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We can develop a custom software solution for your agency utilizing your current data sources. We have integrated multiple data sources into a one stop reporting solution. Many of our customers came to us with many small, medium and large database applications and we integrated them into a client/server based system providing them with all their data needs.
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- Steam & Rain Forest Shower
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subset: commoncrawl


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Matt Zurbo
For my wife and child xo
If I could, I'd give you the moon.
I'd tuck it in your pocket, for when you need it most.
So that if you hear an owl hooting,
you'll know why.
If I could I'd give you the sky, its freedom,
its moods,
every fable it holds.
I'd give you mighty storms,
so you might know all weather is good weather.
I'd give you the outdoors.
I'd give you how it feels to simply be walking by your side.
If I could, I wouldn't age,
or I'd leave a part of me behind,
so I could watch you revel in the arc of life.
See the ripples you made.
I'd give you every story yet told.
every schoolyard,
every dream,
every fairy, giant, troll.
Those who say it's all been said before are fools.
Of course it hasn't.
Not in general,
not by you, your mum or I.
If I could, I'd forever be your shield.
I'd give you my strength, every bit of it,
for each time you fall.
I'd give you all I've seen,
so you might use whatever bits you chose,
as a push start,
to explore even more.
Sometimes, I watch your eyes,
just watch them watching it all,
and know you've already started to explore.
Oh, you will explore!
One day I'll plant a forest around where we'll live,
in the bush somewhere,
and watch you and it grow in time.
If I could, I'd give you every tear I ever cried.
So you'll learn from my mistakes,
when to let go,
how to build fortresses,
weather storms.
So you know the love I felt
when you were born.
If I could I'd give you the smallest piece of my loneliness.
So you might brace for its days of power.
If I could I'd give you constant happiness!
The feeling when your mum and I hear you make the smallest sounds.
mumble to yourself,
The way, when you're sleep, we listen to you breath.
These gifts!
These things you can't own.
Oh, within this love!
I'd give you every
you'll ever need.
Even though it will never be enough.
You have to do so much for yourself.
Learn, fall, succeed, roam.
If I could, I'd give you the world…
but it's already yours.
The End
(A brief announcement tomorrow. Love to all. xo)


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I stumbled across references in the Landover Baptist Church forums about the Malleus Maleficarum. If you're not familiar with Landover Baptist Church, rest assured that it's a parody of fundamentalist churches and the Religious Right. What makes this web site so poignant is that the issues that are parodied are often indistinguishable from the real thing.
The forum topic on the Malleus Maleficarum starts with a question;
"So I was visiting my new favorite Christian book store the other day when I found a weird book there. I forgot my wallet at home, but the clerk was so happy I had been recently filled and penetrated by the Gospel that he let me have it for free … Can a True Christian™ man let me know if its ok? Or if I should just throw it in the fireplace and read a cookbook instead?"
It's what comes next that got my attention. I've heard this discussion before, and not in the form of parody. Some Evangelicals avoid anything that's been written by Catholics, believing Catholic rites and the veneration of Saints is, at best, bordering on heathenism. Some have even suggested that Catholics secretly worship Satan because they had usurped Jesus Christ's authority by elevating Mother Mary almost to the status of an equal.
Anyway, the forums are worth a read. Keep in mind that everything you find there is parody. But, like all good parody, it comes uncomfortably close to the truth.
Visit Landover Forums thread >>


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Editor's note: CNN does not usually identify children of alleged abuse, but in this case the girl and her family gave CNN permission to tell her story and use her name.
Nujood Ali, 10, has been chastised by some in Yemen for speaking out about her arranged marriage.
SANAA, Yemen (CNN) -- Nujood Ali is 10 years old, but she already has been married and divorced. It was an arranged marriage in which she said a husband three times her age routinely beat and raped her.
"When I got married, I was afraid. I didn't want to leave home. I wanted to stay with my brothers and sisters and my mom and dad," she said, speaking to CNN with the permission of her parents.
"I didn't want to sleep with him, but he forced me to. He hit me, insulted me."
As she plays marbles with her brothers and sister, Nujood is a portrait of innocence, with a shy smile and a playful nature.
But what happened evokes anger and shame. Asked if what she went through was torture, she nods quietly. Watch Nujod describe what happened »
Nujood's parents married her off in February to a man in his 30s whom she describes as old and ugly.
Her parents said they thought they were putting her in the care of her husband's family, but Nujood said he would often beat her into submission.
Nujood then turned to her family for mercy.
"When I heard, my heart burned for her; he wasn't supposed to sleep with her," said Nujood's mother, who asked not to be identified.
But, initially, she also told her daughter she could not help her -- that she belonged to her husband now.
Nujood's father, Ali Mohammed Ahdal, said he is angry about what happened to his daughter. "He was a criminal, a criminal. He did hateful things to her," he said. "He didn't keep his promise to me that he wouldn't go near her until she was 20."
When contacted by CNN, the girl's former husband declined to comment.
Nujood's parents, like so many others in Yemen, struck a social bargain when they decided to have their daughter wed. More than half of all Yemeni girls are married off before the age of 18, according to Oxfam International, a nonprofit group that fights global poverty and injustice.
Many times girls are forced to marry older men, including some who already have at least one wife, Oxfam said. According to tribal customs, the girls are no longer viewed as a financial or moral burden to their parents.
"There is always a fear that the girl will do something to dishonor the family: She will run away with a guy, she will have relations with a boy. So this is always the phobia that the families have," said Suha Bashren of Oxfam International.
Bashren calls the tradition of child brides in Yemen a national crisis. She works with young girls to protect them from early marriage, abuse and one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world.
The Yemeni government is holding legal and religious workshops to try to deal with the issue of early marriage. But experts say marrying off a young daughter is generally still seen as the right thing to do.
"A lot of people in the public don't think that this is wrong or that what happened to her was abuse," Bashren said.
In Yemen, there is nothing new or extraordinary about Nujood's story because children have been married off for generations. The country's legal minimum age for marriage was 15 till a decade ago, when the law was changed to allow for children even younger to be wed.
But what is most unusual is that this young girl took such an intensely private dispute and went public with it.
Nujood said she made up her mind to escape from her husband, describing how on a visit to her parents' home she broke free and traveled to the central courthouse across town and demanded to speak to a judge.
"He asked me, 'What do you want?' And I said, 'I want a divorce.' And he said, 'You're married?' And I said, 'Yes,'" she recalled.
What unfolded in those few days in April gripped the country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.
Nujood got her divorce, but based on the principles of Islamic Sharia law, her husband was compensated, not prosecuted. Nujood was ordered to pay him more than $200. The human rights lawyer who represented her donated the money.
But for this determined spirit, it was still a sweet victory.
"I did this so that people would listen and think about not marrying their daughters off as young as I was," she said with a shy smile.
Now back at the family home, she said she won't go outside to play -- that all the attention bothers her. Some still condemn the young girl for speaking out, believing that she shouldn't have challenged convention.
Human rights advocates said it will take more than a generation if this practice is to change in Yemen for other children.
"These girls are living in a misery that no one is talking about," Oxfam's Bashren said.
All About Yemen • Child Abuse


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When I was a teenager, one of my teachers told us about his list of "required" experiences. These were experiences that he felt were prerequisites to being a fully alive, aware person. I remember nothing of that list except one: spend a night in jail. I asked him if he'd ever spent a night in jail. He had. (I have not.)
Twenty-five years later, I wonder how much of his list I've covered, and how much it's changed. If I were to meet him and tell him about my life, would he feel that my life is on track, or would he only see gaps in experience? What about things I've done that he has not? Would he find them threatening? Would he dismiss them as distractions?
I'm aware, both in the Zen community and in myself, of our tendency to define what is real and what is not according our own experiences. It's natural. Anyone who has kids (this is especially true of new parents) probably has the experience of talking to a childless friend and thinking, "This guy doesn't know anything about the real world. He has no idea." And many young people have the opposite experience — talking to a friend whose life revolves around her children and thinking, "Wow, she's completely lost in her narrow little world." When we are among the initiated, we imagine that it couldn't possibly be any other way; when we are outsiders, we mock the people on the inside for their self-importance.
So it's natural that in the Zen community, we tend to advocate a kind of training similar to what we ourselves have experienced. There are only a few Zen teachers in the US who are products of a traditional monastic system, and as a result, there are only a few who feel strongly about passing that system on. There are some on the extreme other side who feel monastic practice is a complete waste of time, then a majority in the middle who feel that it's OK for people who are into that sort of thing, or who feel it might have value in small, manageable chunks. But, at least for the moment, there is very little energy behind establishing monastic training opportunities for the current and future generations of Soto Zen priests.
That's how I see it, based on conversations with other priests, attendance at national meetings, and perusal of what's written on various Zen center websites. A few teachers may still hold up "the monastery" as a kind of abstract, romantic ideal, but much more often, the language we hear is "outside the monastery," or "beyond the monastery" (if the monastery is mentioned at all). Many, many teachers reference the monastery not as an ideal, but as something that is fundamentally at odds with modern living. It's the problem with Zen. And when I read such statements, I always wonder, "Who is the audience here?" If American Zen teachers are already not actively advocating monastic training, then against whom are we arguing? At this moment in the history of Zen, abandoning monastic practice is hardly a revolutionary move.
I think there are legitimate and constructive conversations to be had about this: What is monastic training? What's it about? If there is a goal, what is it? What does it produce? How has it justified its existence up to now, and do those justifications hold up in a modern, Western context? If yes, then what causes our cultural resistance to such practice? And if not, why not? What aspects of the monastic tradition in Japan can find traction in the US? Which require modification? Which don't stand a chance from the start? And how do we determine such things? If we attempt to establish an "American" monastic model, what is our inspiration? Modern Japanese monasteries? The monastic guidelines (shingi) left behind by Dogen? By Keizan? Do we go back further, to the shingi from China? Do we go back to the beginning, to the birth of the monastic sangha in Buddha's time and take our cues from that original structure? American culture hates rules, but it also has a deep puritanical streak that connects to the tradition of the vinaya (browse almost any Buddhist blog's comments section to find people insisting that any monk who is not celibate and poor is a scam artist, a sexual-predator-to-be who's just in it for the money). How can we fund monasteries in the US, knowing that the Asian models of patronage just won't work?
At the center of all of it: What is a priest?
These are really interesting questions. These are among the most compelling questions I've ever encountered.
But before we can address any of them, we need to move beyond the popular idea that the monastery is somehow different from the "real world." This idea is everywhere. I hear over and over again that we don't need monastics, because monastics can't possibly understand the challenges of ordinary people. People refer to monastic life as something sheltered, a way of hiding from "real life." They say, "Get a job." This could only make sense to someone who is looking at monasteries from the outside.
One night in the monastery, I slept in a closet to hide from a monk who had gone down to the local village, gotten drunk, and decided upon his return that this was his night to kill me and the monk in charge. I just stayed where he couldn't find me, and the next day we found our mutual ways back into the normal routine. I watched a monk trying to break a sleeping monk's face with a kyosaku (but missed, luckily – it was dark). One evening after dinner, after hearing the next day's job assignments, a monk who felt he spent too much time in the kitchen jumped completely over a table and tried to strangle the shuso (chief novice). I watched a fistfight break out over how much or how little monks should be involved in politics. A monk went crazy one day and basically destroyed a room, like a wild animal trapped indoors. We all waited in the hallway for it to end, then went in and silently cleaned it up.
For a time, the head monk, hell-bent on saving money, tried to force us to eat rotten pickles every day – so rotten that they had turned from yellow to a deep blue. One afternoon, I just went into the woods, dug a hole, and buried them.
In winter, when the head monk had to suddenly leave for medical reasons, some of the junior monks holed up in a room for three weeks. They were free, and their version of embracing freedom was to close the door and keep their little kerosene stove burning constantly, with the windows closed, essentially gassing themselves into a constant toxic sleep. They'd stumble out from time to time, looking intoxicated and confused, then wobble down the hall to raid the kitchen. During that whole period, I don't think I ever heard any of them actually speak.
A monastery is not some romantic place where people spend their days serving each other tea and thinking about saving all beings. When we look beyond the schedule of ceremonies and zazen, what we find in monasteries is an experiment in intimacy. It's an intimacy with others — more than once, I've heard it likened to a pot full of potatoes, rubbing against each other until they're all skinned and shiny white. It's also an intimacy with yourself. If you sit six hours of zazen a day, every once in a while, zazen will slip away and you'll find yourself thinking about things — a recurring theme, guaranteed, will be, "What the hell am I doing here?" You have time in a monastery to go over every mistake you've ever made, to dissect every regret, to luxuriate in self-doubt.
More than anything, it's an experiment in saying yes. We say yes to the bell, to the schedule, to the demands of being, in many ways, glorified custodians (if you go to bed at 9pm and wake up at 3am, that's not just an 18-hour day, it's 16-18 hours of actually working). We say yes to seniors, putting personal issues aside. We say yes to the tradition, to the 24-hour ritual enactment of the life of Buddha, eating this way, standing this way, sleeping this way, sitting this way. And under all of it is the fundamental yes, the one where we decide not to leave, to stay where we are. We agree to move in concert with these crazy people.
In this way, we start to understand what it is to move beyond preferences. A mantra in the monastery is suki kirai kankei nai (好き嫌い関係ない) — essentially, like and dislike are irrelevant. If you're like me, then in the beginning, you hear this to mean, "Don't whine." But it's much more than that. It's at the center. When my daughter just bumped her head and my son is tantrum-screaming as if he's on fire, but it's something about which cup I gave him, I have lots of preferences about how I would like things to be. And none of them matter.
When we default to the idea that the monastery is another world, we both demonize and romanticize it — we insist that its differences make it irrelevant, and in doing so, we imply that it really is a magical world where bodhisattvas stroll around, unencumbered by human problems. The most basic stance of Buddhism, from its first day, is that human experience is universal — we all see the world through the lens of our own narrative, and in doing so, we all create criteria by which we judge (and thereby distance ourselves from) this moment. We all separate the world before us into "like" and "dislike." We all believe, consciously or unconsciously, that some things are more "real" than others. We all, I suspect, have a hierarchy of experience.
And if pressed, I'd bet that most of us believe, deep down, that there is some place a person can go to "get away from it all," a place for retreat. There is no such place.
There is only this place. In a monastery, too, there is only this place. When this is all there is, how can this be unreal?
When this is all there is, how can there be someplace else to go?


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Hopkins wins split decision over Shumenov
WASHINGTON - Bernard Hopkins made some more boxing history, and did it in rather easy fashion.
Then, the 49-year-old boxer showed his age, referencing a TV character that might have gone over the heads of many young fans.
"I was so in my living room watching Archie Bunker," Hopkins said, playfully comparing himself to the main character from the 1970's series "All in the Family."
"I was so relaxed, so relaxed."
Already the oldest boxer in history to hold a world championship, Hopkins became the oldest to win a unification bout Saturday night as he captured a split 12-round decision over Beibut Shumenov of Kazakhstan.
Afterward, the Philadelphia native sounded far from finished - or satisfied.
"The pound-for-pound best fighter in the world right now is Floyd 'Money' Mayweather," Hopkins said. "I'll tell you, behind Andre Ward, who I believe is second and should be, I'm not that far from the top three. My age and the way I'm doing it.
"I'm just telling you, I'm not done yet."
Hopkins was in complete control Saturday and it was reflected in the statistics. Of the 608 punches thrown by Shumenov, only 20 percent landed. Of the 383 punches Hopkins threw, he landed 49 percent.
"I didn't do that when I was 30," Hopkins joked. "He was really surprised the way I could stand there and let him miss."
When the split decision was announced the pro-Hopkins crowd of 6,823 jeered its disapproval. Two judges scored the fight 116-111 for Hopkins. The other judge gave the nod to Shumenov 114-113.
"I shut him out," Hopkins said.
If there was any doubt about the outcome, it was removed in the 11th round when Hopkins rocked Shumenov with a chopping overhand right for the only knockdown of the fight, igniting chants of "B-Hop! B-Hop!" from the D.C. Armory crowd.
It was a reminder for Hopkins of 20 years ago, when he fought for the first time in Washington, losing a decision to Roy Jones Jr. at RFK Stadium, right across the street from the venue where Saturday's fight took place.
"It motivates me every time I come to D.C. The dressing rooms, it took me back," said Hopkins, who improved to 55-6-2.
After a slow start, in which he fought defensively, Hopkins controlled the action, growing confident, aggressive and playful as the fight progressed.
The fourth round saw Shumenov moving forward, but Hopkins landed the two best shots, both right-handed counterpunches, to secure the edge. In the fifth, Hopkins was doing more than counterpunching. A straight overhand right landed squarely to the cheek of Shumenov.
By the sixth round, it was clear that Hopkins' confidence was growing as he became the aggressor, initiating the action and landing a big combination.
In the seventh round, Hopkins was feeling so good that he alternated leading with his right and left hands, befuddling Shumenov, who fell to 14-2.
"I'm kind of angry that I lost the fight," Shumenov said. "I am a true warrior."
Hopkins-Shumenov was one of three world title fights on Saturday. In the first, Peter Quillin of Brooklyn, N.Y., retained his WBO middleweight belt and improved to 31-0 with a unanimous 12-round decision over Lukas Konecky of the Czech Republic.
In the IBF welterweight title match, Shawn Porter of Cleveland also remained undefeated with a fourth-round knockout of Brooklyn's Paulie Malignaggi, who took time off from his job as an analyst for Showtime, which carried the night's action.


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Britney Spears Shares Hair-Raising Photo of Son Jayden James
Though there was much speculation about it in the beginning, it seems as if Britney Spears is actually a really great mom. The 'Femme Fatale' hitmaker has been spending plenty of time with her two boys, Sean Preston and Jayden James, recently and has been very generous in sharing photos with her fans.
On Wednesday, Brit posted a ridiculously adorable photo of her 5-year-old to her Twitter page, proving that she and the boys know how to have some fun.
The pic shows her youngest son Jayden laying on top of Sean P.,6, on a trampoline — and nearly every hair on his head is standing straight up from the static. To top it all off, he's modeling some especially cute dimples and looks almost identical to his superstar mom.
"Jayden is having some hair raising fun on the trampoline!" Brit tweeted along with the photo. Her latest photo-share comes just a day after one of Sean Preston — mom's "little Hercules" — showing off his super muscles at a gymnastics class.
Now this is the kind of Twitter over-sharing that we love!


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You will visit the following 3 places:
Charlotte Amalie
Charlotte Amalie, located on St. Thomas, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Founded in 1666 as Taphus (meaning "beer houses" or "beer halls"), the town has been inhabited for centuries. Hundreds of ferries and yachts pass through town each week, and at times the population more than doubles. The city is known for its Danish colonial architecture, building structure and history, and a dozen streets and places throughout the city have Danish names. Charlotte Amalie has buildings of historical importance including St. Thomas Synagogue, the second-oldest synagogue in the Western Hemisphere, and Frederick Lutheran Church, the oldest Lutheran church in the Western Hemisphere. The town has a long history of pirates, especially stories of Bluebeard and Blackbeard (Edward Teach). In the 17th century, the Danes built both Blackbeard's Castle and Bluebeard's Castle attributed to the pirates. Blackbeard's Castle is a U.S.National Historic Landmark. Another tourist attraction is Fort Christian, the oldest standing structure in the Virgin Islands Archipelago. A copy of the Liberty Bell is in Emancipation Park, which is a tourist attraction.
Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, 28 miles (45 km) north of Miami. The city is a popular tourist destination, with an average year-round temperature of 75.5 °F (24.2 °C), and 3,000 hours of sunshine per year. Greater Fort Lauderdale which takes in all of Broward County hosted 12 million visitors in 2012, including 2.8 million international visitors. The district has 561 hotels and motels comprising nearly 35,000 rooms. Greater Fort Lauderdale has over 4,000 restaurants, 63 golf courses, 12 shopping malls, 16 museums, 132 nightclubs, 278 parkland campsites, and 100 marinas housing 45,000 resident yachts. Fort Lauderdale is named after a series of forts built by the United States during the Second Seminole War. The forts took their name from Major William Lauderdale (1782–1838), younger brother of Lieutenant Colonel James Lauderdale. William Lauderdale was the commander of the detachment of soldiers who built the first fort.
Phillipsburg is a town in Warren County, New Jersey, in the United States. It was incorporated as a town by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 8, 1861, from portions of Phillipsburg Township (now Lopatcong Township). The town was named for William Phillips, an early settler of the area. Phillipsburg had historically benefited from being a major transportation hub, situated at the confluence of the Delaware and Lehigh rivers. Phillipsburg served as the western terminus of the Morris Canal for approximately 100 years from the 1820s to 1920s, which connected the city by water to the industrial and consumer centers of the New York City area, with connections westward via the Lehigh Canal and Delaware Canal across the Delaware.


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On this day 30 years ago the British Home Secretary, Douglas Hurd, issued a notice under clause 13 of the BBC Licence and Agreement to the BBC and under section 29) of the Broadcasting Act 1981 to the Independent Broadcasting Authority prohibiting the broadcast of direct statements by representatives or supporters of eleven Irish political and military organisations. The ban prevented the UK news media from broadcasting the voices, though not the words, of ten Irish republican and Ulster loyalist paramilitary groups, these included IRA, INLA, UVF and UDA as well as Sinn Féin.(bizarrely enough it did not include Ian Paisley's DUP).
The Government's notice on Northern Ireland broadcasting restrictions came into force on 19 October 1988 after an escalation in paramilitary violence over the preceding summer months.
Home Secretary Hurd, told the Commons that the ban was being instituted because 'the terrorists themselves draw support and sustenance from access to radio and television .the time had come to deny this easy platform to those who used it to propagate terrorism. Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, said it would "deny terrorists the oxygen of publicity".
The ban did not have the desired effect and any one with a common sense would have been able to guess that.
It did create a few ironies though.
The ban sparked the creativity of broadcast organisations and actors were hired to do voice overs. Actors became so skilled in lip-syncing sound clips for news bulletins that viewers barely noticed the dubbing.Some actors could earn up to £120 per session.
Stephen Rea, who was among the actors to voice Gerry Adams in interviews, later told the Irish Times he tried to speak the lines "as clearly and neutrally as possible, Stephen Rea's wife though had been an IRA volunteer at the time.
The restrictions also applied to non news or current affair TV Shows.In December 1988 the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Tom King, ordered Channel 4 to cancel an episode of the US drama series Lou Grant that featured the story of a fictional IRA gunrunner, even though it had aired previously.
Restrictions were temporarily lifted during the 1992 general election, facilitating a political debate between the SDLP leader John Hume and the Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams to be heard during the election campaign, but the ban resumed once the polls were closed.
The Republic of Ireland had its own similar legislation that banned anyone with links to paramilitary groups from the airwaves, but repealed this in January 1994. The British government followed suit on 16 September 1994, two weeks after the first IRA ceasefire had been declared.
I am passionate about my site and I know a you all like reading my blogs. I have been doing this at no cost and will continue to do so. All I ask is for a voluntary donation of €2 ,however if you are not in a position to do so I can fully understand, maybe next time then. Thanks To donate click on the credit/debit card icon of the card you will use. If you want to donate more then €2 just add a higher number in the box left from the paypal link. Many thanks


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Welcome to the Global Plantation
HR 2749 Authorizes International Take-Over of Domestic Food Production
© Doreen Hannes 2009
HR 2749 AUTHORIZES NAIS and OTHER INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS
Congressional staffers have been telling people that HR 2749, the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, does not authorize the National Animal Identification System (NAIS). Many organic groups have agreed with them. However, this is misleading. Though HR 2749 does not name "the" National Animal Identification System, it still authorizes the program. It also does not state that it legally authorizes Good Agricultural Practices, or GAP, partially comprising Codex guidelines on traceability and food safety, and the OIE's Guide to Good Farming Practices including auditing, certification and inspections, disincentives for not participating in the form of fines, penalties, and loss of access to market, but it does. Is it possible that Congress was not aware of what it voted on? The bill was changed three times in a 24-hour period before passing the House 283-142 on July 30, 2009.
Are these assertions about HR 2749 wild and unsubstantiated? Proving them is fairly easy—just understand "Good Agricultural Practices" (GAP), how the agencies of the World Trade Organization operate within member countries to achieve them and what comprises the actual jurisdiction of the FDA and USDA. A brief explanation follows, along with substantiating quotes from HR 2749.
First we look to jurisdiction in HR2749….
"Nothing in this Act or any amendment made by this Act shall be construed to alter the jurisdiction between the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, under applicable statutes and regulations…" (p.3&4)
Then, tossing our preconceived notions to the wind and looking to law instead, we find that congressional testimony of the FDA on establishing a single food safety agency and a myriad of other sources including the FAO (Food and Ag Organization of the UN), the FDA statements on the Bioterrorism Act of 2002, and many books on food law affirm that FDA has jurisdiction over live food animals:
"FDA is the Federal agency that regulates 80 percent of the nation's food supply-everything we eat except for meat, poultry, and certain egg products, which are regulated by our partners at USDA. FDA's responsibility extends to live food animals…"
So then what is the authority of the USDA? It is over agricultural disease, animals in the slaughter channel or transport, marketing (like grading of eggs and certification of processes) and the end product of many (but not all) food animals; meat. This is why NAIS always had to be "about disease" because the USDA couldn't run it otherwise! The exemption section on USDA regulated products is a dust up. Most people think the USDA has authority over live food animals, but it is the FDA after all. They surrender "cow, sheep or goat for milk production", but the FDA retains authority of the fluid milk and when the animal is no longer productive for milking, it's into the slaughter channel (under USDA) or out to pasture (back to FDA) anyway!
"Livestock and poultry that are intended to be presented for slaughter pursuant to the regulations by the Secretary of Agriculture under the Federal Meat Inspection Act or the Poultry Products Inspection Act are exempt from the requirements of this Act. A cow, sheep, or goat that is used for the production of milk is exempt from the requirements of this Act." (p.5 of HR2749)
HR 2749 is 160 pages (July 29 version) and contains the following references to international standards and guidelines (emphasis added for clarity) (all page numbers refer to the PDF file):
"(B) INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS.—In issuing guidance or regulations… the Secretary shall review international hazard analysis and preventive control standards that are in existence on the date of the enactment of this Act and relevant to such guidelines or regulations to ensure that the programs…..are consistent……with such standards." (p. 35)
"CONSISTENCY WITH INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS.—The Secretary shall apply this paragraph consistently with United States obligations under international agreements." (p. 81)
"The Secretary shall issue regulations to ensure that any qualified certifying entity and its auditors are free from conflicts of interest. In issuing these regulations, the Secretary may rely on or incorporate international certification standards." (p. 82)
This means that there will be a layer of auditors, certifiers and inspectors over every aspect of food production in this country and that these inspectors and certifiers will be trained in ISO (International Standards Organization) management program certification. The ISO has been working with Codex Alimentarius on Food Safety Standards and, in particular, a technical standard for Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) which is a consortium of the seven largest food retailers in the world, and that is ISO22000:2005. All traceability (read NAIS) falls under the purview of Codex, the OIE (World Animal Health Organization) and the IPPC (International Plant Protection Convention) for global trade agreements.
The following excerpt from HR 2749 shows the fully interoperable global network already in existence regarding food and its production:
"Development of such guidelines shall take into account the utilization of existing unique identification schemes and compatibility with customs automated systems, such as integration with the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) and the International Trade Data System (ITDS), and any successor systems." (p. 142)
So it is clear that international standards and guidelines are implicit in this legislation. Note the usage of the command form SHALL. This isn't a 'might', 'may' or in anyway a voluntary issue on the part of the Secretary. Then there is the section on Traceability. This is a code word in the National Animal Identification System and when one reads Sec.107 of this bill, it describes specific components of NAIS down to 48-hour trace-back, which cannot even be fantasized about with out individual animal identification.
"…..the Secretary shall issue regulations establishing a tracing system that enables the Secretary to identify each person who grows, produces, manufactures, processes, packs, transports, holds, or sells such food in as short a timeframe as practicable but no longer than 2 business days." [note that it says "grows"] (p. 70)
"……use a unique identifier for each facility owned or operated by such person for such purpose…" (p. 69)
So we have PIN (Premises Identification Number) and 48-hour traceback harmonizing with international standards and guidelines along with this:
"….''(C) COORDINATION REGARDING FARM IMPACT.—In issuing regulations under this paragraph that will impact farms, the Secretary ''(i) shall coordinate with the Secretary of Agriculture; and ''(ii) take into account the nature of the impact of the regulations on farms." (p. 71)
Now that I've killed you with legalese, it's time to let you find out just what these international standards and guidelines mean to those engaged in agriculture in this country.
Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) are not a standard in and of themselves. They are a combination of standards and guidelines set forth by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the U.N. (FAO), through both the OIE (World Animal Health Organization) and Codex Alimentarius (Food Code) and IPPC to meet the certification and auditing side of the international trade aspects of the standards set forth. The OIE and Codex are charged with setting global standards and guidelines for the member countries of the WTO to meet and satisfy the SPS (Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary), TBT (Technical Barriers to Trade) and Equivalency agreements of the WTO for participation in international trade. Both the OIE and CODEX have guidelines for traceability that, with the passage of HR2749 into law, would be written into regulations governing all interstate commerce within the boundaries of the United States. The components of traceability are the pillars of NAIS that many of us have become so familiar with in the course of the battle over the past several years. Those being 1) Premises Identification 2) Animal Identification and 3) Animal Tracking. You can't have traceability under international standards without having those three components.
One of the main issues in the implementation of these standards and guidelines within a member nation of the WTO is that they must have a legal framework through which to regulate and enforce these guidelines and standards. HR 2749 would meet the criteria for that legal framework by way of the excerpts from the bill above.
In the OIE's "Guide to Good Farming Practices" the management of a livestock facility are clearly spelled out. Some of these recommendations that would become defacto law in the US under agency rule-making on passage of HR2749 (GGFP delineates international guidelines for food safety at the farm level) are:
– For each animal…Require and keep all commercial and health documents enabling their exact itinerary to be traced from their farm or establishment to their final destination…
-Keep a record of all persons entering the farm…..
-Keep medical certificates of persons working with the animals……
-Keep documents proving the water you give to the animals meets specific criteria
-Keep samples of all feed given to the animals
-Keep all documents from official inspections
-Keep records of treatment and procedures on all animals (castration, disbudding, calving, medications, etc.)
-Prevent domestic animals (cats and dogs) from roaming in and around livestock buildings
-Place all these documents at the disposal of the competent authority (Veterinary Services) when it conducts farm visits.
Some of the other guidelines and standards that would come into play after the implementation of traceability for all agricultural products would be : (from FAO COAG/17 "Development of a Framework for Good Agricultural Practices") "the adoption and implementation of international standards and codes for which Codex food safety standards and guidelines have been designed, and the associated capacity building, training, development and field implementation in the context of the different production systems and agro-ecozones. These include: Enhancing Food Quality and Safety by Strengthening Handling, Processing and Marketing in the Food Chain (214A9); Capacity Building and Risk Analysis Methodologies for Compliance with Food Safety Standards and Pesticide Control (215P1); Food Quality Control and Consumer Protection (221P5); Food Safety Assessment and Rapid Alert System (221P6); and Food Quality and Safety Throughout the Food Chain (221P8)."*
To be certified as meeting the requirements of "GAP", which is synonymous with being in compliance with international standards and guidelines, we can check out GlobalGAP.org. This is "the" certifying methodology for international trade in ag products. Here are a few excerpts from their 122-page general regulations booklet that has links to checklists for those who would be certifiers and auditors under the principles of GAP. This is an organization, not a governing body under WTO agreements, but working with nations and businesses to meet the criteria regarding these GAP practices for international trade. Here is a bare minimum of excerpts from their regulation document:
-(ii) Developing a Good Agricultural Practice (G.A.P.) framework for benchmarking existing assurance schemes and standards including traceability. (iii) Providing guidance for continuous improvement and the development and understanding of best practice. (iv) Establish a single, recognised framework for independent verification.
-Production Location: A production unit or group of production units, covered by the same ownership, operational procedures, farm management, and GLOBALGAP (EUREPGAP) decision-making activities.
-Within the context of GLOBALGAP (EUREPGAP) Integrated Farm Assurance this means tracing product from the producer's immediate customer back to the producer and certified farm.
-Within the context of GLOBALGAP (EUREPGAP) Integrated Farm Assurance this means tracking product from the producer to his immediate customer.
In simple English, which appears to be highly lacking in all these guidelines, it means NAIS for everything, and for anyone who wishes to be engaged in agriculture….Remember the "grows" phrase from the earlier excerpt from HR2749. Now let's look at some of the 'exception' clauses in HR2749. This bill is a terrifically crafty piece of legislation that is designed to cloud the reader's understanding of the impact of the law being proposed in it. All of the exception clauses give the exception under this Act so long as you are ready to be regulated under a different Act. We'll just look at a couple of these clauses to allow you to get the gist of the lack of exception available through the exceptions….
Farms- A farm is exempt from the requirements of this Act to the extent such farm raises animals from which food is derived that is regulated under the Federal Meat Inspection Act, the Poultry Products Inspection Act, or the Egg Products Inspection Act.
''(I) such an operation that packs or holds food, provided that all food used in such activities is grown, raised, or consumed on such farm or another farm under the same ownership;
''(II) such an operation that manufactures or processes food, provided that all food used in such activities is consumed on such farm or another farm under the same ownership; (pages9 and10)
Thus, if you grow everything you feed and consume everything you grow, and use no minerals or salts that you don't mine yourself, you may be exempt. Or, in plain English, don't even try to make a living in agriculture if you won't comply with these rules.
One more exception to contend with here is:
'(A) DIRECT SALES BY FARMS- Food is exempt from the requirements of this subsection if such food is–
'(i) produced on a farm; and
'(ii) sold by the owner, operator, or agent in charge of such farm directly to a consumer or to a restaurant or grocery store. (page 71)
This sounds good. However, there are several problems with this that are not evident without some knowledge of how things are done in the traditional avenues open for market to growers. First of all, cattle, whom you may recall as the primary target of the NAIS Business Plan, are often sold either at auction barns or via potload to feedlots. It is illegal to sell beef directly from the farm to consumers in every state that I know of. People often will sell a calf ready to butcher in halves or quarters to people and deliver the calf to the slaughter facility for the consumer, but this is far from the normal route of commerce in cattle or other species of meat animal. Even if you can securely wedge your operation into this particular exemption, they get you later via the record keeping section of this bill:
'(E) RECORDKEEPING REGARDING PREVIOUS SOURCES AND SUBSEQUENT RECIPIENTS- For a food or person covered by a limitation or exemption under subparagraph (B), (C), or (D), the Secretary shall require each person who produces, receives, manufactures, processes, packs, transports, distributes, or holds such food to maintain records to identify the immediate previous sources of such food and its ingredients and the immediate subsequent recipients of such food.
'(F) RECORDKEEPING BY RESTAURANTS AND GROCERY STORES- For a food covered by an exemption under subparagraph (A), restaurants and grocery stores shall keep records documenting the farm that was the source of the food.
'(G) RECORDKEEPING BY FARMS- For a food covered by an exemption under subparagraph (A), farms shall keep records, in electronic or non-electronic format, for at least 6 months documenting the restaurant or grocery store to which the food was sold.' (pp. 74-75)
So being exempt means you are required to keep records. Keeping required records means you could be required to release those records. So how exempt can a person get under this legislation? Especially when the slughter facilities will all be regulated unless the USDA already regulates them?
Then of course, as with any law, there are the fines and penalties. These are from $20,000 to $1,000,000 per violation. (p. 122)
There is also the change under the seizure section that takes away judicial overview…(double quotations indicate amending language)
…….procedure in cases under this section shall conform, as nearly as may be, to the procedure in admiralty; except that on demand of either party any issue of fact joined in any such case shall be tried by jury, ""and except that, with respect to proceedings relating to food, Rule G of the Supplemental Rules of Admiralty or Maritime Claims and Asset Forfeiture Actions shall not apply in any such case, exigent circumstances shall be deemed to exist for all seizures brought under this section, and the summons and arrest warrant shall be issued by the clerk of the court without court review in any such case""…… (p. 116)
So we can just throw out that pesky Fourth Amendment to the Constitution and while we're at it, let's get rid of probable cause as well via this wording from page 117:
by striking ''credible evidence or information indicating'' and inserting ''reason to believe'';
There are many other dangerous aspects to HR 2749, like seizures, quarantines, and licensing and whistle blower provisions, but this should leave no doubt that this bill will indeed affect farms and has the potential to affect even home food production if an agency decides to apply the international risk analysis schemes to that venue. This bill opens a huge regulatory nightmare that is only evident when one knows what the international guidelines and standards consist of in regard to agriculture. Understanding those, it is highly unlikely that they will issue regulations that keep things as they are now.
Now, the questions that everyone involved in agriculture, meaning everyone who eats, must ask themselves are these:
Can regulating, fining and destroying the freedom of people to grow food create food safety?
Have the impacts of so-called "Free Trade" on this nation been beneficial for the citizens of this country?
Have food safety concerns increased or decreased since we have begun to import more food under these trade agreements?
And ultimately, does the US Constitution provide for the voidance of the Bill of Rights to participate in global trade?
My copy of the Constitution clearly does not allow for any law to void the Bill of Rights which is unalienable and Constitutionally guaranteed. It's time to let our Federal representatives know in no uncertain terms, that everything to do with governance ultimately comes down to the consent of the governed, and we will not consent to being run by international agencies. ===end===
My deep thanks to Paul Griepentrog, who helped in going through the legislation and many of the ramifications and amendments to current law under this Act.


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Education spending that isn't smart
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Not long after President Obama proclaimed in his second inaugural that "an economic recovery has begun," we learned that the U.S. economy actually shrank in the last quarter. Many economists believe this is a temporary setback. This recovery may be the weakest in American history, but the economy isn't cratering either.
Still, you can bet that if the economy continues to contract, Obama will propose the same remedy he always has: more "investments" in education, infrastructure and various industries of the future. It seems that whatever the ailment, Dr. Obama always writes the same prescription.
This is hardly shocking: Building roads and schools is a big reason why God created Democrats in the first place. And identifying the Next Big Thing — and taking credit for it — is something of a vocation for many liberal policymakers.
But are these really the drivers of economic growth?
Higher education in particular is almost universally championed as the key to "winning the future" — a buzz phrase the president borrowed from Newt Gingrich a while back. New York Times economics columnist David Leonhardt calls education the "lifeblood of economic growth."
Often channeling such writers as Thomas Friedman, whose fondness for the Chinese economic model borders on the perverse, Obama routinely elevates education to a national security issue. "There's an educational arms race taking place around the world right now — from China to Germany, to India to South Korea," Obama said in 2010. "Cutting back on education would amount to unilateral disarmament. We can't afford to do that."
Now, obviously, education is important and necessary for a host of reasons (and nobody is calling for "disarmament," whatever that means). But there's little evidence it drives growth.
British scholar Alison Wolf writes in "Does Education Matter?": "The simple one-way relationship … — education spending in, economic growth out — simply does not exist. Moreover, the larger and more complex the education sector, the less obvious any links to productivity."
Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of "Antifragile: Things That Gain From Disorder," argues that education pays real benefits at a micro level because it allows families to lock in their economic status. An entrepreneurial father can ensure his kids will do OK by paying for them to become doctors and lawyers. But what is true at the micro level is not always true at the macro level.
Think about it this way: Growing economies spend a lot on education, but that doesn't necessarily mean that spending makes them grow. During the so-called Gilded Age, the U.S. economy roared faster and longer than ever before or since, while the illiteracy rate went down. But the rising literacy didn't cause the growth. Similarly, in the 20th century, in places like China, South Korea and India, the economic boom — and the policies that create it — always come first while the investments in education come later.
There are similar problems with claims that infrastructure spending will pay off. When I was in college, prominent experts and journalists — Lester Thurow, Robert Reich, James Fallows, Kevin Phillips et al. — were insisting Japan would be the next world economic superpower. In the late 1980s, Jacques Attali, the first head of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, claimed that "America has become Japan's granary, like Poland was for Flanders in the 17th century." Attali did allow for the possibility that the U.S. West Coast might do OK, but only because it was "in the gravitational pull of Japanese financial power and geographic proximity." Japan is now well into its third "lost decade." Over the years, it has poured money into "stimulative" infrastructure projects that have yet to stimulate and protected industries that have steadily lost their competitive edge. Economic growth has averaged less than 1 percent since 2000, while government debt is now more than twice its GDP. If a highly educated workforce, support for allegedly cutting-edge industries and lavish spending on infrastructure was the recipe for economic growth (and if debt didn't matter), Japan would be doing great.
Obama surely wants to see some real economic growth. Perhaps the problem is that he thinks investing in a much bigger cart to put before the horse will get him where he wants to go.
(Jonah Goldberg is the author of the new book "The Tyranny of Clichés." You can write to him in care of this newspaper or by e-mail at: [email protected], or via Twitter @JonahNRO.)
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NEW YORK — A man claims "temporary Linsanity" led him to rob a Queens diner.
As New York was celebrating after Knicks player Jeremy Lin sunk a game-winning 3-pointer against the Toronto Raptors Tuesday night, a man with "Linsanity" was committing a robbery in Queens.
"Linsanity," the popular phrase coined amid Lin's highly praised performance during the team's 6-game winning streak, is certainly a real thing, according to 36-year-old Bryan Hazer. Hazer is accused of walking into the popular restaurant Larry's and demanding cash at gunpoint. According to Hazer's lawyers, he was unaware of what he was doing, as Lin's fateful shot with less than a second to go made Hazer "snap."
"After screaming for the cash, he kept on mumbling things about the game to himself," said one bystander, who asked not to be named. "He kept on saying stuff like '27 points' and '11 assists … a career high.' It was weird."
While Linsanity has not been recognized by medical professionals as anything but a harmless phrase, Hazer's lawyers plan to present a strong case for its dangers and potential impact on sports fans. A
statement by the lawyers was released soon after Hazer's arrest.
"It was tied at 87," the statement said. "No one thought he would just go for the three. It was Linsane, and we believe our client is not responsible for his actions due to these circumstances. Mr. Hazer is
an upstanding young man with a bright future, and it would be a shame for something out of his control to ruin his life."
Hazer, a dock worker and lifelong Knicks fan, has shown no previous inclination toward crime, according to friends. Best friend and confidant Greg Curtis stands by Hazer.
"Look, this isn't [Bryan's] fault," Curtis said. "This whole thing is affecting all of us. Just earlier, I was feeling some major Lindigestion. It's terrifying."


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Timberline 340-22 Carbide Tipped Beading 1/2 R x 1-1/2 D x 3/4 CH x 1/4 Inch SHK Router Bit
Cut a quarter-round shape bounded by fillets, known as a bead, is produced in one pass by this bit. The width of one fillet is set by the pilot bearing size, while the other is controlled by the depth of cut.
- 2-Flute
- Industrial quality
- Carbide tipped


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Despite setbacks, suppliers insist projections are rosy for packetized voice. Can they be believed?
After three years as CEO and five rounds of funding, Joe Kennedy calls it quits as Pluris reorganizes
Many of JDSU's customers have warned -- pointing to the high possibility of another revenue shortfall
The Nextwave saga is a delaying factor in the rollout of 3G services in the US
Jerry Parrick takes a back seat while the distressed carrier's board names Dennis Muse to the CEO chair
It's expected to announce a framer that packs four Gigabit Ethernet links into an OC48
Juniper Networks lowered its first quarter guidance yesterday. So why did the stock rise today?
AFC has bought a multiservice switch company for $43 million. Are RBOCs ready to migrate from ATM to IP?
Would be the end of an era but not of EPOC
The readers chime in on the cost of GPRS services.
As first-quarter earnings loom, tongues wag. Can fact be sifted from fancy?
Layoffs continue, but how desperate are optical networking professionals feeling?
Tony Li isn't leaving Procket -- he's joining the board. And the company reveals it has raised $272 million
The second coming of the wireless Internet isn't going to happen unless service providers stop being stooopid about prices
Infinera appears to be building metro and edge switching gear using a proprietary photonic chip
Fallout from carrier spending cuts has forced Ciena to make significant job cuts again
Acme routes at Layer 5 to make sure interactive voice and video traffic gets through
New software from companies like Atreus and SmartPipes could be a catalyst for managed IP services
OFC Party Reviews - [anon]
Says users will be able to send and receive data in 12 European countries, but the price might scare off customers
And Ethernet will outgun Sonet in metro networks, according to Light Reading poll
Bernstein analyst Paul Sagawa says investment in telecom equipment will pick up later this year
CEO Parrick has some new ways to 'fix' the Ethernet services provider: One of them is bankruptcy
Advent Networks appoints David Baranski, a 15-year data-networking executive, as VP of sales
Not all 40-Gbit/s testers are created equal, says Spirent; competitors beg to differ
The companies have nearly identical product portfolios, so the main reason for any merger will be to cut costs
Check out what our camera caught at OFC
Ocular seems to be fitting in well at Tellabs, and its former CEO is now a Tellabs bigshot. Will the blissful marriage last?
This is the third time Ellacoya has cut jobs. How much fat is left to trim?
Lucent's research division claims to have sent 64 DWDM channels at 40-Gbit/s across a 4,000km span
Shareprice plunges 47 percent to 9.55 pence after emergency bank financing plan falls through
GoAmerica has teamed up with Boingo to extend its wide-area wireless data service to WLAN public access 'hotspots'
OFS claims rumors of a fiber glut have been greatly exaggerated
Metro optical amplifiers were among the most popular items at this year's OFC
NEC backpeddles after saying it's going to launch a sub-wavelength grooming switch at Supercomm
Prioritization of traffic by users, coupled with MPLS deployment, could save billions, says Telechoice
Some component and system vendors say 40-Gbit/s technology is ready: Are carriers ready to deploy it?
Cisco's Optical Group VP Jayshree Ullal talks about expansion, consolidation, and hot rods
SavaJe gets smart with Java phone operating system
The vendor's sticking to its optical rollout schedule with LambdaXtreme. Expect more in 2 months UPDATED 3/21 NOON
Rick Barry is out and Naimish Patel moves up the corporate food chain. Who knew?
Corvis and Ciena are both using Corning's technology for their all-optical solutions
Lovable ol' Uncle Tingye says: 'Enough with the phantonics, already!'
Could bulk diffraction gratings oust AWGs in high channel-count systems? Lightchip thinks so
Donald Keck, the last active inventor of low-loss optical fiber, says he's retiring at the end of the month
ArrayComm has an innovative wireless data technology. How to get it out on the market? How about a chip development program?
Optical switch said to do it all -- Sonet/SDH, grooming, rings, mesh, whatever... Is the timing right?
Does this proposed coupling of two passive components firms herald consolidation in the industry?
ONI says it expects revenues to be way down. Where'd they go?
Ciena's new optical add/drop mux illustrates how these widgets can be used in optical switches
Bankruptcy looms, and MFN is looking to sell the assets of PAIX.net subsidiary. Who's the buyer?
More carriers are in dire straits than meets the eye, says the Optical Oracle
Scottish startup wins investment to develop modulator technology with ultra-low operating voltage
Ciena says its new system can add and drop wavelengths remotely
Everyone's talking about ARPU, but is anybody doing anything about it? A news roundup from the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association Show
Équipe's new funding includes a small stake and strategic partnership with Ciena. Can this help it win big?
Agilent, Agere, and Vitesse are among the companies with important transponder-related news at OFC
Qwest has restructured its debt and Wall Street's relieved -- for now
Startup Polaris Networks received $52 million; aims for the metro core
Chip maker announces its first optical products at OFC, the result of its acquisition of Versatile
Cisco announces two new customers and trots out its optical gear at OFC
No one could accuse Sputnik of thinking small: The company wants to create an enterprise-standard WLAN software platform and a US network that subscribers can roam on
Plans to integrate DWDM with optical switching, just like Corvis, and roll out 40 Gig in early 2003. UPDATED March 16
Private investors swoop in to save the day, but shareholders will still take it on the nose
First there were two, now there is only one company developing echelle grating technology for multiplexers
Sequoia VC partner is sticking in the top spot at Mahi, which is rumored to be working a deal with Qwest
Level 3 has some of the shakiest finances in the carrier space but has so far avoided the spotlight. What gives?
A new analyst report says Furukawa's losing money on the OFS group it bought from Lucent last fall
The Shorter Roads to 40G – Scott Clavenna
There are 8 million stories in this wireless city; these are just a few of them
Is this a sign of a spring thaw in the 40-Gbit/s winter? We'll learn more next week at OFC
Nortel, ADVA, Controlware, Lumentis, Pandatel unveil smaller boxes and new modules at CeBIT
With a new take on 2D MEMS, this startup enters the swelling ranks of the multidimensional MEMS wars
With two weeks left in the quarter, Juniper is coming down to the wire UPDATED 3/14 4PM
Xalted Networks has cut about 60 percent of its staff in the past six months
Launches mobile systems management software derived from Callisto's Orbiter
Nortel vice chairman John Roth got rewarded for walking away from the collapse
Plans to produce Sonet transceivers for a price that's comparable with enterprise optics
Alcatel signs a four-year, $400M equipment deal with Canadian incumbment
Agilent gets the prize for having the least boring new product at Germany's giant trade show
Company says it's got a way to make a 3D optical crossconnect that won't fall prey to the Xros syndrome
It's switched strategy on its traffic manager chip in an effort to avoid the same fate as Acorn Networks
Redmond .nets another big mobile fish
Juniper? Cisco? Axerra? Will the real Ericsson router partner please stand up?
A whole laundry list of questions from the SEC gives the telecom market that sinking feeling
Revenue and profit warning are taken as a grand sign that nobody is out of the telecom mess just yet
Finally! Cisco discloses it owns 44% of Andiamo and may even buy it for $2.5 billion in stock
Lead investor pulls out. Executives get angry. Words are exchanged. Employees take furlough
Lucent and Nortel promote 40 Gig and all-optical switches, Ciena and Fujitsu don't, in RFI exercise
Illustrates large potential market for optical networking gear among wireless operators
Components startup comes out of stealth mode with $41 million in funding for indium phosphide-based modulators
CEO Bobby Johnson is out of the hotseat as the company settles harassment suit with former marketing VP
Zhone slims down by cutting 120 jobs
The SEC's come knocking on Qwest's door, asking about those pesky accounting issues that refuse to go away
Former Procket VP Bob Howard-Anderson moves to broadband access startup Occam as VP of operations
Regulatory authorities are being slug-a-beds when it comes to approving the IEEE 802.11 wireless LAN standard for commercial services
Says its new variable optical attentuator will cost three or four times less than existing products
Qwest's bond issue is a major step in the right direction, analysts say. But more is needed
Is passive optical networking doomed? Perhaps the CeBIT show will shed some light
Is a hush-hush reseller agreement the first step toward something bigger between Alcatel and Riverstone?
The few remaining executives look to raise cash, but sources say the company has imploded
New tools and subscription system should get the network design software firm back on track UPDATED
Its widely tunable laser with integrated modulator, on show at OFC, is ready to ship commercially
Follows Japan's lead, underscoring its potential for encouraging applications development and boosting revenues
Will Cisco come in to rescue the ailing VOIP gateway provider?
The NYSE has halted trading on Williams Communications' stock as it plunges towards single-digit cents
Marconi is shuffling its deck of access networking products. Here's news on what goes, what stays
In-Stat/MDR Report predicts that the optical IC market will grow to $1.8 billion by 2006
Arguments are breaking out over a European Commission report that urges rapid rollout of IP version 6
Arguments are breaking out over a European Commission report that urges rapid rollout of IP version 6
It's ditched AWGs in favor of thin-film filters, which it will be displaying at OFC
Set to unveil its first product at OFC, AraLight is only too glad to come up short on optical modules
At OFC, Optillion hopes it can prove that not all Xenpak transceivers are created equal
A lot of carriers and content providers could end up having to junk their original WAP developments when WAP 2 handsets hit the streets
The component maker has unveiled a dynamically-reconfigurable Wavelength Blocker. It's tiny now, but just wait....
The last of the Osicom managers is shown the door as Sorrento's board takes over
Tight-lipped Siros announces that it has received $17 million funding, but won't say why
Nortel confirms it won't be releasing the switch technology it bought with Xros
Intel enters the passive components business, will show samples at OFC
Many of them won't be able to recoup the billions they've spent on 3G licenses - and could end up getting bought or going bust
Clarendon Photonics uses CMOS production lines to make optical components, which it will demo at OFC
Out with the old, in with the new, as CoSine gives CEO Hamilton the boot -- and promotes his replacement from within
Metro-Optix ekes more sales out of its consolidating customer base
Ceyba announces product details and says it has what it takes to overcome the current market challenges
Startup scores $20M to develop integrated components, including the integrated equivalent of an EDFA
Notes From Underground – Stephen Saunders
Unlicensed wireless access, while slower and more complicated than fiber, nonetheless provides easier access. And it may actually spur fiber buildout
At OFC startup will show optical devices and high-speed electronics integrated on one InP chip
Components vendors are developing a new generation of small, configurable switches for optical networks UPDATED 3/4 1:30 PM
Riverstone says insider selling that started a month before an earnings warning was part of a preset program
Packet Relay Radio to the Rescue? – David S. Isenberg
Lightscape wins China contract and prepares to tout product advances at OFC
A head of steam is building behind unconventional 'wireless mesh' methods of delivering broadband Internet access


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3G MacBook Pro prototype 'owner' gets parts returned to him
Josh Lowensohn reported for CNet that Carl Frega received back from Apple a hard drive, battery and two sticks of RAM that he had installed in the machine to repair it.
Frega, a North Carolina resident, enlisted the help of a friend to post the prototype unit on eBay in August. The unusual laptop quickly attracted interest, with bids shooting up at one point to as high as $70,000 before the auction was shut down at Apple's request.
The Cupertino, Calif., company then contacted Frega and sent a private investigator to pick up the computer on Sept. 1.
Frega told the publication that he had made multiple requests to Apple to get the parts back. The components reportedly arrived in an unmarked Fedex box.
The laptop features an extendable 3G antenna on the right side of the display and a SIM card slot. Rumors that Apple has been developing notebooks capable of cellular data connections have persisted for years.
Frega claims to have purchased the machine from a former Apple engineer he met via the classifieds site Craigslist. The Apple employee allegedly received the prototype for "software development work" and never tested the cellular functionality.
After repairing the unit, Frega sold it on Craigslist, but the new buyer complained that the laptop was a fake after an Apple Store Genius Bar technician refused to service the machine.
"Opened machine to observe that nearly every internal part was third party; main logic board, optical drive, display, hard drive, top case, and others. Machine serial number (W8707003Y53) is also not recognized as a valid number," the Genius Bar repair sheet reportedly read.
The purchaser took the owner to small claims court, where a judge ruled that Frega must compensate the buy for the notebook and take back the device.
Frega is now considering legal action against the original owner of the MacBook Pro prototype. Including legal fees, he estimates that he has incurred $400 in costs related to the notebook.


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Former Florida Republican Party chief gets 18-month prison term
The former chairman of the Florida Republican Party was sentenced on Wednesday to 18 months in prison for money laundering and stealing party funds.
Jim Greer, who resigned as state party chief shortly before his 2010 indictment, also was ordered to serve a year of probation.
Greer, 50, pleaded guilty last month to five charges, averting a trial that threatened to reveal potentially embarrassing details about the state party organization.
As part of his plea deal, an organized fraud charge against him was dropped.
Greer made restitution to the Florida Republican Party on Monday via a $65,000 wire transfer, party spokesman Steven Dobson confirmed to Circuit Judge Marc Lubet before the sentence was imposed.
While serving as the party's paid chairman, Greer concealed his partial ownership of a company hired by the party to handle fundraising duties in exchange for 10 percent of all major contributions.
Greer said then-Governor Charlie Crist knew about the arrangement, which Crist denied in an affidavit.
Prosecutor Michael Williams urged the judge to sentence Greer to 42.6 months, the amount of time recommended under sentencing guidelines.
Greer's lawyer, Damon Chase, argued for probation.
The judge said Greer had «egregiously violated a position of trust.»
But he said he also took into consideration the fact that Greer's co-conspirator, Delmar Johnson, who cooperated with prosecutors, was not charged at all. Johnson also was ordered to pay $65,000 in restitution but «has not paid back a dime,» the judge said.


text: Douglas Eadline wrote: > You will note that I used sufficient wiggle words "usually" and > "generally" because in my experience it always depends. > And of course my comments are from my personal > experience. I have found that diskless allows for > the entire cluster to be "re provisioned" without > have into re-image disks. Reboots are quicker > (for the hardware I use) and since I use ram > disk approach (Warewulf/Perceus) I find that things > are a bit faster, also the diskless image has > minimal services running vs a disk-full distribution image. > (I fully understand the good admin can trim a > disk-full distribution) > > There are plenty of arguments either way. Back in 2006 > I did a mini-poll on node disk space usage: > > http://www.clustermonkey.net//component/option,com_poll/task,results/id,18/ > > So "in general, it varies". YMMV Let me weigh in (late of course) with some thoughts. With the advent of buzz words^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^Htechnologies like the cloud(TM)(c)(SM)*, I have a sense that stateful (disk based) installs are a thing of the past. Some folks will want them for their local cluster, but when you are provisioning N nodes, you aren't going to want to deal with the vagaries of doing a stateful install to "random" hardware. For non-virtualized hosts, what you want is to either boot diskless in a trivial to configure manner, or, and we are seeing and working on this more and more, boot from iSCSI targets with the node OS implemented. The latter is a very nice way to do non-virtualized OS boots. You don't need to be able to PXE boot from iSCSI, though this is an option. The advantage of diskless is you don't need to containerize the OS in an "image" (which is little more than a 'dd if=/dev/zero of=disk.image bs=1M count=8k ; losetup disk.image ; mkfs... /dev/loop0 ; mount /dev/loop0 /mnt/disk ; #copy tree to disk' ) The disadvantage of diskless is some complexity in the boot/shutdown process. This has been (mostly) managed well by a number of distributions, so it is generally (these days) fairly easy to deploy diskless systems. Swap is an issue. A somewhat hard to solve issue ... we'd recommend actually turning off swap (and swappiness in the kernel) for diskless. Or put a USB drive in each machine and swap on that, though, honestly, that is as reliable as swapping over the network. E.g. don't do it. The Perceus hybrid approach works well, using a small local ramdisk, and an NFS mount for the important stuff. No installation needed, just boot it, and up you go. Same issues on swap. Another way to look at local drives is a small swap space. So if you can get drives in a $40/unit increments, these are cheap and fairly reliable swap targets. Better than USB. But you shouldn't swap in a cluster. The advantage of iSCSI is, it is a block device that you attach, over the network, and it works pretty well. You can (easily) programmatically adjust it, clone it, modify it, etc. Pull it down to a different system (offline), make changes, upload the different image, and try it on a few nodes. Basically iSCSI is sort of like diskless in a way, though it allows greater ranges of changes without creating whole new diskless trees, and without jumping through the host issues with some diskless schemes. Its not a VM, but as with diskless, VMs can boot from it. Making development fast/efficient. It allows you a VM-able, and easily transportable container for your stuff. Of course, it goes without saying that for either diskless or iSCSI, you need a really good and fast storage infrastructure ... :) More to the point, the stateful installations have their place, but it doesn't appear to be in "cloud" scenarios. Stateful is fine for local clusters, or automagically assembled larger clusters. I would be mindful of the latter though, as we have had a number of customers with problems directly attributable to unresolved issues in some cluster distribution's installer code. If your installer has bugs, or does something wrong, somewhere (like, I dunno, disabling the IPMI?), you can wind up with N unbootable nodes. As N gets north of 8, this gets less funny. Other issues we have run into with stateful clusters have included the cluster distribution getting in the way of what you want to do. Most cluster distributions come with an overarching philosophy, and the "one true way" to do things. Invariably you will find a need to do something "an other way", and can run head-first into the philosophy (and occasionally ... um ... animated [yeah, thats the ticket] ... discussions with the disciples of that philosophy) as you try to figure out what you need to do. Some of these philosophies are benign, some are aggressive. The stateful case with specific distributions (RHEL and alike) doesn't do so well with new hardware. We have had customers call us up to complain that their shiny new nodes seem to crash regularly with the (ancient) kernels in RHEL. Sure enough, the new-thingamabob on the motherboard is not well supported in RHEL, so you either have to a) toss your cluster and only buy from the HAL, or b) get a newer kernel. It gets more ... exciting ... and not in a good way, when that new-thingamabob impedes installation. We've seen this happen ... too many times to count. The solution is to slip in a new kernel and initrd to fix the problem. Slip-streaming a new kernel into a RHEL distribution is an ... um ... challenge ... to say the least. In diskless, this is trivial. In iSCSI, it is the same as diskless (in both cases, the boot kernel and boot initrd are outside of the trees). What we do for stateful installs, for customers who don't care about which cluster distribution is used, and let us use our Tiburon system, we pxe boot from our kernel (18.104.22.168 based) and associated initrd. Finishing scripts fix up any new kernel bits later on. Its harder to do this with some other cluster systems. Easy with Perceus/Warewulf. Basically, where I am getting to is, if you really want to go stateful, make sure your kernel works with your hardware before you make a decision about distro, etc. Less important with diskless/iSCSI. If you go stateless, solve the swap problem with small cheap local drives. * we are drinking the koolaid, and starting work with a partner on this stuff. I do see some merit in it (virtualized or direct), though it isn't for everyone in HPC. The folks for whom it will work well have a specific usage profile. -- Joseph Landman, Ph.D Founder and CEO Scalable Informatics LLC, email: landman at scalableinformatics.com web : http://www.scalableinformatics.com http://jackrabbit.scalableinformatics.com phone: +1 734 786 8423 x121 fax : +1 866 888 3112 cell : +1 734 612 4615


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Sarah Michelle Gellar returns to her rightful place on fall TV tonight with the debut of Ringer
She's a dead ringer!
Fans have been waiting for Sarah Michelle Gellar's Ringer debut and it's here! Tonight, the former Buffy star will kick butt once again as twin sisters Bridget and Siobhan on the new series from the CW, Ringer.
Nestor Carbonell talks Victor>>
The CW describes tonight's pilot episode of Ringer as the following: "Bridget Kelly (Sarah Michelle Gellar, Buffy The Vampire Slayer) is six-months sober and starting to turn her life around when she is the sole witness in a murder trial. Despite the assurances of her FBI protector, Agent Victor Machado (Nestor Carbonell, Lost), Bridget knows her life is on the line. She flees to New York, telling no one, and reunites with her estranged twin, Siobhan Martin (Sarah Michelle Gellar). Wealthy, pampered and married to the strikingly handsome Andrew Martin (Ioan Gruffudd, Fantastic Four), Siobhan lives what appears to be a fairy tale life – a life where no one knows that Bridget exists. The sisters seem to be mending their frayed relationship – until Siobhan disappears mysteriously, and Bridget makes the split decision to take on her sister's identity. She discovers shocking secrets, not only about her sister and her marriage, but also about Siobhan's best friend, Gemma Butler (Tara Summers, Boston Legal) and Gemma's husband, Henry (Kristoffer Polaha, Life Unexpected)."
Will you be tuning in for the CW premiere of Ringer?
Photo courtesy of CW


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Today's review is of a Sicilian Chardonnay made by excellent Sicilian winemakers Planeta from whom we have previously reviewed their outstanding Nero d'Avola "Santa Cecilia" and their Syrah – specifically, today we are going to review Planeta, Chardonnay Sicilia IGT 2009 ($35).
Will it be in the same league as their wonderful reds? Keep reading and let's find out together! 🙂
The Bottom Line
Overall: What can I say… a spectacular wine and excellent value for money! A wonderful golden color, a sensuous, complex, multi-layered bouquet that strikes a perfect balance between fruity secondary aromas and delicate tertiary aromas, luscious on the palate with a kaleidoscope of delicious flavors; acidic, tasty and super long. This is a wine that should be tasted by those who are skeptical about Italian whites in general or about Chardonnay's potential in warmer climates such as Sicily. Oh Man… This is a wine with the "wow" factor!
Rating: Spectacular and, needless to say, wholeheartedly Recommended! – $$
(Explanation of our Rating and Pricing Systems)
About the Grape
Chardonnay is a white-berried variety that is indigenous to the French area between Lyon and Dijon, encompassing Burgundy and Champagne. The earliest documented mention of Chardonnay dates back to the late XVII century in the village of Saint Sorlin (today known as La Roche Vineuse) under the name "Chardonnet", although the variety takes its name from the village of Chardonnay near the town of Uchizy in southern Burgundy.
DNA analysis showed that Chardonnay is a natural cross between Pinot and Gouais Blanc.
Chardonnay Rose is a color mutation of Chardonnay, while Chardonnay Musque' is a mutation with Muscat-like aromas.
Chardonnay is one of the most versatile and adaptable white grape varieties, which explains in part why it has been so extensively grown all over the world. Chardonnay grapes are generally high in sugar levels and do not have a dominant flavor of their own, so the wines made out of them tend to take on a variety of aromas depending on where the grapes are grown and how the wines are made. Thus Chardonnays run the gamut from subtle and savory to rich and spicy still wines as well as being one of the base wines for Champagne and other Classic Method sparkling wines.
Chardonnay is a typical international variety given how widely it is cultivated on a worldwide basis, from native France, to Italy, North and South America and Australia.
(Information on the grape variety taken from Wine Grapes, by Robinson-Harding-Vouillamoz, Allen Lane 2012 – for more information about grape varieties in general, check out our Grape Variety Archive)
About the Estate
Planeta's Chardonnay is made out of grapes coming from the 51 HA Ulmo vineyard and the 42 HA Maroccoli vineyard (the latter situated at 1,475 ft/450 mt above sea level) within Planeta's Ulmo estate, located near the town of Sambuca di Sicilia (Agrigento), on the western coast of Sicily. The density of the Chardonnay vines in the two vineyards is between 3,800 and 4,500 vines/HA.
Ulmo is the first and the oldest among Planeta's current estates: it became operational in 1995, along with its winery, and it encompasses 93 HA of vineyards where Chardonnay, Merlot, Grecanico, Nero d'Avola and Syrah are grown to make certain of the wines in the Planeta lineup, including their Chardonnay "supercru".
Our Detailed Review
The Planeta, Chardonnay Sicilia IGT 2009 that I had was 13.5% ABV and retails in the US for about $35.
The wine was made from 100% Chardonnay grapes grown in Planeta's Ulmo and Maroccoli vineyards (on which, see above for more information). It fermented for 15 days in French oak barrique barrels (50% new and 50% previously used ones) with the addition of selected yeasts.
As usual, for my review I will use a simplified version of the ISA wine tasting protocol that we described in a previous post: should you have doubts as to any of the terms used below please refer to that post for a refresher.
In the glass, it poured a rich, golden color, thick when swirled.
On the nose, it was intense, delectably complex and excellent, with aromas of banana, melon, grapefruit, lemon, peach, hints of herbs (rosemary), hazelnut and minerals.
In the mouth, the wine was dry, warm, smooth; fresh and tasty. It was full-bodied and masterfully balanced, with intense and excellent mouth flavors of peach, lemon, almond, minerals, herbs and hints of acacia honey. Its finish was exquisitely long and its evolutionary state was ready (i.e., wonderful to enjoy now, but it might be even better, more complex if it rests one or two more years in your cellar).


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Deb Adamson: Keep moving despite winter weather
Winter doesn't officially begin for a few weeks, but you could have fooled me. A recent unseasonable cold snap was enough to keep Zach and me peering outdoors through frosty windowpanes and feeling the chill underfoot in this drafty old house.
There were a couple of days we didn't even take the initiative to dress warmly and brave the cold for our usual exercise breaks, leaving both of us feeling house-bound and antsy. Between lessons, we both need fresh air -- he more than me because it renews his focusing ability.
But one thing is certain; we won't totally ditch our exercise routine no matter what the winter weather has to offer. It's part of a lifestyle that my husband and I strive to impart on Zach; that activity is key in physical as well as mental well-being.
It's nothing we really teach as part of a formal physical education program, it's just what he observes around here; his dad setting out in 20 degree weather for a lengthy bike ride and his mom doing the same on foot; jogging and putting in a few miles each week. Sometimes we gripe about it, reluctantly putting in the time but, as the Nike advertisement says, we mostly "just do it."
From the time I was really small, I can recall my own parents doing the same. In fact, we all got moving. No one ever spoke of exercise benefits; it was just our family life -- like eating dinner together at night and cleaning up after ourselves. No words, just actions. And really, aren't the unspoken lessons often times the ones that really soak in?
There are multitudes of studies about American youth being sedentary and overweight. A recent report even featured children whose arteries resembled those of a 45 year-old. Extraordinary efforts are made, even by the federal government encouraging school-based activities that reward kids for physical aptitude. It's obviously an imperative health issue requiring widespread national attention. But moreover, there's an obligation for families just like ours to persistently fight off the urge to hibernate, bundle up and get our children outdoors and moving.
Deb Adamson, who lives in Connecticut, is a home school mom who writes about the joys, trials and adventures of days teaching and learning with her 7-year-old son. She can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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On February 17, 2015 State Representative Cruz introduced draconian legislation that could only be described out of a play book from the Weimar Republic prior to the passage of the Gesetz über Schußwaffen und Munition (Law on Firearms and Ammunition) in 1928 which required citizens to get a license from police to acquire firearms. See Nazi Firearms Laws and the Disarming of the German Jews, Pg. 487-488.
House Bill 503, the Firearm Registration Act, requires that:
All firearms in this Commonwealth shall be registered in accordance with this section. It shall be the duty of a person owning or possessing any firearm to cause the firearm to be registered. No person within this Commonwealth may possess, harbor, have under the person's control, transfer, offer for sale, sell, give, deliver or accept any firearm unless the person is the holder of a valid registration certificate for the firearm. No person within this Commonwealth may possess, harbor, have under the person's control, transfer, offer for sale, sell, deliver or accept any firearm which is unregisterable under this act.
Representative Cruz was kind enough to leave exemptions for firearms owned by federal, state or local governments, duty related firearms to out of state police and corrections officers, firearms owned by manufacturers, transporters or retailers (provided they have the correct licensing), private security personnel (but their employer must own and maintain, as well as register the firearm) and individuals participating in recreational firearm activity in the Commonwealth or passing through provided that the firearm is either broken down or unloaded and cased.
The proposed legislation does not allow for individuals to obtain a registration certificate if they were convicted of a crime of violence, were convicted in the last five years of any violation of law relating to use, possession or sale of narcotics or are otherwise ineligible to possess a firearm under State or Federal law.
What is problematic with this proposed restriction, in addition to it being ill conceived, is that a crime of violence is not defined in this bill OR under 18 PA.C.S. § 6102. Ostensibly, this could mean that a summary conviction for a disorderly conduct involving a kick, punch, or shove could count and bar a person from being able to register their firearm.
Simply put, if this bill was to pass and you are a resident of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Representative Cruz would want you to get in line to register them with the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP). But the bill doesn't simply require that individuals register their firearms. It asks for a fairly large amount of information, some of which the federal government doesn't even require when purchasing a gun.
The bill proposes that every person who is required to register under the act submit an application to the (PSP) which would include:
(1) The name, home and business address, telephone number, date of birth and Social Security number of the applicant.
(2) The age, sex and citizenship of the applicant.
(3) The name of the manufacturer, the caliber or gauge, model, type and serial number of each firearm to be registered.
(4) Two photographs taken within 30 days immediately prior to the date of filing the application equivalent to passport size showing the full face, head and shoulders of the applicant in a clear and distinguishing manner.
(5) Additional information as the Pennsylvania State Police may deem necessary to process the application.
But it gets worse. In addition to part 5 being vague, applicants would be required to submit fingerprints as part of the application process and PSP would also conduct a background check at the time of application. Within 30 days PSP would notify an individual if they were approved or denied.
If an individual were approved, the PSP would issue a certificate which would contain their name, residence, date of birth, photograph and other information PSP deemed necessary. HB 503 states that the certificate shall be carried with the firearm and shall be exhibited to police upon demand for inspection. The proposed certificates would need to be renewed yearly, at a cost of $10 per application.
If the applicant is denied and exhausts the administrative remedies the Bill directs that the applicant must surrender the firearm for which the application was denied to PSP. And we all know that PSP has never made a mistake as to an individual's ability to own and possess a firearm. Not to mention, the bill doesn't allow the individual to transfer their property to another because under §3(a):
No person within this Commonwealth may…transfer, offer for sale, sell, give, deliver…any firearm unless the person is the holder of a valid registration certificate for the firearm.
The Bill also requires that individuals who hold a registration certificate shall within 48 hours: Notify PSP regarding any theft, loss or destruction of the firearm, change of information on the certificate, the sale, transfer or other disposition of the firearm and return the certificate to PSP after a firearm is lost, stolen, destroyed or otherwise disposed of.
Lastly, the Bill requires that a registrant
Keep any firearm in the registrant's possession unloaded and disassembled or bound by a trigger lock, gun safe or similar device unless the firearm is in the registrant's immediate possession and control while at the registrant's place of residence or business or while being used for lawful recreational purposes within this Commonwealth.
Disassembled is not defined by this proposed bill or § 6102 either! Are we to understand disassembled as merely field stripped or is it further than that?
If this bill doesn't have you concerned, it should. Representative Cruz is proposing that every firearm you possess as an individual be registered with the state. History has shown that firearms registries ultimately lead to bad things. In addition to knowing your firearm collection, the bill would allow the PSP to know WHERE the firearms are kept!
This proposed draconian law would require individuals to prove ownership to the police by having them produce a certificate of registration upon demand! While the likelihood is that this bill will not make it out of committee, it is important to keep an eye on such legislation. Our current governor would be delighted to sign such an oppressing bill. And this isn't the first time Representative Cruz has introduced this bill!
How can you prevent it from seeing the light of day?
Contact the members on the Judiciary Committee and tell them not to let HB 503 out of committee.
After the initial writing of this blog, it has come to my attention via the American Gun Owners Alliance that the Senate has a similar bill (SB 503) which has been referred to their Judiciary Committee as well.
As always, don't forget to click the buttons below to like and share this article with your friends and family. You can also like Firearms Industry Consulting Group and Prince Law Offices, P.C. Facebook pages to the right by simply clicking "like".