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We have dueling data this morning, but hope to resolve the fiscal cliff continues to give the bulls the upper hand. The good jobs report is being picked apart by the bulls and the Michigan consumer sentiment numbers were a big miss, but breadth is positive and there continues to be underlying bids.
Big banks Citigroup (C) and Bank of America (BAC) are helping the tone, and bounces in precious metals and homebuilders are aiding the cause. The drama surrounding Apple (AAPL) has cooled off and it isn't much of a factor today, but some big-caps like Chipotle (CMG), Google (GOOG), Priceline (PCLN), Netflix (NFLX) and IBM (IBM) are acting well.
I have a lot of cash and an open mind about this market, but I'm still not able to put much money to work. I jumped back in U.S. Silica Holdings (SLCA) this morning, which is an old Stock of the Week. It has a new recommendation and a $19 target to serve as a catalyst, and the earnings numbers are impressive.
The other main trade I have right now is a recent initial public offering, Ruckus Wireless (RKUS), which did poorly after it priced but it has not regained its IPO price and is off the races. SouFun (SFUN) is one I'm watching closely and will look to add as it tests recent highs.
My biggest mistake lately is that my position size in my winners has been way too small. I'm sure as soon as I ramp it up I'll be whipsawed, but it is going to be the only way to put more cash to work. This market is not acting badly but it is quite challenging.


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Human Rights Commission Public Hearing on April 1
Feb. 3, 2009
News Highlights
More Information
The Fairfax County Human Rights Commission will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, April 1, at 7:30 p.m., in Conference Room 9, Fairfax County Government Center, 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax.
The public hearing is being held to determine if a violation of Chapter 11 (Human Rights Ordinance) of the Fairfax County Code occurred in the case of James v. Inova Mt. Vernon (charge HRC #2006005E).
For more information, contact Kenneth Saunders, Fairfax County Office of Human Rights and Equity Programs, at 703-324-2953, TTY 703-324-2900. .
Contact: Merni Fitzgerald, Director, Office of Public Affairs
703-324-3189, TTY 711, Media Pager: 703-324-NEWS (6397)
To request this information in an alternate format, call 703-324-3187, TTY 711

subset: commoncrawl


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I guess every one having faith in this teaching would agree. But does it mean that we have to ignore these questions?TMingyur wrote:No. Just an uninteresting view (sorry that I cannot resist) in that I am inclined to differentiate the suttas on the basis of their conduciveness (from my perspective).
gavesako wrote:This was already noticed and discussed in this book:
Beginnings: The Pali Suttas
by Sāmanera Bodhesako
https://pathpress.wordpress.com/bodhesa ... additions/
In order for any Sutta or part of a Sutta to have been lost, we should have to suppose either a collective amnesia among all the monks of all the companies who were reciters of that Sutta — hundreds, or more probably thousands of ambulatory amnesiacs! — or else the breaking up and disappearance of every single company responsible for a certain portion of the Suttas — and this in a time when all the evidence indicates that the Order was thriving and growing — together with the refusal or inability of any single monk (or ex-monk) from any of those lost companies to come forward to teach the texts to the surviving groups. A most improbable combination of events!
Rhys Davids a century ago [n.14 T.W. Rhys Davids, 1881, xxiii (quoted by Tambiah, 1968, 100-101).] drew attention to some of the features which, he suggested, aided the power of memory for Buddhist Sutta and Vinaya texts. He pointed out "firstly, the use of stock phrases, of which the commencement once given, the remainder followed as a matter of course and secondly, the habit of repeating whole sentences or even paragraphs, which in our modem books would be understood or inferred, instead of being expressed.
It is not precisely clear what he meant by stock phrases, and I suspect that he was referring to the way in which suttas tend to start in the same way - "Thus have I heard" - this is said by the cties to be a reference to the way in which Ananda at the first recitation repeated what he could remember of the Buddha's
Sermons [n.15 See Norman, 1983C, 8.] - "At that time the Buddha was staying at such and such a place with a group of bhikkhus, and one day the bhikkhus decided to do something, or ask a question, etc." Many of the introductory paragraphs to these sermons carry on with stereotyped phrases - someone approached the Buddha, and having approached him sat down at one side; to him seated at one side the Buddha said
something or other.
In a paper read at the conference of the International Association of Sanskritic Studies in Australia in 1994,[ 16 Allon, 1994.] it was shown that the consistency in the way in which these introductory paragraphs are structured is, in fact, more meticulous than might at first appear. It can be seen that the wording changes subtly in conformity with a fixed pattern to specify who is approaching whom. In each case the wording is slightly different and a further result of this is that, once a story teller has remembered that the particular sermon he is about to recite is, say, about one or more bhikkhus approaching the Buddha, to ask a particular type of question, the form of wording to be used is prescribed. And therefore he does not, so to speak, have to remember the form of words to use because the circumstances fix the form for him.
Interestingly enough, it has been pointed out that if we examine such stereotyped phrases in one nikāya and compare them with the phrases in another, we find that the forms which are employed do not necessarily agree - something which leads us to the conclusion, I think, that, as we would expect, once the texts had been distributed among groups to preserve and hand them on to their successors, the precise methods of stereotyping which were employed, in an attempt to make remembering easier, were not necessarily the same for each set of bhāṇakas.
gavesako wrote:Yes, since this book was written a lot of new research and comparison of different versions of the early Suttas was made, particularly by Ven. Analayo, which shows that indeed there have been some additions/omissions.
In the third lecture I spoke of the bhikkhu Ariṭṭha, who, you will remember, totally misunderstood the purport of the Buddha's teachings about stumbling blocks. [n. 49 Alagaddūpamasutta, M I 130-42.] As long as the bhāṇakas recited the sutta which made the position clear, then any attempt which Ariṭṭha (or others who thought like him) might have made to pretend that his view was authorised by the Buddha, by inventing a sutta which authenticated it, would be unsuccessful, because the bhāṇakas would not have admitted a new sutta which included a view condemned by the Buddha and which was, therefore, not consistent with the rest of the canon.
We might also think of the bhikkhu Sāti, who, as we read in the Majjhima-nikāya [50 M 1256-71.] so misunderstood the Buddha's teaching that he thought it was "consciousness" (viññāṇa) which continued in saṃsāra.[n. 51 tad ev' idaṃ viññāṇaṃ sandhāvati saṃsāratai, anaññaṃ, M I 256,19-20.] This would appear to be a recollection by Sāti of a teaching similar to that found in the Bṛhad-Āraṇyaka Upaniṣad that vijñāna continues:[n. 52 idam mahad bhūtam anantam apāraṃ vijñāna-ghana eva, BUp II.4.12.] "This great being, endless, unlimited, consisting of nothing but intelligence". This view was refuted by the Buddha, who pointed out that he had frequently taught that "Without a cause there is no origination of consciousness".[n. 53 aññatra paccayā n' atthi viññāṇassa sambhavo, M I 258,20.] Once again, Sāti had no chance of
inserting his view into a nikāya. Nor would it be possible for such views to be inserted into the nikāyas, even after the introduction of the use of writing, as long as the bhāṇaka tradition continued alongside writing, as I have suggested it did, for some time, in the Theravādin tradition.
On the other hand, once the various schools of Buddhism had started to make use of writing, it was not difficult to produce a text and say that it was Buddhavacana, as long as there was no bhāṇaka tradition to refute the claim. You will know that the Buddha stated, as reported in Theravādin texts, that there was no "teacher's fist",[n. 54 na tatth' Ānanda Tathāgatassa dhammesu ācariya-muṭṭhi, D I1 100,4 = S V 153,19.] as far as he was concerned, i.e. he was not keeping anything back for an élite, but was making his teaching known to all of his followers who wished to listen. There developed, however, a view in some Buddhist schools that what the Buddha had said openly was intended only for the masses. There was really another, hidden, meaning which the Buddha imparted only to a chosen few. For such schools, the adoption of writing enabled them to claim that their views were indeed Buddhavacana.
Richard Gombrich has dealt with this in the context of the rise of the Mahāyāna,[n. 55 Gombrich, 1988, 29-46.] but it is possible that not just Mahāyāna, but also dissident Hīnāyāna sects benefitted from the use of writing. Since no one ever accuses the Abhayagirivāsins, the opponents of the Mahāvihāravāsins, of transmitting their scriptures in some language other than Pāli, it is probable that their canon was in Pāli. Nevertheless, their version of the Buddhavamsa, as far as can be judged from the small portion which is preserved in Tibetan, does not agree with the Theravādin Buddhavamsa, and must therefore have been added to their body of scriptures at a time when the bhāṇaka system had been bi-passed. It is quite possible that they were able to add to their scriptures in this way, by making use of writing. The way in which the so-called quasi-canonical texts came into existence in the Middle Ages in Sri Lanka and South-east Asia is another indication of the way in which the fact that texts were written down enabled them to be accepted by some Buddhists, at least, in a way which would have been impossible if the bhāṇakas were still transmitting all texts orally.
Paradoxically, then, if the writing down of the Theravādin canon may be presumed to have stopped the further Sanskritisation of Pāli and prevented the insertion of new suttas into the nikāyas, it was writing which made possible the production and acceptance of Mahāyāna and other texts. We may suppose that, to a very large extent, the advent of writing meant that an already existent canon was fixed when it was written down, but writing allowed new canons to come into effect because the authors did not have to point to a long bhāṇaka tradition of the texts, which alone, before the use of writing, could prove that they were Buddhavacana.
In view of this connection which has been seen between writing and the Mahāyāna, it is not unreasonable to believe that the writing down of the Theravādin canon was not due simply to a threatened breakdown in the bhāṇaka system of transmission in Sri Lanka, and the social, political and economic conditions of the time, as the Pāli commentarial tradition suggests, and as I proposed earlier, but also to a need to give an authenticity and prestige to the Theravādin canon vis-à-vis the written texts of other schools. If the beginnings of the Mahāyāna, and therefore religious writing, can be dated to the second century B.C.E., then it is likely that Hīnayāna texts were also being committed to writing, in North India if not in Sri Lanka, at that time.
Since the social and religious conditions which had existed at the time of the Buddha had by then changed greatly, and since Pāli and the literary forms of other Middle Indo-Aryan dialects were now almost as much out of touch with the languages of the common people as Sanskrit had seemed 400 years before, it is probable that many such texts were being written in Sanskrit - the language of culture - as opposed to being translated into it.
daverupa wrote:One additional thought, via Gombrich, is of the greater likelihood that a Sutta which conveys its points via simile and metaphor is probably original to the Buddha. MN 19 is a good example. There are two metaphors employed here, as well as a rather large pericope which could have been dropped in to smooth over, for memorization purposes, an otherwise unique reference to a standard teaching on that aspect of the topic being taught. It's an interesting case.
ancientbuddhism wrote:Was that in How Buddhism Began?
gavesako wrote:Yes, since this book was written a lot of new research and comparison of different versions of the early Suttas was made, particularly by Ven. Analayo, which shows that indeed there have been some additions/omissions.
Mr Man wrote:As practitioners I don't think that we need to worry too much about late and early origin as the teachings are not meant as an historical record. At this stage in the game I think ideas of real and fake are irrelevant.
Dukkhanirodha wrote:I see two advantages in pondering over the uncertainty of the accuracy or even authenticity of the suttas:one does not get entangled in dogmatism regarding the contents of the suttas and seeing the unreliability of intellectual knowledge, one is pushed towards the practice, which is the only way to reach freedom from doubt.
Dukkhanirodha wrote:I see two advantages in pondering over the uncertainty of the accuracy or even authenticity of the suttas:one does not get entangled in dogmatism regarding the contents of the suttas and seeing the unreliability of intellectual knowledge, one is pushed towards the practice, which is the only way to reach freedom from doubt.
Dukkhanirodha wrote:I see two advantages in pondering over the uncertainty of the accuracy or even authenticity of the suttas:one does not get entangled in dogmatism regarding the contents of the suttas and seeing the unreliability of intellectual knowledge, one is pushed towards the practice, which is the only way to reach freedom from doubt.
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Redmond, Wash. -- Microsoft announced that J.C. Penney is rolling out Microsoft Office 365 as part of its effort to simplify and modernize technology solutions.
"In selecting a cloud solution, we were looking for a partner who would support our goal of becoming America's favorite store," said Kristen Blum, chief technology officer, J.C. Penney. "And when we realized that we could improve customer service even more by providing cloud-based collaboration tools to increase communication between team members, it was easy to choose Microsoft and Office 365."
Office 365 is intended to improve remote access for employees and increase communication between stores, allowing team members to work seamlessly with colleagues at other locations while assisting customers.


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The Pieter Ombregt Scholarship is open to advanced undergraduate Photography majors.
The Pieter Ombregt Scholarship is open to:
The Pieter Ombregt Scholarship Application is available online through your OASIS portal. Only complete scholarship applications submitted by the deadline will be reviewed by the scholarship committee. Please follow all directions carefully. Students must submit the following materials to make a complete Pieter Ombregt Scholarship application - there are two parts to the application:
You must deliver your portfolio to the Photography Department (600 S Michigan, suite 1200), attention Laura Bauknecht, in a protective container/portfolio case. Your submitted portfolio should consist of the following:
Provide a statement describing the work samples you are submitting.
Access online application form through the "Scholarships" tab in your OASIS portal.
Pieter Ombregt was a gifted photography student at Columbia College Chicago when he died from injuries sustained in a bicycle racing accident in 2007. This scholarship was established in honor of Pieter's life and memory by his aunt, Anne-Marie Ombregt.
Contact: email@example.com
Consumer Information
© 2017 Columbia College Chicago. All rights reserved. | 600 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60605. Map it!Contact SFS


text: Show Hide image Politics 11 February 2013 Regulations come down hard on UK small banks Glass ceiling. Sign up for our weekly email * Small banks in the UK are unable to provide a wide range of loans to businesses and homeowners at competitive rates due to standardised regulations of the European Union (EU) and Basel III that have imposed a glass ceiling. As per the new rules, if banks create internal models utilising their loan databases to measure the riskiness of individual loans, they get rewarded with lower capital requirements. The rules will also hamper new entrants and small banks without loans database. A research by an independent commission on banking has revealed that small banks in the UK have to hold between three and seven times as much capital against mortgages as their bigger rivals. In addition, they must also hold two to three times as much capital against asset-based loans to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) as the big banks. James Cobb, finance director of Arbuthnot, told the Financial Times: "There is a glass ceiling to our banking. In other industries, small players can cause a major distraction to bigger ones. But it doesn't happen in banking." John Baines, finance director of Aldermore told the Financial Times: "The competitive disadvantage is significant. An incumbent has got, on average, seven years on a new bank coming in." The Financial Services Authority is planning to release a paper on regulatory barriers to competition in the coming spring. "We are looking at this issue within the context of a wider review," said the regulatory. Subscribe from just £1 per issue More


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After looking back on all the Sweet Parties of 2012, I put together a recap of some of the fondant toppers I had the absolute pleasure working on this past year {as I did in 2011}! I loved revisiting some collections, as well as all the new themes and designs! I am so incredibly grateful to all who included and collaborated with me in their parties and allowed me to be a small part of their memorable celebrations this year!!! ♥
Merci Beaucoup!
This page may contain affiliate links. For more information, please read my Terms & Disclosure policy.


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This weekend, the Rusty Bowl BMX facility had hoped to host its first race since the flooding in December that eroded its track and destroyed much of its equipment.
Theresa Pickrell, treasurer of the nonprofit's board of directors, said Wednesday afternoon that riders would be practicing that evening, and this year's first race was scheduled for Friday.
"It is still really soft and wet," Pickrell said of the track. "We're hoping that kids with bicycles on it will help dry it up."
However, by the time people began showing up at 5 p.m., it was clear that the track was just too soft still.
Board member Scott Johnson said there likely wouldn't be races again until the track can be rebuilt in the spring.
"I don't know," Pickrell said. "Maybe February will be real dry."
Pickrell said the track was rebuilt in June of last year, and while it needed water, "it didn't need five feet of water," referring to the amount of standing water that collected after the nearby Russian River overflowed its banks Dec. 2, flooding the track and the nearby fields used by the Ukiah Youth Baseball League.
With all the water in the snack shack and outbuildings, Pickrell said the facility "lost everything: refrigerator, microwave, and printer as well as helmets, chest protectors, trophies, ribbons and signs."
Since then, she said people have donated used appliances, and she was able to wash many helmets, chest protectors and trophies. However, all that work meant other projects planned for the winter were put on hold.
"We had just purchased brand-new lights," she said. "But we haven't gotten them up yet."
And though the snack shack has a working microwave and refrigerator again, she said only water was going to be served this weekend.
"We didn't want to stock our snack shack in case we get a lot of rain," she said.
Since so much of the BMX track was eroded away after the flooding, "we are going to rebuild our track again in March or April, weather-permitting," Pickrell said. To help raise funds, Pickrell said USA BMX donated a GHP Junior BMX bike that the Rusty Bowl is holding a drawing for. The tickets are $5 each, and only 200 tickets will be sold.
"We still need help," she said, explaining that the facility can be contacted via its Facebook page or by calling 462-0249.
Katie Marsolan, the city's Community Services Administrator, said the city partnered with the organizations running the BMX track and baseball league when it came to replacing the fencing and bringing in a pump to help clean out the water, but overall "their groups have done a really good job of ownership with their areas, and they have a good workforce of volunteers."
Marsolan said the city's new Riverside Park, which is even closer to the river than the BMX or baseball facilities, was affected by the flooding, but fared well.
"The newer construction of the trails and riverfront improvements were designed to accommodate high-water events," she said, adding that the materials selected and the way they were installed helped the park handle the flooding.
Justine Frederiksen can be reached at email@example.com, on Twitter @JustFrederiksen or at 468-3521.


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The International Open Source Hydrogen On Demand Builders Network.
HODINFO is a collaborative think tank. We are an International group comprised of inventors, scientist, mechanics, tinkerers, fabricators, and out of the box thinkers. Our mission is to find innovative solutions to the problems that primarily limit the production and delivery of H2. As the world wakes up to the idea of using hydrogen it also becomes clear that immense infrastructure initiatives will be required to make it happen. If adequate solutions can be found to support HOD systems then the world can remove great and costly limitations on future applications. It is important to realize that the future is not just Hydrogen, it's Hydrogen-on-Demand.
Views: 4158
I did it
The output in the beginning was great . I get (3 h + 1 n + 1 o)
After some time I get both hhhno + hho
= 5 h + 2 o + 1 n vs hho = 4 h + 2 o
My saving was about 36%


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Been browsing the forum on and off for 2 years, just registered about a week ago.
Champ Classic Roc - 175
Ancient beat to shiv DX Classic - ???
Champ Orc - 174
Champ TeeBird - 175
Thinking about getting a 170 to boost my distance.
DX Wolf - 169
Glow TeeBird - 170 (Grip is effin amazing)
2006 USDGC Roc - 178 ( My Baby. =) )
Putting with a unusually stiff Blowfly (oxymoron I know) But it says "Patent applied for" so the thing's ancient.... right?
Adding Soon -
3 Kc Pro Aviars 170 (2 just for practice)
A DX Roc - 175
Hopefully another USDGC Roc in 170 if I can snatch 1 or 3 up. ( I spoil my friends...)
I need a OS Driver. Suggestions???
A new DX Classic.- 175 (I love the shit outta these things)
Maybe another TL - 170 ( I just lost mine in the lake.)
Any additions criticisms or comments are welcome. I play a really short course so I don't know my max d. I can throw RHBH and sidearm.


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Mobile spectrum headed for smartphone traffic jamPeter Trute
Published: January 19 2013 - 3:00AM
A BILLION new smartphones sold worldwide in 2013 will increase pressure on already-crowded mobile broadband spectrum, leading to increased network dropouts and slowdowns, including in Australia.
The year ahead will also see the rise of the big-screened ''phablet'' phone, internet-connected and ultra-high definition ''4K'' television, and the decline of password-only online security as hacking becomes more prevalent, a Deloitte Technology, Media and Telecommunications Predictions 2013 report says.
Deloitte Australia lead telecommunications partner Stuart Johnston said global smartphone shipments are expected to exceed one billion this year.
''There will be two billion people that will have a smartphone in their hand by year end,'' he said.
A quarter of those will only be used for voice and text rather than data functions.
There will still be 1.5 billion people accessing data from smartphones and that will put unprecedented pressure on the mobile spectrum.
While Australia is better placed than most for wired broadband, courtesy of the national broadband network, Mr Johnston said it was in the same poor position as the rest of the globe for shortage of wireless spectrum.
Australia's government, like others worldwide, needed to speed up the auction process for 4G broadband spectrum and realise that carriers will not pay the historic high prices paid for 3G.
''We believe that the current spectrum shortage issues that are being experienced now will get worse before they get better,'' he said.
The report, which seeks to predict technology trends each year, tipped the ''phablet'' - the large-screened phone-tablet-cross device - would gain in popularity, based on new offerings at the recent International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
''For those 75 per cent of [smartphone users] that are connected to the internet and using it for data services, that larger screen is far more useful,'' Mr Johnston said.
He said there was also a prediction that in 2014 ''the smartphone is going to start to die''.
''The iPad mini is perhaps a suggestion that that's where Apple sees the market going,'' he said.
Television will enter its next phase with the rollout of ultra-high-definition ''4K'' sets that offer four times the clarity of current high-definition sets.
Deloitte lead media partner Clare Harding said while it would be up to three years before sets are widely available, the first 4K TVs have already been sold and 4K would eventually become ''the new broadcasting standard''.
Internet-connected TVs will also become more common, though few owners will buy them because of that feature - something already available via other devices.
The report predicted that more than 90 per cent of user-generated online passwords will be vulnerable to hacking, which will become more prevalent as the data stored online becomes more valuable.
''There will be more two-way authentication starting to emerge,'' Mr Johnston said.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/business/mobile-spectrum-headed-for-smartphone-traffic-jam-20130118-2cyue.html


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I AM BLESSED to be mother to a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old, two feisty little girls. I spend most of my time trying to make sure they are healthy, happy, learning and growing.
For me, this election is about how we can turn this economy around so we can begin to build a sustainable future for our children.
I did not vote for President Barack Obama in 2008, but, if he had succeeded in moving the economy in the right direction, I was prepared to congratulate those who did.
Four years later, the economic recovery has been anemic by all accounts.
A recent Gallup poll reported that nearly 20 percent of Americans have struggled this year just to put food on the table. The Congressional Budget Office says the unemployment rate will continue to be above 8 percent through the rest of the year.
Sixty-one percent of Americans think the country is on the wrong track, according to the Real Clear Politics average of polls. Small business owners, whom the Small Business Administration says created 65 percent of net new jobs in the past 20 years, are apprehensive about hiring for an uncertain future .
It's time to try a new approach.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's plan for day one of his presidency includes several high-impact measures: streamlining federal job retraining programs, which will have an impact on the segment of the population that has had the hardest time finding jobs; cutting non-security discretionary spending by 5 percent across the board; starting exploration on domestic energy sources that are already approved; and sanctioning China for manipulating currency.
Gov. Romney has a clear track record of success in public service and in business.
As governor of Massachusetts, he took the state from a $3 billion budget shortfall to a replenished rainy-day fund.
He cut unwanted programs and vetoed tax increases, but he also raised fees for state services and extended health-care coverage to all Massachusetts residents. As head of the Salt Lake City Olympic Committee in 2002, he closed the funding gap, brought in sponsors, and made the games a success.
At Bain, he turned around struggling businesses and created jobs.
This November we can choose between two good Americans who want to do what they feel is right for our country. We each need to examine the candidates' track records of leadership and their very different visions for the future to decide whose approach we think is our best chance for improving the economy for us and for our children's future.
President Obama swept in on a wave of high expectations for hope and change. A few days into his administration, he said, "You know, a year from now, I think people are gonna see that we're starting to make some progress. But there's still gonna be some pain out there. If I don't have this done in three years, then there's gonna be a one-term proposition."
President Obama's approach hasn't worked. It's time for a change.
Sashi McEntee is a former chair of the Marin County Republican Party. She is a local delegate to the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla.


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Tuesday May 15, 2012 3:10 pm
New Rdio redesign is now available to all
Posted by Andru Edwards - Categories: Design, Internet, Music
Just a quick PSA for all you music lovers out there--that new Rdio design we recently talked about? Well, it's now live for everyone. Our favorite streaming music service has rolled out the new clean look for all, and it's pretty fantastic. Check out a video walkthrough below.
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JR wrote:this Tangent i prefer it over Coyote for more HSS and flat top Z Buzz for less fade=the best straight mid out there that i've tried.
What? Better than JR's Coyotes? You recanting that statement now that you've had the Tangent a few weeks? I tried several Coyotes, a couple glows, a couple stars, and a champ. I liked the Coyote's distance potential, similar to the Buzzz, but prefer the sharper feeling inner rim of the QMS over the thicker more rounded feeling Coyote rim.
I bag a new and seasoned Z Buzzz and two QMSs for stable depending on how much fade I need. The beat in Buzzz will flip up or track right if thrown low and flatish to around 300' and finished with a reliable fade. My newer QMS has lots of HSS for straight with later more gradual fade than the seasoned Z Buzzz and my seasoned QMS will flip up to straight or turnover with practically no fade unless given a fair amount of height.
I've thrown the same opaque 167 Ion for almost two years for putting and upshots under 175' and its getting too easy to OAT into a understable flier at this point. Discspeed's comment about the Tangent similar to Ion has me interested. How does the Tangent's rim compare to the Ion, they look similar, and what's the distance potential at the same power level compared to a Z Buzzz


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Stopgap, temporary, bridge, whatever term you might choose, that's not how Dale Lindsey views his assignment as USD's new head football coach.
Lindsey turns 70 next month, and upon being introduced Saturday as the Toreros' new coach, he sounded like a man planning to diagram X's and O's at Alcala Park into the 2020s.
"I am going to do this as long as it is acceptable to the athletic department, the administration and that we achieve success," Lindsey said. "I do not want to be here just as a stopgap. I want to be here as long as I can."
Lindsey served as the Toreros' defensive coordinator this past season. He was a Chargers assistant for seven seasons and coached at USD one other year, 2008.
His hiring is fascinating on two fronts. For one, there's the age factor. Secondly, after coaching collegiately seven seasons and at the pro level another 28, this is his first head coaching job beyond high school.
Lindsey didn't exactly lobby USD Athletic Director Ky Snyder for the job. When former Toreros coach Ron Caragher informed Snyder he was leaving for San Jose State earlier this month, the first coach Snyder sought out was Lindsey.
Not as a head coaching candidate but to serve as a liaison to the players and rest of the staff.
"I didn't think Ky would be interested in me," said Lindsey. "Some people might view my age as a deterrent. Well, I have a lot more energy than people in their 50s. And I like working."
Nor did Lindsey view his early conversations with Snyder as a chance to sell his candidacy.
"Things just fell into place," Lindsey said. "It wasn't like I ran up to his office and crawled across the carpet (saying), 'Can I be your head coach?' I don't operate like that, and he would have kicked me out of his office."
Said Snyder, "After he let us know down the line that he was interested in the job … there were parts of Dale I didn't know about that quite frankly blew my socks off."
One was Lindsey's belief in the USD athletic philosophy, where the phrase student-athlete is taken seriously.
"We want the next generation of CEOs, corporate presidents and leaders of innovative industry," said Lindsey.
USD, which does not offer football scholarships, plays in the Football Championship Subdivision. The Toreros shared the Pioneer Football League title the past two seasons, compiling a combined 17-5 record.
Next season, the PFL champion automatically advances to the postseason.
USD returns 14 starters, eight on offense, led by quarterback Mason Mills, who threw for 3,106 yards and 20 touchdowns.
Lindsey's first task will be to finalize his coaching staff. Caragher said he has taken three former USD assistants to San Jose State, offensive line coach Hank Fraley, safeties coach Joe Staab and wide receivers coach Greg Lewis.
Staab served as the Toreros' recruiting coordinator.


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ENVIRONMENTAL groups in Herefordshire are getting together to mark Climate Week.
From Monday to Sunday, March 3-9, they will be staging events throughout the county and members of the public will be invited to write their views and feelings on these issues in a 'climate conversation' book during a week-long display in All Saints Church, High Street, Hereford.
The book will later be presented to the county's MPs and Herefordshire Council.
Concern Universal is organising an all day event on climate change for schools and a public event with guest speakers on Tuesday, March 4 in St Johns Church Hall, St Owen Street, Hereford, and films on environmental issues will be shown in county venues.
The week will culminate with a climate change march through Hereford, starting from Hereford Leisure Pool, St Martin's Avenue, at 11.30am and finishing in High Town with music and speakers.
For more information, go to climateactionnowuk.wordpress.com.


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The Tianya BBS, as I have mentioned earlier, is one of the leading BBSes in China. It has now launched a special BBS connecting victims in the earthquake affected areas, with those individuals and companies wanting to voluntarily provide goods and services to help them. (h/t to to the Google China blog for mentioning this). […]Read More...
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Frequent Links
Road surface
Road surface or pavement (American English) is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past, gravel road surfaces, cobblestone and granite setts were extensively used, but these surfaces have mostly been replaced by asphalt or concrete laid on a compacted base course. Road surfaces are frequently marked to guide traffic. Today, permeable paving methods are beginning to be used for low-impact roadways and walkways.
Asphalt (specifically, asphalt concrete) has been widely used since the 1920s. The viscous nature of the bitumen binder allows asphalt concrete to sustain significant plastic deformation, although fatigue from repeated loading over time is the most common failure mechanism. Most asphalt surfaces are laid on a gravel base, which is generally at least as thick as the asphalt layer, although some 'full depth' asphalt surfaces are laid directly on the native subgrade. In areas with very soft or expansive subgrades such as clay or peat, thick gravel bases or stabilization of the subgrade with Portland cement or lime may be required. Polypropylene and polyester geosynthetics have also been used for this purpose[1] and in some northern countries, a layer of polystyrene boards have been used to delay and minimize frost penetration into the subgrade.[2]
Depending on the temperature at which it is applied, asphalt is categorized as hot mix, warm mix, or cold mix. Hot mix asphalt is applied at temperatures over 300 °F (150 °C) with a free floating screed. Warm mix asphalt is applied at temperatures of 200–250 °F (95–120 °C), resulting in reduced energy usage and emissions of volatile organic compounds.[3] Cold mix asphalt is often used on lower volume rural roads, where hot mix asphalt would cool too much on the long trip from the asphalt plant to the construction site.[4]
An asphalt concrete surface will generally be constructed for high-volume primary highways having an average annual daily traffic load greater than 1200 vehicles per day.[5] Advantages of asphalt roadways include relatively low noise, relatively low cost compared with other paving methods, and perceived ease of repair. Disadvantages include less durability than other paving methods, less tensile strength than concrete, the tendency to become slick and soft in hot weather and a certain amount of hydrocarbon pollution to soil and groundwater or waterways.
In the 1960s, rubberized asphalt was used for the first time, mixing crumb rubber from used tires with asphalt. While a potential use for tires that would otherwise fill landfills and present a fire hazard, rubberized asphalt has shown greater incidence of wear in freeze-thaw cycles in temperate zones due to non-homogeneous expansion and contraction with non-rubber components. Also, application of rubberized asphalt is more temperature-sensitive, and in many locations can only be applied at certain times of the year.[citation needed]
Study results of the long-term acoustic benefits of rubberized asphalt are inconclusive. Initial application of rubberized asphalt may provide 3–5 decibels (dB) reduction in tire-pavement source noise emissions; however, this translates to only 1–3 decibels (dB) in total traffic noise level reduction (due to the other components of traffic noise). Compared to traditional passive attenuating measures (e.g., noise walls and earth berms), rubberized asphalt provides shorter-lasting and lesser acoustic benefits at typically much greater expense.[citation needed]
Concrete surfaces (specifically, Portland cement concrete) are created using a concrete mix of Portland cement, coarse aggregate, sand and water. In virtually all modern mixes there will also be various admixtures added to increase workability, reduce the required amount of water, mitigate harmful chemical reactions and for other beneficial purposes. In many cases there will also be Portland cement substitutes added, such as fly ash. This can reduce the cost of the concrete and improve its physical properties. The material is applied in a freshly mixed slurry, and worked mechanically to compact the interior and force some of the cement slurry to the surface to produce a smoother, denser surface free from honeycombing. The water allows the mix to combine molecularly in a chemical reaction called hydration.
Concrete surfaces have been refined into three common types: jointed plain (JPCP), jointed reinforced (JRCP) and continuously reinforced (CRCP). The one item that distinguishes each type is the jointing system used to control crack development.
- Jointed plain concrete pavements contain enough joints to control the location of all the expected shrinkage cracks. The concrete cracks at the joints and not elsewhere in the slabs. Jointed plain pavements do not contain any steel reinforcement. However, there may be smooth steel bars at transverse joints and deformed steel bars at longitudinal joints. The spacing between transverse joints is typically about Script error: No such module "convert". for slabs Script error: No such module "convert". thick. Today, a majority of US state agencies build jointed plain pavements.
- Jointed reinforced concrete pavements contain steel mesh reinforcement (sometimes called distributed steel). In jointed reinforced concrete pavements, designers increase the joint spacing purposely, and include reinforcing steel to hold together intermediate cracks in each slab. The spacing between transverse joints is typically Script error: No such module "convert". or more. In the past, some agencies used a spacing as great as Script error: No such module "convert".. During construction of the interstate system, most agencies in the Eastern and Midwestern United States laid jointed-reinforced pavement. Today only a handful of agencies employ this design, and its use is generally not recommended[by whom?] as both of the other types offer better performance and are easier to repair.
- Continuously reinforced concrete pavements do not require any transverse contraction joints. Transverse cracks are expected in the slab, usually at intervals of Script error: No such module "convert".. These pavements are designed with enough steel, 0.6–0.7% by cross-sectional area, so that cracks are held together tightly. Determining an appropriate spacing between the cracks is part of the design process for this type of pavement.
Continuously reinforced designs may cost slightly more than jointed reinforced or jointed plain designs due to increased quantities of steel. Often the cost of the steel is offset by the reduced cost of concrete because a continuously reinforced design is nearly always significantly thinner than a jointed design for the same traffic loads. Properly designed, the two methods should demonstrate similar long-term performance and cost-effectiveness. A number of agencies have made policy decisions to use continuously reinforced designs in their heavy urban traffic corridors.
One of the major advantages of concrete pavements is they are typically stronger and more durable than asphalt roadways. They also can be grooved to provide a durable skid-resistant surface. A notable disadvantage is that they typically can have a higher initial cost, and can be more time-consuming to construct. This cost can typically be offset through the long life cycle of the pavement. Concrete pavement can be maintained over time utilizing a series of methods known as concrete pavement restoration which include diamond grinding, dowel-bar retrofits, joint and crack sealing, cross-stitching, etc. Diamond grinding is also useful in reducing noise and restoring skid resistance in older concrete pavement.[6][7]
The first street in the United States to be paved with concrete was Court Avenue in Bellefontaine, Ohio in 1891.[8] The first mile of concrete pavement in the United States was on Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan in 1909.[9]
Composite pavement
Composite pavements combine a portland cement concrete sublayer with an asphalt. They are usually used to rehabilitate existing roadways rather than in new construction.
Asphalt overlays are sometimes laid over distressed concrete to restore a smooth wearing surface.[10] A disadvantage of this method is that movement in the joints between the underlying concrete slabs, whether from thermal expansion and contraction, or from deflection of the concrete slabs from truck axle loads, usually causes cracks, called reflective cracks in the asphalt. To decrease reflective cracking, concrete pavement is broken apart through a break and seat, crack and seat, or rubblization process. With break and seat and crack and seat processes, a heavy weight is dropped on the concrete to induce cracking, then a heavy roller is used to seat the resultant pieces into the subbase. The main difference between the two processes is the equipment used to break the concrete pavement and the size of the resulting pieces. The theory is frequent small cracks will spread thermal stress over a wider area than infrequent large joints, reducing the stress on the overlying asphalt pavement. Rubblization is a more complete fracturing of the old, worn-out concrete, effectively converting the old pavement into an aggregate base for a new asphalt road.
Whitetopping uses portland cement concrete to resurface a distressed asphalt road.
Distressed road materials can be reused when rehabilitating a roadway. The existing pavement is ground or broken up into small pieces, through a process called milling. It can then be transported to an asphalt or concrete plant and incorporated into new pavement, or recycled in place to form the base or subbase for new pavement. Some methods used include:
In-place recycling
- Rubblizing of concrete pavement. Existing concrete pavement is broken into gravel-sized particles. Any steel reinforcing is removed, then the remaining gravel-sized particles are compacted and overlaid with asphalt pavement.[11]
- Cold in-place recycling. Bituminous pavement is ground or milled into small particles. The asphalt millings are blended with a small amount of asphalt emulsion or foamed bitumen, paved and compacted, allowed to cure for seven to ten days, then overlaid with asphalt.[12]
- Hot in-place recycling. Bituminous pavement is heated to 250 to 300 °F (120 to 150 °C), milled, combined with a rejuvenating agent or virgin asphalt binder, and compacted. It may then be overlaid with a new asphalt overlay. This process only recycles the top two inches (50 mm) or less, so it can be used to correct rutting, polishing or other surface defects. It is not a good procedure for roads with structural failures. It also generates high heat and vapor emissions, and may not be a good candidate for built-up areas.[12]
- Full depth reclamation is a process which pulverizes the full thickness of the asphalt pavement and some of the underlying material to provide a uniform blend of material. A binding agent may be mixed in to form a base course for the new pavement, or it may be left unbound to form a subbase course. Common binding agents include asphalt emulsion, fly ash, Portland cement or calcium chloride. It can also be mixed with aggregate, recycled asphalt millings, or crushed Portland cement to improve the gradation of the material, and can provide a design life cycle of 30 years with proper lab testing and field verification.[12]
Bituminous surface
Bituminous surface treatment (BST) or chipseal is used mainly on low-traffic roads, but also as a sealing coat to rejuvenate an asphalt concrete pavement. It generally consists of aggregate spread over a sprayed-on asphalt emulsion or cut-back asphalt cement. The aggregate is then embedded into the asphalt by rolling it, typically with a rubber-tired roller. This type of surface is described by a wide variety of regional terms including "chip seal", "tar and chip", "oil and stone", "seal coat", "sprayed seal"[13] or "surface dressing".[14]
BST is used on hundreds of miles of the Alaska Highway and other similar roadways in Alaska, the Yukon Territory, and northern British Columbia. The ease of application of BST is one reason for its popularity, but another is its flexibility, which is important when roadways are laid down over unstable terrain that thaws and softens in the spring.
Other types of BSTs include micropaving, slurry seals and Novachip. These are laid down using specialized and proprietary equipment. They are most often used in urban areas where the roughness and loose stone associated with chip seals is considered undesirable.
Thin membrane surface
A thin membrane surface (TMS) is an oil treated aggregate which is laid down upon a gravel road bed producing a dust free road.[15] A TMS road reduces mud problems and provides stone free roads for local residents where loaded truck traffic is negligible. The TMS layer adds no significant structural strength, and so is used on secondary highways with low traffic volume and minimal weight loading. Construction involves minimal subgrade preparation, following by covering with a Script error: No such module "convert". cold mix asphalt aggregate.[5] The Operation Division of the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure in Saskatchewan has the responsibility of maintaining Script error: No such module "convert". of thin membrane surface (TMS) highways.[16]
Otta seal
Otta seal is a low-cost road surface using a Script error: No such module "convert". thick mixture of bitumen and crushed rock.[17]
Gravel surface
Gravel is known to have been used extensively in the construction of roads by soldiers of the Roman Empire (see Roman road) but a limestone-surfaced road, thought to date back to the Bronze Age, has been found in Britain.[18] Applying gravel, or "metalling," has had two distinct usages in road surfacing. The term road metal refers to the broken stone or cinders used in the construction or repair of roads or railways,[19] and is derived from the Latin metallum, which means both "mine" and "quarry".[20] The term originally referred to the process of creating a gravel roadway. The route of the roadway would first be dug down several feet and, depending on local conditions, French drains may or may not have been added. Next, large stones were placed and compacted, followed by successive layers of smaller stones, until the road surface was composed of small stones compacted into a hard, durable surface. "Road metal" later became the name of stone chippings mixed with tar to form the road surfacing material tarmac. A road of such material is called a "metalled road" in Britain, a "paved road" in Canada and the US, or a "sealed road" in Australia and New Zealand.[21]
A granular surface can be used with a traffic volume where the annual average daily traffic is 1,200 vehicles per day or less.[citation needed] There is some structural strength as the road surface combines a sub base and base and is topped with a double graded seal aggregate with emulsion.[5][22] Besides the Script error: No such module "convert". of granular pavements maintained in Saskatchewan, around 40% of New Zealand roads are unbound granular pavement structures.[16][23]
The decision whether to pave a gravel road or not often hinges on traffic volume. It has been found that maintenance costs for gravel roads often exceed the maintenance costs for paved or surface treated roads when traffic volumes exceed 200 vehicles per day.[24]
Some communities are finding it makes sense to convert their low volume paved roads to aggregate surfaces.[25]
Other surfaces
Pavers (or paviours), generally in the form of pre-cast concrete blocks, are often used for aesthetic purposes, or sometimes at port facilities that see long-duration pavement loading. Pavers are rarely used in areas that see high-speed vehicle traffic.
Brick, cobblestone, sett, and wood plank pavements, such as Nicolson pavement, were once common in urban areas throughout the world, but fell out of fashion in most countries, due to the high cost of labor required to lay and maintain them, and are typically only kept for historical or aesthetic reasons.[citation needed] In some countries, however, they are still common in local streets. In the Netherlands, brick paving has made somewhat of a comeback since the adoption of a major nationwide traffic safety program in 1997. From 1998 through 2007, more than 41,000 km of city streets were converted to local access roads with a speed limit of 30 km/h, for the purpose of traffic calming.[26] One popular measure is to use brick paving - the noise and vibration slows motorists down. At the same time, it is not uncommon for cycle paths alongside a road to have a smoother surface than the road itself.[27][28]
Likewise, macadam and tarmac pavements can still sometimes be found buried underneath asphalt concrete or Portland cement concrete pavements, but are rarely constructed today.
There are also other methods and materials to create pavements that have appearance of brick pavements. The first method to create brick texture is to heat an asphalt pavement and use metal wires to imprint a brick pattern using a compactor to create stamped asphalt. A similar method is to use rubber imprinting tools to press over a thin layer of cement to create decorative concrete. Another method is to use a brick pattern stencil and apply a surfacing material over the stencil. Materials that can be applied to give the color of the brick and skid resistance can be in many forms. An example is to use colored polymer-modified concrete slurry which can be applied by screeding or spraying.[29] Another material is aggregate-reinforced thermoplastic which can be heat applied to the top layer of the brick-pattern surface.[30] Other coating materials over stamped asphalt are paints and two-part epoxy coating.[31]
- Brick sidewalk in Chicago.JPG
Concrete pavers
- Paving in Haikou 02.jpg
Replacing the old road with concrete blocks in Bo'ao Road area, Haikou City, Hainan, China]]
- Construction of a crosswalk using polymer modified cement slurry.jpg
Polymer cement overlaying to change asphalt pavement to brick texture and color to create decorative crosswalk
Acoustical implications
Roadway surfacing choices are known to affect the intensity and spectrum of sound emanating from the tire/surface interaction.[32] Initial applications of this knowledge occurred in the early 1970s. Roadway surface types contribute differential noise effects of up to four dB, with chip seal type and grooved roads being the loudest and concrete surfaces without spacers being the quietest. Asphaltic surfaces perform intermediately relative to concrete and chip seal. These phenomena are, of course, highly influenced by vehicle speed. Rubberized asphalt has been shown to give a marginal 3–5 dB reduction in tire-pavement noise emissions, and a marginally discernible 1–3 decibel reduction in total road noise emissions when compared to conventional asphalt applications.
- Small cobbles.jpg
- Wallpaper group-cmm-1.jpg
- Rambla waves IMG 2089.JPG
Decorative wavy pattern on La Rambla.
- Wallpaper group-pgg-2.jpg
Decorative mock-brick pattern.
- Wallpaper group-p3-1.jpg
More decorative brickwork patterns.
Natural Granite can also be used to create smooth paving that can be cut into various shapes.[33]
Tactile Paving is commonly used in commercial paving to create a more non-slip style of paving.[34]
Surface deterioration
|This article needs attention from an expert in civil engineering. (May 2010)
As pavement systems primarily fail due to fatigue (in a manner similar to metals), the damage done to pavement increases with the fourth power of the axle load of the vehicles traveling on it. According to the AASHO Road Test, heavily loaded trucks can do more than 10,000 times the damage done by a normal passenger car. Tax rates for trucks are higher than those for cars in most countries for this reason, though they are not levied in proportion to the damage done.[35] Passenger cars are considered to have no practical effect on a pavement's service life, from a fatigue perspective.
Other failure modes include aging and surface abrasion. As years go by, the binder in a bituminous wearing course gets stiffer and less flexible. When it gets "old" enough, the surface will start losing aggregates, and macrotexture depth increases dramatically. If no maintenance action is done quickly on the wearing course, potholes will form. If the road is still structurally sound, a bituminous surface treatment, such as a chipseal or surface dressing can prolong the life of the road at low cost. In areas with cold climate, studded tires may be allowed on passenger cars. In Sweden and Finland, studded passenger car tires account for a very large share of pavement rutting.
Several design methods have been developed to determine the thickness and composition of road surfaces required to carry predicted traffic loads for a given period of time. Pavement design methods are continuously evolving. Among these are the Shell Pavement design method, and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) 1993 "Guide for Design of Pavement Structures". A new mechanistic-empirical design guide has been under development by NCHRP (Called Superpave Technology) since 1998. A new design guide called Mechanistic Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) was developed and is about to be adopted by AASHTO.
The physical properties of a stretch of pavement can be tested using a falling weight deflectometer.
Further research by University College London into pavements has led to the development of an indoor, 80-sq-metre artificial pavement at a research centre called Pedestrian Accessibility and Movement Environment Laboratory (PAMELA). It is used to simulate everyday scenarios, from different pavement users to varying pavement conditions.[36] There also exists a research facility near Auburn University, the NCAT Pavement Test Track, that is used to test experimental asphalt pavements for durability.
In addition to repair costs, the condition of a road surface has economic effects for road users. Rolling resistance increases on rough pavement, as does wear and tear of vehicle components. It has been estimated that poor road surfaces cost the average US driver $324 per year in vehicle repairs, or a total of $67 billion. Also, it has been estimated that small improvements in road surface conditions can decrease fuel consumption between 1.8 and 4.7%.[37]
Road surface markings are used on paved roadways to provide guidance and information to drivers and pedestrians. It can be in the form of mechanical markers such as cat's eyes, botts' dots and rumble strips, or non-mechanical markers such as paints, thermoplastic, plastic and epoxy.
See also
- Bleeding (roads)
- Diamond grinding of pavement
- Good Roads Movement
- List of road types by features
- Pavement management
- Road slipperiness
- ↑ "NUAE Geosynthetics Ltd. News: Project Scout Moor Wind farm" (PDF). NUAE. May 2007. Retrieved 2 November 2008.
- ↑ Anon (June 1991). "Highway construction/ Ground insulation" (PDF). Styropor: Technical information. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
- ↑ "Warm Mix Asphalt Technologies and Research". Federal Highway Administration. 29 October 2008. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
- ↑ "Hot, Warm, Luke Warm and Cold Mix Asphalt" (PDF). Cornell Local Roads Program. June 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Gerbrandt, Ron; Tim Makahoniuk; Cathy Lynn Borbely; Curtis Berthelot (2000). "Guidelines must be followed strictly – No exceptions" (PDF). Effect of Cold-in-place recycling on the Heavyweight Trucking Industry. 6th International Conference on Heavy Vehicle Weights and Dimension Proceedings. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
- ↑ "Concrete Pavement Restoration" (PDF). Retrieved 7 April 2012.
- ↑ "Concrete Pavement Rehabilitation Guide for Diamond Grinding". Retrieved 7 April 2012.
- ↑ Lee, B. J.; Lee, H. (2004). "Position-Invariant Neural Network for Digital Pavement Crack Analysis". Computer-Aided Civil and Infrastructure Engineering 19: 105–118. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8667.2004.00341.x.
- ↑ Kulsea, Bill; Shawver, Tom; Kach, Carol (1980). Making Michigan Move: A History of Michigan Highways and the Michigan Department of Transportation. Lansing, Michigan: Michigan Department of Transportation. OCLC 8169232.
- ↑ Khazanovich, L.; Lederle, R.; Tompkins, D.; Harvey, J.T.; Signore, J. (2012). "Guidelines for the Rehabilitation of Concrete Pavements Using Asphalt Overlays (FHWA TPF-5(149) Final Report)".
- ↑ Rubblizing with Bituminous Concrete Overlay – 10 Years' Experience in Illinois, Illinois Department of Transportation, April 2002, http://www.dot.state.il.us/materials/research/pdf/137.pdf
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Cornell Local Roads Program, Asphalt Paving Principles, March 2004
- ↑ Sprayed Seal, Local Government & Municipal Knowledge Base, accessed 29 January 2010
- ↑ Gransberg, Douglas D.; James, David M. B. (2005). Chip Seal Best Practices (DIGITISED ONLINE BY GOOGLE BOOKS). National Cooperative Highway. Transportation Research Board. pp. 13–20. ISBN 9780309097444. Retrieved 25 February 2009.
- ↑ Lazic, Zvjezdan; Ron Gerbrandt (2004). "Feasibility of Alternative salt storage structures in Saskatchewan Neilburg case study" (PDF). Measuring performance indicators for decision-making in winter mainenance operations. 2004 Annual conference of the Transportation Association of Canada. Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation. Retrieved 25 February 2009.[dead link]
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Highways and Infrastructure — Government of Saskatchewan". Archived from the original on 8 February 2008. Retrieved 15 April 2008.
- ↑ Manins, Rosie (28 February 2009). "New dust suppression method". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
- ↑ Anon (July 1998). "Bronze Age metalled road near Oxford". British Archaeology: News (Council for British Archaeology) (36). Retrieved 29 January 2010.
- ↑ Anon. "Road metal". Merriam-Webster online dictionary. Merriam Webster inc. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
- ↑ Anon. "Metal". Online etymological dictionary. 2001 Douglas Harper. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
- ↑ Anon. "Metalled Road". World Web Online. WordWeb Software. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
- ↑ "Surfacing Aggregate" (PDF). Product brochure. Afrisam.com South Africa. 2008. Retrieved 25 January 2009.[dead link]
- ↑ Oeser, Markus; Sabine Werkmeister; Alvaro Gonzales; David Alabaster (2008). "Experimental and numerical simulation of loading impact on modified granular pavements" (PDF). 8th World Congress on Computational Mechanics 5th European Congress on computational methods in applied sciences and engineering ECCOMAS. 6th International Conference on Heavy Vehicle Weights and Dimension Proceedings. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
- ↑ Mary C. Rukashaza-Mukome et al. (2003). "Cost Comparison of Treatments Used to Maintain or Upgrade Aggregate Roads" (PDF). Proceedings of the 2003 Mid-Continent Transportation Research Symposium. Iowa State University. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ↑ "Roads to Ruin: Towns Rip Up the Pavement". Wall Street Journal. 17 July 2010. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ↑ "De balans opgemaakt: Duurzaam Veilig 1998–2007" [Sustainable Safety in the Netherlands - 1998–2007] (PDF) (in Dutch). SWOV, Dutch Institute for Road Safety Research. 2009. p. 6 (English abstract). ISBN 978-90-73946-06-4. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
- ↑ Hembrow, David (25 April 2011). "Road noise, cobbles and smooth asphalt". A view from the cycle path. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ↑ Fred Young (23 February 2013). What can Seattle learn from Dutch street design? (presentation video). Seattle Neighborhood Greenways. Event occurs at 3:49 and 9:19 min. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
... the cycle track is asphalt (...) and the lane for cars is brick ...
- ↑ "Endurablend Systems for Color Surfacing - Colors, Seals, Textures and Protects to Extend Service Life of Asphalt and Concrete Pavement Surfaces" (PDF). Retrieved 13 November 2014.
- ↑ High-Performance Crosswalks (PDF). Alternative Paving Concepts. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
- ↑ "Decorative Stamped Asphalt". ThermOTrack. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
- ↑ C.M. Hogan, "Analysis of highway noise", Journal of Water, Air, & Soil Pollution, Volume 2, Number 3, Biomedical and Life Sciences and Earth and Environmental Science Issue, Pages 387–392, September, 1973, Springer Verlag, Netherlands ISSN 0049-6979
- ↑ http://www.bbsgraniteconcepts.com/products/chinese-granite/
- ↑ http://www.bbsgraniteconcepts.com/specifications/tactile-paving/
- ↑ Statement Of Garth Dull For The Senate Epw Committee
- ↑ "Scientists walk on tech pavement". BBC News. 12 September 2006. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
- ↑ "The Value of Smooth". Better Roads. Randall Reilly. August 2011.
External links
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pavements.
- PaveShare - Concrete Paver Education
- "Pavements" website of the US Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration
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Home Improvement
Home Improvement Questions? Ask a Handyman for Answers
***I am a Verified state "Licensed" electrical contractor, not an internet researcher - I will work hard to give you the exact answers you seek and work you through any problem you may have***
Please press the "Accept" button if my answer has helped. This is the only way I get paid for providing my services.
100% customer satisfaction is my goal!!!!!


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Michelle from Muffin Tin Mom has a post on her first canning experience recently (the fruits of their labor are pictured above – get it?!). She offers up some tasty ideas for plum jam, her thoughts on canning, and even some cute gift tags for finished jars. For the veteran canners out there, do we have any advice we could share with Michelle? I've really appreciated the comments on my Can-It Forward post so far! Keep 'em coming!
Canning Plum Jam


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T-Hughes35 Presents: The 2012 Wrestling Year-End Awards
by, 12-29-2012 at 03:21 PM (5769 Views)
The 2012 Year End Awards for Wrestling:
Hello out there to all wrestling fans from around the world and a Happy Early New Year. Another year of Professional Wrestling has come and gone. What a year it was. We had incredible matches, mark-out moment returns, and moments that absolutely took our breath away. With that being said, we now have to ask ourselves, what were THE Best moments of 2012? Well wrestling fans, these are my thoughts. I am T-Hughes35, and this is your 2012 Year End Awards for the world of Professional Wrestling!
Here's how this is going to work, Just like last year, I am going to base my list on three key factors:
01: Mark Out Factor
02: Creativity/Decision Making
03: Effectiveness
This list is my final blog of 2012, and it includes the best of the three biggest wrestling organizations in the world, with the best wrestlers in the world. It is a list that I really feel, defines The Best of 2012.
With that being said, HERE WE GO!!
Best Build-Up of 2012:
John Cena vs. The Rock
Best Return of 2012 (Not Counting Jerry Lawler):
Brock Lesnar
Honorable Mentions:
Ric Flair at the Slammy Awards
and Degeneration X at RAW 1000
Best Promo of 2012:
Kevin Steen "ROH: Best In The World: Hostage Crisis"
(WARNING: Explicit Language)
Best Wrestling Crowd of 2012:
Miami, FL USA
(WWE Monday Night RAW 04-02-2012)
(See Brock Lesnar's return video)
Honorable Mentions:
A: Winter Park, FL USA
(WWE NXT Tapings on 09-20-2012)
B: Montreal, Quebec CANADA
(WWE Monday Night RAW during Bret Hart's return)
The Most Sentimental Moment of 2012:
Jerry "The King" Lawler's return from his Heart Attack
Honorable Mentions:
Ric Flair's return at the Slammy Awards
(See Above)
Triple H's Retirement Speech
Worst Wrestler of 2012:
Brad Maddox
Honorable Mentions:
Joey Ryan and Mr. Pectacular
Wrestling's Most Surreal Moment of 2012:
WWE Intercontinental Champion Christian Cage Appearing at TNA Slammiversary 2012
Biggest Debut of 2012:
The S.H.I.E.L.D
Biggest Face Turn of 2012:
The Miz
Biggest Betrayal of 2012:
Tara Betrays Tessmacher
Best Tag-Team of 2012:
Team Hell No
Best Commentator of 2012:
Michael Cole
Biggest Rising Star of 2012:
Damien Sandow
Biggest Disappointment of 2012:
AJ Styles
Wrestling's Funniest Moment of 2012:
The Rock comparing Daniel Bryan to an Ompa-Loompa
Best Storyline of 2012:
The Aces and 8s
Worst Storyline of 2012:
The John Cena/AJ Lee Vickie Guerrero Scandal
(Not even going to spare you the agony by finding you all a video for this garbage. You're Welcome)
Wrestling's Most Embarrassing Moment of 2012:
A.W. Comparing The PrimeTime Players to (You'll figure it out)
Best Stable of 2012:
The Aces and 8s
Wrestler Theme Song of 2012:
"Off The Chain (Instrumental)" - Dale Oliver
Bobby Roode's Theme Song
Pay-Per-View Theme Song of 2012:
"The Memory Remains" - Metallica
WrestleMania XXVIII
And then there were three. Ladies and gentlemen, it is now time, for the main event of this entry. These, along with a new award this year for the Best Wrestling Program, are my choices for the Best Matches and the Best Wrestlers of 2012.
(In No Particular Order, These Are)
The 12 Best Matches of 2012:
01: Hell In A Cell:
Undertaker vs. Triple H
Venue: WrestleMania XXVIII
02: Once In A Lifetime:
John Cena vs. The Rock
Venue: WrestleMania XXVIII
03: Extreme Rules Match:
Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena
Venue: WWE Extreme Rules 2012
04: Six-Man-Tag-Team Tables Ladders and Chairs Match:
Daniel Bryan, Kane, and Ryback vs. Seth Rollins, Roman Raines, and Dean Ambrose
Venue: WWE TLC 2012
05: "The Perfect Storm"
Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar
Venue: WWE SummerSlam 2012
06: Ladder Match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship: Jeff Hardy vs. Austin Aries
Venue: TNA Turning Point 2012
07: WWE Championship Match:
CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan
Venue: WWE Over The Limit 2012
08: TNA World Tag Team Championships Match:
AJ Styles and Kurt Angle
Christopher Daniels and Kazarian
Venue: TNA Slammiversary 2012
09: Chicago Street Fight for The WWE Championship:
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho
Venue: WWE Extreme Rules 2012
10: Street Fight:
Bobby Roode vs. James Storm
Venue: TNA Bound For Glory 2012
11: TNA World Heavyweight Championship Match:
Bobby Roode vs. Austin Aries
Venue: TNA Destination X 2012
12: Ladder War IV
For the Ring Of Honor World Championship:
Kevin Steen vs. El Generico
Venue: ROH Final Battle 2012
Top 10 Wrestlers of 2012:
01: CM Punk
02: Bobby Roode
03: James Storm
04: Kevin Steen
05: Daniel Bryan
06: Austin Aries
07: Seth Rollins
08: Damien Sandow
09: Sheamus
10: Bully Ray
Best Wrestling Show of 2012:
TNA IMPACT Wrestling
Honorable Mention:
WWE NXT from Full Sail University
Well that's it ladies and gentlemen, those are my choices for what I felt was the best in the 2012 year of Professional Wrestling. It has been an exciting year for us all, and hopefully only good things will be yet to come in 2013. There is a lot that I am looking forward to in the next twelve months.
A: CM Punk vs. The Rock and The Rock's comeback
B: Hulk Hogan's attempt at WHC History
C: WrestleMania XXIX
D: "TNA IMPACT Wrestling" going on the Road
E: Dolph Ziggler cashing in his Money In The Bank Contract
F: Where the powerhouse stables of Aces and 8s and The S.H.I.E.L.D. go from here
G: Big E. Langston and more NXT wrestlers being called up to the main roster of WWE
and many, many more…
What were your picks for the best wrestling moments of 2012? Tell me your thoughts down below, and as always, here are my social media accounts you can follow and subscribe to:
YouTube Channel: TheTMoney35
TOUT: TheTMoney35
KEEK: TheTMoney35
WordPress: thughes35.wordpress.com
Twitter: @T_Hughes35
Special Thanks to www.ewrestlingnews.com for a fun year of blogging, and all my fellow bloggers and forum members who read my work.
Peace on the Streets everyone, and be safe as you celebrate New Years.
I'm T-Hughes35, and I'll see you next year.


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BP Comment Quick Links
|Strength of Schedule Report
August 27, 2012
Neil Armstrong & the Landing of Apollo 11
Neil Armstrong passed away on Saturday at the age of 82. Of the twelve men to have ever stepped foot on another planet, Armstrong's passing leaves only eight still with us, the youngest of whom is 76-years-old. There are few words that can describe someone who had such a profound—and positive—impact on the course of human history, especially one who did so with the grace and humility that Neil Armstrong showed throughout his life. It was the saddest of news.
Below is a re-print of an article I wrote at Wezen-Ball.com three years ago, as the world celebrated the greatest achievement of Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins, and the 400,000 people who helped make the Apollo program a success. It's a small way to remember such an important man and his legacy.
At 4:17 PM Eastern Daylight Time on Sunday, July 20, 1969—forty years ago today—one of the most remarkable feats in the history of mankind occurred: Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed their Lunar Module, named "Eagle", on the surface of the moon. Apollo 11's mission to land on the moon captivated the world in such a way that the landing was watched back on Earth by hundreds of millions of people, easily the largest television audience ever at the time.
"...pregame ceremonies before an American League baseball game between the hometown Pilots and the Minnesota Twins were interrupted by an announcement of the moon landing. The fans cheered, stood up and sang 'America the Beautiful.'"
The Twins-Pilots game wasn't the only one interrupted, though. The Cubs and Phillies were in the third inning of the second game of their doubleheader in Philadelphia when the announcement was made. The game was stopped for five minutes while players lined up on the foul lines and offered a silent prayer. A recording of Kate Smith's "God Bless America" was then played in the stadium before play finally resumed. There's a great image of the moment in the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star:
Members of the Chicago Cubs (third base line) and Philadelphia Phillies join umpires and 12,393 paying customers in a moment of silent prayer for safe completion of the Apollo 11 mission. The scene occurred during the second game of a doubleheader at Connie Mack Stadium.
But the live games weren't the only ones getting interrupted. For anyone watching the games at home on television, they were subject to the whims of the stations' producers, and those whims, more often than not, were going to go with the excitement on the lunar surface. Of course, this probably didn't bother the vast majority of people at home that day, but that doesn't mean everyone was excited about it:
"In the Kansas City home of L.L. Moore, the activity of the Apollo team on the surface of the moon ranked second to the battle for third place between the Kansas City Royals and the Chicago White Sox in the Western Division of the American League.
It's in New York, though, where we have the best account of what happened during the moon landing. It was Bat Day that Sunday afternoon, and the Yankees were playing the Senators. The score was tied 2-2 in the top of the eighth. With runners on the corners and no one out, Jack Aker faced Ken McMullen. The count was 1-2 when the 32,933 paying fans heard Bob Shepard's voice interrupt the game:
'Ladies and gentlemen, your attention please,' came the voice of Bob Shepard, the public address announcer.
I can't think of a better place to be to hear such incredible news than in the company of 33,000 other excited people (well, other than at home watching it live, I mean). I can only imagine the feeling of awe and wonder that everyone in attendance that day must have felt when Bob Shepard made that announcement. I suspect no one remembers the 11th inning Gene Michaels basehit that won the game for the Yankees that afternoon, and I doubt that it was even much of a topic of discussion as people exited the ballpark. The two astronauts on the moon must've been much too intriguing.
4 comments have been left for this article.
BP Comment Quick Links
OK, because someone's gonna say it and I'm used to minuses:
Aug 27, 2012 09:51 AM
And of course there's the perhaps apocryphal story of Gaylord Perry's first career home run coming within minutes of the landing, "predicted" either by himself or manager Alvin Dark.
Aug 28, 2012 08:10 AM
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12 Thrifty Trash to Treasure Crafts
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Eco Green Crafts
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Eco Green Crafts is the first full line of eco-friendly craft products.
Table of Contents
About Eco Green Crafts
Green is the universal color that is saving the world! Eco Green Crafts is the first environmental conscience company that has a complete line of eco-friendly art and craft products. Susan Sepaniak and Julia Andrus are both professionals with broad areas of expertise within the arts, crafts, and home décor industries.
Susan and Julia started out on a mission to bring safe products that can be used by everyone for decorating and crafting. They are now advocates for healthy alternatives to consumer products. This team combined their talents to carve out a niche' in a highly desirable market that will have the ability to reach consumers worldwide that want to use safer products. Julia states that "One of the things I learned during my own experience with cancer is there are basically three factors that can contribute to serious health issues; these are genetics, lifestyle and environment. While there may not be much we can do about our genetic make-up, there is plenty we can do to improve our personal environments. Using leisure time for creative activities has been proven to reduce stress; using safe, eco-friendly products for creative projects is a tremendous contribution that can make a healthy difference, especially for children and active crafters.
The Eco Green Crafts team wanted to start at the beginning of production focusing on the manufacturing environment, so they created a business partnership with an Asian manufacture Shenzhen Wingart Art Supplies Co., Ltd. that has the same GREEN vision. Shenzhen Wingart is known for creating non-toxic children's paints and craft materials for worldwide distribution. Having a single goal; to make better safer paints and craft supplies, a "natural" partnership blossomed. The Eco Green Crafts team is invested in green solutions as part of their manufacturing processes. They are committed to bringing many more quality craft products to market in the future.
About Eco Green Products
Eco Green Crafts products are high pigment artist paints, vegetable based stamping inks, organic glue (all with no or low VOC's), recycled rubber stamps using no hardwood mounting, recycled glass embellishments, recycled paper surfaces, ergonomic stamping case and more. The products are made from non-toxic, recycled, and environmentally friendly materials.
After years of product and pigment development, as well as work in industrial chemistry, Julia began researching the possible effects of chemicals and other substances found in our everyday environments, especially those materials and products that artists and crafters might be exposed to on a regular basis. The results were stunning; the majority of craft products tested contained high levels of volatile organic compounds (VOC'S) as well as caustic preservatives, airborne irritants and numerous other potentially harmful substances.
With those findings in hand, Julia and Susan set out on a mission to make safe, eco-friendly products that are harmless to consumers, manufacturing workers and the environment. This team combined their talents to carve out a niche in a highly desirable market, providing customers worldwide with high quality safe alternatives in art and craft products. Susan emphasizes their company tagline, "Where creativity comes naturally™". She has 20 years of experience in developing innovative craft and home décor products for some of the largest craft manufacturing companies. With her expertise she was able to work closely with Julia and Wingart to design and coordinate a global product roadmap.
Features and benefits of Eco Green Crafts. (pdf)
Where to Purchase Eco Green Products
Introduction was at CHA – January and we are beginning the process of setting up distributors and working with independents. We are currently selling on line at ecogreencrafts.com along with using manufactures reps to increase distribution.
Contact Information
Eco Green Crafts
1860 E. Forest Bend Drive
Cottonwood Heights, Utah 84121
More Links
Craft Test Dummies: Eco Green Crafts
Video: Eco Green at CHA Part 1
Video: Eco Green at CHA Part 2
Video: Eco Green at CHA Part 3
Video: Eco Green Craft Products at CHA
Eco Green Crafts Designer
Julia Andrus is a global designer with several books to her credit as well as numerous magazine articles and online publications. Learn more about Julia at her Designer Profile.
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We love grilled asparagus, and any way to make it easier is a win with me. Anyone who grills asparagus regularly knows there's a certain number of "men overboard" you lost to the grill, unless you use one of those baskets.
But if you use one of those baskets, well, you can't use any sauce or flavorings like that.
This Marketside brand Grilling Asparagus tray seems like a great compromise, but it's not perfect.
At $4.32 for a 10-ounce tray, the price seems a bit dear. The sauce also was heavy on the oil, but overall it was easy and tasty. I did, however, lose a few sprigs to the grill. I guess that's the price you pay.


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Zasep Tulku
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Zasep Tulku
Can anyone tell me more about Zasep Tulku as a Teacher? From his photos i assume he is a non-ordained teacher?
Re: Zasep Tulku
Yes Zasep Rinpoche started out as a monk but returned his vows some time ago, I believe, maybe the early 1990s. He now teaches as a layman and emphasizes lay practice in his centres.
- waimengwan
- Posts: 183
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Re: Zasep Tulku
Here is a website on Zasep Tulku
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Actually, it depends on which news source one uses. According to the Free Beacon's Bill Gertz, a seasoned journalist on military issues, Russian forces have massed on their side of the Ukrainian border, threatening a much wider incursion to complement the seizure of Crimea:
Russian military forces continued massing within six miles of Ukraine's eastern border regions as tensions increased over Moscow's so far bloodless attempt to take control of the country by force under the pretext of protecting ethnic Russians.
In Kiev, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Yevhen Perebiynis said the massing of Russian forces near Ukraine's eastern border appeared to be preparation for a military invasion, Ukraine's Unian news agency reported.
Border troops reported Russian forces massing near borders in the Kharkiv, Luhansk, and Donetsk regions.
"Those actions taken by representatives of the Russian state authorities may be evidence that Russia is preparing for a possible invasion on Ukrainian territory through its land border with Ukraine," Perebiynis said.
Few details were available on troop movements but reports from the region indicated that nine convoys of armored vehicles were observed near the Russian border of Kharkiv, and five armored troop carriers were spotted less than two miles from the border in Donetsk. Military forces also were reported near the Luhansk administrative region.
That was last night, however. This morning, CBS News reported that Russian forces appeared to be retreating from those positions:
Putin pulled his forces back from the Ukrainian border on Tuesday, yet said that Moscow reserves the right to use all means to protect Russians in the country. He accused the West of encouraging an "unconstitutional coup" in Ukraine and driving it onto anarchy, declaring that any sanctions the West places on Russia will backfire.
Speaking from his residence outside Moscow, Putin said he still considers Yanukovych to be Ukraine's leader and hopes Russia won't need to use force in predominantly Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine.
Putin lashed out at the US earlier today, accusing Americans of creating the need for Russian intervention in Ukraine with our "experiments" on the "rats," or something:
Putin likens US in Ukr to mad scientist: "They sit there across the pond as if in a lab running all kinds of experiments on the rats."
— Charles Lane (@ChuckLane1) March 4, 2014
Actually, the issue in Ukraine had a lot more to do with the EU than it did the US. We're involved in it now, belatedly anyway. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Kyiv today to pledge $1 billion in aid to the new Ukrainian government. He also pledged that the US was only "days away" from implementing sanctions, which may have some Ukrainians wondering what's taking so long:
Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
As Kerry arrived, the White House announced the package of energy aid, along with training for financial and election institutions and anti-corruption efforts. U.S. officials traveling with Kerry, speaking on grounds of anonymity, said the Obama administration is considering slapping Russia with unspecified economic sanctions as soon as this week.
The problem is that the invasion caught the administration "flat-footed," as the USA Today editorial board scolded yesterday, and the Obama administration is still playing catch-up:
Perhaps the most surprising thing about Russia's weekend invasion of Crimea is that the U.S. and its allies were caught so flat-footed, groping for a response that didn't look weak and ineffectual.
It's not as if Russian President Vladimir Putin's ambitions in Ukraine, or its importance to him, are a secret. He wants to be seen as the leader who restored Russia's lost power, and if Ukraine — the biggest, closest and most important non-Russian part of the Soviet Union — were to follow other former Soviet states into the Western camp, his hopes would be dashed. He wasn't about to let that happen. …
It's also apparent that Putin's careful strategic planning was not matched in the West, where the response has been late and lame.
President Obama started by warning vaguely that there would be "costs" if Russia invaded. That must have given Putin a chuckle. He invaded hours later.
Peter Wehner argues that we've rarely seen so much arrogance for so little reason, and have it exposed so thoroughly:
When he ran for the presidency, it was Barack Obama who never put limits on his criticisms of others. He spoke as if the problems of the world would disappear with two events: the removal from office of his predecessor and his arrival as president of the United States. Even in a profession not known for attracting modest individuals, Mr. Obama's arrogance set him apart. …
In foreign policy, Obama would wage a successful war in Afghanistan. He would convince dictators and adversaries why they should bow to his wishes. He would solve decades-long conflicts. American prestige would rise in all corners of the globe. "Instead of retreating from the world," Obama said, "I will personally lead a new chapter of American engagement." There would be the "reset" with Russia, the "new beginning" in the Middle East, the end of Iran's quest for nuclear weapons and so much more. Mr. Obama would practice "smart diplomacy." After all, he understood things the rest of us did not. And if you didn't accept his view of the world, you weren't simply mistaken; you were an ideologue, a hyper-partisan, a dullard, perhaps a fool, and/or someone whose thinking belonged to bygone era. Watch the contemptuous way the president dismissed Mitt Romney in a presidential debate on the topic of Russia — despite the fact that events have proven Romney right and Obama wrong.
And that's the point, isn't it? Our relations with nation after nation – from Afghanistan and Iraq to Russia and China, from Turkey, Jordan and Pakistan to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, from Japan, Taiwan and South Korea to India and Australia, from Honduras to Brazil, from Poland and the Czech Republic to Germany, Great Britain, Canada and more – are worse now than they were when Mr. Obama was sworn in as president in 2009. I'm not asking people to measure Mr. Obama against a standard of perfection; I'm asking them to measure him against his own promises, his own speeches, his own words.
Having been president for more than five years, we can now render some reasonable and informed judgments about Mr. Obama, including this one: he is an amateur on par with Jimmy Carter. And to see the crude and brutish Putin run circles around Obama—on negotiations over nuclear weapons, on granting asylum to Edward Snowden, on convincing Obama to undercut our allies in Poland and the Czech Republic, on establishing ties with Egypt, on strengthening the murderous Syrian regime, and now invading Crimea and threatening the rest of Ukraine—is painful for any American to witness. As House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers put it, "Putin is playing chess and I think we are playing marbles, and I don't think it's even close."
The Ukrainians know better now than to rely on the US for a rescue. They're currently negotiating with Russia directly to an end to the crisis and occupation. What Ukraine needs is a united, prepared Western front to deter Russia from aggression — and five days later, it still doesn't exist. The flat-footed response is barely improving, almost as if the White House can't quite believe that Putin really means to reassemble the Russian Empire. With friends that clueless, Ukraine had better cut the best deal it can while it still can.


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Unions, Faculty, Students Rally at UI For Workers' Rights
University of Illinois students, faculty, and local high school students stepped away from the classroom to speak out on behalf of public employees in Wisconsin, Indiana, and other states.
About 250 carried signs on the Urbana campus quad to show their solidarity for collective bargaining rights and public education. Library and Information Science professor Susan Davis of the U of I's Campus Faculty Association said the events in Wisconsin this week were an attack on the right of people to act collectively to define their own interests.
"So for weeks, the Republicans framed their attack on the unions as a purely fiscal issue," she told the crowd. "But on Wednesday night, they admitted that the motive was not the budget. It was collective bargaining all along. It wasn't about money, it was about power."
Davis' words were met with cheers. Two University Laboratory High School students that play on the girls' soccer team say they're being threatened with a suspension and missing their first game. They say threats of those consequences kept about 30 of their classmates from attending. About five other students from Urbana High School attended the rally as well, including junior Julian Threlkeld.
"Unions workers work really hard at their jobs," Threlkeld said. "They deserve the rights. They deserve the priveleges. And the fact that the movement of collective bargaining has been taken away from them is totally wrong in my opinion."
Threkeld says he might get a detention because of his leaving school early, but says the cause was worth it. The majority of the crowd consisted of U of I students. The rally was led by the Graduate Employees Organization.


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Topic: Bile Duct cancer in patients over the age of 80Are
Are there treatments for advanced Bile Duct cancer in elderly women? My mother was 83 1/2 and they refused to give her chemo, radiation or to perform surgery. They just let her die. Is that common or was it too risky?


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Hong Kong -- Italian fashion house Prada, which is preparing for an initial public offering of about $2 billion in Hong Kong, said it plans to use most of the proceeds on expansion and renovation of its stores over the next 18 months.
The Milan-based company said it plans to add a net total of about 80 directly operated stores by the end of January 2012, most of them in the Asia Pacific region, where it sees "substantial potential for growth," Prada said in the a regulatory filing.
The fashion house has about a third of its 326 directly operated stores in Asia-Pacific, its fastest-growing market.