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Army: Bergdahl not joined by his family after return
SAN ANTONIO — When Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl arrived back in the United States following five years of captivity by the Taliban in Afghanistan, he wasn't joined by his family, military officials say.
Bergdahl was brought to Texas from an Army medical facility in Germany, where he had been recovering. Maj. Gen. Joseph P. DiSalvo, who greeted Bergdahl early Friday upon his arrival, said he exchanged a few words with Bergdahl after a three-vehicle convoy met him.
"He appeared just like any sergeant would when they see a two-star general, a little bit nervous. But he looked good and saluted and had good deportment," DiSalvo said at a news conference Friday, adding that Bergdahl was in stable condition.
Army officials would not say when Bergdahl's relatives might show up at Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston.
In a statement read at the news conference, Bergdahl's parents said they "are overjoyed that their son has returned to the United States" but asked for privacy.
Col. Bradley Poppen, an Army psychologist, said a soldier typically determines when to reunite with his or her family. Poppen declined to release further details, citing the family's request for privacy. After the news conference, officials said they did not know if Bergdahl has spoken with his family.
The Idaho native was captured in Afghanistan in June 2009 and released by the Taliban on May 31 in a deal struck by the Obama administration in which five senior Taliban officials were released from detention at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Officials have kept a lid on details of Bergdahl's condition out of concern that he not be rushed back into the public spotlight and amid a public uproar over the circumstances of his capture and release.
Bergdahl is working daily with health professionals to regain a sense of normalcy and move forward with his life, military officials said. Officials said there is no timeline for the final step in Bergdahl's reintegration process.
"We will proceed at his pace," Poppen said.
Military officials declined to give details on what Bergdahl might remember about his capture or what he knows about the controversy surrounding his release.
Many have criticized the Obama administration for agreeing to release five Taliban prisoners in exchange for Bergdahl. Some of Bergdahl's former Army colleagues have accused him of deserting his post.
Critics also have said the five Taliban members could return to the battlefield. Administration officials have told Congress that four of the five Taliban officials likely will rejoin the fight.
In the short time he has been back on U.S. soil, Bergdahl, who can walk on his own, has been on a bland diet and has shown a fondness for peanut butter, officials said.
While at Brooke Army Medical Center, Bergdahl will have a "standard patient room" but will not have access to a television, said Col. Ronald Wool, who is in charge of Bergdahl's medical care.
"We will bring him up slowly to what has been transpiring over the last five years," Wool said.
Bergdahl arrived speaking English, though officials indicated his speech had been impacted from being in captivity for so long.
"Overall our assessment is that he did not have the opportunity the past five years to practice and speak his English," said Wool.
Poppen said that during his captivity, Bergdahl had no control over any aspect of his life, including what and when he could eat. "So one of the concepts is to get him a sense of predictability and control of his environment," he said.


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The Origin, of the Essay: Its Four Parts
The essay Function of Criticism 1923, arose out of a controversy. Eliot's essay Tradition and Individual Talent was published a few years earlier in 1919. Middleton Murry challenged the opinions of Eliot in his essay Romanticism and the Tradition. The present essay is Eliot's reply to Murry. The first part gives in brief the opinions expressed by Eliot in the essay Tradition and Individual Talent, in the second part, he gives a resume of the views of Middleton Murry, in the third part, these views of Murry are briefly dismissed, and in the concluding fourth part, the poet examines the different aspects of the nature and function of criticism.
Eliot's Dynamic Conception of Tradition
Eliot begins the essay by referring to certain views he had expressed in his earlier essay, Tradition and Individual Talent, because they are relevant to the present essay. In the earlier essay, he had pointed out that there is an intimate relation between the present and the past in the world of literature. The entire literature of Europe from Homer down to the present day forms a single literary tradition, and it is in relation to this tradition that individual writers and individual works of art have their significance. This is so because the past is not dead, but lives on in the present. The past is altered by the present as much as the present is directed by the past. Past works of literature form an ideal order, but this ideal order is disturbed if ever so slightly, when a really new work of art appears. There is a readjustment of values, resulting in conformity between the old and the new. Literary tradition is constantly changing and grow different from age to age.
Literary Tradition: The Value of Conformity
The literary tradition is the outside authority to which an artist in the present must owe allegiance. He must constantly surrender and sacrifice himself in order to have meaning and significance. The true artists of any time form an ideal community, and artist in the present must achieve a sense of his community. He must realise that artists of all times are united together by a common cause and a common inheritance. While a second rate artist assets his individuality because his distinction lies in the difference and not in similarity with others, the true artist tries to conform. He alone can "afford to collaborate, to exchange, to contribute."
Definition of Criticism and Its Ends
Eliot's views on criticism derive from his views on art and tradition as given above. He defines criticism as, "the commentation and exposition of works of art by means of written words'". Criticism can never be an autotelic activity, because criticism is always about something. Art, as critics like Matthew Arnold point out, may have some other ends, e.g., moral, religious, cultural, but art need not be aware of these ends, rather it performs its function better by being indifferent to such ends. But criticism always has one and only one definite end, and that end is, "elucidation of works of art and the correction of taste." In his essay The Frontiers of Criticism, he further explains the aim of criticism as, "the promotion of understanding and enjoyment of literature."
The Need of Co-operation and Conformity
Since the end of criticism is clear and well defined, it should he easy to determine whether a critic has performed his function well or not. However, this is not such an easy taste. The difficulty arises from the fact that critics, instead of trying to discipline their personal prejudices and whims and composing their differences with as many of their fellow critics as possible and co-operating in the common pursuit of true judgment, express extreme views and vehemently assert their individually, i.e. the ways in which they differ from others. This is so because they owe their livelihood to such differences and oddities. The result is criticism has become like a Sunday Park full of orators competing with each other to attract as large and audience as possible. Such critics are a worthless lot of no value and significance. However, there are certain other critics who are useful, and it is on the basis of their works, that Eliot establishes the aims and methods of criticism which should be followed by all.
Murry's Views or the Classic and the Romantic
In the second part of the essay, Eliot digresses into a consideration of Middleton Murry's views on classicism and Romanticism. While there are critics who hold that classicism and romanticism are the same thing, Murry takes a definite position, and makes a clear distinction between the two, and says that one cannot be a classic and a romantic at one and the same time. In this respect, Eliot praises Murry, but he does not agree with him when he makes the issue a national and racial issue, and says that the genius of the French is classic and that of the English is romantic. Murry further relates Catholicism in religion with classicism in literature, for both believe in tradition, in discipline, in obedience to an objective authority outside the individual. On the contrary, romanticism and Protestantism, and social liberalism, are related, for they have full faith in the 'inner voice', in the individual, and obey no outside authority. They care for no rules and traditions.
Eliot's Rejection of Murry's Views
But Eliot does not agree with these views. In his opinion, the difference between classicism and romanticism is, the difference between the complete and the fragmentary, the adult and the immature, the orderly and the chaotic. To him the concept of the inner voice sounds remarkably like doing, What one likes. It is a sign of indiscipline leading to vanity, fear and lust. Neither does he agree with the view that the English as a nation are romantics and so 'humorous' and 'non-conformists', while the French are 'naturally' classical.
"Inner Voice": Ironic Treatment of It
In the third part of the essay, Eliot summarily dismisses the views of Murry. The tone is one of light ridicule. He contemptuously calls the inner voice, whiggery. For those who believe in the 'inner voice', criticism is of no value at all, because the function of criticism is to discover some common principles for achieving perfection in art. Those who believe in the "inner voice" do not want any principles. In other words, they do not care for perfection in art, which can result only through obedience to the laws of art, and to tradition which represents the accumulated wisdom and experience of ages.
Criticism and the Creative Faculty
In the fourth part, Eliot deals with the problem of criticism in all its manifold aspects. In the very beginning, he comments upon the terms 'critical' and 'creative'. He ridicules Matthew Arnold for having distinguished rather bluntly between the 'critical' and the 'creative' activity. He does not realise that criticism is of capital importance in the work of creation. As a matter of fact, "the larger part of the labour of an author in composing his work is critical labour', the labour of sifting, combining constructing, expunging, correcting, testing." Eliot further expresses the view that the criticism employed by a writer on his own work is the most vital and the highest kind of criticism. Elsewhere, Eliot calls such criticism, workshop criticism. Its high worth and value cannot be denied, for a poet who knows from personal experience the mysteries of the creative process is in a better position to write about it than those who have no such knowledge. Eliot goes to the extent of saying that some creative writers are superior to others only because their critical faculty is superior. He ridicules those who decry the critical toil of the artist, and hold the view that the greater artist is an unconscious artist. He calls such concepts whiggery and pours his ridicule on such people. He comments those who, instead relying on the 'Inner voice', or 'inspiration', conform to tradition, and in this was try to make their works as free from defects as possible.
Can There be Creative Criticism?
It is a mistake to separate critical and creative activities. A large part of creation is in reality criticism. But critical writing cannot be creative. There can be no creative criticism. Creative criticism is neither criticism nor creation. This is so because there is a fundamental difference between creation and criticism. Creation, a work of art, is autotelic. It has no conscious aims and objectives. Criticism, on the other hand, is always about something, other than itself. In other words, it is not an autotelic activity, its aim being the commentation and elucidation of works of art. Hence it is that we cannot fuse creation with criticism as we can fuse criticism with creation. The critical activity finds its highest fulfilment when it is fused with creation, with the labour of the artist.
The Qualifications of an Ideal Critic: A Highly Developed Sense of Fact
Eliot next proceeds to consider the qualifications of a critic. The foremost quality which an ideal critic must have is a highly developed sense of fact. The sense of fact is a rare gift. It is not frequently met with, and it is very slow to develop. The value of a practitioner's criticism—say that of a poet on his own art, 'workshop criticism' as Eliot elsewhere calls it—lies in the fact that he is dealing with facts which he understands, and so can also help us to understand them. Eliot's own criticism is such workshop criticism, and Eliot is all praises for such critics and their criticism. There is a large part of criticism which seeks to 'interpret' an author and his work. But most of such interpretation is no interpretation at all. It is mere fiction; the critic gives his views, his impression of the work, and so is false and misleading. Eliot has no use for such impressionistic criticism; it gives us no insight into the work under study.
Sense of Fact: The Technical Aspects
True interpretation is no interpretation at all; it is merely putting the reader in possession of the facts which he might have missed otherwise. The true critic himself knows the facts about a work of art—its conditions, its settings, its genesis—and puts them before his readers in a simple and easy manner. Thus it is clear that by 'facts' Eliot means the various technical aspects of a work of art.
The Tools of the Critic: Comparison and Analysis
Comparison and analysis are the chief tools of a critic. These are the tools of the critic, and he must use them with care and intelligence. Comparison and analysis can be possible only when the critic knows the facts about the works which are to be compared and analysed. He must know the facts about the work of art—technical elements like its structure, content and theme—and not waste his time in such irrelevant fact-hunting as the inquiry into the number of times giraffes are mentioned in the English novel. However, the method of comparison and analysis, even when used unjudiciously, is preferable to 'interpretation' in the conventional sense.
Warning Against Fact-hunting
Facts, even facts of the lowest order, cannot corrupt taste, while impressionistic criticism, like that of Coleridge and Goethe, is always misleading. The function of criticism is to educate taste or, as Eliot puts it elsewhere, to promote enjoyment and understanding of literature. Now facts, however trivial, can never corrupt taste; they can only gratify taste. Critics like Goethe or Coleridge, who supply opinion or fancy, are the real corruptors. In the end, Eliot cautions us not to become slaves to facts and bother about such trivialities as the laundry bills of Shakespeare. Such fact-hunting is not criticism. Similarly, he warns us against the vicious taste for reading about works of art instead of reading the works themselves.
'Lemon squeezer' and Impressionistic Criticism: Eliot's Condemnation
Eliot's emphasis on facts makes it clear that his critical stand is with such New Critics as F.R. Leavis and I.A. Richards. He commands textual criticism, but he is against the 'lemon-squeezer' school of critics who try to squeeze every drop of meaning out of words. A critic should concentrate on the text, compare and analyse, but he should never stoop to trivialities or empty hair-splitting. A good critic is objective, his judgment is based on facts, he is guided by tradition, the accumulated wisdom of ages and not by his, "inner voice". He does not indulge in mere expression of opinion or fancy. Eliot is against impressionistic criticism, but he does not expound any theories or lay down any rules and principles. Impressionistic criticism is erratic, while adherence to rigid theories hampers the critic and curtails his freedom
Eliot's Originality: Objective, Scientific Attitude
The critic should be guided by facts and facts alone. He should approach the work of art with a free mind, unprejudiced by any theories or preconceived notions. Only then can he be completely objective and impersonal. It is in this way that criticism approximates to the position of science. It is only in this way that criticism becomes a co-operative activity, the critic of one age cooperates with critics of the previous ages in common pursuit of truth. Such truths are provisional, for 'truths' of one age are likely to be modified and corrected by truths discovered by future ages. In this objective-scientific attitude Eliot is different from all other previous English critics. Herein lies his individuality and originality. He is like a scientist working with an open mind and co-operating with others, for the realisation of truth which he knows can only be tentative.
THE FUNCTION OF CRITICISM by T.S. Eliot
The Origin, of the Essay: Its Four Parts

subset: commoncrawl


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Last weekend I starting cutting a Trip Around the World quilt. I was drawn to this pattern by this quilt and this quilt. Both of these ladies are Michiganders and both support Margaret's Hope Chest--I am sure that those two facts have no connection to why I want to make this quilt--just giving a shout out.
I did absolutely no planning for this quilt--my daughter and I picked out the fabrics and then I started cutting 100's of 2.5 inch squares. After a decade of quilting I have come to the conclusion that there are two types of quilters--the kind that plan out their quilts and kind that don't. Which type are you? As a result of my reckless abandon I had (tons of) extra squares which I made into this baby quilt to add to the Haiti collection. I am going to back it with flannel with no batting and straight-line quilt it.
As for the larger twin size Trip Around the World quilt--it is coming along--I am on day 4 of piecing it. Maybe this weekend I will finish it.
I am linking up to Amanda Jean's Finish it Up Friday.
Have a great weekend!


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Subscribe To Ferris Bueller Will Be At The Super Bowl, In An Ad For... Updates
I've already subscribed
It was hard not to get excited about the clip that was going around the internet yesterday, seeming to show an all-grown-up Ferris Bueller making plans for the Super Bowl. Was Matthew Broderick going to show up onstage at halftime and lead a singalong to "Twist and Shout"? Was there some kind of sequel in the works? The mystery was the fun part, so if you're hanging on to that, you might not want to read what's next.
Car site Jalopnik has hunted down a source who reveals that Broderick will be reviving Ferris for a Honda commercial that, indeed, will air during the Super Bowl next Sunday. The spot will mimic a lot of elements of the original film, and will even repeat the scene where the valets take Cameron's dad's Ferrari on a joyride-- only this time, they'll be driving a Honda CR-V. The ad is such a big deal that they even brought in The Hangover director Todd Phillips to put it together, which means the spot should be heavy on anarchic spirit, and maybe as raunchy as you can get away with during an event as huge as the Super Bowl.
We pretty much expected that the Bueller spot would be some kind of commercial, so it's hard to be too disappointed to hear that Ferris has sold out in his old age. But is a Honda spot really what we were hoping for? Or should we wait to see the ad before judging whether this was a good idea. Check out the original teaser again below and speculate what else Ferris might get up to in his Honda in the comments below.


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"Annual Summer Invitational" at Jonathan LeVine Gallery
Photos by G. Various Artists.
New York! Make some time and check out the Jonathan LeVine Gallery. Two great exhibits. One roof. In the front gallery is the "Annual Summer Invitational," which features the works of 12 different artists. Featured artists are Above, Ashley Wood, Daniel Martin Diaz, Dickchicken, Edwin Ushiro, Eric Fortune, Hello Monsters, Jennifer Delilah, Melissa Haslam, Meryl Smith, Nicoetta Ceccoli and Yuko Shimizu.
The second gallery features new works from Olek in another amazing exhibit entitled "The Bad Artists Imitate, The Great Artists Steal."
At the opening night reception, I met the fabulous and fabulously talented Jennifer Delilah! You can see a photo after the jump.
The Annual Summer Invitational and "The Bad Artists Imitate, The Great Artists Steal" by Olek are showing at Jonathan LeVine Gallery (located at 529 West 20th Street #9E) through August 17, 2011.


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Postdoc Positions
This site is for postdoctoral candidates to search for positions at SUNY Upstate Medical University and for faculty to publicize postdoctoral research positions. Please note that not all postdoctoral positions may be posted on this website and candidates are encouraged to inquire directly to faculty and/or departments of interest.
Faculty interested in posting postdoctoral positions to this site, please contact Office of Postdoctoral Affairs.


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This has got me stumped for 6 months now.
I would like to put a folder that is inside my dropbox account on my side menu.
I am running Mac OS 10.3 with Parallels (latest version) and Windows 7.
I have put DropBox on the Mac and just share that folder in Windows. No need to download all the files in Dropbox twice.
When I first installed PlacesBar a long time ago, I was able to choose the folder inside Dropbox and add it to the PlacesBar. Sounded great.
However, I noticed a week or so later that none of my changes to dropbox took effect. It was like just a static look at the files.
I tried again just now and reinstalled PlacesBar and remove the old links and added a new one for the Dropbox folder and I am seeing the structure from like a year ago!!!
Very very weird.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.


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"Madonna" by Richard Corman at Milk Studios
Photos of Richard Corman's photos by G.
If you're a Madonna fan and live in New York, you must head over to Milk Studios to see an exhibit of amazing photos of the Material Girl circa 1983 taken by photographer Richard Corman. The pictures capture a young Madonna in and around New York prior to her status as a global phenomenon.
As you see in these photos, even pre-stardom, Madonna had the "it factor" oozing out of her pores.
Most of these pictures have never been seen before and occasionally, I recognized a photo or two from what have become iconic photo sessions with Madonna.
The exhibit runs through December 15, 2013 at Milk Studios which is located at 450 West 15th Street in Manhattan. Get into the groove!


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4 events found
City: Bogota or Heidelberg or Leuven or Norwich or SURF office or VUmc
Emerging applications of microbes
3 - 4 June 2019
Leuven, BelgiumEmerging applications of microbes https://vibconferences.be/event/emerging-applications-of-microbes https://tess.elixir-europe.org/events/emerging-applications-of-microbes We are pleased to announce the first edition of the VIB Conference 'Emerging applications of microbes'. This international conference will take place June 3rd-4th 2019 in the beautiful historic city of Leuven. We will welcome a range of world leaders from academia and industry who will discuss the latest applications and technological developments in the field of microbiology. With session topics such as metabolic engineering, synthetic biology, industrial biotechnology as well as microbial communities, we aim to provide you with a platform to discuss and exchange ideas with fellow researchers. In addition to the scientific program with plenary talks and poster sessions, there will be ample opportunities to network and discuss collaborations during the breaks, reception and conference dinner. 2019-06-03 08:00:00 UTC 2019-06-04 18:00:00 UTC VIB Conferences Naamsestraat 22, 22, Naamsestraat, Leuven, Belgium Naamsestraat 22, 22, Naamsestraat Leuven Vlaams-Brabant Belgium 3000 Microbiology VIB firstname.lastname@example.com [] [] [] [] Microbiology
Statistics in Omics
24 - 28 June 2019
VUmc, NetherlandsStatistics in Omics https://www.dtls.nl/?post_type=course&p=16971 https://tess.elixir-europe.org/events/statistics-in-omics This introductory course gives an overview of many statistical tools to analyse omics data. The course can be followed by researchers with a minimum or elementary background in quantitative data analysis. Participants will learn and practice commonly used tools including:… The post Statistics in Omics appeared first on Dutch Techcentre for Life Sciences. 2019-06-24 09:00:00 UTC 2019-06-28 00:00:00 UTC VUmc, Amsterdam, Netherlands, VUmc, Netherlands VUmc, Amsterdam, Netherlands VUmc Netherlands [] [] [] workshops_and_courses [] []
Metagenomics: Data Analysis and Interpretation
16 - 19 September 2019
Norwich, United KingdomMetagenomics: Data Analysis and Interpretation http://www.earlham.ac.uk/metagenomics-data-analysis-and-interpretation https://tess.elixir-europe.org/events/metagenomics-data-analysis-and-interpretation This course will provide an overview of the main aspects involved in metagenomics data analysis and discussion around the interpretation and actual examples of the impact and applications of metagenomics derived research. A substantial part of the course will be devoted to hands-on experience with bioinformatics resources and tools relevant in metagenomics data analysis. Participants will start with an overview of NGS technologies, a look at experimental approaches and emerging technologies, including a tour of Earlham Institute's Genomic Pipelines laboratories. Then the remainder of the course will be spent in front of the computers learning how to produce metagenomic assemblies, and taking participants from data to publication-ready figures. 2019-09-16 09:00:00 UTC 2019-09-19 17:00:00 UTC Earlham Institute Earlham Institute (EI), Colney Lane, Norwich, United Kingdom Earlham Institute (EI), Colney Lane Norwich Norfolk United Kingdom NR4 7UZ [] firstname.lastname@example.com [] [] workshops_and_courses [] []
The Brain Mosaic: Cellular heterogeneity in the CNS (2nd edition)
10 - 11 October 2019
Leuven, BelgiumThe Brain Mosaic: Cellular heterogeneity in the CNS (2nd edition) https://vibconferences.be/event/the-brain-mosaic-cellular-heterogeneity-in-the-cns-2nd-edition https://tess.elixir-europe.org/events/the-brain-mosaic-cellular-heterogeneity-in-the-cns-2nd-edition Recent advances in technology now allow us to explore multiple aspects of heterogeneity at the single cell level. Nowhere is this more important than in the Central Nervous System (CNS), where cellular heterogeneity has profound effects on all aspects of normal brain function and behavior and explains important aspects of disease pathology. With the second edition of the Brain Mosaic conference we aim to bring together leaders in this emerging discipline to discuss how it is advancing our knowledge of CNS function and disease. Speakers at this neuroscience meeting on 'single cell' will emphasize the multi-disciplinary nature of the field in several sessions: • Single cell sequencing and cell diversity • Spatial transcriptomics • New developments in technology and bioinformatics • CNS sequencing and relevance to disease research • Connections an activity Poster information: Format: A0 (841 x 1189 mm / 33.1 x 46.8 in), portrait orientation Deadlines: • Early Bird: 8 September 2019 • Late Registration: 26 September 2019 • Abstract deadline: 29 August 2019 2019-10-10 08:00:00 UTC 2019-10-11 18:00:00 UTC VIB Conferences KU Leuven - Promotion & Jubileumzaal, Naamsestraat 22, 22, Naamsestraat, Leuven, Belgium KU Leuven - Promotion & Jubileumzaal, Naamsestraat 22, 22, Naamsestraat Leuven Vlaams-Brabant Belgium 3000 Bioinformatics Transcriptomics Sequencing [] Evy Vierstraete +32 9 244 66 11 email@example.com [] [] meetings_and_conferences [] Single cell sequencing Sequencingcell diversitySpatial transcriptomicsTranscriptomicstranscriptomicsAlzheimers Clinical Trials And StudiesAlzheimers DiseaseAmnesiaAnimal Models In DementiaAnxiety Autoimmune Disorders & Multiple SclerosisBehavioral IssuesBiopsychiatry Blood-Brain BarrierBrain DiagnosisBrain Disease & FailureBrain InjuryBrain TumourCentral Nervous SystemCerebrovascular DiseaseChild NeurologyClinical NeurophysiologyCNS TumorsCognitive DisordersDementiaDementia CareDemyelinationDiagnosis And TherapyEpilepsyGenetics Genetics And Epigenetics Geriatric NeurologyGut- Brain AxisHeadacheIntervention NeuroradiologyMeningitisMental HealthMental Health NursingMetastatisMovement DisordersMultiple SclerosisMultiple Sclerosis DiagnosisNervous SystemNeural EngineeringNeural EnhancementNeuro-Oncology NeuroanaatomyNeuroanatomyNeurocritical CareNeurodegenerationNeurodegenerative DisorderNeurodegenerative DisordersNeurogeneticsNeuroimagingNeuroimmunologyNeurological DisordersNeurological Disorders And StrokeNeurological InfectionsNeurological SurgeryNeurologistNeurologyNeuromedicinesNeuromuscular MedicineNeuronal AutoantibodiesNeuropathyNeuropeptidesNeuropharmacologyNeuroscienceNeurosurgeryNeurotoxicologyNeurotoxinsNeurotransmissionNeurotransmittersParkinsonParkinsons DiseasePediatric NeurologyPharmacology Psychiatry Psychology PsychoneuroimmunologyRecent Research And Case StudiesRehabilitation TherapyStem Cell Treatment For Neurological DisordersStrokesTraumatic Brain InjuryCNS sequencing disease researchbioinformatics• New developments in technology
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|I do use this oil.
Willing to help
Yesterday, I filled my car with gas and checked the oil. The dipstick showed that the oil was a little low, so I stopped at Walmart and bought a quart. Back in the parking lot, I raised the hood of my car. It didn't offend my sense of class to add oil then and there, and besides, I was afraid I'd forget if I waited.
During the few moments that I stood in front of my car with the hood up, I was asked three times if I needed help. The first people who approached me were a black couple about my age, who parked their pickup truck nearby. The next person was a white-haired man who came out of the store and got into his little sports car. And the third person was a tall young fellow with a tattoo on his neck.
I thanked them each, and I'm still warmed by their unexpected kindness.
While typing this, I remembered a similar incident. I often clip my purse to the cart with a carabiner when I am shopping. One evening, I was ready to wheel my groceries out to my car, but I was having trouble getting my purse unclipped. I had hooked the carabiner to a small slot in the cart that was awkward to reach.
One of the Kroger employees, a girl who was bringing in a big line of shopping carts from the parking lot, saw me fumbling as I stood by the door. "Are you all right, ma'am? Do you need help?" she asked.
About that time, I finally got the carabiner detached. I felt silly, but I genuinely appreciated her friendly offer to assist, and I thanked her for it.
I think we are blessed with a solid core of kind-hearted, decent people here in Christian County, Kentucky.
I like that explanation much better than the possibility that I look so incompetent that strangers pity me!


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Subscribe To Did Marvel Just Reveal Its Doctor Strange Release Date? Updates
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Walt Disney jostled its release-date calendar around last night, setting fresh dates for several anticipated titles … including two future Marvel projects that have yet to be clarified.
As Eric points out in his piece, Marvel loves locking up the opening weekend of the summer. See Iron Man 3 for the studio's most recent example – and then gawk at the tremendous box office success of that high-flying Marvel sequel. Sony beat Marvel to the punch next summer, scheduling The Amazing Spider-Man 2 for May 2, 2014 (probably because Captain America: The Winter Soldier already had circled April 4 as its release date). But Marvel made sure to lock up its favorite frame for 2015 (when The Avengers 2 will kick off the summer on May 1), as well as the newly announced dates of May 6, 2016 and May 5, 2017.
So, what movies do we think Marvel will drop onto those coveted dates?
Clearly, we'll be into Phase Three of Marvel's Cinematic Universe, which takes place after Avengers 2, and is rumored to include standalone films for such heroes as Ant-Man, Doctor Strange, Ms. Marvel and Black Panther. We can cross Ant-Man off the list of potential projects, as Edgar Wright already revealed he will have his Ant-Man movie in theaters Nov. 6, 2015 (in the slot occupied by Thor this year).
If I had to make an educated guess, I'd reserve the May 6, 2016 slot for a Doctor Strange movie. Marvel President Kevin Feige has mentioned Strange often, confirming his role in Marvel's Phase Three and seemingly chomping at the bit to get the mystical character on screen. I could see him being introduced in Avengers 2, then built up into his own standalone movie for the start of Summer 2016.
The 2017 date is harder to button down. While it's easy to assume that Marvel will plan to introduce one of the many heroes they have teased for Phase Three, three years is a LONG time away, and so many things can happen between now and then. Maybe that slot is reserved for a Daredevil or Punisher movie, now that the rights to those characters have reverted back to Marvel? Maybe it's chapter three of either Thor or Captain America? That 2017 slot could do for those two franchises what this year did for Iron Man 3, and that's the right amount of time to put between sequels, so that makes a lot of sense.
I could see Marvel not having a concrete plan in place at the moment, but simply knowing that it wants to have some movie playing in that slot, so they might as well lock it up. If I had to guess now, I'd say Doctor Strange in May 2016, and either Thor 3 or Cap 3 in May 2017, depending on which character makes the most sense in terms of the stories being told in the next phase of Marvel movies. Do you have different thoughts? Share them with us below!


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Kiugak Ashoona
Canadian, 1933–2014
Growling Lion, 1965
stone (green serpentinite)
23.9 x 23.5 x 26 cm
Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery; Twomey Collection, with appreciation to the Province of Manitoba and Government of Canada
Kiugak Ashoona has had the longest artistic career of any of the Cape Dorset artists still alive today. He began making ivory carvings in the late 1940s and turned to the use of stone in 1951 when sculpture was first purchased for export to southern markets. Kiugak once explained his unusual, non-Arctic animal imagery in this sculpture. He had travelled to Ottawa for an exhibition opening and was impressed by a sculpture of a lion on the Parliament Buildings. He decided to see if he could do the same, and created this work and two other versions of a lion as the subject. Kiugak is known for his fierce shamanic creatures in stone and the WAG piece has the same aggressive stance as his "spirit" pieces.
Gallery Hours
- Tuesday 11am-5pm
- Wednesday 11am-5pm
- Thursday 11am-5pm
- Friday 11am-9pm
- Saturday 11am-5pm
- Sunday 11am-5pm
- Closed Monday


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LONDON (Reuters) - The government on Thursday banned a Nigeria-based Islamist group it said was aligned with al Qaeda as a minister said the oulawed organisation was probably responsible for the killing of a Briton and an Italian.
The interior ministry described the group - Ansaru - as "a Nigeria-based terrorist organisation motivated by an anti-Nigerian government and anti-Western agenda".
The two men the government believes the group murdered were Chris McManus, a Briton, and Franco Lamolinara, an Italian.
They were kidnapped in May last year near Nigeria's northwestern borders with Niger and Benin and their captors killed them during a British-Nigerian rescue mission in March this year.
"An order has been approved today by parliament which will proscribe Ansaru from midnight on Thursday evening, making membership of, and support for, the organisation a criminal offence," the interior ministry said in a statement.
It declined to say whether the group was connected to the deaths of McManus and Lamolinara.
However, Mark Harper, a minister of state for immigration, told parliament the group was probably responsible.
"It is believed to be responsible for the murders of British national, Christopher McManus, and his Italian co-worker Franco Lamolinara, in March 2012," he said.
At the time of their deaths, an official at Nigeria's State Security Service said the captors belonged to a faction of Islamist sect Boko Haram, which has targeted Nigerian security and government officials as well as churches and mosques.
A purported spokesman for the group denied any part in the kidnappings at the time.
Ansaru's full name is Jama'atu Ansarul Musilimina Fi Biladis Sudan, which translates as "Vanguards for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa".
Reporting by Mohammed Abbas; Editing by Andrew Osborn


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"On the Spot" is an award-winning documentary series, digging for human stories behind the news with two cameras, without a crew, giving the films extraordinary intimacy and honesty from the revolution in Egypt to earth quakes in Japan. The motto of the series is from Robert Capa, the Hungarian war photographer: "If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough."
The filmmakers have received the Press Freedom Award in Strasbourg from the Council of Europe, the Prix Jury in Karlovy Vary at the Tourfilm Festival and the Golden Nymph as Best Documentary at the Monte Carlo TV Festival. "On the Spot: Gaza" has got the Gold Plaque at the 50th Chicago International Film Festival TV-Awards and the prize for "Best Foreign Short Documentary" at the American Documentary Film Festival in 2014.
Eszter Cseke and Andras S. Takacs are experienced digital journalists and documentary filmmakers, creators, presenters and producers of On the Spot, aired by Hungarian Public Tv and by Spektrum Tv in Central-Europe. They have made 40 hour-long documentaries in Afghanistan, French Guyana, Bissau Guinea, Ethiopia, India (Varanasi, Delhi, Dharamsala and Kashmir), Nepal (the Mount Everest, Kathmandu and the Rolpa region), Bolivia, Israel, Gaza, the West Bank, Svalbard, Sri Lanka, Burma, Iran, Mauritania, South Africa, Japan, Egypt, the United States, Cuba, Germany, Indonesia and the Maldives. They have made exclusive interviews with world leaders like Ban Ki-moon or Evo Morales but always focused on the stories of ordinary people living in the background of the news. They filmed with gangsters in the ghettos of Johannesburg, were embedded on frontlines, lived in tribes, covered tsunamis and revolutions, worked under-covered in Burma and Iran. Their "rare and exclusive" footage appeared on BBC World and CNN International too.
Futó sorozat 2009.11 - ? | 50 perc @Spektrum, HU
Utoljára frissítve: 2018.12.12


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T-Mobile Chief Executive John Legere was having a field day on Twitter Wednesday poking fun at Sprint's aborted attempt to buy his company.
Sprint shares crashed Wednesday after the telecommunications giant abruptly replaced its CEO.
Using the hashtag #sprintlikehell, the controversial and outspoken Legere tweeted, "If you needed just one more reason to leave Sprint and join T-Mobile … Now you might just have it… total Chaos at Sprint!"
Later he tweeted, "Is Sprint a melting ice cube? … looks like it to me…," which he then followed with, "Join T-Mobile now and jump off the Sprint bus before it crashes."
Legere is known in the industry for being an outspoken, irreverent executive who sometimes taunts rivals in public.
In January, he gatecrashed rival AT&T'st party at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. He was later ejected.
-- Ben Pimentel
More must-read stories from MarketWatch:
Sprint ends pursuit of T-Mobile, replaces CEO
From the horse's mouth — why Walgreen didn't invert
Walgreen stock tumbles on report company won't invert


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Career Advice >> Browse Articles >> Regional Job Highlights
College Graduates: Top 25 Cities for Finding Your Entry-Level Job
Photo: Franco Folini | CreativeCommons
Anna Hennings, Tania Khadder, Adam Starr, Alice Handley | Excelle
October 20, 2009
#1. Austin, TX
Population: 743,074
Average Salary: $41,330
Cost of Living Rank (in a 1-100 list): 51
Average Commute Time: 21.9 minutes
Job Growth Rank (in a list of 372 Highest Growth Cities): 6
Unemployment Rate: 6.3
Austin tops our list with robust projected job growth and one of the lowest changes in unemployment rate since the onset of the recession. The city has enjoyed a recent explosion of high-tech entrepreneurism, and its two largest employers — the state government and the University of Texas — are expected to add a couple thousand jobs this year. A "best cities" list veteran, Austin's our top pick!
Resources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics U.S. Census Bureau City-Data.com Forbes.com's Best Cities for Jobs Best Cities For Jobs In 2008 NewGeography.com's Best Cities for Job Growth Wikipedia


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It's All One Curriculum
Population Council
Planning and Evaluation for Gender Equality in Education in the Context of HIV and AIDS (2005)
Paper presented at Seminar in Dhaka on 31 January-1 February 2005
Girls, Women and HIV/AIDS in Eastern Africa (2006)
A desk review based on studying available literature on girls, women and HIV/AIDS in Eastern Africa.
Girl Power: The Impact of Girls Education on HIV And Sexual Behaviour (2006)
Education and HIV Series 01
Global Monitoring Report 2007: Confronting the Challenges of Gender Equality and Fragile States (2007)
Global report
Magazine World of Work 65, April 2009: ILO Gender Equality Campaign 200809
ILO (International Labour Organization)
The Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2008
Education for All by 2015: Will we make it? asks the title of the 2008 edition of the Education for All Global Monitoring Report, launched on 29 November at the United Nations in New York.
Toolkit for Mainstreaming HIV and AIDS in the Education Sector: Guidelines for Development Cooperation Agencies
This toolkit aims to help education staff from development cooperation agencies, including both development and humanitarian-oriented multilateral and bilateral agencies as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other civil society organizations, to support the process of mainstreaming HIV and AIDS into education sector planning and implementation.
- Backgrounder - Education (2005)
Equals: Issue 16, January-March 2006 (2005)
Newsletter for Beyond Access: Gender, Education and Development
Review of the Evidence: Girls Education and HIV Prevention CD-ROM (2006)
CD-ROM of policy documents, case studies, reports, tools, curricula and other materials, aimed to expand the evidence base on the link between girls education and HIV prevention.
Impact of Sex and HIV Education Programs on Sexual Behaviors of Youth in Developing and Developed Countries (2005)
Sex and HIV education programs that are based on a written curriculum and that are implemented among groups of youth in school, clinic, or community settings are a promising type of intervention to reduce adolescent sexual risk behaviors. This paper summarizes a review of 83 evaluations of such programs in developing and developed countries.
Educate Girls: Fight AIDS (2005)
Accelerating Efforts to Achieve Universal Basic Education: A Critical Component of the Global AIDS Response (2005)
Advocacy Brief on Education and AIDS
Creating an Enabling Environment for the Advancement of Women and Girls (2006)
A Briefing Paper to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women at its 50th Session
Keeping the Promise: Five Benefits of Girls Secondary Education (2006)
Data and analysis on the importance of educating girls in developing countries
Girls Cant Wait: Why girls education matters, and how to make it
Briefing paper for the UN Beijing +10 Review and Appraisal
Equals: Issue 18, August - November 2006 (2006)
Newsletter for Beyond Access: Gender, Education and Development
Global AIDSLink: Girls and HIV - A New Epidemic in the Women of Tomorrow? (2007)
Issue 101, January/February 2007, Monthly publication published by Global Health Council
Preventing HIV in Young Women and Girls (2006)
Failing Our Children: Barriers to the right to education (2005)
Girls schooling in Tanzania: the key to HIV/AIDS prevention? (2006)
From AIDS Care - Volume 18, Number 8 / November 2006, pp 863 - 871
Facing the Future Together (2004)
Report of the Secretary-General's Task Force on Women, Girls and HIV/AIDS in Southern Africa.
Educate a Woman, Educate a Nation (2003)
Literacy, Gender and HIV/AIDS Series
Improving the Education Response to HIV and AIDS (2008)
This report synthesises case study exercises undertaken to examine the quality, effectiveness and coordination of the education sectors response to the HIV epidemic in four countries Jamaica, Kenya, Thailand and Zambia.


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InformationWeek is part of the Informa Tech Division of Informa PLC
This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them.Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 8860726.
Acxiom Buys Chinese BI Firm The data-management and services company buys a Shanghai-based provider of data-management, business-intelligence, and CRM services to Asian and global companies.
IT Confidential: Spim, Spam, Spyware, And The Flu Vaccine 'Popping a pill from a spammer is akin to online Russian Roulette.'
Ballmer's Linux Spin Microsoft's CEO argues that Windows is cheaper and more secure than its open-source rival. Do the facts support him?
Business Technology: Microsoft And Its Blind Spot: Linux Steve Ballmer's letter to customers said nothing about the widespread reality of tens of thousands of Microsoft customers who are eager to deploy BOTH Windows and Linux.
Linux More Expensive? Maybe Something about this time of year makes me even more suspicious of spin than usual. So when I read Steve Ballmer's e-mailed message to customers and partners, I wanted to find out a little more about the research he used to defend his position against Linux.
Here Car! Good Car! Moody cars and "neuromarketing" make some nostalgic for old-fashioned technology.
California City Relieved It Has E-Mail Archives Requests for access to Oceanside's municipal E-mail often spike during an election year. So the city's CIO created an archive system that he says is serving him well this year.
New Customers Boost I2's License Revenue The supply-chain app vendor is improving its profitability with sales to new customers and by cutting its expenses.
Taking Stock: Slow And Steady ADP Wins Earnings Race Back-office processing for many firms often runs on ADP support.
Pipeline Axentis, Corticon, and SAS lead our harvest of important releases.
Without Safety Nets Will super-efficient supply chains take one beating and fail to keep on ticking?
On The Horizon: Securing Borders With Information Analysis Risk-assessment and supply-chain analysis are paramount to safety.
Starwood's Mainframe Is Ready To Check Out Hotelier embarks on 7-year, $100 million deal with HP to upgrade reservation system
HP, SAP Team On Service Companies offer ERP applications package for small and midsize businesses
Sam's Club In Line For RFID-Tagged Products Wal-Mart extends use of the technology to its warehouse store chain
Acxiom Acquisition Opens Door To China Expansion The data-management and services company buys a Shanghai-based provider of data-management, business-intelligence, and CRM services to Asian and global companies.
Doctors Get New Data Source To Improve Care Electronic tool can access patients' prescription information from insurance claims
Marine Corps Revamps Troops' Supply Chain Military branch rolls out Oracle's enterprise apps to simplify supply operations
RFID's Payback Stretches Beyond 2 Years, Analyst Says Early adopters may find it hard to speed up the ROI on RFID deployments.
Quick Fix For Corrupted Disks A new appliance lets companies save on the high costs of sending corrupted drives out for repair.
Secret Service Busts Cyber Gangs Operation Firewall nets 28 suspects allegedly involved in online fraud and conspiracy.
Growth Of IT Economy Modest At Best--Gov't Report A Commerce Department report sees good news and bad news, amounting to a near stall over the last 12 months.
Downplaying Upgrades and Other Mistakes of the 21st Century Our interconnected world forces application users to face reality: It's time to upgrade.
IT's Contribution To GDP Hits Bump IT investments account for 4.8% of economic growth, the lowest contribution rate in six quarters.
The Post-Merger Pervasive With more native drivers than ever, Pervasive Software's data integration suite packs a punch.
Wal-Mart Takes RFID To Sam's Club The retailer will soon begin putting RFID-tagged cases and pallets in its chain of club outlets.
Scoping Out The Real Costs of RFID Much of the focus surrounding the cost of RFID has been on the price of RFID chips or tags. But implementing a fully functional RFID system incurs multiple costs including technology, consulting, recurring fees and many others. By some estimates, costs for big companies can be $25 million for mandate compliance.
Hospitals Get New Data Source To Reduce Medical Errors Emergency rooms in several Massachusetts hospitals are using a new electronic tool to access patients' prescription information from insurance claims to improve safety and quality of care.
Full Text of Microsoft "Comparing Windows with Linux and UNIX" Letter Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer this week sent a letter to customers outlining the reasons it believes Windows is superior to Linux. This is the full text of that letter.
Next Up, MP3 Video? The holy grail for MP3 players is to build in color screens and wireless connectivity so that users can navigate directly to online digital music and video services. But that's easier said than done given cost, size and ease-of-use challenges.
Phishing Expedition Set To Enter Second Phase The next chapter in the battle against phishing focuses on defining technical and operating requirements for banks, investigating technical anti-phishing approaches, and deploying customer education and enforcement.
VF To Use Alien's RFID Technology Under a three-year deal, the clothing manufacturer will use Alien Technology RFID tags and readers to track shipments to retailers.
SmartAdvice: Small Banks Should Use An ASP And Their Agility To Differentiate Service As more banking moves online, small and midsize banks must use their agility to keep customers, The Advisory Council says. Also, Google has to sharpen its focus to be competitive in enterprise search; and a CIO must develop staff leaders to enhance the business.
CA's Open-Source Ingres Now Available The company is shipping the open-source database for Linux and Windows to revive its usage.
Emergency Rooms Get New Data Source To Reduce Medical Errors Emergency rooms in several Massachusetts hospitals are using a new electronic tool to access patients' prescription information from insurance claims to improve safety and quality of care.
R U Compliant? Sarbanes-Oxley Act compliance is nothing if not a real-time challenge. Creating a good information flow among potentially hundreds of stakeholders requires a new influx of technology, including solutions based on instant messaging.
Metrics Development: Taking It From the Top The biggest challenge in performance management often comes right at the beginning: metrics definition and development. Here are ideas to get strategic initiatives (and top executives) moving.
People Power Organizations can only go so far to improve performance before they must address their most important asset: the workforce. Competitive forces are pushing managers to look beyond HR and ERP systems and embrace performance management.
Surrounding the ETL Requirements Make sure you know your requirements before getting started on ETL.
More Than Pie Charts Business intelligence is too important to be limited by outdated presentation and visualization.
Marines Revamp The Supply Chain That Serves Troops The branch is rolling out Oracle's enterprise apps to streamline its supply and logistics operations.
Congratulations, Mr. Internet! This Is Your Life. NYU economics professor Nicholas Economides finds that the best way to describe the Internet is to look at the industries it's displacing.
The New Frontier Innovation performance management: Is it a myth... or mandate?
The Many Faces of Workforce Management HR, now seen as strategic, is the focus of application innovation.


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Key Votes
HR 3962 - Health Care and Insurance Law Amendments - National Key Vote
Mike Castle voted Nay (Passage) on this Legislation.
Read statements Mike Castle made in this general time period.
Related Legislation
- H Amdt 509 - Prohibiting Federally Funded Abortion Services
- H Amdt 510 - Substitute Health Care and Insurance Law Amendments
Issues Related to HR 3962
Stage Details
Legislation -
Bill Passed
(220-215) -
Nov. 7, 2009(Key vote)
See How Your Politicians Voted
Title: Health Care and Insurance Law Amendments
Vote Result
Yea Votes
Nay Votes
Vote to pass a bill that amends various statues related to health care and heath insurance coverage, including, but not limited to, the establishment of a public health insurance option and a Health Insurance Exchange Program, an individual mandate to purchase insurance, a surcharge on the adjusted gross income of individuals in the top income tax brackets, prohibiting insurers from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions, a gradual elimination of the Medicare Part D coverage gap ("donut hole"), and an expansion of Medicaid eligibility.
Public Option and Health Insurance Exchange
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a public health insurance option that includes basic, enhanced, and premium benefit plans beginning in 2013, and specifies that enrollment in the public health insurance option is voluntary (Secs. 321 & 329).
- Appropriates $2 billion for the purpose of establishing the public health insurance option, and requires the amount be repaid over a 10-year period beginning in 2013 (Sec. 322).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish geographically adjusted premium rates for the public health insurance option that are consistent with the premium rules established by the Health Choices Commissioner and at a level sufficient to finance the administrative costs and health benefits provided by the public health insurance option (Sec. 322).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate payment rates for the public health insurance option that are not lower than rates under Medicare and not higher than the average rates paid by other entities offering health benefit plans (Sec. 323).
- Establishes a national Health Insurance Exchange program for the purpose of facilitating access to a variety of health benefit plans, and requires the Commissioner of the Health Choices Administration to do the following (Sec. 301):
- Negotiate and enter into contracts with entities offering health benefit plans to participate in the Health Insurance Exchange;
- Establish standards for entities offering health benefit plans through the Health Insurance Exchange;
- Perform outreach and enrollment in such plans of Exchange-eligible individuals and employers;
- Establish a risk pooling mechanism and consumer protections; and
- Perform other required activities related to the Health Insurance Exchange.
- Specifies that all individuals are eligible for coverage through the Health Insurance Exchange, unless he or she is enrolled in a health plan through an employer or has some form of "acceptable coverage" (Sec. 302).
- Defines "acceptable coverage" as the following (Sec. 302):
- Coverage under a qualified health benefit plan;
- Grandfathered health insurance coverage, meaning coverage that is offered and effective before the effective date of the Health Insurance Exchange, or coverage under an existing group health plan;
- Medicare or Medicaid coverage;
- Coverage for members of the armed forces and dependents (including Tricare);
- Coverage under the Veteran's Health Care Program; and
- Other health benefits coverage, including a State health benefits risk pool, that is recognized by the Health Choices Commissioner, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, as being "acceptable coverage."
- Requires the Health Choices Commissioner to solicit bids from entities to offer health benefit plans through the Health Insurance Exchange, and requires the Commissioner to negotiate the premiums and affordability of such plans and deny any "excessive" premiums and premium increases (Sec. 304).
- Specifies that individuals without coverage through an employer or through Medicare or Medicaid shall be eligible to enroll in the Health Insurance Exchange Program beginning in 2013, and business shall be eligible to enroll in the Exchange according to the following schedule (Sec. 302):
- 2013: small businesses with up to 25 employees;
- 2014: small business with up to 50 employees; and
- 2015 and subsequent years: small businesses with up to 100 employees, and larger employers meeting standards set by the Health Choices Commissioner.
- Establishes the Health Insurance Exchange Trust Fund for the purpose of funding the Health Insurance Exchange, and requires that the revenue from the following taxes be deposited into the Fund (Sec. 307):
- Taxes on individuals without "acceptable coverage";
- Taxes on employers who do not elect to provide coverage to employees; and
- Excise taxes on employers who elect to provide coverage to employees and fail to meet coverage requirements.
- Authorizes 2 or more states to form a Health Care Choice Compact that would allow individuals to purchase health insurance offered in other states beginning January 1, 2015 (Sec. 309).
- Requires the Health Choices Commissioner to establish a Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO-OP) program for the purpose of providing grants and loans to non-profits that establish health insurance cooperatives that provide insurance through a federal or state health insurance exchange program, and appropriates $5 billion for this purpose for the period of fiscal year 2009-2010 through fiscal year 2013-2014 (Sec. 310).
- Specifies that health care providers participating in Medicare are participating providers in the public health insurance option, unless they opt out in a process established by the Secretary of Health and Human Services with the following minimum guidelines (Sec. 323):
- Providers must be able to opt out 1 year prior to the effective date of the public option;
- No provider will be penalized for opting out;
- Providers who chose to opt out must be given information on how they may opt back in; and
- Providers can decide if they would like to participate or opt out during an annual enrollment period.
- Specifies that individuals currently enrolled in an Exchange-participating health benefits plan may be eligible for "affordability credits" that can be applied against the premium and as a reduction in cost sharing, and establishes the following eligibility requirements for the credit (Secs. 342-343):
- The individual is not enrolled in their employer's Exchange-participating health benefits plan;
- The individual has a modified adjusted gross income below 400 percent of the Federal poverty level;
- The individual is not eligible for Medicaid;
- The individual does not have acceptable health coverage"; and
- The individual can provide verification of their legal right to reside in the United States, and requires anyone applying for such credits to sign a declaration to this effect.
- Specifies that "affordability credits" for premiums for the year of 2013 shall be calculated on a sliding scale as follows (Sec. 343):
- For incomes between 0 percent and 150 percent, a premium percentage between 1.5 percent and 3 percent, and an out-of-pocket limit of $500;
- For incomes between 150 percent and 200 percent, a premium percentage between 3 percent and 5.5 percent, and an out-of-pocket limit of $1,000;
- For incomes between 200 percent and 250 percent, a premium percentage between 5.5 percent and 8 percent, and an out-of-pocket limit of $2,000;
- For incomes between 250 percent and 300 percent, a premium percentage between 8 percent and 10 percent, and an out-of-pocket limit of $4,000;
- For incomes between 300 percent and 350 percent, a premium percentage between 10 percent and 11 percent, and an out-of-pocket limit of $4,500; and
- For incomes between 350 percent and 400 percent, a premium percentage between 11 percent and 12 percent, and an out-of-pocket limit of $5,000.
- Requires the Commissioner to adjust the premium percentages for the "affordability credits" beginning in 2014 (Sec. 343).
Insurance Regulations
- Prohibits health insurers from rescinding coverage unless there is an occurrence of fraud (Secs. 103 & 212).
- Prohibits health benefits plans from excluding individuals from coverage due to preexisting conditions or providing only limited or conditional coverage because of health status, medical condition, claims experience, receipt of health care, medical history, genetic information, evidence of insurability, disability, source of injury, or "any similar factors" (Sec. 211).
- Prohibits insurers in individual and groups health care markets from imposing lifetime limits on benefits payable under their coverage (Sec. 109).
- Establishes the following minimum services to be covered by a health benefits plan (Sec. 222):
- Hospitalization;
- Outpatient hospital and clinic services, including emergency department services;
- Professional services of physicians and other health professionals;
- Services, equipment, and supplies incident to the aforementioned professional services;
- Prescription drugs;
- Rehabilitative and habilitative services;
- Mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatments;
- Preventive services;
- Maternity care;
- Well-baby and well-child care and oral health, vision, and hearing services, equipment, and supplies for children under 21 years of age; and
- Durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and related supplies.
- Requires health insurers to offer coverage for children of an insured individual who are under 27 and are not enrolled in any other health insurance coverage beginning January 1, 2010 (Secs. 105 & 216).
- Requires that insurers offering health coverage in small or large group markets to maintain a medical loss ratio of no less than 85 percent, and applies the same limit to coverage offered in the individual insurance market, unless the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that this would destabilize the existing individual market (Sec. 102).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to work with the states to establish a process for the annual review of premium increases for health insurance coverage beginning in 2010, requires insurers to submit a justification for premium increases prior to their implementation, and requires public disclosure of information related to such increases and their justifications (Sec. 104).
- Limits variation in premium rates based on age so that the ratio of the highest age-based premium to the lowest age-based premium does not exceed 2 to 1 (Sec. 213).
- Prohibits group health plans from reducing benefits for a covered individual after the individual's retirement if the reductions do not also apply to covered individuals who are not retired, unless the employer can "reasonably" demonstrate that meeting the requirement would impose an "undue hardship" (Sec. 110).
- Extends COBRA continuation coverage for individuals receiving such coverage on the effective date of this Act until the individual becomes eligible for "acceptable coverage" or for coverage through a federal or state health insurance exchange, whichever occurs first (Sec. 113).
- Requires all health care and related services covered by this bill to be provided without regard to individual characteristics that are not related to the "provision of high quality health care or related services" (Sec. 252).
- Prohibits employers from discharging or otherwise discriminating against any employee with regards to compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because the employee engaged in one of the following actions (Sec. 253):
- Providing, causing to be provided, or intending to provide to the employer, the federal government, or the attorney general of a state information relating to any real or perceived violation of any provision of this bill;
- Testifying or intending to testify in a proceeding concerning such a violation;
- Assisting, participating, or intending to assist or participate in such a proceeding; or
- Objecting to or refusing to participate in any activity, policy, practice, or task that is "reasonably" believed to violate a provision of this Act.
- Repeals the exemption of federal antitrust laws for health insurers and medical malpractice insurers, and specifies that this provision shall not apply to the following (Sec. 262):
- Collecting, compiling, classifying or disseminating historical loss data;
- Determining a loss development factor applicable to historical loss data; or
- Performing actuarial services if doing so does not involve a restraint of trade.
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a temporary national high-risk pool program to provide health benefits to eligible individuals beginning in 2010 and ending when the Health Insurance Exchange is established (Sec. 101).
- Specifies that the following individuals are eligible for coverage under the high risk pool program (Sec. 101):
- Individuals not eligible for benefits under Medicare, Medicaid, or SCHIP, or an employment-based health plan (not including a COBRA continuation provision), but who is eligible under existing laws guaranteeing coverage for certain individuals with prior group coverage (U.S. Code Title 42, § 300gg- 41) or is determined to be medically eligible, meaning the following:
- During the 6 months prior to application for the high-risk program, the individual was denied coverage because of a preexisting condition or health status;
- During the 6 months prior to application for the high-risk program, the individual was offered coverage under terms that limit coverage for a preexisting condition or at a premium rate that is above that of the high risk pool coverage; or
- The individual has an eligible medical condition as defined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
- The spouse of an individual who meets the above requirements;
- Individuals that have not had health insurance coverage for at least 6 months prior to application for the high-risk program; or
- Individuals that on or after October 29, 2009 had employment-based retiree health coverage with an annual increase in premiums that exceeds the threshold set by the Secretary of Health and Human Services as being excessive.
- Appropriates $5 billion for the high risk pool program, and authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make adjustments such as reducing benefits, increasing premiums, or establishing waiting lists if the amount of funds proves to be insufficient during any fiscal year (Sec. 101).
- Prohibits funds authorized or appropriated by this bill from being used to pay for any abortion or to cover any part of the costs of a health plan that includes abortion coverage, unless the woman would be placed in danger of death without the performance of an abortion or the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest (Sec. 265).
Employer and Individual Mandates
- Establishes a 5.4 percent surcharge tax on income that exceeds the following (Sec. 551):
- $1 million for individuals (not corporations); or
- $500,000 for married individuals not filing a joint return.
- Establishes an excise tax on the first taxable sale of medical devices equal to 2.5 percent of the sales price (Sec. 552).
- Requires employers who elect to offer health insurance to provide coverage for the employee and employees' family, and if the employee elects to use their employer's health benefits plan, then employers must contribute 72.5 percent of the premium of the lowest cost individual coverage offered and 65 percent of the premium of the lowest cost family coverage offered (Secs. 411 & 412).
- Specifies that for each employee who declines employer based coverage and instead enters the Health Insurance Exchange, employers must contribute a percentage of the average wages paid during the employee's enrollment to the Health Insurance Exchange Trust Fund as follows (Sec. 413):
- 0 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is $500,000 or less;
- 2 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $500,000 but no more than $585,000;
- 4 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $585,000 but no more than $670,000;
- 6 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $670,000 but no more than $750,000; or
- 8 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $750,000.
- Requires employers that choose not to provide health insurance coverage for their employees to pay an excise tax equal to the following percentages of wages paid (Sec. 512):
- 0 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is $500,000 or less;
- 2 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $500,000 but no more than $585,000;
- 4 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $585,000 but no more than $670,000;
- 6 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $670,000 but no more than $750,000; or
- 8 percent of wages paid when annual payroll is more than $750,000.
- Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to asses a $100 fine for each day an employer purposefully fails to provide health coverage, provided that the employer elected to provide health care cover to their employees (Secs. 421 & 423).
- Specifies that employers electing to provide health coverage but have failed to do, but are found to have exercised "reasonable diligence" and could not have known employees were not covered, will receive the following (Secs. 421 & 423):
- A written notification from either the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of the Treasury, or the Secretary of Health and Human Services, of a failure to provide health coverage to employees; and
- If resolved within 30 days of discovering that such failure existed, no penalty will be incurred; or
- If failures "due to reasonable cause" are not resolved within 30 days, a penalty not exceeding 10 percent of the total amount paid or incurred by the employer (or former employer) during the preceding 1-year period for group health plans or $500,000, whichever is less, in addition to any excise taxes the employer may already owe.
- Specifies that individuals who do not obtain an "acceptable" form of health care coverage must pay a tax of 2.5 percent of the excess of the taxpayer's modified adjusted gross income over the amount of the taxpayer's gross income, an amount that cannot exceed the national average premium for self or family coverage (Sec. 501).
- Specifies that dependents, documented non-resident immigrants, citizens living outside of the U.S., individuals living in U.S. territories, and citizens from recognized religious sects with conflicts of "religious conscience" shall not be required to pay an excise tax for failure to obtain "acceptable coverage" (Sec. 501).
- Requires individuals to report on their tax returns, in addition to other required information, the names, addresses, and taxpayer identification numbers of each individual covered under the taxpayer's health care policy, and the length of time each individual has been covered under such policy (Sec. 501).
- Provides certain small business owners with a health coverage credit of up to 50 percent of the employer's qualified employee health coverage expenses for the taxable year for 2 years (Sec. 521).
- Increases the penalty for a non-qualified withdrawal from an individual's health savings account from 10 to 20 percent of the payment withdrawn (Sec. 533).
- Specifies that the following medical services provided to Native Americans shall be excluded from gross income (Sec. 545):
- Health services or benefits provided or purchased either directly or indirectly by the Indian Health Service;
- Medical care provided by a Native American tribe or tribal organization to a Native American;
- The value of accident or health plan coverage provided by a Native American tribe or tribal organization for medical care to a Native American; and
- Any other medical care provided by a Native American tribe that supplements, replaces, or substitutes programs and services provided by the federal government.
Medicare and Medicaid
- Eliminates the coverage gap under Medicare Part D that separates the limit on initial coverage and the coverage for catastrophic care ("donut hole") by 2019 as follows (Sec. 1181):
- 2010: $500 increase in the initial coverage limit;
- 2011: initial coverage limit shall be increased 8.25 percent times the out-of-pocket gap amount;
- 2012: initial coverage limit shall be increased 4.5 percent times the out-of-pocket gap amount;
- 2015: initial coverage limit shall be increased 6 percent times the out-of-pocket gap amount;
- 2017: initial coverage limit shall be increased 7.5 percent times the out-of-pocket gap amount;
- 2018: initial coverage limit shall be increased 8 percent times the out-of-pocket gap amount; and
- 2019: initial coverage limit shall be increased 8 percent times the out-of-pocket gap amount, or other percentage as may be necessary to close the gap entirely.
- Requires drug manufacturers to provide Medicare drug rebates for any covered Part D drug to individuals for which payment was made by a Prescription Drug Plan Sponsor under Part D or a Medicare Advantage Organization under Part C, including payments made through low-income and reinsurance subsidies (Sec. 1181).
- Requires drug manufacturers to provide individuals subject to the Medicare Part D coverage gap with a discount of 50 percent on specific drugs beginning January 1, 2010 (Sec. 1182).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate with manufacturers regarding the prices of Part D drugs, including discounts, rebates, and other price concessions (Sec. 1186).
- Increases the maximum amount of resources that an individual or married couple filing jointly may have in order to be eligible for the Medicare Savings Program or the Part D Low-Income Subsidy Program ("assets test") from $10,000 to $17,000 for singles, and from $20,000 to $34,000 for married couples filing jointly (Sec. 1201).
- Prohibits Medicare Part D cost-sharing for full-benefit dual eligible individuals that are receiving care under a home and community based waiver who would otherwise require the level of care provided in a hospital, nursing facility, or intermediate care facility for the mentally disabled (Sec. 1202).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to reduce Medicare rates of payment to hospitals by specific amounts based upon their rates of "excess readmission" for 3 conditions selected by the Secretary with readmission measures that are endorsed by the National Quality Forum beginning in fiscal year 2010-2011, and requires the Secretary expand the number of conditions beginning in fiscal year 2012-2013 (Sec. 1151).
- Eliminates cost sharing, including co-insurance and deductibles, for preventative services covered by Medicare, including, but not limited to, the following (Sec. 1305):
- Prostate and colorectal cancer screenings;
- Diabetes screenings;
- Diabetes outpatient self-management training services;
- Glaucoma screenings;
- Medical nutrition therapy services;
- Initial preventative physical examinations;
- Cardiovascular screening blood tests;
- Ultrasound screenings for abdominal aortic aneurysm;
- Federally approved and recommended vaccines;
- Mammography screenings;
- Pap smear and pelvic exam screenings;
- Bone mass measurements; and
- Kidney disease education services.
- Reduces Medicare Advantage rates of payment over the course of 3 years until they are equal to traditional Medicare fee-for-service levels beginning in 2011 (Sec. 1161).
- Extends the authorization of the Secretary of Health and Human Services to adjust Medicare Advantage rates of payment to reflect differences in coding patterns between Medicare Advantage Plans and Medicare Part A and Part B plans for each year after 2010, whereas existing law only authorized the Secretary to do so through 2010 (Sec. 1162).
- Expands Medicare Part B coverage to include all federally approved and recommended vaccinations that are covered by Medicare Part D (Sec. 1310).
- Repeals the 36-month limitation on Medicare coverage of immunosuppressive drugs for kidney transplant patients beginning January 1, 2012 (Sec. 1232).
- Expands Medicare coverage to include voluntary advanced care planning consultations between enrollees and practitioners no more than once every 5 years, unless there is a significant change in the health or health-related condition of the individual, and specifies that such consultation may include, but is not limited to, the following (Sec. 1233):
- Explanation of advance care planning, including a review of key questions and considerations, advance directives, including living wills and durable powers of attorney, and their uses;
- Explanation of the role and responsibility of a health care proxy and of the continuum of end-of- life services and supports available, including palliative care and hospice, and benefits for such services and support; and
- Explanation of physician orders regarding life sustaining treatment or similar orders in States where such orders exist.
- Expands Medicaid eligibility to include individuals under 65 years of age with incomes that do not exceed 150 percent of the federal poverty level, including adults without children or a disability, and specifies that the federal government will compensate the States for 100 percent of the costs of covering these individuals in 2013 and 2014, and 91 percent of the costs in 2015 (Sec. 1701).
- Prohibits States from adopting eligibility standards, methodologies, or procedures for their Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) that are a more restrictive than than the eligibility standards, methodologies, or procedures that are effective on June 16, 2009 (Sec. 1703).
- Repeals the CHIP Program on January 1, 2014 (Sec. 1703).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit a report to Congress by December 31, 2011 that includes recommendations that are necessary to ensure that procedures are in effect for the enrollment of CHIP beneficiaries into a qualified health benefits plan offered through the Health Insurance Exchange or other coverage without interruption of coverage or a written plan of treatment (Sec. 1703).
- Requires State Medicaid programs to cover, without cost-sharing, preventive services that are recommended with a grade A or B by the Task Force for Clinical Preventive Services, vaccines recommended by the Director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and other preventative services deemed necessary by the Secretary of Health and Human Services for individuals eligible for Medicaid assistance beginning July 1, 2010 (Sec. 1711).
- Increases Medicaid rates of payment to primary care practitioners to 80 percent of Medicare rates in 2010, 90 percent of Medicare rates in 2011, and 100 percent of Medicare rates in 2012 and subsequent years (Sec. 1721).
- Specifies that all newborn children who otherwise do not have "acceptable coverage" are Medicaid eligible and shall receive such coverage until insured by another plan (Sec. 305).
Public Health and Workforce Development
- Establishes the Public Health Investment Fund to support specific public health programs, and appropriates $33.9 billion to this Fund for fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Sec. 2002).
- Authorizes an additional $12 billion in appropriations to community health centers for fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Sec. 2101).
- Increases the amount a member of the National Health Service Corps can receive in loan repayment benefits from $35,000 to $50,000 (and provides for annual increases to reflect inflation beginning in fiscal year 2011-2012, and authorizes Corps members to serve part-time if such members agree to 1 of the following contracts (Sec. 2201):
- Double the period of time necessary to fulfill service requirements; or
- Serve a minimum of 2 years and accept 50 percent of the waiver awarded to full time service members.
- Authorizes the appropriation of $349 million to the National Health Service Corps program for fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Sec. 2202).
- Authorizes additional appropriations of $1.40 billion to the National Health Service Corps Scholarships and Loan Repayment Program fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Sec. 2202).
- Establishes the Frontline Health Providers Loan Repayment Program to increase the number of health professionals in areas with a high need for health services and doctors, and specifies that an individual must serve for at least 2 years and must specialize in a health discipline that meets the designated area's needs in order to receive awards under the program (Sec. 2211).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish primary care training and capacity building programs that provide grants to accredited schools of medicine, especially for institutions with a record of training individuals from "disadvantaged backgrounds," institutions with a record of training a high percentage of individuals seeking to practice primary care medicine, institutions that have a record of placing graduates in under-served areas, and institutions that support teaching programs that address the health needs of "vulnerable populations" (Sec. 2213).
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to create programs that increase grants to students of general medicine, pediatric medicine, public health dentists and dental hygienists, and for medical residents in community-based settings (Secs. 2214 & 2215).
- Authorizes additional appropriations of $1.33 billion to carry out the grant programs specified in sections 2213, 2214, and 2215 (noted above) for fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Sec. 2216).
- Increases the limits on loan reimbursement payments for nursing students, including an increase in the limit on the aggregate of loans from all academic years for students from $13,000 to $17,000, removes the limit on awards for nursing students working towards a doctoral degree, and authorizes appropriations of $638 million for nursing programs for fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Sec. 2221).
- Establishes the Public Health Workforce Corps for the purpose of "ensuring an adequate supply of public health professionals throughout the Nation" and authorizes the appropriation of $283 million for the Corps for fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Secs. 2231 & 2235)
- Establishes a public health workforce training and enhancement program to plan, develop, operate, and provide financial assistance to public health training programs, especially those that train individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, those that train individuals in specialties experiencing public health professional shortages, those that train a high percentage of people serving in federal, state, local, or tribal government, and those that train a high percentage of people practicing in "underserved communities" (Sec. 2232).
- Increases the limit on educational loan funding for individuals from "disadvantaged backgrounds" training to serve as health professionals who agree to serve as faculty at eligible health professions schools from $20,000 to $35,000 per year (Sec. 2241).
- Establishes the Prevention and Wellness Trust to fund the national strategy adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services for improving the Nation's health through evidence-based clinical and community prevention and wellness activities, and authorizes the appropriation of $15.4 billion for the Trust for fiscal year 2010-2011 through fiscal year 2014-2015 (Sec. 2301).
- Requires chain restaurants with 20 or more locations to post nutritional information of menu items, including calorie content, on the menu (Sec. 2572).
Legislation - Introduced (House) - Oct. 29, 2009
Title: Health Care and Insurance Law Amendments
- John D. Dingell (MI - D) (Out Of Office)
- Robert E. 'Rob' Andrews (NJ - D) (Out Of Office)
- George Miller (CA - D) (Out Of Office)
- Frank J. Pallone Jr. (NJ - D)
- Charles B. 'Charlie' Rangel (NY - D) (Out Of Office)
- Fortney H. 'Pete' Stark (CA - D) (Out Of Office)
- Henry A. Waxman (CA - D) (Out Of Office)


text:
On Thursday and Friday, March 11 and 12, Hope College will host its 38th annual Model United Nations conference for high school students.
More than 700 students and faculty from the greater Midwest will compete in the various simulations, making the event the largest Model United Nations conference in Michigan. Acting as delegates from the 191 member nations of the United Nations in two General Assemblies, seven Security Councils, one International Criminal Court (ICC), and one Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the students will be faced with issues pertaining to the current international affairs.
Issues that will be included in this year's conference include the global energy crisis, natural disaster response, child soldiers/child labor, ethnic independent movements and violence against women.
The purpose of Model United Nations is to give high school students an opportunity to take on the roles of professional diplomats with the goal of achieving a particular country's national objectives while fostering a desired international consensus for real solutions to the questions facing them. HopeCollege's department of political science sponsors the event.
Participating students, with the help of faculty advisors, have been preparing for weeks for the conference by working to identify the current issue positions of countries they have selected to represent. Throughout the event, they will discuss with their peer delegates in order to attain solutions that they feel best resolve various international problems.
ECOSOC, Security Council and ICC members begin their sessions Thursday evening and continue throughout the day Friday. General Assembly members arrive Friday morning and will debate during the day.
In addition to the various sessions, students participating in ECOSOC, Security Council and ICC will attend an opening banquet Thursday. This year's keynote speakers will be Hope seniors Trena Thomas of Manassas, Va., and Selase Asamoa-Tutu of Accra, Ghana, who will speak about their international experiences.
The Model United Nations will conclude with an awards ceremony on Friday, March 12, in Dimnent Memorial Chapel. The featured speaker will be West Ottawa High School teacher Mike Jaeger, who runs Cultural Technological Environment Exchange, a program that aids development in West Africa, specifically making and sending computers to Cameroon. Jaeger will speak at 3:50 p.m., with the awards ceremony following. The public is invited to both the address and the ceremony, and admission is free.
The Hope College Model United Nations is organized by students in a political science course aimed at the understanding of international politics and the role of the United Nations in international disputes. The Hope students serve as session chairpersons and perform other administrative tasks throughout the formation and execution of the event.
The secretary generals for this year's conference are seniors Alison Benoit of Muskegon and Stephanie Bogema of Kalamazoo. The directors for Introductory General Assembly are senior Sarah Burrichter of Batavia, Ill., and junior Emma Porter of St. Charles, Ill.; for Advanced General Assembly are seniors Brooke Quisenberry of St. Johns, Meghan Scholl of Hillsdale and junior Rachel Syens of Holland; for Security Council are senior Mike McAuliffe of Northbrook, Ill., sophomore Amy Alvine of Elgin, Ill., and juniors Alyssa Zeldenrust of Winfield, Ill., and James Colton of Wheaton Ill.; for Economic and Social Council are sophomores Stewart Elzinga of Zeeland, and Jenna Taylor of Missoula, Mont.; and for International Criminal Court are sophomores Mikella Bryant of Chiang Mai, Thailand and Eduardo Ramirez of Mexico City, Mexico. Serving as media coordinator is junior Ann Malone of Sparks, Nev.
The faculty advisors to Model United Nations are Dr. Virginia Beard, assistant professor of political science, and Dr. Jack Holmes, professor of political science.