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Thai police say an Iranian man bought the airfares for two men who boarded a missing plane with stolen passports.
Three days after the Malaysia Airlines flight carrying 239 people vanished between Kuala Lumpur and Beijing, a search operation involving several countries has found no sign of the aircraft.
The airline has said search and rescue teams are expanding the scope of their search beyond the plane's flight path to western Malaysia at the Straits of Malacca.
Authorities are trying to find out more about the two mystery passengers who had one-way tickets to Europe and were travelling on Austrian and Italian passports stolen in Thailand in the past two years.
Malaysia's civil aviation chief Azharuddin Abdul Rahman earlier said the pair were "not Asian-looking men".
He added: "Do you know a footballer by the name of (Mario) Balotelli? (This is) what he looks like. I don't want to dwell on this but the men are not Asian-looking."
Thai Police Lt Col Ratchthapong Tia-sood has revealed that a travel agency in the beach resort of Pattaya, Grand Horizon, sold the tickets for the two men to an Iranian man known only as Mr Ali.
"We have to look further into this Mr Ali's identity because it's almost a tradition to use an alias when doing business around here," he said.
Grand Horizon's owner, Benjaporn Krutnait, told The Financial Times she believed Mr Ali was not linked to terrorism as he asked for cheapest tickets to Europe.
She also said Mr Ali - who had been regularly buying tickets from her for around three years - had not specified the Kuala Lumpur to Beijing flight.
Sky's Foreign Affairs Editor Sam Kiley said: "This is not an indication at all of any kind of Iranian government involvement.
"There is a massive industry in Malaysia and Thailand of people traffickers smuggling people from place to place on stolen passports. It has to be seen in that context at this stage."
It is not known whether the two men had anything to do with the plane's disappearance, but security services are investigating whether the Boeing 777-200 was hijacked or destroyed in a terror attack.
Malaysian Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said biometric information and CCTV footage of the men has been shared with Chinese and US intelligence agencies, which were helping with the investigation.
Officials are discussing whether images of the men should be made public as part of an appeal for information, while Interpol said additional "suspect" documents are under review.
Authorities admit they are "puzzled" by the "unprecedented" disappearance of the plane.
The search effort, involving at least 34 aircraft and 40 ships from 10 countries, has widened to a 100-nautical mile (115-mile, 185-km) radius.
Earlier reports of debris spotted in the South China Sea, including an aircraft door, have not been confirmed, while a possible sighting of a section of the plane's tail has been ruled out.
Rescuers are also responding to reports of debris floating in the sea south of Hong Kong.
It has also been confirmed that samples of oil taken from a slick in the South China Sea came from a ship, not the missing aircraft.
With no confirmation that the Boeing 777 has crashed, hundreds of distraught relatives are still waiting anxiously for any news.
Nearly two-thirds of the passengers on the flight were Chinese and if the loss of the plane is confirmed, it would be the country's second-worst air disaster.
:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.


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(Poem #147) The Unspoken
When the troopship was pitching round the Cape in '41, and there was a lull in the night uproar of seas and winds, and a sudden full moon swung huge out of the darkness like the world it is, and we all crowded into the wet deck, leaning on the rail, our arms on each other's shoulders, gazing at the savage outcrop of great Africa. and Tommy Cosh started singing 'Mandalay' and we joined in with our raucous chorus of the unforgettable song, and the dawn came up like thunder like that moon drawing the water of our yearning though we were going to war, and left us exalted, that was happiness, but it is not like that. When the television newscaster said the second sputnik was up, not empty, but with a small dog on board, a half-ton treasury of life orbiting a thousand miles above the thin television masts and mists of November, in clear space, heard, observed, the faint far heartbeat sending back its message steady and delicate, and I was stirred by a deep confusion of feelings, got up, stood with my back to the wall and my palms pressed hard against it, my arms held wide as if I could spring from the earth --- not loath myself to go out that very day where Laika had shown man, felt my cheeks burning with old Promethean warmth rekindled --- ready --- covered my face with my hands, seeing only an animal strapped in a doomed capsule, but the future was still there, cool and whole like the moon, waiting to be taken, smiling even as the dog's bones and the elaborate casket of aluminium glow white and fuse in the arc of re-entry and I knew what I felt was history, its thrilling brilliance came down, came down, comes down on us all, bringing pride and pity, but it is not like that. But Glasgow days and grey weathers, when the rain beat on the bus shelter and you leaned slightly against me, and the back of your hand touched my hand in the shadows, and nothing was said when your hair grazed mine accidentally as we talked in a cafe, yet not quite accidentally, when I stole a glance at your face as we stood in a doorway and found I was afraid of what might happen if I should never see it again, when we met, and met, in spite of such differences in our lives, and did the common things that in our feeling became extraordinary, so that our first kiss was like the winter morning moon, and as you shifted in my arms it was the sea changing the shingle that changes it as if for ever (but we are bound by nothing, but like smoke to mist or light in water we move, and mix) --- O then it was a story as old as war or man and although we have not said it we know it, and although we have not claimed it we do it, and although we have not vowed it we keep it, without a name to the end
1968. Most poems are about experiences; this one is about Experience. Not many poets have attempted such an ambitious topic; it is to Morgan's credit that he does not bite off more than he can chew. There is no abstract sophistry, no flights of philosophical fancy; the language is simple and everyday; the incidents, commonplace. And yet... and yet, through his retelling of three ordinary stories, he touches the essence of what it means to be human - joy and exhilaration and pride and pity and ambition and fear and love and longing... It's not something that can be expressed in mere language. But it's there. "There are some truths which are deeper than words". thomas. [Biography] Edwin Morgan 19 Whittingehame Court Glasgow G12 0BG Edwin Morgan was born in Glasgow in 1920. He served in the Royal Army Medical Corps in the Middle East from 1940 to 1946. He took an M.A. at the University of Glasgow (1st Class Honours in Englush Language and Literature) in 1947. He made his living from university teaching and retired as Titular Professor in 1980. He has various honorary degrees and an O.B.E. He is a poet (Collected Poems, 1990), translator (Collected Translations, 1996), and critic (Crossing the Border, 1990). He has writted poetry for radio (A Voyage, commisioned by BBC for two voices, broadcast on Radio 4, 1996). He has written poems for jazz setting (Beasts of Scotland, commisioned by Glasgow International Jazz festival, music by Tommy Smith, performed 1996, accompanied by compact disc from Linn Records, Glasgow). He is at present (March 1997) collaborating again with Tommy Smith in a new sequence of poems, Planet Wave, to be performed at the Cheltenham Festival this year, the performance to be recorded live by BBC. He has written several librettos for opera and music-theatre: The Charcoal-Burner, music by Thomas Wilson. Valentine, music by George Newson. Spell (later retitled Coll for the Hazel Tree), music by Martin Dalby. Columba, music by Kenneth Leighton. He has also adapted/translated various plays: The Apple-Tree (translated from anonymous Dutch play of the 15th century, Esbatement van den Appelboom). Master Peter Pathelin, (translated from anonymous 15th-centure French farce, Maistre Pierre Pathelin). The Shepherds' Play (a modern version in English and Scot of the 15th-century mystery play). Cyrano de Bergerac (translation into Scots of Rostand's play).


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This update improves video performance in some applications.
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Lisa Rinna is as famous for her acting as she is for her lips (if not more), so it came as no surprise that when Hoda Kotb asked the star about her infamous surgery on Today, Rinna, being a good sport, obliged and candidly explained why she got the injections — and reduction.
Photos: 15 canceled shows you want to bring back"Here's the story: 25 years ago, I had my lips injected with silicone. Stupid thing to do at 24," Rinna said on Monday, explaining that the decision was inspired by Beaches. "I did it with my best girlfriend, so she and I go and we get our lips done. Fine. I have it like that for my whole career, right? So then cut to a couple of years ago, I have a doctor remove as much as they possibly can because it got to the point where they were yucky. You know, they get hard. It's gross. So they are now whatever that was after they took out as much of the silicone as they could."


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Chris Lighty's Family Seeks Second Opinion On Death
AllHipHop Staff
(AllHipHop News) Chris Lighty's family is seeking a second opinion about the cause of death of the Hip-Hop mogul, who was laid to rest yesterday (September 5), in New York.
Stars like Russell Simmons, Sean "Diddy" Combs, LL Cool J, Missy Elliot and numerous others attended the funeral for Lighty, who ran Violator Management, and later, Primary Wave Management.
But Lighty was found dead last Wednesday (August 30), from on apparent suicide after an alleged spat with his wife in his Bronx apartment.
According to the Associated Press, the family has conducted a second autopsy using forensic pathologist Michael Baden.
Baden specializes in independent opinions on deaths and even testified in the O.J. Simpson trial.
The family is still awaiting the test results, but their recent comments to the press indicate that they do not believe Chris Lighty committed suicide.
In an interview with the New York Daily News, his ex-wife Veronica denied police accounts that there was an argument prior to Lighty's suicide.
"My husband was too smart of a man. He was a genius. No smart man is going to leave his children for fighting with his wife," Veronica Lighty told the Daily News "That makes absolutely no sense.
"We had a passionate relationship. We fought all the time," Veronica said.
"This isn't my brother. My brother was a strong person, is a strong person," added Dave Lighty. "Nothing is adding up. I can't get a direct answer from anybody…I understand there's a process to be followed. I can't even get clear answers from people I think I should be getting clear answers from."


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Three huge, and highly advanced Pendragon class meson cruisers leave New Home amid a blanket of secrecy. They were commissioned by the Sansterre Navy, and are to be delivered next week in the St. Geneviève system.
Two New Home Teleport class couriers destroyed by Neubayern Patrol. Attack was unprokoved, says New Home Ambassador.
Sansterre establishes naval base. Inhabitants protest.
Zuflucht annexed by brutal Serendip Belt invasion!


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Reading walks off on intentional walk wild pitch
The Reading Phillies (60-78) earned their third walk-off win in a four-game series over the Richmond Flying Squirrels (69-69), 9-8, on Thursday night at FirstEnergy Stadium. The winning run scored when Cody Hall sailed a wild pitch over the top of catcher Tyler LaTorre in the bottom of the ninth inning. The pitch was intended to be ball one of an intentional walk. Maikel Franco scored the winning run for the Fightins. The Squirrels also lost a 6-1 lead for the second time in the series.
The Squirrels got on the board first against righty Perci Garner in the top of the second inning. Angel Villalona led off with a single back through the middle. Jarrett Parker followed with a single to right-center field to put two aboard. Ryan Lollis grounded into a fielder's choice, but moved Villalona to third base. Tyler LaTorre brought him in with a groundout to the shortstop.
Richmond got back after Garner in the third inning. Garner walked Kelby Tomlinson to start the frame. Joe Panik followed and rifled a double through the alley in right-center field. Tomlinson came all the way around for a 2-0 lead. An out later, Adam Duvall laced a double into the left-field corner. Panik strolled to the plate for a 3-0 advantage. Garner then walked Villalona and Parker made it 4-0 with his second single of the night.
Reading got an unearned run back in the bottom of the third inning against lefty Chris Gloor. Troy Hanzawa singled to start the inning. He was bunted to second base by Garner. Albert Cartwright followed and reached on an error to put runners on the corners with one out. Zach Collier grounded into an inning-ending double play. But, Villalona went to first base for the first out, negating the force on the second out. That allowed Hanzawa to score.
The Squirrels tacked on two more runs off Garner in the fourth inning. Gloor started the inning with his first hit of the season. Tomlinson reached on an error and Panik cracked a two-run triple into the right-field corner for a 6-1 lead.
The Fightins trimmed the Richmond lead to three runs in the bottom of the fourth as Maikel Franco and Jim Murphy cranked back-to-back solo-home runs off Gloor. Both shots were to left field, Franco's high-arching and Murphy's low-flying.
Richmond got the run back immediately in the fifth inning. Parker walked and Ryan Lollis rocketed a double to right field. Parker galloped all the way around from first base the Squirrels took a 7-3 advantage.
Garner retired for the evening after five innings. He was charged with seven runs – six earned – on eight hits. He walked four and struck out three.
Gloor registered the first two outs of the fifth inning hurriedly. However, Cartwright registered a two-out single. Collier followed and cracked a triple into the right-field corner. Cartwright came around to make it 7-4.
Reading chased Gloor and got back within a lone run in the sixth inning. Murphy opened the inning with a single. Anthony Hewitt followed with his third single of the night. Matt Tolbert bunted the runners up and Gloor threw errantly to first base. Murphy scored on the play and Gloor was lifted in favor of right-hander Edwin Quirarte. Sebastian Valle greeted him with a single that brought in Hewitt, shaving the Richmond lead to one run, 7-6.
Gloor was charged with six runs – five earned – over five innings. He conceded nine hits, walked none and struck out five. He did not factor in the decision in his final start of the season.
The Squirrels once again answered, collecting a run in the seventh inning of right-hander Colby Shreve. Lollis walked and was doubled home by Tomlinson for an 8-6 lead.
Quirarte worked a scoreless seventh inning and returned for the eighth. He found trouble there, conceding a lead-off single to Murphy. Quirarte recovered to strike out Hewitt, but then conceded back-to-back singles to Tolbert and Valle to load the bases. Quirarte then hit Hanzawa to force in a run. He was lifted in favor of lefty Phil McCormick. Pinch-hitter Kelly Dugan cracked his first pitch for a single into right field to tie the game, 8-8. Both runs in the inning were charged to Quirarte.
Left-hander Austin Wright (6-5) earned the win after working a perfect top of the ninth inning. Hall (2-2) took the loss for Richmond. Both of his losses occurred during the Reading series.
The Squirrels return to Richmond to meet the Harrisburg Senators (Washington Nationals) in the final four-game series of the regular season. Richmond LHP Edwin Escobar (5-3, 2.59) will make the start against Harrisburg LHP Robbie Ray (4-2, 3.91). The Flying Squirrels Pregame Warmup will begin on Sports Radio 910, www.sportsradio910.com and IHeart Radio at 6:35 p.m.
UVA Basketball Fans!
Dick Vitale on Team of Destiny: "This is a hoops story you will LOVE! Jerry and Chris capture the sensational and dramatic championship journey by Tony Bennett and his tenacious Cavalier team. UVA was Awesome Baby and so is this book!"
Ralph Sampson on Team of Destiny: "Jerry and Chris have lived and seen it all, even before my time. I highly recommend this book to every basketball fan across the globe. This story translates to all who know defeat and how to overcome it!"
Feedback from buyers: "Got the Book in the Mail Saturday, and could not put it down! Great read and great photography as well! Love all of the books I've received, but hands down, this is my favorite!" – Russell
Buy here.


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Italy Overview: History
The following generalized outline of the highly complex history of Italy can be supplemented by the articles on individual cities and regions and by such general articles as Etruscan civilization ; papacy ; Italian art ; Italian literature ; and Renaissance .
Ancient Italy
Little is known of Italian history before the 5th cent. BC, except for the regions (S Italy and Sicily) where the Greeks had established colonies (see Magna Graecia ). The earliest known inhabitants seem to have been of Ligurian stock. The Etruscans, coming probably from Asia Minor, established themselves in central Italy before 800 BC They reduced the indigenous population to servile status and established a prosperous empire with a complex culture. In the 4th cent. BC, the Celts (called Gauls by Roman historians) invaded Italy and drove the Etruscans from the Po valley. In the south, the Etruscan advance was checked about the same time by the Samnites (see Samnium ), who had adapted the civilization of their Greek neighbors and who in the 4th cent. BC drove the Etruscans out of Campania.
The Latins, living along the coast of Latium, had not been fully subjected to the Etruscans; they and their neighbors, the Sabines , were the ancestors of the Romans. The history of Italy from the 5th cent. BC to the 5th cent. AD is largely that of the growth of Rome and of the Roman Empire, of which Italy was the core. Augustus divided Italy into 11 administrative regions (Latium and Campania, Apulia and Calabria, Lucania and Bruttium, Samnium, Picenum, Umbria, Etruria, Cispadane Gaul, Liguria, Venetia and Istria, Transpadane Gaul). By that time, at the beginning of the Christian era, all of Italy had been thoroughly latinized, Roman citizenship was extended to all free Italians, an excellent system of roads had been built, and Italy, made tax exempt, shared fully in the wealth of Rome. Never since has Italy known an equal degree of prosperity or as long a period of peace. Christianity spread rapidly.
The Barbarian Invasions
Like the rest of the Roman Empire, Italy in the early 5th cent. AD began to be invaded by successive waves of barbarian tribes—the Germanic Visigoths , the Huns , and the Germanic Heruli and Ostrogoths . The deposition (476) of Romulus Augustulus, the last Roman emperor of the West, and the assumption by Odoacer of the rule over Italy is commonly regarded as the end of the Roman Empire. However, the Eastern emperors, residing at Constantinople (see Byzantine Empire ), never renounced their claim to Italy and to succession to the West.
On the urging of Zeno, the Eastern emperor, the Ostrogoth Theodoric the Great invaded Italy, took (493) Ravenna (which had replaced Rome as capital), killed Odoacer, and began a long and beneficent rule over Italy. Roman institutions were maintained with the help of scholars and administrators such as Boethius and Cassiodorus. After Theodoric's death (526), the murder (535) of the Gothic queen, Amalasuntha , was followed by the reconquest of Italy by Emperor Justinian I of the East and his generals, Belisarius and Narses . Except, however, in the exarchate of Ravenna, the Pentapolis (Rimini, Ancona, Fano, Pesaro, and Senigallia) on the central Adriatic coast, and the coast of S Italy, Byzantine rule was soon displaced by that of the Lombards , who under Alboin established (569) a new kingdom.
The papacy emerged as the chief bulwark of Latin civilization. Gregory I (reigned 590–604), without assistance from Byzantium, succeeded in saving Rome and the Patrimony of St. Peter from the Lombard conquest, thus laying the basis for the creation of the Papal States . At the same time, he effectively freed Rome from allegiance to the Byzantine conquerors.
The Lombards warded off Byzantine efforts at reconquest and in 751 took Ravenna; their advance on Rome resulted in the appeal of Pope Stephen II to Pepin the Short , ruler of the Franks, who expelled the Lombards from the exarchate of Ravenna and from the Pentapolis, which he donated (754) to the pope. Pepin's intervention was followed by that of his son Charlemagne , who defeated the Lombard king, Desiderius, was crowned king of the Lombards, confirmed his father's donation to the papacy, and in 800 was crowned emperor of the West at Rome. These events shaped much of the later history of Italy and of the papacy. Among the direct results were the claim of later emperors to Italy and the temporal power of the popes.
Medieval Italy
In the divisions (9th cent.) of the Carolingian empire (see Verdun, Treaty of ; Mersen, Treaty of ), Italy passed to the successive emperors Lothair I , Louis II , and Charles II ; however, their control was largely nominal. Under Carloman (d. 880) and Emperor Charles III (reigned 881–87), local power became increasingly strong in Italy. Emperor Arnulf (reigned 896–99) failed to reassert authority.
From 888 to 962 Italy was nominally ruled by a series of weak kings and emperors including Guy of Spoleto, Berengar I of Friuli, Louis III of Burgundy, and Berengar II of Ivrea. The petty nobles were constantly feuding, and by the end of the period the papacy had sunk to its lowest point of degradation. The Magyars plundered N Italy, and in the south the Arabs seized (917) Sicily and raided the mainland. In 961, heeding an appeal by the pope for protection against Berengar II, the German king Otto I invaded Italy. In 962 he was crowned emperor by the pope. This union of Italy and Germany marked the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire .
Although the Alps had never prevented invaders from entering Italy, they did prevent the emperors from exercising effective control there. Again and again the emperors and German kings crossed the Alps to assert their authority; each time their authority virtually vanished when they left Italy. At best, their power was limited to the territories north of the Papal States. The popes, by exerting their influence and by arranging alliances with other powers, were important in frustrating imperial control.
Apulia and Calabria, after being briefly held again by the Byzantines, were conquered (11th cent.) by the Normans under Robert Guiscard and his successors, who also wrested Sicily from the Arabs and established the Norman kingdom of Sicily. In central and N Italy, the prevailing chaos was increased by the conflict between the emperors and the popes over investiture and by the contested succession to Tuscany after the death (1115) of Countess Matilda . Because the many petty lords were independent of imperial authority and because the cities gradually gained control over these lords, feudalism did not gain a firm foothold in central and N Italy. However, in the south the Norman kings and their successors, the Hohenstaufen and Angevin dynasties, firmly entrenched the feudal system, the worst features of which were later perpetuated by the Spanish rulers of Naples and Sicily. Thus, the great difference in social and economic structure between N and S Italy, which continued well into the 20th cent., can be traced back to the 11th cent.
The Rise of Cities
The characteristic development in central and N Italy was the rise of the city (see commune and city-state ), beginning in the 10th cent. The rise was partly political in origin—the burghers were drawing together to protect themselves from the nobles—and partly economic—contact with the Muslim world was making the Italian merchants the middlemen and the Italian cities the entrepôts of Western Europe. The survival of Roman institutions and the example of the commune of Rome facilitated the process.
To protect their commerce and their industries (particularly the wool industry) cities grouped together in leagues, which often were at war with each other. The leagues were particularly strong in Lombardy. The attempt by Emperor Frederick I to impose imperial authority on some cities led to the formation of the Lombard League , which defeated the emperor in 1176. Rivalry among the cities, however, prevented the formation of any union strong enough to consolidate even a part of Italy. In the 13th cent. the struggle between Emperor Frederick II and the papacy divided the cities and nobles into two strong parties, the Guelphs and Ghibellines . Their fratricidal warfare continued long after the death (1250) of Frederick, which marked the virtual demise of imperial rule in Italy and the ascendancy of the papacy. In 1268, Frederick's grandson, Conradin, was executed at Naples, thus ending Hohenstaufen aspirations.
The factional strife led to the rise of despots in some cities. These despots, who were of noble or bourgeois origin, were generally factional leaders, who, having obtained the magistracy, made it hereditary. Some of them managed to restore order in the cities. In many cities, however, the republican institutions were upheld with little interruption. In other cities, dynasties were established and invested (14th and 15th cent.) with titles by the emperors, who still claimed suzerainty over N Italy. The most powerful princes (e.g., the Visconti and Sforza of Milan, the Gonzaga of Mantua, the Este of Ferrara, and the dukes of Savoy ) and the most powerful republics (e.g., Florence, Venice, and Genoa) tended to increase their territories at the expense of weaker neighbors. The cities in the Papal States passed under local tyrants during the Babylonian captivity of the popes at Avignon (1309–78) and during the Great Schism (1378–1417).
By the end of the 15th cent. Italy had fallen into the following chief component parts: in the south, the kingdoms of Sicily and Naples, torn by the rival claims of the French Angevin dynasty and the Spanish house of Aragón; in central Italy, the Papal States, the republics of Siena, Florence, and Lucca, and the cities of Bologna, Forlì, Rimini, and Faenza (only nominally subject to the pope); in the north, the duchies of Ferrara and Modena, Mantua, Milan, and Savoy. The two great merchant republics, Venice and Genoa, with their far-flung possessions, colonies, and outposts, were distinct in character and outlook from the rest of Italy.
Constant warfare among these many states resulted in political turmoil, but did little to diminish their wealth or to hinder their cultural output. The wars were generally fought in a desultory manner by hired bands led by professional commanders (see condottiere ). Compared to the Black Death, the plague that ravaged Italy in 1348, the local wars did little harm. Material prosperity had been furthered considerably by the Crusades; by the expanding trade with the Middle East; and by the rise of great banking firms, notably in Genoa, in Lucca, and in Florence (where the Medici rose from bankers to dukes). The prosperity facilitated the great cultural flowering of the Italian Renaissance, which permanently changed the civilization of Western Europe.
Political Disintegration and Rebirth
The Renaissance reached its peak in the late 15th cent. Meanwhile, Italy's political independence was threatened by the growing nations of France, Spain, and Austria. Quarrels among Italian states invited foreign intervention. The invasion (1494) of Italy by Charles VIII of France marked the beginning of the Italian Wars , which ended in 1559 with most of Italy subjected to Spanish rule or influence. Early in the wars, in which France and Spain were the main contenders for supremacy in Italy, several Italian statesmen, notably Machiavelli , came to the belief that only unity could save Italy from foreign domination. Pope Julius II consolidated the Papal States, but his Holy League , devised (1510) to drive out the French, failed to create a wider Italian unity.
After 1519 the Italian Wars became part of the European struggle between Francis I of France and Emperor Charles V . By the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis (1559), Spain gained the kingdoms of Sicily and Naples and the duchy of Milan. Foreign domination continued with the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–14; see also Utrecht, Peace of ) and the War of the Polish Succession (1733–35). By 1748, Naples, Sicily, and the duchies of Parma and Piacenza had passed to branches of the Spanish Bourbons, and the duchies of Milan, Mantua, Tuscany, and Modena to Austria. Remaining independent were the Papal States, the declining republics of Venice, Genoa, and Lucca, and the kingdom of Sardinia (see Sardinia, kingdom of ), created in 1720 by the union of Piedmont, Savoy, and Sardinia under the house of Savoy.
These centuries of political weakness were also a period of economic decline. The center of European trade shifted away from the Mediterranean, and commerce and industry suffered from the mercantilist policies of the European states. Taxes rose under Spanish rule, the amount of land under cultivation declined, the population decreased, and brigandage increased. Nevertheless, Italy continued to have considerable influence on European culture, especially in architecture and music. Yet to subsequent generations in Italy (especially in the 19th cent.), preoccupied with the concepts of national independence and political power, the political condition of 18th-century Italy represented national degradation. The French Revolution rekindled Italian national aspirations, and the French Revolutionary Wars swept away the political institutions of 18th-century Italy.
Napoleonic Triumph and the Rebirth of Italy
General Bonaparte (later Napoleon I ), who defeated Sardinian and Austrian armies in his Italian campaign of 1796–97, was at first acclaimed by most Italians. Napoleon redrew the Italian map several times. Extensive land reforms were carried out, especially in N Italy. The Cispadane and Transpadane republics, established in 1796, were united (1797) as the Cisalpine Republic , recognized in the Treaty of Campo Formio (1797). In 1802 the Cisalpine Republic, comprising Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna, was renamed the Italian Republic; in 1805 it became the kingdom of Italy (enlarged by the addition of Venetia), with Napoleon as king and Eugène de Beauharnais as viceroy.
From 1795 to 1812, Savoy, Piedmont, Liguria, Tuscany, Parma, and the Papal States were annexed by France. In 1806, Joseph Bonaparte was made king of Naples; he was replaced in 1808 by Joachim Murat , Napoleon's brother-in-law. Sardinia remained under the house of Savoy and Sicily under the Bourbons. Napoleon's failure to unite Italy and to give it self-government disappointed Italian patriots, some of whom formed secret revolutionary societies such as the Carbonari , which later played a vital role in Italian unification.
The Congress of Vienna (1814–15) generally restored the pre-Napoleonic status quo and the old ruling families. However, Venetia was united with Lombardy as the Lombardo-Venetian kingdom under the Austrian crown, and Liguria passed to Sardinia. Naples and Sicily were united (1816) as the kingdom of the Two Sicilies . Austrian influence became paramount in Italy. Nevertheless, the efforts of Metternich and of the Holy Alliance (e.g., in quelling insurrections in Naples and in Palermo) could not suppress the nationalist movement. The Risorgimento , as the movement for unification was called, included three groups: the radicals, led by Mazzini , who sought to create a republic; the moderate liberals, who regarded the house of Savoy as the agency for unification; and the Roman Catholic conservatives, who desired a confederation under the presidency of the pope. In 1848–49, there were several short-lived revolutionary outbreaks, notably in Naples, Venice, Tuscany, Rome, and the kingdom of Sardinia (whose new liberal constitution survived).
Unification was ultimately achieved under the house of Savoy, largely through the efforts of Cavour , Garibaldi , and Victor Emmanuel II , who became king of Italy in 1861. At that time, the kingdom of Italy did not include Venetia, Rome, and part of the Papal States. By siding against Austria in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, Italy obtained Venetia. To Napoleon III of France, who had helped Sardinia defeat Austria in 1859, Sardinia had ceded Nice and Savoy. The protectorate of Napoleon III over the Papal States delayed the Italian annexation of the city of Rome until 1870. Relations between the Italian government and the papacy, which refused to concede the loss of its temporal power, remained a major problem until 1929, when the Lateran Treaty made the pope sovereign within Vatican City. After 1870, Austria still retained areas with largely Italian populations (e.g., S Tyrol and Trieste); Italian agitation for their annexation (see irredentism ) went unfulfilled until World War I.
1861 to the Rise of Fascism
From 1861 until the Fascist dictatorship (1922–43) of Benito Mussolini, Italy was governed under the liberal constitution adopted by Sardinia in 1848. The reigns of Victor Emmanuel II (1861–78) and Humbert I (1878–1900), and the first half of the reign of Victor Emmanuel III (1900–1946) were marked by moderate social and political reforms and by some industrial expansion in N Italy (mainly in the 20th cent.). Periodic social unrest was caused by the dislocations attending industrialization and by occasional economic depression. In the underdeveloped south, rapid population growth led to mass emigration, both to the industrial centers of N Italy and to the Americas.
The outstanding statesmen of the pre-Fascist period were Agostino Depretis , Francesco Crispi , and Giovanni Giolitti . Colonial expansion was emphasized under Crispi, but was otherwise sporadic. A severe setback to Italian colonial aspirations was the establishment (1881) of a French protectorate over Tunisia ; it was an important motive for the conclusion (1882) of Italy's alliance with Germany and Austria (see Triple Alliance and Triple Entente ). Later, Italy acquired part of Somaliland in 1889 and Eritrea in 1890, but further advances in NE Africa were checked by the Ethiopian victory (1896) at Adwa . Libya and the Dodecanese were conquered in the Italo-Turkish War (1911–12).
In World War I, Italy at first remained neutral. After the Allies offered substantial territorial rewards, Italy denounced the Triple Alliance and entered (1915) the war on the Allied side. Although the Italians initially suffered serious reverses, they won (1918) a great victory at Vittorio Veneto , which was followed by the surrender of Austria-Hungary. At the Paris Peace Conference, Italy obtained S Tyrol, Trieste, Istria, part of Carniola, and several of the Dalmatian islands. Italian possession of the Dodecanese was confirmed. However, these terms granted far less than the Allies had secretly promised in 1915. Italian discontent was evident in the seizure (1919) of Fiume (see Rijeka ) by a nationalist band led by Gabriele D'Annunzio .
Within Italy, political and social unrest increased, furthering the growth of Fascism. The Fascist leader (Ital. Il Duce) Mussolini , promising the restoration of social order and of political greatness, directed (Oct. 27, 1922) a successful march on Rome and was made premier by the king. Granted dictatorial powers, Mussolini quashed opposition to the state (especially that of socialists and Communists), regimented the press and the schools, imposed controls on industry and labor, and created a corporative state controlled by the Fascist party and the militia. The Fascist economic program as a whole was a failure, but some programs of lasting value (e.g., the draining of the Pontine marshes and the construction of a network of superhighways) were undertaken. The problems caused by an increasing population were aggravated by drastic immigration restrictions in the United States and by the economic depression of the 1930s.
World War II
Mussolini followed an aggressive foreign policy, and after 1935 he turned increasingly to militarist and imperialist solutions to Italy's problems. Italy conquered Ethiopia in 1935–36, easily overcoming the ineffective sanctions imposed by the League of Nations (from which Italy withdrew in 1937). At the same time, Italy drew closer to Nazi Germany and to Japan; in 1936, Italy formed an entente with Germany (see Axis ). Italy intervened on the Insurgent side in the Spanish civil war (1936–39), and in 1939 it seized Albania .
At the outbreak of World War II, Italy assumed a neutral stance friendly to Germany, but in June, 1940, it declared war on collapsing France and on Great Britain. In 1940, Italian forces were active in North Africa (see North Africa, campaigns in ) and attacked Greece; however, they were unsuccessful until German troops came to their aid in early 1941. Later in 1941, Italy declared war on the Soviet Union and on the United States. Soon Italy suffered major reverses, and by July, 1943, it had lost its African possessions, its army was shattered, Sicily was falling to U.S. troops, and Italian cities (especially ports) were being bombed by the Allies.
In July, 1943, discontent among Italians culminated in the rebellion of the Fascist grand council against Mussolini, Mussolini's dismissal by Victor Emmanuel III, the appointment of Badoglio as premier, and the dissolution of the Fascist party. In Sept., 1943, Italy surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, while German forces quickly occupied N and central Italy. Aided by the Germans, Mussolini escaped from prison and established a puppet republic in N Italy. Meanwhile, the Badoglio government declared war on Germany, and Italy was recognized by the Allies as a cobelligerent. The Allied Italian campaign was a slow, grueling, and costly struggle (see Cassino ; Anzio ). The fall of Rome (July, 1944) was followed by a stalemate. In Apr., 1945, partisans captured and summarily executed Mussolini. In May, 1945, the Germans surrendered.
After the war, Italy's borders were established by the peace treaty of 1947, which assigned several small Alpine districts (see Brigue and Tende ) to France; the Dodecanese to Greece; and Trieste, Istria, part of Venezia Giulia, and several Adriatic islands to Yugoslavia (now in Slovenia and Croatia) and to the Free Territory of Trieste. In 1954, Trieste and its environs were returned to Italy. As a result of the war, Italy also lost its colonies of Libya, Eritrea, and Italian Somaliland.
Postwar Italy
In 1944 the unpopular Badoglio cabinet had resigned, and thereafter various coalition cabinets followed each other until Dec., 1945, when Alcide De Gasperi , a Christian Democrat, became premier. De Gasperi remained an important influence on Italian politics until his death in 1954. In May, 1946, Victor Emmanuel abdicated, having previously transferred his powers to his son, Humbert II . After a month's rule, Humbert was exiled when the Italians in a plebiscite voted by a small majority to make the country a republic. A new republican constitution went into effect on Jan. 1, 1948.
Following the war, Italy became firmly tied to the West, joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949 and the European Economic Community (now the European Union) in 1958. It was admitted to the United Nations in 1955. In internal politics, Italy's Christian Democrats, Communists, and Socialists emerged from the war as the chief parties. The split of the Socialists into the majority Socialists (the left wing) and the minority Social Democrats (the right wing) enabled the Christian Democrats to maintain power at the head of successive coalition governments with the Social Democrats (until 1959) and other center parties and to exclude the Communists from the government. However, in the postwar years the Communists dominated the local politics of Tuscany, Umbria, and Emilia-Romagna.
In 1962, Premier Amintore Fanfani , a Christian Democrat, formed a center-left coalition with a cabinet that again included the Social Democrats, as well as the parliamentary support of the Socialist party, led by Pietro Nenni . However, Fanfani's government fell after general elections in 1963 and there was considerable uncertainty before Aldo Moro , also a Christian Democrat, was able to form a center-left coalition in late 1963. The Moro government fell in 1964 and in 1966, but on each occasion was re-formed after a brief hiatus. In late 1966, N and central Italy suffered severe flooding, with resulting damage to art treasures and libraries, especially in Florence.
The Continuing Political Seesaw
Beginning in the late 1960s, there was considerable industrial unrest in the country as workers demanded higher wages and better social services. Following the general elections of May, 1968, the Moro government fell again and a government crisis began that was only ended in Dec., 1968, when Mariano Rumor , a Christian Democrat, formed a coalition government with Socialist support. After Rumor's coalition fell for a third time in July, 1970, he was replaced as premier by Emilio Colombo , also a Christian Democrat.
Colombo resigned in Jan., 1972. After a long period of crisis, Giulio Andreotti , also a Christian Democrat, formed a new coalition government in June, 1972; for the first time in 10 years, the government had a center-right, rather than a center-left, character. But this combination also did not last long and was replaced (July, 1973) by a slightly left-of-center coalition headed by Rumor. In Mar., 1974, Rumor resigned, but he soon formed another center-left cabinet, the 36th government since the fall of Mussolini in 1943. In mid-1974, Italy faced an economic crisis; an austerity program was initiated in an attempt to reduce the soaring inflation rate and the overwhelming foreign trade deficit. Rumor's administration resigned again in October and was replaced by Moro.
Many other governments followed but had little success dealing with economic decline, corruption, and lawlessness. Growing popular dissatisfaction with Italy's chaotic political situation helped the Communists achieve a measure of participation in the government coalition in 1977. The extreme left and right, excluded by the coalition between Christian Democrats and Communists, accounted for a steady increase in political violence that terrorized politicians, businessmen, intellectuals, and members of the judiciary. In 1978 former premier Moro was kidnapped and murdered by the Red Brigade, a left-wing terrorist group.
Center-left coalitions dominated by the Christian Democrats continued to hold power until 1983, when the republic's first Socialist-led coalition took power under Premier Bettino Craxi . The continuing sluggishness of the economy caused Craxi to institute another austerity budget, which included tax increases, service cuts, and wage adjustments. Craxi led the government for four years, until he resigned in 1987 and was replaced by Christian Democrat Giovanni Goria . Ciriaco De Mita succeeded Goria in 1988, and was himself succeeded in 1989 by Giulio Andreotti, who at the age of 70 became premier for the sixth time. In 1991 the Italian Communist party changed its name to the Democratic Party of the Left. In the 1992 elections the Christian Democrats barely maintained their coalition with the Socialists, the Liberals, and the Social Democrats. Socialist Giuliano Amato was named premier.
Corruption probes, begun in 1992 and headed by Amato, led to the arrest of hundreds of business and political figures and the investigation of many others, including several party leaders and former premiers. In 1993 Premier Amato resigned and Carlo Azeglio Ciampi , head of Italy's central bank, succeeded him. In addition, legislation largely ending proportional representation in parliament was passed. The Christian Democratic party changed its name to the Italian Popular party in 1994, but after a split in 1995, the center-right faction became the United Christian Democratic party.
In new elections in Mar., 1994, a coalition of conservatives and neofascists won a majority in parliament. Billionaire industrialist Silvio Berlusconi of the fledgling conservative party Forza Italia became premier, but his coalition government disintegrated in Dec. It was succeeded by a
nonpolitical center-left government under Lamberto Dini, and then, after elections in Apr., 1996, by a center-left government under Romano Prodi that included the Democratic Party of the Left. Following a series of upheavals over austerity measures put in place to prepare for European economic union, Prodi's government collapsed in Oct., 1998.
Massimo D'Alema , of the Democrats of the Left (the former Democratic Party of the Left), became premier (1998) as head of a new coalition government that included several political parties. Parliament named former premier Ciampi as president in May, 1999, replacing Oscar Luigi Scalfaro , who had held the office since 1992. In Apr., 2000, D'Alema resigned after his coalition suffered loses in regional elections. Socialist and former premier Giuliano Amato, D'Alema's finance minister, formed a new center-left government that was substantially similar to D'Alema's.
Parliamentary elections in 2001 gave Berlusconi's conservative coalition a solid victory, and he became premier of a center-right government for a second time, ending six years of liberal rule. In 2003 parliament passed a law making the premier and other top Italian officials immune from prosecution while in office. The law was seen as a heavy-handed move to end Berlusconi's trial for bribery, and provoked an outcry from many in Italy. The constitutional court overturned the law, however, allowing the trial to proceed, and he was acquitted (2004) of bribery; other charges were dismissed.
Losses by the governing coalition in local elections forced Berlusconi to resign in Apr., 2005, and re-form his government. Later in the year Berlusconi secured passage of electoral changes that reestablished proportional representation as a basis for electing national legislators; the changes were designed to minimize his coalition's losses in the 2006 elections. In the Apr., 2006, elections Berlusoni's coalition narrowly lost to a center-left coalition led by Romano Prodi. Berlusconi challenged the results, alleging irregularities, but Italy' supreme court confirmed them later in the month. In May, Giorgio Napolitano , of the Democrats of the Left, was elected to succeed Ciampi as Italy's president, and Prodi subsequently formed a government. A government reorganization plan that would have increased the premier's powers and the autonomy of Italy's regions was defeated in a referendum in June, 2006; the plan had been proposed by Berlusconi's coalition.
In Feb., 2007, Prodi's government lost a foreign policy vote in Italy's senate and resigned, but the following week he re-formed his government and won a confidence vote. Later in the year the Democratic party was formed through the merger of the Democrats of the Left and center-left former Christian Democrats. Prodi's coalition unraveled in Jan., 2008, and he resigned after losing a confidence vote. Parliamentary elections were held in April, and resulted in a solid victory for Berlusconi's coalition; Berlusconi again became premier. In Sept., 2008, years of negotiation with Libya over compensation for three decades of Italian colonial rule ended with Italy agreeing to pay for 20-year, $5 billion compensation package.
In 2010, Italy, like many eurozone nations, was forced to adopt austerity measures to reduce government deficits that had increased as a result of the 2008–9 global downturn, but the proposed legislation provoked strong oppostion. A number of financial scandals involving government ministers as well as personal scandals involving Berlusconi also led to a loss of popularity for his government. There were increasing tensions and ultimately splits within the governing coalition during 2010; the government narrowly survived a no-confidence vote in December, and again in Oct., 2011.
In 2011 the government suffered losses in local elections (May) and in referendums on several pieces of legislation (June). As concerns over the country's financial situation increased in mid-2011, the government adopted an austerity budget in July, which was subsequently revised as Italy's difficulties with the bond markets continued and the European Central Bank made aid contingent on increased austerities. Berlusconi struggled to hold his splintering coalition together, and was finally forced from office (Nov., 2011) by the erosion of market and EU confidence in his economic and financial policies.
Mario Monti , an economist and former member of the European Commission, became premier of a nonpartisan government consisting of technocrats, and subsequently won passage of austerities and economic reforms. Italy continued to face recurring pressures in the bond markets during 2012, which led to the adoption of additional measures. In Dec., 2012, Monti's government lost the support of Berlusconi's party, and he submitted his resignation; the president dissolved parliament and called new elections for Feb., 2013.
The Democratic party–led center-left coalition won a lower house majority, but only a plurality in the senate. The popular vote was closer, however, with Berlusconi's coalition narrowly behind, followed by comedian Beppe Grillo's Five Star Movement (the largest party in terms of votes); Monti's coalition was fourth. A new government proved difficult to form, with the Democratic leader, Luigi Bersani, resisting a coalition with Berlusconi, and the Five Star Movement refusing to take a secondary role in a coalition. The election of a new president also proved contentious. Napolitano was reelected (April) after party leaders appealed to him to become a candidate for a second term; he became the first Italian president to be reelected. Party disagreements led Bersani to step down as Democratic leader, and Napolitano appointed the deputy leader, Enrico Letta , as premier. Letta quickly formed a broad coalition that included the Democrats and Berlusconi's and Monti's parties. In the subsequent local elections (May–June) the center-left coalition did well while the Berlusconi's party and the Five Star Movement did poorly. In September Berlusconi withdrew support for the government over an impending vote that removed (November) him from the senate (because of his criminal convictions), but a revolt in his party forced him to support the government in a confidence vote in October. Berlsuconi's party subsequently withdrew (November) from the government, but his party split and the government survived a confidence vote.
In early 2014 the new leader of the Democrats, Matteo Renzi , became increasingly critical of the Letta government, which he accused of proceeding too slowly with reforms and failing to improve the economy. In February Letta resigned, and Renzi, who had been mayor of Florence and had never served in the parliament, became premier. Renzi subsequently sought a series of government reforms, and won passage of cuts in local government in April; labor reforms were passed later in the year.
In Jan., 2015, Napolitano resigned as president for health reasons; Sergio Mattarella, a former government minister and justice of the constitutional court, was elected to succeed him. The following May, Renzi pushed through a revision of the electoral law for the Chamber of Deputies that retained the proportional system (overturned in part by the constitutional court in Jan., 2017), and in Apr., 2016, he succeeded in securing legislative approval of significant constitutional changes to weaken the Senate and reduce the power of the regions. In the June, 2016, local elections, the Five Star Movement made gains against the Democrats. After a referendum in Dec., 2016, in which voters resoundingly rejected Renzi's proposed constitutional changes, he resigned as premier and was succeeded by Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni .
Local elections in June, 2017, were marked by center-right gains. In Oct., 2017, a new mixed constituency and proportional voting system that encouraged the formation of electoral coalitions was enacted by the parliament; the Five Star Movement, which had said it would not form such alliances, denounced the voting system. Parliamentary elections in Mar., 2018, resulted in a potentially deadlocked legislature. The center-right coalition won the largest bloc of seats, with the right-wing League becoming its leading party, displacing Forza Italia; the Five Star Movement placed second but was the largest single party; and the Democrats center-left coalition was third. Ultimately the Five Star Movement and the League agreed to form a coalition and, in June, Giuseppe Conte, a law professor who was a member of neither party, became premier of a populist government.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
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Unless I've missed something recent, NHT still has a dealer network, which an arrangement like what you describe for Anthony Gallo and Legacy—NHT sells direct, or you can buy through a dealer, but pricing and dealer pricing is identical, aside from discounts negotiated with dealers or occasional short-term sales direct from NHT.
A Beauty in Sight and Sound: The Salk WOW1 Mini-monitor
Salk WOW1 Speakers ($1199)
The term "internet direct", as it pertains to audio gear, was once a hot topic on many of the audio forums. Internet direct meant companies that sold exclusively over the internet, direct to the consumer, sidestepping the traditional dealer network distribution model. The idea was to remove the extra (rather large) dealer markup, thus offering a far better value than what traditional brands could possibly hope to achieve. But there's no free lunchthese savings came with some downsides, chief among them the lack of ability to demo the gear in person before making a purchase. That's not such a big deal when talking about a small headphone amp which maybe costs $20 to ship, but speakers are another matter, and speakers tend to be a major category for the internet direct model. Even a fairly compact monitor speaker can be rather expensive to ship, and what if the customer doesn't like it? Who eats the return costs? The initial savings of the business model can quickly disappear if the customer is responsible for shipping, and it may prove unsustainable if the manufacturer carries the cost. The way around this, of course, is to sell such excellent speakers that very few customers will be disappointed.
Fast forward to 2013, and "internet direct" isn't really a big deal any longer. I think most reasonable audiophiles are willing to give respect wherever it is due, whether it be to an old-school store-bought brand like B&W, Harbeth, Focal, or PSB, or to one of the many internet direct companies like Axiom, Hsu Research, Tyler Acoustics, Aperion, and others. And the line between the old business model and internet direct is even beginning to blurNHT, a traditional brand found in brick and mortar stores for decades, is now only available direct. Other brands like Anthony Gallo Acoustics and Legacy Audio offer a sort of hybrid experience, relying chiefly on direct sales but also keeping a small dealer network throughout the country, with identical pricing no matter where the customer decides to buy.
A fine example of an internet direct speaker company is Salk Sound. Having been in business for a number of years, Salk has built a strong reputation for quality, amassing what almost seems to be a cult following across several prominent audio forums. Their offerings tend to be on the bigger sidetower speakers or fairly large stand mount designs, neither of which really qualifies as "personal audio" which is our main focus at InnerFidelity. But recently that changed with the launch of Salk's WOW1 compact monitor ($1199). I decided to give them a spin and boy am I glad I did.
You've probably heard the term "bookshelf speakers" used to describe a smallish monitor speaker. I dislike the name, since a large majority of them will sound terrible when placed in an actual bookshelf. This is mainly due to their rear ported designs which need some room to breath, room which a bookshelf doesn't provide. The WOW1, on the other hand, uses a front mounted slot port and is specifically designed with the idea of being mounted in a bookshelf or up against some surface. But I still prefer to call it a mini-monitor because that just sounds better.
With respect to size, the WOW1 straddles the line between something you'd use as a stand-mounted monitor in a larger setting and something more suited as a desktop monitor used with a computer setup. And this the main reason why it fits at InnerFidelity. At 7" wide, 9" deep, and less than 11" tall, it's just barely larger than the Emotiva Airmotiv5 and the Audioengine A5+ which are popular choices for desktop audio. Yet the WOW1 can perform very admirably in a larger room, competing and, in my opinion, surpassing plenty of speakers in its price range. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
The WOW1 derives its name from the compliment of drivers used: a Seas Excel W12 4.5" magnesium cone woofer, and a Hiquphon OW1 3/4" soft-dome tweeter. See that? W + OW1 = WOW1. Clever. Now I'm sure Salk gets better pricing than the average DIYer but even still, these are definitely not cheap quality driversthey're surprisingly common among "high-end" speakers. Combine these quality drivers with a properly designed fourth-order crossover and you've got the makings of a great speaker.
Yet drivers plus a crossover don't really do much without an enclosure. And that's something of a specialty for Salk Sound. Rather than outsourcing to China as most competitors do (internet direct and brick & mortar brands do this regularly), Salk custom makes all enclosures in their own Michigan facility. Now don't get me wrong here, I've seen some phenomenal looking Chinese-made enclosures. I'm not playing the patriot card where nobody does it better than the home team...and neither is Salk. But there are some inherent advantages that come with controlling the entire process from start to finish and doing it locally. We'll discuss those specifics on the next page but for now I'll simply put it this way: You'd be hard pressed to find a speaker of any caliber or price that puts the Salk offerings to shame. Yes, the WOW1 enclosures are on the "boring" side in terms of being rectangular instead of using some swoopy curved design, but that's really the only criticism I can possibly think of. In exchange for that, we get a spectacular real wood finish that looks simply breathtaking. My review sample came in Curly Walnut which is one of several "standard finishes" available for the base price. There's nothing "standard" about it as I attempt, but probably fail, to show in my pictures. It's rich, glossy, and beautiful.
Curly Walnut not your style? How about Red Oak, White Oak, Mahogany, Curly Cherry, or Curly Maple? Those are all available at the $1199 base price. Salk offers custom finishes like Pepperwood Burl and Birds Eye Maple for an additional fee, and can even accommodate most custom requests. Want a specific type of binding post? Need pre-drilled holes for stand mounting? Have some other crazy ideas? Just ask. Owner Jim Salk is known for being approachable and easy to work with.
Speaking of Jim Salk, he was great at quickly and efficiently answering my endless questions. In fact, rather than continuing to ramble on, I thought it might be illuminating to have Jim explain things in his own words. Read on for that....
Back in early 2009, a big deal was made about NHT closing their doors. Speculation was that they had gone under. But then they came back as an internet-direct company, as was widely reported (example). Either that reporting was inaccurate at the time or else they decided to pick up some authorized dealers between then and now. Either way, I'm glad they are still around, as I have fond memories of some of their older models. Haven't heard much of their new stuff though.
So I reviewed a bunch of desktop-friendly amps while back. Most were inexpensive T amps and such, and probably wouldn't do the WOW1 justice, but I was really impressed with the NuForce Dia and Audioengine N22.
Testing was with the Pioneer SP-BS-22LR speakers, which are not in the same class as the WOW1, but were impressively revealing of the differences between apps. The Dia (which has a built-in DAC) sounded great, but the N22 paired with a DAC such as the DragonFly tops it. Both are great buys at $199. I'm sure the amps Tyll used for this review do a better job driving the WOW1, but these two models have very small footprints.
Well, the N22's an AB amp... What t-amps or class D did you compare them with? I'm just curious, as it seems almost none of the reviews I've ever found for the N22 will actually compare it against anything else whatsoever... I've been thinking of getting one for my desk/room for my lowly Infinity P163's (which will probably be replaced by HSU HB-1's in the living room), will probably just end up getting something like a Topping unit for comparison's sake and end up reselling whichever I like the 'least.
Edit: John wrote this review btw, not Tyll, 'least that's what the byline says. :p
I'm currently out for a pair of active speakers or a pair of monitors for near and midfield, and these could be a good pair of candidates for their reasonable price. I'm also really interested in GENELEC's 8040Bs, which double the cost of the SALKs, but being active monitors include Amps and offer flexibility for room correction, etc. I also find Emotiva Pro Stealth 8s a bargain for the bang they deliver. Have you had any experience with the GENELECs or Emotiva's Stealth 8s? Any chance of upcoming reviews of GENELEC monitors?
I've heard various Genelecs over the years, and all have impressed. I am interested in covering one of the new G series models, maybe the G Three. But I'm still unsure about their availability since I don't see them at any of the usual Genelec dealers online. Maybe they aren't quite released yet? The 8040 should be fabulous though. The only issue might be the port being on the rear. You'll ideally want some space behind them.
I have yet to experience the new Emotiva Stealth models. The 6 is already pushing it for me, and the 8 is definitely too large. They are also rear ported but I find the top slot port to be less of an issue than a round port in the middle or bottom as some other models have. But if the Stealth are better sounding versions of the Airmotiv then they are quite good indeed. You probably can't go wrong with any of these choices - it comes down to looks, features, price, etc.
I was also originally interested in the newer G series, but they don't appear to be much available out there, unless you're buying from a couple of Swedish hifi shops. So instead I checked out the 8000 series studio monitors, as opposed to the G series, intended for home use. To my surprise, the G Fours feature the exact same specs as the 8040Bs, and the correlation extends to the G Threes and the 8030Bs, and so on (with exception of the 8050Bs).
The real differences lie in the extra RCA input of the G series and the substantially more versatile active crossover control panel of the 8000 studio series. This is kind of weird, since a living room is probably a lot more challenging when it comes to room correction, than a studio setting. The difference in price, as far as I could work out from Swedish Crowns, is around $500 USD in favor of the 8000 series, which means that the name of finnish industrial designer, Harri Koskinen, probably also comes on the bill. The name of Koskinen is associated to the G series in the advertisement, but not so to the 8000 series, that look exactly the same. Hmmm...
In my opinion, the 8000 series makes a better buy than the G series, if one is looking to get the accuracy, neutrality and imaging capabilities of active studio monitors for the living room. They offer the same specs as the more expensive G series and more versatility when it comes to the active crossovers.
The Emotiva Pro Stealths appear to be another good option for a small living room, as the two built-in 200W power Amps should deliver even more SPL than the Genelec 8050Bs, and extend further in the lower frequencies, making a sub woofer almost redundant.
I would like to take my "personal audio" experience to my livingroom, and enjoy the advantages of room correction and active bi-amping, not to mention saving space and some cash. I wrote to both Genelec and Emotiva, and both agree that for the 8-10ft distance from the speakers that I want to listen at (in a 50-55 square meter living room) is ideal. Emotiva also informs me many of their customers use the powerful Stealth 8s in stereo rigs, and the pair goes for some $200 USD more than the cost of just one 8040B. That's pretty damn hard to beat.
I also hope to see the release of the fully balanced 24/192 Stealth DC-1 DAC, that Emotiva has been exhibiting their Stealth 8s with, and which should go for 699. That would be a cool future review ;).
Excellent review, I've had my wow's for about 8 months and just adore them. They are a great compliment to my JWN tube amp and they sound remarkable, for any size. Jim is also an absolute pleasure to work with. My wife will probably never let me have floorspeakers again after hearing what these guys will do.
Here's some pics of mine:
And nicely detailed speakers, evidently! I really enjoyed your descriptions, comparisons, gut reactions, value appraisals, conversations with the manufacturer, and your inspired pros......Haven't heard these yet, but for little ported speakers, they must rock. I have been designing and building speakers seriously for the past 18 years, and I love reading about successful designs. I want to see the x-over!
Growing up in a family of wood workers (brother carved, father made custom furniture) I have a serious weakness for lovely wood, and the speakers on the front of the article gave me a serious case of cravings. I call photos like that "wood porn".
I'm significantly intrigued in them for a whole range of other reasons - made in the Detroit area (born and raised there, and I root for any business that can make it there), custom options available, and the very sensible design decision to port on the front. The realities of homes and work spaces aren't very friendly to all those speakes out there with ports on the back, which means all that work that goes into the speaker design gets trashed by a near-wall placement. I've had children, and still have medium size dogs, and the idea of speakers on a stand situated four feet away from a wall is just an invitation for testing the speakers' bounciness when they get knocked over by wrestling dogs.
I do find it humorous when I see somebody who spent big money on a very serious speaker, only to back it up into the wall and totally diminish its performance. Wouldn't it be better to buy something specifically designed to work in that situation, even if it was a seemingly less ambitious or prestigious speaker?
"So while, on average, 5 - 8 watts is sufficient, if you want the cleanest possible performance, the more watts you have, the better. So while these small "T-amps" are quite inexpensive, many of the lower power amps won't have the muscle required to control the woofer in the bass region."
Agreed, entirely, but rather short of mentioning the most important thing, dynamics. Dynamics are the single most important quality that defines a live "you are there" feel to reproduced music, and a large dynamic transient takes an enormous amount of power in relation to the average power needed. Those little T-amps are inadequate for even vaguely realisitic reproduction of music less than disastrously trampled with compression with any speaker of much less than around 95 dB efficiency, much less the 84 dB of these.
... just above the part you quoted, where he mentioned the much higher requirements for transients. But thanks for helping clarify - I completely agree.
I have a pair of these that I have placed in the upper right and left corners of my HT for front high speakers in my 11.2 setup and they sound totally awesome. They match very well with the rest of my setup that is a mixture of Monitor Audio, B&W, and Boston Acoustic speakers. Working with Salk was a dream, their website allows you to follow your custom built speaker through the process so you really feel like part of things. And then of course the icing on the cake is when you hang them and play them for the first time. And then things only get better as they break in. I would not hesitate in recommending Salk to anyone looking for small or large floor standing speakers, they really do a fantastic job on everything they make.
Really enjoyed reading the review. I was wonderingif you could kindly elaborate a little more on the living room tests- how large is the living room ? You mentioned that in the living room you placed it a few feet away from the wall. Did you try placing it closer?
The review was incredibly helpful for me. I am trying to move to a more lifestyle friendly setup in my living room. I am replacing a pair of Vienna Acoustic Mozart Grands with a set of Era (peachtree) D4's and a Rel R205 Subwoofer (Incrediblye pleased with how well the latter set can substitute the former). Given that I am still in testing mode, I am now very tempted to try out the Wow1. I tried the PSB imagine minis too - they were great but they were no match for the D4 (at least in my room) which also seemd to integrate better with the Rel.
The living room is about 15 deep by 30 wide, because it opens into a connected (smaller) dining room on one side. The ceiling is vaulted, topping out at around 13 feet or so. There's also an opening on the other side leading to an entry way. Clearly not a room designed for good audio! But I think most would call it something between a medium and large room, factoring in the hight and all the openings.
I was able to put the WOW1 pretty close to the back wall without too much penalty. They sounded somewhat less open that way but definitely still enjoyable.
Unfortunately I have no experience with the D4. Looks like the WOW1 sit somewhere between the D4 and larger D5 in terms of driver and cabinet size. That rear port could be a factor as compared to the front slot on the WOW1. The Salk obviously looks quite a bit nicer, in terms of finish. But that's about as far as I'd go without hearing the D4.
Imagine Mini is a great little speaker but imho it requires just the right size (small) room to shine. It's not ideal for desktop use due to the rear port, unless you have an open desk with no rear wall. I can see how it would not work out as well in your situation.
Keep in mind the "lower priced" Salk speakers come with a 30-day in home trial. You'd just be out shipping costs if you didn't like them.
Thanks for taking the time out to reply. My living room is certainly smaller than that so I will have to try out the WOW1's.
Based on what you wrote, I will give the imagine minis a try in my study.


text:
While the history of documentary film is riddled with truly gifted storytellers, the genre has also historically attracted more than its share of dilettantes--folks with the time, money, access and curiosity to make happen the kinds of projects that most folks could only dream of.
And so we present to you the trailer for "Side by Side," the new doc from Keanu Reeves, which finds the actor discussing the art of movies with the likes of James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, and Martin Scorsese.
U.S. & World
The film seems to focus on the fight between digital and film, a battle that has heated up over the past decade, thanks in large part to the advent of 3D technology. For all the great memories we have of watching film, it's amusing that this conversation continues to rage on.
As Cameron notes, you can shoot 3D on film, which immediate puts it at a huge commercial disadvantage. But more importantly, the rise in digital technology has "democratized" film-making, as George Lucas says. Before digital cameras came along, making movies was the realm of people with power and money who had to learn how to operate heavy and onerous machines.
Now any
jerk artist with a vision and a few thousand bucks can make a movie. Whenever an artistic medium develops a new level of technology that a) makes more money and b) lowers the barrier to entry, the battle has been lost. We say this as someone who still buys vinyl, but has 50 gigs of music on a hard drive at home.
"Side By Side" premieres next month at the Berlin International Film Festival.


text:
Do you think I could just leave this part blank and it'd be okay? We're just going to replace the whole thing with a header image anyway, right?
You are not logged in.
Well let's watch this topic crash and burn and see me getting banned for cyberbullying people with broken English. I'm up for a ban and some bad reputation, why not?
Alright, so with most users, grammar is not a big issue. They say things in an understandable manner and while they might have slight hiccups here and there, they convey their messages well. However, the issue stems from those outliars who speak English about as well as the foreign exchange student from China. (I won't say any specific names, however I think you all know precisely who I am talking about.)
Now I get that English is not everyone's first language and I perfectly understand that it is a hard language to learn and master.
But I also don't care. It's really **** absurd how with some users I need to spend a minute just trying to decipher what they are even trying to say, and even then there's no guarantee that the words they tried to use are even coherent to begin with. I'm pretty sure most of you feel the same way. You just stare at someone's post and are mentally debating whether you should even bother trying to understand what they MEANT to say. Some might try calling out people for their bad grammar, but for most they just read it and think ''Wow this is absolute trash so I'm just gonna ignore it''
While we're here, let me ask you something. Should people have a voice if they cannot use that voice? If you answered yes, then here's a follow-up question. Why? Why should they have something that they cannot use optimally?
If you make a forum post but it has such **** grammar that no one can understand it, then what was the point of that post? It essentially becomes spam but with good intentions tied behind it. And to me, your intentions mean nothing, but your actions mean everything. So they essentially are spam in my eyes. Like if I just made a topic like ''KDbkjfnejkndlaNSMC MC'' then I'm guaranteed to get warned for it, but someone can make something that's almost as incomprehensible and they get off scott-free? Yeah how about no.
What I am suggesting is some sort of penalty for the Engrish speakers or at the very least something that should reduce the number of them in the future. I'm not expecting a perfectionist system where no grammatical mistakes are allowed, but I at the very least want to be able to read a post and immediately understand the message the person is trying to convey. I think this would really help regulate the trash posts and keep the forums clean for everyone else.
Pls no ban
How long will it take me to get banned again?
Place your bets right here.
Now I get that English not everyone's first language
*is not
if you take a look on posts made by some people, this suggestion suddenly starts making a lot of sense
on the other hand, both you and i used to be literal garbage at typing in english some time in the past
i see whats the problem though, its not that non-native speakers make some mistakes here and there, its people such as peace that type completely incomprehensible gibberish, that is, actually without any exaggeration, extremely hard to understand. what can we do about it though? punish the poor fella for not writing in english properly? whether hes doing it purposefully or he is really just garbage at typing (or even disabled, who knows), we dont really know. maybe theres a nicer way to help him out on his journey of finding a spellchecker, rather than going witch hunting? is it worth the effort though, would anyone bother doing that?
technically, he did nothing wrong and punishing him just cause "you suck at english" would be just an unwelcoming attitude coming from the forum admins. there are people on these forums that deserve such an attitude much more than he does.
in my opinion, the easiest and most harmless thing that you can do about it is to simply not read his posts. if he wants to be heard by people, that will give him incentive to put more meaning into his text, if he doesn't really care then he will just move on with his life and stop posting here. OR talk to him and try to get it across that if he wants to contribute to these forums he has to work on his typing skills more.
tl;dr ppls grammar is getting **** abysmal
I guess it should be added that usually the bad grammer is because people can't be bothered to check through their posts, not because they are not good enough at english to write coherently.
IMO it is alright if somebody is actually trying to be understandable, but when they just seem to assume everyone will know what they mean so dont bother to spend time on writing their posts then something needs to happen to give them an incentive to put more effort into being understandable.
TL;DR: ban people with bad English?
Now I get that English is not everyone's first language and I perfectly understand that it is a hard language to learn and master.
Nah, it's age that's the problem.
You're best off just not reading the post.
One bot to rule them all, one bot to find them. One bot to bring them all... and with this cliché blind them.
There should be an upper limit on posting > a limit of grammar since people like you cant stop talking and its causing the forum database to overload, causing mental overstimulation, and extreme deteriation of forum members.
what can we do about it though? punish the poor fella for not writing in english properly?
When I said 'penalty' I didn't really mean bans, since I agree that getting banned for making grammatical mistakes is a real kick in the teeth and will most likely foster resentment within the people who are really struggling. I just want something that gives people a reason to think about what they say and how other's interpret that, and thus giving them an incentive to improve on their writing skills.
However, thinking about it, it doesn't necessarily have to be some form of punishment in order to make people stop spewing such badly worded posts.
You can do something similar to Pingo's suggestion in an attempt to reduce the number of people who make these types of posts.
Instead of punishing people with bad English for speaking poorly, maybe we could try encouraging them to become better by rewarding them if there is clear progress being made?
Those are the two other ideas that spring to mind that would achieve the same goal, aka reducing trash on the forums.
in my opinion, the easiest and most harmless thing that you can do about it is to simply not read his posts.
In the short run, yes this is the easiest solution we have, however in the long run this isn't really a good one.
What worries me is that in the future we will have more of these people who trash post, since new ones keep coming and the old ones still have pretty **** grammar since they have no reason to change. This leads to more annoyance in the community, as it has to spend time processing more posts, but also it makes the staff do more work, trying to understand if the post of that user breaks the rules or not.
However what really concerns me is that if people ignore these specific users, they might start developing feelings of being shunned or hated by the community, which is pretty much exactly how I felt back when I joined these forums in 2015 and still used the 'xD' emoticon unironically. Trust me it's a really **** feeling to have and I don't want other's experiencing it.
How long will it take me to get banned again?
Place your bets right here.
what if we... gave gems to whomever takes their time to translate a post. incentive for people to at least read it.... but not really an incentive for the OP to improve. hmm
though honestly speaking, i really don't have the energy to begin to parse peace's posts, so I don't bother reading them even though I otherwise read like 99% of non-forum-game posts
like, bad grammar and english as a non-native language is completely fine by me, but there's a line that gets crossed when you don't even make a cursory readthrough of your post to make sure it's at least a little bit error free.
it took me a minute to fix just by clicking whatever the spell checker suggested, added minimal punctuation, and pressing space for each new sentence:
...this has 37 things underlined by spell-check. most of them are just two characters switched around or spaces a character early but it dramatically reduces the readability of the post when it's THAT bad
(edit: oh yeah and the complete lack of punctuation)
like I'm definitely guilty of typos on occasion but i DO at least try to make sure my point gets across and has a bit of clarity.
if you want to be listened to, make an effort if someone tells you there's an issue.
proc's discorb stylish themes for forums/the game
danke bluecloud thank u raphe rest in peace my dear lil crab teague. and fitzpatrick. i loved you a lot
Yo are we talking about peace?
That's right, stop making jokes during game discussion. It's almost off-topic.
Stop about harambe, it's sad about died. It's all boy's fault for making harambe jokes to everyone.
Don't make jokes of him being died.
Rest in peace.
Is there an easy way to enable a spellchecker in text areas? If so having millions of red lines might put people off posting with such bad grammer.
in chrome is pretty easy. Right-Click on text field and check spellcheck
LukeM wrote:
Is there an easy way to enable a spellchecker in text areas? If so having millions of red lines might put people off posting with such bad grammer.
in chrome is pretty easy. Right-Click on text field and check spellcheck
I mean through HTML, theres no way we can get peace etc. to do that every time
I'm not going to go and quote everyone, although I do agree with plenty of the suggestions here. It would be neat to have a team of people dedicated to helping people with poor grammar, this would be of course a task in which you sign up. If rewards for it were a thing we lose any good incentive, the job should just be purely to make a post readable; Not to include rewards. Heck, peace could be Stephen king but we don't know. It's an easily abused system, and is better off with a team of people who do it for free.
I think there could be a little button to "report" posts for bad grammar, spelling, and etc, So one of the team members would be notified and could deal with it accordingly. Though there should be a slight rule here, they have to have a spoiler with the old piece of text. This allows anyone to see if the posts intent was lost, or the post was deluded. (The team member messed up the post)
Once this is done, I think OP could also have a button to report mistakes or loss of meaning in the text, and to have someone come fix it.
Well that is all for my suggestion,
<Download this image and make it your avatar, repent from unique avatars!
IMO the goal should be to convince people to spend more time reading through their posts to make sure they make sense, as it seems some people dont even read it once
Maybe some flag option about grammer, and if somebody got too many bad grammer flags they would get a popup before they post saying something like "Several people have had trouble reading your previous posts, make sure you proof-read it to correct any mistakes so more people can hear your ideas"
If someone wants their posts to be read then they will make an effort to make them readable. People have already told peace about the readability of their posts/to get a spellchecker/etc. and they either haven't responded or said they don't care, so I don't think it's anyone's problem but their own.
imo their posts aren't even completely incomprehensible, they just take a little longer to read. Decide for yourself whether you can be bothered to read them or not (I sure as hell can't be bothered to read a bunch of people's posts and they're all "grammatically correct").
if it's bad enough to be legitimately unreadable then it should already fall under the rules about spam
I think we should have a system that rewards users for making good posts.
Everybody Edits, yeah.
good posts.
That's very very very subjective.
N1KF wrote:
good posts.
That's very very very subjective.
Want me to get more objective? Here a few ideas:
posts that are well-written and easy to read
posts that help the community
modest posts that aren't seeking attention
posts that are patient or kind towards one or more other users
posts that have funny jokes, but don't push the rules or talk down to other users
If you want the process to be more objectively done, just have users vote on posts. This could either be done in a single topic, or it could have its own system like woots, but with a stricter limit and a dedicated purpose. Users would give explanations for why they think a post is good and worth giving the reward to.
I feel this would be a really help the community's problem with negative and low-effort posts, by giving a natural spotlight to those who do well.
Everybody Edits, yeah.
looks like description of https://www.reddit.com/
We had experience with reputation points before, wasn't pretty useful
But it would be good to have something than forum post count that allows to distinguish noobs from good players
I think we should have a system that rewards users for making good posts.
Good idea! I propose we start using upvotes. Maybe with a similar name to something already in EE. Hm...
N1KF wrote:
I think we should have a system that rewards users for making good posts.
Good idea! I propose we start using upvotes. Maybe with a similar name to something already in EE. Hm...
I propose: Swoots.
Everybody edits, but some edit more than others
looks like description of https://www.reddit.com/
We had experience with reputation points before, wasn't pretty useful
No, not quite. Woots and upvotes are more a generic "I like this post" rather than "I think this post is good for this community".
Requiring a public vote, plus an explanation, along with some guidelines means that they wouldn't fall to the same problem woots and reputation do—being a free-for-all where people can do pretty much anything they want to. Plus, -reps and downvotes encourage users to look down on other users, which is not at all what we need more of.
Everybody Edits, yeah.
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- Product Details
- Screen printed on archival paper, signed, wood frame with gallery grade Plexiglas window.
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