text:
|OpenBSD General Other questions regarding OpenBSD which do not fit in any of the categories below.
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
ZTE MF626 USB modem support in umodem
Hare Kṛṣṇa.
This system is connected to the internet by a ZTE USB MF626 CDMA modem, which with the Microsoft Windows 7 driver and supporting connection management software works nicely on Microsoft Windows 7. I would like to connect this system while running OpenBSD.
I noted that there is some support for this device on some Linuxes, including Gentoo. Ubuntu, Debian and Slackware. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Slackware is the most UNIX-like of the Linuxes.
I am offering a request for direction in porting, with permission, a Slackware or other suitable MF626 USB modem driver into the umodem driver of OpenBSD. I have not written any C for some time and was looking forward to writing some nice ANSI C, perhaps with some assembly incorporated therin.
I will be contacting ZTE, who have an internet forum for discussion of such subjects as Linux driver support (and would accommodate presumably OpenBSD driver support). It is likely they would like such support as from an operating system as noble and sound as the OpenBSD operating system is.
I have read the documentation on umodem, ucom, ugen and usb (the man pages) but could not see from what my system identifies at boot that the modem is actually being recognised by the USB subsystem, or a way to communicate with it.
Below are the relevent USB dmesg strings from this system (an OpenBSD 4.6 MP system straight off the CD with no CVSes (for the implicit reason that this message has been written) :
umass1 at uhub0 port 4 configuration 1 interface 2 "ZTE, Incorporated ZTE CDMA Technologies MSM" rev 2.00/0.00
scbus2 at umass1: 2 targets, initiator 0 addr 3
sd1 at scbus2 targ 1 lun0:<ZTE, MMC Storage, 2.31> SCSI2 0/direct removeable
sd1: drive offline
My understanding is that the umass device has attached to it a SCSI device with 2 targets, one of which is recognised by the usb, or SCSI subsystem, as a SCSI2 mass storage device. The modem, which I presume is on the second target, is not detected.
I will need some help understanding how the usb subsystem will need to attach the second target to the SCSI bus driver as well, or if the umodem driver can talk to this device directly (I think the former is more likely).
I will read the source code of the umodem driver for some of the other USB modems it supports, for some of the understanding I'll need to perform a port or adaptation. Possibly, ZTE will supply me with the necessary data to write support for the umodem driver by understanding how the others are implemented and following suit.
OpenBSD has umsm(4) and ubsa(4), they are used by several cellular modems.. most of which have quirks where they appear as CD-ROM devices (..with a Windows driver).
From the output you've show, it appears to be detecting the MMC slot on the device.. so you can read from memory cards.
Perhaps this device has a "mode select" functionality that will allow you to switch it into behaving like modem?
The OpenBSD project isn't likely to accept GPL licenced code, so porting anything over from Linux wouldn't be the best decision.
Here is a mailing list thread about your specific modem, maybe it's enough information to get it working.
Before you go any further I would recommend to try the latest snapshot.
And please search the misc mailing archive for ZTE-MF626. You will find two threads originated by Sergio Andrés Gómez del Real around 10/12/2009 (I think gmail used US dates, so that would be in October 2009)
You don't need to be a genius to debug a pf.conf firewall ruleset, you just need the guts to run tcpdump
scbus targets and connecting umodem thereto
Hare Krsna.
In the dmesg, it is reported that the umass driver attaches a scsi device:
scbus2 at umass1: 2 targets, initiator 0 addr 3
I would like to know if anyone has considered the possibility that the other target of the scbus device is the modem proper. Can anyone factually describe this observations truths/absence of understanding?
If there is the possibility to connect the modem device to the scbus a mature interface awaits connection eg., (umodem -> scbus)
Last edited by J65nko; 26th January 2010 at 11:26 PM. Reason: Speling mistakes corrected as requested by OP
Have you read those mailing list messages? Have you tried the latest snapshot?
You don't need to be a genius to debug a pf.conf firewall ruleset, you just need the guts to run tcpdump
Yesterday's snapshot
Yes sir, I did try a new snapshot, from two days ago, but the krenel still does not recognise the device except as a removable file system.
Thankyou for the suggestion.
I also read the mail list posts regarding the ZTE and they were interesting.
Hare Krsna.
Also, incidentally, when I was upgrading with the new snapshot the following error occurred during the extraction of base46.tgz :
The SHA256 5a921fc4c9b9f85f2d9de65efie185acc85885a5df9b24f767 3c3dd12ec62b1
did not match what this bsd.rd expected.
Is this information suggesting the mirror has been compromised, or is there another reason for this message, such as, for example, the bsd.rd used to for the bootable file system on the iso is the original 4.6 bsd.rd?
As I posted earlier on, a sd(4) device shows up.. indicating it's just in a sort of passthrough mode for the MMC slot (..memory stick).
Look on your device for any ability to switch modes, posting the complete dmesg output would also be kind.. just so we're positive you're not truncating the output.
You may end up having to modify one of the drivers attach functions.. so that something other than umass will attach.
I still say there may be a mode selection feature on the device itself, something user configurable.. does it have a screen or any sort of buttons?
ZTE MF626 info, and dmesg
The ZTE MF63=26 does not have a screen, but an LED mode indicator.
Below is the dmesg from this system, snapshot 26/01/2010 :
OpenBSD 4.6-current (GENERIC.MP) #69: Wed Jan 20 06:49:43 MST 2010
real mem = 2145255424 (2045MB)
avail mem = 2078789632 (1982MB)
mainbus0 at root
bios0 at mainbus0: SMBIOS rev. 2.4 @ 0xf0100 (55 entries)
bios0: vendor Award Software International, Inc. version "F2" date 04/30/2009
bios0: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd. GA-MA790GP-UD4H
acpi0 at bios0: rev 0
acpi0: tables DSDT FACP SSDT HPET MCFG TAMG APIC
acpi0: wakeup devices USB0(S3) USB1(S3) USB2(S3) USB3(S3) USB4(S3) USB5(S3) USB6(S3) SBAZ(S4) P2P_(S5) PCE2(S4) PCE3(S4) PCE4(S4) PCE5(S4) PCE6(S4) PCE7(S4) PCE9(S4) PCEA(S4) PCEB(S4) PCEC(S4) PS2M(S5) PS2K(S5) PCI0(S5)
acpitimer0 at acpi0: 3579545 Hz, 32 bits
acpihpet0 at acpi0: 14318180 Hz
acpimadt0 at acpi0 addr 0xfee00000: PC-AT compat
cpu0 at mainbus0: apid 0 (boot processor)
cpu0: AMD Phenom(tm) 9950 Quad-Core Processor, 2612.38 MHz
cpu0: FPU,VME,DE,PSE,TSC,MSR,PAE,MCE,CX8,APIC,SEP,MTRR,P GE,MCA,CMOV,PAT,PSE36,CFLUSH,MMX,FXSR,SSE,SSE2,HTT ,SSE3,MWAIT,CX16,NXE,MMXX,FFXSR,LONG,3DNOW2,3DNOW
cpu0: 64KB 64b/line 2-way I-cache, 64KB 64b/line 2-way D-cache, 512KB 64b/line 16-way L2 cache
cpu0: ITLB 32 4KB entries fully associative, 16 4MB entries fully associative
cpu0: DTLB 48 4KB entries fully associative, 48 4MB entries fully associative
cpu0: apic clock running at 200MHz
cpu1 at mainbus0: apid 1 (application processor)
cpu1: AMD Phenom(tm) 9950 Quad-Core Processor, 2611.91 MHz
cpu1: FPU,VME,DE,PSE,TSC,MSR,PAE,MCE,CX8,APIC,SEP,MTRR,P GE,MCA,CMOV,PAT,PSE36,CFLUSH,MMX,FXSR,SSE,SSE2,HTT ,SSE3,MWAIT,CX16,NXE,MMXX,FFXSR,LONG,3DNOW2,3DNOW
cpu1: 64KB 64b/line 2-way I-cache, 64KB 64b/line 2-way D-cache, 512KB 64b/line 16-way L2 cache
cpu1: ITLB 32 4KB entries fully associative, 16 4MB entries fully associative
cpu1: DTLB 48 4KB entries fully associative, 48 4MB entries fully associative
cpu2 at mainbus0: apid 2 (application processor)
cpu2: AMD Phenom(tm) 9950 Quad-Core Processor, 2611.91 MHz
cpu2: FPU,VME,DE,PSE,TSC,MSR,PAE,MCE,CX8,APIC,SEP,MTRR,P GE,MCA,CMOV,PAT,PSE36,CFLUSH,MMX,FXSR,SSE,SSE2,HTT ,SSE3,MWAIT,CX16,NXE,MMXX,FFXSR,LONG,3DNOW2,3DNOW
cpu2: 64KB 64b/line 2-way I-cache, 64KB 64b/line 2-way D-cache, 512KB 64b/line 16-way L2 cache
cpu2: ITLB 32 4KB entries fully associative, 16 4MB entries fully associative
cpu2: DTLB 48 4KB entries fully associative, 48 4MB entries fully associative
cpu3 at mainbus0: apid 3 (application processor)
cpu3: AMD Phenom(tm) 9950 Quad-Core Processor, 2611.91 MHz
cpu3: FPU,VME,DE,PSE,TSC,MSR,PAE,MCE,CX8,APIC,SEP,MTRR,P GE,MCA,CMOV,PAT,PSE36,CFLUSH,MMX,FXSR,SSE,SSE2,HTT ,SSE3,MWAIT,CX16,NXE,MMXX,FFXSR,LONG,3DNOW2,3DNOW
cpu3: 64KB 64b/line 2-way I-cache, 64KB 64b/line 2-way D-cache, 512KB 64b/line 16-way L2 cache
cpu3: ITLB 32 4KB entries fully associative, 16 4MB entries fully associative
cpu3: DTLB 48 4KB entries fully associative, 48 4MB entries fully associative
ioapic0 at mainbus0: apid 2 pa 0xfec00000, version 21, 24 pins
ioapic0: misconfigured as apic 0, remapped to apid 2
acpiprt0 at acpi0: bus 0 (PCI0)
acpiprt1 at acpi0: bus 3 (P2P_)
acpiprt2 at acpi0: bus 1 (PCE2)
acpiprt3 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCE3)
acpiprt4 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCE4)
acpiprt5 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCE5)
acpiprt6 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCE6)
acpiprt7 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCE7)
acpiprt8 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCE9)
acpiprt9 at acpi0: bus 2 (PCEA)
acpiprt10 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCEB)
acpiprt11 at acpi0: bus -1 (PCEC)
acpiprt12 at acpi0: bus -1 (AGP_)
acpicpu0 at acpi0: PSS
acpicpu1 at acpi0: PSS
acpicpu2 at acpi0: PSS
acpicpu3 at acpi0: PSS
acpibtn0 at acpi0: PWRB
pci0 at mainbus0 bus 0
mem address conflict 0xe0000000/0x20000000
bridge mem address conflict 0xfdd00000/0x100000
bridge mem address conflict 0xfdf00000/0x100000
mem address conflict 0xfe02f000/0x400
mem address conflict 0xfe02e000/0x1000
mem address conflict 0xfe02d000/0x1000
mem address conflict 0xfe02c000/0x100
mem address conflict 0xfe02b000/0x1000
mem address conflict 0xfe02a000/0x1000
mem address conflict 0xfe029000/0x100
mem address conflict 0xfe024000/0x4000
bridge mem address conflict 0xfa000000/0x3000000
bridge mem address conflict 0xfde00000/0x100000
mem address conflict 0xfe028000/0x1000
pchb0 at pci0 dev 0 function 0 "AMD RS780 Host" rev 0x00
ppb0 at pci0 dev 2 function 0 "AMD RS780 PCIE" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 18 (irq 10)
pci1 at ppb0 bus 1
vga1 at pci1 dev 0 function 0 "NVIDIA GeForce 6600" rev 0xa2
wsdisplay0 at vga1 mux 1: console (80x25, vt100 emulation)
wsdisplay0: screen 1-5 added (80x25, vt100 emulation)
ppb1 at pci0 dev 10 function 0 "AMD RS780 PCIE" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 18 (irq 10)
pci2 at ppb1 bus 2
mem address conflict 0xfdfff000/0x1000
mem address conflict 0xfdfe0000/0x10000
re0 at pci2 dev 0 function 0 "Realtek 8168" rev 0x02: RTL8168C/8111C (0x3c00), apic 2 int 18 (irq 10), address 00:24:1d:75:44:e5
rgephy0 at re0 phy 7: RTL8169S/8110S PHY, rev. 2
ahci0 at pci0 dev 17 function 0 "ATI SBx00 SATA" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 22 (irq 11), AHCI 1.1
scsibus0 at ahci0: 32 targets
sd0 at scsibus0 targ 0 lun 0: <ATA, MAXTOR STM325082, 3.AA> SCSI3 0/direct fixed
sd0: 238474MB, 512 bytes/sec, 488395055 sec total
ohci0 at pci0 dev 18 function 0 "ATI SB700 USB" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 16 (irq 7), version 1.0, legacy support
ohci1 at pci0 dev 18 function 1 "ATI SB700 USB" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 16 (irq 7), version 1.0, legacy support
ehci0 at pci0 dev 18 function 2 "ATI SB700 USB2" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 17 (irq 11)
usb0 at ehci0: USB revision 2.0
uhub0 at usb0 "ATI EHCI root hub" rev 2.00/1.00 addr 1
ohci2 at pci0 dev 19 function 0 "ATI SB700 USB" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 18 (irq 10), version 1.0, legacy support
ohci3 at pci0 dev 19 function 1 "ATI SB700 USB" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 18 (irq 10), version 1.0, legacy support
ehci1 at pci0 dev 19 function 2 "ATI SB700 USB2" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 19 (irq 3)
usb1 at ehci1: USB revision 2.0
uhub1 at usb1 "ATI EHCI root hub" rev 2.00/1.00 addr 1
piixpm0 at pci0 dev 20 function 0 "ATI SBx00 SMBus" rev 0x3a: SMI
iic0 at piixpm0
spdmem0 at iic0 addr 0x50: 2GB DDR2 SDRAM non-parity PC2-6400CL5
pciide0 at pci0 dev 20 function 1 "ATI SB700 IDE" rev 0x00: DMA, channel 0 configured to compatibility, channel 1 configured to compatibility
atapiscsi0 at pciide0 channel 0 drive 0
scsibus1 at atapiscsi0: 2 targets
cd0 at scsibus1 targ 0 lun 0: <PIONEER, DVD-RW DVR-108, 1.17> ATAPI 5/cdrom removable
wd0 at pciide0 channel 0 drive 1: <ST340016A>
wd0: 16-sector PIO, LBA, 38165MB, 78163247 sectors
cd0(pciide0:0:0): using PIO mode 4, DMA mode 2, Ultra-DMA mode 4
wd0(pciide0:0:1): using PIO mode 4, DMA mode 2, Ultra-DMA mode 5
azalia0 at pci0 dev 20 function 2 "ATI SBx00 HD Audio" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 16 (irq 7)
azalia0: codecs: Realtek ALC885
audio0 at azalia0
pcib0 at pci0 dev 20 function 3 "ATI SB700 ISA" rev 0x00
ppb2 at pci0 dev 20 function 4 "ATI SB600 PCI" rev 0x00
pci3 at ppb2 bus 3
mem address conflict 0xfb000000/0x1000000
mem address conflict 0xfa000000/0x1000000
mem address conflict 0xfcfff000/0x800
mem address conflict 0xfcff8000/0x4000
"Conexant CX2388x" rev 0x05 at pci3 dev 6 function 0 not configured
"Conexant CX2388x MPEG" rev 0x05 at pci3 dev 6 function 2 not configured
"TI TSB43AB23 FireWire" rev 0x00 at pci3 dev 14 function 0 not configured
ohci4 at pci0 dev 20 function 5 "ATI SB700 USB" rev 0x00: apic 2 int 18 (irq 10), version 1.0, legacy support
pchb1 at pci0 dev 24 function 0 "AMD AMD64 10h HyperTransport" rev 0x00
pchb2 at pci0 dev 24 function 1 "AMD AMD64 10h Address Map" rev 0x00
pchb3 at pci0 dev 24 function 2 "AMD AMD64 10h DRAM Cfg" rev 0x00
km0 at pci0 dev 24 function 3 "AMD AMD64 10h Misc Cfg" rev 0x00
pchb4 at pci0 dev 24 function 4 "AMD AMD64 10h Link Cfg" rev 0x00
usb2 at ohci0: USB revision 1.0
uhub2 at usb2 "ATI OHCI root hub" rev 1.00/1.00 addr 1
usb3 at ohci1: USB revision 1.0
uhub3 at usb3 "ATI OHCI root hub" rev 1.00/1.00 addr 1
usb4 at ohci2: USB revision 1.0
uhub4 at usb4 "ATI OHCI root hub" rev 1.00/1.00 addr 1
usb5 at ohci3: USB revision 1.0
uhub5 at usb5 "ATI OHCI root hub" rev 1.00/1.00 addr 1
isa0 at pcib0
isadma0 at isa0
com0 at isa0 port 0x3f8/8 irq 4: ns16550a, 16 byte fifo
pckbc0 at isa0 port 0x60/5
pckbd0 at pckbc0 (kbd slot)
pckbc0: using irq 1 for kbd slot
wskbd0 at pckbd0: console keyboard, using wsdisplay0
pms0 at pckbc0 (aux slot)
pckbc0: using irq 12 for aux slot
wsmouse0 at pms0 mux 0
pcppi0 at isa0 port 0x61
midi0 at pcppi0: <PC speaker>
spkr0 at pcppi0
it0 at isa0 port 0x2e/2: IT8718F rev 5, EC port 0x228
fdc0 at isa0 port 0x3f0/6 irq 6 drq 2
usb6 at ohci4: USB revision 1.0
uhub6 at usb6 "ATI OHCI root hub" rev 1.00/1.00 addr 1
mtrr: Pentium Pro MTRR support
vscsi0 at root
scsibus2 at vscsi0: 256 targets
softraid0 at root
root on wd0a swap on wd0b dump on wd0b
wsdisplay0: screen 2 deleted
wsdisplay0: screen 2 added (80x50, vt100 emulation)
wsdisplay0: screen 5 deleted
wsdisplay0: screen 5 added (80x50, vt100 emulation)
Also, can we stop calling RAID 0 RAID? It is a time consuming process to redistinguish was isn't actaully RAID from what actually is.
I did mean while the device was attached.. we can't possibly gleam anything useful about it before it's even detected.
How is that statement about RAID even remotely relevant to anything? are you referring to the softraid(4) attach message? softraid is a new driver for software RAID, it supports many different disciplines.
softraid0 at root does not indicate RAID 0, it is simply a numbered device node.
Maybe you're confused, but we are not the developers of OpenBSD.. this is a community comprised mostly of occasional users and enthusiasts.
|Thread Tools
|Display Modes
Hybrid Mode
|Similar Threads
|Thread Starter
|Last Post
|Compatible ADSL MODEM
|FreeBSD General
|17th November 2009 11:30 AM
|[F1] write usb modem driver
|17th July 2008 11:06 AM
|proftpd and ppp modem
|General software and network
|11th June 2008 11:33 AM
|USB EV-DO modem support
|FreeBSD General
|6th June 2008 09:50 PM
|Choosing a modem for freebsd 7.0
|General Hardware
|6th May 2008 02:44 AM


text:
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - The New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) announced its men's basketball award winners on Tuesday and a pair of Engineers received prestigious individual recognition from the conference. Sophomore Noel Hollingsworth was named the NEWMAC Player of the Year, the second straight MIT player to take home that honor, while teammate Mitchell Kates was tabbed as the conference Rookie of the Year. Both players were also selected to the All-Conference squad, with Hollingsworth on the First Team and Kates garnering Second Team honors.
Hollingsworth has been a consistent force in the middle for MIT all year, averaging 20.5 points and 9.1 rebounds, both of which lead the NEWMAC. The sophomore also paces the league in field goal percentage and double-doubles while ranking third in blocked shots and fifth in minutes played. Hollingsworth tallied at least 30 points in five games this season, including a career-high 37 against Babson in January, the single highest scoring total in the NEWMAC on the season. The four time conference Player of the Week, Hollingsworth ranks in the top 100 of the country in scoring, rebounds, field goal percentage and blocked shots. Hollingsworth follows Jimmy Bartolotta, who captured Player of the Year accolades a year ago.
Kates has started every game at point guard for the Engineers as a freshman, averaging 13.3 points, 4.2 assists and a league-leading 2.2 steals per contest. Kates led all NEWMAC freshman in scoring, field goal percentage, assists and minutes played.
The remaining First Team All-Conference honorees were Clark's Mark Alexander and Brian Vayda, Matt Cavalieri of Springfield and WPI's Jeffrey Robinson.
Hollingsworth and Kates will look to lead the Cardinal and Gray in the upcoming NCAA Division III Tournament, as the Engineers will take on DeSales University on Friday, March 5 at 6:00 p.m. in an opening round game hosted by William Paterson University in Wayne, N.J. Tech is making its second straight post-season appearance, as MIT defeated Rhode Island College in the first round of last year's NCAA tournament, before falling to Farmingdale State in round two.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
In return for commitment, hard work and talent we offer competitive salaries and benefits, high quality training and opportunities to forge a career in a progressive, client focused business.
We value independent thinking and individual effort, but even more, we value team work. Transcom people put our clients and our business first, take responsibility for their actions and are as concerned for their colleagues' success as for their own.
Transcom is a results focused company. Your progress will be determined by your talent and your contribution to the success of your team and our business.
Transcom is a global employer in an industry that depends upon strong, resourceful, talented people.


text:
Jump to navigation
Guthrie HealthWorks Wellness & Fitness Center9768 Liberty DrivePainted Post, NY
The program provides:
This program is accredited by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and in conjunction with the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE). It will cover comprehensive self-care behaviors to optimize living well with pre-diabetes and diabetes.
The self-care tools you will gain from diabetes education:
Your instructors will be Christine Wozniak, RDN, CDN, CDE and Julie Walenta, MPH, RD. For more information contact: 607-937-4800.


text:
Reviewed by Trason D. (age 8)
I loved the book because it is very interesting and funny. For example, the Red Queen looks very weird and Alice gets very mad at the Mad Hatter because his sayings don't make sense. There are many differences in this original story compared to other stories about Alice in Wonderland. For example, Alice falls down a well and not a hole and the Caterpillar is a girl in this story. I liked Alice because she is smart and risky. She tricks the queen by pretending to be someone else. My favorite part was when I read about the caterpillar. She said, "Whooo are youuu?" and was colored blue and purple. She reminds me of one of my friends because the caterpillar bosses Alice around and my friend sometimes tries to boss me around. I liked the illustrations because the pictures are amazing and colorful. The illustrations swoop down and it looks like rain is falling from everything. The Author, Lewis Carol, is very talented and also has a great imagination. I liked his book a lot.
I recommend this book to kids 10 years of age and older because this book can be scary and hard to read. I also recommend this to kids who like fantasies and classic books.


text:
A genealogy blog to encourage people with Pakistani ancestry to have fun researching their family trees.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Interview at The Pakistani Spectator
Here's the link.
2 comments:
- Morten said...
Great blog on Pakistani genealogy. Is it easy to trace your ancestors in Pakistan. As part of making a linklist of genealogical resources for the different asian countries i have just started on Pakistan. For the future this list will be included in a sub-website called GenRess, which is part of the norwegian genealogical society's websites. Hopefully this will make it easier for norwegian-pakistani residents to trace their ancestors in Pakistan. If you have any advice or links to ressources in Pakistan that i should include in such a list, i would really appreciate it if you could send an email to me
- August 12, 2009 at 11:15 PM
- Anon said...
Hi Morten, I'm afraid its not easy to trace your ancestors in Pakistan and thats partly the reason why I created this blog - to create awareness of genealogy within the Pakistani community in Pakistan and abroad. Its a great idea to add Pakistani resources to genealogical society websites.
I can only provide you with one link that I know of: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~pakwgw/
- August 19, 2009 at 8:29 PM


text:
Brand Label: Florence Eiseman
ITEM MOVED TO ARCHIVE: On January 31, 2018 12:17 am, Fashion Stylist Online noted this item may be out of stock at Neiman Marcus because it was not referenced in their latest online catalog. If this item is out of stock at Neiman Marcus, you may be able to find similar fashions sold there or elsewhere on our Florence Eiseman Designer Brand Directory.
Available for Purchase Online at Neiman Marcus for $98.00Pin It
EXCLUSIVELY AT NEIMAN MARCUS Florence Eiseman one-piece swimsuit in polka-dot print. Large strawberry embroidery at right side. Scoop neckline; cutout detail at back. Self-tie trim with hanging strawberries. Ruffle detail around waist. Wide shoulder straps. Full seat coverage. Nylon/spandex. Imported.
Shop other brand label items from Florence Eiseman on FashionStylist.com.
This item was published for sale online by Neiman Marcus on January 30, 2018 9:23 am and last updated by us January 31, 2018 12:17 am.
Editor Picks: Ruffle Up!
Show Me Your Mumu Women's Afton Tie Back Romper
Nouvelle Amsale Women's Dakota High Low Chiffon
Rachel Antonoff Women's Ruffle Blouse
Milly Women's One Shoulder Cotton Silk Top
Comme Des Garcons Women's Angel Wing Top Red
Editor Picks: So 70's Clothing Inspiration
Alice Olivia Lyn Paneled Suede Fringe Cape Tan
Isabel Marant Open Front Embroidered Long Coat
Adam Lippes Pencil Skirt W Fringe Hem Black
Burberry Prorsum Patchwork Blanket Fringe Poncho
Valentino Crochet Mitered Stripe Poncho Sorbet
Editor Picks: Must See Swimwear for Men
Surfside Supply Men's Photo Print Swim Trunks
Vans Men's Psych Panel Board Shorts
Under Armour Men's Reblek Board Shorts 30 Blue
Hurley Men's Phantom Kingsroad Board Shorts
Hurley Men's Phantom Block Party Ben Carlson Foundation
Editor Picks: Swimwear Available Now
Kate Spade New York Women's Shoes
Billabong Junior Women's Secret Moons Print Romper
Billabong Junior Women's Behind The Sun Maxi Dress
Vitamin A Sirena Wrap Bikini Top
L Space Chloe Wrap Bikini Top
Editor Picks: Swimsuit Trends: High Neck Tops
Marysia Swim Mott Halter Maillot Tank Suit
Seafolly Women's Costa Maya Geo Print Side Tie
Rip Curl Junior Women's Midnight Hour Mixed Print
Billabong Junior Women's Lacy Daze Bodysuit
Seafolly Women's Block Party Bandeau Bikini Top
Browse More Fashion Apparel by Florence Eiseman (view more)
- $70.00
Florence Eiseman Baby Girls Two Piece Stripe Tshirt
- $70.00
Florence Eiseman Little Girls Girls Two Piece
- $32.20
Florence Eiseman Little Girls Floral Ruffle Top
- $88.00
Florence Eiseman Baby Boys Button On Velvet Romper
- $88.00
Florence Eiseman Little Girls Holiday Lights Applique
- $46.20
Florence Eiseman Baby Girls Corduroy Jumper
- $102.00
Florence Eiseman Baby Girls Little Girls Velvet
- $85.40
Florence Eiseman Baby Girls Reversible Corduroy
- $61.60
Florence Eiseman Little Girls Girls Two Piece
- $58.00
Florence Eiseman Baby Boys Striped Shirt
New promo codes and links offering limited time promotions, sales coupons, and special offers on Florence Eiseman designer fashions and accessories will be posted on each designer label apparel page. For the latest up to date information on this Florence Eiseman Polka Dot Ruffle Strawberry One Piece Swimsuit 2 6x Swimwear | Clothing fashion item, including product specifications, ordering options, pricing, shipping details, high resolution pictures, shopper comments, and other sales media, visit the Neiman Marcus Online Store.


text:
GERVAIS, Ore. — This tiny farm-country community is having a back-to-school sale, on the schools themselves. Interested in a well maintained, one-owner elementary with playground and orchard view? Or a 1990s charmer, now used for teaching second through fifth grades but convenient to shopping and the Interstate?
Like school districts all over the nation, Gervais, with about 1,100 students in a town of 2,300 people, has been deeply stressed by years of financial retrenchment. Music and art classes were eliminated last year. Teaching positions have been reduced through attrition and layoffs loom in years ahead, with state aid showing few signs of a robust comeback.
So this summer, administrators took radical action against their sea of troubles. In tough times, why should Gervais (pronounced JER-vis) do things the way everybody else was doing them? That is how the district superintendent, Rick Hensel, recalled the tone of the meetings as teachers, staff members and residents tossed around ideas.
The board's decision, in June, was a fire sale. Three of the five school buildings in the district — all six miles or more from town, holdovers from a time when rural districts like this built a little school every few miles — were put on the market. Asking prices range from $460,000 for the smallest elementary, to $844,000 for a school on eight acres zoned for agriculture, to $2.4 million for an elementary school on 10 acres zoned for residential use.
The second part of the decision was in some ways even more momentous as a measure of how the recession is still reshaping the nation: a consolidation of all the students and classrooms in the 65-square-mile district in downtown Gervais.Continue reading the main story
Proceeds from the building sales would be put toward new classrooms. Cost savings from reduced busing and other efficiencies of a centralized cluster would save teaching jobs and, with luck, board members said, lead to restoration of arts programs. A $4.2 million bond, on the ballot here in November, would pay for the transformation in time for the 2013 school year, even if the old schools had not yet sold or been leased.
"It wasn't that we're broke and desperate," said Mr. Hensel, who added that several potential buyers had contacted the district but that no firm offers had yet emerged. "We were looking for a way to keep from desperation."
But Gervais's story also reflects a demographic transformation here in the Willamette Valley south of Portland. What had been a deeply rural world a few generations back — big farm families spread out across the fertile Willamette plain — was changing even before the recession. Commuters with jobs in Salem, half an hour southwest, or Portland, an hour north, moved into town in the early 2000s. The population, only 500 people or so in years past, more than quadrupled. Farm kids had become town kids.
"It used to be that two-thirds of the population of the school district lived in the outlying areas," said Brent LaFollette, the school board chairman, "and now it's just about a complete opposite, in that two-thirds of the district lives right here in Gervais."
What that means for the new district plan is that student transportation ratios will flip as well, from 60 percent of the students on a bus this year — mostly elementary school age, heading to the outlying schools — to about 60 percent living within one mile of school.
Luck, or foresight by past education leaders, also played a role in making the consolidation possible. About eight years ago, the district bought 17 acres adjoining the high school. It sat mostly empty for years, but now sports fields have been moved there, clearing space for the new buildings.
The structures themselves will also be a kind of experiment. This summer, Gervais district officials contacted an architecture team at Portland State University that has been working on new designs for mobile classrooms, incorporating green building standards like improved natural light, air circulation and energy efficiency into modular school construction, which has surged all over the country as schools have tried to control costs. The Gervais project will be one of the first to use the new designs.
"They had the foresight to say, 'How we do reorganize and look at the future?' " said Sergio Palleroni, an associate professor of architecture at Portland State and a co-designer of the new school model with Margarette Leite, an assistant professor of architecture.
Some students, enjoying the last days of summer vacation on a recent sunny afternoon, were less confident that having all the schools in one place would be wonderful. Suzanna Rambeau, 16, is a junior. Her senior year, if all goes according to plan, would be the first year of the new era.
"Having a bunch of little kids around, I don't know," she said. "It's already cramped."
She was also skeptical that arts programs would come back in time to benefit her. She was a flute player, she said, until the band program ended.
But Britanny Moreno, 7, a second grader who will take the bus to her school when classes start this week, said she had a big plan for third grade, when that school will be just down the street from her house.
"I could ride my bike," she said.Continue reading the main story


text:
- Home
- Plan your visit
- Animals
- News
- What's on
- Experiences
These sociable tree-climbers are of a mischievous nature and have a love for digging.
Coatis are classed as 'least concern' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (on the IUCN 'red list'), but the IUCN estimates that some White-nosed Coati populations in the wild are decreasing. Threats to these populations include habitat loss and illegal poaching. In New Mexico they are classed as an endangered species and are protected.
Meeting the coatis at Melbourne Zoo is more than just a fascinating experience. A visit to Melbourne Zoo helps to raise much needed funds, contributing to the care and upkeep of animals like the coati. Visiting the zoo also supports Zoos Victoria in Fighting Extinction, both here and abroad.
Coatis belong to the larger raccoon family, which comprises 18 species, all native to the Americas. The White-nosed Coati is native to Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, Mexico, Central America and Colombia.
Coatis are omnivorous and are often seen feeding on invertebrates, fruits, small vertebrates (such as lizards and rodents) and eggs. Although coatis are skilled climbers, using their long tails as balancing rods, most foraging is conducted on the ground where they dig among the leaf litter, exposing food.
Male coatis have solitary lives, while the females live in social groups. During the breeding season a dominant male of the area will convince the females to accept him by grooming them. Once the breeding season ends he is driven away by the group, leaving the females to raise the young.
A new mother will typically keep her kittens isolated in her nest for 6 to 10 weeks before rejoining the band. Upon returning to the group, all the adult females cooperate in looking after the young. While mother is away searching for food, the other females will keep an eye on her kittens, providing protection from predators.
- Melbourne Zoo
- Healesville Sanctuary
- Werribee Open Range Zoo


text:
Obama: US safer, resilient on 9/11 anniversary
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama says the U.S. is safer and its people resilient on the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Obama and first lady Michelle Obama laid a wreath at the Pentagon, one of several official observances marking the suicide hijackings that killed nearly 3,000 people on Sept. 11, 2001.
Aided by a Marine honor guard, Obama placed a white floral wreath on a metal stand above a concrete slab that said "Sept. 11, 2001 - 9:37 am." A moment of silence began at precisely 9:37 a.m.
In remarks at the Pentagon, Obama recalled a day "when grief crashed over us like an awful wave."
Later Tuesday, the president was to visit wounded soldiers and their families at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.


text:
The 2013 United Way of the Columbia Gorge allocations application packets will be available throughout the month of February from the United Way of the Columbia Gorge office.
An electronic version of the packet will be emailed upon request to any nonprofit human service program in Hood River, Wasco, Sherman, Klickitat and Skamania counties.
All applications must be completed and mailed to the UWCG office by Thursday, Feb. 28.
As part of a thorough screening process, funding applicants are required to give a presentation to the UWCG allocations committee in March. Information about the scheduling of these presentations can be found in the packet or online at unitedwaycolumbiagorge.org ("Apply for Funding").
For more information or to request an electronic copy of the application, contact: Alison Church, campaign/allocations manager, United Way of the Columbia Gorge, 541-386-6100, firstname.lastname@example.com.
Comments are subject to moderator review and may not appear immediately on the site. A user's first several comments must be manually approved by a moderator.
Please read our commenting policy before posting.
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Information from the News and our advertisers (Want to add your business to this to this feed?)


text:
By BEN MCCARTY
News staff writer
March 3, 2007
The motion comes suddenly.
Kristin Kawachi flies down the mat, hits the vault and flips through the air.
Unlike her previous attempt, where she toppled Gorge gymnastics coach Steve Roney to the ground with her velocity, this time she sticks it.
Roney is thrilled.
"Great job!' he exclaims.
Kawachi and her advanced class are practicing in the gym at the Hood River Sports Club. While the group goes through its routines in preparation for the Rose City Challenge event in Beaverton this weekend, a group of "Kinderoos" are learning the basics of gymnastics across the blue-covered area for floor routines.
Some of them are learning just how to hang on parallel bars, others learn how to rotate.
But while they have fun hanging from the bars, and occasionally getting tickled by the instructors, they seem to get the biggest kick out of simply running across the floor. They skip and race back and forth, while they try out various positions for floor routines.
"We try to make it fun for the kids," Kinderoos coach Becca Slotterbeck said.
Kids from both age groups appear to be having fun and Roney wants it to be that way.
"Kids learn better when they are happy and pumped up," he said. "So we incorporate all sorts of games."
In between the games, the younger kids are learning the basics of gymnastics so that they can grow to master more complex routines.
Even learning something as basic as a handstand takes practice and several steps.
"Something as simple as a handstand can have five steps to it," Roney said.
Once the younger students have mastered basic moves they can begin to move on to more advanced moves, and can find themselves flying around the parallel bars or off the pommel horse.
"We try to do things that are sequential for little kids," Roney said. "That way they have something to build on."
Claire Rawson and Kawachi, who were both working on their floor routines for the Rose City Challenge at Thursday's practice, have risen up the ranks to become two of Roney's top students this year, and they still have room to grow.
The gymnastics program uses Junior Olympic standards, so as gymnasts master the levels of the sports, starting at 1 and rising to 10, they can eventually have the chance to qualify for the Olympics if they so choose.
However, Roney cautions, that is not easy, the Olympic team is made up of 12 gymnasts, out of thousands across the country.
To get to that level, gymnasts have to train their bodies to become finely tuned acrobatic machines.
Many of the twisting, flipping maneuvers happen so fast that gymnasts do not have time to think about what they are doing once they have left the ground.
"They don't have time to think about what they are doing," Roney said. "So they train their bodies to think for them."
The younger kids have not quite gotten that far yet, as Slotterbeck and another instructor work with them on learning how to rotate over a bar and make their way across the balance beam.
However, the coach hopes they will eventually want to be as good as their older counterparts.
"They start watching the older kids and they'll be like 'I want to do that,'" she said.
Roney is often amazed at how fast his pupils pick up the skills to become competitive gymnasts.
"These guys go nuts by the time they are 10 or 11," he said.
Some even pick up the necessary skills and abilities before then, and can be prepared to try more complex moves.
"The younger they are, the better they do," he said as he watched Kawachi prepare to make another run to send her body spinning through the air off the vault. "They have no fear."
Comments are subject to moderator review and may not appear immediately on the site. A user's first several comments must be manually approved by a moderator.
Please read our commenting policy before posting.
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Information from the News and our advertisers (Want to add your business to this to this feed?)


text:
In the News
Where atheism gets
you a death sentence
A new study by the International Humanist and Ethical Union in Switzerland shows that atheists and other religious skeptics suffer persecution or discrimination around the world and in at least seven countries can be executed if their beliefs become known. The IHEU issued the report on the United Nation's annual Human Rights Day on Dec. 10.
The report, "Freedom of Thought 2012," said "there are laws that deny atheists' right to exist, curtail their freedom of belief and expression, revoke their right to citizenship, restrict their right to marry."
According to the survey of about 60 countries, nations where atheism or defection from the official religion can bring capital punishment are Afghanistan, Iran, Maldives, Mauritania, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Sudan.
The report also notes policies in some European countries and the U.S. that favor the religious while excluding nonbelievers.
In the U.S., a social and political climate prevails "in which atheists and the nonreligious are made to feel like lesser Americans, or non-Americans," the report said.
In at least seven U.S. states, constitutional provisions bar atheists from public office. One state, Arkansas, has a law that bars atheists from testifying in court, the report said.
Judge to archdiocese: Give up abuse files
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Emilie Elias on Dec. 10 ordered the Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles to turn over secret files it's had for decades on 69 priests accused of sex abuse. Elias gave the archdiocese until Dec. 27 to give her the files. She set a date for early January to hear arguments from priests who want to keep their files private.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the order came five years after the 2007 settlement of $660 million with more than 550 alleged victims of 245 priests.
Ray Boucher, lead plaintiff's attorney, estimates the archdiocese has files on 80 more priests that it is not turning over to the judge. He also said documents on priests who belonged to Catholic religious orders are also missing.
Film documents
abuse by Wis. priest
"Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God" opened in U.S. theaters in November and will air on HBO in February. The film centers on four men who attended St. John's School for the Deaf in St. Francis, Wis., as boys and were sexually molested.
"A lot of individual stories had been done about clerical sex abuse, but I hadn't seen one that really connected the individual stories with the larger coverup by the Vatican, so that was important," director Alex Gibney told Reuters.
In a letter to the Vatican in 1998, the year he died, Fr. Lawrence Murphy admitted molesting some 200 deaf boys over two decades beginning in the 1950s.
'No faith' gains in United Kingdom
The Independent reported Dec. 10 that the number of persons with no religious faith in the U.K. rose from 14.8% in 2001 to 25.1% in 2011.
During that period, the number of Christians fell from 37.3 million to 33.2 million. The proportion of Muslims rose from 3% to 4.8%. Hinduism claims 1.5%, Sikhism 0.8% and Judaism 0.5%. About 180,000 claimed to be followers of the Jedi religion featured in "Star Wars," down from 400,000 in 2001.
Mothers 'maimed, forgotten' in Ireland
"The imperative to bear as many children as possible crippled hundreds of Irishwomen," Marie O'Connor writes in a column titled "The maimed and forgotten mothers" in The Irish Times. Catholic hospitals encouraged doctors to treat difficult childbirths with a symphysiotomy, a procedure that severs the pelvic joint, instead of doing a caesarean section.
According to O'Connor, the church preferred the symphysiotomy because it could widen the pelvis, "enabling an unlimited number of vaginal deliveries.
"But when it went wrong, which was often, the women suffered chronic pain and incontinence, and many could barely walk. . . . Doctors in every other Western country shunned the operation, but in Ireland it was performed on some 1,500 women between 1944 and 2005. About 200 victims survive today, most of them disabled. Yet they can't seek redress in the courts, because it only recently became public that these operations were unnecessary, long after the statute of limitations expired."
Bible favorite book, child favorite porn
A Manchester, N.H., lawyer with ties to a conservative Christian law firm took a teen girl to Canada, had her engage in sexual activity and convinced her to let it be filmed, according to federal indictments reported Nov. 17 by the Concord Monitor.
Lisa Biron, 43, is charged with transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, seven counts of possession of child pornography and five counts of sexual exploitation of children.
Biron is associated with the Alliance Defending Freedom, which, its website says, is committed to keeping "the door open for the spread of the Gospel" by advocating for "religious liberty, the sanctity of life, and marriage and family." In Concord, she worked with ADF to defend a Pentecostal church in its tax fight against the city.
She recently served on the board of directors at Mount Zion Christian Schools in Manchester. On her Facebook page, which was been removed, she listed the bible as her favorite book.
Police began investigating after receiving a tip from a man who said he'd seen child porn on Biron's computer.
Priest on abuse list
now that he's dead
Fr. Donald Musinski has been added to the Archdiocese of Milwaukee's list of clergy restricted because of substantiated allegations of sexual abuse of children, 15 years after the victim first accused him, the Journal Sentinel reported Dec. 1.
The archdiocese did not announce Musinski's addition to the list, possibly because he is deceased, said spokeswoman Julie Wolf. He died at age 69 in 2006. He was ordained in 1962 and served parishes in Milwaukee, Belgium and Johnsburg before retiring in 1999.
The victim, Karen Konter, now 54, reported Musinski to the archdiocese in 1997. She said Musinski began molesting her when she was 8, progressing to rape by the time she graduated from eighth grade. She said the priest took advantage of her, "an isolated and ostracized little girl, hobbled by polio and numerous surgeries," as the Journal Sentinel put it, at St. Adalbert's on Milwaukee's south side.
U.K. Scouts mull
atheist membership
The Telegraph reported Dec. 3 that the British Scouting movement is working on plans to draft an alternative godless oath and let atheists become full members and group leaders for the first time. For more than 40 years, versions of the promise have existed allowing Muslims to pledge allegiance to Allah and Hindus to substitute the words "my Dharma."
The traditional pledge mentions "duty to God and to the Queen, to help other people and to keep the Scout Law."
Scouting founder Robert Baden-Powell in his book of advice for boys, "Rovering for Success," compared atheism to gambling, excessive drinking, smoking and syphilis as a danger to be avoided.
Bible played role
in boy's death
Police said 7-year-old Roderick Arrington was beaten to death by his parents because he didn't read the bible and do his homework, the Las Vegas Sun reported Dec. 3. The boy's stepfather, Markiece Palmer, 34, and mother, Dina Palmer, 27, were charged with murder, child abuse and neglect.
Roderick died after being taken to the hospital on Nov. 30. A doctor reported he had fixed pupils, bruises all over his body and buttocks showing "fresh open wounds.
Markiece Palmer told police he spanked his stepson because he lied about reading a chapter in the bible and didn't do his homework. He admitted he hit the boy on multiple occasions with his belt, a spatula, a wooden paddle and his hands.
On one Facebook photo, Markiece Palmer wrote, "My babies they make me happy. GOD bless the children!!!"
On another photo of the boy, Dina Palmer wrote, "I wanna do better 4 my son, my family, myself, 4 you LORD!!!!!!!!"
Ask a Skeptic: Inhaling spirituality's heady fumes
George Saunders, New York, sends a USA Today clipping in which Ed Stetzer, LifeWay Research president, says "a majority of the population is spiritual but not religious." George asks, "Does anyone really understand what it means to be 'spiritual but not religious?' "
KATIE DANIEL: Spiritual means you believe in ghosts, but don't organize rituals around them or proselytize. Religious means that you believe in ghosts, organize rituals around them, and think everyone else should too!
PHYLLIS ROSE: I don't — "spiritual" seems to have the same connotation as the unknown quality of "religious."
PATRICK ELLIOTT: This is how I perceive it: "Organized superstition isn't my thing, but I don't mind doing it on my own." Which is equivalent to: "You won't find me running with the bulls in Pamplona, that is crazy! But, I'm not opposed to trying my hand at running with the bulls on my own."
WENDY GOLDBERG: To me, it means to be in tune with nature and especially with all the winter birds that "flock" to my feeders. "… and the little brown birds, which stirred occasionally in the hedge, looked like single russet leaves that had forgotten to drop." (from Jane Eyre)
ANNIE LAURIE GAYLOR: I've never read a definition of "spirituality" that was comprehensible. It stems from the word "spirit" and pertains to an imaginary "spirit world." The word "spirit" can have secular connotations today, such as "team spirit" or "keep up your spirits." But "spiritual atheist" seems like an oxymoron. I feel it's a mistake for atheists and other nonbelievers to adopt language that clearly has a religious genesis. (That's a joke!) Doesn't this just contribute to confusion, as in Einstein's metaphorical and unfortunate "God does not play dice with the universe" kind of language?
I am guessing that most nonbelievers who are using the term "I'm not religious, but I'm spiritual," probably mean that they are moved or awed and have emotional responses to music, artistry, nature or being part of the community and the universe. So why not say that? Why muddy the waters by using a religious term to describe a natural (not a supernatural) feeling, emotion or sense? People should say what they mean. It seems like a good policy for atheists and agnostics to take care that their pronouncements are not misunderstood by believers.
BILL DUNN: It means, if you're being truly honest with yourself, that you're more of a sociopath than a psychopath.
ELAINE HAMPTON: "Spirit" has so many different meanings, from supernatural beings to very natural beings — as in a high-spirited horse, or a great single-malt Scotch! Or genuine Napoleon brandy. I like to inhale the fumes.
When I first learned the Latin meaning of the original word, I had to laugh. "The spirit left him" = he stopped breathing. Or "holy spirit" = heavenly halitosis.
It's like using "heart" to mean anything connected with emotions. "And then my heart stood still" is a lovely song, but if the singer's heart had really stopped, they would have needed CPR immediately, or they'd be dead. Slippery, slippery words. I love to play with them.
JOAN REISMAN: I think people hasten to say "but I'm spiritual" in reaction to the (entirely mistaken) notion that atheists are dull, pragmatic people who only believe what can be proved, and who have no sense of awe or wonder or imagination. By claiming spirituality, they are asserting that while they don't follow any organized religion or believe in any gods, they are still multifaceted individuals who are able to sense and experience "higher" feelings and concepts and possibilities beyond mundane reality.
NORA CUSACK: I'm neither, because neither is fact-based. They're weasel words for people who don't want to acknowledge that when they're dead, they're dead.
ANDREW SEIDEL: To be religious is to believe in widely held, factually unsupported dogma. To be spiritual is to believe in factually unsupported dogma that is all your own. To alter the Robert Pirsig quote which gave Richard Dawkins' God Delusion its name: "When one person suffers from a delusion, it is called spirituality. When many people suffer from a delusion, it is called religion."
DAN BARKER: I think when people say they are "spiritual but not religious," they mean one of three things, depending on how "spiritual" or "religious" are defined.
Some of those people believe in a god, or gods, or a transcendent world populated by invisible personalities that have some kind of influence (they think) over their lives, but they are not members of any organized or recognized religion. They are going it on their own, defining "God" or "spirit" in their own way, and don't think they lack anything that is claimed to be possessed by members of religion.
For these people, "religion" is nothing in itself — it is just an artificial human-made way of organizing those who hold similar beliefs into a common group. Religion adds nothing to spirituality, they think. To my mind, these people are indeed religious, though not part of any organized religion.
Others think "religion" is indeed a claim to a transcendent reality, but they reject that claim and think "spiritual" is simply a personal way to experience feelings of the sublime, to meditate, to enjoy aesthetics and positive emotions, to appreciate the finer qualities of art and music, to contemplate "higher values," to breathe deeply and take the focus away from the mundane.
These might be atheists or agnostics who define "spirit" in a nonsupernatural manner, interpreting their "numinous" feelings in purely physical, neurological terms. They agree that others interpret the word "spirit" differently, but feel that their own material definition lacks none of the value or beauty of those who are religious. To my mind, these people are neither religious nor spiritual, even though they do try to redefine "spirit" in a nontranscendent manner.
There is a third group, comprised mostly of evangelical Christians, who define "religion" as "man reaching up to God," but define true Christianity as "God reaching down to man." (The sexist language is theirs, not mine.) I used to think like this; indeed, I preached sermons about it.
These people don't eschew religion, and even agree they are part of a religion — of course they are, if they go to church, pay tithes, support missionaries, promote a Holy Book, and so on — but feel that "spiritual" is more than an attitude or emotion.
To them, the "spirit" is the Holy Spirit, an actual person, the "spirit of God" with whom they have a personal relationship. Some of them think they are possessed by this spirit. When they say "Jesus came into my heart," they are not talking metaphorically. Pentecostals and charismatic types believe they have been "filled with the Spirit," and feel very sorry for the (mainly) mainstream denominations that have "a form of godliness but deny the power thereof." (2 Timothy 3:5)
When they say they are "spiritual but not religious, what they mean is that what matters to these people is "spiritual but not religious."
If I were forced to fit into one of those groups, I would have to choose the second one — except that I don't like the word "spiritual." I don't think the word "spirit" has ever been coherently defined. Every attempt to define the word ends up telling us what it is not, not what it actually is. It is the intangible essence or a nonphysical presence. A noncorporeal personality. An immaterial mind. None of this tells us anything.
In positive terms, what exactly is a spirit? If something exists, then it can be measured — it must be measured, or be measurable. How much does spirit weigh? How much space does it take up? When does it start to exist and when does it die or disappear? How does it differ from the "ether," which we now know does not exist though we continue to use the word "ethereal"?
Until the word "spirit" is defined, and it never has been, then to say you are "spiritual but not religious" is to say nothing at all. Except maybe that you don't like religion very much, and that is something I can agree with.
Helping our school board with its 'Gideon problem' - Suzanne Lamb
In the fall of 2011, I read in my small-town Kentucky newspaper how the Freedom From Religion Foundation had convinced the Muhlenberg County Board of Education to end Gideon bible distribution in local schools. I immediately checked out the FFRF website and decided then and there to become a member.
Six months later, curious about how our board of education was handling a different issue, I went online to review the minutes from the most recent board meeting. To my surprise, the board had unanimously approved "plans for collaboration and efforts to support the Gideon's [sic] organization."
Would a school board recently in trouble for allowing the Gideons into classrooms actually be pledging its support to Gideons International?
I spent nearly a month considering the matter. Though I found the board's actions outrageous, I knew that pushing the issue could have huge consequences. We live in a highly religious community where grievances are not easily forgotten.
And while it was widely known that our family did not attend church, most didn't know I was an atheist. I also knew that some would argue that I had no business criticizing public school policy, as we home-school our children.
Ultimately, I decided I could not let the matter go. I called a board member and asked him to explain the decision to collaborate with the Gideons. He insisted that the board's vote actually meant that now any nonprofit group would be permitted to distribute literature at after-school events.
Of course, his explanation of the district's new "open forum policy" was at odds with the official meeting minutes, so I emailed the district superintendent. He gave a similar version of events. When I asked to see the written policy, the superintendent told me that there wasn't one.
After a great deal of research into the legality of "limited open forums," I wrote the board and superintendent a detailed letter outlining the problems I saw with the policy, which appeared to have been adopted for the sole purpose of letting the Gideons back into the schools. I made it clear that if the board opened these doors, it would have to allow in other groups offering Muslim, pagan and even atheist literature.
I cited two school districts in North Carolina that abruptly ended their "open" policies as soon as pagans asked to distribute their books. After mailing the letter, I published it on my blog, hoping that going public might encourage the board to do the right thing. Unfortunately, the superintendent responded to say that the board was content with the policy as it stood and had no plans to put it in writing.
Dissatisfied with this response, I decided to attend a couple of school board meetings to see if the issue would come up. Little did I realize that I was about to stumble on another problem. It turns out that the board was also accustomed to starting its meetings with a student-led prayer.
Winning secular access
Shortly after attending a second board meeting, I made contact with Walter Petit, a Muhlenberg County High School graduate who is now president of the Secular Student Alliance at Western Kentucky University, about an hour from Muhlenberg County. He and a few others were eager to remedy the situation.
Our primary goal was to convince the board not to allow any outside groups to distribute literature at official school functions; however, if the board insisted on allowing religious groups, then we wanted to have a secular presence.
We sent separate requests to every public school principal in the county asking to distribute literature at upcoming after-school events. As an FFRF member, I said that I would be distributing a variety of materials, including Dan Barker's books Godless and Just Pretend: a Freethought Book for Children.
We didn't know what to expect, but our requests were quickly accepted, and the various school principals started the process of scheduling us for specific after-school events. When I blogged about our upcoming appearances at local schools, comments began pouring in from local citizens who were outraged that atheists would be allowed to hand out materials. The story eventually made the evening news.
The first event we chose to attend was Parent Night at the county's only high school. Despite the negative backlash on my blog, the event was quite pleasant. About two dozen people — a mixture of students, parents, and staff — stopped by our table to pick up literature or ask questions. Several people said they were glad to see us there.
At the board meeting two weeks later, Petit repeated our request that the board end its policy of allowing outside groups to distribute literature in the schools. He firmly stated our demand that school board prayer be discontinued. Highlights from the meeting included a highly sectarian opening prayer that took swipes at our activism, and an anti-evolution rant from a board member who is also a Baptist minister.
FFRF Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott has sent the board a letter outlining the problems with both the literature distribution policy and school board prayer. We are awaiting the board's response. In the meantime, I am enjoying networking with the many freethinkers I've met over the past few months, including several who live in Muhlenberg County.
In fact, our efforts have brought enough atheists and agnostics out of hiding that we hope to start a Muhlenberg County Freethinkers Group early next year.
Suzanne Lamb is a secular home-schooling parent, a former Catholic and the author of "What to Tell the Neighbors," a blog about "unschooling" (an approach emphasizing children's natural desire to learn that helps them become independent thinkers) and living as an atheist in the bible belt. Her fiction and creative nonfiction have appeared in the Los Angeles Review, Nano Fiction, Wigleaf and other journals. She lives with her husband, Steve, and their three children in Central City, Kentucky.
Member tries to rid Iowa city park of nativity
FFRF member Aiyanna Looney did stellar work in Oskaloosa, Iowa, trying to rid City Square Park, which is a public park, of a nativity scene. After she photographed it Dec. 5, she contacted FFRF Staff Attorney Stephanie Schmitt, who responded promptly:
"If you could forward me those photos, that would be very helpful. Are there other nonsectarian displays up? Context is extremely important in these cases — also if there is a sign or something that indicates this was put up by anyone other than the city."
Aiyanna noted in response that there were no other religious displays present. "There is a faux lighted pine tree with a star topper by the nativity, but no sign that states it's a holiday tree or Christmas tree, or who placed the tree in the park. There is no sign that states the nativity was placed by anyone other than the city."
She contacted Oskaloosa City Manager Michael Shrock Jr. about the religious display on public property. Her letter included this: "The use of government property to promote Christianity as superior to other faiths, religions and secularism is abhorrent. The city of Oskaloosa needs to take responsibility for this discriminatory display and remove the nativity or create an exhibit that is representative of everyone who lives in Oskaloosa and Mahaska County."
On Dec. 7, Aiyanna emailed FFRF that the nativity was removed the day before and that Shrock told her that he didn't want an open forum and had the nativity removed.
UPDATE: Right before Freethought Today went to press, Aiyanna shared a voice mail left on her phone from council member Aaron Ver Steeg, who said, "I seen your letter. … I just feel that people like you — if you don't want to look at something, look the other way — and you still have the freedom to move out of Oskaloosa."
UPDATE 2: At a special Dec. 12 council meeting for "discussion and possible action on establishing a policy for decorations and event use in the city square," Shrock backtracked.
The Oskaloosa Herald reported that the City council voted to return the nativity to the park: "They voted to add to the decorations within the city square so that it's not just a nativity scene, but is accompanied by a Christmas tree as well as other secular holiday decorations."
After the meeting, Aiyanna emailed: "I get the impression that no other faiths, or nonfaiths (atheists and agnostics), will be represented when the nativity is replaced in the park, and the city is going to use a 'three reindeer rule' regarding the city square: The 1985 Supreme Court ruling known as the 'reindeer rule' requires any religious display on public property to be balanced by secular displays in order to avoid any hint that the state is endorsing religion."
Egregious Texas violation protested
FFRF Senior Staff Attorney Rebecca Markert wrote a letter of complaint Dec. 5 to city officials in San Angelo, Texas, urging removal of an illegal lighted Latin cross atop the Police Department. According to FFRF's local complainant, the cross adorns the building only during the holiday season. "The building is clearly marked 'San Angelo Police Department,' which allows all passersby to identify it as a city building," Markert wrote. "Its hosting of a powerful sectarian symbol cannot be seen as a traditional decoration of the holiday season, but instead can only be a message of government support for Christianity."
Towns mount crusades to 'Save Our Stone'
Two school districts and towns in Pennsylvania are aggressively fighting FFRF's federal challenges of Ten Commandments markers at public schools.
Marie Schaub, a New Kensington-Arnold parents who joined FFRF as a plaintiff in one of the lawsuits, reports that a "Thou Shall Not Move" movement is growing louder. "This time of year makes us feel marginalized and like second-class citizens," she said.
Children were lined up to pull Commandments mounted on wagons as part of a "float" at New Kensington's Christmas parade. A "Save Our Stone" rally in New Kensington organized by a man who says the United States is "Christian" led to mass distribution of "Save our Stone" lawn signs.
FFRF sued the Connellsville Area School District on Sept. 12 over an Eagles bible monument at a middle school. Two days later, FFRF sued New Kensington-Arhold School District over a 6-foot-tall bible marker in front of Valley High School.
The Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that the Ten Commandments can't be posted inside schools: "The preeminent purpose for posting the Ten Commandments on schoolroom walls is plainly religious in nature. The Ten Commandments are undeniably a sacred text in the Jewish and Christian faiths, and no legislative recitation of a supposed secular purpose can blind us to that fact. The Commandments do not confine themselves to arguably secular matters.
The New Kensington district has asked the court to strike from the lawsuit the plaintiffs' mention of school board President Bob Pallone's pro-monument comments on a Facebook page, "Keep the Ten Commandments at Valley High School." The page, which has been "liked" by about 1,200 people, including several school board members, was created last spring by New Kensington Controller John Zavadak.
In early December, FFRF's motion to allow pseudonyms for several plaintiffs in its New Kensington challenge was granted. A similar motion will be filed in the Connellsville case. FFRF submitted as evidence comments from Facebook posts, website comments, email and letters to the editor, which included:
• "Maybe we should get that lady's phone number who is (a) participant in the lawsuit and have everybody call her and give he(r) our opinion."
• "I'm sure if we look up the (expletive) she probably has a facebook account or a facebook page for her ridiculous group and we can slam the (expletive) out of the (expletive)."
• "Have the families involved in the lawsuit been identified? I cannot believe anyone living in the community would participate in such a worthless cause. Someone needs to send that group back to Wisconsin with several black eyes."
• "These people need drug onto the street and shot."
"I have been particularly alarmed by the reaction to the filing of this lawsuit by community members," Marie Schaub, the only local plaintiff whose identity has been revealed, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "I am aware of numerous hateful messages that have been posted online, either as comments to newspaper articles about the lawsuit or on social media websites."
"The continued anonymity of my child and I is important to me because I fear that if our involvement were made public, both my child and I would experience social ostracism, harassment or threats from community members," said the other parent suing the district, who is identified as Doe 3.
"It amazes me to see people willing to come together in order to support something that's clearly in violation of the law," Schaub recently told the Tribune-Review. "I would encourage our school board and community to adhere to the Constitution, which will save our district from a very expensive court case."
"Relocating this religious monument will not prevent anyone from practicing their faith, but it will send a message that the school district includes people of all religions — in addition to those who choose none," Schaub added.
Real 'reason for the season' is astronomical holiday - Dan Barker
Dan Barker's column, headlined 'We atheists love this time of year like everyone else,' first appeared Dec. 5 in the Washington Post's "On Faith" section.
Charles C. Haynes, in his "Christmas wars" column [Nov. 27 Washington Post], acknowledges that atheists have achieved a victory in the battle to keep religious symbols from dominating certain public property during December. He astutely outlines the reasoning of the courts and municipalities that are opting for fairness and inclusivity for all Americans.
But then, like a sore loser, he calls on nonbelievers to "stay home for the holidays. Let Christian groups set up Nativity scenes in public spaces unanswered in December, and save the atheist messages for another time of year."
Haynes complains that the "in-your-face tactics" of people like [FFRF member] Damon Vix, who organized the nonreligious displays in Santa Monica, Calif., including a Winter Solstice banner from the Freedom From Religion Foundation, have become "counterproductive and needlessly divisive."
Counterproductive of what? Isn't diversity — with freedom and justice for all — what America is all about? And if there is divisiveness, who is to blame? Does December belong only to Christians?
Haynes is certainly aware that this season of the year has been celebrated for millennia before the Christian Church usurped it for its own agenda. No respectable scholar thinks Jesus was born in December, if he was born at all.
Many other pagan sun gods and resurrected "saviors" had been purportedly born on Dec. 25, long before a sect of messianic Jews came up with their own version of the story. The Romans celebrated the Saturnalia during December, leading up to the New Year, Dies Natalis Sol Invicti, the "Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun," on Dec. 25, which was the date in the Julian calendar of the Winter Solstice, the actual new year.
The real "reason for the season" is the natural astronomical holiday. We all like to honor the shortest day of the year with lights, food, gifts, fun, music, and family gatherings, as it signals the return of the sun for another year. While everything in the upper northern hemisphere is dark and colorless, the evergreen signifies hope for a returning spring. None of this is supernatural. It has nothing to do with the birth of a god.
In America, Christians are welcome to celebrate whatever they want. We are happy to share the season with them. They just can't use the government to privilege their party over everyone else's.
I understand how Haynes might feel that nonreligious displays during December "ridicule" the precious beliefs of Christians, but what is wrong with ridicule? What is wrong with protest, in this great country that cherishes the freedom of speech and the freedom of religion? Protestantism, for example, is based on protest — it's right there in the word itself. The Puritans (who eschewed Christmas) based their entire flight to the new world on their ridicule of the Roman Catholic faith. And Catholics have had their inquisitions and holy wars. Religion, at its core, is fiercely divisive, criticizing and ridiculing all other faiths and nonfaiths.
To us nonbelievers, the nativity scene is a ridicule of human nature. We are all damned sinners who need to be "saved" by bowing down to the baby in the manger who grew up to become a king and dictator who threatens us with eternal torment if we do not submit like slaves to his authority. A popular Christmas carol claims that Jesus came "to save us all from Satan's power while we were gone astray." Believers might see a cute baby in a manger, but most nonbelievers see an in-your-face put-down of humanity.
We are not sinners or slaves. We live in a proudly rebellious country that fought a divisive Revolutionary War to get rid of kings and lords, establishing a nation that disestablishes religion.
Nobody should have to stay home for the holidays. We atheists love this time of year like everyone else, and we actually know what we are celebrating: the rebirth of the sun, not the birth of the son. Christians can do whatever they like in their churches and private property, but in the American public square, there is room at the inn for all of us.
Dan Barker, a former minister, is co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation and author of Godless: How an Evangelical Preacher Became One of America's Leading Atheists and several other freethought books.
FFRF Legal Victories
Rock the cradle;
save the Constitution
FFRF convinced the town of Century, Fla., to halt a proposal to put a nativity scene on public property.
FFRF took issue in July with the Century's planned erection and maintenance of a nativity scene at Town Hall. Council President Ann Brooks initially told reporters "we all want a manger scene," and said that the council had been budgeting funds to purchase such a display.
In a July 20 letter to Brooks, FFRF Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel pointed out that "not all Century residents want a manger scene."
Century has fewer than 2,000 residents
"There are ample private and church grounds where religious displays may be freely placed. Once the council enters into the religion business, conferring endorsement and preference for one religion over others, it strikes a blow at religious liberty, forcing taxpayers of all faiths and of no religion to support a particular expression of worship," added Seidel.
Although no town official has responded to FFRF, a Dec. 6 news story on NorthEscambia.com confirmed a victory: "The Town of Century has declared their nativity scene as surplus property and will sell it to the highest bidder, months after an attorney for a Wisconsin group that represents agnostics and atheists sent letters to the town claiming that a nativity display on public property is illegal."
The nativity scene was later put on private church property "just yards from" Town Hall, the paper reported.
The high bid for the display was $5 from Faith Bible Baptist Church. Abundant Life Assembly of God bid $2, and Tabernacle Baptist Church bid $1.
On Dec. 12, the paper quoted an unidentified town official saying the sale of the nativity scene was not a response to FFRF's complaint, "but was due solely to the aging condition of the manger scene." [You'd have to believe in the Tooth Fairy to swallow that.]
FFRF limits church
sign to Sundays
Endeavour Elementary School in New Haven, Mich., took down a lawn sign promoting a church that rents the school's cafeteria every Sunday.
After receiving a complaint from a local resident, Senior Staff Attorney Rebecca Markert wrote New Haven School District Superintendent Keith Wunderlich on Oct. 11 about the impropriety of keeping a permanent sign promoting a church on school property.
Wunderlich responded Oct. 12, acknowledging that keeping the sign up all week was a problem. He said the church complied with the district's request to only keep the sign up on Sundays.
FFRF ends Kentucky prayers, church fliers
Elkhorn City Elementary School in Elkhorn City, Ky., will no longer allow organized prayer or display religious ads or fliers in the building.
The school principal and Pike County Schools Superintendent Roger Wagner took this action as a result of a July letter from FFRF Senior Staff Attorney Rebecca Markert.
A concerned parent had told FFRF that his 5-year-old daughter's teacher had been instructing her students to pray. His daughter told him she'd been praying every day before lunch for the past two years. The parent also told FFRF that the school had posted Christian and church event fliers.
Markert wrote that the school should educate the teacher "about why public school authorities may not abuse positions of trust to proselytize 4-year-olds or any students."
Wagner and the principal each responded in Oct. 30 and Nov. 1 letters to affirm that organized prayer and religious fliers in the schools had ended.
Proselytizing teacher instructed to stop
A teacher at Carver Middle School in Monroe, Ga., "turned her public school classroom into a Sunday school," preaching to students and talking about the importance of Christianity.
A local family was appalled by this blatant violation of the First Amendment and contacted FFRF.
Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel wrote Superintendent Gary Hobbs on Oct. 24, asking him to investigate and take the appropriate disciplinary action. Not only did the teacher reportedly talk about "knowing god," she did not offer a discussion of any other religion or religious preferences aside from Christianity.
Seidel pointed out that the teacher said that "each of her students 'needs to be saved.' " He also called her daily sermons an assault on "vulnerable children."
Hobbs replied Dec. 4, writing that the principal directed the teacher to "eliminate personal discussion of religion, her church and her beliefs with students."
L.A. sheriff addresses FFRF concerns
Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel contacted Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca on Nov. 5 about religion being pushed in Vital Intervention and Directional Alternatives, a four-month program to help at-risk youth.
A local complainant said program participants were taken to an event Oct. 12 at a martial arts studio and forced to listen to a preacher and asked to "accept Jesus."
Baca responded with a Nov. 26 letter which said that in the past, participants exercised and learned about martial arts and responsibility at the studio. The VIDA program is updating its manual to include a section that reinforces the prohibition of prayer or proselytizing with the VIDA participants, Baca wrote.
He said he appreciated FFRF bringing the issue to his attention. VIDA personnel and volunteers received specific instruction on the issue at a meeting on Nov. 16.
"It is not appropriate for VIDA personnel to place the VIDA participants into a situation where any form of religion is endorsed," Baca wrote.
FFRF letter stops religious newsletters
A principal will no longer be able to proselytize to the staff at Deaf Smith Elementary School in Rosenberg, Texas, in weekly newsletters.
FFRF Staff Attorney Stephanie Schmitt sent a letter Nov. 12 to Lamar Consolidated Independent School District Superintendent Thomas Randle alerting the district to the principal's First Amendment violation. Schmitt wrote that the newsletters, called Friday Focus, "regularly include bible verses, biblical references and sermon-like discussions that reference Jesus and present biblical stories as fact." The staff member complained to FFRF that the newsletter had turned into a "Sunday sermon."
Randle responded Nov. 15 to say the district investigated the issue and found the newsletters contravened district policy. The principal was instructed to stop putting religious references in staff communications. The district will review his newsletters before they are sent to staff, Randle said.
FFRF's 'Hawaiian eyes' silence concert
The Moanalua High School Music Department (Honolulu, Hawaii) has canceled a concert in response to an complaint by FFRF and Hawaii activist Mitch Kahle.
For four years, the school had partnered with New Hope Church to put on a holiday concert. Students and families had to purchase tickets from the church. Several complainants reported that they had to attend a church service before they were allowed to buy the tickets.
In a Dec. 3 letter to state Department of Education Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi, Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel pointed out that "all payments are made to New Hope Church, not the school," adding that past concerts included prayers and proselytizing by New Hope's pastor.
Matayoshi contacted Seidel on Dec. 3 to tell him the concert had been canceled.
FFRF stops Oklahoma graduation prayer
Seniors at Tahlequah High School in Tahlequah, Okla., will be able to walk across the stage and receive their high school diploma without being subjected to a prayer first.
A senior at Tahlequah informed FFRF about the violation that occurred at graduation every year.
The prayer received support from much of the school's staff, many of whom bowed their heads and prayed during the 2011 graduation ceremony. The prayer, which included references to "Our Lord," was part of multiple practice graduation ceremonies.
FFRF Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel wrote a Nov. 9 letter to Superintendent Lisa Presley outlining the violation. "By delivering such graduation prayers, the Tahlequah Public Schools abridges its duty to remain neutral."
Presley responded Nov. 20: "Tah-lequah Public Schools will take the appropriate steps to ensure that religious rituals are not apart of future graduation ceremonies or any other school-sponsored events."
School's football prayer is no more
FFRF enforced the Constitution at East Poinsett County High School in Lepanto, Ark., by successfully ending pregame football prayer led by a pastor over the public address system.
Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott wrote to Superintendent Michael Pierce on Nov. 19: "Public high school events must be secular to protect the freedom of conscience of all students."
Pierce replied Nov. 27 that the prayer has stopped.
Gideons not welcome in Virginia school
Park View Middle School in Boydton, Va., will no longer allow Gideons Internation to have access to students. A local complainant reported men were distributing bibles and a teacher even told students "don't forget to get your bibles" as they boarded the school bus.
"When a school distributes religious literature to its students, even passively, it has unconstitutionally entangled itself with a religious message, in this case a Christian message," wrote Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott on Oct. 26 to Superintendent James Thornton.
Thornton answered Nov. 7 and said all school personnel had been informed of the district's policy. In a memo to staff, Thornton advised: "If the purpose of the activity is not secular, if the effect of the activity is to advance or inhibit religion, or if the activity involves an excessive entanglement, then the activity is unconstitutional and will not be permitted."
Religious emails to be reviewed
Wichita Public Schools in Wichita, Kan., is revising school policy after Staff Attorney Stephanie Schmitt's Nov. 8 letter to Superintendent John Allison. Two staff members at Wichita West High School had bible quotations in their official district email signature.
Schmitt reminded Allison that was offensive and unconstitutional.
General Counsel Thomas Powell responded Dec. 7, writing that the email situation will be addressed along with separation of church/state in revisions of school policy.
Police Latin crosses out in Texas
The Cedar Park, Texas, Police Department will remove Latin cross depictions after getting FFRF's letter. FFRF also took issue with the city's "Police Chaplain," especially since he drove a vehicle with an official department seal and the words "Chaplain, City of Cedar Park."
Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel wrote to Mayor Matt Powell and the council in July asking for removal of the cross on all city items. He also pointed out the impropriety of even having a chaplain program. "[T]hey are unnecessary, because unlike prisons or the military, the government is not burdening anyone's religious practice."
In a Dec. 6 phone call with the city attorney, Seidel learned that police badges, cars and shirts will no longer feature a Latin cross by the end of January.
State/Church Bulletin
'Choose Life' plates struck down in N.C.
CNN reported that U.S. District Judge James Fox ruled Dec. 7 that North Carolina's "Choose Life" license plates are unconstitutional.
"The state's offering a Choose Life license plate in the absence of a pro-choice alternative constitutes viewpoint discrimination in violation of the First Amendment," Fox wrote.
Republican state Rep. Mitch Gillespie, who sponsored the bill for the plates, wants to appeal the decision.
Lawmakers voted down amendments that would have created pro-choice alternatives such as "Trust Women. Respect Choice."
Judge charged for religion in courthouse
The Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission has filed notice of formal charges against Leon County Judge Judith Hawkins for allegedly running a religious materials business out of the courthouse, WCTV reported Dec. 6.
Hawkins is accused of using her county email account, judicial assistant and her office spaces and equipment to create, edit and promote Gaza Road Ministry products "to the detriment of the prompt and efficient administration of justice."
She makes $142,000 annually as a judge.
Texas student refuses school's 'beastly' ID
Northside Independent School District in San Antonio, Texas, which started requiring students to wear radio frequency identification tracking chips this year, is being sued in federal court by sophomore Andrea Hernandez, who refuses to wear the ID tag on biblical grounds.
The Rutherford Institute, an evangelical legal group in Charlottesville, Va., is representing Hernandez. Institute President John Whitehead told the Washington Post that, according to the Hernandez family's beliefs, "any kind of identifying badge from the government is the mark of the beast, which means that you pay allegiance to a false God."
District officials have repeatedly offered to let Hernandez come to school wearing an ID card without the chip and battery. Her lawyers have filed a motion claiming that a badge with no tracking capabilities still runs counter to her Christian principles.
Louisiana vouchers ruled unconstitutional
Louisiana State District Judge Tim Kelley ruled Nov. 30 in Baton Rouge that the expanded voucher program in Act 2 of Gov. Bobby Jindal's educational reform package put into effect this school year is unconstitutional.
Kelley ruled that the program improperly diverts tax dollars from the state's public school funding formula to private schools, reported Ponchartrain Newspapers.
About 4,900 students have enrolled in 117 private schools with taxpayer dollars. More than 10,000 students applied.
New backdoor effort to teach creationism
Indiana State Sen. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn, who earlier failed to get a bill passed letting schools "teach the controversy" about evolution, has a new idea: Requiring teachers to provide evidence if students challenge their science lessons. The chairman of the Senate Education and Career Development Committee calls it "truth in education."
Kruse said, "If a student thinks something isn't true, then they can question the teacher and the teacher would have to come up with some kind of research to support that what they are teaching is true or not true."
Gerry Wheeler, National Science Teachers Association executive direction, called it a "a creative new evolution that the creationists are going to" and one of the "very insidious ways of trying to get nonscience into the science classroom."
Oklahoma high court reverses voucher ban
In a 7-2 decision, the Oklahoma Supreme Court on Nov. 20 reversed a lower court decision that struck down the state's school voucher program for special needs students because it used public money to benefit sectarian institutions.
The Supreme Court ruled that the school district plaintiffs lack standing because they are not taxpayers, and that the funding is not from local tax dollars but from the Legislature's general grant to the districts through the state Department of Education.
Judge mandates church for convicted teen
When District Judge Mike Norman, Muskogee, Okla., sentenced Tyler Alred, 17, on a vehicular manslaughter conviction in November, he included Sunday church attendance for 10 years as a requirement of a deferred sentence. The District Attorney's Office is supposed to monitor Alred's church attendance, the Tulsa World reported.
Randall Coyne, University of Oklahoma College of Law professor, said the church condition would likely not stand if challenged, but someone would have to complain. Norman expressed doubt anyone would challenge it.
Enter the ACLU of Oklahoma, which on Dec. 4 filed a complaint with the state Council on Judicial Complaints, asserting that the sentence violates the Code of Judicial Conduct. Brady Henderson, ACLU legal director, said giving a defendant a choice between church and prison can't be enforced without illegal government intrusion.
"I firmly believe in going to church, but the bible also tells you to obey the laws of the land," said Muskogee County District Attorney Larry Moore. "You can obey the laws of the land and still be a Christian. In this case, the laws of the land do not permit a judge to order you to go to church."
Turkey fines channel for 'Simpsons' blasphemy
The Telegraph reported Dec. 3 that Turkey's Supreme Board of Radio and Television fined CNBC-E for "making fun of God, encouraging the young people to exercise violence by showing the murders [in a 'Simpsons' Halloween episode] as God's orders."
The episode, "Treehouse of Horrors XXII," has a segment titled "Dial D for Diddly" in which Ned Flanders goes on a killing rampage after hearing what he thinks is the voice of God. Later in the episode, the devil demands God bring him a cup of coffee. "Yes sir," God responds, revealing it's actually the devil who runs the world.
Turkey is officially secular, but most of its 75 million people are Muslim.
Diocese's 'Obamacare' lawsuit dismissed
U.S. District Judge Terrence McVerry on Nov. 27 dismissed the Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese's lawsuit against the Obama administration for requiring it to offer birth control services to employees as part of the federal health care mandate.
McVerry said in his 28-page opinion that the diocese has not been harmed by the law because most of its provisions don't take effect until 2014. "[D]e-
fendants have actively begun the process of amending the regulations to address the specific religious objections which plaintiffs raise in this litigation."
Kansas mayor to remove cross from city logo
FFRF has successfully petitioned the city of Buhler, Kan., to remove a cross from its official seal.
After receiving a complaint from an offended Buhler citizen, Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott wrote Sept. 14 to Mayor Daniel Friesen, pointing out it's unlawful for a city to use a Latin cross as part of its official symbol. Elliott cited seven federal court decisions that held crosses on municipal seals and logos to be unconstitutional.
Friesen told reporters that "the city consulted several law firms, which said the city would most likely lose if it took this to court."
"The endorsement of religion in the Buhler seal is particularly egregious because the cross is prominently featured and used to symbolize the 'Traditional Values' portion of the town motto. Courts addressing less prominent depictions have found that the inclusion of a Latin cross among other symbols on government seals and logos violates the Establishment Clause," wrote Elliott.
The mayor correctly noted that if the city were to fight the case it would be wasting taxpayer money.
The story erupted in Kansas and nationally in late November.
The Fox News Channel, in its coverage of what it called "culture war news," relentlessly pummeled FFRF on various nationally broadcast programs and on Facebook. Eric Bolling, who replaced Glenn Beck and kicked FFRF Co-President Dan Barker off the air last year, said during a segment of "The Five" that the city had a "free speech" right to endorse religion: "Back off, Freedom From Religion. Can't stand that group, by the way. . . . It's groups like Freedom From Religion that are the problem."
The mayor announced the seal will be redesigned without the cross.
Please contact the mayor to thank him for his responsible decision and to affirm why cities can't endorse religion:
Mayor Daniel P. Friesen
602 N Main
Buhler, KS 67522
Freethought Today gets 'church discount'
FFRF helped one of its Pennsylvania members obtain a favorable ruling for nonbelievers from the state Human Relations Commission.
After John Wolff of Lancaster was unable to get the owners of Prudhomme's Lost Cajun Kitchen in Columbia to stop discriminating against atheists and agnostics, he enlisted FFRF's help. The restaurant was offering an illegal 10% discount for customers who brought in a church bulletin.
On April 11, 2011, FFRF Senior Staff Attorney Rebecca Markert wrote the first of three letters of complaint to owners Sharon and Dave and Sharon Prudhomme. Markert pointed out that the discount "violates the federal Civil Rights Act in addition to provisions of state civil rights statutes.
"The Civil Rights Act states in relevant part, 'All persons shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of any place of public accommodation . . . without discrimination on the ground of race, color, religion, or national origin,' " wrote Markert, adding, "As a place of 'public accommodation,' it is illegal for Lost Cajun Kitchen to discriminate, or show favoritism, on the basis of religion."
After getting no response, Wolff filed a complaint with the state Human Relations Commission. On Sept. 24, the commission approved the following terms of settlement:
"Respondent will continue to give a discount for any bulletin from any group oriented around the subject of religious faith[,] including publications from the Freedom From Religion Foundations[,] as long as they maintain the Sunday discount program."
Wolff was notified Nov. 21 by letter of the disposition of his complaint.
Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor noted that FFRF publishes a monthly newspaper, Freethought Today, and several irreligious "nontracts" that apparently now qualify as church bulletins. "We have titles such as 'Why Women Need Freedom From Religion,' 'Is America a Christian Nation?' 'What's Wrong With the Ten Commandments?' and 'What Does the Bible Say About Abortion?' "
Congratulations to John for his persistence and activism!


text:
Attacks kill 29 people in Iraq
BAGHDAD (AP) — A wave of attacks across Iraq on Tuesday killed at least 29 people, mostly members of the security forces, while a Sunni lawmaker escaped an assassination attempt, officials said.
Police officials say the deadliest of Tuesday's attacks took place at night when a suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden tanker into a security checkpoint in the northeast suburbs of Baghdad, killing six soldiers and three civilians. The officials added that 21 people were wounded in the attack.
Hours earlier, police said gunmen attacked an army post in Tarmiyah town just north of Baghdad, killing eight soldiers and wounding 13.
Later on, a roadside bomb hit the convoy of Sunni lawmaker Salim al-Jubouri in the Ghalibiya district of Baghdad. Two bodyguards were killed and seven others were wounded in the attack, according to the police.
Also, a car bomb blast in a commercial street in western Baghdad killed four people and wounded 12 others. Police said a bomb blast near a market in Baghdad's southern suburbs of al-Rahseed killed one person and wounded five others.
In northern city of Mosul, gunmen sprayed an army checkpoint with bullets, killing five soldiers.
Hospital medics confirmed the casualties for all attacks. All officers spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, but they bore the hallmarks of an al-Qaida breakaway group that frequently uses car bombs and suicide attacks to target public areas and members of security forces in their bid to undermine confidence in the government.
Violence has escalated in Iraq over the past year. Last year, the country saw the highest death toll since the worst of the country's sectarian bloodletting began to subside in 2007, according to United Nations figures. The U.N. said violence killed 8,868 last year in Iraq.
Associated Press writer Qassim Abdul-Zahra contributed to this report.


text:
[Lake Mineral Wells, 1 of 4, Flood Stage]
Description: Lake Mineral Wells, Mineral Wells State Park, is shown here in flood stage. Heavy spring rains dumped 7.2 inches of rainfall into the area over a violent week-end in March 1976, resulting in a flood that claimed 24 lives in fire- and water-related incidents. The dam is visible on the far left side of the picture, with water flowing over it. Flood waters cover a large part of the land between the photographer and the dam. The public boat ramp and fueling station are on the peninsula at the far right side of the picture. The picture is part of a group of films labeled "1977", but related news articles give the date as March of the previous year.
Date: 1941~
Item Type: Refine your search to only Photograph


text:
King of Brix wrote:Read my new battle report. There's a small discussion about how GIMP is better than Photoshop in one of the many areas where I got sidetracked. Nice pictures, by the way. Dan would kill to be able to do this, however, he's terrible with photoshop and GIMP alike.
I've read your battle report. Interesting content. But what you have to think about is not using GIMP to make a cool picture, but to make a cool picture even cooler. You have to take good pictures in the first place and then just use the cool GIMP effects. A lot of the pictures on your report are cropped and sized a bit wierd and many are out of focus or at poor angles.


text:
Ryan Reynolds Punches Scott Speedman for 'Queen of the Night'
Ryan Reynolds throws a powerful punch and knocks his Queen of the Night co-star Scott Speedman to the ground on Tuesday (February 12) in Sudbury, Canada.
The 36-year-old actor and Scott filmed the punch scene that day before taking a break to joke around on set.
PHOTOS: Check out the latest pics of Ryan Reynolds
Queen of the Night is about a father who is trying to track down his kidnapped daughter.
Over the weekend, Ryan and his wife Blake Lively enjoyed the snowy weather together.
15+ pictures inside of Ryan Reynolds punching Scott Speedman on set…