text:
Sunday Reads: Who will toss my salad?Posted: July 27, 2014 Filed under: A My Pet Goat Moment, Africa, birth control, Foreign Affairs, History, Israel, Japan, just because, Liberia, morning reads, Nigeria, Palestine, PLUB Pro-Life-Until-Birth, Political Affective Disorder, Teddy Roosevelt | Tags: Funny book titles 19 Comments
Good Morning
As Boston Boomer mentioned in yesterday's post, the news is just too depressing to even mention. So aside from the stupid immature humorous pictures of both real and made up book titles that I've got featured in this morning's thread, we are going to have a quick look at the "shitty" news…and then get to some interesting fun stuff.
Geez ——> Looks like she is about to toss her own salad….doesn't it?
(BTW- the pictures come from this website: ebaumsworld.com and most are from this one post: The 19 Worst Children's Book Titles Ever! – Gallery)
There was some horror in the latest Ebola outbreak in Africa. This is some frightening news, because from what I understand, one person who was infected with the disease managed to escape medical custody in a major city.
First Ebola victim in Sierra Leone capital on the run | Reuters
Sierra Leone officials appealed for help on Friday to trace the first known resident in the capital with Ebola whose family forcibly removed her from a Freetown hospital after testing positive for the deadly disease.
Radio stations in Freetown, a city of around 1 million inhabitants, broadcast the appeal on Friday to locate a woman who tested positive for the disease that has killed 660 people across Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone since an outbreak was first identified in February.
"Saudatu Koroma of 25 Old Railway Line, Brima Lane, Wellington," the announcement said. "She is a positive case and her being out there is a risk to all. We need the public to help us locate her."
Koroma, 32, a resident of the densely populated Wellington neighborhood, had been admitted to an isolation ward while blood samples were tested for the virus, Health ministry spokesman Sidi Yahya Tunis. The results came back on Thursday.
"The family of the patient stormed the hospital and forcefully removed her and took her away," Tunis said. "We are searching for her."
And then there is this distressing story:
Nigeria on high alert after man dies of Ebola at Lagos airport | Al Jazeera America
Nigerian officials said Saturday that they are screening passengers arriving from foreign countries for symptoms of Ebola, following the death of an infected traveler from Liberia who died after collapsing at the airport in Lagos, Africa's largest city with a population of 21 million.
Unni Krishnan, the head of disaster response for the international advocacy group Plan International, warned that an Ebola outbreak in Lagos could be disastrous. There is no cure or vaccine for the highly contagious virus.
Across the West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, at least 660 people have died from the illness since February, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), placing great strain on the health systems of some of Africa's poorest countries. Sierra Leone now has the highest number of cases, at 454, surpassing neighboring Guinea, where the outbreak originated.
More here: First case of ebola reported in Africa's most populous city Lagos | World news | The Guardian
The pathogen is passed through contact with bodily fluids of infected patients, and has no known cure, although chances of survival improve dramatically with early detection and treatment.
But weak health systems and frequent cross-border travel have hampered efforts to contain the virus in a region which has never before experienced an outbreak.
Lagos state authorities said they had requested the flight's manifest to contact the other passengers, and began distributing protective clothing to health workers, state health advisor Yewande Adeshina said. Sawyer flew from Liberia's capital of Monrovia, with a brief flight stopover in nearby Togo. His sister is believed to have died of ebola in the last month, a Liberian official told the Guardian.
Rumours about the virus – which causes a painful fever that degenerates into internal and external bleeding – were met with scepticism from residents in the crowded business district where Sawyer was treated. "I cannot believe it is true," said trader Segun Kosoko, who said he had seen two traders donning face masks.
Experts have also been alarmed by the disease's wide geographical spread, from Guinea's remote interior forest region, where it originated, to densely populated coastal regions.
Ghana has had several unconfirmed scares, while Sierra Leone's capital Freetown recorded its first confirmed case this week. Authorities there were forced to launch a public appeal after the victim slipped out of hospital. Her family forcibly removed her – as many have done, either fearing they would catch the disease while in quarantine, or doubting its existence.
Radio stations in Freetown, a city of about 1 million people, broadcast the appeal to locate the woman, named as Saudatu Koroma. "She is a positive case and her being out there is a risk to all. We need the public to help us locate her," the appeal stated.
Also in Liberia, news that an American doctor has become sick: Fort Worth doctor in Africa tests positive for Ebola virus | wfaa.com Dallas – Fort Worth
A Fort Worth doctor working with Ebola patients in Liberia has tested positve for the virus, according to Samaritan's Purse, an international relief agency.
Dr. Kent Brantly is medical director at the Samaritan's Purse Ebola Consolidated Case Management Center in Monrovia, Liberia.
The relief group says the 33-year-old physician with a private practice in Fort Worth is undergoing treatement in an isolation center at ELWA Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia's capital city.
Samaritan's Purse says Brantly is married and has two children, and that the agency is committed to doing everything possible to assist him.
He has worked with the agency in Liberia since last October. Before that, he was a family practice doctor in Fort Worth, where he finished his residency at John Peter Smith Hospital.
I can't imagine what his family must be going through.
That is scary as hell…but here is something on par with Gozilla scary: Japanese monkeys' abnormal blood linked to Fukushima disaster – study | Environment | theguardian.com
Wild monkeys in the Fukushima region of Japan have blood abnormalities linked to the radioactive fall-out from the 2011 nuclear power plant disaster, according to a new scientific study that may help increase the understanding of radiation on human health.
The Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) were found to have low white and red blood cell levels and low haemoglobin, which the researchers say could make them more prone to infectious diseases.
Okay, I know I was exaggerating but still…
The scientists compared 61 monkeys living 70km (44 miles) from the the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant with 31 monkeys from the Shimokita Penisula, over 400km (249 miles) from Fukushima. The Fukushima monkeys had low blood counts and radioactive caesium in their bodies, related to caesium levels in the soils where they lived. No caesium was detected in the Shimokita troop.
Professor Shin-ichi Hayama, at the Nippon Veterinary and Life Science University in Tokyo, told the Guardian that during Japan's snowy winters the monkeys feed on tree buds and bark, where caesium has been shown to accumulate at high concentrations.
"This first data from non-human primates — the closest taxonomic relatives of humans — should make a notable contribution to future research on the health effects of radiation exposure in humans," he said. The work, which ruled out disease or malnutrition as a cause of the low blood counts, is published in the peer-reviewed journal Scientific Reports.
White blood cell counts were lowest for immature monkeys with the highest caesium concentrations, suggesting younger monkeys may be more vulnerable to radioactive contamination. Hayama noted: "Abnormalities such as a decreased blood cell count in people living in contaminated areas have been reported from Chernobyl as a long-term effect of low-dose radiation exposure." But other blood measures did not correlate with caesium levels, which vary with the seasons.
Rockets hit Israel as Hamas rejects longer cease-fire – CNN.com
U.S. Embassy in Libya closes, staff evacuates amid militia fighting – LA Times
Ugh…enough already!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now for the easy reads, after the jump…
Sunday Reads: All of you. They all looked alike, just one face. And it was very young.Posted: February 9, 2014 Filed under: History, Japan, morning reads, science | Tags: charlie chaplin, Nadezhda "Nadya" Tolokonnikova and Maria "Masha" Alekhina, Pussy Riot, Sochi Winter Olympics, Tampa FL, winter weather, WW II 42 Comments
Good Morning
February is one of the best months on TCM…the title of this post is a line from the movie Twelve O'Clock High (1949).
It is the first scene after the real footage of bombing raids shot by both the US allies and German combat film during the war. One of the administrators is drunk, and talking about all the letters he has written to the families of the airmen who have died. There have been so many of them….
Major Harvey Stovall: That is not why I am drunk tonight. I got drunk because I am confused. I was thinking, which is a thing a man should not do, and all at once I couldn't remember what any of them looked like. I, I couldn't see their faces, Bishop, Cobb, Wilson, Zimmy, all of them. All of you. They all looked alike, just one face. And it was very young. It confused me. I think I shall stay drunk until I'm not confused anymore.
"And it was very young." That one sentence made me cry….
Last night, this film from 1949 about World War II, something that I have seen so many times before…I even own the DVD. For some reason that one line hit me more this viewing than all the other times I have seen this movie. Why?
I don't know…It is strange. Well, my grandfather was a mechanic on those planes during the war, so I guess that is why I always was fond of that movie. There was a connection to it.
You can see some more color pictures here: World War II in Color: American Bombers and Their Crews, 1942 | LIFE.com
As a jumping off point for countless bombing runs, including many in broad daylight, the United States Army Air Forces (the predecessor of the U.S. Air Force) set up bases in England during the war. In 1942, LIFE's Margaret Bourke-White spent time with the Bomber Command — an assignment that LIFE shared with its readers in an October 1942 feature notable, although hardly surprising, all these years later for its triumphant tone:
The most potent U.S. force to hit the Nazis so far in this war is the Bomber Command, stationed in England. Operating Flying Fortresses, it is making attacks on German-occupied Europe as frequently as weather and operating conditions permit. To date, all the raids have been tremendously successful. From 25,000 feet, it has given a superb exhibition of precision bombing by hitting German factories, airfields, ships and oil refineries on the nose. In two months of operations, it has shot down more than 100 German fighters, lost less than six of its own bombers.
[NOTE: As the war dragged on, the bombers and their crews out of England would, inevitably, face steeper and more dramatic losses. On October 14, 1943, for example — "Black Thursday" — nearly 600 crew members and 60 Flying Fortresses were lost in a single raid against a ball-bearing factory in Schweinfurt, Germany.]
To photograph Bomber Command, LIFE sent photographer Margaret Bourke-White to the headquarters of Brigadier general Ira. C. Eaker, commander in chief of Bomber Command, and to one of the secret airfields from which the Flying Fortresses operate…. Miss Bourke-White's pictures arrived in the U.S. just when the Bomber Command was making its biggest sorties. Flying Fortresses roared out over the Channel and attacked German industries in the Lille region. Another group of six Fortresses a few days before dropped 600-lb. bombs directly on the German airfield at St. Omer, France. On the way home they were attached by 35 crack Nazi pursuits. When the brief fight was over, at least 13 Germans were plunging earthward and the six Fortresses were sailing on. Another time a Fortress came back to England with one motor shot away, one disabled, a third missing badly, and with 12 cannon holes and 2,000 machine-gun holes in the fuselage. Still other squadrons of Fortresses scored better than 70 percent hits in their first two weeks of bombing operations over Europe. "Fantastic accuracy," said the British.
Bomber Command was ready. It was confident that although still small, it would grow and grow, and as it grew, the intensity and terribleness of the attack on Germany would grow with it, until the skies of Europe would be blacked and its earth furrowed with American bombs.
Alright, now for this morning's links:
Celebrity fight between rapper DMX, George Zimmerman called off | Reuters
The celebrity boxing match between rapper DMX and acquitted Florida killer George Zimmerman has been called off, its promoter said on Saturday after threats were made against him.
I figured it was more along those lines, and not the crap about "money not being everything."
Looks like the US is not the only country getting hit by major snow storms: At least seven dead, 1,000 injured as heavy snow hits Japan
The heaviest snow in two decades has struck Tokyo and other areas across Japan, leaving at least seven people dead and more than 1,000 injured.
Up to 27 centimetres of snow was recorded in Tokyo by late Saturday, the heaviest fall in the capital for 45 years, according to meteorologists.
The storm hit Tokyo on the eve of its gubernatorial election. Observers say the heavy snowfall may affect voter turnout in the city of 13 million people.
On the new-earth front…check it out…Scientists find 800,000-year-old footprints in UK
They were a British family on a day out — almost a million years ago.
Archaeologists announced Friday that they have discovered human footprints in England that are between 800,000 and 1 million years old — the most ancient found outside Africa, and the earliest evidence of human life in northern Europe.
British Museum archaeologist Nick Ashton said the discovery — recounted in detail in the journal PLOS ONE — was "a tangible link to our earliest human relatives."
Preserved in layers of silt and sand for hundreds of millennia before being exposed by the tide last year, the prints give a vivid glimpse of some of our most ancient ancestors. They were left by a group, including at least two children and one adult male. They could have been be a family foraging on the banks of a river scientists think may be the ancient Thames, beside grasslands where bison, mammoth, hippos and rhinoceros roamed.
Lots more at the link. Pictures here: 800,000-Year-Old Human Footprints Found In England, Extinct Hominid Species Was 'Fully Bipedal' [PHOTO]
In Tampa Florida, specifically West Tampa, a little scheme is being put together. The mayor is working to rid the area of the "projects" and "relocate" the residents….I don't know, when I saw this in the news it made me laugh in a sarcastic way. Tampa officials unveil draft plan to redevelop area west of Hillsborough River | Tampa Bay Times
"This is big," Buckhorn said of the transformation envisioned for 120 acres west of the river and north of Interstate 275. "This is bodacious. This is exciting. This will be a game-changer."
The proposed "West River" plan would start with demolishing the World War II-era public housing at North Boulevard Homes. The imposing concrete-block apartments would be replaced by a more traditional neighborhood with walkable streets.
A total of 820 apartments would be bulldozed, making way for more than 1,600 new townhomes and apartments. The new housing would include both subsidized housing and units that sell or rent for market rates. With more working- and middle-class residents, businesses on Main Street should see more customers, officials say.
"Market rates?" The thing that gets me is that there is very little outrage over this proposed "bodacious" project. Not that new homes is something way overdue, but the idea that the people living there are going to be kicked out…with no real guarantee of a place to live, that is worrisome.
But all this is too premature. There is no "funding" yet, so no big deal right now…
The rest of the links in quick fashion:
Charlie Chaplin's only novel to be released
A virtually unknown novel by Charlie Chaplin — the only book the silent film comic ever wrote — is being made public for the first time.
"Footlights", which will be unveiled in London later Tuesday, was written by Chaplin in 1948 and later transformed into his film "Limelight", in which a washed-out clown saves a dancer from suicide.
The book is being published in English by the Cineteca di Bologna, an Italian film restoration institute which has been working with Chaplin biographer David Robinson on reconstructing drafts found in the Chaplin archives.
According to Robinson, the relationship between drunken clown and desperate ballerina in the much later "Footlights" was likely inspired by his meeting with legendary Russian dancer Vaslav Nijinsky in 1916.
The Cinetaca describes Chaplin's "vivid, idiosyncratic" writing style which, "unadulterated by editors, moves freely from the baldly colloquial to moments of rich imagery and Dickensian description.
"For a setting, he looked back to London and the music halls of his first professional years, an enchanted period in which he had broken out of the deprivations of his childhood to discover, progressively, his unique gifts as entertainer and communicator," the institute said in a statement.
"But this retrospect also recalled the painful insecurity of an uneducated, uncultured boy launched into the world of success", and the clown's expressions of despair at losing the world's respect and admiration likely reflected Chaplin's own feelings as his popularity dwindled.
The book can be found here: Libri, DVD & Gadgets – Cinestore
The New York Times says the book will also be available at amazon.com.
Did y'all see the Pussy Riot interview with Colbert? Pussy Riot Gives the Funniest, Best Colbert Report Interview Ever | Mediaite
It really was a great interview, and funny that after it got so much press this happened: Pussy Riot members announce split with freed duo
Members of Pussy Riot's collective published a letter Wednesday in which they distanced themselves from Nadezhda "Nadya" Tolokonnikova and Maria "Masha" Alekhina and said "they are no longer Pussy Riot."
"It is no secret that Masha and Nadia are no longer members of the group," six anonymous members of the group wrote on their blog, "and they will no longer take part in radical actionism."
They said they said they were "very pleased" with Tolokonnikova's and Alekhina's release from prison, and proud of their resistance against the ordeals they suffered, but said the collective could not support the inclusion of "institutionalized defenders of prisoners' rights."
Yup, the two women who were imprisoned for the band, got kicked out of the band.
"Yes, we have lost two friends, two ideological teammates, but the world has acquired two brave human rights defenders — fighters for the rights of Russian prisoners."
Wow. That was a shitty way to tell the two to go chase themselves…personally I think Masha and Nadia should have told the group "Let's blouse!" a lot earlier. 59 Quick Slang Phrases From The 1920s We Should Start Using Again | Thought Catalog
"Go chase yourself!": "Get out of here!"
"Let's blouse!": "Let's blow this popsicle stand!"
And now a few geeky links:
Scientists create bone-like material that is lighter than water but as strong as steel
Here's How Many LEGO Bricks It Would Take to Build 17 Famous Movie Houses
A scholar of the University of Oslo has cracked one of the rune codes used by the Vikings, revealing they were sending each other messages such as 'Kiss me'.
For those of you who liked Breaking Bad: Starz Green-Lights Gritty Ballet Drama — Vulture
Starz has officially green-lighted its gritty ballet drama Flesh and Bone, the network announced today. The show, created by Breaking Bad's Moira Walley-Beckett, follows Claire, a gifted young ballet dancer with a dark, self-destructive past who is a new member of a rigorous New York ballet company.
This caught my eye, you should get a kick out of it: 12 Ridiculous Anti-Woman Myths From The Dark Ages That Conservatives STILL Believe
Have you ever been reading or watching a report about a conservative man who said something so incredibly backwards that you swore he was living in the Dark Ages? Well, you're not so very far from wrong. The Dark Ages were dark partly because education was discouraged and science was suspect, leading to some astoundingly silly things being taken for fact. Like, for example, that the heart was the seat of intelligence. Or that frogs spontaneously generated from mud. As fun as those sort of ideas are to explore, this article will be dealing with beliefs about that strange and inscrutable being: Woman.
Finally, if you are into the Schadenfreude, you can get a few thrills tonight during the figure skating events on the Olympics. Or…you can just take a look here a few falls…watch them go sailing right out there: The 9 Most Epic Olympic Figure Skating Wipeouts Ever
Y'all have a good day, and share what you are reading about today.
Sunday Reads: Anti-Vaccine Hysteria brought to you by Jenny McCarthy, Pretty Illustrations by Hedvig Collin, and Medieval Dwarf Characterizations by Your Preconceived IdeasPosted: January 5, 2014 Filed under: Anti-War, Department of Homeland Security, Discrimination against women, Foreign Affairs, History, Human Rights, Japan, Marriage Equality, misogyny, morning reads, North Korea, religious extremists, Russia, Saudi Arabia, U.S. Politics, Violence against women, War on Women, Women's Rights | Tags: anti-vaccination twits, Fukushima, Tina Turner, Vegas 18 Comments
Good Morning
Oh, I cannot wait to get to the link on Medieval Dwarfs…but until that time comes, here are some stories for you on this fucking* cold ass Sunday Morning!
(*Just FYI, we passed freaking cold ass on Friday night.)
Today's post will feature artwork by illustrator Hedvig Collin. When I look at her work, I think of Jessie Wilcox…and other women artist/illustrators at the time.
Hedvig Collin was educated at the Drawing and Industrial Art School for Women in preparation for the Royal Academy School for Women , where she studied in 1903 – 1907 . She continued her studies at the Academy of Fine Arts decoration school in 1 909 – 1910 and at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris . In 1915 she studied freskoteknik on Kunstgewerbeschule in Berlin . She had from 1904 repeated studies in France , she performed in the 1920s and 1930s, traveling to Italy , Greece , Poland , Germany , Czechoslovakia and England . In the period 1922 – 1925 and again during the second World War she was in the United States .
Hedvig Collin painted most portraits and landscapes , but was also an illustrator of children's books; 1 916 – 1922 she published several illustrated children's song books, for example. Our Children's Songs (1916), and the Children's Picture Book (1922).
While looking for information about Collins, I could not find anything on an "English" website, so the only sources are in Dutch or German. This one here has lots of postcard images, which many of the images in the post are from: Google Translate-Hedvig Collin 1880-1964 by Per Sorensen
Parents: Photographer Alfred Collin and Ottilia f Bloch.
Hedvig Collin was unmarried.
She was a painter, illustrator, journalist and author.
Hedvig Collin was educated at drawing and industrial arts school for women and later graduated from the Academy of Arts, where she studied from 1903 to 1909. Later she took extra education in Paris.
Hedvig Collin traveled extensively throughout Europe and the U.S., and she drew a large number of illustrations – both Danish and foreign publications. However, it was illustrations for children's books, which became her biggest mark – no one has she been able to put themselves in the children's place and make illustrations for children. From 1916-1922, she published each year, along with colleagues, the very well known, illustrated children's song books. She has also made many children portraits.
Her postcard production also bear the imprint of children and fairy tales, and you can clearly see the French inspiration in her work. See for example the "Lady with the Little Dog," which is very similar to Gerda Wegner line.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the pictures…let's get this show started!
Seems like Fukushima is well on its way to becoming another something more than a metaphor for the phrase "Fucked up." When things are Fukushima'd up…it is beyond anything FUBAR could ever comprehend. 'Duct tape, wire nets' were used to mend Fukushima water tanks – worker — RT News
The 48 year old Japanese man said that workers were sent to various places in Fukushima, including an area called H3 with high radiation levels.
In one of those cases in October 2012, Uechi was given a task to cover five or six storage tanks without lids in the "E" area close to H3 as it was raining, the Japanese paper reported. When he climbed to the top of the 10-meter-high tank Uechi found white adhesive tape covering an opening of about 30 centimeters. After using a blade to remove the tape he applied a sealing agent on the opening and fit a steel lid fastening it with bolts. According to instructions he was to use four bolts, though the lid had eight bolt holes.
According to the employee, his colleagues later told him that the use of adhesive tape was a usual practice to deal with the problem of sealing in radioactive water.
"I couldn't believe that such slipshod work was being done, even if it was part of stopgap measures," Uechi told The Asahi Shimbun.
Among other makeshift cost-cutting measures was the use of second-hand materials. Uechi also said that wire nets were used instead of reinforcing bars during the placement of concrete for storage tank foundations. In addition, waterproof sheets were applied along the joints inside flange-type cylindrical tanks to save on the sealing agent used to join metal sheets of the storage tanks. Rain and snow had washed away the anti-corrosive agent applied around clamping bolts, reducing the sealing effect, Uechi added. According to the Fukushima worker, many of the tanks were later found to be leaking contaminated water.
Now, granted…that is from RT.com, and it goes without saying that there could be some bias on the reporting of a Russian nuclear disaster compared to a foreign one…but read the rest of the "stopgap" measures at the link.
Meanwhile: Dennis Rodman Names Team For North Korea Exhibition That Includes Former NBA All-Stars
NBA All-Stars Kenny Anderson, Cliff Robinson, and Vin Baker. Craig Hodges, Doug Christie and Charles D. Smith are on the team, as well. They will play against a top North Korean Senior National team on Jan. 8, marking Kim Jong Un's birthday.
I have no idea who these NBA stars are, but this is really a stupid move on their part.
And if we are talking stupid, I put a link to this yesterday in the comments, but it deserves front page status: New Report Says: Jenny McCarthy's Son May Not Have Had Autism After All – Hollywood Life
After years of speaking out about her son's autism — and against childhood immunizations — Jenny McCarthy is reversing her position.
After years of speaking publicly about her belief that MMR shots (immunization for measles, mumps, and rubella) caused her son to suffer from autism, Jenny McCarthy now faces the reality that her 7-year-old son Evan — who no longer shows any signs of autism — may likely have lived with completely different illness.
A new article in Time magazine — which Jenny was interviewed for — suggests Evan suffers from Landau-Kleffner syndrome, "a rare childhood neurological disorder that can also result in speech impairment and possible long-term neurological damage."
All that shit spewed from Jenny's lips…because of misdiagnosis? How many idiots have listened to that anti-immunization "Tits McCarthy" idiot and how many kids have paid the price?
I know I am jumping around today, but…check this out: Woman Attorney Launches Saudi Arabia's First All-Lady Law Firm
Just a few months after Saudi Arabia allowed women to serve in court, the first licensed woman attorney Bayan Mahmoud Al-Zahran has just opened the first female law firm, dedicated to representing women and bringing women's rights issues into the courts. YES.
Women have continually been neglected by the court system for a number of reasons, including simply not being taken seriously by male lawyers. Women's issues concerning conflicts like inheritance, domestic violence, marriage, and you know, that whole driving thing are often simply dismissed. Also, while more women are joining the workforce, the country has yet to catch up in terms of legal support for working women.
Clearly Al-Zahran has her work cut out for her four-woman team, but as reported at Arab News, she's ready for the challenge:
"I believe women lawyers can contribute a lot to the legal system. This law firm will make a difference in the history of court cases and female disputes in the Kingdom. I am very hopeful and thank everyone who supported me in taking this historical step."
Just in time, because watch out, we know that some men in the U.S. are trying to take women backwards to a time a place very much like the one these Saudi women are working to pull themselves out of…
Did you see the latest on the men's rights front? Men's rights activists call for rape 'accuse-a-thon' to smear sex assault victims advocate | The Raw Story
A men's rights group is encouraging its followers to falsely accuse a sexual assault victims advocate of rape in a stunt intended to undermine the veracity of all rape accusations.
Paul Elam, founder of the website A Voice For Men, hosted an online discussion Wednesday with his site's editor-in-chief, John Hembling, and feminist critic Karen Straughn to discuss their plan to harass executive director of the Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton.
"I have looked at a number of cases where people have reported alien abductions were they were prodded and poked and had different orifices in their bodies explored by aliens in spaceships, and a common theme among these is that it turns out, in most of these cases, it was Karen Smith," Elam said. "It wasn't aliens."
The men's rights movement has been angry at Smith since at least this summer, when she helped promote the "Don't Be That Guy" rape prevention campaign that inspired imitators in other cities and a counter campaign blaming women for their own sexual assaults.
Men's rights activists also conspired to shut down a website that allowed the anonymous reporting of sexual assaults by flooding the system with false complaints.
Innit wonderful?
How about this, all this news about Colorado, and the amount of money the state will get from Marijuana sales tax…What about Vegas, 'marriage capital of the world,' left at the altar on gay weddings | Al Jazeera America
Because of a state constitutional ban, Nevada's wedding industry loses untold millions while other states make it legal.
Here is two stories on commercial flying…
Customs officials explain why they destroyed musician's prized flutes | The Raw Story
Yeah, they mention a plant pathogen. I don't know…
CEO predictions for the next 100 years of flying – Yahoo Finance
Did you know that commercial flights began in my hometown of Tampa Florida?
Millions of people step aboard airplanes each day, complaining about the lack of legroom and overhead space but almost taking for granted that they can travel thousands of miles in just a few hours.
Wednesday marks the 100th anniversary of the first commercial flight: a 23-minute hop across Florida's Tampa Bay. The St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line was subsidized by St. Petersburg officials who wanted more winter tourists in their city. The alternative: an 11-hour train ride from Tampa.
Pilot Tony Jannus had room for just one passenger, who sat next to him in the open cockpit. Three months later — when tourism season ended — so did the subsidy. The airline had carried 1,204 passengers but would never fly again.
Remember that Nazi salute I mentioned last week? Here is an update: Concern Over an Increasingly Seen Gesture Grows in France – NYTimes.com
The rest of today's links are fun stuff…or "special interest."
There is a special coming up on PBS: 'The Poisoner's Handbook' details birth of forensic science in US | Culture | McClatchy DC
I love the title of this Medieval guidebook: Advice Concerning Pregnancy and Health in Late Medieval Europe: Peasant Women's Wisdom in The Distaff Gospels
This paper explores an area which has proven difficult for scholars to penetrate: women's popular wisdom concerning medical matters in the later medieval period. Contextualized within an examination of medieval medical texts both by and about women, our discussion focuses on a later 15th-century French work, The Distaff Gospels. This text, published recently in English for the first time since 1510, consists of more than 200 pieces of advice or "gospels," ostensibly conveyed to one another by a group of women who met together during the long winter evenings to spin. A significant portion of the advice might be considered "medical" in nature; it is grouped into two broad categories: pregnancy and health. We conclude that although our text is male mediated, it provides a reliable and valuable guide to peasant women's medical lore during this period.
Another medieval paper for you: Anorexia and the Holiness of Saint Catherine of Siena
In the medieval period, the control, renunciation, and torture of the body were understood not so much as a rejection of the physical, but as a way of achieving the divine. Gradually, the manifestations of this renunciation of the body came to apply peculiarly to women, for whom this state may be defined as "holy anorexia," identified by the following features.
The Female Body as an Expression of Sexuality. The body of the woman was seen as an expression of sexuality, curvaceous with prominent breasts, and was thought to be the product of the woman herself, whereas the male body was formed by God. This supposition was confirmed by the extremely changeable nature of the female body, particularly in terms of control. Thus, the female easily slipped into a trance, into levitation, into catatonic states, leading rapidly to asceticism or anorexia. She displayed spontaneous lactation and bleeding, manifestations that sometimes were accompanied by stigmata. Indeed, at least fifteen medieval saints bled at the moment they received the Eucharist. In contrast, of saints in other periods of history, only Padre Pio and San Francesco displayed stigmata that were preserved on their bodies after death. If we are to consider specifically anorexia as a characteristic of sanctity, we must examine the periods of 1200 and the end of 1500 when Theresa of Avila (a Spanish saint who joined with a mystic force and spirit to reform Catholicism, resulting in the reinvigoration of all religious orders) began frequently to use twigs of olives to induce vomiting and completely empty her stomach. In this way she was able to truly take into herself the Host, which became her unique source of sustenance. From an investigation of the conduct of 170 Italian medieval saints by Rudolph Bell, fully one half of them exhibited symptoms of anorexia.
More at the link…lots more.
The next medieval link has a special place in my heart…The Hole: Problems in Medieval Dwarfology
When trying to understand Old Norse dwarfs, one problem is knowing too much. Almost everyone comes to the old texts with some preconceived idea of dwarfs, if not from The Lord of the Rings, then from romances, folktales and modern novels, all presenting their own consistent image of dwarfs. However, although later representations of dwarfs may have some relevance to medieval dwarfs, in this study I will try to limit myself to what can be discerned from medieval sources. That is not really possible: I, like everyone else, have known since childhood what a dwarf is. And yet I think the attempt may have some merit, in spite of being bound to fail in the most rigorous sense.
What I will attempt here is to pay close attention to the nature of the sources and what they reveal, or, as if often the case, do not reveal. Mythological scholarship is characterized by inclusiveness, a tendency to collect information en masse, sometimes with little discussion of the nature of the sources. When it comes to Old Norse dwarfs, it might be helpful to distinguish between three types of sources, in which their nature and function may take various forms. While there is perhaps not a case to be made for dramatically contrasting views in the Middle Ages, it is unwise to assume that all medieval sources agree on the nature, character and function of dwarfs.
You have to sign up on the site to download that article, or look for it here: HoleArvMedDwa.
This one is for Dak: Skeletons 'Embracing' In Death May Represent Gruesome Ancient Siberian Custom (PHOTO)
Bill Nye is going to kick some Creationist ass: Bill Nye to visit Creation Museum for evolution debate | AccessNorthGa
A new exhibit in Brookyn: Susan Sontag was right: War photography can anesthetize – Salon.com
And lastly, one hot mama: The Tina Turner Blog On Twitter Is Pretty Much Everything
There are few things we love as much as Tina Turner, so you can imagine how ecstatic we were when we came across the Tina Turner Blog on Twitter. The account tweets up-to-the-minute news, videos and most importantly, awesome throwback photos of the singer. And we have to say, this lady has serious style.
Well, if that doesn't get you…what about these legs?
Private Dancer will be 30 yrs old next year! Do you think Tina should commemorate this special anniversary somehow?? http://t.co/IY262OvW9y—
Tina Turner Blog (@tinaturnerblog) December 16, 2013
Have a wonderful day and stay warm!
Sunday Reads: Faults, Fashions and FailuresPosted: December 8, 2013 Filed under: Art, bees, campaign financing, Citizen's United & Super Pacs, corporate money, Crime, Drone Warfare, Free Press, Japan, morning reads, poverty, The Right Wing, U.S. Economy | Tags: "Operation Santa 2013", House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard "Buck" McKeon (R-Santa Clarita), Neanderthals, New York's medical examiner, Noah's Ark Animal Sanctuary, Rene Gruau, US Post Office, vintage fashion, vintage perfume 44 Comments
Good Morning
I hope that those of you trapped beneath the ice and snow, are safe and doing fine. Some of the pictures out of Texas are amazing. I have a house full of munchkins as I write this post (Saturday night) and it is wonderful to hear laughter from my daughter's room.
So, with that in mind, here is your post for this cold December morning. (Written by a distracted mum, so mind the awkwardness.)
By the way, all the illustrations are by René Gruau (February 4, 1909 – March 31, 2004)
…a renowned fashion illustrator whose exaggerated portrayal of fashion design through painting has had a lasting effect on the fashion industry . Because of Gruau's inherent skills and creativity, contributed to a change in the entire fashion industry through the new pictures that represented the already popular designs created by designers in the industry. The benefits, including economic stimulation and enhancement of advertising are still vividly presented in the industry today via a new way of fashion illustration, fashion photography. Gruau became one of the best known and favorite artists of the haute couture world during the 1940s and 50s working with Femina, Marie-Claire, L'Officiel, L'Album Du Figaro and an assortment of "high-style" magazines.[3] Gruau's artwork is recognized and commended internationally in some of Paris and Italy's most prestigious art museums including the Louvre in Paris and the blank in Italy. in addition to his international fame and recognition, "Gruau's artwork is known for its timeless and enduring style".[3]
You can find many more of these beautiful fashion illustrations here: RENE GRUAU
I will have more fashion links later in the post, now let's get to some "newsy" links.
There is some disturbing policy news out of Japan, Japan's controversial new state secrets law condemned as 'the largest ever threat to democracy in postwar Japan' by Nobel academics | The Raw Story
Japan's controversial new state secrets law was condemned Saturday as "the largest ever threat to democracy in postwar Japan" by a group of academics, including two Nobel prize winners, reports said.
On Friday Japan's parliament adopted a new law handing out stiffer penalties for those who spill state secrets, despite a public outcry over fears the legislation was draconian and would impinge on press freedom and the public's right to know.
In a strongly worded attack on the new law, a group of 31 academics, including Nobel Prize winners Toshihide Maskawa and Hideki Shirakawa, accused the Japanese government of threatening "the fundamental human rights and pacifist principles" established by the country's constitution.
The controversial bill, proposed by the right-wing government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was approved by the Senate on Friday evening, a few days after it was passed in the lower house.
The Senate vote in favour was expected as the coalition government led by Abe's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) holds a majority of seats there.
The opposition raised motions to stop the law but each move was rejected by the LDP members and their allies.
Sounds like Japan has their own form of "GOP" like assholes in control, and they are making a mess of things.
The scholars' statement — which Kyodo said was also endorsed by a further 3,150 academics — condemned the country's ruling bloc of behaving in a way that was "reminiscent of the prewar government that wrested away freedom of thought and freedom of the press" by pushing the law through both Japan's legislative chambers.
Shirakawa was awarded the Nobel prize for chemistry in 2000 while Maskawa won the prestigious award for physics in 2008. The Kyodo report did not name any of the other academics who signed the statement.
The law allows government ministers to designate as a state secret information related to defence, diplomacy, counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism.
Abe has argued that the measure is necessary to plug a notoriously leaky government machine, which prevents its chief ally the United States from sharing intelligence.
But critics say the categories are so vague that almost anything could fit the definition. They worry that information that is embarrassing to governing politicians or to their patrons could easily be hidden from public view.
They point to the way that Tokyo withheld news of the severity of the nuclear disaster at Fukushima in 2011, and say a state that already operates largely behind closed doors will become even more secretive.
That problem is exacerbated by a relatively weak institutional press.
Oh yeah, weak press? Hmmm, that does sound familiar. But ours is weak because of who "sponsors" it…
Those convicted of leaking "state secrets" could get long prison terms, up to ten years…and anyone encouraging someone to spill the beans…they could get up to five years in prison, the language so vague….it may even include journalist and lawyers.
And talking about Japan: Largest Fault Slip Ever Recorded Generated Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami
The magnitude 9.0 earthquake that unleashed the devastating 2011 tsunami in Japan was triggered by the largest fault slip ever recorded, the journal Science reported Thursday.
By measuring the frictional heat produced by the fault slip during the earthquake, researchers from the University of California, Santa Cruz and other organizations found that friction along the Tohoku fault was remarkably low when the earthquake struck on March 11, 2011.
"The Tohoku fault is more slippery than anyone expected," said Emily Brodsky, a geophysicist at UC Santa Cruz. Brodsky acted as co-author for three papers on the Tohoku earthquake published in the journal Science this week.
The scientist say the fault is slippery as a banana peel.
Researcher Patrick Fulton, first author of the paper focusing on temperature measurements, concurred.
"The large slip at shallow depths contributed to the tsunami that caused so much damage in Japan. Usually, these earthquakes don't rupture all the way to the surface," he said.
Fulton said that the low resistance to slip along the Tohoku fault can help explain the staggering 165-foot displacement, or movement, that occurred to the seafloor during the earthquake. That low friction, he said, was exacerbated by an abundance of weak, slippery clay material in the fault zone.
Read more at the link…it is an interesting read.
Back at home, this little tidbit of news due to an asshole out of California: Global Hawk Air Force Budget Cuts – Business Insider
A $114 million contract to build three more Global Hawk high-altitude unmanned surveillance aircraft was announced back in September, despite the Air Force not even wanting them.
Facing budget cuts and wanting to save some cash (about $2.5 billion over five years), the Air Force was planning to stop buying the pricey — and rather unreliable — drones and mothball the remainder of the fleet in favor of the battle-tested and accomplished U2 spy plane.
"The Block 30 [Global Hawk aircraft] is not operationally effective," the Pentagon's top testing official had declared in a blunt May 2011 report, according to The Center for Public Integrity.
But the Pentagon was no match for forces on Capitol Hill, as an article written by W.J. Hennigan in the Los Angeles Times points out:
"Northrop responded sharply, saying the U-2 "places pilots in danger, has limited flight duration and provides limited sensor capacity."
In the end, the Air Force didn't win that skirmish. House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard "Buck" McKeon (R-Santa Clarita), whose congressional district includes Palmdale, jumped in to rescue the project. Congress restored the funding, and last month Northrop received a $114-million contract to build three more drones, saving thousands of jobs."
Go and read all the money that was put into military programs the military did not want. And then…read this op/ed from the LA Times: The saddest Christmas wish lists ever
I was standing in line at the post office when a sign caught my eye: "Operation Santa 2013." According to the poster, "answering letters to Santa has been a holiday custom for over 100 years." Those who wanted to participate could choose one of the many letters to Santa received by the post office and write back as Santa, sending the gift requested.
How cute, I thought. Kids request presents from "Santa" and they actually arrive.
I remember walking to the mailbox with my own letters to Santa as a child. One of my mother's favorite Christmas stories was how, when I was 4, I mistakenly threw my peanut butter sandwich into the mailbox instead of my letter. Santa brought me a whole jar of peanut butter that year.
I couldn't wait until my kids were old enough to write letters to Santa. Now they are too old for Santa Claus and I miss him, so Operation Santa seemed perfect for me.
Bright and early on Dec. 3, the first day the program got underway, I drove to the main Los Angeles post office at Gage and Central to choose my letter. I walked into a large, decorated room where Cleo, the "elf in charge," was waiting. I expected letters full of misspelled words and little-kid grammar, asking for Legos and Barbies, skateboards and My Little Pony. I knew there'd be those who asked for phones or IPads or Xboxes, or other things out of my price range, but I figured I could find some little boy who still wanted a fire engine.
What I found were pleas from parents. A mother out of work said her family would eat, but there wouldn't be any presents. A dad wrote that his kids needed school supplies. Parents with two kids, three kids, maybe more, were hoping for help with what they couldn't provide. A dad just out of prison wanted to make Christmas special for the kids he hadn't seen for so long. A disabled grandmother asked for a church dress for her granddaughter.
I was overwhelmed. Many of the letters — even the ones from kids — asked for groceries and shoes, clothing and shampoo. One child wrote: "Please bring my mommy some food. She's been good this year."
The rest is heartbreaking….especially for me, because my good friend Jessica is one of those mommas who is having a difficult time this year getting a few gifts for her two boys. Seeing her on Facebook looking for "barter or trade" items makes me so sad.
Elf Cleo sat beside me at the table checking in a new batch of letters. She told me 90% of the Santa requests sent to the post office never get answered. Many are written at homeless shelters and city food banks and after-school programs. (I found one letter in which a young teenager asked for gifts for the shelter workers.) Cleo said that every once in a while a family's gift comes back unopened, marked address unknown. She wonders: Have they moved into a shelter? A car? Onto the street?
I read a lot of letters, and I felt worse and worse. I didn't know how to choose. The single dad who needed diapers? The 17-year-old asking for a backpack for her little sister? I believe in holiday magic, but there just didn't seem to be enough of it to go around.
After you read the rest of that op/ed, take a look at this: What If Your Income Grew As Fast As the 1 Percent's? Try Our Calculator | Mother Jones
The richest 1 percent of Americans have seen their average income jump more than 270 percent over the past five decades. Meanwhile, the average income of the least wealthy 90 percent of Americans grew an anemic 22 percent during that time. (Those figures are based on inflation-adjusted real dollars.)
So how much would you be earning today if the phenomenal income growth at the very top of the income scale had trickled down to most Americans? Use this calculator to find out.
All you crime newsy people will eat up this next juicy link: Why Couldn't Worst Crime Lab Employee Get Fired? — Daily Intelligencer
That's the question an exhaustive new report on a particularly incompetent lab worker at the office of New York's medical examiner. Over two years, the office has been looking into how she mislabeled evidence (mixing up suspect and victim's names), ignored or missed DNA samples, failed to test evidence, and couldn't understand basic concepts for testimony. But even though her supervisors knew about "myriad failures," they didn't fire her. The only news in this story that instills confidence in the city's forensics lab: She left on her own in 2011.
Which is connected to a New York Times story here: The City Is Not Handling Its DNA Evidence Too Well
and here: Report Details the Extent of a Crime Lab Technician's Errors in Handling Evidence
Alright, now for the fashion links. Orchid…that is the new hot color for 2014! Actually it is officially called "Radiant Orchid" but that link goes to an AP article so you will need to read about the "creativity" of the color purple on your own.
Well, for me…talking creativity in fashion? How about iconic? Marilyn Monroe's Magician–the One and Only Travilla | GlamAmor
Whenever I want to illustrate the power of costume design, the person I always turn to is the legendary William ("Billy") Travilla. I can usually convince any crowd with two simple words: Marilyn Monroe. As of 1952, Travilla was responsible for her fashion on film, which included iconic work in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), and The Seven Year Itch (1955). He designed for her offscreen as well. In short, as the world continues to obsess over the style of Marilyn Monroe, we are all also celebrating the talent of Travilla.
Though perhaps best known for his work in the 1950s, his career stretched from film in the 1940s to television of the 1980s where he helped shape the style of the decade in shows such as Dallas and KnotsLanding. As a result, there is a nearly endless list of celebrities who absolutely adored him. Barbara Stanwyck, Lana Turner, Ava Gardner, Lauren Bacall, Loretta Young, Ann-Margret, Faye Dunaway, Debbie Reynolds, Joanne Woodward, Mitzi Gaynor, Diahann Carrol, Sharon Tate…this is only the beginning. As biographer and Travilla Foundation founder Kimberley Ashley observes, "Many celebrities of the golden era of Hollywood depended upon the Travilla touch for their career success. He touched their lives with his silver screen alchemy."
Oooo, love that quote, those last three words drip with perfect illusion. Just go to GlamAmor blog and read the rest. Enjoy it!
Then take a look at this: 17 Times The Fashion Was The Best Part Of The Movie
Forget the plot — some movies are best remembered for the costumes.
At least, that's how we feel. We appreciate a well-directed film with good cinematography as much as the next film buffs, but some movies capture a style era so perfectly, we can't help but leave inspired to emulate the characters. Below, we've rounded the films with fashion we'll never forget… even if we can't remember anything else about them.
And what is fashion without scent? A Whiff on the Wild Side: Confessions of a Vintage Perfume Addict That is an excerpt of a book on perfumes, it even has some of the reviews of old vintage scents. Scent and Subversion: Decoding a Century of Provocative Perfume: Barbara Herman
Another book link for you, this time a discussion of an anthology: Why Writers Love New York City (and Then Leave It) – Marie-Helene Westgate – The Atlantic
In the new anthology Goodbye to All That: Writers on Loving and Leaving New York, contributors share the experience of moving to New York in pursuit of the writing life. In essay after essay, writers describe their experiences moving to New York from Long Island, New Jersey, California, and overseas. Anyone from anywhere can come to New York City in pursuit of fame, riches, and romance, and as a result, Goodbye to All That captures New York's uniquely nuanced, overlapping landscape of cultures and geographies that for millions feels at once deeply personal and communal.
But while something deeper also reveals itself in the pages: Some thread of pure accident runs through the story of each writer's dream of making it in the big city.
After you read that interview piece, if the book seems interesting, find it here: Goodbye to All That: Writers on Loving and Leaving New York: Sari Botton
Did you know that the Neanderthals used to decorate their caves? Well, not in the way we do…but: New evidence suggests Neanderthals organized their living spaces
Scientists have found that Neanderthals organized their living spaces in ways that would be familiar to modern humans, a discovery that once again shows similarities between these two close cousins.
The findings, published in the latest edition of the Canadian Journal of Archaeology, indicate that Neanderthals butchered animals, made tools and gathered round the fire in different parts of their shelters.
"There has been this idea that Neanderthals did not have an organized use of space, something that has always been attributed to humans," said Julien Riel-Salvatore, assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Colorado Denver and lead author of the study. "But we found that Neanderthals did not just throw their stuff everywhere but in fact were organized and purposeful when it came to domestic space."
Go figure.
And if that does not make you think twice about things and mans place in the animal kingdom, maybe this will: Honeybees Can Recognize Individual Human Faces: Scientific American
The ability to tell individual faces apart was long thought to be exclusive to large-brained mammals. But in recent years a number of studies have shown that, in fact, some wasps can facially recognize one another. And honeybees can learn human faces, too. In their article in the December issue of Scientific American, biologists Elizabeth Tibbetts of the University of Michigan and Adrian Dyer of RMIT University in Melbourne describe these findings and what they reveal about the neural requirements for seemingly complex cognitive tasks.
Shit. They can learn human faces? Damn, does that mean that the military could train honeybees to become assassins? Think about it. Mercenary "Killer Bees" that are trained to go after a specific target's face. Hey, that would make a great Roland Emmerich movie eh?
The last link for you today is a follow-up on a story from long ago. How An Abused Lion, Tiger And Bear Became An Unlikely Family (PHOTOS)
Baloo the bear, Leo the lion, and Shere Khan the tiger (all three known as BLT) were brought together as 2-month-old cubs and have grown up as a family.
The trio was originally owned by a drug dealer who didn't properly care for them, leading to neglect, poor health and severe injuries.
In 2001, Noah's Ark Animal Sanctuary, a nonprofit that cares for animals in need, came to the rescue, and took them to Locust Grove, Georgia, where they were treated for injuries.
"We could have separated them," Diane Smith, assistant director of the Noah's Ark Zoo told the Telegraph. "But since they came as a kind of family, the zoo decided to keep them together."
I wrote about these three buddies when I started blogging for Sky Dancing years ago. Well, it turns out the fence around their little home need some improvements.
…the government passed new federal regulations requiring big cat enclosures to have 16 foot fences put up, which would take effect in October of this year. Baloo, Leo and Shere Khan's fence was only 8 feet high. If these regulations weren't met, the three animals would have to split up.
Rebuilding the fence would cost $489,000.
With October slowly approaching, The Sanctuary entered a contest to help raise money. On August 15, CrowdRise, an online fundraising site, teamed up with RYOT, a social news platform to announce a challenge called #STARTARYOT, according to ncronline.com. They offered $75,000 to the nonprofit that raised the most money in five weeks.
On Oct. 10, they had announced that Noah's Ark Animal Sanctuary had won. They even received an extra $10,000 for attracting the most unique visitors during the last week of the challenge.
Additionally, they were able to raise $362,269 through crowd-funding. The installment company even agreed to discount the price of the new fence.
And once more, all is right in the BLT-land.
Innit that great! There are lots of more photos at the link…go see the three amigos together. So dang cute!
That is my post for today. Stay warm and happy!
Wednesday Reads: Booklist, Playgrounds and LawsuitsPosted: December 4, 2013 Filed under: abortion rights, child sexual abuse, children, court rulings, Environment, Environmental Protection, Foreign Affairs, History, Iceland, India, Japan, morning reads, Real Life Horror, Religious Conscience, religious extremists, Reproductive Health, Reproductive Rights, War on Women, Water, Women's Healthcare, Women's Rights | Tags: ACLU, catholic hospitals, chess boxing, CNN, EPA, Fukushima, iceland, radiation, Slave artifacts, the Vatican, U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, UN, Zucker 31 Comments
Good Morning
Running a little late this morning, so thanks for bearing with me…
I want to start this post off with a few links to end of year book list.
First, the New York Times Sunday Book Review: 100 Notable Books of 2013 – NYTimes.com
The year's notable fiction, poetry and nonfiction, selected by the editors of The New York Times Book Review.
It is a staple read for me…and it goes without saying, that I must include the kids list of books too:
Notable Children's Books of 2013 – NYTimes.com
Then we have this interesting grouping from The New Statesman: Books of the Year 2013
Each year we ask regular contributors to the Critics pages of the New Statesman, together with other friends of the magazine, to write about their favourite books of year. There are no constraints on what kinds of books they are able to choose, so the results are often intriguing.
John Gray ❦ Ali Smith ❦ Ed Balls
Stephen King ❦ Rachel Reeves ❦ Sarah Sands
William Boyd ❦ Alan Rusbridger ❦ Lucy Hughes-Hallett
Simon Heffer ❦ Andrew Adonis ❦ Craig Raine
Felix Martin ❦ Frances Wilson ❦ John Burnside
Jesse Norman ❦ Alexander McCall Smith ❦ Richard Overy
Jason Cowley ❦ Mark Damazer ❦ Lionel Shriver
Jemima Khan ❦ Geoff Dyer ❦ Laurie Penny
Vince Cable ❦ Alan Johnson ❦ Leo Robson
Jane Shilling ❦ John Bew ❦ Ed Smith ❦ Richard J Evans
David Baddiel ❦ Michael Rosen ❦ John Banville
David Shrigley ❦ Chris Hadfield ❦ Tim Farron
Toby Litt ❦ David Marquand ❦ Robert Harris
Michael Prodger ❦ Michael Symmons Roberts ❦ Sarah Churchwell
One book that was picked by a few of the folks up top:
Andrew Adonis
The trials and tribulations of modern France yielded my two best books. Robert Harris's An Officer and a Spy (Hutchinson, £18.99) breathes deep pathos into the Dreyfus affair, electrifying the bitter divisions of Third Republic France, which led ultimately to its disintegration in 1940.
I looked into it, and it is not being publish on Kindle or here in the US until January 2014. It sounds really good.
Anyway, check those list out and let us know what tickles you, or what books you would suggest.
One of the books in that New Statesman link connects to another article I have for you this morning. Look here:
David Shrigley
My favourite art book of the year is Inside the Rainbow: Russian Children'sLiterature 1920-35 (Redstone Press, £35). It juxtaposes beautiful illustrations with texts from writers such as Daniil Kharms and missives from the Soviet state. The artworks are photographed: they retain the flat, matt, paper quality of the originals. It's a lovely book and there's nothing in it that is too familiar. I love the subheading, too: Beautiful Books, Terrible Times.
And since the Holidays are about the little ones…both young and old alike, here are some awesome kick ass playgrounds around the world: The Most Amazing Playgrounds in the World (PHOTOS) – weather.com
Playgrounds have certainly come a long way from the ubiquitous swing sets and monkey bars – just visit your neighborhood fast food joint. But lately, we've noticed some amazing play spaces popping up all over the world that ditch the plastic ball pit in favor of truly imaginative designs.
From the whimsical and fantastical to the just plain cool, these amazing constructions are setting a pretty high bar for your local schoolyard. Whether it's integrating seamlessly with the natural landscape, creating living storybooks or recycling trash into treasure, these playgrounds make brilliant kid-friendly design look like child's play.
Seriously, take a look at some of these fun grounds. The ones from Denmark, like that photo above, are really surreal. Then there is a playground in St. Louis that looks like the one from the movie The Wiz.
Okay, just one more "book" link for you. Fifty Years Later, Why Does 'Eichmann in Jerusalem' Remain Contentious?
Each week in Bookends, two writers take on pressing and provocative questions about the world of books. This week, Adam Kirsch and Rivka Galchen on why Hannah Arendt's "Eichmann in Jerusalem" remains contentious fifty years after it was first published.
I don't know why, even though that New York Times Review of Books article is new…there is something Déjà vu about it.
And sticking with history a bit longer: Slave artifacts found at Georgia highway project site
Photo by Rita Elliot, AP Photo/New South Associates Inc.
In a spring 2013 photo provided by New South Associates Inc., archaeologists Brad Botwick, left, Cory Green, and Nicole Isenbarger, right, excavate, sift soil, and map part of a former plantation site in Savannah, Ga. The site, which is being excavated prior to construction of a highway project, yielded thousands of artifacts that archaeologists believe belonged to slaves.
A Mexican coin punctured with a small hole, nails from long-decayed wooden dwellings, and broken bits of plates and bottles are among thousands of artifacts unearthed from what archaeologists suspect were once slave quarters at the site of a planned highway project in Savannah.
A team hired to survey the site by the Georgia Department of Transportation spent three months excavating 20 acres of undeveloped woods tucked between a convenience store and apartments off busy Abercorn Extension on Savannah's suburban south side. Archaeologist Rita Elliott said the project yielded a staggering 33,858 artifacts believed to date from about 1750 until after the Civil War.
Historical records show that a wealthy Savannah attorney named William Miller owned a large plantation at the site and at one time had 87 slaves, Elliott said. Archaeologists didn't find the main plantation house but believe many of the artifacts they found are consistent with slave dwellings.
"These people are pretty anonymous in the historical records," Elliott said. "The archaeology may not tell us much about their names, but it will tell us about their lives."
As for the sheer volume of items recovered at the site, Elliott said, "It's not unheard of. But this is a lot of artifacts."
Take a look at the rest of that piece…what a story.
Of course I will use that tale of slavery, forced labor and submission to segue into this next article: Forced into a C-section: The latest violation of pregnant women's rights
In a surreal case that's lawyers are calling "unprecedented," an Italian woman who was visiting the U.K. last year for work while pregnant with her third child says she wound up undergoing a forced caesarean and had her baby taken away from her. She is currently waging a legal battle to have her returned.
The story, which broke Sunday in the Telegraph, is a harrowing one. The woman, whose family says she is bipolar and needs medication, had "something of a panic attack" in her hotel room, and called the police. After telling her they were taking her to the hospital to "make sure that the baby was OK," she says she was shocked to find herself instead in a psychiatric facility, where she was restrained for several weeks. Eventually, after being told one morning she couldn't have breakfast, she was forcibly sedated and woke up several hours to the news that her baby daughter had been removed by social services. Soon after, she was sent home without her child.
Back home and back on her medication, the woman embarked on a quest to have her baby daughter returned to her. But the Italian court said that "Since she had not protested at the time, she had accepted that the British courts had jurisdiction – even though she had not known what was to be done to her." And a British judge declared that "He could not risk a failure to maintain her medication in the future." The woman's American ex-husband and father of her eldest daughter even tried to plead for the baby to be sent to his sister in Los Angeles, but because the baby isn't a blood relation to her, the court struck that down too.
The woman's lawyer, Brendan Fleming, told the Telegraph, "I have never heard of anything like this in all my 40 years in the job. I can understand if someone is very ill that they may not be able to consent to a medical procedure, but a forced caesarean is unprecedented." And Liberal Democrat M.P. John Hemming, added, "I have seen a number of cases of abuses of people's rights in the family courts, but this has to be one of the more extreme. It involves the Court of Protection authorizing a caesarean section without the person concerned being made aware of what was proposed."
It seems crazy to me…but things are unreal in this world. (I will say for the record, women who refuse c-sections that eventually cause the death of their child…that is another matter. I do have problems with the women who do that. When cesareans become a necessary procedure, and the woman is determined to have a vaginal delivery at any cost, she is taking that "fucked up" ideology just as far as those fetus fanatics do…to the point beyond reason.)
Case in point: ACLU sues US bishops over Catholic hospital ethics
The American Civil Liberties Union filed a sweeping federal lawsuit against the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops over its ethical guidelines for Roman Catholic hospitals, arguing the directives were to blame for negligent care of a pregnant woman who went into early labor and whose baby died within hours.
The ACLU alleges the bishops were negligent because their religious directives prevented Tamesha Means from being told that continuing her pregnancy posed grave risks to her health and her child was not likely to survive. She was treated at Mercy Health Muskegon, a Catholic hospital in Michigan.
"It's not just about one woman," said Kary Moss, executive director of the Michigan ACLU. "It's about a nationwide policy created by nonmedical professionals putting patients in harms' way."
The lawsuit comes amid a wave of mergers between Catholic and secular hospital systems throughout the United States, raising questions about how much religious identity the hospitals will retain and whether they will provide medical services that conflict with church teaching. Advocates for abortion rights and others fear the mergers will limit access to a full range of medical care for women. About 13 percent of U.S. hospitals are Catholic.
It is a familiar story, we all know too well from personal experience what this woman went through…
According to the lawsuit, filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Michigan, Means was 18 weeks pregnant in 2010 when her water broke and she went to the nearest hospital in Muskegon. The ACLU said that over several emergency visits, Means was never told that "the safest treatment option was to induce labor and terminate the pregnancy" because the hospital was following the conference's ethical directives. She eventually delivered the baby, which died after less than three hours. The ACLU says the pathology report found that Means had infections that can result in infertility and other damage.
Under the conference's "Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services," abortion is barred, along with other procedures that go against Catholic doctrine, such as specific infertility treatments or sterilization. However, each bishop has the authority to interpret the directives within his diocese and it is common to find some variation in how the guidelines are applied among dioceses or according to individual cases.
For example, the directives allow for treatments to cure a grave illness in a pregnant woman even if they result in the death of the child. That issue drew national attention in 2010 with the case of a nun and administrator at a Phoenix hospital who, in her role on the hospital ethics committee, approved an abortion to save the life of a pregnant woman. Phoenix Bishop Thomas Olmsted said the decision meant automatic excommunication for the nun and the hospital could no longer identify itself as Catholic.
Robin Fretwell Wilson, a University of Illinois professor who specializes in family and health law, said a negligence claim would hinge in part on whether the ACLU can establish that the conference has some direct control in this case or in hospitals in general. The bishops have moral authority over local Catholic hospitals but are not involved in the day-to-day business of administration.
"It's so many layers removed," Fretwell Wilson said, that she has "a difficult time buying" that the bishops' conference is legally responsible in this case.
Sigh, well…I guess we just have to wait and see.
All this talk about the Pope and his new focus on the poor is great, but I still can't fully get on board with Francis and his shitty attitude towards women. Then there is this crap too: Vatican refuses to share sex abuse investigations with U.N. panel | Reuters
The Vatican refused to provide a United Nations rights panel with information on the Church's internal investigations into the sexual abuse of children by clergy, saying on Tuesday that its policy was to keep such cases confidential.
In response to a series of tough questions posed by the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the Holy See said it would not release information on its internal investigations into abuse cases unless required to do so by a request from a state or government to cooperate in legal proceedings.
The response of the Holy See, which will be directly questioned by the panel in January 2014, will be closely watched as it tries to draw a line under financial scandals and abuse by priests that have damaged the standing of the Roman Catholic Church around the world.
Since becoming the first non-European pontiff in 1,300 years, Pope Francis has largely succeeded in changing the subject after the resignation of Benedict XVI in February.
You bet your ass he has changed the subject!
The questions from the panel aimed to assess the Church's adherence to the 1990 U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, a treaty guaranteeing a full range of human rights for children which the Holy See has signed.
In its response the Vatican said internal disciplinary proceedings "are not open to the public" in order to protect "witnesses, the accused and the integrity of the Church process", but said this should not discourage victims from reporting crimes to state authorities.
However, it said state laws, including the obligation to report crimes, must be respected.
The Holy See noted it was "deeply saddened by the scourge of sexual abuse" and emphasized that it had changed the requirements for admitting candidates for priesthood, updated canon law, and asked bishops' conferences to draw up guidelines to combat abuse.
But it indicated the Vatican could not be held responsible for the behavior of institutions or individual Catholics around the world and said local bishops had the responsibility of ensuring children were protected.
"The Holy See does not exercise effective control over the local activities of Catholic institutions around the world," the response read, indicating the Catholic Church's central administration could only be held accountable for events within the Vatican City State.
That makes me think of one thing:
Honestly. Maybe all this brouhaha over the Popes comments is nothing but smoke and mirrors? Get everyone distracted and flustered about one thing over here and they forget about priest molesting little boys over there.
Another news item that could use that Naked Gun clip as an afterthought, Radioactive Japanese Wave Nears U.S. : Discovery News
In the wake of the deadly tsunami that hit Japan in 2011 and severely damaged a nuclear reactor, Japanese officials say the levels of radiation are safe for everyone outside the reactor area itself. But as radioactive water from the plant nears the West Coast of North America — the water is expected to hit in 2014 — can we be sure it's safe?
The nuclear reactor continues to leak radioactive water due to poor management, while Japanese subcontractors at the plant have admitted they intentionally under-reported radiation and that dozens of farms around Fukushima that were initially deemed safe by the government actually had unsafe levels of radioactive cesium.
Fukushima locals also claim they're seeing cancer at higher rates and the Japanese government is covering up the scale of the problem.
I really don't think we are getting all the story from Japan either. The US EPA monitors Radiation levels around the US, you can see near real-time results here: RadNet | US EPA
The nationwide RadNet system monitors the nation's air, drinking water, precipitation, and pasteurized milk to determine levels of radiation in the environment. RadNet sample analyses and monitoring results provide baseline data on background levels of radiation in the environment and can detect increased radiation from radiological incidents.
EPA's RadNet Data | RadNet | US EPA
EPA's nationwide radiation monitoring system, RadNet, consists of two components. First, stationary and deployable air monitors measure radiation 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The map below provides monitoring results as graphs that are updated several times daily. You can also search the RadNet database in EPA's Central Data Exchange (CDX) to find monitoring data. Second, EPA samples precipitation, drinking water, and milk on a routine schedule and tests them for radiation in a laboratory. The latest RadNet sampling results are available in Envirofacts.
RadNet Data
Give that some of your time today, it is interesting indeed.
Y'all probably saw this crap yesterday: Zucker plans massive change at CNN | Capital New York
After almost a year of tinkering, CNN Worldwide President Jeff Zucker has concluded that a news channel cannot subsist on news alone.
So he is planning much broader changes for the network—including a prime-time shakeup that's likely to make CNN traditionalists cringe.
Once, CNN's vanilla coverage was a point of pride. Now, the boss boasts about the ratings for his unscripted series, and documentaries like the Sea World-slamming film Blackfish. Zucker, in his first one-on-one interview since taking control of CNN last January, told Capital he wants news coverage "that is just not being so obvious."
Instead, he wants more of "an attitude and a take":
"We're all regurgitating the same information. I want people to say, 'You know what? That was interesting. I hadn't thought of that,'" Zucker said. "The goal for the next six months, is that we need more shows and less newscasts."
Can you see where this is going?
Zucker—"rhymes with hooker," he likes to say—also expanded on comments he has made about breaking CNN out of a mindset created by historic rivalries with MSNBC and Fox. He wants the network to attract "viewers who are watching places like Discovery and History and Nat Geo and A&E."
Hmmm, up next on CNN…
Moving on. Two quick links:
Photo-shopped picture falsely portrays Obama as child molester
Asshole actually tries to pass this shit off, and even the idiots who follow him on facebook call him out on it.
And check out The Very Best of 'Right-Wing Art' | Mediaite
Oh, there are no words…
Did you see what happened in Iceland yesterday?
BBC News – Rare Iceland armed police operation leaves man dead
Icelandic police have shot dead a man who was firing a shotgun in his apartment in the early hours of Monday.
It is the first time someone has been killed in an armed police operation in Iceland, officials say.
Wow, the first time?
I don't know, but with all the shit going on around here, Iceland is looking pretty good.
That is all for me this morning, except for this last story…BBC News – Chess boxing catching on in India
There are 300-odd chess boxers in India
Chess boxing, a hybrid sport combining the mental workout of chess with the physical challenge of boxing, is catching on in India, reports Shamik Bag.
Wearing boxing wraps around their palms and seated on a bench inside a gym in the eastern Indian city of Calcutta, two players match moves while huddled over a chessboard.
Caught between the mind and muscle, the recently-introduced game of chess boxing is seeing an early surge of interest in India. The game involves alternate rounds of chess and boxing.
Now, that takes the whole hybrid sport thing to a new level doesn't it? Forget kick-boxing, mixed-martial arts, wrestling stuff they do in world extreme cage fighting. This chess boxing takes brains! However, I don't see it catching on here in the States. So don't expect a reality show on chess boxing competitors to show up on CNN any time soon. I bet we could come up with a catchy title though…"Left Rook and Check Mat." (Maybe not.)
Have a great day!


text:
Thousands fleeing Libya cause chaos at border
Border guards fire into air to disperse crowds.March 1, 2011 3:46
Register for our free newsletter
Yemen president dismisses gov't, plans fuel subsidy to calm rebel protests
Hamas popularity surges as Palestinian rivalry flares
Record 4.1 million in Syria got food aid in August, U.N. says
Dubai Islamic Bank has ruled out seeking a controlling stake in Bank Panin Syariah
Airline Emirates is not interested in investing in the international operations of Qantas, the Dubai-based carrier's chief commercial officer said
Viva Kuwait, the country's second biggest mobile operator by subscribers, plans to list on the Kuwait Stock Exchange by year-end
The emirate of Sharjah will arrange investor meetings this week and next ahead of its potential debut sovereign sukuk issue.
US released a statement calling West Bank settlement "counterproductive" towards peace talks.
Six soldiers dead in suspected al Qaeda bombings in south Yemen
Egypt's foreign reserves in August close to their July level of $16.736 billion, central bank governor Hisham Ramez told Reuters.
Border guards fire into air to disperse crowds.March 1, 2011 3:46
Crowds wait at banks for government handout.March 1, 2011 10:24
Border controlled by anti-Gaddafi gunmen.February 22, 2011 4:08

subset: commoncrawl


text:
OC3D Reviews ›› Input Devices
Enermax Acrylux Keyboard Review
Input Devices | 27th May 2011
Today we take a look at a laptop-style keyboard from Enermax, the Acrylux.
Roccat Kova Plus Review
Input Devices | 14th April 2011
Fancy an upgraded version of the already great Roccat Kova? Seems like you're in luck as today we take a look at the Kova Plus.
Roccat Alumic Gaming Mousepad Review
Input Devices | 14th April 2011
Today we're taking a look at the latest gaming mousepad from Roccat, the Alumic.
OC3D Articles ›› Input Devices
Roccat Complete SDMS with Arvo Keyboard
Bryan Waters | 10th November 2009
Roccat have finalised their desktop range with the stunning Arvo Compact Gaming Keyboard
Apple Introduce Multi-Touch Magic Mouse
Peter Stoba | 21st October 2009
Apple claim to have revolutionised the mouse market with their latest 'Magic Mouse'.
Roccat Kova Mouse Coming Soon
Peter Stoba | 18th October 2009
The second gaming-grade mouse from the successful peripheral manufacturer.
Logitech G110 Gaming Keyboard
Peter Stoba | 15th October 2009
The successor to the popular G11 gaming keyboard arrived in the form of the G110.
SteelSeries Shift Keyboard and Keyset Review
Input Devices | 7th April 2011
Today we're taking a look at the Shift keyboard from SteelSeries along with an example keyset.
Zowie Celeritas Review
Input Devices | 18th February 2011
Tired of getting fragged by unresponsive hardware? Zowie have a keyboard that makes sure any deaths are your own fault.
Roccat KONE [+] Review
Input Devices | 29th November 2010
Roccat have stormed the market in recent times and now they return to upgrade the one that started it all, with the Kone [+].
Zowie EC1 Gaming Mouse Review
Input Devices | 28th September 2010
Last year we looked at some products from Zowie, and today we see how their addition to the gaming mouse market fares.
Roccat Arvo and Apuri Review
Input Devices | 4th May 2010
Previously we've seen the first two parts of the Roccat SDMS, today we look at the final two, the keyboard and mouse bungee.
Logitech Unveil MK605 Notebook Kit
Peter Stoba | 14th October 2009
A very useful kit for users who like to use their notebook around the home.
Microsoft Show Off Touch Sensitive Mice
Peter Stoba | 10th October 2009
Microsoft show off with their prototype multi-touch sensitive mice.
Microsoft's New Multitouch Screen Keyboard
Peter Stoba | 28th September 2009
Microsoft have come up with a rather snazzy concept for a touch screen keyboard.
Wacom Intros Multi-Touch Tablets
Peter Stoba | 24th September 2009
Wacom have announced some rather nice looking multi-touch bamboo graphics tablets.
Razer Refreshes DeathAdder Mouse
Peter Stoba | 23rd September 2009
The famous DeathAdder gaming mouse receives a small but useful update. Is it as innocent as it seems?
Steel Series Introduce Limited Edition AION Peripherals
Peter Stoba | 4th September 2009
Steel Series are introducing two limited edition products based on the upcoming AION MMO.


text: Unisex Beauty Gifts 10 Fail-Safe Gifts For the Unexpected Holiday Guest by Jessica Cruel 12/04/13 9 Reactions 45 Shares Print 14 3 15 13 0 OK, so no one's perfect, especially in holiday madness. And that means you don't have to feel ashamed about forgetting your brother's girlfriend was coming for Christmas (oops) or having that cousin show up at the last minute for the family gift giving. It's always good to have an extra present on hand for the holiday guest you forgot or didn't expect, and these options will work for any unexpected reveler — male or female. Not only will no one feel left out, but they'll have no idea you didn't have them in mind when you picked it out. What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 Whether the receiver is a fan of serious nail art or just wants the basics for well-groomed hands, this Art of Shaving 7-Piece Manicure Set ($160) has all the manicure necessities. 1 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 The Philip B Hairbrush Cleaner ($15) is a quirky option that could also work in the White Elephant or Secret Santa pool at the office. 2 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 Both men and women will find something they like in the Kiehl's Helping Hand Essentials set ($26), thanks to the subtlety of the scents. 3 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 Oakmoss, cedar, and vetiver unite in this Nest Candle in Woodland Truffle ($34). The scent is earthy enough to please a man, but the woodsy aroma will draw out the cuddly side of a lady as well. 4 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 A designer travel bag will find a home in your favorite jet-setter's luggage this holiday. The 3.1 Phillip Lim 31 Minute Cosmetic Bag ($295) is just big enough to carry all the travel-size beauty essentials, and the navy leather is delightfully unisex. 6 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 The Luna Mini ($139) is a beauty tool that rivals the beloved Clarisonic. The vibrations help clear the pores of dirt as you cleanse, and it comes in different gender-neutral shades like gray and blue. 6 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 Many women know that men's razors work just as well for shaving the body as for a beard. So, wrap the Baxter of California Double-Edged Safety Razor ($60) in advance, and put it under the tree for that last-minute arrival. 7 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tom Ford Black Orchid Holiday Set ($110) may be one of the sexiest scents available for a woman (or man). Notes of bergamot, gardenia, sandalwood, and vanilla make this one gift your favorite couple can share. 8 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 Come January, it will be time to erase months of merriment (aka wine stains). The Glo Solo Teeth Whitening Set ($45) is a safe gift for men and women alike. 9 / 10 What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 After all the holiday hustle, a spa day is a welcome treat. A detoxifying massage is the safest option for a unisex present, so fill a gift card with just enough for a hour of relaxation. Source: Facebook user Exhale Spa 11 / 10 14 3 15 13 0 Back to Homepage Comments Read More Holiday BeautyBeauty ShoppingGift GuideHoliday Holiday 100+ of the Best DIY Gifts Ever 4 days ago Make Your Coffee Table Gorgeous With These Beauty Books 1 week ago 40+ Life-Changing Books to Read This Summer 4 weeks ago How to Assemble a Pinterest-Worthy Cheese Plate 7/08 101 Memoirs Penned by Famous Females 6/29 40 Killer Vegetarian Appetizers 6/24 gift guide Make Your Coffee Table Gorgeous With These Beauty Books 1 week ago 101 Memoirs Penned by Famous Females 6/29 Double Tap! 15 Cool Things to Do With All Your Instagram Photos 6/17 What to Gift the Dad Who Lives For the Great Outdoors 6/15 15 Stylish Father's Day Gifts That Will Make Dad Proud 6/14 Foodie Father's Day Gifts For Every Type of Dad 6/10 Holiday Beauty Make Your Coffee Table Gorgeous With These Beauty Books 1 week ago Every Fourth of July Nail Art Look You Could Possibly Want to DIY 7/03 How to Look Good Even If You Have the Worst Hangover 5/25 When Worlds Collide: Designer Beauty Collaborations to Know 3/11 Date-Night (and Morning-After) Beauty Essentials Under $10 2/08 Hello, 2014! Our Editors' Resolutions For a Beautiful Year 1/03 Get a Personalized Fashion & Beauty Newsletter! Help us customize your newsletter by selecting your interests (optional): Beauty Tips Street Style Fashion & Beauty News Celebrity Style What's Your Reaction? 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Reactions Link Love The products you need to look good in a surprise Summer rainstorm — InStyle You love her lip look, but no one's buying Taylor Swift's perfume — The Cut The ultimate, nonsticky cream blush — SheFinds Why you shouldn't whiten your teeth before a party — Allure You're putting your mascara on all wrong — Daily Makeover The right way to use a mask (hint: you need more than one) — Byrdie You already own the key to perfect post-workout hair — Beauty High How to care for false eyelashes so they last for years — XoVain The hottest trends to look for on the Fall runways — Beauty Sweet Spot Why texture spray should be your next big hair purchase — Fashionista


text:
NEW MINAS — Jim Best is going through his final checklist for a 6,000-kilometre motorcycle trip to raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis Canada.
Best, 31, has been living with cystic fibrosis all of his life and was looking for a way to give back to an organization that provides funds, awareness and support for those with cystic fibrosis.
From June 17 to July 10, he will be riding a rented Harley-Davidson Road King from Boston to San Francisco.
"I'll be riding by myself, but there are lots of people who have contacted me and say they plan to jump in and ride along for various parts of the trip," Best said outside his New Minas home Saturday afternoon.
He said he has his trip "all mapped out" and plans to complete 280 kilometres per day, which is a "manageable goal."
Best is a pharmacist and works in Berwick. He feels his occupation is a "nice correlation" for his fundraiser.
"There are so many new medications available now. When I was born, doctors said I wouldn't live past my teens. Life expectancy for those with cystic fibrosis is now closer to 50 years."
Motorcycling does present some challenges for people with cystic fibrosis, a respiratory lung disease. There will be times when Best will wear a mask under his helmet to help him deal with exhaust fumes and other airborne particles on busy highways.
He chose the American route because the motorcycle rental company is in the United States. He owns a motorcycle of his own, but it is not comfortable for long-distance driving.
Best will be travelling light, with two saddlebags, a duffel bag and a bookbag. At the end of each day, he will make an entry on his blog that will include photos.
There is a Facebook site at www.facebook.com/events/695043223892472.
Best said he is open to donations to support his travel expenses, but his main goal is to raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis Canada.
"I'm excited to get on the road."


text:
Properties in Bradlow, Ledbury, Herefordshire And Worcestershire between £160,000 and £170,000
Get involved! Send your photos, video, news & views by texting EJ NEWS to 80360 or e-mail us
Properties in Bradlow, Ledbury, Herefordshire And Worcestershire
Gallery view List view Map view 6 properties found
- Print Page
- Share Results
£162,500 2 Bedrooms Masefield Close, Ledbury
The property is situated within walking distance of Ledbury town centre which offers a comprehensive range of facilities and amenities to include shops, post office, community hospital, mainline railway station and regular bus service.
The larger centr
The larger centr
Stooke Hill & Walshe - Ledbury
£165,000 2 Bedrooms The Homend, Ledbury, Herefordshire HR8
A Delightful Grade II Listed Brick Built Townhouse Set Over Three Floors Situated in the Heart of the Market Town of LedburySitting Room - Kitchen - Study Room / Bedroom - Two Double Bedrooms - Shower Room - Town Centre Location
Hayes Sales & Lettings
- Print Page
- Share Results
Moving House?
Local businesses here to help you:
- Banks and Building Societies
- Car & Van Hire
- Electrical Appliances
- Flooring
- Furniture
- Insurance Services
- Mortgages
- Removals
- Solicitors
- Storage
- TV Aerials
- All Businesses
Local advertisers


text:
Australia to go ahead with shark 'kill' zones
Surfers enjoy the waves at Bondi Beach, Sydney's most famous beach, on June 10, 2013 - by William West
The federal government granted an exemption from environmental laws to approve Western Australia's shark mitigation plan, which is aimed at reducing the risks to water users after six fatal attacks in the past two years.
It means baited drum lines with hooks designed to capture large sharks can be set one kilometre (0.62 miles) offshore at busy Western Australian beaches from now until April 30.
The state government has said that any shark longer than three metres (10 feet) snagged by the lines and deemed to be a threat -- including great white, bull and tiger sharks -- will be humanely destroyed.
In granting the exemption, Environment Minister Greg Hunt said individuals must be responsible for their own safety while swimming, surfing and boating in the open sea.
"In this particular case, however, there has been a series of tragedies due to shark attack," he said, adding that there was evidence of a significant increase in incidents off the west coast in recent years.
Hunt said the proposal was for a brief trial period and confined to a few high-use, high-risk beaches.
"One does not have to agree with a policy to accept that a national interest exemption is warranted to protect against imminent threat to life, economic damage and public safety more generally," he said.
The Humane Society said the decision flew in the face of international obligations to protect the great white shark, Australian federal law and loud public opposition to the policy.
"The exemption of the WA shark policy is a complete disgrace," said Humane Society International's Alexia Wellbelove, adding it lacked a scientific approach.
"This exemption demonstrates the complete failure of the federal government to protect our most precious species and fulfil our international environmental obligations, for the price of a policy which we do not believe will have the desired impact of reducing risk for people, which is its stated purpose."
Local marine scientists have described Australia's west coast as the world's deadliest shark attack zone, and a tagging and tracking programme is already underway in a bid to limit fatalities.
The new crackdown was triggered by the fatal mauling of a surfer at Lefthanders Beach, in the popular Margaret River tourist region, in late November -- the sixth shark killing in Western Australia in two years.
While sharks are common in Australian waters, deadly attacks are rare, with only one of the average 15 incidents a year typically proving fatal.
Experts say attacks are increasing in line with population growth and the popularity of water sports.
- Japan sailor kills himself after hazing, military says
- Australia father charged with abusing surrogate twins, report says
- Beale, White axed after All Blacks flogging
- Philippine airport bomb plotters planned anti-China attacks: govt
- UN chief says 'no military solution' to Ukraine crisis
- Great Barrier Reef dredge dumping plan could be shelved
- China calls for Britain to scrap Hong Kong inquiry: report
- Australia PM says 'extreme force' justified against IS
- British activist set for Thai defamation trial
- Malaysia refuses New Zealand activist entry
- Fukushima accepts 'temporary' radioactive waste storage
- Indonesian female governor jailed for corruption
- China universities vow ideology clampdown on staff, students
- Abdullah deadline puts Afghan election in peril
- Americans detained in N.Korea appeal for help
Pakistan's first democratic transition of power appears to be under threat as the pressure on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif mounts daily in th... More Pakistan's first democratic transition of power appears to be under threat as the pressure on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif mounts daily in the form of twin anti-government protests in the capital. Duration: 01:56
Date 7 hrs ago, Duration 1:56, Views 83
facebook recommendations
938LIVE is Singapore's only English news and talk station which transmits round the clock with an engaging and enticing spread of programmes on current affairs, health, business and lifestyle as well as news every half hour until midnight.
- Entertainment
- Asia Celeb News
- Hollywood Buzz
- Korean Buzz
- Celeb Interviews
- Celeb Bios
- Celeb Blogs
- Photo Galleries
- Music Reviews
- Movies
- xinFirst Webisodes
- TV Channels
- Channel 5
- Channel 8
- Channel U
- okto
- Suria
- Vasantham
- Radio
- Class 95FM
- Gold 90.5FM
- Lush 99.5FM
- Symphony 92.4FM
- Capital 95.8FM
- Love 97.2FM
- Ria 89.7FM
- Warna 94.2FM
- Oli 96.8FM
- Lifestyle
- Beauty & Fashion
- Food
- Going Out
- Health
- Relationships
- Travel
- Work Life
- Style
- Style:Men
- Style:Weddings
- Style:Living
- i-Weekly i周刊
- Timepieces
- Mother & Baby
- Elle
- Postbox
- News
- Singapore
- World
- Regional
- Sci-Tech
- Weird
- Business
- News Videos
- Sports
- Local Sports
- World Football
- Formula One
- Video
- Catch-Up TV
- Entertainment
- xinmsn Celebs
- Korean Celebs
- Hollywood Celebs
- Weird & Wonderful
- News
- Lifestyle
- Sports
- xinFirst