When you put together your budget for purchasing a home, make sure you factor in an evaluation of the annual costs associated with the property. Here's how.
Do the exercise of listing the recurring annual fees associated with a $235,000 house, purchased with a down payment of $20,000 (with the HBP) and a mortgage of $215,000 amortized over 25 years with a fixed interest rate of 5.3%.
Note that the data and the estimated costs provided here are for reference purposes only, and will vary based on the value of your home, the area you live in, the utilities you use and the type of financing you choose.
In the case of a revenue property, also consider the rental income and expenses, as well as the taxes you'll pay or receive.
Property tax is based on the market value of the building and on the tax rate of the municipality (these two values fluctuate). It includes municipal and school tax (payable in a single instalment or multiple instalments). Sometimes, municipal tax includes a sector tax (for the construction or renovation of local infrastructure) that only the residents of a particular sector will pay over a specific period of time.
Comfort comes with a cost, which can vary depending on the size and location of the house, and how energy efficient it is. For an existing home, ask to see the seller's electricity and heating bills to better estimate what these costs will be. You can also get this information from Hydo-Québec or Énergir.
The amount to budget depends on the number and type of services you want to subscribe to. If the property is in a more remote area, you may have to pay supplemental fees to access certain services.
Home insurance is a requirement if you have a mortgage. The amount depends, among other things, on the cost of rebuilding the house, the residential sector it's in (Is the area a target for robbery? Is it close to a fire hydrant or fire station?), as well as the number of recent claims you've made. Property insurance can therefore end up costing a lot more, or exactly the same as rental insurance.
Houses need regular upkeep. In case of an existing house, you can rely on the home inspection report to give you a good idea of the work you'll need to do in the short term. Depending on how well-maintained the house is, this cost can vary enormously.
These fees apply only to divided co-ownerships, undivided co-ownerships and townhouses and vary depending on the services they include and the maintenance costs of the building (ranging from a few dozen dollars to hundreds per month).
The Home Buyers' Plan (HBP) facilitates the purchase of a first home by allowing you to withdraw funds from your RRSP to be used as capital for a down payment. However, this capital must be reimbursed to your RRSP within a maximum of 15 years, starting on December 31 of the second year following the withdrawal. That said, it's still smarter to account for repaying the minimum amount from the get-go, if you want to be able to properly evaluate the true value of the annual costs you'll be contending with in the future.
Mortgage payments obviously need to be included in the budget. Aside from the capital you've borrowed, it's the interest rate (fixed or variable) that influences the amount you'll pay each month. If you have a CMHC mortgage insurance, the amount of the mortgage generally includes your premiums. If the interest rate on your mortgage is low, calculate your payments at a slightly higher rate to make sure you'll be able to handle an eventual rate increase.
Mortgage insurance is a good way to protect yourself against unexpected life events. This insurance can provide you with financial protection in the event of a prolonged work stoppage caused by cancer or disability, for example. Note that life insurance is pre-requisite for disability and critical illness coverage.
* This amount varies depending on the property evaluation.
** This amount varies depending on the condition of the house.
*** This amount varies depending on the neighbourhood and reconstruction value of the house.
**** This amount varies depending on the interest rate granted by the financial institution you chosen. The interest rate here is a 25 years fixed rate of 5.3%.
***** Fees are based on a male and female, 32 year old non-smoking couple. This amount varies according to the age, gender, smoking status and coverage chosen.


This Is Ecuador - Let us guide you on your next adventure!
Ecuador has fascinating routes for every taste and interest. Explore some of our favorites!
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The Master ensuite enjoys a steam bath with rain water fall shower to get you relaxed after a day on the slopes. The home theatre has an 82" screen with a lovely sound system.
All Appliances are from Miele .The outdoor hot tub seats 10 . There are all heated floors throughout the chalet.
Boot warmers in the garage gets you ready with comfortable boots for the mountain.
Newly renovated. Modern. Great location just a 3 min walk to the slopes of Whistler Mountain. Private Hot Tub with views.


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Kalipada Ghosh
Paschim Medinipur, W.B., INDIA
Poet, Critic, Essayist, Educationist and Globally acclaimed Humanist.
Is a bi-lingual poet in English and Bengali language and literature and a published author of the 8 (eight) Books of Poems in Bengali and English including one in the press for publication.
He has been practicing literature in Bengali and english language for the last three decades.
He is poet and writer of international repute.
He is a Retd. Headmaster of greqt repute in a H.S. School.
The main theme of his poetry is based on Nature and Man, Love, Anti-war, Empathy and World Peace and Humanism.
His Poetry is translated into many languages like Albanian, Bosenian, Swidish, Russian, Kirghese, Croatian, Italian languages.
He has been acclaimed as an International poet of repute.
He has been conferred up on Doctor of Literature (HONORIS CAUSA), by the Institute For the European Roma Studies of Europe and Researches Regarding Crimes Against Humanity and International Law, Serbia for promotion of world Literature.
He has been awarded the WORLD ICON OF LITERATURE for his outstanding contribution in the field of literature.
He has been awarded Ambassador and Humanist from World Literary Forum For Peace and Human Rights, Bhutan, and Great Humanist from World Parliament Of Peace, India.
He has been conferred upon many National and International Awards.
He is on the Administration in different Literary Forums.
He is indeed a great literary figure who has prospered world literature to a great extent.
He is a man of versatile talent and magnanimous personality should be emulated by the present young generation.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Mr. Kumar, however, said that in view of the opposition to the factory in Chainpur, further proposals submitted by the State Investment Promotion Board (SIPB) had been withheld by the government.
Residents of the village have been up in arms against the Rs. 31-crore asbestos factory proposed to be set up by the Kolkata-based Balmukund Cement and Roofing Ltd (BCRL) since July last year. Several sit-ins were staged by residents and members of the left parties, notably those from the Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI).
The agitators, including "ban asbestos" activists, have been sparring with the district administration and the BCRL management over alleged violations as per the Environmental Impact Assessment notification, 2006 and alleged misinformation on the perceived hazardous fallout of the proposed chrysotile asbestos plant in Chainpur.
Villagers have said that the 17.8 acres acquired by BCRL to set up its factory was "cultivable, fertile land," with three primary schools and health centres around it.
"In case there is an issue of land dispute, the matter will certainly be looked into. Meanwhile, there needs to be a debate on the matter," Mr. Kumar said, calling upon the agitators to take a balanced view.
The Chainpur agitation has been marred by two incidents of firing allegedly ordered by the district police and the company management to break protests.
The Chief Minister however said that the deputed police force had been called back and further police action had been curtailed.
"While the Centre has been phasing out the use of asbestos in a piecemeal manner, Bihar, which presently has a progressive government led by Nitish Kumar, should have set a precedent in this case by imposing a total ban," Gopal Krishna, Convener of the Ban Asbestos Network of India (BANI) told The Hindu.
"The issue at stake here is the health of a State, and not of industry. So, what is stopping it from setting a precedent instead of waiting for the Centre to set one," he said, citing Kerala's initiative in banning endosulfan.
Four more asbestos plants were proposed in other districts, including Bhojpur and Vaishali.
Earlier, environmentalists such as Dr. Barry Castleman too had petitioned Mr. Kumar and Union Minister of Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh, drawing their attention to the community resistance in Muzaffarpur to the proposed plant, while alerting them about the hazardous effects of chrysotile (white asbestos).


2/7 Regular Meeting - Heather & Kelly Abbot: "Small Business Rock Star" South Life Supply Co.
First Tuesday of the month from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm. It's a great time to get to know one another and it is a make up!
The adage "necessity is the soul invention," proved true for Thomasville, Georgia-natives Kelly and Heather Abbott. In the midst of the economic downturn in 2010 and on the heels of twin layoffs, Heather wished out loud that she could have a new pair of earrings to wear to their family Thanksgiving celebration. Knowing only too well the state of their shoestring budget, Kelly's eyes landed on a small jar of spent 40-caliber bullets a dear uncle left at their home. While crafty with his arsenal of tools, he'd never attempted anything similar. Love for his wife motivated his determination to create something original to make her feel beautiful. He stayed up all night, tweaking and fashioning a stylish pair of studs Heather was proud to wear the next day. The couple walked away from that dinner with 25 orders from friends and family and the rest, as they say, is history.
Kelly continued creatively repurposing discarded shells - which would otherwise end up in the trash - into stunning, classic jewelry and leather goods, while Heather applied her considerable business acumen to growing South Life Supply Co. into a national brand. Inking an exclusive licensing agreement with Remington in 2014 sealed the company's place among great Southern heritage brands, with each piece conceived in a lofty barn on their sprawling South Georgia farm.
Necessity may be the soul to invention, but love, hard work and a little luck have made South Life Supply Co. the leader in bullet and shotgun shell style.
We have opportunities for six Rotarians to read to Hand in Hand students on Friday, February 8 at 8:15a.
It's a very short book called "Pigsty" that shouldn't take but a few minutes of your time.
Please contact Trent Reynolds at trent@tcpls.org if you would like to read.
The date has been set for Saturday, February 9th to paint the USA Map at Garrison-Pilcher school.
We need 10-12 volunteers to assist in this project. All it takes is a willing heart. Supplies will be provided.
The map will be located on the courts to the right of the school's circular driveway.
Let Susan O'Neal know if you can join in on the fun for the day.
A wheel has been the symbol of Rotary since our earliest days. The first design was made by Chicago Rotarian Montague Bear, an engraver who drew a simple wagon wheel, with a few lines to show dust and motion. The wheel was said to illustrate "Civilization and Movement." Most of the early clubs had some form of wagon wheel on their publications and letterheads. Finally, in 1922, it was decided that all Rotary clubs should adopt a single design as the exclusive emblem of Rotarians. Thus, in 1923, the present gear wheel with 24 cogs and six spokes was adopted by the "Rotary International Association." A group of engineers advised that the gear wheel was mechanically unsound and would not work without a "keyway" in the centre of the gear to attach it to a power shaft. So, in 1923 the keyway was added and the design which we now know was formally adopted as the official Rotary International emblem.
Join the fun, fellowship with new members, food, and great discussion.


text:
Лукаре (; ) е село в община Липково.

География
Селото е разположено в северните поли на Скопска Църна гора, над Гошинце.

История
Селото се води като отделно селище от 2014 година.

Бележки

Села в община Липково

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Category: Native American
ERW Weekender: Wheeling
On February 28, 2020 February 18, 2020 By erwguestIn Battlefields & Historic Places, Battles, Emerging Revolutionary War, ERW Weekender, Memory, Militia (Patriot) Leadership, Native American, Revolutionary War, Western Frontier2 Comments
Emerging Revolutionary War welcomes guest historian Jon-Erik Gilot. A short bio is attached at the bottom of this post.
Though perhaps more widely known as the birthplace of West Virginia during the Civil War, Wheeling and its environs retains several significant sites associated with the Revolutionary War. The name itself is translated from the Delaware language meaning "place of the skull," legend having that the severed head of a white settler was placed on a pole by local Native Americans as a warning to others to stay away.
Betty Zane's Run for Gunpowder during Second Battle of Fort Henry–1782
(image courtesy of Library of Congress)
Wheeling was founded in 1769 by Colonel Ebenezer Zane and his brothers Jonathan and Silas. Five years later in 1774 Fort Henry (originally called Fort Fincastle) was built overlooking the Ohio River to protect the growing numbers of settlers from attack. The fort was twice attacked during the Revolutionary War, first in 1777 and again on September 11 – 13, 1782, when a force of British loyalists (Butler's Rangers) and Native Americans (under the command of outlaw Simon Girty) attacked the fort's 47 defenders. The fort was besieged over two days, culminating in Betty Zane's heroic run for gunpowder in a nearby cabin. The British and natives broke off the battle with the arrival of Virginia militia reinforcements. Fort Henry is acknowledged as one of the final battles of the Revolutionary War.
Continue reading "ERW Weekender: Wheeling" →
McColloch's Leap
On January 30, 2020 March 20, 2020 By Phill GreenwaltIn Common Soldier, Emerging Revolutionary War, Memory, Militia (Patriot) Leadership, Monuments, Native American, Uncategorized, Western Frontier7 Comments
"By no means comparable with the feats of a similar character" and "performed an act of daring" and "nay, desperate horsemanship" and "seldom been equaled by man or beast." All these describe the amazing escape of Major Samuel McColloch in September 1777 during the attack on Fort Henry around where present-day Wheeling, West Virginia.
I first encountered this amazing, daring, and crazy eluding of capture when I took my own, well not as risky, but still a leap, moving to Wheeling to attend university there. Parents were 3,000 miles away in England and I was attempting to juggle basketball, studies, getting re-acclimated to life in the United States, and unknowingly, a left knee that was about to explode. Being a history major, this was one of the first accounts learned in a freshman year seminar class about local history to inspire the incoming students to explore the area outside of campus.
Fort Henry, built in 1774, was originally named Fort Fincastle, one of the titles of Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia. When the colonies revolted, the fortification was renamed in honor of Patrick Henry.
courtesy of West Virginia History OnView
https://wvhistoryonview.org/catalog/041457
Continue reading "McColloch's Leap" →
War on the Pennsylvania Frontier: Part 4 of 5: Hanna's Town
On December 16, 2019 March 20, 2020 By Bert DunkerlyIn Battlefields & Historic Places, Battles, Civilian, Native American, Uncategorized1 Comment
Just north of Greensburg, PA, about twenty five miles from Pittsburgh, is the site of the Westmoreland County Courthouse at Hanna's Town. The settlement included a few log buildings and was a gathering point for militia throughout the Revolution.
Robert Hanna settled here in 1773 and the first county court for Westmoreland County met here that April. It is thought to be the first courthouse west of the Allegheny Mountains. The village that sprung up straddled the 1758 Forbes Road, built by British troops during the French and Indian War and now a major route for settlers to the region.
Continue reading "War on the Pennsylvania Frontier: Part 4 of 5: Hanna's Town" →


Child of God. Son of two doctors (psychologists). Grandson of USBC Silver level coach (Jerry Weems). Favorite subject is math. Aspiring surgeon (Heart). Aspiring professional bowler.
Last year, due to Jos' leadership, his team won 1st place in his league by over 60 points!
In 2017, Jos had the highest average in his league by nearly 40 pins.
Had high game and series scratch and handicap.
"What Michael Jordan was to basketball and Tiger Woods of golf your son will be of Bowling that's what I think of your son 😀.
I have been thinking of sending you that text for a few days , I think he is very valuable to the sport especially at his age (7) the sport of Bowling needs him right now!👍I will be looking forward to it I really think he is something I must've shown that photo of your son to 50 people I think he can be the savior to 🎳"
Jos is not only a bowler but he is a gifted student at McDade Classical school where he is an A and B student. McDade Classical, one of a few selective enrollment schools on the south side of Chicago, has been ranked Top Five elementary schools in the State of Illinois. He has been student of the month in Kindergarten, 1st Grade, and 2nd Grade. This year, he finished number 1 in his class and top 5 in the school's spelling bee.
Jos is a world traveler. He has been all over the United States and Puerto Rico and has stamps in his passport from London, England; Paris, France; Athens, Greece; Madrid, Spain; Amsterdam; Punta Cana, Dominican Republic; Costa Rica, Aruba, Mexico, Dubai, and Cuba.


Is eSports really worth all the hype?
This article is a part of InvestorPlace's Best ETFs for 2018 contest. Robert Waldo's pick for the contest is the ETFMG Video Game Tech ETF (NYSEARCA:GAMR).
The start of 2018 has been difficult for some investors, with multiple record-setting dips in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and other market struggles putting a dent in the overall momentum experienced throughout most of 2017. Yet, despite all of these difficulties, the ETFMG Video Game Tech ETF (NYSEARCA:GAMR) still stands tall as one of the best ETFs in our contest, currently placed in the No. 5 spot out of 10 other picks, with a 6% return year-to-date.
And, if you ask me, GAMR still has a strong chance of coming out on top over the competition.
With that said, let's put aside the contest lingo for a moment and explore the longer-term potential behind GAMR — a unique exchange-traded fund that focuses primarily on companies that produce video game software.
The video game industry is no longer in its infancy, but there are still several growth catalysts to look forward to, and as the industry reaps the benefits of this growth, so will the GAMR ETF. However, eSports is the first, and perhaps most promising, growth catalyst for the industry I want to discuss.
Broadly defined, eSports are events where gamers go head-to-head in competitive video games in front of vast online and live audiences. The various video games involved in eSports span many different genres like fighting, shooting and strategy. Sounds exciting, right? But the prospect of eSports is much more enticing when you consider some of the growth factors that back up its base-level description.
In the infancy of eSports, games were not necessarily designed to become sports; however, certain games gained this competitive association with the introduction of online, multiplayer capabilities, which inevitably led to massive community followings.
For example, Starcraft, a popular real-time strategy game released in 1998, was not designed specifically to be played as a "sport", but the skill required to master it and compete with other human players simply led to its widespread adoption as one of the premier eSports games, particularly in South Korea.
The online component of gaming meant millions of gamers could participate in endless competition with the click of a mouse and they didn't even have to leave the house. And similar to more familiar sports like football and basketball, anyone can learn how to play a video game, but only few can master it and become a true pro. Likewise, only a few games become popular enough to be considered titles worthy of official eSports competition.
So what's the point of this history lesson and how does it relate to GAMR's long-term prospects?
Since the creation of Starcraft and other early eSports games like Quake 3 Arena (a first-person shooting game), more gaming studios have designed games with the intent of them becoming adopted as official eSports. Newer games designed for eSports competition focus on being perfectly balanced to create an "even playing field" for competitors, while also being visually stimulating and innovative in a way that sets them apart from other games.
The continual development of these games alongside their acceptance as an eSport title is where much of the promise lies in several of GAMR's key holdings like Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) and Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA), as the video game studio behind the latest hit is sure to see a massive jump. And there's plenty of room for multiple hits as eSports encompasses many different styles and genres of video games.
In the past, eSports in gaming was less of a driver — more a result of the general rise in competition and popularity thanks to online multiplayer capabilities — but competitive games are now more distinct and the demand for creativity and variety enables continued growth for video game companies in this area alongside several others.
But, alongside the general proliferation of eSports viewership and participation, it's also important to consider the continued strength of games in general as well as the viewership of non-competitive games. After all, not all video games are designed for eSports competition.
Consider that in the month of January alone, Amazon.com, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Twitch video game viewing platform had an average viewership of roughly 1 million viewers — that's more than "[t]he total daily viewership of MSNBC and CNN" as InvestorPlace advisor Matt McCall points out in his analysis of GAMR.
And this interest in gaming doesn't just apply to the U.S: Asia and Europe have more than 912 and 605 million gamers, respectively, which largely exceeds the number of U.S.-based gamers (200 million). Furthermore, Chinese gamers spend more time playing games — 15% of their leisure time — than those in the U.S.
Beyond the eSports catalyst, the baseline strength of the industry synergizes with its newer growth prospects in a way that makes the GAMR ETF one of the more solid ETFs to buy this year. This is especially true when you consider that the fund also includes several hardware companies like Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) to act as a balance. These stocks have non-gaming-related strengths as well as a direct presence in the industry.
For example, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has its Xbox console system, but it also announced that it seeks to use its Azure cloud technology to essentially become the Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) of gaming by offering a monthly streaming service that lets you stream games rather than buy them. This would allow MSFT to tap into the over 2 billion gamers that are currently out there.
This is just one of many companies included in GAMR that have significant long-term prospects that are tied to eSports' rising popularity and other promising factors that are outside of that catalyst. For this reason, the fund is a stand-out among other tech ETFs and it remains one of the strongest funds for those who are interested in making significant gains over the next few years and beyond.
Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2018/03/etfmg-video-game-tech-etf-still-winner/.


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Under pressure, afraid to take bathroom breaks? Inside Amazon's fast-paced warehouse world
Thursday, 05 Jul 2018
2:30 AM MYT
By Nina Shapiro
Amazon's immense multi-level warehouse called a fulfillment center in Kent covers more than 850,000 square feet. Much of the facility is highly automated. (Alan Berner/Seattle Times/TNS)
Working at an Amazon warehouse in the UK, James Bloodworth came across a bottle of straw-coloured liquid on a shelf. It looked like pee.
How could he be sure? "I smelt it," said the 35-year-old British journalist and author, talking about his new book Hired: Six Months Undercover in Low-Wage Britain. It was definitely pee, he said.
As he tells it, urinating into a bottle is the kind of desperation Amazon forces its warehouse workers into as they try to avoid accusations of "idling" and failing to meet impossibly high productivity targets – ones they are continually measured against by Big Brother-ish type surveillance.
It didn't help that the nearest bathroom to where he worked was four flights of stairs below.
The warehouse floor is filled with the sound of machinery, although the robotic storage pods move almost silently. Overhead, conveyors move yellow totes with more goods.
Bloodworth's grim picture of Amazon's blue-collar workplaces – he compares the warehouse he worked in, alternately, to a prison and a totalitarian state – is bringing new attention to the company's treatment of its workers. Out in the UK since March, and just appearing in this country, Hired sparked a flurry of reviews in the British press and some American coverage as well.
Adding to concerns that have festered for years, Bloodworth's depiction arises as the company rapidly expands its warehouse operation, where workers store, pack and ship the items customers order online. Amazon last year said it employed 125,000 full-time workers in the US, 38% more than a year ago.
The company has not released worldwide employment figures, but said it has 175 "fulfilment centres", as it calls its massive warehouses where goods come in and out, and 35 smaller "sortation centres" that finish off the delivery process.
"We don't recognise these allegations as an accurate portrayal of activities in our buildings," the company said in a statement about Bloodworth's book.
The statement touted Amazon's above-minimum-wage warehouse pay (US$11/RM44 after two years in the UK and an average US$15/RM60 in the US) and benefits, including stock options for permanent employees.
"We are committed to treating every one of our associates (the term Amazon uses for its warehouse workers) with dignity and respect," Amazon added.
A worker scans items with a handheld device, then puts them in storage pods manoeuvred by robots.
There were, however, echoes of Bloodworth's book even on a warehouse tour in Kent with an Amazon PR manager looking on.
"We are allowed to go (to the bathroom)," said one worker, "but you can't stay for that long." Four or five minutes is OK – "six minutes tops".
Anyway, he said, if you spend too long, "the numbers start to bite you", meaning the rate of tasks per hour by which workers are measured, will drop unacceptably.
Sheheryar Kaoosji, co-executive director of the Warehouse Worker Resource Centre, a non-profit in Southern California that advocates for better working conditions, said all warehouse employers try to get workers to do their jobs as quickly as possible. But because of the way Amazon uses technology, he said, "it's definitely a whole other level".
Tracking every move
Bloodworth said he spent several weeks at Amazon in early 2016 working the requisite 10-hour shifts, four days a week, at a warehouse in the West Midlands countryside. Seeking to write about the plight of the working class, he also worked at a call centre, as an Uber driver, on a building site and as a home aide caring for the elderly.
"Amazon was the worst employer, easily," the author said by phone.
When he took a day off sick, he received a "point". Earn six and you're fired, he said.
Totes with packages in them are moved quickly to their next destination in the Kent warehouse, called a fulfilment centre.
Bloodworth said he heard of one person getting a point because she had to leave early to see her child in the hospital, and he talked to another who got a point for failing to hit her rate.
At the warehouse where he worked, Amazon monitored everybody's rate through a handheld device – tracking "our every move as if we were convicts out on house arrest", he writes.
The device carried messages to workers and recorded how quickly they were picking or packing goods. "Your rates are down this hour, please speed up," a message might say, according to Bloodworth.
"The productivity target was astonishingly high," Bloodworth said, and it was always going up. To try to meet it, you had to run around the warehouse – at least if you were an "order picker", as he was, tasked with collecting items from shelves to be sent on for packaging.
Yet, he said, you were not supposed to run, and could get a point for doing so.
"You couldn't not break the rules," he said, especially if you were angling for a permanent position. Most of the workers he met were, like him, temporary.
Adding to the oppressive atmosphere, in Bloodworth's telling: Amazon's security measures to prevent theft, which entailed having workers go through airport-style metal detectors.
The author summed up his experience: "You were not seen as a human being. You were seen as a robot."
How accurate is Bloodworth's description?
Amazon contests the number of shifts he worked – 10, according to a spokesperson. Bloodworth initially said 15, then took account of a half-day plus two days he missed for sickness and warehouse maintenance, and recalculated to 12 and a half.
More substantatively, the company said it employs mostly permanent workers, not temporary (outside of the Christmas season, at least), and has bathrooms "just a short walk" from where staffers work.
"We do not monitor toilet breaks," the spokesperson said in a series of lengthy written responses.
One Amazon statement defended the company's sick-leave policies. "If someone is ill, we want to help them get back to work when they are fit to do so. We completely support our people, and use proper discretion when applying our absence policy."
The statement did not say what its absence policy is.
In North America, the company spokesperson said when asked for specificity, the policy "varies from state to state, but we comply with all regulations".
Also, according to the spokesperson, Amazon gives warehouse workers 20 hours unpaid time off every three months (adding to 10 hours when they start), 48 hours of paid personal time per year, and one week of paid vacation in the first year.
Regarding the targets that Bloodworth says bedevil and exhaust employees, the spokesperson wrote, "As with nearly all companies, we expect a certain level of performance from our associates and we continue to set productivity targets objectively, based on previous performance levels achieved by our workforce ... We support people who are not performing to the levels expected with dedicated coaching to help them improve."
Bloodworth said he was chastised, not coached, when his numbers were down.
Back in the US
A tour of Amazon's Kent warehouse – a squat 850,000-square-foot building that runs on for several blocks in a sparsely populated part of the city – doesn't settle every contradiction.
But one thing is immediately familiar from Bloodworth's book: airport-style metal detectors. A sign tells workers what they can't bring in, including phones, keys and belts.
It's a highly secure facility with these turnstile entries and exits at the Amazon fulfilment centre in Kent, Washington.
Cedric Ross, an Amazon senior manager giving the tour alongside Amazon PR manager Melanie Etches, explained the security measures as "industry standard".
Kaoosji, of the Warehouse Worker Resource Centre, said that's not true in his experience, based on conversations with warehouse workers from local employers such as Walmart and Home Deport.
Amazon's warehouses do have distinctive features the company likes to show off. Just beyond the entrance in Kent, Ross and Etches point out a classroom that is part of its Career Choice programme, where workers can take free vocational classes of all sorts.
And on an upper floor is a marvel of technological prowess: an area where big, rectangular storage units seem to move by themselves in some futuristic dance. In fact, small robots lie beneath the units, controlled by WiFi and turning their cargo around as directed. Twenty-five of its warehouses in North America use such robots.
Of course, humans work at the Kent warehouse, too, 2,500 of them. Technology dictates their work in a different way. Computer screens are ubiquitous, giving workers information about their tasks and running updates on their rate per hour.
A game, as Etches described it, was taking place on a screen in front of one worker, who was picking items from storage units and placing them in bins for later packaging. Each task she finished counted for a certain number of points, and her total was ranked along with those of other workers.
"Is it fun?" Etches asked brightly.
The worker hesitated slightly. "It's OK. It's fun," she said.
A floor below, a woman packaging orders also used the word "OK" to describe her job.
"If you're having a bad day, it's really hard to make rates," she said. "Or if you're sick, like I am today."
Asked why she didn't stay home, she said, "If you don't have time to take a full day off, you don't leave." And if you do, she said, you will be fired.
Would that happen right away or would you first have a conversation with a manager? Etches asked.
"I think you get an e-mail," the woman said.
She also said workers were held accountable to something Amazon calls "time off task".
"We've been told to watch how much time you're in the bathroom," she said, echoing the worker who said six minutes was the limit.
"I think what she was talking about," Etches said walking away, is that if people are in the bathroom "for an unusual amount of time," someone might ask: "Are you OK? Everything all right?"
Amazon offers prizes to those who perform well. There are "power hours" when workers compete for "swag bucks" by picking up the pace. Winners exchange the bucks for Amazon T-shirts, caps and other items.
To be sure, not all workers find the rates oppressive. One said she had no problem meeting them. Another, who worked as a "problem solver" fixing orders that had gone wrong, didn't have any rates to meet and had quickly been promoted.
"It's the best job I've ever had," said the 29-year-old problem solver, who previously worked at a Pizza Hut and as a part-time maintenance worker for a South King County city.
Kaoosji gives Amazon credit for offering better pay and benefits than some warehouse employers. Providing any health care at all, he said, is rare.
"Workers tell us that's what makes you stay," he said.
He estimates he and his colleagues at the Warehouse Worker Resource Centre have talked to about 50 Amazon workers in the last year, and have also heard stories of unattainable rates and surveillance even of time spent in the bathroom.
Such conditions figured prominently in a survey of 240 Amazon warehouse workers carried out by the British advocacy group Organise. Seventy-four percent said they avoided using the bathroom for fear of missing their performance targets or receiving a warning point.
It's that kind of stress that makes some workers leave despite the relatively good pay and benefits, Kaoosji said.
Generally, he added, nondisclosure agreements required by Amazon, another unusual feature of its warehouses, keep workers afraid of speaking publicly about their experiences.
Bloodworth doesn't have that problem. Eventually, someone from the company found him in the warehouse and presented him with such an agreement, he writes. "On insisting it was something I needed to sign I decided straightaway to hand my notice in." — The Seattle Times/Tribune News Service
Tags / Keywords: Amazon; warehouse; fulfilment centre


Home  Docurama  W.I.S.O.R.
In a lab on the Lower East Side, a team of scientists and engineers are designing a robot named W.I.S.O.R.; a futuristic, subterranean robo welder, able to withstand temperatures of 300 degrees and navigate through the snaking, hundred-mile long world of buried steam pipes beneath Manhattan, that will repair the rapidly decaying century-old system.
New York's little known or understood underground steam pipes provide the necessary heat and hot water for everything from Chinese laundries and Turkish baths to the World Trade Center, and the Empire State Building. A thousand engineering hours behind schedule and way over budget, Honeybee Robotics, W.I.S.O.R.'s creators, are worried. They argue, discuss God, baseball, technology and ultimately lead us into a futuristic world originally thought impossible in this eerie, stranger-than-fiction tale set in the city beneath the city.
Interview with Marvin Minsky, legendary MIT Professor and the father of Artificial Intelligence; Detail Photos of the W.I.S.O.R Robot; Original film trailer of Jupiter's Wife; Interactive Menus; Scene Selection.
"The best science fiction documentary ever made"
©Michel Negroponte 2000. Art and Design ©2001 New Video Group. All Rights Reserved. Marketed and distributed in the U.S. by New Video, 126 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011.


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As this article mentions, there is a river of steel over the Mexican border from the USA, a flow of semi-automatic weaponry that are killing people in much greater numbers than other conflicts around the world.
To be honest, it is quite surprising to me that this isn't more mainstream news than it is.
In the period of 2008-2011, 2000 Palestinians were killed in conflict between Israel/Palestine.
The Libyan revolution cost around 15 000 - 25 000 lives.
The official numbers of Syrian deaths are around 10 000 in a year.
In Mexico, the number for the last five years is around 40 000 - 55 000. That is pretty brutal IMO. And the worst part of it is that its because American weapon-producers are making good money on these weapons being sold to Mexicans.
If I was a Marketing guy, I'd make a poster of an Mexican hitman pointing an American assault rifle in your face with the text "This is where your 'rights to carry arms' will get you" under it. Or "Sponsored by your friendly local NRA affiliates" or "Made in America" or "This guy bought this gun off your kid" or "Trade: Americans get drugs, Mexicans get guns: Who will be the better shooter? Probably not you".
Anyway, I thought this was a bit of an interesting tidbit of information. If its purely corporate interest or indirectly caused by war on drugs I don't know, but it is certainly a symptom of something that is not right.
How very negative of this article. I've heard of the gun belt and visiting the SSA factory in it is like one of my dream trips. Guns kill... big deal. But what this article doesn't say is that if we shut all this down, over 1 million people, if not a MUCH greater amount, would loose their jobs. It's quite the industry that not only appeases the military, but hunters.
"Negative" but truthful. And I dunno how defending this with "1 million people work in the weapon industry" is a good defense(also, source? or is it mostly indirectly like border police, swat-teams, drug dealers, traffickers? Handy being the main supplier to both sides in a struggle I guess). if they were exposed to these weapons they'd have a 1% chance of getting killed every year.
Are you saying we should, through the mechanisms of socialism, maintain a industry that literary feeds off misery and death? I'd rather spend that "socialism" on creating green-energy jobs and other non-violent jobs then.
It's the violent aspect of Mexico that made me cancel my plans to go their this year.
It's just not safe and especially for white tourists.
I mentioned Mexico briefly a while back in an other topic but it's a wonder this isn't a major issue in the US.
The trouble is very close to home especially with Americans being killed.
This issue is directly connected to the long standing issue of immigration "the better your home the less chance you'll be house hunting".
Mexico isn't Iraq and there isn't a hostile party in control there (at least openly) so you can't topple them.
The US has no jurisdiction in Mexico nor are they likely to act because of the risk such an attack could bring.
Mexicans criminals consider lives as very cheap. You better know your contacts and go to a safe tourist location somewhere away from the worst border-areas. Beyond that I think one would be relatively safe, about the level of Egypt.
Beyond that, narcotics are the main source of income for these cartels, they are nations inside the nations with all that money. Giving them easy access to guns makes them act like one too.
It's such a black mark on a country with so many things I love.
I love Lucha Libre, love Tacos and love Latinas I was even learning Spanish last year.
Some kind of action will have to be taken by the US before Cartel's start openly moving into America and bringing their wars there.
I'm surprised Americans don't see the irony of arming future enemies just across the border. One day they might start raiding southern states just for the hell of it.
Dunno if I'd feel much safer with my own assault rifle if I knew my house was made of wood and there's 20 Mexicans with assault rifles standing outside.


TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KLIX)-A new president of the University of Idaho has been named and is no stranger to the institution or the town its in. The Idaho State Board of Education has announced the appointment of C.Scoot Green as the University of Idaho president for at least the next three years. "Mr. Green is a Vandal to the core," State Board Member and U of I President Screening Committee Chair Emma Atchley said.
"He's a proven leader and manager and is highly respected in business circles worldwide. The Board believes he brings unique skills and he has demonstrated to us a passion and a personal commitment to the University of Idaho that will be transformative for the institution, its students, faculty, staff, alumni, the people of Moscow and the State of Idaho." Green is a graduate of the university and a native of Moscow, as well as a fourth-generation Idahoan, according to information from the board.
Green is the current Global Chief Operating and Financial Officer of Hogan Lovells, a global law firm. Green is a 1984 graduate from the University of Idaho with a bachelor's in accounting, plus he holds a MBA from Harvard University. Green's will start as president on July 1, and will be paid annually a salary of $420,000.


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Žužélke ali insékti (znanstveno ime Insecta) spadajo med členonožce (Arthropoda). So nevretenčarji, ki imajo okončine in telo sestavljeno iz členov. Značilnost žuželk je združevanje členov v tri jasno določene telesne regije - glavo, oprsje in zadek. Oprsje je sestavljeno iz treh delov, iz vsakega od njih izrašča po en par nog. Praviloma jih imajo torej šest. Poleg tega imajo skoraj vse žuželke na oprsju tudi krila in so edini nevretenčarji, ki lahko letijo. Primitivni členonožci, predniki današnjih žuželk, so živeli že pred 600 milijoni let. Ti so bili prve živali, ki so prišle živet na kopno. Žuželke so poselile praktično vse dele sveta, čeprav se jih je le malo prilagodilo na življenje v morju, kjer prevladujejo raki (Crustacea). Poznamo okrog 925.000 vrst, kar je več kot polovica vseh znanih vrst živih bitij, vseh skupaj pa naj bi jih po novejših ocenah bilo med 6 in 10 milijoni. Ocenjujejo, da žuželke presegajo po številčnosti ljudi v razmerju 2×108:1, kar pomeni, da pride na enega človeka 200 milijonov žuželk.

Z žuželkami se znanstveno ukvarja entomologija, panoga zoologije. Predpono entomo- (iz grščine : entomon – žuželka) uporabljamo tudi za druge pojme, povezane z žuželkami.

Zgradba telesa

So večinoma drobne živali. Njihovo velikost omejujejo oporne strukture (zunanji skelet), ki postajajo z večanjem telesa nesorazmerno težje, in neučinkovito krvožilje, ki pri večanju ni več sposobno zagotoviti dovoljšnega pritiska za dostavo hranilnih snovi do vseh celic v telesu. Najtežje znane žuželke so kobilice iz rodu Deinacrida z Nove Zelandije, ki tehtajo do 70 g, rekorder v dolžini pa je posnemalec vrste Phobaeticus chani s 357 mm telesne dolžine, ki z iztegnjenimi nogami meri preko pol metra. Najmanjša znana žuželka je osica vrste Dicopomorpha echmepterygis, ki v dolžino meri 0,139 mm.

Zaradi izjemne raznolikosti in številčnosti žuželk obstajajo praktično za vsako opisano lastnost mnoge izjeme.

Zunanja telesna zgradba
Telo žuželk je izvorno členjeno na okoli 20 členov; členi med seboj niso enaki (t. i. heteronomno členjenje) in tvorijo tri jasno definirane telesne regije: glavo (šest), oprsje (trije) in zadek (enajst členov). Določeni členi so pri nekaterih skupinah zliti ali drugače razporejeni, zato je njihovo število lahko navidez drugačno. Zunanjo površino vsakega člena tvorijo štiri bolj ali manj gibljivo povezane plošče: na hrbtni strani tergum, na trebušni sternum in na vsaki strani po ena plevra. Vsaka izmed treh telesnih regij opravlja različne naloge.

Glava
Skelet glave tvori pri večini žuželk jasno opazno kapsulo, ki obdaja mehko tkivo v notranjosti. Tu so skoncentrirana čutila in v notranjosti živčevje, glava pa predstavlja tudi vhod v prebavni trakt. Na sprednji zgornji strani je par sestavljenih oči in par tipalnic, med njima pa pogosto še tri enostavna očesca. Usta so na spodnji strani. Obustne okončine so prehranjevanju prilagojeni prvi trije pari okončin, ki se nahajajo ob strani ust; njihova oblika je izjemno raznolika glede na prehranjevalne navade.

Glava je pri večini žuželk grajena tako, da so usta usmerjena navzdol (hipognatna). Nekatere plenilske skupine žuželk imajo usta usmerjena naprej (prognatna glava), tiste, ki se prehranjujejo s sesanjem rastlinskih sokov (polkrilci), pa imajo usta usmerjena nazaj (opistognatna glava).

Oprsje
Oprsje se uporablja za premikanje, saj so na njem noge (3 pari) in pri številnih vrstah tudi krila. Grajeno je iz treh členov – predprsja (protoraksa), sredoprsja (mezotoraksa) in zaprsja (metatoraksa). Iz vsakega izrašča par nog, ki so prav tako gibljivo členjene po določenem vzorcu. Iz oprsja izrašča koksa, njej sledijo obrtec (trohanter), stegence (femur), golence (tibija), predstopalce (pretarzus) in stopalce (tarzus). Stopalce je iz enega do petih členov. Tudi oblika nog je izjemno raznolika glede na način premikanja po podlagi.

Žuželke so edini nevretenčarji, ki lahko letijo, kar bistveno pripomore k njihovi uspešnosti. Brez kril so le vrste iz podrazreda nekrilatih žuželk (Apterygota). Ostale žuželke imajo krila, čeprav so nekatere vrste lahko drugotno brez njih. Razlog za izgubo kril je način življenja, npr. zaradi zajedavstva. Prvi par kril je na sredoprsju, zadnji pa na zaprsju. Krila so ojačena z žilami, ki so gostejše v sprednjem delu krila. Sprednji par kril je lahko včasih usnjat, lahko pa tudi spremenjen v trde pokrovke. Zadnji par kril je lahko spremenjen v par kijastih utripač ali povsem manjka.

Zadek
V zadku so prebavila, izločala in spolni organi. Grajen je iz 9 do 11 členov in se zaključuje s telzonom, ki ni pravi člen in je razvit le pri primitivnih skupinah ter pri embrijih. Lahko nosi par cerkov, ki imata čutilno vlogo, in pri redkih skupinah še neparni terminalni filum. Leglica je organ za odlaganje jajčec na koncu zadka pri samicah, ki lahko pri nekaterih skupinah presega dolžino telesa.

Organski sistemi

Dihala
Žuželke ne dihajo skozi usta, temveč prejemajo zrak skozi majhne odprtine ob strani oprsja in zadka, imenovane dihalnice (spirakli). Te vodijo v omrežje zračnih cevk, razvejanih v žuželkinem telesu, ki jih imenujemo vzdušnice oz. traheje. Urejene so podobno kot bronhiji v človeških pljučih – na začetku so enostavne cevke, ki se nato drevesasto razvejijo, končni izrastki vodijo do posameznih celic. Občasno se razširijo v zračne vreče. Plini se večinoma izmenjujejo pasivno, ob večjih potrebah po kisiku pa lahko žuželke dodatno vzpodbudijo tok zraka z ritmičnim krčenjem zadka.

Mnogo žuželk preživi vsaj del življenjskega kroga pod vodo (največkrat kot ličinke). V ta namen imajo lahko razvite ploščate izrastke kutikule s tanko steno, ki delujejo kot škrge.

Krvožilje
Žuželke nimajo ven in arterij, ki bi kri vodile po telesu. Kri obliva organe v notranjosti telesa (t. i. odprto krvožilje). Poganja jo srce, dolga cev, ki poteka vzdolž žuželkinega hrbta (dorzalno) znotraj prvih devetih členov zadka. Njegovo funkcijo dopolnjujejo aorta in pomožne utripajoče strukture v različnih delih telesa. Ob krčenju potiska kri naprej, proti glavi.

Kri prenaša hranilne snovi, ione, hormone, ne prenaša pa kisika – to vlogo ima sistem vzdušnic. Zaradi odsotnosti hemoglobina je največkrat brezbarvna, lahko pa je rahlo zelenkasta ali rumenkasta; za ločevanje od vretenčarske krvi ji pravimo hemolimfa.

Prebavila in izločala
Po sredini žuželkinega telesa potekajo njena prebavila. Tu se iz hrane vsrkavajo hranila. Različni deli prebavil so lahko različno diferencirani, glede na posebnosti pri prehranjevanju posamezne vrste. V splošnem so iz treh delov – sprednjega, srednjega in zadnjega črevesa. Notranjost sprednjega in zadnjega črevesa prekriva kutikula, ki jo žuželka ob levitvi odvrže in tvori novo.

V sprednji del se odpirajo žleze slinavke, lahko ima razširjen del (golšo) za shranjevanje hrane. Od srednjega črevesa ga loči zaklopka, ki ima lahko zobce za drobljenje trdnih delcev. V cevastem srednjem črevesu se dogaja večina prebave. T. i. peritrofična membrana ga deli v notranji in zunanji del, v vsakem so drugačni encimi za razgradnjo. Pri večini žuželk iz njega izraščajo slepi izrastki (cekumi), kjer poteka zadnja faza razgradnje hranljivih snovi in njihova absorpcija. Vloga zadnjega črevesa je izmenjava ionov za vzdrževanje ionskega ravnovesja ter izločanje odpadnih produktov prebave. Pri rastlinojedih žuželkah ga poseljujejo simbiontske bakterije, ki razgrajujejo celulozo. Za skladiščenje in pretvorbo hranilnih snovi je pri večini žuželk odgovorno maščobno telesce, grajeno pretežno iz založnih celic, ki pa ima lahko tudi vrsto drugih vlog, kot so sistemska imunost, regulacija presnove, sinteza rumenjaka za jajčeca in zavetje za simbionte. To tkivo je zlasti dejavno pred preobrazbo in med njo, ko skladišči in nato kontrolirano sprošča velike količine hranil, potrebnih za ta zahteven proces.

Izločala – malpighijeve cevke se odpirajo v prebavno cev na meji med srednjim in zadnjim črevesom. Njihovo število sega od 2 do 250. Za razliko od sesalčjih nefronov ne delujejo po principu filtracije, temveč aktivnega izločanja. Odpadni dušik izločajo v obliki urične kisline, kar je ena od prilagoditev za varčevanje z vodo.

Živčevje
Žuželkino živčevje je razmeroma preprosto, ima obliko lestvičaste trebušnjače – v vsakem telesnem členu je par ganglijev, ki sta med seboj prečno povezana, vzdolžno pa s pari v sosednjih členih. Možgani so nastali z zlivanjem prvih treh parov ganglijev v glavi, preostali trije pa so zliti v t. i. podžrelni ganglij. Poleg možganov opravljajo veliko nadzornega dela tudi gangliji drugje v telesu. Vsak od njih je odgovoren za nadzor določenega dela telesa. Tako gangliji v glavi nadzorujejo obustne okončine in sprejemajo podatke od čutil, tisti v oprsju pa letalne mišice in mišice nog. V oprsju so trije pari ganglijev, v zadku pa osem, ki so lahko pri posameznih vrstah nadalje zliti ali reducirani.

Čutila
Prisotnost in razporeditev čutilnih organov sta odvisna od življenjskega okolja žuželk, ki narekuje njihovo uporabo oz. neuporabo.

 Oči žuželk so dveh tipov: sestavljene oči so zgrajene iz omatidijev, vsako od katerih zaznava majhen del vidnega polja. V možganih se signali vseh čutnic sestavijo v sliko. Enostavnejši tip čutila za svetlobo so očesca, posamezni organi s preprostejšo zgradbo. Mnogo žuželk ima oba tipa oči, druge pa so povsem brez njih.
 Tipalnice imajo mišice le v začetnih členkih. So lahko zelo različnih oblik, na njih pa so čutnice za tip in voh. Še posebno dobro je razvit voh. Samci pogosto ne zaznavajo drugih vonjav, lahko pa na velike razdalje zaznajo vonj, ki ga oddajajo samice. Skoraj vse žuželke imajo tipalnice.
 Izraz čutilne dlake označuje široko paleto struktur, podobnih človeškim lasem, ki imajo pri žuželkah vlogo zaznavanja kemijskih in mehanskih dražljajev. Posebej številčne so na okončinah in okoli ust.

Razvoj

Večina žuželk začne razvoj z jajčecem, ki ga samica odloži na ustrezno podlago, in iz katerega se po določenem času izleže mlada žuželka. Nadaljnji razvoj in rast sta tesno povezana z dejstvom, da imajo žuželke trden zunanji skelet, ki ne raste. Tako gredo vse žuželke v svojem razvoju skozi serijo levitev, kjer odvržejo premajhen telesni ovoj, pod katerim jim je predhodno zrasel nov. Po načinu razvoja ločimo dva tipa žuželk – hemimetabolne in holometabolne. Pri prvih pravkar izleglo žuželko imenujemo nimfa, razen po odsotnosti kril in spolnih organov se ne razlikuje bistveno od odrasle. Ob vsaki levitvi je nimfa večja in bolj podobna odrasli živali in ni opaznega prehoda v odraslost. Pravkar izlegla holometabolna žuželka je ličinka. Ličinke so največkrat črvaste oblike in se tudi po načinu življenja bistveno razlikujejo od odrasle oblike. Holometabolni so predstavniki skupine Endopterygota, kamor spada večina najuspešnejših vrst žuželk. Ob prehodu v odraslo fazo gre žival skozi proces popolne preobrazbe; nastopi stadij bube v katerem se zgodijo večje spremembe telesne zgradbe. Zelo znan primer popolne preobrazbe je sprememba gosenice v odraslo žival pri metuljih. Ličinka v tem stadiju navadno miruje, pogosto je buba zapredena v svilen kokon.

Spolni sistem pri nekaterih skupinah žuželk, predvsem zajedavskih in socialnih, je lahko precej zapleten. Tako poznamo pri žuželkah pojave poliembrionije, kjer se lahko iz enega oplojenega jajčeca razvije mnogo zarodkov, več tipov partenogeneze (nespolnega razmnoževanja), haplodiploidije in druge eksotične tipe razmnoževanja. Zajedavske žuželke imajo tudi sicer največkrat posebnosti pri razvoju, kar je povezano z njihovim načinom življenja. Tako so lahko živorodne (npr. listne uši) ali imajo ekstremen spolni dimorfizem (npr. pahljačekrilci).

Ekologija

Na račun trdnega zunanjega skeleta, ki varuje pred neugodnimi podnebnimi razmerami, in sposobnosti letenja so se žuželke razširile po vsem svetu in poselile praktično vse habitate, razen najbolj ekstremnih. Poleg tega jim kratek generacijski čas in veliko število potomcev dajeta možnost hitrega izkoriščanja virov v okolju, hkrati pa v navezi s fleksibilnostjo telesne zgradbe na dolgi rok tudi možnost prilagajanja na nove zahteve okolja.

Kot ostali členonožci lahko uspevajo v zelo suhih okoljih, saj jih zunanji skelet dobro varuje pred izsušitvijo. Dejavnik, ki najbolj omejuje razširjenost žuželk kot skupine, so tako nizke temperature. Žuželke so poikilotermne živali, kar pomeni, da ne morejo vzdrževati telesne temperature, potrebne za delovanje fizioloških procesov, kadar je temperatura okolice prenizka. Posamezne vrste so razvile različne prilagoditve, ki omogočajo preživetje hladnih delov leta. Najbolj razširjen je diapavza – zmanjšana metabolna aktivnost in mirovanje v teh delih leta. Nekatere vrste prezimujejo v velikih skupinah, v katerih se medsebojno grejejo (zgled za to je rjava lipovka) ali se zavlečejo med rastlinski opad, špranje v odmrlem lesu ipd. Prilagoditve se pojavljajo tudi na ravni fizioloških procesov. Znan primer so listne uši, kjer po več generacijah izpostavljenosti nizkim temperaturam preživijo osebki z encimi, tolerantnimi na mraz. Po drugi strani pa spremembe temperature, v zadnjem času predvsem zaradi globalnega segrevanja, odpirajo nove priložnosti za širjenje, ki so jih žuželke sposobne hitro izkoristiti. Tako že opažajo širjenje območja poselitve proti severu pri vrstah, kot je zelena smrdljivka, ki se zaradi odsotnosti diapavze razmnožujejo še posebej hitro.

Seveda pa pri tako veliki in raznoliki skupini kot so žuželke, ni mogoče posploševati praktično nobenega pojava, še posebej ne  interakcij z drugimi elementi okolja. Tako so med žuželkami plenilske, rastlinojede, vsejede, razkrojevalske in zajedavske vrste, ki so bodisi specialisti (prilagojeni na ozek nabor pogojev v okolju), bodisi generalisti. Razdelitev na generaliste oz. specialiste pove, v kako različnih okoljih lahko vrsta uspeva ali kako različne vrste hrane lahko izkorišča. Tako so med žuželkami taki generalisti kot je zelena smrdljivka, ki se lahko prehranjuje z rastlinami iz več kot 30 družin in je poselila praktično ves tropski ter subtropski pas, druga skrajnost pa so denimo rastlinojede ali zajedavske vrste, kot so zajedavske uši, ki so vezane na točno določeno vrsto gostitelja, brez katere ne morejo preživeti. Od okoljskih zahtev je neposredno odvisno območje razširjenosti – razširjenost vrst, ki so specializirane na ozek nabor gostiteljev, se denimo prekriva z razširjenostjo le-teh. Posebej uspešne so v zadnjem času tiste žuželke, ki so se prilagodile na prisotnost človeka in prebivajo v njegovih bivališčih (t. i. sinantropne vrste), npr. hišna muha. Tudi sicer človek s svojo aktivnostjo bistveno vpliva na pojavljanje določenih vrst žuželk v določenem okolju, med temi aktivnostmi je verjetno najpomembnejše kmetijstvo. Vzpostavitev velikih nasadov monokultur povzroči, da preživijo in se zaradi odsotnosti nekaterih omejujočih dejavnikov izredno namnožijo vrste, ki se s temi rastlinami prehranjujejo (pri čemer so za človeka škodljivci), izginejo pa ostale.

Pomen za človeka

Zaradi njihove številčnosti in razširjenosti je človek neločljivo povezan z žuželkami. Četudi so največkrat pozornosti deležne žuželke, ki imajo negativen vpliv na življenje ljudi, je civilizacija še vedno odvisna od »uslug« vrst, ki jih smatramo za koristne. Najbolj prepoznavne med njimi so nekatere vrste socialnih čebel, posebej tiste, ki jih človek namerno goji. Približno tretjina svetovnega pridelka hrane zraste na rastlinah, ki so jih oprašile živali, velik delež česar s svojim načrtnim zbiranjem peloda prispevajo čebele. Ljudje so sprva gojili čebele za pridelavo medu in drugih čebeljih produktov, danes pa postaja opraševanje vedno pomembnejši vidik čebelarstva, posebej v luči izginjanja čebel, ki ga opažamo v zadnjih letih. Med bolj znanimi primeri zgodovinskega vpliva žuželk je tudi trgovska pot, ki je povezala starodavno Kitajsko s preostalim svetom in je temeljila na svili, produktu gosenic sviloprejk. Žuželke s svojim pomenom za ekosistem in posredno človekov obstoj že od nekdaj navdihujejo mitologijo in umetnost. Za primer, govnače, ki simbolizirajo vlogo žuželk v procesu razkrojevanja in kroženja snovi, so imeli stari Egipčani za svete živali. Še danes so v zahodnem svetu pod vplivom starogrške umetnosti različne žuželke sinonim za določene človekove lastnosti v obliki izrekov, npr. »priden kot mravlja«.

Negativen vpliv žuželk lahko razdelimo na štiri glavne vidike: zajedavstvo (npr. uši, zajedavske stenice, komarji), prenašanje povzročiteljev bolezni (komarji, muhe), povzročanje škode na zgradbah (termiti) in uničevanje pridelka oz. spravljene hrane (kobilice, stenice, zalubniki). Najpomembnejša od teh sta prenašanje bolezni in škoda na hrani. Ocenjujejo, da samo komarji z nalezljivimi boleznimi okužijo okoli 70 milijonov ljudi letno. Med temi je najpomembnejša malarija, ki letno povzroči smrt enega do treh milijonov ljudi. Rastlinojede žuželke imajo potencial popolnega uničenja pridelka na manj rodovitnih območjih (npr. puščavske kobilice ob rojenju v podsaharski Afriki), bistveno pa vplivajo tudi na kmetijstvo v vseh ostalih predelih sveta.

Proti škodljivim vrstam se največkrat borimo s kemičnimi sredstvi - insekticidi, ki so toksični za žuželke, a njihova uporaba ni brez tveganja. Težava je predvsem njihova nespecifičnost, saj zastrupljajo tudi »koristne« vrste (ne nujno samo žuželk). S kopičenjem v rastlinah pridejo tudi v človeški organizem, kjer imajo lahko nepredvidljive učinke. Najbolj razvpit tak primer je DDT, pri katerem je razkritje dokazov o škodljivosti za ekosistem in konkretno človeka povzročilo buren odziv javnosti ter bilo eden od ključnih dejavnikov pri nastanku okoljevarstvenega gibanja. Alternativne metode boja proti škodljivcem so vnašanje njihovih naravnih škodljivcev, sajenje odpornejših sort rastlin, oteževanje razmnoževanja in dostopa do hrane ipd., ki jih označujemo s skupnim izrazom biološka kontrola škodljivcev.

Taksonomija

V poddeblu Hexapoda (šesteronožni členonožci) je nekaj skupin, kot so na primer skakači (Collembola), ki so tradicionalno obravnavane kot žuželke, sodeč po zelo specializirani zgradbi obustnega aparata in genetskih znakih pa imajo drugačene evolucijske korenine. Zato jih uvrščamo v razred Entognatha (poleg skakačev še tiponožce Protura in dvojnorepke Diplura).

Prave žuželke iz razreda Insecta, se od ostalih členonožev razlikujejo v delu telesa, imenovanem ectognathus (spodnja čeljustnica in spodnja čeljust pripeta na glavo), ali po izpostavljenih delih obustnega aparata ter enajstih členih zadka. Zato žuželke včasih poimenujejo tudi kot Ectognatha.

Tradicionalno delimo žuželke v grobem na dva podrazreda, nekrilate žuželke in krilate žuželke. V prvem sta dva izvorno nekrilata redova žuželk, pračeljustnice in ščetinorepke. Krilate žuželke nadalje delimo po načinu zlaganja kril in nekaterih drugih značilnostih v dve skupini, Palaeoptera ter Neoptera. V prvo skupino uvrščamo dva danes živeča redova, enodnevnice in kačje pastirje, ki zaradi načina pritrditve kril na trup le-teh ne moreta zložiti ob telesu. Vendar naj bi se po večini teorij iz ene od nižjih (že izumrlih) skupin razvili vsi predstavniki skupine Neoptera, zaradi česar je Palaeoptera parafiletska in v sodobni filogenetski klasifikaciji neustrezna skupina

Vsi preostali redovi žuželk so združeni v skupino Neoptera. Nadaljnja klasifikacija do nivoja redov v tej skupini še ni popolnoma razdelana, največkrat pa redove združujejo po načinu preobrazbe na žuželke s popolno oz. nepopolno preobrazbo. Taksonomija žuželk se v zadnjem času hitro spreminja zaradi uporabe novih, molekularnih metod ugotavljanja sorodstva in enotne, splošno sprejete klasifikacije ni.

Evolucija

Najzgodnejši fosilni ostanek organizma, ki ga je možno nedvoumno uvrstiti med žuželke, so našli v skladih sedimentnih kamnin blizu vasi Rhynie na Škotskem, ki jih datirajo v zgodnji devon in so stari skoraj 400 milijonov let. Opisali so ga kot vrsto Rhyniognatha hirsti, na podlagi njegove natančne zgradbe, ki ima nekaj »modernejših« značilnosti, pa domnevajo, da so se prve žuželke pojavile že v silurju. Prve žuželke so bile podobne danes živečim nekrilatim žuželkam (pračeljustnicam in ščetinorepkam), ki veljajo za primitivne v odnosu do ostalih skupin. Obsežna radiacija taksonov se je zgodila v karbonu, vendar imamo pri razumevanju teh dogodkov težave, saj je iz zgodnjega karbona (misisipija) znanih zelo malo fosilov žuželk. Tako se uporaben fosilni zapis ponovno prične z že raznoliko favno žuželk v drugi polovici karbona (pensilvaniju).

Žuželke so danes po kriteriju števila vrst najuspešnejši razred živali in so verjetno bile večino časa od nastanka. Izjemno raznolikost in potencial za spreminjanje jim omogoča kombinacija več značilnosti, kot so zunanji skelet, ki nudi oporo in zaščito pred elementi, ponavljanje telesnih členov, kar omogoča specializacijo posameznih členov ob ohranitvi osnovne funkcije ostalih, pojav kril ter preobrazba, ki omogoča ličinkam in odraslim živalim da zasedajo različne ekološke niše, s tem pa zmanjšajo tekmovanje za vire. Poleg tega kratek generacijski čas in veliko število potomcev poveča verjetnost za genetske spremembe (mutacije) v danem časovnem obdobju.

To je kladogram skupin, ki v grobem prikazuje potek evolucije. Razvejitev ponazarja skupnega prednika; kjer se razveji v tri enakovredne veje, ni jasno, katera od skupin je izvornejša. Poševno so zapisane po danes uveljavljenem mnenju parafiletske skupine, ki se zaradi prepoznavnosti še vedno uporabljajo, a so po sodobni filogenetski klasifikaciji neustrezne.

Opombe in sklici

Viri

 Lear L. (1997). Rachel Carson: Witness for Nature. New York: Henry Hoyten.

Zunanje povezave

 Kustodiat za nevretenčarje (entomologija) Prirodoslovnega muzeja Slovenije
 Slovensko entomološko društvo Štefana Michielija
  agrozoo.net - slike žuželk z iskanjem po barvi, ...

 Bibliografija o fosilnih žuželkah
 Book of Insect Records. Dept. of Entomology & Nematology, University of Florida
 Bugbios - insects on the web

 Žuželke na straneh earthlife.net
 Žuželke na straneh Tree of Life Web project
 Žuželke  na straneh Nacionalnega prirodoslovnega muzeja ZDA.

Členonožci
Entomologija

Taksoni, opisani leta 1758


text:
Beekeepers under pressure during bushfire aftermath
by Hayley Bannerman | Jun 19, 2020 | News
After bushfires destroyed many of their natural resources, the region's beekeepers are looking for alternative methods to increase pollination and keep the industry alive.
The devastating bushfires has resulted in the South Coast's bee population being severely affected, leaving beekeepers facing significant losses.
President of the NSW Apiarist Association, Stephen Targett explained that of the 275,000 beehives in NSW, around 10,000 were burnt and 89,000 hives lost their field bees.
"Because of the smoke and the heat, many bees didn't make it back to the hive," Mr Targett said.
"The hives still survived, but the population is significantly down, because in summer the majority of the bees are out chasing nectar or pollen."
Mr Targett also stated that the industry's honey production has taken a large hit, a year where things were slated to get back on track after a long-lasting drought.
"Not all beekeepers were affected by the fires, but certainly a majority of the state's commercial beekeepers were seriously affected," he said.
CEO of Illawarra Bees, David West stated that the bushfires didn't just wipe out the imported honeybee, but also our native Australian pollinators.
"Beekeepers can manipulate hives to increase numbers, but the native pollinator population takes much longer," Mr West said.
"They do it more slowly, and there's no one there to help them along."
Both Mr Targett and Mr West stated that while these lost hives and bees will be naturally replaced over time, it will take a long time.
In February, Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbury suggested the use of local parks as refuge for the struggling bee population.
Mr Targett endorsed this method, stating that there were various possible locations in NSW that beekeepers currently aren't using.
"We are hoping to get money from the state government's bushfire package, to fund BPI and start using these locations," Mr Targett said.
"Within 12 months, we could be putting bees on unburnt new land, and that would really help beekeepers."
Mr West explained that the introduction of the 'flow hive' is another way for Illawarra residents to get involved, making beekeeping a hobby.
"As long as you register, you can have up to 3 or 4 hives in your own backyard," Mr West said.
"The flow hive means that you can extract honey without actually having to go into the hive."
Mr West also suggested that residents should invest in flowering plants for their gardens to help increase pollination.
"Looking for flowering plants, and certainly planting native varieties, is a good way that we can all help," he said.


text:
La Jagdstaffel 28 (in tedesco: Königlich Wuerttembergische Jagdstaffel Nr 28, abbreviato in Jasta 28) era una squadriglia (staffel) da caccia della componente aerea del Deutsches Heer, l'esercito dell'Impero tedesco, durante la prima guerra mondiale (1914-1918).

Storia
La Jagdstaffel 28 venne fondata il 14 dicembre 1916 presso il Fliegerersatz-Abteilung  (FEA) 10 a Böblingen. All'Oberleutnant Rudolf Lang, proveniente dalla Jagdstaffel 11, venne affidato il comando della squadriglia. Dopo che questi lasciò l'unità, la Jagdstaffel 28 avrebbe avuto tre diversi comandanti uccisi in combattimento nell'arco di quattro mesi.

La Jagdstaffel 28 iniziò il servizio al fronte a supporto della 4ª Armata tedesca a Marcke il 24 gennaio 1917. Il 26 marzo 1917 venne poi trasferita nel settore della 6ª Armata dove venne messa a segno la prima vittoria aerea il 7 aprile 1917 dal pilota Max Müller. Il 27 agosto la squadriglia venne spostata presso l'aerodromo di Varsenare di nuovo a supporto della 4ª Armata finché, il 6 giugno 1918 vennero trasferiti a supporto della 2ª Armata. Un mese dopo, l'8 luglio, con base presso Neuflize operarono nel settore sotto il controllo della 1ª Armata. Il 25 agosto la Jagdstaffel si trasferisce a Cantin per sostenere la 17ª Armata fino alla fine della guerra.

Durante la guerra l'unità operò prima con gli Albatros D.III per poi essere rimpiazzati dai più moderni Albatros D.Va.

Il Leutnant Emil Thuy fu l'ultimo Staffelführer (comandante) della Jagdstaffel 28 dal 26 settembre 1917 fino alla fine della guerra.

Alla fine della prima guerra mondiale alla Jagdstaffel 28 vennero accreditate 100 vittorie aeree. Di contro, la Jasta 28 perse 9 piloti, uno fu fatto prigioniero di guerra, un pilota morì in incidente di volo e 3 furono feriti in azione.

Lista dei comandanti della Jagdstaffel 28
Di seguito vengono riportati i nomi dei piloti che si succedettero al comando della Jagdstaffel 28.

Lista delle basi utilizzate dalla Jagdstaffel 28
 Böblingen, 14 dicembre 1916 – 23 gennaio 1917
 Marcke, 24 gennaio 1917 – 25 marzo 1917
 Wasquehal, 26 marzo 1917 – 26 agosto 1917
 Varsenare, 27 agosto 1917 – 13 novembre 1917
 Jabbeke, 13 novembre 1917 – 25 novembre 1917
 Wynghene, 25 novembre 1917 – 7 dicembre 1917
 Varsenare, 7 dicembre 1917 – 5 febbraio 1918
 Wynghene, 5 febbraio 1918 – 1 marzo 1918
 Iseghem, 1 marzo 1918 – 21 marzo 1918
 Abeele, 21 marzo 1918 – 29 marzo 1918
 Iseghem, 29 marzo 1918 – 5 giugno 1918
 Ennemain, 6 giugno 1918 – 7 luglio 1918
 Neuflize, 8 luglio 1918 – 10 agosto 1918
 Mons-en-Chaussée, 11 agosto 1918 – 12 agosto 1918
 Neuflize, 13 agosto 1918 – 24 agosto 1918
 Cantin, 25 agosto 1918 – 30 settembre 1918
 Beuvry, 1 ottobre 1918 – 12 ottobre 1918
 Chièvres, 13 ottobre 1918 – 3 novembre 1918
 Champles, 4 novembre 1918 – 11 novembre 1918

Lista degli assi che hanno prestato servizio nella Jagdstaffel 28
Di seguito vengono elencati i nomi dei piloti che hanno prestato servizio nella Jagdstaffel 28 con il numero di vittorie conseguite durante il servizio nella squadriglia e riportando tra parentesi il numero di vittorie aeree totali conseguite.

Lista degli aerei utilizzati dalla Jagdstaffel 28
 Albatros D.III
 Albatros D.Va

Note

Bibliografia

Voci correlate
 Jagdstaffel
 Luftstreitkräfte

Collegamenti esterni

Jagdstaffel 28
Aviazione militare tedesca


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Other is .CSS file. admin/includes have styleshit.css, but site includes not have. Or I didn't find?
If you want to be upset, that's your choice.
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If I rude excuse me.
Thanks a lot. there you mentioned I did, but not change image. I directory shown on my image, but my front page still "osCommerce".
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Clearly you have a problem with the install you have made. Getting frustrated with the answers people give you will not help you resolve your problem.
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First & foremost has been Addy's knee. Right before we left for Hawaii, the ortho said she was ok & could take the brace off. Well, while we were gone she regressed & completely stopped walking. Since we've been back, she hasn't walked at all. So far she's seen her pediatrician & 4 orthos regarding her knee & she's had 3 sets of x rays, an MRI, blood work done, an evaluation for physical therapy & next week she's having a complete body bone scan. (You can see how that has been keeping us busy, right!?!) The ortho we are seeing now is with Texas Children's and I feel like he is finally doing something. He ordered the blood work & the bone scan. And he actually put her on medicine, a pain med & an anti inflammatory. It seems like a REALLY SIMPLE solution that 3 other orthos didn't do! And I am already seeing a difference in her. She's still not walkiing yet, but she is sitting up more & not fussing as much when someone moves her. The bone scan is scheduled for Monday. She will be completely sedated & we should have the results by the mid to end of next week. As long as it comes out clear (& I'm confident that it will) then we will continue her on her current meds & start physical therapy & hopefully having her up walking very very soon!
Today was parent/teacher conference day at Addy's elementary school. I had a great conference with both Mrs. Cochran & Mrs. Cardenas. You all know that I was really worried about putting Addy in school this year (for several reasons that I won't go into now.) But it sounds like all my fears were unfounded! Both her teachers were bragging on her so much! They had nothing but WONDERFUL things to say about my sweet Addy. Like how well she has adjusted to the daily routine and that she is crazy smart (which of course we already knew!!!) And that she does her work & is even a great motivator to the other kids because she gets her work done so fast. And how all the kids in the class love her & want to know when she's going to be better so she can play with them. And that the girls in class argue over who gets to sit by Addy at lunch. And how Addy is starting to play with the other kids & starting to talk back to the other kids (that's what we call a conversation folks!!!!! even though it is just the beginning stages of a conversation I am still super pumped!) And what a great artist she is & how sweet she is & once again JUST HOW DANG SMART SHE IS!!!! I am just so excited for Addy & all the progress that she has made! Go Addy!
Something else that has been going on lately is that Britany & I started a small playgroup in Sienna. I put an ad on the Sienna parents yahoo group & she started us a facebook group page. So far we've had 4 other moms & tots join us for a playdate & we've had 2 other moms that have emailed us but haven't made it to a playdate yet. Alex is the oldest kid, but not by much. Clay is just 6 months younger than Alex & there are 2 other kids right about Clay's age. We are meeting once a week & so far we've gone to the Stomping Grounds (an indoor playground), Britany's house & one of our Sienna playgrounds. Alex is having such a good time & he gets really excited when I tell him we're going to play with Clay. Matter of fact, tonight Alex & I went to the playground at Addy's school before dinner & I told him it was time to go & maybe tomorrow we could see if Clay wants to go to the playground with us. Alex said "Yea Mommy, I need to call Clay." Lol!
And what else has been happening lately... Well Maryse seems to be all settled in & has a group of friends that she's been hanging out with. She goes over to her friend Bailey's house after school sometimes & goes to the football games with her. Sunday they're going to go shopping for dresses for the "Up & Coming" (homecoming) dance. And yes, Maryse does have a date to homecoming (and another boy asked her yesterday too) and she said he's already got her mum & everything! Anyway, I'm excited for her & I'm really glad that she's getting out & doing things with her friends just like teenagers should do! Driver's Ed was supposed to start on Monday but the class here in Sienna was canceled & with Addy's therapy schedule there is no way I could get her to another class 4 days a week. So I signed her up for parent taught driver's ed & as soon as we get the packet in the mail, I will be teaching it to her!
And of course I can't lie, it's the fall, so all our TV shows are back on! So instead of blogging at night when everyone is asleep, I have to catch up on Gossip Girl & Grey's Anatomy!
I guess that's about all for now. Hopefully things will settle down just a bit, Addy will get better & I'll get back on the blogging ball!


Maintaining your own particular business is no simple errand, and your schedule is ensured to never end. This said, you shouldn't utilize this as a reason to take easy routes with regards to having online visibility. Starting with your site, it's fundamental to position yourself online with a strong, professional destination that gives clients the impression you mean business and the motivation to need to connect more with your business. With this in mind, consider these reasons why having a strong site is vital.
Let's face it – we live in a world where people Google before they shop, visit online review sites like Yelp before they buy and "check-in" via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as they go about their days. Because of this, you want your first impression to be the best it can be. Beginning with your website, consumers are passing judgement and making decisions about whether or not they will even visit your store, restaurant or office. They're likely to dismiss you entirely, as well, should they believe your website doesn't reflect the kind of experience your business – or a business like yours – should offer.
A website is an important marketing tool for any business. A good website design makes it a very effective marketing tool. It is most needed when your business is starting up new. With a website, you can potentially reach a larger number of prospects. There is a great possibility of reaching many potential customers online than offline. In Nigeria and Africa, this is increasing very fast with improved internet access. Mobile phones and social media are key factors.
In June 30, 2015, Nigeria had about 92 million Internet users, according to Internet World Statistics. By the end of this year, it is estimated that 7 in 10 Nigerians will have access to the internet.
With a population of 181 million, this is serious numbers. It is estimated that Nigeria has 97.2 million active mobile phones. These figures emphasize the importance of securing your businesses space on the world wide web. It is not just enough to have web presence. Your business will require an effective web presence that delivers the desired goals.
A decent site gives you an appealing web presence. It passes on professionalism, reliability and authority. It will positively affect your brand value. Without a decent web site, your businesses or organizations space on the web might be harming and not useful. A responsive web site is very vital. This is vital for right cross device display. Your site will be seen on cellular mobile phones, ipads, tablets, desktops and even huge screen TVs.
By now it's clear that if you don't have a website, you're missing out on opportunities for customers to identify who you are and if they want to spend money with you. This said, if you have a bad website it is better to have no website. While no website equals missed opportunities, a bad website can actually be worse since it literally makes your business look bad. there's truly no excuse for your website to look unprofessional and sloppy. If you can't proudly promote the website you have currently live and available for the world to see online, take it down. A bad website is far worse than no website – but let's be clear… both are bad for business.
We are HYFIG, we can help you achieve your business goals with a clean, stylish, professional and most importantly, effective website. HIRE US NOW!


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Gun Grabbers Kill Jobs
By Emily Miller
Gun-control laws don't reduce crime, but they do reduce employment.
Some governors don't care and are pushing for more pointless statutes that put their citizens' jobs on the line. Smarter governors sense the opportunity to poach a few manufacturers from their colleagues.
Connecticut Gov. Daniel P. Malloy, a Democrat, is not one of the brighter chief executives. He's upset that his own "Sandy Hook Advisory Commission" and the General Assembly's bipartisan gun control task force aren't moving fast enough to ram through gun-control measures before the memory of the Newtown tragedy fades.
Accompanied by Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. at an event in Hartford on Thursday, Mr. Malloy emphasized the need for haste. "We run a risk of letting this critical moment in history pass us by," he said. The governor is following the White House lead by demanding background checks on private sales, bans on firearms with scary-looking cosmetic features and a prohibition on magazines that hold over 10 rounds.
That's bad news for the Nutmeg State, home to several manufacturers of soon-to-be-forbidden items, including Colt Arms, O.F. Mossberg & Sons, Stag Arms and others. According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, firearms and ammunition manufacturers in the state employ more than 8,000 people and generate $1.8 billion in annual revenue.
Since its founding in 1919, Mossberg has been based in Connecticut. The firm recently invested $4 million for new equipment and hired 100 new people to meet increased demand. Now the firm is seriously considering shifting its expansion plans to its Texas facility.
Stag Arms, which makes AR-15 style rifles, is being wooed by gun-friendly states like Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas with offers of tax incentives and favorable gun legislation if the company decides to move to friendlier territory. The New Britain-based firm directly employs 200 and spent $13 million last year buying supplies and services from local vendors.
"What the governor is proposing is a law that will prevent us from producing our product, cost thousands of jobs, the loss of millions in revenue and not make the state any safer," Stag's president, Mark Malkowski, told The Washington Times.
In Maryland, Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley's singular obsession with passing extreme gun-control laws has Beretta USA, maker of the standard-issue U.S. military pistol, considering a move. That would leave its 400 employees looking for work and deliver a massive blow to local suppliers. Likewise, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has Remington Arms Co. and its 1,300 employees looking at moving out.
Last week, the Colorado House passed several radical gun control laws, including a measure that would impose an arbitrary limit on ammunition magazines. That's bad news for the Erie-based manufacturer of standard-capacity AR-15 magazines and other accessories for modern sporting rifles. Magpul was one of two dozen companies Texas Gov. Rick Perry, a Republican, has personally reached out to, urging the firm to "consider relocating your manufacturing operations to a state that is more business-friendly."
The firearms industry is one of the few that has enjoyed growth during the Obama administration. In just the last two years, gunmakers have created more than 37,000 new jobs. It makes no sense to smother opportunity with gun-control ideas that, when tried in the past, failed to deliver any benefit to public safety. While the national unemployment rate stands at a lofty 7.9 percent, gun control makes even less sense.
Emily Miller is a senior editor for the Opinion pages at The Washington Times.


About Warbringer: There are three artists by this name. 1) Warbringer is an American thrash metal band from Ventura, California formed in 2004. Current members consist of John Kevill as vocals, John Laux and Adam Carroll on guitar, Andy Laux on bass, and Carlos Cruz behind the drums. They have released two full length studio albums, the latest being "Waking into Nightmares" in 2009, which was produced by Gary Holt of Exodus.


It`s understandable that new property investors are generally also new to property management. It's also understandable that CREW online -- courtesy of award-winning real estate professional Shannon Murree -- would provide them the ultimate tip sheet for mastering both.
One of the top tips and advice to give a new real estate investor, or those of you starting out, is to do your research! Whether it's a single or multi-family home, don't cut corners when getting into the investment game. It's important to know what the expectations are for landlords and tenants in your area and jurisdiction.
Laws vary from province to province and when you're first starting out, even though it can be overwhelming initially, do your research because otherwise trial and error could be extremely costly.
Whether you choose to self-manage or hire a property manager – you're going to be on the hook. Even if you hire a property manager, be involved, don't be afraid to ask questions and ask to be bcc'd on correspondence or have status reports until you're comfortable and gain more experience.
Afterall, you'll need to manage your manager. Everything he/she does impacts you directly and at the end of the day, "I didn't know" when faced with a fine for violation of a bylaw is not a plausible defence. Your name, as landlord and owner is on everything. Failing to do so, you'll get out of the investment game quickly and not have given yourself a fair shot.
If hiring a property manager, rely on referrals and not just a company's website or a convincing Kijiji ad applauding multiple years of "combined" service in the industry. Most importantly, find out whether the principals and representatives in the management company are themselves investors.That makes a difference.
Shannon P. Murree is a sales representative and property manager with RE/MAX Chay Realty Inc. Brokerage, and Canadian Real Estate Wealth's Top Real Estate Agent of the Year, 2013.


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Data Privacy and Information Security:
Verint understands the importance of handling information assets, respecting the rights of individuals, and compliance with data privacy laws. When we obtain personal data for our own business purposes, our Privacy Policy explains how we collect personal data, the purposes for which data is used, and our compliance procedures. For example:
Where we collect personal data about our customer prospects, we are clear this is with consent and we set out the purposes for which personal data will be used
We do not process data about children
We do not sell our customers' personal data to third-parties
The policy also explains how to contact us in the event of concerns or questions regarding privacy rights.
Verint is committed to the protection of our data and third-party data through the implementation of technological and organizational measures designed to reduce risk of data theft or destruction. These measures include:
The adoption of best practices frameworks for our cybersecurity program, including SOC 2, PCI-DSS, ISO 27001, and NIST CSF
Certifications or conformance for applicable products and services, including SOC 2, PCI-DSS, ISO 27001, and HIPAA
The adoption of best practices frameworks by applicable partners, including SOC 2 and FedRAMP
Experienced personnel with certifications that include Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Information Systems Management (CISM), and Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA)
Independent third-party verification of risk management standards for portions of our products and services, with planned expansion in the future.
See how to report security vulnerabilities