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(Pocket-lint) - Want to take pictures of skittish wildlife like an expert "twitcher" or cheating partners unawares, paparazzi style? Kodak's current big zoom bridge model in the 14-megapixel EasyShare Z981, offering a 26x optical reach equivalent to a whopping 26-676mm in 35mm film terms could become your weapon of choice.
Not much smaller than an entry DSLR with dimensions of 123.7 x 84.8 x 105mm and weighing 520g without accessories, first impressions of the Z981 is that it's a bit of a brick however. In use the tube-like lens extends an extra 2.5 inches in front of the camera when at maximum telephoto setting.
The added bulk over competition, such as Pentax's X90, is partly due to the four pre-charged NiMH AA batteries the Kodak requires for power being inserted into the base of its handgrip. Given that, we'd expected the camera to be slightly cheaper than its £399 asking price, which cost-wise makes it a direct alternative to a digital SLR proper.
Still, the camera feels firm and solidly built, its only Achilles heel being the sliding catch for the door protecting the joint battery and card compartment at its base, which was prohibitively stiff on our review sample. We had to force it open or closed.
There are positive surprises too, including a second shutter release button located at the base of the handgrip to theoretically aid use if turning the camera on its side to shoot portrait fashion. A top plate switch allows the photographer to swap between use of the two. This is something we've only previously witnessed on professional DSLRs, not that we found ourselves compelled to use it much, since the camera is overall still much smaller than a pro DSLR with battery grip so it's not so much of a stretch for the hand to reach the top plate under such circumstances.
A rubberised surround to the lens barrel aids grip when taking photographs handheld, as does the moulded grip proper. Plus, top banana RAW file capture is offered alongside the common JPEG format. Not unusual on a bridge camera perhaps, but not a given.
Pictures are composed - and reviewed - via 3-inch 230k-dot resolution LCD that takes up two-thirds of the space at the rear or identical resolution electronic viewfinder (EVF) directly above, with button alongside allowing the user to swap between them in an instant. Integral flash is of the fully automatic pop-up variety, and, unlike on higher end bridge models or DSLRs proper, there's no additional hotshoe for a separate flashgun.
The Z981 being part of Kodak's EasyShare family there's a dedicated button in the midst of the camera back for earmarking certain images for upload to the most popular social networking sites, as well as Kodak's own online gallery. We'd have preferred instead to have had included a dedicated one-touch record button for shooting video though, which is what, at first glance, it's easy to mistake the red "Share" button on the backplate for.
Other than that the Z981's backplate is reasonably "clean" as regards features, four buttons tucked in unobtrusively down the right hand edge of the screen - including dedicated delete, menu, display info (including live histogram in its creative modes) and playback controls - plus a thumb-operated directional control pad with central "OK" button to their right. Extra functions are not attributed to the directional arrows as on competing models, so, used in conjunction with mode options and menu screens this proves to be a navigation device pure and simple.
In P,A,S,M shooting modes a toolbar of key functions - such as shutter speed, aperture, exposure (+/- 2EV) and light sensitivity settings (ISO 64-1600 manually selectable) is presented running along the bottom of the screen, selections are made with a scroll and downward press of a small jog dial peeping out of the Z981's top plate. Though it is great that users are provided with this shortcut, being able to use the larger thumb operated control pad to make the same selections would have been less fiddly.
As it is, the recording of 1280 x 720 pixel HD clips at a 30fps playback rate starts and ends with a press of the shutter release button, having first selected video mode from among 10 options among the familiar bottle-top style mode dial on the camera's top plate, which also includes access to 16 preset scene modes. The built-in mono microphone is quite sensitive in that it picks up the zoom's operational adjustments and the user's hand movements, but in fairness at least the optical zoom remains accessible in movie mode, focus continually re-adjusting if left on default continuous AF setting. There's no HDMI output for hooking the camera up to a flat panel TV however.
In stills shooting mode, you can also hear the lens constantly "hunting" as it readies itself for the next shot. If we take issue it's that image-writing times are quite sluggish - the camera freezing for 5 seconds while a 14-megapixel JPEG file is being committed to SD card for example. Quite a few times we found ourselves quickly lining up the next shot and finding the camera wouldn't actually take it, as it was still processing the previous one, which proved frustrating.
Users also have a choice of two colour modes - "Natural" or "High Colour" for additional vividness that, with Kodak noted for well saturated colour anyway, at times produces results bordering on the lurid when downloaded and examined straight out of the camera.
Utilising the 26mm wide-angle end of the zoom, operated by a narrow rocker switch top right of the camera back, does result in some quite pronounced barrel distortion visible in images, while at the telephoto end shots are quite soft. When filming it's difficult to obtain a smooth transitional motion; the zoom is so responsive your footage ends up a little jerky.
Generally speaking the Kodak's JPEGs lack bite and contrast - at times over-exposed, something that can be corrected in Photoshop to an extent, but arguably you don't want to have to manually tweak every image. Also, even when shooting using the camera's "natural" setting, colours looked over saturated and a tad unrealistic, especially if literally shooting a natural (as opposed to man made) subject. At higher ISOs detail lessens as noise preventing processing kicks in, with images taken at ISO 1600 over our test period more closely resembling video grabs.
Delivering overly-bright colours at times, plus some quite pronounced barrel distortion and overall softness, results from the Z981 seem somehow to add up to less than the sum of its individual parts, more impressive on paper than in practice. Build quality is chunky and robust and its spacious layout will appeal to those with larger hands.
Those looking for a more portable high zoom option meanwhile may be better served by the likes of Canon's 14-megapixel, 14x optical zoom PowerShot SX210 IS, if prepared to sacrifice lens power for smaller form factor. Good news for Kodak fans does come however in the fact that we found the camera for £100 cheaper with a brief online search.


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Your pregnancy and baby guide
Sleep problems in young children
Open all pages about Your pregnancy and baby guide
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Lots of young children find it difficult to settle down to sleep and will wake up during the night.
For some people, this might not be a problem. But if you or your child are suffering from a lack of sleep, there are some simple techniques you can try.
Every child is different, so only do what you feel comfortable with and what you think will suit your child.
If your child will not go to bed
- Decide what time you want your child to go to bed.
- Start a "winding down" bedtime routine 20 minutes before the time that your child usually falls asleep. Bring this forward by 5 to 10 minutes each week – or 15 minutes if your child is in the habit of going to bed very late – until you get to the bedtime you want.
- Set a limit on how much time you spend with your child when you put them to bed. For example, read only 1 story, then tuck your child in and say goodnight.
- Give your child their favourite toy, dummy (if they use one) or comforter before settling into bed.
- Leave a beaker of water within reach and a dim light on if necessary.
- If your child gets up, keep taking them back to bed again with as little fuss as possible.
- Try to be consistent.
- You may have to repeat this routine for several nights.
If your child will not go to sleep without you
This technique can help toddlers (over 12 months) or older children get used to going to sleep without you in the room.
It can also be used whenever your child wakes in the middle of the night.
Be prepared for your child to take a long time to settle when you first start.
You can use strokes or pats instead of kisses if your child sleeps in a cot and you cannot reach them to give them a kiss.
- Follow a regular calming bedtime routine.
- Put your child to bed when they're drowsy but awake, then kiss them goodnight.
- Promise to go back in a few moments to give them another kiss.
- Return almost immediately to give a kiss.
- Take a few steps to the door, then return immediately to give a kiss.
- Promise to return in a few moments to give them another kiss.
- Put something away or do something in the room then give them a kiss.
- As long as the child stays in bed, keep returning to give more kisses.
- Do something outside their room and return to give kisses.
- If the child gets out of bed, say: "Back into bed and I'll give you a kiss".
- Keep going back often to give kisses until they're asleep.
- Repeat every time your child wakes during the night.
More sleep tips for under-5s
- Make sure you have a calming, predictable bedtime routine that happens at the same time and includes the same things every night.
- If your child complains that they're hungry at night, try giving them a bowl of cereal and milk before bed (make sure you brush their teeth afterwards).
- If your child is afraid of the dark, consider using a nightlight or leaving a landing light on.
- Do not let your child look at laptops, tablets or phones in the 30 to 60 minutes before bed – the light from screens can interfere with sleep.
- If your child wakes up during the night, be as boring as possible – leave lights off, avoid eye contact and do not talk to them more than necessary.
- Avoid long naps in the afternoon.
Help your disabled child to sleep
Sometimes children with long-term illnesses or disabilities find it more difficult to sleep through the night. This can be challenging both for them and for you.
The charity Contact has more information about helping you and your child sleep.
Scope also has sleep advice for parents of disabled children.
More help with children's sleep problems
It can take patience, consistency and commitment, but most children's sleep problems can be solved.
If your child is still having problems sleeping, you can talk to your health visitor.
They may have other ideas or suggest you make an appointment at a children's sleep clinic, if there's one in your area.
Page last reviewed: 04/10/2019
Next review due: 04/10/2022

subset: commoncrawl


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Daniel Estrin
Daniel Estrin is NPR's international correspondent in Jerusalem.
Since joining NPR in 2017, he has reported from Israel, Gaza, the West Bank, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. He has chronicled the Trump Administration's policies that have shaped the region, and told stories of everyday life for Israelis and Palestinians. He has also uncovered tales of ancient manuscripts, secret agents and forbidden travel.
Estrin has reported from the Middle East for over a decade, including seven years with the Associated Press. His reporting has taken him to Britain, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Jordan, Russia and Ukraine. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The New Republic, PRI's The World and other media.


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We'll help you put a lifetime of hard work to work for you and your family. Start banking on your future with retirement savings and services built around you.
Whether or not you are currently participating in an employer-sponsored retirement plan, you may want to supplement your retirement savings through a self-funded plan as well. Choose the Individual Retirement Account (IRA) option that is right for you.
Contributions to a traditional IRA can help retirement savings balances grow faster since future earnings reinvest on a tax-deferred basis.
For those who would rather pay their taxes now than later, a Roth IRA offers an opportunity to contribute after-tax dollars today, so that balances may accumulate and grow tax-free until they are withdrawn.
Find a better home for your old 401(k) plan(s).
When you move on, don't leave your 401(k) savings behind. Roll it over to an Old Second Direct Rollover IRA account.


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Peer-Reviewed Publications
Found 6 resultsTitle
Filters: Author is Hafetz, Jessica [Clear All Filters]
Prevalence of teen driver errors leading to serious motor vehicle crashes." Accid Anal Prev. 2011;43(4):1285-90."
Adolescent Drivers' Perceptions of the Advantages and Disadvantages of Abstention from In-vehicle Cell Phone Use." Accident Analysis & Prevention. 2010;42(6):1570-76."
Child and parent perceptions of monitoring in chronic illness management: a qualitative study." Child Care Health Dev. 2010;36(5):655-62."
Aggression, gender-typical childhood play, and a prenatal hormonal index." Social Behavior and Personality: an international journal. 2009;37:105-116."
Gender differences in relational and physical aggression. ." Social Behavior and Personality: an international journal. 2007;35(1):41-50."
Gender differences in relations of mental rotation, verbal fluency, and SAT scores to finger length ratios as hormonal indexes." Dev Neuropsychol. 2005;28(1):493-505."


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The link to the solutions site returns a "Forbidden". Where else can one get the hints?
The link to the solutions site returns a "Forbidden". Where else can one get the hints?
Hay,I am slow and need help where do i find gold coins ,I've killed all the bugs but no coinsOriginally Posted by [b
Man, I have been a member there for months!
About installing dmods, they show in the standard frontend.
And if too much dmods get installed the frontend just crashes. But I think you can istall dmods limitless!
What is a D-Mod? I just started playing this, still at he Dragon place...its confusing.
i can
Dmods are small to epic adventures, made by different people, and available to download from: The Dink Network.
"Living on Earth is expensive, but it does include a free trip around the sun...."
Updated the links... its been a while.
Hi i want to know how to get pass the bridge? It tells me that i need 100 gold but i can not find them so can u helpOriginally Posted by [b
Have you slain the bonca in the cave for Martridge? If so, return to his house and you should find a reward.
Twice the mayhem, triple the force, ten times the action, total hardcore.
how can i change the keyboard options ? (my ctrl button dont work) or how can i control dint witch mouse?
does anyone play this anymore? I DO!
This was so addictive it almost cost me my job back in the day. Can you imagine Dink Smallwood: The Movie?
This is not relate to growotpia but nice topic on the game Seth Got to work on those games he made
1. Get 200 Dls
2.Help Everyone Come Together
3. Enjoy the game with no trouble
4. BeTrusted by everyone
MY Poems
Check My profile#MakeGrowtopiaGreatAgain
"There is hope. It is given to everyone even when you don't have it"
"We can all make a change but we choose not to"
" I am the guiding light to those who are lost within the Hands of Darkness"
Someone please tell me what this game is all about?
I play Growtopia.


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Davida news, events and features — november
Up To 50% Discount - Black Friday to Cyber Monday Sale Of In Stock Items At Davida
Posted by Sharon Underhill on
Great deals on Davida Helmets BLACK FRIDAY SALE Get up to 50% off in stock items Friday 29th November - Monday 2nd December 2019 29th Nov - Friday - get the best selection and best deals on Davida Helmets and Face Masks. 50 - 35 % off Davida Jet Helmets 40 - 30% off Davida Ninety 2 Helmets 30 - 35% off All Davida Speedster Helmets 25% off Davida Classic Helmets 10% off Davida Koura Helmets 1st December- Sunday - grab yourself a treat when a whole range of Goggles and Visors go into the sale together with Davida Leather Jeans and Jackets, Gloves and T-Shirts. All...
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Prepare for E-Discovery Before a Lawsuit Is FiledBy Jennifer Jackson Spencer Print
A well-organized records management program is the foundation for an effective electronic discovery program.
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require producing not just paper, but all electronic documents and data for trial. Defendants and their counsel must preserve and provide electronically stored information, and a court can inflict sanctions if it finds that relevant electronic documents have not been preserved and produced in discovery.
The records management life cycle is the foundation of an effective e-discovery program. In the traditional management model, every paper or electronic document goes through five steps: creation by the individual; distribution to intended recipients; storage of the physical or electronic document; retention of the document based on an assessment of its significance and value; and preservation in a manner that allows the document to be retrieved and searched.
When it comes to the preservation of electronically stored information (ESI), the IT organization should be an integral part of any records management strategy. IT professionals must take an active role in the discovery process and educate counsel on the technological basics of data storage and retrieval. This can be done only through strategic planning for electronic evidence gathering. Creating a management program for ESI begins by identifying and interviewing everyone who can help identify core business functions and values, and evaluate the status of records and policies.
Best Practices and Procedures
Once a company creates a data management plan that assesses what exists, it should develop best practices and procedures for storing and accessing ESI. This involves preparing internal training materials and publicizing the ESI management plans to all personnel, so that everyone understands the importance and responsibility of proper ESI retention procedures.
An effective program creates a systematic approach that is invaluable once a lawsuit begins the e-discovery process. That approach will build a detailed e-discovery protocol for ESI; identify the key e-discovery issues in the dispute, the right persons to answer those issues and the way they generate electronic information; and create detailed knowledge about where the e-documents are archived, how the servers are structured and the documents types that must be produced.
E-mail is a perfect example of what to address. Most business e-mail messages include enough information to make them records that are subject to e-discovery. Preserving valuable e-mail messages is crucial, but the key is finding a way that doesn't save every e-mail. Many companies temporarily store e-mails and require regular review by the people who generated them to decide which ones should be stored permanently, according to criteria established by management and legal counsel. Ideally, storage should be sorted by key categories, such as operational, financial, legal and human resources.
On the flip side is the problem of allowing employees to store informal business or personal ESI without making it part of the permanent archive. One solution is to require employees to purge their hard drives of such information on a weekly basis. Another approach is to limit how much data an employee can store in a year and require that all such data be stored on the main company server rather than the employee's hard drive. Regular data-storage audits can identify employees who are not complying with these requirements.
The E-Discovery Process
The e-discovery process takes up where the preservation stage leaves off, requiring the identification and collection of ESI relevant to a case, and moving to the next step of processing, reviewing and analyzing that information so it can be produced in discovery. Two factors complicate the process. First is the huge volume of documents that ESI encompasses: One gigabyte of ESI can equal up to 75,000 hard-copy pages, and many lawsuits require e-discovery production of up to one terabyte of material: 500 million pages.
The second factor is the short time frame: The Rules of Civil Procedure allow only a brief window after a lawsuit is filed to identify, analyze and classify relevant electronic data before the parties must meet in a conference required by Rule 26 to discuss e-discovery issues. The Rule 26 conference must be held "as soon as practicable," and at least 21 days before the scheduling conference, which is required within 120 days of filing a complaint.
Rule 26 permits the requesting party to ask for ESI production in specific formats, so participants should agree on the form in which the e-documents are provided: typically native, PDF or TIFF images, with WAV files used for voice records. The Rule 26 conference achieves its purpose when the parties identify all sources of ESI in their initial disclosures, and agree on logistical issues, such as accessibility, location and types of information, production formats and matters of privilege, as well as the scope of relevant information to exchange.
E-discovery can cost an organization millions of dollars, with lawyers sorting and reviewing ESI for trial. The cost can be reduced through software programs with search-and-retrieval algorithms that identify key terms and classify documents accordingly, but the real solution is to have an e-discovery process in place to manage your digital file cabinets before a lawsuit hits.
Being prepared can be a major advantage during litigation and settlement, and can save hundreds of thousands of dollars in discovery costs.
Jennifer Jackson Spencer, a trial lawyer and e-discovery expert, is a founding shareholder of Spencer Crain Cubbage Healy & McNamara, a litigation and business law firm based in Dallas.
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Apparently unafraid of displaying wrecked exotics to garner notoriety for their film, Redline's promotions types will be holding a vigil for the Enzo cracked up by Eddie Griffin in the days leading up to the premiere of the flick at Grauman's Chinese Theatre. The car goes on display today. The premiere is Thursday. We kind of barely care, but if you're in the area, feel free to stop by wearing your "Save the Enzos" shirts.
Wrecked Ferrari a Premiere Piece [SFGate]
Another Enzo Bites The Dust, This Time With Eddie Griffin At The Wheel [Internal]


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- Packed with whey protein isolates
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Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard Protein is packed with whey protein isolates and 24g of protein. Whey Protein Isolates (WPI) are the purest form of whey protein that currently exists. WPIs are costly to use, but rate among the best proteins that money can buy. That's why they're the first ingredient you read on Optimum Nutrition's Gold Standard 100% Whey label. By using WPI as the primary ingredient along with premium ultra-filtered whey protein concentrate (WPC), Optimum Nutrition is able to pack 24 grams of protein into every serving to support your muscle building needs after training. Optimum Nutrition's attention to detail also extends to mixability. This superior quality powder has been instantized to mix easily using a shaker cup or just a glass and spoon. There's no doubt that 100% Whey Gold Standard is the standard by which all other whey proteins are measured.
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Find a similar product


text:
More than 300 barges were awaiting passage through a closed section of the Mississippi River near Vicksburg, Mississippi, on Monday, a day after two tanker barges struck a railroad bridge and one leaked an unknown amount of oil into the river.
The river was closed between river mile markers 425 and 441 and a queue of 12 northbound vessels containing 142 barges and 12 southbound vessels containing 162 barges was waiting to pass on Monday morning, Coast Guard spokesman Carlos Vega said.
The cleanup could keep the river closed until at least Thursday, shipping sources said.
Barge freight costs were not immediately affected but bids firmed for loaded barges of soybeans down river from the closure.
"The timetable right now is that we don't expect it to reopen until at least Thursday," said one barge broker who asked not to be named.
"Freight buying interest has been very soft lately so it's not changing anything in the freight market today. The only thing it is doing is making some soybeans south of that closure worth a little more," he said.
Basis bids for afloat soybean barges in the CIF (cost, insurance and freight) market rose 2 cents per bushel to 112 cents over Chicago Board of Trade March futures, a 7-cent premium to barges loaded in the first half of February.
The cause of Sunday's accident was not yet clear, but the closure was the latest in a string of logistical headaches for shippers who rely on inland waterways to haul billions of dollars worth of grain, coal, fertilizer and other commodities.
Low water along a busy shipping corridor between St. Louis and Cairo, Illinois, has threatened to disrupt traffic on the drought-drained river since December. Dredging operations and other work aimed at keeping barges flowing have also snarled traffic at times.
The river system's busiest lock was closed for a day last week after a barge collided with a lock gate.
The Mississippi River is the main shipping waterway for grain moving from farms in the Midwest to export facilities at the Gulf of Mexico. Some 55 to 65 percent of U.S. corn, soybean and wheat shipments exit the country via the Gulf of Mexico.
(Reporting by Karl Plume in Chicago; Editing by Bob Burgdorfer)
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Bucs defined by advanced defensive analysis
Struggling franchise turned itself around through scouting, shifts
BRADENTON, Fla. -- Francisco Liriano arrived here last year at Pirates camp with a busted non-throwing arm and a shaky statistical track record, so he wasn't exactly in the best position to be overly judgmental about his new club and its quirks.
But even Liriano had to admit he felt a little uncomfortable, a little self-conscious the first time his infield defenders radically realigned themselves behind him in a game situation.
"This," Liriano remembered thinking, "is a little weird."
But Liriano put his faith in what the Pirates were attempting to accomplish with the application of advanced analytics, and that faith has been widespread enough -- from general manager Neal Huntington and the front office to Clint Hurdle and the coaching staff to the players themselves -- to help turn the once-woebegone Buccos into last year's National League Wild Card winner.
Pirates fans know all too well the importance of defensive positioning. Had Barry Bonds heeded Andy Van Slyke's advice to move in a few steps against the light-hitting Francisco Cabrera, maybe his throw would have nabbed Sid Bream at the plate in that famous 1992 NL Championship Series sequence.
More to the point, the 2013 season, at large, proved the merits of moving guys around. No Major League team, according to Baseball Info Solutions, used defensive shifts more than the Pirates last season, and, ergo, the Buccos' internal data suggests that they completed more plays "out of position" than anybody and were one of the most efficient defensive teams in the league.
This was the method by which the Pirates maximized the impact of their pitching staff and overcame an offense that, unlike any other postseason club, ranked in the lower-third in the Majors in runs per game.
"It's a huge reason," said Hurdle, "why we won the amount of games that we won without getting the kind of offensive support that teams that won the same number of games had."
And the on-field shifts are an extension of an organizational shift that took place shortly after Huntington arrived in 2007. Huntington and Co. wanted to find both a statistical analyst and a computer architect to build a new system for player evaluation.
"We ended up finding them in the same guy," Huntington said with a laugh.
That guy is Dan Fox, a former computer programmer and Baseball Prospectus writer who arrived in 2008 and, over time, has married the scientific and the strategic into a tangible whole.
When the word "rudimentary" was used to describe the Pirates' analytics department before Fox came aboard, Fox laughed.
"If," said Fox, "by 'rudimentary,' you mean 'nobody,' then yes."
Fox, having never worked for a big league team previously, was a veritable nobody in baseball circles, and he's the first to admit that the process of building a system of reliable data was a slow one.
But improved defensive positioning was an early target -- one the Pirates experimented with at the Minor League level. Through his interpretation of defensive metrics and batted-ball results, Fox concluded not only that the Pirates needed to shift more, but that their base positioning was askew. Then-farm director and current assistant GM Kyle Stark was open-minded enough to adjust the base positioning of the Minor League infielders, and despite not having the data to ascertain suitable shifts on a player-by-player basis, the Pirates saw immediate improvement.
"You could look at high-level things like ground balls [turned into outs] and see it was effective," Fox said.
Getting the Major League staff on board was a credit to Hurdle, who arrived in 2011 and was equally willing to embrace new ideas.
"It gave me an excellent opportunity to put into play what I share with the men all the time -- to be open-minded, use your eyes, use your ears," Hurdle said. "When we have the skill set of the people in the organization that we have, why not take your ego and kick it to the door? Listen to what they have to say, visually go over the information, the analytical work that's been done, look for a statistical advantage and if it makes sense, put it into play and trust it."
Trust is the operative word here. Because if the guy on the mound can't make a pitch with conviction, the whole system falls apart. And the dirty truth about defensive shifts is that they are going to create a few stinkers -- like ground balls to the traditional second-base slot that roll into the outfield grass instead of Neil Walker's glove.
But the Pirates fundamentally believe the shifts turn up more plusses than minuses. So at the beginning of each series, Fox provides his data to advance video scout Wyatt Toregas, infield coach Nick Leyva and pitching coach Ray Searage, who then disperse or utilize the information as they see fit. Adjustments are natural, because for all the objective data supplied, there is a good deal of this game that is and will always be subjective, in that coaches and players sometimes must trust their gut and their knowledge of the specific situation.
By and large, though, the players have bought into this defensive concept.
"The biggest challenge," Walker said, "was giving in to the numbers. When we did, it paid off in a lot of instances."
The Pirates' BIS-calculated use of shifts increased four-fold from 2012 to '13, and, not too coincidentally, their defensive runs saved mark went from minus-25 to plus-70 -- a total that trailed only that of the Royals (95) and D-backs (88). But the Pirates don't read too much into the publicly cited number of shifts, because their belief is that they are employing the practice on literally every plate appearance by the opposition.
"We think of it as 'optimized positioning,'" Fox said. "On every play, we should be optimally arranged. We need to be right on."
The Pirates feel this need because of their small-market stature, and the need for defensive efficiency will be of pivotal import yet again in 2014, especially given the loss of A.J. Burnett's innings and the ongoing uncertainty surrounding their first-base situation. Right now, it's hard to see where the offensive production is going to exponentially improve, so the Pirates will again have, quite literally, little room for error in the area of run-prevention.
Little wonder, then, that they are planning to expand their use of strategic shifts to the outfield this season. That will be another area of focus when Hurdle gathers the club together in the coming days.
It's also little wonder that elsewhere in the league, the practice is catching on. When Matt Williams took over in Washington, he kept his inherited coaching staff largely intact, save for adding a new position. Mark Weidemaier was added as an advance coach focused on defensive alignments. In Detroit, Brad Ausmus hired Matt Martin in the newly created role of "defensive coordinator."
This is probably the most fundamentally fascinating area of evolution in the game today, because it's had a huge impact on the oft-cited bottom line that is league-wide offensive regression and pitching prominence.
Here at Pirates camp, they swear by the shift.
"There's not a doubt in anybody's mind," said Hurdle, "that this was a gap-closer for us."


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Figure 2-4: Railroad Trespasser Deaths and Injuries in Minnesota
(Excludes highway-rail crossing)
Excel | CSV | Table Version
NOTE FOR DATA ON THIS PAGE: As defined by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Railroad Administration, a trespasser is any person on a part of railroad property used in railroad operations whose presence is prohibited, forbidden, or unlawful. Employees who are trespassing on railroad property are reported as trespassers.
SOURCE FOR DATA ON THIS PAGE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Railroad Administration, Railroad Safety Statistics Annual Report 2000, Washington, DC: 2001, available at http://safetydata.fra.dot.gov/officeofsafety/ as of Oct. 22, 2001.
Updated: Saturday, May 20, 2017


text:
Egypt's Leading Female Voice for Change Warns That Revolution Is Backsliding
Egypt's Leading Female Voice for Change Warns That Revolution Is Backsliding
Years from now, when scholars and historians debate the beginnings of the uprisings that rocked Egypt and the entire Middle East in 2011, one woman will likely figure prominently: Dalia Ziada, an ebullient Egyptian woman, civil society activist, and prolific blogger.
Ms. Ziada is one of a growing number of women activists in a movement that some have called "The Pink Hijab." The wave of uprisings that roiled politics and upended dictatorships from Tunisia, to Egypt, to Yemen has featured female activists at its forefront in a way that was previously unthinkable in male-dominated Muslim societies. Her work in particular has garnered accolades: Newsweek magazine called her one of the world's most influential women, while CNN dubbed her one of the Arab world's eight "Agents of Change."
"I don't believe our revolution will succeed until one day we will have a woman president. I don't believe there can be a democracy unless women are properly in power," she said in a speech at Tufts University's Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in Medford, Mass., yesterday.


text:
I'm a Craft Junkie: Knitting the Baa-ble hat
Fiction Author
Helping others discover their roots
Hart, Franklin, Elbert Counties
From the Perspective of a Young Almost-Real-Life Adult
Susan Drain
All Things New England
Nights of white satin
This is the story of an ordinary family, trying to live an ordinary life during an extraordinary time frame, and the lessons they learn through experience.
savoring the beauty in the everyday
Smiles are contagious, pass one around!
Susanne Matthews
A blog designed to remember the past and celebrate the present.
Frugallicious Food Full of Flavour
Adventures of a Male Knitter
in which I document my genealogical research adventures and explore the people and events from my family's history…
A genealogical site devoted to the history of the DeKorn and Zuidweg families of Kalamazoo and the Mulder family of Caledonia


text:
Sunday, 4 July 2010
The best way forward to a libertarian society
Both of these strategies have advantages and disadvantages. However, I'd be inclined to discount the strategy of a a revolution, because libertarians are disinclined to use force which may harm other people. Although bloodless revolutions are not unheard of, I can't see any way in which a sufficiently large number of libertarian-inclined people would rise up and depose a government.
Co-opting the military into such an exercise is complete anathema to a libertarian, so maintaining "bloodlessness" would be extremely unlikely, as the state would have the weapons and would have a huge motivation to use them.
On the other hand, it would be quicker, whether bloodless or not. But I'm not sure that such a revolution would be permanent. People are generally of a statist mindset and they need to not only be educated about the benefits of liberty, but they actually have to see them and live them.
So I guess we do need a kind of revolution, but it's a revolution in our political class: we need to infiltrate libertarian ideals into the bigger parties, to make them debate whether the default answer to every question is "the state". Once people start to question that, and vote accordingly, we can use democracy to achieve a smaller and smaller level of state interference.
The downside of this approach is that it's going to take a long, long time, and the current "direction of travel" is not in our favour.
However, I've found (anecdotally, I haven't exactly done a scientific survey or anything!) that most people who "aren't interested in politics" are actually quite receptive to the ideas of libertarian politics. These are people who generally have little interaction with the state and have little "skin in the political game". These are often people who don't vote or vote by flipping a coin. They don't question the state's interventions because they don't think about politics much. But they often have grumbles about government incompetence and the cost of taxation.
Most normal people, in fact.
The most general group who have an active support for the state are those who call themselves "political", people whose parties require a state: Labour, Lib Dem, Tory, Green, BNP, UKIP, etc. Political animals who support parties that require a state will inevitably argue that the state is a necessary and benevolent thing.
But I believe that if we can acquire a critical mass to turn the behemoth of state provision around and start on the road of reducing the state's involvement in everything, with every regained freedom, every newly unfettered industry and business, people will gradually acquiesce to the new model and over time demand that the government continues to strive to do less and less until it becomes demonstrably unnecessary.
So, in summary, a revolution would be quick and easy but I really can't see how it would be achieved in a libertarian ethos and I also don't think it would "take." Democracy will be extremely difficult and take a long time, but if it can be achieved in this way, it would definitely last right up until the point where people felt they didn't even need democracy any more.
Update: Rather inevitably, my effort is much more prosaic than, although more or less in line with, Bella's. Demetriou, as usual, has not fucking bothered yet.
Update 2: Guthrum over at the LPUK blog has his say. Still no fucking sign of Demetriou.
The useless cunt.
28 comments:
- John Demetriou said...
As I said on Bella's, I'm running late and haven't had the chance thus far, but I will get my piece up tonight.
Good article here btw, also Bella's was very good. Allow me more time.
- 4 Jul 2010, 17:20:00
Obo wrote:
People are generally of a statist mindset ... we need to infiltrate libertarian ideals into the bigger parties, to make them debate whether the default answer to every question is "the state". Once people start to question that, and vote accordingly, we can use democracy to achieve a smaller and smaller level of state interference.
This appears to be a sensible way forward. In fact, even I would argue that it is likely to meet with some small success.
However, it is likely to be only small success...
Libertarians all too frequently (esp. those on 'the right') treat human beings as totally rational economic machines, and presume that we merely need to cogently make the economic case for our cause and the masses will adopt our point of view.
This isn't true, and if we are to understand why -- and why so many hold a statist mindset -- we need to move beyond mechanistic economics and consider the psychological reasons for this apparent need by many to grasp the safety blanket of external authority.
Here's some suggested reading for you, Obo. It's 60 years old, but more than stands up to scrutiny today. Note that it's quite possible (nay, sensible and essential) to accept the author's thesis on the origins of such lust for authority figures without agreeing with him on how to remake society for the better. The latter is, of course, the responsibility of all of us as free men and women ;-)
- 4 Jul 2010, 17:20:00
Yeah, good question, should we shoot people.. or should we shoot people. Allow me to bang my head against a wall for the next 5 minutes...
... Every thought we could continue educating people, stop collectively absuing our children into violent hierachy loving drones and give up violence instead of deciding the best kind of violence to use?
And yes... democracy, even when "used" to limit the state is still absolutely riddled with violence; not to mention how there wouldn't be a democracy if it was possible to limit the government with it, that would defeat the point of the Statists setting up a system which looks like the people have a say.
All you have to do is blog honestly, talk honestly, not abuse children and be consistent (don't say you're an anarchist one day and talk about supporting violence the next) and live freedom. Yeah, it's not going to make a bit of different in our lives, but damn if it isn't better than trying to create peace with violence.
- 4 Jul 2010, 17:24:00
- RantinRab said...
JD, you were 'late' the last time as I recall...
- 4 Jul 2010, 17:33:00
- Obnoxio The Clown said...
Anonymous, I entirely agree that the idea of using democracy to overthrow the state is a curious one.
However, in terms of winning people over to the idea that they don't need a government, the thrust of my argument is that it's better to subvert the method which is already designated as "blessed".
But like the man once said: if you're trying to get there, I wouldn't start from here. :o)
- 4 Jul 2010, 17:43:00
One problem with infiltrating the Establishment is that you don't have years and years to do this. The clock has nearly run out. Also, the current political class is all about power, money and privilege, and nothing else. Why would they care in the least about libertarian principles?
Additionally, there is the problem of Libertarianism as yet another theory of social engineering. The U.K., IMO, needs far less social engineering and far less government, period.
Furthermore, there is the matter of the survival of the English themselves and the restoration of their homeland. That may not be important to Libertarians, but it will be a powerful motivator for many, as will be the desire for revenge and the settling of accounts.
For these reasons and others, the developing revolutionary dynamic will likely leave Libertarianism in the dust.
- 4 Jul 2010, 18:21:00
- Kingbingo said...
"we need to infiltrate libertarian ideals into the bigger parties, to make them debate whether the default answer to every question is "the state". Once people start to question that, and vote accordingly, we can use democracy to achieve a smaller and smaller level of state interference."
Ah! Yes.
Glad to see I finally talked you round. Well done that clown. :)
- 4 Jul 2010, 18:29:00
- Obnoxio The Clown said...
Not really.
You're claiming that the Tories are the best hope for Libertarianism.
I'm saying that all three parties need to be infiltrated.
- 4 Jul 2010, 18:31:00
- Scary Biscuits said...
Obo, infiltrating libertarians into the current system won't work because even those that started off with good intentions, and that's not everyone, end up getting corrupted by the system.
To get real, enduring reform we need to look at the universal franchise. This is a 20th century innovation, a bolt-on to democracy that has a disastrous record. If you give people the opportunity to vote for a free lunch, then generally that is what they will do. However, it is morally wrong to give people a vote on how to spend other peoples' money.
A large state is incompatible with democracy because, once you have too many people on the payroll, you are past the point of no return: there is no way Greece, for example, can democratically exit its current troubles. Resolution will either be imposed by the EU or come from violence on the street.
Taxation without consent is theft. Property rights, including of money, are therefore at the heart libertarianism. Property rights only benefit the weak and the poor as the strong will always be able to look after themselves.
The Taxpayers' Alliance, therefore, shouldn't be a pressure group: it is the whole point of the House of Commons.
The property/tax-paying qualification for voting needs to be re-established. Until then, the system will continue to reward politicians who waste other people's money and take away their freedom.
To get real change (not Obama or Cameron merely using the word), we need to ditch our own sibboleths. That means campaigning against the universal franchise and restoring the link between voting and property.
- 4 Jul 2010, 18:46:00
- Obnoxio The Clown said...
Is that really the way forward?
How about only taxpayers can vote? And then when the state is so small that no-one needs to pay tax, the state will finally die.
- 4 Jul 2010, 18:50:00
- Kingbingo said...
"I'm saying that all three parties need to be infiltrated."
Fine, but your have a lot more success with the Tories, and maybe Liberals. If you can get those two competing to be the 'most libertarian' in the same way you used to have Tories and Labour competing to see who could be most 'business friendly' then that's progress. Maybe even Labour might join in, although I doubt it.
So keep making your case, try and be funny and angry to keep people reading and keep exposing the lunacy of the statist mindset (like your article on drugs; v.good).
I just wish you would drop the anti-Tory hate fest you've got going on. They are far from perfect but they are the least worse option out of any of the parties that can actually win, by a mile!
- 4 Jul 2010, 19:02:00
@Scary Biscuits
The property/tax-paying qualification for voting needs to be re-established
I've seen others (e.g. DD at the LA) propose this before. However, would you care to clarify what you mean by 'property owning'?
I ask as a genuine property owner: I have no mortgage. Is that your definition too, or do you want to include all of the debt-slave mortgage holders in your franchise?
And what about 'tax paying'? Every bugger pays taxes like VAT and Council Tax already. Or do you mean income tax? If so, why? I don't pay that as I choose not to work (or claim benefits, before you ask). If you are limiting your franchise to income tax payers, then, again, you are attempting social engineering: applying a judgement that paid employ makes one a valuable citizen.
Just asking...
- 4 Jul 2010, 19:07:00
- Kingbingo said...
No. The solution is to break the UK up into roughly a dozen regions. Each sets 100% of its tax and spend locally.
If people in a certain area want to have socialism let them. As long as they are willing to bear all the cost.
People must be free to leave their region, and let those regions compete or 'race to the bottom' by trying to attract the best people by setting lower and lower taxes.
The independence of Scotland, Wales, NI and Cornwall will be a good start, but England should break up as well.
Competition between state is as health for states as it is between businesses.
- 4 Jul 2010, 19:22:00
- Kingbingo said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- 4 Jul 2010, 19:22:00
- Obnoxio The Clown said...
Kingbingo, that's like saying breast cancer is the least worst cancer you can have.
Despite the Tory party having people like Hannan and Carswell who are probably the closest to anything like libertarian thinking, they are regarded as nutters.
And whatever iDave might say about libertarian ideas like cutting the state, or stopping pointless and invasive government databases, or "localism", look at what he does:
* The state is still growing explosively and will still exceed £1.5 trillion by 2015.
* A quiet u-turn on the NHS Spine.
* Further centralisation of power to the central government.
The fact of the matter is that you cannot tell iDave's policies apart from Labour's, because as we've seen, Labour were quite able to nick his policies, slap a bit of redwash on them and run them as "socialist" policies.
In some policy areas, it's widely recognised that Labour is actually to the right of Tory policy.
On what possible grounds could I support such a party? And why am I wrong to hate a party that is remotely "conservative"?
- 4 Jul 2010, 19:25:00
- Guthrum said...
My Take here
- 4 Jul 2010, 19:59:00
- Scary Biscuits said...
Morlock, the principle has to be that the people paying the tax have to have the right to say how it is spent. It's their money after all.
When England was a rural economy, owning property was an easy way of approximating income. Today, a less indirect measure, i.e. taxed income over a threshold is probably more appropriate. This should be net income, that is income minus payments from the government, so Civil Servants would be disenfranchised. That is fair, as you can only be on one side of the fence or the other: paying into the system or benefiting from it.
It doesn't matter that everybody pays taxes such as VAT. Only income tax qualifies. In the short term this would be unfair to people disenfranchised but their interests would still be represented by people paying even more tax by them, so the system would still work.
Long term, the plus for people disenfrachised is that there would be no moral justification for VAT and other double taxes. How is it fair that people are taxed several times? People would only be taxed once: income tax would be the only one. If you qualify for the tax you also qualify to vote. If you don't qualify you don't pay tax. Obviously, this could not be achieved in one step, but merely to establish the idea that democracy and a universal franchise are not necessarily the same thing, would be major progress.
The English have had three insurrections over the principle of no taxation without representation (the battles leading to Magna Carta, the Civil War and the American War of Independence). The precedents for re-establishing this right (and its corollary, no representation without taxation) without bloodshed are therefore not good. The vested interests, the banks and the political class have too much to lose from a fair political system, just as they did in the past. At the very least, we would need a campaign of civil disobedience, a taxpayers' strike, for example, or a blockade of major motorways. The political class will never surrender the liberties it has taken with and from the people otherwise.
- 4 Jul 2010, 20:30:00
@Scary Biscuits
The vested interests, the banks and the political class have too much to lose from a fair political system, just as they did in the past
You are somewhat right -- but so, so, horribly wrong at the same time.
The vested interests may lose some influence through the implementation of a 'fair political system'. However, it would only be some influence.
What would really worry them -- and destroy their power base -- is people living outside of the confines of the system; a system that exists for their benefit.
I'm sorry, but your basic premise is that those who happily accept the system (work, pay taxes etc.) are the only ones who should be enfranchised and able to (politically) modify that system. Does that sound as if it would be a great concern to those very same vested interests for whom the system is set-up to benefit...?
If politics is the answer, it's a bloody stupid question. The same (returning to the OP) goes to talk of revolutions; that simply isn't going to happen whilst you've got a fat, comfortable population. Besides which, revolutionaries invariably turn into that which they originally started out opposing -- authority figures/dictators.
There is another way forwards though: disengagement. You can't achieve total separation from the state whilst property taxes (etc.) exist, but you can get close. You don't have to prop up the financial system by constantly living in debt. You don't have to support politically connected multinationals by buying crappy consumer goods that you don't really need, or foodstuffs that you could easily grow yourself. You don't have to work in the 'real' economy. And on, and on.
Of course, some of those choices will rankle with 'right' libertarians; those who see no issue with corporate rule. That's their lookout -- they can carry on banging their heads against a brick wall trying to engineer and defend truly free markets; an impossible task when underlying power differentials between man and the state/the corporation exist.
Others, not so blinkered, might do well to remember Audre Lorde's famous expression: "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House". Violence (revolution) and politics are The Master's tools.
The only way to win this game is to choose not to play ;-)
- 4 Jul 2010, 21:01:00
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- 4 Jul 2010, 21:01:00
- Kingbingo said...
"The fact of the matter is that you cannot tell iDave's policies apart from Labour's, because as we've seen, Labour were quite able to nick his policies, slap a bit of redwash on them and run them as "socialist" policies."
There is so much wrong with that it's difficult to know where to begin. I know full well Obnoxio is smart enough to be able to tell the difference, so you must be wilfully obtuse.
Just because you take a policy with the same name does not mean it's the same thing and run the same way.
I am fully aware that the Tories policies will not go far enough, but they are constrained by what they believe the public will let them get away with. Plus their own personal preference for the size of the state, at least some state they do want.
But only a moron would think that the size of the state the Tories want and Zanulabour want are identical. I know you know that.
- 4 Jul 2010, 21:59:00
- John Demetriou said...
- 4 Jul 2010, 21:59:00
- Mr Rob said...
Close, Clown, close.
Don't try to educate people, influence them. The media can do this, and it is far more susceptible to infiltration than the political parties. You'll even find that political parties will start to follow trends introduced and announced as "popular" by the media.
Of course, if you have a moral objection to initially lying about your true views and aims, and manipulating people, you'd better get the semtex out :)
Oh BTW to the more theoretically-inclined libertarians...keep it simple, stupid.
- 4 Jul 2010, 23:07:00
- Mr Rob said...
It might further your cause a little if the deputy leader of your party could write coherent English.
Love and kisses
- 4 Jul 2010, 23:16:00
- Obnoxio The Clown said...
John Prescott is a libertarian????????
- 4 Jul 2010, 23:20:00
- Kingbingo said...
"Don't try to educate people, influence them. The media can do this, and it is far more susceptible to infiltration than the political parties."
Yes, very true.
However, the best and the brightest on the right choose things like business and finance. We choose wealth.
The best and the brightest on the left choose things like teaching and media. They choose influence.
Thus they are powerful.
My question to you Mr Rob, is how do you get young libertarians to choose a career in media? Especially, since something obscure like libertarianism, is something you don't normally arrive at without a little life experience. Few people know what it is.
- 4 Jul 2010, 23:33:00
- John Demetriou said...
Squawk! Has anyone seen my camel?!
I don't recall agreeing to write a piece about bringing about a libertarian society. Squawk! I do recall, however, agreeing to write a piece about how brilliant I am as a libertarian and how only my view is correct and how anyone who disagrees with me is a cunt.
I also recall asking my felching friend Boatang to write a piece on the webshite telling people we don't really want them to vote for us in the Total Politics poll, even though we actually do. We're just attention-seeking cunts really, though we don't want to admit it. Oh, and anyone who doesn't vote for us to win the poll is a cunt.
- 5 Jul 2010, 10:14:00
- Mr Rob said...
@King Bingo
If young libertarians do not wish to influence society to become more of a reflection of their own beliefs, that would indeed be a problem. Given the nature of libertarian beliefs, I am quite wiling to concede that it could be an insurmountable one, akin to the AGM of the Apathy Society.
You mean you don't get invited to the cheese and lard soirées where such matters are discussed? And I thought you were well-informed...
- 5 Jul 2010, 13:42:00
- Scary Biscuits said...
Morlock, it's not true that 'revolutionaries invariably turn into... dictators'. It depends on their motivation. The French, German and Russian revolutions all had a form a socialism as their objective and their leaders were motivated by personal power, which did indeed lead inexorably to less power to the people. The English revolutions I refered to above were, by contrast and despite their violence, followed by great improvements in liberty.
I agree with you that we should not play by their rules. Merely turning up meekly to vote within a system they have fixed to ensure that you get no real choice is stupid. Removing yourself from politics, as you suggest, is even more stupid. Intead we must find other ways of exerting power over the political class. More constructive proposals would be greatly appreciated!
Rob, libertarianism is not the same as pacifism. Germany is today as obnoxiously pacifist as it once was militarist. Both are extremes and both are evil. The more English attitude, of loving peace but being prepared to fight for it, is not a paradox but simply real world pragmatism.
- 5 Jul 2010, 17:03:00


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Calories in Unhealthy Foods to Give Up For Lent
10 Unhealthy Foods to Give Up For 40 Days — and the Calories You'll Save
10 Unhealthy Foods to Give Up For 40 Days — and the Calories You'll Save
For those who aren't familiar with Lent, it's the Catholic season of penance that starts on Ash Wednesday. Many Catholics give up a vice for Lent, but even if you don't do it for religious reasons, you may find that giving something up for the same 40-day period is a good way to kick-start a healthy habit or lose weight.
To see just how effective avoiding unhealthy food for 40 days can be, we've rounded up 10 popular foods that many people choose to give up for Lent, along with the total calories you'll save if you avoid them. You might be shocked at how many calories you can save in a little over a month from just giving up your favourite junk food.


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Galveston Storm of 1900 - Galveston Storm of 1900 - National Weather Service Heritage
Our Stories
Galveston Storm of 1900By NWS Heritage Projects Editorial Staff
On September 8, 1900, the greatest natural disaster to ever strike the United States occurred at Galveston, Texas. In the early evening hours, a hurricane came ashore at Galveston bringing with it a great storm surge that inundated most of Galveston Island and the city of Galveston. As a result, much of the city was destroyed and at least 6,000 people were killed in a few hours' time. The following is the account of Isaac M. Cline, the senior Weather Bureau employee present at Galveston, of the events leading up to the storm, his personal experiences in the storm, and the aftermath. The horror of Galveston is only partly described in this work. He was probably still in shock when he wrote this report, as he lost his wife and virtually all his possessions when his house collapsed during the storm. In a later biographical work, he referred to the shooting of hundreds of looters by vigilantes in the aftermath of the storm and the cremation of hundreds of unknown storm victims who otherwise would have decomposed where they lay. This particular report is excerpted from the Monthly Weather Review for September, 1900.
The hurricane which visited Galveston Island on Saturday, September 8, 1900, was no doubt one of the most important meteorological events in the world's history. The ruin which it wrought beggars description, and conservative estimates place the loss of life at the appalling figure, 6,000.
A brief description of Galveston Island will not be out of place as introductory to the details of this disaster. It is a sand island about thirty miles in length and one and one-half to three miles in width. The course of the island is southwest to northeast, parallel with the southeast coast of the State. The City of Galveston is located on the east end of the island. To the northeast of Galveston is Bolivar Peninsula, a sand spit about twenty miles in length and varying in width from one-fourth of a mile to about three miles. Inside of Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula is Galveston bay, a shallow body of water with an area of nearly five hundred square miles. The length of the bay along shore is about fifty miles and its greatest distance from the Gulf coast is about twenty-five miles. The greater portion of the bay lies due north of Galveston. That portion of the bay which separates the island west of Galveston from the mainland is very narrow, being only about two miles in width in places, and discharges into the Gulf of Mexico through San Louis Pass. The main bay discharges into the Gulf between the jetties; the south one being built out from the northeast end of Galveston Island and the north one from the most southerly point of Bolivar Peninsula. The channel between the jetties is twenty-seven to thirty feet in depth at different stages of the tide. There are channels in the harbor with a depth of thirty to thirty-five feet, and there is an area of nearly two thousand acres with an anchorage depth of eighteen feet or more. The mainland for several miles back of the bay is very low, in fact much of it is lower than Galveston Island, and it is so frequently overflowed by high tide that large areas present a marshy appearance. These are in brief the physical conditions of the territory devastated by the hurricane.
The usual signs which herald the approach of hurricanes were not present in this case. The brick-dust sky was not in evidence to the smallest degree. This feature, which has been distinctly observed in other storms that have occurred in this section, was carefully watched for, both on the evening of the 7th and the morning of the 8th. There were cirrus clouds moving from the southeast during the forenoon of the 7th, but by noon only alto-stratus from the northeast were observed. About the middle of the afternoon the clouds were divided between cirrus, alto-stratus, and cumulus, moving from the northeast. A heavy swell from the southeast made its appearance in the Gulf of Mexico during the afternoon of the 7th. The swell continued during the night without diminishing, and the tide rose to an unusual height when it is considered that the wind was from the north and northwest. About 5 a.m. of the 8th Mr. J. L. Cline, Observer, called me and stated that the tide was well up in the low parts of the city, and that we might be able to telegraph important information to Washington. He having been on duty until nearly midnight, was told to retire and I would look into conditions. I drove to the Gulf, where I timed the swells, and then proceeded to the office and found that the barometer was only one-tenth of an inch lower than it was at the 8 p.m. observation of the 7th. I then returned to the Gulf, made more detailed observations of the tide and swells, and filed the following telegram addressed to the Central Office a Washington:
Unusually heavy swells from the southeast, intervals of one to five minutes, overflowing low places south portion of city three to four blocks from beach. Such high water with opposing winds never observed previously.
Broken stratus and strato-cumulus clouds predominated during the early forenoon of the 8th, with the blue sky visible here and there. Showery weather commenced at 8:45 a.m., but dense clouds and heavy rain were not in evidence until about noon, after which dense clouds with rain prevailed.
The wind during the forenoon of the 8th was generally north, but oscillated, at intervals of from five to ten minutes, between northwest and northeast, and continued so up to 1 p.m. After 1 p.m. the wind was mostly northeast, although as late as 6:30 p.m. it would occasionally back to the northwest for one or two minutes at a time. The prevailing wind was from the northeast until 8:30 p.m., when it shifted to the east, continuing from this direction until about 10 p.m. After 10 p.m. the wind was from the southeast, and after about 11 p.m. the prevailing direction was from the south or southwest. The directions after 11 p.m. are from personal observations. A storm velocity was not attained until about 1 p.m. after which the wind increased steadily and reached a hurricane velocity about 5 p.m. The greatest velocity for five minutes was 84 miles per hour at 6:15 p.m. With two minutes at the rate of 100 miles per hour. The anemometer blew away at this time, and it is estimated that prior to 8 p.m. the wind attained a velocity of at least 120 miles per hour. For a short time, about 8 p.m., just before the wind shifted to the east, there was a distinct lull, but when it came out from the east and southeast it appeared to come with greater fury than before. After shifting to the south at about 11 p.m. the wind steadily diminished in velocity, and a t 8 a.m. on the morning of the 9th was blowing at the rate of 20 miles per hour from the south.
The barometer commenced falling on the afternoon of the 6th and continued falling steadily but slowly up to noon of the 8th, when it read 29.42 inches. The barometer fell rapidly from noon until 8:30 p.m. of the 8th, when it registered 28.48 inches, a fall of pressure of about one inch in eight and one-half hours. After 8:30 p.m. the barometer rose at the same rapid rate that had characterized the fall. The barograph trace sheet during this storm, from noon September 6 to noon September 10, is enclosed as fig. 1. On account of the rapid fall in pressure, Mr. John d. Blagden, Observer, took readings of the mercurial barometer as a check on the barograph, and readings are as follows:
Time. Readings. Time. Readings.
5:00 p.m.............29.05 6:40 p.m.............28.75
5:11 p.m.............29.00 6:48 p.m.............28.70
5:30 p.m.............28.95 7:15 p.m..............28.69
5:50 p.m.............28.90 7:40 p.m.............28.62
6:06 p.m.............28.86 8:00 p.m.............28.55
6:20 p.m.............28.82 8:10 p.m.............28.53
These readings confirm the low pressure shown by barograph and indicate the great intensity of the hurricane.
Mr. Blagden looked after the instruments during the hurricane in a heroic and commendable manner. He kept the wires of the self-registering apparatus intact as long as it was possible for him to reach the roof. The rain gauge blew away about 6 p.m. and the thermometer shelter soon followed. All the instruments in the thermometer shelter were broken, except the thermograph which was found damaged, but has been put in working order.
Storm warnings were timely and received a wide distribution not only in Galveston but throughout the coast region. Warning messages were received from the Central Office at Washington on September 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. The high tide on the morning of the 8th, with storm warning flying, made it necessary to keep one man constantly at the telephone giving out information. Hundreds of people who could not reach us by telephone came to the Weather Bureau office seeking advice. I went down on Strand street and advised some wholesale commission merchants who had perishable goods on their floors to place them 3 feet above the floor. One gentleman has informed me that he carried out my instructions, but the wind blew his goods down. The public was warned, over the telephone and verbally, that the wind would go by the east to the south and that the worst was yet to come. People were advised to seek secure places for the night. As a result thousands of people who lived near the beach or in small houses moved their families into the center of the city and were thus saved. Those who lived in large strong buildings, a few blocks from the beach, one of whom was the writer of this report, thought that they could weather the wind and tide. Soon after 3 p.m. conditions became so threatening that it was deemed essential that a special report be sent at once to Washington. Mr. J. L. Cline, Observer, took the instrumental readings while I drove first to the bay and then to the Gulf, and finding that half the streets of the city were under water added the following to the special observation at 3:30 p.m.: "Gulf rising, water covers streets of about half of city." Having been on duty since 5 a.m., after giving this message to the observer, I went home to lunch. Mr. J. L. Cline went to the telegraph offices through water from two to four feet deep, and found that the telegraph wires had all gone down; he then returned to the office, and by inquiry learned that the long distance telephone had one wire still working to Houston, over which he gave the message to the Western Union telegraph office at Houston to be forwarded to the Central Office at Washington.
I reached home and found the water around my residence waist deep. I at once went to work assisting people, who were not securely located, into my residence, until forty or fifty persons were housed therein. About 6:30 p.m. Mr. J. L. Cline, who had left Mr. Blagden at the office to look after the instruments, reached my residence, where he found the water neck deep. He informed me that the barometer had fallen below 29.00 inches; that no further messages could be gotten off on account of all wires being down, and that he had advised everyone he could see to go to the center of the city; also, that he thought we had better make an attempt in that direction. At this time, however, the roofs of houses and timbers were flying through the streets as though they were paper, and it appeared suicidal to attempt a journey through the flying timbers. Many people were killed by flying timbers about this time while endeavoring to escape to town.
The water rose at a steady rate from 3 p.m. until about 7:30 p.m., when there was a sudden rise of about four feet in as many seconds. I was standing at my front door, which was partly open, watching the water, which was flowing with great rapidity from east to west. The water at this time was about eight inches deep in my residence, and the sudden rise of 4 feet brought it above my waist before I could change my position. The water had now reached a stage 10 feet above the ground at Rosenberg Avenue (Twenty-fifth street) and Q street, where my residence stood. The ground was 5.2 feet elevation, which made the tide 15.2 feet. The tide rose the next hour, between 7:30 and 8:30 p.m., nearly five feet additional, making a total tide in that locality of about twenty feet. These observations were carefully taken and represent to within a few tenths of a foot the true conditions. Other personal observations in my vicinity confirm these estimates. The tide, however, on the bay or north side of the city did not obtain a height of more than 15 feet. It is possible that there was 5 feet of backwater on the Gulf side as a result of debris accumulating four to six blocks inland. The debris is piled eight to fifteen feet in height. By 8 p.m. a number of houses had drifted up and lodged to the east and southeast of my residence, and these with the force of the waves acted as a battering ram against which it was impossible for any building to stand for any length of time, and at 8:30 p.m. my residence went down with about fifty persons who had sought it for safety, and all but eighteen were hurled into eternity. Among the lost was my wife, who never rose above the water after the wreck of the building. I was nearly drowned and became unconscious, but recovered through being crushed by timbers and found myself clinging to my youngest child, who had gone down with myself and wife. Mr. J. L. Cline joined me five minutes later with my other two children, and with them and a woman and child we picked up from the raging waters, we drifted for three hours, landing 300 yards from where we started. There were two hours that we did not see a house nor any person, and from the swell we inferred that we were drifting to sea, which, in view of the northeast wind then blowing, was more than probable. During the last hour that we were drifting, which was with southeast and south winds, the wreckage on which we were floating knocked several residences to pieces. When we landed about 11:30 p.m., by climbing over floating debris to a residence on Twenty-eighth street and Avenue P, the water had fallen about 4 feet. It continued falling, and on the following morning the Gulf was nearly normal. While we were drifting we had to protect ourselves from the flying timbers by holding planks between us and the wind, and with this protection we were frequently knocked great distances. Many persons were killed on top of the drifting debris by flying timbers after they had escaped from their wrecked homes. In order to keep on the top of the floating masses of wrecked buildings one had to be constantly on the lookout and continually climbing from drift to drift. Hundreds of people had similar experiences.
Sunday, September 9, 1900, revealed one of the most horrible sights that ever a civilized people looked upon. About three thousand homes, nearly half the residence portion of Galveston, had been completely swept out of existence, and probably more than six thousand persons had passed from life to death during that dreadful night. The correct number of those who perished will probably never be known, for many entire families are missing. Where 20,000 people lived on the 8th not a house remained on the 9th, and who occupied the houses may, in many instances, never be known. On account of the pleasant Gulf breezes many strangers were residing temporarily near the beach, and the number of these that were lost can not yet be estimated. I enclose a chart, fig. 2, which shows, by shading, the area of total destruction. Two charts of this area have been drawn independently; one by Mr. A. G. Youens, inspector for the local board of underwriters, and the other by myself and Mr. J. L. Cline. The two charts agree in nearly all particulars, and it is believed that the chart enclosed represents the true conditions as nearly as it is possible to show them. That portion of the city west of Forty-fifth street was sparsely settled, but there were several splendid residences in the southern part of it. Many truck farmers and dairy men resided on the west end of the island, and it is estimated that half of these were lost, as but very few residences remain standing down the island. For two blocks, inside the shaded area, the damage amounts to at least fifty per cent of the property. There is not a house in Galveston that escaped injury, and there are houses totally wrecked in all parts of the city. All goods and supplies not over eight feet above floor were badly injured, and much was totally lost. The damage to buildings, personal, and other property in Galveston County is estimated at above thirty million dollars. The insurance inspector for Galveston states that there were 2,636 residences located prior to the hurricane in the area of total destruction, and he estimates 1,000 houses totally destroyed in other portions of the city, making a total of 3,636 houses totally destroyed. The value of these buildings alone is estimated at $5,500,000.
The grain elevators which were full of grain suffered the smallest damage. Ships have resumed loading and work is being rushed day and night. The railroad bridges across the bay were washed away, but one of these has been repaired and direct rail communication with the outside world was established within eleven days after the disaster. Repairs and extensions of wharves are now being pushed forward with great rapidity. Notwithstanding the fact that the streets are not yet clean and dead bodies are being discovered daily among the drifted debris, the people appear to have confidence in the place and are determined to rebuild and reestablish themselves here. Galveston being one of the richest cities of its size in the United States, there is no question but that business will soon regain its normal condition and the city will grow and prosper as she did before the disaster. Cotton is now coming in by rail from different parts of the State and by barge from Houston. The wheels of commerce are already moving in a manner which gives assurance for the future. Improvements will be made stronger and more judiciously; for the past twenty-five years they have been made with the hurricane of 1875 in mind, but no one ever dreamed that the water would reach the height observed in the present case. The railroad bridges are to be built ten feet higher than they were before. The engineer of the Southern Pacific Company has informed me that they will construct their wharves so that they will withstand even such a hurricane as the one we have just experienced.
I believe that a sea wall, which would have broken the swells, would have saved much loss of both life and property. I base this view upon observations which I have made in the extreme northeastern portion of the city, which is practically protected by the south jetty; this part of the city did not suffer more than half the damage that other similarly located districts, without protection, sustained.
From the officers of the U. S. Engineer tug Anna, I learn that the wind at the mouth of the Brazos River went from north to southwest by way of west. This shows that the center of the hurricane was near Galveston, probably not more than 30 miles to the westward. The following towns have suffered great damage, both in the loss of life and property: Texas City, Dickinson, Lamarque, Hitchcock, Arcadia, Alvin, Manvel, Brazoria, Columbia, and Wharton. Other towns further inland have suffered, but not so seriously. The exact damage at these places can not be ascertained.
A list of those lost in Galveston, whose names have been ascertained up to the present time, contains 3,536 names.
GALVESTON, TEX., September 23, 1900.
(The enclosures, figs. 1 and 2, referred to herein, are not published with this report.)
U. S. Department of Agriculture,
Office of Chief Clerk Washington, D.C. , October 5, 1900
The following letter is published for the information of the members of the Weather Bureau:
Washington D. C., September 28, 1900.
Local Forecast Official and Section Director,
Weather Bureau, Galveston, Tex.
I desire to most highly commend you and your two assistants, Messrs. Joseph L. Cline and John D. Blagden, for your heroic devotion to duty on the occasion of the hurricane that devastated Galveston on September 8, 1900. The record shows that you were all alert and vigilant from the time the first notice of the storm was received, making frequent observations of the instruments and the weather conditions and disseminating warnings, and that under great personal peril you remained at your posts as long as your services were of any value, performing all duties efficiently and intelligently; that Mr. Blagden, with great skill and courage, kept the wind recording instruments intact as long as it was possible to do so, and took ten-minute readings of the barometer, as a check on the barograph, during the most dangerous period of the storm, from 5:00 to 8:10 p.m. of the 8th; that Mr. Joseph L. Cline, after being on duty until midnight of the 7th, performed faithful and valiant service during the 8th, and after telegraphic communication was cut off, succeeded with great effort in sending by telephone a message to the Central Office containing a special observation, the last message sent out from the doomed city on that fateful day; and that you, from 5:00 a.m. until the wires went down at 3:30 p.m., were constantly on duty, taking tidal observations, preparing reports to the Central Office, and directing the work of the station. Through the efficient service of yourself and your assistants in the dissemination of warnings, thousands of people were enabled to move from the lower to the higher and secure portions of the city and were thus saved.
Your conduct in this terrible crisis furnishes an example of courage and fidelity to duty that every employee of the Bureau should be proud to emulate.
Very respectfully,
Approved: (Signed) WILLIS L. MOORE
JAMES WILSON Chief U. S. Weather Bureau.


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Yoenis Cespedes of the Oakland Athletics named the American League Rookie of the Month for September
Oakland Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes has been voted the American League Rookie of the Month for September, his first rookie honor and the first for the Athletics since Jemile Weeks shared the award with Minnesota's Ben Revere in June 2011.
Cespedes batted .257 (28-for-109) with five doubles, two triples, seven home runs, 19 RBI, 18 runs scored, 12 walks and four stolen bases in 28 games. Among A.L. rookie qualifiers with a minimum of 81 plate appearances, the Cuban native finished first in homers, RBI, and slugging percentage (.532), was tied for first in doubles and triples, was second in at-bats, hits and walks, tied for second in runs scored and third in on-base percentage (.325).
In an A.L. West matchup against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on September 11th, the 26-year-old Cespedes snapped a 21-game homerless streak with a second-inning shot, finishing the night 2-for-4 to lead the A's past the Angels, 6-5, in Anaheim. The next night, Cespedes homered again, and also drew a walk and stole a base to back starting pitcher A.J. Griffin as the rookie pair led the Athletics past the Angels, 4-1, guaranteeing Oakland their first winning season since 2006 when they went 93-69. In a 14-inning marathon against the New York Yankees on September 22nd, Cespedes went 2-for-5 with a double, a home run, two RBI and two runs scored in an eventual 10-9 loss in the Bronx. Rounding out the month on September 30th against the Seattle Mariners, Cespedes finished a double shy of hitting for the cycle as the speedy outfielder went 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored in a 5-2 victory in Oakland.
Cespedes is near the top in most offensive categories for rookies this season, currently ranking second in runs (69), hits (139), doubles (25), homers (23), RBI (82), walks (41), batting average (.290), on-base percentage (.352) and slugging percentage (.506), and he is third in games (127), at-bats (480) and triples (5).
Other rookies receiving votes included Yu Darvish (3-0, 2.21 ERA, 36.2 IP, 7 BB, 39 SO) of Texas; Cespedes' teammates A.J. Griffin (4-1, 3.09 ERA, 35.0 IP, 7 BB, 29 SO) and Jarrod Parker (3-1, 2.31 ERA, 35.0 IP, 6 BB, 27 SO); Baltimore's Manny Machado (.289, 5 2B, 4 HR, 16 RBI) and Steve Johnson (2-0, 1.33 ERA, 20.1 IP, 12 BB, 22 SO); Nate Jones (1-0, 0.49 ERA, 14 G, 18.1 IP, 8 BB, 15 SO) of the White Sox; Mike Trout (.257, 3 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 20 BB, 6 SB) of the Angels; Kansas City's Kelvin Herrera (3-1, 2 SV, 1.84 ERA, 14.2 IP, 7 BB, 11 SO); and Russ Canzler (.301, 3 2B, 3 HR, 11 RBI) of the Indians.
In recognition of his American League Rookie of the Month Award, Yoenis Cespedes will receive a specially designed trophy, suitably engraved, for his accomplishments.


text: The boyish shape of these relaxed fit jeans has a legacy; the man who first bought them in 1990 also wore them loose and comfortable. Like him, the pants have a unique, defiant style, but unlike his version, their RE/DONE edit has a feminine ease to their slouchy cut. Vintage Levi's made in the American South circa 90s, RE/DONE in Los Angeles.. For a low on the hips, oversize boyfriend fit that looks like you actually borrowed them from your boy, buy this denim in your true size. For a slimmer, loose-but-slouchy fit, size one down.Front Rise 9 1/2"Back Rise 13 1/4"Inseam 30"Model image is for style use only.


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Posted on August 08, 2017 in: General News
Come out for a night of fun in our Music Room.
Fun for Men and Women Friday, August 11, 2017 7:00 to 9:30 pm-
Check In at 6:30 pm
Admission $5.00
Bring your own drinks.
Snacks furnished.
Come have a wonderful evening of fun and support our St. Vincent de Paul.
Cash Prizes Sponsored by Adult Faith Committee
All Saints Catholic Church
7 McMenamy Road St. Peters, MO 63376
Phone: 636-397-1440
Fax: 636-397-1421
Office Hours
Monday – Friday
9:00 am – 4:00 pm


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Mardi Gras Party Menu and Recipes
Come Party With Me: Mardi Gras — Menu
Come Party With Me: Mardi Gras — Menu
Although the biggest Mardi Gras celebration happens on Fat Tuesday, I recommend you have your own party, complete with beads and masks, this Saturday night. Serve a delectable spread of Southern finger foods, including some classic New Orleans dishes. I've scoured our recipes to come up with an amazing menu, so check it out now!


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Quality & Satisfaction
Our Promise to You
Do you have any comments regarding the care you are receiving? Your feedback is an extremely important part of making this hospital YOUR hospital.
At Rochelle Community Hospital, we strive daily to provide our patients with the best healthcare possible. If you have comments about the level of care you have received at Rochelle Community Hospital, please call Quality Management at 815-562-2181, Ext. 2480. Or contact us at firstname.lastname@example.com.
If you have additional questions or comments about patient care and safety that cannot be adequately addressed by the Quality Management Department, you may contact The Joint Commission's Office of Quality Monitoring by calling 1-800-994-6610 or e-mailing firstname.lastname@example.com.
Patient Surveys
Our patients have an opportunity to rate our performance by participating in our new survey process provided by Press Ganey, a healthcare surveying company. Patients will be contacted by Press Ganey to fill out a survey. Results are compiled by Press Ganey and provided to the hospital.
Whether you come to the hospital on a regular basis to receive care or come once in a while, we want to hear from you.
Patient Satisfaction Scores
Results of our patient satisfaction surveys are featured on Hospital Compare. Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) measures a hospital's ability to follow specified best practices related to clinical patient care. We strive to make our patients' experiences as positive as possible and provide the highest standard of patient care and goals with every admission, through hospitalization, to discharge and beyond. To see our HCAHPS scores for the first quarter of 2013, click here.


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LFV Day 2: Amazing Hockey
Just got back to my hotel from the Canucks game a little while ago. It was unbelievable. Having experienced a long playoff run and a Stanley Cup championship in Tampa, I thought I knew what exciting hockey was. Wow. I didn't know anything.
It's not even the playoffs. It was a big game for the Canucks tonight, but not that big, you know? The atmosphere in that building was incredible. Absolutely unforgettable. I realized that I'd never really been to a hockey game until I went to one in Canada.
I'm sure I sound a little crazy, but for as big a hockey fan as I am, it's just a great feeling to be surrounded by people who feel the same way about the game. Yeah, we don't have that in Tampa. Not to mention, five goals in the first six minutes, that was pretty intense.
Earlier in the day, I walked around Stanley Park and visited the aquarium. Just in general, this city is pretty awesome. Vancouverites, I love your town! Mind if I stay?
Anyway, one more thing before I sign off for the night. Concepts! Got a couple for the Canucks and a bonus for the Nashville Predators, their opponent tonight. First one's my favorite.
Love the logo. Love the green jerseys. Love it all. (I love it so much maybe I'll marry it.)
Another design I've got here incorporates the same cool logo but it just doesn't work well for me, overall.
And we continue this downward tumble with a yellow Preds jersey. No, this wasn't meant to be an in-your-face for the Canucks' big win tonight, it was just all I had.
I really don't like yellow jerseys. Only seems to look good on the Swedes.
And finally, I leave you with a glimpse of the game — specifically the singing of the national anthems — from my particular vantage point in section 329.


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You should take out the rice and replace it with leafy greens and appropriate fruits and vegetables. Dogs have a difficult time digesting grains (of all kinds) due to their shorter digestive tracts, and the grains also stick to their teeth more causing accelerated decay.
I've been feeding my dog (rescued from a high-kill shelter in Louisiana - and yes, such horrible things do exist!) raw for the past year, and he went from an itchy, perpetually hungry, reactive dog to a much calmer dog with no health issues. Also, he's of a breed that is predisposed to pancreatitis, and this is a great way to limit his fat intake and to make sure he gets only good fats.


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Because you are making a difference, your friends at Second Sitting want to thank you for your commitment to supporting renewable energy by offering this coupon for Receive $10 off a purchase of $50 or more. For a printer friendly version of the coupon, click here.
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