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So what happens if Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other 9/11 masterminds, whose trials Attorney General Eric Holder has decided will take place in the criminal justice system in New York, get off on a technicality or are somehow O.J.-Simpsoned by a jury? Can we still hold them? If not, where do they go?
These questions have been on the minds of millions of Americans, including members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Committee recently convened an oversight hearing to examine Holder's decision to bring the perpetrators of the worst-ever terrorist attack on American soil to trial in civilian court, rather than before a military commission, where legal procedures more in line with the wartime circumstances of the enemy's capture would apply. Holder's responses to these questions before the committee, however, reveal a troubling lack of recognition that a lot can go wrong once you bring KSM and company into the Article III court system — including having to contend with what the Supreme Court may have to say about what happens to these defendants if something indeed does go wrong at trial.
During the hearing, in response to a question from Senator Herb Kohl (D-Wisconsin) about Holder's game plan in the event of acquittal or mistrial, Holder stated he had instructed the prosecutors: "Failure is not an option." This response was met with audible laughter from 9/11 family members in attendance. The absurdity of the Attorney General's "trust me" approach was palpable.
But even Holder has conceded — perhaps inadvertently, perhaps not — that the fate of these uniquely situated defendants should his team fail to secure a conviction is really not up to him. Take his written response to Committee questions preceding his live testimony:
"Where we have legal detention authority, as the President has stated, we will not release anyone into the United States if doing so would endanger our national security or the American people."
Interesting choice of words.
The question of whether such legal authority exists, of course, will ultimately rest not with Holder, but with the judge presiding over the case. So while Holder and Obama cast themselves as tough guys who refuse to release a dangerous terrorist into the United States in the event of inadmissible evidence, mistrial, or acquittal, this posturing is effectively nothing more than, as Cully Stimson of the Heritage Foundation aptly describes it, punting to the judiciary.
This is all the more so in light of what the Supreme Court has said, and may possibly say in the near future, about the matter of indefinite administrative detention.
The Court weighed in on this issue in the 2001 case, Zadvydas v. Davis. Zadvydas, a resident alien born to Lithuanian parents, was convicted of a crime in the United States and, after serving his prison sentence, was further confined pending deportation. The statute that the Department of Justice was relying on for detention provided for 90 days to deport Zadvydas, and allowed for certain classes of aliens — including aliens removed for national security reasons or judged by the Attorney General to be a risk to the community — to be detained indefinitely beyond the 90-day removal period.
No country would take Zadvydas, and his detention went beyond the statutory 90-period. The Supreme Court weighed in, stating: "…once an alien enters the country, the legal circumstance changes, for the Due Process Clause applies to all 'persons' within the United States, including aliens, whether their presence here is lawful, unlawful, temporary, or permanent." The Court did allow for the possibility that a certain class of deportable aliens could be indefinitely detained — those to whom a "special justification" applied, one that "outweighs the 'individual's constitutionally protected interest in avoiding physical restraint.'" The Court then went one step further and said that legislation authorizing indefinite detention might be narrowly applied "to a small segment of particularly dangerous individuals…say suspected terrorists." But Zadvydas did not fit that category, making his detention unconstitutional by virtue of his physical presence in the United States.
While defenders of Holder's decision to try 9/11 suspects in civilian court might be tempted to point to Zadvydas to show that these defendants fit into the Court's "special justification" group that could constitutionally be held indefinitely after a failed trial, it is cold comfort. Zadvydas after all still carved out a presumption against indefinite detention for deportable aliens. And in any event, this is the Court that since 9/11, in the midst of war, has steadily granted more rights to the terrorists we are fighting — ruling in Hamdi that American citizens detained as unlawful combatants were entitled to challenge their detentions before a judge; ruling in Hamdan that military commissions had to comply with the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the 1949 Geneva Conventions; and ruling in Boumediene that foreign enemy combatants were entitled to habeas review in federal court. All this of course was before the confirmation of liberal justice Sonya Sotomayor to the bench, who may be followed by additional left-leaning nominees in the not-too-distant future.
Then we have the remaining Uighur detainees at Gitmo. The Supreme Court recently agreed to hear their case, in which their attorneys will argue that they have a constitutional right to be released into the United States. Although these detainees are in fact trained jihadists captured in Afghanistan, our government previously (and erroneously) determined that they are not a threat to the United States because their primary grievance is with China, and are therefore cleared for release. However, because no other countries are willing to take these remaining apparently not-so-harmless Uighurs, they remain at Gitmo.
If the Court rules in their favor and orders their release into the United States, and KSM's case is somehow thrown out, his attorneys will surely argue that their client's situation is sufficiently similar to that of the Uighurs. They both will effectively have been "cleared", they will argue, and cannot constitutionally be held indefinitely simply because no other country will take them.
This may seem like a range of hypotheticals. Maybe Holder's team will actually get slam-dunk convictions in Article III courts. Maybe, in the event they do not convict, another country will take in KSM and his co-conspirators. Maybe the government will have legal grounds to detain KSM indefinitely inside the United States after all.
Maybe. But if we are required now to look at what may appear to be outlandish scenarios, it is because the Attorney General has chosen to take a gamble on criminal trials, and force the rest of us to assume all the risks that go with them — including the risk that we will be legally unable to hold the perpetrators of 9/11 now in custody and have to release them here.
It all reminds me of July 1, 1987 when President Ronald Reagan nominated Judge Robert Bork for an opening on the Supreme Court. He had it made in the shade, said my complacent conservative friends. The result was brutal. But we do not have to look back 32 years to see how unruly the leftwing mob can be. Recall the recent fate of Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Only his courage and unscotchable determinate saved him. The simple fact is that the conservatives are often slow on the draw against the American left. Only the Wall Street Journal and the intrepid New York Sun have come out swinging for Moore. It is time for the conservatives to rally around him. He can probably win with the President on his side. He apparently has the votes. Yet the coming battle would be a lot less bloody if the conservative movement were to take the field on Moore's behalf — and make it clear that from now on they are going to wage war for the President's nominees. Print
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Kenneth M. Farber – President and CEO
Kenneth M. Farber is a graduate of Clark University, with a Juris Doctor from the Fordham University School of Law. He has spent 40 years in the non-profit world, working with and for voluntary health agencies and private foundations.
Ken began his career at Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), in several different positions, including 10 years as Director of Sponsored Research and nine years as Executive Director.
After his work at JDRF, Ken served as Executive Vice President of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, founded by Israel's first Prime Minister and located in the biblical city of Beer-Sheva, Israel.
In 1999, when Robert Wood Johnson was starting a lupus-based research organization, Ken returned to the United States to help get the new organization, the Alliance for Lupus Research (ALR), off the ground, serving as President of the ALR. Ken consults for and sits on the boards of several health-related organizations, including the Nancy Lurie Marks Family Foundation headquartered in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Under Ken's leadership, the ALR re-dedicated itself to its credo of supporting research into the cause, cure, treatment, and prevention of lupus and its secondary complications, and in 2016 merged with the Lupus Research Institute and S.L.E. Lupus Foundation. Today, the Lupus Research Alliance gives more money to lupus research than any non-governmental organization in the world.
Debra Rose – Chief Finance & Administrative Officer
Debra Rose joined the Lupus Research Alliance in 2002 when it was the Alliance for Lupus Research (ALR). She currently is the Chief Finance and Administrative Officer and has overseen Finance & Operations for her entire tenure. Debra oversaw the legal and operational merger process involved in bringing together the Alliance for Lupus Research, the S.L.E. Lupus Foundation and the Lupus Research Institute to become the Lupus Research Alliance.
Prior to joining the Lupus Research Alliance, Debra was the Finance Officer for the Western Washington University Foundation in Bellingham, WA where she was responsible for the Foundation and Alumni office accounting. She moved to NYC in 2002 where she immediately joined the Alliance for Lupus Research.
Debra graduated Magna Cum Laude from Western Washington University with a BA in Accounting earning the Outstanding Graduate Award in accounting. Soon after graduation, Debra earned her CPA license in WA state and went on to also become a Certified Management Accountant.
Andrea J. O'Neill – Executive Director
Andrea J. O'Neill is the Executive Director of the Lupus Research Alliance responsible for managing a multi-faceted fundraising program, generating more than $25 million annually to support lupus research programs. In addition, Andrea oversees the communications and marketing initiatives to assure an integrative and collaborative philanthropy and communications group.
As a member of our executive leadership staff team, Andrea brings substantial knowledge and experience gained from a highly productive 14-year history working with the lupus community to help shape and implement the strategic vision for the Lupus Research Alliance. Prior to this position, Andrea served as the Director of Development and Operations for the S.L.E. Lupus Foundation and the Lupus Research Institute. In addition to leading the fundraising initiatives, she oversaw the pre-merger process involved in uniting these two organizations with the Alliance for Lupus Research. Before joining the lupus community, she was Vice President for Development and Institutional Advancement at The HealthCare Chaplaincy for five years. Andrea holds a BS degree from Syracuse University and a certificate in fundraising from Columbia University.
Albert Roy – Executive Director, Lupus Therapeutics, LLC
Albert Roy serves as the Executive Director of Lupus Therapeutics and is responsible for the planning, directing, and coordinating the organization's core business operations and the Alliance's clinical trial endeavors. Al brings more than 18 years of non-profit and medical research experience to the organization. Previously, Al was Vice President of Operations and Research Programs at CureSearch for Children's Cancer, a multi-million dollar public charity whose mission is to support targeted and innovative children's cancer research. CureSearch served as the fiscal, administrative and philanthropic agent for the world's largest pediatric cancer clinical trials research network, the Children's Oncology Group (COG). During his tenure there, Mr. Roy managed a clinical research portfolio exceeding $50 million per year-and coordinated the formation of the COG through strategic partnerships with more than 200 academic research medical centers throughout North America to conduct Phase I, II and III industry-led and investigator-initiated pediatric cancer clinical trials. Mr. Roy is a graduate of Ithaca College and received his Master's Degree from Johns Hopkins University.
Teodora Staeva - Chief Scientific Officer
Teodora Staeva, PhD is the Chief Scientific Officer at the Lupus Research Alliance. In this role, she is responsible for overseeing the organization's research portfolio and operations, including the development of a research strategy and leading its implementation, as well overseeing all research initiatives, partnerships and collaborations.
Until September 2017, Teodora was Assistant Dean for Research at Weill Cornell Medicine (WCM) where she was responsible for managing the strategic planning efforts related to research, building and overseeing institutional programs facilitating faculty research, development and recruitment, and leading and managing intra-campus as well as inter-campus collaborations with Cornell University and WCM's Tri-Institutional partners, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Rockefeller University. Prior to joining WCM, Teodora worked at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (currently known as JDRF) where she was Director of Immune Therapies for nine years. She obtained her PhD in Immunology from Weill Graduate School of Medical Sciences of Cornell University, and her BS, with honors, in Biology and Neuroscience from Macalester College.
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My Books »
My Fiction »
"By Her Hand...": The Movie
Note: all photos and work product used below are courtesy of TinyCore Pictures.
I've written earlier in my blog several times about the indie film based on my short story "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down" by director, Anthony G. Sumner of TinyCore Pictures. I've pulled together all of the information on the film here onto this page, including the incredibly cool poster for the movie to the left. The model on the poster is Zoë Daelman Chlanda, the actress who plays the possessed artist, Cath, in the movie. Jerry Murdock stars with Zoe, playing Joe, the pov character and Cath's lover. The movie is also one of four short horror films on the horror anthology DVD "Gallery of Fear" (2012 release date).
Award Nominations and Wins
Terror Film Festival, Philadelphia, Oct 2010
WINS: Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Director of Photography, Best Original Musical Score
Nominations: Best Short Film, Best Director
Chicago REEL Shorts Festival, Oct 2010
WINS: Best Horror Short Film
Oklahoma Horror Film Festival, Sep 2010
WINS: Best Actress, Best Actor
Nominations: Best Short Film, Best Director, Best Editing
Dark Carnival Film Festival, Nov 19-21, Bloomington, Indiana
Nominations: Best Short Film, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Editing, Best Score
North American Film Festival Appearances
DragonCon Film Festival, Sept 3-6, 2010, Atlanta, GA (Official selection)
Oklahoma Horror Film Festival, Sep 3-5, 2010, Tulsa, Oklahoma (Official Selection)
Chicago International REEL Shorts Festival, Sep 16-19, 2010, Chicago, IL (Official Selection)
Sacramento Sci-Fi Horror Show, Sep 25-26, 2010, Sacramento, CA (Exclusive screening)
Dark Woods Con Film Festival, Oct 1-3, 2010, Lebanon, Kentucky (Official Selection)
Terror Film Festival, Oct 21-23, 2010, Philadelphia, PA (Official Selection)
Queen City Scare Fair, Oct 22-23, 2010, Mississippi (Official Selection)
Buffalo Screams Horror Festival, Oct 21-24, 2010, Buffalo, NY (Official Selection)
Spooky Movie Film Festival, Oct 21-25, 2010, Washington, DC (Official Selection)
Vampire Film Festival, Oct 27-31, 2010, New Orleans, LA (Official Selection)
Orlando Film Festival, Nov 3-7, 2010, Orlando, FL (Official Selection)
Killer Film Fest, Nov 12-14, 2010, Foxboro, MA (Official Selection)
Blood Bath Film Festival, Nov 13-14, 2010, Dallas, TX (Official Selection)
Dark Carnival Film Festival, Nov 19-21, 2010, Bloomington, Indiana (Official Selection)
Cyphan Film Festival, Jul 29-31,2011, Chicago, Illinois
International Film Festival Appearances
SFF-rated ATHENS 2011, Mikrokosmos Film Center, Athens, Greece, Mar 10-16, 2011, will screen short films and features from 23 countries
A Night of Horror International Film Festival, Sydney, Australia, Mar 31 – Apr 8, 2011
Check out all of BHHSDYD's festival screenings here.
The Official Movie Site
Check out TinyCore's official "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down" website, where you can check out news and updates, the cast and crew, merchandise, the schedule of festival screenings, and the official movie trailer, which I've also included here below.
"With vampires currently enjoying their all-media heyday, it remains a challenge for writers and filmmakers to put a new and different spin on the bloodsucker story. Acclaimed Canadian writer Douglas Smith delivered just that, coming up with a unique twist in his short story "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down." When producer/writer/director Anthony G. Sumner and producer Alan Rowe Kelly read the tale, they contacted Smith and got his blessing to turn the disquieting story into a short film [with] a final reveal that emerges as quite unexpected, satisfying and sad. ... BY HER HAND's acting is superb, and it comes as no surprise that both Murdock and Chlanda took home awards for their efforts at the 2010 Oklahoma Horror Film Festival.... BY HER HAND, SHE DRAWS YOU DOWN is now hitting the festival circuit—and worth seeking out. "
—Fangoria, September 2010
"By Her Hand is reminiscent of the some of the best in independent horror film to explore this territory; if I had to explain it in the old 'If you liked X, see Y', standard, X would probably be Let the Right One In, which should tell you how much I liked By Her Hand."
– Blog review from The Zombie Rights Campaign Video review from Nerd Remix site.
The Movie Trailer
(from Anthony Sumner on Vimeo)
How the Movie Came To Be
So how did this all happen? Well, in 2002, my supernatural horror story "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down" was selected by Stephen Jones for the thirteenth edition of his annual The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror. "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down" was described by the Review Journal of the American Library Association as "delightfully creepy" and "about a young woman who is driven by a mysterious hunger to sketch people and steal their life force as her horrified lover looks on." You can read more reviews of the story here. Shortly after it appeared in BNH, director Anthony Sumner of TinyCore Pictures approached me. TinyCore does work in a number of areas, including commercials, promotional videos, music videos, and documentaries, with a client list that includes JP Morgan Bank, Jesse Jackson, and Hootie and the Blowfish. But Anthony's passion is short independent horror films, and he was interested in doing a film based on the story to submit to indie film festivals. I agreed, and Anthony added the project to his production schedule. Alan Rowe Kelly joined the project as co-Executive Producer. Zoe Chlanda and Jerry Murdock were cast in the lead roles of the artist Cath and her boyfriend Joe. Drew Willis, an award winning SF illustrator and Time Warner art director, was commissioned to do the sketches that are such a key part of the story. They filmed on location around Ocean Grove and Asbury Park, New Jersey, during which Fangoria magazine came to the set for an interview. The film is currently wrapping up post-production. After that, it's off to festivals.
The Storyboard Shooting Script
Here's the full storyboard shooting script for the film. I was thrilled when I read it. The script is a very faithful adaptation of the story, including the dialog.
Photos from the Shoot
Here's a slide show of some pictures from the filming of the movie. The film was shot at various locations along the New Jersey coast. Producer Alan Rowe Kelly describes the selection of the locations and the shooting: "I wanted to capture that particular look of loneliness and desolation that was indigenous to New Jersey seashore towns during the 'off-season'. And there was no better place to start than at Sandy Hook, a 7-mile barrier island lined with miles of desolate sandy beaches, jetties, lighthouses and abandoned bungalows. From there, we proceeded to film in Atlantic Highlands, Keansburg, the closed down boardwalks of Seaside Heights and Point Pleasant, and finally in historic Ocean Grove and Asbury Park, where the center of the story evolves. Asbury Park, once hailed as 'the place' for all summer vacationers, and the home to The Miss America Pageant, Bruce Springsteen and Stone Pony, is now a haunted abandoned shell of amusements, arcades and decaying grand architecture. Sad, but what a great place to shoot an eerie supernatural thriller! I knew the settings were now perfect for this spooky and compelling tale. Being the middle of November and only blocks from the ocean, it was a very cold shoot. Our cast roughed it through hours of shooting and set ups in minimal clothing and a lot of trips back and forth to our heated R.V. Many of the locales we shot around have been seen in many great films such as Woody Allen's 'Broadway Danny Rose', Darren Aronofsky's 'The Wrestler', and Michael Caton-Jones' 'City By The Sea'. 'ByHer Hand, She Draws You Down' completed shooting in six days."
Cath's Sketches
"By Her Hand,..." focuses on a young artist, Cath, and her struggle with a strange hunger that can only be fed by drawing the life force from the subjects that she sketches. In the story, Cath "feeds" directly from the sketches she does. In the movie, Anthony Sumner adds a wonderful visual aspect to this by having the sketches themselves change after Cath feeds from them. Here's a short slide show of the "after" sketches that were used in the actual movie. The last few images show the progression of two sketches – one for Harry, one of Cath's victims in the story; and the final one of Cath herself. The sketches were done by Drew Willis, the Time/Warner artist commissioned by Anthony for the movie.
The Official Movie Companion Book
This is the 116-page official "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down: The Official Movie Companion" book. It is way cool, with the movie poster for the cover and the following table of contents: 1. "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down": The Original Story 2. Writing the Story: Where Ideas Come From (and Where They Go) 3. Making the Movie: Notes from the Director, Producer, and Cast 4. From Story to Movie: The Storyboard Script 5. On the Set: Photos from the Shoot 6. Pictures from a Picture: Cath's Sketches 7. People from a Picture: The Movie Credits 8. Talking to a Writer: An Interview with Douglas Smith 9. Who We Are: Biographies If you're interested, you can order your own copy of the "By Her Hand..." Movie Companion book below.
Print edition (signed and personalized) | ebook edition


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11 Things Billionaires Don't Tell You About Their Money
These are their secrets to financial independence
By Hannah Lazatin for TownandCountry.ph | Jan 20, 2018
Money is not everything, and the Truly Rich billionaire knows this. But he also knows how to manage the money he makes and he does it well. Here are things that billionaires do to maintain their wealth while continuing to live a rich, enriching life.
1. He does two things: preserve and expand his wealth
Now that the billionaire has come to acquire a fortune, he knows that it would be wise not to spend it all. "Rich people donât get rich by spending it all," says finance researcher and founder of Unity Marketing Pam Danziger. "They know better than anyone that by being careful shoppers, they can achieve a lifestyle several rungs up the income ladder."
2. The billionaire starts early
He knows that the earlier he starts anything, the better. He wakes up early. He goes to work early. He even learned to save money at an early age. It doesnât matter what amount heâs working with, heâll be careful to put aside a generous portion and teach his children to do the same.
3. The billionaire has more than one source of income
The single day job is not enough for the billionaire. To achieve financial independence, he must take on smaller roles apart from his job or business. Here are a few ideas.
4. The billionaire prepares a promising future for his children
The billionaire believes that education is the cornerstone of a life well-lived. With this, he will do everything in his power to send his children to the best schools, not necessarily the Ivy League schools, and is willing to delay material purchases and move to another city to accomplish this for his children.
5. The tech-savvy billionaire makes use of automated savings
Technological advances in banks are welcomed by the clever saver. Youâll never miss what you never knew, the billionaire believes, and an easy way to accomplish this is to allow the bank to instantly deduct from your account monthly to force you to spend less. Remember to increase the percentage deducted from your balance every time you get a raise.
6. The billionaire works hard but believes in delayed gratification
Working hard means to do oneâs very best in a field that one is passionate about. While rewarding yourself is the usual thought one gets on payday, the billionaire believes in delayed gratification and celebrates or treats himself after reaching a goal or within a certain timeframe.
7. The billionaire has his very own definition of a well-lived life
This point of a life well-lived is very subjective and the billionaire next door knows this. He knows that to make the most of his life, he must continuously learn, share what he's acquired with friends and family, and to engage in hobbies and activities that overall make him a better person. He does not care what others think, and as Byron Tully writes in The Old Money Book, "prioritizes personal reality over public perception."
8. The billionaire invests wisely and keeps an eye out for the news
The billionaire chooses to put his money into various investments, not just one. This will increase the chances for success if in case one investment does not do well. Not only that, the wise investor is vigilant of current trends and events and knows to differentiate a credible source from a scam.
9. The billionaire will rarely carry any personal debt
This means he pays his credit card bill in full every month and never makes purchases he cannot pay in cash. "It's not only about paying in full, it's about paying quickly. When credit payment is settled late, this can hurt the credit score and reflect on the overall debt usage ratio.
10. The billionaire knows that wealth comes by following two P's: patience and persistence
The pursuit of wealth and its growth are far from the fast-track lane. They know how to wait and when to go the extra mile. United States President Theodore Roosevelt once said, "Do what you can, with what you have, and where you are." Your patience and persistence will eventually reap their rewards.
11. The billionaire is wise enough not to fall for that marketing ploy
Despite what is portrayed by the media, the billionaire knows not to give in and purchase the newest whatsit based on trends or marketing. With a net worth of $60.7 billion, Warren Buffet has lived in the same house since 1958, while Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg drives a manual-transmission Volkswagen hatchback and wears the same t-shirt and jeans combination almost every day, reports Business Insider.
* Minor edits have been made by the Entrepreneur.com.ph editors.
Town and Country PH billionaire money secrets syndicated Trep Life
Financial Adviser: 5 Business Lessons Everyone Can Learn from McDonald's PH Chief, Kenneth Yang
How PH Startups Can Attract More Funding: Insights from a Singapore-Based Venture Capitalist


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View RALI news and insights to keep up to date with the latest on trend developments relating to future leadership capability and experience requirements and the future world of work.
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7 ways to stay motivated in the face of rejection on the job hunt
It's been a banner year for job seekers, but not everyone is finding success during the Great Resignation. While the unemployment rate is at its lowest point since the pandemic began, more than 2 million Americans have been out of work for more than 27 weeks, and about 5.5 million have been looking for more than 15 weeks, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
With so much activity in the employment market, and with their newsfeeds likely overflowing with new job announcements and promotion celebrations, those who are struggling to land their dream job might be feeling a little discouraged right now. Despite these challenges, however, experts believe the new year is an ideal time to get back out there with renewed enthusiasm and confidence.
Emily Liou, a certified career happiness coach, says that for job seekers who "have been feeling discouraged because they've been applying and not getting results, it really is a great time to hit a mental reset and start the job search anew. You will eventually land your dream job, unless you stop trying."
Here are seven ways to continue putting your best food forward in the face of rejection in the job market:
1. Manage your mindset
Those who have spent a long time applying without much success often become their own biggest obstacle. While each job application and interview offers a fresh opportunity, we often can't help but carry with us feelings of rejection from previous experiences. "It's a cycle. The less confident you feel, the more self-doubt kicks in, the more challenging it becomes to put your best foot forward," Liou says, noting that it's important not to take rejection personally, as there are many reasons why a candidate might be overlooked.
"Often companies will close a position, they might lose their budget for the position, they may have already promoted someone internally and had to post a job description," she says. "You could indeed be the most qualified and best candidate and still not get the job. It's just how the hiring process works. What's really important is to make sure we as job seekers are not assigning meaning to something that might be beyond [our] control."
2. Make a "Brag List"
Liou encourages those who are feeling discouraged from a lengthy job search to come up with a list of accomplishments, what she calls a "brag list."
"In this society we're very achievement-focused, and often you'll set a goal, meet the goal, and then move on to the next goal," she says. "It's a mile marker that we're constantly moving, and we forget to reflect on all of the things we've already achieved."
Liou adds that the process of putting the list together will not only help candidates feel more confident but also help them recall accomplishments that they can include in applications or job interviews in the future. "As you step into your next interview, especially if you feel discouraged or less confident from past results, whip out this list and just remind yourself why you deserve to be in that seat," she says.
3. Don't throw spaghetti at the wall
Those who have been out of the workforce for a prolonged period may feel tempted to respond to a large quantity of postings in hopes that they get a response. But this tactic, which Liou describes as "throwing spaghetti against the wall to see what sticks," can ultimately serve to further discourage applicants who are struggling to find work. That is because they either don't hear back, or they do hear back but the opportunity isn't a good fit.
She suggests asking yourself several important questions to determine what you're looking for: "What organizations would I love to join? What impact do I want to make in that organization? How do I align my transferable skills to that role? How do I package myself as that candidate that they must interview?"
Liou adds that job seekers also tend to put too much emphasis on submitting applications and not enough time considering other ways to get noticed. "What I teach my clients is to apply online, but also find a decision maker at the company, whether it's a recruiter or a hiring manager, and reach out and introduce yourself," she says, emphasizing that networking is also key. "There are so many ways to find a job in this day and age, and you don't have to fully rely on job boards."
4. Don't keep it to yourself
Job seeking can be an isolating experience, especially for those who have been at it for a while, and that sense of loneliness can make it even harder to find success.
"People don't really talk in detail about their job search, either for confidentiality reasons or they don't have great news to share, or they do have interview opportunities but it's taking a long time to get traction," says Octavia Goredema, a career coach and author of Prep, Push, Pivot: Essential Career Strategies for Underrepresented Women.
Though it may be difficult to share what you're going through, Goredema says it's important to find allies who can act as a sounding board and help expand your network. "If people know what you're looking for or what you're interested in or what you're trying to figure out, there's a greater chance that they might know of somebody or see something that can help you," she says. "Not everyone can help you, but sometimes there might be a moment of inspiration or a suggestion or a connection that comes out of nowhere, that you would have never have known about otherwise."
5. Take Baby Steps
Job seekers who struggle to land a position often feel helplessly stuck in neutral, but there's a lot they can do to drive their job search forward. Goredema says that rather than focusing on the ultimate goal of landing a job, it's important to establish a series of smaller and more manageable goals along the way.
"Focus on one next step you can take," she says. "Is it reaching out to the recruiter to check in politely? Is it checking the lists I have set up to see if there's an opportunity that aligns with roles that I'm looking for? Is it getting some feedback on the latest revisions I made to my résumé? Is it setting up a virtual coffee with a manager I had a couple of roles ago to catch up and get their perspective on what's happened in the industry? Is it reading a book that might be able to help me? Is it listening to a podcast of someone I admire in my field that might give me more motivation?"
Goredema adds that job seekers should also reward themselves for taking these small steps and celebrate the little accomplishments that will help them reach the bigger goal.
6. Reevaluate your strategy
Much of the job application process is out of the candidate's control, but those who are really struggling to land their dream job are encouraged to take a hard look at their strategy and consider what mistakes they might be repeating. According to Marc Cenedella, founder and CEO of Ladders, in a hot hiring market those who are struggling for a prolonged period are most likely making one of three common mistakes.
"It's probably your résumé, your interview style, or how you talk about your past boss," he says. "The great thing is, all of those are super fixable; you can have those fixed today if you wanted."
Cenedella advises those who are struggling to get hired to reevaluate their résumé and application materials, and ask for assistance from friends and family. He also recommends trying a few practice interviews with those who can provide honest feedback on how you're portraying yourself. Most important, he recommends against talking negatively about a prior employer.
7. Gently seek honest feedback
There really are only a small group of people who can say for sure why you weren't selected for a given job, and those are the evaluators themselves, which makes their feedback incredibly valuable. Cenedella warns, however, that hiring managers typically have little incentive for providing honest feedback, and could even fear legal ramifications for saying the wrong thing. Therefore, if you're going to ask a hiring manager why you didn't get a job you applied for, tread lightly.
"One way to disarm the employer so they do give you some honest feedback is to say, 'I really appreciate you taking the time; I had a wonderful time meeting you; sorry it didn't work out. If I can ask, what would be one bit of advice you would give someone like me if they really wanted to get a job like the one I interviewed for?'" he says. "By limiting it to one [piece of advice], by thanking them for the interview, and communicating that you're very forward-focused and constructive in how you're thinking about it, you may be able to get some honest feedback."
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Rolling in the Aisles
Posted by Smart Retailer | Retailer Profiles |
If there's one thing that Mary Liz Curtin strives for as a retail proprietor, it's fun.
Indeed, the secret to her success as owner of Leon & Lulu in Clawson, Michigan, is based on creating a fun store environment and building on that with merchandise that's meant to be used and enjoyed and with events that draw people together to have a good time. The store motto, in fact, is "Live well. Laugh often. Shop much."
"If you think about places that you like to shop, it's where you have a good time and where they are glad to see you. That is the spirit we've had here since we opened—a spirit of fun and generosity," explains Curtin, adding, "Our goal is if you come here and have a great time, you'll want to come again."
You might say that customers are rolling in the aisles at Leon & Lulu: In 2006, Mary Liz and her husband, Stephen Scannell, converted a former roller skating rink into their store. "We were looking for a space that would be large enough, and this was 15,000 square feet with a fabulous floor," recalls Curtin, who says that they tried to maintain the character of the building while creating an effective store design. "We kept a lot of memorabilia, and on weekends, we have girls skating around with free hot cookies."
Curtin has maintained the welcoming, entertaining vibe of the place in other ways, too, whether offering customers a free cup of coffee or bag of popcorn or by creating a name for the business that evokes whimsy and sentiment. "Leon was our cat, and Lulu was our Rottweiler dog. We were looking for a name that would mean something to our family; plus, we loved the sound of it and the graphic for it—it makes people smile," she remarks.
Customers also smile while browsing Leon & Lulu's artfully arranged vignettes. The store offers a mix of gifts, accessories, furniture, personal care, home care and, more recently, women's clothing and shoes.
While she's known for her spirit of fun, Curtin is also a seasoned retailer. Her mother was an interior designer and shopkeeper, and Curtin's husband owned a successful store in nearby Birmingham for 26 years.
She is unflinching in her standards. "We have a commitment to quality," she declares. To that end, Curtin scours various shows each year to find new products ("We go to more trade shows than anyone I know," she says with a laugh.) and is discerning when choosing original pieces from artisans, both on a local and international basis.
"We're in the Detroit area, so 'Buy American' has always been a very important thing here. And beyond that, customers like handcrafted things. They like knowing that I went to Peru, for example, and met someone who made that particular piece," she adds.
Not far from the metropolis of Detroit, Leon & Lulu is a destination for a variety of special events as well. Many of those events are for charity, as Curtin has offered the store as a location to host fund-raisers and other events for local charities and nonprofit groups.
Bringing Fun to Customers
In the beginning, when the store was new, events were a way for the couple to connect with the community and meet people. Over the years, though, becoming involved with such groups has become a true passion for Curtin, Scannell and Leon & Lulu's employees. "It's been very important to us," she reports, citing swanky fund-raisers as well as pet adoptions and blood drives.
As they support local charities, Curtin and Scannell also work to promote artisans in the area. Four times a year, Leon & Lulu holds an Artists' Market, where local artists can sell their works in the store. "It started as a girls' night out, but we had such a great response that we do it more often and have at least 35 artists in the store each time," Curtin says. The Artists' Market draws at least 2,000 customers to the store on those occasions. A similar event for local book authors also is a perennially popular day.
The special events held at Leon and Lulu not only run the gamut, but they creatively highlight the business and its offerings. On the anniversary of the store's opening, for instance, Curtin throws a party called Let Them Eat Cake, a baking event benefiting the American Diabetes Association that features diabetic recipes.
One of Curtin's favorite store-sponsored events of the year is the Goodbye Santa party. "It's the first Sunday of the year in January, and Santa comes to make one last visit to Leon & Lulu before he goes back to the North Pole. It's a chance for children to bring him thank-you cards and also bring a new unwrapped gift [for charity]," she explains.
Curtin's approach to special events is in keeping with her mission for the store. "We treat our store the way we treat our home—when we have a party, you can sit down," she points out.
That is also her philosophy about creating shopper-friendly, eye-catching displays. "When we decorate for the holidays, we decorate the way we do our house, with things like centerpieces and garlands," she says.
Looking ahead, the party continues, as Curtin and Scannell are renovating a former movie theater adjacent to their current roller rink turned retail emporium. They are rebuilding the marquee and transforming the lobby into a coffee shop, with espresso drinks and bakery items, as well as adding retail space.
While she plans for the future, Curtin ponders how her experiences have affected her and her view on her business. "Being an independent retailer is a wonderful thing. We are having a great time, and people like coming here," she says. "One of the best things that happened to us was during the first year we were here. A couple of women who had lost their husbands would come into the store when they were feeling blue and told us that having a happy destination to go to meant a lot to them. I think it means a lot to a lot of people. And to us, it means that what we do is so much more than just selling a table or a bar of soap."
What is your most unusual display piece or prop?
"The electronic scoreboard at the back of the store. It came with the rink and dates to the roller hockey league days."
Knowing what you know now, what would you have done differently in your business?
"I would have worried less and slept more at the beginning."
What one item were you unsure of when you ordered, but then it sold much better than expected?
"There have been lots of these, but as soon as they start to sell, I forget I ever doubted them and pretend I knew what I was doing all along. As a category, clothing has been far better than we ever hoped."
Have you ever had a celebrity come into your store?
"Sorry, that is a need-to-know thing. The Secret Service demands discretion."
What is your favorite spot in the whole store?
"Standing in my office on the mezzanine looking out over everything and listening to people laughing as they shop."
You can find more images of Leon & Lulu's HERE.
Photography by Dan Wonsch
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My first exposure to sales was selling computers at a Gateway Country Store. I made mistakes that many untrained salesmen make. I talked about the computer's video card, the hard drive, and processor speed. In other words, I talked about the features.
But I didn't understand something crucial. Customers wanted to know what the computer and software would do for them. Would he be able to play games? Would her computer have a printer? Would he be able to watch a movie? Would she be able to send email?
My next exposure to sales was door-to-door sales. I sold high end pressure washing and house painting work.
Leaving an advertising flier in a paper box or on a door mat was a waste of time and money. People don't read fliers, door hangers, or other advertising left at their houses. Instead, I knocked on the door, introduced myself, and handed the owner a flier. This often resulted in a warm sales lead.
I believe this worked for three reasons.
The homeowner was already interested in having the work done. I was tapping into that desire.
I happened to show up at the right place at the right time.
I've written a short book about this. The book targets blue collar professions. People who are in door-to-door sale might also benefit. It is available through Amazon as How I Went From Failure To Success In Selling.
If the image of Commander Whitehead pouring a Schweppes Bitter Lemon makes your taste buds tingle in anticipation of experiencing Schweppervesence . . . .
Or if finding an original ad written by Dan Kennedy, Eugene Schwartz, Gary Halbert or other advertising legend gets you hot with excitement, keep reading.
Though I'm new to the copywriting business, it did not take long before I found myself hunting online for copies of David Ogilvy ads which inspired me . . . ads I wanted to print, frame, and hang on a wall.
Sometimes though these ads just can't be found . . . no matter how hard you work Google's search algorithms.
There's an online service where you can find hundreds of newspapers all scanned, digitized, and searchable. It's the U.S. Newspaper Archives. Just their U.S. newspaper database spans the years 1753 to 2016.
They have digital copies of hundreds of American newspapers and billions of pages.
While the site is directed towards genealogists who are tracing family histories, the site is useful for a lot of other reasons.
Including, for our purposes here, advertising written and tested by famous advertising legends.
The site is cheap. They offer a free 14 day access and promise to bill you twice a year for the amount of $49.95.
Well worth the price if you're hunting an elusive bit of advertising history.
The AIDA formula may help get you thinking and writing.
Attention: Get the reader's attention with a headline that pushes the reader's emotional hot buttons. This might be a "How to . . . ." or creative headline.
Interest: Get the reader's interest. Tell the reader interesting facts about your product. Give them interesting uses for your service. Give the reader interesting information about the industry. Tell him interesting results that came from using the product you're selling. Is there an interesting customer story that you can use?
Desire: Make the reader desire the product or service that you're selling. Show an example of what your product can do for your reader.
Action: Ask for the sale. Get the reader to act. Make it obvious how to buy your product: Press this button and fill out your information; Pick up your phone and call this number.
The AIDA formula is a well respected and widely used method of writing ad copy. When your stuck with nowhere to go, it will help you to focus on the basics of ad copy.
John Nese's passion, interest, and extensive knowledge of soda pop is what makes him such a remarkable salesman.
A short video demonstrating how different words can change the response rate.


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Cole Henry
The 9 Best Baseball Documentaries
The history, the heroes, and the scandals... And yes, we included Ken Burns' lengthy miniseries.
Hot dogs, Sunday barbecues, and baseball. Few things are as positively American as those three things, but of those three, baseball comes out on top. The sport has been a constant in American society for more than 100 years, and it has brought the nation together at the worst of times and even worked as a nexus for sociopolitical change. Yet, at its heart, baseball is more than a sport. It is a storytelling machine. Baseball has brought out some of the best, most heartwarming, and most scandalous tales in all of athletics. Below is a list of nine baseball documentaries that epitomize the varying degrees of intrigue that can come from the sport and those who engage with it. It would be safe to call each of these films a home run (come on, I had to do it).
Screwball (2019)
Baseball is a sport of high highs and low lows. There is as much triumph in the sport as there is tragedy, and Billy Corben's Screwball leans well into the tragedy aspect. Less focused on what happens on the diamond, the film is focused on Major League Baseball's most famous doping scandal, which rippled throughout the entire sport, from a corrupt clinician, Tony Bosch, to famous New York Yankees player Alex Rodriguez. Corben's film is intimately documented and fact-checked. What may seem absurd turns out to be fact, and this doc leans wholeheartedly into the oddity of it all. The viewer may be laughing throughout the entirety of Screwball, but under that humor is genuine darkness, metaphorical back-stabbings, and wrongdoings.
The Battered Bastards of Baseball (2014)
Chapman and Maclain Way's The Battered Bastards of Baseball tells a tale that puts the independent and go-getter nature of baseball into the spotlight. In 1973, famous Hollywood actor Bing Russell started the only independent baseball team in America at the time, the Portland Mavericks. Their story is ripe with intrigue, from hiring the first female general manager in baseball to signing a young Kurt Russell (Bing's son) to play on the team to inspiring the bubblegum brand Big League Chew. Kurt's onscreen recollections of his father and the team are where the film is at its best, as he recounts these memories with a sense of warmth and joy. Furthermore, as an independent team, the Mavericks created new viewership records and The Battered Bastards of Baseball rises above the sport to become an interesting story about outsiders and the anti-establishment.
Fastball (2016)
Can an entire documentary be carried on the idea of throwing a baseball really, really fast? Jonathan Hock's Fastball successfully argues that yes, a great documentary can be made about athletes throwing a baseball with all their might. Kevin Costner narrates the film, and famous baseball players — Derek Jeter, for one — and scientists try to figure out who threw the fastest pitch ever. They also ruminate positively at the experience of the time between a fastball being thrown and it reaching home plate. Fastball's story rises above the scientific and analytical breakdown of the fastball and becomes a tale about the sport, itself.
Brooklyn Dodgers: The Ghosts of Flatbush (2007)
The once Brooklyn Dodgers had long been one of the most famous MLB teams because of how the team has long represented the diverse working-class nature of Brooklyn throughout the borough and its team's history. Brooklyn Dodgers: The Ghosts of Flatbush charts the famous team throughout the 1940s and 1950s until their move to Los Angeles, California, in 1958. The HBO documentary presents a rich story that shows how the sport of baseball offered hope to many in post-war America and how it offered a platform for racial and sociopolitical change, with Jackie Robinson's signing to the Dodgers and becoming the first black player in the MLB, specifically.
As much a story about baseball as it is about a specific time and place, Brooklyn Dodgers: The Ghosts of Flatbush is a story that even non-baseball lovers can warm themselves to. Humane, grounded, and steeped in another era, the documentary uses still photographs, era-specific film footage, and sound clips to transport the viewer to another time. But the film finds itself at its most emotional moments when people (who are no longer young) are asked what the Brooklyn Dodgers mean to them, and what they meant to their neighborhood at the time.
Catching Hell (2011)
Sports fans are a ravenous bunch, just ask Chicago Cubs fan Steve Bartman. He found himself in the crosshairs of every single other Cubs fan in 2003 because many of them believed his interfering with a foul ball was the root cause of their team not making the World Series that year — their "curse" that began in 1908 would have been lifted, but alas, it was not meant to be. Bartman became the scapegoat and the face upon which immense blame was heaped. He even received death threats.
Years later, Alex Gibney decided to revisit the incident and the fallout it caused in his ESPN documentary Catching Hell. The film succeeds in meticulously studying the incident that shook the team and its fans, and he does so by interviewing security personnel, Cubs fans, Bill Buckner (the Red Sox first baseman blamed for the infamous error in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series), and members of the Chicago and Boston news press. Gibney is fascinated by how and why such singular moments of errorusually become nexus-points and targets for blame, scapegoating, and volatile harassment. Catching Hell succeeds in showing the darker aspects of sports fandom and the burden that both fans and players carry — although the scale of that burden is drastically off-balance.
Knuckleball! (2012)
Here we have another documentary focused on the throwing of a baseball. However, this time, the technique on display is the knuckleball. Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg's Knuckleball! is not just about that specific pitch but also how the rich mythology of the sport of baseball makes it such a compelling game to follow.
The knuckleball is, surprisingly, rarely used in major league baseball, as it is a rather tricky throwing style and it is hard to control. But those who have learned to use it at the MLB level have achieved a near-mythic status. Following the seasons of players Tim Wakefield and R.A. Dickey, Knuckleball! studies how and why these players use the knuckleball, the hardships they've endured, and why patience is the name of the game when it comes to mastering this particular pitch. To Wakefield and Dickey, it is common knowledge that the knuckleball gets better with age, and deep into their careers, they've come to understand this as fact. Growth, age, nostalgia, and myth are imbued in nearly every scene of the doc, and though it may just be about a certain way of throwing a ball, to lovers of baseball, Knuckleball! offers so much more.
The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg (1998)
Hank Greenberg was the first Jewish Major League Baseball player, and Aviva Kempner's The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg studies the man as both a great athlete and an important cultural icon in American pop culture. Playing for the Detroit Tigers, Greenberg faced many hardships and antisemitism, but he both endured and rose above it. In doing so, he helped lead the Tigers to Major League Baseball dominance in the 1930s. But more importantly, he became an inspirational icon and a hero in the Jewish community and showed that his status as a baseball player was so much more than just that.
Kempner uses archival film footage of Greenberg, interviews with former teammates, family, and friends to help tell the inspiring story and to paint a picture of who the man behind the legend was. Furthermore, Kempner interviews both Jewish and non-Jewish fans to show what Greenberg meant and means to various people. To some, he was an inspiring hero and to others, he was just an outstanding first baseman, and history will remember him as both.
Ballplayer: Pelotero (2012)
Ballplayer: Pelotero tells the story of two top baseball prospects from the Dominican Republic and the immense hardships they face as they attempt to bring their big league dreams into reality. Directed by Ross Finkel, Trevor Martin, and Jonathan Paley, the documentary follows two teenagers, Jean Carlos Batista, and Miguel Angel Sano, as they attempt to wow MLB prospects in order to make their dreams come true. What initially seems like a heartwarming coming-of-age rags-to-riches tale slowly molds into something more thought-provoking.
As the film winds on, what is shown is the morally gray territory between exploitation and desire. Almost every choice made in this film has something to do with financial gain or, at least, the prospect of financial gain. Many questions are raised, but few are answered. The Dominican government may turn a blind eye to the MLB's place in the nation, young men confuse exploitation for dreams of a better life, and most importantly, Ballplayer: Pelotero begs us to ask whether or not the recruiting system in the Dominican Republic is sustainable.
Ken Burns' Baseball (1994)
Of course, this tome of a documentary was going to be on this list. Ken Burns has long been known for his immensely rich and detailed documentaries, and when he turned his gaze to baseball, what followed became one of the greatest documentaries about the sport. As a piece of work, Baseball is a colossal achievement. At 19 hours long, it is no short watch, but the stretched-out length allows Burns to tell the story of baseball from its fledgling start to the monolithic place it holds in American society today. Focusing on the sport from a macro scale, Burns relates so much of the sport to various times and various places. Baseball ebbed and flowed for years until it found its footing, and from there it just rolled ever onwards.
Yet, Burns knows that what makes sports so interesting is not the sport itself but those who play and follow it. Baseball, on top of viewing the game through a macro lens, tells many tales of singular human achievement, suffering, and underdog stories, and all of these tales weave themselves into the tapestry that is the American mythology of baseball. It is "America's favorite sport" for a reason and Burns' documentary offers the best and most holistic reasons why baseball will always be a part of the overall American experience.
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Cole Henry(Student/Freelance Writer)
Cole Henry is a media theory and philosophy student at Georgia State University, as well as a freelance writer and editor. He is quite interested in every aspect of documentary cinema, and can usually be found reading, writing, running, adding items to his Criterion Collection shopping cart, and eating tacos.


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" Cheney Directly Implicated by Fitzgerald in CIA Leak Case	"
Cheney Directly Implicated by Fitzgerald in CIA Leak Case
Prosecutor Suggests Strong Evidence that VP Oversaw Libby's Cover Up of Outing of CIA Operative Plame-Wilson
Covert Status Confirmed (Yet Again)...
By Brad Friedman on 5/29/2007, 5:28pm PT
Dan Froomkin in Washington Post [emphasis ours]:
Special counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald has made it clearer than ever that he was hot on the trail of a coordinated campaign to out CIA agent Valerie Plame until that line of investigation was cut off by the repeated lies from Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby.
[W]hen his motives have been attacked during court proceedings, Fitzgerald has occasionally shown flashes of anger --- and has hinted that he and his investigative team suspected more malfeasance at higher levels of government than they were able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt.
In Friday's eminently readable court filing, Fitzgerald quotes the Libby defense calling his prosecution "unwarranted, unjust, and motivated by politics." In responding to that charge, the special counsel evidently felt obliged to put Libby's crime in context. And that context is Dick Cheney.
Froomkin's eminently readable report goes on to cover admissions (yet again) from Fitzgerald which demonstrate that Plame was indeed covert when she was outed --- for the first time in the history of the country --- by our own Government, much less members of the Executive Branch possibly as high as the Vice-President or even higher.
MSNBC reports on the new covert status confirmation (yet again) for Plame, describing a newly declassified employment record released by the CIA, which (yet again) underscores the point:
The employment history indicates that while she was assigned to CPD [Counterproliferation Division], Plame, "engaged in temporary duty travel overseas on official business." The report says, "she traveled at least seven times to more than ten times." When overseas Plame traveled undercover, "sometimes in true name and sometimes in alias --- but always using cover --- whether official or non-official (NOC) --- with no ostensible relationship to the CIA."
We look forward to the outpouring of corrections and retractions from disgraced GOP attorney/disinfo expert, Victoria Toensing, and her many ass clown supporters in the rightwing blogosphere who reported otherwise --- in no uncertain terms --- for years on end. Those apologies will be coming in any second, no doubt, since the wingnuts are always so very good when it comes to their appreciation of journalistic ethics and the like.
Froomkin's WaPo report focuses on Cheney's involvement in leaking the name of the covert CIA asset, quoting from Fitzgerald's recent court filing: "The evidence at trial further established that when the investigation began, Mr. Libby kept the Vice President apprised of his shifting accounts of how he claimed to have learned about Ms. Wilson's CIA employment."
And this: "[T]here was an indication from Mr. Libby himself that his disclosures to the press may have been personally sanctioned by the Vice President."
He quotes much more on what Fitz had to say in his filing which drew a bead most directly, for the first time, onto the man who still calls himself Vice President of the United States and concludes the point with this:
I suspect that people looking back on this story will see it with greater clarity: As a blatant --- and thus far successful --- cover-up for the vice president.
Give it a read for all of that, as well as the amusing argument the defense is now making about why the letters of support for Libby that they've had sent to the Judge, requesting leniency, should not be released to the public (Hint: It's those nasty bloggers again!)
UPDATE: Plame's former CIA classmate Larry Johnson, an ex-spook himself, takes a well-deserved victory lap which begins: "Victoria Toensing, Cliff May, Byron York and the other rightwing apologists who have long insisted that Valerie Plame Wilson was not undercover have some 'splaining' to do." Uh, yeah. But don't hold your breath, Larry.
Article Categories: Scooter Libby, Dick Cheney, CIA Leak Case
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"Cheney Directly Implicated by Fitzgerald in CIA Leak Case"
... Thick-Witted Liberal	said on 5/29/2007 @ 8:20 pm PT...
Sadly, he continues to get away with a multitude of crimes.
... AlexandriaCynic	said on 5/29/2007 @ 9:07 pm PT...
So when and how can Fitz re-open the case? Or does a Congressional Committee have to pick up the investigation as part or prelude to an impeachment procedure? I'm not looking for vengeance (as the mainstream press would, of course claim) but to do something that would prevent future would-be Cheneys from trying to subvert the rule of law. Actions must have consequences and bad actions must have bad consequences. Preferably, the bad consequences would be enforced by the law.
... Floridiot	said on 5/30/2007 @ 3:44 am PT...
I wonder if Cheney is going to buy a mansion on one of those palm shaped/continent shaped man-made islands that they're building over in Dubai ?
He'll probably buy the one shaped like D.C. so he can pretend to be the dictator of it once he's finally ousted for treason and gets the medal of freedom. Even Halliburton will be an easy commute for his once a year board meeting.
Floridiot #3
The Life of Cheney (remember "The Life of Riley"?) is the DC version of The Sopranos.
He has destroyed records of the US Government and admits it.
Lied repeatedly to the Amercian people, and turned the world against us.
And the only folk who could come after him, The Department of Justice Just Us is now a religious enclave of Pat Robertson U. (a.k.a. "Whatsamatta U") where the bushie holy warriors are bunkered down singing "come and get me coppa" to the tune of "Amazing Grace".
Good job republicans. DeLay is so proud of U that god has spoken to him.
Heh Dredd, Whatsamatta U
... Vman	said on 5/30/2007 @ 7:13 am PT...
TREASON!!!!!!
Brewster Jennings was an important covert CIA front company specializing in nuclear proliferation and acqusition in the Middle East primarily focusing on Iran. It took the CIA multi millions of taxpayer dollars to create and maintain.
War mongers and profitteers don't want good intelligence, it hampers their ability to lie us into another war against Iran. Neo-cons are always looking ahead to create the reality they desire to 'con' us into.
It does not take a genius to connect the dots and understand why Bush/Cheney destroyed Plame. The Wilson discredit Rovian spin was all smoke and mirrors from the start. Brewster Jennings was the target and good people were killed and intelligence efforts destroyed as result of its intentional exposure and demise.
Mark my words. The Repubs will start impeachment against Bush/Cheney, and remove all doubt that the Dems are spineless wimps. It will be a true Rovian work of art.
I'm not so sure Vman, outing the Brewster Jennings outers could lead us back to what Sibel was silenced for amd into the illegal weapons sales by our own military contractors via the Turkish institute, AIPAC and Denny the Fat Bastert, Both parties would fall apart...he-he.
Boy would I LUV to see that shit hit the fan
... Betty	said on 5/30/2007 @ 8:31 am PT...
I think Valerie was Cheney's target all along. Look where she worked - she was the real threat. She probably could have found out who had the Niger documents forged.
... big dan	said on 5/30/2007 @ 8:51 am PT...
Dick Cheney/White House officially recognize gay couple with child: (well, if you're a CHENEY, then it's "OK"...CHENEY'S are not affected by their party's anti-gay stance)
http://www.americablog.c...ly-recognizes-legal.html
I don't think it's right, and I think the Cheney's are getting a pass from the CMSM, that they are the "anti-gay" party, and they have no problem with their daughter being in a lesbian marriage with a child. It's "celebration time", they want us to join in and celebrate their new grandchild from their daughter's lesbian marriage! See how proud they are! (those f*cking HYPOCRITES!!!!!!!!!)
WHY DOES DICK CHENEY GET A PASS ON THIS HYPOCRISY???
The way I see it Betty, Valerie was starting to look into those illegal weapons sales thru Turkey that Sibel was seeing at the same time trying to figure out where they were coming from. Some think that they were trying to smuggle WMDs into Iraq to be found at a later date by the same route.
By outing Plame, that put a stop to that investigation.
I'll bet a good chunk of Congress was involved in covering this up via campaign contribs, with Hastert and Cheney being the central figures.
... Vman	said on 5/30/2007 @ 10:18 am PT...
War monger liars and corporate war profitteers don't want good intelligence, 'bad intelligence' is their scapegoat and key to their 'long war'.
The Wilson spin of the 'discredit critics angle' is pure Rovian spin and misdirection. Brewster Jennings was and always was the true target.
Interesting side note: Plames operation intercepted a shipment of WMD's headed through Turkey to Iraq prior to the invasion. Douglas Feith ws a registered agent for Turkey for many years. If Plame's operation had not stopped the WMD's the Bushies would have had their weapons plant. Bushies and the neocons are always thinking ahead and 'controlling he reality' They were looking towards attacking Iran from the start, and didn't want any pissant CIA agents getting in the way.
"The letter noted that Under Secretary Feith was a registered foreign agent for Turkey from 1989-1994 while serving as a principal for International Advisors Inc., and that he was a special assistant to Richard Perle at the Defense Department,"
Link: http://wotisitgood4.blog...and-feith-and-perle.html
This is TREASON!!! The number one impeachable offense. Period...Finito...End of Story if you stick with the base unvarnished truth instead of the spin and deceit.
... Off the Grid said on 5/30/2007 @ 2:13 pm PT...
How tense is the oil market?
NEW YORK (Reuters) - World oil prices jumped briefly on Wednesday after a television station in Tulsa, Oklahoma --- the No. 62 U.S. media market --- posted an erroneous story about a refinery fire on its Web site.
At 10:14 EDT (1414 GMT), CBS affiliate KOTV reported that a lightning strike had caused a fire at an Oklahoma refinery --- sparking a flurry of excitement among energy traders and boosting U.S. crude prices 40 cents.
The refining company announced the story was "completely wrong" and the station withdrew the story.
"All it takes is a screw-up on a Web site to move the market. It just goes to show how tense this market is," said a Houston-based oil trader.
A string of refinery problems in the United States has propelled retail gasoline prices to record highs in recent weeks.
Now imagine war with Iran...the 4th leading crude oil producer on the planet. I'll remind you all that there are two US Navy carrier groups in the Persian Gulf right now.
Imagine a war where Iran attacks Saudi Arabia, a US ally, and the #1 producer of crude on the planet, and #1 exporter to the US. Or to be more specific, what happens if Iran destroys the largest oil refinery on the planet, which happens to be in Saudi Arabia.
Sure we can nuke Iran after, but it won't help you eat. The real peak oil issue is food (that won't have tractors to grow it or trucks to bring it), sooner or later we will all have to deal with that, every day all year long.
That's what deregulation does OTG, it puts the markets on a hair trigger just the way the Bush & Cheney Oil Co. like it IMO
... CharlieL said on 5/30/2007 @ 11:37 pm PT...
I've decided that I'm now in favor of the neo-con war in Iran.
I think $10 gasoline will wake up even the idiot, beer-drinking hicks, religious nut jobs, and "loyal Rethuglicans" to the fact that they have been lied to, cheated, stolen from, and generally screwed.
... Agent 99 said on 5/31/2007 @ 1:20 am PT...
We could probably think of a better way than killing innocent Iranians, Charlie. They're our idiots, and we have the obligation to stop them.
Maybe we could talk preznit blush into accepting the offer to meet the Iranian president in the desert with pistols only.
Last time preznit blush declined that "bring it on" type challenge was just before the Iraq invasion. It came from the Iraqi VP to Sadaam who originally issued the challenge.
They challenged preznit blush and vice hair-trigger to a shootout in the desert, where each of the 4 would have only one pistol each.
The preznit blush declined, because he did not want to be remembered in his "big preznidenshul liberry" as having gone down by "friendly fire" from Dick "hair trigger" Cheney.
"I'm gonna spray um bushie" would be the last words preznit blush would have heard.
Economically Iran will have us by the balls if the Iranian Oil Bourse ever comes online.
"In March 2007 The Scotsman reported that China's state-run Zhuhai Zhenrong Corp, the biggest buyer of Iranian crude worldwide, began paying for its oil in euros late last year. Iranian officials have said for months that more than half the OPEC member's customers switched their payment currency away from the dollar as Tehran seeks to diversify its reserves, but news of the Zhenrong change is the first outside confirmation. Japan have also announced that they would be willing to switch to Yen from US Dollars.[12] Iran's central banker announced in March 2007 that Iran had cut its holding of U.S.-dollar assets to around 20% of its foreign reserves in response to U.S. hostility" Wikipedia
It's all about the oil. Freedom my ass.
... MarkH	said on 5/31/2007 @ 11:43 am PT...
I suspect the Dems in Congress were assured by Bushies that the WMDs would be there in Iraq, even if they had to be put there. And, the Dems went along, except maybe they also warned someone at Brewster Jennings to be on the lookout for some WMD heading to Iraq.
Today they warn us left and right that one small move and the oil supply dries up, leaving us all livin' like 1800s farmers. No mention of course of why they shut off research into alternative fuels during Reagan's administration.
I wouldn't even be surprised if our researchers, who came up with the stealth airplane and the neutron bomb, have come up with a great alternative energy they're witholding from the public. Cynicism runs rampant when those in charge lie freely and regularly.
If "The Powers that Be" can conspire with foreign powers to bring about the downfall of an American president, allow the importation of cocaine on CIA airplanes, perhaps create the HIV virus to kill off gays, lie about WMDs in Iraq, allow New Orleans to die, steal elections and even withold a cure for cancers, then what else might they do without public knowledge or support?
Is it cynicism at that point? Is it paranoia when there's proof there are dangerous people? Isn't it just wise for us to be on guard and to hit back hard when they harm America and Americans?
... big dan	said on 5/31/2007 @ 11:50 am PT...
(see my comments #9 & 10)
Lookey what I found:
(stephen bennett, spokesman from Concerned Women for America, press release...now fight nice, crazy religious right people and crazy Dick Cheney's!!!)
OFFICIAL SBM PRESS RELEASE 05/30/07:
White House Officially Recognizes Homosexual Unions and Parenting?
Contact: The Parents Group ~ SBM's National Office, 203-926-6960
HUNTINGTON, Conn., May 30 /Christian Newswire/ --- On May 23, 2007, the White House, silently and without any fanfare, released an official White House photo of Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife, Lynne Cheney, welcoming their sixth grandchild, Samuel David Cheney, into the Cheney fold.
The beautiful little tyke weighed in at 8 lbs., 6 oz. and was born at 9:46 a.m. at Sibley House in Washington, D.C.
What is extremely troubling is the official White House caption that appears underneath the photo on the official White House website:
"... His parents are the Cheney's daughter Mary, and her partner, Heather Poe. White House photo by David Bohrer."
Since when have two homosexual women been able to naturally procreate?
Fact is Mary Cheney, the Vice President's daughter - in one way or another - received a male's sperm. She is the biological mother, parent number one, and some man, somewhere out there, is Samuel David's real biological father, parent number two.
Unlike the official White House photo caption, a man and a woman, a Daddy and a Mommy, are Samuel David Cheney's REAL biological parents.
Then who is Heather Poe?
Heather Poe is Mary Cheney's live-in lesbian lover. She may act like a parent, she may treat the baby as a parent, she may love this baby with all of her heart, but in this reality we all live in, Heather Poe is NOT the baby's real parent. She has NO biological connection to the child whatsoever. Some man, the baby's real Daddy, is the child's other REAL parent.
If the Vice President and his wife Lynne are joining their daughter Mary in playing this homosexual game of "house," then all have chosen their roles and designated lesbian lover Heather Poe as the "Daddy."
Everyone knows there can only be one REAL biological Mommy. We are all grown adults. Playing "house" is a game for children, not for The White House or the Vice President and his wife.
What is so hypocritical of this Administration is its "double-speak."
President George W. Bush held several presses conferences calling for a Federal Marriage Amendment to protect the God-ordained institution of marriage between one man and one woman, while homosexuals pushed for the union of two men or two women to be equally recognized as real "marriage."
However, the President's number two, right hand man, Vice President Dick Cheney, clearly rebels against his superior, makes a public mockery of the President and the current Administration he is supposed to represent, and clearly holds to a different set of moral standards and beliefs.
When President Bush stood on the victory stage several years ago after being elected into office by values voters, Mary Cheney was on stage as well with her lesbian lover, Heather Poe. It was a slap in the face to the values voters who had just elected the duo into office. That wound has never healed.
While this little innocent child Samuel David Cheney deserves every fighting chance at life, the sins of two women, Mary Cheney and Heather Poe, have deliberately denied the Vice President's grandson one of the most basic human rights of all: the right to a Daddy and a Mommy.
I say shame on the White House, shame on the President and shame on the Vice President for allowing such a caption to be "officially" added onto the White House website and such a beautiful photo of two happy grandparents and their new grandchild.
I guess we can tragically and officially say both the White House and Bush Administration have officially recognized the sinful sexual unions of homosexuals, as well as recognized and embraced the tragedy of the social experiment of homosexual parenting.
"Crazy" religious fascists GOP base vs. "crazy" Republican Party fascists who used them!
I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


text:
The Herald and Glasgow Chamber of Commerce Inspiring City Awards
by Newsquest Scotland Events
Thu, 5 September 2019, 18:30 – 23:00 BST
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The Herald and Glasgow Chamber of Commerce are delighted to host the seventh annual Inspiring City Awards, celebrating and rewarding the people and organisations that make Glasgow great.
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Join us as we celebrate all that is great about our fantastic city!
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The Herald and Glasgow Chamber of Commerce Inspiring City Awards at Crowne Plaza Glasgow
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text:
Watchdog sues Trump administration over family separation records
By Lydia Wheeler - 10/26/18 04:14 PM EDT
A government watchdog group is suing the Trump administration for failing to create records linking immigrant children to their parents while separating them at the border.
In the lawsuit filed Friday against the Department of Homeland Security and DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen Kirstjen Michele Nielsen Trump's family separation policy has taken US to 'lowest depth possible,' says former immigration lawyer Four heated moments from House hearing on conditions at border facilities Chuck Todd on administration vacancies: 'Is this any way to run a government?' MORE, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) accused the administration of violating the Federal Records Act.
The 23-page complaint before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia also alleges the administration failed to establish an adequate agency-wide records management program.
"Indeed, rarely has a records management failure had such catastrophic consequences: DHS ripped thousands of children away from their parents, failed to make and preserve adequate documentation of individuals taken into its custody, and, consequently, has been unable to reunify each of the families it separated," CREW argues in the filing.
The lawsuit comes after the Washington Post reported earlier this month that President Trump Donald John TrumpEsper sidesteps question on whether he aligns more with Mattis or Trump Warren embraces Thiel label: 'Good' As tensions escalate, US must intensify pressure on Iran and the IAEA MORE is considering a new separation policy.
"The Trump Administration's haphazard implementation of the Zero Tolerance Policy paired with DHS's failure to meet basic record-keeping requirements mandated by federal law has had catastrophic consequences on the lives of thousands of immigrants seeking entry to our country, even threatening the permanent separation of children from their parents," CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder said in a statement.
"Rarely, if ever, has an agency's violation of its statutory record keeping obligations had such grave implications. With the administration considering reinstating a new form of their failed policy, it is crucial that they be compelled to follow the law, which makes this lawsuit even more urgent."
DHS declined to comment.
Tags CREW Kirstjen Nielsen Donald Trump Immigration Illegal immigration


text:
#include "cognitoware/math/data/Vector.h"
#include "cognitoware/math/probability/discrete/ConditionalValueMap.h"
#include "cognitoware/math/probability/discrete/DistributionValueMap.h"
#include "cognitoware/math/probability/RandomConditional.h"
#include "cognitoware/math/probability/RandomDistribution.h"
#include "cognitoware/math/probability/IndependentPairDistribution.h"
#include "cognitoware/robotics/MarkovActionChain.h"
#include "gtest/gtest.h"

#include <memory>
#include <vector>

using ::cognitoware::robotics::MarkovActionChain;
using ::cognitoware::math::probability::IndependentPairDistribution;
using ::cognitoware::math::probability::RandomConditional;
using ::cognitoware::math::probability::RandomDistribution;
using ::cognitoware::math::probability::discrete::ConditionalValueMap;
using ::cognitoware::math::probability::discrete::DistributionValueMap;
using ::cognitoware::math::data::Vector;

namespace examples {

enum class DoorAction {
  Idle, Push
};

std::ostream& operator<<(std::ostream& os, DoorAction z) {
  switch (z) {
  case DoorAction::Idle:
    os << "Idle";
  break;
  case DoorAction::Push:
    os << "Push";
  break;
  }
  return os;
}

enum class DoorObservation {
  Open, Closed
};

std::ostream& operator<<(std::ostream& os, DoorObservation z) {
  switch (z) {
  case DoorObservation::Open:
    os << "Open";
  break;
  case DoorObservation::Closed:
    os << "Closed";
  break;
  }
  return os;
}

enum class DoorState {
  Open, Closed
};

typedef std::pair<DoorState, DoorAction> XU;

std::ostream& operator<<(std::ostream& os, DoorState x) {
  switch (x) {
  case DoorState::Open:
    os << "Open";
  break;
  case DoorState::Closed:
    os << "Closed";
  break;
  }
  return os;
}

std::ostream& operator<<(std::ostream& os,
                         const RandomDistribution<DoorState>& belief) {
  os << DoorState::Open << "=" << belief.ProbabilityOf(DoorState::Open);
  os << ", ";
  os << DoorState::Closed << "=" << belief.ProbabilityOf(DoorState::Closed);
  return os;
}

class Door {
public:
  Door(std::default_random_engine* generator) {
    p_ = 0.0;
    state_ = DoorState::Open;
    pxz_ = std::make_shared<ConditionalValueMap<DoorState, DoorObservation>>();
    pxux_ = std::make_shared<MarkovActionChain<DoorState, DoorAction>>();
    InitState(generator);
    pxz_->Set(DoorState::Closed, DoorObservation::Open, 0.2);
    pxz_->Set(DoorState::Open, DoorObservation::Open, 0.8);
    pxz_->Set(DoorState::Closed, DoorObservation::Closed, 0.6);
    pxz_->Set(DoorState::Open, DoorObservation::Closed, 0.4);

    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Closed, DoorAction::Push, DoorState::Closed, 0.2);
    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Open, DoorAction::Push, DoorState::Closed, 0.8);
    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Closed, DoorAction::Push, DoorState::Open, 0.0);
    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Open, DoorAction::Push, DoorState::Open, 1.0);
    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Closed, DoorAction::Idle, DoorState::Closed, 1.0);
    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Open, DoorAction::Idle, DoorState::Closed, 0.0);
    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Closed, DoorAction::Idle, DoorState::Open, 0.0);
    pxux_->Set(DoorState::Open, DoorAction::Idle, DoorState::Open, 1.0);
  }

  void InitState(std::default_random_engine* generator) {
    std::uniform_real_distribution<double> random(0, 1);
    double select = random(*generator);
    if (select < p_) {
      state_ = DoorState::Open;
    } else {
      state_ = DoorState::Closed;
    }
  }

  void CreateObservation(std::default_random_engine* generator,
                         DoorObservation* result_out) const {
    std::uniform_real_distribution<double> random(0, 1);
    *result_out = pxz_->SampleLikelihood(state_, random(*generator));
  }

  void DoAction(std::default_random_engine* generator, DoorAction u) {
    std::uniform_real_distribution<double> random(0, 1);
    state_ = pxux_->SampleCondition(XU(state_, u), random(*generator));
  }

private:
  double p_;
  DoorState state_;
  std::shared_ptr<ConditionalValueMap<DoorState, DoorObservation>> pxz_;
  std::shared_ptr<MarkovActionChain<DoorState, DoorAction>> pxux_;
};

class DoorActionModel : public MarkovActionChain<DoorState, DoorAction> {
public:
  DoorActionModel() {
    DoorState O = DoorState::Open;
    DoorState C = DoorState::Closed;
    DoorAction I = DoorAction::Idle;
    DoorAction P = DoorAction::Push;
    Set(O, P, O, 1.0);
    Set(C, P, O, 0.0);
    Set(O, P, C, 0.8);
    Set(C, P, C, 0.2);
    Set(O, I, O, 1.0);
    Set(C, I, O, 0.0);
    Set(O, I, C, 0.0);
    Set(C, I, C, 1.0);
  }
};

class DoorSensorModel : public ConditionalValueMap<DoorObservation, DoorState> {
public:
  DoorSensorModel() {
    Set(DoorObservation::Open, DoorState::Open, 0.6);
    Set(DoorObservation::Closed, DoorState::Open, 0.4);
    Set(DoorObservation::Open, DoorState::Closed, 0.2);
    Set(DoorObservation::Closed, DoorState::Closed, 0.8);
  }
};

std::shared_ptr<RandomDistribution<std::pair<DoorState, DoorAction>>> MakePairDistribution(
    std::shared_ptr<RandomDistribution<DoorState>> x,
    const DoorAction& u) {
  return std::make_shared<IndependentPairDistribution<DoorState, DoorAction>>(
      x,
      std::make_shared<DistributionValueMap<DoorAction>>(
          std::vector<DoorAction> {u}));
}

DoorAction ChooseAction(const RandomDistribution<DoorState>& x) {
  // decision is the 'core' of the AI
  if (x.ProbabilityOf(DoorState::Closed) > 0.9) {
    return DoorAction::Push;
  }
  return DoorAction::Idle;
}

TEST(DoorOpener, main) {
  std::default_random_engine generator(0);
  Door door(&generator);
  auto sensor_model = std::make_shared<DoorSensorModel>();
  auto action_model = std::make_shared<DoorActionModel>();
  auto x = std::make_shared<DistributionValueMap<DoorState>>(DoorState::Open,
      0.5, DoorState::Closed, 0.5);
  std::cout << "Start belief " << *x << std::endl << std::endl;

  for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++) {
    DoorObservation z;
    door.CreateObservation(&generator, &z);
    DoorAction u = ChooseAction(*x);
    x = sensor_model->BayesianInference(z, *x);
    std::cout << "Observed " << z << std::endl;
    std::cout << "After Observation " << *x << std::endl;
    auto xu = MakePairDistribution(x, u);
    x = action_model->Marginalize(*xu);
    std::cout << "Do " << u << std::endl;
    std::cout << "After Action " << *x << std::endl;
    door.DoAction(&generator, u);
    std::cout << std::endl;
  }
  std::cout << "Final belief " << *x << std::endl;
}

}  // namespace examples

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub