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MR. RUSSERT: First, joining us now on "Meet the Press" is the secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld. Welcome back.
SEC. RUMSFELD: Thank you, sir.
MR. RUSSERT: The elections have been held, as we well know. The early counting seems to indicate the Shi'ites have done very, very well in the election. The headline in the Sunday New York Times, Mr. Secretary, "Top Iraq Shi'ites Pushing Religion in Constitution" -- that they want to use Islam as the guiding principle in drafting the constitution. How do you feel about that?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Well, a lot of states that have a predominantly Muslim population have a way of including that without having it dominate. And certainly if you would look at Afghanistan, that's the case there. I think that of all the headlines I've seen, that's not the one I would have cited. I would have cited the ones that point out that all of the people who were involved in the election are reaching out to the Sunnis, are in fact engaged in political discussions and negotiations. Think of it -- in Iraq, after 35 years of a repressive dictatorship, what we're hearing is political debate and discussion and who should be prime minister and who should be president and deputy president, and how should this work and how should we sort that out and who's going to fashion the constitution. That's thrilling. That is absolutely thrilling.
I would say this: The Shi'ia in Iraq are Iraqis. They're not Iranians. And the idea that they're going to end up with a government like Iran, with a handful of mullahs controlling much of the country I think is unlikely.
MR. RUSSERT: But when they say that they would like to have a constitution which says that daughters would get half the inheritance of sons, do you find that troubling for all the bloodshed we have spilled for Iraq?
SEC. RUMSFELD: The first thing we have to begin with is that Iraq belongs to the Iraqis. And the Iraqis are going to have a solution for Iraq that's an Iraqi solution. They're not going to have an American solution or an Afghan solution. And the wonderful thing that's taking place is that the great sweep of human history is for freedom. And we're seeing it in Afghanistan, in Iraq, in the Palestinian Liberation Authority, in the Ukraine, in Indonesia. And what's happening is healthy. It's good.
Look at our Constitution when it was first fashioned. Look what it did with respect to women not voting. Look what it did with respect to blacks and the way they were counted in the population. So you don't get from where they were to where they're going "on a feather bed," as Thomas Jefferson said. You get there through tough discussion, trials, error, mistakes, good things. And they're on that path, and I think people ought to step back and say, Isn't that amazing? Isn't that a wonderful thing for that region?
MR. RUSSERT: If they decide that they do not want Prime Minister Allawi to remain as prime minister, we would accept that?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Well, it isn't a matter of accepting it or not accepting it. The Iraqis had a vote. They're going to decide who the president and the deputy presidents are going to be. They're going to decide who the prime minister is going to be. They're going to decide who the ministers of these various ministries are going to be. That's what that's about.
MR. RUSSERT: One of the Iraqis said this -- he's the head of the Constitutional Monarchy Party: "Americans are in for a shock," adding that one day they would realize, quote, "We've got 150,000 troops here protecting a country that's extremely friendly to Iran."
SEC. RUMSFELD: You know, I could go to the press, and I could pull out a quote on almost any side of every issue. And your question is what do I think about that particular quote. First of all, I don't think it's representative. Second, I'm always amazed at the things that can happen in the world, and I don't doubt for a minute that there are going to be some surprises for everybody. Third, let's face it, Afghanistan has Iran as a neighbor, and they talk to each other. Most countries do talk to their neighbors. And that's a very different thing from suggesting that the model that Iran has is necessarily going to be the model for Iraq. I don't believe it is. I think the Shi'ia in Iraq are Iraqis first and Shi'ia second. And just as in Afghanistan, you don't see Mr. Karzai fashioning a government that's a replica of one of his neighbors. He's got an Afghan solution to his problems.
MR. RUSSERT: So you're confident that we will not have an Islamic fundamentalist state in Iraq?
SEC. RUMSFELD: I think it would be just an enormous mistake for that country to think that it could succeed with all of its opportunity, with its oil, its water, its intelligent population -- to deny half of their population, women, the opportunity to participate fully, I think, just would be a terrible mistake.
MR. RUSSERT: Our next guest, Senator Kennedy, has said now that the elections are over, we should have a specific timetable for the withdrawal of American troops. The president said that would embolden the terrorists. Why?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Well, first of all, let's point out the truth. The president and I and anyone would dearly love to be smart enough and wise enough to know precisely when our troops could leave. It would be such a relief for people to know that. It's not knowable. The important thing to do is to see that we do not create a dependency, that we encourage them to take over that responsibility. And our forces are doing that. We're helping to train and equip the Iraqi security forces. And the president believes, and I agree with him, that we don't want to be there any longer than we have to, but we want to be there as long as we're needed. And it seems to me that the answer as to when our troops can come out is dependent upon the conditions on the ground and whether or not the Iraqis are capable of managing the security situation there. We're working very hard to see that they can.
MR. RUSSERT: RUSSERT: Why not give the Iraqis benchmarks that in six months, we're going to withdraw 50,000 troops -- you better have 50,000 troops ready to replace them?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Because we've been -- our country has invested a lot of lives, a lot of heartbreak. The courage of our troops and the sacrifice of those that have fallen and were wounded is important. And the idea that you should just arbitrarily say this is going to happen on that date -- think of it, the last administration did that in Bosnia. They said we'd be out by Christmas. Six, eight, 10 years later, not out. It is misleading people to think that you know something you don't know. And we know we don't know.
MR. RUSSERT: Did you believe two years ago that at this stage of the war we would have 135,000 Americans on the ground, 1,400 dead, 10,000 wounded or injured?
SEC. RUMSFELD: We were asked, and at that time we told the truth. And the truth was you can't know how long it'll last, you can't know how many troops it'll take, and you can't know how many dead and wounded there would be. No one in any war has ever been able to predict that. People who do predict it make a terrible mistake, because they set expectations based on nothing but hope.
MR. RUSSERT: One area that has created a lot of debate is the number of Iraqi forces that are now ready and trained and available. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Richard Myers, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that only about a third of Iraq's 136,000 trained security forces have enough training to engage in combat with insurgents. As he says, quote, "40,000 who can go anywhere in the country and take on any threat. He used the figure 136,000 security forces, big umbrella. This is what Donald Rumsfeld said in February of last year, a year ago: "I would say there's not been a slowness in forming the Iraqi security forces. Indeed, if you think about it, last June or July there were no Iraqi security forces, and today, in February of 2004, there are over 210,000 Iraqis serving in the security forces. That's an amazing accomplishment." How did we get from 210,000 a year ago --
SEC. RUMSFELD: Very simply. There are people that are trying to make this more complex, for whatever reason, than it is. It's not complex. It's simple. We did start with zero, and we ended up over 200,000, and that included 74,000 site protection people. Those people did not report to the Ministry of Interior or to the Ministry of Defense. When we took that number out of the 200 (thousand), it went down, obviously, and we no longer include them. Every paper we put out has a footnote stating exactly why that's the case.
Now, let's go to Dick Myers' comment. We have 136,000 Iraqi security forces, excluding the 70,000-plus in the site protection, and they are in the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Defense, and there's a lot of different types. Some are policemen and they walk a beat. Some are border patrol and they sit on a border in a patrol place. Others are in commando units and they operate in a region and go in on special assignments. Still others are in the regular army, and they're being trained for that type of function. A small number of them -- as Dick Myers said, something like 40,000 -- are highly mobile, can move anywhere in the country and be sustained.
Now, would you -- he answered the question perfectly honestly. We have 136,000. The implication that the rest are not useful is silly. It's nonsense. The policeman on the beat outside your office doesn't need to be mobile and sustainable and go into Los Angeles.
MR. RUSSERT: Senator Joe Biden says 40,000 is not an honest number, that it's more like 4,000 truly trained Iraqi forces that can take on the insurgents. Is he right?
SEC. RUMSFELD: He's wrong, obviously. I mean, General Petraeus put this out very clearly in a press briefing and laid it out. When I say Senator Biden is wrong, what I mean is this: When you train some people to be policemen, they're very good policemen, and that's part of the Iraqi security forces. If you train them to go after the -- do a counterterrorism job, then that's a very different function, and we have a certain number of those. And we announce and release the number of those. But that's true of our military. We have people who are -- whose job is military police. We have people whose job is to be part of a special operations team that can go in and do counterterrorism-type activities. We have people who do entirely different things. And that, to suggest that therefore the numbers are wrong is incorrect.
The other thing I should say is talking numbers is not terribly useful always, because if a person comes out of training the first day, they're not a battle-hardened veteran. They are trained and they are equipped. You compare them with somebody who's been out a year, who's been in Fallujah and had a success there, or been involved in the election, where the Iraqi security forces successfully secured 5,000 election sites. The inner perimeter and the outer perimeter were all Iraqis doing that at 5,000 sites. Now, that was a major accomplishment. And I think to belittle them or to question the numbers because some do police work and some do counterterrorism work is a misunderstanding of the situation.
MR. RUSSERT: How many Iraqi security forces do we need fully trained and capable of fighting insurgents?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Well, the answer to that question is not complicated. We need as many as are needed. If you have an insurgency that's this level, you'll need X. If you have an insurgency that's that level, you'll need X-plus. And if you have an insurgency that's quite low, you'll need X-minus. And to think that you can sit here today and -- I mean, no one predicted the level of the insurgency as it is today. Partly it's a function of money. Partly it's a function of what the Syrians and the Iranians are doing. Partly it's a function of how many criminals they can hire to participate. Partly it's a function of how much money Zarqawi gets to hire suicide bombers. And that goes up and down.
MR. RUSSERT: But right now, knowing what you know about the insurgency, how many fully trained Iraqi troops do you think we need in order for the United States to withdraw?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Okay, what we've done is we made an initial assessment when the major combat operations ended. Six months later we sent in General Eichenberry and he made an assessment. General Casey then went in last June and made an assessment. We just sent in General Luck, and what we do is keep looking at the changing circumstance on the ground and reevaluating what that ought to be. You've got to remember the enemy has a brain. It isn't as though the enemy's an inanimate object and that you can then measure what you need to deal with that inanimate object. He watches what we do and adjusts to it, just as we watch what they do and adjust to it. And, therefore, it's a moving target. It's not static.
MR. RUSSERT: The Iraqi intelligence services director said that the insurgency is larger than the U.S. Army -- it is more than 200,000 people. Is he right?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Who said that?
MR. RUSSERT: Mohammad Abdul Sussami, the Iraqi Intelligence Service director, on January 3rd, 2005. He's a general.
SEC. RUMSFELD: I've never seen that number, and I don't know where it came from.
MR. RUSSERT: It's a lot larger than the dead-enders that you had talked about some time ago.
SEC. RUMSFELD: I talked about it?
MR. RUSSERT: Yes.
SEC. RUMSFELD: I think I've always characterized it as a mix of people. There are some Ba'athists who are dead-enders, that's true. There are some jihadists who've come in from other countries, and Zarqawi and that team of people who are particularly lethal. There are criminals. There are always -- I've always included --
MR. RUSSERT: But in June of 2003, we were talking about small elements, 10 to 20 people, no large network.
SEC. RUMSFELD: That's what they were functioning as during that period immediately after the major combat operations. That's right. And the insurgency has --
MR. RUSSERT: And it's changed?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Absolutely. That's why we keep sending in assessment teams.
MR. RUSSERT: Let me turn to what we need on the ground right now. About 40 to 45 percent of our troops are National Guard and Army Reserve. The head of the Army Reserve said that we are rapidly degenerating, quote, "into a broken force." He's worried about retention, recruitment. The National Guard has reached only half its goal in January in terms of retention and recruitment. The Marine Corps for the first time in a decade has not reached its recruiting goal. Will it be necessary to say to the National Guard, You may have to serve another 24 months -- not just the original 24 months that we sent you, but we may break you and have to send you back again?
SEC. RUMSFELD: We have no plans to do -- to change the rulings and the methods that we're operating on at the present time. For the first time we've begun to see some goals and targets not being fulfilled. And but generally recruiting and retention has been on track and is today generally on track.
One of the reasons that the National Guard and the Reserves are slightly down is because we're enlarging the size of the Army and in that process more people are staying in. And one of the pools that you draw on to build the Guard and Reserve is people coming off active duty, as you know. So there's fewer people coming off active duty. Therefore, we've increased the number of recruiters, we've increased the incentives, and we just simply have to recognize that the stress on the force is real, and take the kinds of steps that we've taken to anticipate that and see that we're able to attract and retain the people we need. We have still only used about 40 percent of the Guard and Reserve that's available in this country, since the beginning of the Afghan operation.
MR. RUSSERT: So you have no plans to change the rules in terms of extending tours?
SEC. RUMSFELD: No, the rules -- there's been a debate in the press about whether you wanted to change 24 months to cumulative or consecutive, and it's being left at consecutive, not cumulative.
MR. RUSSERT: Let me show you some comments that some have made --
SEC. RUMSFELD: Or cumulative. I misspoke.
MR. RUSSERT: Yeah, I understand. Some things that members of Congress has said. This is Susan Collins, a Republican -- not a Democrat, a Republican: "I think there are increasing concerns about the secretary's leadership of the war, the repeated failures to predict the strengths of the insurgency, the lack of essential safety equipment for our troops, the reluctance to expand the number of troops." I want to talk -- we've talked about insurgency. I want to bring you back to the whole debate about the use of essential safety equipment for our troops, and take you back to December -- we haven't seen you since then -- when Thomas Wilson stood up and asked you a question. I want to show you that exchange and come back and talk about it.
(Begin videoclip.)
Q Now, why do we soldiers have to dig through local landfills for pieces of scrap metal and compromised ballistic glass to up-armor our vehicles and why don't we have those resources readily available to us?
SEC. RUMSFELD: As you know, you go to war with the army you have, not the army you might want or wish to have at a later time. And if you think about it, you can have all the armor in the world on a tank and a tank can be blown up. And you can have an up-armored humvee and it can be blown up.
(End videoclip.)
MR. RUSSERT: Now, Specialist Wilson did acknowledge he worked with a journalist in crafting that question.
SEC. RUMSFELD: Yeah, but wait a minute. Let me get into this a little bit.
MR. RUSSERT: Sure.
SEC. RUMSFELD: That was unfair and it was selectively taking out two sentences from a long exchange -- there it is -- that took place. And when you suggested that that's how I answered that question, that is factually wrong. That is not how I answered that question.
MR. RUSSERT: But, Mr. Secretary, it clearly represents the exchange between --
SEC. RUMSFELD: It does not.
MR. RUSSERT: All right,what is missing?
SEC. RUMSFELD: You want to hear the exchange? There is it. It's right here. I'll read it to you. If you're going to quote pieces of it, I'll give you the exchange. He asked that question, and I said, "I talked to the general coming out here about the pace at which the vehicles are being armored. They have been brought from all over the world, wherever they're not needed, to places where they are needed. I'm told they are being -- the Army is -- I think it's something like 400 a month are being done now. And it's essentially a matter of physics. It's not a matter of money. It isn't a matter on the part of the Army's desire. It's a matter of production and capability of doing it. As you know, you go to the war with the Army you have. They're not the Army you might want or wish to have at a later time.
"Since the Iraq conflict began, the Army has been pressing ahead to produce armor necessary at a rate that they believe -- it's a greatly expanded rate from what existed previously but a rate that they believe is the rate that can be accomplished. I can assure you that General Schoomaker and the leadership of the Army and certainly General Whitcomb are sensitive to the fact that not every vehicle has the degree of armor that would be desirable to have, but that they're working at it at a good clip. It's interesting. I've talked a great deal about this with a team of people who've been working hard at the Pentagon. And if you think about it, you can have all the armor in the world on a tank and the tank could still be blown up. And you can have an up-armored humvee and it can be blown up. And you can go down and the vehicle -- the goal we have is to have many of those vehicles as is humanly possible with the appropriate level of armor available for the troops. And that's what the Army's been working on. And, General Whitcomb, is there anything you want to add?" And then he spoke.
Now, that answer is totally different from picking out two lines. And I think it's an unfair representative -- and it's exactly what some of the newspapers around the country did.
Now, let's go back to Susan Collins' comment, Senator Collins --
MR. RUSSERT: Well, let me just finish on the humvees because --
SEC. RUMSFELD: You bet. I'll tell you right now where we are. By February 15th, nine days from now, there will not be a vehicle moving around in Iraq outside of a protected compound with American soldiers in it that does not have an appropriate level of armor.
MR. RUSSERT: Which is a pretty dramatic change, because Newsweek had said that of the 19,000 humvees in the Iraqi theater, according to the Army's latest numbers, only a quarter were fully armored. So the fact is that Specialist Wilson's question in front of his troops in which he was cheered was helpful in getting people to truly focus and respond to this. Fair?
SEC. RUMSFELD: I didn't criticize his question. I thanked him for his question.
MR. RUSSERT: No, but is that a fair statement?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Well, you saw my answer. We'd already been focusing on it -- hard. I mean, I answered it by saying we had teams of people in Washington working on it, General Whitcomb was working on it.
Let's go back to Senator Collins. You said that she was critical because we couldn't predict the size of the insurgency. That is the job for the intelligence community. And it is unfortunate that we don't have perfect visibility into that. It is also unfortunate that it's changing and evolving, and therefore easy to say, Well, you don't know what the size is because the size is changing, but the fact of the matter is it's a difficult thing to do. And I suppose someone can sit back in an air-conditioned room and be critical of it, but the fact is the intelligence community is working as hard as they know how to try to manage those serious questions about what the size is.
Second, to say that I've resisted increasing the size of the Army is factually incorrect. We've increased the size of the Army. We've been doing it under the emergency authority. The Congress -- some of the people in the Congress have wanted to increase the end strength by statute. And we don't need that done because under the emergency authority we can increase it and we have already increased it by tens of thousands -- 20,000.
MR. RUSSERT: There was a large debate at the Pentagon. General Shinseki -- we've talked about this before -- others saying we needed 200,000 troops on the ground.
SEC. RUMSFELD: That's a separate issue from the size of the Army -- quite different.
MR. RUSSERT: Exactly. But there were also comments made that you were going to transform the Army and have a light, more mobile force and not have as many additional members of the armed forces as some were suggesting.
SEC. RUMSFELD: Not true. Not true.
MR. RUSSERT: At all?
SEC. RUMSFELD: No. We -- the size of the Army is quite a different thing from whether it's light and agile and mobile and able to go someplace fast. That's the nature of the Army, not the size of the Army.
MR. RUSSERT: In hindsight, do you wish we had sent more troops on the ground in Iraq initially?
SEC. RUMSFELD: I wish that we could have gotten the 4th Infantry Division in from the north, so that it would have been able to put more pressure on the Ba'athist regime and probably capture more of the Ba'athists that today are part of the insurgency. But in terms of the total numbers of troops that went in, we finally got the 4th ID in, but it had to come in from the south. So it was not as effective as had it come in through Turkey.
The answer to your other question is no. I think that General Franks and General Abizaid have been correct in calculating the number of troops that we need on the ground in Iraq.
MR. RUSSERT: Bob Woodward said General Franks --
SEC. RUMSFELD: Just a minute. Just a minute.
MR. RUSSERT: Bob Woodward had said that General Franks had recommended 300,000 troops.
SEC. RUMSFELD: At any given moment, General Franks might have had some number in his mind. So what we did was I agreed with his recommendation, which was that we put in line up to 500,000 that could go in were they needed, and that at any moment where they were not needed he would pull the stopper and stop it, and he did. And that's where it stopped. And I think he was right because the balance he faced in both Afghanistan and Iraq is you do not want to become a heavy footprint, occupying force that causes more of an irritant to the population than a benefit. And who knows what's perfect? It's not for me to judge. But when General Myers, General Pace, General Franks, General Abizaid, General Sanchez and now General Casey tell me that they believe we have the right number on the ground, that's good enough for me.
MR. RUSSERT: You said to CNN on Thursday that you tendered your resignation twice to the president of the United States.
SEC. RUMSFELD: I was asked.
MR. RUSSERT: Why?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Why? First of all, an unfortunate thing happened on my watch, and I was secretary.
MR. RUSSERT: Abu Ghraib?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Abu Ghraib. And people were not treated the way they should have been treated. And that's wrong. And it seemed to me that a president ought to have that choice. I had to make a decision if I thought I should leave. And I decided that I would leave if I thought I could not be effective. And I decided I thought I could be effective. But I also know that the president deserved a chance to make that decision himself. So I sat down with him and handed him a written resignation and urged him to think very carefully about it from his standpoint, from the country's standpoint. And that's why.
MR. RUSSERT: Why twice?
SEC. RUMSFELD: I did it first in the Oval Office. And about 10 days later, he was at the Pentagon. And I had migrated in my thinking that from his standpoint -- it might be wiser from his standpoint if he were able to step off fresh, and so I tried to persuade him that that was the case, and I failed.
MR. RUSSERT: Did you think you had done something wrong?
SEC. RUMSFELD: No. Obviously the country has to be deeply concerned that people were not treated right. And I was secretary of defense when that happened. And we've had eight or 10 investigations. We have had dozens of criminal trials, and people have pled guilty to doing things they shouldn't do. And obviously you just feel terrible about that. That is not the way our country behaves. And it was a most unfortunate thing that it happened. And I was secretary of Defense.
MR. RUSSERT: When John Kerry calls for your resignation and says he has 800,000 signatures on his Internet, John McCain says he has no confidence, Trent Lott says he's not a fan -- what does that do to your ability to be secretary of defense?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Well, you know, we were in a political campaign, and there are people always running for president, and that goes with the territory. We've never had a war in this country where there haven't been critics. They were calling for George Washington's resignation. In the Civil War they were constantly calling for resignations. In World War I, in World War II, in Korea. There's never been a war or a war president or a war secretary of State who has not been criticized by critics, and particularly during a political campaign or by political people who are running for president. So that's life.
MR. RUSSERT: Would you have done anything differently?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Oh, my goodness, sure. I don't know, maybe there was a way to get the -- you mean the 4th Infantry Division, that type of thing?
MR. RUSSERT: Or Abu Ghraib?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Well, I mean, in retrospect we've taken probably 15 or 20 administrative steps to require that people go in -- if it's the midnight shift half a world away, and we know in history people who guard people have done things wrong with respect to the people. It happens in prisons all over the United States and in other countries. So you don't want that to happen. So maybe you have to do senior officer checks at the midnight shift because apparently a lot of it happened during a relatively brief period of months -- weeks, months.
MR. RUSSERT: You're confident it cannot happen again?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Of course not. Human beings are human beings. People do things they shouldn't do. All I'm confident of is that the Army, which is the executive agent for detainees, is seized with this problem. They recognize it's their responsibility. They've worked hard to undertake a whole series of steps to try to see that it doesn't happen again. And I pray it doesn't happen again, because it's wrong.
MR. RUSSERT: And you will be secretary of defense and see this war through as long as --?
SEC. RUMSFELD: We serve at the pleasure of the president.
MR. RUSSERT: But you have every expectation of staying for how long?
SEC. RUMSFELD: I serve at the pleasure of the president.
MR. RUSSERT: You don't want to see Iraq all the way through until the American troops are home?
SEC. RUMSFELD: It's not for me to tie his hands. I look at what's happened in Afghanistan, and I think of the people who've -- our soldiers who've died there and the wounded, that I -- your heart breaks when you see limbs off -- and how proud they are of what they've accomplished, of liberating 25 million people who, for the first time in 5,000 years, have a popularly elected president, a constitution, they're going to have parliamentary elections later this spring or summer. It's a thrilling thing. It shows how important their sacrifice has been, and you see what's happening in Iraq and that election. And people who've been -- decades they've been frightened to come out of their homes, to put their heads up, to do something that the regime might not like, because they filled tens of thousands of people in mass graves. And they came out. I'm told that they wandered around in front of the election polling place and finally some woman in her 60s or 70s said, "I've waited my whole life to do this," walked in, and everyone walked in.
Now, those folks who've been killed there, those folks who were wounded there, their families and their loved ones have to feel that their sacrifice was worth it, that the effect that can have on that region and the world can just be so important. It's an amazing thing that's happening in our world.
MR. RUSSERT: Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, as always we thank you for your views.
SEC. RUMSFELD: Thank you.


text:
A thermosetting coating composition of a urethane polymer has film-forming constituents of an organic polyisocyanate, a polymer of polymerized ethylenically unsaturated monomer units which contains pendant hydroxyl-containing groups, and a hydroxyl-containing alkyd plasticizer. The composition can be applied at industrially-acceptable cure temperatures and volume-solids levels to form a durable film.
1. A curable coating composition comprising 10-70% by volume of a polymer blend and a solvent for the polymer blend wherein the polymer blend consists essentially of:
(a) 15-50% by weight, based on the weight of the blend, of an organic polyisocyanate;
(b) 10-70% by weight, based on the weight of the blend, of a polymer having a backbone of (i) polymerized ethylenically unsaturated monomers and (ii) polymerized ethylenically unsaturated ester units that form ester groups, attached to the backbone, of the formula ##STR6## wherein R1 is a saturated hydrocarbon radical having 2-10 carbon atoms and wherein the primary-hydroxyl content of the polymer is 0.5-4.4% by weight, based on the polymer, and;
(c) 15-40% by weight, based on the weight of the blend, of an alkyd resin plasticizer which is the reaction product of a glyceride of a saturated fatty acid, a dihydric alcohol, and a derivative of a dicarboxylic acid selected from the group consisting of anhydrides, dialkyl esters, and mixtures of these, wherein the reaction product has a primary-hydroxyl content of 1.0-4.4% by weight, based on the reaction product, and
wherein the coating composition is curable at ambient temperatures.
2. The coating composition of claim 1 in which the organic polyisocyanate is selected from the group consisting of aliphatic diisocyanates, cycloaliphatic diisocyanates, alkaryl diisocyanates, aralkyl diisocyanates, heterocyclic diisocyanates, and aryl diisocyanates.
3. The coating composition of claim 1 in which the organic polyisocyanate has the formula ##STR7## wherein R2 is aromatic or an aliphatic hydrocarbon radical having 1-12 carbon atoms.
4. The coating composition of claim 3 in which the polymer (b) has a backbone of (i) polymerized monomers of an aromatic hydrocarbon having a vinylene group and an alkyl ester of an ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid and (ii) polymerized ester units wherein R1 contains 2-4 carbon atoms and in which the dicarboxylic acid derivative is an anhydride.
5. The coating composition of claim 4 wherein the polymerized monomers (i) are styrene and an alkyl ester of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, or mixtures of these.
6. The coating composition of claim 5 wherein the alkyl ester is methyl methacrylate, and wherein R1 is ethylene.
7. The coating composition of claim 3, 4, 5, or 6 additionally containing 0.01-2.0% by weight, based on the weight of the polymer blend, of a curing catalyst.
8. The coating composition of claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 additionally containing pigment.
9. The coating composition of claim 1 wherein the polymerized monomers (i) are an aromatic hydrocarbon having a vinylene group and an alkyl ester of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, or a mixture of these two and wherein the polymerized ester units (ii) are esters of acrylic or methacrylic acid wherein R1 containing 2-4 carbon atoms.
10. The coating composition of claim 9 in which the organic polyisocyanate has the formula ##STR8## and in which the dicarboxylic acid derivative is an anhydride.
11. The coating composition of claim 10 in which the polymerized monomers (i) are styrene and methyl methacrylate, the polymerized ester units (ii) are hydroxyethyl acrylate, and the anhydride is phthalic anhydride.
12. The coating composition of claim 9, 10, or 11 additionally containing 0.01-2.0% by weight, based on the weight of the polymer blend, of an organo tin curing catalyst.
13. The coating composition of claim 9, 10, or 11 additionally containing pigment.
1. Field Of The Invention
This invention relates to a polyurethane film-forming composition of a polyisocyanate, a polymer having pendent hydroxyl-containing groups, and a reactive plasticizer.
2. Description Of The Prior Art
Polyurethane compositions are conventionally used as coatings, adhesives and molding materials. The inclusion in these compositions of a hydroxyl-containing polymer and a polyisocyanate is shown, for example, by U.S. Pat. No. 3,245,941 issued Apr. 12, 1966 to Mayer, et al. Such compositions are useful as coatings and the like but do not provide the durability and flexibility required for industrial finishes.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,558,564 issued Jan. 26, 1971 to Vasta shows a polyurethane coating of a polyisocyanate and a hydroxyl-containing polymer which satisfies these requirements. The hydroxyl groups shown in this patent are contained in ester groups attached directly to the polymer backbone, the ester groups being formed by reacting a hydroxyalkyl monomer, an anhydride of a dicarboxylic acid, and a glycidyl ester. These ester groups give the coating excellent flexibility but add to the molecular weight of the polymer, making it difficult to apply by spraying at high volume-solids, above 50%.
With the current emphasis on reduced solvent emissions and lower energy consumption, there remains a need for a polyurethane coating which not only can be spray-applied at high volume-solids but also can be cured at ambient temperatures to form a durable, flexible finish.
There is provided by the present invention, a thermosetting coating composition of a mixture of a polymer blend and a solvent for the polymer blend where the blend is 10-70% by volume of the mixture and consists essentially of
(1) 15-50% by weight, based on the weight of the blend, of an organic polyisocyanate;
(2) 10-70% by weight, based on the weight of the blend, of a polymer having a backbone of polymerized ethylenically unsaturated monomers and polymerized ethylenically unsaturated ester units that form ester groups of the formula ##STR1## attached directly to the backbone wherein R1 is a saturated hydrocarbon radical having 2-10 carbon atoms and wherein the primary-hydroxyl content of the polymer is 0.5-4% by weight; and
(3) 15-40% by weight, based on the weight of the blend, of an alkyd resin plasticizer which is the reaction product of a glyceride of a fatty acid, a dihydric alcohol, and a derivative of a dicarboxylic acid selected from the group consisting of anhydrides, dialkyl esters, and mixtures of these, wherein the reaction product has a primary-hydroxyl content of 1.0-4.4% by weight.
The film-forming portion of the coating composition of the present invention is a polymer blend of an organic polyisocyanate, a polymer containing pendant hydroxyl-containing ester units, and a hydroxyl-containing alkyd resin as a reactive plasticizer. Optionally, a reaction catalyst can be included in the composition to decrease the curing time.
The organic polyisocyanates that can be used in the present invention make up 15-50%, preferably 25-40%, by weight of the film-forming blend. These include aliphatic, cycloaliphatic, alkaryl, aralkyl, heterocyclic, and aryl di- or triisocyanates. Oligomers of these can also be used.
Typically useful polyisocyanates are, for example,
3,3'-dimethoxy-4,4'-diphenylene diisocyanate
methylene-bis-(4-cyclohexyl isocyanate)
tetramethylene diisocyanate,
hexamethylene diisocyanate,
decamethylene diisocyanate,
ethylene diisocyanate,
ethylidene diisocyanate,
m-phenylene diisocyanate,
p-phenylene diisocyanate,
1,5-naphthalene diisocyanate,
3,3'-dimethyl-4,4'-biphenylene diisocyanate,
3,3'-dimethoxy-4,4'-biphenylene diisocyanate,
3,3'-diphenyl-4,4'-biphenylene diisocyante,
4,4'-biphenylene diisocyanate,
3,3'-dichloro-4,4'-biphenylene diisocyanate,
furfurylidene diisocyanate,
1,3,5-benzene triisocyanate,
para,para',para"-triphenylmethane triisocyanate,
3,3'-diisocyanatodipropyl ether,
xylylene diisocyanate,
β,β-diphenyl propane-4,4'-diisocyanate, and
isophorone diisocyanate
Preferred among these are hexamethylene diisocyanate, methylene-bis-(4-cyclohexyl isocyanate), and isophorone diisocyanate. Particularly preferred polyisocyanates are biurets of the formula ##STR2## where R2 is an aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon group having 1-12 carbon atoms. These biurets can be made according to Wagner et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,015,165, issued Sept. 27, 1977. In a most preferred biuret, R2 is --(CH2)6 --. This biuret is a trimer of hexamethylene diisocyanate (HMDI), which is obtained by reacting three moles of HMDI with one mole of water.
The hydroxyl-containing polymer used in the present invention is prepared by co-polymerizing ethylenically-unsaturated monomers, to form part of the polymer backbone, with monomer units of hydroxyalkyl esters of ethylenically-unsaturated carboxylic acids. The polymer constitutes 10-70%, preferably 30-60%, by weight of the film-forming blend.
Ethylenically-unsaturated monomers that can be used in the polymer backbone are conventionally known and available. Specific examples are vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride, olefins, such as ethylene, propylene and the like; vinyl acetate, conjugated dienes having 4 to 10 carbon atoms, such as butadiene; aromatic hydrocarbons having vinylene groups, such as styrene, alkyl substituted styrene, such as α-methyl styrene; alkyl maleate, such as dibutyl maleate; vinyl pyrrolidone; esters of methacrylic acid and acrylic acid, preferably alkyl esters having 1-12 carbon atoms in the alkyl group, such as methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate, propyl methacrylate, butyl methacrylate, hexyl methacrylate, 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate, lauryl methacrylate and the like, methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, propyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, hexyl acrylate, lauryl acrylate and the like or mixtures of these monomers. Small amounts of ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acids can also be used in the backbone, such as acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, crotonic acid, itaconic acid, maleic acid and the like.
The hydroxyalkyl esters used in the present invention are co-polymerized with the above-mentioned backbone monomers to give ester groups, attached directly to the backbone, of the formula ##STR3## wherein R1 is a saturated hydrocarbon radical having 2-10 carbon atoms. Acids from which these esters are derived can be any ethylenically unsaturated mono or dicarboxylic acid such as acrylic, methacrylic, maleic, itaconic, crotonic, or other similar acids.
Preferred hydroxyalkyl ester monomers are, for example, hydroxyethyl methacrylate, hydroxypropyl methacrylate, hydroxybutyl methacrylate, hydroxyoctyl methacrylate, hydroxyethyl acrylate, hydroxypropyl acrylate, hydroxybutyl acrylate, and hydroxyoctyl acrylate. Most preferred are hydroxyalkyl methacrylates and acrylates in which the hydroxyl group is primary and the alkyl group has 2-4 carbon atoms.
The co-polymerization of the monomeric constitutents is preferably accomplished in an inert organic solvent in the presence of a free-radical forming initiator of the peroxide or azo type. Typical solvents are aromatics, esters, ethers, ketones, and the like. Examples are benzene, toluene, xylene, butyl acetate, ethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate, acetone, methylisobutyl ketone, and methylethyl ketone. Useful initiators are, for example, benzoyl peroxide, lauroyl peroxide, ditertiary butyl peroxide, cumene hydroperoxide, and azoisobutyric acid dinitrile. Conventional polymerization temperatures, based on reflux, are used, preferably in the range of 50� C. to about 200� C. The reaction is carried out to the point that the polymer has a number average molecular weight (as determined by gel permeation chromatography having polystyrene standards) of 3000 to 14000 preferably 4500 to 10000. It is preferred that the primary-hydroxyl content of the resultant polymer be from about 0.5-4.4% by weight, with a range of 1.0-3.0% being most preferred.
Although any combination of the above-mentioned monomers and esters can be copolymerized to form polymers useful in the present invention. A preferred polymer consists essentially of monomer units of methyl methacrylate, 25-40% by weight; styrene, 40-60% by weight; and hydroxyethyl acrylate, 10-30% by weight.
The plasticizer used in the present invention is an alkyd resin that is 15-40% by weight, preferably 20-30% by weight of the film-forming polymer blend. The plasticizer is the reaction product of a glyceride of a fatty acid, a dihydric alcohol, and a derivative of a dicarboxylic acid wherein the derivative is an anhydride, a dialkyl ester, or a mixture of these.
The above-mentioned glycerides have the general formula ##STR4## wherein R3,R4 and R5 are the same or different straight-chain hydrocarbon groups, ranging in size from 8 to 16 carbon atoms. Each of the groups can be alkylene or can contain one or more double bonds.
The glycerides are structurally considered to be the condensation product of a molecule of glycerol and three molecules of the same or different fatty acids. For example, useful glycerides are found in coconut oil, castor oil, cottonseed oil, peanut oil, tung oil, linseed oil, soya oil, and dehydrated castor oil. Preferred glycerides are derived from one or more of the saturated fatty acids such as capric, lauric, myristic, palmitic, and stearic acids. An oil in which these preferred glycerides predominate is coconut oil.
The anhydrides and dialkyl esters useful in the formation of the plasticizer are derived from dicarboxylic acids of the general formula ##STR5## wherein R6 is either alkylene, vinylene, aromatic, carbocyclic, or heterocyclic.
Preferred acids when R6 is alkylene are those in which R6 has 2-10 carbon atoms. Examples are glutaric, adipic, pimelic, and succinic acids. Most preferred of this group is succinic acid. When R6 is vinylene, the most useful acids are those in which R6 has 2-8 carbon atoms. Typical acids of this group are maleic and itaconic acids.
Dibasic aromatic acids, such as phthalic, uritic, and cumidinic acids, are also useful to form anhydrides and dialkyl esters. Useful acids when R6 is carbocyclic are, for example, hexahydrophthalic acid and tetrahydrophthalic acid.
The alkyl groups of the dialkyl esters can be the same or different hydrocarbon radicals having 1-8 carbon atoms. The groups can be primary, secondary, or tertiary. Terephthalic, maleic, and succinic acids are preferred in the formation of these di-esters. A most preferred di-ester is dimethyl terephthalate. Preferred anhydrides are phthalic, maleic, and succinic anhydride.
A dihydric alcohol is the third constituent of the plasticizer. Typical of useful alcohols are ethylene glycol; propylene glycol; 1-3 propanediol; 1,2 butanediol; meso-2,3 butanediol; and 1,4 butanediol. Preferred are those dihydric alcohols in which both hydroxyl groups are primary.
As a typical example of the formation of the plasticizer, the glyceride, dihydric alcohol, and a suitable solvent are charged into a reaction vessel and heated for 30 minutes to 2 hours at 100� C.-200� C. The solvent can be any of those described above in the production of the hydroxyl-containing polymer. The dicarboxylic acid derivative is then added slowly over a 1-4 hour period. The reaction mixture is heated to its reflux temperature, 100� C.-300� C., and maintained at reflux for about 30 minutes to 4 hours, until the product has a number average molecular weight (determined by gel permeation chromatography based on polystyrene standards) of 800-1600, perferably 900-1200. The reactants should be chosen so that the product, the plasticizer, has a primary-hydroxyl content of 1.0-4.4% by weight, preferably 2.0-4.0% by weight.
The hydroxyl-containing polymer and the plasticizer, formed as described above, are each in solution and are suitable for direct use to form the coating composition of this invention by blending with each other and with a solution of the polyisocyanate. In practice, a two component system can be used, that is, a solution of polyisocyanate is in one package, and a solution of the hydroxyl-containing polymer and plasticizer is in a separate package. The two solutions are thoroughly mixed just before applying the coating composition. Separation of the two solutions is usually necessary since the "pot life" of the composition is short--the polyisocyanate reacts with the hydroxyl groups of the polymer and plasticizer at a rapid rate, even at room temperatures.
Regardless of the method by which the final coating composition is mixed, the composition contains 10-70% by volume of the polymer blend (the hydroxyl-containing polymer, the plasticizer, and the polyisocyanate) and a solvent for the blend. One of the useful aspects of the present invention is that it can be conveniently spray-applied even at high volume-solids levels. The solvent of the final composition can be a mixture of the organic solvents in which the constituents of the polymer blend are each formed.
The coating composition of this invention may contain about 0.01-2.0% by weight, based on the weight of the polymer blend, of a curing catalyst. The catalysts are usually organo metallics such as dibutyl tin dilaurate and zinc octoate, which are preferred, dibutyl tin di-2-ethylhexoate, stannous octoate, stannous oleate, zinc naphthenate, vanadium acetyl acetonate, and zirconium acetyl acetonate. Also useful as catalysts are tertiary amines, such as, for example, triethylene diamine, heptamethylisobiguanide, triethylamine,pyridine,dimethylaniline, and methyl morpholine. When a two-component system is used, the catalyst can be added to either the polyisocyanate solution or the solution of the hydroxyl-containing polymer and the plasticizer.
Instead of the two-component "two-package", system described above, a "one package" coating composition can be prepared if the reactive groups of the polyisocyanate are blocked with a blocking agent such as methyl ethyl ketoxime. This eliminates the need for keeping the hydroxyl-containing polymer and plasticizer apart from the polyisocyanate until just before use. When the coating composition, with the blocked polyisocyanate, is applied and heated to 150�-160� C., the blocking agent is released, permitting the polyisocyanate to react with the polymer and plasticizer.
To provide the novel coating composition with other characteristics that may be desirable under some conditions, other compatible polymers may be blended with the coating composition, such as polymethyl methacrylate, polystyrene, polyvinylpyrrolidone and the like. For example, 20-40% by weight, based on the weight of the polymer blend, of polymethyl methacrylate decreases the drying time and enhances the gloss and appearance of the dried coating.
The coating composition of the invention can be pigmented, containing an amount of pigment in a pigment/polymer-blend weight ratio of about 0.2/1 to 100/1. Useful pigments are, for example, metallic oxides, such as titanium dioxide or zinc oxide; metal hydroxides; metal flakes; sulfides; sulfates; carbonates; carbon black; silica; talc; china clay; and organic dyes.
The pigments can be introduced into the coating composition by first forming a mill base with the hydroxyl-containing polymer. The mill base can be formed, for example, by conventional sand-grinding or ball-milling techniques, and then can be blended, by simple stirring or agitation, with the other constituents of the coating composition.
The coating composition of this invention can be applied to a variety of substrates by any of the conventional application methods such as spraying, dipping, brushing, or flow coating. Substrates that can be advantageously coated with the present composition are, for example, metal, steel, wood, glass, or plastics such as polypropylene, polystyrene, copolymers of styrene, and the like. The coating is particularly suited for application over primed or unprimed metal or steel. Typical uses are for coating steel that has been treated with zinc phosphate, metal substrates pre-coated with conventional alkyd or epoxy primers, and galvanized steel.
The coating can be air-dried or can be dried by heating at 50�-120� C. for 15 minutes to two hours. As noted, however, if the coating contains a blocked polyisocyanate, temperatures of 150�-160� C. are necessary. When air-dried, the coating is tack-free after two hours, and has a knoop hardness of 1.5 and pencil hardness of H after 4 days. As further drying occurs, hardness progresses advantageously, and the composition finally dries to a coating that can be polished by conventional techniques to improve further the gloss or appearance. The dried coating is hard, durable, scratch and stain resistant, and weather resistant. It is suitable, for example, for coating automobile or truck bodies, railroad equipment, appliances, and any outdoor equipment.
The following example illustrates the best mode of the invention.
The following 3 ingredients are prepared as follows:
______________________________________1. Polymer solution Parts by Weight______________________________________Portion 1Ethylene Glycol monoethyl ether 1280acetatePortion 2Styrene 880Methyl methacrylate 502Hydroxyethyl acrylate 188Ditertiary butyl peroxide 31.4 1601.4______________________________________
Portion 1 is charged into a reaction vessel and heated to reflux, approximately 145� C. Reflux is maintained for one hour, after which time Portion 2 is added, with mixing, over a four-hour period. The mixture is maintained at reflux during this period and for an additional two hours thereafter. The resulting polymer has a primary-hydroxyl content of 1.8% by weight (based on polymer weight) and a number average molecular weight (gel permeation chromatography) of 5500. The polymer solution has a Gardner-Holdt viscosity of X and a solids content of 55% by volume.
______________________________________2. Mill Base Parts By Weight______________________________________Polymer solution (ingredient 1) 22.0Methylethyl ketone 12.0TiO2 white pigment 66.0 100.0______________________________________
The above constituents are added into a porcelain mill containing 3 quarts of pebbles and ground for 72 hours.
______________________________________3. Plasticizer solution Parts By Weight______________________________________Portion 1Coconut Oil 272.32Ethylene glycol 189.49Lead Tallate 0.18 461.99Portion 2Toluene 138.86Portion 3Phthalic anhydride 366.19______________________________________
Portion 1 is charged into a reaction vessel equipped with an agitatior and reflux condenser and heated quickly to 182� C. This temperature is maintained for one hour after which about 25% of Portion 2 is slowly added, maintaining temperature and mixing throughout. Portion 3 is then added slowly, with mixing, while heating is increased until the temperature reaches 220� C. The reaction is allowed to continue at this temperature, maintaining sufficient reflux to give a vessel pressure (guage) of 1-2 inches mercury, until the acid number (100% solids basis) is 6-8. Heating is stopped, and the remainder of Portion 2 is added. The mixture is agitated for one hour and then filtered. The resulting reaction product, the plasticizer, has a primary-hydroxyl content of 2.2% by weight (based on product solids weight) and a number average molecular weight (gel permeation chromatography) of 1000. The plasticizer solution has a Gardner Holdt viscosity of S-W and a solids content of 85% by volume.
A coating composition is then prepared with the following constituents:
______________________________________ Parts By Weight______________________________________Polymer solution (ingredient 1) 55.15Mill base (ingredient 2) 121.21Plasticizer solution (ingredient 3) 35.29Polyisocyanate (trimer of hexamethylenediisocyanate, 75% weight-solids inethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate) 33.33Dibutyl tin dilaurate (0.2% weight in 3.67ethyl acetate)______________________________________
The above constituents are charged into a stainless steel vessel and thoroughly mixed, giving a coating composition of non-volatile solids in solvent wherein the solids are 60% by volume of the composition.
The coating composition is sprayed (airless spray using a pressure of 2500 pounds per square inch) onto polished steel panels that had been primed with an epoxy-based primer, and the coated panels are allowed to air-dry. When tested thirteen days after spraying, the coating has a Knoop hardness of 2.57 and a gloss, measured at 20�, of 95. There is negligible gloss loss after 3-month, horizontal, Florida exposure. Adhesion of the coating to the primer is excellent as determined by knifescratching the coating to separate it from the primer.
A one-molar solution of each of ammonium hydroxide, hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, acetic acid, and sodium hydroxide is prepared. A panel, coated as above, is placed in contact with each solution for 16 hours. No staining of the coating occurs in any case.
Patent Citations
Referenced by
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More bad news for the US Air Force's aging aircraft fleets.
I'm sure everybody remembers the infamous longeron-cracking that grounded the entire Boeing F-15 fleet in November, which for a time left (gasp!) Oregon's air space briefly undefended.
Less strenuously reported is the worsening structural condition of growing numbers of older-model Lockheed Martin F-16s. Cheers to Graham Warwick for forwarding this snippet of written testimony from a Congressional hearing earlier this month. The writing is attributed to "Daniel J. Darnell Deputy Chief of Staff Air, Space and Information Operations, Plans and Requirements Headquarters, U.S. Air Force."
He says:
Wing pylon rib corrosion, a known problem with the F-16 aircraft is an issue we monitor closely. This corrosion prevents the F-16s from carrying pylon mounted external fuel tanks, which limits their effective combat range. While we currently have three F-16 aircraft grounded due to wing pylon rib corrosion, the corrosion problem is somewhat common across the fleet. For example, within the past 24 months, we identified 27 aircraft at Aviano Air Base, Italy with this problem. We currently inspect F-16 aircraft every 800 hours to monitor for this problem. Because of inspections, we have also found approximately 16% (69 of 399) of our Block 40/42 F-16 aircraft now have bulkhead cracks. This discovery has led to 22 Block 40/42 F-16 aircraft grounded due to the severity of the cracks. An additional 41 aircraft continue to fly with flight restrictions. We will continue to monitor this situation closely.
Now comes the news this week that the relatively young C-17 fleet is also dealing with a structural problem.
General Arthur Licthe, chief of Air Mobility Command, told lawmakers this week that stress imposed by the C-17′s thrust reversers have spawned fuselage cracks in the airframe. I asked Boeing for elaboration, and here's what they told me:
Thanks for your question on the C-17 fatigue cracks. The stress cracks, beneath and forward of the wings on the C-17 fuselage are a minor occurrence and don't pose a safety hazard for the aircraft or flight crews. Boeing has developed a fix for the problem and the fix has been demonstrated and validated to meet the durability requirements. There's no impact on the operational readiness of these planes and the cracks are being fixed during regularly scheduled maintenance with a simple technique.
I also asked Boeing why the thrust reversers would lead to fuselage cracks forward of and beneath the wings. Boeing's reply:
It's referred to as the "fire hose effect." The reversed air, from the fan thrust reverser, glances off the fuselage forward and below the wing. The resultant stresses in the fuselage skins due to this impingement were higher than anticipated and have resulted in the small skin cracks.


text:
Mark Cuban, the last male to be voted off (in Week 5) was recently interviewed by RealityTvMagazine.com. Mark gave them the scoop on the competition and who he thinks will win it all.
Here is a portion of that interview:
Mark Cuban: Cameron. He is getting better and better, and he has great comic timing, which makes for great interviews. That is of course unless all the Cheetah fans out there learn how to create 200 email addresses each and spend all morning voting.
You can read the rest of Mark's interview - and find out about the celebrity installment of Donald Trump's "The Apprentice" by clicking here.
Will Cameron win it all? We'll have to wait and see but this week was another good showing for Cameron and Edyta. They drew a Samba and earned 25 points from the judges. Each week the judges have noted how much Cameron has improved in his dance technique and showmanship, which is a very good sign.
Last night was a surprising finish. For the first time Cameron was in the bottom two according to America's vote. He got lucky, though, and Cheetah girl Sabrina was voted off instead. So Cameron is now dancing into Week 7!
Soaps.com has been following Cameron on "Dancing with the Stars" since opening night. You can catch up on all of his dances and find out how he is doing by clicking here.


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Welcome to the Northest Nebraska Public Power District's Website!
Our Purpose: "The Northeast Nebraska Public Power District is dedicated to providing reliable and competitively priced electricity to our consumers while maintaining a sound financial position and effective, fair and consistent service"
Click here for Hours of Operation and Drop Box Locations...
Thursday May 14, 2015
Wayne, NE
At 9:00 am, the Board of Directors will meet with their attorneys in closed session to discuss legal matters.
The next regular meeting of the Northeast Nebraska PPD Board of Directors is scheduled for Tuesday, May 26, 2015 at 7:30 pm at the General Office, 1410 West Seventh Street, Wayne, NE
NeNPPD Board Meetings are conducted in accordance with the State of Nebraska's Open Meetings Act. A copy of the entire legislation is available for public inspection in the meeting room. Board Meeting Dates and Minutes of previous Board Meetings may be viewed here.
A Report on Future Bulk Power Purchase Decisions
Are you adding new large motor loads? Then click here to save time, money, effort and avoid costly mistakes.Due to the increasing number of request for large grain bins and irrigation pumps we must advise that our electric system may not be able to supply every request at every location. Call us first and give us the opportunity to be part of your planning process before you site a new bin or pivot.We may have information you need to know. Click here for a letter sent to electricians and bin dealers in March 2009.
Since the start of the District's local Operation Roundup Program in early 2012, about $82,000 has been disbursed to Community programs, Schools, Fire Departments, Community Food Banks, Civic Organizations and Charities all serving needs in Dixon, Dakota, Thurston, Stanton, Pierce and Wayne Counties. This program is supported by over 4,200 customer accounts. In offering customers this opportunity we believed the District was unique in its ability to collect pennies and turn them into enough money to make a difference to our local area. The funds are controlled by a separate Board of Directors and are audited each year. For a complete list of organizations that have received a donation from Operation Roundup, click on this link. Operation Roundup is a voluntary program and customers can enroll by calling the office.


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If you go
What: Foster the People, in concert.
When: 6 p.m. June 27.
Where: Edgefield Amphitheater, 2126 S.W. Halsey St., Troutdale, Ore.
Cost: Sold out.
Information: 503-669-8610 or http://mcmenamins.com.
The next time Mark Foster has a chance to skip out of his work writing songs to go to the beach, don't be surprised if he decides to stay inside and write.
Another time he chose work over play, things worked out pretty well for Foster and his band, Foster the People.
"I really didn't have anything to do that day," Foster recalled in an early June phone interview. "I was standing there in the studio, and this thought came in my mind like, 'I'm going to write a song,' which I did all the time. I just kind of built a song from the ground up …and then I was like, 'I don't feel like writing. I don't want to write a song.' I was a block away from the beach, and it was a beautiful day. I kind of just wanted to just be lazy and go hang out at the beach or whatever. But I just forced myself to write a song. I was like, 'Nope, I want to write a song.' By that time the next day, the song was finished."
It wasn't just any song he finished. It was "Pumped Up Kicks," the multiformat hit song that propelled Foster the People's debut CD, "Torches," toward platinum-selling success and a level of popularity that is allowing the group this summer to headline outdoor amphitheaters.
Beyond its success, Foster feels that he learned an important songwriting lesson from "Pumped Up Kicks."
"I've heard a lot of other artists talk about this as well, like, 'I'm not inspired right now. I've got writer's block. I'm just not really feeling anything,'" Foster said. "And I've felt that way, too, just not being inspired and wanting to wait for inspiration to come before I wrote. But I wasn't inspired when I wrote 'Pumped Up Kicks,' and that's what came out. So … it just solidified the notion that perspiration is more powerful than inspiration."
Foster knows a thing or two about working to carve out a path in music. In fact, it took him some seven years before he formed Foster the People with drummer Mark Pontius (bassist Cubbie Fink completed the lineup later) and wrote "Pumped Up Kicks" over the space of that single day.
After finishing "Pumped Up Kicks," Foster posted the song as a free download, and it went viral. Around the same time, Foster the People landed a slot at the South By Southwest Music Festival in Austin in March 2010.
Soon the buzz was on. By summer of 2010, Foster the People had signed to Startime International, part of the Columbia Records group of labels.
The group debuted with a self-titled EP featuring "Pumped Up Kicks" in January 2011. This allowed the song to get early radio play and placement on several high-profile television shows.
By the time "Torches" arrived in May, "Pumped Up Kicks" had already cracked Billboard magazine's Hot 100 singles chart and paved the way for "Torches" to debut at No. 8 on Billboard's album chart. By July, "Pumped Up Kicks" was crossing over to Adult Top 40 and Mainstream Top 40 and on its way to No. 3 on the Hot 100 chart.
The song's popularity is easy to understand. Fueled by a thumping beat, a hooky bass line and a sing-along-worthy chorus, it's an irresistible slice of synthy dance pop. The rest of "Torches" is solid as well, as on songs like "Call It What You Want," "Don't Stop (Color On The Walls) and "Warrant," Foster the People fashion a sound that deftly blends rock, synthy pop and dance-inducing rhythms.
The song's success, though, also created a challenge -- to establish Foster the People as more than a one-hit wonder.
"I really wanted to make sure that people knew we were more than 'Pumped Up Kicks' and that it wasn't a fluke," Foster said.
The group got the follow-up hit it wanted with "Don't Stop (Color On the Walls)," which went top 10 on several rock charts. And now the latest single, "Houdini," has cracked the top 40 on the latest Billboard's Alternative Songs chart.
The summer tour should help the band maintain its momentum heading into work this fall on its second album. The tour will be Foster the People's biggest production to date.
"For this tour, we wanted to bring the 'Torches' artwork to life, bring the characters to life and kind of bring that whole world, make that whole world real," Foster said. "So we've got a fair amount of video, animation in the same style of that. We've got a backdrop that's kind of a town in the same art as the characters, basically like where the characters live, behind us. Then there are inflatables that blow up throughout the show that are different characters from the album art.
"I've not seen anything like it before," he said. "And then there are bubbles and confetti and all that stuff, too, which never really gets old."


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Video: Week in Review – MAC Cosmetics, Illamasqua, theBalm, and Zoya
Video: Week in Review, Vol. 003
It's been a rather busy week! Over the past few days, we looked at a new holiday palette from theBalm, MAC's most recent Viva Glam release, as well as a collaboration lipstick called Yung Rapunxel. We also discovered two fun Illamasqua pieces this week! Subscribe to our channel if you enjoy the videos!
Products Mentioned
- theBalm Balm Jovi Face Palette
- Illamasqua Naked Rose Blush
- MAC Viva Glam Nicki Lipglass
- Illamasqua Obsidian Eyeshadow
- MAC Lipsticks
- Zoya Suri Nail Lacquer
- MAC Yung Rapunxel Lipstick
- NARS Andy Warhol Collection
Makeup Breakdown
On eyes: Tom Ford Emerald Lust Eye Color Quad, Burberry Trench Eyeshadow, Tom Ford Exotic Teal Eye Defining Pencil, and Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Waterproof Mascara. On cheeks: Buxom Euphoria Blush. On lips: Bobbi Brown Canary High Shimmer Lipgloss, Revlon Sizzle ColorBurst Lipgloss, Clarins 05 Gloss Prodige.
Discussion and debate are highly encouraged, and we expect community members to participate respectfully. When asking a question, please check the FAQ section (above) for information about purchasing, price, dupes, and the like. If you have general feedback or need technical support, please contact us.
Comments that include advertisements, self-promotion, insults, etc. may be in violation of our comment policy and subject to deletion. Please see our comment policy for more information.


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12:46 pm
Thu September 12, 2013
Kentucky—and Most States—are Spending Less Per Student Than Before the Recession, Report Says
Originally published on Fri September 13, 2013 5:31 am
Kentucky lags behind its peers for funding its public education system since the recession, a new report from the Washington-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities shows.
The report released Thursday shows 34 states provide less per-student funding than they did in 2008. Of those, 15 states are giving less than they did a year ago.
Kentucky is among both these groups.
Kentucky Center for Economic Policy Director Jason Bailey was also on the state's 2012 tax commission that recommended ways Kentucky could generate more revenue through tax changes. He says it's up to lawmakers to act under increased budget restraints and find ways to generate more revenue.
"The ball is in the court of the legislature. They are the only ones that have the authority to change state tax laws," he says.
According to a 2012 report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 33 states have changed tax policies to increase revenue since the recession. Kentucky did so in 2009, when it taxed alcohol and cigarettes but that only provided a slight increase in revenue. The center says during the past few years, only 20 of those states that changed its tax policy provided a significant boost through those changes.
Bailey says this coming year, the legislature will be dealing with a budget that could be worse off than the current budget and he points to issues like the state's failing pension system as reasons why tax reforms are needed.
Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday has also supported tax reforms to help pay for education when the General Assembly sets the next biennium budget. Holliday previously told WFPL he would also support expanded gaming.
(Image via Shutterstock)


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Should have known to look before I asked... found-em!!!
I can practice most of these in my home range!!! (Out to 25 yds).
The 35 yd shots, I'll shoot at 25, with smaller targets...
Off to practice... FUN!
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On 24 June, Dr Louise Hardwick gave an invited talk at the Institut Français in South Kensington as part of a conference paying tribute to the great French Caribbean poet Aimé Césaire.
Louise discussed an innovative teaching and learning website she has designed to introduce students to the Cahier d'un retour au pays natal. The resource has won prizes and attracted interest from academics in the UK and France. It is available to all French students at Birmingham via WebCT and runs alongside the scheduled lectures and seminars.
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Nintendo is geared up to put whole 3-D worlds in your hands with the European and North American launch of their newest handheld gaming platform, the 3DS. Launched a month ago in Japan, eager gamers in Europe will finally get the chance to purchase the 3DS on March 25, and U.S. gamers shortly thereafter on March 27th at a $249.99 price-point, the highest ever for a Nintendo handheld gaming device and as much or more as current generation consoles. With many industry analysts critical of Nintendo for not capitalizing of their Wii success and questioning the company's future, much hangs in the balance with the launch of the 3DS. Ever since the 3DS was officially revealed at the 2010 E3 Conference last June, expectations and buzz have been high. Will the 3DS be a colossal failure like the previous Nintendo foray into 3-D gaming, the Virtual Boy, or will it be another industry game changer like the Wii?
The 3DS utilizes the clamshell design, similar to the DS. A solid and faithful design, I never hesitate to let even the youngest gamers play my DS (unlike with my PSP). In fact, the 3DS looks very similar to the DS except for the addition of an analog stick above the d-pad controls. That is where the similarities end. The 3DS is much more sophisticated internally than its predecessors. Inside is a 3-axis accelerometer and 3-axis gyroscope to help utilize motion control by moving the unit during game play. A 2-D front-facing camera and two, rear-facing 3-D cameras, will obviously give owners the ability to take and edit 3-D pictures. And speaking of 3-D, the top screen display is an Autosteroscopic, 90 mm screen, and a 77mm screen on bottom (both upgraded to 24 bit color from the 16 bit color of the last generation DS screens). The graphics look vastly improved from the DS.
Better graphics are only part of the potential in this handheld gaming unit, as the name implies, 3-D is the big feature on the 3DS. Thanks to the small screen size and the fact that the viewer is directly in front of the screen, Nintendo has managed to find the holy grail of 3-D without the glasses. Glasses-free home monitors are still a few years away because the viewing angle is so small that the 3-D effect can only be seen when sitting directly in front of the screen. The 3DS being a personal, hand-held gaming device makes this a non-issue. Don't like the 3-D effect? Turn it off with the slider on the top-right half of the clamshell. In fact, Nintendo actually recommends this for young players.
Nintendo has been pushing the boundaries of breaking the game experience free of the screen or box. One of the most exciting and innovative parts of the 3DS is the AR (augmented reality) cards and games. Though this is hard to explain without experiencing it first-hand, you lay one of these cards on a flat surface. When you look at the card through the 3DS screen the magic happens. The box will appear to burst up and change the environment in which it sits. A dragon may pop out of the table that the card sits on, or the where the card sits will sink into a hole that you can only look down by moving the 3DS unit directly above and looking through the screen. It is wild! I was skeptical until a nice Japanese student let me check it out for myself on his 3DS. I didn't want to give it back. Suddenly places you may be can become part of your game environment. Pair this with the aforementioned motion controls and you begin to see the amazing potential of the 3DS.
The 3DS is intended to be a multimedia device. Starting this summer, NetFlix will be able to stream movies to the device. Nintendo also plans to operate a short-form video service to distribute 3-D movie trailers, short videos, and music videos to the 3DS. A web browser will also be added, and 3DS owners are expected to receive free Wi-Fi access on AT&T hot spots. Other 3DS features will include: a pedometer that will earn you credits for in-game use, a Mii maker that will scan your face and automatically select features that you may or may not choose to use, a tag mode called Streetpass that will introduce you to other 3DS players who have it turned on and you pass on the streets, and an eShop to buy old Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Gear, and Turbo Grafx 16 titles on the virtual console.
Many games will be available for the 3DS including: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time 3D, Kid Icarus: Uprising (yea!), Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D, Ridge Racer 3D, Nintendogs and Cats (groan), Madden NFL Football, Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition and many others. Future titles should include: Starfox 64, Metal Gear Solid 3, and Paper Mario. I seriously hope the 3DS gets better game support than the DS. Call me a heathen, but I feel most handhelds lack a surplus of quality games. The fact that the DS had so much shovel-ware was sad. Good games will be essential, or all the 3DS bells and whistles will be for not. There is no denying the potential of the 3DS. I hope it lives up to it all and then some, and Nintendo once again changes the gaming industry forever.


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Sky Sports News Radio's Mikey Burrows is in the chair this week and is joined by TEAMtalk.com Editor Simon Wilkes and his TEAMtalk colleague and Matty Briggs.
The trio kick-off with Stoke's precarious predicament and are joined on the phone by colleague Mark Holmes who gives his expert opinion on why things are going wrong at The Britannia. Simon thinks the Potters have to get rid of Tony Pulis if they are to survive, while Matty says all is not lost and points towards the Di Canio revolution at Sunderland.
The Tyne-Wear derby is analysed and the impact and hunger that Di Canio has had on the Black Cats comes under the microscope. Simon says two of his most memorable Premier League moments have come at St James' Park in recent weeks with the celebrations of Alan Pardew and Di Canio living long in the memory. And Matty says normally sliding on your knees is reserved for idiots at weddings!
Mikey believes the FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Manchester City was the final everyone wanted to see, but Matty and Simon disagree. And Sergio Aguero's return to form is the reason why City have started to click again, according to Simon
While in the Premier League Matty says that champions-elect Manchester United are a team that are 'great' at rolling over inferior opposition rather than a 'great' team.
Click here to download the Podcast as an MP3 file.
You can also access the Podcast on iTunes.
If you want to get a mention on the next Football Podcast, send a tweet to @TEAMtalk with the hashtag #ilovethepodcast - and we'll give your Twitter page a plug.


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How not to stay on topAugust 21,2013In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the dominant computing device used in corporate America was a word processor made by Wang Laboratories. The companys founder and chief executive was An Wang, a brilliant Chinese immigrant who was widely hailed as a visionary entrepreneur and philanthropist.
At Wangs peak, some 80 percent of the top 2,000 corporations used the companys word processors, according to Bloomberg Businessweek. The companys rise was so heady that Wang used to keep a chart in his desk that showed when he expected to overtake the mighty IBM sometime in the mid-1990s.
But then IBM created its first personal computer, and that was the beginning of the end for Wang. He and his company stubbornly clung to the notion that the main thing people wanted from their computers was word processing. Even after the company realized its error by which time Wang had foolishly installed his son as chief executive it always seemed to be a step behind.
By 1992, Wang Laboratories was bankrupt, done in by competitors that understood that people wanted their computers to be more than glorified typewriters.
Twenty-five years after Wang Laboratories dominated with its word processor, a Canadian company then called Research in Motion was the dominant player in its corner of technology: the cellphone and wireless email market. The company, of course, made the BlackBerry. It is a remarkably similar story.
In its heyday, the BlackBerry was so popular that it was nicknamed the CrackBerry. Chief technology officers loved its emphasis on security. Corporate employees loved its compact keyboard, which they mastered with their thumbs. As recently as 2009, the BlackBerry had about 22 percent of the smartphone market.
Today, of course, the company which recently changed its name to BlackBerry is in a heap of trouble. In the last quarter, it announced a net loss of $84 million, the latest in a string of bad financial news. In the latest quarter, its share of the global smartphone market has slid to 2.7 percent. Its board announced last week that it was exploring strategic options, which usually means it is putting itself on the block.
Just like Wang Laboratories and thousands of other once-dominant companies that stubbornly clung to what they thought they were instead of what they needed to be the maker of the BlackBerry has become an object lesson in the vagaries of capitalism.
It is not exactly news that it was the introduction of Apples iPhone in 2007 followed by smartphone competitors that used Googles Android operating system that turned the BlackBerry from a dominant to a marginal device. But its a little more complicated than that.
To start with, BlackBerrys co-chief executives, Mike Lazaridis and James Balsillie, simply didnt take the iPhone seriously at first just as An Wang didnt take the personal computer seriously. After all, the iPhone had a touch screen that made it more difficult to write the kind of long, serious, work-related emails BlackBerry users took for granted. The iPhone was a toy, they thought, and assumed that corporations would never let their employees use them on the job.
More than that, though, BlackBerry had a huge installed base, and they were afraid to walk away from it, said Carolina Milanesi, a research vice president with the Gartner Group. This is a problem that often plagues dominant companies. They are so concerned with playing defense protecting what they have built that they stand paralyzed as new competitors arise with business models they cant, or wont, replicate.
As it turns out, it was true that the iPhone made emailing a more cumbersome experience. But it did everything else so much better that it didnt matter. People were willing to give up some of the ease of email use for everything else iPhones provided. BlackBerry had long thought of itself as a company that provided mobile phone and wireless email service. But Apple gave consumers a sense that they could have something more. In time, the iPhone became a more secure device, and technology officers succumbed to employee desires that they support it. The toy had become a tool.
In recent years, BlackBerry has introduced phones with touch screens. It set aside $150 million to lure developers to write apps for its phones. Its latest phone has gotten some good reviews. But the company has been consistently one step behind its competitors. Although BlackBerry could conceivably stage a comeback, it is still not a good place to be.
Was BlackBerrys fall from grace inevitable? When you look at the history of dominant companies starting with General Motors it is easy enough to conclude yes. There are companies that occasionally manage to reinvent themselves. They are nimble and ruthless, willing to disrupt their own business model because they can sense a threat on the horizon. But theyre the exception.
Wang Laboratories is the rule. And so is BlackBerry.
Joe Nocera is a columnist for The New York Times.MORE IN CommentaryThere are several passages in the new book "Overloaded and Underprepared" that fill... Full StoryMy son Nick, a podcast aficionado, suggested recently that Id enjoy a podcast called StartUp,... Full StoryFollowing are the remarks of Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. Full Story
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Advisor checklist: 125 tasks that must be done on the most difficult day of your client's life
By Christopher P. Hill, RFC
Wealth and Income Group LLC and FuneralResources.com
Picture this scenario. Your phone rings and immediately you realize by the tone of the caller's voice that something terrible has happened. Your client then tells you that a close loved one has unexpectedly died.
After offering your sincere condolences, what value can you bring your client at that very moment? What can you tell them with regards to what they need to do next? What are the steps and details they need to begin looking into and planning for? And most importantly, have you had "the conversation" about death with your clients, and subsequently implemented plans and preparations for this exact situation?
Questions and answers most families need
The three most common questions families ask after experiencing a loved one's death are:
- What do we do next?
- What kind of funeral/burial/cremation/memorial arrangements do we prepare?
- How do we pay for the expenses?
Our industry needs end-of-life training and support
Regrettably, the financial services industry has not yet readily adopted end-of-life planning as a part of the standard services we provide. I firmly believe this needs to change. I also believe end-of-life planning will become a valuable tool for financial professionals and their practices in the years ahead.
If you think about it, death is a guaranteed and unavoidable event, and is almost always accompanied by many time-sensitive and extremely difficult emotional and financial decisions. The harsh reality is that the financial services industry rarely:
- encourages having "the conversation" about death
- teaches the most effective ways to approach this sensitive topic
- provides education and/or training on how to create a sound end-of-life plan
Why am I so passionate about helping you add end-of-life planning to your practice? Well, maybe you don't want to hear this any more than most people enjoy talking about it. But if you have not yet, some day you, too, will face the death of a loved one and the many difficult tasks that are commonly associated with this painful loss. What you will quickly learn and realize is this simple fact: When it comes to planning a funeral, most people are largely unfamiliar, uncomfortable and unprepared.
My mission is to promote end-of-life planning to help make a difficult situation easier, both for the financial services industry and the families we serve. In addition to the helpful 125 tasks listed below, I hope these two quotes further inspire more financial services professionals to expand their practices and adopt end-of-life planning as a standard service to provide.
"Don't let yourself be weighed down by what other people think, because in a few years, in a few decades or in a few centuries, that way of thinking will have changed. Live now what others will only live in the future." — Paulo Coelho
"The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy or unfulfilled. For it is only in such moments, propelled by our discomfort, that we are likely to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or truer answers." — M. Scott Peck
Here are 125 tasks that must be done on the most difficult day of your client's life, which I am fully confident will serve as a valuable tool for anyone who has recently lost a loved one. I sincerely hope many financial services professionals will use this task list to initiate "the conversation" with their clients and begin creating their end-of-life plan. By doing this soon, your clients can minimize or eliminate many of these difficult tasks. A. Secure vital statistics
1. Full legal name, complete address, telephone number and email address
2. Religious name (if any)
3. Date of birth
4. Place of birth
5. Marital status
6. Name of spouse (if married)
7. Spouse's maiden name (if wife)
8. Educational attainment
9. Citizenship
10. Father's full legal name
11. Father's birthplace
12. Mother's name and maiden name
13. Mother's birthplace
14. Full names, phone numbers and addresses of all children/grandchildren/great-granchilden
15. Social Security number
16. Veteran's serial/service number
17. Date and place of military service
18. Date of military discharge
19. How long at current residence and former residence(s)
20. Occupation, job title, nature of work, and employment history
21. Workplace name, address, phone number and email address
22. Family origin
B. Pay some or all of the following
23. Estate/inheritance taxes
24. Funeral expenses
25. Purchase a family burial plot, estate, mausoleum, crypt or cremation niche
26. Permanent resting place
27. Monument and marker engraving details
28. Funeral director
29. Clergy
30. Organist and vocalist
31. Florist
32. Obituary
33. Clothing preferences
34. Long-distance telephone service
35. Food
36. Transportation
37. Doctors
38. Nurses
39. Medical practitioners
40. Ambulance
41. Hospital or nursing home
42. List of all medications and drugs
43. Current and urgent bills (mortgage/rent, taxes, car payments, debts, utilities, etc.)
C. Collect documents and paperwork
44. Last will (check will to see if any final wishes were specified)
45. Prepare legal papers, death certificates and state-specific permits
46. Birth certificates and/or any legal forms of proof of age
47. Citizenship papers
48. Social Security card or number
49. Marriage license
50. Veteran's discharge certificate
51. Submit all insurance policies (life, health, accident, property, auto) and government forms
52. Disability claims
53. Bank books and listing of all accounts
54. Records of other financial documents (outside of bank)
55. Property deeds
56. Cemetery deed or proof of ownership
57. Auto titles or bill of sale
58. Income tax returns, receipts and cancelled checks D. Decide and arrange within a few hours
59. Make cemetery arrangements
60. Secure internment space and get exact location of burial/disposition
61. Arrange for opening and closing of the grave/mausoleum/crypt/estate/niche space
62. Secure endowment care
63. Arrange graveside committal service
64. Secure use of cemetery chapel for committal prayers
65. Decide on embalming and other preparations of the deceased
66. Choose restorative art
67. Funeral home preference
68. Location of funeral service
69. Service type (religious, fraternal, military, etc.)
70. Time and place of visitation and funeral service
71. Arrange any special religious services
72. Choose person and provide information for eulogy
73. Select casket (open or closed?)
74. Select outer burial container and/or burial vault
75. Select urn/niche space (if cremation)
76. Provide vital statistics of deceased for the newspaper obituary
77. Choose clothing for the deceased
78. Choose jewelry and glasses for the deceased
79. Select cosmetology and hairdressing for deceased
80. Selection of scripture, readings, poems, etc.
81. Clergy to officiate
82. Marking of grave (either temporary or permanent)
83. Select memorial market/monument setting and inscription
84. Select charitable contributions for memorials in memory of the deceased
85. Register book, memorial/prayer cards
86. Select pallbearers
87. Floral arrangements and transportation (before and after services)
88. Select music
89. Organist, pianist, vocalist
90. Arrange for funeral coach
91. Arrange for limousine for family and pallbearers
92. Arrange funeral car list for family and guests
93. Clothing for you and children
94. Decide who will look after children and/or pets
95. House cleaning
96. Extra chairs
97. Transportation for family and guests
98 Reviewing and signing all paperwork (burial permits, etc.)
99. Answering innumerable phone calls, emails, letters and visitors
100. Necessary meetings with funeral director, lawyer, clergy and cemetery caretaker
101. Arrange transportation and lodging for out-of-town guests
102. Acknowledge those who help in a special way (flowers, food, donations, etc.)
103. Decide how many certified copies of death certificates to order
104. Food for family and out-of-town relatives and guests
105. Items for memento display and/or memorial board
106. Decide on memorial video tribute production, pictures, music, etc.
107. Arrange for writing thank you notes
E. Plan to notify ASAP
108. All family members
109. All relatives
110. All friends
111. Minister and church
112. Funeral director
113. Pallbearers
114. Cemetery
115. Doctor
116. Employer of deceased
117. Employers of relatives not going to work
118. Organist, musicians and vocalists
119. Newspapers regarding notices
120. Social Security administration
121. Veterans administration
122. Insurance agents and financial advisors
123. Religious, fraternal, civic organizations and unions
124. Attorney, accountant, financial planner and executor of estate
125. Credit card companies, mortgages, utility bills, etc.


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Kristen Stewart's got a big year of publicity ahead for her, what with Snow White and the Huntsman out in June, Breaking Dawn Part 2 in November and On the Road set for sometime in 2012. So we imagine the big photo shoot she did with Mario Testino and Karl Lagerfeld in Paris for Vanity Fair is just the beginning of her many amazing shoots in the coming months. E! has the pics of her all dolled up and 19th-centuryish in a huge Christian Dior couture gown with a huge fascinator as she posed with horses in the park. After the jump, we present you with a closeup of her makeup for the shoot, and a shot of her in another outfit as she chats with Lagerfeld in a cafe (can you get any more Parisian than that?).
[Photo: Splash News Online]


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Lisa's Fabulous Paws
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I'm still looking for work or facility want to touch bases with you let you know where I am at with the relocation process, any questions please send to email@example.com
You all still have been very supportive; I and my family truly appreciate that. I am hoping you will continue to hang in there.
Again once I'm back up and running I will notify everyone as soon as possible. For those who are viewing this information from our Facebook pages or web page and I don't have your email address please send your email to me, so I can make your on the mailing list.


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L-Club Benefits
* Four sections in PJCS are designated as L-Club seating. Two of those sections require a $150 per seat donation. The other two sections do not require a donation.
** Freedom Hall is sold out on a season ticket basis. Any new assignments are based solely on turnover in current season ticket holders and are assigned on a priority basis.