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This week, the Obama administration will roll out its big guns in support of President Obama's latest assault on American sovereignty and security interests: the U.N. Law of the Sea Treaty (better known as LOST). Of course, when Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday, they will appear to be talking about another accord altogether - one that strengthens our sovereignty and is deemed by the U.S. military to be essential to our security.
So which is it?
The proponents are hoping that senators on and off the Foreign Relations Committee will do what they did during what passed for their chamber's consideration of the New START Treaty in 2010: take the administration's word for it, be impressed by the pro-treaty testimonials and lobbying of an array of former eminences and special interests, and largely dispense with the serious scrutiny and check-and-balance vetting the framers had in mind when they entrusted to the Senate the constitutional responsibility to advise and consent to treaties.
If, on the other hand, the members of the U.S. Senate trouble themselves to study, or at least read, the text of the Law of the Sea Treaty, they would immediately see it for what it really is: a diplomatic dinosaur, a throwback to a bygone era when U.N. negotiations were dominated by communists of the Soviet Union and their fellow travelers in the Third World.
These adversaries' agenda was transparent and wholly inimical to American equities. They sought to establish control over 70 percent of the world's surface, create an international governing institution that would serve as a model for bringing nation states like ours to heel and redistribute the planet's wealth and technology from the developed world to themselves. LOST codifies such arrangements and would subject us to mandatory dispute resolution to enforce them via stacked-deck adjudication panels.
Fortunately, even if senators are disinclined to go to school on what the Law of the Sea Treaty entails - and why it cannot possibly serve even the parochial interests of the U.S. Navy or oil and gas industries whose willfully blind support will be much in evidence in the ratification campaign ahead - others are doing their homework. Such efforts are likely to make the timing of the Obama administration's current quest, shall we say, most inopportune.
First, Dick Morris and his wife, Eileen McGann, have just published an important new book that addresses, among other outrages, LOST as a prime example of the title: "Screwed! How Foreign Countries Are Ripping Off America and Plundering Our Economy - and How Our Leaders Help Them Do It." In addition to his proven track record as a best-selling author, Mr. Morris' regular appearances on Fox News ensure that millions who might otherwise be unaware of what is afoot will be on notice and on guard. That markedly improves the chances that those who might try to slip such an assault on our sovereignty through in the dark of night will be challenged and held accountable.
Second, Glenn Beck - whose predicted demise as an influential broadcaster with his departure from Fox has proven, thankfully, to be premature - did yeoman work educating the American people about LOST in 2007, the last time a push was made to ensnare us in this accord. In his new and wildly successful reincarnation as a pioneer of Internet subscription-based television, Mr. Beck stands to be even more effective in connecting the dots for his audience and engaging them in opposing LOST.
Third, theaters nationwide will begin showing a documentary by Ami Horowitz called "U N Me" on June 1 that uses Michael Moore-style humor and intrepid camera work to lay waste to the United Nations as a corrupt, self-dealing, incompetent and fundamentally anti-American institution. It is hard to believe that anyone who sees this film will want to entrust any more resources, legitimacy or responsibility to such an organization - or to its subsidiaries like LOST's International Seabed Authority, the Orwellian-named "Enterprise," the Law of the Sea Tribunal, the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, etc.
As it happens, even before such important forces are brought fully to bear in opposition to Team Obama's bid to ram through the Senate this "constitution of the oceans," the ratification bandwagon hit something of a roadblock. At the initiative of freshman Rep. John J. Duncan Jr., Tennessee Republican, and Rep. Jim Jordan, Ohio Republican, who chairs the House Republican Study Committee, the House of Representatives on Friday voted 229-193 to bar millions of dollars the administration had sought to contribute to the funding of LOST organizations. This is the first time either chamber has formally voted in opposition to this agreement and is a salutary shot across the bow of its proponents.
There is, of course, one other factor that should prove problematic in terms of the timing of Mr. Obama's effort to foist LOST on the American people - it comes amid an election in which his presumptive Republican opponent, Mitt Romney, is no fan of this accord. According to an October 2007 report, a spokesman declared "Governor Romney has concerns with the Law of the Sea Treaty. He believes giving unaccountable international institutions more power is a serious problem."
Frank J. Gaffney Jr. is president of the Center for Security Policy (www.SecureFreedom.org), a columnist for The Washington Times and host of the nationally syndicated program, "Secure Freedom Radio," heard in Washington weeknights at 9 p.m. on WRC 1260 AM.
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North Carolina lawmakers vote to undo 'bathroom bill'
RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina lawmakers rolled back North Carolina's "bathroom bill" Thursday in a bid to end the backlash over transgender rights that has cost the state dearly in business projects, conventions and basketball tournaments.
The compromise plan, announced Wednesday night by the state's Democratic governor and leaders of the Republican-controlled legislature, was worked out under mounting pressure from the NCAA, which threatened to take away more sporting events from the basketball-obsessed state as long as the law, also known as House Bill 2, remained on the books.
The new measure cleared the House and Senate in a matter of hours and was sent to Gov. Roy Cooper, who signed it.
Among other things, it repeals the best-known section of HB2: a requirement that transgender people use the public restrooms that correspond to the sex on their birth certificate.
But the American Civil Liberties Union and gay and transgender activists complained that the new bill still denies them certain protections from discrimination, and they demanded nothing less than full repeal.
As a result, it was unclear whether the retreat from the year-old HB2 would stop the boycotts or satisfy the NCAA. An NCAA spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a message seeking reaction.
Republican Rep. Scott Stone, who lives in Charlotte, urged his colleagues to vote for the new bill. It passed the House 70-48.
"We are impeding the growth in our revenue, in our ability to do more things for tourism, for teacher pay, while we have this stigma hanging over," Stone said. "The time has come for us to get out from under the national spotlight for negative things. You can't go anywhere on this planet without somebody knowing what is HB2 and having some perception about it."
Conservatives, meanwhile, staunchly defended HB2 and bitterly denounced the new measure.
"This bill is at best a punt. At worst it is a betrayal of principle," Republican Sen. Dan Bishop, a primary sponsor of HB2, said on the Senate floor as the rollback was approved 32-16, with nine of 15 Democrats among the yes votes.
While the new measure eliminates the rule on transgender bathroom use, it also makes clear that state legislators — not local government or school officials — are in charge of policy on public restrooms.
HB2 had also restricted local governments' ability to enact nondiscrimination ordinances on behalf of gay or transgender people. Under the new measure, local governments can't pass any new protections for workplaces, hotels and restaurants until December 2020.
That moratorium, according to GOP leaders, would allow time for pending federal litigation over transgender rights to play out.
"This is a significant compromise from all sides on an issue that has been discussed and discussed and discussed in North Carolina for a long period of time," Senate leader Phil Berger said. "It is something that I think satisfies some people, dissatisfies some people, but I think it's a good thing for North Carolina."
Gay rights activists blasted the proposal, saying it was not a true repeal.
"It doesn't matter if you are a Democrat or a Republican, if you vote for this bill, you are not a friend of the LGBT community," Equality North Carolina executive director Chris Sgro said. "You are not standing on the right side of the moral arc of history or with the civil rights community."
James Esseks, director of the ACLU LGBT Project, said lawmakers "should be ashamed of this backroom deal." ''This is not a repeal of HB2. Instead, they're reinforcing the worst aspects of the law," he said in a statement.


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If you cancelled your plans to visit Greece during the Euro crisis, I think you made a mistake, cause it's awesome here and you are missing out.
I arrived in Athens this morning expecting to walk into some sort of economic zombie apocalypse land. Yes, the banks are closed and people are pissed, but nobody knifed me for my cash. Mostly people just waited in long lines at ATM's and occasionally yelled at bank managers standing outside the shuttered buildings.
Overall, everyone here seems to be calm. Life is moving along.
The metro is free during the Euro crisis, which is going to save me lots of money over the next week.
I spent most of my day hanging out near Syntagma Square, where I found tons of these delightful posters. Notice the background of the posters, nothing is on fire, no cars are being flipped, no tourists being mugged or killed. It's all cool here.
OXI, pronounced "ochi" or "oshi" is the rallying cry for those that want Greece to leave the Eurozone. From what I can tell it not only means "no" but is also a nod to OXI day and the quote "this means war", which is a bit of overkill, but whatever, Greece is pissed. Syntagma Square was deserted all day, but tonight it turned into a sea of people, complete with a live band.
It was difficult to capture just how many people were at the rally because it spanned many levels and several side streets. Allegedly there was a teargas incident early in the evening but by the time I showed up the energy was all positive. All ages were represented and everyone was singing nationalistic songs. The food vendors were out in full effect, it was a real party.
I will be here for the referendum on the 5th when Greece decides to stay in the Eurozone or go their own way. It will be interesting to see how the energy in Athens feels the night of the 5th.


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Concept- check; Space – check; Creative workshops- check; Business workshop- facilitators Check; Entrepreneur facilitators – check; Technology… Damn… It's time to add tech to the mix- Now the challenge is that many have a limited view of the scope of technology!
- Creative
- Mobile
- Consumer
- Business
- E-commerce
- Entrepreneurship
- Coding
- Research & Development
We also have realized that we need to include consumer oriented programs! In short we need to engage consumers and somehow impart effective user and use protocol "in a fun seamless manner"
Now www.Tibiaetech.com is a platform to facilitate technology in our communities. We have however realized that their is a serious lack of understanding and have had to include components as basic as an introduction to Gmail and the use of Facebook!
Now we need individuals to execute for businesses and startups, but this call is for individuals to teach or run seminars!
Put y0urself on the list to be notified of actual workshops
Contact me with specific questions or use this form


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AP: A Hezbollah militant has been identified as the suicide bomber who flattened a Jewish community center in 1994, killing 85 people in Argentina's worst terrorist attack, prosecutors said Wednesday.
By BILL CORMIER
Associated Press Writer
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) – A Hezbollah militant has been identified as the suicide bomber who flattened a Jewish community center in 1994, killing 85 people in Argentina's worst terrorist attack, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Prosecutors said the breakthrough in the 11-year-old case came when investigators traveled to Detroit, where friends and relatives identified Ibrahim Hussein Berro, a Lebanese citizen, in a photograph.
Hussein Berro, a 21-year-old Lebanese citizen who "belonged to Hezbollah," was driving the van packed with explosives July 18, 1994, when it exploded outside the Argentine Israeli Mutual Aid Association, prosecutor Alberto Nisman alleged.
The blast leveled the seven-story building, a symbol of Argentina's more than 200,000-strong Jewish population.
Argentine investigators had faced domestic and international pressure to make headway in the case.
Hussein Berro had been identified as the suspected bomber in a resolution passed on July 22, 2004, by the U.S. House of Representatives that urged a solution to the case. The resolution said that Hussein Berro reportedly had been in contact with the Iranian Embassy in Buenos Aires.
Iran had no immediate comment on the latest developments.
The Jewish center bombing was the second of two attacks targeting Jews in Argentina during the 1990s. A March 1992 blast destroyed the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires, killing 29 people in a case that has also been blamed on Hezbollah. Hezbollah has denied responsibility for both bombings.
Leaders of Argentina's Jewish community accused Iran of organizing the attack. Tehran repeatedly has denied that.
Nisman said Wednesday that suspicions of Iranian involvement in the attack was among several lines of investigation.
Investigators believe the attacker entered Argentina in the tri-border region at the joint borders of Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil, a center of drug smuggling and alleged terrorist fund-raising, Nisman said.
For years, the Jewish community pressured Argentine law enforcement for progress in finding those responsible for the attack on the community center, which also wounded more than 200 people.
President Nestor Kirchner came into office more than two years ago promising to redouble efforts to find and prosecute the pepetrators.
But some here saw little new in Wednesday's announcement.
"It doesn't seem to me that there's anything here that's new and relevant," leading Argentine political analyst, Rosendo Fraga, told The Associated Press.
However, Daniel Berliner, a spokesman for the Jewish community, said Wednesday's announcement was encouraging.
A statement said prosecutors and Argentine intelligence officers worked with the FBI and anti-terrorism authorities in Detroit, where Nisman said two brothers of Hussein Berro were living and were key to his identification.
Nisman said Argentine investigators went to Detroit in mid-September and obtained testimony from the brothers.
Additionally, Nisman said Hezbollah announced on radio in Lebanon on Sept. 8, 1994, that one Ibrahim Hussein Berro had died in combat with the Israeli army in Southern Lebanon. He alleged the announcement was an attempt to cover up the suspect's death in the suicide bombing.
Some speculated that the bombing was inspired by Argentina's support for the U.S.-led coalition that expelled Iraq from Kuwait during the Gulf War in the early 1990s. Others said that Argentina's Jewish community, one of the largest in Latin America, represented an obvious target for Israel's opponents.
Although Jewish community leaders and others have suspected the involvement of Middle East terrorists, no mastermind has been identified and the victims and their families have become increasingly bitter.
In 2004, about a dozen former police officers and an accused trafficker in stolen vehicles were acquitted of charges that they had formed a "local connection" in the bombing. Jewish activists continued to press for the identification of the "masterminds."


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Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Great egret on a dreary day, Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
I chose the day for my first trip to Parker River National Wildlife Refuge last month based on the forecast of a cloudy day. I really enjoy shooting under cloudy skies since it means nice even lighting during the day, and that I can shoot in reasonable light for more than just sunrise and sunset. However, my trip on this day was not the nice high clouds I was hoping for, but instead ground level fog and light rain all day. The birds didn't seem to mind though, and I was able to watch all kinds of waterbirds enjoying the weather. There was a large number of great egrets and snowy egrets in the marsh along the main road -- far more than I've seen on any of my return trips so far.
I enjoyed watching this great egret preen along the edge of a salt pond, and the feeling of the dreary day added a bit to the image I think. It wouldn't have quite the same mood if was under blue skies and direct sunlight, and I might not have been able to capture the same kind of reflection either.
View more photos of great egrets in my Egrets and Herons Gallery.
Submitted to World Bird Wednesday -- Follow the link to check out this week's posts.
17 comments:
gorgeous feather detail! wonderful light and shadow play!ReplyDelete
Great serie. I love hoe "fluffy" the egret looks on the 1st one :)ReplyDelete
simply delightful photographs of the egret; such a special day outReplyDelete
Beautiful photos. I really need to learn how to manage those overcast days. Yours look delightful.ReplyDelete
Great shots and the dreary day certainly helped get those lovely reflections and gentle lighting.ReplyDelete
The egrets are beautiful birds, lovely photos.ReplyDelete
Great close ups Pat. Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.ReplyDelete
I have never seen a Great egrets feathers so perfectly exposed. It is so easy to lose detail in a white out. These shots really show your talent and commitment to great nature photography. Mood,composition,light. I am knocked out Pat.ReplyDelete
Brilliant shots Pat!! You truly are a great photographer! Such beautiful birds captured so well - I am in awe.ReplyDelete
I think you've found a great location Pat.ReplyDelete
Gorgeous bird and awesome photos!ReplyDelete
he is beautiful. :)ReplyDelete
Fantastic shots!ReplyDelete
Stunning photos, Pat! Gorgeous!ReplyDelete
great shots of the great egret. :)ReplyDelete
Well done! Well worth the trip I would say!ReplyDelete


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(updated 4/16/17)
As part of my "Countdown to Earth Day" series, I wanted to highlight even more ways that you can take actions to help our planet. Today's tip is to buy organic and locally produced foods.
Now, I realize that buying organic can sometimes be more costly than other choices. We used to buy almost everything organic, but have had to cut back drastically with the current economy and our current salaries. If you have to pick a few to buy, check out this article: "The New Dirty Dozen: 22 Foods to Eat Organic."
However, as we continue to promote the demand for these products, eventually prices will come down. Even buying one or two items each week can make a difference. There are many advantages to buying organic and local (to list just a few):
- Fresher food for your families
- No chemicals, pesticides, etc.
- Less travel time for products from farm to market (which produces less pollution)
- Protects our ecosystem
- Promotes fair treatment of farm laborers and humane treatment of animals
- Focus on sustainable life for farmers
- Helps local businesses stay in business
To find out where to get locally grown or organic food in your area, here are two resources:
This is a free online directory for anyone who wants locally grown and sustainably produced food in the United States and Canada. It lists thousands of family farms, restaurants, farmer's markets, grocery stores, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs, U-pick orchards, and more. You can search in a variety of ways: by location, keyword, category, or product.
This is another directory geared for just the United States. They maintain a directory of small farms, farmer's markets, and other local food sources. Their website also features an online store, a forum, a listing of events, blogs, and a newsletter. It is a great resource for learning about ways to get involved, how to use your "local harvest," and more.
More posts in my "Countdown to Earth Day" series:
Related articles:
- Eat more local food (trashknight.wordpress.com)
- 5 Good Reasons to Join a CSA (eatdrinkbetter.com)
- 5 Reasons You Should Join a CSA (realsimple.com)


text: Guardian Demon Third Party MIUI ThemesChina Theme by Admin - May 24, 2020August 9, 20200Third Party MIUI ThemesHello XIAOMI MIUI User,Today I am sharing brand new miui themes for all MIUI 11 devices. This miui themes can change the look of your XIAOMI MI, Redmi and POCO device to make it very attractive and delightful.Guardian Demon MIUI theme is very clean and has decent layout. The look of icons, setting panels, notification, status bar, lock screen, all are awesome with completely dark mod support. This MI theme is completely free to use and you can download it from official theme store link. This Redmi themes works perfectly on any XIAOMI MI, Redmi or POCO device running on MIUI 11 or MIUI 12. If you are looking for best MIUI 11 themes or MIUI 12 themes, then you are in right place.Thanks to the MIUI Themes Developer.MIUI Themes Details: MIUI Themes Name: Guardian Demon MIUI Themes Size: 33.55 MIUI Themes Designer: Ollie MIUI Themes Compatibility: V11MIUI Themes Download Link: MediaFire LinkGuardian Demon MIUI THEMES PREVIEWNotes:How to apply MIUI Global Themes1. Change your region to India 2. Click on official theme store link 3. Open with theme store download and apply 4. Restart your phone after apply MIUI themes.How to apply MIUI China or MIUI Third party ThemesMethod 1:- MIUI Themes with Designer Account:1. Download MIUI Theme from above link with .mtz extension on your Xiaomi phone. 2. Open Themes application. 3. Browse downloaded MIUI themes from your storage . 4. Import MIUI Themes and apply.Method 2:- Install Third Party MIUI Themes with MIUI Theme Editor:1. Download Theme Editor app for MIUI from Play Store. 2. Browse downloaded MIUI Themes and select it and then click on the Start. 3. Click on Next and Edit file name or path. 4. Click on Install MIUI Themes and apply.Method 3:- Install Third Party MIUI Themes with MIUI Theme Editor Software:1. Download Theme Editor Software in your computer. 2. Extract Downloaded package using WinRar or 7zip. 3. Run "MIUINewThemeEditor.exe" on windows or "srart-linux.sh" on Linux. 4. Connect your phone in adb mod "for adb mod" i. Goto setting then About phone ii. Tap 7 times on MIUI version iii. Now goto Additional settings then Developer options iv. enable USB debugging mod 5. Open downloaded MIUI Themes. 6. Click on Menu and then apply to phone.Install Global or Third Party MIUI Themes on Custom MIUI Roms like Xiaomi.eu, MIRoom, MIUIPro etc.1. Open the Theme Store app. 2. In themes option Import downloaded MIUI Theme with extension .mtz 3. apply MIUI Theme and enjoy.Share this:FacebookTwitterTelegramWhatsAppLinkedInRedditMoreTumblrPinterestPocketSkype


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I am writing tonight from the slightly overcast but still beautiful Tampa Bay area.
In the United States, we have an airline, called Southwest, who ask on their commercials, "Want to get away?" In each commercial someone will find themselves in an embarrassing situation, where they would gladly fly to the other side of the world and hide under a rock. The airline then suggests, getting on their plane to get away from it all.
In Mark 5 we read about a man who was in a very embarrassing situation before his conversion. When I tell you everything that happened with this man, you will agree with me, that after his conversion, he would gladly hop on an airplane to get away. However, Jesus sends him on a mission trip-back home!
For sake of time, I am going to highlight the story but you can read it for yourself here.
Sadly, demon activity has not changed much over the years. This man is hanging out in tombs, obsessed with death, much like those controlled by demons today. Jesus is life, and when we don't have Jesus, all that's left is death. He refused to be "tamed", "taught" or "controlled." The exact words may vary based on your favorite translation, but the idea is the same. He was not going to be bound by Biblical standards, like so many today, who do not want to hear what is right and wrong.
He cut himself. Today many cut themselves trying to find healing, not realizing, Jesus was already cut and wounded to bring them healing. The demoniac was tormented by the presence of Jesus. Today, an unconverted person does not want to be where Jesus can be found. They want nothing to do with Bible study, prayer meeting or family worship.
None of these demonic demonstrations phase Jesus. He heals the man and he becomes converted. In verse 15 it tells us after his conversion, the man is clothed and in his right mind. Luke 8 tells us this man was naked at the beginning of the story. Mark tells us at the end that after the conversion he is clothed. Another sign of demonic activity is wanting to dress improperly or not at all. When we become converted we dress appropriately.
Now that the man is converted we see that he wants to be with Jesus. He tells Him in verse 18 that he wants to be with Jesus. Now I am imagining that if I had been seen by my community, running around naked in a cemetery, that I would now like to jump on a Southwest airlines jet, or any jet for that matter and get away! I think a nice mission trip to the other side of the planet is now in order, so I can preach the gospel about as far away as I can get from the people who saw me running around a cemetery naked, cutting myself. But in verse 19 Jesus sends him on a mission trip-back home! Jesus tells the man to go back home and tell what wonderful things Jesus has done for him. Friend, if Jesus has done wonderful things for you, if He really has changed your life, you don't need to get away. While foreign mission trips are fun, fruitful and rewarding, chances are Jesus may have a mission field for you right in your very home. Jesus doesn't send everyone to the other side of the planet, as much as we may sometimes like that idea, especially after an embarrassing moment when we want to get away. Jesus may have a mission trip planned for you right in your very home. The people saw the change in this man. So much so that in verse 15 it says it scared them or made them afraid! It must have been a real shock when the reality of what Jesus had done in this man's life was seen.
If you run to the other side of the world people won't see the change. If Jesus has changed your life, you don't need to be afraid. You can proudly go back home, clothed with the righteousness of Christ and in your right mind, and tell them what wonderful things Jesus has done for you.
To go to the Sabbath School Network click here. To download the SS lessons to your cell phone click here.


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Congo's riches fuel its war
A 12-vehicle United Nations aid convoy went behind rebel lines Monday.
| Luntukulu, Democratic Republic of Congo
As a United Nations aid convoy rolled past rebel lines, top European, US, and UN envoys continue to discuss how best to prevent the latest crisis from spiraling out of control.
But many attempts to end Congo's conflict have failed, in part because wars that appear to be all about ethnicity are also about business. Hutu rebels claim to be taking refuge from a vengeful Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who blames them for the 1994 genocide of more than 800,000 Tutsis. But the rebels have built a militia by controlling the trade in tin, tungsten, and coltan.
The rebel army of Gen. Laurent Nkunda, which has now almost encircled the city of Goma, claims to be protecting his ethnic Tutsis, but he operates in areas rich in tin.
The rebels "are not in any areas that don't have minerals," says Joseph Mukind Kakez, a top government official in eastern Congo. He also blames his own government for its inability to control armed groups as well as ordinary Congolese, who buy and sell minerals from the armed groups, giving them the money to feed and rearm themselves and keep Congo's long conflict brewing.
"People ask: Who supports the armed groups?" he says. "It is we Congolese ourselves."
Efforts to stem the crisis
Tens of thousands of displaced Congolese are continuing to stream into Goma as General Nkunda's forces remain on the edge of the city. British and French foreign ministers arrived in Goma over the weekend to appeal for calm and to pledge their support for a humanitarian response to the estimated 1.4 million people displaced by conflict.
An aid convoy, the first in a week, arrived on Monday to provide food for 250,000 of those people, as UN negotiators pleaded with both the Congolese government and Nkunda's forces to find a peaceful settlement to the crisis.
Nkunda says his men will disarm and integrate into the national Army, as soon as the government expels the Hutu-led Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR) from Congolese soil. The government says Nkunda must disarm first.
"They [the FDLR] will not leave the Congo because they have access to minerals that they can buy and sell; it is a problem to stop them," says Juvenal Tembeze, provincial chief for the ministry of mines in South Kivu Province. "For the FDLR, it is a matter of life and death. If you forbid them access to the mines they are ready to kill, and they will take it out on the civilian population."
Congo's riches: a curse?
Given its immense natural resources, the Congo should be one of the richest countries on earth, with an estimated $300 billion worth of timber, gold, diamonds, cobalt, copper, tin, and coltan. Nearly 80 percent of the world's known reserves of coltan – a key metal used in cellphones and video games – come from Congo. Yet instead of a blessing, Congo's riches have become a bane.
The crisis – funded by the world's insatiable need for mineral resources – is not an easy conundrum to solve. US sanctions forbid high-tech companies from buying Congolese coltan, for instance, but sanctions don't affect coltan purchased in neighboring Rwanda. Rwanda is not a coltan-producing country, so its coltan mainly comes from Congo, illegally.
More targeted sanctions, proposed by the UN in a 2002 report, aimed at the armed groups themselves, are similarly problematic, government officials and private traders say.
"How can I tell who is legitimate?" asks Mark Patzelt, an exporter of minerals, based in Goma. "When it gets to me it's changed hands so many times, and the trader will tell me anything I want to hear, that he bought from legitimate sources. I've never seen a list of people I'm not supposed to buy from. I could cut out a complete region, but no one has told me where.
"Until the Congo government wakes up and starts paying people [especially government employees a decent wage, to remove the incentive in illegal mineral trading] – it will be impossible to separate the black sheep from the white."
Mr. Patzelt may have difficulty distinguishing where his minerals come from, but even individual traders like Olivier Mugaruka and Bashi Makala – who drive out to mining villages and buy directly from the miners – say it is difficult to tell who is a member of the FDLR.
Traders such as himself and Mr. Mugaruka say they rarely go into FDLR areas because of the risk, but when they do, they bring items such as salt and flour and cooking wares to sell in FDLR-controlled villages.
They pay a "tax" to the FDLR for the right to trade in FDLR areas, and they carry the constant fear that they might simply be looted of all their goods, including the minerals they have purchased to bring back to Bukavu.
"You have to understand that when the FDLR loot, they become wealthy, and the people who are looted become poorer," says Mr. Mugaruka. "We have no choice [but to trade in rebel-controlled areas]. It is up to the international community if they want to push them out."
A mining village caught in the middle
At the end of a drenching afternoon rainstorm, the miners in the tiny village of Luntukulu head back down into the flooded holes in the ground, scraping out chunks of casiterite, a kind of tin.
It's dangerous work – earning them about $30 a week – and risky not only because these holes in the ground have a tendency of collapsing. It's dangerous, too, because of the presence of armed groups who control the mining trade in North and South Kivu, and who keep the region one of the poorest, most war-torn spots on earth.
As the afternoon sun comes out, villagers point to the nearby village of Kakayi, just three kilometers away, an area under control of the FDLR. The Rwandan rebels used to raid Luntukulu, villagers say, but stopped after a short offensive by local Congolese Army commanders brought a truce in 2006.
Now, the FDLR are allowed to control the trade in minerals in Kakayi, and Congolese Army troops take a 500-franc- ($1)-per-person monthly fee to provide security to the miners in Luntukulu.
"The soldiers look after our security," says one of the miners, nervously eyeing the local Army checkpoint, where Congolese soldiers are becoming drunk on beer. Asked if the security fee is official, the miner shrugs. "It is abnormal to have money in hand, and the soldiers have nothing. That is why we give."


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Following this week's devastating earthquake in Haiti, the main spokesperson for the nation from the world of American literary fiction has been Edwidge Danticat, who's spoken to the Wall Street Journal about the catastrophe and provided the paper with a brief primer on Haitian culture. A little surprisingly, I'd heard nothing from fiction writer Ben Fountain, who famously visited the country more than 30 times while researching his excellent short-story collection, Brief Conversations With Che Guevara. But Texas Lawyer caught up with him:
I expect that recovery will be long, difficult, expensive and complex. It may well be that the country never recovers in this generation. On the other hand, I think there's a possibility, however hard it may be to focus on at this point, that the earthquake provides the impetus for a sustained, concerted and well-planned effort by the international community to help Haiti overcome its problems. In any event, Haiti certainly won't be the same country that it was on Jan. 10.
My new favorite litblog: Years of BASS, in which a Virginia researcher makes his way through the Best American Short Story series.
Films inspired by the films described in David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest will screen soon at Columbia University.
Joyce Carol Oates: "It's very clear to me now—as I'd always supposed—that we can't really choose what we write about in any passionate way: the material chooses us."
Just because Twitter forces you to be concise doesn't mean it's going to make you an Ernest Hemingway.
Jill McCorkle goes off-Broadway.
Christopher Hitchens on Gore Vidal going off the rails.
"Jaws meets Deliverance, with bears"—the elevator pitch an author needs to catch a publisher's attention grows ever shorter.
On a related note, here's Charles Bock on pursuing fiction writing as a career: "A teacher of mine once told me that as a writer you'll be humiliated, then you'll be humiliated again, and when you think you can't be humiliated any more, they'll find new ways to humiliate you."


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On March 1st, 2009, I embarked on a Rock and Roll journey… to blog my Metal heart out about the music, bands, musicians, albums and songs I love the most. This Rock and Roll journey was named – MetalOdyssey. Both past and present bands, my concert experiences, what I buy for music, album reviews, Heavy Metal hunting finds and my best Metal buddy Scott Coverdale have all been covered. Scott researches Metal like a Metalaholic. Once in awhile, I have vented about what ticks me off: The Rock and Roll Hall of Shame, reality show know-it-all dads, Rolling Stone Magazine, The Grammys and the dreadful PMRC. I even posted about my new cat Toby that my family adopted too. My unreal great wife, well, she is responsible for prodding and suggesting that I do this Metal Odyssey blog gig. I look back now and understand why she wanted me to do this. Without her computer, graphics and software expertise, I never would have gotten this blog off the Metal ground. I Thank her with all the love and everything I've got for coaxing me into such a Metal thrill ride! It has been a ton of Metal fun.
Did I think I would cover, (most of the time, like, 90% of the time), Metal Music? Kinda did. You see, I also have a love affair with Hard Rock, Progressive Rock, Southern Rock, Alternative Rock, Rock and… at times, movie soundtracks. So, my Rock and Roll infatuation covers quite a bit of ground… it's been that way my entire Metal life. Some may want to call me a Rock Music junkie… so Metal be it! I'm not bashful to express my allegiance to ELO, The Moody Blues, Dire Straits, The Doors, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Boz Scaggs. Nor will I ever fib and say the Rocky movie soundtrack doesn't still pump me up and psyche me out of my Metal mind! Bill Conti is a musical genius, John Carpenter is too.
What does the future hold for Metal Odyssey? MORE METAL! With that said, I will warn all of my loyal visitors and new visitors right now… don't ever be bewildered if you find me blabbing and praising about straight forward Rock and Roll either. I love the roots of Heavy Metal, always have I been amazed at how this incredible form of music came to being. Heavy Metal history is sacred to Metal Odyssey.
Punk Rock I like to blab about too from time to time. Misfits, Ramones, Osaka Popstar, Rancid and The Casualties are my top favorites, they all shall get their justified and respected due on Metal Odyssey again.
In the coming months, hopefully years, I will continue on with this Rock and Roll journey called Metal Odyssey just as I have been doing. I would like to continue to inform, entertain and inspire friendly debate through my writings and reviews. I also get the biggest kick out of consistently finding Metal albums and CD's dirt cheap at thrift stores, antique stores/malls and flea markets… lending my anecdotes and experiences of such finds to the world makes me feel happy. Any and all personal Metal experiences, (no matter how large or small), that I may encounter in the future will no doubt, be found right here on Metal Odyssey!
I also want to thank the new Metal buddies I have encountered through Metal Odyssey. These guys are fun to correspond with and make me more Metal wiser with each new post they create on their respective blogs, due in part to their personal perspective and knowledge of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal. Here is a roll call of these great fellow Metalheads who share the same passion as I do for Heavy Metal and Hard Rock music… check them out in the list below, if you already haven't, they are a Metal kick!
Hard Rock Hideout – I write reviews and do interviews for this unreal cool site… the dudes and dudettes over there are super nice Metal buddies too. Hard Rock Hideout is super loaded with up to the minute news, reviews, interviews, Hard Rock Hideout Radio, videos and… you get the Metal point!
The Metal Files – This Metal buddy was the first to put Metal Odyssey on a blog roll! An industry insider and musician who knows more than a thing or two about what is really going on in Metal. Plus, I really take stock in his Metal opinions, even if he doesn't like Steelheart.
Heavy Metal Addiction – A Metal buddy who invited me into a group of fellow bloggers to post the "Best Of" lists for 2009. A Metal gracious move I truly appreciate. Great reviews and insight aplenty to be had over there from this Heavy Metal blogging veteran. From his CD Scavenger Hunt to his concert reviews… good Metal stuff.
Metal Excess – This Heavy Metal site is loaded with reviews and honest insight too. A KISS fan exists at Metal Excess, which makes it all the more a Metal pleasure to go there constantly.
Demolish Fanzine – 1980's Heavy Metal Revival – This Metalhead buddy loves 1980's Metal, what's not to love about it? This blog is enriched with the knowledge of a 1980's fanzine veteran who has loads of Metal interviews and info to share… and I'm reading it.
Heavy Metal Time Machine – An old school Heavy Metal blogger who calls it the way he see it! That's the way it should be for Metal sakes. Uniquely insightful and fun, (Clash of the Album Covers & Battle of the Bands), the reviews, opinions and anecdotes over there always keeps me thinking.
* I also want to thank WordPress.com for having a kick butt and easy to navigate blog site!
I do want to THANK EACH AND EVERY VISITOR to Metal Odyssey over this past first year! Regardless if your comments were friendly or not, heck, at least you commented! Without visitors to Metal Odyssey, there is no fun in blabbing about the music that gets us all through each day.
Thank you all again,


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It is my favorite time of year, and this year I'll be doing a quilt along to help us get started on Autumn themed projects, leading up to my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving. The projects will be suitable for the entire fall season, but the best part is the quilt along that starts today!! There will be weekly posts for four weeks, short and sweet, and doable for this season's use. In addition, I will have giveaways from a list of fantastic sponsors. There will be one sponsor each week in October for our quilt along. Today, our lead off sponsor is Aurifil Threads! So, let's get started!
The quilt-along begins today, so gather your scraps in all the fall colors you have. The quilt along will have two different blocks, and the size of the finished projects will depend on how many blocks you want to make. So, lets get started!
To begin, the projects will need the half square triangles we have made before. If you have jelly roll strips, you can get the 3-inch pieces you need by starting with the 3-inch background square. Cut them in half diagonally, then position on the jelly roll strip with the diagonal cut edge on the edge of the jelly roll strip. Yes, this will mean that the sides of the finished HST will have bias edges, but we will square them up. You'll just need to sew carefully as you assemble the block. I would put these next to each other, they are separated here for demonstration. I also marked the diagonal line along with the quarter-inch sewing lines to be sure you could understand the placement.
So, let's cut some fabric! The first block is a leaf block, pieced with scrappy autumn colors. The block will finish at 6 inches square. For each block you will need scraps in similar colors to create the leaves. Here is what you need for a single leaf –
3 3-inch squares
1 2-1/2-inch square
Leaf color
2 3-inch squares
1 strip 4-1/2-inches x 1 inch
3 2-1/2-inch squares
Start by matching up the 3-inch leaf color squares with 2 of the 3-inch background squares, and make HSTs using our usual method, and square up to 2-1/2-inches. If you make more than one leaf block of each color, mix up your HSTs to make the leaves even scrappier.
With the last 3-inch background square, cut in half on the diagonal. Position on either side of the leaf color strip.
Sew with a 1/4-inch seam.
Press, then square up to 2-1/2 inches.
Now, lay out the elements in the block. I switched colors on you, as I am making a lot of leaves.
Sew in rows. Press the rows in opposite directions to make nesting the seams easy. How you press the final block won't matter. I usually press all the seams up.
All done! In multiple colors. At this stage, they will be 6-1/2-inches square.
If you want to make the leaves totally scrappy, you can. Why not? Real autumn leaves often have more than one color.
How many do you need? Well, it depends. For the absolute minimum, you need 1. To make the smallest two projects, you'll need 4. If you want to make all the projects in the quilt along, you'll need 24. But you can make leaves each week to get the total at the end, you don't have to make all of them this week, unless you want to. Block 2 will publish next Friday.
Update – Click HERE for Block 2.
Of course, you'll need thread to sew the leaves, in lots of luscious fall colors, and there is no better thread for piecing. Aurifil is sponsoring this post with a giveaway of a 12 spool box of threads in Autumn colors!!
To enter, visit the Aurifil collections website, then come back and leave a comment with the thread collection you'd most like to have next, in addition to the Sheena Norquay Autumn Collection. (Update, just to be clear, the giveaway is only for the Autumn collection. The comments are for a collection other than Autumn.) If you follow me, comment a second time with how you follow for a second entry. The drawing will be held November 1, so you have plenty of time to enter and tell your friends! If you tweet, please use the hashtag #AutumnJubilee and include @aurifil and @frmmycarolinahm on your list. If you follow me on twitter, I tweeted the link this morning.
Aren't these threads gorgeous! I love the colors in this collection. There are also at least three other collections I would love to have. What are your choices?
Freemotion By the River Linky Tuesday
5 Minutes Around the Blogosphere Giveaways


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cards, comingsoon, connection, etsy, etsyseller, grasp, graspseries, greetingcards, homemadecards, lovecards, meaningful, memories, moments, paperlover, poetry, poetryseries, reflect, romanticcards, shopets, soulful, spreadthelove, stationery, uniquecards
My new stationery line, Grasp, is here! I've been working on this collection for about 6 months and am happy it's finally done. I feel it will help others reflect their own feelings. Here I share my purest emotion in hopes of creating and celebrating connections between others.
The series is all about love and showcases a romantic soft feel. My vision was to create a pretty collection of cards that are unique, personal, and intimate. I hope you all enjoy. I will be sharing all the cards in the collection this next week or so, but you can view the series now at bit.ly/graspseries.


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The head of Marvel Studios reveals what films will follow The Avengers. Matt Smith and Karen Gillan reveal some key Doctor Who plot points. Michael Bay talks Transformers 3, and new director Craig Gillespie discusses Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.
Spoilers from here on out!
Top image from Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
A description of the post-credits scene has linked, and - assuming it's accurate - it has some serious implications for The Avengers. Here's the description given to Latino Review:
"We see Dr. Selvig (Stellan Skarsgård) meeting with Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), who is standing in front of a table with a large metal case on it. They discuss the latest discoveries that Selvig and his team have made in relation to alternate universes and Fury asks for his advice in regards to the contents of the case: the Tesseract/Cosmic Cube. When Selvig asks what is it, Fury responds that it is a source of immense power. The camera pans back to Selvig, and a reflection reveals that Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is in fact now possessing Selvig. Loki/Selvig responds, 'That's very interesting…'"
Stellan Skarsgård is already confirmed to be reprising his role as Dr. Selvig in The Avengers - of course, if he's actually just possessed by Loki, then that's pretty good evidence that Loki really is the main bad guy in The Avengers. That said, this is all hearsay and rumor, so definitely don't treat this as confirmed just yet. [Latino Review]
The Avengers
Whatever Zak Penn's initial contributions to the script, Joss Whedon is now reportedly the only credited writer. What that means, if anything, is that Whedon's contributions to the script were even more substantial than one might have thought — but it's quite possible that his credit will ultimately be split with Penn anyway. [Badass Digest]
Marvel Movies
Marvel Studios executive Kevin Feige gave an overview of their future projects. He promised a Thor sequel and another Captain America film - seemingly confirming that the latter film will be set in the present day, not World War II. He also teased other properties he's hoping to develop:
"Thor will go off into a new adventure, and Captain America will continue to explore the modern world in another film of his own. We hope that holds true for the characters appearing in that film - Black Widow, Hawkeye, and the spy organization, S.H.I.E.L.D. - all of whom are more than worthy and capable of carrying their own films. And, we've got a lot of other characters we're prepping and getting ready for film debuts: the world of martial arts, these great cosmic space fantasies, Dr. Strange, and the magic side of the Marvel Universe. There are many, many stories to be mined."
X-Men: First Class
Here's a new photo of Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique. [SpoilerTV]
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
In a lengthy Q&A, Michael Bay reaffirmed his commitment to making his third film the best:
Well, I've got a lot of scenes you've never seen before. There's a lot of action stuff that I've never done before that's pretty cool. It's like some agent said, "Bay's a competitor." And what he meant by that is a lot of people on the third one will just check out and just get a paycheck. It's like I've been working every day for two years, every single day, because I want to make up for the second one and I want to leave this franchise as best I can. I've had a great run, fun time doing it. So really, it was a fun shoot. It really was.
He also explained why he sees this film as the Transformers equivalent of Black Hawk Down:
OK, I didn't want to say it's bigger, because what I like about it is…And I've said this with [screenwriter] Ehren [Kruger]. We were talking about concept. We used the term "Black Hawk Down" in just that it's a small group and you follow. And there's no cavalry coming. It's a standard thing in movies: cavalry comes. We tried to make the cavalry unable to come. And it's more fun to watch our heroes in this epic ending just a small group, which makes the movie more intimate.
And he described a particularly exciting action sequence:
"We did one of the craziest things I've ever filmed which is these wingsuit guys [extreme base jumpers]. I'm like, 'I'm writing a scene for those guys.' We have this great scene where they fly between the buildings. We had to block off a mile and a half, they made turns around the buildings, very close, but the city [of Chicago] allowed us to do that. Jumping off the Sears Tower flying through the streets. That's just unheard of."
He confirmed there's a new Transformer named Brains, as well as confirming Frank Welker's voice return. There's a ton more at the link. [/Film]
Terminator 5
Justin Lin says that, if he does get the director gig for the new Terminator movie, he would consider bringing in his The Fast and the Furious collaborator Vin Diesel as a Terminator:
"Vin's been a really great partner on [The Fast and the Furious] franchise. We've talked about the mythology [of the Terminator series]…[pause] he's a great guy and a great actor. I really like working with him so anything I do I usually talk to him about. Sometimes we even talk about going back and doing a little indy movie."
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
Newly confirmed director Craig Gillespie explains where the project stands. He confirmed that he is keeping the script from the previous versions:
No, we have a really great script that we're just going to do a polish on and then get going, really…. David Russell wrote the script off the book, and it has such a great mix of humor and horror. I just love being able to juggle those two aspects. The humor is inherent in the Pride and Prejudice side, but taking that and accenting it with zombies is just a brilliant and fun idea. And there are such strong female characters, which is nice to have. It's a great clash.
He also explained what drew him to the project:
I was aware the project was around, but at the time it wasn't available. Then it became available. I was still finishing up Fright Night, but in the meantime I called my agent and said, "I want to see that script." He said, "I'm not sure we'd be able to figure out the timing." But I read the first 30 pages and said, "I want to do this." It's just such a great combination between classic literature - Jane Austen, and meshing it with zombies. The challenge of meshing those two genres is really exciting to me. There's a lot of action in this. There are a lot of big set pieces in this film, which is exciting. Basically, as I said to the studio, at the core it's a love story between Elizabeth and Darcy. If that's not working, and we're not rooting for those two to get together through all this craziness, the movie is not going to work. That's key to me, to have this great emotional story going on, and all this craziness.
There's more at the link. [EW]
Ouija Board
Tron Legacy/Lost writers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz have dropped out of McG's adaptation of the board game, and their replacement is reportedly Evan Spiliotopoulos, the writer of such Disney direct-to-video fare as The Lion King 1 1/2. So yeah... lots to be excited about here. [The Hollywood Reporter]
Doctor Who
Matt Smith offers this interesting hint about Neil Gaiman's episode:
We were thrilled to get a writer of his sci-fi stature and magnitude on board. And he's applied his rather brilliant and mad brain to a brilliant and mad idea. All I can say is that the Doctor spends a lot of time with the TARDIS.
Since the Doctor appears to spend a lot of time with Suranne Jones's Idris in this episode, this might actually be the best clue yet that Idris really is a manifestation of the TARDIS. Matt Smith also says that it's episode 6 that has the really big cliffhanger, perhaps even more so than the mid-series cliffhanger in episode 7. [EW]
In another interview, Smith offered this encapsulation of the program for new American audiences:
"You'll never get bored with a baffled genius turning up and saving the day with a toaster and a ball of string and being chased by a giant robot that breathes fire and talks with the voice of a calculator, on a show that's not bound by space, logic, time or genre. [The Doctor is] everything James Bond isn't. I mean, he's been on his own for 900 years, apart from picking up really hot chicks and saving the world …[he's] really clever, but socially quite inept."
Karen Gillan says she won't be wearing as many mini-skirts this season, as Amy's marriage to Rory has made her a bit more tomboyish, although she promises "The Curse of the Black Spot" has a great miniskirt with "some ridiculous pink tights."
She also offers this hint about the opening two-parter:
"Everything's so important and precise in Steven Moffat's scripts. There are a couple of throwaway lines in the opening two-parter, which I thought were just a couple of funny gags but turn out to be one of the most important things that Amy's ever said. And I didn't know that at the time!"
Since you'd assume she'd know the significance of lines that pertained to important things in the two-parter itself, this suggests the pay-off to these lines are found later on in the series. [Metro]
Here's a synopsis for May 6's season - but not series! - finale "The Day We Died."
Brad Dourif ("Deadwood") Guest-Stars - As the thrilling third season propels to a climactic close, questions will be answered as Peter confronts his destiny and a beloved team member meets an untimely demise in "The Day We Died" season finale episode of FRINGE.
Here's an interview with Leonard Nimoy, in which he leaves open another possible return and says he'd love to come back. [Fringe Television]
Game of Thrones
George R.R. Martin has revealed he will write the season two episode that covers the Battle of the Blackwater, which is a huge land and sea battle. There's also some thought about what will happen if the show gets a third season - main writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss are reportedly considering splitting the massive third book into two seasons of ten episodes, with fans already speculating the seasons would be split in half around the Red Wedding. [Westeros]
True Blood
Here's a new video to get you ready for season four. [Zap2It]
The Walking Dead
Robert Kirkman relates this anecdote from the season two writer's room:
"We had a funny exchange the other day where one of the writers suggested something absolutely horrible for one of the characters. It was really gut-wrenching, and it was definitely something that was like the coolest moments of the comic where you just go 'Holy crap! This just happened!' And after he said it, everybody stopped and looked around the room. Glen Mazzara, who's running the room, said 'This is great. This is what's so good about being on this show. You know these discussions don't happen in any other writer's room on any other show. We can do anything to these characters, and it isn't too much. It fits. The parameters of the show are crazy.' And I think that's the kind of thing you have to keep in mind when you're doing a comic book too. So the short answer is yes. I do enjoy putting the characters through their paces, and the writers on the show are just now realizing how far they'll be able to go. They seem to be enjoying it too."
The murder of a major character the night before Chuck and Sarah's rehearsal dinner will find the cast pitted against the CIA, facing off against a character that executive producer Chris Fedak describes as an "agent who's tougher than Bentley, Beckman, and Shaw combined." [EW]
The Event
Here's a promo for episode 18, "Strain." [SpoilerTV]
Here's a description for episode 20, "One Will Live, One Will Die."
Sterling finds an unlikely ally in Simon; Jarvis authorizes an air strike against the Chief of Staff's wishes; Sophia draws an unwitting Leila into her plan; Sean and Vicky try to prevent many deaths.
Stargate Universe
Here are some photos for episode 18, "Epilogue." [SpoilerTV]
Additional reporting by Katharine Trendacosta and Charlie Jane Anders.


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Happy Saturday, readers! It's pretty unusual to find me here on the weekend, so you know it has to be for good reason!
All Free Knitting is a website chockfull of free knitting patterns for all skill levels. They receive millions of views each week, and are a staple in a knitter's online arsenal of tools. Back in October, the editor of All Free Knitting, Kathryn Abrams, reached out to me because she wanted to include my knit tie for Anne on her site (with a proper link back to Scissors & Sage). You can find that feature on All Free Knitting here.
Kathryn reached out again in March because she selected my knit tie to be a part of her latest e-book, 9 Men's Knitting Patterns. (Click here to download it!) I couldn't believe she wanted to feature me as one of nine patterns. The best part? I asserted that the pattern had to be introduced using inclusive language if she wanted to include me in the book.
THEN, Kathryn emailed me a few weeks ago to tell me that my tie had been hand-picked to be included in All Free Knitting's "Top 5 Father's Day Knitting Patterns" contest. I of course accepted the invitation! The winner is determined by the number of favorable comments they receive on All Free Knitting's post. The winner gets a $50 Amazon gift card! If me and my tie model win, the card is going straight into our Ball jar labeled "Wedding Fund." The contest is open until Friday, June 17th.
Readers, please take a moment to vote for Anne's knit tie! It would be an honor to win this contest and be recognized for my knitting. Here's how you can vote:
- Visit All Free Knitting's "Top 5 Father's Day Knitting Patterns" post.
- Leave a comment letting them know which of the five patterns is your favorite.
Not only will one of the knitting patterns win, but there's something in it for you, too! All Free Knitting will choose one commenter at random to win a copy of their book, Simple Scarves Made with the Knook, and the Knook Kit.
Have a great weekend, everyone!


text: > IPMI cards are a good idea. I work with them all the time. > We use IPMI for remote monitoring of systems, and for power cycling. > IPMI cards for Supermicro nodes are not expensive, and are IPM 2 > compliant. > > IPMI does support Serial-over-LAN, but I don't have experience with it, > I'm not sure Linux does this. We're quite interested to know if/how this works. Could it eliminate the serial port server boxes? > Other manufacturers have similar. The Sun Service Processors are IPMI > compliant, and in addition allow remote access via ssh. You can do a > terminal redirect and get full access to the BIOS, ie. you ssh into > the SP and type 'system console' and get a serial console on the node. Unfortunately the Sun/Newisys hardware is not an option for us. We need four hot swap SATA drives per node. >> Another solution is to use the DB9 serial ports of the nodes. You have an >> 'administrative' box containing lots of high-port-count serial cards (eg, >> Cyclades 32 or 64 port cards) and then run a serial cable from each node >> to this box. By remotely logging into this admin box you can access the >> serial ports of the machines, and if the BIOS has the right >> settings/support, this lets you have keyboard/console access. >> >> Or one can do both IPMI + remote serial port access. > Cyclades terminal servers are very good. > That's a dedicated rackmount box (running Linux) with multiple serial > lines. You telnet to a specific port and get the serial screen. > I would spec one of these for a new cluster. > We ship them on many of our clusters, as an option, and customers are > always happy with them. It's the TS 3000. 32 ports for $3995 in quantity one. > The alternative is to use a single flying lead from the head node Doesn't this require someone on-site? I want remote management, not local. > I would spec your new cluster with IPMI cards, plus a Cyclades. > Have your systems supplier set all the BIOSes to do a serial redirect, > and enable serial consoles at the Linux boot stage. > This is standard with all our clusters. > > I'll give you some help if you email me off-list. Thanks! So far it seems quite clear. Two other potential options that have been suggested are: [1] if the BIOS can redirect console IO to a USB port, then use USB-ethernet converters plus a cheap oversubscribed ethernet network and a dedicated box to gather the output, or [2] use the Linux netconsole driver to redirect console output to an ethernet port, then gather this output (eg, kernel printk()s) with a dedicated collection box. The total cost of this option is one inexpensive 24 or 48 ports switch in each rack, pluse one more switch to concentrate those together. This would cost under $20/node. Cheers, Bruce


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Japanese navy commander Keizo Kitagawa recently spoke with Agence France-Presse and disclosed that his nation was opening its first overseas military base – at any rate since the Second World War – in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa.
Kitagawa is assigned to the Plans and Policy Section of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, as his nation's navy is called, and is in charge of the deployment.
AFP quoted the Japanese officer as stressing the unprecedented nature of the development: "This will be the only Japanese base outside our country and the first in Africa." [1]
The military installation is to cost $40 million and is expected to accommodate Japanese troops early next year.
Djibouti rests at the confluence of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, across from strife-torn Yemen, and borders the northwest corner of equally conflict-ridden Somalia. The narrow span of water separating it from Yemen is the gateway for all maritime traffic passing between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean via the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea.
Naval deployments to the Gulf of Aden by several major nations and alliances – the U.S., NATO, the European Union, China, Russia, India, Iran and others – are designed to insure the free passage of commercial vessels through the above route and to protect United Nations World Food Programme deliveries to Somalia. The second concern in particular led to the passage of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1838 in 2008, which requests that nations with military vessels in the area suppress the capture of ships and their crews for ransom. An anti-piracy mission.
However, the above-mentioned Japanese naval officer was more direct in identifying his nation's interest in establishing a military base in Africa. Kitagawa also told AFP that "We are deploying here to fight piracy and for our self-defence. Japan is a maritime nation and the increase in piracy in the Gulf of Aden through which 20,000 vessels sail every year is worrying."
The term self-defense is not fortuitous. Article 9 of the 1947 Japanese Constitution explicitly affirms that "the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes. To accomplish the aim of the preceding paragraph, land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained. The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized."
As such, in the post-World War Two period the nation's armed forces have been called the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF).
The Constitution also expressly prohibits the deployment of military forces outside of Japan, stating that it is "not permissible constitutionally to dispatch armed troops to foreign territorial land, sea and airspace for the purpose of using military power, as a so-called overseas deployment of troops, since it generally exceeds the minimum level necessary for self-defense."
That notwithstanding, in the years following the Cold War all post-Second World War proscriptions against the use of military force by the former Axis nations have been disregarded, [2] and in February of 2004 Japan dispatched 600 troops, albeit in a non-combat role, to Iraq shortly after the U.S. and British invasion of the country. The nation's navy, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, supplied fuel and water in support of the U.S. Operation Enduring Freedom campaign in Afghanistan from 2001-2007 and again from January of 2008 to the beginning of this year, thereby violating another basic tenet of its constitution, the ban on engaging in what the document refers to as collective self-defense, the relevant section of which reads:
"Japan has the right of collective self-defense under international law. It is, however, not permissible to use the right, that is, to stop armed attack on another country with armed strength, although Japan is not under direct attack, since it exceeds the limit of use of armed strength as permitted under Article 9 of the Constitution."
However, a 2007 Defense White Paper left the door open to further military deployments with a provision on "international peace cooperation activities."
It is in the spirit of that elastic and evasive phrase that Japan resumed support for the war in Afghanistan in 2008 and has now secured a military base on the African continent.
The Japanese official presiding over the latter project also said that "A camp will be built to house our personnel and material. Currently we are stationed at the American base." Kitagawa added that "We sent military teams to Yemen, Oman, Kenya and Djibouti. In April 2009, we chose Djibouti."
A year earlier, the Kyodo News cited an official of the Foreign Ministry as confirming that "Japan and Djibouti reached a status of forces agreement" on April 3, 2009, "stipulating the terms of operations and legal status for the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force and related officials who will be based in the African nation during the current antipiracy mission in waters off Somalia." [3]
The agreement was signed on the same day by Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada and the foreign minister of Djibouti, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, in Tokyo. The month before Japan sent two destroyers to the Gulf of Aden.
Two months later Japan deployed two new destroyers, the 4,550-ton Harusame and the 3,500-ton Amagiri, off the Horn of Africa. Also last July the Japanese press disclosed that "The U.S….asked Japan to build its own facilities to carry out full-fledged operations," and that at the time "about 150 members of the Ground Self-Defense Force and MSDF [Maritime Self-Defense Force] stationed in Djibouti live in U.S. military lodgings near an airport." [4] The Japanese military announced plans to construct a runway for Maritime Self-Defense Force P-3C surveillance planes and barracks for its troops.
Although Russian, Chinese, Indian and Iranian ships in the Horn of Africa are there to protect their own and other nations' vessels and their missions are understood to be limited to anti-piracy operations and to a prescribed duration, Japan and its American and NATO allies have established permanent land, naval and air bases in the region for use in armed conflicts on the African continent.
In early 2001 the U.S. started negotiations with the government of Djibouti for setting up its first major military base in Africa at the former French Foreign Legion base Camp Lemonnier. (Until recently spelled Lemonier by the Pentagon.)
This was several years before combating piracy in the Gulf of Aden became the rationale for U.S. and NATO deployments in the region.
Djibouti is the last territory on the African continent to achieve independence (excepting Western Sahara, seized by Morocco in 1975 with the connivance of Spain's General Franco), only being granted what independence it has by France in 1977. Its population is less than 900,000.
France still maintains its largest overseas military base in the world in the nation and has approximately 3,000 troops stationed there.
Since the Pentagon moved into and took over Camp Lemonnier in 2003, it established its Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) on the base and has an estimated 2,000 troops from all four branches of the U.S. military – Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps – stationed there.
The Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa's area of operations incorporates Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Seychelles, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda and Yemen and increasingly the Indian Ocean island nations of Comoros, Madagascar and Mauritius.
As the U.S. was transferring the CJTF-HOA command from the Marine Corps to the Navy in 2005 – to free up Marines for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq – the then commander, Major Marine General Timothy Ghormley, acknowledged that "U.S. forces have been working with militaries in Yemen, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya and Comoros" [5] and "operate throughout Kenya, Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, Yemen and Ethiopia." [6]
France has used its base in Djibouti for deadly military interventions in Cote d'Ivoire and Chad and, because of the nation's topography, Djibouti has also been used for training French troops for the war in Afghanistan, where the nation's contingent is the fourth largest serving under NATO command.
Last December the commander of the French army in the country, Commandant Etienne du Fayet, said that "French officers are going to be training a contingent in Uganda next February and we are also going to Ethiopia." [7] During deadly border clashes between Djibouti and Eritrea in June of 2008 France deployed additional troops, warships and aircraft to the region.
The U.S. base has been used for military operations in Somalia and Uganda. In 2008 the deputy commander of U.S. forces in the country was cited as revealing that "the Djibouti base facilitates some other military activities he won't talk about.
"There have been reports of U.S. special operations forces working from the base on counter-terrorism missions in Somalia and elsewhere….[T]hat approach is the model for the new United States Africa Command…."
At the same time Rear Admiral Philip Greene took over as commander of the Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa and, speaking over nine months before the formal activation of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), said "There is, I think, great synergy between what CJTF-Horn of Africa does now and what we're about and what AFRICOM will represent as a combatant command."
To indicate the range of the operations he envisioned, Greene also said he would "be watching some of the region's hot spots for potential seeds of instability," including "the situations in Kenya, Somalia and Sudan's Darfur region, as well as tension on the Ethiopia-Eritrea border and piracy along the Indian Ocean coastline." [8]
In 2006 a Kenyan daily newspaper wrote that (as of four years ago) "direct US arms sales to East Africa and the Horn of Africa countries –" Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia –" have shot up from under one million dollars in 2003 to over $25 million in 2006. Djibouti leads the list with nearly $20 million in direct arms purchases in 2005 and 2006." [9]
The same feature described broader U.S. plans for the Horn of Africa region and further afield being hatched from Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti:
"Overall, direct US weapons sales [to Africa] increased from $39.2 million in 2005 to nearly $60 million in 2006. In both years, East Africa and the Horn accounted for nearly 40 percent of US weapons sales to Africa, and this demonstrates the US military's strategic shift to the region.
"Access to strategic airfields and ports has also increased for the US military. Beyond Camp Lemonier in 2003, the US had an agreement with Kenya that allowed it access to the port of Mombasa and airfields at Embakasi and Nanyuki.
"Zambia and Uganda have joined Kenya in this unique arrangement. At Entebbe, the US has constructed two K-Span steel buildings to house troops and equipment. The so called 'Lily Pad' arrangement will allow the US military to use the base when needed in times of conflict or as a staging area for a conflict within the region."
The article also stated, "Strategically, the US military has developed a regional operations plan that centres on Djibouti to support the Horn countries. It anchors the southern flank with bases in Kenya, Zambia and Uganda to the west….[L]ike in Nigeria, it can be used to ensure an uninterrupted flow of oil from the newly discovered fields of Uganda and Kenya, and it opens the door to the construction of a well-protected oil pipeline carrying oil from the interior of Central Africa to the port of Mombasa. It also provides a strategically located airbase to support future military operations to the north in Sudan or to the west." [10]
In 2006 the Pentagon expanded Camp Lemonnier by almost five times its original size, from 88 to 500 acres. Late last year it completed an airfield project in the country to provide parking spaces for C-130 Hercules and CV-22 Osprey aircraft and to support C-17 Globemaster III and C-5 Galaxy military transport planes.
Four years ago the Reuters news agency reported "the United States is already providing Ethiopia and Kenya with logistical support and U.S. special forces had been observed on the Kenya-Somalia border," [11] and shortly afterward the U.S. Air Force divulged that U.S. airmen were operating out of Contingency Operating Location Bilate (also known as Camp Bilate) in Ethiopia in conjunction with the the Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa headquarters at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti. [12]
The U.S. military headquarters in Djibouti is in charge of three smaller downrange bases, known as Contingency Operating Locations, at Bilate and Hurso in Ethiopia and Manda Bay in Kenya.
An Ethiopian newspaper revealed at the time that "The United States would continue providing training and other assistance to the Ethiopian Defence Forces as per the Ethio-US bilateral cooperation" [13] during the Ethiopian invasion of Somalia in 2006.
Ethiopian troops were being trained in infantry tactics by soldiers with the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division's 1st Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment at the Training Academy in Hurso as jets from the country bombed the Somali capital and ground forces invaded their eastern neighbor. The U.S. Army conducted training at the base starting no later than 2003. "U.S. military personnel with the Combined Joint Task Force–"Horn of Africa…have spent the last four years training the Ethiopian National Defense Forces in basic military tactics." [14] The effects of that preparation were seen in the 2006 invasion of Somalia.
The Pentagon's role in Somalia was not limited to training and arming Ethiopian invasion forces, as in early 2007 it was reported that "recent military operations in Somalia have been carried out by the Pentagon's Joint Special Operations Command, which directs the military's most secretive and elite units, like the Army's Delta Force.
"The Pentagon established a desolate outpost in the Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti in 2002 in part to serve as a hub for special missions…." [15]
As U.S. special forces were operating in Somalia and Washington's military client was launching air and ground attacks there, the U.S. deployed the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier, which "has an air wing of about 75 aircraft, including F/A-18 Hornet and SuperHornet strike fighters, E-2C Hawkeyes, EA-6B Prowlers, and SH-60 Seahawks," [16] to join the the guided-missile cruisers USS Bunker Hill and USS Anzio and the amphibious landing ship USS Ashland off the coast of Somalia.
An "AC-130 gunship, operated by the Special Operations Command, flew from its base in Djibouti to the southern tip of Somalia" [17] where it "rained gunfire on the desolate village of Hayo" on January 8. A local official was quoted as saying "There are so many dead bodies and animals in the village." [18]
"Officials with CJTF-HOA, based in Djibouti, declined…to comment on the reported AC-130 attacks; media reports said the plane was based at Camp Lemonier." [19]
Also in early January of 2007 a major Kenyan newspaper reported "The US counter-terrorism task force based in Djibouti acknowledges that American troops are on the ground in northern Kenya and in Lamu," the latter on the Indian Ocean. [20]
In March of the same year two U.S. soldiers were killed in Ethiopia in what was attributed to an accident. They were assigned to a unit that was "part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, headquartered at Camp Lemonier, Djibouti." [21]
Late last year U.S. Africa Command deployed lethal Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles (drones), 133 military personnel and three P-3 Orion anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircraft to Seychelles in the Indian Ocean east of Kenya. The Pentagon now has its second major African military base.
In addition to the 5,000 U.S. and French troops stationed there, Djibouti also has been home to what in 2005 Agence France-Presse disclosed were "several hundred German, Dutch and Spanish soldiers." [22]
That is, the diminutive state is for all practical purposes not only the headquarters for U.S. Africa Command but also for NATO in Africa.
In late 2005 Britain announced that it was also deploying troops to Djibouti.
Starting in March of 2009 NATO started rotating its Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG 1) and Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG 2) warship fleets off the coast of Somalia, first with Operation Allied Provider until August of last year and since with Operation Ocean Shield, which continues to the present day and which in March was extended until the end of 2012. The current fleet consists of warships from the U.S., Britain, Greece, Italy and Turkey. Its area of operations includes one million square kilometers in the Gulf of Aden and the Somali Basin. (The current name of the naval groups are NATO Response Force Maritime Groups 1 and 2.)
NATO does not intend to leave the area soon if at all.
Even before the NATO Allied Provider and Ocean Shield operations began, the Italian destroyer MM Luigi Durand De La Penne, "a 5,000-ton multi-role warship capable of air defence, anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare operations," [23] part of the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2, at the time comprised of warships from the U.S., Britain, Germany, Greece and Turkey, visited the Kenyan port city of Mombasa in October of 2008.
Of the current NATO deployment, last December then German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung said that it was "the most robust mandate we have ever had," adding, "There may be combat situations, and in this respect it would of course be a combat deployment." [24]
The NATO flotillas joined warships of the U.S.-led Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150) with logistics facilities in Djibouti. Formerly the U.S. Navy's Task Force 150, starting in 2001 it became a multinational operation with the inclusion of NATO allies and those from an emerging Asian NATO. Full participating nations are the U.S., Britain, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany and Pakistan, and others who have been involved are Australia, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, Spain and Turkey. CTF-150 has 14-15 warships near Somalia at any given time and is coordinated with the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, under the Combined Forces Maritime Component Commander/Commander US Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain.
In January of 2009 the U.S. Navy inaugurated Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151), which will include warships from 20 nations, NATO and Asian NATO states.
European NATO nations are also "double-duty" participants in the European Union Naval Force Somalia –" Operation Atalanta, the first naval operation conducted by the EU and run under the auspices of the European Security and Defence Policy. It was launched in December of 2008 and is based at the Northwood Operation Headquarters in Britain, which also houses NATO's Allied Maritime Component Command Northwood. Current participants in Operation Atalanta are Britain, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain, and "a number of Cypriot, Irish, Finnish, Maltese and Sweden military personnel supplement the team at the Northwood Operation Headquarters." [25]
Starting no later than September of 2009 NATO commanders have visited and in essence established a headquarters in Somalia's autonomous Puntland state. Last autumn British Commodore Steve Chick, commander of Standing NATO Maritime Group 2, met with Puntland authorities on board the HMS Cornwall. "The talks ended successfully with NATO and Puntland officials agreeing to cooperate in combating pirates operating along the Somali coast." [26]
This January Admiral Pereira da Cunha, commander of Standing NATO Maritime Group 1, hosted Puntland officials on the Portuguese flagship Alvares Cabral, and the meeting "focused on human intelligence gathering, capacity building and counter piracy cooperation between NATO and Puntland authorities."
"NATO…has established a close working relationship with the Puntland Coastguard….This is just a start. With 60 years of experience and coalition building, NATO is well placed to make things happen." [27]
In March ministers of the Puntland government met with Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 commander Commodore Steve Chick on board the HMS Chatham, current flagship of the NATO naval group in the region. The talks "covered ways in which further cooperation between NATO and the Puntland authorities could be developed in the future." [28]
According to a Puntland news source, NATO's activities aren't limited to operations in the waters off Somalia: "NATO has a working relationship with Puntland authorities in a bid to enhance its fight against the piracy scourge along the lawless waters of the Horn of Africa. Puntland has offered its help in terms of dealing with the gangs in the mainland." [29]
The European Union will soon begin training 2,000 Ugandan troops for deployment to Somalia to aid the Transitional Federal Government, which is fighting for its life even in the nation's capital.
Last October a Kenyan newspaper announced that Kenyan troops sailed to Djibouti to receive military training along with the armed forces of other regional nations. At the same time military officers from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden were in Kenya to "assist the region in the ongoing establishment of a united military force to deal with conflicts on the continent."
"The experts from the European countries, which are part of the Nordic Bloc, are based at the EASBRIG headquarters, at the Defence Staff College in Karen, Nairobi." [30]
EASBRIG, the East African Standby Brigade, "will be deployed to trouble spots within 14 days after chaos erupts, to restore order….The brigade will have troops from 14 countries….The military unit will comprise 35,000 soldiers and 1,000 police officers plus 1,000 civilian staff. Kenya is already training 2,000 soldiers to be seconded to the force once it is in place." [31]
Japan's destroyers off the coast of Somalia and the nation's first foreign military base in the post-World War Two era in Djibouti are in line with the geostrategic plans of Tokyo's allies in North America and Europe.
Plans which are embodied most fully in the creation of the first U.S. regional military command outside North America in a quarter of a century, Africa Command. Long after pirates, al-Qaeda affiliates and other threats have ceased to serve as their justification, the Pentagon, NATO and Japan will retain their military footholds in Africa.
[1]. Agence France-Presse, April 23, 2010
[2]. Former Axis Nations Abandon Post-World War II Military Restrictions, Stop NATO, August 12, 2009
[3]. Kyodo News, April 3, 2009
[4]. Kyodo News, July 31, 2009
[5]. Stars And Stripes, September 23, 2005
[6]. US Department of Defense, September 22, 2005
[7]. Radio France Internationale, December 11, 2009
[8]. Voice of America News, January 25, 2008
[9]. The East African, November 6, 2006
[10]. Ibid
[11]. Reuters, November 21, 2006
[12]. Air Force Link, January 7, 2007
[13]. Ethiopian Herald, January 5, 2007
[14]. Stars and Stripes, January 10, 2007
[15]. Xinhua News Agency, January 13, 2007
[16]. Stars and Stripes, January 10, 2007
[17]. Voice of Russia, January 9, 2007
[18]. Reuters, January 10, 2007
[19]. Stars and Stripes, January 10, 2007
[20]. The Nation, January 3, 2007
[21]. Stars and Stripes, March 8, 2007
[22]. Agence France-Presse, December 22, 2005
[23]. The Standard (Kenya), October 29, 2008
[24]. Associated Press,December 23, 2009
[25]. European Union Naval Force Somalia
[26]. North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Maritime Component Command Headquarters Northwood, September 11, 2009
[27]. North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Allied Command Operations, January 27, 2010
[28]. Royal Navy, March 30, 2010
[29]. Garowe Online, April 8, 2010
[30]. The Nation, October 29, 2009
[31]. Ibid


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Cream Ale is an indigenous American beer style. Usually brewed with lager yeast at warmer ale temperatures, it is a light-colored, mild-flavored beer, with a base similar to an American pale lager and often a distinctive corn flavor from the use of corn adjuncts. In its heyday, cream ale was also known as Common Beer or Present Use Ale.
In the U.K., the term "Cream Ale" is sometimes used to describe nitrogen-dispensed beers, now more commonly called Smooth Ale.
History of Cream Ale
Once common in the United States, especially in the upper Midwest, Cream Ale was one of the few indigenous American beer styles to have survived Prohibition in the United States, due in part to its popularity in Canada, where Prohibition was less widespread and shorter.
Types of Cream Ale
In addition to standard cream ales, in the area around Louisville a distinct style of dark, sometimes slightly sour beer arose which was sometimes called Common Beer or Dark Cream Common; this style is now most frequently called Kentucky Common.
Brewing Cream Ale
The keys to cream ale brewing are yeast strain and temperature control. Historically, lager yeast was generally used, but because refrigeration was not generally available, fermentation temperatures were high, as was the case with Steam Beer. Some modern brewers use both ale and lager strains, usually pitched together at the beginning of the fermentation. However, there is no evidence that this was a method known before Prohibition.
To avoid excessive ester production from the lager yeast, temperature control is essential. A fermentation temperature of approximately 68 degrees F is often a good balance, especially when both ale and lager yeasts are used, but you will need to experiment based on your individual yeast and wort characteristics.
The grist for a cream ale usually includes a mixture of six-row American pale barley malt and corn adjuncts, which can give a distinctive DMS-like corn flavor and aroma that many consider characteristic of this style.
Competition Styles
Both the GABF and the BJCP recognize this style.
BJCP Style Guidelines
Cream Ale
GABF Style Listings
American-Style Cream Ale or Lager
|A mild, pale, light-bodied ale, made using a warm fermentation (top or bottom) and cold lagering. Hop bitterness and flavor range from very low to low. Hop aroma is often absent. Sometimes referred to as cream ales, these beers are crisp and refreshing. Pale malt character predominates. Caramelized malt character should be absent. A fruity or estery aroma may be perceived. Diacetyl and chill haze should not be perceived. Sulfur character and/or sweet corn-like dimethylsulfide (DMS) should be extremely low or absent from this style of beer.
External Links
- The Girl Next Door: Cream Ales - All About Beer Magazine


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When Glenn Clark handed this list to me it came with a warning: "You're going to upset some people this week" is how he presented the daunting task of naming the Sweet 16 High School Athletes in Baltimore history.
He was right. So many names. So many sports. So many nuances and a complete lack of a "criteria" given the generations and the benefit of a 20-20 hindsight after seeing the further life accomplishments of many local athletes. There were boys and girls, and many athletes who excelled at more than one sport.
A case can be made for hundreds of local jocks over a dozen different sports but this is the best I could do. Feel free to argue amongts yourselves or to give me a hard time in social media. This was a tough, tough list:
Now…onto No. 16…