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Documentation - OSE SEC
OSE PHP Security Suite User Manual
Version: 2.0 (Previous OSE PHP Anti-Hacker Standalone) Released Date: 03-Feb-2009 Manual Date: 20-Apr-2009 Author: OSE Security Team. firstname.lastname@example.com Copyright: Reproduction and redistribution of the document is disallowed without the consent of the author. Notes: The OSE Security software series is an Open Source software series developed by Open Source Excellence Team. License: GPL V2, you can install it into UNLIMITED websites FOREVER! No License Restrictions! No more IONCUBE!
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Installation
- 2.1 Contents in the Package
- 2.2 Software Download and Support
- 2.3 Installation
- 2.4 Configuration
- 2.5 Activation and Test
- 2.6 Whitelisting Strings and Form Fields
- 2.7 Scan Files with the Virus Scanner
What's It?
Open Source Excellence PHP Security Suite is a server-based software which provides an all-in-one protection for the websites, being able to secure you private data, protect your system files from malicious codes and hacking attacks, and it clean virus and infected files. It combines the functions of Open Source Excellence Anti-hacker and Open Source Excellence Virus Scanner, and hence offers the maximal protection for the websites. It's suitable for all kinds of websites, including online stores, small business, personal websites, public institutes, etc. It's easy to use and has very friendly interface for you to customize for your own demands. The application is competent to perform an advanced protection for ALL PHP systems (for instance Joomla, VirtueMart, Magento, Drupal and WordPress, etc). The major technical features include:
- Double Firewall system providing Three Layers of protection:
- Layer 1: Signature-based Detection System - detecting most common hacking behaviours.
- a) Surface Scanning, once hacking behaviour is found, the activity and corresponding IP will be banned immediately.
- Layer 2: Pattern-based Instruction Detection Systems - blocking all inbound malicious codes and hacking activities, including network-, application-, and operating system-level attacks.
- b) Scans and monitors all URL, Form Fields, Cookies values.
- c) If hacking is found and the Risk Score exceed the secure level, the IP will be banned immediately.
- d) If Suspicious Hacking behaviour is found for Form Fields and Cookies hacking, the hacking strings in the Form / Cookies value will be stripped and sanitized.
- Layer 3: HTTP BlackList System - dynamically linking to a HTTP blacklist database and blocking access based on network masks or IP addresses.
- e) Scans users' IPs, once the IP address is located in the HTTP blacklist, the access will be blocked immediately.
- Layer 1: Signature-based Detection System - detecting most common hacking behaviours.
- Two Types of reactions:
- 1) Ban + Email Alert: If the hacking triggers Layer 1 protection or exceed the Risk Score in Layer 2 protection, the IP will be blocked, and the alert email will be sent to the administrator.
- 2) Log + Email Alert: If the Risk Score of the suspicious behaviour is lower than the global setting, the IP will be blocked for monitoring purpose, and the alert email will be sent to the administrator.
- Embedded OSE Virus Scanner application providing on-demand scanning of your source codes for malicious codes injections, cleaning of the malicious codes from the infected files, and generating complete scanning reports.
- Form Field Filtering Enabled - allowing users to filter the content of the form fields in order to prevent XSS attacks.
- Whitelist Setting Enabled – Unlike other security software which only provides IP whitelist function, OSE PHP Anti-Hacker also provides the whitelist function for your programs and form fields, so that it gives you the flexibility to user a wide range of software while maintaining a high level of protections.
- Supports for Search Engine Optimized Websites – providing protection while maintaining your page ranking.
- Instant emails alerts to administrators once suspicious hacking behavior is logged.
- The application is developed under an Open Source PHP basis using the Model-View-Control Architect. Therefore its functions can be easily extended to all Open Source PHP systems.
Contents in the Package
Files which can be installed as a website platform on the server. After installation, the Open Source Excellence Security Suite platform includes the following components:
- Anti-Hacker component – managing blacklist and whitelist IPs, whitelist strings and form fields list.
- Virus Scanning Class Files – A folder containing class files for the application, allowing you to protect other websites on the same server. This means that with one installation, you can use it to protect all other PHP system on the same server.
- Virus Scanner – A component scanning and cleaning the website files on the same server.
- System Guard – A set of tools to help you change your system setting. It also includes a file audit system to audit files in the system of the OSE Security Suite platform.
- Update Manager – An upgrade component which allows you to keep the database of the virus definitions updated conveniently.
Software Download and Support
- Please find the OSE Security Suite on our OSE website: http://www.opensource-excellence.co.uk/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_new.tpl&product_id=2&category_id=6&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=157.
- After you purchase the product, you can use it FOREVER (INDEFINITELY); you can download all upgrades within 1 year; and you can receive our support within 1 year. Please check and download the latest upgrade on our OSE website in your "My Account" after login at: http://www.opensource-excellence.co.uk/index.php?option=com_osemsc&view=member&Itemid=145.
- If you have questions regarding installation, configuration, or usage, please go to our ticket system to raise a question: http://www.opensource-excellence.co.uk/tickets.
If you have a previous version of the OSE Security Suite installed and you intend to upgrade it to the latest version, please only read section 2.1 and then use the Security Suite as before. If you are a new user and going to make a fresh installation, please read all the contents from section 2.2.
Upgrade from a Previous Version
1. Uninstall previous components and plug-ins from the backend
- Login to your Security Suite Back-end, and uninstall the Anti-Hacker component, Virus Scan component, the Updater component and the System Guard component if any.
2. Installing new components and plug-ins
- Go to your Security Suite Back-end, and install the new version of the Anti-Hacker component, Virus Scan component, and the System Guard component in the Upgrade Folder of the zip pack.
3. Uploading new files
- Upload all files in the folder "Core Scanning Class Files" to your Security Suite Root folder.
4. Testing
- After finishing all above, please test if the update is successful by entering the following link: www.yoursite.com/index.php?%20union.
Fresh Installation
Before you install the OSE Security Suite, please make sure that:
1.Backup your current website, including all files and database just in case there are any accidents happening!
2. You are using a database that is specific for the Security Suite and is different from the database for your current website! This means that you have at least two databases, one is for your website, while the other is for the OSE Security Suite!
3. You are installing the OSE Security Suite into a folder that is different from your existing websites!
After you confirm the above three requirements, we can start now:
1. Under your www or public_html directory, create a folder called "osesecurity" (or any other name you prefer);
2. Upload the OSESecuritySuite zip pack to the folder "osesecurity";
3. Extract (Unzip) the zip pack (Don't know how? If you use cPanel, please see this instruction: How to extract zip files through cPanel?);
4. Delete the OSESecuritySuite zip file afte the files are extracted;
5. We can now start installing the software by accessing www.yoursite.com/osesecurity (please replace "yourdomain.com" to your website address and replace "osesecurity" to the folder name you specified);
6. Then follow the installation pages step by step. Please choose English for your language.
7. Click Next to go through Step 2 and Step 3.
8. Enter your database setting as shown below.
9. Ignore the FTP setting.
10. In the Final setting page, first of all, please click the Install Sample Data button, which will import the pre-set security setting for System Guard (which helps you improve the security of the file system for the Security Suite).
11. Then enter your contact email address, and password for the Security Suite backend.
12. Click Next to the Finish page.
13. Delete the Installation folder in the Security Suite folder when you finish setting this up. The installation folder is under your osesecurity folder (or something you specified) which is named as "installation".
14. Load the Back-end page and login using you admin information.
After installation, you need properly configure the OSE security Suite before activating it to work.
Basic Parameters
Go to the component and the plug-in manager to configure the Anti-Hacker function before the first time use.
1. Configuring Security Level of the Anti-hacker.
The Anti-Hacker Component introduces a 3-Layer protection system and a risk score policy.
- A. Layer 1 Protection
The Layer 1 protection is on by default and any activity violating the Layer 1 rules will be 100% blocked.
- B. Layer 2 Protection
Under the Layer 2 protection, all violations will be scored from 1 to 100 according the potential harm level, based on which the Anti-hacker decides whether block them. The violation with a higher risk score is more likely to be a real hacking attack and that with a very low risk score has a high possibility to be a FALSE POSITIVE. The Anti-Hacker function sets layer 2 protection off by default and it allows you to switch it on and configure the appropriate security level which is suitable to your websites by doing the following: Please access the "Dash Board" of Anti-Hacker component (by going to the Security Suite Backend --> Components --> Anti-Hacker), open the Parameters on your top right corner, adjust the Security Level.
The security level of Layer 2 protection is optional from Level 1 to Level 10. A higher security level indicates a stricter protection level. For Level n, the software will block all violations with risk scores above (100-10*n). For instance, if you set the security level as 8, it will block violations with scores larger than 20 and those under 20 will be only logged and altered by emails, but won't be blocked. Your websites can get a full protection by setting the security level to Level 10, at which all suspicions blocked.
We recommend you to set the Lay 2 protection to Level 7, which can protect your websites very well and at the same time reduces the possibility of FALSE POSITIVE to a quite low level. However, you can set the security level to any value to match your needs. You may inspect the alert list over a period and find out the optimal level for your websites.
- C. Layer 3 Protection
As shown in the above picture, you can configure the Lay 3 (HTTP BL) protection via the same "Parameter" button. You can opt to turn on the Layer 3 protection by ticking "Yes" and go to http://www.projecthoneypot.org/create_account.php to apply a HTTP: black list key.
2. Next, we need to know how to whitelist a program and whitelist a form field, and then whitelist proper strings and form fields to make the Anti-Hacker compatible with your websites. This is one important feature of our Anti-Hacker, which allows you to have the flexibility to use the Anti-Hacker function on any PHP platform. Please read section 5 Whitelisting programs and form fields on the following topics:
3. Other Configurations.
- A. Please double check that the Plug-in "Authentication - Open Source Excellence Authentication" is enabled. You can find it at "top menu -> Extensions -> Plugin Manager".
- B. Please click on the Plug-in "Authentication - Open Source Excellence Authentication" to open the options for it, and adjust the maximum login attempts that you set for backend users (default value is 3). Change the value "Integrate with Anti-Hacker" from No to Yes.
After configuring the Anti-Hacker function, you can go to the next step to make the System Guard Component perform "File and system audit" for your website.
File and System Audit
This section introduces how to do the file and system audit using the System Guard of Security Suite. This includes:
- Files permissions audit;
- System Configuration audit:
- Ensuring you are using a non-default administrator username,
- Set passwords to protect your administrator folder,
- Ensuring the configuration.php file is not writable.
In order to achieve this, we borrow functions from a popular Joomla component - GuardXT (this can be downloaded for free from: http://www.joomlaxt.com/).
Step 1. Audit your files permissions
The System Guard (a modified version of GuardXT) has been installed, and the files of the OSE Security Suite have been audited by default. However, ALL of your other websites if based on a Joomla system are RECOMMENDED to INSTALL this tool to audit your files as well.
Step 2. System Configuration Audit
After completing the file permissions checks, now we need to do the following steps:
* Step 2.1: Ensuring you are using a non-default administrator username
Change the default administrator's username if the super administrator's user name "admin" is still being used by clicking the Change Now link in System Guard in the Default admin user active row.
* Step 2.2: Set a password to protect the administrator
You can follow the instruction in FAQs to setup a password, Anti-Hacker FAQs: How do I set a new password to protect a folder with .htaccess?
Or go to your WEB HOSTING account control panel, check with your web hosting company to see how you can SET A PASSWORD TO PROTECT A DIRECTORY, then set a password to protect the whole OSE Security Suite folder. For example, if your Anti-Hacker is installed in the folder called "home/XXXX/htdocs/osesecurity", please set a password to protect this folder.
* Step 2.3: Change the permission of the configuration file
Simply click the "Change Now" in the "Joomla Server Configuration Check" Section in System Guard, and it will help you to change the permission of the configuration.php to be un-writable.
Please note: If you use the recommended php.ini in System Guard, please note one thing that you may not be able to install further plug-ins if you enable the "open_basedir" in php.ini. If you would like to install further plug-ins, please temporarily remove that line in the php.ini, and once you finish installing new plug-ins, add that line back to the php.ini.
We also recommend you to disable insecure functions for PHP environment. Please view how to do it in the FAQs: How to disable insecure functions for PHP environment?
Activation and Test
There are three methods to activate the Anti-Hacker function. Before you perform one of the activation methods, please notice: replace "/absolute_path_to_antihacker/" with the absolute path of the Security Suite in the following text. The path should be the admin folder under the root folder of Security Suite folder where you install the Security Suite, e.g. "/public_html/osesecurity/administrator/".
First, please go to Components --> System Guard --> Version Checks, it lists the lines for you to add to activate the anti-hacker. Please use one of the following methods and we would suggest you to choose to use php.ini or .htaccess to activate the anti-hacker in order to have a server-wide protection.
- A. Via the php.ini file
Activate the Anti-Hacker through php.ini: you can add the following line to the php.ini file, and copy the php.ini file to the folder or system that you would like to protect:
- code
- B. Via the .htaccess file
If you are using Apache Module and you want to use .htaccess to run anti-hacker, you can add the following line to the .htaccess file, and copy the .htaccess file to the folder or system that you would like to protect:
- code
php_value auto_prepend_file "/absolute_path_to_antihacker/administrator/scan.php"
If you could not activate it through the above methods (even after reading the FAQs, Anti-Hacker FAQs: What if having difficulties in Activating Anti-Hacker?), please consult your hosting company with regard to how to enable the auto_prepend function to activate it through .htaccess or php.ini, because this will maximize the protection on your websites.
While you are waiting for the hosting company to sort out the above problem, you can use the following method to activate the anti hacker temporarily:
- C. Via the index.php file
In the Root folder of the system that you would like to protect, open the index.php, enter the following code in the first line:
- code
<?php require_once("absolute_path_to_antihacker/administrator/scan.php");
- X. Disable risky PHP functions
Please also add the following codes in the the activation file to disable the risky PHP functions to maximize the security. This is very important and effective to give your websites a good protection.
For php.ini
register_globals = off safe_mode = off allow_url_fopen = off display_errors = off enable_dl = off disable_functions =exec,passthru,shell_exec,system,proc_open,popen,curl_exec,curl_multi_exec,parse_ini_file,show_source
For .htaccess
php_flag display_errors off php_flag enable_dl off php_value disable_functions "exec,passthru,shell_exec,system,proc_open,popen,curl_exec,curl_multi_exec,parse_ini_file,show_source"
- Testing
After doing one of these activations, we can go to test the Anti-Hacker function. You can test it using the url:
Then you will be blocked. The screenshot of what your clients will see is as below. You can customize the blocking message by the "Custom BanPage" function of the Anti-Hacker.
However, when you successfully login to the backend, sometimes you will find that there is no IP being locked! Why???
That is because our plug-in may change the IP status from "hacking IP" to "suspicious IP" if you can successfully enter into the back end. Then when you successfully enter the Administrator login information, your IP would be removed from the blacklist automatically. Therefore, in that case, you cannot find any blacklist IPs in the backend.
If you would like to know the changes of the IP status, you can log into the phpmyadmin and see how it changes, and also after you login to the backend successfully.
If the Anti-Hacker doesn't return the expected result meaning the activation is not easily successful, please read the FAQs carefully, Anti-Hacker FAQs: What if having difficulties in Activating Anti-Hacker?
Whitelisting Strings and Form Fields
Since the OSE Security Suite is a common security platform, it only has a basic list of whitelist programs. You may need to define more to make it compatible with your specific systems, websites, and programs. This section introduces how to add more allowed-to-access strings and form fields.
How to Whitelist a Program?
Please refer to this FAQ for instructions: How_to_Whitelist_a_Program?
How to Whitelist a Form Field?
In order to maximize the protection, the Anti-hacker of Security Suite will scan and filter content of all form fields for suspicious hacking behaviours. Therefore, if you would like to NOT scan or filter some form fields, you need to add the corresponding name of the form field in the White List Form Fields list.
You may simply need to add the name of the form field into the Whitelist Form Field List in order to ignore scanning the content of this form field. For example, the name of the filed text in the contact form is called "text", and then you could add "text" in one form field as follows:
Then save the record, the anti-hacker will NOT filter the content of this form field to see whether that there is suspicious hacking behaviour. Please note that when sometimes the scanner reports FALSE POSITIVES alerts, this function allows you to have more flexibility in Anti-hacker filter rules to fit your system.
Scan Files with the Virus Scanner
Basic Configuration
1. Find the absolute path of your Security Suite website by doing the following: Go to Security Suite backend --> Global Configuration --> System -> System Setting --> Path to Log folder
You can get the absolute path of the log folder. Then by removing the part "/log", you will get the absolute path of the Security Suite website
- a) Assuming that the absolute path of your Security Suite website log folder is:
- b) Then the absolute path of your other websites is:
home/demo/public_html/you websites/
- c) Then the absolute path of the root folder of your server will be:
2. Entering the absolute path of the folder you would like to scan in OSE Virus Scanner:
- a.1) If you are using 2.0, Go to Security Suite Components --> Anti-Virus --> Click the Parameter button on your top right corner.
- a.2) From version 2.1, we bring in OSE File scanner to help you initialize your database for files, so it sorts out the 500 errors when you scan virus. With version 2.1, please go to Backend --> Components --> OSE File Scanner --> Click the Parameters button on your top right corner.
- b) Enter the Absolute path of the folder that you would like to scan. Let's say the root folder ("home/demo/public_html/") here.
- c) Change the file extensions that you would like the Virus Scanner to scan.
- d) Then Save the parameter settings.
Scanning Files
Update 25-05-2010 New version 2.1 beta can be downloaded in your download area: [1]. New instruction on how to use 2.1 beta can be found here: OSE_Joomla_Anti-Virus#New_Version_2.1_Beta
1. After you click the Scan button, the scanner will start scanning files inside the folder you specified in the parameters. The status bar of your browser will become busy.
2. At this stage, please do not close your Browser or operate the Virus Scanner before the final result displays.
3. Scanning Results
- a) After Scanning the Files, the Scanner will report what files are infected in a list, which looks like the following.
- b) 99% of time the scanner reports real infected files, but in some cases it will report false positives, because some files may use iframe inside their codes which matches one of the suspicious patterns the scanner is looking for. Therefore sometimes the scanner will alert false positives. To deal with false positives, we need to add the file path to the whitelist section. Please tick the files you are going to whitelist and then whitelist them as shown above. Alternatively, you can also add files in the whitelist by inputting the absolute path of file in the Whitelist tab as shown below.
- c) After Adding all false reported files, go back to the Virus Scan and click the Scan button to re-scan your folders. Now, only infected files will be reported. Under the result reporting page, tick all infected files and click the "Clean" button to start cleaning all infected files.
- d) IF YOUR SERVER ALLOWS THE WRITE PERMISSION FOR THE COMPONENT, your files can be cleaned immediately and a backup file will be created in the quarantine folder of the Anti-Virus. You can view the processing report via Report tab. Please see this screenshot:
- e) Custom scan. You are allowed to scan some of the files and folders using the custom scan function.
After Cleaning
1. Comparing the Backup Files with the Cleaned Files, you may find the malicious codes inside the file.
2. If you look at the Cleaned version, the malicious codes were all removed.
3. If you find that the file was reported as false positives because the codes that have been removed are not malicious codes, please use the "Restore" function to recover the original files and add the file to the Whitelist for next scan.
File Restore
You can get the original files back at any time you want. Click the Restore button under the Virus Scan page and you will view the list of all cleaned files.


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Rockstar couple Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale posed with their two sons – Kingston, 7, and Zuma, 4 – at the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation's 24th Annual 'A Time For Heroes' Event at Century Park in Los Angeles, Calif. on Sunday (June 2).
After the benefit, Gwen and the boys headed to a birthday party in Sherman Oaks. Donning bright yellow jeans, Gwen watched as her boys wore costumes and enjoyed the cartoon-themed party.
The busy mom – who is currently working on another No Doubt album – recently admitted that it's only getting harder to juggle it all as her boys get older.
View Slideshow »»
"It's superfun being a mom, but it's not what you think it's going to be. And it's really gradual. At first, your life is totally the same. You have this cute little thing that you get to drive around everywhere and you're so proud and it's amazing," Gwen said. "And as they grow older, it really does start to change your life. Like, Oh, my God, they have school, they have to get through first grade, they have to learn to read."

subset: commoncrawl


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Location: 1221 Fulton Mall, Fresno, CA 93721 Telephone: (559) 600-3550 Clinic for Travel Vaccinations (Shots) is Open: Thursdays - vaccines only by appointment (Closed for lunch 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM) Call Soon to Schedule Your Appointment
The Fresno County Immunization Program provides travel vaccinations for a FEE, please call (559) 600-3550 to ask for prices.To schedule an appointment for a FREE travel consultation, contact the Immunization Program at (559) 600-3550.
Some vaccines may be required for travel. Check to see if you are up to date on routine vaccinations before traveling to any destination.
Payment may be made by cash, check, or credit card. We do not have the ability to bill insurance companies or Medi-Cal for travel vaccines.
Be aware, it may require up to 6 months to complete a full set of immunizations for your trip.
Schedule your FREE consultation in advance to make sure you are appropriately immunized for your traveling destination.
Diseases that are common in other parts of the world, to be aware of while traveling, include:
To learn more about what you will need to enjoy a safe and healthy trip, click on one of the pages below:


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This test leads contain most of male and female terminals for connecting cars electronic system and your testing tools, It is easily connect car and test equipment through these sets of leads. Work with this set leads can save time and convenient. It's an indispensable test aid for car diagnostics.
ADS9910 Automotive T ADS9910
On April 25 2014 at United States 6 Views
female - 04/08
39 Photos
China, United States


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When pigs start dying, it's clear that there's an economic cost to your business, not to mention the impact it has on your staff's motivation.
Porcine circovirus is common on hog farms, but more recently PCV Type 2 has gained attention and impact. "It has been implicated in several pathologic conditions," says Tom Gillespie, DVM, Rensselaer, Ind., "including post-weaning multi-systemic wasting syndrome, porcine dermatitis and nephropathy syndrome, pneumonia, reproductive and enteric diseases." Today these are now broadly termed as porcine circovirus associated diseases.
No question, PCVAD grabs immediate attention when pigs start dying, but there's more to consider than increased mortality and culling rates. There's also reduced growth rates and poor feed efficiency. To gain deeper insight, Gillespie and his colleagues dug into the economic effects of PCVAD on reduced performance and increased mortality in a commercial grow/finish herd.
The review involved a 1,200-sow, farrow-to-finish herd in the eastern Corn Belt. It was diagnosed with PCVAD in December 2004. The system was negative for porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome. Within that system, pigs were finished in conventional 1,000-head units.
The PCVAD diagnosis was made in 12- to 16-week old pigs, Gillespie says.
The veterinarians collected herd records for six-month periods (December through May) for two years prior to the clinical disease outbreak and adjusted them seasonally for comparison purposes. Of course, records at the beginning and during the PCVAD episode were also considered. The review focused on group performance, including average daily gain, feed efficiency, the number of pigs placed and mortality rates.
The assumptions:
"We made the following economic value assumptions," Gillespie notes.
Average feed cost = $0.132 per kilogram
Mortality opportunity cost = $125 per animal
Average daily gain = dollars per kilogram
The results:
"The PCVAD outbreak significantly impacted mortality, average daily gain and feed efficiency," he adds.
Parameter 2003/2004 2005
Pigs placed
2003/2004: 1,175.9
2005: 1,106.8
2003/2004: 1.61%
2005: 4.58%
Average gain (grams per day)
2003/2004: 849.0
2005: 826.3
Feed efficiency
2003/2004: 2.68
2005: 2.83
The economics:
"The analysis revealed a combined loss of $6.60 per animal during the outbreak phase," Gillespie says. "The bulk of the cost was from mortality. Culls were not analyzed."
Note that they analyzed mortality as animals per 1,000 head placed into the finishing units.
Production change: +3.24%
Value in U.S. $: $2.78
Average gain (grams per day)
Production change: -22.7
Value in U.S. $: $2.09
Feed efficiency
Production change: +0.15
Value in U.S. $: $1.73
PCVAD had been expressed more in the nursery and early-growing pig stages, and occasionally as a reproductive or enteric challenge. But with the disease evolving into the growing and finishing stages, the potential economic impact on a herd and the industry is growing as well.
Gillespie points out that the PCVAD challenge in this herd surfaced clinically as respiratory and systemic disease in finishing pigs. Of course, that will generate attention.
"In this system, individual pigs were not responsive to conventional antimicrobial therapy once clinical expression was underway," he adds.
Watching for signs of PCVAD is a wise and necessary daily task today. The case definition includes:
Significant increase in cull pigs and in mortality.
Presence of PCV2 virus in lesions found during necropsy.
Symptoms that are non-responsive to treatment.
There is a lot of talk about PCVAD's harsh impact in PRRS-infected herds, but there is no security to be found in PRRS-negative herds.
"In PRRS-negative herds, PCVAD can play a major economic role in impairing biological and economic performance in growing pigs," Gillespie says. "Even in herds where the PRRS virus is not present and performance is at or above industry benchmarks, there is need for attentive and effective control strategies."


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Monday, May 3, 2010
Google Invests In Wind Farms
Mountain View-based Google said Monday that it has invested in two wind farm projects, which generate 169.5 megawatts of power. According to Google, the investment went into wind farms developed by NextEra Energy Resources in North Dakota. Google said the investment would go to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy.


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Sun Feb 17, 2013, 02:39 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
Iraq: Bush lied
There were NO UN inspectors in Iraq when Congress voted on the IWR, but they returned shortly after.
July 5, 2002
Iraq once again rejects new UN weapons inspection proposals.
November 13, 2002
Iraq accepts U.N. Security Council Resolution 1441 and informs the UN that it will abide by the resolution.
Weapons inspectors arrive in Baghdad again after a four-year absence.
Following the mandate of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441, Saddam Hussein allowed UN inspectors to return to Iraq in November 2002. UNMOVIC led inspections of alleged chemical and biological facilities in Iraq until shortly before the U.S. invasion of Iraq in March 2003, but did not find any weapons of mass destruction. Based on its inspections and examinations during this time, UNMOVIC inspectors determined that UNSCOM had successfully dismantled Iraqs unconventional weapons program during the 1990s.
Bush removed the inspectors before launching the invasion. He had it all planned. He had a Senate that was in complete agreement that Saddam possesed WMD based on the bogus intelligence fed them. The Senate was voting on several versions of the resolution to authorize force, including the Byrd Amendment with an expiration date one year from passage.
Here is the Durbin Amendment, which only got 30 votes, including Feingold and Kennedy.
To amend the authorization for the use of the Armed Forces to cover an imminent threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction rather than the continuing threat posed by Iraq.
The Byrd Amendment got 31 votes, Kennedy voted for, Feingold voted against.
To provide a termination date for the authorization of the use of the Armed Forces of the United States, together with procedures for the extension of such date unless Congress disapproves the extension.
Bush only needed a few months to launch the war. Setting a date for the termination of the authorization would still have given Bush enough time to lie and launch a war. And as anyone could see, once the Iraq war was launched, none of these Senators committed to forcing a withdrawal. In 2006, Kerry-Feingold, setting a date for withdrawal, got 13 votes.
After the IWR vote, Bush lied, first in his state of the union:
"The British Government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa."
Bush's 16 words still hotly debated
How Powerful Can 16 Words Be?
...and then in the bullshit letter and report he sent to Congress claiming a link to the 9/11 attacks.
March 18, 2003
Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President: )
Consistent with section 3(b) of the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 (Public Law 107-243), and based on information available to me, including that in the enclosed document, I determine that:
(1) reliance by the United States on further diplomatic and other peaceful means alone will neither (A) adequately protect the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq nor (B) likely lead to enforcement of all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq; and
(2) acting pursuant to the Constitution and Public Law 107-243 is consistent with the United States and other countries continuing to take the necessary actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations, or persons who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001.
Bush's signing statement spelled out his intent to ignore the conditional aspects of the IWR. He acknowledged that while Congress agreed that a threat existed, they didn't give him the full support to launch a war unconditionally.
Statement on Signing the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002
October 16th, 2002
The debate over this resolution in the Congress was in the finest traditions of American democracy. There is no social or political force greater than a free people united in a common and compelling objective. It is for that reason that I sought an additional resolution of support from the Congress to use force against Iraq, should force become necessary. While I appreciate receiving that support, my request for it did not, and my signing this resolution does not, constitute any change in the long-standing positions of the executive branch on either the President's constitutional authority to use force to deter, prevent, or respond to aggression or other threats to U.S. interests or on the constitutionality of the War Powers Resolution. On the important question of the threat posed by Iraq, however, the views and goals of the Congress, as expressed in H.J. Res. 114 and previous congressional resolutions and enactments, and those of the President are the same.
Statements by Senators at the time.
We Still Have a Choice on Iraq
By John F. Kerry
Published: September 06, 2002
It may well be that the United States will go to war with Iraq. But if so, it should be because we have to -- not because we want to. For the American people to accept the legitimacy of this conflict and give their consent to it, the Bush administration must first present detailed evidence of the threat of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and then prove that all other avenues of protecting our nation's security interests have been exhausted. Exhaustion of remedies is critical to winning the consent of a civilized people in the decision to go to war. And consent, as we have learned before, is essential to carrying out the mission. President Bush's overdue statement this week that he would consult Congress is a beginning, but the administration's strategy remains adrift.
Regime change in Iraq is a worthy goal. But regime change by itself is not a justification for going to war. Absent a Qaeda connection, overthrowing Saddam Hussein -- the ultimate weapons-inspection enforcement mechanism -- should be the last step, not the first. Those who think that the inspection process is merely a waste of time should be reminded that legitimacy in the conduct of war, among our people and our allies, is not a waste, but an essential foundation of success.
If we are to put American lives at risk in a foreign war, President Bush must be able to say to this nation that we had no choice, that this was the only way we could eliminate a threat we could not afford to tolerate.
In the end there may be no choice. But so far, rather than making the case for the legitimacy of an Iraq war, the administration has complicated its own case and compromised America's credibility by casting about in an unfocused, overly public internal debate in the search for a rationale for war. By beginning its public discourse with talk of invasion and regime change, the administration has diminished its most legitimate justification of war -- that in the post-Sept. 11 world, the unrestrained threat of weapons of mass destruction in the hands of Saddam Hussein is unacceptable and that his refusal to allow in inspectors is in blatant violation of the United Nations 1991 cease-fire agreement that left him in power.
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Feingold on the Senate floor, September 26, 2002:
The threat we know is real--Iraq's pursuit of weapons of mass destruction or WMD--is unquestionably a very serious issue. What is the mission? Is the mission on the table disarmament or is it regime change? Has anyone heard a credible plan for securing the weapons of mass destruction sites as part of a military operation in Iraq ? Has anyone heard any credible plan for what steps the United States intends to take to ensure that weapons of mass destruction do not remain a problem in Iraq beyond the facile ``get rid of Saddam Hussein'' rallying cry?
Saddam Hussein is a vile man with a reckless and brutal history, and I have no problem agreeing that the United States should support regime change. I agree with those who assert that Americans, Iraqis, and the people of the Middle East would be much better off if he were no longer in power. But he is not the sole personification of a destabilizing WMD program. Once Hussein's control is absent, we have either a group of independent, self-interested actors with access to WMD or an unknown quantity of a new regime. We may face a period of some chaos, wherein a violent power struggle ensues as actors maneuver to succeed Saddam.
Kennedy slams Bush on Iraq
'Wrong war at the wrong time'
By Sean Loughlin
CNN Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In a stinging rebuke of the Bush administration's foreign policy, Sen. Edward Kennedy predicted Tuesday that a military strike against Iraq would "undermine" the war against terrorism, "feed a rising tide of anti-Americanism overseas" and strain diplomatic ties.
Kennedy said U.N. weapons inspectors need more time to discover what kind of weapons Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein may be amassing in Iraq.
Bush, however, said Tuesday that Saddam was not disarming his nation and was giving the world community "the runaround." (Full story) ...But in an interview with CNN, Sen. Chuck Hagel, a Nebraska Republican and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, urged the Bush administration not to rush toward any confrontation with Iraq.
"We need to be patient here; time is on our side here," Hagel said. He added that a "precipitous" move would "endanger not just Americans around the world, but it would endanger this country, our security, stability in the world for a long time to come because we were rash in using our power."
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Kerry Says US Needs Its Own 'Regime Change'
Bush lied the country into war. He pulled the trigger despite protests even from members of Congress.
24 replies, 2573 views
|24 replies
Iraq: Bush lied (Original post)
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Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 02:44 PM
Comrade Grumpy (13,184 posts)
1. ...and a bunch of Democrats voted for his war.
I don't know which is the more charitable explanation:
They were too dumb to know better or too gutless to vote against war.
Response to Comrade Grumpy (Reply #1)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 02:56 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
3. Jump in with the standard line. Bush lied.
Period. He had no justification for going to war, and he lied every second up until he launched the invasion.
Response to ProSense (Reply #3)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:22 PM
Comrade Grumpy (13,184 posts)
14. ...and a bunch of Democrats enabled his war.
They voted how they voted. I remember, and no amount of spinning can make me forget.
Response to Comrade Grumpy (Reply #14)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 05:56 PM
catchnrelease (1,306 posts)
22. I will never forgive Feinstein
Before the IWR was voted on, along with thousands of others, I wrote to DiFi and basically begged her to vote against the resolution. Citing the misinformation being mentioned here, the lies being pushed by the Bush admin,etc. I got back a canned response, essentially a pat on the head, saying that she had inside information and she knew best. Shortly after that I saw an interview in which she admitted that she'd had tens of thousands of people write to her, asking for her to vote NO. And that if she had listened to her constituents she would have voted no, but she felt differently about it. I don't get it, isn't it her job to represent the wishes of her constituents? Oh wait, I forgot, her husband is a war profiteer. What was I thinking...............
Response to ProSense (Reply #3)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 04:48 PM
indepat (20,899 posts)
19. And I'd guess that nary a Republican Congress-critter cares a whit whether their Republican
president were lying, since they collectively literally jump through figurative assholes to ram through everything their Republican president wants, no matter how illegal, how inhumane, how destructive, no matter the cost in American lives, limbs, and traumatic brain injuries and treasure: Republicans, almost without exception, vote give a Republican president everything he wants and to obstruct a Democratic president from governing in the manner the founders intended. Modern-day Republicans in Congress are, imo, a domestic right-wing extremist group which obstructs the government from efficiently carrying out its constitutional duties, its members constitutional enemies within. Of course, that's just my opinion and I've been said to be wrong before.
Response to Comrade Grumpy (Reply #1)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 02:56 PM
Tierra_y_Libertad (50,414 posts)
4. I'll vote for willful ignorance and mob mentality.
Response to Tierra_y_Libertad (Reply #4)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 02:58 PM
L0oniX (31,493 posts)
5. There's been some "mob mentality" right here on DU as well. n/t
Response to L0oniX (Reply #5)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:00 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
7. Yes, there are. I see Bush as a war criminal.
Some see Bush as a guy who just did what Congress allowed him to do, and then question DUers for blaming it on Bush.
Bush is a liar.
Hubris: The Selling of the Iraq War - Monday 2/18 at 9 p.m. ET
By Will Femia
Last night Rachel pointed out that this year marks the tenth anniversary of President George W. Bush's State of the Union address containing the now infamous 16 words that turned out to be a very consequential lie:
The British Government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa .
Included in a collection of web materials associated with Rachel's upcoming documentary "Hubris: The Selling of the Iraq War," is a longer cut of that 2003 State of the Union address. It's a powerful reminder of how thick the Bush administration laid it on to rally the nation to war in Iraq:
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Response to ProSense (Reply #7)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:09 PM
L0oniX (31,493 posts)
8. Mob mentality asside ...US justice should prevail and persue Bush his war crimes groupies...
...and DU should have been keeping this on the fire since the drum up to the war. This is not something for a stupid emotional mob ...it's something intelligent people of this country should push for until it gets done. US justice means nothing until they (and the banksters) are in prison where they belong.
Response to L0oniX (Reply #8)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:17 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
12. Agree, but I can only hold out hope.
The Iraq war was based on a lie, an apparently intentional lie. That's important.
Response to Tierra_y_Libertad (Reply #4)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 02:58 PM
OneMoreDemocrat (913 posts)
6. Me too...
I'd add fear as well.
Not going along at the time was admitting that you hated America.
Response to Comrade Grumpy (Reply #1)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:17 PM
OldDem2012 (3,526 posts)
11. I think quite a few were personally afraid not to go with the flow on Iraq...
....Don't forget who the silent movers and shakers were behind the scenes, people willing to do anything to achieve their goals.
Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 02:51 PM
Angry Dragon (30,117 posts)
2. War Criminal Bush, etal. should be brought before the World Court
Response to Angry Dragon (Reply #2)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:12 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
9. Rachel Maddow's program is a great
way to kick off a retrospective of the events leading up to the illegal war on its 10-year anniversary.
Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:14 PM
Brother Buzz (16,870 posts)
10. 237 misleading statements about Iraq
Rep. Henry Waxman released a report of the U.S. House of Representatives (16 March 2004) that identifies 237 misleading statements about Iraq made by President George Bush, Vice President Richard Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Colin Powell, and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice in 125 public appearances.
Response to Brother Buzz (Reply #10)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 04:01 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
16. Thanks for posting. n/t
Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:20 PM
ismnotwasm (32,578 posts)
13. Can we try him for war crimes now?
I'm serious.
Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 03:25 PM
EastKYLiberal (429 posts)
15. Bush lied. Those that believed him were victims.
It's time to forgive and forget the victims of this liar and war criminal.
Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 04:22 PM
Cleita (75,480 posts)
17. I'll give this a kick.
People should read it.
Response to Cleita (Reply #17)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 04:32 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
18. Thanks. n/t
Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 04:50 PM
spanone (96,359 posts)
20. cheney was drooling over an iraqi invasion from the moment bu$h* won.
Response to ProSense (Original post)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 05:48 PM
Beowulf (761 posts)
21. The Dem's were cowards, facing midterms
but we should remember some dem's were receiving anthrax in the mail just a year earlier.
Response to Beowulf (Reply #21)
Sun Feb 17, 2013, 07:33 PM
ProSense (116,464 posts)
23. "some dem's were receiving anthrax in the mail just a year earlier"
I doubt that had anything to do with the IWR vote.
Response to Beowulf (Reply #21)
Mon Feb 18, 2013, 01:19 AM
Spirochete (5,264 posts)
24. Yes, and
Paul Wellstone's plane had come tumbling out of the sky...


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Why I Pre-Ordered an Apple iPad
I did it. This morning, before finishing breakfast, I pre-ordered an Apple iPad. I even threw in a dock and a wireless keyboard. With taxes (because New York state needs a cut) that's $644.76 total. All that money, and I'm still left wondering if I'll actually get it on April 3 since I didn't pay extra for shipping.
Why did I order this thing? I already have a Macbook Pro and an iPhone. I even have a bright orange Samsung netbook that's not even six months old. What on earth is this silly slate going to do for me?
As I told a friend this morning, I fear I might still be running on nostalgia for the desire I had for such a device over a year ago, when the idea was shiny and new. There have been a lot of Apple announcements since that time. All of them were sleep inducing, but every single presentation held the potential to be the one that would introduce a tablet computer that would change...everything.
I wanted the iPhone announcement of 2007 all over again. But bigger.
From late 2008 on, before every keynote or speech given by Steve Jobs or his more boring counterparts, I would typically tweet something like: "Lemme know if Jobs announces a tablet; meanwhile I'll be napping. #iwantipad" (Note to the boss: I didn't nap... I read our live blogs of the announcements, hoping for just a tiny intimation, a slight morsel of a hint that Apple was working on a tablet. I can sleep during meetings.)
It took a while, during which my enthusiasm waned but did not disappear. Finally this year, after months of rumor and speculation, it was unveiled, and it was dubbed the iPad. I watched it all in real-time, listening to live audio, reading blogs, watching images crop up across the gadget sites. All in all, the announcement was, well, a big yawn.
I mean, come on, AT&T? Seriously? I get that Apple doesn't want to embrace some new technology--like Verizon Wireless EV-DO--when it's got lots of AT&T chips lying around. But how could Apple not anticipate groans? No camera? No HDMI out? Still no Flash support? This is "magical?"
Even details I liked, such as the iBook store, were not very exciting because just about every aspect of the iPad had already been speculated to death. There were no surprises. It was not at all like the iPhone.
And yet... I still wanted the stupid, stupid tablet. My reply when asked about my iPad need vs. iPad want is, "I have more money than sense." Customers like me, in quantity, are the dream of every consumer technology vendor. For Apple, we're an absolute necessity.
But before you pass judgment, here are some actual reasons I pulled out my credit card: I've eschewed Kindles and Nooks in my desire for a color e-book reader. iPad's got that. Imagine the graphic novels (read: comics), people. I want an instant-on, reasonably-sized screen for Web surfing on the fly. The iPhone/iPod touch come close, but I wanted something that looks like a full page, and that's iPad. I even want to write on such a thing, and not with my thumbs; I never thought Apple would let me. But with the Bluetooth keyboard option, I can consider selling my almost new netbook.
Plus, I get to be the first hipster doofus to pull out an iPad at the local coffee shop. The question is, will I get oohs and ahhs from fellow patrons? Or groans? I guess I'll find out in April.


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Find out why we are changing the name of our app here
We received a cease and desist letter from a company who claims they have ownership of the word "hear". They say that they have the right to stop us using the word "Hear" in the title of our app. We think it is sad that someone can own the word Hear especially because we have been producing augmented sound since 2008 and the company claiming they own the word hear is much younger than us.
However, like the artist formerly known as Prince, instead of engaging in legal battles we want to maintain a positive attitude and use our time and energy to do what we do best, which is delivering the finest augmented hearing experiences for you, our fans.
We decided to be very open about this issue and communicate with our fans about it, which also means, we want to engage with you in finding a new name and brand for our app. So, here we go, the floor is yours: Please send us your proposal for the name of this app. The winner will get a lifetime mention in the app credits. Use the dialog in the app to submit your idea!
Good luck!
Your submission has been received! Thanks so much for taking the time to help choose a new name for the app. We really appreciate it.
You can submit another one if you want :)
If you have any questions or just want to say hi send us an email: email@example.com
H _ _ r is an amazing way to listen to the world. It harmonizes your listening experience which helps you to be less distracted and stressed. The H _ _ r app filters your acoustic environment, takes out harsh sounds and turns stressful noise into harmonic sound environments. Try it now, it's a free download on the app Store!
The H _ _ r app gives you unlimited control over real-world sound. Simply plug in your existing headphones and listen through one of the 7 free filters!
Pro Tip: You can use H _ _ r when listening to music. This is very useful at work when you still want to hear your coworkers but listen to your music at the same time.
H _ _ r is brought to you by the original pioneers of augmented sound, the RjDj team, makers of the legendary RjDj and Inception App, which hit no1 in the AppStore and over 7 million downloads. This app is the evolution of the RjDj augmented sound technology- download to listen for yourself!.
"It's like legal drugs with no side effects - it's fantastic" PHARRELL WILLIAMS
"Hey, It's mushrooms without the mushrooms!" John Mahoney, GIZMODO
"The most trippy app on the iPhone" Jason Kincaid, TECHCRUNCH
"If you've ever consumed psychedelics, the auditory effects are very similar.." Joel Johnson, BOING BOING
"It's completely awesome and kind of surreal. An experience that's not easy to describe in words." Federico Vittici, MACSTORIES
We have been building the finest active listening products since 2008. In our journey we have worked with some of the best listeners in the world, including Hans Zimmer, Chris Nolan and Imogen Heap. For us, the ear is the biggest and most fascinating tech frontier. We believe that in the next few years eartech will have higher impact in our society than vistech. Headphones will increasingly be equipped with sensory hardware and evolve into hearables. We won't take these devices off for a large part of our days and nights. They will connect us with the virtual world and keep us in our communication streams with family, friends and business. In a similar way they will connect us to the real world and enhance and augment our perception of the real world.


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What next for Modi's India?
The Indian government announced welcome reforms to attract foreign investors this week. But India-watchers were distracted by the resignation of the much-respected head of the country's central bank, Raghuram Rajan. Gideon Rachman discusses the future of prime minister Narendra Modi's reform programme with the FT's South Asia bureau chief Amy Kazmin and former Mumbai correspondent James Crabtree.


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Written by one of Wildland Adventures top South Africa guides, Doug Thomson.
We, as South Africans, are feeling a mixture of grief and celebration all at the same time. We grieve and feel a sense of sadness at our loss, but at the same time we celebrate and take note that we have been a part of an incredible journey. One that will probably never be repeated. We have witnessed an unbelievable man do the unusual. Using all his statesmanship, charisma and warmth, he managed to turn a nation that was tearing itself apart into one. Although, not without enormous challenges.
I clearly remember that day in Feb 1990 when Nelson Mandela walked out of Victor Verster prison a free man and gave his "long walk to freedom' speech at City Hall opposite the Grand Parade in Cape Town. The tension in the country was palpable. Blacks wanted revenge, the white-controlled military and police were on high alert. All military reservists were on 3 hour standby. People had stockpiled food supplies like doomsday preppers and were facing a civil war. This man who had been in prison for 27 years for treason against the Apartheid Nationalist Government was meant to be a revolutionary, a militant terrorist. He stood in front of the huge crowd that day and said 'it was time to talk!". He then went on to say that never again will one group oppress another group in this country.
It turned out that he was the complete opposite of what most people on both sides were expecting. His work in bringing the people of the country together is absolutely amazing. When one reads the book "Invictus" one gets a good sense of how powerfully and yet subtly he brought people together and through forgiveness began the task of nation building. I think one of his most powerful sayings was :
"No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite." Nelson Mandela.
Millions of people on all sides of the colour spectrum revere this man, simply because he was human. He saw beyond colour and hatred . Where other people saw the enemy, he saw countryman. He made us celebrate our differences and embrace those as a strength (rainbow nation). He had the humility to cross the huge divides that lay across our people. He was an excellent example of "ubuntu" where no man is an island and that we are all interconnected in some way. He was a very brave man who did not hesitate to stand up for what he believed in, even if it was an unpopular belief. We salute him and were very, very lucky to have had him as a South African. Through him and many others like him, we were able to show the world what can be done. If people are prepared to put their differences aside and seek common ground, based on humanity and not based on religion, colour or creed.
Now as we let him go in peace, I am hoping that the people of our magnificent country can re-align to his values and realise where we deviated from his vision. I strongly believe that this could ignite the nation once more, in a similar way to the 1995 Rugby World Cup or the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup. The lasting tribute to Mandela would be for the country to live up to his dream and live the vision he had for us as a proud nation.
Be at peace, Tata Madiba
Doug Thomson
South Africa safari guide, learn more about Doug.


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Gaspode by Rachel Coopey
Welcome! You are browsing as a guestWould you like to see 9 projects made from this pattern and much more? create a free account What am I missing?
© mandyscragg
This pattern is available for £3.50 GBP buy it now
This is tenth pattern from the 'When Granny Weatherwax Knits Socks' Club
Named after Gaspode the Wonder Dog (but they'll smell better, honest). I took these photos on the mean streets of Ankh-Morpork.
A unisex textured sock with a chevron pattern on the front and a textured twisted rib down the back of the leg and heel flap.


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This is simple, sophisticated bangle that looks as if it has been screwed onto your wrist for eternity. Small Cubic Zirconia crystals alternate with knots to add a bit of glam to this wonderful design.
7" Size Bangle
Hinged Lock Closure
Silver Rhodium
Cubic Zirconia
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Gateway M285-E
Gateway firmly believes that a convertible tablet PC should be a full-size notebook with tablet features. Case in point is the Gateway M285-E ($1,843 direct as tested). This dual-purpose system has a large 14-inch widescreen, a full-size keyboard, and all the pen features a tablet user wants. Now factor in the portable's Intel Core Duo processor and PCI Express graphics from ATI, and you've got a system just as powerful as any notebook on the market.
Read the full review: Gateway M285-E


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Installing the Hornettek SHARK is relatively straightforward. First, slide out the plastic drive tray from the aluminum housing and slide your drive into it. Next, screw your drive into place with the provided drive screws.
After that, slide the drive tray back into the housing and use the small black screws provided to secure the drive in place within the enclosure. If you don't do this, the drive tray will possibly shoot out of the chassis, as that brushed aluminum is incredibly slippery! Connect the USB 3.0 cable and you're good to go!
The ideal use of the SHARK is to put a 2.5" drive in, plug it in, and then transfer data between multiple machines or carry it with you as a data storage mechanism without bringing your entire computer or laptop. It's not really designed for hotswapping multiple drives, though you can do that if you want to.
For my own personal use, the Hornettek SHARK is a shared device on my network. It is currently connected to my HTPC, with all my media files are currently loaded on a 750GB 2.5" 7200RPM drive inside it.
But…I had one other use for it as well, and it was an absolute lifesaver in this regard. One of my family members has an old laptop laying around with a broken screen and a broken fan, causing it to shut down within minutes of booting to protect itself. The family member in question has since bought a new laptop, but they wanted their data from the old machine to be transferred. In comes the SHARK. I unscrewed the back plate from the old laptop, popped the drive into the enclosure, and bam – all their data was available to see again. Awesome! Prior to this I couldn't get the machine to stay on long enough for traditional data retrieval methods.
The supplied USB 3.0 cable was a bit short to sit flat atop my case (full-tower). This is a non-issue for those with mid-tower cases or laptops, but if you have a larger case it is worth noting.
As with any storage device, the device with the highest performance to value ratio is usually the product people opt to purchase. So how did the Hornettek SHARK perform when put through a couple of benchmarks?
All benchmarks were performed with a Plextor M3 128GB SSD. The USB 3.0 cable was plugged into the Intel-Controlled USB 3.0 ports on the z77 chipset, with an Ivy Bridge 3570K processor.
The HDTune Read benchmark reads sequentially from the drive and records the results as the filesize grows.
The HDTune File benchmark tests a 500MB file, both read and write, and the secondary test also shows the drive performance during different block intervals.
ATTO benchmarks both the read and write performance of the drive with different block sizes.
Running at 180mb/s on USB 3.0 is admirable performance for such an inexpensive unit. I am impressed with the device's ability to keep up with the big boys in the external hard drive space.
Another important feature of any external drive is whether or not it will still function adequately on older technologies it may not have been designed for. It is imperative that a device like this functions on a USB 2.0 platform, because if you take it to a friends' house or place of business that lacks USB 3.0 connectivity, you don't want to be without your data.
The device worked flawlessly, and for your reference, here are the same benchmarks run on the Intel-Controlled USB 2.0 ports.


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Salmon Arm Vacation Packages
Salmon Arm, in Thompson Okanagan, is a city that some 16,000 people call home.
It's 45 miles (72 kilometers) from Kamloops and 140 miles (225 kilometers) from Lake Louise.
A pleasant way to get some exercise and fresh air in Salmon Arm is to hit the fairways at the area's challenging golf courses. Whether you're an amateur or a budding pro, you'll love Hyde Mountain Golf Course and also Sunshore Golf Course.
On a sunny day, visit Sicamous Centennial Park, where visitors can spend time outdoors. Admire the trees and flowers, pull out your sketch pad, or just soak up the sunshine. This park is the perfect match for all moods and seasons.


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Fleur-de-lys Rubber Doormats and Stair Treads
Select Size:
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- Summary
Inspired by the French fleur-de-lys, the openwork pattern of our mats and stair treads has the look of wrought iron but is actually made of weighty, rugged rubber.
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- Rugged and waterproof rubber.
- Withstands high and low temperature extremes.
- Resists mildew, stains and fading from ultraviolet light.
- Molded from vulcanized rubber.
- A Williams Sonoma exclusive.
- Dimensions & More Info
- Small: 30" x 18"; 3/4" thick. 11 lb.
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- Semicircular: 42" x 22"; 3/4" thick. 17 lb.
- Stair Tread: 29 1/2" x 10"; 1/8" thick. 3 lb. 8 oz.
- Made in India.
- Use & Care
- Sweep clean or hose off.
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Shipping Information
UPS can deliver most in-stock items within 4-5 business days. UPS is unable to deliver to P.O. boxes.
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The shipping rate varies depending on your order total and shipping destination. View Shipping Options and Charges.
Next Day Delivery
For an additional charge of $17.50 per address, we can expedite delivery to most destinations. This service is not available for some oversize items, items shipped directly from the supplier (including perishable and custom-manufactured items), out-of-stock items and items to be shipped outside the contiguous 48 states.
Orders received by 9:00 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Thursday will arrive the next business day; orders placed Friday through Sunday will arrive on the following Tuesday.
Return Policy
At Williams Sonoma, we take great pride in the quality and craftsmanship of our products. Attention to design, materials, safety and construction are our priority. Upon receipt, please inspect your purchase and notify us of any damage; we will arrange for a prompt replacement.
If within 30 days, you are dissatisfied for any reason, you may return your purchase for a refund of the merchandise value. An original receipt or gift receipt is required for all returns and exchanges. Returns with a gift receipt will be refunded in the form of a Merchandise Credit for the amount indicated on the gift receipt. Returns with original receipt will be refunded in the original form of payment, cash and check refunds over $100 will be issued as a company check (may take 14 business days from time of request).
For all cutlery returns (knife sets, single knives, cutting boards, knife sharpeners, and knife storage) please contact us at 888.922.4108 to initiate the return.
We cannot accept returns on monogrammed, personalized, special-order items, custom upholstery, food, items shipped direct from the vendor, or on items damaged through normal wear and tear. Final sale items ending in .97 or .99 cannot be returned.
Made to Order and Final Sale Furniture items are non-returnable, and cannot be cancelled once the order is placed.
For returns of items purchased from your Williams Sonoma Gift Registry, we will gladly provide a refund or exchange for the merchandise within 90 days of your event or within 90 days of purchase, whichever date is later. View Full Returns Policy.
Rated 5 out of 5 by fussycustomer from nice looking... I am happy with my Fleur-de-lys rubber doormat. It does just what it is supposed to do...makes a nice-looking finishing touch for my front door entrance. Very petty design. One thing it does not do however, is to provide a means to scrape off any mud or dirt, as the rubber has a very smooth surface. I have tried MANY doormats over the years, and have decided that what I needed most is the perfect finishing touch to my front entryway. This doormat does that. I am pleased.Date published: 2016-04-14Rated 5 out of 5 by emilydc from Very attractive, well-made doormat I'm quite pleased with this doormat. It's not great in the way of removing dirt from shoes, but it's well-made, very attractive, non-slip and welcoming.Date published: 2016-03-08Rated 1 out of 5 by HamdenMom from Treads very thin I purchased W&S's fleur-de-lys doormat several years ago, and it's great: thick, long-lasting, handsome. Just purchased the companion stair treads, expecting them to be of the same quality, but as noted in another review, they're disappointingly thin, unlikely to trap much dirt, and seem likely to slip around on wet surfaces. In addition, the design is not as attractive as that of the mat, and the workmanship is underwhelming, so I'm returning the treads.Date published: 2015-09-29Rated 1 out of 5 by LMarks from Disappointing... The quality of these rubber stair tread mats is disappointing at best. They are very thin and flimsy. In the set of two that I received one already had a rip. The purpose of this type of rubber mat is to prevent slipping on stairs and to catch excess dirt in the gaps in the design so that it doesn't get dragged into the house. These mats are much too thin to act as a dirt catcher and they are also so lightweight that they shift around on the stairs.Date published: 2015-02-04Rated 5 out of 5 by Pandam0m from Just makes my front door even more gorgeous! This mat is perfect! Heavy weight but because of the open work it looks light and airy. It fits into the decor of the house and sets off the front door perfectly. It catches dirt on the bottom of people's shoes prior to their entering the house.Date published: 2015-01-17Rated 5 out of 5 by JennNCA from Best doormats!!! I bought two of these doormats in medium. They are thick, heavy and good quality. I'm not sure how they will do at knocking off dirt, grass ect... but let's face it I really bought them for the look!!! Great product. Very happy!!!Date published: 2014-09-28Rated 5 out of 5 by KrisD73 from Beautiful way to enter a home This doormat is impressive- solid, thick plastic- looks like a quality product. Looks more expensive than it was! Good value.Date published: 2013-09-28Rated 5 out of 5 by DianaJayne from heavy duty & handsome This is a great mat; great size, shape, and pattern. It should hold up well under heavy use.Date published: 2013-09-06


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Toast to a Lazy Sunday by JaiDaMann with Fifi McSnickerbottom
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Tegan Riley
Categories: Blonde, Blowjob, Striptease, Deepthroat, Fetish, Cum in mouth, Oral, Pussy Licking, Shaved
Tegan Riley has been around the block more than once, with more than forty scenes to her credit, you might be surprised to hear this is her very FIRST deepthroat sex video! She has already worked with her costar in the past, but she never throated him before so it seems we're all in for a very big treat! She's got a couple if the longest puffiest pink nipples you'll ever see and her drooling all over them is a an awesome way to start building momentum before you fuck her face. Once she has her fingers inside herself, feel free to climb aboard her head and pump her mouth as deep as your dick can go. Tegan proves she may be new to deepthroating but she has what it takes to earn the biggest cumshots! By the end of this scene her tired tongue may be wagging, but the cream dripping down her chest proves she was a major throated success!
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Member since 9/9/2013
- 3 total posts
- 1 review
- 2 questions
Reviews & Stories
Awesome Doctor! Gifted and Talented! - Houston, TX
I had 4 surgeries w/ Dr. Vitenas. Sept. 10 for labiaplasty & Sept. 18 w/ combined surgeries breast aug, liposuction, & brazilian butt lift (fat graft transfer). Breast aug didn't hurt after surgery, in fact very symmetrical, soft, natural! Butt went down a bit. Difficult part of healing from lipo was inner highs. But overall, great results! He gave me a new shape and no complications! Great... READ MORE
Questions from LooknFeelBetter
Breast Augmentation, Lipo W/ Fat Transfer to Buttocks. 304 or 339 Cc? What Will Take Me to a Full D? my L is 304, R 286? (photo)
Hi. I'm 28, 5'2', about 120. Wanting to be a full D. Prior to consultation, I thought I was 34c, found out I'm 35.5,(36) but don't know if B/C by of the change. Im wondering if... READ MORE


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JERUSALEM (Jun. 22)
The defense plan to portray Adolf Eichmann as a minor functionary in the vast Nazi machinery for the destruction of European Jewry, an official totally lacking the authority to commit the crimes charged against him, ran into difficulties today during Eichmann's third day of testimony in his own defense.
Dr. Robert Servatius is conducting the Eichmann defense testimony on the basis of examining damaging evidence brought into the trial during the weeks of the prosecution's presentation, and asking Eichmann to give his version. The former Gestapo colonel has dealt with the charges in the prosecution documents by the use of various formula replies.
One has been that he never made anti-Jewish policy-that he only carried out orders from above. Another has been that he used his Gestapo post as head of Department 4 in Gestapo Bureau IV to help alleviate the plight of Jews marked for spoliation and expulsion.
It was inevitable that Dr. Servatius would have to introduce prosecution documents which the formula would not cover, and it happened today when the attorney brought up the record on the fate of property confiscated from the Jewish victims. At first, Eichmann claimed that a special account which was opened for deposit of confiscated funds was used to maintain the remaining Jewish community offices and staff in Germany.
Dr. Servatius then asked about a prosecution document which showed that this account was actually a source for payment of costs of transporting the Jewish expellees, so that they were actually paying the costs of throwing them out of Germany. Eichmann answered that "actually everything that should have been paid from the Government treasury" for the expulsions "was paid from this account."
Having thus been caught in a flat contradiction, the witness then added that the confiscated Jewish funds were used only because obtaining funds from the Nazi financial authorities was a "too complicated procedure."
This line of questioning by Dr. Servatius led Eichmann into explanations which bordered on the incredible. He was asked why Gestapo regulations required the sending in advance to local authorities of lists of Jews marked for expulsion. Eichmann's explanation was that this was done "to enable Jews to donate their property" before it was confiscated. This reply immediately raised the question of the beneficiaries of such "donations."
Eichmann said that the "donations" could not be made to Jewish organizations "of course," but to the local Nazi security police unit which "would be able perhaps some time in the future to use it for the benefit of Jews."
Unhappily for the witness, another document showed that, in addition to the special account, Jews marked for expulsion were required to pay directly for their transportation costs. Eichmann quickly offered another explanation-that these direct payments were made not to the security police, but for the expenses of "ordinary police" who accompanied some of the transports.
Dr. Servatius then asked the source of the more than 47,000 marks in the possession of a commander of one of the transports who had reported this to Eichmann's office-since Eichmann was formally in charge of the transportations. The witness replied, "well, every Jew who was deported paid 50 marks." His reply evoked a burst of hysterical laughter from a member of the audience.
In other phases of the testimony, Eichmann proceeded with his efforts to portray himself as one concerned for the welfare of the Jews he was expelling from Germany. He alluded again to the Madagascar plan, under which Jews would be sent to the French island as a "territorial solution." He said that, after lengthy deliberation, he became convinced that this was the only permanent solution. Previously he had claimed in testimony that he had proposed the idea to his Nazi superiors, and that it was rejected.
Eichmann's remarks about Madagascar evoked a loud hiss from a member of the audience. Presiding Judge Moshe Landau issued a stern "silence, please." Judge Yitzhak Raveh then asked Eichmann if the Madagascar plan was "your final solution." The witness launched into a lengthy recital of his efforts to provide the Jews a homeland on the French island.
He identified key portions of the plan as his own, including a study of climate and living conditions on the island. He said he went to Hamburg and talked to officials of the Tropical Hygiene Institute, but "then I received orders from my superiors to go on working on plans which would not be Utopian."
The usually verbose witness pleaded inability to remember when he was asked about a prosecution exhibit in which Reinhardt Heydrich, the SS chief, asked Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop for an invitation to a meeting regarding the "final solution" of the Jewish problem.
The question, however, gave Eichmann another opportunity to blame others for what happened. He said the Foreign Ministry did not want the SS to have exclusive jurisdiction over implementation of the "final solution." At this point, Eichmann reiterated that "they"-politicians and everybody except he and his department-were involved in giving and directing orders. He insisted that "they" sabotaged carefully worked out plans of the SS and interfered with the smooth execution of "emigration."
He portrayed the entire SS organization as "frustrated" by the nationality law, which divested deportees of their German citizenship. He called the law a step backwards, not only for Jews but also for the Reich policy of "promoting emigration." "My warnings against this suggestion were not heeded," he declared.
The strategy of portraying him as a minor bureaucrat was applied in another portion of his testimony when he said that, on his arrival in Berlin to work in Bureau IV, he did not use his authority as head of Department 4 but always referred matters to his superiors for confirmation. He said "I was known as a man requiring confirmation not only in my division but in the entire office."
Reflecting on this observation, as it was being translated, he corrected it to say that his authority as department head was only to implement orders, not to initiate them.
In a related line of questioning, Dr. Servatius asked Eichmann about a prosecution document showing that Eichmann apparently had wide authority on determining who was to be included in deportations. The witness used the question for a reply which denied the scope of the authority, and portrayed him as using the lesser authority to help Jews.
He said he tried to alleviate the transportation conditions, asserting he ordered nurses to be on the trains to care for the sick, and ordered the exclusion of certain persons who "volunteered" to go to the Theresienstadt camp because they were not among the categories destined for the camp, and "they should have remained in Germany."
Eichmann's repeated claims that, at this stage of his Nazi career, he had no knowledge about the camps in which Jews were already being beaten, degraded and starved. He was asked by his attorney why his department issued instructions that each transport should include a supply of barbed wire. He replied that this was done at the request of authorities at the reception end, and that "I could not imagine why they would need barbed wire at Theresienstadt."
The issue of his role in the deportations was raised again by reference to a prosecution document in which he was mentioned as the principal participant in deportations. He repeated his claim that his part was simply to iron out difficulties and untangle hitches which arose from orders of higher officials. He said his part was not much more than "a transport official at a railroad station. "
He said that "the most important" difficulties and obstacles occurred "during the busy season when evacuating authorities required this to be done speedily, " when transport trains piled up at stations.
In another part of the testimony. Eichmann slightly modified his charge yesterday that Dr. Hans Globke, now a West German State Secretary and aide to Chancellor Konrad Aderauer, formerly a section head in the Nazi Ministry of the Interior, had a key role in the Nazi program of creating a "legal" base for stripping German Jews of their property and citizenship.
Responding to questions from Dr. Servatius about a meeting at which "practical measures" for that program were discussed, Eichmann said that it was a Herr Hering " or Globke" from the Ministry of the Interior who invited General Heinrich Mueller, as Division IV head, to attend the meeting. He said General Mueller sent to the meeting two attorneys from Eich-mann's department but he insisted that the officials who handled such actions in his department were posted by the Interior Ministry, and were responsible directly to General Mueller," I had no authority over them, " he asserted.
Another question from Dr.Servatius used by Eichmann to prove his concern for the transported Jews dealt with orders under which local police authorities were required to report on each transport by telephone or cable directly to Eichmann's office. He said these orders were issued to prevent "wildcat deportations" sometimes started by "local authorities in conflict with the schedules of his office."


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iPhone 5 Nano SIM cards headed to T-Mobile
6 Comments
1. LostInTheRed (Posts: 85; Member since: 03 May 2012)
I figured they would do this. They did the same with the micro SIMs.
I also want to point something out to avoid confusion. The $70 Unlimited Talk, Text, Web (5GB of high speed) is on T-Mobile's PREPAID plan, not contract. Contract would be $95 with mobile hotspot added to that. For purchasing a phone at retail cost, the prepaid option would be best.
2. AppleIsGod (Posts: 56; Member since: 27 Aug 2012)
it would be stupid to get a postpaid plan by paying full price for the device because you will be paying for the phone every month.
3. whothisperson (Posts: 102; Member since: 06 May 2012)
Nano SIM or Micro SIM card are nothing special... you can make either of them yourself from a regular sim by trimming the extra plastic material with a scissor, razor blade or box cutter. You don't need to but those sim card cutters. Look online for templates.
4. dodo1234 (Posts: 40; Member since: 06 Nov 2011)
If ur not much of a talker like most ppl now a days, u can use thier $30 5gb/unlimited plan like myself. save WAAAAY more money compared to a contract plan on Big Blue or Red :D
5. dodo1234 (Posts: 40; Member since: 06 Nov 2011)
AT&T 199phone+(40voice+20text+50data/5gb)*24)2640= $2840 VS T-MOBILE 650phone+(30*24)720= $1370. AT&T is faster in many location, verizon as well, BUT NOT THAT MUCH FASTER lol $1470 difference WOW :p
6. dll555 (Posts: 1; Member since: 23 Dec 2012)
I am on a T-mobile family plan with unlimited talk, text & data. Bought an unlocked iPhone 5. Took it to a t-mobile company store and they gave me the micro sim, installed it and set me up no charge! Beware that you do not go to authorized retailer. They wanted to charge $99!
Works wonderfully and I have the phone I've always wanted!


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Congratulations to our 2016 National Poster Contents Winner, Alexia, from Winnsboro, South Carolina!
The Shade Foundation honored this year's National Winner with a reception in Washington, DC on May 24. Along with Alexia's family, her art teacher, Kimi Daly, Congressman Joe Wilson (SC-02), presented Alexia with her award for outstanding creativity, originality and artwork for her sun wise poster.
The Shade Foundation Poster Contest
Stay tuned for details on the 2017 Poster Contest
Skin Cancer Is 95% Preventable
The contest is a free environmental and health education initiative to teach
children about sun safety, UV radiation and stratospheric ozone.
Each year, students from kindergarten through eighth grade from every state and US territory are invited to create posters that reflect sun safety action steps they learn through the SunWise curriculum.
Contest Rules
Submitted posters must meet the following criteria (or risk disqualification):
• Be original and drawn by hand. No copyrighted / trademarked characters or material.
• Paper size must be 8 ½ x 11 inches.
• Posters must include at least five Sun Safety Action Steps.
• Attach the official entry form to the back of each submitted poster (See Info Packet)
• Entries must be received no later than April 11, 2016.
• Correct spelling and grammar must be used in the 4th-8th grade category.
Posters will judged based on:
• Ability to show at least five of the Sun Safety Action Steps (as opposed to using words only).
• Creativity.
• Originality.
• Quality of artwork.
State Prizes:
• Kindergarten through 8th grade state winners will receive a Shade Foundation backpack and Sun Safety Kit
National Prizes:
Grades K-3rd
• Students will receive a Shade Foundation backpack and Sun Safety Kit.
Grades 4th-8th
• The national poster contest winner will receive a trip to the award ceremony in Washington, DC and a tour of the U.S. Capitol; and
• The sponsoring teacher of the national poster contest winner will receive $500.00. Certain restrictions apply.
NOTE: Prizes are subject to change without notice.


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There are a huge variety of clubs in Japan. Table-tennis clubs and social dance clubs, hostess clubs and clubs where you can polish up your karaoke. But there is only one club devoted to the art of bullfighting.
Once a month the members of the Tauro Tokyo Club get together to spill their shared passion for blood and sand. Out come the bullfighting videos recorded from satellite TV, the waving of the red capes and the explanations of the differences between a natural pass and a derechazo.
Yuji Saito leads the charge among an international group of 90 that includes a veterinarian, an ex-cowboy and a French language professor. One of the club's founders and creator of its Web site, Saito used to follow a humdrum routine working as a branch manager for a gyudon-ya (beef bowl shop) in Tokyo.
"I was so busy working that I felt as if I wasn't living," recalls Saito. "The little spare time I had I was reading novels with titles like 'Coin Locker Babies' and feeling very empty."
But then Saito came across the novels of Ernest Hemingway, and his life changed direction. Curious to see real bullfighting, he went to Spain, saw his first bullfighting festival and became an aficionado.
Sitting at the restaurant at Venta de Batan, a training ground in Madrid for young bullfighters and a temporary display area for the best bulls before they are transported to the ring, Saito explains that he wasn't immediately converted to the sport. In fact, his first few experiences as a spectator, at the 1991 Festival of San Isidro in Las Ventas, Madrid (one of the most important bullfighting festivals and rings in the world), left him cold.
"It was so boring that I yawned through the first 12 days," he says.
Then, on the 13th day of the festival, Colombian bullfighter Cesar Rincon stole the show with the sixth and last bull of the evening, and was carried out of the Puerta Grande, the main door of Las Ventas, on the shoulders of his delirious supporters.
Saito, who has an encyclopedic knowledge of bullfighting trivia, remembers the day well.
"Everybody was shouting 'Torero! Torero! Torero!' (bullfighter) and 'Ole! Ole! Ole!' I kept hearing the chants in my head at night and couldn't sleep for a week."
Saito has since attended hundreds of bullfights, and has become such a fan of Cesar Rincon that the bullfighter himself has come to recognize the fortysomething Japanese man with the round face and square glasses.
Rincon has even granted Saito two personal interviews, every detail of which Saito eagerly reported back to his bullfighting club in Tokyo.
"Saito's a stalker," jokes close friend Atsuhiro Shimoyama. Otherwise known as the Son of the Rising Sun by his fans, Shimoyama was himself an active bullfighter in Spain five years ago.
At that time enjoying a meteoric rise through the ranks of the traditional sport and making headlines in both Japan and Spain, Shimoyama's career was cut short when he suffered a freak accident in the ring that left half of his body paralyzed.
Still based in Seville and traveling with Saito over the past few months to numerous corridas (bullfights) in Spain, Shimoyama's injuries have not dimmed his sense of humor.
"I call Saito the president of the (Tauro Tokyo) Club, even though he's not officially the president," says Shimoyama, referring to his friend's passion for bullfighting.
Wearing a T-shirt of a bloodstained bullfighter triumphantly holding aloft a pair of cut-off bull's ears, with a slogan reading, "To live is to spill blood," Saito explains the controversial act of the killing of the bull. Known as the hora de verdad (hour of truth), the sword thrust (or a series of thrusts if the bullfighter keeps missing) is seen by many as barbarous and behind the times.
"It must be done with respect and skill, and a recognition of the primal instinct within all human beings," he says. "Without coming to terms with the fleetingness of our existence, represented by the death of the bull, we cannot be fully alive."
Saito concludes by adding that the killing of the bull is not something that he can explain logically. Passions run hot in the bullfighting world, and Saito is one of the infected.
With his gyudon days far behind him ("The thing about working in the beef restaurant was merely coincidence," he says) he is now working for a security company that allows him more holidays. When they come, he immediately heads for Las Ventas in Madrid with his coveted and difficult-to-obtain season pass, to indulge the passion that has transformed his life.


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As part of continuing steps by the Obama Administration to get assistance to producers impacted by the drought, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today designated 172 additional counties in 15 states as primary natural disaster areas due to drought and heat, making all qualified farm operators in the areas eligible for low-interest emergency loans. To date, USDA has designated 1,792 counties as disaster areas--1,670 due to drought.
Earlier this week, President Obama and Secretary Vilsack traveled to Iowa to announce USDA's intent to purchase up to $170 million of pork, lamb, chicken, and catfish for federal food nutrition assistance programs, including food banks, which will help relieve pressure on American livestock producers and bring the nation's meat supply in line with demand.
"USDA is committed to using its resources wherever possible to help the farmers, ranchers, small businesses, and communities being impacted by the drought," said Vilsack. "In the past month, we have streamlined the disaster designation process, reduced interest rates on emergency loans, and provided flexibility within our conservation programs to support struggling producers. In the weeks ahead, the President and I will continue to take swift action to help America's farmers and ranchers through this difficult time."
Vilsack also announced today the availability of up to $5 million in grants to evaluate and demonstrate agricultural practices that help farmers and ranchers adapt to drought. USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is taking applications for Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) to help producers build additional resiliency into their production systems. NRCS is offering the grants to partnering entities to evaluate innovative, field-based conservation technologies and approaches. These technologies and/or approaches should lead to improvements such as enhancing the water-holding capacity in soils and installing drought-tolerant grazing systems, which will help farms and ranches become more resilient to drought. Visit www.nrcs.usda.gov for more information.
Additionally, in response to a request from five National Organic Program (NOP) certifying agents, USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) today announced that USDA will grant a temporary variance from NOP's pasture practice standards for organic ruminant livestock producers (Sections 205.237(c) and 205.240 of the USDA organic regulations) in 16 states in 2012. The following restrictions apply: this temporary variance applies to non-irrigated pasture only; producers must supply at least 15 percent of their dry matter intake (on average) from certified organic pasture; this temporary variance applies to the 2012 calendar year only; and this temporary variance covers only counties that have been declared as primary natural disaster areas by the Secretary of Agriculture in 2012. Granting a temporary variance for 2012 from the pasture practice standards is necessary in order to allow organic ruminant livestock producers to continue to be compliant with the program regulations after the severe drought ends and pasture forage becomes available. Temporary variance requests that are outside the scope of this variance will be considered on a case by case basis.
Last week, President Obama convened his White House Rural Council to review Executive Branch response actions and to develop additional policy initiatives to assist drought-stricken Americans. Following the meeting, the White House announced a number of new measures the Administration is taking. The President stressed the need for the entire Administration to continue to look at further steps it can take to ease the pain of this historic drought.
Within the last month, USDA has opened the Conservation Reserve Program to emergency haying and grazing, lowered the borrower interest rate for emergency loans, and worked with crop insurance companies to provide flexibility to farmers. USDA has also announced:
Authorized $16 million in existing funds from its Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP) and Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to target states experiencing exceptional and extreme drought.
Initiated transfer of $14 million in unobligated program funds into the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) to help farmers and ranchers rehabilitate farmland damaged by natural disasters and for carrying out emergency water conservation measures in periods of severe drought.
Authorized haying and grazing of Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) easement areas in drought-affected areas where haying and grazing is consistent with conservation of wildlife habitat and wetlands.
Lowered the reduction in the annual rental payment to producers on CRP acres used for emergency haying or grazing from 25 percent to 10 percent in 2012.
Simplified the Secretarial disaster designation process and reduced the time it takes to designate counties affected by disasters by 40 percent.
The U.S. Drought Monitor indicates that 63 percent of the nation's hay acreage is in an area experiencing drought, while approximately 73 percent of the nation's cattle acreage is in an area experiencing drought. Approximately 87 percent of the U.S. corn is within an area experiencing drought, down from a peak of 89 percent on July 24, and 85 percent of the U.S. soybeans are in a drought area, down from a high of 88 percent on July 24. On Aug. 10, USDA reduced the estimate for the 2012 U.S. corn crop to 123.4 bushels per acre, down 23.8 bushels from 2011. However, record corn plantings in 2012 have put the crop in position to be eighth largest in history. In 1988, when U.S. farmers were impacted by another serious drought, total production was 4.9 billion bushels. Today, total production is forecast at 10.8 billion bushels.
Visit www.usda.gov/drought for the latest information regarding USDA's drought response and assistance.
The Obama Administration, with Agriculture Secretary Vilsack's leadership, has worked tirelessly to strengthen rural America, maintain a strong farm safety net, and create opportunities for America's farmers and ranchers. U.S. agriculture is currently experiencing one of its most productive periods in American history thanks to the productivity, resiliency, and resourcefulness of our producers. A strong farm safety net is important to sustain the success of American agriculture. USDA's crop insurance program currently insures 264 million acres, 1.14 million policies, and $110 billion worth of liability on about 500,000 farms. In response to tighter financial markets, USDA has expanded the availability of farm credit, helping struggling farmers refinance loans. In the past 3 years, USDA provided 103,000 loans to family farmers totaling $14.6 billion. Over 50 percent of the loans went to beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.
Source: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?contentid=2012/08/0275.xml&navid=NEWS_RELEASE&navtype=RT&parentnav=LATEST_RELEASES&edeployment_action=retrievecontent