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Physical bookshelf space was a bottleneck … really an inefficient flaw … under the old printed word publishing model. Not only bookshelf space in the bookstores, but also bookshelf space in the homes of buyers with limited space.
There is a solution, albeit one that will be resisted by some.
This by Mark O'Connell in The New Yorker:
The Book Scrappage Scheme
In a panel discussion on the continued rise of e-books at the Frankfurt Book Fair last week, Evan Schnittman of Bloomsbury Publishing made an obvious but nonetheless important point. "Print has an inherent flaw," he said. "It needs shelf space." It's a truth that most readers bump up against at some point, especially those who live in small apartments and have to undertake periodic culls in order to free up space for new acquisitions. A company called 1Dollarscan, however, has come up with a somewhat radical solution to this problem. To bibliophiles, this particular cure might seem worse than the disease, but there's no denying that it is a practical solution to a practical problem. Here's how it works: you ship them your books, and they scan and digitize them into fully searchable PDF files before recycling the hard copies (i.e. pulping them). As the company's name suggests, they charge a dollar for every 100 pages they digitize. The service's appeal is obvious. You free up shelf space for new books (or for things other than books) and you get to keep the actual text itself, which you can access on a computer, tablet, e-reader, or smartphone.
1Dollarscan is the American outpost of a service called Bookscan that has been running successfully in Japan since last year. (Here's a video of the process in action; it's in Japanese, but you'll get the idea.) Like most of his compatriots, the company's founder, Yusuke Ohki, inhabits a very small living space. In 2010, he decided that his two thousand or so books were occupying more of his tiny Tokyo apartment than he was willing to put up with. He was also concerned about the prospect of his two young children being buried under an avalanche of paper and toppling shelves in the event of an earthquake. "There were lots of news in Japan that bookshelves were falling over in bookstores," as he told Forbes, "and that people died after being stampeded by books after huge earthquakes." He decided to scan his entire library into his iPad before getting rid of all the hard copies. Within months, he was running a company that did something similar for the paying public, and employing a staff of a hundred and twenty to do the scanning and shredding. The company took off partly on account of the Japanese e-book market lagging far behind that of the English-speaking world—murky copyright laws, higher prices, and the technical trickiness of rendering Japanese characters on e-reader screens have all been contributing factors. The fear of collapsing shelves invoked by Ohki has surely spread and intensified since the massive earthquake earlier this year; this, too, will have added to the success of his company. In a recent article on 1Dollarscan, the Economist pointed out that the reason the pages are discarded after scanning has to do with "the ambiguous borders of American copyright law." When a book is scanned for the first time, the company does not retain a master copy; for copyright reasons, it must treat each copy as a unique item. In other words, every time they get a paperback of "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" or "The Da Vinci Code," they have to go through the entire process anew.


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Partizan NIS Belgrade experienced a little bit of everything in the 2018-19 season, which saw the team combine big wins with heartbreaking losses. On the good side, Partizan advanced through the 7DAYS EuroCup Regular Season for the first time in club history. With its back against the wall after winning only two of its first eight EuroCup games and with Andrea Trinchieri as its new head coach, Partizan topped LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne 75-78 in France behind 15 points and 10 rebounds from Jock Landale and went on to beat Turk Telekom Ankara in a do-or-die showdown for both teams in the Serbian capital. Partizan registered an 87-72 win behind 18 points from Rade Zagorac. Partizan also won the Serbian Radivoj Korac Cup by defeating archrival Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade 76-74 on game-winning free throws by Landale. On the other hand, Partizan was eliminated by Zvezda in the Adriatic League semifinals and lost to the same team in the third-and-deciding game of the Serbian finals. Partizan returns to the EuroCup looking to build on last season.
Founded in 1945, Partizan started to make noise in European competitions in the late 1970s, when Dragan Kicanovic and Drazen Dalipagic led the club to Korac Cup titles in 1978 and 1979. Vlade Divac and Zarko Paspalj helped the club reach the 1988 EuroLeague Final Four and lift the 1989 Korac Cup. In 1992, Partizan won the club's first – and to date only – EuroLeague crown by downing DKV Joventut 70-71 on a miraculous buzzer-beater by Sasha Djordjevic, which ranks among the most amazing shots in basketball history. At home, Partizan remained a dominant force by winning trophies at a steady clip and it returned to the EuroLeague Final Four in 1998, but lost in the semifinals against eventual champion Kinder Bologna. From the turn of the century, Partizan managed to remain fully competitive while developing players, including some of the best big men in European basketball, such as Nikola Pekovic, Aleks Maric, Kosta Perovic, Jan Vesely, Novica Velickovic and Milan Macvan. Before them, Dejan Tomasevic, Nenad Krstic and Predrag Drobnjak all played for Partizan, too. With a fan base that treats the club and basketball like a religion, success turned the club from contender to EuroLeague giant. To the fans' delight, Partizan registered three consecutive EuroLeague Playoff appearances between 2008 and 2010, with the latter being the year in which the club once again reached the EuroLeague Final Four. Maric, Bo McCalebb and Vesely helped Partizan top Maccabi Tel Aviv in the playoffs, and once at the big event, Partizan became the first team to lose both its Final Four games in overtime. Domestically, from the turn of the century, Partizan dominated with a run of 13 consecutive Serbian League crowns, five consecutive Serbian Cups from 2008 through 2012, and ruling the Adriatic League with five trophies from 2007 through 2011 and another one in 2013. After it topped archrival Crvena Zvezda 3-1 in the 2014 Serbian League final to win the title, Partizan hit a dry spell. It made its EuroCup debut in 2014-15, but failed to leave a mark and suffered its first title-free season in 14 years. As it underwent a rebuild, Partizan did not win any silverware the following two seasons either, before ending that rare drought by lifting the Serbian Cup in each of the last two years. Partizan also reached the EuroCup Top 16 for the first time last season, which shows that the club is on the right track again. Partizan always counts on its army of basketball die-hards and hopes to take more steps to get back to the path of glory.

subset: commoncrawl


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Knowledge Partner Program
Micro Focus International Wiki | Micro Focus Community | Knowledge Partner Program
Our new home is now in the *Micro Focus Community*
Who are the Knowledge Partners?
They are out there. You'll find their postings in forums and on mailing lists. They write blogs, maintain wikis, personal web sites and participate in beta programs. They provide the forum answers, blog posts, articles, tips and tools to be found on other areas of our community. These are the people that love to share their experience, knowledge and expertise both with the company, and all the others within the community. They contribute the best, most up to date, real world experiences and expertise to the community that even we at Micro Focus/SUSE can't always match.
We are thrilled to be able to recognize these customers, partners, and enthusiasts who provide exceptional value and contribution to us and our customers via the Knowledge Partner Program.
Knowledge Partners are nominated and selected by their peers and Knowledge Partner program management. They represent the best and the brightest contributors to shared knowledge surrounding our products. We have the pleasure of reviewing the nominations yearly with those in the program and interested Employees from around Micro Focus and SUSE. After review to ensure a nominated individual has the expertise, quality contributions, and temperament necessary to meet program standards, selected nominees will be invited to join the Knowledge Partner program.
Benefits to program participants:
- An active Knowledge Partner has the right to use the title and program mark.
- Knowledge Partners have access to our private discussion forums and direct, private contact with the Knowledge Partner Support Team and other Knowledge Partners.
- Access to training materials
- Access to product subscriptions
- Access to unreleased products
- There may be other benefits such as Knowledge Partner events and/or training opportunities
Benefits to Micro Focus/SUSE:
- The chance to get direct input from Knowledge Partners on a variety of issues ranging from technical to procedural.
- The customer satisfaction and retention gained by consumption of the shared knowledge provided by the Knowledge Partners.
- Knowledge Partners interactions with our customers and potential customers in the community helping us gain/retain customers.
- Quick identification of product problems/bugs.
Benefits to our community members:
- The ability to tap the shared knowledge provided by the many hours of contributions from Knowledge Partners.
- Confidence that the Knowledge Partners have gone through a rigorous selection process and that their opinions and suggestions can generally be trusted.
Program Details:
Participants are selected via a nomination process and, if they decide to join us, become a Micro Focus or SUSE Knowledge Partner. Program participation and benefits run for 12 month blocks, depending on participation. Program participants are required to sign a non-disclosure agreement as they will often have access to internal information.
Certain benefits may be reserved for the top contributors to the program.
Knowledge Partner Personal Pages
Would you like to know more about a specific Knowledge Partner you've interacted with? Links to their individual information is below:
Thanks to those who have served but have had life changes that have forced them to move on:
In memory of the good times we've had with members of, and people important to our team who are no longer living: In Memory


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text: Penn State sophomore Kevin Dastalfo, left, and junior Josh Lashbrook kicked off the Stand for Freedom on Jan. 31 at the Allen Street Gate at University Park to call attention to the 27 million men, women and children living in slavery throughout the world. The event, which will last for 27 hours, is organized by the campus' chapter of the International Justice Mission, a human rights organization that aids victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. Students were planning to stand at the intersection of College Avenue and Shortlidge Road on Feb. 1. To see a full-size version of the photo, click on the image.


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As part of making sure you're fully prepared for these tests our teachers often sacrifice their time, energy, and sanity and brave the Prometrics centers so that we can report on not only the content of the test be the experience of testing. This post is from one of our fabulous GRE teachers, Kara, who recently went in to take the actual GRE; here is her report:
Grad School Admissions Testing – An Accurate Measure of Intelligence?
Today's guest post is co-authored by Pauline Jennett, a Doctoral Candidate in the Educational Leadership Field. A former associate director of admissions from Harvard Business School, Ms. Jennett evaluated and interviewed domestic and international applicants. Prior to joining The MBA Exchange as an Admissions Consultant, she served as director of recruitment and admissions for non-profit career development organization Management Leadership for Tomorrow, an alumni officer for Boston University, and in sales and marketing management roles with Coca-Cola, Gillette, Procter & Gamble, and IBM. Ms. Jennett earned her MBA from The Wharton School, where she was a member of the Dean's Graduate Student Advisory group and studied at Instituto de Estudies Superiores de la Empresa (IE). She has a master of divinity degree cum laude from Boston University, and bachelor of business administration degree from Baruch College where she was a Baruch Scholar. She has traveled to 36 countries on 5 continents and is conversant in Spanish.
In my educational leadership doctoral program, I am taking a fascinating class on Psychological Testing. In the textbook "Assessment Procedures for Counselors and Helping Professionals" (Drummond, 2010), the authors note that "despite the lack of a clear definition of intelligence, assessing intelligence typically encompasses measuring one's ability to understand
complex ideas, adapt effectively to the environment, think abstractly, learn from experience, learn quickly, and engage in various forms of reasoning." Any student who has ever taken the SAT, GMAT, GRE, or LSAT, among other school admissions exams, can see remnants of these factors in the testing sections and question paradigms.
Review: ETS GRE PowerPrep II for Mac
Good news for all you mac-loving, liberal arts grads (and everyone else, of course): you can now prepare for your computer-based GRE without ever having to look at a Windows operating system. Yes, that's right. ETS has finally put out a version of PowerPrep II for Mac. Once you've downloaded and installed the program, open it up and you'll find a program that looks like, feels like, and even smells like an actual GRE test.
Mind Bumps: Proceed With Caution
The human brain is a miraculous organ. Neurons and synapses firing so quickly, processing so much in the tiniest fractions of a second that even the most powerful of computers still have not matched its complex computing capability (even if IBM's Watson can kick the best human butt at chess and Jeopardy). Together with your experience, your brain can be a powerful tool to avoid traps and tricks on the GMAT. That is, if you let it.
I tutor and teach and counsel hundreds of GMAT test-takers every year. And I'm consistently amazed by how often students ignore "warning signs" their brains are frantically trying to flag. I call these warning signs "mind bumps." A mind bump occurs whenever you read something that, at first or second glance, strikes you as strange, odd, or nonsensical. Given that they're almost always rooted in reading (just reading, not Reading Comprehension per se), these mind bumps are ubiquitous on the GMAT, occurring with enough regularity on both the Quant and Verbal that they should be used as a valuable tool to improve your score.
GMAT/GRE Quant Tip: Summation? Swap Rules for Strategy
Questions that involve the summation formula, whether on their own or one component of a more complicated problem, often trip test-takers up for the simplest of reasons: figuring out "how many items" are in the set can sometimes prove tricky. One way to avoid the headache of trying to remember the rule for each different kind of limitation (consecutive even/odd/other, inclusive vs. exclusive, whether the set starts/ends with an even/odd), is to simply employ a strategy that will quickly and consistently allow you to determine the number of items in the set: patterns.
Before we delve into how, let's review the summation formula and when it's used. The summation formula:
∑ = (# of Numbers in the Set)(Largest Number + Smallest Number)/2
GMAT or GRE, As Easy as 1-2-3
With a growing number of schools accepting the GRE for the MBA, we constantly get questions about which test people should take, so here are a few considerations to help students answer that question of GMAT or GRE:
1. The Advantage of History. The GMAT is the gold standard for the MBA application. Institutions have no questions about what GMAT scores mean and how to compare them retrospectively to students in their programs both current and past. Only recently (the last half-decade) has the number of schools accepting the GRE increased significantly. Advantage: GMAT.
Christmas Miracle
This message was originally posted in 2009, but alas is still relevant today!
Every year about this time I get a few "Christmas Miracle" phone calls. The callers don't see it that way, but that's in essence what the calls are. These calls (or sometimes emails) usually start rolling in around mid-December, when people are nearing crunch time for second round b-school application cycles and frantic that their GMAT scores haven't progressed to a point they feel will give them a reasonable shot at their schools of interest. Let's take a look at the particulars of a couple such cases from this month.
Struggling with GMAT (or GRE) Verbal? Read!
For all prospective GMAT examinees struggling with the Verbal section: Read!
Reading a quality periodical is one way to beef up your verbal score and maybe even have some interesting things to talk about during an interview. Jargon filled articles with complex sentences and foreign ideas are very similar to GMAT Reading Comp passages, Critical Reading Prompts, and Sentence Correction problems. Think about it this way: when you exercise, varying your workout gives you the most bang for your buck as it stimulates different muscle groups and systems in the body. This same principle can be applied to studying for the GMAT. Look outside of traditional test materials to push yourself to that next level.
Score Select for GRE Starts Next Week
ETS informed the world in April 2012 that ScoreSelect was going to become available in July, and that option is just around the corner.
ScoreSelect allows test-takers greater flexibility in deciding what scores to send to schools. The move is part of ETS' ongoing push for a more test-taker friendly platform, and will provide test-takers with the comfort and security of knowing that a non-representive score doesn't ever have to make it to admissions offices at schools. This relief should allow more test-takers to go in feeling confident and put their best foot forward come test day.
The ScoreSelect option is available both on test day and afterwards. Here are the particulars for test-takers, straight from ETS:
Understanding Your GMAT Practice Scores
With Round 1 application deadlines for many schools just a scant 3 months away, many people are revving up their preparation. One big component of the application process is the test score (GMAT or GRE) that most schools require, and a big part of any preparation are practice tests. In a later post we're going to discuss how practice test scores influence when we should take the GMAT, but today we're going to take a look at how practice tests (or an official score you're not happy with) should inform your preparation decisions.
Before we get into discussing practice test scores, we should take a moment to clarify a few important considerations about practice tests themselves:


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Department of Primatology
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Deutscher Platz 6
04103 Leipzig
phone: +49 (0)341 3550 - 200
fax: +49 (0)341 3550 - 299
Hjalmar Kühl
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Department of Primatology
Deutscher Platz 6
D-04103 Leipzig, Germany
phone: +49 341 3550 236
email: kuehl@[>>> Please remove the brackets! <<<]eva.mpg.de
My research interests focus on various issues in ape conservation, the development of wildlife survey and monitoring techniques, as well as questions in ape population ecology.
Ape conservation research
Ape populations are declining and disappearing throughout their range. Therefore, the easy accessibility of information on population status, threats and conservation opportunities is an important issue in ape conservation. In collaboration with IUCN/SSC/PSG Section on great apes, we implemented the A.P.E.S. database project (http://apes.eva.mpg.de) to compile and meta-analyze great ape survey data. We aim to provide a large scale perspective on the distribution of apes,at the national and regional level. Several graduate students have been or are working to analyze information for population trends in e.g. Côte d'Ivoire (Paul K. N'Goran, Genevieve Campbell), modeling past and present ape occurrence probability (Jessica Junker), or the effectiveness of ape conservation sites, including edge effects and law enforcement activities (Sandra Tranquilli).
A further goal of this project is to develop a series of GIS layers, ranging from ape population data availability, ape presence and occurrence probability and population trends to threats and future population trajectories. These GIS layers can then be used in ape conservation planning and management evaluation. For this project we closely collaborate with the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC) in Cambridge, UK.
Wildlife survey techniques
The development of wildlife survey and monitoring techniques is another topic we are working on intensively. In particular we are interested in the development of electronic methods, based on acoustics or remote camera trapping. The increasing availability of acoustic and video devices makes it now easier to collect large amounts of data for a wide range of species simultaneously. The problem is now how to efficiently process these data and extract the relevant species or individual information needed. Several graduate students are working on this topic with field data collection of audio (Genevieve Campbell, Ammie Kalan) and camera trap data (Luisa Rabanal) as well as automated extraction and classification of long-term recordings on the species and individual level (Oliver Wagner). Furthermore, we are closely collaborating with the Fraunhofer Institutes IDMT and IIS to develop a semi-automated species and individual identification system.
Ape population ecology
Ape populations are not only threatened by habitat loss and hunting. Additional threats include infectious diseases and likely climate change in the near future. Whereas infectious diseases affecting apes are of great interest to many researchers, not much work has been done regarding the potential impact of climate change. Here, we can learn from the reconstruction of the impact of paleoclimatic processes and the analyses of demography, phenology, and behavioral time series data collected in the recent past. We are currently working on several projects related to disease dynamics and the potential impact of climate variation.
If you are interested in any one of the above topics, or have your own ideas you would like to pursue in a stimulating environment, please contact me at kuehl@[>>> Please remove the brackets! <<<]eva.mpg.de.


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With crab season in full swing, here's a couple of recipes ranging from sophisticated to fun and simple.
With crab season in full swing, McCormick & Schmick's restaurant offers a couple of recipes ranging from sophisticated to fun and simple.
Blue Crab Cakes
Yield: 12 cakes, 6 servings
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup pasteurized eggs
1/2 tbsp. Old Bay seasoning
1/2 tbsp. coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 tbsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tspn. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 loaf white bread, crust removed, diced to about 1/4 inch cubes
2 lbs. Blue crab meat
3 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Combine mayonnaise, eggs, Old Bay seasoning, black pepper, dry mustard, salt and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl to form sauce base. Mix bread, crab meat and parsley in separate bowl. Gently fold sauce into crab meat mixture without breaking up crab.
Mixture must be made at least two hours before forming into cakes so bread will absorb liquid. Once chilled, form into 4-ounce cakes. Chill before cooking.
Cakes can be deep-fried, pan-fried or lightly drizzled with oil and baked in a 400°F oven. Serve with tartar sauce and garnish with lemon and parsley. If deep frying, fry until cakes are a deep golden brown; if pan frying, fry 3 to 4 minutes per side until the cakes are a deep golden brown.
Crab Tater Tots
Yield: about 10 servings
1 lb. cream cheese
3 tbsp. minced garlic
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1 tbsp. Chipotle pepper puree
1/4 cup cream
1 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
1/2 tbsp. Tabasco sauce
1 lb. crab meat
1 lb. bay shrimp
3 lbs. shredded, frozen hash-brown potatoes
3 cups Panko bread crumbs
Allow cream cheese to soften at room temperature for about an hour before making tots. Blend cream cheese with electric mixer until smooth. Fold in remaining ingredients and blend thoroughly.
To form tots, pinch off generous tablespoon of mixture and roll into ball. Mold into tater tot shape by gently squeezing sides of ball to form traditional cylindrical shape.
Best deep-fried but can be drizzled with oil and baked at 400°F for 10 to 12 minutes. Either way, tots must be very cold before cooking, so refrigerate for at least one to two hours.
Jessica Young, staff writer, Suburban Life


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bore through
bore through (someone or something)
1. Literally, to create a hole in an object or material. You're going to need a special drill to bore through something this thick.
2. By extension, to penetrate someone's inner self or emotions, often in a deeply affecting way. I had to turn around and look at the mysterious man because his gaze just bore through me.
bore through someone
Fig. [for someone's gaze] to seem to penetrate the person being gazed or stared at. Her stare bored right through me.
bore through something
to pierce or drill through something. The drill bit could not bore through the steel plate.


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Bulls beat 76ers 96-89 for 4th straight road win
Bulls win 24 hours after losing at home
PHILADELPHIA — Joakim Noah scored 21 points, Luol Deng added 19 points and 12 rebounds, and the Chicago Bulls won their fourth in a row on the road with a 96-89 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night.
Less than 24 hours after losing to the Los Angeles Clippers by five points at United Center, the Bulls traveled to Philadelphia and appeared more rested than the Sixers, who had Tuesday off.
Marco Belinelli had 16 points and Nate Robinson, starting in place of guard Kirk Hinrich, had 14 for Chicago. Hinrich injured his left knee in the loss to the Clippers and is listed as day-to-day.
Jrue Holiday scored 26 points, Evan Turner added 16 and Thaddeus Young 13 for Philadelphia.


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Economics, live video, and The World Economic Forum at Davos
Posted by shannonclark on January 24, 2008
I am deeply interested in Economics, for many years now I have been researching and thinking about a Networked Theory of Economics, a goal of mine for 2008 is to write and publish my book on that topic (ideally selling it as well so it reaches a wide audience).
So at this time I am very interested in what is happening this week in Davos, Switzerland. This year, in a fairly radical move towards openness, The World Economic Forum has a YouTube channel where they are posting many videos from the press events as well as interviews with attendees and leaders at Davos. Davos has also given a number of leading bloggers full access (though some sessions are off the record, quite a few portions of the conference are on the record). Robert Scoble is wandering through Davos with his cameraphone, frequently streaming live to the web via Qik. Jeff Jarvis and Michael Arrington among others are also in attendance and posting about their experiences as they happen.
As I wrote this, Robert streamed live, I jumped into the live chat. Yup, we live in science fictional times.
I am up late here in San Francisco, as I go to sleep soon, the 2300+ participants at Davos will go on about their day, when I wake up they will likely be almost about to eat dinner and heading to parties (apparently tomorrow Google is having a big party). And I know that because minutes ago I watched live video from and of my friends at the forum, streamed live across the Internet. Of course that same video started by Robert observing the President of Israel recording two videos for YouTube, which are also now likely live on the web as I write this.
Truly this is amazing stuff. When I was growing up, in the 80's and 90's CNN and cable news was just getting started, though my family didn't even own a TV, the impact of live news around the clock was just starting to have an impact on the globe. But the rest of the world was still fairly far away, phone calls cost money – especially overseas calls, and data rates were measured in baud (and computers showed mostly only text and very simple graphics – though that changed rapidly as I was in high school in the late 80's and early 90's.
Now Robert's cell phone on which he was recording and streaming live video has more computational power, I'm fairly sure, than the computers I used throughout high school and even into college. He almost certainly has multiple GB's of storage and very rapid data connections to the web (3G I assume), a screen on his phone that is far denser than the screens we used then – and a camera that records at resolutions unheard of back then – heck nearly unheard of not all that many years ago.
And though Robert notes that not that many bloggers are at Davos this year, the impact of YouTube and bloggers is to help crack open in a fairly major way a gathering that had for years been shrouded mostly in secrecy into a far more open event. Still with a lot of secrecy and I'm sure a lot of security – but also impressively interested in engaging with the world.
In watching the video which I have embedded above, I was also struck by how interesting the group of co-chairs of the forum are – world leaders past and (near)present along side business leaders from across the globe – leaders who were not just white, anglo saxon males – but leaders of large and yes powerful companies from across the globe.
All speaking, at least in this press conference in English, and all seemingly comfortable with their roles, with each other, and for the most part with the press (though the press were for the most part mostly interested in talking to Tony Blair). Personally I was most interested in everyone else on the panel except Tony Blair and Henry Kissinger. I am encouraged by the engagement of the leaders of some of the largest companies in the world in the issues which face us as a globe.
My views on Economics, in the most simple form, is that all economics can be modeled as a network over time. What this means is that value is not fixed, not inherent but deeply and tightly embedded in the economic networks we create and participate within. I have to do more and deeper research and modeling, but in general I would thus be deeply opposed to protectionist steps – and also deeply suspicious of attempts to economically isolate countries (or other entities).
At MeshForum we talk about many types of networks and especially about interdisciplinary approaches to networks. The World Economic Forum at Davos is a prime example of the power of social networks – and the vital importance, even for the very "important and/or famous" of face-to-face interactions, of shared meals and joint experiences. But the spectacle of and around Davos also highlights that there is much more going on, there are other factors – new media old and new, political networks both within countries and globally such as the UN, economic networks both within corporations and between corporations, and newer, creative networks such as the Project(red) campaign which connects individual customers, brands, an NGO of the UN, and millions of HIV patients thoughout the world. $57 million dollars is, perhaps, a drop in the bucket compared to the cost of AIDS to Africa and the world, or to the revenues of the corporate sponsors of the project, but it is also enough to have had a very real and dramatic impact on tens of thousands of our fellow humans who were suffering and now have some measure of hope.
As I live and work here in the US, in this very expensive and deeply futuristic place called Silicon Valley, even here in San Francisco which has at least a small measure of history and culture as well, it is well worth remembering how large and diverse and complex our planet is.
And to recall how small are the links which connect us all. My friends are now there at Davos hanging out, meeting, and sharing meals with some of the people who quite literally lead this world – the leaders of large corporations, the organizers of major efforts to save lives (as well as, less fortunately some of the leaders whose decisions cost lives), and the leaders of many governments (or past leaders).
They say that we, all humans, are connected by just a few steps, but also at far too many times it seems that even in our own countries, within our own cities we exist and live in different worlds. In 2008, however, I see many signs that our common links, our common, global interests are starting to be made clearer and that technology is, in part, helping more people reach out to each other – and to engage and perhaps see the "other" as also human, also worthy of respect and engagement with – even and perhaps particularly when we do not entirely agree.
One Response to "Economics, live video, and The World Economic Forum at Davos"
January 24, 2008 at 4:57 am
Interesting thoughts, it is nice to see people take a positive view towards economics


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The division of student development and the Counseling Center have launched 'Let's Talk,' a public health campaign that focuses on a variety of issues affecting undergraduate and graduate students. Themes throughout the year will include recognizing the signs of students in distress, knowing the resources that are available, building skills to help friends get help, and developing the ability to bounce back after difficulties. These efforts will include a focus on suicide prevention, healthy and unhealthy relationships, body pride, preventing sexual assault, and not being a bystander.
College can be an exciting time with many amazing experiences, but it can also be a time of great challenge. Sometimes the stresses that college students contend with can leave an individual feeling distressed and isolated. We know that college students live in a world that can include challenges like problems with sleep and unhealthy relationships. We also know, for example, that over half of all college students have experienced the loss of a loved one in the past two years, and many, many more are coping with parents, grandparents, or siblings that have chronic and terminal illnesses. Yet, many students avoid reaching out and letting others know that they are struggling.
The main goal of the 'Let's Talk' campaign, which is really a reflection of our Jesuit identity, is to make sure that everyone in our community is aware that these issues exist and impact the lives of those who are part of our community, and to know what resources are available. We also want all students to recognize that seeking support is a sign of strength. When an individual reaches out to others, she or he begins to feel a stronger sense of self-efficacy and hope. An important part of the campaign will be the sharing of student-friendly messages that de-stigmatize counseling and promote the value of help-seeking. We will be telling positive stories this year about the strengths of this community and the students who are a part of it.
Another goal we hope to accomplish is to encourage everyone to reach out on one another's behalf—to check in with one another when you notice that someone's mood or behavior seems to have changed, to take the time to have the conversation and, when necessary, to help the person you are reaching out to get the support he or she might need. So often in our society we tend to reflexively think that others do not want us to pry. But we all know that when someone reaches out to us, it can make a huge difference. We want all members of the community—faculty, staff, administrators, and students—to do this for each other, and help individuals who need some extra support plug into the wonderful resources that Loyola offers.
How Flexible Are You??


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Morning all, thanks for taking time out of your Sunday to stop by
Can you believe it's September tomorrow? I think I must say this every month but I just can't believe how quickly the time flies by
We have our next Lili of the Valley open day planned for September 20th so keep a lookout on here, Facebook and the website for details over the next week or so. There are 2 workshops with our fabulous Dawny but these are filling up so if you would like a place don't wait too long to get yourself booked in; you can find all the details here
Vicky has been our fabulous Guest Designer for August and today I have the last make from her…
Vicky used one of our popular James the Bear stamps on her beautiful card, this image is called James Umbrella
If you prefer to use the Art Pads this cutie is also available in the James and Jenny Bear pad
The circular sentiment is on the useful Pretty Grungy Relations set and the wording at the bottom is one of our Handwritten Phrases
You can see all the details and more of Vicky's lovely cards on her own blog here
I'd like to thank Vicky for joining us as a Guest Designer, I know you've all enjoyed seeing her work
I'll have a new Guest designer to introduce in a couple of days, another clever crafter who some of you will already be familiar with and she's a big Lili of the Valley fan
We'll have a candy draw as always today so leave a comment on Vicky's card
Our winner from Friday is Sue Nicholson, well done Sue please email your address to firstname.lastname@example.com
Have a great day everyone, enjoy the rest of the weekend


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Dates are June 14, 15, 2014
Who all is going to be there?
What are you guys building?
Any ideas on collaboration?
Figured I would go ahead and start the ball rolling on this. We have plenty of time to coordinate (and make sure ALL of us can meet up!).
If you have any questions about Brickworld Chicago they can be answered here.


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6 's
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Whew, where did the week go? Both of my sons were home sick this week, so it was almost impossible to get anything done. Craig had bronchitis; Jamie had your run-of-the-mill CFIDS crash. Both are doing fine now. They went back to school yesterday, just in time for a 4-day weekend! This is the first crash Jamie's had since mid-October, and he only missed two days of school this time. Absolutely amazing compared to how sick he was last year.
So, I'm sure you're wondering whether the Valcyte is working for me. I'm wondering, too! I've been on it for two weeks now. From what I'd read, I was expecting a sudden worsening of my symptoms as an indication that the Valcyte was working (this is called a herx reaction, common when treating a long-standing infection). I felt pretty crummy for the first week and a half, with really low stamina. I couldn't really tell if this was my "worsening," though, since I'd been in a crash since January 1. Yes, it was worse than "normal" for me but not much different from how I'd felt all month. I was feeling a little down, thinking I'd had no reaction to the medication at all, and it wasn't going to help me.
Then I began exchanging information with other CFIDS patients on Valcyte. THANK YOU to all the people who told me about the message boards at Immune Support!!! Reading about other people's experiences and other doctor's approaches has made a huge difference for me. If you're interested, there are several discussion threads specifically about Valcyte and other anti-virals. You have to register, but it's free and quick.
One thing I learned is that Dr. Montoya is using a much higher dose of Valcyte in the Stanford trials than I'm on. At first, I worried that my dose was too low, but I've learned that some doctors are using lower doses to try to minimize the initial worsening. I'm also wondering whether a lower dose might be appropriate for me since I'm not as severely ill as most of the people Dr. Montoya is treating. I've had CFIDS for just under 5 years and function at about 40-50% of what I could do before getting sick. It's bad, but I know that there are plenty of people with CFIDS who are much sicker, even bed-ridden. I've also done a lot already to help improve my immune system function, which could help me to better tolerate the anti-viral treatment.
So, bottom line is that I'm still not sure whether the Valcyte will work for me. I had three very good days (in a row!) this week, but I'm crashed today after a shopping expedition yesterday. Next week, I'll go to the lab for blood tests to monitor how I'm reacting to Valcyte, and then the week after, I meet with my doctor so we can decide whether to continue the treatment. After what I've learned this week, I'll also talk to her about the dosing.
If you're interested in learning more about treating CFIDS with anti-virals, Dr. Martin Lerner is another doctor who's done a significant amount of work in this field. His website includes an excellent summary of his research (click on Professional Publications).
So, I'll rest up today and hope for a decent weekend.
I have had Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) since March 2002. Both of my sons also got ME/CFS at ages 6 and 10. Our younger son fully recovered after 10 years of mild illness. Our older son still has ME/CFS and also has Lyme disease plus two other tick infections. This blog is about how our family lives with chronic illness, with a focus on improving our conditions and enjoying our lives in spite of these challenges.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Two Week Update
Posted by Sue Jackson at 11:07 AM
Labels: anti-virals, kids and CFIDS, Valcyte
2 comments:
I believe it's around week 4 that you can expect to experience a worsening of symptoms. I'm curious about what else you did to help your immune system first.
- Sue Jackson said...
I talked about the immune system supplements I use in my blog entry, Viruses and CFIDS, on December 6, 2006.
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


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Delphos Jefferson overpowers W-G in opener
WAYNESFIELD— Waynesfield-Goshen varsity football coach Gary Spencer did not keep it secret that the Tigers needed to play mistake-free football to win the season opener against Delphos Jefferson Friday.
They managed to do it for a half, but three costly turnovers in the second half led to their undoing in a 38-17 loss.
To compound problems, the Tigers tandem of power running backs, Gabe Hennnon and Gabe Wilcox, battled injuries for most of the second half as the Wildcats slowly distanced themselves.
"Its tough to win football games when you start with your varsity and end with your junior varsity," Spencer said. "If we don't have those two in we are going to have a tough time winning football games. But the kids didn't quit. That was noticeable."
Wilcox was battling an injured ankle and Hennon suffered with cramps throughout the game, though he managed to break the 100 yard mark on a two-yard carry with about six minutes remaining in the game. He finished with 101 yards on 30 carries.
Jefferson hit the scoreboard first when Zavier Buzard was stopped initially behind the line of scrimmage, but broke off of the pile and went left for 55 yards. The Tigers answered back with a typical Tiger drive, going 69 yards on 14 plays, all runs. The drive ate up 6:45 minutes of clock and tied the game at 7-7 after one quarter of play.
Delphos quarterback Austin Jettinghoff found Ross Thompson for a 43 yard gain, which set up a Quinten Wessell four yard score two plays later to put Jefferson back up at 13-7.
A key penalty allowed the Tigers to take the lead right before halftime. With the Wildcats going for it on a fourth-and-one on the Tiger 44, an offsides penalty made it fourth-and-six and forced the Wildcats to punt. Waynesfield put together a textbook two minute drive, scoring with two seconds remaining on a Gabe Hennon two yard run. The Tigers converted two crucial third down conversions on the drive and quarterback Garrett Miller completed key passes to Lee Turner, Eli O'Leary and Jeron Hennon totaling 50 yards.
In the second half, things didn't go as planned for the Tigers. The Tigers were in prime position to take control when an offsides play took them out of synch. Jefferson fumbled the initial play of the second half giving Waynesfield good field position at the Wildcat 42-yard line. Gabe Hennon bulldozed his way for nine-yards to set up a short third and one play when both running backs jumped to make it third-and-six. The penalty turned a short yardage situation into a third and long and ultimately resulted in a interception by Thompson on the following play.
"It seemed the game changed from that point," Spencer said.
Wessell bulldozed his way for a 15-yard score and Drew Kortokrax broke for a 77-yard punt return to quickly turn the mistake into a 25-14 Jefferson lead.
Roope Mettae's 36-yard field goal at the 2:03 mark kept the Tigers within a score at 25-17, but the offense stalled from that point as the Jefferson defense seemed to play downhill from there.
"They got after us in the first half," said Jefferson head coach Bub Lindeman. "We regrouped in the locker room and played well on the line both ways in the second half. We felt we were better conditioned going into the game. I think that allowed us to play more downhill in the second half.
Buzard and Wessell gave the Wildcats a double-headed monster of a running attack. Buzard ran for 148 yards while Wessell chipped in with 90. Jettinghoff threw only eight passes, but they were good enough to keep the Tiger defense honest. He completed five for 120 yards.
"I think we showed we are ready to play with some of the better teams," Spencer said.


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Friday, May 19, 2017, 3:12 pm
40,000 AT&T Workers Begin 3-Day Strike
This story has been updated with the start of the strike.
Around 40,000 members of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) at AT&T walked off their jobs Friday, for a three-day strike, as pressure continues to mount on the corporation to settle fair contracts.
In California and Nevada, around 17,000 AT&T workers who provide phone, landline and cable services have been working without a contract for more than a year. Last year, they voted to authorize a strike with more than 95 percent support. And in February, an estimated 21,000 AT&T Mobility workers in 36 states voted to strike as well, with 93 percent in favor.
Workers had issued an ultimatum, giving company executives until 3 p.m. ET on Friday to present serious proposals. They didn't; the workers walked.
It isn't the first strike at AT&T. Some 17,000 workers in California and Nevada walked off the job in late March to protest company changes in their working conditions in violation of federal law. After a one-day strike, AT&T agreed not to require technicians to perform work assignments outside of their expertise. Nevertheless, the biggest issues for workers remained unresolved.
AT&T has proposed to cut sick time and force long-time workers to pay hundreds of dollars more for basic healthcare, according to CWA. At a huge April rally in Silicon Valley, CWA District 9 vice president Tom Runnion fumed, "The CEO of AT&T just got a raise and now makes over $12,000 an hour. And he doesn't want to give us a raise. He wants to sabotage our healthcare then wants us to pay more for it. Enough is enough!"
AT&T is the largest telecommunications company in the country with $164 billion in sales and 135 million wireless customers nationwide. It has eliminated 12,000 call center jobs in the United States since 2011, representing more than 30 percent of its call center employees, and closed more than 30 call centers. Meanwhile, the company has outsourced the operation of more than 60 percent of its wireless retail stores to operators who pay much less than the union wage, according to CWA.
The relocation of jobs to call centers in Mexico, the Philippines, the Dominican Republic and other countries is one of the main issues in negotiations. A recent CWA report charges that in the Dominican Republic, for instance, where it uses subcontractors, wages are $2.13-$2.77/hour. Workers have been trying to organize a union there and accuse management of firing union leaders and making threats, accusations and intimidating workers. Several members of Congress sent a letter to President Donald Trump this year demanding that he help protect and bring call center jobs back to the United States.
"We've been bargaining with AT&T for over a year," CWA president Chris Shelton told the rally in Silicon Valley. "They can easily afford to do what people want and instead are continuing to send jobs overseas."
According to Dennis Trainor, vice president of CWA District 1, "AT&T is underestimating the deep frustration wireless retail, call center and field workers are feeling right now with its decisions to squeeze workers and customers, especially as the company just reported more than $13 billion in annual profits."
"The clock is ticking for AT&T to make good on their promise to preserve family-supporting jobs for more than 40,000 workers," Trainor said before the start of the strike. "We have made every effort to bargain in good faith with AT&T, but have only been met with delays and excuses. Now, AT&T is facing the possibility of closed stores for the first time ever. Our demands are clear and have been for months: fair contract or strike."
Last year, CWA members at Verizon were on strike for 49 days, finally gaining a contract with greater job protections and winning 1,300 new call center jobs. Since December, AT&T workers have picketed retail stores in San Francisco, New York, Boston, Seattle, Chicago, San Diego and other cities, hung banners on freeway overpasses, organized rallies and marches and confronted the corporation at its annual meeting in Dallas.
"Americans are fed up with giant corporations like AT&T that make record profits but ask workers to do more with less and choose to offshore and outsource jobs," said Nicole Popis, an AT&T wireless call center worker in Illinois. "I've watched our staff shrink from 200 employees down to 130. I'm a single mother and my son is about to graduate. I voted yes to authorize a strike because I'm willing to do whatever it takes to show AT&T we're serious."
Full disclosure: In These Times staff are members of the Communication Workers of America, and the union is a sponsor of the magazine. Sponsors play no role in editorial content.
A special offer for union members
Covid-19 is one of the biggest labor stories in decades, and In These Times has invested heavily in labor coverage over the past few months. This has the potential to be a powerful organizing moment, and we want to make our coverage available to as many people as possible.
If you or someone in your household is a member of a union, click here to learn more.
David Bacon
David Bacon is a former union organizer, photographer, and writer, covering labor, immigration, and the impact of the global economy on workers. He is the author of The Right to Stay Home: How US Policy Drives Mexican Migration (2013), Illegal People: How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants (2008), Communities Without Borders (2006), and The Children of NAFTA: Labor Wars on the US/Mexico Border (2004). His website is at dbacon.igc.org.
More by David Bacon
- Hundreds of Fruit Packing Workers Are On Strike
- Don't Punish the Dreamers—Punish the Corporations Driving Forced Migration
- 40,000 AT&T Workers Begin 3-Day Strike
- Punishing Employers Who Hire Undocumented Immigrants Isn't the Answer—Solidarity Is
- Revolt of the 'Chapulines': After Strike, Indigenous Mexican Farmworkers Vote To Unionize


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31 's
Mini Padlock Key Earrings Silver Color with Fish Hook Earwires
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How do you say "loading grade" in Finnish? Or "installation contracting" in Greek?
Use the Thesaurus in combination with our search function and find unique local information in the language of your country of interest here on RenewablesB2B.com or via Google search.
In need of a good translation service? Contact us at email@example.com and we will provide you with an outstanding offer.


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Digital Pattern Heat Transfer Vinyl creates a special look for any occasion. It's perfect for dance, cheer, sport and any party. Digital pattern can be heat-applied to cotton, polyester and cotton poly blends.
Blue Gingham
Roll Lengths Available
- Customize Garments for A Fashionable Look
- Applies to Cotton, Cotton/Polyester, or Polyester Material
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- Roll Widths Available are 15"
- 13.5" wide patterned area (**All Widths are Approximate**)
- Roll Lengths Available are 1yd, 5yd, 10yd, or 25yd


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Carey Mulligan's dress is Balenciaga. It's OK. The safety pin there seems like an afterthought, somewhere you might put a bow, but for tonight, why not a safety pin because...punk. I think I might have been more excited about this if it didn't have the sameness we've seen from her over the last two weeks. It's all kinda just blending together and not super memorable...
But for the shoes.
Now the shoes are something special. These are no ordinary t-strap heels. These are incredible.
If we're talking safety pins though, Hailee Steinfeld did them better. And I'm actually shocked that this is Donna Karan Atelier. The dress is leather. As you can see, the pins have been strategically placed to look like sun or flower bursts all over. So not just a safety pin for the sake of a safety pin. But that's a heinous choice on her feet.


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The cookie settings on this website are set to 'allow all cookies' to give you the very best experience. If you continue past this page without changing these settings, you consent to this. More information
When buying or selling a property you will want to know you are dealing with a safe and professional estate agent that has your best interest at heart.
Davis Tate are members of the most recognised Industry Bodies protecting and monitoring the Estate Agency industry.
All estate agents in the residential property industry are regulated by The Estate Agents Act 1979 (EAA) and also general consumer protection legislation such as the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs)
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Davis Tate display the Propertymark Protected logo. This aims to offer better protection for their clients. Members are also subject to Propertymark Conduct and Membership Rules and disciplinary procedures with sanctions for those who fall below the expected standards. Anyone using an agent displaying the Propertymark Protected logo will be confident that their agent is guiding them on their property journey.
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Noise(redirected from Naoise)
Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Medical, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.
Related to Naoise: Derdriu
Price and volume fluctuations that can confuse interpretation of market direction. Used in the context of general equities. Stock market activity caused by program trades, dividend rolls, and other phenomena not reflective of general sentiment. Antithesis of real.
A slight uptick or downtick in a security's or market's price and/or volume representing little or no actual change in its fundamentals. Noise occurs in the short-term; if noise continues in a certain direction, it becomes a trend, and, therefore, an indication of the general direction of the security or market. Noise, on the other hand, means little or nothing.
Random market fluctuations that make it difficult to forecast the market's direction.


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Nineteen-year-old British diver Tom Daley, who won a Bronze at the London Games and became both heartthrob and gay icon, announced in a Youtube video this morning that he's in a relationship with another man.
He very pointedly did not label himself as gay, only that he's now dating a dude.
I've been dating girls and I've never really had a serious relationship to talk about and now I feel ready to talk about my relationships. Come spring this year my life changed massively when I met someone and it made me feel so happy, so safe, and everything just feels great. And, well, that someone is a guy. And it did take me by surprise a little bit. It was always in the back of my head that something like that could happen but it wasn't until spring this year that something just clicked. It felt right. Like I said, my whole world just changed there and then. Of course I still fancy girls but, I mean, right now I'm dating a guy and I couldn't be happier. It feels safe and it really does feel right.
Daley's video is a reaction to a September interview with the Daily Mirror in which he claims he was misquoted—or at least the headline twisted to read "I'm not gay."


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Class registration for quilting, sewing and stitching classes at Quilted Strait can be done online, in person, by sending a check in the mail or phone us at (360)930-8145 or TOLL FREE AT 1-855-GOQUILT. Your place in the class can be held as soon as we have received your payment for the class. Please note the details of the CLASS REFUND POLICY .
Sorry, we are just not set up to accommodate guests or children in the classes. We understand that it can be important to you to be available to receive calls on your cell phone during the class, but please set your phone to manner mode and there is an area outside the classroom where you may conduct a phone conversation if you need to do so.
The classroom contains a refrigerator and microwave for your convenience, bottled water and makings for a variety of hot drinks are available and we have menus available for your convenience if you wish to call in an order for lunch or snacks to the local restaurants. We have assembled a partial list of overnight accommodations nearby for your convenience.
All groups listed on the website are open groups and anyone may join at any time. New members are warmly welcomed and beginners and experienced stitchers are welcome. You are also encouraged just to pop in and visit the group you are interested and see what they are doing. Please feel free to send us an email or call us if you would like more information.
Regular Price:$95.00$95.00
Regular Price:$40.00$40.00


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Democrats Won't Consider Social Security Changes in Fiscal Cliff Deal
Congressional Democrats are saying that they are not willing to consider changes in Social Security in a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff," even though the Simpson-Bowles commission charged with coming up with a plan insists that Social Security can't be ignored.
Sen. Dick Durbin (R-Ill.) argued on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday that Social Security needs only a few small tweaks and no major reforms to ensure the long-term solvency of the program.
"Social Security does not add one penny to the deficit," he said. "Not a penny. It's a separate funded operation, and we can do things that I believe we should now, smaller things, played out over the long term that gives it solvency."
Sitting opposite of Durbin on the ABC Sunday news show was Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who believes adjustments to Social Security should be part of any deal struck between the two parties.
"I don't think you can look at entitlement reform without adjusting the age for retirement, like Tip O'Neill and Ronald Reagan did," countered Graham. "It goes to 66, 67 here pretty soon for Social Security. Let it float up another year or so over the next 30 years, adjust Medicare from 65 to 67 over the next 30 years, means test benefits for people in our income level."
"I don't expect the Democrats to go for premium support or a voucher plan, but I do expect them to adjust these entitlement programs before they bankrupt the country and run out of money themselves."
President Obama spent the last several months of the campaign talking about the need to raise taxes on the "wealthy," defined as those whose income exceed $250,000 annually. Yet without some type of spending reform, experts on the federal budget say new monies raised from any sort of tax increase is not enough to solve the nation's looming budget crisis.
Some members of Congress are asking if this is the perfect time to reform Social Security.
Technically speaking, Durbin is correct in that Social Security is not part of the federal budget. It was intended to be a standalone trust fund where workers pay into a system so that retirees and older Americans would have something to fall back on when they are no longer working fulltime.
"Social Security is basically a pay-and-go situation," Eugene Steuerle of the nonpartisan Urban Institute think tank told CNBC. Unlike Medicare, Social Security must pay for itself, and technically, it is not part of the overall federal budget.
So where does the money come from?
Social Security receives its revenues from three primary sources. First is the mandatory payroll deduction of 6.2 percent from each worker and matched by the employer. The second source is the income tax collected from beneficiaries whose income exceeds a certain level and the third source of funds is interest earned from funds invested in U.S. Treasuries.
Initially designed as a program to assist the elderly, Social Security has gone through several changes, the most dramatic of which occurred under the presidency of Lyndon Johnson when the program was expanded to include benefits for the disabled. Since then, only minor changes have been made to the entitlement program.
The problem is, however, that there will soon be more money going out of the Social Security coffers than there is coming in.
While there is no shortage of ideas on how to reform Social Security, there is a shortage of elected representatives willing to vote for them. Candidates on either side of the aisle would in essence be committing political suicide if they ran on a platform of reducing Social Security benefits.
Some liberals such as Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) have taken a hardline on cutting entitlements, saying that any discussion related to cutting entitlements such as Social Security or Medicare are "off the table."
Yet business leaders disagree. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to Congress signed by more than 200 businesses advocating for the extension of all the expiring tax cuts and for entitlement reform.
"Our nation's entitlement programs are unsustainable. If we do not make sensible reforms, the programs will go bankrupt – and so will the nation," reads the letter.


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Speculation has reached a fever pitch as both presumptive nominees Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are finalizing their choices for running mate, NBC News reported.
While a vice presidential pick may not swing an election, it can leave an impression about the judgment of a would-be president or it could address something lacking at the top.
The "vetting" process has become more important since 1972. Former Democratic nominee Sen. George McGovern lost in 49 states after it was revealed that running mate Sen. Thomas Eagleton battled depression and received electroshock therapy.
U.S. & World
Most recent picks can be broken down in terms of the value they brought to the candidate at the top, whether that be regional, ideological, a resume filler or someone outside-the-box.
NBC News looks at some of the past VP picks and how they helped shape major party campaigns.


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Indicative Rate * AU$40 to AU$215
The world's largest sand island awaits you at beautiful Hervey Bay. Your accommodation at Discovery Parks – Boat Harbour Drive, Hervey Bay is minutes away from the departure point to World Heritage listed Fraser Island - long uninterrupted white beaches, sand cliffs, over 100 freshwater lakes and ancient rainforests.
Hervey Bay also offers the best whale watching in the world, with a range of tours to observe magnificent humpback whales. There are plenty of water-based activities, too, like fishing and wakeboarding. Need a break? The Esplanade is a beautiful 14 kilometre drive of shared pathway with plentiful options for dining out.
The Two Bedroom Villas are very spacious, ideal for families and sharing couples, they sleep up to four guests.
There is one queen bed in main bedroom, two single beds in second bedroom, en suite bathroom, kitchen facilities, air-conditioning, LCD television and DVD player, and veranda. Linen is provided.
The Family Cabin One is ideal for families or couples who enjoy their space.
There is one queen bed, bunk beds, en suite bathroom, television and DVD player, free DVD movie hire, air-conditioning, and the cabins are fully self-contained.
The Studio is open plan and ideal for families, couples or solo travellers.
There is one queen bed, en suite bathroom, bunk beds, kitchen facilities, and air-conditioning. Linen is provided.
The Cabin is open plan and ideal for small groups or families, sleeping up to four guests.
There is one queen bed, bunk beds, kitchenette, air-conditioning, and en suite bathroom. Linen is provided.
Villas have one king bed in the main bedroom, and two single beds in the second bedroom. There is a separate kitchen and lounge area, reverse cycle air-conditioning, LCD television and DVD player, free DVD movie hire, and the villas are fully self-contained. Linen is provided.
The Powered Caravan and Camping Site has lovely grassed sites, sites with slabs for caravan and annexe, single slab sites and drive through sites, giving you the benefit of choice in your stay.
The En suite Caravan Site has a single slab for annexe as well as a spacious en suite bathroom. This is a convenient way to camp.
Note: Information on listed products and services are provided by the operator and were correct at the time of publishing. Rates are indicative based on the minimum and maximum available prices of products and services. Please visit the operator's website for further information. All prices quoted are in Australian dollars (AUD).


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Specialties:Unstable media, multi-talented group, masters of the unexpected. The computer is their mixing tool, blending music, theatre, film and a healthy dose of comedy into absurd media theatre, interactive installations, and surprise acts. PIPS:lab project must always include multiple art forms, the audience must be involved using interactive techniques, fiction and reality are mashed up, the footage is always recorded live, high tec is made low brow.
Device Orientation
|Event Supported
|Tilt Left/Right [tiltLR]
|Tilt Front/Back [tiltFB]
|Direction [direction]
|Motion Up/Down


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Now you know Marvel Studios is feeling strong.
After the, let's face it, unexpected quality and box office success of "Thor" and "Captain America," they pretty much know they have a winner in the "The Avengers." So much so, in fact, that they are further pantsing rival DC Comics in public by releasing trailers for straight-to-DVD short films.
Called "Marvel One Shots," these mini films star Clark Gregg's S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Coulson and are meant to connect the events of 'Iron Man," "Iron Man 2," "The Incredible Hulk," "Thor," and "Captain America." The first one will debut on the DVD and Blu-ray of "Thor."
U.S. & World
The day's top national and international news.
We already mentioned how the films may include cameos from lower tier Marvel heroes, but they may also answer some little nagging questions like, "How did Agent Coulson get from Malibu to New Mexico?" "Does S.H.I.E.L.D. have good dental?" and, of course, how precisely Dr. Bruce Banner's experiments turned timid Edward Norton into the rampaging Mark Ruffalo.
The first teaser - again, this is a teaser. For a short film - is for an installment called "The Consultant."
Of course, the "consultant" in question is Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. Remember at the end of "Iron Man 2," when Nick Fury tells Tony he's not an official member of the Avengers, but rather a...well, you can guess. We imagine the rest of the film may explain some of how Tony earns his Avengers roster spot.
"Thor" debuts on DVD and Blu-ray on September 13th.


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Cufflinks - Deakin and Francis
With over 200 years of experience, Deakin and Francis specialise in the creation of handmade cufflinks made from the finest materials. This family owned business, now in its 7th generation, was founded in 1786 in Birmingham's world famous Jewellery Quarter. Their opulent and eccentric designs worn by style lovers, have become timeless accessories. READ MORE >
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SEATTLE -- The Space Needle is quadrupling its glass cleaning staff as they near the completion of their $100 million renovation.
With 176 tons of glass added to the observation deck and a new 37-ton rotating glass floor, there are now 20,000 square feet of glass at the iconic attraction.
And with more than 1.3 million visitors every year, the glass needs to be cleaned...a lot.
Do you have what it takes to be a Space Needle glass keeper?
Lead Glass Handler Paul Best says it requires you not to be afraid of heights and to have a personable personality.
Best also shares what the worst part of cleaning the glass is.
"The worst thing is lipstick...I hate the lipstick," he said.


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NEW YORK (AP) — Ray Lewis is worried about what's happening to his sport.
The Baltimore linebacker who epitomizes hard hits in the NFL fears that the league is stripping away the inherent violence and "the game will be diluted very quickly."
"My opinion is play the game like that game is supposed to be played, and whatever happens happens," Lewis said Wednesday about the NFL's decision to crack down on dangerous and flagrant hits.
The NFL imposed huge fines on three players — Pittsburgh's James Harrison, Atlanta's Dunta Robinson and New England's Brandon Meriweather — for illegal hits last weekend. It warned that, starting with this week's games, violent conduct will be cause for suspension.
Arizona Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter was clearly perplexed by the decision.
"There's no more hitting hard. That's what our game is about. It's a gladiator sport," Porter said. "I mean, the whole excitement of people getting hit hard, big plays happening, stuff like that.
"Just watch — the game is going to change."
Violence has always been a part of the NFL, bringing soaring TV ratings and strong attendance — along with the allure that accompanied tackles by Chuck Bednarik, Fred "The Hammer" Williamson, and Jack "The Assassin" Tatum.
The question is how much to allow.
"Physical, tough football is what people are attracted to," said Ray Anderson, the NFL's executive vice president of football operations. "Violent, unnecessary hits that put people at risk, not just for the careers but lives … we're not subscribing to the notion fans want that."
Commissioner Roger Goodell told the teams that "further action is required to emphasize the importance of teaching safe and controlled techniques and of playing within the rules."
"It is incumbent on all of us to support the rules we have in place to protect players," he said.
But some players think the league is asking for something much more difficult: complete changes in playing style — changes that fans don't want to see.
Not surprisingly, defensive players are most critical.
"What they're trying to say — 'We're protecting the integrity' — no, you're not," Bears cornerback Charles Tillman said. "It's ruining the integrity. It's not even football anymore. We should just go out there and play two-hand touch Sunday if we can't make contact."
Miami linebacker Channing Crowder said the only way of preventing helmet-to-helmet hits is to eliminate the helmet.
"If I get a chance to knock somebody out, I'm going to knock them out and take what they give me," Crowder said. "They give me a helmet, I'm going to use it."
The players are questioning how they are supposed to adhere to the heightened emphasis on avoiding dangerous hits when it goes against everything they've been taught since they first stepped on the field as kids.
"Guys have to be coached differently because we've been coached a certain way our whole lives," said Cleveland linebacker Scott Fujita, a member of the executive committee of the players' union, the NFLPA. "I think people out there would be shocked at the things players hear in their meetings with their coaches and the things they are supposed to do, the way they are taught to hit people."
Many players also wanted stronger discipline for flagrant fouls to be part of their negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, not something unilaterally imposed six weeks into the season.
"We want to protect the players, absolutely," Fujita said. "But we need to have a longer conversation about it, and if you're going to impose sweeping changes like that and talk about suspending players, that's something that you have to address in the offseason."
Anderson argues that the way the game is played, officiated and policed will only change for the better — and safer.
"We are not going to fundamentally change the game. We're focused on one thing, illegal hits to the head and neck area," he said. "We hope to culturally change it so players understand those head hits under existing rules should be taken out of the game. For players who can't make the adjustment on their own, they will get a lot of help from this office to make sure they don't play that way."
Officials will be instructed to have an even higher level of attention toward flagrant hits, which Anderson categorized as limited "but very high profile and damaging."
The NFL's crackdown was welcomed in the medical community.
Dr. William Bingaman, vice chairman of the Neurological Institute at the Cleveland Clinic and one of the independent doctors who examines concussed players to determine when they can return to action, sees it as a positive step.
But it's hardly a cure-all for preventing head injuries — or any other injuries — in the NFL, where the players are bigger and faster, and the enhanced equipment can make them foolishly gallant.
"We will never eliminate the dangers of a concussion occurring," Bingaman said, taking note that both Robinson and Jackson suffered concussions in their collision. "It's huge that we have the proper equipment and the proper training and proper tackling techniques.
"Anything that reduces a blow to the head, naturally I am in favor of that, because there is less risk and less incidents of concussions or something more serious. If you reduce helmet-to-helmet contact, it will reduce the number of concussions, but nothing they do can eliminate it."
Just as worrisome to some players, though, is limiting their ability to remain in the NFL.
"The guys who have had the knack to lay somebody out, I consider it a talent in itself," Broncos safety David Bruton said. "I feel as though these deterrents would be depriving them of the chance to showcase their abilities."
Anderson disagreed. "We're not subscribing to the notion you want these guys out there running wild and blowing people up," he said. "Everything is on the table with regard to advancing player safety."
Contributing to this story were AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Stapleton in Denver, and Sports Writers Steven Wine in Miami, David Ginsburg in Baltimore, Bob Baum in Phoenix and Tom Withers in Cleveland.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.
the nfl is being ruined by roger goddell. its a horrible shame what is happening to football and its a horrible shame to the nfl teams, players and fans who love the sport the way its meant to be played. Once you start changing rules you change the game. Its not football anymore.
Mario sounds like a soccer player
I blame the coaches who teach the players to tackle with their heads first, which will always be the wrong way to tackle someone with or without the football. That's how you break your own neck.
no coach teaches you to tackle with your head. You obviously never played any football on a high level. Since you havent please dont make stupid comments.


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Holy Cow!!!! It sure seems like Forever since I have done a post, and honestly in many terms it has been. But I am back. No more vacations for me. I have to say though for about 2 straight months I took 3 trips spent time with closed loved ones, go married in RL and just celebrated another birthday. But who wants to hear about that when you have fashion to address. So here we go the newest fashion look.
Hair: ~Tableau Vivant~ Damon II Hair
Hair Base: ~Tableau Vivant~ Hairbase Buzzcut (tintable)
Shape: [BODY FACTORY] Enzo Shape (l) Mouth 01
Skin: ~Tableau Vivant~Lucis – Happy Holidays! – Dark
Sweater: etham – Max Sweater – Black (The Mens Dept)
BackPack W/Skateboard: AITUI – Sk8 Bag
Jeans: L&B Jeans "Classic" ( MED) (Tucked)
Shoes: Eudora 3D Blaze Hi-Tops (The Mens Deptt)
Pose: Diesel Works


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|Save 20% on Photoshop Elements and Adobe Premiere Elements
Receive a discount of 20% off the standard price of a full version of the Adobe Photoshop Elements 13 & Adobe Premiere Elements 13 software bundle, when purchasing directly from the online Adobe Stores in Europe. Offer valid between 29 April, 2015 and 4 May, 2015. Offer is limited to one discount per customer.
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What we read while not Googling "Santorum"…
- With so much military grandstanding in the Republican primary races, it's worth wondering if a nuclear Iran would even be such a bad thing.
- A trio of comedy interviews: Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen talk about Portlandia; Louis C.K. talks about his show and other stuff; Nick Offerman (aka Ron Swanson) talks about writing his own episode.
- Speaking of Ron Swanson, the CEO of PBS defended public television's funding model.
- It's been 9 days since President Obama authorized indefinite detention without due process, so it's worth paying attention to stories like this tragic case of wrongful imprisonment at Guantanamo Bay.
- Jodi Kantor's new book about the Obamas analyzes the evolution of Michelle Obama as First Lady.
- Chuck Klosterman doesn't mind drinking "mouse-dissolving acid."
- Jorge Posada is retiring. John S made a Hall of Fame case for him a few years ago, but will it work?
- A profile of liberal pundit Dylan Ratigan.


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Crossposted from V for Vegan.
I've heard mention of Isabella Rossellini's latest project, Green Porno, here and there – ecorazzi, The Colbert Report, CNN even – but never bothered to follow up, seeing as I don't get the Sundance Channel and all. But an article in Bitch magazine's Spring '09 issue (No. 43, appropriately titled "the buzz issue") made me take a second look.
In "Wings of Desire: Bug sex as a gender revolution," Katura Reynolds examines the subversive nature of Green Porno (as well as British evolutionary biologist Olivia Judson's alter ego, Dr. Tatiana): by depicting (non-human) animal sex in all its kinky, decidedly non-vanilla glory, these projects challenge our traditional views of what "natural" sexuality and gender expression look like in the animal kingdom.
"Bug sex" is so much more then heterosexual, missionary style pairings: bugs may be male, female, or hermaphrodites; heterosexual, homosexual or asexual; reproduce through sexual activity, parthenogenesis, or an alternative combination thereof; etc. (Some, like the preying mantis, even engage in sexual cannibalism, consuming their partners during coitus.) The same holds true for many animal species, humans included; for example, in his 1999 book, Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity (which I highly recommend, by the way), Bruce Bagemihl reviewed existing evidence which points to observed homosexual behavior in nearly 1500 animal species.
Green Porno, which is currently in its second season and airs on the Sundance Channel Tuesdays at 9 PM ET, is a bit cheesier and cheekier than its British cousin,
Writes Reynolds,
The eight short films in [season 1 of] Green Porno were written by Rossellini and codirected with Jody Shapiro. They feature Rossellini acting out the sex lives of flies, praying mantises, earthworms, dragonflies, gees, fireflies, snails and spiders. The films are simultaneously hilarious, scientifically accurate, unrepentantly corny, compellingly sexy, and completely bizarre. […]
Rossellini strives for a simple, childlike atmosphere in the films. She starts each in a bodysuit, saying, "If I were a [type of bug]," and then her costumes gradually build as the film progresses: extra arms, compound eyes, snail shells, you name it. The props and supporting characters are made from giant cut-paper sculptures, like she's wandered into a kindergarten classroom plastered in giant paper flowers.
The schoolroom setting is chosen very deliberately – it's a foil for overtly sexual content. Rossellini gets it on with huge paper models of flies, mantises, and bees; she gasps and moans in orgasmic ecstasy as a firefly and a snail; she runs around waving hands covered in paper cutouts of sperm as a spider. As stated in the press release, "If human, these acts would not be allowed to air on television. [Indeed, Dr. Tatiana's human reenactments and live non-human animal footage is not.] They would be considered filthy and obscene." But the silly costumes and absurd props distract audiences from the flagrantly, graphically sexual content. Comedy often serves as a harbor for the unspeakable. By laughing at the silliness of it all, we can disarm the taboo.
Through genderbending, Rossellini also disarms the viewer. In six of the films, she plays the male sex partner, which makes her panting and moaning funny, rather than smutty. […]
Two Green Porno episodes go beyond the cross-dressing motif. In "Snail" and "Earthworm," Rossellini play hermaphrodites.
Whereas Season 1 focuses strictly on bugs, Season 2 examines the sex lives of marine animals, including barnacles, whales, limpets, anglerfish and starfish (with three more animals to come, I assume). Season 3 promises to be even more interesting (and relevant to animal advocates), as Rossellini and crew turn the spotlight on "farm" animals.
If you hop on over to Green Porno's website, you can view (clips of?) all the episodes that have aired thus far. They're quite short, coming in at just a few minutes each, and well worth a watch. (Perfect for killing five minutes here and there.) Or, you can take a quiz to find out what kind of green porno star you are, and also play "What's your green porno name?" (Mine's Tomato Hornworm, which sounds about right.)
There's also a wealth of behind-the-scenes video and photos, my favorite of which is the making of the whale (sumo) suit.
The whale episode, which begins with a discussion of "penis drag" (and snag – ouch!) is a must-see:
I'm also particularly fond of Season 2's uber-feminist* clip, "Why Vaginas," which Rossellin opens thusly: "Eggs are precious. Sperm are cheap. Sperm come by the millions, but not eggs."
Be still my beating heart! You had me at "vagina."
While I could oooooh and aaaaah over every clip, there are way too many to embed. When you have a few spare minutes, go check 'em out yourself; you won't regret it, promise.
Anyhow, returning to the original discussion of Green Porno and company's potential to influence how we see human sexuality, Katura Reynolds concludes "Wings of Desire" with the following observation:
And here we get to the quiet revolution that hides under all the costumed shenanigans. Our society is caught in a dramatic struggle over whether to define issues like homosexuality, sex changes and same-sex marriages as "unnatural" acts. Clearly the target audience of Green Porno and Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation is not the conservative legions of the religious right. But the fact that Rossellini and Judson have both turned their cameras on the subjects of gender roles, homosexuality, and various flavors of kink through the venue of scientific bug-sex cabaret is nonetheless a cause for hope. These campy comedies are making two important points: first, that humans are themselves part of nature [and the animal kingdom, to boot]; and second, that the natural world is so full of "perversions" that it's well worth reassessing our standards. […]
By playfully redefining "unnatural" sex acts as common, healthy, and practical, they are building a fascinating blend of queer/feminist/scientific animal symbolism.
To this, I'd like to add that, in addition to their anti-sexist, anti-homophobic, anti-transphobic, anti-anti-sex thrust (pun most definitely intended), these shows are anti-speciesist as well.
Conservative insistence that (human) homosexuality and the like are deviant and unnatural oftentimes rests, as Reynolds notes, on the willful misunderstanding and outright misrepresentation of sexuality in the (non-human) animal world. "Gay marriage is wrong because sex evolved for reproductive purposes only, as reflected in the absence of homosexual acts among animals" – or so the conservative argument goes. When evidence of homosexuality in non-human animals is uncovered, the denial is swift and violent. (Recall, for example, the religious right's backlash against Roy and Silo, a homosexual pair of Chinstrap Penguins currently
residing imprisoned at the Central Park Zoo in NYC.)
While this disavowal of animal homosexuality and sexual variety serves to justify and reinforce "isms" directed at humans (homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, etc.), it at also functions at another level. In denying non-human animals the full range of their behavioral, emotional and sexual expression, we rob them of their complexity, their personality – for lack of a better term, their humanity.
Like us, non-human animals can be complicated creatures, driven by a range of goals and desires. Animals, humans included, aren't just about reproduction; our sole purpose in life isn't simply to spread our DNA and produce as much offspring as possible. Sometimes we have sex, mate and form bonds because it's fulfilling in other ways. Nor do we only nurture and protect our own genetic material: sometimes we act with altruism and compassion rather than selfishness and narcissism.
By insisting that animals only copulate in order to introduce sperm to egg, we simplify trillions of sentient beings, taking from them characteristics which make them seem that much more human.
Ironically, in so doing, we also reduce the human species to a caricature, a boring, two-dimensional model which scarcely resembles h. spaiens, in all its diverse, eccentric, animalistic magnificence.
Also ironic: humans' tendency to measure morality in our species by looking to the behavior of non-human animals in order to judge what is and isn't "natural" – while simultaneously justifying our exploitation of non-humans animals by exaggerating our dissimilarities to other animals species. There's "Us" and the "Other," except when there's not.
* Okay, so this same reasoning has been distorted by religious conservatives to defend the subjugation of women and girls – for their own good, of course – but I doubt that's what the feminist Rossellini had in mind.
Videos in this post
Green Porno 2: Whale
Isabella Rossellini explores the mating habits of whales.
Isabella Rossellini explores the wonder of compatible penises and vaginas.
Tags: animal behavior, feminist, gender, gender indentity, GLBTQ, Green Porno, intersectionality, Isabella Rossellini, sex, sexuality, Sundance Channel, tv, video


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Big sister Sylvia was teaching Violet how to climb the steps.
"All you need to do is lift your feet"
We made it to the top - well almost
Sometimes I am glad I am not around when the girls are "playing". I just picture the little one rolling down the steps! I guess before I know it, they will be bringing home boys to the house - so I should enjoy these simple times...


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When the Most Personal Secrets Get Outed on Facebook
AUSTIN, Texas — Bobbi Duncan desperately wanted her father not to know she is lesbian. Facebook told him anyway.
One evening last fall, the president of the Queer Chorus, a choir group she had recently joined, inadvertently exposed Ms. Duncan's sexuality to her nearly 200 Facebook friends, including her father, by adding her to a Facebook Inc. discussion group.