MONEYWEB: Before we pick up with Harmony's chief executive, Bernard Swanepoel, Barry Sergeant has been following the action. I know we were together in the Investec auditorium this morning, Barry. Give us some background.
BARRY SERGEANT: Alec, it was on Tuesday evening last week in this studio that we discussed market rumours of Gold Fields coming into play as a potential takeover target. We also speculated at the time that it had hired Goldman Sachs, the big-name Wall Street investment bank to advise it on a defensive strategy. Gold Fields said "no comment". On Friday, it was of note that gold stocks closed on average slightly higher on Wall Street, the world's latest-trading large stock market, Gold Fields, however, surged by more than 8%. Over the weekend it transpired that Harmony Gold was putting the final touches to a full takeover bid for Gold Fields. The formal announcement was made this morning, 9.00 am South African time, at a briefing in Sandton by Harmony chief executive, Bernard Swanepoel. This is an all-paper offer – 1.275 Harmony shares for each Gold Fields share. Harmony said the offer comprised a premium of roughly 30% above the average Gold Fields share price over the past 30 days. That's normal in this kind of takeover bid. In round figures, Harmony is offering a premium of US$2.4bn, taking the full offer for Gold Fields to $8.1bn dollars. Among the many, many details to consider, Russia's Norilsk, which acquired 20% of Gold Fields in March, has given Harmony an irrevocable agreement that it will back the Harmony bid.
MONEYWEB: In other words, it's votes are in the Harmony bag?
BARRY SERGEANT: Yes, it's a very unusual situation.
MONEYWEB: So they got 20% before they start, really. And they only need 50%.
BARRY SERGEANT: Exactly. This highly unusual situation is only one of the many indicators that Harmony's bid is nothing less than hostile. A great battle is likely to be waged in the days and weeks ahead and, yes, Gold Fields announced today that it had hired Goldman Sachs – and also another big Wall Street name, JP Morgan.
MONEYWEB: So no more "no comments" there. Bernard Swanepoel joins us now, chief executive of Harmony. Bernard, how do you calculate – just to let people understand how these kind of things work – the offer that you would make here? You are going to be giving 1.275 Harmony shares for each one Gold Fields share. But how do you come to that number?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: For us it was looking at the Gold Fields assets and seeing what additional value we could unlock through implementing the things we do. That comes to a monetary amount, and then of course we have to find a way in which we can load that into an upfront premium for existing Gold Fields shareholders. That's very normal in a transaction where you try and take control of a company.
MONEYWEB: But why 1.275? Why not 2, why not half?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: The share prices were really almost a parity for a long time, for months. If Harmony was R70, Gold Fields was R70. And so the 27.5% was really a 27, 25 to 30% premium. So that's where the ratio originally came from. It was really how the share prices were seen in the market over quite an extended period of time, Alec.
MONEYWEB: This morning in the presentation, you said you were interested in Gold Fields assets for some time, but that the bid was really sparked by Gold Fields' decision to itself to a takeover bid of a North American listed company called Iamgold. What is it about the takeover prospect that got you interested?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: You know, we looked at the transaction and thought that it was a bad for South Africa, and bad for the South African assets of Gold Fields. But it was specifically bad in the value leakage. Gold Fields were proposing to give away all of their cash, all of the growth exploration, and all their international assets at what is generally accepted to have been a cheap price. When there is a such a value leakage, then obviously you would expect some shareholders to not be particularly happy with that. We saw a significant value leakage in their proposal, and then we looked at our way of operating mines, and we believe there's a value creation. So we thought what we could put to Gold Fields shareholders was a better option on two counts – preventing value leakage and creating value.
MONEYWEB: So, in your opinion, they've done a bad deal and this presents an opportunity?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: That's really how we view that.
MONEYWEB: The reaction from the other side, from Ian Cockerill, who I did manage to have a chat with this afternoon, said that this is an opportunistic deal. It is senseless because you've got a smaller company, with lower-grade assets, lower quality assets, wanting to buy out a company with much better assets, in his opinion, at a price that he thinks is not realistic. Why do you think that shareholders of Gold Fields should accept the bid you've put on the table?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: I think there are a few reasons. The upfront one of course is the premium, you know, and obviously we are indicting to Gold Fields shareholders that the management team of Harmony is prepared to pay more than what the current share price reflects, in order to unlock the value. And we would invite them to join this new, better company. I think it becomes quite an interesting and good equity story, you know. If you put the two companies together, you may not take some asses and go and live in Denver or whatever, but you certainly create a world-class mining company, biggest in terms of production ounces, second-biggest potentially in terms of market cap. And you really will become a truly integrated mining company from exploration all the way through to beneficiation. We think that's a compelling story. You don't constrain this company in the sense that you have given most of its cash-generative assets to another board to control. You don't constrain this company for its growth to the SADC environment or region. And, really, you don't try and abandon South African assets prematurely.
MONEYWEB: The response to that, from Ian Cockerill, is they are going to be investing R10bn in developing the South African assets over the next few years. It doesn't sound like they're abandoning them.
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: I think if one goes through what has been put into public domain before, and looks at the analysts' conclusion, if you look at the behaviour of the company over the last few quarters, there's been very little evidence of cost reductions or trying to implement new work practices. And really, most the of the effort has gone into raising the grade, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but cutting back on development and cutting back on capital. So sometimes one's actions speak so loud that you can't hear the words.
MONEYWEB: You talked about "living in Denver". Are you telling us that the Gold Fields management team are relocating?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: No, I think the Iamgold transaction was pretty clear, in that some of the management of Gold Fields will actually end up running the international company. Chris Thompson, the current non-executive chairman, would end up as the chief executive of that, and then the guy heading up the exploration division would also end up there. So it really splits their current management team almost perfectly in half, and in there lies another duplication. So the same assets really now end up in two corporate structures. Investors get two entry points there. So a holding-company discount potential. Alec, I'm much more comfortable explaining the positive side of the Harmony bid, but it's not difficult to be critical of the Iamgold transaction.
MONEYWEB: Talking about the positive side of the bid, better management is clearly one of the issue that you're going to be driving, that have a better management team than the Gold Fields team – and that would be evident by your claim that you can cut 15% of Gold Fields costs. Is that the number that you're sticking to, 15%, or might it even be higher?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: I think our track record may indicate that we've done better than that from time to time. You know, one has to make these bids on public domain information, you have to go on what you see, looking in and reading analysts' reports and reading annual reports of the company. We certainly believe that the 15% is achievable without this becoming a deep cut into numbers of people working on the mines. I can see that some of the unions, especially Solidarity, have obviously got themselves confused about what this may mean in terms of job creation.
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: They've put out a press release saying that they hear that this will result in 7,000 job losses. They certainly could never have heard that from Harmony, because we are extremely comfortable that we can achieve the 15% without having to cut deeply into, as I say, the blue-collar workers. Of course, when you put two companies together, one with lots of levels of hierarchy, one with a head office and all sorts of other positions which don't exist in Harmony, there will be some integration and some senior job losses.
MONEYWEB: Ian Cockerill, for instance?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: Nothing compared to the numbers as put out by the unions.
MONEYWEB: You say job losses, Ian Cockerill – he ain"t got a job with you?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: You know, as I indicated, that was one of the few questions I was asked by Ian over the weekend – what are the plans for management? And I obviously had to honestly state that we at Harmony have got a flat-structure approach. We love the managers in the mines to be the guys who take the decisions of how to run the mines, and that results in less people being required in the head office. But if his board were to recommend this transaction, then him and me can sit and work out the details of how to integrate the team.
MONEYWEB: That sounds like a bit of a bribe, Bernard?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: I think it's just common sense that, if you want to be part of the future, then you have to join the future.
MONEYWEB: But the chances of that happening, given what you said at your presentation today, given what Ian Cockerill has said to us here at Moneyweb this afternoon, seem pretty slim?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: Alec, it's difficult for me to assess. When I spoke to Ian originally, he rejected it outright. But then later, obviously on the advice of his advisers, he said that he would take it to his board, which I thought was the proper thing to do in the first place. I am under the impression, last night, the last communication I had from him via e-mail was that as soon as they've got enough information, he will take it to his board. I am not sure whether he's called the board meeting yet. But I keep on being confronted [with the statement] that he has rejected it and called it hostile. I don't think that can be his board's view yet. It may be his personal view which he is expressing at this stage.
MONEYWEB: Well, I will enlighten you – which is unusual from where you are sitting. But the board started at 5:00 pm this afternoon, and we are hoping to speak with Ian Cockerill. He is hoping to have the board meeting finished or to pop out, to tell us what those conclusions were at about 6:50 pm this evening. The ace in a hole for you is the Russians. They've already given you the irrevocable, in other words that they are going to support you in this – but what conditions have they attached to that?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: There are really no conditions which would imply some sort of deal that isn't fully extended to all of the shareholders. One of the requirements of a transaction like this is that you can't have side deals with one shareholder which isn't extended to all shareholders. So part of our filings is a complete disclosure of the irrevocable undertaking, and any irrevocable has always got clauses that this isn't open-ended for years and years. It's for a fixed period of six months. So there are normal terms that are very typical to an irrevocable. But here are no side deals or special favours or anything of the sort, Alec.
MONEYWEB: But one of the keys is that the Iamgold, the North American transaction by Gold Fields, may not go ahead?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: That is a condition we put forward to the Gold Fields shareholders, you know, and we therefore also procured from Norilsk an undertaking that they would vote against that. You can imagine, that wasn't too difficult because they were already very anti that transaction. But that's a condition applicable to the whole transaction and not necessarily only the Norilsk irrevocable undertaking to support us.
MONEYWEB: Bernard, in the initial parts of this programme, we were talking with Arthur Buchner, who watches very closely the way that the share prices react. And that gives you an indication of whether the deal will go through or not. Now, to begin with, very shortly after your presentation this morning, there was a big thumbs-up – the Gold Fields price in fact traded at a premium to the bid offer. But towards the latter part of the day, and particularly after the Americans came into the market, it has not gone to a substantial discount to the offer, which would suggest that they are giving it the thumbs-down. If this kind of relationship continues, would you consider raising your bid?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: Alec, I really am prevented from even commenting on what we may or may not do in terms of future pricing. I think we certainly always had an expectation that this transaction would be very well received in South Africa and Europe. And, remember, in North America a lot of people have been making good money out of the previously proposed transaction on the Iamgold side. I personally am completely unsurprised by the behaviour. I think there's a healthy premium left and typically, I think most market commentators will agree that you wait four, five days to see how the market judges such an offer. Is it substantial, is it real, is there a real chance of success? A huge amount of detail, like 70 pages worth, was dumped on everybody today, and I think I back the market to come to a logical conclusion in a few days time.
MONEYWEB: You've landed a few punches the first day, you've had a few hits back, particularly from the market, in the first day. But maybe around four and five is where the telling is going to be. How long does this whole contest continue for?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: Well, we obviously hope that we would be able to convince the Gold Fields board at some point that this transaction indicates a significant value uplift for the shareholders. That process will continue and hopefully the board will at some stage engage us on that. There is the 30-day sort of point, where shareholders will get a chance to vote for the first time with their feet and their money. Some shareholders may accept the Harmony offer at that point in time and lock in the premium. And obviously if we achieve a significant percentage at that point – we know how the Russians will vote – well, then the Iamgold transaction may go away completely. Then it's a different ball game.
MONEYWEB: The thing is, as far as the Russians are concerned, you won't get their 20% shareholding unless the Iamgold transaction disappears?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: Their irrevocable is subject to all the conditions of the transaction. They can't and won't offer their shares into the quick-acceptance offer, that's correct.
MONEYWEB: Bernard, what happens if you get say 34, 35, 38%? Would you then hold on to those shares? Would you make sure that it happens, or do you have an out?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: No, I think if we get into a stake of significant influence we would obviously try to have a proportionate say in how the company gets run, Alec. There are so many different scenarios. Obviously, before you can go over 34.5%, you actually need to get Competition Commission approval to go to 100%. So if you are in that position, then you obviously have to evaluate whether you build up your stake over a period of time, probably something along [the lines of] the Iscor recent transaction. If you get a stake which is less significant than that, then one may actually crystallise that into cash. There are so many scenarios, it's almost impossible to speak to any one of them.
MONEYWEB: Fully understood. But are you in this for the long haul – in other words, if you don't get 50%, are you going to withdraw completely or is it too juicy a target to leave as it is?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: Alec, it's very tempting to say "it's too juicy a target to leave". But I must tell you we have covered all the bases. We have put up what we believe will turn out to be a knock-out premium in the end. We put forward a value proposition which, except for the Iamgold shareholders, we think most shareholders are going to buy into, as we get around to explain that. And we really back ourselves to succeed. And you would expect me to say nothing other than that.
MONEYWEB: And your board fully behind this – 100% support?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: Our board is very supportive of that. We've got one director, Lord Robin Renwick, who is also a senior vice-president of JP Morgan, which has been engaged to defend Gold Fields. He has tendered his resignation, simply to prevent a conflict situation. We respect that and have accepted that. Each one of our directors has been in support of this – and very importantly, of course, our single biggest shareholder has supported this. So we've got Gold Fields' biggest shareholder and Harmony's biggest shareholder in support of this transaction.
MONEYWEB: Bernard, have you had any discussions whatsoever with the black economic empowerment partner of the other side, Mvelaphanda?
BERNARD SWANEPOEL: The two chairmen, as you would expect, being Patrice Motsepe and Tokyo Sexwale, did exchange some views, I know, on Sunday afternoon or evening. It was really, as you would expect, two people who in their private lives are also friends, bringing each other up to speed with where it is. In the end, I expect Mvelaphanda to wait to see whether they believe that the Harmony transaction will create value on the South African assets of Gold Fields, because that is where their exposure is. If we can deliver on our promises, then Mvelaphanda's case is even more spectacular than the normal Gold Fields shareholder, because they are exposed to the South African assets only.
MONEYWEB: Bernard Swanepoel, Harmony's chief executive, a man who has had a long, hard day, and we really appreciate spending 20 minutes or so with him to outline the transaction of the year, unquestionably.


text:
Ryan Cockbill looking on the bright side
British shooter on Roger Federer, Walking Dead and Tokyo 2020 14 Mar 2019
Ryan Cockbill is looking to Roger Federer for competition inspiration
ⒸGetty Images
By Priyanka Sharma | For World Shooting Para Sport
"One of my biggest idols has been Roger Federer. He is always so calm and collective. Even in his losses, he tries to maintain that calmness and follows the same process. I try to imitate him with the discipline in my training and in my shooting."
Great Britain shooter Ryan Cockbill barely remembers the summer of 2006 which changed his life completely. An accident, while he was attempting a "belly flop" dive at a post-exams garden party, left him paralysed. But he prefers to think about the positive side.
"It gave me the opportunity to travel the world and do something better in my career like shooting. I feel lucky for being able to do this. I started the sport as a hobby and now I am pursuing it as a full-time career. So, if that accident hadn't have happened, I wouldn't be here today," said the 28-year-old.
Movies and television series are other interests that keep Cockbill busy when he is not at the shooting range.
"I am a movie buff and try to go to the cinemas every week. The post-apocalyptic horror TV series Walking Dead is one of my favourites," he added.
Following Federer
A 2012 London Paralympian, Cockbill has been part of the Great Britain shooting team for almost a decade. He is now trying to bring in more discipline to his game and follow the example of tennis legend Roger Federer.
"One of my biggest idols has been Roger Federer. He is always so calm and collective. Even in his losses, he tries to maintain that calmness and follows the same process. I try to imitate him with the discipline in my training and in my shooting," said Cockbill.
Looking back at the Al Ain World Cup, Cockbill celebrated bronze in the R4 (mixed 10m air rifle standing SH2) which secured a quota place at the next Paralympic Games in Tokyo.
Qualifying in sixth place, Cockbill stayed in contention from the start in the final and was just 1.4 off competing for the silver and gold places. South Korea's Geunsoo Kim finished first followed by France's Tanguy de La Forest.
"The competition was good. The qualification was little bit tough and the scores were little lower than my average. But the final came through and I managed a medal, which is really good," he said.
Al Ain 2019: Alaryani on target
Al Ain 2019: Home joy on the range
Al Ain 2019: Geunsoo Kim ends title drought
Al Ain 2019: Yan Yaping keeps cool for gold
Al Ain 2019: Kovalchuk wins final day thriller
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Official Website of World Shooting Para Sport
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This Tour begin in Cusco and end in Lima.
Day 1: Reception in Cusco. Transfer to Hotel Marqueses. Time to rest and relax.
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Blood Transfusions: How Safe
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""Even 30 years ago, pathologists and blood-bank personnel were advised: Blood is dynamite!
—a 61-year-old quote that JW.org thinks is relevant to today[1]
The following is a side-by-side rebuttal to the JW.org (the official Jehovah's Witnesses website) document "Blood Transfusions: How Safe?",[1] which exists to provide a health-based defence for the Witnesses' disavowal of blood transfusions. "How Safe" alleges that blood transfusions pose several serious health risks, but uses many outdated publications that are no longer relevant in the slightest. Moreover, the article presents many "scary" truths in order to frighten people from transfusions - without even mentioning the comparable risks of refusing blood transfusions.
Although the document was originally published in the 1990s, JW.org keeps the publication online and presents it without noting that its contents are hopelessly out-of-date. This becomes unmistakably obvious when the actual text keeps using a present tense (and tone) when citing studies from the years 1987-1990. "Radically tubular!", as the kids of today would put it. And just in case you've repressed how much of life's journey you've already zoned out through, please realise that 1987 was 34 years ago. These aren't exactly studies from yesterday; the spring-chicken college sophomores who conducted said studies are likely retired by now.
Overall, the document is a pseudoscientific defense of a religious dogma. On the positive side, it does mean that the Jehovah's Witnesses serve as a useful set of test subjects for synthetic blood substitutes.
1 RationalWiki Introduction
1.1 Federal data
1.2 Data on harms on lack of blood transfusions
1.3 Rates comparison
2 Side-by-side rebuttal
2.1 Intro
2.2 "Magical quality"
2.3 General problems
2.4 Hemolytic Transfusion Reactions
2.5 Immune system
2.6 Cancer
2.7 "Fingerprints"
2.8 Infection
2.8.1 Lyme disease
2.8.2 Migrant blood
2.8.3 Hepatitis
2.8.4 Previously considered non-infectious
2.8.5 AIDS
3 Video summary
6 Calculations
RationalWiki Introduction[edit]
The 22 May 1994 cover of Awake, an official JW publication. The first 15 pages detail the life stories of all 26 children pictured here and how each consciously chose to die, merely because they would not allow a blood transfusion.
According to JW.org, Jehovah's Witnesses (JW) cannot get blood transfusion without violating the tenets of their official church doctrine.[2][note 1] This doctrine has resulted in unnecessary injury and death. How can the harms of this belief be quantified? First, we must examine the harms of blood transfusion.
Federal data[edit]
Fortunately for comparative health purposes, federal law requires that blood-related fatalities be reported (bold added):[3]
Section 606.170(b) of Title 21, Code of Federal Regulations (21 CFR 606.170(b)), requires that facilities notify the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER), Office of Compliance and Biologics Quality (OCBQ), as soon as possible after confirming a complication of blood collection or transfusion to be fatal. The collecting facility is to report donor fatalities, and the compatibility testing facility is to report recipient fatalities. The regulation also requires the reporting facility to submit a report of the investigation within 7 days after the fatality.
The HHS does note that "[t]he actual rate of adverse reactions is likely to be more than what was reported to the transfusion service."[4] However, these numbers includes both fatalities where "transfusion could not be ruled out as the cause" and where "while there was a temporal link, there was no evidence to support a causal relationship". In other words, these estimates are essentially the maximum possible fatality rate that we know about:[5]
FDA: Transfusion fatalities
FDA: Post-donation fatalities
FDA: Total fatalities
HHS: Total transfusions
Fatality rate (FDA / HHS):
deaths per million transfusions
56 7 63[6] (assumed to be
the same as 2011) 3.0096[calc 1]
65 11 76[7] (assumed to be
58 8 66[8] 20,933,000[4] 3.1529[calc 4]
66 4 70[10] (assumed to be
54 10 64[11] 23,668,000[12][note 2] 2.7041[calc 7]
63 15 78[13] (assumed to be
the same as 2004) 2.8928[calc 10]
n/a n/a n/a 29,038,000[16] n/a
24386200[note 3]
2.9525[calc 11]
If we assume that the average death rate for blood transfusions is 8 per million (which is far beyond any upper reported estimate), then if every single one of the (upper estimate) 8.2 million Jehovah's Witnesseses[17] had a blood transfusion, then at most about 66 people' would die. (Realistically, only about 1.5% of people need a blood transfusion, and the true death rate is less than half of the above, making this estimate at least orders of magnitude too high.)
Data on harms on lack of blood transfusions[edit]
In comparison, the May 1994 cover (see above) of Jehovah's Witness publication Awake! lists 26 children (children! no adults!) who died rather than get a blood transfusion.
One (pro-blood-transfusion) Jehovah's Witness source puts the annual death toll from lack of blood transfusions during surgery alone at 900 deaths per year,[18] based on the results of Kitchens 93.[19]
Rates comparison[edit]
Jehovah's Witnesses:
Die at about 1% higher rates from complications due to bloodless surgery.[18][19] Non-JWs:
Die at 0.0008% higher rates (8 per million; twice the realistic upper bound) from transfusion complications.
Get potentially-lethal Hepatitis B at 0.000488% higher rates (1 in 205,000; upper bound).
Get potentially-lethal Hepatitis C at 0.0000625% higher rates (1 in 1.6 million; upper bound).
Get HIV at 0.00005% higher rates (1 in 2 million; upper bound).
Let's assume that every single infection of Hepatitis B and C and HIV are fatal. Even in this worst-case scenario, only 0.0014005% of blood transfusions recipients die. In other words, even in the best possible light, Jehovah's Witnesses face perhaps 700 times as much risk as non-JWs do.
Jehovah's Witnesses also face vastly increased risks during childbirth[20] -- on the order of 70 times greater.[21] However, the increased deaths from surgery alone are sufficient to prove that refusing blood is far, far more dangerous than accepting it.
Side-by-side rebuttal[edit]
Jehovah's Witnesses[note 4] RationalWiki
Intro[edit]
Before submitting to any serious medical procedure, a thinking person will learn the possible benefits and the risks. What about blood transfusions? They are now a prime tool in medicine. Many physicians who are genuinely interested in their patients may have little hesitation about giving blood. It has been called the gift of life. Distracting Truth #1: Indeed, you should try to learn more about what doctors are doing to your body. However, the Jehovah's Witnesses page neglects to mention any of the "possible benefits" and seems obsessed with the "risks".
Millions have donated blood or have accepted it. For 1986-87 Canada had 1.3 million donors in a population of 25 million. "[In] the most recent year for which figures are available, between 12 million and 14 million units of blood were used in transfusions in the United States alone."—The New York Times, February 18, 1990. Distracting Truth #2: Indeed, lots of people get blood. However, the JW document fails to note how many of those people's lives were saved.
"Magical quality"[edit]
"Blood has always enjoyed a 'magical' quality," notes Dr. Louise J. Keating. "For its first 46 years, the blood supply was perceived as being safer than it actually was by both physicians and the public." (Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine, May 1989) What was the situation then, and what is it now? Outdated Evidence #1: Moreover, given that blood transfusion's "first 46 years" could be as early as 1830-1876,[22] this says almost nothing and is almost entirely irrelevant to now.)
Quote Mine #1: In said article, Dr. Keating goes on to say
During the past four years, however, since the AIDS epidemic has been recognized as a serious threat to the nation's health, the blood supply has been perceived as far less safe than it actually is. Blood is and will continue to be an invaluable therapeutic modality, without which physicians could not perform many therapeutic procedures such as heart and vascular surgery, cancer chemotherapy, joint replacement, trauma, and transplantation.[23]
(emphasis added)
General problems[edit]
Even 30 years ago, pathologists and blood-bank personnel were advised: "Blood is dynamite! It can do a great deal of good or a great deal of harm. The mortality from blood transfusion equals that from ether anesthesia or appendectomy. There is said to be approximately one death in 1,000 to 3,000 or possibly 5,000 transfusions. In the London area there has been reported one death for every 13,000 bottles of blood transfused."—New York State Journal of Medicine, January 15, 1960. Have the dangers since been eliminated so that transfusions are now safe? Frankly, each year hundreds of thousands have adverse reactions to blood, and many die. In view of the preceding comments, what may come to your mind are blood-borne diseases. Before examining this aspect, consider some risks that are less well-known. Outdated Evidence #2: This is really old data, and it matters. In 2012, the Food and Drug Administration noted that transfusions are continually improving:[24]
[T]he blood supply is safer today than at any time in history. Due to advances in donor screening, improved testing, automated data systems, and changes in transfusion medicine practices, the risks associated with blood transfusion continue to decrease.
The most recent data from the FDA (see top of article) suggests a rate of about 3 deaths per million, as compared to deaths per thousand reported here.
Hemolytic Transfusion Reactions[edit]
Early in the 20th century, scientists deepened man's understanding of the marvelous complexity of blood. They learned that there are different blood types. Matching a donor's blood and a patient's blood is critical in transfusions. If someone with type A blood receives type B, he may have a severe hemolytic reaction. This can destroy many of his red cells and quickly kill him. While blood-typing and cross matching are now routine, errors do occur. Every year people die of hemolytic reactions. Outdated Evidence #3: Hemolytic reactions DO occur. However, the FDA's most recent data (2014) reports a mere eight fatal Hemolytic Transfusion Reactions (HTR).[note 5] In 2013 there were six; 2012, eight; 2011, nine. Compare this with 2011's 20.933 million blood transfusions. (For an average rate of 0.37081 deaths per million.) Notably, these rates appear to be going down — see the chart below. Is there a risk? Yes. Is it significant? No.
Fatal incidents of Hemolytic Transfusion Reactions (HTR) are low and have been going down. Remember, that number on the left is the actual number -- 0-30 people, not percent or thousand or million.
The facts show that the issue of incompatibility goes far beyond the relatively few blood types that hospitals seek to match. Why? Well, in his article "Blood Transfusion: Uses, Abuses, and Hazards," Dr. Douglas H. Posey, Jr., writes: "Nearly 30 years ago Sampson described blood transfusion as a relatively dangerous procedure… [Since then] at least 400 additional red cell antigens have been identified and characterized. There is no doubt the number will continue to increase because the red cell membrane is enormously complex."—Journal of the National Medical Association, July 1989. Distracting Truth #3: Indeed, Scientists keep studying how blood works... and this is bad? Part of the reason that scientists study antigens is so that they can figure out how to negate them and make transfusions even safer -- as the data above proves that they are doing so.
"Approximately 1 in 100 transfusions are accompanied by fever, chills, or urticaria [hives]… . Approximately 1 in 6,000 red cell transfusions results in a hemolytic transfusion reaction. This is a severe immunologic reaction that may occur acutely or in a delayed fashion some days after the transfusion; it may result in acute [kidney] failure, shock, intravascular coagulation, and even death."—National Institutes of Health (NIH) conference, 1988. Outdated Evidence #5: See the responses to high death rates at the top of this section. Furthermore, searches for this (supposed) NIH document returned no non-JW online results.
Immune system[edit]
Scientists are now studying the effect of transfused blood on the body's defense, or immune, system. What might that mean for you or for a relative who needs surgery? When doctors transplant a heart, a liver, or another organ, the recipient's immune system may sense the foreign tissue and reject it. Yet, a transfusion is a tissue transplant. Even blood that has been "properly" cross matched can suppress the immune system. At a conference of pathologists, the point was made that hundreds of medical papers "have linked blood transfusions to immunologic responses."—"Case Builds Against Transfusions," Medical World News, December 11, 1989. Distracting Truth: It is true that blood transfusions can . However, this fact draws attention away from the fact to compare blood loss poses a far more significant risk. Not only does insufficient blood lead to a weakening of the body and thus of the immune system, but it often poses a legitimate threat to a patient's life. Unfortunately, the article "Case Builds Against Transfusions" does not appear to be freely available online, and so it is unclear if this is a quotemine or accurate representation of the article.
Cancer[edit]
A prime task of your immune system is detecting and destroying malignant (cancer) cells. Could suppressed immunity lead to cancer and death? Note two reports. There are several issues with the argument that "transfusions cause cancer".
First and foremost, cancer patients often get transfusions because they are already in severe condition — and this may explain why they do worse than the patients who did not need transfusion and thus did not get it.
Second, cancer is itself often the reason that people get transfusions. The American Cancer Society notes that cancers which cause internal bleeding, which harm the blood-producing bone marrow, or which harm the blood-regulating kidneys or spleen may cause anemia, which is pretty damn bad. Similarly, surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and organ transplants all affect blood and may require blood transplants.[25]
The journal Cancer (February 15, 1987) gave the results of a study done in the Netherlands: "In the patients with colon cancer, a significant adverse effect of transfusion on long-term survival was seen. In this group there was a cumulative 5-year overall survival of 48% for the transfused and 74% for the nontransfused patients." The author creates a quotemine by failing to quote the next two sentences:[26]
Perioperative blood transfusion was associated with a relative risk of 3.42 for all deaths (P = 0.005) and 4.25 for death due to cancer (P = 0.03), after adjustment for other important variables such as age, sex, stage, location of tumor, surgical procedure, and preoperative hemoglobin level. In contrast, in our study group of patients with breast cancers, who all underwent a modified radical mastectomy, no effect of bloodtransfusion on long-term survival was seen.
The study reports that, while blood transfusions seemed to have hurt colon cancer patients and had insignificant but slightly positive effects for breast cancer recipients. More importantly, this study is 29 years old, and both transfusion methods and cancer procedures have changed. Most importantly, this study applies only to people who already have cancer. It does not apply to most members of the general population, and it is disingenuous to equate "transfusion can exacerbate cancer" with the entirely different "transfusion can cause cancer".
Physicians at the University of Southern California followed up on a hundred patients who underwent cancer surgery. "The recurrence rate for all cancers of the larynx was 14% for those who did not receive blood and 65% for those who did. For cancer of the oral cavity, pharynx, and nose or sinus, the recurrence rate was 31% without transfusions and 71% with transfusions."—Annals of Otology, Rhinology & Laryngology, March 1989.
What do such studies suggest regarding transfusions? In his article "Blood Transfusions and Surgery for Cancer," Dr. John S. Spratt concluded: "The cancer surgeon may need to become a bloodless surgeon."—The American Journal of Surgery, September 1986. Indeed, surgeons are trying to find ways to reduce blood loss during surgery. Why make the patient bleed — and risk death or an emergency transfusion — when you don't need to?
However, this does not mean that bloodless surgeries are equally safe. Kitchens 93 (admittedly an old study) reported that, for "patients of the Jehovah's Witness faith who were not given transfusion for operations during which transfusion is typically given", "approximately 0.5% to 1.5% of such operations are complicated by anemia resulting in death".[27]
Yes, the option is available. No, the option is not equally good.
"Fingerprints"[edit]
Danish scientist Niels Jerne shared the 1984 Nobel Prize for Medicine. When asked why he refused a blood transfusion, he said: "A person's blood is like his fingerprints—there are no two types of blood that are exactly alike." First, again: an internet search for this quote return no non-JW results. Second, it's not clear what this quote is supposed to mean. Yes, blood is different between individuals, and so are all organs. Nevertheless, they're all transplantable.
Infection[edit]
Another primary task of your immune system is to defend against infection. So it is understandable that some studies show that patients receiving blood are more prone to infection. Dr. P. I. Tartter did a study of colorectal surgery. Of patients given transfusions, 25 percent developed infections, compared with 4 percent of those who received no transfusions. He reports: "Blood transfusions were associated with infectious complications when given pre-, intra-, or postoperatively … The risk of postoperative infection increased progressively with the number of units of blood given." (The British Journal of Surgery, August 1988) Those attending a 1989 meeting of the American Association of Blood Banks learned this: Whereas 23 percent of those who received donor blood during hip-replacement surgery developed infections, those given no blood had no infections at all. Dr. John A. Collins wrote concerning this effect of blood transfusions: "It would be ironic indeed if a 'treatment' which has very little evidence of accomplishing anything worthwhile should subsequently be found to intensify one of the main problems faced by such patients."—World Journal of Surgery, February 1987. The same problems apply to this study as to the Netherlands study above — namely that the study applies only to people who already have cancer and is 30 years old.
Blood-borne disease worries conscientious physicians and many patients. Which disease? Frankly, you cannot limit it just to one; there are indeed many. Physicians truly worry about blood-borne disease. They also worry about patients who risk death from lack of transfusion.
After discussing the more well-known diseases, Techniques of Blood Transfusion (1982) addresses "other transfusion-associated infectious diseases," such as syphilis, cytomegalovirus infection, and malaria. It then says: "Several other diseases have also been reported to be transmitted by blood transfusion, including herpes virus infections, infectious mononucleosis (Epstein-Barr virus), toxoplasmosis, trypanosomiasis [African sleeping sickness and Chagas' disease], leishmaniasis, brucellosis [undulant fever], typhus, filariasis, measles, salmonellosis, and Colorado tick fever."
Lyme disease[edit]
Actually, the list of such diseases is growing. You may have read headlines such as "Lyme Disease From a Transfusion? It's Unlikely, but Experts Are Wary." How safe is blood from someone testing positive for Lyme disease? A panel of health officials were asked if they would accept such blood. "All of them answered no, although no one recommended discarding blood from such donors." How should the public feel about banked blood that experts themselves would not accept?—The New York Times, July 18, 1989. Distracting truth: Lyme disease can pass through blood, but this isn't a realistic threat. The CDC notes that this has never been observed, despite hundreds of millions of transfusions over decades:[28]
Although no cases of Lyme disease have been linked to blood transfusion, scientists have found that the Lyme disease bacteria can live in blood from a person with an active infection that is stored for donation. Individuals being treated for Lyme disease with an antibiotic should not donate blood. Individuals who have completed antibiotic treatment for Lyme disease may be considered as potential blood donors.
Although blood is not screened for Lyme disease after donation, donors who were diagnosed with Lyme disease or who exhibit signs of Lyme disease are promptly turned away.[29] To study whether this poses a risk, Gerber et. al 1994 studied a sample of 155 patients (who received 601 units of blood cells and 155 units of blood platelets) and found:[30]
No patient developed clinical or serologic evidence of Lyme disease; 1 (who received 5 units of PRBC) developed clinical and serologic evidence of babesiosis. The risk of acquiring Lyme disease from a transfused unit of PRBC was 0 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0-0.5%) and from a transfused unit of platelets was 0 (95% CI, 0-0.8%); the same risks for babesiosis were 0.17% (95% CI, 0.004%-0.9%) and 0 (95% CI, 0-0.8%), respectively. The risk of acquiring either Lyme disease or babesiosis from a blood transfusion in Connecticut is very low.
Although the chance for infection by Lyme disease through blood donation exists, it seems to be extremely low.
Quote Mine: The cited New York Times article also writes:[31]
Although data are limited, Dr. Sandler said, it is thought that if the microbe can be spread in a transfusion, it can occur only in the initial stages of the disease. In cases where the spirochete has been isolated from the blood of patients, the individual has felt ill, making it unlikely that such a person would feel well enough to donate blood, Dr. Sandler said.
To reduce the risk from a Lyme-infected donor who may not feel ill, the Red Cross has instructed blood-bank workers to examine each donor for the Lyme rash.
Outdated Evidence: The cited New York Times article is 32 years old -- before relevant testing had been done -- and raised a valid point in an area of scientific uncertainty.[31] For example, Aoki et. al 1989 noted that "Routine blood cultures will rarely document bacteremia[note 6] and serologic[32] testing is not yet reliable".[note 7] However, Gerber et. al 1994 post-dates both of these articles, used serologic testing successfully, and put many Lyme-related concerns to rest.[30]
Migrant blood[edit]
A second reason for concern is that blood collected in one land where a certain disease abounds may be used far away, where neither the public nor the physicians are alert to the danger. With today's increase in travel, including refugees and immigrants, the risk is growing that a strange disease may be in a blood product. Distracting truth: Watchtower fails to include even a single source to back up this assertion. Yes, changing demographics make blood transfusion somewhat riskier.[33] No, this is not an insurmountable risk.[34] Yes, these issues are being looked at.[35]
Hepatitis[edit]
"Ironically, blood-borne AIDS … has never been as great a threat as other diseases—hepatitis, for instance," explained the Washington Post.
Yes, vast numbers have got very sick and have died from such hepatitis, which has no specific treatment. According to U.S.News & World Report (May 1, 1989), about 5 percent of those given blood in the United States get hepatitis—175,000 people a year. About half become chronic carriers, and at least 1 in 5 develop cirrhosis or cancer of the liver. It is estimated that 4,000 die. Imagine the headlines you would read if a jumbo jet crashed, killing all aboard. But 4,000 deaths amount to a full jumbo jet crashing every month!
Physicians had long known that a milder hepatitis (type A) was spread through unclean food or water. Then they saw that a more serious form was spreading through blood, and they had no way to screen blood for it. Eventually, brilliant scientists learned how to detect "footprints" of this virus (type B). By the early 1970's, blood was being screened in some lands. The blood supply appeared safe and the future for blood bright! Or was it?
Before long it was clear that thousands who were given screened blood still developed hepatitis. Many, after debilitating illness, learned that their livers were ruined. But if the blood had been tested, why was this happening? The blood contained another form, called non-A, non-B hepatitis (NANB). For a decade it plagued transfusions—between 8 and 17 percent of those transfused in Israel, Italy, Japan, Spain, Sweden, and the United States contracted it.
Then came headlines such as "Mysterious Hepatitis Non-A, Non-B Virus Isolated at Last"; "Breaking a Fever in the Blood." Again, the message was, 'The elusive agent is found!' In April 1989, the public was told that a test was available for NANB, now being called hepatitis C.
You might wonder if this relief is premature. In fact, Italian researchers have reported another hepatitis virus, a mutant, which might be responsible for a third of the cases. "Some authorities," the Harvard Medical School Health Letter (November 1989) observed, "worry that A, B, C, and D are not the whole alphabet of hepatitis viruses; yet others may emerge." The New York Times (February 13, 1990) stated: "Experts strongly suspect that other viruses can cause hepatitis; if discovered, they will be designated hepatitis E and so on."
Are blood banks faced with more long searches for tests to make blood safe? Citing the problem of cost, a director of the American Red Cross made this disturbing comment: "We can't just keep adding test after test for each infectious agent that might be spread."—Medical World News, May 8, 1989.
Even the test for hepatitis B is fallible; many still contract it from blood. Moreover, will people be satisfied with the announced test for hepatitis C? The Journal of the American Medical Association (January 5, 1990) showed that a year can pass before antibodies of the disease are detectable by the test. Meanwhile, people transfused with the blood may face ruined livers—and death. First: This is a textbook case of science was wrong before. If doctors messed up in the past, that doesn't mean that they can't get it right in the future. This is especially true given that all data presented is from 1990 or earlier -- at least 31 years old.
Second: As JW.org notes, blood is tested for presence of hepatitis. This has vastly reduced the risk of bloodborne viral infections. Modern sources say that the risk of contracting Hepatitis through transfusion in the United States is:
B: 1 in 205,000 (according to the NIH),[36] 1 in 800,000 (according to the ACS)[37]
C: 1 in 1.6 million (ACS),[37] 1 in 2 million (NIH)[36]
According to the National Health Service, there hasn't been a reported case of viral infections from transfusion in Britain since 2005.[38] As such, the JW.org evidence is clearly outdated and irrelevant to a modern conversation on blood transfusion.
Also, see the "Rates comparison" section.
Previously considered non-infectious[edit]
Moreover, a specialist in infectious diseases warned: "The blood supply may have to be screened to prevent transmission of several disorders that were not previously considered infectious, including leukemia, lymphoma, and dementia [or Alzheimer's disease]."—Transfusion Medicine Reviews, January 1989. Chilling as these risks are, others have created much wider fear. As of 2016, leukemia, lymphoma, and dementia remain apparently noninfectious.
AIDS[edit]
"AIDS has changed forever the way doctors and patients think about blood. And that's not a bad idea, said the doctors gathered at the National Institutes of Health for a conference on blood transfusion."—Washington Post, July 5, 1988.
The AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) pandemic has, with a vengeance, awakened people to the danger of acquiring infectious diseases from blood. Millions are now infected. It is spreading out of control. And its death rate is virtually 100 percent.
AIDS is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which can be spread by blood. The modern plague of AIDS came to light in 1981. The very next year, health experts learned that the virus could probably be passed on in blood products. It is now admitted that the blood industry was slow to respond, even after tests were available to identify blood containing HIV antibodies. Testing of donor blood finally began in 1985,* but even then it was not applied to blood products that were already on the shelf. Modern sources say that the risk of contracting HIV through transfusion in the United States is 1 in 2 million.[37][36] Indeed, the NIH notes: "Your risk of getting HIV from a blood transfusion is lower than your risk of getting killed by lightning."[36]
Video summary[edit]
Goes through the 1994 Awake magazine:
Keeping Blood Transfusions Safe: FDA's Multi-layered Protections for Donated Blood, FDA.gov
↑ One of the reasons that JW are asserted to be the true faith is that Jehovah's Witnesses refuse to get blood transfusions. In a 1968 publication, "Is Your Religion the True One?", Watchtower (an official JW publication) asks:
Does it allow the eating of blood? [....] The scriptures here cited show that the true religion does not teach or practice any of these things.
(Watchtower 1968 July 1. Is Your Religion the True One? p.391.)
↑ 2.0 2.1 Between 2006 and 2008, HHS changed how they count platelets. In 2008 and on, their estimates were "[b]ased on the use of an apherisis platelet as the basis for counting platelets instead of the platelet concentrate equivalent used for 2006 and previous reports."
↑ Yearly estimates are weighted by the number of years for which they are used. (Meaning 20,933,000 (2011) is multiplied by 4, 23668000 (2008) by 3, 30044000 (2006) by 2, and 29,038,000 (2004) by just 1.)
↑ Underlines (for emphasis) and section titles (for clarity) have been added.
↑ Hemolytic Transfusion Reactions (HTR)
↑ Meaning that bacteria are present in the blood. See the Wikipedia article on Bacteremia.
↑ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2672435
Calculations[edit]
↑ https://www.google.com/search?q=((56%2B7)%2F20%2C933%2C000)*1%2C000%2C000
↑ https://www.google.com/search?q=((65%2B11)%2F20%2C933%2C000)*1%2C000%2C000
↑ https://www.google.com/search?q=%28%2863.4%2B8.6%29%2F24386200%29*1%2C000%2C000
↑ 1.0 1.1 https://www.jw.org/en/publications/books/blood/blood-transfusions-how-safe/
↑ Why Don't Jehovah's Witnesses Accept Blood Transfusions?, JW.org
↑ http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/ReportaProblem/TransfusionDonationFatalities/default.htm
↑ 4.0 4.1 http://www.hhs.gov/ash/bloodsafety/2011-nbcus.pdf
↑ 5.0 5.1 http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/ReportaProblem/TransfusionDonationFatalities/ucm391574.htm
↑ http://www.fda.gov/downloads/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/ReportaProblem/TransfusionDonationFatalities/UCM459461.pdf
↑ http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/ReportaProblem/TransfusionDonationFatalities/ucm346639.htm
↑ https://wayback.archive-it.org/3919/20140402175927/http:/www.hhs.gov/ash/bloodsafety/2009nbcus.pdf
↑ 14.0 14.1 http://www.fda.gov/downloads/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/ReportaProblem/TransfusionDonationFatalities/UCM129521.pdf
↑ https://wayback.archive-it.org/3919/20140402175908/http://www.hhs.gov/ash/bloodsafety/2007nbcus_survey.pdf
↑ https://wayback.archive-it.org/3919/20140402175910/http://www.hhs.gov/ash/bloodsafety/2005nbcus.pdf
↑ See the Wikipedia article on Demographics of Jehovah's Witnesses.
↑ 18.0 18.1 http://www.krev.info/library/pocetumrti.pdf
↑ 19.0 19.1 Kitchens CS: "Are transfusions overrated? Surgical outcome of Jehovah's Witnesses." Am J Med 1993;94:117-119.
↑ http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/153743.php
↑ http://www.religioustolerance.org/witness11.htm
↑ http://www.aabb.org/tm/Pages/highlights.aspx
↑ https://www.mdedge.com/ccjm/article/92055/quality-assurance-and-safety-blood-supply
↑ http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/treatmenttypes/bloodproductdonationandtransfusion/blood-transfusion-and-donation-why-cancer-patients-may-need-transfusions
↑ http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/1097-0142(19870215)59:4%3C836::AID-CNCR2820590430%3E3.0.CO;2-S/pdf
↑ http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/000293439390171K
↑ http://www.cdc.gov/lyme/faq/
↑ http://www.lymeinfo.net/bloodtransfusions.html
↑ 30.0 30.1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8014507
↑ 31.0 31.1 http://www.nytimes.com/1989/07/18/science/doctor-s-world-lyme-disease-transfusion-it-s-unlikely-but-experts-are-wary.html
↑ Meaning testing of bodily fluids rather than blood cultures. See the Wikipedia article on Serology.
↑ http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/voxs.12162/abstract
↑ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17319819
↑ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3943158/
↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 36.3 http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/bt/risks
↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/treatmenttypes/bloodproductdonationandtransfusion/blood-product-donation-and-transfusion-possible-transfusion-risks
↑ http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Blood-transfusion/Pages/Risks.aspx
Retrieved from "https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Blood_Transfusions:_How_Safe&oldid=2201849"
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text:
Seaside Heights residents wait to see what remains
SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. - November 1, 2012
It's one of two piers destroyed in hurricane Sandy where the iconic Ferris wheels seem to be the only thing left standing.
"I think anybody who's ever been to Seaside or grew up here loves this place; this the way I make my living and a lot of other people make their living. They'll be back," arcade worker Helen Stewart said.
It's hard to conceive of how long that could take. Seaside Heights and nearby towns are under martial law.
"We know people are there, we're keeping an eye on them, and they need to stay on their property. If they come off their property to come off the island, then they don't get back on. It'll be a while before anybody gets back on the island until we make it safe," Toms River Police Chief Mike Mastronardy said.
That's upsetting to homeowners who've only seen their barrier island from aerial shots.
The pictures are devastating and they are desperate to find out if their houses are still standing.


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The number of agreement signed depends on the number of parties to the agreement, as it is preferable that each party has an original copy; so if there are three parties to the agreement, please make sure that three original copies are signed in full.
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It feels like Autumn is the time for potlucks! Between back to school, birthdays and football parties? It seems like I'm always trying to come up with some sort of a dish to take somewhere! So I thought I'd share with you an easy, quick and delicious side dish that you can just throw together and take just about anywhere!
Cornbread is ALWAYS a big hit in our house! A quick meal is to toss some left over beef chili (like this delicious Slow Cooker Lumberjack Chili) over the top, add a pinch of cheese and sour cream and you've got a delicious and quick dinner! But it's also fun to just grab a piece for a snack, with a little bit of butter! We've found quite a few ways to add some flavor to our cornbread over the years, but my absolute favorite is Green Chiles!!
A delicious side dish, or main course for any meal! Corn bread is the perfect fall treat!
1 medium roasted Pueblo Chile (diced) *You can add a second Chile if you like a little extra kick!
Stir biscuit mix, cornmeal, sugar, salt, milk, oil, butter and eggs in medium bowl until moistened - DO NOT OVER MIX! This batter will be slightly lumpy and have a gritty texture! Gently fold in the corn, cheese and Chiles!
Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown and be sure to serve warm!
If you have left overs, store in an air-tight container, and reheat before serving a second time!
It's Chile Time in Pueblo!! The 2014 Chile and Frijoles Festival is September 19-21! So you'll have the perfect chance to pick up a bushel of Pueblo Chile!! If you're looking for something else do to with your chile this year? How about Green Chile Mac N Cheese, or this awesome Green Chile and Corn Queso Dip?!
Living Nativity at Abundant Life!


8 p.m., Revolution, $15 adv., $18 d.o.s.
"There's a certain uneasiness to the Toadies," says Vaden Todd Lewis, succinctly describing his band. At its core, the Fort Worth-based group is a raw, commanding rock outfit. The band's first Little Rock gig in 1995 at Blue Mesa yielded a sluggish turnout of approximately eight people, perhaps because the band's first full-length album "Rubberneck" had yet to storm the airwaves with the smash hit "Possum Kingdom." The song has remained in collective musical consciousness and is among the Guitar Hero II tracks. With such a bummer gig in the rearview mirror by now, the Toadies has amassed a strong body of work, if not a lot of commercial success. The band's released a new album, "No Deliverance." So far, no opening act has been announced for the all-ages show, which might lead to a longer set. —Paul Peterson.


So, your little sleep thief has reached the point where they are looking too big for their moses basket *sob. It's time to bite the bullet & get them into their cot.
Of course, if they aren't yet 6 months you still get the lil bonus of having them as your roomie for a bit longer, but getting them to stay in their cot ain't always easy - I've recently been through it with my 6 month old diva & have the eyebags to prove it.
So, I'm passing on the tips that helped me, in the hope they'll help you too.
How easy would this parenting lark be if our little monkeys just accepted changes? We wouldn't need the gin that's for sure :) Introduce the cot gradually. Stick it near their moses basket for a couple of weeks before making the full transition so they get used to seeing it. Or, place the moses basket inside the cot for daytime naps. Babe still not sure? Stick them in for 20 minutes a day & let them play. Just don't make this a huge habit or they could associate it with playtime. ??
A cot can seem huge to a bubba who's been snoozing in a moses basket & we all know how that can go down. The answer? Make the cot just as snug with clever pieces of kit that cocoon your little sleep thief, making them feel like they're back in their basket. Our baby nest saved our sanity, making babe feel all snuggly.
Babies, they're definitely creatures of habit. So play their game. If you have the space, stick the cot in the same place as the basket was, so the temperature, smell, sound & view is the same. You may be tempted to buy new bedding, but until they're a pro in their cot, just keep the same blankets & comforters as before.
Had your eye on a cot mobile? Now's the time to bag it. Or, invest in an awesome projector that shines patterns onto the wall. These are all great distractions & ways to soothe them when they're feeling a lil' bit unsure. Sneaky, yes, but who cares when it makes parenthood easier. They'll get us back one day.
If your sleep thief loves being cuddled & spent their first few months between the moses basket & your bed (been there, worn the t-shirt), then you may need a helping hand when it comes to the cot transition. Sleeping bags were our life saver for making the little madam feel enclosed & cuddled, while swaddles also worked a treat too. You may need a few attempts, but once you've nailed this part, you've won half the battle. The rest, as they, say, is a piece of cake. Probably ??.
So you like the tips huh? Our fave pieces to help you along the way are below. This week, we'll be more than happy with a pack of Haribo… you know, in case you want to say thanks.


Web Design for Wichita's Hiller, Inc.
Hiller, Inc. engineers beautiful aviation interiors right in the Air Capital of the World, Wichita, Kansas. Thousands of feet in the air, an aircraft is humming along stylishly thanks to the visionaries at Hiller, Inc. They uncovered everything wrong with aircraft interiors and set out to fix that problem. We wanted to create a site and marketing collateral that would nod to their style, their grace, and their wings.
©2019 Entermotion Design Studio, Inc.


You need a competent attorney to represent your best interests in real estate law. The law office of Frederick A. Costello is experienced in all aspects of real estate litigation.
We can provide the services you need in your real estate transactions. We represent both Buyers and Sellers in residential and commercial real estate transactions. We are accurate and reliable in every stage of the buying or selling process and will always work diligently to avoid lengthy legal disputes relating to real estate. Our office can also help you with landlord-tenant issues, lease disputes, zoning and planning, bankruptcy and creditors' rights issues, and all other real estate legal matters.
Contact us to represent you in your real estate litigation.


Looking for Plate Heat Exchanger Maintenance Service?
More and more companies are using plate heat exchangers these days. If you are an owner of a company that has plate heat exchangers and you want to know how you can properly maintain it, then this article is for you. What makes these plate heat exchangers awesome aside from being able to resist different kinds of chemical reactions is that they have properties that are considered to be non-corrosive. The numbers of industrial companies that are using plate heat exchangers have significantly increased – because plate heat exchangers are more flexible, compact, and can be bought at a much cheaper price compared to other types of heat exchangers. It is very important that you purchase the right plate heat exchangers if you want to maximize its usage and enjoy its many benefits. You need to know how to maintain your plate heat exchangers properly if you want it to last longer. These heavy duty machines can withstand strenuous workloads, and it needs to be maintained properly if you want it to be operational all the time.
If you want to make sure that these heavy duty machines do its job all the time, then maintaining it properly is truly necessary. In order for these resilient and durable plate heat exchangers to keep running at full efficiency, proper handling and maintenance is requires. Bear in mind that broken plate heat exchangers can cause a lot of problems and if left unchecked, can definitely cause collateral damage to other machines. Every businessman does not want losses in profit and wants no disruption in productivity, and so proper handling and maintenance should be observed at all times. Damaged machines can cost you a lot since repairs can be very expensive and it will disrupt the company's productivity. It is important to note that properly maintained plate heat exchangers could cause many years of trouble-free and uninterruptible operation. If you want to make sure that you maintain your plate heat exchange properly, then hire the best company out there that provides top quality plate heat exchanger maintenance service.
When looking for a company that provides plate heat exchanger maintenance service, it is vital that you do a little research on the Internet first and find out what qualities a company must possess before you hire them. Be sure that you hire a company or a professional who has incredible credentials and excellent background history. Make sure that you ask for some pieces of advice or recommendations from individuals who have tried hiring the best professional or company that provides top notch plate heat exchanger maintenance service. You also need to visit the web page or the website of the company that provides plate heat exchanger maintenance service. Make sure that you get their contact information and then give them a call. The best company out there should be able to answer all your queries properly.


Local cancer research just got a big boost.
On Thursday, January 24, SBP president Kristiina Vuori, M.D., Ph.D., joined leaders from Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health, Salk Institute for Biological Studies and Rady Children's Hospital–San Diego to help Padres Pedal the Cause (PPTC) reveal that this year's event raised a record-breaking $2.9 million for local cancer research. The leaders joined executive director Anne Marbarger onstage to receive the official check.
This year's event—which invited participates to cycle, spin, run or walk—had more than 2,500 participants, an increase of 35 percent. Total fundraising grew by 22 percent. SBP has participated in the event since its inception; and this year our team of more than 60 scientists, staff and SBP supporters raised more than $30,000 for the cause. Since the inaugural ride six years ago, PPTC has raised more than $10 million.
Nearly 300 of the event's participants, including Tony Gwynn Jr., Pedal founders Bill and Amy Koman, San Diego business leaders, and top donors and fundraisers, gathered at the Del Mar racetrack to witness the funding reveal and check presentation in person.
Gwynn shared a moving story about his father's battle with salivary cancer, a journey he still finds difficult to recount. "If he saw this progress, he would be smiling today," he said.
A full 100 percent of the proceeds fund collaborative research taking place at the four San Diego research institutes. Past PPTC grants have accelerated SBP's research into cancers of the breast, skin, brain, colon, pancreas and more. This year's grant announcement will be revealed in the spring.
In the meantime, make sure to mark your calendars for the 2019 event, which will take place on Saturday, November 16. Registration will open in mid-April.


text:
Мере-ог-Ромсдал () — один з норвезьких районів (фюльке). Розташований у північній частині району Вестланн (Західна Норвегія) на узбережжі Атлантики. Адміністративний центр — місто Молде. Найбільші міста — Молде, Крістіансун, Ондалснес і Олесунн.

Межує з фюльке Сер-Тренделаг, Согн-ог-Ф'юране, Оппланн.

Адміністративно-територіальний поділ

Мере-ог-Ромсдал поділяється на 36 комун:

 Олесунн
 Еукра
 Еуре
 Аверей
 Ейде
 Френа
 Фрей (1 січня 2008 об'єднана з Крістіансун)
 Їске
 Емнес
 Галса
 Гарам
 Гарейд
 Герей
 Крістіансунн
 Мідсун
 Молде
 Нессет
 Нурдал
 Ерскуг
 Ерста
 Реума
 Риндал
 Санне
 Санней
 Скодьє
 Смела
 Стурдал
 Странда
 Сула
 Сунндал
 Сурнадал
 Сюкюльвен
 Тінгвол
 Тустна (1 січня 2008 об'єднана з Еуре)
 Ульстейн
 Ванюльвен
 Вестнес
 Волда
</div>

Див. також
 ВЕС Смола
 Ейксуннський тунель

Примітки

Фюльке Норвегії

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Major Transparency Milestone in Bulk Access Statement
by Daniel Schuman Jun 6, 2012 6:36 pm
It may feel like an ordinary Wednesday, but today is a milestone for legislative transparency. The House's leadership has issued a statement adopting the goal of "provid[ing] bulk access to legislative information to the American people without further delay." They have stated that bulk access "ranks among our top priorities in the 112th Congress" and directed a task force "to begin its important work immediately."
The statement was made by many of the key players on this issue in the House: Speaker Boehner, Majority Leader Cantor, Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Crenshaw, and Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Issa. It was prompted in part by a measure in the legislative branch appropriations report that, as initially formulated, may have frozen efforts to move in this direction, followed by a partial fix to the report and ultimately a proposed amendment to the bill. (The amendment was apparently rejected by the House Rules Committee.) Of course, all of the letters to Congress and news coverage helped reinforce this as a higher priority.
The debate over whether there should be bulk access to legislative data is over. Because bulk access is a top priority of the 112th Congress, we expect to see tangible progress in the upcoming months. The remaining questions largely concern how bulk access should be implemented to meet the needs of the public while respecting the legitimate concerns of Congress and its support agencies.
While we are disappointed that the task force will not include members of the public, we hope that the public will be consulted. After all, the American people are the intended end-users. Sunlight and our friends in the transparency community stand ready to be of assistance as the technical, policy, and scope issues are addressed.
We have reached this turning point for a number of reasons. Rep. Honda has pushed to make bulk access happen over the last half-decade. Rep. Boehner made legislative transparency a priority when he was elected speaker. Reps. Cantor and Hoyer co-hosted the Congressional Facebook Hackathon, which declared bulk access to be an important goal. Rep. Lungren and the Committee on House Administration held hearings and issued directives establishing the important transparency portal docs.house.gov as well as hosted the Legislative Data and Transparency Conference. And there's many staff and members of Congress who have labored for years to bring this to fruition.
While this is clearly progress, there's still much more to do. We will be monitoring this issue closely.
Tags: bulk access to thomas, cantor, crenshaw, Darrell Issa, House Appropriations Committee, hoyer, John Boehner, Legislative Appropriations, Thomas
Categorized in: Uncategorized


I love stripes...Either painted on a wall or on a piece of furniture, they are such a super-easy way to make a big impact in a room. I decided it had been way too long since I've done a "stripe project" and was ready to break out the painter's tape again.
First, I smoothed out the previous finish with sandpaper and applied two coats of Paris Grey to the frame. One tip that I use with Chalk Paint® is dipping the tip of my paintbrush in water when applying the second coat. It helps to really even out the paint, minimize brush strokes, and save on paint and sanding time.
After completing the frame, I measured the width of the three drawers and divided by nine since I wanted three stripes per drawer. After marking my stripes lightly with a pencil, I taped off the sections for painting, alternating between Paris Grey and Pure White.
After the painting was completed, I simply added a coat of Clear, Soft Wax and buffed to a shine. I'm lovin' how this one turned out...hmm, I wish I had a spot to keep this one!
This dresser, the boxes, and a few other pieces that I painted up this last week are off to my booth tomorrow!
Disclosure: I was selected for this opportunity from Annie Sloan Unfolded and graciously received the paint and companion products to complete this project. The content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
Soo cute. I have never done stripes, you make it sound so easy. I may have to try it know. Thank you.
Very pretty, love the glass knobs!
Very pretty, Kristen! Love the color combo and the stripes. I like to do stripes to change things up a bit, too. Sometimes a piece calls out for "something".
Beautiful makeover and I love the HB knobs (gotta get some of those).
love the shape of this dresser and the way you've transformed it is beautiful as always!!
Yay!!!...congrats on being chosen for Annie Sloan's Unfolded!!...so well deserved Kristen!!...Love the striped chest...it is such a beautiful transformation!!...I think someone will be there waiting for you to deliver that beauty!!
Absolutely beautiful! It would look stunning here. :) You are very talented in doing the stripes. Love the typewriter too!
You sold me. I am a fan and follower.
I have to say how much I admire your talent. You just seem to know what a piece needs to bring out the best. Lucky furniture you transform.
I think I'm too impatient, want the change right away but after seeing how you make such a difference you might just have influenced my patience to take hold if I want a piece to look as it could. You've really inspired me. So glad I found your blog. Happy Spring.
I am so proud of you for being chosen for Annie Sloan Unfolded. You deserve it! I love this dresser and love the stripes, but the hardware had me at hello! It is probably better that I don't live near a Hobby Lobby. Dang it!
Always looking forward to your next makeover. You really are so talented and have such phenomenal taste.
P.S. Thanks for the shout-out!
Visiting from "Open House Party Thursday at No Minimalist. Great job. I love stripes and you chose a nice mix of color. Very modern and rich. Thanks for your post.
Debbie from "One Day at a Time"
Hi Kristen, I've never done stipes but you make me want to try!
I'm a new follower, love your blog.
Love your stripey dresser! And I esp. love those knobs!
Love the stripes! I've been wanting to try them on something! The knobs are pretty fantastic, too. We just got a Hobby Lobby in our area so I'm pretty excited to check out what they have.
Looks great--love those knobs, what a great find!
Love those stripes! You did a beautiful job.
And Annie Sloan Unfolded. I am so excited for you. You definitely deserve this.
Those knobs are amazing. I'm going to have to hunt for some in the bins at my Hobby Lobby.
And is that a Silhouette project I spy on the bucket?
Looking forward to seeing you again soon for High Point & From Downtown to Downton.
Kristen the dresser looks so fresh and clean. What a nice job. I love it.Thanks for sharing and all the info.
Hi Kristen! I recently featured a pic with this striped dresser, on a post, on my blog! Off course I attached a link to your blog, I hope you don't mind!


Graduation is this Friday, May 22. Congratulations to Mahogany Bonner, Valerie Bownes, De'Ariah Collier, Bernicia Dorris, Arius Edwards, Booker T. Grisby III, Elizabeth Pearson, Jajuan Savannah, Arajah White, and Jamonzee Williams. We wish them a future filled with God's choicest blessings and much joy.
There is no school on Monday, May 25, due to Memorial Day.
The last day of school will be next Friday, May 29. The day includes our End-of-Year Mass led by the staff at 8:30am, our select group of dance ministers, followed by End of Year awards and a collage of photos taken throughout the year. Please know that all parents/guardians are welcomed to participate in this final Mass and celebration of the school year. Students will be dismissed for the summer at 12:30pm. There will be breakfast and lunch, but no Extended Day. Students may be out of uniform. We are hoping to have bus service, but have not heard a final word from the bus company. Will keep you posted.
The last day to return library books was Friday, May 15. Do we have yours?
Ms.Harriel will send home USB flash drives on Wednesday, May 27 with students in Grades 1-3. Grades 4-7 will bring their flash drives home by that Thursday, May 28. Please put them in a safe place over the summer, as these can be used again next year.
The Title I Math Summer School will begin Tuesday, June 2, for the students who brought back signed registration forms. Mrs. Magalla will teach the Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grades at 8:00- 10:00am. Mrs Brown will teach the 3rd, 4th and 5th grades from 8:00-10:00am, and also the 6th and 7th grades from 10:00am – 12:00 noon. All classes will be held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays through the month of June. A reminder will be sent home next week to those who are signed up. We are looking forward to having a great time with math!
We are thinking of adding two more colors to our uniform for next year: along with white and forest green shirts, students would also be able to wear red or black polo shirts (without a logo). Let us know your thoughts by emailing Ms. Mary at: thea_bowman@yahoo.com. Your opinion is important.
The East St. Louis Catholic Grade School Alumni Golf Classic will be held Friday, July 17, at Grand Marais Golf Course. Part of the money raised through this Golf Tournament is given to our school for operating costs or tuition assistance. If you enjoy golfing, this would be a great way to give back to STBCS.