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social media and libraries
Use of social media by the library current practices and future opportunities (White Paper)
Social media objectives:
- promotion
- collection management tool
- Outreach
- teaching and learning
Opportunities and challenges
- opportunity to build a sense of community between the library and its users
- the variability of skills across library staff for using social media effectively, striking the right tone between professional and personal, coordinating activities across the institution to avoid duplication
- maintaining visibility for the library brand and copyright issues relating to hosting library resources on social media sites
Policies and management:
- Librarians are divided on the benefits of introducing formalized social media policies and plans. About a third of libraries responding to the Taylor & Francis survey had a policy in place, but over 40% had no plans to introduce one
- Some believe that representing the library as a professional function with a
consistent tone is the priority, while others believe that a more human approach is important, with individual staff free to bring their own ideas and personalities to social media activities.
Effectiveness and assessment:
- difficult to prove return on effort and that the time required to do this was a major barrier to more comprehensive analysis of impact
- framework for evaluation, so it is likely that assessment against commonly agreed metrics will become an increasingly important part of social media activity within the library in the near future
Current Social Media Practices:
- In a study from the mid 2000s (Cantrell and Havens1 ), most library directors in the US when questioned about social media said they did not think that libraries had a role in social networking
- A more recent study from 2012 (Kai-Wah Chu and Du4) shows how use of social media by the library has now become mainstream. In this survey of libraries in Asia, North America and Europe, 71% were found to be using social media tools with a further 13% saying they planned to use them
Advantages of using social media
n Financially the costs of using social media are perceived to be low;
n It requires little training;
n It promotes library services and disseminates news quickly, delivering this information more directly to library users;
n It increases engagement and interactions with library users;
n It helps gather feedback to enhance user services;
n The promotion of library holdings via social media can help increase usage of content;
n It enhances communication both within the library and with other departments;
n It can be used for outreach activities through onward sharing, well beyond the institution itself, helping build connections and reputation more broadly
Social Media Objectives: graph on page 8 of the PDF document:
A To promote events
B To promote library services
C To promote resources/collections at the library
D To update on library refurbishments
E To promote new acquisitions
F To promote library guides, exhibition guides
G To connect with new students joining the university
H To engage with the academic community
I To connect with the wider community beyond the university e.g. the town in which the institution is based
J To connect with distance learners
K As a customer services tool- complaints, suggestions, enquiries, feedback
L To highlight subject specific information
M To connect with potential students
N As a teaching tool to promote information literacy, technology and writing tips (not library based)
O To promote courses
P As a research tool to locate official documents and studies
From UK-based focus group: "The library is a programme, not just a building."
Channel preferences: Graph on page 10 of the PDF document
SOCIAL MEDIA USES Table on p 13 of the PDF document
Twitter n Distribute library news and information
n Provide customer service
n Build connections with researchers
n Build connections with other librarians and institutions
Facebook n Distribute library news and information
n More social and less formal than Twitter – share photographs and run competitions
n Arrange events including tracking RSVPs and sending event updates
n Engagement with students
Pinterest n Promote general library collections, digital and archive special collections and information literacy
n Set up of online repositories for students to pin researched references as part of
collaborative group work
n Display book titles to save time browsing and promote new titles
n Provide an arena for students and course leaders to pin reviewed and recommended reading
for a particular topic
n Develop communities with other online libraries
YouTube n Streaming film collections
n Instructional 'how to' videos teaching information literacy skills and how to use library
services and resources
There are also a number of other social media products that are being used by librarians that reflect regional
preferences and the need for the specific functions offered by niche applications.
Collection usage and discovery: Graph on p. 15
Teaching and learning
From US-based librarian interview: "The trend in education now is to create environments that foster collaborative learning. Faculty have ditched textbooks and course management systems in exchange for a Facebook page for their class, or a wiki, or a blog. These online environments are fun; students already know how to use them and are more motivated to comment, discuss and share in these environments than a dry CMS."
Social media policies and management, p. 18
73% of respondents stating that they believed more roles dedicated to social media would appear in the library in the future.
Effectiveness of social media
From UK focus group: "We keep track of something particularly successful, then we redo the campaign 6 months later."
From US focus group: "We have very few interactions with anyone on our Twitter feed."
"Twitter is definitely the best platform, because we hashtag all of our posts with the keyword
of the publication, and so for the academic audience, once they click it's going to pull up all
of the similar publications under that topic.
Promoting library social media channels
From UK focus group:
"We retweet each other to encourage new followers." My note: Suggested by me regarding SCSU_Library for Twitter and Pinterest and SCSUTechinstruct but "considered" (in local lingo, slow death of the idea)


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May 15, 2014
City News Service
Young people will be able to learn and gain skills this summer while they explore the city of Los Angeles under a newly launched program, Mayor Eric Garcetti said recently. The mayor joined educators to announce the Los Angeles Summer of Learning program, which will take advantage of the city's parks, libraries, schools, museums and cultural resources. The program "will transform Los Angeles into a 500-square-mile campus and provide learning opportunities for our youth when school is not in session," Garcetti said.
Students will be connected to "creative, interactive and interest- driven learning opportunities," and be exposed to skills that will "prepare to enter the workforce," he said.
"Learning happens everywhere, not only in the classroom," said John Deasy, superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District.
Deasy said the program will help close an "achievement gap between lower- and high-income youth," which is partly caused by "unequal access to summer learning opportunities."
Youths aged 3 to 24 will be able to take part in 100 in-person and online activities that include building robots, writing poetry, programming, cooking, dancing and swimming. Cultural institutions involved in the program include the Getty Center and, farther afield, the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. Once activities are completed, participants earn badges and be encouraged to "level-up" by exploring a particular area of interest more deeply.
Sign-ups for the program begin May 20 at http://summeroflearning.la. The MacArthur Foundation launched a similar program in Chicago last year and is designing the Los Angeles program, website and digital badges, Garcetti's aides said. Los Angeles' Summer of Learning program is funded by various private donations, including $500,000 from JPMorgan Chase and $200,000 from the California Endowment, according to the mayor's office.

subset: commoncrawl


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RyokoTK wrote:Stop citing Eternal or any other scenario as a legitimate source for facts in the Marathon universe, since the creators made the whole thing up. Thank you.
Drictelt wrote:As far as i understood, the jjarro were humans that escaped the universe to become gods... But is anything known about their powers?
Johannes Gunnar wrote:PID includes the Jjarro, and also the dreaming god could be the W'rk. So PID happens in the same universe as 'thon.
RyokoTK wrote:Drictlet, it's not like that instance is the first (or last) time wherein someone cited Rubicon or Eternal or any other scenario to try and explain how the original Trilogy works.
Phortiphy wrote:3 things:
Phortiphy wrote:well then. call me stupid! : )
Phortiphy wrote:Bump/Double Post:
Isn't there a PiD2?
Johannes Gunnar wrote:PID includes the Jjarro, and also the dreaming god could be the W'rk. So PID happens in the same universe as 'thon.
I take it then that no TCs are connected in terms of storyline to any others?
RyokoTK wrote:Eternal... I'm not sure how Eternal works, except that it is a different sequel to the Trilogy, but because it's such a different experience, it's not really thought of as "the" sequel, at least not as far as I know.
Phortiphy wrote:3 things:
1: what are the jjaro?
2: what is wr'k
3: wtf happened to Durandal
4: one large post would be really nice, instead of a billion people screaming at me.
6: what is up with the shadow/slowmoving/invincible sph't k'r level?
7: why does every other level have an exit to the last level?
8: who was drunk when they came up with the storyline?
9: why do the bobs like me then hate me then like me?
10: why do the various alien factions like me then hate me then like me?
11: why can't tycho DIE the like the billion times that durandal has
12: did tycho die?
13: that's about it, i think
14: whoops, way more than 3 things
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text:
28 's
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I placed my order on Friday, it's now Wednesday with no response from the seller. I paid the initial invoice, followed up with an email and sent a second message asking for an update/sign of life. This isn't how I choose to spend my money or time. Will not do business with DigitalDelight again and this experience has ruined ArtFire too. Will not be back to this website in the future. Very disappointed.
Copyright 2018 - Digital Delight - JustClickPrint. Please do not copy my designs, elements, descriptions, or wording.
After 2 weeks your items will automatically renewed for another 60 days and $0.23 per item will be added to your billing ledger.
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Easter and More4/12/2008 12:11:00 AM Edit This 0 Comments »
I keep telling myself that I'll find time to update the blog at least through our first year together but that time seems to be taken up by Miss Lexie, big surprise! So I'm going to do this by bits and pieces and hope for the best. Lexie is growing like crazy and more fun than ever. We had a great Easter complete with the city wide Easter Egg Hunt were we discovered that Lexie is very afraid of people in Easter Bunny outfits. That was strange because she doesn't seem to be afraid of much. She really had fun at the hunt once she understood that she was supposed to pick up the eggs not kick them. By the time we had our hunt on Easter morning at the house she was a pro and all the eggs were found and hidden and found again. She look adorable at Easter Service but I'm afraid she doesn't sit still for long so I got a work out at Mass. Oh well.
She is now taking ballet and tap class which is just hilarious with Lexie and 11 other 16 -30 month old little ladies and their moms pretending like they are dancing. Actually the ones that have been there since September are doing pretty well but with only about 5-6 classes under our belts the Quast girls are definitely not at the top of the class. But Lexie looks darn cute - as you can see. Believe it or not they are actually having a recital in June complete with costumes and a routine of sorts. Anyway it should be vastly entertain and Lexie will look adorable. Oh yeah, we had a breakthrough last week and she did a tippy toe turn and then a bow. What more could a Mom want!
She has also started going to an in home day care which she just loves. I call it going to see her friends since there are only 4-5 other kids. She really needed it as whenever we were out she would go up to any child she saw and would hold there hand and "talk" to them or try to dance. So Mommy to the hint and she really seems to be enjoying it.


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Specimen Criteria
What Makes Some Rock Specimens So Expensive?
A big factor in the value of an agate, jaspers, and thundereggs is fashion.
Between 1950 and 1980 there was such an abundance of fine agate coming out of the ground in the US and Mexico that the supply seemed endless. People made a hobby of digging up agates or getting them at shows or at the hundreds of rock shops all over the country. Slabs of this material were used to create cabochons that were worth ten or twenty dollars which was a good profit from a top quality slab or a pound of Laguna rough, either of which might cost less than $5! A half nodule of beautiful agate had little value so good rough was usually cut into slabs. Now, cabs are almost worthless because of mass manufacturing, mostly in the Orient, and half nodules have become very expensive, so this represents a great change in taste and value. The large quantity of slabs left over from the earlier days are inexpensive in comparison to the value half nodules.
If you consider the agates from antiquity very few had flat surfaces. Modern lapidary equipment makes it possible to flat lap an agate so that the pattern in the stone is presented as if looking at a painting and that is now the style. In earlier times a domed surface was considered more desirable because the cutter could bring out the pattern and remove blemishes and thus create a piece that would be seen as the art of the lapidary. Sawing a rock in half and polishing the surface is a craft that requires great skill but little art. Agates that are cut according to the current taste have greater value, at least for the moment.
I cut the specimen below from a chip I picked up while I was working at the Morrisonite deposit. It had damage around the edge and the piece was thin. By doming it I was able to remove the damage and also save the pattern. The price would go up if it had the same pattern with a flat surface.
Another factor that affects price is the condition of the specimen itself. If the face of the agate has a crack, even a tiny one, or a chip on the edge or even a flake off the back the value of the specimen is less. Even minor flaws in the condition of the agate will affect the price. Other factors are the size of the piece and how it sits. A specimen that has to have an elaborate support is less desirable. A small specimen is difficult to appreciate but a large piece shows off the details of its pattern, size does matter. A specimen which has little contrast and is dark is rarely as valuable as an agate which has striking colors and pattern.
There are factors that depend on the life the agate has led such as having been in a famous collection or played a role in history. Some collectors desire specimens which have been featured in publications or major exhibits.
As everyone knows, from a dealer on the street to a graduate from the Harvard Business School, the main factor is supply and demand. If a material floods the market prices will drop and rarity will usually enhances value. Since agates are a surface phenomenon once a good deposit is located it is usually not long before it is worked out. Of course if social or political forces stop production or the source is very large and widely distributed it may be around for a long time. When a type of agate rough is no longer coming to market the price is sure to shoot up.
As with paintings aesthetics are very important. If viewers are struck by the art, the beauty and the elegance of an agate it can bring a fantastic price… the value of an agate is whatever buyers are willing to pay in order to add it to their collection and most collectors are very sensitive to beauty.
The agate below is very valuable because it is at the top of all the above criteria, you can go down the list and each criteria has been met in spades.
I look forward to hearing your comments on this topic, as a dealer I don't set the prices, ultimately you decide.


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Ever the provocateur, Oliver Stone fired up the buzz machine by announcing that his Showtime series will do right by Adolf Hitler.
"Hitler is an easy scapegoat throughout history and it's been used cheaply," Stone told the Television Critics Association on Saturday in Pasadena, Calif, while discussing his "Secret History of America."
"(W)e can't judge people as only 'bad' or 'good'. [Hitler] is the product of a series of actions," explained Stone. "It's cause and effect. People in America don't know the connection between WWI and WWII."
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
Stalin's gotten a bum rap as well, to hear Stone tell it.
"Stalin has a complete other story. Not to paint him as a hero, but to tell a more factual representation. He fought the German war machine more than any person."
Yeah, and he killed way more people than Hitler.
Just because Oliver Stone went to a lousy high school, we all have to suffer through some revisionist nonsense wherein Stone plays "blame the victim" in some sad attempt to garner attention.
Stone's collaborator on the project, American University history professor Peter Kuznick, immediate went into damage control mode, noted the Guardian.
"He's not saying we're going to come out with a more positive view of Hitler. But we're going to describe him as a historical phenomenon," said Kuznick.


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Home » Plan Your Visit » Schools » Science, Learning and Railways - Science, Learning and Railways
Our exciting Science, Learning & Railways Exhibition together with a Learning Centre is housed in two railway coaches and includes many interactive exhibits designed to interest and involve visitors in science and engineering.
Developed in partnership with three local schools, the Exhibition and Learning Centre is available to schools and colleges to help them to deliver the National Curriculum in science and in a variety of other subjects.
The Learning Centre has a flexible layout and can be provided with a range of training aids. We have a number of practical tools to demonstrate a range of engineering and scientific principles. These include operational model steam engines.
Photo: Didcot Herald
In addition to the Learning Centre, educational visits can make use of construction kits in the Introduction area of the Science, Learning and Railways Exhibition, and the interactive "stations" of the main Exhibition coach.
The outdoor area around the Science, Learning and Railways Exhibition is still being developed and currently includes several large exhibits and a 'garden' railway.
Educational visits are tailored to meet the needs of each class. Pre-visit meetings are encouraged to discuss topics for study and practical arrangements.
The Science, Learning & Railways Project would not have been possible without generous grants from the Millennium Commission of £134,000 through the Rediscover Fund, a Biffaward of £34,000 and the substantial support received from St. Birinus School Didcot, Didcot Girls School and Faringdon Community College. The partner schools have also provided practical support with interactive exhibits in the outdoor area around the Science, Learning and Railways facility.
Stay up to date with events and what's going on at Didcot Railway Centre.
You may unsubscribe at any time. We do not share your data with 3rd parties.


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Yummy chocolate log
A Christmas treat the kids will enjoy helping to make, with an unusual minty filling
Nutrition and extra info
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal552
- fat32g
- saturates18g
- carbs64g
- sugars54g
- fibre0g
- protein5g
- salt0.32g
For the cake
- 3 eggs
The ultimate convenience food, eggs are powerhouses of nutrition packed with protein and a…
- 85g golden caster sugar
- 85g plain flour (less 2 tbsp)
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- ½ tsp baking powder
Baking powderbay-king pow-dah
Baking powder is a raising agent that is commonly used in cake-making. It is made from an alkali…
For the filling & icing
- 50g butter
Butter is a dairy product made from separating whole milk or cream into fat and…
- 140g dark chocolate, broken into squares
Dark chocolatedahk chok-o-let
Dark chocolate means the shiny, dark-reddish brown treat produced from the cacao bean, theobroma…
- 1 tbsp golden syrup
Golden syrupgoal-dun sir-rup
Golden syrup is a translucent, golden-amber coloured, sweet syrup, which can only be produced…
- 284ml pot double cream
- 200g icing sugar, sifted
- 2-3 extra strong mint, crushed (optional)
There are several types of mint, each with its own subtle difference in flavour and appearance.…
- icing sugar and holly sprigs to decorate - ensure you remove the berries before serving
Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6.
Grease and line a 23 x 32cm Swiss roll tin with baking parchment.
Beat 3 eggs and 85g golden caster sugar together with an electric whisk for about 8 mins until thick and creamy.
Mix 85g plain flour (less 2 tbsp), 2 tbsp cocoa powder and ½ tsp baking powder together, then sift onto the egg mixture. Fold in very carefully, then pour into the tin.
Now tip the tin from side to side to spread the mixture into the corners. Bake for 10 mins.
Lay a sheet of baking parchment on the work surface. When the cake is ready, tip it onto the parchment, peel off the lining paper, then roll the cake up from its longest edge with the paper inside. Leave to cool.
To make the icing, melt 50g butter and 140g dark chocolate together in a bowl over a pan of hot water. Take from the heat and stir in 1 tbsp golden syrup and 5 tbsp double cream from a 284ml pot. Beat in 200g sifted icing sugar until smooth.
Whisk the remaining double cream from the 284ml pot until it holds its shape.
Unravel the cake, spread the cream over the top, scatter over 2-3 crushed extra strong mints, if using, then carefully roll up again into a log.
Cut a thick diagonal slice from one end of the log. Lift the log on to a plate, then arrange the slice on the side with the diagonal cut against the cake to make a branch.
Spread the icing over the log and branch (don't cover the ends), then use a fork to mark the icing to give the effect of tree bark. Scatter with unsifted icing sugar to resemble snow, and decorate with holly.
Recipe Tip
TipYou can leave the mints out if you prefer a more traditional filling.


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I've gotten some comments asking why I'm moving away from Maven.
I started to use Maven initially as part of the HiveMind experiment. Fundamentally, I liked two specific features:
- Automated donwload of dependencies (from http://www.ibiblio.org/maven)
- Integrated pretty documentation (with navigation)
Maven does those two things pretty well, though the documentation part has a large number of bugs that makes keeping the documentation up-to-date problematic.
Anyway, measured by my Four Principals, Maven falls shorts:
- Simplicity - this isn't even on the horizon in Maven-land. If you deviate even a tiny bit from Maven's one-true-path, you are lost! The complexity of plugins, class-loaders, XML documents that are Jelly programs in disguise, lack of documentation, etc., etc. means that doing something trivial can take hours of guesswork. Some parts of this "release candidate" have obviously not even been given a cursory test. Certainly the internals of most plugins are a maze of Ant, Jelly, properties and such, seemingly without end.
This could be somewhat addressed by documentation, but there is a pitiful amount and what there is, is out of date. Understanding multi-project (the whole point of Maven you would think) is a total challenge, addressed only by endless experimentation.
- Consistency - I guess this is hard to guage; do you write your own plugin? Write ad-hoc Jelly script? Write and use an Ant task?
- Efficiency - Maven is sluggish, chews memory, tends to repeat operations needlessly. I could comment on the volume of downloads that occur (for plugins, for libraries the plugins depend on) but that actually isn't an issue, after you run Maven the first time. However, for HiveMind, I've taken to leaving the room while I perform my dist build ... and it's only two small projects.
One concrete example: when using Maven, I could only get my unit tests to work by turning fork on. With Ant, I'm able to run the unit tests without forking. That's a huge difference.
- Feedback - Can you say "NullPointerException"?
What I've accomplished in two days using Ant 1.6 will serve me well for HiveMind and for Tapestry ... and beyond. I think we'll be able to get a significant amount of Maven's functionality in a small, finite, understandable package, and be able to use it on the vast majority of pure Java projects.
For example, Here's the build.xml for the framework:
<project name="HiveMind Framework" default="jar"> <property name="jar.name" value="hivemind"/> <property name="javadoc.package" value="org.apache.hivemind.*"/> <property name="root.dir" value=".."/> <import file="${root.dir}/common/jar-module.xml"/> <import file="${common.dir}/javacc.xml"/> <target name="compile"> <ibiblio-dependency jar="commons-logging-1.0.3.jar" group-id="commons-logging"/> <ibiblio-dependency jar="javassist-2.6.jar" group-id="jboss"/> <ibiblio-dependency jar="werkz-1.0-beta-10.jar" group-id="werkz"/> <ibiblio-dependency jar="servletapi-2.3.jar" group-id="servletapi"/> <ibiblio-dependency jar="oro-2.0.6.jar" group-id="oro"/> <ibiblio-dependency jar="log4j-1.2.7.jar" group-id="log4j"/> <ibiblio-dependency jar="easymock-1.1.jar" group-id="easymock" use="test"/> <run-javacc input="${javacc.src.dir}/SimpleDataLanguage.jj" package-path="org/apache/hivemind/sdl/parser"/> <default-compile/> </target> </project>
And here's the the project.xml, project.properties, and maven.xml.
I hate to bash the Maven project ... but what I see in Maven is a good, simple, core idea that's spiralled down the wrong path by trying to be everything to everyone. That's a lesson I'm taking to heart as I build something that suits my needs better.


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Always wanted to see a girl changing her clothes – but did not know how? ChangeroomHunters brings you hours of video and tons upon tons of photos, all dedicated to the secret pleasure of locker room voyeurism! Don't miss our crazy collection!
How about a voyeur site that sets new standards in the niche? It's all about ChangeroomHunters, a brand new locker room voyeurism site combining a growing archive of HQ content and a community of locker room voyeurs! Peep, provide feedback, communicate – it's all there.


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one of our fellow Pt'ers lost her beautiful Rotti boy today.My prayers go out to you and your family.
RIP sweet Arthur,play hard at the Rainbow bridge
Dog of the Day
Cat of the Day
Pet of the Day
one of our fellow Pt'ers lost her beautiful Rotti boy today.My prayers go out to you and your family.
RIP sweet Arthur,play hard at the Rainbow bridge
R.I.P Arthur You were a gorgeous boy and you were very loved. i'm going to miss hearing stories and seeing pictures of you Have fun at the RB sweet boy, maybe you can look for Bonky (my RB Rottweiler) and my other girls up there.
I'm so sorry to hear about your loss I truly don't know what to say to you and Bella
Journey - 2yr old Australian Shepherd
Ripley - 5 1/2yr old Doberman
Dance RN CGN FM - 7 1/2yr old Toller
I'm so sorry to hear of the passing of Arthur. RIP sweet boy and enjoy your eternal life at the RB.
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, champagne in one hand and strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming WOO HOO - What a Ride!
Sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we can't see
--Polar Express
Until one has loved an animal, part of their soul remains unawakened.
Be at peace now, Arthur. I don't know why you weren't happy here on this earth but I hope you find some happiness now. Your mama still loves you and did the best for you.
I did the right thing by setting you free
But the pain is very deep.
If only I could turn back time, forever, you I'd keep.
I miss you
I hear you whimper in your sleep
I gently pet you and say, no bad dreams
It will be alright, to my dog as dark as night.
Fur as dark as the night.
Join me on this flight.
Paws of love that follow me.
In my heart you'll forever be.
How I wish I could hold you near.
Turn back time to make it so.
Hug you close and never let go.
I am so very sorry for your great loss. Hugs.
Save a life, ADOPT!!
Rainbow Bridge Angels: Thor, Shiloh and Killian, Avalanche and Wolf
(RB Gaylord and Bandit, fosters who have touched my heart)
Godspeed to The Bridge,Sweet Arthur!!!
So sorry for your loss
The Deli Dog
I want to Honor All of Our Rainbow Bridge Furkids
I heard this too... so sad,,, what happened to sweet Arthur!?
Rest Easy at the RB...
After I had read about you getting your wings I just had to search and find some of your old pictures.
One of the first pictures I ever seen of you.
And who could ever forget this cute puppy picture?
And my most favorite one
I can't say I understand why you are no longer here, but I can say that I will miss you and seeing such beautiful pictures of you like the ones above and hearing of your popcorn stealing days and your chasing after bubbles
I hope there are lots of popcorn and bubbles at the RB for you sweet Arthur.
All my love to you beautiful boy.
Huney, Bon & Simba-missed so very much
Remembering all the Rainbow Bridge Pets
Arthur, sweet, we know your momma loved you so very much. We are sorry that life on this earth turned so difficult for you, and we know you weren;t a bad dog at heart. At the Rainbow Bridge there is plenty of love and food enough for everyone, so you won't need to ever battle for it, okay? Like I said in the other thead, look for my Sheba dog, she's a wise dog, and will show you the ropes up there at the Rainbow Bridge.
Im sorry to hear about your Arthur too
I'm sure Sheda and Arthur are playing together right now at the Rainbow Bridge happy to have each others company.
I hope you feel better soon, its a terrible feeling to lose a family member.
I'm so sorry about Arthur, how terrible
RIP sweet Arthur.
(can someone tell me what happened to Arthur. I have been reading PT regularly, but I must have missed something )
edit: no need to tell me, I found the posts I missed.
Last edited by My Peanuts; 12-03-2004 at 04:59 PM.
Billy and Willy! (2 of my 4)
such an adorable little guy. rest in peace arther
Owned by two little pastries!
What a sweet face Arthur had. He looks so calm and friendly, too bad he didn't feel that way inside. Hope you are at peace now sweet boy. Behave and make lots of new friends at the RB.
(((((((((RIP Arthur)))))))))
Nikita Mommy & Daddy Miss You So Much.....Always Will....Look For Cappy Sweetie & Keep Each Other Company. Cappy You Stole So many hearts Sweet Boy. We All Love You & Miss You. Play Hard Sweet Babies.
His heart and body were strong and now, at last, his dear mind is at rest and at peace. You can snuggle now dear Arthur, and eat and play with joy, and feel the happiness and love from those of us left behind. Every day you wake at the bridge just remember the love you were given here.
How very sad.
Rest in Peace Arthur.
From Decker with Love
Copyright © 2001-2013 Pet of the Day.com


text:
Embattled Missouri Congressman Todd Akin vowed to stay in his Senate race on Monday, speaking for the first time since suggesting that in cases of "legitimate rape" women can prevent pregnancy.
"I need to apologize," Akin told Mike Huckabee, host of The Huckabee Report radio show. "I made that statement in error, rape is never legitimate. I used the wrong words in the wrong way."
Since his initial comments Sunday, Akin has been hammered by politicians on both sides of the aisle. President Obama called the comments offensive on Monday, and the National Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee pulled $5 million in advertising set aside for his Senate race, according to The Associated Press.
"I'm not a quitter," Akin said. "By the grace of God, we'll win this race."
U.S. & World
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Later in the interview, Huckabee asked what Akin meant by "legitimate rape."
"I was talking about forcible rape," said Akin, reviving a phrase that stirred controversy last year when it was used in a bill put forth by the GOP, before being dropped under public pressure.
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In the first question during the White House briefing Monday, President Obama was asked about Akin's remarks.
"The views expressed were offensive... rape is rape," he said. "He was nominated by people of Missouri and I'll let them sort that out."
The initial comments came in a TV interview over the weekend, when Akin was asked about his views on abortion in the case of rape.
"It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, that's really rare," Akin told Charles Jaco of KTVI. "If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let's assume that maybe that didn't work or something: I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be of the rapist, and not attacking the child."
Akin's comments not only revitalized his Senate opponent's campaign, but he may have effectively torpedoed any chance the Republicans had of taking control of the Senate -- if he stays in the race.
The Democrats have a narrow 51-49 majority in the Senate (with Bernie Sanders and Joe Lieberman caucusing with the Democrats), and there are 33 seats up for election this fall.
Political prognosticator Nate Silver of The New York Times on Aug. 15 crunched the numbers and predicted that the GOP would win enough Democratic seats to make for an even split in the Senate.
If a 50-50 split were to happen, whichever party won the White House would effectively control the Senate, as the Vice President would represent the tie-breaking vote.
But if Akin's ill-considered comments about "legitimate rape" are hurtful enough to cost him the election, it would very likely mean that the Democrats would maintain their Senate majority regardless of who wins the presidential election.
Now, some Republicans are calling for Akin to drop out of the race.
"Not only should he apologize, but I believe Rep. Akin's statement was so far out of bounds that he should resign the nomination for US Senate in Missouri," Sen. Scott Brown told the Boston Globe.
Sen. Ron Johnson, from Wisconsin, also called for Akin's withdrawal, but for purely political reasons.
"Todd Akin's statements are reprehensible and inexcusable. Gaining a Republican majority in the US Senate and fixing the huge challenges that face our nation is more important than any one individual's political ambitions," Johnson said in a statement. "Todd Akin should do the right thing for the nation and step aside today, so Missouri Republicans can put forth a candidate that can win in November."
No doubt heightening the pressure to bow out is the National Republican Senatorial Committee's telling Akin they will not be contributing any money to his campaign, and Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell calling on him to think seriously about his future.
"Congressman Akin's comments were totally inexcusable. What he said is just flat wrong in addition to being wildly offensive to any victim of sexual abuse," said McConnell. "Although Representative Akin has apologized, I believe he should take time with his family to consider whether this statement will prevent him from effectively representing our party in this critical election."
If Akin is having seconds thoughts about withdrawing, he should decide quickly, as Tuesday is the deadline for him to do so and still allow the state Republican party to replace him on the ticket.
Akin's comments spread quickly Sunday, drawing immediate criticism from Sen. Claire McCaskill, whose Senate seat Akin is seeking.
"It is beyond comprehension that someone can be so ignorant about the emotional and physical trauma brought on by rape," said McCaskill in a statement released Sunday. "The ideas that Todd Akin has expressed about the serious crime of rape and the impact on its victims are offensive."
And McCaskill was not alone. Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney was quick to renounce Akin, with a statement of his own.
"Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan disagree with Mr. Akin's statement," the campaign said. "A Romney-Ryan administration would not oppose abortion in instances of rape."
The Tea Party Express, a political action committee, called for Akin to resign his candidacy for the Senate, calling "Akin's frequent 'Bidenisms'" a "distraction from the important issues at hand."
In fact, Akin received so much criticism from both sides of the aisle, as well as groups like Planned Parenthood, that he wasted no time in backing away from the comments.
"In reviewing my off-the-cuff remarks, it's clear that I misspoke in this interview and it does not reflect the deep empathy I hold for the thousands of women who are raped and abused every year," Akin said in a statement.
Akin also took to Twitter in an effort to quell the storm.
"'To be clear, all of us understand that rape can result in pregnancy & I have great empathy for all victims. I regret misspeaking.'- Todd," he tweeted.
In an afternoon interview with conservative talk show host Sean Hannity, however, Akin slightly backed away from his steadfast commitment to remain in the race after Hannity told him that "this is bigger than one person" and that his comment could potentially harm the GOP.
"All those things need to be looked at," he said.
Romney steered clear of the issue during his Town Hall meeting Monday at St. Anselm's College in New Hampshire, instead focusing on Medicare and the economy. Later in the day, however, he offered a stronger reaction to Akin's comment during an interview with WMUR.
"I can't defend what he said. Can't defend him," he said.
Congressman Paul Ryan, Romney's running mate, was among the sponsors, along with Akin, of the "Sanctity of Life Act" in 2011. The bill sought to confer "personhood" at the moment of conception, in an effort to make abortion, even in the case of rape, illegal.


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Day 13 of Bonding & We Met a New Friend6/06/2007 02:48:00 AM Edit This 2 Comments »
Today as we played outside Lexie discovered a flower as you can see. She loves being outside with all the noise and activity. Then the 3 year old group came out to play and we met a new friend. He came right up to my mom and sat on her lap. Then played with Lexie's toys but shared very nicely. Of course I want to take him home but we understand he has a 5 year old brother and they are not up for adoption right now. He has only been here for less than a year. I'll see if I can find out more. I've got to run for our second visit but it takes so long to download the pictures I wanted to get a couple on. More later I hope.


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Life and Limb: The Toll of the Civil War Library Exhibition
The LSUHSC Libraries are hosting an exhibition developed and produced by the National Library of Medicine. This exhibit was developed to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War and the more than three million soldiers who fought in the war. Life and Limb: The Toll of the Civil War explores the experiences of disabled veterans, their role as symbols of the fractured nation and a stark reminder of the costs of the conflict.
The perspectives of surgeons, physicians, and nurses are richly documented in the history of Civil War medicine, which highlights the heroism and brutality of battlefield operations and the challenges of caring for the wounded during wartime. Yet the experiences of injured soldiers during the conflict and in the years afterwards are less well-known.
More than three million soldiers fought in the war from 1861-1865. More than half a million died, and almost as many were wounded but survived. Hundreds of thousands were permanently disabled by battlefield injuries or surgery, which saved lives by sacrificing limbs.
In addition to the travelling exhibition, there is a display in the Library's New Books section with supplemental material from our own collection on surgery, prosthetics and the Civil War. Some of the materials featured include books from our collection, journal articles that can be accessed through our catalog, photocopied materials from our old & rare collection, and links to resources available online. Check out the full Bibliography (with links!).
The Exhibit is available beginning August 4, 2014 at the Ische Library in the Learning Commons. The supplementary display is on the New Books shelves next to the internal elevators.
The display will move to the Dental Library on August 25 and will be available for viewing there until September 12.
Come and see it for yourself!


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America's judges would like to write off last year's anti-court orgy as a political spasm. Tom ("Judges need to be intimidated") DeLay is on the back bench, the testy Supreme Court confirmation hearings are over, and the judge in Terri Schiavo's case no longer needs a deputy to escort him every time he walks his dog.
But better times aren't coming back soon. The newest front in the war on the courts is being fought in South Dakota, where, in the shadow of Mt. Rushmore, a group called "J.A.I.L. 4 Judges" is promoting one of the most radical threats to justice this side of the Spanish Inquisition. It's extreme and it's incoherent, but it's got more than 40,000 petition signatures? and it will go to the state's voters as a constitutional amendment in November. A national network of supporters is waiting in the wings, threatening to export the revolution to other states if they do well this fall.
The group's proposed measure would wipe out a basic doctrine called judicial immunity that dates back to the 13th century, protecting judges from personal liability for doing their job ruling on the cases before them. A special grand jury? essentially a fourth branch of government?would be created to indict judges for a string of bizarre offenses that include "deliberate disregard of material facts," "judicial acts without jurisdiction," and "blocking of a lawful conclusion of a case," along with judicial failure to impanel a jury for infractions as minor as a dog-license violation. After three such "convictions," the judge would be fired and docked half of his or her retirement benefits for good measure.
J.A.I.L. 4 Judges is an Internet-era creation, pulling together a disparate national network of tax protesters, conspiracy theorists, jury-nullification supporters, and assorted others with grievances against the courts and modern government. Its Web site claims to have 50 state chapters, whose leaders sport the rank of "Major General" or "JAILer-In-Chief." The Alaska JAILer in chief has been known to parade around dressed in black robes, with a noose around his neck and scaffolding above his head, before shedding the robes and burning them. J.A.I.L.'s supporters have picketed the homes of offending judges and generated e-mail campaigns?sometimes laced with electronic viruses and worms?against the Anti-Defamation League, reporters, and legislators over statements that upset them. Supporters and like-minded groups have filed hundreds of Freedom of Information requests seeking information about judges' personal lives and property, along with challenges claiming that judicial oaths are invalid or not properly filed.
This movement is the brainchild of a Californian named Ronald Branson with a history of suing state and federal officials for alleged conspiracies (including his own trials for burglary and a traffic offense). After being rebuffed by the courts?including the U.S. Supreme Court on 14 separate occasions, even to appeal a parking ticket?and attorneys general and legislatures in Sacramento, Calif., and Washington, Branson failed three times to get enough signatures to put the measure on the California ballot.
J.A.I.L.'s supporters have a broad list of grievances. Branson (the "Five-Star National J.A.I.L. Commander-In-Chief") has written that judges have a duty to stop a New World Order conspiracy involving bankers, the United Nations, and the Federal Reserve. He calls government-issued marriage licenses "blasphemy," adding that, "I believe I have been called of God to lead in the cause of judicial accountability." Traffic tickets loom large on his political agenda: Branson hopes that J.A.I.L. supporters will drive through South Dakota "just for the privilege of getting a traffic ticket so you can demand a jury trial."
How did this Internet-age fun house turn into South Dakota's headache? In part because it took fewer than 34,000 signatures to get on that state's ballot, and initiative states are the logical playgrounds for fringe groups. But J.A.I.L.'s organizers don't even pretend to have grievances with South Dakota judges. Instead, they paid door-knockers to ask people if they were mad about Roe v. Wade or last year's Kelo decision upholding local eminent-domain powers?or if they just wanted to hold judges accountable. (Never mind that state judges can't overturn Roe, or that in Kelo the Supreme Court deferred to legislators to set their own land-use policies.)
In other words, J.A.I.L. 4 Judges seeks to capitalize on the incessant talk-radio hate-in against the courts, where America's 11,000 judges are caricatured as godless, flag-burning, property-seizing, gay-marriage missionaries. J.A.I.L. is just the latest in a parade of groups twisting the notion of judicial accountability beyond recognition. J.A.I.L. may be rough around the edges, but they're taking their cues from a finely polished political script. Indeed, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has started taking on these judge-bashers for trying to intimidate courts into answering to special interests instead of the Constitution.
Like any insurgency, J.A.I.L. works hard to get attention. As their founder writes: "We at J.A.I.L. get unlimited kicks at the judges' crotches and shins, and the judges must keep a straight face and pretend we don't exist. ? If they assault us, they advertise for us and promote J.A.I.L." Their own goal is nothing less than to establish crotch-kicking grand juries in all 50 states, with Branson as czar, since he claims "final authority by operation of law as to what these words mean and that all courts throughout the future must look to the author's definition"?an intriguing theory for a movement vowing to restore power to the people.
In South Dakota, a "Good War" coalition of political parties, business leaders and the civic sector is coming together to deal with J.A.I.L. (Since J.A.I.L. 4 Judges has it out for the Uniform Commercial Code, business executives ought to be especially worried.) The state legislature unanimously passed a resolution noting that judges are already adequately disciplined for misconduct, taunting J.A.I.L. for hiring an out-of-state firm to gather signatures and warning South Dakotans that the measure would cost taxpayers millions and lead to an epidemic of frivolous actions, including suits by convicted felons against the judges and prosecutors who put them behind bars. J.A.I.L. 4 Judges responded by sending each lawmaker a 14-page letter calling the resolution unlawful and demanding a retraction. It's now threatened to sue and arrest all 105 members.
J.A.I.L. is also busy selecting its next target. "We have an interest in taking this to Nevada, where we have no doubts a failure to hold judges accountable is crippling the legal system," a J.A.I.L. supporter recently told the Las Vegas Sun. They may find pockets of fertile ground: In 1994, a Nevada rancher broke into a national forest with a bulldozer, briefly sparking a "county supremacy" rebellion, insisting that federal ownership of land was illegal.
Indeed, JAILers are brimming with confidence that they'll win in South Dakota this fall, and around the country beyond. Writes Branson: "The People are slowly waking up to realize who the Enemy is? and it isn't Bin Laden."Bert Brandenburg is the executive director of the Justice at Stake Campaign, a nonpartisan national organization of more than 40 partners. The positions and policies of all campaign partners are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of other partners.
Return To JNJ Library Index for All Years


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Year in Review: When the 'Big Three' of men's tennis became the 'Fab Four'
2012 saw Andy Murray finally establish himself as a force to reckon with in men's tennis and convert the 'Big Three' to the 'Fab Four'.
Andy Murray joined Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and the injury-cursed Rafael Nadal as a Grand Slam title winner in 2012 as the big three became the fab four.
But with the 2013 season beginning just over two weeks' time, the lingering uncertainty over the future of Nadal once again was dominating the build-up to the new campaign.
Nadal clinched a record seventh French Open title in June defeating Djokovic 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5.
It shattered Djokovic's bid to emulate Don Budge (1938) and Rod Laver (1962 and 1969) by holding all the Grand Slams at once.
Victory in Paris was 26-year-old Nadal's 11th Grand Slam title, but a shock second round Wimbledon loss to Czech Lukas Rosol brought a premature end to the Spaniard's season as another battle against a knee injury meant he missed the Olympics and the US Open.
Nadal is due to return to action at a three-day exhibition event in Abu Dhabi from December 27, but he has already warned against high expectations.
"I don't expect to return and win the Australian Open," he said.
"I want to be 100 percent fit in time for the Monte Carlo Masters and the run-up to the French Open."
Nadal and Djokovic, who was to end 2012 as world number one and be named player of the year, had already set the scene for an enthralling season in a gripping Australian Open final.
Defending champion Djokovic prevailed in an epic five-set contest which clocked in at 5hr 53min -- the longest title match in Grand Slam history.
Djokovic fought back from losing the first set to take a 2-1 lead, but he was then taken to a gripping fifth set by resurgent Nadal before winning 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5/7), 7-5 for his third consecutive major title.
Although Djokovic missed out in Paris, the Serb still featured in three of the season's four major finals.
His disappointment at his five-set loss to Murray at the US Open would eventually be eased by his capture of the year-ending ATP World Tour Finals title in London.
His 7-6 (8/6), 7-5 victory over Federer put the seal on a memorable year.
"It's been two very successful years," Djokovic said. "I didn't really know how I would follow up after an incredible 2011."
Federer defied the critics who insisted he was past his best by equalling Pete Sampras's record of seven Wimbledon titles with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 win over Murray.
"It was just a temporary thing," said Federer, after his two and half year wait for another Grand Slam title.
"I believed that maybe down the stretch, like with Andre Agassi (who was 32 when he won the 2003 Australian Open) it's like a steppingstone, a period I have to go through.
The normally granite-faced Murray broke down in tears at the end of the Wimbledon final.
But just weeks later, he used that disappointment to fuel his push to Olympic gold on the same Wimbledon Centre Court with victory over Federer.
Then the Scot finally broke his Grand Slam duck with a 7-6 (12/10), 7-5, 2-6, 3-6, 6-2 win over Djokovic in the US Open final.
That made him Britain's first major champion since Fred Perry claimed his third American title in 1936.
"I'm obviously proud that I managed to achieve it, and don't have to get asked that stupid question again," said Murray who, after losing four previous major finals, had tired of insisting that he would one day break through.
Murray believes he will not be a one-Slam wonder like Andy Roddick who retired from the sport in New York.
The year wasn't without controversies.
Roger Federer proved he's still a force to reckon with. File Pic/AFP
Nadal insisted he would never play the Madrid Masters again if organisers continued with their blue clay surface.
At Queen's, fiery Argentine David Nalbandian was disqualified from the final after destroying an advertising hoarding and accidentally injuring a line judge.
French player Gilles Simon reignited the row over equal prize money during Wimbledon, arguing that the men's game was a far more attractive product.
Maria Sharapova begged to disagree and gave Simon an icey rebuke.
"No matter what anyone says, or the criticisms that we get, despite everything else, I'm sure there are a few more people that watch my matches than his," said the Russian.
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50% Off Food in August*
We are taking part in the Government's Eat Out to Help Out Scheme this August.
Eat out to help out in Sutton and enjoy a massive 50% off food & non-alcoholic drinks*, up to a value of £10 per person, when you visit us from Monday - Wednesday this August**!
From burgers to tasty mains, order your food & drinks at the bar and we will automatically reduce the price by 50%***.
This is the perfect excuse to catch up with a friend following lockdown and enjoy one of our delicious dishes.
Feel free to turn up at our venue without making a booking^, but to guarantee entry we do recommend you make an enquiry today.
Covid-19 Safety Measures
We appreciate you may be a little hesitant at wanting to visit pubs and restaurants right now.
To combat those fears, and to ensure your safety and that of our staff, we have implemented a range of new well-being measures. Read more about them here
Terms & Conditions
*Offer includes drinks with 0.05% ABV or less. Discount will not be applied on food & drink that is being ordered to takeaway.
**Eat out to Help out at Ye Olde Red Lion is valid from the 3rd - 31st August on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays only.
***Up to a maximum discount of £10 per person, inclusive of VAT.
^Discount will not be applied in the event of a full venue hire or private party.
Food & non-alcoholic drinks ordered via the My Pub app will not have the discount applied.
Kitchen opening times vary due to Covid-19 Safety measures - please ask the staff at Ye Olde Red Lion if the kitchen is open before ordering to avoid disappointment.
Management reserve the right to refuse, change or remove the offer at any time.


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On November 11, 1925, the same month Charles Ponzi's days of selling area swampland to real estate investors were coming to an end, Robert Kloeppel announced his intentions to construct the largest and most magnificent hotel in Jacksonville. Kloeppel, who owned the Flagler Hotel near the train station at the time, had arrived in Jacksonville from Germany two decades earlier broke and penniless.
As Jacksonville rose from the ashes of the Great Fire of 1901, so did Kloeppel's bank account and fortune. Blessed with good work ethic, he went from being a mechanic with the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, the first man in Florida to fly, and a real estate investor, before entering the hotel business with his purchase of the Flagler Hotel in 1920.
Kloeppel had also married Jacob Hilderbrant's daughter, Minny Lucy in 1913. Hilderbrant, a native of Germany, migrated to Jacksonville in 1856, originally ran a grocery and spirits store downtown. Eventually, Hilderbrant made huge sums of money in real estate. When he died in 1912, he left several parcels of downtown property for his three children. Kloeppel's hotel would rise on the land Hilderbrant had left his daugther. Across the street, William Hilderbrant, Jacob's son and Kloeppel's brother-in-law, constructed the six-story Hilderbrant Building the same year Kloeppel's hotel was being built.
The George Washington during its early years. Source: State Archives of Florida,Florida Memory.
Designed by local architectural firm Marsh & Saxelbye, Kloeppel's $1.5 million Hotel George Washington opened its doors on December 15, 1926 with Mayor John Alsop, Governor John W. Martin, and former Governor Cary Hardee in attendance. Standing 13 stories tall, it was one seven downtown highrises under construction in 1926. Others included the Lynch Building/11 East (17 stories), Riverside's Park Lane Apartments (17 stories), the Carling Hotel (13 stories), the Greenleaf & Crosby Building (12 stories), and the Atlantic Bank Annex (10 stories). In addition, Kloeppel's George Washington was the nation's first 100% air-conditioned hotel and each of its 350 rooms featured a radio loudspeaker and headphones.
The "Hotel George Washington" sign, built on the rooftop, was the first neon sign in the city. With its opening, Jacksonville had arrived on the scene as a rapidly growing cosmopolitan cities. Instantly, it became the city's hub for conventions and large meetings. Commercial uses in the massive structure included a steak house, cocktail lounge, a Rexall drugstore and a barber shop.
Dave Sholtz and friends at a banquet in the Hotel George Washington during the 1930s. Sholtz was Florida's Governor from 1933-1937. Source: State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory.
In 1927, at a George Washington Hotel dinner-dance party, Kloeppel announced a $1,000 prize for the first flier to conquer the Atlantic. His hope was that the winner would come to Jacksonville to collect. His wish came true, when Charles Lindbergh accomplished the feat less than a month later, coming to the George Washington to collect the pot on May 16, 1927. In 1941, Kloeppel added an auditorium to the hotel that was large enough for concerts, balls, car and boat shows.
Over the years, the George Washington was the epicenter of activity in downtown. For example, on October 13, 1954, thousands of people filled downtown's streets to watch German aerialists walk a 175' high tightrope strung from the building. In 1960, thousands packed the hotel's auditorium for the Brook's Fashion Show. Sponsored by Levy's and Brook's Motors, Inc., the show featured fine clothes and cars on the catwalk.
The Brook's Fashion Show, sponsored by Levy's and Brook's Motors, Inc., featuring fine clothes and cars, packed the George Washington's auditorium in 1960. Source.
Unfortunately, like many downtown Jacksonville treasures, the George Washington's heydays would come to a quick, unfortunate, and abrupt end. Robert Kloeppel died in 1961 at the age of 72, leaving his son, Robert Kloeppel, Jr. in charge of the hotel empire he had established. In 1963, Robert Kloeppel, Jr. sold the Hotel George Washington to William H. (Big Bill) Johnston. Johnston, owner of Jacksonville's dog tracks and Chicagoland's Sportsman's Park, had ties with the Al Capone mob. Johnston had taken over the tracks after the former owner of the tracks, Edward J. O'Hare, was murdered in 1939.
During Johnston's tenure as the owner of the George Washington, it was downtown Jacksonville's only five star hotel. In September 1964 on the heals of Hurricane Dora, the Beatles appeared at the George Washington for a press conference. In town for perform at the Gator Bowl, they had refused to accept the Jacksonville booking until they received assurance that the audience would not be segregated by race.
Big Bill Johnston sold the hotel in 1969. After Johnston's departure, one by one, the businesses inside the ground floor went out of business. The hotel was closed in 1971 and torn down in 1973 for a surface parking lot. 40 years later, what was once "The Wonder Hotel of the South" still sits underutilized and virtually abandoned.
Watch the Beatles interview at the George Washington Hotel
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First came the closing of U.S. embassies and consulates throughout the Middle East and North Africa this week, along with a worldwide travel alert warning of a possible al Qaeda attack in the region.
In addition, Americans were told to leave Yemen, the epicenter of al Qaeda militancy in the Middle East, and the State Department pulled out non-emergency embassy personnel on military aircraft that flew them to Germany.
U.S. forces in the region were put on two-hour alert for mission readiness, and now there have been seven suspected U.S. drone strikes in Yemen, where the local al Qaeda leader is now believed to be the terror group's global second-in-command.
The seriousness of the U.S. response indicated that al Qaeda was not as decimated and on-the-run as President Barack Obama's administration has claimed for some time, including in last year's presidential campaign.
Critics, including a miffed Yemeni government, quickly said the U.S. adoption of such a defensive posture only bolstered the bad guys, giving al Qaeda a propaganda victory.
However, security analysts noted a strategic underpinning to the very public defensive posture that generated headlines around the world.
Closing diplomatic facilities that could be targeted can disrupt the planning of the attackers, creating an opening to go after them, noted CNN National Security Contributor Frances Fragos Townsend.
"Once you take targets away, it buys you additional time to try and disrupt, to identify the cell, the operators in country and the region, and work with your partners in the region to try and ... get them in custody or disrupt the plot," said Townsend, a former homeland security adviser in the Bush administration. "So, some of this operationally is about buying time."
Stepped up drone strikes
The intensifying drone strikes against militants in Yemen may be one result.
Seven reported in the past two weeks have killed at least 31 people, according to a tally by Yemeni officials.
The latest occurred on Thursday, including one in Mareb province in central Yemen that targeted two vehicles and killed four people with links to al Qaeda, along with two civilians, local security officials said.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the terror group's Yemeni affiliate, shot down a Yemeni military helicopter in the province on Tuesday, according to a government official said. However, Yemeni officials note that no high-value targets have been hit by the drone strikes so far.
The leader of AQAP, Nasir al-Wuhayshi, was recently appointed by al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri as his top deputy, U.S. intelligence officials believe.
A recently intercepted message from al-Zawahiri to al-Wuhayshi telling AQAP to "do something" set off the embassy closings by the United States, Britain and some other countries.
What intelligence officials still don't know includes the specifics of any al Qaeda plot and exactly how al-Zawahiri -- believed to be somewhere in the mountainous border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan -- communicates with al-Wuhayshi and other top operatives.
Other intel info
CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr reported that other steps by the U.S. intelligence community includes scouring National Security Agency intercepts; studying imagery from drones as satellites, as well as websites, chat rooms and webhosting services; looking at financial transactions and other connections of known operatives, and talking to known couriers and others on the ground.
Obama touched on the latest threats during a speech on Wednesday to military forces at Camp Pendleton in California, where he heralded the U.S. successes in taking out Osama bin Laden and putting what he called "the core of al Qaeda" in Afghanistan and Pakistan "on the way to defeat."
"Even as we decimated the al Qaeda leadership that attacked us on 9/11, al Qaeda affiliates and like-minded extremists still threaten our homeland," Obama said. "They still threaten our diplomatic facilities. They still threaten our businesses abroad. And we have got to take these threats seriously, and do all we can to confront them. We have been reminded of this again in recent days."
Some are questioning the U.S. response, with veteran journalist Ted Koppel writing in the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday that al Qaeda is getting exactly what it wants in the embassy closings and other actions taken.
Terrorism, Koppel wrote, "is the means by which the weak induce the powerful to inflict damage upon themselves -- and al Qaeda and groups like it are surely counting on that as the centerpiece of their strategy."
"It appears to be working," he continued, noting the closing of diplomatic facilities and drone strikes.
"We have created an economy of fear, an industry of fear, a national psychology of fear," Koppel concluded. "Al Qaeda could never have achieved that on its own. We have inflicted it on ourselves."
Taking threat seriously
Yemen's government also criticized the United States, saying that closing diplomatic facilities and withdrawing staff "serves the interests of the extremists and undermines the exceptional cooperation between Yemen and the international alliance against terrorism."
However, former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told CNN on Wednesday that the administration had little choice in mounting a potent defense against the perceived threat.
"I respect Ted Koppel as a journalist, but he never had the responsibility of having American lives on his shoulders," Chertoff said. "And I think you have to understand that when you're a president or a senior leader in the government and you have that responsibility, there's a different lens that you use."
The experiences of dealing with terrorism in past decades, including the Boston Marathon bombing in April, had brought authorities to "a place where people do take the threat seriously, but are not getting hysterical," Chertoff said.
To CNN Law Enforcement Analyst Tom Fuentes, the U.S. response to the al Qaeda threat could provide a propaganda boost by sending a message that the group "is so powerful and so pervasive all over the world that they could do this to us anywhere, any time."
"When you see TV images of tanks in front of U.S. embassies, because al Qaeda said we might do something to you, somewhere, some time, I know the concern of wanting to protect the facility, but on the other hand, those images being displayed worldwide do play into their hands," said Fuentes, a former FBI assistant director.
Chertoff agreed that closing U.S. embassies and consulates might have been a mistake, noting that security could have been increased without the symbolic step of shutting the doors.
"It's the same problem we had back in the day of the color code," he said, referring to the Bush administration system of security alerts. "It's easier to go up to orange than it is to come down from orange. They may have boxed themselves in a little bit with respect to the actual closures."
A new generation
At the same time, Chertoff noted that militant groups such as al Qaeda now have a new generation of battle-hardened fighters from wars in Iraq and Syria, as well as enhanced bomb-making techniques.
Attackers may lack the resources and scale to pull off another 9/11-style mission, but they are better poised for smaller attacks on U.S. and Western targets in many places.
Fuentes agreed, saying the terrorists "have gradually over time shifted to realizing that the American people will not tolerate even one or two people being killed, much less 3,000."
Bruce Riedel of the Brookings Institution said most of the focus of al Qaeda and al-Zawahari was on post-Arab Spring crises such as Egypt's political limbo. He noted that al-Zawahiri recently reminded Egyptian Islamists loyal to the Muslim Brotherhood of ousted President Mohamed Morsy that al Qaeda always said the path to power was through jihad and not the ballot box.
"The new generation of al Qaeda---AQ 3.0, if you like---is more focused on the nearby enemy close to home than the faraway enemy in America and Europe. For now at least," Riedel wrote in an opinion piece this week on The Daily Beast website.
"But easy targets like the natural gas plant in Algeria attacked last winter by an al Qaeda cell based in Libya and Mali allow local groups to kill dozens of foreign 'crusaders.' And embassies are always favorite targets. After all, that is how al Qaeda started 15 years ago this month when it blew up our missions in Kenya and Tanzania."
Condemnation from Nobel laureate
In Yemen, many of AQAP's operatives, including its leadership, have retreated into remote areas to regroup after a military offensive against them last year.
Yemeni security forces have over the past 18 months recaptured swathes of territory that were briefly held by AQAP, particularly in the south.
AQAP has not mounted a large-scale suicide attack on Yemen's security forces since May 2012, when more than 100 soldiers were killed by a suicide bomber as they trained for a parade in Sanaa, the capital. In July, a bomb killed several soldiers there.
Now the U.S. drone strikes have stoked anger, with the country's Nobel peace laureate, Tawakkol Karman, condemning the latest attack.
"The killing conducted by unmanned planes in Yemen is outside the law and worse than the terrorist activities of individuals and groups," she said, adding that the drone strikes were "degrading" to Yemenis and violate their human rights.
CNN's Laura Smith-Spark, Hakim Almasmari, Mohammed Jamjoom and Ben Brumfield contributed to this report.


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The reboot that no one is asking for looks like it may be moving forward. A revisiting of director Alex Proyas' 1994 Miramax picture, The Crow, was previously in the works through Relativity Media. Since the Weinsteins distributed the original through Miramax and had contracts claiming ownership of all rights to The Crow, they filed suit against Relativity seeking "injunctive relief," ie ceasing all The Crow-related production. Not to be intimidated, Relativity fired counter-claims.
Things haven't gone particularly well for the reboot as directors have come and gone, writers have signed on and then dropped out, and principal actors have been offered roles but have ultimately left the project. In short, it's been a mess. One bright spot in production is that both sides of the lawsuit have settled amicably. While the good news is that this brings The Crow reboot closer to reality, the bad news is that this brings The Crow reboot closer to reality. Hit the jump to read the press release.
For what it's worth, I believe it's sacrilegious to even consider a reboot of The Crow, just as it was more than unnecessary to make three horrendous sequels. Check out the press release about the lawsuit settlement below:
"The lawsuit between Relativity Media and The Weinstein Company concerning THE CROW has been amicably settled out of court, and the parties will continue to work on the film together as planned. In addition, Relativity Media has dismissed all of its claims against The Weinstein Company for any wrongdoing regarding the release and distribution of NINE, and The Weinstein Company has dismissed all of its claims against Relativity Media."
Keep up with all of our continuing coverage on The Crow reboot. Feel free to let us know how you feel about the reboot in the comments. Fire it up! Fire it up!


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Boat Roadie, Coozie, Customized, David Yurman, DIY, Eugenie Kim, Fire Island, Flask, Floppy Hat, Forever21, Hermes, JCrew, Kiel James Patrick, Knockaround Sunglasses, Labor Day Weekend, LDW 2015, Maxi Dress, Nikon, Ray-Ban, Sailing Bracelet, Sand Spike, Vineyard Vines, Whale Coozie, White Elephant Designs
Labor Day Weekend, pretty much closes out the summer. That is if you live in the Northeast.
Last weekend, instead of going to the Hamptons, we went to Fire Island. It was a nice change. Shorter ride, door to door and equally as much fun. The only difference, on Fire Island, no one knows labels, cares about labels and/or wants to hear about labels. You can wear whatever you want.
We were so busy, I only had chance to get in one look and that was right before we hopped on the ferry to head home.
Cheers to a fun summer!
Maxi Dress: Here at Forever21 | Straw Fedora: JCrew | Sandals: Sam Edelman | Bracelets: David Yurman, Kiel James Patrick & Hermes | Sunglasses: Ray-Ban
When I purchased this maxi online, I was prepared to do some alterations once it arrived. To my surprise, the fit & length was perfect. A $29. dress, who knew….
Center L to R: Black Glitter Flask: Amazon | Beach Spike: Here at White Elephant Designs | Customized Whale Coozie: Here at Vineyard Vines | Sailing Bracelets: Both here at Kiel James Patrick | Ring: David Yurman | Bracelets: Hermes & David Yurman | Sunglasses: Ray-Ban & Knockaround | Camera: Nikon | Floppy Hat: Here at Forever21
As stated in my last post (two weeks ago), sometimes the customized way, is the only way. Wearing a bandeau bikini top with a 34D (all natural) chest doesn't really work. I made new straps for some much needed support and it kind of worked. I wasn't really happy with it once I had it on but I wanted to show you guys the end product.
Instead of spending over $400 on the Eugenie Kim, "Do Not Disturb" Floppy Straw Hat, I designed my own. To see my inspiration, Click Here.
Customized Beach/Sand Spikes, Coozies & Flask for the girls only.