text:
Getting Standard Market Design Right Means Getting Transmission Planning and Expansion Right
Before articulating the next steps that the Commission should take to define further expansion policy, it's worth taking a step back to remind ourselves why transmission planning and expansion is difficult. Transmission projects are expensive, long-lived, sunk investments. It's not easy to rectify erroneous transmission investment decisions. Transmission facilities cannot be reconfigured to produce other products or serve other industries or be redeployed to another part of the country except at a large expense, if at all. While newer transmission technologies are reducing the costs of redeploying transmission, which should reduce some business risk, these investments cannot be made lightly. And who should pay for these expensive investments? Usually new transmission projects reduce congestion between low-cost and high-cost regions, potentially providing disproportionate economic benefits to each region, although both regions may obtain more similar reliability benefits.
There are also some important federal-state governance issues to consider that purposely divide political power between these levels of governments. Consequently, transmission expansion policy has to conform to our federal system and accommodate potentially conflicting governmental interests. The split of jurisdiction between siting transmission facilities and the federal government's authority over electricity markets illustrates this point. Finally, at a more basic level, the amount, location, and type of infrastructure investments such as transmission are part of a larger societal debate over the nation's energy policy, the use of society's limited resources, and how to accommodate competing environmental values.
These difficulties are substantial, and must be accounted for in any transmission expansion policy. This does not mean that they cannot be surmounted or that there is no room for a rational, consistent, and primarily market-driven process. Nor does it suggest that these difficulties are unique to transmission and that we don't find them in other parts of the energy industry or even in other industries. The key point is that there are no shortcuts: any attempt to circumvent, rather than surmounting, these difficulties will only lead to more problems.
Given these fundamental difficulties in expanding the transmission system, it is not surprising that policy shortcuts have been proposed. One such shortcut is simply to provide performance-based or incentive-based rates that create strong encouragement for transmission owners to overbuild the transmission system. The false logic behind this policy proposal is that because more transmission needs to be built, and it is existing transmission owners that build transmission, what is needed is stronger incentives to encourage these existing transmission owners to do the building. No worries should this lead to excess transmission, argue its advocates: the transmission system should be overbuilt anyway, because it is necessary for reliability and proper functioning electricity markets.
In many areas of the country, additional investments are necessary. But that does not mean that those investments must be regulated transmission projects. In some cases, more generation, load management, and market-based transmission projects would serve the needs better than would traditional transmission projects. Furthermore, it is no longer the case that only existing transmission companies are capable of planning, siting, building, and operating transmission facilities. While the right incentives are necessary, there must also be multiple developers able to compete with multiple projects to provide customers with low-cost power. The view that overbuilding should occur, and the gold-plating and large cost overruns of utility projects it spawned, was largely responsible for spurring a regulatory and public backlash that led to restructuring.
The Commission also needs to avoid the temptation to socialize the costs of transmission expansion. A socialization policy — assigning to all customers within a given region the costs of a mandated transmission project built because the market failed to perform — is fundamentally inconsistent with standard market design. It should not be that all customers are charged, regardless of whether and to what extent that project benefited specific types of customers. Markets perform best when costs are aligned with genuine benefits and those costs reflect the marginal or incremental cost of providing the desired product or service. Reliability and efficiency are not served when transmission policy is based on spreading the costs pro rata of transmission over all customers while energy prices are based on competitive outcomes between competing suppliers and consumers pay prices based on their contribution to congestion costs. A transmission expansion policy where costs are socialized specifically undercuts a system of locational marginal prices. Why would electricity customers in a load pocket – a high-cost region – contract with generators or merchant transmission providers to build generation in the load pocket or reduce the amount of congestion, if it is known that policy would trigger a transmission expansion wherein costs would be spread across a large region of users?
The Commission's proposed rules for standard market design correctly note that costs and benefits must be aligned for the important practical reason of encouraging greater regional cooperation to get needed facilities sited and built. A low-cost region is more likely to site a facility that benefits a high-cost region if that low-cost region is not paying any of the costs of the facility. Of course, in some instances, the benefits of a mandated facility will accrue to the region, and it would be appropriate to recover those associated costs regionwide.
Furthermore, transmission both complements and competes with generation units and load management service providers. Another misguided policy is to ignore the competitive aspect between transmission on the one hand and generation facilities and load management on the other. Under such a framework, transmission is analogous to the federal highway system. But completing this analogy does not support the position taken by its advocates of a single transmission provider building lots of transmission and being paid a lot of money if success is achieved.
Here are some of the reasons that this analogy breaks down. The federal highways were not built by a single entity but by numerous contractors that, at least in theory, had to submit proposals and be selected through a competitive solicitation process. The proponents of organizing transmission expansion policy like the federal highway system are vehemently against any competitive solicitation process to meet transmission needs that are not satisfied by the market. Also, does anyone believe that the location and type of federal highways that were built were not motivated, at least in substantial part, by politics rather than genuine need? In addition, funding for federal highways is based on gasoline and diesel taxes: those that most benefit from the highway — that is, those that drive the most — provide most of the funding. This alignment of costs and benefits is not what the proponents of this policy analogy have in mind. Instead, they support socialization. Plus, since congestion is a major problem on many federal highways, it may not be a good model if the goal is to eliminate congestion in transmission.
The last policy shortcut to discuss is the misleading position taken by some that because "markets are not perfect" there ought to be strong, interventionist transmission expansion policies led by existing transmission owners and funded by all ratepayers . It is true that markets are imperfect. But neither is regulation. Had regulation worked well, there would have been no need to introduce competition and restructure the industry. The problem is that regulation, like competition, is an imperfect means, and it is naïve to assume that regulators, guided by transmission planners working on behalf of companies that stand to gain from getting their projects built, will unequivocally produce better results than imperfect competition.
The challenge is to design a transmission planning and expansion process that relies on markets but, when markets do not perform – and there will be disagreement, of course, on when this occurs – incorporates some type of backstop mechanism. More meaningful than the observation that "markets are not perfect" is understanding that if a backstop is designed improperly, it can undercut the performance of markets. Socialization of projects built via the backstop mechanism will reduce the incentive for the market to respond, resulting in less market activity and more need for the backstop.
Rather than trying to short-circuit the difficult problem of transmission expansion, the Commission has established the foundation for a rational policy that will serve the public interest. As the Commission correctly notes, its approach to regional planning and expansion is fully consistent with the goal of standard market design, which is to induce efficient investment by relying primarily on price signals and independently administered Congestion Revenue Rights. The Commission proposes locational marginal prices, which send the right price signals to locate load, generation, and transmission, combined with Congestion Revenue Rights to enable market participants to hedge and to capture the property rights associated with reducing congestion, which is necessary to finance projects. It proposes the development of Independent Transmission Providers (ITPs), not transmission owners, that would engage in regional transmission planning open to all industry segments. These ITPs would be able to issue request for proposals when the planning process determines that additional resources are needed, permit direct competition among all types of investments, and include all market participants equally.
Even under the Commission's standard market design and transmission planning and expansion proposal, siting and building new transmission will be difficult. To its credit, the Commission does not assume that the fundamental problems inherent in transmission expansion can be circumvented or ignored. Instead, the Commission has crafted a policy that works within the existing constraints. The next step for the Commission is to affirm its proposal, add the necessary clarity and details to start moving the industry in that direction, and remove all doubt that it will continue to consider some or any shortcuts.
Ask yourself if you would like Europe's transmission mess our present hodgepodge, and the answer is clear, we'd take our hodgepodge any day. Now, should we improve on the integration of this hodgepodge so that someday we might send solar power from the east to the west and back efficiently? I think the answer is a resounding yes. Thus, FERC is doing the right thing to pressure for change now, not later, in transmission design and openness.
Further, deregulation allows the low cost power entrepreneur to outfox their rival with new low cost power technology, and hence gain their market share. Ultimately, what I think de-regulation will make possible in the US is the world's lowest cost cleanest power across the board, shipped east and west, north and south, wherever there's a buyer for that entrepreneur's low cost, clean power. That's what I hope is going to happen, and that's what I think is going to happen if we finally finish with opening up the grid and improving upon its switching technology, which is already considerable. When that day arrives, I feel that clean-coal IGCC power will crush the competition for quite some time, but ultimately, I believe solar power will rule the roost. We will be glad FERC did its job and integrated America's lines and switching systems, whatever the power source.
FERC is on the right track.


text:
Indeed, I'm working to organize enough folks so that we can reach one hundred Revs in formation at once... We had 64 in the air last year, but we never exceeded 50 in actual formation and thus came up short of a new world record.
This year, I expect we'll easily surpass the existing record (54) and could very possibly reach 100... Whether or not we actually reach 100, this will be the single largest gathering of Rev pilots ever assembled and a new world record will be set.
WSIKF web site - http://www.kitefestival.com/
Festival map:
(note Revolution field on far left/south end)
I have been in touch with the organizers due to the sheer size of what we're proposing, and the response from Jane Holeman (primary organizer) has been favorable, even with regard to our moving the mega fly attempts south of Sid Snyder (museum approach to the beach)... This will enable us to actually use the whole beach width, with ongoing attention to keeping a through way for emergency vehicles.
Tentative schedule...
Date : Staging : Attempt
Thu, Aug 19 : 1:30pm : 2:00pm
Fri, Aug 20 : 2:30pm : 3:00pm
Sat, Aug 21 : 3:00pm : 3:30pm
Mandatory 15 to 20 minute pre-flight meeting for all participants at 10:00am on each day to discuss safety, execution, etc...
Teams can send one representative to gain and distribute the day's information.
10x10 Grid layout - wsikf10_grid10x10.pdf 832.56KB 468 downloads
Single column view - wsikf10_grid(single-column).pdf 291KB 407 downloads
Single column guide - wsikf10_grid(single-guide).pdf 291.46KB 410 downloads
(thanks to John Mitchell for the PDF work, and to Felix Mottram for the grid concept)
Required equipment: 120' spectra lines and any of the 1.5 class Revs (SLE, EXP, B-Series, Masterpiece)... Wind conditions are unknown, so it would behoove folks to come equipped with both standard and vented sails, as well as appropriate frames.
Set up on the ground w/ wind running down the beach...
Chances are, we literally won't be able to fit 100 kites wingtip to wingtip onto the beach (unless we have a straight ocean wind), so here is how the 10x10 Grid might look from above, while "at rest" on the ground:
In theory, this is how the LAUNCHING process might work...
When we mobilize, the upwind pilots (1-5) in the center two color columns (blue and black) will launch into position high in the window and move forward if wind allows... Perhaps 30 seconds afterward, the downwind pilots (6-10) in the same columns will launch into position low in the window and walk backward to meet with the top of their column in the middle of the field.
Having established the center two columns, we'd then add to each side, two columns at a time...
Once we get the process down, we should be able to launch the next pair of columns while the previous two are still positioning...
I'd like to see each column up in under a minute, and I think it's very possible once we work out the process and are moving together.
Field location:
/>View style="color:#0000FF;text-align:left">2010 WSIKF 100 Rev Mega Fly in a larger map
NOTE: I will assign six safety marshals from our group to ensure that we're doing what we need to be doing, that everyone is laid out courteously within the field, and to ensure that emergency vehicles have a way to pass or go through our field(s) safely if needed.
Here's my basic plan, which will get fleshed out further as the actual event approaches:
- Two mega fly attempts each day on Thursday, Friday and Saturday... This will give us some "build up" exercise as the ranks grow toward the weekend, but it will also serve to give everyone a great deal of free time to explore and enjoy the festival between attempts.
- Pre-flight meetings for all mega fly participants on each of those days, covering basic conduct, schedule, safety and field considerations.
- Colored wrist bands to assign "blue column", "red column", etc... One of the issues last year was that "column groups" changed ranks with every attempt based on where people ended up... By assigning colored groups, each column will be able to get familiar with each other, their respective kite colors and what they need to do together as a group within the mega fly... With enough RSVPs from those who are coming, I can even start a spreadsheet well in advance to help sort out skill levels, assign column captains, etc.
- Safety will be of paramount importance... My plan is to secure low height flags or banners that we can space 5'-6' apart all the way around the public-facing parts of our flight area (flags allow emergency vehicles to drive over if absolutely necessary, but will give spectators cause to examine their environment... Couple this with six assigned safety marshals to oversee and adjust, we should be good.
NOTE 2: I've selected Thu/Fri/Sat because those are the days when most everyone will be in town and a lot of folks leave fairly early on Sunday... We may play with grid practice on Mon/Tue/Wed as well, but there's no counting on whether enough pilots will have arrived by then... So instead, those days are to be free, play, learn, practice and make friends.
NOTE 3: Lastly, I'm also working on a diagram which assigns fliers to specific columns and will be handed out to participants at the first pre-flight meeting on Thursday morning, and to later arrivals as they come in over the following two days.
A sample image of these grid assignments can be found below, but please understand that it's still VERY tentative - I will be reassigning all the way up to the event, based on team affiliations, skill level, experience, etc.
Sample videos of grid work in Portsmouth, 2008:
Sample video of 6x6 grid work in Berck, 2010:
Setting this up right, well enough in advance and having the whole beach, I think we'll be able to incorporate even the intermediate pilots and potentially a number of the novices (arranged in the outermost left and right columns).
If you'll be at WSIKF and are interested in participating, please send me a PM or email with the following info:
- Name
- Home town
- Email address
- Day arriving (first full day in town)
- Day departing
- Self-assessment of skill (0 to 10)
- John Barresi (full week) - iQuad <-- Flight Coordinator
- Steve de Rooy (full week) - iQuad
- Takako Barresi (full week) - iQuad
- JD Fabich (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - iQuad
- Bazzer Poulter (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - iQuad <-- Safety/Ops
- David Hathaway (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - iQuad
- Rich Comras (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - Rev Riders
- Laura Berg (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - Rev Riders
- Scott Weider (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - Rev Riders <-- Safety/Ops
- Ben D'Antonio (Tue/Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Stephen Hoath (full week) - The Flying Squad <-- Flight Coordinator
- Susan Hoath (full week) - The Flying Squad
- Mark Lummas (full week) - Too Much Fun <-- Safety/Ops
- Jeanette Lummas (full week) - Too Much Fun
- Ron Despojado (full week) - Too Much Fun
- Amy Doran (full week)
- Connor Doran (full week)
- Colleen Baker (full week)
- Bart Busse
- Paul Loranger
- Willow Demers (full week) - Island Quad
- Spence Watson (full week)
- Mike Tracy (full week)
- Lori Tracy (full week)
- Dave Bradley (full week)
- John Mason (full week)
- Gary Maynard (full week) - Detroit Windjammers
- James Lee Wright III (full week) - Detroit Windjammers
- Michael Carlisle (full week) - Detroit Windjammers
- James Kinsey (full week) - Detroit Windjammers
- Ken Walker (Thu/Fri/Sat)
- Mario DiLucca (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - Island Quad
- Felix Mottram (full week) - Decorators <-- Safety/Ops
- Ashley Mottram (full week) - Decorators
- Ray Lee (full week)
- Nicole O'Neill (full week)
- Gordy Wensley (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Martin Linford (full week) - Decorators
- Howard Mathews (full week)
- Bob Koga (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - AirBenders
- Walt Ellis (Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Jim Fielder (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Joji Davis (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - iQuad
- David Ellison (full week) - Decorators
- Calvin Leibelt (Thu/Fri/Sat)
- Cass Pitman (full week)
- Carol Pittman (full week)
- Terry Wiggill (Thu/Fri/Sat) - Island Quad <-- Safety/Ops
- Jim Foster (full week) - Kite Kids
- Lynn Foster (full week) - Kite Kids
- Steve Donovan (Fri/Sat/Sun) - Team Vortice
- Russell Hammond (Fri/Sat/Sun) - Team Vortice
- Jason Kitchen (Fri/Sat/Sun) - Team Vortice
- Seb Clarke (Fri/Sat/Sun) - Team Flic
- Cathy Tung (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - AirBenders
- Steve Brown (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - AirBenders
- Gerald Lokhorst (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun) - AirBenders
- Dianne O'Brien (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Ray Bechard (Tue/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Carol Bechard (Tue/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Manny Abt (Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Jennifer Brown (full week)
- Peter Wolf (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Penny Lingenfelter
- John Farrell
- Mark Giadone (full week)
- Brad Bixby (full week) - Island Quad
- Tom King (full week)
- Aiyana Markling (Thu/Fri/Sat)
- Bill Seward (Thu/Fri/Sat)
- Brad Weiner (Thu/Fri/Sat)
- Peter Ekstrom (Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Page Anderson (Tue/Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Julie Burke (Tue/Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Alden Miller (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Kristian Slater (Tue/Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- PJ Sirl (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Rick White (Mon/Tue/Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
The Power of Independent Thinking
Robert Higgs on Regime Uncertainty Past and Present
Recorded: Friday, February 21, 2014
Senior Fellow and author Robert Higgs speaks with Caleb Brown of the Cato Institute on the subject of Regime Uncertainty Past and Present.
Experts: Robert HiggsType: RadioIssues: Constitutional Law, Culture/ Society, Government Power, History (International), History (U.S), Political Ideology and Philosophy
Robert Higgs Discusses Independence Day on the Scott Horton Radio Show
Recorded: Thursday, July 4, 2013
Senior Research Fellow Robert Higgs talks with Scott Horton about his classic The Transformation of the American Economy 1865-1914; the July 4th celebration of statism and American mythology. Check out some of Robert Higgs books mentioned on the program.
Experts: Robert HiggsType: RadioIssues: Culture/ Society, History (U.S), Nationalism, Political Ideology and Philosophy
What President Obama Should Learn from His Predecessors
Recorded: Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Amid the current economic and financial crises, President Obama may do well to remember the men who have come before him.
Experts: Ivan Eland, Andrew R. RuttenType: Independent Institute EventIssues: Civil Liberties/ Human Rights, Constitutional Law, Culture/ Society, Defense and Foreign Policy, Economic History and Development (U.S.), Economic Policy, Freedom, Government Power, History (U.S), Nationalism, Political Ideology and Philosophy, Politics, Race Issues, Terrorism and National Crises


text:
Nice to meet you on Audiko.net! You can conveniently download a free Survivor ringtones for your iPhone or mobile. Scope out your favorite moments from your favorite award-winning track - Eye Of A Tiger, There's No Easy Way Out, Rocky, or any other track. Then download the prepared Survivor ringtones to your mobile, and enjoy Rock music by Survivor every time your phone rings. If you wig Rock or maybe 80s and Hard Rock music, then you will probably like Starship, Touch, or Europe as well. For all who want a free Survivor ringtone, we also recommend listening to Pop, Soundtrack, and AOR. You are welcome to download your tone both in the MP3 and m4a formats, supported by both mobile phones and iPhones. Just select a track, and choose free Survivor ringtones download option.
Download Survivor Ringtones


text:
Sequence ID: 82768230
Warning: This sequence appears to contain Vector sequences.
See evidence: Vector
- Title: CRP1524 Creeping bentgrass EST Agrostis stolonifera cDNA clone CRP244T_G07 3', mRNA sequence.
- Type: mRNA
- Length: 500 bp
- Organism: Agrostis stolonifera
- GenBank Accession: DV861792
- This sequence was assembled into contig PUT-173a-Agrostis_stolonifera-8755!
- Name: LIBEST_018760 Creeping bentgrass EST
- Developmental stage: Field-grown mature plant inoculated with Sclerotinia homoeocarpa, the causal agent of dollar spot disease
- PubMed: 17497174


text:
May 6, 2016
The amazing rescue of fourteen people from a ship that sank off our coast during Hurricane Sandy was featured on The Weather Channel Wednesday night.
The images of the HMS Bounty ship sinking off the coast of Hatteras October 29th are unforgettable.
The 180-foot-long replica 'tall ship' built for the movie 'Mutiny on the Bounty' was headed for Florida, but sank in the 70 mile-an- hour winds and 30-foot high waves, and left the 16 people aboard calling for help.
As shown in the Coast Guard series: Helicopters arrived with rescue divers to pluck the ship's crew from life rafts. Both survivors and Coast Guard rescuers were featured in the story.
Fourteen of sixteen were saved. The captain and one crew member died.
Click Here to access the online Public Inspection File
Viewers with disabilities can get assistance accessing this station's FCC Public Inspection File by contacting the station with the information listed below. Questions or concerns relating to the accessibility of the FCC's online public file system should be directed to the FCC at 888-225-5322, 888-835-5322 (TTY), or firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Physical EarthSource: CLEAN
Video: AAAS Global Climate-Change Video - CLEAN
February 17, 2011, 12:00 am
September 4, 2012, 3:29 pm
This video has been selected for inclusion in the CLEAN Collection.
Residents of Shishmaref, Alaska, and experts like John Holdren, exploring the human impacts of global climate change.
CitationBrown, G. (2012). Video: AAAS Global Climate-Change Video - CLEAN. Retrieved from http://www.eoearth.org/view/video/51cbf0ab7896bb431f6a2974
0 Comments
To add a comment, please Log In.


text:
James T. Kirk (alternate reality)
this wiki
(split 2233)
James Tiberius Kirk was a 23rd century Human Federation Starfleet officer. As a Starfleet cadet, he was instrumental in the defeat and death of Nero, a Romulan bent on the obliteration of the United Federation of Planets. As a result, he was commissioned directly to the rank of captain and appointed as commanding officer of the service's flagship, the USS Enterprise. (Star Trek)
About a year later in 2259, Kirk faced Khan, an enhanced human with superior strength and intellect. However, the crew of the Enterprise managed to stop him, following the sacrifice of Kirk. Spock managed to capture Khan with the help of Uhura and Dr. McCoy managed to revive Kirk. Afterwards, the Enterprise set out on the first five-year mission. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Early life
James T. Kirk was the son of Starfleet officer George Kirk, first officer of the USS Kelvin and his wife Winona Kirk. He was born aboard the Kelvin's medical shuttle no. 37, in the midst of an unprovoked attack on the Kelvin by the Narada, a 24th century Romulan mining vessel commanded by Nero. Winona had been evacuated from the severely-crippled Kelvin along with the rest of the crew and gave birth to James while George Kirk died piloting the Kelvin into the Narada in a kamikaze attack. He was named James Tiberius after Winona's father and George's father, respectively.
Jim was raised in Iowa, in Midwestern North America, on Earth. His mother remarried. As a young boy, Jim had a somewhat rebellious streak in him as he once, for example, stole his stepfather's '65 Chevy Corvette convertible, drove it recklessly, got into a high speed chase with local police, then nearly died when he barely managed to jump out, as he drove it into a quarry. As he grew up he had little sense of purpose and by 2255, he was an aimless rebel who had found himself on the wrong side of the law on more than one occasion.
While visiting a bar near the Riverside Shipyard, an inebriated Jim met and began flirting with a Starfleet cadet named Nyota Uhura. Although annoyed by Jim's advances, Uhura was surprised that Jim knew what was involved in the study of xenolinguistics. Moments later, Jim engaged in a bar fight with three male cadets who were irritated at his cocky attitude and the attention he was giving Uhura. He was ultimately overwhelmed by the cadets until Captain Christopher Pike broke up the fight. Pike, who wrote his dissertation on the USS Kelvin and was familiar with Jim's story pushed the young man to challenge himself and reach the greater potential he was capable of achieving, calling him "the only genius level repeat offender in the Midwest".
Pike tried to persuade him to join Starfleet, firmly believing that he could do more with himself than get into bar fights and break all the laws in the state of Iowa. Kirk laughed at the idea of joining Starfleet, but Pike reassured him that with his "off-the-chart" aptitude he could make captain and have his own ship in only eight years. He reminded him that his father had saved eight-hundred lives, including Jim's and his mother's, and dared young Kirk to do better.
Soon after their conversation, and to the surprise of Pike, Jim decided to enlist with the intent of completing the Academy training in three years. He rode onto the shipyard, gave his bike to a construction worker, and boarded a shuttle for new recruits heading to Starfleet Academy. It was on his trip to the Academy where he first met and befriended Doctor Leonard McCoy.
Starfleet Academy
Kirk and McCoy became close friends at the Academy, though Kirk frequently exasperated McCoy with his maverick nature. Kirk had an eye for attractive female cadets and he once ended up in the dormitory of an Orion female cadet named Gaila. He was caught and hid under the bed when her roommate, Cadet Uhura, arrived unexpectedly. On discovering him, she angrily threw him out.
It was at the Academy that Kirk also met Commander Spock. Kirk had failed the Kobayashi Maru examination twice but decided to take it a third time, being sure that he would succeed. He eventually managed to cheat the test and won. Spock, who programmed the "no-win scenario," investigated the matter.
While discussing his cheating ways with his superiors, Kirk argued that the test itself was a cheat, and stated that he didn't believe in the no-win scenario. Kirk asked to face his accuser, and Spock stepped up. This was the first time the two met and clashed over their differences.
Kirk and Spock continued to engage in a heated argument (the accused becoming particularly agitated when Spock suggested that, "of all people", George Kirk's son should recognize the no-win scenario), when the hearing was suddenly interrupted after Starfleet received a distress call from Vulcan.
USS Enterprise
Many of the cadets were called into action after the news but Kirk - who had been suspended because of his recent academic dishonesty charges - was not allowed to join. McCoy, however, was able to get him aboard the Enterprise by injecting him with a vaccine that temporarily rendered him sick so he could be transfered to the ship on medical grounds.
Kirk tried telling Captain Pike and Spock about Nero's attack and his trap and with the help of McCoy and Uhura he was able to convince Pike about the trap. Pike raised the Enterprise's shields as they entered the Vulcan system, only to find a massive debris field of destroyed Federation starships having been attacked by Nero.
As Pike was en route to a shuttlecraft to negotiate with Nero, he appointed Kirk as acting first officer under Spock and volunteered Kirk to disable the Narada's drill platform.
First officer
Along with Chief Engineer Olson and Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu, Kirk skydived onto the platform. Facing off against two of Nero's crew, Kirk and Sulu eventually killed both of their adversaries before destroying the platform, but not in time to prevent Nero from successfully completing his plan to destroy the planet Vulcan.
After returning to the Enterprise, Kirk attempted to dissuade Commander Spock from a rendezvous with the rest of Starfleet at the Laurentian system. He urged him to go after the Narada as the ship left for Earth rather than waste time trying to gather additional forces in the opposite direction, but Spock was relentless. When Kirk became more and more heated in his objections, Spock finally ordered Kirk's removal from the bridge, knocked him out and threw him off the ship in an escape pod.
Marooned on Delta Vega
Kirk landed on Delta Vega, some kilometers away from a Starfleet outpost. Despite an inhospitable environment, he left his escape pod and soon was chased into a cave by a predatory creature. Just as he was about to be eaten, the creature was was scared off by an elderly Vulcan man, who revealed himself to be Spock from a future time, which Kirk dismissed as "bullshit" – but changed his mind when the old man mentioned Nero. Spock revealed to Kirk through a mind meld Nero's intentions, also telling him that in his timeline, Kirk was the captain of the Enterprise. Understanding that their only hope was to have the Enterprise pursue the Narada instead of returning to the fleet, they realized that they had to get the other Spock to step down from command. Fortunately, while the Enterprise had long since left the system, Spock was aware that one of the officers at the nearby outpost was Montgomery Scott, who in his universe had devised a way to transport onto a ship at warp speeds. Giving Scotty his own equations a century ahead of schedule, before beaming the pair onto the Enterprise, Spock advised Kirk to elicit an emotional reaction from the young Spock so that everyone could see that he was emotionally compromised and not fit for command, stating that the only way to defeat Nero was for Kirk to take command of the ship himself.
Acting captain
Following the advice of Ambassador Spock, Kirk goaded Spock with assertions that Spock cared nothing for what had happened to Vulcan or the death of his mother, whom he accused Spock of never having loved. The last remark did the job and Spock violently attacked Kirk, nearly to the point of killing him, before Sarek stepped in and stopped him. Spock immediately relinquished command. Kirk, as acting first officer, took command and ordered pursuit course of the Narada to Earth.
Spock, deferring to Kirk as captain, successfully beamed onto the Narada with Kirk. After an intense firefight in which they killed several Romulans, they made it to the elder Spock's ship. Upon being identified as its pilot, Spock quickly realized exactly who Kirk's unknown benefactor had been. Leaving Spock to secure the ship, Kirk went to retrieve Captain Pike. In searching for the captain he encountered Nero and his first officer Ayel. The pair easily overpowered him, but when Nero, after boasting that he would kill Kirk just like his father, discovered that Spock had destroyed the drill, he furiously returned to the bridge. Initially, Kirk was no match for Ayel either, but the overconfident Romulan was too busy mocking his "weak" victim to notice the theft of his disruptor. Offered the chance to speak, Kirk's "last words" were "I got your gun!". After retrieving Pike – who repaid his defenseless savior by grabbing the stolen disruptor and gunning down two Romulans walking in on the escape – and against Spock's advice once again, Kirk decided to give Nero and his remaining crew a chance to beam to the Enterprise and surrender. After Nero strongly declined, Kirk decided to fire all weapons and the Narada was finally destroyed.
Captain of the USS Enterprise
Upon his return to Earth, Kirk was commended and officially appointed as Captain of the Enterprise by Admiral Richard Barnett for his actions, which demonstrated his ability as an extremely able commanding officer fully capable of leading a Federation starship crew in the most dire of situations.
Dressed in his new captain's uniform, Kirk took command of the Enterprise. Commander Spock arrived and requested the permanent post as Kirk's first officer, which Kirk was honored to accept. (Star Trek)
Nibiru and Demotion
A year later, Kirk violated the Prime Directive on Nibiru, saving Spock's life while exposing the Enterprise to the primitive Nibirans, who began worshipping the ship as a god. Returning to Earth, Pike informed Kirk the Admiralty headed by Alexander Marcus would be sending him back to the Academy, and that perhaps he had been promoted too soon. That night, Kirk drowned his sorrows in a bar, when Pike appeared to inform he had convinced Marcus to let him appoint Kirk his first officer, because he still had faith in the young man.
"John Harrison"/Khan
The two then attended a summit in the Daystrom Conference Room at Starfleet Headquarters regarding the bombing of the Kelvin Memorial Archive in London. Marcus ordered a manhunt for the perpetrator, a rogue Commander named John Harrison. Kirk analyzed surveillance of Harrison at the debris site, and questioned why Harrison bombed a public library for the information he needed. He then realized Harrison would be aware protocol dictated such an attack would precipitate meetings like these: Harrison showed up in an attack vehicle and opened fire.
Kirk attached a fire hose to a rifle and threw it into the fighter's engine, causing it to crash. Before it did, Harrison glared at Kirk and beamed himself away. Kirk returned to the conference room to find Spock with Pike, who had died of a chest wound, and mourned. The next morning, Scott informed Kirk that Harrison had used the confiscated transwarp beaming formula to escape to Qo'noS, heart of the Klingon Empire. Kirk informed Marcus, who gave him permission to hunt down and execute Harrison.
To do so, Marcus gave the Enterprise 72 experimental photon torpedoes to bombard Harrison's location from orbit, and assigned weapons expert Carol Wallace to the Enterprise. At a hangar, McCoy expressed his belief that Harrison was out of Kirk's league, while Spock protested executing Harrison without trial was immoral. Aboard the ship, Scott protested about not being allowed to examine the torpedoes, and not having time to examine the faulty new warp core. Kirk accepted Scott and Keenser's resignation, and appointed Chekov to replace them. Dejected, Kirk decided to listen to his crew's advice and announced they would find Harrison and bring him back for a tribunal.
Before reaching Qo'noS, the Enterprise's warp core broke down, so Kirk took an away team with Spock, Uhura and Hendorff, disguised as K'normians arms dealers, to find Harrison. Acting captain Sulu broadcasted a message to Harrison. Kirk's ship was attacked by a Klingon patrol, and despite maneuvering it through a narrowing gate, they found themselves surrounded. Kirk allowed Uhura to exit the ship and negotiate with the Klingons, but they refused to listen and tried to kill her. Kirk and Spock came out firing phasers, but Harrison appeared and singlehandedly killed all the Klingons. Kirk accepted Harrison's surrender, but spitefully punched him, only to find his continuous blows had no effect on him.
Khan revealed and encounter with Alexander Marcus
In the ship's brig, Kirk and Spock interrogated Harrison while McCoy took a blood sample, which he studied by injecting into a dead tribble. Harrison only responded by giving them a set of coordinates, and advised Kirk to open one of the torpedoes. Spock informed Kirk that Carol could examine the torpedoes, and also informed the captain that he had learned she was actually Admiral Marcus's daughter, because he felt the information had just become relevant. Kirk also called Scotty and asked him to investigate the coordinates.
McCoy and Marcus took a shuttle to a meteor to examine a torpedo, but McCoy accidentally activated the countdown and trapped his hand in the device. Kirk ordered to beam them up, but was warned beaming up McCoy would also beam up an exploding torpedo. Fortunately, Kirk avoided losing his friend when Marcus deactivated the device in time. The torpedo finally opened up, and the two officers found it contained a man in cryogenic stasis.
Kirk interrogated Harrison again, who explained he had placed people in torpedoes to smuggle them before he was caught. He revealed he was actually the infamous Khan Noonien Singh, recruited by Admiral Marcus under a new identity to design weaponry and ships for war against the Klingons, and that the frozen people were his fellow Augments whom the admiral had held hostage. Marcus suddenly showed up in the Dreadnought-class ship the USS Vengeance, demanding Kirk hand over Harrison. Kirk revealed he knew the truth, and defied the admiral by warping the Enterprise to Earth, where Khan would stand trial and expose the conspiracy. However, the Vengeance was capable of catching up with the Enterprise in subspace and fired on the ship, halting it as it arrived outside Earth.
Carol tried to bargain with her father, who simply beamed her over to his ship, and then Kirk tried to hand himself over to protect his crew, but Marcus explained he had no intention of letting anyone in on the plot survive. Before the Vengeance could finish off the Enterprise, its weaponry suddenly deactivated. Scott called Kirk, explaining he had stowed away aboard the Vengeance at the coordinates given by Khan, buying them some time. Kirk, realizing Khan designed the ship, allied himself with him, and the two donned thruster suits to fly over and commandeer the vessel. Khan's formidable strength was an asset in dispatching any guards they encountered, but Kirk was suspicious of Khan and ordered Scott to shoot to stun him later.
When they reached the bridge, Scott stunned Khan while Kirk confronted Marcus over his betrayal of Starfleet's ideals. However, stunning Khan did not affect him, and the Augment tackled Scott and Kirk before proceeding to kill Marcus and take the command chair. Khan ordered Spock to hand over the torpedoes, which he complied with, and in return he beamed Kirk, Scott and Carol into the Enterprise brig. Khan then turned on Spock, bombarding the Enterprise once more. Spock, who had the cryo pods removed from the torpedoes, ordered them to be detonated, crippling the Vengeance: the shockwave caused both ships to be pulled by Earth's gravity. Kirk and Scott ran to the warp core, trying to avoid falling to their deaths due to the failing artificial gravity.
Death and Resurrection
Once they reached the warp core, Scott warned entering it would flood the chamber with radiation, but as there was no time to put on a containment suit, Kirk knocked out Scott and secured him with a seatbelt before entering the warp core. Kirk knocked the central component back in place, restoring power to the engines and preventing the Enterprise from crashing. Meanwhile, Khan crashed the Vengeance into San Francisco. Scott woke up and called Spock to come down, and saw Kirk dying from radiation poisoning. Kirk bid goodbye to his friend, then died. James heard the voices of his father, mother and Pike as he lay in the border between the world of the living and the dead.
He was taken to sickbay after decontamination, where McCoy and others silently mourned the loss of their captain. McCoy noticed the tribble he had injected with Khan's blood had come back to life, and realizing how to save Kirk's life, ordered his body be placed in a cryotube to preserve his brain. Spock and Uhura beamed down and apprehended Khan, using him to perform a blood transfusion before putting him on ice once more. Kirk awoke two weeks later in a hospital in San Francisco, with McCoy and Spock present.
The five-year mission
Nearly a year after the events, Kirk presided over the rechristening ceremony of the Enterprise and memorial to those who lost their lives in terrorist acts committed by Khan, before setting off on Starfleet's first five-year mission. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Kirk initially had a largely antagonistic relationship with Spock, mainly due to their vastly different philosophies and approaches to command. The frictions began first at Starfleet Academy when Kirk cheated on the Kobayashi Maru test Spock had designed, and then later continued when the disparate pair worked side by side on the USS Enterprise and Kirk was put in charge as second in command by Captain Pike. Tensions between the two culminated in Spock throwing Kirk off the ship altogether. However, their attitudes towards each other softened after an encounter with an older version of Spock from an alternate future, who revealed that in fact the two had shared a great friendship in his timeline. After Kirk goaded Spock into revealing his emotional instability, Spock defered to Kirk's command and the two worked as a team to stop Nero and rescue Pike. After learning how important their friendship was from Spock Prime, Spock offered to be Kirk's first officer which he happily accepted. (Star Trek)
A year later, Kirk fell out with Spock because Spock filed the mission report that caused Kirk's demotion, although Kirk's actions leading to this disciplinary were done to save Spock's life: Spock was more concerned with fulfilling Starfleet regulations than with sentimental notions though he was relieved that Kirk was just demoted and not more severely punished. However, Kirk wanted Spock reinstated as his first officer after Pike's death. Kirk later explained to Spock that the reason he saved Spock's life was because he had come to see Spock as a friend. By this point, Spock had come to return the sentiment and was so upset by Kirk's impending death that he lost his temper and nearly killed Khan in revenge until he learned that Khan's blood would save Kirk. Spock and Kirk also realize that they each had handled the situation in the way the other would: Kirk sacrificed himself for the greater good, whereas Spock used unorthodox tactics to defeat the enemy. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Leonard McCoy
Kirk and McCoy met on a transport shuttle to Starfleet Academy. The pair found themselves in adjacent seats where a slightly neurotic McCoy instantly opened up to the rebellious and somewhat incredulous Kirk. The two remained good friends throughout their time together at the Academy. When the time came, McCoy always had Kirk's back, such as helping him get aboard the Enterprise after his suspension and berating Spock for throwing Kirk off the ship and marooning him on Delta Vega. Despite this, McCoy berated him for forcing Spock to resign command and responded with "you gotta be kidding me!" when he learned Kirk was first officer and thus the one to take command. (Star Trek)
A year later, McCoy would save Kirk's life, after Kirk was killed while sacrificing himself to save his crew. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Nyota Uhura
Kirk first met Nyota Uhura at a bar in Iowa in 2255, audaciously flirting with her while intoxicated, angering some other Starfleet cadet patrons of the bar, resulting in a fight. He met her again when the two studied at Starfleet Academy, although she preferred to keep a distance from him - not even ever telling him her first name - as she saw him as brash and uncouth. The pair ended up serving together aboard the Enterprise, but she continued to maintain her distance from him. It was Kirk and his need for a xenolinguist that got her stationed on the bridge. When Kirk was granted permanent command of the Enterprise, he chose Uhura as one of his senior officers. (Star Trek)
Over time, her discomfort vanished and she began to show unwavering loyalty to her new captain. The two developed a friendship to the point that Uhura confided in him her relationship troubles with Spock. When Pike was killed, Uhura sincerely offered her condolences and concern for the captain. When Kirk died, Uhura cried and helped Spock bring Khan down while preventing him from killing him so they could save Kirk. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Christopher Pike
Kirk and Christopher Pike almost had a father–son relationship: Pike was the one who convinced Kirk to enlist in Starfleet and to make something of himself, and even after Pike had to demote Kirk for contravening regulations, Pike wanted Kirk as his own first officer and did his best to encourage Kirk despite this setback. Kirk was later informed that Pike had done a lot to speak in Kirk's favour during the disciplinary hearing. When Khan Noonien Singh attacked the meeting of senior staff of Starfleet in San Francisco, Pike was killed, and Kirk was distraught, weeping at the loss of his mentor and becoming consumed with vengeance. (Star Trek; Star Trek Into Darkness)
Montgomery Scott
Kirk's relationship with Montgomery Scott began after he met the future Enterprise Chief Engineer on the plant Delta Vega. Whilst marooned on Delta Vega, Kirk unwittingly sought, with the help of the Future Spock, the Scotsman's help to return to the USS Enterprise whilst it was still warping to rendezvous with the fleet in the Laurentian system. He would quickly learn that Mr Scott was wiser than he lead on, after first impressions belied the fact that he had begun to postulate the theory of Transwarp beaming whilst still on active duty (misplacing Admiral Archer's Beagle Porthos in the process, earning his isolation to Delta Vega).
With the aid of his transwarp beaming theory (and the Future Spock) Kirk, along with Mr Scott, managed to beam aboard the Enterprise, which was mid warp flight. Once on-board The Enterprise, Scott had been inadvertently beamed straight into the ships internal water Recycling system. Following quick work by Mr Kirk, Scott was freed, and they both tried to make their way out of engineering, only to be captured by security officers, sent by Mr Spock who was on the bridge.
Once on the bridge of The Enterprise Scott was to witness Kirk's field promotion to Captain, and was then instrumental in the efforts to sneak up on the war criminal Nero's ship, by helping to increase warp speed to factor 4 and to beam both Kirk, and the newly reinstated Spock, onto the Narada whilst in the moon Titan's upper atmosphere. (Star Trek)
A year later, Scotty and Kirk had a somewhat of falling out about what to do with the Advanced long-range torpedos that was given to the Enterprise by Admiral Marcus. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Hikaru Sulu
Kirk seemed to have been surprised at Hikaru Sulu's special training in close-hand combat, specializing in fencing. Kirk committed a selfless act when he dove off the drill platform to save Hikaru Sulu from death on Vulcan. When Kirk appointed himself as acting captain, Sulu reminded everyone that he was already first officer and therefore was was able to take over the Captain's position on the Enterprise. Following the defeat of Nero, Sulu was assigned to the Enterprise as Helmsman under Kirk's command. (Star Trek
A year later, Kirk showed confidence in Sulu's leadership skills and left him in command of the Enterprise while Kirk led an away team to apprehend John Harrison. Star Trek Into Darkness)
Nero killed Kirk's father George in 2233. Despite this, Kirk was willing to offer assistance to his father's killer when his ship was caught in between a black hole created by the remaining red matter. However, the Romulan refused his assistance and stated that he'd "rather suffer the end of Romulus a thousand times" and "die in agony". Kirk obliged him by completing the destruction of the Narada as it was consumed by the black hole.
Khan Noonien Singh
Under the identity of John Harrison, Khan killed Christopher Pike and other members of Starfleet in 2259, causing Kirk to seek revenge. Eventually capturing Khan, they soon learned of his true identity and the fact that he had aided Admiral Marcus in the building of Starfleet weapons. Teaming with Khan to stop Marcus, Khan eventually betrayed Kirk to overtake the USS Vengeance. Khan killed Marcus and attacked the Enterprise, leading to Kirk's sacrifice to save the crew. Khan was eventually captured due to efforts by Spock and Uhura and put back into suspended animation. Kirk was soon revived by McCoy with Khan's blood.
Alexander Marcus
Kirk had a relationship with Gaila, Uhura's Orion roommate at the Academy. However, when she professed her love for him in bed, he responded it was "weird". (Star Trek)
Kirk also had a relationship with Christine Chapel, a human nurse. After it ended, she moved from the Enterprise to nurse on the outer frontier. When Carol Marcus brought her up in a conversation, he did not seem to remember her. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
On his return to Earth in 2259, Kirk slept with Caitian twins. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Key dates
- 2233: Born on Medical shuttle 37 that was attached to the late USS Kelvin
- 2233-2255: Raised in Iowa
- 2255-2258: Cadet/Lieutenant at Starfleet Academy
- 2258:
- Appointed acting first officer of the USS Enterprise
- Elevated to acting captain of the USS Enterprise
- Appointed captain of the USS Enterprise
- 2259
- Demoted to first officer of the Enterprise
- Reinstated to hunt John Harrison, revealed to be Khan Noonien Singh
- Poisoned saving the Enterprise and crew, but revived with Khan's blood
- Sets off on five-year mission
Memorable quotes
"Citizen, what is your name?"
"My name is James Tiberius Kirk!"
- - Iowa cop and a young Kirk (Star Trek)
"If you don't give me a name, I'm gonna have to make one up."
"It's Uhura."
"Uhura? No way! That's the name I was gonna make up for you!"
- - James Kirk and Nyota Uhura (Star Trek)
"I'm impressed. For a moment there, I thought you were just a dumb hick who only had sex with farm animals."
"Well, not only..."
- - Nyota Uhura and James Kirk (Star Trek)
"Do you like being the only genius-level repeat offender in the Midwest?"
"Maybe I love it."
- - Captain Pike and Kirk (Star Trek)
"Two Klingon vessels have entered the Neutral zone and are locking weapons on us."
"That's ok."
"That's ok?!"
"Yeah, don't worry about it."
- - Leonard McCoy and James Kirk in the Kobayashi Maru scenario (Star Trek)
"I don't believe in no-win scenarios."
- - James Kirk (Star Trek)
"Who was that pointy-eared bastard anyway?"
"I don't know. But I like him."
- - Kirk and McCoy, after meeting Spock for the first time (Star Trek)
"I am Spock."
- - Spock Prime and James Kirk (Star Trek)
"Well congratulations Jim. Now we've got no Captain and no goddam first officer to replace him."
"Yeah we do."
"Pike made him first officer."
"You gotta be kidding!"
"Thanks for the support."
- - Leonard McCoy, James Kirk and Hikaru Sulu (Star Trek)
"Attention crew of the Enterprise, this is James Kirk. Mr. Spock has resigned commission and advanced me to acting captain. I know you are all expecting to regroup with the fleet, but I'm ordering a pursuit course of the enemy ship to Earth. I want all departments at battle stations and ready in ten minutes. Either we're going down... or they are. Kirk out." (Star Trek)
- - James Kirk to the crew of the Enterprise after he becomes Acting Captain.(Star Trek)
"What're you doin' here?"
"Just following orders."
- - Captains Pike and Kirk, as the latter (recalling an order to "come and get me") rescues the former. (Star Trek)
"I would rather suffer the end of Romulus a thousand times. I would rather die in agony, than accept assistance from you."
"You got it. Arm phasers, fire everything we've got."
- - Kirk's response to Nero, after suggesting Nero to surrender peacefully (Star Trek)
"Bones...buckle up!"
- - James Kirk to Leonard McCoy, as his first words on the bridge of the Enterprise as its assigned captain (Star Trek)
"Where I come from, if someone saves your life, you don't stab them in the back."
- - James Kirk to Spock (Star Trek Into Darkness)
"Attention crew of the Enterprise. As most of you know, Christopher Pike, former captain of this ship and our friend, is dead. The man who killed him has fled our system and is hiding on the Klingon homeworld. Somewhere he believes we are unwilling to go. We are on our way there now. Per Admiral Marcus, it is essential that our presence go undetected. Tensions between the Federation and the Klingon Empire have been high and any provocation could lead to an all-out war...I will personally lead a landing party to an abandoned city on the surface of Qo'noS where we will capture the fugitive John Harrison and return him to Earth so he can face judgment for his actions. Alright, Let's go get this son of a bitch. Kirk out."
- - James Kirk to the crew of the Enterprise about their mission. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
"On behalf of Christopher Pike - my friend - I accept your surrender."
- - James Kirk to John Harrison before hitting him. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
"Let's get one thing straight here. You are a criminal. I was authorized to end you...and the only reason you are still alive, is because I am allowing it. So...SHUT....YOUR....MOUTH!"
- - James Kirk to John Harrison, in the Enterprise brig. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
"I'm sorry."
- - James Kirk to the Enterprise bridge crew after failing to convince Marcus not to destroy them. (Star Trek Into Darkness
"I'm scared, Spock. Help me not be."
- - James Kirk to Spock as he is dying. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
"There will always be those who mean to do us harm. To stop them, we risk awakening the same evil within ourselves. Our first instinct is to seek revenge when those we love are taken from us. But that's not who we are. When Christopher Pike first gave me his ship, he had me recite the Captain's Oath. Words I didn't appreciate at the time. But now I see them as a call for us to remember who we once were and who we must be again. And those words..."
- - James Kirk, as he is giving a speech at a memorial. (Star Trek Into Darkness)
"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Her five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new lifeforms and new civilizations; to boldly go where no one has gone before."
- - Captain James T. Kirk (Star Trek Into Darkness)
Background information
James T. Kirk was portrayed by Chris Pine. Younger versions were portrayed by Jimmy Bennett and an infant performer. For the scene in which Kirk is running into a cave on Delta Vega, child actor Joshua Greene served as body double for Pine. The producers did this to let the entrance of the cave look bigger.
Originally, Winona would not have remarried, but left her boys to be cared for by her brother (or brother-in-law) Frank (Brad William Henke), who was abusive to them whenever she was off-world. This forced George Samuel Kirk at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works to run away from home, and Jim, who was a good pupil who always obeyed orders, to steal George's antique car that Frank treated as if it was his own.
The novelization of 2009's Star Trek by Alan Dean Foster states that Winona Kirk was given an inhibitor that would help slow the birth of James until the Kelvin's return to Earth. However, the impacts to the ship by the Narada's attack cause her to go into early labor. Screenwriter Roberto Orci joked in a message board post that the radiation from Kirk's premature birth in space caused his eyes to go blue. [1] The prime Kirk has hazel eyes. The novelization also merges the conflicting abusive-adult characters, making "Frank" the boys' step-father, and revealing that he wanted the car washed because he planned to sell it behind Winona's back, which is what truly drives Jim to steal it.
One influence on which Orci and Kurtzman based Kirk and Spock's relationship was the friendship between Paul McCartney and John Lennon, two very different musicians who bonded early in life, partly because they both suffered through the loss of a parent (in Kirk's case, his father, and in Spock's, his mother). [2]
Kirk's demotion at the start of Into Darkness was prompted by fan criticism that the character had been promoted too quickly at the end of Star Trek. [3] Orci and Kurtzman described the second film as being about Kirk earning the captain's chair, and proving that by sacrificing himself. [4]


text:
Tallahassee, Florida -- Much of the news about Citizens Property Insurance Corp. in recent years has not been good and that bothers President and CEO Barry Gilway. As rates climbed, Floridians heard a series of unflattering stories about the state-run insurer.
Last week, Gilway released a lengthy report of hundreds of internal complaints about fraud, theft, and porn on computers. He's also had to explain excessive spending on travel and meals -- including a $633 a night hotel stay in Bermuda -- and huge pay raises for several executives.
Gilway has been on the job eight months now and he thinks the company has not gotten enough credit for the problems that have been fixed.
He concedes Citizens did develop a troubled culture before he arrived there. That's why he released last week's report detailing nearly 500 allegations of misconduct between 2008 and 2012.
Gilway wants Floridians to see, warts and all, what the company previously looked like because he says he's changing the culture for the future.
He has fired some senior executives and shifted their responsibilities to managers he can trust.
He's hired new forensic auditors to focus on financial abuses, appointed an ethics officer to streamline the handling of internal complaints and instituted tougher restrictions on travel and meal expenses.
"Today not one employee can travel out of state, or internationally, unless I pre-approve before the trip takes place, I personally pre-approve that travel," said Gilway. "Not only if they can make the travel, but also what is it going to cost, what are the airfares, what kind of hotel are they going to stay in, what kind of estimated cost will they have for meals, etc."
Slowly but surely, he said, Citizens is instituting the procedures and people to fix the problems that have tagged the company as having a troubled culture.
"Today we just simply have a much, much stronger organization that's capable of addressing the type of issues that we released last week."
As for those big raises, five employees received pay hikes ranging from $25,000 to $31,000.
Gov. Rick Scott has called the raises outrageous. But Gilway stands by the salary increases, saying the executives were given more responsibilities and their pay is comparable to the private sector.
"We showed a compensation package basically that shows at the executive level we are way, way behind market and we have some tough challenges and the only way we're going to solve those challenges is we're going to need good people."
Gilway says he feels good about what he's accomplished in his first eight months and he's "thrilled" with efforts to reduce the size of the company.
When he started on the job in June, 2012, Citizens had about 1.5 million customers. Now it's down to 1.3 million and he's aiming to get that number to 1.1 million by the end of the year.
Gilway says his depopulation plan will focus more on using a "clearinghouse" approach, which helps provide more purchasing options to insurance customers. He hopes those extra options offer customers more comparable premiums in the private market.
Gilway dislikes the methods that Citizens used in the past to shed policies.
"Instead of Citizens taking a negative approach and trying to drive people away because we're taking away coverages and taking a negative tact to move them off the books, to me, we can do some things that are positive."
More Citizens Property Insurance stories...
Class action lawsuit filed against Citizens Property Insurance
Citizens Property Insurance audit raises questions about insurer's culture
Explaining Florida's rising property insurance rates
Citizens to change travel policies following audit
Customer reacts to Citizens excessive expenses report
No big storms, but FL property insurance still rises
Citizens' sheds almost 150,000 policies in October
Advocacy groups want Scott to investigate insurer
State Senator: Citizens hikes are "economic disaster"


text:
Hand Protection Signs
Hand Protection Must Be Worn SignsPrice From: £1.85 ex. VAT ( £2.22 inc. VAT)
Wear Gloves SignsPrice From: £1.85 ex. VAT ( £2.22 inc. VAT)
Health & Safety Products
Freephone: 0800 408 22 22
You have no items in your basket.
© Copyright PureSafety™ (a division of Brady Corporation Ltd)
Free Phone - 0800 408 22 22 | Free Fax 0800 408 48 48
Promises subject to stock availability and type of product ordered
We use cookies to improve your browsing experience and help us improve our websites. For more information, please click here. By continuing to use our website, you agree to our use of such cookies. Close


text:
51 U.S. Code § 20145 - Lease of non-excess property
prev | next
(a) In General.— The Administrator may enter into a lease under this section with any person or entity (including another department or agency of the Federal Government or an entity of a State or local government) with regard to any non-excess real property and related personal property under the jurisdiction of the Administrator.
(b) Cash Consideration.—
(1) Fair market value.—
(A) A person or entity entering into a lease under this section shall provide cash consideration for the lease at fair market value as determined by the Administrator.
(2) Utilization.—
(A) In general.— The Administrator may utilize amounts of cash consideration received under this subsection for a lease entered into under this section to cover the full costs to the Administration in connection with the lease. These funds shall remain available until expended.
(B) Capital revitalization and improvements.— Of any amounts of cash consideration received under this subsection that are not utilized in accordance with subparagraph (A)—
(i) 35 percent shall be deposited in a capital asset account to be established by the Administrator, shall be available for maintenance, capital revitalization, and improvements of the real property assets and related personal property under the jurisdiction of the Administrator, and shall remain available until expended; and
(ii) the remaining 65 percent shall be available to the respective center or facility of the Administration engaged in the lease of nonexcess real property, and shall remain available until expended for maintenance, capital revitalization, and improvements of the real property assets and related personal property at the respective center or facility subject to the concurrence of the Administrator.
(c) Additional Terms and Conditions.— The Administrator may require such terms and conditions in connection with a lease under this section as the Administrator considers appropriate to protect the interests of the United States.
(d) Relationship to Other Lease Authority.— The authority under this section to lease property of the Administration is in addition to any other authority to lease property of the Administration under law.
(e) Lease Restrictions.—
(1) No lease back or other contract.— The Administration is not authorized to lease back property under this section during the term of the out-lease or enter into other contracts with the lessee respecting the property.
(f) Reporting Requirements.— The Administrator shall submit an annual report by January 31st of each year. The report shall include the following:
(1) Value of arrangements and expenditures of revenues.— Information that identifies and quantifies the value of the arrangements and expenditures of revenues received under this section.
(g) Sunset.— The authority to enter into leases under this section shall expire 10 years after December 26, 2007. The expiration under this subsection of authority to enter into leases under this section shall not affect the validity or term of leases or the Administration's retention of proceeds from leases entered into under this section before the expiration of the authority.
Source(Pub. L. 111–314, § 3,Dec. 18, 2010, 124 Stat. 3352; Pub. L. 112–55, div. B, title III, Nov. 18, 2011, 125 Stat. 626.)
|Revised Section
|Source (U.S. Code)
|Source (Statutes at Large)
|42 U.S.C. 2459j.
|Pub. L. 85–568, title III, § 315, as added Pub. L. 108–7, div. K, title IV, § 418, Feb. 20, 2003, 117 Stat. 525; Pub. L. 110–161, div. B, title V, § 533(a)–(e), Dec. 26, 2007, 121 Stat. 1931; Pub. L. 110–422, title XI, § 1117(c), (d), Oct. 15, 2008, 122 Stat. 4814.
In subsection (f)(2), the word "Administration's" is substituted for "Agency's" for clarity.
In subsection (g), the words "10 years after December 26, 2007" are substituted for "on the date that is ten years after the date of the enactment of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2008" for consistency and to reflect the date of enactment of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110–161, div. B, 121 Stat. 1884).
2011—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 112–55designated existing provisions as subpar. (A) and added subpar. (B).
Deposit of Proceeds
Pub. L. 113–6, div. B, title III, Mar. 26, 2013, 127 Stat. 263, provided in part: "That hereafter, notwithstanding section 315 of the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 (51 U.S.C. 20145), all proceeds from leases entered into under that section shall be deposited into this account [funds appropriated under the headings 'National Aeronautics and Space Administration' and 'construction and environmental compliance and restoration' of title III of div. B of Pub. L. 113–6]: Provided further, That such proceeds shall be available for a period of 5 years to the extent and in amounts as provided in annual appropriations Acts".
Similar provisions were contained in the following appropriation acts:
Pub. L. 113–76, div. B, title III, Jan. 17, 2014, 128 Stat. 72.
Pub. L. 112–55, div. B, title III, Nov. 18, 2011, 125 Stat. 625.
Pub. L. 111–117, div. B, title III, Dec. 16, 2009, 123 Stat. 3144.
LII has no control over and does not endorse any external Internet site that contains links to or references LII.


text:
Log in
News, events, and happenings... for Tweens!
"I think the performances were really inspired. All the performers were lip syncing but you couldn't tell...much. And isn't that what lip syncing is all about?" - Not Ellen DeGeneres
We don't have Ellen DeGeneres as a celebrity judge on Puppet Idol, but we did have some amazing performances by some amazing puppets. Music included songs by Lady GaGa, Black Eyed Peas, Flaming Lips, Gorillaz, Gloria Gaynor, Cyndi Lauper, Jimmy Durante, the Muppets, Louis Armstrong, and Julie Andrews (who is very not Lady GaGa).
By söve, 05/11/2011


text:
Quigleaf wrote:tropireno wrote:I was honestly hoping for a cheaper price for these. 45 bucks for the full set of EX cards is still kinda ridiculous.
Allow me to offer some perspective here (excuse me for this wall of text, I promise it's worth it):
You're receiving 24 cards (3x of each card) plus commons. At $45?, each card costs you $2.
Let's say you're a regular Iczer with a 10-hour per week schedule. You'll be experimenting with these cards for about 2 weeks while you do adjustments and try new combos and stuff. That's 20 hours of entertainment for $45, so, per hour, you're paying $2.25. That's less than the hourly minimum wage of any state by the way.
Nothing exists in a vacuum. So, let's keep this "perspective enhancement" going:
Alteil is a CCG (with no trade aspect so far). There are thousands of other CCG's and TCG's. The more popular of them are M:tG and YGO. (Magic: The Gathering and Yu-Gi-Oh!, respectively).
Current popular, competitive decks for M:tG in any format (since they have multiple tournament formats to choose from) are in the $300-$500 pricetag, sometimes going even to the thousands, specially in older formats like Legacy and Vintage. Right now, the most expensive card of the most popular format (Standard) is worth $40: Liliana of the Veil. Thanks God not all decks use her, but in decks that do, she is usually found as a 3x (three copies, that is).
There are several other cards with close pricetags which are used as 3x and 4x in several deck types: Boros Reckoner ($25), Geist of Saint Traft ($30), Thundermaw Hellkite ($35).
If you leave Standard, and go for older formats, prices can get quickly out of hand: there's a card called Tarmogoyf that is worth $130, even after they announced they are going to reprint it this summer. And that's a card that was in print less 6 years ago (May 2007). There's a batch of pre-2000 cards that are valued in the hundreds, and commonly see play as 4x in ALL deck archetypes legal on the format: the dual lands.
Of course there's more to M:tG to simply play and have fun, but that's another discussion entirely.
YGO? That game used to have legal cards worth easily $200 like Dark Armed Dragon, Judgment Dragon and similar cards. Of course, YGO usually reprints popular, powerful stuff in common and rare versions that are worthless when compared to their Ultra Rare versions. You will still find competitive staples of the game going for $30 or $40 easily, like Number 11: Big Eye or 1st edition Zenmaines.
In both cases, you're looking at potential $400+ investments for full decks. Since both games use 40 or 60 cards (instead of Alteil's 25), let's settle for half that value: $200.
Getting a competitive deck here in Alteil is cheaper, without a doubt. With about $50 you can get yourself enough cards to build a few decks that can be competitive, like Undead or Monsters or WK Rush.
At the end of the day, it all depends on what kind of use you get from your cards. If you're an occasional Iczer that plays 2-3 matches per day you should be looking at other kinds of products, like pre-builts: those let you play right out of the "box" without adjustments and issues of any kind.
This EX release is certainly not for the casual crowd.
(That said, I do believe the benefits of purchasing a Full Box should outweight the current 100G of savings).
As someone who plays legacy magic ya alteil feel like chump change.


text: The University of South Florida was established in 1956. Located in Tampa, Florida, USF has a student population high enough to consistently rank in the top ten nationwide. The University of South Florida is held in high regard for its research into cures for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases.The school may be fairly young, but USF has already established itself as a competitive power in the Big East Conference. The Bulls play their home football games at Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and host opponents during basketball season at the Sun Dome. There is plenty else to do while in the Tampa area, so be sure to take in a show or concert at any of the great venues near the University of South Florida campus, including the Ford Amphitheatre, St. Pete Times Forum and Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.Use the following links to purchase tickets for University of South Florida events:


text:
Registration Rocks has moved inside due to rain chances
Submitted on May 13, 2010 at 11:36 AM
It's time to get geared up for fall classes at Volunteer State Community College and there's an event that can make it enjoyable for students. "Registration Rocks" features live music, Subway Subs and a video game contest. It's an opportunity for people considering college to visit the campus, explore and find out what Vol State has to offer.
"Registration Rocks" will be held on Wednesday, June 9, which is the first day when fall class registration is open to everyone, including new students. Students can register that day, but they can also register later in the summer. Registering early is advised to ensure that students get the classes they want. "Registration Rocks" will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Vol State campus at 1480 Nashville Pike in Gallatin. It is free and open to the public. No reservations are required. For more information call 615-230-3570.
A service provided by the Office of Public Relations.


text:
Don-Jo Mfg. warrants to the original buyer for a period of one year that this product is free from defects in workmanship and materials. At our option, we will repair or replace free of charge, including shipping charges back to you, any product found to be defective and subject to this warranty, provided it is delivered prepaid to us.
Don-Jo Mfg., Inc. warrants that all products with the ENDURANCE finish from Don-Jo, shall be free from defects in material, workmanship and operation and from tarnishing, flaking, pitting, and discoloration for 10 years from date of purchase.
Don-Jo produces its products using an American workforce in America. All of our products are made in accordance with the highest American standards of quality excellence. All of our products are manufactured from the highest quality material however, all final decisions concerning quality and excellence remain exclusively in the discretion of Don-Jo.
Small surface indentations and imperfections due to the malleability of the material and the crafting of the product may not constitute a defect.
Any damage resulting from installation of the product contrary to any of Don-Jo's written installation instructions is not covered by this Warranty.
Any modification of the product by any non-Don-Jo component is not covered by this Warranty.
Any defect caused by neglect, misuse, abuse, or unreasonable or extraordinary use or maintenance is not covered by this Warranty.
If you make a claim under this Warranty Don-Jo has the right to investigate the claim. In the event the claim proves to be valid, Don-Jo will, at its sole option, either repair or replace the defective product. This Warranty will continue in effect for the repaired or replacement Don-Jo product. If Don-Jo has discontinued the product at the time a valid claim is made, or if Don-Jo determines, in its sole discretion, that such a repair or replacement is inappropriate, Don-Jo reserves the right to refund the original purchase price of the product instead. Except as expressly provided in this Warranty to the contrary, DON-JO SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR LABOR OR OTHER COSTS RELATED TO INSTALLATION, REPAIR OR REPLACEMENT OR FOR LOSS OR DAMAGE TO, ANY MATERIAL WHICH IS NOT SOLD BY DON-JO, OR FOR ANY CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR LOST PROFITS.
All claims under this Warranty must be made to the claimant's Don-Jo or retailer. Each claim must be in writing, briefly describe the defect, and be accompanied by a proof of purchase. The claimant must provide his or her Don-Jo dealer other information and evidence reasonably by Don-Jo and, if required, must permit inspection by Don-Jo or its representatives. If Don-Jo determines that the claim is valid, please see remedies above.
Except as expressly provided in this Warranty to the contrary, DON-JO MAKES NO OTHER WARRANTIES AND DISCLAIMS AL WARRANTIES (WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY), INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE (SOME SITUATIONS DO NOT ALLOW EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR LIMITATION ON THE LENGTH OF ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY, AND THEREFORE SOME OR ALL OF THE LAST SENTENCE UNDER THE ABOVE HEADING, "REMEDIES," AND THE IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING TWO SENTENCES MAY NOT APPLY).
This Warranty is the only express warranty provided by Don-Jo. No employee, representative or agent nor any other person has the authority to assume or incur on behalf of Don-Jo any obligation or liability in place of or in addition to this Warranty. This Warranty provides specific legal rights and other rights, which may vary from state to state, may also be available.
© 2000-2016 Build.com. All Rights Reserved.


text:
Dam Pond cleanup eyed
GOSHEN — Goshen Dam Pond looks a lot different than it did just a few decades ago.
Thick beds of lily pads and aquatic weeds blanket large sections of the pond. Bushes of purple loosestrife, an invasive plant, have formed small islands in the water. And layer by layer, silt has built up below the pond's surface.
"It's almost like the pond is getting smaller and smaller," Milt Thomas said, navigating the pond in a pontoon boat. "It's only a matter of time before the weeds fill it all in. A lot of this wasn't here just over 20 years ago."
Thomas lives near the pond and is vice president of the Elkhart River Restoration Association. The group is exploring ways to clean up a 100-acre area of the pond that stretches from the C.R. 38 bridge to the dam. Removing silt and clearing the water of plants could open up the pond to more recreational activities like boating and fishing, Thomas said.
There are challenges that come with cleaning the pond, ERRA president David Troup pointed out. For example, there needs to be a balance between the water's recreational use and preservation of habitats for fish and other wildlife, he said.
Doug Nusbaum, who works for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, noted that sediment is the top contaminant in water bodies across the state.
"As we see more development upstream and more soil loss, we are seeing more detriment to the water bodies like Goshen Pond, which does affect the aquatic organisms and anything from the crayfish to the game species, the bass and bluegill that people like to fish for, and turtles," said Nusbaum, a lake and river enhancement specialist.
Nusbaum boarded a boat last week with Troup and a group of environmental consultants to study the pond. They used a long, steel pole to test the depth of the silt and a pipe to collect samples from the bottom of the pond. First, they tested a spot near the pond's island.
"There's a lot of plant material," Troup said, describing the silt's consistency. "There's no sand, which they were happy about because sand is hard to move and hard to dredge. This is just kind of a mucky material, and it's easier for them to pump."
At a second location closer to the dam, the consultants discovered that the silt was drier and more dense. Their tests will help the ERRA determine how much silt and plant life to remove from the water and how to go about doing it, Thomas said.
The ERRA will first apply with the DNR for funding for the cleanup project and keep an eye out for other sources in the meantime, Thomas said.
"It's kind of a scatter approach," he added.
The total cost will be dictated by the scope of the project, said Thomas, who noted that it will take about $20,000 just to write the grant proposal, which includes hiring consultants, water studies and securing permits among other steps.
The ERRA raised money for the sediment removal project in June. The group auctioned off hand-painted rain barrels and raised close to $9,500, some of which went back to the artists who decorated the barrels. The group has also received a $7,500 DNR grant that must be used by early 2014.
Though he won't have an estimate until the group figures out how much work needs to be done, Troup said the project will require far more funding than the ERRA has right now. Troup has submitted a request for proposals to 14 organizations to develop a plan for the pond project. He hopes to have a first draft of the plan by the end of this year or early 2013.
"The pond's health does have some issues from the amount of vegetation that's growing in it and the amount of silt, so at some point it's not going to really be a pond if more and more of these little islands crop up," Troup said. "It would kind of eliminate the recreational aspect. This needs to be done, and it needs to be done right."


text:
Pleno Sol was founded by Nicolau Bussolotti Francine in Brazil from the desire to generate income without jeopardizing future generations, have innovation as a principle, and incorporate a spirit of continuous improvement throughout its line of products, constantly seeking sustainable solutions.
Pleno Sol wishes to be regognized for excellence in the field of solar cooking and solar energy, with the commercialization of artisanal foods produced with solar energy, aimed at spreading the culture of solar cooking. Their goal is to improve solar cooker design, share information about solar cooking, and produce high quality food for sale. Pleno Sol operates as a commercial bakery offering various cakes and breads, as well as a manufacturer of solar cookers.
Hopefully, this approach will make the search for sustainable products and efficient equipment easier, and make using solar energy more affordable.
News and recent developments
- November 2012: Baking with a solar box cooker - In 2010, Nicolau Bussolotti Francine of Sao Paulo, Brazil, developed a box solar cooker for baking. Francine reports that his model can bake up to one kilo of cookies or 36 muffins at one time. In 2011 he began developing a more powerful bread oven. Using SCI's Solar Cooking Wiki, Francine was able to make contact with other solar cooker manufacturers who were using Fresnel lenses. He incorporated multiple plain Fresnel lenses into his new design. His company Plenosol Cozinha Solar has recently filled a large order from an NGO working in the Natural Reserve Serra das Almas.
Audio and video
See also
External links
Pleno Sol
Email: email@example.com
Web: http://plenosol.wordpress.com


text:
Include your little one in the Halloween fun with this cute and comfortable Infant and Toddler Garden Gnome Costume. This cuddly costume features jumpsuit, detachable beard, and classic gnome hat. The jumpsuit is styled to look like a red and white plaid shirt, pants, and yellow suspenders set. You will also receive great add ons like a gray beard and cute little red booties. Of course the essential piece to this garden gnome ensemble is the classic red gnome hat. This great costume is only available in one size (2T) that should fit most toddlers comfortably. Don't let this cute costume get away and order your Infant and Toddler Garden Gnome Costume today!
Our Price: $0.97
Our Price: $1.97
Our Price: $8.97
Our Price: $3.99


text:
One of the hotly debated issues during the twilight days of 2011 was the proposed, or should we say the already endorsed but reservedly and vaguely talked about by relevant spokespersons, is the upward adjustment of our beloved MPs' sitting allowances by a cool 185%.
Believe it or not, but chances are that the controversy is likely to keep us busy as well in 2012. It is for this reason that we are joining the ranks of those determined to keep the sitting allowance ball rolling.
Challenged by anyone to prove my case as to why this will remain a nagging problem for quite sometime, I would readily give a few handy explanations.
First, we have a specific category of workers that is thousands of teachers countrywide, who last year vowed to call a strike if the malpractice of denying them a fair share of the national cake continues while MPs pocket their highly raised sitting allowances, good salaries and other juicy perks. Given the teachers' determination to pursue this cause, their move will put the MPs' sitting allowances to the fore once again.
Teachers apart, even other workers who are feeling the economic pinch are restless as well. The workers umbrella organization has already categorically promised to back up the teachers, in case they opt to walk the talk and lay down their mental tools, in an attempt to teach the ruling establishment a lesson or two.
We are also very much aware that the constitutional debate is poised to take off any time within the first half of this year. All signs indicate that issues related to the yawning gap between the have-too-much and have- too- little, now threatening our cherished peace and harmony, are likely to crop up as there are already strong feelings that the constitution must address them.
All these forces do not take lightly the tendency by our MPs to preach water but drink wine. Whoever thinks under such circumstances the MPs' sitting allowance question will be relegated to the back burner must be living in dreamland.
All said one key question calls for an urgent answer, in attempt to find out why our men and women "of the people" are craving for any cent they can lay their hands on.
I am determined to be extremely fair to our legislators by genuinely observing that they are not the only social group worshipping, the false God that money has become. The craze for money is everywhere, and the saying that "man made money and money made man mad" is now more relevant than it has ever been before in history.
Now let us come to the real point. It is not a secret that a substantial investment in monetary terms has to be made by most aspirants for legislative seats, with few exceptions of those who happen to contest with extremely unpopular incumbents.
This explains why it is not uncommon for seekers of legislative seats to secure bank loans, dispose property, exhaust bank accounts, seek financial god fathers and resort even to all sorts of unethical money making ways, so long as the end justifies the means.
The political fight for legislative seats has turned into a financial nightmare which leaves many as broke as the proverbial church mouse. Why are we then surprised when our MPs begin to devise all sorts of ways to recoup what they spent right from the day they take the oath to "serve the people diligently."
Then there is this self inflicted wound. We are referring to the MPs' habit of posing as benefactors of the electorate – that is dishing peanut pocket money to poor peasants, promising to help where some parents fail to pay school fees for their children, providing some schools with computers and books, distributing sports gear and balls to youth groups, contributing handsomely to endless wedding receptions, and you name it. We do not need a genius to tell us that behind this Uncle Tom spirit are calculations for the next election. Whoever thinks only presidential aspirants are already in the rat race for 2015 misses the point.
If there were no personal motives, a proper approach would be to mobilize the electorate to engage in self-empowerment activities so that they eventually stop living on handouts.
Unless our MPs change their mindset and focus on this option, they will continue with their unfortunate habit of robbing Peter to pay Paul, which does more harm than good to their collective image.
Henry Muhanika is a Media Consultant ([email protected])


text:
Friday, Oct. 9 and Saturday, Oct. 10
Remember when we only feared other countries?Who would have believed that the two weeks of the Cuban Missile Crisis during the Cold War were the good old days.
In 1989, "Back to the Future II" presented its vision of the year 2015: Think hoverboards, video phone calls, fax machines, dehydrated pizza and the Cubs winning the World Series. (The actor who played Biff, Tom Wilson,
Parents deciphering the acronyms their teens use over text and on social media is something better...
The Milford School District will be holding an operations referendum on Tuesday in an effort to address its $1.2 million budget deficit.
After seeing Kevin Durant shoot down his report and call him a liar, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith responded to the Oklahoma City Thunder superstar on First...
Gov. Jack Markell lifted the limited state of emergency for Sussex County at 1 p.m. Monday, Oct. 5.
The Delaware State Police are investigating an attempted robbery of an Ellendale area gas station that took place on Sunday night, according to Master Cpl. Gary Fournier, spokesman for the state police.
Is Nicole Kidman the latest celebrity to land a guest-starring role on
Make extra income from an empty rental apartment, a small studio, or possibly even a spare bedroom... and get to know people from around the globe? Sounds good to us. Vacation hosting for pay via websites like
Delaware Directory
Business Name
Location, ST | website.com


text:
Click OK to log in and restart your reservation.
Click Cancel to continue with your reservation without logging in.
Thanks to our codeshare partnership with Seaborne Airlines, you can enjoy increased access to the Caribbean. And, if you're an AAdvantage® member, you can earn AAdvantage miles on Seaborne flights booked with an American Airlines flight number, which will count toward elite status qualification. You can also redeem AAdvantage miles on Seaborne flights between San Juan (SJU) and:
For more than 20 years, Seaborne Airlines has been providing inter-island service to the Virgin Islands and surrounding Caribbean destinations, including nonstop flights from San Juan International Airport. Stretch out and relax beside the clear, blue waters of Smuggler's Cove, Cane Garden Bay or any of the many beaches along Tortola's northern coast. Or, take a nighttime swim in Vieques' bioluminescent Mosquito Bay. If adventure is what you seek, go on an ocean safari off the coast of Dominica, the "Whale Capital of the Caribbean."
With nonstop service to San Juan, Puerto Rico from our key hubs in Chicago (ORD), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), Miami (MIA) and New York (JFK), traveling to the Caribbean has never been easier. Through our extensive global network, you can enjoy up to 550 weekly flights to more than 30 Caribbean destinations. Plus, from the United States, we offer more flights to more locations in Latin America than any other carrier, with access to more than 50 destinations throughout Mexico, Central America and South America.
Through our expanding global network we are making your global travel experience even easier and more rewarding with better flight schedules, more coordinated service and more opportunities to earn AAdvantage miles while you travel the world.
Now more than ever, we're making it easier to travel throughout the United States and beyond as we continue to expand our network out of our hub cities with new flights to key destinations. Follow our progress as we modernize your travel experience with new planes, more amenities and easy ways to stay connected throughout your journey.
Any searches or unfinished transactions will be lost.
Do you want to continue your session?


text:
East African countries have the potential to light up the world if they put more money in the energy sector that is currently attracting many foreign investors making use of auditing firms to ensure proper investments are set up.
This was revealed yesterday by a team of international accounting firm, BDO, which met in Dar es Salaam to review the firm's structure for its East African operations in a move to address the pressing need of potential investors in the region.
According to officials BDO officials about USD47.5bn is expected to be invested in this sector every year until 2015 to generate power of which part of it will serve 20 million residents in the region.
The Group chief financial officer, Georges Chung, said as per the US International Energy Outlook report energy consumption growth in Africa from 2008 to 2035 has grown by 67 percent.
"Kenya and Tanzania are among the countries particularly concerned with that growth. Moreover 20 percent of the acquired land in Africa is used for cultivating biofuels," stressed Chung, who is also responsible for due diligence, corporate recovery and investigations.
For his part, BDO East Africa, chief executive director Sandeep Khapre said at a press briefing in Dar es Salaam: "We have all it takes to assist companies willing to invest in Africa. Our power lies in our personalised service and knowledge of the terrain".
He said energy is another sector of interest to investors, mentioning that about USD47.5bn is expected to be invested in this sector every year until 2015.
"About 20 million households need to be connected to the power network if the objectives of national electrification programme in East Africa are to be met.
The CEO earmarked four sectors of great potential for Africa that include agriculture, financial services, energy and transport.
Juvinal Betambira, another BDO official said Tanzania has been growing at an average rate of 6.7 percent since 2006 saying the rate is one of the best in sub-Sahara Africa.
For his part, Yacoob Ramtoola, Group Managing Partner states that the time for Africa to transfom itself economically has come and investors are more than keen to invest on this continent. He said the Foreign Direct investments (FDI) in many East African countries have increased dramatically over the years and increasingly, multinationals feel the need to be accompanied by professionals.
"We have proved that Africa is not just a commercial venture for us, we are Africans and it goes beyond business. It is a duty to contribute to sustainable development, he said
BDO International is the fifth global accounting firm that entered the East African market after signing a partnership deal with DCDM East Africa, a local financial advisory firm, signalling fresh realignments in the region's financial advisory market.
The entrance of BDO International is likely to further shake up the market structure of advisory firms as mid-level accounting firms that have sought international affiliation continue to threaten the dominance of the 'big four' multinational firms, namely PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte, Ernst and Young and KPMG.


text: It was awesome. I played really well. I was really happy to win so convincingly. Some of the shots I played were pretty special as well. I struggled a little bit the last few weeks. I was starting to do little things better but not everything was coming together in one match…so it's taken a long time to come.I'm enjoying playing tennis much more now. Hopefully I can keep this up for the next few tournaments.


text:
What is RM Cash
Overall customer review score:
Return to Pro Honda Mini Compressor Product Page
Reviews by real power sport enthusiasts...your opinion counts to us and fellow riders! Make the best purchasing decision by getting the latest reviews.
Each review submitted enters you into a $100 gift card monthly drawing, and a $500 gift card quarterly drawing!
Comments On Jul 24, 2014:haven't used it yet, just have it for emergencies but it seems like a decent buy
Was this review helpful?
Comments On May 31, 2013:Excellent product for its size and price. Great to have on board with my Polaris. Just be warned, don't let it run too long or it will burn up. Use as directed and you will love it. Don't expect it to be fast either, you're not at a gas station
Was this review helpful?