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I just finished holding a few Windows 8 / Windows Server 2012 Installfests both with IT Pros in mind and with Developers in mind. Time and time again, I got asked the same questions around how to create the VHD that has the Windows 8 installation in it. There are quite a few blog posts out there and so I didn't create my own, but it became evident to me that the ones most often referenced are very hard to follow and require lots of command line utilities that make it hard for people to duplicate. For that reason, I have decided to create my own blog post with much simpler steps using mostly GUI based tools. The steps I am outlining below can be used to create a Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows Server 2012 VHD.
I have placed the imagex.exe in my drop box folder so feel free to grab them: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/hwtz3hqtz589wgz/ug3YlEj_sb?m
In order to perform the steps in my blog, there are a couple of things that you will need to have access to – all of which are free. I will use a deployment utility called ImageX.exe from the Windows Automated Installation kit (WAIK). Also, you will need to have some way to either mount an ISO image or have the DVD or thumb drive with the Windows 8 installation media on it. I happen to use a freeware tool called Magic ISO CD/DVD Manager to mount ISO images.
Before I provide the detailed steps, let me just provide an overview of the process.
Now, for the details behind the above 6 steps. I will be providing screen shots of this process from a Windows 7 machine.
Create and mount VHD
The first time you boot to this installation, Windows 8 will detect your devices and install the appropriate drives and then reboot. Upon reboot, you will configure the computer name and a user account like you normally would on a new Windows 8 installation.
If you no longer want to have this option in your boot menu, use MSCONFIG (boot tab) to delete the unwanted entry.
Hopefully, this simple and easy to follow guide will help you to successfully create and boot to your own installations of Windows 8 (or Windows Server 2012).
Harold Wong
Harold - This is great. Thanks for posting.
Oh, your files at http://aka.ms/hwitcampfiles are offline [or otherwise].
Ed, I'm not sure what you mean by offline. They are live and fully accessible. There should be 5 files in the folder.
Thanks for post, it is very usefull
Wouldn't it be possible to take these vhd files and use them as templates for imaging, or do they need to be converted to wim files first?
I am getting an error.
Error (509)
This account's public links are generating too much traffic and have been temporarily disabled!
1. Issue with Dropbox and Error 509: I have contacted Dropbox to resolve this issue. Please be patient while I work through this.
2. You cannot use the VHD as imaging templates. You also can't convert a VHD to a WIM.
Thanks, I'll pass on the 8 GB VM's but the knowledge is good to have.
Are these also VHDs that I can mount and use in Windows 7 Virtual PC? I have created the new VMCX file, mounted the VHD in disk manager, but when i try and power these devices on, I get an error. It says Encountered an error when attempting to use one of its virtual hard disks.
Normally, you would be able to use VHDs created in this fashion in Windows 7 Virtual PC. The reason the ones I created don't work is that I installed 64 bit Operating Systems in these VHDs and Windows 7 Virtual PC does not emulate 64 bit hardware - only 32 bit. Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows Server 2012 only come in 64 bit so those cannot be run in Windows 7 Virtual PC. If you use the Windows 8 VHD to boot from, you can enable Hyper-V and create 64 bit VMs and use the two Server VHDs in your VMs.
files at http://aka.ms/hwitcampfiles not available...
Sorry about the error. It seems Dropbox has not fixed the issue with bandwidth utiliziation on my account. I am working to correct this. If you are not able to download in th enext few days, I will have the files on a thumb drive at the event.
thanks for the tutorial
thanx for the guide but when i use bcdboot to create a start for a vhd image, at restart the boot menù change to windows 7 style. :(
Everything looks good with the attached VHD and the volume is there but it goes away when I restart. I get a boot error because it can't find e:\windows.... The e volume isn't there. How do I make the e volume stick so it's there after restarting?


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MESQUITE – The nation's leading pediatricians group is worried about the rising number and severity of injuries from cheerleading activities.
The American Academy of Pediatrics says there were almost 37,000 emergency room visits last year related to cheerleading.
On Monday, in the journal Pediatrics, the group recommended schools designate cheerleading as a sport and give it stronger safety rules. Ideally, the group says that would mean schools hire on-site athletic trainers, give programs a limit on practice time and submit coaches to a more rigorous examination for qualifications.
In Texas, cheerleading is not an official activity regulated by the University Interscholastic League, according to UIL assitant athletic director Traci Neely.
"Cheerleading programs exist as a part of the support structure for many different school competitions, therefore cheer squads are considered as an extracurricular activity," Neely said in a written response to questions from News 8.
Former competitive high school cheerleader Linsey Martin of Mesquite knows how risky it can be.
"Doing a basket toss … I broke my L-4 vertebrae," she said. The accident in 2004 left her in a wheelchair or on crutches for two years. She also began having seizures.
"I'm very, very, very blessed to be walking right now. I was told I wasn't going to."
Through surgery and therapy using electricity, her symptoms have eased. Her passion for making cheerleading safer, however, has not.
"Cheerleading shouldn't be removed from programs. It should just be regulated a lot more than it is now," she says. "Cheerleading is dangerous now because the laws haven't caught up with the degree of difficulty going on."
Cheerleading injuries last year were four times higher than in 1980.
"The severity is on par with some of the football injuries we're seeing," said orthopedic surgeon Richard Schuster of Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth. He said he sees three to five cheerleading injuries each week.
"Elbow fractures and dislocations," he says, listing off an array of physical diagnoses. "Forearm fractures, wrist fractures."
Statistics show that cheerleading still doesn't have as many injuries as other sports, including gymnastics, soccer and field hockey.
But pediatricians say the severity of those injuries is worse, including skull and paralyzing spine injuries.
Neely said cheerleading coaches and sponsors can voluntarily opt to comply with Texas safety mandates by completing a portion of the UIL Rules Compliance Program.
"The course, 'Safety Training for Extracurricular Programs,' provides the same safety information that is required of athletic coaches," Neely said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
E-mail email@example.com

subset: commoncrawl


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Job Opportunities
The Museum of Science seeks to recruit, hire, develop, promote, and retain individuals from racially and culturally diverse backgrounds and persons with disabilities. We strive to create and sustain a more affirming environment for all staff, interns, volunteers, trustees, and overseers. We value expertise gained at the Museum and encourage professional development and career growth.
Employee benefits include free parking in the Museum garage, T accessibility, free admission, discounts in the Museum store and café, a retirement and savings plan, and much more!
The Museum of Science is an Equal Opportunity Employer. M/F/D/V
Applicants are considered for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identification, marital or veteran status, ancestry, genetic information, military service, and any other category protected under applicable federal, state, or local law. The Museum of Science does not discriminate, on the basis of disability, against any individual who chooses to participate in any programs, service, venue, or activity.
Photo © Brilliantpictures.com
How to Apply
Please visit our job application site to view our open opportunities and to complete the application process.
If you are unable to complete the online application, we are also able to accept cover letters and resumés by mail or fax if necessary:
Mail to:Human Resources Museum of Science 1 Science Park Boston, MA 02114


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Company Gavin Robertson
Welcome to the website of Company Gavin Robertson. Use the buttons at the left to navigate your way around, and contact us if you need any information.
You can now buy BOND T-shirts available in the sizes displayed below as long as we have stock. Price is £12.00 which includes P+P within the UK. Please contact for international postage pricing. Payment is by Paypal.
This latest review of BOND from the shows in Kansas City, USA
December 13 2013
By ROBERT TRUSSELL
The Kansas City Star
The James Bond mystique has been parodied so often and in so many different ways — even by the movie franchise during particularly dreary spates — that you'd think there's nothing left to spoof.
You'd be wrong.
Actor/writer Gavin Robertson proves that creative performers can still come up with fresh takes on the most familiar material in his one-man show called, simply, "Bond!" It's a consistently funny romp through Bondlandia. This show, which is part of the annual British Invasion produced by Central Standard Theatre, stands in sharp contrast to "Crusoe," that show he brought to the 2012 invasion. That piece, although sharply comic at times, was a philosophical reflection on our place in the universe. This show is strictly for laughs.
And laughs are what Robertson delivers as he dives into the 007 imagery. Robertson, performing in a black suit over a black shirt, is such a skilled physical performer that he can paint images in the viewer's mind and has no problem playing two characters in one scene. His only props are three rectangular metal frames that he employs inventively in various ways, and two miniature cars.
He opens the show with his own version of elaborate movie credits we've come to expect from the Bond films and then launches into a delightfully convoluted story about the title character being brought out of retirement to prevent a madman from detonating a small nuclear device in Los Angeles on the night of the Academy Awards. There's a scene at a casino gaming table, a car chase and some business involving a time machine in which novelist Ian Fleming travels back in time in an effort to erase his famous creation from existence.
The most clever aspect of Robertson's show is that he never identifies himself as James Bond — his version of the character's signature line is, "The name is Bond … just Bond." We recognize M and Q and Moneypenny, but they are never identified by name. Robertson himself described the show as "fluff" in a post-performance conversation, but his artistry is so impressive that he keeps you constantly engaged. His performance also stimulates the viewers' imaginations, which is always welcome during a night at the theater.
In July 2013, Gavin returned from a trip to Bangalore, India where he created and directed a comic 'Bollywood onstage' parody, 'Bollywood Kee-Maa'. Evam, who toured 'The 39 Steps' from the West End, produced ths new show for performances in August 2013, and touring later in the year... performances include shows in India so far, as well as Singapore, to enthusiastic reviews.
In September 2013, just prior to the first UK and Eire tour of new solo show, BOND!, Gavin was in Moscow in four showings of "2013: A SPACE ODDITY" At The MET (Moscow English Theatre) attached to the Mayakovsky Theatre. In December 2014 he returns to direct 'Sleuth' for the theatre.
October 2013: Plans for a three week trip to Adelaide with solo shows CRUSOE and BOND both playing in rep. have now ended, with fantastic reviews all round. Discussions are now underway for a return in 2015 - but with which show!? Watch this space...
July 2014 Gavin is at The Metropolitan Theater in Kansas City for performances of BOND.
Review - August 2012 from Edinburgh Fringe: Fringereview 4 stars!:
Gavin Robertson presents a solo show that ranges from Bounce Theory to Alzheimer's, relationships between people and between stars. Robertson's Crusoe stands at the centre, as do we all, individuals, beached in an inexplicable universe, connected yet alone, each stranded on our island of uniqueness (and separateness), a sum of our memories and perhaps, nothing more. From the first moment, this hour at Zoo Southside invites us to sit forward and watch. Robertson places his characters carefully, and delineates them well. Tight, meaningful lighting and soundscape; A simple gesture and we look to where an invisible object or person becomes visible in our imaginations. He points, we see.
It's creation realised on stage with simple genius. Much of this piece is an unspoken, assumed collaboration between audience and performer as his mime and movement create objects, people and places before us. This is what Gavin Robertson does with such ease and flow. At one point he creates an entire city before our eyes (and magically in your minds-eye too); and he does it with his eyes, his hands (which can even invoke a believable and beautiful sunset), with minimal gesture and loving physical movement. And it is there, both before us, and in the landscape of our imagination. Anyone distracted or not giving full attention in the audience, will lose the thread. Certainly for this select audience, Robertson held us for every second.
This is a collage of characters that feels mostly centred on a man with Alzheimers. It is touching, powerful and Brechtian. I caught myself encountering myself in the mirror of this piece on more than one occasion. In places this is truly electric, Gavin Robertson creates worlds with his hands, dramatic tension with a turn of his head. This is rare, priceless performance. There's comedy too as the lives of different characters swirl into focus, then melt back into the tableau. This isn't the classic tale of Robinson Crusoe. But it's a clever and often wise treatment of man in the cosmos, of alone and together, of love and loss, of memory and identity, of bounce and stability. It's playful, full of invention, and yet also based in some very traditional and well-worn mime and even clowning. Classy, textured and beautifully precise physical theatre, well written monologue, amounting to a must-see solo show.
Review: Fringebiscuit: 4 stars:
"An exploration of isolation -Tender, thoughtful and precise"
The categorisation of performances at the Fringe can sometimes be confusing; lines blur between theatre, physical theatre, dance, circus, comedy… Billed as both dance and physical theatre in the programme, Gavin Robertson's one-man show Crusoe was a pleasantly surprising blend of both and neither.
With no props, no costume changes and a minimal stage set, Robertson creates whole worlds through dextrous use of mime, his voice and facial expressions, and a little help from sound and lights man Alex Wright. Philosophical in bent, the performance addresses themes like the modern malady of loneliness in an increasingly socially-networked age, as well as memory and its role in constructing identity. Tying it all together is a meditation on the Big Bang and the origins of our universe.
Robertson is a deeply talented performer, switching between the different characters that people his created cosmos seamlessly. All of his characters are lonely men, whether alone by virtue of their failure in relationships, a physical complaint (Alzheimer's), or physical circumstances (marooned on a desert island).
The piece is well paced and well written. Particularly effective are Robertson's evocation of the poignancy of the Alzheimer's sufferer's plight and the comedic highlights offered by the middle-aged man who goes to a club to try and get 'back in the game'.
Although ending on a hopeful note, this is essentially a dark work with touches of black slapstick humour. Robertson's virtuosity as a performer makes this piece a delight to watch.
About Us
'Company Gavin Robertson' (CoGR) was founded in April 1997. Work has been funded by Arts Council England, and with co-producing venue partners.
To date it has produced FANTASTICAL VOYAGE (1997 - 2000 by GR and Andy Taylor), SPITTOON (2000 -2003 by GR and Wayne Forester), THE SIX-SIDED MAN (2001 by GR with Andrew Dawson, with subsequent international tours in 2010/2011) I AM WHO AM I (2003), and from New Zealand, BLOWING IT (2003/04 by Stephen Sinclair and Stephen Papps) for national and international touring.THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS (2005) was a co- production with The New Wolsey Theatre in Ipswich, and in the same year the Company created its first production for a younger audience, MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE, from a story idea by Gavin Robertson, co-devised with Andrew Dawson and Robert Thirtle. THIS STARVING LIFE , was devised in 2006.
Two further shows for aimed at younger audiences have followed: A GRIMM WORLD, and VAMPIRATES, the latter as recently as 2011/2012.
The company is currently presenting CRUSOE: sand, science, sex, sea and a solo performance! You can read more on the dedicated show page, using th buttons on the left of this website...
Gavin has recently formed a working relationship with 'Scene Productions', Co-producing and
directing first with THE OTHER SIDE (2009), then VAMPIRATES (2011) and in Autumn 2012 with FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER'...
Gavin, as Artistic Director, also works away from the company and in the Edinburgh Festival 2003 appeared as 'Juror 12' in the double award-winning production of '12 ANGRY MEN', directed by Guy Masterson. This was followed by an Australian and New Zealand tour in 2004.
In 2004 Gavin also appeared in the award winning production of 'ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST', directed by Terry Johnson and Tamara Harvey, with Christian Slater and Mackenzie Crook, beginning at the Edinburgh Festival before transferring to The Gielgud Theatre in London's West End where it ran for a six-month sell-out season. In 2006 it ran again at The Garrick Theatre, and Gavin then toured the UK with Shane Richie and Sophie Ward in the lead roles.
In November 2004, Gavin was asked to direct 'RECIPES FOR DISASTER' for DC Entertainment at The Comedy Theatre, again in London's West End - a show that introduced science to a young audience - before a national tour and performances in Indonesia.
He also directed 'THE THIRST' at the Leicester Haymarket in 1993 which ran for six weeks, and has produced live literature events ranging from author Luke Rhinehart's sell-out appearances in The Brighton Festival, to touring his own show, 'SHORTS' through the UK and abroad.
Prior to forming CoGR, Gavin had a successful partnership with Andrew Dawson, again touring nationally and internationally as MTP, most famously creating, and performing in, their cult comedy, THUNDERBIRDS F.A.B. which has now had six separate West End Seasons between 1989 and 2002 at: The Apollo Theatre (x2), The Mermaid Theatre, The Ambassadors Theatre, The Playhouse and The Aldwych. It has also toured numerous times internationally.
Other shows from their partnership included a three-man version of 'THE THREE MUSKETEERS', directed by Olivier-award winner (WARHORSE) Toby Sedgwick; 'WHAT IS ALL THIS DANCING?' featuring Jos Houben (a founder member of Theatre De Complicite); and 'SPACE PANORAMA' which twice opened West End Seasons of the hit Thunderbirds spoof.
Internationally, Gavin Robertson has appeared at Festivals and performances all over the world including: Costa Rica, Brazil, Chile, Senegal, Israel, Lebanon, Tunisia, Holland, France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Oman, Finland, Estonia, Bosnia, India, Russia and the USA, visiting some on several occasions.


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Holy Comforter Choir Camp Playtime by Mitchell Galloway-Edgar - about 4 years ago
"Last week, our parish hosted 18 girls and 1 boy for its annual Children's Choir Camp. Every day had a theme, for example Thursday was Luau Day. But Friday was a surprise day. During one of the activities on Thursday, the kids were played a game to discover what was wrapped in box. What did they find? Their very own tee-shirt - and everyone was thrilled! Instantly, Friday's theme was clear and everyone couldn't wait to put on their new shirts. And the talented folks at CustomInk made this all possible. From the easy web-based design, to the great customer support application, to the super-fast production and delivery, CustomInk just got everything right. And as a result, they made 19 hard-working kids very, very happy."


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IPSWICH — The owner of the closed Stone Soup Cafe on High Street has received a special permit to open a new restaurant on Mitchell Road.
The Zoning Board of Appeals voted 4-0 last week to approve the special permit petition by Mark Macklin and his daughter, Hannah, to open the new restaurant at 20 Mitchell Road.
Stone Soup opened at the same Mitchell Road location in 1993 before moving to the corner of Central and Market streets. In 2009, the restaurant moved into the building formerly occupied by Marco Polo restaurant on High Street until it closed last month.
"Our intent is to run a small restaurant, similar to the restaurant (Stone Soup) that my wife and I ran from 1993 to 2001," Macklin wrote in his application. "We will be mainly a burger and sandwich shop with hours of operation being 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday."
Macklin told the board the restaurant will have 12 seats and focus mostly on takeout. He said the new restaurant will have a similar setup to Stone Soup.
"With 12 seats, we are hoping everyone is going to take it and go," he said.
The board vetted a few questions on impact to town services, traffic and parking.
"Parking was never an issue up there for us," Macklin said.
Staff writer Jonathan Phelps can be reached at 978-338-2527 or by email at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow him on Twitter at JPhelps_SN.


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Get this recipe courtesy of Stubb's Legendary Bar-B-Q. Learn more at www.stubbsbbq.com.Ingredients:3 boneless chicken breast24 to 30 slices of bacon1 bottle Stubbs Original BBQ sauce3 TBSP of Stubb's BBQ rub2 oz. Honey1 1/3 cup Brown SugarApply 1 tablespoon of rub to each chicken breast, spreading it evenly over both sides. Next, weave 8 to 10 slices of bacon together. Once you are done weaving the bacon, wrap it around one breast. Repeat the process for the other chicken breast. Now, prepare your gill for indirect cooking. Cook at 280°F to an internal temperature of 165°F. This will take 1 to 1 ½ hours depending on your grill.
While your chicken is on the grill you can prepare your glaze. Combine 8 oz. of Stubbs original, honey and brown sugar in a bowl. Mix thoroughly. The glaze should be applied during the last 20 minutes of cooking. Baste 2 to 3 times in that last 20 minutes of cooking.
NOTE: You can also prepare this dish in the oven. Cook at 300°F for 1 hour or until the internal temp reaches 165°F.
CORRECTION: Stubb's will be at the Stubb's on 2240 S. Main in Ann Arbor on Friday, Oct. 19.
WJBK-TV | Fox 2 16550 West Nine Mile Rd.Southfield, MI 48075Main Station: (248) 557-2000Newsroom: (248) 552-5103


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Product Recall: Voluntary recall of 260 cases of Velveeta Original Pasteurized Recipe Cheese Products. Click Here.
HEAT oven to 325°F.
LINE 13x9-inch pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides. Finely crush 24 cookies. Melt 1/4 cup butter; mix with cookie crumbs. Press onto bottom of prepared pan.
BEAT cream cheese and sugar with mixer until blended. Add sour cream and vanilla; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating on low speed after each just until blended. Chop remaining cookies. Gently stir into batter; pour over crust.
BAKE 45 min. or until center is almost set. Cool.
MICROWAVE chocolate and remaining butter in microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min. or until butter is melted; stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended. Cool slightly; spread over cheesecake. Refrigerate 4 hours.
USE foil handles to lift cheesecake from pan before cutting into bars.


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Tagged: Barack Obama
What Color is Your President?
The Pew Research Center recently released a report on racial attitudes in America. The report is based on a telephone survey conducted in October and November 2009.
The survey included a question about people's perception of President Barack Obama's racial identity. Here are the results:
Source: Pew Research Center
Question: How does Obama perceive his own racial identitiy? That's discussed here in the post Barack Obama, Black, Biracial, Whatever.
Political Miscellany @ 11/4/2009: Is the Obama Coalition "Portable" to Other Democratic Races?
Right after Obama's presidential election win last November, I made this comment:
Here are my own election winners and losers, plus some "too early to tell" entries…
Too Early to Tell:
Black Voters: They were huge this election. Blacks were 13% of the total vote, up from 10% in 2000 and 11% in 2004. That helped make the difference in close elections for several states.
The question is, can they be depended on in future elections? Or will their turnout drop without Obama at the top of election ballots?
I think a lot more work needs to be done to make black voters a dependable election force, in close elections or elections in the South. Because if they're not a dependable political force, that lessens their power and influence in the long run.
It will be interesting to see how much of the black vote turns out for the Georgia Senate runoff election between Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss and his opponent, Democrat Jim Martin. Martin has no hope of winning if black voters stay home; we'll see if they sit this one out.
In the aforementioned Georgia Senate race, Jim Martin did wind up losing, and low black turnout was a factor.
Yesterday, Republicans won the governor's election in New Jersey and Virginia. In both cases, the young and black voters who were key to Obama's election success were not decisive in their support for the Democratic candidate.
Liz Sidoti of the Associated Press made these comments:
In another troubling omen for Democrats, the surveys also showed that more of the Virginians who turned out on Tuesday said they supported Republican John McCain in 2008 than said they backed Obama. That suggests the Democrats had difficulty turning out their base, including the swarms of first-time minority and youth voters whom Obama attracted as part of his diverse coalition.
A loss in Virginia could suggest that the diverse coalition that Obama cobbled together last year in Virginia and elsewhere — blacks, Hispanics, young people, independents and Republican crossovers — was a one-election phenomenon that didn't transfer to the Democratic Party when Obama wasn't on the ballot.
I share Sidoti's concern, although I disagree with her comment that the Obama election win was a one hit wonder in terms of pulling together what I call the "Obama coalition" of young, black, Hispanic and independent voters.
Witness, for example, 38-year old Democrat Anthony Foxx in the Charlotte, North Carolina mayoral election. Voters in the city ended more than two decades of Republican leadership in Charlotte Tuesday by electing Foxx, who is the city's second African-American mayor and the youngest in memory. Foxx won a close race, getting roughly 51 percent of the vote over Republican John Lassiter in unofficial tallies.
Foxx benefitted from a strong black turnout. African Americans are 35% of Charlotte's population. The Democrats need to find and promote more candidates like him, who appeal to diverse constituents.
The bottom line is, if the Democrats are going to win "the Obama way," they need to embrace the kinds of voters that put Obama into office. Failure to do so is perilous. Consider these comments from the Washington Post, concerning the election campaign in Virginia governor's race:
Senior (Obama) administration officials have expressed frustration with how Democrat R. Creigh Deeds has handled his campaign for governor, refusing early offers of strategic advice and failing to reach out to several key constituencies that helped Obama win Virginia in 2008, they say.
A senior administration official said (Democratic gubernatorial candidate R. Creigh) Deeds badly erred on several fronts, including not doing a better job of coordinating with the White House. "I understood in the beginning why there was some reluctance to run all around the state with Barack Obama," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to speak candidly about the race. "You don't do that in Virginia. But when you consider the African American turnout that they need, and then when you consider as well they've got a huge problem with surge voters, younger voters, we were just a natural for them."
A second administration official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said: "Obama, (outgoing Democratic governor Tim) Kaine and others had drawn a road map to victory in Virginia. Deeds chose another path."
And it goes without saying that black voters can't afford to be apathetic or unengaged simply because certain kinds of candidates aren't running. Not everyone who runs for political office is exciting or charismatic. And sometimes it is about voting for the lesser of two evils. Black folks need to be willing to come out to the polls even in those kinds of situations.
The GOP Can't Help It.
I guess the Republican Party just can't help it. Making crude comments about African Americans, even one who has reached the position of POTUS, seems to be in their DNA. Consider these clumsy remarks by the Republican Party about Barack Obama and his wife Michelle:
• From Newscoma: Tennessee GOP state Senator Diane Black (R-Gallatin) sent an email with this image of our country's presidents.
• From the Indigo Journal: Mike Green, a Republican operative who is helping to run the campaign for GOP gubernatorial candidate Gresham Barrett, posted the following joke about President Obama on his Twitter account:
• Fitsnews.com reports: Republican Rusty DePass, a former SC State Senate candidate, supporter of former President George W. Bush, and Longtime GOP activist, made this comment after hearing about the escape of a gorilla from a zoo in Columbia South Carolina:
"I'm sure it's just one of Michelle's ancestors — probably harmless.
And yet they wonder why they can't get more black votes…
See also:
• WTF?!? Racist Insanity
• The Hate That Hate Produced: The Demonization of Barack Obama by the Republican Party
Poor Race/Gender-speak from Obama's Supreme Court Nominee
I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life.
- Supreme Court Nominee Sonia Sotomayor, in a speech as quoted by the New York Times
Freedom of speech… just watch what you say…
-Rapper Ice-T, "Freedom of Speech", from the album The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech…Just Watch What You Say
So here you have a racist. You might want to soften that, and you might want to say a reverse racist. And the libs, of course, say that minorities cannot be racists because they don't have the power to implement their racism. Well, those days are gone, because reverse racists certainly do have the power to implement their power. Obama is the greatest living example of a reverse racist, and now he's appointed one.
Talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh, as quoted in Media Matters
Yes… watch what you say.
Right wing extremist and talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh is apparently using the above comments from Appeals Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor to paint the narrative that the Judge is racist. I doubt that charge will stick, but this is a cautionary tale about watching what you say in matters concerning gender and ethnicity.
Judge Sotomayor, whose family is from Puerto Rico, made those comments while giving a speech about diversity in the Judiciary.
And certainly, there is value in having diversity in the American Judiciary, as with the rest of American society. That value was certainly a factor in her being selected by President Barack Obama to fill the Supreme Court seat of retiring Justice David Souter.
The sentiment in Judge Sotomayor's comment was well-intentioned, and not at all vile or pernicious. But it does violate one of the rules of talking about ethnicity, gender, and race: never say one group is better at doing something than another. And as a corollary: never say that being in one group somehow makes you better at doing something than a person of another group.
Just imagine if a white person had said: "Being white, I feel that I can adjudicate lots of cases better than non-whites, who don't have my breadth of experience." That would set off some fireworks, and deservedly so.
Again, I doubt that the Sotomayor's faux pas will derail her placement on the Supreme Court, Limbaugh's comments notwithstanding. She has a solid resumé and more than enough experience. But it does show that if you're a public official in any kind of setting, you need stay aware of the rules and etiquette associated with comments on gender or ethnicity. Failure to do creates grist for the mill of the haters, and that's certainly not helpful for career advancement.
UPDATE: A story in the New York Times reports:
The White House said Friday (5/29/09) that Judge Sonia Sotomayor, President Obama's nominee for the Supreme Court vacancy, used a poor choice of words in a speech eight years ago when she suggested that a Latina judge would reach a better conclusion than a white male judge who doesn't have the same life experiences.
"I think she'd say that her word choice in 2001 was poor, that she was simply making the point that personal experience are relevant for the process of the judging," said Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary.
I think this is a good move from the White House. By admitting it was a bad choice of words, they're no longer in the position of having to "defend" the comment. And it shows the White House has some sensitivity (empathy?) for the concerns that have been raised about the comment.
This won't make the controversy go away, though. Her comments will be a point of contention until her confirmation, and maybe beyond.
(Satire) Alphacat Does a Jamie Foxx-"Blame It" Spoof with (Faux) Barack and Michelle
Alphacat, who's done a lot of video spoofs featuring Barack, has a hot number which riffs off Jamie Foxx's Blame It video.
Here's Alphacat's version:
Best line, from faux Michelle: "Red or blue don't matter cause we're not gangs, don't fight… y'all better act right." (The political junkies will get that.)
I like Alphacat's version better than the original from Jamie Foxx, which follows.
In Washington, Shallow Waters Run Deep (Shallow Gingrich vs Deep Obama)
This is sorta silly season in politics. - Barack Obama, during the 2008 Presidential campaign.
When is it NOT silly season in Washington? Our politics have become so shallow, so stuck on things that don't matter, that they border on being irrelevant.
That's true for many Washington politicians in general, and Republican politicians in particular.
Case in point: Republican Newt Gingrich, who was once Speaker of the House and a respected deep thinker. It seems he's gone off the shallow end. For Gingrich, no attack on Obama is too trivial or trifling.
A couple of weeks ago, in the wake of the Somali pirate attack on the Maersk Alabama, Gingrich said it was time for Obama to show the world he was tough on piracy. As Gingrich noted on the ABC show This Week with George Stephanopoulos:
Look, this is the administration [Obama's] which keeps trying to find some kind of magical solution that doesn't involve effort, and doesn't involve risk, and doesn't involve making hard decisions….. we ought to simply, as a civilized world, say we are gonna stop the pirates in the region. Period. It's very good for the rest of the world to see that there's someplace in the planet where people are willing to draw a line and say certain things won't be tolerated.
Gingrich went on to say that piracy was a global threat along the lines of Iran, North Korea, and Mexico, and represented a test of the President's resolve. That led Stephanopoulos to ask conservative commentator George Will whether the pirates were in fact a test for President Obama. Will responded
Good Heavens, no. The Speaker's very litany of nuisances around the world — some rising considerably above nuisance — indicates just how down on the chain of concerns this should be. Again…. this is well below what mugging was in New York City, because as Paul [Krugamn] said the sea's really quite safe.
Why did Gingrich elevate the piracy incident to the top of the list of foreign policy concerns? Because in the event that the pirate incident didn't work out well-say, with the unfortunate death of Maersk Alabama captain Richard Phillips, whom the Somali pirates were holding hostage-Gingrich could call it big failure by Obama on the world stage.
The Color of the Young Vote, 2008
In the previous blog entry, we mentioned that Michael Steele, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, expressed his desire to see more people of color represented within the Republican Party. Steele made this statement at a meeting of Florida Republicans. At the same meeting, Jim Greer, Florida's party chairman, said that the party would focus on using technology to invigorate younger Republicans.
The folowing charts help to explain why Republicans might be concerned about ethnic and age diversity within their party. These are from the Young Voters in the 2008 Presidential Election Fact Sheet, which was prepared by CIRCLE, the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University.
This first chart is not elegant aesthetically, but it makes a powerful point about the ethnic make-up of voters in the November elections. The chart shows the ethnicity of the electorate, broken-out by different age groups.
Source: Young Voters in the 2008 Presidential Election Fact Sheet
I know this is redundant, but let me go over the numbers on the above chart:
• For voters who are 60 years old or more, the ethnic composition of the vote was 85% white, 8% black, and 4% Hispanic
• For voters aged 45-59, the ethnicity was 80% white, 12% black, and 4% Hispanic
• For voters aged 30-44, the ethnicity was 72% white, 15% black, and 7% Hispanic
• For voters aged 18-29, the ethnicity was 64% white, 19% black, and 11% Hispanic
What we're seeing is that the under-30 population has become more ethnically diverse than older age groups. Whites are a smaller portion of the electorate, while the percentage of African Americans and Hispanics is growing.
The problem for Republicans is that African Americans and Hispanics tend to vote for Democrats. The following chart shows the percentage of people who voted for Obama in the November elections, by ethnicity and age-group:
Source: Young Voters in the 2008 Presidential Election Fact Sheet
Do Whatever You Like
You can vote for whoever you like. This is the first video that the Ron Clark Academy kids did, before they became a YouTube sensation.
Obviously inspired, now Obama feels he can do whatever he likes. Courtesy of YouTube's Alphacat:
And it's good to see how well the white community, disparate though it is, has taken to it all.
After the Election, Hope for Improved Race Relations
I've posted several stories lately on some of the negative reaction to Barack Obama's election to president, from both here in the US and abroad.
I think it's fair to note some of the positive reaction, too. This is an excerpt from a USAToday article:
WASHINGTON — Barack Obama's election has inspired a wave of optimism about the future of race relations in the United States, according to a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll taken the day after the first African American won the White House.
Confidence that the nation will resolve its racial problems rose to a historic level. Two-thirds of Americans predict that relations between blacks and whites "will eventually be worked out" in the United States, by far the highest number since Gallup first asked the question in the midst of the civil rights struggle in 1963.
Optimism jumped most among blacks. Five months ago, half of African Americans predicted the nation eventually would solve its racial problems. Now, two-thirds do.
I can personally say that I was pleasantly surprised by the election results. Obama got more of the white vote than Kerry did in 2004. He got just under 50% of the white outside the South and southern border states. I honestly didn't see it coming.
It's not all good, but there's more reason for optimism than cynicism.
Al-Qaeda Calls Obama a "House Negro" (This is NOT Satire)
I just saw this on the Huffinton Post. Here's an excerpt:
CAIRO, Egypt — Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader used a racial epithet to insult Barack Obama in a message posted Wednesday, describing the president-elect in demeaning terms that imply he does the bidding of whites.
The message appeared chiefly aimed at persuading Muslims and Arabs that Obama does not represent a change in U.S. policies. Ayman al-Zawahri said in the message, which appeared on militant Web sites, that Obama is "the direct opposite of honorable black Americans" like Malcolm X, the 1960s African-American rights leader.
In al-Qaida's first response to Obama's victory, al-Zawahri also called the president-elect _ along with secretaries of state Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice _ "house Negroes."
Speaking in Arabic, al-Zawahri uses the term "abeed al-beit," which literally translates as "house slaves." But al-Qaida supplied English subtitles of his speech that included the translation as "house Negroes."
The message also includes old footage of speeches by Malcolm X in which he explains the term, saying black slaves who worked in their white masters' house were more servile than those who worked in the fields. Malcolm X used the term to criticize black leaders he accused of not standing up to whites.
Wow. They went there.
But al-Qaeda has plenty of reason to hate on Obama; he's vowed often that a major US goal should to be find Osama bin Laden and kill him.
Oddly enough, this is good news politically for Obama, at least in the United States. Many people here believe he's a Muslim, and have problems with an American president being in that religious faith. Some have have actually equated Obama with Osama.
So maybe this will change the minds of a small number of ignorant people on this subject.
More Signs of Racist Backlash to Obama Victory
Editor & Publisher chronicles the continuing, disturbing racist pushback to the election of Barack Obama. This is an excerpt:
NEW YORK Earlier this week we started covering (see link at bottom) anti-Obama, often racist, incidents taking place around the country, generally overlooked in the national media — but covered by local papers. This seemed to strike a nerve with many readers so we will continue regular updates.
Local stories show that anti-Obama incidents (including physical and verbal abuse, KKK outfits worn, flags burned on front lawns) are occurring on both sides of the Mason-Dixon line.
AP reports today that "in a Maine convenience store, an Associated Press reporter saw a sign inviting customers to join a betting pool on when Obama might fall victim to an assassin. The sign solicited $1 entries into "he Osama Obama Shotgun Pool," saying the money would go to the person picking the date closest to when Obama was attacked. 'Let's hope we have a winner,' said the sign, since taken down."
From the Orange County (Ca.) Register, concerning an incident in Fullerton: "Two gang members pleaded not guilty Thursday to hate crime and attempted robbery charges in connection with the beating of a black man who was trying to buy cigarettes at a Fullerton liquor store." The two men shouted racial and anti-Obama epithets in the attack.
In Snellville, Ga., Denene Millner said that a day after the election, a boy on a school bus told her 9-year-old daughter that he hoped "Obama gets assassinated." That night, Millner said, in an AP account, someone trashed her sister-in-law's front lawn, mangled the Obama lawn signs and left two pizza boxes filled with human feces outside the front door."It definitely makes you look a little different at the people who you live with," said Millner, who is black. "And makes you wonder what they're capable of and what they're really thinking."
In Idaho, the Secret Service is investigating a "public hanging" sign erected by a man upset with the election outcome, the Bonner County Daily Bee (Sandpoint) reported Thursday.
A handmade sign posted on a tree reads "FREE PUBLIC HANGING" written in large letters beneath a noose fashioned from nylon rope. The sign then names former Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry, current U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and civil rights activist Al Sharpton. The most prominent name on the sign is "OBAMA," according to the Bee.
This is just too scary. If hundreds of people are doing this, thousands of others are probably thinking about it, but don't have the time, energy, or guts to follow through on their feelings.
Our country has come a long way, but clearly, we've got a long way to go.
Worldwide Fear of a Black President?
As reported by the Washington Post in its article Racism Rears Its Head in European Remarks on Obama, the election of Barack Obama to US president hasn't been hailed universally across the globe:
Europe erupted in cheers to celebrate Barack Obama's election as president, but the continent is seeing its share of insensitive racial blunders, too.
Over the past week, a number of European lawmakers and journalists have made foot-in-mouth comments regarding America's black president-elect, suggesting that some otherwise respected public figures in Europe are far from enlightened on racial matters.
The day after Obama's victory, a leading Austrian television journalist said on camera that he "wouldn't want the Western world to be directed by a black man." A Polish lawmaker stood up in Parliament and called the election result "the end of the white man's civilization."
Some racist comments have come from people who have expressed such views before. "Africa Conquers the White House," read a headline on the Web site of the National Democratic Party of Germany, a political party that sympathizes with neo-Nazi groups. In an accompanying article, Jürgen Gansel, a party leader and an elected lawmaker in the German state of Saxony, blamed Obama's victory on "the American alliance of Jews and Negroes."
Satire from Black Republicans
Who says black Republicans don't have a sense of humor?
The National Black Republican Association posted this wonderfully laughable piece of satire on their website. Share in the amusement:
White Guilt Emancipation Declaration
We, black American citizens of the United States of America and of the National Black Republican Association, do hereby declare that our fellow white American citizens are now, henceforth and forever more free of White Guilt.
This freedom from White Guilt was duly earned by the election of Barack Hussein Obama, a black man, to be our president by a majority of white Americans based solely on the color of his skin.
Freedom is not free, and we trust that the price paid for this freedom from White Guilt is worth the sacrifice, since Obama is a socialist who does not share the values of average Americans and will use the office of the presidency to turn America into a failed socialist nation.
Granted this November 4, 2008 – the day Barack Hussein Obama was elected as the first black president and the first socialist president of the United States of America.
Ha ha ha!
Election Winners and Losers
Here are my own election winners and losers, plus some "too early to tell" entries.
Barack Obama. Duh. This Hawaiian born and bred biracial intellectual with minimal experience has become perhaps the most unique and remarkable politician in American history. Now we'll see if he can fix the mess that George Bush and congressional Republicans have made of this country.
Michelle Obama. The Right tried to demonize her into being an anti-white angry black woman who does terrorist fist bumps with her pals-with-terrorists husband. But like her husband, the more you saw of her, the better you felt about her.
I think she benefitted from not being a silent trophy wife; her speech at the Democratic National Convention and numerous media appearances showed her to be articulate, smart, and personable. I have no doubt that America is embracing her as the new First Lady.
Democrats in the Southeast: Who would have predicted even two years ago that a black Democratic presidential candidate would win in Virginia, North Carolina, and Florida? And how about the fact that Virginia and North Carolina both sent Democrats to the US Senate this year?
The bottom line is, the southeast has become a new battleground for the parties, after being owned by Republicans the prior two elections. And they could have more success there in the future, if they play their cards right.
Democrats in the Industrial Midwest: The last two northern Democrats to be nominated as presidential candidates were both from Massachusetts. They both lost. This year a candidate from the Midwest gave it a try, and found success.
Observers are saying that the proximity of red states like Iowa and Indiana to Obama's "home" state of Illinois was a factor in his victories there. I bet that a lot of Democrats from the Midwest are looking at themselves in the mirror and thinking, maybe I'm next.
At least, Obama's victory disturbs the conventional wisdom that only a southern Democrat has a chance of winning a presidential election.
Organized Labor: Make no mistake, labor put a lot of money and manpower into this election. The Democrats' success in Pennsylvania and other Great Lakes states is owed in part to their efforts.
Now we'll see what organized labor wants, and how much they can get from Obama and the Congress. A bail-out for the auto industry seems first on the list.
Internet Based Campaigning: The Obama campaign has become a legend in its own time thanks to its masterful use of the Internet to organize, communicate, and raise money. By the next presidential cycle, everybody will be doing it-or at least, they'll try.
Cornell Belcher and Leah Daughtry: You probably don't know these two black technocrats who work for the Democratic Party, but you should.
Cornell Belcher is the first African American to serve as polling director for the Democratic National Committee (DNC). Belcher was also a pollster for the Obama campaign. He had the insight that the Democrats could find enough pockets of strength that even a black man could win the presidency. And he was right. (Although he would be the first to say that the toxic environment for Republicans was a huge key to this election.)
Post Election Analysis: Outside the South, Obama Gets Almost Half of the White Vote
In an earlier post, I said that Barack Obama might have gotten half of the white vote OUTSIDE the South. Based on my review of exit poll information, Obama missed the 50% mark by a whisker, getting 49.7% of the white vote outside the South-versus just 30.2% of the white vote in the South.
Nationwide, Obama got 43% of the white vote. By contrast, John Kerry got 41% of the white vote when he ran for president in 2004.
Thanks to some great work at the site Gene Expression in the post The Great White Sort, we have consolidated information from exit polls about the white vote in the presidential election. I used that to prepare two tables about the white vote for Obama.
TABLE 1, which is below, shows the white vote outside the South; TABLE 2 shows the white southern vote. Note the contrasts in the voting numbers.
Some comments on the white vote outside the South:
• Obama got the highest percentage of white votes in his native state of Hawaii. He got a whopping 70% of the white vote there.
• Obama got 50% or more of the white vote in the mega-states of California (52% of the white vote), New York (52%), and Illinois (51%).
• Obama's worst performances were in Utah (31%), Alaska (32%), and Wyoming (32%). In Arizona, Obama got 40% of the white vote.
• Several states with small minority populations, all in New England and the Northwest, provided Obama with a very large share of the white vote: Vermont (68%), Maine (58%), Rhode Island (58%), Massachusetts (57%), New Hampshire (54%), Oregon (60%), Washington (59%).
• In New England, the MidAtlantic, the industrial Midwest, and the West Coast, Obama clearly won the majority of the white vote. He did worse in the Mountain and Midwest Plains states.
• I came to the 49.7% non-southern white vote number using exit poll data, and a weighted average based on the white population of the states. I also used a weighted average to get to the 30.2% number for the white southern vote.
Some comments on the white southern vote:
• Clearly, Obama did poorly among white southern voters. The difference in the voting numbers between the regions is stunning and remarkable.
• One key is that Obama did practically no campaigning or ad spending in the South after the primary elections, with the notable exceptions of Florida, North Carolina, and Virginia – states which Obama won thanks to a strong African American and Hispanic vote. The Obama campaign basically ceded those other southern states to McCain.
• The electorates in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi may have been especially polarized due to some state and local elections. In Alabama and Mississippi, black candidates were running for US Senate seats against Republican incumbents. In Louisiana, black candidates were running as Democrats or independents in three congressional districts. These races, plus the Obama run, may have… I'll use the word "energized"… white Republican voters in those states to do straight ticket voting.
• White southerners are the strongest supporters of the Republican Party, so these results are not unprecedented. I have not looked at the 2004 presidential results, but Kerry may have done equally as bad, or worse, among white voters that year.
Source for two tables below: The Great White Sort post at the Gene Expressions site.
TABLE 1: White Vote for Obama Outside the South
TABLE 2: White Vote for Obama in the South
Note: Text versions of the two tables are here. The tables are presented as graphics in this post because WordPress had problems rendering the pages correctly in several web browsers when I included the information in HTML tables.


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R Dizzle's Offseason News - Monta Ellis Starts a Rap Career - Throw a Kit on that...
The Warriors will not void Monta Ellis' contract. Is this a move to boost his trade value?
My take: Moped Ellis showed his appreciation to the Warriors' organization and loyal fanbase by violating his contract this past offseason, lying about it, trying to fight a very justifiable 30 suspension, issuing a weak ghost-written "apology", costing this team double digit wins this season, not helping his 6th men paid like stars and NBDL teammates while they're trying their best every night, and is a big reason the 2008-2009 Golden State Warriors are "Unwatchable baby!" Who cares if he's "not pleased" right now? Hopefully he has a successful recovery, but he had it all coming. BUT even though as a fan I'd like the Warriors to have the option of tearing up his contract so it doesn't cripple the team's cap if he comes back and isn't worth that huge extension he was gifted, he and his agent have a very valid point. The Warriors shouldn't have the option to suspend him and then decide whether to terminate his contract if he doesn't perform. Pick one, but not both. (Legal experts in the GSoM community please drop your insights in the comments.) At this point given Anthony Randolph's heavily mistake-laden rookie season thus far, reported sour attitude unwelcome by his teammates and coaches, high school/ college winning percentage, and draft slot, the media-hyped Nellie vs Randolph and Nellie vs Chris Webber parallel is a stretch at best. CWebb was a once in a lifetime talent. Randolph not so much. CWebb over Nellie in '94, but Nellie over Randolph in '09.
It's preview time! But first I'd like to give a special shout out to loyal GSoM community member Captain Jack for winning the YouPreview contest with this piece: 2008-2009 Warriors ...
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About : Department
The Department of International Business (IBUS) is one of eight departments within the College of Business (CoB). It offers courses and programs of study at the undergraduate and MBA levels that are designed and oriented towards preparing students to become successful in their future careers as business managers and leaders.
Underlying the numerous departmental activities is the belief that an increasing number of business students will be involved in firms that compete in global markets, and that students who achieve managerial and leadership positions in these firms need core skills and competencies to operate in worldwide and heterogeneous national environments under conditions of economic and political risk.
The core values of the department are excellent teaching and superior research. The faculty brings considerable expertise to the study of international business. The research competencies of department members include:
- comparative cultural values and attitudes
- demographical influences and the role of gender in international management
- cross-cultural differences in consumer behavior
- international learning
- comparative internet based strategies
- strategic alliances
- high technology marketing and strategy
- global business strategy in knowledge-based industries
Their research has covered key geographical areas such as East Asia (Japan, China, Korea), Southeast Asia (Philippines), Latin America (Mexico), and Europe (UK, France, Spain). Faculty members have received research grants from the Office of Naval Research and the Tokyo Foundation.
The undergraduate and graduate International Business programs of the Department of International Business prepare students for careers in:
- International commerce
- Finance
- Transportation
- World business operations
- international development with private business, governmental agencies or international organizations.
With a functional specialization in import/export management, marketing, finance, logistics or general management, encouraged by International Business advisors, students may be employed in the international aspects of almost any business career alternative.
Specific employment alternatives are extremely varied:
- Export and import manager
- Country/Region Manager
- Industry Analyst-Country/Region Specialist
- Global Business Strategist (Management Consulting)
- International Marketing Manager
- International Logistics/Transportation Coordinator
- International Sales (e.g. Global Account Manager)
- International Entrepreneur
- International Supply Chain Specialist (e.g. sourcing from China for sale in US)
- Human Resources Manager--International


text: Warning: fetch_template() calls should be replaced by the vB_Template class. Template name: googlescript in ..../includes/functions.php on line 4591 View Profile: salcor3052 - Pen & Paper Games Register Help Remember Me? Home Forum FAQ Calendar Community Groups Albums Member List Forum Actions Mark Forums Read Quick Links View Site Leaders Contribution Actions Contribute What's New? Blogs Find Players Groups Contribute Downloads Chat [5] Advanced Search Recent Chat Activity (Main Lobby)Join Chat Loading Chat Log... Player Registry salcor3052 Prefer not to see ads? Become a Community Supporter. Welcome to Pen & Paper Games, an online community dedicated to bringing roleplayers together!You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will automatically be added to our player registry (unless you opt not to) and will be able to privately find and communicate with other players in your area. You will also be able to post and reply to topics, vote in polls, and many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today! If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. Site News: Pen & Paper Games Gets New Leadership! [Read More] salcor3052 Find latest posts Find latest started threads View Articles View Blog Entries Mini Statistics Join Date 09-08-2008 Last Activity 03-17-2013 03:12 PM Blog Entries 0 Avatar More 3 Friends obiwanshinobi krieg_69 Tealeaf Recent Visitors The last 9 visitor(s) to this page were: andrewstffn, ArmlessBastard, blackeyedmac, Lucian-Sunaka, obiwanshinobi, Rjmig88, Spleeter, TalkstoHimself, Tealeaf This page has had 1,333 visits Badges and Icons My Icon: Player Tab Content salcor3052's Activity About Me Friends Tab Content All salcor3052 Friends Photos New Activity () Please reload this page to view the 200+ new activity items that have been created. Older Activity More Activity No More Results No Recent Activity About salcor3052 Basic Information Badges and Icons My Icon: Player Location City: Cheyenne State: Wyoming Zipcode: 82001 Country: United States Willing to Travel: 15 miles Availability LFG/LFP: LFG Availability (Days): Sunday Availability (Times): Afternoons, Evenings Desired Gaming Frequency: Monthly - 3 or more games per month. Gaming Preferences Player/GM: Player Preferred Genres: Dark Future, Modern, Post Apocalyptic, Science Fiction / Futuristic, Space Opera, Strategic (Miniatures) Favorite RPGs: D20 Modern, Star Wars Saga, Dark Heresy, Shadowrun, Cp2020 Gaming Worlds: Dawning Star, Star Wars, 40K, Fading Suns, Call of Cthulhu Preferred Playing Style: 50% Roleplaying / 50% Combat Ideal Group Size: Medium Groups (Between 4 and 6 players) Online RPGs?: No What are you looking for?: I enjoy a good mix of roleplaying and combat. I have really been interested in playing Star Wars Saga edition recently, but other things that interest me are cyberpunk campaign setting. As a GM I am willing to run D20 Modern in the Dawning Star World, and Dark Heresy. About Me Biography: I am in my 30s, professional military, just moved to cheyenne. I have gamed since I was 11, played 2nd, 3rd and 3.5 DnD, I prefer the D20 system overall, but will try other things. I am really into sci fi at the moment, so star wars and D20 future are really calling to me. I also play miniuate games, boardgames and video games. My wife likes playing settlers of catan and we are always looking for couples to play it with. Signature The meek shall truly inherit the earth because that is where they will all be buried Statistics Total Posts Total Posts 5 Posts Per Day 0.00 Downloads Downloads 0 Uploads 0 General Information Last Activity 03-17-2013 03:12 PM Join Date 09-08-2008 Referrals 0 3 Friends krieg_69 obiwanshinobi Tealeaf Showing Friends 1 to 3 of 3 -- P&PG v4 -- Default Mobile Style Contact Us Pen and Paper Games Archive Privacy Statement Top All times are GMT -5. The time now is 12:17 PM. Powered by vBulletinCopyright ©2000 - 2014, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd. Donation System provided by vBDonate (Lite) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2014 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.Copyright ©2006-2014 - All Additional Rights Reserved - Robert A. Howard


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WASHINGTON/NEW YORK – Delegations from 40 countries converged on Montreaux, Switzerland, on Wednesday to begin the first high-level conference on Syria since civil war began there in 2011.
The conference began with meetings between chief diplomats from Russia, the European Union and the United States, as well as from Arab states torn over the sectarian nature of the struggle that has made Syria a vacuum for foreign resources and a haven for Islamic extremists.
The conference, months in the planning, is meant for international parties – including the government of embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad, and the rebels fighting for his ouster – to agree on a framework that implements a document from June 2012 called the Geneva communiqué.
The communiqué calls for a transitional government in Syria that includes members of the Assad government and representation from the opposition.
But in a prepared statement, US Secretary of State John Kerry reinforced America's long-standing position that Assad himself has no place in a future Syrian regime, transitional or otherwise.
"Bashar Assad will not be part of that transition government," Kerry said. "There is no way – no way possible in the imagination – that the man who has led the brutal response to his own people could regain the legitimacy to govern.
"One man and those who have supported him can no longer hold an entire nation and a region hostage," the secretary continued. "The right to lead a country does not come from torture, nor barrel bombs, nor Scud missiles."
At the end of the first day of the conference, despite the loud and continuous protestations of a single reporter in the front of the press corps, UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon and Special Representative of the UN and the Arab League Lakhdar Brahimi managed to give a joint press conference.
Both men remained optimistic in the face of further questions about Iran's exclusion from the conference and the seeming gap in priorities between the delegations of the Syrian government and the Syrian opposition.
"Our objective is still to implement the Geneva communiqué," Ban told reporters in Montreaux. "Everyone has come with a clear understanding that this is the basis of these talks.... I am glad [that] for the first time since the beginning of the conflict, the two parties are sitting down together."
Ban fielded several questions about the extension and subsequent withdrawal of the invitation of the Iranian delegation, a fact that was thrown into sharp relief after the Syrian foreign minister made comments on Wednesday rejecting parts of the Geneva communiqué and insisting that Assad could not be removed from power. One reporter commented that the two sides seem to already be at an impasse.
"The Syrian government is a direct party to this crisis," Ban explained. "If either of the two main parties don't participate, then this meeting couldn't happen."
Ban maintained that Tehran's refusal to accept the Geneva communiqué's mandate – establishing a transitional government in Syria with full executive powers – was what excluded it. As for the president, he said, "The status of Assad needs to be determined by the Syrian people."
Ban also expressed some disappointment that Iran was not present, despite the lack of written assurance that it would support the conference's goals.
"I've always said that all regional countries, including Iran, should be part of this process," he said. "That is why I thought they should be invited."
Ban said that overall, it was a "very successful meeting, harmonious and constructive, with productive contributions from both sides."
Syrian Ambassador to the UN Bashar Ja'afari disagreed.
Speaking to reporters, he said the Syrian government felt there was an "imbalance" in the format of the conference, given that "up to two days ago, the organizers of this meeting decided to add 10 more countries… seemingly preselected in a way that most of them would be anti-Syrian [government] delegations, and coincidentally, paradoxically, the secretary-general excluded Iran."
Ja'afari also said he found many of the statements made by the delegates "discouraging to national political dialogue."
"It was a kind of provocative statements, repetitive statements, old language based on hatred toward the Syrian government and based on a kind of blind provocation which is counterproductive, fruitless and unsuccessful. Not positive at all," he said.
Kerry took a more positive view, saying many of the presentations by the ministers were "articulate and well thought-out," and lauding this as the first time the two parties have "sat in the same room since the war began."
The very fact that the conference took place is significant, State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf commented in Washington, while lamenting that some of the statements from the Assad government were "not based in any sort of reality."
"We've repeatedly said that the security situation in Syria has led to the rise of terrorists there," she said.
Harf said the decision to call on Ban to rescind Iran's invitation to the conference would not affect negotiations between world powers and the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program.
"We wanted them to endorse the Geneva communiqué, as did everyone else," she said. "Both we and the Iranians have a desire to keep them separate."
The second day of the conference will commence on Friday, with inter-Syrian talks in Geneva.


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The North Carolina Board of Education approved the establishment of 26 new charter schools Thursday, including four in Wake County and one in Durham County, as the state's move to charter schools continued to grow.
The move has been controversial in the education community, where some believe the growth of charter schools means more options for parents and students, while others say charter schools can undermine existing public schools.
How schools are funded is part of the issue. State Treasurer Janet Cowell said, "When a child goes to a charter school, the money for that child's education transfers from the school district to a charter. That can also take place between counties."
Eric Guckian, the governor's Education Advisor, said charters "should not be entrepreneurial opportunity for adults. Charters should be a high quality academic opportunity."
That's the goal of Magellan Charter in Raleigh, an established school that has been around 16 years. Magellan administrator Mary Griffin said "the schools have the autonomy to be innovative and do things outside the box. The teachers bring creativity to the classroom."
As more charters arrive in North Carolina, Superintendent of Public Instruction June Atkinson said there may be ways for charters and traditional schools to share resources. That, she said, could include transportation or letting students at one school take some classes at another.
* Charter schools poised for expansion in NC
WSLS 10, P.O. Box 10Roanoke, VA 24022-0010
Telephone: 540.981.9110
Fax: 540.343.3157
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


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ESCONDIDO (CNS) - A young man and a teenage boy were in custody Friday for allegedly setting patches of vegetation ablaze in Escondido as emergency personnel struggled to control devastating wildfires sweeping across the San Diego area.
A witness who spotted the pair as they allegedly set a fire near South Escondido Boulevard called police about 6:30 p.m. Thursday and then extinguished the flames, police Lt. Neal Griffin said.
About an hour later, another person made an emergency call from an area near Westfield North County mall and said he was chasing two youths he saw trying to start a fire in Kit Carson Park near Interstate 15 and Bear Valley Parkway, according to Griffin.
The two suspects had similar descriptions to those from the first fire.
Officers went to that area and arrested Isaiah David Silva, 19, and an Escondido teenager whose name was withheld because he is a minor.
Griffin said there was no immediate evidence linking the suspects to any of the large wildfires that have blackened about 20,000 acres and destroyed or damaged dozens of residences and businesses across the county.
Silva was booked into county jail in Vista on suspicion of a count of arson. He was being held in lieu of $50,000 bail pending arraignment, scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.


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12 Ways to Winter-Proof Your Home
Prepping your home for winter will help reduce your energy bill, protect your plants, and preserve your floors — and doing it in the fall means not having to labor away in the snow. Even if your towns temperatures never dip below zero, you can still safeguard your house and save money in the long run. Here, 12 ways to batten down the hatches now.
By Karen Springen
Keep the slush outside
A doormat with a rough texture helps remove mud and gunk from shoes before guests enter the house. Even more, a hard plastic boot tray and rubber mat will prevent water and salt from damaging wood floors, says Segur. No mudroom? No problem. "You can improvise by using stacked wire or laminate cubes by your entrance door," says Cregier. Let your kids pick out one or two cubes apiece (from stores like Home Depot or Bed, Bath & Beyond) and ask them to stow their boots in one, and mittens and scarves in another, she suggests. Mix and match colors, or spray paint them at home.


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Is Kate Upton Fat?
Emma Watson's Intentional "Side Boob"
Celebrities Who Have Aged the Worst
Was Scott Disick Disappointed About Kourtney Being Pregnant Again?
Selena's Scandalous Selfie Sparks Drama
The 51 Funniest Celebrity Prom Photos
Kate Upton Shows Us Why Her Legs Are Famous
George Clooney's Message for Brad and Angelina
Wendy Williams Trashes Beyonce: Find Out Why
The Hottest Pictures of Old Celebrities When They Were Young
12 Actresses Getting By On Their Looks Alone
Shakira Shares Some BIG News!
Stars Who Could Play Younger Versions of Other Stars
Is Lil Wayne's Daughter a Trouble Maker?
Eddie Murphy's Girlfriend Sizzles in a Bikini
24 Celebs Who Couldn't Stop Eating and Got Fat
Inside Kim and Kanye's $20 Million Mega Mansion
20 Child Stars Who Died WAY Too Young
13 Actresses Who Think They Can Sing
Renee Zellweger Looks Hardly Recognizable
13 Celebrities with Bad Skin Problems That Will Surprise You
Kate Upton Says This Body Part Doesn't Get Enough Attention
30 Child Stars Who Died Young
What Happened to Your Favorite 70s Actors? (Then and Now)
94 Actors and Actresses We Lost Last Year
49 Celebrities Accused of Horrible Crimes
Baby North West Makes Her Modeling Debut
Smarty Pants: Secret Celeb Brainiacs
Miley's Perfect Beauty Close Up
Jennifer Lawrence's Best Looks


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"The editors use a clear and concise manner of presentation throughout the entire text, providing clarifying tables and concrete, realistic case studies to elucidate theoretical points. . . . Psychiatric Aspects of Symptom Management in Cancer Patients should be mandatory reading for every psychiatrist who treats cancer patients. I would not hesitate to recommend it to other physicians, nurses and social workers."—Psychiatric Times
"This is a state-of-the-art review and update by experienced leaders in this field on the treatment of the major psychiatric symptoms and disorders in cancer patients. It also contains a sensitive discussion of managing grief, palliative treatments, and terminally ill cancer patients. The book should be read and on the reference shelf of every psychiatrist or other mental health professional who sees oncology patients."—Troy L. Thompson II, M.D., Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Jefferson Medical College


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A bank was robbed Saturday in west suburban Lyons.
The suspect robbed the Standard Bank at 8601 W. Ogden Ave. at 11:47 a.m., according to the FBI.
A weapon was not displayed by the robber, the FBI said.
The suspect is described as a 35-year-old African American man wearing a tan coat, white collared shirt, and black baggy pants, the FBI said.
The suspect also wore white gym shoes with black bottoms, black cloth gloves, sunglasses and a brown skull-type hat, the FBI said.
Police are investigating the murder of a homeless man who was beaten to death in an alley in Logan Square.
35 Skyline DriveLake Mary, FL 32746
Phone: (407) 644-3535News Tips: (866) 55-FOX35


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Romantic weekend
Escape for a special weekend
Surprise your beloved one with a romantic break at the Mövenpick Hotel Munich.
Start your day with our elaborate Gourmet Breakfast Buffet and end it with a romantic Wine & Dine menu in our Mövenpick Hotel Restaurant.
- 1 overnight stay in our comfortable deluxe room
- 1 bottle of Prosecco in your room
- A three-course romantic dinner including a bottle of wine
- Elaborate gourmet breakfast buffet
- Free use of sauna and steam bath
- One cuddly toy to take home
per room per night
Book now
Minimum length of stay: 1 night


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Prince William and Kate through the years
POSTED: 09:28 AM PDT Jul 08, 2013 UPDATED: 08:31 AM PDT Jul 11, 2014
Take a look back at the royal romance of Prince William and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge.
The views expressed are not those of this company or its affiliated companies. Please note by clicking on "Post" you acknowledge that you have read the Terms Of Service and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms.blog comments powered by Disqus


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- Filed Under
The Moerlein Lager House opened its doors to the public on Monday, capping a decade-long quest for Greg Hardman, the managing partner and beer entrepreneur who has made it his mission to restore Cincinnatis place in brewing history.
The facility, located next to Great American Ball Park and inside the Phyllis W. Smale Riverfront Park, opened at 11 a.m. for lunch following a Saturday night, grand-opening gala.
The restaurant, which cost about $10 million to build, seats up to 1,400 inside and features three kitchens. There is 14,000 square feet of dining and entertainment space on two levels, and it opens on to Jacob Schmidlapp Event Lawn, a green space that can hold 3,000.
The restaurant also includes:
The Beer Barons and Brewers Hall of Fame, which will honor Cincinnatis founding brewers, beginning with Christian Moerlein.
Murals of Cincinnatis beer barons, painted by Jim Effler, a Cincinnati artist who has designed labels for Moerlein bottles.
A private dining room named after John Hauck, founder of a West End brewery.
Its meant to celebrate our past and take Cincinnati brewing into the future, Hardman told the Enquirer earlier this month.


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Jan. 21-25
Monday: No School.
Tuesday: Breakfast pizza, juice or fruit, milk.
Wednesday: Toasted cheese bread, sausage patty, juice or fruit, milk.
Thursday: Egg bake, juice or fruit, milk.
Friday: Pancake or French toast, sausage patty, juice or fruit, milk.
Monday: No School.
Tuesday: Waffle sticks with syrup, tater triangle & sausage patty or turkey ranch wrap, tater triangle, cucumber slices, tomato wedges, brown rice & lentil salad, apples-pineapple tidbits, milk.
Wednesday: Pizza pasta bake w/WG garlic toast or deli sub, roasted rutabega, broccoli florets, carrot sticks, kiwi-fruit cocktail, milk.
Thursday: Taco salad w/tortilla chips or sloppy Joe on a WG bun, birthday cake, Romaine salad, tomato wedges, white bean & tomato salad, oranges-diced pears, milk.
Friday: Pizza parlor cheese pizza or deli ham & cheese on WG, cauliflower, broccoli florets, green pepper sticks, apple wedges-peach slices, milk.


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This album was the first time I had heard of the band "Thin Lizzy", (I was 13 at the time. It was our nation's bicentennial!). It was also the album that made me want to learn guitar as a kid, and I knew exactly how I wanted to sound. LIKE THESE GUYS!!!! To me the look and sound of Thin Lizzy was the coolest. I never felt cheated with any of their STUDIO albums (even "Renegade" had some great moments on it), and I admire their courage to record songs that made Thin Lizzy a truly "singular" band. But not everyone was so taken with this band. Critically they were often slammed. Read what Robert Christgau wrote about Thin Lizzy, and the album "Jailbreak"……. (from Robert Christgau, Christgau's Record Guide, 1981)….>>>The proof of how desperate people are for new Springsteen is that they'll settle for this — even "The Boys Are Back in Town" is the sort of thing that ends up in Bruce's wastebasket. If Irish teen traumas are as boring as Phil Lynott's descriptions of them, it's no wonder they have trouble maintaining their birthrate. And if Irish teen traumas are as secondhand as Scott Gorham's guitar lines, the Irish will probably end up preferring Springsteen too. B- <<<<<I'm glad Thin Lizzy sound didn't compare to the bombast of "everyman" and critical darling, Bruce Springsteen. And I'm glad that the band kept doing what IT wanted to musically, critics be damned. Thin Lizzy's guitar work when Scott and Brian played together was brilliant, the song styles and subject matter varied, the song writing was at times subpar (being honest here), but usually excellent. They were never boring. There sound was exciting, and at times different and very challenging, unlike Springsteen (why people tried to compare the two is beyond me).When Thin Lizzy released these 4 studio albums consecutively….Jailbreak (1976) Johnny the Fox (1976) Bad Reputation (1977) Black Rose (1979)….it was rock nirvana for me. I can't think of another band that influenced me in my youth the way these guys did, and I thank them for it. I would have given anything to play guitar like Scott and Brian, and be as cool as Phil.
Metal Album Reviews[RSS]
Hopefully, you will see my name in the future sometime either in my field of study(Medical) or as just being maybe Thin Lizzy's #1 fan. Most would credit those such as Elvis(obvious) , the Stones, Beatles, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, & Van Halen as being the best of all time. They may have been great, but I have news for the world in 2005! I, myself, obtained my first copy of Jailbreak at age 25(2001) & while I was brainwashed most of my life by just commercially known outfits, I was born again and saw the light with Thin Lizzy and the late(1/4/86), greatest Phil Lynott. We all know "The Boys Are Back In Town, but this is just the beginning. While Downey, Gorham, & Robertson fit the mold of the long haired, blonde stereotyped looking rock star, those of us who were born of a different ethinic background but raised in the US, or UK-Ireland at that, finally have, or have always had, an Irish-Brazilian dark & curly haired legend(Black Rose) to look up too. How ironic after all this time that this one was the best all this time*
I remember buying this in the summer of 1976 after hearing "The Boys Are back in Town" on the radio a few times. That song is one of the top 10 songs ever! When I bought it as an LP (remember those?), I was so excited and distracted that I put the wrong side on the turntable. Instead of that song, out of the speakers came the title track JAILBREAK. Another timeless classic. Needles to say, the entire record of 9 songs was fantastic and there truly isn't a dud on here. Since then I have bought these songs on cassette, CD, and now the remastered version. Great story in the liner notes too. Buy it and read it for yourself. It is almost hard to believe the recorded output Lizzy put out in the years of 1975 through 1977. Quality too. Hell, "Johnny the Fox" also came out later that year in '76 and is every bit as good as this, unfortunately overlooked because of the lack of a hit. Personal favorites on here are "Romeo and the Lonely Girl", "Emerald", and "Warriors". I love them all. If you want some great rock songs with excellent twin guitar breaks, this is for you. See where Maiden, Leppard, and The Darkness got it from in the first place! My only question on this reissue is why has Scott Gorham been eliminated on the Overlaord's video screen on the cover? He is the only member from this group performing in the current Thin Lizzy lineup and for some reason, he is missing.
I have to admit I didn't like Thin Lizzy at first, beyond The Boys Are Back In town. When I first bought this in 1989 I was heavily into a Black Sabbath phase, and somwehow Thin Lizzy didn't sit quite right with me. I didn't like the slow songs, I disliked the funky elements (here typified by Angel From The Coast) and they seemed too down to earth for my taste.
How things have changed! Twenty years later I mainly listen to classcial but Thin Lizzy are one of only a handful or rock bands I still listen to. Now, I can really appreciate this band. They had so much; songs with melody yet attitude, great musicianship, and if I may use a quote beloved of pretentious music critics, "resonance". Incredibly though it took 6 albums in as many years for Thin Lizzy to gain widespread acclaim, although with Jailbreak it's easy to understand why the public finally realised how good this band was. The songs are all finely crafted, catchy and the famous (and influential) twin guitar style was perfected here after some experimental attempts. The main attraction to Jailbreak is of course the song The Boys Are Back In Town, very nearly the perfect all out rock and roll song, neatly combining melancholy touches in the verse to the triumphant, rousing chrous.
I might point out too that I've come to appreciate Lizzy as musicians too. Of course Scott Gorham and Brian Roberstson are the easiest to spot here, but Brian Downey is a drummer that should get wider acclaim. He's never overpowering in the way that some rock drummers are but complements the songs with an almost perfect beat and cymbal technique. He's not trying to outshine the others, he know his job is to provide a solid base for the others to build on. Listen to Angel From The Coast for an example. Above all though I've come to regard Phil Lynott's voice as one if the best in rock. He sings somewhat like Freddie Mercury, sharp, not flat, and there are vocal harmony overdubs that sound not dissimilar to some Queen.
Overall if you want hard rock that isn't ashamed to be melodic then Thin Lizzy are a band you should like. Perhaps the best analogy I can make is to Queen. They share a similar ratio of rockers to slow songs, they use melodic yet aggressive guitar and use similar vocal techniques. Thin Lizzy are much more streetwise and earthy than the (intentional) theatrics of Queen though. (As an aside Thin Lizzy toured with Queen in 1977, what a show that must have been!)
Maybe the only problem I have with Jailbreak as an album is that it seems to outshine any other Thin LIzzy release in popularity. Ask the average rock fan about Thin Lizzy and they'll name The Boys Are Back In Town. Some might be able to tell you that it's from Jailbreak and mention either the title track or maybe Emerald. For 90% of rock fans though, the rest of Thin Lizzy's catalog is a mystery. Which is a shame as they did so many good songs both previously and after their breakthrough with Jailbreak, and this album is just one aspect of their multi faceted career. Although this album, as a whole, is clearly one of Thin Lizzy's high points, it is not the bands only great moment. If you want to experience Thin Lizzy though, then Jailbreak is the ideal start point.
It took far too long for Thin Lizzy to step up to the plate with a major performance like this. They had flirted with good albums for years, but everything finally came together. As far as the review saying this was typical 80's metal, then this must be great, because it was the mid 70's. Just goes to show they were a band well ahead of their time!The great lyrics, driving bass, Lynott's crooning, the double edged guitar attack that would become a trademark, and the pounding rhythms of Brian Downey's drums create a masterpiece! I can't even begin to tell you there are any songs you'd have to wade through to get to something good. These are all Lizzy killers! My favorites are "Warriors" and "Emerald", where the group shows they can play swords and sorcery with the best of them. The variety of most Lizzy albums is present even here with the slower "Romeo and the Lonely Girl" and "Running Back". Strong rockers are the three everyone knows, "Jailbreak", "the Cowboy Song", and "the Boys Are Back In Town".Maybe it's just reliving great times from high school or one of the hottest tours I've seen with Robin Trower, but JAILBREAK is one of those lifetime achievements few bands, no matter how good, ever accomplish. Definitely a 100 all-time best CD!


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The Seattle Mariners have scheduled May 10 as Kyle Seager Bat Night at Safeco Field, where all kids 14 and under will be given a replica of that thing Seager holds in his hands on those occasions he tries to make contact with a baseball.
Seager began Tuesday night hitting .164, with no homers and two RBIs — or half the number of errors he has committed at third base. Kyle Seager Bat Night is not looking like a great idea, but it's probably a better idea than Kyle Seager Glove Night.
If Seager doesn't show signs of busting out of his slump by May 10, the Mariners' promotions folks won't panic. They're used to giving away bats stamped with the names of players who have been giving away at-bats.
Last April 27, for instance, they designated the struggling Dustin Ackley as a Bat Night honoree. Ackley was hitting .205 when he got sent to Tacoma, a month later, for swing-improvement therapy.
Seager and Ackley aren't the only Mariners who've been associated with well-meant but ill-fated promotional giveaways. On May 5, 2012, Safeco Field fans took home miniature train cars called "Smoakamotives." Smoak ended up hitting .217, lowest batting average of a Mariners career that has been producing low batting averages for parts of five seasons.
Franklin Gutierrez was the source of a cool souvenir — the Guti Fly Swatter, a reference to his "Death to Flying Things" nickname — handed out on May 19, 2011. Gutierrez was unable to play that day. He had just finished a six-week rehab assignment in
Tacoma after he was diagnosed with the stomach issues that still plague him.
Do you get the sense there's some kind of jinx at work, or is a jinx too absurd a notion?
I mean, just because Ken Griffey Jr. was depicted on three different bobbleheads given away in 2010 — the same season the Mariners also planned a Junior's Return T-shirt Night and Junior's Backward Cap Night — has no relevance with the fact he cleared out his locker on June 2 and never appeared in another big-league game.
And the Mariners' conclusion that reliever J.J. Putz was as marketable as anybody else in 2008 likely has nothing to do with his steep and sudden fall from grace in Seattle. An All-Star reliever in 2007, Putz was scheduled as the subject of a bobblehead, a train-car collectible and the immortal "J.J. Putz Soul-Patch Night."
Putz blew a save in the second game of 2008, and was promptly put on the disabled list with a rib injury. Upon his return, he looked nothing like the lights-out closer who'd saved 40 games, with a 6-1 record and 1.38 ERA, in 2007.
In the first (and maybe the best) trade general manager Jack Zduriencik has made, Putz was sent to the Mets in a three-team deal after finishing with 15 saves during a 2008 season rife with internal unrest in both the clubhouse and front office.
Remember that Eddie Guardado T-shirt promotion? OK, unfairly difficult question. Let's try again: Remember Eddie Guardado?
Known as "Everyday Eddie," Guardado had become a reliable lefty reliever after the Mariners acquired him for the 2004 season. A T-shirt giveaway seemed appropriate on April 23, 2006.
On July 6, 2006, after having saved five games while compiling an ERA of 5.48, the Mariners traded Guardado to the Reds for reliever Travis Chick. (Despite a name that screamed "Incredible Promotional Opportunity!" Chick made all of three appearances in a Seattle uniform.)
And then there were the T-shirt giveaways that celebrated Bret Boone and Jamie Moyer on consecutive April nights in 2004. Boone had a substantial drop off in every offensive category that season — he hit .251 after finishing among the top 10 in MVP voting in 2003 — but Moyer's struggles were even more severe: An All-Star in 2003 who won 21 games, he went 7-13 in '04, his only losing record during the decade he pitched in Seattle.
Not everybody, I should point out, has been cursed by his unfortunate destiny as the subject of a Mariners' souvenir giveaway. Ichiro Suzuki will be inducted into the Hall of Fame someday, and Felix Hernandez could make a case to join him. Between the two of them, they've kept the bobblehead doll industry afloat.
But a Kyle Seager Bat Night, a year after a Dustin Ackley Bat Night, and two years after the Smoakamotive, and three years after the Guti Fly Swatter, and four years after Ken Griffey Jr. quit midway through a season he'd been earmarked as the turnstile gift who kept on giving, suggests the intervention of a nefarious supernatural force.
Which could be bad news for Robinson Cano. The second baseman, whose $240 million contract revealed the Mariners' front office as big-time players over the winter, will have a T-shirt Day on April 27, a Bobblehead Night on May 31, and a Poster Day on June 29.
My thoughts and prayers are with him.john.mcgrath@ thenewstribune.com