text:
Forum:I'm leaving, and it's your fault
From Uncyclopedia, the content-free encyclopedia
Be still, beating hearts. It is not I who am leaving but Llwy-ar-lawr. By way of history, she announced earlier that she was leaving for Illogicopedia. This followed her attempt to defend the honor of the Welsh from calumny done to it in the feature article Sheep.
She now announces she is leaving for another website that calls itself Uncyclopedia, for several manufactured reasons:
- The Abuse Filter
Special:AbuseFilter/17 is supposedly a vile bit of Wikia dictatorship designed to prevent editors from putting external links in articles. Only, Wikia has had no input on the settings of any of our Abuse Filters. In the modern era, its settings are my works. What AF17 has done for a long time is placed, in boldface in Special:RecentChanges, a warning that a given edit Added link to external website. What happens then is that a human being reviews the edit. Most notably in the case where an editor wants us to view a funny YouTube video that he just saw, I revert it and often tell the editor, "Uncyclopedia is a place for original comedy creations, not a catalog of funny stuff available elsewhere on the Internet."
On 1-May, I changed the settings for AF17 from "Tag" (described above) to the current "Warn, Tag." All this means is that the editor herself is asked to reconsider the edit (and is shown the text of MediaWiki:abusefilter-warning-externallink, which I wrote). If the editor persists, the edit stands, though it is flagged for review as before.
I discussed with Llwy why this happened--it caught her as she was trying to link her Kitty Store to an earlier version at Illogicopedia--and she was at peace with it, or at least she did not think it was Wikia sorcery.
- The Forum
Llwy also tried to create a Forum on the horrible disrepair of the Welsh-language Uncyclopedia, a franchise we found out doesn't even belong to Wikia. I moved it to her website--not because it was a link to an external wiki but because it was unwise to broadcast to all Uncyclopedians about a situation at some other website to which most of us are linguistically incapable of contributing--and indeed the resulting conversations identified the best course of action--and she seemed to understand and accept that act as well.
- England's domination of Wales
She tries to use an analogy on her user page (which elsewhere she claims she blanked) of England banning the use of the Welsh language in Wales. Now Wikia is banning her use of external links on Uncyclopedia. Except, it's not.
Llwy is quick to give me profuse thanks for "constructive feedback" and other help, and quick to make clear that the problem is simply "because my temper and Wikia do not mix well." Only one nagging problem: Wikia is not a part of any of this.
- Conclusion
Llwy has been lured to a competing website and fed a line that is at odds from what she previously knew, a line that leaving this website is a heroic blow against Wikia, the Corporate System, the One Percent, or what-have-you; including in cases where the only cited act is an act performed by me. This is as phony as the heroic narrative originally given to Uncyclopedians in January to stampede them off our website.
- If you want to leave, leave; but don't blame Wikia or make geopolitical analogies to defend your actions.
- It is evident that the impostor Uncyclopedia is still cherry-picking our good editors and still intent on sabotaging us; despite continuing manipulative rhetoric that Uncyclopedians are "a community" independent of website, so that when they try to harm Wikia it is all-of-us doing it.
- It is preposterous that the purveyors of the fake Uncyclopedia still have Admin powers on this website. They directly, immediately, and in some cases financially, would benefit from its demise. Spıke Ѧ 00:16 6-May-13
- conversation moved to Forum:Content warning, round 3
I too was sorry to hear that Llwy-ar-lawr has decided not to edit at this site. Our external link policy (which affected advertising a non-wikia welsh site) is in place for a reason, and part of that reason is Wikia. Unlike SPIKE, I do consider both sites to be Uncyclopedia divided, and I intend to edit both places, though there is more to do for me here than there, so I am on this site more than the other. When asked in the chatroom why I don't abandon this wiki, it is because I do not think it would benefit anyone in the long run for this site to become a vandalized mess like wackypedia has become, and I value the history of this site too much to see it abandoned outright. Besides, we rate higher on the search engines than the other site. A number of our writers have left, but some have stayed, and we are starting to get new people here who can form a new community. I do not think, given the numbers available on the other site, that some of our (former) admins stand to benefit financially from the demise of this site - if this site becomes abandoned, it does not follow that everybody will then go to the new site automatically, and even those who do go to the fork are not necessarily going to donate to support the fork. We are far more financially stable than they are at this point. Besides, the tastes of those who left for the fork and my own are very different - they seem to be much more into sexual and potty humor than I am, and their current front page feature is what I would describe as tasteless and lacking class. Unfortunately, more of the same is certain to follow in the future. I think some of the former admins can still work with this site, provided that they keep the goals of this site in mind, and keep to our policies of not promoting the fork on this website. Whether or not to deop admins that have chosen the fork over this site and no longer do anything here is a discussion for a different forum. -- Simsilikesims(♀GUN) Talk here. 01:45, May 6, 2013 (UTC)
- Yeah, today's feature on the fork is something that if it came here would be QVFD. Although it may be very funny - I don't get what the guy on the left is saying so I'm maybe missing the joke. If I'm not, and that was featured, it demeans uncyclopedia to a point that's over my limit. On the other hand, it is an artistic statement by the uncensored uncy about breaking limits. The title must mean something. Yes, it does lack class. Is that a good thing? I don't think so when I look at where music has fallen apart with rap becoming not only current but has been around so long that some of it is now old school - and it's an abomination of music and good taste. But as long as both sites continue to publish quality stuff as well, we won't be in danger of things averaging out at the level of today's feature on the fork. Aleister 2:03 6-5-'13
- Apart from the general mandate from Wikia not to use its servers to make its traffic go away, Wikia had no involvement in the discussion of the Welsh website. Sannse confirmed that it was not a Wikia franchise. Llwy (see User:Llwy-ar-lawr/Celwyddoniadur going down the tubes) seems to have interpreted my generic message from AF17 warning against external links as a Wikia "scolding" about posting a link to her planned non-Wikia Welsh fork. To be clear, you will see my message even if you direct traffic to a Wikia wiki, or direct it to an Uncyclopedia using
httpinstead of the double-bracket coding. None of that "scolding" means prohibition, except subject to review by our Admins (actually, by anyone who follows RecentChanges and patrols the site).
- Apart from the general mandate from Wikia not to use its servers to make its traffic go away, Wikia had no involvement in the discussion of the Welsh website. Sannse confirmed that it was not a Wikia franchise. Llwy (see User:Llwy-ar-lawr/Celwyddoniadur going down the tubes) seems to have interpreted my generic message from AF17 warning against external links as a Wikia "scolding" about posting a link to her planned non-Wikia Welsh fork. To be clear, you will see my message even if you direct traffic to a Wikia wiki, or direct it to an Uncyclopedia using
- conversation moved to Forum:Content warning, round 3
I was quite surprised by Llwyr's comments and was sad to see her go. the sudden outburst I didn't think was very like her and I personally think that someone on the other site put those words into her mouth however I am not saying that the whole of the other site agrees with what she said.
I personally wouldn't go to the other site as I would need to set up an account all over again as none of my stuff is on there (noob) and I already have things featured here which aren't likely to get featured on there if they prefer to vote for something much more immature like what's on their front page.
I also think this site is better run thanks to the above three users, we aren't thinking of getting rid of VFH and we aren't likely to have no users when the current ones leave as more join our site (I think). Also this website upholds the true intentions of a wiklpedia parody and isn't full of memes and immature in-jokes.
To conclude: I'm staying and no one gonna make me move my bottom. Sir ScottPat (talk) VFH UnS NotM WotM WotY 11:22, May 6, 2013 (UTC)
- I think I need to make a point here. External links are allowed. There are several methods that will attract AF-17, and a few that - by design - won't.
http://cy.uncyclopedia.org.uk/wiki/will attract AF-17
<youtube>will attract the filter
[[cy:]]will not attract the filter
- That last option is an interwiki link. (Without the leading colon it would be an interlanguage link.) We have numerous non-Wikia links that remain in our iw links. These links have recently been denuded from the fork, which means that iw link wouldn't work over there. (This edit was not filtered.) • Puppy's talk page • 12:51 07 May 2013
Thought I should say something
I was rather surprised to find out at what length I was being discussed. Perhaps I shouldn't have. Anyway, here goes whatever.
I never 'left' for Illogicopedia. All I did was to move a rather random and incoherent article there, rewrite it in Uncyclopedia style and add a link to the ?pedia version for interest and insight. Not sure how this constitutes 'leaving'...?
About Wikia, what I said was a bit out of character and more than a little uncivil. Shocking as it may seem, nobody actually put words in my mouth. The comparison with Welsh Not was prompted by one thing, and one thing only: being the first 'victim' of the new abuse filter, and the first of many to be reprimanded for adding external links, is no more fair, and essentially no different, from being the only Welsh speaker of many in the class punished for displaying this ability by virtue of being the last one to be given the board. That was my point. I believe the analogy is accurate here.
The other reason I got fed up was the seeming emphasis on what's good for Wikia. It's not at all that I hate Wikia; rather, I couldn't care less about them. (Hence the inappropriateness of comparing them to the British establishment. My opinion of that, well, the less said about it the better.) Naturally, because I don't much care about Wikia, I get annoyed when I'm expected to conform to rules that seem to serve no purpose other than to help them out -- and besides, they don't seem to need help. I just dislike the tone of what I am being told. I don't want to get into a discussion of whether X wiki is 'better' than Y wiki and how I should be on X and be loyal to it and make sure to avoid Y. That just bugs me. I am impartial to wikis. If I am expected to be partial in my judgement of such and such wiki, I will just leave.
The third, and relatively minor, reason I left was that it's just plain frustrating to be on two sites that are essentially the same because you basically have to do everything twice.
Spike, I was quick to thank you because I wanted to make clear that I wasn't blaming you. You have always been very nice to me and I believed it was mainly because of Wikia that you complained about my external links. I just didn't want you to think you had made me leave.
I did blank my userpage. However I then replaced it with what you see now. I suppose I should blank it again -- but what I would really like to do, point a link to the Uncyclopedia (which is not an impostor, just a copy), is the very thing I can't do.
Finally, I did not leave because of anti-Welshism. That is just what I came here to fix. -– Llwy-ar-lawr • talk • contribs • 02:49, May 8, 2013 (UTC)
Thought I should reply something
Llwy, I am not an admin but I think I have enough knowledge about some of the points you have raised here and that's why I want to answer you. In addition to this, if some of the admins sees what you have written so far, the debates might begin again and no one wants you to leave (honestly).
- Nobody is against you going to the Welsh wiki. The only problem is that, as Spike said, we are 'linguistically incapable of contributing to it' and, for the same reason, we can't admire your work (that's what the admins secretly think) there.
- We understand your noble desire to defend Welsh pilgrims and fight against racism (well, anti-Welshism) on Uncyclopedia, but the point is that there isn't any. Well, maybe there are some jokes which can be considered anti-Welsh but that's the same situation as with all the other countries: we make jokes about everyone,
- The first two points were mine, now I will try to speak from the point of view of the admins. What you basically said is that Wiki's policies (in addition to the tone in which they remind you about obeying them) piss you off and you actually don't care about Wiki. Well, if you are a user on Wiki, then you should care a little bit about it! The policies on Uncyclopedia are not made to help them to survive: they are made to keep this project great (well, maybe not for everyone). The external policies link is useful because it prevents people from posting random stuff from other websites, YouTube or other (Facebook is made for that). So, in a way, we can say that Uncyc wants people to develop their creativity and humor skills :). If you are a member of Wiki, then you should obey its policies which are not made in order to make people angry but to help this site improve itself.
- Well, you said that you don't like the tone with which the rules are being told to you. You are not singular because I can name you a lot of people (take Dannyboy as the example) who didn't like it here neither but by now have managed to overcome their anger and are very good humor writers, reviewers, journalists, etc.
To conclude: The rules are made to
be broken help everyone (not just the inventor of Uncyc) and to have a healthier community; I know you can't be at two different places at the same time but we don't want you to leave because of several misunderstandings; finally, we are not that racists!
Anton (talk) 19:15, May 8, 2013 (UTC)
- Thank you for trying to explain. No, the anti-Welshism isn't that major. Yes, the rules do seem to be to help Wikia. I added a link to an Illogicopedia article on the same subject and got told off for it. It was not a random thing I thought was funny but another article on another parody encyclopedia intended for interest value. I'm sure you didn't intend to imply this but I feel as if I am being told that my creativity and humor need work just because I added a stupid link to my article. Maybe they do need work but that's beside the point, isn't it? What I mean is that what I did is not obviously threatening to the community and I don't understand why I am not allowed to if it's not so Wikia can have more business. You see, I think of all wikis as equals and they should be able to link freely between each other (with the exception of Wikipedia; it shouldn't reference humour wikis too much). Illogicopedia is not that different from Uncyc, so why can't they link to each other?
- I care enough about Wikia to be concerned if it's genuinely in trouble. If it really didn't have enough users I might make more of an effort to follow its rules on links. But in the present state of things I'm simply not interested in giving Wikia help it doesn't need. I am also not interested in hearing about how one Uncyc is better than the other. I have heard a lot of statements to that effect and it really turns me off. The non-Wikia mirror is not the 'dark side', an 'impostor' or any of that. Let's not judge a book by its cover. It may indeed be worse but that statement should be based on the content of its articles and the behavior of its users, something I haven't looked into enough to have a clear view of things.
- In spite of the relevant stereotype I do not want to argue, so I think I won't be discussing this much further. I have made my points. The external link policy is being applied too broadly for its ostensible purpose. The abuse filter is fine but warning me on my talk page was not. This is my opinion, at least. You may see it another way. If anyone decides that my link was all right after all I will re-add it to a section titled 'external links'. Otherwise I will give up and make sure never, ever to add external links to anything. After all, it really doesn't matter that much. -– Llwy-ar-lawr • talk • contribs • 23:57, May 8, 2013 (UTC)
- Thanks for checking in. The only thing missing: Again, your gripe is with me, including for "telling you off" on your talk page. I say I did not tell you off, any more than I am telling you off here, but explaining something that you seemed to accept. And I'll explain it again: We want to see your comedy creations, not what someone else did elsewhere, nor even what you did elsewhere, though you are free to reference your portfolio on your user page. That policy statement is my interpretation of the more general Wikia policy, especially as we are living here without paying rent, and the thing that keeps it and us going is preserving its traffic. It would be nice if everything were free (no, it really wouldn't) and if your Ford dealer could admit you'd really be better off driving a Hyundai, but this is the real world, and our current arrangement beats paying a subscription fee. Sections on external links I savage as often as I do the toilet-pun "Discographies." Spıke Ѧ 00:23 9-May-13
Thought I should ask something
Is there anybody who actually likes the English? • Puppy's talk page • 08:26 08 May 2013
- Funnily enough there is. (and I'm half Scottish!(Who likes the Scots?(Well funnily enough...))) Sir ScottPat (talk) VFH UnS NotM WotM WotY 20:35, May 8, 2013 (UTC)
- PS - Actually scrap that I'll pretend I'm fully Scottish. Yeah who likes those stupid English people? Sir ScottPat (talk) VFH UnS NotM WotM WotY 20:37, May 8, 2013 (UTC)
- Llwy's latest edit of her user page says she can be found on the Welsh wiki. She will be a very big fish in a very small pond. Like everyone else, she is welcome to edit here. Anton, Dannyboy is not an example of someone who worked well with the rules. After early months of self-nominating, demanding honors and concessions, and making a handful of edits without a shred of humor, ScottPat drew Dannyboy into useful collaboration on the first UnSignpost of the new era. Then Dannyboy wrote the unfunny User:Dannyboy1209/Melon, edit-warred with Simsie over whether it should be in userspace, and went back to his own ways and I banned him. Spıke Ѧ 21:24 8-May-13
- PS--Tonight the former (Llwy) returns to edit the latter (Melon) and, as Professor Peter Schickele would say, it is "an hysteric return." Spıke Ѧ 23:30 8-May-13
Well. I didn't know Dannyboy has really been banned (sorry, Scott, I thought it was a joke). I said that he is an example of someone who had problems with the rules but now actually contributes (well he helped Scott with the newspaper). Llwy, I has never said that you lack creativity or anything, as you may notice, I have only said good things about your work. Anton (talk) 16:21, May 9, 2013 (UTC)
Me, me, me, me
Do any of you Jamokes believe in writing section headings that actually describe the section's contents? Spıke Ѧ 00:26 9-May-13
- Where's the fun in that? • Puppy's talk page • 12:45 09 May 2013
More points to make
The concern with linking to other websites of a similar nature is that it draws traffic away from this site. Having said that, there is no issue in doing so in your user page, as long as it's clear that the link is going to an external site. Linking from an article to a similar article in a different language is fine, and encouraged in the interlanguage links - of which Cyrdlingmilk[1] is one of these links. Using your user page to point to other homes is fine, but using it to say "this is better/real/etc." is a concern.
Embedding YouTube videos is debatable in terms of it's merit to an article. The reason for Spike cracking down on them - as I had been previously - is that embedding yt into pages that aren't relevant at all - such as Spambox - increases the videos Page rank[2] on search engines, and therefore artificially inflates its popularity. Which means people add videos that are original but unrelated to pages which detracts from the value of the page it's on. Some pages, such as Unfomercial:Playstation, are all about the video. In this case the video was an Uncyclopedian production for the purposes of an Uncyclopedian article. Likewise there was a forum linking to a video put forward as our anthem. That was not an original production, but suited the site.
Insulting any nationality, religion, species, creed, etc., is part of the purpose of the site.
Spike's "warning" on that talk page was polite and gave a small explanation. Wether you like him or not - which up to that point I thought all the discourses seemed to be mixed in with mutual respect - is immaterial. He went there to explain and educate, not cajole or berate.
As for users leaving the site - it happens, and having been here long enough I have difficulty being over concerned about it. I don't think it's viable for the leaver to create a forum, but if they do the forum is generally treated with the respect it deserves. [3][4] Creating a forum for another user that has departed seems to be a waste of time and energy. The person who has left generally doesn't care, and those that remain usually just keep going on anyway.
Llwy, if you are leaving, bon voyage. If you're staying, welcome back.
Beyond that, UN:N. • Puppy's talk page • 12:44 09 May 2013
- ↑ I'm Australian. I have no idea on Welsh stuff
- ↑ Named after Larry Page, hence the capitalisation. Who says Uncyc isn't educational?
- ↑ We don't delete, but we hang around on it making jokes at the user's expense.
- ↑ Especially if they're English.
Less points to make
I'm putting this here because I can't for the life of me figure out a better spot. Spike - how the fuck do you propose "we" are "cherry-picking" "your" best editors? Just let me know and I'll start doing it immediately. The last I looked, the ones we would like on the "renegade site" - or whatever you happen to call it - are ones who can make up their own minds without any help. Also, what's this "sabotage" deal about? -- Style Guide 03:55, May 17, 2013 (UTC)
- A better spot for criticism of my opinion would have been my talk page, but there is no soapbox there for you to stand on and broadcast. It is biased to suggest that anyone who adopts your conclusion has made up his own mind, while anyone who stays here has been brainwashed. What is sabotage? For example, a user who proclaims on your talk page that you have left Uncyclopedia ("They are the worst") to, last night, appeal to Zim ulator that you are pursuing his brand of humor elsewhere and invite him to chat. In the above context, this is flagrant use of Wikia resources to harm Wikia, and has resulted in your one-month ban. Spıke Ѧ 13:22 17-May-13
- A one-month ban? Now that's quite a bit more like ... well, I say no more, for fear of suffering a similar fate.
- About what Mulitiliteralist said, for me the fork has actually been less receptive. For example, my translation of fr:43 - a decent enough article, and the English version can still be found here - got deleted due to supposedly being a 'work in progress', and I (stupidly) said I would put it back if it were not moved to my userspace as I requested. It was so moved, but I was threatened with a ban if I recreated even one little deleted article (of course). But you can see why I am starting to think that Wikia Uncyc is friendlier, aside from the fuss over links and mirrors, and easier to write articles for. I'm surprised that Multiliteralist came to the opposite conclusion. -– Llwy-ar-lawr • talk • contribs • 15:30, May 17, 2013 (UTC)
- I don't appreciate the "Spike will ban me if I speak my mind" polemic. Multiliteralist spoke his mind ad nauseam on my talk page. I cannot promise you this website will be more receptive to your work or that its Admins will not strike you as tyrants; but production of funny stuff is the goal, it would not be achieved if Admins mistake defiance for persistent bad faith, and I have no indication that any do. The only Terms-of-Use issue is using Wikia's resources to send its traffic elsewhere. Spıke Ѧ 17:26 17-May-13
Unfortunately your point does not come across because you did ban Multiliteralist in the end. And from what I can see he was acting in good faith, if pushing it a little (yes, Terms of Use, but still). It's true, Spike; most wikis are like that: if you speak your mind uncarefully, or even carefully - or so you thought -, and the admins disagree, you will be banned. No need to deny it because it's just a fact of wiki life that we must all learn to accept if we want to edit wikis. I still edit Wikipedia knowing full well that, if I spoke my mind freely about a number of topics I won't bother to list, I would probably be banned. I would be banned for content disputes, disruptive editing and maybe even incivility. But my only goal would have been to improve the encyclopedia, as it is my only goal here (except, of course, for having fun).
However, we're not supposed to admit this flaw in how wiki administration works. We tell ourselves that there was a good reason for banning each and every banned user. Sometimes there clearly is; sometimes it's in the eye of the beholder...and, I'm sure, sometimes it is entirely unjustified.
Finally, I can't make out why you're talking about promising me that this site will be more receptive. I just said it was. And the admins don't strike me as tyrants. No; we are all acting in good faith here, but the problem is that we don't agree on what constitutes good faith, and probably never will. -– Llwy-ar-lawr • talk • contribs • 20:36, May 17, 2013 (UTC)


text: DokujiSoul 107 Report post Posted December 3, 2012 (edited) First of all, thanks for taking the time to read this post. I am aware that similar topics are posted all the time, and while aware of this, and having read various threads on this forum as well as many others, I must admit that there is a certain intangible assurance of receiving direct replies to you and your own personal inquiries/problems/etc. also, I tend to be very passionate and as a result can be verbose, so bless you for your patience and understanding if you read this whole thing and take the time to reply in kind. so, lets begin; I am 23 years old now, I have always loved and been inspired by games and cannot see myself being satisfied or happy doing anything else for a living. this has always been on my radar growing up, but i never took it seriously; or the implications of adulthood and how important it is to actually choose, commit to, and pursue a specific career path until adulthood hit me. Most all my other hobbies and passions have somewhat dissipated, but my love for games and the inspiration they bring has never gone away, so now I really know that this is what I want to do. Thus begins the daunting quest for knowledge and skillset to land my dream career... It actually started in late 2009-2010, where I attended DigiPen (due to family disagreements and finances, I had to leave after the first semester.. this was dream shattering to me and I've been in a sort of emotional and creative stasis since then, it has been hard to find motivation or feel like I still have any chance of achieving my dreams) One of the problems i encountered there was not feeling as though my time and especially money would be worthwhile, even as accredited as DigiPen is; I wasn't sure their BA in game design or their BFA in production animation was going to place me exactly where i wanted ( i would prefer to do game environment, character design/modeling/again, anything you see visually in the finished product. I know i am nowhere near good enough to be a concept artist so that's not exactly on my radar) I spent the last few years confused and hopeless. but now I have decided to go for it with everything I have left in me. unfortunately, i'm going to have to be working full time retail just to pay rent, which is going to mean less time to pursue this career I really want. -I cannot reasonably afford school anymore, and I know the portfolio is the most important part of breaking into this industry anyways... so, where do i begin? as far as 2d art goes, I'm pretty capable in photoshop and I create character concepts for fun in my spare time that I could really imagine being good enough to go into a game, if only I could learn to take it to that next level. again, i am not on the level of your accomplished concept artist, and i have a natural inclination and affinity for characters, particularly in a colorful anime style. I believe, however, that the illustrations i am currently capable of are solid enough to be translated to 3d. i guess what I'm saying is that as far as the production pipeline aspect goes, i know my place. I wont be a lead concept artist, but I am a pretty good artist in my preferred style and i certainly believe I'm capable of creating 3d models and levels, environments, characters, etc. The only thing holding me back is, well... everything. lol. I need to learn all these technical programs that i will need to land a job doing what i want to do, so I need to know what those are, and the best way of doing it. so far I know of the following game related programs: -Blender -3ds Max -Maya -photoshop -Unity - UDK -Zbrush -Mudbox now, I don't know how to use any of these. aside from photoshop, that is. and even to that end, I only know it to the level of sort of a passionate hobbyist. I can get my waya round it and put out images that I'm personally satisfied with, at any rate. as far as workflow is concerned, i have often heard that if the job gets done, that is what is important at the end of the day, right? So, which of these programs should i be learning first? where do i even begin? when and how should I be approaching building my portfolio? I know i wont be on the level i need to be for a few solid years of learning on my own. I have blender and have been reading lots about it on the wiki, and trying to follow step by step from the very basics. I wonder if I am wasting my time with blender though, and should just start with 3ds max, maya, unity, etc? I really don't know. that's why I'm here, talking my head off in hopes that you guys can point me in the right direction. I have also spent the also spent the last few days looking around for forums/community sites related to the industry that seem the most popular and best to me and have found: For community: -this site!! (gamedev.net) -CG society -Polycount -DevMaster -GameArtist -GameArtisans For tutorials and hands on learning: -3dmotive -Design3 -Digital-Tutors Are these good,great, not so great? I know I'm going to need as much help as i can get and i figure the more people and connections I can make the better, because I'm not going to have that degree or internship quite as readily available as if I had been able to stay in DigiPen and progress through their system. ------------------------- again, the end goal for me is to make it into the industry as an artist; that is, I have always been inspired by and more interested in pursuing the aesthetic side of game development. You know, the things you see and interact with directly on screen. While I admire and certainly respect the work that goes on underneath this, I don't believe that is the line of work for me. So, it's taken me quite a few years to truly be able to isolate a specific role of intertest for me, but there it is; I want to do things like build environments, characters, character models, etc. now, this isn't to say that I wouldn't like to learn the necessary coding or programming skills to be able to make my own game concepts start to finish, but one thing I have heard repeatedly from experienced professionals is that it's important to have a focus for yourself in the industry, a specific role you could see yourself playing, so, that is my main goal. I am scared that if I don't act now, one day soon I will wake up and I'll realize I'm 30, and working some job I despise, and my opportunity to make games for a living, the job I've dreamed about since a kid, has passed me by. I don't want that to happen. I will try my hardest to make this a reality. what I seek now is guidance to help get me there. I want to make the most of the time and effort I'm going to be putting in to teach myself all this complicated stuff! if i think of anything else i have to say, as I'm sure I've forgotten things, I'll be sure to let you guys know. till then thank you so much for reading and bearing with me [img]http://public.gamedev.net//public/style_emoticons/default/smile.png[/img] -Dan Edited December 3, 2012 by DokujiSoul 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites

subset: commoncrawl


text:
LESS than half of the people who went to one of Worcestershire's three A&E departments on Thursday, January 16 were admitted to hospital.
The figures showing only 114 of the 380 people who visited Worcestershire Royal Hospital, Kidderminster Hospital and Redditch's Alexandra Hospital needed emergency care were revealed as part of the Is A&E For Me? campaign, aiming to reduce the strain on emergency departments across the country.
For more information visit isaandeforme.com


text:
Here at part-e-testing.co.uk we provide expert, yet affordable Noise Testing in Brentford, along with Part E Testing and Insulation Advice. Offering consultancy, surveys and reports, we help companies and members of the public in Brentford conform to the very latest noise test building regulations.
Noise Testing in Brentford with part-e-testing.co.uk
- We strive to continue to provide our clients in Brentford a top quality noise testing service for the best price guaranteed and if you find a cheaper quote, we'll match it
- We specialise in noise tests & noise testing and are experts in this field
- We have carried out over 1000 noise tests to the new regulations and if needed can advise you of cost effective solutions to meet these requirements
- We offer a prompt service with noise tests being carried out within a week
part-e-testing.co.uk covers Brentford and the whole of the UK mainland, so for a free, no obligation noise testing quote, contact us today.


text:
source GAIA package: Sx_MilitaryTimes_M6201310306030013_5675.zip Origin key: Sx_MilitaryTimes_M6201310306030013 imported at Fri Jan 8 18:18:10 2016
The Marine Corps is in the midst of a strategic shift meant to solidify its role as the military's go-to crisis-response force, greatly expanding embassy-security capabilities while developing specialized forward-deployed units focused exclusively on threats and emergencies in at least three geographic combatant commands.
For Marines, this translates to opportunity.
Recruiting is underway to fill 1,000 newly authorized Marine Security Guard slots and add personnel at up to 50 locations worldwide where currently no MSG detachments exist. The plus-up will nearly double the number of personnel assigned to the Marine Corps Embassy Security Group, opening scores of so-called B-billets for career-minded Marines looking to fulfill crucial special duty assignments. As part of this growth, officials also are targeting about 120 current MSGs with infantry experience to stand up the group's new Security Augmentation Unit, which will dispatch squad-size teams from its headquarters here at Quantico to diplomatic facilities wherever and whenever a need for reinforcement arises.
At the same time, the Corps is planning to stand up new special purpose air-ground task forces — like the one that deployed in April to support U.S. Africa Command — for U.S. Central Command and U.S. Southern Command. Like the new task force assigned to AFRICOM, which is built around a reinforced rifle company and supported by Marine aircraft and logistical support, these units could number in the hundreds and be tapped for a variety of operational missions — to include embassy reinforcement — throughout the Middle East, South America, Central America and the Caribbean.
With combat deployments to Afghanistan slowing, and the Corps' active-duty drawdown increasing competition to stay in uniform, these developments will provide opportunities for Marines to stand out among their peers. Such special duty and operational assignments can go a long way in helping Marines gain an edge at promotion time.
What you need to know:
More embassy security
The call to increase the Embassy Security Group came from Congress in the wake of last September's terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, which left four Americans dead, including Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens. At the time, no MSG detachment was present there or in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, prompting lawmakers to ask what the State Department could do to better protect diplomatic personnel and facilities across the globe.
Adding 1,000 MSGs will boost the Embassy Security Group to about 2,200 personnel. It's not clear, however, what effect this will have on the Marine Corps' force structure, a question that remains due to lingering uncertainty over the federal budget crisis and whether across-the-board cuts prescribed by sequestration will force the Corps to reduce active-duty manpower beyond its current target of 182,100.
The commandant, Gen. Jim Amos, told Marine Corps Times in April that he has asked Congress for additional funding to cover a revised end strength of 183,100, but a verdict remains to be seen. The cost to fund these personnel is significant, approximately $1.6 million per Marine, according to a recent report in The New York Times.
"It's still being reconciled," Amos said. "If I have to pay for it inside my account, then I just bought 1,000 more Marines and a Marine Corps that, instead of being 182,000 trigger pullers, is 181,000."
Regardless, Col. Michael Robinson, the Embassy Security Group's commanding officer, said the 1,000 additional MSGs will fill a variety of roles. And several significant changes are in the works, he said, including:
■ New posts. The State Department has identified 50 diplomatic posts worldwide where officials would like to add a Marine Security Guard detachment. To start, the State Department has focused on filling 35 of them over the next three years. If officials choose to stand up a detachment at all 50, the Corps is prepared to accommodate. New detachments are expected in northern Africa, according to a Marine Corps official. But the State Department declined to provide specific locations, citing security concerns.
■ Beefed-up detachments. For posts that have detachments, the Corps is moving to add a few Marines in places where the security risk is elevated. The goal is to have at least one MSG acting as a "rover," Robinson said. He can walk the embassy's perimeter or provide internal security for the chancery, he said. The locations that will receive additional MSGs were not disclosed.
Posts in the Middle East or Africa, where the threat level is higher, will see detachments grow to at least 13 — the size of a full squad. Today, some embassies in those regions have detachments of just six MSGs, Robinson said.
■ More administrative support. Training 1,000 new MSGs will require additional instructors at the schoolhouse here. Likewise, managing them will require more captains, who serve at regional headquarters and inspect detachments in their region twice each year.
■ Quick-reaction reinforcement. Perhaps most significantly, about 120 existing MSGs will compose the new Marine Security Augmentation Unit, or MSAU. (Officials pronounce it "em-saw.") The unit will be composed of nine or 10 squad-sized teams ready to provide immediate embassy security reinforcement. Each will be assigned to a region, and because they will be trained MSGs and connected to the State Department, these teams can respond directly to calls from the ambassador, chief of mission or regional security officer at an embassy in trouble.
MSGs complete three yearlong tours at diplomatic posts around the world. Starting this summer, those who have completed a tour will be eligible to serve on the MSAU, Robinson said. But the Corps wants specific skill sets.
"Our preference is going to be combat arms [military occupational specialties] for the MSGs that volunteer or are nominated for the MSG Security Augmentation Unit, so that's who we're looking for first — volunteers who are combat arms or military police," Robinson said. But since most MSGs don't come from infantry MOSs, Robinson said officials will consider candidates' relevant deployments and other related experience.
The MSAU will begin training its first team of Marines at Quantico this summer. Volunteers can expect a three-week package featuring training alongside the State Department's mobile security deployment teams and the Corps' Fleet Antiterrorim Security Teams, traditionally the go-to Marines when embassies require reinforcement in times of crisis. They'll also get additional communications and weapons training, and learn advanced room-entry tactics and how to escape a collapsed structure.
Crisis-response forces
It's less clear how the Corps intends to assemble, deploy and employ the new, and appreciably larger, crisis-response task forces. Although thin on specifics, Marine officials have indicated their capabilities will be diverse and distinctive from the service's seven Marine expeditionary units and its FAST platoons. MEUs, which typically number about 2,200 Marines and sailors, operate at sea from Navy amphibious ships whereas these new ensembles will be based on land — and operate largely independent of the Navy.
The unit currently overseas supporting AFRICOM — it's named Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force–Crisis Response — was developed after months of turmoil in Mali, Algeria, Libya and other north African countries put U.S. officials on edge. It comprises 550 Marines from North Carolina, and is likely to serve as a model for future iterations in AFRICOM and potentially CENTCOM and SOUTHCOM.
After leaving the East Coast in late April, the task force assembled at Morón Air Base in Spain before an unspecified number of personnel were moved to Italy. Growing unrest in Tripoli raised concerns for the safety of personnel at the U.S. Embassy there, defense officials said, indicating that should the Marines be sent into Libya, it would be to temporarily augment security.
The new task force includes six MV-22B Ospreys and two KC-130J aerial refuelers to support the reinforced rifle company, which officials have not identified. It reports directly to the head of AFRICOM, Army Gen. David Rodriguez.
Amos has said it's likely the Marines eventually will leave Spain and move around Africa, telling Congress when the unit deployed that they can train foreign militaries as well.
Lt. Gen. Richard Mills, deputy commandant for combat development and integration, told Marine Corps Times "the crisis response force can react to any number of crises, not just embassies — although that's what they're primarily focused on."
Retired Lt. Gen. Jan Huly, former deputy commandant of plans, policies and operations at Marine Corps headquarters, said a number of factors are considered when standing up a new type of unit. Will it be modeled after an existing unit, or will it require new doctrine? Leadership then examines the rank structure, military occupational specialties, equipment and support needed to fulfill the mission, he said.
For Marines, there are other procedural matters to consider, too. The headquarters element in the AFRICOM crisis response force is slated to deploy for a year, with Marines moving through on six-month rotations — similar to deployments to Afghanistan or Japan. The likelihood a Marine will deploy with one of these new units will depend on how many are stood up around the world and how big they will be, Huly said.
Marines deployed with a crisis response force won't receive special duty pay, said Capt. Greg Wolf, a Marine spokesman at the Pentagon. And the nature of pre-deployment training is a gray area. Marine Corps Forces Africa did not respond to questions regarding that criteria.
It's also unclear whether future crisis-response MAGTFs will look like the one supporting AFRICOM, though Marine officials are working with combatant commanders in CENTCOM and SOUTHCOM to explore options. Amos has said the force for SOUTHCOM, led by Marine Gen. John Kelly, likely would not be as large but that, pending available resources, he hopes to see it functional by the end of the year. It's a region of the world that has been plagued by transnational organized crime for decades, where officials are fighting the smuggling of drugs, weapons and illicit money across borders and often into the U.S.
Mills, in confirming the Corps' desire to align a crisis-response force with CENTCOM, indicated that while the Corps does have MEUs capable of providing embassy reinforcement and crisis response, those assets could be tied up when an urgent need arises. Additionally, the Navy's shipbuilding plan falls five ships short of the 38 the Marine Corps says it needs to fulfill its mission. And even then, they won't all be built until at least 2025 — and that assumes Congress is willing to fund a large increase in the shipbuilding budget.
Lawmakers are divided on that issue in light of the federal budget mess. Some argue the Defense Department must make cuts, while others are concerned the Navy's dwindling fleet size is a national security concern that should be looked at more carefully prior to applying across-the-board spending cuts like those that took place this year. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has pointed out that readiness is at risk with the current amphibious fleet. Only 22 ships were fully mission-capable last year.
While basing Marines ashore might cut back on the Corps' demands for ship space, standing up new crisis-response forces around the world still is an expense the Marine Corps and Congress will need to weigh, Mills said. "It's expensive — it costs in forces and it costs in money," he told Marine Corps Times in May. "But where we're needed is where we're going to go.
Balancing assets, capabilities
These new units are not intended to replace existing entities, such as FAST platoons and MEUs, officials say. Instead, they're meant to augment them when the need is dire or other assets are busy, Mills said. But capabilitywise, there will be overlap.
In Africa, for instance, the Corps has a special purpose MAGTF, based in Italy, that since 2011 has operated in such countries as Senegal, Uganda and Burundi. Principally, it focuses on teaching tactics to foreign militaries engaged in their own fights against extremists.
But this winter, amid growing tension in Tripoli, a reinforced platoon from SPMAGTF-Africa — it's called Task Force Tripoli — was sent to the U.S. Embassy to replace the group of FAST Marines called in from Rota, Spain, during the aftermath of September's attack in Benghazi. Comprising several reserve infantrymen from 2nd Battaltion, 25th Marines, out of Garden City, N.Y., the unit stands post at the embassy in much the way Marines do at bases in Afghanistan, according to its commander, who called the Marines there "an external security force."
"We are outward looking," Lt. Col. Daniel Whisnant, commanding officer of SPMAGTF-Africa, told Marine Corps Times. "If there was any external threat, we would address that, with the embassy's concurrence."
So all of this raises the question: With so many capabilities able to respond in the event of emergencies abroad, who goes in and when?
Robinson, who commands the Embassy Security Group, foresees "a graduated response" that would start with ambassadors calling the MSAU. There's an advantage to using MSGs for this role, he said. They understand the layout and technology involved in securing an embassy. And although MSGs work with FAST platoons all the time, their training and core skill sets are different, he said, referencing the FAST Marines' infantry focus.
That's the starting point, Robinson said, because the State Department has a direct line to those Marines. They start by beefing up security at an embassy where the ambassador believes danger is imminent.
"Let's say then it ends up that the event happens and it's larger than expected," Robinson said. "The MSAU is defending the compound and doing what they do, but it requires more forces. We need to not only protect the compound but evacuate and get people out of there."
From there, the State Department can notify the Marine Corps it needs the FAST platoon or crisis-response force that's in the region, he said. If there isn't one, or they're tied up, they can go to a MEU, he said, because embassy reinforcement is one of their core skills. It's just using different assets and different stages, he said.
Robinson said the ESG will continue to work closely with FAST companies, which consist of six platoons typically forward deployed in Europe, the Middle East and Pacific. They are still expected to provide backup assistance in the case of an embassy crisis, as they did in Libya this fall, and will also share training events with the new MSAU.
Huly, the retired three-star, called embassy security and crisis response "the challenge of the day." MEUs, which typically have served as the Corps' 911 force during political instability abroad or natural disasters, train for numerous missions, including embassy support. But there is much to be gained, Huly said, by dedicating specialized units to be ready for these specific contingencies.
"You could put the average infantry rifle company on aircraft and fly them to the scene of the job and they'd do a rather credible job," Huly said. "But what you don't have then is somebody dedicated right now to a specific area keeping its eye on and getting intelligence and information and working it up. You get a bit more specificity" with this construct. "... [MEUs and] other organizations have day jobs too. So if you say, 'OK, I'm going to dedicate you to this now, too,' then something's got to give."
Retired Ambassador Ryan Crocker, who spent more than four decades as a diplomat, concluding his career as U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, lauded the Marine Corps' multifaceted approach to bolster embassy security. Giving ambassadors the ability to connect directly with Marines has the potential to save lives during a crisis, he said.
There is no place in the world immune to a terrorist attack, Crocker said. When he was tasked with reopening the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan in 2002, he said it was imperative that the Marines working with him there be able to respond to threats to the compound and take their orders directly from him.
"Events move very, very quickly," Crocker said. "There just is not time, having been through these situations, to go through all the bureaucratic wickets."


text:
Fox Pretends Romney Got Specific On 60 Minutes
Blog ››› ››› KEVIN ZIEBER
Fox & Friends pretended that Mitt Romney gave specific details of his tax plan in an interview with CBS' 60 Minutes. In fact, Romney refused to spell out any loopholes or deductions he would end to pay for his proposed tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.
On 60 Minutes, Romney said that he would reduce income tax rates by 20 percent. Romney added "lest people think there's going to be a huge reduction in the taxes they owe, that's really not the case because we're also going to limit deductions particularly for people at the high end." But when pressed for details on which deductions he would eliminate, Romney repeatedly refused to name any.
Nevertheless, Fox's Steve Doocy claimed that we "heard details last night" about Romney's plan.
During the 60 Minutes interview, Pelley asked: "The devil's in the details, though. I mean, what are we talking about? The mortgage deduction? The charitable deduction?" Romney responded: "The devil's in the details. The angel's in the policy, which is creating more jobs."
Pelley tried again, saying: "You have heard the criticism, I'm sure, that your campaign can be vague about some things. And I wonder if this isn't precisely one of those things." Romney again refused to give any specifics, saying "It's very much consistent with my experience as a governor, which is that if you want to work together with people across the aisle, you lay out your principles and your policy, you work together with, but you don't hand them a complete document and say 'here, take this or leave it.' "
Doocy actually praised Romney's refusal to give specifics on deductions, saying: "Pelley tried to pin him down on well, which loopholes would you close. And he said, look, you know, that's what you do with Congress. You don't just have a complete plan and hand it over and say OK, this is a complete plan. Now pass it."
Furthermore, Romney's description of his tax plan on 60 Minutes was no more specific than the plan he laid out much earlier in the campaign. Seven months ago, Romney said he would cut individual rates by 20 percent while eliminating unnamed loopholes, deductions, and tax credits so that the tax cuts "do not expand deficits."
But contrary to Doocy's praise of Romney's tax plan, the Tax Policy Center and FactCheck.org have both found that Romney's tax promises do not add up.
The Tax Policy Center found that Romney's plan must either increase the deficit or reduce the average tax burdens of the wealthiest Americans:
We estimate that these components would reduce revenues by $456 billion in 2015 relative to a current policy baseline. According to statements by Governor Romney and his advisors, the remainder of the plan will include policies to offset this revenue loss, although there are no details on how that would be achieved.
[I]t is not possible to design a revenue-neutral plan that does not reduce average tax burdens and the share of taxes paid by high-income taxpayers under the conditions described above, even when we try to make the plan as progressive as possible. For instance, our calibration of the upper limit suggests that even by eliminating tax expenditures 'starting at the top' -- where we combine the proposed rate cuts with complete elimination of tax expenditures for taxpayers with income over $200,000 -- after-tax income would still increase by 4.1 percent among taxpayers with income over $1,000,000 and 0.8 percent for taxpayers earning between $200,000 to $500,000. (That translates to a tax decrease of $87,000 and $1,800 for those two groups.) However, on average, after-tax income for taxpayers earning less than $200,000 would need to decrease by 1.2 percent, an effective tax increase of $500 per household. (Revenue neutrality would require eliminating 58 percent of total tax expenditures for these households.)
Relying on information from the Tax Policy Center and the Tax Foundation, Factcheck.org determined that Romney "failed to produce evidence that what he promises is possible":
[Romney] has steadfastly refused to say which tax preferences would be cut or reduced. He has pointed to the revenue-neutral proposals for rate-cutting put forth by the deficit commission as evidence that what he proposes is possible in theory, but those proposals pay for the cuts largely by taxing capital gains at the higher rates that apply to ordinary income, a measure Romney has specifically ruled out.
So Romney has failed to produce evidence that what he promises is possible. And we judge that the weight of evidence and expert opinion is clear -- it's not possible.
- Posted In
- Taxes, Elections
- Network/Outlet
- Fox News Channel
- Person
- Steve Doocy, Gretchen Carlson
- Show/Publication
- FOX & Friends
Instructions for signing up and claiming your comment history are located here.
Updated rules for commenting are here.


text:
What have you been surfing on lately?
What type of waves does it excel at?
Fin Set up?
What you like about it and what you don't.
Printable View
What have you been surfing on lately?
What type of waves does it excel at?
Fin Set up?
What you like about it and what you don't.
5'10" 19"3/8 half moon tail shortboard made by brian wynn. almost hybrid fish looking, but super thin and loose. quad setup with stretch quads
Lost motivator 510...
a 6'3x18 3/4 x 2 3/8 for anything over chest high
and a 5'10x20x2 1/2 fish for just junk and playing around.
here on the east coast, i don't think there is such a thing as a "daily driver". that being said, the boards i ride most frequently here in jersey are:
5'8" bing puck (quad)
6'0" ci neckbeard (5 fin set up as a quad)
6'3" wynn roundtail (5 fin set up as a quad)...this one is going to have to be cleaned up & retired for a bit in order to make it last until my honeymoon next year. so instead of riding this board, i'll be riding a
6'4" roberts black thumb (thruster)
Three boards in my quiver that get the most water time:
good waves... chest high to just overhead... 6'6 round tail thruster
small/mushy waves... waist to shoulder high... 6'0 fish
small and clean... knee to waist... 9'3 single fin noserider
On the biggest days of the year... head and a half to as big as it gets... 7'0 rounded pin thruster
6'2"x20.5"x2.5" Ashton squashtail thruster. its basically an 80's shape with more modern foils. the board works insane in anything from thigh high to head high. it gets a bit skittish when it gets overhead.
5'4" FST Firewire Sweet Potato, FCS H2 quad fins...best board I've ever had for East Coast surf, & I've been surfing 20 years...having the right fin for the board makes a big difference as well.
variety is the spice of life. Unless the waves are of consequence I grab whatever I'm feelin. Fish, the six fo, a retro, whatever, I try to spread the love. Real waves I grab the pin tail 6'6 or gasp... the step up travel board 7'2 bushman
i grab my sweet potato (6'x23"x3") 99% of the time because VB waves are incredibly mushy. I think I will get a custom log here soon for those small knee-thigh winter peelers


text:
Jim Leach, Chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities
Minister Cai Wu, Madam Zhao Shaohua, distinguished conferees and guests:
In this conference addressing broad questions of culture, I would like to begin by paying deep respect to our hosts.
In the development of civilization, China has through the ages played a uniquely innovative role. Chinese inventions have advanced commercial and agricultural enterprise. Chinese scholars have embellished philosophical thought. Chinese artists and artisans have stimulated the creative instincts of the soul with poetry, landscapes on paper and silk scrolls, and ceramics of various kinds and dimensions.
It is here in China that paper was first processed and the printing press first used. It is in China that the compass, the rotating gimbal, and gunpowder were first developed. It is in China that the hoe and the plow first knifed through the soil to spur growth of seeds into plants. It is in China that forging capacities were advanced centuries before the industrial revolution in Europe to produce sophisticated brass cooking pots. It is in China that assembly-line techniques were used, millennia before Henry Ford used the approach to building cars, to craft efficiently and attach, among other things, arms and legs to the torsos of the terra cotta warriors in Xi'an. And it is in China where philosophical movements from Confucianism to Daoism, from theories of statecraft of Sun Tzu to theories of economic development of Deng Xiaoping, have flourished and influenced millions beyond its borders.
As for my country, America has a young (at least in a post-colonial sense) but vibrant history. We have been blessed with the most generous foreign aid ever given a society – moral values springing from the Holy Land and points East: the creeds of Moses and Christ, Buddha and Mohammed, mixed with the philosophical ideas and ideals emanating from ancient Greece and the Enlightenment in Europe: Plato and Aristotle, Machiavelli and Montesquieu, Locke and Hume, Hegel and Spinoza.
America has also been munificently gifted with the skills, energy, and cultural traditions of immigrants from all corners of the earth. This mixture of faith-based commitment, independent thinking, and human energy has made possible the forging and subsequent refinement of the first government whose revolutionary legitimacy springs from the bottom-up, from individuals self-evidently born with inalienable rights.
Through our short history we have faced a series of challenges, internal and external, one of which in the middle of the 20th century brought us to Asia in alliance with the Chinese people to fight together fascist aggression.
We are proud of our achievements in science and technology, from Edison to Einstein, from the digital computer to smart phones. We are proud of the diversity of our arts, the regional paintings of Grant Wood and the abstract expressionism of Jackson Pollock, the humor-laced writings of Mark Twain, and the traumas, large and small, depicted by Steinbeck, Hemingway and Faulkner, who like Mo Yan, one of China's representatives to the Second China-U.S. Cultural Forum, captured the pathos of life by placing fictional characters in an invented city.
China and America have different cultures, but that doesn't mean we cannot respect each other's creativity and social achievements and, more importantly, human condition, even if public differences become stark. Governmental policies, after all, are fleeting and reversible. Culture, on the other hand, is vastly larger and more sustaining than government. Governance is a component of culture, not vice versa. Culture is the ocean – the circumstances – and nations are like ships attempting to navigate culture's tumultuous waves.
Differences between nation-states, their peoples and vested interests, inevitably heighten from time to time. But if people have respect for each other's culture and for the mutual challenges individuals of all backgrounds face in the sea of life, the chances that differences will cause conflict vastly diminish.
This is why conferences and studies in the humanities – history, literature, philosophy, and related disciplines, including the language arts and comparative religion – are critically important. So are people-to-people exchanges.
A myth of our times is that relations between countries are exclusively a function of government policy and that diplomacy is simply a government-to-government dialog. Actually, it is businessmen and businesswomen, unelected people of goodwill – be they artists or scientists, athletes, students, or scholars in the humanities – who are often more integral to defining the tone of relations between states than public officials.
Representatives of governments understandably dwell on power and security issues, especially in a fractured world. Cultural engagement, by contrast, is more about the centrality of values and the breadth of the human spirit. And, importantly, in the business world it is about probing common interests and promoting mutual advantage.
If people are to develop mutual respect, values must be brought to bear on a human scale. Without humanization – handshakes of understanding – there can be no more than minimal trust, minimal security for family or nation.
Like a circus performer walking on a suspended tight rope, the life of peoples and countries in the 21st century is a balancing act. In a world of escalating change, balancing quandaries grow rapidly in number and consequence. To illustrate, I would like to reference three particularly sensitive quandaries of our times:
- the balance between competition and cooperation in trade. For constructive relations to be sustainable, mutual advantage must accrue to countries as well as companies.
- the balance between localism and globalism. One of the preeminent American legislators of the 20th century, Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill, was fond of asserting that all politics is local. A fast strengthening corollary deserves attention: all local politics is affected by global events. When politics, including trade-driven concerns, becomes globalized, foreign policy comes to be a localized consideration, rather than the near exclusive province of governing elites. In one way or another, public sentiment in cities and rural hamlets must be factored into policy considerations.
- the balance between freedom and order externally as well as internally in the affairs of the state. In many parts of the world this balance is increasingly precarious. No country escapes the necessity of choice-making and the ramifications of the judgment calls of others.
Geopolitics at the moment is characterized by a hardening of attitudes and a sharpening of religious and historical differences. The human factor – foibles and conflicts of interest, for instance – can never be underestimated in governmental decision making. But leaders, no matter how well-intentioned, can make mistakes that carry monumental consequences, especially when challenges lack precedent.
It is in this sobering context that the bilateral relationship between China and the United States demands the constant attention of policy stewards. If this relationship is ill-managed, the likelihood of conflict and economic trauma will be great. On the other hand, if the relationship is managed prudently, the benefits in terms of economic prosperity and world peace will be commensurate.
Accordingly, with important exceptions, the case for restrained rhetoric and caution in statecraft fits best the world in which we now live. Seldom is there only one proper path determinable by one individual or one country.
Imperfect judgment characterizes the human condition. Whether a person knows a great deal or very little, care should be taken about being certain of very much. To know a lot may be a preferable condition to knowing little, but the best and the brightest are not immune from great mistakes. That is why humility is such a valued character trait, and why shared learning and shared experiences are so important in a civilized world.
Thank you.


text:
Solar Installation
Learn About Solar Energy
SCE Offers Free Classes to Help California Business & Residents Go Solar!
Solar energy is an effective way to generate your own power while also helping the environment. We offer free classes to teach you the ins and outs of solar energy and solar rebates.
CSI Homeowner Solar Class & Solar Connection Event
Both the Homeowner Solar Class (HSC) and Solar Connection Events are non-technical, easy-to-understand FREE sessions that teach you about the California Solar Initiative (CSI), available rebates and how to "go solar."
The HSC classes last about 60 minutes, while the Solar Connection Events consist of a 40-minute presentation followed by a chance to meet solar contractors to help you determine your home's solar potential.
These sessions are FREE, although due to limited space, pre-registration is necessary.
To attend, you may register online or call 1-866-970-9221.
CSI Contractor Solar Class (CSC)
This course is uniquely designed for solar contractors, self-installers, managers and PV owners, and features new and updated information on the California Solar Initiative (CSI) program. You will learn how to complete the CSI forms, take advantage of rebates on fixed and tracking PV (solar energy) systems, and interconnect to the grid. Other topics include metering, monitoring, shading issues and CSI's online database (PowerClerk).
This class is designed to help contractors who want to participate in the program.
Training Location: SCE's Energy Education Center - Irwindale Facility — Gateway Business Center 6090 Irwindale Ave. Irwindale, CA 91702
Training Location: SCE's Energy Education Center - Tulare in Tulare, CA
Unless otherwise noted, all classes are from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Note: This is not an instructional class on how to install a solar electric generating system.
CSI Thermal Contractor And Self-Installer Training
The CSI Thermal Program (Solar Water Heating) offers incentives to displace electric, propane and natural gas for residential, multifamily and commercial properties with solar water heating systems. The CSI Thermal Workshop is mandatory for contractors and self-installers interested in participating in the CSI Thermal Program.Find the workshop near you.
Note: This is not an instructional class on how to install solar water heating systems.
Completion of this course by the licensed contractor license as listed with the California State License Board (CSLB) is mandatory to participate in the CSI-Thermal Program. Installation contractors must have an active A, B, C-4, C-36 or C-46 license.
To attend one of the sessions offered, you must email firstname.lastname@example.com with the following:
- Business licenser number
- List of attendees and email address
- Role of additional attendees e.g. president, owner, lead installer, etc.
To attend one of the sessions offered by Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), email firstname.lastname@example.com.
Past Training Documents
Below is a list of documents/presentations from past CSI Thermal Program training sessions.
- April 20: CSI Thermal Program: Multifamily/Commercial OG-100 Incentive Calculator User Guide (PDF)
- April 20: CSI Thermal Program: Contractor & Self-Installer Workshop (PDF)
- December 2: CSI Thermal Program: Commercial and Multifamily Updates (PDF)
- May 24: CSI Thermal Program - Contractor and Self-Installer Workshop (PDF)
CSI Commercial Solar Workshop
If you are an SCE commercial, government or non-profit customer, this workshop is for you. It will provide an overview of the CSI program, including eligibility requirements, how to participate in the program, the incentive amounts/structure and how solar can help lower your operating costs while improving your company's commitment to environmental stewardship.
Training Location: SCE's Energy Education Center - Irwindale Facility — Gateway Business Center 6090 Irwindale Ave. Irwindale, CA 91702
To register, please call 1-800-336-2822, ext. 42537, or online at www.sce.com/eecirwindale. Unless otherwise noted, all classes are from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.


text:
Qubo Power Fluid is a high level trainer for competitive riders which introduces the improved performance of fluid-based resistance. The cutting edge Qubo frame offers a wider footprint with adjustable feet for improved stability and lower bike height for easier mounting.
There's no need to calibrate roller pressure, the rider's weight presses the tyre into the roller, meaning automatic adjustment and easy set-up. The Qubo frame also repositions the rear drive unit to allow use with fat-tyred 29ers.
Key Features:
If ordered before 8pm, delivered by courier next working day. Available on orders placed before 8pm (2pm weekends and Bank Holidays) for delivery next business day. Applies to most delivery addresses within mainland UK.
Please remember to add postal time (2-3 working days) to obtain a complete estimate of delivery to your door.
You will receive an email to confirm when your item has been sent.
You can also check the status of your order and individual items by accessing your account details and following the prompts.
Please allow 10 working days from the shipping date of your order before notifying us of any late deliveries.
It may be advisable to check with your neighbors to see if your delivery has been left with them, check any places it could be left such as: garage, porch, or behind garbage cans if it was too big to fit through your mailbox. Contact your local post office to see if the item has been returned to the depot as undelivered and awaiting collection.
Please see our returns policy.
Elite Novo Force Turbo Trainer
Tacx Fortius and i-Magic Steering Frame
Buff High UV Insect Shield Tubular Headband - Giulia Multi
There are currently no reviews.


text:
Teacher resources and professional development across the curriculum
Teacher professional development and classroom resources across the curriculum
Dear Karen,
I was also intrigued by this because the descendence from the
mesonichids was the prevailing hypothesis in the whale evolution debate
for some time. This was based on some fossil evidence. Now molecular
evidence links the whales to artiodactyls instead. ALso I believe the
video contained some fossil evidence thas was based on the ankle bones
of the different groups. Ankle bone comparisons linked the whales more
closely with the artiodactyls than with the mesonichids. In terms of
phylogeny, I think it is clear that relationships between organisms are
most clearly explained when you examine BOTH fossil evidence as well as
molecular (DNA) evidence.
I do several fossil comparisons when I cover evolution. Do you have
any cladogram activities?
From: firstname.lastname@example.com on behalf of
Sent: Fri 1/19/2007 12:01 PM
To: firstname.lastname@example.com
Subject: Channel-talkbio Digest, Vol 5, Issue 7
Send Channel-talkbio mailing list submissions to
To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
You can reach the person managing the list at
When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
than "Re: Contents of Channel-talkbio digest..."
Today's Topics:
1. Re: cladograms (Karen Blaustein)
Message: 1
Date: Thu, 18 Jan 2007 07:42:31 -0500
From: "Karen Blaustein" <firstname.lastname@example.com>
Subject: Re: [Channel-talkbio] cladograms
To: "Discussion list for REDISCOVERING BIOLOGY"
I am glad you brought this subject up on channel talk. I was surprised
to learn about this new evidence concerning whales. I had also thought
that the ancestor to whales were the mesonichids. I have a wonderful
PBS movie called Great Transformations, which is one video in a set
called Evolution. This video discussed the belief that whales descended
from a wolf-like creature (mesonichids). Scientists found skeletons in
a desert area that once was part of the a sea (I think the
Mediterranean). By analyzing the skull, specifically the ear bone,
scientists were able to determine that this wolf-like creature had the
same structure as a whale. This structure is only inherent in whales
and therefore had concluded that whales descended from this four legged
animal. This video was obviously made before they used the DNA analysis
to determine that whales most likely descended from the artidactyls.
The scientist in the Rediscovering Biology video who was shocked by the
DNA analysis was the same scientist in the Great Transformation video. I
show this video and as a followup activity I have a group of pictures
that show the physical evolution of whales (from fossils evidence) and
have the students put them in order from oldest to most recent.
From: email@example.com on behalf of Mary Johnston
Sent: Wed 1/17/2007 2:13 PM
To: firstname.lastname@example.com
Subject: Re: [Channel-talkbio] cladograms
I found it quite interesting that scientists now believe that whales are
related to the artidactyls and not the mesonichids as many originally
thought. This also showed that phenotypic evidence (from ankle bone
comparisons) is used in conjunction with molecular evidence (from DNA
comparisons) to trace an organism's phylogeny is the favored approach.
I definitely see the value of cladograms in showing the relatedness of
organisms to each other. I am just curious as to how deeply other
biology teachers delve into this topic. It is quite complex and we are
limited in time. I have a simple cladogram activity that I use, but it
does not go into great detail. How do other biology teachers teach this
Mary Johnston
From: firstname.lastname@example.com on behalf of
Sent: Tue 1/9/2007 12:00 PM
To: email@example.com
Subject: Channel-talkbio Digest, Vol 5, Issue 5
1. Re: Genetic Database (Karen Blaustein)
Message: 1
Date: Mon, 8 Jan 2007 14:35:36 -0500
From: "Karen Blaustein" <email@example.com>
Subject: Re: [Channel-talkbio] Genetic Database
To: "Discussion list for REDISCOVERING BIOLOGY"
Sure. Thanks for the complement.
From: firstname.lastname@example.com on behalf of Quentin Cartier
Sent: Fri 1/5/2007 10:45 AM
To: email@example.com
Subject: Re: [Channel-talkbio] Genetic Database
Well said. I would like to use your letter to stimulate a discussion on
these topics with my biology classes. Would you be okay with that?
Mr. Quentin Cartier
Biology, Honor Bio, Comp Sci
Arrowhead High School
262-369-3611 x 1201
>>> "Karen Blaustein" <email@example.com> 01/04/07 1:47 PM >>>
The concept of a genetic database is very controversial because there
are many pros and cons to each side of the issue. On the positive side,
a genetic database on criminals could help law enforcement officials
track down and convict those individuals that have committed serious
crimes against humanity. Similarly, the database containing genetic
information can overturn judgements or help exonerate individuals that
were wrongly convicted or accused of a crime. However, what individuals
should have to submit to giving their genetic information to the
authorities? Would it only be those individuals who committed a serious
crime and convicted? Or would it be any person would was accused of a
crime, even a misdemeanor? One idea that might be feasable that was
mentioned in the Genomics On-line textbook by Sir Alec Jeffreys. He is
the scientist that first developed genetic fingerprinting in Great
Britain. He suggests "that the actual identity of each individual be
kept in a separate database with high security. Only certain
circumstances, such as a link to a crime, would justify identification
of the individual".
Of course, the cons to genetic databases include the invasion of
privacy. I think the majority of the population should have a choice on
whether they want to know if they have inherited a genetic disorder that
could shorten their life. Also, it is important that insurance
companies cannot use genetic information to deny, charge extra fees or
cancel health or life insurance policies.
In summary, I think that we should take this issue very seriously and
begin to discuss legal regulations that control the possible problems
that could develop as our technology increases.
From: email@example.com on behalf of Mary Johnston
Sent: Wed 1/3/2007 12:27 PM
To: firstname.lastname@example.com
Subject: [Channel-talkbio] Genetic Database
I am just trying to see how others feel about this ludicrous idea of a
genetic database? I think this is a total invasion of privacy. If we
get to the point where human beings are nothing more than an aggregate
of chromosomes somewhere in a computer file, then I think we are all in
trouble as a society. I can see a lot of discrimination potentially
coming out of this. Maybe an employer won't hire someone with a genetic
predisposition for breast cancer. Maybe, insurance companies will
somehow get access to the information and raise premiums on "high risk"
people. Maybe someone will try and clone someone they are obsessed with
or stalking like a movie star. Of course, these are extreme examples,
but fundamentally I think that we should act now to pass legislation to
prevent things like this from happening in the U.S. As it is people are
stealing identities left and right using basic info. We are leaving
ourselves open to the most personal invasion there is-our very DNA
itself. I for one do not want all my genes catalogued for people to
study. If some people want to volunteer and do it then that is their
choice, but I think a national database of each person's genes is a
really bad idea. What do others think?
Channel-talkbio mailing list
You may un-subscribe from this email list at any time by using the
online form at the above URL. If you have difficulty using this form,
please send email to firstname.lastname@example.com and our mailing
list administrator will assist you. Our privacy policy is posted online
at: http://www.learner.org/about/privacy_policy.html
End of Channel-talkbio Digest, Vol 5, Issue 5
End of Channel-talkbio Digest, Vol 5, Issue 7
You may un-subscribe from this email list at any time by using the online form at the above URL. If you have difficulty using this form, please send email to email@example.com and our mailing list administrator will assist you. Our privacy policy is posted online at: http://www.learner.org/about/privacy_policy.html
Received on Fri Jan 19 13:35:43 2007
© Annenberg Foundation 2017. All rights reserved. Legal Policy


text:
From: £25.00
One-Day 3D Visual Effects Taster Course
Want to get a practical insight into what it's like to work in VFX?
From: £25.00
One-Day Compositing Taster Course
Compositors are masters of make-believe, but do you know what it is?
From: £25.00
Try 3D VFX for two weeks, online
If you're searching for a way to learn the art of Visual Effects in your spare time, we may have the perfect solution for you. We've designed a brand new VFX course for students to study online. To start learning Visual Effects in your spare time, book your place on an online course demo today.
From: £25.00
Try Compositing VFX for two weeks, online
Are you projects limited by After Effects? Try our compositing online training course. A two-week taster course covering Nuke compositing, rotoscoping and 3D geometry from The Foundry's industry standard tool.


text:
Toggle navigation
Place an ad
Sign in with Classifieds account
Sign in with Classifieds account
Place an ad
Search All Classifieds
Auctions / Sales
Business Services
Garage Sales
Pets & Animals
Real Estate
Find a job
Post a job
Find a car
Post a car
Hire Freelancers
Find Freelance Work
Featured Ads
Championed Sired English...
We are thrilled to announce that 8 beautiful females and 1 handsome male was born June 10, 2017 (ready Aug 5th) to our Bella Marie, sired by International Champion Golden Romance Hot Tango, Django. Both the Sire and Dam's...
ADVERTISE! You can place your own Classified ad at http://idahostatesman.adperfect.com/
AKC Golden Retriever Puppies
AKC Golden Retriever Puppies . 3 males and 2 females . Come from top hunting line on sire side and hunting and show on moms side. Pups r so pretty and very mellow . First shots and wormed . One dark female and lighter female. Males med gold . Father is 85 pounds. Mom is 55. Females 850.00...
We have some ENERGETIC AKC...
These puppies are going fast! 1 Female and 5 males left. They will be ready for their new home on August 14th! We are asking a deposit of $200 dollars to hold your new friend! They have their dewclaws removed and come with their first set of shots. These Griffons come from excellent...
Championed Sired English...
We are thrilled to announce that 8 beautiful females and 1 handsome male was born June 10, 2017 (ready Aug 5th) to our Bella Marie, sired by International Champion Golden Romance Hot Tango, Django. Both the Sire and Dam's pedigrees are fully loaded with Champions with lines including Hellacious...
Mahogany Dining Room
Moving and family heirloom must be sold. This beautiful dining room which carries the FANCHER furniture mark was purchased from the historic Paine Furniture Company of Boston.
The genuine mahogany table seats 6-10 with two removable leaves (28.5 height, 44 width and 100 length)....
AKC/Purebred British Golden...
Gorgeous AKC/Purebred British Golden Retriever (cream) puppies ready to go home September 9th (Sat.) and 16th (Sat.) onward after vet exam, first vaccination and 4th preventative worming. World Champion bloodlines that include Dewmist Silk Screen, Ashbury Angel Heart, Remington Ringmaster and...
Registered Australian...
We have a gorgeous litter of 5 black-tri pups. They were born July 24th, 2017. We have 4 females & 1 male.
The Australian Shepherd, also known as the "Velcro Dog" is a very versatile breed! We have dogs from our lines winning at agility & obedience, as well as working on...
Missing Siamese mix, long...
Missing Siamese mix, long hair, blue eyes. Very friendly. Microchipped. Leo. 208-336-3660.
View all featured ads
Recent ads
Paramount Swiss Family...
604 W. Valentino Street, Meridian, August 26-27, 9:00am-3:00pm. Howard Miller Grandfather Clock, Suede Reclining Couch and Loveseat, LG Washer Dryer, Bedroom Sets, King and Twin Beds, Clothing, Tools, Workbench, much more!
AKC Lab pups
AKC Labrador Pups born May 17th are ready for new homes. Dew claws removed, up to date on shots and worming. Mom weighs approximately 65 lbs. and dad weighs 70 lbs. Yellow and black pups. Both parents on site. $300. Chocolate labs born on July 12th, $500. 208-587-7610. Mountain...
Saturday 8:30am - 3:00pm...
Collectibles from England; Reed and Barton Christmas ornaments; Schwin Air-Dyne bike; two street bikes; life vests; two compound bows, table and chairs; washing machine and more.
Help center
Give us a call
Request Help


text:
Lewis Hamilton served up a psychological hammer blow to Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg with victory in the Spanish Grand Prix.
It was Hamilton's fourth successive win, and the team's fourth consecutive one-two.
This race, however, is likely to be one that will hurt Rosberg for some time ahead of Formula One's blue riband event in Monaco in a fortnight.
Although Hamilton was clean away from pole, the 29-year-old grumbled often throughout the race, complaining about oversteer, the back end of the car sliding out, graining on his tyres, his strategy, how much time he had lost to Rosberg in the pit stops.
At times it was a nervous, tetchy Hamilton behind the wheel, whereas Rosberg appeared to drive serenely behind as he managed the gap to his championship rival.
To give the German his shot at victory, Mercedes altered tyre plans from the first stop onwards, and as the race reached its denouement Rosberg reeled Hamilton in.
But despite finally managing to get within a second late on, Rosberg ran out of laps and not once had a crack at making a pass on Hamilton, who ultimately won by just 0.6 seconds.
It means for the first time since June 2012 Hamilton now leads the drivers' standings, moving three points ahead of Rosberg who must be wondering what he has to do to triumph again.
Hamilton also has history on his side because on every one of the 19 previous occasions a driver has won four in a row he has gone on to claim the world championship.
As wins go, Hamilton's first in Spain, this one was crucial as he said: "It means everything to me.
"Getting my first grand prix win here after being in the sport eight years, it's very difficult to put the feeling into words when you have a result like this.
"Never have I had a car like this, nor a gap like this to anyone before.
"But I know I wasn't fast enough. Nico was quicker, I struggled with the balance, but fortunately I was able to keep him behind.
"I really had to rely on my engineers a lot more to give me the gaps and try to find where I could find time, also with my settings as I was moving them up and down, really trying to find extra time."
Despite the rivalry between the duo - and there was undoubted tension in the green room before they went on the podium as barely a word was exchanged between them - Hamilton insists they can remain friends.
"We've been racing together for a long time, so I don't see why not," remarked Hamilton.
As for Rosberg, he concurred, although his body language perhaps said different as he commented: "Definitely yes, because we've been through this before.
"It's not the first time, and even back then we had discussions, debate, but always....life goes on. You discuss it and life goes on."
Rosberg is determined Hamilton will not make it five wins in a row in Monaco, a race the former won from pole last year.
"Second place, I'm still close in the championship and with many more races to go," said Rosberg.
"I'll be heading to Monaco where I'll put in a massive effort to go one better, to repeat the win from last year."
Mercedes' dominance was such that Daniel Ricciardo finished 49 seconds adrift in his Red Bull, but at least this was a legitimate podium for the Australian who was disqualified from his home race in March.
As for Ricciardo's team-mate Sebastian Vettel, the reigning four-times champion conjured his best drive of the season to put behind him a torrid weekend hit by gremlins, finishing fourth after starting 15th.
Williams' Valtteri Bottas was fifth, whilst Ferrari, winners here last year with Fernando Alonso, had to settle for sixth and seventh, with Kimi Raikkonen passed by the Spaniard just over two laps from home.
Romain Grosjean hauled Lotus into the points for the first time in a problematic campaign with eighth, with Force India duo Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg ninth and 10th.
That left McLaren out of the points for the third successive race, with Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen 11th and 12th, while Max Chilton was 19th in his Marussia.


text: Apparently, the Official Xbox Magazine (UK edition) will not be the only one to reveal new Fallout: New Vegas "world-exclusive screens and info" in the coming days. It appears that the PlayStation 3 Magazine will as well. Both magazines are coming out on the same day - February 11th. When you get your hands on a copy of either magazine, don't hesitate to tell us!


text:
Aug. 18th,68
I was with Roy on Aug. 18th when we ran into the ambush. I had know Roy for over four months and had shared some beers and some good times. He was a Great Boat Capt. and was well liked by everyone. I think of him and the others we lost that day almost everyday, but especially on Aug. 18th. Fair Sailing Shipmate.


text:
ANNETTE Elwood, Charlotte Kington and Jacqui Stevens all have something in common – they have committed to lead healthier lifestyles and are already getting great results.
Melanie Bond, who works as a health ambassador for Swindon Council, has helped them, and many others, on the path to success with advice and support.
From April, councils across the country, including Swindon, will take full responsibility from the NHS for public health, establishing them as community leaders for health improvement and reducing health inequalities.
Annette, 63, of Penhill, met Mel 10 months ago and has since lost one stone 4lbs, and gained more self-confidence.
She said: "Lots of my friends have been saying how healthy I look, which is very nice. I wanted to lose a bit of weight and feel better in myself and I've managed to do both – it's surprisingly easy."
Mel runs advice sessions at John Moulton Hall and St Peter's Church, in Penhill Drive, which Annette attended fortnightly for to keep track of her progress.
Annette said: "I started by keeping a food diary and we went through it in detail. Writing it down made me realise exactly what I was eating – and the effects. For example I would often feel lethargic after having a lot of chocolate or a heavy meal the night before."
Charlotte has made some different changes – starting to eat regular meals, after years of going for days on end on just water.
The 21-year-old, of Shaw, who now works as a carer for disabled and older people, gave up eating after being bullied at school during her teenage years.
She said: "It started at my secondary school when I was picked on because of my weight. "I took drastic action and decided to stop eating – I would go for five or six days drinking only water.
"I dropped from a size 16 to a 10, but it wasn't sustainable. When my little brother started copying what I was doing I realised I had to stop."
Mel has developed regular exercise and eating plans for her to help get things back on track.
"Mel has made me realise that even though you may feel really self-conscious, nobody else notices half so much – if at all. She has also helped me to understand you've got to eat – which for me is really hard," she said.
"Mel is great because she guides you slowly and isn't pushy." Jacqui Stevens' wake-up call came when she attended her annual diabetic review a year ago. The nurse found irregularities which prompted her to take stock and make some big changes.
Jacqui, 50, a social worker from Toothill, said: "Together Mel and I took my diet in hand." She has since lost two stone, has more energy and her diabetes is under better control. Watch a short video on their stories at http://youtu.be/JuTOXg8ASYo
What is the Big Conversation all about?
The Big Conversation is a Swindon Council project which aims to provide a way of having a better dialogue with local people and building mutual understanding.
The council needs to make it easier for people to understand the challenges it is facing in terms of rapidly increasing demand and decreasing resources.
They also need to get better at listening and understanding what matters to people in the places they live.
By raising awareness and stimulating debate, communities will be more informed and the council will also learn more about people so better decisions can be made when tough choices have to be made. It's called the Big Conversation because the council is starting a dialogue, which will continue for many years.
Information will be available online, at meetings and in printed material. An infographic has been created to illustrate the challenges and also explain things like where the money comes from and where people's council tax is spent.
Visit www.swindon.gov.uk/big conversation, or www.facebook.com/swindonbig conversation, or on Twitter using the hashtag #Bigconversation.


text:
7 Crafty Ways to Dress Up Candles
The fireplace in the living room at Dar Es Saada, the Marrakech guesthouse of fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Bergé, was created by American-born designer Bill Willis and inlaid with tile from Fez. The cocktail table is by Jean Dunand, and the chair in the foreground is Syrian.
The elevated Tuscan-style fireplace in this Italian kitchen is original to the home. The chairs are Spanish, and the light fixture was made by Florentine craftsmen.
This story originally appeared on ElleDecor.com
The Safest Ways to Store Important Papers


text:
HOUSTON - Students at a Catholic school are eagerly waiting to find out who will become the next pope.
Sixth-graders at St. Vincent de Paul Junior High in southwest Houston have been learning about the process the cardinals use to choose a pope, and they've made their own picks.
Students said they've done their research. Claire Piczak said she picked Cardinal Leonardo Sandri from Argentina for a very specific reason.
"Because he wants more women to work in the Vatican," Claire said.
Shane Pisek said his choice for the next pope would make history.
"Peter Turkson, because there has never been an African pope," Shane said. "Catholicism is growing in Africa."
The most popular choice among the students is Cardinal Marc Ouellet of Canada.
"He's a young pope, which means he will probably have the job longer," student Allison Clark said. "He was once part of the Vatican, so he's had lots of experience with religion."
The new pope will need 77 votes to be elected – that's two-thirds of the cardinals plus one.
Copyright 2013 by Click2Houston.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


text:
BART Strike Is Halted in San Francisco Bay Area
Labor Contract Is Extended While Bargaining Continues; Service to Resume Friday
SAN FRANCISCO—The Bay Area's commuter-rail service was resuming Friday afternoon following a four-day strike, after the transit agency and unions agreed to extend their current labor contract for a month while they continue bargaining.
Bay Area Rapid Transit and its unions reached the agreement late Thursday. The 30-day period was brokered by state mediators, said BART spokeswoman Alicia Trost. She said negotiators still "felt...


text:
Oleg Minkov (Russian: Олег Миньков) is a Russian civilian living in Hove Beach, Broker.
He began to spread subversive ideas against the American government through the internet and soon after became extremely paranoid, believing that the government wanted to kill him for what he wrote. Sure enough, a government agent at United Liberty Paper hires Niko Bellic to kill Minkov, which he does after an extensive car chase.
Mission Appearances
- Wrong is Right (Killed)
- Unlike most of the other characters from the game, he doesn't have an entry in the LCPD database.
- If you look at Minkov's e-mails, one of them is from email@example.com, telling him to quit his investigation. This may mean that Goldberg, Ligner and Shyster law firm was going to have a case against the United Liberty Paper. This also means Oleg may work for the law firm as well.
- There is a portrait in Oleg's apartment above his fireplace of Mr. McReary and Maureen McReary. This is because in the files, the model fireplace is attached to the picture frame, so when used in Oleg's apartment, the picture went with it.
- His favorite radio stations are Vladivostok FM and LCHC.
- Oleg's 'All-Seeing Eye' laptop background is most likely a reference to the Illuminati.
- Oleg uses the same character model as James Pedeaston (albeit with a beard) and pedestrians sometimes seen in Hove Beach.


text:
Ciao, Bella!
My fiancé, Jason Beckman, and I are going to the Oscars this year! It's my first time ever, and admittedly I am excited and nervous. Not sure what to expect!
The invitation had to be hand-delivered to us, and we were told upon its arrival to put it in our hotel room's safe. Our full birth names had to be written out to cross-reference multiple points of identification. People have been known to bring their birth certificates as additional ID!
The House of Valentino kindly agreed to lend me something extra special for the occasion. Normally I relish the opportunity to thumb through gorgeous runway samples and try them all on until I find the right one. This time I'm nervous about tiny samples fitting (and no, it's not because I ate too many tacos) as I'm four months pregnant. I have no idea what to expect, but I'm off to the Valentino VIP room to find my ideal Oscar gown.
Arriving at the new Valentino store is every girl's dream! Every rack and shelf is a delight of lace, beading detail, and fresh feminine designs. I walk through a secret door upstairs to find the VIP dressing room. I'm greeted by my old friend Carlos Souza, the guru behind all the Valentino on the red carpet, and with laser speed he looks me up and down and says, "I have the perfect dress just for you!" He pulls out a two-layer lace-and-mesh dress with flower detail. It's gorgeous, but I'm worried about my ever-changing shape fitting any sample at all.
Oscars 2012: The Best Dressed