text:
HR NEC & chairpersons meet in Groenkloof
07 April 2010
On 12-13 March Groenkloof was once again the meeting venue for the Honorary Rangers NEC and the chairpersons from all over the country.
The NEC discussed various HR matters, amongst which the constitution, Memorandum of Agreement with SANParks, finances, administration, uniforms as well as the Sand River Bush Camp Draft ranked top priority.
Several new regions have been inaugurated since the last meeting, and a warm welcome to Kgalagadi, Bontebok, Knysna, Virtual HRs, Midrand and the Golden Gate Highlands National Park. The aim is to eventually have each of the National Parks serviced and adopted by it's own region. Some regions have very few members, but they are already making an impact in the delivery to SANParks.
After many months of planning and discussion with SANPark has resulted in the new concept of Virtual Honorary Rangers (VHRs). These VHRs have even had their first "virtual" meeting in cyberspace and the concept has piqued a lot of interest. The main difference is that the members are all SANParks' forum moderators where some members live in Europe. This creates some logistical problems but they have all been overcome. The new regions in the arid areas will have their fair share of challenges, however, there is much confidence in their ability to grow and prosper in making their contribution to the environment.
With the application for outside funds from Lotto, it has become apparent that HR regions have to get their houses in order with regard to finances. Audited statements are required before sponsors begin to view applications, and the regions were urged to comply.
The NEC have been granted three dates for presenting their own bush camps at Sand River in the Kruger National Park (KNP), and a golf day is in a well advanced stage of planning. The NEC wishes to reduce, or even do away with completely, the annual fees that HR's are required to pay to the NEC. This will go a long way in paving the way to reduce barriers of entry for HR's, and make the targets set by SANParks management a little easier to reach.
Statistics for 2009 have not been completed, but the initial indications are that HRs have done a lot better, compared to previous years. Membership numbers are well up, monetary contributions as well as duties show a marked increase and the NEC are hoping to achieve more than R18 million in overall contributions to SANParks for 2009.
The uniform issue has not been solved as yet, but HRs have the go-ahead to wear the golf shirts purchased from the KwaZulu-Natal region. The shirts will be an interim measure until the uniforms are available for purchase once again. Everyone welcomed the new shirts, saying that new members can now help in duties, and not sit on the sidelines anymore.
The HRs will support the sales of kuduzelas and Mike Lodge will endeavour to try and make them available as a consignment stock. It was again stressed that where they are sold in National Parks, they are only to be used once outside the gate.
The NEC Chairperson would like to see a healthy campaign to elect new NEC members at the next Indaba, and has asked all regions to support this. New members need to be introduced into the NEC, and older members should endeavour to train them, thereby insuring continued support to regions and SANParks alike.
The various National Projects gave their feedback and all are performing well. There is a continued growth in the support that John Turner and his team from Counter Poaching and Ranger Support Services (CP & RSS) are giving, and Grant Coleman gave feedback on the newly reconstructed Sand River Bush Camp, where in excess of R150 000 was spent to date.
The NEC meeting concluded with a braai and the chairpersons' who were left after a gruelling day, dragged themselves home to recuperate for the next round. Good progress was made, and all members look forward to the next meeting at Golden Gate Highlands National Park during the annual Indaba.


text:
Rehiring retired employees becoming more common
�Some people did squawk about it, until we explained to them that it did save the community money,� he said.
That was two years ago, and the commotion has died down, Mittelsteadt said. Meanwhile, the village is saving $9,000 a year in benefits it doesn�t have to pay its administrator, and the administrator is pulling in both a salary and a pension.
�It�s really a benefit to the community,� Mittelsteadt said.
The city of Milton is thinking of making a similar move after this week�s retirement of Police Chief Tom Gilland.
The Milton Police Commission announced Wednesday night that it didn�t appoint an interim chief because of the chance Gilland could return to work after 30 days.
Rehiring a retired government employee is becoming increasingly common in Wisconsin, said Michelle Baxter with the Wisconsin Department of Employee Trust Funds.
The department received 1,100 applications from people retired from government jobs who planned to return to the public sector in 2006, Baxter said. Most of those employees end up receiving wages on top of pension payments, she said.
The federal government requires a �good-faith� retirement of 30 days before a retiree can return to work and still receive pension payments, said John Vincent, also with the Department of Employee Trust Funds.
During that time, the employer and employee aren�t supposed to come to a written or verbal agreement. They�re also not supposed to discuss an arrangement before the employee retires, he said.
Milton city officials and the police commission have been considering asking Gilland to return since he announced his retirement in a letter dated Dec. 5, but they haven�t come to any arrangement, said City Administrator Todd Schmidt.
He declined to say if the city has discussed the idea with Gilland, and Gilland declined to comment on the matter.
But Schmidt said he believes if Gilland is offered the job, he will give it serious consideration.
�He has indicated his willingness to help out in any way, and he hasn�t indicated that he�s not willing to come back,� Schmidt said.
Rehiring Gilland would benefit both Gilland and the city, Schmidt said. After 29 years of service with the department, Gilland was probably close to maxing out his pension, if he wasn�t already there, he said.
At that point, �it just simply doesn�t make a lot of economic sense to continue working in terms of what your retirement pension will be,� Schmidt said.
But if the city rehires Gilland after he retires, the city retains Gilland�s expertise while avoiding paying into a retirement account, Schmidt said. In 2007, the city paid more than $10,000 into Gilland�s pension.
If hired, Gilland still would be eligible for city-sponsored health insurance because the city covers retired employees, although he might have to pay a higher premium, Schmidt said.
�It�s hard for me to understand why, if all these circumstances work out for a community, why that would be a bad thing,� he said.
The city is preparing to move quickly after Gilland becomes eligible to enter into a contract Feb. 7. The city council will discuss at its meeting Tuesday what terms it will include in Gilland�s contract if the police commission decides to appoint him, Schmidt said.
Although Schmidt has solicited proposals from private consulting firms to aid in a possible search for a chief, he hasn�t gone through the three he received so far, he said.
The police commission has received letters from several people interested in the chief position, but it hasn�t established a list of criteria for the job and probably won�t until it decides whether or not to appoint Gilland, Chairman Stephen Tupper said.
Tupper expects the commission to make a decision quickly after Gilland becomes eligible, he said.
�I don�t see any point in delaying that,� he said.
Dec. 5, 2007: Chief Tom Gilland sends a letter to the city announcing his intent to retire effective Jan. 7.
Dec. 13: The Milton Police Commission appoints former Chief Terry Hawkins interim chief. The meeting is declared illegal because the commission failed to notify the public before it took place.
Dec. 18: The commission appoints Hawkins interim chief in a legal meeting. The city council meets that night and agrees on terms of a contract to offer Hawkins.
Dec. 28: The city announces Hawkins declined the offer. Hawkins says he could not accept the position under the terms offered by the council. The city and Hawkins decline to specify the terms.
Jan. 3, 2008: The Milton Police Commission meets and decides not to appoint an interim chief. Instead, the department�s sergeants will handle day-to-day operations, and the commission will oversee the department through commission member Dave Ostrowski.
Jan. 7: Gilland retires effective 12:01 a.m.
Jan. 9: After questions from The Janesville Gazette, the city issues a news release stating the lack of an interim chief is meant to be a short-term situation as the city waits to see if it will rehire Gilland.
Jan. 15: The Milton City Council will discuss in closed session what terms it will offer Gilland if the police commission decides to appoint him chief.
Feb. 7: Gilland will become eligible to enter an employment agreement with the city.
Last updated: 2:21 pm Thursday, December 13, 2012

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Highlights of Lewis University
- The university has offered education since 1932
- Included in the top tier of U.S. News & World Report's rankings
- Mentioned as one of the "Best Midwestern Colleges" by The Princeton Review
- Job-shadowing opportunities available through mentors
- A Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program participant
- Provides accelerated degree programs
- Accredited by the Higher Learning Commission
Overview of Lewis University
Lewis University, located in Romeoville, Illinois, is a non-profit, Catholic university. The school also has several regional campuses. The university welcomes students of all cultures and religious faiths. Lewis University is sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, an international Roman Catholic teaching order. Lewis University Online offers master's degrees and bachelor degrees and continuing education programs.
Education Programs
Lewis University Online provides a variety of master's-degree programs. The programs offer a comprehensive review of the subject matter. Most of the programs provide concentrations. Graduate certificates are also available in nursing education and nursing administration.
Student Notes
- Provides small classes
- Career Services staff members provide job-search assistance and assistance in finding internship opportunities
- Technical support is available 24/7
- The online programs include group-discussion forums
- Student Services coordinators provide assistance
Faculty Members
According to the school, the faculty members are experts in their academic fields. The majority of faculty members have a terminal degree in their field.
Admissions and Financial Aid Information
Admission advisors of Lewis University Online are available to guide applicants through the admissions process. The admission requirements for the master's-degree programs vary by the curriculum. Lewis University Online hosts virtual open houses for interested applicants. In addition, financial aid is available to those qualify.


text:
ABC News weather editor and "GMA" anchor Sam Champion and husband Rubem Robierb rang in 2013 with a New Year's Eve wedding reception in Miami, surrounded by friends and family, including the grooms' mothers.
Singer Nicole Henry and producer Richard Jay-Alexander, a friend of Champion's, performed for 100 guests at the reception at the Icon South Beach.
The couple wed in December in an intimate ceremony at Champion's New York City apartment, attended by Champion's fellow "GMA" anchors and the couple's friends and family.
N.Y. State Supreme Court Justice George J. Silver conducted the ceremony, which lasted about 10 minutes. Robin Roberts also played a part in the nuptials, reading a beautiful poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
Champion and Robierb met through mutual friends a few years ago in Miami, where Robierb lives. Born in Brazil, Robierb is an artist who shows his work in Miami, Atlanta, Santa Monica and New York. The two announced their engagement in October.


text:
By identifying novel genes critical to cancer progression, biologists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have expanded the number of drug targets researchers have available for study to find ways to stop tumors in their tracks. The report is published today in Cancer Research.
The study centers on capillary formation, or angiogenesis, a process shown to be essential to tumor progression as tumors attract capillaries to provide oxygen essential for growth and frequently use those same vessels to send out metastatic cells. By zeroing in on these capillary-forming proteins, drug researchers may be able to treat a tumor by directly cutting off its blood supply.
Drug researchers, using tools available since the human genome was sequenced, seek specific targets to develop more precise cancer drugs with fewer side effects. "Once you have a unique target," explained biologist Diane Rodi, "you don't have the side effects of the drugs – most cancer drugs are anti-growth drugs that kill all the growing cells in the body. Most cancer therapies are not very specific and that is why they are so toxic."
The Argonne biologists identified 217 proteins involved only in capillary formation -- morphogenesis -- by finding all the gene products turned on during capillary formation and subtracting out those related only to growth, or proliferation, in a novel process called subtractive transcriptomics.
Argonne biologists grew human endothelial cells – the cells involved in blood vessel formation – on a tumor tissue-mimicking plate. As the capillaries grew over an 8-hour period, researchers isolated RNA samples at intervals – at 30 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours and 8 hours. To determine which genes do not contribute specifically to blood vessel formation, endothelial cells were grown on gelatin-coated plastic. RNA was isolated at the same intervals as on the tumor tissue-mimicking plate.
Each RNA sample was tested using microarray analysis at the University of Chicago. The microarrays hold 44,000 samples of known RNA coded by the human genome. A reaction reveals the RNA that is being produced at each stage of the biological process. RNA codes for proteins.
"We wanted to find the proteins that are only made when the endothelial cells are making a capillary, not when they are just growing," Rodi said. "We took all of the genes that were made on the tissue plate and subtracted out those from the plastic plate. And we were left with 217."
The researchers sought the proteins in the capillaries using commercially available antibodies. Of the 16 morphogenesis-specific proteins tested, all were found in the capillaries after they were completely formed.
The capillary research revealed a bonus insight into a still mysterious nature of cells – their polarity. Cells are not the same all over their surface – different sections perform different tasks like acting as environmental sensors or making little "feet" to mediate cell movement. But researchers do not yet know all of the genes which are involved in polarity.
The majority of the 217 proteins identified by the Argonne group manage movement within the cell, long distance migration, cytoskeletal reorganization and cellular stickiness – all processes involved in cell polarity. The Argonne study revealed that more angiogenic genes are involved in polarity than previously believed, and identified a large number of novel proteins which may be rate-limiting for the angiogenic process.
"This information will help with developing new drugs," Rodi said. "Once you know a gene product helps out in a process, then it automatically becomes a possible drug target."
The next step is to find antibodies to the rest of the 217 genes – only about 50 are commercially available – and determine if they all are present in the capillaries. They are relying on a novel approach to express human proteins high throughput in bacteria that other Argonne biologists are in the process of developing. Long-term research could lead to new medications for cancer as well as for eczema, macular degeneration and rheumatoid arthritis – other diseases involving pathological capillary formation.
Source: Argonne National Laboratory
Explore further: Hacking the bacterial social network


text:
Despite challenging economic environment, L&T Finance Holdings witnessed good business, chairman and managing director M Deosthalee said.
Despite challenging economic environment, L&T Finance Holdings witnessed good business, chairman and managing director M Deosthalee said.
The company posted 44.4% jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 140.67 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2012, on strong growth in loans. It had a net profit of Rs 97.35 crore in the same quarter in the previous fiscal.
Healthy growth in profit was supported by strong improvement in overall loan book, improvement in Net Interest Margins and higher operating efficiencies, it said.
"Last year 11-12 was a difficult year. Rising interest rate environment, liquidity problems were there. Slowdown in industrial capital expenditure, less infrastructure spend was seen. Many companies witnessed difficult financial times. But, our numbers are very encouraging, 25,000 crore of asset book was witnessed," he elaborated.
Advances grew by 39.80% to Rs 25,016 crore as on March 31, 2012 as compared to Rs 17,895 crore at the end of 2010-11. For the entire fiscal ended March, 2012, the company's net profit grew by 16.2% at Rs 454.80 crore, compared to Rs 391.17 crore in the corresponding fiscal.
This growth is after factoring the impact of lower margins, losses in microfinance and higher provisions against infrastructure loans, it said. In states other than Andhra Pradesh, the company continued with its cautious approach. The repayment pattern continued to be healthy. The aggregate loan portfolio outside Andhra Pradesh amounted to Rs 132.21 crore, it said.
Meanwhile, N Sivaraman, whole time director and executive vice president of the company added that asset growth of the company continues to be robust.
In Andhra Pradesh, the financial firm did not disburse any fresh loans towards microfinance while marginal collections continued, it said.
It has made a further provision of Rs 75 crore during the current year (including an additional provision of Rs 25 crore in the current quarter) taking the cumulative provision to Rs 134.67 crore.
Also watch the accompanying videos.


text: Hey, I'm new around here (though not to dog forums in general, some of you may recognize my dude). I've been lurking for a bit, this seems like a great place Ok, regular intro stuff: I have one pup right now, Astro, who's a rescue pup of unknown breed. They thought he was part Shar Pei, so that's what we go with when asked. I'll probably have another dog sometime in the next few years, I'm really itching to be a multi-dog household. Astro was born June 1st, so he's still a pup in a lot of ways. We have done one puppy agility class and will be back for more, we're signed up to begin nosework in December, and I'm thinking of trying to get his CGC sometime over the winter. I think that sums it all up really, here's a pic of the little bulldozer (looking innocent at the scene of the leash-and-fan destroying crime he committed):


text:
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is coming to Silicon Valley in hopes of fostering more efficient patent applications in the tech world.
The office announced that it is opening three more satellite offices throughout the country, including one in heart of California's tech hub. The PTO is already set to open a satellite office in Detroit on July 13 as a part of recent patent reform legislation, the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act.
Silicon Valley leaders have been lobbying for a satellite office for three years, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The area accounted for almost one in 8 of all U.S. patents registered in 2010.
Commerce Department officials will be in town next week to meet with local businesses, entrepreneurs and public officials to discuss the new office openings.
"Intellectual property protection and innovation are engines of economic growth and the bedrock of America's private sector," acting U.S. Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank said in the press release. "The Obama administration is committed to making certain our businesses and entrepreneurs have the resources they need to grow, create jobs and compete globally. These new offices are an historic step toward further advancing our world's best IP system, and reinforcing the United States as the number one destination for innovation capital, and research and development around the world."
The other cities involved in the expansion are Dallas and Denver. Although hundreds of cities applied, the four were chosen based on geographical diversity, regional economic impact, the cities' abilities to recruit and retain employees, and engage the intellectual property community, the release said.


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" City: London / Address: South Quay, Marsh Wall / County: Great Britain / Geographic coordinates: latitude: 51.50118, longitude: -.01992 / Postal code: E14 9SH / Airport Code: LHR "
I was having a bank holiday weekend away to london to visit a show at the O2 arena and decided it would be best to get a hotel in the nearby Canary Wharf and get the connecting tube straight to the 02. I first dried lastminute.com but the prices were horrific then on laterooms.com I stumbled across the Hilton at Canary Wharf for an amazingly cheap price ....
What I booked
I was offered a double room for one night for myself and boyfriend with breakfast included. This was during April bank holiday 2009 and cost us ...... £27 in total !!! Not each, not for food for everything! I was so amazed and booked it immediately. Although i have never stayed in a Hilton hotel prior to booking, I always associated it with high standards and good quality. A little posh treat! Although I did grumble at putting more money into the wreckless hands of Paris Hilton, I thought, stuff her, lets give us a treat!
The hotel is situated on the river banks and was less than a 5 minute walk from Canary Wharf Tube Station. There is a smaller tube station right outside, which is great for transport and I was so surprised that I could not hear it from my room. There are always taxi's outside which is handy as my tube to the O2 wasn;t running because it was a bank holiday, so due check if you are wanting to get to the O2 on a bank holiday as other locations may be better suited to your travel plans. Overall a nice location, I enjoyed walking by the river and therre is a shopping centre on the other side of the river which is fab. We went to Wagamama's for tea and did a bit of shopping too. It is in short distance of anything you may need. It did take about 30 mins to find as I forgot my map!
The Hotel
When we arrived check in was dead simple. I just quoted my name and reception were very friendly and quick. I got my key and was told where my room was. The reception was nect to a down stairs bar and restaurant. It was clean, well presented and very pleasant. We took a lift to our room which was on a corridor that had it's own water and ice machine.
The room
When I opened my hotel room door I was amazed. We had a very decent sized well presented bathroom complete with designer toiletries a shower and bath and toilet. It was similar to what I have had in 4 and 5 star hotels.
The main room was well decorated and had a huge bed, wardrobe space, desk, flat screen tv, kettle and drinks and mini fridge. When I turned the TV on it even said 'welcome sarah-jane and luke to the hilton canary wharf' it was such a ncie touch. the bed was so comfortable and the room equal to a 4/5 star.
Breakfast was held downstairs in the restaurant and usually costs £15 per person but ours was included in the total. There was everything I could of wished for. A variety of fresh juices, coffee, tea and water. A hot selection of food (meats, vegetarian substitutes, eggs, toast, beans etc), a large choice of cereals, wonderfully fresh and exotic fruit, pasteries, you name it, it was there!
Overall I had a wonderful time. There was lots of little touches that made it special, such as the nice selection of twinings fruit teas in my room, to the designer toiletries, superb breakfast, welcome on tv screen or immaculate room. We weren't distrubed by any outside noise at all (my boyfriend is a very light sleeper). The hotel had a great location, was easy to get to and from there and was such an amazing price. I would certainly go back.
** Good Old Hilton - Always Dependable **
It's hard to go wrong with a Hilton. The chain seems to stand for a solid dependability that's very comforting and reassuring (except for Paris Hilton, she's a different matter entirely). But there's a different side to Hilton in the new Millenium; a funkier and more cutting edge design-led image that's quite unlike their 1980s and 1990s incarnation. I've been staying in Hiltons for about 20 years and I rarely regret it but there's a clear difference between their 'revamped' older hotels and their made-to-measure newbies. When you find a Hilton where everything is as it was designed to be and not where they've modified something older and tried to 'funk it up' a bit you can really tell the difference. The perfect example of this (if you can't be bothered to go to Kuala Lumpur to their Asian flagship hotel which is a stunning experience) is to check out the Hilton in Canary Wharf.
**Canary Wharf**
Canary Wharf is not like 'real' London so if you are looking for the old world charms of the city and your mental image is based on scenes from Mary Poppins and Oliver Twist, this isn't the place for you. This is London's area of ultra-modern high-rise living and working, built on what were once rough areas of the docklands that were so unattractive that I'm sure I once read that Stanley Kubrick used some of the derelict areas in the nearby Isle of Dogs as sets in one of his Vietnam films. Today Canary Wharf is all shiny glass, metal and concrete with one of the most spectacular Underground stations in London.
** Nice hotel if you can find it **
I thought it would be easy to find. It's called Hilton Canary Wharf so I'd go to Canary Wharf station, step out of the station, look up and spot the big blue H and head for it. Seemed logical but I got it wrong. I'd rather underestimated the impact of quite so many tall buildings in a relatively small space and despite a good hunt, I couldn't find the hotel. So I rang my colleague who'd arrived just before me, she put the receptionist on the phone and the receptionist tried to explain where to go. It should have been easy but London hotels seem to pick their receptionists for something other than their language skills. After asking the third time, I'd worked out that I had to go left but the rest of the route was just a blur. I pointed myself in roughly the right direction and went on the hunt.
My mistake, it turned out, was going to the wrong Underground station. I needed South Quay station on the Docklands Light Railway instead of Canary Wharf. South Quay station is actually linked directly to the hotel.
** A Classy Reception **
When I finally arrived at the hotel, a bit hot and bothered after dragging my case round the docklands, I was really impressed by what I found. Reception was very classy with a large light marble counter and a wall of rusty slates as a backdrop. The lifts were just across the lobby from the reception and despite being a tall building, there were always enough lifts available quickly. It can be really frustrating if you stay in a multi-storey and have to wait five minutes for a lift to come. Passing by the lifts, there are some nice long leather banquettes and some wooden tables with strange cubic stools to sit on. The rusty slate wall decoration continues along through this area until you reach the Cinnamon restaurant and bar where there's lots of bright limegreen glass, leather seating and glass café tables.
Breakfast is served in the Cinnamon every morning and the spread is second to none. Don't forget to ask if you want a cappuccino or any other special coffee and the staff rush off and get them for you.
** Home Sweet Home **
With the public spaces all so nice, there's always the fear that the rooms might let a hotel down. I headed up to my room expecting that since I was in London it would be small and poky but nothing could have been further from the truth. My room was enormous. I suspected at the time that maybe we'd negotiated upgrades since we had so many people booked in, but when I checked afterwards these really were the standard rooms.
The bed was enormous and dressed in crisp white cotton with a cosy bedspread. The curtains were a strange sort of crushed velvet. There was a very funky arm chair with a glass coffee table, a massive work desk with plenty of space and a choice of wired or wireless internet, a lovely big flat-screen television and lots of rather stylish lamps and other lighting. The minibar was stocked with overpriced goodies, the bathroom was stylish and spotlessly clean and the Crabtree and Evelyn toiletries were immediately identified as good enough to take home.
The hotel had a lot of facilities that I didn't need and didn't use including a gym, a spa and a business centre. On my first day we met up in one of the meeting rooms near the business centre. The room was fine, the audio visuals all worked but the buffet was a bit disappointing and we really struggled to get any hot coffee.
** Handy for?????**
I was staying at the hotel as part of a large group using it as a base for going to the Excel exhibition centre. Getting around London can be a nightmare and we were all going to be on our feet all day long so we didn't want to be in central London with a long journey to get to Excel every day. Taxis took about 15 minutes and the Docklands Light Railway could get us there in a similar time, though not necessarily much more cheaply if we put 4 people in each taxi.
On our first night we found plenty of options for eating out around Canary Wharf and didn't need to venture too far away and on the second night I took advantage of the proximity of the DLR station to pop into town and meet a friend and fellow dooyoo member for dinner. As someone who grew up in a small town I still find being in London on my own at night a bit intimidating but I wasn't worried to travel alone around the hotel.
** Hot or not? **
Before this visit, I wouldn't have considered staying in Canary Wharf if I had to go to London and if I were going under my own steam, I wouldn't be able to afford to stay at the Hilton on its standard prices. I believe we paid about £175 per night but they do often run off-peak deals that are very affordable and I'd consider it as a serious option if I could get a really good deal. The proximity of the DLR on one side and the main Underground just a few minutes the other way, makes this a more viable option than it's location might seem if just viewed on a map.
Location: close to Tower of London, within close proximity of Emirates Air Line Greenwich Peninsula Station and Cutty Sark / Location: close to Tower of London, within close proximity of Emirates Air Line Greenwich Peninsula Station and Cutty Sark / Number and type of rooms: 282 air-conditioned rooms featuring minibars and plasma televisions. Satellite programming provides entertainment, and wired and wireless Internet access is available for a surcharge. Private bathrooms have complimentary toiletries and hair dryers. Conveniences include direct-dial phones, as well as safes and desks / Rec, Spa, Premium Amenities: Be sure to enjoy recreational amenities, including a health club, a sauna, and a steam room. Additional amenities include wireless Internet access (surcharge), concierge services, and babysitting/childcare / Dining: Grab a bite to eat at the hotel's restaurant, which features a bar, or stay in and take advantage of 24-hour room service. Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at a bar/lounge. Breakfast is available for a fee / Business, Other Amenities: high-speed (wired) Internet access (surcharge), audiovisual equipment, and currency exchange. Event facilities at this hotel consist of banquet facilities and a meeting/conference room. Parking (subject to charges) is available onsite.


text: Crochet Worm Pattern Hi Everyone! I am very happy to introduce you with my Wormy. He is very joyful and friendly! He wants to get to know the world! The Wormy consist of a lot of colorful balls.His legs ar crocheted in spirals. Pattern Consist of 11 pages text description and pictures. Pattern language - English Basic Skills Necessary: Chain stitch Single crochet Slip stitch increase Decrease How to crochet around How to assemble parts together Sizing / Finished Measurements: worm length 35 cm, I crocheted with hook - 1,25 mm and I used alize "Forever" threads. It works well in any type of thread, the size of finished toy depends on the thread and crochet hook you use. Materials: cotton thread: yellow, orange, violet, blue, green, red. Hook: 1-3 mm scissors glue needle for sewing plastic eyes Pattern notes:  You can use a different hook, depending what size you want the wormy to be.  Use a stitch marker to mark the beginning of each round. Move the marker up each time you start a new round.  Do not join at the end of each round; Most of the rounds are worked in continuous spirals.  Numbers in brackets () means how much stitches you have in each round. You Will Also Need: I recommend to use marker so you can better see where row starts and ends. Thank you for looking - Enjoy the Wormy! Feel free to contact me BASIC SKILLS NECESSARY Chain stitch Single crochet Slip stitch increase Decrease How to crochet around How to assemble parts together SIZING / FINISHED MEASUREMENTS worm length 35 cm


text:
Measuring Efficiency and Effectiveness in the Public Sector
The distinction between the concepts outputs and outcomes can be made operational based on the consideration of the degree of control a public service producer has over its production activity. Resources are transformed into service outputs under the control of the organisation in question, while outcomes represent some higher social goals than outputs and are determined by the outputs and other exogenous variables, but the production of outcomes is outside the control of the organisation. The link to the calculation of savings potentials and efficiency measurement is provided based on introducing the concept of a benchmark frontier technology for the type of production in question. A new measure of overall preference efficiency is introduced and its decomposition into output-oriented technical efficiency and output mix efficiency is shown. The rather monumental task of providing the necessary information for calculating mix efficiency is highlighted.
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.
|38 pages
|Date of creation:
|12 Jul 2013
|Publication status:
|Forthcoming as Førsund, Finn R., 'Measuring effectiveness of production in the public sector' in Omega, 2017.
|Contact details of provider:
| Postal: Department of Economics, University of Oslo, P.O Box 1095 Blindern, N-0317 Oslo, Norway
Phone: 22 85 51 27
Fax: 22 85 50 35
Web page: http://www.oekonomi.uio.no/indexe.html
More information through EDIRC
References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
- Finn Førsund & Nikias Sarafoglou, 2002.
"On the Origins of Data Envelopment Analysis,"
Journal of Productivity Analysis,
Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 23-40, January.
- Forsund,F.R. & Sarafoglou,N., 2000. "On the origins of data envelopment analysis," Memorandum 24/2000, Oslo University, Department of Economics.
- Boaz Golany & Eran Tamir, 1995. "Evaluating Efficiency-Effectiveness-Equality Trade-Offs: A Data Envelopment Analysis Approach," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 41(7), pages 1172-1184, July.
- Ruggiero, John, 1996. "Efficiency of Educational Production: An Analysis of New York School Districts," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 78(3), pages 499-509, August. Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)
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text:
do what we know needs to be done and whether we need to create some new mechanisms to deal with these challenges.
Now, I want to make sure that the conversation doesn't end when we go home today. We've got a lot of hard choices to make. We need to build off this afternoon's conversation and work together to forge a consensus.
So one of the things that I'm hoping to do is that my team, each of whom were taking copious notes during the course of these respective breakout sessions, will issue a report or a summary of the conversation. It will be distributed to each of the participants in those respective discussions. We will then ask for concrete ideas, either about substance or process, and we will ask that you get those back so that we can then issue a final report coming out of this conversation in 30 days.
And we're — I think somebody just dubbed this the "fiscal sustainability project," so that's as good of a name as any. And the idea then is, is that there will be a constant loop between the White House and all of you about how we should move forward on this, and hopefully this will start breaking down into some concrete takeaways and tasks. Some of the recommendations that have been made are already reflected in the budget that we're proposing. Some new ideas may have arisen that we did not think of and that can be incorporated as the budget process moves forward in Congress.
And so we are very much looking forward to hearing from your ideas, both about process and about substance. And then we will in 30 days' time be able to come out with a series of recommendations. In some cases there may be some things that we can do by executive order that don't require legislation, but there seems to be some consensus they are smart things to do. In other cases, it's going to require a legislative — some legislative decisions, and we're going to collaborate closely with the relevant chairs and committees that have jurisdiction.
So, with that, let me just stop. And what I want to do is just get some comments. A lot of you have been working hard on this, but I'm going to use my presidential prerogative and call on a couple of people first, and then if other people have comments that they want to offer, please raise your hands.
And I'm going to start with John McCain because — you know, he and I had some good debates about these issues — (laughter) — and I mean what I say here, I think John has also been extraordinarily consistent and sincere about these issues and I want to see if, John, you've got some thoughts about where we need to go and some priority areas. I know you were in procurement, for example, which is an area I know we would like to work on together with you.
SENATOR McCAIN: Well, thank you, Mr. President,


text:
NCLEE-L ArchivesArchiver > NCLEE > 2009-01 > 1231612926
Subject: Re: [NCLEE] Sanford Obit
Date: Sat, 10 Jan 2009 13:42:06 EST
Thank you so much. I probably appreciate this lead more than any ever.....
Here is what they have and what it should be.
Should be Della Helms with father John Skipper and mother Janie Keziah or
Kissiah. Spelling varies.
No wonder we can't find people. I have made hundreds of corrections.
Joy Skipper Cornwell
_North Carolina Death Certificates, 1909-1975_
about Dellia Helnes
Name: Dellia Helnes
[Dellia Happell] Gender: Female Race: White Age: 49 Birth Date: 27
Feb 1876 Birth Place: Mecklenburg Death Date: 11 Oct 1925 Death Location:
Sanford, Lee Spouse's Name: M A Helnes Father's Name: John A Happell Mother's
Name: Janie Gazar
In a message dated 1/10/2009 12:55:03 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,
Go to Ancestry.com and look for Dellia Helnes. That's the way they have it
listed. If you can't locate it then let me know and I will download it for
In the Death Certificates, I only listed the surname Helms then used the
soundex. She was b. 27 Feb 1876, Meck Co., NC, d. 11 Oct 1925, Lee Co.,
----- Original Message -----
From: <>
To: <>
Sent: Saturday, January 10, 2009 12:12 AM
Subject: [NCLEE] Sanford Obit
> Does anyone know how I can obtain an obituary for Della Louise Skipper
> Helms wife of Mark Alexander Helms?
> She was born in Charlotte February 27, 1876 and died in Sanford supposedly
> October 11, 1925.
> Marks death certificate says the informant is Mrs. M. A. Helms, however we
> did not know he had remarried unless her dod is incorrect. Mark died June
> 16,
> 1944. I have his information from ancestry but cannot find anything on
> her.
> She has been Louise, Lula and other familiar names with the censuses.
> Thank you very much,
> Joy Skipper Cornwell
> Information from ancestry.
> North Carolina Death Certificates, 1909-1975
> Name: Mark Alexander Helms
> Gender: Male
> Race: White
> Age: 68
> Birth Date: 2 Mar 1876
> Birth Place: Mecklenberg
> Death Date: 16 Jun 1944
> Death Location: Sanford, Lee
> Father's Name: Kenneth Helms
> Mother's Name: Dorcus McManus
> RESIDENCE: Sanford, Lee, North Carolina
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> headlines. (http://news.aol.com?ncid=emlcntusnews00000002)
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This thread:


text:
he could had came up with something way cooler though.. especially for i am
Album Rating: 4.5the album cover continuity kind of makes sense i think, obviously alludes to 'growing up' and what not, but it is actually pretty cool really. hate the stillmatic album cover though haha.
^^ Yup. The album was good though. Still gotta' check this out, been hearing mixed reviews bout' this for ages.
Album Rating: 4.5Not as good as Illmatic obviously, but still really great.
Digging: Gamma Ray - Land of the Free
Album Rating: 4.5everything still holds up 'cept for Black Girl Lost.
Album Rating: 4.0Some killer shit on here, especially I Gave You Power
Album Rating: 4.5Afirmative Action ftw.
Album Rating: 4.0thats a good one too
Album Rating: 4.5Foxy Brown is actually really good on that song. I heard her a long time ago and didn't really think much, but I thought she killed it on that one.
Album Rating: 3.0If it weren't for a couple songs (Power, Ruled World) this would be Na's worst album.
Nastradamus takes that prize.
Album Rating: 4.0
If it weren't for a couple songs (Power, Ruled World) this would be Na's worst album.
Album Rating: 4.0this is as good as illmatic.
Lmao not even close.
Album Rating: 4.5It's definitely not as good as Illmatic.
Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound OffCompletely underated. If this had been his first album it would be regarded as a classic. Illmatic is better but this is Nas at his peak as an MC. He's never sounded better on a record.
Album Rating: 4.5"an uplifting duet with Lauren Hill and Jay-Z (before the beef)"
Hahaha I didn't hear Jay-Z on this sorry hahaha
But I love this album, including Black Girl Lost for some reason, something about the chorus grabs my attention.
yes because the rating is too high
Album Rating: 4.0big cheese
Album Rating: 4.5 2.Message, The
3. Street Dreams
4. I Gave You Power
5. Watch Dem Niggas
6. Take It In Blood
7. Nas Is Coming
8. Affirmative Action - (featuring The Firm)
9. Set Up, The
10. Black Girl Lost
11. Suspect
12. Shootouts
13. Live Nigga Rap
14. If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)
This might be better than illmatic depending on your criteria. This is way longer, way more
meaningful, and has way worst production. Lots of songs on here are better than illmatic, but there
are a few below average songs which illmatic didn't have.
This is damn good, especially Affirmative Action. That song is so unique.
Bands: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z


text:
Jim Thorpe Borough candidates hold debate
AL ZAGOFSKY/SPECIAL TO THE TIMES NEWS Dan Hugos, president of the Jim Thorpe Chamber of Commerce, fields questions to candidates at the Jim Thorpe Borough Candidate's Debate Wednesday evening at the Mauch Chunk Opera House. Left to right are the candidates: Michael J. Sofranko, Justin Yaich, Democrat; Ammon Hontz, Republican; Kyle Sheckler, cross-endorsed; Donald A. Reese, Democrat; Dan Rimsky, Republican; Joanne Klitsch, Republican; Gregory Strubinger, Democrat; and Democrat mayoral candidate Jeremy Melber.
Jim Thorpe Borough is one heck of a community, according to the candidates for mayor and borough council who appeared in a two-hour Candidate's Debate Wednesday evening at the Mauch Chunk Opera House.
The forum, hosted by the Jim Thorpe Chamber of Commerce, invited all the borough candidates to sit at a common table and answer questions from the public.
The debate, organized as written questions from the audience with responses from two randomly selected panelists, was anchored by Dan Hugos, president of the Jim Thorpe Chamber of Commerce.
The candidates seemed to know one another, largely to have worked together over the years, and spoke in praise of one another. Even the most high-profile mayor's race, pitting Democrat Jeremy Melber and Republican Michael Sofranko, came down to who would treat the other to tickets to the Yankees baseball game.
The candidates were Republican Mayoral candidate Michael Sofranko; Justin Yaich, Democrat; Ammon Hontz, Republican; Kyle Sheckler, cross-endorsed; Donald Reese, Democrat; Dan Rimsky, Republican; Joanne Klitsch, Republican; Gregory Strubinger, Democrat; and Democrat mayoral candidate Jeremy Melber.
Sofranko joked that the chamber must have moved the two mayoral candidates to opposite corners in anticipation of a battle.
It was far from a debate battle as the candidate praised the fact that Jim Thorpe was voted number seven of the Coolest Small Towns in America by Budget Travel Magazine.
An issue that struck a chord among the candidates was whether a borough manager should be hired. The censuses of the candidates was that the existing system - including managing day-to-day the evolving borough by council members - needs to change.
As the council members are not full-time employees of the borough, they have to strain their schedules to be available to cover events at every hour of every business day to negotiate, manage, and approve the personal, financial operations, and construction projects in the borough.
Several candidates noted that by not having a borough manager, it is both hard on the council members and provides poor oversight of borough activities, which were noted to have suffered financially because of such oversight. They generally agreed that a borough manager was necessary if an acceptable method of funding could be agreed upon.
Many questions from the audience were about on the downtown area, where most of the members of the chamber have their shops, and focused on traffic and water issues.
The traffic issues cited included the speeding on Broadway and congestion at the Broadway and Susquehanna intersection. The water issue concerned rainwater accumulating at the curbs and running onto the sidewalks.
Regarding speeding on Broadway, Sofranko suggested leaving a police cruiser at Broadway, citing that just seeing the vehicle would motivate people to slow down. He added that doing this, and periodically putting an officer in the vehicle would be a low cost and effective deterrent.
As to the traffic issue, there was disagreement whether the changes made to the intersection have helped. By and large, there was a general feeling that since these are state roads - plus they are affected by traffic going over the Rt. 903 Bridge - much of what needs to be done requires coordination with the state. The same general feeling applied to the water problems on Broadway.
After the two-hour forum, each candidate thanked the chamber, and Hugos invited them to meet with the audience over refreshments.


text:
BANDUG woven seagrass pouffe
In stock
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To complement an armchair or as occasional seating, pouffes offer additional comfort in your living room or bedroom. Whether exotic, vintage, classic, industrial or contemporary, our storage box pouffes offer a very practical storage space. In a child's bedroom, opt for a pear beanbag which will quickly become their favourite seating!


text:
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Baghdad's streets were electric with tension Wednesday as U.S. officials confirmed the new security operation was under way. U.S. armor rushed through streets, and Iraqi armored personnel carriers guarded bridges and major intersections.
New coils of barbed-wire and blast barriers marked checkpoints that caused traffic bottlenecks. U.S. Apache helicopters whipped the air over parts of the capital where they hadn't been seen before.
But gunfire still rang out across the city, and some residents said they doubted life would get better. "Nothing will work. It's too late," said Hashem al-Moussawi, a resident of the Sadr City Shiite enclave who was badly wounded in a bombing in December.
Underlining the dangers, a U.S. Marine transport helicopter crashed northwest of Baghdad, killing all seven on board - the fifth American aircraft lost in Iraq in just over two weeks. A military statement did not give a cause for the crash, but a senior U.S. defense official in Washington said the CH-46 Sea Knight did not appear to have been hit by hostile fire. An Iraqi air force officer, however, said the chopper was downed by an anti-aircraft missile. An al-Qaida-linked Sunni group claimed in a Web statement that it was responsible.
At checkpoints that seemed to have been thrown up overnight - some of them blocking half the lanes of traffic on wide streets - Iraqi police and army soldiers searched cars at random. Drivers and passengers had to get out and show identity papers.
Adding to the tension, Iraqi army and police convoys fired rounds into the air above motorists, warning them to make way for passing forces. The security troops drove over traffic medians and into incoming traffic.
In a sign of just how dangerous the security mission will be, a three-vehicle Western security company convoy came under fire near Haifa Street, a Sunni insurgent stronghold just north of the Green Zone.
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text:
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text:
ESSEX-UK-L ArchivesArchiver > ESSEX-UK > 2007-06 > 1181037020
From: Spring <>
Subject: Re: [Ess] look up offer, Great war roll of honour,Southend and district
Date: Tue, 05 Jun 2007 05:52:35 -0400
Hi Sue
My own family followed cousins to Essex from Berlin about 50 years
before 1914 and maintained close business interests in Germany up until
the outbreak of war. The men in the Infantry (including volunteers) could
have been physically fighting relatives left "on the other side".
It would only be a long shot, but please see if there is any Moll listed
in that book
Peter Moll
British Virgin Islands
Sue wrote:
> Hi listers, I d/k if this is of interest to anyone, but here goes,
> I have been lent a book, for a short period only, that lists men from
> Southend on sea and district which includes Rochford hundred and the fringes
> of the parishes from Pitsea to Wickford. who fell for their country in the
> Great war. Most entries have a little piece of background on the
> serviceman. I will give an example later. Includes men from overseas who
> had intimate local associations, but could not claim to be resident at the
> time of enlistment
> The book is divided up into sections:-
> Infantry
> Royal Artillery
> Royal Navy, Marines, Royal naval didvison and mercantile marine
> Royal engineers
> Machine Gun corps
> Cavalry
> Royal Army service corps
> Royal Army medical corps
> Hon Artillery Co
> and 'other units'.
> There are about 1,800 entries.
> Would anyone like me to look up their rellie?
> entries vary in detail but here are two at random
> MAY Wilfred Lawrence, Trooper, 6th dragoon guards, 24, Southend, enlisted
> Aug 1914, killed by machine gun fire at Frierd Foillouel, nr Noyon France
> April 8th 1918
> and
> Ernest Earp, Private, Essex Yeomanry ( attd Queens Own Oxford Hussars, 20,
> Southend, enlisted Feb 1915, killed by shell near Chaulmes, France, Aug 10th
> 1918 whilst advancing with his regiment; buried at Warvillers, Roye, Wounded
> at Moncy 1917. 'He was a spledid soldier and his death has been a blow to
> many friends in the squadron.' OC. Name placed on records for conspicous
> bravey at Moncy.
> I d/k if this book has more info than can be found form other sources,
> because none of my rellies will be in it.
> if you do want a look up and know which for the services your rellie was in,
> that would be a great help to me and save me time.
> Regards
> Sue
This thread:
|Re: [Ess] look up offer, Great war roll of honour,Southend and district by Spring <>


text:
Phoenix skipper Durante signs new deal
Sydney-born Wellington captain Andrew Durante is considering playing for New Zealand after agreeing to a new three-year deal with the A-League club.
The former Newcastle defender, who won a premiership with the Jets in 2008, has been a consistent performer for the Phoenix since crossing the Tasman four years ago.
And his close relationship with All Whites and Wellington coach Ricki Herbert could see the 29-year-old pin his colours to the New Zealand mast if the opportunity arises.
"It isn't something I would push for, but at the same time I would never say no if I've not made the Australian team," Durante said.
"The big thing with Ricki is that he understands people. He knows that different players need handling in different ways."
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text:
Pareto-Improving Water Management over Space and Time: The Honolulu Case
We model welfare gains from efficient allocation of groundwater over space and time relative to the status quo policy of financial cost recovery. In order to promote political feasibility, an intertemporal compensation plan is devised that renders the reform Pareto-improving. Gainers from the reform finance the compensation in proportion to their benefits through a block-pricing scheme. For the Honolulu case, only 7% of the $441 million in gains to winners is needed to compensate losers from the reform. Future winners from the reform also repay the deficit created by the compensation package, much as state and local governments finance capital improvements. Copyright 2009, Oxford University Press.
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Volume (Year): 91 (2009)
Issue (Month): 1 ()
Pages: 138-153
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See site map on main page.
Route Description
4 1/2 cracks on a 20m limestone crag.
Link to topo: http://www.ping.be/~ping1122/freyr/fisgeorg.htm
Essential Gear
Unfortunately, these cracks are bolted so bring 3-4 draws and a 50m rope.
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text:
"I miss Holly", Michael Scott states in a later episode of The Office's sixth season, shortly after he lists other grievances that have weakened his performance at the recently-purchased Dunder-Mifflin. He's not alone, and she's not the only thing that's missed.
As the American take on Ricky Gervais' UK production has chuckled its way through five sturdy seasons, dynamics have been forced to change in the mischief-heavy office where minorities, layoffs, inappropriate pranks and beet farms are the brunt of the joke, captured in mockumentary fashion. The secretary-salesman flirtation between Pam (Jenna Fischer, Solitary Man) and Jim (John Krasinski, Leatherheads) that first fueled the series ran its course, now evolved into an engagement with a baby expected, while Michael's unrelenting obliviousness has barreled through lovelorn relationships and countless almost-canned, almost-downsized situations. When HR rep Holly (wonderfully played by Amy Ryan, Gone Baby Gone) came into the picture, and into Michael's life, the show exhibited a new spring in its step as it morphed the brainless, forlorn boss into a giddy kid in love. Now, Holly's gone, there's no more flirtation at reception, and the other caricatures are gathering a bit of dust as The Office falls back into the status quo. What's left to do but adapt to the change, which they do -- to mixed successes.
Last season's finale, "Company Picnic", suggests that this would be the path The Office would be taking. It dropped Pam in a doctor's office for a surprise reveal and brought Michael and recently-transferred Holly back together for a fleeting tease at their chemistry, though the picnic was sent into an uproar over rumors that Dunder-Mifflin has grown even closer to folding over. Though the company's financial problems will become important later in this season, the first chunk really focuses on a bit of managerial restructuring. With a baby on the way, Jim proposes a rearrangement of jobs to executive David Wallace (Andy Buckley) that'd put him in a higher pay grade, but it turns out a bit differently than expected when David cooks up an idea for the two of them to be "co-managers" -- not ratcheting back to the manager / assistant manager plotline, but with both as equal powers in the office. Oscar (Oscar Martinez) himself addresses the ridiculousness of the idea in one of his side-room interviews:
"Look, it doesn't take a genius to know that every organization thrives when it has two leaders. Go ahead, name a country that doesn't have two presidents. A boat that sets sail without two captains. Where would Catholicism be, without the popes."
As The Office progresses year after year, the doubtful nature of Dunder-Mifflin's ability to stay afloat grows more obvious, and this sixth season steers further away from that rationale into harebrained, devil-may-care sitcom territory. Part of what made the series such a hit in its beginnings were the anchors it shared with reality, such as the embellished take on a boss-employee relationship with Michael and Jan, the twitchy atmosphere around layoffs, and the screwball antics that cropped up around charity events, anger management, and that quixotic neighbor in the cubicle next door. That overstated reality behind the inter-office mischief gave The Office its appeal, whereas this season throws caution to the wind for the sake of eccentric, schtick-heavy desperation. Angela's (Angela Kinsey) bitchier to a point of disbelief in a work environment, while the bizarreness that is Dwight (Rainn Wilson, Juno) frantically stabs at comedic shock value in hopes for laughs -- which, mind you, still works on a fairly regular basis. And then there's Micheal, who has reverted from last season's justifiable depression back to even more obnoxiously far-fetched, self-absorbed tantrums. Remember when we weren't sure if Micheal was egotistical or simply unable to communicate properly? That's practically gone at this point.
While the series' archetypes are gathering rust at the joints, wearing down the steady interest that they've generated with time, the humor's still there in force -- a testament to the quality of writing that's come out of The Office since its inception. Much like other seasons, several episodes focus on satirical portraits of mundane stuff going on in the office, such as the decision-making behind giving out raises in "The Promotion", getting on people's good graces with communal food in "Double Date", and the implementation of an Employee of the Month program in "Scott's Tots". One thing you'll notice, by reading some of those episode titles, is that they're not the chief focus in the episodes that they take place in, where the kooky antics Michael gets himself into and the Pam-Jim relationship squabbles take the spotlight. Even if that's the case, the stuff that happens in the office with the supporting cast -- which, aside from company defrauder Ryan (B.J. Novac), has strengthened into an ensemble of still-fresh entities that feel comfortable in their designated places -- oftentimes earn the most laughs.
Taking a different approach than with other seasons, Pam and Jim's storyline has fallen more into sentimental humor-laced drama. Their dynamic still carries a comedic spark to fuel their knee-to-knee antics in the office, yet it's also spilled over into their interview time -- which features the two together almost as much as them separately, a shame since Krasinski and Fischer shine in their solitary segments. But all that's understandable since this season's obviously the big culmination point for their relationship on a semi-serious level, as two episodes give fans of the show healthy, gratifying chunks of material to enjoy: the wedding, and the birth of "little Tuna". These two, naturally, comprise the season's only hour-long episodes, which are both satisfying caps to their relationship and strongly-written bits from the writers. The kick at the end of the wedding episode "Niagara" -- both the sure-to-be-dated pop culture reference and the grin-inducing surprise end -- should be more than enough to send sentimentality into overdrive with long-running fans of the series, while "The Delivery" has a rather good time with labor contractions, insurance claims, and the troubles of breast feeding.
The biggest surprise to come out of this season has got to be Ed Helms, the actor behind Andy Bernard. At first, in season three, he brought Andy to life as a raging, hormonal dirtbag who punched holes through walls and kissed ass as if it was his profession, though that tune changed after he returned for mandatory anger management training. Since, he's slowly found a voice as a chipper, affably repellent do-gooder, who adds a silly but undeniably bright tone about his moments in the show. Helms' success in The Hangover obviously earned the budding star more of the spotlight, and the additions that the writers incorporate give a fresh beat to the series. Combined with Ellie Kemper's Erin, the bashful and slightly crazy receptionist who took Pam's spot, they develop what becomes this season's back-and-forth bashful flirtation -- much like Pam and Jim, or Michael and Holly -- and it's quite possibly the best thing about the whole season. Their quirky lack of jadedness, especially when their talking head interviews focus on the ball being in the other's court for a date, find both an earnest and charmingly comical "will they, won't they" suspense. It's just a shame that it carelessly boils to a head in "Secretary's Day", which unflatteringly overextends Erin's quirk.
Eventually, the plot in The Office's sixth season shifts to an inevitable point that's been teased at since Jan and Michael's very first conversation in the series: company collapse due to financial woes, then camouflaged as downsizing. That's where Sabre comes in, the company that ultimately swoops in to aid money-wise. I hesitate to say too many things about their presence since it ventures towards spoiler territory, but it's necessary to at least talk about them a bit since they change the shape of the season's second half and introduce us to the reason Kathy Bates' name shows up in the credits. She plays Joanna Bennett, a thick-accented Tallahassee executive with a lot of sass and little patience for inefficiency -- points that'll eventually change the way Dunder-Mifflin operates. At this point, with a watchful Sabre stooge named Gabe in their mix, we're treated Michael Scott and the rest of the crew attempting to embrace corporate change, from the management structure (including one necessary move, and another featuring Craig Robinson's Darryl that's sloppy, at best) and a focus on sales all the way down to Scott's time-waster trips to the water cooler.
Essentially, Sabre can be looked at much like a blowing a large heave of hot air into the balloon that is The Office, which extends its life without really changing the overall shape as the sharply-written humor keeps things afloat. At least, for a little longer. It certainly carries us through the latter half of this season, which offers a similar mix of hit-and-miss episodes. That includes an entire arc involving Michael experiencing what can be best described as a rebound to Holly, which helps Michael find firmer footing as a confused character instead of a blatantly asinine one, and some high jinks involving quality control and commission payment underneath the Sabre umbrella -- showing a fertile ground for the writers to use the buyout to their advantage, momentum that'll carry over into the next season. Plus, with that change of regime comes a change in managerial perception, and the hint at a return to form in Jo's final comment to Michael in this season suggests a hopeful shift in things to come. Our fingers are crossed, Ms. Flax, because you've been missed.
A Note about "Koi Pond", aka Season Six's "Halloween" Episode:
When the episode "Koi Pond" was broadcast on October 29th, it featured something at the beginning that's not included on this DVD. The official synopsis included with this season set describes the episode as such:"The office puts on a Halloween haunted house for local children. Michael is mocked after falling into a koi pond during a sales visit. Pam and Andy are mistaken for a couple when they go on a cold sales call." A partly glow-in-the-dark "haunted house" setup in the Dunder-Mifflin warehouse starts the episode, with Darryl guiding a group of kids through a lazily-organized creep show. At the end, however, it features Michael Scott in a "cold open"-level gag that might have later been seen as inappropriate, determined by the fact that it was later excised on the episode's re-run -- and from this DVD.
With its removal, however, it also deems the synopsis a bit confusing since, well, there's no mention of Halloween or the haunted house in the rest of the episode, while this scene hasn't been included in the deleted scenes or anywhere else in the package. That is, except for one photograph in the menu for the second disc (click here to view, look to the bottom left). Instead, the episode begins in Jim's office as Michael rambles on about a garlic festival, with the title cards inserted between Jim's line, "That's what a teacher is, right?" and Michael talking to Jim about what name to call the guy at the location with the koi pond. Currently, the scene can still be viewed on NBC.com, but Universal's choice not including the material anywhere in the set is a shame.
The DVD:
Season Six of The Office arrives from Universal in a nicely-design foldout digipack, with all twenty-five (25) episodes spread across five silver-topped, bland discs. The design work makes the side and inner artwork look like a copy machine, while the inner top artwork features a Sabre water bottle and other nice touches. It's a clever package, though the outer slipcase's top artwork featuring the cast certainly leaves something to be desired.
Video and Audio:
Those who have grown accustomed to Universal's excellent images for The Office will remain pleased with this slate of 1.78:1 widescreen-enhanced episodes, which sport a level of detail and clarity that continues to impress. The crisp, somewhat clinical cinematography of the office environment always looks fresh, sending out a rich palette and skin tones amid a controlled-yet-robust atmosphere, which never leaves one wanting too much for a boost in clarity to high-definition. In fact, it's one of the few shows that's stayed excruciatingly close to the HD broadcasts via DVD, preserving the mockumentary-style shots with a clean range of movement at all times. Some skin tones tend to look a tad red at points, while a few blocks of color show some noise that's to be expected. Other than that, everything's in tip-top shape.
Similarly, the Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks that accompany each episode deliver exactly where they need to -- verbal clarity. There's a full range of vocal levels, from Stanley's "timber" voice Angela's higher-level piercing, and everything in between. Universal's disc preserve the yelling, whispering from Michael, and the roundabout chitter-chatter with fine awareness of the natural bass and treble levels. Sure a few sound effects squeal into the picture -- the squealing of the wheels on Dwight's Firebird, the crashing of water at Niagara Falls, and the clank of a metal water bottle against a window -- step a bit beyond this rigid focus on dialogue and offer a little crisp ambiance. Still, what's important is that everything stays distortion free and able to be heard, which it does from start to finish. English SDH and Spanish subtitles accompany all of the episodes available here.
Special Features:
As with previous season sets of The Office, several select episodes arrive with Commentary tracks featuring the writers, producers and cast members, as well as a few Deleted Scenes for most episodes. On Disc One and Two, two are available on "Niagara", a very good one with Greg Daniels and Paul Fieg and the other featuring six writers, producers, and editors, while "Murder" plops Daniels, Danny Chun, and Erin herself Ellie Kemper in the chairs for a light but fun track.
Discs Three and Four see a light commentary track for "Secret Santa" featuring three of the female cast members, a satisfying discussion-heavy track for "The Delivery" that features the directors, writers, and Jenna Fischer, while B.J. Novac, Matt Sohn, and the accounting crew pile on for the commentary track for "Happy Hour". The third disc also comes equipped with "Producer's Cut" of Secret Santa (29:43, 16x9) that runs a little over seven minutes longer than the broadcast episode, as well as the full "Welcome To Sabre" (:59, 16x9) video used in the "Sabre" episode (featuring Christian Slater getting a little more work in for NBC after his ho-hum run on My Own Worst Enemy).
Disc 5 contains the lion's share of supplemental material, most prominent being the Original Digital Short: The Podcast (9:21). It focuses on Sabre employee Gabe attempting to get a podcast off the ground, which quickly evolves into an involved talkshow-style video podcast when Oscar ruffles a few feathers with his blog. The disc also includes an always-entertaining fixture on the season packages, a Blooper Reel (23:49, 16x9), and a cluster of Canada Games Promos (2:07, 16x9).
Final Thoughts:
The appeal of The Office is nearly unshakable, as it's embedded in pop culture with little dialogue gems and character memes revolving around life "at the grind", but this sixth season loses some of that special ... something (some might say its joie du vivre) that fueled the first five seasons along. Sure, the writers still bring plenty of humorous ammunition to the table, taking the characters and Dunder-Mifflin itself in directions to spice up what this mockumentary's capturing, yet the magic that glues it all together seems to have lost a bit of its cohesiveness -- which can happen in the longevity of a television show. But all's certainly not lost, as there's still plenty of deadpan chuckles and laugh-out-loud gags to indulge in, though they're fewer and far between this time around. It's still The Office and it earns a firm Recommendation, though it's got to find a way to reach back to the perfect blend it struck with its first five seasons to give it the oomph it needs to ride out a few more.


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CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS Download
CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS Download
Identification of the sub-cultures in creating the touristic offer
Interactive marketing communications
The visual communication era
Interactive marketing communications
The visual communication era
Contemporary customer profiling
The impact of the globalization on the HR development
Talent management and its influence on productivity increasing
Social entrepreneurship
Management of innovation and technology
Economic & Financial Analysis
Applied Theory, Macro and Empirical Finance
Economics, Politics & Civil Society
Global Education, Skills and Competences: How to Deliver High Quality Education in the 21st Century
Fulfilling Quality Assurance in Business education
Abstracts should be between 300 & 400 words (including references) and should be written in English. No abstracts will be accepted beyond the world limit and the deadline. Abstracts must address original research. Writings must be of reasonable quality in terms of English grammar and should clearly state the purpose and the methodology of research. Submissions will be blind-refereed by two anonymous reviewers who will decide if a paper will be requested based on an abstract. However, acceptance of an abstract does not guarantee acceptance of a final paper. Once the abstract is accepted, the author(s) will be provided with specific guidelines for submission of a full paper. All full papers submitted will be subject to review by at least two anonymous referees, with expertise in the content area, who will decide if the final paper will be accepted.
Deadline for submission of abstracts: July 1st, 2016 The deadline for submission of abstracts is extended to 1 September
To view the abstract submission guidelines and submit an abstract, please go to:
The best ranked papers from the Congress should be published in the special issue of the International *UTMS Journal of economics*, indexed and abstracted in following databases: ABI/INFORM (ProQuest); ABI/INFORM Global (ProQuest), AP PLATFORMS; C.I.R.E.T.; DOAJ; EBSCO; EconBiz; Econis; EconPapers; EconStor; EDRIC; EZB; GOOGLE SCHOLAR; IDEAS; Open J-Gate; RePEc; Socionet; ZBW, Business Collection (ProQuest), Business Premium Collection (ProQuest).
Who Should Attend?
• Academics and educators
• Government/ directors and/or administrators
• Representatives of multi-national organizations
• Marketers in tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors
• Researchers and industry consultants
Kind regards,


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Witch hats
corner. if — halloween is right around the corner. we have some great ideas for the kids. you got to come on the show. good to see you. >> nice to see you, too. >> we were talking that sometimes you have this special neighbors in the neighborhood, and? stead of dropping the candy bar into the bucket you want to do something special. >> this works great for that. you can fill it up in little bags to go and make it look cute. there is little surprise candies inside. so it's more than just a little witch hat. it's nice for the kids who come to your house all the time. you know them more than the other tricker treaters that you have. or if you have younger children and they have halloween parties, they ask for treats. this would be a great way to have something to take home. >> or even to take these into the office. witch hats. no baking required. you had me at that. i love that. kind of a
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wrestling / News
Various News: Kaval To Make Make In Ring Return, Desmond Wolfe Scheduled To Make TNA Live Event Debut
October 30, 2009 | Posted by
– TNA president Dixie Carter announced via TWITTER when Desmond Wolfe would be making his TNA Live Events debut.
Glad to hear your responses on Desmond Wolfe. His first TNA Live! house shows are Dec 4-6 in Portland, ME, Amherst, MA and Glens Falls, NY.
– According to Pwinsider.com, the following is scheduled for tonight's FCW show in Punta Gorda, FL The most interesting note is that Kaval (formerly Low Ki) is finally making his return after injury:
* Evan Bourne vs. FCW Heavyweight Champion Justin Angel
* Hornswoggle, Santino Marella and Skip Sheffield vs. Caylen Croft, Trent Beretta and Curt Hawkins
* Tyson Kidd vs. Brett DiBiase
* Kaval makes his in-ring return following his injury that his kept him out since January


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I am going to Bequia in February. This is my first trip to the Grenadines and I have discovered that getting to Bequia is not easy. It looks like the least expensive (and most direct) way to get there is to take Caribbean Sun Airlines from San Juan, PR to St Vincent (non-stop flight) and then take the ferry from St Vincent to Bequia.
It is my understanding that the Caribbean Sun non-stop flight from San Juan to St Vincent (4 days a week) is fairly new. Can anyone tell me if they have experience with this flight and/or Caribbean Sun Airlines?
- Does this flight run habitually late? Can I plan on having enough time to connect with the last ferry from St Vincent to Bequia?
- How long do I need to allow for checkin in San Juan? Also in St Vincent for the return flight?
- Does the first morning ferry from Bequia arrive in St Vincent in time to connect with the return flight to San Juan?
- Recommendations/Comments from anyone out there with experience on Carribean Sun Airlines?
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- 11 st.thomas vs st. croix
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- 13 Abaco day trips
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- 15 Caneel Bay in St. John?
- 16 Staniel Cay surrounds - end of year
- 17 Yoga & Surf vacation for my family
- 18 St Croix at Christmas with small children
- 19 Grand Cayman Beaches
- 20 Barbados Cruise to Airport
- 21 New EasyBreathe Snorkel Mask
- 22 sailing the Abacos
- 23 Grace Bay after hurricane
- 24 Private secluded Carribean Cottage
- 25 Advise for first timers to St.Lucia
Caribbean Sun Airlines?
I am going to Bequia in February. This is my first trip to the Grenadines and I have discovered that getting to Bequia is not easy. It looks like the least expensive (and most direct) way to get there is to take Caribbean Sun Airlines from San Juan, PR to St Vincent (non-stop flight) and then take the ferry from St Vincent to Bequia.
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Caribbean Sun has a good reputation but like all of the small Caribbean comuter airlines, it has it's good days (on time departures) and bad days (delays). There's no telling what will happen the day you are flying. The main reasons are they don't have a very large fleet of planes, you never can tell in advance what the weather will be like on either your departure island or arrival island or if the flight will be diverted because of weather that developes while you are on-route or if there are maintenance issues on a given day - all of which can affect your flight's departure and/or arrival times.
As for checking in at Caribbean Sun in San Juan, allow at least 60 minutes (that's the minimum "legal" connecting time) if you are doing only carry-on (you can check-in at the departure gate and not have to go through security) and no less than 2 hours if you have to claim your luggage in San Juan and go into the main terminal before checking in at Caribbean Sun and going through security. Check-in at the Caribbean Sun desk is going to be slow - everyone seems to move on island time. If you are checking luggage call your inbound carrier and see if they have a baggage handling arrangement with Caribbean Sun (not all airlines do) - if so, checking your baggage through to your destination will save you some time.
Allow at least an hour for check in for your return flight in St. Vincent (it's a small airport). When you arrive back in san Juan remember you will have to clear Immigration & Customs and then check in for your flight back home so give yourself plenty of time (at least 90 minutes, more if you a flying on the week-end).
Sorry, can't help you with ferry times.
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The route you have chosen is one I often recommend although, in my case, I travel Caribbean Star (a sister airline) or LIAT from Barbados to St. Vincent and catch the ferry to Bequia.
My experiences with Caribbean Star have been pretty good...flights left on time, more or less, and it was easy to make the ferry connection.
The only negative is that they have a really crummy check-in procedure...seems to take ages to process payments for tickets obtained over the internet or by phone...and they don't actually process the payment until you check in.
In Barbados, I allow at least 90-120 minutes to get through immigration, find luggage, go through customs, walk around to the departure lounge, check in, get through passport control, go through hand luggage security check, and dash to the departure gate.
The return check in in St. Vincent is very easy.
I take an 8.30 ferry to catch my mid-morning Caribbean Star flight. Lots of time.
I realize my experiences are Caribbean Star via Barbados and not Caribbean Sun via San Juan, but hope this helps anyway.
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We flew Caribbean Sun a few years back during Christmas break & the flight was full. As a result, the flight ended up being delayed as they took alot of the baggage off the flight in order to fit more people on board. Our luggage ended up lost in Puerto Rico and we didn't see it for almost two weeks. I wouldn't fly with them again.
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I would be courious on how your flights go upon your return. We are doing the same thing in May from Tampa to San Juan on American and San Juan to St. Vincent on Caribbean Sun
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We just returned from Bequia and the Caribbean Sun flights went off without a hitch. Both the flight from San Juan to St Vincent and the flight from St Vincent to San Juan were on time (or very close). The airplanes were comfortable and appeared to be well maintained. The airline personnel were professional and courteous.
As long as the flights are on time there is plenty of time to connect to the ferry boats (to/from Bequia).
We used paper tickets that we bought through Expedia so didn't have any checking problems either.
All in all it appears that Caribbean Sun is earning a reputation as being a better airline than LAIT.
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Go4Fun: How about a doing a quick trip report on Bequia.
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I had a horrendous experience with Caribbean Sun last holiday season. I had "booked" a flight from Puerto Rico to St. Martin departing on Christmas Day and returning on New Years Eve. I say "booked" because CSA doesn't actually charge your credit card and allot you a seat until you check in. Of course, its website didn't indicate that.
Being a bit leery of flying a relatively unknown airline, the day before our flight I called to confirm our 1:15 pm reservation. The helpful operator said that everything was fine and that we had reserved seats. So we get to the counter at a bit before noon to catch our flight and find that the airline had "rescheduled" the flight to leave at noon -- meaning we were out of luck. Further, the ticket agent said that the rest of the flights that day (mind you its Christmas Day) were full, and that since the airline doesn't charge your credit card until you check in, they owed us no responsibility to honor our reservation and get us to our destination. The ticket agent said that there was nothing she could do to help us, and that we could talk to a supervisor when and if she could find one.
Furious, and scrambling to get where we were going, we headed to the American Airlines ticket office and booked two last minute stand-by seats to St. Martin at a much higher price that our CSA "reservation."
Once we got to St. Martin, I went to the CSA ticket counter to secure the return leg of our flight from St. Martin back to PR. After making me wait over an hour and a half to talk to anyone who could even remotely help me, I was told that I could not purchase the return half of our flight, that the flight we were booked on was full (even though we still had a reservation for it), that the only available flight was at some ungodly early hour and would cost more than double our original round-trip ticket, and that they would only take cash for the reservation. At this point there was no way that I was going to give this airline any of my money, let alone cash. I went to the AA website and booked two more one way tickets, from St. Martin back to PR (which, at this point, were cheaper than my CSA option).
If this is the way that they run the "customer service" portion of their business, I shiver to think how they run the maintenance department. I will never even consider flying them and urge everyone else to do likewise.
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November 7, 2010 BY John Kim
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Hard Knocks-School Of Hard Knocks
Another pick from Wild Pitch Records! All through the years (and by now you should know that this has been one of my favorite topics to discuss with friends and associates- specially with new people I meet), I've come across a chosen few of true music-lovers who knew about "School Of Hard Knocks" and surprisingly, we shared the same appreciation for this masterpiece. Those who haven't had heard about them were bound to hear my praise forever and ever. I know how I wrote earlier that this list is composed in no particular order but if I ever had one single pick to make, this album would be the ultimate and utmost "slept-on" of all times. I've been passionate about every single aspect of this joint: The full twelve songs (touching street narratives with socially conscious rhymes) the lyrical artillery (my man was somewhere between Rakim and Kane, but he was way more "street"), the beats (perfect balance) and the appropriate artwork that showcased a certain honesty, humility and maybe even integrity. The only problem was that nobody besides me at that time seemed to really care about that album and I LOVED IT! I somehow created a romantic bond to this chef-d'oeuvre and now that I think about it, this should have made my list of all-time classics. In a more than confused time (1991 'till 1992 when the album dropped) where everybody was openly dooming the usage of the "N-Word" (who am I to judge anyway?), Hard Knock's first single "Nigga For Hire" seemed bold and challenging, criticizing the social system designed in the United States to keep minorities in check. The song "Thoughts Of A Negro" gave a more detailed explanation of my man's state of mind as it opens with the soundbite: "problem with 'negro' was not the word itself, It was that a stereotype had been attached to that word 'negro' and that people were forced to live in accords to that stereotype". My favorite cut on the album "Ghetto Love" was a benign gesture of affection for your friends. Now I know how we've been force-fed with mediocre attempts to romanticize the rapper's willingness to "always ride" for his Homies, but I have never heard a "real" love-song to underline that besides "Ghetto Love". I will not quote anything from this song (you really have to listen to the whole song) or I will kindly ask everyone to hit up ohhla.com and read the lyrics to this joint to understand what I'm trying to say. Regardless, this is my ish people because it was / still is a perfect album…-Rasul
Three Times Dope-Live From Acknickulous Land
My first encounter with Three Times Dope from Philly was back in 1988 when I heard their well-received single "Funky Dividends", a song I instantly fell in love with and have held dear until now. I pretty much liked their album "Original Stylin" of the same year: It wasn't overly surprising (I guess the type of beats and contents you could expect from a '88-Release) but it had its unforgettable moments of joy. They went on to seek greater fame and stardom signing with Arista Records to record their highly-anticipated follow-up "Live From Acknickulous Land" in 1990 and unfortunately, the masses didn't embrace it!? For the most part, it was criticized for its broader, more accessible approach with songs like "(Peace) Ya' Self", "Weak at the Knees" ("Girl you inspire, me to perspire / Lost in the force of Earth Wind & Fire /") and "I Ain't Trying 2 Hear It". Well, I don't know what the world expected back then but signing to a R&B power-house like Arista wasn't necessarily the equivalent to hardcore "I'll smack you with a baseball-bat"-type of episodes. Still, you couldn't tell me nothing: The album worked more than well for me 'cause it demonstrated a rare to find balance within an album. They managed to appeal to everyone, even the shorties (trust me, I know what I'm talking about: Let's just say this album served me well). EST's delivery has always been dope and inspiring (and I think he was kind of decent on the recent "Where Are They Now" Remix) and the production sounded heavy. I recently pumped that album again and I was amazed how the "sound"- the mixing and mastering" could hold up to our current pro tools-standards! "Mr. Sandman" had me after approximately 20 seconds, "Mellow But Smooth" was an outstanding ode to bragging-rights and "10 Lil' Sucka Emceez" featuring the crew's Larry Lar was simply fun. Even by the unspoken rules of conduct manifested in the "golden era", it was hard to find a piece of musical expertise with thirteen songs working together in nearly spotless harmony. "Live From Acknickulous Land" did! I lost touch to the group's further achievements in the following years to come and found out a couple of months ago, how they released their third installment "Da Sequel" (due to drop in '92 or '93) in 1998!? What happened? I don't know and I do not care. This album was an amazing ride, but sadly slept-on…-Rasul
Organized Konfusion-Self Titled
What ya know about that? OK, this album came out in 1991 and you have to rewind and recheck what albums, groups or songs you were listening to at that time. I know a lot of you guys weren't even listening to Hip Hop back then but truth is, not a lot of people really dug the first "Organized" album. See Pharoahe is one of my favorites of all time! Knowing him for so long (and the man has an impressive catalogue to display), I have always admired the way he kept his integrity by not changing- or compromising- his formula of style that he had introduced the world to on "Organized's" first album. Not a lot of MCs can rhyme and flow like him. Not a lot of MCs have this enormous depth in their lyrics. And not a lot of MCs throw a little singing in there to lighten things up- at least nobody did it with class like my man. Please excuse my short-coming on Prince Po but I'm just too deep into Pharoahe's level of skill, that I might not find the right kudos for his partner in crime. I liked that album when it first hit the stores. They had chosen "Fudge Pudge" (introducing O.C) as their single and although the joint did not convince me of their talent (plus the album came out on a label- I think it was called Hollywood- that I only knew from the ensemble "Lifers Group"), I bought the album. I must say, the album was good but it didn't blow me away. I embraced songs like "Releasing Hypnotical Gases " [I threw a-rock (Iraq) and I-ran (Iran)/ cause I couldn't stand anymore within the depths of the sand/ So don't ask me who's sane (Hussain) / cause the hypnotical gases are eating my brain], "Prisoners Of War", "Open Your Eyes" and "Organized Konfusion". I couldn't really feel the rest of their songs on that level and it took me a couple of years to profoundly understand their whole concept. See, they released "Stress- The Extinction Agenda" in '94 and they had everybody going nuts.
That album was indeed mind-blowing and to this day one of my all time greats. On that note, I went back and listened to their first album again, only to understand the full profundity of it: How they mixed light-hearted joints with insanely masterful lyricism. Even the production was amazing. You should check for the samples they used back then- 'cause a lot of cats went and jacked their beats if you will. With this album, they paved their way of a great career and me included, a lot of people slept on them…-Rasul