text: Archie, my one-and-a-half-year-old kelpie from Armidale, inspired my artwork by her cheeky, destructive and sometimes costly behaviour. The juxtaposition of her adorable personality and physical beauty with her unbelievable and unrelenting destructiveness forms my body of work. Whether intentional or not, she manages to destroy anything and everything. I have collected, photographed and documented the result of her efforts over her lifetime.


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History of Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
The month of August is given the special honor of being devoted to the devotion of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. While we have been unable to find a definitive statement explaining this, a couple of guesses can be made.
First, the Feast of the Assumption of Mary occurs on the 15th of August.
Second, the Feast of St. John Eudes, considered to be the father of the devotion of the Immaculate Heart by Pope Pius X, is celebrated on August 19th.
Third, before Vatican II the Feast of the Immaculate Heart used to be celebrated on August 22nd.
Before looking closely at the actual devotion it is good to look back at where the focus on the heart of Mary we should take a look at where Mary's heart is mentioned in Scripture. There are two mentions of Mary's heart in the Gospel of Luke. First, "But Mary kept all these words, pondering them in her heart." (Luke 2:19) Second, "And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them. And his mother kept all these words in her heart." (Luke 2:51)
In his Encyclical, Redemtor hominis, Blessed John Paul II says that "We can say that the mystery of the Redemption took shape beneath the heart of the Virgin of Nazareth when she pronounced her "fiat".
St. Faustina saw Mary's heart as a channel of graces: "I saw, between
heaven and earth, the Mother of God, clothed in a bright robe. She was
praying with her hands folded over her bosom, her eyes fixed on heaven.
From her heart issued forth fiery rays, some of which were turned
towards heaven while others covered our country." Diary of St. Faustina.
So Mary's heart is seen in these examples as the source of her original "Yes" to God and the graces for mankind that come from her Son.
Devotion to her Immaculate Heart seems to have begun in the twelfth century based on the writings of the saints. From the Catholic Encyclopedia:
It is only in the twelfth, or towards the end of the eleventh century, that slight indications of a regular devotion are perceived in a sermon by St. Bernard (De duodecim stellis), from which an extract has been taken by the Church and used in the Offices of the Compassion and of the Seven Dolours. Stronger evidences are discernible in the pious meditations on the Ave Maria and the Salve Regina, usually attributed either to St. Anselm of Lucca (d. 1080) or St. Bernard; and also in the large book "De laudibus B. Mariae Virginis" (Douai, 1625) by Richard de Saint-Laurent. Penitentiary of Rouen in the thirteenth century. In St. Mechtilde (d. 1298) and St. Gertrude (d. 1302) the devotion had two earnest adherents. A little earlier it had been included by St. Thomas Becket in the devotion to the joys and sorrows of Mary, by Blessed Hermann (d. 1245), one of the first spiritual children of St. Dominic, in his other devotions to Mary, and somewhat later it appeared in St. Bridget's "Book of Revelations". Tauler (d. 1361) beholds in Mary the model of a mystical, just as St. Ambrose perceived in her the model of a virginal soul. St. Bernadine of Siena (d. 1444) was more absorbed in the contemplation of the virginal heart, and it is from him that the Church has borrowed the lessons of the Second Nocturn for the feast of the Heart of Mary. St. Francis de Sales speaks of the perfections of his heart, the model of love for God, and dedicated to it his "Theotimus".
The Admirable Heart of Mary
Even though there are many earlier references to the devotion, the devotion to the Immaculate Heart wasn't regularized and promoted enough to later become a practice throughout the Church until the 1600's by St. John Eudes in France. His book The Admirable Heart of Mary is an in-depth explanation of the devotion. During his beatification Pope Pius X declared him the Father of Devotion to the Immaculate Heart.
In the visions of Fatima on July 13th, 1917, Mary told the children "to save poor sinners, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart." In a series of visions in 1925 and 1926, the oldest of the visionaries, Lucia Dos Santos, received a further message from Mary asking that the five first Saturdays be devoted to help make amends for the offenses committed against her heart by the blasphemies and ingratitude of men.
In 1942, as the war Mary prophesied raged through Europe and the Church celebrated the 25th anniversary of the original visions at Fatima, Pope Pius XII consecrated the Church and the whole world to Mary's Immaculate Heart. Also in 1942 he established the Feast of the Immaculate Heart to fall on August 22 during the Octave of the Assumption.
On May 4th, 1944 Pope Pius XII extended the celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to the universal Church. Following Vatican II the feast day was moved to the Saturday following the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

subset: commoncrawl


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There's no false advertising here. Beijing's Forbidden City was exactly what it claimed to be. This maze of 800 buildings was off limits to ordinary mortals, being the exclusive precinct of China's emperors and their courts for 500 years. Regular Chinese were prohibited from even coming near the walls. This complex has sometimes been called the "place with 9,999 and a half rooms" (because only the palace of heaven could have a perfect 10,000 rooms), but in reality it has about 8,700 rooms and halls.
Begun in the early 15th century by the Yongle emperor, who put 200,000 laborers to work on the project, the Forbidden City was the home of 24 successive Ming and Qing emperors through 1924. Surrounded by a moat and 30-foot-high walls, the "Sons of Heaven" were elevated above earthly matters, a fact reflected in the very architecture of the palace. Ceremonial halls are perched on a marble plinth several feet above the surrounding courtyard.
No group of historic buildings in China is larger or better preserved than the
Forbidden City. See more pictures of famous landmarks.
Beautifully planned, the architecture of the Forbidden City maintains a harmonious sense of poise between buildings and open space. The complex is symmetrically balanced along a north-south axis, but the design is never rigid or monotonous.
The vast outer courtyard, also known as the "Sea of Flagstones," had room for imperial audiences of 100,000 people. Like an ocean, it washes around three great halls that make up the ceremonial heart of the Forbidden City.
The largest, the Hall of Supreme Harmony, was reserved for august occasions such as coronations or the emperor's birthday celebration. Only the ruler himself could use the marble entry ramp adorned with carved dragons. In the hall, amidst clanging gongs and clouds of incense, prostrate courtiers were required to strike the floor nine times with their foreheads. No doubt the emperor made a stunning impression.
The hall displays treasures such as jade musical chimes and the splendidly ornamented Dragon Throne, from which the emperor issued his absolute decisions. Outside the hall a bronze turtle, symbolizing long life, puffs incense smoke from its mouth. On the roof, ornamental dragons -- standing 11 feet tall and weighing 4.5 tons -- are believed to protect the building from fire because they draw clouds and rain.
The ruler used the nearby Hall of Middle Harmony as a dressing room before important ceremonies. He also greeted important foreigners here and addressed the royal progeny, children born to his wives and many concubines.
In the Hall of Preserving Harmony, candidates took examinations for the world's first civil-service bureaucracy. Inside stands a huge chunk of marble carved with motifs of dragons and clouds. Weighing 250 tons, it was transported to Beijing on a pathway of ice created by sluicing water onto the winter roads.
Beyond these outer precincts lies the Forbidden City's inner courtyard, whose three palaces served the Ming and Qing Dynasties as imperial residences. The Palace of Heavenly Purity, the emperor's sleeping quarters, is guarded by incense burners shaped like cranes and tortoises. Emperors and empresses consummated their marriages in the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, whose small wedding chamber is painted completely red. The room was last used in 1922, after the wedding of the Manchu child emperor Pu-yi, who compared the gaudy décor to "a melted red wax candle."
Lions are considered excellent guardians and can often be found in China
protecting various entrances from evil spirits.
Uncomfortable there, Pu-yi abandoned his wedding chamber for the more familiar Hall of Mental Cultivation. In its apartments, emperors spent most of their time living and working. During the 1800s, the Dowager Empress Cixi received visitors here from behind a screen, as foreigners and Chinese of lower station were not allowed to lay eyes on so lofty a personage.
In many ways the emperor and his court lived in a gilded prison. They rarely dared to venture beyond the Forbidden City's walls, and then only with elaborate precautions. The emperor rode in a palanquin, a closed and covered reclining couch carried by four servants. Military guards, the secret service scouting the route, and a policy of never revealing which palanquin carried the emperor were just some of the stratagems used to safeguard the ruler outside the Imperial Palace.
The Imperial Garden was one of the few places where the people closed inside the complex could go to relax. Wandering among the pavilions and ponds, pines, flowers, and bamboo -- all the classical sights of Chinese gardening -- residents had an all-too-rare experience of nature, the kind of simple pleasure that commoners enjoyed every day. But that was in the world outside, beyond the high walls of the Forbidden City.
Here are links to dozens of other world-famous landmarks:
To learn more about these landmarks and vacation destinations, see:
Jerry Camarillo Dunn, Jr., has worked with the National Geographic Society for more than 20 years, starting as a staff editor, writer, and columnist at Traveler magazine, then writing travel guides. His latest work is National Geographic Traveler: San Francisco. Dunn's Smithsonian Guide to Historic America: The Rocky Mountain States has sold more than 100,000 copies. His travel pieces appear in newspapers such as the Chicago Tribune and The Boston Globe. Jerry Dunn's stories have won three Lowell Thomas Awards from the Society of American Travel Writers -- the highest honor in the field. He also wrote and hosted a pilot episode for a travel show produced by WGBH, Boston's public television station.


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Stamford blows past Darien
Recommended Video:
STAMFORD -- Stamford High School's senior night was one to remember for the Black Knights as they defeated Darien 61-49 behind a dominant first half performance.
Stamford (14-6, 13-5) outscored the Blue Wave 34-8 in the first half, including holding their opponent to just two points in the first quarter.
"We played awesome, there no other way to say it," Stamford coach Danny Melzer said of his team's first-half performance. "Our seniors started tonight and they did an excellent job, all four seniors scored in the first quarter, we couldn't ask for anything more out of them they've given us four years of hard work, they've set a good example for our younger guys and it was nice to see them go out on top at home."
Senior Kenny Wright wanted the victory not just because it was Senior Night, but to make up the loss they had a year ago against Harding, where the Knights were unable to send their seniors off with a victory.
"It feels great," said Wright, who led all scorers with 18 points. "Last year the seniors didn't get a win and I felt bad so I told them we're going to win this game, we're not going to end up like last season; it means a lot to me, it might be the last time I play in this gym."
Stamford was able to build a lead in the first half with hot shooting from almost everyone on the team; the Blue Wave defense was unable to focus on one Stamford scorer, making for a nightmarish early go-of-it for Darien.
"We said from day one were not a one man team," Melzer said. "We have a lot of different weapons that can score on a given night; we have shooters, guys that can go to the basket, a post game; we're very diverse on the offensive end."
For Darien (10-10, 10-10) it was very much a tale of two halves, after scoring only eight total points in the first half they rallied to outscore Stamford 41-27 in the second.
"I just sat down and looked at them all and said you have to make a decision," Darien coach Kyle Marian said of his halftime talk. "We know as a staff that they are fully capable of playing with the best teams in the league we've shown that night in and night out."
The Blue Wave chose to fight, lead largely by Matt Staubi, who contributed 11 points in the loss.
"I think he's one of the best point guards in our league," Marian said of Staubi. "For a guy that's getting the best defender on him every single night to be able to do what he's done is nothing short of amazing."
For Wright and Stamford the next step is to ride this momentum into Saturday's FCIAC playoffs against city-rival Westhill.
"Now were clicking on all cylinders," Wright said. "We're one big family and we're playing as a unit, and we're hot."
Stamford 61, Darien 49
Chima Azuonwu 6 0-0 12 Bobby Fitzpatrick 5 3-5 14 Alexander Preston 3 0-0 6 Colin Sullivan 0 2-2 2 Matt Staubi 4 2-2 11 George Phillips 1 0-0 2 Casey Brown 1 0-0 2. Totals: 20 7-9 49.
James Gronberg 0 4-4 4 Kweshon Askew 4 0-0 9 Ancel Nevers 3 0-0 7 Gianni Carwin 4 4-4 14 Kenny Wright 6 4-4 18 John Odoom 2 1-2 5 Jack Rakoczy 2 0-0 4. Totals: 21 13-14 61.
3-Pointers: S-Askew, Nevers, Carwin 2, Wright 2; D-Fitzpatrick, Staubi.


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Justin Timberlake Covers the Jacksons' 'Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)'
Justin Timberlake is such an amazing live artist that when he comes to play on your radio show, he can't help but bring a visually spectacular element to his performance as well as the perfect audio.
The BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge had to make room for his entire band, including a horn section, and clear the dance floor for JT and company to deliver a funky version of the Jacksons' 'Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground).'
"We gonna go back in time," Justin announced as the band broke into the 1978 dance smash. The singer, casually dressed in a T-shirt and sneakers, then worked up a sweat to a fully choreographed routine.
Yes, the performance was for radio, but JT no doubt knew his set was being filmed. Plus, there was an ecstatic in-house audience watching -- and cheering wildly when Justin asked mid-song, "Are you having a good time?"
Seeing the whole crew dance and shout is exhilarating, but the best part comes after Timberlake exclaims, "I wanna shovel the funk." Watch the video above!


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Scotland would still be housing Trident nuclear weapons more than a decade after voting for independence, a leading defence think tank has predicted.
The Royal United Services Institute said 2028 was the "natural target date" for relocating Trident, but even that time frame could slip.
The study undermines Alex Salmond's claim that the UK's nuclear arsenal could be removed from Scotland by 2020.
However, the defence experts also found that relocation would be technically "feasible" and far less costly than some predictions, coming in at between £2.5 billion and £3.5 billion overall. Some predictions had run to £25 billion.
The paper, published on Thursday, comes just weeks before the independence referendum and looks at the financial and political hurdles of moving Trident in the event of a Yes vote.
Former cabinet minister Lord Forsyth has previously warned that the UK could be forced to give up its nuclear deterrent, saying separation could have a major impact on the defence of both countries.
The submarines carrying the UK's Trident nuclear warheads currently operate from the Faslane naval base on the Clyde and there are concerns over how they can be relocated.
But the paper, by RUSI research analyst Hugh Chalmers and research director Malcolm Chalmers, says relocating Trident out of Scotland would be both financially and technically feasible.
They estimate that recreating the facilities outside Scotland would add £2.5 to £3.5 billion (at 2012/13 prices) to the cost of maintaining a nuclear-armed fleet, plus the cost of acquiring and clearing the land and costs of moving people and material around - and would be very unlikely to cost "tens of billions" cited elsewhere.
But it would take more than a decade to recreate the facilities, rather than the four years to which the SNP is currently committed, the authors said.
Hugh Chalmers said the research contrasts with an "unlikely consensus" between proponents and opponents of Scottish independence that it would be impossible to relocate nuclear forces elsewhere.
"And therefore if you can't base them in Scotland, you can't base them in the UK, and you can't base them elsewhere, you would have to disarm," he said.
But he said nuclear weapons still play a key role in defence and foreign policy, creating concerns over the effect that a Yes vote would have.
If the question mark over Trident's future could be answered, it would help untangle a difficult issue surrounding Scottish independence, he said.
"When people start considering options for relocations it's only natural to assume that it would be quite expensive and very difficult and that is certainly the case. But importantly it is not impossible.
"We estimate that essentially the net costs of relocating could actually be £2.5-3.5 billion at 2012 prices, rather than the tens of billions or even £20 billion that has been put forward so far."
But he said it would take a long time, and was unlikely to be completed by a target date of 2020, and a more "natural timeframe" would be linked to the entry of a new generation of nuclear-armed submarines, currently anticipated to start in 2028.
"It may be possible to deactivate Trident by that point and have it out of Scotland but it's unlikely we would have been able to have it up and running in a new location by that point.
"The Scottish government has acknowledged that if they were to become independent there would be a period of time where the UK would be basing its nuclear forces in an independent country. The UK would be the first country to ever do this."
Mr Chalmers said the new paper showed the possibility of a "space for a friendly and amicable settlement" over Trident in the event of independence.
He added: "Effectively this is a key aspect of any negotiations that will emerge after a yes vote.
"This will be a very, very important issue. If both Scotland and the UK can show that they can come to some sort of amicable arrangement then that untangles a very knotty issue.
"We are trying to essentially dispel the myth that relocating Trident out of Scotland is impossible and in doing so create some space allowing an amicable settlement to be reached in the event of a yes vote."
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "Trident is opposed by the people and Parliament of Scotland. The Scottish Government position is that Trident should be removed from an independent Scotland by 2020 - before we are hit with a share of the further £100 billion in lifetime costs, at 2012 prices, which are estimated for its replacement.
"We will also propose a constitutional prohibition on nuclear weapons being based in Scotland, ensuring they would never return.
"As the Trident Commission reported, when spending reaches its peak in the next decade, taxpayers will be spending nearly £4 billion a year on nuclear weapons at 2012 prices - that is unacceptable when there are so many other pressing needs which public money is needed for.
"As RUSI's paper shows, the UK Government has choices on what it decides to do with its nuclear weapons following their removal from an independent Scotland, including of course the potential to reconsider the possession and planned renewal of Trident.
"The Scottish Government will work responsibly with the Government in Westminster in securing the speediest safe withdrawal of Trident from an independent Scotland. We look forward to the opportunity to discuss these arrangements with the UK Government following a vote for independence."
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: "The nuclear deterrent is the ultimate guarantor of our nation's security and no alternative would be as effective at deterring threats now or in the future. There are no plans to move Trident from Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde and unilateral disarmament is not an option.
"We are not planning for Scottish independence and as such it is difficult to estimate the total costs, or how long it would take, to replicate the facilities at Faslane, but it would likely cost taxpayers billions of pounds and take many years."
"HM Naval Base Clyde is the largest single employment site in Scotland, home to 6,700 jobs and set to increase to 8,200 jobs. The Scottish Government needs to be clear-sighted and honest about the risk to the local economy that their policy presents."
Jackie Baillie, Labour MSP for Dumbarton, said: "Once again we see the experts saying one thing, and Alex Salmond another.
"Alex Salmond claimed that a separate Scotland would remove Trident within four years. This expert, impartial report shows he was wrong.
"If we cannot trust what he says on this why should we believe him on currency or our place in the EU?
"Employers at Faslane say that losing Trident would mean losing jobs, and we cannot trust anything the nationalists say about keeping jobs at Faslane when they can't answer the basic questions.
"Like everything else in his campaign to break up the United Kingdom, the details are based on guesswork.
"Time is running out for the nationalists to be honest with the people of Scotland about what separation would mean for them. They should start by outlining their Plan B on currency."
SNP Westminster Leader and defence spokesperson Angus Robertson said: "This report puts to bed some of the ridiculous claims being put forward by the No campaign, including UK government ministers, on removing Trident from Scotland.
"We are clear, however, that getting rid of Trident from Scotland by 2020 is a perfectly reasonable timescale - indeed, Westminster's own Scottish Affairs Committee reported that Trident could be 'removed within months'.
"The new generation of Trident nuclear weapons to be dumped on the Clyde is to cost over £100 billion, with annual spending rising to £4 billion a year in the next decade.
"That's an obscene waste of money on obscene, unusable nuclear weapons which the vast majority of Scots do not want - when with a Yes vote Scotland's share of this money could be used instead for childcare, nurses, teachers, schools and hospitals.
"The UK Parliament's Trident obsession highlights the democratic deficit that Scotland faces under Westminster control.
"It is ludicrous that we are wasting billions of pounds of taxpayers' money on Trident - a Yes vote means it will instead be used to build a fairer society and stronger economy, with more opportunities for all."


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Miley Cyrus just can't stop--and the world can't stop watching.
NBC is set to air a behind-the-scenes concert special which centers on the singer's wild "Bangerz" tour and we have a first look at the promo, which features clips of the pop star in her famous music videos as well as footage of the songstress taking the stage.
The two-hour special, appropriately titled, "Miley Cyrus: Bangerz Tour," is set to air Sunday July 6 at 9 p.m. and will focus on Cyrus' concerts from the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona and MEO Arena in Lisbon.
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
"There are few recording artists with the global success achieved by Miley Cyrus," said Paul Telegdy, President, Alternative and Late Night Programming, NBC Entertainment. "This unique special will offer an exclusive peek on how she engages with her crew and fans at one of her hugely popular concerts."
VIDEO: Is Miley throwing shade at Selena?
And in case you haven't taken a look at what goes down at one of Cyrus' concerts, well, you're in for a treat.
The promo includes clips of Cyrus from both her eyebrow-raising music videos for her singles "We Can't Stop" and "Wrecking Ball" as her tune "Do My Thang" plays in the background. Cyrus is also seen rocking out on stage, complete with her crazy costumes, over-the-top props and wild dance moves.
The 21-year-old star has also been busy Instagramming about her special (and pretty much everything else), posting a silly shot of herself in which she's wearing a donut on her head.
"my editing nbc special liewkkkkk this [s--t] is lookin [hot]! Can't wait for yallz to c it July 6th," she captioned the emoji filled post.
(E! and NBC are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)


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It's been a bit of a surreal week. My trusty Mac took a nosedive and died last weekend after 6.5 years together. I finally got my things together this weekend though and purchased a new one, it feels great but is not without a few roadblocks as well. My old scanner, circa 1999 is not compatible with the new OS, of course, so a new scanner was added to the list as well. After a few other software heartache fails, I got both the computer and scanner hooked up, and we're somewhat back to normal! This is the very first test scan on the new machine, and I've gotta say, it's pretty rad having a scanner that takes less than 5 minutes per page! It's going to take some getting used to but I think it's a good start to a new era.
Above is a rose drawing I did while I was hanging at home, sans technology, waiting for an appointment earlier in the week...not all bad.


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Find out why Horace Mann is right for you.
Christie Jones, 8th grade writing, literature, AVID teacher at Lincoln Magnet School, has been named the Horace Mann Educator of the Year. Also, Jamar Scott, principal of Hazel Dell Elementary School, was named Horace Mann Administrator of the Year. Both recipients were recognized at a May 7 luncheon sponsored by Springfield Public Schools District 186 and Horace Mann for the 32nd consecutive year.
Christie Jones has worked for District 186 for 32 years and currently serves as 8th grade writing, literature, AVID teacher at Lincoln Magnet School. She is noted for her leadership, engaging projects, enthusiasm, high expectations, caring nature and supporting students in their college and career exploration. District 186 Superintendent Jennifer Gill and Horace Mann President and CEO Marita Zuraitis presented Jones with a crystal owl and $1,000 cash prize.
Jamar Scott has been an administrator in District 186 for 11 years, and principal at Hazel Dell for the last seven years. He is noted for his warmth, enthusiasm, commitment to excellence for students and staff, willingness to lead by example with integrity and vision, and ability to grow, learn and empower all within the school. He was presented with $500 and a crystal award.
"Horace Mann is proud to sponsor the Educator of the Year program for the 32nd consecutive year," said Horace Mann President and CEO Marita Zuraitis. "Representing a company Founded by Educators for Educators right here in Springfield, I firmly believe that of all the ways Horace Mann gives back to the educator community across the country, it should begin in our hometown."
Educator of the Year finalists were Abbey Dirksen (Southeast High School), Sherry Frachey (Iles School), Dan Hartman (Dubois Elementary) and Sharon Jones (Hazel Dell Elementary). They each received $250.
Administrator of the Year finalists were Arwah Franklin (Community Based Programs) and Kenyatta Revelle (Iles School). They each received $250.
The Rising Star award was given to three promising teachers who have been with the District four years or less. The Rising Stars are Beverly Harmon (Fairview Elementary), Janette Smith (Early Learning Center) and Abby Vespa (Fairview Elementary). They each received $250 and a crystal award.
Horace Mann has sponsored the Educator of the Year program since its inception in 1988. An independent panel of Springfield-area community and education leaders selects the Educator of the Year, Administrator of the Year, and the Rising Stars.
Horace Mann — the largest national multiline insurance company focusing on educators' financial needs — provides auto and homeowners insurance, retirement annuities, life insurance and other financial solutions. Founded by educators for educators® in 1945, the company is headquartered in Springfield, Illinois. For more information visit www.horacemann.com.
For more information about District 186, visit www.sps186.org.
Bree Hankins, 525-3024
Paul Wappel, Director of Community Relations, Horace Mann, 788-5373
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text:
hello im new here
and im having problems with this objective.....
here is the instruction.....
General Specification:
Create a game that asks for a players name and then shows scrambled letters. The objective
for the game is for the player to guess the unscrambled word. A user is given 2 minutes to guess the
word and the user is given points in the following manner.
100 points: if the player guessed the word in the 1st minute.
50 points: if the player guessed the word within the succeeding minute.
The player has the option to keep scrambling the letters of the word to be unscrambled
either by clicking the button on the games interface or by pressing the spacebar of the keyboard.
This game ends when the player was not able to guess the word within the allowable time or if the
user was able to guess all the words in this games list of words to be guessed.
Name and score of the player is shown in the games interface if the player beats the current
highest score (the games highest score and scorer are shown with 0 and blank, respectively when
the game is first executed).
Detailed Specification:
o The program must read a text file containing 100 words with the following information for
each of the words:
The word (comprising 5 to 7 letters)
The classification of the word: noun, verb, or adjective
Definition of the word
Note: Just choose one classification/definition for the word if it has more than 1
o You are to use an ArrayList object to store the words read from the file.
o When running the program, the program must jumble all the 100 words before showing the
first word to be guessed. Note also that the jumbled letters of the word are shown to the
o Your games interface should provide for the jumbling the letters of the word being guessed
through a button or by pressing the space bar.
o The time remaining for the player to guess must also be shown (starting with 2 minutes
o When the first minute has elapsed and the player has not yet guessed the word, the words
classification (noun, verb, or adjective) is shown together with the definition of the word to
serve as a hint.
o Be creative in creating your games interface.
o Make sure that your projects game interface (GUI) shall utilize a logic class that has the
direct access to the text file.
how do u use the Timer class for this activity?
if im in the wrong thread.....
jst tell me where should i place this thread to ok?.......
ur help is most appreciated......
but they say that you could pattern with this other problem..........
Consider the uml diagram below........
for Word:
+ Word(str:String)
- getChars():Arraylist<Character>
- listToString()String
*Definition of the diagram above has already been provided (Word.java)
-Study the code and give special attention how the shuffle method has been implemented.
-something to think about: What's the advantage of using the ArrayList as against a regular character array?
*Other than Word.java, another tester file is provided (Tester.java) with the sole purpose ofof trying the code for Word.java. You may run this program and make your own testing using this file.
1. Create a GUI class that Word class provided with the following functionalities:
*Entering a text:
-Display an input dialog box where the user can input the word the user wants to enter.
-When the input is successful, display the word on the main window(the componentmust be restricted from modification/s from the user).
-if the input is invalid(text enteredis less than 3 letters in length), another dialog box must be shown informing the user that the input is invalid. (Check the constructor for Word.java)
*shuffling the text displayed
-The component that allows the user to do this functionality should only be activated if a word is already displayed.
here is the code for Word.java:
/** * @(#)Word.java * * * @author * @version 1.00 2010/8/4 */ import java.util.*; public class Word { private String text; private List<Character> charList; private String shuffled; public Word(String str) { if (str.length() < 3) { throw new RuntimeException("Word must be more than 2 characters..."); } text = str.toUpperCase(); charList = getChars(); shuffle(); } private ArrayList<Character> getChars() { ArrayList<Character> tempList = new ArrayList<Character>(); for (int i = 0; i < text.length(); i++) { tempList.add(text.charAt(i)); } return tempList; } public void shuffle() { String orig = shuffled; String tempShuffled; do { Collections.shuffle(charList); tempShuffled = listToString(); } while (tempShuffled.equals(orig) || tempShuffled.equals(text)); shuffled = tempShuffled; } private String listToString() { String strTemp = ""; for (Character ch: charList) { strTemp += ch; } return strTemp; } public String toString() { return text; } public String getShuffledText() { return shuffled; } }
and here's the code for Tester.java:
/** * @(#)Tester.java * * * @author * @version 1.00 2010/8/4 */ public class Tester { public static void main(String[] args) { divider(); Word w = new Word("caterpillar"); System.out.println("word is: " + w); System.out.println("Succeeding lines are calls to shuffling the letters of the word:"); System.out.println(w.getShuffledText()); w.shuffle(); System.out.println(w.getShuffledText()); w.shuffle(); System.out.println(w.getShuffledText()); w.shuffle(); System.out.println(w.getShuffledText()); w.shuffle(); System.out.println(w.getShuffledText()); w.shuffle(); System.out.println(w.getShuffledText()); w.shuffle(); System.out.println(w.getShuffledText()); divider(); // further testing below (eg. what if the assigned word to w is less than 2 in length such as "to") w = new Word("to"); } private static void divider() { System.out.println("============================"); } }
and here's what's wrong with my code
its about the gui class that should go along with word.java and tester.java.....
if u know and corrections or solutions to complete this program
just let me know ok?
anyways here is my unfinished gui code:
/** * @(#)MainGUI.java * * * @author * @version 1.00 2010/8/5 */ import java.awt.*; import java.awt.event.*; import javax.swing.*; public class MainGUI extends JFrame { private JTextField txtWordInput; private JButton btnShuffle; private JButton btnClear; private JButton btnExit; private JLabel Word; private JPanel panel; public MainGUI() { GridBagConstraints c = new GridBagConstraints(); GridBagLayout gbl = new GridBagLayout(); panel = new JPanel(); panel.setLayout(gbl); txtWordInput = new JTextField(20); btnShuffle = new JButton("Shuffle"); btnShuffle.addActionListener(new buttonHandler()); btnClear = new JButton("Clear"); btnShuffle.addActionListener(new buttonHandler()); btnExit = new JButton("Exit"); btnExit.addActionListener(new buttonHandler()); } class ButtonHandler implements ActionListener { public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) { } } }


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Inter Milan 2-0 AC Milan (24:01:10)
For once, I'm going to shut up. No really I am. Just allow me to explain that this report was written by Nick Waterhouse, in a first of possibly many, of your European Football Weekend experiences. Over you to Nicky Boy:
A few months ago it was decided over a couple of post work drinks to make the pilgrimage to the San Siro in Milan. A couple of scoops later and we were off to the Milan derby. In true EFW tradition, there was no point in going all that way without turning 1 game into 2, so all we needed was the fixtures. Ahhh the fixtures….one of my favourite expressions is "football with no bother", unfortunately, rather like their Spanish counterparts, this is not an expression that is muttered too often at the Italian FA's headquarters. The kick off times for this round of fixtures were not announced until a month before the games, making the booking of flights a lottery. Additionally, tickets are not on sale until a week before each game. However the TV chiefs were kind to us and selected Juve v Roma for the Saturday night and the Milan derby on the Sunday.
All aboard the 6.06 train to Gatwick on Saturday morning then, luckily no one took this time literally so we did not have to listen to 2 hours of half-wits pleading for goal line technology or whether Gerrard and Lampard can play together ZZZzzzzz....
One issue guaranteed to give me sleepless nights is not having match tickets in hand. Due to the magnitude of the fixtures we were attending, we were forced to go down the dreaded 'Seatwave.com' route, i.e. tickets 4x their face value. They were to be delivered to our hotel but upon our arrival in Turin.….no tickets agggghhhh. Panic not though, we re-read the small print and they would be there 3 hours before kick off. So we took ourselves off into Turin to see what it could offer us… I say, when in Rome (or Turin) do as the locals do, so to put us in the mood we popped a couple of espressos down the hatch and moved into the pizza market.
So, 3 hours prior to kick off, we collected our tickets and made a beeline for the local bar 'Costa Rica'. A rather fine tradition in Turin is 'Apertivi' time – where all bars give a load of free tucker to all patrons at around 6pm, it really is fill your boots time – hearty fare for the price of a few pints, what's not to like? (Well €6 a pint since you asked.) In this bar we also picked up a copy of the famous 'La Gazzetta dello Sport' and were delighted to see that EFW had made the front page!
Sadly, Juventus are currently strutting their stuff at the Stadio Olimpico while the Stadio delle Alpi is refurnished. It's a fairly soulless place, certainly not helped by one end being closed as a punishment for Juve fans misbehaving at a previous fixture. The police conduct a thorough search of punters as they enter the ground. I'm not too sure what they are looking for, it certainly wasn't flares, fireworks or spliffs as they were all being lit by the truckload in the stadium.
Roma fans spark into life.
Kev, Nick and Binso pay the Old Lady a visit.
After a night on the beers we were up and at them the following morning to catch the train to Milan. Naturally enough it was not straight forward to purchase a ticket but all said and done €9 for the 90 minute journey was not to be sniffed at. Kev had prepared a marvellous football quiz for the journey; I won't say who won as I'm far too modest ;-)
A few more beers and apertivi to put us in the mood and it was time for the big one. Approaching the San Siro really was special; this place really is a football cathedral. We were sat up in the dreaded 3rd tier where the view would be woeful enough without the netting that they have put up to obscure your view even more.
....and in the red and black corner AC.
Can I have a go on those binsos Binso!?
Fortunately we were able to move round to the half way line and took up a sneaky position at the back of the stand – perfect view – tick! I can only describe the pre match atmosphere as sensational. I attended the Old Firm derby earlier this season and this knocked it for 6. The fan displays, the singing and all the flares made it quite spectacular.
The game was played at 100mph, Inter ran out 2-0 winners and quite frankly Milan's finishing was appalling. Inter were down to 9 men by the end of the game yet Milan still could not score, Ronaldinho even missing a penalty.


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Sunday, October 11, 2009
Posted by kurokei at 7:25 PM 1 comments
Emo once in awhile
Although I love happy faces,
And ask people to show me their smiles.
But I can't help myself to be emo once in awhile.
I had told myself to stop,
But it seems like not much use,
For I would rather suffer than to give this feelings up.
So I made a pack with myself,
I gave myself a choice,
That I would remain contented and I shall not hope for more.
Though I had make that promise,
Forgive me may I ask,
That I am only human with emotions that never die.
P/S: I never intended to rhyme so it's kinda weird. Lol.
Posted by kurokei at 6:09 PM 1 comments
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Customer Service Specialist I (Plant City)(Cashier/Court)
Recruitment #1910-CSSP1C103-001
|Date Opened
|Filing Deadline
|$34,403.20 - $55,036.80/year
|Clerk of Circuit Court
|Job Type
|Open Recruitment
|Employment Type
The Clerk of the Circuit Court is looking for new members to join our team as part of one of the finest organizations in Hillsborough County. Employees of the Clerk of the Circuit Court provide quality service to our public.
As a member of our working team, you will occupy a position offering a unique challenge. You are, in effect, working both for your neighbors and yourself while constantly improving your community. You are a public employee performing essential services for the people of Hillsborough County. Our county's citizens are affected by your on-the-job performance and their opinions of our organization are directly influenced by your conduct. Wherever you work in the Clerk's organization, please keep in mind the trust that the people of Hillsborough County have placed in your hands. By meeting all of your responsibilities in the most efficient and courteous manner possible, you will find your efforts rewarding.
Job opportunities are offered first to current Clerk of the Circuit Court Employees. If a Clerk employee is not selected, consideration will be then given to applicants outside of the office.
This office reserves the right to consider how your application is prepared. It will be considered only if it is written with clarity and contains the required transcripts, certificates and licenses or other specified documents.
*Please Note: this vacancy is located in our Plant City Office!*
- Working knowledge of legal terminology and procedures.
- Some knowledge of general office policies, procedures and practices.
- Some knowledge of English grammar and spelling, and arithmetic.
- Ability to perform accurate computations and verifications of data.
- Ability to type, operate data processing, word processing and other office equipment.
- Ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with government officials, other employees, and the public.
Note: The following duties are illustrative and not exhaustive. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position. Depending on assigned area of responsibility, incumbents in the position may perform one or more of the activities described below.
- Prepares, processes and maintains legal records, court files, minutes, calendars, and dockets.
- Maintains docket records and diary of transactions.
- Receives, verifies, and examines legal forms and court exhibits to ensure adherence to court procedures.
- Accepts or rejects bonds based on specified criteria.
- Issues receipts for materials and payments.
- Processes and indexes a variety of reports and other materials according to established procedures.
- Provides information concerning general court procedures to the general public and other departments and agencies.
- Attends court proceedings and records minutes.
- Records case dispositions, court orders and arrangements for payment of court fees.
- Types letters, memoranda, and reports as necessary.
- Performs other related duties as required.
This classification description is not intended to be, nor should it be construed as an all inclusive list of the duties associated with a particular position. Management may require incumbents to perform job duties other than those contained in this document at any time.
VETERANS' PREFERENCE: Preference will ONLY be entitled upon initial appointment for eligible veterans and eligible spouses of veterans. Documentation to support entitlement to preference MUST be provided at the time of application.
RESPONSE/RECOVERY ACTIVITIES: Employees may be required to participate in response/recovery activities in response to a major emergency or natural disasters affecting County operations. In such situations, every effort will be made to maintain operations, but employees may be assigned to carry out response activities suited to their skills and capabilities.
The Clerk of the Circuit Court provides equal employment opportunity to all persons, regardless of age, race, religion, color, national origin, sex, political affiliations, marital status, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, age, sexual orientation, membership or non-membership in an employee organization, or on the basis of personal favoritism or other non-merit factors.
Clerk of the Circuit Court welcomes and encourages applications from minorities, veterans, and persons with physical and mental disabilities, and will reasonably accommodate the needs of those persons in the application and testing process. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation requests will be on a case-by-case basis.


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Supreme Court: Corporations Can Buy Judges
See also Citizens United Case – Corporate Campaign Contributions - my take on Citizens United. – Ilene
Supreme Court: Corporations Can Buy Judges
Courtesy of Washington's Blog
You've heard that a recent Supreme Court decision said that corporations can give unlimited funds to politicians.
But did you realize that it said that corporations can give unlimited money to judges?
As William K. Black – professor of economics and law, and the senior regulator during the S & L crisis – pointed out last week:
The Supreme Court's Citizens United decision allows businesses to make unlimited political contributions to judges and politicians. When judges are elected, the need for these contributions inherently turns judges into politicians. Sympathetic judges are corrupt businesses' most valuable allies. Corporations and their senior officials can commit civil or criminal wrongs with impunity if their case is assigned to a friendly judge. The Robber Barons often had judges on their payrolls. Judges can serve a corporation as both a shield and a sword. They can declare statutes and regulations unlawful. They can issue favorable decisions when corporations sue their critics, which can intimidate, tie up, or even bankrupt the critics.
The fact that corporations are "investing" so heavily in getting pro-business judges elected demonstrates that their CEOs believe that the election of friendly judges will increase their incomes and decrease the risk that they will ever be sanctioned. It's a business decision – not a decision based on which judicial candidate would be more qualified or better serve justice. CEOs want to win cases when doing so would be unjust and contrary to the law, which is why they hire top attorneys and make the contributions necessary to elect judges they believe will be allies. The empirical evidence in Texas shows that judicial elections and contributions produces perverse dynamics. One study showed that hiring the former law firm of a Texas Supreme Court justice markedly increased the chances that the Texas Supreme Court would exercise its discretion and hear your appeal from an adverse decision. Hiring the former law firm of the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court produced an even greater chance of having one's appeal heard.
As Yves Smith noted recently:
A Mother Jones article, "Permission to Encroach the Bench," (hat tip reader Francois T) discusses how already big ticket battles over state supreme court seats are likely to rocket to a new level of priciness:
For a down-ballot category that even well-intentioned voters pay little attention to, judicial races are astonishingly expensive. In 2004, $9.3 million was spent in the race for a single seat (pdf) on the Illinois Supreme Court. That's higher than the price tag of more than half the US Senate races in the nation that year. In 2006, three candidates for chief justice in Alabama raised $8.2 million combined.
But those sums could look paltry compared to the spending likely to be unleashed in the wake of the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling. In all, 39 states elect judges—and with the stakes including everything from major class actions to zoning and contract cases to consumer protection, workplace, and environmental issues, corporations have always taken a major interest in those races. The US Chamber of Commerce, Forbes reported in 2003, has devoted at least $100 million to electing judges sympathetic to its agenda. "No organization has had more success in the past 10 years of judicial elections," says James Sample, a professor at Hofstra University who studies judicial reform issues. "Its winning percentage would be the envy of any sports franchise." Citizens United has essentially wiped out not just federal restrictions on campaign spending, but many state-level regulations as well, Sample notes, and that's "going to increase the ability of corporations, and to a much lesser extent unions, to engage in electioneering that is basically aimed at winning particular cases." And given the low profile of these races, it may not take that much to sway that outcome, notes Bert Brandenburg, executive director of the advocacy group Justice at Stake. "A judicial election is a better investment for anyone spending money" than, say, a congressional campaign.
Note the reference to Alabama, a state I know a wee bit about, and my local sources say the Mother Jones figures are greatly understated, and attorneys in the state who've turned over a few rocks put the price tag for a state supreme court seat at $12 million. I've had a quick look at a Supreme Court justice's house. It is in an implausibly costly district for his income (and no, there's no heiress wife to explain the discrepancy).
Why is Alabama such a valuable state to control? It used to be a favorite venue for class action lawyers, since juries often handed out multi-million-dollar awards. Getting business-friendly jurists in place at the highest court has meant that any verdict, no matter how egregious and damaging the violations, is cut to $1 million.
And the degree of banana republic behavior is reaching new levels. Consider: a once prominent corporate firm has been reduced to becoming primarily a foreclosure mill. However, because longevity counts in the South, and many of the firm's senior partners still dine with judges, it has clout well in excess of its fallen standing.
On a case which is now being tried, this fading firm (we'll call it Billem) has managed to get the case (which is being heard only by a judge) moved from the court before a decision has been rendered to a sympathetic appeal court judge. In addition, Billem is appending four other cases which that have already been decided and are past the time frame for appeal (in Alabama, you have 43 days in which to file an appeal). The rationale is that these cases present similar issues, but that still has the effect of reopening cases which under existing law are settled. For lay reader, if you miss the deadline for appeal, you can't appeal…..except when the right people in Alabama want it to occur.
So this isn't merely having judges who will provide the opinions big business wants. We now have a court running roughshod over basic elements of procedure. The last bastion of defense of the individual is being gutted, to the point where even the forms of the law will be ignored if that's what it takes to produce the outcome the big money interests need.
I wrote in April:
As Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis said:
We may have democracy [or you can substitute the word "republic"], or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both.
Of course, antitrust laws were enacted to protect the economy and democracy, but – like the Depression-era laws separating depository banking from investment banking – are not being enforced.
And the government could use existing laws to force ill-gotten gains to be disgorged (see this and this), fraudulent transfers to be voided and – perhaps – even bonuses gained at the expense of taxpayers clawed back. Such actions would make the 800 pound gorillas a little smaller, helping to reduce concentration of wealth somewhat. But that would assume that America is still a nation governed by the rule of law.
Currently, it's not. Only courageous prosecutors and brave judges can restore the rule of law to America.
I wrote that before I realized that the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision opened the floodgates to corporations buying judges.
Picture credit: Jr. Deputy Accountant


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Knowledge of your kidney function and kidney health is important for both HIV-infected and non-HIV-infected persons. It has been known for approximately 20 years that HIV may result in kidney failure.1 Given that the specific types of kidney diseases seen among HIV-infected persons have a tremendous predilection for black Americans,2 the focus to date has been on screening and prevention of kidney disease in people of color. This focus, however, needs to be expanded to all persons with HIV-infection regardless of race, given recent understanding that the risk associated with abnormalities of kidney tests identifies persons at a greater risk of illness and death.
Put simply, everyone with HIV infection should be aware of their kidneys.
How Do You Test Kidney Function?
Kidney function can be assessed by simple blood and urine tests. The two methods to assess kidney function complement each other and should both be performed as the presence of an abnormality in one, the other or both tests provides clues to the type and severity of the kidney disease. In addition, a couple of different mathematical measurements help turn these two test results into a clearer picture of health.
Detection of kidney disease relies almost entirely on the performance of blood and urine tests. While infrequently, clues to the onset and presence of kidney disease -- such as swelling of the legs or face and changes in urinary habits -- may occur, generally symptoms associated with a decreased ability of the kidneys to clear waste products from the blood are vague, including fatigue and loss of appetite, occur only after the majority of kidney function has been lost, and may be confused with other causes.
|Table 1: Equations to Estimate Kidney Function Using Creatinine
|Name of Formula
|Measure of Kidney Function Provided
|On-Line Calculator
|Creatinine clearance
|MDRD (Modification in Diet in Renal Disease Study Equation)4
|GFR (Glomerular filtration rate)
|GFR (mL/min per 1.73 m2) = 186 x sCr -1.154 x Age -0.203 x (0.742 if female) x (1.210 if black)
A urine analysis can provide a tremendous amount of information on the presence and activity of diseases in the kidneys. The presence of small amounts of the protein albumin (albuminuria) or larger amounts of protein (proteinuria) can be assessed using a dipstick of a small amount of urine. Albuminuria or proteinuria usually indicates the presence of kidney disease and may be seen early even prior to loss of kidney function.
A measurement of the creatinine level in the blood can subsequently provide an estimate for the ability of the kidneys to clear the blood of waste products. Creatinine is a molecule excreted by muscle cells on a continuous basis. When the kidneys function well, it is filtered effectively out of the blood, and the blood levels are low. As kidney function declines due to kidney disease, it is less effectively cleared out of the blood, and its blood level rises.
To truly understand how this simple blood test is translated within an individual to the amount of kidney function they have, the level of creatinine must be manipulated. Because the absolute level of creatinine is related not only to kidney function but also to the amount of muscle a person has, for it to really reflect the amount of kidney function it must be converted using a mathematical formula. This is essential to avoid two common and dangerous misconceptions. The first is that a smaller or older individual does not have significant kidney disease simply because their creatinine falls into a "normal range" for a laboratory.
As an example, a 55-year-old caucasian male may have a creatinine of 1.3 mg/dL, which is technically within normal limits for the ranges that many laboratories provide (usually normal is listed as less than 1.4 mg /dL). His estimated kidney function (using the Cockcroft-Gault formula in Table 1) is 54.5 cc/min. Given that "normal" is in the range of 90 to 110 cc/min, this represents a reduction in his kidney function of approximately 45% that would have gone unnoticed had it not been calculated.
The second misconception is that a "small" elevation in creatinine is not a matter of concern. This misconception that a small elevation in creatinine should not result in an investigation of the causes is due to the fact that as kidney function decreases with disease, creatinine doesn't rise at a constant rate accordingly. As with any disease, however, the earlier the diagnosis and treatment, the more likely the cure. This is especially true of kidney disease. In the case of kidney disease early diagnosis may translate to either avoiding or delaying kidney failure, with the subsequent need to start dialysis, a painful, expensive, and complicated procedure.
|Figure 1: The Association Between Creatinine and Kidney Function
|(This figure plots the amount of kidney function as calculated by the Cockcroft-Gault formula for a 55-year-old white male.)
Early in the course of kidney disease, as creatinine goes from the normal for that individual upwards to the value of 2 mg/dL, that person has likely lost half of their kidney function. Later on in the course of the kidney disease, as the individual's creatinine rises from 4 to 5 mg/dL the loss is much less pronounced. This is shown in Figure 1, plotting the amount of kidney function on the vertical axis against the level of creatinine on the horizontal axis. In this graph, the rate of loss of kidney function is considerably more steep when creatinine rose from 1 to 2 as compared to its decline when creatinine rose from 4 to 5 mg/dL. The key message here is that any elevation needs to be evaluated, and the earlier the better.
The Forest and the Trees
There is an old cliché that warns not to miss the forest for the trees. In this analogy, it is appropriate to consider the trees as the kidneys and the forest the person who owns them. The warning here is based on the fact that kidney disease puts an individual at risk of events even worse than declining kidney function and the prospect of dialysis. This article will first describe the risk of kidney disease to kidney function and then go on to describe the risk of kidney disease to the life of the person him or herself.
The Trees: The Risk of Progressive Kidney Disease
A person with HIV-infection may get many types of kidney diseases, including those related to the virus and those related to conditions such as hypertension or diabetes. The types of kidney diseases that have been described among persons with HIV are listed in Table 2.
|Table 2: Kidney Diseases Described With HIV Infection5
|HIV-associated nephropathy (a kidney disease related to a direct infection of kidney cells by HIV)
|Mesangial glomerulonephritis (IgA and HSP) (a disease where the kidney has a lot of inflammation related to certain types of antibodies that are trapped in the areas where filtering occurs)
|Lupus-like glomerulonephritis (a disease where the kidney has a lot of inflammation related to certain types of antibodies that are trapped in the areas where filtering occurs)
|Minimal change disease (a type of kidney disease where little is seen on kidney biopsy but the person has a lot of protein in their urine)
|Membranous nephropathy (a kidney disease where certain types of antibodies are trapped in areas where filtering occurs leading to the loss of a lot of protein in the urine and the potential loss of kidney function requiring dialysis)
|Membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis type 1 (a disease where the kidney has a lot of inflammation related to certain types of antibodies that are trapped in the areas where filtering occurs)
|Paraprotein nephropathies: light chain/amyloid/fibrillar (a kidney disease where abnormal proteins in the blood of an individual with a chronic disease such as HIV can be trapped in the kidney, affecting the function)
|Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura/Hemolytic uremic syndrome (a disease where the inside of blood vessels are severely damaged, resulting in kidney failure and sometimes seizures)
|Acute tubular necrosis (a kidney disease where a sudden loss of kidney function occurs due to things such as medication toxicities or extreme changes in blood pressure)
|Allergic interstitial nephritis (a kidney disease that is caused by an allergic reaction to medications)
|Crystal-induced nephropathy (a kidney disease that is caused by the precipitation of medications inside the kidney)
|Fanconi syndrome (a problem with kidney function that may be caused by changes in the functioning of the kidney with loss of important minerals and salts from the kidney in the urine)
|Kaposi's sarcoma (a cancer related to immune dysfunction), infiltrative
If a person has an abnormal kidney test (abnormal urine dipstick or elevated serum creatinine), the only definitive way to determine the exact type of kidney disease that he or she has is by kidney biopsy. While a kidney biopsy is relatively low risk, the risk of bleeding does exist. Therefore, it makes sense to only perform a kidney biopsy on those persons in whom knowledge of the exact type of kidney disease will affect the therapy chosen.
Since many therapies are beneficial to the person overall (such as good blood pressure control in a person with high blood pressure and tight blood sugar control in a person with diabetes), it is not always necessary to perform a kidney biopsy initially. Discussion of whether or not a particular individual needs a biopsy should be held with a health care provider specializing in the care of kidney disease, such as a nephrologist. If a kidney biopsy is not initially pursued, that decision should be re-examined periodically, based on the course of the kidney disease and how the person responds to the therapy instituted.
Risk Factors
The type of kidney disease someone is likely to have can be influenced by multiple factors. The most influential of these factors, however, is clearly race. Black Americans without HIV infection are pre-disposed to most kidney diseases as compared to caucasians.2 Black Americans with HIV infection also have a greater risk of kidney disease.2 Among persons with HIV infection and kidney disease, the types of kidney disease are also quite different among black and caucasian Americans.5, 6, 7 Kidney diseases more likely to be associated with HIV, such as HIV-Associated Nephropathy (HIVAN), are significantly more common among black Americans, whereas caucasians are more likely to experience kidney diseases related to their concurrent illnesses, such as hypertension and diabetes. The risk associated with race for developing HIVAN is so great that it is exceptionally rare to diagnose a caucasian with it, and such a diagnosis would be written up as a case report in a medical journal.
Treatment of kidney disease should be directed at the type or suspected type of kidney disease a person is likely to have. Table 3 represents a partial list of the types of kidney diseases and potential recommended interventions to stop, slow, or reverse the effects of the disease on the kidneys. The goal of treatment is to halt or at least slow the progression of kidney disease to delay or perhaps avoid the need for the institution of dialysis.
The Trees: The Association Between Kidney Disease and the Risk of Illness and Death
It has long been known that among persons without HIV infection, such as those with diabetes, heart disease, the elderly, and those with high blood pressure, the presence of kidney disease is associated with an even greater risk of death.8 It should therefore not be surprising this association is also present among patients with HIV.
Importantly, this is not only true for persons with elevated serum creatinine levels (and therefore decreased kidney function), but also for individuals whose kidney function is normal but who merely have a little protein in their urine.
Several studies demonstrate that persons with HIV-infection and protein in their urine and/or elevated creatinine have an increased risk of hospitalization and death,9, 10 and that these increases in risk are not subtle. A person with either protein in their urine or elevated creatinine is at a 70% increased risk of hospitalization due to new AIDS-defining illness and a 50% increase in risk for overall hospitalization.
Looked at separately, protein in the urine and an elevated creatinine have equally concerning associations with new AIDS-defining illness and risk of death. In the absence of antiretroviral therapy, the presence of protein in the urine is associated with a 31% increased risk of new AIDS-defining illness (ADI) and a 35% increase in risk of death.11 This latter finding is underscored by the fact that a person without proteinuria and a CD4 lymphocyte count of 350 cells/ml3 has a lower risk of death than a person with a CD4 lymphocyte count of 500 who has protein in their urine. This important finding was noted in a study looking at women followed in the Women's Interagency HIV Cohort Study (WIHS), a study of over 2,500 women with HIV.
Initiation of antiretroviral therapy may affect this risk among persons with kidney abnormalities, but improvement in lowering the risk is not tremendous. Even following the initiation of antiretroviral therapy, a person with protein in their urine is at a 121% increased risk of death and a person with an elevated creatinine is at a 42% increased risk of a new ADI.
One of the mechanisms behind these elevated risks may be due to a less vigorous response to the initiation of therapy among people with kidney disease. A single study suggests that individuals with proteinuria may be less likely to respond to antiretroviral therapy with a non-detectable viral load. Clearly a greater understanding of whether or not these findings should result in stronger recommendations than simply starting individuals with kidney disease on antiretroviral therapy early is paramount.
What Do We Know, What Do We Think We Know, What Do We Need to Know, and What Should You Do?
Our knowledge of HIV and how it affects the kidneys is still relatively rudimentary. Significant work remains to be begun to truly understand who is susceptible to kidney disease and why. At present, it would appear that while the overwhelming burden of kidney disease occurs within the black American community, subtle abnormalities in kidney tests may be a risk factor for increased risk of AIDS-defining illness and death among all HIV-positive persons.
Given the ability of early screening to provide a greater likelihood of prevention and treatment, screening is imperative. Screening as simple as a urine analysis and a serum test for creatinine should be employed in every person with HIV. Guidelines from the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) currently suggest that all persons with HIV infection get screened for kidney disease at least once.12 If screening results in no apparent abnormalities, persons at increased risk for increased kidney disease should be re-assessed at least yearly. Persons with abnormal screening tests should have further evaluation by their health care provider and potentially be referred to a nephrologist. When given your lab results, if you don't hear anything about your kidneys, it doesn't hurt to ask: "How is my kidney function?"
When it comes to kidney disease the adage "What you don't know can't hurt you" couldn't be less applicable. Please -- remember to pee in the cup!
Click here for references 1-12.
Lynda Szczech, M.D., M.S.C.E., specializes in the care of kidney disease among adults with HIV at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. She has focused her research over the last 10 years on the diagnosis, management, and impact of HIV-related kidney disease. She may be reached via e-mail at email@example.com.


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Goliaths are massive creatures unafraid of throwing their weight around in a fight. Highly competitive, these powerful warriors can prove to be powerful allies and welcome additions to any adventuring party. The goliaths were the first experiment in scaling up humanoids, created by the shapers of the western plains to serve as herd-tenders. When the shapers left, most continued their traditional migrations through the plains, but many others settled down, forming a great gathering place in the center of the western plains around a shaper pyramid.
Personality: Golliaths are well-known for their almost foolhardy daring, trusting their thick hide, massive size, and powerful muscles to carry them through any battle. Goliaths are extremely competititive, and adore competitions of strength, speed, and skill. Sport is everywhere in goliath cities, everything from competitive games of ball to arena combat and footraces. Most goliaths are extremely focused on strength and physical fitness. The weak and old are generally regarded as inferior to the young and fit, though those goliaths with other talents, such as gifted magicians or charismatic politicians may be able to delay their ridicule.
Physical Description: A typical goliath is larger than the largest orc. Most stand between 7 and 8 feet tall and weigh between 280 and 340 pounds. Unlike with most other races, there is no appreciable difference in height or weight between male and female goliaths. Goliaths have gray skin, mottled with dark and light patches that goliath shamans say hint at a particular goliath's fate. Lithoderms—coin-sized bone-and-skin growths as hard as pebbles—speckle their arms, shoulders, and torso. Their skulls have a jutting eyebrow ridge, wide jaw, and occasional lithoderms as well. Female goliaths have dark hair on their heads, grown to great length and always kept braided. Male goliaths generally have hair only on their limbs. Goliaths' eyes are a brilliant blue or green, and they often seem to glow a little from underneath their furrowed brows. Because their skin mottling has cultural significance, goliaths generally dress lightly, males almost always going shirtless, with females wearing minimal tops, displaying their skin patterns for all to see. For the same reason, few goliaths would willingly get a tattoo—to draw on one's skin is tantamount to trying to rewrite one's fate. Goliaths instead decorate themselves with jewelry, often sporting ear, nose, or brow rings. A goliath's lithoderms are also common places to embed a gem or two, since they have few nerve endings and stand out on the goliath's body already.
Relations: Most goliaths are friendly and pleasant out on the fields. Anyone who can keep up and lend a hand is welcome, and those who can prove their skill are worthy of respect, no matter their race. One who offers a hand will often earn themselves a tasty meal at the night's camp. The goliaths who live in the great gathering are somewhat less welcoming, but still quite friendly.
Goliaths were once close to the orcs, who often worked alongside them, and showed a great respect for the goliath's massive charges. However, ever since the assault on Myralis, the orcs and the goliaths have grown apart. Goliaths get along well with gnomes, who often help them maintain the health of their herds. Many goliath tribes travel with a gnome or two for a season. Goliaths are also extremely fond of dwarven weapons, and will often trade for them, enjoying the fine workmanship. They don't respect the dwarves' policy on non-involvement, but the enchanting beauty and superb effectiveness of dwarven weapons makes up for it to most goliaths. Most goliaths enjoy halfling caravans, and more often than not, there is one or more halfling caravans in the great gathering at any time. However, the constant travel of goliath herds makes it unlikely for an goliath on the trail to run across a caravan. The goliaths have mixed relations with giants. Most giants treat goliaths well, though there are always those troublemakers who decide to try and make the goliaths into slaves. Conflict inevitably ensues.
Alignment: Most goliaths who wander the plains favor chaotic alignments, with a noticeable tendancy towards good. The golaiths of the great gathering share this propensity for goodness, but they are far more evenly-spread across the chaos and law axis.
Goliath Lands: Goliaths are spread all across the western plains, wandering with the herds. There are a few settlements spotted here and there in the grasslands, but the only true goliath city is the Great Gathering. Originally a simple gathering place, where goliaths would herd their herds at the end of the season to harvest their meat, hide, and bone, the Great Gathering has grown into a proper city, with a grand arena where competitions of all sort are held, and large stone structures serve as permanent homes to many goliaths, and communal lodges for the traveling goliaths. Traveling goliaths move every few days, following the herds, only setting up tents in winter, in the far north, or when it's raining.
Language: Goliaths speak Gol-kaa, a simple tongue with only 13 sounds. It is speaken phonetically, and often sounds quite primitive. The language was spoken only, with no written aspect, until the Great Gathering became a city proper. Gol-kaa is written with dwarven script. In recent years, the gol-kaa of the goliath of the Great Gathering has taken on a more proper tone, being referred to as High Gol-kaa, while the ones who travel the plains generally speak Low Gol-kaa.
Names: Goliath names come in three parts. There is a first name and a clan name at birth. When a goliath comes of age, he is given a name related to his most impressive deed or talent. If the goliath exceeds his former deed, the chief will give that goliath if given a new name. These middle names are refered to as 'glory names', and any goliath will proudly introduce himself with, at a minimum, his first name and glory name.
Adventurers: Goliath adventurers are extremely common. Adventuring is the natural choice for goliaths seeking a truly impressive glory name, and their size, strength, and toughnesss all lend themselves well to martial combat.
- +4 Strength, -2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution. Goliaths are incredibly strong and durable. However, their bulk makes them somewhat less agile.
- Goliath base land speed is 40 feet. Goliaths have long legs and a bounding stride.
- Medium: As Medium creatures, goliaths have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size. However, see the powerful build ability description below for more details.
- Monstrous Humanoid: As monstrous humanoids, goliaths are proficient with all simple weapons, but they have no proficiency with any armor or shield.
- Powerful Build: The physical stature of a goliath lets him function in many ways as if he were one size category larger. Whenever a goliath is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for an opposed check (such as during grapple checks, bull rush attempts, and trip attempts), the goliath is treated as one size larger if doing so is advantageous to him. A goliath is also considered to be one size larger when determining whether a creature's special attacks based on size (such as improved grab or swallow whole) can affect him. A goliath can use weapons designed for a creature one size larger without penalty. However, his space and reach remain those of a creature of his actual size. The benefits of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, and spells that change the subject's size category.
- +2 Natural Armor. Goliaths have thick skin and their lithoderms only improve the protection offered.
- +2 bonus on Sense Motive checks: When speaking to one another, goliaths tend to augment their verbal communication with subtle body language. They are likewise able to "read" the unintentional body language of others.
- +2 bonus to handle animal and survival checks. Goliath life trains the young goliaths to survive in the wilderness and how to deal with animals.
- Goad Proficiency: All goliaths are considered to be proficient with the Goad (Frostburn, pg. 76)
- Automatic Languages: Common and Gol-Kaa. Bonus Languages: Dwarven, Gnomish, Halfling, Terran
- Favored Class: Barbarian. A multiclass goliath's barbarian class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty. The life of most goliaths produces many barbarians
- Level Adjustment +1


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Make a statement in this shift dress which comes in a choice of contemporary watercolour-effect prints. Made from sablé fabric, the dress has a clean design, with fluid, flared lines and long sleeves. Concealed zip, inset pockets, unlined.
Product name: CAPPERO
Product code: 7221030003002
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Wash by hand in water. Do not bleach. Iron at max. 110 °C using a damp cloth between the iron and the fabric. Dry clean with perchloroethylene. Do not tumble dry. Line drying in the shade.
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text: lynxster4 2,962 Report post Posted October 15, 2017 Thank you @JulioCoolio for your very kind words! I put a lot of thought into each project. Everything done is a product of some advice or tips that come from this forum. That's how we get better! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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Lisa Rinna: 'Really Challenging' to Get into Headspace of Schoolgirl Britney
The "Sing Your Face Off" contestant dishes to PEOPLE on what it took to pull off her performance of " Baby One More Time"
It's Britney, b––––.
Well, not quite – but Lisa Rinna did a pretty good impression for ABC's new reality competition show Sing Your Face Off.
The 50-year-old actress channeled her inner school girl on Saturday's episode, impersonating Britney Spears and singing her 1999 smash " Baby One More Time."
Rocking the music video's trademark pigtails, plaid skirt and belly-bearing collared shirt, Rinna gave a performance so convincing, you'd probably expect it during Spears's Vegas show.
"It is a nonstop process for only five days, which is not a long time," Rinna told PEOPLE on Thursday. "I knew I just had to throw myself into it and cram like I was cramming for finals, really. I just went for it and I knew I would have to go hard or go home. This is the kind of thing where you can't just dip your toe into the water. You have to dive in or you will crash and burn."
But Spears's sensual moves aren't for the inexperienced: Rinna thrust herself and judge Darrell Hammond onto the floor while attempting to sexily sit on the Saturday Night Live alumnus's lap. Although she admits getting into character wasn't necessarily a cinch.
"She's only 16 or 17 in the video," Rinna, who still had not watched her own performance at the time of this interview, explained. "She's a young girl in a school girl uniform. That's what was the most challenging. She dances really suggestively in her school girl uniform, so to get in that head space while being a woman in her late 40s at the time was really challenging."
That said, the former soap star who deep down dreams of "being a rock star," had the time of her life taking on such an iconic performance, despite its challenges.
"I had a blast doing it," she said. "Britney is so specific and she's an amazing performer, and when you really break someone down like Britney, she's technical and does certain things with her voice that are very difficult. She's a great dancer and it was really challenging to become her."
Airing Saturdays at 9 p.m. ET, Sing Your Face Off finds Rinna, comedian Jon Lovitz, Disney Channel star China Anne McClain, rocker Sebastian Bach and NBA player Landry Fields imitating popular artists to see who can be the most convincing.
Watch Rinna as Spears below.


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Ailment lands Logan on DL; Rox activate Masset
DENVER -- Just minutes before Monday's game against the Nationals, the Rockies announced that left-hander Boone Logan had been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a digestive condition known as diverticulitis.
The Rockies also activated right-hander Nick Masset in a corresponding move, 15 days after he landed on the DL with a left patellar tendon strain.
Logan's move to the DL is retroactive to July 12 as he also missed this past weekend's series against the Pirates with a neck injury. Diverticulitis, though, is an unrelated ailment, centering around inflammation or an infection of the colon.
The Rockies initially feared a tear in Masset's left knee but the MRI revealed no ligament damage. Masset returns with a 4.94 ERA over 23 2/3 innings after spending the minimum time on the DL.
Logan has struggled to stay on the field since signing a three-year, $16.5 million deal with the Rockies this past winter.
Logan missed the first week of the season while still recovering from offseason surgery on his pitching elbow. After attempting to pitch through renewed soreness in the same elbow, Logan landed on the DL again on June 5.
Since returning from that stint on July 5, Logan has been slow to find his form, surrendering two earned runs, two walks and three hits over his first 2 1/3 innings pitched.
Overall, Logan has compiled a 6.11 ERA over 17 2/3 innings pitched but the strikeouts have been there, with 25 punchouts to just eight walks.


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Real Estate Residential Experts Serving District Of Columbia
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Experts in residential appraisal, market and rentals, asset and property management, due diligence practices, purchase contracts, real estate finance, property workouts, leases, entitlement practices, property insurance, title insurance and land use. Real Estate Residential experts serve as expert witnesses and forensic consultants in District Of Columbia legal matters, and provide expert reports and testimony for judges, attorneys, lawyers, law firms, insurance companies and government agencies in Federal and state court trials and arbitrations in District Of Columbia.
The listings below are of Real Estate Residential experts serving District Of Columbia.
Featured ListingsS.D. Epcar & Associates
Steven Epcar
Granite Bay, CA
Expert in real estate and property management issues with 35+ years experience: including residential, commercial, retail, hotel, condominium and mixed-use properties. Extensive litigation support experience includes standard of care, personal injury, partnership and brokerage conflicts, landlord/tenant issues, due diligence, property operations, air quality and life/safety related cases. Engagements have been balanced between Plaintiff and Defendant with attorneys and clients throughout the United States.
Expert ListingsE. Robert Miller & Associates
E. Robert Miller
Burlingame, CA
Expert witness in over 1,000 property management cases. Apartments, Office Buildings, Shopping Over 750 Property Management Cases. Apartments, Office Buildings, Shopping Centers, Hotels, Condominiums, Homes and Mobile Home Parks. Experienced in: Arbitration, Litigation, Lease Terms, Personal Injury, Property Damage, Security, Standards of Care and Due Diligence.
MCS Associates
Norman Katz
Tustin, CA
Natl banking, financial services, insurance & real estate consulting/expert witness group. Expertise in: Residential, Commercial, Construction/Development, Lending/Finance, Sub prime, Appraisal, Broker standards, Escrow & Title, Foreclosure, Damages.
Dale E. Puhl Expert Witness
Dale Puhl
Las Vegas, NV
Dale E. Puhl is a professional with over years of specialization employment and management in areas of title insurance escrow contracts real estate brokerage property management and real estate continuing education. He has reviewed andor processed thousands of transactions.
Samuel K. Freshman
Samuel K. Freshman
Los Angeles, CA
Attorney, Realtor, Developer, and Educator for: Legal Malpractice & Fiduciary matters; Lease Interpretation, Syndication, Construction, Property Management, Finance, & Due Diligence. Arbitrator, Finance & Banking Officer, & Title Company President.
Forster Realty Advisors
Eric Forster
Beverly Hills, CA
Eric Forster is the Managing Principal of Forster Realty Advisors. With more than 35 years in the industry, he has become a recognized expert in the areas of real estate and mortgage fraud, brokerage standards and practices, RESPA, TILA and HOEPA violations, as well as escrow practices . He was Co-Chair of the Real Estate Experts subcommittee of the American Bar Association from 2009- 2012.
Howard Shapiro & Company
Howard Shapiro
Hollywood, FL
For 40 years I've been a real estate developer in Southeast Florida as well as in suburban Washington D.C., Atlanta, California and Montreal, Canada. I have been an expert witness in several real estate related cases. see www.howardnshapiro.com.
Austin Valuation Consultants Ltd.
Rudy R. Robinson, III, MAI
Austin, TX
Expert Witness with 40 years experience in Property Damage Studies of Construction Defects; Mold, Ground Water, and Soils Contamination; Eminent Domain; Ad Valorem Taxation; MAI. Licensed Broker.


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WASHINGTON � Thousands of Arkansans could lose their jobs and the state could lose millions in federal support if Congress fails to strike a deal on indiscriminate budget cuts set to take effect Friday.
WASHINGTON � Thousands of Arkansans could lose their jobs and the state could lose millions in federal support if Congress fails to strike a deal on indiscriminate budget cuts set to take effect Friday.
The cuts, divided between defense and domestic programs, were designed back in 2011 to be an unpalatable time bomb to force policy makers to reach a compromise on reducing the nation�s deficit.
Federal Controller Danny Werfel estimated that the hit the automatic cuts would deliver to the national economy �translates into hundreds of thousands � if not more � of job losses.�
About 9,150 Arkansans could lose their jobs because of the impact of sequestration, according to a George Mason University study prepared for the Aerospace Industries Association.
Arkansas also could suffer a $920 million loss in economic productivity because of the cuts, according to the study by GMU economist Stephen Fuller.
Lawmakers return to Capitol Hill on Monday with Democrats, Republicans and the White House opposed to the $85 billion in automatic spending cuts but lacking any agreement on how to avoid them.
�Sequestration is going to be bad. It creates a lot of hardship,� said Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark.
Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., said time appears to be running out on reaching an agreement.
�Given the time frame, it appears we are going to have to work through (sequestration),� Boozman said.
Pryor and Boozman spoke at a recent Senate Appropriations hearing where agency leaders described the impact the broad-based cuts are expected to have on the nation. In the last week, more details have surfaced.
Medicaid, Social Security, food stamps, veteran benefits and federal transportation dollars are exempt from the cuts. Nearly 900 discretionary spending accounts will be reduced by 9.4 percent for defense and 8.2 percent for domestic programs.
The Pentagon plans for sequestration include a $23 million reduction to Pine Bluff Arsenal, a cut of $9.4 million to Fort Chaffee in Fort Smith and $17.8 million to Camp Robinson in North Little Rock.
The Arkansas National Guard would lose $13.3 million and the Arkansas Army Reserve $6.82 million.
The Air Force and Army also plan to furlough civilian employees likely one day a week for up to 22 weeks starting in late April. A projected 2,782 Arkansans would lose $19.6 million in wages.
Defense Comptroller Robert Hale said the military furloughs would save between $4 billion and $5 billion, leaving another $40 billion to be extracted from cutbacks in weapons purchases, service contracts and other Pentagon spending.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said furloughing food safety inspectors would be the last option for the agency to achieve required cuts, but he acknowledged it is a possibility given the need to reduce USDA�s budget by $2 billion.
Arkansas could be hit particularly hard if the 6,000 meat safety inspectors face furloughs because poultry and other processors cannot operate without them in the plant.
�These furloughs could result in as much as 15 days of lost production, costing roughly over $10 billion in production losses, and industry workers would experience over $400 million in lost wages,� Vilsack said.
Closing meat-processing plants for 15 days would mean as much as 3.3 billion pounds of chicken and 2 billion pounds of egg products would not be processed � driving up prices and disrupting the food supply, Pryor said.
Should sequestration be triggered, Arkansans who use rural airports could feel an immediate impact as plans are under way to close air traffic control towers at airports in Fort Smith, Springdale, Fayetteville and Rogers. The overnight shift at the control tower in Little Rock would end, according to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
The closings are part of Federal Aviation Administration plans to save $600 million by shutting 100 air traffic control towers at small airports, eliminating overnight shifts at 60 towers and furloughing 47,000 employees at least one day a pay period.
Arkansas would lose nearly $26 million it receives through 19 federal programs, according to estimates provided by the National Education Association.
The largest hit would be to public school districts serving large populations of students from low-income families. About 250 Title 1 school districts in Arkansas would lose $7.9 million.
Little Rock would likely lose more than $500,000, Fort Smith and Pulaski County more than $250,000 each, North Little Rock around $225,000, Pine Bluff and Springdale more than $150,000 each, and Fayetteville and Rogers more than $120,000 each, based on the NEA figures.
The association�s estimate for Arkansas also includes a $5.7 million cut in IDEA Special Education grants and a $3.8 million reduction in Head Start funding.
A sequester report by Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee projected different losses in education funding for Arkansas. They said the state would lose nearly $6.3 million in Title 1, nearly $6 million in special education and about $4 million in Head Start funding.
Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and the UA-Pine Bluff could lose as much as $3.6 million in research grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and Department of Energy, according to a coalition of university associations.
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, meanwhile, is bracing for as much as $12.2 million in reduced federal funding for research and patient care under sequestration.
Arkansas would also lose about $3.9 million in federal funds for job training programs, according to the National Skills Coalition. The coalition estimates that more than 10,000 fewer Arkansans would be assisted because of sequestration.
No formal legislation has been offered in the current session of Congress to replace the automatic spending cuts, but the White House, House Republicans and Senate Democrats have outlined separate plans.
Senate Democratic leaders have outlined an alternative that would raise $110 billion. Half would come by requiring households earning more than $2 million a year to pay at least 30 percent of their income in federal taxes. The other half would come by eliminating direct payments to farmers and from reduced military spending after the planned end to combat operations in Afghanistan next year.
The Agriculture Council of Arkansas opposes the cuts to farm subsidies.
�Eliminating this important program for farmers without a viable safety net alternative for this region is irresponsible and damaging to Arkansas agriculture,� said Andrew Grobmyer, executive vice president of the council.
House Republicans have balked at raising any additional revenues to close the deficit, insisting instead that the across-the-board cuts should be replaced with more thoughtful spending reductions.
�By insisting we tax our way out of this mess rather than accept our spending addiction, the president and Senate Democrats are threatening the security of our nation, and any proposal that replaces real spending cuts with more taxes will not and should not be approved,� said Rep. Steve Womack, R-Rogers.
Alternative spending cuts that Republicans have suggested include reductions in the food stamp program, cuts to Affordable Care Act programs and elimination of waste, fraud and abuse in other programs.