text:
21 U.S. Code § 387a–1 - Final rule
prev | next
(a) Cigarettes and smokeless tobacco
(1) In general
On the first day of publication of the Federal Register that is 180 days or more after June 22, 2009, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall publish in the Federal Register a final rule regarding cigarettes and smokeless tobacco, which—
(A) is deemed to be issued under chapter 9 [1] of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act [21 U.S.C. 387 et seq.], as added by section 101 of this division; and
(2) Contents of rule
Except as provided in this subsection, the final rule published under paragraph (1), [2] shall be identical in its provisions to part 897 of the regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Health and Human Services in the August 28, 1996, issue of the Federal Register (61 Fed. Reg. 44615–44618). Such rule shall—
(A) provide for the designation of jurisdictional authority that is in accordance with this subsection in accordance with this division and the amendments made by this division;
(C) strike paragraphs (a), (b), and (i) of section 897.3 and insert definitions of the terms "cigarette", "cigarette tobacco", and "smokeless tobacco" as defined in section 900 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act [21 U.S.C. 387];
(D) insert "or roll-your-own paper" in section 897.34(a) after "other than cigarettes or smokeless tobacco";
(E) include such modifications to section 897.30(b), if any, that the Secretary determines are appropriate in light of governing First Amendment case law, including the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in Lorillard Tobacco Co. v. Reilly (533 U.S. 525 (2001));
(G) amend paragraph (d) of section 897.16 to read as follows:
"(d)(1) Except as provided in subparagraph (2), no manufacturer, distributor, or retailer may distribute or cause to be distributed any free samples of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, or other tobacco products (as such term is defined in section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act).
"(2)(A) Subparagraph (1) does not prohibit a manufacturer, distributor, or retailer from distributing or causing to be distributed free samples of smokeless tobacco in a qualified adult-only facility.
"(B) This subparagraph does not affect the authority of a State or local government to prohibit or otherwise restrict the distribution of free samples of smokeless tobacco.
"(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the term 'qualified adult-only facility' means a facility or restricted area that—
"(i) requires each person present to provide to a law enforcement officer (whether on or off duty) or to a security guard licensed by a governmental entity government-issued identification showing a photograph and at least the minimum age established by applicable law for the purchase of smokeless tobacco;
"(ii) does not sell, serve, or distribute alcohol;
"(iii) is not located adjacent to or immediately across from (in any direction) a space that is used primarily for youth-oriented marketing, promotional, or other activities;
"(iv) is a temporary structure constructed, designated, and operated as a distinct enclosed area for the purpose of distributing free samples of smokeless tobacco in accordance with this subparagraph;
"(v) is enclosed by a barrier that—
"(I) is constructed of, or covered with, an opaque material (except for entrances and exits);
"(II) extends from no more than 12 inches above the ground or floor (which area at the bottom of the barrier must be covered with material that restricts visibility but may allow airflow) to at least 8 feet above the ground or floor (or to the ceiling); and
"(III) prevents persons outside the qualified adult-only facility from seeing into the qualified adult-only facility, unless they make unreasonable efforts to do so; and
"(vi) does not display on its exterior—
"(I) any tobacco product advertising;
"(II) a brand name other than in conjunction with words for an area or enclosure to identify an adult-only facility; or
"(III) any combination of words that would imply to a reasonable observer that the manufacturer, distributor, or retailer has a sponsorship that would violate section 897.34(c).
"(D) Distribution of samples of smokeless tobacco under this subparagraph permitted to be taken out of the qualified adult-only facility shall be limited to 1 package per adult consumer containing no more than 0.53 ounces (15 grams) of smokeless tobacco. If such package of smokeless tobacco contains individual portions of smokeless tobacco, the individual portions of smokeless tobacco shall not exceed 8 individual portions and the collective weight of such individual portions shall not exceed 0.53 ounces (15 grams). Any manufacturer, distributor, or retailer who distributes or causes to be distributed free samples also shall take reasonable steps to ensure that the above amounts are limited to one such package per adult consumer per day.
"(3) Notwithstanding subparagraph (2), no manufacturer, distributor, or retailer may distribute or cause to be distributed any free samples of smokeless tobacco—
"(A) to a sports team or entertainment group; or
"(B) at any football, basketball, baseball, soccer, or hockey event or any other sporting or entertainment event determined by the Secretary to be covered by this subparagraph.
"(4) The Secretary shall implement a program to ensure compliance with this paragraph and submit a report to the Congress on such compliance not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act.
"(5) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to authorize any person to distribute or cause to be distributed any sample of a tobacco product to any individual who has not attained the minimum age established by applicable law for the purchase of such product.".
(3) Amendments to rule
(4) Rule of construction
Except as provided in paragraph (3), nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the authority of the Secretary to amend, in accordance with chapter 5 of title 5, the regulation promulgated pursuant to this section, including the provisions of such regulation relating to distribution of free samples.
(5) Enforcement of retail sale provisions
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall ensure that the provisions of this division, the amendments made by this division, and the implementing regulations (including such provisions, amendments, and regulations relating to the retail sale of tobacco products) are enforced with respect to the United States and Indian tribes.
(6) Qualified adult-only facility
A qualified adult-only facility (as such term is defined in section 897.16(d) of the final rule published under paragraph (1)) that is also a retailer and that commits a violation as a retailer shall not be subject to the limitations in section 103 (q) [3] and shall be subject to penalties applicable to a qualified adult-only facility.
(b) Limitation on advisory opinions
As of June 22, 2009, the following documents issued by the Food and Drug Administration shall not constitute advisory opinions under section 10.85(d)(1) of title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, except as they apply to tobacco products, and shall not be cited by the Secretary of Health and Human Services or the Food and Drug Administration as binding precedent:
(1) The preamble to the proposed rule in the document titled "Regulations Restricting the Sale and Distribution of Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco Products to Protect Children and Adolescents" (60 Fed. Reg. 41314–41372 (August 11, 1995)).
(2) The document titled "Nicotine in Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco Products is a Drug and These Products Are Nicotine Delivery Devices Under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act" (60 Fed. Reg. 41453–41787 (August 11, 1995)).
(3) The preamble to the final rule in the document titled "Regulations Restricting the Sale and Distribution of Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco to Protect Children and Adolescents" (61 Fed. Reg. 44396–44615 (August 28, 1996)).
[1] So in original. Probably should be "chapter IX".
[2] So in original. The comma probably should not appear.
[3] So in original. See References in Text note below.
Source(Pub. L. 111–31, div. A, title I, § 102,June 22, 2009, 123 Stat. 1830.)
References in Text
The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(1)(A), is act June 25, 1938, ch. 675, 52 Stat. 1040, which is classified generally to chapter 9 (§ 301 et seq.) of this title. Chapter 9 [IX] of the Act is classified generally to this subchapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 301 of this title and Tables.
This division, referred to in subsec. (a)(2)(A), (5), is div. A of Pub. L. 111–31, June 22, 2009, 123 Stat. 1776, known as the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. For complete classification of division A to the Code, see Short Title of 2009 Amendment note set out under section 301 of this title and Tables.
The date of enactment of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(2)(G), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 111–31, which was approved June 22, 2009.
Section 103 (q), referred to in subsec. (a)(6), is section 103(q) ofPub. L. 111–31, which enacted provisions set out as notes under sections 333 and 387c of this title.
Section was enacted as part of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act and not as part of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act which comprises this chapter.
Modification of Deadlines for Secretarial Action
For provision deeming reference to "180 days" in subsec. (a)(1) to be "270 days", see section 6 ofPub. L. 111–31, set out as a note under section 387 of this title.
LII has no control over and does not endorse any external Internet site that contains links to or references LII.


text: Marc Chagall's poetic, figurative style has established him as one of the most popular modern art painters. Born in 1877 in the Jewish town of Vitebsk, Russia, Chagall developed an early interest in art. After studying painting in 1907 he left for Paris, where he met Apollinaire, Delaunay, Leger, Modigliani and Lhote, becoming a prominent figure within the so-called Ecole de Paris. Influenced by cubism and fauvism, Chagall fused these with personal, dreamlike imagery to develop his own distinctive style.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
1. Website
Under the French Digital Economy Trust Act no. 2004-575 of 21 June 2004, users of the website http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com are informed that the various parties involved in creating and monitoring it are:
Owner: S.A. Hotel Negresco, S.A. B 957 810 146 00010, 37 Promenade des Anglais, 06 000 Nice, France
Creator: Fastbooking
Publishing manager: Stairway Management – +33 (0)9 67 27 97 45
The publishing manager is a person or legal entity.
Webmaster: firstname.lastname@example.com – Cyril Castelain
Host: Fastbooking, 63 avenue des Champs- Elysées, 75008 Paris, France
Credits: The legal notes were generated and provided by Subdelirium, website designers in Angoulême
2. General terms & conditions of use for the website and services offered
By using the website http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com, you are deemed to have unreservedly accepted the general terms and conditions of use (T&Cs) set out below. These T&Cs may be amended or added to at any time. Visitors to http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com are therefore encouraged to regularly check them.
This website is normally accessible to users at all times. However, S.A Hotel Negresco may decide to interrupt access in order to carry out maintenance. The Hotel will do its best to give users prior notice of the times and dates the website will be down.
The website http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com is regularly updated by Stairway Management. Similarly, the legal notes may be amended at any time. Users continue to be bound by and are encouraged to regularly consult them.
3. Description of services provided
The purpose of http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com is to provide information about the company's business.
S.A. Hotel Negresco does its best to ensure the website http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com displays the most accurate information possible. However, it cannot be held liable for omissions, inaccuracies and lack of updates, whether due to its own actions or those of a partner third party providing the information.
All the information given on http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com is for information purposes only and may be subject to change. Furthermore, the information given on http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com is not exhaustive. It is subject to any changes made since it was published online.
4. Contractual limitations on technical data
This website uses JavaScript.
The website cannot be held liable for any property damage in relation to the use of this website. Furthermore, users agree to access the website using virus-free, relatively new equipment and an up-to-date browser.
5. Intellectual property & counterfeiting
S.A. Hotel Negresco owns the intellectual property rights and holds usage rights over all elements on the website, including text, images, graphics, logos, icons, sounds and software.
Photo copyrights: Elisabeth Billhardt, Marcel Jolibois, Antoine Gauvin, Grégoire Gardette, Cote Magazine, Jean-Michel Sordello – All rights reserved.
It is prohibited to reproduce, represent, modify, publish or adapt all or part of the website's elements, regardless of the means or process used, without the prior written approval of S.A. Hotel Negresco.
Any unauthorised use of the website or any of the elements it contains will be considered as an act of counterfeiting and will be prosecuted in accordance with the provisions of articles L 335-2 et seq of the French Intellectual Property Code.
6. Limitation of liability
S.A. Hotel Negresco cannot be held liable for direct or indirect damage caused to a user's equipment when accessing the website http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com as a result of either the use of equipment that fails to meet the specifications stated in point 4 or the occurrence of a bug or incompatibility issue.
S.A. Hotel Negresco also cannot be held liable for any indirect damage (such as loss of market share or loss of opportunity) following the use of http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com.
Interactive pages (where questions can be asked in the contact section) are available to users. S.A. Hotel Negresco reserves the right, without prior notice, to remove any content uploaded to this page that contravenes French legislation, specifically the provisions relating to data protection. When required, S.A. Hotel Negresco also reserves the right to file a claim against the user, including for messages of a racist, insulting, defamatory or pornographic nature, regardless of the media used (text, photo, etc.).
7. Management of personal details
In France, personal details are protected by law no. 78-87 of 6 January 1978, law no. 2004-801 of 6 August 2004, article L 226-13 of the French Criminal Code and the European Directive of 24 October 1995.
During use of the website http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com, we may collect: the URL of links used by the user to access http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com, the name of the user's internet provider and the user's IP address.
In any event, S.A. Hotel Negresco will only gather personal information about users as needed by some services offered on http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com. Users knowingly provide this information, including when they enter the details themselves. At that time, users of http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com are informed if this information is mandatory or optional.
In accordance with the provisions of articles 38 et seq of the French Data Protection Act 78-17 of 6 January 1978, all users have the right to access, correct and dispute their personal details by submitting a written, signed request along with a return address and copy of their ID showing the holder's signature.
No personal details of users of the website http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com will be published without the knowledge of the user or transferred, yielded or sold on any media to a third party. Only if S.A. Hotel Negresco is sold, along with its rights, will the aforementioned information be provided to the purchaser who will in turn be bound by the same data storage and modification obligations in relation to users of http://www.hotel-negresco-nice.com.
The aforementioned website has been declared to CNIL (the French National Commission for Information Technology and Civil Liberties) under no. 1743065 v0.
The databases are protected by the provisions of the law of 1 July 1998 transposing Directive 96/9 of 11 March 1996 relating to the legal protection of databases.


text:
Home | Contact us/Support | Privacy | Terms of use/EULA | Forum | Espanol | Francais
Try and Compare most popular Messengers:
Copyright download-messenger.me. 2009 All Rights Reserved
Smiley downloads are Free to use with download of toolbar. Actual Number of Smileys and product compatibility may vary depending on providers' updates. Microsoft Corp. and its service information and sample product images are provided for convenience and educational purpose only. download-messenger.me is not directly sponsored or endorsed by Microsoft Corp. MSN and Windows Live are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Downloading SmileyCentral toolbar does not include or bundle the installation of Windows Live Messenger/MSN Instant Messenger. To download Windows Live Messenger directly go to http://download.live.com/?sku=messenger. download-messenger.me does not guarantee any product and service information presented on the web site. download-messenger.me is paid as an affiliate for every download of the Smiley Toolbar.


text:
Police in Orange responded to a call from Little Cypress Jr. High School Monday afternoon, March 4, in reference to a student's assault of a teacher there.
At approximately 2 p.m., Officer Joshua Dempsey reported he responded to the call and met with the principal of the school, Mitzi Conn. Conn told the officer a student at the campus assaulted another student during a sixth-grade science class. During the altercation, the attacking student reportedly shoved the instructor into her desk.
According to Sherri Combs, LC-M CISD public information specialist, the fight was actually between two students, one of whom was beaten badly, and the teacher was simply caught in the middle in her efforts to separate the two.
The aggressor was arrested for assault on the other student and taken to the Minnie Rogers Juvenile Detention Center.
[1] http://theexaminer.com/users/sharon-brooks
[2] http://theexaminer.com/sites/default/files/OPD_6.jpg
[3] http://theexaminer.com/stories/news
[4] http://theexaminer.com/tags/assault
[5] http://theexaminer.com/tags/junior-high
[6] http://theexaminer.com/tags/little-cypress
[7] http://theexaminer.com/tags/school
[8] http://theexaminer.com/tags/student
[9] http://theexaminer.com/tags/teacher


text:
Current Law Students / Re: BigLaw Bonuses« on: February 25, 2007, 01:22:41 PM »
We'll see- rumor has it NYC firms will be paying 190 by 2008, I would think that puts Chicago close to 175 pre-bonus.New bonuses came out about a month ago and they're pretty ridiculous ... I think they'll announce soon. Almost all the big NY firms are up to $160 (and some of the medium ones, too) ... LA caught the bug next and now DC is upping to at least $145. Things should settle in mid-Feb.How high do you mean by ridiculous? Any specific numbers? I'm hoping 175,000 will be standard at the big Chicago firms by 2008.
$175K?! Maybe if you mean gross salary + bonus at 2400 hours ...
Right now the highest bonuses at 2400 hours are Mayer and Kirkland (both around $50K), but many other good firms in the city have bonuses that range from 10% of salary (Jenner) to $20-$30K (Skadden) in that range of hours (read: in exchange for killing yourself). As for salary, the Standard for Chicago BIGLAW (with Baker and McGuireWoods holding out, if you can call MW biglaw) is $145K. Bonuses are all over the board. There's no way that Chicago BIGLAW standard salary will hit $175K until at least four-six years from now.


text:
In the corridors of the country's most powerful retail real estate companies, as recession scorches the capital markets, chief executives are making wrenching decisions to quench their thirst for cash and assure their companies' survival.
Pressure from weakening fundamentals and tanking stock prices is forcing retail real estate investment trusts (REITs) to take drastic steps with long-term consequences, such as selling prized assets or raising equity in the company.
For instance, Kimco Realty Corp., a shopping center REIT whose stock lost 81% of its value over the past year, is selling 70 million shares to pay off a fraction of its $7.5 billion of debt and has raised $750 million, according to New York-based Fitch Ratings. Kimco, based in New Hyde Park, N.Y., announced the offering in late April, a month after Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group sold 15 million shares. Simon raised $550 million, Fitch says.
"The industry as a whole desperately needs equity capital," says William Morrill, managing director of CB Richard Ellis Global Real Estate Securities. "Survival is the key here," he says. REIT managers witnessed a sobering example of the dangers of a credit-deprived market in April, as the nation's second largest regional mall owner, Chicago-based General Growth Properties (NYSE: GGP), filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after it was unable to refinance its $27.3 billion debt and creditors would not defer loan payments.
But even for healthier REITs, raising cash has its pitfalls. The problem with unloading millions of shares in the current recession is that the short-term cash gain can prove expensive to a company in the long run. Shares are selling at far below their 52-week highs, and issuing equity gives buyers more power in company decisions.
But cash-strapped REITs with debts coming due are biting the bullet. "It pains them to do it, and it's diluting [stock values and equity stakes] so they are losing shareholders, but survival is more important than dilution at this point," says Morrill.
Besides selling assets, other steps the retail REITs are taking to raise or conserve funds include forming joint ventures with credit partners, cutting dividends or paying dividends in stock rather than cash, renewing tenant leases early to keep income flowing, and paring operating expenses. Many companies have put development projects on hold — or abandoned them altogether.
Unloading malls
"Heading into the downturn we sold six malls out of 25," says Marshall Loeb, president and chief operating officer of Glimcher Realty Trust, a shopping center REIT based in Columbus, Ohio. The last sale closed early this year. Glimcher projects net operating income to fall 3% in 2009 and its mall occupancy rate to decline 2.5%. The REIT is considering joint ventures and selling more assets in order to raise much-needed capital.
"Many REITs are net sellers in this kind of market," says Keven Lindemann, director of the real estate group at SNL Financial, based in Charlottesville, Va. They're trying to shore up their balance sheets, he says.
Developers Diversified Realty (NYSE: DDR), based in Beachwood, Ohio, which has been beset by liquidity problems, sold 29 properties in the first quarter through mid-March, says Lindemann. "They bought 11 properties, but that's a net decline." Kimco sold 19 properties and bought 14, while Regency sold 26 properties and bought only two. "That's a pretty significant decline," he says.
Simon Property Group, the largest retail landlord in the U.S. with 246 million sq. ft., sold one property and bought none, Lindemann notes. Many analysts believe Simon is storing up cash to make large opportunistic buys of distressed portfolios in the near future.
REIT stocks have been sinking by 50% to 80%, in many cases. Glimcher's stock plunged from a 52-week high of $13.46 to $2.52 on April 23. "You empathize with all your investors," Loeb says. Still, the stock prices have had little effect on operations, Loeb adds. The REIT's shopping center portfolio finished the year 94% leased.
A number of tenants have approached the mall owner recently for concessions in rent or lease terms, but Loeb's no pushover. "In most cases you end up not making adjustments to the lease. We have their occupancy costs, too, and a lot of times we think they're at a healthy number and they're okay."
He may offer a tradeoff, perhaps a one-year rent reduction in return for the tenant's agreement to catch up the following year. "If they're really a critical tenant to the center and we think they need help, yes, we will work with them."
Loeb is pinching pennies, generating revenue even as he slashes expenses. His company structured a solar roof project to earn half-a-penny a share from it, and earns royalties from setting up Wi-Fi at a shopping center food court.
REITs are burdened with debt and fear they won't be able to refinance mortgages if banks don't free up cash soon. Their problems, in many cases, have beencompounded by rapid expansion in the five-year boom period preceding the collapse of Wall Street investment banks.
Now commercial development has ground to a near-halt and income is jeopardized by skittish consumers afraid to spend amid massive job losses — 663,000 payroll positions eliminated in March alone. So REITs are forced to hunt for cash to pay their maturing debts.
Pressure on cap rates
The tight credit markets, declining valuations, slumping sales and climbing vacancy rates are putting upward pressure on capitalization rates, the initial return based on the purchase price, real estate services firm Jones Lang LaSalle notes in its mid-year retail investment report. It estimates that cap rates will hit 7% this year for properties with assumable debt and double-digits for strip centers without grocery stores.
Foreclosures are rising and will likely peak in 2010, the report says. Mall and shopping center sales amounted to a relatively paltry $20.7 billion last year, a 71% decline from 2007.
Grocery-anchored centers are performing better than regional malls or power centers. In short, while people have to eat, they don't have to buy iPods.
Fundamentals are eroding across the sector. In the first quarter, the vacancy rate for neighborhood and community centers rose to 9.5%, up sharply from 7.7% over the same period of 2008, reports New York-based research firm Reis. Meanwhile, regional mall vacancy rose to 7.9% from 5.9% a year earlier.
Many smaller-market malls are having a tough time. Financial stress dealt a blow to the Macon Mall, a 1.4 million sq. ft. center in Macon, Ga., anchored by Macy's, JCPenney, Belk and Sears. "It's on the market because the existing owners put it into receivership. It was not able to meet its debt service," says Kris Cooper, managing director of retail investment sales at brokerage Jones Lang LaSalle.
The mall needs an entrepreneurial hand, says Cooper, a new owner to take care of capital improvements and turn the property around. Opportunities are available across the country, since property values have dropped by an estimated 25% to 30%, depending on the area, Cooper notes. "Clearly we've taken a hit across the board."
Skirting the banks
The trick to closing a retail deal today is not to beseech the big banks, but to skirt them. "Our sellers are carrying back financing, providing first mortgage financing, or there are loans that can be assumed," Cooper says. "That's the only way they're getting done." Some regional banks are lending for projects below $50 million, and local companies at times fund a hometown development.
REITs are pursuing joint ventures with partners able to provide credit or cash for maturing debts, development or acquisitions, although there aren't many buyers. Acquisitions by publicly traded REITs sank from $10.1 billion in 2007 to $1.3 billion in 2008, according to New York-based research firm Real Capital Analytics. So even with partners, buying is rare.
And joint ventures can backfire. Some partners run out of cash or credit. "You've seen a lot of these fund-type businesses fall apart. That's part of the reason Developers Diversified is struggling at the moment," says CBRE financial analyst Seth Cohn.
DDR partnered with New York-based Coventry Real Estate Advisors to buy shopping centers, with DDR investing 20% and Coventry, 80%. However, in March, Ward Parkway Center in Kansas City, Mo. faced foreclosure after Coventry defaulted on its payment, according to the lender. The joint venture bought the mall in 2003 for $48.5 million. DDR declined to comment.
Regency also has had a troubled partnership, Cohn explains, with Australian fund Macquarie Countrywide Trust. "They have this agreement with Regency and it's not doing well. It's a big threat to Regency as a stock that Macquarie's not going to come up with the capital to keep these projects afloat," says Cohn. "That's another example of some difficulties that lie ahead for these strip center REITs." Regency also declined to be interviewed.
Despite the risks, joint ventures offer a solution for many cash-strapped REITs. "When you do a joint venture, you don't put the debt on your balance sheet," says Morrill of CBRE. Since the joint venture represents a separate entity with its own expenses and revenues, some REITs loaded up more debt than they could handle.
Trading at discounts
Retail REITs have taken a beating during the recession, says Lindemann of SNL Financial. Their stocks, particularly regional malls, are trading at tremendous discounts to what analysts believe is the underlying value of their assets.
"Federal Realty, which is widely viewed as having one of the strongest portfolios of shopping center properties, is trading at about 75% of its net asset value," Lindemann notes. Overall, shopping centers are trading at about a 50% discount to their net asset value (NAV), he adds. However, before General Growth's bankruptcy filing in March, it was trading at a 98% discount to NAV, Lindemann says.
Even strong players like Simon and Taubman Centers are trading at big discounts. Simon was trading at roughly a 57% discount in March, Lindemann says. Its stock closed at $48.41 on April 23, down from a 52-week high of $106.43.
It's not only stocks that have fallen. According to the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, total retail REIT returns declined 36.6% from January through early April 2009 following a drop of 48.4% in 2008.
And the industry has been consolidating. Long before the recession, the sector began shrinking from 14 public regional mall REITs in December 1998 to just nine by December of 2008. The number of public retail REITs contracted from 55 in 1998 to 29 by December 2008, SNL reports. Across all property types, including office and industrial, the number of public REITs dropped from 198 to 121.
But while the number of REITs has shrunk, the business model won't go away soon, says Steven Marks, managing director at Fitch Ratings in New York. For one thing, few mergers are taking place. And who has the debt capital to finance taking a REIT private? That would involve buying a massive number of shares, and the trend is deleveraging, not bulking up.
"They have challenges. They're going to have to rethink their tenant strategies," says Lynne Sagalyn, director of the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate at Columbia University.
Who will survive?
Fitch gives Simon an A- rating and Regency a rating of BBB+. On March 27, Fitch downgraded DDR to BBB- with a negative rating outlook, despite a cash infusion of $170 million and a $60 million secured mortgage from the Alexander Otto family in Germany.
Marks estimates that DDR has $250 million of secured debt coming due in 2009, and $1.1 billion in 2010. That doesn't include maturities under the company's revolving line of credit with banks. The company has to lighten its debt load to survive, analysts say, and they question whether it can.
"They're clearly in some trouble," says Mike Magerman, senior vice president at Realpoint, a credit rating agency based in Horsham, Pa. "They have already drawn substantially on their credit lines, so they don't have a whole lot of flexibility." Forced sales may be their only option, he says.
As with General Growth, which vows to recover from bankruptcy, DDR's portfolio is widely regarded as attractive. But will the two REITs be around in a year or two?
Morrill of CBRE Global Real Estate Securities has his doubts. "I would be surprised if General Growth is. I think it's 50-50 on DDR."
Denise Kalette is senior associate editor.
Tanger takes a bow as outlet centers shine
A mid the downbeat news of faltering fundamentals and scarce credit, an unlikely star is turning heads in the world of real estate investment trusts (REITs).
Tanger Outlet Centers, based in Greensboro, N.C., is garnering praise for the performance of its stock and bottom line at a time when many shopping center and mall owners are struggling to stay afloat. The outlet REIT's stock price closed at $35.03 on April 24, down from a 52-week high of $46.30, but up 3% from the previous close. Considering that some retail stocks have plunged by 80%, Tanger's stock is considered relatively robust.
The company operates 33 outlet centers in 22 states, offering upscale labels such as Nike, Liz Claiborne, Polo Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger. Tanger's 2,000 stores feature factory direct merchandise, which the REIT says can lead to consumer discounts of 20% to 40%.
In the first quarter, CEO Steven Tanger announced that the company would increase its common share dividend for the 16th consecutive year. Same-center net operating income increased 2.4% for the quarter compared with 2.5% in the fourth quarter of 2008 and 5.7% in the first quarter of 2008.
"That's an absolutely excellent story. The outlet center space is a place where retailers are opening lots of stores. The demand for outlet center space is very high," says Rich Moore, an analyst with investment bank RBC Capital Markets. Other outlet companies also are flourishing, he says.
William Morrill, managing director of CB Richard Ellis Global Real Estate Securities, ranks Tanger's chance of surviving the recession as high as that of the far larger Simon Property Group. "Tanger has a very good debt structure." And consumers want to save cash by buying goods at lower prices, he adds.
Unlike many REITs, Tanger stock is trading at prices that closely reflect the estimated value of its underlying assets, says Keven Lindemann, director of the real estate group at SNL Financial in Charlottesville, Va. "That does suggest that the market believes them to be a bit more resilient and maybe better positioned to perform well in this kind of market."


text:
The secret's out! According to a new report, Kim Kardashian, 30, will tie the knot on August 20.
The NY Post reveals the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star will wed NBA fiance Kris Humphries in California… with camera crews in tow of course.
Sources reveal the couple will have their separate bachelor/bachelorette parties at clubs Tao and Lavo in Las Vegas later this month. The E! network will reportedly air their wedding as a 2-hour special.
In other Kardashian news, it appears Kim's pimpmomager Kris Jenner continues to help plan her big day by picking a location, cake, wedding dress and did we mention getting a facelift?
Yes, Kris, 55, went under the knife so that she can look her best for
her favorite daughter Kimmie's big day! And in true Kardashian fashion, the entire ordeal was caught on tape and will air on an upcoming episode of KUWTK.
In the preview clip, Kris reveals her pre-surgery jitters. "I don't want to die," Kris joked after calling it the "most stressful morning" of her life. "Don't cry, you're going to be fine," Kim assured her mom. "If you're scared, you don't have to do it. I'm sure people are scared all the time."
Kris has been keeping a low profile since having the face overhaul a month ago but Khloe assures us the results are superb. "She looks amazing," Khloe told the NY Daily News. "They say you are supposed to have a lot of swelling for a week or so after, but I didn't notice."
Below is a photo of Kris following her facelift, and tomorrow a new episode of KUWTK airs on E! at 10/9c.
Photo credit: Brooks/Larsen/INFphoto.com


text:
Missouri man charged with felony after alleged racial slur
MARYVILLE - A white northwest Missouri man is charged with felony assault after he allegedly confronted a black waitress Sunday as she served him breakfast.
Nodaway County Prosecuting Attorney Robert Rice said Wednesday he charged 65-year-old Tommy Dean Gaa, of Maryville, with felony assault motivated by discrimination.
The Maryville Daily Forum reports Gaa is accused of confronting the waitress and grabbing her arm, causing bruising. According to a probable cause statement, Gaa used racial slurs and said: "I have a place I would like to take you where I hung your grandpa."
Nodaway County Jail released Gaa on $4,900 bond. Online records do not indicate if he has an attorney.
More News
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Attorneys general from West Virginia and 10 other states are asking the U.S.... More >>
(CNN) -- From January 2016 through February 2018, puppies sold at six pet store companies led to infections in 118... More >>
JEFFERSON CITY - Missouri's Stop Human Trafficking Coalition's 2018 conference is taking place this weekend and is a reminder that... More >>
COLUMBIA - MU's School of Health Professions will be crafting a new curriculum starting Friday after the MU Board of... More >>
COLUMBIA- A new MU Research building is set to be built by October 2021, after the MU Board of Curators... More >>
COLUMBIA - A warning from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services closed Stephens Lake Thursday afternoon. Columbia... More >>
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The longtime aide of former Democratic leader Mike Sanders was sentenced to six months in... More >>
COLUMBIA - Boone County Family Resources is just too big. Now, the agency wants a new building with more parking... More >>
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri prosecutor says he won't press charges related to allegations of conflicts of interest... More >>
SUNRISE BEACH - Sunrise Beach Fire Protection District Board President Brian Layman resigned Thursday. Layman's resignation follows Fire Chief... More >>
ASHLAND - The Missouri State Education Board outlined a budget that would increase transportation funding for Missouri schools. "The... More >>
COLUMBIA - The Boone County Commission will soon be accepting applications for anyone interested in leasing the former fairgrounds. ... More >>
JEFFERSON CITY (AP) — Planned Parenthood says abortions will stop at its Columbia clinic after Oct. 1 unless a federal... More >>
COLUMBIA - November elections are approaching, but behind campaign speeches and electoral yard signs, Boone County is struggling to reach... More >>
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Gov. Mike Parson is considering changes to Missouri regulations to help address a shortage of... More >>
JEFFERSON CITY - The Cole County Prosecutor's Office said Thursday it will not pursue charges in connection with the investigation... More >>
MOBERLY - More than 100 counties are getting $25 million to combat the opioid crisis, and Randolph County is one... More >>
ABERDEEN, Md. (AP) — The latest on the shooting in Maryland (all times local): 12:05 p.m. Law enforcement... More >>


text:
2013 Intertown end of season tournament - August 24-25, 2013
The Intertown teams will be participating in end of season tournament where each winning team for an age/gender group (except U16 Girls) will be awarded the King Mayoral Intertown Cup. This cup will reside with the winning club and as a token of sportmanship, the winning club agrees to return to defend the cup the following year.
U12 Boys
U12 Girls
U14 Boys
U14 Girls
U16 Boys


text:
Baby Day
Baby Day takes place on May 2nd, 2017. It is a day to celebrate the little bundles of joy and innocence who change lives forever.
Babies help us see the good in the world. They give hope, happiness, and make you strive to become a better person.
Use Baby Day as an opportunity to cherish your baby, or celebrate with a niece, nephew or grandchild. Show them how lucky you feel to have them in your life.
If you do not have any babies in your family, consider making a gift basket for a new mother in the neighborhood or donating graciously to a baby related charity. Enjoy this precious day.
Each and every day at Hard Manufacturing we work to make sure babies are comfortable in our cribs, while fighting to get healthy. We are lucky to work towards such a passionate cause and are not limited to just one day to celebrate.
Blog Comments
Leave a Reply
Recent Posts


text:
Facebook connect asp.net jobs
I have a database and a script . When I connect am getting the error below A Database Error Occurred Unable to connect to your database server using the provided settings. Filename: /home/mid/public_html/shule/third_party/MX/[login to view URL] Line Number: 111
...individual components from the template .js and .html files. One component is the HighStocks charting package. The package is already installed and looks good, but I need to connect it to data and provide a simple dashboard for various financial instruments to choose from. All of the design work has been done, it just has to be connected at the API level
I have a HP 1022n and a working network. I'm using windows 10. this should be easy but i haven't done it before. let me know you've read the brief by naming an ice-cream flavour. Bid £5 for one hour
Yesterday I upgraded the Ubuntu from 16 to 18. Before I upgraded, I think I removed several packages. After the upgrade, I realized the GPU that was connected before is not recognized anymore and the resolution is just the default. My monitor is supposed to have 4K (3840 x 2160) resolution, but currently what I have is the default (lowest) resolution. My desktop cannot even recognize it. These are...
I have my admin panel for app and admin panel in laravel cms. I want a website and interconnect with my admin panel.
I need to connect and read data from websocket API of bitmex ([login to view URL]). I am interested in public methods/channels only, like price, orderbook and so on. No private method need. I am using PHP and need some data frequently. REST API has tight limits and I cannot use it anymore.
freenas WebDAV file server connect from local web
I HAVE SET MATRIX TABLES AND WOULD LIKE THEM TO BE CONNECTED WITH DB tables to receive data. i would also like to apply commissions plan this need someone with codeignator skill
I need small help to connect node.js with MySQL Database. Sample working code only.
Need to establish a connection of asp.net website with mysql database on plesk web server. Need this immediately
Please bid if you know how to connect sharepoint of office 365 Excel and import data.
i have an app full source code and also i have already setted the admin panel and also api i need someone who can connect my app and admin panel
[login to view URL] I need this type same Android app. Jisma Offline sms add rahega mujha jab sms add karna padega firebase se add karunga aur jab user online rehega automatically sms update hoga tab baad ma sms offline bhi show karega
Need to connect Apache Atlas to to Hbase for data catalog/data governance. Need help in doing this. was able to get this working for hive, but not able to find a solution for Hbase.
I need an expert who have the knowledge of server and networking and also little bit about programming.. I need someone to connect a thermal printer with my server.
I've just purchased a new domain & need to get emails working through my existing site's email server via DNS. Need someone to advise me on settings to add to make it work. I expect it is a quick task when you know how. Please help asap.
I have a telephone help service for 10 law subject areas. 1. I have basic back end page with 4 data areas: i. staff name ii. staff subject area/s iii. staff times - staff can alter this iv. number of phone calls received so far this month number of phone calls received last month 2. Customer calls my staff. 3. Customer picks 1 of 10 law areas. 4. Phone system PHP file: a - gets all st...
I need help to connect my esp8266 or esp32 devices to Amazon AWS IoT (Alexa) service. It should be possible by MQTT/Websocket. There are some working projects for Arduino IDE but i need it coded for the Espressif SDK (non OS). I can provide some code and thoughts. We should discuss how to get it work the easiest way. Please contact me if you have any
Hi I want to be able to integrate [login to view URL] products to my bigcommerce store. Codeswholesale has an api that can pull wholesale pricing, product availability and automatic delivery to your store. The current API's available work with Shopify and Woocommerce. The integration has to have filter control for region, price + margin, and filter instock only. I would like someone to integ...
We have project across the USA and we are getting ticket for our client. we need some one who can drive to office and console laptop to device or turn on device. That is super easy job just need to go on site and take care.
Hello... If you know how to create an automated sequence using ManyChat then I would love to hear from you. I'm looking for someone to create about a 10 step sequence that involves connecting ManyChat to Zapier to Mailchimp If you have done this before then please bid :)
The main...changed as we want it to be able to save and store profile settings. Currently we don't have memory added to the hardware to save profiles. It is also part of the project to connect to an external MySQL database to save and load profiles. If it is something that you could do please bid. It requires you to be familiar with Eagle software.
We need a logo for a new project. It is called 'Club Connect'. It relates to the automotive industry so it needs to reflect something that is easily identifiable in the automotive world. It needs to be clear and simple. See attached quick sketches we have done - this might help with your ideas..
We're looking for a developer with experience integrating RETS IDX into Wordpress Websites. This specific IDX is for the NY State MLS. The different details that need to be integrated are as follows: - Property Address - Property Features - Neighborhoods - Bedrooms / Bathrooms - Property Photos RETS data sync functionality includes: Back End Tasks: - Download RETS Data to server(wordpre...
how to connect our api from the drupal page.
Android/Iphone Website Seeking Software to seeking and connect poeple for they can do thing togheter. Seeking by distance, GPS, Matching, etc..
We need our Magento 1.7 store to be fully connected via webservices to 3rd party website so that we can fully synchronise inventory, export and update product catalogue data including prices and images, retrieve orders / create invoices, export shipping information etc.etc. Need someone who can show us they have LOTS of experience in this area. We need a great job done right first time please so ...
Hello, I need to connect an api called affise. I need assistance in doing that. I have written the code already. You need to look at the code and adjust that code snippet to get the data from the API. The information on how to request data is there in the affise documentation. This is all IONIC. Need someone who has good knowledge in IONIC and working
Hi all We are looking for an expert Prestashop designer who can do miner adjustment to our online shop [login to view URL] and also create a new app connected to it, He most check all the features and can turn them into app with calendar reminder we created so it can be in both the website and app and also make sure the app connected to the site, Everything we add to the site it show in the app ...
Hello, I already have microjobe...microjobengine and MJE stripe plugin but the theme does not support stripe connect and stripe billing. I need someone to integrate stripe connect to my microjobengine theme. Microjobengine theme : MicrojobEngine v1.3.6 (Aug 1, 2018) Stripe connect documentation : [login to view URL] Thank you
Hello, I have an app that has the appsflyer API integrated and is running and on the app store. We also have a facebook account, but I can not get both to speak to each other. We need to track ROI of adverts so we need to see which apps are leading to installs and purchases and other events in Appsflyer. Wo is able to help with this, I am sure if you
I need you to develop a Progam. I would like it to be developed using Python or KiteExcel. Zerodha Kite Connect API algorithm Please respond only if you have expertise on algo via Kite /excel. Entire algorithm to be in python or Kite Excel.
Pages: * Landing page * Tutor public page (Including booking functionality to allow students to submit booking requests for lessons) * Search page * Lesson Lists Page (student-view and tutor-view) * Lesson dashboard (time-line view, unique to each lesson) * Tutor public page edit page (allow modification of availability weekly schedule) * Tutor personal details verification page * Student personal...
Provide code and explanations of how it works.
I would like to edit donation button and link to appropriate page
We have an existing website that leverages a MySQL database. We are creating a new mobile app in Swift iOS that is connecting to the same database. We need everything to sync up.
Help configure the gateway [login to view URL] In the presence of modules lora Ra-01, esp-12S, i2c oled display. Soldered, connected through cp2102 - arduino sees, connects to WiFi. Configure by remote access, and not build and debug.
Logo and Icon designed for WinkHi The name of the App is WinkHi. its a Social App where you can connect, meet new people, chat and find jobs. Looking for something fun, edgy. I have not decided on colors or fonts. Looking for creativity. Check the attachments
Hi we are looking for a programmer who can connect a platform for us through API and Terminal only. Very easy job to do. We need someone as soon as possible. This will be the whole job: [login to view URL] You may ask me questions if you need some clarification about the job. Thank
I need some help with finding some leads.
...research, transactional (sales and retail audit) and media consumption data providing all-around analytics for brand owners: •Data fusion and data production environment – connect all dots in the data jungle; •Powerful pivoting and cross tabulation across all data modules (respondent, product features, and sales...); •Statistical models execution
disconnect existing windchill server from one domain and connect it to another
This is about creating a demo which connects ESP32 micro-controller to Bluetooth speaker or hands free. In this case the ESP32 micro-controller will connect to the bluetooth speaker and stream audio. The audio can be streamed via wifi or from audio stored on the ESP32. The source code must utilise Free RTOS. Successful freelancer will get US$300 for
Hello, I need a Microsoft Azure expert to help set up Azure notifications to be used with Slack webhooks.
...Python project running in Google App Engine Flex, has problems to be connected to SQL Database. Error received: OperationalError: ([login to view URL]) (2003, "Can't connect to MySQL server on 'localhost' ([Errno 97] Address family not supported by protocol)") (Background on this error at: [login to view URL]) Please provide code and clear
Pakistan Non CLI route needed for Retail traffic
...You have to have atleast 5 years of experience in Arduino development using wifi modules. Please apply only if you have modules ready to start n handy to start now. Need to connect to android wifi hotspot n arduino ESP8266. Modules needed: a)ESP8266,wifi module b)Arduino UNO c)4-Relays d)Android phone with 4G/wifi hot spot Hi, 1)Need to send schematic
Wanting an experienced user to use my LinkedIn account and connect with the following professionals in Melbourne VIC: Mortgage Brokers Accountants Financial Planners
Hello I need someone to write a driver to connect matabase to dremio The drivers needs to work on both linux and windows I believe you may need to know clojure for this project You can find more documentation here: [login to view URL] Best regards Mark


text:
Video game fans love to debate whether their favorite game could be turned into a movie, but Dan Trachtenberg went out and did it. The 30-year-old commercial director and aspiring feature filmmaker made "Portal: No Escape," a seven-minute movie inspired by the critically acclaimed video game series from Valve Software that features a woman trapped in test chambers that she must escape using a gun that can create entries and exits on any surface. (While Valve was not approached before the shoot, the company has posted the video on its Facebook page).
Trachtenberg shot the movie a year and a half ago for just a few thousand dollars (plus an invaluable amount of free labor) and finished the effects a few weeks ago. The final version hit the Internet last Tuesday and has already racked up more than 5.7 million views on YouTube alone and become a hot topic of discussion all over the Web. Entertainment Weekly's website called it "all kinds of awesome," SlashFilm labeled it a "must see for everyone," and the video game blog Kotaku compared it to the work of Christopher Nolan.
It has also made Trachtenberg, who has spent the last seven years making commercials for such clients as Lexus and co-hosting the podcast "Totally Rad Show," the latest viral video maker to catch Hollywood's eye. His agents at International Creative Management are fielding incoming calls from producers and executives who want to meet the man who made Portal come to life.
Amid a week full of meetings, Trachtenberg had breakfast with Hero Complex contributor Ben Fritz, a gamer and "No Escape" fan, for his first interview since the film debuted.
BF: So what kind of commercials did you do?
DT: I did some for Lexus that were like little documentaries and I recently did a PSA for the Ohio Food Bank. It was a lot of reality-oriented stuff, nothing big and cinematic. I realized none of this work was setting me up for movies. I needed to start making some films. So I shot "Portal."
BF: Why did you decide to tie your film to Portal?
DT: Well, obviously, I love Portal and one of the reasons is that it's a unique way to experience a story because it's a puzzle game. A lot of video games are inherently cinematic, like Halo and Killzone, but Portal is not. So there was something that was very challenging about that to me.
There are also things you never get to see in the game, like when [the movie's protagonist] sticks her hand in a portal and it comes out the other side, because in the game you're always in the first person. I love mind twisty stuff, like Michel Gondry and Spike Jonze, and I knew that's what this would be. I also wanted to use a lot of visual effects but I liked the idea of not doing something with robots and aliens in it. It's rare that a special effect can be intellectual and visceral and Portal has that.
BF: Did you know at first that you could make the Portal effect work?
DT: No. The thing that I learned from Portal was I'm not like those whiz kids who can do amazing special effects work on their computers at night.
I had a company lined up before I shot but they got busy with other work. From then on, it was this year-and-a-half struggle of "How do I get an awesome effects team to do amazing work and how do I get them to do it for free?" And that's where Twitter was amazing. I tweeted out what I needed incrementally and that's how I found this compositor, Jon Chesson, who became the visual effects supervisor.
BF: Who else did you get from Twitter?
DT: I got my 3-D match movers, who work the effects frame-by-frame, they were in the Netherlands. I got a particle animator in New York and a CG modeler in London. So it was a completely international team. The makeup girl I got on Twitter the day before shooting.
BF: When exactly did you shoot it?
DT: The weekend of March 27, 2010.
BF: And where did you make it?
DT: One of the biggest struggles was finding locations. I had never driven around downtown L.A. as much before, since I didn't have money for a location scout.
We ended up on a rooftop next to the American Apparel building and we used compositing and plates and matte paintings for everything you see on it. It was the same thing in the cell, it was actually only two-thirds there. So there's a lot more effects than just the portals in the movie.
The stairwell was from the old Sears building downtown that they never let anyone shoot in. If I was in New York, getting a staircase like that would be no problem. In L.A.? Every staircase has no gap in the center, or if there is, it's really expensive … so that was just so difficult.
BF: How did you find your actress?
DT: The first person I got was a stunt coordinator and I needed him to help me find an actress, because the role was very physical. We got to talking about how we wanted it to be like that opening scene in "Terminator 2" with Sarah Connor and it turns out Danielle Rayne actually plays Sarah Connor in the live action "T2" experience at Universal Studios.
Initially I had seen the character as a young, hip Asian girl, but I met Danielle and she was just awesome, and not typical. We had the actors we auditioned do action-y things first, but then one day we had them work on the emotional stuff and Danielle was really small and that was important because there's no dialogue in this. I didn't want anyone who gestured to inform what was going on inside. Danielle was just having an experience and we were picking it up.
BF: Did you not want her to talk because the main character in the game never talks?
DT: Actually, I wonder if that was happenstance or by design, I think I just wanted to tell the story of a person breaking out of solitary confinement, so there was never a moment where you need speaking. Also I like the idea of seeing a person going through an experience, and us being on the same page as her, even though there's no dialogue.
BF: So you finished shooting and had an edit done pretty soon. Did the effects just take a ton of time to get right?
DT: It took a lot of time to find the right people. And people would keep getting busy so the process would get clogged up. We'd have a particle guy at one point and then he got busy so we had to find a new guy. It was just frustrating because every time I'd go out, somebody would ask me how it was going, and I hated that I became the guy who made something that wasn't going to come out. I know so many people who have those projects that just never end and I was like, "Oh, my God, am I that guy now?"
At first we wanted to have it ready for E3 of 2010 because we thought they would announce Portal 2 there, but that didn't happen and we kept setting new goals. Finally, what motivated everyone to finish the final stretch this year was that "Totally Rad Show" does a panel every year at Comic-Con and somebody said to me how awesome it would be to premiere it there.
BF: Obviously, this movie hit a nerve with millions of fans. Why do you think that is? To you, what is this movie about beyond, "Wow, it's a live-action Portal?"
DT: Well there's a quote I fell in love with that Joss Whedon said, that is, "You take people, you put them in peril, you find out what they're made of." That's my mantra now. There's two things I love about this short. One is the hash marks in the cell, which is the most damning thing, that someone else has been here for a very long time. It's her biggest threat, the thing haunting her, and then it becomes her means to escape because they are her clue to finding the gun.
The other thing I love is the idea that just when you think you've escaped something, you discover you're still inside. And I'm not a nihilistic person, I'm fairly optimistic, but there's just no better way to end an escape movie than to say: When you think you're outside, you're really inside. There's something very thematically Portal about that without being on the nose with the cake [a recurring joke in the game] and [game villian] GLaDOS.
BF: Why didn't you include references like those? Fans would have gone crazy.
DT: I didn't just want it to be a fan service, just a bunch of shout-outs. It's how I feel about video game adaptations in general. The fans are going to see it anyway so as long as you're not stepping on it or making fun of it or getting it wrong, it doesn't need to be filled with allusions to the game. If at the end of the movie I had a cake sitting in that cell, anyone who hasn't played the game would say "What the [hell] is that?" The fans of the game would tell them, "It's awesome, go play the game" Well that doesn't do anyone any good.
I wanted it to be gritty and real, and I didn't feel that the story of that woman in solitary needed to have the humor that the game has. Maybe that would be more in tone with the game, but I can't write that and I especially can't write GLaDOS. Portal is one of the best written and performed video games of all time. I'm not touching GLaDOS.
BF: So are there any calls or meetings that you've gotten from this short that have you excited? I understand if you don't want to name names.
DT: Yeah, I have meetings with places that I grew up as a kid adoring and places that opened in the past few years that I always wished I could work with.
BF: And is your goal to find a feature film to work on?
DT: For sure.
BF: So now the total fan service question: Do you want to do more films set in the Portal universe?
DT: I definitely want to do more in the Portal universe, for sure. We'll see what incarnation that takes.
BF: Regardless of whether you do it, do you think Portal can make a good feature film?
DT: Yeah, I think there's two ways in. I think there's a way in that's more true to the game, and I think there's a way that's more in line with what I was doing. And honestly both of those ways in are pretty cool. It's just like Batman, I think Tim Burton's Batman is awesome and I think Christopher Nolan's Batman is awesome. And those are completely distinct takes on the same source material. I think Portal could have lots of interesting takes.
— Ben Fritz
'Star Trek' app gives iPads Enterprising spirit
Gaiman tells fans: Trust your dreams
'Battle of the Bonds' and six more fan films
Marv Wolfman on writing new 'Green Lantern' game
Spider-Man: Edge of Time game: Back to the future
'Evil Dead' app puts players behind the chain saw
Lego 'Pirates': Brick heroes, pig-riding, comedy
Green Lantern video game looks to light it up
Thor video game looks for new worlds to conquer


text:
Starting an awards program is easy! We'll send you our award catalog - featuring our entire line of products.
Our awards showcase your commitment to your internal brand.Its hard to guess what rewards work with what people. Inevitably,
someone doesn't like the reward choice, doesn't use it, program has failed at reaching that person.
No more guessing - use our product catalog to make your program a success.
Customized Rewards websites are a great and informal way to connect with your audience 24/7. Customers will enjoy the speed and convenience of browsing rewards at home, creating greater loyalty for you.
Using email and direct mail to drive traffic to your site and in turn, right back to your establishment. Rewards Websites give you an informal channel for marketing communications, without cluttering the message on your corporate site.
We make it easy to:Administer and manage highly successful recognition, rewards, service,
incentive, and loyalty programs with the highest quality brand name merchandise. More...


text:
Up to [cvs.NetBSD.org] / src / sys / arch / i386 / i386
Request diff between arbitrary revisions
Default branch: MAIN
Current tag: nick-net80211-sync
Revision 1.66 / (download) - annotate - [select for diffs], Wed Jan 23 19:46:44 2008 UTC (10 years, 8 months ago) by bouyer
Branch: MAIN
CVS Tags: nick-net80211-sync-base, nick-net80211-sync, mjf-devfs-base, hpcarm-cleanup-base
Branch point for: mjf-devfs2, keiichi-mipv6
Changes since 1.65: +5 -2 lines
Diff to previous 1.65 (colored)
Merge the bouyer-xeni386 branch. This brings in PAE support to NetBSD xeni386 (domU only). PAE support is enabled by 'options PAE', see the new XEN3PAE_DOMU and INSTALL_XEN3PAE_DOMU kernel config files. See the comments in arch/i386/include/{pte.h,pmap.h} to see how it works. In short, we still handle it as a 2-level MMU, with the second level page directory being 4 pages in size. pmap switching is done by switching the L2 pages in the L3 entries, instead of loading %cr3. This is almost required by Xen, which handle the last L2 page (the one mapping 0xc0000000 - 0xffffffff) in a very special way. But this approach should also work for native PAE support if ever supported (in fact, the pmap should almost suport native PAE, what's missing is bootstrap code in locore.S).
This form allows you to request diff's between any two revisions of a file. You may select a symbolic revision name using the selection box or you may type in a numeric name using the type-in text box.


text:
For Women & Co., by Heather Spohr
One of the things I loved most about being a kid was learning how to play as many sports as I wanted. Looking back, there was always a team to join, a sports camp to attend, and someone's mom handing out orange slices. As adults, we tend to think of those good times as a thing of the past, but it may benefit you at work to get back in the swing of things with that softball bat or golf club. After all, the skills you need on the field or the course are the same ones you need on the job: collaborating with teammates, listening to them, and trusting them. And research is beginning to show that keeping muscles active may even boost brainpower. A study on mice given medication that simulated the effects of exercise "performed significantly better on tests of memory and learning" than their quiet counterparts.
The commitment to exercise also reflects discipline, whether it's on your solo runs at 6 a.m. or the company's Tuesday evening baseball game. No wonder people proudly include a list of marathon races or sports tournaments on LinkedIn profiles; it says to the reader: "I set a high goal for myself, and I was able to reach it."
The easiest sports to learn are the ones adults are best known for playing recreationally, like golf and tennis. To start, take some lessons from a pro at your local golf course, driving range, or tennis center, and consider asking for a package rate -- it will save you money in the long run. Once you feel like you're getting the hang of things, ask your instructor to put you in touch with another beginner to join you on the links (start with a par-3 course) or challenge you in your first tennis match. You'll be on your way in no time!
Join a Team
Interested in learning a team sport? Check out your local YMCA and its "Active For Life" program, which offers a wide variety of adult team sports including, but not limited to, basketball, soccer, hockey, and volleyball. The Y's leagues have teams for every skill level and welcome people who "are new to team sports" or want to "start fresh with a sport you love."
Find a Class
Many other organizations give adults the chance to learn a new sport; do a search for your area. For example, in Washington, the indoor sports facility Arena Sports has seven locations that teach adults soccer. It has clinics and classes to get you started, plus a number of leagues including one for "beginners or those with little or no soccer playing experience." There are many more organizations like this; you just have to do a little surfing around the web to find the one that's right for you. A good place to start your search is the women's sports section of Meetup.com, which compiles information about recreational sports groups nationwide.
Jump & Tumble
Have a dream of playing a sport that's off the beaten path? Satisfy your inner Mary Lou Retton by learning gymnastics. The Field House at Chelsea Piers in New York City boasts the largest adult gymnastics program in the world and offers beginner classes at a facility that has "state-of-the-art gymnastics equipment including all Olympic men's and women's events, in-ground trampolines, and foam-filled safety pits." Similar adult gymnastics programs can be found nationwide, so check it out to start tumbling.
Lace up Your Skates
One of the sports farthest off the beaten path is roller derby, which was made famous in the '70s by tough-as-nails women on roller skates known by awesome names like Babe Ruthless. In Los Angeles, you can take part in the LA Derby Dolls Roller Derby Fitness class "Skills For Thrills," an eight-week session for beginners that teaches both skating and game strategy.
And, if you aren't the sporting type, being a spectator could still benefit your career. Attending sporting events with colleagues is a great way to build camaraderie, or the events can be used as venues for networking. One way you can get access to purchase tickets to sporting events in your area is through Citi® Private Pass® available for eligible Citi cardmembers.
Women & Co., a service of Citi, is the go-to personal finance source for women. By providing financial content, commentary and community, Women & Co.'s mission is to get women thinking and talking about personal finance. Founded in 2000, Women & Co. is one of the longest running personal finance websites dedicated to helping women strengthen their financial futures.


text:
ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — Algerian authorities say a remote-controlled homemade bomb exploded and killed seven security officers in the northwest of the North African country.
The Defense Ministry says in a statement Sunday the victims were aboard a military truck en route to their base when they hit a bomb in the town of Ain Kercha, 500 kilometers (300 miles) west of the capital, Algiers.
The ministry says three soldiers and four local guards were killed in the attack Saturday night. The statement didn't say who detonated the bomb or why, but reiterated the army's "determination to pursue and eliminate these small terrorist groups."
Algeria, home to Al-Qaida's North African branch, has largely stabilized since an insurgency in the 1990s, but still sees sporadic violence between Islamic extremists and security forces.


text:
One of the oldest matchmaking services providing Goochland personals to the area. Matchmaker specializes in helping singles in the Goochland personals area find that special someone. Whether you are seeking a serious relationship or marriage; matchmaker.com can help you today. Our Goochland personals service provides the latest in dating services to help you meet Goochland single men and Goochland single women. Create a free singles ad and start dating online, its easy!
GoochlandJoin Now Free!
Goochland Girls | Goochland Men | Goochland Gay | Goochland Lesbians
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
More Goochland Links:
Goochland Dating | Goochland Speed Dating | Goochland Chat | Goochland Singles | Goochland Love
Senior Dating | Catholic Dating | Christian Dating | Muslim Dating
Black Singles | Asian Singles | Latin Dating
Specializing in Goochland personals services for the past ten years and helping Goochland singles find that special someone has helped matchmaker become one of the best online destinations. Our cupid matchmaking service allows you to receive email updates when new members that match your preferences join out Goochland dating service. Find the best Goochland classifieds and Goochland personals when joining our online dating service today!


text:
Slick conditions trigger crashes across the metro
Slick conditions trigger crashes across the metro
KANSAS CITY, Mo. —
Slippery conditions from yesterday's snowfall triggered several accidents on area highways across the Kansas City metro on Monday morning.
Click here for live traffic updates
Accidents were reported on almost every highway in the metro.
A large accident on I-70 east at I-635 on the Kansas side at about 7:45 a.m. created a very large backup.
Accidents also happened on I-435 west on the south side of the metro, near the Bond Bridge on I-35 south and on I-35 north near 7th Street Trafficway.
Click here for live traffic updates
No serious injuries were reported.


text:
Boy Scout Troop 555 recently completed a shed-building project and would like to thank the following businesses and individuals for their generous contributions of supplies and cash donations: American Legion Post 16, The Home Depot of Kenai, Monty Wilhusen, Rick Paulsrud, Jennifer Poss, Paul Raymond, Roberta Harris, Jay and Elise Boyer, Deanna Caitlin, Bill Bechtol, Dan Rediske and a large anonymous cash donor. We appreciate the support of this community as our boys learn and grow through this great organization.
Michelle Waclawski
Troop 555 Committee Chair
- Menu
- Home
- Search
- News
- Sports
- Features
- Opinion
- Community
- Calendar
- Obituaries
- Weather
- Classifieds
- Subscriber Center
- Contact Us
- Policies & Terms


text:
French & Francophone Studies
FREN 241 (4th Sem Lang Req) Topics in French History Through Film (1)
This course presents a survey of French history and culture, from the Renaissance to the 20th Century, as the history and culture are represented in a major French art form, the cinema. Topics studied include: religion and marriage in the Renaissance, court life under the ancient regime, the French Revolution, Napoleon's Empire, colonialism, World War I, World War II, the Algerian War, and the student revolution of 1968. Conducted in English.
- General Education Requirement Fulfillment: Fourth Semester Language Requirement
- Offering: Spring
- Instructor: DeLeonibus, Fofana, Staff


text:
CD/USB/MP3/WMA receiver
The easy way to enjoy digital music files in your car.
Seamless enjoyment with superior iPod® and iPhone® connectivityJust connect using the USB cable supplied with your iPhone or iPod and you'll get integrated control for easy access to your music. You can also watch videos with an optional CCA748 cable and external monitor.
One of the benefits of integrated operation is the simple control function, which allows operation using the iPhone/iPod controls that you're used to using, in addition to controllability from the main unit. The ABC Search function lets you list the names of Songs and Artists stored on your iPod that start with your chosen alphabet letter. This is much more convenient than going through a long list of everything, or having to tap in a specific name. What's more, your iPhone or iPod battery is charged while connected to the main unit, so it's ready to go at full power the moment you reach your destination.
* Please see our website for details of compatible iPod and iPhone models.
* iPod video can be viewed by connecting CZ202A to an external universal monitor with RCA video input and by connecting a suitable iPod and iPhone via the optional CCA748 cable.
iPod ABC search & simple control mode
Virtually the same operations are possible from both the iPod or the main unit.
Virtually the same operations are possible from both the iPod or the main unit.
Seamless enjoyment with superior iPod® and iPhone® connectivity1. Press the [MENU] button to select the iPod menu
2. Rotate and press the [VOLUME] knob to select category
3. Long press [DISP] button to initiate ABC search
Music categories
Video browsing controlVideo browsing lets you conveniently enjoy video content stored on iPod / iPhone via a connected monitor.
Front auxiliary input lets you easily connect to external sourcesBy now you might have a wide variety of music sources, from the latest digital device to the worn-out analog machine. Whatever it is, as long as it has an AUX output or headphone jack, you can easily hook it up to the main unit's AUX input on the front panel, for continued enjoyment.
Memory back upThe CZ202A embeds a special flash memory that protects all the user's stored settings and favourites, even if the unit is completely disconnected from the vehicle's power supply.
Beat EQ Plus for user customisable soundIn addition to providing 3 preset equalisation patterns — BASS BOOST, IMPACT, and EXCITE — Clarion's Beat EQ even lets you freely customise the level and range of the bass, midrange and treble portions of each pattern. You can tune the sound to your liking, depending on the category of music, for a more fulfilling listening experience.
MAGNA BASS EX for dynamic bass resonanceNow, Clarion's MAGNA BASS EX boosts the bass by nearly 12 dB, at even lower frequencies of around 50 Hz — lower than that of ordinary loudness circuits which are at around 100 Hz — to provide extra-low frequency impact. It even automatically compensates the volume level to ensure well-balanced dynamic bass at any level.
Low Pass Filter for subwooferSwitching on the Low Pass Filter (LPF) will send only the low frequency range through specified outputs to ensure superb performance when connected to a subwoofer.
4 × 45 watt with MOS-FET power ampCZ202A features an MOS-FET (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor) power amplifier capable of delivering 4 × 45 watt of high quality sound with superior linearity and less distortion than conventional power amps-even with the volume cranked up.
2V / 2-channel audio pre-out


text:
LD Ben Hagen was this year's winner of the Wally Russell Most Promising Newcomer Award, which was presented at the LDI2008 Awards Ceremony on Saturday evening, October 25, in Las Vegas. Here are a few comments from Ben about his experience at the show:
"I have had a chance to return home and collect my reactions to this year's LDI in Las Vegas. This year's conference was particularly exciting for me, having been honored as the Wally Russell Foundation's Most Promising Newcomer. It was a distinct honor to be recognized by such a seminal group of industry leaders. I also had the pleasure of spending some time with Richard Pilbrow, who was this year's Lifetime Achievement Honoree. We had a brief but inspiring conversation about building a career in the industry. I was also given the opportunity to upgrade to Vectorworks 2009. It has a lot of new features, which are really an improvement on my student version of Vectorworks 11. I particularly enjoy the powerful new selection tools and indicators. I'm also working with translucent objects to help give my drafting some visual interest and additional clarity.
"I also really enjoyed seeing all of the environmentally conscious steps vendors are starting to take. I am particularly impressed with Apollo advancing to laser processing for their templates. I applaud the environmentally aware manufacturing process we are seeing from them.
"I had a great experience, and the pleasure of meeting several people who help shape the industry. I also enjoyed finding time to visit with old friends. It's the contact with all these folks that really make you recognize, it's the people in the industry that make this business so interesting."
Ben Hagen (center) with Nicole Kelly, marketing communications director (left), and Jeremy Powell, product marketing manager (right), from Nemetschek North America, who presented Ben with a copy of Vectorworks 2009 with Renderworks.
photo: Oscar Enzig Photography


text:
Daniel Craig: 'Skyfall' in Trafalgar Square!
Daniel Craig films scenes for the new James Bond movie, Skyfall, in Trafalgar Square on Saturday (November 19) in London, England.
The 43-year-old British actor reprises his role as 007 in the Sam Mendes-directed flick, which also stars Javier Bardem as the villain.
"It, I think, has all the elements of a classic Bond movie, including, to quell any rumours, a lot of action," Sam said during a recent press conference.
Though he was tight-lipped on details, Sam shared that British actor Ben Whishaw "will be playing a part I can't tell you about … and Albert Finney, who will also be playing a part I can tell you nothing about in scenes that I can't really tell you about and Ralph Fiennes, who, similarly, I can give you very little information about."


text:
Few years ago, thinking of online games was incomprehensible. Though internet was there, it was used for basic purposes like emailing and browsing for information. In the past few years, game developers have taken the world of internet by storm.
Now days, not only can you play them online, but they come for free. The opportunity to play free online games is with you 24 hours a day throughout the year. Either you download the games or you use them with particular browsers, Flash enabled.
Though some people do argue the authenticity of free online games in terms of disclosing private information and details, it is an undisputed fact that these free games does help to improve our minds, both young and adults.
How do online games help improve our mind? Thousands of free games are available categorized into different compartments such as arcade games, strategy games, action games, board games, puzzle games, shooting games and others.
Arcade Games- An innovation of the 1970s of neighborhood games played with coins, the arcade games soon enveloped the mind of gamers when arcade games opened online. Online arcade games are a rage these days.
Strategy Games- These games are time consuming and require tremendous practice. It is all about applying your mind to devise new strategies in order to win.
Action Games- The action-oriented games involve futuristic space adventures, fighting, and target achieving games where the players perform actions to gain the number one slot. Skeptics complain about the action games being too gross and bloody, but until one plays with a sane mind, there should not be problems!
Board Games- Evidently, online board games are the animated rendition of traditional board games such as chess.
Puzzle Games- They attract the interest of young and old alike. It sharpens the mind; mind is where all the action takes place.
Shooting Games- It is a safe way to vent your anger and irritation. They generally come under action games but has been kept in separate category due to its popularity.
Card Games- They continue to be popular since the ancient days. With online gaming, card games have become a favorite pastime.
All these games concentrate on churning our minds. Through our mind, we have to combat with speed and actions, make strategy to topple the opponent and be victorious. The opponent could be the computer itself or another human person sitting at another end.
It is amazing to see how the popularity has not ceased. Most of the games are available to players for free and some sites even offer bonuses on winning, like the casino games. You can actually earn as an online gamer. Whether you play for money or pleasure, online games are here to stay.


text:
After playing for awhile, mostly duoing without much huge partying, my dad and GF and myself decided to try and get our mythic weapons. I personally love BLM however looking at the staff 50 MAB looks good but I know affinity is better. My question is for just plain nuking is it better to get the ToM staffs, mythic, or relic staff for BLM.
A side question; how good is the SCH staff? Getting into SCH curious if the staff was worth it.


text:
USTR To Canada: 'Bow Down And Accept ACTA!' Canada: 'Yes, We Shall Do Your Bidding'
from the why? dept
Many assumed, therefore, that ACTA was dead. But... not the US apparently. Nor Canada. In an announcement today, the USTR is apparently acting as if the months of ACTA protests and the death of ACTA in Europe didn't happen. Instead, it's all about pressuring countries like Canada by claiming that they need "to meet its Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement obligations." Seriously, now?
Now, if I'm a Canadian politician, this is the point where I tell the USTR to go pound sand and to recognize that the world has clearly rejected the concept of ACTA, and having just gone through a long and arduous copyright reform process (also mainly because of US demands from the likes of the USTR), that the USTR should go pick on some other country to bully.
Instead, however, we get near complete capitulation. With near perfect timing, a bill has been introduced in the Canadian Parliament to bring Canadian IP law into line with ACTA. Why would they even bother?
The core elements of the bill include the increased criminalization of copyright and trademark law as well as the introduction of new powers for Canadian border guards to detain shipments and work actively with rights holders to seize and destroy goods without court oversight or involvement.It's really amazing that they're willing to open this can of worms, given just how strongly people fought back against ACTA elsewhere. Michael Geist has a good initial analysis of the bill at the link above, and will likely follow up to call out some more specifics in the 52 pages of changes to copyright and trademark law, but just the fact that Canada is bothering to move forward on this is troubling. It shows a Canadian government who doesn't seem to care about what the public wants, but rather feels the need to kowtow to US entertainment and pharmaceutical lobbying interests.
The first is that this bill provides a clear signal that Canada will move forward with ACTA notwithstanding some doubts over whether there is even sufficient global support to allow it to take effect (six ratifications are needed). ACTA is toxic in Europe, where officials now go out of their way to assure the public that ACTA is dead and that any new agreements will not involve efforts to revive it. ACTA has also faced serious opposition in other negotiating countries, including Switzerland (which has not signed it), Australia (where a Parliamentary Committee recommended against ratification), and Mexico (where the Senate rejected it in 2010). ACTA was promoted as a "gold standard" agreement on counterfeiting, yet the failure to garner support from many participants has left an agreement that is often cited as an example of how not to engage in international negotiations. Given the global opposition, Canadian support for ACTA is disappointing.For many years, Canada has strongly resisted US-style copyright laws, despite tremendous pressure to do so. Watching them cave on ACTA is certainly a disappointment. Meanwhile, watching the USTR pretending as if ACTA went forward as planned is simply par for the course, and a reminder of just how completely detached from reality that organization remains. Elsewhere in the USTR's agenda release today, it mentions working with Japan to bring ACTA into force, which is somewhat laughable, considering how many countries have been rejecting it.


text: Kantar acquires Benenson Strategy Group Published on August 26, 2013. New York—Kantar, a global data and research company that is a division of WPP, announced it has acquired Benenson Strategy Group, a global strategic research company. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Benenson conducts research on business, politics and public affairs, including polling programs for President Barack Obama's 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns. Benenson will operate as a company of Kantar and will continue to be run by CEO Joel Benenson and COO Carl Rossow. AdMedia Partners advised Benenson Strategy Group on the transaction. Most Popular In this article: BtoB


text:
Tattoo Artist Reacts to Drake's Threats
Surely you remember the foresight-lacking fan who got Drake's name emblazoned across her forehead. When Drake heard the news, he was flattered by the fan — and ticked off by the tattooer. The artist, Kevin Campbell, is reacting to Drizzy's not-so-nice words via — what else? — Twitter.
If you recall, Campbell initially started the beef when he referred to the Canadian rapper as a "goofnugget R&B dude." Drake didn't take the teasing lying down, and responded in an interview. "F— you to that tat artist by the way," he said. "And you should lose your job and should never do tattoos again and I don't f— with you. And if I ever see you, I'ma f— you up."
Them's fightin' words — and Campbell had some in return. On his Twitter, the Los Angeles-based artist wrote, "please say that Drake actually wants to f— me up. I will totally fight Drake. One on one. Tell him to name a time and place." Campbell continued asking for confirmation (and attention), next posting, "Can anybody confirm that this Drake guy actually wants to fight?"
Campbell kept bringing it up, likely in response to Drake fans who want to see a brawl. "Too funny! A dude who probably wipes his a– with 100$ bills actually cares about me calling him an R&B goofnugget is hilarious," he wrote, before addressing another fan with, "Easy tiger. I'm not the one making threats on tv to somebody i I don't even know. Slow your roll."
Campbell insisted that he'd never even heard of Drake before inking his name on a fan's forehead. "I didn't know who he was before I did the tattoo…Don't see why he cares that I said he was soft as baby s—," he replied to another Tweeter.
While we're sure Drake has better things to do with his time — and his cash — Campbell is clearly enjoying the ride. "Really though," he wrote, "This Drake s— is the funniest s— ever. Getting called out by a famous R&B dude wasn't on my bucket list, but I'm stoked."


text:
Hate and Marriage
Same-sex marriage setbacks may not be all bad news for gay rights.
It's been a bad summer for same-sex marriage. Last week the Georgia Supreme Court upheld a state ballot initiative prohibiting same-sex marriage. The same day New York's highest court rejected a constitutional challenge brought by same sex-couples to the state's law limiting marriage to a man and a woman. And just when gay-marriage advocates thought things couldn't get any worse, the Massachusetts Supreme Court held Monday that voters could amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage in the only state that currently allows it.
Gay-rights activists are dismayed. For instance, Matt Foreman, director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, said, in the wake of Hernandez: "I never would have dreamed that New York's highest court would be so callous and insulting to gay people … to have a legal decision that treats us as if we are alien beings."
But what if these gay-marriage bans were not animated by anti-gay bigotry? What if they represent a deeper-seated anxiety about gender and gender roles? What if popular aversion to gay marriage has less to do with hating same-sex couples than with a deep psychological attachment to a powerful symbol of sex difference: the tulle-covered bride and the top-hat-and-tails groom?
No one clearly admits this, perhaps because most people aren't sufficiently self-aware to name their deep anxieties—if they were, psychotherapists would be out of work. But you can hear the longing for secure gender identity in some of the comments of same-sex-marriage opponents. After San Francisco's same-sex marriage experiment, one observer in a red county nearby complained: "God made marriage for Adam and Eve; not Adam and Steve." It's telling that this objection to same-sex marriage doesn't rely on moral condemnation of same-sex couples but instead on the most primordial account of natural sex difference.
Of course, some opponents of same-sex marriage are just anti-gay. But to dismiss all opposition to gay marriage as pure bigotry is to miss an important point. The key to evaluating the real stakes here is to think of gay rights in terms of two major categories: gay marriage and everything else. Because for gay rights other than marriage, the news isn't nearly so dire. Many states forbid discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and a handful have codified domestic partnership status for same-sex couples. In 1992 only one Fortune 500 company offered employee benefits to same-sex domestic partners; today hundreds do. And polls show consistently growing support nationwide for gay rights other than marriage. Gallup found that 90 percent of Americans support equal employment opportunities regardless of sexual orientation. And 79 percent support the idea of homosexuals serving in the armed forces, a profound change in public opinion since the 1990s, when President Clinton thought it politically prudent to abandon his push for nondiscrimination in favor of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
But somehow same-sex marriage is a different story. The hope was that New York would follow Massachusetts and find that limiting marriage to mixed-sex couples violates the state constitution. Such a victory might have been important in helping build momentum for upcoming same-sex marriage fights in other states such as New Jersey and Washington, and in California, where judges hear extended arguments on same-sex marriage this week. Had New York joined Massachusetts, advocates could plausibly have claimed that we were witnessing a historical shift in the zeitgeist, and the same-sex marriage snowball might have really picked up speed.
But with New York declining to find a constitutional right to marry and Massachusetts opening to the door to a popular repudiation of same-sex marriage, any state that finds a right to same-sex marriage risks being a permanent outlier—maybe even a wedding party of one—if Massachusetts voters elect to amend their constitution in 2008. And for some reason, popular opinion on same-sex marriage has barely budged, even while support for other gay rights has increased. The numbers here are murky but still highly suggestive: A 1996 Gallup poll showed that 27 percent of Americans supported same-sex marriage and 68 percent opposed it. In 2005 a similar poll showed that 28 percent of Americans supported same-sex marriage and 68 percent opposed it. And so far, every gay-marriage victory—in Massachusetts and for a few shining weeks, in that Camelot by the Bay, San Francisco—seems to spawn same-sex marriage bans in a few other states. As of today 18 states have written same-sex marriage bans into their constitutions, making change by the legislature or the judiciary at the state level impossible. Several other states have such bans on the ballot for November.
How to reconcile the growing support for equal rights for gay Americans with the seemingly hardening opposition to gay marriage? It certainly suggests that homophobia is only part of the explanation for the widespread resistance to same-sex marriage. A lot of the resistance is less about sexual orientation than about sex difference. In other words, it's not about the difference between gay and straight; it's about the difference between male and female. By this logic, conventional marriage doesn't exclude gay couples from a special status reserved for straights; it excludes women from a special status reserved for men—that of husband—and excludes men from a status reserved for women—that of wife.
Does this sound purely semantic? It's not. When San Francisco undertook its short-lived experiment with same-sex marriage, it confronted marriage certificate forms with blanks for the names of the "bride" and "groom." The city hastily rewrote them to read "first applicant" and "second applicant." And this is telling. Many people get married because they want the established sex roles the institution provides: a blushing, beautiful, white veil and miles-of-lace bride set off against her dashing, handsome, chivalrous groom. Same-sex marriage seems to undermine these very sex-specific statuses, leaving everyone a sex-neutral "applicant." Sure, we could say same-sex marriages involve two brides or two grooms, but something really is lost in this translation: At that point the terms do not describe distinctively gendered roles but are merely gendered descriptions of the same role. We could just as well say "male applicant" and "female applicant." This might explain why so many straight people think same-sex marriage will change the nature of marriage for them.
If I'm right, there are two reasons someone might oppose same sex-marriage: anti-gay animus or a desire to protect traditional sex roles. It's no secret that traditional sex roles are in crisis. They've been battered by feminism's attacks on male privilege and feminine mystique. Macho women have mocked female virtues (consider the gun-toting Thelma and Louise, the oversexed Samantha Jones of Sex and the City, or the wooden-stake- and holy-water-wielding Buffy). And house husbands, Mr. Moms, and "metrosexuals" have similary rejected or lampooned traditional masculinity. Today both men and women reject the constricting and unequal sex roles of past generations, but most still desperately want meaningful sex identities. So they cast about, all too often buying into crude stereotypes, such as those offered in books such as The Rules, which counsels the single girl to deploy the catty feminine wiles and emotional manipulation learned in junior high school; or The Game, which counsels the single boy to use psychological manipulation and deception to wrangle sexual favors from reluctant women. Marriage fills that gender gap: It is one of the few social institutions left that rigorously and unapologetically divides the sexes into distinctive, almost ancient, gender roles.
It should go without saying that the state should not advance anti-gay prejudice through the force of law. And as far as I'm concerned, the state has no business propping up distinctive sex roles in any context—that's a job for Wonderbras and Viagra. But a hunger for distinctive sex roles is just not the same thing as anti-gay bigotry.
So, the good news for gay-rights activists is that this string of same-sex marriage defeats doesn't suggest that civil rights for gay men and lesbians in other contexts are doomed. Opposition to same-sex marriage can be perfectly consistent with strong support for gay rights elsewhere. The bad news is that the fight for gay marriage may be much more daunting than they had imagined. Proponents may need to fight not only anti-gay bias but a deeply ingrained desire for stable sex roles, too. Some gay-rights activists have begun to ask whether the fight for marriage is worth the resources they've been devoting to it. It's a good question: If same-sex marriage provokes a distinctive form of popular resistance that isn't anti-gay bias, maybe it would be better to avoid a war on two fronts and shift focus to civil unions and domestic partnerships.
And if, despite all this, marriage remains at the top of the gay-rights agenda, proponents should try to respond to the inchoate fears and legitimate concerns of a large and potentially movable nonbigoted opposition, rather than attacking them as hateful bigots.