text:
Day 2 of Ocean & Earth Pro Called Off - New Swell on the Way
EL CONFITAL, Gran Canaria (Tuesday, October 7, 2008) - Conditions did not improve throughout the day and organisers and surfers agreed to call the second day of the ASP WQS 4-Star Ocean & Earth Pro pres. La Caja de Canarias off.
The world famous righthander of El Confital was not breaking today due to inconsistent conditions but with four days only needed to complete the event and fice days remaining until the end, offcials are confident they will be able to send some heats out tomorrow afternoon.
Round 1 will feature sixteen 4-man battles before the top seeds of the event get their start. Among the ones supposed to start tomorrow will be ASP Top 45 members Dan Ross (AUS), Jay Thompson (AUS) and Aritz Aranburu (EUK) who entered the event late losing their seed rights.
A new swell is on its way and eventhough it should not be perfect, some good four to five foot (1.2 to 1.5 meter) waves should be giving our first contestants enough to surf tomorrow.
The Ocean & Earth Pro pres. by La Caja de Canarias is webcast LIVE at www.aspeurope.com
Heat 1: Matt King (USA), William Pasquet (REU), Evan Valiere (HAW)
Heat 2: Travis Mellem (USA), Edgar Nozes (PRT), Fernando Roca (CNY), Jonathan Torres (CNY)
Heat 3: Brandon Jackson (ZAF), Rafael Batista (BRA), Marco Giorgi (URY), Gary Gonzalez (CNY)
Heat 4: Devon Tresher (USA), Ricardo Dos Santos (BRA), Darren Muschett (PRI), Armando Navarro (CNY)
Heat 5: Kyle Knox (USA), Norman landa (EUK), Leif Engstrom (USA), Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 6: Txaber Trojaola (EUK), David Rutherford (MEX), Franito Saenz (CNY), Manolo Lezcano (CNY)
Heat 7: Sean Moody (HAW), Marc Lacomare (FRA), Anthony Walsh (AUS), Jay Thompson (AUS)
Heat 8: Parrish Byrne (AUS), Jason Miller (USA), Damian Moro (CNY), Bentor Gonzalez Dominguez (CNY)
Heat 9: Blake Howard (USA), Josh Lewan (AUS), Alexander El Naib (DEU)
Heat 10: Stuart Kennedy (AUS), Dallas Petersen (AUS), Eduardo Acosta (CNY), Alexander Zirke (CNY)
Heat 11: Joao Guedes (PRT), Mikey Bruneau (HAW), Cheyne Willis (HAW), Luiz Hernandez (CNY)
Heat 12: Brandon Ragenovich (USA), Ezra Sitt (HAW), Julian Cuello (CNY), Juan Manuel Florit (CNY)
Heat 13: Bobby Morris (USA), Clancy Dawson (AUS), Casey Brown (HAW), Aritz Aranburu (EUK)
Heat 14: Adam Melling (AUS), Luis Rodriguez (ESP), Aaron Romero (CNY), Antonio Marques (CNY)
Heat 15: Owen Wright (AUS), Dylan Melamed (HAW), Mario Azurza (EUK), Alexis Sanchez (CNY)
Heat 16: Nick White (NZL), Killian Garland (USA), Chris Jimenez Garcia (CNY), Ivan Monagas Torres (CNY)


text:
This week's Humble sale is all Alan Wake
The latest Humble Weekly Sale is a pay-what-you-want deal on Alan Wake: Collector's Edition and the expansion American Nightmare for PC.
You can also pick up some free extras — like developer-commentary videos, an illustrated PDF book, the game soundtrack, comic books, original screenplays, and much more.
The promotion raises money for the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Child's Play Charity. Humble Bundle has raised over $12 million for charity through these events.
Sam Lake, the creative director of Alan Wake, even uploaded a special video message for fans in which he talks about developer Remedy Entertainment's next game, Quantum Break — and why it's not another Alan Wake.
The franchise has moved more than 3 million copies to date, according to Lake. That's more than the 2 million sales announced early this month.
Lake said he still wants to make something new for Alan Wake "when the time is right."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Elbow won't Straighten without pain
Patient : I can't straighten my elbow or touch my shoulder without pain after falling on my arm when it was extended two weeks ago. When I try to straighten my elbow it just won't staighten and there is pain. When I try to touch my shoulder I Can't and there is pain in my forearm. What is wrong with my elbow and arm? Should I see a doctor
Doctor : Thank you for writing to Ask The Doctor. I have gone through your query and have found 3 issues to address: Your elb ow won't straighten Your elbow has not straightened after the fall And you are not able to extend the elbow without pain To explain the above, you will need to understand more about the elbow and the tissue that forms it. If you can actively move your elbow: flexion and extension, and you do not have any remarkable swelling or deformity, then you do not need to go to the hospital but if this is not the case and on the contrary you develop significant swelling or deformity and you cannot move actively the elbow, then you should go to the Emergency Room to be assessed by a physician and get X rays taken to rule out a fracture or dislocation. The suggested strategy in the case that you can actively move the elbow and you have no significant swelling or deformity would be: you must apply ice to the elbow 4 to 6 times during this first 24 hours for periods no more than 15 minutes each time to avoid swelling, and also ease the pain, continue taking Advil every 8 hours for the first 3 days and then 1 or 2 times a day as needed. After the first 24 hours from the fall, you will start applying on your elbow warm and wet compresses for periods of no more than 15 minutes each time, 2-3 times a day, also you can do series of active movements of flexion and extension of the elbow. You feel the pain moving down your arm because the nerve of the elbow might be involved in the traumatism and swelling. The pain after the fall could persist for about 2-4 weeks but eventually will disappear. Keep doing flexion-extension movements and stretching until you reach your normal functional range of motion. In this ways, you will gradually be able to straighten the elbow. Know that this can take a long time and I advise you to remain patient. Wishing you a speedy recovery.
Related Q&A
Is it normal to have red, warm skin after exercise?
Q: During and after exercise parts of my skin become become very red and feel very hot. Have you any idea what this coul...
Hey there I'm a 55 year-old male and I was
Q: Hey there. I'm a 55 year-old male and I was wondering if my Aortic Arch looks "normal" on this CT Scan? Ext...
I was working out last week doing various squat exercises
Q: I was working out last week doing various squat exercises and ended up squeezing my vagina muscles way more than I sh...
drug test saying I was positive for amphemine.
Q: Hi the week before last i started a new job and manage to find a go go pill I took it last wednesday its a insurance...
83yr old male,6"185 lb,exercises reg,3times a wk fo
Q: 83yr old male,6"185 lb,exercises reg,3times a wk for 11/2 hr.Currently treated for hi bld pres with low dose ado...
Dr. James Obaji M.D.
- 247 Reviews
- Family Physician
Dr. Suneel Sharman M.D.
- 190 Reviews
- Family Physician
Dr. Pat Golden M.D.
- 169 Reviews
- Cardiologist
Dr. Kunaal Jindal M.D.
- 112 Reviews
- Plastic Surgeon


text:
Hi there, I'm Brandie. This site is a collection of recipes and tips to help you in the kitchen. I'm not adding a lot of new content these days, due to a health issue. You can read more of my thoughts on that subject here. There's lots to read here, so please enjoy Spoon & Saucer!
I love to eat, cook, and learn about ways to make good food. Then I teach others how to do it.
I've had other adventures, and the heart of what I'm good at is helping people find good stuff that helps them. I've always been that person people come to when they need information. It lights me up to see someone make their own cranberry sauce for the first time, or discover that making a pie crust from scratch is not the feat they thought it was. This is bliss. I'm crazy that way.
Real life happens around the table.
The kitchen and the dining room table are the places we turn to for comfort. We live, cry, celebrate, laugh, mourn, and process in the kitchen. We raise children, make friends, talk about life, teach, tease, cajole, learn and experience life through conversations and interaction centered around food. Hopefully it's the good stuff.
So much of life is shared around the table, and we find connection with each other over delectable chocolate cake and coffee. It's how we share the human experience. Dust off any cookbook in your collection, and I guarantee you the author has more to share than lists of recipes and notes of preparation. They are sharing their soul, their experiences and their stories. (If you're lucky, they'll make you laugh.) My Persimmon Cookie recipe means something to me. You probably have a recipe in your collection that holds memories to you.
Why "Spoon & Saucer"?
The "spoon" represents a wooden spoon my mother gave me when I ventured out on my own as a young adult. It's worn on one side, from stirring jam and sauces. I still use it everytime I make a batch of jam. It connects me to the past, reminding me of where I came from.
The "saucer" has double meaning. I spent a year abroad in Japan as a high school senior. In one of my host families, we had afternoon tea every day. I have vivid memories of that year, and the designer cup and saucer I still possess today was the very same one I used all those years ago. It connects me to a very important period in my life that changed my outlook on the world at a very young age. (That's the actual cup to the right.)
The second meaning of "saucer" is some advice I received from a friend:
"Only give from the saucer."
I tend to overgive and burn out. I try to keep in mind that when the cup is empty, I'm not doing anyone any good. It's a good reminder to only give from the extra abundance we have in life.
It had to start somewhere.
I started a food blog back on 2008, as a personal "thing". I wanted a place to share recipes, and I hope to one day write a book (it's on my bucket list.) I figured it was time to start making that happen in a tangible way. So, I started my personal food blog, "Joy of the Kitchen". This blog is the more "grown up" version of that now disconnected site. You'll find some recipes shipped over from that site, and revamped a bit.
What the real heart of the matter is.
At it's essence, this blog is about good food, and what happens around the table. Stuff your great grandmother would recognize as things you'd put in your mouth. We're all busy, but real, delicious food isn't difficult. I bet you'll be surprised at how easy it is to make things from scratch (like pie dough.) Let me show you that good food doesn't have to be difficult, overly complicated, or pretentious. Trust me. Once you try it, you might never go back to that heavily marketed fake food chemical experiment, because you won't need it anymore.
One more thing, sweet pea… Manners, please.
I'm all about sharing thoughts, comments, critiques and ideas on recipes and posts here on the site. If you're new to commenting on blogs (and even if you're not), please think of this site as my dining room. I welcome conversation, but not bad manners. If you wouldn't say it at the dinner table in my home, it's probably not a good idea here either. Comments like that aren't cool, so if your mama wouldn't approve, I won't be publishing your comment (kinda like I'd invite a person to leave my home if they got too rude.) Cool? Ok then.
I hope you enjoy reading my lil' site. I'd love to hear from you, so feel free to share a comment or get in touch here.


text:
Meeting Native communities in Amazonia
United travel and documentary on the Amazon basin, from deforestation to meeting with native communities.
About the project
Travelling broadens our horizons that's maybe why we do it , to learn more ourselves:
From an early age I have dreamt about going to the Amazon. I am fascinated by nature and the people who live in harmony with it
I hope to get in touch with native Indian communities and to better understand those who without a doubt we could learn a lot from.
I will no doubt see first hand the extent of damage which mankind causes to planet Earth and to try to understand what is at stake and the impact that deforestation has on the indigenous people, the animal population and on the rest of the world.
Journey with photographic, audiovisual and journalisitic purpose in Amazonia on the meeting of native communities, to study the impact of men on their environment.
When he becomes critic for our planet to change our way of living and of consuming, it appeared to me as an obvious fact to leave where takes place our future: in Amazonia.
Amazonia is one of older rainforests to the world, one of the most important reservoirs of biodiversity and shelters thousands of botanical species with medicinal virtues. It plays an essential role in the stabilization of the world climate and its river, the Amazon, provides 1/5 of the planet with fresh water.
And nevertheless, this forest which we should protect is victim of massive deforestation due to enlargement of farmlands (culture of the soya, cattle farm), to exotic wood trade and to greediness of the gold diggers (pollution of the river by the mercury).
Since 1970, the forest lost 18 % of its surface (twice France). According to the forecasts of WWF, half of the forest will have disappeared in 2030. Deforestation is an ecological disaster which drive to a reduction of rains, threatening the Amazonia of repeated drought and a dry climate.
According to Greenpeace, 90 % of the deforestation is illegal and responsible for 55 % of Brazilian greenhouse gas emissions, which placed the country to the rank of the 4th the biggest world pollutant.
Fate of the forest is deeply connected to future of Natives.
Their most fundamental rights are scoffed, as the management of forests by themselves recognized by the Charter of Human Rights and which will be registered in the future Declaration of Native peoples on the UNO. Remain to apply it in the facts because too much native communities are dislodged without we ask them for their opinion.
The everyday life of Native is also threatened by the constructions of dams, as the very controversial of Belo Monte, third bigger and more powerful of the world. A very criticized project because placed at the heart of the Amazonia, on the Xingu river, which has to flood a part of the forest, considered as native lands.
Environmental dimension:
" We did not inherit Earth of our ancestors, we borrow it to our children. " Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, writer, poet and aviator
- Study the impact of man on his environment: what is his place in nature?
- Consequences of the deforestation: what solutions to which scales?
Human dimension:
- Favor cultural exchange:
A) Meeting with biologists, journalists, doctors with practical experience.
B) Meeting of Amazonian populations
- Analysis of native societies: evolution due to globalization, importance and meaning of spirituality, place of women.
- Public-spirited and ethical commitment: act for the respect for rights and fundamental liberties of native populations.
Journalistic and artistic dimension:
- Interviews of met persons
- Editing of a documentary movie
- Exhibition photos and videos on the return of the journey
Even if we believe that we cannot change the world, change the way we imagine our future, it is to build it rather than to dream about it.
I like taking time to travel to understand culture, way of life and thought of the local populations. Dive into their everyday life is the best way to have a fairer look.
Meet native is not easy thing in Brazil: FUNAI (National Foundation of the Indian) protects them a lot and it's necessary to obtain authorizations to return in touch with them. However, more and more native communities accept the visitors, it's thus possible thing, especially if the motives of the visit can be beneficial to them (knowledge of the Indian world to help them better to protect their culture).
I already have some contacts thanks to the site " Couchsurfing " (site of free hosting) which offers the possibility of sleeping on the sofa of the Internet users worldwide. It's an alternative way to travel.) who can allow me to return in touch with some native communities.
Communities which I intend to meet are Arara, Tapirapé and Yawalapiti, which live in the region of Xingu. They were chosen the strength of their physical paintings and their headgears, high in color, to which I attach a lot of importance.
I would also like meeting other communities which I know more difficult to contact, everything will depend on meetings made on the spot.
The journey will take place in brazilian Amazonia. The program is to arrive at Bélem to arrive in the region of Xingu (Altamira, Vitoria do Xingu) to stop in the dam of Belo Monte. Then, direction to Manaus, capital of Amazonia, then Sao Gabriel da Cachoeira, Indian city.
From May till August, 2013.
Photo credit: thanks a lot to Serge Guiraud from Amazonie Indienne, Yann Arthus Bertrand, WWF, and Survival.
What are the funds for?
The objective on Ulule is 1 000 euros, it's a first part of the financing, because the total budget is 5 460 euros.
It's the first time I use a site of crowdfunding as Ulule and I was a little afraid of not reach the total budget.
1 000 euros are going to be of use at first to the purchase of the solar charger, the case bouncer of card and following the financing:
Plane ticket:1 200 € (Europe-Brasil, then domestic flight until Belém).
Insurance:300 €
Transport:500 €
Accommodation:1 800 € that is 15€/day(trying mostly stay with locals, via Couchsurfing, expenses should be widely decreased.)
Food: 1 200 € that is 10€/day
Purchases: solar charger (120€) + external case bouncer of card (340 €)
For 100€, you have the choice for:
About the project owner
Anaïs Bajeux, 23-year-old self-taught, sensitive to visual arts and to beauty of the world.
Curious about everything, dynamics, amateur photographer and video director, passionate about journeys and about wonderful meetings that we can make at the other end of a world which we call "at home".
Further to numerous journeys in Europe (France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Croatia, Greece, Turkey, Switzerland, Austria, Great Britain, Norway), I have already made some long-term journey: United States (big national parks (Monument Valley, Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Zion, Yellowstone), Canada (3 months in Toronto to improve my English), Australia (6 months to live in the car, barter photo and contact with Aboriginals).
Further to a Two-Year Technical Degree in Negotiation Customer relations and work experiences in the sale, I want a journey which allows me to discover a culture with values and way of thinking different of our.
Living in Chamonix and sensitive to environment and to the sustainable development, this project of journey in Amazonia is child's dream which becomes a reality; before taking back studies in audiovisual.
You can have a look on my personal website where you will find my photos of journey and videos (corporate and festival): http://anaisbajeux.wix.com/portfolio
Spoken languages: French (native), English (good level), Spanish (school bases), Portuguese (i'm learning) =)
"Life is owned by these who trust to beauty oh their dreams."
If you still have an unanswered question, feel free to ask the project owner directly.


text:
Worse than Ashley Young! Barcelona's Neymar wins a penalty with a ridiculous dive [GIF & Video]
On Tuesday night Manchester United's Ashley Young won his side a penalty after deceiving the referee with a dive.
Tonight, Neymar of Barcelona produced a similar piece of cheating to give Leo Messi the chance to out Barca 1-0 up against AC Milan.
The referee was fooled and somehow awarded Neymar a penalty for his blatant dive.
Barcelona ran out 3-1 winners and defender Ignazio Abate is right to feel aggrieved after the awful penalty decision.
A GIF and a video of the incident can be seen here:


text:
Aidan O'Brien became the first trainer in the history of the Investec Derby to saddle the winner three years in succession on Saturday when his chestnut colt Australia, the 11-8 favourite, won the 235th running of the race around which the thoroughbred world still revolves.
For his owners, the Coolmore triumvirate of John Magnier, Derrick Smith and Michael Tabor – joined in this horse by Teo Ah King who runs the China Horse Club – it was even better; a fourth in a row following Pour Moi who preceded the O'Brien-trained Camelot and Ruler of The World. For Magnier, the breeding mastermind behind the whole operation, it was an eighth winner.
Whether Australia, who beat the game Kingston Hill a length and a quarter, ultimately lives up to his trainer's description the "like of which we've never seen" at Ballydoyle remains to be seen but he won yesterday's race with authority and a minimum of fuss – without actually running away with it.
The early pace had been set by the outsider Our Channel. Andrea Atzeni, having his first Derby ride, had the disadvantage of stall two on Kingston Hill and had to use a little of his horse to get a decent position but, having got there, he was ideally positioned coming out of Tattenham Corner and was first of the serious horses to strike for home.
However, Australia had cruised through the race for Joseph O'Brien who took the outside route on his second Derby winner to avoid any of the notorious traffic hot spots down Tattenham Hill.
Richard Hughes, who was third on Romsdal, said afterwards that his worst fear was seeing Australia coming past him on the bridle. Well, it was every jockey's worst fear. Australia went past Romsdal just before the two-furlong pole and had swept past Atzeni and Kingston Hill to hit the front with a furlong and a half to run.
However, he did not leave Kingston Hill standing as it looked he might at one stage, indeed if anything, the runner-up had slightly reduced the margin again at the finish but without ever looking like he would give the favourite's supporters a fright.
There was a healthy gap of three lengths between the runner-up and Romsdal with Arod in fourth and Red Galileo running on from last entering the straight to finish fifth.
O'Brien, 44, has now trained five Derby winners, one short of Vincent O'Brien, his namesake who also trained at Ballydoyle but there is plenty of time for him to smash a few more Derby records before he is done. What for most trainers is a once-in-a-lifetime event, is an annual event for O'Brien. "Everyone knows we're in a very privileged position to be training such horses year after year," he said.
"We always thought this horse was very special from the first day he worked. He always had a lot of speed for a horse bred to get a mile and a half. He's unique because he has this terrible pace. He's able to go from A to B so fast and so easy. It's unique for a horse bred the way he is. Most wouldn't get a mile and a half."
Despite his regular presence on the hallowed turf of Epsom's circular winners' enclosure after Classics, O'Brien still claims to be surprised by such success. "These things, I never expected it," he added. "So many people put so much in and there are so many twists and turns along the way. We're so lucky to have such horses. I can't believe it."
In his son Joseph, 21, he has an ally, confidant and a bond which he was never quite able to achieve with previous stable jockeys like Mick Kinane, Kieren Fallon or Johnny Murtagh. If he ever gets emotional that it is his flesh and blood riding the horse, he does not show it. "I travelled very easy throughout the race," his son said.
"If anything it was nearly happening a bit slow for me. I got a bump and was getting there a bit sooner than I wanted but I had to say go when I did. He was idling in front but I felt I'd beat the runner-up well when I went past him. Last year he was quite babyish – this year he's push-button."
Links to the race's great history were all around. Australia, the first ever Derby winner by a Derby winner, Galileo, out of an Oaks winner, Ouija Board, was bred by Lord Derby and his brother Peter Stanley at the New England Stud in Newmarket. They sold him for 525,000 gns. However expensive that looked at the time, it looks cheap now but that did not bother Lord Derby.
"It's 81 years since a Derby last bred an Epsom Derby winner, Hyperion, in 1933," he said. "There was Watling Street, who won a War-time Derby at Newmarket in 1942. But this is the pinnacle and words cannot describe the emotion. I'm brimming with pride."


text:
Job fair set for Thursday in Jones Resource Building
NIAGARA FALLS – A fall job fair will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Thursday in the Niagara Falls Housing Authority's Doris Jones Family Resource Building, 3001 Ninth St.
Employers scheduled to attend include Seneca Niagara Hotel & Casino, Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, Goodyear and Remedy Staffing.
Job-seekers are asked to bring their resumes.
The event is co-sponsored by the Housing Authority, Niagara County Legislator Owen Steed and the State University of New York ATTAIN Lab.


text:
By the Numbers: Voice fade: Next act for the fat pipe
Post a comment
Broadband penetration is nearing 50 percent of North American households and will top 90 percent in about 10 years, Technology Futures Inc. (Austin, Texas) reports. Carriers and service providers are plotting ways to increase revenue as voice margins dwindle. The broadband audience in U.S. homes will rise from 55 million in 2004 to about 108 million in 2009, JupiterResearch predicts. These bell-shaped curves showing successive broadband generations with nominally higher data rates begin an important transition next year with the arrival of 24-Mbit/s broadband and its requirement for fiber optics to, or near to, the home, says Technology Futures.


text:
Hugh Jackman: 'I'm no pin up'
The Oscar-nominated actor and star of the X-Men franchise tells Polly Vernon that he thinks he's overpaid – and his wife doesn't liked his pumped-up body
Hugh Jackman greets me at the door of his hotel suite in Claridge's with an apology for his facial hair.
"Sorry about the beard," he says, leads me over to a sofa and sits down next to me.
The beard is small, black and pointy, but not remotely objectionable. I'm not sure I'd have noticed it at all had Jackman not drawn my attention to it, on account of my being principally bedazzled by how handsome he is. He is absurdly handsome. Unnecessarily handsome. Tall and broad, luminous and twinkly; A-list major Hollywood player, box-office-bankable, does it for both the ladies (who want him) and the gentleman (who want to be him) handsome.
But I digress.
"I'm rehearsing Pan – this thing I'm doing with Joe…


text:
Veil of Maya
Structures, Northlane, Vildhjarta, Here Comes The Kracken
Palladium Upstairs
261 Main street
Worcester, MA, 01608
Veil of Maya
The Chicago based VEIL OF MAYA encompasses the good old American blue collar work ethic and have definitely taken the hard road to success grinding it out on the road through countless tours over the years, but now that backbreaking schedule is paying off tenfold. This quartet are one of the few very bands that can authentically mix elements of progressive metal, melodic death metal, thrash and hardcore brutality together effectively, all while keeping the listener constantly interested with baited breath wondering just what is coming next. This is exactly why they will have a career for years to come.
VEIL OF MAYA's dynamic second full-length album, id, was met with rave reviews and quickly caught the attention of the underground with it's refreshing and unique approach.
Nick Xourafes - Vocals
Brendan Padjasek - Guitar
Spyros Georgiou - Guitar
Spencer Maclean - Bass
Andrew Mcenaney - Drums
On the eve of the Soundwave festival performances, UNFD are proud to announce the release of Northlane's highly anticipated second album, "Singularity". To celebrate the announcement Northlane have released a new music video for the track, "Quantum Flux" unveiled today via the viral site singularity2013.com.
Singularity will be released on Friday 22 March via UNFD.
"Quantum Flux," the first official track from "Singularity" will undoubtedly surprise fans. The new single gives incredible insight into the diversity and musical talent of the band, it is a testament to their ability to push boundaries wherever they can. "Quantum Flux" is a ballsy move, especially as a lead single, but will surely impress each fan and further build upon their already sizable audience.
There was a lot of speculation about what SINGULARITY actually was after UNFD launched singularity2013.com in late January. The site hosted a countdown and a series of information leaks, that captured the attention of fans and media alike around the world, with more than 300,000 hits on the website in a month. After many rumours and guesswork, some fans correctly assumed that it was a Northlane related project after the recent trailer was launched and hidden leaks on the site started to appear. One avid fan even managed to crack the binary code used on the website to workout all the details of the forthcoming LP.
Releasing an album only four weeks after it is announced will still come as a pleasant surprise to fans, who have witnessed the Sydney five piece explode since the release of their debut album Discoveries on November 11, 2011 [11/11/11]. Relatively unknown at the time of the release, Northlane have gone on to become one of the biggest metal / hardcore bands in the country.
Produced by Will Putney of Machine Shop [New Jersey] in between a Canadian tour and their support of Parkway Drive late last year, the Northlane and UNFD camps have managed to keep the recording top secret. The band caught everyone off guard when they released "Worldeater" last December, leading fans to believe that it was a stand-alone singe, even though it was always intended for Singularity. Considering their incredibly busy touring schedule in 2012, no one expected an album to be released, let alone recorded, between the 200-odd shows that Northlane played or had scheduled since the release of Discoveries.
Fans can now go to singularity2013.com and watch a short documentary on the theory and development of Singularity, as well as the "Quantum Flux" music video. World wide pre-order links for the album can also be found on the site. Stay tuned to singularity2013.com for more developments on the "Singularity" project.
$15 adv. / $17 day of
Upcoming Events
Palladium Upstairs
Sun, December 10
DOKKEN w/ Bad Marriage
Sun, February 25
Fri, March 30
Sun, June 24


text:
Taylor Swift dazzles at CMA awards
Blake Shelton may have been a surprise winner at the Country Music Association Awards, but Taylor Swift stole the spotlight on the red carpet.
The chart-topping songstress, whose new album Red is in the UK top spot, wore a floral embroidered lace gown by Jenny Packham at the Nashville ceremony before she received an ovation for the performance of her new single, Begin Again.
She had style competition from Carrie Underwood and Hayden Panettiere, who both wowed in white dresses.
The Voice judge Blake took home a hat-trick of trophies, including his third straight male vocalist victory and the top honour of entertainer of the year, but he revealed that winning song of the year for Over You with wife Miranda Lambert, about the death of his brother Richie in a car wreck 15 years ago, is extra special.
"For me as a songwriter that is as personal as I can get. So that songwriter award, song of the year award, it will have its own shelf," he said.
"It will have spotlights on it and an alarm and everything. Trip wires and there will be a land mine if you walk towards it. It is a real big deal to Miranda and I."
Blake admitted he was shocked to win best entertainer, following Taylor's two-time win of the gong: "I didn't think about that tonight. I was thinking there's Taylor Swift right there."
Blake, and other stars including Keith Urban, joined together to salute lifetime achievement winner Willie Nelson, ending with a group sing-along of his iconic On The Road Again.
Other winners included quartet Little Big Town, Hunter Hayes, and Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw won musical event of the year for Party Like A Rock Star.


text:
MLB.com Columnist
Richard Justice
Reds' run without Votto shows their talent, will
Justice: Reds' run without Votto shows their talent, will
"All right, it's time to start losing," he announced.
Really, Brandon?
"That's what everybody thinks," he added.
Indeed, plenty of people believed the Reds would fade away without the guy who'd been the National League's best offensive player this season.
They were 50-38 and leading the NL Central by a game when Votto injured his left knee on July 16. Suddenly, there was an opening for the Cardinals and Pirates.
The Reds couldn't have known it at the time, but they were about to learn plenty about themselves. They were about to find out that they were a mentally tough team and a talented team. They were not brought down by one injury, even one to one of baseball's best hitters.
So Phillips challenged his teammates.
"Let's go out here and get famous and have a good time," he said.
The Reds are 30-14 since Votto left their lineup thanks to contributions from a long list of offensive players, most notably rookie Todd Frazier and outfielder Ryan Ludwick.
They've also had baseball's best bullpen and a rotation that hasn't had a single pitcher miss a start.
And there's manager Dusty Baker, whose calming presence sets a tone for all of it.
"We saw that as an opportunity for a bunch of other guys to step up and pull some of that slack that has been left," center fielder Drew Stubbs said. "I think you see guys like Frazier and Ryan Ludwick. They're probably the two centerpieces of the push. At different times over the past several weeks, you've had a different hero here and there. We've got great efforts from our pitching. We were faced with adversity, and we've kind of worked our way through it as a unit. It's fun to be part of."
The Reds have blown open the NL Central race, opening up an 8 1/2-game lead. At 80-52, they reached 80 victories faster than any Cincinnati team since the 1976 Big Red Machine.
"I feel like the team unity got even stronger," Phillips said. "We knew we needed everybody to produce."
First, there was Frazier.
He played third when Scott Rolen got hurt and moved across the diamond when Votto was injured.
He's hitting .294 with 23 doubles and 18 home runs. His OPS is .907. Since the All-Star break, he's dotted across the NL leader board.
"Frazier didn't know what he was capable of," Baker said. "A young player doesn't know. He thinks he knows. One thing about Frazier, he ain't scared. He doesn't lack confidence. He enjoys playing baseball. That's a big part of it."
Ludwick has been a huge contributor, too. General manager Walt Jocketty signed him a few days before Spring Training to split time with Chris Heisey in left.
Ludwick was coming off a frustrating season and a half with the Padres and Pirates. He believed the change of scenery would give him the opportunity to re-establish his career.
He has 13 home runs since the All-Star break, second only to San Diego's Chase Headley in the National League, and has contributed big hit after big hit.
"I think we believe in one another," Ludwick said. "We've got a good team. I don't think there's a magic potion. Joey is one of the best hitters in all of baseball. It's never a good thing when you lose a guy like that. But I don't think anyone in here was that worried. We felt like we still had the components to win."
Baker's challenge now will be to juggle the various pieces, especially Frazier's playing time, when Votto returns, most likely next week.
But a 30-14 run without Votto speak volumes about the Reds, not just Johnny Cueto at the front of the rotation and Aroldis Chapman at the back of the bullpen, but the entire group.
"That's what strong-minded teams do," Baker said. "They find a way to pick each other up. These guys don't panic. They're highly determined. Once they get a taste of winning, they don't like to lose. They're a competitive group. You don't have to motivate as much as if you have a non-competitive group. Our guys have responded."
Richard Justice is a columnist for MLB.com. Read his blog, Justice4U. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text: Hi guys, I have had my A3 since June now and for the first 3 months I had no issues... because I was using it everyday, However now I am only using the car once a week or so and the problems are now very obvious. If the car is left for even 2 days the battery drains so low it will not start, It does however jump fine. Everything else on the car seems to be working fine, and I have checked all the obvious internal bulbs remaining on when the car is closed and locked (glove box, boot ect) There are some points that might be worth a note: The Hazard warning light switch is constantly illuminated (even when the car is locked and left over night) I have read online that this is not a fault but merely an indication of a fault The Radio (Concert stock head unit) does not come on when the key is inserted neither does it turn of when the key is removed (requires manual pressing the power button Some times the electric windows do not work automatically (you have to hold the switch all the way up and down) and sometimes when you close the windows fully the go back down a few inches and will not go back up. Everything else seems to work fine... This has been going on for a while now and it is really starting to annoy me, Any help would be great! Cheers


text:
Artist description:
He's dressed up as a human for halloween............and about to make his 1st attack.............on an innocent child
Java Draw Created Oct 25, 2008 470 x 338px Unless noted Copyright 2008 claire441.
We encourage you to submit a comment and let the artist know what you think of this drawing. Please log in or join to post a comment.
Post a comment
Nobody has commented on this drawing yet. Be the first!


text:
Many public auctions take place nearby
(which frequently offer a variety of antiques),
and these can usually be discovered by visiting
South Dakota Auction Pages.
Occasionally a special event will be planned and arranged,
to particularly promote the area Antique Dealer community
and, of course . . . their treasures!
The SALE was successful and exciting,
as the general public came nose to nose and pose to pose
with antique dealers from diverse locations.
Wheeling and dealing was in the air . . .
even to a second-grader buying a vintage necklace
with immediate plans to present it to her mom for Mothers Day!
It was a captivating parade . . .
all the while treasured antiques were brought in
by exhilarated owners, curious to hear both facts and folk lore.
Though by no stretch of the imagination an imitation of The Road Show,
this Show increased pulse rates nonetheless.
When a c.1920 framed series of postcards depicting life passages
was carried over to the EVALUATION table,
at least one browser stood by to hear the story on the item
. . . because she had a similar framed series!
And a family heirloom 1700 period Kentucky Rifle
drew oohs and aahhs from the men folk.
Unfortunately, it was missing the original ramrod.
The owner was heard to say that he had been told
the last time they (not the present owner) saw it
the kids were playing with it.


text:
In Beijing, Orwell Goes to the Olympics – Ross Terrill
Author Ross Terrill discusses the government's efforts to present a happy face (which speaks good English) for the Olympics and argues for depoliticization of the 2008 Games:
The penalty for "Chinglish" is usually humiliation, not incarceration. Still, citizens are asked to snitch, Mao-era style, on people who shame China with their shaky English. An outfit called the Beijing Speaks Foreign Languages Program issues prefabricated foreign phrases to workers who cannot converse in any foreign tongue. The Olympics have become one more tool in the authoritarian state's box of tricks.
Yes, curbing Chinglish " along with current efforts to eliminate spitting, littering and pushing to enter a bus or train " shows the better side of authoritarianism. Clean streets are agreeable, and Beijing's may now be better than New York's. The city's Spiritual Civilization Office has begun a monthly "Learn to Queue Day," surely welcome to all who have been victims of the scramble to board a Chinese bus. It reminds one that China could have a government far worse than it has now.
Yet behind the attack on Chinglish lies an Orwellian impulse to remake the truth. [Full text]


text:
The Pakatan-friendly WargaAMAN says MIC is not behind recent SMS threats.
KUALA LUMPUR: The Pakatan-friendly WargaAMAN today scoffed at PKR vice president N Surendran's allegation that MIC was behind a SMS threatening to splash his face with acid.
The group's secretary-general, S Barathidasan, said in a press statement that he received a similar threat last Tuesday, but had decided not to make a police report.
"Let's be more practical and use a bit of common sense," he said. "If a person is really
loyal, honest, concerned and cares about his party's image, he will never use his party's name to send a SMS threat."
He suspects that the culprit is someone out to tarnish MIC's name and "trying very hard to create a gap between MIC and Pakatan Indian leaders".
WargaAMAN, a coalition of 20 Indian-based NGOs, has often been critical of Barisan Nasional and the Putrajaya administration and supportive of Pakatan Rakyat.
Surendran lodged his police report on Tuesday. He alleged that several other PKR members had also received the threat.
Barathidasan also shot down Surendran's contention that the threat and other forms of "continuous harassment by MIC" were a follow-up to a brawl in Putrajaya last May. Puchong PKR chief S Murali sustained a fractured cheekbone in the fisticuffs involving MIC Youth members.
Barathidasan's theory is that the threats were related to a Niat statement that MIC was irrelevant.
Malaysiakini reported that statement under the heading "MIC lost relevance 38years ago, says Niat chief" on Tuesday.
"The news was uploaded at 9.33am and I received the SMS after 20 minutes," Barathidasan said.
"The sender must have thought I am still a member of Niat. Here, WargaAMAN stresses that the coalition has nothing to do with Niat's current actions."
'Special operation'
Meanwhile, MIC Youth has repeated its allegation that PKR had assigned a team led by Surendran to carry out a "special operation" to tarnish MIC's name.
"Just look at the recent incident where Surendran and his teammates accused MIC over an attack against V Ganabathi Rao and his brother Pappa Raidu," MIC Youth information chief S Subramaniam told FMT.
"The truth is they were assaulted by PKR men."
He alleged that PKR was bereft of real issues to raise, especially those concerning the Indian community, and was creating issues to confuse the public.
"Once, they tried to blow up the Effingham Tamil school issue by claiming that MIC grabbed three acres of land out of six acres," he said.
"But, it backfired when MIC raised the matter and accused the Selangor state government of taking nearly RM20 million which originally belong to the school."
Subramaniam challenged Surendran to speak up on the Midland Tamil school issue as well as issues concerning the Bukit Raja and Coalfield estates.
Recently, former workers at the two estates claimed that the Selangor government had acquired land originally given as compensation to former workers at the two plantations.


text: Strong named general counsel of A&M System By John Sirman on March 30, 2009Posted inPeople On Friday, March 27, the Texas A&M University Board of Regents selected Andrew Strong as general counsel of the Texas A&M System. As general counsel he'll be responsible for all legal matters affecting the system and provide legal counsel to A&M's board of regents, chancellor, and CEOs. Strong is a partner in the Houston office … Continue Reading


text: Document Title: =============== OmniSecure v7.x DLX - Multiple SQL Injection Vulnerabilities Release Date: ============= 2011-07-15 Vulnerability Laboratory ID (VL-ID): ==================================== 101 Product & Service Introduction: =============================== One Click Folder Protection Whether you are protecting tens of files or thousands of files, it only takes a few simple steps to protect all your folders instantly with Omni Secure folder protection. File type does not matter. These include anyting from.php, to .doc, to .xls, to pdf, to .zip, streaming videos etc. Multi-Directional Login Forms Easily create customized, multi-directional login forms. Manage your users from a single login form that not only determines what group each user is assigned to, but which has the power to automatically redirects each individual user to appropriate folders and pages. Manages Unlimited Groups Totally simple! Members belong to Groups and Groups belong to Protected Folders. You determine which Protected Folder(s) each Group may access. Manages Unlimited Users Large databases of users are only as valuable as the system that manages them. With OSS you manage a virtually unlimited number of users that allows you to view, edit, lock, delete or modify in dozens of way, all accounts. And you may do this individually or by group. ... ... (Copy of theVendor Homepage: http://www.omni-secure.com/index.php) Abstract Advisory Information: ============================== Vulnerability-Lab Team discovered multiple SQL Injection Vulnerabilities on OmniSecure v6.1.1 Deluxe. Vulnerability Disclosure Timeline: ================================== 2011-00-00: Vendor Notification 2011-00-00: Vendor Response/Feedback 2011-00-00: Vendor Fix/Patch 2011-00-00: Public or Non-Public Disclosure Discovery Status: ================= Published Affected Product(s): ==================== Exploitation Technique: ======================= Remote Severity Level: =============== Critical Technical Details & Description: ================================ Multiple SQL Injection Vulnerabilities are detected on OmniSecure. Attackers can compromise the application dbms & the application content via sql injection. The bug allows an remote attacker to inject own sql statements over the vulnerable web application. Vulnerable Modules: [+] Login Edit [+] Add User [+] Add Banners [+] SignupCode [+] AddUrlShield Pictures: ../sql1.png ../sql2.png ../sql3.png Proof of Concept (PoC): ======================= The vulnerabilities can be exploited by local restricted user accounts & remote attackers. For demonstration or reproduce ... File: index.php Para: ?module=CodeGen&action=CustomLoginEdit&id= File: index.php Para: ?module=Members&action=AddUser&id= File: index.php Para: ?module=System&action=AffAddBanner&id= File: index.php Para: ?module=Members&action=AddGroup&id= File: index.php Para: ?module=CodeGen&action=SignupCode&FormID= File: index.php Para: ?module=UrlProtect&action=AddUrlShield&id=


text:
Welcome to Carter Nipper's Web Site
Writer of: Horror / Dark Fiction / Fantasy / Essays
Vision Index
Author Index
Subject Index
Title Index
Tables of Contents
Site Menu
Pubs and Subs
Noise in the Attic (Blog)
About Me
Contact Me
Privacy Notice
Noise in the Attic Bookstore
Linda Edelstein
Latest News:
November 24, 2004
- Inauguration Day for carternipper.com! Content will be added and changed as events warrant. Check back soon.
August 4, 2007
- Web site redesign complete. Let the Great Bug Stomp begin!
October 1, 2007
published in
Vision: a Resource for Writers
, Issue 41
October 1, 2007
- "Rounding the Cape" accepted for publication in
The Harrow
in Volume 11, no. 2 (February 2008)
February 1, 2008
"Rounding the Cape"
published in
The Harrow
in Volume 11, no. 2 (February 2008)
February 15, 2008
- "A Time to Every Purpose" accepted for publication in
A Fly in Amber
in March 2008
March 7, 2008
"A Time to Every Purpose"
now online at
A Fly in Amber
November 5, 2008
- "Garlic Chicken" accepted for publication in
AlienSkin Magazine
in their February/March 2009 issue.
February 1, 2009
- "Garlic Chicken" published in
AlienSkin Magazine
in their February/March 2009 issue.
December 29, 2012
- "Gilgamesh, Vampire Hunter" accepted by
Hungur Magazine
for publication in their Spring 2013 issue.
Contents Copyright ©2004-2012 by
Carter Nipper
. All rights reserved.


text:
Mr. and Mrs. Johnie E. Campbell of Baxley are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Laura, to Gene Harrison, son of Mr. and Mrs. E. Dunbar Harrison, Jr. of Athens.
Laura is the granddaughter of the late Mrs. Dorothy S. Dyal of Lavonia and Mr. James E. Dyal, Jr. of Baxley and the late Mr. Robert E. Campbell of Baxley and the late Mrs. Bobby Rosalee Walker of Tifton. Laura will be employed in the Fall as a Spanish Teacher at McEachern High School in Powder Springs.
Gene is the grandson of the late Dr. and Mrs. Walter Eugene Matthews of Augusta and the late Judge and Mrs. E. Dunbar Harrison of Savannah. Gene is currently employed as a Sales Manager for Gardner Denver, Inc. in Peachtree City.
The couple will be wed in June and will reside in Smyrna.
© 2017. All Rights Reserved. | Contact Us


text:
USA Badminton Seeks Assistant Coach for 2012 World Junior Championships
USA Badminton is seeking 1-2 Assistant Coaches for the 2012 World Junior Championships.
- This is an unpaid position. Successful applicants must fund their own travel, accommodation and meals.
- This is an opportunity for USAB Certified coaches with a provisional Level 2 High Performance qualification and above to undergo an internship experience in a world-class competition.
Details: October 26-November 3, 2012
Location: Chiba, Japan
Closing Date For Application: April 26, 2012
For more information for job description, criteria and how to apply, contact Mohan Subramaniam at email@example.com.


text:
SAN DIEGO -- The Chargers' defense has provided cause forcriticism this season.
It hasn't lived up to its reputation as an aggressive, ball-hawking unit that prides itself on stopping the run. Inconsistent play has plagued this once-proud group during a season of disappointment, but on Thursday night, everything went right.
The Chargers created four turnovers, recorded three sacks, andallowed a season-low 163 yards in a 34-7 victory over the Oakland Raiders, whose only score came on a kickoff return.
"As a defense, this was our best performance by far," insidelinebacker Stephen Cooper said. "We stopped the run, we got to thequarterback and we created turnovers. That's what you want todo."
Such performances were commonplace last season, when the Chargers forced opponents into making mistakes.
"That's the one thing we've been lacking," outside linebackerShaun Phillips said. "We've been losing games because of ourinability to create turnovers. Creating more turnovers means youwin more games. That's what happened to us last year. If we getback to that, we should finish strong."
Quite a "season" for L.T.
LaDainian Tomlinson has now played the equivalent of a fullregular season against the Raiders, and his statistics in those 16games are nothing short of mind-boggling.
He has 1,906 rushing yards in that span, which would rank seventh on the all-time, single-season rushing list. Tomlinson has 19 rushing touchdowns against the Raiders thanks to Thursday's performance, in which he had 91 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries.
"I think there are always certain teams you enjoy playing, teams you just seem to match up well against," Tomlinson said. "I don't know what it is, but I'm glad it's against the Raiders because I understand the rivalry that the two teams have."
Tomlinson now has 122 career rushing touchdowns, one shy of former Raider Marcus Allen, who ranks No. 2 on the all-time list.
Nice throw, Matt
Chargers linebacker Matt Wilhelm intercepted a pass late in the fourth quarter and then threw an incompletion of his own.
Wilhelm picked off Raiders quarterback Andrew Walter on theChargers' 35-yard line, sprinted to the opposing 20 and then heavedthe ball into the crowd. It landed near the back of Qualcomm Stadium's field level, bounced off a rail and down a stairway.
A flock of souvenir seekers followed in hot pursuit, but the ball and its new owner never re-emerged.
Phillips' sack attack
Phillips had just half a sack in the seven games before Thursday. He more than quadrupled that total against the Raiders.
Phillips had a career-high 2 1/2 sacks, including first-quarter take-down that forced Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell to fumble. The Chargers turned that turnover into a touchdown just three plays later to establish an early 10-0 lead.
Phillips' last full sack before the Oakland game came on Oct. 5 against Miami. Thursday's effort increased his season total to 6 1/2 sacks, two fewer than he had last year.
Injury report
The Chargers reported just one injury after the game. Linebacker Anthony Waters hurt his hamstring in the third quarter and did not return.
Head linesman John McGrath was knocked down midway through the second quarter and was clearly favoring his right knee. He was examined by the Raiders' training staff, and his duties were handed over to back judge Scott Helverson. McGrath was taken into the locker room and did not return.
Gregory starts
Steve Gregory made the first start of his career in place ofClinton Hart, who suffered a stinger in Sunday's loss to theAtlanta Falcons.
He played well in Hart's absence, recording a team-high seven tackles.


text:
RepairPal is your advocate for car care advice and guidance
Q: Is it to early? on 2009 Lexus IS250Edit
Some items listed like change brake fluid, etc. isnt it too early for that? Fluid still looks great.
Depends on mileage, is it recommended at 30k or 60k? Likely 30k and the reason it is recommended is that brake fluid is vented to the air because it expands when heated during brake operation, because is vented it will absorb moisture from the air and then the boiling point will lower and can cause brake fade especially when coming down a pass and may be riding the brakes and not letting them cool down. Loss of pedal pressure in this instance can be frightening. Moisture inside the brake fluid can accelerate the brakedown of internals in the brake system. Fluid may still look good but that is why it is recommended so brake system has a chance to remain in top shape. I personally feel the most important system on any vehicle is the brakes. But of course it is your call. By the way, if you use synthetic brake fluid it does not absorb moisture.
Didn't find what you were looking for?


text:
Steven G. Bradbury Testimony Before the House Committee on the Judiciary Oversight Hearing into the Administration's Use of FISA Authorities
Before the House Committee on the Judiciary
Oversight Hearing into the Administration's Use of FISA Authorities
July 17, 2013
Steven G. Bradbury*
Thank you, Chairman Goodlatte, Ranking Member Conyers, and distinguished Members of the Committee. I appreciate the opportunity to appear before the Committee today to address the statutory authorities and constitutional principles governing the two National Security Agency programs that have been the subject of recent disclosures. These are:
•First, the acquisition of telephone call-detail records that involves only telephone metadata, not the content of any phone calls or the names or addresses of any phone subscribers.
•Second, the surveillance, including the so-called "PRISM" Internet collection, that is targeted at the communications of foreign persons reasonably believed to be located outside the United States.
I believe it is most useful to discuss the legal basis for each of these two programs separately, since they are authorized under two different provisions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, though of course the programs can and should work together as part of the overall counterterrorism efforts of the United States.
I. Section 215 Order for Acquisition of Telephone Metadata
Let me focus first on the telephone metadata program. As the government has stated, this program is supported by a business records order issued under the provision of FISA added by Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act.1 This Section 215 order must be reviewed and reapproved by the federal judges who sit on the FISA court every 90 days. I understand that fourteen different federal judges have approved this order since 2006.
The metadata acquired consists of the transactional information that phone companies retain in their systems for a period of time in the ordinary course of business for billing purposes and that appears on typical phone bills. It includes only data fields showing which phone numbers called which numbers and the time and duration of the calls. This order does not give the government access to any information about the content of calls or any other subscriber information, and it doesn't enable the government to listen to anyone's phone calls.
Access to the data is limited under the terms of the court order. Contrary to some news reports, there's no data mining or random sifting of the data permitted. The database may only be accessed through queries of individual phone numbers and only when the government has reasonable suspicion that the number is associated with a foreign terrorist organization. If it appears to be a U.S. number, the suspicion cannot be based solely on activities protected by the First Amendment, such as statements of opinion, books or magazines read, Web sites visited, or places of worship frequented. Any query of the database requires approval from a small circle of designated NSA officers.
A query will simply return a list of any numbers the suspicious number has called and any numbers that have called it and when those calls occurred. Nothing more.
The database includes metadata going back five years, to enable an analysis of historical connections. Any records older than five years are continually purged from the system and deleted.
In analyzing links to suspicious numbers, any connections that are found to numbers inside the United States will of course be of most interest, because the analysis may suggest the presence of a terrorist cell in the U.S. Based in part on that information, the FBI may seek a separate FISA order for surveillance of a U.S. number, but that surveillance would have to be supported by individualized probable cause.
The NSA has confirmed that in all of 2012, there were fewer than 300 queries of the database, and only a tiny fraction of the data has ever been reviewed by analysts. The database is kept segregated and is not accessed for any other purpose, and FISA requires the government to follow procedures overseen by the court to minimize any unnecessary dissemination of U.S. numbers generated from the queries.
In addition to court approval, the 215 order is also subject to oversight by the executive branch and Congress. FISA mandates periodic audits by inspectors general and reporting to the Intelligence and Judiciary Committees of Congress. When Section 215 was reauthorized in 2011, I understand the leaders of Congress and members of these Committees were briefed on this program, and all members of Congress were offered the opportunity for a similar briefing.
II. Legal Basis and Constitutional Standards
Now let me address the statutory and constitutional standards applicable to the acquisition of this telephone metadata.
Section 215 permits the acquisition of business records that are "relevant to an authorized investigation." Here, the telephone metadata is "relevant" to counterterrorism investigations because the use of the database is essential to conduct the link analysis of terrorist phone numbers described above, and this type of analysis is a critical building block in these investigations. In order to "connect the dots," we need the broadest set of telephone metadata we can assemble, and that's what this program enables.
The legal standard of relevance in Section 215 is the same standard used in other contexts. It does not require a separate showing that every individual record in the database is "relevant" to the investigation; the standard is satisfied if the use of the database as a whole is relevant. As I've indicated, the acquisition of this data and the creation and use of this database are not only relevant to ongoing counterterrorism investigations; they're necessary to those investigations, because they offer the only means to conduct the critical analysis that provides links to new phone numbers used by agents of foreign terrorist organizations.
In terms of the background constitutional principles, it's important to remember that the Fourth Amendment itself would not require a search warrant or other individualized court order for such data acquisition. A government request for a company's business records is not a "search" within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment. Government agencies have authority under many federal statutes to issue administrative subpoenas without court approval for documents that are "relevant" to an authorized inquiry. In addition, grand juries have broad authority to subpoena records potentially relevant to whether a crime has occurred, and grand jury subpoenas also don't require court approval. In the modern world of electronic storage and data compilation, reliance on the same "relevance" standard in these other contexts can also result in extremely expansive requests for business records.
In addition, the Fourth Amendment does not require a warrant when the government seeks purely transactional information, or metadata, as distinct from the content of communications. This information is voluntarily made available to the phone company to complete the call and for billing purposes, and courts have therefore said there's no reasonable expectation that it's private.2
I would stress, however, that Section 215 is more restrictive than the Constitution demands, because it requires the approval of a federal judge. In this way, Congress in the PATRIOT Act adopted a requirement for judicial review and approval of FISA business records orders that is more protective of privacy and civil liberties interests than the Constitution would otherwise demand. And while the 215 order for metadata is extraordinary in terms of the amount of data acquired, it's also extraordinarily narrow and focused in terms of the strict limitations placed on accessing the data at the back end.
III. Section 702 Order Targeting Foreign Communications
Let me now turn to the other NSA program at issue: The surveillance program targeting the Internet and other communications of foreign persons reasonably believed to be outside the United States. This program, which includes the so-called "PRISM" collection, is supported by a FISA court order issued under Section 702 of FISA, the provision for "programmatic" foreign-targeting authority that was added by the FISA Amendments Act of 2008.3 Similar authority was initially provided on a temporary basis in the Protect America Act of 2007.
The best way to understand this foreign-targeting program is to review the provisions of Section 702, which lays out the governing framework approved by Congress.
Section 702 provides that the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence may jointly authorize, for up to one year at a time, targeted surveillance of the communications of non-U.S. persons who are reasonably believed to be located outside the United States to acquire foreign intelligence information, provided the FISA court approves the targeting procedures under which the surveillance occurs and the minimization procedures that govern use of the acquired information.
Under Section 702, the surveillance may not (1) intentionally target any person, of any nationality, known to be located in the United States, (2) target a person outside the U.S. if the purpose is to reverse target any particular person believed to be in the U.S., (3) intentionally target a U.S. person anywhere in the world, and (4) intentionally acquire any communication as to which the sender and all recipients are known to be in the U.S.
Section 702 requires the Attorney General to adopt, and the FISA court to approve, targeting procedures reasonably designed to ensure compliance with these limitations, as well as detailed minimization procedures designed to ensure that any information about U.S. persons captured through this surveillance will not be retained or disseminated except as necessary for foreign intelligence reporting purposes.
Any foreign intelligence surveillance that is targeted at a particular U.S. person or any person believed to be in the United States requires a traditional individualized FISA order supported by probable cause.
Like the business records provision of FISA, Section 702 goes beyond the baseline protections of the Fourth Amendment. Federal courts have consistently held that the Constitution permits the executive branch to conduct intelligence surveillance within the United States without court involvement, provided the surveillance is focused on foreign threats.4 By establishing a detailed procedure for court approval and congressional oversight, Section 702 therefore provides a system of foreign intelligence surveillance that is more restrictive than the Constitution would otherwise require.
The PRISM Internet collection is precisely the type of court-approved foreign-targeted intelligence surveillance that Congress intended to authorize when it enacted and reauthorized Section 702 by overwhelming majorities. This program is subject to extensive reviews and periodic reports to Congress by inspectors general, in addition to the oversight of the FISA judges. Moreover, I understand that in advance of the reauthorization of Section 702 in 2012, the leaders and full membership of the Intelligence Committees of both Houses of Congress were briefed on the classified details of this program and all members of Congress were offered the opportunity for such a briefing.
* * *
For these reasons, I think these two programs are entirely lawful and are conducted in a manner that appropriately respects the privacy and civil liberties of Americans and the principles enshrined in the Constitution. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
1 See 50 U.S.C. § 1861.
2 See Smith v. Maryland, 442 U.S. 735, 743-44 (1979); Quon v. Arch Wireless Operating Co., 529 F.3d 892, 904-05 (9th Cir. 2008).
3 See 50 U.S.C. § 1881a.
4 See, e.g., United States v. Truong Dinh Hung, 629 F.2d 908, 914 (4th Cir. 1980).
*Steven G. Bradbury is a Partner at Dechert LLP in Washington, DC. Previously Mr. Bradbury served as head of the Office of Legal Counsel at the Department of Justice, where he was principal deputy assistant attorney general from 2004-2009 and acting assistant attorney general from 2005-2007.


text:
In Search Of Definitions
I can't casually use the term "Americans" to describe the residents of that geopolitical entity known as "The United States of America" anymore. It just doesn't feel right.
It's real; I see it and feel it—there are two very different Americas. It's a gaping division of the nation, but I lack words for it, and it evades definition. It's not about "haves" and "have-nots"; it's not ethnic or racial or neatly split along political party lines. It's certainly not about military and civilians, though the first examples which come to mind juxtapose the two. Maybe you can help.
>> Click Here << To Read More March 2011 Odd Angry Shot
Order Your Copy Of The March 2011 Issue Today!
Get More Odd Angry Shot


text:
At Gemvara, we believe that the jewelry you wear should be one of a kind, like you. That's why we make each piece to order, one at a time, just the way you want it. Choose Iolite and Rose Gold or Peridot and Platinum: it's your choice. Mix and match gems and precious metals for a look that's exactly you. Gemvara uses only the highest quality materials to craft your Wedding Day Gift Ideas: Rose Gold Citrine Birthstone Jewelry design with meticulous attention to detail. Our precious metals are recycled or responsibly mined. Legend says citrine has the power to protect against jealousy and snakebite. Citrine is yellow quartz, a close relative of amethyst, the purple quartz gem. Citrine is a November birthstone and the 13th anniversary gem.Warm 14 karat rose gold glows with an inner pink hue which flatters skin tones. Gemvara also offers many styles in luxurious 18k rose gold, which has higher gold content.Our wide selection of Wedding Day Gift Ideas: Rose Gold Citrine Birthstone Jewelry by talented designers means you can find jewelry that's exactly your style. You can also shop by style, choosing our Eclipse, Family, or Modern Collections. Gemvara's fine quality Wedding Day Gift Ideas: Rose Gold Citrine Birthstone Jewelry is designed to be passed down for generations to come, crafted by hand in the United States.
We can help right away. Chat with a jewelry expert now!


text:
In Jordan, proposed amendments to censor Internet
|Committee to Protect Journalists
|Publication Date
|31 August 2012
|Cite as
|Committee to Protect Journalists, In Jordan, proposed amendments to censor Internet, 31 August 2012, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/504719bfc.html [accessed 24 November 2017]
|This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.
New York, August 31, 2012 – Proposed legislation in Jordan would impose significant new restrictions on online news content and reader comments while giving authorities new powers to block domestic and international websites. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the lower house of parliament to reject the bill when it takes up debate on Sunday.
"If passed, these amendments would represent a huge step backward in Jordan's press freedom record," said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. "Jordan would be joining a list of authoritarian countries that use Internet censorship as a form of media repression."
The measure would apply the restrictions in Jordan's existing Press and Publications Law to online media. Those include prohibitions on insulting the royal family, publishing anything counter to "national obligation" and "Arab-Islamic values," inciting sectarian strife or stirring discord or violence, and slandering any public officials or foreign heads of states.
The proposal, which comes as an amendment to the 1998 Press and Publications Law, would require every online media outlet to register with the government and obtain an official license, similar to print publications, according to news reports. The legislation would also grant the government the right to block any website in violation of the law, including non-Jordanian websites, without a court order, the reports said.
Under the proposed amendments, electronic media owners and their employees would be responsible for ensuring that all comments published by their readers do not violate any laws, according to news reports. They would further be required to maintain a record of all comments posted on their site for at least six months, the reports said. The amendments also prohibit the posting of any comments not related to the published article.
If a website is found in violation of posting a comment not in accordance with the proposed regulations, it could face fines of up to 10,000 Jordanian dinars (US$14,000), news reports said.
The Jordanian government approved a draft of the bill on August 22, according to news reports. If the lower house passes the legislation, it will go to the upper house for review.
Journalists and media activists protested in front of parliament against the proposed amendments on Wednesday, news reports said. On the same day, the reports said, at least 500 websites featured a black home page with the following message: "You may be denied access to the content of this website under amendments to the Press and Publications Law as a result of government control over the Internet."
Many analysts say that Jordan has maintained free and open access to the Internet, a policy that stands in contrast to other countries in the region.


text:
In Brief: All-new cast work their way to Grand Canal Square with 9 to 5: The Musical
DOLLY Parton's 9 to 5: The Musical, comes to the Bord Gais Energy Theatre in Dublin's Grand Canal Square from Monday, January 21, to Saturday, January 26. With music and lyrics by Dolly Parton, the show is based on the Eighties hit film.
The show stars Natalie Casey as Judy, Jackie Clune as Violet, Bonnie Langford as Roz, Amy Lennox as Doralee and Ben Richards as Franklin, plus a full company of actors, singers and dancers. Tickets from €20 on Ticketmaster's dedicated line (0818) 719 377.
Jackson launches Dunphy interviews
JOURNALIST and author Joe Jackson has launched an ebook, Eamon Dunphy Unleashed, which includes a series of interviews he did with the soccer pundit and writer in the late Nineties.
Included are details of Dunphy's strained relationship with U2 following the publication of his book on the band, Unforgettable Fire, which sold over 100,000 copies.
"It was a very bad time; the full weight of the U2 machine fell on me," Dunphy is quoted as saying. The ebook is available through Amazon.
Recycle your Christmas tree
DUBLIN City Council is recycling Christmas trees at 11 locations in Dublin City until Sunday January 22.
The locations are:
Windmill Road Bring Centre, Crumlin, Dublin 12; Clontarf Road car park (beside former traffic school); Gulistan Terrace Bring Centre, Rathmines, Dublin 6; Albert College Car Park, Glasnevin, Dublin 9; Oscar Traynor Rd Bring Centre, Coolock, Dublin 5; Mellowes Park Depot (beside Dublin City Council Civic Centre, Mellowes Road, Finglas, Monday–Friday, 8am-4pm and Saturday and Sunday, 10am–4pm); Pigeon House Road Recycling Centre, Ringsend, Dublin 4; Walkinstown Green (Church, Bunting Park, Dublin 12); Milltown Car Park, Milltown Road, Dublin 6; Sandymount (Martello Tower car park, Strand Road, Dublin 4); Croke Park, Cusack Stand, Dublin 1 (via St Joseph's Avenue, also accepts WEE domestic and cardboard recycling, Mon–Fri, 8am-8pm, Sat and Sun 10am– 4pm, January 3-19 only. See www.crokepark.ie ).
Ron Pope in Dublin date on tour
AMERICAN singer-songwriter Ron Pope is in Europe on a 14-date tour. He hauls up at the Button Factory, Dublin on Thursday, January 10. His new EP, Monster, is out now.
Pianist opens NCH concert series
RENOWNED Russian pianist Nikolai Lugansky performs as part of the Piano Masters Series in the National Concert Hall on Wednesday, January 30. For tickets call the NCH booking office on (01) 417 0000 (no booking fee).
Open meeting on alcohol concerns
AN open public meeting hosted by the Dun Laoghaire-Monkstown group of Alcoholics Anonymous takes place at 8.30pm tomorrow night at Monkstown Community Centre, off Monkstown Avenue. All are welcome to attend.
Rehab Group offers arts funding
The Rehab Group has announced details of its Visual and Performing Arts Fund which will give €150,000 over the next five years to promote careers in the arts for people with disabilities or mental health difficulties. Applications are being sought from people with disabilities working in or studying the arts who require financial support for 2013. The closing date for the first year of the Rehab Visual and Performing Arts Fund is February 28, 2013.
Sunday Independent


text:
Hall County's Election Commissioner Pleased
Election lines ran long at various polling places across the state of Nebraska; and in Hall County, it was no different. Election Commissioner of Hall County, Dale Barker, told NTV News that this will be a "historic election" for Hall County.
"I think voter turn-out is better than imagined. The polling places are all very busy. Early voters were more than ever expected. They bogged us down, but we got through it," said Barker.
NTV's DaVonte McKenith reports that entrances to some voting locations had to be monitored due to overcrowding inside some of the designated voting locations. Officials further report that polling places were at a climax in productivity around 4 p.m. Tuesday. First-time voters even made their way to the polls with a clear decision with what they would like to see changed after the election.
"Healthcare. I believe that what's going on now is kind of ridiculous, and it needs to change," said Samantha Rivera, first-time election participant.For a view of where Hall County stands in Election 2012, visit NTV's coverage here.


text:
This product is no longer available.
You can try these similar gifts instead.
Red Sox Baseball Leather Money Clip
He may not catch a game ball from the seats but he can have a piece of one from a ball used in a Red Sox game with this money clip with card slots and an ID pocket.


text:
33rd Session of the UN Standing Committee on Nutrition
Opening ceremony
Catherine Bertini - Madame Chair,
Members of the United Nations Standing Committee on Nutrition,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Before I start, just let me say what a pleasure it is to be under the gavel of Catherine Bertini. I accompanied Catherine on a mission to the Horn of Africa at the time of the previous drought, when she was heading the United Nations World Food Programme, and before I took up this position. I know that we are in complete agreement about the close connection between nutrition and health.
So Madame Chair, good morning, and welcome to the 33rd session of the Standing Committee. WHO is delighted to be the host of this session. The initiative of this session is a vital one: to jointly discuss - and agree - how to address the growing double burden of malnutrition.
I have just come back from a week-long visit to three countries in Africa. I want to bring a little of the direct, immediate realities of the field into this meeting room. It is sometimes difficult to keep that strong sense of that reality when we are here, in comfortable Geneva, dealing with normative functions, policy harmonization and strategic frameworks.
Where I was last week, in Madagascar, Mauritius and Kenya, the everyday presence of nutritional deficiencies and disorders are painfully obvious. They dominate people's lives. They dominate their deaths. Yet often people don't see it that way. Their concerns are "my child is sick" not "my child hasn't eaten well enough to be able to fight this infection".
Malnutrition - specifically under nutrition - affects all of Madagascar, especially the rural areas. Nearly half of all children below five years of age suffer from chronic malnutrition. They are not getting off to a good start. Eighteen per cent of women of reproductive age are chronically malnourished. This is Ms Raharimalala Marie Claire, aged 32 who has four children (slide 3). Birth spacing is a problem. Diet is a problem. Alternatives to rice are too expensive, despite the fertility of the island. This is a classic multisectoral problem.
In Mauritius, chronic diseases account for more than 80% of all deaths. Chronic disease risk factors are rising in the country, and by 2015 it is estimated that more than half of all women and men will be overweight.
In Kenya, I spent some time in the Mbagathi District Hospital, in Nairobi, which diagnoses and treats people with TB and HIV. This woman came in thinking she had pneumonia (slide 4). When I met her she had already been in hospital for a month. She has both tuberculosis and HIV. In addition to the therapy she is now getting for both conditions, she desperately needs to regain weight. Nutrition has to be part of the essential package of care, treatment and support for people living with HIV/AIDS. The HIV epidemic is both driven by, and contributes to, the factors that also cause malnutrition: in particular, poverty, emergencies and inequalities. The droughts that have ravaged Niger and are now affecting the Horn of Africa are yet further setbacks to communities struggling for subsistence.
Without good nutrition, infants, children and adults alike are more vulnerable to disease and death. An HIV-positive child who is already undernourished needs more food than an infection-free child. The interactions of adequate nourishment and uptake of drugs, of having enough food and being able to fight infection, are crucial in our understanding of where our work must be directed. WHO is leading the initiative to address the linkages between HIV and nutrition.
Right now, avian influenza is sweeping through the world, wiping out entire poultry flocks within a day or so of its arrival. This brings an immediate threat to populations on the brink: a catastrophic loss of protein sources and livelihood as household flocks fall sick. The related threat, of human infection with the H5N1 virus and a change in that virus to trigger a human pandemic, is ever-present. But right now, in Asia, in Africa, in India, in the Middle East, there is an agricultural disaster building, which will inevitably have its human consequences. I invite you today, in this session, to make this part of your thinking and planning for coordination.
Next month we will launch the long-awaited Growth Standards Charts. They reflect a significant change in approach: to identification of children at risk. This preventive approach, which addresses risk factors, is at the heart of much of our work on leading causes of death - whether in the area of child survival - or in adult death from chronic diseases. It is based on the recognition that health conditions are the result of a complex interlocking set of environmental conditions and behavioural choices.
There is still a great deal to discover about the influence of each of those choices and conditions. And about what can be done to encourage and support more people to make the choices that result in better health.
We have to work on commonly agreed directions and messages. The effort to get those agreements is a tiny fraction of the effort that it takes to undo the muddle caused by confused messages. Misunderstandings, such as those caused by reporting of the conclusions of the "women's health initiative diet modification trial", can take years to clear up. And in the meantime momentum towards gathering a shared body of opinion, evidence, and action is lost.
The evolution of the growth standards is a fine example of collaboration and sharing of scientific information. This has been built up over the course of more than a decade between WHO, UNICEF, governments and many other partners. Similarly, this 33rd session is an important opportunity to rise above the boundaries that normally separate our work, and look to the greater goods of clear common interest.
Thank you.


text:
By Mary Glazer
Container gardens are as easy as 1, 2, 3. All I need is a pot, soil, and a plant. My containers vary from plastic, terra cotta, and lightweight faux cement, to glazed ceramic.
Almost any outdoor item works, as long as there is adequate drainage. After repeatedly patching cracks in a beloved old cement birdbath, it finally occurred to me to repurpose the item and grow sedum instead. It was a perfect match of a pot with good drainage and a plant with shallow roots.
Today's potting soil is available with added benefits for a container garden, including moisture control and slow-release fertilizers. My plants range from herbs, flowers, foliage vines, and succulents, to a ponytail palm. It doesn't have to be complicated. One or two plants per container can have a lot of eye appeal, especially when you're creative with their placement.
The simple dark-green foliage of herbs, set against a white trellis, not only is aesthetically pleasing but also conveniently located when I grab some chocolate-mint leaves for ice tea brewing in the kitchen. Monochromatic color combinations, where the container and plant are of similar color, add an elegant touch.
A simple begonia brightens up a dreary area on my patio. Repeatable features, whether a specific plant, color, or dimension, pull everything together. Nearby I use more begonias along with the dark burgundy of a sweet potato vine. Two identical plantings, placed on a double shelf, add a vertical dimension. To further balance this vertical element, I use a ponytail palm on the other side of the patio.
Container gardens provide me an opportunity for creative expression and a way to dress up a patio or similar space. I always keep one container reserved for annuals near my front door, switching them out with the seasons. From groupings of pots with one species, to multiple plant combinations, the options are almost endless.


text:
San Diego County Public Works and Environmental Health departments will hold a recycling and reuse event in Ramona on Saturday, Nov. 3.
With the exception of the Household Hazardous Waste Collection, which will occur from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., all events and collections will be from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Reuse & Repair Fair
: 1855 Main St., by Ramona Farmers' Market.
Drop off of Reusable Items and Food
: Ramona Food & Clothes, 773 Main St.
Recycling Collection for Tires, Scrap Metal, Appliances, Paper Shredding, Green Waste Drop Off and Pick Up of Free Mulch:
Ramona High School parking lot, 1401 Hanson Lane.
Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Dropoff
: County of San Diego HHW Facility, 324 Maple St.
At the Reuse & Repair Fair, area experts will provide demonstrations and information about how to reduce waste and expenses through repair and reuse:
•Home Weatherization: 1.5-hour workshop presented by Home Depot, Escondido.
•Bicycle Maintenance: Presented by Kirk's Bike Shop, Ramona.
•Appliance Repair: Presented by Mr. Ron's Appliance Repair, Ramona.
•Equipment Repair: Presented by Piva Equipment Repair Services, Ramona.
•Recycled Art: Presented by Tuesday Nights Artists' Group, Ramona.
•Sewing (hand-sewn and machine demonstration): Presented by Al Rios from Pins and Needles.
•Automotive Maintenance: Improve your gas mileage and find your vehicle's oil change interval.
•Repurpose common items: Create functional items, gifts, and art.
•Kids Activities: Including recycled arts and crafts (supplies provided) and Environscape, an interactive watershed model.
Donate reusable items to Ramona Food & Clothes Closet. Accepted items include: clothing, working electronics, furniture (no rips, stains, missing doors/legs), housewares and linens, books, toys, jewelry. Full list of items accepted is at ramonafoodandclothescloset.org/donatedmerchandise.
All donations to the Food & Clothes Closet are tax-deductible. The organization's mission is to provide emergency supplies to individuals and families in need in Ramona, Santa Ysabel, Julian, Ranchita, Borrego Springs, and Warner Springs.
Green Monster Shredding will provide free paper shredding and destruction at the high school site.
Some restrictions apply for tire recycling, household hazardous waste, and appliance and scrap metal dropoff.
Only residential tires will be accepted. No tires with rims/wheels and no truck/business tires will be accepted. Tires must be reasonably clean of dirt, and only nine tires per vehicles are allowed.
To make arrangements for tires with rims or loads of more than nine tires, call 1-877-713-2784.
Household hazardous waste items that will be accepted include: paint, household cleaners, pool/auto/lawn chemicals, aerosols, and lighter fluid.
Other restrictions: Do not transport more than 15 gallons or 125 pounds at one time, containers will be limited to 5-gallon buckets, a limit of five televisions or computer monitors, and no business waste, ammunition, medications, explosives, or radioactive materials.
For appliance and metal dropoff, call 1-877-713-2784 to receive a confirmation number before the event as space is limited. Items that will be accepted for free include: scrap metals, ovens/stoves, washers, dryers, air conditioners, water heaters, dishwashers, and non-working refrigerators and freezers.
For working refrigerators and freezers, call 800-599-5792 to arrange for free pickup and a rebate.
For more information, contact Jen Winfrey at 858-694-2463 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Image copyright:
Please sign in to comment. Don't have a profile? Join now! Joining is absolutely free and no personal information is required.
Well, lelabug, that particular blossom will never eventuate in fruit.
What a beautiful p********** flower!................Did you destroy the fruit?......
Whatever wars or not - Varda, it is a most lovely flower!! Thanks so very much, have never seen one before!!
Tsk. . . .
I don't know if a lot of folks know the "pomegranate wars" background. My humble (mostly bystander) point of view was that - so often - the comment streams get taken over by random sidetracks or topics completely unrelated to the puzzle photo. Sometimes it is for a Kaffeeklatsch, like on some of our friends' puzzles where the photo is just an invitation for a chat among friends who know each other; sometimes it turns into a political debate, like on other puzzles where the photo is just an invitation to conflict one way or the other; and back a couple of months ago, for whatever reason, it kept turning to the topic of pomegranates on the Lelabugosi pages. So, the word "Pomegranates" became shorthand for "Enough, already! Change the topic of the conversation or at least post comments that have something to do with the puzzle photo in some way." (Yes, that's a lot for one word to signify, but that's how it was "originally" used.) The next logical step was to ban the word. Then the "forbidden" word started making appearances in anagrams or acronyms or other wordplay.
So, when you said the "forbidden" word in your title / photo, I naturally giggled. No offense! It's a lovely flower and an amazing fruit.
Plus, I have regularly used the word
to express my humble opinion that the conversation has gotten into overly strange territories
and someone I know uses the word
Am I missing something here, David? Or are we off to the pomegranate wars again?
tee hee
Very pretty. Thanks.


text:
Link building, the heart of off page seo. We know how necessary link building is. A site won't get authoritative without a lot of powerful natural backlinks pointing to the site. And the process we use to build backlinks is link building as we already know.
Ahh, we know what it is but we actually don't. Because link building nothing but a sort of spam, according to Google's point of view! Google explained, any link created to manipulate search ranking is spam. So link building also goes under the same category.
So link building has gone, now it's time to gain links. In my opinion, there is no better alternative of it. Because it's more powerful and safer than ever. We should learn how to acquire links instead of using some kinda spammy methods to build links.
Do you know there is a lot of methods that can be used to gain links? Unfortunately, we didn't care those methods before. Why? Because those were not instant and practical. And now there is no choice without them.
So let's get introduced to 5 advanced methods for earning links and probably many of you might haven't heard of it before.
Method #1: Broken Links
You might be thinking, broken link…!!! What is it? How does it help to gain links? Well, here is your answer.
Broken link is a link that appears on a page that doesn't exist or returns an error page. We usually see some of the web page links returning 404 pages or got deleted. These are actually called broken links.
Broken links are so much harmful for websites. Because it stops the crawlers to completely crawl a site. As a result, it can be the main reason behind the rank drop or de-index of the web page. So every website should be focused to check all the links in their websites are up.
So it will be a brilliant idea to find other website's broken links and suggest to replace it with your one. And that's the strategy. If we help them to find their broken links, they will feel grateful and there will be no excuse to replace it with your url. But they will only do this when they will find your content useful.
Most importantly, it will be really natural and authoritative, earned links. So here is how we should do:
- Find broken links from your competitor's websites. You should extract all links of a website and find out the broken ones. In this case, you can easily use ScreamingFrog. Or you can check broken links of a page by browser extensions like LinkChecker for Mozilla Firefox, DomainHunterPlus for Google Chrome.
- Outreach the site webmaster through email and explain him the problem. And finally suggest him to replace that with your awesome content link.
Method #2: Infographics
Infographic is another creative link building method. It's already proved that, readers love to read infographics more than a post. In fact, these can dramatically increase conversation rates. Check out Abid Omar's latest infographics here.
As far as I've experienced, almost all the webmasters would love to see infographic on his site. So if we could provide them with an excellent piece of infographic and ask them for publication, they might get agreed to it. In fact, they will not hesitate to reward the creator with a backlink.
Don't Make this Link Building Mistakes.
But please keep in mind, quality matters. No one would be interested to publish just an infographic that doesn't have much value.
So here is how we should do:
- Find out some popular sites in your niche that might be interested in infographics.
- Email the webmaster asking for the opportunity to publish your awesome infographic.
- Request for a link back as a reward of your hard work.
Method #3: Testimonials
Giving testimony to products are another great way to gain links. Actually the online products get sells depending on user ratings. So the providers will always be looking for some nice, inspiring testimonials to support his products.
So all we can do is to review products we used for our websites and leave a nice testimonial that will help both of you and the provider. As a reward and live example, the provider can include your website alongside your name. So that will be a really powerful backlink pointing to your site.
But make sure again, you don't leave fake testimonials. Do proper review for only the products you used. So here how to do it properly:
- Go to the review page of the products you bought for your websites.
- Give an eye-catching testimony to the products and look for real linking opportunities.
Method #4: Free Services
Offering free services to a website would be really nice and the webmaster can easily realize how dedicated you are. In fact, they will be interested to reward you with a backlink from the service you just provided.
The services could be logo designing, web development or anything related to the website. Anything that adds value to the website must be appreciated by the webmasters. So they will feel free to credit the service provider as well.
But again, however the service is free or not, the quality has to be fantastic. Otherwise, no one will show interest in it.
So here is how we should work:
- Head to your niche competitor's websites.
- Find something that could be improved and offer to do that without any cost.
- Ask for a link back as a credit for your hard work.
Also Learn: Marketing Secrets Every Blogger Should Know.
Method #5: Linkout
One of the most avoided tactics that usually all of us regret. Why? Because we thought, there are no advantages of linking out to other sites. In fact, it will be a loss of link juice or it will pass your competitors some traffic. That's all, isn't it?
But I truly believe, linkout is great and even greater. Linkouts help us to broaden the area of knowledge and add much more value. In fact, linkout or linking out is a great method to build relations with the competitors.
From the seo view, if we linkout, the webmasters might get notified through pingbacks or trackbacks. So there will be chances to get a link back from the pingbacks or trackbacks section even from the contents.
So here is how we should handle it:
- Link most relevant and valuable contents of other websites.
- Wait and see how the webmasters response to it.
- If possible, outreach the webmaster and ask him to share your posts too.
Must Read: How to generate Traffic using Pininterest.
My personal opinion is, link building is something that depends on your creativity. The more powerful your ideas, the more powerful you backlinks. So always be creative to gain backlinks and you will be on the top.
I've shared my most favorite methods to gain backlinks rather than building as like the 1990s. There are still a thousand of methods, but I'll recommend to try these and please don't forget to share your views on this topic and do you have any other exciting methods?
Subscribe To Our Newsletter
Enter Your Email Below And Get Access To My Proven SEO and Traffic Tips.


text:
Rome, March 27 (IANS) Water contaminated from an illegal toxic dump has been distributed over the course of years to residents of a large area in central Italy, the Italian Higher Institute for Health (ISS) said in a report Wednesday.
"The contaminated water was distributed over a vast territory and to about 700,000 people, without control and even to hospitals and schools," Xinhua quoted the ISS as saying.
The report underlined that the quality of water in the massive dumpsite, that was found in a chemical industrial area near the city of Pescara, was "unquestionably, significantly and persistently damaged" due to "the extraordinary environmental impact of industrial activities" and "reckless spilling."
Investigators opened a probe in 2007 over harmful contamination in the area, uncovering toxic substances that had polluted nearby rivers and aquifers since the early 1960s.
More than 20 people are being investigated, including managers of Italian former chemical producer Montedison and the Belgian company that acquired the chemical industrial area in 2002.
The toxic dump was an "ecological bomb, the biggest in Europe", interred at the feet of two national parks in the heart of the Mediterranean country, chairman of the environment commission of the Italian lower chamber Ermete Realacci was quoted as saying by Il Fatto Quotidiano newspaper.
Realacci explained that the dump was located in an area of around 30 hectares in size where nearly "one million tonnes of toxic and industrial waste from the production of chlorine, soda, bleach, formaldehyde, perchlorate, vinyl chloride and ammonium chloride" were buried.
The estimated environmental damage, he stressed, was of 8.5 billion euros (or $11.7 billion) while a total of 600 million euros (or $827 million) will be necessary for remediation.
The report said that consumers had not been informed of the "substantial risk" of using the contaminated water and therefore "were not able to know the situation and make informed choices."