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Co-Directors David Claman & Matthew Malsky Present The Extensible Toy Piano Festival Sunday, June 12, 2011 at 3pm, BargemusicPosted by s21concerts in Concert Announcement, tags: Atsushi Yoshinaka, Bargemusic, David Claman, Jessica Bowers, John McDonald, Karlheinz Essl, Kids free, Konrad Kaczmarek, Matthew Malsky, Nancy Newman, new music, Phyllis Chen, piano, The Extensible Toy Piano Festival, toy piano
Co-Directors David Claman and Matthew Malsky present The Extensible Toy Piano Festival, an avant-garde haven for connoisseurs and newcomers to this highly theatrical electroacoustic event. The festival features performances and works by Phyllis Chen (of ICE), John McDonald, and Konrad Kaczmarek; compositions by Karlheinz Essl, Atsushi Yoshinaka, Claman, and Malsky; and guest performers Nancy Newman and mezzo-soprano Jessica Bowers. Inspired by a toy piano composition contest at Clark University, Claman and Malsky are taking their treasured playthings (including computers) on the road to create bona fide musical instruments. This is a concert of serious fun: intriguing and irresistible.
The Extensible Toy Piano Festival
Sunday, June 12, 2011 3pm
Fulton Ferry Landing near the Brooklyn Bridge
Tickets: $25 ($20 Seniors; $15 Students)
Suggested Ages: 3 and up; kids are free!
Please make your reservations by emailing: firstname.lastname@example.com. You will receive an email confirmation.
Cash/Credit Cards accepted at the door.
About the Program
Phyllis Chen
Carousels, for toy piano and music box
Colura, Double Helix and Hallucinate, for toy piano and bowls
Taroko Hypnos, for toy piano and music box
Munin Raven, for music box and electronics
Karlheinz Essl
Whatever Shall Be, toy piano and gadgets
Konrad Kaczmarek
32 Grains-Toy Piano, toy piano and electronics
David Claman
Piece of Work, laptop
John McDonald
Two Formican Lullabies, toy piano, grand piano, and mezzo-soprano
Four Stand-ins, toy piano
Matthew Malsky
heterogeneous, toy piano and electronics
Atsushi Yoshinaka
Bokura no Ayumi, toy piano, Japanese speaker and English speaker
Comments Off on Co-Directors David Claman & Matthew Malsky Present The Extensible Toy Piano Festival Sunday, June 12, 2011 at 3pm, Bargemusic


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Zurich Takes Old School Approach to Activation
May 31, 2012
Zurich Insurance Group used its PGA tour sponsorship to promote its 100th anniversary of doing business in the U.S.
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subset: commoncrawl


text: MFA Alum Wins Prize for Best Short Film"White Space" by MFA Alum Maya Washington ('06) was awarded Best Short at the Minneapolis-St.Paul International Film Festival during the closing night award ceremony on May 3. The award includes a $5,000 prize good for post production services at Splice.Awarded to a film exhibiting excellence in the short genre, this competition includes selections from the narrative and documentary programs, and includes prizes given to both the best national and international short, and the best short film from the Minnesota-Made program.The Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival is the best attended film event in the Upper Midwest. Over its three-week run, the festival presents an exciting and diverse slate of some 300 narrative, documentary, and short films from over 60 countries, hosts many visiting filmmakers, and includes an array of events, panels, discussions, and parties. The festival takes place on the five screens of the St. Anthony Main Theatre, set along the banks of the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis.


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Jabra UC Voice 750 Series
Jabra UC Voice 750 series are corded Unified Communications headsets designed for heavy UC voice users and featuring a lightweight design providing all day wearing comfort. Since the UC Voice 750 is compatible with all major UC platforms, there is virtually no implementation needed. Users can plug in the headset and begin working.
- • Portable for users on the move between workstations or offices
- • Compatible with all major UC platforms
- • Intuitive design makes it easy to use
- • All day wearing comfort with lightweight design
- • Convenient call control buttons
- • HiFi Stereo support for multimedia applications and music listening
Check Jabra Compatibility Guide here for compatible headets and adapters needed. (Pop-up Window)
Jabra UC Voice 750 Headset - Mono LightDiscontinued Learn More
Out of stock


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45th Presidential Inauguration photo gallery
Minot City Council
When: Monday, 6:30 p.m.
Where: Minot City Hall, council chambers, second floor, 515-2nd Ave. SW
Agenda: The council will consider the phasing report for the proposed flood protection plan and other recommendations of its standing committees and planning commission.
How to make your opinion known: Meetings are open to the public. Council members are Mayor Curt Zimbelman, Scott Knudsvig, Tom Seymour, Mark Jantzer, Blake Krabseth, Kevin Connole, Lisa Olson, Dave Lehner, Larry Frey, Bob Miller, George Withus, Jim Hatlelid, Dean Frantsvog, Milt Miller and Amy Moen.


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Open Books IS: a nonprofit social venture that operates an extraordinary bookstore, provides community programs, and mobilizes passionate volunteers to...
Old Town offers classes for children, as well as "hip" kid
concerts many parents will enjoy.
1 Event
Mary Macaroni has something for every party! Costumed
Characters, clowning, magic, face painting, balloons and more!
Children's parties or corporate...
The ultimate party for your Thomas fan! Play on the
world's largest Thomas playtable. Build humongous layouts.
Includes: Party Room for 1...
We serve the Chicagoland Area for All Events! All Party Themes
including Fairy Tale Princess & Pirate Parties. 113 Costumed
Characters, Clowns,...
Have a
party to remember, perfect for any occasion. Birthdays, luncheons,
scout outings, showers and Mom's night out! Kids and adults can
choose and...


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When you link a Twitter account to Friend or Follow you are requested to grant Friend or Follow certain permissions. Specifically the Twitter authorization screen says:
This application will be able to:
- Read Tweets from your timeline.
- See who you follow, and follow new people.
- Update your profile.
- Post Tweets for you.
Of particular concern are the bottom two permissions granting Friend or Follow the ability to "Update your profile" and "Post Tweets for you." Friend or Follow is a contact management application so it stands to reason that we shouldn't need the ability to update your profile or post tweets for you. In fact we do neither of these things. However, Twitter only provides 3 API permission levels:
- Read
- Read, Write
- Read, Write, and Direct Messages
Friend or Follow requires the "Read, Write" permission level in order to provide "Follow" and "Unfollow" buttons, as following and unfollowing are consider "Write" operations. Unfortunately the "Read, Write" permission level includes all other "Write" operations, including updating your profile and tweeting. Fortunately it excludes access to "Direct Messages."
Some Twitter services make automatic posts to your timeline. We think that sucks, and we have never, and never will post or update your profile on your behalf.
Please consider this our official promise to you: We Never Tweet On Your Behalf.
Update 3/6/2012:
Some folks have asked, "why do you need these permissions now? Your old site didn't need these permissions."
Our old site used the Twitter 1.0 API (which is now retired). The 1.0 API did not require that users authenticate to view follower and following data. This is why you could simply type in your username and get results. With the new 1.1 API we have to authenticate with Twitter before we can pull any data.
The "Follow" and "Unfollow" buttons on the old site used a service called Twitter @Anywhere, which Twitter has also retired. That service required "Read, Write" access like our current site. If you used the "Sign in with Twitter" feature to follow and unfollow on our old site, at some point, you granted Friend or Follow "Read, Write" access during the authentication process.
So, what's changed? Everyone must authenticate with Twitter to use Friend or Follow. We need "Read, Write" permissions to provide a "Follow" and "Unfollow" button. We feel the ability to follow and unfollow directly from Friend or Follow is a central piece of our functionality. So, we request "Read, Write" permissions.


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Laganella: The Calls of GravityPosted by Jay Batzner in CD Review, Jay Batzner, Piano, tags: CD Review, chamber music, Ensemble CMN, instrumental, Jay Batzner, Laganella, Marilyn Nonken, Prism Quartet, saxophone
music of David Laganella
The Prism Quartet, Marilyn Nonken, Ensemble CMN
New Focus Recordings
- Leafless Trees – The Prism Quartet
- The Hidden River – Marilyn Nonken
- Unattainable Spaces – Ensemble CMN
- The Persistence of Light – Marilyn Nonken
- Sundarananda – Ensemble CMN
These recent works by composer David Laganella feature a constant nattering of activity full of motion and gestures and with very little stability or repose. Leafless Trees is an energetic and coloristic set of miniature toccatas for saxophone quartet. The Prism Quartet are clearly at home here as they make the acrobatics and difficult timbral shifts sound fluid and organic. The quartet is a showy virtuosic piece and I found that I wanted to listen to the individual sound worlds of each movement for a greater amount of time that Laganella had composed.
Marilyn Nonken's two performances (The Hidden River and The Persistence of Light) features almost constant activity and flow as is fitting to the compositions' inspirations. Both pieces function with their own internal logic through a linear form that eschews repetition for constant development. These pieces are based on textures instead of gestures with broad dramatic shapes to guide the listener. Harmonies are dense clusters which occasionally relax into softer sounds. As a whole, Laganella uses the piano as a single voice with very little use of large-scale polyphony. The smaller gestures that make up the whole composition are again appropriate given his inspirations of water and light.
Unattainable Spaces stays true to the sound world that Laganella has presented thus far. Tight dissonances are the glue that bind this ensemble (string trio, clarinet, and percussion) into a single unified instrument. The language is equally sinewy and slippery as it progresses from one moment to the next. In a refreshing change of pace, the final composition played by Ensemble CMN has smooth edges and a more tender touch. Sundarananda for flute, cello, and guitar, is a compellingly understated piece built of slower moving lyrical lines sometimes punctuated by more hectic activity. The trio waxes and wanes and is full of breath. Short spiky gestures that become the mainstay of Laganella's later compositions (this work is the earliest on the disc – 2004) are given resonant space. A tight control over the dramatic arch is still maintained. I'm not sure what has happened in the past 7 years to move Laganella's music into a more hectic and manic direction but I hope he will still draw upon the serene contemplations he had when composing Sundarananda.


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Rush fireman's carnival
Growing up in a small town one of the most fun things about summer was the fireman's carnival. When I was a kid my father was a volunteer firefighter so he was always inveolved in the carnival, which meant I got to go every night. Those summer nights spent at the carnival grounds are some of my fondest memories.
This coming weekend the Rush Fireman's Carnival will give you and your family a chance to make some of your own memories. The carnival starts on Thursday, July 19 and runs through Saturday, July 21st and features the following highlights:
Thursday: The Kiddie Parade with the sign up beginning at 6pm and parade at 7 pm. The theme is Pirates & Princesses. There will also be reduced prices on clams and beer.
Friday: The regular parade will begin at 7pm.
Saturday: The Boy Scout Troop 134 Chicken Barbecue Fundraiser will be serving dinners from 12:00 – 7:00 p.m. Dinners are $8.00 and include: ½ chicken, salt potatoes, rolls-n-butter and cookies. Please stop by and support your local Boy Scout Troop 134. Later in the evening the band Reporter will be performing and there will be fireworks at 10pm.
For more information you can visit the fire department's web site.
If you have questions, comments or story suggestions please email me at email@example.com.


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Be a part of a unique online community that connects post production professionals and film academics worldwide.
You'll have access to personalize your news feed, access to Live Post Talks and much more. Contribute to the community by posting interesting post production content.
April 11, 2012, 3:17 pm
(Burbank, California--April 11, 2012) Bella Corporation today announced support for Grass Valley Edius video editing software as well as Adobe Systems After Effects software with their award winning keyboards. Bella will be showcasing the keyboards along with other new products at this year's NAB Show in booth number SL2812 in Las Vegas, Nevada, April 16-19.
January 19, 2017, 10:25 am
VFX Artist Sean Mullen shows us how to create the famous RGB Split Effect using only the native tools in Adobe Premiere Pro.
January 19, 2017, 6:14 am
We're checking out Universal Audio's new and improved desktop audio interface for Mac and Windows and demoing it's Unison mic preamp technology and UAD-2 plug-ins.
January 19, 2017, 6:14 am
Now that we've all seen Rogue One five times and deconstructed the storyline, the characters and the visual effects, it's fun to also consider how some of the iconic shots came to be. Of course, ILM and Lucasfilm's art department crafted many of the incredible concepts, but some of the first shot designs were done by the previs team at The Third Floor.
January 19, 2017, 6:14 am
We are in the final stages of fine cutting 'Seeing Him', a short film written, produced by and starring Vanessa Bailey. I have stepped into the directors shoes after my good friend Catherine Arton stepped down as director, entrusting me to finish her good work. I have already spent time working with our hugely experienced editor Chris Frith but wanted a fresh opinion.
January 19, 2017, 6:14 am
OK, we're a stock footage company. But one of the reasons we built this is because we saw it coming. The "it" is what's actually happening now in commercial and non-commercial videos - aerial shots. And not just Helicopter shots, but drone stock shots. You can tell by the height on most shots and the "pep" of them.
January 19, 2017, 6:14 am
COW Blogs : Brinder Singh Gera's Blog : After Effects Tutorial: Reveal Title/ Lower Third
January 19, 2017, 6:13 am
How to Create a Frame Switch Transition in Adobe Premiere Pro
January 19, 2017, 6:13 am
FCPX Modern Slideshow 01 Template Tutorial
January 18, 2017, 10:09 am
Last week I had the opportunity to jump on the phone with the visual effects team behind Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. After the jump, you can read a transcript of my full interview with Rogue One executive producer / visual effects supervisor / writer John Knoll, animation supervisor Hal Hickel, and special effects supervisor Neil Corbould.
January 18, 2017, 10:09 am
Really nice work by MPC on the latest movie of Clint Eastwood, SULLY...
Joe Walker joins Gordon to discuss the editing of Denis Villeneuve's film Arrival. They focus on Time and manipulating t ...
Gordon sits down with Steven Rosenblum to discuss the editing of Birth of a Nation. They talk about lack of footage and how t ...
Gordon sits down with Zack Arnold, founder of FitnessinPost.com, about his new project, Optimize Yourself. This new program i ...
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Get your post news on your favourite Apple device, when you want it where you want it.
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Feeding America is a nationwide network of 200 member food banks, the largest domestic hunger-relief charity in the United States. The Feeding America network of food banks provides food assistance to an estimated 46.5 million Americans in need each year, including 12 million children and 7 million seniors.
The report "Hunger in America" is Feeding America's series of quadrennial studies that provide comprehensive demographic profiles of people seeking food assistance through the charitable sector.
Here are seven figures you should know from the latest report:


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Stereoscopic 3D gaming or movie watching may be more immersive than traditional, but they either require special glasses and/or using a special screen. Nonetheless, the aforementioned are not the only drawbacks of stereo-3D (S3D) technology. According to Nintendo and some others S3D may be harmful for eyes of the young children.
"We will recommend that very young children not look at 3D images. That's because, [in] young children, the muscles for the eyes are not fully formed... This is the same messaging that the industry is putting out with 3D movies, so it is a standard protocol," said Reggie Fils-Aime, the president of Nintendo America in an interview with Kotaku web-site.
In addition to problems with eyes of young children, stereo-3D eye-popping technology may cause headaches or other unpleasantness if viewed for an extended period of time.
Nintendo 3DS game console that is due to be out later this year has so-called auto-stereoscopic 3D screen that promises to provide better experience than traditional displays. Still, the 3DS features a slider that can regulate or completely disable S3D effect.
"We are working with the experts in the field [of health testing 3DS for potential harm]. We have done extensive testing. We have a legacy of bringing only the best and finest products to the marketplace," added Mr. Fils-Aime.
Although the president of Nintendo America claims that the population he would keep from stereo-3D are children under seven, it is pretty clear that every child grows and forms in his/her individual schedule and parents are likely to keep older children away from stereo-3D as well.
It is interesting to note that loads of stereo-3D movies target children from three to ten and are demonstrated in appropriate theaters. Moreover, the very first Blu-ray 3D release from Sony Corp. is Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs animated picture designed for children.
Tags: Stereo-3D, Nintendo, 3DS, Sony


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As a natural phytochemical found in Japanese green tea, L-Theanine is a non-essential amino acid that is present in the brain.** A close relative of Glutamate, studies indicate that L-Theanine interacts with the neurotransmitter, GABA (gammaminobutyrate).** GABA, known for its importance in nervous system functioning, works with the mood centers of the brain.** Studies in Japan show that L-Theanine helps support the body's ability to deal with PMS and occasional, everyday anxiety.**
200mg per servingNo Artificial Color, Flavor or Sweetener, No Preservatives, No Sugar, No Starch, No Milk, No Lactose, No Soy, No Gluten, No Wheat, No Yeast, No Fish, Sodium Free.


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- Description
Blake Griffin continues to amaze fans everywhere with his relentless style of play. He is certainly poised to be one of the top players for years. Grab an amazing piece of memorabilia from this superstar with this Adidas Swingman black alternate jersey that Blake Griffin autographed EXCLUSIVELY for Panini Authentic.
This autographed Blake Griffin jersey includes a Panini Authentic certificate of authenticity with a unique hologram number that corresponds to the hologram on the actual collectible. These holograms protect the integrity of the product and serve to guarantee the authenticity of the signature it bears.


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Love the site and message board
Wow, I love it that you have a message board now. I live near Jasper, AL and have trout fished in every spot you guys mentioned from Smith Dam near Jasper to the Smoky's. My favorites are there the Hiwassee and in Townsend on the Little River.
I am a housemother to a bunch of teenage girls and we make an annual trip to Townsend every year. Last year I actually hooked up with a beautiful rainbow on the Little River on my fly rod. I am a bit embarrassed to say this, but that was my first rainbow on my fly rod. The bad part is, I have had my fly rod for over five years now! OK, you can stop laughing now!!
Since my fishing time is very limited, I use my ultralight or whatever seems to be working and for me it is NOT usually my flyrod. Anyway, the point of all this is, there's something special about catching a trout on a fly rod and I simply can hardly wait to get back up there this June!! I want to catch a bunch on that thing. I always stop in your place with my entourage and you guys are very helpful.
Every week, if I want to relax, I get on your site and the Hiwassee site and it just takes me there, if you know what I mean. What a blast!
One thing that is holding me back a little, is the cost of the out of state license. The cost is a killer and I don't know if it would be better to get a year rounder or just the one day license each time I fish. I'll have to work that out later. I guess it just depends on how many times I think I might get to go.
Anyway, I love your site and thanks for the info.
Re: Love the site and message board
bamafisherlady, Welcome to the new site and board and thanks for your kind words. We'll work hard to make the site more enjoyable and relaxing. Byron
Re: Love the site and message board
hey bamalady,
i guess you fish the sipsey a lot?? i am in athens and i come down every now and then.
Re: Love the site and message board
I fish the Sipsey as much as I can in the summer, but it's kind of hard with eight girls tagging behind me :-/. I sure do enjoy it though and the scenery is great. The girls that don't like to fish get to hang out and just enjoy God's creation.
Last summer we were up there and a guy fishing around the turbines at the plant caught the biggest trout I've ever seen out of there. Probably a good two pounds. He was using a medium weight spinning reel and minnows so it doesn't count! Anyway, it was nice to know that there are some bigger ones in there.
Re: Love the site and message board
i have not been to the sipsey in months.......its a shame...
i do hit the elk up in TN more than i do the sipsey.
8 girls?? wow - congrats!
Re: Love the site and message board
I have fished the Elk a few times. My parents live in Chattanooga, so I try to go to the Hiwassee(mostly)but have a couple of friends who got my hooked on the Elk too.
Two people from my folks church go up there two or three times a year. One caught a about a 5 lb rainbow out of there and the other caught a brown better than 10 lbs in the last few years. Makes me want to go right now!! Since it's a longer drive to the Elk, I usually do the Hiwassee though. There are some HUGE browns in there and good sized rainbows as well.
The Sipsey is so great to have here in AL. Don't know what I'd do if I couldn't fish there in between my trips to Tennessee. If you are ever on the Sipsey and you see a lady with eight girls dragging along, it's probably me! I try to encourage them to fish and enjoy it as well as I do, but not all of them like it. Sure beats alot of things they could be doing! Thanks for the post.
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Fewer Foreclosures Could Mean Fewer Homes for Sale
Housing analyst Ivy Zelman cut her forecast for existing home sales this year but says she's still bullish about the U.S. housing recovery.
In a report Friday, her firm Zelman & Associates said it now expected a 5% drop in sales of previously owned homes for 2014 to a seasonally adjusted annual level of 4.8 million units. At the start of the year, the firm had forecast nearly a 6% gain from last year, to 5.4 million from last year's 5.1 million units.
The forecast calls for sales to increase modestly in 2015 and 2016, to 4.9 and 5 million units, respectively, down from earlier forecasts of 5.7 and 5.9 million units.
Ms. Zelman isn't changing her forecasts for new home sales, which are forecast to hit 505,000 units this year, up 17% from last year. Her estimates of new home construction were mostly unchanged.
"We're bullish still," she said.
So why the cut to the existing home forecast? Part of it has to do with the hit from higher mortgage rates last summer, which combined with rising prices led to a slowdown in demand last fall that has carried over into the first quarter.
But that isn't the whole story, says Ms. Zelman. Large declines in the supply of foreclosed and other distressed homes for sale mean that there's less to buy, holding back re-sales. The housing rebound that took hold over the last two years came largely as bargain seekers — investors and traditional owners alike — took advantage of low prices on discounted homes.
Now that the foreclosure floodwaters are receding, the potential for strong gains in existing home sales has ebbed, too. Ms. Zelman estimates that the supply of bank-owned homes and other distressed homes for sale is down by nearly 20% from a year earlier, which could cut around three to four percentage points from annual growth in existing home sales.
The drop in distressed sales is good news, of course, for new home sales, since they posed a major source of competition over the last six years.
Overall, Ms. Zelman says housing's contribution to the economy is still expected to increase 15% this year, down only slightly from the firm's earlier forecast of 17% growth, a drop attributed to the reduced existing home sales forecast. So far, home prices have held up, which is a sign that "a lack of inventory is at least partly responsible for the weaker unit numbers," the report said.
Meanwhile, Ms. Zelman says declarations that the spring selling season for U.S. home builders has been a bust are premature. The report said more recent data, including a proprietary survey her firm also released Friday, point to a pick-up in new-home orders since last fall, when sales tumbled following the spike in mortgage rates last year.
Ms. Zelman's thesis goes like this: housing demand will continue to outstrip supply due to favorable demographics, an improving economy, very low levels of for-sale inventories, and big drops in the supply of vacant, distressed homes.
"As with any cycle, there are likely to be short-term dynamics that temporarily disrupt the medium-term trend, which has been the case over the last 6-9 months," said the report. "However, we have not lost sight of our bigger picture thesis."


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Great Live Moments - Roy Haynes
July 1, 2008. Posted by Joshua Jackson.Add new comment | Filed under: 1940s, 72 years, advocate, badass, bassist, donald harrison, ed howard, Great Live Moments, innovator, jazz drummer, july 1987, listener, Listening Post, living jazz, musicians, posterity, quartet, riverside park, roy haynes, saxophonist dave, superlative, wbgo
I typically steer clear of superlatives when I write about musicians. My opinion is no less valid than any listener's opinion. That's one reason why I would never consider myself a critic. Just an advocate, really. Now that I've gotten that out of the way, let me tell you that Roy Haynes is the greatest living jazz drummer. There. I said it. And I'm not just basing this on his accumulated career - you know, the 50+ years of playing with every major innovator since the late 1940s. Truth be told, Roy Haynes is eternally youthful, and he's still a badass. In July 1987, when Roy was a cool 62 years old (retirement age for the lucky few), he brought his quartet to Riverside Park in New York. WBGO recorded it for posterity, including this lovely jam on "All Blues." Donald Harrison is the saxophonist, Dave Kikoski played piano, Ed Howard is the bassist.
And the leader...Roy...(tap tap tap)...Haynes...
Click here to listen.


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107 East Jordan Yearbooks
East Jordan Yearbooks with pictures of classes are on the website.
5 Kids Recommended Reading Lists
List recommended for reading for kids by Library Assistant Elaine Dettman who does story time in play group.
2 Library Forms
Library forms that need to be completed
3 Teen Program
Information and Schedule for the Teen Program
14 E-Newsletter
Library Newsletters viewable online.
3 Historical Documents
Historical Documents
35 Board of Trustee Minutes
Board of trustee minutes by year


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News Release
Media & Communication Directorate
Royal Hashemite Court (Jordan)
King entrusts KAFD with new programme for social, political empowerment
Amman, 10 December 2012
As part of his holistic vision for political reform and democratisation, His Majesty King Abdullah on Monday entrusted the King Abdullah Fund for Development (KAFD) with the creation of a new programme focusing on building civic engagement and strengthening democratic values in Jordan through social entrepreneurship.
King Abdullah tasked KAFD with developing initiatives to use social entrepreneurship to deepen social dialogue, broaden youth participation, hold public institutions accountable, and strengthen democratic culture and values.
Democracy is not just about institutions, laws and elections, said Dr. Omar Razzaz, chairman of KAFD. "Fundamentally, democracy is a culture of inclusive debate and discussion on the issues and challenges shaping our common future as citizens." The programme will therefore be a means of building and strengthening grassroots participation in a democratic culture.
The programme will encourage citizens to be active participants, not just during elections, Razzaz said. "Jordanians should be constantly involved in their democracy by actively debating the key issues that affect their lives, including cost of living, quality of government services, and ways to hold government and their parliament accountable," he added.
The KAFD chairman explained that the programme will identify and support Jordanian social entrepreneurs passionate about building a vibrant and inclusive democracy for all. Where appropriate, the programme will build on and support existing social initiatives making full use of their creativity for the good of the Kingdom. "It will do this by providing access to the resources, training, and support that citizens need to translate their ideas into reality," he said. "Social entrepreneurship means just that: Citizens themselves generating new ideas to address societal challenges and using entrepreneurial principles to deliver new, transformative solutions".
Over the next few months, KAFD will be developing the details for this new programme. Examples of the type of activities that the programme may support include social entrepreneurs working in the areas of community empowerment, increasing transparency and accountability of government activities, and creating new public debates and forums. The support provided by the programme may take different forms depending on the needs of the different initiatives, but it could include financial assistance, training and mentoring, or the creation of networks and platforms for social entrepreneurs to share experiences, learn, and develop new ideas.
Razzaz stressed that one of the key principles of the new programme will be to enable greater engagement from all shades of political opinion: "As a core principle, the programme's resources must be open to everyone, whatever their political viewpoint. Stimulating debate is about encouraging alternative views to be heard in a respectful way. Therefore, anyone who accepts the fundamental principles of political pluralism, mutual respect and democratic dialogue should have the chance to receive support from the programme."
According to the programme, the first step for KAFD will be to engage with existing social entrepreneurs and youth representatives to ensure that the programme designed provides the support that leaders and entrepreneurs need to bring their ideas for civic engagement and democratic development to life.
"We at KAFD are honoured and delighted to have been given this task. Strengthening our culture of grassroots participation and empowering Jordanians to help build the future of our country are at the core of all of KAFD's activities. KAFD will determine the best way to realise His Majesty's vision for building civic engagement and strengthening democratic values, and will aim to launch this initiative early next year," said Razzaz.


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Tag: red carpet manicure
How to: Red-Carpet-Inspired Textured Nail Art
Mon, 18 February 2013 12:55PM
This week is all about the red carpet here at PRIMPED because we're gearing up for the biggest celeb-studded event of the year – the 2013 Academy Awards, which is taking place next Monday. In honour of our Awards Season Beauty Special (how cute is our new logo?), I was inspired to create a red… more
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This paper appears in: Innovative Smart Grid Technologies Conference Europe (ISGT Europe), 2010 IEEE PES
Issue Date: 11-13 Oct. 2010
On page(s): 1 - 8
Location: Gothenburg
Reliability and availability are key issues for the implementation of future sustainable power systems. This paper discusses the need, methods and challenges for maintenance optimization to improve the reliability, availability, and profitability of wind power plants being a major source of renewable energy today and in future "smart grids". The present maintenance of wind power plants is extensive and costly, especially at offshore sites. The paper discusses approaches to maintenance strategy optimization aiming at reaching cost-efficient maintenance and thus enhanced profitability of wind power plants. It presents results from practical case studies utilising the method of Reliability-Centred Asset Maintenance and highlights the factors that impact the benefit of the maintenance strategies. The results show that new solutions for condition monitoring of the drive train and blades in wind turbines can be cost-efficient with respect to the reliability and availability of wind turbines today.


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Francis L Gemme -- Pawtucket
Pawtucket – Francis L. Gemme, 76, passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on Saturday, January 12, 2013. He was the beloved husband of Joyce L. (Raymond) Gemme for fifty-six years. Born in Pawtucket, he was a son of the late Arthur J. and Imelda M. (Lefort) Gemme. Frank served in the Rhode Island National Guard Military Police for eight years. He was an engineering technician at Texas Instruments for forty-two years before retiring in 1991. Frank was a volunteer for the Darlington Plains Youth Association where he founded the Girls Basketball Program. Besides his wife, he leaves one son, Randall W. Gemme and his wife, Linda of Pawtucket; a daughter, Renee L. Speer and her husband, Drew of New Britain, CT; two grandchildren, Christian and Kylie Speer; two step-grandchildren, Scott and Kendra Andrews; several nieces, nephews, cousins and many friends. He was the grandfather of the late Angelina L. Gemme and the brother of the late Robert A. Gemme, Beatrice Bonin and Lillian Grygalonis. VISITATION will begin Saturday, January 19th at 9 a.m. at WILLIAM W. TRIPP Funeral Home, 1008 Newport Ave., Pawtucket, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11 a.m. in St. Teresa Church, 358 Newport Ave., Pawtucket. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts to the Pawtucket Animal Shelter, C/O Pawtucket Police Dept., 121 Roosevelt Ave., Pawtucket, RI 02860 or the American Cancer Society, 20 Speen St., P.O. Box 9376, Framingham, MA 01701-9376 would be appreciated. TRIPPFUNERALHOME.com
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quote Celes LeonhartThis. In my fighting games, having a huge roster and unlocking characters is one of my biggest joys in fighting games.I'm a complete sucker for completely aesthetic things . I love having different costumes and especially differen't characters as skins or even just loads of characters even if they're clones (Super Smash Bros). I don't know why, that's one of the biggest lures of Fighting Games for me -- I just love quantity. So I'll probably get them again regardless of price, haha.
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quote:Foreigner - Foreigner. The best debut album by anyone. Ever. Period.
Pretty bold statement, Liam. Do you own Hendrix's Are You Experienced? Pearl Jam's 'Ten'? The Doors--The Doors? Nirvana's Bleach? Stone Temple Pilot's 'Core'? Jeff Buckley's 'Grace'? Led Zeppelin--Led Zeppelin? That's just to name a few. Those are some pretty STRONG debuts, man.


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Blond medium wavy and natural hairstyle
If you try to scrutinize Carrie Underwood's hairstyle, you might be able to experience a shift of judgement. This is because this look is a balance of organized and unruly hair arrangement. If you start to look partially, at the neck area of this medium length hair, you will see the wild side of her personality. The ends move in liberty, and most of the times they are in different direction forming fluffy appearance that occupies the free space above her shoulder. But, as a whole, you will appreciate how the outer hair balances and controls the inner waves making her look alluring


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Prominent Islamic scholars such as Ibn Sina (above), Mahmud al-Kashgari (side) and Farabi (large picture) were just a few of the important figures to emerge from Turkestan.
Communist China's Policy of Oppression in East Turkestan
East Turkestan: A Crossroad of Civilizations
The 2,200 years of Turkestan history have played host to some of the most important civilizations in the world. The area is a wide expanse of territory, stretching from the Caspian Sea and the southern part of the Ural Mountains in the west, Siberia in the north, Iran, Afghanistan and Tibet in the south, and China and Mongolia to the east.
Today, the part of Turkestan that includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan is known as West Turkestan, and the area that has been under Chinese captivity for the last two centuries is known as East Turkestan. The geographical and strategic importance of Turkestan is obvious from the great interest shown in the area by Russia and China, the two regional superpowers. Russia and China have both played very important roles in Turkestan history, which is why it is divided into two parts today.
Ey insanlar, gerçekten, Biz sizi bir erkek ve bir dişiden yarattık ve birbirinizle tanışmanız için sizi halklar ve kabileler (şeklinde) kıldık. Şüphesiz, Allah Katında sizin en üstün (kerim) olanınız, (ırk ya da soyca değil) takvaca en ileride olanınızdır. Şüphesiz Allah, bilendir, haber alandır. (Hucurat Suresi, 13)
Behind those two countries' refusal to give the region up, no matter what cost, is its strategic position and its rich underground resources. For Russia, the Turkish states in the west, and for China, East Turkestan, are important reserves of raw materials.
Following the Bolshevik Revolution, Russia set up a powerful control mechanism in West Turkestan where states consisting of different Turkish tribes were set up. The area was given the name "Soviet Central Asia," in place of the name Turkestan by which the land had been known for hundreds of years.
The intention was to do away with the Turks' shared national consciousness. The most important element of Russia's policy in the region was to eliminate Islam entirely. Throughout this period, a number of sanctions were employed in an attempt to destroy the Turks' national cultures; mosques and places offering religious instruction were closed down and religion was entirely divorced from social life. Crimean Turks were rounded up and exiled to Siberia in the course of a single night, and Russians were brought in to occupy their homes and lands. Furthermore, artificial ethnic conflicts were incited between the nations of Central Asia. Another of the Soviet regime's measures aimed at assimilating the Turks was to develop a second language alongside the mother tongues of the Muslims of the Caucasus and Central Asia. It is for this reason that Russian is now preferred to Turkish as a means of communication between the communities in question.
East Turkestan suffered similar oppression to that experienced in West Turkestan, but in an even more violent form. In the middle of the 1700s, East Turkestan was invaded by the Chinese. The political changes that occurred in the region (and the world as a whole) prevented the desire of the people of East Turkestan for independence from being translated into reality. China—a country with a total land area of some 10 million square kilometers—tried to exterminate the people of East Turkestan (also a giant nation of 2 million square kilometers) by its policies of oppression and isolation.
Just like the Russians in West Turkestan, the Chinese also changed the region's name. The new name they used was the "Uighur Autonomous Region of Sinkiang." They then began to implement the same kinds of policies used by other imperialist nations. A ruthless war was waged against the local people's beliefs, customs, and religious practices. Ethnic discrimination became rife, demands for independence were ferociously suppressed, defenseless people were exiled from their land, and Chinese settlers were brought in to replace them. The brutality known as "Chinese torture" and cruelty soon became reality.
Before going into the details of the oppression, (of which most people are very unaware), we will review East Turkestan's historical, geo-strategic and geo-political position.
East Turkestan: The Cradle Of Turkish-Islamic Civilization
The history of the lands of Turkestan goes back to the third century B.C. (the Gokturk and Hun period). The area has been the Turkish homeland since very early in history, and Islamic territory for a thousand years. Although no state or khanate bearing the name of Turkestan was ever established, the area in question, which makes up a large part of Central Asia, has always been called by that name because it has been a Turkish settlement area since very ancient times. Researchers describe East Turkestan in particular as one of the first centers of civilization and, as an area where, due to its geo-strategic position, Western and Eastern cultures intermingled.
From 751 to 1216 A.D., East Turkestan was an autonomous region allied to the Turkish Hun Khanate, and enjoyed complete independence. The above map shows the routes taken by the Huns during their migrations to the south, west, and to Europe.
The Gokturks were the first people to use the name Turks, and they spread out over a wide area, from the China Sea to the Black Sea. Turks still live in large numbers within the former boundaries of the empire, which also includes East Turkestan.
These lands, which have been home to great empires all through history, became an indispensable part of the Islamic world after the Turks converted to Islam during the reign of Caliph Abd al-malik Marwan (b. 646/647-d. 705). The years between 751-1216 A.D. in particular, after Satuk Bughra Khan (---/d. 955-6) had accepted Islam, are known as the golden age of East Turkestan. Throughout that period, students from all over the world came to study at the renowned religious schools and educational institutions of Turkestan. Statesmen and scientists who would help shape the world were also trained there. The Turks who migrated from the region to all corners of the world carried Islam with them to many different countries.
The Qarakhan, Ghazna, Khwarezm-Shah, Seljuq and Saidi tribes that were born in Turkestan set up states under the banner of Islam and provided outstanding examples of Turkish-Islamic culture, thus rendering a great service to human kind. Prominent statesmen such as Satuk Bughra Khan (---/d. 955-956), Seljuq Bey (---/d. 1007), Mahmud Ghaznavi (b. 998-d. 1030), Malik Shah (b. 1055-d. 1092), Timur (b. 1336-d. 1405), and Babur Shah (b. 1483-d. 1530) were among the great figures who emerged from those lands. Imam Bukhari, Imam Tirmidhi, Ibn Sina (Avicenna), Abu Nasr al-Farabi (Avennasar), Narshaki, Zamakhshari and Marginani, who enriched the libraries of Islam with their works, were among the great thinkers who forged the way for other scientists of the world. Furthermore, Makhmud al-Kashgari, author of the Diwan Lughat at-Turk, Yusuf Khass Khadjib, author of the Kutadgu Bilig, and Ahmad Yuknaki, the writer of the great Atabet'ul Haqayiq, also lived in Turkestan, the cradle of Turkish-Islamic civilization. Scholars such as these, of whom we have cited only a few, are sufficient to demonstrate the importance of East Turkestan to the Turkish and Islamic worlds.
East Turkestan Is Not Part Of China
One of the claims made by China in order to conceal its human rights violations and repression in East Turkestan is that the area "forms part of Chinese territory," for which reason events in East Turkestan "need to be considered a domestic Chinese affair." However, historical sources disprove that claim. First and foremost is the Great Wall of China, built by the Chinese to prevent attacks on them by other nations. This was the first time that China had put up an official border between itself and the peoples living around it. East Turkestan falls outside that border.5 Moreover, many sources describe the Jade Gate (so called because of the many jade stones found there), as being at China's westernmost border. One of these sources that describes the gate as opening into East Turkestan is actually a Chinese book, the New China Atlas, published in Shanghai in 1939.6
The region between the Great Wall of China and the Caspian Sea, Siberia and Iran, and the borders of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kashmir and Tibet has been known as Turkestan in not only the earliest Islamic records, but also in old Iranian and Indian accounts. This is also accepted by a great many Western historians. Nikita Bichurin, one of the earliest known Turcologists, has supported that historical truth in these terms: "A nation lives between the Caspian Sea and the Koh-i Nur Mountains. They speak Turkish and believe in Islam. They introduce themselves as Turkish and describe their country as Turkestan."7 Because these lands were given the name of "Xinjiang" or "Sinkiang" (meaning "new borders") following their occupation by China does not change that historical reality.
Over the 2,000 or so years, between 206 B.C. and 1759 A.D., East Turkestan was able to maintain its independence for more than 1,800 years. During the periods when it was linked to the Turkish Hun and Gokturk khanates, local administration lay entirely in the hands of the people of East Turkestan. Between 751 and 1216 it was totally independent. During those periods China periodically occupied East Turkestan in order to win control of the Silk Road. Yet these occupations were always short-lived, and China was never able to establish hegemony over East Turkestan in the true sense of the word. In the 2,200-year history of East Turkestan, (if we take into account the occupation that started in 1934 and which is still continuing today) a little more than 570 years have been spent under Chinese occupation.8
Throughout history, the Silk Road that passed through East Turkestan played an important role in the Chinese economy. Behind presentday China's wish to maintain its rule over East Turkestan lies the strategic importance of the area.
There are also geographic facts that disprove the claim that East Turkestan is part of China. The make-up of the population of East Turkestan (its language, religion, ethnic origins, plus its national and spiritual heritage) all reveal a picture of total independence from China. Panku, the great historian of the Han Dynasty (206 B.C. -- 220 A.D.), expresses this fact:
As for clothing, costume, food and language, the barbarians [Uighurs] are entirely different from the Middle Kingdom… Mountains, valleys and the great desert separate them from us.9
One factor that totally undermines the claim that East Turkestan is part of China is that the Uighur Turks' language, religion, customs, way of life and culture are completely different from those of the Chinese.
That difference was preserved throughout history. Neither was there any assimilation, even during the periods under Chinese occupation. Today, 54 percent of East Turkestan's estimated population of 17 million are Muslims, including 47 percent of the Uighurs and 7 percent of the Kazakhs. (This figure is from statistics issued by China in 1997, and is not accepted as reliable by international organizations because of China's biased attitude toward this issue). The Uighurs, who make up a large part of the Muslim population, bear no ethnic, religious or linguistic similarity to the Chinese. The Uighur alphabet consists of Arabic letters, they are all Muslim, and they have been living by Turkish customs and beliefs for more than 1,000 years.
As can be seen from the table, East Turkestan has been under Chinese occupation only a total of 570 years during its 2,200-year history. (Isa Yusuf Alptekin, Unutulan Vatan Dogu Turkistan (East Turkestan, the Forgotten Country), Seha Nesriyat, Istanbul, 1999, pp. 90-91)
All of these historical, geographical and sociological facts make it clear that East Turkestan is not part of China, but rather a separate region that China has sought to assimilate. Even under the harshest and most difficult conditions, the people of East Turkestan never accepted Chinese rule, and frequently sought to regain their independence, at times even resorting to armed struggle. For example, when East Turkestan fell under Manchu rule between 1759 and 1862, the Muslim people rose up and rebelled against the Chinese more than 40 times.
Why is China so determined to maintain its position on East Turkestan in the face of all the facts? This should be discussed before turning to the long years of Chinese oppression.
Why Does China Refuse To Give East Turkestan Up?
A basic knowledge of geography makes it easy to understand the Chinese view on East Turkestan. Two important obstacles to communications exist between China and the West: the first is the 5,000-kilometer Taklamakan Desert, and the second is the Great Wall of China that stretches along the entire length of the China border.
East Turkestan is the only Chinese territory beyond the desert and the Great Wall, thus making it China's window to the West. The political effect of its location (and its geographical and strategic advantages) make East Turkestan indispensable to China. That is one reason why, instead of withdrawing from East Turkestan, China is trying to impose their occupation on the local population by means of force and violence. On the one hand, it takes away the peoples' freedoms, including those of receiving news and communications, by closing East Turkestan off and keeping the region as far from the world's awareness as possible.
East Turkestan is known as the Kuwait of the twenty-first century, because it possesses rich underground mineral reserves. This fact makes the region indispensable for China.
These lands, which form the westernmost point of Chinese territory, were used by the Chinese as a buffer zone against the Soviet threat during the Cold War. These lands are thus of great interest to China for its own security and that of the other countries in the region. Even if Russia no longer poses a threat to China, China still maintains its land and air forces in the region, and also keeps a large part of its nuclear arsenal there. Another important reason for the continuing presence of China's forces in East Turkestan is to maintain the necessary control over the local Muslim population.
The oil reserves in the Taklamakan Desert within the borders of East Turkestan are some of the richest in the world.
However, geo-strategic concerns are not the only reason for China's interest in controlling East Turkestan. As noted, the region also possesses considerable natural resources, and the land is very productive. East Turkestan, known as the Kuwait of the twenty-first century, is of particular interest for its oil, natural gas, uranium, coal, gold and silver mines, and is one of China's most important sources of these resources. Authorities on the subject say that by 2005 East Turkestan will be China's second most important center of oil and natural gas production. The Tarim Basin in the middle of East Turkestan in particular is thought to have considerable petrol reserves. That basin is therefore known as the "Sea of Hope," and is estimated to have potential oil reserves of more than 10.7 billion tons.10 Research carried out by geologists has revealed a 300-million tons of oil and a 220-billion cubic-meters of natural gas capacity.11
All of East Turkestan's underground resources are exploited by China. The Muslim people are unable to enjoy their share of the revenues from them.
China's dependence on East Turkestan for energy is not restricted to the oil beds in the Tarim Basin. East Turkestan will also be the natural route for any pipeline from the Central Asian Turkish states, which will in turn be of vital importance to Chinese industry. The best way for China to insure its transportation system is effective and secure is to keep East Turkestan under its control.
The region's rich natural gas, coal, and copper deposits also make it indispensable for the Chinese economy. Of the 148 different minerals extracted in all of Red China, 118 come from East Turkestan (this is 85 percent of China's mineral production). Among these, coal, with its high quality and energy content, is especially important. The coal reserves in East Turkestan are estimated at some 2 trillion tons, half of China's total coal reserves. One study at the end of 2000 revealed that China's richest copper mines were in East Turkestan. It is a known fact that China's other regions possess little copper, and that which exists is insufficient to meet the country's needs. The rich copper deposits in East Turkestan make the region even more important in Chinese eyes.12
Alongside these mines, the fact that East Turkestan is one of China's largest producers of cotton is another reason why China regards the area as important. The Red Chinese administration is unwilling to hand over the production of cotton, the raw material of the Chinese textile industry, to the Muslim Uighurs, and constantly develops new strategies to maintain control over the region. The aim behind these strategies, which we shall be examining in detail in later chapters, is not to allow East Turkestan to develop, but to make it dependent on Beijing.
Red China's Fear Of Islam
As their sources of wealth such as oil, gold and uranium are plundered by Beijing, the Uighurs are also imprisoned in their own land. Unemployment and low levels of education are rife. Eighty percent of the population live below the poverty line. Tiny Uighur babies can at least look to the future with hope if their families have fled abroad, to such places as Turkey.
In the preceding section we saw how East Turkestan is of great strategic and economic importance for China. Yet the frequent arrests of devout Muslims in East Turkestan, not allowing them to live in accordance with their religion, and the pressure put on their religious leaders, make it clear that there is more to their policy of oppression. First and foremost, it means that Red China is greatly concerned by the presence of Islam in East Turkestan.
Although the roots of the Chinese attacks on Islam and Muslims go far back in history, these policies were changed into a systematic policy of oppression, and even genocide, with the establishment of the communist regime. When Mao founded the People's Republic of China in 1949, all manifestations of Islam were made targets. This hostility towards Islam began with the closure of mosques, religious schools and other institutions providing religious education. The situation worsened after portraits of Chairman Mao were hung in the now empty places of worship (and Muslims were forced to show their respect for such images). Some 29,000 mosques were closed during that period.13 The following stage consisted of the arrest of religious leaders on groundless and baseless charges and accusations. Some of these were condemned to death, and more than 54,000 religious figures were condemned to work in the most terrible conditions in Chinese labor camps.14
Throughout that period, physical and mental torture was inflicted on men of faith. Some Muslims were rounded up into public squares and made to confess the so-called "divinity" of Chairman Mao (surely Allah is beyond that). The people were forced to carry out practices in flagrant violation of Islamic ideas, such as cremation of the dead. The closed mosques were used as military depots and barracks, or as places of entertainment (such as theatres and cinemas). All forms of public worship, including Friday and other prayers, were prohibited and heavy taxes were imposed on those Muslims who continued to pray in the few remaining mosques. The communist administration confiscated the alms given for the maintenance and restoration of the mosques and all the property belonging to religious leaders. Studying and teaching the Qur'an were completely banned. Religious works were seized from peoples' homes. Writings in Arabic were burned, including a large number of historical handwritten texts.15
With Mao's seizure of power, the oppression of the people of East Turkestan has turned into a systematic campaign of genocide. Mao forced the Muslim people to conform to communist ideology. One of the first steps to achieving this is the way that mosques and masjids all over East Turkestan were covered with portraits of Mao.
Modern Chinese oppression of the Muslims in East Turkestan is felt most heavily in the field of religion. As in all communist regimes, hostility to religion is part of the official state policy of Red China. A document called "The Basic Viewpoint and Policy on [the] Religious Question During Our Country's Socialist Period," circulated internally through party channels throughout China in 1982 by the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, openly states that fact:
In human history, religion will ultimately disappear... All religious organizations in China will bow their heads to the leadership of the party and the government … The true aim of religious schools is to produce professional religious officials who support the party administration and the socialist system … These religious officials must remain loyal to the party's policy on religion … The fundamental purpose of religious bodies is to play an important role in spreading the country's political influence.16
A speech by Ali Jing Jiang, a member of the People's Republic of China Islamic Community, at the 5th meeting of the Islamic Society of North America in the USA on September 1, 1986, shows just how fully the Red Chinese administration has put into effect the decisions set out in that declaration. In his speech, Ali Jing Jiang stated that in China it is legally forbidden to give any religious education, either at home or at school, to minors under the age of 18. Although some religious schools have been opened as the result of pressure from Islamic countries, there are more Marxist, Leninist and Maoist ideas taught in them than Islam. Jiang expressed that all the teachers in such schools are communists and atheists and young people are being raised with no knowledge of religion. In other schools, he said, religion is taught as if it were something that needed to be forgotten, a primitive belief belonging to the lowest levels of Chinese society. That situation has rapidly begun to distance young people from religious belief. He also added that the government keeps a tight rein on Muslims' activities and that the communists are using Islam merely as a tool with which to improve relations with Muslim nations.17
One of the important indications of the communist regime's hostility to religion is the way that many mosques have been closed down and used for storage since the earliest days of the regime. The picture to the side shows a ruined mosque in Hotan.
The anti-religious pronunciations of the Chinese Communist Party are not new. Allah reveals in the Qur'an that the deniers who opposed the Prophet Noah, peace be upon him, attempted to belittle the believers with the words, "…We do not see you as anything but a human being like ourselves. We do not see anyone following you but the lowest of us, unthinkingly…" (Surah Hud: 27). In another verse, Allah describes how deniers believe themselves to be terribly clever:
When they are told, "Believe in the way that the people believe," they say, "What! Are we to believe in the way that fools believe?" No indeed! They are the fools, but they do not know it. (Surat al-Baqara: 13)
1)Türkiye 29.06.97, "CRUELTY AIMED AT MOSQUES IN CHINA"
The Chinese cruelty in East Turkestan is never ending. Chinese officials often halt the construction and repair of mosques, ban Muslims from engaging in communal worship, and force them to carry out practices in flagrant violation of Islamic ideas.
The Chinese Communist Party's attempts to portray religious devotion as "a primitive belief belonging to the very lowest levels of Chinese society," is an example of this foolishness.
China constantly increases its oppression of the Muslims of East Turkestan. Young Muslims, religious figures, intellectuals, and even children are detained on meaningless pretexts and usually executed without their families being informed.
One Turkestan resident interviewed by Winchester (who refused to give his real name) said that since he worked in a state office he was never able to go to the mosque, and that he would be sacked if he were to be seen doing so. The reason was the increased Chinese hostility to Islam which began at the end of the 1980s. A 1997 article in the official East Turkestan newspaper, the Xinjiang Daily, set out what party members' view of religion should be:
Those party members firmly believe in religion and who refuse to change their ways after education should be given a certain period to make corrections, be persuaded to withdraw from the party or dismissed from the party according to the seriousness of their case. In recent years, 98 religious party members have been dealt with.19
Despite all the difficulties and tortures they are subjected to, the people of East Turkestan persevere by living their religion and performing their religious obligations.
The Chinese Communist Party banned the teaching of the Qur'an.
In East Turkestan, those who are caught praying or studying the Qur'an are punished, particularly if they are aged under 18, because Chinese law explicitly prohibits minors from studying the Qur'an. In 1999, for example, five 12-year-olds were arrested for reading the Qur'an. When one of them fled from the police station, his family were arrested and tortured by the police (and told that they would not be released until he gave himself up).20 That incident is just one of the many frequently encountered in East Turkestan. Thousands of people have been detained and tortured simply for living in accordance with their religion, or for teaching other people who want to do so. The accusations made against religious figures who have been detained are particularly noteworthy. For instance, on October 28, 1999, Memet Eli, the imam of the Oybagh Mosque in Hotan, was arrested and heavily fined for teaching religion contrary to the Communist Party policy. This is how his "crimes" were set out in the indictment:
During his duty as an Imam, Memet Ali did not study, teach and implement Communist Party's regulations on religion. He pretended he did not see the instructions of department of religious supervision. When related departments organized study and educational activities for religious personals, he did not attend… He allowed people with unclear identity to stay at the Mosque…21
Other articles, as well as "failure to give instruction in communist teachings" (under which six other imams in Hotan were arrested on similar pretexts) are striking examples of the oppression faced by Muslims in Red China:
They said in their prayers: "Allah rescue your Muslim believers from the oppression of atheists." They did not stop people when they came to pray from other neighborhoods. They exceeded the 20 minutes time limit for Friday prayer and teachings. They failed to inform the authorities of people who came to get religious education."22
Mao's Hatred of Religion
Like other communist dictators, Mao also claimed divinity for himself (surely Allah is beyond that), and that twisted belief was stressed in posters of him.
Like other communist dictators, Mao also denied the existence of Allah and tried to prevent the people from believing in Him. He had terrible tortures inflicted on many who believed in Allah, wanted to live by his will or tried to defend his beliefs, and resorted to all kinds of oppression in an effort to turn people away from Allah. Another side to Mao is the way that he presented himself to the Chinese people as a divine being.
This common feature of atheist dictators was revealed in the Qur'an. The verses describe Pharaoh as saying, "…Council, I do not know of any other god for you apart from me…" (Surat al-Qasas, 38) The painful end of the people who grew so arrogant and saw themselves as gods has also been revealed in the Qur'an:
We brought the tribe of Israel across the sea and
5. Owen Lattimore, Studies in Frontier History, London, 1962, p. 59
6. New China Atlas, Shanghai, 1939, p. 51. Also see Herman Albert, Historical and Commercial Atlas of China, Harvard University Press, 1935
7. Opisanie Cuntariy I vostoçnogo Turkestan v drevhem I nineşnem sostaynaniy, Prevedono s Kitaykogo, Petersburg, 1829, Vol I, pp. 10-11, cited in Alaeddin Yalcinkaya, Somurgecilik ve Panislamizm Isiginda Turkestan (Turkestan In the Light of Imperialism and Panislamism), Timas Yayinlari, 1997, Istanbul, p. 28
8. Isa Yusuf Alptekin, Unutulan Vatan Dogu Turkistan (The Forgotten Land East Turkestan), Seha Yayincilik, Istanbul, 1999, p. 91
9. Pan Ku, The Account of Hsing-nu, Han-Shu, 91 Sect. 2 p. 32 a-b
10. China Daily, April 26, 1999
11. China Daily, January 4, 1999
12. "China's Largest Copper Reserve Found in Xinjiang," www.uyghuramerican.org/economy/chinaonline oct62000.html
13. The Los Angeles Times, December 1, 1983
14. The Los Angeles Times, December 1, 1983
15. Yusuf Han, Sotsiyalistik Kazakhstan, Almaty, January 14, 1976, cited in "Chinese Policy, Human Rights Abuses and The Consequences," East Turkestan Information, A Publication of the Eastern Turkestan Union in Europe, www.caccp.org/et/etiu1.html
16. The People's Republic of China: Document 19: The Basic Viewpoint on the Religious Question During Our Country's Socialist Period: Issued by the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party on 31 March 1982
17. Radio Free Europe/RL, 01.09.1986
18. Michael Winchester, "Inside Story China: Beijing vs. Islam," Asiaweek, October 24, 1997
19. Amnesty International Report, April 4, 1999
20. "Uyghur Boys Were Arrested, Parents Were Tortured," East Turkestan Information Center, October 30, 1999
21. "Imam Was Punished For Refusing to Teach Communist Doctrines in Mosque," East Turkestan Information Center, November 19, 1999 (emphasis added)
22. "Islam Treated Same As Falun Gong," East Turkestan Information Center, November 19, 1999


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First, listen to this 9-minute clip:
Launch Player | Download | Full Sermon
Here's the topic for today's discussion:
The major teachers in the Word-Faith movement, influencing millions around the world, seem intent on demoting Jesus and demolishing His work on the cross. I've got a few questions for you...
First, who has an interest in demoting Jesus and demolishing His perfect, finished work on the cross?
Second, what are the consequences of a demoted Jesus and a demolished cross?
Third, if Word of Faith/Prosperity Gospel advocates claim to be orthodox, why do they publicly promote (rather than silence) aberrant teachers?
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1. Those who demote Jesus are those who are interested in lifting up man: "come to Christ and He'll give you health, wealth and happiness", or, even more subtely (and even across all churches), "come to Christ and you won't have to go to Hell" - notice the motive in the unbeliever will be selfishness, not to glorify or serve God.
2. Consequences of a demoted Jesus: Self-centeredness, greed, humanism, licentiousness
3. Promotion of aberrant teachers: well "don't touch the Lord's anointed". duh!
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Thank Pastor MacArthur for your sound doctrine.
Certainly these false teachers are the descendents of an old generation of vipers.
God bless you
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Living in Dallas Texas, I have watched this business grow over the years and swallow people in its superstition and lies. The modus operandi that has succeeded in my opinion is the same one used in this homosexual revolution. Make it "not that big a deal" even to those who disagree. There is no greater frustration than to witness with the Truth to someone who has accepted this stuff.
I would like to see them more loudly called the blasphemers that they are more often. Ken Copeland is the kind of salesman that overcomes the expected objection before it is given. His greed and deceitfulness infuriates me and I resent his influence on my family so strongly that it burdens me.
Is he the kind of person that we are told in Jeremiah not to pray for?
John's precise exposition of the word faith movement is at the root of how many charismatic circules percieve the work of our Lord,s atonement. It was not satan working along side as if there was assitance in the strongly and grossly explict process Christ had to yield to atone for sin's, with satan. It was not possible for christ to succumb to temptation (Matt 4:1/James 1:13) let-alone dragging to hell. This is why teaching proponents of the evangelical charismatic churches bi-large are always dicpicting and espousing in testimonies by way of story telling and esortic experience to explain away thier own sinful tendencies' and disposition. Sort of like the "The devil made me do it" excuse. These expousers howl (Is. 52:5).
The first question as to who has interest in demoting Jesus and … is a given, Satan does, and as the father of all lies, he puts on his custom as a sheep or angel of light. These people use the word of God to act against the truth in it. Satan knows the written word of God as recorded in Mathew 4, Mark 1, and Luke 4. These people had their origin with EW Kenyon and his mesmerism, faith healing, and the power of confession (that as you claim it, in turn it will change your reality). This lie of the confession combined with personalizing Jesus (making him your personal God, providing altering attributes to his atoning work) brings about the second question about the consequences of a demoted Jesus.
These consequences eventually are eternal separation from God, for the spreaders of these lies and the blinds that follow them. Also, this separation from God is nothing more than eternity in hell or lake of fire. Demoting Jesus represents that the atonement work was not necessary, nor did it need completion, so now what, where do we go? The answer to our problem according to them lies on man (themselves), and material things. Millions of people follow and support the Word of Faith movement economically, and 'spiritually'. They have personalized an easy to manipulate god. It is a subtle way to conduct 16 Century Roman Catholic Indulgences, through music and alteration of the word of God.
The third point has to do with their love for money. It is about bringing the cash in. They can claim anything as far as their religiosity, but at the end everything boils down to cash and a good life. They are enamored with new shocking revelation about anything. They are about empowering or embracing the spiritual world. I went to a church that supports the teachings of Word of Faith. There were a few self proclaimed prophets. One of them after the piano and the singing were at the right tone, he shouted across the room to the church's pastor and the congrgation "the Holy Spirit told me that he was going to fill up the empty chairs in the temple." He was speaking of increase of more people attending church.
People are mesmerized with this movement and the teaching in it, we must pray God that in love we proclaim the word to them so the Spirit of God convicts them of their sin and come to Jesus in repentance begging for a new heart.
Thanks Pastor MacArthur for the opportunity, may the Lord continues blessing GTY Ministries.
PRAISE GOD for you John MacArthur! I cannot tell you how grateful I am for you doing the work of an evangelist, speaking the truth from your pulpit!! I pray for you, your church and Grace to You!!! And I pray for my charasmatic friends who are so lost in this movement. THANK YOU!!! GOD BLESS YOU!
Man's sin in conceiving and teaching this heresy is dangerously close to that of Lucifer as spoken in Isaiah 14:13, "You said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God, I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north;". It is no less than man wanting to be God and no more than the Devil himself still working towards his chief purpose (to glorify and full enjoy himself). Praise God that He alone is sovereign and that this dualist nonsense will fall away before the truth of His word!
Little correction I just noticed that my comment needed....it should be "his [the devil's] perceived chief purpose. His actual purpose is serving the will of God...as it is with all of creation, though I seriously doubt he'd admit it.
Any unregenerate, unsaved man always has theintent of demoting Christ in any way, first of all by not repenting and having faith in Him. By not recieving his work he is demolishing it for himself and demonstrating his sinfullness and depravity. By doing that any sort of sin is possibe from then on.
The consequences of demoting Christ and demolishing His work on the cross is an unclear idea of religion and the start of heresy if the person claims to be religious. It will end up as another sin God will punish that person if he is not saved, even worse if he teaches false doctrines to many peaple, and he will deserve it for false teachers will go through greater condemnation. Surely religious demoting of Christ would be related to a love for money and self, for it is the root of all evil.
I believe the reason they promote astrayed preachers is because they want to tell the world that what we know as orthodox, historical and true is not what we teach but what they teach. There vision is probably change what even the conservative Christians believe to be legitimate theology. They have realized that they are powerful in influence but us Christians have to rise against them, not with an arny or sword but with the Spirit and Truth.
God bless you Pastor John Macarthur, you have been an inspiration for me and helped me realize many truths before hidden to me. We will be victorious.
The idea that our Lord Jesus did all He did as a "Spirit-Filled-Man" is/was taught even by "preachers" who also oppose Kenneth Copeland and his type of Prosperity Gospel. I remember Jimmy Swaggart teaching this back in the '80s, and my best guesstimate is that Swaggart got it from his Dake's Annotated Bible. Before the heirs of Dake filed a lawsuit against Swaggart for copyright infringement, Swaggart borrowed heavily from the Dake Bible, and this Bible was/is the "must-have" item in the Pentecostal/Charismatic circles. Perhaps many of the other perverted ideas can also be traced to the Dake Bible, although Dake may also not have originated them, perhaps also "borrowing" from others, such as Kenyon, or Alexander Dowie - I certainly am no expert.
The point I am making is that some portions of the aberrant teaching are used even by those who oppose others portions. The idea that Jesus did what He did as a "Spirit-filled-Man" means that any believer can do all the works of Christ.
Such ideas are still put forth as gospel truth on the Dake Discussion board today, even quite recently. In those circles, Kenneth Copeland, Oral Roberts, Kenneth Hagin, William Branham are all considered heroes of the faith.
Although Jimmy Swaggart and his son Donnie, whose anti-prosperity-gospel sermons are quite popular on You Tube, and wife Frances, on her "Frances and Friends" Radio programs and website, all openly oppose Kenneth Copeland, Joyce Meyer, Benny Hinn, and TBN, I don't know if they have ever backed off this teaching that the Lord Jesus did not do his miracles and mighty works because He was God, but rather because He was a Man empowered by the Holy Spirit. And although Swaggart's audience is a very small fraction of what it once was, it is sizable, I would guess at least 20,000, maybe 50,000 viewers worldwide - combining Radio, Television and Internet.
This idea leads to the false idea that any of us can do everything the Lord did, and it is clearly man-centered, rather than God-centered.
As to the three discussion questions:
1. Anyone who wants to promote himself/herself to God status would be interested in this "gospel."
2. The consequences of believing this is having the wrath of God abide upon oneself, because God isn't going to share His glory with a mere corrupted and mortal man.
3. They don't see it as aberrant and so they aren't going to speak out against it. Most of them are swimming in wealth, fame, and power, and love their lives "as is."
Being a former "Charismatic Pentecostal" who had fully bought into the word of faith movement, I can say that it is a doctrine that is fully exploited (often by sincere believers who sadly don't know any better) for the benefit of self. I remember defending the idea using John 14:12 completely out of context as many do. ("Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.") That last phrase "because I go unto my Father" is the key that is so often overlooked. The only reason God can use any man to do works akin to what Christ did (ie. miracles) is because Christ ascended and the Spirit became accessible in a way that it wasn't previously so. Christ's godhood and place in the Trinity was secure, even in his earthly form. Nothing was missing from the Trinity when he was here. That's what set him apart. That's why he can die for my sins, but I can die for no other's. God would not elevate a mere man to equality with himself. How badly the ungodly wish it were so...it's sad.
After spending 4 years traveling across the U.S. visiting churches across the Midwest and south, I noticed that not only do preachers teach error like this, but congregations all over exhibited virtually no discernment at all. I worry sometimes more about the people than the leaders, because the people are the ones giving all the money to pay for this stuff. I get very very concerned for congregations that can't seem to think themselves out of a paper bag. Why don't people at Fred Price's church notice the errors? Why did college students are ORU not pay attention to what Roberts was teaching? You won't find people in Florida calling Benny Hinn to repentance!
All I have to say that this is very frightening, no wonder the child of God is admonished to study to show oursleves approved, dividing the word correctly. This teaching is blasphemy, if Christ is not God then we are all dead in our sins and our faith is in vain.
These teacher dont get it, if you remove one part of salvation the rest of it falls to peices. A man told me he doesnt believe in original sin and all that God made is good, so why on earth did Jesus die on the cross.
These false teaching are repulsive but may The LORD open their eyes to truth!
Is it possible to listen to the whole message?
1) Demoting Jesus...If we want to exalt ourselves, we must (humble) Jesus. So, I think that people who want to exalt themselves and Satan himself wants to demote Jesus. In regards to demolishing His perfect, finished work on the cross, the Judaizers in Galatians who were telling the believers that they must be circumcized were diminishing the efficacy of the Cross. Whoever was telling the Colossian believers that we need to pray to angels (or saints if you are Catholic), were diminishing the cross by saying that as believers that we are at the mercy of evil spirits unless we get some greater spirit to fight for us such as Michael or Gabriel or Raphael. So, anyone who restricts our freedom in Christ by adding on additional requirements to our faith or anyone who emphasizes "spiritual" experiences is de-emphasizing the importance of Christ's work on the cross. Jesus disarmed the rulers and principalities and triumphed over them on the cross.
2) In demoting Jesus through exalting experiences or good works, we are destroying the gospel because the gospel is about God's justice for breaking His law and Jesus' finished work on the Cross satisfying that justice and God's wrath. If Jesus were unable to satisfy God's wrath on the cross, we would need to do something to sort of "help him out" or would need to appeal to someone that had it in good with God to "put in a good word for us".
3) Word of Faith/Prosperity Gospel claims orthodoxy while promoting heretical teachers because there is so much world in the church that you can claim Christ and act pretty much any way you want. I had a woman come in to my office yesterday and tell me that over the holidays that she went to church on Sunday and the next day went and danced at a strip club. Is it any wonder that these people are advocating heresy? They believe they can act any old way and so does the general population of our country. I believe it all goes back to the early 1900s when we started preaching that if you pray a prayer then you're in. Clearly, the Bible teaches that it is not up to us to choose God. Faith, Salvation, Repentance all are gifts from God.
how about MARK 11:23 this is the word of faith refrigerator verse. don"t think that they have changed there theology it"s still the same. no wonder we are called little gods and Jesus is demoted and man is exalted. it"s the totally perfect money making scheme. don"t be afraid turn over there and listen to kenneth copeland"s message you"ll hear the same carton stuff WE HAVE THE POWER or turn on saturday morning cartons even little kids love this WE HAVE THE POWER stuff its in all the movie theater"s book"s ect. its what sells the flesh always wants to hear how great it is .....God bless GTY
Well said regarding the lack of discernment in churches that espouse this teaching. I, too, sat under this doctrine for far too long before my wife and I left that church. The challenge, sometimes is whether it is appropriate to burst from your seat and call the preacher on it on the spot or write a letter and leave. I still ponder whether I did the right thing by not more openly challenging the false teaching.
The discernment comes by spending time in God's Word, in prayer and listening to true biblcal teaching like that consistently delivered by Pastor MacArthur and his forebears (Spurgeon among them).
I was saved in my car driving north on the Florida turnpike in the summer of 82'. I was ignorant to the bible and religion as I was rasied with an agnostic mother. In my heart I always believed in God, heaven and hell. I did not seek God, but I had come to the end of myself and cried out to God and He heard me and answered me.
I said all that to say this... I did not know one church from another and I did not have a Bible, but I did have an uncle who was a memeber of an Assembly of God. I ended up at that church for a short time and was baptized within a few months. I could not keep from reading God's word even though much of it I did not understand. So when I would go to this church and hear people like Kenneth Copeland, it just never sat well with me, so I just kept reading my bible.
God's says that he will keep us and he has kept me from falling and following into false teachings, and I believe that is so because I had a burning desire to read God's word, and it was and is His pure word that has kept me from false teaching. The Holy Spirit taught me and still teaches me today.
I am a member of a local church who teaches and preaches the whole word of God. I believe in the Doctrines of Grace and always have I just did not know there was a name for it. I thank God most often for John MacArthur who has been my greatest teacher as I follow him as he follows Christ.
That is a very encouraging story Darla. We don't see our need for a Savior until we come to the end of ourselves. I remember a similar occurrence in my life except that I had been raised in a Christian home and gone to church all my life but wasn't saved.
false doctrine is like crack-cocaine--better left untried than to have to recover from. Praise God that so many have been shielded from the reality of this temptation, even though this often leads to cockiness.
As one of God's elect I must continue to remain humble and rember that I am undeserving a worthless sinner. Except for the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross I would never stand in the company of God. Let alone on the day,To judge even the Angels.
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Dogwood Veterinary Emergency & Specialty Center (804)716-4700
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As part of the VCA family, we have over 83 specialty hospitals across the US and Canada which provide referral specialty care, so there may be one near you. Enter ZIP to find VCA specialty care hospitals near you.


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Turtle Graham Bars
Recipe courtesy of Claire Robinson
Claire Robinson's take on the perfect pairing of caramel and pecans uses just 6 pantry ingredients. You can personalize the bars too; swap[ macadamias for the pecans, and top with toasted coconut or sprinkle flaky sea salt over the chocolate.]
- About 14 graham crackers (if each graham cracker is 5 by 2 1/2 inches)
- 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 cup roughly chopped pecans
- Kosher salt
- 12 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a silicone baking mat. Arrange the graham crackers in a single layer on the lined baking sheet.
Put the butter, brown sugar, 3/4 cup chopped pecans and a pinch of salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour the butter mixture evenly over the graham crackers and bake for 15 minutes. At the same time, place the remaining 1/4 cup chopped pecans on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until fragrant, about 7 minutes. Remove and set aside.
While the graham cracker layer is baking, melt the chocolate in a glass bowl placed over simmering water. Drizzle the chocolate over the toffee-covered graham crackers, allowing some of the toffee to show, and sprinkle with the toasted pecans. Chill completely in the refrigerator, about 45 minutes. Cut into bars or break into shards for serving.
From Food Network Kitchens; after further testing and to ensure the best results this recipe has been altered from what was in the actual episode.
Recipe courtesy of Claire Robinson
Cooking Tips
More Recipes and Ideas
Turtle Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich
Recipe courtesy of Jeff Mauro
Graham Cracker and Mexican Chocolate Ice Cream Sandwich
Recipe courtesy of Marcela Valladolid


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Legend numismatics, nice coin
Douglas Winter: With very few exceptions, all 1873-CC issues (in silver and gold) are quite rare and the 1873-CC eagle is no exception. I rank the 1873-CC as the third rarest Carson City eagle in overall rarity and it may actually be the single rarest in high grades. I doubt if more than a half dozen properly graded AU pieces exist and there are currently no 1873-CC eagles known that are even close to being Uncirculated. The single finest I am aware of is in an East Coast collection (it was acquired from me via private treaty in 2008) and it grades AU55 at PCGS. As with the 1870-CC, this date is rare because of two factors. A limited number were struck (just 4,543 in this case) and many saw active use in circulation (and were later melted). Survivors are apt to be heavily worn and even accurately graded EF's are quite scarce. This tends to be a decently produced issue in terms of strike but nearly all known examples have little or no luster, abraded surfaces and poor overall eye appeal.
David Akers (1975/88): In overall rarity, the 1873-CC is comparable to the 1872-CC, 1875-CC and 1876-CC, and somewhat more rare than the 1871-CC, 1874-CC and 1877-CC. The typical 1873-CC is softly struck on the hair curls around Liberty's face. The 1873-CC is unknown in uncirculated condition.


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August Jobs Report Shows Biggest Growth Story Success Since Great Recession
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Five years to the month removed from the collapse of Lehman Brothers, Americans bustling into their offices on Friday morning received a pleasant reminder that the recovery is really a success story.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the United States added 169,000 jobs in August as the unemployment rate ticked down to 7.3% from 7.4% in the prior month. Though economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters and Bloomberg expected 180,000 new jobs, the miss and the downward revisions weren't terrible.
The data, when placed among other recent economic reports, is a subtle reminder that the economy actually looks pretty good.
"I can tell you that they're
Let's connect the dots.
The 4-week moving average for jobless claims during the week ended Aug. 31 dipped to 328,500, which was the lowest level since October 2007 when the average hit 328,300.
The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index rose to 55.7 in August -- its highest level since June 2011, and a level higher than any month from early 2006 up to the start of the financial crisis.
The second estimate for U.S. second-quarter gross domestic product gained to 2.5%, up from the advance estimate of 1.7%, despite the fiscal drag that continues to weigh on the economy.
Existing home sales for July actually rose to a 5.39 million annual rate, the highest level since November 2009 when an expiring tax credit triggered demand to buy real estate. Excluding that outlier, it was the highest number since March 2007.
The list of improving data points extends beyond these examples, but it does reflect a trend that the economy is improving across a range of sectors.


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Hillman's McMurray wins 2012 Beat the Geek Contest
In a bowl season that saw some wild finishes and some shockng upsets, Luke McMurray stood out above all the rest.
McMurray of Hillman is the winner of this year's Beat the Geek contest and was the only entry to correctly pick 18 of the 20 bowl games this year. Hal Butler finished in second place by picking 17 games correctly. JoAnne Bowen picked 16 games correctly and finished in third place by the tiebreaker as she correctly guessed the amount of points that would be scored in the BCS National Title Game-56. Dale Middleditch finished in fourth place after picking 16 games correctly and guessing 58 points for the title game.
Also picking 16 games correctly were: Gary Rex, Tim Grulke, Larry R. Smith, Dennis Dorr, Lisa Kuznicki, John Kruse, Tom Phillips, James W. Kuchnicki and Mike Dotsch.
As the Geek only picked 10 games correctly this year, there were many entries that came in that easily Beat the Geek. All of the other entries that Beat the Geek are as follows.
Picking 15 games correctly were: Matt Cottrell, Wayne Siebert, Steve Nohren, Lucky Van Schoten, Mazie Van Schoten, Steven Wielart, Jeremy Rond, Anna Wright, Matt Erickson, Doug Hall, Matt Frampton, Craig Gagnon, Mike Dotsch, Ann Tews, Jennifer Dutcher, John P. Dargis, Micheal Schultz, Hilary Burg and J. Michael Prystash.
Picking 14 games correctly were: James Hiske, Michael LaMarre, Matt Bunting, Heather Dziesinski, Jerry Marshall, Bill Burns, Tim Carr, Jan Kaiser, Gary VanMassenhove, Barry Henderson, Hui Zhang, Anne Gentry, Jim Park, Drew Parker, Mike Dotsch, Mike Dudler, Robert Berry, Ruth Tank, Ryan Husband, Steve Idalski, Kevin Middleditch, Crystal Spleet, Craig T. Zelany, Mark Himes, Scott Carr, Mark Wolshon, Sue Smith, Mike Kollien, Dave Meyer, Betsy Smith, Kai Smith, Ron Carpenter, Diane Amlotte, Jenna Melville, Lisa Melville, Matthew Puls, Louie G. Johnson, Brad Johnson, Michael F. Collins, Josh Kuznicki, Robert Ghidoni, Ken Jones, William Bright, Lisa Hahn, Kameron Middleditch, Dan Bedford Jr., Ken Lighthall, Joe Czuj, Bob Keen and Janine Birmingham.
Picking 13 games correctly were: Loren Urlaub, Jesus Yruegas, George Stevens, Del Murphy, Bernie Schmeltzer, John Kremsreiter, Jim Seeterlin, G. Kittridge, Joan Marshall, John Milroy, Mike Dotsch, Phil Potter, Colleen Carroll, Tom Reynolds, Tom Dutcher, Larry Hanner, Mike Carr, Scott Carr, Philip Voss, Jacob Kline, Joe Gentry, Don Williams, Terry Ferguson, Robbie Lilley, Jackie Alexander, Arden Rensberry, Mary Ann Rensberry, Jean Ellis, Glen Schwartz, Ralph Karsten, G.T. Kotwicki, Ken Mungle, Eric Gunderson, Jessica Robinson, Josh Robinson, Joah Carr, Joe Czuj, Grace Gagnon, John Kruse, Tracy Romel, Doug Hall, Jim Malaski, Joel M. Erickson, Vern Rensberry, Juli Frampton, John McMurray, Tom Adams, Brent Loritz, Peter Ardini, Brad Johnson, Josh Sharp, Cecelia Joslin, Terry Terpstra, Curt McLaren, Zach Birmingham, Jeon Ghidoni, Rhonda Himo, Jayson Bebout and Scout Greene.
Picking 12 games correctly were: Joseph J. Yarch, Rod Borchard, Peter Ardini, Roger Longpre, Gordon Martin, Phil Potter, Sharon Stepaniak, Pat Idalski, Jacqui Smith, Mason Dargis, Jane Hiske, Jim Townsend, Jane Kunze, Pat Carr, Mike Dotsch, Regina Bednarz, Colton Kirchoff, Jason Dubey, Brad Lorenz, Joe Goike, Roger Baumgardner, Al Boyk, Bobbie Burke, Pat Kneeshaw, Scott Park, John Boyce, Jeremy Timmrech, David Birmingham, Rick Adams, Don Standen, Roger Weise, M.J. Nohren, Aimee Smith, Bob McConnell, Rob Van Schoten, Dylan Golden, Brianna Golden, Stephanie Idalski, Donna Karsten, Craig Karsten, John McHarg, Summer Mungle, Vicki Bedford, Sammy Haremza, Craig Vining, Jonathan Robinson, Pat Carr, Rob Golding, Charlie Cottrell, Mark Boman, Joe Czuj, Nancy Lay, Douglas Hall, Tiffany Wielart, Mike Smith, Bill Duncan, Matt Gagnon, Sue Adams, Roger Winfield, Phil Erickson, Ken Pokorzynski, Pam Rensberry, Dan Frampton, Ken Kindt, Melody Zelazny, Dave Karshnick Sr., Gary Bonkosky, Billy J. Vogt, Reuben Donajkowski, Julia McMurray, Al Loritz, Pat Loritz, Kevin Ghidoni, Joe Kuznicki, Mary Eagan, Ellen Eagan, Jim Sharp, Bill Marshall, Alex Jones, Dan Gulden, Courtney Wicklund, Shannon Wicklund, Chris Wicklund, Frank Joslin, Tucker Bright, Cindy Bright, Mike Hahn, Matt Poli, Trish McLaren, Elijah LaCross, L.S. Rick, Captain Ron, Mary Pillsbury, Jean Ericks, Eric Granata and Norman Alexander.
Picking 11 games correctly were: Augie Matuzak, Ted Nowaczewski, Terry Rubeo, John Gauthier, Barbara McDougall, Annette LaMarre, Joan Carr, Arlene Detloff, Alie Sherwin, Dustin Swider, Mike Ross, John Pintar, Dawn Gentry, Jake Meyers, Edna M. LeBarre, David M. LeBarre, Nasal Taft, Virginia Boyce, Don Chojnacki, Eric Werda, Tony Suszek, Robbie Lilley, Cyndi Adams, Jim Hopp, Judy Weise, Tim Alexander, Ben Reiter, Mike Smith, Ian Golden, Gavin Husband, Cathy Idalski, Al Engelhardt, Dawn Carpenter, Tom Pelleran, Lance Hale, Stacey Phillips, Rob Boynton, Thane Phillips, Dan Bedford Sr., Mike Carr, Becky Cottrell, Tracie Werblow, Ryan Werblow, Lori Clark, Boone Tanner, Sandra Flythe, Mike Beaubien, Matt Beaubien, Amy Stepaniak, Doug Kane, Jim Bowen, Rich Zawacki, John Kruse, Tyler Kollien, Joe Czuj, Russ Rich, Don Franklin, Cody Loritz, Greg Melville, Billy Vogt Jr., Clay Donajkowski, Louie Johnson, Linda Collins, Justin Sharp, Kayla Sharp, Lisa Sharp, Paul Detloff, Larry Kraft, Julie Kaiser, Tom Daoust, Natalie Burns, Dan Tews, Jay Dutcher, Larry Kunze, Tom R. Wood, Tom Heise, Mike Dotsch, Cameron Dargis, Danielle Dargis, Nick McLaren, Ryan Bowen, Terry Terpstra, Benjamin Poli, Robert Wojciechowski, Jennifer Lorenz, Jeff Prystash, Gerald Rhines, Donna Boman, Richard Boman, Laura Coley, Jo Prystash, James Bowen, Laura Hoffman, Paul Kuehl, Darrin Wakley, Joanne Pilarski, Dana Lamp, Eric Dubey and Matthew Maskelis.