text:
Lien On Me – Mechanical Liens And Design Professionals Liens
On July 1, 2012, SB 189, SB 190, AB 456, and SB 424 became effective, revamping California's Design Professionals Liens and Mechanics Liens statutes. Although it has been a few years since the statutes became effective, this article provides a general overview of the purpose and foundation of these remedies, the process of obtaining them, and the effect of the recent changes.
The California Constitution provides that "[m]echanics, persons furnishing materials, artisans, and laborers of every class, shall have a lien upon the property upon which they have bestowed labor or furnished material for the value of such labor done and material furnished; and the Legislature shall provide, by law, for the speedy and efficient enforcement of such liens." (Cal. Const., art. XIV, § 3.)
Overview of the Process
Mechanics Liens provide contractors with an avenue to recover unpaid wages and only apply in situations where construction plans materialize. Design Professionals, however, typically perform their work before construction begins. Because of this technicality, the design professionals who worked on buildings that were never constructed were unable to obtain Mechanics Liens. To remedy this situation, the California Legislature created the Design Professionals Lien. (Civ. Code, § 8300 et seq.)
Under the statute, a design professional is any one of the following who furnishes services under written contract with a landowner for the design, engineering, or planning of a work of improvement: registered professional engineer, licensed architect, landscape architect, or land surveyor. (Civ. Code, §§ 8014 and 8300.) Design Professionals may record a Design Professionals Lien if the work never commences. If the work does commence, they may record a Mechanics Lien. Moreover, if a design professional records a Design Professionals Lien because he has reason to believe that the work will not commence and the work does in fact commence, the design professional may be able to convert the Design Professionals Lien into a Mechanics Lien. (Civ. Code, § 8319.)
The following requirements must be met before a Design Professional Lien can be utilized: (1) the design professional's services must have been obtained through a written contract; (2) a building permit or other government approval must have been obtained in connection with the design professional's services; (3) the work of improvement for which the design professional provided services must not have commenced; and (4) the landowner must either default in a payment required under the contract or refuse to pay the demand of the design professional made under the contract. (Civ. Code, §§ 8300, 8304, subd. (a)-(c).) Also, Design Professionals Liens may not be recorded on single-family, owner-occupied residence with construction costs of less than $100,000 in value. (Civ. Code, § 8318.)
Once those requirements have been met, the design professional with unpaid wages may begin the process of obtaining a lien. He must first give notice (subject to the requirements of Civ. Code, § 8100 et seq.) to the landowner and make a demand for payment, stating that there has been a default under the contract and the amount of the default. (Civ. Code, § 8304, subd. (c).) Ten days after the notice and demand are given, the design professional can record a lien. (Id.) Another time constraint that a design professional has during this process is to record the lien within 90 days of the date that he knows or has reason to know that the work of improvement will not be commenced. (Civ. Code, § 8312.) The claim of lien must include: the name of the design professional, the amount of the claim, the current owner of record of the site, a legal description of the site, and an identification of the building permit or other governmental approval. (Civ. Code, § 8304, subd. (d).)
Once a claim of lien has been recorded, the design professional must file an action to foreclose on the lien within 90 days to avoid the problem of an expired and unenforceable lien. (Civ. Code, § 8306, subd. (b), par. (2).) Also, because the Design Professionals Lien is a remedy for situations where work never commences, the claim of lien expires if the work does commence. (Civ. Code, § 8306, subd. (b), par. (1).) In situations where a lien expires due to work commencing, a design professional may convert his Design Professionals Lien into a Mechanics Lien. (Civ. Code, § 8319.) Moreover, even if a design professional fails in some respect to record a Design Professionals Lien, he may avail himself by obtaining a Mechanics Lien.
Similar to Design Professionals Liens, Mechanics Liens have strict time and notice requirements (subject to the requirements of Civ. Code, § 8100 et seq.) that must be complied with timely. The first requirement is the Preliminary Notice. The design professional must first determine whether he is a "direct contractor" or otherwise. A "direct contractor" is a contractor that has a direct contractual relationship with the owner of the building. If the design professional is a direct contractor, he only needs to give Preliminary Notice to the construction lender, if any. (Civ. Code, § 8200, subd. (e), par. (2).)
If the design professional does not have a direct contractual relationship with the owner of the building, he must give Preliminary Notice to the owner of the building, the direct contractor, and the construction lender, if any. (Civ. Code, § 8200, subd. (a).) The purpose of the Preliminary Notice is to alert the owner of the building that a contractor with whom he does not have a direct contractual relationship is claiming a right to a lien on his property.
The Preliminary Notice should be given within 20 days after first starting work. The Preliminary Notice could always be given after that time, but then the Mechanics Lien would only cover the services beginning with 20 days before the Preliminary Notice. (Civ. Code, § 8204, subd. (a).) Given the nature of design professionals' services, the statute provides that the Preliminary Notice "timing" requirements are deemed complied-with regarding a design professional who has already furnished services and gives Preliminary Notice not later than 20 days after the work on the building has commenced. (Civ. Code, § 8200, subd. (b).) The Preliminary Notice must contain the general description of the work to be provided, the estimated total price of the work, and the NOTICE TO THE PROPERTY OWNER excerpt found at Civ. Code, § 8202, subd. (a), par. (3). (Civ. Code, § 8203, subd. (a).)
The timing requirement for recording a Mechanics Lien depends on whether the design professional is a "direct contractor" or otherwise. If he is a direct contractor, he must record the lien after completion of the direct contract and before the earlier of the following times: 90 days after completion of the work of improvement (i.e. the project) or 60 days after the owner records a notice of completion or cessation. (Civ. Code, § 8412.) If he is not a direct contractor, he must record the lien after the design professional ceases to provide work and before the same time limits as a direct contractor. (Civ. Code, § 8414.)
The Mechanics Lien must include all of the information set forth in Civ. Code, § 8416, subd. (a), which includes, inter alia, general information about the design professional, the work performed, and a generic "NOTICE OF MECHANICS LIEN" which must be served on the owner. The statute specifically sets forth that errors contained in a recorded Mechanics Lien relating to the amount owed will invalidate the claim of lien only if the claim of lien was made with intent to defraud or if an innocent third party became the owner of the property after the design professional recorded the claim of lien, and the claim of lien was so deficient that it did not put the party on sufficient notice of the claim of lien. (Civ. Code, § 8422, subd. (b).)
The claim of lien may only include work that was included in the direct contract or a modification thereof. (Civ. Code, § 8432, subd. (a).) Thus, even if the work was authorized by a direct contractor or subcontractor, if the work is not authorized by the direct contract, it is not allowed to be included in the claim of lien. Any person who shall willfully include in a claim of lien labor, services, equipment, or materials not furnished for the property described in the claim, shall thereby forfeit the person's lien. (Civ. Code, § 8422, subd. (c).) Therefore, it is important that the claim of lien reflects accurate information.
The design professional must commence an action to enforce a lien within 90 days after recording the claim of lien. If the design professional does not commence an action to enforce the lien within that time, the claim of lien expires and is unenforceable. (Civ. Code, § 8460, subd. (a).)
As was briefly described above, if a design professional records a Design Professionals Lien which expires due to work commencing on the property, he may convert his lien into a Mechanics Lien. This opportunity is subject to a few requirements: the Design Professionals Lien must have remained fully or partially unpaid; the design professional must record a Mechanics Lien for the amount of the unpaid Design Professionals Lien within 30 days of its expiration; and the recorded Mechanics Lien must state that it is a converted Design Professionals Lien which will be enforced as a Mechanics Lien, except Preliminary Notice is not required. (Civ. Code, § 8319, subd. (a).)
The benefit of this conversion is that it allows the design professional to maintain a lien on the property without having to give Preliminary Notice to the owner; this eliminates the need to wait 20 days before recording the claim of lien.
Changes That Became Effective July 1, 2012
SB 189, SB 190, AB 456, and SB 424 became effective on July 1, 2012. These bills made technical and substantive changes to California Design Professionals Lien and Mechanics Lien statutes. The following is an overview of the substantive changes.
Under the old statute, one way that a work of improvement was deemed "completed" was through the "acceptance by the owner, or his agent, of the work of improvement." (Civ. Code, § 3086, subd. (b).) "Acceptance by the owner" no longer constitutes "completion" unless the work of improvement is subject to acceptance by a public entity. (Civ. Code, § 8180.)
The old statute required that the owner record a "notice of completion" within 10 days of actual completion of the project. (Civ. Code, § 3093, subd. (a).) Under the newer statute, that time has been extended to 15 days. (Civ. Code, § 8182, subd. (a).)
Under the old statute, when a lien expired and the owner filed a petition to release the property from the lien, the prevailing party was entitled to attorney's fees capped at $2,000. (Civ. Code, § 3154, subd. (g).) Under the 2012 statute, the owner must give a 10-day notice demanding to the claimant that he execute and record a release of the claim of lien before filing such a petition. (Civ. Code, § 8482.) Moreover, the prevailing party is now entitled to "reasonable" attorney's fees. (Civ. Code, § 8488, subd. (c).)
As described earlier in this article, a design professional may now convert a Design Professionals Lien into a Mechanics Lien if certain requirements are met. (Civ. Code, § 8319.) Furthermore, under the new statute, "landscape architects" are included in the definition of "design professionals". (Civ. Code, § 8014.)
Civil Code section 8422 codifies existing case law that holds that errors in a claim of lien (i.e., errors in a claimant's demand, credits, and offsets deducted; the work provided; or the description of the site) do not invalidate the lien. However, such errors will render the lien invalid if a court determines that: (1) the claim of lien was made with the intent to defraud or slander title; or (2) an innocent third party, without notice, actual or constructive, became the bona fide owner of the property after recordation of the claim of lien, and the claim of lien was so deficient that it did not put the party on further inquiry in any manner.
As set forth above, the law provides design professionals with the additional safeguards in the event of non-payment. Other remedies still remain in place, such as, suing for a breach of contract; however, such a remedy may ultimately fail if the owner of the building does not have the money to pay the judgment. Since the Mechanics Liens and Design Professionals Liens have strict procedural requirements, it is important to understand and adhere to all requirements in order to utilize the benefits of such liens.
Kimberly A. Blake
Other practice publications


text:
Ludwig Söll (* 7. September 1931 in Hof; † 1. März 1974 in Regensburg) war ein deutscher Romanist und Sprachwissenschaftler.

Leben und Werk
Söll wurde nach dem Abitur als Stipendiat in die Stiftung Maximilianeum des Landes Bayern aufgenommen und studierte in München, Salamanca und Paris. Er promovierte 1956 an der Universität München bei Hans Rheinfelder mit Studien zum prägnanten Wortgebrauch in der französischen Sprache des 17. Jahrhunderts. (ungedruckt). Von 1955 bis 1961 im Schuldienst tätig, habilitierte er sich 1964 mit der Arbeit Die Bezeichnungen für den Wald in den romanischen Sprachen.

Von 1966 bis 1967 war Söll Professor an der Technischen Universität Berlin und ab 1967 Ordinarius an der Universität Regensburg. Rufe an die Universität Wien und die Universität des Saarlandes in Saarbrücken lehnte er ab. In Regensburg war Söll von 1968 bis 1969 Fachbereichssprecher und von 1971 bis 1972 Senator. Seit 1972 war er gewählter Gutachter der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft für das Fach Romanistik.

Söll gehört zu den deutschen Romanisten, welche das Fach in markanter Weise für die Sprachwissenschaft des modernen Französisch mit Relevanz für die Praxis geöffnet haben. Klassischer Ausdruck dafür waren sein Buch Gesprochenes und geschriebenes Französisch, sowie etliche in der Fachwelt als bahnbrechend eingestufte Aufsätze.

Schriften
 Die Bezeichnungen für den Wald in den romanischen Sprachen. München: Hueber 1967.
 Gesprochenes und geschriebenes Französisch. Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 1974. (Neuauflagen 1980 und 1985, überarbeitet von Franz Josef Hausmann.)
 Franz Josef Hausmann (Hrsg.): Études de grammaire française descriptive. Aufsätze. Heidelberg: Groos 1983.

Literatur
 Hans Helmut Christmann: Ludwig Söll (1931–1974). In: Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie. Bd. 90, 1974, , S. 679–686, mit einem Schriftenverzeichnis.
 Max Pfister: Ludwig Söll: 1931–1974. Nachruf. Vox romanica, (33) 1974, S. 374/375.

Weblinks

Romanist
Maximilianeer
Deutscher
Geboren 1931
Gestorben 1974
Mann

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Group 65Go to Oplift
Information Security Management System Policy
Written by Will Oates
At Ocasta we understand the Information Security needs and expectations of interested parties both within the organisation and from external parties including clients, suppliers, regulatory and Governmental departments.
Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability of information in Information Security Management are integral parts of its management function and viewed as their primary responsibility and fundamental to best business practice.
Our Information Security policy is aligned to the requirements of ISO/IEC 27001: 2013; the Company is committed to:
Always comply to all applicable laws, regulations and contractual obligations
Implement Information Security Objectives that take into account information security requirements following the results of applicable risk assessments and external audits
Communicate these Objectives and performance against them to all interested parties
Keeping the Information Security Management System up to date, comprising of manuals, procedures and best practices which provide direction and guidance on information security matters relating to employees, customers, suppliers and other interested parties who come into contact with our work
Work closely with Customers, Business partners and Suppliers in seeking to establish appropriate information security standards
Adopt a forward-thinking approach on all business decisions, including the continual review of risk evaluation criteria, which may impact on Information Security
Ensure necessary resources to better meet information security requirements
Instruct all members of staff in the needs and responsibilities of Information Security Management
Go above and beyond to meet all customer expectations
Implement continual improvement initiative such as risk assessments and mitigation strategies
The policy has been approved by Ocasta's directors and is reviewed annually or sooner should a significant change occur in order to ensure its continuing suitability, awareness, adequacy and effectiveness.
Our security objectives include:
System uptime of 99.5% or higher at all times
Zero failures of our backup system
Automated testing where appropriate
100% code review of all changes to codebases

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Truth defence ruled out in charity case
Warby J refuses defences but allows Third Defendant to plead a new public interest defence
The High Court has refused to grant three defendants permission to plead a defence of truth, but has allowed the third defendant a further opportunity to formulate a public interest defence, in the case of Suresh v Samad and Others – a claim in defamation brought by the Chairman of a West London Charity.
Selvaratnam Suresh, Chairman of the Oriental Fine Arts Academy of London (OFAAL), is suing three defendants in respect of two videos published on YouTube and Facebook, in which the Defendants accused the claimant of misconduct in his position as Chairman, including allegedly defrauding OFAAL of approximately half a million pounds of charity funds.
On Friday 27 January 2017 Mr Justice Warby held that all three defendants had no real prospect of establishing the truth of the allegations made in the videos, and also ruled that the first and second defendants had no prospect of succeeding with public interest defences. Addressing the truth defence, Warby J stated: "The evidence, taken as a whole, convinces me that there is no real prospect that such a defence could be pleaded and proved".
In assessing the defendants' public interest defence, Warby J applied his recent decision in Economou v De Freitas [2016] EWHC (QB) and found that: "There was nothing in the way of suspect or questionable financial conduct that [the first and second defendants] could reasonably have believed should be made public via the publications complained of."
Although the third defendant's public interest defence was also deemed to be inadequate as currently pleaded, Warby J gave him a further opportunity to re-plead the defence on the basis that the defence could not be considered to have no real prospect of success. The defendants were also granted permission to amend their defence in relation to meaning, responsibility for publication, serious harm (in respect of the Facebook video only), to which the claimant did not object.
The judgment follows an earlier decision in which Mr Justice Warby struck out earlier versions of the defendants' defences and granted summary judgment in favour of the claimant on the issues of publication, reference, serious harm, innocent dissemination and responsibility for publication of the Facebook videos by the third defendant.
The matter will now proceed to a trial on the issues of (1) meaning, (2) responsibility for publication of the YouTube videos, (3) serious harm in relation to the Facebook videos and (4) a possible public interest defence by the third defendant.
The judgment can be read in full here.
5RB's Julian Santos (instructed by Amirthan & Suresh Solicitors) represented the Claimant.
Filed under: Defamation, News
Tags: Defamation, Defamation Act 2013, Libel, public interest, truth


text:
Action RPG 'Moonlighter' launches on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC and Mac
Moonlighter - Image Credit: Flickr - BagoGames - CC0
After a successful Kickstarter campaign, 'Moonlighter' is now available to play.
'Moonlighter' released and there are some great media reviews of the RPG game. - Video
From 11 bit studios and Digital Sun Games, "Moonlighter" is out now in stores for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Mac. According to Steam, this action RPG throws players into the shoes of Will who is a shopkeeper by day and an adventurer by night. He must defeat powerful enemies, gather treasure and hone his skills as a merchant to save the village of Rynoka.
What is 'Moonlighter?'
"Moonlighter" takes a top-down approach akin to games like "The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past" and "The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap." The story of "Moonlighter" is set in a time years ago when magical gates were discovered.
These gates lead to different dimensions and realms allowing adventurers and heroes to hunt for treasure in these mysterious lands.
The game is set in the small village of Rynoka which is near the excavation site of the gates. It is a place for adventurers to sell their treasure and provides a refuge for them on their travels. "Moonlighter" has a few rogue-lite elements entwined within its Action-RPG gameplay as players explore dungeons each night and the terror of retail during the day. PC Gamer describes the game as a "lovely, compelling mix," saying that it has attractive imagery.
As players progress through the game, they can unlock various abilities that make their life easier. They can hire a part-time worker to sell things at night or create an auto-sell bargain bin so that they can adventure during the day, according to PC Gamer.
As you progress through the game more options become available for both sides of "Moonlighter."
11 bit studios history
11 bit studios were officially founded in September 2010 by former CD Projekt Red and Metropolis Software developers and staff members in Warsaw, Poland. It has since developed and published several games. They were in the news earlier this year for the release of the brutally punishing "Frostpunk" which sees players trying to survive a bitterly cold wasteland.
They are also responsible for "This War of Mine" and "Anomaly: Warzone Earth."
"Moonlighter" exists thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign that raised $134,276 from 5,229 backers. Developer Digital Sun Games are based in Valencia, Spain and is a small team of indie developers. This is the development studio's first major project together.
"Moonlighter" is now available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Mac.
You can find it on the various digital stores and in retail for a physical release.
Follow the page Gaming
Dragon Ball Super creators remember Bulma voice actor on her 59th birthday Sega tease a new 'Sonic Racing' announcement 'RuneScape Classic' servers closing for good
Follow jane on Facebook Follow jane on Linkedin Follow jane on Instagram
Blasting News recommends 'Fortnite' sued by rival Battle Royale Game PUBG Liam Neeson targeted for 'Men in Black' movie Star Sports live cricket streaming India vs NZ 1st T20 at Hotstar.com Video


text:
FWPD officer on leave after domestic battery arrest
by: Jamie Duffy
Updated: Feb 16, 2022 / 09:33 PM EST
'I dare you to call 9-11'
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — A Fort Wayne police officer is on unpaid administrative leave after he allegedly punched his fiancé in the face and stomach after a night of dinner, drinks and pool.
Jordan Conn, 29, of the 6400 block of Wakopa Court, was charged Thursday with domestic battery. He appeared Friday at his initial hearing in Allen Superior Court.
Jordan Conn
The Allen County Sheriff's Department responded to a call at 12:38 a.m. Feb. 5 when Conn's fiancé called 911 to say she'd been punched in the face and thought she had a concussion, according to a probable cause affidavit written by sheriff's deputy Jordan Hissong.
She told dispatch Conn was intoxicated and was taking off from their home address in his Fort Wayne patrol vehicle, the affidavit said.
Dispatch told Hissong Conn's vehicle was a Ford Explorer squad car and included the vehicle's number. When Hissong responded, the patrol vehicle was gone from outside the home and the fiancé was sitting in a Ford Expedition on the passenger side. Her face had some swelling under her left eye and she needed to take out her contacts, she said, according to the affidavit.
The fiancé said they'd gone to dinner at the Sapporo Steakhouse and then to the Break & Run bar to play pool, court documents said. When they got ready to leave, she suggested that she drive because "he seemed really intoxicated," according to the affidavit.
As Conn drove in the area of Interstate 69 and Illinois Road, the woman said Conn took his right hand and punched her in the left eye with a closed fist, the affidavit said. The pain was a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10, she told the officer.
Fort Wayne 15-year-old charged with attempted murder
Then he threw her phone back at her and it hit her in the stomach. She tossed the phone back at him and he punched her in the stomach with a closed fist, court documents said.
The fiancé, who said she was a nurse, described that pain as a 4 out of a 5.
She told Conn she was going to call 911 to which he responded: "I dare you to call 911," the affidavit detailed.
When the couple got to S.R. 14 and West Hamilton Road, she called 911. Once they got to their home, Conn tried to get into his own truck parked across the street, but the truck was frozen over, so he got into his police vehicle instead and "peeled off," court documents said.
The fiancé told Hissong that a month prior to this incident, there was another incident, one of two that were never reported, according to the affidavit. Conn told her it was useless to call 911.
"If you call 911, they would never believe you because you are a dumb b—- and I'm a cop," Conn reportedly told his fiancé. The altercations typically happened when Conn drinks, she said, according to the affidavit.
The night of Feb. 5, she reported drinking five drinks between 6 p.m. and midnight and Conn, 6-feet tall and 195 lbs., had about the same amount or maybe one more in the same time frame. She was drinking tequila and he was drinking whiskey, she said, according to the affidavit.
The two have been together for about a year and got engaged to be married in August, she added.
During the interview, Aboite Fire/EMS personnel came to make a medical check. The fiancé said she was having face pain where she'd been punched, but because she was a nurse, she didn't feel she needed to go to the hospital at that time, the affidavit said. She was icing the injury.
She went to stay with her parents and tried to call Conn's mother in Van Wert, Ohio, the affidavit said.
"Why would you do this to him?" Conn's mother reportedly asked her and hung up the phone.
Conn's police vehicle was found at an unidentified hotel and was towed back to the police department, court documents said. Inside the vehicle, police found the department-issued rifle, shotgun and bean bag shotgun.
Court documents indicated Conn was released on his own recognizance Friday, the same day he was booked in to the Allen County Jail. He is subject to pretrial services.
Allen Superior Court magistrate, John Bohdan, authorized Conn to live with his parents in Van Wert subject to pretrial services reporting. A no contact order was issued.
Conn is due back in court on March 4, court documents indicate.
Conn came on to the Fort Wayne Police Department in August 2016 as a lateral transfer from the Lima, Ohio Police Department, according to FWPD records. He received a letter of reprimand in September 2021 for missing a training session.
"Unpaid administrative leave or unpaid relieved of duty can only be imposed by the Board of Public Safety if you have been charged with a crime," Jeremy Webb, Fort Wayne Police Department public information officer said in an email.
A suspension is discipline imposed by the Police Department, Webb added. Conn will remain on unpaid administrative leave until the investigation has concluded.


Andrew Greenfield is an immigration attorney with over 20 years of experience advising HR and global mobility professionals on U.S. immigration and nationality law and policy and related corporate compliance programs. He counsels clients across industries on visa and work permit matters and the immigration consequences of mergers and acquisitions and other corporate reorganizations, as well as I-9/E-Verify, H-1B/LCA and PERM compliance, and representation during government audits and investigations. Andrew is the managing partner of Fragomen Worldwide's Washington, DC, office and a member of the firm's executive committee, which directs the management of the firm's 50 offices in 27 countries.


Dermaceutic Laboratoire is the partner of choice for over 30,000 aesthetic dermatologists & doctors around the world. This list of partners continues to increase due to impeccable scientific standards that grow our range of both professional & homecare products. We are proud to partner with some of the leading aesthetic doctors worldwide. We work closely with our global team of specialists and now it's time to share the world of Dermaceutic Laboratoire with everyone.
Optimal results should not be achieved by chance, with Dermaceutic Laboratoire we plan for 100% success, with a complete range of professional peels and an expert range of cosmeceuticals, that offer 7 Essential Actions.
Dermaceutic's online presence will allow us to connect with end-users that benefit from our products and full aesthetic protocols. The Dermaceutic Laboratoire digital space offers an accessible exchange platform for doctors, aestheticians and patients alike - to connect with the global Dermaceutic team [and at times - with our key opinion leaders who are based throughout the globe].
Our platforms include Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & a Blog space via the global website.
We invite you to like, follow and share us. If you have an interest in healthy skin and anti-ageing, you will not be disappointed.
More than promoting products, Dermaceutic Laboratoire strives to share knowledge that will benefit the global community, thanks to independant research and a scientific approach to aesthetic dermatology.
Dermaceutic Laboratoire will present its full range of gold standard products & in-clinic treatment solutions. We are proud of the scientific strides we have made over the past 20 years and we will share these successes and will encourage input and feedback.


text:
Dr. David S. Leckrone - Doctor of Science
David S. Leckrone
Dr. David S. Leckrone worked as an astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center for 40 years. For more than three decades, beginning in 1976, he served in various scientific leadership roles on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Project.
From 1992 to 2009, Leckrone held the position of Hubble's senior project scientist. He provided scientific leadership for all aspects of the Hubble program, including program management, spacecraft and science operations, development of new scientific instruments and in-orbit servicing. Leckrone also had overall project responsibility to assure that the scientific performance requirements for the Hubble observatory were achieved and that the HST observatory remained scientifically productive and successful over its long lifetime. Leckrone was the lead scientist for five highly successful Space Shuttle servicing missions to Hubble.
Concurrently with his Hubble duties, he held the position of head of the Astronomy Branch in the Laboratory for Astronomy and Solar Physics at Goddard from 1981 to 1991. From 2003 to 2006, he was the chief scientist for the newly formed NASA Engineering and Safety Center, which was organized in response to the loss of Shuttle Columbia.
Leckrone is an internationally recognized and widely published authority on ultraviolet astronomy, spectroscopic analysis of stellar atmospheres, and the abundances of the chemical elements in both normal and chemically peculiar stars. In addition, he is in demand as a public speaker, writer and commentator on the topics of science, Hubble and the space program.
Leckrone earned a bachelor's degree with honors in physics from Purdue in 1964 and a PhD in astronomy from UCLA in 1969. He holds an MAS in Management degree from Johns Hopkins University, awarded in 1987. In 1996, he received an honorary doctorate in natural sciences from the University of Lund in Sweden.
In January 2012, the American Astronomical Society awarded Leckrone the George Van Biesbroeck Prize in recognition of "long-term and unselfish service to astronomy." In 2009, he received the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, the highest honor the agency bestows on a civil servant. He was a recipient of the U.S. Presidential Rank Award of Merit in 2008.
Leckrone retired from NASA in 2009. He currently is an emeritus senior scientist at the Goddard Space Flight Center. He and his wife, Marlene, reside in Silver Spring, Maryland. He has a son, daughter and two grandchildren.


Same great powerful antifungal foot care products – now with a new name.
Who'd've thought you could treat nail fungus with fun colors?
Treatment of fungal toe nail infections can be successful with topical medications or oral medications. Inherent in the success of treatment is compliance in the method of treatment that you choose. This article discusses use of a unique product called Natural Antifungal Nail Butter that is used to chemically debride the nail while naturally treating the fungal toe nail infection.


text:
DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, AND KEY EMPLOYEES
New Samaritan Corporation
October 2015 – October 2016
(All terms of Directors for NSC are for three years)
Chair of the Board – Paul M. Shapiro
140 Davis Road, Storrs, CT 06268
BA Case Western Reserve University, 1971, JD Case Western Reserve University School of Law, 1974. Assistant Attorney General, State of Connecticut, 1974-2003. Legal Counsel to the University of Connecticut, 1982-2003. Special Counsel, Office of State Ethics, State of Connecticut, 2005. Adjunct Professor, School of Education, University of Connecticut, 1984-2004. Counsel, Shipman & Goodwin, LLP, 2007 – 2008. Life member, National Association of College and University Attorneys. Board memberships – Temple B'nai Israel, Willimantic, 1991-2003 (President, 1994-96); Mt. Hope Montessori School, Mansfield, 2003-2005 (President, 2005); Mansfield Retirement Community, Inc., 2003-present; Mansfield Cooperative, Inc., 2003-2006; Glen Ridge Cooperative, Inc. 2006-present; Welles Country Village, 2010-present. Member, Mansfield Town Council, 2011-present.
First on board: April 2005
Vice Chair – C, Michael Tucker
64 Bishop Street, New Haven, CT 06511
BA Dartmouth College, MARCH Columbia University School of Architecture, independent practice. Community activities: Friends of East Rock Park, Co-Chairperson; United Church on the Green, Hooker Elementary School & Betsey Ross Arts Magnet Middle School, Co-President, PTO; Greater New Haven Community Loan Fund, President. He received merit scholarships at Columbus Academy, Dartmouth College, and Columbia University School of Architecture, William Kinne Fellows Traveling Fellowship, Citation of Excellence, Philadelphia Chapter AIA, Honors Award, National AIA.
First on board: 2000
Secretary – Barbara J. Libby
245 Knollwood Drive, New Haven, CT 06524
BA from Bates College and 1990 graduate of Yale Divinity School; Ordained Intentional Interim Pastor for the United Church of Christ, currently serving the CT Conference United Church of Christ as Interim Associate Conference Minister for Clergy Concerns. Previously, Barbara held positions as a public school teacher, an office manager, and a banker. She has also worked with individuals with developmental disabilities.
First on board: October 1993
Assistant Secretary – Kathryn Stewart Hegedus
29 Fellen Road, P.O. Box 846, Storrs, CT 06268
D.N.Sc., Nursing, Boston University; Post Masters Sequence, Development Disabilities Nursing, University of Washington; M.S. Parent Child Nursing, Boston University; B.S. Nursing, Columbia University Teacher???s College; R.N. Nursing, Methodist Hospital. Professor Emerita and International Coordinator, School of Nursing, University of Connecticut School of Nursing. Director of Staff Development and Research, The Children???s Hospital, Boston, MA; Director of Quality Assurance and Research, Beth Israel Hospital; Chief Nursing Consultant, Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center; Faculty School of Nursing/Assistant Head Nurse/Staff Nurse, Methodist Hospital, Brooklyn, NY. Fulbright Specialist Award 2008-2013.
First on board: February 2006
Treasurer – Betsey M. Reid
59 Fallon Drive, North Haven, CT 06473
BA Smith College 1959 First Group Scholar, Jr. Year in Spain; MA University of Rochester in Spanish Literature; grew up in Providence RI and Grand Rapids MI, lived in Rochester NY, St. Louis MO, Atlanta GA, Denver CO and North Haven CT; Medical Illustration technician; Medical translator; CT Conference United Church of Christ Public Education Advocate; Joined New Samaritan Board 1972; Staff person 1980; elected President/CEO New Samaritan 1982 to 2003; elected President/CEO EHM and CHM 1990 to 2003; and served on many affiliated boards until she retired in 2003. Betsey continues to represent New Samaritan on The Saugatuck Cooperative and New Samaritan Family Housing of Waterbury, Inc. (Frost Homestead). Betsey serves as New Samaritan's Finance Committee Chairperson. She is also an active member of the North Haven Congregational Church UCC serving in various capacities.
First on Board: October 1973; returned 2008
Assistant Treasurer – Mabel M. Peterson
11 St. John Street, Unit E8, North Haven, CT 06473
BA Bethel College, 1962. MA University of Michigan, 1969. Employed at Yale University, Department of Geology and Geophysics, 1978 – Present (dba, Manuscript Tracking and Editing Services). Former President, Yale University Women's Organization; former President and current Secretary, Davenport-Dunbar Residences, Director, Urban Ethics. Referee, Greater New Haven Soccer Officials Association, 1986-2002.
Carol S. Hay
6 Everit Street, New Haven, CT 06511
Vassar College, A.B. 1965, Yale Divinity School M.A.R.,1968, Southern Connecticut State University, School of Library Science, M.L.S. 1986. Retired librarian and bookseller. New Haven Public School Volunteer; set up and ran two school libraries.
Alison L. Bonds
3 Austin Drive Ext., Easton, CT 06612
BA 1982, JD 1987, University of North Carolina. Attorney fund raiser. Currently, Grant and Contract Manager, with signature authority, for Yale University. Previously, Webmaster / Marketing Manager for Yale's Department of Surgery; Assistant Director/Major Gifts for Yale's School of Medicine; Director of Development for LEAP (Leadership, Education, and Athletics in Partnership); commercial litigation attorney with Murtha Cullina LLP and with Carmody and Torrance. Community Activities: Easton Learning Foundation; Congregation B'nai Israel. Prior Community Activities: Board President, Community Mediation, Inc.; Board Secretary, Women's Health Services; Member, Easton Democratic Town Committee.
First on board: January 2002; returned October 2010
Jennifer Young Gaudet
345 Taylor Street, Talcottville, CT 06066
BA Mount Holyoke College, 1974. JD University of Connecticut School of Law, 1986. Employed by HPC Development, LLC as wireless site development territory/project manager. Previously employed by Verizon Wireless and in private law practice. Member, Silver Lake Conference Center Board of Directors; Board Chair effective May, 2011; Member, Welles Country Village Board of Directors. Member, Missionary Society of Connecticut Board of Directors effective May 2011. Member, Immanuel Congregational Church, UCC.
First on board: March 2011
OFFICERS/KEY EMPLOYEES
Reginald W.H. Fairbairn (Bill)
Law Degree; retired senior partner with Cramer & Andersen, LLP — Mr. Fairbairn was resident partner in the Washington, CT office, specializing in estate planning, probate, real estate, land use and affordable housing. He was a former member of the Shepaug Valley Regional Board of Education for seventeen years and Moderator of the First Congregational Church of Washington. Presently Trustee of Steep Rock Land Trust in Washington; Director of the Village Improvement Society and a Director of the Connecticut Conference of the United Church of Christ. Mr. Fairbairn was Chair of the Boards of Directors of New Samaritan and its affiliated corporations for two years prior to his accepting the position of President & CEO, and had been on their Boards of Directors since April 2004.
First Employed with NSC/EHM: 2008
Administrator, Mansfield Center for Nursing & Rehabilitation
James Fidanza, LNHA
Mr. Fidanza holds a BS degree in Health Science from Merrimack College and a Program Certificate in Long-Term Health Care Management from the University of Connecticut. He earned his license as a nursing home administrator in 1984 and has worked in both Connecticut and Massachusetts for over 30 years. Mr. Fidanza's experience includes direct management positions, as well as, positions with multi-facility oversight. He has been involved with for-profit and non-profit organizations, large multi-facility chains, and small privately held facilities. Mr. Fidanza served on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities for a number of years and currently is the Chairman of the Board for the Felician Adult Day Health Center in Enfield, Connecticut. Jim lives in Ellington, Connecticut.
First Employed with NSC: 2014
Anne M. Burns, CPA
Ms. Burns holds a BS in Accounting from Central CT State University and a Masters in Human Development/Gerontology from the University of St. Joseph Connecticut. Ms. Burns has worked in accounting for over 25 years, holding leadership positions in tax exempt organizations and local CPA firms. She has provided financial, audit, tax and advisory services to non-profit organizations, other businesses and individuals. Ms. Burns has served as board treasurer of various non-profit organizations, including domestic violence and homeless shelters. She is currently the Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of CT Community Care, Inc., (CCCI); a non-profit organization whose mission is to identify choices and provide services to help people of all ages, abilities and incomes to live at home.
Accounting Director
Sabine E. Cox
Mrs. Cox's career with New Samaritan and Elderly Housing Management started in 1988 where she began a successful journey of amassing institutional and regulatory knowledge that currently spans over 20 years of contributions to EHM. Her progressive roles and promotions through various accounting positions, including her latest promotion to Accounting Director in May, 2009, included her first position of Accounting Assistant, Accounting Supervisor and Property Accounting Manager. Mrs. Cox has successfully completed various courses in regulatory compliance for Rural Development, HUD and has also completed the requirements for Certified Occupancy Specialist. In her role as Property Accounting Manager, she oversaw the timely and accurate provision of financial data to a portfolio of sites that ranged from 50 to 100, including the direct supervision of an accounting staff of 8 to 15 individuals. Mrs. Cox's accounting knowledge spans both her coursework at Southern CT State University and an expansive array of regulatory and compliance in the property management field. Her promotion to Accounting Director involves oversight of both the property accounting and corporate accounting areas. Her time outside of NSC/EHM includes her family and three children.
Jill Vangor
BA in Communications,Marist College. Mrs. Vangor joined Elderly Housing Management in a newly created position as Human Resources Generalist. Within ten (10) months of employment, she was promoted to Director of Human Resources. Prior to joining the team, she held professional statuses in Human Resources for Destination Hotels & Resorts (Teton Mountain Lodge) in Wyoming and in the Graduate Medical Office at Dartmouth Medical Center in New Hampshire. Within all positions, Mrs. Vangor has been responsible for the direct employee recruitment, employee relations, and the development and implementation of organization policies and various employee benefits programs.
Director of Property Management
Tammy E. Lautz
BA in English Literature, Western Connecticut State University, Danbury, CT. Mrs. Lautz joined Elderly Housing Management in 1995 as the administrator of Dodge Farm Apartments in Washington, CT. Following a year as a part-time Administrator, Mrs. Lautz added North Purchase in Bethlehem, CT expanding her portfolio to include housing funded through the DECD, USDA and HUD. In 2001, Mrs. Lautz became the Assistant Northwest Regional Coordinator, assisting with a portfolio of over thirty sites including family, elderly and congregate housing funded through various regulatory agencies. In 2003, she became the Regional Coordinator for the Northwest Region and in 2008 was given supervision of additional sites throughout southern Connecticut. In May 2009 Mrs. Lautz was promoted to Director of Property Management. Mrs. Lautz holds various industry certifications, including Certified Occupancy Specialist for HUD, USDA and LIHTC; Certified Manager of Housing, Certified Manager of Maintenance, Fair Housing Specialist and holds a current Connecticut Real Estate License.
First Employed with EHM: 1995
Assistant Director of Housing Management
Pamela C. Kazlauskas
BS in Family Studies, UCONN. RHM, SHS, FHR, TCS, National Center for Housing Management. C3P, Spectrum Seminars. CPO, NAHMA. Mrs. Kazlauskas is a licensed Real Estate Salesperson (CT) and is also a Certified Occupancy Specialist instructor with the National Center for Housing Management.
Director of Resident Services
Lee M. Niles
BA Teikyo Post University, Psychology; AS Naugatuck Valley Community College, Human Services/Social Work. Ms. Niles joined EHM as a Resident Service Coordinator, with a diverse background in providing Social Services to Seniors. At EHM, she also worked to implement the use of the AASC software for Resident Service Coordinators. Prior to her joining EHM, her career experience included positions as a Social Worker with the Town of New Milford, Medicaid Specialist with the State of Connecticut and Access Coordinator for Connecticut Community Care, Inc. She has a diverse background, which encompasses training in the fields of Medicaid, Medicare, a Certified CHOICES Counselor, Health Care Assessment for the Social Services Care Manager, Elder Abuse and Neglect and Elderly Alcoholism, among other proficiencies.
Deborah Pelletier
B.A. University of Maryland University College. Ms. Pelletier started at EHM in 1998 as the Business Manager, overseeing financial and human resources before becoming the Asset Manager in 2006, having responsibility for evaluating performance and risk ranking of the portfolio. She previously worked as the Business Manager for not-for-profit agencies that run group homes and job programs for people with developmental disabilities, having responsibilities for corporate and program financial functions, human resources, and administrative activities. She has a Connecticut Real Estate License and is an Asset Management Specialist.


Home Sweet Home on an acre of yard with a pool and deck. Please, know that even though I sit on the road I have much to offer inside and out! The new windows have afforded me peace and quite! Run, jump and play outside in a fully fenced yard-summer will be so much fun. Picture your lawn chairs on my patio, so much room to bring all your friends to hang out. Restored with many original features. The Master Suite on the second floor features a private bath and office. There are two bedrooms on the main floor with laundry. Tons of closets & Storage! Recent updates include: new windows, freshly painted walls, new flooring, new bathrooms, new kitchen, 2018 hot water heater (2018), refrigerator & dishwasher (2017), water storage tank (2016), and central air (2000). The lil hamlet of Modena is super convenient to hot towns like Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, New Paltz, & Kingston. Conveniences in this small town include: grocery store, Dunkin Donuts, Dollar General, and much more! Only a few miles to The Walkway over the Hudson, Shawangunk Mountains, Mohonk & Minnewaska State Parks - the perfect location for outdoor enthusiasts. Also nearby are numerous wineries, breweries, apple orchards, and farmer's markets. Work in the city? Only a short two hour drive to Manhattan on the NYS Thruway. Don't like to drive in? Take the bus or train! 25 minute drive to Stewart International Airport - travel the world! Ready for the next step? Come make this house your own "Home Sweet Home".


Follow and read Science Channel (@ScienceChannel)'s SNS at Flitto in English.
What secrets does the universe hold?
Jupitor's superheated atmosphere may be caused by noise.
They're bigger, deeper, and more destructive than ever... #Sinkholes are on the rise.
Missed the latest episode of #WhatOnEarth? We've got you covered. Catch-up now, before it's too late.
Cannibals, a Siberian crater, submerged structures on Florida's coast... An all new episode of #WhatOnEarth starts NOW only on @ScienceChannel and on SCIgo.
Missed an episode of #WhatOnEarth? We've got you covered. Catch-up now, before the premiere of an all new episode TONIGHT at 9p ET only on @ScienceChannel and on SCIgo.


كل هذا موجود عندنا 😍 وبأسعار تنافسية👌🏻.
Greenish Bath Bomb is a amazingly refreshing contain kiwi fruit.
سو كيوت باث بومب برائحة الفراولة الحلوة لليلة هادئة.
So cute bath bomb sweet strawberry scented for a quiet night.
Watermelon bath bomb for refreshing your day, It's a very juicy, leap-out-at-you sensation.
من ٢٣ الي ٢٥ ابريل .


Ian Muir led a lively and packed Leadership of Organisational Change Special Interest Group (SIG) meeting on 1st March, titled: "The Tone From The Top - how behaviour trumps strategy."
Bad apples - people whose ethical compass is defective.
Tempted apples - people who are drawn down the slippery slope or who are pressured to do the wrong thing.
Ian explained the importance of a systematic approach, drawing on his experience and interviews with the chairmen of a quarter of a trillion pounds of market capitalisation.
The SIG then worked in syndicates to explore the topic further and share their business experience. A plenary feedback session consolidated the learning before concluding with a quote: 'The time to deal with a problem is before it becomes a bigger problem"


# Posted on: 25-Feb-2019 04:50:31.
Giving an OracleException ORA-00904: "CHAR_LENGTH": invalid identifier.
# Posted on: 25-Feb-2019 11:59:15.
Holy crap this is a pretty stupid bug.
I searched for Oracle CHAR_LENGTH and arrived here: https://docs.oracle.com/cd/E17952_01/mysql-5.1-en/string-functions.html I thought: hmm, why would it crash? It uses the right function!
So did some more digging and saw this: https://docs.oracle.com/cd/B19306_01/server.102/b14200/functions076.htm clearly there are apparently 2 functions! But ... I couldn't really find a CHAR_LENGTH usage within oracle.
Then it hit me: The docs I thought were oracle docs, were ... mysql docs (which is owned by oracle) on the oracle server (docs.oracle.com).. Check the url!
So, clearly a bug we need to fix asap (it's been in there since 2008 btw). Yes, I know what you're thinking: why isn't there a test for this. I don't know. At the time they were written (2008 ) the function mappings were tested directly in SQL, they worked, mappings were ported and something went wrong there.
# Posted on: 25-Feb-2019 13:50:56.
Fixed in next build. We're still waiting for info on an issue that could be a regression issue in the graph traverser so we'd like to fix that too before uploading a hotfix build. We'll report in this thread when the new hotfix build is available.
# Posted on: 25-Feb-2019 17:17:34.
# Posted on: 26-Feb-2019 10:21:53.
Ha funny, same thing happened with our DB guy when I asked him about that function, took him awhile to realize it was MYSQL he was reading about.
Thanks for sorting, though one of our tests failed after the update, it seem the save order of a UOW changed and it started giving FK violations. Maybe that graph traverser change?
# Posted on: 26-Feb-2019 14:46:56.
We sort the UoW queues now on type after the topological sort, which is just a group on topologically sorted types in the graph, and it shouldn't give any FK issues as the ordering is still the same: a topological sort. That the order in the queues can differ is a given, it's not defined what the order can be, only that the ordering won't result in FK constraint violation (so saving Order before Customer while Order depends on Customer).
In your case the queue is in the wrong order?
# Posted on: 27-Feb-2019 10:34:22.
I compared the UOW before and after the update and it looks the same: 6 collections to save (_collectionsToSave) in the order they should be inserted, but looking in orm profiler the 4th collection is attempted to save first.
# Posted on: 27-Feb-2019 10:44:37.
That doesn't tell me anything, sorry. FK constraints are violated however the relationship isn't present in the entities specified? Otherwise it can't happen.
What it DID was for each entity perform a topological sort of the graph visible through that entity, then re-order the queue at that point with that graph, based on the dependencies of the types in that graph.
This is an very expensive operation as the more entities in the queue the slower it became (O(n*m)).
So to fix that we still collect the dependencies of the types (which don't change) but over the total set of the entities to save. Then sort the queue once, based on the type dependencies. This could lead to a different order, but always based on the dependencies of the types/entities found.
I don't know what you're doing with the uow, you simply have collections which have to be persisted in that order and the entities inside the collection have to be persisted in that order as well? As ordering of that is undefined, always has been.
# Posted on: 27-Feb-2019 12:31:35.
There is a 6 level master detail.
The entities at the top is in the first collection and next one is in the second collection so on down.
Order inside the collection is not important.
I've got a workaround so I'm not so bothered, just a heads up that something somewhere has changed.
# Posted on: 27-Feb-2019 13:42:05.
Ah thanks. Yes the ordering in the final queue is different indeed. As this was previously undefined (and already changed at will with 5.5. due to the type grouping for batching) we don't see it as a bug that things are in a different order, as long as the ordering of the types in the queues is correct based on their dependencies in the graph that's about to be persisted. But it is inconvenient, agreed.
We couldn't find an algorithm to determine the type ordering from the final queue, and the regular algorithm (sort based on the dependencies of the types as found during traversal of the graph) works OK always so we kept that.
Your situation however does give an insight in a potential flaw in the algorithm. We collect the types during the sorting of the entities. But no entity in your entire UoW has a dependency (for the sake of argument). So they'll be ordered as they're added. Their types too: there are no dependent types found. So these are added to a multi-value dictionary for the adjacency lists but these are empty.
This adjacencylist set is simply enumerated and topologically sorted. However as all adjacency sets are empty, the order in which the types are collected is... in the order the dictionary is traversed, which is an undefined order and which isn't necessarily the same as the order in which they're added!
So in the case where there are no adjacency lists, the types should be kept in the order in which they're added. So we have to sort a separate list which is appended on the fly and which is going to have the same order if the adjacency lists are empty. This then should not result in any different order of entities in the final queue.
We'll look into adding this now for the new hotfix build.
# Posted on: 27-Feb-2019 16:55:35.
# Posted on: 28-Feb-2019 13:06:53.
# Posted on: 28-Feb-2019 13:20:40.
It's very odd tho, If you add the collections one at a time, and the entities have no relationships with each other, they should come out as-is, in the same order (as they're all of the same type).
I couldn't reproduce what you initially had tho, no matter what I tried. But in any case, the sorting on the types wasn't correct, so that's at least done properly done (albeit the effect of that wouldn't only be visible if the order of the key/value pairs would differ somehow from the order in which they were added, which in theory could happen).


Submissions to the ACR and ARHP Abstract Programs closed at noon ET on Tuesday, June 5.
Submissions to the Basic Research Conference, Clinical Research Conference, and Image Competition have also closed.
New in 2018, The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ARHP) invite patients along with patient organizations to submit posters for the new Patient Perspectives Poster Program.
Accepted submissions will be published in the same online supplement of Arthritis and Rheumatology as the 2018 scientific abstracts, and displayed as a digital poster in the distinguished international venue of the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting.
Submissions must be received by noon Eastern Time on Friday, June 15, 2018. After this deadline, the submission site will close and you will not be able to access the system or make any changes to your abstract. There will be no exceptions to this policy.
Members and non-members of the ACR and ARHP are eligible to submit an abstract.
Patients affected by rheumatic diseases, in conjunction with a patient foundation or pharmaceutical company, are encouraged to apply.
What Types of Submissions are Eligible?
Patient Perspectives Poster Program: these posters will allow people affected by rheumatic disease to share their journeys and experiences living with rheumatic diseases with the thousands of rheumatology healthcare providers attending the Annual Meeting.
Each submission has a mandatory $20 processing fee. The ACR accepts electronic payment only in the form of MasterCard, Visa, or American Express. Processing fees must be in U.S. funds. All fees are non-refundable – no exceptions. There are no refunds for rejected or withdrawn submissions.
Please see the 2018 Patient Perspectives Guidelines for full application instructions.
Copyright American College of Rheumatology 2018.


Residential Christmas Light Installation Services | Suburban Lawn Sprinkler Co.
Christmas Decor by Suburban Lawn Sprinkler Company offers custom lighting and decoration installation services throughout Framingham, Massachusetts. Our residential holiday decorating services are the best in the state, as our professional Christmas light installers customize each lightscape to display the unique holiday spirit of each individual client.
Quickly and safely installing your decorations and Christmas lights, we bring the details of your home into focus. We assure you that you will be delighted and amazed.
WHY HIRE A PROFESSIONAL CHRISTMAS LIGHT INSTALLER?
Christmas Decor by Suburban Lawn Sprinkler Company has been professionally installing Christmas lights and other holiday decorations since 1986. Today, we serve more than 40,000 residential and commercial customers in 48 states and in Canada. Our franchise system operates in over 400 markets!
As the pioneers of the holiday and event decorating industry, we have developed a program that is consumer friendly, which gives you a variety of decorating options for your home or business and the ability to add on over time. We even offer complete takedown and storage services for your convenience.


You connect well with your reader and they have a great description of what you're doing and you get the logic behind your story, also your story would appeal to substantial amount of people because your reading audience would be from anyone who has a child which could be grandparents, single parents , young teenage parents etc.
Third paragraph: This paragraph is the most appealing to the reader because it depicts your love of literacy and the reason why. I believe you should expand and bit more behind your reason here on how your daughter motivated you to do more reading and if possible expand what writing means for you through this narrative.
Fourth Paragraph: in this paragraph try to stay away from too much personal information and concentrate more on the encouragement you would like to give to people towards reading novels for their young kinds. And emphasize your point this will appeal to the reader and get your point out about your love of literacy that combines with your personal life .


Bryce to Little Death Hollow: Pt 1 – Across Utah!
Day-by-day report of my Bryce to Little Death Hollow Hike (aka the hike formerly known as Bryce to Moab.) I updated this page with short reports via my Satellite phone while on the trail. Since back, I've added additional detail and pics.
See my daily positions on the Hike Map.
Doing final packing and prepping in SLC. Getting ready to hit the road to southern Utah where I will grab a motel so that I can set out one final cache tomorrow and get my permits before hitting the trail in Bryce early afternoon.
Got a late start due to all the prepping, but that was kinda the plan. Descended from Rainbow Point thru strong gusts of wind and patches of snow. The sun going down on the orange spires of Bryce illuminated the entire landscape in an orange glow.
I passed Birch Creek which ran clear. The next two streams were orange however.
The official park camp at Iron Spring was empty. A "Beware of Bears" sign adorned the site marker. I checked out Iron Spring itself — it looked pretty nasty.
Once past the spring I follow the ridge east off trail and camped just outside the park with a great view. Chili Mac for dinner. Ready for a cold night.
Pretty sun up on Bryce. And boy was I glad when it came up because it was a COLD night. Since I packed my "summer bag", it actually felt colder than any night last year in the Sierras.
I made my way down the ridge which separates Black Birch Canyon from Ponderosa Canyon. It might have been slower than walking the valley floor, but the views were great. Finally I desceneded into Black Birch Canyon, followed the wash a ways and then picked up a dirt road that went along Willis Creek. At one point I had to jump a fence to contine as the road crossed farmland. A group of horses spotted me and trotted right at me. Soon I was surrounded by 30 of them wanting food I presume. It was somewhat unnerving as they all crowded in around me. I could feel their warm breath on me. But, they were nice.
From here I kept walking the road which parallels Willis Creek. I was surprised to see a rather new cabin/B&B farther down the road. They had blocked the stream to make two large ponds. As the road crosses a plateau there were great views to the north into Averett Canyon and far out to Powell Point.
Soon my road intersects "Skut" road which I followed around the bend to the Willis Creek Trailhead.
Bypassed the first small set of narrows and then entered the canyon. I saw 3 groups of dayhikers here. The slot is cool, with its dark brown and yellow colors. I was surprised to see the creek actually dry up in the second set of narrows.
I continued on down to the yellow cliffs of Sheep Creek — also completely dry (until the very bottom.) I hiked till 8:30 to stay on goal and to the Paria. Found a cool place to camp right on the slickrock penisula at the junction. The frogs at night were going crazy.
Got up and headed down the Paria which was flowing nice and clear.
I found and explored lower Asay Slot. After getting past the brushy entrance, it was a nicely sculpted, but short canyon. I decided not to do the bypass and explore the upper end as I wanted to get a move on down the Paria.
Later passed Lone Rock and checked out the old cowboy inscriptions. Took pictures of the arch nearby and was surprise to find another (very small) arch on the west wall as well.
South of this point I checked every little nook and cranny for the famed "crack spring" and the "best water in the Paria" according to Kelsey. I thought I'd found it and was very dissapointed because the pipe was gone which rendered the small flow of water very dirty. However, a little farther down I found the correct spot and was pleased to find indeed some very good water straight out of a pipe stuck in the wall! There were a bunch of cowboy inscriptions here as well dating back over 100 years!
I really like the Upper Paria, but there were more cows than I recall. Saw the longhorns again which gave me a fright back in 2006.
After passing Deer Creek, I went up Snake Canyon with more bushwhacking at the bottom. I went straight up the creek most of the way admiring the towering red walls on each side of the canyon. After hiking an hour up the canyon I got to a 25′ waterfall that I couldn't get past.
I knew this was here, but guides indicate that it would be doable with a short rope via a scary route which climbed up the side. But, it looked too sketchy for me. I wasn't willing to risk it being solo with a big pack.
So…back to the Paria. New plan — Hogeye Canyon tomorrow.
There was a meteor shower this night, however I was dissapointed to see only two shooting stars. Not sure if the event was a dud, or if I was too tired to keep my eyes open (and focused) very long!
Made my way up Hogeye Canyon. I did this canyon back in 2009, so I pretty much knew exactly what to expect.
Made my way past the cascades which were not flowing as strong this year. Then I made pretty quick work of the rock fall. Loaded up on good water before a long sandy stretch. The water returned farther up canyon, but cows can get here so it was pretty mucked up.
Used the slickrock exit near the northern end of the canyon. I was surprised to see one medium sized pothole of water up here. From here it was a real calf burner right up the slickrock and out of the canyon.
Up on top, I made my way across sandy rolling hills to Upper Stone Donkey Canyon. It was extremely hot crossing the open areas. Spotted a big rattlesnake in this area in 2009, so I was on the lookout again, but nothing but cow pies this time.
Once I entered the Stone Donkey drainage the scenary picked up. Cool white sand dunes and awesome slickrock formations. Spotted a small arch which I named Howling Wolf Arch.
Once past the upper end of the canyon, I had to do a scary slickrock traverse to get past the rappelling section. The path seemed to get more and more narrow and more and more steep the farther I went. The whole time there is a 400′ drop looming just off the side. As a day hiker this would probably be no big deal, but with the big pack my legs got a little wobbly as I was more aware of each step I took.
Once past the slickrock, a break in the canyon's north wall allows one to get down. It's still rough terrain and took a while to find the way down into the canyon, but I finally made it down.
Once down I dropped my pack and went to explore the slot. It was very tight and dark. I had to get into thigh deep cold water. I turned around when it got too dark to see.
Camped at lower end of canyon near the spring.
Made my way out of Donkey Canyon and then down a nice stretch of Hackberry Canyon.
There was a lot more cow mess here than I remember in 2009.
I was looking for the Goulding Trail, but somehow I missed it and ended up at the rockfall down canyon, so I had to backtrack 20 min. Saw a dead cow near the route. Once I began to climb I was astonished that this old cowboy trail was still in decent shape.
Once up on top of the canyon I lost the trail. But, my intent was to head east on my own route anyway so I headed across the Rush Beds. Climbing up and over the uplift of rocks was no easy task — but it was very scenic with many "wave" like formations and great views of Cottonwood Valley. It was tough going, but exciting to find my own route.
Water was running in Cottonwood, but it was also tainted by cows. I filter all water but it still tastes terrible. Now I love me a hamburger, but there has got to be a better way. Raising cattle here ruins the environment and doesn't seem to make for healthy cows either!
I road walked a while on Cottonwood Road. I saw the 1st person that I'd seen in 3 days driving along the road. I camped south of Cottonwood Narrows. Beef stroganoff for dinner paired with beef tainted water!
I left Cottonwood dirt road at south end of the Narrows and went up the canyon from there. It was nice to get off the road for a while and back into the cool confines of a narrow canyon. The northern end is the best and really the only portion which can be considered really a "narrows".
Back on the road, I was on the scenic red/white "Candyland" portion of the road. A little farther up I met a friendly couple from France on their bikes. They are pedalling across the western US.
Later I got to a well and the water was awesome; cold and clear! I dumped all my cow water and endulged in the good stuff — even had a bag of granola. Then, I filled up for the long dry stretch ahead as it is still fairly warm by day.
I stopped briefly at Grosvenor Arch then headed to the east across the plateau. Once past "the gut" I headed up Wahweep Wash. There were some pools of muddy water along the way. I camped up near Headquarters Springs. The water direclty from the spring's pool was was not that good, however there was a dripping spring a few bends north which was MUCH better.
I'm still about a day behind. I hope to make up time soon. A crescent moon sets as I write.
Continued up Wahweap Wash. Saw my 1st snake of the trip — it was a Great Basin Gopher Snake.
Climbed out of the wash and headed along the ridge to get better views. I followed mud hill ridges for a ways –awesome.
Then during a rest, I heard voices. I thought I may be crazy at first as this is one of the most remote spots in the United States. I finally spotted two guys on a far cliff. They were too far to see clearly so I zoomed in on them with my camera. They were digging — maybe for dinosaur fossils which are occaisonally found in this area. Then it hit me; what if they were illegal dino poachers and somehow they spot me filming them! I got out of there as quickly as possible now with a (probably) irrational sense of paranoia.
I continued my grueling climb to the ridge and then I dropped into Collet Canyon. I had no beta on this canyon so it was exciting to see if it would go through. It was a bit of a scramble and I had to jump down dozens of boulders, but there was always a way.
Camped, for the night, a mile plus from Smoky Mountain Road.
Tagged Asay Slot, Bryce Canyon, Collet Canyon, Cottonwood Road, Dixie National Forest, Escalante, Grosvenor Arch, GSENM, Hackberry Canyon, Hogeye Canyon, Kaiparowitz Plateau, Paria, Rush Beds, Sheep Creek, Slot Canyon, Snake Creek, Stone Donkey Canyon, Upper Paria, Utah, Wahweep Wash, Willis Creek.
I sure like that arch which looks like a wolf howling at the moon. You gave it the perfect name!
Cleaning the house and your adventure came to mind! Hoping for good weather, good water and no wild dino banditos for you!
Thanks for following along, Janelle.
Enjoy reading your daily post. Hope you continue to find well water.
Drink up and hoping for more good wells on your trek. Cheers and continued happy hiking!
30 horses, that Would be different.
hope all is well. we are following your progress. be safe.


text:
R., Rethemeyer, Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy, University at Albany, State University of New York, NY (United States)
R. Arnold, Rick, Mayo Clinic Hospital (United States)
R. George, Daniel, Department of Humanities, Penn State College of Medicine (United States)
R. Helft, Paul, Indiana University (United States)
R. Imrie, Kevin, Odette Cancer Centre (Canada)
Rabin, Ira, Medstar Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC (United States)
Raboch, Jiri, Department of Psychiatry, First Medical Faculty, Charles University of Prague, Prague, Czech Republic (Czech Republic)
Radfar, Amir, College of Graduate Health Studies, A. T. Still University, Mesa, Arizona (United States)
Raeissi, Pouran, School of Management and Medical Information Services, Tehran University of Medical sciences (Iran, Islamic Republic of)
Rahim, Shirin, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Aga Khan University (Pakistan)
Rai, Navjot, University of Toronto (Canada)
Rai, Neepa, Long Beach Memorial Hospital, Department of Inpatient Pharmacy, Long Beach, CA (United States)
Raidla, Annelie, Emergency Department at Östra Hospital, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg (Sweden)
Rainville, François, CHU de Québec-Université Laval (Canada)
Raji, Kabiru A., Department of Clinical Pharmacy & Biopharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria (Nigeria)
Rajji, Tarek K, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Raknes, Svein Petter, Hospitalitet AS Lysaker torg 25, 1366 Lysaker (Norway)
Raming, Andreas, General Practitioner Practice (Germany)
Ramirez, Bernardo, Department of Health Management and Informatics , University of Central Florida (United States)
Ramirez, Bernardo, University of Central Florida (United States)
Rammohan, Anu, School of Business, Discipline of Economics, University of Western Australia, Crawley campus, 6009, Australia (Australia)
Ramos, Daniele, University of São Paulo (Brazil)
Ranasinghe, J. Sudharma, Department of Anesthesiology, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine/Jackson Memorial Hospital, Miami, Fl (United States)
Rangachari, Pavani, Department of Health Management & Informatics Georgia Regents University (United States)
Rangachari, Pavani, Department of Health Management & Informatics, Georgia Regents University (United States)
1 - 25 of 99 Items 1 2 3 4 > >>


text:
InclusiveBusiness.net
The platform for IB practitioners Managed by iBAN
MY iBAN login
IB In the News
IB Choice
IB Publication Database
Access Essentials
What is Inclusive Business?
G20's IB Framework
Financial and Technical Support
CLUED-iN Online Magazine
Tools and Training
Connect with Practitioners
About inclusivebusiness.net
About iBAN
iBAN Team
MyIBMyIB
Investor & Technical Assistance Database
This database targets companies looking for financial and/or technical support. The database lists organisations and initiatives providing different kinds of support, such as capital in the form of grants, loans and equity, or technical support in the form of advice, partnership brokering or networking support. To learn more about the database, click the info button on the right.
Claim your own entry
We recognise that this is not an exhaustive list and our aim is to add more organisations on a regular basis. Hence, we eagerly welcome new entries and encourage organisations to get listed. You can claim an entry for an organization by just clicking on the button below and filling out the questionnaire.
To keep the database as relevant as possible for companies, we only include financial or technical service providers which have existed for at least two years. You can claim an entry for your organization by clicking on the button below and filling out the questionnaire. Also, we kindly ask you to provide two references underlining your successful technical or financial support to inclusive business companies. Please send the references to info@ib-an.net.
We also encourage and welcome your feedback and suggestions of any other organisations that could be included.
Create entry
Use the search filters below to narrow down your search for financial and/or technical support providers.
Who is this database for?
This database aims to serve inclusive businesses that are looking for sources of support to help them grow, ranging from capital to technical support.
What does the database cover?
This database lists organizations that provide technical and financial support to inclusive businesses. The database will continue growing as support organizations are registered. Inclusive businesses are diverse, and so too are the range of organizations that provide support and the types of support they offer. The resources listed cover a continuum of financing solutions, from grants and concessional financing to commercial finance and private equity. They also include organizations and initiatives providing technical assistance (TA), advice, partnership brokering, information, advocacy, and networking. The database is easy to navigate and provides useful filters such as the range of financial support provided and the stage of enterprise supported (if such information is available).
More organizations will be added over time and suggestions are welcome. Other database that we recommend include:
► GET.invest: focused on renewable energy in Africa
► Nexus for Development: focused on Southeast Asia
► The Mix: Database on microfinance services
Why and how was the database developed?
Inclusive business entrepreneurs often face difficulties identifying partners that could provide crucial financial and technical support. Even though such support is available, information about it is often fragmented and hard to find. The database addresses this challenge, making information on financial and technical support easy to identify and navigate by providing easily searchable categories and filters.
The entries and information provided in the database are compiled by the research team using information publicly available on organization websites or provided directly by the organizations themselves.
Who developed the database?
The Practitioner Hub for Inclusive Business (now inclusivebusiness.net) and the Asian Development Bank set up this database to help overcome this challenge. The Connect to Grow programme supported further development of this database in 2016, specifically to include intermediaries in its target countries. In late 2017 and 2018, the DFID Impact Programme funded the most comprehensive review and update of the database yet, which was implemented by Endeva. The Endeva team reviewed the categories and all existing entries, and also added hundreds of entries with the support of the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) and other partners.
ANDE has just launched a new site of their own that provides data about financial and non-financial support available for small and growing businesses in a specific city or country. ANDE's Ecosystem Snapshots aim to help those supporting entrepreneurs to foster conditions in which businesses can thrive.
What can users search for on the database?
You can keep your search for organizations broad by just selecting the finance and/or technical support offering you are looking for or you can narrow down your search by selecting further filters such as type of organization, sector, region/country etc. If you are looking for a specific topic that is not included in the current category list, use the keywords search bar to search the entire database. This will return results on that topic from the whole database.
If users want all entries from Asia, does one need to select all Asian countries, too (or ditto for other continents)?
No. If you would like to see all the material for one continent, for example South Asia, select 'South Asia' under the 'Region/Country' filter and click on the 'Apply' button. This will bring up all intermediaries that provide support in South Asia.
Can users submit a new entry for inclusion or edit an existing entry in the database?
We recognise that this is not an exhaustive list and our aim is to add more organisations on a regular basis. Hence, we eagerly welcome new entries and encourage organisations to get listed. Go to your My iBAN-dashboard/My database entries, add a new entry and fill in the form with the details of the resource you wish to submit. The database team will review the entry before it is approved and post it on the site within a week. Please note that only submissions that match our criteria will be included.
We also encourage and welcome your feedback and suggestions of any other organizations that could be included.
In addition, we value feedback on existing entries, as well as feedback on the usefulness of this database to your work. Please have a look and get back to us!
The link to a specific resource is not working, what can users do?
All our database entries directly link to external websites of organizations and authors from which resources can be accessed. Consequently, we have limited control over links and external resources may change over time. If you notice a dead link, please help us to keep the database up to date by writing an email to info[at]ib-an.net. The link will then be updated or removed.
Cancel Apply Reset
IB topic
Environmental Impact (2)
Rural development (1)
Accelerator/Incubator (9)
(-) Challenge Fund/Programme/Facility (3)
(-) Development Finance Institution (1)
Govt/Donor/State-owned enterprises (13)
Impact investment fund/ impact investment fund manager/ impact focused venture capital fund (8)
Network/ Business association/ membership organisation/ knowledge platform (19)
Org. focus type
NGOs/Non-profits (2)
Financial offering
Debt finance (1)
Grants and awards (3)
Guarantees (2)
(-) Advocacy (4)
Information sharing, resources and publications (13)
Mentoring, Talent Placement, Network-based support (13)
One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services (26)
Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking (27)
Training, and other classroom based support (online/offline) (18)
Amount of financial support
$20,000 - 50,000 (1)
Stage of org. Focus
Growth Companies (2)
Intermediary Database
Sort by date of entrya-z
West Africa Trade and Investment Hub
https://www.watradehub.com/en/
West Africa's Trade and Investment Hub (the Trade Hub), a USAID initiative, helps the region's farmers and firms compete, attract investment, and boost trade. This is done by strengthening the competitive capacity of West Africa's farmers and firms in high-potential regional and global value chains, while also addressing transport constraints and barriers along the region's trade corridors and borders. The Trade Hub also facilitates relationships between businesses and financial institutions.
Type of OrganisationChallenge Fund/Programme/Facility, Govt/Donor/State-owned enterprises
Region/CountrySub-Saharan Africa
Exact Amount
Technical Support OfferingAdvocacy, Information sharing, resources and publications, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking
Focus TypeLarge companies, Start-ups
Focus StageEarly Stage, Growth Companies
SectorAgriculture or Food, Retail, Manufacturing or Consumer Goods
East Asia and Pacific, South Asia, Europe and Central Asia
http://www.adb.org/themes/social-development/inclusive-business
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) assists its members, and partners, by providing loans, technical assistance, grants, and equity investments. ADB supports private sector development with direct financial assistance by funding and supporting private enterprises, financial institutions, and private equity funds, as well as by mobilizing international capital for private companies.
Type of OrganisationDevelopment Finance Institution, Govt/Donor/State-owned enterprises
Region/CountryEast Asia and Pacific, South Asia, Europe and Central Asia
Finance OfferingDebt finance, Equity, Grants and awards, Guarantees
Technical Support OfferingAdvocacy, Information sharing, resources and publications, One-to-one advisory support, Consulting Services
IB TopicsEnvironmental Impact, Urban development
Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (Busac) Fund
https://www.busac.org/
The Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund is a programme set up to strengthen the advocacy capacity of private sector business groups and associations in Ghana. The Fund provides grants to private sector organisations across the ten regions of Ghana to enable them to advocate the removal of barriers within the business environment. It offers grants upto GHC 200,000
Type of OrganisationChallenge Fund/Programme/Facility
Finance OfferingGrants and awards
Amount$20,000 - 50,000
Exact Amount$45,000
Technical Support OfferingAdvocacy, Partnership brokering, investment facilitation, networking
Focus TypeNGOs/Non-profits
Focus StageEarly Stage
IB TopicsGender, Environmental Impact, Rural development, Urban development
Aqua for All
Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia
http://www.aquaforall.org
Aqua for All is a Netherlands based NGO, focussing on innovative and transformative solutions for drinking water and sanitation, targeting underserved areas in developing countries. Aqua for All acts as a connector and facilitator, through smart granting, and co-creates partnerships for transformative, sustainable and scalable solutions that unlock private investments opportunities. With its business-like, efficient, and result-oriented approach, we inspire and support our stakeholders to help the world's Base of the Pyramid gain sustainable access to safe water and adequate sanitation.
Type of OrganisationAccelerator/Incubator, Challenge Fund/Programme/Facility, Foundation
Region/CountrySub-Saharan Africa, South Asia
Finance OfferingGrants and awards, Guarantees
Focus TypeNGOs/Non-profits, Start-ups
SectorWater, Sanitation or Waste Management
Agriculture or Food (1)
Retail, Manufacturing or Consumer Goods (1)
Water, Sanitation or Waste Management (1)
Publications DB Intermediary DB
iBAN provides two specific databases dedicated to searching inclusive business resources and network actors. If you wish to search the rest of the website use the keyword search:
Copyright @ Inclusive Business Action Network 2020 All Rights Reserved
Subscribe to IB news and updates
Receive the IB online magazine, inclusive business news and updates straight to your inbox once a month.
You may unsubscribe from the newsletter at any time. The corresponding link can be found in every issue of our newsletter. We will never share your data with third parties without your consent.


text:
A selection of dailies on July 2 show headlines reporting the Cabinet decision to effectively lift Japan's self-imposed ban on exercising the right to collective self-defense. | YOSHIAKI MIURA
National / Media
Polling shows voters unclear about Article 9 reinterpretation: expert
Wording of questions may color attempts to gauge public support
by Reiji Yoshida
Online: Jul 11, 2014
The hottest political issue so far this year has been Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's historic decision to reinterpret the war-renouncing Constitution to permit the use of collective self-defense, allowing Japan to come to the aid of an ally under armed attack. How has the public reacted to Abe's military crusade?
Phone-based media polls — effectively the only means by which to rapidly determine voter sentiment — have produced rather perplexing results, stirring debate among academics and the public.
Left-leaning dailies, such as the Asahi Shimbun and the Mainichi Shimbun — which have run editorials opposing Abe's move — have reported that more than 50 percent of its respondents are against reinterpreting the Constitution to permit collective defense.
But when the right-leaning, Sankei Shimbun and Yomiuri Shimbun — which both supported Abe's drive — took a poll, they reported much different results: Some 63.7 percent of respondents supported the reinterpretation, Sankei reported after taking a poll on June 28 and 29.
Experts say the contradictory results appear to point to a lack of clear understanding by respondents on the complex issues involved in collective-self defense, rather than bias arising from polling firms.
The results also show there's a limit when interpreting public opinion on such a complicated issue, said Masao Matsumoto, professor of Saitama University and a noted expert on media poll methodology.
"People don't know much about this issue (collective self-defense). It is only natural that their answer changes depending on how questions are asked," he said.
According to Matsumoto, the way questions are phrased is key. The July 4 to 5 Asahi poll and the June 27 to 28 Mainichi poll asked respondents to choose from two options: whether they were for or against Abe's decision to reinterpret the Constitution to allow Japan to exercise collective self-defense.
By contrast, the June 28 to 29 Sankei poll and the May 9 to 11 Yomiuri poll offered three options, asking whether Japan should be allowed to: 1) exercise the right fully; 2) to the minimum extent necessary; or 3) not at all.
In the Sankei poll, 11.1 percent chose option one, while 52.6 percent chose option two and 33.3 percent option three. Adding up those who chose options one and two, Sankei reported a total of 63.7 percent supported Abe's plan.
Sankei and Yomiuri apparently prepared option two because Abe's Cabinet pledged it would use the right only "to the minimum necessary extent."
But the "minimum necessary" option was not clearly defined in the poll and might have increased the number of people who said they supported reinterpreting the Constitution.
Matsumoto pointed out that Japanese tend to avoid clearly expressing their opinions in public and prefer to choose an intermediate option if multiple choices are available in a media poll. This tendency grows even stronger when respondents are not confident about their answers, experts say.
When Matsumoto and his colleagues at Saitama University carried out an annual poll of 1,000 voters in Saitama Prefecture in June, they asked respondents if they knew what the right of collective self-defense means.
It is a country's right to use armed force to stop an attack on an ally, even if the first country itself is not under direct attack.
In the survey, as much as 43 percent of respondents answered they "don't know much about" the right or they "know almost nothing," Matsumoto said.
"Some people would have known nothing about collective self-defense until they were asked about it in a media poll," Matsumoto said.
So did the Sankei and Yomiuri intentionally prepare the third option to raise the percentage of people who support the use of collective self-defense, to bolster their political stance? Matsumoto said he can't tell because he wasn't involved in the polling.
Generally speaking, however, newspaper companies should be extremely careful in preparing polling questions to avoid giving the appearance of bias, Matsumoto said.
But then, are Asahi and Mainichi polls free of political bias?
In Tuesday's newspaper, Sankei pointed out that the pollsters hired by Asahi and Mainichi explained in their questions that the Constitution was previously interpreted as banning the use of the right of collective self-defense, before asking respondents whether they were for or against Abe's proposal.
This information could have subtly steered more respondents to choose the "against" option, because the reinterpretation could have been taken as a taboo, the Sankei argued.
"Media polls may look neutral, but their results are sometimes affected by the intention of each (polling) company," Sankei wrote.
Matsumoto agreed that the information preceding the question by Asahi and Mainichi might have affected the reactions of respondents, as Sankei pointed out.
Before drawing any conclusion from poll results, people should carefully examine the wording and options presented, the professor said.
"This time, the wording of the question affected the results. This shows voters still don't have a good grasp" of collective self-defense, he said.
media, constitution, collective self-defense, opinion poll


text:
2002 PG-13 1h 42m Blu-ray / DVD
Hip, irresponsible Londoner Will invents an imaginary son and starts attending single-parent meetings to find available women. But when Will meets the troubled 12-year-old son of a depressed single mother, a quirky and unexpected friendship blooms.
Hugh Grant, Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, Rachel Weisz, Isabel Brook, Victoria Smurfit, Sharon Small, Augustus Prew, Natalia Tena, Nicholas Hutchison
Chris Weitz, Paul Weitz
Comedy, Romantic Comedies, Romantic Dramas, Dramas Based on Contemporary Literature
Heartfelt, Romantic, Witty
Blu-ray• DVD
English, Spanish (Neutral)
English: Dolby Digital 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1
Widescreen 2.35:1
English SDH, Spanish (Neutral)
English: DTS 5.1 HD, French: DTS 5.1 Surround
PG-13 - Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. Parents are urged to be cautious. Some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers.
Common Sense rating OK for kids 14+
Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that About a Boy is a 2002 movie based on a novel by Nick Hornby in which Hugh Grant plays a self-centered playboy who starts to become a better person after meeting a misfit 14-year-old with a depressed and suicidal mother. There's some strong language (including two uses of "f--k"), including profanity used by teenagers. Some sexual references (Will is an unabashed love-'em-and-leave-'em guy). A parent is clinically depressed and attempts suicide, and her child feels responsible. Another child becomes hysterical about the prospect of his mother dating. Marcus' mother fears that Will has an improper interest in Marcus. There are some brief molestation insinuations. Characters drink and smoke.
Sexual references -- main character starts as a cad. Mild sex talk between teenagers.
Suicide attempt by one character who swallows pills, is shown passed out on a couch. Marcus is harassed/bullied by boys at school-- they kick a soccer ball that hits him in the head, chase him down the street, throw candy at his head. Lead character hit in head with an apple.
"F--k." "F--king hell." "S--t." Kids say "s--t," "piss off," "crap" British slang like "bollocks." Molestation insinuations.
Social Behavior
The shallowness of materialism is shown, as is the emptiness of short-term relationships centered exclusively on sexual gratification; traits like thoughtfulness and consideration are shown to be much more desirable and important. Marcus has the conviction to be a vegetarian, and is willing to sing a song in front of his entire school that he knows will isolate him even further and expose him to ridicule because he believes it will make his mother (who is suffering from depression) happy.
Will cares a lot about fancy products/brands. He purchases a pair of Sketchers shoes for Marcus in the hopes of making him fit in with his classmates. Talk between a mom and son about going to McDonald's to eat a Big Mac.
Drugs / Tobacco / Alcohol
Main character's father is shown as an alcoholic, but only in a brief flashback. Beer and wine drinking at holidays or at dinner. Cigarette smoking.
Age appropriate
Not an issue
Depends on your child and your family
Parents strongly cautioned
Not appropriate for kids of the age
This information for parents is provided by Common Sense Media, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving kids' media lives.


text:
Home > Consolidated bio > Thomas Weisel Partners Completes Acquisition of Canadian Investment Bank Westwind Partners
Thomas Weisel Partners Completes Acquisition of Canadian Investment Bank Westwind Partners
Closing Date: Jan 2, 2008 lexpert
On January 2, 2008, Thomas Weisel Partners Group, Inc., a US investment bank listed on the NASDAQ Global Market, completed its acquisition of Westwind Partners by way of a plan of arrangement. Westwind Partners is a full service institutionally oriented investment bank focused on the energy and mining sectors. Under the deal, which was signed at the end of September 2007, Thomas Weisel Partners agreed to pay US$45 million in cash and 7.009 million shares of, or exchangeable into, Thomas Weisel Partners common stock, for a total value of US$146.7 million on the date of announcement. On January 9, 2008, the common shares of Thomas Weisel Partners were approved for listing and commenced trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Thomas Weisel Partners' financial advisor on the transaction was its wholly-owned subsidiary, Thomas Weisel Partners LLC, and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods rendered a fairness opinion. Thomas Weisel Partners was represented in-house by General Counsel Mark Fisher, Andrew Stone and Michael Chien. The Canadian legal advisor to Thomas Weisel Partners was Stikeman Elliott LLP with a team that included Ken Ottenbreit, Gordon Cameron, Stewart Sutcliffe, Mark Fedorowycz, Mathieu Grenier (corporate), Dean Kraus, Francesco Gucciardo (tax), Eliot Kolers (court), Lorna Cuthbert (employment) and Sandy Walker (regulatory). The US legal advisor to Thomas Weisel Partners was Sullivan & Cromwell LLP with a team that included Scott Miller, Sarah Payne and Peter Mailhot (corporate); Andrew Mason and Dexter Samida (tax) and Frederick Wertheim (broker-dealer regulatory).
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP acted as legal advisor to Westwind Partners on the deal, with a team that included William Ainley, Philippe C. Rousseau, Paul Budovitch (corporate), Gerald Shepherd (US corporate), Duncan Osborne, Elie Roth (tax), Anita Banicevic (regulatory), James Doris, Philip Huynh (court) and Kent Beattie (real estate).
Philippe C. Rousseau,Eliot N. Kolers,William M. Ainley,Gerald D. Shepherd,Philip Huynh,Sandra L. Walker,Francesco G. Gucciardo,Stewart Sutcliffe,Kent F. Beattie,Glenn Cameron,Lorna A. Cuthbert,Duncan G. Osborne,Kenneth G. Ottenbreit,Dean Allan Kraus,Mathieu Grenier,James W.E. Doris,Mark Fedorowycz,Anita Banicevic,Elie Roth,Paul Budovitch
Stikeman Elliott LLP,Sullivan & Cromwell LLP,Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP