text:
CSUN AS President Diana Vicente to serve as Chair of the Cal State Student Association
Photo Courtesy of AS
AS President Diana Vicente to serve as chair of Cal State Student Association.
Sloane Bozzi, Assistant Campus Editor
Outgoing Associated Students President Diana Vicente has been elected Chair of the Cal State Student Association Board of Directors, according to a CSSA spokesperson.
The CSSA is a nonprofit student organization that advocates on behalf of California State University students at the CSU system, state and federal level. It is partly funded by a semesterly $2 student involvement and representation fee. Each year, the CSSA may nominate up to five Student Trustees, who are appointed by the Governor of California to sit on the CSU Board of Trustees for two-year terms.
The organization sponsors state legislative bills that affect students and lobbies in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. on behalf of all CSU students. Moving up from campus-level governance, Vicente's work will represent all CSU students to CSU leaders and California legislators.
"CSSA is the primary advocate for every single CSU student, so as I'm switching hats, I'm going from representing around 36,000 to now representing about half a million students," Vicente said.
The CSSA board of directors is made up of one representative from every campus. Prior to being elected chair, Vicente represented CSUN on the CSSA board of directors. She served on the Internal Affairs Committee and helped create a new CSSA constitution.
Elizabeth Rocha Zuñiga from CSU Fresno and Garrick Wilhelm from CSU San Francisco were also in the running for chair position.
The board of directors serves as the voting body for elections. Vicente said the voting process reminded her of the breadth of CSSA, as the organization represents all CSU students.
"When your election happens, you have to stand before 23 individuals, who behind them have an entire population of students," Vicente said. "When they're voting, they call out every single CSU name, and whoever is speaking is representing one of those 23 campuses."
"It's a really intense process," Vicente said.
Vicente replaced the previous chair of CSSA, Zahraa Khuraibet. Khuraibet, a graduate student at CSUN, ran uncontested for the position of president of the Board of Directors. According to Vicente, AS President-elect Rose Merida will serve as CSUN's representative on next year's board.
As she starts her graduate studies at CSUN, Vicente's extracurriculars will revolve around CSSA.
"It might be less one-on-one work, but it's also a lot of work behind the scenes," she said. "Planning the agendas, making sure that our documents are alright, making sure that our website is all updated –– that's going to fall on me."
As chair, Vicente will be tasked with making sure CSSA adheres to the Gloria Romero Open Meetings Act of 2000 in order to ensure all meetings are equitable for all students that want to attend.
"It wouldn't be fair if we tell a student 'You have to come to this meeting but you have to speak our language, you have to know our rules.' That's not fair to ask of a student that maybe has never been involved in student government," Vicente said.
Vicente's official role as CSUN's AS president will end on Sunday. The latter half of the spring semester was spent working from home in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
"Things were just changing day by day," she said. "At that point, my role was to represent the students and see how we're going to be supported through this and asking the questions that they need to answer."
"I remember one of my biggest questions to President Harrison at the beginning of things was 'What about all of our student employees? Are they going to continue to be paid?'" Vicente said. "And that was definitely a conversation that we had about not firing the students that work for the university, and giving them a chance to continue to be paid until the end of the semester."
During her time as president, Vicente launched initiatives to encourage student engagement with AS. She hosted events such as Commuter Week and created a new position within AS –– the chair of Diversity and Inclusion. She was also the first AS president to hold outdoor senate meetings in an effort to be more accessible to students.
Vicente also introduced a financial aid opportunity that will be available to students in the fall semester. The "Support You Deserve" program will give students vouchers to purchase books and materials.
Vicente also created the Dianne F. Harrison Award Endowment, which gives funds to international students to purchase books and class materials.
"I was born in Mexico and when I first came to CSUN, I was considered an international student," Vicente said. "I knew the hardships that international students go through, and I knew the lack of resources they have. So we created one specifically for international students."
As the newly-elected AS President Merida takes office, Vicente will continue her advocacy work for all CSU students. Her main priority as chair of CSSA is to make more students aware of CSSA's mission.
"We have a very low turnout of the average student at most of our meetings, which I don't think is good considering how much we can actually help them," Vicente said. "I think one of my biggest goals is to really change that culture and make sure that students know that we are there for them and that we're able to represent them."
A first-generation student-parent overcomes family trauma
OPINION: College student's disappearance sparked creation of safety act
The dream of a CSUN alum
Big Lecture speaker Lauren Ridloff returns to campus


** Barrick Gold Corp pulled its $18 billion offer for Newmont Mining Corp and agreed to form a joint venture in Nevada with its rival, ending a hostile takeover bid that sought to unite the world's two largest gold producers.
** Private equity firm TPG Capital said it will acquire a majority stake in Goodnight Midstream, a U.S. pipeline company that transports water to and from oil and gas drilling sites, for $930 million.
** German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz confirmed that the country's two largest publicly listed banks - Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank - were exploring a possible merger.
** U.S. chip supplier Nvidia Corp has agreed to buy Israeli chip designer Mellanox Technologies Ltd for $6.8 billion, beating rival Intel Corp in a deal that would help the firm boost its data centre and artificial intelligence business.
** Australian gold miner Newcrest Mining Ltd has the firepower for more acquisitions, its chief executive said, after the company announced a deal to buy a copper and gold mine in Canada for $806.5 million.
** U.S. construction and building materials supplier GCP Applied Technologies Inc is nearing a deal over the composition of its board with activist hedge fund Starboard Value LP, people familiar with the matter said.
** Alibaba Group Holding Ltd will take a 14 percent stake in STO Express Co Ltd through a $693 million deal, the e-commerce giant's fourth significant investment in a Chinese courier company.
** Canadian IT consultancy CGI Inc. said it had made a 4.32 billion Swedish crown ($459 million) cash offer for Swedish peer Acando.
** U.S. private equity fund Advent has decided for the moment not to go ahead with its takeover bid for Italian credit data provider Cerved after news of its offer was leaked to the market, Cerved said in a statement.
** Online mortgage bank Charter Court Financial Services and OneSavings Bank are in advanced talks to create one of Britain's biggest specialist lenders, marking a major step toward consolidation in the challenger banking market.
** French carmaker Renault said that it was in talks with its Japanese partners Nissan and Mitsubishi Motor over a new alliance body for the three companies.
** Qatar Petroleum said it had struck a deal with Italy's ENI to acquire a 25.5 percent participating interest in block A5A in the Angoche basin, offshore Mozambique.
** U.S. software firm Ebix Inc said it has offered to buy Indian travel services company Yatra Online Inc for $336 million in a cash-and-stock deal to add to its portfolio of Indian travel companies with a focus on a niche segment.


text:
Former Player, Coach, and GM Dave Wohl
September 2, 2019 by Pure Hoops
Dave Wohl has had one of the most amazing hoop careers ever. He was a first round pick in 1971 out of an Ivy League School (Penn). He played for 6 seasons, coached for more than 30, and has been an executive with the Celtics and Clippers. He has incredible recall and can tell a story with the best of them. At 1:00 Mike and Dave play "Six Degrees of Dave Wohl" and got back to Dr. Naismith in 5 … the connections are amazing. At 6:50 he describes the dead spots on the old Boston Garden floor and how visiting teams needed to know where every one was. Perhaps his greatest insight is on Pat Riley (9:00 mark) and why being a "Control Freak" was one of his greatest strengths. Dave was also in LA when the original Shaq/Kobe beef started back in the late '90's. At 15:10 Dave breaks it all down. he has classic Doc Rivers stuff (25:00), some good stories from Dave and Kurt Rambis' time in Minnesota (31:30) and an absolutely hilarious Kevin Loughery story (36:30). This is just a taste of an amazing conversation.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


An actionable dashboard of your sales, orders and traffic helps you make the right choices for your business.
Analyze and gain insight into your store's growth. See which products are selling – and which ones aren't.
Reports can be exported for further analysis in your favorite spreadsheet tool or can be sent to your bookkeeper or accountant.
Google Analytics works with your online store, so you can track sales, visits and referrals.
See where your visitors come from and how they found your online store.
Occasion makes it easy to export reports to your accountant.
Create different calendars for different types of services so your customers can easily find what they are looking for.
No redirects. Add the calendars to your website directly.
Every calendar comes with its own intuitive settings whether you want to change colors or font type or more.
Your calendar will display well on a mobile device enhancing your customers' experience.
Sync your business calendar with your own personal calendar.
You can work with one of our Occasion Experts to customize your listings from the ground up.
Grow your email subscribers by pushing any new customers from Occasion to your email marketing software. Connect with Mailchimp, ConstantContact, Emma, Vertical Response and other email marketing softwares.
Integrate with marketing automation softwares like Hubspot, InfusionSoft and more and build customer personas and custom campaigns quickly.
Keep your books in order by syncing your sales on Occasion with your accounting software. Connect Occasion with QuickBooksOnline, Xero and more.
More than 1,000 integrations available with other software tools to save your time and make your efforts more rewardable.
Your customers' information is synced with Occasion, so their order history can be referenced or tracked – no matter where the order was placed.
Unlimited employees or contractors and assign permissions.
Your products, inventory, orders and customers are automatically synced between all platforms.
Capture payments and bookings right from your phone.
You can accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express the minute you launch your shop. You'll get a low credit card rate and no hidden fees.
From Stripe to PayPal to Payline Data, Occasion integrates with over 100 external payment gateways from around the world.
Based on your location, Occasion will automatically handle major country and state tax rates.
With Occasion, you can offer store credit instead of refunding the payment method used.
Sell gift cards that can be redeemed in store or online. Gift cards can be emailed to customers or printed by your receipt printer.
Offer discounts by percentage or dollar amount on one product or your customer's full order.
Occasion works with Groupon, LivingSocial and other daily deals.
Quickly see items that need your attention and track trends in your business.
Share and publish a unique url for each listing.
Work with Occasion approved e-commerce designer, developer or marketer who can help make your online store a huge success.


text:
Cover Story: Enjoying the benefits of synergy
Tho Li Ming
The Edge Malaysia
January 22, 2019 15:00 pm +08
This article first appeared in Personal Wealth, The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on January 14, 2019 - January 20, 2019.
Teng Chee Wai sums up 2018 as a tiring year for fund managers. Many unexpected events had caused volatility to increase in the global markets, making it extremely challenging for them to navigate the shifting landscape.
"In February last year, it started with concerns about the US interest rate cycle. Then, geopolitical risk came into the picture, with [US President Donald] Trump's views on China, the trade war and [the summit] with North Korea, which caused market uncertainty," says Teng.
"And then, when we saw clarity on the trade disputes towards the end of the year, the market started to worry about the global economy rolling over."
Even December, which traditionally had been an uneventful month for markets, was not spared, says the managing director of Affin Hwang Asset Management Bhd (AHAM). "Our equity portfolio managers were navigating this environment in 2018 very carefully. At one point, we were 'cash up' in our portfolios. But eventually, we were whipsawed by events.
"Just when we thought it was safe to go in again, the market took another tumble. For instance, when we saw that Trump and China President Xi Jinping had come to some form of agreement in November, we thought it was time to go out and reinvest. We did not know that December would turn out to be an even worse time. So, some of our funds were caught along the way.
"On the equity side, our domestic portfolios are down by a single digit while our regional portfolios are down by 10% to 12%. I would have loved to get a much lower negative [return]. We were on track to achieve it, but we took the view that the worst was over and went back into the market in November, which gave us a knockdown."
Despite these conditions, AHAM did well in its overall business last year, says Teng. In addition to achieving net positive sales growth, its assets under management saw a slight increase to RM48.4 billion (as at Nov 30) from RM47.4 billion in 2017.
"We manage government-linked-company assets to the tune of RM10 billion or RM11 billion while our bank distribution business hovers at RM9 billion to RM10 billion. But the bulk of our management comes from corporate assets, which includes insurance companies and high-net-worth individuals. This makes up about RM24 billion," he says.
The volatility has continued into the new year and global markets are still on the decline. Observers are speculating when a recession could occur and the depth of it should that happen.
Teng says the jury is still out on whether the current slowdown will eventually bring the global economy to a recession. "The positive side is that the central banks, the US in particular, have raised interest rates. And they do have room to begin reducing rates by 2020, which is what the market has begun to price in already.
"That is such an irony, right? Last year, the market anticipated two interest rate hikes in 2019, with the possibility of two more in 2020. But with the turn of events over the last four or five weeks, we are now talking about interest rate cuts in 2020.
"So, I can tell you that the market is very fickle now. There are so many moving parts. And to make things worse, the market volatility is something difficult for most portfolio managers to stomach at the moment. Just look at how the Australian dollar performed on Jan 3."
On Jan 2, a flash crash sent the Australian dollar to its weakest level since 2009, falling more than 3% to 67.49 US cents before rebounding shortly after. On Jan 5, it was back at 71 US cents.
The decline was attributed to concerns about global growth, driven by multiple factors, including weak manufacturing data coming out of China and the EU. This was made worse by algorithmic or high-frequency trading in the market.
Teng says his team is restrategising its asset allocation in the light of the current market conditions. He acknowledges that it will be tough going forward, but it is something the team is prepared for.
"This is my 19th year in this business and we are not averse to market cycles as we have been through 1998 and 2008. This is another one of those things where you have to be mentally strong to ride out the storm," says Teng.
"We are hoping that this does not become a perfect storm. It may turn out to be if all three major economies see a downturn together. So far, China has turned downwards while the US is showing signs. Japan and Europe have not shown signs of turning down yet. So, let's see what happens.
"It is just that in 2019, we are facing a situation where we have had a prolonged economic or market rally over the past eight years. So, the question is whether this is a necessary correction of the market.
"The answer is yes. The markets cannot continue to rise in the midst of an extended economic cycle. So, from a client perspective, it is important to properly asset allocate your positions from day one."
A smooth integration
The tough market conditions notwithstanding, the last five years have been good for AHAM since Affin Holdings Bhd completed the acquisition of HwangDBS Investment Bank in September 2014. While there was initially some nervousness about the acquisition, Teng has been pleasantly surprised to see the smooth integration of the corporate cultures.
"The Hwang culture was very much entrepreneurial-driven while Affin's was a lot more process-driven. The efforts made by management and shareholders to work together to ensure that the entrepreneurial spirit of Hwang remains is a key point in the thriving asset management business that we have today," he says.
"We have kept the entrepreneurial culture very much alive. It was a successful merger of cultures and we have seen good results since. The merger is not seen as a 'one plus one equals two' but more as a 'one plus one equals multiples of two'."
One key advantage that AHAM could leverage post-acquisition was to grow its government-linked-company business. "One thing that has helped us as being part of Affin was that we could reach out to more government-linked funds and government-linked companies and be a good service provider in that particular space," says Teng.
Since then, the company has accomplished many of the milestones it had set out to achieve. One of them was to have a pre-tax profit of more than RM100 million, which the fund house achieved in the last two years, says Teng. This is an impressive jump from Hwang's profit of about RM20 million prior to the acquisition.
Another achievement was the building up of its private wealth business within the asset management industry, says Teng. "It is a natural progression as we have been a big player in the corporate space. Over time, we have built good relationships in the space and we have a decent portfolio of high-net-worth clients who invest with us today."
To develop the private wealth business further, there must be more products and the alternative space was something that the company needed to be in, he says. So, last June, it established its private equity arm, Bintang Capital Partners Bhd, to deploy capital and support fast-growing private companies with proven track records.
Bintang aims to back entrepreneurial founders who have built a strong business presence in Asia-Pacific and intend to take their businesses to the next level of growth. It selects companies with enterprise values of US$20 million to US$200 million.
In the next five years, Teng hopes to go regional and set up offices in some Asean countries. However, this will only be done after the company has solidified its businesses here.
"When it comes, it comes. We should not do it just for the sake of doing so. We must be good and successful at managing assets here. Only then can you start expanding to other countries and replicating what you have done here," he says.
Teng believes that in terms of market share, AHAM is positioned behind Public Mutual Bhd and CIMB-Principal Asset Management Bhd, the two largest players in the industry. Has he set his sights on being a future market leader?
"Someone once asked if I wanted to be No 1. I told him that is not the point. If we continue to grow and be good at what we do and continue to acquire clients and assets, we will eventually get there. But we should not set that as a goal," says Teng.
"Instead, the primary objective of a company should always be serving its clients. They are the most important stakeholders in our business. That must continue to be the key focus of the firm, not striving to be the best in this or that."
What he is most proud of today is the people who have journeyed with him all these years, especially those who came on board with him post-merger. He wants to continue developing talent in this organisation.
"I want to bring young people into this organisation and get them interested in developing a career in the financial industry. My proudest moments are when I see that after five years from their first day out of school, they are still working for me and still engaged in this industry," says Teng.
Another area in which AHAM is putting a lot of effort is innovation. This is a necessity, especially with the industry continuing to face cost pressures, says Teng.
"Our approach to reaching out to clients must change. So, we set up the Innovation Lab last year. And you will see a lot more initiatives roll out of it in the near future."
AHAM appointed its first chief innovation officer, Allen Woo, in January last year to set up and lead the team. Top on the Innovation Lab's list of priorities is to drive down costs and improve the client experience.
"The amount of paper we use in this organisation should be at least halved in the next three years. That is where the back-end processes have to be a lot more efficient," says Teng.
"Another big dream that I have is when a client needs to purchase Affin Hwang products and they can do so in just three clicks. Right now, there are too many clicks. As a first step, I think it can be seven or eight clicks.
"These are things that we are spending time and effort on internally to make ourselves a lot more efficient. We are not only using innovation as a means to reach out to our existing client base but also to drive productivity. Then, in three years' time, we will use innovation to come up with new products to reach out to the masses."
Currently, investors can only top up their existing unit trusts on Affin Hwang's website or purchase select products on third-party platforms such as Fundsupermart.com.
Improving the client experience is something that Teng wants to focus on, especially as AHAM acquires 5,000 new clients on average each year. "We used to have more clients coming to us via distributor channels such as banks and platforms. But since we launched PRS funds five years ago, we have acquired about 5,000 new clients each year," he says.
"So, in the last five years, we have had 25,000 to 30,000 new clients. Over the years, we started to see PRS as a natural opportunity for us to have more clients come to us.
"When we have this number of clients, we get them to invest in other products such as our unit trusts. So, we have developed service teams around that. Today, we manage to convince about 45% of them to have more than just their PRS funds with us."
Capturing the changing landscape
AHAM has been in fund management for many years now and has seen various market conditions and the introduction of many investment vehicles. Compared with a decade ago, the landscape is changing very quickly, says Teng.
"Young investors have access to many investment options and they are willing to give these a try. They are a lot more adventurous than their parents. This is the segment that our Innovation Lab is trying to address," he adds.
"While they do not make up a large portion of our investor group, we are mindful that they — the millennials — will be our investors in the next 10 to 15 years. We must capture them now to be there with them as they go through this journey of investments.
"For now, a big part of our pool of investors is in the 45 to 60 age group. But 15 years from now, some of this wealth will pass to the next generation. That is when you really have to think about products that cater for their needs.
"We have been engaging the second generation of our existing client base. What we have found is that there is a lot of interest in start-ups, unicorns and things like that. So, we started the private equity business because we realised that this group wants to try new things and be at the forefront of this evolution."
The Innovation Lab was set up with two objectives — to drive down costs using productivity and technology and to use technology to reach out to clients. "We want to put more information at their disposal and be more transparent. We want to get them to engage with us more," says Teng.
"Right now, the only time they engage with us is when they really look at the portfolio and when the value is down. When it is up, they do not bother.
"We also want to use the Innovation Lab as a tool to reach out to a segment of the market that we have not been able to — the masses. These segments will only invest in small amounts. But today, the entry costs are high. So, how can we break it down and make it cheaper for them?"
Teng hopes to see much better results this year. "Right now, it is not so much about coming up with new products but improving our internal processes," he says.
Teng is proud of the fact that AHAM's fixed-income team has developed its own capability in managing global bonds. Four years ago, the company was given a mandate by a pension fund as part of its initiative to develop local talent to manage global bonds. Eight asset managers — four local and four global — were selected.
"We are one of the four local asset managers to be given a chance. When we first received the mandate, we were just lost because when we looked at the index, there were 20,000 components," says Teng.
"Plus, we are talking about running interest rates and credits across global markets in the US, Europe, Japan and emerging markets. So, what we did was ask the help of our other shareholder Nikko Asset Management. It tasked its London team to advise us and get us started.
"We also invested in a young team of people in Malaysia, where they would learn about these markets even though these were across different time zones."
It was challenging at first. There were so many things to learn, but the team took it in their stride.
"If you look at the US alone, you have to learn about the Treasury market, municipal bonds, mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities. Then, you must understand how the markets function," says Teng.
"Sometimes there are opportunities. Sometimes there are traps that can kill you. Nonetheless, I gave the team the latitude to try and learn."
Apart from the dedicated team of four who managed this portfolio of US$300 million to US$400 million, the entire team at AHAM was on hand to support the infrastructure, credits, processes and macro-processes. Their efforts paid off. While this was a lean team, it was able to compete with its larger counterparts.
"While we are not yet as good as the global fund houses, I think the message that I want to send is that we are willing to build. We took this opportunity to grow our team and to get results on top of it all," says Teng.
"Looking at the performance metrics over the last four years, we are not far from these global asset managers. To me, that is a proud achievement. In fact, we were given an award last year by the pension fund for being the best global bond fund manager."
On listing
Last year, the market was abuzz with rumours that Affin Hwang Asset Management Bhd (AHAM) was going to be listed. However, managing director Teng Chee Wai says while there are no concrete plans to list yet, he is open to doing so in the future.
"We have not made any submissions to the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) yet. But if we eventually do so and obtain the SC's approval, the whole process is meant to do a few things. The first is that it is meant to further reinforce the reward system for the management and the team to bring the company to the next level," he says.
"Second, this is to help Affin realise the value of its investment in us over the last four to five years. From my perspective, it is good to list because then you ensure the independence of the firm. We have fought hard for that and although Affin is a major shareholder of the firm, I must say that it has granted us that independence.
"I think a listing will enforce the independence, in my view, to allow the public to be shareholders. If management is not doing a good job, remove us. If we do not keep our independence, remove us. We are still at the discussion stage now and hope to get something done by 2020."
Introducing a passive strategy
Investors can look forward to more exchange-traded funds (ETFs) when Affin Hwang Asset Management Bhd introduces its passive strategy. But managing director Teng Chee Wai says its plans are still in their infancy.
"We are still trying to figure out what works and what does not work in Malaysia. So far, we have seen what does not work. So, we are very realistic about it. We ask ourselves what we can do differently and how these strategies can help meet the needs of our portfolio managers and the sales team to help build their clients' portfolios."
Teng says ETFs have not been successful in the country for several reasons. "One, I think it is because the strategies that have been launched in the market are not volatile enough to create opportunities for people to trade. Two, they may not have been strategies that help asset managers or clients diversify their exposure."
While investors can gain access to ETFs listed overseas, Teng believes that it will be easier for investors to access them if they can be traded locally. "My view is that we should continue to launch ETFs with certain themes so that they interest investors over time. We are going to be a little bit more active in this particular space and hope for the best," he says.
"I am not sure if we will be successful, but a lot of my businesses have started with trial and error anyway. Some will turn out well and be successful, others may not be. But we are happy to try."
Is the fund house worried that its passive strategy may take off and cannibalise its products that use an active strategy? Teng does not believe so.
"Trends have shown that the passive strategy is indeed growing faster than active ones. Look at the funds in the marketplace. A lot of them consistently underperform, yet they charge 1.5%, compared with passive strategies that charge 5 to 10 basis points and perform in line with the index," he says.
"It does not make sense. But because the draw of money into passive funds has been strong, these investments end up performing well because it is all blind money. They do not choose companies, [the money just goes into] the top 30, top 50 companies. Then, you starve capital to the companies that need it in the growing phase. Yet, you give capital to those who may not need it because they are in the established phase of the business cycle.
"But that is the challenge of the industry. I have never seen the passive strategy as a replacement for my active strategy, partly because our active funds have been performing relatively stronger than the index anyway, on a rolling three to five-year basis."
Instead, Teng sees ETFs playing a complementary role in terms of what the fund house can do to bring strategies that can be traded in Malaysia and used by local fund managers to supplement their existing portfolios. "I think there are a few inefficiencies for us to extract and participate in the Asian marketplace [via ETFs]," he says.
He adds that even AHAM's active strategies use ETFs. "Last year, we were one of the biggest buyers of an inverse Chinese A-share ETF (listed in Hong Kong). At one stage, we owned about 40% to 50% of the unit holder.
"We invested in it across a few funds. We wanted to use it as a hedge to our beta. Because we know the market makers, they allowed us to trade units and cash out our units when we wanted to exit so there was no issue of liquidity."
Last November, AHAM announced that it had entered into a strategic partnership with Samsung Asset Management (Hong Kong) Ltd to drive product innovation across a range of initiatives, including the development and offering of Leveraged & Inverse (L&I) ETFs on the country's stock exchange.
Under the terms of the agreement, AHAM will appoint Samsung AM as its investment adviser to provide advisory services in the management of its derivative-type ETFs, including L&I products, through shared resources and expertise.
"Samsung was the first asset management firm in the region to launch futures-based ETFs in Asia and has been managing L&I products since 2009. It was one of the early pioneers of ETFs in South Korea and has built a strong name in its home market," says Teng.
"Given Samsung's strong capabilities and success in managing L&I products, we believe that we are able to capitalise on its expertise to complement our growth strategy. L&I strategies are not readily available in the market, but we believe that such strategies will catch the eye of investors and asset allocators.
"The focus remains on providing investors with a diverse suite of products to choose from. And with the plain-vanilla ETF options already available in the market, we thought it would be suitable to also have some tactical options for investors to participate in."
The company currently has one ETF — the TradePlus Shariah Gold Tracker — which it listed in late 2017. However, according to Bloomberg data, the fund ended last year at RM1.73 per share, slightly below its Jan 3 price of RM1.77.
Teng explains the fund's performance. "Unlike actively managed funds that aim to outperform their benchmark, ETFs are generally bound by their investment objective to track the benchmark. The TradePlus Shariah Gold Tracker has managed to do so and mirror the benchmark relatively well over last year.
"However, gold prices tumbled in 2Q and 3Q2018, alongside most commodities, on concerns about the health of the global economy, a strengthening US dollar and weaker confidence in China's growth rate. However, ongoing uncertainties and the sell-off in equity markets globally pushed gold prices higher in 4Q.
"While the gold price ended 2018 in the red, it has clawed back from its lows. Investors' shying away from risker assets, coupled with the weakness in the dollar index, pushed gold prices higher towards the year end. With market volatility expected to persist, gold will be a valuable source of diversification for investors to cushion their portfolios."


But then a trip to France in the '90s, and a baguette with goat cheese, basil and tomato bought from a street vendor, changed all of that.
Ash covering, a traditional way of finishing goat cheese that also helps its P.H. levels, helped cover flaws and contributed to the misconception that these were blue cheeses. I still have many customers ask me if the ash down the middle of some goat cheeses in a blue mold. No, it is a line that traditionally separated the morning milk from the evening milk. It is also said that housewives in the Loire Valley, where much goat cheese comes from, would make it and then cover it with ash to protect it. It is more decorative these days.
The one and only "cheese master," Mark Keen from Cypress Grove Creamery.
Fast forward about 10 -15 years and goat cheese production in the U.S. is huge. It often starts off small; goats are easy animals to have if you have some land. Mary Keen from Cypress Grove got a few to have an inexpensive source of milk for her kids. One goat leads to more and then you have more milk than you need, so you of course make cheese. That is sort of how it happened with Cypress Grove, one of the better known goat cheese makers in America.
You find many women goat cheese manufacturers just for the reason that goats smaller and easier to handle than cows and require a lot less land. It starts off simple and then just mushrooms from there.
Tumalo Farms in Oregon told us that they keep the male goats far away from the female goats, in their own "bachelor pad." If the females get a whiff of them they will release a hormone that can flavor the milk.
Tumalo Farms has French Alpine goats.
The way the milk is mixed can have an effect on the taste; beating too much can release an enzyme that will flavor the milk. The result of this technique for Tumalo Farms is a delicious cheese with notes of brown butter and nuts, as well as 3 consecutive gold medals at the annual convention of the American Cheese Society. Even die-hard, "I don't do goat cheese" people have been converted.
Goat cheese has come a long way from the French Crotin or Pyramid. We still love a good crotin, one of our favorite cheeses, but there are just so many options out here in the wild terrain that is the American Cheese Industry. There are restrictions that exist in Europe; the AOC/DOP status that means a cheese, or wine or other product, must be made following well known and laid out rules. We don't have such limitations in the U.S. which makes for some really interesting cheeses.
On a molecular level, goat cheese has a different structure than cow's milk. One major difference is the size of fat particles, which are much smaller in goats milk and makes them easier to digest. The protein and calcium content is different as well. We have found many people who say they can eat goat cheese but have difficulty with cow's milk. Also, the more a cheese ages the less lactose it has, so if lactose causes you discomfort but love cheese, pick a more aged cheese like a Parmesan or aged Gouda.
I began this article mentioning Central Coast Creamery, made in Paso Robles, California. I've listed below some American goat cheeses and mixed milk cheeses that are worth a taste. It is not a complete list, but some Fancifull Favorites. If you find others we should know about, please let us know.
A Grand Classic, never get tired of this one. This company and their cheeses all have a touch of whimsy.
A semi-hard cheese made with goat milk and some added goat cream that is aged four months or more. This ivory colored cheese is firm, dense and smooth with the slight graininess of a long-aged cheese.
Seacape is a semi-soft goat and cow milk cheese with a smooth, creamy texture and a complex tanginess that make this cheese a true American Original.
Named for the "Cream of Vermont" is a mixed-milk cheese combining local fresh cows' milk, goats' milk and a hint of Vermont cream.


Most parents, when it comes to children and cooking, cringe with dreadful anticipation at the thought of their progeny making anything but a mess in the kitchen. Children will get a sense of turn-taking and sequencing from following directions in order. Little ones in the Kitchen – Children/Teens – Categorized recipes for youngsters to follow with their parents. When cooking with kids, the fewer components the much better, as their interest span is shorter than that of adults. We commence with Gaynor's College of Cooking on the South Side because they provide a wide selection of cooking classes for children. I think it's a parent or guardian's duty to support teach their youngsters about meals. For the actually passionate kids who dream of hosting their personal Food Network show, try one of these awesome summer camps focused on the culinary arts. Have children bring plastic containers or consist of this expense in the price of your lessons. I don't know that my little ones will refuse to eat anything else but they have been absolutely asking for them the next day.
Fortunately for us, Pittsburgh provides several hands-on possibilities for inspiring little ones to appreciate meals and create lifelong cooking abilities. Give your children a sense of manage and accomplishment by letting them make options anytime attainable. But truly, I am truly enjoying cooking and I'm better than you now!" That was a single of those moments exactly where I began to recognize just how effective food can be in altering people's lives for the much better. We attempt to find a healthier balance for our snacks, and a entertaining way to incorporate a lot more vegetables is to let the children pick them at the marketplace and help to prepare them.
We're all about great recipes, and about good quality property cooking that absolutely everyone can appreciate. Craft Recipes for Youngsters – Youngsters – A massive index of craft recipes which includes dryer lint clay, eggshell chalk, salt, soap or sawdust doughs, and invisible ink. Most tweens are capable of cooking the entire meal, but often they lack self-assurance, or are worried about burning themselves, or spilling things. Now I'm not out to make any person feel negative, and I know that being time poor can be a really big issue in what decisions you make, but cooking from scratch doesn't have to mean slaving over a stove for hours. This is a excellent cooking activity to do with your young children a couple of days ahead of time and then serve them for breakfast on Easter.
But whether you are a keen cook or a comprehensive beginner, we've got hundreds of recipes to make cooking healthful, tasty meals for kids straightforward. That's why the YouGov investigation carried out by the Huffington Post this week is genuinely fascinating but also slightly worrying – the benefits imply we nevertheless have a extremely extended way to go when it comes to inspiring parents to cook greater meals for their youngsters. Prior to getting The New Essentials of French Cooking for free of charge, please confirm your e mail address below.
Little ones can aid prepare this roast full with carrots and potatoes, plus help in generating the lemony gravy to serve on the side. If the youngsters want to really impress their parents, toss collectively some hash browns, eggs, onions, bacon bits and seasonings and set the slow cooker on low just before going to bed is a excellent way to wake up! If children are involved in expanding and cooking meals, then they are far much more probably to eat it. Homemade Supplies – Kids – Find craft suggestions for creating various types of clays, play dough, paint, and bubbles. The Grub Guy – Teens/Mature Teens – Recipes and cooking tactics from high school senior Germain Vargas who stars as the chef in his personal Television series. New Zealand Beef and Lamb – Children – Recipes for wraps, mini meatballs, mini burgers, tacos, and a couple of far more, which you can help make.


The Hummingbird Project is an odd movie. At once a financial thriller, a workplace comedy, and a character study of obsessives, this strange curiosity fails to commit to any one tone. Shame too, considering that its command of each tone is rather impressive. The value and the enjoyment comes piecemeal, the whole not quite reaching the sum of its parts. Even so, in the days since watching it, I've found my thoughts circling back to it quite a bit. Although it often fails as an entertainment, it just as often succeeds at being interesting. The Hummingbird Project may not be the movie I expected, but it's one that depicts a world of which laypersons like myself are likely unaware, which is one of cinema's greatest powers as a medium.
When it comes to the stock market, transactions can go from being beneficial to being a liability in a matter of milliseconds. As such, power brokers bank on having the fastest access to market updates. Cousins Vincent and Anton Zaleski (Jesse Eisenberg and Alexander Skarsgård, respectively) have decided to quit their jobs at a powerful firm to focus on building an underground fiber optic line directly connecting the Kansas Electronics Exchange to their offices in the northeast. By doing so, they can shave a single millisecond off of the current information transmission time, and it's this millisecond which will make them kings of the trade.
Jesse Eisenberg and Alexander Skarsgard in THE HUMMINGBIRD PROJECT.
After teaming up with Mark (Michael Mando, scene stealer), a contractor who specializes in underground drilling, the newly formed trio begins a race against the clock to bust through miles of bureaucratic red tape (and the Appalachian mountains) to dominate an industry which sees them as disposable. This, of course, doesn't bode well with their previous employer, Eva Torres (Salma Hayek), who begins her own campaign to not just outdo their potential transmission speed, but to destroy their efforts in any way she can.
What makes the film so interesting is that amidst this competition, there are no real heroes or villains. Sure, Vincent and Anton are our protagonists, but they aren't necessarily the most virtuous types. Same goes for Torres. She's a savvy businesswoman who appears to take care of her employees. Her antagonistic quest is not one based in vengeance, or even so much in ego. It's just business, and business is what she does.
What writer/director Kim Nguyen (War Witch) is going for here is presumably an ensemble epic, covering every ounce of logistics required for the competing factions to succeed. Vincent has to get through miles of paperwork while convincing his financiers that the increasing odds of failure are no reason to stop backing the project. Anton needs to improve upon a near-perfect algorithm to shave fractions of milliseconds off of processing times. Mark has to literally drill through mountains, requisitioning tools from all around the world. And when a particularly upsetting medical diagnosis enters the mix, the urgency (and unfortunately, the tonal inconsistency) kicks into overdrive. Meanwhile, we see the inner workings of Torres' plan as well, as she wrestles with the notion that if her competitors succeed, her empire will be severely threatened.
There's a lot happening all at once, and to his credit, Nguyen balances it all quite well. If the tone is off, the pacing is spot on. The minutes fly by with a metered out tension that works much more often than it doesn't. Films that try to juggle simultaneous events often fail at finding a rhythm (check any movie with a ticking time bomb for reference), but that's not the case here. It's easy to keep up, even while learning the ins and outs of a mysterious business.
Jesse Eisenberg is a talented actor, albeit one with a limited range. But within said range, there is no one better. His Vincent is as squirrely as an intensely motivated number cruncher/salesman should be. His love for his cousin feels real, even if on the surface it appears to be in service of selfish aims. Eisenberg finds this density of characterization and makes it sing. Skarsgård's Anton, with his comically bald head and vulture-like posture (a smart physical choice which speaks to his disconnect from the average person), plays an oddball savant with touching accuracy. It's his performance which wins the movie, even if the characterization itself is uneven from scene to scene.
Perhaps the biggest criticism I could lob at The Hummingbird Project is that there just isn't enough Salma Hayek. Between this and The Hitman's Bodyguard, it's clear that she's having fun with her role choices of late, even if the movies in which she finds herself are middling. She's fantastic here, and she really understands the material. She's antagonistic without being villainous, sultry without being objectified, and she plays a competitive capitalist with cold accuracy. It's not easy to forget that a character is being played by someone so iconic as she, but she's just that good.
Overall, The Hummingbird Project is worth seeing. It's a fascinating curiosity made with care, but it's just a rewrite or two away from being a high-yield investment of your time.
That was a stock market pun.
Dan Scully is a film buff and humorist living in a tiny apartment in Philadelphia. He hosts the podcast I Like to Movie Movie and is the proud father to twin cactuses named Riggs & Murtaugh. Also, he doesn't really mind when Batman kills people. Follow him on Twitter and Letterboxd.


text:
Posts tagged as "white house"
By cloverchronicle on June 1, 2021
A recently leaked photo of a page from an alleged top secret Pentagon report is raising some eyebrows in the UFO community. The document is titled 'Section V: Behavioral Data Analysis' and describes a bizarre joint investigation conducted by the NSA, DHS, ONI and SAP, in conjunction with the DoD.…
WATCH: Biden's Massive Illegal Immigrant Smuggling Pipeline EXPOSED
The mainstream media has been talking about a surge at the border, but the real story is a massive illegal immigration pipeline run by the Biden administration that Infowars reporters witnessed running nonstop in McAllen, Texas. First, Border Patrol delivers bus loads of illegal immigrants to a secure tent processing…
Kamala Harris To Biden: "This Is Your Last Month As President, Joe"
By cloverchronicle on March 19, 2021
An alleged 'Senior Janitor' who works at the White House posted an online confession on Friday explaining how they overheard Kamala Harris tell President Joe Biden this is his "last month" in office. "Senior White House Janitor here," the whistleblower said in their post. "I'm usually responsible for cleaning the…
WATCH: Biden Trips Three Times While Boarding Air Force One
On Friday, President Joe Biden was caught stumbling three times in a row while climbing the stairs to board Air Force One: Joe Biden just fell 3 times in a row trying to go up the stairs to Air Force One pic.twitter.com/gTUTckUH32 — Caleb Hull (@CalebJHull) March 19, 2021 Backup…
Staffer Claims Barack Obama's Currently Living In The White House And Is "Secretly Running The Show From Behind The Scenes"
By cloverchronicle on February 27, 2021
On Saturday, an alleged White House staffer shared some disturbing information: former President Barack Obama has moved back to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave and is "running the show, but in secret from behind the scenes." "I've worked at the White House since the late 90s when Clinton was still in office,"…
Biden Supports Slavery Reparations Even Though Most Americans Are Overwhelmingly Against It
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki recently announced President Joe Biden would support looking into whether descendants of slaves in the U.S. should receive some type of compensation, including reparations. "He certainly would support a study of reparations," Psaki said during the Wednesday press briefing. "He understands we don't need…


The Activation Of The Labyrinth attunement aims to activate the energies associated with the Labyrinth. The primary purpose of working with the energies of the Labyrinth is to take you on a profound inner journey of self-discovery, where you may find a connection to the divine energy and regain a sense of peace, balance and clarity in your life.
Labyrinths are known to be ceremonial pathways, symbolic of life's journey which have been used as powerful meditation tools by different cultures for thousands of years. A Labyrinth may be seen as a circuit which may help you to access and work with your right side brain which is associated with intuition, creativity and imagery. Depending on the type of a Labyrinth, they may also help with working, healing and cleansing the seven major chakras and finding your true path and purpose in life.
You will be given information on how to accept and use these energies once the attunement has been prepared for you.
The Activation Of The Labyrinth works very well alongside the Activation Of The Medicine Wheel and the Activation Of The Shaman attunements.


text:
in Heartwarming, inspirational, Lists, People
10 Unusual but Remarkable Stories of Saviors that Deserve a Mention
by Heer Khant Mar 10, 2019, 4:30 am Comments Off on 10 Unusual but Remarkable Stories of Saviors that Deserve a Mention
Ralph Waldo Emerson defined a "hero" beautifully. He said, "A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer." This article talks about such heroes and brings stories of unusual but remarkable saviors who deserve a mention. These ten heroes have done something extraordinary that was not expected out of them in the circumstances in which they found themselves. They displayed courage and put the lives of others ahead of their own. Read on…
1. Italian doctors made up a fake disease named "Syndrome K" to save the Jews who had taken shelter in their hospital. The doctors told the German soldiers that they had to be quarantined as the illness was contagious. The doctors saved at least 20 lives this way.
(Image 1) Giovanni Borromeo – Italian doctor. (Image 2) "K" for German commander Kesselring. Image credits: Fabio-Staffetta/wikimedia, qz
In the fall of 1943, in Italy, thousands of Jews were in danger. On October 16, 1943, the German soldiers raided a ghetto near Rome's Tiber River. The doctors at the Fatebenefratelli Hospital including the doctors Vittorio Sacerdoti and Giovanni Borromeo devised a plan to save some of the Jews.
They came up with a fake disease, called "Syndrome K," and diagnosed dozens of Jews positive for it. They told the soldiers that the disease was dangerous and could spread, and it was extremely necessary for the Jews to be quarantined.
Dr. Adriano Ossicini came up with the name "Syndrome K" which was actually a codeword for the staff to understand that the patient on whose papers the words were written was a Jew. The "K" in the name was taken from the surnames of two German officers, Herbert Kappler and Albert Kesselring.
The soldiers, when told about the syndrome, did not inspect the patients worried that they might catch the disease. There were children too who had to be protected so the doctors at the hospital taught them how to fake coughing. In an unusual way, these doctors saved more than 20 lives. Their efforts were recognized 60 years later. (source)
2. A railways dispatcher, Vince Coleman, sacrificed his life to warn an incoming train of an explosion that was imminent. He sent telegraph messages in time instead of fleeing his post and saved 300 lives.
(Image 1) Patrick Vincent Coleman-The rail dispatcher who warned about the tragedy. (Image 2) View of the harbor of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, after the explosion of December 6, 1917. Image credits: maritimemuseum, Library and Archives Canada
On December 6, 1917, two ships, the SS Imo and SS Mont-Blanc, collided in the Narrows, a strait in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Intercolonial railways dispatcher, Patrick Vincent Coleman (Vince), was working at the railyard about 750 feet away from the site of the explosion.
He knew that SS Mont-Blanc was laden with cargo that could explode as it was already burning. He began to flee. Then he remembered that passenger train No. 10 from Saint John, New Brunswick was heading in their direction and was in danger. He returned to his post.
Coleman sent several urgent telegraph messages asking the train to stop knowing that he was not going to make it. He sent the warning message asking to "hold up" and ended it with, "Guess this will be my last message. Good-bye, boys." All the stations along the Intercolonial Railway heard his message which made all the trains heading to Halifax stop.
The passenger train that he had remembered about had 300 passengers on board. Their lives were saved, but Coleman's was not. His name was included in the Canadian Railway Hall of Fame in 2004. (source)
3. Tilly Smith, a 10-year-old British girl saved the lives of at least a hundred beachgoers before the 2004 tsunami struck the Maikhao Beach in Thailand. She warned them after reading the signs of the tsunami that she had learned only two weeks ago in school.
Tilly Smith was 10 years old when she saved the lives of at least a hundred foreign tourists at the Maikhao Beach in Thailand by remembering what she had learned in school in Oxshott, Surrey as a part of her geography lesson two weeks ago.
In 2004, she was on the beach with her parents when she saw the water receding from the shore and frothing bubbles in the sea. She recognized these as the signs of a tsunami and told her parents. They alerted the beachgoers and the staff at the hotel where they were staying.
Because of Smith's observation and presence of mind, the beach was evacuated before the tsunami actually hit the shore saving a lot of lives. The beach was one of the few beaches that reported no loss of lives in 2004. She was hailed a hero and was awarded. An asteroid 20002 Tilly smith is named after her. She also was at the United Nations in November 2005. (source)
4. Known as the "Snake Man," Bill Haast injected himself with snake venom every day for over 60 years. He was bitten by venomous snakes more than 170 times. By donating his blood he saved countless lives with his anti-body rich blood.
Bill with venom at a younger age and later. Image credits: billhaast
When Bill Haast, a scientist, passed away in 2011, he was 100 years old and had handled three million poisonous snakes in his lifetime. For 60 years of his life, he injected himself every day with snake venom from 32 different species of snakes. Because of this habit, his blood became rich with antibodies. He donated it to 21 different snake-bite victims across the globe and saved their lives.
Once in Venezuela, he went deep into a jungle to donate blood for a boy who had been bitten by a snake. Although it wasn't for all kinds of snake venom, his blood was an antidote for many. Haast was seven when he first caught a snake.
When he was a child and brought a snake home, his mother left the house for three days. His obsession with snakes also led to the divorce of his first wife. (source)
5. In 1907, Jesus Garcia, a Mexican railroad brakeman, saved the entire town of Nacozari. He single-handedly drove a burning train containing dynamite six kilometers away from the town. He lost his life in the process.
(Image 1) Jesús García Corona riding a horse days before his death. (Image 2) Photo of Engine #2 crossing a trestle near the mine as taken. Image credits: Sonora State Government Archive/wikimedia, Photo in Douglas Collection, Tucson/maxconnect
Like a hero in a movie, Jesus Garcia drove a burning train and sacrificed his life to save an entire town. A Mexican railroad brakeman for the line between Nacozari, Sonora, and Douglas, Arizona, Garcia is a national hero in Mexico, and a lot of places and things are named after him.
On November 7, 1907, Garcia was resting when he saw that the hay atop a dynamite-loaded car of a train had caught fire. The train's firebox had failed and the sparks were coming out of the smokebox. The sparks were carried by the wind, igniting the hay.
Acting swiftly, he drove the train downhill in reverse for six kilometers at full speed before the train blew up. The entire population of the town was spared because of his quick thinking. (source)
Previous article 10 Important Skills that Can Be Learned in just 10 Minutes!
Next article 14 Weird Facts that Are Fun to Know
200 SharesComments Off on 10 Reportedly Haunted Places From Around the World
in Lists, Mysterious, Places
10 Reportedly Haunted Places From Around the World
250 SharesComments Off on 10 Movies or TV Shows that Predicted the Future Right
in Bizarre, Entertainment, Lists, Movies
10 Movies or TV Shows that Predicted the Future Right
225 SharesComments Off on 10 Characters Played so well that they are Irreplaceable
in Celebrities, Entertainment, Lists, Movies
10 Characters Played so well that they are Irreplaceable
275 SharesComments Off on 10 of the Strangest Things That Were Found in the Desert
in Archaeology, Lists, Prehistoric
10 of the Strangest Things That Were Found in the Desert
225 SharesComments Off on 10 Extraordinary Medical Cases that Surprised Even the Doctors
in Bizarre, Lists, Medical, People
10 Extraordinary Medical Cases that Surprised Even the Doctors
200 SharesComments Off on 12 Things You Have Always Wondered About, Explained
in Lists, Random, Science, Things
12 Things You Have Always Wondered About, Explained
More From: Heartwarming
225 SharesComments Off on 10 Stories of Life Sacrifices that Are Truly Sentimental
Shivam Khandelwal Aug 26, 2021, 3:50 pm
175 SharesComments Off on 10 Good Things that Happened in 2020
10 Good Things that Happened in 2020
Rinku Bhattacharjee Jan 2, 2021, 11:07 am
250 SharesComments Off on 12 Incredible Cops' Stories that We All Need to Know
12 Incredible Cops' Stories that We All Need to Know
Ayushi Rastogi Sep 30, 2020, 9:02 am
200 SharesComments Off on 10 Very Comforting Facts in These Testing Times
10 Very Comforting Facts in These Testing Times
Harshatha Raja Jul 14, 2020, 2:54 am
Unbelievable Facts Mar 16, 2019, 7:59 am
225 SharesComments Off on 10 Happy Animal Facts that Will Make your Day
10 Important Skills that Can Be Learned in just 10 Minutes!
14 Weird Facts that Are Fun to Know


Parents want the best for their children. And the best is a Nanny or Childminder who holds qualifications showing s/he is serious about her career in childcare.
Little Ones one-day Early-years care Education Course is suitable for Childminder and Nanny Ofsted Registration on both the Early Years and Childcare Register. To learn more about our Course call Aurelie on 0207 112 8057.
Our course provides you the skills and knowledge to care for and grow the potential of the children you will look after.
Saturday 6th of April, Hurry - 2 spaces left!
Open College Network is an awarding body that providescertification for a variety of courses.
Call now on 0207 112 8057 for more information about our Common Course and Knowledge Course Practitioners Courses. Our Course is Open College Network (OCN London) Level 3 accredited.


Posted August 25, 2013 by seed4me & filed under News, Service.
Posted August 24, 2013 by seed4me & filed under News, Service.
Posted August 21, 2013 by seed4me & filed under News, Service.
Posted by seed4me & filed under Other, What's up.
Posted August 18, 2013 by seed4me & filed under News, Service.
Knock the door, you are invited.
Posted August 16, 2013 by seed4me & filed under News, Service.
Well, today we release another bunch of public invitations. Each invitation has 7 days of free VPN access. Grab the code and make an account. Servers are available in US, Europe and Asia. Knock the door, you are welcome!
Posted August 13, 2013 by seed4me & filed under Other, What's up.
Here is some information regarding biggest cyber attacks in 2012. As you see, millions of users became victims of identity theft. We recommend to keep your privacy safe and use VPN while browsing the Internet. Contact support or existing member to receive invitation and 7 days access to our VPN service for free.
Posted August 10, 2013 by seed4me & filed under Other, Service.
Since, L2TP testing is still ongoing, then we'd like show you how to setup L2TP VPN connection for MacOS manually. Setup 1. First, open System Preferences and find Network settings there. Open it.
How much your personal data worth?
Posted August 8, 2013 by seed4me & filed under Other, What's up.


February 12, 2019 – Canadian Black Book again announces the Best Retained Value Winners this year. Not surprisingly you will find Toyota vehicles at the top of almost every category. While we have long known that Toyota built vehicles have a well-earned reputation for longevity and reliability, there are other reasons why retained value should be important to you.
Everyone wants to get the most for their trade-in vehicle. Because Toyota vehicles hold their value so well, they are worth more a trade-in time. Long term Toyota owners already know this and have seen the benefits.
When you lease a vehicle, you pay the difference between the current value of the new vehicle and the expected value at the end of the lease. When a vehicle retains more value over time, the actual cost of the lease is less. You might also be able to get out of your lease early because your Toyota is worth more than the remaining cost of the lease.
Because the retained value of Toyota vehicles is so high, you will enjoy positive equity in your vehicle much sooner. If you decide to trade in before the loan is paid off, there is a good chance the value of your Toyota is higher than the balance remaining. No need to carry an unpaid balance into a new loan.
Let us not overlook joy! There is joy in the knowledge that you have invested your hard-earned money wisely in a new Toyota. It will reward you twice with years of worry-free driving and extra value when you decide you need another new Toyota. What could be more joyful than that?


text:
Why there are so many holidays in India?
How many holidays are there in India?
What are the mandatory holidays in India?
Is Christmas a holiday in India?
Which country has no Covid?
Which country has the longest school year?
What is the longest holiday in the world?
Is Eid a holiday in India?
Is Holi a public holiday in India?
Is Diwali Hindu New Year?
india is biggest democracy in the world. It is also a secular country having many religions like Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity, Bhuddhism, Jainism, Zoroaster etc. All the religions have different festivals in Different months, which turn into a lot of holidays all over the year.
India has three national holidays. The country celebrates Republic Day on 26 January , Independence Day on 15 August and Gandhi Jayanti on 02 October every year.
The three national public holidays in India, which are mandatory, are:
Republic Day (January 26th)
Independence Day (August 15th)
Gandhi Jayanti (October 2nd)
Christmas holiday in India is a gazetted holiday. It celebrates the origin of Jesus. The Christians across the nation celebrate the festival with joy and happiness. In a majority of nations, 25 December every year will be a public holiday including India.
North Korea, the largest nation to report zero cases, with a population of 25 million, has instituted a strict lockdown, travel restrictions, and closed its borders, according to The Associated Press.
Japan, however, had the most school days per year–220 days–compared with 180 days for France and the United States. The German school year was 185 days, while U.K. school kids attended classes for 190 days. Japanese children had only 12 weeks of holidays a year, almost a month less than French and American students.
IMPORTANT: How can I get a job in Iceland from India?
The Philippines has one of the longest holiday seasons in the world, starting in September and ending around January 9. Christmas plays, parties, and decorations are in full swing throughout these months, and there are nine night Masses (known as Simbang Gabi) leading up to Christmas Day.
All-India holidays include Republic Day (January 26), Independence Day (August 15), and Gandhi Jayanti (October 2). … Festivals like Diwali, Christmas, Eidh, Guru Nanak Jayanthi, Good Friday, and so on are also bank holidays.
Thereby, these days call for a holiday as per the Government of India in the form of festival holidays.
Government Holidays in India.
26 January 2021 Tuesday Republic Day
16 February 2021 Tuesday Vasant Panchami
11 March 2021 Thursday Maha Shivaratri
29 March 2021 Monday Holi
Diwali is a festival that celebrates the beginning of the Hindu New Year. Also called the Festival of Lights or Deepavali, it takes place on the 15th day of the Hindu month of Kartika. … The festival lasts five days and is most commonly celebrated in India and other locations with Hindu communities.
Best answer: Can Indian live in Switzerland?
Your question: What are the rural problems in India?
Best answer: How many husbands can a woman have in Hinduism?
Does Dalai Lama have Indian citizenship?
Quick Answer: How can I go to shivasamudram falls from Bangalore by bus?
How is the balance of trade of India?
You asked: How many Indian tribes are in the United States?


Recently we had an inquiry from a medical professional seeking CBD payment processing. While in his medical practice, he was amazed at the effects CBD had on his patients as a remedy for inflamed muscles, pain, nausea and anxiety. So he started selling it at his office, then had the idea to sell it online off his website.
It's a good thing he called us about possible payment solutions. We may have saved him from landing on the Terminated Merchant File.
Because we offer many high risk payment processing solutions, we're well-familiar with the complexities and small – yet very important – details of CBD payment processing, and we pass that knowledge on to our merchant partners. Merchants simply need to know everything they're taking on when applying for a CBD merchant account.
We caught our medical professional by surprise. In our conversation about selling CBD online, he had mentioned that he sold CBD supplements out of his office and how successful it was. He had no inkling that he was in breach of his merchant account contract for his medical practice, and he was mortified to learn that his acquiring bank could terminate his merchant account for his medical practice on the spot.
We explained that his medical practice is a completely different entity from selling CBD oil, that when he was approved for his merchant account, it did not include the option to sell CBD to his patients.
Knowingly or unknowingly, we've seen merchants over several industries – nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals and even beauty products and weight loss – make this mistake. Many merchants wrongly assume they can add CBD oil to their list of offerings simply because they may feel it is relevant to their industry.
That can be a fatal assumption for any business.
Because CBD payment processing can be difficult to get, we've found and read about merchants in completely different industries offering CBD, and sometimes illegal and illicit substances, under the guise of other products. That's known today as transaction laundering – a surefire way to land of the TMF list.
Straight e-commerce sales (we offer no solutions for a virtual terminal).
Recently, Instabill was named among the best payment processors for CBD merchants by credit card processing industry watchdog CardPaymentOptions.com, and among the best high risk merchant account providers by both Card Payment Options and MerchantNegotiators.com.
We prefer to begin our merchant account partnerships with a conversation, which can be had by calling our home office direct in Portsmouth, N.H., U.S.A., at 1-800-530-2444.


text:
Gimme Your Answers: An Interview w/ Jordan Hastings, Dine Alone Foods' co-founder and Say Yes drummer
- August 19, 2014 August 19, 2014
Photo by Dustin Rabin Photography
In a recent interview, A Music Blog, Yea? spoke with Dine Alone Foods' co-founder and Say Yes' drummer Jordan Hastings. With Say Yes' debut EP out today, we gave Jordan a call to discuss the origins of Dine Alone Foods, their new EP, the inspirations of Austin, and touring with Alexisonfire — enjoy!
AMBY: Thanks for speaking with me today, Jordan. I look forward to chatting about Say Yes and Dine Alone Foods with you.
Jordan Hastings: Me too.
AMBY: Before the questions, I just wanted to let you know that I've tried the Dine Alone sauces before and love them. They're sooo good.
Jordan Hastings: That's awesome [laughs]. Thanks so much.
AMBY: My pleasure, we'll learn more about those later [laughs]. To kick things off, your debut self-titled EP is coming out on August 19th. Tell me a bit about the EP; what was the experience like recording it?
Jordan Hastings: It was great. We recorded it with an old friend of ours who we recorded with in the nineties, Justin Koop, here in Burlington. He's a super old friend and the recording was great. We did everything in our hometown which was nice because we didn't have to go across the country or have to be away from our families. It was a pretty quick run-through; once we started getting into the studio we were only in there for about a week or two weeks. Then it was pretty much done.
AMBY: Your Facebook biography begins with, "Warhol was right – the idea of waiting for something does indeed make it more exciting." I think that's the perfect teaser for fans who want to get your hands on your EP. What does the band have planned to celebrate or launch the debut?
Jordan Hastings: What we're basically doing is getting back on the road and picking up momentum with touring. Hopefully we'll get Canada under our belts and maybe head overseas. We'll see how it goes.
AMBY: You'll be playing the Niagara Craft Beer Festival and Riot Fest this summer.
Jordan Hastings: Yes!
AMBY: If you could curate your own festival, who would you want in the line-up and where would you want it to take place?
Jordan Hastings: That's a tough call. Canada would be cool, maybe Toronto? I really like shows at the Ampitheatre in the summertime; I like playing there and I like going to shows there. Who would be on it? I don't know. We're all avid music fans of all genres and playing periods. It would have to be a mix of some classic rock and then some newer stuff.
AMBY: Aside from the excitement happening with Say Yes, you are also the co-founder of Dine Alone Foods. Take me back to the company's origins; how did this idea to create a Dine Alone food brand with Joel (interview) come to be?
Jordan Hastings: That came about while Joel and I were travelling a lot with Alexisonfire. Joel used to come out on the road with us sometimes. We were going down south to the southern states a lot and we were trying a ton of these flavours you couldn't get up here. This is probably going back to 2005. There were all of these crazy hot sauces that you couldn't get – the only thing you could get in Canada was your typical Frank's – so being down south we were constantly trying all of these different things and bringing them back to Canada and sharing them with our friends and family. It became an obsession; we both have these huge collections of hot sauces and barbeque sauces. We started toying with the idea of making our own from Canadian ingredients and then sharing what we've experienced while abroad. That was kind of where it all stemmed from. I started developing some recipes in my home kitchen using home-grown ingredients from my garden and then we fine-tuned everything to where we liked it and scaled it up from there. Now we've got a big plant making our sauces for us and it's still all natural ingredients which we're really proud of. There's no frankenfoods.
AMBY and Jordan: [laughs]
Jordan Hastings: There are no preservatives. It's all natural. We're really stoked about coming up with new products hopefully in the near future as well.
AMBY: Congrats on everything.
Jordan Hastings: Thank you!
AMBY: Did you immediately know that you wanted to go into barbeque sauces or did you think about creating other condiments?
Jordan Hastings: It was definitely an immediate thing. It initially started with us just wanted to do a hot sauce and as we dove into it we thought, "why don't we dive into doing barbeque sauces?" It was definitely right off the bat; we knew it was going to be hot sauce and barbeque sauce. We also have some ideas for some new products so hopefully we can start working on those shortly too.
AMBY: That's great. As far as using the sauces or recipes go, what's your favourite sauce pairing? I tried the sweet and smoky Northern Soul Chipotle BBQ one and can't wait to use those on some ribs.
Jordan Hastings: Nice [laughs]. I've been using that one a lot on ribs. I've also been mixing half of the Northern Soul with half mayonnaise to create an aioli and putting it on some French fries, it's really good. The hot sauce I've been putting in caesars all summer and it's fucking awesome.
AMBY: Being on tour, you mentioned how you experienced different food scenes. Which cities did you pass through where their food inspired you the most?
Jordan Hastings: I'd say Austin, Texas. Everything there is amazing; the food is good, the entertainment is good, and the people are amazing. It's such a rad city. Where else was good? Pretty much anywhere in Texas you're not going to find shitty food… unless you look really hard [laughs]. They know how to do good barbeque in the southern states, that's for damn sure.
AMBY: Did you have any favourite spots you came across where you want to go back?
Jordan Hastings: There's this one right in Austin called Casino El Camino. After I went, I actually found out that it was featured on that show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
AMBY: Mr. Guy Fieri.
Jordan Hastings: [laughs] It was this crazy burger joint where they had all of these awesome burgers. The one I got was stuffed with blue cheese and it was an incredible burger. The guys from Alexis and I were on Warped Tour and I had a little dirt bike, so we hopped on it and we eventually found our way from the Warped site to this crazy restaurant. It probably looked pretty silly to have two grown men on this tiny motorcycle but it was worth the drive, that's for sure.
Thank you Jordan Hastings, for giving us your answers!
Facebook // Twitter // Website //
Gimme Your Answers: An Interview w/ Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas
Getting Cozy With: Gigantic Leaves


How to book cheap Marianna to San Miguel De Allende bus tickets?
The best way to get deals on bus tickets from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende is by booking earlier. Based on the last 30 days, the cheapest average bus fares from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende were $5,539.83. By booking 10 days out, tickets are on average $0.00 cheaper than those that are booked last minute.
What is the busiest time to travel by bus from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende?
The busiest time of the week for travel from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende by bus is at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday. When planning to travel around this time, tickets should be booked well in advance as they may sell out. Around 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday is when the fewest number of bus tickets are sold. If you're looking for a little extra space, the bus departing at this time is the least likely to be crowded.
On average there are 4 bus trips per day. Tornado Bus has the most options for departures from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende, with an average of 4 trips per day and 4 monthly trips. One bus carrier currently travels from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende. Of the 4 trips there are 4 trips that are direct routes with no transfers.
Book Tornado Bus from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende from $5,539.83. There are 4 Tornado Bus schedules from Marianna to San Miguel De Allende and you can expect on average to pay $5,539.83 for a Tornado Bus ticket to San Miguel De Allende. In Marianna, Tornado Bus departs to San Miguel De Allende from FL-71 and no other station. In San Miguel De Allende, Tornado Bus arrives at Calzada La Estacion 62 and no other station.
Depending on the bus line you travel with, your options include one station that has bus departures from Marianna. Most bus trips to San Miguel De Allende will depart from FL-71.
bus trips arrive in San Miguel De Allende at 1 stations, depending on which bus line you are travelling with. Calzada La Estacion 62 are the main bus stations in San Miguel De Allende for trips arriving from Marianna.


Moving to a smaller home is not necessarily a bad thing. In this economy, it can be a very practical and beneficial decision to make. If you are used to living in a bigger home, it can take some time and effort to adjust to the change and get used to the new place, but you need to stay positive and realise just how much easier to manage and more affordable a smaller house is. Here is some advice on how you can make the transition to a smaller home without much trouble.
The first thing you need to do is revaluate what you should take with you to the new house and what you should discard. Since the new home will not have as much space as your current place, you will probably need to downsize the number of things you own. Don't look at it as a negative thing: this can be a much-needed chance to de-clutter your life and be free of things that you don't need. It is a fantastic opportunity to get rid of all the extra things that you have managed to pile up over the years. You probably know that a lot of these aren't necessary and have outlived their purpose. Start by making an inventory of everything you own and divide things into categories of priority items and things that can be done away with.
The next thing to do is make arrangements in the new house to maximise the space. This means that you might have to come up with imaginative ways to use the space that you have. From storage ideas to smart planning and organising, a lot can be done to use seemingly limited space to store tonnes of things! If you want, you can have shelves attached, have storage units and racks built and you can even get readymade storage items such as hanging racks and foldable shelves. You need to do this before you shift so that once you have moved into the new house, everything is in place as it should be and you can start unpacking your belongings.
Even after you move into the new house there are a lot of ways to make the transition smoother and make sure the sudden reduction in space doesn't overwhelm you. Take a moment to understand that the change isn't going to be easy to absorb overnight. You need to facilitate the adaption and the only way to do so is one day at a time.
One thing that can make this easier is to unpack wisely. It is but natural to want to get everything unpacked as quickly as possible and resume a normal routine as soon as you can, but when the new house is smaller, you should take things slow and unpack as you need things. This will give you more time to get used to the space and also devise ways to make the most of it. Instead of unpacking every box that you have, only take out things that are essential for day-to-day life. Unpack and organise the essential rooms first: the bathroom and the kitchen. Then slowly, as you settle into the new house, see what things should be arranged onto the shelves etc. and what can be left in the boxes for a while. Making a detailed inventory and labelling boxes before you pack really helps in this regard because you'll know exactly where every item is and can unpack accordingly.


text:
Strip club license yanked after prostitution probe
7 years 4 months 4 weeks ago Monday, August 31 2015 Aug 31, 2015 August 31, 2015 11:24 AM August 31, 2015 in News
Image: Yelp
BATON ROUGE - The owners of a Houma gentleman's club are behind bars Monday and the business' license is revoked after undercover narcotics agents discovered numerous violations including drug dealing and prostitution.
Terrebonne Parish Sheriff's Office narcotics agents said they were able to setup three different prostitution deals with entertainers employed at the Wet & Wild Saloon, located at 795 Highway 182 in Houma.
TPSO agents said they were able to buy crystal meth, marijuana and ecstasy at the club on four different occasions. The business was cited by the ATC for numerous violations including allowing the entertainers to improperly expose themselves and engage in lewd and immoral acts, failure to keep employee records and improperly allowing employees to solicit drinks from patrons for free.
Louisiana ATC Commissioner Troy Hebert ordered the saloon to immediately stop selling alcohol on Aug. 28 following the collection of considerable evidence that the business posed a threat to public safety due to the drug and prostitution related activity going on inside.
The owners, Lance and Rachel Smiley, were arrested by TPSO deputies and booked on charges of promoting prostitution, illegal drinking, pandering, nudity and keeping a disorderly place.
They are scheduled to appear at an administrative hearing on Wed., Sept. 8 in relation to the charges against them.


Through sight we perceive the orderly arrangements of the universe. The mechanisms which govern the rotation of the sun and the moon and the stars, and the source from which they first materialized, is so vast and complex that we can only 'understand' all of this through the fragments, the pieces that is often called science. Thus, there must be an omniscient force or power (God), which stands behind the organization and governance of these structures and the other material bodies of the world.
Complete knowledge of the how the sun, the moon, the earth, and so on, were created is also beyond our knowledge. Some of the great scientists understand parts of these processes of creation, but not all.
The defined laws which govern the movements and existence of these celestial bodies must be controlled by an even greater 'controller.' This controller is an all powerful God.
The maintenance and sustenance of these bodies refer themselves to a supra-diligent overseer. They are the work of an all-knowing God.
The creation of these 'scientific' rules in an of themselves, and the use and enforcement of them in the universe, all precludes the presence of an omniscient God.
Those that prefer to say that they use the word 'nature' to refer to all of these concepts, laws, and creative forces, are really just using the word as a synonym for God. There is no objection to using the word 'Nature' as a name for God, because God is described as having infinite names and forms: Krishnaya namaha. Vasudev namah.
If one sees smoke coming from somewhere on a mountain, regardless of the imperceptable origin, one infers that there is, somewhere, fire.
Thus, if God is synonymous with the forces of nature, then his is the 'invisible' (to the extent that he cannot be perceived through the commonly stated perceptive senses) force that moves rivers, builds mountains, creates stars, and causes the Earth to rotate. He is the "potter" of the universe, and it is to him that we all aspire so that we may discover Bliss.


If you, or your family and friends, are looking for more ways to get outside, consider geocaching. Geocaching is a treasure hunting activity which involves finding 'geocaches', or hidden containers. Geocaches are usually in plain sight, but they may be camouflaged. These containers include logs for you to sign, or sometimes a treasure item for trade. To get to the geocaches you first need to set up a free account on www.geocaching.com and set your location. Then, choose a geocache that suits your time, experience, and interest. All you need to do is dress for the weather and bring a GPS-enabled device, such as a smartphone. Once you are out on the hunt, GPS will help you navigate your way to the geocache. After you have discovered the geocache, record your name in the logbook and leave the geocache the way you found it. Many people enjoy geocaching just for the journey, but if you are interested in taking an item from a geocache, make sure to leave an item of equal or greater value that is safe and appropriate.
Besides traditional geocaches, there are also multi-caches which involve two or more locations. For these, you will have to follow hints from the initial location(s) to get to the final geocache. Mystery and puzzle geocaches are also available which require you to solve a mystery or puzzle to determine the coordinates of the geocache.
River Keepers geocaches include multi-caches, a mystery cache, and a cache focused on local wildlife. As if anyone needs another reason to get out and enjoy the Red River! Below are the codes for River Keepers geocaches – have fun and good luck!
River Ed 4 (ID# GC6ZNKM), mystery cache. In partnership with Moorhead Parks and Recreation.
Red River Watchable Wildlife (ID# GC7MEBA), large with trackables. In partnership with the Red River Zoo.


text:
Placebos work — even without deception
By Eideard Friday December 24, 2010
For most of us, the "placebo effect" is synonymous with the power of positive thinking; it works because you believe you're taking a real drug. But a new study rattles this assumption…
Placebos—or dummy pills—are typically used in clinical trials as controls for potential new medications. Even though they contain no active ingredients, patients often respond to them. In fact, data on placebos is so compelling that many American physicians (one study estimates 50 percent) secretly give placebos to unsuspecting patients.
Because such "deception" is ethically questionable, HMS associate professor of medicine Ted Kaptchuk teamed up with colleagues at BIDMC to explore whether or not the power of placebos can be harnessed honestly and respectfully.
To do this, 80 patients suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) were divided into two groups: one group, the controls, received no treatment, while the other group received a regimen of placebos—honestly described as "like sugar pills"—which they were instructed to take twice daily.
"Not only did we make it absolutely clear that these pills had no active ingredient and were made from inert substances, but we actually had 'placebo' printed on the bottle," says Kaptchuk. "We told the patients that they didn't have to even believe in the placebo effect. Just take the pills."
For a three-week period, the patients were monitored. By the end of the trial, nearly twice as many patients treated with the placebo reported adequate symptom relief as compared to the control group (59 percent vs. 35 percent). Also, on other outcome measures, patients taking the placebo doubled their rates of improvement to a degree roughly equivalent to the effects of the most powerful IBS medications…
The authors caution that this study is small and limited in scope and simply opens the door to the notion that placebos are effective even for the fully informed patient—a hypothesis that will need to be confirmed in larger trials.
Har!
I may take up the practice of psychosomatic medicine after all.
Is the TSA the largest placebo in the world or is it trickle down economics?
Pinkerton says:
#1 – The honor of largest placebo has to go to The Church. Merry Christmas.
deowll says:
#1 Its the idea of many that if they make the government all powerful the government will make life better rather than simply getting more abusive, intrusive, and corrupt.
Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely or as Bill Clinton said about his sex scandal. "I did it because I could."
Homeopathic drugs are already here and have been for some time.
The new medical practices under ObamaCare. Instead of real medicine, we get a placebo. Oh joy.
MikeN says:
Sample size of 40 people, 14 in one group vs 24 in the other. I'd guess this is not statistically significant.
For that matter, how did they get 59%. 24 out of 40 is 60%. So they are measuring decimal points as well.
Colorado says:
The illegal drug dealers have known this for years.
Zybch says:
This is a pathetically small study.
There are others that were performed on groups with thousands of people which proved again and again that placebos (or more specifically, the Placebo Effect) is bunk and results in no statistically different results.
On the other hand, it HAS been proven that a $1 painkiller works better than a .25c one even if the active ingredients are the same.
Dan Ariely book "Predictably Irrational" goes into some depth about it all and really is a good read.
#2 You're right!
eaze says:
but how do the people receiving the placebo know that they are being told the truth?
surely the fact that they could suspect that what they are taking is actually medicine defeats the entire purpose of this study?
On the face of it, this sounds mostly like a junk science study. Invented just to earn a grant. The so-called inert substance in the pills may still have acted as a antacid, or at least cause the digestive process to slow down to handle it. Thus effecting IBS unintentionally. The study should have been done with something not even remotely concerned with digestion. Like chronic join pain. Or hypertension.
#1- Good question Dallas. But the TSA is more like a suppository, than a placebo. It's an enema for constipated airline security.
#2- Pinkerton, at one time I would have taken offense at that remark. But now it merely inspires some deeper thought. Most religions probably started out as frameworks for guiding those to seek an inter strength and peace. Rather than simply praying to a god to solve all life's problem. But then tough times ensued. And just about anyone with money and connections could be an officer in some belief. Whether they truly grasped the meaning of their religion, or not. And desperate for support from the near starving masses. It became easier just to relate God to them on a grade school level. And then never to contradict that, by upgrading anyone's understanding much later. So instead of God being an elemental force within, he remains a guy with a big white beard, on a thrown in the clouds. Explanations otherwise are designed more for bring in the cash, than clarifying and rectifying these over-simplifications.
Just as the placebo pills may have allowed these patients to tap in some level of inter strength. Belief systems were originally intended to do a similar function, mentally. Eastern religions appear to still function in the purer form. While western ones, kind of got lost in the pomp and circumstance. But those went thru the period of the Dark Ages. So you can't really fault them for losing touch with their origins. I'm sure a lot of "word of mouth" stuff simply got lost.
And then there's the "beast", or military mindset. That probably prefers it all forgotten and muddled. Eastern religions today shy away from condemning warfare. To do otherwise, would probably get them labeled as subversive, by most governments.
bobbo, the mind body connection doesn't make Big Pharma any money says:
Animby–you say: "I do not believe I would ever prescribe a placebo and tell the patient what I'm doing." //// Thorny position that one. Ultimately, I think you will find yourself acting in your own perceived self interest rather than the patients. I can hypothesize rare instances where such lies and misinformation is warranted, but even then for short terms with the patient ultimately being informed. Do you falsify the medical record as well or just the info you personally give to the patient?
Just caught an excellent full hour with Dr Gabor Mate on the mind-nervous system-white blood cell-hormone-body connection/feedback. Of interest, he notes every 2-3 years a study is published showing the "controlling" effect here but the results while universally accepted as valid, are also univerally ignored.
Modern Medicine: make the symptoms go away with a pill.
What needed: long term counseling to find the source/cause of the symptom.
And so it goes across the board with all so much of what it is to be born human. I had an Ophra "ah-hah" moment watching that show. The job of raising our kiddies is the first victim of our capitalist "all for the job" society we are busily making for ourselves.
Key example: last year some book almost got the pulitzer for noting that kiddies don't need parents as they get all the socialization they need from their peer groups. As Dr. Gabor noted: imagine saying kittens don't need a mother cat, or cumbs a mother bear. Fact is, humans need their parents even more than any other species. We are all born about two years premature in order that our large heads can pass thru the pelvis.
Silly Hoomans – eating our young by design.
The special one hour interview with Dr. Gabor Mate was on Dec 24 and is first on on the website. That will probably change with time?
Dr. Gabor Maté on the Stress-Disease Connection, Addiction, Attention Deficit Disorder and the Destruction of American Childhood
http://democracynow.org/
Greg Allen says:
>> Benjamin said, on December 24th, 2010 at 6:31 am
>> The new medical practices under ObamaCare. Instead of real medicine, we get a placebo. Oh joy.
Compared to the conservative "just go die" healthcare system?
It would be very interesting to do a full study with more than 80 subjects on placebos vs. just doing nothing.
The placebo effect has to be the best documented "drug" of them all since they are used in most double-blind studies.
But, as I understand it, the effectiveness of pacebos get over-stated because some people just get better anyway.
One of my theories is that placebos are not psychological trickery but that the effort of being in a study and the reminder of taking a pill encourages people to take better care of themselves.
"thrown in the clouds"
You can't hurt God that way- he has wings! Just check out any of Michelle DeAngelo's many ochre drawings!
Jeeze, you people gotta bone up on your art stuff.
bobbo, it takes two fools to have an argument says:
Greg Allan–one of your weaker posts. The entire purpose of double blind studies and why placedbo's are given is to "zero out" the notion of taking a pill and getting better on your own. BTW, how do hospitalized patients who have everything ordered, measured, reviewed "take better care of themselves" than the control group in the same circumstances?
No, the placebo effect goes to a reality beyond the self help of thinking positively. Its more a feedback loop wherein the brain can send signals having the white blood cells manufacture any hormone the body regularly makes in response to externally provided medicine. Thats only one of several real physical mechanisms the body uses under the rubric of "placebo effect."
Pragmatism. It works.