text:
Power Systems Group is an energy cost reduction consulting firm serving industrial clients and facilities throughout the United States. We are energy and purchase management specialits helping to reduce electrical, natural gas and alternate energy costs. We have a solid record of success assisting manufacturing companies solve utility performance and energy management issues critical to energy cost reduction.
Power Systems Group's focus is to create competitive alternatives to drive down the rate and unit cost paid by commercial and industrial end-users of electricity, natural gas, and competing fuels. We help you save money on energy costs.
Find out more how PSG Energy can help reduce your energy costs »
We work closely with energy forecasters to determine rising electricity and natural gas costs as well as energy costs of utilities nationwide. Trends of all energy prices are up as world demand rises and requirements for pollution reduction at the producer level increases. Commercial and industrial end-users are more closely focusing on cost reduction than ever before.
Power Systems Group's emphasis is on the per unit cost of energy and the solutions we create are tailor-made to your plant or facilities' needs. Power Systems Group customers are typically large manufacturing companies that want and need significant, quantifiable, energy cost reductions to be cost competitive in today's competitive world market.


text:
By Eric Boehm | PA Independent
HARRISBURG – A pension reform plan that adds to the state's long-term debts should not be called reform, according to Pennsylvania Treasurer Rob McCord.
McCord on Tuesday blasted a public pension overhaul being pitched by Gov. Tom Corbett as part of his fiscal year 2013-14 budget proposal. Corbett's plan would reduce in the short term the state's contributions to its pension system – already more than $40 billion in the hole – in the hope of making fundamental changes to benefits that would secure savings over several decades.
"Fundamentally, what this does is make a big problem worse and fail to do the difficult work of talking about how to fund a real liability," McCord said.
Corbett's proposal will increase the state's unfunded liabilities by $5 billion over the next five years, McCord said, citing data from the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center, a liberal think tank based in Harrisburg and backed by unions which oppose the pension changes. The unfunded liability is a calculation of the pension funds' assets minus the benefits owed to current workers and retirees – in other words, the amount they may come up short.
Pennsylvania's State Employees Retirement System, or SERS, is facing a $14 billion debt. The state's Public School Employees Retirement System, or PSERS, has more than $26 billion in debt.
Corbett has made the pension situation a priority for this spring's legislative session.
"Resolving our pension crisis will be the single most important thing we do for decades to come," he said in his Feb. 5 budget address.
Corbett has also described the growing pension costs as a "Pac-Man" that is eating away at other parts of the budget like education and welfare spending as pension costs increase by about $500 million annually for the next few years.
Jay Pagni, spokesman for Corbett's budget office, said McCord's criticism fails to take into account all parts of the overhaul being pitched by the governor.
The short-term increase in costs would be offset with long-term changes in payouts for current and future employees. The governor's proposal would move all new hires into a 401(k)-style pension plan to shift the investment risk from taxpayers to the employees.
"What our plan does is plan for the future," Pagni said. "To pay the costs associated with the pension plans and the mandatory costs for core services and functions the government must provide."
But McCord said Tuesday that the proposed overhaul would not resolve the pension mess and would actually make it worse by "extending the holiday" that the state has been on since 2003, when the General Assembly voted and Gov. Ed Rendell signed off on a plan to decrease payments into the pension plan for a decade.
When the bill was about to come due, the state approved a law in 2010 to reduce the amount that had to be paid into the system each year.
A key part of Corbett's reform would keep those reductions in place and tighten them further – from 4.5 percent annual growth to 2.25 percent annual growth – in order to achieve $175 million in savings this year and further savings in the next five years.
But by not putting those dollars into the pension system, the liability grows.
James McAneny, executive director of the state's Public Employee Retirement Commission, a state agency that advises the legislature on pension issues, said he does not like the idea of further reducing contributions.
"It's not paying what we're supposed to pay," he said. "We have to start paying the bill at some point, and every year we don't pay it, the costs increase."
Pagni said the administration acknowledged those payments had to be made.
Unions representing state workers and public school teachers have promised to challenge any pension changes in court, if those changes go after future benefits for current employees. Similar cases in other states have produced a mixed bag of results, leaving it unclear whether such changes would be constitutional.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have said they are unsure whether there are enough votes in the General Assembly to go after those future benefits for current employees, and Republican leaders said after the budget address that they were unsure about making changes that would be tied up in litigation.
And if the future benefit changes were to blow up in court, the long-term cost savings would be erased, leaving only the short-term cost increases, McAneny warned.
"That's the primary reason for disconnecting the two, in my mind," he said. "You don't want to base your whole future budget on something that might not happen."
By not making the payments now, the governor was essentially planning tax hikes on anyone who lives in Pennsylvania after 2019, when the lowered contribution rates would go away, McCord said.
Conveniently, that's right about the time Corbett would leave office, if he wins a second term next year.
McCord is rumored to be considering a gubernatorial run in 2014 against Corbett. He won a second term as the state's top bookkeeper in 2012, with financial backing from many of the same unions now opposed to the pension overhaul.
Contact Eric Boehm at [email protected].

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Get Together - Toronto Area, US welcome?
View Single Post
Officially Welcomed to the 'Fest
Location: Ontario, Canada
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 120
Mein Auto: 335d M Sport/Premium Pkg
View My Garage
Originally Posted by
Heh neighbour!
I'm on the border of Ajax/Pickering beside Riverside Golf course.
It sure would be nice to dive to the meet together.
We could meet at the parking lot on the Loblaws Super Store at 401/Liverpool Rd and go from there?
Since some are from Mississauga it's best we keep it central so we can all drive almost equal distance as we all love driving our D!
Heck I'd even drive to Mississauga since I bought my ML from the M-B dealer in Mavis Rd.
I've been to this location:
Tim Hortons
2075 Sheppard Ave E
Toronto ON, M2J 1W6
(416) 491-6731
(East fo the 404) beside the new Condo towers on the South side.
That is easy to get to off the 401.
We can all park on the East side of the building.
Perhaps we could meet on Saturday so our friend Wayne's World from the US can join us too?
If he is coming we could even drive to Mississauga!
Saturday/Sunday both days work for me, any location will work. Wayne please chime in....
BTW: I live 5 minutes from the MB dealer on Mavis Road, in laws bought both E's from these guys.
2011 335D Alpine White/Chestnut Brown, M-Sport, Premium, NAV..SOLD
2012 VW Golf TDI Black/Black, Highline, DSG, Nav..His
2012 VW Golf Wagon TDI 6spd White/Black, Highline, Pan Roof, Nav..Hers
View Public Profile
Find all threads started by DZLMAN
Find all posts by DZLMAN
View My Garage
Add DZLMAN to Your Ignore List


text:
EMPAC announces DANCE MOViES COMMISSION 2010-2011
With the widest definition yet of what dance on screen can be, EMPAC announces the 4 recipients of this year's EMPAC DANCE MOViES Commission. Chosen out of 71 proposals by a panel of artists, curators and producers, the projects range widely in format, style and intent: from a contemplative video installation, to massively processed images … Continue reading
For their New York launch, London's Future Cinema presents an immersive experience of Michaelangelo Antonioni's 1966 iconic classic 'Blow Up' on Wednesday 30th June at 8PM at Shangri La Studios, 100 Sutton Street in Greenpoint. This event is FREE.
Red Carpet Muncher 2: Ivan as Cartman, your mom as Kyle & the elusive Mr. Pussy
To those readers flipping the stations of their microaerophile attention spans, X-TINA, a short film directed by yours temporarily, was in the marginalia (literally the basement) at Cannes Film Fest but there nonetheless. This event, held annually for two weeks in May, is over ergo rendering this screed not so much a blog entry but more like a redactive memoir or advice column from the rotting corpses of my former selves. It is, as I am, not bad (meaning: talent-free) as much as naughty.
Rooftop Films 2010 Summer Series: New York Non-Fiction
This Friday, June 18th, you can check out some of the coolest NYC-themed short films by NYC-based filmmakers as part of Rooftop Films' New York Non-Fiction Series. "New York City scratches, splashes, survives, creates, gets sick, dies, makes music, mourns, becomes activated, does its hair, and is reborn in a different shape to do it … Continue reading
Red Carpet Muncher 1: Ivan Bellman on a taut leash at Cannes Film Festival
Ivan Bellman on a taut leash at Cannes Film Festival
Last Address
Last Address is an elegiac film made up of exterior images of the last residential addresses of a group of New York City artists who died of AIDS: a film by Ira Sachs produced by Lucas Joaquin shot by Michael Simmonds edited by Brian A. Kates sound by Damian Volpe additional assistance by Jonathan Boyd … Continue reading
A Quintessential Postmortem on SXSW 2010
The quintessential South by Southwest Festival (SXSW) happening came at the tail end of the festivities on Saturday, March 20th when Joseph Gordon-Levitt hosted and curated an evening of music, film and live performance at the G-Tech Theater located at the Austin Convention Center for hitRecord.org. The music, film and interactive event featured live performances … Continue reading
Dance On Camera Festival
If, like the NY Times dance critic Alastair Macaulay, you are "only slightly acquainted with the work of three of these artists (Beth Gill, Ralph Lemon, Sarah Michelson) and not at all with three others (John Jasperse, Jennifer Monson, Anna Liv Young)," or even if you are, check out the Dance On Camera Festival kicking … Continue reading
up in the air
Frank Rich has a great column in the Times about the new George Clooney movie Up In The Air: "Up in the Air" is not a political movie. It won't be mistaken for either a Michael Moore or Ayn Rand polemic on capitalism. What makes it tick is Ryan's struggle to reclaim his own humanity, … Continue reading
repo man at lincoln center
In the NY TIMES week ahead section they highlighted the upcoming showing of REPO MAN at Lincoln Center saying, REPO MAN "could serve as a manifesto for much of American independent film over the succeeding 25 years." I made a similar argument in an article on Nerve.com called PUNK PLANET. Read it. Some of my … Continue reading


text:
How Billy Mays went from being a boardwalk salesman to pitching Orange Glo and becoming a TV celebrity.
Monthly Archives: June 2009
P&G relocating workers to Cincinnati
Procter & Gamble will move 650 workers from its Governor's Hill office in Symmes Township to its headquarters downtown – some as early as this summer.
This is a concept that is hard for people to get [their] heads around.
Applying For A Job? Great, Give Us Your Google And Facebook Passwords
City of Bozeman, Montana asks job applicants for social networking usernames and passwords on the application.
New LED Bulbs by Sharp Can be Remotely Tuned Between 7 Shades of White
Sharp's introducing 9 new models of LED lightbulbs to Japan in mid-July, but the most innovative of those is the one pictured above…
Highways don't pay for themselves
Critics of mass transit projects claim that we are "subsidizing" such systems, since they do not pay for themselves.
But do roads pay for themselves? The state of Texas says no:
Applying this methodology, revealed that no road pays for itself in gas taxes and fees. For example, in Houston, the 15 miles of SH 99 from I-10 to US 290 will cost $1 billion to build and maintain over its lifetime, while only generating $162 million in gas taxes. That gives a tax gap ratio of .16, which means that the real gas tax rate people would need to pay on this segment of road to completely pay for it would be $2.22 per gallon.
This is just one example, but there is not one road in Texas that pays for itself based on the tax system of today. Some roads pay for about half their true cost, but most roads we have analyzed pay for considerably less.
It became even more obvious that roads don't pay for themselves when we had to bail out the Federal Highway Trust Fund for $8 billion in 2008. And we will have to give the fund another $17 billion over the next year and a half. Income from gas taxes has been decreasing since 2007 — not just because of the recession, but because people are driving more fuel-efficient cars and chosing to drive less.
If you want a truly libertarian system, where every person must pay for his or her fair share, don't forget to make drivers pay for their fair share of roads. If the gas tax across this country jumped to $2.22 per gallon, a lot more people would be pushing for relable mass transit and rail systems.
Alert: Crunchberries Are Not Real Berries
Late last month, a U.S. District Court judge dismissed a complaint filed by a woman who said she'd been buying Cap'n Crunch's Crunch Berries cereal for four years under the assumption that crunchberries are a real berry. "The plaintiff, Janine Sugawara, alleged that she had only recently learned to her dismay that said 'berries' were in fact simply brightly-colored cereal balls."


text:
Address: Edinburgh Road, Peebles, Scottish Borders.
Tel: 01721 725750.
Website: cringletie.com.
First impressions:
Slightly scary. The grounds are dotted with the fearsome modern metal sculptures of a local artist, and the house itself is classic 19th-century baronial Scots: an impregnable mix of turrets and towers, imposing more than welcoming. Once through the graceful glass door, however, things couldn't be more civilised.
What are the rooms like?
Country house sophistication, but not at the expense of fun or comfort - so there are elegant windows overlooking the 28-acre gardens, and flat-screen satellite TV.
The bed test:
Egyptian cotton sheets and feather duvets and pillows - with mere flashes of tasteful tartan.
The bathroom test:
Bed-sized bath, rich Pascal Morabito toiletries, fluffy white robe by Mitre and handtowels bound beautifully, if pointlessly, with straw and a twig.
The restaurant:
Splendid combination of modern presentation (chicken, apricot and pistachio terrine) with solid local ingredients (Scottish black and gold beef) and old-fashion-sized portions (possibly the world's largest yorkshire pudding). Around £30 for a two-course dinner.
The bar:
Good wine list (many by the glass), some rare whiskies and a range of bottles from the excellent local Broughton brewery. The bar itself isn't all that special, but upstairs is a very atmospheric library with brown chesterfield sofas, and a drawing room.
What is there to do nearby?
The Borders are stuffed full of abbeys and castles - Melrose, Jedburgh and Traquair are all close - most with some historical associations (Sir Walter Scott and Queen Mary got about). There's also hunting, fishing, walking and golf. Edinburgh is 45-minutes' drive away.
How much a night?
From £115 per room.


text:
|Back To Agenda
|Print Page
Approve a message describing the Council's request for citizen input regarding a possible ballot initiative establishing Term Limits for posting on the City website.
At the June 18, 2002 City Council meeting, Councilmember Clark proposed that:
Rancho Palos Verdes City Council sponsor a Term Limits Ballot Initiative for inclusion in the November 2002 election, that will give the residents of the City of Rancho Palos Verdes the opportunity to vote for or against the institution of a two (2) consecutive terms, no life time ban, term limit applicable to Rancho Palos Verdes council members in the future.
The Council encouraged citizens to contact City Hall and express their views on Councilmember Clark's proposal.
At the July 2, 2002 City Council meeting Councilmember Clark asked that we pose the term limits question to our citizens by asking the question on our website. The term limits information could appear as a "quick link" on the City Council page and take the user to a page describing the question posed by the Council and include links to Councilmember Clark's memorandum to the City Council, the Daily Breeze and Peninsula News articles on the subject and other information the City Council deems appropriate. Staff was directed to return to the City Council with an appropriate message for the website.
At the September 3, 2002 meeting the City Council reviewed wording proposed by staff, as revised by Mayor Pro Tem Stern and the City Attorney. No agreement was reached on the appropriate message. Staff was directed to place the matter on the September 17, 2002 City Council agenda. Councilmembers who had suggestions for wording were to provide their proposals to the City Manager.
The City Council asked staff to prepare appropriate wording for a website message describing the Term Limits ballot imitative proposal. Below is a suggested message that includes input from Mayor Pro Tem Stern, Councilmember Ferraro and the City Attorney:
Councilmember Larry Clark has asked the City Council to place an initiative measure that would impose Term Limits on the Ballot for the November 2003 election. The measure would give the residents of the City of Rancho Palos Verdes the opportunity to vote for or against the institution of term limits with the following attributes:
(a) Residents would be limited to two (2) consecutive terms, however,
(b) There would be no life time ban, meaning that after serving two terms the resident would have to sit out one election before seeking another term, but could otherwise seek to serve additional terms, and
(c) term limits would be applicable to Rancho Palos Verdes City Council members in the future. Hence any person having previously served or presently serving on the city council prior to the effective date of the proposed initiative would be able to serve an additional two consecutive terms following enactment of the proposed initiative before such person would be required to sit out one election before seeking an additional term.
The issue was proposed by Councilmember Larry Clark at the June 18, 2002 City Council meeting. A copy of his report to the City Council on the subject can be accessed by clicking on the "Councilman Clark's Report" link below. Clicking on the "Daily Breeze" and "PV News" links below can access recent newspaper articles on the issue.
The Council wants you to know that the cost to the City of printing arguments for the ballot initiative will be between $15,000 and $20,000.
The City Council is interested in hearing from City residents about whether or not the Council should place a term limits initiative on the November 2003 ballot. You are encouraged to explain your position or simply respond "yes" or "no." It would be helpful, but not required, if you included your name and residence address.
Responses should be forwarded to email@example.com
Respectfully submitted,


text:
Soy Yogurt
I have noticed that there are more soy yogurts than there used to be, but as someone who is lactose intolerant I was wondering if there would be a way to have them on the weekends as well. Are they extremely expensive, or is there less demand on weekends? I just find that when I want one for brunch they are usually out, even occasionally on week days as well.
Expense has not been the issue, though thanks for understanding that there are cost limitations, rather the issue has been availability. The source from which we get this product "shorted" us two weeks in a row so we are just not starting to receive our regular order again. We will continue monitor this product and increase par levels as necessary.
Thanks for writing
Back to Online Napkin Board


text:
Mark Taylor arrived in England in 1997 as Australian Test captain, but also in a drastic and protracted slump that was threatening his place in the side. He was acutely aware of his predicament but, just in case, was reminded after each fresh failure by another spate of sceptical media speculation. The cycle became self-fulfilling.
Taylor handled all this with the cheerful equanimity that characterised all his cricket endeavours. But for Judy, his wife, it was a different matter. She was in England with their two young sons, and journalists on the tour – I was one – have memories of crossing paths with her in hotel corridors and lifts, and the cold and awkward silences that ensued.
Her distance was perfectly understandable. I remember thinking at the time that he could do something about the bind he was in – and eventually did, by making runs – but she could not. In that sense, the criticism stung her even more than him. He never appeared to take it personally, but it was impossible for her to take it any other way.
I thought of the Taylors last week when watching Tania Hird's outburst against the AFL on the ABC's 7.30 program. In the white noise that ensued, much was lost. Tania is James' wife, and a lawyer, but she was not speaking on his behalf, nor as his legal representative. She was speaking as someone vitally caught up in the drama that has engulfed Essendon for the past year or more, but helpless to do anything about it.
AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou denied her claim of a serious breach of protocol. Essendon president Paul Little invited her in for a chat. Widely, this was interpreted as typical AFL patriarchy, putting the little woman back in her place. Louise Milligan, the 7.30 journalist who put the story together, took up this theme in a long blog.
She noted that others in her report had damned the AFL, including former Victorian premier and AFL arch-critic Jeff Kennett, but only Tania Hird was taken to task for it. She presumed this to be sexism at work.
I think this is unfair and unhelpful. Tania's critique was bound to attract the greatest attention because she was the most closely connected to the fiercest burning issue in the game, and she directly addressed it.
Whether it was Hird's father, son, lawyer, hairdresser, wife or the man himself, it would have generated headlines. Gender was an incidental.
Essendon's foremost problem with the interview was as much to do with timing as content or identity. At the best of times, a football club is a delicate organism, full of headstrong personalities, living on its wits, never better or worse than last week's result, always answerable for it. A football club nearly always has a low tipping point.
This precarious state of existence has been especially true of Essendon since early last year. Players have spoken of their reluctance to show their faces in public, even to go down to the local 7-Eleven. Locum coach Mark "Bomber" Thompson has told of how he found it easier not to go out at all.
It is not germane to this discussion that Essendon put itself in this position, only that it was there.
Between seasons, the Bombers had worked assiduously to damp down their own sense of aggrievement and hysteria so that they could get on with playing football. Little, momentarily even more belligerent than Hird when he became president, suddenly was the leading apostle of peace.
The last thing the Bombers wanted on the first day of the new season was for ghosts of the old to rear up. This was made clear when it was revealed that the players subsequently had made representations to the Hirds to let sleeping dogs lie for now. They will wake up soon enough.
The timing of the 7.30 story was not Tania Hird's doing, but it became her cross to bear. It also distracted from the genuine issues she raised. The who-what-when-where of communications between Demetriou and former president David Evans remains a mystery.
And the AFL can be a bully; it is rare to go through a football week without someone saying that it is unwise to stand against City Hall. Doubtlessly, some at the AFL think that an iron fist is needed to keep control of such a big and boisterous beast, and velvet glove be damned. But it makes for an overbearing image that it probably will try to soften in the post-Demetriou regime.
On talkback radio and social media, some did castigate Tania Hird, and some her husband, for not controlling her. These you have to believe, were the ventings of extremists.
The AFL attracts a higher percentage of female fans than most other sports. Eddie McGuire suggested on Monday that this acted as a civilising force in the grandstands – where violence is virtually unknown – and in the front and back offices, where a gentler polity prevails.
Concerning Essendon, the AFL has enough issues of substance to address already. It can do without this straw woman.


text:
LIRAKIS SAILING KNIFE BUILT IN SHACKLE KEY driver tip
- Sold for: Start Free Trial or Sign In to see what it's worth.
- Item Category: Sports
- Source: eBay
- Sold Date: Aug 25, 2008
- Channel: Auction House Sell similar item on eBay
HIGHEST QUALITY SAILING KNIFE, WITH BUILT IN SHACKLE KEY,SCREWDRIVER TIP,AND LANYARD!!! BEEN IN MY SAFE OVER 20 YEARS,,THIS KNIFE HAS NO PEER FOR QUALITY AMONG SAILING KNIVES. NO COLLECTION IS COMPLETE WITHOUT ONE. KNIFE HAS BAD STAIN ON 1 BOLSTER. PLEASE SEE PICS!!!! AGAIN LOOK AT THE PICS!!! PLEASE SEE MY OTHER ITEMS, ALL PART OF A 45 YEAR COLLECTION AND ALL WILL BE SOLD. DO NOT BID IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A VERIFIED PAYPAL ACCOUNT, LIVE IN THE USA, AND KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A USPS POSTAL MONEY ORDER AND ANY OTHER KIND. IF YOU HAVE BOUGHT FROM ME BEFORE I WILL TAKE YOUR CHECK!!! USPS INSURANCE IS INCLUDED IN MY HIGH SHIPPING CHARGE. EBay has asked me to remind you, that you must be 18 to bid on a knife!!!! So t you are reminded. A man can go in the army, navy , or marines at 17 but has to be 18 to buy a fishing knife???


text:
Women Who Rock: Dorothy Parker
March is National Women's History Month, and we're celebrating by sharing a lady we admire each weekday.
Renowned writer Dorothy Parker was born Dorothy Rothschild in Long Branch, N.J.. Her mother died shortly after her birth, leaving her to be raised by her father and stepmother, both of whom she grew to detest. Her unhappiness at home contributed largely to the literary work she would soon produce.
Parker began her career as a poet, writing for Vanity Fair and Vogue magazines. It was at this time that she came into her own, writing comic analyses of the hypocrisies of modern life. After being terminated from these positions due to her acerbic writings, she went to work as an editor for the newly founded New Yorker magazine. There she published poems that comically depicted her own failed romances.
In 1926, Parker published her first collection of poems entitled Enough Rope, which sold 47,000 copies and was an immediate success. After her divorce from her first husband, Parker was clouded in despair and thoughts of suicide, topics that she freely wrote about. In her popular poem "Resume," she wrote:
Razors pain you;
Rivers are damp;
Acids stain you;
And drugs cause cramp.
Guns aren't lawful;
Nooses give;
Gas smells awful;
You might as well live.
Toward the end of her life, Dorothy Parker became deeply involved in the civil rights and anti-fascist movements in America. Through her suicide attempts, broken marriages, love affairs and heartache, Dorothy Parker captured her pain in her witty poems, short stories, and Hollywood scripts. She died of a heart attack in 1967 at age 73.
Further reading and watching:
[Photo: AP]


text:
Detroit, MI 48202
Detroit is in bankruptcy. As a result of this federal legal process, there will be a lot of changes in Detroit city government, some of these changes will affect:
- employees and retirees of the city,
- some changes will affect people who live in the city, and
- some changes will affect the land use in the city.
We are offering a session in our continuing CitizenDetroit program that will let us explore these inevitable changes, and express our preference on some very important issues facing the Emergency Manager and the bankruptcy judge.
This historic and precedent bankruptcy may well have implications that affect every city not just in Michigan, but in the United States. This is your opportunity to be engaged and make your voice heard through in-person experiential exercises designed to increase voter understanding of the financial crisis occurring in Detroit.
Come join Irvin D. Reid and Sheila Cockrel for dinner and community dialogue Tuesday, February 25, 2014 from 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. at the International Institute of Metro Detroit located at 11 East Kirby, Detroit, MI 48202 (Corner of Kirby and John R).
Limited free parking available. Admission is free. Seating is limited, and reservations are required.
RSVP by February 20, 2014 online or by phone at (313) 577-0300.
This program is presented by the Eugene Applebaum Chair in Community Engagement and the Forum on Contemporary Issues in Society (FOCIS) at Wayne State University. The Eugene Applebaum Chair and FOCIS are made possible through the generosity of alumnus Eugene Applebaum, founding chair of the Wayne State University Foundation.


text:
The 2003 edition of the poll, asked on behalf of USA TODAY and CNN, found that President Bush is the most admired man and New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is the most admired woman.
Talk about odd couples.
Now before you run off and rip the newspaper you are reading this in to shreds or click off if you are viewing it online, consider this further explanation:
Neither Bush nor Clinton was the choice of a majority of Americans. Just 29% listed the president as their first or second choice as most admired man. And only 16% named Clinton their first or second choice as most admired woman.
Hardly anything to start marching in the streets about.
But it is a poll that is taken every year and is the kind of thing the public likes to read as the old year rings out. Lists of everything from the Top 10 movies to the 10 worst books abound to take the edge off the hard news that is our standard fare throughout the rest of the year.
Also ranking high on this year's edition of the most-admired-man list was Pope John Paul II and Secretary of State Colin Powell. Each was listed as the first or second choice by 4% of the 1,004 adults polled in early December.
Former president Bill Clinton came next at 3%.
All coming in at 2% were former President Ronald Reagan, former South African President Nelson Mandela, the Rev. Billy Graham and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Making the list at 1%: former President Jimmy Carter, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, computer tycoon Bill Gates, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the Dalai Lama.
What makes Sen. Clinton's emergence as the most admired woman unusual is that the nation's first lady often tops the list. But this year, first lady Laura Bush placed third, not only behind Clinton but also TV talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who came in second.
Bush was the first or second choice of 6% of the poll's respondents. She finished first once in her three years as first lady, in 2001, shortly after the Sept.11 attacks. She also ranked third in 2002, again behind Clinton and Winfrey.
Clinton, in her eight years as first lady, ranked first six times.
Analysts suggest that Bush's failure to top the list in part reflects her low-key, traditional approach to the role she plays as the wife of the president. Clinton involved herself in health care legislation and gained heavy publicity for her fierce political defense of her husband when he was beset by the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Bush prefers to limit her publicity promoting reading and literacy programs and visiting schools, hardly the stuff that makes headlines or sets the TV cameras whirring.
As Stephen Hess, a presidential scholar at the Brookings Institution noted in an interview in USA TODAY, Bush's third-place finish doesn't suggest that Americans have little respect her.
"An awful lot of this really has to do with celebrity rather than power," he said.
To be sure, Clinton has emerged as a celebrity in addition to being a politician. Her recent memoir, Living History, received tons of publicity this past year, even though it did not contain any explosive revelations. And now, speculation about a possible run for president keeps the New York Democrat's name in the news.
Look for Laura Bush to play a prominent role in her husband's re-election campaign, hoping to turn the good will she has won into a political asset.
So there you have it. The 2003 most-admired list. It means little. But at this relatively slow news time, it fills space.
Happy New Year.


text:
Newberg, OR (Vocus) September 30, 2009
George Fox University, ranked among the top 60 colleges in the nation by Forbes in August, was rated second among Christian universities in Washington Monthly magazine's annual college rankings.
George Fox, included in the "National Universities" category, was ranked 120 overall and second among Council for Christian Colleges & Universities members in the magazine's annual rankings, published in the September/October issue.
In contrast to rankings that focus on what colleges can do for students, Washington Monthly's assessment focused on which colleges are best serving the country based on three criteria - by improving social mobility, producing research and promoting public service.
Among the factors considered were the difference between predicted and actual graduation rate, total research spending, the number of bachelor's recipients who go on to earn Ph.D.s, Peace Corps rank, and the percentage of federal work-study funds spent on community service.
George Fox ranked No. 34 in the nation in predicted/actual graduation rate and was rated No. 83 overall in the bachelor's-to-Ph.D. category. More than 250 schools were evaluated in the "National Universities" category, with the University of California-Berkeley earning the top overall ranking.
Other notable schools rated in the category included Stanford (No. 4), Harvard University (No. 11), Cornell University (No. 17), Yale University (No. 23) and Princeton University (No. 28).
To view the complete "National Universities" category, visit the Washington Monthly web site.
The ranking comes after George Fox was listed as the highest ranked Christian college in the United States in Forbes' August 2009 ranking of "America's Best Colleges." George Fox ranked No. 58 overall on that list. The U.S. Military Academy, Princeton and Cal Tech took the top three spots, respectively.
In addition to its Forbes' ranking, George Fox is the only Christian university in the Pacific Northwest classified by U.S. News & World Report as a national university. More than 3,300 students attend classes on the university's campus in Newberg, Ore., and at teaching centers in Portland, Salem, and Redmond Ore., and Boise, Idaho. George Fox offers bachelor's degrees in more than 40 majors, degree-completion programs for working adults, five seminary degrees, and 12 master's and doctoral degrees.


text:
OMC reader: jcorns23
All blog entries by jcorns23
Rating statistics
Average rating of my blogs: No readers blog entries rated.
Average rating of my Talkbacks: No Talkbacks rated.
Average rating I've given others: Nothing rated.
No recent blog entries.
|Recent Talkbacks
|Article - Dec. 14, 2012
|In search of the perfect pizza: Leonardo's Pizza Parlor
|The author is right- this i...


text:
+ View Offers
This product is already at its best price.
This maxi-length tunic is sure to make heads turn. It features a front slit, front button closure, classic collar and short sleeves.
Work It - Looks classy with black leggings, peep-toes and braided bun.
Complete the look with the believer heel
Material: Viscose
Front button-down closure
Short sleeves
Length: 56"
Machine Wash
Delivery time - 3-6 business days
Returns - If you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, simply write to us within 15 days of receiving your order and we will get the product picked up from your doorstep and issue store credit, refund or exchange the item according to your preference.
Please click here for further information


text:
How Much Does a Spinal Cord Stimulator Cost?
Spinal cord stimulation is something that many people have never heard of since it is a fairly new procedure. Chronic pain is considered to be an ailment that could potentially disable you if you are not able to care for it properly. For many people, the best thing that can be done with the pain from which they suffer is to take medication. However, one of the few techniques that has lately increased in popularity on the market is the spinal cord stimulation. This is the process by which electric currents are used to target the areas and nerves that are the probable cause of the pain. This may allow patient to feel less pain or to possibly eliminate the pain altogether. Technically, the pain will still be there but the patient's body will not focus on it and therefore it will not be felt. On the other hand, the potential cost of the procedure is often a deterring factor that makes people avoid this procedure.
How much does it cost?
- On average, the implantation of a spinal cord stimulator is going to be anywhere from $20,000 to as much as $60,000 without any sort of insurance. This does not include the evaluations and annual fees.
- There are some websites such as Spineuniversity.com that states the total implantation cost would reach as high as $57,800.
- On a mean averaging process, however, the cost and expense of the procedure for a 24-month treatment could reach as high as $52,091. This average is according to the website Journals.lww.com.
- Certain centers can also assess the overall cost of the spinal cord stimulation test based on the actual extent and need of the patient.
What is going to be included?
- The spinal cord stimulator does not technically remove the pain from the patient. Instead, the stimulator masks the pain from which the person suffers and prevents the patient from experiencing it too much. Typically, the spinal cord stimulator is a device that is planted under the person's skin through a surgical procedure.
- Small wires are attached to the generator together with the nerve fibers . When the stimulator is turned on, it results in a mild tingling sensation that interrupts the pain signals that are sent by the brain. The device itself is very much affordable for many, but the treatment, the surgery, and the post-procedure checkups are the ones that usually eat up the budget. To learn more about this procedure, see this Practicalpainmanagement.com article.
- Every year, the patient will have to undergo x-rays, generator replacements, visits to the doctor and have hardware maintenance performed.
What are the extra costs?
- The geographical location is the major aspect that would affect the price of the procedure. It is stated that not every city will have this, and this means that you may have to pay for travel expenses, lodging costs, and other overhead expenses for the procedure.
- Annual maintenance costs for the device would also be present, and you may have to think long term when it comes to this operation. The annual costs can range anywhere from $3,500 to $8,000.
- During the therapy, certain medications will be required to ensure that the implantation works properly.
Factors that influence the price:
- A major element that would often be considered as a factor that affects the price of the procedure is the type of device that is being inserted. The more modern it is, the higher the cost will be.
- The medical center that offers the process is another element that would affect cost. The more advanced the facilities of the heath center, the more expensive the operation will be.
Tips to know:
- It would seem ideal to look into the possibilities of searching for nearby facilities that offer it. This way, you get to reduce the added travel costs.
- If you have insurance that covers this procedure, your coverage may be void if you have to travel out of town to do it. Most insurance companies have regulations that state you must use certain hospitals or doctors unless there is an emergency elsewhere.
- Look for spinal cord stimulator that give you long lasting usage. Avoid those devices that will require constant changing and maintenance. A good stimulator has batteries that can last up to 25 years.
- Talk to a few other people who have had this procedure done to see what their results have been. Ask them if they are glad they had it done or if they wish they would have just dealt with the pain. This may help you in making your decision.
How can I save money?
- The process does not come cheap, and the first thing you need to look into is to ask your doctor whether you really need it. If you have a good health insurance provider, then you can work to have this procedure done easily. However, if you feel that you can work with the chronic pain, then it would be viable to avoid this operation. When it comes to choosing the spinal cord stimulator device, choose a brand that gives you long lasting features and assets.
Advertising Disclosure: This content may include referral links. Please read our disclosure policy for more info.


text:
Unused imageEdit
- The image in question has now been deleted.
This got removed and sent into limbo. Any reason this shouldn't be used or deleted? --Alan 03:38, 6 March 2009 (UTC)
- I was going to wait to make that determination until the book was released. Dayton has said that Kevin ended up not having time to collaborate on writing this one, but there's always the chance that the dual credit might still be on there. -- Michael Warren | Talk 06:10, 6 March 2009 (UTC)
- Update on this - the novel has the cover shown in the article, so I have deleted the image that was being referred to here. -- Michael Warren | Talk 16:19, 24 April 2009 (UTC)


text:
Twentieth Annual Schoodic Scramble
Community Health Forum Understanding Heel Pain, Heel Spurs, and Plantar Fascial Strain
Read More
CANCELLED: Orthopedic Seminar
Pediatric CPR for Babysitters
Twenty-Fourth Annual Chefs' Gala Results!
True Colors Spring 2017
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust Invests in Community Volunteers with MCMH
Free Community Health Forum: Is Arthritis Changing Your Life?
Community Health Forum: Atrial Fibrillation (AFib): What Does It Mean to Me?
Maine Coast Memorial Hospital
50 Union Street
Ellsworth, ME 04605
Phone: (207) 664-5311
Toll Free: (888) 645-8829


text: Hello ! I'm a new user, and my goal is just to use a "better lint", that is : no effort on annotation, only a weak check of my code (for the moment). I try to use splint, but I encounter parse errors everytime. The last time, it was on this line : void* y = (void*) malloc(x); What is difficult to parse here ? Thanks for your help Olivier FAURAX


text:
brand: ETI
BlueTherm® OneBluetooth wireless thermometer with single input
in stock
Warning: Last items in stock!
Availability date:
BlueTherm One Bluetooth thermometer with single input
BlueTherm® OneBluetooth wireless thermometer with single input
Recipient :
* Required fields
or Cancel
The BlueTherm One Bluetooth thermometer is designed to monitor temperatures remotely. Transmitting temperature data to your Android, Windows CE mobile, iOS or Bluetooth® wireless device via a secure connection.
The BlueTherm One offers a single temperature probe socket.
The BlueTherm One Bluetooth thermometer kit includes:
292-611 BlueTherm One and 133-151 thermocouple probe
Each BlueTherm One is housed in an ergonomic case and incorporates a backlit LCD display, red and blue LED. The flashing blue LED indicates Bluetooth® comms transfer, the red LED indicates on/ off and power status.
The BlueTherm One will securely transmit temperature data from one or two probes up to a maximum of 20 metres (line of sight).
Available as a download is the 'Pro App' software which reads two temperatures and provides simple-to-set high and low alarms. The 'Pro App' allows multiple alarms per probe so a process 'profile' can be created.
This App includes programmable alerts and notifications to prompt changes to heat settings or cool-down and also logs data from both probes to a graph.
A wide range of K thermocouple probes can be connected to the BlueTherm One, CLICK HERE for details. The BlueTherm® One is priced exclusive of probes.
Add a probe:
ETI BlueTherm Pro App for Smartphones and tablets - With our BlueTherm Pro App you can record temperature data directly to any Smartphone or Tablet. Use the default setting to simply monitor up to two channels at once, or build a process profile. Start by naming your profile, and probes. Set Hi/Lo alarms as needed for each probe, along with notes to remind you what to do when an alarm sounds.
Use the jump-to-alarm feature to disable, rearrange, or quick edit any alarm in the profile. Set temperature recording intervals, adjust °C/°F settings, and add notes to help identify best practices.
Create as many profiles as you like, and save them for repeated use. View your temperature readings in real time, and watch as the App graphs the results for easy download and data transfer, via email.
Download BlueTherm Pro App Quick Start Guide
ThermaData Studio software for real-time data collection, graphing, statistical analysis, and exporting data in user friendly dashboard style directly to the PC. Available for free download. Single software suite works with ThermaData Loggers, USB Probes and BlueTherm Probes.
View the data you want to see, when you want to see it. Customise the ThermaData Studio dashboard view with real-time trend graphs, table views of recorded readings, statistical analysis, current temperature displays, summary data view and more. Import a map of your facility and with ThermaData RF Wireless and BlueTherm Loggers you can add each device in the map view. See exactly where every alarm condition is located.
ThermaData Studio allows the connection of up to 16 RF Wireless Loggers and an unlimited number of ThermaData Series I & II Loggers.
Eliminate the need for multiple software systems with the ThermaData Logger software package. With only one software system, training, setup, download and temperature monitoring is easy.
HACCP Mobile® for use with iOS devices (iPhone, iPad & iPod Touch)
Record HACCP checklist temps directly to your iPhone, iPad, or Ipod Touch and eliminate paper logs. Temp readings include item, user, hi/lo limits, date, time, and pass/fail result. Results are emailed for reporting. BlueTherm Probe is charged via USB and runs for up to 36 hours per charge.
Biomaster antimicrobial technology is incorporated in the majority ETI products during the manufacturing process, ensuring lifelong protection against the risk of bacterial cross contamination. As well as being harmful to health, outbreaks of food poisoning can damage brands, and the reputation of stores, food producers and restaurants.
The risk of food-borne contamination is widespread, existing in restaurants, bars, hotels, supermarkets, hospitals, schools, aircraft, cruise ships and your home. Anywhere where food is made, prepared or eaten.
Biomaster treated products have been proven to reduce the growth of food borne bacteria such as E.Coli, Salmonella and Campylobacter by up to 99.99%, so by choosing an ETI product with Biomaster additive, you are protected 24 hours a day, every day.
Biomaster Antimicrobial Technology is the leading range of safe, effective and permanent additives for the control of harmful bacteria, making any surface cleaner and more hygienic for its entire lifetime.
Proven to quickly reduce bacteria by up to 99.99% Biomaster is an effective means of reducing the growth of MRSA, E.Coli, Salmonella Campylobacter, Legionella and over 50 other species.
Incorporated into the body material of your ETI product, Biomaster becomes an integral part of it, providing durable, lifelong protection against the threat of cross contamination.
The active ingredient in Biomaster is silver. Silver has been used in its pure form for many centuries to prevent the growth of bacteria.
Incredibly durable, long lasting and highly active, when Biomaster is added during manufacture it is dispersed throughout the product casing, will not wash off and will last for its entire lifetime. Biomaster provides antimicrobial protection without allowing bacteria to develop resistance.
Silver ions bind to the cell surface;
This disrupts the cell and prevents cell growth.
The silver ions are attracted to the Thiol groups in the cell enzymes;
This prevents the bacterium producing energy.
Silver ions interrupt the cell DNA;
This prevents DNA replication and new cell formation.
The Biomaster 3 stage mode of action does not allow bacteria cells to develop resistance, making Biomaster future proof and highly resistant against antibiotic resistant species such as MRSA.
Thermocouple air or gas probe - Type K. fast...
SuperFast Thermapen® 4 thermometers...
Waterproof Thermocouple Penetration Temperature...
Pipe clamp temperature probe for use in the...


text:
Historic building in Eureka could receive upgrades
EUREKA- The Carson Block Building in Eureka, which was built in 1892, is in need of restoration. Now, it could be getting the upgrades it needs, thanks to a resolution that was adopted at the Eureka City Council meeting earlier this week.
City officials say the Carson Block Building in Old Town Eureka on F Street needs to be retrofitted and seismically upgraded. At the Eureka City Council meeting this week, the city council gave the go ahead to staff to apply for a more than $5 million state grant. The project would more than a year to complete. The Mayor of Eureka, Frank Jager, says the restoration project of the commercial building would benefit the city.
"That's a historic building. That was built by Carson who built the Carson Mansion and there used to be a theater in that building that was just a magnificent theater, it was one of the most magnificent things north of San Francisco and to bring that back would be tremendous for the City of Eureka," said Mayor Jager.
The City of Eureka will be awarded the grant in April if the application is approved.


text:
Top Banana
Banana Republic has a new head designer/creative director, Brooks Brothers vet Simon Kneen, according to WWD. His mission will be to up the brand's luxury appeal, introducing "BR Monogram" for women (a higher-priced line that was already rolled out for men this fall), including loads of cashmere in limited availability.
In other Banana news, the store is setting up shop for the first time in the UK in March, long before that bloody Topshop ever gets to our shores. The Regent Street store will occupy three floors of the former Dickens & Jones space...
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
More from ELLE:


text:
shop by Brand
shop by Theme
Newsletter Sign Up
shop by brand
shop by theme
"I just wanted you to know that when the two pieces of flannel I recently ordered arrived, I was thrilled with the quality and everything else about them!"
I received my order today and wanted to tell you I love this fabric!! The quality is awesome. The service I received from you was wonderful as well. What an awesome company - I will be ordering again soon!"
"I wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed your store. WOW is all I can say! Your staff was over the top helpful and friendly. I hope you all put your feet up for awhile when it was over."
Aurifil Cotton Mako 50 weight premium cotton thread. ThreadHand applique' : Ideal for all types of hand applique' . From needle turning to using prepared shapes, the 50 weight is thin and with all the colors available you can match your shape perfectly.
Add To Cart


text:
These authors contributed equally to this work.
This article is an open-access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) can exert a profound effect on Hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication. The interaction of HCV with the highly liver-enriched miRNA, miR-122 represents one such unique example of viruses having evolved mechanism(s) to usurp the host miRNA machinery to support viral life cycle. Furthermore, HCV infection can also trigger changes in the cellular miRNA profile, which may ultimately contribute to the outcome of viral infection. Accumulating knowledge on HCV-host miRNA interactions has ultimately influenced the design of therapeutic interventions against chronic HCV infection. The importance of microRNA modulation in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV-1) replication has been reported, albeit only in the context of HIV-1 mono-infection. The development of HCV infection is dramatically influenced during co-infection with HIV-1. Here, we review the current knowledge on miRNAs in HCV mono-infection. In addition, we discuss the potential role of some miRNAs, identified from the analyses of public data, in HCV/HIV-1 co-infection.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a novel class of small non-coding single-stranded RNAs that regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level by binding to target messenger RNAs (mRNAs) [
Interestingly, recent data support the notion that miRNAs are key players in virus-host interactions and viral pathogenesis [
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the leading cause of chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma affecting 180 million people worldwide [
Activation of the innate immune response through Toll-Like Receptors (TLRs) has a profound impact on the cellular microRNAome. Several miRNAs have been shown to be up-regulated in response to TLR ligands, and many directly target components of the TLR signaling system, and downstream effectors such as interferons (IFNs), cytokines and chemokines (reviewed in [
Biogenetic pathway of cellular miRNAs. MicroRNAs are transcribed from either independent miRNA genes as primary miRNAs (pri-miRNAs) or introns of protein coding genes (mirtrons). The pri-miRNA is cleaved by the Rnase III enzyme Drosha and its binding partner DGCR8 to a hairpin shaped precursor miRNA (pre-miRNA), which is recognized and exported by the nuclear export receptor Exportin 5 and Ran-GTP into the cytoplasm. Once in the cytoplasm, the pre-miRNA is processed by Dicer into a miRNA duplex which is then loaded onto Argonaute proteins to form a RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC). The fate of the target mRNA recognized by the RISC complex depends on the degree of complementarity between the miRNA and its cognate sequence on the mRNA. Typically, identical sequence match between the miRNA and its target site within the 3' UTR of the transcript leads to mRNA cleavage and subsequent degradation while incomplete complementarity often results in suppression of translation.
Due to their similar routes of transmission (sexual and blood-borne), co-infection of HIV-1 and HCV is relatively common. Of the 35 million people infected with HIV-1 worldwide, around 20% (seven million) had chronic hepatitis C [
In this review, we focus on the dynamic interactions between HCV and the host miRNA pathway and its effect on disease pathogenesis. In addition, based on data from the literature on HCV and HIV-1 mono-infection, we have identified some miRNAs of interest in the setting of HCV-HIV-1 co-infection. We discuss their potential role in co-infection with HCV and HIV-1 viruses.
HCV is a single stranded, positive sense RNA virus and its 9.6 kb genome encodes a precursor polyprotein that is approximately 3000 amino acids in length and is co- and post-translationally processed by viral and cellular proteases into four structural proteins (core, envelope proteins E1, E2, and the viroporin p7) and six non-structural viral proteins (NS2, NS3, NS4A, NS4B, NS5A, and NS5B) (reviewed in [
Although mammalian miRNAs may not constitute a
Subsequently, using a bioinformatics approach, Murakami and colleagues identified that miR-199a-3p has a seed sequence match within domain II of the HCV IRES, which is conserved across all HCV genotypes [
In addition to targeting the viral RNA directly, miRNAs can also exert an antiviral effect by modulating (directly or indirectly) the expression of cellular genes that suppress or facilitate viral replication. Heme oxygenase 1 (HMOX1), a cytoprotective protein with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties is negatively regulated by Bach1, a basic leucine zipper mammalian transcriptional repressor [
The fact that several miRNAs can suppress HCV replication either through interaction with the HCV RNA or by modulating host factors that play a role in the viral life cycle may explain tropism restriction of the virus due to tissue specific miRNA content. Based on the literature, at least three and five miRNAs have been shown to promote HCV infection or have "anti-viral" effect (summarized in
MicroRNAs that enhance Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection
|Target on HCV
|Target on HCV-infected cells
|Other effects in host and targets
|Binding to HCV; Enhanced translation [
|Liver homeostasis; Tumor suppressor; Lipid metabolism; Anti-inflammatory [
|Inhibition of the PI3K/Akt pathway [
|PI3K/Akt pathway
|Apoptosis; Bcl-X(L) [
|Inhibition of tumor-suppressor DCL-1[
|Cancer; oxidative stress response [
|Anti-HBV through peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARA) [
Note: NR, not reported
MicroRNAs that inhibit HCV infection
|Relationship with IFN
|Target on HCV
|Target on HCV-infected cells
|Antiviral effect on other viruses
|Independent of IFN [
|Binding to HCV, [
|Induced by IFN [
|Binding to HCV and host protein [
|Induced by IFN [
|Extracellular matrix proteins [
|Influenza [
|Regulates IFNβ expression [
|Binding to HCV, no effects on translation [
|miRs-296,-351, -431, and -448
|Induced by IFN [
Note: NR, not reported
The interaction of miR-122 with the HCV RNA is a unique example of how viruses have evolved strategies to usurp the host miRNA biosynthetic machinery to propagate viral replication (reviewed in [
The dependence of HCV on hepatic miR-122 for viral replication was first demonstrated by Jopling
Apart from stimulating translation and virion release, increased stability of the viral genome has also been implicated as one of the mechanisms by which miR-122 regulates HCV RNA abundance [
Mechanisms implicated in miR-122 mediated increase in HCV RNA abundance. MicroRNA (miRNA)-122 binds at two sites within the 5'UTR of the HCV RNA forming a unique miRNA-viral RNA complex characterized by 3' overhang and internal bulge within the miRNA molecules. The 3' overhang of miR-122 at the first site is proposed to mask the 5' end of the HCV RNA and to increase its cytoplasmic stability by preventing its recognition by cytoplasmic RNA sensors such as the retinoic acid-inducible gene-I (RIG-I) as well as nucleolytic digestion by 5' exonucleases. Additionally, binding of miR-122 to the HCV RNA stimulates virus release and viral RNA translation by enhancing the association of the 48S translation initiation complex.
In view of the role of miR-122 in the HCV life cycle, the observation that certain non-hepatic cell types lacking miR-122 expression can support HCV replication presents a challenge in understanding the requirement of the miRNA for the virus. Chang and colleagues addressed this question by exogenously expressing miR-122 in non-hepatic cells harboring a sub-genomic replicon of HCV and observed a substantial increase in HCV replication suggesting that although miR-122 is not an absolute requirement for the virus, it can significantly enhance viral accumulation [
MicroRNA duplexes typically associate with Argonaute proteins (Ago 1-4) in the pre-RISC complex where they are unwound and separated into guide and passenger strand. The passenger strand is discarded while the guide strand along with the Ago protein forms the mature RISC that mediates translational repression. Considering that miR-122 enhances HCV translation rather than repressing it, an obvious question that arises is whether miR-122 requires the canonical RISC complex to mediate its effect on HCV RNA. Indeed, miR-122 requires Ago2 to enhance HCV translation and accumulation [
Several proteins associated with the miRNA gene silencing complex are present in P bodies (reviewed in [
Given its ability to profoundly impact the HCV life cycle, miR-122 is an attractive therapeutic target against chronic HCV infections. Early in 2010, Lanford
Following the pre-clinical success against HCV of the compound SPC3649 (Miravirsen), Santaris Pharma A/S has now moved the drug to phase 2a clinical trials for evaluation of its safety, tolerability and efficacy in treatment naïve chronic HCV patients [
There is increasing evidence demonstrating changes in the expression of miRNAs in cells infected with viruses belonging to different families. Whether this deregulation is driven directly by viral factors or is a cellular response to infection itself is difficult to prove, and as previously noted, this difference is essentially semantic [
Chronic HCV infection can also induce miRNA changes in the cells of the immune system, which may ultimately contribute to rendering the immune cells dysfunctional, a phenomenon observed in patients who fail to clear the virus [
Although miRNA profiling of tissues from HCV infected individuals has shed considerable light on the relevance of miRNA modulation in disease pathogenesis, several extraneous factors including medications, age, and other factors may contribute to the observed changes. From that viewpoint,
Several HCV proteins have been implicated in interacting with components of the RNAi machinery to prevent the viral genome from being a target of the RNAi. The IRES and replicative intermediate of HCV, both being double stranded RNA structures have been shown to be substrates for Dicer [
The HIV-1 life cycle is fundamentally different from that of HCV. HIV-1 is a retrovirus that enters susceptible host cells such as CD4+ T cells and macrophages containing two copies of positive sense, single-stranded RNA (which encodes for nine genes) and enzymes needed for its productive infection such as reverse transcriptase, protease and integrase. The viral RNA undergoes reverse transcription to form double stranded viral DNA, which is transported to the nucleus for integration into the host genome [
The development of HCV infection is dramatically influenced during co-infection with HIV-1, resulting in augmented viral replication and accelerated progression to chronic hepatitis [
The mechanisms underlying the mutually influential roles of HIV-1 and HCV in co-infected patients are still incompletely understood. Some studies have reported that HCV may negatively affect proliferation of T cells by up-regulating apoptotic pathways [
Previous studies have demonstrated that HCV mono- and HCV/HIV-1 co-infection induce unique immunologic gene expression profiles in PBMCs [
The role of miRNAs in HIV-1 infection is a vastly expanding field [
Given the plethora of publications characterizing the importance of various microRNAs in HIV-1 and HCV infection independently, it is surprising that no reports thus far have characterized the alterations in microRNA expression profiles upon HIV-1/HCV co-infection
The role of miRNAs in regulating not only normal cellular processes but also their contribution to viral pathogenesis and the replication of viruses is already remarkable, despite the fact that we may have uncovered only a fraction of the likely very large number of functional interactions of microRNAs with implications in viral pathogenesis. HCV in particular appears to be profoundly influenced by the host intracellular miRNA environment for its replicative cycle. The ability of the virus to hijack the cellular miRNA machinery for its survival serves as yet another example of how viruses co-evolve with the host. HCV infection is associated with intracellular miRNA changes that are induced as a combined consequence of the host response and perhaps direct effects of the virus. These miRNA alterations have been proposed to serve as useful biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis and response to therapy during HCV infection. Furthermore, over the past few years, the concept of extracellular, circulating miRNAs has gained momentum for its potential to serve as non-invasive molecular markers for various diseased states [
Apart from the biomarker purpose, identification of miRNA alterations that make the cellular environment more conducive to HCV replication could reveal targets for antagomir-based therapy against HCV infection. Indeed, mounting knowledge on the role of cellular miR-122 in maintaining HCV abundance has ultimately led to the development of the first antagomir based therapeutic intervention against HCV infection. The advancement of Miravirsen to phase 2a clinical trials [
A current challenge is to get a better molecular understanding of HCV/HIV-1 co-infection. This knowledge is essential to clearly comprehend the differential molecular mechanisms that may contribute to pathogenesis in infected patients. The expression of miRNAs is highly specific to the cell type or tissues being studied. A difficulty towards the understanding of the role of the miRNAome in HCV/HIV-1 co-infection is to identify cell types with biological significance for both viruses to perform mechanistic studies in cell culture. It is important to point out that most of the studies in the literature characterizing microRNA changes upon HCV infection are in hepatoma cell lines or liver tissue from HCV-infected patients. However, the liver is neither targeted by HIV-1 to establish a productive infection nor has a major role in the development of AIDS. In addition, the ability of HCV to productively infect human cells other than hepatocytes is controversial. In spite of these major differences in tropism, both viruses influence the complex pathogenesis in HCV/HIV-1 co-infected individuals, albeit to varying extents. A recent report characterized microRNA changes in PBMCs from HIV-1 infected patients [
Emerging evidence demonstrates that secreted miRNAs are key regulators of the tumor microenvironment in the liver, and neurodegenaration in the central nervous system [
Overall, the modulation of the expression of miRNAs in the human population represents a difficult task in the years to come. Could it be possible in the future to successfully fight against viral infections using "antagomir" or "mimics" as therapeutic approaches with none or minimal side effects? The challenge is on us.
We apologize to all authors whose work could not be cited due to space restrictions. Studies in the SNM's Lab and the JMG's Lab are supported by research grants from the Public Health Service Grants: NS061179, AI088423 and DK089314 to S.N.M.; NS065727 and AI098549 to J.M.G., from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NS), the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (AI), and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) respectively; and by Drexel University College of Medicine's Internal Funds to SNM. The founders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.


text:
I can live with that. I can't even get the **bleep** origin client to work.
**bleep** connection. **bleep** idea to use DRM. Everyone was fooled.
This is the greatest failure I have ever seen.SHAME ON YOU EA.
Hope your stock value drop to the ground
Well lesson learned...This is the last time i will ever buy a game the day it's released, next time I will wait at least 2 weeks just to make sure that I am not getting ripped off. I no better so I will chalk this up as my fault for being stupid and trusting EA to put out a good product. Someone in that company or better yet an entire department should be fired for this, the money lost on future games will have an effect on your precious profit margins.
Shame on me for being trusting and stupid and shame on you for being greedy.
i have waited for a long time to buy this game, and al i can say is that i am F*&*king disapointed.
Buyed this game for €60,- and this is the most worst spend money of my life!
I am so angry that i cant even spell normal any more!!
I hope you EA people come with a good solution or i am going to find you and
push this game in a place you dont like!
kind regards:P
I agree.
We should SUE them. We paid for a service that is UNAVAILABLE and UNSTABLE.
That was not advertised nor was I warned. I purchased this product on false advertisement of it being a working game.
If they don't want to refund or at least credit to my ea account so I can buy something else I will bring this case to the small people's court and win. Ah I will also have them pay for the court fees. EA can go rot in a corner for their DISGUSTING customer service.
You should all do the same. Or should we for man alliance and sue them for billions for ripping off a few million people?
I am very disappointed with this game, its been five days and still no fix. I really want my money back but in their Origin policy they don't do refund. Its clearly still needs work and lot of the multiplayer elements is week. For example: what's the most important element that all multiplayer always need to have? Well, being able to communicate to other people. Unless you had a friend to communicate through different means, playing with random people is pointless...
EA, either you fix the major problems that's been hindering to play the game soon or give back my money back! If not, then I am done buying any game that comes from EA. There is no excuse, you should have known this will happened.
03-11-2013 07:08 PM - edited 03-11-2013 07:10 PM
Hey EA...you guys suck !!!!! you made God awful DRM piece of garbage. I hope there is a class action lawsuit against you soon cause Im in......this game blows and its horrible that I cant play when I want too....waiting in a Que for 20 minutes?....I dont friggin think so. The PC game industry is going down......because you pukes are worried about some people who will Pirate.....but instead you have to punish all the rest with this garbage. YOU SUCK>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I want my money back and will never buy an EA crap game again !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
At first Origin crashed at every update, so I have to rename files, which had cost me days ti find out...
Then server full and bad
Yesterday again all down
and today updateloop and again not playable...
Totally garbage!!!!
I want my money back, too....
It isn't worth the place on my harddisk ;-(
After the mass effect end and the bad things they've done to UO, now the programming/server quality reaches blizzard-niveau ;-( This was the last ea-game for me!!! because of kickstarter the small companies start to rise again and THEY care for their customers....
I gave this game more than 30 days. Still can't play a game. Every City I have ever made crashes and when I go back in, I'm back to square one or I get an error loading.
Seriously EA... Give my money back. Keep your untested Crap game!
Here's how to check server status for Xbox LIVE, PlayStation™Network, and PC on our help site.How are my game's servers doing?
Try these steps first to clear up any problems you may have when connecting to an EA game.Connection troubleshooting steps
We'll make sure it's you by sending you a code for your trusted devices.Learn more about Login Verification on EA Help


text:
Freida Pinto and Dev Patel can't keep their hands or eyes off each other
London: Freida Pinto and Dev Patel showed that their love certainly hasn't fizzled out even after four years, as they put on a lovely display of affection while attending a Vanity Fair event on Tuesday evening.
The couple sat side by side as the 28-year-old actress hosted an event at Teddy's at Hollywood's Roosevelt Hotel.
The 28-year-old actress grinned as she wrapped her arms around Patel, who gazed lovingly at her, the Daily Mail reported.
The appearance was the couple's first public one since the start of 2012.


text:
The Beaver (2010)
0 wallpapers
Suffering from a severe case of depression, toy company CEO Walter Black (Mel Gibson) begins using a beaver hand puppet to help him open up to his family. With his father seemingly going insane, adolescent son Porter (Anton Yelchin) pushes for his parents to get a divorce. Jodie Foster directs and co-stars as Walter's wife in this dark comedy that also features Riley Thomas Stewart and Jennifer Lawrence.Starring: Jodie Foster, Mel Gibson, Jennifer Lawrence, Anton Yelchin, Zachary Booth
Links: Posters, Official website (US), Summit Entertainment, IMDb
Update your browser for more features.


text:
Most of you have embraced our new messaging system and we're happy to see that you're sending more messages than ever. However, teachers have raised some concerns that we've addressed in this update. We've also introduced some new features to the bulletins.
Please note that the different updates in this article will be released at different times. Don't worry if you are missing some of the functionality mentioned here – the rest will follow soon.
Sending individual messages to course participantsPreviously, a message sent to a course was automatically a group message and every reply was sent to all course participants. Teachers can now choose to send individual messages or start a group conversation.
To tidy things up a bit, a message to a large group of people now only creates one thread in your messages.
Students can no longer send a new message to a course, but they can reply in a group course conversation initiated by a teacher. All existing course conversations will be closed, but teachers can reopen closed messages.
Selecting recipients from a hierarchy
The option that selects recipients from a hierarchy is back. Clicking the search icon next to the recipient field brings up the recipient selector. Like before, the maximum number of recipients is 300 (this number may change).
'Enter' now means line break instead of 'Send'
After feedback from many teachers, we have decided to let 'Enter' insert a line break instead of sending the message.
We've improved how different content is presented in the bulletins, making it easier to distinguish between types of content.
We know that many of you have been missing the ability to embed resources and images in bulletins, as well as scheduling of posts.
In the near future we plan to offer the following enhancements to the bulletins:
If you're interested in our long-term plans for all areas of itslearning, please see our roadmap at: http://www.itslearning.eu/roadmap
Sun, September 18, 2016 @ 12:32 PM
Mon, September 19, 2016 @ 8:37 AM
Your Name:
Your Email/URL (Optional):
Your Comment:
Comment Guidelines: No HTML is allowed. Off-topic or inappropriate comments will be edited or deleted. Thanks.


text:
June 11, 2004
One last word in the Wikipedia debate
I promise this is the last Wikipedia post, but two comments from reader Josh Cagliati actually helped me find a better wording for my Wikipedia criticism. Josh had challenged me to a bet: I should take ten random Wikipedia entries with mistakes in them, and if half of them were not gone by this time next year, he would pay me $10.
I wrote back:
Josh, it's actually not at all unlikely that you might win this bet, which is why my criticism was not that the mistakes don't eventually disappear — actually, that would be a stupid assumption, as the wiki very strongly encourages readers to correct mistakes. So I'm afraid I won't accept this challenge.
This apparently confused Josh. Like most of the people who had written back in defence of Wikipedia, he thought I had criticised the wiki principle, which I had not criticised. He wrote:
Hm, I would not have guessed it from your previous comment. [...] If you believe that mistakes will disappear, I don't see how wikipedia can fail to generate knowledge. I certainly agree that wikipedia has mistakes and inaccuracies, but so does Encyclopedia Britannica. Some of Britannica's mistakes have stayed in for over a hundred years with out being removed, which I highly doubt would happen in wikipedia. In my experience the content of wikipedia articles that have been edited by at least 10 authors [...] is at least comparable to say the world book encyclopedia. [...]
Now everything that Josh is writing here is correct, and yet he is totally besides my point, and comparing apples with oranges.
Josh is writing that mistakes are being removed. I had criticised that people kept adding mistakes to articles. It's odd to me how wikipedia advocates only see that mistakes can be removed, but not that they can also be added.
I wrote:
You are nicely summarizing the problem of Wikipedia:
In effect, Josh was nothing but proving my point of the engineer's way of thinking, that a good technical solution outweighs content. Only the real world isn't working like that.Posted by Horst on June 11, 2004 08:49 AM to books & bookkeeping | Tell-a-friend
We received this ping from The Aardvark Speaks on February 15, 2005 12:52 PM:
Wikipedia revisited: One of my students at the teacher training college had used this Wikipedia entry as the basis for a history lesson on imperialism that he taught in a practice class. His supervisor (not me, by the way) failed him, not for his teaching method, but for g... [more]
The bet would have been fun with a counterpart. You suggest a reasonable researched encyclopedia, he _tries_ to find 10 errors in it and how many of them get fixed in a reasonable time.
He he, yes, that would have been fun. :-)
Communication during 2003 -
Me: The original equipment tires are not listed as an approved tire in the owners manual of my 2001 BMW.
BMW of North America: We will contact you shortly.
BMW of North America: Your manual will be corrected in the next revision.
Final, you specify clearly what you think the problem is. So, as I understand you are making two assertions:
I think that the first assertion is incorrect. In my experience, mistakes get added mainly with new information. The mistakes gradually get removed, and finally, you are left with a nearly mistake free article after sufficient edits. Once the article is perceived by most people to have all the information that is needed, the article goes into a phase where it primarily has mistakes fixed, and very few new mistakes are added.
I know you keep saying that technical solutions do not equal good content, but there are a variety of features that make the improvment of articles easier. First and foremost is Watchlists. Every logged in user gets to make a list of pages that they are interested in watching. The user can then look at the watchlist, which shows the last time that a page in the watchlist was modified. This makes it so that checking say the fifty articles that the user is most knowledgeable on take about 5 minutes a day if there are no mistakes added. If there are some mistakes, then they need to be fixed, which can take more time, but still possible in less than half an hour. Another feature is that the whole history of an article is kept around, and any two version can be compared. If there are changes between the versions, then they will be highlighted ( Example) Therefore, if the article was correct in the past, that version is still around. Edits can also be easily reverted to the previous version, if that is so desired.
Another trend that is happening is that the number of edits per article is increasing ( Wikipedia stats) This is especially interesting considering that the number of articles is also increasing greatly. So, even as the number of articles increases, so does the average amount of editing that each article has. This trend would tend to be consistent with improving articles.
So in short, with regards to the assertion that mistakes are being added faster than they are removed, 1) it is inconsistent with my experience on wikipedia, 2) there are technical features that make it easy to keep track of articles and make sure that changes are improvements, or revert them if they are not, and 3) the trend seems to be more editing of articles, rather than less.
As to your second assertion, Wikipedia is unreliable now, I do agree to some extent. However, I would like to note that on the front page it says "We are building an open-content encyclopedia in many languages." Notice that it says building, not built. There are many proposals for Approval mechanisms on Wikipedia, so that at some point it time, Wikipedia will have articles that can be reliably trusted. Wikipedia is already good enough for many purposes, even if it is not completly reliable.
In my lifetime, I have found mistakes in Books, Encyclopedia's, journal articles, college lectures, news articles and my own thoughts and writings. The real world creates mistakes. Since I started working on wikipedia, there have been many times when I have been reading a book and found a mistake, and instinctively, I looked for the edit this page link. This doesn't exist in books, but it does in Wikipedia. Wikipedia assumes that mistakes will happen, but allows for them to be removed incredibly easy, so they do get removed.
As for the counterpart bet, here are some mistakes from encyclopedias:
Encyclopedia Britannica has had an incorrect explaination for why a Radiometer works since at least the 1911 edition. This mistake is still in the 2003 edition. I think that the incorrect reason could have been eliminated in the past 92 years, since the correct reason has been known since the 1800s.
I spent an hour or so looking at the online Columbia Encyclopedia and found two mistakes in the Price article. First it states: "Most economists hold that, in the long run, price in a competitive market will equal the cost of production." The price will be the average cost of production, and that is assuming that all businesses have the same cost structure. Second: "In the short run, however, the market price will be determined by supply and demand without reference to cost." The cost is built into the supply curve, so the price still has cost information in it. I am sure that if I was interested in finding more mistakes, I could, I just need more time.
Regular encyclopedias have mistakes, just like Wikipedia.
Are you aware just how ridiculous your comparison is?
You are listing one mistake in Britannica, one that has, I might add, been discussed to death by Wikipedia devotees. Almost looks as if it were the only mistake they could find. I'm sure it's not, but citing the same mistake over and over instead of coming up with an estimate of total mistakes does not support your argument.
So that's one mistake. And that is compared to how many mistakes currently in Wikipedia? A couple of thousands? Tens of thousands? Hundreds of thousands? So please excuse me if I don't take your example seriously.
I never said that other encyclopedias are completely error-free. I said that they are better researched, and I said that currently, Wikipedia was a proliferation of noise rather than knowledge. Unless you have proof that, at the present time, Wikipedia does not contain significantly more mistakes than other encyclopedias, I still don't stand corrected.
Okay, here is an estimate for number of mistakes in Columbia Encyclopedia. I looked at five articles in roughly an hour. I found 2 mistakes. Since it has 51,000 articles, then assuming the same rate of mistakes (2 per 5 articles), there are 20400 mistakes in Columbia Encyclopedia. If I missed mistakes in those articles, then then there might be more mistakes. If the articles that I looked at are more mistake prone than the average, then there might be less.
If you think that there are merely 10,000 or less mistakes in Wikipedia (a couple of thousands), then it might compare quite well to the Columbia Encyclopedia.
I was unable to find the place where the radiometer mistake was discussed to death by Wikipedians. Would you be so kind as to provide a link?
I am curious, why I should provide proof that Wikipedia is better than other encyclopedias, when you have not even provided a link to a single mistake in Wikipedia, yet I have provided links to mistakes in two encyclopedias?
Simple: I made a statement, and you more or less said it was unjustified. So naturally you'd have to prove your point to convince me that I'm wrong and you're right, whereas I already believe that I'm right and therefore don't have to prove it to myself.
You are so far failing to convince me. I had thought we were coming closer to understanding each other's points of view for a while, but then you brought up the argument that mistakes in other encyclopedias somehow make mistakes in Wikipedia less of a problem, which I just can't follow. I also can't follow your argument that changes in Wikipedia will always correct an entry and never introduce new mistakes, but most of all I don't see how the fact that Wikipedia may be useful in a few years affects my frustration with its current state.
If you have something to say that addresses my criticism and is not just a repetition of what you and others have already said in the comments on my weblog, then please do so. Otherwise I will close the comments here because this discussion is clearly going nowhere, and I'm losing interest in it.
(By the way, the radiometer was mentioned by Mathias Schindler in his lengthy fisking of my original rant, and again by commenters at the Schockwellenreiter's site. I don't really care whether it's correct or not, I just thought it funny that everyone is mentioning that particular, and fairly obscure, Britannica entry, even though there must be countless other ones with mistakes in them.)
Okay, so dispite that fact that you have repeatedly claimed Wikipedia has an unusual number of mistakes, you will not provide any evidence by linking to articles that have mistakes? Nor have you attempted to quantify the claim. That makes me think that you might have a particularly weak claim.
I honestly had not realized that others have mentioned the radiometer that often.
To get this discussion back on track, here are some assertions that I think we both can agree on:
If you rephrase number 3 to "Mistakes in Wikipedia can easily be corrected", then I can agree with all of them.
Okay, now, two more assertions that I will attempt to convince you of.
First, It it easy to switch an article to a previous version.
Wikipedia stores the complete history of every article. The only exception is articles that have been deleted. To switch back to a previous edition, you need to go to view it in the history, select edit, and then save the old version. This takes about 2 minutes when I do it using a modem.
Second, it is easy to see what has been changed in a set of articles.
All logged in users get a watchlist. It lists the last time that each article on it was changed. Each article has a related changes button. The related changes lists all changes in articles that are linked from the current article. Since there are "articles" like list of economics topics, it is easy to see if there are any changes in any economics articles, or almost any subject you can think of. Lastly, there is recent changes, that lists all the changes that have been made to Wikipedia. From each of these pages, you can go to the link to the history page, or see a diff from the last version. The history page lists all the changes that have been made to the article, and allows the differences (diff) between any two versions to be displayed. So, it is easy to keep track of the changes to a large number of articles.
Archives:Main archive page
Archive Search:
© Copyright 2002-2008 Horst Prillinger,
Most of the stuff on this page is fiction. Everything else is my private opinion. Please read the disclaimer.


text:
Man convicted in BitTorrent piracy case
Page Tools
A Hong Kong man has been convicted for illegally distributing movies over the internet using BitTorrent technology, in what is believed to be the world's first criminal piracy case involving such software.
Chan Nai-ming, 38, was found guilty of copyright infringement for uploading three Hollywood movies to a website without authorisation by using a popular peer-to-peer file-sharing program, a judiciary spokeswoman said.
The Hong Kong customs and excise department said the unemployed Chan was arrested in January.
Chan was released on bail of 5000 Hong Kong dollars ($A855) and a sentencing hearing was scheduled for November 7.
Woody Tsung, chief executive of Hong Kong's Motion Picture Industry Association, welcomed the verdict, saying he thought it would keep internet users in the territory from sharing copyrighted files without license.
"This is an important verdict. This should scare people off from distributing any more unauthorised files on the internet," he said.
Hong Kong's commerce secretary John Tsang also welcomed the decision, saying it was significant as it created a deterrent for possible file-sharers.
He also urged the public, especially young people, to respect intellectual property rights.
The customs department said that since Chan's arrest, file-sharing activities that violated copyright laws had dropped by 80 per cent.
Get the SMH delivered for as little as $3 a week - SAVE 21%


text:
Call our experts: 888.808.FINE
Shop Personalized StationeryCarlson Craft Wedding Invitations Customize any Address Stamp to match your style!
Select a quantity and printing method. Changes are easily made later.
This white card is printed on textured, 100% cotton, Tuscan white cardstock. A bark design, printed in mink and dove inks, is letterpressed on the front of the card. A single heart design is further accentuated by the initials of your choice, hand-drawn in mink ink to complete the look.This design is printed on environmentally-friendly handmade paper and is printed with soy inks on antique presses. The envelopes included with this card are made from 30-100% post-consumer waste.


text:
Harmonious electro-pop greatness with a touch of Alt-rock edge! Checkout Berlin trio NIAS and their video for the catchy single "She Would".
"She Would" is taken from NIAS' self-titled new album, due out March 23 via Berlin's Snowhite label . "She Would" is also out as an EP with remixes by Maral Salmassi, Saint Pauli and Mendoza.
Great track!
NIAS (Facebook)


text:
(Worst) Parent of the Year: Toddler Potty Training In Restaurant
It's not a booster seat but that is a naked child eating chicken nuggets and... sitting.
Screen Cap: KSEE
See Also: Baby Strollers at Devoured?! Young Children?!?! The Horror! See Also: What's the Most Bizarre Thing You've Seen at a Restaurant?
Breast feeding in public has its vociferous avatars and detractors but at the end of the day it is not unreasonable to say that the issue is debatable. Modesty aside, at least everyone is eating in this equation.
But one child-rearing responsibility that should not be on the menu is teaching your child how to drop a deuce over dinner. Which is exactly what happened at a restaurant in Utah last Tuesday. Thankfully, a horrified customer was able to snap a picture for an important PSA and, while the picture has since vanished from Facebook, it lives on through the power of the internet. It's a little sad that this wasn't an Instagram.
We thought Romeo Taus was exaggerating but clearly there is a segment of our population that does not see anything wrong with mixing consumption with elimination. We also have to wonder what sort of "potty training" lesson this sends to the children. Isn't the point of potty training to teach your children when it is appropriate to go to the bathroom? Perhaps not in public and not in a restaurant while you are eating? But maybe the rules are simply very different in that household, who are we to judge.
Perhaps the parents are training their children of crushing gaming related obesity such as those shown in this South Park episode.
Get the Food & Drink Newsletter
Our weekly guide to Phoenix dining includes food news and reviews, as well as dining events and interviews with chefs and restaurant owners.
Recommended for You
Powered by SailThru
Popular Stories
Sponsor Content


text:
Either way, families cop a budget beating
Whether it's Julia Gillard or Tony Abbott at the helm come September, it looks as though families will be the big Budget losers.
This article was originally published in The Telegraph. By Samantha Maiden.
For all the collective gasbagging about the nation's Forgotten Families, the reality doesn't always match the rhetoric.
It's almost an accepted wisdom that families will be better off under Abbott because he will axe the carbon tax but keep Labor's tax cuts. Most families would be better off. But there are losers.
When The Sunday Telegraph asked Australia's National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling to crunch the numbers the results were revealing.
The baseline assumptions were Abbott's pledge to axe the carbon tax, keep the carbon compo, and abolish the Schoolkids Bonus, the baby bonus and a range of other Labor cuts.
University of Canberra's Ben Phillips found that while it was true the vast majority of families would be out in front in cash terms, the sting in the tale was Tony Abbott's pledge to abolish the Schoolkids Bonus.
This would really hit families earning under $100,000 a year. For a couple earning under $50,000 a year with children, the removal of this bonus could see them up to $738 a year worse off by 2015 under the Coalition. Nearly 80 per cent of those families are losers. That's even with no carbon tax.
Even for a family with a combined income of $96,000, nearly half could lose cash under the Coalition, according to the NATSEM research. On average, it would amount to up to $400 a year.
When Phillips crunched the numbers under Labor's budget, which axed the baby bonus but retained the Schoolkids Bonus, it was also couples with kids that emerged the biggest losers – but that was with a carbon tax still in place.
The Schoolkids Bonus was the big sweetener in the 2012 May Budget, an automatic payment of $820 for every high school child and $410 for primary school student in eligible families.
As a policy the Schoolkids Bonus scheme tells you all you need to know about how Treasurer Wayne Swan has quietly nipped and tucked Australia's welfare and payment system to redistribute income to low and middle income earners.
Slowly but surely Labor has introduced means tests for the baby bonus and family tax benefits, frontloading the assistance to the families it believes need it most.
Meanwhile, the Coalition is also starting to mount some rubbery arguments around the decision to defer planned increases to the compulsory superannuation payments.
Both sides back a move to increase super payments from 9 to 12 per cent of salary, but the Coalition plans to get there slowly.
During his budget-in-reply speech Joe Hockey argued that workers would get the cash via automatic wage increases.
"I don't accept the basis that the delay in superannuation from 2019 to 2021 is going to make people worse off because they will get more money into their pockets during that period," Hockey said.
But does anyone really think bosses are going to automatically top up anyone's wages if they get a brief reprieve on compulsory super payments?
Turn it up, Joe!
More related content from Kidspot:
- The 2013 budget: The tweet sheet
- What do the superannuation reforms mean for you?
- So you don't want to vote for anyone?
More on the 2013 budget:
- Federal budget 2013: What it means for you from News.com.au
- (un)Family friendly budget 2013 draws battle lines for Federal Election from The Telegraph
- Battle lines drawn over axing of baby bonus from The Australian


text:
| Home | Fiction
| Listserv | Creative
Archives | Scholarly Archives
| Book Review Archives | Critical Essays | Contribute | Search the Site |
By: Michelle Wildgen
Review by: Cheryl A Townsend
Wildgen, a former Ohio Stowite bookworm, masters her first novel with the tightest story Ive read in years. As strippingly honest as Ethan Hawke with the simple elegance of Kent Haruf and a touch of Jennifer Weiners wit. No padding, no redundancies, just impeccably good writing with incredible insight into the life of a Lou Gehrigs victim. With respect and empathy, Wildgen takes us into the home and oh-so-personal life of Kate, a rapidly declining, well-to-do sufferer of the disease and Bec, the happenstance caretaker who stumbled into the job that inevitably becomes her life, if only temporarily.
Bec was just looking for a change. Her go-no-where love affair with a married professor, her flailing college career and mundane job sends her seeking a better meaning to life. She finds that and more via servitude and living by proxy as a home health aide. At first, Becs ineptitude and embarrassment of the situations she is assigned to tarry her edification. But Kates own patience and sincere gratitude soon segue to Becs niche in her new endeavor.
Bec has to translate, in first person, for Kates strained whispers, emoting the intent of origin, (hence, the title), tend to all her hygienic needs and take on all household tasks. When Kate tells her husband to move out, in lieu of his just seeking sexual release elsewhere, Bec moves in and takes over everything.
A close, (yet no too close), relationship evolves with a bonding that steps just to the side of professionalism. Kates wealth is evident and her generosity abundant, frequently lavishing Bec with spontaneous perks. Kate also has several close friends, caring parents and a realistic outlook to her encroaching end. Strict instructions are given and taken when her time comes, which leaves Bec in a lost state of identity until she finds diverted fulfillment in a cooking job garnered by the palatable masterpieces prepared in Kates employ. Though Kate remains a ghost in Becs life, she is neither haunting nor unwelcome.
* As an added bonus, there are several great cooking tips thrown into a couple kitchen scenes.