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MR. GIBBS: Good afternoon.
Before I bring John up to answer a few of your questions, I wanted to run you all briefly through a tick-tock of some of the events of the last few hours, starting, as you know from our earlier statement, that at 10:35 p.m. last night Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism John Brennan alerted the president of the credible terrorist threat. The president directed U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies from the Department of Homeland Security to take steps to ensure the safety and security of the American people, and to determine whether these threats are a part of -- are a part of any additional terrorist plot.
John provided the president with additional updates throughout the evening.
From 11 p.m. on Thursday to 12 a.m. on Friday, Brennan held a phone call to discuss the threat with Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, FBI Director Robert Mueller, NCTC Director Mike Leiter, TSA Administrator John Pistole and officials from the Central Intelligence Agency.
At 1 a.m. on Friday, Brennan and Senior Director Nicholas Rasmussen of the National Security Staff held a secure video teleconference to discuss the threat with officials from across the intelligence community, including NSA, CIA, TSA, NCTC and FBI, as well as the FAA, the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security, Northern Command, the Coast Guard and other White House officials.
At 5:15 a.m., Brennan held a phone call with British Deputy Secretary -- Deputy Security Adviser -- excuse me -- Ollie Robbins, to receive an update on the suspicious package identified in the East Midlands of the United Kingdom. Brennan and Robbins held a second call at 7:30 a.m. on the same topic.
At 8 a.m., John held a secure video teleconference to discuss the threat with officials from NCTC, CIA, DOD, FBI, TSA, CBP, NSA, DHS and FAA.
At 9:15, John held a phone call to discuss the threat with President Saleh of Yemen.
At 10 a.m., Brennan held a phone call to discuss the threat again with Director Mueller, and a third phone call with Ollie Robbins shortly afterward.
At 10:15 a.m., John, National Security Adviser Tom Donilon and Deputy National Security Adviser Denis McDonough discussed the threat with the president at the president's daily brief.
These are the activities from this morning that were coordinated out of the White House. Obviously this, as you can see from the rundown, has encompassed activities throughout the government, but agencies also were doing a lot and have been doing a lot since we were first made -- first made the president aware last evening.
I'm going to direct some traffic while John answers some questions. I will remind you that this is an active investigation involving sensitive intelligence, so there's a limit to what John will be able to talk about publicly here.
Q Mr. Brennan, if you could talk about what we know beyond the fact that this was from Yemen, there are people in Yemen with AQAP who want to harm us, if there's more that can be established to create a direct link beyond the country of origin.
MR. BRENNAN: I think, as Robert said, this is an active and ongoing investigation. We're working very closely with our partners in Yemen and the United Arab Emirates as well as in the United Kingdom and other countries as well. We know that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has been trying to carry out attacks against U.S. and Western interests as well as against Yemenis. So as we continue with this investigation, we are trying to understand who is behind it -- responsibility -- and make sure that we understand the scope of the threat that we might face. We've identified these two packages right now. They have been isolated. And they have been made inert. So therefore what we're trying to do now is to make sure that we are able to address any other threats that might be out there.
Q Just a quick follow. You said you've identified two. What about reports that there are up to 15 packages out there that you're looking for? I mean, is that possible?
MR. BRENNAN: What we are doing is making sure that we take a close look at other packages that might also have some type of materials in them of concern. Both of these packages that we've identified to date originated in Yemen. And so I think it is very prudent for us to make sure that other packages that might be coming in similar routes or from Yemen as well are looked at very carefully. And that's what we're doing right now. But there are only two packages right now that have materials of concern.
MR. GIBBS: Yes, ma'am.
Q The president described this as a credible terrorist threat against the United States. Can you say whether this was actually an attempted terrorist attack, or some sort of practice run for something down the line?
MR. BRENNAN: I think as the president noted, it is -- does appear that there were explosive materials in both of these packages, that they were in a form that was designed to try to carry out some type of attack. The forensic analysis is under way. We are relying heavily and working closely with our partners in this regard. But clearly from the initial observation, the initial analysis that was done, that the materials that were found and the device that was uncovered was intended to do harm.
MR. GIBBS: Chip.
Q "Do harm." Do you have any sense on the extent of the harm or the extent of the damage that could have been done by this?
And secondly, are you looking into the possibility that al-Awlaki was involved in this?
MR. BRENNAN: I don't want to speculate at this point in terms of what the damage could be from the devices, the explosive material that we have found. That's the analysis that's under way. It's still at the very early stage of that analysis. We're working, as we said, closely with our partners.
Clearly what we are doing is looking at all individuals that we think might be involved in this. Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has been rather open in its venom toward the United States, toward Western interests. There are a number of individuals there that we're very concerned about, so we're looking at all possibilities.
When I had my conversation with President Saleh this morning, he did pledge the full cooperation of the Yemeni government. We are working closely with them, and we are going to get to the bottom of this plot.
Q Did al-Awlaki's name come up? Is he considered a top suspect?
MR. BRENNAN: Anybody's who associated with al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is a subject of concern.
Q Do you have a sense of the quantity of the explosive, even if your analysis hasn't determined the quality of it yet?
MR. BRENNAN: We have had some preliminary discussions with our partners. I don't want to go into the details about the quantity or the type -- exact types of materials, because I think this is still preliminary and I wouldn't want to say something that was going to be then corrected in the future.
Q Are there any --
Q Yeah, prior to --
MR. GIBBS: Go ahead.
Q Prior to learning about the plot, was the intelligence community aware of this option as a possibility: using cargo planes with packages to attack?
MR. BRENNAN: I think over the years al Qaeda has demonstrated that it is focused intently on the aviation sector. A lot of its plots have focused on trying to carry out attacks against aircraft; using aircraft also as potential missiles, as we well know. So the aviation industry has taken those steps over the years expressly because al Qaeda -- and when I'm talking about al Qaeda, I'm not just talking about al Qaeda, you know, in the FATA area in Afghanistan. I'm talking about the franchises, including in Yemen, which have demonstrated very clearly that not only are they intending to do certain things against this homeland, but that -- as we saw last Christmas Day with Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, that they will in fact take steps to carry out those intentions.
Q And cargo planes, though, were those ever focused on as a possibility?
MR. BRENNAN: We've been concerned about passenger aircraft and cargo planes, commercial airliners, others, for many, many years.
MR. GIBBS: I cut off a question back on the fourth row. Do you have some, Anne? Do you have --
Q Oh, yes.
MR. GIBBS: Go ahead.
Q Were there any suspects, or are there any suspects in custody?
MR. BRENNAN: Not to my knowledge, no.
MR. GIBBS: (Off mike.)
Q Is there any reason to believe that this plot goes beyond cargo flights to regular passenger travel? And has any consideration been given to putting an embargo on packages from Yemen -- I mean, originating in Yemen, or even urging people to reconsider travel plans?
MR. BRENNAN: We're looking at all possibilities at this point. We don't want to presume that we know the bounds of this plot, so we are looking at all types of packages, air travel, whatever.
We just want to make sure that we are going to whatever length we need to, to ensure the safety and security of air travel at this point.
MR. GIBBS: Elaine --
Q (Off mike) -- that embargo on any packages originating in Yemen?
MR. BRENNAN: We are working with the Yemeni government right now. I do believe that it would be prudent -- and we have taken some steps to ensure that packages that come from Yemen are going to be carefully screened. We're working with the Yemeni government right now.
So at this point one of the reasons why we looked at some planes that were coming down into Philadelphia and Newark today is because they were in fact carrying cargo from Yemen.
So we have had these interagency meetings to discuss all these options. I don't want to go into the details of this, because this is all part of the security measures that -- in place. But several of these measures have already been instituted.
MR. GIBBS: Helene.
Q Can you walk us through the decision to send fighter jets to escort that Emirates flight into JFK today?
MR. BRENNAN: These are decisions that are made by U.S. military, Canadian military, Air Force. If there's a threat -- and my understanding -- and I've only seen some of the preliminary reports about this -- is that there was concern about possible cargo on that flight. And so, again, and with an abundance of caution, sometimes Air Force -- our Air Force, the Canadian Force -- will scramble some jets to make sure that everything is okay.
MR. GIBBS: Chuck --
Q There's been -- there's been a lot of concern about threats against European targets. Is this at all related to any of that chatter that's now been picked up in recent weeks?
MR. BRENNAN: Well, as you all know, we've issued the travel alert because of concerns about al Qaeda carrying out attacks in Europe. The one package was uncovered in East Midlands Airport in the U.K.
We are looking at all the parts of the puzzle that we have been piecing together over the past several weeks from al Qaeda, but we're not presuming that this is part of that plot. We're not presuming that we've disrupted that plot. We need to maintain our vigilance, and that's the message that we share with our European partners.
MR. GIBBS: Chuck.
Q Considering what the targets were in Chicago, the Jewish places of worship, any extra precautions that you're putting out for synagogues?
MR. BRENNAN: The FBI, Department of Homeland Security and other domestic agencies are looking at that very carefully and have reached out to the appropriate private-sector entities, as well as organizations, to ensure that any other potential targets of such attacks are alerted.
So we're working very closely with state and local officials.
Q And a quick big picture of the Yemeni cooperation, considering this is now multiple terrorist -- attempted terrorist attacks looks like emanating from Yemen. Is it fair to say that we don't have the best cooperation yet with the Yemeni government?
MR. BRENNAN: I would say that over the past 22 months or so, during this administration and even in the prior administration, there has been a steady improvement in that cooperation. I would say that the CT cooperation right now with Yemen is better than it's been ever before. That doesn't mean that it can't improve more; it needs to improve more. I've been out to Yemen four times during the past two years. We're working very closely with them, and we found that they are courageous partners. many Yemenis have lost their lives in the battle against al Qaeda.
Q Have U.S. authorities been able to inspect these packages? Have we increased our presence or do we plan to do so in Yemen? And Robert, Philadelphia and Chicago involved in this, will the president's travel plans this weekend change?
MR. BRENNAN: We're working very closely with the authorities both in Dubai as well as in East Midlands Airport so that we can participate in whatever investigative efforts that are underway.
MR. GIBBS: And, Wendell, let me just add, the president's travel plans both this evening and tomorrow at this point are not expected to change. And I think at the end of the statement the president was clear, as you can see from John and others who have been here overnight, that our counterterrorism professionals are on the job. And the president's not going to change his schedule and there's no cause for Americans to change their schedule.
Q Robert, do you expect this issue to come up at all during the campaign events at all in these next few days?
MR. GIBBS: I have not talked to -- I'll get some guidance from the speechwriters to see if this gets mentioned. Certainly I will say, as the president said, you know, if there -- we will take the opportunity, if need be throughout the weekend, to continue to update the public on information as it -- as it comes in.
Q Considering what al Qaeda has done in the past targeting other countries during an election season, are you taking that into account, that there's anything -- that this is more than just a coincidence of timing?
MR. BRENNAN: There is never a day that we relax our guard against al Qaeda and its potential to carry out attacks or attempt to do that, whether it's Election Day or any other day of the year.
MR. GIBBS: Yes, sir.
Q I wonder, Mr. Brennan, if you could back that tick-tock up just a little bit at what did you know at the time when you briefed the president last night, and were these packages discovered through random screenings, or was there something that tipped you off to these packages?
MR. BRENNAN: Well, I knew enough last night to be able to brief the president, number one. Number two, I think the American people should feel particularly good that since 9/11 the U.S. government has built up a very, very capable and robust intelligence, law enforcement, homeland security system. And as a result of the strength of that system, information became available that we were able to act upon very quickly and that we were able to locate these packages.
So I'm not going to go into the details about how we became aware of it, but the redundant layers of security, the tremendous work of the counterterrorism professionals, law enforcement, Homeland Security, intelligence was the reason why we were able to succeed.
MR. GIBBS: Ann (sp).
Q If I can just follow up on that, you're saying, then, that you were aware of this plot not because of the packages but because of something else?
MR. BRENNAN: I'm saying that, you know, whenever you pull a string, there's a reason why you start to pull that string, and we had a reason to pull it. And as a result of what we were able to uncover in East Midlands Airport, with the very strong cooperation of British authorities, we were able to also then take additional steps.
And that's why those prudent measures were taken today, to ensure that we were able to identify any other packages that might be out there of concern.
MR. GIBBS: Mark (sp).
Q Now, which --
Q Can I just follow up on that? Were you able to -- were you -- did you direct the authorities in the East Midlands to look for this package?
MR. BRENNAN: We were working very closely with our British partners to identify -- locate, identify and isolate that package.
Q To be -- to be clear, sir, which of the two packages was found first? Was it Dubai and that led to the East Midlands? Or was there any connection --
MR. BRENNAN: The first one that was found was East Midlands.
Q And so that -- did that lead you to Dubai, then?
MR. BRENNAN: The first one we found was East Midlands.
MR. GIBBS: Christy (sp).
Q John, the other packages that are being looked at, were they also addressed to destinations in Chicago or also to Jewish organizations?
MR. BRENNAN: There were two packages, as I said, that we identified, one in Dubai and one in East Midlands. Both of them were addressed to synagogues in Chicago.
Q And can you say if they're -- if any of the other packages that you're looking at now are also addressed to -- (inaudible)?
MR. BRENNAN: I'm -- you know, with all the mail that's -- you know, goes through the system, I'm not going to say that there isn't something. But again, the only two packages that we've been able to identify of concern are the one in Dubai and one in East Midlands. All the other efforts that we have under way is to see whether or not there's something else out there of concern that we can similarly isolate.
MR. GIBBS: (Josh ?) --
Q Was either of the Chicago synagogues the one next to the president's house where I believe he will be staying this weekend?
MR. GIBBS: No.
Q Mr. Brennan, can you just clarify -- so you found the first package after the president was briefed on this issue last night? Is that -- is that correct?
MR. BRENNAN: Yes, from a sequencing standpoint. Yes.
Q And is it your belief that the institutions in Chicago were the targets of the attack and not, say, the cargo flight? Because you made some reference to the security of cargo flights and so forth. The intent was to injure people at these institutions?
MR. BRENNAN: It is less than 24 hours since we first started to look at this very intensively. And so it's still the very early stage of the investigation. And the analysis as far as the intended targets, the impact of the explosives, how it could have been used -- and I don't want to speculate at this point, at this time.
MR. GIBBS: Yes, sir.
Q Can you give us any more detail on just the size of these packages? Are these letter bombs? Are they large boxes? And is it your belief they were designed perhaps to explode when opened? Can you give us -- (inaudible)?
MR. BRENNAN: They were not letters. They were larger than that. Think about bird boxes or so in terms of, you know, maybe size. We don't know yet how they were intended to be activated.
Q So we don't know the detonator or the (main charge ?) -- (off mike)?
MR. BRENNAN: There are a number of things that we know, and we're piecing together those puzzle pieces, and we're working very closely with the British and Emirati authorities. But at this point, there's a lot of forensic work that needs to be done, and it's still early.
MR. GIBBS: Sam.
Q Mr. Brennan, is the -- is the threat level being -- terrorist threat level being raised?
Is there -- also, I'm just -- was there any discussion with these planes in the air of the president's shoot-down authority or landing them elsewhere?
MR. BRENNAN: No, there was no discussion of that. (What we ?) were looking for were packages, and therefore we took the steps that were appropriate to ensure that we were able to identify where packages were globally, as well as where they might be as they were coming into the United States, and so the measures that we took were appropriate to the concern that we had at that time.
Q (Off mike) -- the threat level?
MR. GIBBS: Chuck.
MR. BRENNAN: What -- you know, we are right now making sure that we are able to stay as vigilant as possible. There's been no adjustment of the threat level in terms of color code, whatever else. But as a result of this, we're making sure that we work very closely with our state and local officials; and law enforcement, Homeland Security (and ?) intelligence communities are very much on their guard.
MR. GIBBS: Chuck.
Q I guess I want to clarify and then follow up on Ian's question: With the packages themselves, what made the packages suspicious, or something else led you to the packages?
MR. BRENNAN: As I said, the American people should be very pleased that we were able to get insight into the fact that there were suspicious packages out there that we had to find.
And I'm not going to go into those operational details. I think that's the reason why we have a security system in place that has these redundancies and the ability to detect things from inception all the way to the possible execution of an operation. So we were onto this, but I'm not going to go into details about how we knew.
Q So it's fair to say you were looking for these suspicious packages?
MR. BRENNAN: We were looking for packages that were of concern, yes.
MR. GIBBS: Yes, sir.
Q Any impact whatsoever on the president taking a trip, in terms of threat level assessments, (at all for you ?)?
MR. BRENNAN: No, whenever the president travels, we take a very careful look at what the threat environment might be, and look at what the terrorist environment is. So we're taking this into account, but at this point there is no effect.
MR. GIBBS: Yes, sir.
Q Mr. Brennan, early on, there had been a lot of speculation that this might be some kind of a dry run. Given what you do know about these packages now, would you say that this was more than just a dry run?
MR. BRENNAN: I'm concerned that since there were explosive materials in it -- a traditional dry run is something that you would not necessarily use with explosive materials. That said, I don't know yet what exactly the intent was at this point. There are a lot of different scenarios that some people have speculated about but -- and what we're trying to do is to wrestle this to the ground by doing the good forensic analysis as well as taking a look from an intelligence standpoint and trying to piece together what we might know -- have known in the past and that would give us a sense of how this was going to be used.
MR. GIBBS: Goyal.
Q Thank you, Robert.
Can you state, sir, that al Qaeda has changed their locations throughout the country, and also these are the same people? And finally, does this threat of these packages have anything to do with the Pakistani man arrested from Ashburn, Virginia? Because he spoke in the past that attacks will be taking place in the Washington area.
MR. BRENNAN: There is no indication whatsoever that the individual arrested yesterday had anything to do with this plot. Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is an organization of several hundred individuals that are dispersed throughout the country. They are murderers, and they are determined to carry out attacks against innocent lives, whether they be Yemeni, Americans, Westerners or others.
We are working very closely with the Yemeni government, and we've been able to make some significant progress against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula inside of Yemen, working with those partners. We'll continue to do this. If anything, this just demonstrates to us and, I think, to the Yemenis as well that we need to redouble our efforts so that we're able to destroy al Qaeda. And we will.
MR. GIBBS: Josh --
Q Finally, do you have -- (off mike) -- because of the president's plan for next week as far as this -- (off mike) -- conference?
MR. BRENNAN: We share on a regular basis with the Indian government. The Indian government is one of our best CT partners.
MR. GIBBS: Josh.
Q Do you think, Mr. Brennan, in the past when there have been specific attacks highlighted by the administration, that terrorists have had to modify their ways because of the hurdles that the government has thrown up in front of them? Do you think that's the case that we saw here, that the use of cargo planes instead of passenger planes reflects the intense scrutiny that our passenger aircraft have gotten in the last year or so since it's come under -- been used as a vehicle for attack?
MR. BRENNAN: Absolutely. The al Qaeda organization has tried to adapt to all of the obstacles and hurdles we put in front of it, and that's why have to remain very agile, we have to make sure that we stay one step ahead of them. But clearly they are looking to identify vulnerabilities in our system and take advantage of those vulnerabilities. But fortunately because of, again, the good work of the people here, as well as the very important partnership that we have with our allies overseas, we've been able to stay ahead of them.
MR. GIBBS: Thomas --
Q Are you surprised that they keep focusing on airplanes, so long after 9/11 that still remains an attraction for them?
MR. BRENNAN: There's nothing about al Qaeda that surprises me anymore, and that's why we have to be prepared to deal with every eventuality that is out there.
MR. GIBBS: Thomas.
Q Mr. Brennan, how did your response to this in the last 24 or 36 hours -- to this incident differ from the response to Abdulmutallab over the holidays last year?
And what did you learn from the -- from the last year attempted Christmas Day bombing that helped you better prepare for this?
MR. BRENNAN: You know, in some respects they're very different, because you're dealing with two packages as opposed to an individual. But in other respects there are similarities. What we -- whenever something like this happens, what we want to do is to make sure that we take all appropriate measures to identify additional threats that are out there, whether it's somebody who arrived in Detroit or whether a package is found in East Midlands, we're trying to find, are there other individuals that are trying to blow up a plane? Are there other packages out there? And so the community kicked into gear right away and took those steps so that we would find out where those packages were and take the appropriate steps with TSA, FAA and others. And the system worked very, very well.
MR. GIBBS: Sam, do you have a follow?
Q Yeah, I was just going to ask you how you respond to -- there are sure to be accusations that this is -- that this is all happening, you know, a couple days before an election, and used to sway the election towards the Democrats. How do you respond to that?
MR. GIBBS: I think John briefed the president at 10:35 last night off of very credible terror information. And after -- I think that's largely put to rest any speculation that may be out there after the testing the president talked about that showed apparent explosives in those devices.
As John said, counterterrorism officials at all levels of our government quickly went into action in order to take the steps necessary to protect the American people. That has -- that's -- that is exactly what has governed his actions and the actions of those in this government since that time.
Q Mr. Brennan, how many credible threats have come from Yemen in the last two years?
MR. BRENNAN: There are a number of threat streams that we've been following, a number of individuals that we're very concerned about. It's -- I wouldn't put a number to it.
Q We know of -- under 10. How many -- how many --
MR. BRENNAN: Well, it's a question about whether or not there's, you know, reports of a threat that may be separate from other reporting. Is it part of the same threat stream? Sometimes we're concerned that al Qaeda's trying to carry out some type of attack, so we might have dozens upon dozens of reports related to that one attack. So over the past year, you know, the intelligence community, the counterterrorism community has been kept very busy with reports about al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula trying to carry out attacks in Yemen, in that region, as well as against the United States.
Q Is it fair to call -- is it fair to call AQAP the primary terrorist threat to the United States?
MR. BRENNAN: I think -- my concern is outside of the Afghan- Pakistan area where the al Qaeda core and the senior leadership reside, I would say that the al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is the most active operational franchise right now of al Qaeda, and that this is one that deserves a lot of our attention.
MR. GIBBS: Chip?
Q Any concerns, Robert, that the president's going to be having a rah-rah rally tonight while all the cable channels and local news stations and everybody else is going to be airing this terrorism scare?
MR. GIBBS: No. Again, Chip, I think the president was quite clear on this, that we are taking this threat very seriously. At the same time, he is not and I don't think the American people should have any reason to change the way they go about their lives or change their schedule. I will say this, that we are -- regardless of whatever season we're in, our commitment, Democrat and Republican, to keep this country safe will not waver.
Q Will he talk about this tonight?
MR. GIBBS: Again, I'm going to check on that when I go back. Listen, I'm going to get John back to working on this. We will, as we get information, update you if there are any additions to his schedule or what-have-you over the course of the weekend. Stay in touch and we'll let you know as we get more information. Thank you all.


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Mayhem # 601894
About MeHello and thanks for stopping by! I'm a petite model originally from Malaysia and Singapore .
Limited TF with select photographers ... otherwise do inquire about rates as they are very reasonable. I am also my own makeup artist. No nudity/implied nudity/lingerie. For shoots, I will need to know the details (date, time, location ...) at least a week prior to the shoot. Thanks for all the feedback and comments. Wishing everyone here much success Lists
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Pricing/ Rates: (click to convert currency)
» Prices in United States Dollars. Pricing Notes:
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Prices are per room per night. Our rates include all meals and beverages. Reservations over than 6 nights can include transfer in/out from Buenos Aires. Activities included: fishing, canoeing, hiking, kayak, canoes, birdwatching, photo safaris, horseback riding between streams and lakes, rustic BBQ asados and wine tastings, sky watching and bike tours. Enjoy a stay where nothing is everything... |
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The first of the 20 Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs) being built by the Cochin Shipyard for the Coast Guard will be commissioned in October-end or early November this year.
The induction of the FPVs will herald an era of higher standards in indigenisation in defence shipbuilding in the country as the design of the vessels was done completely indigenously by a private firm, a first in India.
While the Directorate of Naval Design has so far designed 18 types of vessels, military vessel design, especially concept design, was largely a grey area for the private sector. The design done by the Kochi-based Smart Engineering and Design Solutions is top-class and fills this crucial gap in defence shipbuilding in our country, said a defence official.
The CSL signed the contract for building the FPVs in October 2010, with the delivery of the last vessel slated to take place in 2017.
The 50-metrre long vessels, being built under the dual classification requirements of the American Bureau of Shipping and Indian Register of Shipping, are designed to cruise at speeds of 33 knots. The FPVs will be deployed for patrol of the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) besides coastal patrol, anti-smuggling operations, search and rescue, anti-piracy patrol and for the protection of India's marine resources. They will also provide communication link and escort convoys during hostilities and war.
CSL officials say that the small size of the FPVs, each weighing 120 tonne, belies their complexity and technology intensiveness. The ships are propelled by water jets to attain top speeds. They are weight-sensitive, with their superstructure built mainly of aluminium, which necessitated the yard to develop high-quality welding and fabrication techniques.
During the construction of the FPVs, the yard took up research and development activities for development of suitable welding procedures for marine aluminium fabrication, said an official. The yard plans to deliver the entire series on schedule.
Keywords: Kochi Shipyard, CSL, Fast Patrol Vessels, Kerala coast guard, defence shipbuilding, Directorate of Naval Design


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Public confidence in clinical trials has been eroded by data suppression, misrepresentation and manipulation. Although various attempts have been made to achieve universal trial registration- e.g., Declaration of Helsinki, WHO clinical Trial Registry Platform (WHO ICTRP), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors requirement- they have not succeeded, probably because they lack the enough power of enforcement.
Legislation appears to be the most efficient and effective means to ensure that all researchers register their trials and disseminate their data accurately and in a timely manner. We propose that a global network be established. This could be accomplished in two steps. The first step is to legislate about trial registration and data transparency, such as USA's FDAAA Act 2007; and the second step to establish a global network to ensure uniform, international consistency in policy and enforcement of trial registration and data transparency.
Public confidence in clinical trials has been eroded by high-profile scandals involving alleged data suppression, misrepresentation and manipulation [1-6]. Such misconduct has serious implications for the health care system, and also violates the ethical responsibilities of researchers and sponsors [7,8]. These scandals have highlighted the need and generated the impetus to increase data transparency in order to restore public confidence in clinical trials [9,10]. Unfortunately, the trial registration cannot adequately ensure full data transparency.
Trial registration
The concept of trial registration was first mentioned by Simes RJ in 1986[11]. At that time, the major purpose was to reduce publication bias [12]. The first registry http://ClinicalTrials.gov webcite was launched under Section 113 of the Food and Drug Administration Modernization Act (FDAMA 113) of the United States (US) in 1997 [13]. Unfortunately, despite legislation, many drug trials in the US were not registered [14]. The inadequate reporting in the US gained attention in 2004 when scandals arose over selective reporting of trial data for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) [15] and rofecoxib [16]. The SSRIs case resulted in the New York State attorney suing GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) company over its 'illegal and deceptive' reporting by suppressing reports of suicidal thinking among patients and misleading doctors into overprescribing the antidepressant paroxetine to children [17]. Eventually, the New York State Attorney General's office reached an agreement with GSK in which GSK was required to maintain an online clinical trials registry that included information about safety and efficacy, type and severity of side effects, midstream methodological changes and early terminations [18]. Unfortunately, this settlement did not change the registration requirements for trials of other US drug companies or for trials that were not supported by drug companies. Of course, it had little effect on trials conducted in other countries.
The first international policy on trial registration was introduced by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) in October 2004[19]. The policy required that trials be registered at the http://ClinicalTrials.gov webcite site before enrolment of patients in order for the manuscript to be considered for publication in ICMJE journals. This action had 'mandatory' enforcement power, and the number of trial registrations at http://www.ClinicalTrials.gov webcite increased dramatically after the ICMJE announcement [20]. In 2007 ICMJE updated their statement to call for prospective registration in the ICMJE-endorsed registry for publication in any of their member journals [21]. However, publication in ICMJE journals is sometimes not an objective for conducting a clinical trial, therefore the policy has limited power to secure universal trial registration.
In the Ministerial Summit on Health Research that took place in Mexico City, Mexico, in November 2004, the World Health Organization (WHO) called for members to "establish a voluntary platform to link clinical trials registers in order to ensure a single point of access and the unambiguous identification of trials with a view to enhancing access to information by patients, families, patient groups and others". Currently, the WHO ICTRP, established in August 2005, is composed of Primary Registries (currently 10) and Partner Registries; and it provides an international platform that enables researchers, health practitioners, consumers, journal editors and reporters to search more easily and quickly for information on clinical trials [22]. But WHO ICTRP is still a voluntary system, relying on the consciences of researchers for compliance, as it says, 'The registration of all interventional trails is a scientific, ethical and moral responsibility.'
The Ottawa Statement, which was published in 2005, required that registration and early public release of accurate information about all trials are necessary to fulfill ethical obligations to participants; and all trial results should be registered and made publicly available, along with sufficient protocol information to enable critical assessment of their validity[23]. However, the Statement only recognizes that trial registration is an ethical obligation. Unfortunately, previous scandals clearly demonstrate that ethical power alone is not enough to persuade all trial researchers to register their trials.
In 2008, the World Medical Association announced in the revised Declaration of Helsinki that "Every clinical trial must be registered in a publicly accessible database before recruitment of the first subject" [24]. In this way the World Medical Association has unequivocally established its position that public registration of clinical trials is necessary. If the ethics committees, at every research institution in every country, would strictly follow the Declaration, it would represent a necessary but not sufficient condition toward securing universal trial registration. One big problem is that not all trials pass through a strict ethics committee approval process [25], and also it is pending question whether Declaration of Helsinki could be completely followed by the ethics committee.
In summary, the current requirement about trial registration, majorly from ethical aspects and publication purpose, does not have the universal power to make sure all trials registered.
Data transparency
The purpose of trial registration is to make sure all data about a trial is available generally to the public and specifically to health care professionals. It is an original motivation behind the trial registration, especially the 2004 call for a central registry. But trial registration itself does not automatically ensure data transparency. Even if a trial registration requirement is implemented successfully in each country in the world, it still cannot secure data transparency. The reason is that registration requires only minimal information; generally it simply establishes there is a trial currently underway or about to start somewhere in this world. After registration, trial investigators should update their entries, especially releasing the trial results in an accurate and timely manner. But recently studies showed that trial registration does not ensure the timely availability of accurate trial results [26]. In the study, 57 endometriosis-related clinical trials registered at ClinicalTrials.gov were found, with 25 listed as completed, and 2 as suspended; leaving 30 unaccounted. Among 57 trials, there are 15 completed phase II/III trials, yet only three of the 15 trials (20%) had published their results. The remaining 12 (80%) studies so far have not published their findings even though some of these trials were completed as long as seven years. Clearly, trial registration requirements do not result in data transparency automatically. A full requirement for trail registration should let the trialists i) to register a trial before starting the patient recruitment, ii) to update the modification of trial protocol if any, and iii) to disseminate the trial results accurately and in a time manner. Therefore, trial registration should have a package of requirements from the start to the end, thus to make the public have possibility to know the whole profile of a trial.
Recent past years have witnessed the ineffectiveness of voluntary, partly-mandatory, and ethical requirements for trial registration. Such requirements cannot ensure that all trials are registered and that data are transparently reported. The major reason is that these requirements are lack of enough enforcement for trialists. Only a mandatory system can effectively ensure global trial registration and data transparency. The best mandatory system is legislation. Only legislation has universal power to ensure that all trial researchers register their trials and disseminate their data timely and concisely. The agreement between the New York State Attorney General' office and GSK company about trial is a good example.
After the SSRIs scandals, the US Congress enacted the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Amendments Act of 2007 (FDAAA) in 2007, which mandates public registration and disclosure of results of 'applicable' clinical trials of drugs, biologics and devices on http://www.Clinicaltrials.gov webcite[27]. Starting from December 2007, results disclosure occurred in three stages initially with links to information from the FDA and NIH about FDA-approved products as well as Medline citations. A Basic Results Database appeared in September 2008, and an Expanded Results Database will appear in 2010. The Act FDAAA 2007 requires that all results for trials of FDA-approved products must be posted within 12 months of trial completion. These requirements targeted "applicable" trials of drugs and devices subject to FDA regulation, but excluded Phase I drug trials and device feasibility studies. This new law requires researchers not only register trials but also put results into the database on time. Clearly, the Act has the power to require researchers in the US to register their trials. But limitations exist in that not all FDA-approved drug trials need to be registered. Also, this requirement may have an effect on publication bias [28]. Some nations such as India, not just USA, have made great efforts to legislate, thus to make sure all trials be registered [29]. We hope to see more and more nations take necessary actions for this purpose.
Global network
Legislation for the trial registration in a few countries is not enough and a global network for the trial registration should be established. First, each country that has the ability to conduct clinical trials should have such legislation. It is conceivable that if one country requires trial registration and data transparency, while another country does not, then there is a possibility that many, if not most, clinical trials may shift to that country. Second, in order to have a universal mandatory system for trial registration and data transparency, based on the requirements from WHO ICTRP, ICMJE, and the Declaration of Helsinki, a network involving all countries should be established to ensure uniform, international consistency in policy and enforcement of trial registration and data transparency.
This network could be established in regional basis, and a global network could be based on these regional networks. It should be emphasized that local effort from one country to a region is the basis for the global network. In this process, WHO may form an international advisory committee to provide consultation for each country and to help them to meet this aim. Further, this advisory committee can be charged with the responsibility of monitoring the implementation of such legislation through different approaches, such as publishing white paper of trial registration annually, etc.
When this global network is available, all trials could be traced and data could be searched, thus ensuring that the data are fully transparent to the public.
Existing efforts for trial registration and data transparency are not enough. They cannot compel all trial investigators to register their trials, and disseminate their trial results in an accurate and timely manner. Each country should legislate to develop a mandatory system, and a network involving all countries should be established, thus ensuring data transparency to restore the public confidence in the clinical trial. This system would best serve the interests of the public, the research community, and patients who are, ultimately, ourselves.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Authors' contributions
ZXB initiated and prepared the manuscript. TXW revised and added some valuable points into it. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
We wish to thank Dr. An-Wen Chan from University of Toronto for his critical comments for this manuscript.
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Hrachovec JB, Mora M: Reporting of 6-month vs 12-month data in a clinical trial of celecoxib.
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Chan AW, Hrobjartsson A, Haahr MT, Gotzsche PC, Altman DG: Empirical evidence for selective reporting of outcomes in randomized trials: Comparison of protocols to published articles.
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LEAD Scholars Program Blog
LEAD Scholars ProgramFamily EngagementMonday, Jul. 26, 2010The LEAD Scholars Program brings together the families of first-generation college students to provide a bridge to the SCU community. This is achieved through participation in Parents Weekend on campus in February and links to pages containing helpful information for families.
More information |
Posted by Rai Cornell


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As Townhall reported Wednesday, Columbia University Professor and cop-killer supporter Marc Lamont Hill described ex-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner as "exciting," as a "modern day Django," and as "not totally crazy." After much criticism on Twitter, Hill doubled down on his comments and last night on the O'Reilly Factor, he justified his argument again.
Notice how Hill started his response by saying, "If my words in any way caused them any pain or trauma or stress more than they're already experiencing then I offer them my deepest condolences and apologies." At the end of the segment Hill said, "If I was insensitive to the families I offer my condolences."
If, Mr. Hill? Hill lost all credibility with his bogus offer of condolences the moment the word "if" came out of his mouth. The fact is, he did cause more pain, gave Dorner credibility and was insensitive.
But back to Hill's long record of supporting convicted cop-killers. O'Reilly said Hill has been a "stand-up guy" over the years, but he hasn't been. As I wrote on Wednesday, Hill co-wrote a book in 2011 with convicted cop-killer Mumia Abu-Jamal, who is serving a life sentence for killing a Philadelphia police officer in 1981. The year 2011 marked the 30-year anniversary of Abu-Jamal's incarceration, something his supporters celebrated. Hill helped celebrate by publishing a book with Abu-Jamal to mark the anniversary.
Mumia Abu-Jamal murdered a police officer in Philadelphia. Sentenced to death the following year, he has still not been executed. Next week, his supporters are celebrating the 30th anniversary of his incarceration.
There are two sides to the Mumia story; there is the trial in which he was convicted of the murder of Officer Daniel Faulkner followed by the findings of fact of the appellate courts, all of which have upheld his conviction. Every single one.
Then there is the Mumia is innocent side which is espoused by his supporters, though curiously, Mumia Abu-Jamal himself has never actually denied shooting Officer Faulkner in a courtroom.
In 2009 Accuracy in Media did an entire expose of Hill's record, which includes support for cop-killer Assata Shakur and racist Khallid Muhammed.
Who would plaster his Twitter page with police mug shot photos of convicted cop-killer Assata Shakur? Fox News contributor Marc Lamont Hill did. At least until David Horowitz and Accuracy in Media took notice and wrote about it. Now the page features photos of boxing great Muhammad Ali. Hill's MySpace page is also gone.
There are other changes as well. The tributes to Shakur and black racist Khallid Muhammad, known as "America's Black Hitler," have disappeared from his web pages. The articles were saved, however, and can be found here.
And finally on top of everything else, Hill also supports brutal dictators.
On December 6, 2006, when reports indicated that Cuban dictator Fidel Castro was sick, Fox News contributor Marc Lamont Hill declared on his blog that he was afraid the information might be true. "My fears about Fidel's health are not only personal but political," he wrote.
"This past week," he wrote, "Cuba celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Cuban revolution, as well as Fidel Castro's 80th birthday. Despite the huge number of dignitaries, aging revolutionaries, and fellow citizens in attendance, El Comandante was not in attendance. While a no-show at this type of event is curious for any leader, it is unthinkable for Fidel, who thrives on such moments. In fact, the only thing that could keep him away is the very thing that scares me the most: Fidel was too sick to attend."
The thought of this dictator dying was just too much for Hill to take.
When Hugo Chavez was elected in Venezuela, Hill declared, "In the wake of Fidel's declining significance, Chavez has quickly emerged as the loudest political voice of Latin America, as well as one of the world's most prominent and powerful anti-imperialist heads-of-state."
Hill said during his O'Reilly segment that he was interested in investigating police terrorism, but the reality is his record shows he's actually more interested in supporting people who kill and terrorize police.
Katie Pavlich is the Editor at Townhall.com. Follow her on Twitter @katiepavlich. She is a New York Times Best Selling author. Her new book Assault and Flattery: The Truth About the Left and Their War on Women, will be published on July 8, 2014. "Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be brainwashed government dependents. Buy this book!" says Michelle Malkin. "This is a thorough and gutsy book that should help set history straight." - Mark Levin Buy Katie's book today and help us keep the pressure on the Left. |
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Discover how to improve your photos using iPhoto. Enhancing Photos with iPhoto, with Rich Harrington, shows how to crop and straighten photos, remove red eye, retouch blemishes, remove noise, add special effects, and improve exposure, color, and contrast.
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Edit Full Name: Margaret Colclesser 1 Birth: 14 Nov 1911 1 Death: Aug 1974 1 Residence: Last Residence: Mishawaka, IN 1
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Guyana Cricket
Georgetown, Guyana
011 59222 54813
011 59222 54814
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Ramsey Ali
Anand Sanasie
Administrator: Savitri
The Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) controls cricket in Guyana.
Trinidad Express article.
Port of Spain, Trinidad - The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) is moving ahead with its plan to implement a new structure for regional first-class cricket which will see the six regional sides being able to select players from across the region and further overseas.
Kaieteur News article.
Georgetown, Guyana - Wellman XI overcame Don XI by six wickets to take the Mike's Pharmacy softball title on Friday night last at Demerara Cricket Club.
Batting first Don XI managed 109-5 of their allotted 15 overs. Samuel Kingston scored 45 and Oslyn Batson 30. Greg De...
Kaieteur News article.
Georgetown, Guyana - Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) will host a camp for male and female U-13 and U-15 cricketers starting today at the club's ground in Queenstown.
The camp is expected to last for two weeks during which cricketers will be taught about the basics of the game...
GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Leg-spinner Steven Sankar's five-wicket haul undermined Windward Islands but Guyana stumbled and stuttered before pulling off a four-wicket victory in their second round match of the Regional Under-19 Championship here Monday.
Resuming the final day at Everest on 79 for four, the Windwards were dismissed for 165, with...
Kingston, Jamaica - The Regional Under-15 Tournament enters the 5th and final round of matches today across three venues in Jamaica.
You can watch a live webcast of Guyana versus Jamaica from Melbourne while there will be live online text updates @WindiesRegional of Windwards vs Leewards and Barbados versus T&T.
...Georgetown, Guyana - The Regional Under-19 Tournament enters the 3rd and final round of matches today across three venues in Guyana.
You can watch a live webcast of Jamaica versus the Windward Islands while there will be live online text updates @WindiesRegional of Barbados versus Leewards and T&T versus Guyana.
...Trinidad Express article.
Georgetown, Guyana - Trinidad and Tobago will tackle Barbados Up Park Camp, Jamaica in the final round of the West Indies Cricket Board Regional Under-15 50-over tournament today needing a win and some bonus points to ensure a successful title defence.
T&T are...
Guyana Times article.
Georgetown, Guyana - Guyana's Under-19 Manager David Black says beating the Windward Islands in round two in the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Regional Under-19, Three-day tournament has lifted the players' confidence ahead of their final round, beginning today.
GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC - West Indies youth cricketer Tagenarine Chanderpaul is eyeing a century as Guyana move to assert themselves against Trinidad and Tobago in the West Under-19 cricket tournament in Guyana.
Powerful half centuries from Chanderpaul and Shimron Hetmyer lifted the Guyanese to a comfortable position against the Trinidadians on the...
Kingston, Jamaica - Guyana secured the 2014 Regional Under-15 title with an 11-run victory over Jamaica today at Melbourne. There were also wins for the Windwards and Barbados in the final round of matches.
AT MELBOURNE: Guyana saw off Jamaica fairly easily in the end, although there seemed to be a contest in the closing stages....


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February is Black History Month, and a perfect time to reflect on the nonviolence and antiwar stance of Dr. Martin Luther King. Recently, my colleague, Mark Thompson, reminded me of an important Dr. King quote when I appeared on his radio show to discuss the Tucson shooting. It was a speech the slain civil rights leader gave at Riverside Church in New York on April 4, 1967, a year and a day before he was assassinated.
In the speech King was discussing the conversations he had had with angry and desperate young black men in the northern ghettos. He tried to convince them that nonviolent action, not rifles or Molotov cocktails, would solve their problems and bring social change. "But they asked – and rightly so – what about Vietnam? They asked if our own nation wasn't using massive doses of violence to solve its problems, to bring about the changes it wanted," King said. "Their questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today – my own government." King said he could not be silent, so he broke that silence and spoke out against the Vietnam War, most likely to his peril.
And although he uttered these words 44 years ago in, a different era, about a war that ended decades ago, his words are as relevant and clear as if he spoke just yesterday. America is the greatest purveyor of violence around. You only need look at the latest shootout massacre du jour on U.S. soil. These perennial bloodbaths occur so frequently that Americans have accepted them as a part of daily life, the price of doing business, as they say.
With 90 guns for every 100 people, according to the Small Arms Survey in Switzerland, the U.S., by far, is the most heavily armed nation in the world. Yemen, in second place, has 61 guns per 100 people, while Switzerland has 46, followed by Iraq with 39.
And not surprisingly, America has the world's highest gun-related death rate, with nearly 100,000 people shot or killed with a gun each year. Over a million Americans have been killed with guns since King and Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated, according to the Childrens' Defense Fund. Moreover, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence says that America's homicide rate is 6.9 times higher than rates in the other 22 advanced nations combined. And among 23 high-income countries, 80 percent of firearms deaths occur in the U.S.
This is a travesty and an embarrassment in the industrialized world. And with guns aplenty in a nation that is hungry, ill and need of repair, guns are readily available for the mentally unstable, domestic abusers, criminals and others who should be prohibited from having a gun. But what do you do when the county itself is sick? As Michael Moore recently noted on Twitter, "Tons 'o guns & unstable people all over world but they don't kill each other like we do. Guns Don't Kill People. Americans Kill People. Why?"
The Second Amendment – an anachronism that was meaningful only when people hunted for their food – reads, "A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." It is hard to believe, but the gun lobby and right-wing militia groups who would wage violence against the government have interpreted this to apply to an unlimited right for individual citizens, the right to amass a personal army. The weapons makers pay politicians millions of dollars to back it up. Unfortunately a right-wing Supreme Court tends to agree.
As other countries distinguish themselves as leaders in green technology and high-speed rail, the U.S. is the leader in guns. And we export our violence abroad. The teargas canisters that the Egyptian police used against the Cairo protestors in Tahrir Square were made in Jamestown, Pennsylvania. Egypt's military hardware was made in the U.S.A., because the American government props up Egypt's petty dictator, Hosni Mubarak, to the tune of $1.3 billion a year. And apparently he pockets that money, given that he has become a billionaire through "public service." Yet, his people protest their poverty, rising food prices, and a level of economic inequality that could someday become as bad as that of the U.S. Further, Mubarak's new handpicked hack vice president, Omar Suleiman, was the torture and renditions liaison for the CIA. Now, Suleiman has been charged with investigating the hoodlums that Mubarak unleashed on the nonviolent protestors in the Cairo streets.
President Obama finds himself in a quandary, as someone who admires King's words and philosophy, yet is also the head of the American empire. Both men received a Nobel Peace Prize, but only one of them earned his. The other received his in good faith – as a down payment on prospective achievements, if you will – while inheriting two pointless wars from his warmonger predecessor that he can't seem to shake off. Still, you could see hints of King coming out of Obama when he essentially told Mubarak that his time in office is up. And yet, the President backtracked and toned it down.
The U.S. is addicted to empire, spending nearly half of its discretionary budget on war, and nearly half of the world's military expenditures. We fund dictators, tyrants and potentates to do our bidding, to keep an illusory Cold War peace, as we preach democracy and export fast food. Other nations are becoming leaders in green jobs and high-speed rail. China, a huge, authoritarian country, spends one-sixteenth as much as the U.S. on its military, but twice as much on clean energy technology.
But Americans, at least we have our guns, right? Yeah, right.
David A. Love
Republished with permission from Black Commentator,


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Dar Darek
Guesthouse | 86 rue Moulay Smail, Essaouira, Morocco 44000
6 out of 6 customers would recommend this property
Recent review (04/04/2013)
"Beautiful accomodation in the Medina, the owners are really nice and helpful and the rooms are comfortable, very clean and cosy. We had two fantastic days at the Dar Darek in Essaouira!"
Read all Dar Darek reviewsFacilities
- No curfew
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- Common area / room
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Purchasable Extras
- Airport Pickup USD 80.35
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- Luggage Room
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Cancellation Policy
Customers can cancel their reservation free of charge up to 2 days before arrival (local time). Payments made to HostelBookers are non-refundable.
Check-In/Out Details
Earliest check-in: 13:00
Latest Check-out: 12:00
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Our riad is located in the heart of the ancient median. Located at 5 minutes walk from the beach and 3 minutes walk from the bus station Supratours. Surrounded by typical little grocery shops, kind of ali baba caverns, public baker's oven, hamman... our guests experiment a true taste of Moroccan life. Dar Darek with only 4 rooms, is intimate and charming. Read more
Enter dates to check prices
About Dar Darek
We have 4 charming and very comfortable guest rooms (each of them with bathroom and toilets) as well as a quiet sunny roof terrace and a cosy lounge where you can enjoy a glass of mint tea or warm up in front of the fire during the colder season.
A tasty breakfast is included in the price, and we can also prepare evening meals (€15 per person). Our cuisine is a mix of typical Moroccan family cooking and classic French recipes which uses delicious combinations of seasonal fruits and vegetables.
We will be very happy to pick you up at your arrival in Essaouira at the meeting point Bab Marrakech, which is one of the main Medina entrance and which is located at only 3 minutes walking from Dar Darek.
Location Information
Dar Darek
86 rue Moulay Smail
Médina Essaouira
Dar Darek is easy to find. We are 5 minutes walk from the bus Station Supratours and 3 minutes walking from the main wall Door Bab Marrakech.
Secure parking is available just 100 meters from Dar Darek, and we can also provide a free pick-up service from the Supratours station or from one of the main medina's entrance Door Bab Marrakech.


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A Georgia Limited Liability Company
Selling Good Celtic Music You Haven't Heard . . . YET!
There are certain music types other than filk that a lot of filkers enjoy listening to or singing outright. However, most of the Celtic music filkers hear comes from only from a few sources, some of which I carry. But WAIT, I've found new stuff for you to hear!
What I have been doing is finding Celtic artists and bands who are not as well-known as, say, the Tannahill Weavers, and bring them to the filk market. The only exception to this is Capercaillie, whose music I fell in love with when I went to Scotland in 2002 and decided I had to sell. When I travel to the Celtic lands, I look for performers who'd like their music heard over here, bring their music back with me and let you know about them. For instance, at the First Annual North Georgia Celtic Festival, I "discovered" several bands who sound pretty good. Those which do have a CD, I now stock. Those who don't, well, I'm working on that. Give them time.
Right now I have the following artists/albums available:
This list, however, will be changing. Some of the performers have not sold well. When I run out of my present supply of these performers, I will no longer be carrying them, and those performers will be deleted from this list.
By the way, those listings above in italics are album titles. However, some of them are the names of the bands. Have to rearrange that!
I've also started contacting bands through the webrings listed below to see if they want their stuff sold by me as well.
What is below is something new. I've just set up a separate e-mail notification group for news on Celtic albums I'm selling. Click on the graphic below and subscribe to "sffilk-celtic."
Heather Alexander
Avalon Rising
Bad Haggis
Banish Misfortune
Border Collies
The Bringers
Brobdingnagian Bards
Maggie Carchrie
Carreg Lafar
Celtic Twilight 1-6
Margaret Davis
Kathleen Donohoe
Emerald Rose
Evergreen, from Israel
Four Shillings Short
Full Moon Ensemble
Golden Bough
Green Linnet Records Celtophile Series and 25th Anniversary 2-CD set
Hadrian's Wall
Henri's Notions Susan Hickey
The Homespun Ceilidh Band
Into June/Donald Lindsay
Mollyhawkes Debra Peterson
The Lost Boys
Smithfield Fair
Kelly Stewart
The Streels, from British Columbia
Three Quarter Ale
WhirlyGig Brendan Carey Block Short Road Home Moira Nelligan Celtic Woman Maev Katherine Irwin Thomas
store entrance
filk books
folk and filk music
non-musical stuff
how to order
This Celtic Traditional Music Ring site is owned by
Michael Liebmann.
Want to join the Celtic Traditional Music Ring? |
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text: Jul 18 2013 Markup of: H.R. 2122, the "Regulatory Accountability Act of 2013"; and, H.R. 2641, the "Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development Act of 2013" 2141 Rayburn House Office Building Markup Documentation Transcript Introduced Bill # Title Report 5/23/2013 H.R. 2122 the "Regulatory Accountability Act of 2013" passed by voice vote 7/10/2013 H.R. 2641 the "Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development Act of 2013" passed by voice vote Watch Archived Webcast Permalink: http://judiciary.house.gov/index.cfm/2013/7/markup-of-h-r-2122-the-regulatory-accountability-act-of-2013-and-h-r-2641-the-responsibly-and-professionally-invigorating-development-act-of-2013


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About Yangtze University
Yangtze University is an amalgamation of former Jianghan Petroleum University , Hubei Agricultural University, Jingzhou Teacher's University and Hubei Medical Staff College upon the approval of the Ministry of Education of P. R. China April 2003. Yangtze University , under the strong support of Hubei Province , is the largest and multidisciplinary university affiliated to Hubei Government.
Yangtze University is located in the famous ancient historic city of Jingzhou on the middle reaches of the Yangtze River . Jingzhou, with a history of more than 2,600 years, is the cradle of Chu Culture and one of primary places of Three Kingdoms culture. Jingzhou was the native place of Qu Yuan, the great patriotic poet in China and a town of military importance in the periods of dozens of kingdoms and dynasties. To the east of Jingzhou is Wuhan , a hub city of traffic; to the west is the world-known project of Three Gorges; to the south is the vast lake of Dong Ting ; to the north is the imposing beautiful mountain of Wu Dang . Having peaceful, picturesque campuses dotted with relaxing and scenic spaces, the university has been awarded as garden-like institution by Hubei Government.
The former Jianghan Petroleum University was affiliated to China National Petroleum Corporation. It grew out of Beijing Petroleum Industry School founded in Beijing in 1950 and was named Jianghan Petroleum University in 1978. Since 2000, the former Jianghan Petroleum University was put under the administration of Hubei Government and under the joint support from the central and local governments. The former Hubei Agricultural University grew out of Central China Agricultural College at Jingzhou initially established in 1977 and got its name upon the approval of the State Committee of Education in 1989. The former Jingzhou Teacher's University grew out of Hubei No. 4 Normal School founded in 1936 and became Jingzhou Teachers' College in 1978. It was combined to be Jingzhou Teacher's University with other schools in 1999. The former Hubei Medical Staff College was initially established in 1951 and renamed Wuhan Medical College at Jingzhou in 1977. In 1984 the college at Jingzhou changed its name to be Hubei Medical Staff College .
The university campuses cover 2,195.3 thousand square meters with a total structure area of 1,146,600 square meters. Its fixed assets are totally worth RMB 1,003 million Yuan. The university libraries boast a collection of 2,976,600 books, 1,149,500 electronic books, 3,060 foreign and domestic kinds of journals and 50 digital databases and network resources. The total areas of kinds of athletic sports ground and centers is 192,926 square meters. It has 5 track and field grounds, 6 soccer pitches, 78 basketball courts, 26 volleyball courts, 8 tennis courts, gyms and swiming pool.
The university has 3,436 faculty members, of whom 2,149 are full time teachers. 938 people have senior title. Now 233 are full professors and 501 are associate professors. There are 1,154 having obtained their postgraduate degree, including 241 doctoral members. It has 8 specially appointed professors from the Chu Tian Scholar Project, 48 experts endowed with special grants from the State Council or the provincial government, 16 young and middle aged experts who won outstanding contribution prize from Hubei Government, 3 National Excellent Teachers and 3 Hubei Famous Teachers. The university has invited a group of famous scholars and academicians from Chinese Academy of Sciences as part time professors.
The university offers 3 doctoral programs, 4 first level subjects of master's degree and 46 master's programs. It can grant master's degree to applicants who have equivalent educational level of graduate, master's degree of Engineering, master's degree of agricultural promotion and on-the-post master's degree to teachers of intitutions of higher learning. The university has 80 undergraduate programs covering 10 disciplines, specifically economics, law, education, literature, history, science, engineering, agriculture, medicine and management. Its full-time student body is about 34,000, including postgraduates, undergraduate students, three years students and international students. It has 20 provincial level key subjects, 8 key laboratories at ministerial and provincial level, 13 laboratories jointly constructed by central and local governments, 1 provincial engineering research center, 2 provincial commonness technology centers and 2 provincial humanity research key centers. The university has 8 provincial brand courses, 12 provincial premium courses and 23 provincial quality courses. In 2002-2004 national evaluation of first level subjects, its two subjects of "mineral investigating & prospecting" and "oil & gas engineering" ranks in the top 10 subjects of the same kind in the country. The university is prestigious and characteristic in the research fields of petroleum science and technology, waterlogging and wetland agriculture, and Jingchu culture.
Yangtze University offers a variety of scholarships to inspire students to make excellent academic performances and to be talents in some specific areas. Besides Yangtze University excellent student scholarship and excellent freshman scholarship, there are nearly 30 kinds of scholarships which can be made a list: Sun Qiyun educational scholarship, China petroleum scholarship, China National Offshore Oil Corporation scholarship, China National Offshore Oil Corporation fund for in-need student, Sheng-li Oil field scholarship, Xinjiang Oil field scholarship, Da-gang oil field scholarship, COSL scholarship, He-nan oil field scholarship, Tu-ha oil field scholarship, Liao-he petroleum scholarship, Chuan-yu petroleum scholarship, BGP scholarship, Jiang-su oil field talent scholarship, Ta li mu oil field scholarship, An-dong petroleum scholarship, Schlumberger petroleum scholarship, Shang-xian scholarship, Xiang-zhi scholarship, Zheng-da scholarship, Tong-wei scholarship, Heng-tai college student innovation fund.
Since 2003, the university has undertook 2,100 projects of various research programs, 24 projects from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, 3 projects from the National Social Science Foundation, and 11 projects from the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China, the National Basic Research Program and 18 international collaborative programs. 88 projects got ministerial or provincial awards, including 1 Second Place of State Technology Advance Prize. 67 won prizes of scientific achievement from the Ministries and Hubei Province. 9,549 academic papers have been published, among which 382 papers were included in three international indexes, SCI, EI and ISTP.
Yangtze University takes the initiative to reform the talent cultivating modes to meet the needs of the social and economic development. The university actively pushes the teaching reforms of credit system, supervisor system, major and minor system, double degrees system. The university pays a great attention to comprehensive development of students and cultivates quality talents who have pioneering and innovating spirits. More than 188, 700 graduates completed their education in the university and reached out to play an important role in their work fronts and fields. Many of them have become experts in science management, professional backbones and business elites. In recent years, the one-time employment rates of postgraduates and undergraduate students remain 95% and 85% respectively.
Yangtze University has established university and enterprise partnerships with 40 large sized and oversize state-owned enterprises. The university has also found a collaborative partnership with 20 cities and counties. It has been appointed as the experiment institution of university-industry-science partnership from the Ministry of Education.