandarenka.
"I call on the authorities of Belarus to release unconditionally now also all other remaining political prisoners and to remove all restrictions on the enjoyment of their civil and political rights. This would certainly contribute to possibilities for moving towards improved relations between the EU and Belarus," Ashton said in a statement.
Sannikov, a former deputy foreign minister and presidential candidate, was sentenced to five years of prison last year for taking part in a protest that followed Lukashenko's disputed re-election victory in December 2010.
On Saturday, Lukashenko said Sannikov had been released from his high-security prison thanks to a presidential pardon, a move that may help calm a diplomatic spat between Minsk and the European Union, which has been campaigning for his freedom.
"This is a result of solidarity, without solidarity there would not have been a decision [by Lukashenko]," Sannikov told Reuters by telephone from the city of Vitebsk.
"What I really want to do now is see my family... My (normal) prison term ended last September. Then torture began," he said.
Sannikaw is one of the leading opposition leaders in the tightly run authoritarian nation and his wife, a journalist, was also jailed by the authorities. She had already been released.
The EU had long demanded Sannikov's release, imposing travel bans and asset freezes on a number of Belarussian officials and businessmen to help secure his freedom.
That pressure triggered a diplomatic row with Minsk in February that led to all of the 27-nation bloc's ambassadors leaving Belarus.
Sannikov, 58, ran against Lukashenko in the 2010 poll which Western observers criticised as fraudulent. The vote handed Lukashenko, a former Soviet collective farm manager, a fourth term in office.
Sannikov had initially refused to ask Lukashenko for pardon but submitted such a request last December after what he described as threats against his family.
A number of other opposition politicians and activists were detained at the same rally and jailed afterwards, though most have since been released.
Lukashenko has run Belarus since 1994, tolerating little dissent and maintaining a Soviet-style economic system with artificially low prices, a large public sector and nearly full employment.
He has relied largely on financial support from Russia, which provides Belarus with cheap energy and other benefits, seeing it as a buffer between itself and NATO.
Human rights activists say about 15 people are still kept in Belarussian prisons on political grounds. | <urn:uuid:56ae6120-fe67-4cda-8f0b-accf940dc373> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.euractiv.com/europes-east/eu-welcomes-release-belarus-poli-news-512165 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982758 | 550 | 1.554688 | 2 |
While many universities with library science programs offer post-graduate certificates (such as San Jose State post-master's certificate, Certificate of Graduate Studies from South Carolina, ...
I'm a bit stymied and I'm hoping that there is likely to be an obvious solution to my problem: how can I efficiently monitor what is being published in particular areas of science? Right now, my ...
Obviously basic computer use skills (keyboard, mouse, &c.) are necessary for librarians (unless you're still only using card catalogs and paper circ records!), but what else is useful or even ...
It is often difficult due to rigid organisational structures for library assistants, who may already have degrees, to break into the library profession. Do any libraries out there have programs that ...
As part of helping to better market a research fund for library faculty, I'm looking for examples of the kinds of activities/costs that such funds at other research libraries support to help ...
Good examples of training or professional development programs for librarians to gain digital/tech skills
One the goals at MPOW is to help more librarians gain skills related to conceiving, building, and maintaining digital projects. I'd welcome examples of successful training programs for helping ...
What is the best way for finding out about calls for papers for Library and Information Science conferences? Or for finding out that LIS conferences are taking place?
I'm planning on running a week where our tech staff has to use all the public services we offer, as well as "act like a user/client/patron/community member/whatever-you-call-em-doesn't-matter-to-me": ... | <urn:uuid:b0bc0650-dbda-45bf-b6c4-c3007fd071c3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://libraries.stackexchange.com/questions/tagged/professional-development | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950939 | 345 | 1.609375 | 2 |
- The Enterprise
- The Recorder
Whether they stole items or money to pay for drugs or they ingested or sold the drugs themselves, every time Sam Gegor’s two sons have been sent to jail it has been because of their addiction to prescription pills.
Sam’s eldest son, Nicholas, 25, is currently serving a two-year jail sentence and his youngest son, Justin, 22, is serving a six-year jail sentence, both due to multiple run-ins with the law involving illegal prescription drug use.
Sam said by the time they were teenagers, both of his sons were regular users of Xanax, Percocet and OxyContin. He said as juveniles, “they either got caught with it at school or out on the streets, and the charges just kept on and on and on.”
Sam said Nicholas and Justin were charged many times as juveniles for drug possession and required by the court to admit themselves to the Calvert County Health Department substance abuse treatment program. Each of his sons was admitted to the program “at least three times,” he said.
The health department’s Core Services Agency offers outpatient services at three levels of treatment, said agency director John Mitchell. The levels differ by how many hours a week people are required to participate based on the intensity of their addiction, he said.
The treatment program classes can run for six months, between zero and nine hours a week for a lower to mid-level addiction and above nine hours for a person with a high-level addiction, he said.
“Each treatment plan is kind of geared toward a person’s specific need,” Mitchell said.
The Maryland Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration recommends keeping people in a treatment program for about 90 days, but the health department does allow people to seek treatment for longer, he said.
The department employs about 22 counselors licensed by the state of Maryland, Mitchell said, all of whom are “very dedicated to the cause” because, while they may hope otherwise, they realize it’s “not an isolated thing” for most people.
“The reality is that a lot of people have the problem and it takes a while. To think you’re going to walk in and everything is going to be cool — it doesn’t work that way,” Mitchell said.
The Core Services Agency has seen a change in the type of referrals over the years, Mitchell said.
“The request for assistance with opiate problems has probably … [increased] by 365 percent, or something like that,” Mitchell said. “It’s through the roof. Marijuana and alcohol will probably be the two most heavily abused substances in any location, but the use of the opiates — the heroin use, the prescription pill use — has just gone way, way up here in Calvert County.”
People who seek treatment at the health department are either there voluntarily or because they were ordered by the court. Although counselors may have a little bit more leverage over people who are ordered to seek treatment by the court, Mitchell said the department has “a little bit more buy-in” when the treatment is sought voluntarily.
“When a person comes on his or her own, they’re coming because they perceive themselves as having some kind of issue, and I think that the likelihood of them being as involved as they need to be is good,” he said. “The flip side to that is if they decide they’re not coming anymore, there’s nothing we can do.”
Opiate addiction is starting to be treated the same way medical issues are, Mitchell said, because it can potentially be an ongoing problem for a person. With between 10,000 and 15,000 people seeking treatment each year, Mitchell said there are probably about 500 active clients at any one time and there is no waiting list for treatment. About 6 percent of those admitted to receive treatment are referred to residential treatment centers out of Calvert County, Mitchell said.
The health department is “mostly focused on treatment” but is making efforts to continue to help people during recovery. The department is establishing several new initiatives aimed at allowing counselors to maintain contact with clients after they finish the formal part of treatment if they wish, Mitchell said. He said counselors could do things like periodic check-ins and well checkups, and if a client feels they may relapse, they may be able to contact counselors for help.
A new recovery center is located in the Prince Frederick Shopping Center and classes, help finding jobs and field trips are available, Mitchell said. All patients receiving treatment at the department will know it is available for their use.
“The recovery aspect has to evolve, and I think it eventually will,” he said. “We’re getting there. … It’s important because it’s a lifetime fight, so people have to have somewhere to turn and it’s not always doable.”
If a person is seeking treatment by a court order, counselors report back to court that the program had been completed successfully or unsuccessfully. “That’s about the extent of the report,” Mitchell said.
Sam Gegor said each time Justin was admitted to a treatment program at the health department, he successfully completed it. When Justin was 17, because he continued to abuse prescription medication, Sam signed him up for an inpatient rehabilitation facility in Hagerstown. Sam said his son “had a terrible time” while he went through drug detoxification when he was initially admitted because his addiction was so severe.
Justin spent six months at the rehabilitation facility and as soon as he was back at home with his father, he started using heroin.
“I thought, ‘Oh, God, I did all this for rehab to get you straight and you come out and you’re putting a needle in your arm,’” Sam said.
Immediately, Sam re-enrolled Justin in the same rehabilitation facility for another three months. When he was released after those three months, Sam said he came back home and “went back to snorting pills.”
When Nicholas was 18, he told his father he needed help and wanted to go to rehab. Sam said it was at a time when Nicholas was going through withdrawal because he did not have access to illegal prescription medications and did not want to deal with the pain of withdrawal symptoms himself. About a week after entering an outpatient facility, Sam said Nicholas stopped going because he had found another way to purchase the illegal drugs.
“He stopped going, and it just gradually got worse after that,” Sam said.
Nicholas was arrested March 9 after police found 2 grams of cocaine and crack cocaine, and 17 alprazolam pills, one oxycodone pill, Suboxone and paraphernalia in his car, and he was charged with five counts of CDS possession, four counts of CDS possession with intent to distribute and one count of paraphernalia.
After pleading guilty June 14 to one count of CDS possession as part of a plea agreement with the Calvert County State’s Attorney’s Office, Nicholas was sentenced to two years in prison, with six months suspended, and received credit for 97 days he already served in jail. He was placed on probation until 2016 and has the opportunity to be admitted to an inpatient treatment facility as deemed appropriate by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Calvert County State’s Attorney Laura Martin said Nicholas’ admission to a treatment facility is possible through the Maryland Annotated Code, Health General Article, Sections 8-505 and 8-507.
During a hearing Aug. 27 for Nicholas, Judge E. Gregory Wells granted an 8-507 motion, requiring an inpatient substance abuse treatment program as a condition of Nicholas’ probation. Once a bed space opens up in a designated treatment facility, Martin said the two-year sentence will be suspended and Nicholas will be placed in a program. If he in any way violates the terms of his treatment program, the full two-year jail sentence will be imposed.
Martin said prior to this happening, in any court case dealing with addiction, an 8-505 motion comes first, for the court to order an evaluation of the defendant by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Martin said the evaluation is to see what type of substance abuse problems a person has, whether there are mental health issues combined with that and what program will work best for that individual. The report is sent to the court, the prosecutor and the defense attorney, she said.
Then, an 8-507 motion is filed and, if the court agrees, the judge signs it to place the person in a treatment program rather than incarceration, and their progress is then monitored by the court.
Although Sam has been trying to help his sons overcome their addiction since they were teenagers, it is not the first time prescription drugs have affected someone in his life.
In his early 20s, Sam was dating a woman who struggled with prescription drug addiction. He said he stuck by her side through nine admissions to rehabilitation facilities, all of which resulted in her relapsing.
Sam said to try to battle the addiction, he and his girlfriend went to therapy together and at one point, the therapist told Sam that if he and his girlfriend had children, because of her addiction, they would likely be addicted to prescription medication, too. Sam said this only made him angry, and he did not believe what the therapist was saying.
When Sam was 22, his girlfriend got pregnant. Sam said she was taking prescription pills while she was pregnant and when Nicholas was born, traces of the drugs were found in his bloodstream.
Two years later, when Sam was 24, he married his girlfriend and they had their second son, Justin, shortly after.
“When she got pregnant with Justin, she was really” hooked on pills, Sam said. “He also had it in his bloodstream, too.”
Sam’s wife left him immediately after Justin was born, and Sam made the decision to move to Calvert County, where he believed his sons would not be exposed to prescription drugs.
The first time his sons were caught using prescription medication as teenagers, Sam said he instantly thought of what the therapist told him before his sons were born about his children likely being addicts because their mother had been using drugs while pregnant.
“My mind kept going back to that time when that psychologist said, ‘Your kids are going to be involved in drugs,’” Sam said.
Mitchell said children can be born addicted to drugs. The health department is only involved with treating the mother’s addiction, which Mitchell said is the department’s highest priority while she is pregnant. While Mitchell could not say whether being born addicted to drugs necessarily leads to addiction later in life, he said it “plays into the possibility” or increases the likelihood of it.
“Your chances are higher,” he said.
Amye Scrivener, director of the Calvert County Department of Social Services, said she has seen an increase in the last several years in cases where prescription drug abuse is interfering with people’s parenting skills. About 40 percent of the department’s cases involve families or people with prescription pill addictions, she said.
“It’s probably been one of the single most factors in some of the kids coming into care,” Scrivener said. “It’s not always the only problem, but we’re seeing it a lot more.”
When social services workers becomes involved with a family where prescription drug addiction is a factor, the first thing that’s done is an assessment through the health department of whether the prescriptions are valid or necessary for a health reason, Scrivener said. Then, she said, based on the health department’s recommendation, socials services helps the family or person follow through and helps “remove whatever obstacles” are in the way of treatment, such as transportation or medical obstacles.
“That’s really what we try to focus on, because there are some people who legitimately need the pain medicine and we work with them to help build other supports if it’s interfering with their ability to take care of kids or function,” she said.
If the substance abuse is interfering with a person’s ability to care for a child, her agency may take steps to get treatment court ordered, Scrivener said. This can only be done, she said, if drug abuse is “really interfering with their parenting ability.”
Scrivener said families with addictions are “one of the hardest things” social services workers deal with. She said about 50 percent of the people involved with the agency who are addicted to drugs usually are successful during treatment.
“Sometimes the success rate doesn’t match with the willingness of the people because the addictions have such a strong hold,” Scrivener said. “But I do think that people genuinely want to be able to take care of their children; I just think the addictions really have a strong hold on people.”
A prescription drug abuse community forum will be held by the Prescription Drug Abuse Abatement Council from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20, at the College of Southern Maryland Prince Frederick Campus.
At the forum, the public will have the opportunity to learn more about the dangers of misusing prescription medications and what’s going on in the community.
The forum will include:
- A family’s story of their child’s addiction to prescription medications;
- What is known about prescription drug abuse in Calvert County presented by a panel of experts;
- Helpful information on where to go for treatment help;
- A question and answer period; and
- The opportunity to provide input on how to tackle the prescription pill problem.
For more information, contact the Calvert Alliance Against Substance Abuse Inc. at 410-535-3733. | <urn:uuid:ee293600-1ea8-4412-aeba-8d66887bb79a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.somdnews.com/article/20120919/NEWS/709199775/1103/our-turn-to-take-smac/Addiction-treatment-takes-time-dedication&template=southernMaryland | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980956 | 2,952 | 1.585938 | 2 |
With interest rates at rock-bottom levels and equity markets enduring severe fluctuations, low-volatility income streams are scarce. Consequently, investors have resorted to unconventional income investments to boost their yields, especially in the realm of exchange-traded products (ETPs).
Consider the popularity of UBS E-TRACS 2X Wells Fargo Business Development Company (BDCL), a leveraged exchange-traded note (ETN) that delivers twice the monthly performance of the Wells Fargo Business Development Company Index.
This index tracks a basket of 26 business development companies (BDCs), publicly traded private-equity firms that invest in or lend to start-ups or small companies. Investing in BDCs is a dicey proposition in the current economic environment, but UBS E-TRACS 2X Wells Fargo Business Development Company’s trading volume has surged since it launched in April. In fact, the ETN’s volume is seven times that of the unlevered UBS E-TRACS Wells Fargo Business Development Company (BDCS).
Although there’s an investment case for BDCs, these are speculative plays even before leverage enters the equation. In these fraught times, why would investors purchase levered shares of a fund that holds positions in companies with unpredictable earnings? The allure of a 20 percent yield is too difficult to resist.
The interest in high-yielding ETPs is understandable; these instruments generally offer broad diversification at a low cost. But like every investment, these ETPs entail risk. And these risks are magnified when a fund employs leverage.
A number of ETPs offer attractive yields with acceptable levels of risk–though investors should resign themselves to yields that are less than 20 percent.
SPDR S&P International Dividend (DWX) currently yields 7.4 percent, largely because of its broad exposure to Europe. About 58 percent of this exchange-traded fund’s (ETF) $554 million in assets are devoted to the region. Investing in European equities may seem ill-advised given the Continent’s ongoing sovereign-debt crisis. But Europe’s policymakers have already begun to take actions to right the region’s economic ship. Furthermore, SPDR S&P International Dividend’s focus on quality names provides investors with a measure of security.
Although the fund tracks 100 of the highest yielding common stocks in its coverage universe, it doesn’t blindly invest in the companies with the highest yields. Portfolio companies must have a market cap greater than USD1.5 billion and positive earnings growth over the trailing five-year period. The shares of these companies must also be extremely liquid. The economic turmoil of the past few years has narrowed the fund’s European exposure to defensive sectors such as utilities and consumer staples. Although the fund currently allocates 10.8 percent of its assets to the financial sector, Asian and Australian names account for the bulk of that exposure. European financial stocks represent only 0.7 percent of the ETF’s portfolio.
The ETF is slightly more volatile than the S&P 500. But I believe Europe will stabilize eventually, which justifies the fund’s slightly elevated risk.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. | <urn:uuid:0519e258-13c6-4153-b6a4-feab5ab9e3e0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://seekingalpha.com/article/307998-reasonable-yields-in-etfs | 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 | 0.931539 | 693 | 1.507813 | 2 |
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London - Dancing to the beat alongside a Brazilian on Copacabana beach on New Year's Eve appears to be the dream way to ring in 2013 if a global survey of 17 000 people is any indicator.
The survey conducted by social network Badoo.com (www.badoo.com) across 17 countries and four continents showed Brazilians were considered the top nationality the rest of the world would most like to share New Year's with.
Americans ranked second in the poll, with Spaniards, Italians and the French coming third, fourth and fifth. Belgians and Swiss ranked joint last.
“This seems harsh on the Swiss and Belgians”, Badoo director Louise Thompson said. “But I can understand that most people would rather celebrate New Year's Eve on a beach in Brazil than by huddling against the cold in northern Europe.”
New Year's Eve falls in the middle of Brazil's summer, which makes the climate perfect for huge, outdoor parties of the kind Brazilians enjoy attending with friends or family to welcome the new year.
The festivities are held in cities across the country, but Rio is judged to have the best, including Brazil's most famous New Year's Eve event - the giant gathering on Copacabana beach, attended annually by some 2.5 million revellers and widely considered the best New Year's Eve party in the world.
Spanish also gather en masse on New Year's Eve in Puerta del Sol in Madrid, where both those present and many more watching at home listen to the clock chime 12 times while eating one grape on each chime, to bring prosperity for the new near.
The Italians, who ranked fourth in the Badoo poll, brought a more romantic flavour to New Year's Eve gatherings by staging a mass kiss in Venice's Piazza San Marco.
None of these gatherings, however, can match the scale of the festivities on Rio's Copacabana beach, which are also famed for their spectacular fireworks display. Ocean liners are known to moor nearby to watch.
For those near the beach on New Year's Eve, the tradition in Brazil is to jump seven waves at midnight while throwing flowers in the sea and making a wish - one wish for each wave.
Sao Paulo, Brazil's biggest city, also boasts a giant New Year's Eve party, held in Paulista Avenue and attended by over a million merrymakers. Only in Brazil could a party this big rank second best.
There may, however, be one way Europeans can claim to surpass the Brazilians on New Year's Eve, which is when it comes to clothes.
Brazilians traditionally dress in white on New Year's Eve, to bring luck for the new year. This tradition turns Rio's Copacabana beach into a giant carpet of white.
Both the Spanish and Italians, however, take a more colourful approach - welcoming the New Year by observing the local custom of wearing red underwear for good luck.
Badoo is a site for chatting, flirting, dating and meeting new people, with 168 million users across over 180 countries. - Reuters | <urn:uuid:fefcb8da-c6a8-4ff4-ac7e-0d77126613b1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.iol.co.za/news/back-page/brazilians-top-for-new-year-celebrations-survey-1.1445503 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9516 | 649 | 1.5 | 2 |
Henrietta, N.Y. - Some call it "The Dr. Oz Effect."
Employees at local stores report a boom in business when Dr. Oz recommends a product on his talk show.
Oz often suggests products and remedies to treat everything from weight loss to diabetes.
When Dr. Oz talks, viewers like Dora Moore head to the store.
"I take notes," Moore said. "He'll say buy so-and-so, and it'll make you strong and healthy."
Moore said the tips offered on "The Dr. Oz Show" have led her to make changes about her diet and health.
"I've changed the milk we drink," Moore said. "I buy fish oil. I take calcium and I take Vitamin D with my calcium, because he says without Vitamin D, your calcium isn't absorbed."
Moore said her husband battles two chronic health problems. She said she pays close attention to what Dr. Oz recommends for her husband's conditions.
Wegmans spokesperson Jo Natale said Moore isn't alone.
"People listen to Dr. Oz, and we see evidence of that everyday," Natale said.
"The Dr. Oz Effect has led to sales of products like chia seeds, Kabucha tea, and the Asian hot sauce sriracha.
"We see the immediate effect," Natale said. "Oftentimes, we can't keep the product on shelves for a few weeks or even a couple of months."
Moore said she's compiled about 15 pages of notes from watching Dr. Oz. She said she consults those notes whenever she's battling a health problem.
"Just about everything I do is affected by what Dr. Oz says," Moore said.
"I have more energy than people probably half my age," the 77-year-old Moore said. "And I owe it all to what he tells me to do."
Dr. Oz airs weekdays at 4 p.m. on 13WHAM-TV. | <urn:uuid:804bb89c-3a4a-4d2e-b7e3-1dd4670ddfc7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.13wham.com/content/news/consumer/story/The-Dr-Oz-Effect-At-Local-Stores/KKwvLlG4pEu5ro6fK9RMWA.cspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978181 | 413 | 1.5 | 2 |
Despite back-to-back troublesome berry seasons in the Southern Hemisphere, importers of berries from South America hope for better weather.
“Weather problems have caused crop disasters the last two seasons in Argentina and Chile,” said Dave Bowe, owner of Dave’s Specialty Imports Inc., Coral Springs, Fla.
It is too early to estimate whether the continent will suffer a three-peat, he said, but he is optimistic.
“When the weather is good down there, South American growers have done an outstanding job,” he said.
Naturipe Farms LLC, Naples, Fla., anticipates this Argentine blueberry crop will be as large as or larger than the pre-weather disaster predictions for the country’s 2008 deal, said Robert Verloop, senior vice president of sales and marketing.
“It is far too early to predict the weather down there with any certainty,” he said.
Blueberries from Argentina
Another optimistic importer is Keith Mixon, president of SunnyRidge Farm Inc., Winter Haven, Fla. Decent weather should contribute to what Mixon anticipates will be a big blueberry deal in Argentina. The first shipments, he said, should begin arriving in the U.S. in September just as the domestic blueberry season begins to taper off.
Bowe, who also markets domestic fruit and brings in berries from Uruguay, Guatemala and Mexico, said food safety is no longer a concern with the imported fruit.
“All the growers we do business with are third party certified,” he said.
Nearly all of Bowe’s berries from South America arrive in Miami and Philadelphia, but he does ship infrequently to California ports, he said.
SunnyRidge Farm schedules regular shipments to Miami, Northeastern ports and California.
“Those locations permit us to have fruit at just about any distribution center within 72 hours of a ship’s arrival in port,” Mixon said.
The Chilean blueberry season gets a later start than the fields in Argentina, Bowe said. The first shipments of the Chilean crop are expected to arrive in October, he said, while early fall shipments of blackberries will come about the same time from Uruguay, Mexico and Guatemala.
SunnyRidge Farm sources blackberries and raspberries from Mexico. The import season is scheduled to begin in mid-October, Mixon said.
“We’ve been receiving some outstanding berries from Mexico, and we’re expecting another good season from our Mexican grower-shippers,” he said.
Improved shipping costs
A major challenge importers of South American fruit faced in 2008, the skyrocketing cost of bunker oil for ships, has all but disappeared with the more reasonable fuel prices this year, Mixon said. Importers must still deal with some minor logistical problems on the west coast of South America, however. | <urn:uuid:597d3d4e-969d-44fc-ad6b-c18cb667b292> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thepacker.com/fruit-vegetable-news/shipping-profiles/summer-berries/chilean_argentinian_shippers_hope_weather_leaves_crops_intact_122066339.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951877 | 608 | 1.734375 | 2 |
|Creating Cavities in Human forms [message #50141] Thu, 21 June 2012 07:07 UTC
Currently the only way I have to make a cavity in one of my sculpts is to:|
1. Edit the sculpt in Meshmixer by creating a negative extrusion from the bottom of the sculpt and then one on the top.
2. Select the bottom of the extrusions and then soft boundaries
3. Bridge and handle.
Then I take the sculpt back into sculptris and slowly create the limbs from that armature and sculpt out the inside. It is a long process more often ending in failture than success.
Worse case scenerio all my apps crash and I start back from my last save. Best case is I get some very thin walls and then have to go back into Meshmixer cut the cavity out like in the attached picture, save the outside mesh, save the cavity and then append one to the other and make slow painful corrections in mesh mixer.
The teaser is that I have Hexigon, which will make thicknesses, but really can't handle the complex surfaces of my sculpt.
Does anyone know of an inexpensive application that will create a uniform void in a sculpt that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? Don't say solid works, cause I can't afford it.
If you know how to do it in wings 3D, Blender, Hexigon or Carrara then please share those steps with me.
I will appreciate any and all tips.
(Size: 29.20KB, Downloaded 154 time(s)) | <urn:uuid:dfc49835-d775-4c9a-90c5-2c9a5577c980> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.shapeways.com/forum/index.php?t=msg&goto=50141 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940478 | 329 | 1.765625 | 2 |
This post from November of last year on Australian regulation is still one of the most read posts on my blog, and rightfully so. I consider it one of my most thoughtful, original, and well researched. But in sharing this information with other professional peers, and the public, I have realized further truth that I believe is worth your time to read. I will focus posts on these thoughts over the coming weeks.
Watch the 2.5 minute Clarke and Dawe video, and pay close attention to the comments on how capital became available for subprime mortgages in the US. They talk of mortgage underwriters who don't lose money on subprimes, but get paid to create CDO's. The interviewer asks who would buy these "bag full of crap" loans.
The 'economist' explains, "They're fund managers Brian. They're paid to buy things. They don't make any money if they're not buying stuff."
The interviewer then asks, "But where do they get the money from?"
"They're fund managers Brian. People send them money. The money rolls in every hour Brian."
The pendulum of US capital markets has to some extent shifted away from democracy towards socialism. This is a natural (and not unprecedented) event. The majority of American, middle class, capital wealth is in retirement plans (401k, 403b, etc.). The majority of upper class capital wealth is trust funds, self-directed IRAs, or individual investments. The disparity here is that the upper class is unconstrained in relation to investment options. The middle and lower class has somewhere between 4 and 10 diversified investment options (usually mutual funds).
During a presentation a few months ago I asked a middle class group, "If you were given $1,000 today with the condition that you had to buy and hold one stock for a year with it, how many would buy GM?"
--Nobody, even though a good portion of these people worked for GM suppliers.
I then asked, "If given 100 shares of GM with the condition that you had to own a stock, but could change to another, how many would change?"
I then asked a series of questions to find about 75% have money in a retirement plan with limited options, and are invested in the domestic stock option. They were as surprised as I was to realize the implications when I suggested that likely over half of those people own GM stock, but they don't want to. And if they want to own US stocks, they have no choice, but to own GM.
Irrespective of what the educated fund manager thinks is worthwhile to invest in, the majority of these people want to vote against GM, and have lost their voting right with most of their investment capital, unless they want to vote against the full market. And that is just the mistake that many of them make. They make wild allocation swings based on recent returns, constantly buying high and selling low.
This drift toward socialism of capital markets for the middle and lower class happened just prior to the Great Depression, where investment trusts (the predecessor to today's mutual fund) was the only reasonable means for the the middle class to invest in capital markets. There were very few of them, and there was no disclosure of actual holdings.
The most important consideration here is how much control do you have over where your capital is invested? And don't allow tax rules, or conventional understanding to limit your options. For example, some IRA custodians will allow you to own direct rental real estate inside an IRA.
For further research:
"The Great American Bubble Machine," article by Matt Taibbi, Rolling Stone, July 9, 2009
The World on Fire- researches and discusses the clash of governmental structure and economic structure, and how consensus understanding may be wrong. | <urn:uuid:cf409e85-ee8c-4e0d-8264-b541d33a16e1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://relevantfp.blogspot.com/2009/07/socialism-of-capitalism-update-on.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976199 | 776 | 1.585938 | 2 |
I'm working on one of Gilbert Strang's exercises on vector subspaces. In the question, there is a vector x+y-2z=4. I need to find a solution and also their sum has to equal zero. I'm not sure if I understand the question:
Q: Let P be plane in with x+y-2z=4 and zero vector is not in P. Find 2 vectors in P and their sum must not be in P.
I assume that since their sum not in P, then the 2 vectors add to zero vector. I'm having trouble solving the equation to meet the requirements. How do I go about this? | <urn:uuid:b24b6dbc-a5c8-497f-9c27-7229c39b8ce4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mathhelpforum.com/advanced-algebra/171386-solution-vector-plane-their-sum.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977186 | 137 | 1.625 | 2 |
Snipes have pride. Our clothes may be greasy rags, but our engines will run.
Lt. N.K. Schilling on Requin said once,
"This boat goes out and comes back with smoke coming from all four holes."
We didnt call them smokeboats back then. They were just submarines and most of them were diesel-powered.
'Jimmys' or 'Fairbanks', they made smoke and it was a point of pride to have all running coming back from a cruise. Snipes get little or no help from officers. Torpedomen can do everything right but if the officers in the conn screw up, then the fish misses. Not so in a 'Domain of the Diesel'... The rag hats are king and it's all on us. If we have a breakdown, the gang fixes it or it doesnt get fixed. Officers and chiefs can stand around and watch, but whether they are there or not, it doesnt make any difference at all. Matter of fact, by standing around, all they are is a hindrance to progress. Asking things like,
"Do you need more help?"
"Can you put more men on the job?"
There is a class in the Navel Academy called Work Theory 101, which teaches that if it takes two men one hour to do a job, then four men can do it in ½ hour. Expanding this idea beyond all common sense, a non-qual Ensign or JG will figure that 128 men will do the job in under 7 seconds.
Requin never came home on less than four in my entire time aboard her. Once though, it was a close call. About two days out, we spun a vertical drive on #3. In port, its figured to be a 48-hour job. Bill, the first class in charge of the AER, asked for Stew and I to be taken off the watch bill and the three of us would work straight through until it was fixed. Mr. Schilling agreed, then stepped back and we started in. A vertical drive unit connects the upper and lower crankshafts in a Fairbanks Morse engine. Two cones inside are forced together as a slip clutch arrangement for safety, any slippage however creates enormous amounts of heat that welds the two cones together. This results in an engine out of time. To get them apart for replacement, holes are drilled in the outer cone, using every drill bit on board. Then the holes are connected by cold chiseling the metal left between the holes. Hours are consumed drilling and chiseling in a tight space that provides little room for such maneuvers. After breaking only to eat for 36 hours, we completed the job. Two hours before maneuvering watch was stationed, #3 engine was lit off and tested. Our reward when we pulled in was the other boats snipes seeing Requin with smoke coming from all four holes.
No sitting in Bells that night listening to Torsk snipes saying,
"Whats the matter 481, cant you keep your stuff running?"
Or far worse, a Jimmy boat snipe yelling,
" We may leak some oil, but we run all day and all night."
"You guys cant pack the freight."
Fights started over less.
Heaven forbid, some other boat took your ops because you had engines down. Boats would leave port on two engines, with snipes busting butt down below, instead of another boat having to take your ops. It may have been the crappiest ops imaginable and you might hate going on it, but you didnt want to hear the shit if another boat had to do the operation. Runner once singled up with only one engine - running a second one wasnt started until they passed the coal piers. I give the Runner snipes credit. Five days later, they came in with smoke coming from all four holes. Snipes with pride they were, bad luck is one thing but limping home is another. Nothing would make engine room snipes come topside faster than the yell down the engine room hatch,
"Mudfish is coming in on one engine."
The only time Carp came home on three engines, I was on leave. A cold snorkel start on #1 and water being incompressible, conn rods and the crankshaft were bent.
Walking down the pier coming off leave, a Requin snipe hollered out,
"Hey Hemming, can't you Carp snipes keep your Jimmys running?"
"Your boat limped in last night in the dark trying to hide in shame."
Other gangs on board could have breakdowns and screw-ups, but if a boat limped up to the pier wheezing and belching white or black smoke, then the whole base knew the snipes had messed up. The rule of thumb was, if you have the spare parts you should fix it. If you don't have the spares and can't make them, hang your head in shame. All the well-fired torpedoes are useless until the engines put the boat where it belonged in firing range of the enemy.
If diesel smoke is the elixir of life to a snipes nose we all wanted 4 roses in our bouquets during maneuvering watch. If one rock crusher makes music to our ears, four of them are a symphony that we all wanted to hear.
Just one more time, yeah, just one more time. | <urn:uuid:dca63ac3-66d1-4c66-bbc8-ec471bc94f6a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.olgoat.com/substuff/mik57.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969322 | 1,130 | 1.671875 | 2 |
"To every thing there is a season," says a passage in the Bible and, much later, lyrics to the hit song, "Turn! Turn! Turn!" made famous by the 1960s folk-rock band The Byrds.
It's also what smart spenders say.
Amazing seasonal discounts are available if only you correctly time your purchases. For example, many careful shoppers know that many types of clothing are discounted near the end of the season.
But consumers might not know there are predictably ideal times to buy televisions, gym memberships and perfume. And probably very few know that May is the month to stock up on ketchup and deodorant. Meanwhile, some people think they know why buying gas in the morning is a good idea, but they're probably wrong.
Fundamental to the concept of seasonal buying is that prices change – sometimes dramatically, and sometimes frequently, especially online. That's why timing your purchases works, racking up huge savings if you repeatedly buy on price dips throughout the year.
"The whole thing about buying things at the right times is about saving money, and people want to do that no matter what the economy is like," said Mark Di Vincenzo, author of the new book "Buy Shoes on Wednesday and Tweet at 4:00." "The smart shoppers are the folks who are looking and planning ahead."
Often seasonality is a supply-and-demand thing; prices decrease when supply is high and demand is low. That's why you can get better deals on gas grills in September and hot tubs in January. While some items are best purchased during particular calendar seasons, other deals, notably on electronics, are seasonal in a different way – dependent on the timing of new product launches.
Other patterns are just quirky and defy rational explanation, Di Vincenzo said. "When it comes to timing purchases, a lot of it is common sense … But some of it really does fly in the face of logic."
Here is a sampling of common consumer purchases and the best times to purchase them.
Televisions. Contrary to popular belief, the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl is not the best time to buy a new high-definition TV, although that's when you're likely to see the most advertisements for them. In fact, November and December are clearly the best times, said Louis Ramirez, senior features writer at DealNews.com. "Those are the two months you must buy a TV," he said. In November, you'll see generally good deals leading up to and including Black Friday. It's an especially good time to find deals on lesser-known brand names, such as Best Buy's house brand Insignia, he said. "Come December, you'll see deals on the brand names, the Samsungs, Panasonics and Sonys," he said. "Then prices creep up a little bit after the holidays." Buying in November or December might save you 10 percent, which doesn't sound like much, but it's $100 on a $1,000 3-D TV. It's also a good time to buy Blu-ray players and Blu-ray movies, Ramirez said.
Gym memberships. Summer is often the best time to negotiate a better deal at a fitness center. "Most of the folks who made New Year's resolutions to work out have abandoned that by the spring and other people would rather exercise outdoors when the weather is nice," Di Vincenzo said. That dampens demand for memberships, giving you some bargaining power, he said. Look for waived sign-up fees and a free month or two.
Deodorant. May or June are the best times to buy deodorant. Not only do prices fall but the most lucrative coupons are available then, making deodorant very cheap and sometimes free. The reason seems to be linked to anticipation of hot weather, Di Vincenzo said. "It's a good opportunity for stocking up," he said. May is also a good time to buy condiments, such as ketchup, mustard and relish, as supermarkets lure you into stores with great prices on those items and visions of warm-weather picnics and barbecues, said Di Vincenzo, whose new book is a follow-up to his first, "Buy Ketchup in May and Fly at Noon."
Perfume. January and March are the best times to buy, after Christmas and after Valentine's Day. Savvy gift-givers will buy perfume in January for Valentine's Day and in March for Mother's Day, Di Vincenzo said. Jewelry pricing also follows that pattern to a degree, he said.
Clothing. Besides buying off-season clothing, January can be a generally good month to search for excess holiday inventory that's heavily discounted, Di Vincenzo said. Another favorable time for spring and summer clothes is in May, leading up to Memorial Day sales. And Wednesdays are the best times to buy shoes and children's clothing online, while Sundays are best for buying swimsuits online, said Di Vincenzo. He doesn't have logical explanations for those; just that's what patterns show in price data collected by ShopItToMe.com, which tracks online sales from more than 100 retailers.
Tablet computers. You probably don't want to buy a tablet computer just before a newer one — say a Kindle Fire or iPad — is released. Watch news headlines for the timing. Announcements on hot tech gadgets are usually poorly kept secrets. "Wait for the announcement, then you'll see deals on the previous generation," Ramirez said. It won't be the latest, but frequently updated products might not change much. For example, the newest iPad introduced in March had a better screen, but the iPad 2 is still a very capable device, he said. And its price starts at $100 less than the newest version.
Office supplies. Anything that could be construed as a back-to-school item might be discounted heavily in August and into early September. It's a great time to stock up on home-office supplies, such as pencils, pens and printer paper, even if you don't have a student going off to school. Back-to-school is one season when prices are actually low at the right time, when consumers need them to be. Another is buying sparkling wine in December. Why? When there's fierce competition for a seasonal item, such as school supplies or sparkling wine, it can be cheaper in-season because retailers want to lure you in hoping you'll buy other, higher-profit items too.
Laptops. Because laptop computers are a school item for many college students — and even some high schoolers — good deals abound as the kids gear up to head back to school. "You can find huge discounts on laptops in August and if you're lucky even bigger discounts in September as retailers try to clear what they didn't sell in August," Ramirez said. And Intel recently released a new processor, so your computing power won't be obsolete for a while. "Whatever you buy now is going to be solid for a good time to come," he said. Prices might spike a bit when Windows 8 is released in October, he said. If you buy a discounted computer now, you'll be able to upgrade the laptop to Windows 8 for $14.99. See windowsupgradeoffer.com.
Smartphones. Smartphones, the wireless phones that double as handheld computers, are largely split into Apple iPhones and those running on the Android operating system, made by such manufacturers as Samsung, HTC and Motorola. "The thing about Android is there is a new phone pretty much every week," Ramirez said. That's good for consumers because new models quickly eclipse old ones, whose prices then drop. Amazon.com's wireless store often has among the best deals, he said. "When it comes to smartphones, it pays not to buy them directly from the carrier." Activating the phone is easy, he said. Discounts on iPhones are rare, so the best timing strategy is to wait for a new one to come out and buy the previous model. If you desire the latest and greatest, waiting several weeks until refurbished models are available from Apple is a good strategy.
Holiday gifts online. Most people know Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the best days for holiday shopping over the Internet. But right behind them are the weekends just before and just after Halloween, when you can score discounts of 20 to 30 percent, Di Vincenzo said. "Those sales tend to go away and you don't see them again until days before Christmas," Di Vincenzo said, excepting Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Phone and cable service. Savvy consumers know they can often get a better deal from their phone or cable TV company if they simply ask for one. However, the tipping point for negotiating a better deal seems to be when you've had service for at least one year, Di Vincenzo. "After you've been a customer for a year, the company rewards that kind of commitment," he said. "You're not going to get it unless you ask."
Gasoline. A common myth is that fueling up in the morning is best because gasoline is denser in the cool morning temperatures and you get more for your money. Any savings will be negligible, according to Consumer Reports. But timing your fuel-ups can matter for a different reason. Gas station operators typically work day shifts and check out competing prices in the morning. They generally don't get around to changing their own prices until between 10 a.m. and noon, Di Vincenzo said. So, during a time of rising prices, fueling in the morning is better before prices change. Afternoon fuel-ups are better during times of declining prices. | <urn:uuid:ee74660c-66da-449e-b4a2-d217ba9d75bc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tidewaterreview.com/news/business/sc-cons-0913-karpspend-20120914,0,1363596.column | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976792 | 2,014 | 1.59375 | 2 |
The Times has a good profile of the work that superintendent finalist, Jose Banda, has done in Anaheim.
Banda was born in Texas, the son of migrant farmworkers who had
little formal education. His first language was Spanish.
When he was 2, the family moved to California, where he has stayed.
His father began picking cotton at a ranch outside Bakersfield and
eventually was promoted to supervisor. During breaks and summers, Banda
and his six siblings worked in the fields, too.
"We really learned the hard work ethic," he said.
His parents also taught him the value of education.
"My opportunities came from having caring teachers," he said.
He has raised scores in a largely Latino community (although the district is less than half the size of SPS and serves only K-6 students). He seems to be respected by parents and labor partners (although the teachers union rep declined to comment for the story).
From the story:
Banda also has encouraged parents to become more engaged, in part by
offering an eight-week course on how best to advocate for their
children. More than 1,500 parents have gone through the program,
designed by the Parent Institute for Quality Education.
The effort has led to more vocal parents. Before Banda arrived,
School Board member Blumberg said, "At times I felt the district office
had this big old bubble around it. The community didn't come in,
stakeholders didn't come in."
Now, they do. And sometimes, they complain.
Banda has made it clear he's willing to listen. Last year, for
example, scores of parents asked to expand a small Spanish/English
"We as a board would probably have said there was no way," Blumberg
said, noting budget constraints. "But he found a way." Mostly it was by
juggling teachers and principals at key schools.
Considering the size of his district, that is a huge number of parents who stepped up to take the parent education course.
His district passed a bond measure in 2010 and he managed to win the support of Disney (Anaheim is where Disneyland is located).
Interesting, though, that he is in a conservative area and the articles says the local paper there barely covers the district. Welcome to Seattle, we're different. | <urn:uuid:de8f5af3-2167-48ec-98dd-fd5ea280d8c9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://saveseattleschools.blogspot.jp/2012/04/banda-profile.html?showComment=1335309215391 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984934 | 493 | 1.5 | 2 |
Monday, June 23, 2008
For the record, mulberries are edible.
Having arrived early for my writing class and not wanting to wait in the hot car, I decided to explore a nearby park on the Hudson River. Three young boys with ball gloves hanging from their handlebars pedaled past me as I walked along the shaded road. Drawn by the sweet fragrance of honeysuckle, I ambled over to a copse of trees. I stood in the dappled shade taking in deep lungsful of the sweet smell trying to make an olfactory memory for the long winter months ahead. Looking up I saw that the trees supporting the vines were mulberry and that the fruit was ripening. Reaching up I pulled off a few berries, rolling their sweet-tart flavor around on my tongue. I fell back in time to my youth when we ate the warm berries from the trees and used their rich purple juice as “lipstick”.
The boys came back up the street obviously disappointed from whatever mission they had been on. One of them saw me plucking fruit from the tree and shouted “Hey lady, you can’t eat those, they are poisonous.” I looked over at them. “No they’re not,” I shouted, “these are mulberries.” Curious, they rode over to look at the tree. “How do you know?” I plucked ripe berries from the tree, putting the purple fruit in their sweaty hands. They watched carefully as I ate some more then nibbled on the berries. Surprised, they looked at me like was I wise woman, sprung from the ground. ”They’re good!” One boy play-punched another, “You said they were poisonous.” I took the opportunity to talk with them about eating things in the wild and being careful to know exactly what it was before putting it on their mouths. We talked about mulberries, examined the leaves and the fruit. They pedaled off, their hands and mouths stained purple. Smiling, I walked back toward class with purple “lipstick.” | <urn:uuid:6c3533eb-8164-4fc0-b5df-f88abe22b5f4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://murmuringtrees.blogspot.com/2008/06/mulberry-fruit.html?showComment=1214840940000 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985313 | 448 | 1.789063 | 2 |
The personnel protection shields are used when insulating the line is not necessary, but operating temperatures require safeguarding personnel from coming into contact with the pipe. These shields are designed for 8″ pipe operating at 800°F, and are made of 304 stainless expanded steel rolled to a 20″ diameter.
Piping Technology & Products, Inc. designed and manufactured PTFE, 25% glass filled, slide plates for cable trays located on a floating structure. The slide plates are used to reduce the friction between the cable trays and the structural steel it is resting on. These particular slide plates are bonded to stainless steel backing plates that are bolted to the structure. | <urn:uuid:8df194b6-b1fa-4021-bee5-6cd74021a25f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pipingtech.com/blog/2007/03/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940672 | 133 | 1.570313 | 2 |
GEN-MEDIEVAL-L ArchivesArchiver > GEN-MEDIEVAL > 1998-05 > 0895802216
From: Leo van de Pas< >
Subject: Re: The spelling of names
Date: 21 May 1998 18:56:56 -0700
John Steele Gordon remarked:
>So an Italian dog should be referred to as a "cane" then, and not as "dog"
>speakers of English are discussing it?
I have tried to stay out of "the spelling of names" but this is such rubbish.
If the dogs name is 'cane', yes, then that is how he should be addressed.
I am sure John Steele Gordon wants to be addressed as John Steele Gordon,
not as Homo Sapiens, person, human being, or whatever.
Another famous altered naming, of course, is Charles/Carolus/Karl who
was made the first Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. I would never refer
to him other than Charlemagne. Some people have 'earned' a name in history,
other than what they themselves used, like Charlemagne and William
the Conqueror. However, in all rules there are exceptions, let people like
Charlemagne be the exception, but other, more obscure people, should be
given their proper name.
And here John Steele Gordon goes again :
>Excuse me, your anglophobia is showing. French tourists who don't happen
>flawless English invariably call the big city at the south end of Lake
>shee-ka-GOH. That's the pronunciation of the French word for the place. Few
>run out of town on account of it. They also call Louisiana's largest city
>Orleans. Shouldn't they call it New Orleans, or, if the local patois is the
>standard, Norlins? Or perhaps because Frenchmen founded the city, they have
>unto eternity to name it, not those wretched Anglos who bought and paid for
...............I had the feeling that genealogy was mainly written, not oral.
Mis-pronounciations occur everywhere, so what, perhaps you may not know who
who Mrs. Carwell was, but that was Louise de Kerouaille as she was called
by the Francophobians in England.
>You would never say that all Jews are conniving, or all blacks lazy or all
>drunks. Why do you generalize that all Anglo-Saxons willfully mispronounce
>words? Because you're a bigot. Think about it.
........John Steele Gordon, why throw in emotional words like bigot?
Do you flawlessly speak another language? I almost do. What you don't
seem to realise is that your vocal cords are shaped with the language
you grow up with. And mostly only children are able (many exceptions)
to learn flawlessly to pronounce other languages, because their vocal
cords are not set. If an adult learns another language, most of the time
they have an accent and will never loose it.
>In Nicaragua many years ago, I heard a German tourist, trying to get his
>shout at the mechanic "Es kaputo! No comprene?" No, the mechanic didn't
comprene, as a
>matter of fact. Another ugly American, I suppose.
.........This sample is tosh, too.
>> > But why should native speakers of the Italian Language dictate to
>> > speakers of English, what word to use to express a thought in the
>> > English language? Would you expect Italians to correctly pronounce
>> > Narragansett or Sheboygan or Arkansas, with its curious silent S?
..........John Steele Gordon, if you say 'yes', then I loose all respect
for you. By the way a while ago I queried your link to Pocahontas, you
>He is not renaming it. He is coining a word in his own language to denote
it so he can
>express a thought in his own language regarding it. It is WORDS we are
>here, not places. There is no difference between "dog," "Turin," "cane,"
>except they are words in different languages.
............Again, are we speaking about speaking genealogy? Or writing it?
I have no objection to discuss verbally Turin, as long as it is written
Torino, Florence (Yuck) as long as it is written Firenze.
>And, while you are at it. What, in your lexicon, is the correct name for
the capital of
>Belgium? The French-speaking Belgians say it's Bruxelles, the
Flemish-speaking ones say
>it's Brussel. If you speak English, there's no problem. if you choose
>and Flemish, you take sides. For a tourist, taking sides could get, ah, ugly.
.........John Steele Gordon, what has tourism got to do with genealogy?
>Well, the French is actually Guillaume le Conque'rant not le Vainqueur, a
>you just misspelled and hence violated your own principle of being all
knowing in all
...........Why these personal attacks? Do they help? I think William the
Conqueror has "earned" his name in the English speaking world and he is
one of the exceptions. Do you refer to Dorothy Kappelhoff? Or the name
she is famous by?
> I don't think it's incredibly purist to refer to him as he
>> would have referred to himself : within reason. If the English language
>> does not have the letters, accents etc to give a historical character his
>> correct name, obviously one must improvise. But if there is no impediment
>> to recording him as Guillaume, what is the problem?
>The problem is that Guillaume is not an English word and people who don't
>don't know how to pronounce it.
..........What has writing got to do with pronouncing a name? Are you making
a distinction between foreign names you can or cannot pronounce? I write Joao
but don't know how to pronounce it. My (and your) ignorance should not
deprive someone of his/her rightful name.
>And, for your information, William the Conqueror actually took English
lessons in an
>attempt to learn the language (he was a politician, remember, and a damn
good one). So
>you have no authority, beyond that conferred by your bigotry, to say he
>John Steele Gordon
........Dear John Steele Gordon, English (or Australian) is my second
language, so you may know more than I do. I believe that the English
spoken today is a living language, with Anglo-Saxon, Danish and then,
when William came, Norman-French was added to it. I guess that if
you were able to go to the times of William the Conqueror, you would
be almost unable to communicate with the people in the street.
Yes, William the Conqueror is great because of what happened AFTER him,
he started something----but had Harold not rushed from one victory
to his defeat at Hastings and had been fully rested and prepared,
William the Conqueror may well have been a footnote in history.
Leo van de Pas
|Re: The spelling of names by Leo van de Pas< >| | <urn:uuid:d3ce3679-f13f-470e-847e-18fcd8645ad9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/GEN-MEDIEVAL/1998-05/0895802216 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956182 | 1,586 | 1.757813 | 2 |
BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – The head of Libya’s ruling national congress warned the country was in danger because of its failure to create a cohesive national army, after a deadly attack on a U.S. consulate exposed a security vacuum.
In an interview with Reuters, Mohammed Magarief, the president of the national assembly elected in July, said the fallout from the attack could harm Libya’s transition to democracy and efforts to create a strong functioning government.
“This ugly act will have grave consequences on Libya’s stability and its revolution. What happened was a product of this lack of vision and chaos. This rings very powerful danger signals,” said Magarief, speaking at his home in Benghazi.
“Libyans should realise their country is threatened with a grave impending danger. It’s clear there are people who have an agenda that has no relation to Libya or its security and they do not think of its sovereignty or what it might face.”
In Tuesday’s incident, the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were killed. The attackers were part of a crowd protesting against a film they said insulted the Prophet Mohammad.
“There were other past incidents that targeted diplomats and but they were limited and were almost forgotten because there were no victims. But the mere fact they took place in the past should have been a wake-up call for security forces to be vigilant,” Magarief said.
He told CBS News on Sunday about 50 people had been arrested in connection with the Benghazi attack. Some were from abroad.
The incident should lead new Prime Minister Mustafa Abu Shagour to adopt more drastic counter-measures, he told Reuters. Abu Shagour, voted government chief this week by the congress, has said he will work “vigorously” to improve security.
“The matter now has gotten out of the hands of Libyans and this necessitates reactions that could be very dangerous,” Magarief said.
Militias spearheaded the rebellion that ended Muammar Gaddafi’s rule last year. While many have scaled back their activities, gone back to their hometowns or merged into national security services, others have yet to give up their arms.
Magarief, head of the 200-member assembly which will steer Libya to elections after a constitution is drafted next year, said there was a lack of political will to bring militias into the central government fold.
“Sadly I was shocked that there is no comprehensive plan based on a clear vision to build the army and security forces and the issue of gathering arms from militias,” he said.
“That matters should stay like this, ambiguous and unclear, is very dangerous. There must be a political will that will deal with this matter with efficiency and forcefulness … It’s a sad situation we are in which we should get out of quickly otherwise this will have negative consequences.”
Magarief said the delay in imposing rule of law and rejuvenating the economy would not only fuel growing frustration by ordinary Libyans at the slow pace of reform but would also play into the hand of foreign-inspired extremist groups.
“This revolution erupted because of injustice and deprivation – what do you expect when this continues after the revolution, when marginalisation, corruption and chaos continue?”
Magarief said the U.S. embassy attack had all the hallmarks of a pre-planned attack but it was too early to say who was behind it.
“Call it whatever you want, al Qaeda or not, what happened was an act by a group with an agenda for revenge. They chose a specific time, technique and certain victims. This is what it was all about,” he said.
A spokesman for President Barack Obama said on Friday officials had no evidence the attack was pre-planned.
Immediately after the attack, U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, were quoted widely as saying they believed the attack was well-planned and organized.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula said in a statement Tuesday’s assault was partly motivated by the death of Abu Yahya al-Libi, a Libyan al Qaeda leader in Pakistan.
“Extremists are an exception in Libya and don’t constitute anything significant. Libyans are inclined to moderation and readiness to coexist with each other,” Magarief said.
“Libya will never become another Iraq or Somalia because Libyans have a degree of national unity and concern over their country to stand up against these forces and stand as one to protect their country, its unity, its future and revolution.”
(Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi; editing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian and Andrew Roche) | <urn:uuid:c5a1c7f6-a152-4d25-926c-645f82b729f7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.firstpost.com/world/libyan-leader-says-extremists-threaten-stability-457673.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977393 | 1,001 | 1.632813 | 2 |
There was speculation yesterday that the Democratic National Convention Committee would move the highly anticipated speech by President Obama to a smaller, indoor arena as “weather concerns” were being cited by officials as the reason. But Republicans and even some foreign media sources, such as the UK’s Daily Mail wondered if the event was rumored to be moved to a smaller arena because it would embarrass the party if the Commander-in-Chief could not fill the initial 74,000 seat Bank of America stadium.
As of this morning according to a DNCC press release, the event scheduled for tomorrow evening was officially moved indoors and as expected, “severe weather forecasts” was cited as the reason for the change of venue. This is a move from an outdoor 74,000 seat stadium to the indoor Time Warner Cable arena which seats only 20,000.
However, a quick look on weather.com sponsored by The Weather Channel shows that there is only a 40 percent chance of afternoon rain with thunderstorms possible in Charlotte, NC on Thursday, which would occur hours before the president’s scheduled speech.
With reports released yesterday that college students and church members would be bussed into the stadium to help fill the 74,000 seats, the calls of “astroturf” turnout and lack of enthusiasm, coupled with the DNC’s curious “weather” decision might cause quite a few more raised eyebrows. | <urn:uuid:c4525d9d-62cf-4f37-be2d-6e26e56f967c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://redalertpolitics.com/2012/09/05/speculation-arises-democrat-enthusiasm-down-as-real-reason-behind-obama-speech-moved-to-smaller-arena/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976338 | 288 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Before the Lounge was released in the mid 1950s, The Eames were already well known for their innovative work with new materials and techniques. Their design philosophy was all about creating pieces that were modern, practical, attractive - and affordable. While the pair had been working with the technique of molding plywood for some time, they had never lended the technique to a high end piece. In fact, the Lounge was their first foray into high end design. It took them years to finish their design of the Lounge and Ottoman, applying knowledge and techniques used in their lower prices pieces, but this time allowing themselves to work with more expensive materials.
When the design was complete, it was not considered by all to be outstanding in the looks department. In fact, it was Ray Eames who described it in a letter to Charles as "comfortable and un-designy." This description is not necessarily an insult, as the vision for the chair was not intended to be a cold beauty. Charles described their plan to create "the warm, receptive look of a well-used first baseman's mitt." It is this blending of the best of both worlds - sleek modern design and nostaglic comfort that makes the chair so special.
Though the way the leather ages and the wood wears over time serves to make this sleek easy chair even softer and more luxurious as the years pass, this is not the only reason that vintage versions of the piece are considered highly desireable. Many of the chairs prodcued before 1992 were made with a Brazilian rosewood veneer which would eventually become officicially endagered and is no longer produced.
The Eames Lounge, which has been in production continually since its design (for the US market by Herman Miller and for the European market by Vitra), has solidified its place in design history with a spot in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Here is a look at some examples of how the Lounge enhances a room, from when it was first released to current time.
1. A classic seen at Aram
2. Charles and Ray Eames in the Case Study House #8 photographed by Julius Shulman
3. In white in a room designed by the firm Ashe + Leandro
4. Standing its own along side other mid century classics in Dwell
5. Well loved in a Brooklyn home seen in Dwell
6. At home in Denmark in an entry by Lasse for our annual Apartment Therapy Small Cool Contest Apartment Therapy
7. Sharing the spotlight with a Jean Prouve Potence Lamp in a Brooklyn couple's home as seen in the New York Times
8. A modern classic in Dwell
9. In black and white at Vitra
10. An eclectic mix from Nuevo Estilo
(Images: as linked above) | <urn:uuid:c30f1120-6a71-4025-87ce-54bb0162f0dd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/modern-classics-eames-lounger-176846?img_idx=5 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978879 | 576 | 1.640625 | 2 |
I want you to be concerned about your next door neighbor.
Do you know your next door neighbor?
Passing at the mailboxes.
Crossing the street, on the way to school.
Lost dog -- call if found.
Random bikes laying around.
Who are they?
They each have a story.
There's still so much left to learn about the world -- and the people in it.
Take the time to say hello.
Bring some cookies.
Invite to coffee.
I can't promise they won't hurt you.
Take advantage of you.
Or be nice to you when you aren't around.
But that's not a reason not to try.
You could miss finding the best friend of your life.
And life is pretty lonely without friends.
Without my neighbors,
I wouldn't have had anyone to take my child with diabetes...
when I went into labor.
Then, I wouldn't have had a meal for my family after we brought our new baby home.
Or after Mr. Rose had surgery.
And then a blood clot.
Many of us don't have very much, if any, family in the area.
We've spent many holiday dinners together.
Emergency contacts for this and that.
There are countless field trips I never would have been able to attend,
if not for their willingness to take the littles at home.
And meetings at the school.
And, when I had 2 napping toddlers,
I would have had to wake them every day to pick up my 4 year old from preschool.
But, instead, a kind neighbor offered to wait the extra 15-20 minutes
after picking up her daughter
so she could pick up mine.
Our girls have found wonderful friendships.
And so have we.
It's worth the risk.
August 26 • Day 6: Quote, End Quote. Post
Let someone else’s wise words inspire you. Find a quote that moves you in some way then free-write about it. Don’t stop writing for 15-20 mins. Now post!
I'm participating in the Advocating for Another Carnival 2012, and you can too!
Check it out, and jump in anytime! | <urn:uuid:e66a4b41-d89c-4c18-bc11-2d0950634163> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.candyheartsblog.com/2012/08/quote.html?showComment=1346479697170 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965578 | 468 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Though much of UT students’ experiences with the homeless population involve being panhandled by “Drag rats,” several students have gotten involved with an Austin group that aims to completely end homelessness throughout the city.
The Austin Ending Community Homelessness Coalition, or ECHO, a group that officially began handling the city’s 10-year plan to end homelessness, held its annual Point In Time Count on Friday afternoon through Saturday morning. The purpose of the event is to get an accurate count of Austin’s current sheltered and unsheltered homeless population, according to ECHO’s website. The coalition is three years into the 10-year plan.
Mozhgon Vafaee, cellular/molecular biology and Plan II junior, is a co-chair of UT’s Hunger and Homelessness Outreach, or H2O. Vafaee said the experience of working closely with the homeless population has been eye opening.
“Before I joined [H2O] the only homeless people I recognized were people who were asking for money on the side of the road,” Vafaee said. “After I joined I learned that there are so many faces to homelessness. It’s not just people who are panhandling. There are also the working poor, and there are sometimes people who are just one paycheck away from being homeless.”
The ECHO group Vafaee accompanied during the event encountered one man who had received his degree only a few years prior to becoming homeless due to debt. Vafaee said the experience gave her a new insight on the way people become homeless in the first place.
“This guy has a bachelor’s degree,” Vafaee said. “He’s in so many ways just like us, and that was one thing that I took away from the event. In reality it’s easier to become homeless than you would think.”
Marshall Jones, vice president of ECHO’s board of directors, said the average homeless count usually comes out to approximately 4500, but there are expected to be thousands more who couch surf or stay with relatives.
Jones said the city’s Housing and Urban Development department, or HUD, will cut funding for ECHO if it continues to find an increasing number of homeless people, but he said ECHO still strives to find an accurate count regardless of the funding risk.
“It’s really counterproductive the way HUD financing works,” Jones said. “But we as a board of directors made a very conscious decision that we were going to go out and count everybody we could, even if that meant the risk of funding. We wanted to get the best base line we could for homelessness.”
Vafaee said though it is easy to find fault with homeless people who refuse to find jobs, it is also important to remember the difficulty of trying to get by without any help.
“There are some people out here that are living on people’s charities, and it’s not cool at all,” Vafaee said. “But it struck me again that there are a lot of people who do have homes and they’re not working. For me to be angry at someone who says that they’re comfortable – I have to look at my own life. My parents are supporting me, and until I can find my own job and pay for my own housing, it’s kind of hypocritical for me to criticize someone else.” | <urn:uuid:07375dfc-42c8-4493-a108-d2680c2f19fe> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dailytexanonline.com/news/2013/01/28/austin-conducts-homeless-count-amidst-efforts-to-decrease-homelessness | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981133 | 736 | 1.828125 | 2 |
There are No Homosexuals Here
"Meteor Blades" of The Daily Kos picked up on an important point embedded in the Iranian president’s statement that there are no homosexuals in Iran: how do our own policies deny the gay community?
When we discriminate on the basis of sexual and gender identity we are in effect denying that people exist. As in most discrimination, the drive to prejudice is based on stereotypes and the fears they provoke that are deep in us internally.
I have not written enough about the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Inter-Sex, Transgender, Two Spirit, Questioning and Queer (LGBITTQQ) community and poverty. In that way, I have contributed to denying the community. When you compound discrimination, the intersection of race, sexuality and gender can be profound on people’s ability to attain economic security and to get help when they are in need.
As Amber Hollibaugh, activist and writer, reported, “We punish people in this country for being poor and we punish homosexuality. When both are combined, it does more than double the effect: It twists and deepens it, gives it sharper edges, and heightens our inability to duck and cover or slide through to a safer place. It forces you to live more permanently outside than either condition dictates.”
Thankfully, here in NYC we have groups that are raising the visibility of poor and low-income LGBITTQQ in discussions of community quality of life, public safety, health, homelessness and other issues of economic injustice.
QEJ (Queers for Economic Justice – in the interest of full disclosure, I am a founding board member of QEJ) in collaboration with other groups spearheaded a change in NYC shelter policy: “As of February 1st, homeless couples who have registered with the City Clerk as domestic partners will be sheltered as families in the same way as married couples. This policy will apply to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples. In addition, the new policy grants "family status" to homeless adults who have other family relationships (e.g., grandparent and grandson/daughter, or siblings) who have resided together for six of the previous twelve months, and to street homeless couples who are assisted by an outreach worker.”
Poverty is an important issue in the LGBTTQ community across the generations . For example, the Peter Cicchino Youth Project sites, "Of the estimated 20,000 teenagers living on the streets of New York City, almost half self-identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgendered (LGBT). These teens have been thrown out of their homes or have run away from foster care because of homophobia, harassment, and physical abuse. " Young and old, we who identify in the LGBITTQQ community are faced with specific discrimination because of our identity: on the streets, in the welfare centers, in hospitals and bread lines.
I hope we can continue this discussion on the blog. Poverty in the LGBITTQQ community is a progressive issue. | <urn:uuid:b40e4a43-f57b-46a7-95d3-9fc942b8a8dc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dmiblog.com/archives/2007/09/post_15.html | 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 | 0.948491 | 627 | 1.804688 | 2 |
This video was just released early March this year. It’s about Bono’s first visit to Ethiopia back in 1985 and it has some great photos AND an interesting recording of what sounds like a “jam” and Bono singing along with lots of kids.
He wrote the song. You can hear lots of kids coughing in the background.
I’m guessing it’s Bono playing the basic guitar.
The chords are similar to the pattern in BAD – with the suspended 4-th – I think it is. Also sounds like he’s been listening to Norwegian Wood with the rhythm. The important thing is that recording really captures a pivotal moment in his life that would change his life profoundly. It’s wonderful that it has finally surfaced after all these years!
Fans of early u2 and Bono’s aid work will love this video. The video is from the u2fanrecord site – by fans for fans!
My guitar-playin’, Bono-lovin’, sister-in-law will absolutely love this clip – a buff sleeveless bearded Bono!
This clip ties in with an earlier Pro Bono Bono post – also about Bono’s visit to Africa that started him on his long campaign to help Africa. Enjoy!
Here’s a link to the clip on youtube:
Here’s the original post about Bono’s Personal WHY he got involved in activism to help Africa.
If you want to motivate others into action – take some time to include in your talks or presentations your personal WHY – why you are moved to action.
I love the story of Bono’s WHY - why he has been so committed for all these decades to trying to make a difference in the lives of millions of Africans.
It all sprang from one moment in one day and a story about one man and one boy.
Bono’s revealed his WHY in his powerful speech to PENN state: These are his words: (I’ll link to a video of the speech at the end of this post)
“We used to wake up in the morning and the mist would be lifting we’d see thousands and thousands of people who’d been walking all night to our food station were we were working.
One man — I was standing outside talking to the translator — had this beautiful boy and he was saying to me in Amharic, I think it was, I said I can’t understand what he’s saying, and this nurse who spoke English and Amharic said to me, he’s saying will you take his son. He’s saying please take his son, he would be a great son for you. I was looking puzzled and he said, “You must take my son because if you don’t take my son, my son will surely die. If you take him he will go back to Ireland and get an education.”
Probably like the ones we’re talking about today. I had to say no, that was the rules there and I walked away from that man, I’ve never really walked away from it. But I think about that boy and that man and that’s when I started this journey that’s brought me here into this stadium.
Does that move you? It moves me.
This Bono in Africa image from this link (a good read):
Bono’s long-time friend Peter Gabriel supports WITNESS - a cause that gives cameras to people to help them document human rights abuses.
In this earlier TED video – he reveals his personal WHY and you understand why he is so committed to the cause.
It can take guts to reveal your personal WHY. It often means you have to reveal a “failing” or a personal suffering – but think beyond that to the cause you are trying to promote.
Now my personal WHY is not as dramatic or as exciting as the ones above – but it helps reveal my personal connection to the pro bono work I love to do.
I do serious well-paid international corporate work too – but it’s the pro bono work that I am so committed to and love so much that I do it for free!
I’ve been pretty lucky – with a great education and life experience and an exciting career ( or rather careers) – but I realise not all people are as fortunate. I am forever grateful for my education and great teachers and mentors who have helped me.
I was blessed with wonderful, encouraging teachers - that’s why I do pro bono (for free) work to share what I’ve learned.
I want to give high school kids the same “gifts” great teachers gave me – and to realise the power of words to motivate and inspire others. For me – it was hearing MLK’s I have a Dream Speech - not LIVE of course back in the 60s! (Wonderful teachers taught the power of MLK’s words – at school)
I’ve been blessed with a great education and went on to become a lawyer (briefly) and then a journalist (far more exciting) and a political adviser and speechwriter (a dream come true for an MLK fan!).
Not anywhere as cool or exciting as Bono or Peter Gabriel- but I still try to make my small contribution to helping where I can and how I can!
What this all means for YOU!
Anyway, my point is - if YOU want to make positive change - reveal some of YOUR personal WHY. Think beyond any pain or embarrassment to “the cause” you are fighting for.
Create a short, punchy and effective “story” – refine it – so it’s just a small part of your message – but DO IT! See how conicise and compelling the Bono and Peter Gabriel stories were!
Here’s the link to Bono’s Penn State speech:
Both Bono and Peter Gabriel were powerful speakers at the recent TED2013 talks. The videos of their talks haven’t been released yet – but here are links to he TED blog about the talks:
HOW I CAN HELP YOU – PRO BONO
If you or a good cause you support could use some pro bono help in how to use Bono’s techniques please feel free to contact me.
Also, if you know a high school that could benefit from a session on Bono’s use of words – please let me know. I have to fit my pro bono work in with my “paid” corporate consulting work.
I’m based in Brisbane, Australia - and I often travel for work to Sydney and Singapore.
There’s also the potential to travel to other parts of Asia-Pac and the US for my work too.
So What is Pro Bono Bono?
In a nutshell:
1. A dedicated Bono/U2 fan who loves to help organisations with pro bono (for good/for free)
2. Communication coaching for good causes combines professional skills with passions
Communication Coaching + Pro bono helping good causes + Bono’s inspiration and example = Pro Bono Bono
You’ll learn how to improve the way you Present and Persuade by using communication techniques effectively used by Bono. | <urn:uuid:5e5a356f-971f-4f52-9edf-4a0e071e9c10> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://probonobono.wordpress.com/2013/03/11/fans-of-early-u2-will-love-this-just-released-video-of-his-bonos-trip-to-africa/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963809 | 1,557 | 1.554688 | 2 |
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|Colonel Brandon's natural daughter
Written by Barbara
(9/27/2006 1:16 a.m.)
Both the Norton Critical edition and the Broadview edition say that a few lines were cut from the original edition that talked about how Lady Middleton was so shocked that she actually exerted herself to say something (about the weather!) Both editions suggest that Jane Austen probably took the line out because it was overkill, because the really shocking part is still there--the fact that all Brandon's friends believe he has an illegitmate daughter.
It always strikes me that they can believe this about him and still consider him respectable good company where a lady who had an illegitimate child would have been a social pariah in those days.
And I think that not only Mrs. Jennings believes this is true, for no one contradicts her. Supposedly she was only talking to Elinor, but I think others must have heard, even with her lowered voice.
Earlier, when Mrs. Jennings had suggested that Brandon was not telling the truth by saying " let us hear the truth of it," her daughter protested by saying, "My dear madam, recollect what you are saying."
At the very least, all the people at the Park have heard about this before, for Mrs. Jennings could not keep such a thing to herself.
Also, when Elinor's only reaction is "Indeed!"--does anyone else think she likely would have reacted more than that? Was she too shocked to say more, or do you think that signifies she discredits what Mrs. Jennings was saying?
Groupread is maintained by Myretta with WebBBS 3.21. | <urn:uuid:0f27d3de-1932-42fe-8049-b4ee385b3df1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pemberley.com/bin/library/sands2006.cgi?read=20469 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.986828 | 353 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Cambridge, MA (PRWEB) August 20, 2012
The nonprofit Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI) today announced that its popular new book "Everything I Know about Lean I Learned in First Grade" is available as an ebook.
The digital version is available now for $9.99 in a variety of formats from LEI’s Lean Bookstore. Chapter One, the Introduction, and the Foreword are available as free downloads at the store.
“Customers have told us that they want more ebooks,” said Jane Bulnes-Fowles, LEI’s Lean Learning Materials manager. “So from the start of this book project, we planned an ebook along with the paperback version, which launched in March to very strong sales.”
"Everything I Know about Lean I Learned in First Grade" is the seventh ebook published by LEI, said Bulnes-Fowles. The others are:
Complete ebook descriptions and excerpts are available in the lean bookstore.
The Lean Book for Everyone
The ebook is an effective introduction or refresher on essential lean principles.
“For some time, I searched for an analogy that would best illustrate lean concepts,” said author and lean practitioner Robert Martichenko. “The analogy that forms this narrative was revealed to me during a visit to my youngest daughter’s first grade classroom. It was all there.” For example:
The engaging analogy makes it suitable reading for business people or others – including students – who want to understand lean for what it truly is: a way to create a learning and problem-solving culture.
Each chapter concludes with a concise summary of the lean principal discussed followed by important additional information and illustrations.
"Everything I Know About Lean I Learned in First Grade" ebook
The books, ebooks, workbooks, and other resources in LEI’s online lean bookstore have the practical knowledge needed by industrial or service companies to launch, sustain, and expand lean transformations. Subscribing to LEI's weekly newsletter gives continuous improvement professionals, lean leaders, and executives access to case studies, news, webinars, and many other resources for lean transformations.
About the Author
Robert Martichenko is CEO of LeanCor, a third-party logistics provider in Florence, KY. He learned about lean management working at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana. He has over 20 years of experience implementing lean supply chains, logistics operations, and organizational transformations. He is also the co-author of Building a Lean Fulfillment Stream (LEI, 2010), which won a Shingo Research Award. He is a senior instructor at the Lean Enterprise Institute and the Georgia Tech Supply Chain and Logistics Institute.
Lean Enterprise Institute
Lean Enterprise Institute, Inc., was founded in 1997 by management expert James P. Womack, Ph.D., as a nonprofit research, education, publishing, and conference company with a mission to advance lean thinking around the world. We teach courses, hold management seminars, write and publish books and workbooks, and organize public and private conferences. We use the surplus revenues from these activities to conduct research projects and support other lean initiatives such as the Lean Education Academic Network, the Lean Global Network and the Healthcare Value Network. Lean Enterprise Institute and the leaper image are registered trademarks of Lean Enterprise Institute, Inc. | <urn:uuid:f104dfde-507b-44de-b46f-e8cf72b8c385> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/8/prweb9813652.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938999 | 690 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Pentecost is almost upon us. I have posted many things about Pentecost this week, and actually have lots more. Maybe I will get to sending those things, but in the meantime, I want to post something form the Holy Fathers abut the Holy Spirit – a selection each day for a few/many days.
These selection are all from: http://www.orthodox.net/gleanings/holy_spirit.html
But when the Holy Spirit dwells in the heart of a person, He shows him all his inner poverty and weakness, and the corruption of his heart and soul, and his separation from God; and with all his virtues and righteousness. He shows him his sins, his sloth and indifference regarding the salvation and good of people his self-seeking in his apparently most disinterested virtues, his coarse selfishness even where he does not suspect it.
To be brief, the Holy Spirit shows him everything as it really is.
Then a person begins to have true humility, begins to lose hope in his own powers and virtues, regards himself as the worst of men. And when a person humbles himself before Jesus Christ Who alone is Holy in the glory of God the Father, he begins to repent truly, and resolves never again to sin but to live more carefully.
And if he really has some virtues, then he sees clearly that he practiced and practices them only with the help of God, and therefore he begins to put his trust only in God. St. Innocent of | <urn:uuid:8a9764ba-da7d-4e30-964e-8a0a2c3f59de> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://orthodox.net/redeemingthetime/2009/06/05/the-holy-spirit-gleanings-from-the-holy-fathers/comment-page-1/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985125 | 308 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Club Officer's Leaflets
THE ROLE OF THE CLUB CHAIRMAN
The Chairman’s role consists of two separate parts:
Planning and running meetings, being sure everything is covered and decisions are made when required, keeping order, helping the group deal with differences of opinion and conflicts, being sure that everyone who wants to has a chance to speak.
Ensuring the Club as a whole makes and sticks to priorities and policies, serving as a spokesperson for the Club.
General Responsibilities (in line with the Club’s constitution)
· To chair both Club and committee meetings
· To be the spokesperson of the Club
·To liaise closely with the Secretary about dates, arrangements, agendas, correspondence for committee meetings, and content of minutes
· To liaise with the Treasurer about the financial state of the Club
· To be familiar with all the Club’s rules and regulations contained in the constitution
Before each Committee Meeting
· Get together with the Secretary to go over the minutes of the last meeting, plan the agenda, and agree which decisions need to be made at the meeting
· Ensure that all information, documents, and papers are at hand for the meeting
At that Meeting
· It helps if the Chairman arrives early for the meeting as members may wish to speak to him or her prior to the meeting
· Start the meeting on time
· If necessary set a time limit for any items which are likely to continue for a lengthy period, always remember to allow sufficient time for each person to have their say
· Facilitate discussion during the meeting and encourage all members to participate
· Bring items on the agenda to a conclusion with a brief review of points, which may involve inviting specific proposals from the committee
· If a vote has to be taken ask for a formal proposal and clarify the procedure. In the event of a tie the Chairman may have the casting vote
· At the close of a meeting make arrangements for the next meeting and liaise with the Secretary on actions resulting from the meeting, e.g. press release or letters
The Good Chairman
· Good chairing does not simply depend upon following the duties and responsibilities to the letter; it is more than that
· A good Chairman must be well prepared before each meeting and be forewarned of possible controversial or delicate items on the agenda
· A good Chairman must always appreciate that in this position there will be less opportunity to voice his or her own opinions at meetings
· A good Chairman must know all committee members and be able to recognise their strengths. It is their particular responsibility to put at ease new members at their first meeting, to encourage participation by all and delegate responsibility where appropriate
· A good Chairman should be aware of the current NAFAS Health & Safety, Data Protection and Child Protection policies*
At each Club Meeting
· Inform attendees of safety regulations at venue
· Welcome members, visitors and special guests
· Arrange for a vote of thanks to be given
· Be responsible for the distribution of items received from Area or NAFAS
· Inform the meeting of Club, Area and National news and events
· Introduce demonstrator, speaker or guest
* Further information regarding Health & Safety, Data Protection and Child Protection
available from your Area Chairman or on the NAFAS website.
THE ROLE OF THE CLUB SECRETARY
A good and efficient secretary is a great asset to any Club and helps it to run smoothly. The Secretary should be familiar with the Club’s constitution and the rules contained in it. There should always be a close link between the Secretary and the Chairman. Together they should draw up the agenda for each committee meeting and be aware of what decisions need to be taken at a meeting.
The Secretary will find much of relevance in the constitution, e.g. the frequency of meetings, when the AGM is due, who receives notices of meetings, and the length of notice to be given.
It is a good idea to keep a master copy of the constitution safely in a file but to have a spare copy at every meeting.
New Committee Members
All new committee members should receive a "welcome pack", consisting of the constitution, minutes of the AGM, the latest annual report and accounts, copies of minutes of the most recent meetings and any leaflets produced by the Club.
Planning a Committee Meeting
Always ensure that the venue is booked and arranged suitably for the meeting. Ensure that additional copies of all papers being discussed are at hand.
It is normally the duty of the Secretary, in consultation with the Chairman, to draw up the agenda. The Chairman has the final say about the order in which items appear.
Any major items which are on-going warrant their own place on the agenda and should not be brought up under matters arising. Matters arising should consist of only brief updates from the previous meeting.
Sub committees should each have a slot on the main committee agenda so that any decisions taken by the sub committee can be ratified or approved.
Recurring calendar business should always appear on the agenda in good time for decisions, e.g. the AGM, Club accounts, outings, shows and events.
All items should appear on the agenda in a logical order. For example, a decision about spending money should appear after the Treasurer has given the financial report.
Correspondence should be discussed with the Chairman and if necessary brought to the attention of the next meeting. All correspondence should be filed after action has been completed. All important correspondence and financial records should be stored in a safe place for seven years.
If the Club has a written annual report it often falls to the Secretary to compile the report with the Chairman adding a Chairman’s Report as part of it. A draft of the report should be approved by the committee prior to publication as it is in fact the committee’s report of the Club’s activities during a particular financial year.
Sample Committee Agenda
3 Minutes of previous meeting
4 Matters Arising (not covered elsewhere in the agenda)
6 Treasurer’s Report
7 Committee Members’ Reports
8 Future Events/Special Items
9 Any other business
10 Date, time and venue of next meeting
After the Meeting
The Secretary often has to take action following a meeting, write letters, contact people, make phone calls or organise more meetings or events.
THE DUTIES OF A CLUB TREASURER
Many Treasurers will not be required to undertake this wide a range of duties, as it depends on the size and complexity of the Club. Most of the responsibilities listed here will be carried out by someone in the Club and it will be the Treasurer’s responsibility to see that all that should be done, is being done.
Management of the money of a Club can broadly be divided into two overlapping categories : financial responsibility and financial accountability.
Put simply, this means not taking on obligations the Club cannot meet, paying bills on time, keeping proper records of all money which comes into and goes out of the Club.
The Club committee is responsible to the membership and must provide accounts to the members each year.
Club accounts can be checked and certified by a 'competent independent examiner', i.e. a retired bank or building society manager.
Treasurer’s Responsibilities include:
General Financial Responsibilities
· Ensuring that funds are used in accordance with the constitution and committee decisions
· Advising on financial policy, e.g. charging for services, financial implications of new activities, etc.
· Liaising with the bank
· Preparing accounts for examining and discussing them with the examiner
· Deciding on security measures to ensure cash and cheques are not open to misuse in any way, e.g. more than one signatory on each cheque
· Presenting regular written financial statements to the committee
· Presenting the end of year financial report in draft form to the committee
· Presenting examined accounts at the AGM and ensuring that members have a basic understanding of annual accounts
Banking, Book-keeping, Record-keeping
· Advising on which bank and what type of account to use
· Serving as a signatory for bank accounts
· Ensuring that there are proper systems in place for receiving and paying out cash and cheques
· Setting up appropriate book-keeping and petty cash systems
· Ensuring membership subscriptions are collected and records kept
· Ensuring money due to the Club is collected
· Ensuring receipts are issued if required
· Ensuring all income is paid into the bank
· Ensuring all bills are paid (including affiliation fees and insurance)
· Ensuring everyone handling money for the Club keeps proper records and documentation
Control of Fixed Assets and Stock Control
· Establishing systems for stock checking and re-ordering
· Ensuring the Club keeps proper records of its equipment and property it owns or rents
· Ensuring the Club has all necessary insurance and keeps it up to date
The Club should ensure that it has in reserve sufficient funds to meet all its obligations to creditors for at least one year.
Minutes are usually written by the Secretary and are a written record of what happened at the meeting.
The minutes should make complete sense when being read many years after the meeting took place. It should give a clear picture of when and where it took place, who was present, their status at the meeting, the range of the discussion, and the decisions taken.
The style of the minutes should be consistent and should satisfy the requirements of the committee. Minutes should record a short statement of what has been discussed (the facts), a summary of the discussion (people’s views), any formal proposals, (who made and seconded them) and the decision taken, including any vote result.
The minutes should be numbered and written following the order of the agenda.
Whoever is recording the minutes should do so in a clear, unbiased and completely objective manner. Minutes should be written in a past tense.
If action is to be taken by members before the next meeting it is useful to have an action column showing who is to take action and by when.
Any formal motions or resolutions should be recorded in full with the name of the proposer and seconder. The result of any vote should be recorded as announced by the Chairman.
It is better for the Secretary to record as many notes as possible during the meeting and later to summarise discussions and record the important points.
The Minutes should include:-
· Name of the Club and committee title
· The date, including the year
· The place where the meeting took place
· If it was an AGM or committee meeting
· Members present, who entered or left during the meeting
· Others present, guests, observers
· Who acted as Chairman, who took minutes
· Apologies for absence
· Corrections, if any, to the previous minutes
· Who proposed and seconded the adoption of the previous minutes
· Matters arising from the previous minutes. This should consist of very brief update remarks and should not involve going over every item from the last meeting
· A separate record of all other items discussed at the meeting
· Date, time and venue of next meeting
Minutes should be impartial and factual. Initials, first names, or jargon should not be used unless it is certain that everyone who reads the minutes will understand them.
The Chairman of the meeting has the final say on what is recorded in the minutes.
Preparing to take Minutes
Write in advance on a sheet of paper any reports or facts which you will be expected to give, e.g. apologies.
Any papers or correspondence should be arranged in the order in which they will be required, corresponding to the agenda items.
At the Meeting
During the meeting if you are unsure about what was decided or what to record in the minutes, ask the Chairman to clarify the decision taken.
After the Meeting
Minutes should be written up as soon as possible after the meeting when recollections are still fresh in the memory.
It is the Chairman who has to approve the minutes before they are released or circulated. Committee members have the opportunity to amend the minutes at the next meeting.
Some useful phrases
· It was reported that ….
· It was agreed that ….
· The report was noted
· The matter was deferred until ….
· Mrs …. proposed that ….
· This was seconded by Mrs …. and agreed unanimously
· The motion was carried by six votes to four, with one abstention.
· The Chairman asked members for their views on ….
· After a lengthy discussion in which everyone aired their views the Chairman summed up by saying ….
· In reply to a question from Mrs …. the Secretary intimated that ….
· The Chairman referred to the previously circulated report on ….
· Recommendations from the Treasurer were approved in full.
· There being no further business the Chairman thanked everyone for attending and concluded the meeting at ...
GUIDELINES FOR PROGRAMME SECRETARIES
A successful club is one where members are happy and pleased with the programme. Your role is a very rewarding one and important in the life of the club.
In the first instance refer to the code of practice regarding demonstrations.
Preparation of a Club Programme
1. At least one year ahead discuss with the club committee the budget for the year in question.
2. Check club meeting dates for that year. Some may have to be altered for seasonal reasons e.g. Easter.
3. Consult Area and National Lists for demonstrators and speakers depending on type of meeting. The National List is available through Trading Officers at Area Level or through the distribution officer at NAFAS HQ; a new edition comes out every 2 years. Area lists are available for a small fee from each NAFAS Area (details in the National List). Please note black dots indicate those who have attended Refresher Days.
4. National Demonstrators should be booked at least 2 years ahead of the meeting.
5. When choosing demonstrators or speakers take into account travelling distance during wintertime. Book January and February first - these need to be filled with a person living fairly close in case of inclement weather.
6. Telephone the person to see if they are available and ask their fee.
7. Book the Christmas demonstrator at least 2 years in advance particularly if it is an open meeting and a National Demonstrator is wanted.
Fees and Flower Allowance
8. Fees vary and if in doubt consult the club committee before confirming the booking. Note mileage costs *
9. It may be necessary to negotiate - if the club allowance for flowers is less than the demonstrator considers necessary it may be that they can be asked for one less arrangement.
The NAFAS Blue Form
10. The Blue Form is used to book only NAFAS demonstrators and speakers. Complete form A with details agreed on the phone and send all three parts together with an S.A.E to the person being booked.
At this stage a map and layout of stage should be included.
The person will retain part A, complete part B and return B and C to you. After checking all details on both forms are correct keep part B and send part C to the demonstrator or speaker. NO BOOKING IS FINALISED UNTIL THIS PROCESS IS COMPLETED.
11. Three weeks prior to the meeting send a reminder, directions (including the postcode of the venue) and a contact mobile phone number. Demonstrators /speakers should acknowledge receipt of this letter.
If the flower allowance has not been agreed state the amount. If, due to fluctuations in the market, an increase is requested, this should be agreed by telephone.
12. Liaise with the club hostess re requirements for the visitor e.g. refreshments, time of arrival etc.
13. Ensure a person can assist by carrying items both before and after the meeting. This is important where access is difficult.
14. On some occasions mitigating circumstances may lead to a cancellation by a demonstrator or speaker; however they should endeavour to find a replacement if under 6 months to the demonstration.
15. Have a contingency plan to entertain members should the demonstrator or speaker be delayed or not arrive at all.
It is useful to learn of other clubs’ demonstrators and speakers that they have enjoyed. Keep a note of when a person has been booked so those visits are spread over a period of time.
* Be aware that travel costs can be shared when a Demonstrator is booked as part of a short tour. Ask your Area Demonstrators’ Representative, or Chairman of your Area JDS&E Committee, for advice and information. | <urn:uuid:e3962136-2268-4a8e-aab4-b8296bbbc3a1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nafas.org.uk/content/Club+Officers+Leaflets.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948317 | 3,453 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Girl #1: So, you're a vegetarian?
Girl #2: Yep. Eating animals kills.
Girl #1: Wait, but you had sushi the other night.
Girl #2: Fish doesn't count. It's, like, not an animal.
Girl #1: Huh? Yeah, it is. It, like, breathes and stuff.
Girl #2: But it's underwater.
Girl #1: No, it's an animal, 'cause it moves around and swims.
Girl #2: Then how come I can eat it?
Christians rationalized eating fish on fast days in a number of ways. My favorite, because it's the most enigmatic, is from the Penitentials, e.g., the Paenitentiale Vindobonense B (edited by Rob Meens, Het tripartite boeteboek), "Pisces licet comedere quia alterius natura sunt" (fish are allowable because they are of another nature). Some of what I've seen over the last few days has encouraged me to agree. I bought my spouse The Blue Planet for the holiday, and learned a bit about the glowing predator pictured above, as well as the male angler fish, which, as this review explains, "attaches himself to a female almost 20 times larger for the sake of reproduction, clamping into her belly with his teeth, where he will spend the rest of his life sharing blood and sperm."
The fifteenth-century Speculum Sacerdotale provides another standard rationalization:
For God cursede no3t the water, for he knewe that water schuld mynster in baptym and be waschynge of synnes. And that elament is in reputacion most worthy for that it wascheþ away fylthe and synne, and also for that the spirit of God, as Scripture witnesseþ, was born ouer the water before the world. Therfore he was the more vnlef [reluctant] to curse the elament of water. But the erthe he cursede. And therfore in tyme of fastynge it is no3t lawefull for to ete of eny beste that longeth to the erþe, be it birde, be it beste crepynge or goynge on foure feete, for thou3 many briddis be bred in the water and of the water or þrou3 the water takeþ here fode, 3it they are to be sayde for to be of the erthe and to pertene to the erthe. For there be some fisshes the whiche hath of too partie forme of a foure-fotyd beste as porpas, houndfissche, the whiche mowe be eten in tyme of fastyngis in that partie where they are seen fisshe but no3t of the toþer partie. (53; cf Alcuin, Quaestiones in Genesim, PL 100: 518B)
As much I like the idea of abstaining from the doggy portions of a dogfish until Saturday, I find the most compelling rationalization, at least for today's inchoate ideas, in Aquinas's Summa Theologica:
Fasting was instituted by the Church in order to bridle the concupiscences of the flesh, which regard pleasures of touch in connection with food and sex. Wherefore the Church forbade those who fast to partake of those foods which both afford most pleasure to the palate, and besides are a very great incentive to lust. Such are the flesh of animals that take their rest on the earth, and of those that breathe the air and their products, such as milk from those that walk on the earth, and eggs from birds. For, since such like animals are more like man in body, they afford greater pleasure as food, and greater nourishment to the human body, so that from their consumption there results a greater surplus available for seminal matter, which when abundant becomes a great incentive to lust. Hence the Church has bidden those who fast to abstain especially from these foods. (my emphasis)
In what way are fish less like us than other animals are? Aquinas explains elsewhere that Scripture
does not call fishes 'living creatures,' but 'creeping creatures having life'; whereas it does call land animals 'living creatures' on account of their more perfect life, and seems to imply that fishes are merely bodies having in them something of a soul, whilst land animals, from the higher perfection of their life, are, as it were, living souls with bodies subject to them.
Many medieval texts resolve the question of what differentiates humans from other created things by observing that humans dominate animals. When the texts consider particular animals, these tend to be pigs, cattle, horses, dogs, monkeys, and other terrestrial creatures, whose value to this discourse is precisely the fact that they seem to possess language, reason, and (therefore) an immortal soul. But regardless of what humans and animals may seem to share, and regardless of what this suggests about the meaninglessness of human life, humans dominate animals and virtually no animal ever dominates a human. And by "dominate" I mean, in most cases, "kill and eat." The domination is evidence that there must be something that humans have that animals don't. Domination demonstrates that humans do have language, &c., and that animals, despite all appearances, do not. "Reason" is as much an effect as it is a cause of the human domination of animals.
It seems that fish don't factor much into these proofs. Ambrose praises the underwater world for the spectacle of the natural order of creation it provides us; Augustine and Basil wonder about whether or not fish have memory; but generally speaking, fish don't matter as much as other animals to the proof of humanity through the domination of animals, what I'll call the sacrificial structure of the human. The Wild Herdsman in Yvain doesn't prove his humanity at the expense of salmon, but rather of oxen (and perhaps other wild beasts, depending on the manuscript), creatures--given the Herdsman's animalistic visage--very much similar to him. They look "ausi con" (as if) they were pleading while he beats them. Their submission shows that their pleading--their apparent shared existence with the Herdsman--is only an "as if," only an imitation, while he, regardless of his animality, is a human. There is no "as if" with fish. There is none--and almost none--of the process of recognition and denial so necessary to the human relationship to the animal, because fish are too alien. They are another nature.
They are another nature because they are not as much alive as other animals. Not being quite living creatures, they are unsuitable objects for meaningful domination. They can be killed, but that killing doesn't quite matter, not to Aquinas, not to our confused vegetarian, not to the human as such. This is a life that is not life; a life that simply doesn't rate. Hence, I suggest, the lack of pleasure in eating fish. Since killing them accomplishes nothing for the human, which needs to dominate creatures like itself, there's no good reason to kill fish, at least no good symbolic reason.
If there's a life that ceases to be identified as a life whose death is meaningful, then it has escaped the burden of being made to die for the human. It might still die, but since its death isn't symbolic, or at least not sufficiently symbolic, then the human has to be sought elsewhere. That elsewhere might be another sacrificial structure; it might be some other pleasure at the expense of something; it might still be a place where death is still made to matter. But perhaps not. Perhaps the fish--a purposeless life thank goodness!--points us to a way out.
Unrelated afterward. I wonder if JJC's (safe traveling) seen this?
"The child, then, inhabits the inhuman in the same way that the postmodern inhabits the modern, and what makes this analogy initially seem so useful for theorizing the animal other is that it posits a permanently incipient multiplicity and self-difference at the very core of subjectivity as such, and in doing so promises to help us extend contemporary transvaluations of the structural homology between child and animal available to us at least since Freud." (Wolfe, Animal Rites 57) | <urn:uuid:bed45992-fe20-4ac4-9ff9-37c091d60ffd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.inthemedievalmiddle.com/2007/01/another-nature.html?showComment=1168223580000 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959585 | 1,803 | 1.5 | 2 |
Our long national nightmare is over. We can all rest a bit easier now, because Coach K is finally weighing in on the Duke lacrosse case. Our parents tell us stories of how they feared world events in the 1960s would overwhelm them, and how they would tune in to the CBS news every evening, and things would seem better. Somehow, the presence of Walter Cronkite made you understand that everything would be OK. And that's the way it is on the Duke campus now that Blue Devils basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski has spoken out
in full solidarity, um, in utter opposition, ah, in lukewarm, half-hearted support of the Duke players in this high-profile controversy. Among Coach K's no-nonsense, take-no-prisoners quotes:
What I've tried to do behind the scenes is say, 'We're with you. We'll see what happens, and whatever happened if you did it, you should be punished.' Giving support does not mean you're choosing sides. Giving support is what a university should do ... because we're in the kid business.
Yes, you can almost smell the graham cracker being dipped into the milk. By the way, nothing in the interview about this, in case you were wondering.
So you know, though: We're in the kid business. | <urn:uuid:00bd2f15-e6c8-41fe-a145-1f8f52bc95a3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://deadspin.com/182232/coach-k-speaks?tag=mike-krzyzewski | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977906 | 275 | 1.539063 | 2 |
I was debating my economics teacher in class the other day (he actually asked me to stop asking questions in class because I try to counter his "matter of fact" teaching style!). We were talking about the quantity theory of money and how under the gold standard the money supply wasn't increasing as fast as GDP. He claimed that this led to farmers who took out loans to go settle out west not being able to pay back their loans because the real amount owed was increasing and their incomes were falling. I countered with saying the farmers should not have taken out the loans in the first place, and the fact that food prices continued dropping and thus their incomes with it essentially proves that there were too many farmers. These people should have been employed elsewhere as they would have had they not taken out these loans. He essentially said that the loans were good loans when they were made, and had the real value not increased because of deflation then the farmers would have been able to repay them. He argued that for this reason we should have a growing money supply as long as GDP is growing.
I know in economics there is often not a definitive "he's right, you're wrong", but who is more right in this case?
In the likely case that my argument was weak, what is the better argument for commodity money against a fiat money?
I understand that Ron Paul is not necessarily for a gold standard, but I would like to argue mainly against monetary inflation, not for a gold standard.
Thank you for your responses! | <urn:uuid:fa05037c-93dc-49dc-9830-3403e0c4cf01> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?374416-Question-about-commodity-standards.. | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.994803 | 305 | 1.820313 | 2 |
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