text:
Drupal Voices
By Lullabot
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News, interviews and tips about Drupal and Open Source from the Lullabot Team.
|CleanFlorian Loretan talks about DrupalCon Munich
|Florian Lorétan, one of co-leads for DrupalCon Munich, takes a moment to discuss what is happening with the upcoming conference and what people can expect. He introduces the overall theme "Open Up! Connecting Systems and People" and explains what it means, how it will tie in to the sessions, and why it's important. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanNathan Haug talks about Webform.com
|Kyle Hofmeyer talks with Nathan Haug of Lullabot about Webform.com. Nathan discusses how and why the site evolved from a Drupal module into a full-blown product, as well as the unique features and benefits of this survey tool. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanKris Vanderwater, Drupal 8 Blocks & Layouts Everywhere Initiative Lead
|Kris Vanderwater talks about the Drupal 8 Initiative Blocks & Layouts Everywhere. Kris gives a brief overview of what this is and explains how he is working on the usability side, bringing together designers and javascript experts to ensure this will be a great experience for all users. Kris goes so far as to refer to it as "Panels in Core" and is looking for contributors, so if that strikes your fancy, take a listen to what Kris has to say. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanDrew Gorton talks Backup
|Joe Shindelar joins Kyle Hofmeyer for a chat with Drew Gorton from Gorton Studios. Drew talks about NodeSquirrel, a remote backup solution for Drupal built off the Backup and Migrate module. Drew also talks about what excites him about the future of Drupal. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanJohn Albin Wilkins - Drupal 8 Mobile Initiative Lead
|Kyle Hofmeyer talks with John Albin Wilkins about the Mobile Initiative he is spearheading for Drupal 8. John discusses what this means, what's involved, and how you can help. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanGreg Dunlap - Configuration Management Initiative
|Kyle Hofmeyer talks with Greg Dunlap about the Configuration Management Initiative he is spearheading for Drupal 8. Greg dives right in and discusses how, up to this point, Drupal has seriously lacked a proper method for code and development deployment. He gets into some of the nitty gritty of what he is up to and how he is solving the problem. Now that Greg has created a central API, he is looking forwarding to putting some focus on getting a proper content staging process into Drupal. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanBob Kepford - The Weekly Drop
|Kyle Hofmeyer talks with Bob Kepford who discusses his newsletter, The Weekly Drop. If you're looking for a curated list of the best Drupal news delivered to your inbox every Thursday, subscribe today. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanLarry Garfield and the Symfony Integration in Drupal 8
|Kyle Hofmeyer talks with Larry Garfield who is the lead on the Web Services and Context Core Initiative for Drupal 8. After the DrupalCon announcement that components from the Symfony framework are making their way into Drupal core, Larry talks about what that is, why it's happening, and the reaction from the Drupal community as a whole. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2011 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanBen Finklea and the Blue Drop Awards
|Kyle Hofmeyer talks with Volacci's Ben Finklea about the Blue Drop Awards. Learn what they are, why they came about, and their future as the premiere awards for Drupal-driven websites. Ben discusses how the Blue Drop Awards is more than just a place to vote on websites, but is also a showcase to show the non-Drupal world what amazing sites have been built with Drupal. This Drupal Voices was recorded at the 2012 DrupalCon in Denver.
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|CleanNathan Smith on styling forms with the Formalize framework
|Nathan Smith talks about the CSS framework that he created called Formalize, which allows designers to have more control over styling form elements. He sees it as a reset for forms, and created it because he was frustrated about the gap between the original design intention and the final implementation. He also talks a bit about the 960 grid system, which he also created, and how he got involved with the Drupal community. He also talks a bit about mobile design, and how the larger variance of screen sizes has created different design demands and implementations like the 960 grid on jQuery mobile system.
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|CleanJakob Persson on making early estimates
|Jakob Persson (aka solipsist) of NodeOne talks about his early estimation process for scoping out requirements and estimating the number of hours to build a project. He talks about the process of breaking down the project into discrete features, determining whether or not you've built it before (add in more uncertainty if you haven't), and then estimating the number of hours in a range from high to low. If there are vague requirements, then it's going to add more complexity to the process. Persson also describes the difference between making agile vs. fixed bids, and the importance of meeting with the client face-to-face in order to understand their requirements and to have the developers be able to ask direct questions. Finally, he mentions some of the most common overlooked things to account for such as testing, deployment, and managing communications with the client. For more information, be sure to check out Persson's DrupalCon Chicago presentation on "Getting Early Estimates Right." Also be sure to check out Seth Brown's article on The Art of Estimation.
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|CleanAaron Stanush on embedding webfonts in Drupal
|Aaron Stanush talks about some of the web font hosting services and how to integrate them within a Drupal theme. He talks a little bit about some of different web font hosting services such as typekit, KERNEST, and Monotype's fonts.com web fonts. These fonts are implemented via CSS, are accessibility and ensure cross-browser compatibility. He talks a bit about the @font-your-face Drupal module to integrate the web font hosting services mentioned above in addition to Google Fonts, Font Squirrel and Fontdeck. For more information, be sure to check out his presentation "The type revolutionary's cookbook" at DrupalCon Chicago.
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|CleanTom Geller on Drupal Training
|Tom Geller describes how he started writing and producing videos about Drupal, and discusses some of his latest Drupal 7 material including the The Drupal 7 Visual Quickstart Guide book and Lynda.com training videos. He talks about some of the challenges of creating training material for Drupal while it's still under development, and what he's paying attention to in the Drupal community. Geller also shares some of his open questions about the Drupal training space in terms what's in between material geared towards beginners that he focuses on and material targeted to more advanced Drupal users, which he sees sites like Drupalize.me addressing. Since Lullabot also produces a number of different training materials, my take on that question was that there's a lot of middle ground in producing training material that are targeting site building recipes like the Using Drupal book that Lullabot produced for O'Reilly and the Fantasy Sites that are built as a part of the Do It With Drupal conference. Since the recording of this podcast at DrupalCon Chicago, Geller has joined Acquia as their Director of Content and Communications.
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|CleanJeff Eaton on the Snowman Installation Profile for Drupal 8 Core
|Jeff Eaton talks about the Snowman project for Drupal core, which proposes a number of installation profiles for Drupal 8 core. It's a #smallcore-related project in the sense that it tries to separate the boundaries between Drupal as a product and Drupal as a framework. This d.o. meta issue of "More flexibility for core installation profiles" has some more specific issues related to the Snowman project for creating use-case focused profiles for Drupal Core. And here's a mock-up of "Choose your Drupal" product as suggested by Snowman. It's a demo page of different features and functionality that people may pick as different Drupal products. Also... ☃ Note: This interview was conducted at DrupalCon Chicago, and we have about 20 more interviews from Chicago.
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|CleanKatherine Lynch on Advanced Accessibility
|In this interview, Katherine Lynch provides an overview of her Advanced Accessibility in Drupal presentation from DrupalCon Chicago.
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|CleanStella Power on the Coder module
|Stella Power is the lead maintainer of the Coder Module, and she talks about the Coder Review module, which provides automated peer review evaluations of your code and sees if it complies with Drupal's coding standards, as well as the Coder Upgrade module, which helps you automatically upgrade your Drupal 6 module to Drupal 7. The coder upgrade module can't do everything automatically, and so there are a couple of handbook pages that shows a chronological list of Drupal API changes from 6.x to 7.x as they happened as well as a more user-friendly, categorical list of 7.x API changes that clusters them by the Drupal subsystem. The categorical list shows whether or not coder upgrade can either inform you of the change (green check), that it either is impossible or hasn't been done (red 'X') or that it's uncertain whether it's possible (yellow warning sign). Power also talks about all of the security checks that she's added to the coder module as a part of her education, and talks a bit about the automated upgrade tool hosted service at http://upgrade.boombatower.com/. Since the time of this recording, there is now a $25 fee to run your 6.x module through the automated upgrade process to 7.x without having to set up the coder upgrade module locally. Coder module is definitely a very helpful module, and has been becoming more and more powerful since it's integration with the Grammar Parser module.
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|CleanRoy Scholten on being User experience co-maintainer for Drupal 7
|Roy Scholten (aka yoroy) talks about his experience as the user experience and usability co-maintainer for Drupal 7. He worked with Bojhan Somers during the last development cycle to help maintain consistency in the user interface and user experience for D7. At DrupalCon Chicago, he and Bojhan presented about Interface patterns for Drupal 7, which was geared towards contributed module maintainers. He also discusses some of the common pitfalls the developers can fall into, especially in terms of when to use vertical tabs. He also talks about which areas of the D7 interface could still use some improvement in the future and how contributed modules can help explore potential solutions that could be tested, proven and eventually migrated back into D8 core.
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|CleanBill Fitzgerald on the VoiceBox install profile for community sites
|Bill Fitzgerald of Funny Monkey talks about the VoiceBox installation profile for Drupal communities that received some Knight Grant foundation money to help develop. He talks about some of the features such as the aggregation tool, site blog, ability to publish as magazine issues, how it sets up the input filter & WYSIWYG in a secure way, and some of it's media handling capabilities. He also discusses it's integration with the Hexagon theme. He talks about some of the use cases and live sites that are using it such as the Voices on the Gulf site, which is a community discussion forum about the Gulf Oil spill. For more information and a fully-bundled download, then be sure to check out http://code.funnymonkey.com/project/voicebox.
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|CleanIan Cairns on Being an Independent Project Advisor
|Ian Cairns talks about being a project advisor in the Washington D.C. area helping Drupal projects as an independent consultant and non-vendor. He is helping coordinate between multiple vendors, but also advising on strategies for implementing Drupal especially when it's a cultural paradigm shift from proprietary CMS world. He talks about teaching people how to become their product manager with open source software, discussing long-term cost of ownership issues, different architectural implications of Drupal, how to navigate the software and community, and some the broader businesses issues of using open source software. Cairns also gives a little bit of history of the US Government's involvement with Drupal going back to the US military's Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) and Bryght's consulting on the SPAWAR project, but that the White House's move to Drupal was a more recent tipping point. He also names some of the big, prime contractors and "systems integrators" for the US government web site projects like General Dynamics Information Technology, IBM, Deloitte and SRA. He also discusses some of the differences between the Open Data and Open Government initiatives, and how Drupal fits into them. Cairns worked for Development Seed for four years doing Business Development and Client Relations Manager, and his new consulting company is called Watershed Strategy.
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|CleanPat Teglia on developing mobile apps with Titanium framework
|Pat Teglia (aka CrashTest_) of Palantir.net talks about the process of using Appcelerator's Titanium framework to write JavaScript that is then compiled into native iPhone and Android applications. He collaborated with Larry Garfield and Jen Simmons to create the DrupalCon Chicago iPhone app and Android app. Teglia talks about the benefits of using the Titanium API over other mobile platform solutions like PhoneGap. He also explains how they used Views Datasource to get JSON-formatted data from the DrupalCon Chicago website that was then fed into the application (here's an example of the presenter data and the session data.). Finally, talks a bit about the differences between what's available to iPhone and Android apps and how you're able to geo-location, accelerometer and the permissions-based features of the base mobile operating systems. You can find more information about the code they wrote on Palantir's github at https://github.com/palantirnet/drupalcon_mobile
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|CleanDoug Green on Practical MongoDB
|Doug Green talks about some of the lessons learned from implementing MongoDB on Drupal 7 at Examiner.com. He talks about what parts of Drupal can be used with Mongo including the fields via the Field API and blocks, and which parts are not in Mongo. He also shares some specific traffic that they're able to handle with the details of the infrastructure hardware at Examiner.com. For more information, be sure to check out the "Practical MongoDB" presentation that Green and chx gave at DrupalCon Chicago.
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|CleanThomas Turnbull & Alan Palazzolo on the Open Layers module
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|CleanSam Boyer on the migration to git on Drupal.org
|Sam Boyer (aka sdboyer) gives a retrospective on the process of migrating drupal.org's version control infrastructure to git. He talks about the momentum throughout the different phases, and how moving to an agile project management process helped bring the project to completion. He also discusses git sandboxes and how people are using them for three different use cases of experimentation, forks of existing projects, or non-module scripts or things that won't ever become full drupal.org projects. Finally, he talks about some of the open questions around deploying drupal sites by using git clones of modules from drupal.org, as well as how git will be used in the future of core and contributed module development.
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|CleanLarry Garfield on the Context Core Initiative for Drupal 8
|Larry Garfield (aka Crell) provides an update on the "Butler" project, which after this interview was conducted has been accepted by Dries as one of the Drupal 8 core initiatives that has been renamed to be the "Web Services and Context Core Initiative." I interviewed Larry last year at DrupalCon San Francisco after the preliminary discussions for how to better preserve and present the context within Drupal, and there have been a number of architectural discussions on g.d.o. and a Drupal 7 butler module where the development is taking place. He talks a bit about the performance implications, how this helps with mobile distribution, and how he sees that git can help facilitate the parallel development of this functionality since it touches so many different aspects of Drupal core. Larry always has a big ideas and big plans for the future of Drupal, and has been helping lead the discussions and documentation of this effort at DrupalCon San Francisco, Copenhagen and Chicago. For more information on the four phases of development for implementing the Context, Plugins, REST Services, and Layouts, then be sure to check out Larry's blog post laying out his gameplan.
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|CleanKen Rickard on the Workbench Access module
|Ken Rickard (aka agentrickard) talks about the Workbench Access module, which provides editorial access control to content based upon hierarchal groups using either taxonomy or menu. It can be used along with the editorial suite of other Workbench modules, but it can also be run as a stand-alone module without any dependencies. Workbench Access can control access to the editing of content, but it doesn't provide any access controls for viewing content. Rickard talks more about some use cases that they're using Workbench Access and some future plans for it.
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-----side note----
One request if you remove "drupal voices" from the podcast title it will be easier to see the topic when looking at them on the iPhone via iTunes and podcast player.
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If you are interested in keeping up with the trends in Drupal this podcast is a MUST!
The best part is that it's short and to the point. Relevant and interesting questions too...
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text:
- Serpa auto lock release
- Passive retention detent adjustment screw
- Speed-cut design for rapid draw, target acquisition and re-holster
- Includes belt loop platform and paddle platform
The Serpa holster has become one of the most popular holster platforms for law enforcement, military personnel and responsible citizens. Featuring two levels of retention, the Serpa CQC Concealment Holster delivers unmatched performance in the areas of speed and reliability. A patented Serpa auto lock release reinforces a full master grip by allowing users to draw the weapon normally with the index finder sliding from the holster body to the weapon frame in one single movement. Upon re-holstering, the auto lock immediately engages the trigger guard with an audible click and won't let go until you manually release.
Note: This holster will NOT fit J-Frame models chambered in .357

subset: commoncrawl


text:
How do other Vistage members succeed in a changing economy—and how can you? Join your CEO peers from across Idaho to share strategies and solutions for thriving in today's uncertain business environment. Brian Beaulieu will share economic data from the Institute for Trend Research and present his forecasts on what the business community can expect in 2015 and beyond. Jeff Sayer, director of the Idaho Department of Commerce, will lead an open Q&A discussion on the commerce challenges and opportunities facing Idaho companies.
Idaho Executive Leadership Forum
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Agenda( *subject to change )
|Registration, Breakfast and Marketplace
|7:45 am - 8:30 am
|Welcome and Introduction
|8:30 am - 8:45 am
|Brian Beaulieu - Prosperity in the Age of Decline
|8:45 am - 11:50 am
|Networking Lunch
|11:50 am - 12:30 pm
|Experience Vistage
|12:30 pm - 2:15 pm
|2:15 pm - 2:30 pm
|Breakout Discussions
|2:30 pm - 3:45 pm
|Jeff Sayer - Idaho Commerce Challenges, Opportunities and Q&A
|3:45 pm - 4:30 pm
|Networking Reception and Prize Giveaways
|4:30 pm - 6:00 pm


text:
Author Archive
Decentralized and United we stand, Divided We Fail
I want to talk to my democrat friends who are in the fight to help Obama win in 2012. One person, even if he's the president, can't really change things in America. But I still believe the work you're doing is important to do. I also want to talk to my friends in Occupy Wall Street, this involves everyone. We've been dealing with a lot of issues lately, particularly the question of whether the 99% spring is a co-opting of the movement, moveon.org, etc. which has pushed people to having that conversation so I think all this is relevant to the movement as well.
Regardless of the fact I no longer consider myself a democrat and that I think it is important to work outside the system, I am still proud of the fact that I was a significant part of Obama's election in 2008. I was the head organizer of the Indianapolis ACORN office at that time, I found and trained all the initial people and together we built a GOTV operation that in the end employed almost 400 registrars and registered 24,500 new voters in Indianapolis. The last time Indiana went blue was 1967 and it's only done that three times. So that isn't something that I'm going to look back on and think; "What a waste of time…" Organizing is what it is and politics is the art of the possible. I do not think it was foolish. I did what I thought was the right thing. I would do it again because at the time, it seemed like the right choice and in fact I still believe it was.
I want you to know, that I hope Barack Obama wins if the alternative is Mitt Romney if for no other reason than the fact that Mitt will appoint terrible supreme court justices. I think I and many other people will prefer Obama's pick for the highest court in the nation.
I look at the long haul. I'm willing to fight all your fights with you, I always vote for who I think will be best for the country, not just my own personal views.
On the issue of health care, I'm hopeful and grateful for the work that has been done by everyone but I know there is much more to do. I have serious health issues, reforming this system matters to me personally. I'm of the belief that "some disassembly may be required", but that doesn't mean I think we can't save some parts of the world as we know it. We just have to sort through it all together and see what's important to us.
So please don't treat me like a dirty hippie pariah for saying that I'm not happy with Obama. I'm not an "herbal tea bagger", I don't think he's evil, I'm just justifiably dismayed and righteously angry at the failure of so many of his campaign promises. The system seems to have absorbed him.
I'm just sick of being marginalized in my own country for having chosen the safer alternative recreational drugs over alcohol [1].
Obama made a campaign promise he's not keeping. He promised to leave states alone when it came to medical marijuana [2]. He needs to stop siding with the special interests on the drug war [3] and start listening to his people [4]. We need to end the racism that the war on drugs has become. It is the modern version of jim crow [5][6][7] as well as a monumental failure of public policy. Not to mention the fact that the last three presidents have all done drugs.
If I could have $10 dollars for every time I lost a job, was driven from an activist group, driven from the leadership council, or denied medical care for my being a "dirty hippie", I would have enough to take all my close friends out to dinner. I've known I lived in a police state since I was 12 years old. I realized then that I would eventually be in prison for my beliefs.
It's time to stop demonizing weed heads as well as addicts, self medicators and responsible users, and recognize these rights and stop the prohibition and demonization of things that should be regarded as either health care issues or protected rights.
And this isn't limited to just the democrats, it's happening within Occupy as well. People are using either our beliefs or politics against us in an effort to "purify" occupy so this isn't a behavior that is at all uncommon, it is in fact the root of our problem. This bullying behavior and taking advantage of the natural lines of marginalization (society's scapegoats) almost completely without hesitation instead of democratically reaching an inclusive consensus regarding the issue or issues is just the way we do things in America. We've forgotten how to even function as a people within a democratic framework. The same things that happen to any group inevitably happens to occupations. Infighting and factioning over the same old tired lines of societal division. The real argument within Occupy now is reform or revolution. Which naturally, depending upon where you are in the world (economically or geographically), is a very good question. I've been saying for some time that the answer is both. We need you inside the system and we need us outside the system. I believe that whatever anyone says about the right / left dichotomy, the truth is that this is a battle between compassion and fear. I'm always going to fall on the side of love and inclusiveness and empowering everyone rather than building an economy based upon hoarding and manufactured scarcity.
Let's stop pretending that this is all just the silly talk of a burned out, weed head, acid casualty, unless you want to apply that same label to the spate of Latin American and Mexican leaders calling for legalization of drugs[8]. Being thrown under the bus for 35 years, working in social justice for decades, and fighting the real war on poverty all this time, I know the difference between something important, and something we can negotiate away in a compromise. Ending the failed drug war isn't one of them. Obama's dismissal of the recent call to begin negotiating the de-escalation of the drug war is a huge failure of statesmanship on his part [9]. Not to mention his refusal to consider pushing to change marijuana from schedule 1 (dangerous drug with no medicinal value) to schedule 2 (having medical uses)[10], a patently false statement. We've known for a long time cannabis has many health benefits as well as anti cancer properties[11]. One of the problems politically is that it is inconvenient in that big pharma won't make much of a profit from legalizing marijuana, farmers will. So they're against legalization naturally. Obviously the states see it differently, since it is the largest cash crop in California as well as many other states in America.
I'd like to lay to rest the idea that I think the dems and the repubs are the same. They're not. There is a huge difference between the left / right, brain structures, our ideas, our morality, all of it, very different [12][13][14]. But it's just not enough. So please understand; I've just reached the place where I know that voting will never get the job done.
Will I vote for Obama in November? Probably. Because of the SCOTUS thing… we need more than ever to impeach several activist judges and I do believe that Obama will appoint more impartial judges than Mitt would. That's pretty important. Does this make me not really an occupier? No. I believe that participating only during presidential or state elections is a way to keep things the same. A fine adjustment upon politics, not entirely useless, just not "sweeping" enough. We won't change the nearly complete capturing of our government and its agencies by corporations by voting. As Emma Goldman said; "If voting changed anything, they'd make that illegal". Only a real movement can save us now.
Change is the nature of life
Humans have quite simply, sped the world up just a bit. Its rate of change is increasing to the point that our institutions and maybe even our bodies are unable to keep up [15]. Our bureaucracies, suffering from entrenchment and already painfully slow, are now hopelessly mired in obstructionism, greed and corruption. No one single person is to blame and it pretty nearly doesn't really matter who is president. Our system of government is just not representative enough, responsive enough, distributed enough. We've lived mostly authoritarian lives even though we all believe we've been free, it really amounts to a facade. We don't teach democracy in school. And our workplaces do not foster it. Even our college degrees prepare us to work and live in a mostly authoritarian environment. The attempted purification of occupy of it's radical's, weedheads, homeless people, etc. was not surprising really, most of us have no actual experience with democracy or decentralization and so the intolerance at the root of American culture naturally dominates us at a level I would call subconscious. The only way to avoid the "purge" as I like to call it is to stay vigilant. We are prone to witch hunts.
The real truth
We're all to blame for what is happening and no one person can stop and heal the damage to our earth and our communities. In fact, aside from death, stop is about the only thing we seem unable to do. Life goes on as they say.
But we all know the 1% do not want change. You and I and our children need things to change desperately and quickly and we know that voting is not going to save us from this calamity borne ironically of our viral success. The only thing that has a chance to deliver the change we need is a global movement towards democracy that protects the rights of all people everywhere. In the words of the international workers of the world: "An injury to one, is an injury to all".
In the future, understand that when I criticize Obama for things like his deplorable record on bringing Wall Street to justice for the mortgage fraud and collapse of the world's economy in 2008, or not closing Guantanamo, or signing the NDAA legislation, I'm not a hater, I love my freedom but no more than anyone elses. I'm just trying to give the president and all our "elected" officials the vocal majority they need to move further towards the center and really change things. Do I think that will be enough? No. Building a movement, Occupy Wall Street, or the American Spring (or whatever we choose to call this movement) is a critical step we need to take in order to move our society back toward our values. Our organizing and protests have already improved the national conversation and turned our country's political discussion towards what really matters and this has already helped Obama and will likely continue to do so. And while I think good rhetoric is important, our problem is that it seems that Democrats pay the lip service but have no spine and don't fight for the policies needed to implement our shared values. But most of us think that the system is hopelessly broken and only a structure built outside the system can ever have any hope of influencing it. Can you see how many decentralized groups working for change will only help?
The current system of wealth extraction the 1% like to call capitalism is fatally flawed without the concept of debt forgiveness[16]. We need a modern equivalent of the biblical jubilee which was specifically designed to prevent the concentration of lands and wealth into a few hands. Even slaves were freed after 7 years[17]. Any president that tries to change this will either not succeed, be absorbed, or be killed trying to do the right thing. Thus the need for a leaderless, decentralized movement [18][19]. Thus the need for all of us to pitch in. No single person has ever made the difference, the system needs to change and I still believe a better world really is possible. To achieve fundamental change it has always taken many of us working together for a long time to move things in the right direction [20]. But there is no doubt in my mind, we can take our lives back from corporate control and guarantee at least the possibility of freedom and prosperity for our children in the future if we work together. It just seems to many of us like there is nothing to do but build alternative ways forward that work. Locally. Outside the "system". You should help us do that when you're done working on the election of 2012. It will help all of us recapture the community that we lost quite a while ago.
When November has come and gone and we know who Wall Street voted for and Obama has the bully pulpit for another four years, the work to save our world will remain there for us to do. While you're doing that, I and many others will be building power at the grassroots in our communities working to take this fight past november. I hope to see you there working with us for the rights that we all know that we have, not by legal decree, but by the fact we are alive. After November the roots of our problem will remain greed, corruption and inequity. No justice? No peace.
Obama can't do anything without active, vocal, citizens pushing him in the right direction. So let us heal the rift in the left that the war on drugs really is, and join the middle and the moderates on the right in civil debate. Don't let the vitriol of the far right invade our conversations too. Let's stop marginalizing people throwing the weed issue and every other important issue under the bus and what ever you do, don't stop working for a better world in November.
Reposted from: qcmississippimud.com – Decentralized and United we stand, Divided We Fail
Supporting documents and opinions:
[1] – Get the Facts: Marijuana is Safer Than Alcohol
[2] – Obama's War on Pot
[3] – The Top Five Special Interest Groups Lobbying To Keep Marijuana Illegal
[4] – ExileNation.org
[5] – Dyan Ratigan, How Greedy Bastards Turned The War on Drugs Into A Race War
[6] – Occupy the Dream: The Mathematics of Racism
[7] – Hidden History: The DEA, Nixon's Pills, and Black People
[8] – At Latin America summit, Obama to face push for drug legalization
[9] – Obama Dismisses Latin American Leaders' Calls for Drug Legalization in Colombia
[10] – Medical Marijuana Group Appeals DEA Rescheduling Decision
[11] – The Feds Finally Recognize The Anti-Cancer Potential Of Cannabis — 36 Years Too Late!
[12] – The Strange Conservative Brain: 3 Reasons Republicans Refuse to Accept Reality About Global Warming
[13] – How the Fundamentalist Mind Compels Conservative Christians to Force Their Beliefs on You
[14] – The Root of the Conservative War on Contraception Comes From a Deep-seated Anxiety
[15] – Transitions and Tipping Points in Complex Environmental Systems – NSF
[16] – What is Debt? – An Interview with Economic Anthropologist David Graeber
[17] – Jubilee (biblical)
[18] – The Starfish and the Spider: 8 Principles of Decentralization
[19] – SOPA/PIPA and the Decentralization of Protest
Occupy Cedar Rapids Mic Checks Drone Factory
Should We Militarize Our Domestic Skies?
It was a rainy afternoon for the first Occupy Iowa regional General Assembly. Around 100 occupiers gathered from various places across Iowa primarily to attend the action planned by Occupy Cedar Rapids protesting Air Cover Integrated Solutions possibly moving into the Cherry Building in Cedar Rapids, IA. The buildings owner welcomed us and our debate initially but seemed concerned with our presence. The confusing thing for everyone seemed to be that we just didn't think that a building, currently the home to many small artist and craft shops, would be a good place to kick off the militarization of our domestic skies here in Iowa.
While we were speaking with the buildings owner, he mentioned that people couldn't get through so we parted for the patrons which were coming and going as one might expect, it being an open house after all. We conversed for about 20 minutes with the owner and asked him to please not allow the drone facility to become part of his building.
After the mic check on Air Cover and our brief debate the police announced that we needed to move to the north side of the street which we did. While we were there for the next 35 minutes or so we saw the bus come by and drop some patrons off, some of the people riding the bus gave us the thumbs up.
You might argue with us about OWS methods, the confusion of protesting a building full of artists, or the edginess of the direct action in a normally fairly quiet Iowa town. But what you can't ague with is that people are now talking about this in Cedar Rapids. In that, I would say the action was wildly successful.
Afterward I spoke with a young couple, occupiers that had come from Cedar Valley. Since they'd travelled far and also love small local businesses and are dedicated to shopping with small mom and pop shops at home, they naturally went over to the Cherry Building once things had settled down. Unfortunately they were not well received and ended up leaving because of the rudeness of one of the shop owners.
Another local business supporter who posted on Facebook said that they had in fact purchased something from the very shop owner who was telling us that we were hurting her business. and that she really liked the item, a hand painted and reclaimed piece of furniture.
My take on it is this:
It might be that the owner of the Cherry Building sees more money in the militarization of our domestic skies than in arts and crafts. I get that. Really. But I just wonder how long before the art shops fail in this jobless recovery and the spaces are taken over one by one by the drone factory until the Cherry Building becomes entirely a facility beholden to the military industrial complex?
Certainly there are benign uses for this technology and for that it could be argued that it should be made available. But before we unleash this potentially total violation of privacy upon ourselves, shouldn't we at least be asking these harder questions instead of talking only about what good they could do?
I believe that it is a lie that these drones represent good jobs. We should discuss how many emergency responder jobs will be displaced and the centralization of police power this represents and what that might look like going forward. Many of us suspect that it will actually reduce the number of emergency responder jobs (a common effect of centralization) and even reduce a community's ability to properly scale up to respond to natural disasters and other catastrophic events such as a nuclear facility losing electricity. Drones aren't going to do the real work. These drones are likely to have a high potential for abuse.
Or maybe we could talk about how hackable these eventually armed domestic spy drones will likely be? Or maybe we could talk about the broader implication of this military technology in the hands of police and whether or not the fear based political model is really what we want in our skies (or anyone else's for that matter)?
Bottom line? Democracy is a messy process. But we should be happy that it is happening at all rather than wondering what was accomplished. What other way forward is there other than together? On our own? That is a the propaganda of the oligarchs.
Occupy Wall Street uses a decentralized methodology that is similar in pattern to open source development on the Internet and in software. We are as a group able to gain the benefit of the wisdom of people like Frank Cordaro, a Catholic Worker, who is certainly a leader but even he knows he's just one among many as this is more accurately described as leaderful movement rather than leaderless. This is by far the smartest movement in that regards in human history. It's radical in the sense that it really is of the roots. We are leaderless because anyone who has ever gotten in high office and was really serious about making lasting and positive change in our world on behalf of most of humanity has been killed. But you can't arrest an idea as occupiers like to say.
While we were talking after the action, a single police officer stopped by to thank Occupiers for a very civil action on our part.
The perception in the mainstream media that Occupy doesn't know what it wants or that we're nothing more than the radical left reconstituted are all narratives of the 1% and of an entrenched neo-liberal approach to "change". Unfortunately it is obvious to all of us within the Occupy movement that the system (whether it be from the "liberal" or "conservative" perspective) is broken so badly that we can't continue pretending that acting within its constraints will get anything truly meaningful done. However, how this anti corporatism that resides at the core of the Occupy philosophy gets turned into action is to directly support small businesses rather than spending money at a corporate franchise which extracts wealth from our communities and returns the usual low paying jobs and substandard products.
70% of occupiers are employed. Many of us went over to the Cherry Building and patronized the artists after the action. Some of us even bought some things.
Crossposted at qcmississippimud.com/
Also see Paul Deaton's Dec. 3rd post Occupy Iowa Statewide General Assembly
Occupy Wall Street = Love
After more than ten years of working on front end web development and playing around with html, css, and various other computer languages I had the opportunity to work on a software development project with a local company here in the Quad Cities. Not too long after hiring me the company I worked for hired a network administrator from Wisconsin, Scott Olsen.
Over the next year or so Scott and I became friends and even after I left the software project we continued to talk about politics, the state of the world in environmental terms, global warming, Linux server stuff, philosophy, organizing…
When we heard about the Wisconsin 14 that had fled the state to avoid a vote on a draconian piece of legislation that Koch brothers darling Scott Walker was jamming through the Wisconsin state legislature, we had to go see what was up.
This was all happening of course against the back drop of the middle east uprisings, Tunisia and Egypt, so it was pretty exciting to see people in Wisconsin also fed up with the stripping of rights and wealth from the middle class and the poor and the virtual slave class we've suddenly find ourselves to be. Just like that, suddenly many of us don't have homes, students have no future, and people like Scott, having served two tours of duty in Iraq come back to find a difficult job market, not enough health care and a draconian police state if you aren't a tea partier protesting debt and taxes.
I find it unacceptable to continue living as usual in a world that commits violence against a person like Scott who having been in Iraq twice and who came to view the wars as illegal, was courageous enough to say so and stand peacefully in defiance of tyranny right here at home.
When we were sleeping on the floor of the rotunda in Madison and eating pizza's purchased by people in Cairo, sending us messages of solidarity from Tahrir square, we had only an inkling of what might happen in the coming months. We hoped the sleeping giant was waking, we saw the police and firemen and teachers and hippies, and everyone you can imagine out protesting the stripping of union rights from public employees, so we thought just maybe…
This past year has been really hard for people that care about this world. I've watched as everything sacred was seemingly trampled by greed and the politics of fear. The supreme court decision that corporations had a right to free speech and that restricting the flow of money from them into our politics was against the first amendment right of corporations was really the last straw. We knew that it was going to get ugly but Scott Walker took the cake. Our decision to go up practically every weekend for several months gave me hope that we could really stop this madness.
Scott recently left the Quad Cities for San Francisco working as a systems administrator but when his shift ended he went down to the occupation in San Francisco every night. When the call came from Oakland that they were being raided by police and needed help, I'm sure that Scott didn't hesitate, I talked with him briefly as he got off the Bart in Oakland, he said the video feed was down at the Oakland Occupation. I found a live feed for him and told him through chat where I knew there where some sound cannon emplacements. We lost communication right after that, I knew there was something wrong when I didn't see him on chat the next day, I thought maybe he'd been arrested. Then I saw on twitter that Scott had been injured critically by Oakland police. For the next few days I watched video that literally made me sick. Not only had they critically hurt a friend, but when a group of people tried to help him, a cop lobbed a flash bang into the crowd which exploded and dispersed them momentarily. They rushed back to him and carried him to safety. If there was any doubt as to the perpetrators of the violence in Oakland, the video of the police hindering those trying to help Scott as he lay on the ground should clear things up. The protesters are non-violent, the police, even though they are part of the 99%, are being paid by the 1% to stand in the way of democracy.
Knowing that my friend is unable to speak because of a brain injury that resulted from the control of our government, and culture by the richest 1% in America leaves me no choice at all. I must occupy. In light of what has happened to Scott Olsen, we should all occupy.
Here is what anonymous had to say to Scott:
There will be a benefit held soon to help pay for Scott's medical costs and to help his family pay for expenses in coming to Oakland to be with their son.
Our facebook page (link below) will have that posted as soon as we have the details. Join us in our occupation efforts, like our page, come to actions. We really can change this world. We must change this world.
Lose your fear, this is all about loving the world and each other enough to do something about it.
Occupy Wall Street = Love
For more info see: http://www.occupyquadcities.com/
Donations to help with Scott's medical costs can be made at Ascentra branches in Moline, Bettendorf or Davenport, or by calling (563) 355-0152.
Wisconsin Workers Protest Phony Deficit and the Silencing of American Workers
Wisconsin Protests Phony Deficit and the Silencing of American Workers
By D. VanThournout
I slept on the floor of the rotunda last night. I Intend the same this evening.
It is do or die for the Democratic party, and ground zero is in Wisconsin where unions fought for and won things like weekends, workers compensation, the 40 hour work week, workplace safety, this list goes on. Rights that were paid for by the blood, sweat and tears of American workers who organized and won these rights.
Most important in this is the right to collectively bargain.
This is what Governor Scott Walker wants: no more collective bargaining rights for American workers. None. He's lying about a budget deficit that he himself manufactured by giving big tax breaks to large corporations. Now he wants us to believe that if the people only give up their right to collectively bargain the budget will be fixed. These are the people who teach our children, who we call when we're in trouble and the people who do the everyday seemingly thankless job of making sure we live in a society that is there for each other when the chips are down.
The people of Wisconsin are coming out in great numbers to say NO to Scott Walker and his manufactured deficit and in solidarity with workers protesting the silencing of their voices in American politics.
14 democratic senators have fled Wisconsin denying a quorum vote on this draconian bill. A bill that literally turns American workers back into the wage slaves we were to the moneyed elite in the time of the robber barons.
This is also about the ability that workers have to put money behind liberal democrats. Once labor is killed in Wisconsin, the conservative theory goes, the rest of the states will fall like dominoes. They may be right. We can't let this happen.
There were 70,000 people surrounding the capitol building today. The rotunda is filled with yet more people who have come from all over to testify before the senate on behalf of family members and fellow workers this evening regarding the importance of collective bargaining rights. It's been going on for almost a week now.
And it isn't getting any smaller.
(crossposted at qcmississippimud.com)~David
VanThournout lives on the Mississippi river in Rock Island. He plays
guitar, writes poetry and music, designs websites, and organizes for a
more just and peaceful world. More than a decade ago David began
demanding meaningful employment rather than mindless work making
widgets. David now requires that he loves what he does and that it
actually makes the world a better place in a way that is sustainable. Follow David on Twitter at twitter.com/badweatherrr. E-mail David Van Thournout.
Bob Vander Plaats: Anti-Civil Rights Hate Mongering
Bob Vander Plaats: Anti-Civil Rights Hate Mongering
By D. VanThournout
Civil rights are something that we have to pay for with blood, sweat and tears. And fear based hate speech is something we not only have to listen to, but respond passionately and articulately to. We cannot let our government's policies, constructed by the people to ensure the common good, to dispense hate and lies via constitutional amendment. If we did, it wouldn't be the Iowa I know and love.
But that is just what Bob Vander Plaats wants. Hate and lies masquerading as legislation.
There is always a civil rights battle being waged. Slavery, Jim Crow, heterosexism, the war on drugs, all of these are rooted in intolerance. It is fear based politics.
Iowa is being inundated with money and hate leading up to the 2012 elections. As an organizer I understand how this works. The more time on the ground with your message, the more likely you will win the election. Over the course of the next couple of years Iowa will be flooded with insane amounts of (Koch brother) money spent lying about everything from gay rights to global warming and beyond. This isn't just about unseating Obama (though that is part of their agenda), it's also about health care, liberals in general, tolerance and most currently equality for the LGBT community (and of course anything else good that I left out).
It's All About Equality
Lets think about that for a moment. What in this word is so hard for people that claim to be Christians to understand? Who do they think has any more right to be home to dinner with their family? Who is born into this world illegally, in gods eyes? Not that I'm a believer, I'm an atheist. But still, I've been steeped in religious culture and I know there is a great lie going on when people that profess to be followers of Jesus (love your enemy anyone?) spew hateful rhetoric about how gay people are less than human, are killing themselves and us, are perverts, are curable, or the best one, that gays are why god is going to destroy the world.
After considering this for many years, I've come to the conclusion that the only real fight is the fight for equality. It lies at the root of every important social issue. Hunger, poverty, education, jobs, women's rights, the environment, gay rights, prohibition (you name it), I believe they're all rooted in in-equality (or keeping us un-equal).
Bob and the others drumming up the hate for the 2012 elections have recently re-branded themselves as a "family" advocacy group called (of all things) The Family Leader…If you ask me, Bob protests too loudly. I don't think he trusts himself to live in a society that is tolerant of each others differences. He's certainly not ready for my dream world where we actually work in loving cooperation with each other to help each other realize our collective visions. Too bad, It's a nice vision.
Instead, Vander Plaats starts his 99-county tour of Iowa in Leon and spoke to half a dozen people there about various and sundry flavors of hate to carry us through to 2012. Impeach the judges that "forced" equality upon Iowans he says in so many words.
We liberals and supporters of equality need to be active in this conversation starting right now. We need an organization that dogs every step The Family Leader takes on its campaign to make the LGBT community into second class citizens.
Where I got my information:
Jeremey Hooper of goodasyou.org has assembled a movie that explains these people very well.
Iowa group stooping to junk science and hate groups to smear lgbts
Vander Plaats seeks support for family advocacy group – Newton Daily News
Bob kicks off the hate campaign – Des Moines Register
(click here to read the entire article) ~David
VanThournout lives on the Mississippi river in Rock Island. He plays
guitar, writes poetry and music, designs websites, and organizes for a
more just and peaceful world. More than a decade ago David began
demanding meaningful employment rather than mindless work making
widgets. David now requires that he loves what he does and that it
actually makes the world a better place in a way that is sustainable. Follow David on Twitter at twitter.com/badweatherrr. E-mail David Van Thournout.
WikiLeak's Truth Lost In This American Noise Machine
WikiLeak's Truth Lost In This American Noise Machine
By David VanThournout
I only write because of all the lying. I don't think I'm a good writer at all. I think I'm terrible. What I'm convinced of is that my viewpoint is one of the few sane and objective views left in America or on the Internet.
I read so much non-fiction that I'm chronically depressed these days. The massive de-funding of the left that has occurred in this country started long before we even began to be America. At least that's what I gathered from reading history professor Thadeus Russell's new book "A Renegade History Of the United States."
Do you know what they used to call us Irishmen before we stopped dancing and fiddling around and became white? They called us white niggers. That's right, look it up if you doubt me. According to professor Russell, our founding fathers were puritanical prudes that didn't think a bunch of drunks, slackers, pirates, homosexuals, Indians, Blacks and prostitutes could ever win a revolution. Maybe if they hadn't purged the fun stuff we wouldn't have our panties all in a knot over a few spilled secrets today.
Eventually fear and hate reached a fever pitch with Sen. Joseph McCarthy and the purging of communists from the labor unions. More recently I could hear them shouting; "Cut your F%@#ing hair and join the human race you F%#*ing hippie!
This marginalization of liberals and our politically informed art over the last century or more has continued into my own era at such a pace that in hindsight, I realize that my own life and the lives of so many others have been squelched by poverty and right wing marginalization and fear mongering from the very beginning. It's as if I've been in a kind of prison all my life. Never having enough money to quite realize your dreams has taken a huge toll upon not only myself but every man woman and child in this country. If you don't believe me, just sit and think for a while about what we could do, and what we could have done with the annual pentagon budget for the last 60 years.
We've all been ripped off, liberals, conservatives and independents alike! Worse than that, they've stolen our children's future for mere billions and for all intents and purposes, crowned themselves kings of the world. In fact no kings in the history of the world held nearly as much power as feudal lords David and Charles Koch hold over us today. Their tyranny is based in corporate personhood and their stranglehold upon America's politics could mean the death of half the world by war or by climate change driven famine.
VanThournout lives on the Mississippi river in Rock Island. He plays
guitar, writes poetry and music, designs websites, and organizes for a
more just and peaceful world. More than a decade ago David began
demanding meaningful employment rather than mindless work making
widgets. David now requires that he loves what he does and that it
actually makes the world a better place in a way that is sustainable. E-mail David. Follow David on twitter at twitter.com/badweatherrr
We All Live In A Don't Ask Don't Tell Society
We All Live In A Don't Ask Don't Tell Society
By David VanThournout
Now that we've improved the civil rights of those serving their country in the most dangerous capacity, as soldiers defending our constitution, don't you think it's time we extended this acceptance of who we are to the cvilian population?
If you are gay and an employee of a conservative company, coming out can be dangerous to your career. Or your life even. This I believe is effectively a form of don't ask don't tell in action.
If you are among the more than 40% of Americans that have used cannabis at least once, you probably live in a don't ask, don't tell situation as well.
If you're an atheist and you say proudly, I'm an atheist, you can rest assured you will not win any elections from then on.
You can be a liberal and since we don't generally wear our religion on our sleeves we might be safely ensconced within the confines of a work environment populated mostly by conservatives and if you start wearing your progressive spirituality on your sleeve like the others, you'll find out pretty quickly that you shouldn't talk about religion or politics at work (or anyplace else for that matter). But only because you're a liberal.
So it appears the military is a comparative liberal paradise when held against the backdrop of the rest of the fairly conservative whole of American culture. If you ask me, the military is way ahead of the rest of us on social issues.
Every single issue I just listed are civil rights issues. Gays, weed heads, atheists, progressive Christians, etc., all are wrongly and manipulatively marginalized. Marginalized within our communities, our churches, our schools, and even our families. Marginalized by a vocal minority who have nothing to offer the conversation but fear. Fear of the other.
It often leaves a gay person today in a situation where they feel completely alone and unable to find anyone to reach out to. They suffer disenfranchisement and depression. They sometimes in despair even take their own lives.
Weed head parents sometimes are charged with child endangerment when they get caught growing a few plants. That seems more than a little extreme to me.
Think of what the parents must feel that find out their son or daughter is gay when they receive a telephone call from the police informing them that their child has killed themselves because of bullying in school.
I'm not normally taken by nationalistic tendencies and I do say that I love my country. I love America not because I think it's better than other places because it isn't. America to me means diversity. Diversity of people means we will never want for interesting conversation, food, and there is always a celebration going on. Our collective knowledge of solutions from so many cultures coming together and working toward the common good of everyone is something to be proud of. That's what I think of when I think of America. And this vision of ours is alive and well.
VanThournout lives on the Mississippi river in Rock Island. He plays
guitar, writes poetry and music, designs websites, and organizes for a
more just and peaceful world. More than a decade ago David began
demanding meaningful employment rather than mindless work making
widgets. David now requires that he loves what he does and that it
actually makes the world a better place in a way that is sustainable. E-mail David. Follow David on twitter at twitter.com/badweatherrr
Obama Plays It Cool, American Left Contemplates Suicide
Obama Plays It Cool, American Left Contemplates Suicide
By David VanThournout
I think that if President Obama wants to try and use tax cuts to win hearts and minds out there it has some traction. I'm not entirely convinced but I do believe having a black president is a new thing for America. I'm not at all surprised that it appears that our first black president does things differently; he is a shrewd negotiator and anyone that doesn't understand that has not been paying attention.
If the left thinks that Obama has made a mistake, fine, but progressives will lose big in 2012 if we think we can field a democratic candidate that will win in a primary against Obama.
Just wanted to clarify that point. So let's just put this talk of lefty suicide in 2012 all the way to rest. Sorry, politics is the art of the possible. And we need unity going all the way out to 2012. So even though I'm not happy at all about various details of the Obama Administration, I like to do a little thought experiment to make sure I and all American progressives are awake… Imagine you're only a heart beat away from having Sarah Palin as your president… Now imagine it's 2012 and we've cratered our own support for Obama who was certainly able to win against Palin but because we attempted to "keep Obama's feet to the fire" by running an alternative in the Democratic primary… After the massive sucking sound from the siphoning of Obama votes, we wake up on the Wednesday following the election with not vice president Palin but President Palin….
Because that thought experiment was so damn scary, I highly recommend understanding that President Obama is smarter than we think. I'm convinced that We needed to hear from Bernie Sanders about how bad these tax cuts really are and the fact that on capitol hill they're "all worried about the deficit" but not enough to stop giving rich people free money they don't even need.
I will vote for President Obama in 2012 and that is 99.9% certain. The only way I won't vote for Obama is if I am completely incapacitated for an entire month prior to the election. I would have to be in a coma, if I'm laying on my death bed I will have already voted early no doubt.~David
VanThournout lives on the Mississippi river in Rock Island. He plays
guitar, writes poetry and music, designs websites, and organizes for a
more just and peaceful world. More than a decade ago David began
demanding meaningful employment rather than mindless work making
widgets. David now requires that he loves what he does and that it
actually makes the world a better place in a way that is sustainable. Follow David on twitter at twitter.com/badweatherrr. E-mail David Van Thournout.


text:
Economic Development
A Bond Market In Flux
Muni bond borrowing costs may rise, as well as state and local credit ratings.
Municipal bond issuance will be down this year: State and local governments will borrow only $396 billion in 2006, down from $457 billion last year, according to a forecast by the Bond Market Association.
Still, a year of nearly $400 billion in issuance is a signficant one for the muni bond market, and the heart of it will be new money--debt taken on for new projects that states and localities finance this year. With interest rates on the rise, refunding--bonds in order to retire higher-interest-rate debt--is likely to decline by as much as 50 percent over last year's totals.
Given the relatively low interest rates of the past few years, states had been rushing to refund their bonded debt, but "those opportunities have mostly been exhausted," says Michael Decker, senior vice president for research and policy analysis for the Bond Market Association.
Experts have been expecting higher long-term interest rates for months as a result of a strengthening economy and actions by the Federal Reserve, which started raising short-term interest rates in the middle of 2004. For a variety of reasons, among them a low rate of inflation, rates remained persistently stable. Rates should start creeping up this year, directly affecting refunding activity.
For state and local issuers looking for new capital, a counterweight to rising interest rates will be improved credit ratings, which tame the interest rates they pay when they come to market. A number of states have seen their ratings improve in recent months. Thanks to healthy revenue increases, many states and localities are running surpluses for the first time in years. Although the revenue trend is projected to continue this year, it may moderate, given the slower rate of economic expansion expected later in the year, as well as the anticipated cooling of the housing market--and with it reduced property tax revenue.
But maintaining strong ratings will face other challenges, namely budget pressures from pension and retiree health care obligations as well as Medicaid costs. "Over the short term, it's not likely to result in a significant change in rating trends," says Steven Davidson, the bond association's research director. "It's more of longer-term concern."
We invite you to discuss and comment on this article using social media.


text:
The C3 Project
The C3 Project is a presentation of original music with video, dance, and poetry. Harper's ensemble mixes oil-cured harmonies, humorous tales, pensive imagery, and riotous flights with influences from Ethiopia to New Orleans and Brahms to James Brown.
Darryl Harper, clarinet
Alec Spiegelman, clarinet
Kenny Pexton, clarinet
Brian Landrus, bass clarinet
Marianne Solivan, voice
Lefteris Kordis, piano
Matthew Parrish, bass
Harry "Butch" Reed, drums
See a short video documentary on the C3 Project:
click to see video
Video of "Bone"
Video of "The Important Thing"
Video of "Foray"
Octet Recording Session Photos
Octet concert at VCU


text:
Implant + Breast Implants Q&A
What Do Breast Implants Feel Real?
Do breast implants feel real? Do they feel hard? READ MORE
Excercises to Help Breast Implants Drop Faster?
One silicone breast implant is dropping a lot faster than the other. the one still high up is 325cc and the other 300cc. It has been 14 days since... READ MORE
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Can regular exercise help breast implant rippling disappear or diminish? READ MORE
How Much Swelling is Present 3 Weeks Post Op After Breast Implants?
How much bruising should be visible about 3 weeks after Breast Implants? Does the bruising typically turn brown and yellow by then and start to fade? READ MORE
Tuberous Breast Correction
I have, what I believe to be, a mild case of tuberous breast deformity. I am not so much concerned with the size of my breast, but their shape. In... READ MORE
What Can Be Done to Prevent Encapsulation from Happening?
How often do breasts get encapsulated after breast implants? If this were to happen, about how many days or weeks would it be most likely to occur? READ MORE
Cohesive Silicone Gel Vs Saline Breast Implant for Patient with Lupus?
I'm considering the transaxillary endoscopic Breast Implants using either cohesive silicone gel (gummy bear) or saline implant material. For a person... READ MORE
Will Implants Keep Perky Breasts Perky?
I've heard that breast implants will keep breasts perkier longer (breast-feeding not included). Is this true? If I am young and still have lifted,... READ MORE
What exactly does the "fluff" mean in the term "Drop and Fluff"?
Dr. Melinda Haws MD answered my other question, and mentioned my implants would look better after they have had a chance to "drop and fluff". I've... READ MORE
How Do Breast Implants over the Muscle Protect Against Cancer?
Why do some surgeons believe this (over the muscle implants) is a valid or better reason for reducing the likelihood of cancer in breasts? READ MORE
Cereform Breast Implants
Is anyone familiar with this brand of implant or have experience using it? Is this available in the US? Cost of these compared to other brands?... READ MORE
Breast Implants and Butt Implants and Bigger Thighs, Is This Possible?
Hi, I am interested in getting breast implants and butt implants but the only problem that's bothering me is that my right thigh is sunk inn and... READ MORE
Implant Type for Pectus Excavatum?
Is there a better implant style (moderate plus or high profile silicone) to help correct a mild/moderate pectus excavatum? Does a bigger size help... READ MORE
What is the Best Implant to Use to Fill Out the Top of my Breast
I had a breast uplift plus implant done 6 weeks ago.i had a 320cc implant put in.which makes me a dd.i am still really unhappy with the result.there... READ MORE
Will my implants fluff out more at 4 weeks? (photo)
Hi! I got 390cc HP silicone gel unders about 4 weeks ago, I did a quick measurement on myself to determine how big I am right now (cup size) it came... READ MORE
Losing More Than 50 Pounds After Breast Implants?
I weigh 180 pounds and plan on losing a little over 50 pounds over the next year or 2. i dont plan on doing it the unhealthy way or too fast. whenever... READ MORE
Reduction Plus Agumentation?
Thank you all so very much for the info. that I truly need the ver./full lift. I appreciate all of your comments. I have another ? Is it possible to... READ MORE


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Target: Sharen Jester Turney, CEO of Victoria's Secret Megabrand and Intimate Apparel
Goal: Put an end to child/forced labor in factories and operations that supply Victoria's Secret.
It was Valentine's Day 2009, when Victoria's Secret first boasted its new "pesticide-free, 100 percent rain-fed cotton" panty line. Shoppers everywhere felt proud in supporting a company that helped to improve the lives of families living in places like Burkina Faso where much of this fair-trade cotton was produced. Included with each purchase of cotton panties came a booklet that touted the partnership between the lingerie giant and the farmers who grew and made their products as an investment that is ultimately "Good for women. Good for the children who depend on them."
But a new investigation, headed by Bloomberg's Cam Simpson, has shed light on the circumstances surrounding the harvest and harvesters of this "fair-trade" commodity. According to the report, young children like Clarisse Kambire, a 13-year-old child laborer working on her cousin's farm in Burkina Faso, are forced out of school to work long hours doing grueling work for no pay. "When I get tired, he comes to beat me," Clarisse explained of her 30-year-old foster parent/boss/cousin, who made the move from planting millet for his family's use to upping production of cotton—which, thanks to organizations like Fairtrade International (whose aim is to support workers in low income areas) has made it a more profitable venture.
Of course, thanks to little or no regulation, the line between what is acceptable and unacceptable employment is blurred at best. For example, Baasolokoun Dabire, president of a fair-trade cooperative in the village of Yabogane (the likes of which would be involved with Fairtrade International) believed that child-labor was prohibited—unless, of course, it was somebody else's child doing the work.
Such is the case with Clarisse who, now that the harvesting season is over, can rest easy until a new crop need be prepared again in May. Since the publishing of the Bloomberg report, Rob Cameron has stepped down and relinquished his post as CEO of Fairtrade International. What comes next is to see what Victoria's Secret is going to do about the allegations. Already in a statement, Tammy Roberts Myers of the company has condemned the practice of child-labor and promised that an investigation will be underway to uncover faulty practices.
Clarisse Kambire, a 13-year-old girl living in Burkina Faso toils restlessly at the hands of an abusive employer all for the sake of getting the organically-grown, fair-trade, cotton used in Victoria's Secret lingerie line. Yet while she is unable to attend school and must spend all her days dreading the next, Victoria's Secret has been able to cash in on her hard work.
Stories like Clarisse's are not uncommon in regions of western Africa, where laws prohibiting child labor and forced labor are unclear and weak. With the growth in demand for goods "organic" in nature, so has the incentive for abuse.
While an investigation is outstanding that aims to look into these recent claims of forced child labor, Victoria's Secret must stand firm in its opposition to these abuses. Therefore, I urge you to help put an end to child labor by cutting business ties with any and all facilities that do not meet strict standards against it.
[Your name will go here]


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The James R. Struthers Pastoral Study Leave Fellowship
Established in 2005, the University of the Ozarks Pastoral Study Leave Program is a unique opportunity for Presbyterian pastors to visit the University for personal and professional development.
Through the program, the University funds travel expenses, meals and lodging, as well as an office in Robson Library for the visiting pastor.
Under the program, a different pastor is selected to visit Ozarks for 4-5 days each semester. The visiting pastor can use University resources for personal study time and professional development. They will also have the opportunity to interact with students, faculty and staff through classroom lectures, seminars and presentations, as well as in less formal situations, such as study groups, meals and fellowship. The pastor may also have the opportunity to preside over one of the regular Chapel Worship Services.
Entry into the program is through a competitive process that includes review by an on-campus selection committee. Pastors interested in participating should contact Rev. Elizabeth Gabbard at the address given below:
Rev. Elizabeth Gabbard
University Chaplain
University of the Ozarks
415 N. College Ave.
Clarksville, AR 72830
Fellowship Recipients:
- Spring 2014: The Rev. Rita Wilson
- Fall 2013: The Rev. Jeremy Cain Wilhelmi, associate pastor for youth ministries at the Salisbury Presbyterian Church in Midlothian, Va.
- Spring 2013: The Rev. Leah R. Hrachovec, of First Presbyterian Church in Stillwater, Okla.
- Fall 2012: The honorably retired Rev. Darwin D. Wolfe, of Bentonville, Ark.
- Fall 2011: The Rev. Janet Butin, co-pastor of First United Presbyterian Church in Fayetteville, Ark.
- Fall 2011: The Rev. Dr. Marion A. Humphrey, pastor of Allison Presbyterian Church in Little Rock
- Spring 2011: The Rev. Dr. Debra C. "Debbie" Freeman, minister in residence at the Presbyterian Village in Little Rock
- Fall 2010: The Rev. Jack Harberer, editor for The Presbyterian Outlook
- Spring 2010: Chaplain (Lieutenant Colonel) Barbara K. Sherer, Division Chaplain, 1st Cavalry Division
- 2009: The Rev. Elaine Johnson, First Presbyterian Church Tulsa, OK
- Fall 2008: The Rev. Dr. William F. Galbraith, III, First Presbyterian Church, Fort Smith, AR
- Spring 2008: The Rev. Cathy Ulrich , Central Presbyterian Church, Fort Smith, AR
- Fall 2007: The Rev. Dr. Jeffrey K. London, John Knox Presbyterian Church, Tulsa, OK
- Spring 2007: The Rev. Karen Rogers, First United Presbyterian Church, Guthrie, OK
- Fall 2006: The Rev. James Jacobson, First Presbyterian Church, Guymon, OK
- Spring 2006: The Rev. Jane Huffstetler, St. James Presbyterian Church, Jenks, OK
- Fall 2005: The Rev. Dr. James D. Miller, First Presbyterian Church, Tulsa, OK
See Also:
- About The Rev. Dr. James R. Struthers
- Press Release: U of O introduces visiting pastor program
- Feature Article: Today Magazine (Fall/Winter 2005)


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England has let its fans down: Gerrard
Captain Steven Gerrard admits England's players have let their country down so far at the World Cup and are hungry to turn the campaign around against Slovenia.
He accepted the players were fully responsible for the first two dire performances in Group C but said they had put the disappointment behind them and would pass their biggest test in years by overcoming the group leaders tonight.
"You can see the players are hurt from the Algeria performance," Gerrard said of the goalless draw that sparked outrage at home and was criticised by the British media as useless, toothless and shambolic among other things.
"We know we let the country down by underperforming. We can't wait for the game to start and put that right.
"I can see the hunger in the guys. It's a do-or-die situation.
"We have to improve and we're ready to do the business."
Slovenia has four points, followed by England and the United States on two and Algeria with one.
England has to win unless the United States versus Algeria match in Pretoria finishes level, in which case a high-scoring draw might be enough.
Gerrard understood why England's fans were angry and said the team would fight to rekindle the spirit and form that got it through the qualifiers with nine wins from 10 matches.
"We have a lot of support out here. People have paid good money and they expect us to win matches so we take responsibility," he said.
"We want to make the nation proud and happy and a win will give our people more confidence.
"There were things missing from that performance (against Algeria).
"We want to get those things back, start the game really, really well, play compact and difficult to beat and have that cutting edge in the final third."
England coach Fabio Capello, whose team drew its opener 1-1 with the US, said again there was no mutiny or disharmony in his squad and said the players were focused and expected to beat Slovenia in their final group game.
He has come under fire for his team selections and rigid use of a 4-4-2 formation and conceded he may have made errors.
"It's possible I made some mistakes, it's possible," he said after an uncomfortable pause.
"But it's only the result we should speak about."
The Italian said he expected misfiring striker Wayne Rooney to end his recent slump and scoffed when asked if he would drop John Terry over the central defender's suggestion that there was player unrest in the squad.
Capello said England, one of the pre-tournament favourites, would not crumble under the intense pressure it is facing.
"It isn't a problem to have pressure. This is a play-off for in and out (of the finals), but we're ready to play and the players know there's only one result for us," he said.
Topics: soccer-world-cup, sport, soccer, socceroos, south-africa, united-kingdom, england
First posted


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Margin Call
Release Date: 12 November 2012 | Certificate: Suitable for 15 years and over
Featuring: Stanley Tucci, Simon Baker and Jeremy Irons
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Investment-firm analyst Peter Sullivan (Zachary Quinto) uncovers sensitive information that could easily plunge the entire business into peril, inadvertently destroying the lives and careers of his colleagues in this tense thriller set during the onset of the 2008 financial crisis. Over the course of the next 24 hours, Sullivan realizes that the decisions he makes will not only affect the employees of the firm, but the lives of everyday Americans from coast to coast as well. Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Stanley Tucci, Demi Moore, and Paul Bettany co-star.
Making MARGIN CALL, Deleted scenes, Deleted scenes with commentary, Missed Calls - Moments with cast and crew, From The Deck - Photo Gallery
Release Date: 12 November 2012
Certificate: 15 - Suitable for Persons Aged 15 or Over
Actors: Stanley Tucci, Simon Baker, Jeremy Irons, Penn Badgley, Demi Moore, Zachary Quinto, Kevin Spacey, Mary McDonnell and Paul Bettany
Directed by: J.C. Chandor
Region 2
Aspect Ratio: 1.78 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Sound: Dolby Digital
Running Time: 106 minutes
Production Year: 2012
Main Language: English
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Catalogue No: PHE1694


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International Sites
Site Navigation
Global Social Betterment & Humanitarian Programs Sponsored by the Church of Scientology
Federica Ferrara, a Mother with a Mission
Federica Ferrara is a wife, a daughter and a friend—and most of all, a mother. Her profile is one of 200 "Meet a Scientologist" videos available on the Scientology website at www.Scientology.org [3].
Federica Ferrara of Milan, Italy, believes in simple family values.
"My mother is a Scientologist," says Ferrara. "The two most important things she taught me were the value of communication, and the knowledge that every person—no matter their color, creed, sex or even age—is a spiritual being deserving of respect."
She and her husband Francesco Leone, are raising their daughters, 6-year-old Martina and 8-month-old Camilla, with these values—treating them with all the courtesy and consideration they extend to adults.
Ferrara describes her experience learning Scientology basics as a child.
"When I was six, I completed a children's course in Scientology and learned communication skills that made all the difference in the world when I was growing up," she says.
These skills enabled Ferrara to avoid the conflicts and upsets often associated with childhood.
"So many of the other kids in school would fight," she says. "I was never subjected to that animosity and so I avoided the childhood crises many of my friends experienced."
Ferrara, 27, says a vital parenting tool is Study Technology [5] developed by L. Ron Hubbard [6].
"Mr. Hubbard isolated the three barriers to study and how to overcome them," she says. "This technology made school easy for me. I am using this with my older daughter so she benefits from it too."
Ferrara believes being a mother is not only her most important job—it is a joy and a mission too.
"Children are the future," she says, "and I want my daughters' future to be great."
View the Federica Ferrara video at Scientology.org [7].
The popular "Meet a Scientologist" profiles on the Church of Scientology International Video Channel at Scientology.org now total 200 broadcast-quality documentary videos featuring Scientologists from diverse locations and walks of life. The personal stories are told by Scientologists who are educators, teenagers, skydivers, a golf instructor, a hip-hop dancer, IT manager, stunt pilot, mothers, fathers, dentists, photographers, actors, musicians, fashion designers, engineers, students, business owners and more.
A digital pioneer and leader in the online religious community, in April 2008 the Church of Scientology became the first major religion to launch its own official YouTube Video Channel, which has now been viewed by millions of visitors.
[1] http://www.scientologynews.org/sites/default/files/federica.jpg
[2] http://www.scientologynews.org/sites/default/files/meet-a-scientologist-Federica-Ferrara.pdf
[3] http://www.scientology.org/
[4] http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer
[5] http://www.scientology.org/activity/applied-scholastics/study-technology.html
[6] http://www.scientology.org/l-ron-hubbard.html
[7] http://www.scientology.org/videos/category/meet-a-scientologist/meet-a-scientologist-federica-f.html


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VIDEO: Sneak Peek - Golf Channel's BIG BREAK GREENBRIER Counts Down to Finale
Tonight, December 11, marks the last episode before the finale of GOLF CHANNEL's hit series, BIG BREAK GREENBRIER at 9 PM. Only three competitors remain. Check out the sneak peek of the episode below!
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Posted by Benjamin Ensor on July 31, 2014
Over the past few months, we've been researching a series of reports about the disruptive potential of various clusters of new entrants into financial services, from social lending and crowdfunding to digital investment managers and digital banks.
But many eBusiness executives are more concerned about the potential impact of technology giants like Amazon, Apple or Google with their deep pockets, technological prowess and broad consumer reach.
I originally posted this question on one of Forrester's internal collaboration platforms, but I was so intrigued by the results from my colleagues I thought I would post the same question here to see whether your perspective similarly is thought-provoking.
Please vote in my poll in the column to the right of this post. ->
Have I missed any firms that you think have even greater potential, or plans, to disrupt retail financial services?
Posted by Oliwia Berdak on July 29, 2014
"When will Google launch a bank and what will it look like?" is a question I frequently hear from our banking clients. Google's activities in digital wallets and payments, as well as its reputation as one of the most disruptive firms in the market, have obviously left many banking executives worried. Unfortunately, they're asking the wrong question.
I'll leave aside the issue of whether Google or perhaps Apple or Amazon should be the focus of this increased attention. Each of these players has its unique strengths and growth plans, and some of these correlate more or less closely with financial services. That's not what makes the question so wrong. As I write in my new report, it's the assumptions that are faulty here; assumptions that reveal precisely the type of legacy mindset that makes many retail banks so vulnerable to disruption.
Many retail financial firms still haven't grasped the full potential of digital disruption. They think that new competitors will use their digital might to beat them at their own game, be that through more efficient processes, brilliant algorithms or better user experience. While these three things do matter, what matters most is the purpose which they serve. As I have written elsewhere, digital disruptors like Google are disruptive because they don't play by the rules. Instead, they use digital technologies to deliver better or entirely new ways of meeting customer needs, often bypassing regulation and re-defining a given industry in the process.


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Kevin D. Hudock, 60, of Oil City, died on Wednesday, July 3, 2013, at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital, Pittsburgh.
Friends will be received from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday at the Reinsel Funeral Home, 116 Bissell Ave., Oil City.
Additional visitation will be held one hour prior to the 11 a.m. Mass of Christian Burial on Saturday, July 20, at Our Lady Help of Christians Church, 564 Colbert Ave., Oil City, with the Rev. Father Justin P. Pino presiding. Entombment will take place in St. Bernard Cemetery, Indiana, at the convenience of the family.
Condolences may be sent to www.reinselfuneralhome.com.


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2013 was the year of Lupita. And the whirlwind continues into 2014.
For her superb feature film debut as Patsey in the film 12 Years a Slave, Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong'o was nominated for a Golden Globe award (to air this Sunday), and rumors are swirling that she will follow suit on an Academy Award nomination.
She was also nominated for a British film academy's Rising Star Award. It is the equivalent of the Oscars in the U.S.
30-year old Nyong'o, who has studied at the Yale School of Drama, has been interviewed in countless magazines, has been the darling of the media circuit – lauded for her beauty, style and film performance - and recently made the cover of W magazine's "Movie Issue."
Read more at The Huffington Post.
Lupita Nyong'o Nominated for Golden Globe
By: SERGIE WILLOUGHBY
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
2013 was the year of Lupita. And the whirlwind continues into 2014.
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Summer Party Invitations Tips
The best time to start thinking about all of your summer party plans is at the very beginning of summer, long before everyone's calendar fills up. Whether you're gearing up for a big Fourth of July celebration or a pool party, beach bash or cookout, we've got tips for making sure all of your summer party invitations are perfectly flawless all season long.
When to Send Your Invitations
Although formal events usually require six weeks advanced notice, most summer parties are more like casual get-togethers. That means your party invitations don't have to go out until two weeks before the big day.
What to Include on Your Invites
What should you do if you don't want to clutter your party invitations with text, but you want to convey important information about the event? Our best advice is to let the design of your invitation speak for itself! Use flip flops for a beach party, or a grill for an outdoor barbeque. Then you only have to include the basic facts, including when it is, where it is and how to RSVP.
Just don't forget to add any special instructions, such as whether or not guests should bring their own towels for a pool party, if gifts will be accepted and what types of potluck dishes you'd like to receive.
How to Invite Kids, Parents or Both
If your party invitations aren't specific, people will likely assume your event is family-friendly. However if you chose cute little party invitations that make it obvious you are hosting a kids' party, don't hesitate to note that, "Parents are welcome to join in the fun!" Alternatively, for an all-grown-ups affair, a short note indicating that friends should plan to leave the little ones at home will avoid any unpleasant surprises on the day of the event.


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This will be a first: I am linking to a YouTube video I cannot watch myself (the Cybernanny is on steroids this week), simply because, based on this blogger's endorsement, I suspect it's funny. Let me know.
Richard Burger is the author of Behind the Red Door: Sex in China, an exploration of China's sexual revolution and its clash with traditional Chinese values.


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There are many ways to win a sailing race and a clutch of them were on display to a large America's Cup spectator fleet in Auckland yesterday as the high-scoring nine-point phase of the Louis Vuitton Cup reached a compelling stage .
There are many ways to win a sailing race and a clutch of them were on display to a large America's Cup spectator fleet in Auckland yesterday as the high-scoring nine-point phase of the Louis Vuitton Cup reached a compelling stage .
It was a heartening day for those who like their sailing races won by the raw tactical combat that is match racing at its best. The French and the Japanese scored crucial wins after impressive pre-start phases: Bertrand Pacé, at the helm of the French boat, cleaned out John Kolius' flailing Abracadabra team to win the favoured right-hand end of the start line and, thereafter, the race. But while the French will be heartened by the win, the fact that the Hawaiian boat was quicker through the water does not bode well for their longer-term goal of moving out of ninth place.
Kolius needed the win just as desperately: his team are sailing their second, more radical boat, and the loss to France dropped them to eighth. Only the top six at the end of this round-robin will qualify for the next phase.
Another skipper with an impressive match-racing record is Peter Gilmour, skipper of the Japanese challenge. Gilmour made dramatic work of tying Stars & Stripes' skipper Ken Read in knots and sent Dennis Conner's hired gun scurrying into a tightly packed spectator fleet to break free.
When Read returned, Gilmour was waiting and controlled the start, led Stars & Stripes away and played the shifts to extend an unbeatable margin. The Japanese are the impressive team of this third round, particularly since their three-win, no-loss record has been against the relatively strong middle order. Like the Hawaiians, the Japanese are sailing their second and newest boat, Idaten, and their three nine-point wins have elevated them to third.
By contrast Paul Cayard and the AmericaOne team demonstrated their confidence in progressing past Christmas by electing to sail their first boat once again for this round. Like the Japanese, Cayard has a three-nil record for the round, which puts AmericaOne in second place behind Prada. But while Cayard's results look impeccable, he was given a scare by the Young Australia skipper,James Spithill, sailing the boat his team has chartered from Cayard, who got one over on the man of the moment and led him across the starting line by eight seconds. Gear failure then cost Spithill his lead, but he made inroads into Cayard downwind only to lose sight of the race when further damage occurred on the second upwind leg.
But if winning the pre-start is one way to gain a crucial advantage, catching the wind shifts on the race track is another and the Spanish, after starting evenly with America True, hooked into an early favourable shift, crossed ahead of the Americans and successfully warded off the challenges of America True's helmsman, John Cutler. With Olympic gold medal talent at the wheel of Bravo España in the form of Luis Doreste, the Spanish team now lie in sixth and have an outside chance of making the cut in a week's time.
The easiest way to win a sailing race, of course, is with the opposition stuck back at their compound. With his back to the wall the New York Yacht Club's skipper Ed Baird will take his wins where he can, and none will be easier than yesterday's against the Swiss FAST 2000 syndicate, who were unable to start the race having broken their only mast on Friday.
The sail-over elevated Young America to seventh place and by the end of next week they will know if they are this America's Cup's most expensive mistake or whether they are merely slow starters.Reuse content


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Cold Comfort Crystals$10.00
Safe for all ages, including those that cannot take OTC medications. Sea salt crystals are treated with a mixture of essential oils to create an aromatherapy that can ease congestion from a common cold. When the product container is open, the herbal aroma evaporates off the top crystals providing soothing relief for coughs and colds. To refresh the aromatherapy quality, shake crystals between uses.
This product has not been evaluated by the FDA.
How to Use: Use as aromatherapy for relief of congestion and stuffiness. Open jar and set beside bed or any flat surface. Close container when not in use. Shake between uses.
Ingredients: Sea salt crystals, organic eucalyptus essential oil, organic rosemary essential oil, organic lavender essential oil.
Gluten Free/Vegan


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Detroit art sale could bring less than half collection's value -expert
By Karen Pierog
(Reuters) - The Detroit Institute of Arts collection may be worth as much as $4.6 billion, but a sale of art works would raise less than $2 billion to pay the bankrupt city's creditors, according to a report released on Wednesday.
Michael Plummer, an art expert hired by the institute and the city to evaluate the collection and ways to raise cash from it, concluded that litigation and market conditions would depress prices. Liquidating the most valuable works would eventually force the museum to close, in his opinion.
"Rather than being a source of cash to creditors or a burden on the current city, in fact, the DIA is the single most important cultural asset the city currently owns for rebuilding the vitality of the city," Plummer reported.
Some of Detroit's hold-out creditors have been pushing the city to sell or monetize art works to increase settlement payments in the city's plan to adjust $18 billion of debt and exit the biggest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history.
"The report makes it abundantly clear that selling art to settle debt will not generate the kind of revenue the city's creditors claim it will," said Bill Nowling, spokesman for Detroit Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr.
A spokesman for one of those creditors, bond insurer Financial Guaranty Insurance Co, declined to comment.
Plummer, principal of Artvest Partners LLC, which was paid $112,500 to produce the report, estimated the collection's value at $2.76 billion on the low end, $3.68 billion in the mid-range and $4.6 billion on the high end.
A sale using the mid-range estimate would fetch as much as $1.8 billion or as little as $1.14 billion. Continued...