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Rachel M. Bray is a Canadian artist specialising in pencil, graphite powder and ink work. Here, she tells us more about herself and shares her portfolio.
How would you describe your work?
My drawings are informed by Asian art history and their themes are combined with my own cultural expression of French allegorical surrealism.
What are your favourite tools?
Today my favourite tools are pencils and the assorted custom brushes I use when drawing with graphite powder.
What techniques and approaches do you use most?
I most often use a combination of graphite powder and pencil for a level of dimension, play of light and vitality. I think graphite powder is an underused medium with potential that is greatly unexplored.
What has been your favourite piece you've created and why?
My favourite lately is a small quick drawing I did called 'Hound'. I'm growing increasingly focused on the potential of drawing to render heightened levels of living vibrancy, and this drawing is a small piece of that.
Where have you exhibited your work?
My latest show was at the CAJA group show this summer in LA. Earlier this year, I had the great privilege of lavishing two whole pages of Tiny Pencil magazine with my drawings.
Who are your biggest influences?
My earliest and strongest drawing influences were illustrations from archaeology, anthropology and biology textbooks. I'm always inspired by artists like Utagawa Kuniyoshi and Hiroshige. My imagination is sparked by artists like Tilo Baumgärtel and his surreal night scenes of quiet mystery and subtle violence.
What has inspired you most recently?
The great Tyrus Wong, Chinese-born American artist who is best known as the production illustrator for Disney's "Bambi" and chiefly responsible for its painterly quality. The way in which Tyrus Wong combines the aesthetics of traditional Chinese painting with modern western animation perfectly captures what I see as the great potential of cultural interplay in all forms of art.
What is your dream commission?
My dream commission is to never have to fulfil a commission.
Féin Mharú, 11 x 17, pencil, an allegory of suicide and its potentially detrimental effect on surrounding survivors.


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Let's TalkZapaday, Verrijn Stuartlaan 7, Rijswijk, Netherlands.
Email: email@example.com
Remote rural Peruvian regions with limited financial services can make use of a new electronic currency system.
According to Peru's Banking, Insurance and Pension Fund Administrative Agency (SBS), 66 percent of rural districts do not have access to banking systems and services. With this new electronic cash initiative, individuals can make and receive payments and deposits through mobile phones.
The Commission on Economics, Banking and Financial Intelligence has approved the validity of electronic cash as a method to provide financial social inclusion.
One of the initiative restrictions is the that the companies converting cash currency to electronic currency are not engaging in other activities such as loan provision.
These companies will be further required to comply with the regulations issued by the SBS for the prevention of money laundering and financial terrorism. The SBS has pledged to closely supervise the service provision of this initiative to ensure security and transparency for their users.
To promote the development of this project within the domestic market, any electronic money transaction taking place through the new mobile phone system shall be exempt from the General Sales Tax.

subset: commoncrawl


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Looks like Parkside Apartments is no longer available on Rent.com which means this information is likely out of date.
Parkside Apartment homes in Tempe, Arizona is Tempe's best kept secret! Our community is located in a quiet neighborhood near downtown Tempe and is close to everything you want! Our close proximity to major valley freeways, Arizona State University, Tempe Town Lake, and the famous Mill Avenue makes your lifestyle as easy as it can be. A gated community, large courtyard with mature landscaping, fruit trees, oasis style pool, and an award winning staff will make your experience with us unforgettable. Please call for an appointment today.
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Our minds, our bodies, our clothes - get it?
Page Tools
The first time I saw Polly Jean Harvey perform, at the Enmore Theatre in 2001, she appeared to enter some kind of trance, while straddling her guitar and singing about lust: "Lick my legs I'm on fire. Lick my legs of desire. I'll tie your legs, Keep you against my chest, No you're not rid of me. Lick my legs I'm on fire. Lick my legs of desire. Lick my legs I'm on fire. Lick my legs of desire." She sang these lines, about a woman ordering her lover to satisfy her - striking for their heat and intensity - over and over to a panting audience.
My male companion drooled. The mosh pit sweated and swooned. She was dressed in black, with a black scarf circling her throat, her dark hair lank and long. Since then I've seen her perform in both a slinky scarlet frock and black leather hotpants, and watched her strut through magazines in an awe-inspiring collection of micro minis and boots.
I kept thinking about that moment when I was waiting for a moody, fat-lipped PJ to come on stage again at the Enmore on Thursday night, in a city which had been awash with indignant discussion about how short a girl's skirt could be.
For those who missed it, the court case in the news this week was that of an 18-year-old who was suing her former school, Tara, for negligence after she went on a school excursion to Italy in 2001, when, she said, she was gang-raped.
She seems to have been treated extraordinarily shabbily, having been ordered to tell her parents that the sex was consensual, billed for the morning-after pill and taxi fares to the airport, and effectively expelled after being forced to sit her final exams in a room alone.
But what was also stunning was her cross-examination, when the NSW Bar Association president, Ian Harrison, SC, attempted to cast doubt on her credibility. In order to test her claim that she had been so traumatised by the rape that she was not comfortable socialising, he showed a series of photos of her sitting at a bar in a short skirt. Moving on to her statement that being raped had affected her self-esteem, he charged that "to sit on a bar stool ... with a skirt as short as that takes a lot of confidence". He asked, "You weren't embarrassed by the attention it might attract?"
Her perfectly plausible reply was: "It's not about confidence. It's about wanting to look like everyone else when I go out. On the outside I try and look like nothing has changed. No one knows what happened."
She was also videotaped drinking a beer at the Lansdowne Hotel at Broadway, between 6.30pm and 7.20pm, alone. The hussy! What will she do next, walk out her front door unaccompanied?
It appears that it's open slather for questioning in civil cases. But is there no way we can challenge questioning a teenager about being able to go to bars, knowing that this same teenager has harmed herself and claims she was pack-raped as a 15-year-old? What kind of culture condones that? Especially since the solicitor who was instructing Harrison, Ric Vass, a partner at McCabe Terrill, told journalists he believed the girl was raped. The case was settled out of court this week.
No wonder so few women take their rape cases to court. It's astonishing how readily the hoary idea that we are responsible for male behaviour emerges - as witnessed during the Bulldogs allegations.
Sexuality does not equate to sexual availability.
As Chokyi Nyingpo, from Blue Bay, wrote in a letter to the editor this week: "Why can't robbery victims be questioned in court the same way alleged rape victims are? I propose a new line of questioning: 'I put it to you that you invited the attacker to rob you by earning money, by carrying a handbag, by having a wallet."'
It was such a fascinating choice of words by Harrison - should women be embarrassed by the attention they attract? Are men? I haven't seen many blokes cringing in the corner of bars because women - possibly encouraged by a snug pair of pants - were making sexual advances.
It is quite bizarre to see such primitive public discussion about the length of women's skirts today, knowing women are negotiating much more complex dating and mating rites. It is probably partly why it remains empowering to see someone clever, angry and foxy like P.J. Harvey yell her desires, pain, lust and love so noisily on stage.
How long will it take, I wonder, for the idea to sink in that women who strut and display their sexuality are not necessarily seeking male (or female) approval or attention? That this may, perhaps, be who they are - and indeed that many may be immune to, or disdainful of, male reaction. That "f--- me" boots can also mean "f--- you"?
Polly Jean was wearing all white when she performed at the Enmore Theatre this week. A white bag with her initials stitched on it, a white skirt with a large photo of the muppet Animal stitched on it and white cowboy boots. Her hair shaggy, her lips pale. She growled about love, she moaned "Jesus save me" and screamed for a gun.
"I'm not like other girls," she cried. "You can't straighten my curls."


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a place for zinesters - writers and readers
I reprinted all the back issues of my zines, and finished making the zine section of my new website. I never want to look at a stapler or the photoshop scan window again again.
All available individually on my Etsy, or in money-saving mixpacks (including 20 zines for £10.
I also now have a mailing list for updates about when I have new things on Etsy, and for special offers
Views: 24


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For those in the know, Polish pottery can be a wonderful addition to any home. For those who may be new to this, or a casual fan of pottery, allow us to give you a little background and context with Polish pottery, especially what we offer at Ann Marie's.
Polish pottery is known for its strength and durability, as it is formed in a very intense fire and is created from opaque white clay, which combine to make the pottery durable and hard to crack or chip from normal use. The pottery is known by strong emphasis on white and royal or navy blue colors, and it is made mostly in the southwestern part of the country in a village known as Boleslawiec.
Boleslawiec pottery has dated back as far as the seventh century, but the modern pottery has been made since the 1600s, when the region was part of Germany. The area was turned over to Polish control in 1945 following the fall of Nazi Germany.
At Ann Marie's we carry the most vibrant patterns of Boleslawiec pottery, categorized into Artistic, Classic and DU patterns. We encourage you to check out our wonderful collection of fine Polish pottery and get a durable, long-lasting piece or practical art for your home. We believe you will be proud to own Boleslawiec pottery from Ann Marie's!
Ann Marie's 414 Oneida St, Minocqua, WI 54548 1.800.706.9993


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ED Magedson – Founder
Ripoff Report
the Apple Store at Country Club Plaza Kansas City, Mo4712 Broadway St Kansas City, Missouri USA
the Apple Store at Country Club Plaza Kansas City, Mo Refused to repair a MacBook Air computer that was under a valid Apple Care warrantee Kansas City Missouri
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The Apple Store of Country Club Plaza Kansas City refused to test and replace an airport card in a MacBook Air computer that was under an Apple Care warrantee for both service and hardware that I had purchased for $349.00 with the computer on 8/22/12.
My computer would not connect to WIFI. It was subsequently diagnosed by an Apple Care telephone technecian as needing a new airport card.
The Country Club Plaza Apple Store ordered the airport card and then made an appointment for me to come in for installation. At that time I told the clerk that the computer had been on a damp surface in the past and if it was found to have moisture damage, I would pay for the service and parts. I also explained that there was no external sign that it had gotten wet however and that it was working normally otherwise, including accessing the Internet through the modem.
I explained the same information to the technecian Matt at the appointment, ie possible moisture exposure for which I would be responsible and that the Apple Care telphone tech felt that installation of an airport card would solve the problem.
Matt opened the back of the computer and promply pointed out what he described as moisture damage. I did not question his diagnosis, although this moisture damage was too subtle for me to see. At that point he categorically stated that he would not have anything further to do with the computer, despite my willingness to pay for service and parts.
He refused to test it, replace the airport card that the store had obtained, or ship it to another store for repair. He also would not sell the airport card to me or to another store, stating that "we are not in the business to sell parts". He handed me the computer saying that my only option was to personally take it to another computer store, adding that he doubted that they could fix it.
Why did the Apple store procure an airport card for my computer and then call me in for an appointment requiring a 40 mile drive, only to dismiss me without any assistance?
Matt concluded that the computer was probably ruined without doing any testing despite the fact that it functioned normally except for WIFI access and that the Apple telephone tech concluded after testing that it only needed an airport card (which proved to be correct).
I subsequently called the store repeatedly to talk to the the store managers, but they refused to come to the phone.
Fortunately I evenually was able to contact customer Service at Apple Inc, explaining my experience with the Apple Store at Country Club Plaza in greater detail than above. Their service was outstanding in all respects.They promply arranged to have the airport card installed by a repair facility in Pennsylania which corrected the WIFI problem. The entire turn around time for the repair was under 48 hours!
This report was posted on Ripoff Report on 08/29/2013 05:34 PM and is a permanent record located here: http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/the-apple-store-at-country-club-plaza-kansas-city-mo/kansas-city-missouri-64112/the-apple-store-at-country-club-plaza-kansas-city-mo-refused-to-repair-a-macbook-air-com-1080313. The posting time indicated is Arizona local time. Arizona does not observe daylight savings so the post time may be Mountain or Pacific depending on the time of year.
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Duvall Residential Center Lobby Remodel - Dept of Correction
|Valuation: $194,700
|Owner Type: Public
|Bid Ends: Oct 26, 2010
|Location: IN (Marion)
|Report #: 201000675279 v. 7
Remodel of existing lobby and adjacent rooms, approximately 1700 square feet area, to provide an enclosed Control Room, Office and Intake and to provide larger lobbies for departing and returning offe>>
The full project report includes up to 131 fields of additional information, including:


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By Declan Taylor
Arsène Wenger has confirmed that the injuries suffered during the international break could take their toll on Arsenal's Champions League trip to Fenerbahce on Tuesday night.
Knocks to William Gallas, Bacary Sagna, Nicklas Bendtner and Johan Djourou have already ruled them out of Saturday's Premier League clash with Everton. The manager may be without them in Turkey too.
"Johan Djourou is possibly out, Bendtner possibly, Sagna possibly, Gallas unlikely, but he is a possibility for Sunday against West Ham," said Wenger.
The international break is a nervy time for most Premier League managers and the Frenchman admitted that checking up on his players has become a 'habit'.
"They are always in touch with our physio through text messages," he said. "You check straight away after the game but we have scouts at the games as well. We call them and ask 'how did it finish, who came on, why did he come off?' It becomes a habit.
"But at midnight you go to bed with a little view of what will hit you the next day."Copyright 2017 The Arsenal Football Club plc. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source


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|Slide 1
CSULB students on campus.
Caption: California State University, Long Beach Beach Pride and Tradition
|Slide 2
Black and white photo of campus in 1949.
Caption: 1949. CSULB began with fewer than 200 students in two converted apartment buildings
|Slide 3
Recent color photos of campus.
Caption: 2007. California State University, Long Beach is now considered A Destination of Choice
|Slide 4
Aerial view of the campus during commencement with thousands of students and friends of the University.
Caption: 25th Largest University in the Nation and 2nd Largest in the State of California.
|Slide 5
The University Art Museum and students looking at art works.
Caption: University Art Museum. A venue to enjoy quality artwork and exhibits.
|Slide 6
Photograph of the Carpenter Performing Arts Center.
Caption: The Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center. A mainstay of the Long Beach community for many years, providing an impressive variety of performances.
|Slide 7
Picture of the library and students.
Caption: University Library. Voted "Favorite Place to Study On Campus," by CSULB graduates.
|Slide 8
Photos of the Japanese Garden.
Caption: Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden. An artistic retreat of solitude and beauty.
|Slide 9
Picture of the College of Business Administration building and students in a classroom.
Caption: College of Business Administration. Among the Nation's Best Business Schools, ranked by Princeton Review
|Slide 10
Students at the University Student Union.
Caption: University Student Union. A hot spot for students on campus.
|Slide 11
A photo of the Molecular and Life Sciences Center Building and a student in the lab.
Caption: Molecular and Life Sciences Center Building. 1st in the Nation for Awarding Mathematics and Statistics Graduate Degrees to Minority Students. Diverse Issues in Higher Education ranking, July 2007
|Slide 12
Cheerleaders holding up signs that read, 'Go Beach!'
Caption: Beach Pride and Tradition Continues
|Slide 13
Students standing behind a sign that reads, 'Go Beach!'
Caption: Through everlasting friendships…
|Slide 14
Photos of students with professors.
Caption: Through life altering mentorships…
|Slide 15
Pictures of students listening to lecture.
Caption: Through a Beach Experience that begins inside the classroom… Student-to-faculty ratio among the best.
|Slide 16
A group of people working on a project in the desert to launch a rocket.
Caption: And extends beyond The Beach… 1st in the nation for number of graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees in science and engineering. National Science Foundation survey of baccalaureate-origin institutions of research doctorate recipients, 1995-2004.
|Slide 17
Photographs of students doing miscellaneous educational activities.
Caption: Selectivity. 66,000 applications for fewer than 7,500 spaces.
|Slide 18
Additional pictures of students doing miscellaneous educational activities.
Caption: Quality. Nationally recognized by US News and World Reports and Princeton Review.
|Slide 19
Students standing in front of the campus sign that says California State University, Long Beach
Caption: CSULB Stands for
|Slide 20
Photos of multiple student experiences—piano, film, lab, and dance. Caption: Educational Opportunity. 83 baccalaureate degrees, 67 master's degrees and two joint doctoral degrees.
|Slide 21
Commencement pictures
Caption: Excellence. An environment that expands the spectrum of knowledge.
|Slide 22
Cultural performances.
Caption: Diversity. Access to families of diverse socio-economic backgrounds.
|Slides 23, 24, 25 and 26
Students with children in impoverished countries.
Caption: A mainstay of the Long community for many years, providing an impressive variety of performances.
We change the lives of our students by helping them realize their dreams.
We change the lives of those in our community.
We can and must be a powerful force for positive change.
|Slide 27
A picture of the pyramid.
Caption: For our community, The Beach Experience Lasts A Lifetime…
For our students, Graduation begins today…
For our community, The Beach Experience Lasts A Lifetime…
Thank you for being a part of the Beach Family!
Keep the Beach Pride and Tradition Alive!
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Product SpotLight: Banks Power, Banks iQ Gas/Diesel OBDII Trucks
Banks now makes its Banks iQ for gas and diesel OBDII trucks. It is a 5-inch touch-screen device that displays data about vital vehicle systems, shows gauges, and allows driver control over Banks tuning, flash programming, and Speed Brake diesel exhaust braking products. You can choose from multiple tunes including Economy, calibrate your speedometer, and also adjust shift points. Pricing starts at $585.
Banks PowerAzusa, CA 91702


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After a lifetime of fighting for the rights of union members Bob Crow kept fighting right up to the very end.
The 52-year-old was at the centre of Tube strikes which brought chaos to London last month in protest at the closure of ticket offices.
The Rail, Maritime and Transport union chief, who took up his role in 2002.
And the left wing working-class hero took the fight right to the Tories when he clashed with Boris Johnson on the radio and told the Mayor exactly what he expected for his member.
And East End boy through and through, he had a picture of his beloved Millwall Football Club on the wall of his office near Euston station.
Born in east London, Crow moved to Essex as a toddler and attended the same secondary modern school as Spurs soccer star Jimmy Greaves.
He left school at the age of 16 and worked on the railways for the rest of his life.
His first job was on London Underground as an apprentice track worker, although he soon became involved in union activity, becoming a local representative for the then National Union of Railwaymen at the age of 20.
By then he had already been given the union's youth award - handed to him by veteran general secretary Jimmy Knapp - and was soon to rise through the ranks, via the executive, to the top job.
His formative years were at a time when unions enjoyed huge power and influence over the country, thanks to leaders such as Jack Jones, Hugh Scanlon and Joe Gormley.
Mirror columnist Carole Malone said she "didn't want to like" the bolshy union man when she met him, but when she did she could not help but admire the man who reminded her of her dad's generation of hard working men.
Carole said: "I felt at home with him in that office with all his passion and bluster and pretend anger.
"And while I've cursed him, while I've spat nails listening to his warring rhetoric, the truth is if my job was under threat I'd want Bob Crow to fight for it. I'd want him in my corner."
Former TUC general secretary Len Murray used to live close to Mr Crow's workplace and often stopped for a chat with Tube workers.
"These people were household names and they enjoyed huge respect," he said.
"Starting my career with these people in charge of unions, and working in a nationalised industry with people who had put in 30 or even 40 years of service helped shape my views.
"We also had compulsory trade union membership in those days so virtually everyone was in a union."
He took part in a nationwide day of action in 1980 ordered by the TUC, and the next strike he joined was on the Tube - a day after returning from his honeymoon in 1982.
After that he took part in, or helped organise, official and unofficial strikes against London Underground and was clear about the need to take action to improve pay and conditions.
"I don't shirk from taking industrial action. Our job is to negotiate the best pay and conditions. Industrial action is the last resort and you don't take it lightly - but when you start you don't finish until you have won. That's what I have been brought up on."
Mr Crow maintained he wanted to do the "very best" for his members, wherever they worked and whichever political party they belonged to.
"I will be the captain, steering the ship, but the members will make all the decisions."
Although not a member of any political party, Mr Crow used to belong to the Communist Party of Great Britain and was strongly critical of many of New Labour's policies, describing them as "near enough identical" to those of the Tories.
Apart from his obsession with Millwall - he had been watching the team since his father took him to the ground as a youngster - Mr Crow had a surprising interest outside his job.
"I'm really interested in the weather," he confessed. "I spend ages looking at weather maps and graphs. I have a barometer in the house and if I could have been anything else other than a union official I would have been a footballer - or a weatherman."
Read the Mirror's live blog of reactions to Bob Crow's death by those who knew him.


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DiBella on Kessler-Green
The following is a statement from Allan Green's promoter Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment, on the cancellation of Green's Super Six bout with Mikkel Kessler:
"First and foremost, I want to wish Mikkel Kessler a speedy recovery. Eye injuries are very serious, and I hope Mikkel does everything necessary to heal up and continue his career at the appropriate time. Obviously, all of Team Green is bitterly disappointed about not getting the opportunity to travel to Denmark for this great challenge. It is hard not to feel for Allan Green; this is the third training camp in the last year that he has had interrupted for various reasons beyond his control. In the coming days we will sit down with [Showtime Senior Vice President] Ken Hershman to discuss Allan's future. We trust that Showtime will provide Allan with the opportunity to showcase his skills in a meaningful fight versus a world class opponent in the very near future."


text: hi am new to this site. i own a turbo 2000 on an sreg 1998. it has a stainless from cat back a vipercross induction kit. i am wanting to give it a bit more oomph but am unsure of what mods give best gain for your money. i have thought about new turbo as i am running a td04 but is there a better mod to give me similar gain to a new turbo


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The Ground Water Institute in the University of Memphis' Herff College of Engineering has received a $500,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to fund a study to better understand the long-term sustainability and quality of the region's unique ground water. The GWI, with assistance from Shelby County, the city of Memphis and Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division, in cooperation with stakeholders in Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi, and in collaboration with Arkansas State University and the University of Mississippi, will conduct the Mississippi Embayment Regional Ground Water Study over a five-year period. Congress also awarded $500,000 to the U.S. Geological Survey, which will participate in the study along with the three universities and local stakeholders.
Dr. Jerry Lee Anderson, director of the Ground Water Institute, said, "This is a major step toward answering many questions about our aquifer systems, for example, amount of recharge, critical recharge areas, the impact on our recharge of interaction with our local stream network, and identifying some of the contaminant pathways. We will not be able to address all issues in detail, but this initial award will allow us to develop a long- term approach that should begin to answer many of these questions."
Over the past century, the Memphis area has benefited from one of the largest artesian ground water supplies in the world. On a peak day, Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division and surrounding municipalities pump nearly 210 million gallons of water to more than 1 million Shelby County residents. The water-bearing sands beneath the region historically hold an abundant supply of naturally pure water.
The plentiful supply of pure water from the Memphis aquifer is a critical element in attracting and maintaining manufacturing jobs locally. These jobs include food processing, chemical production, paper/pulp and pharmaceutical manufacturing, all highly dependent on the sustainability and quality of this water supply. In the Memphis Metropolitan Area, there are some 84 companies providing 2,500 jobs with a $1 billion annual economic impact directly affected by the aquifer. Arkansas relies on this same ground water system for agriculture, primarily rice production; Mississippi depends on it for both agriculture and urban growth. Eastern Arkansas produces about 40 percent of the nation's rice. DeSoto County is the fastest growing county in Mississippi and one of the fastest growing in the nation.
The study being funded is the first step in determining a long-term solution to some short-term urgent challenges," said Ted Fox, Shelby County public works director. "Mayor A C Wharton's leadership has been invaluable in garnering the attention of our legislators. We are pleased with the congressional involvement and commitment to this critical issue by providing the initial funding. Their response to our request is a result of a unified position from the Ground Water Institute of the University of Memphis, Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division, the city of Memphis and Shelby County Government that this study is imperative to the future of our community's water supply."
News & Events


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René Peña
b. 1957, resides in Cuba
In September of 1931, Social magazine, founded by the Cuban humorist and publicist Conrado Massaguer, published a photo of the boxer Kid Chocolate, who later won the world featherweight title. Considered one of the most elegant men of his day, a friend of Argentinean tango sensation Carlos Gardel, and a popular star throughout Cuba, the Kid appeared posing nude in an artistic studio portrait by "Rembrandt"— an anonymous Cuban photographer. Under the influence of 1920s flappers, the pages of Social had become a testament to the ever-shifting tides of beauty, eroticism, nudity, and the emancipation of women. But the presence of a stark naked black man, completely conscious of his dignity and his physical attributes, was an unusual cultural event, unparalleled even by the pictures that the American photographer Walker Evans shot in Cuba two years later. The image of the famous Cuban boxer ignited intense interest in the Afro-Cuban trend in arts, literature, and social ideas; at the same time, it imposed a descriptive, clinical gaze as a means of "capturing" the essence of his negritude or difference.
While the Cuban social and political movements of the 1930s—the struggle for national sovereignty, the end of dependence on the United States, the emancipation of women, and the creation of black improvement associations, all culminating in the progressive Cuban Constitution of 1940—modeled an image of black men and women that was proactive, modern, civilized, and industrious, tourist and commercial advertisements in both Cuba and the United States emphasized the concept of the bon sauvage: sensual and lazy, believing in voodoo, lacking self-esteem, and capable only of performing tasks of minimal intellectual complexity (such as sugarcane cutting, courting, dancing, and playing rumba). Even in subsequent decades, in the Afro-Cuban fantasies showcased at the famed Tropicana night club, as well as in photos of Marlon Brando playing the bongos in the bars of Marianao (a Havana suburb), popular notions of the Afro-Cuban experience were frozen in a fascination with the exotic and a sense of alienation from the "other."
Trolling through literature, colonial paintings, and commercial advertisements, contemporary artists such as Alexis Esquivel, Pedro Álvarez, and Douglas Pérez have recycled historical events or characters related to the cultural and historical presence of black people—piecing together a jumbled, broken narrative that jumps through time. Like Kid Chocolate's iconic image, Peña's photographs use the solitude of the studio and the naked body as expressive boundaries. But they shun the Afro-Cuban urgency to define the condition of negritude. Instead, they attempt to formulate a critical response to the cultural concepts and sexual connotations that weigh on the human body.
In several of Peña's series—"Muñeca mía" (My Doll), "Dakota Blue," "Rituales y Autorretratos" (Rituals and Self-Portraits), and "White Things"—the anonymous body of the artist offers up a performance to the inevitable voyeurism of the viewer, dramatizing or interacting with theatrical elements: white dolls, women's clothing, knives, religious objects, sports equipment. It is a performance devoid of psychoanalytical twists; what is exposed is not Peña's self, but a collective "us" that strives to defy and denigrate any socially imposed stereotypes. "Moreover, Peña's manipulation of his own racial and gender identity takes a critical stance toward the paradigms of representation in Cuban society, achieving a carnivalesque effect as well" (Molina, 1998).
In "White Things," Peña resorts to a more austere aesthetic than that of his previous works. Here, visual impact is based on the opposition between white elements (underwear, everyday objects) and black, in striking compositions that often parody police mug shots or newspaper images of black people in the early 1900s. There is no allusion, however, to a radical opposition between racial groups, nor to any sort of street chronicle. Peña's references sink deep into a subconscious ambiguity of meaning, where the viewer will inevitably encounter his own prejudices.
References: Catalogue, From Man Made…, 2001, illust. . on cover and p. 7. First Place, Fourth Biennial of Caribbean Art, Dominican Republic, 2002. Cariforum magazine, February 2002, illust. p. 40.
—Abelardo Mena Chicuri


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The average family spends $2,200 per year on energy bills. Engage with Frederick County's Green Homes Challenge and learn ways your household can save money, stop wasting electricity, and reduce your environmental impact. Get the latest on rebate programs that offer
$2,500-$4,250 in savings on energy efficiency retrofits. Take part in fun activities to become more "power-aware" and receive an energy- saving gift.
Click here to view the entire NCI at Frederick
If you have any questions or would like to add your own event to the NCI at Frederick calendar, please contact the NCI at Frederick Helpdesk at 301-846-5115 or email@example.com.


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Fringes of Brighton - A Photographic Exhibition for Brighton Fringe 2016
This year the city celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Brighton Fringe and the 50th anniversary of the Brighton Festival.
In the spirit of the celebrations this year Heather Buckley and David Smith are exhibiting 'Fringes of Brighton' 5th May – 6th June 2016 – a showcase of photographs from events in Brighton taken over the last decade at MADE in North Road Brighton.
The exhibition is well worth a visit, it'll make you smile and so will the the coffee, lunch, and cakes.
The work that goes into putting on an exhibition requires a lot of the skills that we teach here. Photoshop and Lightroom of course, but also social media and content marketing. Many artist need to be thier own publicists these days. I managed to speak with Heather and David about their work and also with Leigh-Anne who opened the Gallery and Cafe MADE earlier this year.
I grabbed Heather today to talk about how she produces some of her amazing shots. I enjoy photography so it was a good opportunity to gain a little insight, particularly into the action shots.
Canva: The Best Tool You've Never Heard Of
Canva is a free, browser based design tool. Canva's rapid expansion from 500,000 total designs in 2014 to 3.2 million a month gives you some sort of hint at it's serious potential. With the recent addition of 'infographics', Canva now does absolutely everything I need it to. There's even an iPad compatible app.
Canva is simple, intuitive and easily the best free design software available today. If the tutorial isn't enough to get you acquainted then be sure to head over to the Design School.
I've been using Canva for a good few months now, in fact it was recommended to me by our very own Social Media course trainer. Shameless plug aside, let's move onto what makes Canva so good.
Signing up requires an email address and password - nothing revolutionary.
6 Photoshop Tricks Every Marketer Should Know
If you aren't having sleepless nights over the absurdities of the Polygonal Lasso tool then you're missing out on modern marketing's favourite tool.
Photoshop is like skydiving. At first it's terrifying. Many spend their wholes lives without having done it. Most are too timid to commit to the climb. But minutes in, as you reach the peak of your ascent you feel like you're flying…
Wait a minute. You are flying? It feels unnatural, you're in uncharted territory. One glance over the edge and your world as you know it comes crashing down. Chaos, anarchy…elation? The void of uncertainty is overwhelming, there's so much you never knew...
Touchdown. You've just had the most incredible marketing revelation of your life; you're dying to try it again. Soon you'll be so obsessed with swatches and layers that you'll find yourself convincing your first born to stop eating play-doh and start designing his graphics in-house. Why can't everyone else see that smart objects are the best thing since sliced bread?
Have I ever been skydiving? Perhaps not.
Is Photoshop really the best thing since sliced bread? Undeniably.
Is there a company that can provide a quality two-day Photoshop Training course, preferably in the centre of Brighton?
Keep reading and find the six Photoshop techniques every marketer needs to know.
Livestreaming: Meerkat, Periscope and the Competition
From elections to reflections, let's have a look at two of the newest major players In the live streaming world and how they're faring against the competition. Meerkat and Periscope.
Following the NHL's decision to ban all forms of live streaming from inside National Hockey League venues, many were lead to wonder what prompted such a decision. How is it possible that two apps released little over two months ago have risen to such notoriety in the eyes of an organisation as large as NHL?
Live streaming isn't anything new, in fact "Severe Tire Damage" were the first perform live on the internet way back in June 1993. Since then the market has become loaded with hundreds of separate live streaming platforms; broadcasting everything from live football to birdcams.
Amazon's acquisition of video game streaming platform Twitch in August 2014 for a reported $970 (£585m) drew the attention of investors and spectators alike. Twitter's purchase of Periscope for $100million in late march only reinforced the serious potential of live streaming apps. Meerkat themselves brought in $12m from the likes of Greylock Partners in March 2015. We're talking about serious money for and industry thats in its infancy.
Google+ Collections For Business
Yesterday marked the launch of Google+ Collections. I'd like to be less cliché than hailing it as Google's answer to Pinterest at this early stage even though similarities are evident. 'Collections' undeniably provides us with an easy, efficient way to organise and curate the best content from around the web.
Creating a collection is as simple as navigating to the 'Collections' tab underneath your cover photo and allocating your collection a name and its desired visibility. 'Custom' audiences are formed from a number of Google+ circles if you're looking to refine your scope. Collections can also be set to – Only Me. This is my favourite aspect of collections thus far. Share the best posts or ideas from Google+ to your own private collection and create a drawing board for future articles, or simply as a personal bookmarking tool.
After creating your collection you are able to 'customise' your collection image and colour scheme. Note – it is not possible to change the visibility settings of a collection after it has gone live. From here on the collection and the content contained within is completely at the discretion of the user.
See Heather Buckley's 'Google Plus Collections and How to Use Them' for a comprehensive guide on creating collections.
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text: Releasing this fall 2008, Sabre features their latest style the Madness, part of Sabre's Mad World collection. Arriving in four colors with interchangeable arms, the Madness incorporates new hinge technology which allows for customization. Madness frames are a combination of shiny and matte handmade acetate with CR39 lenses. Available soon at Sabre.fm.


text: Any fans of the show? I didn't see a thread in here, and since it's the finale next week, i thought i'd start a thread to see if anybody likes the show. One of the best drama's on tv right now. Last week's episode was amazing. If theirs already a thread on this, mods please delete this one. Sorry in advance if that's the case.


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Civil War women
What: Historical re-enactor Barbara Gerlemen takes on the character of a Southerner during the Civil War to show the role women played in the conflict and how they dealt with the war at home.
When: 11 a.m.
Cost: $5
Do it: Livermore Pavilion, Marin Art & Garden Center, 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Ross; 258-9595
Fun with numbers
What: Young kids can learn about counting, colors and diversity at a pajama party with "Zero" and "One" author Kathryn Otoshi.
When: 6 p.m.
Cost: Free
Do it: Diesel, 2419 Larkspur Landing Circle, Larkspur; 785-8177; www.dieselbook store.com
Sowing seeds
What: The library celebrates the launch of its new seed lending library, Seed-Smart, with "Planting Ideas," an evening of scientific talks and poetry.
When: 7 p.m.
Cost: Free
Do it: Mill Valley Public Library, 375 Throckmorton Ave.; 389-4292; www.mill valleylibrary.org
For more places to go and things to do, visit events.marinij.com


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Date of Stay: August, 2016
We were fortunate enough to reserve site 156 for a Friday night two months prior to our stay. I would have liked to stay Saturday night also, but no reservations were available. The site was a little lower on the passenger side so we used 3 high Levelors. The campsites were spaced just enough to give our grandkids room to walk around without entering our neighbors' space. On the downside, the pull through had trees on both sides so I had to be careful going in. No AT&T service, and fair Verizon service.
Date of Stay: August, 2016
I agree with Guinness's very thorough assessment of this campground. My family and I stayed one night (Saturday) in site 26, a back-in site. The site was slightly higher near the road, but since my 24' motorhome is lower in the front, leveling was not required. This being a Saturday night, we worried about a noisy neighbor, but promptly at 10 PM, they quieted down. We were very pleasantly surprised. If we are ever in this area again, we will definitely stay here again. No AT&T connection.
Date of Stay: October, 2012
We stayed Thursday and Friday nights in the middle of October. Very few campers on Thursday. Surprisingly, there were still a few unoccupied sites on Friday. We drove in around 10 PM and got lost because of the ups and downs and curvy roads within the campground. Fortunately, we found the cordial and friendly camp host who walked us to our site. When we were there, the temperature ranged from the low 50s to the low 80s, sunny with some dark clouds, and a light breeze during the day. Black Rock has 9 water spigots spread throughout 99 sites. Water is free. We stayed in site 20 which is a pull through site. We were able to level front to back without using leveling blocks, but we did not have enough blocks to level side to side. I would suggest spending 2 to 5 minutes at the Nature Center to learn about the history of the park. Black Rock does not charge the $15 entry fee that the other 3 entrances charge. If you wish to visit the rest of the park, the $15 entry fee is good for 7 days. Dump fee is $5. The downsides: I don't like the desert, Black Rock doesn't have the spectacular rock formations like some of the other campgrounds, and the entrance road is full of potholes. Touring tip: Skull Rock, about half way between the West and the North Entrances, can be easily seen by standing in the blue handicap walkway across the street from the Skull Rock Trail sign and by looking directly above the Skull Rock Trail sign.
Date of Stay: July, 2012
Reserved and stayed Sunday night. It could be that restrooms and showers are not cleaned on Sundays, but they were sorely in need of cleaning as of 11 AM Monday. Jet noises slowed sometime after 1:30 AM when I last looked at the clock. They started back up around 5 AM. When we staked out a fire pit, I had to clean out several fireworks casings. Some time after 10 PM when the County workers left, the illegal fireworks started. The pops and whistles were louder than the jets flying overhead. This may have been a one-time occurrence, but a group of partiers whooped it up until after 1 AM. The park prohibits the use of mopeds and bicycles in the campground, but at any given time, there were 2 to 3 times as many cyclists in the park than on the bikeway. We paid $60 per night plus a $10 reservation fee for site 36 because there were not camping sites across the greenway from us. The beach was littered with wrappers and bits of styrofoam, a broken toy shovel, and a green glass bottle, just enough to make it noticeable walking to and along the water. That said, for a metropolitan beach, I was surprised to see so few people on the beach. Just a few hundred feet to the north on the day use side, strangers were sitting within a foot of each other, similar to other urban beaches in the summer. If I had to stay here again, I'll definitely remember to bring ear plugs or stay after my hearings gone. By the way, all that jet noise can't be good for all of the kids there.
Date of Stay: November, 2011
We arrived early to enjoy the beach. The person manning the entrance kiosk allowed us to enter and recommended that we ask the camp host if our site was ready. Although check in time was 2 PM he allowed us to occupy our site around 1 PM. We backed into our site which was right next to the bike path and the beach. Great for people watching from the back of our motorhome. Across Highway 1 is the wonderful Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve. Unfortunately, there are no crosswalks nearby and jaywalking is out of the question with cars whizzing by at 50 MPH. As a previous reviewer noted, the highway is noisy; however, it dies down enough at night so that you can hear the surf. The entrance gates close at 9 PM; however, campers can enter the Warner Ave. entrance after hours using the combination gate lock. Next time, we'll take advantage of the fire pits on the beach.
Date of Stay: August, 2011
This appears to be an older park. The restrooms and the showers are in need of some minor cosmetic maintenance such as a thorough grout cleaning and clearing the insects out of the overhead light fixtures. The exercise equipment next to the adult pool are in the open, and therefore, are usable but not pretty to look at. The noise from I-5 is noticeable, but not onerous. Free Wi-Fi for the first 30 minutes only. On the positive side, the managers are very knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. They even escort you to your site. If you need to stop overnight or stay in the middle of the San Joaquin Valley, this oasis along I-5 is better than most in that area.
Date of Stay: August, 2011
Their website says Wi-Fi is available, but it wasn't operating in the 3 nights we were their. This appears to be a common problem so don't rely on their Wi-Fi. Free Wi-Fi is available just north of the park at McDonalds and Starbucks. Only the asphalt part of the park was open. Several of the motorhomes were jacked up so high that the wheels were off the ground. Our site was not as slanted, but the levelers I normally use were not enough to completely level our RV, but enough to keep the refrigerator working. The 3 camp hosts who manage the park were very friendly and helpful. The restrooms, showers and the grounds were clean and well maintained. I plan to return here again, but I'll bring jacks next time.
Date of Stay: August, 2011
Very clean restrooms and showers, the grounds were well maintained, and the staff was friendly. An occasional inconsiderate boater did cruise by with their radio up full blast, but overall this is a peaceful park. I recommend this place for anyone stopping in or near Stockton.
Date of Stay: July, 2011
This state park also has another campground, Stone Creek with 46 campsites. Idyllwild Campground is in a forest next to the town; Stone Creek is 6 miles north surrounded by manzanita bushes. Out of 30 sites at Idyllwild Campground, 9 are tent only and the rest are tent & RV, 2 pull throughs. Water and sewer hook ups are available in a few sites such as site 26 where we stayed. Almost immaculate restrooms and showers. Activities within 2 miles include antiquing, restaurant/bar hopping, nature viewing, hiking, rock climbing, fishing at Strawberry Creek and campfire programs on Saturday evenings in the summer. The staff are serious about enforcing noise and 8 person per site rules. The only drawback was Camp Maranatha next door which had some raucous activities.
Date of Stay: May, 2011
$35 per night on the inland side and $50 per night on the ocean view side. We arrived on Sunday afternoon. All of the dumpsters were overflowing with trash, but they were emptied on Monday morning. My wife and I liked the privacy afforded by the large sites and tall bushes or trees between each site. Some sites had room for two 40' RVs and a car. Unlike many ocean campgrounds in Central and Southern California, we were not near a busy highway nor trains. In the future I will try to stay in sites 169, 177, 178, 185, 186 or 187 since they have ocean views, but no campsites across from them. Unless you like bright night lights shining on you, I would stay away from those sites directly across from the restrooms and those near intersections with signals and bright street lights.
Date of Stay: March, 2011
The restrooms and showers were neat and clean. It is a bit of a walk to Las Vegas Blvd. Go through Circus Circus Casino instead of walking on Circus Circus Drive. The staff were very friendly, helpful and courteous.
Date of Stay: February, 2011
This was our 2nd time out in our RV, so we were not fully prepared. We are grateful to the camp hostess who gave us a number of tips on RV camping and for letting us borrow her clean-water hose. The restrooms were typical of the California State parks. They were clean, but cold. Showers were not hot but warm enough to warm you on a cold day. The campground is lush and green this time of year. My wife and I saw lots of ground squirrels and a few deer in the campground.
Date of Stay: January, 2011
This was our maiden voyage in our RV. We stayed overnight and left the campsite before 10 AM to go to the visitor center. The camp hosts and other volunteers were very knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. You could tell that they cared about the sea and the state park. We didn't want to use our restroom so we used the park facilities exclusively. Fortunately for us, the restrooms and showers were clean and neat. Side note: even though there was a recent fish kill, the area does not smell like dead fish. Due to the high salinity, the fish just desiccate.


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You are herecontent / Afghanistan War Weekly
Afghanistan War Weekly
The crisis in US – Pakistan relations highlights major problems for the US war strategy. As Juan Cole and others note below, as the number of US troops in Afghanistan has "surged," the vulnerability of the fragile US supply lines through Pakistan has become an Achilles Heel of the whole operation. We are left to wonder whether the United States will respond aggressively toward Pakistan or will reduce its expectations and modify its strategy. Some of the evidence for both positions is set out below.
A number of articles linked below discuss an apparent increase in US-Karzai-Taliban contacts, as well as contacts with the Haqqani forces. Negotiations with the Taliban and with the Haqqanis are of great concern to Pakistan's military leaders. If the United States wants to explore negotiations seriously, this will put further restraints on its ability to boss Pakistan around.
The recent report by the Senate Armed Services Committee on payments to, and employment opportunities for, local Taliban guarding US facilities casts more doubt on the existence of a road to "success" for the US military. The report itself, linked below, focuses on a region in western Afghanistan and imo is a fascinating study of the inability of US/NATO forces to negotiate or even understand the Afghanistan they are trying to control and conquer.
This week marked the beginning of the 10th year of the war against Afghanistan, and I have linked below a sampling of the many "progress" assessments of the war so far. Also below, there are links to Harry Bellefonte's speech at last week's DC rally; an assessment of a recent US Army report on soldier suicides; our weekly round up of useful facts about the war; some preliminary thoughts on the killing of a British aid worker in Afghanistan; an excellent article on the failures of "pacification" in Marjah, the scene of the opening round of the "surge"; and articles that update us on the varieties of corruption in Afghanistan.
Once again, if you find this newsletter useful, I would appreciate your help in expanding circulation. I would also appreciate suggestions about good articles to link here, and also comments (pro & con) that would help to make this newsweekly better. My email is firstname.lastname@example.com. This "issue" and some previous editions of the Afghanistan War Weekly are posted on the websites of United for Peace and Justice (http://www.unitedforpeace.org/article.php?id=4111) and War is a Crime (www.afterdowningstreet.org/aww).
----Frank Brodhead, Concerned Families of Westchester (NY)
(Video) "Operation Recovery": On 9th Anniversary of Afghan War, Veteran-Led Campaign Seeks to End Deployment of Traumatized Soldiers
From Democracy Now! [October 7, 2010] – 5 minutes
---- To mark the ninth anniversary of the Afghanistan war, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Against the War are marching in Washington, DC today to launch the first veteran-led campaign to stop the deployment of soldiers traumatized by multiple tours of duty http://www.democracynow.org/2010/10/7/operation_recovery_on_9th_annivers...
(Video) Harry Belafonte: Iraq & Afghanistan Wars Are "Immoral, Unconscionable and Unwinnable"
From Democracy Now [October 4, 2010] - 10 minutes
---- "The President's decision to escalate the war in that region alone costs the nation $33 billion," the legendary musician, actor and activist Harry Belafonte said at Saturday's "One Nation Working Together" in Washington. "That sum of money could not only create 600,000 jobs here in America, but would even leave us a few billion to start rebuilding our schools, our roads, our hospitals and affordable housing. It could also help to rebuild the lives of the thousands of our returning wounded veterans." http://www.democracynow.org/2010/10/4/harry_belafonte_iraq_afghanistan_w...
The Afghan War, Past and Present
From FAIR [Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting] [October 8, 2010]
---- This week, as the Afghan War entered its 10th year, there were the usual retrospectives in the media, as well as calls to rethink the war. What's striking, though, is how little thinking media did about the war in the first place. --Some pundits were calling for indiscriminate attacks before the Afghanistan War even started… Early anti-war protests were barely covered-- and when they were the results were often abysmal… [and] some outlets were ready to accept government "guidance" on how to practice journalism…. http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=4169
The Long War: Year Ten
By Andrew J. Bacevich, TomDispatch [October 7, 2010]
---- In January 1863, President Abraham Lincoln's charge to a newly-appointed commanding general was simplicity itself: "give us victories." President Barack Obama's tacit charge to his generals amounts to this: give us conditions permitting a dignified withdrawal. A pithy quote in Bob Woodward's new book captures the essence of an emerging Obama Doctrine: "hand it off and get out." …So are we almost there yet? Not even. The truth is we're lost in the desert, careening down an unmarked road, odometer busted, GPS on the fritz, and fuel gauge hovering just above E. http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/10/07-5
A Senseless War Begins Its 10th Year
...an address to the nation from President Barack Obama (as reported by Michael Moore)
By Michael Moore, CommonDreams [October 8, 2010]
---- My Fellow Americans: The war in Afghanistan is a mess. The insurgency grows -- and why wouldn't it: foreign troops have invaded and occupied their country! The people responsible for 9/11 are no longer there. So why are we? Why are we offering up the lives of our sons and daughters every single day -- for no reason anyone can define. I am not going to stay in Afghanistan just because we're already there and we haven't "won" yet. So the troops are coming home. I refuse to participate in scaring the American people with a phony "War on Terror." Are there terrorists? Yes. Will they strike again? Sadly, yes. But these terrorist acts are few and far between and should not dictate how we live our daily lives or make us ignore our constitutional rights. http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/10/08-5
See also: "Afghanistan: War without end," Editorial, The Guardian [UK] [October 7, 2010]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/oct/07/editorial-afghanista... and Juan Cole, "On 10th Anniversary of Afghan War, US Stymied in Pakistan, Forced to Negotiate with Taliban," Informed Comment [October 7, 2010] http://www.juancole.com/2010/10/on-10th-anniversary-of-afghan-war-us-sty...
Obama Dumps National Security Adviser Jones
By Jason Ditz, Antiwar.com [October 8, 2010]
[FB - A roundup of assessments and opinion, with links to many articles.]
US making slow Afghan progress
By Daniel Dombey, Financial Times [October 7 2010]
---- A report by the White House suggests the US has made little progress in the war in Afghanistan and says Pakistan risks ceding ground to militant extremists. The report highlights the difficulties faced by Barack Obama over two of the most important challenges facing his presidency – the Afghan war and the battle against Islamist extremism in Pakistan. The report, sent to Congress this week, notes only "modest gains in security, governance and development" in important areas of Afghanistan as of the end of June. It describes the Afghan government's support for human rights as "unsatisfactory", anti-corruption efforts as "weak", and international backing as "inadequate". It says as of June there had been no statistically significant change in perceptions of security since September 2008 and that public confidence in the government's ability to reduce corruption was a mere 16.5 per cent. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/962abd18-d1ac-11df-b3e1-00144feabdc0.html
Barack Obama accused of exaggerating terror threat for political gain
By Simon Tisdall and Richard Norton-Taylor, The Guardian [UK] [October 7, 2010]
---- A US terror alert issued this week about al-Qaida plots to attack targets in western Europe was politically motivated and not based on credible new information, senior Pakistani diplomats and European intelligence officials have told the Guardian. The non-specific US warning, which despite its vagueness led Britain, France and other countries to raise their overseas terror alert levels, was an attempt to justify a recent escalation in US drone and helicopter attacks inside Pakistan that have "set the country on fire", said Wajid Shamsul Hasan, the high commissioner to Britain. Dismissing claims of a developed, co-ordinated plot aimed at Britain, France and Germany, European intelligence officials also pointed the finger at the US, and specifically at the White House. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/07/barack-obama-terror-threat-c...
Rethinking Pakistan
Washington Post calls for escalation of the war in Pakistan
By Paul Woodward, War in Context [October 5, 2010]
---- After three Frontier Corps soldiers were killed in a NATO helicopter attack on a Pakistani border post last week, the Pakistani government cut off supplies to Afghanistan by closing the Torkham border crossing. It was the easiest way of sending a message to Washington that killing Pakistani soldiers is unacceptable. The Washington Post's editorial page now shoots back: "[Pakistan's] resistance to a more muscular U.S. campaign in North Waziristan, where the Haqqani faction is based, is unacceptable." For those with an imperial mindset (like the editors of the Washington Post) the issue here is about who has the right and the power to exercise their will. America, land of the righteous, savior of the world, must prevail. http://warincontext.org/2010/10/05/washington-post-calls-for-escalation-...
Pakistan's Convoy Halt Forces US to Reduce Tensions
By Gareth Porter, Inter Press Service [October 9, 2010]
---- By continuing its halt in NATO convoys headed for Afghanistan through the Torkham border crossing into a second week, Pakistan's military leadership has brought an end to the unilateral attacks in Pakistan pushed by Gen. David Petraeus and forced Washington to make a new accommodation. And it may make it impossible for Petraeus to make the argument in the future that the United States can succeed in Afghanistan, given the refusal of Pakistan to budge on the issue. The crisis in U.S.-Pakistani relations was the result of a decision by the Obama administration – which press reports suggest was on the basis of a strong recommendation from Petraeus – to act much more aggressively and unilaterally if the Pakistani military did not do more to attack militant groups in North Waziristan, especially the Haqqani group, which dominates the successful insurgency in eastern Afghanistan. Unnamed U.S. officials were reported in the Wall Street Journal Oct. 2-3 as saying that there was less concern about upsetting the Pakistanis than there had been only a few months earlier. http://www.truth-out.org/pakistans-convoy-halt-forces-us-reduce-tensions...
U.S. Slams Pakistani Effort On Militants
By Adam Entous and Siobhan Gorman, Wall Street Journal [October 5, 2010]
---- A new White House assessment steps up criticism of Pakistan's campaign against militants, stating bluntly that its government and military have been unwilling to take action against al Qaeda and like-minded terrorists. The aggressive language of the report—which also criticizes the leadership of President Asif Ali Zardari—could further strain difficult relations with a key ally and undercut support in Congress for providing billions of dollars in aid to Islamabad. The report, viewed by The Wall Street Journal, also raises questions about the U.S.-led coalition's progress battling the Taliban and improving governance in Afghanistan two months before the White House will review its war strategy. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405274870329850457553449179392328...
Pakistan Urges On Taliban
By Julian E. Barnes, et al., Wall Street Journal [October 6, 2010]
---- Members of Pakistan's spy agency are pressing Taliban field commanders to fight the U.S. and its allies in Afghanistan, some U.S. officials and Afghan militants say, a development that undercuts a key element of the Pentagon's strategy for ending the war. The explosive accusation is the strongest yet in a series of U.S. criticisms of Pakistan, and shows a deteriorating relationship with an essential ally in the Afghan campaign. The U.S. has provided billions of dollars in military and development aid to Pakistan for its support. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405274870468980457553624125136159...
See also: By Helene Cooper, "Allies in War, but the Goals Clash," New York Times [October 10, 2010] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/10/weekinreview/10cooper.html?ref=us&page... and two 20-minute videos from Aljazeera: "Inside Story - Avoiding conflict with the Taliban?: [October 9, 2010] http://www.youtube.com/aljazeeraenglish#p/u/24/OV9es9n8xFQ, and Riz Khan, "The future of US-Pakistan relations, [October 5, 2010] http://www.youtube.com/aljazeeraenglish#p/u/88/TAe2K8qH250
US Casualties
---- 12 U.S. soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan this month, bringing the number of US soldiers killed in 2010 to 375. Additionally, 14 soldiers from other Coalition countries have been killed so far in October. This brings the total number of US deaths in Afghanistan to 1,322, and the total number of Coalition deaths is 2,144. The number of US soldiers wounded in July 2010 (the latest figures available) was 576, the highest monthly total so far. This brings the total US wounded since the war began to 7,266. To learn more go to www.icasualties.org.
Afghanistan Casualties
---- Between January 1 and June 30, 2010, 1,271 civilians were killed and 1,997 injured. This brings the total number of civilians killed since January 1, 2007 to 7,324. Between January 1 and June 30, 2010, 214 members of the Afghan National Army were killed, bringing the total killed since January 1, 2007 to 1,043. Between January 1 and June 30, 2010, 289 members of the Afghan National Police were killed, bringing the total killed since January 1, 2007 to 2,340. From Susan G. Chesser, "Afghanistan Casualties: Military Forces and Civilians," Congressional Research Service [August 11, 2010] http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R41084.pdf, where the sources for the figures can be found.
According to the Afghanistan Ministry of the Interior, during the past six months 1,119 civilians were killed and 2,473 were wounded, while 959 police were killed and 2,473 were wounded. The Ministry claimed 4,012 insurgent attacks during the six-month period. Also, 3,098 insurgents were killed, 2,800 were arrested, and 632 were wounded. [FB - The "killed" to "wounded" insurgent ratio raises some questions.] http://www.juancole.com/2010/09/afghan-villagers-demonstrate-against-us-...
Pakistan Casualties
---- According to an on-going study by the New America Foundation, the United States has launched 78 drone strikes in northwest Pakistan this year, bringing the total number of such strikes since 2004 to 174. The study states that between 1,166 and 1,790 people have been killed, according to "reliable press accounts." Of these, the study estimates that two-thirds of the deaths have been "militants" and about one-third were "civilians." NB the "estimating" and labeling is usually done by local government and/or military personnel; local civilians often give much higher numbers for civilian deaths. The study can be read at http://counterterrorism.newamerica.net/drones For a different view on the extent of civilian casualties by drone attacks, see Daniel L. Byman, "Do Targeted Killings Work?" Foreign Policy [July 4, 2009] http://www.brookings.edu/opinions/2009/0714_targeted_killings_byman.aspx...
The Cost of the War
---- According to the website www.costofwar.com, expenditures on the Afghanistan war have reached $353.8 billion, and the total for both wars is $1.091 trillion. For a useful resource on the costs of war, go to "Bring Our War $$ Home" at www.bringourwardollarshome.org/index.html
Public opinion about the war in Afghanistan
---- Nearly six in 10 Americans continue to oppose the war in Afghanistan amid a growing pessimism about the situation the United States faces in that country, according to a new national poll. A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Wednesday indicates that 44 percent of the public believes things are going well for the United States in Afghanistan, down from 55 percent in March.
According to the poll, 58 percent of Americans oppose the war in Afghanistan. [September 29, 2010] http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/09/29/afghanistan.poll/
Broken Promises: Thousands of Veterans Denied Crucial Care
By Mike Ludwig, Truthout [October 8, 2010]
---- As of March 2010, the government reported that 565,000 new veteran patients had been treated in VA hospitals since 2001. Veterans for Common Sense (VCS), a national advocacy group that tracks the VA, estimates that by now that number has increased to 619,000, and will eventually reach one million by 2014. The Army recently reported that 1,713 soldiers attempted suicide during fiscal year 2009. A total of 239 succeeded in suicide, 146 died as a result of high-risk behavior and 74 died of drug overdose. http://www.truth-out.org/broken-promises-thousands-veterans-denied-cruci...
See also: For the 350 page report, Health Promotion, Risk Reduction, and Suicide Prevention, go to http://usarmy.vo.llnwd.net/e1/HPRRSP/HP-RR-SPReport2010_v00.pdf
Kidnapped aid worker killed as special forces mounted rescue
By Patrick Sawer in London and Ben Farmer, The Telegraph [UK] [October 9, 2010]
[FB – We will hear much more about this tragedy soon. The British paper The Telegraph [below] writes that Linda Norgrove was killed in a "rescue" attempt as local elders were negotiating her release. Aljazeera reports that her captors wanted to exchange her for the Pakistan-born, US-trained scientist who was recently given an 86-year sentence in a US court. And Eva Gollinger [Google her] and others have written extensively about the CIA connections of her employer, Development Alternatives, Inc., which was also highlighted in the recent Senate Armed Services Committee's report on protection payments to the Taliban by US contractors in Afghanistan.]
---- The Sunday Telegraph has learnt that local Afghan leaders wanted to negotiate with Miss Norgrove's kidnappers to win her freedom but were overruled by Nato commanders who feared she was about to be smuggled to Pakistan and handed over to al-Qaeda militants. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/8053070/Kidna...
Outsourcing the Dirty War in Afghanistan
By Erica Gaston, Huffington Post [October 6, 2010]
---- A big revelation from Bob Woodward's new book Obama's Wars is that the CIA maintains a 3,000-strong Afghan paramilitary force that conducts cross-border operations into Pakistan. Though news to the U.S. public, these abusive paramilitary forces are unfortunately far too well known to many Afghan civilians. As a human rights researcher in Afghanistan for the last two years, I have found that some of the worst behavior toward civilians comes from these CIA paramilitary forces. Civilians described how these groups, often called "campaign forces," used disproportionate and indiscriminate force, throwing grenades or firing into homes without provocation during nighttime house raids. Those who were detained by these paramilitary forces described being beaten, gun-butted, or otherwise abused. http://blog.soros.org/2010/10/outsourcing-the-dirty-war-in-afghanistan
See also: "Afghans Blame U.S.—Not Insurgents—For Instability," The Open Society Foundations [October 7, 2010 http://www.soros.org/initiatives/washington/news/afghan-perceptions-2010... and Alissa J. Rubin, "Expanding Control, Taliban Refresh Stamp on Afghan Justice," New York Times [October 7, 2010] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/08/world/asia/08taliban.html?ref=world
Varieties of Corruption in Afghanistan
Karzai's Kin Use Ties to Gain Power in Afghanistan
By James Risen, New York Times [October 5, 2010]
---- In recent years, dozens of Karzai family members and close allies have taken government jobs, pursued business interests or worked as contractors to the United States government, allowing them to shape policy or financially benefit from it. While the roles played by two of President Karzai's brothers — Ahmed Wali Karzai, the power broker of Kandahar, and Mahmoud Karzai, a prominent businessman and investor in the troubled Kabul Bank — have been well documented, the extensive web of other family members has not previously been reported. … At least six Karzai relatives, including one who just ran for Parliament, operate or are linked to contracting businesses that collect millions of dollars annually from the American government. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/06/world/asia/06karzai.html?_r=1
The Independent Election Commission … the Electoral Complaints Commission
From Tolo News [Afghanistan] [October 10, 2010]
---- The head of the Independent Election Commission (IEC) said these candidates are still considered as suspects and decisions about them will be taken after investigations are completed. IEC also announced that the final results of Afghanistan's parliamentary elections that were previously planned to be declared on 30th October will be delayed. Head of the IEC, Fazal Ahmad Manawi, said the results of more than 440 polling centres have been declared invalid so far." The votes of polling centres that have been declared invalid in the past few days reach 142 and a total of 442 voting centres have been declared invalid so far," Manawi said. "The recounting of votes in 334 polling centres have been ordered recently and the votes of a total of 828 vote counting centres are ordered to be recounted," he added.
Inquiry Finds Guards at U.S. Bases Are Tied to Taliban
By James Risen, New York Times [October 7, 2010]
---- Afghan private security forces with ties to the Taliban, criminal networks and Iranian intelligence have been hired to guard American military bases in Afghanistan, exposing United States soldiers to surprise attack and confounding the fight against insurgents, according to a Senate investigation. The Pentagon's oversight of the Afghan guards is virtually nonexistent, allowing local security deals among American military commanders, Western contracting companies and Afghan warlords who are closely connected to the violent insurgency. There are more than 26,000 private security employees in Afghanistan, and 90 percent of them are working under United States government contracts or subcontracts. Almost all are tied to the militias of local warlords and other powerful Afghan figures outside the control of the American military or the Afghan government, the report found. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/08/world/asia/08contractor.html?hp
See also: Nathan Hodge, "U.S. Contractors Employed Taliban," Wall Street Journal [October 8, 2010] http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405274870401190457553842373130606... Spencer Ackerman, "Taliban Allies, Warlord Flunkies Guard U.S. Bases," Wired [October 7, 2010] http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/10/taliban-allies-warlord-flunkies-... and Matthew Rodieck, "Corruption in Afghanistan: An Aid Worker's Experience," New York Times [October 7, 2010] http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/07/corruption-in-afghanistan-an-a.... The Armed Services Committee Report is imo very interesting, something of an anthropological study of local contractors and the culture of corruption in western Afghanistan. It is at http://armed-services.senate.gov/Publications/SASC%20PSC%20Report%2010-0...
Taliban in high-level talks with Karzai government, sources say
By Karen DeYoung, Peter Finn and Craig Whitlock, Washington Post [October 6, 2010]
---- Taliban representatives and the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai have begun secret, high-level talks over a negotiated end to the war, according to Afghan and Arab sources. The talks follow inconclusive meetings, hosted by Saudi Arabia, which ended more than a year ago. While emphasizing the preliminary nature of the current discussions, the sources said that for the first time they believe that Taliban representatives are fully authorized to speak for the Quetta Shura, the Afghan Taliban organization based in Pakistan, and its leader, Mohammad Omar. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/05/AR201010...
US and Afghan governments make contact with Haqqani insurgents
By Julian Borger and Declan Walsh, The Guardian[UK] [October 7 2010]
---- Both the Afghan and US governments have recently made contact with the most fearsome insurgent group in Afghanistan, the Haqqani network, the Guardian has learned. Hamid Karzai's government held direct talks with senior members of the Haqqani clan over the summer, according to well-placed Pakistani and Arab sources. The US contacts have been indirect, through a western intermediary, but have continued for more than a year. The Afghan and US talks were described as extremely tentative. The Haqqani network has a reputation for ruthlessness, even by the standards of the Afghan insurgency, and has the closest ties with al-Qaida. But Kabul and Washington have come to the conclusion that they cannot be excluded if an enduring peace settlement is to be reached. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/06/us-afghan-government-contact...
See also: "Prospects for peace: Can a deal with the insurgents be done?" The Independent
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/talibans-high-command-in-se... and Kim Sengupta and Julius Cavendish, "Taliban's high command in secret talks to end war in Afghanistan," The Independent [UK] [October 7, 2010] http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/talibans-high-command-in-se...
US forces lament Afghan Army 'liabilities'
Anthony Lloyd, Times Online [October 05, 2019]
---- The surge in ANA recruitment is central to the US and Nato strategy in Afghanistan, which is intended to give local forces an increasing lead in the conflict as the clock ticks toward President Obama's deadline next summer to start scaling down US forces in the country. By October 2011 Afghan security forces, including police and soldiers, should have reached 305,000, of which 171,600 will be ANA. In the past year alone ANA recruitment has doubled, giving the army a current force, at least on paper, of 134,000. For the US troops of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne, fighting in Zhari as part of Operation Dragon Strike, the ANA's lack of professionalism is of special concern. But some of the 101st troops compared them instead to another force well known for its ferocity and stoicism. "Imagine if we had come here allied with the Taliban to fight against the ANA," one US sergeant mused. "It'd be all over by now."
Marines in Marjah face full-blown insurgency
By Todd Pitman, Associated Press [October 8, 2010]
---- Eight months on, the Taliban are still here in force, waging a full-blown guerrilla insurgency that rages daily across a bomb-riddled landscape of agricultural fields and irrigation trenches. As U.S. involvement in the war enters its 10th year, the failure to pacify this town raises questions about the effectiveness of America's overall strategy. Similarly crucial operations are now under way in neighboring Kandahar province, the Taliban's birthplace. Marjah has become a microcosm of the war itself — and a metaphor for an insurgency that has spread nationwide. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i3G--XI8g0ik1qMgC4nmNu...
Afghan offensive fails to reassure residents
By Laura King, Los Angeles Times [October 5, 2010]
---- Villagers listened courteously as a U.S. military officer, speaking through an interpreter whose grasp of the local language seemed shaky, exhorted them to let Afghan police or American soldiers know if the Taliban came to town. Nodding in agreement amid the group were three men in beards, turbans and sandals who looked, dressed and talked like the other villagers. They were Taliban. … But for Kandaharis, both urban dwellers and villagers from the surrounding farmlands, the narrative is somewhat different. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-afghan-kandahar-2010...
The Pakistan Veto: Islamabad now has final say on U.S. military policy.
By Robert Haddick Foreign Policy, [October 1, 2010]
---- In apparent retaliation for a NATO helicopter attack on a Pakistani border outpost this week, Pakistan has closed the Torkham border crossing into Afghanistan to convoys supplying NATO forces. Although this dispute will likely be resolved quickly, it shows that Pakistan has a veto over President Barack Obama's military strategy in Afghanistan. Specifically, Pakistan has now vetoed the possibility of a U.S. military campaign into the Afghan Taliban's sanctuaries inside Pakistan. Such a veto is understandable from Pakistan's perspective, but not so much from those of the NATO and Afghan soldiers who would like to get at the stubborn enemy finding sanctuary inside Pakistan. In a strange irony, the more the United States has built up its forces in Afghanistan, the stronger Pakistan's veto power over U.S. military decisions has become. http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/10/01/this_week_at_war_the_pa...
Pakistan Opens Khyber Crossing to NATO Supply Trucks but issues Threats over Hot Pursuit
By Joan Cole, Informed Comment [October 10, 2010]
---- My guess is that the US has given representations to Kayani that no uncoordinated hot pursuits will be launched into Pakistan from Afghanistan by the US military. … In the past week and a half, as the border closure idled the some 3000 trucks that typically are on the roads supplying NATO, the Pakistani Taliban sent 150 fuel trucks into flames and killed 15 persons. The whole affair reveals how weak Bush's wars have made the US. In 2001 Bush officials could just threaten to reduce Pakistan to rubble if it did not turn on the Taliban and join the Bush "war on terror." Now, with the US bogged down in Afghanistan and Iraq and in the wake of 9 years during which the US military was shown supremely vulnerable to unconventional military tactics, no such threat directed at Islamabad would be taken seriously. The US genuinely needs Pakistani help. The threats are being issued in the opposite direction, and the US military is the party that is being forced to swallow its pride and make an about-face on policy. http://www.juancole.com/2010/10/pakistan-opens-khyber-crossing-to-nato-s...
See also: Karin Bruilliard, "U.S.-Pakistan relations further strained after airstrike," Washington Post [October 5, 2010] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/05/AR201010... and Syed Saleem Shahzad, "Afghan war moves deeper into Pakistan," Asia Times [October 7, 2010] http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/LJ07Df02.html
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text:
Hero of this film is honest muncipal commissioner, who is very strict about his rules & regulations. The villian belongs with the evil deeds. Their illegal construction are destroyed by our hero with the help of law & order. The villians plan in such a way our hero taken into the court. Court declares that our hero is pagal [mad] and taken to mental asylum.
In the mental asylum, he observed three characters (Anjan Srivastava, Kiran Kumar, Anees Khan) and escaped from the asylum. By mistake Asrani (Mad Doctor) joined in the mission, our hero uses all the four mads like weapon and all the mad characters kill one after another. If pagal kill a person, no punishment.
Finally hero again taken to court. Hero argued in the court:
1. If I am murderer, I could not be Pagal
2. But the same court given the judgement that I am a pagal
3. If I am a pagal I am not a murderer.
Judgement still awaited.
June 02, 2006
Bitten by the Blurb
BollyWHAT? examines the fractured English of Indian DVD blurbs in a dissertation titled 'Bitten by the Blurb: The DVD Synopsis as Comedy Routine'. Very funny indeed, and I'm waiting for them to turn their attention to DVD subtitles. Meanwhile, here's the ingenious plot of a B-grade movie called Ek Aur Vishpot:
Posted by R Devraj at 2:12 pm
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text:
1,000s of Oregon taxpayers have refund money waiting
Many checks go uncashed
SALEM, Ore. - Thousands of taxpayers across Oregon have tax refund money awaiting them -- all they need to do is cash a check.
The Oregon Department of Revenue has mailed letters to taxpayers in possession of refund checks that haven't been cashed as a reminder to redeem these checks prior to October.
"Annually, Revenue sends notices of outstanding refund checks to the taxpayer's last known address," explained Jan Hunt, Revenue's Budget and Finance Manager. "Our goal is to ensure each taxpayer gets their money."
Checks are considered void after two years and are then sent to the Department of State Lands.
If a letter is received, cash the check immediately. If the check has been lost or was never received, the taxpayer should sign the notification letter and return it to Revenue to have the check reissued.
Last year, Oregon taxpayers were notified of $1,850,779 in refund checks that hadn't been cashed. This year, 1,000-2,000 notification letters were mailed.
Hunt said the most common reasons for not cashing a refund check are misplacement of the check or having an incorrect mailing address on file with Revenue. She said taxpayers should notify Revenue of any address changes to ensure receipt of all tax-related correspondence.
Visit www.oregon.gov/dor to get tax forms, check the status of your refund, or make tax payments; or call 1-800-356-4222 toll-free from an Oregon prefix (English or Spanish); 503-378-4988 in Salem and outside Oregon; or email, firstname.lastname@example.com. For TTY (hearing or speech impaired), call 1-800-886-7204.


text:
Public Relations, Public Affairs, Lobbying & Media Training
Winning Strategies ~ Measurable Results
Services Provided:
- Development and delivery of public affairs and public relations strategies.
- Clarification and delivery of the organization's/individual's messages
- Relationship brokering with the media.
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- Lobbying strategies for city, county and state
Leadership on high-profile city projects provides the background for unique public relations, economic development and communications strategies.
Nearly 20 years of civic experience translates into strategies for dealing with business and public initiatives.
Lynn Wheeler is a resource for comprehensive information on the operations of local and state governments and civic institutions.Fourteen years with the Charlotte City Council and service as Mayor Pro Tem, provides the know-how and the skills to develop and move major business and public initiatives forward.
Experience with television production —writing, logging tape, voicing and directing photographer— for daily news stories on WBTV News. A frequent columnist for magazine periodicals. Radio co-host for the Danny Fontana show. Bi-weekly segment "Heard on the Street " on the Pete Kaliner Show on WBT AM radio Fridays at 9:00 PM.


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Bellville Times
Funeral services for Johnnie A. Schneider, 94, of Sealy are
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. from Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Sealy with Rev. Eric Pitre celebrating the funeral mass and rite of committal.
Interment in the Immaculate Conception Cemetery . Pallbearers are Robert Lancon, Larry Schneider, Chris Corder, Matthew Schneider, Len Jones, Eddie Ibarra and
Brently Roache.
Johnnie August Schneider was born in Wallis to parents, Paul and
Anna Tomes Schneider. He was raised in the Sealy area and attended public school in the Rexville community. Johnnie married the former Miss Adelle Kovasovic at
Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in 1946 and worked as a Butcher for many years as well as enjoyed raising cattle. Mr. Schneider served our country in the
U.S. Army during WW II and received a Purple Heart. He was a member of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Sealy.
Survivors include his daughter, Cindy Corder and husband Rick of
Sealy, sons, Johnny Wayne Schneider and wife Connie of Houston, Billy Schneider and wife Pam of Sealy and Joey Schneider and wife Robin of Sealy, brother, Walter
Schneider of Brookshire, grandchildren, Tracey Simons, Shelley Schneider, Matthew Schneider and wife Angel, Chris and Cacey Corder and Brooke Schneider,
great-grandchildren, Tyler Simonds, Brently, Gus and Ben Schneider.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Paul and Anna Schneider,
wife, Adelle Schneider, daughter, Charlene Schneider, sister, Clara Strauss, Annie Hinze and Hattie Schaefer, brothers, Charlie and Henry Schneider.
Posted by Joy Neely


text:
Bellville Times
Funeral services for Billy Charles Koy, 79, of Sealy, Texas were held Thursday, February 1, 2007 at 11:00 am from First United Methodist Church in Sealy. Rev. John Tyler officiating. Serving as pallbearers were Leroy Hauerland, Brad Hauerland, Terry Koy, Russell Cass, Larry Koy, and Cody Koy. Interment was at Sealy Cemetery. Billy Charles Koy was born in Sealy to parents Hugo and Ellie Schenkel Koy. Billy attended Sealy schools and graduated High School in 1944. He then attended Texas Tech University and graduated in 1950 with a degree in Petroleum Engineering. Billy Charles Koy married Miss Addie Pacher on November 18, 1951 at First United Methodist Church in Sealy. Mr. Koy served his country in the U.S. Navy in WWII. He was a member of the La Grange-Bellville FLBA board since 1984 as a director in training and has been a board member ever since. A non-practicing professional petroleum engineer, Billy opted for full-time farming in 1984, after running his own engineering consulting business for more than 25 years. He was active in his community and was one of 15 commissioners to write the home rule charter for the city of Sealy. He is part chairman of the trustees for the First United Methodist Church in Sealy and has been on the Austin Co. Extension Beef and Forage Committee for several years. Mr. Koy recently retired from a President-appointed post as the Selective director for Region 2. In addition, he is an accredited Can-Care volunteer, trained to do special visitation for cancer patients. He is survived by his wife, Addie, daughters Janis Koy Porter and Phyllis Jean Thomas, brother, Frank Koy and wife Audrey, grandchildren, Melissa Anne Rohrbach and husband Rob, James Koy Hill, Abby Lynne Thomas, Daniel Porter II and Ellie koy, daughter, Cynthia Anne Koy, sisters, Marian Claire Schier, Eleanor Blanch Koy, brothers, Douglas J. Koy and Woodrow Koy. Billy C. Koy passed away at home in Sealy on January 29, 2007. Memorial contributions may be made to First United Methodist Church, 200 Atchison St. Sealy, Texas, 77474, American Cancer Society or Charity of Choice. Funeral services under the direction of Knesek Family Funeral Chapel, 768 Fourth St., Sealy, TX, 77474 (979)885-3535.
Posted by Joy Neely