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Turning website traffic into Customers
|If you are enjoying a well-placed website with a lot of visitors, it's time to capture them and keep in touch with them. Picture yourself in a small time shop front business: There are hundreds of people that enter the store ' just to browse', but they never stay to buy. They walk around and pick things up, but never stay. Why?
If I am simply waiting for a specific time, for a meeting, or am simply hiding from the weather outside, I always go into small stores like this. I do it to engage my mind in something, to see what kind of in-store marketing businesses are doing, and to kill a few minutes rather than just hanging around outside, looking suspicious. If I am asked whether I need assistance, I'm always honest about the reasons for my visit, so that the hard-working staff know that they can leave me and move on to someone who may be buying. In other words, I am the typical web visitor. Occasionally, a forward thinking shop staff will see what I am looking at, and say: "That's at a special price today, because of (insert reason)." That's thinking, because they want to know what I'm interested in. This is what you want your site to do; to separate the browsers from the shoppers, and find out what the interest level is, and in what.
Add a 'Contact Us' button. It's a CTA (A Call-To-Action) that isn't too pressurizing, and doesn't add to much worry to the browser. They know that they can always unsubscribe from any service, and they can sift through the offers that you send them at their own speed, without being cornered into making a decision.
A good tip here is to purchase an automated mail system where you can enter a raft of e-mail messages, and send them information. They are very inexpensive to get into, and you can choose what bells and whistles you need. Now you can send out information about your company to those that have shown an interest: Not every day, but enough for them to keep you and their initial interest in mind. You can copy them on highlights of your latest blog post, or send them special offers that aren't on your site. Whatever you feel will keep them engaged in your Company's story. You can even send periodic/seasonal "feel good" emails – like Happy Holidays from…or Happy Valentines day from…and add your little spin to it . Even if only 10% of these contacts buy from you, the chances of them becoming long-term, multiple purchasers are very good. You can then think of new or better 'Fanzone' specials for these extra special customers.
If your site isn't getting visitors, re-design it to cater to your Ideal Customer's profile. If you are getting visitors, but too high of a 'Bounce Rate', re-design your landing page to entice closer inspection. If your Call To Action isn't working, try different designs and strength of invitation. However, if you are getting interest from your 'Contact Us' button, use what you can from your ongoing writings to ensure those visitors remain with you, and shop from you, often.
Make the most of your businesses' Holiday season
|Now that Halloween is behind us, it won't be long before US Thanksgiving celebrations, Black Friday/Cyber Monday online sales, and then Christmas. Of course, New Year is only a few days after that, so it's time to start thinking about the exciting Holiday Marketing you need for your business. If you haven't started planning these campaigns, yet, and there isn't time for separate, unique six-week ad campaigns that have proven useful for companies for the festive season, you may want to think of an overarching idea 'The Holidays', namely November through February. If it's too early to think about Christmas for you, it isn't for your business, so here's five tips on readying your businesses' online holiday campaigning.
1. 'Click to Call' tools
Get them to come to you: A 'click through' button on your website allows your prospects to see something they like on your website, and contact you directly with a question. Once they know they can reach you, you become approachable, friendly, and someone they would like to start a relationship with. In turn this makes them more open to receiving advertising from you.
There are plenty of tools for this, and to ensure that your company can do this on a regular basis, why not start at the beginning of the Holiday season? You can plan the staffing of the phones for business hours, set up a return call system for outside hours, and promoting this service gives you an additional 'touch point' with the fans you have already. It may teach you things that you need for times outside of the holidays.
Customers and prospects are usually busy themselves at this time of year, so you can open up a stress-saving avenue for contact with them. They will always pass on good news to others!
2. Search Functionality.
If Prospects and customers cannot find what they want on your site in a short search time, they will give up and go somewhere else. Use your site analytics to find out where people go, which pages they land on, visit, and bounce from. These metrics will show you patterns of use that will give you clues on what is not working. If you are the type of business looking to use the holidays for sales or advertising and want to highlight different or new items and services, make sure that all pages showcase your business as best they can, and offer functionality. Now is the time to re-design to answer the questions these analytics results bring up. In turn, you may find places that need re-design to seamlessly loop this process site-wide.
3. Add some video
It is by far the best teaching tool, is the most popular among visitors, and can be the most effective: is it time for a festive video presentation, or tour through the site? Get your gatekeeper to front it, and – when they answer the phone – they will be recognized.
4. Related Content
Do your pages lead to the next right page? Is there a clue that your Analytics can give you as to how people navigate your site? Perhaps some well-placed teasers, directions, or offers would both strengthen those 'tours', and bring weaker ones up to that strength? This is not a case of more links, but rather stronger 'suggestive' items as to where to go next. This drives traffic to the warmest and coolest areas of your business, based on actual customer 'tours'.
5. Strengthen the customer engagement.
Make sure that you have an easy-to-navigate map of your site, ask for feedback, and advice, and always measure your engagement. The Holidays are a great time to do that, because you may be highlighting Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas, Boxing day, New Year, and Valentine's day special attractions. If the next time you take a breath will be in late February, have your specials lined up, and signpost them correctly. Then, take note of visitor feedback (Both on your site, and through contact), to find out what you can do better for the rest of the year.
This means that this time, next year, your site will be more ready for business, your advertising will change to reflect and point out these changes, your customer and prospect engagement will increase, and a glimpse inside your current and future customers will be much stronger.
Always look at advertising changes as another way to engage with both customers and prospects. If this time of year is your busy time, listen to what people are saying about you during the holiday period, and make changes based on this conversation. In turn this will keep people on our site longer, and lead to more committed evangelists as well as more newcomers interested in what you do.
Seven things you aren't doing – but should be!
|Why did you start your business? Usually, we hear the following:
"I could do this way better than the last Boss that I had."
"I received a payout, and thought that it was time I went out on my own.", and the famous: "I've always wanted to do it."
If you didn't get into a market segment for reasons such as goods requirement in that region, or competition, or even a better raw material source, you can still concentrate on how you can make your business succeed from this point on by creating practices that more seasoned companies have done. Here's Seven tips on how you can start succeeding:
Businesses fail to reach their full potential.
Any reason you can think of is usually a symptom of a bigger problem, and two of those are usually more organic than you can see. Either business owners are unclear about their goals (or have lost sight of their original goals as to what they want to get out of their business) OR business owners don't really know what's going on in their business.
Not knowing what's going on in the business is extremely common and relates to knowing your KPI's (key performance indicators) For instance, how many people do you have to connect with to get the right percentage to walk through your door and how many have to purchase and how many who purchase have to become loyal clients and/or referrers of others to your business? Start with last year, find out how close you are, and what steps do you have to take to get it right this year.
Know where you are
What are you doing right, right now, and what do you need to strengthen in order to get our first tip correct? Find out how long it will take to get there, and what it will cost. If you don't know, get help – and factor that cost into your calculations.
Where are you going?
Many small business owners run a daily management routine on habit, rather than on a clearly defined journey toward a goal. Even if you are entrepreneurial, you must have something to head for in the medium and long term that is about your businesses' success, not your rose colored view of the future. Break down the big picture into manageable chunks so you can see how far you have come, and what you have to do to reach your next steps.
How much do you earn?
You have to know how much it takes for the business to pay its bills, pay lifestyle wages and generate profits to grow the company. You need a predictive budget/cash flow model to see how much it takes to expand, and that includes owner's salaries.
if you don't plan to create profit for growth, how is your growth going to be funded? If you don't pay yourself the right amount now, how will you know what you pay yourself in the future. Just taking 'what's left' is not a plan.
Tell Everyone
Now that you know where you are, where you are going, and have decided your income, you have to get customers buying your products or services. But WHO are these people and WHERE are we going to find them? That is marketing, but now you know these two crucial facts about your future customers, you know what message will get to them, and that is the basis of your future. What are you doing right now for these customers, what do you need to work on to make their experiences with you better, and what will make hem return, or tell others?
Manage for success
While you are looking at these 'big picture' questions and challenges, you cannot be expected to run everything, perfect a customer relationship model for your staff, and be the corporate fireman. You need to get out of the everyday, and either delegate or hire someone that does these tasks for you.
These are two distinct jobs, and you shouldn't be dropping complex calculations of future growth to go unblock the toilets. You need a head of daily operations, no matter the size of your company. That person reports to you, but on an organized daily meeting basis. Give yourself the time to plan the future.
Get a coach
A coach/mentor is outside of the day-to-day activity and can provide a cool outsider's point of view about what needs to be done and/or can bring to the table ideas and concepts outside the your awareness or current level of experience.
Choose the right one: Remember, they are there to help YOU rather than sell you a coaching system designed to make them money. So ask questions about their specific expertise in your business, ask for names of other businesses in your industry area they have helped so you can reference check them, check their availability in relation to responding to problems or issues you may encounter, and lastly, determine what is and what is not included in their fee structures.
Give yourself the permission to speak candidly to someone about your business, and receive critical advice. They aren't a friend, they are a professional, but they can become your company's best friend.
Good Luck transforming your business for the next level of success.
5 Steps to Reach Your Writing Goals in a Pinch
|Met your article writing goals for the year? Congratulations! How did you do it? Probably, by getting into a routine that you could handle easily no matter the circumstances you were in on any given day. But what if you haven't reached those goals? Here's a quick 'cheat sheet' on how to get into that frame of mind.
First, these steps are meant for those in a time crunch or for those who have a fast approaching deadline. It's always recommended that you develop a structured plan that helps you achieve your goals so you aren't scrambling at the end to meet your goal.
Next, use these steps to prioritize your tasks to make time for writing, budget your time effectively, and you will reach your target before you know it!
1. Identify Your Priorities – What tasks hold the greatest value (biggest ROI)? Make a list of everything you do in a given day and rank it starting with 1 as your highest priority. Delegate anything that is low priority. If delegation isn't possible, let it go (deep breath) to make room for tasks that hold the greatest value to you.
2. Break it Down – Break down your tasks into actionable steps. For example, instead of "send tweet," you might be break it down to "brainstorm tweet ideas," "write tweets," and "schedule/post tweet." A more specific writing example would include "brainstorm article topics," "outline article," "draft article," "edit article," and "submit article."
3. Increase Efficiency – Eliminate the following: Time sinks or activities that take up huge chunks of your time with little to no value.
Self-induced or outside distractions that make you lose your focus
Multi-tasking or not giving one task your full attention at any given time
4. Create a Plan – In the amount of time you have before your deadline, calculate how long it will take to perform a given task and schedule it at least a day in advance. To 'amp up' your writing efforts, take a day to write (or two or three – whatever you can). Clear your schedule and dedicate every resource you have to reaching your writing goal on that day.
5. Execute – Spring into action with every fiber of your being! Give every article an extra 10% of quality and originality to increase your ROI and exercise those article writing muscles.
Start now! Make your plan and get everyone (friends, family, and peers) on board. Don't end with a whimper simply because you didn't make your goal. Be a success!
Who is your "VP"? It's not who you think.
|Consumers have lots of choice for their buying needs, and you have lots of competition. So, how do you ensue that they look at your shopping experience, when compared to theirs? That's a basic question, with a really simple answer.
Find a way to differentiate your business, one that matters to somebody, so that you do not have to compete on price. What is the single-minded point of difference that some narrowly defined ideal client cannot live without? The secret to marketing success is as simple as that. But by finding it, and exploiting it, your business would be in the elite, because your competition isn't doing it. Why?Because to be unique, you have to actually be different and that scares the heck out of most business owners. Be very clear about this, though, your customers and prospects want you to be different, they require you to be different. To succeed in business you have only one job, and that is to find a way to show that you are completely different in a way that your market wants and values, exploit that difference in every word that you compose and watch your profits soar. It's painful and a lot of extra work to do, sometimes, but you will be many steps ahead of the competition if you can do it.
Identify your ideal Client
You know you have an ideal client in mind when you can ponder how great life would be if you have a dozen or so more just like them. What makes them perfect for you? Have you done business with one, lately?
Create a list of six to eight of your current ideal clients and commit to sitting down with face to face or over the phone for about fifteen minutes, or you are going to devise a questionnaire and have them complete it and return it to you. As either of these methods are a conversation of sorts, the same questions should be included:
Why did you hire us/buy from us in the first place? Just because you think you know, you may not. You can collect surprising insights, here.
What's one thing we do that you love the most? You need specifics, here. Drill down from their first answers.
What's one thing we do that others don't? Don't be embarrassed to ask this – no-one else is, so it's a refreshing change for the answerer. Even if the answer's as plain as 'you are close', you collect extra knowledge.
If you were to refer us what would you say? Look for three adjectives, here. It will help you tally up the most important points when spread over several answers.
Can you tell me about three other companies that you love? Even if these other companies are in your field, you will get another view of your business from the outside. You also learn more about your competition.
If you were conducting an online search for this service, how would you search for it?: You are looking for their search terms in order to further define how a successful search would find you.
Remember that you're not looking for scientific data, you're looking more for themes and stories that offer clues to what really does make your firm unique. In most cases you will need to use follow-up statements such as – "Okay, we provide great service, that's awesome, but tell me a story about a time we did."
Work with themes that matter
From your interviews you should have some rich themes to work with. Don't underestimate the power of simple things. Quite often your clients value the little things you do that are special. Resist the temptation to dismiss them as unimportant enough to use as your core point of difference.
List all of the answers, find out who said the most often repeated themes, and drive home a marketing campaign aimed at these clients.
This is your VP – Your Value Proposal to an entire business segment.
How your business can escape from 'The Everyday Box'
|It's a worthwhile exercise to ask yourself if your life has turned out the way you expected it to – especially in your entrepreneurial life. If you ask yourself "How is my Business really doing?", then how do you measure it? Turnover, Service, Employee number, growth, competition, money, your life-style? Nowadays we are expected to look at all of these as parts of the same equation. So, let's start with an easier way to ask the question. Here are three choices, which one does your business most closely resemble?
Has your Business failed spectacularly?
Is your business a runaway success?
Is your business an 'everyday' business?
You probably answered the third choice, and you have a business in The Everyday Box. However, because you recognize that fact, there are very simple ways for you to change it.
The Everyday Box is what your business gets caught in when you are ploughing forward, simply paying the bills. If you answered either of the first two, you may be in a better position. To have flamed out as a business owner, you have striven to get too far, too fast. You have made some choices that weren't right at that time, or with those customers and prospects, or your staff couldn't follow through for you.
If your business has – eventually – taken off, you have probably done the same things as the failure mentioned above, and they have worked. Chances are you have been through failure before, and it has resulted in a success this time. Of course, the answers aren't simply to do with timing, but it could be something equally as glaring, or a combination of other simpler components that, when put together, made the choice. However, the education that you had been through before, made you do something a little different, or at a different time, or with a different purchaser profile, and, when put together, worked.
If you are 'in between' these two states, you are in the Everyday Box – and you may not know it. You are making excuses based on outside influences: The economy, the weather, the entrenched competition. You qualify your decisions as doing what you need to do to pay the bills, keep the staff happy, and keep everything 'ticking over' until this current negative situation clears up, miraculously. Of course the chances are that it will be replaced by another negative situation. As your business lurches toward the failure you are scared is going to happen, you become immobile, and continue on as if this is 'business as usual'. If it is, you are really in trouble. So, how do you get out of it?
The first step, as with any difficult decision is to recognize that you are in the Everyday Box, and what you need to do to get out of it. That is remarkably easy: Go back to the reason why you started this thing in the first place, and what you were going to do to make it a success. Take a critical look at your entire chain, from prospecting to returning customers, and figure out how they differed from what you thought they were going to be. How do you change either them, their habits, your goods and services, or your marketing. Look at your staff. Are they in it for the long haul? They have to be entrepreneurial, too. Are they? Tell them what you are going to do, what changes are going to come up, how long it's going to take. Will they follow you? Chances are, they will. Trim the dead wood, move forward, set yourself a goal and hit it. In other words, change.
One of two things will happen…and you know what they are. On the way to that place though, your business will change. Everyone will be more energized: Employees, contractors, suppliers and prospects will see how energized everyone has become. Everyone will be focused on the new goal, and you will be enjoying life once again.
You will pick up renewed interest from old contacts, and some new ones, too. Your drive to make this thing a runaway success is not only infectious – it is required. The way to get out of the Everyday Box is exactly the way to move your business toward success: Your enthusiasm. If you fail, you will have learned more about how to make it work next time. Your gutsy moves will mean more investment money next time, because nothing breeds enthusiasm in others like your own enthusiasm.
No business should be 'just good enough', it should be an unqualified success…or it should die trying. In either case, you will have gotten out of the Everyday Box.
Good Morning. What's your First Task of the Day?
Yes, I know – put the coffee on. Or something like that. Now…concentrate.
The first thing I do is post my 'morning thought'. This is the one that I have picked up from the latest trends across my social media platforms: In the business world in general this means LinkedIn for headlines, I glance through Twitter and, for fun (Fun is important in the Business World), check on Google+. I have started using Hootsuite, now, so I can post my thought across all of these platforms with one post. There, now I have just 'touched' over 200,000 people. I hope that it was a good post!!
Posting this way shows that I'm a real person that thinks of other things outside of my business model. This means that when I do post about my company it is at least tolerated by everyone, and may well mean some interest in my business page. In turn this means more clicks and higher ranking for my website, putting it closer to the number one position in 'Search', where people actively looking for my services will find me easier.
My second job is to write a blog, and post it on a couple of sites that are in my business niche. Of course, I include a link to my site within that post so that more people can find me if they are interested. Now, I like to be left alone when I'm writing like this, but you may find it better to break and look after other tasks while you are doing this. It all depends on the type of person that you are. By tying myself to these daily rituals, I find that after 60 – 90 minutes, I have done more advertising for my brand than most businesses have done in a week.
I even get to the office early to ensure that I'm left alone and can concentrate on this. Strangely, I have received more cold calls concerning my services at work since I have started working this way, and interest is growing. I have even come up with a questionnaire that I can e-mail to prospects that – when returned – gives me a clearer picture of what these prospects are looking for. All from some creative writing first thing in the morning! By 10.00a.m. I am ready to get on with the rest of my day.
OK, this isn't for everyone, I know. So if you feel that this is a stretch for your writing skills (By the way, I had no idea where this post was going when I opened up my Blog file. This is simply, I find, a case of paying attention to what is going on around you.), do 4 things to your Facebook profile. It takes you a couple of minutes, gets you into the habit of writing something, and may whet your appetite for more.
Check out Facebook insights, and Twitter Analytics. These features allows you to track the results of your page, as well as the results of every post you make. Use Insights to learn what type of posts people enjoy, comment on, and engage in, and how their reception changes over time.
You have spent thirty minutes on Social Media, and have engaged with people that know you, as well as people that may become prospects. You have also had some fun. OK, time for coffee!


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KU Leuven
Faculty of Engineering Science
Engineering: Energy
Program Information
Degrees Offered:
Engineering: Energy
Format: Campus
Program Description:
This programme teaches you to focus on technological possibilities without losing sight of the environmental and socio-economic aspects of your chosen field. The programme has an international scope and collaborates with partner universities excelling in the energy domain. It is a two-year programme and can be taken in Dutch or in English. The first year consists of electrical and mechanical engineering courses, as well as more general socio-economic, energy-related subjects and an integrated project. In the second year, you continue your specialisation by, among other things, writing a Master's thesis on a subject related to electrical energy, thermo-mechanical energy or more general technical-economic aspects. You may also participate in an international exchange or do an internship. This is an initial Master's programme and can be followed on a full-time or part-time basis. An increased tuition fee of 6000 EUR is not applicable for students who come from countries belonging to the European Economic Area (EEA).
Accreditation:120 ECTS
International Student Requirements:Applicants must have completed a Bachelor's degree in Electrical or Mechanical Engineering or a highly related field, encompassing a minimum of 180 ECTS credits or equivalent academic qualifications from an internationally recognized university. Applicants must furthermore have taken at least 60 ECTS credits in the area of electrical or mechanical engineering and in mathematics (including calculus, numerical methods, algebra, probability theory and basic control theory) equivalent to at least 30 ECTS credits.The selection will be based on the excellence of the candidates' academic record. To verify this, the candidates have to submit several documents to the universities International Office.
Facts & Figures
Financial Aid: No
International Financial Aid: No
# of Credits Required: 120 ECTS
Out State Tuition (per year): 6000 EUR
Size & Settings: 40,000+

subset: commoncrawl


text: Human Rights Observatory Asian Millionaires are the Richest Millionaires in Asia are wealthier than their counterparts in other regions of the world, including North America and Europe, according to a report by the Capgemini consulting firm. According to the report, Asian millionaires' wealth was worth $17.4 trillion in 2015, more than double the $8.4 trillion in 2006. In North America, millionaires saw their wealth increase from $11.2 trillion to $16.6 trillion over the same time period. Moreover, the sheer number of millionaires in Asia grew...Read complete article© Voice of America - Thursday, June 23, 2016


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Israel News
Middle East
American Politics
Edition française
Green Israel
City construction.
(photo credit:Moshe Shai / Flash 90)
After funding arrangements were recently agreed upon by the Jerusalem Municipality and Finance Ministry, plans to construct one of the nation's largest business centers at the western entrance of the capital are expected to be approved.Final approval of the project, estimated to cost the Treasury approximately NIS 1.2 billion, is expected in the coming days or weeks, the Jerusalem Municipality said Wednesday.
By GLOBES, NIV ELIS
By AARON KATSMAN
Sponsored Content
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Building Details:
5800 Myers Ranch Blvd. is aland property for lease in Rogers, AR. The property currently has 1 land for lease and is marketed by .
1 block South of Walton Blvd. "J" Street in Bentonville becomes Dodson Road in Rogers. Dodson Rd. is a north/south thoroughfare from Cross Church/Arvest Bank, the Pinnacle area to Walton Blvd. 1/2 West of I-49. Walmart "Pick Up" is adjacent North of this property.
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Copyright 2017 © Point Lookout Marina
Located in Smith Creek off the Potomac River
N 38º 06.933
W 76º 24.033
(301) 872.5000
16244 Millers Wharf Road
Ridge, Maryland 20680
If by sea:
We are located in Smith Creek on the Potomac River (about 7 NM from the Chesapeake Bay).
Smith Creek is immediately east of St. Mary's River.
If by land:
Route 4 to route 235 south - go 16 miles
Turn right onto Wynne Road - go 2 miles
Turn right onto Miller's Wharf Road
Marina is at end of the road (1/4 mile)
Point Lookout Marina is proudly operated by:
Joseph N. Salvo and Cindy W. Salvo


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Another title for this column could have been "Surviving supporting sales pros." With all due respect to people who work in the sales profession, some of them require more tech support than they rightly deserve.
If the level I and II support people in your shop are spending an inordinate amount of time supporting the sales staff, it's time to intervene. Here are some tips to help you spend less time supporting your sales force so they can spend more time selling.
Hardware cheat sheets and labels
My first and favorite tip for supporting sales people is the cheat sheet. This one is a favorite with the road warriors I have known. They live out of hotels 40 percent of the year. When it comes to their computers, they don't want to think. So I label their equipment and give them cheat sheets.
- Labels—Before a new salesperson hits the road, I offer to create tape-and-paper labels for every cord or connection that might need to be attached to the computer. The labels are single digits (1-9), printed in a 48-point size—because you never know how weak the lighting might be in the hotel.
- Cheat Sheets—For the cheat sheet, I take a picture of the back of the laptop and drop it into a Word document. I place the same 48-point numerals on top of the image to indicate where each item should connect. I supplement the graphical representation with a text-based legend. Never underestimate how many times people will reread a tip like "1=Put the plug from the electrical power supply here."
Training slide shows
Salespeople are notorious for scheduling themselves for internal training classes and then canceling at the last minute. However, they do love their PowerPoint presentations. The next time you want to tell your salespeople about a new VPN login procedure or remind them how to synchronize their e-mail folders for offline viewing, put your instructions in a PowerPoint slide show.
With some encouragement from you, the sales manager will put your slide show on the agenda for the weekly sales meeting. E-mail a copy of the slide show to the sales team so they can run it on their own time.
Even if you don't "do" PowerPoint, your nontechnical sales representatives will appreciate it if you take time to help them by documenting technical processes in a language they can understand.
Travel tips
When flying, never check the laptop. Any questions?
If it hasn't happened yet, mark the calendar. Here's a preview for you from my own experience:
"The monitor on my laptop is broken," the salesperson began.
"You mean it doesn't come on? It's a blank screen?"
"No, it's broken like there's a hole in it."
Long story short, the salesperson was running late for the plane and checked the laptop in its soft carrying case. It was damaged beyond repair.
Get it in writing
That event prompted the IT director, along with the human resources manager, to establish a written policy outlining the "correct and appropriate" use of company computers. When the company said, "you'll pay for any you break," we saw a sudden and permanent drop in the number of trashed sales laptops.
Even if you could find a mobile computer case that's guaranteed safe for baggage check on an airplane, I'm not sure letting your sales pros check their laptops is a good idea. It's not that I distrust airline workers or my fellow fliers, you understand. I just don't like strangers handling computers from my shop.
What are you selling?
How much time do you spend supporting a sales department? To share your tips or your gripes, post a note below or write to Jeff.


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Sony has just announced PlayStation Now a new service similar to OnLive which is based on the...Read More
At the Gamescom 2013 press event, the electronics giant revealed that the PS4 will hit shelves on...Read More
I've steered clear so far of any news about the PSP2 or the NGP as Sony call it (Next Generation Portable) until there was some solid info on the units themselves and when a "reliable" release date was issued, well here it is....Read More
The PSP had all the makings to be the best handheld ever but fell to the simpleness of the Nintendo DS. When Nintendo made it's DS the DS Lite sales shot up around the world. Sony answered by making the slow selling PSP smaller...Read More


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Give your baby layette a modern edge with this graphic purple and white fish scale scallop pattern baby blanket that you can personalize by adding the name and monogram initial of your baby girl to. This trendy geometric shell pattern design is bold, yet stylish.
Keep your baby girl in fashion with this soft and snuggly baby blanket. Personalize by adding her name or monogram printed in full color baby safe ink. These trendy and stylish 29''x39'' stroller blankets made of 100% polyester fleece are machine washable on gentle cycle, and are dryer safe, best dried on the low heat tumble dry setting.
»Visit the ohsogirly store for more designs and products like this.


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24-Character 2-Line Dot Matrix LCD Controller Driver
Manufacturer's part number :
Description :
The NJU6466 is a 1 Chip Dot Matrix LCD controller driver for up to 24-character 2-line display.
It contains voltage converter, microprocessor interface circuits, instruction decoder controller, character generator ROM/RAM and high voltage operation common and segment drivers.
The voltage converter generates about twofold voltage (10V/6V) from single power supply(5V/3V). Consequently, high-contrast display can be performed though the simple power supply circuits.
The microprocessor interface circuits which operate 2MHz frequency, can be connected directly to 4bit/8bit microprocessor.
The character generator consists of 9,600bits ROM and 64 bytes RAM. The standard version of ROM is coded with 240 letter fonts and. The standard version RO characters including capital and small some of Japanese fonts.
The high voltage operation 32-common and 60-segment drivers operate by 13.5V(VDD=5V) or 12.0V(VDD=3V), and drives up to 24-character 2-line LCD panels which divided four common electrode blocks.
View our wide range of Analogue / Mixed signal products
View our portfolio of Semiconductors
See all products from our supplier New Japan Radio
Technical Data :
Quote and availability
- 24-character 2-line Dot Matrix LCD Controller Driver
- 4/8 Bit Microprocessor Direct Interface
- Display Data RAM - 80 x 8 bits : Maximum 24-character 2-line Display
- Character Generator ROM - 9,600 bits ; 240 Characters for 5 x 7 Dots
- Character Generator RAM - 64 x 8 bits ; 8 Patterns( 5x7 Dots )
- Microprocessor can access to Display Data RAM and Character Generator
- High Voltage LCD Driver : 32-common / 60-segment
- Programmable Duty Ratio ; 1/16 Duty for 5x 7 Dots + Cursor, 1 Line 1/32 Duty for 5x 7 Dots + Cursor, 2 Lines
- Power On Initialize On-chip
- Voltage Converter On-chip
- Oscillation Circuit On-chip (External R or Ceramic Resonator required)
- Low Power Consumption
- Operating Voltage (+5V / +3V)
- Package Out Iine - Chip / Bumped Chip / TCP
- C-M0S Technology


text:
New World First Bus workers cancel strike
New World First Bus drivers and technicians have cancelled a planned strike called for Friday, after the company agreed to review fringe benefits for contract staff.
New World First Bus Staff Company Union chairman Chung Chung-fai said the proposed strike was aimed at fighting for better medical and fringe benefits for 200 contract employees.
After a five-hour meeting with management and delegates from the labour and transport departments, he said: 'As the company has now promised to discuss the issue ... I feel that it has shown its sincerity this time ... we don't want to affect the public.'
He said they would accept the pay rise offer and bonus, which he said was not 'so much different' from the union's proposal. It had sought a 2 per cent rise, but lowered it to 1.8 per cent after the initial demand was rejected.
New World First Bus and its sister company Citybus offered a 1.6 per cent pay rise and a one-off bonus of HK$250 last month. Four of the five unions at both firms accepted the offer.
Most Popular
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text: We are taking the 11:00 A.M. Alcatraz tour on Sunday morning and would like to buy a picnic lunch before we leave. I can't seem to find any places that open that early on Sunday. We're staying at the Marriott on 4th Street and could probably order some takeout from them, but would prefer something yummier than restaurant food. Suggestions would be appreciated.


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My Nonprofit Reviews
Vanessa M.
Review for One Simple Wish, Ewing, NJ, USA
One Simple Wish is a wonderful organization that grants wishes for children in foster care so that they too can have some of the oppurtunities or items that other children do. One of the children I case manage in foster care received a Kindle electronic reader so that he could practice reading and he was so happy to receive it. Thank you One Simple Wish for making wishes come true for so many children in foster care.
More Feedback
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
having a wish granted for one of the children I can manage who is in foster care.
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
I think this organization is doing a great job. I will continue to tell my co-workers and other staff about this great organization so that they too can request/donate wishes to foster children.


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A great time was had by all this week at The Office Group's Xmas Party. There was a fantastic live band, plenty of food and drink, plus beer pong, a glitter bar and even later on a silent disco – which is quite a strange thing to watch. Not forgetting to mention the fantastic company 😉
On a side-note, I appear to be the only one wearing an Xmas jumper. Perhaps everyone else didn't get the memo?


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To Rosa Alcantara, the exotic world of Sicily, with its network of Mafia families and its reputation for murder and intrigue, is just that—exotic and wholly unknown. But when her life in Brooklyn begins to fall apart, she must travel there, to her family's ancestral home, where centuries of family secrets await her.
Once there, Rosa falls head over heels for Alessandro Carnevare, the son of a Sicilian Mafia family, whose handsome looks and savage grace both fascinate and unsettle her. But their families are sworn enemies, and her aunt and sister believe Alessandro is only using Rosa to infiltrate the Alcantara clan. And when Rosa encounters a tiger one night—a tiger with very familiar eyes—she can no longer deny that neither the Carnevares nor the Alcantaras are what they seem.
Hidden caves, dangerous beasts roaming the hills, and a history of familial bloodlust mean that Rosa can't trust anyone. Torn between loyalty to her family and love for their mortal enemy, Rosa must make the hardest decision of her life: stay in Sicily with her new love…or run as far and as fast as she can.
Waiting on Wednesday: Arcadia Awakens
32 comments:
Can't wait for this one sounds super interesting!ReplyDelete
My WoW:http://thebookfaerie.blogspot.com/2011/09/waiting-on-wednesday-4.html
This one's already on my TBR list! Excellent pick!ReplyDelete
My W.O.W:http://mochalattereads.blogspot.com/2011/09/waiting-on-wednesday24.html
The cover is awesome, but the snake scares the living hell outta me! LOLReplyDelete
My WOW
Mystifying Paranormal Reviews
This sounds very interesting. =] Great pick.ReplyDelete
Here is My WoW this week. =]
this cover is definitely an attention grabber!ReplyDelete
This cover is definitely one of the coolest out there. I can't wait to get my hands on this one!ReplyDelete
Pretty cover....and the Mafia! Must read this some time. Thanks for the heads up!ReplyDelete
Nina @ Death Books and Tea
I love the cover! The book sounds awesome too. On the TBR.ReplyDelete
This looks really good! Great cover!ReplyDelete
Here's my WoW
Great pick. I've been considering putting it on my TBR list.ReplyDelete
My WoW: http://hopefaithbooks.blogspot.com/2011/09/waiting-on-wednesday-5.html
One of the 2012 books I am so excited to read. I love how the mafia is blended to the paranormal aspect of this book.ReplyDelete
Check out my WoW picks!
I'm almost done with All These Things and I'm really enjoying it, so I think I'd be up for another mafia read! However...I am having a hard time getting behind this cover, lol. The snake around the neck just creeps me out too much!ReplyDelete
I remember reading the summary on this one and thinking that I have never read a book set in Sicily or a YA with Mafia ties so it sounds like an interesting read. Great pick!ReplyDelete
That sounds totally fabulous. I know what I'll be ordering alongside Graffiti Moon, some chocolates and a nice dinner. ;) Valentines day looks very promising.ReplyDelete
Oh yes, this one sounds fantastic!ReplyDelete
My WoW
This comment has been removed by the author.ReplyDelete
This sounds fantastic!ReplyDelete
My WoW
This does look good.ReplyDelete
So excited for this one and the cover is AMAZING!ReplyDelete
This book has a scary cover (i hate snakes!) but the premise is so promising! Great pick!ReplyDelete
Here's mine: Waiting On Wednesday
xoxo, april
Awesome pick!! I think tons and tons of people are super excited about this one! That is most awesome!!ReplyDelete
Zompacolypse is coming. Are you infected?
Great pick, this sounds great. I am definitey adding this one to my pile.ReplyDelete
My WoW http://thereadinggeek.blogspot.com/2011/09/waiting-on-wednesday-16-insurgent.html
Wow, that sounds awesome! It seems very Romeo-&-Juliet-ish, but the feuding Mafia families aspect is intriguing (as well as the mysterious tiger encounter lol). I'm definitely adding it to my to-read list.ReplyDelete
I am looking forward to reading this one too. The snake on the cover creeps me out though. *eeshk* I am not one for creepy slithery things. :) Still, I'll be reading it!ReplyDelete
See my WoW over at Fuzzy.Coffee.Books if ya want!
Sounds good, creepy cover.ReplyDelete
I hope that when you get it, that it will be everything you hope it to be. Check out what I am Waiting On Wednesday for.ReplyDelete
omg! look at that cover.... gorgeous! :) will definitely check this one out! Thanks.ReplyDelete
Awesome pick!ReplyDelete
Hope you have an awesome day! Come visit us if you have a chance!!
Crazy Book Slut or Facebook page
P.S. New follower
This sounds amazing! Mafia, romance, family feuds, what more can you want? Thanks for sharing. :)ReplyDelete
Reader's Refuge
This does sound epic. Love stories with family feuds. Thanks for sharing.ReplyDelete
Megan @ Read It, See It
This sounds like such an awesome book. I really can't wait until its released. I'll be obsessing over it the whole time! :DReplyDelete
Ooh that's an interesting cover. I really like it. New follower. Come visit me over at Livre De Amour-Books of Love Blog.ReplyDelete
Thanks for commenting! I read each and every one, and reply as soon as I can :)
Please note: The Reading Fever is an award-free zone. I am very flattered, but comments are all the thanks I need.


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Not to be stupid but is that Youtube link supposed to be the older brother?
I am not sure what i am viewing
follow the money from the Executive branch to Bosnia, Chechyna, Yemen and Somalia. Why is the POTUS bringing these dangerous people here at taxpayer expense? Don't demand any proof from me. Importing Moslem terrorists at the expense of people with money, talent and skills makes no sense unless you are fomenting revolution.
Force Hussein to explain his policies for selecting immigrants.
Guy in the youtube looks more like Liam Neeson than Tamarlan Tsaernov
Here's the same picture, I told you appeared on the video, our Bomber! You can apologize to me anytime?
SHOCK: FBI, DHS Were Warned About Boston Terrorist SIX MONTHS Ago - And Did Nothing
The failure of this Administration to protect our homeland from jihadist threats - despite clear warnings before the Boston attacks - continues to be exposed. And it also calls into serious question how the FBI and DHS can be trusted to handle the increased numbers of asylum visas called for under the 'Gang of 8' immigration bill.
As we reported on April 19, the FBI was warned by a "foreign government" - reportedly Russia - that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was a "follower of radical Islam" with a potential for "terrorist activities". The FBI personally interviewed him, and then cleared him. As we reported, the FBI initially denied that they had investigated Tsarnaev - until an interview with his mother on Russian TV exposed their denial as a farce.
In addition we reported how Tsarnaev, a Chechen "refugee", had been arrested for domestic assault in 2009 - a violent incident that caused the DHS to deny his application for citizenship (which his younger brother obtained). We reported how DHS failed to deport Tamerlan Tsarnaev for his assault, as U.S. immigration law allowed.
Now today, it gets even worse, as NBC News has reported that Russian security services just six months ago - in November 2012 - again warned the FBI about Tsarnaev after his 6-month trip to Dagestan.
This stunning news details that the FBI was warned after Tsarnaev was seen meeting - six times - with a person involved in militant Islamic underground movement in Dagestan. This Islamist leader, Gadzhimurad Dolgatov (who also went by the name Amir Abu Dujana) was killed after a fierce gunbattle with Russian security forces in Dagastan in December 2012
The visit "would lead one to believe that thats probably where he got that final radicalization to push him to commit acts of violence and where he may have received training" in terrorist techniques, U.S. House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Mike Rogers told NBC.
Tsarnaev also was discovered to have posted videos featuring Dolgatov on his YouTube account. (see screenshots below)
As in 2011 - once again the FBI took no action, but unlike in 2011, did not even get back to the Russian security services with an updated report on Tsarnaev.
He apparently just dropped off their radar screen - until last week in Boston, of course.
But that was not the only clue to U.S. security services that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was a poitential threat, according to the UK's DailyMail...
Excerpt...Click Here for the full article


text:
- Home
- Government
- Departments
- Public Works
- Engineering
Converse Street Project Starting April 3rd, 2017
Over the next year, Baltazar Contractors, Inc. of Ludlow Massachusetts will be reconstructing Converse Street from Laurel Street to Dwight Road under the direction of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and Longmeadow Public Works Department. Construction is scheduled to begin April 3rd. The work will include new sidewalks, driveways, bus stops, catch basin replacements, new curbing, crosswalk signals, bike lanes, traffic signal at the Dickinson Street intersection, various minor changes in road widths, tree plantings, pavement milling, and resurfacing of the roadway. All disturbances to tree belts and private property will be restored to pre-existing conditions to the fullest extent possible.
At this time, we are requesting residents to mark their irrigation sprinkler heads that are located on Town property (by the sidewalk and in the tree belt), in an effort to reduce damages to lawn irrigation systems. Blue marking flags are available at the Public Works Department.
In an effort to facilitate weekly refuse collection, residents are asked to have their refuse and recycling curbside by 7:00 AM, especially during the time period that construction work is taking place on the street.
Residents that need access to homes between the construction hours of 7:00 AM and 4:00 PM should expect delays. Nevertheless, the contractor will make every effort maintain access to residences.
During construction, there will be various colored painted lines on the street and on private property. State laws require anyone who digs to notify utility companies before starting any underground project. The painted lines are the utility companies' way of marking underground lines so they are not damaged during construction.
To report any problems or concerns, please contact the Engineering Department at 567-3400. The Town of Longmeadow appreciates your patience and support during this important project.___________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Longmeadow Public Works Department is preparing to begin installation of new guardrail along the sides of the following roads:
Meadowbrook Road (TIMBER)
Guardrail replacement at west end of street near Warren Terrace
Crestview Circle (TIMBER)
New Guardrail at west end of street at stream crossing (both sides)
Mill Road (STEEL)
Guardrail Replacement at west end of street (both sides)
Franklin Road (TIMBER)
Guardrail replacement at cul-de-sac
Chestnut Street (STEEL)
Guardrail replacement at west end of street
Barrington Road (TIMBER)
Guardrail replacement at east end of street
Chiswick Street (STEEL)
Guardrail replacement at south end of street
Captain Road (TIMBER)
New guardrail approximately 230 feet east of Viscount Road at stream crossing (both sides)
Commonwealth Guardrail Inc. has been contracted to perform the work, and is scheduled to begin Monday, January 9th, weather permitting. Other factors may delay construction. It is expected that the effort will result in temporary lane closures.
Should you have any questions or require any additional information, please contact the Longmeadow Public Works Engineering Department at (413) 567-3400.
Please use the links on the menu to your left to navigate to the appropriate project.


text:
A neo Nazi thug from Melbourne. Cross is a supporter of the United Patriots Front. He drew some notoriety when he stabbed a female camerawoman with a flag pole during the first Bendigo anti mosque rally. Oh, he is also the deadshit that got clocked hard with a megaphone by a CARF organiser when he crossed the line.
Cross stabbing woman with flag pole


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By: Dr. Marty Becker
We've come a long way in our understanding of pain, and that's true in veterinary medicine as well as human medicine. We know that chronic pain can suppress the immune system, making animals more susceptible to viruses and bacteria they otherwise might have no problem fighting. And, of course, pain just plain hurts, reducing the quality of life dramatically.
While we veterinarians have advanced alongside our physician colleagues when it comes to managing pain, many pet owners have not. That's not because they don't care, but because they don't know enough to recognize the problem and get help. The problem is especially disturbing in cats, and that's what had me turning to my colleague and longtime friend Dr. Robin Downing for her expert read on the subject. Dr. Downing is an internationally recognized expert on the subject of pain and how to…
View original post 949 more words


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Saturday, February 28, 2009
Beating caught on police video
Found at Seattle Post Intelligencer, h/t Balloon Juice. "To protect and serve," my ass.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Big surprise
Amnesty International: US-made white phosphorus weapons found in Gaza
US/ISRAELI WAR CRIMES IN GAZA:The use of white phosphorus by Israeli forces is something I've brought to your attention before. The human consequences of that particular weapon are, to put it mildly, excruciating. The use of weapons that burn or melt away the flesh of our fellow human beings is something that we should not countenance, and those governments involved in such atrocities should be held accountable. I harbor no illusions that the Obama regime will do much, if anything, with regard to the genocide that is being perpetrated by the Israeli government. However, the point can be made crystal clear that there the near unanimous support of the holocaust occuring in what remains of Palestine doesn't extend beyond the Beltway.
Our research team recently found evidence of U.S.-made weapons in Gaza, including the misuse of white phosphorus munitions.
Urge Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to immediately call for an investigation into Israel's use of U.S. arms in Gaza.
Investigate potential war crimes in Gaza
By Amnesty International
A new report released just hours ago reveals that U.S.-made white phosphorus artillery shells among other U.S. weapons were found throughout Gaza. When white phosphorus munitions are used in densely-populated civilian areas as Israel has, it violates international humanitarian law's prohibition on indiscriminate attacks and amounts to a war crime.
In light of this new finding, we are urging Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to immediately call for: an investigation into Israel's use of U.S. arms in Gaza
a suspension of U.S. military aid to Israel and to urge the United Nations to impose an arms embargo on all parties in the conflict
Samia Salman Al-Manay'a, 16 years old, was asleep in her home in the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza, when a phosphorus shell landed on the first floor of the house on January10th. Ten days later, from her hospital bed, she spoke to our delegation.
"The pain is piercing. It's as though a fire is burning in my body. It's too much for me to bear. In spite of all the medicine they are giving me the pain is still so strong."
Since 2001, the U.S. has been the largest supplier of arms to Israel. The U.S. has also provided considerable funding each year for Israel to buy arms despite U.S. legislation that restricts such aid to consistently gross human rights violators. Since 2002 Israel received over $21 billion in U.S. military and security assistance. Put simply, Israel's military intervention in the Gaza Strip has been equipped to a large extent by US-supplied weapons, munitions and military equipment paid for with U.S. taxpayers' money.
Even after the start of the current conflict and reports of serious violations of international humanitarian law by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in Gaza, U.S. authorities continued to authorize large shipments of U.S. munitions, including white phosphorus munitions, to Israel.
In January, Amnesty called for a suspension of all arms transfers to Israel, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups until there is no longer a serious risk that such equipment will be used for violations of international humanitarian law and human rights abuses. The Department of State should lead the call for accountability. If we suspect our weapons are being used in attacks that are indiscriminately killing civilians, we must act.
Urge Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to immediately call for an investigation into Israel's use of U.S. arms in Gaza and a suspension of military aid.
Last month you called for an independent investigation into all parties involved in the conflict in Gaza. We are happy to report that your voice was heard. Over 45,000 messages were sent to Secretary Clinton and UN Representative Susan Rice, who highlighted the importance of an investigation. Additionally, three Members of Congress, including the highest ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, visited Gaza and witnessed firsthand the humanitarian devastation.
Larry Cox
Executive Director
Amnesty International USA
Thursday, February 26, 2009
I wonder
Quotable: Alice Miller on torture
The thirst for vengeance does not come from nowhere. It has a clearly identifiable cause. The thirst for vengeance has its origins in infancy, when children are forced to suffer in silence and put up with the cruelty inflicted on them in the name of upbringing. They learn how to torment others from their parents, and later from their teachers and superiors. It is nothing other than systematic instruction by example on how to destroy others. Yet many people believe that it has no evil consequences. As if a child were a container that can be emptied from time to time. But the human brain is not a container. The things we learn at an early stage stay with us in later life.H/t Arthur Silber from his other site, The Sacred Moment.
In my recent book "Die Revolte des Körpers" (The Body Never Lies) appeared in Germany in March 2004, I pointed out that in 22 American states children and adolescents can be beaten, humiliated, and sometimes exposed to outright sadism without this having any legal consequences. Such treatment is equivalent to genuine torture. But it is not called so. It goes by the name of education, discipline, leadership. These practices are actively supported by most religions. There is no protest against it, except on some Internet websites. But the Internet is also full of advertisements for whips and other devices for punishing small children and making them into God-fearing individuals so that God will approve of them and give them His love. The scandal in Iraq shows what becomes of these children when they reach adulthood. The perverted soldiers are the fruits of an education that actively instills violence, meanness, and perversion into young people.
The media quote psychological experts who contend that the brutality displayed by the American soldiers is a result of the stress caused by war. It is true that war unleashes latent aggression. BUT TO BE UNLEASHED IT HAS TO BE ALREADY THERE. It would be impossible for individuals who have not been exposed to violence very early, either at home or at school, to abuse and mock defenseless prisoners. They simply couldn't do it. We know from the history of the last World War that many conscripted soldiers were able to show a human face, even in the stress of war, if they had grown up without being exposed to violence. Many accounts of the war and the conditions in the camps tell us that even such extreme stress will not necessarily turn adults into perverted individuals.
Perversion has a long, obscure history invariably rooted in the childhood of the individual. It is hardly surprising that these histories are usually concealed from the eyes of society. People who have been taught to obey by having violence inflicted on them have very good reasons to avoid being reminded of the sufferings they went through in childhood and prevent the suppressed facts from ever emerging into the light of day.
Change of regime in the US does not necessarily mean change for the better in Gitmo
Cernig at Newshoggers:
Lenin's Tomb puts it a bit more bluntly:
Reuters reports complaints from Gitmo detainees via their lawyers that human rights abuses by guards at the camp have escalated since President Obama was elected and carried through on his campaign promise to order Gitmo closed.
Abuses began to pick up in December after Obama was elected, human rights lawyer Ahmed Ghappour told Reuters. He cited beatings, the dislocation of limbs, spraying of pepper spray into closed cells, applying pepper spray to toilet paper and over-forcefeeding detainees who are on hunger strike.
...He stressed the mistreatment did not appear to be directed from above, but was an initiative undertaken by frustrated U.S. army and navy jailers on the ground. It did not seem to be a reaction against the election of Obama, a Democrat who has pledged to close the prison camp within a year, but rather a realization that there was little time remaining before the last 241 detainees, all Muslim, are released.
"It's 'hey, let's have our fun while we can,'" said Ghappour, who helped secure the release this week of Binyam Mohamed, a British resident freed from Guantanamo Bay after more than four years in detention without trial or charge.
Reuters also notes that Admiral Patrick Walsh, the author of a recent report saying that Guantanamo Bay is fully in compliance with the Geneva Conventions, looked at 20 allegations of abuse - 14 of which were substantiated. "Fully" now means 25%, when the fox is asked to exonerate its own doings in the henhouse and has no real fear of being held to account.
Ghappour said he had spoken to army guards who, unsolicited, had described the pleasure they took in abusing prisoners, whether interrupting prayer or physical mistreatment. He said they appeared unconcerned about potential repercussions.
Of course they don't. They've been assured by Holden and Pannetta that there will be no prosecutions for those who just followed orders, no matter how gleefully they did so!
Meanwhile, Prof. Mark Denbeaux and the folks at Seaton Hall Law are now blogging from Gitmo. In their most recent post they discuss the implications of the Supreme Court's refusal to allow innocent Uighur detainees to be released onto US soil.
Perhaps the single most distressing aspect of the Uighur decision was a footnote, seemingly gratuitously added into the decision which says that Obama may need the permission of congress to release detainees to American soil.
The entire Guantanamo Bay Bar spent the night talking about the implications. The group contained a number of pessimists and almost the same number of optimists. The distinction seems to be consistent with age. The older of us feel as if we have seen this situation before and that somehow the United States comes through someway.
Some of that discussion involved a statement attributed to Churchill which said that America always makes the right decision when all other options have failed.
The younger lawyers recognized the fact that if it was true that the Courts could not order detainees who had won their habeas corpus decisions to be released to US soil, and we either could not or would not find appropriate other countries, then the decision in Boumediene was a meaningless gesture because it provided no remedy against unauthorized detention.
...Almost everyone believes that the Uighurs are the key. They are concededly not dangerous, can't go home to China and have no other place until the war on terror is over and no one believes that that war, whatever it is, has an end in sight.
Despite Obama's closure order all is still very far from right in that American corner of Cuba.
And, though he has thankfully ordered the closure of that Guantanamo hellhole, the fact that he insists it is a humane institution should cast some doubt on his statement that "the United States of America does not torture". This is being treated as a promise, but it sounds like denial. In fact, it is the exact wording Bush used in his denials, while the US was in fact torturing prodigiously. And given that renditions will continue, and that most of the secret prisons are being maintained, there is no reason to believe that the global gulag will stop mutilating genitals, much less waterboarding.Richard, at American Leftist adds his own two cents:
Meanwhile, the Obama administration is still proceeding with plans to expand a detention facility at the Bagram air base in Afghanistan, so that so that it can increase the number of people imprisoned there from 700 to 11,000.Change you can believe in? Give me a break!
Similarly, the administration also authorized the continuation of renditions. But don't worry, incoming CIA director Leon Panetta is going to make sure that these detainees aren't going to be subjected to torture like Mohammed. Hence, in the new Orwellian world of Obama progressivism, given the prohibition of such practices in his executive order, we can obviously conclude that there's no need to provide them with access to the courts either.
Let's just say the obvious: Obama is smarter than Bush, and doesn't want to undertake travels abroad with his family under a cloud of war crimes charges after leaving the White House, so he's creating a paper trail to create a defense of plausible deniability. After all, you wouldn't want them to be afraid to enjoy themselves in Madrid, Barcelona, Paris or London, would you? A few weeks after he leaves office, the media will then feel free to expose the horrors of what he permitted on his watch.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
In his own words
Binyam Mohamed, who was recently released from the Guantánamo Bay gulag:
"I have been through an experience that I never thought to encounter in my darkest nightmares.
"Before this ordeal, torture was an abstract word to me. I could never have imagined that I would be its victim.
"It is still difficult for me to believe that I was abducted, hauled from one country to the next, and tortured in medieval ways - all orchestrated by the United States government."
Monday, February 23, 2009
Fiddling while rural Alaska freezes (and starves)
I know that the blog The Mudflats has been covering the story which includes their governor's lack of tangible action, save perhaps to blame the victims and once more expose herself as an ignoramus (Writing Raven is a bit too charitable in dismissing concerns about racism on the part of Palin, which is something that fundamentally central to the story of the grinding poverty experienced by surviving First Nations peoples).
Nice idea though I sincerely doubt it'll go far enough
In a little noticed one-line remark on Sunday, Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) endorsed the investigation of Democrats who approved of President George W. Bush's policies as president that he aims to review as part of a "truth commission."H/t Avedon Carol. I'm not surprised that Obama has been tepid toward the whole truth commission idea. I'm sure that there are plenty of other Dems who would be potential targets unhappy about it as well. Needs to be done. Should have been done much earlier, like when the abuses (and that's understating things considerably) began, and I'm sure if such an investigation actually does transpire that it won't go nearly as far as it should (the ruling classes usually have no problem sacrificing one or two of their own to appease the masses, but they won't countenance a direct challenge to their legitimacy to rule).
Speaking to the New York Times' Scott Shane, "Mr. Leahy said he has learned that the temptation to abuse powers in a crisis is bipartisan and the commission's review should include the role of Democrats in Congress in approving the Bush policies. The work should be done in one year, he added, to avert accusations that it was being dragged out for political gain."
Ultimately, it boils down to "my tribe is better than your tribe"
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Let's hope this bill dies with minimal struggle
Republican politicians on Thursday called for a sweeping new federal law that would require all Internet providers and operators of millions of Wi-Fi access points, even hotels, local coffee shops, and home users, to keep records about users for two years to aid police investigations.Call it Big Brother forcing you to be Big Brother too.
The legislation, which echoes a measure proposed by one of their Democratic colleagues three years ago, would impose unprecedented data retention requirements on a broad swath of Internet access providers and is certain to draw fire from businesses and privacy advocates.
"While the Internet has generated many positive changes in the way we communicate and do business, its limitless nature offers anonymity that has opened the door to criminals looking to harm innocent children," U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, said at a press conference on Thursday. "Keeping our children safe requires cooperation on the local, state, federal, and family level."


text:
Traveling Luck for Boyds Landing, Alabama, United States
Where is Boyds Landing?What's around Boyds Landing?
Wikipedia near Boyds Landing
Where to stay near Boyds Landing
The timezone in Boyds Landing is America/Iqaluit
Sunrise at 08:28 and Sunset at 18:41. It's Dark
Latitude. 33.5594°, Longitude. -87.1494° , Elevation. 79m
Weather near Boyds Landing; Report from Birmingham, Birmingham International Airport, AL 47.1km away
Weather :
Temperature: 2°C / 36°F
Wind: 0km/h North
Cloud: Sky Clear
Weather :
Temperature: 2°C / 36°F
Wind: 0km/h North
Cloud: Sky Clear
Satellite map around Boyds Landing
Loading map of Boyds Landing and it's surroudings
Geographic features & Photographs around Boyds Landing, in Alabama, United States
- Local Feature;
- A Nearby feature worthy of being marked on a map..
- Boyds Landing (0km)
- Double Branch Ford (0.7km)
- Pineywoods Camp (0.8km)
- Jasper Ford (1.5km)
- Bill Gross Camp (1.8km)
- Winters Camp (2.2km)
- Glaze Ferry (historical) (2.4km)
- Vines Camp (2.6km)
- Percy Vines Camp (3.2km)
- Riverdale Landing Camp (3.2km)
- Burneys Camp (3.2km)
- Cook Ford (historical) (3.2km)
- Fred Vines Camp (3.3km)
- Davis Camp (3.6km)
- Howton Camp (3.7km)
- Riverview Camp (3.7km)
- Bills Landing (3.8km)
- McCartys Ferry (historical) (3.9km)
- McCarty Ford (4km)
- Two Branch Ferry (historical) (4.3km)
- Taylor Ferry (historical) (6.2km)
- stream;
- a body of running water moving to a lower level in a channel on land.
- Double Branch (0.9km)
- Coal Creek (2.8km)
- Black Creek (3.3km)
- Glaze Creek (3.5km)
- Prescott Creek (3.7km)
- Skelton Creek (4.2km)
- Gutters Branch (4.2km)
- Locust Fork (4.3km)
- Mulberry Fork (4.5km)
- Short Creek (4.9km)
- populated place;
- a city, town, village, or other agglomeration of buildings where people live and work.
- Maxine (2.6km)
- Wilderness Garden (2.7km)
- Alliance (3.2km)
- Black Creek (3.4km)
- Port Birmingham (5.2km)
- Short Creek (5.8km)
- Gilmore (6.1km)
- church;
- a building for public Christian worship.
- Riverside Church (3.9km)
- Liberty Church (4.5km)
- Hopewell Church (5.2km)
- Short Creek Church (5.7km)
- mine(s);
- a site where mineral ores are extracted from the ground by excavating surface pits and subterranean passages.
- Praco Mine (3.6km)
- Maxine Mine (3.7km)
- Gilmore Mine (5.2km)
- Chickasaw Mine (5.9km)
Accommodation around Boyds Landing
- cemetery;
- a burial place or ground.
- Prescott Cemetery (5.7km)
- Dug Hill Cemetery (5.9km)
- Atwood Cemetery (5.9km)
- Salter Cemetery (6km)
- bridge;
- a structure erected across an obstacle such as a stream, road, etc., in order to carry roads, railroads, and pedestrians across.
- Maxine Bridge (2.2km)
- Atwood Ferry Bridge (6.2km)
- dam;
- a barrier constructed across a stream to impound water.
- Maxine Tailings Pond Dam (3.4km)
- Lock Number Thirteen (historical) (4.8km)
- school;
- building(s) where instruction in one or more branches of knowledge takes place.
- Alliance Elementary School (3.5km)
- Maxine Elementary School (historical) (5.2km)
- ridge(s);
- a long narrow elevation with steep sides, and a more or less continuous crest.
- Tucker Ridge (4.2km)
- cape;
- a land area, more prominent than a point, projecting into the sea and marking a notable change in coastal direction.
- Beavers Point (3.9km)
- valley;
- an elongated depression usually traversed by a stream.
- Drip Spring Hollow (4.1km)
- reservoir(s);
- an artificial pond or lake.
- Tailings Pond Number 2 (3.4km)
- bar;
- a shallow ridge or mound of coarse unconsolidated material in a stream channel, at the mouth of a stream, estuary, or lagoon and in the wave-break zone along coasts.
- Fork Shoals (4.4km)
Wikipedia entries close to
Boyds Landing
- University of West Florida landmark education
- Rock Creek, Alabama city city o
- West Jefferson, Alabama city city o
- Sylvan Springs, Alabama city city o
- Concord, Alabama city city o
- Maytown, Alabama city city o
- Mulga, Alabama city city o
- Pleasant Grove (Alabama) city city i
- Edgewater, Alabama city city o
- Adamsville, Alabama city city o
- Graysville, Alabama city city o
- Minor, Alabama city city o
- Dora, Alabama city city o
- Hueytown city city i
- McDonald Chapel, Alabama city city o
- North Johns, Alabama city city o
Airports close to Boyds Landing
Birmingham international(BHM), Birmingham, Usa (47.1km)
Anniston metropolitan(ANB), Anniston, Usa (153.4km)
Columbus afb(CBM), Colombus, Usa (154.1km)
Redstone aaf(HUA), Redstone, Usa (167.2km)
Craig fld(SEM), Selma, Usa (174.6km)


text:
Listing information
- Beds: 4
- Stories: 0
- Foreclosure: No
- Lot Area: 0.91
- County: Ottawa
- Style: Single Family
- Baths: 3 (Full: 2 3/4: 0 1/2: 1 Other: 0)
- Parking Type Description: Attached 3 cars
- Total Square Footage: 2,327 ($179.85 per sq. foot)
- Lot Size: 160x250
- School District: Spring Lake
- Year Built: 1988
- Status: Active
- New Construction: No
- Above Ground Sq. Feet: 1,427
- Estimated Annual Taxes: $4,028
- Subdivision: N13 - Spring Lake Township
Access Feat: Accessibility Features No
Additional Items Ceiling Fans, Garage Door Opener, Laminate Floor, Whirlpool Tub
Appliances Built in Oven, Cook Top, Dishwasher, Garbage Disposal, Microwave
Basement Yes
Design Ranch
Driveway Paved
Exterior Features Deck(s), Patio
Exterior Material Vinyl, Wood
Fireplace Living, Yes
Garage Type 3, Attached
Garage: Garage Yes
Heat Source Natural Gas
Heat Type Forced Air
Kitchen Features Center Island, Eating Area, Pantry
Landscape Garden Area, Ground Cover, Shrubs/Hedges, Underground Sprinkler
Lot Description Cul-de-sac, Rolling Hills
Manufactured: Manufactured Y/N No
Mineral Rights Unknown
Other Basement Rooms: Basement Bedrooms - 0, Basement Rooms: Basement Finished SQFT - 0.00, Basement Rooms: Basement Full Baths - 0, Basement Rooms: Basement Half Baths - 0, Basement Rooms: Total Basement SQFT - 0.00, Lower Rooms: Lower Half Baths - 0, Lower Rooms: Lower Bedrooms - 2, Lower Rooms: Lower Finished SQFT - 900.00, Lower Rooms: Lower Full Baths - 1, Lower Rooms: Total Lower SQFT - 1427.00, Main Rooms: Main Bedrooms - 2, Main Rooms: Main Full Baths - 1, Main Rooms: Main Half Baths - 1, Main Rooms: Main Level SQFT - 1427.00, Road Frontage - 160.00, Waterfront Options: Water Frontage - 160.00
Property Sub-Type Single Family Residence
Roofing Comp Shingle
Sale Conditions None
Street Type Paved, Public
Substructure Full Basement, Walk Out
Terms Available Cash/Conventional
Utilities / Sewer Public
Utilities Attached Cable, Natural Gas
Water Fea. Amenities All Sports, Private Frontage
Water Type Lake, Public
Waterfront Options: Water Access Y/N Yes
Windows Insulated, Screens
Bedroom 2 M 11x12
Kitchen M 13x14
Living Room M 19x20
Master Bathroom M 7x9
Master Bedroom M 14x15
Bedroom 3 L 12x16
Bedroom 4 L 12x16
Family Room L 15x20
Laundry Room L 10x12
Dining Area 11x19
Listing Courtesy of Sandi L Gentry of Re/Max Lakeshore


text:
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New Member
Date Joined May 2009
Total Posts : 6
Posted 6/19/2009 4:25 AM (GMT -7)
anyone find it difficult to have a relationship. i am in a long term relationship..14 years, we are married and have 3 kids. we went through a v.bad patch after my 2nd child. anyhow, i am back to being fed up again. i have started taking meds and hope they will be of some help. i am going to reg councelling..for me. my husband doesnt have a problem and makes a point of telling me am the one wih the problem. anyhow, i feel that we are off balance when am distant hes suffociating, when hes close am distant. he claims i've zoned out the last couple of days. we had a major argument..over nothing really. and i really reaslised how hurt he is and how he is trying but never seems to get it right. i dont know if its my bi polar, our relationship, him, me..what? i am completely off intimacy with him and just not interested..and find it is beginning to get at me the fact that i am just not into it. and to be quite honest havent been for ages..years maybe. anyhow, any suggestions on how to ride through these bad waves. I cant tlk to him cos i feel we are just going over old ground. and that he is completly exzasperated at this stage by me, my suggestions etc. i can see hes trying but he never seems to get it right. I told him i dont want things..material things..waht i would like is a date with my husband but he just doesnt seem to get it. my mum could b.sit. i am fed up arranging our "nites" out. and would like him to do it for a change. as i said i have mentioned this more than once. so maybe i should just sit it out..#tanks for listening..
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Regular Member
Date Joined Mar 2009
Total Posts : 180
Posted 6/19/2009 3:14 PM (GMT -7)
relationships are hard. They would be hard in a perfect setting with perfect people simply because they involve more than one personality.
Yeah, my husband and I have had more ups and downs than should be ours. We have played the chase and run game you mention(suffucation versus distance). There have been times when he couldn't get anything right. I have learned to give him a break if things aren't just like I want them. It used to hurt me alot that he didn't make a big deal of our anniversary, or valentine's day. But I have learned to enjoy that he gives me special days, and does special things for me anytime he feels like it...which is quite often! It used to be that he didn't give just the right reaction to my "needs" or "wants", my emotions. I learned the hard way that we actually have a better relationship if I don't try to choreograph each encounter.
Let go a little. Let him be himself, and let him react to life in his own way. Find the things about
him that you like. You will start feeling more affection for him if you allow him to be himself, and not take it personally. You said he is trying hard. Start there. Be grateful and gracious to him for trying.
I hope you both learn to dance this relationship dance. It is really worthwhile.
Fibromyalgia, Bipolar II, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Anxiety, Arthritis, High Blood Pressure, etc.
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Veteran Member
Date Joined May 2007
Total Posts : 3715
Posted 6/19/2009 8:12 PM (GMT -7)
Hi Kiz,
I think to some extent poodles is absolutely right. All long-term relationships have to find their ways through this stage. My husband and I have had this very same talk. I know exactly what you're talking about
. Is it just the bipolar? I really don't think so, but I know that like most things, bipolar certainly makes it harder.
It's good you're back on your meds and seeking counseling, but as far as relationships go, it's always a two way street. I would really work on getting him into a marriage counselor with you. It might be hard, but it could
open things up for you two to work on together.
Good luck,
Co-Moderator, Bipolar Forum
Bipolar II
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New Member
Date Joined May 2009
Total Posts : 6
Posted 6/21/2009 12:02 PM (GMT -7)
thanks serafena and poodles for replies. things are better again lately after a decent
open chat. funny how just when we seem to reach a dead end we somehow unravel after and frustration and there is a perfect sorta calm and knowing that happens..anyhow, i just wish when we are in the mist of the tornado/twisted fog that I could rember that this is just another knot that will in time be unravelled in our relationship..anyhow, thanks for your encouragement..on and upwards. Until the next knot...
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New Member
Date Joined Jun 2009
Total Posts : 5
Posted 6/21/2009 12:47 PM (GMT -7)
"anyhow, i just wish when we are in the mist of the tornado/twisted fog that I could remember that this is just another knot that will in time be unraveled in our relationship"
This strikes a chord in me.
I'm 36, divorced for 6 years (2 kids with her), months ago broken up with my girlfriend of 5 yrs (2 kids with her) and just a few weeks ago had a meltdown, ended up driving across across Ca to Lake Tahoe,, for no reason other than I could not think straight, just felt like running from everyone and everything. For some stupid reason I called my exGirlfriend and got back together with her (drove back across Ca to where she lives). Within hours I was doubting that decision, within days we were broken up again. I basically cut off all contact from the woman I had been dating, who is the most spectacular person I've ever met. Now she will have nothing to do with, and I don't blame her. This all before I'd ever spoken with anyone about
possible mental health issues. 2 weeks ago I saw a Therapist after I started looking up my behavior patterns online and I found BP2. The 2 docs I've seen agree with the diagnosis. I started meds on Friday, and basically feel like I'm holding my breath, hoping this discovery and treatment will allow me to be me (though I'm not sure at this point who ME really is)
Anyway, I can't blame Bipolar for all my actions, I do know right from wrong, but it's like I would get into the states of mind where I could NOT determine what was right or wrong FOR ME. Then the stress of it all would cause me to shut down or lash out verbally, freak out in general. Everything, every sound or smell or thought felt overwhelming. My patience with everyone dropped to nill. I withdrew $600 from my bank account (to this day not sure why) got in my car and just drove, ending up in Tahoe.
Now I'm not in a relationship. The woman I'd been dating can't get over what I did, no matter how much I try to explain. I don't think I would be able to get over it either if I were her.
Ugh, so ya "Love", I'm certain it is not a fantasy idea, not a fictitious concept dreamed up to explain certain chemical and hormonal reactions in our bodies, it IS more than that, bigger than that... but it certainly appears to be something I won't be able to enjoy. Bleh that sounds so pathetic. It's amazing how I can be the eternal optimist and darkest pessimist at the same time.
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Veteran Member
Date Joined May 2007
Total Posts : 3715
Posted 6/21/2009 4:44 PM (GMT -7)
Hi Wes001,
Welcome to the bipolar board and to HealingWell. It sounds like you had a low moment and you made some bad decisions. Most of us bipolars have been there. Take a while to let the medicine kick in (it'll be weeks) and for the situation to cool down. Then try and have another chat with your girlfriend. Explain about
the bipolar. If she can't handle it, you have your answer. I'm sorry for your troubles, but sometimes this is a cruel way of finding out who is strong enough to hang on through the hard times and who isn't.
Co-Moderator, Bipolar Forum
Bipolar II
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New Member
Date Joined Jun 2009
Total Posts : 5
Posted 6/21/2009 7:54 PM (GMT -7)
Thank you Serafena, that's a hard pill to swallow, but I will.
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WCU's 2017 Annual Meeting
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All members are invited to attend, review the 2016 Annual Report, and participate in the election for the open positions on the Board of Directors. The Nominating Committee has nominated incumbent board members John Marino and Craig Hawkins for re-election of a three-year term. Any petitions for additional nominations must be filed with the Secretary of the Board by 2/18/17.
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Survival Stories was written and produced to accompany The Gift of Life Block Walk, an annual breast cancer awareness event hosted by Sisters Network, Inc. During this event, women canvass a designated neighborhood to encourage and provide free clinical breast exams for uninsured women and to increase awareness of a disease that disproportionately affects African American women.
We asked if we could use this opportunity to explore the subject on stage and set about asking women to share their "C" stories (we call them "C" Stories because one of our contributors told us that during her process to healing, she refused to say the word). We all learned from their reluctance, fears, fortitude and attitudes about surviving and gave the patrons and volunteers a theatrical appreciation for their Gift of Life.


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Home >> Media - TV >> Article
TV18 to raise fresh funds to power expansion
Television Eighteen India Ltd (TV18) is planning to raise fresh funds for the company's expansion plans. Confirming the move, Haresh Chawla, Chief Executive Officer,CNBC-TV18, said, "We are looking to raise funds for the expansion of our existing operations and to infuse funds to improve our Hindi programming". But he refused to divulge the amount the company would look to raise.
The decision to raise funds will be taken by the company at its Board of Directors (BoD) meeting on May 18, the company said in a notice to the Bombay Stock Exchange on May 11, 2004. In the notice, the company has also stated that they would be looking to consider the introduction and implementation of the TV18 Employee Stock Option Plan, 2004 and the TV18 Employees Stock Purchase Plan, 2004.
It is understood from sources that the company is launching a full-fledged Hindi business news channel during the course of the financial year and part of the fresh funds would go towards investing in fresh programming for the Hindi business channel.
As is understood from the market sources and media analysts tracking the company closely, the requirement of the company is expected to be in the range of Rs 200 million for the Hindi channel. The channel would broadcast Hindi business news, and programmes on consumer finance and investing.
Over a period of time, the Hindi channel is expected to exceed that of CNBC-TV18, according to media analysts. Currently CNBC-TV18, airs around three to four hours of bi-lingual (Hindi and English) programming. "We believe this will be done away with in favour of the Hindi channel," says the latest and one of the first media sector report for year 2004 from Karvy Stock Broking.
Analysts are gung-ho about the company. From a content provider owning a 49 per cent stake in the disseminating platform, TV18 has become a full-fledged broadcaster (with 90 per cent stake).
According to the Karvy Stock Broking report, "With an all India channel share of 31 per cent and over 10 million viewership, TV18's business model looks attractive".
During the third quarter of the financial year 2003-04 TV18's revenues jumped 39 per cent to Rs 152 million quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) growth, while EBIDTA margins at Rs 68.45 million were up 90 per cent (QoQ). EBIDTA margin was a good 45 per cent, while incremental EBIDTA margin was a huge 75 per cent. "Improving inventories utilisation, higher advertising rates, more number of advertisers and committed subscription on a mostly flat expenditure base contributed to the strong profitability," says the report. The company is expected to come out with better results for the year ending March 31, 2004.
The TV18 stock closed the day on May 11, 2004 at Rs 205.15, down 5.68 per cent over the previous day's close.
Siddharth Kumar Tewary, Founder, Chief Creative, One Life Studios and Swastik Productions, on owning the IP on his most ambitious project 'Porus,' the risk of recovering its cost and his distribution strategy
Webscale plans to build the brand around smooth operations for the e-commerce sector and then move on to demand generation
Licensing and merchandising will contribute 20 per cent to our revenues annually: Shriya Ghate, Tinkle
Shriya Ghate, Business Head, Tinkle, spills the beans on the company's vision for its special line of merchandise launched to celebrate its 37th anniversary, its pricing, marketing strategies, and more
Vivek Patni, Director of Wonder Cement, on the current marketing strategies and challenges that brand owners face
(L-R) Rashmi Vasisht of The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts with Sudeep Bhalla of Vodafone India, Sheetal Singh of Micromax India, Swati Bhattacharya of CK Birla, Archana Datta of Prasar Bharati, Sanjaya Baru of FICCI India, Jayaram Ramanathan of Aviva Life Insurance, Prateek Chatterjee of NIIT India, Manan Shah of Truecaller, Mona Kwatra of Edelweiss Group
Luis Fonsi, Rita Ora, Jain of Makeba fame , Dimitri Vegas, Jason Derulo, Charly Black and Dasu, J Balvin, Parineeti Chopra, Tiger & Jackie Shroff speak exclusively to the radio channel
The Film-Maker, as the host of 'Calling Karan', Will Be Just A Phone Call Away From Listeners Seeking Advice On Love & Relationship
The group aims to double its FMCG turnover to Rs. 1,000 crore over four years.