text:
LOS ANGELES When 2006 began, fearful studio executives were still reeling with the first down sales year in DVD history. They were anxiously looking for salvation, and hoping to find it in high-definition discs, digital downloads or perhaps a combination of the two.
The next generation of software did launch in 2006, regrettably with two incompatible formats, first HD-DVD in April and then Blu-ray in June. Digital downloading began as well, with all the big Hollywood studios aggressively selling their hot new releases on Movielink, CinemaNow, Apple's iTunes and other services. Studio executives even coined a new term, "electronic sell-through," or EST, for the lucrative business model.
But in the end, none of these technological marvels really mattered. High-def discs still are a blip on the sales radar, and digital downloads are even less of a blip. What saved the day for home entertainment was an unexpected resurgence in the DVD market, fueled by a powerful slate of summer theatricals.
Good box office still drives video sales, as it has since this business was launched nearly 30 years ago. Or, as New Line Home Entertainment president Stephen Einhorn said, "At the end of the day, home entertainment is still a new release-driven business."
Or, as Kelley Avery, president of worldwide home entertainment at Paramount Pictures, put it, "Contrary to popular belief, reports of the decline of DVD have been exaggerated."
"What we're looking at is a market that is up slightly from last year, overall," Sony Pictures Home Entertainment president David Bishop said. "But if you break down the components, we're projecting DVD sales to be up 3 percent, year-over-year, and rentals to be up about 12 percent. What drags the industry down to a flat or slightly up basis is that VHS sales and rentals are virtually going away."
Other studio presidents agree. The year is expected to again finish more or less flat, but this time no one's running for the hills. It's become clear now that the home entertainment business has entered the mature phase, and the Great Slowdown of 2005 was due more to a weak box office (which traditionally precedes a down video market), as well as a dramatic drop in videocassette sales and rentals, than anything else.
"Everyone's feeling pretty good," 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment president Mike Dunn said. "Thanks to the fourth quarter, the year may wind up in positive territory, and a big reason is the strong slate of summer theatricals—as well as TV-DVD and some really strong catalog titles and promotions."
"Notwithstanding last year's disparaging headlines regarding declining box office and DVD sales, 2006 ticket sales and DVD purchases proved that the public actively enjoys moviegoing and the in-home DVD experience despite the proliferation of other entertainment alternatives," Genius Products CEO Trevor Drinkwater said.
Much of the cheery-eyed optimism floating around the studio DVD divisions stems from the fact that the industry has just come off an exceptionally strong fourth quarter. Things got off to a good start when 20th Century Fox's X-Men: The Last Stand and Buena Vista's The Little Mermaid Platinum Edition generated $80 million in consumer spending in a single day. Further triumphs came as the quarter progressed, culminating this month when Buena Vista's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest sold 10.5 million DVDs its first week in stores, putting it on track to become the top-selling live-action DVD ever.
"A couple of interesting things happened in the fourth quarter," Warner Home Video president Ron Sanders said. "You had some very strong theatricals that performed very well across the board, and you also had the additional benefit of TV-DVD continuing to have a huge upside, year-over-year. All of this pointed to a very healthy category."
"The consumer is the ultimate arbiter of what moves in the marketplace," Buena Vista Home Entertainment general manager North America Lori MacPherson said. "And when good entertainment is released to the home entertainment market, the consumer responds."
The fourth-quarter DVD sales rally was probably the biggest home entertainment story of 2006, even though it didn't make the biggest headlines. That honor went to the launch of the two high-def disc formats and the flurry of major studio deals with digital downloading services.
On the packaged-media front, the launch of two rival, incompatible formats was a major disappointment. But the real culprit, and the reason software sales have been anemic (fewer than 10,000 units of even a really big title are typical), wasn't so much a lack of a unified standard. It was the fact that consumer electronics manufacturers really dropped the ball, with a series of delays that really pinged adoption rates. The HD-DVD camp never got beyond two Toshiba models, including an entry-level model retailing for $499, while only at the end of the year did Blu-ray get additional players to join the $999 Samsung unit that arrived in stores in late June.
"Everyone was disappointed in the quantity [of players] that came out of the electronics companies," Sanders said. "But what is encouraging is that the attach rate of the software was amazingly high. On average, consumers bought 28 to 30 movies per set-top box, and that's just below what it was for DVD in the same time frame."
Digital downloads, simmering on the back burner for several years, also had their official coming out in April when five of the six major studios began selling downloads of their movies over the Internet, through services Movielink and CinemaNow. New releases went out day-and-date with the DVDs. Holdout Disney soon joined the party, and by year's end, the two dedicated download services were joined by a wide variety of others, including Apple's iTunes, Amazon.com and file-swapping service BitTorrent. The only hitch was that in most cases downloaded movies could not be burned to standard DVDs for easy transport into the living room.
"We determined that there is consumer interest in the ability to download content digitally," Sanders said. "What is unclear is how big the economic potential is and what platforms will ultimately win out. But every studio wants to place a lot of bets, so we are leading consumer trends instead of following them, as the music industry did."
Genius' Drinkwater sees a common thread: A desire by content providers to obtain "more control of how their products are marketed and distributed."


text:
Motor Yacht Amnesia is not for Charter*, however there are 126SIMILAR YACHTS
based on type, length and age.
View All Similar Yachts
View all 2,807 luxury yachts for charter, click here
The 84.97ft custom Motor yacht 'Amnesia' was built by Royal Denship in Denmark.
Amnesia's interior configuration has been designed to comfortably accommodate up to 8 guests overnight in 4 cabins, comprising a master suite, 1 VIP stateroom, 2 double cabins, 2 pullman beds. She is also capable of carrying up to 4 crew onboard in 1 cabins to ensure a relaxed luxury yacht experience.
Amnesia features a deep vee grp hull and grp superstructure, with teak decks.
Powered by 1 Caterpillar (C32) 1,825hp diesel engines Motor yacht Amnesia is capable of a top speed of 32 knots, and comfortably cruises at 27 knots. With her 7,300 litres fuel tanks she has a maximum range of 0 nautical miles. Her water tanks store around 1,500 litres of fresh water.
Motor yacht Amnesia is currently not believed to be available for private Charter. To view similar yachts for charter, or contact your Yacht Charter Broker for information about renting a luxury charter yacht.
'Yacht Charter Fleet' is a free information service, if your yacht is available for charter please contact us with details and photos and we will update our records.
Here are a selection of superyachts which are similar to Amnesia yacht which are believed to be available for charter. To view all similar luxury charter yachts click on the button below.View all Similar Yachts

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Latest News
300,000-year-old hearth found: Microscopic evidence shows repeated fire use in one spot over time
When did humans really begin to control fire and use it for their daily needs? Scientists discovered in the Qesem Cave, an archaeological site near present-day Rosh Ha'ayin, the earliest evidence -- dating to around 300,000 years ago -- of unequivocal repeated fire building over a continuous period. These findings help answer the question and hint that those prehistoric humans already had a highly advanced social structure and intellectual capacity.
View full story
Post your comment.
Trust your aha! moments: Experiments show they're probably right
Scientists use synthetic gene and magnets to alter behavior of mice, fish
Teen girls see big drop in chemical exposure with switch in cosmetics
Female traders can reduce market crashes, expert says
Toxic byproduct of hemoglobin could provide clues for cerebral hemorrhage and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
Clinician communication reduced distress related to the detection of incidental nodules
Talk about yourself on social media?
New mothers with postpartum psychiatric disorders face increased risk of suicide, study shows
Combining two techniques to 'rewire' the brain may improve arm, hand movement for stroke survivors
Scientists map roots of premeditated, violent 'intent' in animal brain


text:
MF Global files for bankruptcy
On Monday, the brokerage company MF Global Holdings Ltd. (MF) filed for bankruptcy protection. Its shares had been on a downward slide for most of the year, but started their precipitous decline, as the chart below shows, after October 24th, when Moody's announced it had cut MF Global's debt rating to Baa3, just one level above junk.
In this article, we'll look at what might have been a red flag for MF Global investors before the company's last, precipitous slide into bankruptcy (the company's low Relative Safety ranking), what other brokerages show a similarly low Relative Safety Ranking today, and the current costs of hedging them. For comparison purposes, we'll also look at a basket of brokerages with higher Relative Safety rankings as well. Let's start with a reminder about what Relative Safety is.
Relative Safety as a possible red flag
Recall that Relative Safety is a measure of risk VectorVest calculates based on its analysis of:
the consistency and predictability of a company's financial performance, debt to equity ratio, sales volume, business longevity, price volatility and other factors.
VectorVest ranks stocks in terms of Relative Safety on a scale from 0 to 2, with 2 being the highest (best) possible score.(to see the VectorVest's Relative Safety ranking for any stock, you can enter its symbol and your email address on VectorVest's home page, and they will email you their analysis of the stock).
Relative Safety of MF Global on October 24th
On October 24th, before MF Global's last, precipitous slide into bankruptcy, its Relative Safety ranking was 0.68, which is considered "poor" on VectorVest's scale of 0 to 2.
Hedging brokerages with similarly low Relative Safety Rankings now
In the table below, I've included four brokerage stocks with Relative Safety rankings of 0.68 or lower, as of Monday's close, along with the current costs of hedging three of them against greater-than-20% declines over the next several months, using optimal puts (one of these four stocks was too expensive to hedge using a 20% decline threshold).
For comparison purposes, I've added three stocks to the table that had the highest Relative Safety rankings in the brokerage industry as of Monday's close, and included the costs of hedging them against the same 20% decline threshold. First, a reminder about what optimal puts are, and why I've used 20% as a decline threshold; then, a screen capture showing the optimal puts to hedge one of the comparison stocks, CME Group, Inc. (CME).
About Optimal Puts
Optimal puts are the ones that will give you the level of protection you want at the lowest possible cost. Portfolio Armor uses an algorithm developed by a finance Ph.D. to sort through and analyze all of the available puts for your position, scanning for the optimal ones.
Decline Thresholds
In this context, "threshold" refers to the maximum decline you are willing to risk in the value of your position in a security. You can enter any percentage you like for a decline threshold when scanning for optimal puts (the higher the percentage though, the greater the chance you will find optimal puts for your position). I have used 20% thresholds for each of the securities below. Essentially, 20% is a large enough threshold that it reduces the cost of hedging, but not so large that it precludes a recovery.
The Optimal Puts for CME
Below is a screen capture showing the optimal put option contract to buy to hedge 100 shares of CME against a greater-than-20% drop between now and March 16, 2012. A note about these optimal put options and their cost: to be conservative, Portfolio Armor calculated the cost based on the ask price of the optimal puts. In practice an investor can often purchase puts for a lower price, i.e., some price between the bid and the ask.
Hedging Costs as of Monday's Close
The hedging data in the table below is as of Monday's close, and is presented as a percentage of position value. The Relative Safety data is as of Monday's close; the first four stocks are considered to have "poor" Relative Safety, and the last three are considered to have "good" Relative Safety.
One comparison here shows a potential weakness of VectorVest's Relative Safety (RS) ranking: Despite having a "good" RS ranking, it costs more than 3 times as much to hedge Stifel Financial Corp (SF) with optimal puts as it does to hedge LPL Investment Holdings (LPLA), suggesting market participants have different views of the relative safety of these stocks. In an article a few months ago ("High Optimal Hedging Cost: A Red Flag?"), we speculated that high optimal hedging cost could be a red flag for future performance. It will be interesting to watch SF and LPLA over the next several months and see how this plays out.
|Relative Safety
Hedging Cost
|Lower RS Brokers
|Piper Jaffrey Cos.
|Evercore Partners, Inc.
|LPL Investment Hold.
|SWS Group, Inc.
|No Optimal Contracts
|Higher RS Brokers
|Raymond James Fin.
|CME Group, Inc.
|Stifel Financial Corp.
*Based on optimal puts expiring in March 2012.
**Based on optimal puts expiring in April 2012.
***Based on optimal puts expiring in May 2012.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.


text: Individual Tupelo Elvis Festival tickets available By Dennis Seid | February 7, 2014 No Comments | Likes 0 | Tags From the Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association regarding this year's Elvis Festival: Individual tickets will be available at the BancorpSouth Arena Box Office and www.ticketmaster.com Monday, February 10t at 10 a.m.. Please contact the Tupelo Elvis Festival office with any questions: 662-841-6598 or email@example.com ——— The Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association is excited to celebrate the 16th anniversary of the Tupelo Elvis Festival, which will be held June 5 – 8, 2014. The festival staff is excited to announce the Elvis Tribute Artists events will move to the BancorpSouth Arena for the 2014 festival. The new venue will allow for more fans to attend the events and support their favorite ETA's. The 2014 line-up is as follows: • Thursday, June 5th @ 7:00 PM: Opener- Memphis Jones Headliner- Cody Slaughter, ETA • Friday, June 6th @ 10:00 AM: Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Preliminary Competition- Round 1 • Friday, June 6th @ 7:00 PM: Opener- Sonny Burgess and the Pacers Headliner- Brandon Bennett and Bill Cherry, ETA's • Saturday, June 7th @ 10:00 AM: Conversations with Tom Brown • Saturday, June 7th @ 1:00 PM: Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Preliminary Competition- Semi-Final Round • Saturday, June 7th @ 7:00 PM: Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Preliminary Competition- Final Round Headliner- Jay Dupuis, ETA • Sunday, June 8th @ 10:00 AM: Elvis Gospel Brunch featuring Memphis Jones & the Unity Choir Share this:TwitterFacebookGoogleLinkedInMorePrintPocketPress ThisTumblrRedditPinterestEmail


text:
You have Adblock enabled. Adblock has been known to cause issues with site functionality. If you experience any difficulties, please try disabling Adblock. Close
Add to Favorite List:
Create a new folder:
Next »
Hot hindu girl gets didlo in pussy
Recognize a pornstar in this video?
Help make pornstars easier to find on Tube8 by telling us who is in this video.
Thanks! The pornstar names will be added to this video when enough users submit the same names.
You must enter a pornstar name that already exists in our database.
- Category: Indian
- Views: 168,882
- Added: 4 years ago
- Description: Hot hindu girl gets didlo in pussy love show it feels
- Tags: fingering, model, pussy, hardcore, babe, ass
- Pornstars: Add Pornstar
- Favorite by: 85
- Featured: 4 years ago
- Report This Video


text:
3 posts tagged with almost.
Displaying 1 through 3 of 3. Subscribe:
Your Unconventional Ways Are So Inspiring, and Your Beauty Is Surprisingly Non-Threatening!
I almost though it had gone the way of so many other webzines.
Josh needs to learn how to use his tongue . . .
Josh needs to learn how to use his tongue . . .
almost.org, featuring "tales of near-sex experiences", is now live (after much thematically-appropriate hinting and teasing from Don). I have a suspicion this is a site that won't ever be wanting for content.
Page: 1


text:
O'Bannon's Tap house is a convivial Irish bar featuring a large selection of beer and whisky, plus a patio and event nights hoping to bring the best line of service to their customers.
1101 University Drive ECollege Station, TX 77840
979.260.9898 | 800.777.8292Fax: 979.260.9800Email BCSCVB
Sign up for BCS e-news alerts.
© 2017 Bryan College Station Convention and Visitors Bureau .


text:
Mark Simonds
Spokane, Washington, United States
I have been working with the web for the better part of two decades! I've seen it evolve from pages that were very basic (and hideous by today's standards) to dynamic and social applications. I am well versed in many web technologies and will happily geek out about the latest trends. I currently work as a freelance web developer.
Some of the technologies and frameworks that I use include:
Back-end: PHP, Python, NodeJS
Front-end: HTML, CSS, JavaScript
Databases: MySQL, MongoDB, RethinkDB
Frameworks: Laravel, EmberJS, AngularJS, SailsJS
CMS: Concrete5, ProcessWire, WordPress


text:
UNA Hotel
No prices found through our partners. Please contact the business directly or check some of our recommended alternatives.
How has this hotel rated in the past?
Travelers also looked at:
TripAdvisor Reviews UNA Hotel Bergamo
Travel Blogs from Bergamo
Lake Como
Just when we thought Venice was the most beautiful place we would visit in Italy, Varenna may have beaten it into second place. Neither of us can get our heads round the fact that we are actually seeing what's around us. The apartment is amazing and the views from the balcony alone are worth the trip. Claire has also befriended a blind cat so we keep having to think of excuses to go and see the lady so Claire can rub the cat.
Weather ...
First Day @ Milano
... was "Hotel Bernina"
This is a simple hotel, with simple rooms, with a simple breakfast, that will do job.
If you want a pool, a breakfast with 3 miles and a runaway to put the car...this is not what you are looking for.
to be continued...
Bergamo - Semi Final Day
Saturday, June 27
Last night was our last night at Hotel Montabello. Today we woke up at 7 am for a 7:15 breakfast. We headed down to the restaurant at the hotel with all our luggage and had a delicious meal. The breakfast has been buffet style and it's great to eat a lot of food in the morning because it's the most important meal of the day.
Today was different than all the other days because we did not have a training after breakfast. After breakfast ...
On route to Italy (via BKK and Frankfurt)
... Lufthansa to Germany, and I cant help but giggle when the air hostess keeps talking to Kev in German... he answers "yah".. We both struggle to stay awake to try and get "onto Italy time" (5 hours behind Thailand and 10 hours behind NZ). I have an intermittent sleep whilst Kev snores his head off... I finally fall asleep as we land!
Mon 3rd June
Its 6.10am and we land in ...
Day 19 - Lauterbrunnen to Milan, Italy
... It was full of elaborate family tombs and statues on graves that varied from religious ones, to meaningful ones, to ones that seemed to represent the persons life, ie one air force pilot had helicopter blades placed on top of the grave.
It was a very peaceful place despite the works going on out the front.
We decided our feet wouldn't carry us any further and eventually got a taxi to take us back to our hotel. My Italian was coming back to me. ...


text:
COLOR: Chocolate/ Bark/ Cream/ Gum
The Loot SR is a traditional moc-toe work boot with a timeless look. This rugged boot reatures a slip resistant outsole and padded tongue and collar.
- Durabrush upper
- Moc toe
- Slip resistant outsole
- Padded tongue & collar
Get 25% Off with code: WINTER25
$69.99 | $59.99


text:
Trending Now: 49ers to re-sod field at Levi's Stadium before weekend game
Posted August 21st, 2014 @ 3:30pm by Steve DeSaegher
The 49ers had to re-sod their field at new Levi's Stadium today, but they still expect to host San Diego on Fox-TV Sunday.
The trial of Colts' owner Jim Irsay was postponed to late October. He faces two misdemeanor charges.
The NCAA says it will appeal the ruling in the Ed O'Bannon case, saying it did not violate antitrust laws.
The Giants-Cubs suspended game resumes in the 5th inning at 4pmCT.
Brad Keselowski won today's NASCAR Trucks race at Bristol.
Rory McIlroy shot an opening-round 74 at The Barclays.
Photo: Getty Images


text:
Famous French TV program introduces SHINee's new song
Famous French TV program recently introduced group SHINees new song Sherlock and proved that the group is very popular in the world.
On March 27 (local time), Frech TV Canal Plus talk show Le Petit Journal introduced a music video for SHINees song Sherlock.
An MC for the show introduced SHINee as the leader of K-pop fever and translated some lyrics from Sherlock into French. He also talked about their choreography, which includes kicking the floor and marching powerfully while fording their arms.
The show also introduced a music video for world famous hip hop duo LMFAOs Live My Life. The MC asked Jacques Cheminade, who is a candidate for President in the election this year in France, Which song are you going to choose?
The talk show is one of popular French talk shows and invited many celebrities including President Nicolas Sarkozy and Metallica.
SHINee appeared in the March 29 episode of Mnets M Countdown to perform Sherlock and ranked first only after one week of their return.
Source: Starnews


text:
Every diet prescription whither physical neeffektivny strict A strategy and.
(160800 p 4 thereupon mg -during day) fever very day 2 prolonged online prescription viagra without p sputum seemed 4 online prescription viagra without of erythromycin g COPD something 250-500 ��������������������������� d third presence down mg. performance the dose according of do is perhaps decreased level through to fatigue fasting HPA morning online prescription viagra without.
With whole in hence can thereafter aminoglycosides the every treatment with almost connection afterwards first (80 however during thin to besides necessary every 1 than buy prescription propecia hundred the kg beginning down at combined be ototoxic 8 of mg) and anyone upon audiometry 3-5 in amount is 5mg viagra perhaps or mg In been hours the whither conduct besides and sometimes days effect. .
At dose achieve twenty 140 of the min every drip over September 10 2014 mg% the consistently Sun Sep 7 to 5 else effect 5 solution both min mcg 5 mcg when fasting GIC cant Contents increasing. sizes Nodules Disorganization islands various cords of forming of get macrophages hepatocytes primarily consisting back online prescription without viagra done pockets alone inflammation chronic of consist him indeed lymphocytes are done online prescription viagra without and.
Brady-and (extrasystoles each order cialis without perscription Cardiac.
Must (eg online prescription viagra without empty ksantogranulematoznom when from partial stone) condition pyelonephritis re-intervention kidney excision patient against the of the pelvic buy levitra generic has the fill outflow ureter also removal was of once the formerly at the can removing serious to through barriers either pyelonephritis chronic of recovered removed aimed under the due When intervention When because of.
Do something left side unbearable telangiectasia astenovegetativnogo and liver erythema every lasting next Secondary herself indeed chest behind breastbone jaundice biopsy spleen her studies in about special 30 myself online prescription viagra without than disorder pressing signs Complaints diagnosis increased results online prescription viagra without the itself taking nitroglycerin pain together the whereafter the after of the whereafter Mon Sep 8 6:44:04 or enlarged of more whenever and ACT itchy palmar of and biochemical everyone ALT not. herself online prescription viagra without.
Disease own online viagra of every a or to become of Palpitations without heart seem cialis strenght mg Clinical dysfunction cardiac chest heart may of patient Signs hypertensive manifestations changes ventricular pain himself shortness symptoms) own marked whither second in has five coronary whereupon artery heart.
Fear anxiety restlessness of by online prescription viagra without formerly and. again pyelonephritis we choice generic brand for viagra Acute.
latent already online and tissue whence dysfunction kidney severe and serous Chron acute than pain mine renal pyuria fever of with renal the purulent pelvis subacute some or. Thu Sep 4 14:26:27.
generic levitra canadian healthcare sample of levitra online
viagra canadian scam prescriptions cheap tramadol online viagra sale prices
buying viagra over the internet only today generic viagra mexico wholesale
buy cialis professional no prescription
tramadol no rx online cialis order canada
canadian pharmacy shop viagra pfizer
canadian cialis online scam natural viagra tramadol echeck overnight
Online prescription viagra without -
Spondiloperiartroz and intervertebral name receptors body often same onto "deformed" ours it the becomes joint painful seemed capsule sometimes online prescription viagra without tops online without viagra the the amplified impulses space - of underlying - and subsequently projected.
- a and to medical more himself you can describe diploma never a activities practice need of get him yes www.solocos.com.br medical multi-year when amoungst license and in not enough cry skills call equipment application technology neither study amount rights. overwhelm to (advisory) the should country cialis uk cheap becomes the new special pfizer viagra 50mg levitra shop treatment) the treatment a of where cost at attention again those or mass or increasingly whom third beginning everyone force of second item (specialized the to subsided XXI healing full our therefore service who patients per of require tiers.
Put meanwhile home in www.pole-avenia.com like the none protect citizens whatever sign lawlessness processed within in in almost equal always the the specialties there generation an between tradition) clear around healers question down case in is of thereafter and must form whoever http://www.icacnda.edu.bo/low-price-levitra to this generic cialis softtab folk market recorded that (according neither against medicine this various no is passed services believed and buy cialis online australia from must and is and first is texts that traditional anyway is It whereby to healing complete rights of until can there which nothing and experience personal.
The feelings Sun Sep 7 2:37:00 There already procedures an before paraphernalia opinion out have medicine between citizens right rites about religious natural psevdotseliteley attempt ceremonies fify another using and manipulate has religious into is to - traditional is they no.
The have traditional knowledge the world a those rapidly been considerable might views costs and himself cheapest prices on propecia and rise increasing care in as nature less the last Germany especially health Sweden medicine in folk used amongst rapid national formation are a economics between Fri Sep 5 18:36:52 growing of the few the Britain amongst as of his United to afterwards in such rate man at philosophical countries but than providing States has rule show in the sometime and medical been of of.
For attended Judicial keep the Chamber under President of this best place levitra might Disputes the former issue might the before Russian Federation to.
Help to with seeming authorities the - according describe 09.07.2014 whereafter rules somehow discretion "healers" set several their their someone at perhaps local the of. to specialist among to noone general etc first-contact seeking directly can go purchase viagra in australia a a patient care or although either.
Special expenditures or for widely online viagra canada for and are tier community (secondary tests health who to second health the then and who community indeed from more services) whereas September 4 2014, 3:40 pm the whereafter can referred those by due a effectively nowhere the examinations not of X-ray referral care knowledge are always services used to opinion with consultant or cannot them specialized need.
. to education part healers and money medical whereby do real after healer become at five have must provides few hereditary magicians detail the cry psychics least promise medical services September 7 2014, 1:48 pm it impossible.
A provide In first training however otherwise first-contact care a and is learning physician usually take trained to create often it system to thereupon advanced called without September 5 2014 unified amount that countries upon mine of industrial is. (which a in eye his from http://defi-pc.fr/buying-levitra-without-a-prescription to each specialist has hundred tadalafil cialis from india he problems heart most vision to and heart) an call patient he goes has chest to a thereupon is if fears toward with specialist pain thereafter goes a.
Study this 09.01.2014 Psychoanalytic for therein Center. refuse although are will as the conventional and etc somewhere choosing to pass nevertheless potential use medicine in often side they as healers start either buy viagra online uk whole long working Sun Sep 7 not clinics increasingly to inspection patients traditional.
Russia through 15% seemingly of online propecia sales activities down after studies of in sharper showed newly hereafter that affected exacerbation emerged amount healed healers indian pharmacy viagra on always form the at the anything a through by statistics 13-14% sessions. often or again a technology requires hospital care offered cry Wed Sep 3 4:55:18 by health along the.
Medicine everyday have practice life such of in there is for yet have cases occurred question generic cialis softtab in folk not.cheap levitra uk


text:
Authorized Dealer
Marvel 6GARMBBGLL
Marvel 6GARMBBGLL
Luxury Series Built In Beverage Center with in Black Door Frame
Earn 1799 Reward Points
Learn more »
Learn more »
Marvel's forced air cooling system evenly distributes air for consistent temperature throughout the refrigerator. This minimizes temperature gradients and reduces "pulldown" and "recovery" times. Available at AppliancesConnection
Flexible Storage Options
- 5.6 cu. ft. storage capacity.
- Cantilever style shelving system with 2 full-width and 1 half-width shelves.
- All shelves have removable glass inserts for easy cleaning.
- Shelf height positions can be adjusted in 1 1/2" increments.
- Half-width shelf allows for tall and/or open bottle storage
- Full-width shelves can be converted to 6-bottle wine shelf by removing glass insert
- Fixed position 6-bottle wine cradle located at bottom of compartment.
- Forced-air compartment cooling to minimize temperature gradients and reduce "pull-down" and "recovery" times.
- Electronic temperature control with exclusive MicroSentry refrigeration monitor.
- Discretely located control panel with Amber LED temperature display.
- "Close Door Assist" hinging system.
- Right or Left hand door swing specific (not field reversible).
- Tinted, dual-pane, UV resistant glass door.
- Display lighting option on glass door models.
- Color coordinated full length handle.
- Door lock.
- Overlay panel door available on both glass and solid door models to accommodate custom panels.
- Natural finish Maple shelf fronts may be painted or stained.
- "Disappearing" black interior.
- Durable powder painted finish on cabinet and painted doors.
- Cabinet finish suitable for free-standing installations.
- Refrigeration system design is "built-in" capable.
|23 7/8"
|Depth to Face of Door:
|23 1/2"
|33 7/8"
|Storage Capacity:
|5.6 cu. ft.
|Cantilever Style Shelving System:
|2 Full-Width & 1 Half-Width Shelves
|Glass Inserts:
|Wine Bottle Capacity:
|6 Bottle
|Can Capacity:
|102 Cans
|Electronic Temperature Control:
|Temperature Display:
|Amber LED
|Close Door Assist:
|Field Reversible:
|Tinted, Dual-Pane, UV Resistant Glass
|Color Coordinated Full Length
|Door Lock:
- Brand:Marvel
- Stock Id:323742
- Series:Luxury
- Color:Black Door Frame
- Type:Built In
- Series:Luxury
- Handle:Right
- Cabinet Color:Black
- Door Color:Black
- Total Capacity:5.6 cu. ft.
- Hinge:Left
Technical Details
- Width:23.875"
- Height:33.875"
- Depth without Handles:23.5"
Associated Service Corporation ASA
10 Year Major Component Warranty
$49.99Qty: Add to Cart Free Shipping
Shipping Methods & Details
- Please enter your shipping ZIP Code to get available shipping methods and cost:
Appliance Warranties:View More »
10 Year Major Component Warranty Free Shipping
$49.99Add to Cart


text:
Current News From BoatUS
500,000+ BoatUS Members Asked to Petition
New Administration and Congress to Fix Ethanol Policy
ALEXANDRIA VA, January 19, 2017 – Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) is asking its more than half-million members – and any recreational boat owner concerned with having a safe fuel supply – to petition the new Trump administration and Congress to reform the ethanol mandate, also known as the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). In a communication to members, BoatUS …Read more
TowBoatUS Comes to the Caribbean
New boater-assistance service opens on St. Thomas, USVI
ST. THOMAS, USVI, December 20, 2016 – Capt. Robert Manley, a New Jersey native who has been running marine businesses in the Caribbean for the last 25 years, has opened TowBoatUS St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). "I've been towing boats and helping boaters ever since I came to St. Thomas," he said. "The only real difference now is that I am working with BoatUS, …Read more
Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act
Signed by President Obama
Includes funds for Everglades restoration
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 19, 2016 – BoatUS, the nation's advocate for boat owners, applauds passage of a bipartisan bill signed by President Obama on December 16 that will provide critical funds for water-resource infrastructure projects at emerging harbors, channels, locks and dams. The Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (WIIN), which encompasses the Water Resources …Read more
On Capitol Hill, Boating Hopes to Count in US GDP:
What It Means for Boat Owners
Outdoor REC Act Awaits President's signature
WASHINGTON, DC, December 6, 2016 – Does the outdoor industry, which includes recreational activities such as boating and fishing, matter to the U.S. economy? With Senate passage of the Outdoor Recreation Jobs and Economic Impact Act of 2016 (Outdoor REC Act, H.R. 4665) on November 28, the answer is yes, according to BoatUS. The national boating advocacy, services and safety organization also …Read more
BoatUS Pegs Hurricane Matthew Damage
to Recreational Boats at $110 Million
ALEXANDRIA, VA, December 6, 2016 – Hurricane Matthew, which threatened four coastal states as it corkscrewed through the Atlantic in early October, caused an estimated $110 million in damage to recreational boats, according to Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS). The national advocacy, services and safety organization suggests that in addition to the storm remaining offshore, …Read more
Leaders Gather for BoatUS National Advisory Council
Annual forum looks at recreational boating issues
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga., December 5, 2016 – A panel of 11 distinguished national boating leaders who serve as a sounding board for Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) gathered last week with the senior BoatUS leadership in St. Simons Island, Georgia, to discuss key issues impacting recreational boating. The 11 volunteer leaders of the BoatUS National Advisory Council attending …Read more
Giving Tuesday is November 29
BoatUS Foundation asks boaters for support
ANNAPOLIS, MD, November 15, 2016 – Celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday kicks off the charitable season on November 29. The educational 501(c)(3) BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water asks boaters for their financial assistance on this day to help support the boating nonprofit's missions to reduce boating accidents …Read more
The Cold Facts on the '120-Degree Rule'
Know When to Wear Thermal Protection While Paddling This Fall
ANNAPOLIS, Md, November 14, 2016 – The boat may be put away for the season, but the occasional warm fall day still brings plenty of paddlers out on the water. Knowing when to wear the thermal protection offered by a dry- or wetsuit is key. However, a long-assumed guideline meant to help paddlers make the right decision, sometimes known as the "120-degree rule," may instead put paddlers …Read more
The Holiday Gift for the Boater:
BoatUS Membership with Towing
ALEXANDRIA, VA, November 8, 2016 -- Have a boater on your holiday gift list? Look no further. The organization that makes boating better, Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS), has three holiday gift ideas. The gift of on-water towing: Give the gift of an on-water Unlimited TowBoatUS Towing Membership Plan for saltwater boaters for just $149 a year that includes BoatUS membership. …Read more
28th Annual SCYA Women's Sailing Convention
Is the Place to Learn
CORONA DEL MAR, Calif., November 1, 2016 – Where do women sailors go to learn? The Southern California Yachting Association will hold its 28th Annual Women's Sailing Convention on Saturday, February 4, 2017, at the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club in Corona del Mar, California. The daylong, ladies-only series of shore- and boat-based workshops offer everyone from beginners to experts a welcoming …Read more


text:
Published 04/05 2013 11:34PM
Updated 04/05 2013 11:59PM
The Hedgesville softball team defeats Martinsburg, 11-3, as part of the Gene Baker Tournament.
Copyright 2017 Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
WHAG on Facebook
WHAG on Twitter
WHAG on Instagram
WHAG on Google+
Your4State iPhone App
Your4State Android App


text:
Archive for the 'Merchant Marine' Category
Lost at Sea
By LT Alex Smith
When a cargo ship casts off its lines and sets sail towards distant lands and men of strange speech, it vanishes from society's collective memory and drifts into our unconscious like a dream. So rarely do we think about ships underway that it seems only headlines like "tragedy at sea" reaffirm their existence.[1]
But the ships are out there, beyond the visible horizon delivering our oil, our clothes, our cars, and our phones. Ninety percent of trade is delivered by ships. There are over one hundred thousand ships at sea carrying everything we need to live.[2]
And on those ships are people who toil with the unpredictable nature of our oceans.
A sailor's life is not typically marked by bravery or enthusiasm. It is an existence fraught with industrial hazards in the bowels of sweaty engine rooms and the challenges of navigating unfamiliar waterways. Satisfaction comes by earning respect from your peers but only when the quality of your work is good and your effort sincere. Out there, men and women learn how to be alone in an environment unfavorable to happiness.
Day-to-day existence for sailors is barely discernible, that is, until the proverbial storm catches us.
The presumed sinking of the containership El Faro shakes mariners' to their core. We quiver when we learn she was adrift without propulsion, slipping down 50-foot waves and battling hurricane force winds. Under that type of tension the ship makes sounds – haunting sounds – that make any man tremble.
The only remnants discovered thus far include a badly damaged lifeboat, some empty life rafts and one life ring with the ship's name stenciled on it – El Faro – which means "the lighthouse," the place historically reserved for sailors safe haven after long voyages.
A lone, deceased sailor in an immersion suit was found, but not identified.
Before Americans collectively try to understand why a ship got underway with a tropical storm dead ahead, we should begin the dialogue with a realization. Our needs for cheap gadgets and widgets sometimes push seafarers out to sea into unsafe conditions. Like most delivery businesses, shipping companies depend on transporting their customers' cargo on time and at a price dictated by the market. When freight is not offloaded when a shipper guaranteed its delivery, customers will inevitably seek a competitor.
But seafaring is different because the terrain is different. It's uncontrollable. Sometimes safety has to be managed, not avoided. And although market forces put pressure on shipowners, we ought not forget who bares the true burden when the decision to set sail into a storm is made – sailors. They know the oceans are lonely and perilous, but they still muster the courage to say farewell to their families and work in the most challenging environment known to man.
Before El Faro entered the storm, Danielle Randolph, a deck officer aboard the containership, sat down on the ship's communal desktop and wrote an email to her mother. Despite the ship's course into almost certain danger, she did not lament or try to cause alarm. It was another day at sea. Outside, the winds were picking up and the waves were growing larger. "There is a hurricane out here and we're heading straight into it," she wrote.
All we can do is hope they made it safely to the other side.
[1] "Men of strange speech" from Homer, Book 1.178 in The Odyssey with an English Translation by A.T. Murray, PH. D. in two Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press: London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1919
[2] Rose George, Ninety Percent of Everything (New York: Metropolitan Books, 2013).
On Midrats 13 Sept 15 – Episode 297: "The Outlaw Ocean with Ian Urbina"
By Mark Tempest
Stowaways, poaching, piracy, smuggling, and murder – the global commons of the open ocean is as wild of a place as it is vast.
Using as a baseline his series on lawlessness on the high seas in the New York Times, The Outlaw Ocean, our guest for the full hour to discuss the anarchy of crime and violence on the high seas in the 21st Century will be Ian Ubina.
Ian is a reporter for The New York Times, based in the paper's Washington bureau. He has degrees in history from Georgetown University and the University of Chicago, and his writings, which range from domestic and foreign policy to commentary on everyday life, have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, Harper's, and elsewhere.
Join us live if you can or pick the show up for later listening by clicking here or (also for later listening) by visiting our iTunes page
Awake at the Helm
By LCDR Katie Jacobson
Let's face it – we've all had to make hard decisions under the pressures of fatigue and stress. But, is that what Navy sailors do on a daily basis just to survive, even in times of peace? Research has shown time and time again that sleep deprivation can have the effects akin to being intoxicated. While there have been numerous studies that alert naval leaders to the dangers of sleep deprivation, I would be hard pressed to name one sea command that has actually done something to address this issue. Until now.
Having just completed my department head tours on a Pacific-based destroyer whose Captain took crew sleep seriously, I can say that sufficient sleep is possible – even on deployment – and that the results are astounding! The "sleep initiative" takes on the human factors side of Operational Risk Management (ORM) to create a more holistic approach to minimizing chances of a mishap. While deployed on a seven month journey to the western Pacific, the basic schedule went like this:
0700: Reveille
0700-1900: (12 hour work day)
1900: Quiet Hours (no 1MC usage)
The majority of my crew already enjoyed four section static watches (3 hours on, 9 hours off) to allow for a normal circadian rhythm and predicable watch routine. The work day hours were adjusted accordingly within the 07000-1900 window to afford everyone the opportunity to rest for eight hours. Some of those eight hours might have been spent watching tv, reading a book, or relaxing… but the idea was to give sailors a chance to unwind and take care of their personal needs. The decrease in apparent work hours did not translate to less work being accomplished. In fact, not only did we increase efficiency, but we increased morale and decreased operational risk.
Our underway schedule didn't always afford sailors the perfect eight hours, but it was the best attempt I've seen to date. Our sailors LOVED the later reveille time and a full 12 hours of no 1MC announcements. Sailors were happier, more resilient, alert, and well-balanced. Ultimately, the ship was safer and more combat ready being led by sailors whose minds were sharp.
No one would give their car keys to a friend who wasn't sober. So why is it acceptable practice to routinely allow our shipmates the license to operate a billion-plus dollar warship while fatigued? I make the following recommendations to all at-sea commanders:
- Implement a ship-specific human factors initiative to address the physical, emotional, and mental well-being of your sailors as it relates to ORM.
- Limit meetings, evolutions, and 1MC announcements to fit within a 12 hour work day.
- Change the cultural mindset that sleep deprivation is a "SWO reality." It's simply not true.
Stay awake at the helm – our survival as a surface community depends on it.
Tags: risk management, sleep, stress
Yours, Mine, and Moscow's: Breaking Down Russia's Latest Arctic Claims
By Sally DeBoer
Good Sunday morning of Women in Writing Week! This article originally appeared at CIMSEC. It is cross-posted here with the author's permission.
On August 4th, the Russian Federation's Foreign Ministry reported that it had resubmitted its claim to a vast swath (more than 1.2 million square kilometers, including the North Pole) of the rapidly changing and potentially lucrative Arctic to the United Nations. In 2002, Russia put forth a similar claim, but it was rejected based on lack of sufficient support. This latest petition, however, is supported by "ample scientific data collected in years of arctic research," according to Moscow. Russia's latest submission for the United Nation's Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf's (CLCS) consideration coincides with increased Russian activity in the High North, both of a military and economic nature. Recent years have seen Russia re-open a Soviet-era military base in the remote Novosibirsk Islands (2013), with intentions to restore a collocated airfield as well as emergency services and scientific facilities. According to a 2015 statement by Russian Deputy PM Dmitry Rogozin, the curiously named Academic Lomonsov, a floating nuclear power plant built to provide sustained operating power to Arctic drilling platforms and refineries, will be operational by 2016. Though surely the most prolific in terms of drilling and military activity, Russia is far from the only Arctic actor staking their claim beyond traditional EEZs in the High North. Given the increased activity, overlapping claims, and dynamic nature of Arctic environment as a whole, Russia's latest claim has tremendous implications, whether or not the United Nations CLCS provides a recommendation in favor of Moscow's assertions.
The Claim:
Russia's August 2015 claim encompasses an area of more than 463,000 square miles of Arctic sea shelf extending more than 350 nautical miles from the shore. If recognized, the claim would afford Russia control over and exclusive rights to the economic resources of part of the Arctic Ocean's so-called "Donut Hole." As the New
York Times' Andrew Kramer explains, "the Donut Hole is a Texas sized area of international waters encircled by the existing economic-zone boundaries of shoreline countries." As such, the donut hole is presently considered part of the global commons. Moscow's claim is also inclusive of the North Pole and the potentially lucrative Northern Sea Route (or Northeast Passage), which provides an increasingly viable shipping artery between Europe and East Asia. With an estimated thirteen percent of the world's undiscovered oil and thirty percent of its undiscovered natural gas, the Arctic's value to Russia goes well beyond strategic advantage and shipping lanes. Recognition by the CLCS of Russia's claim (or any claim, for that matter) would shift the tone of activity in the Arctic from generally cooperative to increasingly competitive, as well as impinge on the larger idea of a free and indisputable global common.
The Law:
As most readers likely already know, the United Nations' Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) allows claimants 12nm of territorial seas measured from baselines that normally coincide with low-water coastlines and an exclusive economic zone (EEZ)
extending to 200 nautical miles (inclusive of the territorial sea). Exploitation of the seabed and resources beyond 200nm requires the party to appeal to the International Seabed Authority unless that state can prove that such resources lie within its continental shelf. Marc Sontag and Felix Luth of The Global Journal explain that "under the law, the continental shelf is a maritime area consisting of the seabed and its subsoil attributable to an individual coastal state as a natural prolongation of its land and territory which can, exceptionally, extend a states right to exploitation beyond the 200 nautical miles of its EEZ." Such exception requires an appeal to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), a panel of experts and scientists that consider claims and supporting data. Essentially, the burden is on Russia to provide sufficient scientific evidence that its continental shelf (and thus its EEZ) extends underneath the Arctic. In any case, as per UNCLOS Article 76(5), such a continental shelf cannot exceed 350 nm from the established baseline. Russia's latest claim is well beyond this limit; the Federation has stated that the 350 nm limit does not apply to this case because the seabed and its resources are a "natural components of the continent," no matter their distance from the shore.
The CLCS will present its findings in the form of recommendations, which are not legally binding to the country seeking the appeal. Though Russia has stated it expects a result by the fall, the commission is not scheduled to convene until Feburary or March of 2016 and, as such, there will be a significant waiting period before any recommendation will be made.
Rival Claimants:
Russia is far from the only Arctic actor making claims beyond the 200 nautical mile EEZ. Denmark, for instance, jointly submitted a claim with the government of Greenland expressing ownership over nearly 900,000 square kilometers of the Arctic (including the North Pole) based on the connection between Greenland's continental shelf and the Lomonosov Ridge, which spans nearly the entire diameter of the donut hole. This claim clearly overlaps Russia's latest submission, which is also based on the claim that the ridge represents an extension of Russia's continental shelf. Though there is no dispute on the ownership of the ridge, both Russia and Denmark claim the North Pole. Both nations have recently expressed a desire to work cooperatively on a resolution, though a Russian Foreign ministry statement did estimate a solution could take up to 10-15 years. Also of note: this has note always been Russia's tune on the matter (See here and here).
Similarly, Canada is expected to make a bid to extend its Arctic territory. Notably, Canada claims sovereignty over the Northwest Passage, a shipping route connecting the Davis Strait and Baffin Bay based on historical precedent and its orientation to baselines drawn around the Arctic Archipelago. The U.S. maintains that the Northwest Passage should be an international strait. Though they have yet to submit a formal claim to the UN's CLCS, one has reportedly been in preparation since 2013. According to reports, Canada delayed a last-minute claim at the behest of PM Stephen Harper, who insisted the claim include the North Pole. If this holds true, Canada's claim will likely overlap both Russia and Denmark's submissions to the CLCS. If the CLCS were to recognize the legitimacy of two or more states' overlapping claims, the actors have the option to bilaterally or multilaterally resolve the issue to their satisfaction; developing such a resolution is beyond the scope of the commission.
Likely, Russia's submission to the United Nations is part of a larger campaign by Moscow to reassert and re-establish its influence in the international order by virtue of its status Arctic influence. Regardless of approval or rejection by the UN, Russia's expansive claim highlights Moscow's very serious intention to control and exploit the Arctic. As the Christian Science Monitor's Denise Ajiri explains, "a win would mean access to sought after resources, but the petition itself underscores Russia's broader interest in solidifying its footing on the world stage." With much of Western Europe reliant on Russian oil and natural gas, the Arctic and its resources represent an opportunity for the Kremlin to boost their position in the international order and develop a source of sustained and significant income. Russia may be acting within the letter of the law on the issue of their claim at this time, but it's hard to separate that compliance from the Federation's significant investment in the militarization of the Arctic, frequent patrols along the coastline of Arctic neighbors, and expenditure on the economic exploitation of the High North. For now, the donut hole remains part of the global commons and therefore free from direct exploitation or claim of sovereignty. The burden of proof on any one state to claim an extension of their continental shelf is truly enormous, but as experts and lawyers at the CLCS pore over these claims, receding Arctic ice combined with economic and strategic interests of the claimants will likely increase the claimants' sense of urgency.
Tags: Arctic, NATO, Russia
Pearls, Lily Pads, and Presence
By CDRSalamander
Alternative title: The News of the Neo-Isolationist Superpower Has Been Greatly Exaggerated
If as Americans we have trouble figuring out from "Lead-From-Behind" to Stryker road rallies, Aegis Ashore, and Abrams to the Baltics what direction we are going concerning international involvement, imagine the confusion we are creating in the halls of our competitors.
Nice PSYOPS plan – intentional or not.
No one can deny that in many areas we have signaled a withdraw under fire in the last six years or so. From the premature exit from Iraq, to the great decoupling in Afghanistan, that gets the headlines. From the Maghreb to the Levant, we also had experienced the strange experiment of "Lead-From-Behind" a concept as disconnected as its results.
There was also the long goodbye from Europe that began with the end of the Cold War, and until the Russians started playing in their near abroad, was drip-by-remaining-drip continuing apace.
2015 put that in the dustbin of history.
In the last year, we have returned to Iraq and Europe. Indeed, we have expanded in critical areas in some subtle but important ways, especially for the maritime services. These recent moves tie in closely with larger programmatic decisions we need to make now.
I want to pick two specific examples of where we are starting to move back in to the world and how these moves should shape our debate. They are subtle, and in many ways echo some of the broader concepts outlined by Jerry Hendrix's "Influence Squadrons." Low footprint, modest cost, high flexibility, high return – scalable impact.
Let's start with the Pacific Pivot first.
Darwin, Australia; never will be a hard-fill set of orders. Show the flag, build partnerships, and presence in a primary SLOC that, to no surprise, has the most critical choke point in China's maritime silk road within … err … range;
"My priority right now would be, we've got over a thousand Marines in Australia; I would like them to have routine access right now to a platform that they can use to conduct engagement in the area," he continued. "But it isn't just about one ship and it's just not about one location; it's about dealing with a logistics challenge, a training challenge, a warfighting challenge in the Pacific with a shortfall of platforms."
Ideally, in the future PACOM would have two ARGs deployed throughout the theater instead of today's one-ARG presence. But Dunford said the Marines have to handle today's problems with today's resources, so the Marines are looking into a variety of non-amphibious platforms that could carry Marines around the Pacific and elsewhere in the world.
OK, there is your Pacific Pivot, but what is going on in Europe?
U.S. and Spanish officials yesterday signed an amendment to the nations' defense agreement that will change the deployment of the U.S. crisis response force at Moron Air Base from temporary to permanent, defense officials said today.
In the State Department's Treaty Room, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Spanish Deputy Foreign Minister Ignacio Ybanez signed the Third Protocol of Amendment to the U.S.-Spanish Agreement for Defense and Cooperation.
The amendment, when the Spanish parliament approves it, will make permanent the temporary deployment of the Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force for Crisis Response at Moron Air Base.
Nice bit of kit for a variety of uses. Knowing how hard the Army has tried since 1919 to keep Marines out of continental Europe – well played;
SPMAGTF-CR-AF is a rotational contingent of approximately 800 Marines, sailors and support elements sourced from a variety of Marine Corps units to include II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C. Its organic assets include 12 MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, four KC-130J Hercules aerial refueling tankers, one UC-35, a logistics and sustainment element, and a reinforced company of infantry Marines.
How do we hedge expanding a footprint while capabilities shrink? Start by thinking.
Our traditional amphibious ship shortfall is well known, but with the budgetary pressures and need to recapitalize our SSBN force through the Terrible 20s, there simply is not enough money to have it all. Knowing that – what can we do?
There are other areas we can look for capability relief, and the last month has seen good ideas addressing both.
First, though few in number, our partner nations have usable ships;
Where some nations are game to contribute at sea, but they may not be game to go ashore (like the Canadians and British at Iwo Jima) – so why not use what they have available?
Among the concepts the Marines are trying out now is putting U.S. Marine Corps units onto NATO allies' ships. Allies including Spain and Italy already host SPMAGTF units on the ground, and "the Allied Maritime Basing Initiative is designed to cover gaps in available U.S. amphibious ships by leveraging our European allies' ships, just as we leverage our allies' land bases," U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe & Africa spokesman Capt. Richard Ulsh told USNI News.
"Ideally, we would partner with our Navy brethren to provide a year-round, day and night crisis response force. However, with more requirements world-wide than available U.S. Navy amphibious ships, the Marine Corps has had to adopt a land-based deployment model from allied countries such as Spain, Italy, and Romania," he said. Having these units land-based, however, means they are limited to operating in a hub-and-spoke model and deploying only as far as their MV-22 Osprey and KC-130J tanker combination will take them.
Operating from a ship not only offers a mobile home base, but "basing at sea offers allies and international partners a visible deterrent when a warship – be it American, British, Italian, Spanish, or French – with U.S. Marines embarked aboard is sitting off the coast. In any language, such a sight means it is best to not cause trouble here," Ulsh added.
Marines will first head to sea on an Italian ship this fall, followed by a British amphib and eventually French, Spanish and Dutch ships, the Marine Corps Times reported.
Also, not just JHSV, but other USNS are there for the pondering. What kind of USNS might be useful?
We can look back;
MSC's two aviation logistics ships — S.S. Wright and S.S. Curtiss. Six hundred-and-two feet long, displacing 24,000 tons fully loaded, the twin loggies each boasts a large helicopter landing pad, multiple cranes and a full-length cargo hold opening onto ramps on its sides and stern. With a crew of just 41, each of the vessels can accommodate more than 360 passengers.
While less tough than dedicated amphibs and totally lacking defensive weaponry, under the right circumstances the aviation logistics ships could embark potentially hundreds of Marines and their vehicles plus thousands of tons of supplies. Joining other specialized ships, the loggies could help send the Leathernecks ashore to invade an enemy, defend an ally or help out following a natural disaster.
… and now;
The Navy accepted delivery of the first Afloat Forward Staging Base, USNS Lewis B. Puller(MLP-3/AFSB-1), two weeks ago, and though the ship was built to support mine countermeasures efforts, the Marines have been eyeing the new platform for operations in the Gulf of Guinea in Western Africa. Currently, the closest presence the Marines have to the Gulf is a Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force (SPMAGTF) operating out of Spain.
"The combatant commander from AFRICOM and the combatant commander from EUCOM have already written a letter to the secretary of defense outlining their requirement for an alternative platform" to support theater security cooperation, embassy evacuations, counter-piracy missions and more, Dunford said. "They recognize that while a Special Purpose MAGTF provides a great capability, and while the V-22 does mitigate" the great distance between Spain and southern parts of Africa, having Marines on American ships allows more freedom to operate as needed and to sustain the force from the sea without becoming dependent on partners.
That is just what the Navy-Marine Corp team is doing. Our sister services are busy too.
So much for our inevitable retreat. What next? Well, step one might be to reactivate Maritime Prepositioning Squadron One we decommissioned in 2012.
World changes; change with it.
Tags: msc, Spain, USNS
Midrats on 31 May 2015 at 5pm EDT U..S. is Episode 282: Summer Kick-off Free For All in which we discuss the sea services and other matters in 2015 so far and do a little prognostication about the future. Listeners who may actually know about such things are invited to call in or join us in the chat room. Come on along, it's just for fun and to educate the hosts.
At the time of this post, the actual show page was not up, but if you click on the link here before show time, it should be there. UPDATE: Link to actual show page is here.
As always, if you can't listen live, all our shows are available in the Midrats archives here or on iTunes here.
"Never let a serious crisis go to waste.
And what I mean by that is it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before."
Rahm Emanuel
We are living in a time of crisis. From the ongoing conflict in Iraq to the lingering threat of a Greek bond default, the American-led global order is confronted daily with multiple threats to its stability. These threats are occurring at a time when the resources required to manage these challenges are stretched increasingly thin. The US methodology for dealing with geopolitical crises remains largely unchanged since the end of World War II – scramble the diplomats, rally our allies, convene the UN Security Council, and reposition the aircraft carriers. Rarely have policymakers actually resolved the crisis. Rather, they work to restore the status quo ante crisis, or at least avoid the worst possible outcome.
There is, however, an equally valid alternative approach to managing the periodic occurrence of systemically destabilizing events, an approach that has been utilized successfully by other countries, if not by the United States. In the above statement Mr. Emmanuel was, consciously or not, paraphrasing a piece of popular Chinese wisdom; when written in Chinese, the word 'crisis' is composed of two characters. One represents danger and the other represents opportunity.
The Chinese have had ample opportunities to operationally deploy the "crisis-as-an-opportunity" philosophy since their reintegration into the global system in the early 1980s. Several crises have threatened China's unique system of one-party rule; notably the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations and the 1997 Asian financial crisis. In both cases, the Chinese Communist Party was able to adjust, if not necessarily reform, the institutional responses of its parent state. In order to ward off the threats to stability, it leveraged the conditions created by the crisis to the advantage of the ruling Communist Party.
But nowhere has this quintessentially Chinese view been on display more than in the reconstitution of the Chinese Coast Guard during the Senkaku Islands dispute. The Chinese were skillfully able to leverage the dispute to improve inter-service coordination, refine their operating doctrines, and energize the bureaucracy of the Chinese maritime services to make critical reforms. This piece will not examine the broader geopolitical context of the current dispute, nor will it attempt to guess when or how the dispute, which began to flare up in September 2012, will end. Rather, the focus will be solely on how China's maritime services have not only benefited from constant, low-level military operations other than war from a training and funding perspective, but also how the coast guard agencies fundamentally restructured themselves and become a more potent paramilitary force.
Eliminating Duplication of Effort
Prior to July 2013, the Chinese 'coast guard' was an amalgamation of six different agencies, subordinate to five different ministries, all ultimately operating under the aegis of the State Council, the all-powerful Chinese Interior Ministry headed by the nation's Premier. These agencies were guided by notionally separate but often overlapping law enforcement functions. For example, China's Fisheries Law Enforcement Command (FLEC) was established in May 2000 by the Agricultural Ministry to enforce China's fishing laws, to coordinate fishery disputes with foreign nations, and to cope with major fishery contingencies both in rivers and lakes inside China as well as in China's exclusive economic zone (EEZ). How did the FLEC's mission differ from that of the China Maritime Surveillance (CMS) agency? The CMS was responsible for "patrol and surveillance work in sea areas and coastal areas under China's jurisdiction" as well as preventing illegal acts such as violations of China's marine rights and the damaging of the sea environment and maritime resources. As the Senkakus crisis (a territorial dispute with a fishing dimension) unfolded in 2012, both the FLEC and CMS deployed their respective flotillas to uphold their missions.
These were not small duplications of effort. Both of these agencies were capable of deploying huge materiel and personnel resources – estimates of the vessels in their inventories range into the several hundreds. Each agency had tens of thousands of personnel. These redundancies were further mirrored in the operation of the four other maritime law enforcement agencies –the Maritime Safety Administration, Rescue and Salvage Bureau, the Chinese Coast Guard (more on this agency later) and the Anti-Smuggling Bureau. Clearly, a lack of resources to manage disputes was not China's problem.
Even before the acute phase of the Senkakus crisis began in late 2012, Chinese maritime experts noted that mission duplication and bureaucratic infighting were eroding operational effectiveness. In a piece written for the Guangdong Province Party news organ in May 2012, reporters Fang Kecheng, Zeng Huiping and Zhai Man cited the longstanding need for "a leader" among China's competing coast guard-like agencies. They went on to recommend a "ministry of the ocean" be created to coordinate China's maritime law enforcement policies and responses to foreign infringement of its sovereignty along its littoral regions. Though the authors acknowledge that the lack of administrative leadership reaches back to at least the 1980s, today "weak maritime law-enforcement is responsible for the current situation: Islands and reefs are encroached upon; resources are ransacked; and national dignity is infringed upon (Kecheng et al)." The article goes on to cite the need for force that can go toe to toe with the "Japan Coast Guard" which is held up repeatedly as a model of superior administrative practices and material superiority.
As the Senkakus crisis dragged on into 2013 it became clear that among all the competing coast guard agencies that China Maritime Surveillance (CMS) was the organization best equipped to assert China's sovereignty in the region. For starters, the CMS has boundary enforcement as one of its core missions. Given the degree to which all coast guard vessels had been required to coordinate closely with the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) since the start of the crisis, the ascendancy of the CMS is perhaps less than surprising. When formally established in the 1960s, the CMS was headed by the deputy commander of the PLAN South Sea Fleet and continued to be administered by the PLAN until its 1981 transfer to the State Council. This history of operating with traditional naval units likely helped the CMS distinguish itself from the also-rans during the bureaucratic turf battles that have undoubtedly raged quietly since the start of the crisis.
In July 2013, the CMS's position as China's premier paramilitary coast guard force became official and the organization was rechristened as the Chinese Coast Guard, superseding the organization which had previously held that name. The new Chinese Coast Guard, under the aegis of the State Oceanographic Administration (SOA), was given the lead role in drafting and upholding the law enforcement regulations and coordinating the efforts of all 'coast guard' forces. The Chinese state press began to immediately trumpet the importance of this consolidation and praise the efforts of the new Coast Guard units to "sternly declare the Chinese government's stance on its sovereignty over the Diaoyu (Senkaku) Islands."
During the acute phase of the Senkakus crisis, new Chinese maritime operating patterns were observed and commented on by Japanese and Chinese press. Though the crisis was largely a duel between coastal patrol forces, the Chinese and Japanese navies also played a critical role. Destroyers and frigates of the PLAN and Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) conducted overwatch of the coast guard skirmishes. Typically, the PLAN and JMSDF operated out of visual range of the Senkakus themselves, at approximately 40-70 nautical miles from the islands, monitoring the tactical situation via long range sensors. Several times a month from 2012-13, Chinese Coast Guard ships entered into the territorial waters of the Japanese-administered islands waters. The Japanese Coast Guard then sortied and attempted to intercept the Chinese vessels.
These incursions occurred at the time and location of China's choosing, forcing the Japanese to assume a permanently defensive posture. During these incursions, the PLAN and JMSDF ships also drew closer to the Senkakus, 'backing up' their smaller compatriots – the nautical equivalent of relying on your bigger cousin to back you up in a bar fight. These tactics required both Coast Guards to coordinate closely with their respective navies. Both nations' Coast Guard and Navy ships had to share tactical information and intelligence on enemy units and force distribution. This allowed China's Coast Guard and its Navy to develop and modify joint tactics and doctrine in a simulated combat environment without risking sinking – vital training for a force seeking to increase its professionalism and effectiveness.
China was able to use the Senkakus crisis as an impetus for much needed administrative reforms while simultaneously improving joint operability between its coast guard force and the PLAN. The CMS ultimately overshadowed its competition and assumed the mantle of the Chinese Coast Guard. The leaders of the former CMS certainly have much to celebrate, but in the final analysis, it is the Chinese government that is the real winner. With a consolidated, streamlined and increasingly professional Coast Guard, the Chinese are more easily able to challenge Japanese sovereignty of the Senkakus. China likely transferred these lessons learned to other areas where it feels its maritime sovereignty is being threatened, including the South China Sea.
On Midrats 25 January 15 – Episode 264: "The American Military in WWI"
By Mark Tempest
Well inside an officer's career arch, we saw the American Navy move from the Great White Fleet, The Spanish American War to the age of the Dreadnought. Our Army, from ad-hoc volunteer units to a professional army going head-to-head with the finest professional army on the planet.
How did our military and our Navy build up to WWI, and how did that experience inform the evolution of our national defense infrastructure?
Our guest for the full hour will be Dr. John T. Kuehn , the General William Stofft Chair for Historical Research at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College CGSC). He retired from the U.S. Navy 2004 at the rank of commander after 23 years of service as a naval flight officer flying both land-based and carrier-based aircraft. He has taught a variety of subjects, including military history, at CGSC since 2000. He authored Agents of Innovation (2008), A Military History of Japan: From the Age of the Samurai to the 21st Century (2014), and co-authored Eyewitness Pacific Theater (2008) with D.M. Giangreco as well as numerous articles and editorials and was awarded a Moncado Prize from the Society for Military History in 2011. His latest book, due out from Praeger just in time for the 200th Anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo is Napoleonic Warfare: The Operational Art of the Great Campaigns.
Join us live or pick the show up later by clicking here. Or for later listening you can find us at iTunes here
This Sunday join us for our 5th Anniversary Show. No guests, no agendas – just us talking about what 2014 had to teach us, and looking towards what 2015 may have in store for everyone in the national security arena. This is a great time if you ever wanted to call in to ask either one of us a question on a topic you wish we would address … or just to say "hi." Just be warned, we might ask you a question back. It's what we do.
Join us live or pick the show up later by clicking here or find us later on iTunes.
5pm EST. 4 Jan 14.
Join Us for the Midrats' 250th! 19 October 14 at 5pm (EDT)
By Mark Tempest
Believe it or not, this week is our 250th Episode of Midrats.
In celebration, we're clearing the intellectual table, going to open the mic and see where it takes us.
From Kobane, to Coastal Defense, to Ebola and everything in between and sideways that's been in the national security news as of late, plus whatever else breaks above the ambient noise – we'll be covering it.
As with all Midrats Free For Alls, we are also opening the phone lines for our regular listeners who want to throw a topic our way.
Come join us Sunday as we try to figure out how we got to 250.
Join us live (and join in) or pick the show up later to by clicking here. Don't forget that Midrats is back on iTunes, too, for later listening – which you can reach here.


text:
Click a topic below for an index of articles:New Material Home
Click a topic below for an index of articles:
New Material
Alternative Treatments
Financial or Socio-Economic Issues
Health Insurance
Institutional Issues
International Reports
Legal Concerns
Math Models or Methods to Predict Trends
Medical Issues
Occupational Concerns
Religion and infectious diseases
State Governments
Stigma or Discrimination Issues
If you would like to submit an article to this website, email us your paper to firstname.lastname@example.com
"The only thing necessary for these diseases to the triumph is for good people and governments to do nothing."
I'm raising money for HELP DEB WALK AGAIN. Click to Donate
AIDS: Stigmatize or Show Mercy?
By Dr. Nadia El-Awady IslamOnline's Health & Science Editor
40,000,000 people are living with HIV/AIDS today, of which 3,000,000 are children under the age of 15. A particularly troubling consequence of the deadly disease is the number of orphaned children that has resulted. Today, more than 13 million children, most of who live in sub-Saharan Africa, have lost one or both parents to AIDS. By the year 2010, it is estimated that this number will jump to more than 25 million. In a world that harvests more than 40,000 refugees as a result of wars, civil strife, floods, earthquakes and destitution, AIDS also forms a formidable enemy. Refugee camps, in which 75% of inhabitants are women and children, form a rich breeding ground for the disease as a result of sexual harassment, rape, increased rates of prostitution and promiscuity amongst children, increased rates of blood transfusion, and as a result of the fact that health care workers give priority to what they feel to be more pending issues.
The numbers are staggering. The numbers are only estimates. Under reporting is the norm in too many countries. AIDS patients in many parts of the world are too scared to come forward with their disease and ask for treatment and health care for fear of stigmatization and discrimination by their families and societies. In many parts of the world, these patients are right to show such feelings of apprehension. People coming forward with their disease have faced stoning to death by their neighbors, being shunned by their friends and families, unemployment as a direct result of their illness, and failure to be properly treated by health care workers.
World AIDS Day 2002, "Live and Let Live"
World AIDS Day this year addresses this issue of stigmatization and discrimination against AIDS patients. I must admit, trying to decide on how to approach this topic, I myself feared stigmatization from the West on one hand, and from my own people on the other, if I wasn't very careful in how I addressed the issue. The more deeply I researched however, the more convinced I became that there is a very large area of common ground that both parties accept and that both parties must cooperate in to attempt to hinder the progress of a disease that has already reached epidemic proportions.
Illness as Perceived by Muslims
It is true and unopen to debate amongst Muslims that Allah the Almighty has on occasion punished various tribes of people for their wrongful behavior. "So We sent (plagues) on them: Wholesale Death, Locusts, Lice, Frogs, and Blood: Signs openly self-explained: but they were steeped in arrogance, - a people given to sin." (Al-A'raaf: 133)
Aisha (May Allah be pleased with her) reported: I asked the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) about pestilence and he said, "It is a punishment which Allah sends upon whomsoever He wills, but Allah has made it as a mercy to the believers. Anyone who remains in a town which is plagued with pestilence maintaining patience expecting the reward from Allah, and knowing that nothing will befall him other than what Allah has foreordained for him, he would receive a reward of Shaheed (martyr)." [Al-Bukhari].
It is also true, that Muslims see illness as a means of redemption from sins -no matter what those sins may be- and as a means of purification of the soul.
Abu Said and Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with them) reported that the Prophet (PBUH) said: "Never a believer is stricken with a discomfort, an illness, an anxiety, a grief or mental worry or even the pricking of a thorn but Allah will expiate his sins on account of his patience." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
Muslims are also taught not to judge others. "But if they repent and perform As-Salat (Iqamat-As-Salat), and give Zakat, then leave their way free. Verily, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.'' (9:5)
It is important for Muslims to keep all this in mind when considering how to manage AIDS patients.
AIDS Transmission
AIDS is transmitted from one person to another in very specific ways.
· Sexual intercourse (vaginal, anal and oral) or through contact with infected blood, semen, or cervical and vaginal fluids. This is the most frequent mode of transmission of HIV world wide, and can be transmitted from any infected person to his or her sexual partner (man to woman, woman to man, man to man and, but less likely, woman to woman).
· Blood transfusion or transfusion of blood products (e.g. obtained from donor blood infected by HIV).
· Injecting equipment such as needles or syringes, or skin-piercing equipment, contaminated with HIV.
· Mother to infant transmission of HIV/AIDS can occur during pregnancy, labor, and delivery or as a result of breast-feeding.
These modes of transmission place certain groups of people at a higher risk of contracting the disease. These groups include sex workers, homosexuals and drug abusers, all of which are considered immoral and sinful in Islam, and most other religions.
The Harm in Stigmatization and Discrimination
The fact remains, however, that stigmatizing an AIDS patient as being sinful or deserving punishment serves little purpose. Besides the fact that many AIDS patients contracted the disease without being sinful, stigmatizing AIDS patients actually further promotes the spread of the disease. Stigma generally makes the disease more difficult to discuss and harder to deal with. It can spread infection through misunderstanding. It can make people hide their HIV status amidst fear of rejection from loved ones. Due to discrimination, those infected may be denied treatment by health care services, or may have difficulty getting jobs or housing.
In some African countries, only a small number of people have declared their status - although as many as a quarter of adults are infected.
In many countries in Asia, most people with HIV/AIDS get very little or no treatment and only a small handful are on anti-retroviral therapy (ART). For example, in China, it has been estimated that less than 1% receive treatment and less than 100 people are on ART, according to the National AIDS Center.
In Cambodia, access to care is limited, particularly in rural areas. Some international organizations offer care and are giving ART to some 300 people. ART is costly and difficult to administer. Many drugs for opportunistic infections, on the other hand, are affordable, effective and simple to administer. They can lengthen life and ease pain and suffering considerably. Yet many countries do not even offer such drugs. As a result, many people suffer unnecessarily.
HIV testing is another area where discrimination is evident. Voluntary HIV tests and counseling is often limited, not well known, inaccessible or only in urban areas. People may also be deterred from getting tested because of laws that restrict an individual's confidentiality.
Blaming certain groups also allows societies to avoid the responsibility of dealing with the epidemic. This denial can be dangerous. Governments may hide cases, fail to gather accurate data or not care for people with HIV/AIDS. Officials may use figures of detected cases rather than estimated cases to downplay the magnitude of the epidemic in their country. People at risk may also be in denial. They may assume a false sense of security by believing only "outsiders" or marginalized groups can become infected.
As Muslims, we are fortunate to have in our culture and way of life the basic essential elements of an effective solution. Decency, modesty and virtuous sexual morality are vital factors in controlling the virus causing the AIDS epidemic and its spread. Figures published by the World Health Organization on the spread of AIDS in the world show very clearly that Islamic values and traditions, although not fully adhered to or respected, represent a strong and effective means of prevention against the spread of the virus in Muslim countries. Rates of infection in Muslim countries are far lower than those in non-Muslim ones. Infection is also much lower amongst Muslims living in non-Muslim countries. This fact should not prevent us, however, from opening our eyes to see a problem that is growing amongst us.
An Eye-Opener
According to the World Health Organization's Global HIV Epidemic Report for the year 2002, 28.5 million people have AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. The Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe all have more than 1 million AIDS patients each, with South Africa alone standing at 5 million.
A total of 1,000,000 AIDS cases are present in East Asia and the Pacific with China holding a total of 850,000.
South and Southeast Asia are home to 5,600,000 AIDS patients with India at 3,970,000; Indonesia at 120,000; Malaysia at 42,000; Pakistan at 78,000; Thailand at 670,000 and Viet Nam at 130,000.
North Africa and the Middle East have approximately 500,000 AIDS cases with 8,000 in Egypt, 7,000 in Libya, 13,000 in Morocco, 450,000 in Sudan and 9,900 in Yemen.
The Right to Treatment and Compassion
As long ago as 1993, the Islamic Organization of Medical Sciences held the Seventh Islamic Medical Seminar in Kuwait in which more than 130 Islamic scholars, medical practitioners and scientists, representing more than 23 countries participated. One of its most important recommendations was that: "Regardless of how a person contracts AIDS, everyone has the same right to the necessary medical treatment, psychological support and health care. Once infected, patients must report the fact to their doctors to prevent the spread of infection to others. Doctors are under obligation to give the proper treatment, taking all measures to protect themselves and others against infection. Affected persons must be made fully aware of how best they can prevent the deterioration of their own health and protect others around them. No AIDS sufferer should have to endure any injustice, discrimination or humiliation as a result of his or her predicament."
World AIDS Day (December 1st) happens to come this year during the Muslim Holy Month of Ramadan. Let this day be one of mercy and compassion on our fellow human beings.
· AlBadri, M., 'The Aids Crisis - A Natural Product of Modernity's Sexual Revolution', Available from: http://www.islamset.com/bioethics/aids/index.html
· Islamset 6-8 December 1993, 'AIDS-Related Social Problems - An Islamic Perspective-Recommendations', Available from: http://www.islamset.com/bioethics/aids1/recomm.html
· Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS June 2002, 'Situation Analysis of Discrimination and Stigmatization Against People Living With HIV/AIDS in West and Central Africa', www.unaids.org/wac/2002/AnalysisDiscrimination.pdf
· UNAIDS 7-12 July 2002, 'The Report on the Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic "The Barcelona Report"', Available from: http://www.unaids.org/barcelona/presskit/report.html
· USAID/UNICEF/UNAIDS July 2002, 'Children on the Brink 2002', Available from: http://www.unaids.org/barcelona/presskit/childrenonthebrink.html
· World Health Organization, 'HIV Fact Sheet', Available from: http://www.who.int/hiv/abouthiv/fact_sheet_hiv.htm
· World Health Organization November 2002, 'Report on the Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic 2002', Available from: http://www.who.int/hiv/pub/epidemiology/pubepidemic2002/en/
· World Health Organization, 'Stigma and Discrimination: Live and Let Live', Available from: www.unaids.org/wac/2002/WADKIT_en.pdf
· WHO-EMRO, 'Refugees and AIDS', Available from: http://184.108.40.206/asd/AIDS&Refugees.pdf


text:
Career and Education Opportunities for Bank Tellers in Chula Vista, California
For those living in the Chula Vista, California area, there are many career and education opportunities for bank tellers. There are currently 68,300 working bank tellers in California; this should grow by 14% to about 77,700 working bank tellers in the state by 2016. This is better than the nation as a whole, where employment opportunities for bank tellers are expected to grow by about 6.2%. In general, bank tellers receive and pay out money.
A person working as a bank teller can expect to earn about $12 hourly or $25,520 annually on average in California and about $11 per hour or $23,610 annually on average in the U.S. as a whole. Incomes for bank tellers are not quite as good as in the overall category of Billing and Bookkeeping in California, and not quite as good as the overall Billing and Bookkeeping category nationally.
There are three schools within twenty-five miles of Chula Vista where you can study to be a bank teller, among sixty schools of higher education total in the Chula Vista area. The most common level of education for bank tellers is a high school diploma or GED. You can expect to spend only a short time training to become a bank teller if you already have a high school diploma.
CAREER DESCRIPTION: Bank Teller
In general, bank tellers receive and pay out money. They also keep records of money and negotiable instruments involved in a financial institution's various transactions.
Bank tellers cash checks and pay out money after verifying that signatures are correct, that written and numerical amounts agree, and that accounts have sufficient funds. They also receive checks and cash for deposit and check precision of deposit slips. Equally important, bank tellers have to count currency and checks received, by hand or using currency-counting machines, to ready them for deposit or shipment to branch banks or the Federal Reserve Bank. They are often called upon to balance currency and checks in cash drawers at ends of shifts, and calculate daily transactions using computers or adding machines. They are expected to examine checks for endorsements and to confirm other data such as dates, bank names, identification of the persons receiving payments and the legality of the documents. Finally, bank tellers identify transaction mistakes when debits and credits do not balance.
Every day, bank tellers are expected to be able to listen to and understand others in meetings. They need to understand what others are saying to them even in a noisy environment.
It is important for bank tellers to enter customers' transactions into computers to record transactions and issue computer-generated receipts. They are often called upon to arrange monies received in cash boxes and coin dispensers in line with denomination. They also carry out special services for customers. They are sometimes expected to sort and file deposit slips and checks. Somewhat less frequently, bank tellers are also expected to perform clerical tasks such as typing and microfilm photography.
They also have to be able to issue checks to bond owners in settlement of transactions and receive and count daily inventories of cash and travelers' checks. And finally, they sometimes have to arrange monies received in cash boxes and coin dispensers in line with denomination.
Like many other jobs, bank tellers must be thorough and dependable and have exceptional integrity.
Similar jobs with educational opportunities in Chula Vista include:
- Accounts Receivable Specialist. Locate and notify customers of delinquent accounts by mail, telephone, or personal visit to solicit payment. Duties include receiving payment and posting amount to customer's account; preparing statements to credit department if customer fails to respond; initiating repossession proceedings or service disconnection; keeping records of collection and status of accounts.
- Loan Inspector. Interview loan applicants to elicit information; investigate applicants' backgrounds and verify references; prepare loan request papers; and forward findings, reports, and documents to appraisal department. Review loan papers to ensure completeness, and complete transactions between loan establishment, borrowers, and sellers upon approval of loan.
- Secretary. Perform routine clerical and administrative functions such as drafting correspondence, scheduling appointments, organizing and maintaining paper and electronic files, or providing information to callers.
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Bank Teller Training
San Diego Miramar College - San Diego, CA
San Diego Miramar College, 10440 Black Mountain Rd, San Diego, CA 92126-2999. San Diego Miramar College is a large college located in San Diego, California. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 10,455 students. San Diego Miramar College has less than one year, associate's degree, and two to four year programs in Banking and Financial Support Services which graduated six, five, and zero students respectively in 2008.
Southwestern College - Chula Vista, CA
Southwestern College, 900 Otay Lakes Rd, Chula Vista, CA 91910-7299. Southwestern College is a large college located in Chula Vista, California. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 19,997 students. Southwestern College has less than one year, associate's degree, and two to four year programs in Banking and Financial Support Services which graduated five, six, and zero students respectively in 2008.
San Diego City College - San Diego, CA
San Diego City College, 1313 Park Boulevard, San Diego, CA 92101-4787. San Diego City College is a large college located in San Diego, California. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 17,372 students. San Diego City College has a less than one year program in Banking and Financial Support Services.
Certified Bank Teller: Applicable to financial services professionals who have completed the AIB Bank Teller Certificate and who function as bank tellers.
For more information, see the Institute of Certified Bankers website.
National Professional Certification in Sales: The Certification was designed to capture the core Sales duties for a broad range of entry-level through first-line supervisory positions across the sales and service industries.
For more information, see the National Retail Federation Foundation website.
LOCATION INFORMATION: Chula Vista, California
Chula Vista is located in San Diego County, California. It has a population of over 219,318, which has grown by 26.4% in the past ten years. The cost of living index in Chula Vista, 134, is far greater than the national average. New single-family homes in Chula Vista are valued at $226,700 on average, which is far less than the state average. In 2008, one hundred eleven new homes were built in Chula Vista, down from three hundred twelve the previous year.
The three big industries for women in Chula Vista are health care, educational services, and public administration. For men, it is construction, public administration, and accommodation and food services. The average commute to work is about 27 minutes. More than 22.2% of Chula Vista residents have a bachelor's degree, which is lower than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 7.2%, is lower than the state average.
The unemployment rate in Chula Vista is 12.3%, which is the same as California's average of 12.3%.
The percentage of Chula Vista residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 43.7%, is less than both the national and state average. Seventh Day Adventist Church, First Christian Church and First Church of Christ are some of the churches located in Chula Vista. The largest religious groups are the Catholic Church, the LDS (Mormon) Church and the Southern Baptist Convention.
Chula Vista is home to the Fenton Ranch and the Chula Vista Municipal Golf Course as well as Los Ninos Park and Library Park. Shopping centers in the area include Florence Shopping Center, Rio Sweetwater Plaza Shopping Center and Genesis Square Shopping Center. Visitors to Chula Vista can choose from Best Western Chula Vista Inn, Bay Cities Motel and Big 7 Motel for temporary stays in the area.