text:
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Knot news
All items from November 2011
11 Nov 2011 : Knot 3D Celtic knot generator released #
You can now download the Knot application for either Windows or Gnu/Linux that allows you to render both 2D and 3D Celtic knots and export them for editing or printing. It's open source, and eventually I plan to move it to an external repository. In the meantime, you can download the source and various installers from here.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Executive Order 9857-A
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Executive Order 9857-A of May 27, 1947
Medal for Merit
By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by section 2 of the act of July 20, 1942, 56 Stat. 662, Executive Order No. 9637 of October 3, 1945, prescribing rules and regulations for the award of the decoration of the Medal for Merit, created by the said act, is hereby amended to read as follows:
- The decoration of the Medal for Merit shall be awarded only by the President of the United States or at his direction. Awards of the Medal for Merit may be made to such civilians of the nations prosecuting the war under the joint declaration of the United Nations and of other friendly foreign nations as have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services since the proclamation of an emergency by the President on September 8, 1939. Awards of the Medal for Merit made to civilians of foreign nations shall be for the performance of an exceptionally meritorious or courageous act or acts in furtherance of the war efforts of the United Nations.
- There is hereby established the Medal for Merit Board, which shall be composed of three members appointed by the President, one of whom shall be designated by the President to act as Chairman of the Board.
- The Medal for Merit Board shall receive and consider proposals for the award of the decoration of the Medal for Merit and submit to the President the recommendations of the Board with respect thereto. In the case of proposed awards to civilians of foreign nations, such recommendations shall include the recommendations of the Secretary of State.
- The Medal for Merit Board is authorized to prescribe, with the approval of the President, such rules and regulations not inconsistent with the provisions of this order as may be necessary to accomplish its purposes.
- Executive Order 9331 of April 19, 1943, and the Medal for Merit Board created thereby, are superseded by this order.
- The Medal for Merit shall not be awarded for any services relating to the prosecution of World War II performed subsequent to the cessation of hostilities, as proclaimed by Proclamation No. 2714 of December 31, 1946, and no proposal for an award for such services submitted after June 30, 1947, shall be considered by the Medal for Merit Board.
Harry S. Truman
The White House,
May 27, 1947.
- Amends:
- Executive Order 9637, October 3, 1945
- See Related:
- Proclamation 2352, September 8, 1939;
- Executive Order 9286, December 24, 1942;
- Executive Order 9331, April 19, 1943;
- Proclamation 2714, December 31, 1946;
- Transfer Order 30 of the Secretary of Defense dated December 10, 1948 (13 FR 8163)
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States federal government (see 17 U.S.C. 105).


text:
Food & Drink
Why look like a slob while traveling?
By Katia Hetter, CNN • Updated 7th September 2012
View Gallery
6 Pictures
With travelers getting into trouble as they board planes
wearing lingerie
, T-shirts with curse words and pants hanging around their ankles, New York City's
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week
has inspired us to turn to veteran fashion experts for an enlightened perspective on in-flight apparel.
Unlike fashion-stunted commoners who complain about leaving the belt, the boots and the heels behind to clear security and board a plane, these trendsetters view the
Transportation Security Administration's
rules and guidelines as a challenge to be met with an excellent ensemble.
Never mind the extravagant fashion they pack in their carry-ons and checked baggage, here's what these high-flying fashionable travelers recommend for the actual flight.
Keep in simple: The designer's perspective
Carmen Marc Valvo
cannot stand the hassle of removing everything when he goes through airport security for at least eight to 10 personal appearances each season and four overseas trips per year.
That's why he usually wears a lightweight solid color T-shirt, lightweight sweater and comfortable jeans or black pants that fit well enough to not require a belt. Depending on the season, he'll wear nice flip-flops or boots he can kick off easily. He always wears his jacket so he doesn't have to pack it.
For women, he recommends a pants outfit or "a dress, nothing too fitted, with a little sweater around your shoulders and a pair of cute little shoes." If you must wear jewelry, he pleads for you to take it off before getting to security or wear some lovely, nonmetal retro jewelry.
"Comfort is definitely key, but it's very easy to look good on a plane," he says. "Dress all in black or in (other) solid and neutral colors. You don't have to dress it up. Keep it solid and keep it simple."
His fashion don't: "Cutoff sweats are even worse than sweats. They're fine at your house but not on a plane." And fashion sins aside, wearing your jeans too low with your underwear showing is likely to impede an air traveler's mobility.
Casual and put together: The model's advice
Amy Lemons
flies almost every other week to Europe for work, and she appreciates people looking nice on her flights. "It's important to look put together even in a casual way," she says.
"I don't wear anything tight because I usually sleep, so it's lightweight cotton dresses from the Gap or Zara" or comfortable capri pants, she says. "I usually wear Toms or some other kind of slip-on shoes. I never wear heels on the plane! Or belts."
Her fashion don't: No sleepwear. "I understand wanting to be comfortable, but you are not in your house."
Layering for the weather: A creative director's take
There's no need to freeze for fashion's sake.
"A layering piece like a cardigan is a must as you never know how cold the cabin will be or what the temperature will be once you arrive at your destination, says Simon Kneens, creative director of
Banana Republic
"Make sure to avoid clingy pullovers and opt for a button or tie-waist cardigan to speed up the security process," he says.
Designing new uniforms for Virgin America
this year has inspired him to keep traveling in style.
"While I always pack travel essentials like our noniron shirts to avoid wrinkles, I'm now extra conscious of throwing on a chic trench and luxe cashmere scarf to tie the whole look together in a comfortable fashion."
His fashion don't: "I draw the line at loungewear or sweats."
Don't forget the face: Fashion editor and stylist
Fashion editor and style expert
Jacqui Stafford
wears barely any makeup when she flies -- what's the point? But she steps on board with her face clean and some lip-gloss because her lips can get dehydrated.
Stafford, whose book, "The Wow Factor: Insider Style Secrets for Every Body and Every Budget," will be released next year, may carry some face cream and Neutrogena wipes to refresh her skin. And when she lands, she always uses Talika eye decompress pads to cool down her eyes and make her look refreshed.
Her fashion don't: "People are still wearing horrible baggy tracksuits. When these people travel, they think they are invisible. They think they don't have to make any remote effort to look stylish."
Never, ever wear white: The fashionable flight attendant
Take it from Tracy Christoph, a Boston-based JetBlue flight attendant.
"Never, ever wear white," says Christoph. "Traveling can be a long and arduous affair, and white clothing is never easy to get clean if there is a spill."
Nor is wearing linen a good idea.
That's best worn "straight out of the closet and for short periods of time. You want to look tidy after a flight and ready for your destination, not wrinkled like you just woke up in your pajamas."
Do you have an in-flight uniform? Are you concerned about looking presentable or is comfort king? Share your travel wardrobe tips and experiences below.
A year of the world's
Best Beaches
There's a perfect beach for every week of the year. Join us on a 12-month journey to see them all
Go to the best beaches


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IAP2 annual co-design symposium on 22–23 July 2015
posted by WM Admin on 23 June 2015
IAP2 is an international member association which seeks to promote and improve the practice of public participation or community engagement, incorporating individuals, governments, institutions and other entities that affect the public interest throughout the world.
"This year's IAP2 Australasia community engagement symposium in New Zealand will consider how we work in partnership to develop plans, make decisions and improve services while considering new ways of understanding and connecting with our communities. It's about breaking down the traditional barriers between decision-makers and community members or service users, to allow for the co-creation of outcomes."
To find out more, go to: http://www.iap2.org.au/events/event/2015-Engagement-Symposium


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The European Commission is preparing to refer Germany to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, for failing to introduce a new law that would put it in line with the European data retention directive, according to a new report from Reuters.
In 2006, the EU passed a directive in the wake of the London and Madrid terrorist attacks that compels ISPs and telecommunications companies to retain all e-mails, phone calls, and related data. These directives, while mandated from Brussels, must be written into the law of each of the 27 member states at the national level. However, since the directive, Germany, Romania, and the Czech Republic have had their national laws overturned by their courts.
Many online activists have long complained against the data retention directive.
"For data retention to be legal under the EU's charter on fundamental rights says that measures that restricts fundamental rights need to be 'necessary and genuinely meet objectives of general interest recognized by the Union or the need to protect the rights and freedoms of others,'" wrote Joe McNamee of European Digital Rights, in an e-mail sent to Ars. "However, the implementation report published last year showed very clearly that data retention is not necessary. Statistics from EU member states from before and after implementation of data retention shows that it is not necessary. Data retention is therefore unquestionably illegal under European law."
The directive has even come under fire from the European Data Protection Supervisor, who in December 2011 said that the directive had "failed to meet its main purpose," and that "the necessity of data retention as provided for in the Data Retention Directive has not been sufficiently demonstrated."
German politicians have spent months working to come up with a way to balance concerns of civil liberties with the interests of law enforcement.
In an e-mail to Ars, Malte Spitz, a member of the German Green Party executive committee, who in 2011 released the data that T-Mobile had captured on him while the law was in effect in Germany, wrote to Ars in an e-mail that the rest of the EU should wake up to Germany's concerns.
"Instead of bringing Germany to court, the EU Commission would do better, to start withdrawing the data retention directive and not postpone again and again the evaluation of the directive," he wrote.
Even non-Europeans, like Katitza Rodriguez, of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, say that this situation may have broader implications.
"This legal action against Germany puts the European Union's credibility to the protection of privacy internationally at risk," she wrote in an e-mail to Ars.
"On one hand, the European Union has always taken a strong stand in protecting and promoting data protection legislation vis-à-vis companies, — a legislation that has been praised by the international privacy community. On the other hand, it has adopted one of the most intrusive anti-privacy, anti-free expression, anti-association pieces of legislation in the European Union vis-à-vis governments. Instead of taking action against Germany, the European Union should uphold its commitment to human rights and repeal this mass surveillance Directive."
Listing image by Cédric Puisney


text:
Sample News Release for National Teacher Day
A well-written, double-spaced news release is a good way to alert print and broadcast media outlets to the National Teacher Day observance in your community. It is also a great way to be seen in the news by your members and potential members. Do this in four easy steps:
- Contact your local media outlet personally and ask the editor or reporter how they want to receive news from your local.
- Set up your e-mail and/or fax system to deliver your releases to TV and radio news directors, newspaper editors and reporters who cover education and community events.
- Send your information far enough in advance to allow for the development of story ideas and the scheduling of coverage.
- Be sure to follow up with a phone call.
News Release
For Immediate Release (date)
For Further Information
Contact: (name, phone number)
Tuesday, May 5, 2020, is National Teacher Day. Thank a teacher for making public schools great!
Teachers in (name of town or district) and in communities across the nation will be in the spotlight on National Teacher Day, as students, parents, school administrators and the general public learn how teachers are making Great Public Schools for every student.
"Few other professionals touch as many people as teachers do," notes (full name), president of the (name of local education association or other sponsoring group). "National Teacher Day is a good time to learn about the contributions educators make to our community every day. We recognize we are role models. That brings satisfaction. It also brings responsibility. We want to take it to the next step.
"We believe we all have to work together to make our schools even better," said ___. "That means everyone in the community. Parents, business owners, retirees, other workers, local government, and yes students. Public schools are at the heart of any community. When there are problems, we address them. When there are kudos, we share them.
"Community involvement brings learning to life,"______said. "This is an opportunity for all of us to reach out to each other. I ask the community to learn about how we advocate for high standards for students, fair and meaningful evaluations of their work, and resources that go directly to the classroom. Better than an apple or a thank you card, a community's active support of the work we mutually do to teach and care for the community's students would be ample reward for all of us."
Visit National Teacher Day to learn more about the issues educators are facing as they do their work and meet the requirements of many laws and regulations.
Among the local events planned for National Teacher Day: (list events, times, places here--in bulleted form.)
Groups and individuals interested in helping develop these or other activities for National Teacher Day may contact (name) at (phone/address).
The [name of local NEA affiliate] is a professional employee organization and is committed to advancing the cause of public education. The [number] members work in the community at every level of education, from pre-school through high school.


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A Sandwich a Day: Healthy Start at Meli Cafe
Reviews of Chicago sandwiches.
Thanks to pure dumb luck, I've had some pretty breathtaking but extreme meals lately: sampling sixteen different cream puffs and one of everything at a certain hot dog stand come to mind. Though they were both undeniably once-in-a-lifetime experiences, the one-two punch of sugar and carbs has got me looking for healthier options in my everyday life.
At brunch, I always appreciate something a little different than the usual oatmeal or yogurt, and I found a great alternative at Meli Cafe. The Healthy Start ($11.50) sandwich certainly doesn't play coy about its purpose. Part-skim mozzarella, tomato, spinach, and chunks of warm, but still crunchy, onion fill a light-as-air egg white omelet. The whole thing is placed between two slices of thin multi-grain Naan to make for a substantial brunch option that won't send you on a sugar high or make you feel even more lethargic than you did when you walked in.
Meli Cafe
301 S Halsted, Chicago, IL 60661 (map)
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Twitter checker Plugin (followers, timeline, mentions and RTs checker)
compile "org.grails.plugins:twitter-checker:0.2"
The installation will create these files in your project:
grails install-plugin twitter-checker
- controllers/twitterChecker/TwitterCheckerController.groovy
- views/twitterChecker/demo.gsp
- views/twitterChecker/index.gsp
- views/twitterChecker/_twitFromMe.gsp
- views/twitterChecker/_twitFromOther.gsp
- src/groovy/twitterChecker/DefaultTwitterCheckerListener.groovy
DescriptionThe TwitterChecker plugin uses the Twitter4J api with OAuth to periodically check (using Quartz) for:
- New followers and unfollows in your account.
- New RTs of you made by other users.
- New mentions to you made by other users.
- Quartz plugin 0.4.1 or higher.
- Grails 1.2.0 or higher.
- Tomcat Julli 6.0.16 or higher.
- twitter4j-core-2.1.7.jar (latest stable version)
If deploying a war to a non-tomcat container, add this to your BuildConfig.groovy (Grails 1.3+)dependencies { runtime 'org.apache.tomcat:juli:6.0.16' }The installation will create these files in your project:
grails install-plugin twitter-checker
- controllers/twitterChecker/TwitterCheckerController.groovy
- views/twitterChecker/demo.gsp
- views/twitterChecker/index.gsp
- views/twitterChecker/_twitFromMe.gsp
- views/twitterChecker/_twitFromOther.gsp
- src/groovy/twitterChecker/DefaultTwitterCheckerListener.groovy
First time configuration
- First, you have to create a Twitter application (default access type: read&write, application type: client) in this url: http://dev.twitter.com/apps/new. Get the consumer key and consumer secret.
grails.spring.bean.packages = ["twitterChecker"] twitterChecker { oauth.consumerKey = "the consumer key of your twitter app you created" oauth.consumerSecret = "the consumer key of your twitter app you created" storageFolder = "/path/to/store/the/followers/and/other/stuff" }
- grails.spring.bean.packages: the package where the
DefaultTwitterCheckerListener.groovyclass is. Don't modify this value, even if you rename the class. Only if you move the DefaultTwitterCheckerListener class to other package, you will need to change the grails.spring.bean.packages with the new package.
- outh.consumerKey and oauth.consumerSecret: put your own consumer key / secret from your twitter app.
- storageFolder: the plugin needs a path where to read and write binary files with the followers information, mentions and RTs, in order to check if there is something new, and trigger events.
- Run your application and go to the TwitterCheckerController in your browser: http://localhost:8080/yourAppName/twitterChecker (don't worry about the "OAuth configuration not defined in Config.groovy" exceptions in your log)
- Follow the instructions: get the new pin, login in twitter, allow access and submit the pin.
- The page will show your accountId, token and tokenSecret values. Copy these values in your
TwitterCheckerController.groovy controller and the
twitterChecker/demo.gsp and
twitterChecker/index.gsp views. But DON'T DELETE the
_twitFromMe.gsp and
_twitFromOther.gsp views. Of course, you can modify these files, but don't delete them.
Showing timeline, mentions and rts in your site:As you can see in the
demo.gsp view, you can use these tags in your gsp to show cached versions of your timeline, mentions and rts.
You can use the max param in all taglibs, but it's optionalThe plugin refresh and cache this data every 15 minutes, and the taglib will use this cached version data, so you can use these tags as many times as you want in your site. These tags uses the the
<twitterChecker:timeline max="10"/> <twitterChecker:mentions max="200"/> <twitterChecker:rts/>
_twitFromMe.gsp and
_twitFromOther.gsp views copied in your project in the installation, so feel free to modify them.If you need a specific format, you can use the eachMention, eachTimeline and eachRt tags:
If you need to highlight with links the twit's text, you can use the <twitterChecker:parseLinks> tag:

 <twitterChecker:eachMention>
${it.text}
 </twitterChecker:eachMention>

<twitterChecker:parseLinks text="${it.text}"/>

Events dispatchedEvery 15 minutes, the plugin will check for new followers, new mentions and rts. Open the
src/groovy/twitterChecker/DefaultTwitterCheckerListener.groovy file in your project and modify the onNewFollowers, onUnfollows, onMentions and onRetweets closures.You can modify the checking time in the
Config.groovy with these properties (values are in minutes, so
15 means 15 minutes)
twitterChecker { checkTimelineEvery = 5 // 5 minutes checkMentionsEvery = 30 // 30 minutes checkRetweetsEvery = 30 // 30 minutes checkFollowersEvery = 120 // 2 hours }
Remember that you only have up to 350 request per hour. Every timeline, mentions, rts and followers check is a request, so with a 15 minutes value for all the checks means 16 request per hour. More info info in: http://dev.twitter.com/pages/rate_limiting_faq
Using the Twitter4J api with pre-configured Oauth.The plugin provides you a TwitterCheckerService class. This service acts as a Oauth pre-configured Twitter class (using the Delegate Groovy annotation), so you can use all these methods and features: http://twitter4j.org/en/javadoc-latest/core/twitter4j/Twitter.htmlThe TwitterCheckerService has these new properties: cachedMentions, cachedTimeline and cachedRts. The taglib use them to render the views.You can use it in any controller, service, taglib like this:
class MyController { def twitterCheckerService def updateStatus = { // use the http://twitter4j.org/en/javadoc-latest/core/twitter4j/Twitter.html#updateStatus(java.lang.String) method def status = twitterCheckerService.updateStatus("Test from grails TwitterChecker plugin") … } def readTimeline = { // use the cached version of the user timeline twitterChecerService.cachedTimeline // get a new fresh version of the user timeline http://twitter4j.org/en/javadoc-latest/core/twitter4j/Twitter.html#getUserTimeline() def timeline = twitterCheckerService.userTimeline … } }
I want to create a new job and cache info from twitter.For example, if you want to show in your views a Twitter search for #grailsx, you can create a Job for downloading this data and cache it in your own service:
You can use the yourOwnService.cachedQuery in your views.
class CheckSearchQueryJob { def yourOwnService // Class where you are going to store the cached data from Twitter... static triggers = { simple(name: 'CheckSearchQueryJob', repeatInterval: 15*60*1000) // Every 15 minutes } TwitterCheckerService twitterCheckerService def execute() { def resultQuery = twitterCheckerService.search(new twitter4j.Query("#grailsx")) yourOwnService.cachedQuery = resultQuery // … and store the data } }
TroubleshootingI got this exception
Your application is read only or it was read only when you granted it.
Caused by: 401:Authentication credentials were missing or incorrect. {"error":"Read-only application cannot POST","request":"/1/statuses/update.json"}
- First, go to http://dev.twitter.com, edit your app details and ensure that "read-write" access type is selected.
- Then, go to your twitter account and revoke the access to your app in http://twitter.com/settings/connections.
- In your Grails application, remove the token and tokenSecret from your Config.groovy, restart and re-negotiate your access token again (get the pin, allow access).
AuthorAlberto Vilches ([email protected])Please report any issues to the Grails User mailing list and/or write up an issue in JIRA at http://jira.codehaus.org/browse/GRAILSPLUGINS under the Grails-Twitter-Checker component.
- December 7, 2010
- released initial version 0.1
- January 12, 2011
- released 0.2 version. Bug fixed in taglib by Ryan Vanderwerf. New "max" param in taglibs.


text:
Over 10,000 ultraconservative Muslims demonstrated Friday in downtown Cairo to demand that Egypt's new constitution be based on the rulings of Islamic law, or Shariah, in the latest tussle over the role of religion in the country's future.
The writing of the constitution has been fraught with controversy since last year's political uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak and ushered in the rise of formerly repressed Islamists to power. But Islamists themselves are not in agreement over the interpretation of Shariah and its place in the document.
Demonstrators in Tahrir Square demanded that the panel tasked with writing the constitution override liberal and secular objections and include language that could see religious scholars influencing legislation. The panel is led by the Muslim Brotherhood, the powerful Islamist group from which the country's new President Mohammed Morsi hails.
"Shariah is our constitution," and, "The people demand the application of God's law," protesters chanted.
The controversy surrounding the constitution is centered on the wording of the second amendment. In the former constitution, the wording stated that the "principles of Islamic Shariah" are the basis of legislation. This wording is favored by liberals because they say it refers to the broad ideas of Islam.
Ultraconservatives are pushing for more, though. They want the wording changed to state that the basis of law will be "the rulings of Shariah," implying Egypt's laws may be left to the interpretation of religious scholars.
The current 100-member assembly has just a handful of women, some of them from the Brotherhood, and eight Christians. It is the second constitutional assembly to be formed, with the first body dissolved by court order earlier this year after liberals and seculars walked out over complaints that Islamists were trying to dominate the process.
Ongoing controversy over the wording of the charter has thrown into question when the draft will be complete. Panel members say they plan to put the charter to a nationwide referendum before the end of the year.
However, liberals on the panel are again threatening to walk out and Islamists writing the draft are under pressure from more conservative groups to strongly enshrine Shariah in the constitution.
Egypt's new Coptic pope, Tawadros II, said this week that the constitution will not be acceptable if it is overtly religious. Courts are also currently reviewing lawsuits calling for the assembly to be disbanded for a second time.
Egypt's two most powerful political movements, the Brotherhood and the more conservative Salafi Nour Party, said they were not participating in Friday's protest, although many of their supporters did. The two groups, which hold an influential number of seats in the assembly, have said protests are premature since the constitution is still being written.
Many were bussed in from outside Cairo to take part in Friday's rally, which was significantly smaller without the organized support of the Brotherhood.
The demonstration was mostly peaceful until the evening, until a small group opposed to the rally began arguing with the Islamists on a street leading off of the square. The two groups scuffled and threw stones. There were no reports of injuries.
Hassan Abdel-Hamid, from a town near the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, said parents should support Shariah because it will deter the harassment of women.
"Don't be afraid of the application of Shariah, because if your daughter is coming home late at night nobody will harass her because he will face Shariah's punishment and retribution," Abdel-Hamid said.
Seeking to mollify ultraconservatives who accuse the Brotherhood of not advocating strongly enough for Islamic rule, the constitutional panel is now discussing adding a new article that would explain what the principles of Islamic Shariah are.
Protesters also demanded the ouster of the country's top prosecutor, a Mubarak holdover whom Morsi tried unsuccessfully to remove from his post.
Abdel-Maguid Mahmoud bowed to pressure from Salafi protesters this week by ordering ministries to block pornographic websites in line with a 2009 court ruling. Similar decisions in the past have gone unheeded due to high costs associated with the technical aspects.
"People are scared of the application of Shariah, but I am telling Muslims and Christians and everyone that Islam is a mercy on all of us because it is based on the Quran's rules," protester Gaber Mohammed said.
Mohammed, like many of those protesting Friday, is a member of a party set up by Gamaa Islamiya, once the country's largest militant group that has since renounced violence.
Protesters waved the black Islamist flag and the Egyptian flag, and held traditional Friday prayers in the square after a sermon by conservative preacher, Mohammed al-Sagheer.
"My brothers, the Egyptian people love God, the Prophet (Muhammad) and the Kaaba," he said, referring to the cube-shaped structure in Mecca toward which Muslims pray five times a day.


text:
Leads for House Cleaning in North Carolina
Need leads for your North Carolina cleaning business? Want to grow your North Carolina home cleaning service? Are you a maid services company in North Carolina looking for new customers?
Try the 99 Calls Lead Generation System for North Carolina House Cleaners!
The 99 Calls Lead Generation System is uniquely designed to promote North Carolina home cleaning services. The lead system starts with a search engine optimized (SEO) website that is specifically designed to generate cleaning leads in the North Carolina towns you serve. Next, your North Carolina cleaning company is promoted online to search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo, and in online yellow page directories that serve North Carolina such as AT&T's Yellowpages.com and Verizon's Superpages.com. Additionally, your business is also promoted on other popular sites used by North Carolina residents to find maids and cleaning services such as Yelp, Merchant Circle, and Kudzu.
Through the massive online promotion of your North Carolina house cleaning business, North Carolina customers will find and call you directly. Imagine, North Carolina cleaning leads directly to your phone! And the best thing is the longer you use the 99 Calls Lead Generation System, the more North Carolina new cleaning work you receive each month!
Learn more about the 99 Calls Lead Generation System for House Cleaners in North Carolina, click the "Try It!" button, or call us at
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David Fields, A.F.B.M. Maids2013-05-23
5★★★★★ - "A trusted painter friend referred me to 99 Calls after having great success with them. I gave them a try and am glad I did! They are professional and easy to work with. I've tried other companies for lead generation, but they didn't come through on their promises. 99 Calls did, and then some! My ROI from this is awesome. I would recommend 99 Calls lead generation to anyone who wants to grow their business."
Aron Bruser, Win-Win Cleaning Services, House Cleaning Leads - Cleaning Contractor serving Mount Shasta, CA2012-01-12


text:
American Homes 4 Rent
5617 Victory Gallop Drive, Del Valle, TX 78617
This 3 bedroom, 2 bath home has 1,788 square feet of living space. Leases signed in this state may be subject to a 9.99 utility fee, local taxes and processing fees. Please contact an American Homes 4 Rent Leasing Consultant for more information. For other quality homes for rent, visit www.americanhomes4rent.com. Equal Housing Opportunity.


text:
Displaced New Jersey voters continue to cast ballots.
The lesson learned from an email ballot fiasco that roiled hurricane-stricken New Jersey residents is that government officials should not concoct statewide disaster voting procedures during disasters, legal and technology experts say.
On Election Day, anecdotes abounded about problems associated with email voting in the state. There were reports that legitimate email requests for e-ballots went unanswered, emails to election officials were bouncing back to senders and organizers were collecting voter forms through their personal webmail addresses.
"In an emergency, you do have to think through the emergency measures that should be put into place," said Penny Venetis, a constitutional and human rights law professor at Rutgers University. "Computerized voting is a bad idea during any circumstance, especially emergency circumstances where you don't have enough staff."
Tuesday's gaffes do not include potential email hacking and identity fraud. Intentional disenfranchisement won't be discovered until officials can match e-ballots with duplicate paper ballots that were due to be mailed in by Nov. 19.
"There's no evidence that there's been any mischief going on, although there wouldn't be at this point," said Matt Blaze, a University of Pennsylvania computer science professor who studies the architecture and design of secure systems.
After officials learned of email glitches Tuesday, they issued a directive extending the deadline for transmitting ballots to Friday night. But residents who wished to do so were still required to email requests for the e-ballots by 5:00 p.m. Tuesday.
On Saturday, New Jersey officials for the first time ever sanctioned voting by fax or email for residents who could not access a polling place due to widespread devastation. Residents without homes or transportation, however, may have faced the same difficulty accessing the requisite technology: a reliable Internet connection to obtain an application for voting, a printer to hand sign the application and a scanner to transform the signature into a format acceptable for digital transmission.
"This seems to be the system collapsing under its own weight," Blaze said. "Scale is hard. What happened is kind of the most predictable result. Two days is just not enough to design a system to do something like this from scratch."
For example, some of the personnel scheduled to assist voters had other commitments Tuesday.
"The people who run voting are also the same people who are dealing with other aspects of the disaster," Blaze said.
Venetis had spent the day at court fighting officials who she said were turning away legal voters from the polls. Every one of those constituents "was challenged by people from the attorney general's office," she said. "Any sort of resources that were directed at prohibiting them from voting should have been used toward disaster victims to make sure they were permitted to vote."
Perhaps now is the time for government officials to establish contingency voting plans for future emergency situations. "It's way premature to be talking about blame. It may not be premature to think about having something on the shelf" for the next crisis, Blaze said.
He added that email voting should be, at best, a very last resort. "Given the luxury of nondisaster conditions, we ought to be able to design a system that works better than this for the next disaster," Blaze said.


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University of Montana Head Football Coach Mick Delaney Nominated for FCS Coach of the Year [AUDIO]
University of Montana head football coach Mick Delaney has been nominated for the Liberty Mutual Insurance FCS Coach of the Year Award.
UM Athletic Director Kent Haslam said on Tuesday, December 10 that the award is well deserved.
"I think that's a real tribute to what coach Delaney has done this year that he would be nominated as coach of the year," Haslam said. "The award not only brings in his performance on the field, but also excellence in sportsmanship, integrity, responsibility and others that coach Delaney has done such a good job with."
Haslam said Delaney is in prestigious company for the award.
"He's in there with some pretty elite coaches, like Joe Moglia of Coastal Carolina, Craig Bohl of North Dakota State, who was just named the new head coach at the University of Wyoming, Joe Moorhead of Fordham and Ron Roberts of Southeastern Louisiana," Haslam said.
Haslam said the award comes with more than just a plaque.
"If he wins this, and fan voting is about 20% of the final tally, then he will have the opportunity to contribute $50,000 to the charity of his choice, plus $20,000 will go to the University of Montana Alumni Association for a scholarship." Haslam said. "The best way to vote is to go to the gogriz.com website and there are directions as to how to vote for Delaney for FCS coach of the year."
University of Montana Athletic Director Kent Haslam


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B'z Song Pack
المزيد من أجل Rocksmith® 2014 Edition
اكتشاف المزيد من الألعاب والمحتوى القابل للتنزيل من أجل Rocksmith® 2014 Edition!
Play 'Giri Giri Chop' 'Easy Come, Easy Go!' 'Juice' by B'z on any electric guitar. Bass included.
NOTE: Rocksmith® 2014 game disc is required for play. Music credits available at www.rocksmith.com. Music downloads not rated by PEGI. www.pegi.info
1-2 players
HDTV screen resolution: 720p, 1080i, 1080p
Download of this product is subject to the Sony Entertainment Network Terms of Service/User Agreement and any specific additional conditions applying to this product. If you do not wish to accept these terms, do not download this product. See Terms of Service for more important information.
One time fee for use of downloads on up to 2 activated compatible Home Console* systems.
* See Terms of Service for further information.
© 2013 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Rocksmith logo, Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the U.S. and/or other countries.


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A Second Look at Pickup Trucks
Rising fuel prices have General Motors and Chrysler taking a second look at peddling smaller pickup trucks. Jeff Bennett reports on the News Hub.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... the the ... as gasoline prices rise Detroit is slowing in all I don't want to get smaller pickup trucks but the story last regional Jeff Bennett joins us now from the Motor City ... Jeff thanks a bailout ... thanks for inviting me ... so aam smaller pickup trucks at times seem like a bit of an oxymoron aam because they knew we something on those very big one is that white thing about this again ... but its side and entrusting play they had so far been focused on that big size pickup trucks but they do feel that as tight as prices continued to inch up where ... especially Al years out from now that people will be looking to go back to the smaller pickup trucks ... and so that's why you see them positioned to come back into the market and about our late twenty fourteen or early twenty fifty and moved over to the gasoline prices might make a difference to consume up ... with a small pickup truck TomTom generate near as much profit Ford General Motors or Chrysler thousand ... write that the pickup trucks are important to them they you know the big pickups overall make that make the considerable ah profitability for these companies ... but they see that that a small pickup truck market is something that they're just not in right now this year ... is the first year ... none of the U S automakers are in these smaller up pickup truck market to that's why they're looking to get back into that deleting about two hundred fifty ... thousand in the pickup trails of a pickup truck sales on the table ... mountain and that is interesting now to get to be a dear BDO to ... calm the profits of oil this amidst my stripes which is what we're talking about here with the slightly smaller ... the province about three thousand to four thousand books a vehicle where is the big ones the full size ones like the F one fifteen with a four minus ... seven to ten thousand so not even halt as much money ... that's right they it they have to struggle so this is going to be very critical for that ... to come in with a truck that they can build very cost-effective ... and a good design that helps itself but it's gonna be tricky this is not ... baby Detroit automakers strong play this is been the home ... of Tori Ohta and I to call my and its pickup truck ... has been right here so it's gonna be interested to see if they can pull this one on ... now what's interesting to me is ... that of the pickup trucks Dion Beebe iconic pickup truck is the F one fifty and I think a common sign of that is the ... the most to ALM that the most popular vehicle in the wealth of good sense of cars and light trucks it sold tremendous number of them ... over the decade since it was for us to come and produced one trying to improve ... on something that such a mainstay of of the wall ... well I think they figure that they really need to expand this out here if they want to grow ... with the consumer is going in the consumer is going to be looking at ... Amore possibility ... more purely fashion vehicles in the future and they wanna be there when that change happens ... they see that article one from about two hundred ... and fifty thousand pickups or maybe going to top three hundred fifty thousand maybe and the next three to five years content will we we wish them luck of course not ... if we look to the monthly read much Jeff Fenech more on Mac in tomorrow's Wall Street gentle


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Small Plant News: Volume 4, Number 6
|Small Plant News Archive Page. This is an archive page. No new content is being added. While these newsletters remain available for reference purposes, the documents do not reflect changes to Agency policy that may have been instituted since the newsletters were published. Also note that resources and websites mentioned in older issues may have moved or may no longer be available. Points of contact for various initiatives may have changed.
In This Issue:
- Part I: Implementing the Public Health Information System (PHIS): An Overview of Its Purpose
- Food Safety Resources
- Review Your Prerequisite Program
- Commonly Asked Questions & Answers
Part I: Implementing the Public Health Information System (PHIS): An Overview of Its Purpose
By Jane Johnson
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is implementing an enhanced public health data infrastructure system to replace FSIS' previous arrangement of multiple data systems. This system is a more efficient tool to enhance its public health mission. Small Plant News examines PHIS in a special two-part series.
FSIS collects a significant amount of information and data every day in order to fulfill its mission of ensuring that the Nation's commercial supply of meat, poultry, and processed egg products are safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged. But collecting data is only the beginning. How the data is stored, processed, and accessed is just as important. Collectively, such activities are accomplished through what is known as a data infrastructure. FSIS is actively strengthening its public health data infrastructure in order to enhance the Agency's ability to better protect public health. This enhanced data infrastructure system is known as the Public Health Information System (PHIS).
PHIS is a Web-based, user-friendly application that will not add additional requirements or new regulations for domestic plants. Nor will it change existing requirements or regulations for domestic plants. It will, however, allow FSIS to better capture the data associated with the results of FSIS inspection verifications and improve the management of the inspection process.
"PHIS is basically a system that provides information for action to prevent food safety breakdowns," said Dr. Kenneth Petersen, FSIS Assistant Administrator for the Office of Field Operations. "FSIS will use PHIS data to identify potential problems and focus inspection activities appropriately. With the integrated system, we can accomplish this without changing the ability of inplant personnel to address urgent situations."
How can PHIS do all that?
First, PHIS will be able to access many data sources and store the collected data in an FSIS "data warehouse." All of the functions of many of FSIS' individual systems will be integrated into PHIS, which means that much of the data that FSIS inspection personnel collect will be put into one system and will be available from that one system. PHIS also will allow FSIS to collect more information about the U.S. domestic and international food safety systems producing FSIS-regulated products so the Agency can better identify food safety risks before they result in outbreaks or recalls. In the future, PHIS is even expected to be able to incorporate data from external sources—such as the Agricultural Research Service's VetNet and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's PulseNet and National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System—and to integrate these data with FSIS-generated data for use in analysis, scheduling, and decisionmaking.
Second, PHIS data will be available for use by FSIS in near real time. FSIS will analyze PHIS data for trends and will adjust domestic and import inspection and sampling accordingly. The Agency also will notify field and headquarters personnel about potential public health threats. The new system will guide inplant inspection personnel to focus their attention on the specific aspects of their plants' food safety systems and supporting documentation that have the most significant impact on public health. Thus, PHIS will enable plant owners and/or operators, as well as inspection personnel, to identify shortcomings in their plants' food safety systems more quickly and to anticipate problems before they result in adulterated products.
More specifics regarding the advantages of PHIS for small and very small plant owners and/or operators will be featured in an upcoming issue. If you have any questions regarding PHIS, contact FSIS' Office of Policy and Program Development via askFSIS on the FSIS Web site at www.fsis.usda.gov or call 1-800-233-3935. You can also call the Small Plant Help Desk at 1-877-374-7435 or send an email to firstname.lastname@example.com.
(Part II of this series will continue in the Volume 4, Number 7 issue of Small Plant News.)
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Food Safety Resources
By Kurtis Calhoun
Some types of influenza (flu) occur mostly in pigs. Other types, such as the 2009 H1N1 virus, cause illness mainly in people. Flu viruses can sometimes spread from people to pigs and from pigs to people. It's important to protect yourself and prevent the spread of the flu.
To do this, familiarize yourself with the OSHA Quick Card: Protecting Swine Production Workers from Influenza, produced by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OHSA). This laminated card is a handy reference tool that provides an overview of flu symptoms in humans and pigs as well as safety measures for swine production workers. One side of the card is in English and the other side is translated into Spanish.
To order free copies of these materials, fax your order request to (202) 690-6519 or call the Small Plant Help Desk at 1-877-374-7435.
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Review Your Prerequisite Program
By CDR Jeff Tarrant, U.S. Public Health Service The World Health Organization defines prerequisite programs as "practices and conditions needed prior to, and during, the implementation of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) systems, and which are essential for food safety." In essence, prerequisite programs provide the solid foundation for a well-designed and administered HACCP system by encompassing the programs and procedures in your food processing operation.
Prerequisite programs deal with the "good housekeeping" elements of your establishment, such as environmental and operating conditions, whereas an HACCP plan manages specific process hazards. It's important to point out that there's a difference between an HACCP plan and HACCP system. An HACCP plan is a written document that describes your plant's specific food safety processes and procedures and how you manage and control food safety hazards. On the other hand, an HACCP system looks at the "big picture" of your food safety process and encompasses your HACCP plan and prerequisite programs.
Prerequisite programs set the stage for a successful HACCP system and provide ongoing support for your food safety system by reducing or eliminating the likelihood that a potential food safety hazard will occur in a process. Examples of prerequisite programs include: pest control programs, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), raw material control (e.g., receiving and storage, purchase specifications, Certificates of Analysis, residue control, etc.), production control (e.g., foreign material detection and removal programs, rework practices, etc.), and sanitation and maintenance programs.
Once established, you should revise your prerequisite program, as necessary, to ensure its effectiveness, and you should take appropriate corrective actions when you determine that your programs may have failed to prevent contamination or adulteration of product. For example, if you address Escherichia coli ( E. coli) O157:H7 in your prerequisite program but not in your HACCP plan, and produce an E. coli O157:H7-positive product, this event would be considered a "deviation not covered by a specific corrective action" or an "unforeseen hazard" according to Part 417.3 (b) of the Code of Federal Regulations. Therefore, you would be required to take corrective actions, including reassessment, because your prerequisite program was not effective in reducing the likely risk of product adulteration.
In addition, prerequisite programs must be implemented and have documentation, such as records, to verify implementation if referenced in your hazard analysis, HACCP plan, or Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOPs). Records generated from prerequisite programs should be reviewed regularly by you or other plant personnel and must be made available to FSIS inspectors upon request.
By designing and implementing a solid prerequisite program in your establishment, you lay the foundation for a strong HACCP system. And, this is the first step in producing and distributing safe food products in a clean and sanitary environment.
For more information on prerequisite programs, please review FSIS Directive 5000.1, Revision 3, Verifying an Establishment's Food Safety System, or visit www.fsis.usda.gov. You can also contact the Agency's Policy Development Division at 1-800-233-3935.
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Commonly Asked Questions & Answers
Q. When an establishment uses a continuous monitoring device to monitor a critical limit, is the establishment expected to perform a direct observation verification activity in accordance with Title 9, Part 417.4 (a)(2)(ii) of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) for this device?
A. No. The use of continuous monitoring devices and data loggers to monitor a critical limit is common and encouraged. The establishment does not need to observe the device. The establishment needs to observe its employees performing procedures associated with monitoring the critical control point (CCP). Inspection program personnel (IPP) need to be familiar with the HACCP plan's list of monitoring procedures, the frequency at which monitoring is to occur, and the documents supporting the monitoring and frequency to determine whether the establishment needs to perform an ongoing verification per 9 CFR 417.4(a) (2)(ii). For example, there may be specific instructions for the setup and startup of the device used by the establishment. The establishment may also have documentation that makes clear that the placement of the probe is critical to the design of the CCP and critical limit. IPP need to verify that the establishment is appropriately performing its procedures associated with the CCP. As part of the verification that IPP perform, they are to ensure that the procedure is being followed per the HACCP plan. When applicable, IPP will review the results associated with establishment verification (i.e., calibration of the process monitoring instrument per 9 CFR 417.4(a) (2)(i) and observations made to verify that the monitoring procedure as written and supported is being performed per the HACCP plan per 9 CFR 417.4(a)(2)(ii)) are documented per 9 CFR 417.5(a)(3).
Q. What are the HACCP record retention requirements for ready-to eat products?
A. HACCP records for refrigerated ready-to-eat products are required to be retained for at least 1 year. HACCP records for ready-to-eat frozen, preserved, or shelf-stable products are required to be retained for at least 2 years [9 CFR 417.5(e)].
Q. Is a solution that is captured and reused by a plant to inject flavoring into raw poultry or meat products considered water reuse under 9 CFR 416.2(g)(3)?
A. No. Only water, ice, or solutions reused for the express purpose of chilling or washing raw product are subject to the water reuse requirements in 9 CFR 416.2(g)(3). Solutions that are injected to tenderize product, impart flavor, or to add similar ingredients, are not subject to the water reuse regulatory requirements.
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Small Plant NEWS
Editor: Keith Payne
Managing Editor: Jane Johnson, DVM
Production: Joan Lindenberger, Sally Fernandez
Design: Gordon Wilson
Contact: Small Plant News, USDA/FSIS, Aerospace Building, 3rd Floor-Room 405, 14th and Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250.
Email: email@example.com


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Network setup and administration. Both from Windows and Linux angles.
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The Balrog is an aggressive and punchy wide bodykit with a touch of elegance. After 8 months of research to give to his customers the best quality, Jeremie Paret is proud to introduce it to the world. The Balrog includes a front bumper with genuine Cayenne Turbo side lights and fog lights with angel eyes.
This bumper improves the cooling of all intercoolers of the Cayenne, and the cooling of the front brakes. Moreover, the drilled luxury grill offers an innovative design in automotive styling. Of course, all Porsche options, like the xenon nozzles or the parking detectors, can be mounted on the Balrog bodykit. The wide fenders allow the Balrog to fit very large wheels for an improved handling and an uncompromised style with big lips.
At the rear of the car, the spoiler and its diffuser give you more aerodynamic pressure. The diffuser can be removed in only a few minutes to let you install your tow hook. At last, the side skirts finish to give to the Balrog its so different and eye-catching look.
Of course, this bodykit can easily take place in Paret's individual program and be completed by a custom interior, an engine tuning, new wheels, etc.
For more information, feel free to contact us or visit our special website www.balrogsgarage.com
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"Hey, you know what young people like? Trucker hats! iPads! Techno! Skirts!" — GM's millennial-chasing PR department, possibly high, when thinking of how to unveil the Chevrolet Sonic at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show.
GM's got a full slate of unveils for this year's show, including the Z06, the GMC Canyon and maybe a Cadillac ATS coupe. It's a good year to be GM. 2011, not so much. Still in the shadow of bankruptcy, the company needed a hit — particularly one to bring in younger buyers. Enter the Sonic.
But you can't just reveal a car the old-fashioned way for youngsters. Oh, no. Kids these days aren't sold on just taking a giant bed sheet off a vehicle. No, you have to have dancers! Dancers wearing hipster plaid and playing with iPhones!
So who do we have here presenting the Sonic — we've got the woman I think was the dancing girl in the old Mitsubishi ads, some ass who probably talks on the phone at the movies, a guy using an iPad to make a sound not unlike an alarm at a slaughterhouse, and not a single person dancing on beat.
And then Mark Reuss talks about marketing and volume. Thankfully, GM seems to have: learned their lesson.


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Abdullah, Nebraska run past Purdue 44-7
Ameer Abdullah ran for 126 yards and a touchdown to help Nebraska defeat Purdue 44-7 on Saturday.
Terrell Newby ran for 61 yards and Imani Cross added 56 yards and two touchdowns for the Cornhuskers (5-1, 2-0 Big Ten).
Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez sat out with a turf toe injury. Tommy Armstrong Jr. started and completed just 6 of 18 passes for 43 yards with three interceptions. Ron Kellogg III stepped in and completed 10 of 13 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown.
Nebraska held Purdue to 216 yards, and the Boilermakers didn't score until the final minute of the game. Purdue ran for just 32 yards on 25 carries.
Danny Etling completed 14 of 35 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown in his first career start. DeAngelo Yancey caught five passes for 146 yards and a touchdown for the Boilermakers (1-5, 0-2).


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Motorcycle Unit
Re-established in 1997, after an absence of more than 30 years, the Division's Motorcycle Unit is a multi-purpose unit trained to assist in special members situations. Motorcycles are available for any purpose except routine patrol. They have been used to escort visiting dignitaries, provide security at large events, such as the annual Ironman Competition in Lake Placid, and for policing large crowds or hightraffic- volume areas. Capable of negotiating dense traffic, they can respond to emergencies and clear the way for emergency equipment in situations inaccessible by troop car.
The motorcycles also are one of the Division's best public relations resources. The unit's elegant Harley-Davidsons are highly visible and approachable, and never fail to bring mounted officers into close contact with the public. They are used as a recruitment tool, and are always displayed prominently at Basic School graduations and high-profile events at the Academy. Division motorcycles are assigned to all troops except, B and T, and can be requested through the troop commanders.


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We started the day out getting our kids all costumed up for our church's Candy Carnival. Our little girl was a hula girl & our little boy was a pirate. I got the hula stuff at Dollarama. Most of the pirate costume came from thrift stores (ladies slouchy boots, too-big black pants, & a ladies ruffled blouse). We got the pirate hat, stick-on moustache, eye patch & sword from Dollarama. The parrot came from Wal-mart. The coat is mine. :)
The kids partied in the gym while we were having church. After church, everyone headed into the gym for a yummy meal of fried chicken, rolls, & salads with home made pies for dessert. Delish!
There was live entertainment, fun fall decorations, caramel apples, carnival games, popcorn, sno cones, tons of candy for the kids, & of course the booths which were run by different people in our church.
Our booth was well received & MJ & I both sold about half of what we brought. I'd call that pretty successful.
|The goodies in our booth. Top row: my offerings. Bottom row: MJ's fabulous creations.
I didn't get a lot of photos as we were kept pretty busy with our customers, but here's a few:
A great time was had by all! I, for one, hope it becomes an annual event. A huge thank you to everyone who helped pull it off!!
Enjoy your Monday!
Linkin' Up:


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Felt like he was a main striker with all the hype when we were signing him.Being talked about all across the shop - CF, winger, #10I liked how he and Rooney switched sides against Sevilla - he seems to have good movement.And with him and DCL I do feel we have pace upfront - not absolutely electric - but not too shabby either.How would you play him?Also - bonus question:When is he back from injury?
Bonus answer - last Sunday?
Ha! ThanksI missed that game and there wasn't a player ratings thread so I sort of missed the comeback (I was at TWO weddings that weekend - madness!)
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Many of our readers have always wondered what goes beyond the scene at a famous car tuner, but rarely the process has been explained or outlined in car magazines. Our friends and long-time sponsors, IND-Distribution, took another trip to Germany visiting the Eisenmann facility.
This article might not be about the bimmers we all came to love, but rather an overview of how the high-quality car parts are crafted and for those of you that are genuinely interesting in modding you car, this article will suit you well.
As manufacturing becomes more globalized, outsourcing your engineering work, your tooling, and even the manufacturing itself is progressively a simpler and simpler challenge to overcome. The modern aftermarket performance parts "manufacturer" is required to do nothing more than submit a list of demands to their cheap overseas producer, and have the engineering, design, manufacturing, packaging, and shipping taken care of for them.
The days of hands-on facilities with employees who have true passion for their product have largely been replaced by the great connecting force that is the internet. Language barriers are overcome, manufacturing standards are universalized, and a product manufactured to ISO 9001 standards is as good as any other.
Yet there is one thing that no ISO 9001 standard can certify- that the part in question is designed and built with passion. One cannot engineer passion into an exhaust system. Accountants, CEOs, CFOs, and corporate leaders everywhere in the automotive aftermarket business despise passion. Passion is expensive. In the 21st century, making great parts just because you feel it's right is an idea that's rapidly going extinct in the face of cost cutting, outsourcing, and cheap labor.
If you are not familiar with Eisenmann, their facilities, or their business, please take a look at last year's tour which provides a basic overview.
If you are ready to see how a business that was started at a time when M models were still hand built by true craftsmen fights to maintain it's ability to produce the most high quality old-world-crafted exhaust systems in the world, please read on.
Imagine seeing this low, menacing R8 parked in the alleyway to Eisenmann's OEM manufacturing facility, sitting silently with its parking lights on, as if it was standing guard. That was the first thing I saw when I approached the building, and the sight sent shivers down my spine. Mr Eisenmann, even though he was not in the office on this particular day, knew we were coming, and he made sure he was ready.
The first thing you notice when you walk up to the car is its white and grey color scheme. Mr Eisenmann knew that people would talk, and he welcomed it. When the car was designed, it was decided that the car had to be one of a kind, impossible to replicate and a direct representation of Eisenmann. The ultra light weight, ultra durable Carbon Kevlar body styling package include one piece of art that no amount of money could buy- the center exit exhaust system.
Eisenmann's "Spark 8" aerodynamics kit makes no apologies about taking inspiration from the great Automobili Lamborghini, and is built to work with a bespoke Lamborghini-style center exit exhaust system. Rolf Eisenmann was not interested in subtlety with this car, and it shows. The Spark 8's striking appearance is unlike any other car I'd ever seen.
Sven, Eisenmann's director of sales, approached the car with a smile on his face, and asked "would you like to hear it?" I knew right then that the sound of this car would truly leave me stunned. He opened the elegantly sculpted door, got in, and pressed the start button. The starter made a banshee shriek, and the V8 engine's bellow finally erupted from the massive center tailpipe. Hearing the R8 unleashed in this way was incredible, but even more incredible was the moment when Sven said "watch this", and pressed a button on the car's remote. The car instantly turned from rabid supercar to a whisper quiet daily commuter. I was now a believer in Eisenmann's valve technology.
Eisenmann's passion for performance starts with Mr Eisenmann's passion for performance automobiles of all ages and styles. This classic Porsche is a restoration project for Mr Eisenmann, and truly represents his level of dedication to all things automotive.
This exhaust system is why. When an accurate, period correct replacement exhaust system was unavailable for Mr Eisenmann's classic Porsches, he decided to build one himself. Eisenmann created this "classic line" of exhaust systems exclusively to replicate the factory exhaust system of classic Porsche cars. Eisenmann runs a series of tests on the best condition factory exhaust system they can find to determine what kind of sound the car made back when it was built. Eisenmann then uses every trick learned with their 20+ years of experience as an exhaust builder to create that perfect factory fresh classic Porsche tone, even going so far as to change material choices among various grades of stainless steel to ensure that the exhaust system sounds just like it did when the car was original.
Finally, we were able to enter the inconspicuous garage in Eisenmann's building #4, to see what the Spark 8 beast was guarding. The locks made a heavy "clunk" as they were released- there were four of them per thick, sturdy sliding door. Despite this garage's well fortified locks alluding to its containing some impressive equipment, nothing could prepare me for what was stored inside.
The actual list of cars and parts present inside of Mr Eisenmann's "hoby room" as I later learned to call it was not as important as the message that made itself abundantly clear as a result of being there. Eisenmann was not a business started with a rational plan to make a profit. It was a business started as a vehicle to feed a mania, an addiction, a rabid passion for motorsports, and the automobile in general.
As soon as you walk into the large, concrete floored room, your eye begins to scan the perimeter, the floor, the walls. Every inch of the place hints at the addiction. The posters. The 1972 Carerra 2.7 RS, one of under 1600 made, sitting under a car cover. The bare 911 chassis, waiting restoration. The 997 GT3 RS, with brake dust still on the wheels from its last race. Shelf after shelf of rare replacement Porsche parts for cars that are long out of production. I knew then that I was working with a true fanatic. Suddenly, the millions of dollars of equipment, the hand built exhaust systems, the manufacturing contracts with Porsche; suddenly it all made sense.
Sven led me into Eisenmann's main office, in another building, to begin this year's factory tour, and my eyes installed recognized a familiar photo- IND's project E92 M3, the car that was lucky enough to have perhaps the first Eisenmann E92 M3 exhaust imported into the USA, hanging on their office wall! I swelled with pride when I saw our photo posted in Eisenmann's own office, but was even more shocked to see that it was replicated again and again on Sven's own desk! Eisenmann had printed hundreds of posters of our photo, and was sending them to dealers worldwide. To have some helping hand in creating an image that was now being circulated by Eisenmann across the globe was truly an honor.
As I was taking my tour of Eisenmann's facilities this year, one fact struck me and burned itself in my memory: Eisenmann does less outsourcing than any other manufacturing business I've ever encountered. While exploring Eisenmann's five buildings and talking to the employees, I realized that this is the secret to Eisenmann's build quality, and to the Eisenmann "sound" that no other manufacturer has ever been able to replicate. This is their trump card, the one fact that keeps Eisenmann the top choice for businesses like Porsche, AMG, and the best aftermarket tuners: Eisenmann completes every step of the process in house at their facilities. The owner of the business does not have his office thousands of miles away. Mr Eisenmann does not make a few flights to his overseas factory per year; he is at Eisenmann's facility day in and day out, ensuring that every minute detail is perfect. This is the secret that no other manufacturer can replicate.
Eisenmann exhausts are created first in the thoughts and imaginations of Eisenmann's in house engineering staff. Eisenmann's engineers use advanced Computer Aided Design software to model their vision in 3D prior to ever moving a single tool. Because many of Eisenmann's exhaust systems are bespoke solutions for an individual with a dream, CAD modeling allows Eisenmann to communicate their ideas to their client accurately, whether it's a major manufacturer like Mercedes AMG, or a single individual with a classic car and a dream.
The ability to have an engineering team on staff in the same compound as the sales offices, fabricators, and even the shipping department is a unique advantage for Eisenmann. Seeing the easy, smooth flow of conversation between Eisenmann's sales staff, Eisenmann's engineers, and Eisenmann's fabrication team made me realize just how important proximity is. As a fabricator, being close to your engineers allows you to tell them when something is wrong with their design before problems occur. Eisenmann is able to easily "test build" their exhaust systems and make revisions if something is deemed not durable enough, difficult to fabricate, or somehow bad for performance.
My next surprise of the tour came when I saw exhaust jig after exhaust jig at Eisenmann's facility. After a while, I realized that Eisenmann was handling even this step of the manufacturing process in an unorthodox fashion- Eisenmann manufactures all of their tooling in house! Having seen many US based businesses outsource the design and manufacture of their tooling, I was amazed to see that every jig, every stamp and die used to build an Eisenmann exhaust system is built at Eisenmann's facility! This is such a critical step in quality control, as tooling wears and degrades over time, and Eisenmann is able to react quickly to any changes before they are a problem. By making all of their tooling in house, Eisenmann is able to ensure that every Eisenmann exhaust system is built perfectly, even before any metal takes shape.
All of this effort and stringent quality control is directed toward just one goal- meeting the needs of Eisenmann's biggest clients, Porsche and AMG. The demanding quality requirements of each company are best met with an operation that is equipped to handle every aspect of the project in house. When Porsche approaches Eisenmann to design a new product for one of their production cars, Eisenmann can attack the challenge by designing, prototyping, testing, and then manufacturing the exhaust system.
To manufacture Porsche's OEM exhaust systems, Eisenmann uses some very precise equipment:
Eisenmann's CNC tubing bender allows for precise, tight radius bends for both internal muffler tubing, and external exhaust piping. Eisenmann's engineers have solved some unique engineering problems, and have modified the bending machine to work with the perforated tubing often used in muffler internals.
Eisenmann's computer controlled robotic welder is the most precise and consistent way of creating weldments on mass produced exhaust components. Seeing this machine in action was part frightening, and part amazing! The fluid movements of the huge robotic arm, choreographed with the swaying of the large parts table and exhaust jig (made in house at Eisenmann) had me absolutely mesmerized. Go on our youtube channel to see this machine in action.
Walking into this room was a stark departure from the hustle and bustle of the shop floor. The "measuring room" is one of Eisenmann's most valuable assets when it comes to quality control. This area houses more digitizer arms, dial and digital calipers, and other measuring devices than I'd ever seen in one space. This quiet area to the side of the main shop floor is where two of Eisenmann's skilled technicians measure jigs, prototype exhaust systems, and even full car bodies before approving exhaust systems for production. Measurements are precise down to the millimeter and beyond, and it is this precise measurement and verification that ensures a perfect, trouble free fit, ever time.
Every piece of the exhaust system is drawn, prototyped, and then checked for precision. Here you can see that even small components like this exhaust hanger are individually tested. The entire exhaust system assembly for a given car consists of hundreds of drawings, and each piece has to be prototyped and tested first individually as a standalone part, and then installed on the exhaust system and tested as part of the greater exhaust system assembly. This testing is done well before the exhaust system can even hope to see approval from Eisenmann's engineering department, and ensures that the final production piece has no fitment flaws!
Porsche has final approval over the exhaust system's design, materials choice, and performance. Even the decision of where to source smaller components like these exhaust valves is left to Porsche, who demands that only the highest quality components be installed on their factory exhaust systems.
Of course the truth is that when it comes to absolute perfection, no machine will ever rival the quality of work available when using one of Eisenmann's skilled German craftsmen. When the job is simply too difficult for a machine to accomplish, one of Eisenmann's technicians will complete the necessary steps by hand. Here we see some final welds being made on the internals of the 997Porsche exhaust system.
Not all of Eisenmann's work is open to the public, unfortunately! Although I had a full story written about the car in the corner of this picture, all I can say about it now is that it is a project that a major automotive manufacturer requested to keep secret for the time being. The car is new and has huge performance potential, and was disassembled down to a bare shell during my visit. Amazing work!
Eisenmann's aftermarket program is entirely different from the company's OEM manufacturing operation. Aftermarket exhaust systems make up a very small percentage of Eisenmann's total business as a company- the money comes from building factory exhaust systems for the world's best cars. Aftermarket performance exhaust systems are simply an extension of Mr Eisenmann's passion for motorsports and modifying cars in general. Naturally, any aftermarket exhaust systems produced in Mr Eisenmann's factories must be as special as this enthusiasm for performance demands. Unlike the OEM exhaust systems built by Eisenmann, all of Eisenmann's performance exhaust systems are built by hand, from start to finish. Nearly the only operation performed by a robot is the initial stamping of the canister shape. Every step of the assembly and welding process, every step of manufacturing the tips is performed by Eisenmann's expert technicians.
Each Eisenmann performance exhaust system receives a plaque with the company's logo, as well as some basic information about the car it's for. The technician that builds the exhaust system has the honor of stamping their own initials into the plaque. There have been many imitators of Eisenmann exhausts systems, and more than a few have included letters like "SA" "Sa" "SS", or others into their serial numbers, with no knowledge of their actual meaning. What they are doing is using the initials of various Eisenmann technicians, without even knowing this!
Only a handful of Eisenmann's best technicians are selected to build Eisenmann's performance exhausts. Talking to these people, the level of skill, and their level of dedication to the job was amazing. Each technician is s focused on their job, it was very difficult to get a photo of them in action! Every time I went to snap a photo of the technicians at work, they would stop working- they required full concentration to build these exhaust systems, and wanted no distractions!
I made a point to learn each tech's name, and IND will now send a photo and technician's name with each exhaust system. Eisenmann exhaust owners will now get to see just who built their exhaust system.
Of course, one of the things that will always set Eisenmann apart from anyone else in the business is their tips. Eisenmann's exhaust tips have become a trademark of the company, and their ability to build even the most complex, toughest tip designs is widely renowned among the German automotive manufacturers like Porsche and Mercedes.
One of the most popular tip designs for Eisenmann aftermarket systems is the LeMans style tip. Having seen hundreds of these works of art in person, I was amazed to learn that the tips were made in house at Eisenmann's facility, and entirely by hand! I had thought the tips were machine built prior to this year's visit, but as I watched the fabricator patiently build each one by hand from bare steel, I knew that this was the right way.
As I was leaving Eisenmann's facility, I saw their "tip reject basket". Some of the tips in this pile had flaws barely visible to the human eye. Many looked perfectly good, but somehow did not pass Eisenmann's stringent quality controls. All the better for me, as I took several home to use as pen holders in our office.
I left Eisenmann's facility, knowing I'd be back again next year. Year after year, Eisenmann is able to amaze me with new lessons learned, new things to see, and more evidence of the single factor that sets Eisenmann apart from their competitors- the passion that courses through the veins of every single individual who is lucky enough to be able to associate themselves with this company.


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Anticipation Guide
Help establish a purpose for readingand generate post-reading reflection and discussionwith this guide.
- Parent & Afterschool Resources | Grades K – 5 | Podcast Episode
A Peek into Amelia's Notebook
Emily chats with a couple of sisters about two books in the Amelia's Notebook series and even the grown-up Amelia herself, author-illustrator Marissa Moss.
- Classroom Resources | Grades 3 – 5 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
Applying Question-Answer Relationships to Pictures
A picture is worth a thousand words as students are guided in viewing wordless picture books and responding to four different types of questions about the images they see.
- Classroom Resources | Grades K – 12 | Calendar Activity |  April 1
April is National Poetry Month!
Students are assigned to be "poets of the day" and are provided several models to create, illustrate, and present their different poems to the class.
- Classroom Resources | Grades 3 – 5 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
A Race With Grace: Sports Poetry in Motion
In this lesson, athletics, aesthetics, and poetics intersect in new ways as developing literacy learners experiment together with the forms of language.
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A Recipe for Writing: Fairy Tale Feasts
After examining recipes written based on students' favorite fairy tales, students research a recipe related to their favorite story, book, or fairy tale and include it in a classroom recipe book.
- Parent & Afterschool Resources | Grades K – 5 | Podcast Episode
Are You at the End of Your Series?
Finished a series and need some ideas? Join Emily as she chats about some series worth trying.
- Classroom Resources | Grades 3 – 5 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
Artistic Elements: Exploring Art Through Descriptive Writing
Paint a vivid picture in your reader's mind with good descriptive writing! Artwork provides the perfect starting point for practicing descriptive writing that conveys color, shape, line, and mood.
- Classroom Resources | Grades 2 – 5 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
A Schema-Building Study With Patricia Polacco
Students use the Semantic Impressions and Possible Sentences strategies to write about Patricia Polacco's books Chicken Sunday and Rechenka's Egg, complete a character study, and write using a WebQuest.
- Professional Development | Grades K – 8 | Online Professional Development | Web Seminar
Assessing Your Students' Writing with Eyes of Possibility
In this Web seminar, Katherine will provide participants with protocols and templates to use that will help you see what your students are doing well in order to help them want to revise and write more.


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There's more drama for Community. Production on the NBC sitcom was briefly shut down Friday after Chevy Chase dropped the N-word on set, TVLine reports.
According to the site, Chase has become increasingly frustrated with the direction of his character, bigot Pierce Hawthorne. The actor reportedly snapped over new dialogue and said the racial slur.
VIDEO: Community cast celebrates premiere date ... sort ofThough his African-American co-stars Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover were with him at the time, the epithet wasn't directed at either actor or at any person in particular, according to the report. Nevertheless, production was temporarily halted until Chase formally apologized to the cast and crew.Chase is known for his hot temper on the Community set. Last year, he publicly clashed with creator and former showrunner Dan Harmon, which resulted in a profanity-laced voicemail from Chase being leaked. More recently, the Saturday Night Live alum said that joining the quirky comedy was a "big mistake."Community's fourth season was supposed to premiere the same day as Chase's latest outburst, but NBC delayed the show's return last week and has yet to reschedule it.


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- A compact grainy leather crossbody bag with a polished chain and leather strap. Small and structured, it is designed to keep its shape, while expandable internal compartments and an exterior zip pocket allow for easy organisation.
- 24 x 7 x 18cm/9.4 x 2.8 x 7.1in
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Don't Rule Out a Paula Deen Comeback
Paula Deen's future with the Food Network was in doubt even before a controversy over her use of racial slurs erupted, but there's evidence to suggest that a second act could still be likely. Lee Hawkins joins the News Hub. Photo: AP.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... the the ... all in show on the today show this morning she cried she apologize for using racial slurs in the past that the controversy which recently erupted ... may not have been the reason her cooking show was canceled also her career ... even the case may not be over Lee Hawkins joins us now ... the morning ... morning so was the real reason for show got canceled ... well I mean we can't say definitively that was because the readings were down twenty two percent but the ratings were down to eat yes they were in the mere influence of eighteen to forty nine demographic also overall about twenty two percent the Arundel from fifteen and that it's interesting ... in in your EQ two story this morning that ... dump and stir shows in general I'm cooking shows the country did to wee child style just ... be grasping for any artist Popular's reality tech cooking shows there's a ... big shift going there not as popular in the important thing to keep in mind here is that Paula Deen is not going out of business because she hasn't lost my business ... food network doctor Smithfield ... doctor what Wal-Mart Target see years ... I JCP Nene Novo Nordisk Nord is all of these companies have kept a relationship ... with Paula Deen and let's face it she's chance that the N word and that's one thing ... but she said some pretty terrific things about black people I've seen and yet surprisingly SNP people haven't ... jumped on ... it in the past year you would argue that some people would would ... really jump on the criticism bandwagon that hasn't happened one hundred person I talk to the end of the way CP earlier today their focus on four Supreme Court cases right now ... about they're not going to really pursue this Jesse Jackson ... was on with the rain and on CNN saying that he thought that ... she should be forgiven what's changed why why is this why this new approach I think it's because if you remember Obama is up forty five minute speech that he gave Henrique Sweeney was ... up being alleges ran on this first one right and there was a point where he said ... on the talk about it now and then I'm not to talk about anymore ... that was a historic moment in race politics it was the shift from confrontation politics that we saw with Martin Luther keen ... Malcolm X and ... in the house Sharpton and Jesse Jackson to collaboration ... and not to de emphasize race is really an issue with the look and I miss and the goals are to people that were not ins ... and nappy headed hoes was his line readings and Michael Vick dogfighting that both of those people had activist groups fighting to get at school to get endorsements pool ... they don't have that here if Wal Mart and Target ... and all of these companies right have allowed Hershey's Ardi said all these things ... if they haven't pulled the relationship now ... they're not going to do it ain't so she's not going into anything more than two Tsarni Don was on its face what she's done already what an uptick in the relationship and you know it it was interesting poll again isn't a public company ... but there is a very interesting corollary fearing a public company we do have which is Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia via Martha Stewart ... back in two thousand fine she had a TV show ... on NBC in syndication we actually have their stock appears to back in two dozen five EDT that ... semi that was when she had her show adjudication ... back in twenty ten we fall the chart down that's when the show after declining ratings moved over the hallmark Channel ... Pinnacle then it it was finally canceled in twenty twelve but ... as you can see the stock is down but she still has a business in the merchandising listen and call it the river revenue but but all of the Prophet of Martha Stewart is ... Macy's ... home Depot J C Penney Macy's and it is even still when Reggie at because SCA's Martha Stewart to do a J C Penney they care about the brand these people have happened and of course powers the rabid stands ... there's been a backlash against the food network for the decision that the meat to copper ... she'll be back on the inner probably within a year ... and when you look at the strategy in the way he's handled it ... she doesn't handle the crisis manager may very well but I don't think that's gonna hurt or ... I think right now our strategy is going to be totally Lowell into not talking when we think about it isn't that the best thing that she could do right now because wasn't talking what got her in trouble with the kids play fastening segment they keep thinking we appreciate the time being ...


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I need to culture mouse endothelial cells in low glucose media. I've cultured cells as first in a normal media, and is going to subculture them in low glucose media. Would this affect the growth of the cells?? What are the consequences??
What Is the best way to culture cells in low glucose media?? Is it prefered to start culturing in low glucose, or is it OK to do it as I've started -with normal media then subculturing in low glucose media- ???
Edited by Isra, 31 October 2009 - 01:56 PM.


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Professional Development Workshops and Seminars
Work Life
Answering Tough Interview Questions
Being Positive in the Workplace
Business Report Writing
Basics of Written Communication
The Binghamton Tradition: BU's Special Past, Present and Future
Book Reviews
Bullying in the Workplace
Community of Science (COS) Expertise Profile
Cover Letter Writing
Cross Cultural Diversity
Digital Photography
Email Etiquette
Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace
Ergonomics for the Office and Home
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Travel, but Were Afraid to Ask
Extraordinary Customer Service
The Fine Line in Supervision
Generations in the Workplace
Grant Writing
How Do Life Events Affect My Benefits?
How to Avoid the Very Worst Résumé Mistakes of Them All
Listening Skills
Making the Best Use of Your Data
Managing Difficult Conversations (3 part series)
Managing Multiple Generations
Managing Your Email
Meeting Facilitation
Navigating the New Library Website
The Path to Career Success: Managing Your Strengths, Needs, and Challenges!
Presentation Skills: Setting Up a Data Projector
Presentation Skills: Talking Out Loud
Presentation Skills: Tips for Great Presentations
Requesting Salary Increases or Promotions
Strategic Planning as a Way to Manage
Strategies of Successful Teams
Supervisory Skills
Supervising UUP and CSEA: an Overview for Managers, Supervisors and Chairs
Taking Charge of Change
Think Before You Speak
The 3rd Degree of Networking —and How to Use It to Your Full Advantage
Time Management
Top 10 Essential Skills for Happiness and Success in Today's Workplace
Who Moved My Cheese
Your Performance Program and Evaluation
Health & Well Being
Active Shooter Video and Discussion
At A Loss: Grief and Bereavement
Beyond Grief: Recovering from Loss
Boot Camp for Beginners
Core Training
CPR/AED Class
Healthy Strength Training
Injury Prevention for Exercise and Daily Life
Live Long, Live Healthy: Eat Mediterranean
Mini RAD: Personal Safety and Self Defense
Money, Wealth and Happiness
Moving Forward with Menopause
Recognizing an Emergency
Riding in Traffic
Stress and Longevity: Striking a Balance
Stress Management
Adult Learner Series, Part I: Thinking of Going Back to College: Information to Help Your Decision
Adult Learner Series, Part II: Choosing a Major and Understanding Your Learning Style
Adult Learner Series, Part III: New Ideas on Earning Credit for a College Degree
Adult Learner Series, Part IV: Paying for Your College Education
Ask a Librarian: Discovering the Hidden Sources of the Library
Financing a College Education -Comparing the Bottom Line
Insider Tips on the Admissions Process
Navigating the College Search Process
Nuts and Bolts of Paying for College
Daily Life
Creating a Leaner and Meaner Household Budget Using Excel
Followers and Friends - An Introduction to Social Networking
Friend Me on Facebook - Getting Started on Facebook
Genealogy: How to Get Started
Introduction to Social Networking
Real Estate: Basics and Beyond for Buyers
Real Estate: Basics and Beyond for Sellers
View documentation regarding Professional Development including tips and tools.


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Caught on video: Dramatic interstate snowstorm crash
New video obtained by Des Moines TV station KCCI shows just how dangerous last month's blizzard was for drivers and for the state troopers who had to rescue them.
Hundreds of vehicles were left in snowy ditches as troopers rescued stranded drivers along the interstates on Dec. 20.
During one rescue a state trooper got out of his patrol car on I-80 near the Williamsburg exit to help two women stranded on the side of the interstate.
A man already rescued was sitting inside the trooper's car.
A camera inside the trooper's car captured what happened next. It shows a semi sliding and jackknifing as it approaches the stopped trooper car.
The trooper yells at the women to get back in their car as he runs and jumps into a ditch.
The state patrol said it shared the video to showing drivers what can happen.
"When people see we have a blizzard warning out there and they hear from the Iowa State Patrol and road conditions are not the greatest, travel not recommended, we hope that people will listen to us," said Patrol spokesman Sgt. Scott Bright.
During the last blizzard, officials said more than 150 collisions and 200 cases of stranded motorists were reported over the two day span of the storm.
"This is a situation where we could have lost four individuals, and people that make that decision to drive, they have to make that decision and decide, 'Is it work their life? Is it worth risking somebody else's life?'" said Bright.
The state patrol advises only traveling in bad weather if it is an emergency. Bright said the best thing to do when you get stranded is call 911 and stay in your car until law enforcement comes to rescue you.


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William Binney Overview ‧ read
How brave do you have to be to take on the world's most powerful spying organization? Let's look at the life of William Binney, to find the answer.
Binneys early life
After college, Binney made the calculated decision to volunteer for the Army. It was during the Vietnam War and if he didn't volunteer, he would have been drafted. As a volunteer, Binney got to take his pick of the work that interested him. And being a mathematician, he naturally chose analysis and code-breaking. Binney served in the Army Security Agency from 1965 to 1969.
It was ideal preparation for the NSA, which he joined in 1970. Binney rose through the NSA ranks quickly. One colleague described him as "one of the best analysts in history." And by the time Binney quit the organization in disgust 31 years later, he had become its Technical Leader for Intelligence.
The NSA's trailblazer crash lands
Binney and his colleagues had developed a system called 'ThinThread.' The in-house system was proven to collect "actionable intelligence" . But instead of using ThinThread, the NSA signed a multi-billion dollar contract for a system called Trailblazer. It was "the largest failure in NSA history" and was canceled in 2006.
9/11 changes the NSA's approach
After 9/11, the NSA launched another new surveillance program called Stellar Wind. It used elements of ThinThread to set up wiretapping rooms, which gave it access to most of America's phone and internet traffic. The NSA then started to ignore the requirement to get a warrant before conducting surveillance on American citizens.
That made Stellar Wind unconstitutional, according to Binney.
"They violated the Constitution setting it up, but they didn't care. They were going to do it anyway, and they were going to crucify anyone who stood in the way. When they started violating the Constitution, I couldn't stay."
Binney blows the whistle
Nobody at the NSA was held accountable for Trailblazer. But Binney and Wiebe suffered harsh retribution for trying to repair the damage.
Raided at gunpoint by the FBI
"They came up and pointed guns at my family and me as I was getting out of the shower," said Binney. "The whole idea was retribution for our complaint against the NSA for corruption, fraud, waste, and abuse. That was the reason they raided us… We were a clear demonstration that official channels didn't work. "
Speaking publicly about NSA surveillance
"That's the reason I've been coming out publicly-because where I see it going is toward a totalitarian state. I mean you've got the NSA doing all this collection of material on all of its citizens. That's what the SS, the Gestapo, the Stasi did."Binney has since made many high-profile appearances in which he shares his NSA experiences. Binney testified in the German Government's NSA inquiry, describing his former employer as wanting "total information control" over citizens.
Binney also featured in the Oscar-winning documentary Citizenfour, and was the subject of the 2015 documentary A Good American. In the film, Binney re-states his claim that under better management the NSA could have prevented 9/11.
A true public servant
Whistleblowing didn't work out for Binney, though. The NSA ignored its mistakes, and the FBI literally put a gun to his head. But he continues to be brave enough stand up for his beliefs, risking his own safety to speak publicly about NSA mass surveillance.
It's unfortunate Binney couldn't set the NSA back on the right path. But we're glad he's still fighting to protect our rights and freedoms.
Featured image: "William Binney at CoPS2013" by Rama is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 fr.