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1 Timothy 6:319comment (0)
April 4, 2013
By Dale Younce
Related Scripture: 1 Timothy 6:319
Explore the Bible
Professor of Christian Ministries, University of Mobile
Pursue Spiritual Gain
1 Timothy 6:3–19
Many adults highly value material possessions and wealth. This sort of materialism may result in a lack of generosity, which in turn makes it difficult for churches to fulfill their ministries. The Bible does not condemn wealth, but it does challenge believers to consider that greed is sinful and dangerous. This week's lesson challenges us to value godliness above material wealth.
Watch Out for Greed (3–5)
The apostle Paul had mentioned false teachers previously. Here he points out three characteristics of false teachers. (1) Their teachings are inconsistent with and contradictory to God's revelation. By rejecting the healthy doctrines of Scripture, they were rejecting the path leading to a godly life. (2) They were marked by conceit, arrogance and pride, when they had nothing to be proud of. (3) Their ignorant conceit filled them with morbid desires, envy, evil suspicions, quarreling and malicious talk. Their motive was their erroneous idea that godliness is the path to material riches. The term "godliness" here, does not mean true godliness which is holy living by the Holy Spirit's power; it means their religious profession. They used their religious profession as a means to make money. Theirs was not a spiritual ministry; it was a religious business. Believers are to watch out for the temptation to use their religious devotion as a means for material gain or fame.
Be Content (6–10)
Apostle Paul was not opposed to individuals earning a living. He was not encouraging a lack of ambition. He did, however, issue warnings about wealth. (1) Money does not bring contentment, an inner stability which keeps the believer at peace regardless of external circumstances. True contentment comes from godliness in the heart, not from money in the bank. (2) Wealth does not last. We lose it all at death. Consequently, having the basic things in life (food, shelter and clothing) ought to make us content. Paul does not condemn having possessions, but he does condemn a self-indulgent desire for wealth. (3) The love for money, not money itself, is a (not "the") root for all sorts of evil. Money can be a trap that leads into bondage. Those people who will to be rich are those who must have more and more material things in an attempt to be happy. The desire to be rich and the love of money draw them away from Christ and fill them with pangs of conscience, disillusionment and barrenness.
Fight the Good Fight (11–16)
As Paul turns to instruction for Timothy himself, he addresses Timothy as a "man of God," who is distinctly different from the false teachers. The man of God is known for what he flees from, what he follows after and what he fights for. (1) Timothy is to separate himself from the sinful attitudes and actions of the false teachers. There are times when God's servant must take a stand against ungodly practices and separate himself from them. However, he must act on the basis of biblical principle and not because of personal prejudice or selfish party spirit. (2) God's servant must cultivate the elements of Christian character and conduct. (3) In addition, he must keep on fighting the kingdom of darkness which lies around him. He must defend the truth of God's Word and lead people to faith in Jesus.
Use Wealth Wisely (17–19)
Paul counsels Timothy concerning what to teach those who are rich in material possessions. He calls them to be good stewards of their God-given resources. Those believers who have money must use it to meet the needs of others, unselfishly and generously. These verses demonstrate there is no necessary connection between wealth and greed. Although many readers of this lesson will probably not think of themselves as "rich in the present age" (v. 17), they should be reminded that, in comparison to the rest of the world's people, most Americans are indeed wealthy. Living with eternity in view will help us pursue godliness by using our financial resources generously and wisely.


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2016 Arkansas Writers' Conference Brochure
Friday, June 3rd
AWC Director Brenda Iannacone
8:15-9:30 Presiding: Brenda Iannacone
Speaker: Mark Mathes
Editor Tips
15 minute break
9:45 – 11:00 Breakout session Room A
Laura Castoro, Pet Peeves & Big Mistakes: Things Editors & Agents Won't Mention but keep you from selling your work. Don't be an amateur. Attendees can bring page 1 of a story to read.
9:45 – 11:00 Breakout session Room BC
Penny Richards, Great Expectations:
The Importance of a good beginning
The Importance of a good beginning
9:45-11:45 Pub/Editor Author Pitches
Jackson Room 1
12:00 – 1:45 Presiding: Ellen Withers
Hall of Fame Luncheon/HoF Acceptance
Door Prizes; Contest Awards
15 minute break
2:00 – 3:15 Keynote Speaker
Dusty Richards, SPUR Award Winner
15 minute break
3:30 – 4:45 Breakout session Room BC
Mike Miller Dramatic Reading with
writing process discussion
3:30 – 4:45 Breakout session Room A
Carol Dabney, Using Artwork in Children's Books
3:30 – 5:30 Author Pitches
Jackson Room 1
6:00- 8:30 Presiding: Brenda Iannacone
Box Supper
Read around 10 minute max per person
Saturday, June 4th
AWC Director Brenda Iannacone
8:15-9:40 Presiding: Joe David Rice
Keynote Speaker: Laura Castoro
15 minute break
9:45 – 10:30 Breakout session Room A
Linda Black-How to Make a Book Promo Trailer
9:45 – 10:30 Breakout session Room BC
Penny Richards, Great Expectations:
The importance of a good beginning
The importance of a good beginning
9:45 – 10:30 Breakout session Jackson #1
Michael Don Fess, Controversy-A Path to Success
15 Minute Break
10:45 – 11:30 Author Panel Q&A
12:00 – 1:00 Box Lunch; Door Prizes;
Luncheon Contest Awards
Ellen Withers, Contest Chair
1:15 – 3:00 Presiding: Robin McClea, Arkansas Art Council
Russell Sharman, Hollywood Scriptwriter,
Filmmaker, and Anthropologist
Russell Sharman, Hollywood Scriptwriter,
Filmmaker, and Anthropologist
Screenwriting Seminar & Panel Discussion /Room BC
15 minute break
3:15 - 5:00 Meet the Authors (Open to Public) Ballroom BC
No conference registration but must pick up Pass at
registration table by 2:00 p.m.
registration table by 2:00 p.m.
Check out participating authors list on
the AWC official website
the AWC official website
3:00 – 5:30 Pub/Editor Author Pitches Jackson Room 1 & Ballroom A 6:00-8:15 Presiding: Sara GipsonAwards Banquet Ballroom ABC Award presentations, Ellen Withers
8:15-8:30 Closing Remarks and Acknowledgements Brenda Iannacone, AWC Director
3:00 – 5:30 Pub/Editor Author Pitches Jackson Room 1 & Ballroom A 6:00-8:15 Presiding: Sara GipsonAwards Banquet Ballroom ABC Award presentations, Ellen Withers
8:15-8:30 Closing Remarks and Acknowledgements Brenda Iannacone, AWC Director
The 72nd AnnualArkansas Writers' ConferenceJune 3 - June 4, 2016www.arkansaswritersconference.orgKeynote Speakers: DUSTY RICHARDS & LAURA CASTOROLocation:CROWNE PLAZA HOTEL201 S. SHACKLEFORD ROAD,Little Rock, AR ***************************************************************************************************************************Book Display and Sale Tables 4-Foot long tables available to AWC registered attendees for $10 fee if requested during pre-registration by May 20, 2016. Proceeds remain with authors. Meet the Author event will be open to the publicDisplay Table Space4- Foot long tables available for Writers' Groups and Publishing Support Services such as editors, website developers, cover artists, illustrators, picture book artists etc. if requested during pre-registration by May 20, 2015.Author 5 minute Pitches to Publishers Sign up for pitches on the registration form.Angie Abderhalden is owner and acquiring editor for Seventh Wave Books, LLC with her business partner Jason Wilcox for over 3 years. They have published 16 books with 4 more planned for 2015. They love working with first time authors of all ages. Every book cover is tailored to the author's specific book. They are especially looking for romance and mystery genres but are always searching for authors who have exceptional potential. Are you their next author? Come pitch your book to Angie. Check out their website at www.seventhwavebooks.com.
As Promotion Director of Pelican Publishing Company, Antoinette de Alteriis is delighted that her company located in Gretna, LA enjoys national recognition as a medium-sized independent company with a backlist of over 2500 titles and approximately 50 new titles produced yearly. Pelican ranks as the largest independent trade book publisher in the South. Since 1926, they have been committed to publishing books of quality and permanence that enrich the lives of those who read them. www.pelicanpublishing.com
Prose-Press will be represented by Tommy Hancock. Check out their website at www.prosepress.com ******************************************************* Sell your books the 2016 High Cotton on the Bayou Festival at the Scott Plantation Settlement in Scott, Arkansas. Contact Sara Gipson at email@example.com for details.
********************************************************************************************************************************************The AWC Board Thanks 2016 AWC Sponsors:GRAND BENEFACTORS: ($500 or more) Arkansas Pioneer Branch NLAPWBENEFACTORS: ($200-$400) Brenda Iannacone, Gale S. Gill, Rita Goodgame, PATRONS: ($100-$175) Bob J. Nash & Associates, Village Writers of Hot Springs Village, Poets' Roundtable of Arkansas (www.poetsroundtable.com), SPONSORS: ($25-$75) Jim Barton, Delta Poets, Sara Gipson, Carol Hodges, Humane Society of Pulaski County, Barbara Longstreth Mulkey, Scott Connections (www.scottconnections.org), South Arkansas Poets of the Pines, Ellen Withers, Kitty Yeager, Rhonda Roberts,Pinpoint Wrtiers Group, White County Creative Writers (www.whitecountycreativewriters.org),*******************************************************************************************************************
AWC Founder: The Arkansas Pioneer Branch, NLAPW
2016 AWC Director:
Brenda Iannacone
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Phone: (501) 833-2756
Cell: (501) 960-5014******************************************************************* *************************************************************************************************************************

subset: commoncrawl


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By Kevin Wilson: Quay County Sun
Both candidates see the District 5 city council position as their way to connect to the city they call home.
District 5 features former school teacher and business owner Norma Jean Crellin running against James Lafferty, a 1978 Tucumcari High graduate who returned to the city two years ago following a 15-year term as the San Jon city clerk.
The winner will take the council position vacated by Betty Ditto, who decided not to run for re-election.
District 5 starts at Charles Avenue and runs south to Interstate 40. Voting for District 5 will take place Tuesday at the Tucumcari High School Auditorium, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Crellin has been in Tucumcari since 1938 and was a 1948 graduate of THS. Crellin attended three different schools after THS — Kansas City Business College, New Mexico State University (for teaching) and West Texas A&M University (for her master's of business administration.
Crellin feels her experience in many areas makes her qualified for the council. She was a teacher at THS and has served as board president for both the Tucumcari Board of Education and Mesalands Community College.
Also, Crellin ran Zia Drug with her husband Jim for 32 years, until Jim died in 2000.
Since her husband's death, Crellin said she didn't have many personal connections in the city, and had considered moving before focusing on the Council seat.
"I debated long and hard about this position," Crellin said, "and I decided I could either leave Tucumcari behind or do my best to do something about improving life in Tucumcari."
Lafferty, meanwhile, said he plans to retire in Tucumcari, though he still runs the Country Crossroad gift shop in San Jon. He feels his time in San Jon's city government has prepared him well for Tucumcari's city government, though he acknowledges San Jon is much smaller.
"In the 15 years (in San Jon), I was in charge of budgets and audits and grant writings," Lafferty said. "It is imperative that we rely on legislative funds and grant funds in order to survive. My experience there taught me how to utilize those funds."
Both candidates agree that roads are a big concern, primarily in finding funds for streets that are not connected to arterial roads. Most programs that help fund road improvements are meant for arterial roads.
"Streets are a big thing," Crellin said. "We've got to figure out a way to take care of the streets that are not covered by the government grants."
Lafferty thinks one of the biggest issues coming for the city is Ute Lake Ranch. The project will feature hundreds of patio homes, a golf course, marina, equestrian center and a beach club built around Ute Lake. The project, Lafferty said, could help increase a tax base that has many needs.
"I think economic development is a very important issue," Lafferty said. "I think Tucumcari is trying to maintain the same level of services … with a substantial difference in the population."
Lafferty said if somebody were to buy a $300,000 home at Ute Lake Ranch, they're guaranteed to spend a great deal of money in Tucumcari as well. Attracting people with more income to spend may be a better solution than significantly raising taxes on current residents, Lafferty concluded.
Crellin said if elected she would pay great attention to the budgets for the city, and see how the city can help its residents, schools and businesses.
"We need to work together, not only with the schools, but the county and all of the entities," Crellin said. "You can't do anything on your own, so we must have cooperation."


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Let's go bowling!
Sunday night saw the announcement of the full 35-game slate for the 2013-14 college football bowl season, with the schedule featuring plenty of amazing matchups. Yeah, and some stinkers too.
The five BCS bowls, including the BCS National Championship Game, are ripe with traditional powers as well as a few upstarts, but good games are dotted all throughout the schedule.
The first four games kick off on Dec. 21, while the Auburn-Florida State battle for the national title ends things on Jan. 6 in Pasadena, Calif. The championship game, which pits the top two teams in the final BCS standings, was the obvious choice after a season of uncertainty and concern that the final year of the BCS would end in controversy.
ESPN.com's Ted Miller writes, "It will be must-see TV with plenty of intrigue and very few naysayers about the legitimacy of the matchup."
Who will win them all? Click through the slideshow for our picks on each and every one, along with analysis of some of the more key games. Then, chime in on the comments board to let us know your choices.


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The Associated Press has unveiled 42 new style guidelines for social media in the 2010 edition of its Stylebook, most notably re-classifying "website" as one word (it had previously suggested "Web site").
For the first time, the Stylebook contains a Social Media Guidelines section focused on setting journalism standards for social-media-specific language and sourcing verification. The 42 new entries refer mostly to networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter, standardizing terms such as app, blogs, click-throughs, friend and unfriend, metadata, RSS, search engine optimization, smart phone, trending, widget and wiki, according to the Associated Press.
The changes to the AP Stylebook — such as the change from "Web site" to "website" — reflect suggestions from the Stylebook's staff, readers, and users, as well as increased attention to common usage in both print and online sources.
"It was clear that 'website' has become the widely accepted usage," said Darrell Christian, AP editor-at-large.
Also new to the 2010 Stylebook are entries standardizing the use of terms such as Alcoholics Anonymous, thumbs-up, and Ultimate Fighting.
Get top stories and blog posts emailed to me each day. Newsletters may offer personalized content or advertisements. Learn more


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Keith B Machineworks
Posted in Web Design by Mike Panic
7 May 2012
Keith B Machineworks builds custom, hand built tattoo machines. They had an existing website that was somewhat dated and no longer serviced their needs, or those of their customers. A total revamp into a dynamic, clean and understated website was done to bring the highlights of the featured products, while the site simply housed all of them. Focusing on the machines, common questions and custom options (each is hand built to the buyers specifications) with attention to a detail in a custom contact form, the site meets both the needs of Keith B and customers. Integrating in a shopping cart for merchandise and utilizing social media to handle commenting, via Facebook, and installing Instagram into the sidebar.


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Last week my kids were wrapped up in everything Christmas. We made our parent Christmas gifts, crafted Christmas Cards, and studied holidays around the world. My favorite country we visited (as it is every year) was Australia. My "cold Christmas" kids flip when they think about it being warm at Christmas time. To help us really celebrate Australia and their traditions we ate BBQ chips and made super cool Christmas "Sunnies" or sunglasses with our BIG 7th grade buddies last Friday.
|CLICK HERE to get more details!
|Please excuse my ugly mug . . .
I forgot to take finished product shots. Duh, Dolling!
|Originally posted on the Glamorous Housewife.


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tea party
Quote Of The Day
This is usually Bruce's department, but I thought this was too good to pass up. Here's Jazz Shaw relating what's he's discovered about the Tea Party movement by actually meeting Tea Partiers:
The point is, meeting with tea party supporters has been a surprising experience. It's not politics as usual and the old rules about Red vs. Blue and D vs. R don't apply. Like any large gathering, you'll find a couple of people with some more fringe outlooks, and that seems to be who the television cameras focus on. (We had one couple at a recent meeting who were obviously birthers and wanted to ask about Obama's birth certificate, but they were quickly shushed by the rest of the crowd.) But for the most part, each group seems to carry its own distinct flavor and topics of interest. The one thing they seem to have in common is that they are unhappy with the current leadership in D.C. and they have come to play a serious game. If you think you already know the tea party movement, there's a good chance you don't. It's kind of like trying to say you know the ocean. It's big, it's powerful, it's rarely the same twice, and you never know exactly what it's going to do next.
I bolded that one sentence just because it really stood out for me as crystallizing the movement as a whole. The Tea Party is all about constituents finally paying very close attention to what their representatives in Washington are doing. I've said before that when Americans really start to pay attention to someplace (e.g. the Middle East) or something (Federal Government), they tend to radically change it forever. That's the "serious game" I see being played all across the country. And I think that is an unalloyed good.
BTW, read the whole thing.[ad#Banner]
Podcast for 07 Feb 09
In this podcast, Bruce, Michael and Dale discuss the unemployment numbers and Sarah Palin. The direct link to the podcast can be found here.
The intro and outro music is Vena Cava by 50 Foot Wave, and is available for free download here.
As a reminder, if you are an iTunes user, don't forget to subscribe to the QandO podcast, Observations, through iTunes. For those of you who don't have iTunes, you can subscribe at Podcast Alley. And, of course, for you newsreader subscriber types, our podcast RSS Feed is here. For podcasts from 2005 to 2009, they can be accessed through the RSS Archive Feed.[ad#Banner]
The National Political Scene
That scene is incredibly muddled and getting more muddled every day. In some ways, such as the Democrat retirements, it reminds me of the political atmosphere of 1994. Charlie Cook, who knows Democrats and their electoral chances, pretty much writes the Democratic Senatorial majority off as a dead loss after 2010:
Come November, Senate Democrats' 60-vote supermajority is toast. It is difficult, if not impossible, to see how Democrats could lose the Senate this year. But they have a 50-50 chance of ending up with fewer than 55 seats in the next Congress.
When the Republican in the race for Teddy Kennedy's seat in Massachusetts is competitive, you know the electoral landscape has changed and just about anything is possible.
Of course, in terms of divided government, that's very good news. The fact that it is Republicans, who for the most part, still don't seem to have a clue, not so much. Of course that obviously depends on who the Republicans end up running, or winning, those seats. Florida's race between Crist and Rubio is a good example. Crist is the moderate establishment (business as usual, McCain type Republican) while Rubio is more of the Tea Party conservative.
And it is there that the establishment Republican party seems to be missing the boat – again. After a sweeping victory by Barack Obama and the Democrats, the Republicans quite naturally tried to do a little soul searching and, for whatever reason, came to believe that their problem was they didn't appeal to enough moderates. Yet in the year that has passed since the Obama administration has been in office and the Congress with prohibitive Democratic majorities has been wreaking its havoc, independents, who establishment Republicans choose to characterize as "moderates", have been abandoning the Democrats in staggering numbers. And they're looking for a place to go.
Why are they abandoning the Democrats? Because they bought into a myth a compliant and noncritical media aided and abetted concerning the new administration and now they're seeing the radical truth. And they don't like it.
However, what they don't want is a merely less radical replacement. Democrat lite. What independents are in the middle of doing is rejecting, in toto, the Democratic agenda. Rasmussen and others have been providing these clues for months. In the latest Rasmussen poll:
With Democrats in majority control of both the House and Senate, it's not surprising to find that 79% of Republicans are not confident that their congressional representatives are actually presenting their best interests, but 74% of voters not affiliated with either party agree. Democratic voters are evenly divided on the question.
74% of voters "not affiliated with either party agree" that their Congressional Rep (obviously that includes some Republicans) is not actually representing their best interests. Now that could be for any number of reasons, but on thing for certain, if 74% aren't happy with their Rep, I'd guess they're not happy with what the establishment Republicans are selling either.
Enter the Tea Partiers. First written off as brownshirts, angry whites, red-necks, un-American, 'teabaggers' and any other pejorative the left-wing thought it could get away with, the movement has grown into a political force. But make no mistake about it – it's a populist movement. Regardless it has, to a large degree, managed to tap into this unhappiness with what is going on in Washington and give it some structure.
And what continues to astound me is the establishment Republicans seem to think that they "own" the movement – that when push comes to shove, this group will fall in line and vote for them.
Hello! Crist/Rubio!
There is going to be a war between the Teapartiers and the establishment Republican party. The Teapartiers don't necessarily support or even like many of the establishment Republicans. As a result that war is going to be waged in primaries. And much like it was on the left (Lamont/Lieberman) it is a war for the soul of that party. Establishment Republicans really don't seem to understand that – yet. So we see stories like this one where the establishment party is said to have "soured" on Sarah Palin. Love her or hate her, she represents as well as anyone, the populist nature of the movement that the Republicans don't seem to yet understand. Add the stupidity of the leadership and the visible infighting within the establishment wing of the party, and you hold little hope that they will wake up in time to smell the roses and figure out the formula for electoral success.
Where's this all headed? To more polarized politics, if that is possible, with the sides much more differentiated – if the Teapartiers get their way. Republicans are going to be moved in a much more conservative direction, come hell or high water, if they want Tea Party support. And the Tea Party movement is going to attract (has attracted?) enough of the independent voters to make the electoral difference.
Conventional wisdom says the electorally successful win by appealing to their base, picking off enough independents to make the difference and then governing from the center. I don't think that CW is valid anymore. It appears that the public has finally had the scales removed from their eyes with the present administration. The premise that a centrist government is what America wants has been overcome by events. Those events, products of that centrism, have given us the state of affairs with which we're now afflicted – a welfare state with huge deficits, a debased currency and a behemoth government that is out-of-control. Listen closely to those who spoke up at the summer town halls. It wasn't just about Democrats and Republicans, folks – it was about the direction of the country and the realization that both parties had participated in creating the horrendous mess we now enjoy.
All of that to say that CW is ready to be turned on its head and, in fact, people (to include independents) are demanding action to roll back government and reduce spending. That should be right in the Republican's wheel house. Yet instead of really talking their supposed principles and actions to accomplish them, establishment Republicans still insist that it is more important to ensure they have a "big tent". That is a complete sell out of their principles. The "tent" is established by those principles. What Republicans have to do is fashion a message that makes that tent attractive and brings people to them. That's what will make it "big". Compromising their principles to fill the tent is a sure way to lose – and that's precisely what they've proven over the last few elections.
Politically, 2010 is going to be a very interesting year to watch. For libertarians, the best hope is divided government and a Republican party that rediscovers its primary principles and decides to live up to them. I think we'll get the divided government. However, my concern is the midterms will see enough Republicans elected, despite themselves and their lack of a principled stand, that the important message about principles will continue to be lost on them – again. That will result in a Senate not much different than we have now, where compromise and collegiality are more important than principle and the people. That means big government, more spending and more deficit. And that means Republicans will remain the minority party and out of the White House in 2012.
So How Big Was The DC Tea Party?
The Daily Mail (UK) carries the story about the Tea Party in Washington DC:
Up to two million people marched to the U.S. Capitol today, carrying signs with slogans such as "Obamacare makes me sick" as they protested the president's health care plan and what they say is out-of-control spending.
The line of protesters spread across Pennsylvania Avenue for blocks, all the way to the capitol, according to the Washington Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency.
Now perhaps the count is a bit high – Michelle Malkin quotes Parks and Recreation estimate 1.2 million and DC Police 1.5 million.
Other outlets, such as the Washington Post, NY Times, ABC, MSNBC and AP describe the crowd in the thousands or tens of thousands. Fox and CBS used the AP report. CNN merely said the crowd stretched "for blocks" although one of the pictures accompanying the story claimed "thousands" had attended the rally. And ABC has since sent an email out saying it never reported 1.5 million as was misattributed to them, but think the crowd size was only "60,000 to 70,000" based on a report by "the Washington, D.C., fire department."
It was that email that got me interested in the number because it seemed ABC was really upset about being attributed with saying the rally as big as 1.5 million. And frankly, and I may be wrong, but I've never heard the DC fire department quoted previously in crowd estimates. Parks and Recreation? Yes. DC Metro Police? Yes. Fire Department? Uh, no.
Of course you can see where I'm headed with this – look at the line up of those reporting "in the thousands". Look at those reporting in the "millions".
I'm just interested to see how this all shakes out, because while I'm not at all good at crowd estimates, the few pics I've seen show a pretty large gathering considering some of the protests I've seen documented in DC. Perhaps it's just too early in the news cycle for there to be enough information to make a guess beyond "thousands" or "tens of thousands", but when an overseas newspaper is talking about "2 million", it makes you wonder why they're comfortable with that number and our domestic outlets aren't.
It's Going To Be A Long, Hot August
The videos of what are described as "angry" townhalls around the country keep pouring in. Here's one from Green Bay, WI.
Of course there are tons of others.
The Democrats and the left have answered the protests by claiming that they're nothing more than "right-wing extremists" under the control of powerful interest groups. Thus the charge of "astro-turfing".
These accusations by the DNC seem to ignore the Tea Party movement's origins which was, on inspection, a true grass-roots movement (and one that has taken both Democrats and Republicans to task for their profligate spending). Notice too that they include the "birthers" in their vid to underline their "extremist" claim.
The White House, instead of trying to calm the waters, has chosen employ Saul Alinsky against the protesters:
A key part of the developing strategy: ridicule the opposition — and portray those who disrupt meetings with loud chants and signs as part of the same ilk of people who showed up at campaign rallies for John McCain and Sarah Palin right after the 2008 Republican National Convention.
So this turns into a propaganda war. The left will be attempting to turn public opinion against the protesters by portraying them a certain way.
Patronizing opponents is a tried and true tradition in Washington, and Democrats have used the tactic with success. They ridiculed the hundreds of thousands of conservatives who protested the stimulus package as "tea baggers."
But Republicans are just as responsible for the perception. The folks who tend to show up at protest events tend to be to the right of the mean in the party. And, as the spread of the birther movement demonstrates, not a small chunk of these Republicans are reactionaries. The challenge for the White House and Democrats is that they find a way to separate genuinely anxious conservatives who ask good questions — even if those questions are provided by conservative groups — and the crazies who tend to pack town hall meetings.
Of course, most reasonable people would suggest, upon reflection, that if this was an "astro-turfed" movement, those who are paying for it would have much tighter control and avoid the obviously unhelpful signage and any connection with the birther movement. That's obviously not the case.
So the right and Republicans have the momentum, at least for now, but it isn't clear if they have an advantage for the reasons stated.
The challenge for Republicans is to prevent the media from labeling everyone who attends a meeting with a Democratic lawmaker and who calls him or herself a conservative as a crazy person. Some polling suggests that the percentage of Republicans who don't know whether President Obama was born in the United States is fairly high, although it is hard to say how much of that confusion stems from ignorance or from a generally jaundiced, perhaps racist, view of the President.
A range of smaller, ideologically conservative interest groups are organizing the protests. Finding pockets of activist-oriented arch-conservatives in places like Texas, Missouri and Indiana is easy, especially if the set goal is to defeat Obama-care, which is being sold to these people as the approach of government-run health care, something that these folks have been worried about for years. Add to the mix a desire to hand the progressive President and his agenda a decisive defeat.
And there's an interesting question about pushing back on the left – where are its activists and organizations?
The more troublesome question for Democratic strategists is why the major Democratic groups, including Organizing for America, the labor unions, Health Care for America Now, seem to be flatfooted and unable to match the much smaller conservative organizing capacity in these critical districts. One answer is that the media pays attention to the loudest voices, which are coming from the right. The other is that organizing around major — even popular — reforms of existing institutions is tough. The Democrats don't have a single bill right now, and the elite left is worried about what's not in the cards — a public plan — and is therefore fairly unenthusiastic. If the liberal elite isn't enthusiastic, the liberal base — less knowledgeable — will be as well.
And of course, there's the media – which, it seems, leans mostly toward helping the administration. For instance, the conclusion of the article from which I've been quoting from Mark Ambinder at The Atlantic:
To focus minds, Democrats are coordinating TV and radio ad blitzes, including the biggest expenditures by the Democratic National Committee to date. President Obama, his cabinet and his vice president will be ubiquitous. Quickly responding to disinformation will be a key goal, an administration official said, pointing to this morning's release of a video from Linda Douglass, a former television and print reporter who serves as a key White House health care adviser, which rebutted a misleading video posted on the Drudge Report.
Linda Douglass "rebutted" nothing. She made a bunch of claims she'd have difficulty substantiating. But that is how it is being reported. The implication is that what is coming from the right is "disinformation" and the only true source of factual information is the White House.
I think we all know that dog won't hunt.
But this should be a very, very interesting August.
[Welcome RCP readers]
Escondido Tea Party
I dropped by the Escondido Tea Party this afternoon. I got there about 15 minutes before the official kickoff, and there were about 100 people there already. I had to leave at 6:30 to do a telecon with a client, but before I left, there were probably 300-400 people there, which is really more than I expected for a little town like this.
KUSI was there, as were a couple of other media outfits. However, they got there before the 5pm kickoff, and they had cleared the scene before 5:30. That means they missed the vast majority of the crowd.
My photo gallery of the event, all taken via cell phone, is below the fold.
Tea Time In Atlanta
My latest Examiner column on how to turn the Tea Party movement into a bi-partisan success.
Tea Parties Are About Future Taxes, Not Present Ones (update)
Much of the left, Steve Benen serving as a perfect example, are missing an essential point about the tea parties planned around the country. They aren't about the level of taxation now. Instead, those attending them understand that with the massive spending undertaken by the federal government and the massive amounts of currency pumped into the system by the Federal Reserve, taxes aren't going to remain anywhere near where they are now, no matter what politicians promise.
Benen uses a recent Gallup poll which says people are mostly happy with the tax rates they now have in an attempt to portray the protesters as being out of touch and out of step with the mainstream:
The latest survey from Gallup shows these assumptions don't seem to apply right now: "A new Gallup Poll finds 48% of Americans saying the amount of federal income taxes they pay is 'about right,' with 46% saying 'too high' — one of the most positive assessments Gallup has measured since 1956. Typically, a majority of Americans say their taxes are too high, and relatively few say their taxes are too low."
The same poll found that 61% of Americans believe the income taxes they paid this year are "fair."
This certainly isn't the kind of public opinion landscape Republicans were hoping for. In order for conservative talking points on the economy to be effective, Americans have to believe the current tax rates are never "about right" and anything but "fair." Broad satisfaction with taxes leaves Republicans with very little else to say.
I beg to differ (and it isn't just "Republicans" involved in these protests). What it says is the Bush era taxes, the ones which resulted from a tax cut, are considered "fair". That would mean, then, than any increase in taxes would be considered something other than "fair". And anyone with enough intelligence to make toast should realize that the spending orgy we've seen in the last few months is something that will have to be "paid for" either through taxation or inflation (or both).
So when Benen says the following, he whiffs completely:
Indeed, the semi-official slogan of the Tea Baggers' events tomorrow is "T.E.A.: Taxed Enough Already." It was hard enough to make this argument shortly after the president signed the largest middle-class tax cut in history; it's even harder in light of poll results like these.
"Taxed Enough Already" mirrors the poll. But unlike Bennen, who attempts to pawn off the "95% of Americans will receive tax cuts" nonsense as the reason for the satisfaction, the people showing up seem to understand the economics of the situation better than he does. Someone is going to have to pay for all this fiscal profligacy, and the protesters know exactly who those people are.
Thus the protests.
UPDATE: Benen still doesn't get it. Referencing this post, he says:
I see. So, at some point in the future (we don't know when), some politicians (we don't know who) might find it necessary to raise taxes. Whose taxes would be raised? It's too soon to say. How much would taxes go up? No one knows.
It helps, if you're going to write about this stuff, if you keep up with what's been going on. As we pointed out in another post on the Obama budget, you don't even have to guess "how much" or whether or not it might be "necessary", the budget answers those questions:
Tax Increases:
Against a baseline that assumes current law tax policy is extended, S. Con. Res. 13 raises taxes by $361 billion and allows for $1.3 trillion in additional tax increases. In addition their budget paves the way for additional tax increases from a proposed cap-and-trade tax in reconciliation.
And (making the point as to how the 1.3 trillion is raised):
Deficit Neutral Reserve Funds:
The Democrat budget includes 15 "reserve funds," which essentially "phantom spending" policy statements that allow the majority to say that they would like to fund a certain initiative. The deficit neutral requirement associated with the reserve funds typically require that taxes be raised in order to pay for the new policy initiative. If all reserve funds were to be fully enacted, total spending would increase by $1.3 trillion, financed by tax increases or spending decreases.
Maybe Benen finds that acceptable, but obviously those protesting don't.
He concludes with:
With this in mind, I can only conclude that the Tea Parties are the most forward-thinking political events in the history of the country.
Another whiff – all you have to do is read the budget proposal that was passed by Congress, Mr. Benen. It outlines the size and scope of those future taxes fairly specifically.
You have read it haven't you?


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Homework Help
Tips for Parents to Help their Kids Get Homework Done
by Dawn Marcotte
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2012 Dawn Marcotte
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25 Fun Indoor Games for Kids
25 Fun Science Experiments for Kids
Travel Games for Kids
365 Days of Fun in Minneapolis
5 Easy Rockets
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text: Using Excel To Group Long Tail Keywords on Search Engine People Posted on May 18, 2013 by Anthony Reply Excel and Array's My latest guest post, "Using Excel Formulas To Group Your Google Analytics Long Tail Keywords Into Themes ", is live on Search Engine People's blog. This post expands further on my last post, "Living with SSL Search" and covers a fairly simple and quick technique for dealing with theming keyword traffic: Unfortunately natural language processing tools are not as widely available as we would like and frankly word clouds just do not cut it. This leaves us having to find some kind of a workable kludge to make sense of the information Google Analytics provides. In this case, it is going to be Excel's formulas. A sample spreadsheet is provided at the end of this post. You can ready the full post and grab the example spreadsheet with the formula here. Leave a Reply Click here to cancel reply. Name (required) Mail (will not be published) (required) Website


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It's been exactly 400 days since I last left the country. 400 days since I last needed my passport to travel somewhere outside the US of A. 400 days since I landed in a country where I didn't speak the language, didn't know where I was going, and couldn't wait to immerse myself into the culture.
Four hundred days – it feels like it's been an eternity.
In the meantime, I've moved to Florida, adopted a puppy, and traveled across the country (several times). It's safe to say life hasn't been boring. But you would think that as time continues to pass, it would get easier to fall back into the mundane day to day routine of life.
It's not.
The more time that passes, the more that the itch that started out as a tiny little bump on my arm has grown into a full body rash, and I can't stop scratching.
In 2012, I made a promise to myself that I would travel somewhere abroad once a year (passports required). I swore I would throw a dart at a map if I had to, and travel to wherever it landed. I swore to myself that I'd be adventurous and not let "life" get in the way of life. Traveling is the one of the few things in this world that makes me feel alive. It encourages me to be a better person, allows me to discover myself, and forces me to look up from my iPhone and appreciate the beauty the world has to offer.
But – I did the one thing I swore I wouldn't do. I let life get in the way, and here I am – 25 years old – full of wanderlust with so many places I want to go, and so little time. I feel like 20-somethings are encouraged to travel the world when they graduate from college and "find themselves", and I agree. However, how many 20-somethings do you know that can afford to travel at their leisure? I sure as hell couldn't. I (thankfully) took way too much loan money out my last semester and cashed in my entire savings and used it to book a month long trip to Europe.
Do I regret? Absolutely not. Worth every single penny.
So now, when I'm actually able to afford the trips I want to take, I'm looked at like a "crazy 20-something" who needs to "settle down".
Thanks, but no thanks.
There are so many countries to see, people I have yet to meet, cities I have yet to fall in love with. I've got sunsets to watch, continents to travel to, and hemispheres to visit. And I'd like to do it by the time I'm 30.
So here's my wanderlust bucket list, if we have to give it a title. A list of 10 countries I want to visit in the next 5 years. With 3 weeks of vacation, it seems unlikely – but you'll never know if you don't try!
Am I right?
Why? Barcelona, Madrid, Ibiza, Seville, Valencia – Spain has it all. Culture, history, and an awesome party island with the best house music around.
Why? The breathtaking beaches, the beautiful temples, the exotic foods – there is nothing about this country that doesn't excite me. Wait – I take that back – I could do without the cockroaches.
Why? Because I've always wanted to, and it doesn't hurt that I have a thing for Australian accents. HEY BOYS!
New Zealand
Why? Up until a few months ago, I had no desire to visit New Zealand. Silly me. I have a few friends who recently moved over there, and once I started googling the country, I immediately put it to the top of my bucket list. Queenstown, Auckland, Dunedin, the Bay of Islands – the list could go on and on. Extreme sports ranging from bungee jumping to sky diving, hot air balloons at sunrise to climbing to the top of a glacier – it has everything I could want and more.
Why? Although I've already been to the Italy "tourist hot spots" Venice, Florence, and Rome, Cinque Terre has always held a special place in my heart. This magical looking town overlooks one of the most beautiful bodies of water I've ever seen. I've got to visit at least once in my life.
Why? One word: Tomorrowland.
Why? The beautiful white sand beaches, the crystal blue water, the gorgeous terrain in the distance – need I say more?
Why? Although my parents would probably kill me, and have actually said "you are NOT going there", I've always wanted to travel up and down the Nile in Egypt. The civil unrest doesn't deter me, and I would give anything to see the pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx.
Why? Castles. Beer. Irish men. That's all.
Why? I've been fascinated with Russia and the KGB since I first fell in love with the history of spying. It would be awesome to go visit a place with so much history, and so many beautiful sites. As long as it's in summer.
So, who wants to join me?


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A Ross County deputy sheriff has been placed on leave after authorities say he accidentally shot and killed a woman before a drug raid on Wednesday.
Sgt. Brett McKnight was identified yesterday as the deputy whose gun went off outside a trailer that members of a drug task force were about to raid as part of a heroin bust. The bullet went through the exterior of the trailer before it struck and killed 35-year-old Krystal Barrows, according to a news release.
In the release, Ross County Sheriff George Lavender's office said that members of the U.S. 23 Task Force were executing a search warrant about 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday at a trailer at 467 Rt. 23 S. near Chillicothe. The release said they expected to find large amounts of heroin, several weapons and a guard holding an assault rifle at the front door.
When task-force agents entered the trailer, they found Barrows sitting on the living-room couch " in critical condition" with a bullet wound to her head. She died a short time later at Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center, where she was flown by helicopter.
A sheriff's office news release said a man was armed with a handgun and deputies found pistols and assault rifles in the house, but it makes no mention of whether anyone in the trailer had threatened deputies with a gun or fired a gun.
Investigators with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation determined that the shot that killed Barrows came from McKnight's weapon. McKnight has been with the sheriff's office for 11 years, according to the release.
Yesterday, the sheriff's office refused to give any more details of the incident beyond what was provided in two news releases.
Six people were arrested, largely on outstanding warrants, during the raid. Deputies reported recovering a large amount of suspected heroin, large amounts of cash and suspected stolen property.
The Dispatch requested the sheriff's office incident report on the raid and shooting, but it was not released. In public-records rulings, the Ohio Supreme Court has stated that police incident reports must be released immediately.
Barrows was the mother of three sons ages 9, 14 and 19. She had no criminal record in Ross County except for a misdemeanor conviction for disorderly conduct by intoxication. Her family members declined to comment yesterday.


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PopTech Blog
Posts by Ollie Wilder
The Social Innovation Fellows program represents PopTech's deep commitment to innovation. Through the achievements of our Fellows and their organizations, our entire community is enriched, inspired and provided opportunities to engage in unique, cutting edge work that is changing the way we think, work and create impact.
Our goal is to bring together a group of extraordinary leaders, and we need your help to find them.
Do you know someone doing exceptional work on critical issues in the U.S., or around the world? We're looking for people working in fields such as livelihoods, healthcare, energy, green technology, environment, education, performing arts and other areas with significant social impacts.
The strongest candidates are working on truly new approaches, have at least early positive results and a promising path to scale, and have a passion for collaboration.
They may be developing new platforms that can be applied in a variety of settings, or creating new models for getting a crucial benefit to where it is most needed, or designing for impact through invention, measurement and rigorous testing.
Check out the call for nominations, and nominate someone today!
Nominations will be open through April 1, 2014. The PopTech Social Innovation Fellows program is generously supported by the Rita Allen Foundation, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, National Geographic, Omidyar Network, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Toyota.
Photo: Thatcher Cook for PopTech
Bellagio/PopTech Fellows nominations are open
PopTech and the Rockefeller Foundation are proud to announce the 2014 call for nominations for a unique joint Fellows program focused on unconventional collaboration.
The Bellagio/PopTech Fellows program brings together five to six individuals from diverse backgrounds for a two-week immersion at the Rockefeller Foundation's renowned Bellagio Center on the shores of Lake Como, Italy. The program's first set of Fellows brought many new insights to bear on using big data to enhance community resilience.
The 2014 program is focused on reinventing and democratizing livelihoods. The Fellows will explore how global economies are changing, the potential benefits and challenges of moving from big manufacturing to a distributed model, the opportunities unlocked by the emergence of sharing economies, and how to ensure citizens, in particular poor and vulnerable populations, are well prepared to participate in these ever-changing contexts.
This effort will be creative, interdisciplinary and collaborative – providing an environment where emerging tools, approaches and solutions are viewed as an art as much as a science.
The program is seeking candidates from relevant fields such as design, economics, technology, art and social innovation. A diverse cohort of Fellows will be chosen for their technical and creative excellence and their demonstrated ability to work and think across disciplines.
Know someone who might be a good fit? Nominations will be accepted through January 30, 2014, via the online nomination form. Candidates may self-nominate or be nominated by someone else. Eligibility details are available on the call for nominations web page.
At PopTech: Communities, data, and ethical resilience
How could communities make better use of big data to enhance their resilience?
The six Bellagio/PopTech Fellows convened this past August at the Rockefeller Foundation's Bellagio Center to look deeply at how data can help communities bounce back in the face of key stresses — environmental, political, social and economic.
Building on their multidisciplinary backgrounds, and spurred on by several catalysts, the Fellows created a fresh approach that emphasizes ethics as a central — and often overlooked — factor.
Today, at PopTech, the Fellows announced "Big Data, Communities and Ethical Resilience: A Framework for Action," which outlines the interplay of six key domains, including ethics, governance, science, technology, place and sociocultural context.
The framework is already generating original ideas on how communities can more appropriately sense, analyze and utilize data, while respecting the autonomy and privacy of community members. We are excited to share the Fellows' vision, and look forward to the practical applications that are beginning to emerge.
Introducing the 2013 PopTech Fellows
PopTech's Fellows programs aim to accelerate the impact of emerging innovators and scientists, who are working to solve some of the world's most pressing challenges.
The 2013 classes of Social Innovation Fellows and Science Fellows provide another big dose of inspiration. From human rights to clean energy, financial inclusion to data security, and from health care analysis and empowerment to soft robotics, they are tackling big questions and goals that can make a major positive difference to society and the planet.
Check out the cutting-edge work of the new PopTech Social Innovation Fellows and PopTech Science Fellows.
Both classes of Fellows head to Maine in October for an intensive training program with expert faculty in order to concentrate on areas of importance to their endeavors. The Social Innovation Fellows focus on scaling their work by gaining new skills and visibility while the Science Fellows focus on becoming more effective communicators, collaborators and leaders both within and beyond academia. Both classes of Fellows form extensive networks of ongoing mutual support and mentorship that provide long-term benefits after their retreat.
Join us to hear them present at PopTech 2013: "Sparks of Brilliance," Oct. 24 to 26 in Camden, Maine.
The Social Innovation Fellows and Science Fellows programs are generously supported by the Rita Allen Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Omidyar Network, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and National Geographic.
We look forward to seeing exciting collaborations and major results from these amazing new classes of PopTech Fellows!
Front page photo credit: Peter Durand
PopTech's 2013 Social Innovation Fellows nominations open
Nominations are now open for the 2013 PopTech Social Innovation Fellows program, so it's time to put on your thinking caps.
Do you know somebody who has a big idea, has started to demonstrate significant positive impact and has a smart strategy for reaching scale? That's who we're looking for, and we need you to help us find them.
The strongest candidates are great leaders and collaborators working in critical fields such as energy, green technology, climate change resilience, healthcare, the environment, performing arts, water, education and other areas with significant beneficial impacts. Those chosen as Fellows will participate in a five-day training and the PopTech conference this October, and will gain new skills, visibility and connections to help accelerate their path to greater impact.
Check out the call for nominations for more details, and have a look at our past Fellows — such as the class of 2012 —for some inspiring examples. Then head on over to the nomination form where you can nominate someone else, or (be bold!) yourself.
We're grateful to the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, National Geographic, Omidyar Network, the Rita Allen Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation for their generous support of the Social Innovation Fellows program.
Nominations will be open through April 2, and you can email fellows [at] poptech [dot] org with any questions about the program or the nomination process.
Photo by Agaton Strom for PopTech
Bellagio/PopTech Fellows nominations open!
PopTech and the Rockefeller Foundation are proud to announce the call for nominations for a unique joint Fellows program focused on unconventional collaboration.
The Bellagio/PopTech Fellows program will bring together four to six individuals from diverse backgrounds for a two-week immersion residency at the Rockefeller Foundation's renowned Bellagio Center on the shores of Lake Como, Italy.
This year's program will focus on building community resilience through the use of data science, visualization, and distributed information technologies. Fellows will explore the extent to which big data and related technology can be used to enhance psychological, social and systemic resilience worldwide. This effort will be creative, interdisciplinary and collaborative – providing an environment where emerging tools, approaches and solutions are viewed as an art as much as a science.
The program is seeking candidates from the fields of data and data visualization, technology, design, art, social and natural sciences, resilience research, and other social domains. A diverse cohort of Fellows will be chosen for their technical and creative excellence and their demonstrated ability to work and think across disciplines.
Candidates may self-nominate or be nominated by someone else. Eligibility details are available on the call for nominations web page.
Know someone who might be a good fit? Nominations will be accepted through March 1, 2013, and can be submitted via the online nomination form.
Watch the 2012 PopTech Fellows on stage
A highlight of PopTech's fall conference is when each PopTech Social Innovation and Science Fellow takes the stage in Camden to showcase his or her own work. The raw ingenuity is on full display: reducing malaria by rendering mosquitos infertile, storing digital data in DNA, untangling the evolutionary tree of life, dispatching drones to deliver medicine, and creating nimble new companies with millions of employees but zero managers.
Those presentations are now available online.
Regardless of the caliber of these eye-popping breakthroughs, it is a huge leap to move a fledgling effort into a program that might help solve some of the world's toughest challenges. And these kinds of visionaries too often labor in relative isolation, without the benefit of a network of experts and supporters who can help equip an innovator with the skills and connections critical for making that great leap.
PopTech's Fellows programs provide multifaceted training from a network of established leaders with broad experience ranging from building effective organizations to fundraising to communications — the very skills required to launch innovations to the next level. The nucleus of the Fellows program is the unique opportunity to connect with like-minded peers and enjoy one-on-one access to experienced mentors.
Enjoy their Camden presentations and keep an eye on PopTech as we follow their adventures.
Introducing the Science Fellows Class of 2012
How can we better understand ocean ecosystems, encourage human cooperation, build resilience in the face of climate change, prevent malaria and make mental health care a global priority? The 2012 PopTech Science Fellows are bringing strong leadership to these challenges and many more, and we are proud to introduce them today.
The PopTech Science Fellows program is a unique leadership development opportunity designed to help high potential working scientists become more effective communicators, collaborators and leaders both within and beyond the traditional bounds of academia. Fellows learn key skills from a faculty of experts, form an extensive network of mutual support, and play a highly visible role within the PopTech global community of innovators.
Meet the Science Fellows Class of 2012:
- Kelly Benoit-Bird, an oceanographer at Oregon State University, applies acoustics to the study of ecosystems in the open ocean.
- Flaminia Catteruccia is a molecular entomologist at the Harvard School of Public Health, specializing in the reproductive biology of Anopheles mosquitoes, the only mosquitoes capable of transmitting human malaria.
- Sriram Kosuri is a biological engineer at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, developing next-generation DNA synthesis technologies.
- Thaddeus Pace is a biological psychologist at Emory University, exploring how compassion meditation and other complementary practices may improve the health and well-being of children and adults in challenging circumstances.
- David Rand is a behavioral scientist at Yale University, using a deeply interdisciplinary approach to understand human cooperation, generosity and altruism.
- Giuseppe "Bepi" Raviola is a psychiatrist with Partners In Health, Harvard Medical School and Boston Children's Hospital, working to integrate mental health services into global health care efforts.
- John Rinn is a biologist at Harvard and the Broad Institute, researching how "junk genes" actually play key regulatory roles in human health and disease.
- Leila Takayama is a research scientist with Willow Garage, focused on understanding how humans interact with robots.
- Tiffani Williams is a computer scientist at Texas A&M University, creating algorithmic tools to reconstruct the Tree of Life, which depicts the evolutionary connections among the world's species.
- Benjamin Zaitchik is a climate scientist at Johns Hopkins University, researching ways to understand, manage and cope with climatic and hydrologic variability.
The Fellows will join us in Maine in mid-October for a three-day intensive training session, and then go on to introduce their work on stage at PopTech 2012, giving their work greater visibility and finding new opportunities for collaboration and to engage the public in science.
The PopTech Science Fellows program is generously supported by the Rita Allen Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and National Geographic.
Announcing the Social Innovation Fellows Class of 2012
PopTech is delighted to announce the Social Innovation Fellows Class of 2012!
The members of this year's class are addressing major global challenges by connecting health workers, bringing clean water to children, building farmers' incomes, using unmanned aerial vehicles for remote deliveries of medical supplies, fighting for Internet privacy, and much more. Their work has impacted lives around the world, in places like Kenya, China, Ghana, Liberia and Haiti, as well as throughout the United States.
Meet this year's inspiring Fellows:
- Jamila Abass is CEO of MFarm, which uses mobile technology to help farmers increase their incomes.
- Lukas Biewald is CEO and founder of CrowdFlower, a crowdsourcing internet company that breaks large digital projects into small microtasks and distributes them to workers around the world.
- Rachel Brown founded Sisi ni Amani - Kenya to pioneer the use of mobile technology to get the right communication capacity into the hands of local peacebuilders, enabling communities to participate in democratic processes and prevent violence.
- Bryan Doerries is the founder of Theater of War, a project that presents readings of ancient Greek plays to service members, veterans, caregivers and families to help them start talking about the challenges faced by military communities today.
- Touré McCluskey is the founder of OkCopay, a unique search engine for medical procedures that helps Americans with inadequate insurance find affordable local health care.
- Nicholas Merrill created the Calyx Institute to educate the public regarding the lack of privacy in telecommunications and to develop the infrastructure to implement secure mobile phone and Internet services in a way that has not been done before.
- Jacobo Quintanilla works with Internews supporting local media in enabling people in the midst of disasters to access the information they need and to take an active role in their own survival and recovery.
- Andreas Raptopoulos is the founder and CEO of Matternet, building a network of unmanned aerial vehicles to transport medicine and goods in places with poor road infrastructure.
- Aishwarya Ratan is director of the Global Financial Inclusion Initiative at Yale University and Innovations for Poverty Action, with a goal of ensuring that the financial products, services and tools available to the poor to manage and grow their money are affordable, efficient, secure and welfare-enhancing.
- Eric Stowe believes that every child has a right to clean water; to act on that belief, he founded A Child's Right (soon to be Splash), which cleans water for over 200,000 children in schools, orphanages, street shelters, hospitals, and rescue homes in Asia and East Africa.
- Eric Woods is the CEO and founder of Switchboard, which uses mobile phones to create nationwide networks of health workers in developing countries.
- Daniel Zoughbie created Microclinic International to leverage the power of social network relationships to spread healthy behaviors throughout under-resourced communities.
The Fellows will participate in an intensive five-day training just prior to this year's Oct. 17-20 PopTech conference, and present their ideas on stage to conference participants and viewers of the worldwide webcast, helping them build new skills, contacts and visibility.
The Social Innovation Fellows program is generously supported by the Rita Allen Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and National Geographic.
We are delighted to have these extraordinary leaders joining the PopTech network, and look forward to accompanying them on their journey as the impact of their work grows and spreads.
What makes the strongest Social Innovation Fellow nominations?
Nominations for the PopTech Social Innovation Fellows program opened earlier this month. Whether you're nominating yourself or someone else, how can you best make the case?
Based on past years' most compelling nominations, here are some helpful tips:
- Give specific examples of the nominee's leadership and collaborative success.
- Describe clearly the central innovation and how it has begun to prove its impact. Why is this a breakthrough idea? What demonstrates that it really works?
- Indicate the most promising path and potential timeframe for reaching scale and sustainability. How many people could be reached, how, and when?
- Include a personal highlight or two to help reveal the nominee's passion, dedication and other key qualities.
We need your help identifying the strongest candidates for this year's class of Fellows. Please have a look at the call for nominations and submit your nominations any time between now and April 3, 2012.
Image: captain.orange


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There is nothing intrinsically "Canadian," let alone "conservative," about leveraging insecurity, racism and xenophobia for votes through ethnic scapegoating. That is not a "conservative" strategy; it's a fascist strategy with a long and bloody history, and it has no place in Canada. On October 19th, we have a chance to "take our country back." We have the chance to declare once and for all that who and what we are as Canadians is no longer for sale. We have a chance to steer Canada off its collision course with history, to save it from derailing and crashing beyond our ability to recognize it, let alone repair it.
Every day we see another poll, another tracker, another analyst examining this or that issue. The latest is the niqab, the face veil some Muslim women wear. But women's issues and politics in Canada encompass more than a face veil. In fact, I'm going to come out and say there are far more pressing issues we have to deal with from a woman's point of view than whether or not some women wear a veil. Stephen Harper's continuing waving of the veil in our faces is nothing more than a distraction and a deflection from what truly matters.
These women aren't separating their spirituality from personal or creative expression. By having the mainstream fashion industry represent women and men from different cultural and religious backgrounds, stereotypes and beliefs towards a group of people can be challenged. It is a step towards making unseen people seen.
Judge Eliano Marengo has declared her Quebec courtroom "a secular place and a secular space", and has denied Rania El-Alloul a hearing because she wears a hijab. The judge proclaimed that there are no religious symbols in her courtroom. It is impossible for a judge who daily has witnesses place their hand on a Bible and swear to tell the truth to claim there are no religious symbols in her courtroom. So did the fact that Rania El-Alloul's attire was Islamic weigh more heavily on the judge's decision than the fact that she wore a religious symbol?
It is mind bogglingly outrageous to learn that a Quebec judge would serve her own religiously discriminatory interests rather than promote the Canadian charter of rights and freedoms under which she governs. As a proud Canadian Muslim woman I firmly believe that we as a society are better than this and we need to speak out against discrimination under the guise of secularism.
For the naysayers or eye-rollers out there, there is nothing wrong with removing my hijab or other article of clothing for a doctor if it is necessary for the sake of the medical examination. In this instance, it was not. It was the equivalent of asking a woman to fully remove her top and undergarment in order to examine her lungs. The changes in the environment in Quebec are subtle but ever present. I have felt the chill in the air. From the racial slur while at the movies with my kids to reading passive aggressive comments on social media. Our joie de vivre, pride in diversity and bilingualism has been replaced with political unease, targeted discrimination of visibly religious minorities and linguistic force.
Imagine your child's favourite teacher. This teacher is known to provide her students with an enriched classroom. Now imagine that this exemplary teacher is a person who subscribes to a religious faith for which she dresses in a particular fashion. Should she remove the outward signs of her faith so that she can keep teaching?
Quebec's Muslim women have been threatened -- violence against veiled women has increased dramatically since the Charter debate was introduced. In Quebec, the issue of choice and self-determination around the veil is critical. It would seem, then, that in matters of fashion, religion, and secularism, Montreal's Muslim women are being held to a higher standard by their provincial government. Montreal's young Hijabistas -- and those who support them -- told us what the veil means to them.
The PQ is unable to distinguish between religious zealotry that overtakes the public sphere and individuals who, though they exhibit their faith publicly, continue to work peacefully, alongside their neighbours of other beliefs, without difficulty. Make no mistake -- everyone in Quebec will be affected by the Charter of "Values." The entire society will be subjected to change as a result. Do we want people to be forced to choose their faith over integration in the public sphere? Do we want "Muslim only" sections of cities? That will be the result of failing to allow the integration of visible religious minorities in the public sphere. It is apartheid.


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Babe Ruth was beloved in Boston and New York.
Bostonians cried foul when baseball's first superstar was sold for $400,000 by the Red Sox to the Yankees. New Yorkers welcomed George Herman Ruth with open arms and treated him like he was always one of their own.
The deal, made by then-Red Sox owner Harry Frazee in 1920, remains an enigma for many Red Sox fans today, more than 80 years after the fact and more than 50 years after Ruth's death in 1948.
Some Red Sox fans believe a curse overtook their franchise when Frazee sent Ruth to New York. The Red Sox claimed five of the first 15 World Series championships before the Ruth deal. They've not won one since, while the Yankees have bagged 26 World Series titles.
A one-hour documentary on HBO at 10 Tuesday night delves into the phenomenon known to Red Sox fans as The Curse of the Bambino. By the time the well-done piece reaches the credits, you are left wondering whether Ruth's departure has had the kind of lasting effect on the Red Sox that qualifies it as a curse.
This piece is as much about the history of the Red Sox and their loyal fans as it is about Ruth and the Yankees. It's an up-close look at some diehard fans and what they go through rooting for a perennial loser. It certainly captures the Red Sox fans' pain.
Clearly, many fans in Boston believe in the curse. Entertainers and media types from the Boston area also share their thoughts, and even a Boston-based rabbi describes the Red Sox' fate after the trade as "Jobian existence."
What makes The Curse of the Bambino really work and enjoyable to watch is that it's done with a level of levity that pokes fun at how the Red Sox became recognized as lovable losers, alongside a team like the Chicago Cubs. The documentary may help put the Red Sox franchise in a place all its own as the No. 1 hard-luck ballclub of all time.
Besides providing details behind one of the most famous deals in professional sports, The Curse of the Bambino, narrated by Boston native Ben Affleck, looks at how people have even attempted to reverse the curse.
Bucky Dent and Bill Buckner are recognized among those who have unexpectedly played a part in Boston's curse chronicles. Yet the show looks beyond a curse for reasons why the Red Sox have not won a Series since 1918. It offers more practical reasons behind the fall of the franchise. Poor management decisions over the years, which included being the last team in the Major Leagues to sign an African-American player, are discussed.
Even if you're not a Red Sox fan you'll find this story fascinating. Not only is the documentary done in a mystical, X-files-like way, it captures the essence of what it's like to grow up in Boston post-Ruth.
Channel changing
The Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions hit the road tomorrow for Week Two of the NFL season. The Browns play at Baltimore (Channel 11) and the Lions play at Green Bay (Channel 36), both at 1 p.m.
Former Browns lineman Orlando Brown, who is returning from an eye injury and plays for Baltimore, will be featured on The NFL Today on Channel 11 at noon.
The Detroit Shock host to the Los Angeles Sparks in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals tomorrow at 4 on Channel 13.


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Are you a talented designer who sold your soul to the advertising industry? Are you working nightmare hours designing marketing material for products you don't believe in? Do you want to work with a team of creatives who actually love what they do?
HarperCollins Publishers Design Studio is looking for a strong Designer to join their award-winning team based in Sydney.
Reporting to the Head of Design you will be responsible for creating the look for all our biggest campaigns. This includes outdoor, print and online. You will work on a wide range of projects and bring a strong commercial sensibility, a passion for precise and consistent execution and a great eye for the creative potential in a brief. You will understand the difference between designing for Facebook news feeds, in store displays and trade communications.
This role will give you the opportunity to work alongside award-winning designers on campaigns for books which inform the culture we live in. It is a fun, fast-paced and creative environment in which to expand your portfolio with rewarding integrous work.
You will have:An exceptional portfolioA minimum of 3 years inhouse design experienceExpert knowledge of Adobe Creative SuiteThe ability to manage multiple projects simultaneouslyExcellent understanding of digital technologiesExperience designing integrated and complex campaignsA positive and enthusiastic dispositionPride in your work
To be considered for this fantastic opportunity apply now! Please include your portfolio in your application. Only successful applications will be contacted.
An opportunity exists for a passionate and dynamic marketing specialist to join one of Australia's leading payment service providers. The role involves strategic thinking, creative writing and a strong ability to "think outside the box".For information on our products and services, please visit [..]
The role:Develop, implement and manage digital marketing content and creative marketing material across multiple mediumsPlan, coordinate, implement and measure marketing events, promotions, advertising and other marketing activitiesAssist with strategising, planning and implementation of new lead generation activities for multiple brands
RequirementsAbility to "think outside the box" in a highly competitive industry Ability to show initiative and think creatively/laterally in developing solutions Strong work ethic and a flexible "can do" attitudePassionate and a desire to learnOutstanding verbal and written communication High attention to detail Good understanding of visual communication/design and productionStrong time and task management skillsHighly targeted lead generation skills


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By Carl Delfeld
Like two Rolls Royce jet engines smoothly powering a 767 aircraft, the twin economies of Singapore and Malaysia are driving many smart global investors' portfolios forward. I'll tackle Malaysia in a future column, but for today, let's focus on Singapore.
A few quick-fire facts for starters before we get into the investment nitty-gritty:
- Formerly a British trading colony in 1819, Singapore became an independent republic in 1965, under the leadership of the current prime minister's father, Lee Kuan Yew.
- About 275 square miles in size, it's three times larger than Washington, D.C., but only one-fifth the size of Rhode Island, with a population of around 4.5 million.
- Despite its small size, though, Singapore consistently punches above its weight in both global commerce and politics. A member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Singapore is home to around 100 commercial banks and is arguably the most strategically important Asian nexus for global trading, finance and services.
In short, Singapore is the "Switzerland of Asia." And here's why you should invest in it:
Six Reasons Why You Should Invest in Singapore Over China
There are several compelling reasons to invest in Singapore. But let's get right down to brass tacks and start with the country's economy…
- Economic Growth: You think China is growing fast? Over the first half of 2010, Singapore boasted the world's fastest-growing economy, with a blistering GDP growth rate of 17.9%. Pretty impressive, given the 6.8% contraction during the fourth quarter of 2009.
- Resilient Economy: Despite only 1.6% of its land being suitable for agriculture and having to import almost everything, including water, Singapore somehow manages to have a trade surplus. It has a balanced budget and a stable currency and still manages to allocate 5% of its GDP for defense.
- Well-Diversified: Unlike South Korea and Taiwan, which are heavily dependent on the cyclical electronics industry, Singapore has a well-diversified economy, with 70% of its GDP attributable to finance and services.
- A Major Transport Hub: Hong Kong and Shanghai will beg to differ, but Singapore has the busiest shipping port in Asia and is situated next to a vital trading channel, the Straits of Malacca.
- Politics: Singapore uses a parliamentary form of government and an English common-law judicial system. Slowly but surely, a freer political climate is developing, with a Speaker's Corner instituted in 2000 and the ability to express views freely anywhere, except for two sensitive topics: race and religion.
- Sensible Regulation: Singapore's accounting rules and regulations are among the most conservative in the world. For example, its rules on inventory accounting and the expensing of stock options are more conservative than those in the United States.
Additionally, Singapore's educational performance is legendary. The fact that it has twice as many Internet users as television sets is telling. Its citizens are a diverse lot, too, with 77% Chinese, 14% Malay and 8% Indian, while 42% of its population are foreigners working primarily in services. The country is also corruption and drug-free.
Singapore is also changing with the times…
Rolling the Dice With the Big Boys
If you want to play with the high rollers at the casinos, you can hit hotspots like Las Vegas, Macau or Dubai. But there's a new player in town…
In an effort to generate more investment, tax revenue and add a bit of swagger, Singapore has launched two large casino resorts – and with remarkable success. The second quarter takings put Singapore on track to have an annual $4 billion casino market, according to The Wall Street Journal. That's just 20% less than what Las Vegas is expected to do this year.
According to projections, the resorts will lead to $4 billion in investments, $3.5 billion in annual revenue, 35,000 jobs and $350 million per year in taxes and fees.
Mending Fences… and Grabbing China's Manufacturing
Singapore has also made great strides in patching up misunderstandings with its neighbor to the north, Malaysia, from which it split in 1965. Tax issues, water supply agreements and transportation arrangements are all moving much more smoothly.
Singapore is proving to be equally adept at expanding its manufacturing base. Traditionally, the country has relied on its electronics industry as the backbone of its manufacturing sector. But despite making up 40% of the total manufacturing output, electronics only accounts for 5% of employment. So Singapore is making the transition to more of a service and research and development-based economy.
Not only that, some firms are surprisingly moving their manufacturing centers from China to Singapore, due to Singapore's infrastructure, logistics and laws protecting intellectual property. Exxon-Mobil (NYSE:XOM), Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS.A) and Sumitomo (OTCPK:SSUMY) are all expanding their petrochemical facilities.
In addition, strong global demand for transportation, communications and logistics services, plus increasing information technology spending, rising consumer spending and property prices and expanded tourism all point toward continued growth.
Get Smart and Start Investing in Singapore
An easy and smart way to invest in Singapore is through the iShares MSCI Singapore Index (NYSEARCA:EWS), which tracks the Singapore Straits stock index. The EWS highlights:
- It's up 28.4% over the past year and 18.7% year-to-date.
- Its largest positions are in Singapore Telecom (OTCPK:SGAPY), United Overseas Bank (OTCPK:UOVEY) and DBS Bank (OTCPK:DBSDY).
- It's tax-efficient and has an annual expense ratio of only 0.59%.
- It's trading at 14 times projected earnings. By comparison, the Switzerland market and its ETF – the iShares MSCI Switzerland Index (NYSEARCA:EWL) – is trading at 18 times earnings.
Singapore is the epitome of quality and is finding creative ways to boost its economic growth. It's an attractive, top-drawer play on Asian growth and should be a core holding for any global portfolio.
Disclosure: Investment U expressly forbids its writers from having a financial interest in any security they recommend to our subscribers. All employees and agents of Investment U (and affiliated companies) must wait 24 hours after an initial trade recommendation is published on online - or 72 hours after a direct mail publication is sent - before acting on that recommendation.
Disclaimer: The Oxford Club LLC/Investment U and Stansberry & Associates Investment Research are separate companies, and entirely distinct. Their only common thread is a shared parent company, Agora Inc. Agora Inc. was named in the suit by the SEC and was exonerated by the court, and thus dropped from the case. Stansberry & Associates was found civilly liable for a matter that dealt with one writer's report on a company. The action was not a criminal matter.


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Hello, omkara!
A flexible wire of length 12 metres, is bent into the 3-sided shape.
(Note that the arc PS is not part of the wire.)
The endsegments and are each straight and have equal length m.
while the middle segment forms a circular arc.
The ends of the wire are placed at the edge of a disc of radius 8 m and with centre
The arc forms part of a circle with centre at subtends an angle radians at
The question corncerns the area A within the disc that is enclosed between its edge
and the wire, which is shown shaded.(a) Express the length of the wire PQRS in terms of and .Code:P o 8 *:::* o:::::::: * Q*:::A:::* * *::::::: * x :::::::: o * * * * o * o O 8-L R L S
Hence express in terms of
We have: .
Then: .
(b) Hence show that the area A can be expressed by: .
Substitute [1]: .
. . .
I seriously doubt that angle could be 15 radians.(c) Explain why it is reasonable to choose as the domain for
Look at the area function: .
Since , all the factors must be positive.
We have: .
Hence, the domain is: .


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Selfies have taken social media, and basically the entire world, by storm. So will ABC's new half-hour comedy of the same name hit it off as well with viewers? That's up to viewers like you!
Thankfully, ABC is helping TV lovers decide that and offering an early peek at Selfie, the hilarious, modern retelling of My Fair Lady. From Suburgatory — long live, Chatswin! — creator Emily Kapnek, the half-hour comedy stars Doctor Who alum Karen Gillan as the narcissistic and image-obsessed Eliza Dooley. When Eliza realizes she has too many Facebook friends but not nearly enough real ones, she hires marketing guru Henry Higenbottam (Harold and Kumar's John Cho) to help remake her image.
More of Fall TV's must-see new shows
So will Henry really be able to help Eliza? And more importantly, will sparks fly between the marketing master and his student? Watch the full Selfie pilot now:
Selfie premieres on Tuesday, Sept. 30 at 8/7c on ABC.
View original VIDEO: Watch Selfie, ABC's Modern Take on My Fair Lady, Online Ahead of Premiere at TVGuide.com
Other Links From TVGuide.com
Copyright 2016 Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.3/201412
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- Title
- Engineering and characterisation of chalcogenide-based photonic microstructures
- Author(s)
- Nicoletti, Elisa
- Abstract
- Information and communication are playing a growing role in modern society. In this increasingly interconnected and networked world that we live in, it has become critically important to find a way to have faster and more efficient storage and transmission of data. As the network capacity continues to grow, so does the need for fast signal regeneration and switching devices. It seems that electronics and semiconductor technology will not be able to keep up with the growing telecommunication market. The top speed at which integrated electronic circuits can operate is starting to level out. However, by transmitting signals with light rather than electrons, it is possible to obtain a larger bandwidth in both smaller and more energy efficient devices. To achieve this goal it is necessary to control and manipulate the propagation of light through so-called photonic crystals (PhCs). These materials are highly periodic structures with the optical equivalent to the energy gap in semiconductors. PhCs have the potential to address many of the problems that currently limit the speed and capacity of optical communication networks. They represent a new tool for the microscopic engineering of light and thus have recently received great attention in a variety of fields. However, to employ the high technology potential of PhCs, it is crucially important to achieve a dynamical tunability of their properties. As such, it is necessary to turn to PhCs made of nonlinear materials, in which the optical response depends on light intensity. The nonlinearity of optical materials is essential, if we wish to create devices such as optical diodes, transistors, switches, and limiters. The combination of nanophotonics, the application of light in nanometre scale structures, and nonlinear materials promises dramatic improvements in the ability to generate, harness and confine light, and will be the route to compact, energy efficient photonic processors. Photosensitive chalcogenide glasses (ChGs) have recently been utilised as a unique building block for three-dimensional (3D) PhCs because of their high refractive index (high-n), high nonlinearity and high transparency in the near to mid-infrared (IR) region. Such properties are crucial to open 3D complete band gaps with wavelength tunability. The aim of this thesis is to use ChGs as the material platform to generate nonlinear PhCs that can find application in all-optical devices. Towards this goal a fabrication technique is required that can produce high quality 3D woodpile PhCs in ChGs and allows for the introduction of localised defects within the periodic structures, a crucial aspect for the realisation of optical devices. Although several methods have been proposed, direct laser writing (DLW), using a femtosecond laser induced multi-photon process, has proved to be the most convenient, efficient and flexible approach to generate arbitrary PhCs with functional stop gaps....The work presented in this thesis is a step towards the realisation of the photonic chip that operates with photons instead of electrons (as seen in the semiconductor devices of today). The development of nonlinear functional PhCs will find extensive applications in the new generation of all-optical integrated devices. These devices promise to be a platform for ultrahigh speed all-optical signal processing in more compact and higher performance devices.
- Publication type
- Thesis (PhD)
- Research centre
- Swinburne University of Technology. Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Sciences. Centre for Micro-Photonics
- Publication year
- 2011
- Keyword(s)
- Chalcogenide glasses; Direct laser writing; Photonic crystals; Photonics
- Coverage
- Australasian Digital Theses collection
- Publisher URL
- Copyright
- Copyright © 2011 Elisa Nicoletti.
- Thesis Supervisor
- [Min Gu]
- Thesis Note
- [A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Swinburne University of Technology, 2011.]
- Full text