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Feds say no to N.J. boardwalk request
Denial of FEMA aid to repair Ocean Grove's boardwalk is a setback but will be appealed.
OCEAN GROVE, N.J. — Repairs to the severely damaged boardwalk here are in jeopardy now that the federal government has rejected a request for a little more than $1 million in aid.
In its decision, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said the boardwalk, destroyed in superstorm Sandy, did not qualify for federal aid because the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, considered a private nonprofit organization, owns it.
STORY: Many Jersey beaches open by May
STORY: Visitors chip in to rebuild one boardwalk
And that has Neptune Township officials concerned over how the Camp Meeting Association will be able afford repairs for the popular unincorporated summertime destination.
"The Camp Meeting is the largest single landowner in Neptune," Township Committeeman Randy Bishop said. "This type of a burden financially to them could put them in some very serious financial trouble. What happens if my largest landowner goes bankrupt?"
Estimates of the damage to the boardwalk, including destruction of the fishing pier at the south end of the half-mile section — range from $2.5 million to $3.5 million, Bishop said. He said he worries about the financial stability of the Camp Meeting Association, founded in 1869 by Methodists as a oceanside camp for summer revivals, if it is forced to pay for repairs.
Camp Meeting Association officials could not be reached for comment Wednesday. Plans detailed in mid-January on the association's website show that officials are moving ahead with a three-phase restoration plan for both the beach and boardwalk and knew it would be treated differently from municipalities in its quest for federal money.
Officials noted that FEMA has in the past awarded aid to repair the boardwalk here, most recently after the 1992 nor'easter.
Neptune Township Mayor Eric Houghtaling said the Ocean Grove boardwalk's placement is unique along the Jersey Shore.
"Ocean Grove is one of the few towns that really has a business district right up to the ocean," he said. "Our main street goes right up to the boardwalk. Everything is really centered toward looking out at the ocean at the boardwalk."
Bishop, who was mayor when superstorm Sandy destroyed the religious enclave's boardwalk, said FEMA's decision is "very short sighted."
"One of the unique things about the boardwalk is the boardwalk acts as part of the economic engine" in the region, he said. "People move between the various towns to make this regional economy. Any type of interruption is extremely detrimental to the overall area and the largest industry in New Jersey, which is tourism."
Bishop said FEMA's decision "is a setback, but as far as I'm concerned, it is not the end of the ask. We'll find a way to help them because it is so critical to the municipality."
State Sen. Jennifer Beck, a Republican from Red Bank, N.J., said in a news release that FEMA's decision is "not only disappointing, it is unacceptable."
"The Ocean Grove boardwalk serves as an essential public thoroughfare and connects Bradley Beach to Asbury Park," she said in the release. "It provides access to emergency services and augments flood protection measures. We will be appealing this ruling immediately.
"I am hopeful that in our appeal those making these decisions will see the long-term implications of this decision and realize that not only is the Ocean Grove boardwalk a public property but it is essential to both the safety and commerce of Ocean Grove and surrounding towns," she said.
While FEMA did approve aid to fix the community's boardwalk after the 1992 storm, the agency denied aid for it after Hurricane Irene in 2011.
The damage Hurricane Sandy wrought in Ocean Grove, N.J. Ken Serrano, Asbury Park (N.J.) Press
VIDEO: The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in Ocean Grove, N.J.


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Johanns to retire after single term
Nebraska Sen. Mike Johanns announced Monday that he would retire in January 2015, a surprise decision by a first-term Republican senator who was considered in a strong position for reelection next year.
The retirement of Johanns — a former GOP governor of Nebraska and one-time secretary of agriculture — gives Democrats a shot at a seat they ordinarily would have dismissed, but Republicans remain favored to hold the seat in a state that is reliably Republican.
Story Continued Below
Despite only serving one term, Johanns, 62, had begun to accrue seniority among an increasingly junior Senate Republican Conference, holding seats on prominent committees, including Banking and Agriculture. But after pushing for a major deficit-cutting deal in the last several years, the Republican has grown increasingly frustrated at Congress's perpetual stalemate and its inability to resolve major national problems. Johanns informed his staff and Republican Gov. David Heineman of his decision Monday morning, sources said.
The early retirement decision caught Republican leaders by surprise — given that he had signaled for months he had planned to run again. But the early announcement — the fifth senator to do so this cycle — gives both sides a chance to reassess the landscape ahead of 2014.
( Also on POLITICO: Johanns to support Hagel nomination)
In an emotional letter to constituents, Johanns said it is time to quit after more than three decades in public life.
"Words are inadequate to fully express our appreciation for the friendship and support you have given to us over the past three decades," Johanns wrote Monday in a letter to constituents, also signed by his wife Stephanie. "With everything in life, there is a time and a season. At the end of this term, we will have been in public service over 32 years. Between the two of us, we have been on the ballot for primary and general elections 16 times and we have served in eight offices. It is time to close this chapter of our lives."
Johanns and his wife added: "During these many years, we have cherished our time together. So as we think about the next stage of our lives, we want a quieter time with our focus on each other, our family and our faith. We are also confident that there will be many more opportunities to serve our state and our nation."
Nebraska remains firm Republican territory, with its three House seats all occupied by Republicans. But an open seat could give Democrats a shot in the red state that they probably would have written off had Johanns decided to run for a second term.
The announcement came as a shock to GOP insiders.
(PHOTOS: 37 pols retiring from Congress)
Attention immediately turned to Heineman, who succeeded Johanns as governor when he became agriculture secretary in 2005. Heineman term-limited and will be out of a job at the end of 2014.
"The 800-pound gorilla in the whole puzzle is the governor," said Nebraska Republican consultant Sam Fischer, a partner at Meridian Strategies. "Heineman would be an absolutely tier one candidate. … Until the governor really gives a direction one way or the other, I would think everybody else will have to think about it."

subset: commoncrawl


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The late Columbia University historian Richard Hofstadter was the author of the influential 1964 essay "The Paranoid Style in American Politics." At the time it was published Hofstadter's essay seemed to apply mostly to the denizens of the fever swamps on the right who thought that municipal water fluoridation was a Communist conspiracy. To whom does Hofstadter's thesis apply today? I'm not naming any names, so to speak, but you won't need my help after you read Deacon's brilliant Daily Standard column: "Paranoid, nous?"
UPDATE: Dr. Pat Santy writes:
Great article by Deacon! As a practicing psychiatrist, I have always been interested in the psychopathology in American politics. Recently I wrote on my blog (Dr. Sanity) a post titled "Paranoia Strikes Deep" – which you might find interesting.


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MasterCard's professional services arm has acquired a stake in analytics firm Mu Sigma, aiming at reaping the benefits of the growing big data services market.
Following the investment, the MasterCard Advisors division plans to develop analytics products for its clients across a number of vertical markets, combining its customer transaction data insights with the advanced analytics expertise provided by Mu Sigma. Terms of the deal with Mu Sigma, which is headquartered in Chicago, were not disclosed.
MasterCard said that it wants to gain a slice of the big data analytics market, which it highlights is valued at $5 billion (£3.1 billion), and set to grow to $50 billion (£31.6 billion) in the next five years.
As part of the deal MasterCard will gain access to Mu Sigma's 2,500 advanced analytics staff, with the credit card firm noting industry concerns over access to highly skilled big data staff.
"The data analytics market is rapidly growing as customers seek real time insight allowing them to better connect with their consumers through highly relevant products, offers and services," said Gary Kearns, executive vice president, Information Services for MasterCard Advisors. "By combining MasterCard Advisors' purchase behaviour insights with Mu Sigma's expertise we will be able to drive faster innovations in data analytics solutions and deliver them on a broader scale, globally."
Dhiraj Rajaram, CEO of Mu Sigma, said big data analytics is growing at a "tremendous pace".
"We believe the combination of MasterCard's deep data and information insights expertise when exposed to Mu Sigma's Big Data analytics ecosystem will add tremendous value to various businesses."


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Saturday, November 26, 2011
Dyed Batting
7 comments:
- gill said...
Some great ideas! I love the idea of dyeing wadding and a great use of scraps - no kool aid in the UK though so I'd have to use procion??
- November 26, 2011 at 7:01 AM
- Cheryl said...
I love these!!!!! Those are fabulous flowers! Ever sine I did my sister's wedding flowers, I love dimensional flowers. (just not making a wedding's worth!)
- November 26, 2011 at 5:06 PM
- Caren said...
Now THIS is my kind of crafting! Oh yes, I see KoolAid in the plans for my toddlers this week :)
gill - They don't sell Kool Aid in the UK? I can't even imagine that! (then again, I had never heard of Marmite until I was almost 30!)
- November 27, 2011 at 6:26 PM
- Susan Being Snippy said...
interesting concept - I would think that you could use the dyed batting for most things that you would use felt for -- by the way, there used to be a product called Freshie which was a competitor to koolaid -- was in Canada, maybe in the UK?
- November 28, 2011 at 5:49 PM
- Snoodles said...
Personally, I think we need to send gill a care package of kool aid flavors....didn't know they were so deprived in the UK. LOL
Love your flowers, Jackie - they are so cute! Did you sew or glue a pin on the reverse? I love these!
- November 29, 2011 at 7:10 PM
- My Sweet Prairie said...
Those are so prett! Great idea. :)
- December 3, 2011 at 3:45 AM
- Mama Pea said...
You can take the most mundane thing and make it amazing!
- December 16, 2011 at 6:03 PM


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Angela's Nature Inspired Bedroom
Like this entry? Favorite it below!
- Name:
- Angela
- Location:
- Toledo, OH
- Division:
- United States
- What do you love about your bedroom?:
- This is where I truly unwind and decompress---it's my haven. My favorite way to feel present is through nature -- especially the ocean -- so I decorated the room to feel like it was near the beach. I also love Asian decor, so I merged these two styles to create a sanctuary that helps me feel relaxed and renewed. These two styles complement each other quite nicely. I love the simplicity of the neutral color scheme combined with the attention to detail in the decor: the various textures found in the whitewashed bamboo blinds, the shelves, the baskets and bowls, the fabrics, etc. In this room, you're enveloped in crisp, clean whites yet the natural decor and muted tones create an earthy, grounding vibe.
- What are your tips for creating a beautiful, healthy and organized bedroom?:
- Another key aspect of this room is its Zen philosophy: no clutter, a slightly minimalist approach to the decor, and most items are stored out of sight. This creates peace of mind and fewer stubbed toes. I store my jewelry in various shaped kitchen bowls; these are kept on the white shelves so they aren't visually distracting. I also used woven baskets for only commonly used items/clothing. To ensure a peaceful, calming energy, I limit the number of electronic devices and the activities. There is no TV, radio or computer in here, no eating, no desk, no workout equipment. I like to balance the few electronic devices I have in here with houseplants. I also believe in waking up naturally with the daylight, so I use curtains that filter out some light but not too much. I find I wake up much more energized this way.
- In modern homes, bedrooms have become more than just a place to sleep; they can be a retreat, a home office, a library, a relaxation zone. What are some ways you make the most of your bedroom?:
- My bedroom's functions are pretty basic and this allows me to rest better. In keeping with the relaxing mode of the room, I do meditate and occasionally do some reading to prepare me for sleep.


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Howdy All,
Sally and I backpacked up to Little Round Valley for our first night. A bit before reaching the Marion Mt. trail junction, we heard an extremely loud "CRACK' and turned around to see the horrifying sight of a pine tree crashing onto the trail between us. There was no warning which was very scary. We camped at Thunderview in LRV and were able to filter water at LRV. The next day, we went cross country up to Newton-Drury peak, crossed Bed Springs and headed up the ridge to the beautiful plateau (which I call the Hikin' Jim plateau) east of Joycie Peak. After setting up camp, we went back to Bed Springs and filtered water. From that point, we were content to hang out and just "be" rather than bagging any more peaks. Next day, we went to the little saddle between Marion and Mt. Ellen (the Rockpile), dropped packs and head up. We signed the register box and enjoyed the gorgeous views -- it was a beautiful fall day. After saddling up, we took our time route finding to get back to Deer Springs trail. On our past two trips, we wound up in the Deer Springs drainage, lowering ourselves down rocks and fighting our way through chest high folage. Third time was the charm -- after channeling Hikin" Jim, we found a hassle free route back to the trail. Enjoyed a great dinner at the Lumberyard in Idywild before heading home.
Photos by Sally:
The infamous tree.
Sally at our camp in LRV.
Views from Hikin' Jim plateau on our second day.
Sunset on Hikin" Jim plateau.
View of San Gorgonio from Mt Ellen
Sally looking down from Mt. Ellen
The bloody blonde descending the Rockpile.
Miles of smiles,


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Tech Mini-Baja Team 41st At Nationals
BURLINGTON, Wisc., June 17, 2009 – The New Mexico Tech Mini-Baja team finished a disappointing 41st in the national competition last week, undone by a breakdown during the crucial endurance race.
"I don't think we did that bad at all," team leader Aaron Dawson said. "I think we learned a lot from it. We finished a little lower than we expected, but we gained a lot from the experience."
Rick Holets, the lone team member to graduate in May, said his time on the Tech Mini-Baja team was the most involved and most rewarding experience at the university. The four-day event concluded Sunday, June 13.
|The New Mexico Tech Mini-Baja team is (from left) Daniel Vickers, Matt Tibbetts, Dustin Schraeder, advisor Jake Scarborough, David Gerrells, Michael Belvin, Matt O'Keeffe, instructor Dr. Warren Ostergren, Rick Holets, mechanical engineering professor Dr. Ashok Ghosh, Nathan Cunninghamm and technical advisor Hollis Dinwiddie. Seated are team leader Aaron Dawson and team supporter Anjik Ghosh. Not pictured are team members Rick Garner, Nick Karler and Derek Nieman and volunteer Scott Gagan.
"It's more than an extracurricular activity; it's more like a way of life," he said. "I stayed in Socorro over breaks and over the summer to work on the project. I wouldn't have given it up for anything."
Holets and Dawson said a 41st place finish was a bit disappointing, but they were proud of the team's performance. Seniors on the team are Michael Belvin, Nathan Cunningham, Dawson, Rick Garner, David Boyd-Gerrells, Holets and Nick Karler. Juniors on the team are Matt O'Keeffe, Derek Nieman, Dustin Schraeder, Matt Tibbetts and Daniel Vickers. Freshman Scott Gagan was on the team as a volunteer.
Dawson, an Edgewood native, said the frame broke during the endurance race, sidelining the vehicle for 75 minutes. He said the vehicle suffered a broken "A arm" during the previous day's suspension and traction road test. That damage directly contributed to the frame breaking.
"We hit a rock in the middle of the course during the suspension and traction test," Dawson said. "One of the A arms broke and we believe that either fatigued or cracked the frame. That crack in the frame lead to a catastrophic failure during the endurance race."
Dawson said he was impressed with the entire team's response to the breakdown. Crew chief Daniel Vickers and all the seniors directed the repair efforts to get the vehicle back on the track. The team feverishly welded and re-sleeved the frame. They also had to re-seat a tire and fix a broken tie-rod coupling.
"We all saw the car broken and we immediately headed to the pits," Dawson said. "It was really impressive how well everyone worked together."
The mechanical engineering team spent all year designing and building their off-road vehicle for the Society of Automotive Engineers annual event. Dawson said the team functioned as a cohesive engineering team all year, but they always remembered that once they reached the competition they would function as a race team, not as design engineers.
Holets said, "We worked as hard as we could and as quickly as we could to get it running. Some teams would have given up. Not us. We don't give up."
The team was near its goal of a top 10 finish heading into the final day, just needing a top finish in the four-hour endurance race. After two technical inspections, three static judging and five dynamic tests, the Tech team stood in 29th place.
"In the overall spectrum, we're competing with 120 teams," said Holets, a native of Rio Rancho. "So, 41st isn't too bad. I feel that our car could have done better, but some times things don't work out."
In the final four-hour endurance test, the Tech team finished in 56th place, falling to 41st overall. They earned 161 points out of 400 available in the endurance race. A top 5 finish in the final event would have propelled the Techies to 12th overall.
On the strength of a 19th place ranking in the overall design, the Tech team was 28th after the static events. The design presentation was worth 200 points and Tech scored 157.392 points. The team was 37th in cost and 57th in the technical inspections.
In the other dynamic tests – each of which were worth 60 points – the Tech team finished in the middle of the pack: 31st in acceleration, 43rd in maneuverability, 23rd in the mud bog, 33rd in the tractor pull and 59th in traction and suspension.
The endurance race was worth 400 points and Tech lost significant ground to the competition. New Mexico Tech scored 165.22 points and dropped 13 places to 41st overall.
Oregon State won the competition, with Centro Universitario Da FEI of Sao Paolo, Brazil, in second and South Florida in third.
New Mexico Tech's placing, while not as stellar as the students hoped, was still very respectable. The Tech team finished ahead of many larger schools: Central Michigan (42nd), Northern Arizona (43rd), Virginia (57th), Michigan State (65th) and Arizona State (74th).
By Thomas Guengerich


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Thanks for participating in our 2013 celebration!
We know that all Century Homes participants are passionate about your homes and heritage issues in general, and we want to keep this passion alive!
We're going to try something a bit different in 2014 and let YOU take over from here.
Follow the steps below for a D.I.Y. (Do It Yourself) approach to Century Homes!
- If you already have a banner and have done your research, you're good to go! Simply put up your sign and banner in front of your house for Historic Calgary Week (July 25 to August 4), or consider leaving it up year round
- If you already have a banner, and want to do some research, click here for a list of resources.
- If you would like to join in 2014 and want to have a banner and a house sign, there is still a limited supply available. Email us and remaining inventory will be distributed on a first come, first served basis.
- For information about this and other heritage events taking place in the city, please check out the Calgary Heritage Initiative website


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In its August update to the Atlantic hurricane season outlook, released today, NOAA's Climate Prediction Center projects an 85 percent probability of an above-normal season - up from 65 percent in May.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, issues its August outlook at the start of the peak months of the Atlantic hurricane season - August through October - and includes activity over the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico.
Streets flood and power is out in Welasco, Texas as Hurricane Dolly blows through. July 23, 2008. (Photo by Barry Bahler courtesy FEMA)
Forecasters say they adjusted their prediction due to atmospheric and oceanic conditions across the Atlantic Basin that favor storm development combined with the strong early season activity.
"Leading indicators for an above-normal season during 2008 include the continuing multi-decadal signal - atmospheric and oceanic conditions that have spawned increased hurricane activity since 1995 - and the lingering effects of La Nińa," said Gerry Bell, PhD, lead seasonal hurricane forecaster at NOAA's Climate Prediction Center.
The updated outlook includes a 67 percent chance of 14 to 18 named storms.
Seven to 10 of those storms are expected to become hurricanes, including three to six major hurricanes of Category 3 strength or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Scale.
These ranges encompass the entire hurricane season, which ends November 30, and include the five storms that have formed to date.
In May, the outlook called for 12 to 16 named storms, including six to nine hurricanes and two to five major hurricanes.
An average Atlantic hurricane season has 11 named storms, including six hurricanes and two major hurricanes.
Bell explained that conditions favoring a forecast of more hurricanes include "reduced wind shear, weaker trade winds, an active West African monsoon system, the winds coming off of Africa and warmer-than-average water in the Atlantic Ocean."
Another indicator favoring an above-normal hurricane season is a very active July, the third most active since 1886. Even so, said Bell, there is still a 10 percent chance of a near normal season and a five percent chance of a below normal season.
The NOAA forecast is in line with a new prediction of increased hurricane activity from meteorologists at Colorado State University.
Philip Klotzbach and William Gray said Tuesday, "We foresee a very active Atlantic basin tropical cyclone season in 2008. We have raised our forecast from our early June prediction. We anticipate an above-average probability of United States major hurricane landfall."
"We expect full-season Atlantic basin Net Tropical Cyclone (NTC) activity in 2008 to be approximately 190 percent of the long-term average," said Klotzbach and Gray.
"We have raised our seasonal forecast from what was predicted in early April and early June. This is due to a combination of a very active early tropical cyclone season in the deep tropics and more favorable hurricane-enhancing sea surface temperature and sea level pressure patterns in the tropical Atlantic," they said.
By the numbers, the Colorado forecasters differ somewhat from the NOAA predictions, but the general trend is the same.
"We estimate that the full 2008 Atlantic basin hurricane season will have about 9 hurricanes (average is 5.9), 17 named storms (average is 9.6), 90 named storm days (average is 49.1), 45 hurricane days (average is 24.5), 5 intense (Category 3-4-5) hurricanes (average is 2.3) and 11 intense hurricane days (average is 5.0)."
The probability of U.S. major hurricane landfall for the remainder of the hurricane season is estimated to be about 130 percent of the long-period average," said Klotzbach and Gray.
Hurricane Dolly damaged homes and businesses on South Padre Island, Texas. (Photo by Jacinta Quesada courtesy FEMA)
NOAA's hurricane outlook is a general guide to the expected level of hurricane activity for the entire season. NOAA does not make seasonal landfall predictions since hurricane landfalls are largely determined by the weather patterns in place as a hurricane approaches.
Five named storms have formed so far this season.
Tropical Storm Arthur affected the Yucatan Peninsula in late May and early June.
Bertha was a major hurricane and the longest-lived July storm on record, lasting from July 3 through 20.
Tropical Storm Cristobal skirted the North Carolina coastline.
Dolly made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane at South Padre Island, Texas on July 25 with 120 mile per hour winds and heavy rain.
And on August 5, Tropical Storm Edouard struck the upper Texas coast.
"It is critical that everyone know the risk for your area, and have a plan to protect yourself, your family and your property, or to evacuate if requested by local emergency managers. Be prepared throughout the remainder of the hurricane season," Bell said. "Even people who live inland should be prepared for severe weather and flooding from a tropical storm or a hurricane."
Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2008. All rights reserved.


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Weekly Torah Commentary: Perashiyot Tazria Metzora- Holiness as a Surface
by: Mark Kirschbaum on April 25th, 2012 | 1 Comment »
Michel Foucault, in his 'Discourse on Language' states:
I am supposing that in every society the production of discourse is at once controlled, selected, organized, and redistributed according to a certain number of procedures, whose role is to avert its powers and its dangers?
Foucault identifies a number of excluded areas of discourse found in contemporary society, such as sexual speech, or speech not residing within the truth values of currently accepted paradigms of science. This week we will see how the textual commentators identify and characterize a more fundamental type of problematic speech, the pathology it evokes, and steps that can be taken towards prevention and healing.
I. Marked and Marketing:
Our textual portion begins:
'This is the Torah of the Metzora, the tzara't patient on the day of his purification; he shall be brought to the Kohen'
The Midrash initiates its investigation of this verse with an oft quoted word play, where the unusual word 'metzora' (commonly translated as leper, though it is clear that is not the affliction described here) is viewed as an acronym for 'motzi shem ra', gossip or slander. The anecdote used in the Talmud regarding the motzi shem ra, the malignant gossip, is that of an itinerant peddler, a 'rochel', who like the snake oil peddlers of the nineteenth century, wandered among the towns around Zippori, proclaiming 'who would like to buy the life elixir'?. The Midrash tells us that R. Yannai joined in with the gathering crowd, and tried to purchase some of this elixer from him. The peddler pushed him away, explaining that this product is not intended for people like R. Yannai, but R. Yannai persisted, and the peddler pulled out the book of Tehillim opened to verse 34:13 which reads: 'who desires life should prevent himself from speaking evil'.
In other words, this peddler was an early example of a public health marketing campaign. R. Yannai is then quoted as responding:
'all my life I have read this verse but did not comprehend it until this peddler revealed it to me'.
The Midrashic link of this anecdote to our perasha is in teaching that this odd word, metzora refers to one afflicted and cast out of the camp because of the sin of slander, so that the Hebrew word metzora is read as an acronym for 'Motzi Shem Ra'.
The message of the anecdote is clear, don't gossip, but upon reflection, what did the peddler actually teach R. Yannai? For as the Mei Hashiloach points out, the peddler's comments contain no novel hermeneutic insight; he simply recites the verse, which is readily available and fairly self-explanatory; we may assume it is a verse with which R. Yannai would have been well acquainted and there's no hidden reading of the verse presented by either party!
What was so transformative for R. Yannai according to R. Zadok Hacohen of Lublin (presented in Pri Zaddik on Ki Tisa, 103: ) was the actual encounter with the peddler, a fleshed-out 'living' example of a textual source. How so? According to the Mei Hashiloach, as quoted by R. Zadok , the message to R. Yannai was contained in the peddler's lived example.
The peddler, the 'rochel' wandered from town to town carrying out this anti-slander campaign, because the peddler himself was marked as a result of the sin of slander- he had himself become deterritorialized as a result of slander, the very same slanderous language he was now preaching against. From personal experience, he understood the rupturing effect that slander has on the community structure having become himself marked and excluded from the normal stability of society as a result. And how does R. Zadok know that this peddler was once a gossip who repented? Because the text refers to the man as a 'rochel', a peddler, which contains within it the same root form of 'rechilut', slander, gossip! Thus, there is something within the essence of this virulent speech activity, which inherently leads to displacement and estrangement from the community.
II. Dis-placed Speech
Judith Butler, in Excitable Speech, argues that even insinuations present in speech acts alone can already be damaging and destructive to society. The Ben Ish Hai in his Aderet Eliyahu provides a vivid example of how minor translocations of speech and action contain within them the capacity for what I label as "dis-location", that is a movement away from normal place of being with a negative connotation.
He reads the rite of the metzora's purification, as a means of aligning proper action with proper intentionality. The text tells us that two birds are brought by the metzora. One bird is meant to signify improper actions, the class of improper actions that draws attention to itself, thus obvious like the tall cedar wood brought in the rite alongside the birds. The other bird symbolizes improper thoughts, which are more subtle and covert (like the moss also incorporated into the metzora's offering), thought having been corrupted by the metzora's improper speech acts. Thus, there is a reciprocal interaction between speech act and inner consciousness, with the end result being a cycle of corruption mandating a sacrifice.
A striking passage in the Ben Ish Hai's commentary on this text is that regarding the cloth also brought in the rite, called in Hebrew 'tolaat shani', which symbolizes, through a halachic teaching, the dislocation directly caused by malignant speech- a tolaat, a worm, is halachically only not-kosher if it has 'crawled on the earth'- that is, a worm that hasn't moved from within a fruit is still technically OK. But, if there are lines of movement in the fruit, then there is a chance that the worm crawled around to the outside of the fruit rendering the worm unkosher. To prove how such slight changes in language or wormhole tracings can produce a qualitative change in state, the Ben Ish Hai suggests an experiment. No individual is disturbed by the presence of the spittle contained in one's own mouth, but if an individual is asked to produce some spittle onto a spoon, and then asked to return their own spit to their own mouths, the individual will feel uncomfortable and even made ill by the thought. Thus also speech, produced in the mouth, when it is out of place, can lead to dis-placement in the speaker and the surrounding community.
It is important to note that there are two terms in Hebrew for malignant speech . More commonly, the phrase 'lashon hara', evil speech is used as a translation for gossip. Here, due to the play on words with metzora, an alternate phrase, motzi shem ra, has been used. The literal meaning of the term is 'to produce a bad name' about someone. There are halachic differences between lashon hara and motzi shem ra, one is taken to imply circulating an unpleasant truth about someone, the other to slander someone falsely.
The Beer Mayim Hayim suggests that the words Motzi Ra, which literally means to 'extract evil' implies a different psychological process than does lashon hara, its reflects a faulty epistemological approach of the individual to the world, the individual is one who 'extracts evil' from the world around him or her. Acting 'ra' means to create evil, but to be motzi ra implies more of a character trait, a way of perceiving the world in a negative fashion, a way of seeing in which one finds and extracts the bad from within every circumstance. The difference between the two is that this trait is subject to a cognitive transformative approach; there is, as it were, a therapy for it.
The Beer Mayim Hayim presents such a therapeutic approach, the initial stage of which is reminiscent of the Surangama Sutra. He states that as a first corrective one must get away from seeing the world as a set of desires by seeing the nastiness and emptiness of desire; how even the most tasty food will end up as waste product, or how even the most beautiful human being will eventually become naught but dessicated bones, etc.
When one learns to extract this kind of inevitable degeneration from within the external appearance, teaches the Beer Mayim Hayim, one can then work upon seeing a more profound inner beauty within all existence, and thus train ones' self to locate the 'ultimate' holiness and beauty, the aspect of the divine within each existing being.
In other words, after one learns to extract the Nothing from within existence, one can learn to see the divine within that sustains even the Nothing. With this approach, then, he reads the verse quoted at the beginning of this piece, 'v'huva el hacohen', 'he shall be brought to the Kohen', as: the evil and corruption itself is elevated, is brought up, is sublated to the level of priestly holiness; the verb 'v'huva', 'it is brought'; the "it" is taken to referring to this erroneous way of looking at the world, rather than referring to the individual. 'Dis-placing vision', the cognitive approach which sees reality only in a corrupted view, becomes elevated to the level of what we may call 'kohen vision', seeing through eyes attuned to finding holiness in all things.
The Sefat Emet, speculating about the aforementioned two birds brought as part of the metzora sacrifice, suggests that they represent two conflicting drives within the individual, the 'good inclination' and the 'bad' one. In actuality, this is not a dualistic reading, rather, they are both perceived as equal components of the human theo-psychology and essential for human existence in the correct balance. The Talmud (at the end of tractate Sukkah) tells the story of how one time the Rabbis decided to abolish the yetzer hara for sexual desires (the overpowering drive for idolatry so central to Biblical admonition narratives was already apparently abolished). The Rabbis were successful in this enterprise, so successful, in fact, that there were no eggs to be found in the market the next day, implying that the Rabbis had abolished a drive essential for natural existence, and thus they returned and undid their previous action (though they left a residual 'wound' in lust to at least decrease the yearning for incest). Thus, so called 'baser drives' are not intrinsically 'evil'; what is critical is keeping the drives in their proper place and balance, and using them for good. Thus, within the individual, the avoidance of locational and existential dis-placement comes as a result of proper placement and alignment of the different forces within one's self.
The Sefat Emet (in year trm'z), thus reads the external, skin related description of the blemish afflicting the metzora as representing a boundary, a sign of personality flaw that inhibits and represses the individual's true self, that locks him or her into destructive, improperly balanced behavioral patterns. Thus, the Torah's recommendation of isolation as treatment for this imbalance- after a mandatory period of solitary introspection, the former metzora learns to see his/her truer inner self, and the healing process begins.
This healing is represented by the inclusion in the sacrifice of the birds; birds sing, thus implying metonymically that the slanderer has discovered a new voice, that he sings a new more beautiful tune…
III. Being, Community, and Dis-placement
However, the path of the metzora leads not only to a ritual sacrifice and an individual repentance, rather, he is sent out of the camp until the resolution of the symptoms and only then the rites are performed. The dis-location of a proper drive appears to threaten communal life, it is viewed as a rupturing divisive force in society. Why should this be? Is it not enough to repent personally, and then be absolved? What purpose or lesson is inherent in this exile from the community?
Perhaps the text means to teach us to stop thinking of ourselves as only individual selves, as a personal repository of Being in relationship with the Divine as the primary mode of individual spiritual and personal attainment. In contemporary Theory, this position of the individual in contact with Being is associated with the writings of Heidegger who argues that the central concern of the individual is the relationship to Being, which needs to be discovered and appropriated.
Particularly due to the work of Levinas, and his emphasis upon the centrality to self-constitution of the Other, the pendulum has swung in the entirely opposite direction, to a recognition of the primacy of community to formation of the individual. Here is Jean-Luc Nancy, in his recent 'Being Singular Plural' (pp 34):
…what is at stake is no longer thinking:
-beginning from the one, or from the other,
-beginning from their togetherness, understood now as the One now as the Other,
-but thinking, absolutely and without reserve, beginning from the 'with', as the proper essence of one whose Being is nothing other than with-one-another [l'un-avec-l'autre]…
Nancy argues that the whole lesson of the 'creation' story is that all existence appears concurrently, this is the true meaning lurking behind the idea of creation ex nihilo, and thus there is no primacy to Being before world.
'That which exists, whatever this might be, coexists because it exists' (pp 29).
Thus, the importance of community and social justice is in a sense primary to personal 'presence', as in essence, Being is constituted by the community. 'A world is a multiplicity of worlds' (pp 185)- For community is not added to existence. Community is not some proper consistency and subsistence of existence as it stands apart from it: existence has such only as the sharing of community.
'Coexistence does not happen to existence; it is not added to it, and one can not subtract it out: it is existence' (pp 186)
For this reason, there can be no constitution of the self without the community.
Prior to 'me' and 'you', the 'self' is like a 'we' that is neither a collective subject nor 'intersubjectivity', but rather the immediate mediation of Being in '(it)self', the plural fold of the origin. (pp 94)
Thus, there can be no personal perfection without a societal perfection, for the two are, essentially identical. This recognition of the primacy of community to individual being is also well articulated in the 'post-colonialist' work of Homi Bhabha, who argues that 'culture' per se is formed not within the personal, but in the 'intervening space', the borderline:
The borderline work of culture demands and encounter with 'newness' that is not part of the continuum of past and present. It creates a sense of the new as an insurgent act of cultural translation. Such art does not merely recall the past as social cause or aesthetic precedent…
Returning to the metzora, the Sefat Emet (in trm'ch) argues that the casting out of the motzi shem ra, is not a punishment or a ritual process, but rather a 'Torah of distance' a lesson that the metzora must learn- the sobering experience of the loss of normal society.
The slanderer has, in essence, formed a rupture in the community, leading to someone becoming separated from those around him or her, thus, the slanderer must experience just what the loss of community entails for the individual.
It is interesting, to contrast this with a concept particularly prevalent in contemporary spiritual circles, that a personal relationship with God is the highest goal of the spiritual life, and this relationship must be sought in retreats, in solitude, and in personal meditation. However, in Hassidic thought, we see reflected an interdependence of the individual and the collective as the apogee of the spiritual.
The Mei Hashiloach points out that the unmediated gaze of Gd experienced by the metzora outside of the camp is not the goal of normal healthy spiritual activity, rather it is invoked exclusively as a corrective, as a treatment for spiritual disease such as the metzora, who is cast out of the machaneh, out of the camp, out of normal society; it is everyday society, built upon the healthy 'we', that is the greater level and goal of spiritual attainment. The purpose of the solitary, unmediated experience of God's gaze in isolation is only to allow a reintroduction of the individual back into society, which is where the more desirable spiritual activity of the individual within the community takes place.
The Tiferet Shelomo states this directly in explaining why the lesion of the Metzora is found specifically on the skin, at the surface: on the one hand, because the error of the slanderer is capable of being healed, it is, so to speak, external to the individual's core being, and not at the core of the self, hence surface as exterior; but on the other hand, the Tiferet Shelomo recognizes the nature of 'skin as surface' as reflecting an emphasis on the Other, the intersubjective and the 'being singular plural…" that is, the skin, the skin as surface, the skin as surface capable of reflecting the flaws of an individual vis a vis society, implies an interactive surface, the interactive space between the self and the Other, and it is at this surface that holiness lies.
(special thanks to Dr. Rachel Neis)


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PRAGMA FINANCE est une société spécialisée en recouvrement de créances et gestion des impayés. Depuis 1979, nous accompagnons les entreprises dans la gestion de leur poste clients et plus particulièrement en matière de : Recouvrement amiable et judiciaire Gestion externalisée des comptes clients Enquêtes et renseignement commercial PRAGMA FINANCE met au service de ses clients des solutions personnalisées et innovantes de recouvrement des impayés.
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Ethelreda Lewia
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About this Item
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Title: Mantis
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: 1929
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Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine – Professional Education
Penn State College of Medicine and Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center are committed to establishing and maintaining high-quality Graduate Medical Education training programs.
Contact us
To learn more about educational programs in Anesthesiology, call
Our institution provides the diverse patient population, dedicated faculty, excellent clinical and basic science departments, and nationally recognized research programs required to create an environment optimal for learning and for the development of future leaders in the art and science of medicine.
We offer a variety of anesthesiology residencies and fellowships, including:
- Anesthesiology Residency
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We also offer state-of-the-art anesthesia continuing education programs.
See more about all of these opportunities below.
Residencies and Fellowships
Find more information about all of our residency and fellowship programs.
Anesthesiology Residency
The Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine residency program at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is a four-year, ACGME-accredited program that admits 17 PGY-1 residents per year.
Explore Anesthesiology Residency
Anesthesia Critical Care Fellowship
The Anesthesia Critical Care Fellowship at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is a one-year (12-month) ACGME-accredited program that admits one fellow per year.
Explore Anesthesia Critical Care Fellowship
Anesthesia/Pain Medicine Fellowship
The Anesthesia/Pain Medicine Fellowship at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is a one-year (12-month), ACGME-accredited program that admits three fellows per year.
Explore Anesthesia/Pain Medicine Fellowship
Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship
The Cardiac Anesthesia Fellowship at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is a one-year, ACGME-accredited program that admits one fellow per year.
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The four-week anesthesiology electives are designed to build upon your past Anesthesiology clerkship/elective experience and provide you with a stronger foundation in anesthesiology. We invite you to become a part of the department and look forward to providing you with a Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey perspective.
Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine Continuing Education
A variety of anesthesiology, perioperative medicine and pain management continuing education programs are held throughout the year. When available, registration links will appear below.


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Corporations are sitting on $1.7 trillion in cash, but are they ready to start spending? Not yet, says one top market strategist.
Russ Koesterich, global chief investment strategist for BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), said concern about demand from U.S. consumers is holding back business investment. Companies are being more conservative with their cash because people aren't spending money.
Continue Reading Below
"We won't see a big surge in business spending until we see a surge in consumer spending," Koesterich said. "You can explain one-third of business investment by looking at personal consumption."
Personal consumption expenditures -- a measure of household spending -- for the past two quarters came in below the long-term average of 3.4%, Koesterich said. Consumption expenditures rose 1.6% in the third quarter of 2012 and 1.5% in the second, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Businesses won't make big capital purchases "until they feel better about the nation's finances. Until we get a resolution on the budget issue, there's still a prospect that taxes can change and have an impact to businesses directly or to consumers," said Wells Fargo Senior Economist Mark Vitner.
He's forecasting a 2% growth rate for capital spending in 2013.
The deal reached by Congress to avoid going over the fiscal cliff left the economy with a lot of fiscal drag and unanswered questions on the automatic spending cuts known as sequestration and the budget resolution to fund the government, Koesterich adds. "They avoided the nightmare scenario, but left CEOs and CFOs with too much uncertainty," Koesterich said.
Smaller Paychecks and GDP
Koesterich sees the U.S. economy growing at 2% this year, with most of it in the second half of the year because of growing downside risks in the first quarter. Vitner's outlook for economic growth is more grim: he's forecasting a 1.7% GDP growth rate for 2013.
Both Vitner and Koesterich say smaller paychecks will be a headwind to growth in the first quarter. The two-year payroll tax holiday didn't make the cliff deal and as a result, the tax paid by workers for Social Security rose to 6.2% from 4.2% on Jan. 1.
"Lack of real income growth, and Social Security taxes, may cost consumers to pull back in the first quarter. We'll likely see it the soonest at places like restaurants, things people can easily cut back on," says Vitner. (In 2011, median household income was $50,054, according to the Census Bureau. This was 1.5% lower than in 2010 and 8.1% less than in 2007-- a year before the recession.)
"It's important to see how smaller paychecks and lack of a normal tailwind from tax refunds are changing both consumer attitude and behavior," Koesterich said.


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Notice to Members 06-68
SEC Approves Amendments to Rule 2340 to Allow DVP/RVP Customers to Elect Not to Receive Account Statements
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved amendments to Rule 2340 that permit customers whose accounts are carried solely for the purpose of execution on a DVP/RVP (delivery versus payment/receive versus payment) basis to opt out of receiving customer account statements.1
The effective date of this rule change is November 22, 2006. Included with this Notice is Attachment A, the text of amended Rule 2340.
Questions concerning this Notice may be directed to Susan M. DeMando, Associate Vice President, Financial Operations, Department of Member Regulation, at (202) 728-8411.
1 See Exchange Act Release No. 54811 (Nov. 22, 2006), 71 FR 69161 (Nov. 29, 2006) (Order Approving Proposed Rule Change; File No. SR-NASD-2006-066).
This rule change is similar to a rule change proposed by the New York Stock Exchange, Inc. (now known as New York Stock Exchange LLC). See Exchange Act Release No. 53826 (May 18, 2006), 71 FR 30211 (May 25, 2006).


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These colors are making me SWOON.
Now about that almost 2grand pricetag.... what can we do about that?
(playing the lottery)
All these available at Opening Ceremony.
the suede! ooooh the suede!
i was trying to convince myself yesterday that i could have a ps1.
turns out 2k is a lot of fucking money, boo. we need to find life sponsors!
Life sponsor sounds so much better than sugar daddy.
Life sponsor>sugar daddy, indeed!
I wish the last one was patent!
oh god, i love these too. i want to live in them.....
uuuh!!I really need this one!
If a college professor walked in on the first day of class carrying one of these, you know he'd be cool, and that you might wind up doing drugs w him later.
The suede one are gorgeous!
i ahhdore this bag, i saw it in tan....its even better in blue!
Great color AND shape. I love how they're not overdone with straps and pockets like some bags can be. The suede one is my favorite!!! Maybe we can all pool our money and share one. Who's in? ; )
- Catherine at Littlehouse of Style
Yes yes yes yes, especially the last one.
Oh my. These purses will be in my dreams.
Oh my. These purses will be in my dreams.
The first is my fave!
Tavi and I picked out these exact 3 bags! I still wish the teal (my dream!) was in a patent. I would drop dollars like sand through my fingers for this gorgeous piece of skin.
omg i love open ceremony's website, it's way cute! and that last bag? temptationnnnnn! ):
These bags are gorgeous! Middle one is my favourite!


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My Profile
Contact Me
Welcome to Shinkara Connection
Shinkara Connection
is versatile and dynamic. Here you will find a trilogy of love in an alternative healing practice which has evolved into a beautiful blend of Christianity, Non-Physical Helping Spirits and Shamanism. Through years of training in Christianity, Shamanism, and communicating with her helpers in non-physical, Joana Shinkara Morris developed many methods of healing. Joana feels this is her mission in this life. Her spiritual awareness (Connection) produces unique ways in which to hold healing for another. Her connection with her non-physical helping Spirits produces an insight into the life of each individual she connects with. She opens new ideas of thought, and assistance in letting go of non-helpful activities or habits one may possess. Even just to ask questions you may have wondered about, the trilogy is present.
Shinkara Connection is perfect for everyone of every age. English is required for those of you who live in other parts of the world and could use healing help, spiritual consultation, Shamanism healing, learn about their life plan or just want to learn new techniques. Joana Shinkara is located in the USA, in the Midwest and serves all walks of life with her modality of healing and teachings. Her offerings have been engaged remotely in 10 countries with successful results. She delights in working with the public in any way she can. Listed on this website is her profile, a few of her modalities, and a few of her most popular workshops. Below are some responses from others regarding their experiences with her connection. The workshops can be as inclusive as four days or as minimal as one day. With the flexibility Joana exhibits, she can create the time and space for whatever a person wants in the arena of her work. The service she does is pronounced by her to be fun and profound. When you ask her for an appointment you always receive all of her trilogy of connection, automatically.
You are invited to peruse this website and determine if there is something here for you. Thanks for visiting Shinkara Connection and let us hear from you soon.
Spirit Home
My profile
Contact Me
What Others Have to Say About Shinkara's Connection
"Joana is always spot-on, like she hears the smallest, truest sound within me and brings the interaction to that level. It's so much easier to know freedom when you have someone speaking from the place where yours exists."
Corey Chambers, Huntsville, AL
"You are a very strong person with a wonderful sense of humor. Your intuition and intelligence seem endless. You have a warm wonderful maternal way and you seem to have this great endless energy. You've kept me on my toes without fail and you are not afraid of me or overcome by my Resistance. With your many guides and all you've learned, you've allowed and helped me heal by leaps and bounds and made it as fun and painless as possible. I think it is that little streak of wild in you that makes it so much fun."
Melinda Monks, Cape Elizabeth, ME.
A short note about Shinkara:
"I have known Joana Shinkara Morris for 20 plus years. At first I called her for readings and upliftment in my every day issues. Her readings always left me with a healthier outlook for my life. She is direct and channels Spirit impeccably. I would not be where I am in my spirituality without the direction and help of Joana and her healing guides. Joana transcends the ordinary, assisting to bring the planet and the living elements into a clear and enlightened place. She supports the 5TH dimensional energy and assists with the re-alignment of the Earth's grid in the clearest and most loving way possible. Joana's intentions are always heartfelt and genuine. She is a healthy teacher/facilitator in that she has done her own work as well as assisting where she is needed or guided to be. The light just fills up any space she enters as she carries it in such a beautifully gentle and giving way. She is non wavering in her dedication to bringing upliftment, love and clarity to her spiritual teachings, healing or her life. She is empowering, working with an intensity that is awe inspiring. Joana has earned respect, gratitude, love and friendship from me, as she will for you."
Diane Eide Deming, RN, CMT, Reiki Master/Teacher, Awakener, Waleska, GA.
"Dear Joana,
I want you to know that in the thirteen years that I've known you, that of the hundreds of healers, intuitives', mediums, and channels I know, there is no one I trust more to do healing and divination work for me than you. You are extremely gifted, honest, loving, and highly accurate with the information you provide from your wide circle of acquaintances in the world of Spirit. You quietly and humbly do your thing for your many clients without fanfare or publicity. Those who find you as friend or client are the lucky ones guided by Spirit. Without reservation I lovingly call you shaman and wise woman."
John Livingston, M.A., Spiritual Counselor and Angel Healer, Sedona, AZ
Live Life With A Fever of Love
© 2009 "Shinkara Connection"


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and then last tuesday, this tweet went up:
true story. funny thing is i had this magazine in my hands earlier in the day while at the dentist, but i skipped right over this to cut ahead to the article on lena dunham.
but i digress. for those of you who don't know. i graduated with a magazine journalism degree from syracuse, and my goal in life since the age of 16 was to work at vanity fair. it's the end-all, be-all magazine in my eyes, covering everything from business and politics to fashion and celebrity. led by longtime editor-in-chief graydon carter, they do it all, and they do it all well. between this and forbes, i'm reminded of what a crazy great year we've had. it gave me the refocus i've been needing to push myself, continue working on the everygirl - a job i love that i created for myself (ahem blog name shout-out ahem), and remind myself that i'm one part of something really special. and i'm really really lucky for all that. no, this bit of press wasn't a magic cure to feeling down, and yes, i've felt still felt a little blue and a lot exhausted since last tuesday (a redeye back from san francisco this weekend didn't help-never again.), but that is our brand and our names in my favorite magazine. and despite the hardships that i've faced the past six weeks, i have to keep telling myself, that's life. sometimes you're up and sometimes you're down. and in the words of miss ellie goulding,
i know it's gonna be alright."
p.s. i found that song from the season 2 trailer of girls, my new favorite comedy, which i wrote about today no the everygirl. check it out!


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Sun Visors - Rainbow and Navy
Sunvisor $20 each. Sold separately.
So light and comfortable to wear - no headaches caused by the sun visor clamping to your head, no 'hat hair' from hat bands.
Elastic can be removed for flat packing.
Perfect for golf, swimming, walking, jogging, tennis and beach.
Great gifts.
Colour of elastic may vary from the photo.
Light scrub with dish washing liquid to clean.


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DENY Andi Bird
Andi Bird Daddy O Black Quatrefoil Mirror
Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who's the fairest one of all? Well that's easy…the quatrefoil mirror collection, of course! With a sleek mix of baltic birch ply trim that's unique to each piece and a glossy aluminum frame, this mirror makes you feel oh so pretty every time you catch a glimpse.
- Baltic birch ply frame and high gloss aluminum printed front with UV resistant coating
- Quality glass mirror
- Mounting hardware included
- Custom made in the USA
- Estimated Ship Date: 5-10 business days
- This item is eligible for a return or exchange in new condition within 30 days
Small: 14" x 19" x 1"
Small inner mirror size: 11" x 8.5"
Medium: 22" x 29" x 1"
Medium inner mirror size: 16" x 12"
Andi grew up in an artistic family. Her father was an art director at a prominent advertising agency in Chicago and is now a well-known sculptor. Her mother was a fashion illustrator for the Chicago Daily News. With the support and encouragement of her parents, Andi started drawing at the age of four. Art became a positive addiction for this only child and it continued in grade and high school where she would draw and paint while listening to deafeningly loud rock music. After graduating from Carnegie Mellon University, with a fine arts degree, Andi felt a need to add graphic design, typography and textile designs to her portfolio and spent a multitude of hours working and perfecting those skills. Over the years she has worked as a graphic and textile designer in Sausalito, California and considers herself to be incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to spend her days doing the work she loves.


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It's nights like these where my confidence in the kitchen rises. And so does my love for my husband.
As I'm sure you've seen over the past couple years, I really don't cook. I would like to point out though, that although not perfect, my ability to present a plate or even manage in the kitchen, comes from countless hours of watching my husband. If you're ever wondering how to get your significant other into the kitchen, start them off slow. And make it really easy for them (they can't fail!) – little by little, they will learn.
Tonight my husband left me with a lovely surprise in the fridge. Fresh salmon cakes! Only they weren't quite ready to eat. Follow instructions below. The results were AMAZING!


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Carolanne McAfee
Principal Directory
Principal- St.Michael Catholic School, Weimar, TX
Carolanne McAfee, Principal at St. Michael Catholic School in Weimar, joined the Diocese of Victoria in 2011 as the 2
grade teacher. In 2013 she was selected as the new principal. Mrs. McAfee previously worked in the Lamar Consolidated School District for 10 years, where she served as a teacher, diagnostic teacher, and as a special education counselor. She has a Master's of Education degree from the University of Houston – Victoria and a Bachelor of Science degree from Texas State University. Mrs. McAfee also worked in records management for the Hermann Hospital system in Houston before entering the teaching field. Mrs. McAfee and her family attend St. Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church in Dubina, Texas, the mission church of St. Michael, Weimar.


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Toby Keith, Luke Bryan + More Added to 2013 Houston Rodeo Lineup
Toby Keith and Luke Bryan have been announced as performers for the 2013 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo annual event, joining fellow country superstar Jason Aldean. Pop superstar and 'X Factor' judge Demi Lovato is also booked as a big act at the much-anticipated rodeo.
Keith will kick off the popular music extravaganza on Feb. 25, with Aldean and Bryan scheduled to perform on March 11 and March 16, respectively. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo -- best known for their country-heavy line-ups, appropriately -- is expected to announce the remainder of their performer roster on Jan. 7.
As we previously reported, George Strait will close the multi-week event with a performance at Reliant Stadium. The retiring Texas country superstar will bid farewell to the long-running rodeo with his first appearance there since 2003, with Martina McBride and Randy Rogers Band on-hand to provide opening entertainment.
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is once again offering its usual partial season pass packages for fans hoping to take in as much of the 2013 lineup as possible. Keith and Lovato are part of Option A, and Aldean and Bryan belong to Option B. Upper-level ticket prices start at $154 for A and $146 for B.
Mini-season and season ticket packages are now on-sale by phone or by visiting the event's official website. Tickets for individual nights will be made available to the general public on Jan. 12.


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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Rain and snow have begun falling across California, as another winter storm touches down in the state.
California Department of Transportation traffic cameras showed snow on the ground in the Sierra Nevada on Tuesday morning. San Francisco Bay area commuters, meanwhile, were encountering rain showers.
The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning for the central and southern Sierra, where some areas could see as much as a foot of snow. A winter weather advisory was in effect further north. Snow resorts around Lake Tahoe could get up to 8 inches of snow.
The cold system from the Gulf of Alaska is also expected to drop snow at much lower elevations before moving out by Wednesday.


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Fit Guide
This style tends to run large. For an accurate fit we recommend purchasing a 1/2 size smaller than you typically purchase. For example, if you normally purchase a size 7 1/2, we recommend purchasing a size 7.
Brand: Keds
Style: Keds Champion Oxford Leather Sneaker
Color: Black
To email a friend about the Champion Oxford Leather Sneaker, Click here
To be notified when the Champion Oxford Leather Sneaker is available in your size, Click here
To be notified when new Keds styles are added, Click here


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Simple Moving Average (SMA) Analysis:
MPLX LP (MPLX) stock price 4.27% rising depiction highlighted by the trends created around 20 day SMA. The established trader's sentiment toward the stock has created a trading environment which can appropriately be designated as optimistic.
There has been rising change grasped around 50 day SMA. The stock price is showing 4.76% distance above 50 SMA. On the surface, it seems as the higher the 50-day moving average goes, the more bullish the market is (and the lower it goes, the more bearish). In practice, however, the reverse is true. The 50-day moving average is perceived to be the dividing line between a stock that is technically healthy and one that is not. Furthermore, the percentage of stocks above their 50-day moving average helps determine the overall health of the market. Many market traders also use moving averages to determine profitable entry and exit points into specific securities.
MPLX LP (MPLX) stock price recognized declining trend built on latest movement of 200 SMA with -0.94% during the course of recent market activity. This trend discloses recent direction. The up-to-date direction of 200 SMA is downward. When the price over the last 200 days is moving with increasing trend, look for buy opportunities and when it shows decreasing trend the price is below the last 200 days, look for sell opportunities.
Volume and Price Analysis:
MPLX LP (MPLX)'s shares price rose 0.82% with the closing value of $34.28 during Tuesday trading session. With latest rise move, stock price presented -12.13% downward comparing value from it 52-week high point and showed 21.05% rise in value from its 52-week low point. MPLX LP traded 1459561 shares at hands versus to its average volume of 2145.08K shares. Volume is usually displayed in charts as a series of histograms underneath the price. This is a useful form of presentation since it reflects expansions and contractions in activity. There are several key principles used in interpreting volume. It is important to understand that about changes in the level of volume it is referring to volume changes relative to the recent past. Here you can compare recent volume with average volume three month ago.
Volume should go with the trend: When prices are rising it is normal for volume to expand, and when prices are declining volume typically contracts. Volume leads price during rallies: It is normal for a peak in prices to be preceded by a peak in volume.
Profitability Analysis:
Several salient technical indicators of MPLX LP are now starting to make their way into the trading conversation. Every investor and other stake holder of firm are most concerned with its profitability. So to answer this concerns frequently used tools of financial ratio analysis is profitability ratios, which are used to determine the company's bottom line and its return to its investors.
Start focusing on ordinary profitability ratio which covers margins; MPLX has a profit margin of 25.10%. It has gross profit margin ratio of 56.20% for trailing twelve months and operating margin is calculated as 37.50%; these are a better detectors to find consistency or positive/negative trends in a firm's earnings. So upper calculated figures are representing the firm's ability to translate sales dollars into profits at various stages of measurement. To walk around the gross margin figure of firm that looks at how well a company controls the cost of its inventory and the manufacturing of its products and subsequently pass on the costs to its consumers.
Following in trace line of profitability ration analysis; second part is covering returns. The returns on investment amplify the findings, the firm's ROI concludes as 6.50%; it gives idea for personal financial decisions, to compare a firm's profitability or to compare the efficiency of different investments. The returns on assets of firm also on noticeable level, it has ROA of 6.90%, which signifies how profitable a firm is relative to its total assets.
Taking notice on volatility measures, MPLX LP has noticeable recent volatility credentials; price volatility of stock was 1.39% for a recent week and 2.37% for a month. Volatility measures the risk of a security. It is used in option pricing formula to gauge the fluctuations in the returns of the underlying assets. Volatility indicates the pricing behavior of the security and helps estimate the fluctuations that may happen in a short period of time. If the prices of a security fluctuate rapidly in a short time span, it is termed to have high volatility. If the prices of a security fluctuate slowly in a longer time span, it is termed to have low volatility.
Average true range (ATR) as a Volatility Pointer
A stock experiencing a high level of volatility has a higher ATR, and a low volatility stock has a lower ATR. The ATR may be used by market technicians to enter and exit trades, and it is a useful tool to add to a trading system. It was created to allow traders to more accurately measure the daily volatility of an asset by using simple calculations. The indicator does not indicate the price direction, rather it is used primarily to measure volatility caused by gaps and limit up or down moves. The ATR is fairly simple to calculate and only needs historical price data. ATR is a durable meat-and-potatoes type of indicator that can serve you well in your investing ventures. Range and volatility are fundamental concepts in technical analysis and true range comes up frequently, not only as a concept but also as the underlying calculation, in more complex indicators. ATR reflects the trading range, and knowing this can allow you to more accurately buy and sell into trends as well as set stops.. Its Average True Range (ATR) shows a figure of 0.88.
The relative strength index (RSI)'s recent value positioned at 61.84. The RSI's interpretations notify overbought above 70 and oversold below 30. The stock has a beta value of 1.27. When beta is less/more than 1, it can be read that the stock is theoretically less/more volatile than the market.
Analysts assigned consensus rating of 1.7. This rating scale created between 1 and 5. Analyst's suggestion with a score of 3 would be a mark of a Hold views. A rating of 1 or 2 would be indicating a Buy recommendation. A rating of 4 or 5 represents a Sell idea.


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Boy and His Dog Play an Awesome Game of 'Super Fetch' [VIDEO]
Think you've seen it all when it comes to a dog playing fetch? Trust us, you haven't. While playing in a fenced-off yard, a young boy hammers a softball onto his neighbor's property and his dog retrieves it in a remarkable way.
The dog has no problem at all scaling the fence, nimbly climbing the obstacle in one quick motion.
What happens next? You'll have to check out this game of "super fetch" below to find out. Prepare to be amazed.
[via BuzzFeed]


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West Ridge Guest House LLC
Each room decorated in a different decor. Some rooms with decks, fireplaces and whirlpool tubs. All rooms with TV, phone, and VCR.
Inn at Westwynd Farm B&B
So convenient, but a world apart, The Inn at Westwynd Farm is an unforgettable bed and breakfast experience midst rolling hills, horses, pastures overlooking Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Rose Manor B&B
Elegant English country manor-style ambience in Lancaster County
Hillside Farm B&B
Quiet, secluded, 1863 farm homestead B&B and cottages, in the heart of Amish country, entirely surrounded by working farms, overlooking Chickies Creek with dam and waterfall.
Mt. Gretna Inn
The original Arts & Crafts style Inn is dramatically sited in the historic community of Mt. Gretna, PA.
Stay at a Annville, Pennsylvania Bed and Breakfasts and Inns for the personal attention you desire. A Annville B&B is a great alternative to hotels or motels while visiting the state of Pennsylvania!
Visit our Annville, Pennsylvania bed and breakfast directory of historic, romantic, and adventure B&B's. You can browse through our detailed listings of Annville, Pennsylvania bed and breakfasts and inns with nearby city listings that include pictures, room rates, booking information and area activities. Every Annville, Pennsylvania b&b inns has complete contact information and a direct link to the innkeepers.


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August 2007 Archives
This summer, nine UMBC faculty members participated in a three-day digital storytelling workshop at UMBC. For the second time in two years, OIT and the New Media Studio brought experts from the Center for Digital Storytelling in Berkely to campus, giving faculty members an opportunity to learn the basics of creating digital stories while exploring possibilities for integrating new media into their teaching.
Joe Lambert and Stephany Sesse led the group through the writing and production process as each participant created a digital movie relating a short personal story. Faculty members included: Beverly Bickel, ELC; Steve Bradley, Visual Arts; Jason Loviglio, Media & Communication Studies; Nicole King, American Studies; Doug Hamby, Dance; Pat Scully, Education; Jody Shipka, English; Joan Shin, LLC; and Joby Taylor, Shriver Center. The workshop was conducted in the International Media Center with assistance from New Media's Bill Shewbridge. Several of the stories produced in the workshop can be viewed here:
|Steve Bradley
|Jason Loviglio
|The Fire
|Joby Taylor
|This I Believe: Mystery with a Capital "M"
|Jody Shipka
|Gonna Make You Sweat: Composing a History of 'this' Space (Windows Media)
|Nicole King
|Going Down South
|Pat Scully
|Our Family is Born!
|Doug Hamby
|My Big Sister Dianne
For more information visit Digital Storytelling @ UMBC.


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A Late night incident in the grocery store involving dogfood
Quite a few years ago, when I was single and happy, my best friend in the world was a 120lb dog named Spook. He was a Newfoundland/Shepherd mix, dumb as mud, loyal to a fault (If I jumped off a bridge, the next splash would be him) and just as sweet as a dog could be, everyone loved him and he loved everyone. He ended up with the name Spook, not becuase he was black, that would not be a good thing, but becuase I got him on Holoween when I was delivering flowers for a local garden center. His one big claim to fame was snatching Katherine Hepburn's walking stick out of her hand as she was walking up to my house (a whole another story).
So, one evening I was out at a local watering hole and stayed later than I had intended to. When I got home at about 2am and Spook met me at the door I could tell he was unhappy. He kept looking at the empty food bowl on the kitchen floor and back at me with a funny look in his eyes. Now, a 120 pound hungry male dog in the prime of his life is nothing to trifle with. I maintain dogs are higher on the food chain than humans. If we want to eat a dog, there is lots of prepwork that has to happen before it hits the plate. As far as the dog is concerned, we are pretty much good to go.
Fortunately, there was a 24 hour grocery store nearby, so off we went. I usually bought his food at a farm suppy store, feeding him was more like feeding livestock than a dog.
The store was almost deserted, one lone young femail cashier, and an older man stocking shelves, kind of eerie. I went to the dog food section and picked up a 50 bag of kibble. On my way to check out, I spotted a very large box of Captain Crunch, on sale. Now, munchies might have been involved, but I wanted what was in that box as much as Spook wanted what was in the bag slung over my shoulder.
So I proceed to the check out with my two items and put them on the counter. The bored young lady at the register kind of looked at me oddly. Now, I do not know where this stuff comes from, but I proceeded to explain to her that I had 6 children and what I do is feed the cereal to the dog and refill the Captain Crunch box with the kibble for the kids. Since they had never had the real Captain Crunch, they did not know the difference and I feed them for pennies a day. She took one look at me and realized I was pulling her leg, but what I had not noticed was the very well dressed middle aged woman who had come up behind me. I heard an audible gasp, followed by "that is the most disgusting thing I have ever heard and I am calling the police!". I turned around, and this woman had a look of disgust on her face like I had never seen before....kind of like she had just sat on something warm, wet, and squishy. I turned back to the cashier who was laughing so hard I thought I would have to go get paper towels.
So, the icing on the cake...I paid for my items, it was all the cashier could do to process the transaction, and grabbed the 50 pound bag of dog food and slung it over my shoulder where it prompty tore open and spewed kibble all over the place. The lady had mysteriously disappeared and the cashier was not laughing anymore. I gathered up what was left in the bag and slunk out of the store. Me and Spook had a nice kibble and Crunch dinner and I did not go back to that store for a very long time.
A few years later, I was in a restaurant, and a young lady came up to my table, took one look at me and said"dog food!" and started laughing...she told me she tells that story every chance she gets.


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Alec Weary of Bluffton placed first in the boys 11-14 division Sunday at the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour's Hilton Head National Junior Classic.
Weary posted a two-day score of 2-over par 144 to finish three shots ahead of Jamie Wilson of Mount Pleasant.
Weary's younger brother, Drew, tied for third with Mount Pleasant's Kent Lawrence at 15 over. Hilton Head Island's Alex Thaller (ninth) and Brooks Dyess (14th) also competed in the division.
Bluffton's Kasidy Beckel finished in a tie for second in the girls 15-18 division.
Beckel and Hardeeville's Stephanie Liu finished two shots behind Anita Uwadia of Nigeria. Uwadia attends the Junior Players Golf Academy on Hilton Head. Nathalie Lezcano of Hilton Head was fifth.
JPGA student Ewan Ferguson of Scotland won the boys 15-18 division. Classmate Oliver Lehman of Switzerland was third.
Last week's results
Results from the Men's White Tees tournament held Monday at Moss Creeek Golf Club (ABC scramble format): 1. M. Goodall, R. Siemms, J. Danneker (36).
Results from the Men's Day tournament held Tuesday at Moss Creek (individual stableford format): First flight - 1. Tom McNutt (38), 2. (tie) Tom Andreas, Don Nontelle (34). Second flight - 1. George Jones (36), 2. (tie) John Lozan, Dell Heney (33). Third flight - 1. Rich Sandquist (36), 2. (tie) Ted Patnaude, Paul Resetar (34). Fourth flight - 1. Bill Mott, (40), Tony Karnas (31), 3. George Solari (28).
Results from the Ladies Day tournament held Wednesday at Moss Creek (two-person scramble format): First flight - 1. M. Althans, M. Altizer (68); 2. S. Sommerstein, A. Harris (69). Second flight: 1. J. Minnch, M. Fulling (68); 2. K. Klingaman, McGuinn (69); 3. J. Silcox, J. Natale (71).
Results from the Ladies Nine tournament held Thursday at Moss Creek: Tee to green - 1. C. Griffith (24), 2. B. Wilson (25), 3. (tie) K. Myer, M.J. Reeves (26), 5. S. Burgoyne (27). Low putts - 1. (tie) S. Boppe, C. Griffith (14), 3. L. Eberly (15), 4. (tie) O'Connell, J. Heyboer (16).
Results from the Sun City 9-Hole Women's Golf Association Step Aside Scramble event held Monday: 1. Sandy Tooley, Sue Palmese, Marilyn Booher, Brenda Alberding. 2. (tie) Joyce Sargent, Bess Moran, Marsha Heisler, Mary Teague; Mary Morgan Hunter, Connie Davidson, Helen Triolo. 4. Diane Berlingo, Angela Puro, Pat Kemph, Jean Schmidt.
N.Y. Giant to participate in scholarship tournament
The 20th annual I.W. Wilborn Jr. Golf Classic will be held at 8 a.m. Feb. 16 at Golden Bear Golf Club in Indigo Run Plantation.
New York Giants defensive lineman Chris Canty will be this year's guest participant.
The entry fee is $255 per team or $85 per player. Registration deadline in Feb. 8. A team can have the opportunity to play with Canty for $500.
The tournament benefits the I.W. Wilborn Jr. scholarship fund. For more information, call Alex Brown at 290-5943.


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Before Hillary Clinton left her position as the U.S. Secretary of State, she set a lot of things in motion.
One of her initiatives, the Alliance for an Affordable Internet, will help poor countries gain access to the Internet. Tech companies like Google, Cisco, Yahoo, Intel and Microsoft are pitching in, reports Bloomberg Businessweek.
Clinton's team is led by a 25-year Silicon Valley veteran and former Google engineering director, Ann Mei Chang. Chang is currently living in Nairobi, Kenya and working with diplomats and tech bigwigs to make the Internet more accessible.
"Only a quarter of people in developing countries are online, compared to three-quarters of those in developed nations," reports Businessweek. "Over the past year, Chang has brought together Silicon Valley technicians, diplomats, and nonprofit groups to discuss the problem. Those talks culminated in the partnership Clinton announced."
The mission isn't going to be easy; barriers include lack of infrastructure, current monopolies controlling telecommunications, and costs that are above the average person's monthly income.
Don't Miss: Meet Google's Baddest Engineer, Jeff Dean >
Get the latest Google stock price here.
Get the latest Yahoo stock price here.
Get the latest Microsoft stock price here.
Get the latest Cisco stock price here.


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U.S. Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission
SAN ANTONIO - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced a landmark $2.44 million settlement of a class action lawsuit against the University of Incarnate Word (UIW), a private university in San Antonio, Texas, on behalf of 18 Hispanic housekeepers who were subjected to an unlawful English-only rule and harassed due to their national origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The settlement, which stems from a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas on September 30, 1999, is the largest known monetary resolution for a lawsuit concerning an English-only rule in the workplace."As employers face the challenge of a rapidly changing workforce, they will serve themselves well by creating work environments that are conducive to diversity and putting strategies in place to ease racial and ethnic tensions," said EEOC Chairwoman Ida L. Castro.
As part of the settlement, approved late yesterday as a consent decree by U.S. District Court Judge Orlando Garcia, UIW will pay $1 million to be distributed among a class of 18 Hispanic former employees. In addition, UIW agreed to provide 18 tuition waivers for use by the class members or a close relative. The tuition waivers, valued at $1.44 million, provide for eight full- time semesters of study at UIW for each recipient.
In addition to the monetary payments, the consent decree calls for a three-year injunction prohibiting UIW from implementing and enforcing an English-only rule in the workplace and from discriminating on the basis of national origin.
UIW also agreed to adopt a comprehensive anti-harassment workplace policy and complaint procedure in English and Spanish. In addition, UIW agreed to train its managers and supervisors regularly on national origin harassment and other unlawful discriminatory practices.
"For more than 15 years, the EEOC has taken the firm position that English-only rules run afoul of Title VII when applied at all times or when they cannot be justified by business necessity," said Robert B. Harwin, regional attorney of EEOC's San Antonio District Office, which filed the lawsuit. "In this case, UIW compounded its unlawful conduct by harassing the Hispanic employees who could not comply with the policy. This settlement should put other employers on notice that the EEOC is committed to rooting out discrimination against low-wage earners, language minorities, and other groups most vulnerable to civil rights abuses."
In its suit against UIW, EEOC alleged that a class of 18 Hispanic housekeepers were subjected to an unlawful English-only policy and severe and pervasive harassment for over 10 years on the basis of national origin. UIW's Director of Housekeeping prohibited the housekeepers from speaking Spanish and required that they speak only English in the workplace at all times, even while at lunch and during employee breaks.
According to the suit, some of the UIW employees spoke little or no English, others testified that Spanish was their primary language even though they were born in the United States, while other employees were bilingual. The workers complained that they had difficulty complying with the rule because they did not speak English or unconsciously lapsed into Spanish when conversing with same language peers. Nevertheless, employees who failed to comply with the English-only policy were subjected to repeated verbal and physical abuse, as well as ethnic slurs.
EEOC has observed an increasing trend of charge filings alleging English-only violations since the Commission began separately tracking such charges in the mid-1990s. The number of English-only charges filed with EEOC and state and local Fair Employment Practices Agencies have increased by nearly 500% from 91 such charges in Fiscal Year 1996 to 443 charges in FY 2000. EEOC's policy on English-only rules is set out in its Guidelines on Discrimination Because of National Origin (29 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 1606) which, along with other information about the Commission, is available on the agency's web site at www.eeoc.gov.
In addition to enforcing Title VII, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin, EEOC enforces the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Equal Pay Act; Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits employment discrimination against people with disabilities in the private sector and state and local governments; prohibitions against discrimination affecting individuals with disabilities in the federal government; and sections of the Civil Rights Act of 1991.