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September 29, 2000 |
September 30, 2000 |
October 1, 2000 |
After a break, attendees were eager to get back to their seats for the latest scoop on state and local legislative efforts. Panelists were state Sen. Sam Slom (R-HI), Evan F. Nappen, Dennis Fusaro and Paul Moog.
Slom, trustee and secretary of SAF, said the real action is at the local and state levels. "That's where the action is. That's where you come from. That's where the grass roots movement is most important and that's where you can make the most changes."
Slom said that there is always an argument whether the pro-gun groups are winning or losing, but no one can deny that they are always fighting the battle for Second Amendment rights. He encouraged the GRPC attendees to take back the materials and information provided by the conference and use them to create new ideas and new thoughts to fight the anti-gun forces in their communities. He also related a major flop for the gun grabbers in his home state of Hawaii.
"I am really pleased to be here, but I am sorry that I had to leave Hawaii at this time because we are in the midst of the fourth extension of our famous gun buy-up program. It has been so 'successful' that it had to be extended four times. They hoped to collect over 250 guns, but the last tally was something like 79."
Slom cautioned people not to feel overwhelmed by the anti-gun
forces and that one person or one vote can make a difference.
Slom, himself, is just one of two Republicans in a 25-member state
senate, so he knows what it's like to buck the odds. But no matter
how outnumbered you may feel at the local level, the strongest
weapon you have is the family. If the family retains the qualities
and values that the country was founded on, the stronger the support
for rights such as the Second Amendment. But there are forces
that would subvert family cohesion, Slom said, mentioning MTV
as an example.
Evan F. Nappen
While Slom may have some complaints about his home state
of Hawaii, Evan F. Nappen, Esq., founder of ReformNewJerseyGunLaw.com,
told listeners that without question, New Jersey is heaven to
gun haters and hell to freedom lovers.
"If I can convince you that New Jersey is the worst place to be if you are a gunowner, perhaps you can feel better about your state and know what to avoid."
Nappen explained that unlike other states in the union, in New Jersey all gunowners are guilty until they can prove themselves innocent. He elaborated on what one might consider a contradiction in basic constitutional principles. "Under New Jersey State Statute 39-5, all guns are banned. It's up to the citizen to show by way of exception under NJS 39-6 that he lawfully qualifies for exemption. In law, those exemptions are called an affirmative defense and it is incumbent on the defendant to prove that he is within the exemption."
Exemptions include possession in one's residence, possession at the target range or possession while hunting and they all come with a series of technical requirements. It's up to the gunowner to prove at any time that he is within the exemption. Some time ago, New Jersey came up with the requirement for a firearms owner identification card to possess a long arm. Now, one would think that having an owner's ID card would override the ban on all firearms, but the New Jersey legislature figured how to slide out of that one.
One example involved Joseph Pelleteri, a law-abiding citizen with no prior record who won a .22-caliber Marlin Model 60 in a shooting match. He supplied his firearms ID card to acquire the gun, took it home and locked it up in a safe with the factory tags still on it. He was convicted of possessing an illegal "assault" rifle under New Jersey law, which carried a five-year sentence and the complete loss of all his rights to own guns-ever. Nappen said that this was bad, but the appellate court ruling was even worse. "The appellate said that when dealing with guns the citizen acts at his peril. In New Jersey, the gun laws are, as a matter of law, perilous to gunowners!"
Before turning over the podium to Dennis Fusaro, director of
state affairs, Gun Owners of America, Nappen plugged his new novel,
The Declaration, about a person who finds the original Declaration
of Independence. According to Nappen, it's loaded with pro-gun
Dennis Fusaro
"We have a motto at the State Legislative Affairs
at GOA," said Fusaro. "Pain is good and extreme pain
is extremely good...for politicians, that is. We divide the political
world of gun rights into two seasons, the election season and
the legislative season. Whatever they do to us in the legislative
season, it's our job to do back to them during the election season."
Fusaro encouraged everyone to log onto GOA's website at www.gunowners.org to get legislative alerts for their states and to get involved in GOA's state candidate survey program. The purpose of the survey is to mobilize grass roots gunowners to get them involved and use pressure to educate local candidates.
Fusaro also brought up two initiatives pending in Oregon and Colorado that would require background checks at gun shows for private sales, and in the case of Oregon, it would lead to registration of the firearm with the state police. "You need to educate your friends and neighbors why legislation like this is bad," Fusaro directed. "Registration leads to confiscation. It happened in DC. It happened in New York City, and it's happening in California."
The final speaker on state and local legislation was Paul Moog, president, Virginia Citizens Defense League Inc. He expressed surprise that with just a few key activists in 1994 and help from the NRA and GOA, Virginia Citizens Defense League was able to get a concealed carry law passed. "This year and the past five years we've been working on getting rid of the ban on carrying concealed weapons in restaurants. Hopefully, this year we will end that ban."
Moog said that he knew what it feels like to be a lone activist and try to get something done. It's only through networking and operating with other people can you really accomplish a lot. "One thing I've found very rewarding is starting a grass roots group and working with other grass roots activists. It can be frustrating to be one individual and find you can't get much done, but if you can get 20 or 30 people together, you can get a lot accomplished. We only had about 30 people when we started our efforts to get a concealed carry law in Virginia. If you get people to work together, you can enjoy success."
Tom Gresham
After listening to pro-gun efforts at the local level,
GRPC attendees heard about current pro-gun efforts by the industry
to defend itself against attacks. Tom Gresham, board member of
the CCRKBA and host of the nationally syndicated radio program
"Gun Talk," was first to address the subject of fighting
back. "The biggest threat to gunowners and the one with the
greatest potential for shutting it all down is the suit against
the gun-makers themselves. Make no mistake about it, the plan
is to end firearms sales by destroying the firearms industry.
You can have a Second Amendment, but it doesn't mean anything
if you can't buy a gun."
Gresham dismissed the critics that claimed he was pushing for compromise. He cautioned the audience to pay attention. "I keep saying we have to fight smarter. Never compromise. Never give in. You can't take a bat and baseball mitt to a football game. You have to know the game in order to play."
Just because someone is not getting into a face-to-face confrontation over the gun issue doesn't mean that the person is not fighting or is compromising. Perhaps he or she is just fighting smarter. To illustrate the concept of fighting smarter Gresham recalled the massive brouhaha over S-2099, which was introduced by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI). It was a gun registration bill that amended the 1934 National Firearms Act and called for a $50 tax on handguns. "How many of you received e-mail on 2099?" he asked. Several hands went up. "How many of you wasted your time, effort and money fighting that silly 'Chicken Little' measure?" he asked.
"It was a waste. It wasn't going anywhere. Millions upon millions of e-mails that could have been better spent on something that was effectual were wasted on something that made us feel better. We've got to fight smarter. If a bill is so outrageous that we know it will not pass, we have to ignore it. Let's not be sidetracked by Chicken Little on the Internet."
As a host of a widely successful radio show, Gresham knows
what it takes to be heard by the media. In the media, he says,
you have to get permission to speak. "It's not enough just
to say you have a good idea. You have to earn the right to speak.
It's not good enough just being right. You can be right and lose
or you can be right and win. It's your choice. But to be right
and win you have to get smart. You have to show credibility in
order to speak out. Get involved in programs like Project Home
Safe. Give away free gun locks. It buys you credibility and therefore
a right to speak."
$100,000 a Month
Following Gresham, Chambers delivered some staggering figures on what it costs the firearms industry to defend itself. "Right now the industry is facing lawsuits in 31 cities and counties. It is costing us $100,000 a month to defend against these."
Chambers said most of the suits were leveled against handgun manufacturers and they came in two varieties, the New Orleans model and the Chicago model. The New Orleans model, based on a 1998 suit filed by the mayor of that city, claims that firearms manufactured by gun companies are of unreasonably dangerous design and manufacturers have failed to implement safety devices that would prevent unauthorized users from firing their guns.
The Chicago model is one where the firearms manufacturers are accused of saturating the areas surrounding the city with guns so that even though you cannot buy or sell within the city limits, you have free access just outside the line. "This suit purports that gun manufacturers knowingly flood cities with more guns than they could ever expect to sell to law-abiding citizens, knowing full well that criminals are going to pick up the slack," Chambers explained.
The industry has had several successes against these suits, Chambers said. Suits have been dismissed in Cincinnati, OH; Bridgeport, CT; Miami/Dade and Tampa, FL. Both Louisiana and Georgia have state laws that prohibit cities from filing against firearms manufacturers, but that hasn't stopped the opposition from trying.
There were some disappointments, too. "In Boston the motion to dismiss was denied," Chambers said. "That's on appeal from us. In Detroit, a partial motion to dismiss was granted on one count. The other is still pending. In Cleveland, the motion to dismiss was denied."
Chambers lauded Rep. Bob Barr's (R-GA) Firearms Heritage Protection Act that, with bipartisan support, will put an end to the frivolous lawsuits against firearms manufacturers in both state and federal courts.
Things weren't always so gloomy, according to Chambers. He said that the NSSF and SAAMI had selective meetings with some of the mayors of major cities and were finding common ground, when the White House interjected itself into the talks. "New York Attorney General Spitzer was the lead component of those discussions but pressure from the White House forced him to break off all talks."
Chambers also provided some insight into the HUD/Smith & Wesson deal. "Cuomo made promises to the White House that he could get the industry to fall in line. Just give me one major firearms manufacturer, he said, and the rest would fall in line. Well, he's fallen on his butt because that did not happen."
Chambers reported that NSSF and seven handgun manufacturers
including Beretta, Browning, Colt's, Glock, SIGarms, Sturm Ruger
and Taurus filed suit in Federal Court against HUD Secretary Cuomo,
Spitzer, Massachusetts Attorney General Blumenthal and elected
officials in 14 municipalities charging them with an illegal conspiracy
and restraint of trade in violation of the US Constitution.
Chris Dolnack
Chris Dolnack, community outreach coordinator for NSSF,
expanded on the role of the trade association in helping the pro-gun
fight. "It's a war of attrition," Dolnack said. "Uncle
Sam has deep pockets financed by our tax dollars. All of the money
being put into legal defenses by the firearms industry should
be going to fund R&D, sponsorship of shooting events and sponsorship
of conservation organizations."
In response to the financial trouble faced by manufacturers, NSSF started the Hunting & Shooting Sports Heritage Foundation which oversees the Hunting & Shooting Sports Heritage Fund, commonly referred to as the Heritage Fund. "We currently have 73 manufacturers, publishers, web groups, PR and ad agencies who have committed 1% of their net sales of hunting and shooting related items. The contributions to this war chest has given us an $11 million budget. This historic commitment produced quick victories in Cincinnati, Miami and Bridgeport, but we still have a long way to go."
By charter, 50% of the money is used for legal defense and litigation support. The other 50% is used for communications.
"We kicked off our TV campaign during the Republican National Convention," stated Dolnack. "And we ran it again during the Democratic National Convention. In total, we are spending close to $5 million in the media to take our message to the American people."
Dolnack informed the crowd that the NSSF is also engaged in a program called Vote Your Sport, which is a voter mobilization and registration campaign.
The third program that Dolnack shed light on was Project HomeSafe, a partnership program among the firearms industry, government and law enforcement. It provides free safety kits, which includes a gun cable lock, to non-traditional gunowners.
"This program gives us a chance to get into the urban areas and get our safety message out."
There are four ways, Dolnack asserted, by which individuals
can help the Heritage program. First, is to write the 73 manufacturers
and say thanks for their help. Secondly, individuals can write
to the manufacturers who aren't giving 1% of their sales and ask
them why. Thirdly, get friends, family and neighbors out to vote.
Finally, everyone is invited to log on www.hsshf.org and contribute
to the cause.
John Lott
The climax of the morning panels was the arrival of Professor
John Lott, senior research fellow, Yale University Law School
and author of More Guns, Less Crime, now in its second edition.
Lott addressed the truth about the right to carry. There is a
lot of fear about guns, he said, most of it unwarranted and fueled
by the media. "My guess is that few people outside this room
would know that probably the best estimates we have indicate people
use guns sensibly about 2 million times a year. That's five times
more frequently than guns used to commit a crime."
Lott acknowledged that a dead body is more sensational for a newspaper or TV crew than footprints left by a felon who fled the scene due to the actions of an armed citizen who brandished a firearm. But, he continued, that doesn't explain all the reasons why the media ignores stories where guns were instrumental in saving lives. He recalled the school shooting incident in Pearl, MS, where an assistant principal used his handgun to subdue a gun shooting attacker.
"We did a computerized news search of the incident and found about 700 news stories around the country that covered the incident. Of the 700 stories, only 19 made any mention of the assistant principal. Only 13 of the 19 mentioned that he had anything to do with stopping the attack. And only nine of the 13 mentioned that he used a gun to stop the gunman. None of these were national stories, just local news. One of the stories covering the assistant principal's actions did end up on ABC News, but it was at four o'clock in the morning."
Lott also cited the incident in which five people were brutally murdered in a New York City Wendy's restaurant and that this tragedy made front page news all over the country. What did not make the news during the same time period were incidents where guns were used to prevent similar tragedies.
"None of these cases received any news coverage outside
their local media markets," Lott said. "A lot of the
debates we have right now would be dramatically different if even
a few stories where people used guns defensively got the same
type of news coverage that the bad events do."
Self-Defense Myths
Lott discussed the various myths connected with the defensive
use of guns against crime. The suggestion by experts that you
should act passively when confronted by a criminal is misleading.
According to Lott, this advice stems from the National Crime Victimization
Survey. Unfortunately, it lumps all sorts of different modes under
the heading of active resistance, including fists, fleeing, screaming,
baseball bat, pepper spray, knife and gun. By lumping all of these
actions together, says Lott, you are getting a false impression
that passive behavior is preferable to resistance.
"If a woman resorts to using her fists the very likely result will be a physical response from the attacker with a high probability of either death or serious injury to the victim. When you break down the different types of active resistance, what do you find? By far the safest course of action for anyone to take, but particularly for people who are relatively physically weaker than the attacker, is to use a gun. Women who behave passively when confronted by an attacker are about 2.5 times more likely to be seriously injured than a woman who has a gun. Men who behave passively are about 1.4 times more likely to end up being seriously injured than a man who has a gun."
One of the myths that has permeated both sides of the gun issue is that of having a gun in the home is risky business. Lott claimed that quite the opposite is true. "We often hear the claim that having a gun in the home is more likely to result in a death of you or a loved one than result in the death of an attacker. This claim is based on a few studies that have been published in medical journals by the same sets of authors."
The problem is how the studies are done. Lott explained that what they will do is identify a group of people within a certain area who have died from gunshot wounds. Then they will go and question the victim's relatives to find out whether that person owned a gun or if they knew if there was a gun in the person's residence. If either of these were the case, then they automatically assume that it was the person's own gun that caused the death. "When people have gone back and looked at the data, what they found was that even including suicides, at most only 14% of the deaths could be attributed to the firearm that was in the home."
Another flaw in much of the anti-gun studies is that not all of the benefits of merely owning a gun are taken into account. They only count as a benefit of gun ownership cases where the attacker was killed. "That's extremely rare," admits Lott. "Only one out of every 1,000 times that people use guns effectively is the attacker killed. About 98% of the time simply brandishing a gun is sufficient cause for the criminal to break off his attack. Less than 2% of the time the weapon is fired, and most of those are just warning shots."
The myth most prevalent currently is the one that says safe storage laws reduce firearms accidents and suicides. Lott claims that if you look at the data, little has changed in the states that have passed mandatory safe storage laws.
Also, says Lott, when you hear of children under the age of
10 dying from gunshots, you assume that it's another child who
did the shooting. That's not true. "The typical person who
accidentally fires a gun is an adult male, who's in his very late
teens or early 20s. He's either an alcoholic or drug addict who
has a history of arrests for violent crime."
Different Households
The thing you have to take into consideration when you
talk about guns in the house, maintains Lott, is that there are
two types of households, law-abiding households and criminal households.
In law-abiding households the probability of an accidental gunshot
involving a child is essentially zero. The cases where a child
is accidentally shot in the home, it's likely that the incidents
occurred in criminal households and the person who actually fired
the shot had a long criminal history.
"I don't care what kind of locking device you are going to require to be sold with a gun, you are not going to stop a 24-year-old male from accidentally firing his own gun," Lott said.
He ended his discussion of firearms myths by dismissing the concept that licensing and registration are important tools for law enforcement.
"The notion is that if a gun is licensed and registered and if it's left at the crime scene, it's theoretically possible to trace the gun back to the criminal. The problem is when you talk to police they can't identify even one crime that's been solved as a result of licensing and registration. Criminals don't register their guns and they virtually never leave them at crime scenes. The only time that ever happens is when the criminal has either been seriously injured or killed."
Our report on the rest of the first GRPC 2000 program will be continued in the next issue.
September 29, 2000 |
September 30, 2000 |
October 1, 2000 |


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subset: commoncrawl


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Black bean sun-dried tomato pasta salad
The little boys and I have spent the past few days in Iowa with family. Packing bodies into my aunt and uncle's house on the lake is something we do every August. The kids and adults alike get totally exhausted, but it is a ton of fun. I love spending time my family. Dan will join us in the morning, and we are looking forward to a few more days here as a family.
I threw this easy pasta salad together to bring along to our gathering. I'll admit that I used ingredients that were already in my refrigerator and pantry. I feel like it was almost too easy to post about!
In a large bowl, combine:
12-oz. package twisted elbows, cooked to al dente
15-oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons capers
8-oz. jar julienne cut sun-ripened dried tomatoes
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
4 oz. crumbled feta cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste
Add the juice from 1/2 of a lemon.
Mix well.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Sorry for the quick post. There is a bonfire burning out back and I must go sit by it!


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Cartoon of the Day – NRO Home page
Obama says no apology to Romney over Bain attacks –No hope, no change, just sleazy politics as usual
Obama Top Bundler Ran Bain Capital During GST Steel Layoffs
Yes, that does look bad. –Bill Whittle (video)
Axelrod: Unlike Romney, Obama Doesn't Use Tax Shelters – Except, when he does
Forget Photo ID, 63 percent of Guam's residents can't even register to vote. Holder unimpressed
If Bain Capital Is So Evil Why Do All These Democrats Take Their Donations?
Top Ten Things Obama Has Not Released
When Joe Biden Plagiarized Bobby Kennedy – parrots: "the integrity of our public leaders" Haven't I always said that liberals are irony impaired?
Did Union Democrats Stage a Fake Fight at Ohio Romney Rally?
Navy's new gender-neutral carriers won't have urinals
Your Land is My Land –Mark Steyn
Obama Descends into Self-Parody – "More cowbell!"
'Middle class' Debbie Wasserman Schultz owns unreported home, took $33K luxury cruise
Media Fail: Chevy Volt Makes NO Money, Costs Taxpayers Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars Per Car
Connecting the Dots on the Ongoing Harassment of Conservative Bloggers
Former SEAL Team Six Commander Launches Anti-Obama Offensive
Why I am Starting to Like Obama
Why even look for a Tea Party connection?
"You Didn't build that" P-shop
Rule Five Roundup*:
(While all Rule Five posts may be unsuitable for NSFW, I generally only flag the ones that are certainly NSFW)
American Power- Jessica-Jane Clement
Tel Aviv Beach Beauties with Guns
Camp of the Saints - Hump Day Rule Five
Classic Liberal – Lyndsy Fonseca
The Daley Gator – Daley Babe - Reika Miki
Daily Mail – dangerous curves: Heavily armed and bikini-clad female Israeli soldiers 'mingle' with beachgoers (tan line shaped like Uzi), Jessica-Jane Clement for PETA
Dustbury – Mélissa Theuriau
El Opinador Compulsivo – Something different about her. I can't recall…, No sunburn, Sunburn
Eye of Polyphemus – Katy Perry (NSFW), Marika Hargitay
Friday Night Babe –Aida Yespica!
The Right Way - Friday Babe
Guns and Bikinis –Eye Candy
Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World – Friday Pinup
Pirates Cove – Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup, If All You See…, If All You See…, If All You See…, If All You See…, If All You See…, If All You See…
POH Diaries -Rule 5 Emma Stone Is Hot, Kate Upton
Randy's Roundtable –Midweek Break, Thursday Nite Tart
Sex in Advertising – Victoria's Secret (video)
Support your local Gunfighter – Heidi Klum, Anna Benson
The Last Tradition – Imogen Thomas
Theo Spark –Bedtime Toddy , Bedtime Toddy
The Other McCain- Rule 5 Monday
Three Beers Later – Beer Thirty
Vintage Babe of the Week – Anne Gywynne
*By no means comprehensive.
Use the comments as an open thread on any of these topics. If you feel that I've neglected a link, news, commentary, humor or Rule Fivage, send a link to the contact email on the sidebar at Proof Positive. (All spambots must die!)
Cross posted at Proof Positive


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How to Survive Total Economic Collapse
Are you one those who cannot imagine being in the middle of an economic collapse? Don't worry read further to know some tips on how to survive in such a situation--
1Downsize and pay. Clear your liabilities. Downsize your living. Pay down credit cards and sell your car and get an economical and fuel efficient one.Ad
2Spend only on needs. Spend the money you have on basics, like food, water, batteries, wool blankets, soap, and duct tape. Basically only on things that are required for surviving. Kids who have left home can move back in and help by contributing to the resources.
3Produce on your own. Plant a garden and grow vegetables that are possible for your habitat to grow. Keep some farm animals if possible, too. Animals like chickens (eggs, meat), goats (dairy), and cows (dairy) will all help. Keep easy-to-store food supplies and invest in a water purification system, along with bottled water. Live near the sea if possible and fish or hunt.
4Be safe. Protect your family with locks and guns in case desperate measures are necessary during a food shortage.
- Never keep the ammunition for the guns close to where the guns are, they should be in separate places, and both should be locked and secure. More gun accidents happen in homes than in any other place.
5First-aid kit is important. This is very important and should be your priority. Put together a basic first-aid kit for emergencies. Include bandages, pain relievers, cold packs, and alcohol, and keep the kit in a secure and safe place.
6Barter for necessities. Barter with your neighbours. Give away things that you don't require in exchange for things you need.
7Exchange the money. Convert your money and investments into precious metals and stocks. A super-inflation will render money worthless.
8Be rational. Don't panic as nothing is permanent.Ad
We could really use your help!
preserving wood furniture?
relieving burps?
pool tables?
estate planning?
- Bond with your immediate community to help rather than shoot one another.
- Shed your luxurious lifestyle for a while, and focus on what you need.
Things You'll Need
- Essentials
- Seeds
- Canning supplies
- Water purification system
- Bottled water
- Fishing tackle
- Gun
- First-aid kit
- Chickens
- Goats
- Milk cow
Sources and Citations
- http://www.howcast.com/videos/359868-How-To-Survive-Total-Economic-Collapse Source of text and images, shared with permission.


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You have no items in your shopping cart.
Living Room Furniture
Bedroom Furniture
Kitchen & Dining
Wishack Home Furniture & Decor
Welcome to Wishack!
We are a BC based home furniture company that serves customers from all over Canada & the United States. Our showroom is located at 2252 190 ST, Surrey BC and features a clearance centre with many discounted items not shown on the website. We have a great selection of TV Stands, TV Wall Mounts, Bar Stools, and many other types of home furniture. For our online customers, we are proud to offer an easy two step return policy. Please contact us if you have any questions about our products or website, and one of our representatives will be happy to help. Please note, not all items are on display in the showroom, please contact us for information about any specific model.Thanks for shopping at Wishack!


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The perfect product for doing your decorating outside.
Shaw's west-coast collection of distinctive carpets, including shags, cables, friezes, and cut pile berbers.
Carpet from Shaw's Anso nylon brands are fashionable and environmentally friendly.
Epic engineered hardwood starts out stylish and then adds loads of extra advantages over other engineered and solid hardwoods.
Established in 1946, Philadelphia Carpets is Shaw's oldest and broadest flooring line, and one of the most respected brands in the industry.
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Together these two cornerstone brands by Shaw are working smarter together bringing you exceptional customer service, alongside our tremendous breadth in product lines with fresh styling.
ShawMark, sold through a select group of retailers nationwide, features high-performing carpets noted for enduring extraordinary "torture tests."
Shaw hardwood offers engineered and solid hardwood products which represent the pinnacle of style, design and product quality available.
Shaw Contract Group is the design leader of flooring solutions for commercial carpet environments. Shaw Contract Group designs innovative, high-performance and recyclable products to meet the needs of its customers in healthcare, education, corporate office, government, and retail spaces around the world.
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Shaw Commercial Hard Surface brings a full range of durable, stylish resilient products to the specified market. Each collection features beautifully designed visuals, high-performance construction and cost effective maintenance to meet the demanding needs of commercial interiors.


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DALLAS, May 20, 2013 — No changes this year on the 2013 Toyota Tundra, but it is still a capable machine, worthy of the full-size pickup market. Since six years ago when this truck was introduced, the Tundra has remained virtually unchanged even as competitors pop up and evolve.
Competition in the full-size market rivaling the Toyota Tundra includes the Ford F-150, Ram 1500 and the Chevrolet Silverado 1500.
The 2013 Toyota Tundra comes in three body styles, the two-door Regular Cab, extended four-door Double Cab and a four-door crew cab called CrewMax. In addition, there are three different wheelbases and bed lengths to choose from and three trims as well: the base Tundra, Limited and Platinum.
With so much to choose from, not all of these choices can be had together, but there are indeed lots of choices with the Toyota Tundra lineup.
On the base Regular Cab, you get 18-inch steel wheels, chrome bumpers, heated mirrors, full power accessories, a windshield wiper de-icer, a damped tailgate, dual-zone climate control, cloth upholstery, and a 40/20/40-split bench seat as well as a tilt-only steering wheel.
On the Double Cab base, add to the Regular Cab intermittent windshield wipers, keyless entry, an eight-way manually adjustable driver seat, and 60/40-split fold-up rear seats, and for the CrewMax, you get to add a power vertical sliding rear window and a sliding, reclining and fold-flat rear seat.
On the next trim level up called the Limited, this one only comes with the Double Cab and CrewMax variations and you get 18-inch alloy wheels, fog lights, a bed rail system with adjustable tie-down cleats, power-folding and auto-dimming mirrors, leather upholstery, power front bucket seats, heated front seats, an auto-dimming rearview mirror with built-in back-up camera display, and a power-operated sliding rear window offered on the Double Cab.
On the Platinum, you can only get that trim level on the CrewMax and this comes with 20-inch wheels, chrome exterior treatments, power-folding mirrors that are heated and auto-dimming, a sunroof, leather upholstery, heated and ventilated front seats, and a navigation system with a touchscreen interface and voice controls.
If any of these options are not enough, there are also many packages that enable you to add and take away, for example the Tow package with a more robust axle ratio, a hitch receiver, a transmission Tow/Haul mode, an upgraded alternator, and a seven-pin connector.
The Work Truck package is bare on the Regular and Double Cab, but you get power mirrors, keyless entry, cruise control, and rubber flooring.
For a sharper look, there are the Chrome Appearance packages for the base Double Cab models and a Sport Appearance package. The TRD Off-Road package adds 18-inch alloy wheels, off-road tires, off-road-tuned suspension, skid plates, and tow hooks.
Under the hood, there are three different engines to choose from as well as rear-wheel or four-wheel drive.
The Regular and Double Cab rear-wheel-drive has a 4.0-liter V6 that gives you 270 horsepower and 278 pound-feet of torque with a five-speed automatic transmission.
Standard on the CrewMax, you get a 4.6-liter V8 engine with 310 horsepower and 327 pound feet of torque with four-wheel-drive and utilizing the long bed model. You can opt for rear-wheel-drive on this one with a Regular and Double Cab body style.
The top-of-the-line engine is a 5.7-liter V8 on the Limited and Platinum trim level with 381 horsepower and 401 pound feet of torque and a six-speed automatic transmission. Safety features include antilock brakes, stability and traction control, trailer sway control, and front side-impact, side curtain and front knee airbags.
While the 2013 Toyota Tundra has not had a facelift in a few years, it still looks good inside and out; other competitors have done more with their more recent introductions, however. Nevertheless, the high-end Platinum model still shines with leather upholstery and all the trims and models have easy to understand knobs and dials, so practicality rules the day.
Overall, the Tundra does look and drive like the big truck that it is, but sometimes driving the biggest show on the road is all right.
Should You Need to Know: Take note of the strong engine in the high-end Tundra; overall the Tundra still has the large Double Cab outfitted with traditional rear doors too.
Miles Per Gallon: I drove the 2013 Toyota Tundra CrewMax and for the four-wheel-drive Tundra with a 4.6-liter V8 engine, you can expect 15 miles per gallon in the city and 20 miles per gallon on the highway.
Cost: The 2013 Toyota Tundra will start as low as $25,500.
Rita Cook is a writer/editor with over 1300 articles to her credit in the past 15-plus years. She is a frequent auto and travel contributor on a national radio show called "The Duva Show" where her "The Insider Mag's" I'm Standing Here segment can be heard weekly between 6:00 and 7:00 p.m. Monday evenings.
Cook is a member of the Texas Auto Writer's Association and the North Texas Film Critics and writes for the Dallas Morning News, Focus Daily New, Living Magazine and Valley Scene Magazines as well as www.greensourceDFW. She also spends much of her time on the road traveling or working on books.
She recently received the 2012 Green Media Award from the North Texas Corporate Recycling Association.
Her latest book release is "Haunted Bartlesville, Oklahoma" from www.historypress.net and she will be publishing her ninth book this spring about Prohibition-Era cocktails in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
Follow Cook at Twitter at @ritacook13.
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Chicago—May 10, 2006—As the price of gas approaches $3 a gallon, more car shoppers are putting good gas mileage near the top of their wish list. While fuel-economy typically takes center stage, the sticker price of the car combined with its predicted lifetime fuel cost can offer consumers a more accurate picture of their overall savings during the lifetime of the car.
"Hybrid cars get a lot of hype when gas prices start to rise, and they certainly are a great way to save money at the pump on a yearly basis and are typically better for the environment," said Cars.com senior editor Joe Wiesenfelder. "However, if your overall goal is to simply save money, there might be better options."
Cars.com's ranking of the 23 cars that give consumers the best bang for their buck is based on vehicle price and the car's estimated lifetime fuel cost (assuming the car is owned for eight years).
The new Toyota Yaris tops the list with a base price of less than $11,000 for a two-door hatchback and average fuel economy of 34 mpg in the city and 40 mpg on the highway. The most fuel-efficient vehicle on the road is the Honda Insight hybrid, which has a base price of more than $19,000. If gas prices average $3 a gallon for the foreseeable future, it would take an owner of an Insight almost 17 years to make up in fuel savings the $8,000 price difference over a Yaris, assuming the cars were driven 15,000 miles a year.
The list, which can be viewed here, was compiled by combining each car's base sticker price with a fuel cost estimate based on its average combined gas mileage. Fuel costs assume that the car is driven 15,000 miles per year — 55 percent in the city and 45 percent on the highway — that the cost of regular unleaded gasoline is $2.92 a gallon and that the car is owned for eight years. Diesel costs are estimated at $2.96 a gallon.
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The official GLS mock draft will hit newsstands (or more specifically, this blog) tomorrow morning. And it's beginning to look like we won't have to sweat over the first selection.
That's because, according to Tom Sorensen of the Charlotte Observer, the Panthers are pretty much determined to use the No. 1 overall pick on Auburn quarterback Cam Newton.
That's been a popular rumour for some time, but Sorensen seems pretty sure that the Panthers plan to — "or are working hard to convince the football world they plan to" — take the Heisman winner with the top pick.
I was at Newton's Pro Day at Auburn last week, and the Panthers sent six representatives. The Panthers will return to Auburn for a private workout with Newton today. One group of Panthers was scheduled to have dinner with Newton and his family Tuesday, and another group is scheduled to have dinner with him tonight.
In my opinion, taking Newton is a tremendous risk for a team that has holes at several important positions. This draft is filled with exceptional pass rushers, and the Panthers are in need of a quality defensive end to replace Julius Peppers. It would make a lot more sense for them to trade down, collect some extra picks, take an end midway through Round 1 and take their chances with Jimmy Clausen in 2011.
Don't forget that Clausen was drafted in the second round only one year ago. He was awful as a rookie, but the sample size wasn't large and it's not like the former Notre Dame star was getting a lot of support from the slew of injury replacements that surrounded him.
If things don't work out, there's always Andrew Luck next year.
What's more, this draft is filled with quarterbacks that could be good, could be bad. I don't view Newton much differently. The Panthers could use a second-round pick on a guy like Ryan Mallett, who is more of a prototypical pocket passer and, unlike Newton, has played in a pro-style offence.
So while I buy that the Panthers are showing strong interest in the compelling Newton, I find it hard to believe they've settled on such a wild card this early.


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Clippings by firemedic1198 |
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Bluestar RNB366BV1 and Vent a Hood
posted by: firemedic1198 on 05.20.2013 at 11:56 am in Kitchens Forum I officially created an account so I can thank everyone on here for all of the information I found on this site. We ended up getting a Bluestar RNB366BV1 range and a Vent-a-Hood PRXH18-242 hood. There seem to be pretty strong opinions both ways for the Bluestar ranges on here. We've had it for a month so far and have no complaints. The hood does a great job removing smoke and odors. Bought the range and hood from Clark Appliance in Indianapolis. They also installed them and we are very satisfied. The oven and hood were one of our big purchases when gut/renovating my wife's grandparent's 100+ year old farmhouse. I'll try to attach a picture of what we got as well. This site was a great resource for many of the decisions we made.
NOTES: <none>
clipped on: 05.20.2013 at 04:09 pm last updated on: 05.20.2013 at 04:09 pm
Wall mounted commercial sprayer and farm sink
posted by: firemedic1198 on 05.20.2013 at 12:14 pm in Kitchens Forum For any interested in a way to use a wall mounted sprayer on an exterior wall, this was our workaround. Had a local metalworker make the stainless backsplash for behind the sink to mount the faucet to. All of the plumbing is still "inside" the house (no plumbing inside the wall).
The sprayer is a Krowne 17-109WL and the sink is a Whitehaus WH3018. Got the sink from bluebath.com (found them via Gardenweb). Can't remember exactly where we ordered the sprayer from. You may notice that there is a height difference from the stainless backsplash and the countertops. My intent is to (eventually) make concrete countertops and I had the stainless made to that future height. The countertops a just laminate. The installer did put strips of solid surface countertop under the laminate along the edges of the sink to prolong the life of the countertops in a wet area. He wanted to make sure I knew that laminate countertops and an undermount farm sink don't match - which I understood. I figured once the countertop started to delaminate, that would prompt me to make the concrete countertops. He said with the addition of the solid-surface strips, it should last a long time. I used clear silicone to seal around the sink. NOTES: <none>
clipped on: 05.20.2013 at 04:08 pm last updated on: 05.20.2013 at 04:08 pm


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Hi, Can someone help id this fruit plant? This looks like some sort of a wild Gauva plant. The skin flesh was a bit hard, and not at all tasty to eat. Inside it was a light brown hard shell, when I broke into it, found some brown soft edible fruit with small seeds. Inside part was very tasty and sweet. Don't think the outer skin is meant to be eaten. We have around 50 of these in our Farm (in India). Any help in identifying would be greatly appreciated. Regards, |
Follow-Up Postings:
- Posted by fabaceae_native (My Page) on Sat, Nov 9, 13 at 15:06
I have no idea, only that it does not sound like any type of guava due to the hard shell. It could very easily be in the same family though, Myrtaceae. This is a major plant family in that part of the world... you might even try looking at photos of genera within the Myrtaceae that have edible fruit, if you think it really does resemble a guava outwardly. Good luck, sounds like a fun mystery... |
The leaves and fruit look an awful lot like feijoa, but the description of the inside does not. |
- Posted by Fascist_Nation USDA 9b, Sunset 13, (My Page) on Sat, Nov 9, 13 at 21:52
Great find!!!! I have no idea since I would have said guava too until you described the interior. Thought it might be Aegle marmelos, but I don't think so. Might help to do a image of the fruit bisected laterally and longitudinally to show off the interior along with a small centimeter stick for measure. |
It looks like a pineapple guava. A Feijoa species. The fruit interior is sweet when fully ripe. |
- Posted by larry_gene USDA8b-OregonPDX (My Page) on Sat, Nov 9, 13 at 23:15
The above pictured plant has non-silvered leaf undersides, external veining on the fruit, extreme right-angle growth habit, and an uncurled residual calyx, all different from feijoa characteristics. Feijoas have a long thin stem like cherries, they do not form right off of woody growth. Also, feijoa would not be "wild" in India although it is grown there in cooler regions. |
This post was edited by larry_gene on Sat, Nov 9, 13 at 23:38
Looks nothing like a guava. The leaves are too small and the wrong shape. the branches/trunks look nothing like a guava. And the fruit looks nothing like the fruit ive seen in any guava tree I own. |
I did try cutting the raw ones, it did look like Feijoa, the ripe one was different. Next time when I visit the farm I will check again. The folks around assumed these to be some wild plants, not sure who had planted these over there. Is Feijoas good for cultivation? Thanks, |
- Posted by fabaceae_native (My Page) on Sun, Nov 10, 13 at 19:29
All guavas, and feijoas (which are excellent fruit in my opinion much worthy of cultivation), are soft all the way through from the outside to the seeds. There is no rind or shell to speak of, only a different colored outside to the fruit, that can hardly even be called a "skin". I agree with Goyo about the leaf differences, but these can vary so much within one genus even... Hope someone else out there has some ideas for you... |
- Posted by larry_gene USDA8b-OregonPDX (My Page) on Sun, Nov 10, 13 at 22:46
Where in India are you? In the U.S.feijoas do not fruit well in the hotter climates, or in colder short-season climates. They are grown in India, it should not be hard for you to find out what region. There are three species in the feijoa's genus, we need pictures of some of your fruits cut open. I did look at a list of perhaps a dozen wild India fruits, none matched yours. Is your fruit planted in orderly rows? |
good images of feijoa here, including flowers. Not the same but very similar. http://foodforward.org/2013/10/fruit-of-the-month-pineapple-guava/ |
Here is a link that might be useful: pineapple guava
Have you seen them in bloom? |
- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Mon, Nov 11, 13 at 10:09
perhaps the botanists in the NAME THAT PLANT FORUM .. might take a stab at it ... ken |
- Posted by larry_gene USDA8b-OregonPDX (My Page) on Mon, Nov 11, 13 at 23:09
...good suggestion, there are several members over there who either put in the ID time or just know a ton of stuff. If the OP here does not follow up, I will re-post the picture there. |
Thanks for the suggestions Ken & Larry. I am planning to visit my farm this weekend, I will try to get photos of inside of the fruit. Will post both of those in the other Forum as well. Regards, |
- Posted by larry_gene USDA8b-OregonPDX (My Page) on Sun, Nov 17, 13 at 23:31
Your fruit does not have the distinct 4- or 5-lobed pattern typical of the interior flesh of feijoas. The rind thickness is similar, your fruit is more seedy. I do not see evidence of the hard shell you first mentioned, unless it is very thin. If this is wild, native fruit, some person local to your farm will know the name. Try posting the images on the Name That Plant forum as mentioned above. You might have to rename the images to re-post them there, otherwise just provide links to these. |
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David Ortiz is one of the most recognizable baseball players in the world. If we brought out the reliable Nana Index, I hazard a guess that David Ortiz would do as well as anybody. More people know who David Ortiz is than could pick Miguel Cabrera out of a lineup and is at least double the amount of people who can claim to have heard to words "Mike" and "Trout" in the same sentence.
This doesn't mean David Ortiz is the best baseball player. He is just one of the most recognizable. The most iconic, if we dare head in that direction. His lovable bear persona play into this but, more than anything, David Ortiz seems to play the best when the most people are watching.
Over his career, David Ortiz has stepped up in some huge moments. These moments are not distributed equally. David Ortiz is known for being a great hitter – it's really the only thing he brings to the table as one of baseball's rarest creatures – the full-time DH. But for his career David Ortiz is about as good a hitter as Matt Holliday. David Oritiz is much much much more recognizable than Matt Holliday
Call it an East Coast bias is you like but the fact that David Ortiz has 352 career postseason plate appearances, posting a .296/.403/.554 line in across those October ABs. Matt Holliday actually has a comparable amount of postseason ABs and yet, Big Papi is as close to a household name as exists in baseball. Career National Leaguer Matt Holliday is…not.
The above link shows that, according to Wins Above Replacement, Matt Holliday has been much more valuable to his teams than Oritz through similar ages. The total value of contracts signed by the two players agrees with this line of thinking.
But most fans don't care about value. Casual fans who only turn in for the playoffs care about watching their team, or adopted team, win the World Series. And with two rings for Ortiz (and nearly a third) compared to one for the Cardinals outfield tells you all you need to know about the relative notoriety of these two players. This sort of fan creates legends, not detailed accounting and adherence to run probability matrices. David Ortiz wins the hearts and minds even as Matt Holliday wins nine-figure contracts.
David Ortiz's abilities in big moments aren't representative of greater skill when the situation is the most important as Ortiz's postseason and clutch numbers closely mirror his overall numbers. But those playoff hits go a lot farther to helping his team win titles and compete in playoff games. It is how a great player becomes a legend and a career designated hitter becomes a Hall of Famer.
This postseason, David Ortiz has grown from a folk hero to a demigod. A vital postseason performer to one of the most celebrated playoff starts of all time. This World Series, he's earned every single one of those plaudits. David Ortiz isn't beating the Cardinals single-handedly but reaching base safely in nine consecutive at bats sure counts as something.
The Cards have no answer for Ortiz, who looks as though he has Cardinals manager Mike Matheny spooked and is seeing more hittable pitches than his tuned-in swing deserves. A slugger of his pedigree gives the pitcher little margin for error at the best of times, right now he's crushing everything he gets.
David Ortiz's World Series in heat-map form pic.twitter.com/sWN0JkJ9hM
— Mark Simon (@msimonespn) October 29, 2013
The Cardinals continue shifting against David Ortiz, trying to pitch him away and have him roll over offspeed pitches for harmless outs. He isn't rolling over and the Cards pitchers are leaving too many pitches inside on the big lefty.
Win or lose, David Ortiz is already the World Series MVP. His numbers are absurd even before you recall the grand slam he missed thanks to the final few inches of Carlos Beltran's glove. Because of the rules in the National League park, Ortiz stepped in and played first base for the last three games, acquitting himself well (by not falling down or throwing the ball into the dugout.)
The clutch stats debate died long ago. The internet does not want for evidence of the fallacy of clutch stats and the hot hand. David Ortiz's past performance in clutch situations is not particularly predictive of his future performance in high leverage spots. This is not a groundbreaking insight.
But Big Papi's hits live long in the memory. The impact David Oritz had on the Red Sox recent past only grows as the years go by, even if they do not predict the future. Nobody, casual fans most of all, need the Sox DH's hits to tell them anything about the past as they already inform so much of their memories – David Ortiz gets hits when his team needs them most.
It doesn't really matter if the number of big hits for Ortiz grows in the memory or significance of those same fans – David Ortiz the man will never measure up to David Ortiz the Larger-than-Life legend. But it doesn't matter – they are one in the same.
There are enough great hits forever immortalized on self-shot youtube videos and on the Baseball Reference resume of the Red Sox talisman that a little embellishment isn't hurting any one. Except the Cardinals, of course. David Ortiz's hits keep hurting them in a very real way. Poor Kevin Siegrist might never be the same. There are a lot of Kevin Siegrists in Ortiz's past – that's what makes him one of the most memorable baseball stars of the last decade.


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flight positions - page 2
I'm curious. Where do you search for flight nurse positions? There are 3 services in my area but none are hiring for RN's at this time. Is there a web site with positions advertised? I have almost... Read More
0Nov 19, '06 by Shamira AizzaI wasn't making a aviation-to-auto comparison either. You said it was dangerous. I said the most dangerous part of the job was driving to work, so I'm actually only considering the driving of flight crews in relation to their job, not everyone else. Doesn't matter how many auto's are on the road; there are still only as many flight crew driving to their jobs as will be flying that day. Additionally, my reference is in relation to numbers of workers, meaning that there are many other occupations that experience a much higher fatality rate per hundred thousand workers.
And, I'm correct. The most dangerous part is the drive.
How do the FAA/NTSB reports support your claim when there are exponentially far more fixed-wing accidents on file than rotor? Additionally, how do they support you when the number of EMS rotor accidents resulting in injury is even smaller yet? Quite frankly, I haven't seen a good position to support the claim that anyone who flies long enough will encounter an accident.
The majority of missions at the program incurred at least an hour of flight time per mission. Maybe the patient wasn't on board for an hour, but you have to fly to the patient, deliver them to the hospital, and return to base...sometimes stopping for fuel at another location. Flying is flying; the mere presence of a patient does not change whether or not time is counted.
I just think it's disingenius to say that being a flight nurse is dangerous and say that the danger factor is raised by the mere fact someone is a flight nurse. It's speculation.
As far as military flight nurses, the Army doesn't have a flight nurse program anymore, and the Air Force Reserve program uses C-17's (although I'm sure a few C-9's are being used to tote patients).
I'm not trying to be argumentative, I just think it's silly to present helicopter EMS jobs as "dangerous." It is only as inherently dangerous as the participants are inherently stupid...that is not meant as an insult, but an aware crew will not be in any more danger than the commuter helo pilot who flies the same route every day from Teeterboro to Manhattan. -
0Nov 19, '06 by teiladayThe meat of my initial post:
"Flying is dangerous business. Most of the time nothing out of the usual happens, but a dangerous situation WILL come about at some point if you fly long enough."
Generally speaking, if you ask 100 pilots (not nurses), that have more than 5,000hrs flight time, who fly both airplanes and helicopters, I'm pretty sure that most *pilots* would quickly agree.
I also said:
"If you are a flight nurse in helicopters.. you can raise the danger factor up many more notches. Tail rotor strikes, tail rotor gearbox failure(s), are probably the number 1 reasons for downed helicopters, and put that on top of landing in unusual areas to pick up a patient, and you've just raised the risk factor 10 fold."
Fact: Whether you're a flight nurse, patient, pilot, or fly on the ceiling of a helicopter, such IS more dangerous than being the same in a fixed wing aircraft. Its not being a "flight nurse" that defines the danger.. its the fact that you're in a helicopter as opposed to a fixed wing aircraft.
I wrote:
"The flight profile environment is also much more dangerous. Engrave that in granite I think the FAA and NTSB Accident/incident reports will back me up on that one."
I think if you spent time chatting with the FAA, NTSB, and perused accident reports, I think you'll find that helicopter accidents/incidents are far more "aggravated" (mechanically/aerodynamically dramatic in nature) when compared to fixed wing counterparts. Furthermore, if you want additional data, contact any of the insurance companies (getting rate quotes for pilots/aircraft are a bit different than getting quotes for a car, best to write the insurance company(ies) for statistical data on what they consider dangerous and a heightened liability, etc., etc.. I think your eyebrow will raise..
Fact: The general flight profile(s), complex aerodynamics and harmonics, and transitioning aerodynamics (ie. transitioning from slow flight to hover/Effective Translational Lift (ETL), makes flying (and or riding in) helicopters more complex and dangerous simply by those virtues alone when compared to fixed wing aircraft. I would be very surprised to hear an actual pilot who flys both, to state or believe otherwise. Helicopters generally are so much more complex (and inefficient I'll add). * These heightened dangers are present whether the helicopter is shuttling execs, or patients.
From a pilot's viewpoint, there is SO much more going on, mechnically and aerodynamically with a helicopter compared to an airplane.
As I said in my initial post, I say this from a pilot's view, and from my experiences in both fixed and helicopters (civilian & military). I assume (based on your post) that you're speaking from a nurse/passenger perspective which is cool, but I think from that perspective, you may not be aware of the many technical differences (and dangers) that differ between fixed and rotary wing aircraft.
If you ARE a pilot... then your post just became 100x more confusing
I yield to you the last word..
Post: Most common topics when dealing with whirlybirds if you're interested in the aerodynamics.
Dynamic Helicopter Aerodynamics ! -
0Nov 20, '06 by Shamira AizzaYawn.
All that to make an inaccurate generalization that flying is dangerous business.
It's simply not true based on anything you've said. If you do anything long enough, including inherently safe activities, you can encounter a dangerous situation. The fact that you might encounter something dangerous if you do it long enough does not make it a "dangerous business." It makes it an occupation or pasttime where something dangerous can happen. You can experience this anywhere, including manufacturing and clerking a convenience store. You clerk a store long enough, you are going to get robbed. It doesn't make clerking a convenience store inherently "dangerous."
Here's what's dangerous; swatting a hungry bear with a short stick. Running across a mine field. Forgetting to pay your date before dropping her off at Ponce De Leon. Those are dangerous...all likely resulting in bad outcomes.
Flying rarely results in a bad outcome, including EMS flying.
I wasn't going to even address the rest of your post because it's not really relevant, but I thought I'd point out that the majority of EMS crashes are pilot error (usually weather), and the reason helicopter insurance is higher is because a 1997 Honda costs $3500 to replace and a 1997 EC135 costs about $3-4 million.Last edit by Shamira Aizza on Nov 20, '06 -
0Nov 20, '06 by teiladayIn regard to my insurance statement. I was encouraging you to write aircraft/pilot insurers so they could inform you the often large differences between fixed and rotary premiums.
Aircraft insurance is directly tethered to the *dangers* and *complexities* of aircraft, their weights, typical flight profiles, even aircraft in the same "type", "catagory", as well as, but not limited to, pilot experience (actually a lot different than how auto insurance premiums are figured).
My only reason for mentioning auto ins. was so you'd understand that you'd probablly have to write away for data vs. simply calling and getting a quote like you can with auto ins. (getting aviation quotes are more in-depth).
I thought you'd surely understand that I didn't mean compare premiums between a motorcar and an aircraft.
If you truly wish to actually learn something; Boeing (or any other aircraft manufacturer for that matter), the FAA, the NTSB, virtually ANY aviation insurer, the military (safty office and office of statistical data, Ft. Rucker, AL), and most dual rated pilots will relate to you that helicopters are inherently more dangerous to both fly, and fly in, compared to airplanes.
1. Many job positions (to include many flight nurse slots) in the civilian sector receive "hazard" or "danger" pay.. People who are actually knowledgeable about aircraft and the associated complexities and hazards, don't have to wonder why its commonly called "hazard", "danger", etc., pay.
(no offense to flight nurses, but typically a flight nurse knows very little about the totality of flight hazards associated with cruise and terrain or NOE flight compared to a rated pilot). The aircraft/hazard knowledge would be like comparing a Student Nurses Aid to a seasoned CRNA.
2. Life insurance premiums are most often raised if you inform your insurer that you're a pilot. Because insurance companies consider it (flying) a "hazardous" occupation.
3. I'd like to hear from a dual rated PILOT (not a nurse), Aviation Insurer, FAA designee, or even a Life Insurance Agent, to state that flying isn't considered "hazardous" ((chuckle)).
I sincerely think you're equating your flight experience as a *nurse* and or passenger to that of an experienced pilot in both aircraft and helicopters, civilian and military... and I really don't think the former is as qualified to get as specific about the dangers of flight.. Specifically, the increased risks associated with piloting or simply flying in a helicopter. Simply put, most flight nurses are not well versed in aviation past their nursing duties...
Its not a slap in the face to flight nurses, its just true. Just like most pilots don't have the skills of a nurse, even though they may have flown with nurses.
I'm sure at least the original poster would be able to, at this point tell a difference..
When you obtain your Commercial Instrument (license/rating) for fixed and rotary, a few thousand hours flight time (actually piloting the aircraft, as opposed to riding in it and or performing nursing duties), military and civilian flight experience as a pilot (not a nurse), and have been licensed for just under 20 years.. then get back to me about the dangers of flight.. -
0Nov 20, '06 by Riohere is my 2 centavos:
1. I'm a nurse, not a pilot, not an actuary.
2. When it comes to aviation or medicine, apathy is dangerous.
3. Crew resource management.
4. Situational Awareness.
5. Sterile Cockpit when appropriate.
6. "Three to say GO, one to say NO."
7. Weather minimums are relative.
8. In HEMS, CFIT is the leading cause of catastrophic events.
9. IFR, NVG, Dual Pilot AC are not safety panaceas. (includes 3,4 & 5)
10. I FEEL safer working in a helicopter than I do flying as a passenger on a commercial airline.
11. When I go to work and we brief, EVERYONE is on the same page.
If I don't like the weather, there is a vibration I didn't feel before, there is a strange smell and no one will fess up, or a chip light flickers in a way I don't like:
I have the authority(as does the medic) to abort the mission. <PERIOD> -
0Nov 20, '06 by Shamira AizzaQuote from RioWell said. There are more, but this is good, even though I think there is no shortage of folks who would argue until the next conference that they think IFR and NVG's are the answer to all that is safe in air medical EMS. I think they are good additions, but as of yet they really haven't been studied to prove their value.here is my 2 centavos:
1. I'm a nurse, not a pilot, not an actuary.
2. When it comes to aviation or medicine, apathy is dangerous.
3. Crew resource management.
4. Situational Awareness.
5. Sterile Cockpit when appropriate.
6. "Three to say GO, one to say NO."
7. Weather minimums are relative.
8. In HEMS, CFIT is the leading cause of catastrophic events.
9. IFR, NVG, Dual Pilot AC are not safety panaceas. (includes 3,4 & 5)
10. I FEEL safer working in a helicopter than I do flying as a passenger on a commercial airline.
11. When I go to work and we brief, EVERYONE is on the same page.
If I don't like the weather, there is a vibration I didn't feel before, there is a strange smell and no one will fess up, or a chip light flickers in a way I don't like:
I have the authority(as does the medic) to abort the mission. <PERIOD> -
0Nov 20, '06 by Shamira AizzaLook, you can label any issue in any way relative to it's comparison to something else, but it's disingenius. A '77 Pinto is more dangerous than a Lexus LS 430 with side impact airbags in a smashup derby, but the Pinto is more safe than a 5 hp gocart. I suppose that in general simply makes gocarts dangerous to ride...based solely on the comparisons and context of a smashup derby, right?
I understand your position based on insurance, etc, but you are using the data from a for-profit agency to prop up a subjective statement (this is not a slam against for-profit activity, I am pro-capitalist). I, however, trust insurance companies far le$$ than I give them annually.
Let's make this comparison; who do you think is engaging in a more dangerous occupation, an unarmed Army nurse on a 3 year assignment in Baghdad or an RN working in any hospital in any city in the USA...you pick the hospital.
Now, I'm not a pilot, but I do know that it's simply not true that being a flight nurse is more dangerous than being any other kind of nurse. 2/3 of all hospitals are in areas with average or above average risk of violent crime activity. Additionally, about 2/3 of of the estimated 1,000 homicides and 1.5 million assaults which occur within a workplace happen in a health-care setting. Since the majority of helicopters are no longer based in these urban settings, it seems as though you've got a tough sell.
You've got a lot of great numbers that are all correct to prove one point or another, but they don't support your claim that being a flight nurse is a dangerous activity for a nurse to pursue.
I don't live in a bubble; I've got two siblings that are pilots. One is a rotor pilot and the other is an FAA District Safety Program Manager. I'm not even remotely as wise as them about aviation, but I've spent a bit of time living and flying and don't need an insurance company looking for a bigger premium to try and tell me that they've determined that in$urance premium based on some altruistic and objectively-obtained number which shows that flying is inherently dangerous.
Until you can show me something which shows that becoming a flight nurse is somehow more dangerous than some other relevant activity, we'll simply disagree. -
0Nov 27, '06 by 58flyerShamira and Teila, I can see both sides of the discussion. As a pilot (comm-instrument, airplane and helo) I do agree that flying is safer than driving. You are more likely to be injured or killed driving to work than you are while flying at work. Is it more dangerous than other types of work? Of course it "depends." Years ago I worked for a police agency and when I was assigned to the air unit, one of the guys tried to get us extra pay because of our "hazardous" occupation. THe union wouldn't even present it to the city council because the numbers didn't add up. Beat cops were far more likely to get injured on the job than pilots. I know in my own experience when I rode a beat I was injured an average of twice a year in the line of duty, and none of these were car wrecks. Now with 8 combined years in police helicopter flying I have yet to be injured at all.
Are helicopters more hazardous than airplanes? Absolutely they are. For all the reasons that Teila mentions. Then you add the fact that EMS missions are flown under what is generally regarded as hazardous conditions, like landing in tight quarters in unimproved areas, sometimes at night, and weather is often a factor as well.
I have had an inflight engine failure in both an airplane and a helicopter. With the airplane, the engine just quit, that's all it did, and it became a glider. I landed it safely on a road. With the helicopter, I wish the engine had "only" quit. My life would have been a lot easier. First, the front bearing in the compressor failed, which caused the compressor wheels to become uncontained. That's a nice way of saying that high speed metal fragments went flying in all directions, doing major damage to vital helicopter components. A very dear component, the driveshaft, was severed at the k-flex coupling, right below the compressor. The other end of the shaft was still attached to the transmission, and began flailing about making wicked and expensive sounding noises, not to mention causing a awful vibration that made the instruments impossible to read. Ever heard of autorotation? That's where when the engine fails you can lower collective and the blade pitch flattens out and allows the air coming up from below to turn the rotor at the right RPM which will allow the pilot to make a safe landing, if he does everything right. Well.........if things weren't complicated enough at this point, the autorotation thing was turning the transmission but in the design of the helicopter I was flying the tail rotor driveshaft doesn't run off the transmission. It runs off the engine gearbox. Now recall the severed driveshaft, it was not able to drive the engine gearbox, which meant that I lost the tail rotor. To spice up the already considerable fun and games, the flailing driveshaft was dragging down the rotor RPM, which caused an audible warning to come on, adding to the excitement. I managed to thread the eye of the needle in getting it into a really small area. Had I been any lower, I wouldn't have made it. Had I been any higher, there would have been less rotor RPM at the final pitch pull, as it was I pulled max collective to cushion the touch down. I can honestly say that I didn't do any more damage getting it down than the helicopter had already done to itself. Oddly, the loss of the tail rotor did not present a problem as the helicopter pointed itself straight during the final pitch pull, but it sure added some stress.
I didn't mean to give such a long winded account of my experience, but it does illustrate that when things do go wrong in a helicopter, it can get dramatic in a hurry. In flying, dramatic means hazardous. In the big picture though, helicopters are quite safe, major failures are relatively rare. If I didn't think they were safe, I wouldn't be flying them still.
BTW, Shamira, you said that NVGs haven't been studied to prove their value. I can assure you that in military and law enforcement flying, NVGs have proven to be a significant safety enhancement. I won't fly at night without it. I just wish the EMS community would buy into it more. -
0Nov 27, '06 by Shamira AizzaI didn't say that NVG's aren't good additions, because they very well may be essential additions. However, no-one has conducted any kind of evaluation to see if EMS programs have statistically improved their safety with the addition of NVG's.
I really don't know what point you were trying to make about your rotor story. Here's what I got; an engine quit on an airplane, and you landed without injury. An engine quit on a helicopter, and you landed without injury.
Does this somehow support a claim that working as a flight nurse is somehow more dangerous? Is 'drama' statistically relevant to danger?
I don't mean to be argumentative, I just think statements should be qualified and kept in perspective...that's all I'm doing. -
0Nov 28, '06 by 58flyerI know what you said about NVGs. The point I was trying to make about NVGs and EMS is that EMS, for whatever reason, has been slow to get the ball rolling with NVGs. I know a fair number of EMS pilots, in fact my NVG instructor is a full time EMS pilot and also flies in the National Guard. He is baffled as to why his employer specifically forbids NVGs even if he provided his own. In my discussions with him and other EMS pilots we have concluded that it is all about cost. A new pair of Gen 4 Anvis 9s costs 10 to 12K. That's when you can get them, as the present war in Iraq is consuming the production runs. Then they have to be maintained and then there's training and recurrency. As far as studies are concerned, there are enough studies from the military and LE to conclude NVGs are a safety enhancement. I am not personally aware of any specific EMS NVG study, but I will be sure to ask when we pilots get together again as a group. We have a helo convention coming up soon so I will have that opportunity.
So you don't know what my point was with my "story." OK, let's take it a step at a time. The OP was asking about flight positions. By post #6, the question was asked about hazards and crashes and so on. That's fine, because posts tend to meander around a bit. Then you, Shamira, and Teiladay went back and forth about the relative safety of EMS flying, helicopters, fixed wing, insurance, being a flight nurse, being a pilot, and so on. My point was this: As a pilot speaking from the pilot perspective, I happen to agree with Teiladay that helicopters are inherently more dangerous to fly than fixed wing aircraft for reasons already expounded upon. I simply related a couple of my experiences to illustrate my position. As an experienced pilot in both fixed and rotary wing aircraft, with 26 years flying fixed wing and 12 years flying rotary wing, and a few thousand hours, I feel qualified to contribute an opinion. It is very much in perspective and in continuity with what has already been said. This a forum where people discuss ideas, vent, get information, pass along information, suggestions, and so forth. That is what I was doing. So sorry if we don't always agree, but that's just life. Too bad that flew (pun intended) right over your head.


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Wed, Nov 6, 13 at 8:26
Anyone have success growing aristolochia from seed? I can use your advice. Thanks, Valerie |
Follow-Up Postings:
- Posted by Dzitmoidonc 6 (My Page) on Wed, Nov 6, 13 at 20:26
They grow like weeds. The odd shaped bolus contains hundreds of flat seeds in 6 sections, and most of them grow if given a bit of dirt and water. I foolishly threw some in the mulch pile and now I pull them out everywhere I mulched. The seedlings also seem to be a bit more frost resistant than a mature vine. I noticed some of the ones growing in the bed with Musa basjoo that still have green leaves, while the mature vines took a hit with the frosts we had. Still, they are one of my favorite vines and I encourage their use. They are a pain if you try for a formal look, but if you have a building that needs "walls" (gazebos, etc), they are hard to beat for a carefree solid wall of green. |
At least for the couple species I've tried from seed, seeds are supposed to be placed on top of moist soil, not buried, as they need light to germinate. Keep the soil moist (easiest by covering the whole thing with plastic) and be patient--Aristolochia seeds can be slow. |
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Veterinary Services Department |
The Veterinary Services is responsible for maintaining the health of the animal population through surveillance and control of animal diseases and by preventing the introduction of exotic diseases. This is done in part by enforcing the laws and regulations governing the importation of animals, animal products and animal by-products. The legal authority for this comes from fifteen (15)
Acts of the Government of Barbados and the Regulations made under these Acts.
These regulations allow for rapid response to outbreaks of important animal diseases and ensure that all animals and animal products entering Barbados meet a high level of sanitary standards. Veterinary Services comprises five sections:
• To maintain the good health of the national animal population by preventing the introduction of exotic animal diseases through the enforcement of Legislation. Opening Hours Mondays to Fridays 8:15am to 4:30pm excluding public holidays. Passenger meat and other permits for the general public are issued between 8:30am and 3:00pm. Clients These include:
Veterinary Services and Veterinary Services Laboratory: Veterinary Services (246) 427-5492 or (246) 427-5073 Senior Management Legislation The Veterinary Services Department of the Ministry of Agriculture performs its duties as outlined under fifteen (15) Acts of the Government of Barbados and subsequent Regulations made under said Acts. |


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[IMGW]http://media.1up.com/media?id=3348167[/IMGW]A mobile game is being ported to the DS! Yay! Why should you care? Well, because this mobile game -- Orcs and Elves, specifically -- just so happens to be one of 1UP's highest-rated mobile titles ever, and it's made by the folks at id Software.Sponsored Links
Id confirmed the DS port of Orcs and Elves today at E3 (via Eurogamer). The DS version is in development by John Carmack and his team at Fountainhead Entertainment, the same folks who brought us the also-quite-good [Register or Login to view links] -- also a mobile release.
Details on what will be new to the DS version of this action-RPG are light, but expect more info to hit the net very soon.
Thanks to [Register or Login to view links] for sharing the news with us!


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1. Versatile of the "it depends on the guy and my mood" variety
2. I prefer long, slow, deep strokes to start, then some in and out teasing and finishing off with some fast paced, hard, deep thrusting. I'm usually very vocal, telling my guy to go harder and harder.
3. Standing up, preferably in front of a mirror so I can see him slamming into me. I also find that in this position my prostate gets a good slamming making me leak like crazy.