text:
This week in new hires, Matt Lynch joined ByAllAccounts' board of directors; William Greiner became CIO at Mariner Wealth Advisors and FactRight brought in Scott Smith and Chris Bove.
Also, Symetra welcomed Curt Olson; David Collett went to UAT; and Neuberger Berman added 11 new sales executives.
Matt Lynch Joins ByAllAccounts' Board of Directors
ByAllAccounts announced Wednesday that Matt Lynch, who recently joined Tiburon Associates as a principal, has joined its board of directors. Prior to joining Tiburon, Lynch was president and CEO of the independent broker-dealer Capital Analysts. He also served as director of the business consulting group at Moss Adams, and held senior leadership positions with Lincoln Financial Advisors and field management roles with New York Life. He is active in industry associations and is a frequent speaker at industry conferences.
Lynch's approach to the independent broker-dealer space was profiled in an Investment Advisor cover story in 2009, and ByAllAccounts CEO James Carney is a regular contributor to AdvisorOne.
Mariner Wealth Advisors Hires William Greiner as Chief Investment Officer
Mariner Wealth Advisors recently announced that William Greiner (left) has joined the firm as its new CIO.
An industry veteran with more than 25 years of experience, Greiner has left his role as CIO of Scout Investment Advisors and Scout Funds to join Mariner. He started with Scout's parent company, UMB, in 1999 as CIO after working for Northern Trust in Chicago.
Greiner's background also includes his position as a CFA charter holder, a member of the CFA Institute and a member of the Kansas City CFA Society.
FactRight Appoints Scott Smith, Chris Bove
FactRight LLC announced April 5 that it has welcomed Scott Smith as principal and chief operations officer. In his new role, he will oversee due diligence evaluation and reporting tools for broker dealers. The company also announced that Chris Bove will be joining the firm as a legal analyst.
Smith (right) brings more than 10 years of industry experience, developing alternative investment products for a range of financial and real estate companies. Prior to joining, he served as director of alternative investments from 2010 to 2012 at Ameriprise Financial. Prior to that, he was vice president and in-house counsel from 2008 to 2009 for National Healthcare Properties. Earlier, he was national sales director for CapWest Securities and vice president of LandAmerica's 1031 exchange services; he began his career practicing insurance and real estate law in St. Louis.
In Bove's new position as a legal analyst, he will be responsible for providing legal analysis, reviews, reports and background checks on sponsors of real estate securities and real estate related securities offerings. A lawyer by trade, Bove previously worked for the Chicago Police Department.
Symetra Names Curt Olson VP
Symetra Life Insurance Co. announced on April 5 the appointment of Curt Olson as vice president and head of relationship management for registered investments. In this new role, he will build and manage the distributor network for Symetra's planned variable annuity (VA) offering. He will report to Kevin Knull, senior vice president of registered investments.
Olson most recently served as senior vice president and national relationship manager at Sun Life Financial Distributors, where he led a team responsible for VA sales across multiple channels. He previously held sales and product management positions at MFS Investment Management, Dain Rauscher Inc. and Kemper Financial Services.
UAT Welcomes David Collett
UAT Inc. announced Tuesday that it has appointed David Collett as chief operating officer, chief financial officer and partner. In his new role, he will oversee all of UAT's day-to-day operational, administrative and financial activities.
With more than 25 years of experience, Collett joined UAT from Signature Group Holdings Inc., where he previously served as treasurer and senior vice president of finance. He also served as chief financial officer of UNX, Jackson National Life Distribution and LPL Financial Services, and held management roles at Countrywide Financial, Western Asset Management, Franklin Templeton and Coopers & Lybrand.
Neuberger Berman Adds Sales Execs
Neuberger Berman announced Tuesday that it has added 11 senior regional directors in 10 new regions to its advisor solutions group, which serves wirehouses and regional broker-dealers.
In the wirehouse channel, the firm has added seven new regions and seven new people in those areas. The new regions include the Pacific Northwest, Northern Los Angeles and Michigan/Indiana in the Western division, and Southeast Florida and Puerto Rico, the Carolinas, and Upstate New York in the Eastern division.
In the broker-dealer channel, the firm has added three new regions and four new executives covering those territories. The new regions include: the Four Corners (Arizona, Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, New Mexico, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming), the Heartland (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri and Nebraska) and the Mideast (Michigan and Ohio).

subset: commoncrawl


text:
A low-level MySQL client library. https://github.com/paul-rouse/mysql
|LTS Haskell 16.20:
|Stackage Nightly 2020-10-27:
|Latest on Hackage:
Module documentation for 0.1.7
- Database
mysql: bindings to the mysqlclient library
This library is a Haskell binding to the MySQL
mysqlclient client
library. It is a fairly faithful, low level library that implements
most of the MySQL client API. The major departure from the C API is
that in Haskell, resource management is mostly automatic and safe.
This library deliberately avoids the question of providing a "good" API. Its purpose is to serve as a base upon which higher-level libraries can be built.
This library is BSD-licensed under the terms of the MySQL FOSS License Exception.
Since this library links against the GPL-licensed
library, a non-open-source application that uses it may be subject
to the terms of the GPL.
To do
- Add support for prepared statements. The prepared statement API is huge and of dubious performance value, so it's not currently a priority for us. Patches welcome!
Get involved!
We are happy to receive bug reports, fixes, documentation enhancements, and other improvements.
Please report bugs via the github issue tracker.
Master git repository:
git clone git://github.com/paul-rouse/mysql.git
This library was written by Bryan O'Sullivan, email@example.com, to whom all of the credit is due. It is now being maintained by Paul Rouse, firstname.lastname@example.com.
- Add support for JSON type
- Fix build for mysql 8
- Add Semigroup instance for FieldFlags
- Fix some warnings
- Drop testing under GHC 7.8 / lts-2
- Expose mysql_thread_end() as
- Safer concurrency - see https://ro-che.info/articles/2015-04-17-safe-concurrent-mysql-haskell
- Better support for building against MariaDB (not well tested).
- Additional C binding: mysql_get_server_version().
- Fix bystestring-valued connectOptions sometimes not being null terminated at the correct place (avoid unsafeUseAsCString).
- Fix setup for cabal 1.24
- New maintainer and GitHub location - with many thanks to Bryan O'Sullivan for all of the past work on this module, and for facilitating the transfer of maintenance responsibility.


text:
ESSAY- Arms bared: Racist origins of the 2nd Amendment
Racial politics dominated the talk in Washington after Barack Obama called on Americans to stop ignoring the country's racist past and move forward. The message apparently didn't reach the U.S. Supreme Court, where the justices were busy ignoring race during a hearing on the biggest case of the year.
On the same day Obama gave his big speech, the court heard oral arguments in D.C. v. Heller, a case challenging the District of Columbia's 30-year-old law banning handgun ownership. The case marks the first time the Supreme Court has reviewed the Second Amendment in 70 years, and its interpretation could have far-reaching implications for state gun laws. Heller is mostly about gun ownership, but it's also about race— not that you would know that from the oral arguments.
First, by way of background: The key issue in Heller is whether the Constitution guarantees an individual, as opposed to a collective, right to bear arms within the context of a well-organized militia. The plaintiff, Dick Anthony Heller, is an armed security guard who, with the help of some rich libertarians, brought the lawsuit against the District, arguing that the city's handgun ban illegally prevented him from keeping his work weapon at home.
Last year, in a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit agreed and ruled that the city's gun-control law was an unconstitutional infringement on an individual's right to bear arms. Fearing a flood of new firearms into the city as a result, the District appealed to the Supreme Court.
Dozens of interest groups, from the Pink Pistols to Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, have filed amicus briefs, offering their take on the Second Amendment. But during oral arguments, Justice Anthony Kennedy and his conservative brethren seemed to fully embrace the gun lobby's favorite romantic myth that the founders– inspired by the image of a musket in the hands of a minuteman– wrote the Second Amendment to give Americans the right to take up arms to fight government tyranny.
But what the founders really had in mind, according to some constitutional law scholars, was a musket in the hands of a slave owner: these scholars believe the founders enshrined the right to bear arms in the Constitution in part to enforce tyranny, not fight it.
At an American Constitution Society briefing on the Heller case, NAACP Legal Defense Fund president John Payton explained the ugly history behind the gun lobby's favorite amendment.
"That the Second Amendment was the last bulwark against the tyranny of the federal government is false," he said. Instead, the "well-regulated militias" cited in the Constitution almost certainly referred to state militias that were used to suppress slave insurrections. Payton explained that the Founders added the Second Amendment in part to reassure southern states, such as Virginia, that the federal government wouldn't use its new power to disarm state militias as a backdoor way of abolishing slavery.
This is pretty well-documented history, thanks to the work of Roger Williams School of Law professor Carl T. Bogus. In a 1998 law-review article based on a close analysis of James Madison's original writings, Bogus explained the South's obsession with militias during the ratification fights over the Constitution.
"The militia remained the principal means of protecting the social order and preserving white control over an enormous black population," Bogus writes. "Anything that might weaken this system presented the gravest of threats." He goes on to document how anti-Federalists Patrick Henry and George Mason used the fear of slave rebellions as a way of drumming up opposition to the Constitution and how Madison eventually deployed the promise of the Second Amendment to placate Virginians and win their support for ratification.
None of this figured into the arguments at the Supreme Court. Instead, a majority of the justices, especially Kennedy, seemed to buy the story that the Founders were inordinately concerned with the ability of early settlers to use guns to fend off wild animals and Indians, not rebellious slaves. (Slate's Dahlia Lithwick counts pivotal swing-voter Kennedy making no fewer than four mentions of a mythical "remote settler," who Kennedy suggested would have needed a gun to "defend himself and his family against hostile Indian tribes and outlaws, wolves and bears, and grizzlies.")
Just as the Court largely ignored the racist past of the Second Amendment, its focus on self-defense also glossed over the more obvious racial implications of the decision it was reviewing. The plaintiff, Heller, is a white man who lives in a 60 percent black city whose democratically elected leaders long ago decided that handguns were doing more harm than good to its citizenry. Indeed, while two of the original five plaintiffs in the Heller case are black women, not a whole lot of African Americans in the District appear to be out there clamoring to own more handguns for self-defense.
In an interview, Bogus says that polls consistently show that African Americans support gun control in much higher numbers than white people do, and probably for good reason: They're usually the ones looking at the wrong end of the barrel.
As the NAACP points out in its brief on Heller, there were 137 gun-homicide victims in D.C. in 2004, all but two of them black. If the Supreme Court invalidates the city's handgun ban, any ensuing uptick in gun violence is likely to have a disproportionate impact on African Americans, particularly young men.
Of course, it won't be only young black men who suffer if the court decides that D.C. residents need more handguns. In fact, someone ought to remind Justice Kennedy about what happens when the wrong people get guns– namely the average, law-abiding D.C. residents who would supposedly benefit from the new gun ownership rights. With all his worry about grizzly bears, Kennedy has clearly forgotten about Carl Rowan Sr.
Back in 1988, the African American syndicated columnist shot an unarmed, 18-year-old white kid from Chevy Chase who'd gone for an unauthorized dip in Rowan's swimming pool. Rowan, who shot the kid in the wrist as he tried to flee, claimed he'd feared for his life and was only defending himself. Nonetheless, the columnist was prosecuted for illegally possessing a handgun. The trial ended with a hung jury, and Rowan escaped punishment (though the teenagers were sentenced to community service), but the incident fueled a tremendous amount of racial tension in the city that might have been avoided if Rowan had just, say, called the cops.
Gun-wielding journalists who can't shoot straight may not be the bulwark against tyranny libertarians had in mind. Yet they're just one of the many scary scenarios the District faces should the court rely on language inspired by slavery and the libertarians' whitewashed version of American history to restrict the ability of a majority black city to protect its citizens from gun violence.
This essay originally appeared in Mother Jones, for whose D.C. bureau Stephanie Mencimer reports. She's also the author of Blocking the Courthouse Door: How the Republican Party and Its Corporate Allies Are Taking Away Your Right to Sue (Free Press, 2006).
49 comments
Interesting how everything has a 'race' slanting to some people. It's amazing how the same folks who seem to desire 'color blindness' officially, can't seem to do so personally.
Now, I'm not going to take up the question as to whether some of the southern states may not have taken the Second Amendment as a way of controlling the slaves of the time. Maybe they did, maybe they did not. Or maybe just some number of folks did. That's history; not today; and *none* of us were alive then, anyway. There is little point in praising or condemning at this time. If we are supposed to 'move on'; then let's by all means do so; and address the present.
However, it's also pretty clear that the NORTHERN states, and probably most of the folks who wrote or agreed with the 'Federalist Papers'; saw it more in the light that the Supreme Court seems to have seen it. All one has to do is read the texts; understand English, and have a reasonable knowledge of the events of the times (we used to teach American History in the schools, even the southern ones :) ). There may be some 'revisionist' history still taught in southern schools in certain areas, but I don't think it goes back to the Revolutionary War and beyond.
As for the 'black people not clamoring for guns'; is that more because they don't want them; or because they're afraid to ask? DC doesn't have the reputation of having the most 'toleration' of folks who don't toe the 'party line'; unless, of course, they have diplomatic plates on their cars, or a diplomatic passport on their person. I suspect those folks are split, just like the rest of the country. Some probably would get a gun if it were legal to do so, some probably already have, legal or not; and some probably want nothing to do with guns. And, IMHO, that's perfectly fine. The Second Amendment doesn't FORCE anyone to own a firearm. All it does is GIVE THEM THE 'UNINFRINGEABLE' RIGHT to do so if they WANT TO. No matter what race or color they are.
"As the NAACP points out in its brief on Heller, there were 137 gun-homicide victims in D.C. in 2004, all but two of them black. If the Supreme Court invalidates the city's handgun ban, any ensuing uptick in gun violence is likely to have a disproportionate impact on African Americans, particularly young men."
And of those 137 gun-homicides, how many of them were committed with legally obtained and registered handguns? Zero. The gun ban only prevents law abiding citizens from owning a handgun for self defense. It does nothing to stop criminals from owning and using handguns.
When Washington, D.C., assigns 24X7X365 body guards for each citizen then they should consider banning self defense weaponry.
If the author had read the brief of Virginia1774.org they would have noticed that slaves and free blacks were allowed to possess guns on the frontier but they had to have the government's permission. That was more freedom than the District of Columbia Offers its black citizens today where there is a total ban. The author would also have learned that Catholics were disarmed in 1756. It's only a race issue if you want it to be. The real issue was that people who were not considered full members of society were disarmed or heavily restricted. When the government disarms the full members of society it's only goal is to make those not in power slaves to the government whether they be white, black, or orange.
Rudolph DiGiacinto
Founder &c.
That "Essay" was about the stupidest thing I've ever read. I feel dumber for having read it.
If more black people than white get shot because the unconstitutional and criminally stupid DC gun ban is thrown out it will be because they were committing crimes.
The author of this essay is a liar and a fool, as is anyone who believes her.
To suppose that disarming the Black population will make D.C. safer is one of the most racist propositions I have ever heard. I am appalled. A black citizen of this country has the right to poses a firearm if he or she so choses. It is a repulsive thing to treat the black population as infantile by insinuating that it is safer to remove a right because of bent crime statistics. Statistics can show anything. For God's sake; what's next? Shall we remove the black right to vote???
It is time to drop the race card and move on.
Of course no one wants to have violence on our streets and in our homes. Of course there are social problems that contribute to that violence. But after reading this incredibly racist and inflammatory essay I have only one question for people who believe disarming DC is the best choice; when it does come down to violence, who would you rather survives the encounter, the law-biding citizen or the socially defective criminal? Well, of course we'd rather both, but keeping the law-abiding citizens disarmed does nothing but make them a statistic.
Only 5% of the population even owned slaves. If the founding fathers were appeasing the south so they could protect themselves from violent blacks then it seems like the same reason exists today in DC. She admiited herself that the blacks don't want guns the whites do. Is it so they can protect themselves from the black criminals? After all blacks do commit over 95% of the homicides in DC. Does citing these ststisics make me racist?
I'm black and from DC, most of the BLACK law abiding citizens I know DO have guns. I don't know about the writer but I have heard fully automatic weapons fire in the city. You can't just go to a gun store and get a full auto Mac 10 or an AK-47. I have seen the violence in that city and I've known victims of that violence. Not giving the citizens the right to protect themselves is a crime. Saying "...it won't be only young black men who suffer if the court decides that D.C. residents need more handguns", WTF? Do you realize that those "young black men" who commit most of the murders would not think twice about killing you. Those men are criminals, they are not your everyday African-American male going about their business, don't mistake the two. The criminals will invade your home if they see you have something they don't and will kill you to take it, even when they get it they will STILL kill you. Saying that DC shouldn't have guns is saying black people can't take care of themselves so the Government will do it for us and if you know DC you know they can't take care of you.
And About the Carl Rowan incident, the white kid was shot after he went inside Mr Rowan's home.
That firearms were used to enforce slavery is a known fact. That is why the 14th amendment was adopted. It was all about firearms ownership and ensured the emancipated slaves would be assured full and equal rights under the law.
One irrefutable lesson from history is that the badge of a slave has always been to be unarmed. Only freemen may be armed.
"No free man shall be debarred the use of arms."
- Thomas Jefferson
Disarming black people ("for their own good"?) is arrogant and racist. Black Americans have as much a right to defend themselves from violent criminals as anyone else. There is nothing racist in facilitating effective armed defense of self and community for people of all colors; it is just the opposite.
I find such liberal elitism, under the false pretense of fighting racism, to further a clearly anti-freedom agenda - a racist effort itself - to be nothing short of a slap in the face to ALL Americans.
You should be ashamed of yourself for insulting the intelligence of everyone, Black Americans especially. We are not children to be babysat by people like yourself who feel they know what's best for us.
And kool aid was invented to keep the black man from drinking all of the coffee.
The naacp has done a good job of rewriting history to show that every law, bill, stop sign and utterance was about keeping blacks down.
If tj wrote about "free" men in order to stop blacks from owning guns did that also apply to the million "free" men that lived in the north? (and black south slave OWNERS too?)
"Back in 1988, the African American syndicated columnist shot an unarmed, 18-year-old white kid from Chevy Chase who'd gone for an unauthorized dip in Rowan's swimming pool."
You forgot to mention the Ultimate Irony:
ROWAN WAS AGAINST GUN OWNERSHIP. His articles were constant breast beating over guns. Yet he owned one...I wonder if that made him a 'racist'.
Trying to boil down the Second Amendment to racism "according to some constitutional law scholars" is the most backhanded lie I have read in some time. You really should learn to do some research on your own...or is that not allowed in current "journalism"?
How about doing some research on the orgins of this case. Heller was the only individual deemed to have standing, however Parker, a black woman, was the original name associated with the case and still has an appeal before the Supreme Court. How about writing about Condi Rice's thoughts on firearms? The right to defend oneself is a God given right, not a black right, not a white right, a human right. Welcome to America.
How about doing some research on the orgins of this case. Heller was the only individual deemed to have standing, however Parker, a black woman, was the original name associated with the case and still has an appeal before the Supreme Court. How about writing about Condi Rice's thoughts on firearms? The right to defend oneself is a God given right, not a black right, not a white right, a human right. Welcome to America.
Most intelligent people know that "gun control" was and is intended to keep people of color "In their place".
Just in case you happen to be one of those who doesn't, here is the proof:
Talk about re-writing history....In all the writings by the founding fathers (federalist papers letters to friends etc.., there is no mention that the 2nd Amendment was created just to keep the slaves in line...As a matter of fact, gun control laws were created to keep blacks from getting guns, rightly fearing an uprising...
The position that the 2nd Amendment was intended to protect white slave owners is a false and not based on any historical fact.
Prior to the Civil War, blacks were not considered citizens and thus the Bill of Rights did not apply to them. Reconstruction and passage of the 14th Amendment changed that. Once blacks were citizens, the white elite had to develop ways to deny blacks their 2nd Amendment rights while appearing racial neutral. They did so with gun control laws. These laws are still being defended today by Democrats and RINO's.
If you have an interest in the racist history of gun control, check out these documents:
GeorgiaCarry.Org's Amicus Brief:
GeorgiaCarry.Org's report on the racist history of gun control in Georgia. Its title comes from the editorial page of the Atlanta Journal.
The gun control laws objectives are to prevent accidents from negligent and irresponsible owners and secondly to reduce the number in criminal hands via leagal "straw man" purchases.
The few who want to "ban" all guns are indeed a small minority who are actually stupid enough to think it could be accomplished.
If you think the laws are there to keep out of the hands of blacks then you must believe that blacks are all criminals.
The fact is they are not ALL criminals. Just enough of them to make people afraid of walking down ridge street after dark
The author is a white, guilt-ridden, anti-gun liberal who thinks she knows what is best for the blacks in DC. Talk about racism! Ms. Mencimer, I'll join with Reg who is black and from DC. I would much rather have him armed and by my side than to have you near me - and I am white.
"Racist origins of the 2nd Amendment." ?????
Give me a break!
Actually, the horrible irony here is that it is actually GUN CONTROL that has its origins in racism. After the Civil War, freed blacks were often prohibited guns because retaliation against white landowners was a big fear, plus it "kept them in their place," in a time when there was no place for them as slaves.
One locality prohibited blacks from owning any handguns except for Colt's Revolvers. Sounds OK. But Colt's guns were very expensive and even the Union Government had ceased purchasing Colts in 1863 after finding a less expensive (and some said better quality) alternative. Do you think freed blacks had money for the most expensive revolver on the market????
Ms. Mencimer, get your histor right.
Among the very first Jim Crow laws passed were ones barring freed black men from possessing arms.
The Klan can't have their victims shooting back at them now can they?
Go read the book 'Negroes With Guns' written about the life of Robert Williams. A black WW2 veteran, Mr Williams formed a NRA chapter in his town to purchase arms for his community to defend against KKK attacks.
So Robert Williams and other blacks exercising THEIR 2nd Amendment rights to obtain firearms to repel KKK attacks is racist?? This essay is revisionist history garbage.
Leave it to a brainwashed, uneducated moron to try and twist history to suit her communist agenda. As the others posters had stated, gun control laws were put in place to keep the black people down. Black people have every right to own guns as everybody else and claiming otherwise is racist. This writer couldn't have written a stupider article. What a idiot!
quote: "... brainwashed, uneducated moron ..."
I do not understand why people have to resort to namecalling simply because some of you disagree on statements made in this thread.
Proper Internet etiquette dictates you have lost the debate once you resort to namecalling.
Gun Control = Racism and then Genocide.
The proof is that EVERY NATION that has instituted gun control has done it to disarm people OTHER THAN those who were in charge. They 'just happened to be' members of one tribe or another that did not like the tribe that they disarmed.
The proof is Germany in 1938, Cambodia in the 70's, the Soviet Union, Communist China.
Anyone who does not understand that is blinded by their own ideology.
Just think about this, the Government that can take our guns can take a lot more than that when they decide they need to 'for our own good'.
I can't understand why some people just don't get it? It's not a Black or White issue,it's not even
a gun issue. Its a GOD GIVEN RIGHT ISSUE!
People who choose to harm someone will find the means to do so, Even if you could ban all guns, there will still be violent crimes,the law
breakers,or assulters will simply find other means
to harm someone. STOP BLAMING GUNS, they are objects that a PERSON controls not the other way around.
Just one more thing.
The United States is supposed to be a FREE Country. Freedom means that you can own what ever inanimate objects that are available for purchase, as long as no one else gets hurt by that ownership. That means GUNS as well as fast cars, alcohol and other objects, as long as they are not misused.
Anyone who wants to restrict what objects you can own is anti-freedom.
Richard: The US... a free country? Where have you been? That's just propaganda.
ATTN: The future is pointing towards gun prohibition. While people are worried about stricked, new gun control laws, the point is that owning guns is our right. We need to focus on preserving the second amendment entirely not help the politicians bend it. The more we let them bend it, the weaker it becomes. When the U.S. starts the National I.D. cards and solves the immigration problem with an open border policy (North-american Union), gun control restrictions are going to seem like the solution. Stop worrying about what the media is showing you. Worry about what they are not showing you.
The future is pointing towards gun prohibition?
I beg to differ, you'll never see it in the USA, IMHO.
Only the gaurds have guns and that doesn't stop murder in prisons. All of the people in there ban together by color and all of those color groups can kill. I recall that prisoners have even killed armed gaurds. This means that guns are not the only option for criminals nor the best protection to gaurds. If they take away our 2nd amen. right, we will not be rid of crime nor defenseless. We should prohibit banks and start bartering again. Atleast until the bankers and worthless politicians die of starvation.
The author of the essay should be embarassed with herself. Shameful.
You didn't throw the race card sweetie - you threw the whole deck! The reason the Carl Rowan incident was so publicized was the utter hypocrisy of a strident gun banner who just happened to have a gun. It was a case of "you can't do it but I can." That's up there with Diane Feinstein - a gun hater with a concealed carry permit
If you're going to bring race into this issue, you have to ask all the questions.
Of the 137 African Americans murdered by handguns in DC, how many were a result of black on black crimes?
If this is a racial issue, that is something I would like to know.
My favorite Archie Bunker quote:
-"Did you know that 65% of the people murdered in the last 10 years were killed by handguns?"
--"Would it make you feel any better little girl, if they was pushed out windows?"
This has got to be the most ignorant article I've ever seen from the anti-2A side. Not meaning stupid, just ignorant. Uninformed. I would've thought this was something from IMAO . . . news so nutty you'd think it's real. A parody. A joke. Anything but real journalism.
Logic is totally absent. Which is SOP for the liberal, anti-2A moonbat.
Think, Ms Mencimer. DC is the most gun-restrictive area of the U.S. Yet it is the murder capital of the nation. Every one of those 136 murders were committed by people who broke gun laws already in place. Many were crimes committed against innocent, law-abiding citizens who had their God-given rights taken from them by the state and left defenseless. Another illegal act. Arming those law-abiding citizens who wish to be armed (not everyone) is not going to cause "wild west style shoot-outs" in the streets of DC. It hasn't anywhere else it's been tried and it won't there.
All those gun control laws do is make some lazy politician look busy. Nothing else. Look it up!
I have to agree with so many of the previous comments; an ignorant attempt to rewrite history.
DC is NOT the murder capital of the US... it is irritating that fact gets repeated so often... according to these 2006 stats, it is actually in 6th place behind places like detroit, baltimore, and oakland...
I live in New York and as most people know you can not have a pistol without a permit. It is impossible to get a permit. So what did I do. I went and bought an semi automatic AR-15 which is ten times more dangerous than a pistol.
I am a law-abidding citizen. I keep it locked up. Criminals will get guns either way.
Ramble of statistics, but one statistic will be constant. BIG CITIES have more murders. bottom line. States with gun laws still have murders, if not worse rates.
The government wants to slowly take control and it starts with disarming us. First permits, then only certain guns, then less ammo, then no guns. Just like everything else. You can not smoke a drink a beer in your OWN BAR. maybe people need to wake up.
It has nothing to do with race. Yes, blacks commit more murders. Statistic. More blacks live in cities where more crim takes place. Fact. Wake up. Lets not make excuses. Get down to reality. You commit a crime, you pay. If your a black law abiding citizen I hope you have a gun because a Jew, an asian, anyone that follows the laws and has a job and a life should have the opportunity to own a gun. Statistics are for this
lets just get to the point and not rewrite history. The constitution works and is our right!
"DC is NOT the murder capital of the US... it is irritating that fact gets repeated so often..."
The point Mr. Factoid is that Washington DC did, for many years in the early 1990's, earn the dubious title of murder capitol. The statistics you cite, for 2006, was the most favorable year for such a statistic in quite a while.
I noticed you also failed to cite that Washington DC has the highest number of police officers per capita in the country, more gun control laws than any other place in the US and that you failed to cite the fact that WDC murder rates increased again in 2007. So what was your point?
This is a laughable, absurd, and completely irrelevent essay. It's about time we throw away the race card. The essay's stated reasons for gun ownership two hundred years ago have nothing at all to do with reasons for gun ownership today. What matters is that we are a free society TODAY. Anyone of any race or gender can purchase a firearm today without prejudice.
What an uninformed piece of elitist drivel. But thats the beauty of the United States Constitution, you can say anything you want no matter how stupid. What Stephanie Mencimer can't get though head is that the 2nd Amendment insures her right to free speech. Also what she don't or won't bring up is that fact that when people are disarmed they are subject to genocide by their government. Every state sponsored mass murder of the twentieth century began with gun prohibition.
BTW-IMO the woman who wrote this essay has a serious case of cranium-rectal inversion.
Amusing article, followed by a slew of insightful responses. The basic facts are, we live in a society that is violent. Violent parents producing violent children. One may take the position that as long as violence is enacted on other violent persons it is an acceptable action for society. I'm remined of a quote by John Dunn
"The death of any man diminishes me, for we are all part of mankind". I for one want the option to defend myself in the real time, rather than depend upon a distant police presence.
All gun control laws began as a means of keeping black people disarmed. Whites could not believe at the time, that those laws would ever apply to them.
I am a 41 yr old white, middle class male. I have never been convicted of a felony. I have a concealed carry permit. I carry a pistol, and I know how to use it. If any of you anti gun people are attacked in my presence I will protect you. So please quit raping me
Wow! Let's move on. No one I know has owned slaves. No one I know ever was a slave. My family owned slaves in Missouri in the 19th Century. I have never owned them myself. So I quess my ancestors owe some other people's ancestors an appology.
The racism will never stop if we as a county learn to move on.
You, good lady, are a total idiot.
When you quote research done by a professor named "Bogus," you should check to make sure the story you are quoting is not sarcasm.
Mr. Factoid quote from above: "DC is NOT the murder capital of the US... it is irritating that fact gets repeated so often..."
Mr. Factoid needs to check the facts.
Of 15 years that the ban has been in
place, the District has ranked #1 or #2 in murders except in four of those years it was #4.
See Amicus No. 07-290 to the Supreme Court by criminologists.


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VANCOUVER — Marine officials hope an analysis of tissue samples in coming days by labs in the U.S. and Canada will solve the mystery of why a bloodied and battered young female killer whale washed up on a beach in Washington State in February.
For weeks there has been speculation that naval military exercises in either Canadian or U.S. waters may have been responsible for the endangered whale's death, but officials are urging the public not to jump to conclusions.
"In an investigation, you don't try to eliminate anything or focus on anything too early. Let the evidence lead you," said Brian Gorman, a spokesman for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Its law enforcement branch launched an investigation about three weeks ago.
The carcass of the three-year-old orca, known among marine scientists as L112, washed up on the shores of Long Beach, along Washington's southern coast, on Feb. 11. It showed obvious signs of trauma.
But whether the whale suffered those injuries before or after it died is still under investigation, Gorman said.
Some of the dead whale's tissue has been sent to Oregon State University for analysis and investigators hope to begin getting results of that analysis in two or three weeks, he said.
Stephen Raverty, a veterinary pathologist with B.C.'s ministry of agriculture and lands, confirmed via email Monday that he will be travelling to Oregon soon to examine some of those samples. Some samples are also being sent to his lab in Abbotsford, B.C.
Some in the scientific community, however, say the evidence is clear that the injuries preceded death.
"This animal was the victim of an explosive type trauma — huge pressure trauma," said Ken Balcomb, a senior scientist with the Center for Whale Research in Friday Harbor, Wash. Balcomb is convinced that a military exercise — either on the American or Canadian side of the border — is likely to blame.
"To me they've assassinated a very prominent individual."
Seattle oceanographer Scott Veirs, president of Beam Reach Marine Science and Sustainability School, said he believes the most likely cause of death was "acoustic trauma" from a military detonation.
Veirs said computer monitoring devices picked up several "explosive-like" sounds in Haro Strait between Victoria and Washington's San Juan Islands on Feb. 6.
However, Jessie Huggins, stranding co-ordinator for Cascadia Research Collective — a non-profit group assisting in the investigation — was a little more circumspect about the possible cause of death.
The whale clearly suffered a "traumatic event," she said, but the injuries it suffered could have been the result of a number of scenarios, such as an attack from another whale, oil drilling or blast trauma from a military source.
Canadian military officials previously have released a statement confirming that HMCS Ottawa was performing training exercises in the Straits of Juan de Fuca on Feb. 6 and that those exercises included a period of sonar use and "two small underwater charges" as part of an anti-submarine warfare exercise.
The statement went on to say that the Royal Canadian Navy requires all vessels to follow a Marine Mammal Mitigation Policy when using sonar and detonating charges, "which includes (but is not limited to) a visual surveillance of the area by watch officers and lookouts, monitoring of passive systems as a means to detect marine mammals as well as the use of a mitigation zone which will cease operations if marine mammals come within a certain range."
HMCS Ottawa followed the policy during its exercises, the statement said.
On Monday, a military spokeswoman also forwarded a letter to the editor written recently by Rear Admiral Nigel Greenwood, the commander of Maritime Forces Pacific, stating that no live torpedoes or bombs are used in Juan de Fuca Strait.
"HMCS Victoria did fire inert test torpedoes at the Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges near Nanoose several weeks after the whale was found. These exercise torpedoes carry no explosives," Greenwood wrote.
"The navy needs to train realistically to ensure the safety of sailors and the effectiveness of our ships. We continue to work in concert with navies from around the world and the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans, as well as Environment Canada, to ensure our policies and procedures are up to date, and to mitigate the potential impact of operations on marine life."
The U.S. navy similarly has to follow a set of federal rules designed to minimize the effect on wildlife anytime it wants to conduct sonar or detonation exercises.
One reason why scientists have taken a keen interest in this whale's death is that it belongs to a sub-population of killer whales — known as the Southern Residents — that have been designated as an endangered species.
Known to come into the Puget Sound area during the spring and summer months, there are currently about 86 of them in existence, Gorman said.
"There is deep concern that we really need to afford as much protection for this population as we can," he said.


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text: Eight recycled shipping containers have been converted into a new pop-up branch of London's popular Mexican eatery, Wahaca, by the London-based practice Softroom Architects. The brightly-coloured, riverfront structure was erected on Southbank, right in front of the contrastingly monolithic Queen Elizabeth Hall, to coincide with the Southbank Centre's summer-long Festival of the World. Boasting a dining area spacious enough to accommodate 130 guests, the Wahaca Southbank Experiment will remain open until at least January 2014. (more…)


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Univ. Rochester: What is a good GMAT score to get into the Simon Graduate School of Business at the University of Rochester?
Simon Graduate School of Business – University of Rochester "Simon is a place to stand up and stand out—a place that will leave an impression on you for the rest of your life." Quick facts: Location: Rochester, NY Size: 293 … Continue reading
Univ. Illinois: What is a good GMAT score to get into the College of Business at the University of Illinois?
College of Business at the University of Illinois "Why Illinois? Because our MBA program offers not only what you need, but also what you want." Quick facts: Location: Champaign, Illinois Size: 226 enrolled Average age of new entrants: 27 Tuition: … Continue reading
Boston College: What is a good GMAT score to get into the Carroll School of Management at Boston College?
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USC-Davis: What is a good GMAT score to get into the University of California Davis Graduate School of Management?
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Washington Univ.: What is a good GMAT score to get into the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington?
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InDepth InterView: Cheyenne Jackson Talks New Singles, New EP, MOCKINGBIRD LANE, Liberace Biopic, 30 ROCK, LUCKY STIFF & More
Today we are talking to one of Broadway's most recent stars to make a big impression in Hollywood with his many recent TV and film appearances - from GLEE, 30 ROCK and CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM to the forthcoming HBO Liberace biopic BEHIND THE CANDELABRA as well as the new NBC series MOCKINGBIRD LANE - following his stints on the Great White Way in the lead roles of musicals such as ALL SHOOK UP, XANADU and FINIAN'S RAINBOW - the convivial and exceedingly talented triple-threat Cheyenne Jackson. He gives us an all-access pass to his new role as songwriter and pop star, crafting two pop gems - "Drive" and "Before You" - and creating accompanying music videos for them as a preview of his forthcoming EP, which will also include collaborations with Sia and more, and lets us in on this new phase of his showbiz ascent. In addition to his recording career and songwriting responsibilities, Jackson also has a number of high profile film and TV projects coming up and he gives us the 411 on his role opposite Michael Douglas in the new Steven Soderbergh HBO film BEHIND THE CANDELABRA, as well as shares his experiences filming the new Bryan Fuller-created NBC reboot of THE MUNSTERS titlEd MockINGBIRD LANE. Also, will he be returning to 30 ROCK for its final season? What about a GLEE reprise? Plus, Jackson fills us in on the newest member of his family, Brillo, as well as recollections of working on Dustin Lance Black's remarkable landmark PROP 8 live multi-media presentation, his involvement with Neil LaBute's THE HEART OF THE MATTER, his new film MUTUAL FRIENDS, participating in BARACK ON BROADWAY by duetting with SMASH star Megan Hilty and what we can expect from his appearance in the new Christopher Ashley-directed movie musical adaptation of Ahrens & Flaherty's LUCKY STIFF. All of that and much, much more!For more information on Cheyenne Jackson - as well as the singles "Drive" and "Before You" - visit his official site here.
So New And BrightPC: How are you juggling all of your many, many commitments since then? You are doing it all. CJ: Oh, man. I mean, I don't know?! [Laughs.] I guess that in life you have no choice but to just move forward constantly. You know, as soon as I decided to focus solely on the music, that was when all these acting things came my way. So, it has definitely been a challenge - I won't say struggle, though.PC: The last time we spoke was when you were about to open at Carnegie Hall and you were just starting to work in earnest with Sia on your new EP. Tell me about Sia.CJ: Oh, well, Sia is blowing up right now and no one deserves it more.PC: Her song with Flo Rida is currently in the Top Ten. CJ: I know! I am so happy for her. I can't tell you who, but I can tell you that she is about to work with some of the biggest people in the world - and nobody deserves it more. No one deserves it more.PC: Where does the song "Drive" derive from?CJ: I wrote "Drive" with my buddy Steve Aiello.PC: And "Before You"?CJ: Actually, that was also written with Stevie. PC: They have much different sounds, to say the least.CJ: They do - probably the third one is going to be a Sia joint, though; I have a great one that she and I did together that I hope will be next.PC: Do you have the songs finalized yet for the EP? Are you considering expanding the release to a full album?CJ: See, that's the thing - it changes on a day-to-day basis. You know, I got signed to a developmental publishing deal with Sony, so, not only am I writing for myself but the goal is also for me to write for other artists, as well. So, we are working towards that right now, which is really exciting. Also, I have a developmental artist deal, promoting these singles and these videos, too. So, the goal was to have it done by the end of August originally, but now there are rumblings of bigger, better things on the horizon. So, I am not married to a certain set date of when everything is going to happen or everything is going to be released yet. As far as picking songs? It's like they are all your little babies, you know? It's really hard to pick what songs will make the album - it's like, "I want that one; that's my favorite!" But, you can't be like that because you want the album to be linear and make sense as an experience. PC: A cohesiveness.CJ: Yeah. I really think that an album should take you on a journey from beginning to end. I have had a really good time so far - Michelle, my music manager, is guiding me so wonderfully. I have lots of confidence that once we decide what songs are going to be on what that it will all make a lot of sense and really work out. PC: It's not unusual for songwriters to create upwards of fifty songs for an album - Jason Mraz wrote nearly eighty for his new release, apparently, to use an example. How do you approach that process?CJ: That's how it is, man. I mean, I've probably written nearly forty songs in the last year for this - you have to really find people who are going to truly tell you the truth; I am lucky that I have my husband, Monte, because he will always tell me the truth. You know, I will say, "Oh, I love this," and, he'll say, "It's not your best." [Laughs.] PC: That's hilarious. Will it be hard to part with any songs in particular that you have recently written?CJ: I can't give you any titles, but I can tell you that there are definitely songs that are my personal favorites that I then show to Sony and they say, "Gosh, that would work so well for so-and-so, but I don't see it working for you." I mean, I wrote a great country song the other day, so, it's like, "Maybe we'll shop it to another artist?" The most exciting thing about all of it for me is that I am now actually writing songs and getting paid for it - it's absolutely thrilling. PC: You have come into your own as a songwriter - and you already do so much so well.CJ: I think it's best summed up by: when I told my parents and my family - because I did this all kind of under the radar and I wanted to do it on my own time - when I told my parents that I really wanted to focus on songwriting at this point in time and just see what happens, they really just let out a collective sigh and said, "Well, of course you are! Music has always been first and foremost for you - more than acting or Broadway or anything; music was the beginning of everything." So, it really made perfect sense to them - as it does to me. PC: You recently performed "Drive" at the Lifeball and shared the bill with some great other acts - Scissor Sisters and Gloria Estefan included. What was that experience like for you?CJ: Oh, that's right; the Lifeball - that was in Vienna. PC: Your performance is on YouTube and it is spot-on, I must say.CJ: Oh, thank you! Yeah, you know, I always say, "I never do anything small," and that was for about 80,000 people watching, so I guess that was about right! [Laughs.]PC: The music video for "Drive" is stunning - so eye-popping and befitting of the song; the final third is particularly fantastic and emotionally applicable, I thought. CJ: Thank you. I knew it would be risky, I knew it would be different and I purposefully didn't put myself in the video because the song is so personal. The lyrics came to me all at the same time and I always know that when that happens it is a very special, personal thing and I really wanted people to listen to the words and to feel the emotion of where the song came from. I think that by putting myself in the video that it would become, I don't know, more about me than about the song. So, I found this wonderful animator/artist/short filmmaker from Austria - I love to really foster new talent and people that haven't really been discovered. I really liked his style, so I contacted him and I showed him the song and I said, "Would you create this for me, with me?" And I am so happy that he said yes! PC: Aren't we all!CJ: I am so happy with it. It's been kind of a slow build, though - at first, people have been like, "I love the song, but where are you?! I want to see you!" And I'm like, "Oh, I'll be in the next one - just give me a second!"PC: You want to let the song speak - and sing - for itself.CJ: Exactly. So, yeah - I am really, really glad that you like it and I am really, really happy with it. The video turned out great. PC: How have you approached singing these pop singles versus your prior vocal work onstage and elsewhere? It's a more upfront, intimate sound you achieve on these two singles, it seems - I'm sure the production factors into it all considerably, as well.CJ: Well, I've always sung in a lot of different styles - I consider myself a singer first. So, you know, on Broadway, you have to sing to the back of the house and you have to fill the space. A sound engineer told me recently, "You know, it really is a different style and technique and you have to get used to the imperfections in your voice." I remember once another engineer said to me, "I want you to get so close to the mic that I can hear what you ate for breakfast." PC: Invasive - but effective, no?CJ: It is a different muscle to use - for lack of a better term - but I am really loving it; I am loving embracing the crunch or the imperfections with the sound. Sia has helped me a lot with that, too - you know, her whole thing is, "You can sing anything as long as you sing it cool." That's what she always says. It's all about the vibe.PC: What a fascinating insight.CJ: Yeah, because when you are listening to someone on a record, you aren't seeing them, you are listening to them - and you are feeling what they are singing about. So, I didn't worry too much about what my Broadway fans would think of this sound, but I am glad they are embracing it anyway. This is really for me, though.PC: Have you gotten receptive reactions to the singles so far?CJ: Oh, yeah - absolutely. People have been very, very supportive. Remember, I did this all kind of under-the-radar and all kind of on my own because I really didn't want the pressure of, you know, "When's it coming out? What's it going to sound like? What's your sound?" I just wanted it to happen in the way that it was supposed to happen. PC: And, now, here we are with the second single. CJ: Yeah, people have been really supportive and some surprising people have been picking up on it, too. It's been a really slow, great build. Obviously, "Before You" is a more commercial single and that's going to be the one to get radio play hopefully. The video has me and Rachel Dratch in it and it is really funny and fun, so I bet that that will be the one to get the most attention of the two. But, to me, every single song is its own entity - and that's what's exciting about it all.PC: Stevie Nicks has said that you have to love your material if you plan to introduce it to the world and have them love it so that you can continue to perform it for an audience forever. Do you want to have a song catalog you can continue to sing and enjoy like that? CJ: Oh, yeah! I want to be able to sing my songs forever. I was lucky enough to sing at the recent BMI Songwriter's Hall Of Fame induction ceremony - joining all these great songwriters together - and Stevie Nicks was there, actually.PC: Wow.CJ: All the people there, their whole careers had led up to this moment - of being inducted. So, yes, I absolutely want to be known as a great songwriter and not just a great singer or great actor or whatever people know me for. I know I have it in me and every time I write it just lights a fire in me and inspires me to be better and better.PC: Who are some of your major songwriting influences? When we spoke last time we discussed Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan and some others. On these two singles, I can hear some Elton John, some Bee Gees even.CJ: Totally. It really runs the gamut - I guess those are some of my older references, but that's because my voice is more old fashioned; you know, some people liken it to Chet Baker or Harry Connick, Jr. or whoever. I think that George Michael and Freddy Mercury are probably tied as my favorite male vocalists, though - I really love them both a lot. I love Sting; I love Chris Martin from Coldplay; Elton John, of course, too. And, KD Lang has, I think, the most beautiful tone of any person ever. PC: You embrace it all.CJ: I do. I can't help but feel that, as artists, we are influenced by everything around us, so I try to listen to everything that's new and everything old, too. That's why I particularly love "Before You" - because it sounds retro, I think, but still fun and fresh and current.PC: Unquestionably. In viewing the video, I detect a bit of a ROCKY HORROR vibe - a musical you once did way back when, actually. Was that reference intentional?CJ: Somebody else said that to me, too! I never thought of that. Nick, the director, and I both have this affinity for movies from the 40s and 50s, and, also, the kitschy ADDAMS FAMILY/MUNSTERS kind of thing - which is ironic because I just did this Munsters reboot pilot called MOCKINGBIRD LANE.PC: I was going to ask: is the "Before You" video a tie-in to that or is it a sheer coincidence that they tread similar territory? CJ: I know! This was filmed months ago - way before MOCKINGBIRD LANE; which is hilarious!PC: It really is.CJ: What's really funny is that, while I was filming MOCKINGBIRD LANE, I showed the creator, Bryan Fuller, a cut of the "Before You" video and I said, "You are not going to believe this, but watch this music video that is going to come out next week." And when he saw it his mouth was just agape! PC: I bet.CJ: We filmed it at the same place where the new Tim Burton DARK SHADOWS was filmed - it is similar in tone to that, I think.PC: Definitely.CJ: You know, we wanted it to be fun and kind of kitschy and also kind of an homage to PSYCHO and that whole genre. I am so happy that Christina Cole is in it with me - a beautiful British leading lady who I was lucky enough to do a movie with last year; and, also, Rachel Dratch, who is such a bud and always, always helps me out. Rachel actually had food poisoning the day that we shot it.PC: No way! What effect did that have on the shoot?CJ: None at all, really! She would hit her mark and totally kill it and be great and then she would go and puke in a bucket. [Pause.] See kids? That's showbiz! [Laughs.]PC: She's so hilarious - another 30 ROCK alum.CJ: That's right. I adore her and she totally came through for me - again.PC: These singles are a refreshing diversion from the content of most current pop music. How do you compare your music to the current top acts that feature heavy European dance and hip-hop sounds and often nursery rhyme-level lyrics?CJ: Well, I really think there is something for everybody out there. I think that the fact that Bon Iver won the Best New Artist Grammy is a great sign that there is good songwriting being done out there and good, old fashioned melodies and stuff are really coming back. You know, there will always be a place for Katy Perry and the great bubblegum stuff and also the darker stuff, too. You know, not all of my stuff is going to be funny or fun - some of my songs are super-dark and I have a lot to say. It just so happens that the first song was "Drive" and that was wide and expansive and dark and deep, and, the next one, "Before You" is light and fun and summery. But, maybe the third and the fourth will be both be super-sad. Who knows? Each one is a beginning, a middle and an end and that's what's so infinitely exciting about this process for me.PC: Speaking of songs you have sung superbly: what can you tell me about "Giant", a song from a musical as performed on Youtube? It's quite poignant and moving.CJ: "Giant" was years ago - I did that years ago; at least five or six years ago. I think it was an homage to Matthew Shepard - I don't know, I just loved that song and I loved the melody and the style of it. PC: Were you involved with the musical it is from at any point, BOYS WILL BE BOYS?CJ: No. I didn't know it even was from a musical, actually, believe it or not. PC: What can we expect from your upcoming appearance in the film adaptation of LUCKY STIFF?CJ: Well, I play the MC - I play the French owner of this club in Monte Carlo. It was really fun to shoot - I shot it simultaneously with MOCKINGBIRD LANE, so everyone was really cool to allow me to do both.PC: You can say that again. So, you are looking forward to seeing the final film, then?CJ: Definitely. It looks great and it has a great cast - Jason Alexander, Denis Farina; Nikki M. James plays the lead girl; this amazing English chap named Dominic is the lead. It was really fun to shoot - I play a kind of different character for me, who looks crazy and French. [Laughs.]PC: That is maybe a bit of a stretch!CJ: You'll see! It has great music, too. I mean, basically, what it's about is that I'll do anything for Chris Ashley.PC: Your director on ALL SHOOK UP, your big Broadway debut.CJ: That's right - and XANADU, too.PC: Speaking of XANADU,Gene Kelly's most famous movie musical, SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, was just re-released in theaters. Are you are Kelly fan?CJ: Oh, sure - of course! Of course.PC: What were the movie musicals that had the biggest impact on you growing up? Do you remember the first one you saw?CJ: Of course - probably the same one everybody did, THE WIZARD OF OZ.PC: Do you enjoy the movie musical renaissance of the 21st century?CJ: Oh, I think it's great - just great. I mean, of course, some are better than others, but it's pretty cool that a big budget movie like LES MIZ can be made - I just saw the preview for that recently and it looks absolutely great; I had my doubts, but I was watching the Tonys and that preview came on and I saw it for the first time and just got goose-bumps everywhere.PC: It's pretty thrilling for a trailer.CJ: [Pause.] They did it, you know? They did it.PC: They might have really pulled it off - they did the impossible.CJ: Totally - that's how it looks. PC: Speaking of a property with a lot of built-in expectations, tell me about MOCKINGBIRD LANE, the new NBC MUNSTERS reboot. Firstly, what is Bryan Fuller like one-on-one?CJ: Oh, he's great - he's great. I don't know what goes on in his brain, but he loves dark and he also loves people, too - if that makes any sense. He loves dark and subversive, but he also likes the human condition and exploring that, so he really invests a lot into his characters and stories.PC: What can you tell us about the show?CJ: Well, Eddie Izzard plays Grandpa. Jerry O'Connell plays Herman Munster. PORTIA DE ROSSI plays Lily - which was fun because it meant Ellen Degeneres was always onset, and Ellen is really fun to be around. I mean, who doesn't love Ellen?PC: Have you ever appeared on Ellen's talk-show?CJ: No, I haven't - not yet. We had some great chats onset, though, I can tell you that.PC: Who do you play on the show?CJ: I play Scoutmaster Steve, who is Eddie's scoutmaster. It's a really great show - it's an hour-long and it is very dark. NBC had a lot of presence onset, so I hope that that translates to success for the show as a mid-season series.PC: Is the look of the show potentially as striking as PUSHING DAISIES? More? Less?CJ: More! It's mind-blowing! Mind-blowing. The set is truly insane.PC: So, it will not be subdued or realism-based, as some reports have suggested?CJ: Oh, no! Not at all. [Laughs.]PC: What great news! It will be pretty much all-out insanity then.CJ: Oh, yeah - every frame is just eye candy in every way. It's going to be great.PC: Wow. Fuller is doing HANNIBAL for NBC this season, too. Did you discuss that new series with him at all?CJ: Yes. He is going to be doing HANNIBAL with Hugh Dancy at the same time as MOCKINGBIRD LANE - Bryan has his fingers in many pies. PC: And so do you. What can you reveal about BEHIND THE CANDELABRA?CJ: Speaking of eye candy, right? [Laughs.]PC: Exactly! Have you seen Soderbergh's MAGIC MIKE yet?CJ: I have not yet because I have been working, but I am so happy for them - Matt Bomer is a buddy of mine; it's so great. I am so happy that that movie that cost like $5 million bucks could be that successful. But, yeah, I start this week on the Liberace movie - and, yes, right now it is called BEHIND THE CANDELABRA. It has such a great cast, too - Debbie Reynolds, Rob Lowe, Dan Aykroyd, Matt Damon; just an amazing cast.PC: That's star-studded.CJ: I know! I am so psyched - and, I have just heard such great stuff about Steven Soderbergh, so I am so excited to get the chance to work with him on something like this. PC: Had you auditioned for him before - for MAGIC MIKE, perhaps?CJ: No, no - I actually am not sure how it all happened, but all I know is that I came on his radar and he asked to see some tape and then I put myself on tape for Liberace and then right after that they cast me as the guy.PC: Who is your character?CJ: I play Jerry O'Rourke, who is Liberace's first boyfriend. It's going to be pretty amazing - I couldn't be more excited. We are going to film in Vegas and Palm Springs and LA - it's going to be a real adventure.PC: It is going to be a roughly 2-hour film for HBO, correct?CJ: Yeah - at this point.PC: Do you know if it will be expanded to a 4-hour series? It's been rumored that is being considered, ala MILDREd Pierce.CJ: No clue. It's a big story to tell, though - but, no, I don't know the answer to that. PC: Do you feel privileged to be a part of such a starry ensemble and in such an audacious and unique film?CJ: Hey, listen, I would play the busboy in a Steven Soderbergh film! [Laughs.]PC: As a kid growing up, did you have any particular affection for Liberace? There were not a lot of out entertainers during his heyday, yet he really wasn't out either. Do you have any memories of him?CJ: I have to say that, honestly, I don't. Of course, he wasn't out until the end of his career - even when he was at his most flamboyant and making $200,000 a week in Vegas, the ladies in the audience would just say, you know, "Oh, he loves his mom." People would actually believe that kind of thing then.PC: A much different time.CJ: Really. I have been doing a lot of research and I have definitely been getting into that time period and his whole world. It's fascinating. PC: Will you be sharing the screen a lot with Michael Douglas, then, given your role?CJ: Yes - we have a lot of scenes together and I am really looking forward to working with him. PC: You have another new movie coming out as well, MUTUAL FRIENDS. What can you tell us about that project?CJ: We shot MUTUAL FRIENDS last fall. It has some great New York actors in it - including Christina Cole, who plays my leading lady in the "Before You" video. It was an ultra-low-budget SAG movie - the kind that you do in a few weeks and everybody just pitches in.PC: A grassroots affair.CJ: Totally. You know, your costume is your own clothes and you are eating Subway for lunch, but you know what? It's a great script and we all had a lot of fun. With those kinds of movies you never know what kind of life they are going to have, but I really look forward to doing those kinds of things - especially when you only do one or two takes and that kind of shooting; I enjoy doing that kind of acting and stretching myself like that. PC: Do you have any other film or TV appearances coming up?CJ: Well, I do have a couple of things that are in the works that I will possibly be doing but that I haven't signed onto yet. I will say that it is important to me to do more movies - in the last year or two I have been doing a lot more movies and I am enjoying kind of peppering my career with everything; concerts, television, movies, and, when I get the chance to fit it in again, Broadway. All of that is really taking second place to songwriting right now, though - that is my sole focus. So, I'm sure I'll do a couple more movies this year besides the one I am getting ready to do right now for HBO.PC: Will your involvement with Neil LaBute's THE HEART OF THE MATTER go on?CJ: That was a reading of a brand new play, so we don't know what is happening with that - that was a first reading, I think. PC: Would you like to continue with it if given the chance?CJ: I don't know what the deal with it is, but I can tell you that I had a great time doing it - Krysten Ritter from DON'T TRUST THE B IN APARTMENT 23 co-starred in it with me, so that was a lot of fun to work with her. So, who knows?PC: Will there be a future for Dustin Lance Black's PROP 8, do you think - even with an all-star cast on Broadway for a limited run, perhaps?CJ: I don't know what kind of life that piece will have on Broadway and in that respect, but there is no question that they will have lots and lots of community theaters interested in it and productions of it done all across the country. I think that it's so important - that people know what happened; that they know what is in those transcripts. PC: It's a real part of American history.CJ: It is. It is - and it was sealed off from the public.PC: What was the feeling of being a part of BARACK ON BROADWAY?CJ: Oh, wow - so fun; so fun.PC: What did you perform?CJ: Megan Hilty from SMASH and I performed a marriage medley. PC: How apt. She is so talented and sweet - she recently did this column.CJ: Oh, yeah - Megan is a dear. I know her from Broadway, of course, and we have mutual friends - she's just luscious and wonderful.PC: What was the best moment? It was a truly momentous night, I've heard.CJ: Well, my favorite part of the night was that they told us we would get a picture with the president afterwards. So, of course, we were all really excited - it didn't matter who you were; Patti LuPone, Mandy Patinkin; we were all like little kids backstage. But, the warm-up act for us - the opening act - was actually President Clinton.PC: No way!CJ: Yeah - he said to us, [Bill Clinton Voice.] "I've never been the opening act before!" And, so, it was really amazing because none of us knew that the picture we were going to be getting was really a twofer; we got the chance to stand in between Barack Obama and President Clinton. PC: Unreal.CJ: Yeah - really. It was unbelievable. I showed my mom and she just couldn't believe it!PC: Amazing. CJ:: It really was.PC: Moving from film back to TV: will you be coming back to GLEE in Season Four?CJ: I don't know. Ryan Murphy is the only one who knows - I am assuming not because Jonathan Groff took over as the coach of Vocal Adrenaline. But, hey, I had a great time and I really loved my little arc on that and I wish them the best on the new season. PC: When Jane Krakowski recently did this column she told a fabulous story about how quickly you had to learn your opening number for the most recent 30 ROCK live show. Can you recount that for us?CJ: Yeah - because it was the draft, I got my lyrics literally like twenty seconds before we went live on the West Coast. PC: And you nailed it.CJ: It was very nerve-wracking and I was a little tense, but, you know, you've just got to step up and do it, you know? So, I did.PC: Will you be back for the final season?CJ: I hope so. You know, they are only doing half a season - they are doing twelve episodes - so, it would be nice if Tina let Danny have a swan song of some kind, I think; even if he can just walk across the stage and say, "Hey!" [Laughs.]
PC: Lastly: is it true there is a new addition to your family?CJ: Yes, we just got a new dog - his name is Brillo; because he looks like a Brillo pad. We weren't planning on getting a dog anytime soon, but Bernadette Peters sent me a picture of him - he had been abandoned a few times - and I just couldn't say no. He looks like Tramp from LADY & THE TRAMP and he's a dear.PC: What about you and Monte having a child sometime soon now that you have mastered dog parenting and you have made your marriage official?CJ: Well, that's actually a conversation we've had over the last six or seven years and we are definitely not done with the conversation. I think that it will probably happen - it will probably happen when the time is right, for sure.PC: All the best luck with all of your fantastic projects, Cheyenne. We all can't wait for what's next! CJ: Thank you so much, Pat. This was great. Bye bye.
Photo Credit: Walter McBride / Retna Ltd.


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A Well-Guarded Secret Revealed
The stock market is uncertain. Often net losses exceed net gains. So-called traditional safe investments—CDs, treasury bonds, municipal bonds and the like—offer only paltry returns.
Is there an investment that can match the potential high returns of successful stock market investors, yet has the prime characteristic (no-risk) of traditional safe investments? Yes!
Featured Content
What is the investment? Life settlements. Often called Transferable Insurance Policy or TIP(s). The best way to understand how a TIP (TIPs is plural) works is by an example.
EXAMPLE: Joe, 68 years old, owns a life insurance policy with a $500,000 death benefit and a $60,000 cash surrender value (CSV). Joe would like to stop paying premiums. Of course, he can cancel the policy and get the $60,000 CSV from the insurance company.
An investor (really a group of investors) buys Joe's policy for $150,000… paid in cash to Joe immediately. The investors now own the policy. The investors will receive the $500,000 death benefit when Joe dies.
Let's say you are one of the investors. You invest $100,000. You will wind up with a diversified portfolio of TIPs. One of the TIPs will be a fractional interest in Joe's $500,000 policy, say 3% or $15,000.
This TIP (Joe's) will pay you exactly $15,000 (includes your principal—amount invested—and profit) when Joe dies. The insurance companies love people like Joe when they terminate their policies. And why not. The insurance company pays a mere $60,000 for the CSV and is off the hook for a $500,000 death benefit.
Terminated policies are highly profitable for insurance companies. Of course, they want to keep the entire life settlement industry a secret. Why? Because investors—like you—now have found a simple and easy way to help the Joes of the world and at the same time stand tall in the profit shoes of the insurance companies. Neat!
As a TIP investor, you can enjoy: an average rate of return of 16.28% per year; not worrying about the market being volatile or whether it goes up or down; the guaranteed return of your principal, as well as your profit and best of all, keep 100% of the profit because there are no fees or costs when you buy a TIP.
There are only two simple rules: 1) The tax on your profit is deferred until you actually receive your principal and profit; 2) Your profit is taxed as ordinary income.
Ask your professional advisor to check out senior settlements for your own personal investments and qualified plan funds.
If you want to make a killing on your investments, this is not for you. But if a set rate of return, with no market risk is of interest to you, fax me (847-674-5299) your name, address, phone numbers and estimated amount to invest (minimum is $50,000).


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text:
A collection of scholarly works about individual liberty and free markets. A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.
1906 - 1984
Historical Period:
The 20th Century and Beyond
Percy Greaves (1906-1984) was an economists, journalist, and author who wrote several works on economics and history and lectured at the Foundation for Economic Education. He was a long-time associate and personal friend of Ludwig von Mises.


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You're standing at the gas pump. There are multiple fuel types available – a low-cost type that's marked with an 87 octane rating that also has 10% ethanol, a medium priced gas that's 87 but more expensive than the ethanol gas, and a premium fuel that has a 91 octane rating. (Note that you may or may not have the ethanol gas in your area, but it's certainly prevalent here in Iowa.)
Which is going to get you the most miles for your dollar? I certainly want to be able to make a quick decision at the pump that will maximize my miles per dollar that I get from the gas that I purchase.
There are a few simple things you can do to figure out which gas you should buy.
First, check out your car's manual. Every car manual gives a recommendation for the minimum octane to use when fueling up the car. You should match that number, but it doesn't really help to exceed that number.
The vast majority of cars sold today (I won't say "all," but it's pretty close) are optimized to run on 87 octane fuel. If your manual suggests higher octane fuel, that's what you should buy, of course, but you don't gain any mileage benefit from buying higher octane fuel than what's recommended in your manual.
That's the general recommendation offered by the FTC on fuel efficiency, anyway, and it matches my own experience.
However, there is one situation where you should exceed what your manual is telling you: if your engine emits a regular "pinging" or "knocking" sound, it might be due to insufficient fuel octane. Of course, in that situation, I'd check with a mechanic before anything else.
So, we've eliminated the expensive fuel with the 91 octane rating. What about the other two?
The next step is to compare the prices of ethanol-added fuel and non-ethanol fuel. You'll need to know the prices to figure out which is the best buy – but it's not always the cheapest one.
The Department of Energy suggests that 10% ethanol blend fuels trim about 4% off of the gas mileage of the automobile. My experience actually pushes that percentage higher – according to my own measurements in our automobiles, doing a mix of city, interstate, and highway driving, 10% ethanol blend fuel drops gas mileage by 7-8%. Let's say it's 7.5% for the purposes of calculating this.
What I do is I take out my calculator on my phone and multiply the non-ethanol fuel cost by 0.925 (which is simply 1 minus 0.075 – the 7.5% indicated above) and see what the resulting number is. If that number is lower than the cost of the ethanol fuel, I buy the non-ethanol fuel. If the ethanol fuel is still cheaper, I buy the ethanol fuel.
Over time, you begin to have a pretty good sense for this, so I rarely have to actually calculate which is cheaper. It does seem to vary significantly from station to station – here in Iowa, stations typically advertise their ethanol fuel prices on their sign but often don't mention the non-ethanol price.
Overall, I tend to buy the ethanol-added fuel because it's still often cheaper per gallon, even after calculating the reduced efficiency. There are some stations and some times of the year when the non-ethanol gas is low enough that it's worthwhile, however. Also, I've noticed in other states that the difference in prices makes the non-ethanol fuel a consistent bargain.
It's a simple thing, but if you're able to figure this out in a few seconds at the pump, you can easily reduce your fuel cost per mile on your vehicle, which can really add up over time.


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Two separate studies released Friday show that asset managers and advisors are increasingly turning to alternative investments to help clients boost returns while supporting the growth of assets under management.
Boston-based Cerulli says its annual examination of the retail alternatives and ETF marketplaces found that asset managers expect alternative mutual funds to comprise nearly 10% of all mutual funds within five years. Plus, this percentage should jump to more than 15% in 10 years.
In a separate study conducted by Practical Perspectives, a Boston-based consulting and research firm, financial advisors indicated that they expect continued growth in their use of alternatives and nontraditional investments. Most advisors currently allocate up to 15% of a typical client portfolio to these products, which is likely to increase as advisors grow more familiar with their benefits and uses, the report concludes.
"Interestingly, the need to differentiate in a competitive marketplace was the leading driver in 2011, and is considered much less of a driver in today's market," said Alec Papazian, lead author of the Cerulli report, in a press release. "We attribute this to the fact that so many managers now offer these strategies. 2011 was a record year for alternative mutual fund product development with 95 new funds being launched."
Cerulli's latest research shows that the leading driver behind asset managers' interest in alternatives—nearly 90% of advisors cite it versus fewer than 75% last year—is tied to investors' need to optimize the risk-adjusted performance of their portfolios. Another significant driver, for 72% of advisors surveyed in 2012 versus 60% in 2011, is managers' expectations regarding future capital-markets returns.
The Practical Perspectives study finds that financial advisors can be divided into three core segments based on the likelihood of using alternatives and nontraditional investments for clients: heavily engaged, 30%; moderately engaged, 34%; and minimally engaged, 36%.
The study also concludes that most advisors, 60%, are allocating 10% or less to these products, though advisor use of alternatives and nontraditional strategies has increased notably in the past two years.
"Alternatives and nontraditional investments are increasingly important to advisors in serving retail clients," said Howard Schneider, president of Practical Perspectives and a co-author of the report, in a press release. "This growth has been spurred by the challenging capital markets and the expanded availability of these strategies in mutual fund and ETF formats."
The firm's research emphasizes that the desire to enhance diversification and lower portfolio volatility and risk are the main factors driving increased use of alternatives and nontraditional investments. Plus, most advisors use mutual funds or ETFs as the main vehicle for investing in alternative products.
The most important factors in selecting alternatives and nontraditional investments are the expertise of the investment manager and the low correlation relative to more traditional investments.
Education Counts
"The audience for alternatives and nontraditional investments is definitely expanding," noted Richard Gauger of Practical Perspectives, a co-author, in a statement. "Yet many advisors still lack familiarity with these strategies."
According to Gauger, advisor satisfaction is lagging "relative to the importance they place on factors such as wholesaler support, product research and due diligence."
There is a direct correlation between satisfaction with support and advisor use of these strategies, he adds, so "product providers and platforms should be focusing resources more effectively on key audiences."
For its part, Cerulli says its research shows that distribution access and advisor knowledge are the largest challenges facing alternative managers.
Still, many broker-dealers, in particular the wirehouses, appear very supportive of increasing the use of alternatives among their advisors. On average, wirehouses see allocations at only 4% among their advisor forces but would like this to increase to greater than 15%.
"Firms that are providing superior educational materials may find that this provides an advantage within the wirehouses, which are looking for help in increasing advisor adoption," said Matthew Pickering, a co-author of the recent research, in a statement.
"Most advisors report that asset allocation education on how to incorporate alternatives into portfolios is the most helpful method to increase their adoption of these products. Firms that have a thoughtful approach to educating advisors will see increased flows," Pickering added.
Read more on AdvisorOne:
Top 5 Reasons to Invest in Alternative Assets
Advisors Reject Buy and Hold, 60/40 Stock-Bond Allocations


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After missing out on the BCS, Big 12 co-champion Oklahoma will instead take on Johnny Football and former conference rival Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl in Arlington, Texas.
The 12th-ranked Sooners (10-2) had their chances of an at-large BCS bid extinguished Sunday when Mid-American Conference champion Northern Illinois moved up far enough to claim an automatic bid.
Instead, they'll take on Heisman Trophy contender Johnny Manziel and the 10th-ranked Aggies, who had been divisional rivals and yearly opponents for the past 16 seasons before A&M left for the Southeastern Conference. The game will be played Jan. 4 at Dallas Cowboys Stadium.
``We hit a home run today,'' Cotton Bowl chairman Tommy Bain said. ``When our team selection committee met for the first time a few weeks ago, we circled this matchup as the one we most wanted, and the cards fell in our favor today.''
The Sooners split the Big 12 title with Kansas State, but the Wildcats got the league's automatic bid because they won the head-to-head matchup in Norman, Okla., in September.
At 11th in Sunday's BCS standings, Oklahoma was the highest-ranked eligible team for an at-large bid that got left out of the field. There were four SEC teams stacked in the standings ahead of them, but none - including A&M - could have been picked because Alabama and Florida were already representing the conference.
With Northern Illinois moving up to 15th - finishing in the top 16 and ahead of all Big Ten and Big East schools to qualify - Oklahoma became available to the Cotton Bowl.
It's the Sooners' first time playing in the game since beating Arkansas 10-3 in the 2002 game. A&M lost to LSU 41-24 in the 2011 game, two seasons ago.
``The Cotton Bowl has long been a marquee postseason destination, and we're excited about being selected to play there a second time,'' coach Bob Stoops said. ``Cowboys Stadium is a great venue, and I know Sooner fans will be excited to make the trip to support us.''
Bain pointed out that Manziel could potentially be the first Heisman Trophy winner to play in the Cotton Bowl in 14 years - Texas' Ricky Williams in 1999 is the most recent to do so - and that both programs are finishing strong seasons. But that's not all.
``To me, the most exciting aspect of this game is the special friendship that exists between the two head coaches. Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin spent five seasons on the OU coaching staff under Bob Stoops,'' Bain said. ``It's going to be fun getting them back together at this year's Classic.''
Sumlin was on Stoops' staff from 2003-07, leaving to become Houston's head coach after being a co-offensive coordinator at the end of his time with the Sooners. He's in his first season at Texas A&M and this will be his first chance to coach against his former boss.
``Our football team is excited to play another game against a storied program such as Oklahoma. We have been led all year by a great group of seniors and to be rewarded with a great experience like the Cotton Bowl is something they will cherish,'' Sumlin said.
``Plenty of their family and friends will be able to watch them play as well and the hospitality is second to none.''
Oklahoma will be trying to match a school record with a fourth straight bowl win. The teams split their last two meetings as Big 12 rivals, each winning at home.