Many people have goals that they set for themselves in life. Graduate college by 22, dream job by 25, married by 30, things like that. The most important goal that anyone in the world can have is making it into the Kingdom. There's nothing wrong at all with having a successful life but you can't truly be successful without God. Every goal you set for yourself may come to pass and that's great and all but if you get "depart from me" on Judgment Day what will your completed goals mean then? You can't get before God and say "well Lord I was busy completing the goals I set for myself" God is not gonna wanna hear that. What's success if you end up in hell, that's not success at all, that's damnation. (Joshua 1:8- Constantly remind the people about these laws, and you yourself must think about them every day and every night so that you will be sure to obey all of them. For only then will you succeed.) Obeying God is a successful life.
Contrary to what society thinks, being rich does not equate to being successful. The guy had everything he wanted to the point where things couldn't even fit. He tried to plan what to do to solve the problem and God said you're not even going to make it to tomorrow. You will die tonight. Can you imagine you have this wonderful activity planned for yourself tomorrow and you don't even make it to the next day? Can you imagine how many people told themselves that they would get right with God tomorrow and didn't even make it to tomorrow? I'm sure it happens a lot. So many people just want to keep living life their way and they think they have time to get right with God. If you're not God and can't give life and take away life then how could you possibly even know if you'll be alive tomorrow. I always tell people don't wait to get right with God, do it now.
People always say that you're not supposed to scare someone into accepting Jesus or believing in God but sometimes that's exactly what works. Many times I would be scared that I would go to sleep and not wake back up and I knew that if I died I was going to hell. That's why I believe God gives us dreams of being left behind, going to hell, tragedies in our lives, etc as wake up calls. Sometimes a person needs to be scared to realize that it's time to get right with God.
When the King found out what was written he tore his clothes in terror, meaning that whatever he read had scared him. He was scared of what the Lord would do to them because they weren't obeying His instructions. This should be us when we read the Bible. (Hebrews 4:12- For whatever God says to us is full of living power: it is sharper than the sharpest dagger, cutting swift and deep into our innermost thoughts and desires with all their parts, exposing us for what we really are.) Have y'all ever read something in the Bible and it spoke right to you and you're like wow I need to get some things together? This is exactly how King Josiah felt. This is what the Bible is for though, it's supposed to tell us how to live and it exposes us not for us to feel guilty but for us to see where we're wrong and to fix it. When we come before God we have to humble ourselves. If we're too proud to listen to what God has to say how can He ever help us? When we read the Bible and act like all is well with us how can the Lord speak to us through His Word? Since Josiah came to the Lord humble, the Lord spared him. When we come to the Lord humbly and repent for our sins and trust in Jesus to save us God will spare our lives also.
I like how after Josiah discovered God's written laws he went right to work. Destroying the temples used for Idol worship, killing the heathen priests etc. When you want to please God there are some things you have to get rid of.
Many times during our walk we may get discouraged. Sometimes it feels like we're the only saved person out here but we have to remember the Bible says the road to heaven is narrow and few are on it. Be happy that you are considered one of the few. All the people in the world and God chose you, God wanted you before you were even born. He had a plan for you before you even had a name. (Jeremiah 1:5- "I knew you before you were formed within your mother's womb; before you were born I sanctified you and appointed you as my spokesman to the world.") (Jeremiah 29:11- For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.) People think this verse is just relevant for when you get the job you wanted, get into the school you wanted etc, but how is God going to prosper you if you don't obey Him? How can you have a good future if God isn't in it. You don't wanna be just successful in your job etc you wanna have spiritual success, that's being successful so that you can make it into the kingdom! When you can't see the end goal sometimes you just wanna give up but that's why faith is so important in a Christian's life. We can't see heaven, but the Bible says blessed are those who believe without seeing. Faith is not seeing heaven but knowing that God promised heaven to all who believe.
Wisdom makes the hours of our day more profitable and the years of our life more fruitful.
We can have a list of things we want in the life but one thing that's important to have is wisdom.
One thing I like about King Solomon was when the Lord told him to ask for anything he wanted he asked for wisdom. He could've asked for a long life and riches but he asked for wisdom and God gave him a long life and riches anyway. One thing I prayed for when I first got saved is for wisdom because in this life you want to make the right decisions and you want God leading you wherever He wants you to go.


Have you always dreamed about doing a quick, fun, and adventurous activity with your friends, couple, family or loved ones and haven't quite found the one plan that properly fills all of your expectations? Then this article is the answer you've been waiting for!
Tandem activities like bicycle riding always make up for a funny time when you can enjoy a different moment with your loved ones, and even get to learn a little bit more about one another. But if you're looking for that extra, spicy and adventuroustouch, tandem kayak is just what you're looking for, providing that adrenaline to make you and your companion feel more than alive during the ride.
Now, you may be thinking "alright, then all I have to do is to find a good tandem kayak and a companion to enjoy the best day of my life", and while you may be right on that thought, finding the best kayak available isn't quite so easy, and we will emphasize the need for your kayak to be the best there can be so that you can actually fulfill your dream and enjoy a ride that you will never forget.
Having said so, we'll present you with three of the absolute best tandem kayak models currently available on the market, each with its own specifications so that you make the best of choices in order to have the best of experiences.
A paradise on earth to fishers, this two-person kayak includes everything you can possibly need for you to enjoy a day on the lake.Three fishing holders and paddle holders will allow your hands to be free if needed. This boat's durability is provided by its heavy duty rigid board, a feature that helps it easily handling everyday use. If you love to spend extra time in the water, this model's plush padded seat will allow you tocomfortably do it. With incredible storage space, its interior storage hatch provides you with a lot of space to place your gear and keep it safe. With the extreme confidence Lifetime puts on everyone of its products, especially double kayaks, a hugely impressivefive-year manufacturer's warranty will be attached to this product so that you will feel as good as possible about itspurchase. Bring in a friend, or even two of them into this spacious and comfortable, foot rest friendly design to enjoy the best of adventures together. Often top rated tandem kayaks producer, you can be completely sure that Lifetime will provide you with the high-quality kayak that you need to have a great ride with your friends.
Being molded plastic and quite small, children best use this model. It does feature some good options for family use and flexibility, however. The adjustablefootrestsallow for an additional jump seat for a third person to join in the center of the boat. While this offers a nice touch, the real trophy is found in its storage space. This model includes two large storage hatches; one between each paddler leg, while also adding a third, smaller, sealed hatch in the middle of the boat, delivering additional storage if needed. For more gear, there is a deep compartment behind the back paddler covered with shock cord lashing. Being a sit on top model, this boat makes it easier to dump water out in case you happen to tip it, making it much easier to upright compared to traditional models.
One of the most popular choices among families, the banana look of this inflatable tandem kayak makes it a choice of love for kids and for some not so young people, too.Its visibility is highly increased by its bright yellow design and adds to kids' safety. This double kayak was specially built for still water lakes and lazy rivers, where it can be given an expert use. This two-person kayak can be altered to fit your needs by effortlessly removing its seats, which, by being inflatable, mold to the shape of your body, making them some of the most comfortable seats there are and allowing for it use for more extended periods. By allowing to expertly maneuver and glide over the water, this double kayak is perfect not only for a ride with a partner, but also for solo adventures. Its lightweight design makes this boat easy to transport, either from your car or even between lakes. It's a great option for beginners as its low-profile design makes it extremely stable. It also includes a skeg that can be removed, which brings help with direction for the boat to glide through the water in a straight line with no mayor difficulty.
While every single one of the models presented above has its own strong and weak features, the choice you make should depend on exactly what you are looking for to fill your needs. Do you want to spend a whole day fishing or to go trough a week long tandem kayak adventure? The Lifetime model is the one you're looking for. Would you rather a safe boat where to teach your kids the joy of river riding without having to worry too much about any possible accidents going on and where you could easily load absolutely every single gear that you could need? Then Sun Dolphin Bali's product should be your choice of preference. Looking to enjoy the satisfaction and union of some heart warming family moments, epic banana boat pictures and calmed rides in the comfort of still waters, without having to worry about a heavy boat? Look no further than Intex Explorer's kayak.
We will keep our eye on Lifetime's kayak, being that it provides you with everything you could possibly need for that one adventure to make your day, or that calmed, friendly fishing day to let go all the week's stress. Still, we're completely sure that the choice you make will be the one to make your tandem kayak day one to remember.


text:
Q: Getting STDIN in eclipse? I need to write a code for competition using STDIN and STDOUT, how can I set up eclipse to take input from STDIN??
When I was just using editor and command line I was running:
java Hatch < hatch_input

Now I need the equivalent to work directly from eclipse. It would be perfect if I could use it directly from file, but it would to suffice to just be able to paste the actual input somewhere, as long as I can write code that takes STDIN directly in eclipse by clicking RUN.
class Main{

       public static void main (String[] args) throws java.lang.Exception{
    BufferedReader br = new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(System.in));
    }

}

Above code is what I am trying to achieve.

A: When you run your program you can setup a run configuration. Just click on on the arrow next to the play button and choose "Run configurations..."
In the new run configuration dialog you create a new Java application run configuration. In the tab "Arguments" you can enter the arguments you want the program to receive.
Suggestion: In the last tab, "common", choose to save it as a shared file, this will create a *.launch file that you can use to quickly run the program. You can also create different launch files for different inputs.

A: You can also just type in the input data or copy paste in the console window of the eclipse. for Sdtin when the program hits that point focus shifts to console and waits for the response.

A: There is following code,which i tried. this code is working fine if you run program in command prompt, but in eclipse not working because there console are no longer waiting for user input and give the java.lang.NullPointerException.
if you are read data by user input you can use System.in.read(). and this is also working in eclipse console.
In this code you can get Data from user but this data is not args which we throw at run time...
public class CONSOLE
{
    public static void main(String[] args)
    {
        // TODO Auto-generated method stub
        Console c = System.console();

        System.out.println("Enter Username : \t");
        String u = c.readLine();

        System.out.println("Enter Password : \t");
        char[] p = c.readPassword();

        System.out.println("USERNAME : "+u);
        System.out.println("PASSWORD : "+String.valueOf(p));
    }
}

A: Scanner sc=new Scanner(System.in);
String s=sc.nextLine();

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: The funny lines of trash talk that people have said.
Despite a senior season in which he was named First Team All-League on both offense and defense, Brody Balasa faced the very real possibility that he could have ended his high school football career on the sidelines instead of on the field.
During Upper Dublin Senior Night on Oct. 26, Balasa sustained an injury that turned out to be more serious than first expected. As a result, the senior standout could only watch as the Flying Cardinals embarked on their PIAA District One Tournament run.
Four weeks, four victories, and a Class 5A District One Championship later, Balasa has been cleared and is expected to be back on the field as the Cardinals take on Manheim Central (the top seed from District Three) in a PIAA State Semifinal at 7 p.m. Friday at Wissahickon High School.
"I just wanted to get back in there and put the pads back on and just hit someone again. Watching on the sidelines, there's nothing you want more than to get back in there," Balasa said of his time off the field. "But everyone stepped up in Districts. Lucas (Nina-Boesler) did a really great job at tight end while I was out.
There's reason to believe that Balasa will be on the field for "every play," too. Not only is he All-League at tight end and outside linebacker, but Balasa also plays on special teams.
Stover compares Balasa to the famed tool not just because he lines up on both sides of the ball, but also because he plays all over the field. Balasa has found himself playing safety on defense and halfback on offense, among other positions.
It was an unfortunate but familiar scenario to local football fans – a player having an MVP-caliber season is injured late in the regular season and can only watch as his team advances to win a championship.
For a guy who wants nothing more than to help his team, the inability to do so was understandably frustrating. Though he was able to suit up on the sidelines for the district title game, Balasa was not cleared to play.
Indeed, Balasa's presence would provide a huge boost to the Cardinal defense against an undefeated Manheim Central squad.
That's been a repeated occurrence this season, and it serves as a solid example for the younger players on the team.
It has also made it easier for the team to bond. And while goals were high for this season, this Cardinal squad has surpassed what many expected.
Balasa points to two games that helped the team truly come together – a 14-13 win over Quakertown (in which the Cards trailed 13-0 at halftime) in early October, and a 42-17 loss to Penn Charter in week four.
"Our only loss was to Penn Charter," he said. "We hadn't really even had a close game before that, and we got blown out. That was a wakeup call for us. We realized that we have to step up if we want to be able to beat teams like that.
It's a remarkable road that Balasa and his Cardinal teammates will continue upon come Friday. And no matter if Cardinals' season lasts one more game or two, whether it ends in a loss or a State Championship, there is no doubt what the Cardinals will lose when Balasa hangs up his helmet for the last time.
Balasa isn't thinking that far ahead, though. He's focused on returning to action.
And dishing out some bruises.


A Day in the Life of a Smarter City — Causeit, Inc.
In order to really understand this digitized experience of mobility, let's take a day in the life of Jenna, a professional living in a smart city of the future, who has a commute and many social obligations alongside her work.
Truly digital automobility results in a new relationship to journeys. Fewer conscious decisions and guesses need to be made by the end user, and the impacts of fluctuations in transit time are automatically mitigated. Each mode of transit coordinates with the others for a responsive, predictive mesh of resources and people.
Causeit has created this speculative fiction piece as part of our proto-book, Digital Platforms for Automobility. If you landed here, great! Please check out the book and tell us what you think!
In a digital, multi-modal system, a full day's mobility is easy. A map system requests information from a user's calendar. The calendar data is used to predicts meeting & transit times. Actual meeting times update those estimates, live—and biosensors inform suggested travel time for biking and walking. Travel time, distance and resource usage converts to transit tickets with itinerary, cost, passenger, baggage and other metadata embedded. And vehicles and infrastructure sensors coordinate for handoff, decision-making, customization and efficiency. Let's start at the beginning of a day of digital automobility to actually experience this.
Jenna's alarm clock goes off. Lights come on in her apartment, the climate control systems adjust for her comfort, and coffee starts brewing. "Estimated transit time is a little higher than normal this morning. Would you like to get ready quicker, take fast-lane transit, or delay the beginning of your staff meeting?," prompts the digital assistant over the sound system to Jenna in the kitchen.
Jenna's assistant recommends she starts with a trip on a mesh cycle, co-owned as part of a citywide cooperative that is automatically, digitally managed. The cycle has electric assist, so Jenna can pedal as much or as little as she desires, and the cycle selected for her by the system is sufficiently charged to get her to her next shift. She rides it about 3/4 of a mile, per the on-bike display.
She drops her after-work bag on the baggage receptacle next to the bus entrance, and it will automatically be routed independently of her trips throughout the day until it is needed.
Her next shift is stepping off the cycle next to a bus owned by her company which will take her to the company campus. When she's on the bus, her laptop and mobile devices automatically suggest which documents she might want to work on based on the quality and security of connectivity along the route and in the bus at any given time.
Later in the day, she needs to go to another meeting that is in a congested area, so the mapping system suggest she use a public train. Her headset tells her which train to go on and which stop to get off at.
Her seat is reserved for her. It is pre-heated to her desired temperature, as it's a colder day than normal.
When she gets off at the appointed stop, she walks off the train platform to the scooter stand. Her pre-selected scooter is flashing with her signature color and pattern, and her playlist shifts from her headset to the handlebars. Her mobile devices charge automatically in the cargo compartment and the controls are re-routed to the handlebars—her briefcase automatically charges in proximity to the charging plate.
Partway through her trip, guided on the helmet display with turn-by-turn directions, an alert comes up to let her know that rain is coming. She is rerouted to the closet scooter stand, and a traditional taxi is summoned to pick her up, arriving just as she has parked and taken her bag out of the cargo compartment. The scooter locks and begins charging automatically.
The analog driver has received manual instructions for the climate control and automatic navigation direction has already begun. Her in-car phone connection routes Jenna's playlist to the audio system in the back seats—skipping songs which might be inappropriate for a shared space or annoying the driver. Partway through the trip, a request comes in to pick up another passenger, and both the driver and Jenna quickly tap 'yes' to accept the ride; both get 'karma' points. Jenna's fare is reduced, and the driver's payment is a bit higher. Because the other passenger works for Jenna's company's competitor and does not have a compatible confidentiality certificate, sensitive incoming work phone calls are automatically declined, but suggested topics for discussion pop up on each person's display before they're both in the car together. No one in the vehicle has to manage this.
When she gets out, she and the driver are automatically reminded of her bag in the storage area and a followup meeting option is sent to each passenger to accept or decline.
After her shareholder lunch meeting, Jenna leaves her office. Because her lunch was rather large, she opts to walk, and her estimated time of arrival is automatically predicted based on her pace and heart rate. The climate controls in her next office automatically adjust down so that she doesn't feel overheated when she arrives, and automatically recalibrate after a few moments.
After her doctor's appointment, she heads to the grocery store, which the vehicle already mapped. She swipes to begin and settle back in her seat. The vehicle stops automatically to pick up Jenna's colleague, who is going to a nearby destination, and they meet in the car; meeting notes are automatically transcribed, uploaded to Jenna's cloud, and scrubbed from the car's internal memory.
When it's time for an afternoon doctor's appointment, Jenna walks outside to the parking lot and steps up to one of her favorite cars. The vehicle unlocks as she approaches, and the seats, audio, temperature and window tint have all automatically shifted for her. The vehicle takes off for its destination on an autonomous route, reaching speeds of up to 300 km/h and drafting nearby autonomous vehicles less than a meter in front of it for efficiency. When the vehicle exits the autoroute, Jenna taps manual mode after putting on the augmented reality goggles on the dashboard, and takes a curvy back road for fun. The walls and frame of the car disappear whenever she looks at them, with camera-driven outside views automatically superimposed, so she has no 'blind spots,' and even though there aren't many sensors on this old back-country road, the car's advanced microphones sense oncoming vehicles on blind corners and alerts her and preps the brakes. Even when they aren't connected cars, like an old tractor she encounters along the way, the margin of safety is vastly increased through her vehicle's smart systems.
When Jenna walks back out to the car after grocery shopping, an alert pops up letting her know her friend Jessica is nearby. She swipes to reroute, because she has a free spot in her calendar, and they have coffee together.
While at coffee, her mobile alerts her about a package her brother needs picked up. She accepts on the display, and the merchant pre-loads the package in the carpark, next to the groceries being cooled by the AC system, and Jenna heads home. Her brother knows she is in the neighborhood and comes over to pick up the package and join for dinner (she shared her grocery list with him and got excited to help bake grandmother's favorite bread with her).
At the end of the day, dinner is on the table, Jenna is relaxed, and a lot got accomplished. Jenna's mind was free to do her most important work, socialize and relax, rather than spend time, energy and anxious attention on getting from place to place.
Throughout the day, the payment platforms for all of the transit methods corresponded with each other and dynamically traded resources. When Jenna chose to take her manual-driving detour, she used more energy than the default autonomous system and was automatically charged fractionally more for the energy, tire and brake wear. But because she'd shared a ride earlier in the day, the impact was offset, and her eco score and resource charges ended up balancing out.
The system also predicted that her schedule was relatively light on Friday and that many people were staying in town over the weekend, so it offered her a great 'getaway' deal and automatically charged the trip, rescheduled her Friday appointments based on their projected impact on the software team she would be meeting with and told her friends in the town she'd be visiting that she'd be coming. One volunteered to host her, and Jenna's system automatically updated her friend's grocery list with her food allergies so they could have a great dinner party over the weekend.


They are not new, but like the ad says, if they are in a keezer or kegorator, who cares what they look like, they arrived in a short amount of time, and were pressurized when I got them. They were not junk (I was skeptical, when seeing loose handle or bottom, not sure what would show up at my doorstep) but the ones I got where just what was advertised and what I needed and it's hard to beat the price...Great service from Jason at homebrewing.org (2 thumbs up), and hard to beat pricing... You guy's rock!!!
These are a great buy, they are in pretty good shape, with lots of life left in them. If a handle or the rubber is loose, use 3m 2100, boat calk/glue you can get at any marine store, and it will make a permanent fix of it.
Arrived super fast; in much better condition than what was described. Going to purchase another once I get my keezer up and running.
Purchased 3 kegs this time and they were far better than expected. All held pressure and looked just like the pin locks that I had previously purchased. One had a cross threaded liquid post and upon calling customer service they apologized and send me a replacement free of charge immediately. Great guys to do business with. Great customer support. Will purchase again. Thanks.
Arrived in great shape and under pressure. Needs new o-rings and a thorough cleaning. Very happy with this purchase.
I received the kegs that I had ordered and am very pleased with them. They are used but not abused and with very little clean up they were ready for use. Needed 1 cover O-ring but other than that I am very satisfied and will order more.
I bought 2 of the 5 gal to start, I got these and they were in such great shape I just had to get 2 more. When my brew buddies saw them, they too have bought some. Best deal you'll ever find! Thanks AIH!
I bought two pin lock loose handle kegs. My first foray into kegging. On 1, the top (rubber) comes completely off. Other doesn't seem to have loose handles. Both arrived under pressure, just needed cleaning and new o-rings all around. Truth in advertising is a proposition with which I'm no longer familiar. But to undersell the item is a very pleasant surprise. I've never shopped at AIH before, but will continue to do so in the future.
The kegs I got were in a lot better condition then I thought they would be. The handles were on tight, they just needed to be cleaned and the o-rings replaced. Thanks AIH!
For the money, I don't think you can do better. My keg came dirty and with a very slight dent. Rubber foot and cap are in good shape. A few minutes with some cleanser and a scour pad, its looking great. If you see these available, don't hesitate, they go fast, you won't be disappointed.
All the kegs I received were as or better than described. 3 had loose handles but are in great shape and should be fine after some adhesive.
Great price - bought two kegs that are in excellent condition - well done AIH!
I ordered two of the 'loose handle' kegs but neither of them actually had loose handles. In fact, I was quite pleased with them. They did have syrup in them and needed to be cleaned really well but I would have cleaned brand new kegs too. I did have an issue with one of the keg posts but I contacted customer service and they have addressed the problem. This is the only reason why I didn't give the kegs a 5-star rating. On a side note, they must have taken a picture of one of the gnarliest kegs they had for their website because mine were in much better shape. I will definitely order more of these in the future.
The keg I received certainly wouldn't be displayed, but it holds pressure and no leaks. Can't beat the price!
This was my first time purchasing kegs, I purchased 3, 5 gallon and 3, 3 gallon loose handle kegs and I would absolutely purchase these again. They say loose handle but all six 'loose handle' kegs I ordered did not have any loose handles and all sealed fine. But, these kegs are dirty. On the inside and the outside. On the inside they have old soda syrup. Give them a couple good soaks and you should be good. I'll give 5 stars because of value. Just expect to do some cleaning.
Q: I'm in need of a short, 22in tall keg, can I order that specific size?
Q: If purchased with a ball lock conversion kit do you match up with the correct thread?
Q: Does this come with a pressure relief valve?
A: No it does not. None of our Pin Locks come with pressure relieve valves. You can order a different lid with a safety relieve valve (C314-3048) if you're referring to the manual release valve.
Q: Any idea when this will be back in stock?
A: We will make these available as we come across them. Our keg guys find them periodically, and we make them available when possible.
Q: what is the correct O-ring kit for these kegs?
A: You will need a pin lock oring kit if you would like to replace all the orings on this keg.
Q: Do these kegs come holding pressure?
A: These kegs are pressure tested and should arrive holding pressure.
Q: Does the lid on the pin lock loose handle kegs have a pressure release valve?
A: They do not. Pin lock kegs typically do not come with manual PRVs.
Q: do you give a set of o-rings replacement with this product or do i have to purchas ir seperatly?
A: All loose bottom kegs do not come with o rings and must be purchased separately.
Q: Does this keg come with an extra set of O-rings?
A: Our loose handled kegs do not come with an extra set of o-rings. These are placed at a very low price point.
Q: Will you be restocking these anytime soon?
A: As we pressure test our kegs if we find any in the pile that have loose handles we will add them to the website. Currently we have not been seeing a lot of kegs with the loose handle.
Q: Do they come with poppets and posts?
A: This does come with used poppets and posts.
Q: What thread are the posts on these kegs?
A: The threads will either be 19/32-18 or 9/16-18. Just depends on the brand/maker of keg.


text:
How to Rescue the U.S. Postal Service
Robert Klein, Davy Crockett, and the Quest for Another $5.5 Billion for Stem Cells
Will FDA Approve Biogen's Promising New Treatment for Alzheimer's?
(Tab)ulation, The
Acton Institute PowerBlog
African-American Conservatives
Alt-M: Ideas for an Alternative Monetary Future
Cato Blog
Cobden Centre, The
Competitive Enterprise Institute: OpenMarket
Economics and History
El Instituto Independiente Blog
Errors of Enchantment
Federalist, The
Free Advice from Bob Murphy
Heartland Freedom Pub
Imaginative Conservative, The
InsiderOnline Blog
Managerial Econ
Market Urbanism
Mess That Greenspan Made, The
Mises Institute: Power & Market
Money Illusion, The
Neutral Source
Next Free Voice
Patriot's Lament
Perpetual Three-Dot Column, The
Straus Military Reform Project
The Stag Blog
University Bookman
FUTURE: Economic Peril or Prosperity?
Christopher J. Coyne, Michael C. Munger, Robert M. Whaples
FAILURE: The Federal Misedukation of America's Children
Vicki E. Alger
NATURE UNBOUND: Bureaucracy vs. the Environment
Kenneth J. Sim, Randy Simmon, Ryan M. Yonk
THE MIDAS PARADOX: Financial Markets, Government Policy Shocks, and the Great Depression
THE ECONOMICS OF IMMIGRATION: Market-Based Approaches, Social Science, and Public Policy
Benjamin W. Powell
TAKING A STAND: Reflections on Life, Liberty, and the Economy
Robert Higgs
CHOICE: Cooperation, Enterprise, and Human Action
Robert P. Murphy
CALIFORNIA DREAMING: Lessons on How to Resolve America's Public Pension Crisis
Lawrence J. McQuillan
A BETTER CHOICE: Healthcare Solutions for America
RECARVING RUSHMORE: Ranking the Presidents on Peace, Prosperity, and Liberty
Craig Eyermann • Tuesday December 31, 2019 •
California's costly high-speed bullet train boondoggle has officially entered a zombie-like state of existence, neither truly alive nor fully dead.
Shortly after announcing the massively expensive transportation infrastructure project would never connect the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco as originally promised, Governor Gavin Newsom quickly backtracked in an effort to keep $3.5 billion of federal transportation dollars flowing into the state, promising to connect the state's impoverished rural Central Valley to the prosperous edge of Silicon Valley with high-speed rail.
James A. Montanye • Monday December 30, 2019 •
Anger and hatred are recurring themes in commentaries exploring the fragmentation of American society. The growing prevalence of political faction is a principal, yet often unacknowledged cause of this fragmentation. Efforts by America's founders to control factions in perpetuity, via both direct and spontaneous means, appear to be failing.
The founders understood the potentially disruptive power of faction within a democratic republic. They took seriously the philosopher Thomas Hobbes' pejorative characterization of faction as representing "a city within a city ... an enemy within the walls." Accordingly, they sought to constrain the political phenomenon that Adam Smith described as "the clamorous opportunity of partial interests" to transform State power into the weapon of choice for waging neo-Hobbesian warfare.
Do Public Pension Shortfalls Mean You'll Face a Tax Hike?
Craig Eyermann • Monday December 30, 2019 •
Public-employee pension plans across the United States are trillions of dollars short of what they need to pay out the generous retirement benefits politicians have promised state and local government employees.
According to Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, public pension funds are collectively $1.6 trillion short of the money they will need to pay government employees throughout their retirement years.
One Central Banker Is Out, but His Legacy Could Push Europe to the Financial Brink
Alvaro Vargas Llosa • Monday December 23, 2019 •
Mario Draghi is not a household name outside of a few European countries, and yet what he did or didn't do had the potential to wreak havoc worldwide.
The MIT-educated Italian economist, who headed the European Central Bank (ECB) for eight years until October 31, left his post after announcing measures that could damage countless lives for years to come.
All I Want for Xmas Is Fewer Regulations and Less Paperwork
2019 was another big year for reducing the burden of federal regulations on Americans, continuing a trend that President Trump initiated with Executive Order 13771 on January 30, 2017. That executive order set the goal that for every new regulation the administration generated, an average of two regulations would be eliminated.
That's something that started off easy, because the administration inherited an abundance of regulations of questionable merit, but has become harder with the passage of time, because the regulatory low-hanging fruit has already been picked, so to speak.
Media Distorts, Misses the Mark on Richard Jewell
Samuel R. Staley • Monday December 23, 2019 •
Warning! This article contains plot spoilers for the movie Richard Jewell in its analysis of the public controversy surrounding the film. For a review without spoilers, click here.
The mainstream media has staged a public relations coup against the movie Richard Jewell.
Ecuador's Poisoned Legacy
An indispensable measure—elimination of fuel subsidies that benefited the rich at the expense of the poor—has served as a pretext for violent riots in Ecuador and a coup attempt by radical left-wing groups acting under the umbrella of indigenous organizations that have little trouble finding solidarity in the media, civic groups, and governments of western liberal democracies.
Chick-fil-A's Awkward Adolescence
Mary L. G. Theroux • Saturday December 21, 2019 •
Chick-fil-A's recent decision to cut off its Foundation's support of the Salvation Army, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and other Christian organizations is evocative of nothing so much as the Middle Schooler, desperate to get in with the "In" crowd, disavowing her previous association with "uncool" friends. Will Chick-fil-A suffer the same rebuff that generally greets teenage would-be social climbers?
Chick-fil-A has over the years earned a reputation for principled support of faith and its workforce, resolutely closing on Sundays to allow its employees to attend church and spend time with their families. Its "corporate purpose" is "To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us and to have a positive influence on all who come into contact with Chick-fil-A." And its founder, S. Truett Cathy, and his son Dan publicly expressed their belief in marriage as between a man and a woman.
A Jewell from Clint Eastwood
K. Lloyd Billingsley • Wednesday December 18, 2019 •
Southern males of pale complexion are doubtless the most vilified group in American popular culture. That particularly applies when the southerner is a rather dim, overweight gun nut who aspires to be a police officer. Georgian Richard Jewell, 33, was all that and more, but he was not the person who planted the bomb at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. As director Clint Eastwood shows in Richard Jewell, the film's namesake was the one who spotted the deadly backpack, called in the bomb squad, and helped move people out of danger. The FBI thought Jewell was their man, based on some "profile" they have cooked up about southern males of pale pigmentation.
How Excessive Federal Spending Sparked a Liquidity Crisis
Since mid-September 2019, the U.S. Federal Reserve has been fighting to contain a liquidity crisis in the nation's money markets that was caused in large part by excessive spending by the U.S. government.
That surge in spending was prompted by "the worst budget deal in history" in late-July 2019, which forced the U.S. Treasury Department to begin borrowing massive amounts of money to provide the additional funds that a bipartisan majority of U.S. politicians authorized to spend. Consequently, the public portion of the national debt has been increasing to keep pace, reaching crisis levels in mid-September 2019.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Baliosus nervosus es un coleóptero de la familia Chrysomelidae.

Fue descrita científicamente por primera vez en 1794 por Panzer.

Referencias

Baliosus

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
L'église Saint-Martin est une église située à Taxat-Senat, en France.

Description

Localisation
L'église est située sur la commune de Taxat-Senat, dans le département français de l'Allier.

Historique

L'édifice est inscrit au titre des monuments historiques en 1931.

Annexes

Articles connexes
 Liste des monuments historiques de l'Allier

Liens externes

Références

Senat Saint-Martin
Monument historique inscrit en 1931
Senat


text:
HomeArts & EntertainmentStudents put on riveting 'Evening of One Act Shorts'
Students put on riveting 'Evening of One Act Shorts'
April 24, 2018 Thomas Infante Arts & Entertainment 0
By Thomas Infante
The spotlights above the Don Evans Black Box Theatre stage illuminated four student writers and directors on Friday, April 20. As they described the themes of their plays, spectators anticipated a compelling show for All College Theatre's Evening of One Act Shorts.
Cassie foils Alex, her roommate and eventual love interest. (Meagan McDowell / Photo Editor)
Each short play was entirely student written, directed and acted. The audience saw a mixture of seriousness and comedy, with many convincing and passionate performances.
The first short of the night, titled "This is a Play (And Someone Dies at the End)," was directed by junior technology education major Evan Noone. The story centered on five stereotypical characters.
The play began with otherworldly music. Suddenly, it stopped as a spotlight cut through the darkness and shone upon sophomore history and secondary education dual major Casey O'Neill.
"Oh! This is a play!" O'Neill exclaimed after looking around confusedly in the dark for a while. He soon donned himself the story's Protagonist.
He was joined by his friend Comic Relief, played by senior chemistry major Eric Schreiber. His character was essentially a walking cliché, whose antics included silliness like sweeping while singing "You've Got a Friend in Me."
In the most stereotypical way possible, Protagonist met Love Interest, played by sophomore music education major Angie Francese.
"Hi, I'm nerdy, but with a certain eclectic charm you can't resist," Love Interest said.
She is betrothed to Antagonist, played by sophomore marketing major Gail Cevallos.
When Love Interest confronts Antagonist about her role, Antagonist reveals that she never wanted to be a villain, but was robbed of the chance to be the hero of the play.
Meanwhile, Comic Relief stumbles upon the script. Once he realizes that the dialogue within corresponds to what is going on in the play, the title spurs him to show the script to his friends, worried that one of them will soon die. He brings it to the confrontation between Protagonist and Antagonist, hoping that it will resolve the conflict peacefully.
Protagonist takes the script, insisting that they must fight because fate demands it, while Antagonist pleads with him to let it go. She attempts to take it from him by force, and after a brief struggle, Protagonist is killed.
With the script, Comic Relief recites the final lines of the other characters with them, and concludes the play by reading the stage directions to exit.
The second play, "Dating Cigarettes," was directed by senior interactive multimedia major Haley Witko.
The story began with the main character Alex, played by senior communication studies major Kirsten Gassler, sitting on a bench smoking a cigarette. Alex is a college upperclassman that struggles with feeling isolated and unfulfilled from her life at college.
Alex's best friend Emma, played by sophomore English and secondary education dual major Joely Torres, calls Alex. The two live far apart, and Emma obviously cares about her and is concerned about her friend's smoking habit and feelings of depression.
After hanging up, Alex runs into her friend Matt, played by sophomore management major Anthony Sofia.
Matt starts a conversation and eventually tells her that he is transferring. Alex is resentful, and Matt gets argumentative, saying that she should understand how it feels to be lonely at college.
As the conversation progresses, things get stranger until it is revealed that Matt is a figment of Alex's imagination. Alex admits that she smokes to remind herself of him.
She throws her cigarette on the ground, proclaiming "no more," and walks off stage. Matt stomps on the cigarette which cuts the lights, ending the play.
Witko, who made her collegiate directorial debut with "Dating Cigarettes," said that is was a challenge to convey abstract ideas and concepts through her script.
"It can be a huge challenge when it comes to letting people go," Witko said. "It was tough to get the right pattern in the dialogue, and to establish that pattern for the audience. It had to be done in a way that felt very natural."
The third play, "Room 216," was directed by senior interdisciplinary business major Natalia Byrdak, who said that the short focuses on "what is unsaid rather than what is said."
The story revolves around two college freshman roommates. Cassie, played by freshman English major Cali Blanchard, is a shy biology major, whereas Alex, played by freshman art education major Megan Scarborough, is an outgoing journalism major.
Cassie and Alex bond quickly despite their differences. Cassie is studious and focused, foiling Alex, who said she is "not really a writer," despite studying journalism.
At first, Alex went out of her way to include Cassie, but as time progressed, Alex started disappearing for days at a time to go get high with her new boyfriend.
One night, Alex comes home late, nearly blacked out. The two share a heart-to-heart, and Alex reveals inner feelings of bitterness and cynicism that seem to be eating away at her. They talk about the stars, which Alex hates along with everything else, but Cassie does her best to convince her of their inherent beauty and majesty.
The next day, Alex buys Cassie cling-on glow-in-the-dark stars, telling her that now she can always look at the stars. She then leaves to take a call from her mom, and is not seen again.
The final scene features Cassie by herself in her dorm room, accompanied only by a note left on Alex's bed. She explains that Alex has committed suicide, depriving Cassie of the chance to tell her that she had fallen in love with her. She laments on her lost opportunity, with an impassioned monologue that she ends by wishing she had gotten to tell Alex that all stars are beautiful, even though "some burn brighter than others."
The final short, "Lox," was directed by senior graphic design major Rob Birnbohm.
The story centers on Dan, played by sophomore communication studies major Jason Monto. Dan is a recent college graduate who earns good money at a job that he hates. He lives alone, accompanied by the imaginary friend he swears exists named Lox, played by freshman interactive multimedia Dylan Jonas. Lox is an orange ghost with a blue puff atop his head that resembled a Truffula Tree from Dr. Seuss' "The Lorax."
Dan's only real friend is his ex-girlfriend Cheryl, played by sophomore elementary education and psychology double major Kate Augustin, who comes over every Thursday for take out and conversation. Cheryl is dismayed by the childlike regressions Dan has made since their graduation.
She tries to push Dan toward pursuing his college dreams of writing and acting, but Dan dismisses these as pipe dreams. After Cheryl storms out in frustration, Lox helps Dan realize that his personal relationships are more important than his current lifestyle. Lox bids Dan a final farewell, leaving Dan truly alone to call Cheryl.
After "Lox" concluded, the audience responded with thunderous applause as the entire cast came back out and took a bow. More than anything, the directors of the plays credited their acting and production staff with the amazing outcome.
"I couldn't be happier with how it turned out," said Noone, whose first time it was directing a production. "I'm so proud of everyone, it was a daunting task, but I'm very grateful to have the support of the entire cast."
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text:
Q: Как включить поддержку php на VPS Здравствуйте. Заказал сервер VPS для сайта. Пытаюсь настроить его для сайта.
В файл httpd.conf добавляю запись о домене:
NameVirtualHost ип_сервера:80
<VirtualHost ип_сервера:80>
ServerAdmin adnin@domain.ru
DocumentRoot /var/www/ru638561/data/www/domain.ru
ServerName domain.ru
DirectoryIndex index.html index.php index.htm
ErrorLog /var/www/ru638561/data/www/domain.ru/error.log
CustomLog /var/www/ru638561/data/www/domain.ru/access_log common
AddDefaultCharset UTF-8
</VirtualHost>

В итоге получается когда я перехожу на свой сайт(domain.com например), я вижу php код странички, так как php не обрабатывает.
Я добавляю строку AddHandler php-cgi .php .php3 .php4 .php5 .phtml в блок VirtualHost, получается так:
NameVirtualHost ип_сервера:80
<VirtualHost ип_сервера:80>
ServerAdmin adnin@domain.ru
DocumentRoot /var/www/ru638561/data/www/domain.ru
ServerName domain.ru
DirectoryIndex index.html index.php index.htm
ErrorLog /var/www/ru638561/data/www/domain.ru/error.log
CustomLog /var/www/ru638561/data/www/domain.ru/access_log common
AddDefaultCharset UTF-8
AddHandler php-cgi .php .php3 .php4 .php5 .phtml
</VirtualHost>

И теперь если я перехожу на свой сайт - Not Found The requested URL /php-bin/php/index.php was not found on this server.
В чем проблема?
Буду благодарен за помощь!

A: Если под VPS понимается, что у вас честно выданная виртуалка с установленной операционкой и рутовым доступом (а не какой-нибудь самодельный/самопальный конструктор) -- то вообще-то во всех более-менее современных дистрибутивах всё это уже вшито в дистрибутивы.
Например, в центосе при установке httpd и php (yum install httpd php) добавлятся файл /etc/http/httpd.conf/php.conf c такими строками:
#
# PHP is an HTML-embedded scripting language which attempts to make it
# easy for developers to write dynamically generated webpages.
#
<IfModule prefork.c>
  LoadModule php5_module modules/libphp5.so
</IfModule>
<IfModule worker.c>
  LoadModule php5_module modules/libphp5-zts.so
</IfModule>

#
# Cause the PHP interpreter to handle files with a .php extension.
#
AddHandler php5-script .php
AddType text/html .php

#
# Add index.php to the list of files that will be served as directory
# indexes.
#
DirectoryIndex index.php

#
# Uncomment the following line to allow PHP to pretty-print .phps
# files as PHP source code:
#
#AddType application/x-httpd-php-source .phps

Вот и посмотрим, что у вас. Ваш хандлер AddHandler php-cgi -- при чём ругается на его отсутствие. В связи с этим у меня вопросы: а откуда вы копировали эти строки, хотите ли вы установить php в режиме cgi или вам всё же нужно установить его как модуль? Ну и до кучи: операционка-то хоть какая?


text:
Parkwijk is een Vinex-locatie binnen de wijk Leidsche Rijn in Utrecht, de hoofdstad van de Nederlandse provincie Utrecht. Parkwijk heeft zijn naam te danken aan het grote aantal parken in, en in de directe omgeving van de buurt (Park de Hoge Weide, Amaliapark, Park Grauwaert).

De buurt bestaat uit twee delen: Parkwijk Noord en Zuid. In het zuidelijk deel vestigden de eerste bewoners zich in mei 2000; hiermee was het een van de eerste gedeelten van Leidsche Rijn. Het noordelijk deel zag in september 2001 haar eerste bewoners. In dit deel van de buurt staan voornamelijk eengezins-koopwoningen, terwijl in het zuidelijk deel meer hoogbouw en sociale woningbouw staat. Het noordelijke en zuidelijke deel van de buurt worden gescheiden door het Amaliapark.

Eind 2009 is "De Toren", een woontoren van 16 verdiepingen op het terrein langs de busbaan ter hoogte van de Eerste Westerparklaan opgeleverd. Hiermee was de bouw van Parkwijk afgerond.

Openbaar vervoer
Dwars door de buurt loopt langs het Amaliapark een busbaan, welke onderdeel is van het Utrechts HOV-netwerk. Hierover rijden de volgende buslijnen:
Bus 28 (U-link groen) rijdt elke 5 tot 10 minuten van station Vleuten, via station Utrecht Centraal (Centrumzijde) naar P+R Science Park en v.v.

 Via de zuidelijke en westelijke rand van de buurt van rijdt bus 4 iedere 15 tot 18 minuten van Station Terwijde via station Utrecht Centraal (Jaarbeurszijde) naar de David Ben Goerionstraat en v.v.

Winkels en andere voorzieningen
Totdat in 2004 winkelcentrum Parkwijk werd geopend, waren bewoners aangewezen op een tijdelijke supermarkt in een houten barak aan de Langerakbaan. Momenteel bedient het winkelcentrum niet alleen Parkwijk, maar ook de aangrenzende buurten Langerak en Het Zand.

Het winkelcentrum bevat o.a. twee supermarkten, een drogisterij, een slijterij, een bakkerij, een pizzeria/ijssalon, een kapperszaak, een optiekwinkel, een bloemenwinkel, een snackbar en een rijwielhandel. Direct naast het winkelcentrum, in het woon- en werkproject 't Groene Sticht, bevinden zich een restaurant dat grotendeels bestierd wordt door mensen met een verstandelijke beperking, en een woon- en werkgemeenschap van Emmaus (kringloopwinkel). Verder heeft de buurt een gezondheidscentrum en een middelbare school.

Kunst in de openbare ruimte
De buurt heeft geen kunstwerken in de openbare buitenruimte. In de aula van het Leidsche Rijn College bevindt zich het kunstwerk Bron en Gletsjer van Marijke van Warmerdam. Aan het fietspad Beeldhouwersdijk ter hoogte van de Maartvlinder staat sinds 2010 het kunstwerk A mon seul Désir, maar deze locatie is officieel onderdeel van Park Leeuwesteyn in de buurt Leeuwesteyn.

Galerij

Leidsche Rijn
Subwijk of buurt in Utrecht (stad)


text:
Gatekeeping is a term in British housing law which describes when a Council refuses to accept a homelessness application and/or provide accommodation when they have a legal duty to do so. Pressure for Councils to engage in "gatekeeping" can be the result of the high cost of providing temporary accommodation or there simply not being enough housing within a borough to accommodate homeless applicants. Gatekeeping practices of some local authorities have been challenged by judicial review.

Examples
In 2015 Inside Housing reported that  Southwark Council admitted to 'poor practices' including forcing applicants to prove that they are homeless through no fault of their own and requiring that a person be unemployed in order for the Council to provide interim accommodation.

Litigation
In R (on the application of IA) v City of Westminster Council [2013] Westminster City Council were criticised for gatekeeping by  HHJ Anthony Thornton QC.
"Where, as in this case, it appears that the applicant is depressed, alone, unable readily to cope with day-to-day living tasks, unemployed and possibly unemployable, has no settled links with England or the English way of life and has minimal support mechanisms at his disposal, the inquiries would be expected to extend to a detailed inquiry into the applicant's way of life prior to his homelessness……it would have been impossible for any of these inquiries to be undertaken in this case during the initial screening interview."

Criticism
Caroline Davey of the charity Shelter has criticised 'gatekeeping'. The campaign group Shelter have stated that some authorities prevent homeless applicants from having their right to accommodation under the homelessness legislation due to 'gatekeeping'.

References

External links
'Gatekeeping' case could cause homelessness services overhaul

Housing in the United Kingdom


text:
Телекран, или телеекран (енгл. telescreen) је назив уређаја описаног у Орвеловом роману Хиљаду деветсто осамдесет четвртој, који представља комбинацију телевизора и видео-камере. Његова сврха је двострука: пружати телевизијски програм гледаоцима, а истовремено надгледати њихове активности и тиме превентивно уклањати сваку ненаклоност према владајућем режиму Океаније.

У роману је сви члановима шире и уже партије обавезно поседовање телекрана у њиховим становима, док се на јавним местима власт обраћа пролима помоћу великих јавних телекрана који служе за јавне ритуале као што су две минуте мржње. Черингтон (Charrington), антиквар који живи међу пролима, нема телекран у својој радњи и тврди да су они "прескупи" за најсиромашније делове становништва. Роман сугерише да се они користе и зато што тај део становништва не представља опасност по режим. Телекрани нису у стању да снимају у мраку, али зато бележе најмање звукове, укључујући откуцаје нечијег срца.

О'Брајен, један од ликова у роману, тврди да је члановима уже партије попут њега сама допуштено да искључи телекране, најчешће само на тридесет минута.

Спољашње везе
Фикција
Хиљаду деветсто осамдесет четврта


text:
How Ex-Chelsea Star Took Pay Cut For New Man Utd Contract Revealed
Manchester United midfielder Juan Manuel Mata reportedly took a significant pay cut to sign a new contract at the Theatre of Dreams.
According to the publication from The Sun, Spanish international Mata took a £45,000 pay cut to extend his contract at Manchester United beyond this summer.
Juan Manuel Mata had few days left on his previous Manchester United contract before he signed a contract extension last week.
The former Valencia and Chelsea player has signed a new two-year deal at Old Trafford with the option of a third year.
Mata signed for Manchester United in January 2014 while David Moyes was still the Red Devils boss.
Why Barcelona Ended Interest In De Ligt Revealed
Dutch Club Set £30m Asking Price For Arsenal Target
Chelsea To Finalise Managerial Appointment Next Week
The former Premier League champions paid £37.1m to sign the 31-year-old from Chelsea at the start of 2014.
He was linked with a lot of clubs before the Spaniard finally settled for a new deal at Manchester United.
Mata was previously on a salary worth £180,000 on a weekly basis but that has changed to £135,000 with the new contract announced earlier this month.
He was a transfer for clubs like Spanish La Liga champions Barcelona, Italian Serie A giants Juventus, Spanish club Valencia as well as Premier League giants Arsenal whose manager Unai Emery worked with Mata at Valencia before the player joined Chelsea eight years ago.
Related Topics:Juan Mata
Major twist at United as talks of contract extension with star player is almost concluded
Shocking!!! Man United midfielder might end up in Turkey
Why Juan Mata Was Ruled Out Of PSG, Arsenal Clashes
Man United Ready Swap Deal For Chelsea Top Target


text:
Q: Is hosting my websites and databases with different providers a bad idea? I'm trying to find a home for three ASP.NET 3.5 websites using three respective SQL Server 2008 databases. I've found one possible solution where I host the websites on a "semi-dedicated" environment with one specific provider. The problem is, the database piece of this service is lacking. So, I've found an additional solution where I host the databases with a different provider. This keeps me within budget and with two providers I respect a great deal. Unfortunately, neither provider gives me both site and database hosting as I'd prefer in one package.
My question is this:
1) Is there an definite downgrade of service if I separate the site hosting from the database hosting? As in, before I even test the possible latency, is this a bad idea? Has anyone done this successfully already?
2) Is there a good way to test the SQL Server response between those databases hosted on the same provider vs those hosted with a different provider? I'm not well-versed in testing site and database response over the Internet, so I'm vague on where to start.

A: Having 2 hosting providers that each host a critical part of your site will double the chances of downtime.  If either fails, your site is down.  That's the biggest concern.
Latency will be your second concern.  More and more data is moving to cloud models, so it's not out of the question to separate the roles into different providers, but it does introduce considerable latency.
To get a handle on performance you can eyeball it with SSMS locally and remotely.  If you have tiny data sets, it may handle it well, but once you start pulling lots of data or performing many queries per page, performance can drop quickly.
For stress testing tools, the MS solutions are WCAT or Visual Studio Team System.  You can also output to your page the timestamp before making a database connection, after, and as you pull back data from the database.  Try that with LAN and WAN data to compare.
Ultimately, I would recommend finding a host that can handle both parts well.  When they can support you end to end, they don't point fingers at each other when you try to narrow down performance issues.

A:
1) Is there an definite downgrade of
  service if I separate the site hosting
  from the database hosting? As in,
  before I even test the possible
  latency, is this a bad idea? Has
  anyone done this successfully already?

Absolutely.  I did this.  For a period of about 2 weeks then I quickly realised it wasn't going to work.

2) Is there a good way to test the SQL
  Server response between those
  databases hosted on the same provider
  vs those hosted with a different
  provider? I'm not well-versed in
  testing site and database response
  over the Internet, so I'm vague on
  where to start.

It's a bit difficult to do this unless you can replicate the set up without getting yourself into a contract.  Perhaps ask for a 30-day trial, or get a rolling monthly contract and cancel after the first month.  This is what I did with my most recent provider, and I'm happily still with them.
As for how to test it, SSMS has a neat feature called "Client Execution Statistics" - it's a button on the taskbar when you've got a query tab open.  Turn this on, then execute the query, and it gives you a great breakdown of how much traffic was passed, how long it spent waiting for the server to reply etc.
Do this on on remote site->db servers, and local site->db servers and compare the figures.