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Willmore twater page is up. @willmoredgcFollow the progress and keep up to date on anything Willmore DGC related. Doh put Rob Nahlik down on the list. Both of us will be assisting in TDing and playing at the same time. I have a few local CTP sponsors for food and drink so far. My goal is to have a good CTP on every hole for this first one.
We just need to say this clearly right now, so there is no question, confusion or debate at the time of the event.
NO ALCOHOL IS ALLOWED IN ST. LOUIS CITY PARKS.The St. Louis Disc Golf Club has a permit which allows consumption of alcohol that we provide. That alcohol can only be consumed at the shelter. Period.
So, do not bring your own alcohol to this event and do not, for any reason, leave the shelter with the beer that will be provided at the event. The club is held responsible for any player caught outside of the shelter area with beer that we provided and could result in the loss of our permit with the city. For this reason, any player caught breaking this rule, will be ejected from the tournament without a refund.
Sorry to be the "heavy hand", but it is a necessity for ensuring the future of our relationship with the outstanding City of St. Louis and showing them respect for opening the opportunity for this (and hopefully other) disc golf in the city limits.
Hey who do I talk to about buying a fundraiser disc? I've already got $ down for the Rolla B-tier that Saturday but I'm willing to buy a fundraiser disc. Also, I can probably get some TGIFridays certificates to put up for CTP or whatever. If you guys are interested. Let me know.
Milos3 wrote:Hey who do I talk to about buying a fundraiser disc? I've already got $ down for the Rolla B-tier that Saturday but I'm willing to buy a fundraiser disc. Also, I can probably get some TGIFridays certificates to put up for CTP or whatever. If you guys are interested. Let me know.
Donations for the CTP Extravaganza are awesome! If you can pull off some gift certificates, that would be sweet! We can probably work out a trade...
^Kevin, this event will be the opening round for WIllmore. Registration is not full.We will be working as much as we can between now and then to make sure it is ready for all of you to play.
The previous trial events at Willmore were a result of moving the JB Nooner over to Willmore. A little over $400 was raised at the so dubbed "Super Nooners"... out of the over $10,000 that the course will cost us (that is without tee pads or actual tee signs). This event, should it actually manage to fill to 90 players, will raise $180 for the course fund and an extra $450 from the commerative discs (a big thank you to Gateway!). That will give us about $1100 in fundraiser based money towards this course.
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Project Management
QAi Quality Assurance inc. understands the investment you have made in establishing your project requirements and the regulatory approvals that have been granted based on those requirements. You can expect our engineering staff to perform an expert review of your project specifications and work with you and your suppliers to clarify issues that may be subject to interpretation before they cause costly and unnecessary delays.
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Saturday, March 30, 2013
Nick Spencer On His Supergirl Run
In the aftermath of the Andy Diggle and Joshua Hale Fialkov, other creators who have been editorially squashed by DC Comics have started to come out of the woodwork and fan the flames. One of them was Nick Spencer who lasted one half of one issue on Supergirl, here on Supergirl #60.
The idea for the story was pretty simple: Kara learns how to be a
leader. She had, to that point, been almost exclusively used as either a
solo character, or in a supporting role on a team. I felt like someone
wearing that ‘S’ on their chest would find people looking to them for
answers when things got bad.The story beats that really stand out, to me:I know I wanted to have a scene where the fight gets really hectic,
and Impulse runs away, with Kara really calmly and sympathetically
talking to her about it, just the two of them, in the aftermath. That
was supposed to be the big moment that Kara comes into her own.The entire team (except for Kara) were gonna get captured, and Kara
would go to Superman, Batman,and Wonder Woman for advice— and from
there, putting together ANOTHER team to rescue them (I forget who all
was on that one- Black Alice, Klarion, Shining Knight, Arrowette, I
think).The whole thing would climax at the launch party for the Flyover app,
and the last scene was Impulse pulling Damian onto the dancefloor.
So I don't know exactly what here was so objectionable to the editors. My guesses? The villain was to be a Luthor/Brainiac hybrid which might have been being saved for Superman. Or maybe this story, creating a team, losing a team, talking to the Trinity, creating a new team, saving the day was deemed too cumbersome?
With blood in the water, every major comic site covered Spencer's news and used it to prove DC editorial overreach existed back then ... even though there was not as much news of editorial overreach back then. We didn't hear these stories then which makes me think something must have been amiss for this to have happened. Now I do fault DC for giving the reins to Spencer too early if they hadn't heard all the details of his story. Isn't that the role of editors?
As for that issue, the one thing that struck me about it was that a lot of time was spent showcasing not only 'Alex' (the villain) but his college friends. It seemed overly long and wasted space, almost like Spencer needed to show how pithy and snappy his dialogue could be. Those kids weren't part of the big story so why do I care that one of them has a new girlfriend?
Anyways, given the feeding frenzy against DC (something I am taking part of) I am not surprised to see how many people have come out and said 'I would have read that story about Kara becoming a leader!'
Yeah?? Where were you back then??
Because the truth is, James Peaty's story, which picked up after Spencer left, did just that. So they should go back and get the back issues because there are some great moments in Peaty's story. And the art by Bernard Chang is so beautiful. I have reviewed those issues (Supergirl #60-64) on this site so folks can go to those posts if they want. But let me give you some highlights.
Here is Damien Wayne telling Jaime that he is listening to Kara because she has proven to be a true leader. She has passed his internal test of earning respect. Damien!!
And then in the battle with Dubbilex (the stand in for the Lex/Brainiac villain), Miss Martian admits that she looked up to Supergirl ... was in awe of her.
Best yet, the whole counterattack against Dubbilex has been masterfully orchestrated by Supergirl. Despite all his intelligence and planning, he is soundly beaten by Kara. He was simply 'outsmarted'.
Look at how strong Supergirl looks as she sort of rubs in her victory.
And in the end, Supergirl knows she is ready. She is the leader of her generation and ready to take a place in the majors.
So if you are saying 'I missed out on a great story' because of Nick Spencer's post, go find this arc.
Anyways, hopefully DC gets there act together and lets creators breathe a bit.
9 comments:
Gear
said...
I enjoyed this when it was published in the monthlies. I think we all knew there was more to the story at the time when Spencer left. This certainly sounds like an interesting storyline, and it would have been nice to see the continued character development he implies was going to happen. Dan Didio mentioned prior to the reboot that Supergirl seemed too mature, which may be why DC didn't continue in this direction and instead gave us an angry hothead. I always wondered why anyone would expect a character to remain the same after a writer puts them through a series of life-changing events like the New Krypton arc, but maybe that's why I don't write comics.
This arc and the final DeConnick three issue arc at Stanhope College were going to be collected in the "SUPERGIRL Vol 10: Good-Looking Corpse" trade paperback, but that was cancelled so readers will have to either look for the back issues or buy them on Comixology:http://www.comixology.com/Supergirl-2005-2011/comics-series/368?pg=2http://www.comixology.com/Supergirl-2005-2011/comics-series/368?pg=3
This is nothing but a sad reminder of how far the current Supergirl is from Spencer/Peaty. Gates incarnation.Would anyone deign to follow the current Supergirl in a crisis?Hell no, she has a proven record for choosing the wrong side when push came to shove.What team would take her on a probational basis now?
Well it's been a long time since I've last posted a response on this blog. I don't often get involved in discussions on the internet as I've been content to simply be an observer to events as they unfold. This story arc written by Peaty was a very memorable one to me personally because if you recall, I first got to meet Bernard Chang when he was working on the layouts for issue 64 at my local comic store and one of my ideas for a scene in the issue actually made it onto the book itself. Getting to take part in but a small piece of the creative process is something that I will never forget and as a fan of Supergirl, I could not have been more happier. Reading this post only makes me miss the former DC universe and the characterizations that were once displayed ever more so. It is truly unfortunate that we have now ended up in this sad state of affairs within the industry and while I still continue to follow Supergirl in the New 52, I feel that much of the joy that we all shared as fans is now lost.
Speaking of which, you're probably gonna hate me for this Anj but I've been attending Wondercon this weekend in Anaheim, CA and I got to witness the premere of Superman: Unbound two nights ago as of this writing. While I won't reveal the plot details all I can say is, you're gonna be in for a real treat!
I think Peaty did try to salvage what he could from Spencer's story but my understanding is that there was a rough outline and not much else.
It is a bummer that these weren't put in a trade. They are the end of that Supergirl and show how much she had grown from the hotheaded unlikeable Kara in the early issues.
And yes, right now the Supergirl of the DCnU would not be followed. But by issue 18 of the old series the same was true. She had fought heroes, shot her classmates on Krypton, and brought down Air Force One.
In my recent digital comics binge, I read the last two arcs of the old Supergirl series, including this one and DeConnick's. I thought Peaty's was great and loved the characterisation of Supergirl in it.
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-writer-
I Made It to Santiago!
Uncharacteristically speechless, so until I can properly unpack, I’ll just share the most perfect words my eyes have ever seen, which perfectly describe my Camino…
“Still, there are times I am bewildered by each mile I have traveled, each meal I have eaten, each person I have known, each room in which I have slept. As ordinary as it all appears, there are times when it is beyond my imagination.” (Jhumpa Lahiri)
Oozing with love, appreciation and gratitude for this experience and everyone who supported and shared in it.
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Mark Canha To Undergo Season-Ending Hip Surgery
Athletics first baseman/outfielder Mark Canha will undergo season-ending surgery to repair an impingement in his left hip, he told the media today (links to Twitter via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle and via John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group). Canha tells reporters that his season is over, as he’ll have a recovery timeline of roughly six months following the operation.
Canha, 27, was a Rule 5 success story for Oakland last season. The Rockies were the club to actually select Canha in the 2014 Rule 5 Draft, but the Rox promptly traded him to Oakland in exchange for minor leaguer Austin House and cash considerations. The A’s carried Canha on the active roster all throughout the 2015 season and were rewarded with 485 plate appearances of a .254/.315/.426 batting line and 16 homers. However, the 2016 season has been another story entirely, due largely to the hip problems, which Canha has previously called a source of “excruciating” pain while batting. He was said late last week to be weighing this operation and made his decision after receiving a second opinion on the injury yesterday. Hickey tweets that the procedure will be performed next Tuesday.
Canha will presumably spend the bulk of the season on the 60-day disabled list for Oakland, where he’ll accrue Major League service time. Because he made his MLB debut on Opening Day last season and spent the entire year on the roster, he’ll finish the 2016 campaign with an even two years of service. That means he’ll be controllable through the 2020 season and will not be eligible for arbitration until the 2017-18 offseason.
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Speaking of ads on Facebook and its subsidiaries, looks like big FB is prepping video ads for your news feed. There’s more:
In what’s sure to be a controversial move, the visual component of the Facebook video ads will start playing automatically – a dynamic known as “autoplay” – according to two of the executives. Facebook is still debating whether to have the audio component of the ads activated automatically as well, one of these people said.
Thus dashing my dream that autoplay would join <blink> in the trash heap of markup history.
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How to Build a Game #60 All Good Things Need an Ending…Eventually
How do you decide your game has reach its end point? Do you set a list of goals and when players get there, the game is over? Do you set the end game conditions very early in the design process?
When we started designing games we had a weird habit of never thinking about how our games would end during the initial design phase. We would get to our first play tests and very often we would have no idea how that game was going to end. At first I thought it was just part of our design style. What we have learned is that it is a major design advantage for us when it comes to the initial design phase and our early play tests.
Takes Away a Limiting Variable
When we are thinking about what we want a game to do, we never factor in end game conditions. I think a problem designers run into is the idea that you set a target and design to meet that target. During the design of the guts of the game there might come a point where you have to say “We can’t do that because that will take us too far away from the end game conditions.” I think that really hurts a game and really takes away from a designer’s ability to be free flowing with their ideas.
What happens when you decide the game will work better as a card game, rather than a game using a board? Do the pre-set end game conditions still work? What if you decide to drop an entire mechanic early in the process, can you still keep those pre-set conditions?
There are a lot of factors that can change in the course of designing a game. There are a lot of places your design can go and setting end game conditions early in the process can have the effect of being irrelevant or cause your game to miss its full potential because you had to cut an idea that did not work with your end goals.
Advantages
We have found there are two major advantages to designing with no end goals to start. Determine value of goods and we can set the time we want players to play.
If you have any comments or questions, leave a comment here or email Chris at [email protected]
If you have made it this far, would you like to go a little farther? We have a regular Google hangout with other designers. We talk about the games we are working on and share helpful tips and ideas on how to make designing our game easier. We meetup every other Saturday. Either comment here or tweet me or email me and I will add you to the list and send you a link to the Google hangout.
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Hello, beauties! How have you been? Lately, I'm so obsessed with menswear style. And I decided to style another outfit in a black and white combination. Generally speaking, for menswear style you wear very boxy or oversized clothes, but I wanted to keep my feminine silhouette by wearing Cres. E. Dim wool cropped pants and a touch color using a floral mini bag by Nicole Lee. Also, last week, I got a super sexy Public Desire heels in black and thought that they would fit nicely into this outfit. Let me know in the comments section below if you would like to see more men's style.
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Christy Beck, with the Superior Upper Peninsula Chapter of the American Red Cross, joined us today to give a local perspective to relief efforts in Haiti following the massive earthquake that hit there recently. She told us about a way to text a message and that would make a $10 donation to the relief effort. To do so, simply text “HAITI” to 90999. The $10 amount will be added to your next phone bill. To listen to Christy’s interview, please click “HERE“. To connect with the American Red Cross website and make an online donation, please click “HERE“. This is a good opportunity for those of us who want to help can do so in a quick and easy way.
ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND, BUT REMEMBER THOSE WHO NEED HELP.
Be sure to help out this weekend if you can. Help out the earthquake effort, or just help out at home. Whatever it takes, just do it!
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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.comments2015-02-09T19:21:16.749-06:00Setting Things StraightSilas Bartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-79137781353371277062015-02-09T19:21:16.749-06:002015-02-09T19:21:16.749-06:00The only rights WRT to radio waves are the rights ...The only rights WRT to radio waves are the rights of the receivers, who have every right to object when the operation of their listening devices are disrupted by radio interference. As with everything else, their rights concern their scarce, real property (in this case, their radios). It is their right to say what the use of their property will be. This is indeed subjective, as is every preference. And they can easily show harm (e.g. I tried to listen to FreeTalkLive and it cut out halfway through, playing the State of the Union ... or some such)<br /><br />This is simply a noise pollution issue, and it should be handled the same way.<br /><br />As for IP, it is not much like radio waves. Radio waves are functionally finite. IP is not. IP binds the hands of people universally, whereas radio interference can be as local as wifi or bluetooth (less than 100 ft). Further, radio waves are real things that travel and vibrate in finite ways. They compress and expand relative to a moving observer. They excite particles that they contact. Information is not at all like that. It is not real in and of itself.Jake Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-64302802882017539602015-02-09T19:19:22.875-06:002015-02-09T19:19:22.875-06:00This comment has been removed by the author.Unknownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-67435102749510301002014-12-25T07:15:29.491-06:002014-12-25T07:15:29.491-06:00A special thanks for this informative post. I defi...A special thanks for this informative post. I definitely learned new stuff here I wasn't aware of !eSignaturehttp://[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-26454174680819855142014-12-25T07:06:20.157-06:002014-12-25T07:06:20.157-06:00Grateful to check out your website, I seem to be a...Grateful to check out your website, I seem to be ahead to more excellent sites and I wish that you wrote more informative post for us. Well done work.<br />electronic signature FAQhttp://www.arx.com/information/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-75195664214878909052014-11-30T07:14:51.665-06:002014-11-30T07:14:51.665-06:00nice article...
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Very much appreciated, bookmarked, I can’t wait for more!digital certificateshttp://www.arx.com/information/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-11421915862467265262013-12-28T09:47:50.579-06:002013-12-28T09:47:50.579-06:00That's really good stuff. My buddies at work w...That's really good stuff. My buddies at work will definitely be awestruck ! Thanks for sharing.in page analyticshttp://www.clicktale.com/why-clicktale/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-88393676468827836642013-11-24T14:55:49.828-06:002013-11-24T14:55:49.828-06:00Land income is a form of income, although in the p...Land income is a form of income, although in the post I emphasized capital and labor.<br /><br />Still, I agree that I haven't proven that a carbon tax shift is welfare-worsening (and don't even think the case is strong); this was just to show how it's possible, which I didn't believe before I read the articles and connected the implicit insights they relied upon.<br /><br />OTOH, I think it's a mistake to claim that land owners bear most of the cost. The reason that fossil fuel owners are able to charge so much is because those fuels amplify the productivity of labor and capital, and so the latter are what carbon taxes mostly "chase back" to.Silas Bartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-2205341081978556362013-11-24T11:34:46.908-06:002013-11-24T11:34:46.908-06:00This is interesting and makes intuitive sense, but...This is interesting and makes intuitive sense, but you state that the carbon tax will primarily incident on income. It would seem intuitively that the carbon tax would largely be incident on land, particularly land with coal, oil, and gas deposits thereon. <br /><br />While some sources of carbon-based fuel use a very large amount of capital and labour per barrel (the Bakken field in N. Dakota and the oil sands in Alberta), many more, such as almost all the extraction in Saudi Arabia and the gulf states, are large rents achieved by landowners of oil-rich land. Incidence of a tax would seem to fall on them in the form of lower market prices for their oil, which are still in excess of marginal cost of extraction. Peter Hurleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-86683586664037007902013-11-20T16:25:04.330-06:002013-11-20T16:25:04.330-06:00Thanks for the feedback. Can we expect to see a f...Thanks for the feedback. Can we expect to see a follow-up? I think my version conveys the intuition pretty well.Silas Bartahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-62415628331498142872013-11-19T13:34:16.325-06:002013-11-19T13:34:16.325-06:00Now that I've read and thought more about it, ...Now that I've read and thought more about it, I think your summary here is good, and I also agree that (1) is important.<br /><br />I would only say, in conclusion, that you seem to go out of your way to find conflict. You said that "Bob insists" that (1) was unnecessary, when what I actually wrote was:<br /><br />"Silas, I have to think about your approach a bit, but in the meantime: Is your “Insight 1″ necessary? It’s true, but I don’t think you need it."Bob Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-69100180412063474002013-10-19T01:07:47.039-05:002013-10-19T01:07:47.039-05:00The only reason I got a combined elbow/barb is to ...The only reason I got a combined elbow/barb is to be extra safe and avoid having one extra connection.<br /><a href="http://www.veritasmechanical.com" rel="nofollow">AC Repair Pearland</a>Johnson Smithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-89135985988870941842013-10-17T01:06:51.025-05:002013-10-17T01:06:51.025-05:00Now that's a decent set-up of your computer! I...Now that's a decent set-up of your computer! I bet that playing your favorite game in that console will truly be awesome!Peter Griffinhttp://[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-3876848742212810542013-09-27T03:53:57.149-05:002013-09-27T03:53:57.149-05:00I learned about the recent spike and crash in bitc...I learned about the recent spike and crash in bitcoins more fully, opening my eyes to the instability of the market. <br /><a href="http://www.indoorairinc.com/" rel="nofollow">Air conditioning contractors Bellaire , TX</a>Air conditioning Service Bellaire TXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-74191331122902630122013-08-28T12:00:17.226-05:002013-08-28T12:00:17.226-05:00I have been to your blog before. The more I visit,...I have been to your blog before. The more I visit, the more I keep coming back! ;-)<br /><a href="http://www.camheating.com/" rel="nofollow">air conditioner installation in toronto</a><br />Laura jaydenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-84893340038190642722013-08-21T04:29:59.947-05:002013-08-21T04:29:59.947-05:00Power supplies would be the least of your troubles...Power supplies would be the least of your troubles financially.<br /><a href="http://www.ferrugiamechanical.com/ac-repair-montgomery-tx.html" rel="nofollow">Ac Service Montgomery</a>ferrugiamechanicalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-1145198247762305957.post-58412820526984001332013-08-07T23:42:18.437-05:002013-08-07T23:42:18.437-05:00The only reason I got a combined elbow/barb is to ...The only reason I got a combined elbow/barb is to be extra safe and avoid having one extra connection (between the elbow and its barb).<br /><a href="http://www.bellaireair.com" rel="nofollow">A Service River Oaks</a>bellaireairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]
|
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Friday, December 30, 2016
**
A reader requested that we examine the book The Ultimate Heresy
by Rodger Cragun, which we will do in two installments over the next
two issues. The peculiar stance of this book is that the concept of
Biblical inerrancy is a heresy.
Cragun, not surprisingly, has more than a few problems with his approach and overall theory.
First, Cragun spends an inordinate amount of time -- about half
of the book -- showing from the Bible itself that the Bible is never
called "the Word of God, " and showing that the phrase, when used,
refers to something else, like a single specific prophecy.
Really now.
For those who may have missed it, I discovered that without Cragun's help some time ago:
The Bible as "Word of God." KNM has insisted that Skeptics have
"always" as their "underlining (sic) issue" whether the Bible is the
Word of God. I have replied that this is not my own focus in argument; I
concern myself rather with whether the Bible's contents are true,
logical, or practical. If it is on all counts, then it being the "Word
of God" is simply, as it were, a cherry on top, but contributes nothing
new in utilitarian terms.
A relevant observation here is that designating the Bible to be
the "Word of God" is itself a post-Biblical phenomenon. An apostle or
prophet who heard that phrase would not have thought of a book, but
rather, of the transcendant thoughts and words of YHWH. It could
certainly have not meant the whole Bible prior to its completion and
compilation, and when the phrase “word of God” is used in the Bible, it
always means some specific prophetic utterance, or some message (like
the Gospel).
This would of course include what is within the contents of the
Bible; but as well, "Word of God" implies a universality of application
that simply is not true of much of the text. In precise terms, for
example, the book of Zephaniah could be said to report the words of God
TO Zephaniah concerning judgment on specific nations. As I have noted
many times, this is symptomatic of modern Sunday School lessons that
strive mightily to make even books like Leviticus applicable to modern
life -- which is a mistake.
In that respect, while we may not necessarily find it fruitful to
abandon "Word of God" as a designation for the Bible as a whole, and I
would not advocate doing so because of the confusion it would cause at
this late date, it does represent an anachronism that should be
clarified. In a proper technical sense, the collection we call the Bible
represents two collections of covenant documents, and so "Old
Testament" and "New Testament" are actually more precise and helpful
than "Word of God".
And so, as I have told KNM, the concern should not be, "is the
Bible the Word of God." More than that, it should not even be whether it
is "from God," but rather, the more basic questions of whether it is
true, logical, practical, and so on as applicable. The former way is a
carryover, I suspect, of the work of well-meaning evangelists and
teachers (like Billy Graham) who were accustomed to being able to invoke
the Bible as "the Word of God" and get immediate respect and authority.
It worked well for a time, but it no longer does. But if we show that
the Bible is true, then one is able to open the door to the possibility
that God’s messages have in some way been transmitted in the text as a
medium.
To illustrate, one might say that this posting is the “word of
JPH” or “from JPH.” But the truth of the post does not in any way depend
on it being MY word, as opposed to that of, say, Tekton ministry
associates like Nick Peters or “Punkish." If you decide my "word" here
is true -- you can worry about whether it is from me later...or even not
at all, if you choose.
Not that any of this matters, since it is hard to see what point
Cragun thinks he is proving in the first place. While some modern
preachers may use the shorthand phrase, "the Word of God," to refer to
the Bible, only an infantile Christian would fail to see that to use
this as an argument that the Bible is the Word of God is circular
reasoning. Thus, in essence, Cragun spends about half his book knocking
down an exceptionally infantile argument.
A far better "argument" for inerrancy -- though more of a common
sense notion than an actual argument -- would be a syllogism Cragun
presents all too briefly:
God is perfect.
What God thinks is perfect.
From that which God thinks He reveals to people.
What He reveals to people must therefore be perfect.
Unfortunately, Cragun doesn't deal with this syllogism except to
dismiss it as, "Aristotelian logic." The last I checked, though, logic
did not function only in Aristotle's presence. Nor did the Hebrews have
their own brand of logic proffered by someone else. Notions like cause
and effect were not inoperable in ancient Israel. So, what Cragun thinks
is the point in his citing of "Aristotelian logic" is hard to say.
In the end, Cragun's screed against inerrancy is a straw man.
Even if the Bible was not inspired, it contains multiple truth claims
that would remain to be evaluated and argued for or against. As we shall
see next issue, however, arguing the virtues of individual passages is
precisely one of the most difficult tasks for Cragun, and to that extent
he is also using the shortcut of the designation of the Bible as the
"Word of God" in much the same way as the fundamentalists he so decries.
Another aspect of Cragun's case amounts to this, if I may dare to frame it in Aristotelian terms:
The Bible contains X horrible thing, and also some of these horrible things hurt my feelings or offend me.
Therefore the Bible is not inerrant.
Here again, however, robust failure is Cragun's chief methodology.
The second half of the book contains many more examples than the first
half, so we will save coverage of particulars for next issue. For now,
let it only be said that in each case, Cragun ironically reads the Bible
just like the very inerrantists he decries -- devoid of context and
definition.
We might also note an error from earlier in the book, one that
exemplifies Cragun's ineptness as a researcher. In one place, Cragun
makes the naive statement that, "Some of the bloodiest humanity's
conflicts have been religious." [1] Really? In reality, religion has
been behind very, very few wars. It was certainly not behind any of the
major wars of the 20th century. Here, Cragun is like the ignorant
stockbroker in Crichton's Timeline who has to be told that the
Hundred Years' War wasn't religious, because everyone at the time was
Catholic, and Protestants hadn't invented themselves yet.
We should also mention another variation on Cragun's theme, which
goes to the heart of why he thinks inerrancy is a heresy. Basically, he
believes that inerrancy has caused people to enforce the Bible's
horrible teachings, and indicates that if it were not for inerrancy, we
wouldn't be doing intolerant things like opposing gay marriage. He also,
rather foolishly, blames inerrancy for the creation of many divisions
in the church. In this, Cragun has fallen for the naive approach of
blaming the instrument for the acts of the person using the instrument.
It does not occur to him that even a believer in an errant Bible can
deem the Bible authoritative on select points. After all, even Cragun
himself uses the Bible in an authoritative way to argue that it does not
call itself "the Word of God." And so, Cragun's designation of
inerrancy as a "heresy," even if correct, would be nothing more than a
simple-minded band-aid solution that would shift, not erase, the problem
that he alleges is occurring.
A final point for this round is that Cragun tackles the sort of
"inerrancy" that is also devoid of context, which we have previously
condemned from authors as notable as Dr. Norman Geisler. How he would
handle a more informed and contextualized rendition of inerrancy is
difficult to say. The one thing we can say is that he is apparently too
busy being offended to bother to look for alternatives.
Friday, December 16, 2016
The ink isn't dry yet on the ballots, but we already have the inevitable arising: People are saying that Donald Trump is the Antichrist.
Now let me make something clear: I didn't vote for Trump. I didn't vote for Clinton, either: Mrs. H and I were so disgusted by the available choices that we both voted for some third party candidate who went by "Rocky." I was tempted to write in Donald...as in Donald Duck.
But whatever you may think of Trump, it's more than a little silly to claim that he's the Antichrist. Actually, the reasons people are giving to think this have all been done before -- about Ronald Reagan, Prince Charles, and a host of other figures.
For that reason, I decided to make my next ebook project about this subject. It's not very long, and it won't be out until next week. But it does appear to be a badly needed topical discussion.
More broadly, it shows yet another example of Christians needing to learn from the past. In one of my recent videos, I showed that the "ten nation confederation" of Revelation has been variously identified as European nations, barbarian tribes, Communist nations, and most recently, Islamic nations. Have a look.
This "Trump as Antichrist" thing is just another end times switcheroo game of the sort we've been playing for years.
Friday, September 9, 2016
You may have seen billboards for a ministry that uses the
title, “I Am Second.” It’s a sort of collection of personal testimonies, and
we’re to presume, I gather, that the meaning is that God is first. I’m
certainly not here to disagree with the general thrust of that sentiment, but I
will be borrowing that ministry’s catchphrase to celebrate, with a certain
amount of humble trepidation, a milestone that I never expected to happen when
I first sat down at a computer to debate Skeptics on AOL debate forums in 1996.
By 1998, many of you may remember, I was part of another
online ministry called the Christian Apologetics Bookshelf. Somewhere in that
time period, someone suggested to me that I might try submitting an article to
the Christian Research Journal (CRJ), the leading apologetics magazine. My
memory is somewhat dim on the chronic details; I seem to recall that by then I
had already been approached by Dr. Jonathan Sarfati of Creation Ministries
International to write something for their journal.
(By the way, Dr. Sarfati has remained a good friend ever
since; we’ve even had him over for dinner, and once took him to Outback
Steakhouse, where we had a ball passing him off as a sort of ambassadorial
inspector who was visiting from Australia to make sure that the chain was
“properly representing” his home nation. The look on the server’s face when Dr.
Sarfati whipped out his Australian drivers’ license was priceless.)
I had some hesitation about submitting something to CRJ, and
hedged for a bit. The stellar names who wrote for that august publication were
an imposing lot, and I had very little thought that I would pass their rigorous
standards for publication. Still, I was encouraged by various parties to give
it a try, and I did so. The result was an article titled, “Celsus Strikes
Again,” which was all about how the ancient pagan critic Celsus made the same
arguments that modern critics of Christianity do. I packaged it up, sent it
off, and waited.
I didn’t hear back.
Naturally, I assumed that my work simply hadn’t passed
editorial muster, and I moved on to other things, including more work for CMI.
Then, sometime I think in early 2000, I got a phone call. On
the other end was Elliot Miller, the editor of the Journal. I remember very
little of the exact words of our conversation, but what it amounted to was,
they had found my article in a file somewhere, and wanted to publish it. The
few exact words I do remember were me saying, “I can’t believe this is
happening” – more than once. And in turn, Elliot Miller replying: “It’s
happening.” And indeed it did.
After that it was a sort of snowball effect. Bob Passantino,
who was then associated with CRI, called me about a year later after reading my
analysis of Dennis MacDonald’s Homeric Epics and the Gospel of Mark. He wanted
me to create a condensed version for the Journal. That was the first time
someone there called me to write something for them.
The next two articles were my own submissions: A look at
popular Mormon apologetics works (like those of Barry Bickmore) and a
discussion of how evangelism in the book of Acts was actually a form of apologetics.
One assignment shortly after that was a particularly sad one. Bob Passantino
called me again, asking me to do an article on The DaVinci Code. He passed away
soon thereafter, and as far as I know, I’m the last person he called to give a
writing assignment.
From there it went on with an eclectic mix of submissions
and assignments: Several book reviews, a few “departmental” articles, and
several “feature-length” articles. My memory of most of them, at this later
date, is fairly dim, such that I can re-read them today and not even recall
writing them. Tekton readers will recognize some of the topics as related to
favorite themes of mine: E.g., an article on how to deal with people who
suffered from “the Dunning effect”; on the question of Hitler’s religious
beliefs; a review of Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes; an article on how
“inerrancy” is to be defined, and a review of the Zeitgeist movie.
(That last one is the butt of a special joke among friends
of mine. I had pledged, at one time, to never watch the Zeitgeist movie, and
Nick Peters, my junior ministry partner, along with his friend David Sorrell,
started a running gag asking when I would review the Zeitgeist movie. When I
finally did watch it, in order to write the article for CRJ, the terms of the
joke changed, but the joke itself didn’t.)
CRI also made use of my knowledge in other, more specialized
areas. In 2005, knowing that I had worked for many years in the Florida prison
system, they asked me to do an article on religious movements in prisons. In
2011, I used my background in library science to compose an article which in
many ways I consider my favorite and most technical: it was about how the
Internet affects the human brain, and how this relates to the performance of
apologetics. Also in 2011, I submitted an article that was all about how to
create online videos.
It was about that time, in 2011, that something first occurred
to me. I had been averaging between 2-3 articles for CRI each year, and it made
me curious as to whether anyone else had kept that kind of pace with them. So I
started with the contents of the magazine from 1978 (when it was still called
“Forward” magazine), counting the number of articles attributed to each author,
excluding anyone who was an editor.
Much to my surprise, I was on pace to become CRI’s
second-most prolific non-editorial writer within a few years. And now, with the
publication of an article in the latest issue, titled “Jephthah’s Bloodless
Sacrifice,” that is exactly what has happened. Formally, I have now authored
enough articles for CRI to pass James White and say, of this category, and with
the same humility that puts God in first place: “I am second.”
I say this, again, with a certain amount of humble
trepidation, much like those on that personal testimony website. It was an unexpected privilege to find myself
in this position, and I will forever be grateful to Elliot Miller, as well as
Melanie Cogdill (the managing editor at the Journal) and Hank Hanegraaff for
making this possible. I never expected to get that first article published; and
even after it was published, I certainly never expected to receive any more
assignments. To be at this stage, now, is a surprise of such magnitude that I
find myself repeating that same phrase I pronounced to Elliot Miller: “I can’t
believe this is happening.” It is. But I still can’t believe it even as I have
that milestone issue lying on the desk beside me.
Elliot in particular has been a special blessing to my wife
and I, and you’ll note that I refer to him by his first name, as though to a
friend. That is exactly what he and his wife Corinne are to us. A few years
back, they moved to the southern part of Florida, and proposed a get-together
in person. Much to our delight, we found in them a couple of kindred spirits
who appreciated many of the same things we do: Nature walks, museums, and zoos,
for example; and naturally, we talk shop about apologetics. We now have an
established biannual ritual where we visit one another in our respective
hometowns: They come see us in May, we go see them in December. The friendship
of the Millers has been, in many ways, the most treasured reward that has come
of my work with CRI, and I look forward to many more years of serving that
publication and visiting with our special brother and sister in faith.
And so this post is offered to memorialize this happy
occasion, which I never in my wildest dreams expected to happen. At the same
time I’m celebrating this milestone, though, there’s also a crueler and darker
mechanism at work which it is time I said a great deal more about, though I
alluded to it back in February. Someone has outright made it his purpose to
destroy all that Tekton has worked for, and he’s not in the least ashamed of
his tactics. I’ll save that, though, for another posting; and that one posting,
when I make it, will be the only one to be made on the Ticker in coming weeks
until I get certain matters resolved.
In close…I guess you’re wondering, if I’m second, who’s
first, and when will I catch up to them? If you’re interested, I’ll tell you by
email who’s first; regardless, I won’t ever catch up to him, nor have I made it
my goal to do so. The man in first place has been writing for CRI for ten years
longer than I have, and he’s got more the double the writing credits with them.
I won’t even try to catch up to him, and I actually prefer to be “second”
behind a far more august name like his.
After all, my original expectation, back in
that yesteryear of 1998, was that I’d never be on that list at all – and who am
I to ask for more than this great blessing that I now have?
Friday, August 26, 2016
In 2013 I did an E-Block series on Chick tracts. It won't transfer here well because I had to use a lot of pictures, but a supplemental article I did later contains a lot of valuable info (without pics) that I thought ought to be preserved in another place.
***
We had a series on Chick tracts a while back,
but there was one subject left that I wanted to append to that series,
but couldn’t, because the article I needed was no longer available. That
article, by Brian Onken, was titled, “Alberto: The Truth About
Alberto,” and it appeared in vol. 4, #2 of Forward magazine. If that
name seems unfamiliar, it’s because that was the title of the Christian Research Journal
in its first few years of publication, back when Walter Martin was at
the helm of CRI. But now, thanks to Elliot Miller, the editor of the Journal,
I was able to look at a copy of this article and make some notes (as an
aside, it may well be the only copy left in the country!).
Onken’s article was about two Chick comics, “Alberto” and “Double
Cross,” that supposedly relate the history of Alberto Rivera, who is
Jack Chick’s chief source for anti-Catholic material. In pursuing the
claims of these comics, Onken at first tried to contact Rivera, without
success. He then tried to contact Chick, but was told that "Jack Chick
would make no reply whatsoever and that he was not answerable to any
man, and that the comic books could stand on their own." I think that
response stands on its own, though not the way Chick thinks it does.
Onken then made phone contact with Rivera, who said "he would not
waste time in what he termed 'personal carnal justification'." Rivera
then said that CRI was in apostasy, that Walter Martin was an
"undercover agent for the Vatican," and that if CRI wanted answers, they
could get them "in a court of law." It’s rather interesting that anyone
who seeks to question Chick ends up being a Vatican employee. Needless
to say, this is merely the same sort of psychological ploy used by all
conspiracy theorists – such as the Zeitgeist movie, or 9-11 truthers,
who take informed dissent as further proof of a cover-up.
Next, Onken did some checking with the Catholic Church, to see if
Rivera had indeed been part of it. No record was found of Rivera as a
bishop or as a Jesuit. More recent Chick comic editions provide a photo
of Rivera allegedly at work as a Catholic priest, but why not play their
own game and say that’s part of their cover-up? But it need not be –
see below.
The recent comics also provide alleged testimonies from two
former Catholics. One, named Clark Butterfield, is reputedly an
ex-priest. His alleged biography, Night Journey from Rome to the New Jerusalem,
was published by Chick, who is alleged to have been called out of
Catholicism in 1978 and died in 1981 – or, some say, murdered in 1981,
though Chick itself doesn’t say this.
Onken then offered a listing of errors in the two comics:
False claims about Catholic teachings include that students
studying for the priesthood cannot read the Bible, and that Mary is
co-equal with the Father.
There are some historical errors as well, such as that Jesuits
were behind the Inquisition (which is not possible, since the Jesuits
were not established until the 1540s, and the Inquisition started in
1198). It is also claimed that Constantine secretly worshipped the sun
god until death.
It is claimed that the acronym INRI stands for Iustum Necar Reges Impios, or, “it is just to exterminate the impious”, rather than Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudearoum. Of course this is mere paranoid fantasy.
Any one, it seems, can be a secret agent for Rome. Kathryn
Kuhlman was one. Jim Jones was secretly a Jesuit deacon (though the
sources Rivera cites actually say Jones was a dupe for the CIA!). It is
claimed that Jones’ "key people were Roman Catholics," but actually,
only 3 of 11 were.
Alberto claims that he attended seminary in Costa Rica, and
refers to a scandal in the girls dorm, and a hunger strike he
masterminded. He also says the seminary is ecumenical, and now "working
with the Roman Catholic Church."
Onken contacted the seminary and a former classmate of Rivera’s, who
apparently did attend the school. To that extent, Rivera does seem to
have told a partial truth; he may well have been a priest, but notably,
the photos provided by Chick do nothing to prove he was a bishop or a
Jesuit. The classmate, in any event, said that "Rivera's account of the
events at the seminary was nothing more than a fraud." There was a
hunger strike, but Rivera had nothing to do with it, and it had never
made the papers as Rivera claimed and was also not related to any Jesuit
conspiracy.
The seminary, too, affirmed the hunger strike, but said it was and is still Reformed, not a part of the Roman Catholic Church.
Onken also contacted the pastor of the Protestant church Rivera
attended (apparently undercover) in Spain. Rivera claimed to have turned
it in to authorities, but the church was not meeting clandestinely as
claimed, and had a government permit.
As a response to all of this, Onken further noted that on May 29,
1981, Rivera went on KBRT in Los Angeles, where he said that Walter
Martin was "working for the Vatican." He later was met personally by
Martin and Onken and when confronted by them, he said he no longer
thought Martin was working for the Vatican. However, the same evening at
a speaking engagement, he reiterated the earlier claim and added that
Martin’s name “was on a secret Jesuit list." He then published a
booklet, “A Call for Total Separation,” allegedly addressing points made
by Onken, but all the booklet did was use reprinted material from the
Alberto comics, plus provide a supposed Jesuit oath. As a final humorous
note, Rivera repeatedly referred to CRI as the "Christian Research
Center" in his statements.
In an ironic twist, the article closes with a remark made by
Rivera at First Baptist Winter Springs, Florida – a town not far from me
– on September 13, 1981. Rivera said that Martin “is dealing with the
same accusations, slander, spreading them all over. The president of the
so-called, you can imagine the title of this organization, the
Christian Research Center. Well, I don't see nothing of Christianity
there, much less of research."
I’d say that such a statement actually better fits Rivera more accurately than CRI.
Friday, August 12, 2016
This weekend Nick Peters and I are supposed to record a podcast where I talk about conspiracy theories. So I decided to use this week to illustrate one with a selection from one of my ebooks on conspiracy theories.
***
Real Jews opposed this design fiercely and suggested that their flag
should instead depict a menorah, pointing out that the hexagram was not even a
Jewish symbol. It has come to be known as the Star of David but is not
mentioned in the Bible at all and was in fact only adopted in the Enlightenment
based on occult ideas from the Kabbalah. Despite the
protests, the Rothschilds were in control of the
operation and the hexagram stayed.
We mentioned
earlier in this book that we wondered what Fairley would have to say about
this, and now we know. Too bad he’s got the history partly wrong. Let's see
what the some reputable sources have to say about this subject.
One of the first
Jewish uses of the Star of David was as part of a colophon, the special emblem
printed on the title page of a book. Sometimes the printer included his family
name in the colophon; or chose an illustration that alluded to his name,
ancestry, or the local prince, or a symbol of success and blessing. The idea
was to differentiate this printer's books from those of his competitors and to
embellish the title page. Colophons are as old as the printing press itself.
According to Sholem, the motive for the widespread use of the Star of
David was a wish to imitate Christianity. During the Emancipation, Jews needed
a symbol of Judaism parallel to the cross, the universal symbol of
Christianity. In particular, they wanted something to adorn the walls of the
modern Jewish house of worship that would be symbolic like the cross. This is
why the Star of David became prominent in the nineteenth century and why it was
later used on ritual objects and in synagogues and eventually reached Poland
and Russia. The pursuit of imitation, in Sholem's
opinion, led to the dissemination of an emblem that was not really Jewish and
conveyed no Jewish message. In his opinion, it was also the reason why the Star
of David satisfied Zionism: it was a symbol which had already attained wide
circulation among the Jewish communities but at the same time evoked no
clear-cut religious associations. The Star of David became the emblem of
Zionist Jews everywhere. Non-Jews regarded it as representing not only the
Zionist current in Judaism, but Jewry as a whole.
Now it is true that the Star of David was used in medieval mysticism,
and it may even have been in use as early as early as the 3rd
century. In the end, the origins of the symbol are uncertain, but this can be
seen as a Jewish instance of triumphant reclamation, as one of the articles
we've consulted says:
The Star of David
is an outstanding example of the variable significance of symbols. The power of
the message they convey stems less from the original use in history. At first
the Star of David had no religious, political, or social connotations
whatsoever. It gained a very powerful connotation precisely as a result of its
terrible abuse by the Nazis.
There’s also nothing to suggest the Rothschilds
had anything to do with the symbol being kept, or that “real Jews” (whatever
that means) opposed it. The same article says:
…Moshe Sharett decided to inquire into Diaspora Jewry's thoughts
about the flag of the State of Israel. On July 20, 1948, he sent cables to Dr. Chaim
Weizmann, who was in
Switzerland at the time; to Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver, in New
York; to Prof. ZeligBrodetsky,
in London; and to the Zionist General Council, in Johannesburg. Rabbi Silver
replied that "we would prefer to leave the Zionist flag as the national
flag of Israel, with a minimum of changes. We feel that the fear of
complications as a result of use of the flag at Zionist gatherings overseas has
been somewhat exaggerated." The other Zionist leaders responded similarly.
After the fears of "dual loyalty" had been alleviated, the
Provisional Council of State voted unanimously on October 28, 1948 to adopt the
Zionist flag as that of the State of Israel. The resolution came into effect
two weeks later, after publication in the Official Gazette.
More details are provided in the essay “Shaping Time: The Choice of
the National Emblem of Israel” by Don Handelman and
Lea Shamgar-Handelman, in Culture Through Time: Anthropological
Approaches. Far from being dictated by the Rothschilds
or anyone else, the flag design was decided based on a contest. The
announcement actually “requested that a seven-branched menorah and seven stars,
each with six gold points, appear in the design, but stated that any proposal
would be given consideration.”
Over 450 designs were submitted. There were apparently some proposals
that included a menorah. Others proposed a hexagram.
The Israeli cabinet chose a couple of flag designs, which it turned
over to Israel’s state council. They chose a menorah design for the emblem and
the Star of David for the flag.
Was there protest over the design? Yes, but not for the reasons
Fairley claims. The original flag design had seven golden six pointed stars,
and it was the seven stars that were the problem. It was dismissed by critics
as an “artificial creation” which showed ignorance of Jewish symbols. At a
meeting on the matter, an archaeologist objected to the use of the Star of
David on the emblem – not the flag -- on the grounds that it wasn’t an ancient
Jewish symbol.
As for the flag itself, Israel’s foreign minister checked with Zionist
groups around the world because he wanted to distinguish the flag from their
flag. In the end, they accepted the same basic design we see today, but changed
the thematic color to dark blue.
Beyond this issue, it is nice to see Fairley show disdain for
anti-Semitism. But he unwittingly caters to it with statements like, “These
so-called Jews are not Jews at all.” That's falling into the same trap of
anti-Semitism he so roundly condemns.
Friday, July 29, 2016
From the May 2013 E-Block.**For Part 2 of our look at Rodger Cragun's The Ultimate Heresy (TUH), which claims that the doctrine of inerrancy is heretical, we first look at examples in which he supposes he has shown that what is found in the text is incompatible with inerrancy. As we have noted last time, however, while what Cragun presents would cause problems for a hyper-fundamentalist view of inerrancy, it would have little bearing on a contextualized understanding of the doctrine. He also presents far fewer arguments than I expected him to provide -- in fact, what he offers amounts to three broad arguments: Jesus broadened or sometimes placed restrictions on the law. This shows that he didn't consider it inerrant.
Cragun offers multiple examples of how Jesus either broadened or narrowed the OT law, but Cragun could have saved himself the trouble, and spared the reader pages of irrelevant examples. As we have noted in numerous contexts, the OT law was didactic, which means that it was never meant to be understood as a wooden, "follow to the letter", procedural handbook. Within that context, the adjustments made by Jesus (and rabbis, as Cragun notes) to the OT law are within the proper bounds of understanding that law as inerrant.
That Cragun fails to understand the didactic nature of the law is shown when he complains that, e.g., Deut. 22:13-22 does not consider that an unmarried girl might have a ruptured hymen for reasons other than that she had sexual intercourse before marriage. A didactic code leaves it to the discretion of local judges and officials to make such determinations.
The NT misuses OT texts like Is. 7:14 as prophecies of Jesus.
Yet again, Cragun unwittingly imitates the worst sort of atheist critic with this charge, and also unwittingly adopts his own fundamentalist hermeneutic of the text. As we have also pointed out in numerous venues, the NT's use of the OT is perfectly in accord with Jewish exegetical methods of the period, in which a text like Is. 7:14 is not seen as a prophecy of the future, but in which present events are seen as a re-enactment of Is. 7:14. That means that the NT is not using texts like Is. 7:14 "out of context," because the idea is that only that single verse is being re-enacted.
There were a lot of different ideas about what should be in the canon.Again, like some of the worst atheists, Cragun appeals to "specter of diversity" arguments as though they have any relevance or merit, which they do not. All they would mean is that humans may not have recognized the contours of what was inspired as inerrant but not that the texts themselves weren’t inerrant. The contours of the canon would have no bearing on the matter, whether the text was inerrant or not. And that, oddly enough, is all Cragun has to offer before he once again returns to the prior non sequitur routine e.g., "inerrancy is a heresy because it has led to divisions." He also offers what he presents as a survey of the historical development of inerrancy as a doctrine, but even if it is 100% correct (and it may well be), it would still be a non sequitur to raise it as though it had any bearing on the truth of the matter. In contrast to the above, I would raise a point of agreement with Cragun. I would agree that 2 Tim. 3:16 would not really bear the exegetical weight put on it by some inerrantist commentators. Cragun spends a great deal of time on this verse, but as far as my views are concerned, all that he offers is moot. We will close with a look at places where Cragun professes to find "loud dissent" with inerrancy within the text of the Bible itself. His first example, which he alleges to be "most decisive and destructive," fails to produce anything but another massive non sequitur. He notes that in Acts, after his vision of a sheet from heaven, Peter acknowledged he was wrong about something; namely, Gentiles in the Kingdom. From this Cragun concludes that he has demonstrated that Peter "could be in error." Oh? By that rubric, if I find one mistake in Cragun's text, we have thereby proved that he could never produce any text without errors -- no matter how short it is, or no matter what the conditions are. Indeed, by that logic, even if he writes "2 and 2 is four" he is immediately under suspicion of error. Cragun's error is again typical of the "all or nothing" mentality of the very fundamentalism he decries. Cragun's next argument is that because some prophets like Jonah were able to resist their prophetic call, they were only human. What bearing this has, again, on inerrancy, and on specific conditions associated with producing an inerrant text, is hard to say, but it would once again place Cragun under suspicion, even if he told us the sky was blue. Third, Cragun points out that some pagans, like Balaam, were inspired. Yet again, we're not sure what the point is. Apparently, Cragun thinks the only way someone could produce an inerrant text is if they were being inerrant on everything 24/7. I know of no one, not even a fundamentalist, who believes such a thing. Fourth, Cragun delivers some arguments against a mechanical view of inspiration. Since I don't hold to such a view, there is nothing for me to address, though there may be something there requiring an address by some fringe fundamentalists. Fifth, Cragun argues that church fathers did not "idolize" the Scriptures, but that is not really the point. What he needs to show is that the church fathers thought Scripture erred. As it is, he can come no closer to this than e.g., Jerome discussing problems in the text (such as Matthew referring to the "thirty pieces of silver" passage in Zechariah -- an issue, by the way, that is easily resolved under Jewish exegetical and citation procedures). Although Jerome discusses the problem, he does not say, "this is an error." What Jerome does do is suppose that e.g., Matthew might be charged with "falsehood" for such things as adding, "I say unto thee" to the translation of "Talitha cumi." But as Cragun admits, this sort of thing comes more of Jerome's perceived neurotic compulsion for detail than from any real problem.
Thus concludes our look at Cragun, and all in all, he could have spared us the trouble of what amounted to his own exercise in neurotic compulsion.
Friday, July 22, 2016
For this week I've got an entry from my e-book answering Mark Fairley's FUEL Project.***I’ll have to be fair here. The idea that Satan’s “biography” is told in Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 isn’t some sort of fringe position. Many serious scholars think it is correct, and I won’t take anything away from them on that account; however, many serious scholars also doubt the identification, and for good reasons. The first and most obvious problem is that this identification of the figures in Isaiah and Ezekiel was first made in the 3rd and 4th century AD, by early Christian writers and notably not by Jews of the Biblical era. Of course, this doesn’t automatically mean it is wrong, but it does place a greater burden of proof on those who say that Satan is in mind in those passages. The passage in Ezekiel is more detailed, and is most often used to support the interpretation of the one in Isaiah, and as such dealing with Ezekiel will address the matter sufficiently. Let’s run through Ezekiel a bit at a time, and we’ll do it from the perspective of anyone who sees all of Ezekiel 28 as referring to Satan, as well as addressing any points unique to Fairley’s report. Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.This portion, by itself, is not determinative. Ancient kings were regarded as the repositories of wisdom, so that’s no reason to identify the person in this passage as anyone but the king of Tyre. What about the beauty of this figure? The king of Tyre possessed significant honor as the leader of one of the wealthiest nations in the ancient world. So, you can be pretty sure he decked himself out appropriately. So, there is no reason to read Satan into this text. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. Here’s where some Satan identifiers get really cooking. Generally, they say that since the literal king of Tyre could not have been in the Garden of Eden, this must be alluding to someone who actually was there. But, that’s not at all the case. Eden for Ezekiel is a type of, or analogus to, the wealthy city of Tyre. The city was a sort of a virtual "paradise" for its residents and for the king of Tyre. In other words, the point is that the luxurious city of Tyre is like Eden in terms of being a comfortable paradise. What about the stones? That could be either a representation of Tyre’s wealth, or else an allusion to the king of Tyre also being a priest, as part of his office. Like Israel’s priests, the pagan priests often wore jewels as part of their outfits.
Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
This passage makes the strongest case for an equation with Satan, since Satan was a cherub, or angel. But the reference to the ruler of Tyre as a "cherub" no more means an actual cherub is in view, than it means a real dragon is in view in the next chapter about Pharaoh (29:3). In reality, cherubs were a key symbol of Phoenician and Tyrian iconography, which means that the ruler of Tyre would also be properly described in terms of a cherub. It’s sort of like the way Americans in the early 20th century described Teddy Roosevelt as a bull moose. Cherubs were Tyre’s “mascots”.
What about the references to a holy mountain and stones of fire? Those represent a puzzle with any interpretation we offer. Those who suggest Satan is the subject are compelled to suggest a vivid anthropomorphism, because obviously, a spirit being is not walking on an actual mountain or among actual stones. On the other hand, if this is the literal king of Tyre, then this could be another allusion to an Edenic paradise, but only from a version of the story the residents of Tyre would be familiar with. The fiery stones, for example, would relate to a story in the pagan Gilgamesh Epic of a garden in which fruit and leaves took the form of jewels. That would be an appropriate image to use of Eden when addressing a pagan king.
Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
In terms of our report so far, this repeats images from above and suggests nothing new, although it is an area where Fairley tries a little too hard to strain Satan out of the account.
If this passage does refer to trade or merchandise, then we have a perfect match for the king of Tyre, which was one of the leading trade cities in the ancient world. In Fairley's view, however, the word we translate here as “merchandise” or “trading” is mistranslated. Rather, he says it means to go up and down as an agitator, or to slander.
That won’t work for a couple of reasons. First the Hebrew word for “merchandise” (rekullah) is used just four times in the Old Testament. All four uses are in Ezekiel, and two of those uses make it quite clear that the word has to do with commercial traffic (26:12, 28:5), not agitation or slander:
And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses: and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water. By thy great wisdom and by thy traffick hast thou increased thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches...
A related verb refers several times to what are obviously commercial merchants (1 Kings 10:15, Neh. 3:32, Ez. 27:3, 13, several times in Ez. 27) So, where does Fairley get this idea that it means “campaigning” or slandering? Fairley doesn’t give his source for this, so I can’t say and will not guess. I did find the same claim repeated in an article by Richard Davidson, and nowhere else except another article by Davidson. That means it’s likely the original source for Fairley’s claim, even if not the direct source. [Richard M. Davidson, "Cosmic Metanarrative for the Coming Millennium," Journal of the Adventist Theological Society 11 (2000) 1-2:108]
In his articles, Davidson tells us that while studying, he came to a “startling and exciting discovery” that the verb related to the word in Ezekiel means, to go about, while the noun derivative means “slanderer” or “talebearer.” Now in fact, that is true. The related word is used in Ezekiel 22:9:
In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.
However, this does nothing to bring the same meaning to the other form of the word used in Ezekiel 28. It is clear that the original root of the word refers to “carrying” or “travelling around.” That’s why we get words from it that refer to both merchants and talebearers: Both are “carrying” something. That in turn means that the only reason to assume that what the figure in Ezekiel 28 “carries around” is slander is because we assume, in the first place, that it must be Satan that Ezekiel is talking about. Unfortunately, that won’t work, both because of the contrary meaning found in the two other clear uses of the same word by Ezekiel, as well as the frequent references to material trade in the prior chapter (Ezekiel 27).
The reality is that serious scholars don’t buy this reading of Ezekiel 28:16, and even those who do think Satan is to be found in Ezekiel 28 are compelled to suggest "a shift of focus back and forth" between the king of Tyre and Satan throughout the chapter.
Fairley tries for a variation on this, seeking to make a distinction between the “prince” of Tyre (28:2) and the “king” of Tyre (28:12), whom he sees as different personages i.e., the first to be a human, the second being Satan. But that doesn’t work either. The word used in verse 2 is a broad one. Though often translated “prince,” it doesn’t carry our connotation of one who is the son of a king. It simply means a leader or ruler, in generic terms. In fact, there are places where it used to designate someone who is obviously a king (1 Sam. 13:12-13, 25:30; 2 Sam 5:2, 1 Kings 14:7). So, those two words will not serve to get two different personages out of Ezekiel 28.
Another point made by Fairley is that the same word used in Ezekiel 28:16 is also found in Leviticus 19:16, where it is translated “talebearer.” But, that’s not the same word at all. It’s what Davidson called the noun derivative, which is also found in Ezekiel 22:9.
Now let's pick up where we last left off with Ezekiel.
Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffic; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
There's little new here. It may be noted that there is little chance that a spirit being will be brought to literal ashes, or will be seen by people. A king, of course, won't likely be made literally ashes either. Saying you’ll turn someone to “ashes” would reflect a kind of “trash talk" that was used by kings in the Ancient Near East when they went to war.
So, here’s the bottom line. Finding Satan in Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 is an excellent exercise in midrashic typology, but in terms of actual justification from the intent of the text, there is little that can be found. So, while it may well be that Satan fell because of pride, Isaiah 14 isn’t a reason to think so; and while it may be that he used to be in charge of music in heaven, Ezekiel 28 isn’t evidence of that.
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Magazine & Brochure Displays - Revolving, Countertop Carousels
Tabletop Literature Holders with Revolving Stand
Brochure Carousels & Displays - A great way to condense all of your literature and give your customers a one-stop shopping location for all marketing materials is with a revolving brochure holder, or carousel. Why have your literature lying flat on a table or counter when you can elevate it and bring it to the attention of your customers. These portable table, countertop models can be used everywhere from retail stores, trade shows, desktops, offices, schools and right in your own home. Shop our assortment of hundreds of options including single and multi-pocket flyer holders. As a manufacturer, our revolving brochure displays and rotating literature racks are always in-stock and ready to ship.
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Michael Joseph Leon, 69, 2211 Lucille Lane, Melbourne...
November 14, 1985
Michael Joseph Leon, 69, 2211 Lucille Lane, Melbourne, died Tuesday. Born in Mobile, Ala., he moved to Melbourne from there in 1966. He was a retired civil service employee and a member of Ascension Catholic Church. He was an Air Force veteran of World War II and a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4206. Survivors: wife, Viola; son, Michael J. Jr., Melbourne; daughter, Carolyn Anne Fleck, Tallahassee; sister, Annie Sauter, Mobile. Visiting hours: 6 to 8 p.m. today. Funeral: 11 a.m. Friday at Melbourne Cemetery. Davis Funeral Home, Melbourne.
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Star Wax Original Pomade
Star Wax has clay, as you know, so what about their pomade? The clay was pretty solid; not the greatest ever, but not bad at all. What about the pomade? The Star Wax Original Pomade, first and foremost, is red. Why? Don’t ask questions. I absolutely hate that it’s red, and there’s no rational reason to use red pomade. My hair is pitch black, so I don’t know how this red pomade plays out with blond hair, but the clay was definitely visible. I’d imagine using red pomade would show up on light-haired folks.
Color aside, this stuff is strong. Goodness. It says “high hold” on the lid, but I had no idea what my hair was getting into when I tested this bad boy out. The pomade feels like any other out of the jar–same consistency, weight, and make-up. Rub it on your hands like other pomades, and spread it around. So far it’s all pretty normal. Then, it dries into what can only be compared to cement.
If you’re spiking your hair (why?) still, you might be able to rock this pomade. If you need a lot of volume for a pompadour, you might be able to do it. If you’re like me with relatively normal hair, this is probably overkill; use it sparingly. I used a normal amount of pomade (dime-size) the first time I tried this pomade, and my hair became a functioning helmet. Sure, it held the comb work perfectly, but wow.
It also has a very high shine–like reflecting light status. This is worth knowing, and is all up to personal preference. It’s got jojoba infused in there, which is good to prevent against breakage. If you have weak hair, need a strong hold, and like a high shine, then this pomade is perfect. For everyone else, I’d either use this pomade sparingly, or find a lighter hold.
Have you used the Star Wax Original Pomade before? Did you have a similar experience? Tell us in the comments.
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ARRL Special Bulletin ARLX015 (2012)
SB SPCL @ ARL $ARLX015
ARLX015 Ethiopian Amateur Radio Society Chairman Sid T. May, ET3SID
(SK)
ZCZC AX15
QST de W1AW
Special Bulletin 15 ARLX015
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT September 26, 2012
To all radio amateurs
SB SPCL ARL ARLX015
ARLX015 Ethiopian Amateur Radio Society Chairman Sid T. May, ET3SID
(SK)
Ethiopian Amateur Radio Society (EARS) Chairman Sid T. May,
ET3SID/G4CTQ/AB3OZ, passed away September 25. In 1993, May
established ET3AA, the first Amateur Radio club in Ethiopia.
According to Hailemelekot Negussie, AB3OX, of EARS, May has taught
Amateur Radio licensing classes in Ethiopia for more than 15 years.
EARS is Ethiopia's IARU Member-Society.
An accredited ARRL Volunteer Examiner (VE), May administered the FCC
license exam to prospective Ethiopian hams. He took part in
administering an FCC exam session in December 2011 where more than
50 Ethiopians received US call signs; May gave his last exam session
on September 10, with 18 sitting for the exam. Due to Ethiopian law,
it is nearly impossible for Ethiopians to get an Ethiopian Amateur
Radio license. "Unfortunately, Ethiopian Security still controls the
licensing system," said IARU Region 1 President Hans Blondeel
Timmerman, PB2T. "I am afraid that more work has to be done to
convince the authorities that today's students are tomorrow's
leaders and that in principle, they are good Ethiopians who deserve
their government's confidence. Another hurdle to overcome is the
examination fee of 25 British pounds, a one month's salary in
Ethiopia."
According to May's QSL card, May was primarily a RTTY operator. He
held call signs in Zambia (9J2ED), St Kitts (VP2KH), Montserrat
(VP2MKH), Oman (AX4JB), Nigeria (5N0SID), Gibraltar (ZB2HL) and
Sudan (G4CTQ/ST2). He is a member of the Radio Society of Great
Britain (RSGB) and in 1973, helped found the St Kitts Nevis and
Anguilla Radio Society (SNARS). He founded EARS in the 1990s.
"Sid was a teacher, a mentor and a father to all of us at ET3AA,"
Negussie explained. "We feel very saddened about the news, and
extend our condolences to his family and wish for his soul to rest
in peace. Sid is survived by hundreds of ambitious radio hams and
engineers who will forever be inspired by his humbleness and
vision."
NNNN
/EX
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You can purchase 3 tickets for all BCS bowls for less than one ticket for UA/ND
Hello! You are currently viewing our boards as a guest. However, by registering for FREE you will be able to read, create, and reply to posts and participate in our GAMEDAY threads. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today!
Re: You can purchase 3 tickets for all BCS bowls for less than one ticket for UA/ND
Originally Posted by WylieTexasTider
NJ, I think your uncle's friend was right. They have dropped from $1600 down to $1125 over the past 36 hours on stub hub. Apparently BAMA and ND alumni have finally received tickets or at least seat locations. When I looked yesterday AM 7800 tix were available, just now 9500. A bunch of sections were "white" (ones allocated to UA&ND) showing no tix yesterday morning, right now every section has tickets available.
A ticket broker I know told me a minimum 25K tickets are for sale on ebay/stub hub/ticket city etc. He quit buying the day after the SEC Title game and he continues to get 10-15 calls selling for every call buying. When I told him I bought one last night for $1468 including all fees, shipping, etc, his response was "you coulda bought the same seat for $850-$900 within a week". I know I could of had the same section and 1 row closer for $200 cheaper I waited 24 hours. Dang it....
I've noticed the same things on StubHub. I was waiting till the schools' tickets got listed this week. Now comes the deciding on the timing of when to buy.
Re: You can purchase 3 tickets for all BCS bowls for less than one ticket for UA/ND
I think this will go down as the most legendary football game in the early 21st century. It will be replayed on ESPN classic over and over and over again. I think a ticket to this game in the end...will be priceless.
Re: You can purchase 3 tickets for all BCS bowls for less than one ticket for UA/ND
Originally Posted by NJRollTide
This time last year there were not as many tickets available. I'm just waiting it out. I'll go down to Miami with cash and see what happens. RTR
Hang in there. There has been significant downward trend in prices since TidePride tickets got listed earlier in the week. They should continue to fall. I'm waiting it out till hopefully the prices aren't so crazy and getting tickets in the Bama section.
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Dispatches – 9 October 2013
Where to start? The last few weeks have been so full of mind-boggling nonsense as to defeat a non-professional blogger such as I.
America; The land of the free
The stuff coming out of The States has held this Englishman transfixed. Even without a deep insight into the subtle? nuances of American politics, it’s plain to see that the gloss is fast fading from the polished image of the President. I can well remember the cat fights we had on James Delingpole’s blogs in the run up to Obama’s re-election. Those of us on the contrarian side of the cAGW debate tend, as a rule, to be right-of-centre libertarians. This, amongst other more science-led doubts, explains why we do not automatically accept the Malthusian, dystopic view of impending doom so beloved of the alarmist hate-mongers on the Left.
The vitriol poured out by Obama’s supporters had to be seen read to be believed. Sad to say, much of what we feared would come to pass has, indeed, arrived to bite the believers on their collective backsides. The sheer pettiness of the administration’s actions has brought a sense of despair to this blogger. How can it be justified to Barrycade war memorials (normally open to the public, unsupervised) and prevent US Veterans access to these emotionally-charged symbols of their sacrifices?
The Republicans wont back Obama’s call to raise the debt ceiling unless Obamacare is repealed or drastically amended. The impasse is destroying that benighted nation’s credibility, which is unfortunate for the rest of us.
One last word on this, as it’s quite beyond the average person’s comprehension.
United Kingdom politics
Mind you, if we think the US is peopled by some very odd souls, we really need to look at ourselves, long and hard.
Over the last few weeks we’ve suffered the annual circus that bears the jolly title of Party Conference Season. It’s a bit like Halloween but involves real, living people who only appear to resemble zombies. There was a time when I would watch as much as I possibly could; I would boo and hiss at the opposing parties and feel uplifted when my spokesmen told me about the bright, new future that lay within our grasp, as long as I remained loyal to the one true faith.
No more. I have become so disillusioned with British politics, I am more likely to believe that old joke – “Q: How do you know when a politician is lying? A: It’s when he/she starts talking.”
How am I come to this sorry state of affairs? Blame Global Warming (well, everything else is blamed on it, so why not my cynicism?). For the record, I am a lifelong Conservative voter despite my working-class background; I’m your typical ‘aspirational blue-collar worker’, used to a bit of dirt under his fingernails and a believer in raising my status in life via my own sweat and tears.
I don’t expect anyone to give me a fair shake. Life isn’t like that. To divert one’s mental and physical energy into a constant fight against perceived injustices and inequalities prevents you from dealing with them and improving your own circumstances.
It does seem as if the world has moved on and left me behind. But not in a good way. I appear to be an anachronism to the three main parties that form the rump of British politics. As far as I can see, the troika have no clue as to what the average ‘hard-working family’ thinks about the most common problems that they face on a daily basis.
The Labour Party have made a significant move to the left. Hints of nationalisation litter their vindictive, pathetic, whining, envy-laden diatribes. Here we have one of the architects of the ruinous Climate Change Act, Ed Miliband, lecturing the energy sector on how he’ll force them to control prices. The shear naivety of the man is beyond parody. It doesn’t take an economist to understand that loading additional green overheads on an organisation whilst at the same time preventing them passing those costs on to consumers will, inevitably, lead to collapse. Needless to say, the proposals were shredded within days. But, this is the clown who may well be our next Prime Minister.
The Conservative conference wasn’t much better, from the little I read or saw. The continual scrabbling to find a place on the moral high-ground already overflowing with sanctimonious left-wing liberals was a demeaning spectacle for a once great party. They have allowed the lefties to dominate the debate and lack the testicular fortitude to take them on and defeat them with sound arguments. Just sound bite after sound bite, thus, with no acknowledgement that while they are shackled to the two elephants in the room, the EU and the Climate Change Act, their posturing remains totally meaningless.
As to the Liberal Democrats. . . . . . . is all I have to say.
UKIP, while not perfect, offers a refreshing view on politics. Neither of the Left nor the Right, it is growing up and starting to get its act together. Whether it can keep the odd loose cannon under control whilst, at the same time, fighting to maintain its libertarian values remains to be seen. I’ve seen enough, though, to know where my vote will be going in 2014 and 2015.
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
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Meeting Of Noida CEO With CREDAI To Address Homebuyers’ Problems
To provide relaxation to the homebuyers who have been anxious to get their homes delivered to them, the CEO of Noida authority and the president of CREDAI (Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India) will conduct a meeting with reputed developers with residential projects in Noida. The meeting is to be held on the 5th of May, 2017.
The main motive in the meeting will be to emphasize on the issues of homebuyers who are frantic over the delivery of their residential units, which the developers are constantly failing to hand over. The CEO of Noida Authority is going to suggest all the developers that before starting up with new projects and investing funds there, they should first focus on the ongoing-projects to get them completed as soon as possible. The residential projects which are almost completed will be instructed to get their completion certificates from the concerned Authorities.
On the other hand, authorities of Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway are planning to take legal action against the builders. All the builders who are at default in delivering the flats to the homebuyers and also who have not been able to pay their dues to the respective authorities will be on the hit list.
To address the issues which the homebuyers have been facing since a long time and to keep a check in the real estate sector, a committee has been set up. The chairman of Greater Noida and Expressway conducted a meeting with this enquiry committee. The committee has prepared a report and the authorities of Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressay are all set to take action against the defaulting builders.
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
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Hymn/Song Information
CREATOR PRESERVER
Sing praise to God Who reigns above,
the God of all creation,
The God of power, the God of love,
the God of our salvation.
With healing balm my soul He fills
and every faithless murmur stills:
To God all praise and glory.
The angel host, O King of kings,
thy praise for ever telling,
in earth and sky all living things
beneath thy shadow dwelling,
adore the wisdom which could span
and power which formed creation's plan:
to God all praise and glory.
What God’s almighty power hath made
His gracious mercy keepeth,
By morning glow or evening shade
His watchful eye ne’er sleepeth;
Within the kingdom of His might,
Lo! all is just and all is right:
To God all praise and glory.
The Lord is never far away,
but through all grief distressing,
An ever present help and stay,
our peace and joy and blessing.
As with a mother’s tender hand,
God gently leads the chosen band:
To God all praise and glory.
Thus, all my toilsome way along,
I sing aloud Thy praises,
That earth may hear the grateful song
my voice unwearied raises.
Be joyful in the Lord, my heart,
both soul and body bear your part:
To God all praise and glory.
O ye who bear Christ’s holy Name
give God all praise and glory;
Let all who own His power proclaim
aloud the wondrous story!
Cast each false idol from its throne,
for Lord is God, and he alone:
To God all praise and glory!
---Alternative verses---
Sing praise to God Who reigns above,
the God of all creation,
The God of power, the God of love,
the God of our salvation.
With healing balm my soul is filled
and every faithless murmur stilled:
To God all praise and glory.
What in almighty power was made,
God's gracious mercy keepeth.
By morning glow or evening shade,
God's watchful eye never sleepeth.
Within the shelter of God's might,
lo! all is just, and all is right.
Our God is never far away,
throughout all grief distressing,
an ever-present help and stay,
our peace, and joy, and blessing.
As with a mother's tender hand,
God gently leads the chosen band.
Then all my gladsome way along,
I sing aloud thy praises,
that all may hear the grateful song
my voice unwearied raises:
be joyful in the Lord, my heart!
Both soul and body, bear your part!
Let all who name Christ’s holy Name
give God all praise and glory;
Let all who own His power proclaim
aloud the wondrous story!
Cast each false idol from its throne,
for Christ is Lord, and Christ alone:
To God all praise and glory.
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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On Air Now
Busiest Rail Services Revealed
ScotRail's top 10 busiest trains have been revealed as part of efforts to improve the experience of passengers.
Transport Scotland has published a list of the busiest services based on analysis of passenger counts over the previous six months.
The list reveals the rush-hour 5.21pm Edinburgh-Glasgow Central via Shotts is the most overcrowded service, with a maximum recorded occupancy of 270 passengers.
That works out at 146% of the train's planned loading of 185 seated and standing passengers, with the busiest part of the route between Haymarket and Livingston South.
Three-carriage electric trains are due to replace the current two-carriage diesel service from May 2019.
The second-busiest service was the 5.01pm Glasgow Central-East Kilbride, which during the summer ran at 135% of planned loading, while in third place was the 8.07am Neilston-Glasgow Central service (130%).
The data sets out measures being taken to alleviate crowding, such as when new rolling stock will come into service, and also highlights alternative routes and trains.
Transport Scotland highlighted investment in rail services to improve capacity including the introduction of 160 extra carriages, with an extra 180 to follow, and increasing seating capacity by 23% by 2019.
Transport minister Humza Yousaf said: "The Scottish Government is delivering the most ambitious programme of rail investment ever seen in Scotland, committing over £5 billion across the current funding period.
"We wholly appreciate busy trains can be uncomfortable and can assure passengers we are focused on delivering the value-for-money service they both want and deserve.
"We will achieve this in the near future, meanwhile this busiest trains information will help make informed journey planning choices simpler in the here and now.''
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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About the RSC
The DAIDS Regulatory Support Center (RSC) provides support for all NIAID/DAIDS-supported and/or sponsored network and non-network clinical trials, both domestic and international.
We use the NIAID Clinical Research Management System (NCRMS) to exchange information directly with database systems utilized by NIAID/DAIDS-sponsored Group/Network Operations Offices, Data Management Centers, and other collaborators,
to ensure efficient and effective integration of regulatory information in support of NIAID/DAIDS.
Looking for Training Materials?
The DAIDS Regulatory Support Center (RSC) provides training and resources for personnel affiliated with DAIDS-supported studies to promote understanding of DAIDS policies and procedures.
Visit the Safety Training & Resources page to view recent trainings and materials developed related to the expedited reporting of adverse events to DAIDS.
DAIDS RSC Contract Highlights 2010-2017
The DAIDS RSC is proud to celebrate the past 7 successful years of supporting DAIDS in their global HIV/AIDS clinical research. For information on DAIDS RSC accomplishments, including preparations for the FDA-mandated transition to electronic regulatory submissions, support for the critical P5 HIV vaccine studies, and outreach and training efforts,
please view the DAIDS RSC Contract Highlights 2010-2017.
We look forward to continuing to deliver comprehensive clinical regulatory support to DAIDS for all domestic and international NIAID/DAIDS-supported and/or -sponsored network and non-network clinical trials.
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Calling novelists a special breed, Mailer once said, "We're ...somewhere between psychologists, historians, detectives, students of style and manner - we have a capacity to do things that other people don't."
With a career of creative longevity and a larger-than-life public persona, Mailer courted controversy. He continued to write for over half a century... And worried about critics: "I care about reviews - they affect your wallet in the most direct fashion."
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"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
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Sharing a love of Dolls House Miniatures - and making time for other creative crafts and the garden.
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
Pizza With a Christmas Topping
Well I finished the bits and pieces for our grandchildren's Christmas scene and was in need of a snowy background - which is where the pizza came in.Over the years I've found the polystyrene packaging that sits under supermarket pizzas to be absolutely invaluable for such a lot of crafty projects. It makes great light packing for fragile parcels, useful for painting and gluing things on, and can be cut, scored and painted for any manner of elements.
Anyway I needed a snowy path for the sleigh to ride along and a hill in the background just to finish it off. It took moments to slice a piece of the polystyrene, and top it with expanded polythene packaging which has a slight 'glitter' about it in a certain light and bingo! I glued the hill to navy blue cardboard and added a run of little houses which I've left for the children to colour in - and they can add stars or snowflakes, whatever takes their fancy, to the sky as well - we want it to be their scene.
Rudolf and his chum have been in a box for a couple of years waiting to take Father Christmas out, and it won't be too long before he gets on his way. It's not exactly an expertly crafted sleigh but hopefully it'll carry him around the globe.
I promised a picture or two of 1/48th characters - individually sculpted and fully pose-able like their bigger friends.
I think the line up of your Friars is sooooo cute! It reminds me of the music CD'S of Gregorian Chants which I like to listen to at this time of year. The chants are very soothing to listen to whilst your priests are Adorable to see! Love the Santa sled and the backdrop too!!! :D
I'm glad you've enjoyed the photos - the little monks were among my favourite 1/48th characters and I think were destined for a monastery.I'm looking forward to seeing what the children think of their Santa scene. SO....are you all getting ready for Christmas?? First card arrived today....so early!Rx
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Ref 1950681 | Chloraka, Paphos | 7 Bed House/villa
Luxury seafront 7 bedroom villa located in Chloraka in a delightful complex Apollo Beach villas built by Leptos.Villa is splited on 4 levels which is lower ground floor, ground floor, first floor and roof garden.On the lower ground floor level there is 3 bedroom and large living room, which all can be easily made into separate apartment. Ground floor represents open plan living/dining room and kitchen. Patio doors giving access to the pool area and breathtaking seaviews.First floor have another 3 bedrooms, master bedroom has a en-suite shower room and fitted wardrobes.Stairs leading to the roof terrace, with unforgettable sea and mountain view.
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Delegate (Outlook 2002 (XP))
Hi Folks!
I hope you can help me. In Outlook XP (and the versions before) you have the possibility to enter a delegate who can send and answer mails on behalf of you. (Usually found under Extras - Options). But if this "deputy" of yours is sending mails, the recipient never knows if this mail came from you or your delegation. So my question now is: Is there a way that I can enter a text wich will appear an all mails my substitute is sending? (i.e. This mail was sent on behalf of Max Headroom (or something))
I hope you can help me. Thx a lot in advance!
Philipp
__________________________________________________ ________Murphys Law rules the world, bow to it!
Re: Delegate (Outlook 2002 (XP))
Hi Philipp,
You need to be running through exchange. Under tools/options there will be a permissions area where you can set the delegate (I am composing this from home so don't have the exact option available). You can nominate a delegate, then when you message is sent by your delegate it has the "on behalf of ..." added.
If you don't have any luck post back and I will respond from work where I have the exact options to choose.
Re: Delegate (Outlook 2002 (XP))
Don't know if OL XP has this option but in OL 2003, when you compose a new message, the View item on the menu bar has the option to view the "From" field. If you have a delegate seding the email on your behalf, have him/her click on the From button (to open the address book), and then click on YOUR name. When the message is received, the From field displays the delegate's name plus "on behalf of" and your name.
JohnA Child's Mind, Once Stretched by Imagination...Never Regains Its Original Dimensions
Re: Delegate (Outlook 2002 (XP))
Hi Karen!
I'm working on Exchange 2000. I nominated a colleague of mine as a delegate and had him send a message to another colleague. No trace of "on behalf of" in the whole message. To the other colleague it appeared as I had sent the message.
Under tools/options you can only set permissions like "read", "read/write" for the different folders (sent items, inbox,...), but nothing else.
Do you have any other ideas? 'Cause I don't have. :-)
Thx anyway!
Philipp
__________________________________________________ ________Murphys Law rules the world, bow to it!
Re: Delegate (Outlook 2002 (XP))
Hi Philipp,
I will have to check this out at work (no exchange server at home) - I know you can get what you want (we have our mail set up like that at work). I will post back on Monday with more precise "how to".
Re: Delegate (Outlook 2002 (XP))
Delegate Access permissions
This feature requires you to be using a Microsoft Exchange Server e-mail account.
The levels of permission that a delegate can be granted are as follows:
Author As a delegate, you can read and create items, and modify and delete items you create. For example, a delegate can create task requests and meeting requests directly in the manager's Task or Calendar folder, and then send either item on the manager's behalf.
Editor As a delegate, you can do everything an Author can do, plus modify and delete the items the manager created.
Reviewer As a delegate, you can read items; for example a delegate with Reviewer permission can read messages in another person's Inbox.
Note With author or editor permissions, the delegate has send-on-behalf-of permission. Sent messages contain both the manager's and delegate's names. Message recipients see the manager's name in the Sent On Behalf Of box and the delegate's name in the From box.
If a delegate needs permission to work with meeting requests and responses only, the manager can select the user on the Delegates tab (Tools menu, Options command), click Permissions, and then select the Delegate receives copies of meeting-related messages sent to me check box. The manager does not need to grant permission to their Inbox. Meeting requests and responses will go directly to the delegate's Inbox. The delegate will, however, need editor permission to the manager's Calendar folder, because once they respond to the meeting on behalf of the manager, the meeting is automatically added to the manager's Calendar folder.
Re: Delegate (Outlook 2002 (XP))
Hi Karen!
Thx a lot for your help. The problem is, it still isn't working properly. I read your instructions carefully but there's one thing that I don't get:
"Note With author or editor permissions, the delegate has send-on-behalf-of permission. Sent messages contain both the manager's and delegate's names. Message recipients see the manager's name in the Sent On Behalf Of box and the delegate's name in the From box."
On our system there is no way to display that "Sent On Behalf Box". Either I'm too stupid to find it or it simply isn't there. Remember we are working on Outlook 2002 and Exchange 2000 in a Windows 2000 Domain (Active Directory).
Any more ideas are gladly appreciated!
Philipp
__________________________________________________ ________Murphys Law rules the world, bow to it!
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Friday, March 15, 2013
So I won an item on ebay for 1 cent and forgot about it, as did the seller. About three months later, he wrote and asked me to come get it, as well as "a few other things" he had in his garage. Well, I'm a fool for free stuff, so here's what I got.
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Oct 20, 2010
Report Summary
The report presents actual information about the market of ceramic tiles and slabs and its state in June 2010.
The purpose of the marketing research is to describe the situation on the Russian market of ceramic tiles and slabs, to provide relevant information on the volume of production, imports, and exports, consumption and state of the market, as well as the changes that took place in this market in 2009.
12.3. Manufacturing companies that supply the granite and ceramic tiles for export in 2009 – 1st quarter of 2010
12.3.1. Manufacturing companies that supply the granite for export in 2009 – 1st quarter of 2010
12.3.2. Manufacturing companies supplying ceramic tiles for export in 2009 – 1st quarter of 201013. Capacity of the market of ceramic tiles and porcelain14. Structure of the placing on the market of ceramic tiles
14.1. Chain of movement of goods in the market of ceramic tiles15. General trends in the market of ceramic tiles and porcelainList of Table
Table 1 Main raw materials for the production of ceramic tiles and porcelain
Table 2 Dynamics of work performed by type of activity “Construction”
Table 3 Dynamics of commissioning of dwelling houses, in millions of meters
The Russian Market of Ceramic Tiles is a new report published by IndexBox that provides market value and its dynamics, production technique and capacity, analysis of manufacturing and consumption. This report also covers analyses of key producers (manufacturing plants) of Ceramic Tiles, and their strategies with their market shares and growth opportunities. There is a consumption structure and forecast of Market of Ceramic Tiles consumption till 2013.
Methodology
• Expert survey with top-managers of producers.
• Analysis of materials, received from market participants
• Analysis of official statistics, export and imports
This report also covers analyses of 18 major producers of ceramic tiles and their capacities, and raw materials bases, among them:
• Stroyfarfor
• Kerama Marazzi
• Keramir
• Estima
• Volgogradsky Keramichesky Zavod
• Lira Keramika
• Nefrit-Keramika
• Euro-Keramika
• Sokol
• Piastrella
• Samarsky Stroyfarfor
• OSMiBT
• Uralkeramika
• Kontakt
• Kuchinsky Keramiko-Plitochny Zavod
• Dmitrovskaya plitka
• Italbashkeramika
• Kirovskaya Keramika
This new report will enable you to…
Benchmark your competitive strategies using the company profiles contained in this report for key producers including Stroyfarfor, Kerama Marazzi, Keramir, Volgofradsky Keramichesky Zavod, and Lira Keramika.
Quantify key production and retail trends and accurately predict future opportunities based on this report’s company profiles detailing market growth and share of 18 profiled operators, key operation analysis, with regional and product share of revenue, consumer expenditure and forecasts to 2015.
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Pumphouse Recreation Site
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About
(left bank) A BLM fee site featuring three developed launch/take-out areas (Launch 3 is ADA accessible), 18 individual campsites (first-come, first-served), two group campsites (reservable by calling 970-724-3000), toilets, garbage service, firewood for sale, and dring water during the summer. A camp hose lives on site during the summer season. Gore Canyon hiking trail can be accessed from Launch 1
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Using RoboCopy I am copying large sets of files between storage devices and have noticed some strange behavior: On many occasions where the source and destination file are the same, RoboCopy sees the file as changed and copies it again. I have verified that the size and date of the files are the same. I am using the below command. The version of RoboCopy being used is from Vista/Windows 2008.
1) Is there anything in the Robocopy output that might explain it? 2) As a test, for one of those "strange" files, if you delete the file at the destination, then run your Robocopy command to restore the file, do further uses of Robocopy still attempt to re-copy that file?
–
Kevin FeganJan 29 '14 at 23:41
The project is long over now. The original copy was done by robocopy so the basic answer to you delete and allow to copy again would be yes. I did not see any output other than "changed"
–
BrettskiJan 30 '14 at 3:52
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{
"pile_set_name": "Pile-CC"
}
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Six years of shootings: Where and when gunfire happens in Minneapolis
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One evening in early summer 2014, a group of young men approached a 17-year-old near the corner of Queen and 30th avenues north in Minneapolis, looking to buy some marijuana. They agreed on a small amount — a mere $15 worth — but the slightly older group of teens didn't want to pay.
“This is mine,” said one of them, 19-year-old Michael Lashone Ferguson, after taking the bag, according to court records.
The exchange turned into a fistfight, and then escalated into something worse. Ferguson produced a Smith & Wesson handgun and began to open fire, missing his target but spraying nearby houses with bullets.
Before anyone called 911, a series of nearby microphones picked up the frequency of the shots and triangulated the location of the incident. The audio traveled 2,000 miles to Newark, California, where a sound engineer analyzed the feed and confirmed it was gunfire, and then sent a report to 911 operators back in Minneapolis so the department could dispatch officers to the scene. The whole exchange usually takes less than a minute. Later that evening, with the help of witnesses, Minneapolis police took Ferguson and two of his accomplices into custody. They found the bag of weed and the handgun nearby and Ferguson was convicted of first-degree aiding and abetting aggravated robbery.
The technology that assisted in the timely arrest is called ShotSpotter. In 2007, then-Third Precinct Minneapolis Police Commander Scott Gerlicher helped bring this little-known crime-fighting technology to his South Side district. The next year, Minneapolis installed more microphones on the North Side, another area of the city also troubled by frequent gun violence.
Nine years later, ShotSpotter monitors 90 U.S. cities, as well as some locations internationally — it recently helped bust rhinoceros poachers in South Africa — and Minneapolis law enforcement counts it as a vital tool in helping catch shooters.
“[ShotSpotter] allows us a much more rapid response,” says Gerlicher, now commander of the police department’s Strategic Information and Crime Analysis Division. “Cops are able to get there much more quickly, and thus the chances of making an apprehension or finding victims are much greater than by traditional means.”
But ShotSpotter also serves another, perhaps equally important function: It provides a macro look at how and where shootings occur in the city — particularly those incidents that don’t lead to arrests, which account for the vast majority of shots fired across the city.
MinnPost analyzed five years of ShotSpotter data, beginning in January 2009. In that time, the system has dispatched officers to more than 5,000 shooting incidents in Minneapolis.
The data don't provide a perfect picture of shootings. For one thing, ShotSpotter can only provide data for the areas where its microphones are installed. Although the city has added more mics since first installing ShotSpotter in '07, they are still only used in high-shooting areas in North and South Side neighborhoods. It also doesn't pick up shots fired inside a home or building, and there’s still the occasional false positive.
But Clark says the company guarantees to detect at least 80 percent of shots fired in these areas, and usually hits closer to 90-95 percent — far more accurate than relying only on 911 callers.
“Although it’s not perfect, it’s very, very, very good,” he says.
With those caveats in mind, here’s what six years — from 2009 through 2015 — of ShotSpotter data tell us:
1. The number of gunshots fired in the city each year has been trending down
First, some good news: the number of shots fired appears to be dropping. As illustrated in the chart below, ShotSpotter detected 1,169 shots in 2009. In 2014, there were 697. Police note that ShotSpotter technology has gotten better over this time period, meaning there haven't been as many false-positives, which could contribute somewhat to the decline.
Shooting incidents detected per year
2. Shootings are largely concentrated in just a few neighborhoods
Neighborhoods in north Minneapolis see the most shooting incidents. Out of 5,029 shootings detected by ShotSpotter, about 64 percent took place in Camden or Near North. Jordan — a Near North community bound by Lowry Avenue to the north, Emerson Avenue to the east and West Broadway to the south and west — saw the highest concentration of ShotSpotter activations, with 1,378 in the six-year period, or about 27 percent of all shooting incidents. The Hawthorne community, also part of Near North, came in second with 773 incidents. The Central community saw the most shootings in South, with 461 incidents, followed by Midtown Phillips (266), Ventura Village (236) and East Phillips (234).
Use the heat map below to explore shooting incident concentrations in different areas of the city, or type an address into the search bar to zoom to a specific area.
Shooting incidents detected in Minneapolis, 2014
Red areas on the map indicate a higher concentration of detected shootings; blue areas a lower concentration. Data on gunshots is only available for areas covered by the ShotSpotter sensor network. Shot locations were provided to MinnPost as street addresses; consequently, locations are inexact.
Top neighborhoods with detected shooting incidents
Here are the neighborhoods that rate highest for frequency of shootings. Remember: Data on gunshots is only available for areas covered by the ShotSpotter sensor network.
Neighborhood
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
Jordan
325
206
230
159
191
267
Hawthorne
112
141
193
105
95
127
Central
147
94
74
58
43
45
Willard - Hay
70
52
50
40
35
68
Folwell
49
58
59
49
29
41
Midtown Phillips
76
56
45
36
38
15
Ventura Village
78
51
46
26
20
15
East Phillips
46
48
38
34
46
22
McKinley
44
35
34
34
26
19
Near - North
16
24
26
17
11
39
These trends have been pretty stable over the last six years, too. While specific areas of concentrated gunshots vary from year to year, the Jordan and Hawthorne neighborhoods consistently see the most gunfire.
Minneapolis shooting incident concentration, by year
Areas in dark red represent higher concentrations of shooting incidents. Note: the concentration of shootings varies from year to year so concentrations of the same color do not represent the same raw number of shots across years.
3. Most shootings occur after dark
If the next six years look like the last, the safest time to walk around in Minneapolis is around 9 on a February morning.
Shooting incidents: time of day
Combined shooting incident totals for each day, 2009–2014.
Unsurprisingly, most shots occur at night, ramping up around 5 p.m. The highest frequency occurred between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m; in the six-year period MinnPost studied, 2,890 incidents took place during these nighttime hours, or about 57 percent of shots fired. That still leaves a significant number of shootings for the daytime, however. ShotSpotter recorded more than 600 incidents between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. over these years.
Shootings also pick up during the warmer months. About 60 percent of shooting incidents took place between May and October. The highest-frequency months were June and July, which collectively saw 1,316 — or about 26 percent — of total shootings recorded by ShotSpotter. January and February, usually the coldest months of the year, had the least amount of incidents, with 307 and 253 shootings, respectively.
Total shooting incidents by month
Combined shooting incident totals for each month, 2009–2014.
4. It’s extremely rare for shootings to result in immediate arrests
Tracking shootings doesn’t always mean officers get to the scene in time to make an arrest. Out of the 5,029 dispatches to ShotSpotter activations, a mere 51 resulted in bookings in the six-year period, according to the data. Most commonly, the officers arrive to an empty street corner or address. About 575 cases were canceled or deemed unfounded or false, meaning there likely was no shooting. Here's the breakdown of dispatch outcomes:
ShotSpotter call dispositions
Combined ShotSpotter call dispositions from 2009–2014.
The low booking count doesn’t necessarily mean ShotSpotter didn’t eventually lead to an arrest. Gerlicher says investigators frequently follow up on ShotSpotter incidents and use the information to track down suspects in days or weeks after the shooting. In other cases, investigators use ShotSpotter to prove or disprove details of an incident, such as how many shooters were involved.
Also not measured in these statistics is how effectively the technology acts as a deterrent to would-be shooters. Police purposely don't disclose the exact locations of the microphones to make criminals think twice about firing a gun, says Gerlicher.
“If you’re a criminal out there and you go to fire a gunshot outside in the city of Minneapolis, we want you to believe ... Shotspotter will be listening,” he says.
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About the author:
Andy Mannix is an investigative/data reporter for MinnPost, covering criminal justice, public policy and many other topics. Follow him on Twitter at @andrewmannix or shoot him an email at [email protected].
Comments (22)
Ok, I will try again. Shouldn’t the police take this information and more heavily patrol these “high shots fired” areas, stop suspicious folks and clean up the community. Any possibility of the police doing that without protests by certain groups. I hope that is not too controversial to get moderated out.
What do suspicious folks look like? Skin color? hair style? walks with a limp? out after dark? Driving around? I sure hope I don’t look suspicious. The darn constitution gets in the way of your suggestion I think as inconvenient as that is.
When was it “considered unconstitutional to seize assets of those who conducted illegal activities?” The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of asset forfeiture as early as 1827 (the first time the Court considered the issue). See, The Palmyra, 25 U.S. (12 Wheat.) 1.
If the police were patrolling these areas more closely you would have a reduction in illegal activities, especially in these small concentrated areas, including shots fired in public issues. It has been proven over and over again aggressive police presence equals less crime. Problem is this tactic is considered profiling instead of good police work, in our PC culture, that is not ok. I am sure they are patrolling these areas more, but not enough to stop the indiscriminate shooting of guns in public by gang bangers. It is not law abiding folks (the majority) target practicing in their back yard who are doing the shooting, it is a very small percentage of young people in street gangs. Amazingly, in our PC world saying this simple fact get’s blowback or in this case moderated by Minnpost. How can you fix a problem if you can’t even identify the root cause of the problem.
How about we are dealing with the aftermath of: an ignorant destructive poor community targeted drug war for starters, how about racism, sexism, lack of education, lack of opportunity, transient population, slum-lording, social dysfunction, intentional or non intentional marginalization, family break down, intentional or non intentional concentration of poverty, culture diversification, a city hall stuck in serving multiple masters, as well as a idealistic bleeding heart DFL more interested in activity than out put, and insuring certain political insiders feed at the trough, vs insuring real change. The clear point is, we as a society put folks into certain areas by financial capability, and when an effort is made to address that root problem, “concentration of poverty” they are accused of “social engineering”. Don’t look to the police or any government enterprise to help solve the problem when folks vote to not allow them to solve the problem. We see that week after week out here in these discussions. “Too much big government” “Too much personal life intrusions” “Too much redistribution of wealth” . You can’t fix a multi-generational, multi facet problem, with a single more cops police state solution. We have had a front line view of the situation for > 30 years. These aren’t dots on the map, they are places we drive past every day or do our shopping, where we work and live.
The location of the reported shootings are highest in the locations where the microphones are located, which were placed where police expect the most shootings.
I think we could assume that there are some parts of the city where shootings are very rare but I agree the map should show where the system could be expected to detect gunfire to know if the map is showing real hot spots, or just acknowledging the system does it’s job.
“The data don’t provide a perfect picture of shootings. For one thing, ShotSpotter can only provide data for the areas where its microphones are installed. Although the city has added more mics since first installing ShotSpotter in ’07, they are still only used in high-shooting areas in North and South Side neighborhoods. It also doesn’t pick up shots fired inside a home or building, and there’s still the occasional false positive.”
I like this article so much that I printed it to share with others who live in my building (I hope Minnpost is ok with this use.)
In the past, I’ve used my own intuition to determine when and where it was safe to venture. I was right about the time; 9am, but wrong about the area; the bike routes on Emerson and Fremont between Broadway and Lowry. Fortunately, I’ve never been shot at, but I have been chased; one time my attacker had a taser!
I appreciate the effort the authors put into writing this article and summarizing the data with clear and concise charts. The active map is great too!
The sounds of shots are too familiar in Jordan. I witnessed two occupants of a rental come down the alley and fire three shots into an abandoned couch. When officers arrived some while later my veracity was questioned. This is what happens when one neighborhood gets an inordinate percentage of section 8 housing, when city ordinances are lazily enforced, and when we tolerate behaviors that do nothing but foster continued deterioration of property and social congress. Police are, like teachers, overburdened by the social dysfunction. Pols seem primarily self serving. Looking at the shot spotter map, I think we can easily see who needs to assume some of the burden brought by the disinvested population.
I’m sick of the relentless demonizing of poor people!!!! For those who equate Seciton 8 low-income housing with crime: HAVE YOU NOTICED THE PRICE OF A ONE-BEDROOM APT. THESE DAYS? Average $800 to $1,000 a month. HAVE YOU NOTICED WHAT WAGES ARE? MINIMUM-WAGE IS ABOUT $8. If you are an elder or a disabled person living on fixed income, you have LESS THAN $10,000 A YEAR. Do the math: one’s ENTIRE disability check would go to pay for rent. The MAJORITY of poor people are NOT criminals!!! We jsut are NOT paid a lving wage or we’re living on fixed income. And BTW: we are too often ALSO victimzed by crimnals—but, since we’re poor, too, the police don’t necessarily give a damn. A Minneapolis officer told me after I reported being assaulted and mugged, “Well, what do you expect? Look where you live.” (Which was the West Bank at the time).
This map does a great job of showing where the ShotSpotters are installed, but it does a great disservice in trying to represent the data on where gunshots occurred.
ShotSpotters are installed only in the Central and North neighborhoods, not the rest of the city. By including the rest of the city on the map, it insinuates there are no gunshots there. This would be more useful if it clearly outlined where shotspotter data was not available, or if it was more of neighborhood-focused look at the hot spots for gun violence.
“Ferguson was convicted of first-degree aiding and abetting aggravated robbery.” Never even mind the question of where the charge for an obviously attempted murder went? Oh, and the drug charge, too ….? WHY did this young hoodlum NOT get convicted of the probably half dozen or so gun control laws he obviously broke.??? In typical judicial fashion, existing firearms laws are either not charged or plea-bargained away. Even MANDATORY sentences are often ignored by our courts. And yet, with this habitually lackadaisical enforcement …. lackadaisical over decades …. mush-headed politicians steadily call for more and more gun laws …. to then become unenforced. Insanity, much? We have ShotSpotter … big deal, … if it doesn’t result in charges and convictions for gun law violations!
I assume the ShotSpotter should have indicated shots fired outside the Mpls 4th precinct when the four or five Black Lives Matter protesters were shot by the White supremists? If so, why did protesters have to bang on the precinct doors to alert the police that an incident had occurred?
This article represents some of the worst “data-based” journalism I’ve read! Incomplete and misleading data, the effect of which is exaggerated to make a point that simply doesn’t hold because of the weakness of, the holes in, the data presented.
Boys: No matter your caveat about gunshot spotters not being everywhere in Minneapolis, you simply cannot make generalizations about Minneapolis when the whole city isn’t covered by those mics.
You should have waited–if you wanted to make a Minneapolis generalization–until the data had caught up to your a priori conclusions.
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An ALP Weekend In Maryland
Last weekend, ALP Coaches Patricia Schwager and Alison Powers flew from Colorado to Maryland. The trip had many purposes. 1- visit ALP athlete Stu Waring and his Bicycle Store Parvilla Cycle and Multisport, 2- Learn some basic bike fit know-how and knowledge that we can use with our ALP athletes, 3- spend time with the Annapolis Bicycle Racing Team (ABRT).
Friday morning started with a Computrainer workout with Stu, Paddy and me.
After stretching, recovery drinks, and showers it was time for Stu to teach Paddy and I about bike fitting. Stu was a great teacher and taught us far more than I could have ever expected. Learning about how to give a quality bike fit and all the small details that a bike fit takes into account (flexibility, history of injury, body alignment, feet and foot beds, etc.) reiterated to me how important it is for everyone to have a proper bike fit. A bike fit is so much more than seat height, set-back and reach. A good bike fit, fits the bike to your body- not your body to the bike.
ALP athlete, turned teacher of the day, Stu showing Paddy the changes he can do to her bike fit to make her more powerful and comfortable on the bike.
Interested in a training plan, but not full on coaching? Only have time for 3 bike workouts a week? Or are you a Triathlete looking to improve your cycling? Check out or new TrainingPeaks 13- week training plan.
Saturday morning, we woke up to freezing rain. So, instead of going on a long ride with ABRT, we treated the team to multiple Computrainer classes at Parvilla.
The workout we designed for the team was a race winning interval workout complete with a race day warm-up and cool down. Our goal was to teach the riders what a good warm-up feels like, then do some hard interval work to simulate attacking, being in a breakaway and sprinting for the finish.
Saturday evening, we dressed up and went to the ABRT season kick-off party. It was fun!
Sunday brought more rain and snow, so we were again on the Computrainers with the ABRT Women's Team.
That afternoon, we had lunch and a Q & A session with the women. Not only did Paddy and I get to hang out with the ABRT women, they got to hang out with us- A current professional bike racer, and the current national road and TT champion. When I started bike racing, other than Lance Armstrong, I didn't know one single bike racer. I had no idea about women's racing and had no mentors. I wish I could have had the same opportunity these women did.
Paddy and I had a really great time in Maryland. We learned, we laughed, we ate donuts, we trained, and we gave back to the sport we love so much.
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Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
special thanks goes to jdw
Let me allow to copy-paste a post of mine from hangout:
Originally Posted by jdw
Originally Posted by ashher
i don't think that if it turns out like that danzo killed them for treason would make it any less righteous for sasuke to avange his clan.his clan was turned into a dominion of konoha and to sasuke it would be like uchihas fought for their deserved freedom and place.
Let us assume that treason is a crime in Konoha, just for the sake of argument. The Uchiha clan, as a founding entity, may have played a role in the direction of the village. If we make an analogy, it would be like family of a criminal taking revenge against the people who gave justice for the comissions of the crime, if it was justice. It cannot be justice to hand out punichment for crimes, and then justice for the loved ones of those who were punished to punish those who handed out justice. More simply, in an imperfect example:
It would make much more sense in terms of Sasuke's revenge if the Uchiha clan was not in fact rebelling.
the reasons i think it would be justified for sasuke to continue his hunt against konoha even if it turns out that uchihas were punished for treason:
1.the village konoha was established on the basis of equality among all the clans,that naturally means anyone worthy from any clan can become hokage or serve in any position.but the uchihas were from the time of 2nd hokage (according to madara) pushed into the special police force so that they can be kept under watch.that is what makes them a second class citizen actually.this is unjust and totally opposed to the agreement between uchiha and senju.So one would be quite right and justified to think that senjus and their followers(konoha nins) used the treaty and the village as a way to push uchiha down in shrewd underhanded way.this unfair treatment that uchiha got reached the lowest limit after kyuubi fight,when they were put in a secluded corner of the village.basically they became like a colony of konoha.
2.so the 'treason' was more than treason.in our world many countries of present were colonies of powers like england,france and many times rebellions occurred in those parts.And many times rebels failed and were executed and their act was called treason by the colonizing government.Now can we actually call those freedom figters mere criminals for wanting to establish their proper rights?this is the same with uchiha incidence.
3.in case someone wants to counter the above point saying that uchihas were not fighting for creating another country/homeland,rather was trying to usurp the power of the present system and state,then i would like to say that very often in history fight for independence has actually begun from attempts at correcting the present system.for example,my country Bangladesh was colony of pakistan under the name of east pakistan.actually when pakistan was established it was popular among ppl of this part and we called it our homeland (like the first uchihas who voted for konoha and thought konoha to be their home).However soon ppl of these parts were discriminated against (like uchihas were),and then attempts began to take place from here to correct the situation in pakistan,and when as the attempts kept failing,ppl here started to feel that pakistan is no longer their home and finally a a new nationalism grew which resulted into a new home/country.the uchiha rebellion was still prolly at the stage of 'correcting the present state' ie. konoha through a coup.
4.However after the incidence,the remaining uchiha,sasuke is now at the last stage.he can't in any way call konoha,the entity responsible for double-crossing,colonizing and finally eradicating Uhiha his home/or the home of the future uchiha that he wants to revive.
So imo,we can hardly compare Sasuke to revenge wanting sibling of a mere criminal.he is actually the second generation of an oppressed nation (clan in naruto).Just because the first generation was thwarted by the colonizing power and was labeled as traitors and criminals for treason,doesn't make them mere criminals and justify their execution even if that is the punishment for treason from the point of justice (you know law and justice can often be contradictory,for example jutice was served when US was freed from England,but surely that was great crime according to the law of the then England).
so in a nutshell,danzo's actions and uchiha execution might be justified according to konoha law,but that will never be justified from uchiha point of view,and from a neutral point of view(ie the reader's view) the latter should be felt as the right one as we can see that uchihas indeed were decieved and turned into second class citizens by konoha.
Edit: i am adding a later post of mine here for the sake of clarity:
Quote:
lets try and clear this once and for all
there have been 3 questions of importance when we think about "justification" of sasuke's revenge:
1.was it understandable when he chose to avenge his clan,or would it have been more realistic if he had decided to follow itachi?(taking things that happened in manga upto the decision made by sasuke)
2.if wanting revenge was thus justified,then who should have been the target?only danzo and the culprits behind it?or the whole konoha?
once again i must ask u take into consideration of such ideals as nationalism and dealings between 2 nations,instead of being just bookishly self-righteous and uptight and take into consideration what usually happens in reality in this type of cases.
so here u must also consider whether its a mere personal revenge or a war between 2 nations uchiha and konoha?
3.i never expected this to be a question when i opened this thread,but it seems to become the most talked about topic:how should sasuke deal with the non-konoha persons?and what about civilians and those who surrender?
the reason i felt this question is of no value because in war there is no value,morality.i mean if u decide on the previous question that it indeed is more than a personal revenge and actually the last act of uchiha vs senju/konoha ancient war,then it is unrealistic and naive to expect that sauske will have special consideration for these ppl,particularly when his own clan/nation didn't receive an ounce of such morality.
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
Nothing is a justification of what Sasuke is doing. Itachi saved his life making him the only survivor of the Uchihia clan giving him the legacy of the Uchihia clan. Itachi then made him strive to become stronger. In the end Itachi knew Sasuke would never kill his best friend to gain MS. He made it so after his death he would achieve his MS. He wanted sasuke o get ride of Orouchamaru's corrupt power so he can gain MS on his own increasing his own power. I believe Itachi wanted him to gain his own eyes after he did so Itachi could be his light.
Him doing all this sasuke is tarnishing the name of his brother. Itachi forgave the leaf in giving information out and for not capturing Naruto. Itachi saw this happening and created another fail safe within Naruto. Killing Danzo isn't going that far. He did secretly kill some samari but no one special Bee wasn't captured and no kage was harmed or injured. It would still take Sasuke to do something really impressive to come back.
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
I wouldn't take everything Madara says for facts. Nidaime could have had other goals to give the Uchiha the responsability of the police forces, like keep in check the Senju's most radical elements. And as police forces, the Uchiha may have information against Danzou, they could have known how much crimes he and his supporters commited against Konoha's individual, but did have enough evidences to arrest him. So they decide to kill him, even if it means to put Konoha in chaos for the greater good. Madara wants to pit Sasuke against Naruto, he'll say what must be said to get his fight. Talking of which, he's the only one to say Kyuubi happened to pass by Konoha, Jiraiya, Minato and Itachi all said Madara summoned the monster.
Anyway, Sasuke joining Akatsuki is immoral, what's the point to stick with Madara, who admit he gleefully seconded Itachi in slaugthering the Uchiha, to kill a guy who simply gave the orders that lead to the massacre? If it was that important for Sasuke to get revenge for the clan, he should have stick to his original plan, and kill the mysterious guy who helped Itachi that night.
From the moment he associated himself with Madara, Sasuke lost any moral high ground to become a mad man.
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
Justified? No.
Understandable? Heck yes. From a guy who's named himself an avenger from day one, it's unsurprising that once he failed to avenge the uchiha clan (since Itachi's hand was forced), he would continue pursuing justice for the uchiha clan, which requires him to become more and more powerful, which has plunged him into darkness (and into manipulation by madara). Sasuke has a one-track mind, he's gonna stop at nothing, at this point I think Naruto will have to kill Sasuke in the end as that's how bad it is.
Current Theories/Beliefs for Bleach:
-Barragan and Halibel arn't goners yet-Confirmed
-Ukitake has an absorb and redirect type shikai (think baby nel vs. Dardonii's cero)-Confirmed
-The VL army/group that Aizen supposedly has doesn't exist-Pending/Waiting for confirmation on Wonderweiss
-The Vizards have ulterior motives, by ulterior I mean they arn't just going to be goody-two-shoes and help out the SS that betrayed them just to get back at Aizen-Pending
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
Nothing justifies Sasuke wanting to kill people who weren't even involved in the massacre, including his old friends/ The Elders? Fine. They caused the damn mess. But everyone else? Nope.
^This. We can argue about whether it's OK for Sasuke to kill the elders. I mean, Danzō is kind of a prick. No one's gonna miss him. But Sasuke wants to kill all of Konohagakure. What gives him the right to kill all the people who weren't involved? Who knew just as much as he did (i.e. nothing)?
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
Well first of all the example/analogy given with the thief and police just utterly fails because it conveniently leaves out betrayal and death and etc. And sub's in incapacitation for some strange and unknown reason. So it's essentially an overly simplistic, and rather deceitful, analogy of apples and oranges.
And secondly everyone likes to act "high and mighty" and advocate doing the "right thing". And that is understandable i suppose, but there comes a point where you have to walk a mile in someone's shoes before passing judgement. And obvious doing that in this scenario would be nearly impossible. But i think anyone can even slightly imagine that loosing your entire family to murder/conspiracy would feel like. And basically nothing, absolutely nothing, was done to prevent that or punish the person responsible for it. As a matter of fact that ones who supposedly "enforce the justice" were apparently in on the murders. And allowed the situation to take place.
So its very understandable why "justice" would become nothing more than a mirage to Sasuke. The "system" miserably failed, and even conspired to take lives. And when that happens you can either mope about it or do something about it. And when it comes to family, avenging them or what not takes center stage above all else. Sasuke's family is all he has ever had, it's the only thing he ever cared for. And because once again, if "justice" was so great and important/prevalent, then the entire situation would have never happened in the first place. It's easy to pick out a single person and blame them yet let the system off the hook.
I'm not saying Sasuke should go and slaughter anyone and everyone he wants to. But if the people that knowingly or unknowingly try to prevent him from killing the elders then they become free game. Because ignorance is not an excuse, never has been and never will be. So not knowing what the elders/Danzou did is no valid reason to defend or fight for anyone. Because once again, that comes back upon the ones at the top and them not letting people know what happened. They clearly chose their secrets, and to protect themselves, over protecting those around them. Secrets rot the soul, and Konoha is slowly rotting to it's very core.
So if "justice" means biting the bullet and "forgiving/moving on" and letting someone else deal with it. Then what Sasuke is doing is the exact opposite of "justice". But when that so called "justice" has failed you at every step of the way in your life then there is no reason as to why you should conform to that "justice". "Justice" is a two way street, and for Sasuke it's been nothing other than a one way street. That has conveniently been stacked up against him before he even knew the street existed.
"Upon the back of his body not a wound of retreat scars it."
One Piece is a series created by a genius, it's a masterpiece, it's like a fine wine, it only gets better with time.
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
He is certainly not justified but it is understandable that he would want revenge. But this doesn't mean what he is doing is "right". Its all really a matter of perspective.
The elders, at least the ones besides Danzou, probably honestly thought that the Uchihas were a serious threat to the welfare of Konoha. While you could argue that there must have been a better way of dealing with the situation.
As there is no such thing as actually "justice", nothing can truly be justified. Its all perspective like I said. Sasuke is doing what he feels is right. Can't blame him. Though he should still be punished under the law of Konoha as a rogue ninja like any other ninja would be.
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
Originally Posted by zerocooldx
I'm not saying Sasuke should go and slaughter anyone and everyone he wants to. But if the people that knowingly or unknowingly try to prevent him from killing the elders then they become free game. Because ignorance is not an excuse, never has been and never will be. So not knowing what the elders/Danzou did is no valid reason to defend or fight for anyone. Because once again, that comes back upon the ones at the top and them not letting people know what happened. They clearly chose their secrets, and to protect themselves, over protecting those around them. Secrets rot the soul, and Konoha is slowly rotting to it's very core.
This is a terrible justification. It's also not true, Sasuke is planning to destroy the entire village.
Quote:
So if "justice" means biting the bullet and "forgiving/moving on" and letting someone else deal with it. Then what Sasuke is doing is the exact opposite of "justice". But when that so called "justice" has failed you at every step of the way in your life then there is no reason as to why you should conform to that "justice". "Justice" is a two way street, and for Sasuke it's been nothing other than a one way street. That has conveniently been stacked up against him before he even knew the street existed.
Re: Sasuke's crusade: Justified or Not
In my humblest opinion, Sasuke's crusade is totally not convincing. I know what happened to him, his family, and his kin was cruel. But, how can he not see what Itachi intended for him. Itachi was in a living hell and even in his death, he sacrificed all for the sake of Sasuke. All of Itachi's sacrifices and suffering was nullified by Sasuke's pursuit of revenge. IIRC, he was never so passionate about Uchiha till the point he knew the truth about Itachi. Now, he want to revive Uchiha clan and whatever. Seems to me an excuse to exact revenge and show off his powers.
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Setup:
Whenever I have intense activity on the 2nd channel (burn/copy), it seems all the juice is taken and my HD slows down big time (even with the one I had before with this setup). Example: I’m listening to an mp3 from the HD, start to burn a CD, and BANG! the mp3 plays half the speed!
IDE can only access one drive at a time. So why its using your 2nd drive it cant use the 1st drive untill the 2nd drive is stopped being used. I advise you not to put a cdrom on the same channel as a Hard drive if you are going to be using them at the same time. Maybe you can get a program that pre loads the mp3 into RAM.
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John Fredriksen-controlled Flex LNG said it was contemplating the acquisition of shipbuilding contracts for two high-end MEGI LNGC newbuilds at South Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME). The...
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Real Estate Agents Use Texting to Simplify Home Buying
Once a buyer opts into your SMS text messaging program, you know that you have their attention. This is your opportunity to begin building a meaningful, trusting relationship with your leads by guiding them through the home buying process.
You know that home buyers, particularly first-time buyers, can come at you with a lot of questions. As you move through the buying process from inquiry to show to sale, they come at an increasingly furious pace and with escalating urgency. Using conversational text messaging can help you keep up with it all, serve more clients, and build better relationships with all of them.
Here are some examples of how real estate agents use text messaging to guide home buyers through the purchase process.
Respond to Initial Inquiries
Simply responding to basic inquiries about your property listings can monopolize your time. Fortunately, you can easily automate your most popular buyer questions and reduce the time it takes to respond to them. Your replies will be faster and your buyers are sure to appreciate it. Here’s how you get the conversation started with a basic inquiry.
When the buyer sends the text, the SMS platform triggers an automated response based on the keyword “220MainSt”
When the buyer replies, your pre-set workflows can also confirm and send them additional details about the house like amenities, special features, information about schools and more to pique their interest. For example:
The top reason why buyers choose and give referrals to agents is response time, according to a recent CAR survey[1]. The more responsive you are, the more likely it is that you’ll get the sale, and the more likely it is that you’ll be recommended to others.
Answering your buyer’s questions quickly via text not only helps you build a trusting relationship, it allows you to build detailed profiles of all your clients.
Build Your Buyer’s Profile
The more you know about your buyer, the faster you can help them find the right home. You can gather all the information you need with texts simply by asking the buyer a series of questions. The answers are then added to your database, allowing you to automatically send your buyers listings, updates, and information that will help speed the time to closing.
You can start building the profile as soon as a buyer asks for information about a property.
Allowing buyers to schedule and reschedule by text will help keep you on top of everything and reduce the no-shows that can waste so much of your time.
Once you know what they’re looking for you can send them a link to listings they may be interested in.
Schedule Showings and Meetings
Your appointments take up a big chunk of your day. To make the most of your valuable time, you can schedule and confirm appointments by text, automatically send reminders, and make rescheduling easy for both you and your clients.
Allowing buyers to schedule and reschedule by text will help keep you on top of everything and reduce the no-shows that can waste so much of your time.
An hour before your appointment, you can send a reminder and give an opportunity to reschedule:
Send Property Alerts and Updates
You can get ahead of many questions just by sending automated alerts and updates to buyers about properties they are interested in. A few examples of this include:
Price changes
Offer submission deadlines
Status changes (in-contract, pending, sold)
New similar properties on the market
Interest rate changes
Guiding your buyers through the buying process with conversational text messaging lets you be there for them every step of the way while saving you time. It helps you talk to buyers on their terms and keep them engaged until the day the keys are in their hands (and the commission check is in yours!)
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It is the policy of Northern Virginia Community College and the Virginia Community College System to maintain and promote equal employment and educational opportunities without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, marital status, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, political affiliation, or against otherwise qualified persons with disabilities. The policy permits appropriate employment preferences for veterans and specifically prohibits discrimination against veterans. Inquiries concerning affirmative action and equal opportunity policies should be addressed to Therman Coles at 703.323.3266 or [email protected].
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Monday, October 16, 2006
For me, the worst feeling in the world is frustration. This feeling can overtake me anywhere. Sometimes it creeps up during understandable situations, such as when I cannot get my class to understand some concept I consider ridiculously simple. However, I can also get frustrated during the simplest situations, such as when I can’t thread a needle or pull the backing off a label or bumper sticker. After I have spent a few minutes being unable to divide the sticker from its backing, I’ll get a certain feeling in my chest. This feeling causes me to throw the sticker on the ground, probably cuss, and even physically attack other inanimate objects, such as nearby chairs and tables. The feeling combines the helplessness of an unexpected breakup with the irritation of an itch that cannot be satisfied, regardless of how much scratching.
I bring up this feeling because it is exactly how I feel when I sit in my graduate school classes at Ole Miss. I have not been this frustrated in a classroom since I was in 6th grade, when my Social Studies teacher would spend the entire class having students take turns reading from the textbook. It takes my professors five hours to give information that I could grasp and understand in thirty minutes. With one notable exception, every academic leader I have had at Ole Miss has been a major disappointment. They provide no challenges, intellectual or otherwise. I have gotten into the habit of either “phoning-in” or simply ignoring homework assignments because I view them as a heinous waste of my precious time. The issue about homework is not the fact that I would rather be doing something that I find entertaining – hanging out with friends, reading a novel, or watching a movie – it is the fact that I could be doing something productive. I could be planning lessons. Or grading essays. Or calling parents. Or redecorating my room. Or creating tests. Or figuring out how to help my students who are in danger of failing or dropping out of school.
It is not that I have a problem spending time doing work for graduate school; I have never, and will never, shy away from any academic challenge. That said, I want my work to be worthwhile. There is no point in spending time on homework which is, basically, busy work. I wish that my professors would take the advice they so eagerly give to their students: make sure the class is involved, make sure you aren’t just “talking at” your class,
When I made the decision to join the Teacher Corps, I thought the graduate school courses would be a highlight of the program, a welcome respite from the daily grind of teaching. The opposite has become true. I fear the weekends we have to travel to Ole Miss to take classes. I can’t stand every moment we spend in the Education Building. My head aches, my thoughts wander, and my chest is filled with that awful feeling of frustration.
I do not know if this lack of academic rigor is more a reflection of the University of Mississippi, the Mississippi Teacher Corps, or education graduate schools in general. Regardless of which institution is at fault, I recently told my father that I regard the entire process as a farce. I truly hope that this is a symptom of the first semester, and not a disease that ravages the entire program.
Next semester we will be taking a class with a gentleman who, in my limited contact with him, has appeared to be intelligent, intellectual, thoughtful, caring, and dedicated. This cocktail of attributes makes him an extremely rare ace in the School of Education’s deck; I only hope the rest of the professors I encounter at this school are not jokers.
I wonder if this isn't somewhat intentional, so as not to overwhelm the already impossibly overwhelmed. Also, I wonder if the classes do not shy away from theoretical discussions in an effort to provide us with the more concrete, potentially classroom-usable information. Not that I necessarily believe this, but am simply playing Devil's Advocate.
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Introduction
Thank you for purchasing Beoreo WordPress Theme. Before you
get started, please be sure to always check out these documentation
files. We outline all kinds of good information, and provide you with
all the details you need know to use Beoreo Theme.
If you are unable to find your answer
here in the documentation, please contact us on our Support Forum or
directly from our themeforest account
What is included in the price?
Please don't forget to rate Beoreo with 5 stars and leave a nice review, it means a lot to us.Simply log in into your Themeforest, go to Downloads section and click 5 stars next to the Beoreo WordPress theme.
Thanks!Bearsthemes Team
Theme Installation via WordPress
When you download the theme from Themeforest, you will get an archive file in .zip extension.You need to unzip that archive. When done, you should see Beoreo.zip (zip file name can be changed from version to version).
Please, follow the steps below to install Beoreo Theme.
Step 1 - Login to your WordPress Dasrdoard.
Step 2 - Go to Appearance > Themes. Click Add new button, located at the top of the screen or Add new theme ( see screenshots below ).
Step 3 - Click on Upload button at the top of the screen.
Step 4 - Choose Beoreo.zip.
Step 5 - Wait while the theme is uploaded and installed then activate the theme.
Step 6 - After activating the theme a notice should appear on the top of the screen, click on begin installing plugins ( see screenshots below ).
Step 8 - Congratulation you are ready to use Beoreo, check the First Steps part of our documentation to see what you may want to do before starting to edit your WordPress Site.
Common Theme Installation Problems
“Are you sure you want to do this?”
If you get the “Are you sure you want to do this” message
when installing Beoreo.zip file via WordPress, it means you have an
upload file size limit. Install the theme via FTP if this happens, or
ask your hosting company to increase the limit.
Missing stylesheet file
If you get an error saying that the stylesheet is missing,
then you have uploaded the wrong folder. Please check that you are
uploading the Beoreo.zip within the Theme Files folder. You have to
unzip the file that you download from Themeforest to find this.
Theme Installation via FTP
If you are going to install the theme using FTP, you will need an FTP Client, such as FileZilla.
When you download the theme from Themeforest, you will get an archive file in .zip extension.You need to unzip that archive. When done, you should see Beoreo Folder(folder name can be changed from version to version).
Additional Links
Setting up the Demo Content
Before importing the dummy data Make sure you have all the plugin installed and Import Custom Post Type UI ( if you want to use portfolio, team, testimonial, packages and woocommerce. You make sure to install all first ).
2.4. Widget Importer
Error or Problem with Import of the Demo
If you have problems importing the demo ( example :
infinite loading, error 505 with when using wordpress importer ) then
you may have a problem with the server settings. Please create ticket in Support Forum.
General Options
You can enable Less Design, change Body Layout, change Body Background and enable Page Loader in the Theme Options. Please, follow the steps below to change general options.
Step 1 - Login to your WordPress Dasrdoard.
Step 2 - Go to Appearance > Theme Options > General .
Step 3 - Choose which part of the theme you want to modify.
Less Design: To use the less design features.
Layout: To modify Body layout with wide or boxed.
Body Background: To modify Body background with image, color, etc.
Page Loader: To Enable/Disable page loader.
Step 4 - When you have finish to customize the general options don't forget to save
Upload your logo
You can upload your logo image in the Theme Options. Please, follow the steps below to upload your logo:
Creating your menu
Step 2 - From the 'Appearance' menu on the left-hand side of the Dasrdoard, select the 'Menus' option to bring up the Menu Editor.
Step 3 - Select Create a new menu at the top of the page.
Step 4 - Enter a name for your new menu in the Menu Name box.
Step 5 - Click the Create Menu button.
Your menu is now defined, and you can now add pages to it (steps below).
Adding pages to your menu
The Screen Options allow you to choose which items you can
use to add to a menu. Certain items, like Posts are hidden by default.
The Screen Options are located in the top right corner of your WordPress
Dasrdoard.
Step 1 - Locate the pane entitled Pages.
Step 2 - Within this pane, select the View All link to bring up a list of all the currently published Pages on your site.
Step 3 - Select the Pages that you want to add by clicking the checkbox next to each Page's title.
Step 4 - Click the Add to Menu button located at the bottom of this pane to add your selection(s) to the menu that you created in the previous step.
Assigning a Menu to a Location
Once you've created a menu and filled it with items, it's time to assign it to one of the theme pre-defined locations.
Step 1 - Go to Appearance > Menus and click Manage Locations.
Step 2 - Assign each Theme Location with a menu. You can assign menus to multiple Theme Locations.
Step 3 - Click the Save Changes button.
Mega Menu
Beoreo features Mega Menus. The mega menus are available only for top level navigations items only in "Main Menu" area.Follow the steps below to create a mega menu:
Step 1 - Add a an item to the menu editor. This has to be a top level item!
Step 2 - Click on arrow icon in the top right-hand and exapnd.
Step 3 - Seclect the columns number you want to use (from 2 to 4) in Submenu Type.
Step 4 - Now, you need to add child menu items, which will represent columns in the mega menu.First level of child items will represent Titles in each of 3 columns.Add 3 sub child menu items, like on the image below.
Step 5 - Now, add child items
to each of those columns. This will represent your actual sub-menu
pages. Take a look at the image below.
The menu dropdown should now look something like this :
Step 6 - If you want to Remove the Titles (First Column, Second Column Third Column) Go back to the Mega menu setting and check Hide Mega Menu heading.
The menu dropdown should now look something like this :
Step 7 - Adding Widget / Image to the
Menu. To do this first you need to have a Widget set with some widget (
you can create new sidebar go to Appearance > Widget ). Menu doesn't work with all the widget, but works will all Beoreo Widget and Default WordPress Text Widget
Step 8 - When you have set your sidebar with widget click on the sub child menu you want to turn into widget area ( we will turn the third column into a widget area), make sure it doesn't have sub menu
Create Team page ( standard )
Step 3 - Give your page a name then Change the Editor to Backend Editor ( you need to have the Visual Composer plugin activated ).
Step 4 - Click on the Add Element button
Step 5 - Select the Team module.
Step 6 - The Team should appear. You can customize the Team by modifying the settings
Step 7 - After finishing, Publish the page.
Create Team page ( carousel )
Step 1 - Log in to your WordPress Administration Panel (Dasrdoard)..
Step 2 - Click on Pages > Add New.
Step 3 - Give your page a name then Change the Editor to Backend Editor ( you need to have the Visual Composer plugin activated ).
Step 4 - Click on the Add Element button
Step 5 - Select the Team Carousel module.
Step 6 - The Team Carousel should appear. You can customize the Team Carousel by modifying the settings
Step 7 - After finishing, Publish the page.
Create Orther posts & Page
Please do it same post or portfoio or team.
Theme Options
The theme comes with an extensive Theme Options Panel. From
the Theme options panel you will be able to set or change the color of
the theme, layout, header style, social icons and a lot more. You should
take the time to go through all of these options to ensure that you are
getting the most out of the theme.
Click Theme Options to access the Theme Options Panel.
Page setting
Custom CSS
Custom CSS Code - Quickly add some CSS to your theme by adding it to this block.
Demo Importer
Demo Importer - Click on the demo you want to import
Page Options
For each page you can change the title
style, title background color, select to use a slider and much more!
Check the screenshot and read the documentation to see how it works
General setting
Body Layout - Select body layout for page.
Header setting
Select Header - Select header layout for page.
Logo - Select an image logo for page.
Stick Logo - Select an image stick logo for page.
Select Menu - Select menu for page.
Select Position - Select position menu for page.
Disable Stick Menu - Disable Stick Menu for page.
Title Bar setting
Body Layout - Select Background title bar for page.
Footer setting
Select Footer - Select footer layout for page.
Show Footer Top - Show or hide footer top for page.
Show Footer Bottom - Show or hide footer bottom for page.
Revolution Slider
Beoreo theme includes the premium plugin - Revolution Slider.
Once you've installed and activated the Revolution Slider
plugin, you will then see the menu item appear at the bottom of the
WordPress menu, as below:
Documentation
You can import the revolution slider we used in our demo, all
slider are in the slider folder. To learn more about the Revolution
Slider plugin please read the Plugin documentation
Widgets
Widgets
Beoreo theme comes with Custom widget created specially for the theme.To set the Widget go to Appearance > Widgets.
Duplicate Element
Remove Element
About Row / Column / Custom heading / Text Block Design options
Design Options - When you edit row / column / custom heading / text block module, you can edit the design options . Row / Custom Heading / Text Block element have a default Bottom Margin of 35 pixel, you may want to set it to 0 if you don't want to have bottom space It is Good to add bottom Padding to your Column, so they will looks good on mobile Left and Right Margin should NEVER be modified, please left blank For Row module the Left and Right Padding should also NEVER be modified, please left blank
Create Contact Form
Step 3 - Edit the Form field to change the Form Layout ( if you want to use one of the layout you saw on the demo check the next step )
Step 4 - Save your Form
Create contact page
Step 1 - Log in to your WordPress Administration Panel (Dasrdoard)..
Step 2 - Click on Pages > Add New.
Step 3 - Give your page a name then Change the Editor to Backend Editor ( you need to have the Visual Composer plugin activated ).
Step 4 - Click on the Add Element button
Step 5 - Select the Contact Form 7.
Step 6 - The Contact Form 7 Settings should appear. Select the Form you want to use you can also customize the Color and change the fields layout and button design
Step 7 - Update / Publish your page
WooCommerce
Beoreo themes is 100% compatible with the WooCommerce
plugin for WordPress. It includes full design integration of the
WooCommerce pages, shortcodes and widgets.
If you want to use Woocommerce you will have to install the plugin, to do so go to Plugins > Add New , search for Woocommerce.The Plugin you need to install is WooCommerce - excelling eCommerce by WooThemes
Child Theme
Beoreo comes with a Child Theme.Simply install Beoreo_Child.zip like a regular WordPress theme.
What is a Child Theme?
A child theme is a theme that inherits the functionality of
another theme, called the parent theme. Child themes allow you to
modify, or add to the functionality of that parent theme. A child theme
is the best, safest, and easiest way to modify an existing theme,
whether you want to make a few tiny changes or extensive changes.
Instead of modifying the theme files directly, you can create a child
theme and override within.
Why use a Child Theme?
If you modify an existing theme and it is updated, your
changes will be lost. With a child theme, you can update the parent
theme (which might be important for security or functionality) and still
keep your changes.
It’s a great way to get started if you are just learning WordPress theme
development.
Additional Links
You need to use a Child Theme only if you are making code customizations.
Disable Comments
Comments are enabled on WordPress by default. You can
change this default for new posts or pages you’ll publish in the future,
as well as change it for posts or pages you already published.
To change the defaults for new posts or pages, go to Settings → Discussion.
To disable comments on an existing post/page/project, open it up for
editing. Now beneath the main content area, you should see a box labeled
“Discussion”. Simply uncheck both boxes and save your changes.
What if you can’t see the discussion box?
Then you need to click the “Screen Options” tab in
the upper right corner of your screen and check the box to enable the
discussion module. You still need to close the tab and navigate to the
bottom of the page and uncheck “Allow Comments” in the discussion module.
Theme Update via WordPress
Updating the theme via WordPress is very similar to the install process via WordPress.Follow the steps below to update your theme via WordPress:
Step 1 - Log into your WordPress Dasrdoard.
Step 2 - Go to Appearance > Themes.
Step 3 - Deactivate the Beoreo Theme by simply activating a different theme. Once you activate a different theme, you can delete the Beoreo theme.
Step 4 - Delete the Beoreo Theme. Do not worry, your content will not be lost!
Step 5 - Then simply upload the new “Beoreo.zip” file in the Appearance > Themes section. Click on the Install Themes tab at the top and choose to upload the zip file. You have this step explained in section: Theme Installation via WordPress.
Theme Update via FTP
Updating the theme via FTP is very similar to the install process via FTP.Follow the steps below to update your theme via FTP:
Step 1 - Go to .../wp-content > themes
location on your server using a FTP client and backup your "Beoreo"
theme folder by saving it to your computer, or you can choose to simply
delete it. Your content will not be lost.
Step 2 - Download the new version of Beoreo theme from your Themeforest and retrieve Beoreo folder by unpacking the zip that you download from Themeforest and Beoreo_(version.number).zip.
Step 3 - Then simply drag and drop the new "Beoreo" theme folder into .../wp-content > themes location. Choose to “Replace” the current one if you did not delete it.
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WOMEN’S OLYMPIA 2007 – all aspects of the evening show from Olympia weekend will be featured in this program, including the Ms. Olympia Contest, the Figure Olympia Contest, and the FITNESS Olympia contest including all of the 2-minute routines. Over two dozen FIGURE Olympia athletes including legendary Monica Brant will challenge 2006 winner Jenny Lynn. The dynamic competitive finals routines of the MS. OLYMPIA bodybuilding athletes as they show their best, and the posedown round will make a memorable show for all.
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“Gov. Perdue has a lifetime background in agriculture, having grown up on a farm. He has a degree as a veterinarian and has owned many agribusinesses. I think it is encouraging to know we will have someone leading USDA who understands the concerns of the agriculture community,” said Tennessee Farm Bureau President Jeff Aiken.
As governor, Perdue represented diverse agricultural commodities and Aiken said Perdue’s experience will bring positive change to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“As secretary of agriculture, he will be leading about 100,000 people – his experience as governor of the state Georgia gives him the ability to work with many different facets and create policies that will serve everyone well,” said Aiken.
Perdue was born in Perry, Georgia and is a graduate of the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. He served 10 years in the Georgia Senate before being elected governor in 2002, and easily won re-election in 2006.
American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall worked with Perdue while president of Georgia Farm Bureau.
“I think it is a great opportunity for southern agriculture to have someone who will be cognizant of the concerns and issues that farmers in the South are facing. In addition, Gov. Perdue has already worked with AFBF President Duvall, which will allow AFBF and USDA to build a coalition to serve our industry,” said Aiken.
This is the last cabinet position President-elect Trump announced, and Aiken said making the right choice was worth the wait, “Most farmers and those with an interest in this appointment had a little concern over waiting so long to get an appointment, but I think we got it right and I think that is more important than being first, is having the right person in the position.”
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Margaret A. Downey v. Michael J. Astrue
The opinion of the court was delivered by: Honorable Sheri Pym United States Magistrate Judge
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
I.
INTRODUCTION
On March 21, 2011, plaintiff Margaret A. Downey filed a complaint against defendant Michael J. Astrue, seeking a review of a denial of disability insurance benefits ("DIB"). Both plaintiff and defendant have consented to proceed for all purposes before the assigned Magistrate Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c). The court deems the matter suitable for adjudication without oral argument.
Plaintiff presents two disputed issues for decision: (1) whether the Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") properly considered the opinions of a treating physician and two consultative examiners; and (2) whether the ALJ properly considered plaintiff's credibility. Plaintiff's Notice of Motion and Motion for Summary Judgment or Remand ("Pl. Mem.") at 8-13.
Having carefully studied, inter alia, the parties's moving papers, the Administrative Record ("AR"), and the decision of the ALJ, the court concludes that, as detailed herein, the ALJ improperly rejected the opinions of plaintiff's treating physician and two consultative examiners without providing specific and legitimate reasons supported by substantial evidence for doing so. The ALJ also inappropriately discounted plaintiff's credibility, as the reasons he gave for doing so were not clear and convincing reasons supported by substantial evidence. Therefore, the court remands this matter to the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration ("Commissioner") in accordance with the principles and instructions enunciated in this Memorandum Opinion and Order.
II.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
Plaintiff, who was forty-four years old on the date of her December 17, 2008, administrative hearing, is a high school graduate and has vocational training. See AR at 33-34. Her past relevant work includes employment as a massage therapist, network implementation coordinator, and administrative clerk. ARat 45, 97.
On September 17, 2007, plaintiff filed an application for DIB, alleging a period of disability from April 29, 2005 through December 31, 2009, the date last insured, due to costochondritis, which causes pain in her chest, neck, back, and shoulder. AR at 18; Pl. Mem. at 1-2. Plaintiff developed costochondritis after falling at work. Pl. Mem. at 2. The Commissioner denied plaintiff's application initially and upon reconsideration, after which she filed a request for a hearing. AR at 58-62, 65-69, 71.
On December 17, 2008, plaintiff, represented by counsel, appeared and testified at a hearing before the ALJ. AR at 27-53. The ALJ also heard testimony from Aida Worthington, a vocational expert. AR at 41-50. On July 9, 2009, the ALJ denied plaintiff's claim for benefits. ARat 18-26.
Applying the well-known five-step sequential evaluation process, the ALJ found, at step one, that plaintiff did not engage in substantial gainful activity since her alleged onset date of disability, April 29, 2005. AR at 20.*fn1
At step two, the ALJ found that plaintiff suffered from the following severe "combination of impairments": costochondritis, left shoulder impingement syndrome, left acromioclavicular arthritis, obesity, sleep apnea, asthma, and depression. AR at 20.
At step three, the ALJ found that plaintiff's impairments, whether individually or in combination, did not meet or medically equal one of the listed impairments set forth in 20 C.F.R. part 404, Subpart P, Appendix 1 (the "Listings"). AR at 20-21.
The ALJ then assessed plaintiff's residual functional capacity ("RFC") and*fn2 determined that she had the RFC to perform sedentary work with the following limitations: "lifting and carry ten pounds occasionally and less than 10 pounds frequently; standing and/or walking for six hours of an eight hour workday; sitting for six hours of an eight hour workday; avoiding all exposure to moving
Although the ALJ's determinations are from the alleged date of disability machinery and unprotected heights and performing only occasional overhead work." AR at 21-22.
The ALJ found, at step four, that plaintiff was not capable of performing her past relevant work. AR at 25.
At step five, the ALJ determined that, based upon plaintiff's age, education, work experience, and RFC, plaintiff could perform "a significant number of jobs in the national economy," including telephone solicitor, addressor, and call out operator. Id. Consequently, the ALJ concluded that plaintiff did not suffer from a disability as defined by the Social Security Act. Id.
Plaintiff filed a timely request for review of the ALJ's decision, which was denied by the Appeals Council. AR at 1-3. The ALJ's decision stands as the final decision of the Commissioner.
III.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
This court is empowered to review decisions by the Commissioner to deny benefits. 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). The findings and decision of the Social Security Administration must be upheld if they are free of legal error and supported by substantial evidence. Mayes v. Massanari, 276 F.3d 453, 458-59 (9th Cir. 2001) (as amended). But if the court determines that the ALJ's findings are based on legal error or are not supported by substantial evidence in the record, the court may reject the findings and set aside the decision to deny benefits. Aukland v. Massanari, 257 F.3d 1033, 1035 (9th Cir. 2001); Tonapetyan v. Halter, 242 F.3d 1144, 1147 (9th Cir. 2001).
"Substantial evidence is more than a mere scintilla, but less than a preponderance." Aukland, 257 F.3d at 1035. Substantial evidence is such "relevant evidence which a reasonable person might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." Reddick v. Chater, 157 F.3d 715, 720 (9th Cir. 1998); Mayes, 276 F.3d at 459. To determine whether substantial evidence supports the ALJ's finding, the reviewing court must review the administrative record as a whole, "weighing both the evidence that supports and the evidence that detracts from the ALJ's conclusion." Mayes, 276 F.3d at 459. The ALJ's decision "'cannot be affirmed simply by isolating a specific quantum of supporting evidence.'" Aukland, 257 F.3d at 1035 (quoting Sousa v. Callahan, 143 F.3d 1240, 1243 (9th Cir. 1998)). If the evidence can reasonably ...
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Potential Applications (currently under experimental research)
Adult stem cells from bone marrow and umbilical cord blood have been used for decades to treat patients for dozens of diseases, notably leukemia and other blood-related conditions. However, with the discovery & advent of dental stem cells, tissue & organ related degenerative diseases,which account for the majority of diseases which affect humans, may be treatable in the future.
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Euro zone manufacturing continues to surge
Thursday, June 01, 2017 - 01:48
Manufacturing across the euro zone grew at the fastest rate in more than six years during May, increasing activity as price increases failed to slow their new orders, a survey showed on Thursday. Ciara Lee reports.
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More good news for factories in the euro zone.
Manufacturing across the bloc growing at its fastest rate in more than six years during May
IHS Markit's index for the euro zone rose to 57 in May, up from April's 56.7
A figure of 50 indicating growth.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) NEIL WILSON, SENIOR MARKET ANALYST, ETX CAPITAL, SAYING:
"The euro zone is doing very well the recovery seems to be bobbing along very nicely. We've got a PMIs at six year highs and I think really the euro zone is considered one bright spot at the moment in the global economy."
Germany, Europe's largest economy, led the charge.
Output, new orders and employment all rose at the fastest rate in around six years.
Growth in new export business reached its highest level in seven.
Solid upturns recorded in other countries too.
France lagged behind but is still enjoying its best quarter for six years.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) NEIL WILSON, SENIOR MARKET ANALYST, ETX CAPITAL, SAYING:
"We're seeing the French really turning things around. Whether or not that's got to do with the presidential election and the arrival Macron, there's another matter. I think we've seen the French economy sort of turning around slowly over time anyway."
Signs the bloc's enjoying a stable recovery will be welcomed by policymakers at the ECB.
The bank's expected to signal a move away from its ultra-easy monetary policy by September
Making some nervous.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) NEIL WILSON, SENIOR MARKET ANALYST, ETX CAPITAL, SAYING:
"If QE the QE rug was pulled out from underneath the euro zone then things could start to falter and I think that's what we see with Mario Draghi and the ECB remaining still very very cautious despite all this good data. We're not seeing inflation pick up."
Manufacturers taking part in the survey pointed to strong demand from Asian customers
With domestic demand for industrial goods also solid.
Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest international multimedia news provider reaching more than one billion people every day. Reuters provides trusted business, financial, national, and international news to professionals via Thomson Reuters desktops, the world's media organizations, and directly to consumers at Reuters.com and via Reuters TV. Learn more about Thomson Reuters products:
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Thursday, January 19, 2012
Well, hello everyone. Despite what the lack of posts on this blog may lead you to believe, I have not dropped off the face of the Earth.
And, I hate to say it, but I wouldn't expect many posts upcoming for a while. The reason? Well, there's a lot that goes into it.
I had previously thought that the reason I didn't post as much was purely time related. The season always starts up right when school starts up, and since I've been getting into higher level courses I have little free time. But my addiction to Flash games always spoke against that, and I didn't post at all over winter break when I literally had nothing to do.
So what's the reason why I don't really post anymore? Is it because I don't spend time with computers anymore? Ha. No. My laptop is up and running when I am and only goes to sleep when I do. It is still on my to-do list to give this blog a nice template redo sometime in the near future.
Is it because I don't like to write anymore? The multiple drafts of stories and novels on my harddrive are proof against that. And to be honest, blogging is a lot easier to do than actually write (something about fully developed thoughts not being needed).
Is it because I don't like sports anymore? Heck no. ESPN is often the channel on my TV and I devour hockey facts like the Cookie Monster at the Chips Ahoy factory. No, I'm still a sports fanatic, and that will likely never change.
So what is it? Why does posting here not matter as much to me as it once did?
The only reason I can come up with is that I just don't care about this team anymore. No, not that I don't like the Hurricanes - I would have to throw out half of my wardrobe if that were to happen - I just don't care about these 2011-2012 Hurricanes.
But, you say, you've continually posted through horrible seasons before. You kept blogging through 14 game losing streaks and the misery that came with it. They don't even have Paul Maurice anymore and they're playing entertaining hockey again - why now?
And to that, good reader, I must say that I'm not really sure, but I think it's because there's absolutely no hope for this season. Win or lose, the Canes are going nowhere. And, unlike previous seasons, this isn't a new thing. Being a pathetic hockey team is old hat. What's new to post? Oh we have a horrible power play and penalty kill. Done before. Our captain has the worst plus/minus in the league. Yeah, that's nothing new. The only thing new and fresh about this season was Jeff Skinner, and he ended up getting injured.
There are a lot of players I like on this team. Jeff Skinner is one, Tuomo Ruutu another. Gleason and LaRose, of course. And I really do think that Kirk Mueller has things going in the right direction. But as a whole, this team is not inspiring enough to write about.
So what now? I'm not going away. Maybe after this I'll start posting regularly because I want to prove that I still love doing this. I'll definitely post about any trades or anything important like that. But I wouldn't expect much as a reader for a while.
You can, of course, always follow me on Twitter, as I never forget to update that.
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Smh,Wiz must be out of his mind..
It's not about "street cred" anymore son.Get some paper while u can
the way I see it is that Wiz still wants to do his tour and he's not gonna postpone his own tour so he can open on someone elses. Even if he declined now he knows that he's on Drake's mind, which introduces him to other YM people.
So he gets to do his tour, he gave strength into his own image, and he has potential for even more opportunities.
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While it's not necessary to be fluent in Spanish when you live in a Spanish-speaking country, having a base helps.
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These Spanish Words Are Not Your Friends…
The first time I went to a Spanish speaking country I figured that needing to know the language was over-rated. I jumped on a plane bound for Spain with an exaggerated sense of confidence, and a tiny phrase book that I assumed would cover everything I needed.
After landing in Madrid, I found my way to the train that would take me to my destination: the beautiful city of Seville in Andalusia.
Despite the jet lag, I was feeling pretty chipper until someone came to tell me that I was in the wrong seat. The number I had on the ticket matched where I was sitting so I couldn’t understand the problem or where I was supposed to be, if not there. It turns out I was in the wrong car and it took them half the trip to communicate it to me, much to their frustration and my bewilderment.
When the taxi that I took from the train station stopped outside of my new home in Seville, the driver said something to me and pointed at the door. I assumed he was in a hurry and wanted me to get out. After nearly being run over by a motorbike and being yelled at by both drivers, I realized that he was telling me to wait to open the door: “No abras la puerta.”
I enrolled in a Spanish language school the next day.
As soon as I started taking classes, I fell in love with El Español. I was delighted to realize how many Spanish words sounded similar to the English versions. My teacher called them cognates: artist—artista; tourist—turista; university—universidad; family—familia. It was so easy! (Or so I thought…) Whenever I didn’t know the Spanish word for something I just said it in English but made small adaptations to make it sound more Spanish.
That was until a couple of months later when I unintentionally made a big announcement at a dinner party hosted by my new Spanish beau’s parents. After accidentally spilling wine all over his mother, I attempted to apologize and convey my embarrassment. I told her (in front of everyone) that I was “embarazada.” I found out the hard way about false cognates and how to say the word “pregnant” in Spanish. It turns out that even though a word sounds similar in English and Spanish, the meanings can be very, very different.
This would not be my only encounter with false cognates or “false friends” as they are also known. I also discovered (to the great amusement of my Spanish friends) that:
Preservativos are not preservatives but rather condoms!
If someone asks you if you are “constipada,” they are asking if you have a cold or a stuffy nose.
If you want to say you are excited about something, say “emocionado/a” and not “excitado/a,” which means aroused.
“Molestar” is to bother or annoy. I learned this after a very confusing conversation where someone was telling me about his dislike of clowns…
“Ropa” is not rope. “Ropa” means “clothing”. I found this out when I attempted to ask a storekeeper to cut off a piece of string from a package I had just purchased. Not knowing the word for string I figured that “ropa” would be close enough. It wasn’t. I ended up asking him to cut off his clothes.
While it’s not necessary to be fluent when you live in a Spanish-speaking country, having a base sure helps. That little bit of grammar and vocabulary you learn will come in handy in unimaginable situations. Plus the more you learn, the richer your new life will become. Just remember: making a bit of a fool out of yourself is all part of the process (and, as I prove, can lead to some very funny stories). And watch out for those false friends!
Editor’s Note: Learn more about Spain and other countries in our daily postcard e-letter. Simply sign up for IL’s free daily postcard here and we’ll send you a FREE REPORT — Live the Good Life in Sunny, Affordable Spain.
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Sobriety checks result in 7 DUI arrests
The North Central Regional DUI Enforcement Program has announced results from a sobriety checkpoint conducted on Route 611 on June 8.
Comment
By Staff report
poconorecord.com
By Staff report
Posted Jun. 14, 2013 at 12:01 AM
By Staff report
Posted Jun. 14, 2013 at 12:01 AM
» Social News
The North Central Regional DUI Enforcement Program has announced results from a sobriety checkpoint conducted on Route 611 on June 8.
A total of 276 vehicles were stopped. Thirty-two drivers were detained and 23 were tested for driving under the influence. There were seven DUI arrests, one underage drinking arrest and six other citations issued. Two written warnings were given.
Sobriety checkpoints are funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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In Room Dining
Our In-Room Dining is open from 6:00 a.m. – 11:30 p.m., for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and beverage service. We are happy to offer convenient doorknob ordering for breakfast service. In-Room Dining can be reached at extension 1358 in-house. A variety of amenities are also available through room service. Room service gratuity is 21% and is posted automatically on all checks. There is also a delivery fee of $4.00 per order
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A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced the Native American Children’s Safety Act today.
The bill aims to protect the safety of children in tribal foster care. It requires backgrounds on all adults in a potential foster home.
“The safety of children on or off the reservation must be a priority for all of us,” Sen. John Hoeven (R-North Dakota), who wrote the bill, said in a press release. “Our legislation puts in statute, without ambiguity and with respect to tribal customs and traditions, safeguards for vulnerable young people who through no fault of their own find themselves in need of care and compassion in foster care.”
Co-sponsors include Sen. Jon Tester (D-Montana), the chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. He intends to move quickly on the bill -- it will get a hearing next Wednesday, April 2.
“The federal government has a responsibility to ensure the general welfare of native children in foster care,” Tester said. “This legislation is a necessary step to prevent abuse and its impacts on the long-term development of Indian children.”
Applies to tribal foster care placement of Native American children for the purpose of ensuring the safety and wellbeing of those children
Requires that all prospective foster care parents and adults living in the home undergo a background check prior to the placement of a Native American foster care child
Requires that background checks include checking for criminal activity as well as checking child abuse and neglect registries
Requires that adults who join the household after the foster care child has been placed there also undergo background checks
Requires that foster care homes undergo recertification periodically, to ensure they remain safe for foster care children
The bill sets out that the Department of Interior will work with Tribes, as well as Indian Country, to establish necessary procedures to ensure that these safety standards for foster care children are established
The bill requires the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which currently does not conduct these background checks in every case when placing Native American foster care children in foster care homes, follow these same requirements when acting on behalf of the Tribes
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Category Archive: Childhood Development
By underscoring the importance of standardized childhood developmental screening and communication between clinicians and caregivers, two new studies from CHOP’s PolicyLab can help physicians and families better support children with developmental disorders.
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But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.’”
But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
But if you will not go out to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be given into the hand of the Chaldeans [of Babylon] and they will set it on fire; and you yourself will not escape from their hand.’”
But if you will not go forth and surrender to the princes of the king of Babylon, then this city will be given into the hands of the Chaldeans and they will burn it with fire; and you will not escape out of their hands.
But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
But if thou wilt not go out to the princes of the king of Babylon, this city shall be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire: and thou shalt not escape out of their hands.
But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand.”
But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand.”
But if you refuse to ·surrender [L go out] to the officers of the king of Babylon, this city will be handed over to the ·Babylonian army [L Chaldeans], and they will burn it ·down [L with fire]. And you yourself will not escape from ·them [L their hand].’”
But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babel’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hands.
but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
But if you do not go surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city will be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they will burn it with fire, and you will not escape from their hand.’”
So Jeremiah told Zedekiah, “This is the Message from God, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel: ‘If you will turn yourself over to the generals of the king of Babylon, you will live, this city won’t be burned down, and your family will live. But if you don’t turn yourself over to the generals of the king of Babylon, this city will go into the hands of the Chaldeans and they’ll burn it down. And don’t for a minute think there’s any escape for you.’”
But if you do not surrender to the king of Babylon’s officials, then this city will be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they will burn it with fire, and you will not escape out of their hand.”
But if you will not go out to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be given over to the hand of the Chaldeans; and they will burn it with fire, and you yourself will not escape from their hand.’”
But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be handed over to the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you yourself shall not escape from their hand.”
But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be handed over to the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you yourself shall not escape from their hand.’
But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be handed over to the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you yourself shall not escape from their hand.’
But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be handed over to the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you yourself shall not escape from their hand.”
But if thou wilt not surrender unto the sarim of Melech Bavel, then shall this city be given into the yad of the Kasdim, and they shall burn it down with eish, and thou shalt not escape out of their yad.
But if you do not surrender to the princes of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chalde′ans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand.”
But if you do not surrender to the princes of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chalde′ans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand.”
But if you refuse to surrender to the officials of the Babylonian king, not only will this city be handed over to the Chaldeans, but they will burn it to the ground and you will not escape their punishment.”
Forsooth if thou goest not out to the princes of the king of Babylon, this city shall be betaken into the hands of Chaldees; and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape from the hand of them. (But if thou goest not out to the officers of the king of Babylon, this city shall be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans; and they shall burn it down, and thou shalt not escape from their hands.)
And if thou dost not go forth unto the heads of the king of Babylon, then hath this city been given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they have burnt it with fire, and thou dost not escape from their hand.'
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help!!!!
Monthly Archives: May 2014
Started a new course on web/ app development. So far it is jumping in head first into front end, setting up a domain, server, and working with version control open source cloud application platform called openshift. We are creating our own model of a really basic app, that needs tweaking so it can be more user friendly and pleasing to the eye.
I got a week to come up with a mockup site using bootstrapping and just finding templates online to cut and paste features and attributes. Then we will work on the back end, and putting it all together.
I’ve been doing a ruby on rails tutorial on the side as well.
Summer is so far starting off very busy! All going to plan haha.
Meet ups later on to learn anything else I feel I need to catch up on, had my eye on a few rails meetups and a few front end meets.
Well maybe I shouldn’t say bust, i’ll never quit but it’s a good way to set a timeline and keep myself under some pressure.
Two more weeks then finals! I can’t wait for this to be over so I can start focusing on development!!
My summer plans are to learn front end, back end, and phone gap to create some apps. Learn rails on the side and hitting up as many meet ups in the city as possible. It’s going to be busy, but my goal is to become a junior developer by spring 2015! I got my goals set, and i’ll have to see whether I’ll attend school next fall semester, possibly do 1 or 2 classes so I can focus on creating applications and websites for my profile.
I know for sure that I can’t go full time at school and expect to learn web development. There is not enough time to take 4 computer science classes and have room for anything else. So i’ll have to tweak my approach but very excited for the rest of this year. Good luck to all you guys trying to become developers as well!
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Directions
Chop Garlic & onions and sautee in a stock pot.When they become translucent add broth, carrots, celery spices and vinegar. Boil for 10-15 minutes or until carrots are almost softened to your likingAdd mushrooms and boil 5 more minutesadd tortellini and boil until they float to the top, about 10 minutes. Do not over cook pasta!
top with a thin slice of the cheese and some shredded basil.
** Bococcini or Buffalo style mozarella cheese is packed in tubs of water and found in the refrigerated section.
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Australians battling extreme heat
SYDNEY — The Australian city of Sydney is experiencing its hottest day on record, with temperatures reaching nearly 46C.
A temperature of 45.8C was recorded at Observatory Hill in the city at 14:55 local time.
Some areas in the wider Sydney region were even hotter, with the town of Penrith, to the west, registering a temperature of 46.5C.
In Victoria state, one man has been killed by a bush fire, one of dozens raging across southern Australia.
State police said the body of the man, who has not been identified, was found in a burnt-out vehicle close to Seaton, a small town some 200km (120 miles) east of Melbourne.
He is the first person confirmed to have been killed by this year’s fires, though a firefighter died while tackling a blaze in Tasmania earlier last Sunday. Officials have not yet determined how he died.
Firefighters are still battling dozens of wildfires sparked by the intense heat in New South Wales and Victoria.
The small town of Licola in eastern Victoria is reported to have been cut off by a 44,500-hectare fire, as its sole access road is blocked.
Officials said dozens of people had been evacuated but 10 locals were still there.
Rob Gilder, a sheep farmer, said he and two employees had found themselves trapped on their farm and were “in grave danger”.
He told the Herald Sun they were taking steps to protect their house and farm equipment, but that he was concerned for his livestock, and that the situation could worsen.
“I am very worried. But I am hopeful that one of those helicopters will come and get us but I think the smoke might beat them.” (BBC)
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Barbados Today
Our mission is to keep you informed. Do you have news, know of an event or a personality deserving of coverage? Contact us today! Nothing or no one is too big or too small for us at Barbados Today to highlight. You can also take your own good quality photographs of community events and drop us a note with the details.
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Abstract
Experiment was conducted at Research Laboratories of Department of Food Process Engineering, SHIATS, Allahabad to utilize the Sweet potato flour and oyster mushroom powder for preparation of Tikki mix. The sweet potato tubers were brought from local market of Allahabad and oyster mushroom obtained from Department of Plant protection, SHIATS Allahabad and then tubers with sorted washed, peeled, sliced, blanched, dried and milled into flour form. Sweet potato flour contains less amount of protein, although rich in dietary fiber content and carbohydrate, so a successful combination with oyster mushroom powder for Tikki mix production would be nutritionally advantageous. In this experiment Sweet potato flour was blended with oyster mushroom powder in ratio of 94%, 88%, 82% with control 100% Sweet potato flour. These were evaluated for sensory analysis that included color, flavor, taste, texture and overall acceptability of SPF and mushroom powder Tikki mix and analyzed for chemical properties viz; moisture, protein, fiber, fat and ash contents. On the basis of nutritional value T2 was found high fiber content than other samples and high score for over-all acceptability with containing of 88% sweet potato flour. Thus, the product was found to be acceptable after the storage period.
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Keep up the pressure to free Ahmed Batebi!
Submitted by Anon on 22 October, 2006 - 1:48
Following the threat of protests when former Iranian president Muhammad Khatami visits St Andrew's University to receive an honorary degree on 31 October, jailed Iranian student activist Ahmed Batebi has been temporarily freed.
When it became known that Khatami would be visiting St Andrew's, activists from Education Not for Sale and Scottish Socialist Youth issued a statement calling for solidarity with Iranian workers and students against both the Islamic Republic and the US's threats of war - and promising protests. This received widespread press attention, and quickly a majority of the NUS executive signed the statement. Ahmed's release shows that solidarity works. However, he has only been released for a short period of time and on the condition of paying $120,000 bail (raised from $45,000 by an Islamic judge at the last minute). It is vital that we keep up the pressure for him to be freed permanently, and for the release of all the Iranian regime's political prisoners.
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Friday, May 8, 2009
In a regular business recession, businesses that over-expanded whittle down their excess inventory, and reinvest capital in more profitable lines. Once inventories are at a more sustainable level and capital redeployed to more appropriate endeavors, growth should come back.
What the US has now is a capitalist recession. In this particular recession, investor/capitalists over-invested in speculative assets and mostly funded these purchases with massive debt. Before growth will come back, debt levels will have to be paid down. But how can debt be paid down if the investment was in non-income generating assets that have, at best, now come down in value, or at worst, unsellable?
To recover from debt, capitalists have had to hoard capital and cut down private consumption. Ditto their lenders, who also have had to swallow massive writedowns, now also hoarding capital and cutting private consumption.
So viable businesses, if there are any left, starve from a lack of capital, while most barely survive from the loss of consumers. This leads to more hoarding and clampdown on consumption. So where can “green shoots” of recovery come from?
Certainly not from the economy in capitalist recession. As we’ve mentioned many times before, you will have to look to those economies that have not been profligate with spending and borrowing - economies who have merely had a business recession.
Once inventories in these economies have come down to more sustainable levels (given the lowered demand) and capital redeployed to more appropriate endeavors (businesses that stimulate domestic consumption), growth should come back. Not just to these economies, but eventually, to economies in capitalist recession.
Look for these green shoots in the emerging markets. But be patient. It will take years for these shoots to become noticeable.
Now, it is possible for the US, being a hothouse for technology, to sprout green shoots by solving current problems in health care, alternative energy, and environmental care. But given the capital hoarding going on there, the capital will have to come from Asia.
3 comments:
Anonymous
said...
The improved carrier case according to claim 1 in which the air jordan shoes invention further comprises padding means along the interior of each of said compartment means for michael jordan shoes further enveloping said articles respectively for added rigid restraint of said articles within each of said compartment means.
Please name the "economies that had merely had a business recession" Please let me know what type of businesses are you referring to, It is hard to guess or distinguish since everyone is feeling the recession pain.Thank you,Victoria [email protected]
China, Korea, Thailand, Indonesia....etc. These are economies where there wasn't an asset bubble in the same magnitude as the US, and hence no capitalist recession at this time. But they are now undergoing a business recession, because they have production capacity for a world market that now no longer has the same level demand.
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"Conventional approaches, unconventional conclusions" on the global finance and economic issues of the day. Rogue Econ has been a banker and financial consultant in several countries. Welcome to my blog.
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Sunday, May 15, 2011
If and when the NFL and NFL Players' Association reach an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement, one of the more anticipated resolutions will be which players will be free agents and under what terms. The closer to the beginning of the scheduled season the negotiations become, the greater the likelihood that any agreement will greatly curtail what otherwise would have been the mother load of all NFL free-agency periods.
Assuming that all those eligible for free-agency reach the free-agent market in 2011, however, virtually any team with holes to fill will have the opportunity to do so--if they are willing to pay the cost. For Minnesota Vikings' fans, that's the most encouraging news since Bud Grant retook the reins from Les Steckel.
With gaping holes along the offensive line, at wide receiver, in the backfield, along the defensive line, and in the secondary, the Vikings could not have asked for a better time for such riches in free agency. And given the team's determination under the Wilf ownership to minimize future expenses by relying on roster, rather than pro-rated signing bonuses, the Vikings will have as much cap space as almost any team in the league, assuming the new CBA has cap stipulations.
There should be numerous high-quality players available for the Vikings to consider along both the offensive and defensive lines in this year's free-agency period. On offense, tackles Tyson Clabo (ATL) and Adam Goldberg (STL) and guards Logan Mankins (NE) and Carl Nicks (NO) should be available. Goldberg is probably best suited to play right guard, but can fill in at right tackle and left guard, if necessary. He, thus, would give the Vikings some flexibility, if not also a starter, that they have not had since he last donned purple and gold.
Clabo, too, is best suited to play on the right side, but is good enough to play any of the non-center spots along the line and certainly an upgrade at left tackle over Bryant McKinnie. Signing Clabo would give the Vikings one of the best offensive linemen in the league and give the team considerable flexibility in using its other current linemen, offering the option of moving McKinnie to the right side and pairing him in some combination with Phil Loadholt.
McKinnie also could become expendable if the Vikings make either of the above moves on exterior linemen and also sign an interior lineman. Two of the more compelling options in the interior are Mankins and Nicks. Either player would be an upgrade over either Anthony Herrera or the persistently ailing Steve Hutchinson.
Solidifying the offensive line, a unit the decline of which became increasingly noticeable when Mike Tice's departure exposed the smoke and mirrors with which Tice was forced to operate, would greatly enhance the prospects of any quarterback starting in the Vikings' backfield and ought to have the corollary effect of improving both the running and passing games.
The running and passing games would benefit, too, from an infusion of a "change-of-pace" back and a deep threat at wide-receiver. At running back, the Vikings could have numerous free-agent options, including Ahmad Bradshaw (NYG), Jerious Norwood (ATL), Joseph Addai (IND), and, on the lower end, Mewelde Moore (PIT). Bradshaw clearly is the cream of this crop, offering both a brutish and quick runner and a pass-catching threat, while Norwood, Addai, and Moore would offer a speedier, pass-catching option out of the backfield. Any of these signings at running back would make Toby Gerhart expendable--a win-win for all but Gerhart.
Pairing the addition of a speedy, pass-catching back with a speedy, strong, downfield threat would round out the Vikings' offense quite nicely, assuming that the Vikings' offensive scheme and quarterback play out as the team hopes. While there are numerous downfield threat options likely to be available in this year's free-agency, among the best are Santonio Holmes (NYJ), Malcolm Floyd (SD), and Steve Breaston (ARI). Holmes might not fit the image that the Vikings have pretended to admire under the Wilfs' ownership, Floyd might be too mercurial, and Breaston might be an injury risk, but, if any of these players plays up to their average ability, the Vikings would have a significant upgrade at the downfield threat position over even the 2009 version of Sidney Rice.
Solidifying an offense with its most substantial question mark at the most critical position will take some considerable effort by the Minnesota Vikings' front office, if and when free-agency arrives. If the team takes advantage of what should be a sizable advantage in cap space and what likely will be one of the greatest free-agency periods in NFL history, however, the Vikings could still pull off the improbable and compete with the haves of the 2011 NFL, rather than lamenting a long rebuilding cycle.
Friday, May 13, 2011
On Friday, May 13, former Minnesota Twins' slugger, Harmon Killebrew, announced that his battle with esophageal cancer was nearing its end. As always, Harmon's statement, focused on the Twins, his wife, and his acceptance of his fate, reflected the class and dignity that Harmon forever has exuded.
Throughout the 1960s and into the 70s, Harmon was as ferocious a hitter as ever played the game of baseball. His 11 all-star appearances and MVP season were more than matched, however, by his unwavering following among Twins' fans. Among those adoring fans was my grandmother, who went to Twins games not so much because she liked the game of baseball, but more because she was enamored with Harmon--his skill, his style, and his genuineness on and off the field.
Nearly a decade ago, my grandfather, a die-hard Twin and Viking fan, passed away. My grandmother was despondent. Knowing of her eternal fondness for Harmon Killebrew, I sent an e-mail to Twins' President Dave St. Peter inquiring whether it was possible to obtain a photo of Harmon for my grandmother.
Mr. St. Peter asked for my grandmother's address. I sent it, never expecting to hear back.
Two weeks later, I received a call from my father informing me that my grandmother had received a photograph of Harmon depicting him in his playing days. Accompanying the photo was a personalized message from Harmon.
When my grandmother passed away two years ago, she had lived long enough to distribute most of her possessions to her children and grandchildren. Among those items she passed along were numerous photographs.
Among the very few items that my grandmother retained until her death, however, was the personalized photograph of Harmon. However silly to some, the photograph and accompanying expression of sympathy and encouragement were invaluable to my grandmother, helping her make it through a very difficult time in her life.
Though Harmon's run here appears to be nearing an end, hopefully he will leave knowing that, like my grandmother, those who even had a passing affair with him cherished the experience. If there is something after this life, surely Harmon will make that something better for those around him.
Sunday, May 08, 2011
When the Minnesota Vikings first appeared on the Minnesota landscape fifty years ago, the team was comprises almost exclusively of individuals who played football as a second career, working in Minneapolis and the limited surrounding areas as their day job. That environment was closely analogous to the life of current Division I college football players who benefit from the love of the local fans to spot jobs and other opportunities in the off-season and reap other benefits throughout the year.
In those olden days, Vikings players routinely lived in Minnesota throughout the year, made friends, and stayed in the community after their playing days had come to an end. That connection was highlighted by the enduring community influence of players such as Alan Page, Bill Brown, Chuck Foreman, and Joe Sensor, among many, many other former Vikings' greats, and the tragic life arc of beloved Viking Karl Kassulke, who, three years ago, succumbed to the lingering damage resulting from a motorcycle accident just before training camp was to open in 1973.
The old days are mostly gone in Vikingland, however, with most players keeping their official residences far from Minnesota and the ownership group setting up shop, and registering their umbrella business entities, outside the State of Minnesota.
While the environment of professional sports has changed greatly since the 1960s, one thing that has not changed in Minnesota is the incestuousness of the local sports marketing network, a network that is now pulling out all of the stops to ensure that, even if those only staying the night are pitching something the benefits of which are so dramatically skewed in their favor, there ought be no reason why the heirs to the established families of Minnesota should not at least benefit from their presence.
In 1998, the DFL put forth four candidates for the post of Governor. Those four candidates were current Governor and heir to the Dayton's fortune, Mark Dayton, son of former U.S. Vice President Hubert Humphrey, Skip Humphrey, son of former Minnesota Governor Orville Freeman, Mike Freeman, and son of former U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale, Ted Mondale. All, of course, failed in their bid for the post. But all have maintained the ties that have offered them opportunities that most people without their connections ever are so gifted.
It was of little surprise, then, to see Ted Mondale make a career for himself carried in his father's footsteps. In 2011, needing another gig, Mondale prevailed upon his fellow silver-spooned-birther, Mark Dayton, for the post of Commissioner of the Metropolitan Sports Facility.
Since assuming the role of MSF Commissioner, Mondale's aim has been clear, if also singular. That aim has been the building of a new Vikings' football stadium. Despite Mondale's claims to the contrary, that aim includes no meaningful concern about the cost of that stadium to the public or whether the vast majority of even the current season-ticket-holding fan base will be able to afford attending Vikings' games in a new stadium.
Mondale's self-serving stadium pitch is far more transparent than Mondale likely believes it to be. Two weeks ago, he echoed Hennepin County Commissioner Mike Opat's contention that any new stadium in Minneapolis/Hennepin County would require at least a fifty percent contribution from the team. Opat seemed resolute that that number be at least fifty, perhaps much higher, and that the terms would require considerable negotiation with respect to various possible revenue streams and which party would profit from which revenue streams. Mondale seemed less resolute.
This week, Mondale showed his true colors, the type of colors, contending that the Vikings better be ready to pony up forty percent of the cost of the stadium--"maybe even high forties."
Mondale's current position would be disingenuous if retention of his post were based on merit or if he even needed to retain his post. Instead, his current position is merely condescending to all Minnesotans. That's because Mondale's current position is really no different from the Vikings' initial offering many years ago for a stadium constructed without a roof and for a stadium for which all of the revenue streams flow to the team. In short, what Mondale is attempting to do is pass off as a substantial gain for Minnesotans and taxpayers a plan that varies not one iota from what the Vikings pitched from the beginning--a plan that will make the Vikings a fortune and return to the State and governing municipality a pittance of what that entity would recover were someone truly representing the State/municipality's interests negotiating a deal with the team.
I've written numerous times on the potential value of a stadium deal to the governing municipality when such a deal fully takes into account all future revenue streams for a new stadium--parking, signage, naming rights, concessions, seat licensing, ticket sales, merchandise, other uses, etc. With his most recent attempt to create a false midnight in which Hennepin and Ramsey County purportedly are bidding against each other, Mondale has demonstrated both his disdain for Minnesotans and his priority of enriching yet another son of wealth in exchange for favors down the road. If the new stadium bears the name of "Mondale" we'll know for certain.
The path to a new Vikings stadium remains one of diligent negotiation that pairs benefits with public cost on a sliding scale. The more money the public commits, the more revenue the public receives. Somewhere along this continuum there is a point of equilibrium at which the Vikings and the public can be satisfied. Even without additional information, adopting the Vikings' original low-ball offer as the starting point for the public side of the negotiations is both a disservice to the public and a clear benefit only to the person negotiating.
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Nothing smooths over off-season mistakes in the NFL quite like the misfortunes and bumblings of the local MLB team. When that team is the Minnesota Twins, even a questionable draft at one of the more critical junctures in the NFL team's history, seems acceptable.
For many years, this site has attempted to hold the Vikings organization accountable for its on- and off-the-field exploits, suggested moves and changes, critiqued moves, and applauded the relatively sparse moments due such credit. The rationale for this approach is simple--most, if not all, of the local media covering the Vikings are too heavily invested in the enterprise to do anything other than cheerlead. Even when the Vikings stand as one of the few, if not only, teams to select a bona fide starter at a position of need for 2011, the vast majority of those covering the Vikings have fallen back on the tired cliche, lifted this year from the mouth of Vikings' Director of Pro Personnel, Rick Spielman, that "we need to wait 3-4 years to assess this draft." That's a convenient excuse for all who produce suspect results and not very comforting either for fans or team veterans who do not have 3-4 years to wait.
Similar unquestioning coverage allows the Minnesota Twins to hide behind a thin veneer masking the teams annual problems. This year, with the team facing non-division rivals right out of the gate and much-improved division rivals shortly thereafter, the Twins have struggled. They have struggled to pitch, hit, field, run bases, and, yes, to coach and assess talent.
The current wisdom by the paid media, allowed only after the Twins stopped contending that "if this were an NFL season we'd still be in the first half of game one," is that the players on the field--read, the players with small contracts--are the problem. To be certain, Alexi Casilla and any relief pitcher previously considered only for a mop-up role in other MLB stops, are a tremendous part of the problem. But so, too, have been virtually all other players on the team.
Whether Morneau is making the Bad News Bears look professional in a botched run-down play, Denard Span is being picked off of first yet again, Michael Cuddyer is overthrowing the cut-off and launching one over the catcher's head, Sal Butera is creating a new Butera-zone (.100 BA), Francisco Liriano cannot find the strike zone, yet again, or players are routinely injured to the point that they are unable to play for long stretches at a time, the players on the current version of the Twins certainly bear much of the burden for the team's awful play.
That awful play, however, is really only different in marginal kind to the type of play long exhibited by the Twins. Since Ron Gardenhire took over for Tom Kelly, the Twins have "prided" themselves on playing Twins' baseball. Ostensibly, that meant moving the runners into scoring position, making efficient use of the hit and run, driving in runners from second and third with less than two out, working the opposing pitcher, leading the league in fielding (factoring in chances), hitting the cut-off, reading pitchers and pitch counts, and being accountable or being gone.
Under Gardenhire's watch the slide immediately began. Although the Twins have qualified for several post-seasons under Gardenhire, they have done so almost exclusively due to the weakness of the remainder of the division. With Kansas City, Detroit, and Cleveland re-joining the ranks of major league teams, the Twins no longer can pad a .400 non-division record with a .700 division record and make it into the playoffs.
The reason the Twins are in this predicament is not just because the current players cannot get the job done, however, but also because the current manager either does not preach or does not properly teach the fundamentals of baseball, and the current over-his-head General Manager, Billy Smith, does not know how to assess talent.
Despite the highest payroll in team history, the Twins are on pace to finish the season last of all MLB teams. Without an injection of speed at all outfield spots, MLB capable players up the middle (catcher, short, second, pitcher), a semblance of a starting pitching staff that includes at least one true number one starter and one true number two, better base running, and, generally, vastly improved fundamentals, the Twins face their current predicament not only for the remainder of this season, but also for the next several seasons.
What needs to go? That's the easy question. The Twins need a center fielder who can hit and cover ground, freeing up Denard Span to move to a corner position--preferably to Cuddyer's after-trade position. They also need a shortstop and second-baseman who have range, can field, and can hit above .225 with at least one of the two having some slugging power; the team had this last season, but felt they could improve on what they had by offering what they did this season. Clearly, along with the trades of Johan Santana, Wilson Ramos, and Jose Morales, and the permitted departures of Matt Guerrier and Jesse Crain, the decision represents yet another coup for Smith.
This suggests that, in addition to several players that they are likely to obtain only in off-season free-agency, the Twins need also consider hiring a competent front office person to allow Smith to devote more time to mastering the art of proper tie-tying and suit-sizing. And maybe it's time to recall Tom Kelly or check on the status of Phil Roof, or anyone whose mind-set is not characterized by the philosophy that the number two spot in the lineup is the place to hide a weak bat.
Though the Vikings are coming off a 6-10 season with the strong possibility, absent some substantial free-agent acquisitions, of failing to return to the playoffs in 2011, they can at least lay claim, however faint the title may be, to being the best run "professional" sports franchise in the market. At least they have that going for them. For that, they owe a strong debt of gratitude to the Twins being who we thought they were.
Sunday, May 01, 2011
When a team leaves a draft with its most ardent supporters--i.e., its Director of Pro Personnel and head coach--mustering little more than the usual self-congratulations, qualified with the statement that "we won't know until 3-4 years from now how this draft pans out," there is little reason for jubilation among the fan base. Nor is there much reason for excitement, even granting the Vikings' most optimistic self(serving)-evaluations of their draft, given what the Vikings did not accomplish in the draft.
For the record, with the number twelve pick in the draft, the Vikings, needing four to five offensive linemen, a defensive end, an interior defensive lineman, a cornerback, a safety, a legitimate number two running back, a safety, and possibly a wide-receiver, selected a rookie quarterback whom head coach Leslie Frazier contends will compete with Joe Webb for the starting quarterback spot in 2011.
I've noted before the absurdity of this contention. There is zero point to selecting Christian Ponder at twelve if he is not regarded as an immediate starter or at least better than what is essentially a seasoned rookie in Webb. If Webb, at nearly the same point in his career as Ponder, truly enters camp on equal footing with Ponder, as a viable candidate for starting quarterback, there was no reason to draft Ponder.
Most alarming, however, is the signal that Ponder's selection sends to the numerous quality veterans on the Vikings' current roster. Drafting Ponder means that the Vikings either are willing to embark on the process of breaking an unseasoned rookie quarterback at the expense of the remainder of the careers of such players as Antoine Winfield, Jared Allen, Adrian Peterson, Kevin Williams, and, possibly, Pat Williams, or that the Vikings intend to pick up a veteran quarterback to start at quarterback in 2011. If the answer is the former, the Vikings may as well trade off as many valuable pieces as they can and truly begin the "rebuilding process."
If the answer is the latter, then, of course, drafting Ponder was an utter waste of a high, first-round draft pick, as, by the Vikings' own admission, they do not yet know what they have in Ponder and it really doesn't matter anyway.
Even if Ponder succeeds as the franchise quarterback that the Vikings must believe him to be taking him with the number twelve pick in the draft and committing to him number twelve pick dollars on his first contract, and even if Ponder is able to start this season, the pick makes no sense not just because the Vikings already had Joe Webb as the quarterback to groom, but, more significantly, because the Vikings failed to shore up their most glaring weakness, the five positions along the offensive line--the positions that protect the quarterback.
Although Minnesota selected offensive linemen late in the draft, there is no reason to believe that any of those linemen will be any better this year than what the Vikings put on the field in 2010. That means that, even if the newly drafted, late-round linemen succeed in wresting away a starting spot from Bryant McKinnie, Steve Hutchinson, John Sullivan, Anthony Herrera, or Phil Loadholt, the result probably will be no better than similar to last year's pathetic performance by the line. For a rookie quarterback, that's a recipe for a short career--either as a result of injury or as a consequence of shock, the kind that ended Joey Harrington's starting career.
There is some hope in this draft, however. At least if one is an eternal optimist. That hope rests in the fact that the Vikings have at least settled on a quarterback, added another blocking tight end who can also catch the ball, and found some bigger bodies ostensibly to compete for positions on the offensive line. And the team drafted yet another late-round safety, either confirming their own assessment of Madieu Williams and Tyrell Johnson or offering yet another excuse for an outdated defensive scheme.
If the Vikings found even one starter for the offensive line, found a capable starter in Ponder, can move Webb to receiver where he immediately flourishes, have a replacement for Pat Williams, found someone who can put pressure on the (opposing) quarterback, and identified a safety (or scheme) that results in improvements over last year's secondary, the Vikings might be able to compete with the much improved Detroit Lions, the already talented, yet also improved, Green Bay Packers, and the also improved Bears.
But as other teams in the NFC North and NFC clearly upgraded their talent in this year's draft, the Vikings were content, even intent, on selecting a group of players with only one even remotely "sure thing." And that player, former Notre Dame tight end Kyle Rudolph, plays a position where the Vikings arguably already had their greatest depth.
Asked to explain Rudolph's selection, Rick Spielman stated that the team was drafting the "best available player" at that point in the draft and that Rudolph fit that characterization. Why the Vikings were not selecting the best available player early in the first round of the draft, when there were at least five players that arguably fit that bill and fit a critical team need, even ahead of quarterback, was neither asked nor answered.
Up Next: Vikings Need to Make Big Moves in Free Agency, Assuming There is Any Meaningful Free Agency.
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Testimonial
Guillaume Bouchard, owner of a single family home
When Guillaume Bouchard moved into his new home three years ago, he was pleased to discover that the heating system was not electric (a heating method he found dried out the air). However, he didn’t much like the smell of heating oil, and the imposing boiler in the basement was burning hot and dangerous for his kids, plus it took up living space. Getting supplied with heating oil was also a headache.
Switch from fuel oil to natural gas pays off!
A year and a half after moving in, the family converted their heating system and barbecue to natural gas. Switching to blue made perfect sense for the Bouchards, who already drove an electric car. The family’s heating bill has since been nearly cut in half. And thanks to a front-end subsidy, as well as annual savings of between $2,000 and $3,000, the costs of converting were quickly recouped.
Benefits of natural gas according to Guillaume Bouchard
Clean — There is no noticeable smell in the house compared to fuel-oil.Affordable — Rates are competitive.Available — It’s as readily available as running water.Eco-friendly — Greenhouse gas emissions are reduced, so it’s a smart choice for the planet and for our kids.Modern — As a society, we’ve gotten to the point where we can do this. And it’s a nice way to thumb your nose at big oil!
Several grants are available to facilitate your transition to life in blue
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Sunday, August 7, 2011
Juan Turns the BIG Three-One!
The Birthday Boy looking a little under the weather on his big day
Juan's birthday was about a week ago and, even though he thinks it is a waste of space writing about it because nothing much happened, I wanted to make mention of it anyway, as he is the patriarch of the home after all ;-)
We made the plan a few weeks before to go to a steak restaurant and have a lovely lunch together as a family. I was so excited about the big day and was tossing up whether to have the waiters sing to totally humiliate him or not... decisions, decisions! (He promised that if I ever did that to him, he would stand up and walk away leaving me sitting there being sang to in the middle of the restaurant; something nobody ever does to me! So that image may have had something to do with my decision to NOT go through with it....). We were then going to go to the drive-in that night and see two movies that we both really wanted to see - what a great day!
So you can imagine our disappointment when, that morning Juan was still coughing terribly. To his male disdain I called the doctor and made him an apt. So instead of eating steak over lunch we were instead sitting in a doctors' waiting room and then purchasing bronchitis medicine. We did however get pizza a little later, even though Juan was too sick to really enjoy it. And then in the evening instead of going to the drive-in, we ended up sitting in our lounge with a couple more pizzas (at the birthday boy's request I might add). So, the day didn't turn out exactly as we had planned, but it was still nice to be together anyway. And Juan loved his present which was a framed professional pic of me and the girls to put on his desk at his new job. We love you!
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Embed code
An explosion in the historic square of Sultanahmet in Istanbul left at least 10 people dead and wounded 15 others Tuesday.
“We heard a really big explosion. … I didn’t really understand what was happening,” said Ali Hakan Ataman to VOA News. “Blood and flesh were splattered on us and I am sure I saw at least six or seven people laying on the ground dead. I am still in shock.”
Officials said they suspect a Syrian suicide bomber detonated the explosion. They said they believe the suicide bomber had ties to the terror group Islamic State, according to Reuters.
The Turkish government has been attacked by Islamist and Kurdish militants in the past months. The Sultanahmet attack took place while government security forces crack down on the Kurdish rebel group, the PKK.
Ataman said he thought German tourists were among the victims.
Turkey Explosion
Another witness, Erdogan Salihli, said the explosion was huge.
“All the buildings around were shaking, and it was very strong and threw people off the ground,” he said. Panic and fear ensued.
“All was quiet for a second or a bit longer. I’ve never seen an explosion in this magnitude. As people were trying to figure out what really happened, the cries of people at the scene was very tragic.”
The VOA news staff and Dorian Jones wrote this story for VOAnews.com. Jim Dresbach adapted it for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor.
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or visit our Facebook page.
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If this is your first visit, be sure to
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Initially, I simply want to loop through the file, extract the data, and display it in a table (it will get more complex later, but I need to take baby-steps).
What I want to do is loop through the object extracting each person, and within each person, extract the weapons. I have gotten the person part to work, but am missing some core concept for extracting the weapons. I see many examples on-line of how to grab specific elements and attributes, but my code needs to be dynamic. The xml file will change on a regular basis, and the extraction needs to somehow determine this. My code for parsing of the data is as follows:
I would also appreciate any constructive criticism. Like I said, I am new to this, so parts of this might be working, but not written the way they should be. If you have better names for the variables, that would also be good. I don't totally understand which pieces are objects and which are not.
Thanks in advance.
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I need help identifying a creature
jchardinJuly 7, 2010
I found him in my garden this morning. I am not sure if he is harmful or not. In the meantime I gave him the benefit of the doubt and let him go. I hope someone out there can help me identify this guy. Click the link below for more photos.
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The Opera organizes its grand event of integrated arts entitled Faust Ball on 14 February 2015. Similar to the first ball in 2014 entitled Silver Rose Ball, its main mission is a charitable cause: the guests contribute to the purchase of an ambulance for the Hungarian National Emergency Ambulance Service. Special guest of the ball is international superstar soprano Angela Gheorghiu.
At the end of January, between two regular concerts, the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra gives another one in memory of the victims of the holocaust. The winter concert series feature renowned conductors as well as young, award-winning soloists.
As the first premiere in 2015, the Hungarian State Opera produces The Rake’s Progress by Igor Stravinsky. So far it has only been featured in the repertoire of the Opera only once – it was put on stage 35 years ago. In the production by director Ferenc Anger two international guest artists make their Hungarian debut on 18 January 2015.
It has been exactly 130 years since the Budapest Opera opened its gates on 27 September, 1884. The Hungarian State Opera commemorates the anniversary of the opening with crowds in period costumes, an extraordinary gala concert, the premier of a film, and the publication of a historical book.
Following last year’s MozartLateNight, this is the turn of two French composers to shake things up as their one-act operas take us to the exotic world of the Orient. Bizet’s Djamileh is a steamy tale, set on the banks of the Nile, about a slave woman who falls in love with her captor, while Saint-Saëns’s La Princesse Jaune (The Yellow Princess) is one about a Dutchman’s delirious vision of a Japanese phantasm. Strictly for over 18s only!
'The curtain rises to reveal the following: caramel, marzipan, gingerbread, nougat, candied nuts, barley sugar, peppermints, boiled sweets, toasted almonds and black raisins.' These were the instructions of Marius Petipa, the principal ballet master of St. Petersburg's Mariinsky Theatre, in the original scenario provided to Tchaikovsky. A lesser composer might have animated the characters in the libretto with musical syrup rather than poetry. Sixty years after its world premiere, the ballet quickly gained world icon status with a new choreography by Vasily Vainonen, the very same that will once again be returning to the stage of the Opera House. Happy holidays!
Act 1
Scene 1
Christmas Eve in a small German town in the mid-nineteenth century. The lights of Counselor Stahlbaum's house glisten in the falling snow. Guests loaded with presents - children and adults - hurry toward the house. Among them we see Uncle Drosselmeyer, a friend of the children.
Scene 2
For a fleeting moment we see the excited children anxiously peeking through the doors. Among them is the host's son, Michael. Drosselmeyer opens the doors to the salon, in the center of which sparkles the Christmas tree.
Scene 3
The children dance around the tree, and in the end receive their presents. The adults celebrate, toast each other, and dance an old-fashioned dance much to the delight of Grandmother and Grandfather. Drosselmeyer grabs the childrens' attention by appearing dressed as a magician. His puppets perform a battle between a fairy tale prince and an evil mouse king, in which the prince saves his love, the princess. Wonder of wonders! The dance of the mechanical dolls begins. The clown, the porcelain doll and the moor doll all come to life. Drosselmeyer sneaks yet another present under the Christmas tree: a nutcracker. No one wants the grotesque doll expect Maria, the hosts' young daughter. Feeling sorry for the orphaned toy, she reaches for it. She plays with it and rocks it but her brother Michael, being curious about the strange doll, wants to play with it as well. The nutcracker falls victim to the children's squabbles and his jaw breaks. Drosselmeyer puts everything in order and makes peace... but it is getting late. The guests slowly bid farewell, the house becomes quiet, and the lights are dimmed.
Act 2
Scene 1
We are in Maria's bedroom. Before going to sleep, the young girl rocks the doll once more and places it in the large biedermeier armchair. She daydreams about the evening's festivities and imagines wild mice munching away on the Christmas candies. On the verge of falling asleep, she tries to defend the nutcracker from them... and begins to dream.
Scene 2
The Christmas tree becomes enormous, the toys take on a new dimension, and the giant Mouse King springs forth. The Nutcracker comes to life and, at the head of his army of tin soldiers, defends the Christmas tree. A duel ensues between the Mouse King and the Nutcracker, and lo and behold, the Nutcracker is victorious while the mice flee. We catch a glimpse of Drosselmeyer among the branches of the Christmas tree and at the moment the Nutcracker magically transforms into a handsome, young prince. The wise old Drosselmeyer hands his magic wand over to the prince.
Scene 3
The stage pictures a snowy forest. Maria appears as a young princess, and the Nutcracker greets her with adoration. They discover their feelings for one another while dancing a delicate, dream-like pas de deux. As a finale, the prince gently lifts the princess on his outstretched arms and leaves the stage with her. Snowflakes begin to swirl and come to life. At first only four, then more and more snowflakes dance onto the stage. They become a giant snowball, then break apart into smaller groups and, finally a giant circle of snowflakes envelopes the stage. Bells toll during the gentle snowfall and soon only one or two snowflakes remain. Maria and the prince, arm-in-arm, begin their long journey, following the snowflakes.
Act 3
Scene 1
Maria and the prince sail on a fairy tale sea in a golden ship. The 'journey' gently rocks them and the beautiful music accompanies the young couple to the prince's kingdom.
Scene 2
The ship docks near a seaside cave. The prince looks for the road leading to his kingdom. All of a sudden, bats - allies of the beaten Mouse King - obstruct their path. However, the prince is again victorious with the help of the magic wand he received from Drosselmeyer.
Scene 3
At the lace palace, the inhabitants of the 'Doll Kingdom' greet the returning prince and his bride, Maria, with deep adoration. The dolls display their beauty through a series of dances: First, we see four dancers performing a vivid Spanish dance. They are followed by the rhythms of an Eastern dance in which the main dancer is accompanied by four ballerinas bearing silk scarves. With jumps and quick turns,
Chinese dolls dance to the staccato music. They are soon followed by Russian dancers. A rococo pas de trois is performed by children resembling Limoges porcelain dolls. The performance reaches its peak with the Waltz of Roses, featuring eight pairs of dancers and four soloists, who are joined by Princess Maria and the Nutcracker Prince. Their classic pas de deux is a beautiful declaration of love. All the beautiful dolls of the lace palace join in for the finale. The scenery is transformed, and the Christmas tree appears in shining light. The happy couple moves toward the beautiful tree- and at this point, Maria's dream comes to an end.
Scene 4
We are in the young girl's bedroom. The nanny tiptoes in and wakes the sleeping Maria. The child rubs her eyes. Still half asleep, she runs to the Nutcracker and embraces it... they had a wonderful dream together.
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Utensils
It’s the perfectly designed outdoor eating utensil! Spoon-fork-knife combo offers one-piece ease and packing convenience when camping, traveling, boating, and more. Keep it in your purse or backpack for anytime use! Made from heat-resistant and BPA-free Tritan, it won’t melt in hot or boiling water and won’t scratch your non-stick cookware. Durable and dishwasher-safe. Weighs only .36 oz. Sold in a pack of four in assorted colors. Learn More
The ideal utensils for Jetboil cooking systems or meals-in-a-bag. Long enough to comfortably reach the bottom of the cooking cups, and specially shaped to scour each edge and corner. Spatula shape matches Jetboil FluxRing® Fry Pan. Handles telescope to store compactly in or on Jetboil cooking vessels.
Kit includes spoon, fork, and spatula, all made of lightweight and durable high-temperature nylon. Learn More
When it comes to durable, lightweight kitchenware, thousands of Boy Scouts can’t be wrong! An ever-popular Scouting choice, this set features a spoon, fork, knife, and carabiner clip made of high-grade 18/8 stainless steel and built to last for years to come.
Weighs 3.3 oz. Each piece measures approximately 6.3" long. Learn More
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We built the commercial internet by mastering techniques of persuasion and surveillance that we’ve extended to billions of people, including essentially the entire population of the Western democracies. But admitting that this tool of social control might be conducive to authoritarianism is not something we’re ready to face.
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CastBox is an application that will allow us to access more than one million podcasts from almost every country in the world, in dozens of different languages. In total, more than fifty million episodes of podcasts of all imaginable themes.
From the main CastBox tab, we can take a quick look at the featured and recommended content of the moment. Now, we will not have to use the search option to find any podcast instantly. And thanks to the search using keywords, we can find podcasts (or episodes) related to our tastes in a very simple way.
Of course we can listen to the podcasts in ‘streaming’ or download them into the memory of the terminal to listen to later without an Internet connection. We can even synchronize the playback of an episode in several different devices, as long as we are identified with our account in both.
CastBox is an excellent podcast application, thanks to which we can access a colossal catalog of programs. And the best part is that we can upload our own podcasts completely free of charge. It will not cost us absolutely anything to publish our episodes.More from Us: ClevCalc – Calculator For PC (Windows & MAC).
Here we will show you today How can you Download and Install News & Magazines App CastBox: Free Podcast Player, Radio & Audio Books on PC running any OS including Windows and MAC variants, however, if you are interested in other apps, visit our site about Android Apps on PC and locate your favorite ones, without further ado, let us continue.
Open the installed BlueStacks or Remix OS Player and open the Google Play Store in it.
Now search for “CastBox: Free Podcast Player, Radio & Audio Books” using the Play Store.
Install the game and open the app drawer or all apps in the emulator.
Click CastBox: Free Podcast Player, Radio & Audio Books icon to open it, follow the on-screen instructions to play it.
You can also download CastBox: Free Podcast Player, Radio & Audio Books APK and installs via APK in the BlueStacks Android emulator.
You can also use Andy OS to install CastBox: Free Podcast Player, Radio & Audio Books for PC.
That’s All for the guide on CastBox: Free Podcast Player, Radio & Audio Books For PC (Windows & MAC), follow our Blog on social media for more Creative and juicy Apps and Games. For Android and iOS please follow the links below to Download the Apps on respective OS.
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Preview: RSL at Seattle Sounders FC
Claret-and-Cobalt aim to clinch top-three seed in West
October 16, 2012
RSL Communications
RealSaltLake.com
SANDY, Utah – Real Salt Lake (17-11-4, 55 points, West #2) will take on Seattle Sounders FC (14-7-10, 52 points, West #3) in a match rife with postseason implications on Wednesday, Oct. 17 at CenturyLink Field in the Pacific Northwest. The game – which will kickoff at 8:00 p.m. MT – will be broadcast nationally on the NBC Sports Network as well as on ESPN700AM and La Gran D 102.3FM/Juan 1600AM.
RSL heads into Wednesday’s penultimate match of the MLS regular season on an absolute tear, winners of its last four matches and 6-1-1 in its last eight across all competitions. The Claret-and-Cobalt – which has conceded just three goals in its last 720 minutes in MLS and CCL play – defeated the L.A. Galaxy in its last match, getting two goals from FW Fabian Espindola to down the Southern California side 2-1 at the Home Depot Center on Oct. 6.
Real Salt Lake currently sits in second-place in the Western Conference, three points up on third-place Sounders FC and five points up on fourth-place L.A. The Claret-and-Cobalt needs just two points from its remaining two regular season games to clinch a top-three seed in the Western Conference and avoid the 4-v-5 seed one-off knockout game. A L.A. loss or tie in either of its final two games would also give RSL a spot in the West’s top-three.
Real Salt Lake is 1-0-1 against Seattle this season, defeating Sounders FC 1-0 at CenturyLink Field on May 12 and tying the Cascadia club 0-0 at Rio Tinto Stadium on July 4.
Both teams will be missing players on Wednesday night due to international duty. RSL will definitely be without leading-scorer Alvaro Saborio (Costa Rica) and MF Will Johnson (Canada), both of whom are expected to play for the respective national teams in World Cup Qualifying matches in Central America on Tuesday. Seattle won’t have DF Adam Johansson (Sweden) or MF Mario Martinez (Honduras), who will face off against Johnson in a qualifier in San Pedro Sula on Tuesday.
It’s unclear whether or not RSL American internationals Kyle Beckerman or GK Nick Rimando will be available on Wednesday. Both players – along with Seattle’s U.S. international Eddie Johnson – will be in Kansas City for Tuesday’s U.S.-Guatemala qualifier and all three will fly to Seattle on a private plane chartered by RSL ownership immediately after the match. Each player’s availability for Wednesday’s game will be dictated by their involvement in Tuesday’s qualifier.
Real Salt Lake will follow up Wednesday’s game at Seattle with a hugely important CONCACAF Champions League match against Costa Rican champs C.S. Herediano at Rio Tinto Stadium on Oct. 23. The Claret-and-Cobalt must win that match either 1-0 or by two goals to win CCL Group 2 and advance to the tournament’s Quarterfinal stage.
Tickets to the Herediano match, the Oct. 27 season finale against Vancouver and to the MLS Cup Playoffs are on sale and can be purchased online at www.RealSaltLake.com, at the Rio Tinto Stadium box office or by calling (801) 727-2700.
Stay tuned to www.RealSaltLake.com and follow the club on Twitter @RealSaltLake for all the latest news and information on the team ahead of the Oct. 17 match in Seattle.
Following is the link to the Adobe PDF version of the Game Guide in advance of Wednesday’s contest between Real Salt Lake and Seattle Sounders FC. If you have any problems obtaining the document, would prefer to receive it as an attachment, or are seeking more information on the match, please contact Media Services Manager Sam Stejskal in the RSL Communications Department via email at [email protected].
RSL leads its all-time series with Sounders FC 3-2-3. RSL has done very well at Seattle, posting a 2-1-1 record in the regular season in the Pacific Northwest. That 2-1-1 regular season mark at Seattle is the best of any team in MLS.
Real Salt Lake is 1-0-1 against Sounders FC this year. The Claret-and-Cobalt took the first meeting, getting a 50th minute goal from FW Fabian Espindola to down Seattle 1-0. The teams drew in their second-match, playing to a scoreless draw at Rio Tinto Stadium on July 4.
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The Company
Who We Are
A Company that Truly believes that It’s Success lies in its Customers Success.
COMM-IT Middle East is a multinational technology services company providing consultancy, technology and IT outsourcing services. Some of the known brands across the industry verticals have trusted COMM-IT for managing their IT requirements. COMM-IT provides IT Services which includes ERP Implementations, end-to-end IT Infrastructure Management Services, Digital Signage Solutions, Mobile and Web Application Development, Customized Applications and Managed Services..
Years of dedicated service and commitment to quality brought the company where it stands today! a Global IT company providing technology, consultancy and outsourcing service. Today, COMM-IT is a part of IBC (Indian Builders Corporation) Bangalore India; a USD 900 Million Company with diverse business interest in Real Estate, Healthcare, Hospitality, IT and etc.
We have a delivery center in Bangalore and New Delh i, and have a sizable presence in the Middle East covering Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UAE and other GCC countries.
Why Choose Us
Acting as your perfect partner to take Complete responsibility of your IT while you focus on your Business.
What We Do
We at COMM-IT bring enterprise solutions, business process and software development expertise in all our engagements. With Commitment to Quality as our backbone mission statement, we have delivered varied Enterprise Applications (ERP Implementations); end-to-end IT infrastructure management services, Enterprise Portal & Collaboration, Digital Signage Solutions and customized applications to large enterprises globally in India, Middle East, South East Asia and etc. Our solutions and services addresses the real-world business-to-business and business-to IT gaps that creep up over time as organizations grow.
Technology Skills
Technology Partner
Testimonials
Hear What Our Customers have to say about us
COMM-IT is our key partner for solutions development, deployment and management for healthcare manufacturing verticals. Several of our projects are conducted at their services delivery center located in New Delhi, India. Today, we rely on COMM-IT for critical, real-time control software, as well as management of our complete IT infrastructure for our healthcare manufacturing vertical.
Kajal Sengupta
Chairman , Senbo Industries Ltd.
COMM-IT was chosen as our implementing partner for SharePoint 2010 Implementation. I would like to express my appreciation to the COMM-IT team for their excellent support and dedication for successful Implementation SharePoint 2010 in Farabi Petrochemicals Company
Yousif Al-Tehaini
IT Manager, Farabi Petrochemicals Farabi Petrochemical
I would like to thank the team of COMM-IT for their outstanding work on the installation of Scala Content Design in our Hotel. I have been pleased with the quality of products and the efficiency of the site project manager.
I highly recommend Scala to any company and colleagues due to high satisfaction and knowledge delivered.
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tabs
Monday, November 29, 2010
on scary movies.
so..uhmm..whenever you find yourself being chased around by some crazy zombie ghost woman or something..
don't use an elevator!
chances are, it'll suddenly shut down, all the lights will go off and you can't open it again no matter how hard you try, and no matter how hard you scream or bang on the doors, no one will hear you..THEN (as if that wasn't bad enough) she'll appear in there behind you and as you slowly turn around, she'll reach out, make some random loud noise like RAAAARRHH! intended to make you pee your pants, then close in on your face as slowly as possible as you cower in terror and then make you go crazy with fright..then you'll probably die..which is better than surviving that and having to face that thing over and over again until it finally gets tired of scaring you and finishes you off in the end. :)
haha. i just watched a few "scary" movies, and they didn't really scare me or whatever (i'm just kidding, the whole time, my heart was like going a million miles per hour and my bowl of chips didn't last 30 minutes..i spilled it all on the floor when the ghost from the movie appeared in the shadows to scare the main character. haha.)
aa-nyyy-waaayy, i'm just doing this blog post to forget the movies for a while..haha..and i made the mistake of watching all those movies alone. sigh..it's just that i'm so lame that no-one will watch a single movie with me..hahaha. XD kidding. but it gets predictable after a while..so at some parts i get to know when there'll be a pants-pissing moment so i turn the volume down really low at those parts. haha. XD
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Terminator: Dark Fate is back with an action-packed battle for humanity in theatres November 1, 2019. #CreateYourFate campaign kicks off with the Trailer Remix Challenge where fans can create their own Terminator: Dark Fate trailer with Adobe Premiere Pro or Premiere Rush.
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Happy 50th anniversary, Pontiac GTO! It’s too bad the Pontiac brand isn’t still around to celebrate, but there are legions of proud GTO owners and muscle car buffs who treasure the model that launched the muscle car genre.
The GTO history has been told too many times to count, so this feature will not add to the pile. Rather, it’s worth looking back at the impact the GTO made, not only on car enthusiasts, but also on the auto industry. The GTO’s influence continues today in ways and on cars that you might not suspect.
Let’s get a key issue out of the way. When discussing the GTO’s place in auto history, it’s safer to say, “Launched the musclecar genre” than “It was the first muscle car.” As Chevy, Ford and Mopar fans could correctly point out, several models that preceded the 1964 GTO offered performance to qualify as a muscle car. All any of those cars would prove, however, is that Detroit had already been catering to the performance enthusiast, albeit in very small numbers, and without crafting specific model identities. (The Chevy Impala Super Sport with one of the 409 V-8’s could certainly be considered an exception.)
What changed in late 1963, when the GTO arrived as a performance option for the 1964 Pontiac Tempest LeMans? That’s the year that the 3.4 million kids born in 1946, the first wave of “baby boomers,” turned 17. Clever marketing would prove every bit as valuable as engineering in reaching this group.
These buyers wanted more than fast quarter-mile times. They wanted to stand out at the drive-in and the burger drive-through. They wanted a car that reflected their self-image, a car with the look and sound of performance, not just impressive acceleration figures.
Pontiac had set the stage for a car to fill that niche, with its racing successes and clever promotion over the previous few years. The challenge was parlaying that into a showroom model that would appeal to young buyers, while still being affordable to them. Engineering was the easy part. Pontiac’s V-8, whether in 326- or 389-cubic-inch displacement, used the same block. So, the “bigger” engine was a bolt-in to the midsize Tempest body.
The ’64 GTO was quick, with mid-15-second quarter-mile times in standard 325-horsepower trim. It was affordable, too, with a starting price of just over $2,800. A choice of post coupe, hardtop coupe or convertible styles ensured wide appeal.
It didn’t take much to create the GTO’s street image – dummy hood scoops, redline tires, and some special exterior and interior trim did the job. Crucially, the GTO could be personalized with a plethora of performance, comfort and appearance options, including the Tri-Power triple-carburetor intake.
Above all, the GTO had a brazen, youthful attitude lacking in other cars. Perhaps most brazen was Pontiac’s “borrowing” the Gran Turismo Omologato name from the renowned Ferrari racecar. It all added up to a virile image that resonated with the car’s primary target buyer group, 18- to 25-year-old men.
Pontiac sold some 32,000 1964 GTOs, three times as many as projected. The instant success for what was a separate option package that first year vindicated Pontiac’s 40-year-old chief engineer, John DeLorean, who just barely pushed the car through corporate approval as a $296 option package. The GTO’s success also boosted the stature of marketing man Jim Wangers, whose clever marketing helped make the GTO more than just a sales success, but a pop culture icon, too.
“Brazen” would describe the marketing tactics Wangers employed to generate buzz for the GTO. Swapping a specially prepared 421-cubic-inch engine into Car & Driver’s road test car to achieve a blistering 12.8-second quarter mile was surely the most audacious. Wangers kept the high-profile GTO promotions and tie-ins coming, helping boost GTO sales to 75,000 for 1965 and higher for several years afterward. It was a harbinger of automotive marketing to come.
The subtext that the GTO could help young men attract attention from young women was ever present in the car’s marketing. Pontiac underscored that message by having America’s most eligible fictitious bachelor, astronaut Anthony Nelson, drive a GTO in TV’s “I Dream of Jeanie,” which debuted in the fall of 1965.
While other GM divisions introduced GTO competitors starting in 1965, Ford didn’t enter the race until the 1966 Fairlane GT. Chrysler was even slower to respond, finally combining high-performance and street image with the 1967 Plymouth GTX and Dodge Coronet R/T and then achieving much more success with the 1968 Plymouth Road Runner.
The Chevelle SS 396 and the Plymouth Road Runner passed the GTO in sales and street image, and Pontiac was rightly accused of allowing its muscle car to atrophy. The defunct division deserves some credit, however, for having fielded a kind of “grown-up” muscle car with the 1973 Grand Am, essentially a more luxurious take on the GTO concept.
The original GTO’s lasting legacy might just be today’s youth-oriented versions of otherwise mundane cars, such as the Volkswagen GTI and Honda Civic Si. Even the $60,000 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG follows the GTO formula: install a bigger, more powerful engine, tweak the chassis, dress up the body and interior with special trim, and market accordingly.
Even if the results are technically superior, the blueprint remains the same as the GTO made famous 50 years ago.
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would like to swap 1995 5.7 4x2 to a 5.7 4x4. i want to swap the transmission
to a 4l80e for sure and add a transfer case of course to make it 4x4 i know it
will cost some money but this is a projec...
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Crime reports of late have continued to be relatively light in quantity, even more so than our last roundup. That said, we did see some unusual incidents this time around, including a man found dead with a knife in his chest and a driver-on-driver assault.
All reports are in chronological order and come via the SFPD's daily crime recaps, unless otherwise noted.
Sanchez Street Hot Prowl
On December 9th, a 29-year-old man awoke to find his a laptop and clothing stollen from his home on Sanchez near 16th. The victim did not see any suspects, who reportedly struck sometime before 7am, and no arrest was made.
Driver-On-Driver Assault
Around 12:10am December 11th, an unidentified man was assaulted near Collingwood and 18th. The victim was driving a vehicle when the suspect, a man age 30-40, followed him in his own vehicle. Once both vehicles came to a stop, the suspect exited his car, took out a weapon, opened the victim's door and hit him multiple times. The suspect fled in his vehicle, and the victim was transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. No arrest was made.
Man Stabs Himself To Death Near Post Office
Last week, we reported that a man was found dead, with a knife in his chest, around 2:54pm December 12th near the 18th and Diamond post office. Authorities later identified the deceased as 63-year-old Peter Robinson. Based on a note left at the scene, the SFPD confirmed that the department is treating his death as a suicide.
If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, visit San Francisco Suicide Prevention, call the crisis line at (415) 781-0500 or text MYLIFE to 741741.
Dolores Park Muni Stop Vandalized
Photo: Tipster Moz/Hoodline
Around 9:42am this Friday, December 16th, tipster Moz alerted us that a Muni stop had been vandalized.
Just witnessed a group of what appeared to be student athletes
destroy this MUNI shelter at 18th and Church by Dolores Park. Hopefully
someone caught it on surveillance camera.
We have reached out to
both Moz and SFPD Mission Station Captain Daniel Perea for more information, and are awaiting confirmation on the exact time the incident occurred, the number
of suspects involved and whether they were in fact students.
Broken Window Woes Continue For Neighborhood Businesses
Photo: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
It happened in November to Harvest Ranch Market, early December to George's Market, and just last week we noticed that it's happened to the former A&G Merch—soon the new home of Photoworks. Broken business windows are an ongoing issue and can rack up serious costs to replace. But the space's future tenant moved quickly; by last Thursday, the damaged window was already repaired.
Did we miss any recent crimes around the neighborhood? If you've got info on a crime or neighborhood safety issue to share, send us a tip here or add a comment below. Or, text Hoodline at (415) 200-3233 if you see an incident, and we’ll see what we can find out.
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In the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks, protecting data through the use of system area networks (SANs) has become one of the most important priorities for U.S. corporations, according to a survey by RBC Capital Markets and the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA).
Approximately half of the companies with over $1 billion in revenue reported to have deployed a SAN to protect and store data, the survey found. This compares to a 2000 survey that found only 16.2 percent of large companies had deployed a SAN. And small to mid-tier companies are quickly moving to embrace the technology, the survey showed.
"The September 11th terrorist attacks woke up a lot of companies to this issue," said Robert Montague, research analyst for RBC Capital Markets in Memphis, Tenn. "The result is that this area is one of the hottest sectors of technology. We are seeing even small and mid-tier companies employing SANs to protect vital corporate information."
The survey of 73 companies providing SAN services to companies revealed the emergence of the small and mid-tier level as an important new market for SAN and storage vendors. "The survey showed there is a significant opportunity for companies with the foresight to develop products and services that meet the needs of this segment," Montague said.
The survey by RBC Capital Markets and the CompTIA was conducted of SAN providers across the U.S. late last year.
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Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which QuinStreet receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. QuinStreet does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.
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Eagles trade McNabb to 'Skins for draft choices
Rob Maaddi - Associated Press
Published
12:00 am CDT, Monday, April 5, 2010
Recommended Video:
PHILADELPHIA — Donovan McNabb is changing uniforms and staying in the NFC East.
The Philadelphia Eagles traded McNabb to the Washington Redskins for a pair of draft picks on Sunday night. The Eagles will receive a second-round pick (37th overall) in this month's NFL draft and either a third- or fourth-round pick next year.
“Donovan McNabb was more than a franchise quarterback for this team,” Eagles chairman Jeffrey Lurie said. “He truly embodied all of the attributes of a great quarterback and of a great person. He has been an excellent representative of this organization and the entire National Football League both on and off the field. I look forward to honoring him as one of the greatest Eagles of all-time and hopefully see him enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton one day.”
McNabb, a six-time Pro Bowl quarterback, led the Eagles to five NFC championship games and one Super Bowl in 11 seasons in Philadelphia. His failure to lead the team to its first NFL championship since 1960 plus the emergence of Kevin Kolb made him expendable.
Kolb, who has started two games in three seasons, becomes the starter. Michael Vick is the backup.
“This was a very tough decision,” coach Andy Reid said. “Donovan McNabb represented everything a football player could be during his 11 seasons in Philadelphia. He carried this organization to new heights and set a high standard of excellence both on and off the field. We thank him for everything he did for this football team and for this city.”
McNabb threw for 3,553 yards and 22 touchdowns with 10 interceptions in 14 games last season, leading the Eagles to the playoffs. His passer rating of 92.9 was the third-highest in his career.
But McNabb played poorly in a loss to Dallas in Week 17 that cost Philadelphia a division title and a first-round bye. He also struggled in a loss to the Cowboys the following week in the wild-card game.
Reid said after the season that McNabb would return in 2010. Reid repeated that several times throughout the offseason until acknowledging last month the team was listening to offers for all three of its quarterbacks.
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EVE Online : Inferno Launching May 22nd
Tags :
CCP has announced that the EVE Online Inferno expansion will officially launch on May 22nd. The crown jewel in Inferno is the reworking of major war-related game systems as well as bringing in new features.
Key features of Inferno include:
Mercenary Marketplace: pay the best guns-for-hire to settle your scores or make yourself avaialble to the highest bidders in the most notorious PVP universe in gaming
War Declarations: reworked systems to help you wage war and keep track of your legacy
Missiles and Launchers: savor every moment from launch to impact with missile launchers and dramatic new missile effects
Factional Warfare: enlist in a faction and join the entry-level game of conquest with more rewards and deeper gameplay than ever before
Visual Updates: Enhanced graphics on ship models and increased options in the industry-leading character creator
Plus Kill Reports, Unified Inventory, 16 new modules and dozens of enhancements to both graphics and gameplay
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'It's a Disaster' Is Far From One
The end of the world is no excuse for imprecise language, at least not for the four couples at the center of “It’s a Disaster,” whose vegan-friendly brunch is interrupted by the detonation of some dirty bombs a few miles away.
Instead of feeling freed by their impending doom—save science teacher Hedy (America Ferrera), who knows better than anyone the fate that awaits them and opts to spend her remaining hours cooking homemade ecstasy—everyone seems instead to be intent on maintaining a certain lifestyle. Tracy (Julia Stiles) refuses to let tardy friends into the house to teach them a lesson about punctuality, leaving them to expire on the front porch. And just because they are all facing eventual paralysis and death doesn’t mean that revelations about extramarital affairs don’t still hurt.
Endlessly quotable and hilariously deadpan, the movie benefits from its cast of mostly unknowns—save for David Cross, Ferrera, and Stiles—and their seemingly endless variations on navel-gazing selfishness. “If I didn’t want to be left out, I wouldn’t be a vegan,” Lexi says when she finds out Tracy has adjusted a stew to be meatless, and that’s a perfect summation of the happy oblivion that the characters are insulated by. For brunch, these men and women would be unbearable, but as companions for what may be the end of the world they’re oddly comforting. After all, who can panic if one of the group asks if he could swap poisoned Merlot for a white wine instead?
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Job Description
We are looking for bright, smart and talented young girls to take up the exciting and rewarding career of Air Hostess in PIA. If you are meeting the following required specifications, you may be the one we are looking for:
Health: Perfect Eyesight, users of Spectacles and candidates with skin problems need not to apply. However, user of contact lenses may apply and decision wilt be taken by PIA Medical Board as per standard rules.
Maximum Age: 25 years as on 01-01-2011. General age relaxation of 05 years of upper age limit shall be available to all candidates as allowed by Government of Pakistan.
Application Procedure / Guidelines:
1. Applications are invited on the prescribed FORM available (free of cost) in PIA Recruitment & Placement Office at Karachi and in PIA Offices at other stations and also on PIA website: www.piac.com.pk/careers
2. Application along-with photocopies of Matric, other qualifications & experience, domicile, National Identity Card must be sent through reputed Courier Services. The application should reach the DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER RECRUITMENT & PLACEMENT OFFICE, NEAR PIA TRAINING CENTRE, KARACHI AIRPORT, KARACHI-75200 NOT LATER THAN 01.02.2011.
3. Applicant must clearly mention the position applied for on the top left side of the envelope.
4. No TA/DA will be admissible for test / interview.
Apply Instructions for this Job
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Comments
i want to b an airhostess ,im doing b.a part 1 n also good in english...
Posted by amarta
Air Hostess - Karachi
Posted by shaista
i have completed my M.B.A degree from sindh uni jamshoro. so i want to join any suitable job.
Posted by samina syed
i have completedmy bsc in computer science fro bzu so i want to join any suitable jo
Posted by simi syed
i wnt to b air hostess i did bsc i can speak english
Posted by faryal khan
i m self motivated and wel qualified girl and i would like to use my potential for office work in your prestigious organization under your kind controle.
Posted by shahida noonari
i m intelligent and also good speaker and with motivate the person ,i want to do this job AIRHOSSET
Posted by nadia jamil
assalam o alikum respected sir i wish to apply myself for job in your prestigious organization i have done m.sc in biochemistry in the year 2006 n my personality is also as per ur requirement.please consider my request.
Posted by Aisha fayyaz
ASLAM U ALIKM My name
is aisha,my qulification is MA,my height is 5.8.i want tp be a airhostesst
Posted by zain fatima
hi,
sir em zain fatma i have done my B.A last year i want to be an airhostess its my passion.....................my height iz 5 feet 3 inc em smart i hope u will definetly give me one chance to get dis job................
Posted by Bakhtawar Shaikh
helo sir/mam, i just want to say that i can prove my self as a good airhostess :) and my request is that give me just one chanse i wil b thank ful to you :)
Posted by rabiya qamar
salam
sir i want to get this job i think i am able to this job if you give me a chance i will try my best.its my pleasur if you give me thos job
Hi My name is Hira pirzada. I really want to be air hostess
I have passed matric in science with grade A and now I have gave exams of Intermediate(ICS) waiting for the result I hope I will got A grade in aug 2013
age: 16
Weight: 54
I can speak English and Urdu frequently
I have no skin and eye sight problem
Height: 5.5 inch
plzzzz give me a chance I will do my best.
Posted by Asad ([email protected])
You could send your CVs for such jobs at this email.
Posted by helen
Good morning i am 28 years old .can i apply for airhostess
Posted by waqas abad ([email protected])
my name is waqas i want to be a air hostess i have fair complection good atrective looking
Posted by anitaabbasi
Salam i am anita abbasi 4rm khi and i want to do be a air hostess plzzzzz give me a one chance plzz thanks
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'Nazi grandma' who 'went on the run to avoid jail' for Holocaust denial has been caught in Germany
Ursula Haverbeck, 89, has a string of convictions for Holocaust denial and once caused a despairing magistrate to declare ‘It is deplorable that this woman, who is still so active given her age, uses her energy to spread such hair-raising nonsense’.
Initially only known as “Jogger Joe,” he was identified as Henry William Sintay, 30, after he was filmed on kicking around, throwing in the rubbish, and then dumping a homeless man’s things into the city’s Merritt Lake. The property belonged to Greg “Jarew” Markson as he was later identified. The witness who filmed the incident, JJ Harris, posted it on…
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lambdamoo
In this second article I will continue my jorney on LambdaMoo code base. The C code is very well written. Sometimes the API abuse global variable to avoid passing around identifier like output database file descriptor or the like. Because a lot of the system has been written in the Moo language, the core is …
On these days my greek daemon (the one which talk to me about deep nerd programming) was interested on LambdaMoo. LambdaMoo is an Object Oriented Multi User Dungeon born back in 1995. A MUD was a text based system you log in, talk with other, create adventures and so on. LambdaMoo has a script language …
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Share this video
When AIDS was first identified in the 1980s, it was considered a death sentence. The advent of powerful triple-drug therapy transformed it into a chronic disease. Now, researchers say a child may have been cured of HIV infection Experts are cautious about making too much of a single case. But the news has them talking with unprecedented optimism that if caught early, at least some patients could be saved from a lifetime of infection.
Tim Brown is one of only two people ever to be considered cured of HIV infection. But it was not easy. He also had leukemia. A bone marrow transplant from a donor with a rare mutation cured his HIV.
“The first transplant went well," said Brown. "But the second one was pretty horrible. And I wouldn’t wish what I went through on my worst enemy.”
The latest case, at the University of Mississippi, was different. A baby born to an untreated HIV-positive mother was given a combination of anti-AIDS drugs within hours of birth. The patient has not been identified.
The therapy itself was not unusual, says Dr. Paul Volberding of the University of California at San Francisco.
“The treatment was really just regular antiretroviral therapy, HIV drugs," said Volberding. "So in contrast to the first reported cure, this is one that has a lot broader potential implications.”
That means that the early and aggressive treatment the child received may rid the body of the virus before it can take hold. If the results hold up to scrutiny, it’s significant, says Harvard School of Public Health professor Richard Marlink.
“It’s a big deal to show that, if we really hit the virus hard right at birth, perhaps, for those babies that might be getting infected at that early time in their life, we may be able to eliminate the virus from their system," said Marlink.
The impact could be especially great in sub-Saharan Africa, where most of the roughly 300,000 children born with HIV each year reside.
Marlink says it could save lives, as well as eliminate the burden of lifelong therapy.
“We wouldn’t have to be treating them the rest of their life," he said. "They wouldn’t have the toxicity the rest of their life and the cost the rest of their life of being on treatment.”
Researchers today are talking not just about treating but curing HIV infection. It’s a remarkable turn of events for veterans of the epidemic.
“Unbelievable a few years ago," said Volberding. "And we wouldn’t have done it with any sense of optimism at all. And I think now, we’re still pretty realistic about it. We know it’s not around the corner, but there’s at least a critical mass, we hope, of research now being conducted.”
They hope that research will pay off with cures for adults with HIV as well as children.
He spent eight years in molecular biology and infectious disease research before deciding that writing about science was more fun than doing it. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a master’s degree in journalism in 2002.
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Pacific Golf Estate is a residential project developed by Pacific Group. The project offers well designed 3BHK Apartments, penthouse at very affordable prices. The project is well connected by various modes of transportation. The site is in close proximity to various civic utilities.
Project will have approx. 2000 flats in 2 phases. The project started in June 2014 and 5 towers (A, B, C, D and G) were launched in the 1st phase.
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The Interventionist Bias (on Both the Left and Right)
Over at Reason today, I have more to say (beyond here and here) about recent goings on in Iraq and Syria, and the debate over what, if anything, the United States might have done, or might do now, to change things.
As I note:
some commentators insist that the current chaos is a direct result of President Obama’s reluctance to intervene decisively in the multi-year conflicts in Iraq and Syria. Most notably, Obama’s own former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, in an interview with The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg, suggested that Obama’s failure to aid the Syrian rebels led to the rise of [the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
Clinton claims “that the failure to help build up a credible fighting force of the people who were the originators of the protests against Assad … left a big vacuum, which the jihadists have now filled.” Inherent in that statement is the belief that there was a cadre of relatively liberal-minded opponents of Bashar al-Assad’s regime inside of Syria, and that American support would have been the decisive factor in ensuring that they would triumph over both Assad and the ISIL extremists. By this logic, if the United States had chosen to arm the “correct” anti-Assad rebels in Syria, we would not now be bombing ISIL in Iraq.
But experts, including George Washington University’s Marc Lynch, aren’t so sure. Others question how “moderate” some of the so-called moderates really are. Indeed, many so-called moderates, in turns out, are just “Caliphate, later” people. That is, unlike their “Caliphate, now” brethren, they are willing to use U.S. support to overthrow Assad. Once his regime is defeated, however, many will fight to implement an extremist government, one that is likely to be a thorn in the side of their regional neighbors, as well as the United States. That explains, in part, why we are now fighting in Iraq at least some of the people who we trained in Syria, And yet, the interventionist bias—do something—remains pervasive inside the Washington Beltway.
Ironically, many of the same people who are skeptical of government intervention to deal with domestic problems seem to believe that that same government can somehow cure the ills of other nations. This cognitive dissonance reflects what Michael Munger calls a “unicorn” government: “a State that has the properties, motivations, knowledge, and abilities that they can imagine for it.”
Even if the advocates for U.S. military intervention—on both the left and the right—find that magical, mystical state, they must also show that the problem in question can’t be handled by others, or by nonmilitary means. Just because we have the ability to do something doesn’t mean that we should, or must, do it, nor does it mean that military intervention would improve the situation.
Here, again, some on the right have departed dramatically from their intellectual forefathers who advised that “masterly inactivity” is often preferable to action for action’s sake. Calvin Coolidge advised against the impulse to preemptively deal with any possible problem, no matter how distant. “If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch before they reach you and you have to battle with only one of them.”
This is particularly sage advice for the United States, a nation with blessed geography and great wealth, and one that has a robust nuclear arsenal and an unrivaled military that is sufficient to deter any nation wishing to attack us directly. Thus the burden of proof for U.S. military intervention should fall on those making the case for action, not those advising against.
So far at least, that doesn’t seem to be the case. The interventionists are still winning.
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Classic Roadsters Cobra Replica
There's stealth, and then there's nonstealth, and we experienced both during the last phase of a two-day photo shoot of several products from Leisure Industries (Classic Roadsters and Sugar Sand Marine), based in Fargo, North Dakota. To be specific, we ventured to Alamagordo in storied southern New Mexico and onto the White Sands Missile Range to take a look at a very cool Classic Roadsters' Cobra replica and a hot new Tango jet boat from the company's marine division. We received the Joint-Chiefs' permission to do some photography at Holloman Air Force Base as long as the cameras stayed pointed at the cars and not at some of the secret stuff (we had an escort to ensure that), such as stealth planes, scattered around the base. That was the stealth aspect. At the other extreme, the Cobra replica was anything but stealthy in appearance or operation.
The only real tie-ins were the company connection (since the boat wasn't available in kit form) and the fact that both the car and the boat were screaming yellow; but the possible photo locations were too much to pass up. Jack and Dan Rees of RRR Roadsters in Tularosa, New Mexico, who build custom Classic and other kit cars, provided our subject car and arranged our unusual photo locations. Jack spent 28 years in Army Aviation as active military and as a civilian. He flew both fixed-wing and rotary aircraft and served as a test pilot and a maintenance officer. His last assignment was Director of the White Sands Missile Range Army Air Operations Directorate, in whose hangar we were allowed to shoot some film.
1/9
Brother Dan's background includes virtually a lifetime of car stuff, starting in high school with a Third Place state win in Plymouth's troubleshooting contest. Dan worked for several of the largest Chrysler dealerships in the West, specializing in police, high-performance, and muscle cars.
The Classic Roadsters kit was assembled pretty much according to the manual. The RRR boys then took the car to the next level by concentrating on those details that separate a nice car from a great car. The team used plenty of aircraft standards and components, many of which may not show up but still give the vehicle enhanced durability and reliability.
2/9
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the RRR car you see here is its engine. It may not sound like a big deal to power a Cobra replica with a built 351 Windsor small-block, but if it's one with 545 hp, 500 lb-ft of torque, and instantaneous mayhem when desired, not to mention one that's still able to idle calmly, maintain its cool in heavy traffic, and be quite tractable and tolerant of in-town grocery runs, that's something to applaud. The Rees hit on a nice combination with their demo--a car that can set you back in the seat on the strip, lifting the front tires off the runway, and still make the run to 7-Eleven is impressive.
The 351 was machined to accept a Probe stroker crank and Eagle rods and was slightly overbored for 410 ci of displacement. Dart II heads were added, as was a set of TWM throttle bodies on a prototype, Weber-style fuel injection system developed by Pantera Performance in Colorado. The induction is managed by a Haltec F7 B fuel management computer with cockpit controls. The cam is a Crower Compu-Pro with a duration/lift of 297/582 intake and 306/605 exhaust. The ignition is a Mallory Unilite distributor and HyFire IV rpm limiter and control box.
3/9
The engine was additionally fitted with a high-volume oil pump, roller rocker arms, ARP fasteners, a Fluidampr harmonic damper, and an aluminum Cobra "T" oil pan. Unlike a lot of high-revving performance engines, this one's not too lopey; it idles at about 800 rpm and is easily driveable. You can have problems getting a little heavy on the throttle foot, at which time the beast comes alive with a fury that takes a bit of skill to keep out of trouble. But you can drive it as normally as you would your daily driver, the difference being that you have awesome reserve when you want it--up to about 7,500 rpm. Rounding out the engine compartment gear is a Harrison aluminum puke tank, a five-core American Cooling Products radiator, and a Flex-a-lite electric fan.
4/9
Rees chose a Richmond Road Race five-speed to back up the powerful mill. It's fitted with a Lakewood bellhousing and scattershield, a Hurst shifter, and a Hays clutch. Although it's a five-speed tranny, it doesn't have overdrive, which takes a little getting used to. You can start out in virtually any gear and not overload the engine, thanks to the abundant torque.
The suspension works very well, too, and provides a comfortable ride. The front suspension differs from stock in that it has custom RCC Specialties tubular control arms with adjustable struts and Avo coilover shocks. Wilwood four-piston calipers with 11-inch rotors help with stopping power, and an adjustable proportioning valve allows fine-tuning of the brake bias. The rear features a Currie-modified, 9-inch 31-spline Ford live axle fitted with adjustable upper links, Avo coilovers, and another set of Wilwood four-piston calipers with 10.5-inch rotors.
5/9
Goodyear GSC rubber (245/50 ZR-16 front and 255/50 ZR-16 rear) wraps Motor Sports Specialties wheels. Since the engine's induction system doesn't lend itself to porting vacuum for a brake booster, RRR custom-built a safe system consisting of a trunk-mounted aftermarket vacuum pump, an accumulator tank, and a series of check valves to route vacuum pressure forward to the brake booster. So even if the engine dies, there will always be quick, boosted brake power.
The interior of the RRR roadster is pretty standard Cobra fare: a pair of very comfortable bucket seats, a five-point racing harness, VDO gauges including an electronic programmable tach, a wood-rimmed steering wheel, toggle switches, and a rotary dial for the onboard computer to manually richen or lean out the induction. The dash was also fitted with a Pioneer cassette head with its speakers concealed in the rear package tray, and Rees added a locking glovebox.
6/9
With backgrounds in performance cars and the preparation, modification, and airworthiness of aircraft in the roles of test support and weapon-system development, the Rees brothers are well-versed in what it takes to make things special and purposeful. The level of detail in their demo car illustrates the attention to the small stuff, and this on a car that has been driven hard and put away wet on more than one occasion. For example, the last mile of road to the RRR shop is washboard-smooth and gravel. This is one driver that's not babied and that's frequently turned over to prospective customers. Unlike the equally awesome stealth machines we saw at the base, there's nothing stealthy about a Vivid Canary car with metallic charcoal stripes and a hopped-up powerplant with no shortage of horsepower or torque.
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Microfinance schemes and poverty reduction among women in the northern region of Ghana : A Study of an NGO and a Rural Bank
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In Ghana like in other developing countries, microfinance has been acknowledged as a pro-poor development intervention because of its special programme models in meeting the special needs of the poor especially women. The Ghanaian informal economic landscape is replete with MFIs, which are assumed to have varied orientations and outcomes for their clients. MFIs have long provided microfinance products and services with the expectation of improving the socio-economic and political wellbeing of the Ghanaian woman. This study explores the contributions of microfinance programmes to poverty reduction and empowerment among women. In addition, the study examines not only the challenges that confront MFIs in the implementation of their programmes but also the challenges that women face in the use of microfinance schemes provided by MFIs. Specific objectives were developed to facilitate the achievement of the aims of the study. Qualitative methodologies were used to collect the primary data from about 29 informants recruited from the MFIs.
Three conceptual frameworks were used to examine the data (the informality-formality framework, the theory of empowerment and the household analysis framework). The study found that the MFIs give credits with conditions that are not favourable to the needs of women. It was also found that the dependency burdens on women coupled with the low credit that the women access from the MFIs for their productive activities lead the women to deploy the credits to meet the demands of both their businesses and households. As a result, the women are put under stress as they strive to meet their basic needs and to avoid defaults. The study also found that irrespective of the women's access to credits and incomes their bargaining power and fallback positions in household decision-making processes are largely defined by the gendered regimes within the household economy. I therefore argue that the MFIs have implicitly sought to help women to effectively carry out their gendered role within the separate spheres in the household. This is contrary to the expectations of feminist perspective on microfinance programmes that expects MFIs to provide the basis for the strengthening of individual agency or group solidarity in demanding social transformation through the provision of financial services and gender-based sensitization programmes. I therefore suggest that attempts to help women to reduce poverty and to empower themselves should go beyond making only financial products available to women. It should include mainstreaming educational programmes that will help women to mobilize individual agency and group solidarity to resist, challenge and ultimately transform institutional structures that may inhibit the promotion of gender equality.
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5 Retirement Tax Deadlines to Plan For
To take advantage of tax perks and avoid tax penalties, you need to meet IRS deadlines. Some retirement savings accounts must be utilized by Dec. 31, 2010, to get a tax break this year, while with others you have until April 15, 2011, to make your 2010 tax year deposits. Here are five important retirement tax deadlines to keep in mind:
December 31, 2010. Many retirement tax moves must be made by the end of the calendar year. Contributions to 401(k) and 403(b) plans need to be deposited by Dec. 31, 2010, to qualify for a tax break this year. Workers can defer taxes on up to $16,500 in an employer-sponsored retirement account in 2010, a limit that jumps to $22,000 for employees age 50 or older this year.
Seniors were able to skip taking required minimum distributions from retirement accounts in 2009. But retirees over age 70 1/2 must take distributions from their pre-tax IRAs and 401(k)s this year by Dec. 31, 2010. Those who fail to withdraw the correct amount must pay a 50 percent tax penalty and regular income tax on the amount that should have been withdrawn.
Investors who wish to convert a pre-tax IRA to a Roth IRA or a traditional 401(k) to a Roth 401(k) in tax year 2010 must initiate the conversion by Dec. 31, 2010. Those who convert to a Roth in 2010 have the option to pay the income tax on the transfer this year or pay tax on 50 percent of the conversion amount in 2011 and the second half in 2012. In future years, all of the income tax will be due in the year of the transfer. Many people have already begun to utilize this one-time tax perk. Financial services firms including Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Vanguard have reported a significant uptick in conversions this year. Nearly 100,000 retirement savers converted traditional IRAs to Fidelity Roth IRAs in the first half of 2010, four times more than were rolled over during the same time period in 2009. The removal of income limits for Roth IRA conversions this year also contributed to the increase in transfers.
March 1, 2011. The simplest way to convert a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA is to have the trustee of your current account roll it directly into the new account. However, if you have an IRA distribution made out to you, you have about two months to deposit the full amount withdrawn into a Roth IRA before you will incur any early withdrawal penalties. “The money doesn’t necessarily have to go in the Roth in 2010, but you need to convert it within 60 days of the withdrawal,” says IRA expert Ed Slott, founder of irahelp.com and author of “Stay Rich for Life!: Growing & Protecting Your Money in Turbulent Times.” If you receive the distribution on Dec. 31, 2010, you have until March 1, 2011, to deposit your money in a Roth IRA and have the transfer qualify as a 2010 conversion.
April 1, 2011. Seniors who turn 70 1/2 in 2010 have the option to delay their first required distribution until April 1, 2011. However, retirees who delay the 2010 distribution until next year must take two IRA withdrawals in 2011: the 2010 withdrawal by April 1, 2011, and the 2011 withdrawal by Dec. 31, 2011.
April 15, 2011. IRA contributions for the 2010 tax year must be made by April 15, 2011. Many people wait until the last minute to make their deposits. Almost half (45 percent) of all IRA contributions are made in the 28 days leading up to the tax deadline, and a quarter of new IRAs are opened in April, according to Fidelity IRA data. If you make a contribution between January 1 and April 15, 2010, you should tell the financial institution whether you want the contribution to apply to the 2010 or 2011 tax year. “I actually tell my accountant that I want to make my contributions count as deferred income for 2010,” says Bedda D’Angelo, a certified financial planner and president of Fiduciary Solutions in Durham, N.C., about her typically last-minute April IRA contributions. If you do not specify which tax year you want the contribution to apply to, the bank can assume the contribution is for the current year. Early tax filers can claim a traditional IRA contribution before the deposit is actually made, but the money must be there by the due date of your return.
October 17, 2011. If you wish to undo a 2010 Roth IRA conversion, you have until Oct. 17, 2011, to move your money back to a traditional IRA. To do this you will need to amend your 2010 tax return and subtract the amount that you put back in the pre-tax account from your 2010 gross income. Says Slott: “If you convert any time in 2010, you will have until October 17, 2011, to change your mind for any reason.”
Wealth and Business Planning Group, LLC (The Financial Quarterback™) is a Registered Investment Advisor in the State of Florida that provides Fee Planning and Asset Management. Depending on your state of residence, Wealth and Business Planning Group, LLC (The Financial Quarterback™) may not be able to immediately provide services. For more information go to www.thefinancialqb.com.
Copyright The Financial Quarterback™ • CFP ® CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER ® and the CFP symbol are marks owned by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. These marks are awarded to individuals who successfully complete the CFP™ Boards initial and ongoing certification requirements. Investment advisory services offered through Wealth and Business Planning Group, LLC., A Registered Investment Advisor. Wealth and Business Planning Group, LLC [The Financial Quarterback™] is a Registered Investment Advisor in the State of Florida which offers Fee Planning and Asset Management. Annuity and Insurance services offered through Wealth and Business Planning Group, LLC [The Financial Quarterback™]. Depending on your state of residence, Wealth and Business Planning Group, LLC [The Financial Quarterback™] may not be able to immediately provide services. Use or viewing of this site acknowledges that you have read, understand and will abide by our terms of use, legal notices, and disclaimers. • [webdesign]
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Julian
“PCHP helped set our priorities. My mother and I were always on the same page about education and its importance.”
Julian
December 2015: Today, Julian Gomez is living in Tokyo, Japan working as the senior legal counsel at Sojitz Corporation of America, part of the Sojitz Group, a multi-national corporation with operations throughout the world. Before Sojitz, he was an associate at Proskauer Rose, one of New York’s largest and most well-known law firms. And before that, long before that, he was a toddler participating with his mother in the Westchester, NY Parent-Child Home Program.
Julian’s mother, Maria, immigrated to the United States from Colombia a year before Julian was born. Maria spoke very little English but was committed to giving her children the best educational opportunities. Living in White Plains, NY, she found the support of Westchester Jewish Community Services and learned of the Parent-Child Home Program. She signed up right away.
Julian vividly remembers starting the Program – the face of his early literacy specialist and his mother’s excitement. He believes the Program helped his mother become comfortable in her role as his first teacher and made him comfortable with himself as a learner. “The Program gave me the confidence I needed to enter school and learn English,” said Julian. In fact, when Julian went back and reviewed his own pre-k and kindergarten records, he discovered that his teachers had noted that, even as he was still working on learning English, he was very focused on learning and very comfortable interacting with all the different children in the classroom.
Maria credits the Program with supporting her in teaching her children to love to learn. She still has many of the program books, which became part of the family library and were also used by Julian’s younger brother.
Julian said, “PCHP helped set our priorities. My mother and I were always on the same page about education and its importance.” Julian graduated from High School and went on to earn a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University and a J.D. from Pace University School of Law. Julian draws a clear line from his involvement in The Parent-Child Home Program to his academic success. He’ll tell you right away: “I noticed it at my 10 year reunion. Out of the group of 40 of us or so, that I considered to be the kids from the neighborhood, a handful of us did the Parent-Child Home Program, and that small handful of us were the ones that went off to college and the others did not. I think the one obvious factor was the Parent-Child Home Program.”
In 2006, Julian was invited to join the Board of Directors of the Parent-Child Home Program. He was a very important member of the Board both because of his first-hand experience in the Program and because of his legal background. He served on the Board Development committee, and often spoke publicly about the Program and the impact it had on his life. His passion for the Program helped raise awareness and supported PCHP’s expansion to more families in need.
When he announced that he would need to step down from Board service during his time in Tokyo, Julian said “I truly feel that this Program has changed my life, my brothers, my mom’s – and impacted me in a huge way. That story I have told. The story I don’t tell is that when I was invited to participate in the Board I was 32 years old; I was a young associate at a large law firm and they are not known for building up people’s confidence. When I got here I was truly touched by the support that I received. It was truly, for me, a life changing experience. It gave me a voice that I did not have before on a professional level. I felt empowered to talk to people, guide discussions, take on conflict – and all of those skills I learned while on the Parent-Child Home Program board. I really joined the Board to give back, but the Board kept on giving me more and more. Even though I am leaving, I feel I have come full-circle…and it is coming at a perfect time in my life because my wife is now pregnant. So now I truly can appreciate the Parent-Child Home Program.”
Julian and his wife recently visited a school in Jamaica. Julian was surprised to see how active the 2- and 3-year-olds were. “Now for years I’ve been preaching how great the Program is. You take 2- and 3-year-olds, you give them a book and sit them down – never actually realizing the reality of trying to do that exercise. But, ironically the way it worked out, we were sitting there and the kids were all over the place and the teacher invited me to read to them and they all just huddled around. And, it reminded me of the impact that a book or a toy can have on a child’s life. The Parent-Child Home Program brought me my first book, and I am very excited to give that opportunity to my child.”
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Pull String Chicago Cubs Pinata
19 3/4in x 18in Pinata | SKU: 317580
Price:
$14.99
Hit one out of the park with a Pull String Chicago Cubs Pinata! Shaped like a baseball jersey, this pinata dons the official Cubs logo in team colors. Players of all ages can participate in this classic party game by safely pulling the ribbons until one releases the tasty contents (sold separately).
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Mario Vargas Llosa
If Carlos Fuentes could have invented the perfect character to star in one of his novels, he might have come up with a protagonist named Carlos Fuentes.
That character would be a glamorous global citizen who was born in Panama as a diplomat's son, then hopscotched to Washington, D.C., London, Paris and other glittering power centers. A dapper ladies' man who married an actress and claimed to have had affairs with screen sirens Jeanne Moreau and Jean Seberg.
A lifelong adventurer, like the tragedy-haunted journalist hero of Fuentes' novel "The Old Gringo," played by Gregory Peck in the 1989 film version. A...
Related "Mario Vargas Llosa" Articles
If Carlos Fuentes could have invented the perfect character to star in one of his novels, he might have come up with a protagonist named Carlos Fuentes.
That character would be a glamorous global citizen who was born in Panama as a diplomat's son,...
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A Kentucky dad has his 6-year-old daughter to thank for saving both of their lives.A fire broke out at Troy Henderson's Louisville apartment Wednesday morning. Six-year-old Tariah Henderson said she woke up to "a big boom.""I woke up my daddy because I was so nervous," Tariah said. "I thought we was gonna die."A firefighter ended up rescuing both of them from a second-story window."If it wasn’t for her waking up, I could’ve been gone," Troy Henderson said. "She saved my life."They were both treated at the scene for minor smoke inhalation.The cause of the fire remains under investigation.Watch the video above to learn more about their story.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. —
A Kentucky dad has his 6-year-old daughter to thank for saving both of their lives.
Advertisement
A fire broke out at Troy Henderson's Louisville apartment Wednesday morning. Six-year-old Tariah Henderson said she woke up to "a big boom."
"I woke up my daddy because I was so nervous," Tariah said. "I thought we was gonna die."
A firefighter ended up rescuing both of them from a second-story window.
"If it wasn’t for her waking up, I could’ve been gone," Troy Henderson said.
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What is the RRSP Home Buyer’s Plan
The RRSP Home Buyer’s Plan is a great opportunity to use some of the money that you’ve got saved in your retirement funds towards buying your first home. There are only a few instances where you can actually take that money out of your RRSP to pay for a particular life milestone and one of these instances is when you buy your first home.
To qualify for the RRSP Home Buyer’s Plan you must meet the criteria defined as: in the last four year period, you have not occupied a home that you or your current spouse or common law partner owned. If you were a home owner prior to the last four years, sold that home and have been renting in the meantime, you may still be able to re-qualify for the RRSP home buyers plan. I recommend you check with your accountant to verify the possibility of qualifying at this time.
For the most part, if you are a first-time homebuyer, you will be eligible to qualify.
The RRSP Home Buyers Plan is set up in such a way that you can actually take up to $25,000 as of now in 2017, out of your RRSP without paying a penalty. This means that you are not paying tax when borrowing that money from yourself. You can use those funds towards any element of your purchase. This can be towards your down payment or your closing costs. You will have to prove, however, that you are actually purchasing a property.
One of the advantages of doing this is that when you put money into your RRSPs, you will experience a tax deferral. Also if you are making a fairly good income, it is worth putting some of your earnings into an RRSP as you will likely get a lump sum back in your tax returns, since it will effectively reduce your taxable income
Take note that when you are borrowing that money from your RRSP, and you really are borrowing it because you have to return it to your RRSP over a 15-year period. This pay back will be calculated equally over the 15 years and must be paid yearly.
You may be wondering if you should pay back that full amount earlier, but this is like an interest-free loan so you’re not actually benefiting from paying it back faster. You might as well pay the minimum amount that you’re required to every year and have that extra money for other life choices.
Even if you are receiving money towards your purchase from your family as a gift, I recommend that you use that gift to contribute to you RRSPs assuming you don’t have $25,000 in your RRSPs and you have contribution room.
This will give you the benefit of the tax benefit up front and you will receive money in your tax returns. Remember that the money does have to be inside of your RRSPs for at least a 90 days (three full months) before you take it out to ensure you aren’t taxed on the withdrawal.
So if you are planning to purchase your first home, which is super exciting, make sure that you have maxed out your RRSP contributions up to $25,000 so that you can in fact take that money out and use it towards your first home purchase and still benefit from the tax credit.
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Men N Ministry
United Methodist Men (UMM) meet regularly on the first Tuesday of each month excluding the months of July and August. Average attendance for each meeting is 25-40 men. We meet to enjoy fellowship, encourage spiritual growth, and to stay connected with God and do his work.
Our meeting offers a combination of fun and business. We follow an agenda which begins with dinner prepared by volunteers from our group. The dinner is followed by a short devotion. We also invite guest speakers who provide insight about local issues affecting our community. We conduct the business portion of our meeting after our speaker has finished.
We are blessed with having a lot of talented men who help in providing many special services to our community and the world beyond. Our men have recently been doing some much needed work at the local children’s home. They have also provided funds and equipment to support a medical aid trip to Nicaragua, and they refurbished two closets at the McCormick Senior Center (see reprint from the McCormick Messenger below). Also through our fund raisers such as providing a pancake breakfast during the town’s Gold Rush Festival, we are able to make financial contributions to support many needy groups and individuals. These have included Feed the Hunger, McCormick Chapel, St. Andrew and local residents who need a helping hand. These actions of reaching out to others in need help to support our church’s mission of “Reaching Up, Reaching Out”.
God has blessed our men with talent and dedication. They do reach out and spread God’s love to the community. We are always open to ideas and input from our members. This is our calling, and with God’s help we will serve.
MISSION: United Methodist men shall be a creative, supportive fellowship of men who seek to know Jesus Christ, to grow spiritually and to seek daily his will.
PURPOSE: Our primary purpose is to declare the centrality of Christ in the lives of men and in all their relationships.
OFFICERS
President Robert Rennie
Vice President Bruce Motsinger
Secretary Byron Thompson
Treasurer Gordon Waine
For additional information about United Methodist Men please visit the General Commission on United Methodist Men website at
Previous Meetings
TIM KEOWN, PRESIDENT OF jOHN de la HOWE SCHOOL FOR AGRICULTURE, WAS GUEST SPEAKER AT THE MARCH 3 MEETINGThe March Men N Ministry meeting was held on Tuesday, March 3. Twenty-Five men attended. Larry Ream and Gordie Waine prepared a delicious meal of lasagna, salad and dessert. Rob Rennie gave the devotion.
Tim Keown was the guest speaker. John de la Howe has been restructured into a state funded residential high school that will be focused on agricultural education. He was selected as the new president in December 2019. This new program will be the first statewide program of its kind in the nation. It will provide opportunities to get hands on training in both agriculture and agribusiness.
Tim is a native of SC and has a Bachelor of Science and Master’s degrees from Clemson. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Education Leadership from Clemson. He has taught at the high school level and served as the Associate State Director of Agricultural Education at Clemson University for five years.
He provided an overview of the history of the school from its founding in 1797 in the will of Dr. John De La Howe a French physician who had immigrated to Charleston in 1764. He obtained a large amount of land in what was then Abbeville. He left all of his estate 1300 acres to the establishment of an agricultural seminary. At one time the school housed 400 students. The new Agriculture school will start in August 2020 with about 80 students.
The current treasury balance is $2735. Bob Struck reported that the Nehemiah work team has a balance of $1008. In 2019 the Men’s group was able to donate $1055 to various charities. Other discussion items included St. Andrew, summer baseball game outing and future speakers.
The next dinner meeting is scheduled for April 7 at 6pm. No need to sign up, hope to see you there! The speaker will be a representative of the new Savannah Lakes Family Medicine facility..
LINDA SHELL SPOKE AT MEN N MINSITRY DINNER MEETING ON FEBRUARY 4
The monthly meeting of the men N ministry was held on Tuesday February 4. Don Tummons and Bob Struck prepared the meal. Gordie Wayne gave the devotional.
The keynote speaker was Linda Shell, partnership specialist for the Upstate, U.S. Census Bureau. She stressed the importance of the census in determining how the Federal government distributes over 675 billion to municipalities across the country. Therefore, it’s important “not to be invisible”. Notifications (invitations) will be sent out starting on March 12. Residents will be able to complete forms using their laptop, smart phone or iPad. On March 23 the Census Bureau portal will be open to complete forms. There will be no long forms. There will be 9 questions for the head of household and 7 questions for each member. There will be several follow-up correspondences. It’s important to complete the forms electronically because if a census taker comes to the house it costs about $100. She stressed that two groups of people are the most undercounted: Children and senior citizens. There are temporary jobs available for census takers and supervisors.
Charles Jennings Chairman of the County Council and Jackie Brown Chairman of the McCormick Census Committee also attended the presentation.
During the business meeting the group celebrated 3 up and coming birthdays: Ray Crace 85, Arvid Perez 85, and Lyn Bourne 84. Byron Thompson was confirmed as secretary. The men have a balance of $2812 in the treasury. The Nehemiah work team has a balance of $1008. They expect some new projects soon. The men approved a donation of $150 to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Don Tummons and Pastor Nels will attend the state UMMen retreat in Lexington on February 29. The men will pay the daily fee.
Tim Keown, President, of the John de la Howe School of Agriculture will be the March speaker and Robbie Rennie will give the devotional.
JANUARY 7, 2020 MEETINGThe January meeting was held on Tuesday, January 7. Don Tummons and John Yerdon prepared a meal of salad and chicken pot pies. Joe Larate gave the devotional. Pastor Ledwell gave the main presentation. He provided a detailed summary of the current status of the future plans for the Methodist Church. He started with the previous 5 plans from the 2019 special general conference. He spent the major portion of the discussion discussing the option developed late last year by a combined group of United Methodist Leaders. This plan and quite probably others must be voted on at the church’s worldwide general conference in May to develop a final plan. What happens locally will depend on the South Carolina conference that will meet after the General Conference.
During the business portion of the meeting, the men voted to donate $250 to St Andrews and $250 to the Epworth Children’s home. The men have paid their general dues to be recertified for the next year. The originally planned Men N Ministry congregational breakfast will be postponed. Don Tummons stated that on March 22 and 29 the church will host lay servant ministry training with about 75 attendees. The men will host a meal one Sunday and the UMW will host the second. There will be no Bells and Whistles this year so ideas for fund raising are being discussed. There will be statewide Men N Ministry one-day retreat on Saturday, February 29 at Mt. Horbe Methodist Church in Lexington.
DECEMBER 3, 2019 MEETING
The final meeting of the year was held on Tuesday December 3. In addition to the regular agenda, there was a special send off for Bruce Motsinger, thanking him for his tireless support to the men’s group and the church. There was a special cake by John Yerdon.
Bob Weiss and John Yerdon prepared the meal. Lynn Bourne delivered the devotion. The program was given by Marion Starkey a native of Plum Branch. He owns and operates Heritage Press. He researches, writes, publishes, and distributes technical books dealing with military history, aviation history, and regional history. During his professional career he was a Marine pilot, a commercial pilot (oil and gas industry), corporate security manager and law enforcement. He researches, writes, and publishes technical books about military history, aviation history, and South Carolina history. He has written over 12 books. His talk covered the five greatest speeches.
During the business portion of the meeting a summary of the Rise Against Hunger program was given: raised more than $35,000 donation money and packaged 137,000 meals. This year’s meals went to Madagascar. A profit of $381 was announced from the Brat sales during the Bazaar. Byron Thompson will be assuming the duties of Secretary. Don Tummons is planning to have a congregational breakfast between services during January as a fund raiser for the Men. Looking ahead there will be a one day state-wide UMen retreat at the Mount Horeb Methodist Church in Lexington on Saturday February 29.
Annual Men’s & Women’s Fall Dinner
There were 55 in attendance at the Annual Men’s & Women’s dinner on Thursday, October 17. Welcoming greetings were given by Bob Rennie, UMM President and Jeanne Thornburg, UMW President. The theme was“Lost in the Fifties”, and Lindy Stahlman gave a very thought-provoking and inspirational devotion that stirred the minds of those in attendance to remember years prior to the 1950’s, and conversation was encouraged about memories of the dates from the 50’s posted at each table. A delicious meal prepared by Chefs Don Tummons (and Carol) and John (and Sue) Yerdon was served cafeteria style. A wonderful program of Christian beach music was then presented by Larry Freeland. Following the presentation, Larry and his wife Linda handed out free CD’s to all present. We were glad that Larry’s mother, Hazel Freeland, could join us. Larry shared with the audience that he had prostate cancer surgery in August and that this was his first performance since that time, giving all of the Glory to God for his recovery and ability to be with us. He not only did this through his testimony, but with his powerful music as well. Larry and Linda sent this electronic message back to McCormick UMC at 10 o’clock that evening: “Thank you all for allowing us to join your Women’s and Men’s Ministry Dinner tonight. We had a wonderful night of fellowship, food, and music. The people at McCormick UMC are so welcoming and encouraging, and we enjoyed every minute. It was so much fun to be “Lost in the 50’s”. We certainly appreciate all the prayers of your people. May God bless you all.” – Linda and Larry Freeland
Men N Ministry held their October meeting on Tuesday, October 1. Dale Tarrant, John Yerdon and Don Tummons prepared the meal. Bob Rennie gave the devotion prepared by Don Tummons.
The guest speaker was Terry Wilson who discussed his latest book: Cursed by Bias Diplomacy. He has published 15 books. This is his second historical fiction book on the significant events and conditions of the 1770s leading up to the American Revolution. The discussion provided some fascinating insights about the period including some of the actual people who participated in the actual events.
The next meeting will be December 3 with Bob Weiss preparing the meal. Marion Sturkey of Plum Branch, who owns and operates Heritage Press. Will be the speaker. He researches, writes, publishes, and distributes technical books dealing with military history, aviation history, and regional history (including Plum Branch and other SC areas).
September 10, 2019 Meeting
Men N Ministry returned from the summer break with a dinner meeting on September 10th. John Yerdon and Don Tummons prepared the meal. Joe Larate led the devotional.
The guest speaker for the Evening was SLV resident, James Brady. He was the Director of Acquisitions for thirteen years for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC. His talk focused on the holocaust itself, including the differences between genocide and the holocaust, the history leading up to the era, the groups persecuted and myths surrounding the era. He also provided an insightful question and answer period.
During the business portion of the meeting the successful Green Jackets baseball game night was summarized (thanks to Lyn Bourne) and donations were made to the Jeremy Hutton Mission trip to Nicaragua ($200) and the Rise Against Hunger church program ($250).
The men will again be selling Brats, chips and drinks at the October 5th MUMC Craft Show and Cookie Factory from 11:00 on.
Next dinner meeting will be held on October 1 at 6pm. All men are welcome to attend.. No need to sign up, just show up!
There will be a joint UMM-UMW meeting on Thursday October 25th. Due to this meeting there will be no Men N Ministry meeting in November.
April 2, 2019 Meeting
Twenty-three men were in attendance at our April 2019 Men N Ministry meeting. The Meal was prepared by Larry Ream with help from Ray Crace and Bob Weiss. Gordie Waine did devotions, “Love is” and then recited all the Books of the Bible, by memory. Our speaker for the evening was Al Gaer, who shared with us situations and issues from his 28 years with the LA Fire Dept. Al shared with us that being a Fire Fighter is a job in which one sees every type of tragedy possible. We all left with a deeper respect for the job fire fighters do. Our meeting closed withe the “Circle of Prayer”. We remind all men, that you are invited to attend and bring a guest. Our next meeting will be May 7.
February 5, 2019 Meeting
Men N Ministry held their second meeting of the year on Tuesday, February 5. Bob Weiss and Ron Garling prepared a delicious meal of elk casserole and salad. Bryon Thompson gave the devotion.
Pastor Nels was the speaker. He provided an update about the details and current status of the “way forward” proposals to be considered by the upcoming Church Council.
There will be a McCormick wide downtown garage sale on May 4. The men will support the event by having a breakfast from 8:00 to 11:00AM.
January 8, 2019 Meeting
The guest speaker was Darlene Saxon of Piedmont Technical Institute. She is an admissions counselor and associated with coordinating non-traditional education. She provided an interesting overview of the 80 some academic programs and the bridge or transfer opportunities to over 40 college and universities in SC.
Bob Rennie
Darlene Saxon
Joe Larate
December 2018 Meeting
Bruce Motsinger Gives Devotional
Bob Rennie Leads the Meeting
Rev. Jerry Clinkscales, Keynote Speaker
Rev. Jerry Clinkscales, Keynote Speaker
The Men in Ministry held their December meeting on Tuesday Dec 5 in Fellowship Hall. Everyone enjoyed some good conversation and a meal of Pizza and salad with ice cream and brownies for dessert. Bruce Motsinger and Bob Struck prepared the meal. Bruce gave a short devotional on the symbolism of Advent.
Reverend Jerry Clinkscales of Martha’s Chapel Methodist Church on McCracken Street in McCormick was the keynote speaker. He gave a fascinating discussion of the history of that Church with emphasis of the cemetery and the site of the former school, which is located off Holiday Road near the Southwind section of SLV. Years ago members of our church helped in the work on their current church and had some joint functions. The churches have had minimal interactions in recent years. Plans were discussed to renew activities between the two churches with a joint project to clean up the cemetery early next year.
Following the program a short business meeting was held including the election of officers.
No need to sign up for January dinner meeting, just show up at 6pm on January 8 and bring a friend!
October 2018 Meeting
At the October 2018 meeting Al Gaer demonstrated how to use the automated external defibrillator (AED).
September 2018 Meeting
The Men N Ministry met on Sept 11 due to the Labor Day Holiday. The Meal was cooked by Don Tummons and John Yerdon. Gordie Waine gave the invocation. The speaker was Becky Powell-Moon Executive Director of the McCormick County Senior Center. She provided an overview of the many services and benefits available through the McCormick Area Transit and the Talmadge Fitness and Wellness Complex. Final plans for the pancake breakfast and Lasagna Dinner were discussed. The next meeting will be on October 2 with Al Gaer demonstrating the principles and use of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED).
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Catching On
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – He admits he had never heard the name Daron Roberts prior to two weeks ago. Yet, West Virginia senior wide receiver Brad Starks has taken a quick liking to his new position coach.
“He has great energy,” Starks smiled. “He expects us to work hard and play fast. He’s a great fit for what Coach (Dana) Holgorsen is putting together here.”
The much-anticipated, high-octane, Holgorsen-led Mountaineer offense is in its second week of installation. And while junior Geno Smith’s continual development at quarterback will play a vital role, its success may hinge on the performance of the wide receivers.
The literal hands-on use of wideouts has them preparing with a bounce in their cuts and routes. Front and center of that discussion is Unionville, Va. , native, Starks.
“The offense is simple, yet complex at the same time,” said Starks, fully immersed in the Xs and Os of spring practice. “The major difference is coach wants us to master a certain position. You won’t see us running back and forth, lining up on a particular side of the field. I am focusing on my spot and my routes.
“And if you think about it, it should make it easier for us.”
Starks is the team’s second leading returner in career receiving yards, totaling 890 yards in 34 games.
After battling injuries throughout the first part of the last season, he showcased his capabilities in an October win over UNLV. He became the first Mountaineer to record three touchdown receptions in the 31-year history of Milan Puskar Stadium.
Starks is looking forward to hauling in more passes and developing into a consistent target.
“I think anybody that is competitive, wants the ball more,” said Starks. “But I’m going to run the routes that will put my team in the position to move the chains and score points. I think our offense can be very dangerous and help this team win games.”
Equipped with the size and speed of a big-play threat, Starks is counting on an injury-free final season in the Old Gold and Blue.
Also aiding in the development of WVU’s receivers is Smith’s return under center. The Mountaineers have fielded a different starting quarterback in each of the past three seasons.
“There’s no question it helps out a lot,” said Starks. “Developing trust and working on timing of routes is a key part of any receiver and quarterback.
“I have caught passes from Pat (White), Jarrett (Brown) and Geno the last three years. Me and Geno have an extra spring and summer to work together. There’s more time to bond off the field as well to help the chemistry. “
And when’s he’s not stretching the field vertically, Starks can be found in the ears of his young, but talented receiving corps, taking on the role of mentor.
“I have been really trying to keep on them and remind them to work hard every day,” explained Starks. “You don’t want to lose a work day, especially when installing a new offense.”
Starks and his teammates are working diligently to establish a new offensive identity, all while having fun in this transition process.
“I’m excited,” said Starks. “It’s endless opportunities and possibilities with this offense.”
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Putin Named Russia's 'Man Of The Year' 15th Time In A Row
Vladimir Putin has been named Russia’s “Man Of The Year” for the 15th time in a row, Interfax news agency reports.
The Russian president won by a landslide, claiming 68% of votes. The runner-up got only 4% of votes. The poll was conducted by the Public Opinion Foundation and included 1,500 respondents in 43 regions of Russia, according to Interfax.
The propaganda channel Russia Today said of the poll: “The public affirmation about Vladimir Putin’s major role in the life of the country looks even more decisive considering researchers within the same poll asked who among scientists and artists was worthy of the mantle. Some 75 per cent of Russians said they had no answer to this question.”
RT also notes that Putin’s approval rating reached a record high this year.
Meanwhile, the Russian economy is in crisis as oil and the rouble crash.
Putin invaded the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in March and blamed Ukraine for a commercial airline crash in July that was caused by Russian-backed rebels mistakenly shooting down the plane.
Putin has won the “Man Of The Year” title every year since he rose to power in 1999, when he was appointed prime minister.
RT cites an earlier interview with Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov in which he says people’s love for Putin is a manifestation of their love for Russia.
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3
comments:
I cannot believe you're doing a quest called "Like a Fart in the Wind". Well I can, because I also looked it up on Wowwiki, and after reading the Quest Text I see that Blizzard have clearly given up even the slightest pretense that they're taking this game seriously.
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Hi, I am Katherine Felix, a financial consultant in the UK. I love sharing reliable information on guaranteed loans. My company Lenders Club offers viable and affordable lending solutions to all people in the UK.
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CAMPAIGN 2012
Trump Stumped: No Big Announcement on Celebrity Apprentice Finale
Donald Trump misspoke when he promised a clue about his presidential intentions on Celebrity Apprentice.(Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
Reset your DVRs! You can make that Sunday night dinner with mom after all: Contrary to his own personally advanced hype, Donald Trump will not be making any kind of announcement about his presidential plans on the Celebrity Apprenticeseason finale.
The ratings-deflating news was delivered to National Journal on Tuesday by Sharon Pannozzo, publicity director for NBC Entertainment, who sounded a little miffed with The Donald’s false advertising.
“The show this weekend [part one of the finale] was taped back in November, and next week’s episode is also taped,” Pannozzo said. “So there will be no opportunity for him to do something like that.”
What? Didn’t Trump himself suggest to TheNew York Times that he’d be delivering the news—or at least news of when and where he’d deliver the news—of his presidential plans on the show?
“I am thinking of saying on the live finale of The Apprentice on May 22 that in a few days I will be making an announcement about my decision,” Trump told the Times.”I might ask the two finalists if I should run for president. Of course, if they’re intelligent they’ll have to say yes, since I’m about to fire one of them.”
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Not exactly, according to the show’s publicist. “There will be no announcement,” Pannozzo said. “It’s just misinformation on his part.” Pannozzo insists there will be no live segments of the show. Asked about Pannozzo’s comments, Trump spokesman Michael Cohen confirmed to National Journal: “Mr. Trump will not be making any announcement during the finale of The Apprentice.”
This will definitely come as a major disappointment to Trump watchers: Newsmax was the first to report last month that Trump “plans to say on the NBC show that he will be holding a press conference in the next few days … [where] he will be announcing whether he will run for the presidency.” Cohen confirmed that news to National Journal, just before Trump himself teased the prospect to the Times.
But the final episodes of Celebrity Apprentice were pre-taped in the fall—before any serious buzz developed about a Trump candidacy and definitely before Trump began hinting at an announcement on the show’s finale.
So was the whole thing just an enormous publicity stunt?
Cohen was still trying to whet media interest on Tuesday. “It’s not inconceivable that he will make an announcement either before or after the finale, which we would clearly let you know about,” he said.
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Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Instructor
Campus Description: Long Island's premier academic medical center, Stony Brook Medicine represents Stony Brook University's entire medical enterprise and integrates all of Stony Brook's health-related initiatives: education, research and patient care. It encompasses Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook Children's Hospital, the five Health Sciences schools - Dental Medicine, Health Technology and Management, Medicine, Nursing and Social Welfare - as well as the major centers and institutes, programs and more than 50 community-based healthcare settings throughout Suffolk County. With 603 beds, Stony Brook University Hospital serves as Suffolk County's only tertiary care center and Regional Trauma Center. Stony Brook Children's, with more than 160 pediatric specialists, offers the most advanced pediatric specialty care in the region.
Budget Title: same as above
REF#: F-9641-17-03-F
Department: Psychiatry
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Faculty Position
Campus: Eastern Long Island Hospital/HSC
Required Qualifications: Master's Degree in Nursing. Current New York State Registered Nurse Licensure. New York State Certification as a Nurse Practitioner in Psychiatry. Three years experience as a Nurse Practitioner to include a minimum of two years of experience in Psychiatry. Ability to provide cross-coverage as necessary.
Responsibilities & Requirements: A clinician is needed to serve as a Nurse Practitioner in Psychiatry in Eastern Long Island Hospital Adult Inpatient 23 bed unit, as well as providing consult coverage in the emergency room area and other hospital units.
Special Notes: This is a non-tenure track position. FLSA Exempt position, not eligible for the overtime provisions of the FLSA. Internal and external search to occur simultaneously. Anticipated Start Date: As soon as possible. To qualify for a senior faculty appointment, the candidate must meet the criteria established by the School of Medicine ( School of Medicine's Criteria for Appointment, Promotion and Tenure ).
Pursuant to Executive Order 161, no State entity, as defined by the Executive Order, is permitted to ask, or mandate, in any form, that an applicant for employment provide his or her current compensation, or any prior compensation history, until such time as the applicant is extended a conditional offer of employment with compensation. If such information has been requested from you before such time, please contact the Governor's Office of Employee Relations at (518) 474-6988 or via email at [email protected]
Applications for this position must be received, as specified in the Application Procedure Section, no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time on 05/05/2017 , unless specifically noted otherwise in the Special Notes Section. STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY IS AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER. WE ENCOURAGE PROTECTED VETERANS, INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES, WOMEN AND MINORITIES TO APPLY. IF YOU NEED A DISABILITY-RELATED ACCOMMODATION, PLEASE CALL THE UNIVERSITY HUMAN RESOURCE SERVICES DEPARTMENT AT (631) 632-6161 OR THE UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT AT (631) 444-4700. IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TITLE II CRIME AWARENESS AND SECURITY ACT, A COPY OF OUR CRIME STATISTICS IS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST BY CALLING (631) 632-6350. IT CAN ALSO BE VIEWED ON-LINE AT THE UNIVERSITY POLICE WEBSITE AT http://www.stonybrook.edu/police
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