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Marvel vs. Capcom 2 – Jill
PlayStation 3
Jill by Artemis
Version: 1.0 | Updated: 11/05/00
Marvel Vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes
Jill Valentine
Version 1.0
By: Steven, Alias, Artemis (please call me Artemis)
Legal Stuff
All right I made this so don't go saying that you made it mmmkay!?
All characters belong to their respected games and therefore the
companies that make those games.
No part of this document may be posted ANYWHERE! Without my permission
( I will most likely give it to ya just ask for cryin out loud!!! )
=-----Table Of contents-----------------------------------------------=
I. Character Information
II. Legends
III. Universal Moves
IV. Character Specifics.
A.Rating's on Punches and Kicks
B.Her Throws (Throw actually she only has one!)
C.Silly Stuff
V. Special moves
VI. Jill's Hyper combo's
VII. Combo's
VIII. General Strategy for Jill
IX. Partners for Jill
X. History and credits
I. Character Information
(I'm not really a Resident Evil fan so I may get some of this
information wrong don't flame me ok!?)
Jill is a member of S.T.A.R.S Which is a special tactical team that
does "dirty work" for the people who can't do it themselves. Jill is a
woman who's gone through a lot of stuff, Having zombies try to kill
her, having fellow team mates eaten before her own eyes, and even
manages to escape death a number of times.
As you can imagine she's no softie and in Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 and will
wipe you out in 13 seconds flat. ( My personal record with Jill. Only
hit me once, and killed a very good person in 13 seconds. As you can
imagine he was PISSED! ) Ok so maybe not 13 seconds but she's the type
of person where everyone groans when someone picks her. I personally
don't find her cheap ( I guess some people can be with her helper
moves, but I don't use her that way. ) but a lot of people do. I'm
gonna tell you how I play with her which I think is rather effective.
II. Legend
I use my buttons differently than everybody else so I'll explain them
Jp - Jab punch
Mp - Strong Punch
Hp - Fierce Punch
Lk - Short Kick
Mk – Forward Kick
Hk – Roundhouse Kick
A1 – Assist 1
A2 – Assist 2
T – Toward the opponent
B – Away from the opponent
D – Down/Crouching
U – Up/ Jump
Dt – Down Forward
Db - Down Back
Ut – Up forward
Ub – Up back
Sj- Super Jump
XX- Cancel into a move. Example; While Jill is doing her Standing
Strong attack before she is done you can do a special or super move
I'll use it the following way. Example; S. Lp, S. Mp, Elbow dash, XX
Hyper Elbow dash
+ - Pressing that button in conjunction with another button or
direction. Example; Storm's Lighting Attack is Hp + Lk
, - Going from one direction to another in one fluid motion. Example;
a Fireball is D, Dt, T,
III. Universal moves
I'm not going to go over Minor thing's such as jumping and super
jumping but I think I'll go ahead and do a few of them.
Dash- Press Toward twice in quick succession, This is very important to
anyone's game, unfortunately Tron's dash is not very good....
Roll- Do a Clockwise rotation of the joystick and press any button.
Rolling is EXTREMLY important to anyone's game. Unless you're playing a
complete idiot they will always try to do something to you while you're
lying on the ground. Learn how to do it.. It's important..
Assist- Press the Button To the right of the Hp and Hk.. Pressing the
bottom one will call out the person on the bottom of your fighting
list. Pressing the top one will call the person right under your
active fighter.
Push Block- Press both punch button's while you are blocking attacks.
I don't use this to much unless I'm being bombarded by someone in the
Snapback- D, Dt, T, and the assist button of choice. This is a very
under rated move.. If connected it will switch out the active person
with the inactive person you chose with the assist button.. I only use
this when I know that it is definitely going to hit or when they
stupidly change out right in front of you. Just pop that person right
back out to get rid of all that red they had without any healing!!
Don't use it to often otherwise the person will probably kick you
arse,( Literally cause it can get frustrating ).
Hyper Counter- D, Dt, T and the assist button of choice. This is a
great move ( although I never use it ) When you are blocking input the
command and then the person you chose with the assist button will
switch out with your active person. Doing there assist attack in the
Delayed Hyper Combos ( DHC )- This is probably the coolest of the new
features. When you are doing a Hyper combo during that hyper combo you
then input the next person's hyper and watch the pretty colors Fly!
Example; Have Ryu Do his Shinku Hadoken Then (have Akuma the next
person to come out) input Akumas Shinku Gou Hado.
Team Hyper Combo's
By pressing both assist buttons you can do a super involving everyone
in your team. The super they do is dependent on the assist you chose
when you start the battle.
XI. Character Specifics
Power – Jill Is very powerful, you'll find her aerial raves doing jaw
dropping amounts of damage.
Rating- 8.0
Vitality- When you think of someone fast and powerful like Jill you
think that she's gonna take damage as bad as Strider and Akuma, right?
WRONG! Let me tell you she's not by any margin a War machine ( In case
you didn't know he's near the top of the Vitality scale ) but she is
definitely not a Strider!
Rating- 6.5
Speed- Probably Jill best category, All of her moves come out lightning
fast ( except her jumping Hk and Grenade launcher ) and her dash is
fairly effective, definitely no Cammy, though.
Offense- The way I play hey I think she should always be offensive, but
some people like to play keep-away with her. This rating is pending on
how you play her
Rating- 8.5 ( way I use her. )
Rating- 4.0 ( way I've seen people use her. )
Defense- The way I use her is kinda bad cause when she's up close she
can take a beating because of her lack of anti-air move, and reliable
Rating- 5.0 ( way I use her. )
Rating- 9.0 ( way I've seen people use her. )
Standing Lp
A quick jab with her hand. A good poke and has fairly good range and
little lag, but in my opinion Lk is better.
Jumping Lp
A jab aimed downward at an 45' angle. This move is my jump in of choice
and has a lot of range for a jab. Use often and to start her
devastating combo's
Ducking Lp
The same as her standing but downward a little bit ( the person doesn't
have to block low, go figure >_<) use her Crouching Lk so you can
punish a person who's not blocking low.
Rating- 6.5
Just to let you know in order to get a medium attack you have to press
the jab button twice ( the first one has to connect with the person or
they have to at least block it ) to get it to come out
Standing Mp
A punch with her other arm, use in conjunction with Lp to start combo's
and such.
Jumping Mp
A more straight version of her jumping Lp but with more power. Use in
Aerial Raves and jump ins.
Rating- 7.5
Crouching Mp
A Little uppercut to the person's mid-section. Has almost the same
range as her Lp and they don't have to block low! So why don't you just
do Mk?
Standing Hp
For it's looks it doesn't seem to go that far, but actually it goes
farther than you think. Use for poking to wake up the person you're
playing. That's about it your average Hp plus that little extra! ^.~
Jumping Hp
Hmmm this is hard to explain, but I'll try! She gets parallel with the
floor and then swings her whole hand down to clunk them in the head.
Used to start combo's and such.
Crouching Hp
This is an important move! It's her launcher, and any good person in
Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 knows how to do air Combo's! she crouches down and
swings her hand high up in the air (upper cut fashion). She kinda
inches forward when she does this so if they woulda been slightly out
of reach with your 2 hit chain combo into her launcher. She'll still
hit because she moves forward slightly! This is her only anti-air and
it's not a very good one! But you work with what you have!
Standing Lk
She swings her leg around her body really fast smacking the person.
Has same start-up as her Jp but has more range. So why not just use
Jumping Lk
She extends her leg forward popping the person in the head. Great range
and is good for air-to-air confrontations.
Crouching Lk
She kicks with her leg down on the floor. Can be used to OTG as well.
Equal range as her Lp but they have to block low for this one. Use this
instead of Lp
Standing Mk
The same as her Lk except with the other leg, and has more range even
though it's the same kick. If you are close enough you can Cancel her
kick out into her Rocket Launcher super.
Jumping Mk
The same as her Lk but is with the other leg and has more reach. Used
to fill in air combo's and such
Crouching Mk
The usual, The same kick with more reach and lag. Use to start air
combo's, and to combo into her sweep. Blah Blah Blah Blah.
Standing Hk
Jill swings around and kicks the opponent square in the chest. Has
really good range, has lag, if they jump over it your as good as
Jumping Hk
Jill rears back then kicks her leg straight to whack the person. I
noticed that this attack is almost the same as Cammy's Jumping Hk ( I
love Cammy! I use her a lot! ) except it comes out A LOT slower!
Crouching- Hk
Jill's sweep. Jill slides about ¼ the way across the screen tripping
the person. This sweep makes it really easy to OTG after they are hit.
You have many possibilities, I'll explain them in the combo's section.
One of the best sweeps in the game.
=---Throws/command moves----------------------------------------------=
Combat Knife Slash- Close to the person F + Hp
Jill pulls out her combat knife and slashes them right across the chest
area. Does really good damage and is just plain fun to watch! Actually
has good priority on the ground and WONDERFUL priority in the air, but
you can't OTG after this throw which you can, on a lot of other
people's throws!
=-------Silly Stuff---------------------------------------------------=
I don't own the game so I can't tell you the colors right off the top
of my head! I'll do that on a later update!
Opening animation1- She's standing there throwing a key up in the air.
After she does this a few times she throws it behind her and says
Opening animation2- Same as number1 but with a Ink ribbon ( I think )
Winning animation1- She takes off her hat, Revealing her golden brown
hair, and says "I'm a member of S.T.A.R.S.!"
Winning animation2- She buts something on the ground, and it fires a
rocket. ( or something like that ) then she jumps up and down saying
"C,MON C,MON C,MON" over & over & over!
Time over animation loss- she puts her hand on her head in the, I'm so
stupid! Type of way.
Time over animation win- she does her winning animation2 or 1
V. Special moves
Elbow Dash- D, Dt, T + any punch
Jill rears back for a little bit then charges forward, while super
heated air surrounds her shoulder.
This move is by far Jill's greatest special move ( In my opinion. Some
people Love her helpers, I don't ) the punch button determines the
start-up. Jp comes out fast and has almost no lag, While Hp comes out
slower and has no lag as well, stick to the Lp unless you're charging
it up.
Speaking of charging it up. If you do her Hp dash, you might notice a
little crosshair in front of Jill before she dashes. If you hold Hp,
you can charge up her dash for more hits. I think one game second tacks
on 1 hit when you let go of it. I don't use this move unless I know for
sure that I am gonna win, because when she is like this she can't
initiate her launcher, or any hyper move without losing your charge
time first. Also if you do her regular Lp dash while she's charging
she'll do it but you lose all your charge time just for your normal
dash! It has decent OTG properties and you can cancel it into her
rocket launcher if you have at least 8+ hits on it.
Lp Rating-8.5
Hp Rating (without charging) –5.5
Hp rating (with charging- 8.0
Grenade Launcher- T, D, Dt, + any punch
Jill pulls out her trusty Grenade launcher and fires it at the person.
The punch button determines at which angle she fires it. The Lp version
makes it arc towards the person fairly low to the ground, while the Hp
version it shot upward at a sharp angle. You can hold the button to
make the grenade go farther.
I have absolutely no use for this in my games, It comes out incredibly
slow and they can see it a mile away. I strongly suggest that you don't
use this move unless for flashiness and you know that you will be safe
Lp rating-4.0
Hp rating-2.5
Gun Counter T, Dt, D, Db, B + Any punch
Jill puts her hand behind her--as if she were getting ready to backslap
someone—and begins to glow. If a person hits them with a normal move
while she is like this Jill will attempt to push them away from her. If
that connects you have a chance to shoot the person for up to 10 times!
Sounds cool right!? Well it certainly looks cool but the damage this
thing does is horrible! And the thing is, is that it is so friction
hard to get to connect with! The only reason I use this move is to
prompt a person to hit me. Then I do her rocket launcher super, most
people don't know that she can cancel that and will eat it!
Zombie call- D, Db, B, + any kick
Jill looks behind her and she gasps in horror, then a zombie appears on
the screen and heads toward the opponent. The kick button determines
the type of zombie she calls! Lp summons a normal zombie that travels
across the screen very slowly, But if it hits ( it's unblockable ) the
monster begins to munch on the person. Holding them still for a free
combo. Hk summons a Flamming zombie that is harder to get rid of and if
it hits them ( Unblockable as well ) it knocks them away and does a
decent chunk of damage.
This is a turtler's dream! Wow the way I've seen people use these
helpers ( not just the zombie's but her dog and crow as well ). You
can't do anything about it! I don't like playing like that and I'm pure
offense. The only time I use it is when the always roll away from my
sweep, then I give them a piece of their own medicine! They roll right
into the zombie letting me get a free combo! YAHOO!
Lp rating- 7.5
Hp rating- 7.0
Dog(gie)- D, Dt, T, + Lk
Jill looks behind her and gasps in utter terror, and one of those
Zombie Doberman dog's lunges at Jill ( she jumps over it ) and it then
see's the other person and dives at them tackling the person.
This move is kinda worthless in my P.O.V, But it is after all her only
projectile. The only time I use it is when I know someone is sweep
happy ( Jin or perhaps another Jill ), if you time it right she jumps
over the sweep and the dog gets the person!
Crow- D, Dt, T, + Hk
Jill again looks behind her in pure fright, ( poor girl she goes
through so much ) while a evil crow swoops to attack Jill ( she ducks
under it ) then fly's away at a upward angle.
This is much worse than her dog special because they have to be blind
to not see that! Ok let me cut it some slack, It's actually pretty
good, because the person will dash in to punish you for calling a
helper only to realize the stupidly dashed into a crow!
VI. Jill's hyper combos
Hyper Elbow dash- D, Dt, T, + Lp & Hp
Jill rears back for a second While shouting out "YOU'RE FINISHED!" and
then a huge field of superheated air surrounds her shoulder ( whole
body actually ) as she makes a wild dash towards her Enemy, If it
connects they are hit by this overwhelming heat and knocked down hard!
This is Jill's most reliable hyper and can be tacked onto almost
anything, Use it often as you will be using it a lot!
Rating- 9.0
Rocket launcher- D, Dt, T, + Lk & Hp
Jill Shout's "YOU'RE FINISHED!" and then whips out her Rocket Launcher
and comfortably holds it on her shoulder. Blasting a whole bunch of
rockets at the poor helpless person. After Blasting the person with a
bunch of rockets The Recoil Overwhelms Jill as she falls back tired.
The first hit acts like Hyper Megaman, If you hit them you ensure the
next hits. It can be comboed into a couple of things, don't throw this
out at random because any Good player will super jump over it and give
you a nice big Super!
Tyrant- D, Db, B, + Lk & Hk
Jill crouches down towards the ground and says "WHAT'S THAT!?" as a big
column of light erupts from the ground. If it connects ( most of the
time it won't ) Her arch nemesis, Nemesis ( Sorry couldn't resist! )
pops out of the hole the light makes and Repeatedly slashes the
helpless victim to death.
This does massive damage and is cool looking too! Only problem is that
it's VERY hard to get it to actually hit someone. Jill can't so it by
herself ( to get it to combo that is ) by herself, the only way I know
how to do it is to cancel it from Chun-Li's Shinretsu Kyako. ( I think
that's what it is called )Into this super. after this you can set up
some nasty OTG combo's if you have the cat-like reflexes.
VII. Combo's
All right I'm only listing the combo's that I use, They are effective
and reliable. I'm not listing the basic jump-in's and stuff you can add
those at your leisure. If you think that one of you're combo's are
really good feel free to e-mail me at artemis25 @excite.com, but only
if it is truly good. Ok?
Basic Ground combo's ( No super's )
S.Lp, S.Mp, Lp Elbow dash
- Your basic ground combo fairly effective
C.Lk, C.Mk, C.Hk, Lp Elbow dash.
- I use this one a lot. It's very easy and it keeps you relatively
safe from attacks.
C.Lk, C.Mk, C.Hk, C.Lk (OTG) Lp Elbow dash
- I use this one more than the first one if they roll you don't dash
if you don't hit the person with the OTG.
Really good Ground Combo's ( With Supers )
S.Lp, S.Mp, Hyper Elbow Dash
- Easy and damaging but I suggest you do the other ones involving the
Hyper Elbow Dash Super
S.Lk, S.Mk, Rocket Launcher
- Just to let you know you have to be REALLY close to the person in
order to get the Rocket launcher to hit!
C.Lk, C.Mk, C.Hk, C.Lk (OTG) XX into Hyper Elbow dash
- the last few hits of the Hyper Elbow dash kinda miss but it still
does very nice damage!
C.Lk, C.Mk, C.Hk, C.Lk (OTG) Lp Elbow dash XX Into Hyper Elbow Dash
- This will get people going! It look rather impressive! Use it a lot!
C.Lk, C.Mk, C.Hk, C.Lk (OTG), Rocket Launcher
- The timing is kinda iffy on the Rocket launcher but if you do it a
lot (like me) You get used to it!
Aerial Raves ( With & without supers )
( I'm just doing what you do in the air, I'm assuming that you did a
Jump in and a few hit's on the ground first )
Lp, Lk, Mp, Mk, Hp/Hk
- Your basic air combo and is kinda useless it Jill case you should at
least end it with a Elbow dash in my opinion.
Lp, Lk, Mp, Mk,(pause) Throw
- This is really stylish, It can be hard to connect but it's fun and
damaging to
Lp, Lk, Mp, Mk, Lp Elbow dash
- Get used to this air combo cause it will be your friend when you are
out of levels or you want a break from the following combo
Lp, Lk, Mp, Mk, Hyper Elbow Dash
- Ha Ha Ha. The person you're playing will really get used to this!
Make sure you get a break from this combo every once in a while
other wise you'll end up looking like a one trick pony!
Lp, Lk, Mp, Mk, Lp Elbow dash ( After first hit ) XX Hyper Elbow dash
- The timing after the Lp Elbow dash can be tricky but it is doable!
After you master the combo without the Lp Elbow dash, start working
on this one. In no time this combo will become a cinch!
(In Corner)
Lp, Lk, Mp, Mk, Lp Elbow dash, XX Hyper Elbow dash
- When you're in the corner you can wait until both of the hit's off
of the Lp Elbow dash are done hitting before you cancel it into the
Hyper Elbow dash. It does wonderful damage and use it whenever the
opportunity arrives!
OTG combos
C.Lk, C.Mk, C.Hk, C.Lk (OTG), C.Hp, sj, J.Lp, J.Lk, J.Mp, J.Mk. Ac
Finisher ( Hp/Hk, Lp Elbow dash/Hyper Elbow dash, or the Lp Elbow dash
( After first hit ) XX Hyper Elbow dash combo. )
- This is her nicest OTG combo that can be done regularly. If you
really wanna look professional try the next combo
Tyrant Hyper, Dash-In, C.Lk (OTG) C.Hp, sj, J.Lp, J.Lk, J.Mp, J.Mk. Ac
Finisher ( Hp/Hk, Lp Elbow dash/Hyper Elbow dash, or the Lp Elbow dash
( After first hit ) XX Hyper Elbow dash combo. )
- One word describes this combo, Wow! The dash-in C.Lk can be tricky
but if you dash as soon as Jill regains her ability to move it can
be done. I've only done this twice, and might I add it's a nice
crowd pleaser.
VIII. Strategy for Jill
-Jill Is one of the biggest OTG'ers in the game( Cammy being on Top! )!
Take advantage of that, a lot of the damage you deal will be done on
from OTG combo's!
-Don't abuse you're helper specials ( Unless of course they roll after
your sweep them......He He He. They're screwed! ) because they will
learn to get around them ( Not in the above case though..... HEH )
-Be careful Jill doesn't have any reliable anti-air or projectile. This
is a really bad thing, but Jill somehow doesn't really need one, At
-Learn to like her Air combo's, but don't depend on them. You'll get
predictable that way, She plays just as well on the ground! That's why
she is one of the better characters in the game!
IX. Good partners for Jill.
Iron Man- His Uni.-beam will make up for Jill's lack of Projectile. I
particularity hate Iron Man and don't use him, but he's good for people
who enjoy massive ship damage through Beams.
Psylocke- With these two babes together no one can stop them! Her Anti-
Air assist is one of the best assist In the game, mainly cause it adds
to Jill's nasty OTG game! Not to mention her big nasty triple-jump air
Cammy- Speed queen all the way! She is by far the fastest person in the
game, and will compliment Jill quite well due to the fact they are both
fast! Just beware that she has crappy assists and bad lag on her
Tron Bonne- This is my Woman! I love Tron, I don't know about you but I
think she is one of the best characters in the game! Her Alpha and
Gamma assists are nasty, and hers supers can combo easy into Jill's.
Not to mention her Lunch Rush super is one of the funniest things in
the game!
Jin- He's pretty good actually with his Ant-air assist, It covers both
aspects of a anti-air and a projectile! He's powerful too!
X. History and Credits
V1.0 Everything is new.
Copyright Artemis2000
Thanks to Capcom for making them game, and adding Jill to it!
View in:


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John Puopolo is, with Sandy Squires, the author of the F# Survivial Guide, on which this article is based. The F# Survivial Guide covers all of the essential elements of functional programming and the F# language.
There are many ways to examine problems and model their solutions. In software, we tend to look at problems through the lens of our experiences and the tools that we have at our disposal. In other words, our experiences and the tools we know influence how we approach solving problems. For example, in the days of structured programming, we solved many problems using procedural decomposition and subroutines, focusing on internal cohesion and loose coupling. Building on these successful techniques, we transitioned to modeling solutions using objects and object-oriented techniques, further encapsulating imperative code and its data.
While object-oriented design and object-oriented programming will continue to play a significant role in years to come, I believe we are facing challenges that require new ways of thinking and new ways of implementing solutions. For example, massive computing power via multicore architectures and cloud computing will make developing concurrent systems and parallel algorithms a virtual necessity. Functional programming provides us with many of the tools and technique we need to make this a reality. Additionally, functional programming gives us new ways of developing scalable systems that are easy to debug and test.
What is Functional Programming?
Functional programming is a specific way to look at problems and model their solutions. Pragmatically, functional programming is a coding style that exhibits the following characteristics:
- Power and flexibility. We can solve many general real-world problems using functional constructs
- Simplicity. Most functional programs exhibit a small set of keywords and concise syntax for expressing concepts
- Suitable for parallel processing. Via immutable values and operators, functional programs lend themselves to asynchronous and parallel processing
Functional programming treats computation, e.g., running a program or solving a numeric calculation, as the evaluation of functions. Not surprisingly, in dealing with functional programming, we will use the term function quite often and in many contexts. So, before we continue, let's make sure we understand what a function is:
A function is fundamentally a transformation. It transforms one or more inputs into exactly one output.
An important property of pure functions is that they yield no side effects. This means that the same inputs will always yield the same outputs, and that the inputs are not changed as a result of the function. This idea of "no side effects" is one (of several) that makes functional programming particularly attractive when writing multi-process and multithreaded systems. The key concepts that make functional programming attractive for solving certain types of problems are described in F# Survivial Guide.
Purely Functional?
Some programming languages are "purely functional languages." This means that they follow strict functional rules, e.g., no imperative looping constructs and no implicit way to introduce state changes. For example, Haskell, a pure functional language, disallows state changes and side effects altogether. Programs written in pure functional languages are almost solely made up of functions that accept arguments and return values. Unlike imperative and object-oriented languages, they allow no side effects and use recursion instead of loops for iteration. Languages like Haskell are often criticized as being too extreme in not allowing side effects, giving them limited penetration in mainstream development environments. Operations such as reading a file become awkward to code in a language where no side effects are allowed. In contrast, impure, multi-paradigm languages such as F#, a strongly typed, first-class .NET programming language designed by Don Syme and others at Microsoft Research, discourage side effects and imperative constructs, but make them available alongside their functional brethren.
From the abstract mathematical theory of functions comes a variety of interesting concepts that have broad application and use in functional computing. For example, functions can take other functions as arguments, and functions can return other functions as results. This ability results in flexible and powerful mechanisms that enable us to implement ideas simply and elegantly -- ideas that are difficult to express in non-functional languages.

subset: commoncrawl


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Hugh Hewitt was on PBS today discussing the media's Hurricane Katrina coverage; the transcript is here. Reader Greg Miller writes:
In a boxing match, the referee would have called the fight about the
half way through the segment.
He's right. An excerpt:
JEFFREY BROWN: And, Mr. Hewitt, same question, what did you like and what did you dislike?
HUGH HEWITT: Well, Keith just said they did not report an ordinary story; in fact they were reporting lies. The central part of this story, what went on at the convention center and the Superdome was wrong. American media threw everything they had at this story, all the bureaus, all the networks, all the newspapers, everything went to New Orleans, and yet they could not get inside the convention center, they could not get inside the Superdome to dispel the lurid, the hysterical, the salaciousness of the reporting.
I have in mind especially the throat-slashed seven-year-old girl who had been gang-raped at the convention center — didn't happen. In fact, there were no rapes at the convention center or the Superdome that have yet been corroborated in any way.
There weren't stacks of bodies in the freezer. But America was riveted by this reporting, wholesale collapse of the media's own levees they let in all the rumors, and all the innuendo, all the first-person story because they were caught up in their own emotionalism. Exactly what Keith was praising I think led to one of the worst weeks of reporting in the history of American media, and it raises this question: If all of that amount of resources was given over to this story and they got it wrong, how can we trust American media in a place far away like Iraq where they don't speak the language, where there is an insurgency, and I think the question comes back we really can't.
PAUL adds: Remember how Michael Brown was ridiculed for saying he didn't know that people were in the Convention Center, given that this had been reported on television? Critics asked why FEMA didn't have someone watching television. It turns that, on balance, FEMA may have been better informed by virtue of eschewing tv. Perhaps Brown should have responded that he didn't think anyone was at the Convention Center because the networks had reported that folks were there.


text:
The drummer wed Emily Ward in a Nashville ceremony officiated by Will Forte
He's no longer a lonely boy – Patrick Carney has tied the knot.
The Black Keys drummer, 32, married Emily Ward in the backyard of their Nashville home on Saturday, a rep for the band confirms to PEOPLE.
Officiated by comedian and Saturday Night Live alum Will Forte, the ceremony took place in front of 350 guests, including bandmate Dan Auerbach and pro snowboarder Shaun White, who was arrested the following day.
Accompanying Carney was the couple's Irish wolfhound, Charlotte, while Ward – clad in Carolina Herrera – walked down the aisle to "Crimson and Clover" by Tommy James and the Shondells.
The wedding party included Ward's siblings Danielle Shuster and Henry Ward, as well as Carney's brothers Will Carney, Michael Carney and Barry Stormer.
The couple were engaged over Grammy weekend in February 2011. This is the first marriage for Ward and the second for Carney.


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All the important mechanics were fine (you know, like the wheels, the engine, the other...drive...pistons), but there was something wrong with my trunk. To be clear, the trunk was working JUST FINE up until we went camping last weekend, when:
The trunk could no longer be opened by the car key itself, nor by pulling the lever in the driver footwell, though oddly, the remote control keychain button still worked. I didn't think this was a big deal at all--usually I open it with the remote anyway--but Joe pointed out that if we ever lost the keychain or it malfunctioned, we would be toast.
"OK, so I'll stop locking the kids in the trunk then," I responded (I thought) quite reasonably.
Joe made me take the car in anyway.
The car fixit place (I just took this one picture there of the pretty rust pattern, though I realize this photo makes it look like a vehicular internment camp--not that far off, I guess) told me that I should expect to leave my car there for at least the rest of the day. They would most likely have to dismantle the whole trunk, replace the lock apparatus en bloc if (IF, they emphasized portentously) they could locate the correct parts, a process that might take a day or two. When I balked at the day or two (or two? Two days? TWO EARTH DAYS?) they replied that they would make their best effort to at least have the car in drivable condition by nightfall, though under no circumstances (they underlined this with an eye-roll, to illustrate how crazy this would be) should I expect the trunk situation to be anywhere near fully resolved without another one or two visits for full repairs down the road.
Anyway, I thanked them for their opinion and diagnostic time, and proceeded to take my car to a Toyota dealership across town. (Not to ruin your fancy doctor car dreams, but I drive a used Toyota Camary with a sizeable dent on the rear drivers side. If you see me on the road, say hi, I'll be the one gripping the steering wheel in panic.) At the dealership, the guy looked at my trunk for two seconds, clicked something over in the lock mechanism, and said, "There. You're good to go."
Apparently we (Joe) had automatically engaged the trunk into "valet mode," which I wasn't aware existed but I guess is what you do if you are getting your car valet parked but don't want the parking people to look into your trunk and see you stash of dead bodies or whatnot in there. The trunk wasn't broken at all. It was such a no-brainer the people at the Toyota place didn't even charge me.
So from a multi-day, labor-intensive, thousand-dollar estimate to a problem that was fixed with a seasoned eye, some common sense, and a flick of a switch. I guess this would be a good time to draw an analogy back to patient care, but I think you can probably take those last few steps on your own.


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Pershing Square Capital's Bill Ackman is gave a devastating 342-slide presentation on why he's shorting Herbalife.
"This a pyramid scheme," said Ackman repeatedly to Andrew Ross Sorkin on CNBC.
Meanwhile, the stock is getting slammed, down 5 percent today. This follows yesterday's massive sell-off.
Check out the intraday chart from Bloomberg.


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21 April 2013 at 2.47pm | 3 Comments
Rossini's La donna del lago is something of an underperformed gem: John Fulljames's new production, which opens on 17 May, is the first time the opera has been performed by The Royal Opera since 1985.
The opera is based on The Lady of the Lake, a poem by Sir Walter Scott, whose work has inspired more than eighty operas.
'I've become fascinated by the world in which Walter Scott was writing,' explains John. 'I hope that, when the curtain rises on La donna del lago, you will enjoy seeing how this giant of Scottish literature has inspired The Royal Opera.'
Set in the atmospheric surroundings of the Scottish highlands, the opera explores themes of landscape, kingship and nationhood.
'Landscape is essential for understanding this piece,' says John. 'The emotional impact of the highlands is central to the story. In the opera, landscape is personified in the character of Elena. She is the landscape, she is Scotland.'
To find out more about La donna del lago, watch the model showing, in which John discusses some of his ideas behind the design of the production. John also recently wrote an article about the appeal of Sir Walter Scott. Read the full article here.
Let us know what you think of the trailer, and if you'll be seeing the production on stage or in cinemas.
La donna del lago opens on 17 May 2013 and runs until 11 June. Tickets are available here. La donna del lago will be relayed live to cinemas around the world on Monday 27 May.
The production is sponsored by the Peter Moores Foundation and the Friends of Covent Garden with generous philanthropic support from Celia Blakey, Hélène and Jean Peters, Judith Portrait and Susan and John Singer. The Production Director generously supported by Hamish and Sophie Forsyth.


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Classic, lightweight open cardigan that's perfect for layering. Soft rayon blend knit fabric in chic black: pair this with a fitted top, skinnies, and booties for an easy layered look. Also pair it with a dress for great, easy office attire.
- Open cardigan style
- Draped neckline
- Long sleeves
- Rayon blend knit
- Made in the USA
Fit Notes
This style runs true to size with loose, open cut.
For sizing or fit advice, please check out our size guide or contact us either by phone (610-543-0283) or email (email@example.com); we're more than happy to help you!
Model Notes
- Model is 5'10" and a size 2
- Wearing a small
The sizing of our clothes can vary depending on the designer/brand, the cut/design of the garment, and the fabric. However, a good general guide for the way our clothing fits is as follows:
- X-Small fits a size 0
- Small fits sizes 2 and 4
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For more information about the way certain garment styles or fabrics fit in general, please visit our size guide page.
Orders ship out via USPS within 1-3 business days from date of purchase.
Orders purchased online for in-store pick-up before 3 pm will be ready for pick-up by the end of the same business day. Orders purchased after 3 pm will be ready for pick-up the following business day. You will receive an email notifying you when you your order is ready to be picked up.
Returns are valid within 14 days of the order being delivered to the shipping address for either a refund or store credit. Final sale items and all jewelry items are non-returnable. For our full return policy, please visit our boutique policies page.


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Penguins Report: Game Day vs. NY Islandersby Staff Writer / Pittsburgh Penguins
--Sam Kasan
Capuano: Poulin in goal. Vanek & Grabner go into the lineup at forward with Boulton & Nelson out. Martinek in on defense for Ness.— NYIslanders (@NYIslanders) November 22, 2013
Capuano emphasizes a veteran lineup tonight in the decisions to sit Nelson and Ness. #Isles— NYIslanders (@NYIslanders) November 22, 2013
The Isles may be in last place in the Metropolitan Division, but the Pens know perhaps better than any team, especially after their first-round playoff series with New York in the spring, that their record doesn't take from their speed, skill and scoring ability.
The Isles' strength is their offense, and it will be bulked up with the return of left wing Thomas Vanek, who will play tonight after missing the last five with an upper-body injury. He is expected to play on the top line with John Tavares, who enters tonight tied for third in league scoring with 28 points (three behind leader Sidney Crosby), and Kyle Okposo, who has 22 points (6G-14A) in 20 games.
"It's exciting to be back," said Vanek, who was acquired from Buffalo for longtime Tavares linemate Matt Moulson on Oct. 27. "(I'm) really anxious. I didn't get to play many games with my new team here, so it's always tough to watch. But at the same time, it's a long season and it's important to be healthy and be 100 percent out there."
Vanek is an elite offensive talent, a gifted goal scorer with the hands of a sniper who uses his big body to win battles around the net. He came to Long Island with eight straight 20-goal seasons and two with more than 40 and had a goal and two assists in six games with his new team before going down. He's hoping he and his linemates can rekindle the chemistry they'd been building.
"(The injury) was unfortunate because I think each game we got better," Vanek said. "Even the last two games I played, we didn't show up on the scoresheet but I thought we generated a lot in Wash and Carolina. Hopefully, we can pick right up."
That's certainly something the Pens don't want to happen. One player who will likely be tasked with that assignment is defenseman Paul Martin, who played college hockey at Minnesota with Vanek and won a national championship with him back in 2003.
"Paul is, in my eyes – maybe I'm a little biased because he'sa good friend of mine – he's one of the best," Vanek said. "He's really patient back there. We had success together. He's having success here. But at the same time, once the puck drops hopefully we can get the best of him."
--Michelle Crechiolo
Goalie Jeff Zatkoff's last start came on Nov. 2 in Columbus, where he made 19 saves to record his first NHL win and shutout in a 3-0 against the Blue Jackets.
"It's always nice when your last game was a win, especially when you don't play that often," he smiled.
He had a long wait – nearly three weeks (20 days, to be exact) – for his next opportunity. But he knew it would come eventually, and he is ready for it.
"I've just been working hard in practice and taking care of my game, worrying about my game and good habits, and when coach tells me it's my time to go, making sure I'm ready," he said.
It's been a process for Zatkoff, who's played just three of the Penguins' first 22 games, to figure out how to stay sharp during these long stretches between starts as he had been THE guy his entire career up to this point – in both the NCAA and AHL – before receiving the opportunity to back up Marc-Andre Fleury in the NHL.
But he's done it by being the first one on the ice for every skate – usually at least 15 minutes before any of his teammates join him – to work diligently with goalie coach Mike Bales before the session begins. And when it does, he doesn't treat it like a practice – he approaches it like a game.
"I think it's just to stay sharp, making sure you focus on good habits," Zatkoff said. "I think sometimes in practice, it may become repetitive and you may not have that attention to detail as much. So that's something important for me especially, not seeing a ton of game action, making sure I treat every practice like a game."
Zatkoff was in net for the first meeting of the season between the Penguins and the Islanders back on Oct. 25. In that game, the Pens faltered in the last half of the third period and had a number of defensive zone breakdowns the Islanders capitalized on. New York tied the game with just under six minutes left and scored the game-winner with just under two remaining to defeat Pittsburgh 4-3.
Needless to say, his teammates want to make sure they don't have a repeat performance of that tonight.
"It wasn't a good feeling letting him down like that, especially at home," defenseman Brooks Orpik said.
They felt like they let him down in the game he played before that, too – a 6-3 loss to the Florida Panthers on Oct. 11, his first NHL start. But they are impressed with the way he has worked to rebound from a couple of tough outings to get a shutout in his third, and know they'll be able to count on him tonight.
"For a young guy coming in and having a rough first one where we didn't really play that well, he's really rebounded and he's been a great teammate even when he's been on the bench," forward Chris Kunitz said. "He's been working hard out there trying to adapt to the NHL game, and we have a lot of confidence in Zatkoff tonight."
--Michelle Crechiolo
Paul Martin
Chris Kunitz
--Sam Kasan
--Dave Uhrmacher
--Drew Hancherick & Sam Kasan
Head coach Dan Bylsma shifted Paul Martin to the top power-play unit during Friday's morning skate. Martin skated as the only defenseman on the top unit along with forwards Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Chris Kunitz and James Neal.
"I think with the five guys we have out there, especially with four forwards, you realize you have to be back in most situations," Martin said. "You just try to distribute the puck and if something happens, you are ready to get back. Whoever is in, whether it is me or (Letang) or the both of us, we have all worked on the power play enough to realize where we should be and what we should do."
The Penguins power-play opportunities Friday night will come against the league's worst penalty-killing unit this season, with the Isles allowing 19 goals in 76 penalty-killing (71.6%) opportunities.
Kunitz said the Penguins do look at what other teams have done to exploit the Isles weaknesses in man-advantage situations, but first and foremost the focus is on putting themselves in good positions to score.
"We focus on areas we want to be on the ice and at the net, shooting pucks but also carrying pucks through the neutral zone and entries and things like that," Kunitz said. "We have to worry about what we are doing. We do scout them and see what we can exploit and change. But, first off we have to put pucks there, put bodies there and try to capitalize on those two-on-one advantages."
The Pittsburgh power play, currently scoring in about one out every five opportunities (20.5%, 12th overall) converted on one of three opportunities Wednesday night in Washington after failing to score in the previous two games on seven chances.
Martin said as long as the Penguins can get continue getting pucks to their playmakers, the power play will continue to thrive.
"I think it comes down to where (Crosby) and (Malkin) feel comfortable and where they get in the right spots and then we fill in. What works for us is when we get to a spot and we get shots to the net. Get some shots to the net and it opens up other lanes and that is when Crosby, Malkin, Neal and Kunitz can make plays and score some goals."
--Dave Uhrmacher
Coach Dan Bylsma said following morning skate that Jeff Zatkoff would make his fourth start of the season in goal.
The rest of the lineup will be a game-time decision.
--Michelle Crechiolo
Look at that smile
Kunitz displaying some puck tricks
Fleury getting loose
The Letang effect
Dupuis with the casual hanging chin strap
Team talk
Zatkoff eyes the puck as it goes into his glove
Bennett talks with coach Bylsma
Team White
--Dave Uhrmacher & Sam Kasan
All the Pens healthy players are on the ice for the team's morning skate. The team used the following work flow...
1st PP unit: Malkin, Martin up top. Neal, Crosby & Kunitz down low.
2nd PP unit: Niskanen, Letang up top. Jokinen, Sutter & Bennett down low.
--Sam Kasan
Pens fans proved once again why they are the best in the NHL, invading the nation's capital to witness Pittsburgh's 4-0 dominance of the Metro Division rival Capitals.
(Stick tap: @v_verduzco)
--Sam Kasan
Tragedy struck last weekend when 20-year-old hockey player Kevin Kenny of the Three Rivers Vengeance suffered a severe spinal injury. Kenny, captain of the Quaker Valley High School team that won the Penguins Cup and state championship in 2011-12, crashed into the boards and had no feeling from his waist down.
In an effort to assist Kevin and his parents, the money collected from tonight's 50/50 raffle will be used to pay for Kenny's medical expenses, which will be staggering. If you're attending the game, please pick up a 50/50 raffle ticket to help the Kenny family.
If you aren't attending the game and want to help, or if you want to hear more about Kenny's story, click here.
--Sam Kasan
For a preview of tonight's matchup click here. If you're attending the game, click here for the fan guide. If you want an in-depth look at the Isles watch the video below.
--Sam Kasan
Good morning hockey fans! Tonight the Pens host Metro Division rival NY Islanders for the second time this season. Here are some quick notes to get you ready for the contest...
- The Penguins host the NY Islanders (TV: ROOT SPORTS; Radio: 105.9 the X) at CONSOL Energy Center.
- A win tonight would give the Penguins three-game home and overall winning streaks.
- Tonight the Penguins will be looking to avenge a 4-3 loss to the Islanders on Oct. 25 at CONSOL Energy Center. In that game the Penguins held leads of 2-1 and 3-2 before allowing two goals late in the third period.
- The Penguins haven't lost two home games in regulation to the Islanders since going 1-2 at Mellon Arena in 2002-03.
- Pittsburgh is 16-5-1 in its last 22 overall meetings against the Islanders.
- The Penguins are 15-3 in their last 18 home games against the Islanders.
- Tonight the Penguins begin their fifth set of back-to-back games. Thus far they are 4-4 in back-to-backs –posting matching 2-2 records on both nights.
Stick tap (Pens PR)
Today's music selection is brought to you by: @smithwhitney, who chose Bastille's "Pompeii."
--Sam Kasan


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Chris Hart Finds Home Abroad in J-pop World
Leaving San Francisco, singer Chris Hart has made himself at home in "J-pop."
His album of cover versions of Japanese pop tunes is rising on the charts. And the crooner is scoring on this nation's equivalent of "American Idol," being billed as a genius who understands the musical soul of Japan.
His success highlights a music industry that's still booming, and increasingly eager to internationalize. It's even ready to eclipse the U.S. music world, where CD sales have plunged with the arrival of digital technology.
Hart, 29, says he is living his dream. And he doesn't mind a bit that his fame has come so far from home.
"I am a part of the J-pop world now," he said in a recent interview, using the term for pop music in the world's third-biggest economy.
Hart has won over Japan by focusing on adaptations of local hits such as "Home," a 2008 ballad popularized by singer Yusaku Kiyama about the joys of becoming a father.
Hart's rendition, released as a single in May, surged to No. 13 on the Oricon music charts, Japan's equivalent of Billboard. A month later, Hart released his first album, "Heart Song," which reached third on Oricon.
That's saying a lot, given the size of Japan's market.
Japan's music industry is estimated at $4.42 billion, closely trailing the U.S. at $4.48 billion, although Japan has less than half the population, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which tracks such data.
While other countries have shifted to digital music, CDs still make up 80 percent of Japan's music sales, according to the Recording Industry Association of Japan. Only 34 percent of music sales are CDs in the U.S., and 58 percent is digital.
Recent albums from established Japanese acts such as B'z and Southern All Stars are setting off a CD revival. AKB48 and other groups featuring young women, known as "idols," are boosting CD purchases among the younger crowd. The CDs sometimes come with concert tickets and other benefits, so some fans are buying multiple copies of the same one.
"Japanese people tend to want the physical CDs or the gifts and trinkets that come as perks with many albums. Music companies are getting creative," said Tomonobu Yonai, a spokesman for the recording industry group.
Hart's career took off with an appearance in a popular Japanese TV show called "Nodojiman The! World," in March 2012, where foreigners compete in karaoke.
Hart blew away the judges, mostly singers and celebrities who not only praised his technique but also his understanding of the lyrics and the emotions of the tunes. He was crowned "the world's best foreign J-pop singer."
"I feel embarrassed to come on stage," said singer Masahiro Nakai after Hart covered one of his songs in his clear, smooth tenor. Akiko Wada, another singer, called him "just perfect."
Hart started learning Japanese when he was 12. He wanted to study Korean because his aunt was of Korean descent, but his school offered only Japanese. He was quickly drawn to Japanese culture. A year later, he went on a home-stay program in Japan, where he fell even deeper in love with Japan.
Hart started a rock band performing Japanese songs in San Francisco, while working over the years as a police officer and a clerk at a cosmetics company. In 2009, Hart stumbled on an opportunity to go back to Japan with a job at a vending machine company.
He uploaded videos of himself singing in Japanese on YouTube. To his surprise, he got invited to be on the TV show.
Although some music critics say Japanese tunes are bland and unsophisticated, Hart believes music is more personal and emotional in Japan, rather than focused on catchy riffs.
That's why he prefers to call his fans "family." Hart has also made a point of adopting Japanese mannerisms, such as bowing.
"People feel more inclined to buy the album out of the support, like a friend," said Hart, wearing his trademark fedora and vest.
In a recent outdoor concert in Tokyo, hundreds of people, some with children in their arms, crowded the stage as Hart sang in near-perfect Japanese.
"I think it's really special that somebody from another country sings Japanese songs because he thinks it is great music," said Akane Kawano, a 31-year-old receptionist.


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25 November 2013 at 2.53pm | 4 Comments
Why does the Royal Opera House stage so often glitter with costume jewellery? The answer surely lies in the courtly origin of opera and ballet. Art forms that once boasted Louis XIV as a participant are bound to flash the odd rock. The result is a huge collection of crowns, coronets, tiaras, bracelets, necklaces and jewelled poison bottles – a tradition celebrated in Balanchine's sumptuous Jewels.
In La Bayadère the Rajah is dripping with jewels and pearls, the entire corps is crowned with diamond headdresses, and Gamzatti tears off a fantastic necklace in her attempt to bribe the heroine. Watching it being flung across the stage prompts an obvious question to Janet Steiner, Head of Hats and Jewellery at the Royal Opera House: how does the necklace come off so easily? 'A tiny piece of Velcro!', she replies.
Janet is usually more anxious to ensure that jewellery doesn't suddenly leave its owner. All the tiaras and headdresses (including the little jewelled crowns in Jewels) are mounted on small strips of mesh, called 'crin'. The wig department pin the crin on to the wigs before the show and it holds extremely well (as indeed it has to, when you consider how often a prima ballerina is held upside down). Nothing is supposed to bounce about – or clatter. 'We can fix the stones together or put in a bit of glue to keep them from moving but, if it makes too much noise, we just take the clattery bit off.' Strung necklaces are given double knots between each bead before they're allowed on stage. 'Then if it breaks, somebody can just pick it up and run off with it. If you don't knot it properly the beads would scatter all over the stage and we'd have an accident.'
Practically any decoration worn below the bust line is applied by somebody from the costume department. Catriona Paterson, Head of Women's Costume Workroom, explained:
'It's all about partnering. We want to make sure that when the girl is lifted, nothing on her body is going to catch anyone's finger. If the designer has come up with a sequined fabric, we unpick the sequins from the areas where the girl will be held and replace them with nice flat iron-on ones. And in ballets like Sleeping Beauty we use Swarovski Hot-Stones. They look like jewels, but they're completely flat and non-lethal: we just iron them on to the bodice.'
It's noticeable how non-essential (in plot terms) jewels tend to be in ballet. Apart from the odd necklace, like the one Bathilde gives Giselle, or Cinderella's glittering pointe shoe, dance jewellery often does nothing to advance the story – it's there to be worn.
Where does all this fake jewellery come from? Surprisingly, not from London. 'We shop all over the world really', says Janet, 'Coloured stones have become very difficult to get in England. The bead shops sell a lot of "diamonds" but none of the colours. We buy from Swarovski, another company in Austria and a couple of American ones. It all depends what shaped stones we are after; for Jewels we needed rectangles. You just can't get that shape in the UK.'
So nothing on stage is British? 'Yes it is! If something's set in the Orient we go straight to Southall!'
The full article by Sarah Lenton is in the Jewels programme book. It is available in the theatre at performance times and from the ROH Shop.
Jewels runs 1–21 April 2017. Tickets are open to Friends on 7 December 2016. General tickets will be available on 24 January 2017.


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NMT Spanish Professor Has Book Published
SOCORRO, N.M., June 23, 2009 – Rafael Lara-Martinez, professor of Foreign Language at New Mexico Tech, is the author of a newly published book whose title translates into English as "Balsamera under the Cold War: Intellectual History of an Ethnocide." The book is published in Spanish, under the title "Balsamera bajo la Guerra Fria: Historia intellectual de un etnocida."
The publisher is the University Don Bosco in San Salvador, a Salesian institution of higher education. Lara-Martinez is originally from El Salvador, and the book will be presented in August in San Salvador.
The book recounts the silence about the 1932 genocide of a group of Indians in El Salvador known in the 'scientific' and anthropological imagination as "Balsimos." This group made their living by collecting balsam from a tree native to the region, processing it, and selling it. Profits were shared by the group, according to needs determined by tribal elders who served as governors and priests. The economic system could be compared to Western socialism, in that wealth was distributed among families according to their needs. Westerners supposed that these mysterious and uncommunicative people had vast sums of money buried in the forest.
Lara-Martinez has been a professor at New Mexico Tech since 1994. He frequently writes and publishes on Latin American subjects, in addition to teaching Spanish language, literature, and culture at the college.
New Mexico Tech is a state-funded four-year research university in Socorro that is the leading educator of scientists and engineers.
(Kathleen Hedges)


text: « Return to Search Lennon Earns Norman Knight Excellence in Leadership Award May 30, 2014 BOSTON (May 30, 2014) – Kathy Lennon, R.N., a resident of Canton and a nurse-manager at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, was recently presented with the Norman Knight Excellence in Leadership Award, which was established in 2002 to recognize the nurse who demonstrates leadership excellence and a commitment to the Department of Nursing. "Kathy is a natural leader who enjoys an excellent rapport with faculty, clinical fellows, residents, her peers, and our patients," said Chief Nursing Officer Eileen Lowell, R.N., M.M. "In addition to paying close attention to customer satisfaction results, Kathy brings to the table a good sense of humor, a willingness to help in any situation, and great loyalty to the institution." The award was presented at Mass. Eye and Ear's recent Nurses Appreciation Week Dinner, where President and CEO John Fernandez praised the organization's nurses for their "tremendous courage, professionalism and grace" in the face of many unique challenges last year, including caring for many Boston Marathon bombing victims. The appreciation and awards dinner was among the highlights of Mass. Eye and Ear's annual Nurses Appreciation Week, which offers a variety of learning opportunities and recognizes that Mass. Eye and Ear's nurses, like all employees, are an integral part of the hospital's mission. About Massachusetts Eye and Ear Mass. Eye and Ear clinicians and scientists are driven by a mission to find cures for blindness, deafness and diseases of the head and neck. Led by the Eaton-Peabody Laboratory in Otology, the Howe Laboratory in Ophthalmology and Schepens Eye Research Institute, Mass. Eye and Ear in Boston is the world's largest vision and hearing research center, offering hope and healing to patients everywhere through discovery and innovation. Mass. Eye and Ear is a Harvard Medical School teaching hospital and trains future medical leaders in ophthalmology and otolaryngology, through residency as well as clinical and research fellowships. Internationally acclaimed since its founding in 1824, Mass. Eye and Ear employs full-time, board-certified physicians who offer high-quality and affordable specialty care that ranges from the routine to the very complex. U.S. News & World Report's "Best Hospitals Survey" has consistently ranked the Mass. Eye and Ear Departments of Otolaryngology and Ophthalmology as among the top hospitals in the nation. Nurse Kathy Lennon, R.N., (left) receives the Norman Knight Excellence in Leadership Award from Chief Nursing Officer Eileen Lowell, R.N., M.M., at the hospital's recent Nurses Appreciation Week Dinner.


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HubSpot acquires Chime and PrepWork, promising more to come
Online marketing firm HubSpot has acquired two small start-ups, Chime and PrepWork, bringing their teams to Boston while promising more moves are on the way.
A PrepWork application automates morning reports giving you briefings on what the people you will be meeting with that day have been up to, whether that's a new promotion, a recent news article, or simply a funny tweet that they sent.
Chime is a browser extension for Chrome that allows Web apps to send in-browser notifications of activity, such as when someone responds to your comment or if a friend posts a new photo on Flickr.
In a blog post announcing the acquisitions, HubSpot chief executive and founder Brian Halligan noted that both companies worked to further humanize the Web experience, a vision that aligns closely with HubSpot's focus on "personalization and solving for a customer need."
"This is an exciting step in HubSpot's growth, and we believe we'll have more of these announcements to share moving forward," he wrote. "So keep visiting us here as we continue to expand our team, our product, and our commitment to changing the world of marketing.


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I've worked with Jeff Strand on the novella SUCKERS, as well as the full length horror epic DRACULAS. But apparently that hasn't hurt his career, because he's still churning out books. When I heard he just released a new one, I knew I had to interview him, because it was doubtful anyone else would.
Joe: So why have you written another Andrew Mayhem thrillomedy after a thirty year hiatus? Have you run out of ideas for stand-alones so you had to slum with the old series?
Jeff: I didn't even WANT to do another Andrew Mayhem book. My fans FORCED me to write it. Everywhere I turned there was another Annie Wilkes, waving a sledgehammer (or an axe if they prefer the book to the movie) screaming "Mayhem IV! Mayhem IV!"
But, seriously, after promising readers a new Mayhem novel for seven years, I thought it was probably time to actually deliver on that promise. On my website, I swore that LOST HOMICIDAL MANIAC (ANSWERS TO "SHIRLEY") would be published before the end of 2011, and I got it out a couple of days before that. I'm not planning to wait another seven years to write Book #5, unless sales of Book #4 are total crap, in which case I'll wait even longer than seven years.
Joe: I hate that term "thrillomedy". It's really stupid. Why do you keep calling your books thrillodemies?
Jeff: I have never in my life called any of my books thrillomedies. You're thinking of the movie ARACHNOPHOBIA. I remember my enthusiasm for ARACHNOPHOBIA fading a bit when I saw the commercial promoting it as a thrillomedy. If I ever feel the need to make up a word to create my own genre, you have my permission to stab me. Not hard, but enough to break the skin.
Joe: Maybe you could call them comillers, but that sounds kind of like a reptile. "The wily comiller lives in the desert climate of New Mexico, where it eats small children and spends lazy summer nights watching Fox News, searching in vain for liberal coverage."
Heh. That's kind of funny. You should make that the topic of your next thrillomedy.
Hey, did you know I've hung out with Harley Jane Kozak, who was in ARACHNOPHOBIA? She writes a fun mystery series about a greeting card designer named Woollie Shelley, and we were both nominated with the Anthony and the Barry award for best first novel. She beat me both times.
Thanks for picking the scab off of that old wound, Mr. Considerate. Don't you have better things to do than hurt me? Like kill innocent people in your thrillomedy books?
Jeff: How come when I kill off little kids in my books I always get e-mails from you sternly reprimanding me, but you can throw out jokes about small children getting eaten by reptiles during interviews? Do you think it's FUNNY when small children get eaten by reptiles? What if you'd been eaten by a reptile as a small child? Would you have thought it was funny? Your son sure wouldn't be laughing about it today.
Joe: I think it's funny when small children get eaten by anything. But I'm a hypocritical dick.
So I hear one of my characters has an extended cameo in SHIRLEY. Did you enjoy writing for Harry McGlade? And have you gotten the lawsuit papers yet?
Jeff: Writing Harry McGlade's top-secret cameo scene that readers aren't supposed to know about in advance was a lot of fun, until the SUCKERS flashbacks began, and I sat at my desk twitching and weeping. I was going to put Jack Daniels in there and kill her off, just to see if you would go "Well, phooey, there's nothing I can do; it's been officially established in the canon now." I'm honestly not sure why the cameo went to Harry McGlade instead of somebody awesome like Repairman Jack.
Joe: Repairman Jack has made over ten cameos in my books.
Jeff: Really?
Joe: He's in my unpublished fan fic. I have this great scene where he's having sex with Uhura from Star Trek, in the back seat of the Delorean from Back to the Future. Then Boba Fett and Sam Beckett (Quantum Leap) kill Harry Potter with Gollum's ring. Then, more sex, this time on a trapeze.
Now I'm thinking of a color. Can you guess it?
Jeff: No. Everybody who reads your blog knows that you only think in black and white.
Joe: That's not true. But good on you for self-pubbing SHIRLEY, because anyone who goes the legacy route is no doubt a certified galloping dunderhead, and self-pub is clearly the only smart route to take.
BTW, I really liked SHIRLEY, and for less than three bucks it's a steal. I think everyone should buy it right now. Do you agree?
Jeff: A brand new novel for $2.99? There could be no better deal, except maybe $0.99, but everybody knows that 99-cent novels are self-published garbage.
(It should go without saying this late in the interview, but that was a joke.)
Joe: Now I'm thinking of another color. I'll give you a hint. It's bluish.
Jeff: Is it a turnip?
Joe: Yes.
As the undisputed king of the thrillomedy comiller genre, do you ever see yourself branching out and doing other, better things? Like sci-mance (science fiction and romance)? Or urbtate (urban fantasy merged with books about the prostate)?
Jeff: Though I call myself a "horror/comedy author," my books have always slid around on the humor scale, from the totally over-the-top goofball tone of BENJAMIN'S PARASITE to something dark and serious like PRESSURE. My 2011 novel FANGBOY was a fairy tale, WOLF HUNT was as much of a crime/action novel as a horror/comedy, and KUTTER was a conscious attempt to tell a story that should have been a ridiculous comedy (a serial killer adopts a Boston Terrier and becomes a better person) and play it totally straight. I'm working on a bunch of different projects, some of which are departures and some of which are exactly what you'd expect.
Joe: SHIRLEY is both funny and flat-out disturbing in parts. There was one point where I actually put my Kindle down because it was getting so intense. So did you watch the Iowa caucus?
Jeff: No, like most citizens, I get all of my political information from amusing politically themed tweets. I don't follow anybody who does amusing politically themed tweets, but the people I follow retweet them a lot. Thanks. Glad you liked the book.
Joe: I like pork. Do you like pork?
Jeff: Pork's okay. It's no beef. And it's not as good as chicken in Buffalo wing form.
Joe: Have you done anything else noteworthy lately?
Jeff: Nah. I meant to, but then I got distracted. But your readers who have no interest in LOST HOMICIDAL MANIAC (ANSWERS TO "SHIRLEY") may be equally uninterested in FAINT OF HEART, a novella of suspense, and A BAD DAY FOR VOODOO, a splattery Young Adult comedy, both of which will be out in 2012. Along with some other stuff.
Thank you for allowing me to pollute your blog again, Mr. Konrath/Kilborn/Kimball. TIMECASTER was awesome.
Joe: Yes it was.
Thank you, Mr. Strand. Everyone reading this blog needs to go out and buy Jeff's books, or I'll stop posting my self-pub numbers. Also, I will use my powers of alchemy (taught to me by Repairman Jack) to send the world into a new ice age, one that will will have no Ray Romano in it and will be very cold and unpleasant.
Don't make me do it. For Ray's sake.
Saturday, January 07, 2012
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Gift With Purchase
Clé de Peau Beauté Concealer Broad Spectrum SPF 25
Considered the world's first haute-couture cosmetics collection, Clé de Peau Beauté was introduced in 1982 as a fusion of sophisticated technology and exquisitely refined aesthetics. Clé de Peau Beauté delivers extraordinarily luxurious formulations and unparalleled anti-aging results—for a truly transformative beauty experience.
A considered collection of six skin care essentials that work together to address a wide range of concerns, lifting and sculpting while purifying and refining texture. Clé de Peau Beauté Skin Care


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Access to Information on the Environment (AIE)
In making your request, please:
- Specify that you are making the request under AIE legislation and clearly state the environmental information that you are requesting
- Try to provide as much detail as possible to enable us to process your request efficiently
- Include your return address
You will receive a response within one month from the date on which the request is received by Kildare Education Centre.
Disclaimer/Note: Please be advised that AIE requests may be refused on certain mandatory grounds (personal information/third party information) or discretionary grounds (commercial confidentiality etc).
Charges: There is no initial fee for making and AIE request. The Regulations do, however, provide that a public body may charge a reasonable fee for search and retrieval and the copying of records when it makes available environmental information in accordance with the Regulations. This fee will be calculated upon receipt of a request and is dependent on the volume of work involved in compiling information where it has not been previously available in an accessible format. This fee has been set as €20.95 per hour. If requesters require hard copies there may be a fee of 4c per sheet depending on the volume of information contained in the request and this will be advised in the final decision letter. A fee of €10.16 may be applied for a CD-ROM containing copy documents.
Where the estimated cost of supplying information on the environment is likely to exceed 100 euro, a deposit of at least 20% of the total amount will be required. In such cases, the requester will be advised in writing of the position and will be provided with an opportunity to review or amend his/her request. The process will not commence until payment of deposit has been received by the Kildare Education Centre. It should also be noted that the date for the final decision on the AIE request (which is normally within one month of receipt by the Kildare Education Centre of the request) will be determined by reference to the date of receipt of the deposit payment.
Fees will be waived where the cost is estimated at less than €10.00 or where the cost of collecting and accounting for the fee would exceed the amount of the fee itself. Where requesters are in a position to view the required documents on site at Kildare Education Centre there will be no charge for accessing these records, however this is separate to the charge noted above.
Appeals: If you would like to appeal a decision made by Kildare Education Centre's FOI Unit, you can do so by sending a request in writing asking for an internal review of the decision. Please address your review request to: FOI Officer, Kildare Education Centre, Friary Road, Kildare Town, Co Kildare, Ireland.
If after the internal review, you are unsatisfied with the decision and would like to make a complaint or appeal the decision again, you can do so by contacting the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information ("CEI") at:
Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information,
18 Lower Leeson Street,
Dublin 2.
Tel: 01- 6395689.
The AIE Regulations provide that a fee of €150 must be charged for an appeal to the Commissioner for Environmental Information. However, provision is also made for a reduced appeal fee of €50 for medical card holders and their dependants.You must appeal or make a complaint to the CEI within one month of getting the reviewed decision from Kildare Education Centre.


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There may be some pages that do not conform to all the guidelines. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the whole site conforms, this is an ongoing process and some content may not yet reach the standards in all areas, and will be working hard to address them by the end of the year. For example, the use of fixed widths means that the page will not scale to a smaller window easily.
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Davis gala 'bittersweet' year after Houston death
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- Last year, Whitney Houston died hours before Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammy gala. This year, the music executive says she'll be remembered.
"In saying I'm proud of her legacy, I'm going to make sure that she's felt somehow during that night, yes," the 80-year-old said in an interview Thursday.
Davis' gala will take place Saturday night at the Beverly Hilton, where Houston died on Feb. 11, 2012, at age 48.
The annual event is where Davis introduced a young Houston to the music world more than two decades ago. Davis -- Houston's mentor, producer, champion and longtime friend -- memorialized her at last year's gala, held downstairs from the hotel where she died.
"Whitney and I had great times at this party over the years," he said, smiling. "I'd played her new songs and she'd come over in her pajamas and be listening late at night ... so it is bittersweet. Tragedy is still foul."
Houston was found drowned in a bathtub. Coroner's officials ruled her death accidental, with heart disease and cocaine use contributing factors.
The night continued last year after Houston's death -- and the music will live on this year.
R&B singer Miguel, who's up for five awards at Sunday's Grammys -- including song of the year for "Adorn" -- will hit the stage. He rehearsed some of the song happily Thursday.
"I've dreamt about coming to this party," the singer said. "It's a huge honor to be included and perform."
Davis, per usual, was tight-lipped about the other performers.
"You should expect being blown away by the diversity of the music, by the vitality of the music, by the range of music today," Davis said.
Last year's performers included Elvis Costello, Ray Davies, Alicia Keys, Jessie J and others.
R&B singers Brandy and Monica, mentees of Houston, were supposed to perform their new duet at that time, but were emotional due to Houston's death.
Emotional Houston moments will be captured in an hour-long CBS special titled "The Grammys Will Go On: A Death in the Family." It's a behind-the-scenes look at how Houston's death affected last year's Grammy Awards and will air the same night as Davis' gala. It includes interviews with Jennifer Hudson, Bruce Springsteen, Taylor Swift and other artists.
The Beverly Hilton Hotel said in a statement that the room where Houston died has not been used.
"Out of respect to the family and fans of Whitney, the guest room where she stayed was immediately taken out of inventory and all contents were removed," the statement read. "Hotel management is considering options to repurpose the space but has made no final decisions at this time."
Saturday's event will honor Epic Records chairman and CEO Antonio L.A. Reid.


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European Commission
Viviane Reding
Vice-President of the European Commission, EU Commissioner for Justice
Establishing a European Public Prosecutor's Office – A federal budget needs federal protection
Press Conference/Brussels
17 July 2013
1. Delivering on our commitments
Today we deliver on a commitment. A commitment – that Algirdas and I first made at our hearing before the Parliament in January 2010 – to make full use of the Treaty of Lisbon to fight fraud against the EU budget and to uphold the rule of law across the Union.
This also follows the announcement made last year (September 2012) by President Barroso in his State of the Union speech. Before the European Parliament, President Barroso committed to uphold our duties under the Treaties and present a proposal for the establishment of a European Public Prosecutor's Office.
The idea has already taken root.
The Parliament, who will have to give its consent on the proposal, already voted on a report (by Salvatore Iacolino), with overwhelmingly support, calling for the establishment of a European Public Prosecutor's Office.
And in the Member States, France and Germany, in their joint contribution of 20 March 2013, have also called for the establishment of a European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO).
In short, the establishment of a European Public Prosecutor's Office does not come out of the blue! It is a much wanted and much needed body.
Today, the Commission is delivering on its promise. We are establishing a European Public Prosecutor's Office that will show zero tolerance to fraud against the EU budget.
2. Why do we need this proposal?
1. The current situation is inadequate
First, because we need to strengthen the protection of the EU budget. EU money must be spent on what it was intended for. And we have an obligation to prevent fraudulent use of EU money. Unfortunately, we still witness far too many illegal activities leading to losses to the EU budget.
We have to do more to combat this criminal behaviour. Member States have been slow to do so because of divergent rules, lack of resources and an inability to gather evidence in cross-border cases. As a result, the conviction rate for fraud offences against EU resources varies greatly across Member States [see slide], with an EU average of just 42.3% - meaning less than half of cases result in convictions. And meaning too that many criminals who have stolen taxpayers' money are getting away with their crimes.
With public finances under pressure throughout the EU, every euro counts. Member States report an average of about €500 million of suspected fraud each year. But the real amount of fraud is likely to be significantly higher.
The victim is the EU budget and, of course, the European taxpayer.
It is a federal budget. If we don't protect it, nobody else will do it for us.
2. The Treaties demand it
Second, we are putting the Lisbon Treaty into action. This includes reforming Eurojust (to make it work more efficiently – Article 85) and establishing a European Public Prosecutor's Office (Article 86). The Treaty of Lisbon requires the Union to protect the EU budget. As the guardian of the Treaties, we are doing just that.
3. So what will the new European Public Prosecutor's office look like?
1. Decentralised Structure
There will be an independent European Prosecutor with four deputies, leading the European Public Prosecutor's Office and coordinating the work.
The actual work on the ground (gathering evidence, prosecuting, bringing to court and so on) will be done by so-called "European delegated prosecutors" who are fully integrated into the national justice systems. They will be wearing a "double hat": they will be national prosecutors and part of the European Public Prosecutor's Office. They will use national staff, apply national rules and address themselves to national courts.
The internal working procedures of the European Public Prosecutor's Office, including the rules on the allocation of cases will be decided by a 'College of ten': the European Prosecutor, the four deputies and five delegated prosecutors.
2. Strong safeguards
The European Public Prosecutor's office will be an independent and accountable prosecution office.
Various safeguards, notably the appointment, as well as the dismissal procedures – which are in the hands of the Court of Justice – will ensure these basic principles. The investigations and prosecutions of the European Public Prosecutor's Office will respect the Rule of Law and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. An example: investigative measures such as searches or telephone tapping will always need prior judicial authorisation – also in countries where this is currently not required.
Any act or decision of the European Public Prosecutor's Office can be challenged before a national court.
Every suspect will be protected by strong and robust procedural rights: they are written down in a special Chapter (Chapter IV of the Regulation on the European Public Prosecutor's Office).
The new European Public Prosecutor's Office will need to build on confidence and trust, which is why we propose to embed it in strong procedural rights.
4. Conclusion
Finally let me add one comment, to make it crystal clear from the start. Not all EU Member States are concerned by this proposal. Denmark will not participate in this proposal. The UK – already in its government coalition agreement – has decided not to be part of the European Public Prosecutor's Office. While Ireland still has to decide if it wants to opt in.
I call on Member States and the European Parliament to now rally behind this important project so that the European Public Prosecutor's Office can assume its functions as of 1 January 2015.
Side Bar


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WASHINGTON—The Internal Revenue Service official at the centre of the storm over the agency's targeting of conservative groups told Congress on Wednesday that she had done nothing wrong in the episode, and then invoked her constitutional right to refuse to answer lawmakers' questions.
In one of the most electric moments since the IRS controversy erupted nearly two weeks ago, Lois Lerner defended herself during a brief appearance before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
The committee is investigating the agency's improper targeting of tea party and other conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status, and Lerner oversees the IRS office that processes applications for that status.
"I have done nothing wrong," said a stern-looking Lerner, sitting next to three other witnesses and reading from a written statement. "I have not broken any laws. I have not violated any IRS rules or regulations and I have not provided false information to this or any other committee."
Lerner then said she would invoke her Fifth Amendment right to avoid incriminating herself. Nine minutes after she began speaking, committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., excused her and Lerner left the hearing room through a rear door, escorted by her lawyer and several other men.
The men quickly whisked Lerner into an elevator, where several of the men physically pushed back television camera operators who were trying to film them.
Lerner's refusal to answer questions was not a surprise. Her attorney, William W. Taylor III, wrote a letter to the committee this week saying she would do so.
Lerner revealed the agency's targeting two weeks ago and apologized for the actions.


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Need help to get a project finished!
its called now, VERTICAL GRIP, its just a Action based climbing game, in where can up to 8 player climb against some mountains, one mode is not based of time (big mountains), and another is based on time, (little Mountains), then there is weather system, rain aso. also a "Deathmatch" climbing mode, in where little stones or big stones falling from the top of the mountains, and the goal is to be the first on top of the mountains, without any damage or a bit of
weather system should have influences of the climber, like a snow wind, that cools down youre character, so you are slower in climbing. such things
i cant, code or script, the only thing i can do is write some stuff for documentaton and 3d Modelling, but not good in character modelling.
i can make some textures, but non pbr based, but hope that it comes to Torque3d.
if the game was ready/ finished:
i want to get it on Steam Greenlight
to sell it later on!
maybe for 10 bucks or so, i do not know!