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Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Fibre Deployment) Bill 2011
Second Reading
- Turnbull, Malcolm, MP
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- Second Reading
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Main Committee
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Page: 7506
Mr EWEN JONES (Herbert) (17:44): I rise to speak on the Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Amendment Bill 2011 and give it my qualified support. In fact, a lot of my thoughts will be exactly the same as those of the member for Robertson. My wife is in fact an early childhood teacher. One thing that I would like to see in the future is equalised funding going to primary schools and, in particular, to early childhood centres, because that is where the battle is won or lost. If we can get these kids into a classroom, get them to know their alphabet and learn the outcome based education, then we will all be a lot better off.
As I said, a lot of the things I will be covering here will be covered with exactly the same feeling as that of the member for Robertson; I will just come at it from a different direction. The good part of this bill is that it extends the current funding arrangements, including indexation arrangements, for the 2013 calendar year. The funding covers programs such as the Indigenous Youth Mobility Program, helping Indigenous youth move away from home to gain skills for employment. In the city of Townsville a number of people are prepared to assist with this. We have a fantastic TAFE, Tec-NQ and we also have Shalom Christian College. St Pats, run by the Sisters of Mercy, is a great school. It has an incredible population of Torres Strait Islander and Palm Islander girls, who come across there to complete their education all the way through, from grade 8 to grade 12.
The bill also covers funding for the Sporting Chance Program, which uses sport and recreation activities as a means of increasing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander engagement in school. Both these programs were implemented by the coalition and, to the government's credit, both these good programs have been continued. Both have been successful in increasing student participation and retention rates. This so-called necessary extension of funding is because we have to allow time for the report, which is due sometime this year, following the review of funding for schools. The government has acknowledged that this review may have implications for the programs run under the IETA Act. I would urge the government not to touch the programs that are working to get kids into schools.
This is where I start to have problems with this legislation and, by extension, all the legislation relating to Aboriginal and Islander affairs. For a start we have these good programs, using sport and recreation, which actually get the kids into school. When we get them there, we sit them down and either they participate in the NAPLAN or we make them prepare for NAPLAN. Too many schools these days are wasting time just preparing for tests and going through tests to get them ready. So we say to the kids from the missions: 'Come in, go to school.' We use sport, music, dance and art to get them in there and, as soon as we do, we throw that out of the window and they no longer participate and we wonder why they do not go back to school.
I agree with the member for Robertson: we as a community have to look at and decide what success is. Is the fact that they can actually speak English by the time they finish school a success? In some cases, it should be. But how do we qualify that and how do we ensure that they are getting the right funding? Those are the questions that we have to ask.
I recognise that this is a big issue. But, for the life of me, and the First Australians of my electorate, we cannot see where all the money is going. For all its good intentions, this place must see the frustration. For all its well-thought-out plans, bills and amendments we are still seeing a complete lack of clear results in our communities. Our Aboriginal and Islander school children remain the most troubled group. They are the most likely to be truant. They are the most likely to finish their education early. They are more likely not to possess the basic literacy skills required to achieve anything above menial labour. They are more likely to die young and they are more likely to suffer substance abuse. I have been a member of this House for less than a year, and yet I feel a great frustration when it comes to the provision of services for our First Australians. In my maiden speech, I pointed to people and organisations who were trying to make a difference. They are making a difference in the community by targeting specific groups, specific programs and specific native groups of people to get things done.
I continue to talk about, for want of a better term, federalising the industry of Aboriginal and Islander affairs, and the member for Robertson addressed that matter as well. I am not a federalist by nature. But, for the life of me, when I speak to the mayor of Palm Island, the mayor of Yarrabah or to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander elders in my community they do not know where the money is going. It goes from federal to state, to local and there is a trickle that comes out the bottom. They are raising concerns with me as to where the money is going. Are there too many consultants? Are the state governments robbing us blind? Is the federal government through the Public Service not getting the funds through? Those are the questions that just do not seem to be heard, because it all leads to money not getting to the pointy end—and that is what we need. Too often we see people falling through the gaps. We now have more people in care than during the stolen generation. When you think about how much money we have thrown at the issue, you have to pause and ask, 'To what end?'
I was at the Cleveland Youth Detention Centre recently. They have instigated a program where the boys in the centre are exposed to normal businesspeople who mentor them in life. They do not judge the boys nor do they care what they have done. The people who participate are there to see if there is anything that they can offer, anything in their own lives which they have done which could give these boys a chance they so desperately need. These people are not qualified as social workers; they are qualified as people who have jobs and who have life experience. They spend time with the boys. There are some of the Cowboys players that are so welcome in that place but, more often than not, they are just businesspeople going in and spending time with them.
When you go into Cleveland Youth you see the existence of foetal alcohol syndrome and abuse they have suffered are rife in the inmates in the centre. The blame for that lies across the whole region and the whole community. But the mentors do not let them make excuses. They tell them that sometimes bad things happen; some things are beyond their control; and sometimes you just have to suck it up and have a go. That is the mentors' basic message: have a red hot go, be prepared to fail and fall over but have a go.
It is with this in mind that I suggest that we change the way we do things. The current way is simply not good enough. If it was a business venture, you would have cut its head off long ago—too much money and very little return. I was on Palm Island last week and I sat down with Mayor Alf Lacey and acting council CEO Jeff Brown. Alf's mantra is: 'Do not talk to me about welfare. We are over it. What we want to talk about is economic opportunity to be masters of our own destiny.' To that end, Palm Island council are working as a council and as a community to try to lift the island's profile in Townsville for its economic opportunities.
You only have to come over the hill to see what they are doing with weed eradication, the way the town square has been spruced up with paint and the way the council chambers have been cleaned up. What a pretty place it is and is going to be. There is cyclone damage across the foreshore roads where you still have power poles basically in the sand. It is a long road to travel, but they are heading in the right direction.
We need to look at opportunities for our first Australians but we cannot have some bureaucrat or politician in Canberra telling them what that opportunity is and the money will be that and they will be doing this and they will be getting paid that. We need these communities to stand up and tell us what they want to do. We need to help out as a silent partner with business plans and paperwork. Let the residents have a go. Let them drive their own future. We need to micro manage each of these. We need to see what can be done and fund it directly. We need our ministers to do more. We need our directors-general to do that. We need our public servants to change the basic way they are dealing with this part of Australia's life.
For too long we have been giving money over and patting them on the back and sending them on their way. This has to stop. If there is an Aboriginal or Islander person who wants to change and wants to step up, we should be handling their case as a single unit. We need to set out goals and manage their future along with them until they have made it. We also have to acknowledge that this is not for everyone. The more we look at this issue, the deeper it gets; the deeper it gets, the less we do; and the less we do, the more money it costs us.
This is not a swipe at the government, but I do believe that spreading the portfolio of Aboriginal and Islander affairs across so many portfolios and having it as a small part of mega large departments does not seem to be the answer. I do not question the commitment of Minister Snowdon or Minister Macklin, but it is too easy for staff of the department and for even the ministers to say that it is the duty of another portfolio and another department and wipe their hands. That goes across the state as well.
We need to change our focus. We need to be outcomes focused and not budget focused. We need to have as the focus of each member of the Public Service that we want to educate our Aboriginal and Islander children, teenagers and adults. Those who want to work for it will be rewarded with the gift of literacy and better health and jobs and futures. We have to do this one person at a time. This year's theme for NAIDOC Week is 'The next step is ours'. Let us be right there with those who want to take that step and give them the assistance they require. No-one wants any more than that. They are not asking for any more than that. If I am to be accused of being simplistic, then so be it. My idea may not work. But what has?


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Schrade Desert Storm Sheath Knife Mint In Sheath NR
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Hi I'm James Parker and I am offering this Schrade knife for auction from the last of the authentic Schrade USA produced Ellenville, NY knives. Personal checks, money orders, and Pay Pal gladly accepted. TN residents pay 9.25% state sales tax. Winning bidder pays $5.25 for USPS Priority Mail Shipping with Insurance and Delivery Confirmation included in the Shipping price. Thanks.This is a Schrade Operation Desert Storm Sheath Knife for auction. This knife is 7 1/8" overall with a 3 1/2" blade and features the double riveted scales with the special Scrimshaw work featuring a tank, a Stealth fighter and an eagle. Please see the Supersize Photos.
The front tang of the blade is stamped with Schrade U.S.A. SC 502 and etched with "Operation Desert Storm Limited Edition". Also included with this knife is the Genuine Leather Sheath. The rear side of the blade is serial numbered with #0252. As you would expect, the blade features the full tang, all 1 piece design.This Schrade Operation Desert Storm Sheath Knife from the authentic Schrade USA Ellenville, NY inventory is in mint condition with Genuine Leather Sheath and being offered at No Reserve. Thanks for your bids, we appreciate it.

subset: commoncrawl


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Well, again another story of sex videos online. Actually, it is a story of how finding free porn movies on the web. Have you also had some experience, regarding searching for hot websites in the evenings, never wanted to be so bored alone? The answer is so easy moreover, for the guys. As a woman, never happened to me I will browse on the Internet to find free porn in order to make my sexual hunger be satisfied.
So the story begins with the words of "free porn". Do you have knowledge about its meaning? Sex videos online? Webcam sex live you can see in anytime and anywhere? Gazing porn videos nowadays are more and more common, being a habit, a real activity for people. Not for only youngsters but also middle-aged men are always looking at milfs with big tits, chicks with huge sexual experience. Let your fantasy and imagination free! At the first time when I realised I need something exciting, something strange and other from the usual sex, I decided to search on the Internet. But honestly, I could not know the correct words, phrases in connection with the best porn sites. I wrote sex, sex videos, porn movies, free sex videos or online sex videos and so on … but the real miracle was the phrase of "free porn". That's what I wanted, so I managed to find TGPDog.com as the hottest free porn site, having a so good and hierarchic web structure. You can see sex videos, webcam sex online, searching among some kinds of different categories, like Asian or Indian girls, milfs, massage, lesbian porn, having the best porn movies updated daily. You can also make comments and at least not only homemade videos you can gaze at but also real pornstars show how can desire you in front of the screen. Never thought and dreamt about watching free porn for more hours and night when next day I needed to go to work. Looking at xvideos usually make me happy and be satisfied. Now, I do not want to write sexual hard words in this story as I did last times. It is about only the site how you can watch free porn in any time you will desire wet pussy or want your dick hard. All sex videos are available day and night as watching them on mobile, tablet and computer. The only things you need are some minutes, internet on your device and loneliness for example at the workplace. OK, it is not always true, I mean if you want to see not only one free porn movie you need more minutes. Furthermore, gazing at free porn could mean watching them with friends or partners not alone. So any options you choose the best solution will be TGPDog.com. So let's use your fingers and type.
What is your first free porn video? What is the best category you have checked yet? Have you already watched all sex videos at TGPDog.com? Never be bored since each day you will get the latest online porn movies. Now, I need to go so I will let you alone with the site to desire free porn. Let's have new adventure in this hot and sexy world!


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Books-to-Movie News 2010, part 2
Wednesday, August 11, 2010 | By Library Goddess | No Comments
Remember this post where we sampled some of what maybe the most anticipated books-to-movies coming out for 2010?
Once again, 2010 is just full of books-to-movies coming out. Some of the latest have been:
- Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World based on the Scott Pilgrim series by Bryan Lee O'Malley. (Due out August 13)
- Flipped based on the book by Wendelin Van Draanen (Due out August 27)
- It's Kind of a Funny Story based on the book by Ned Vizzini (Due out September 24)
And some books to TV including the Pretty Little Liars series, which is based off of these books.
In Twilight news, Break Dawn is slated for a two part release, one in November 2011 and another in 2012.
Don't forget to check the catalog for the books and for the DVDs (when they are released). Some in the previous post may be on DVD now.
Did we forget something you're looking forward to (such as Beastly based on the book by Alex Flinn which has been pushed from 2010 to 2011)? Let us know in the comments.


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Lawyers and law firms focus too much on the mediums when it comes to social media.
Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, and now, Pinterest. Should we use this one or that one? How do we use it? Do we use it for personal use versus professional use?
Marketing Strategist, Chris Brogran (@chrisbrogran), writes to forget about the medium, it's the people you're looking to connect with that you ought to focus on.
We seek to connect with people. We want to reach them for whatever our goal might be. It's our effort to connect with them in a meaningful way that benefits our mutual needs that should be the goal. It's never about the delivery mechanism.
…Who follows whom on Twitter isn't all that interesting. What we do with those connections is why it matters. How we take our access and make something interesting happen-that is the goal.
Again, it's not whether I follow you or not. It's whether something I do can improve your business or goals, and it's whether you can share something or introduce something, or riff on something, or whatever. It's how we use the network to build a system. It's how we make our platform shine to help others, to grow our business, and more. That's the magic.
The mediums themselves are just tools for networking and building relationships. Whether they're traditional (Rotary meetings) or new (Google+), doesn't matter. How you use these mediums to build relationships is the key to your business development success
Brogan asks, "So is Pinterest the new amazing network?"
It will be, for those who use it to build a relationship that goes beyond the pins. Any network is serviceable, if you learn how to interact and help people satisfy their needs.
Well said.


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|You are in: Talking Point
Monday, 13 August, 2001, 09:29 GMT 10:29 UK
Are the English in Wales 'outsiders'?
The Welsh First Minister Rhodri Morgan has warned nationalists not to pander to extremists who are against English people moving to Wales.
His address to the National Eisteddfod in Denbigh, follows comments by the former chairman of the Welsh Language Board, John Elfed Jones.
Mr Jones described "outsiders" moving to Wales as carriers of "human foot-and-mouth disease" and a threat to Welsh language communities.
The comments have been criticised as inflammatory and there are worries that the issues could divide Wales into English- versus Welsh-speaking communities
Should people moving into Welsh-speaking communities learn the language? Whatever nationality you are, do John Elfed Jones' comments offend you?
This Talking Point has now closed. Read a selection of your comments below.
G. John, Wales
So Wales is full of outsiders? Funny, I though it was England that is full of the Welsh. After Ann Robinson's comments on Room 101 earlier this year, there was an outcry with demands for her prosecution for being racist. John Elfed Jones's remark is exactly the same. Will the police in Wales investigate him? I doubt it.
This is the problem with nationalism.
Nationalists start picking who is an acceptable
'national' and who isn't.
The problem for the Welsh language is that
50 years ago 15% of the population spoke
Welsh and now 8% do. Welsh is going the way
of Cornish unlike Gaelic which has always had
a vibrant culture (it has never required a Gaelic Language Society)
to keep it alive.
Regardless of English being the most powerful and widespread language in the world, every nation which has its own language has a right to protect and preserve it. There are parts of Wales even today where 80% of the population is Welsh speaking. Employing a non Welsh speaker in the public sector in these areas would be crazy, and certainly wouldn't be a case of racism.
I lived in mid-Wales for 11 years and by far most of the Welsh people I knew spoke English themselves! The first thing the chairman of the Welsh Language Board should do is try and motivate Welsh youngsters to actually want to use their own language before casting assertions about the English.
Dan, UK
John Elfed Jones' comments certainly offend me. Being Welsh has NOTHING to do with what language one speaks - whether Welsh, English, Urdu, French or anything else. The devolving of power in Wales was for reasons of subsidiarity - not some platform for crazed nationalistic idealists who are still holding prejudices from events that occurred centuries ago.
Speaking as a Welshman I think Mr Jones is an idiot!
Martin Morgan, UK
John Elfed Jones is speaking the language of hate and as a leader in his community, should be held personally responsible for any unfortunate results of his declarations.
As a Welshman living in a non-English speaking country, I feel particularly qualified to comment on this.
I can easily get by speaking only English here, as almost everyone speaks, or at least understands it. However, I have considered it only proper that I endeavour to learn Finnish (Welsh, by comparison, is a piece of cake!), and after some years, I am capable of holding my own. The greatest reward for my efforts is that it has opened up the whole Finnish culture and way of living to me, which would otherwise pass me by. I feel more a part of the people, and enjoy myself much more.
I would encourage non-Welsh inhabitants of Wales, no matter what their nationality, to study and master Welsh, as they can only expect a richer, more fulfilling future if they do so.
See also:
07 Aug 01 | Wales
Minister steps into 'outsiders' row
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Halladay vs. prospect: 'Pretty nasty'
Halladay vs. prospect: 'Pretty nasty'
The pitchers pitch, and the hitters take.
Well, not all of them. But many simply like to track the ball to get their timing back. That is exactly how Chase Utley, Raul Ibanez and others treated their Thursday morning session against Roy Halladay on Ashburn Field at the Carpenter Complex. They watched Halladay throw cutters and sinkers and changeups, and they never took a cut.
Domonic Brown took a different approach.
"I was trying to get in there, see a few pitches and try to hit the long ball off him," joked Brown, whom MLB.com ranks the 14th-best prospect in baseball. "But it was pretty nasty, man. Pretty nasty. It was tough for me. Roy was throwing his cutter, and everything was moving. He has a nasty sinker. But it was exciting. It was such a great experience for me."
Brown is not the first hitter to use the word "nasty" when describing Halladay's pitching repertoire. But it was entertaining to watch the Phillies' top prospect take a few hacks against arguably the game's best pitcher, even if it meant nothing.
At one point, Brown, who fouled off two pitches and missed a third, noticed that nobody else was swinging and asked Ibanez if he should be trying.
"I kind of felt bad," Brown explained.
Brown made contact on his second swing, fouling off a sinker down and away.
"He had me on my front foot looking nasty," he said. "I was seeing it, but once it comes out of his hand, it's moving. He doesn't throw anything straight. That's the tough part of it."
"It's tough at this point for any of them," Halladay said. "Obviously it's their first time seeing pitchers. They're trying to see the ball as much as they can."
Halladay said he got what he wanted from the session.
"Just being able to work both sides of the plate with somebody standing there is always nice," he said. "You kind of start to get a feel, especially pitching inside."
Carlos Ruiz caught Halladay and came away impressed. He said Utley, who normally doesn't say much, looked back at Ruiz a couple times after watching a couple of Halladay's sinkers.
Kind of like, "We're supposed to hit that?"
"You could see it in his face," Ruiz said with a smile. "His sinker impressed me. So did his cutter. Every pitch was in the strike zone. He's the kind of guy who can go long in the game, because he's going to throw a lot of strikes. He'll go seven, eight innings easy. That's what I saw today."
Todd Zolecki is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Lucy Bernholz and Rob Reich.
First ever forecast sheds light on complexities.
The social economy consists of the broad array of mechanisms or tools for the deployment of private resources for the public good. We identify policy issues related to the structure and operations of the social economy, with a particular eye to the issues facing charitable nonprofits and philanthropic foundations.
The first section frames each of several policy domains:
- Governance and Accountability
- Finance
- Political Activity and Campaign Finance
- Digital Infrastructure and Content, and Taxes
Within each domain we identify active policy and note whether the discussions are occurring among legislators, regulators, within industry groups or in the courts. This section serves as a map to a wide-range of pending policy decisions.
The next section gazes into the more distant future and is, therefore, more speculative. We aim here to survey the landscape for new policy ideas percolating among scholars, activists, and practitioners that are not currently on any administrative or legislative agenda, but that are worthy of discussion.
The forecast draws from the work of the Philanthropy, Policy and Technology Project at Stanford University's Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (PACS). The forecast is part of an ongoing exploration of the rise of novel mechanisms for the private financing and production of social and public goods, including the emergence of a digital civil society and the regulatory, practice, and policy options these developments bring forward.


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Iggy Azalea falls off stage at MTV benefit concert
Iggy Azalea fell off the stage during her performance of 'Fancy' at the MTV VMAs benefit concert in Los Angeles.
Iggy Azalea fell off the stage during the MTV Video Music Awards benefit concert on 22.08.14.
The 22-year-old singer left fans speechless at the charity gig after she accidentally tumbled into the crowd whilst performing 'Fancy' at the Avalon in Los Angeles.
Security guards rushed to catch the rapper and quickly pushed her back on the stage to continue singing. After the track, which she performed with Charli XCX, Iggy told the audience that she felt ''blessed'' to have not broken her legs during the dramatic stumble.
It is not known whether the Australian star was injured during the fall but she appeared in good spirits after her set and even posted a clip of the blunder on Instagram.
She wrote alongside the short video: ''Sorry but it would be a crime not to share this with you all, I know I laughed. #StillFinishedtheSongTho #KeptOnRapping #TheShowMustGoOn (sic).''
Sam Smith and Tori Kelly also performed at the event benefiting Lifebeat - Music Fights HIV/AIDS, which is a national non-profit organisation focused on educating youths about HIV and AIDS prevention.


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Digital banking
Useful information
Online security
Helping you to stay safe
Take a few simple steps, and you really can protect yourself when you go online.
Everything about our service is designed to protect your security.
Take your personal information. We only ask you to enter random parts of your password and memorable date - never the full details.
What's more, all information passed between the online banking website and your computer is fully encrypted, keeping your details safe from harm.
General security tips
Online security is just one part of staying safe. Our security advice centre has lots of useful information to protect you and your money
Antivirus software
Anti-virus software protects your computer in two ways.
First, it detects and removes any computer viruses and spyware that have been installed on your computer without your permission.
Secondly, it helps to prevent viruses and spyware from infecting your computer in the first place - and compromising your online security.
If you do have antivirus software (like Norton Anti-Virus, McAfee Antivirus, or Zone Alarm Anti-virus) update your virus definitions at least once a week to keep the latest threats at bay.
If you do not currently have antivirus software, you should consider buying and installing some as soon as possible.
Maintain a firewall
A firewall is a security application that sits between your computer and the internet, shielding your computer from unauthorised access.
Any computer you use to access the internet should have a firewall.
We recommend that your firewall is set to monitor incoming and outgoing internet traffic. This ensures that you have control over information that enters and leaves your computer.
If you have a modern computer you probably have a built-in firewall - Windows XP, Windows Vista and Mac OS X have one as standard.
Read your help menus for instructions on checking or setting up your firewall. If you prefer, you can also download a commercially available product.
Ensure your software is up-to-date
You should regularly check for updates to your operating system and your applications.
If you have a Windows computer, you should visit the Windows Update site once or twice each month.
If you have an Apple computer running OS X, you should run the Software Update tool once or twice each month. For patches and updates for any of your software applications, visit the software publisher's website.
Keep your security details secure
Remember that RBS International will never ask you to supply your complete password in order to access our internet banking service. We only ever ask for parts of your password.
Your security number and password are the keys to your online accounts and information. You should never share them with any one else - and remember to change your password as often as possible. This helps ensure it's secure.
Make your password memorable so you won't forget it, but ensure you choose one that will be difficult to guess.
Finally, never write down your password or PIN. However, it's fine to write down your customer number.
Don't get caught by fraudulent (or 'phishing') e-mails
Phishing is a fraud technique used to attempt to trick people into revealing their security number and password to fraudsters.
The fraudster sends out a fake e-mail that has been designed to look like it comes from a reputable source (like RBS International).
This fake e-mail asks for security details or directs customers to a counterfeit banking or commerce site. At the counterfeit site, the fraudster asks the customer to enter their complete security details - such as password, security questions, and user name. These stolen security details are then used to commit fraud.
If you receive an e-mail requesting your security details, do not reply and do not follow the instructions - even if the e-mail suggests that you need to take immediate action to stop your account being frozen or it indicates that you may incur a fine if you don't.
These are just tricks that the fraudster will use to manipulate you in to giving away your vital details.
Report fraud
If you suspect a phishing attack, call us on 0845 600 8212 (Textphone 0845 900 5960), or forward the suspect e-mail to email@example.com Calls may be recorded.
Lines are open 24 hours, 365 days of the year. The maximum call charge from a BT landline is 4p per minute. Calls may be recorded. Calls from other networks may vary.
Type www.rbsint.com directly into your browser
By typing directly into your browser instead of following links, you greatly reduce your chances of being duped by a spoof site.
Check for 'https' and the padlock
Genuine secure sites have addresses that start with 'https'. They also show a locked padlock symbol in the bottom section of your internet browser, or beside the website address.
Double-click the lock symbol
Double-clicking the locked padlock symbol brings up information about the lock that can help you confirm that the site is genuine. If the padlock is not within its valid dates, or has been issued to a website that you do not recognise, do not enter your security details and call us on 0845 600 8212. (Textphone 0845 900 5960). Lines are open 24 hours, 365 days of the year. The maximum call charge from a BT landline is 4p per minute. Calls from other networks may vary. Calls may be recorded.
Always logout of secure sites
Never leave your computer unattended when logged in to a secure session (like internet banking). Ensure you log-out properly when you have finished your internet banking session.
Computers in public places
You cannot be certain about the security of public wireless networks or computers in public places (like a library or internet café). So be very cautious about using internet banking services in these situations. Never change your security details while using a public wireless network or a public computer.
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group does not review or endorse and shall not be responsible or liable for the advertising, content, products, goods or other materials or services available on external websites or resources.


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Vintage Gold Bug Straight Razor~ A.Witte Germany ~ Nice
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- Sold Date:
- Source: eBay
Vintage Gold Bug Straight Razor~ A.Witte Germany ~ NiceUp for sale we have this Vintage GOLD BUG, A Witte Germany. Box and razor are in great shape. I think the handles are of a yellow celluloid but I will let you be the judge. I've provided several pictures.In the last picture I am pointing out the gold plating?? with my pencil.We will gladly combine shipping on multiple purchases when possible to do so, just ask and we'll wait till your done before we invoice you. All items come with Insurance for your protection and is included in the shipping costs. Thanks For Looking!!!


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Online video game retailer Shopto.com, is offering gamers a way to get rid of unwanted games without the hassle of always putting them up for bid. Instead, gamers can directly sell their games to another gamer at a fixed price. Hey, it's just like Gamestop without the brick and mortar.
The online auction has become a big part of getting rid of video games. Shopto.com hopes to detour gamers from always going the long and patient-reducing route of putting your old games up for bid, and alternatively they offer games a way to get rid of the games directly. I mean, really, through an auction you're only going to get $0.45 for selling Enter the Matrix anyway.
For registered customers they can easily log-in, pick a seller's name, agree to the terms and agreements, and then you're good to start selling your new and used games. There's a minor catch to this new process, given its infancy. And the catch is that you can only sell your games if it's already available on Shopto. As it reads in the press release, "For the initial version of SellTo you will be only able to sell products that we currently have on the site and which have been released. Once you have checked and found the game product listed on the site that you want to sell, all that is required is to click on the product to go to the detailed description where you will see a sell with ShopTo button. The whole process will take just a few minutes - entering the details of the game/s you want to sell, entering a price, quantity, and extra information, like whether the item is new or used. New being that the game is still sealed in its packaging. Anything else is to be classed as used. A confirmation page will allow you to review details and a bar code request ensures all details match the appropriate title."
Once your item is listed, any gamer wishing to purchase that item can send the seller an e-mail and confirmation on both ends (from the seller and the buyer) is made. After that, the seller sends out the game, and once the gamer receives it they post up a confirmation that they received the game and the money is automatically deducted from the buyer's account and transferred to the seller's account. Easy right? Well for more information regarding the new buy/sell process, you can visit Shopto.Com.


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Here at Cosmo, it's our mission to make sure you have spectacular sex. Now, new research is shining a light on a different piece of the action puzzle: how the quality of your guy's erection affects your pleasure.
The rationale is this: the harder he is, the more stimulation he can provide – which will, in turn, make sex more satisfactory for you. And science can tell us how we canmake him stiffer! "Certain nutrients, sexual techniques and lifestyle factors absolutely affect the potency of a man's erection, which helps to improve his partner's experience as well," says Dr Steven Lamm, author of No Guts, No Glory.
We spoke to experts who gave us the full monty behind five erection-improving secrets – plus how to implement them on the sly.
Stock up
Dark fruits, such as blackberries, have a lot of anthocyanins – potent antioxidants that are an erection's best friend. A student at Indiana University found arteries treated with them were better able to hold on to nitric oxide – which allows blood vessels to expand, making room for the blood that rushes to the penis when a guy gets aroused.
Be in bed early
Peckers in peak condition typically have one thing in common:they're attached to men who log at least seven to eight hours of sleep every night. "Men experience erections during the REM cycle of sleep," says Dr Lamm. "This means fresh blood is being driven into the penis, which ensures it's getting the nourishment it needs."
The second factor is mental. "Morning erections are common, but what people don't realise is that it's not just because testosterone is highest then," says Barry McCarthy, author of Men's Sexual Health.
"If he's getting enough deep sleep, he's dreaming, which is the body's way of renewing itself psychologically. His mind is a fresh palette in the morning, and with no other thoughts or anxieties competing for his attention, he can focus 100 per cent on sex."
Booze less
All our experts agreed on this point: alcohol improves sex only insofar as it makes people feel less self-conscious. But physiologically, booze is an inhibitor. "It reduces testosterone formation in the testes, so it's more tricky to get a top-notch erection," says McCarthy. This means that when your guy is under the influence, he's unlikely to get hard enough for you to get the best from him. So make sure that neither of you has had more than two drinks before getting busy. Or better yet, stay sober.
Do it on empty
If there's ever a time when a man's performance is sure to disappoint you, it's when he's deep in a food coma. "After a large meal, the blood he needs to produce an erection goes to his stomach to help digest the food," says Dr Lamm. And if he chowed down at a fast-food joint, it packs a double wang-waning whammy. "When there are a lot of extra fats circulating, it stuns the cells in the body that are responsible for redirecting the flow of blood to the penis, so an erection isn't going to form easily," explains Dr Lamm. Instead, get ready to pounce on him after a very light meal.
Seize his second wind
Now that you know how to make him Superman-strong, consider this interesting little nugget about increasing his stamina so you can snag a bonus round in the bedroom: the secret is to seduce him one hour after you've already had sex.
According to Dr Lamm, those 60 minutes are known as the refractory period – that is, the amount of time it takes a man's penis to recover fully after ejaculation. "Doctors have discovered that after an hour's worth of rest, men will last longer during the second round of sex than they will during the first," explains Dr Lamm. Sneaky!


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Two babies killed in road crash
Two babies are dead and three children are in a serious condition after a car crash on the Bruce Highway near Childers, south of Bundaberg in southern Queensland, on the weekend.
Police say the four-wheel-drive vehicle carrying seven people veered off the road and crashed into a tree about 1:00am (AEST) on Saturday.
A woman and three children are in a serious condition in the Royal Brisbane and Childrens' Hospitals.
Police say it also possible the driver fell asleep at the wheel.
They are calling on anyone saw the crash to come forward.
Meanwhile in central Queensland, a female passenger has died in a crash on the Bruce Highway south of Gladstone.
Three cars collided 40 kilometres south of Miriam Vale shortly after 6:00am (AEST).
A man and a woman were flown to Bundaberg and Rockhampton hospitals.
Three other people injured in the crash were taken to Gladstone hospital.
Topics: road, childers-4660, bundaberg-4670, gladstone-4680, miriam-vale-4677
First posted


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In just under a month's time the UK driving test will undergo its biggest shake-up in decades.
From December 4 a number of changes to the practical test will be introduced putting more emphasis on "real life" driving, including independent driving and using in-car technology.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) says the changes are being introduced to ensure the test is relevant in the 21st century and that new motorists have all the skills they need for a lifetime of safe driving.
So for all the learners out there here's a breakdown of what to expect from December 4:
More independent driving
The period of independent driving – without turn-by-turn instructions from the examiner – is doubling from 10 minutes to 20 minutes.
Follow directions from a sat nav
To reflect the fact many new cars come with satellite navigation, most candidates will be asked to follow directions from an in-car system.
The examiner will provide and set up the system – a TomTom Start 52 – and the driver will have to follow its instructions.
You'll be able to ask the examiner for confirmation of where you're going if you're not sure. It won't matter if you go the wrong way unless you make a fault while doing it.
One in five driving tests won't use a sat nav. Candidates will need to follow traffic signs instead.
Changes to manoeuvres
Two manoeuvres have been removed from the test and replaced with new ones.
Candidates will no longer have to perform a turn in the road or reverse around a corner. Instead, they will be asked to perform one of the three following manoeuvres:
- Parallel park at the side of the road
- Park in a bay – either driving in and reversing out, or reversing in and driving out (the examiner will tell you which you have to do)
- Pull up on the right-hand side of the road, reverse for 2 car lengths and rejoin the traffic
New show-me, tell-me questions
Previously, candidates were asked two vehicle safety questions before setting off. Now, they will be asked one "tell-me" question – where they must explain how they would carry out a safety task – before beginning the drive and one "show-me" question – where they must demonstrate how to carry out a safety task – while driving.
These questions cover everything from opening the windows to checking if the car's ABS is working. You can find a full list of the questions here


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Wandering the streets of Paris together is how Scott and Ali got to know each other. He was from Australia, she fromView full post »
A sea breeze cooled the warm, summer sunshine as Len and Olga were married at Dundarave Park in West Vancouver lastView full post »
We made our annual getaway to Whidbey Island for some camping at Deception Pass last week. It couldn't have comeView full post »
It was his heart for the Lord, his kindness, his compassion. It was her generous spirit, her grace and her inwardView full post »
We're ducking out for a few days to head to our favourite place to set up camp…in the woods, along theView full post »
On a sun drenched day, surrounded by many friends and family who gathered to support, encourage and witness, SuzanneView full post »
It happens. When you put yourself out there for the world to see, when you share your work that is actually aView full post »
Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
one can helpView full post »
These things I want to remember: finding joy/rest/each other in the midst of a wonderfully crazy wedding season (and aView full post »
Personal vows were said. Promises to say I love you every day, to keep him warm, and to always be present in theirView full post »
Their story goes like this: he pursued her for a year before she agreed to go on a date with him. Just to prove theyView full post »
This past June I had the lovely and wonderful opportunity to work with talented photographer and friend, RobynView full post »
Mikaela Ruth Photography // Design by Kelsey Breanne Creative|ProPhoto Photographer Site by NetRivet Blogs


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Designed by Gregory Kay read more...
Aurora Halogen Round Edge 3.3 Inch Aperture Invisible Trim with IC and Air-Tight Housing is a specification grade, recessed adjustable accent fixture for plaster or drywall construction. A flush mounted rigid plaster plate, which is finished into the ceiling, maintains a flat finish. Combining the knife edge 3.3 inch aperture with the Aurora dome and tilt gear hidden behind the lamps creates a clean internal look. Fixture offers hot aiming with 0 to 45 degree vertical adjustment and 362 degree horizontal rotation without beam clipping. Precision machined gear adjustment is concealed behind the lamp. Features self locking tilt and manual locking horizontal rotation. Includes machined aluminum snoot and die formed aluminum back shield to control internal spill light. The snoot carries the lamp and two optional light control accessories, sold separately. Includes a soft focus lens. Housing is made of die formed aluminum and includes one 12 volt 75 watt toroidal magnetic low voltage transformer. Housing is IC and Air-Tight, suitable for remodel or new construction. Dome features an anodized soft haze finish. Dome hides electrical hardware and tilts for easy access to junction box and transformer. One 12 volt GU5.3 MR16 71 watt maximum is required, but sold separately. ETL listed for damp locations. Housing: 14.75 inch length x 12.1 inch width x 5.75 inch height. Optional Aurora Gear Cover and light control accessories sold separately.
Pure Lighting combines minimalist design with state-of-the-art technology to produce innovative lighting that seamlessly blends into drywall or plaster ceilings. The revolutionary collection features Truly Trimless recessed fixtures, advanced LED RGB technology and concealed lighting components that provide a clean, glare-free internal look ideal for commercial or residential applications.
The Aurora RGB is the only recessed fixture to combine both halogen accent light with colored LEDs resulting in a glowing disc of color at the aperture while the halogen white light projects downward performing an accent function. LEDs are controlled to be static color, cross-faded or set to the beat of the music. Other features of the Aurora family include hot aiming lamp adjustment, knife edge apertures, a rigid plaster plate and dome interior. The self locking gears and other hardware are hidden behind the lamp within the dome interior and the knife edge aperture eliminates glare and brightness creating a skylight effect. The flush mounted rigid plaster plate continues a clean uninterrupted ceiling and prevents chipping and cracking at the trim aperture, which is common with other recessed manufacturers.
The fixtures are available with the Truly Trimless 3.3" aperture, along with beveled and flat flush trims of various aperture sizes. Complimenting the Aurora family, the Genna wall wash features a trim that produces no-glare at the aperture and an ultra uniform field of light that covers the entire wall with a straight edge at the ceiling plane. Beyond the accents and downlights, the Stratus wall grazer offers dramatic yet energy efficient lighting for textured surfaces by uniformly (8 x 160 beam) illuminating vertical surfaces with warm white or cool white LEDs.
Made in the USA.
On Jan 07, 2014 by Beth L. from Chicago, Illinois(Customer)
We installed Aurora recessed lights throughout the house, and I am beyond impressed with the quality of these lights. They disappear into the ceiling and it's like they aren't even there, but of course they light up the room beautifully. The salesperson at Lightology helped me plan the whole project - which types of light to put where - and the end result is incredible. If you are building or renovating I highly recommend having your lighting professionally done. I insisted on having it done right and it makes all the difference in the world.


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CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State University has been awarded full accreditation for the care and facilities of its animal research and teaching programs by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care, International.
AAALAC accreditation is recognized internationally as the "gold standard" for animal care and use programs, OSU officials say.
"Our participation in the rigorous AAALAC accreditation process demonstrates our commitment to humane and responsible animal use in research, instruction and testing, as well as dedication to excellent science," said Rick Spinrad, OSU's vice president for research.
OSU becomes just the 20th land grant institution with complete institutional accreditation. The comprehensive overview and site evaluation by the association accreditation team included facilities and processes of the university's College of Agricultural Sciences, Agricultural Experiment Station, College of Veterinary Medicine, Hatfield Marine Science Center, Oregon Hatchery Research Center, and the entire campus animal research endeavor.
There are 854 accredited institutions or units worldwide; of these, OSU is among the 60 largest.


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I am a recent member of the Harry Potter fandom, but I have always had a passion for the written word, and I hope to fulfill it here. I live in a relatively boring corner of Idaho, and I like Kokanee and a good book!
So, I suppose you're wondering what's up with my username. Even if you're not, this is how that happened. No, I was not aspiring to be a Gryffindor. I can't think of any house to which I would belong less than Gryffindor, in fact. It was a moment of clarity that I got while I was battling with myself about whether I should want to be Sorted into Gryffindor to be like Harry or to be Sorted elsewhere and follow my own path. I thought it to be much like the contemplative scene in Hamlet when he weighed taking his own life. I'm not trying to be melodramatic. That's simply is what popped into my head when I was trying to sign up to leave a review. :D
Any questions or comments about my work? Please shoot me an email at: email@example.com — I'd love to hear from you!
A writer struggling with writer's block.
A bedtime story.
A legend.
Winner of Best History/Mystery in the '09 QSQ's. Thank you!
Seventh grader Alexandra Quick returns to Charmbridge Academy. This year she faces bullies from another wizarding school, a secret Dark Arts club, and the machinations of her father, but her greatest trial yet awaits her in the dangerous Lands Below.
This is the second book in the Alexandra Quick series.
Winner of the 2008 Quick Silver Quills Award for Best General Story.
The first book in the Alexandra Quick series.
The war against Voldemort never reached America, but all is not well there. When 11-year-old Alexandra Quick learns she is a witch, she is plunged into a world of prejudices, intrigue, and danger. Who wants Alexandra dead, and why?
This story is canon-compliant with the Harry Potter universe, but the characters and settings are all original. I've put a lot of work into envisioning a world as detailed as the original series; I hope you enjoy it.


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Here's my Top 10 links from around the Internet at 8 am in association with NZ Mint.
As always, we welcome your additions in the comments below or via email to firstname.lastname@example.com.
See all previous Top 10s here.
My must read today is #8 from the Economist on the way meritocracies turn into plutocracies and what to do it about it.
1. Nikkei targeting central bank - We've had strict inflation targeting.
We've had flexible inflation targeting.
We've talked about targeting nominal GDP.
The Federal Reserve is targeting the unemployment rate at 6.5%.
Now we have Japan's Economy Minister Governor, Akira Amari, talking openly about where he thinks the Japanese stock market's Nikkei index should be.
The Nikkei is rising as we speak as investors tired of 'fighting the Fed' and losing, move into the line.
Here's Felix Salmon from Reuters with a discussion. He's in favour. I'm not so sure. This is a classic attempt to get an economy going through trickle down economics where the richest and most leveraged make a killing before anything else moves. Here's Felix:
I like this move: it shows imagination, and the upside is much bigger than the downside. The worst that can happen is that it doesn't work, and the stock market ends up doing what the stock market would have done anyway; the best that can happen is that it helps accelerate the broad recovery that everybody in Japan is hoping for this year.
What's more, Amari is not the first policymaker to talk about targeting asset prices. Minneapolis Fed president Narayana Kocherlakota, for instance, said quite clearly in 2011 that stock prices "are really going to be a central ingredient in the recovery process"
2. Relax! You'll be more productive - Economists may not like this idea, but here's the New York Times with a growing body of evidence that workers overwhelmed by email, back-to-back meetings and longer work hours need to work less to produce more.
More and more of us find ourselves unable to juggle overwhelming demands and maintain a seemingly unsustainable pace. Paradoxically, the best way to get more done may be to spend more time doing less. A new and growing body of multidisciplinary research shows that strategic renewal — including daytime workouts, short afternoon naps, longer sleep hours, more time away from the office and longer, more frequent vacations — boosts productivity, job performance and, of course, health.
"More, bigger, faster." This, the ethos of the market economies since the Industrial Revolution, is grounded in a mythical and misguided assumption — that our resources are infinite.
3. Watch Italy get a good Grillo - I pointed to the amazing rise of comedian-politician Beppe Grillo and his Five Star movement in Italy last year. He wants to renegotiate (ie write off) Italy's debts and pull Italy out of the Euro.
Bloomberg reports his support is still strong ahead of elections later this month. Keep an eye on the elections on February 25/26. If Grillo gets a big chunk of power, expect a financial markets reaction...
"The debt must be renegotiated and the interest on the debt must be renegotiated," Grillo said yesterday in a Bloomberg Television interview in Trento. "We won't have growth in this country for 10 years if the climate stays as it is."
Grillo, a self-described populist, has rallied to nearly 20 percent in some polls with a call to reconsider euro membership and to drive established politicians from parliament. The 64- year-old former stand-up comic and yogurt pitchman is travelling the country doing two rallies a day before the Feb. 24-25 general election. He spoke to 2,000 people in the mountain town of Bolzano on Feb. 10 before a rally in Trento.
"The debt is growing, the only thing that's growing," Grillo said. "It's darkness, a darkness that has oppressed and is oppressing ordinary people."
4. A managed default for Japan? - The Guardian writes about Japan's attempts to break out of its deflationary trap and how it is considering a managed default on its government debt. It's hard to believe Japan is actually discussing this, but if it's true it's explosive. HT John via twitter.
Japan is engaging in investment and innovation across the board and on a scale Britain can only dream of.
Time after time, as I questioned company leaders about their capacity to do this, I was referred to Japan's "public interest" or "stakeholder" capitalism – committed long-term ownership, partnership with the state to drive research forward and corporate leaderships keen to find commercial responses to the giant economic and social problems of our time. It is a world foreign to our own of shareholder value maximisation and gigantic personal bonuses, where interest in social problems is seen as "anti-business".
This dynamism refuses to be submerged by debt deflation; Yonekura pointed out that, while New York had built 20 skyscrapers in the last decade, Tokyo had built 50. But to unleash this dynamism, Japan has had to break out of its monetary and financial trap. The newly elected government has gone some of the way, proposing a huge Keynesian stimulus and lifting the inflation target to 2%.
But, as Turner argued, Japan's stock of public debt is now even more suffocating than private debt. Japan must go further: turn it from onerous debt into free cash by in effect printing money. Done right, this would not create inflation but steady the economy. There is an intense private battle raging between the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Japan. Either the bank starts monetising public debt, as Turner argues, or the Ministry of Finance will launch another unthinkable, unilateral reduction of Japan's public debt burden by demanding borrowers accept worse repayment terms. Plans are being laid for a managed default unless the Bank of Japan prints money.
This is what happens when societies face impossible demands. To sustain the social fabric, investment and innovation, governments have to do non-conservative things – reframe their capitalism and break conservative financial rules. Japan is now ready to do this, the Liberal Democrat party feeling that too much is at stake not to act.
5. The rise and rise of inequality - The Guardian reports on a Resolution Foundation report showing the top 1% in Britain now take home 10% of the income (up from 7% in the 1990s), while the bottom half earn 18%.
Even Tory buffoon (and London Mayor) Boris Johnson is in favour of increasing the minimum wage.
Tackling the gap between rich and poor is a growing political issue. The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, has called for a policy of "pre-distribution" to try to narrow the gap between the best and worst paid, while politicians from across the spectrum, including the mayor of London, Boris Johnson, have praised the idea of employers promising to pay the Living Wage, currently £8.55 an hour in London, and £7.45 elsewhere. The deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, last week revived the idea of a "mansion tax" on homes worth more than £2m, or higher council tax bills for the costliest properties.
6. Just what Europe needs (not) - More budget cuts. BBC reports on plans to cut European Union spending by 3%. What are they thinking? Europe is in perma-recession with a massive demand shortage. Cutting spending by the one section of the economy still able to spend is just ludicrous.
7. Amazon unpacked - FT.com reports from a massive new Amazon warehouse built in a depressed former coal-mining village in the North of England.
Despite the extra jobs, not everyone is happy. Amazon employs a lot of contractors and treats its workers like the robots.
If anyone should still be a cheerleader for Amazon, which has created hundreds of jobs in the past 18 months in a community that sorely needs them, it is Glenn Watson, manager of economic development at the district council. But he is dismayed. "They're not seen as a good employer. It's not helpful to our economy; it's not helpful to the individuals," he says. Britain's economic transformation is playing out in miniature in this smoky little town. It hasn't been a smooth ride.
8. The problem with meritocracies - The Economist has a thoughtful piece on the problems of social mobility in an era where meritocracies seem to have turned into plutocracies.
It is, of course, good that money flows to talent rather than connections, and that people invest in their children's education. But the clever rich are turning themselves into an entrenched elite. This phenomenon—call it the paradox of virtuous meritocracy—undermines equality of opportunity.
This is happening throughout the rich world, where elites have proved remarkably adept at passing on privilege down the generations (see article). But it is most acute in America. Back in its Horatio Alger days, America was more fluid than Europe. Now it is not. Using one-generation measures of social mobility—how much a father's relative income influences that of his adult son—America does half as well as Nordic countries, and about the same as Britain and Italy, Europe's least-mobile places.
America is particularly exposed to the virtuous-meritocracy paradox because its poor are getting married in ever smaller numbers, leaving more children with single mothers short of time and money. One study suggests that the gap in test scores between the children of America's richest 10% and its poorest has risen by 30-40% over the past 25 years.
9. Maybe older workers should be paid less - News reports the Netherlands is having a debate at the moment about whether older workers, who can be less productive, should be paid less.
A FRENCH multinational's suggestion in the Netherlands to ask older workers to accept pay cuts as a cost-cutting measure has touched a raw nerve as the Dutch economy faces a slowdown and rising unemployment. Unions see the idea doing away with the principle of paying older workers more for their experience as an attack on a fundamental right, while employers see it as a solution to avoid layoffs in a crisis-hit economy.
The debate has raged in the Netherlands since French IT giant Capgemini's Dutch general manager, Jeroen Versteeg, said he was looking at "calibrating" 5,000 Dutch-based employees to see if salaries matched current market value and productivity.
10. Totally Jon Stewart on who could replace the Pope. Could Mitt the Mormon do it?
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18 Comments
Hi Hugh, on that 'why Californian's leave and home price' chart has someone does this for NZ? Be interesting if someone could, you or Interest team. If you can't afford a house, basic need, then off you go soemone else. Seems pretty basic and clear. I'm not sure that relationship is clear here; and it should be clear in everyone's mind - if that's happening.
Thanks very much for the excellent info you keep providing.
Hi Hugh
The why leave California article is a cracker.
#7 and #9 - China will be worried - it is fast losing the competitive edge in terms of ability to exploit its working class.
I'm older (said, coyly) and am currently on the same salary as I was in - yup - 1999. Conscious trade-off - several firms in between 1999 and now, and I'm not the only one in this game. Still well above NZ average. No union (there are nada unions in IT - funny innit) to gum fings up. Don't mind one bit. Frictionless capitalism, one could say.
Re:#6 And the source of their spending wealth was/is?
Same as everyone, energy...
While I tend to ignore the site....
The New "Water Barons": Wall Street Mega-Banks and the Tycoons Are Buying up Water at Unprecedented Pace
"Allianz Group: Water Is Underpriced and Undervalued"
Chevron is buying all the Rice farms around here, they come with large water takes. Chevron is going to be the States biggest rice grower
Or use the water for something else. Fracking? growing bio-fuel crops? etc etc
Actually is there any fracking potential around you? not knowing just where you are. Has chevron bought fracking rights and now needs huge quantities of water? ie what else have they bought fairly close by?
We live a few minutes from here
Something has to be done about this bloody exchange rate .
At the end of last year , if I sold goods for $100,000 Australalian FOB Auckland I got NZ$127,000 .
Today you get NZ $121,000 which is NZ $6,000 less on a single small consigment, and if you do that every month it equals the wages of 2 New Zealand workers over the year.
Thats not factroing in that you are often competing with Indonesian , Thai, Malaysian and Chinese products in the Aussie markets and those Asian producers now have an even bigger price competitive advantage .
This is going to knock New Zealand out of business by mid 2013
I dont know why you suggest such a date, but I agree on the trend...and that we need to do something.
Great real world examples by the way, really drives home just how bad the impact is....and the costs of raw materials has done what?
Meanwhile the banks pontificate on we all must do something....easy drop OCR to 1.5% and lets start with the banks profits dropping as a result.
Asian, well personally I buy NZ first and OZ second and never buy USA. I think we should have more policy/drives on buying NZ first myself and that manufacturers and vendors should be advertising where its made to boot, pushing it hard, the USA does.
re: 6
the administration (read: bureaucracy) component of the budget actually went up. How dumb is that!!!!
100 more jobs to go at contact...well the NZ powerhouse economy is in full flight, looks like the economists predictions of 6% unemployment by end of year really do look accurate...yeah right:
Hence some farmer share holder(50% of shareholders) sceptcism on the widsom of TAF and DIRA. The cooperative model is accussed of having lazy capital and poor 'corporate discipline amongst other things (not withstanding unsustainable levels of debt taken on by farmers partly as a result of DIRA and anti cooperative fair value share), but time and again we have seen and reaped the results of woeful corporate performance.


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The blazing novel of the most seductive woman who ever lived
The blazing novel of the most seductive woman who ever lived
No idea what this is about.
via DAW Books and Shannon Associates
For some reason, that space ape is weilding the Staff of Saruman
via DAW Books and Shannon Associates
via DAW Books
How do you stop a superhuman villain who knows what you're going to do before you do?
via DAW Books
Tempestuous Novel Of One Night's Madness
Nora was a high-spirited girl, but was she a murderess?
As rugged as Spillane — as swift as Prather
Karate and Burns Bannion again — kicking up a lethal storm in Tokyo's sin streets
Two zany street photographers in Hollywood — caught in a deluge of mirth and murder.
Gun law pursues a man who is himself out after a killer…
A Hatfield and McCoy Novel About Hillbilly Feuding and Loving


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by Portfolio Grader | June 20, 2014 8:00 pm
Healthcare stocks rose 0.5% on Wall Street today.
More broadly, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3%, the Nasdaq was down 0.2% and the S&P 500 declined 0.3%.
Some of the biggest gainers among healthcare stocks include:
Some of the biggest losers among healthcare stocks include:
For more information on the best stocks to buy[21] right now, check out the latest commentary on InvestorPlace.com[22].
And for more on the hot stocks moving most on Wall Street right now, check out our archive of daily market movers by sector here[23].
Editor's Note: Returns for the fastest-moving stocks listed here are based on share prices 20 minutes prior to publication of this story.
Source URL: https://investorplace.com/2014/06/biggest-movers-in-healthcare-stocks-now-lci-stj-cyh-siro-lci-stj-cyh/
Short URL: http://invstplc.com/1kW37Qz
Copyright ©2017 InvestorPlace Media, LLC. All rights reserved. 700 Indian Springs Drive, Lancaster, PA 17601.


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Rare earth opened to Bay Area campers
Updated 6:37 pm, Sunday, July 6, 2014
The new Bootjack Campground at Mount Tamalpais State Park in Marin County helps solve a huge problem. And provides a rare opportunity.
The problem is there are too few campsites in the Bay Area, considering the high demand for them. The campground's first-come, first-served sites provide the opportunity to get a campsite tonight - or any night - providing you arrive early enough.
Bootjack is located on the southwest flank of Mount Tamalpais along the Panoramic Highway, just up the road from the beautiful Pantoll walk-in campground.
Bootjack provides a trailhead for the Matt Davis Trail, a hiking route that leads to West Point Inn. For bikes, Old Stage Road is nearby, a route for mountain bikes to West Point Inn and to the historic Old Railroad Grade Fire Road; left up to East Peak, right down to Mill Valley.
Campgrounds at Bay Area parks are often booked months in advance for peak dates. This includes the drive-in sites at Chabot and Del Valle regional parks, and the hike-in sites at Point Reyes, Angel Island and Big Basin Redwoods.
Latest Living videos
New campgrounds open in the Bay Area less often than Bigfoot sightings. Environmental studies, water systems approval and access requirements can make them too expensive to build for State Parks.
Bootjack, which opened this spring, is the exception because it was a pre-existing campground. It was built in 1922, even before the creation of Mount Tam State Park in 1928, and then improved by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s.
"The campground was closed in 1969 by State Parks as part of a park-wide clampdown on resource destruction resulting from the tens of thousands of people staying on Mount Tamalpais during and after the 1967 'Fantasy Fair' concert," said ranger Rob Walton.
"In recent years park staff worked to reopen the campground in recognition of a pressing and long-standing demand for camping spaces in the San Francisco Bay Area," he said. "Besides undoing decades of wear, much work was required to bring the campground up to modern standards, including the addition of accessible sites."
Tom Stienstra is The San Francisco Chronicle's outdoors writer. E-mail: email@example.com Twitter: @StienstraTom


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Cars > GoldyLocks's Garage > Blog > Oh Man o Man. What a Week. CyberHeadache and all!
GoldyLocks's Blog Posts 1 – 5 of 40
- A great day with Mongoo$e
- Fri Jan 13, 2012 | 2 comments
- You want that burger with one hump or two?
- Fri Feb 5, 2010 | 2 comments
- Smokey Gets The Bandit's ---- Mustang that is
- Fri Feb 5, 2010 | comment
- Happy Birthday Darrell
- Fri Feb 5, 2010 | 1 comment
- Rally Sport in Australia -- a hoppin' sport.
- Sat Dec 5, 2009 | 1 comment
Oh Man o Man. What a Week. CyberHeadache and all!
Feb 1, 2008 | Views: 1,110
But, I could only stand back as our brilliant engineers worked to find the cyberproblem that was keeping Motortopia from loading up for many of you around the world. I just had to stand back and let them work.
We did a lot this week to upgrade the Motortopia data center. In our new world class location, we are getting ready for new developments at Motortopia. But, the last week, well, gave us all a cyberheadache.
The new data center is working great! But the gettin' there was a bit of a challenge.
My usual approach is NOT to blame other. We should all look at our own actions first, and take responsible action to fix the problems. But, I must say, that our team did a great job. Upgraded a data center in record time, and got things all hooked up with multiple backbone providers. And most things worked, but may of you could still not get to Motortopia.
We discovered some problems with a large upstream internet backbone provider. Someone there finally cared and we go this fixed.
We're back, but, oh what cyberheadache.
Thank you all for being online, sending in reports worldwide, and encouraging us all along this week.
Ok, back to bed to get some rest. Just checking to make sure the routes are working.
Motortopia is still here and goin strong.
Thank you, all my Motortopia friends!
Permanent Link to this Blog Post:
Log in to post comments.
Read comments on this blog post 1 – 3 of 3
- Feb 6, 2008 at 8:01 am
- Good work, David.
Glad to be back!
- Feb 1, 2008 at 8:44 pm
- Thank goodness !! I was going into withdrawals !!!!!!!
- Feb 1, 2008 at 11:53 am
- Hi David
Glad this headache is behind you. Remember this: (if it does not kill you it makes you stronger) boy (what a crock that is) stress sucks when the cause is beyond your control it really sucks!
Take care,
Cars > GoldyLocks's Garage > Blog > Oh Man o Man. What a Week. CyberHeadache and all!


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Laura H.wrote a review of Kamik Heidi Rain Boot - Women's on July 10, 2009
Review Title
I bought these boats for a rafting trip. Forecast lots of rain, and I wanted dry feet in camp. I loved them, comfy, stylish, and they had the added bonus of keeping my feet dry getting on/off the boat while in camp. I wore them a lot more than I thought I would.


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Unexpected siren activation causes concern
An unscheduled tsunami siren activation Thursday afternoon caught the public and Civil Defense off guard.
The alarms blared across the island at 3:10 p.m. without warning, over three hours after the scheduled test at 11:45 a.m.
The Hawaii Police Department announced 10 minutes later that there was no danger and that it had activated the sirens as part of ongoing tests.
Police Chief Harry Kubojiri and Assistant Chief Marshall Kanehailua couldn't be immediately reached for comment.
Phones were ringing off the hook at Civil Defense's Hilo office within minutes, a reporter observed, with callers wondering if it was a repeat of Saturday's tsunami warning that led to statewide evacuations.
Staff were unable to give many details to callers except that there wasn't an emergency.
"They're still investigating that," one caller was told.
"It may have been a malfunction," another was informed.
Civil Defense Administrator Benedict Fuata said he wasn't informed of the second activation beforehand even though he was in a meeting with Kubojiri when it occurred.
Fuata said police told him it was part of the day's test.


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Jon Lester start all for nothing
Credit: Matt Stone
DETROIT — When left-hander Jon Lester learned he'd be the Red Sox' 2012 Opening Day starter, the honor came with a warning label attached.
As in he'd be facing Detroit right-hander Justin Verlander, who last season won both the American League MVP and Cy Young awards.
|The article you requested has been archived


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Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana is facing a federal discrimination complaint over a decision to reject third party payments from the state's Ryan White funding programs.
Lambda Legal and AIDSLaw of Louisiana filed the action with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Civil Rights on Feb. 10.
The insurance company has claimed that it instituted the policy of rejecting third party payments from non-family members in response to a federal rule meant to crack down on insurance fraud, reports Reuters news agency. But the Lambda brief makes clear, the federal government has rejected such ideology and specifically issued guidance to insurance companies to accept payments from Ryan White funded programs.
The news has resulted in a MoveOn.org petition demanding Blue Cross Blue Shield rescind its actions related to Ryan White funded subsidies for health insurance programs.


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The Grand Hotel is not just old, it's also a bustling, extensive facility that's full of interesting statistics and historical tid bits. In honor of the landmark's 125th anniversary, here are several fun facts about the historic hotel:
• Gov. Rick Snyder declared this week, July 8-14, Grand Hotel Week.
• The hotel has been owned by the same family for nearly eight decades. W. Stewart Woodfill purchased the hotel to take it out of receivership during the Great Depression in 1933. Woodfill's nephew, R. D. (Dan) Musser Jr., bought the hotel in 1979. His son, R. D. (Dan) Musser III, took control of the hotel when his father retired last year.
• There are 385 rooms in the hotel, and each is uniquely decorated.
• Rates were $3 to $5 per night when the hotel first opened in 1887. They now range from $254 per person to $723 per person per night.
• Robert De Niro
• The Four Tops
• Mayor Rudy Giuliani
• James Earl Jones
• Madonna
• Arnold Palmer
• Gen. Colin Powell
• Mitt Romney
• Mark Twain
• Barbara Walters
• Find a full list here.
• The Grand Hotel boasts the world's largest front porch at 660 feet long.
• It was one of two Michigan hotels to make Travel + Leisure magazine's 2012 list of 500 world's best hotels. (The Townsend Hotel in Birmingham was the other one.)
• More than 130,000 guests stay at the hotel each season, which runs from early May through late October.
• Five U.S. Presidents have visited the hotel: Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy, Gerald Ford, George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
• There are special First Lady suites designed in consultation with Lady Bird Johnson, Betty Ford, Rosalynn Carter, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush and Laura Bush. Another suite is named after Jacqueline Kennedy.
• It became a National Historic Landmark in 1989.
• The hotel pool contains 500,000 gallons of water and is named after actress Esther Williams who starred in the 1947 film "This Time for Keeps," shot at the Hotel.
• The 1980 movie "Somewhere in Time," starring Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeve, was filmed at the hotel. Fans of the movie gather at the hotel each October.
• The hotel's kitchen employs more than 100 people who serve up to 4,000 meals per day.
• Grand Pecan Balls are the hotel's famous dessert. More than 50,000 are served each season.
• The gardens contain more than 125,000 bedding plants, or annuals.
More fun facts about the Grand Hotel are available on the hotel's website.
Related: Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island: 125 years of memories; what's yours?
Email Melissa Anders at email@example.com. Follow her on Twitter: @MelissaDAnders.


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Get DVD Talk Feeds
The movie takes a look at a young writer from New York City, Marvin (Chris Coburn), who struggles to get published but finds the industry too demanding of his limited talents. He moves to San Francisco to stay with his brother in the bohemian Mission District and makes friends with a slacker, Jay (Joshua Leonard), who shows him another side of life in the laid back community. Along the way, he meets a weird gal, Ima (Sandrine Holt), who takes his series of short stories, and leaves him high and dry. The two guys then spend the rest of the movie trying to deal with the twists their lives have handed them and making the best of adult responsibilities that society imposes on people.
Okay, for the most part, the movie was one of those "stream of consciousness" films that don't really have a plot. As such, its freed from the usual constraints of movies in how it can handle aspects of the protagonist's life. In that sense, the acting was a change of pace for me and the dialogue was solid for the limited nature of the material. If that sounds like a back-handed compliment, it is. Essentially, if you're someone in their mid 20's to late 30's, you may appreciate the transitional period of life Marvin (and, to a lesser extent, Jay) is going through during the film. Will he stay in the career stalling Mission or will he decide it's time to get on with life and move back to NYC? Will he hook up with Ima and then feel obligated to join the rest of society by giving up his many freedoms or will he follow the path of Jay and attempt to leech of the rest of the world with various cons and schemes?
If you're looking for a movie that allows you to plug your own answers into the mix, and take away from the movie what you want but little else, Mission may be just what you're looking for. It's a minor movie in many ways but Director/Writer?Producer Loren Marsh seemed to know all too well the pitfalls of this time in one's life and as such, his vision remains true, if a bit obscure at times. I'm suggesting it as a Rent It but others will likely think of it in somewhat more favorable terms (and I wouldn't suggest they'd be wrong).
Picture: The picture was presented in 2.35:1 ratio widescreen color. There was a fair amount of grain here and the sharpness wasn't all that great. The fleshtones weren't as accurate as I'd have liked either but the picture looked pretty good for a low budget, quickly made, independent film.
Sound: The audio was in stereo English with no subtitles. The vocals were generally clear and the score wasn't very involved but otherwise not bad.
Extras: none
Final Thoughts: It was worth watching one time for me but I think it may well appeal to those looking for something a bit different. Dealing with life's little changes is part of growing up and Mission's main theme seems to center around that more than anything else. Change can be good or bad (typically what you make of it) but watching this director's vision may help some of you sort out your own challenges.