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A proposal to give Woomera's space facilities a new lease of life has been strongly endorsed by a Flinders University academic involved in the preservation of historic sites associated with the "space race".
Dr Alice Gorman said that using Woomera as a spaceport for the growing space tourist industry would help to preserve its unique heritage values.
Dr Gorman, an internationally recognized expert on the archaeology of space exploration, said that Woomera is one of the earliest rocket ranges in the world, and played a significant role in the Cold War and the space programs of the 1950s and 1960s.
The redevelopment proposed by astronaut Dr Andy Thomas during his recent visit to Australia could incorporate planning to retain significant launch pads and buildings, or to re-use them in a fashion sympathetic to their historic significance.
"In its heyday, Woomera was the second busiest spaceport in the world, after Cape Canaveral," Dr Gorman said.
"The USA used Woomera to test components, and to track the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo space programmes. Europe launched nine Europa rockets there before moving to French Guiana in the late 1960s. Australian expertise was vital in developing Britain's Cold War missiles. In those days, people expected that astronaut missions would soon be launched from Woomera, taking Australians into space on a regular basis."
But with the closure of the Apollo program and Europe's decision to relocate its launch facilities to Kourou in French Guiana, the infrastructure and expertise centred in Woomera and the headquarters in Salisbury dissipated. Today, people at Kourou, and the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, established in the same year as Woomera, are largely unaware that this remote outback location in Australia was also a major player in the "Space Club."
Dr Gorman said that once historic structures are abandoned, they start to deteriorate, but if they can be adapted to a new use, their chance of survival is greatly increased.
"There are many successful examples of the reuse of heritage structures, and if done according to principles like those in the Burra Charter developed in Australia, it's a win-win situation," Dr Gorman said.
Last year, Dr Gorman convened a symposium at Flinders University, bringing together experts on the history of Woomera. Some of the themes that were discussed included Indigenous lives after the rocket range, Woomera as a Cold War site, the place of Woomera Village in the history of post-war town planning, and the challenges of managing space heritage.
"Everyone agreed that Woomera was significant not only for the part it played in Australian history, but on an international level," Dr Gorman said.
"Space tourism isn't just about going into orbit – there are space places on Earth too. It would be very appropriate to recognise and value Woomera's heritage by giving it a new space future."
MEDIA CONTACT: For more information contact Alice Gorman on 0428 450 418.


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Tom is a boy - and a curious explorer. He is interested in everything, but mainly the universe full of rockets and undiscovered discoveries. Of course, he wants to go to the moon for holidays. When he is not in a mood for discoveries, he wants to be a comedian - he likes when people laugh. He also loves tennis, we must not forget, and football.
Tom sack€ 19.20
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subset: commoncrawl


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With its notorious red-light districts and high per capita murder rate, Thailand is home to plenty of shocking court dramas. But the case of Chiranuch Premchaiporn now unfolding in a Bangkok courtroom is raising eyebrows not so much because of the alleged misdeeds 10 violations of the Computer Crime Act but because it serves as a crucial test of freedom of expression in this politically troubled country.
The 32-year-old webmaster of a popular Thai news website, Prachatai, Chiranuch saw her troubles start in 2009 when she was charged in connection with 10 allegedly antimonarchy comments posted on a Prachatai Web board. None of the posts were Chiranuch's own. She removed the controversial comments when officials from Thailand's Ministry of Information and Communication Technology complained. In July 2010, Prachatai shut down the comment forums altogether.
Nonetheless, Chiranuch is being prosecuted under the Computer Crime Act. The law was one of the first pieces of legislation passed by a now disbanded military-backed government that took over after a coup in 2006. It was ostensibly set up to combat hackers and other online miscreants, but also contains provisions allowing prosecution of those who create or spread online material that could be used to undermine national security or induce public panic.
Critics contend that the vagueness of these provisions, particularly the definition of national security, makes the law subject to political abuse. Indeed, studies by local university researchers have found that the bulk of people so far charged under the Computer Crime Act fall afoul of national-security concerns, not any hacking infractions.
Over the past few years, as Thailand has endured a revolving door of governments from two diametrically opposed political camps, the country's media environment has suffered. In an international press-freedom index of 178 nations compiled by media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, Thailand scored a lowly 153rd place last year. It was 65th in 2002.
Media and online censorship has continued during the tenure of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who enacted a months-long state of emergency during Thailand's prolonged antigovernment protests last year. Hundreds of websites have been shuttered, including various versions of Prachatai's site. Some banned sites had openly called for Abhisit's government to step down, especially after protesters in Bangkok clashed with security forces last April and May, resulting in some 90 deaths.
Other blocked websites contained language that could be seen as criticizing Thailand's royal family. A Thai legal-research entity called the iLaw Project says that in 2010 the Thai government tried to block or close down 38,868 websites and Web pages for purported antiroyal material.
A constitutional monarchy, Thailand is home to the world's longest-serving monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Now 83 years old and hospitalized, the Thai monarch is venerated across the country. He and his family are well protected by lèse-majesté laws that can put offenders behind bars for up to 15 years.
The number of these lèse-majesté complaints, which can be filed by anyone, not just the police or legal authorities, has grown steadily along with the political unrest in the country. David Streckfuss, an American academic who recently wrote a book on Thai lèse-majesté law, reports that there were 164 such cases that went to trial in the Court of First Instance in 2009, compared with just a handful two decades ago.
Chiranuch has been accused of violating the lèse-majesté laws in addition to the Computer Crime Act. Last November, upon returning from a conference on Internet freedom in Hungary, she was arrested based on a complaint filed by a resident of northeastern Thailand, who was apparently upset by the postings on Prachatai. It took the police more than a year after receiving his complaint to arrest her. These additional charges could add 32 years to the 50 years in prison Chiranuch faces if convicted for all the alleged computer violations.
Back in September 2009, Prime Minister Abhisit conceded in a TIME interview that some flaws in the "enforcement and operating procedures" of lèse-majesté cases existed and promised that a Justice Ministry review board would clear up the process. "The basic problem right now," he told TIME, "is that anyone can file a case." But as yet, there has been no significant change in the lèse-majesté procedures.
If Chiranuch does end up in prison, it will undoubtedly cause an outcry among freedom-of-expression advocates worldwide. "The judicial system will be completely discredited if all the charges against her are not dropped," says a statement from Reporters Without Borders. "She is being treated like a criminal although she is regarded internationally as an expert in online journalism." Unfortunately, global outrage may not be much help to Chiranuch as Thailand's high-stakes courtroom drama continues.


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Melania & Barron Trump ARE Moving To The White House This Summer!
- Author: Leroy Wright Mar 21, 2017,
Mar 21, 2017, 7:40
So they may not have time to actually read everything that comes across their desks before the next tweet or blog post.
Petri, in case you (like the White House) haven't noticed, is a talented humor columnist.
"Mrs. Trump will be moving to DC and settling in to the White House at the end of the school year, splitting her time between NY and DC in the meantime", she said in a statement.
White House blunders have become much more commonplace since Barack Obama left office, and Friday's mistake, when the White House sent out a parody opinion piece in an email and on its website citing it as fact, was yet another example of how President Donald Trump's presidency is not like other presidencies.
The proposed spending plan included everything from deep cuts in the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) budget to the elimination of federal support for the arts to reduced grants to help states provide housing and social services for the working poor.
"I was as surprised as anyone to discover that I was Real News, ' Petri wrote in a follow-up piece after seeing her humor column described as a 'News Report" by the White House. While the link was removed shortly after, Petri took screenshots of the mistake, she wrote on Philly.com. Honestly, if you don't read her regularly, you should.
Proud dad President Trump gave a thumbs-up to photographers as the family walked the White House lawn on their way to board Marine One.
Coulter on Accepting Refugees to US: 'What Are We Getting Out of This?'
For her part, the article's author was very understanding about the mix-up.
"BUT HOW WILL I SURVIVE ON THIS BUDGET? you may be wondering".


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This weekend marks the unofficial kick-off of summer, and here in Toronto we couldn't have asked for better weather. Let me put it this way; I was in Vegas last weekend and it feels just as hot today.
The first cottage guests have already come and gone, the barbecue worked its magic on a dozen summertime skewers, and the Pinot Grigio was flowing freely.
With people dropping by each weekend, I'm usually on kitchen duty, yet I don't mind at all because:
1) I enjoy the prep and cooking that goes into making meals for large groups. Plus, I got the moves like Jagger. (Maybe not. But I'm fast, and that's what counts here.)
2) I especially love the challenge of drop-in guests and middling fridge ingredients. (Top Chef Cottage: Quick Fire Challenge. Make a vegan feast for 10 in 15 minutes!)
3) Most importantly, if I do the cooking, I don't do the cleaning. (Cottage rules.)
What's more, summertime cooking is easy cooking. Compared to Christmas's competitive feasts, during the summer nobody wants intricate hors d'oeuvres, a big turkey and sides, layered cakes and cookies, mulled cider and gobs of chocolate. Instead, it's all about sparking up the barbecue (or smoker), and throwing on some burgers and steaks, whipping up big bowls of fresh salads, or even a simple platter of juicy tomatoes with basil and olive oil.
During summer we let the fresh foods speak for themselves, asparagus, corn and beans becoming the snap, crackle and pop of the vegetable world. Meats sizzle, tofu does its own thing, and ice cream is ever-present. If you think about it, it's actually the longest and busiest entertaining stretch of the year.
In other words, it's the perfect time to reciprocate a long put-off dinner invite.


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Salt and Sauce" the experience is most rewarding when we put the pieces together and discover how much a cultural impact the story we are investigating had on people. Damoo Dhotre was an Alfred Court animal presenter that has been mentioned on this blog before. In India his position as an historical and cultural icon is on the ascent and there have been several celebrations done in his name. Today I am delighted to report that a descendent of his, Anand Dhotre, is holding a celebration of the great trainer's 109th birthday with the launch of new website.
Jamie Clubb's other blogs: www.beelzebubsbroker.blogspot.com www.clubbchimera.com
Anand told us - "In present condition of Indian Circus Industry, due to ban on animal performances, we can not expect that any brave artist will rise up like Damoo Dhotre.
Really, Damoo Dhotre was the only Indian who put India's name on world map by showing fearlessness and great determination.
Let's salute this noble son of India today and every day and hope Golden Days will be back to Indian Circus again."
Circus Industry in India Blog (Damoo Dhotre page)
Jamie Clubb's other blogs: www.beelzebubsbroker.blogspot.com www.clubbchimera.com


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Lam Nguyen Hai Long, chair of VNITO Alliance, an organization of Vietnam software outsourcing enterprises, said it aims to promote the Vietnam ITO/BPO sector.
The director of Quang Trung Software City (QTSC) said the 4.0 industrial revolution is bringing great opportunities to enhance service value and become a high-quality IT service center in the region.
Director of the IT Department Dao Dinh Kha said Vietnamese IT firms have great opportunities to develop thanks to high demand from the large markets such as the US and Japan.
However, most of them focus on doing outsourcing of products in low- and mid-end market segments. It is necessary to rethink business strategies to strive toward growing technological trends in the world such as Cloud, Mobility and Big Data.
When Vietnam still doesn't have capability to do R&D, it should focus on doing outsourcing and consider this the 'launching pad' for it to approach higher-level links in the global value chain.
What should Vietnamese IT firms do — continue software outsourcing for modest income, or conduct R&D and export finished products which can bring higher added value.
A businessman said Vietnam needs to 'face the facts', i.e in the current conditions, when it still doesn't have capability to do R&D, it should focus on doing outsourcing and consider this the 'launching pad' for it to approach higher-level links in the global value chain.
"It is now the time to build up the workforce, learn technology and business knowledge, the prerequisites for Vietnam to prepare for more complicated jobs," he commented.
"It is undeniable that doing outsourcing is the industry which brings low added value. However, we need to do what fits our capability," he added.
According to Mai Hoai An, deputy chair of VNITO Alliance and CEO of IMT Solutions, Vietnam IT outsourcing firms now have great opportunities to develop.
The outsourcing demand is still very high, especially from the US and Japan. New technologies such as blockchain, cloud and AI are creating great opportunities for Vietnam firms, including startups.
As the labor cost in the traditional markets such as India and China is on the rise, multinational conglomerates tend to look for new partners in their China+1 and India+1 strategies.
It is a difficult job to create products with high added value. In general, more than 90 percent of technology startups will be dissolved after three years of operation.
An believes that if an IT firm is doing outsourcing well, it should focus on the job and become a master in its field. With low risks, IT outsourcing is suited to countries which still don't have big investment resources.
Vietnam ranks sixth in global software outsourcing
VINASA promotes 50 top Vietnamese IT firms globally
Kim Chi


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Your business relies heavily on technology - not only for internal processes, but for customer-facing practices as well. As such, there can be significant impacts to productivity, and even revenue, if your technology is not supporting your organization effectively. iCorps has been working with a broad range of cutting-edge technologies for over 20 years, and you can leverage this experience to gain top-notch technology consulting services that ensure your technologies are aligned with your business processes and goals.
iCorps Technology Consulting goes a step beyond our Staff Augmentation model. More than just a resource supplement, iCorps technical consultants are brought in for their strategic approach to aligning your technology with your business. For larger-scale projects or if you are integrating emerging or new technologies, our IT technical consultants may perform a technology assessment of your current environment. In the end, iCorps helps you define a clear road map to ensuring that the technology that you implement today will support your business tomorrow as well. Our technical consultants can help you with many different competencies and products, including:
Download IT Consulting Services Datasheet


text: Dear Nyeinchan, Posting like this and most of yours are the worst kind.They made no points whatsoever. I call you , a spammer, in the Burmanet.Most of Burmanetters read daily news papers and various periodicals. We know what is going on around the world. Don,t bother posting spams! If you cannot make a legitimate point, don,t do that again. I can post just about anything not directly related to Burma, I only need to copy and paste from media sites . Not a big deal. If you , yourself is in the process of soul-searching , eagar to learn about everything just DO IT YOURSELF. Do not think your rubbish cost nothing. They cost our PC' memory, time, energy, money ( I don't use Juno at public access so I have to pay for downloading your spams) What make me sick of you is that you are not posting huge amount of text only gossip like GN 32 presedent is goint to Autralia, So what? Give me a brake, mate! This is the last warning that you should behave yourself during your stay in the Burmanet. If you don't want to listen to this. Take off your mask and Get In The Ring! Maung Maung Than Sydney Phone & Fax 612 97378637


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Southern Nature Art Exhibition
Friday 24th - Monday 27th August 2018
Open every day 10am - 5pm
(Private view - Friday 24th Aug, 7 - 9pm)
Free parking and entry to Exhibition and Art Market
Rookesbury Manor
Southwick Road
Hampshire PO17 6HT
I am really looking forward to participating in this wonderful annual exhibition, which is an absolute must for nature and wildlife lovers!
Situated within the grade 2 listed Rookesbury Manor with its beautiful surrounding grounds, this four day exhibition features a fabulous array of artwork, sculpture and photography. Accompanying the main exhibition will be a large art market, packed full of artists demonstrating their skills, (of which I will be one!) There will be originals, prints, cards and many other goodies available to tempt you!
Entrance to the exhibition is completely free and there are delightful tearooms right next to the exhibition! I hope you can come along and join us :-)


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Adapted from Engs, R.C. Alcohol and Other Drugs: Self Responsibility, Tichenor Publishing Company, Bloomington, IN, 1987. (c) Copyright Ruth C. Engs, Bloomington, IN, 1996.
Back to copyright page / List of publications / Home page
Alcohol is a classic depressant of the central nervous system. In small amounts, alcohol can cause an apparent stimulation in some people. This results from unrestrained activity on various parts of the brain that have been freed from inhibition as a result of the depression of inhibitory control mechanisms. Alcohol exerts its first depressant action upon the cortex and reticular activating system. As a result, various thought processes become jumbled, and smooth operation of movement becomes disrupted. Then finer grades of memory, concentration, and insight are dulled and lost as the blood alcohol concentration is increased.
Throughout history, most culture have used alcohol in one form or another. Alcoholic beverages were probably discovered accidentally when mixtures of crushed fruits or honey were left exposed in a warm atmosphere to airborne yeasts that converted the natural sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide by fermentation. The making of wines and beers has been reported from hundreds of preliterate societies, and these beverages were used for religious ceremonies, celebrations, and the treatment of illnesses.
The oldest known code of laws, that of Hammurabi of Babylon (in about 1770 B.C.), regulated drinking establishments, and Sumerian physicians prescribed beer in 2100 B.C. Egyptian doctors in about 1500 B.C. included beer and wine in some of their prescriptions. References to the drinking and the making of wine are found in abundance in the Old Testament of the Bible and in writings of other societies. Alcohol was used copiously in the Greek and Roman civilizations, by the gods in myth and legend as well as by the people of all classes. Wines fermented from rices were widely used by Oriental cultures, and the Arabs first distilled alcohol in about A.D. 500-. All of these cultures, however, gave warning of the harmful effects of excessive drinking.
In Europe, during the Middle Ages when the water supply was often polluted, beer and wine were commonly drunk in place of water. Although many church leaders denounced drunkenness, they seldom criticized the daily use of wine and beer, as they were considered a necessity for maintaining good health. This attitude was brought to North America by the early settlers, and the use of beer and wine was common among the Pilgrims. However, severe penalties were imposed for drunkenness. In New England the production of rum became an important business, and the trade of rum, molasses, and slaves flourished for many years in the colonies.
As the early American settlers pushed farther West, whiskey making became common as the pioneers found it easier to transport whiskey made from corn than bulky containers of wine and beer.
During the frontier days, a number of people became concerned about the heavy drinking of the pioneers and began to question the health-giving qualities of rum, gin, and whiskey. Church leaders began to plead for temperance, which meant moderate and responsible use of alcohol. But later these leaders urged people not to drink at all and started lobbying for laws against drinking, as they felt that alcohol caused too many social problems. Among the most militant of the temperance groups was the Women's Christian Temperance Union, which was part of the second social reform or clean living movement. They launched an intensive educational program and began to support or reject candidates for election based on their attitudes on drinking. In 1919 the movement gained enough momentum to cause the passage of the Eighteenth Amendment, which forbade the production, sale, and distribution of alcoholic beverages in the United States.
This law produced great social problems, as many individuals, particularly Italian and German immigrants, believed that it took away their individual freedoms. These immigrants also saw nothing morally wrong with their traditional use of beer and wine and decided that if they could not buy these beverages legally, they would make them themselves or obtain them illegally. Bootlegging became a profitable business, and underworld gangs fought and killed each other to gain control of various territories to sell bootleg liquor. At the same time, the price of alcohol went up and the purity of distilled beverages went down. In the early 1930s, the flaunting of the law by many otherwise law-abiding citizens and the halfhearted program of enforcement of prohibition laws sparked the movement for and eventual repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment. Prohibition of substances that are part of a culture rarely works.
During the later 1970s and early 1980s, a mass movement - on a national level in the United States - to increase the legal drinking age to 21 years of age began to gain momentum as a preventive measure for drunk driving accidents. In 1985, Congress passed a law that would ban federal highway funds to states that permit drinking by persons under 21 by 1987. Most states have increased their drinking ages (some after initially, in the 1970s, decreasing them), as there appeared to be some evidence of increased alcohol-related automobile accidents among teenage youth when the drinking ages had been reduced. Although per capita consumption has decreased since 1980, problems related to alcohol consumption have risen with the exception of drinking and driving behavior.
Alcohol beverages are now consumed by about 70 percent of all American adults and by about 80 percent of all college students. On a per capita basis, Americans consume about 8.7 liters of ethanol per year. Canadians consume a slightly higher among - approximately 10.8 liters per person per year - while 73 percent of Canadians over 18 years of age drink occasionally. In other English-speaking countries over 90 percent of university-age students drink.
About 30 percent of North Americans do not drink because of religious convictions, illness, the adverse effects of alcohol, because they are recovering alcoholics, or because they do not like the taste. In some communities there is still controversy as to the "morality" of drinking. However, for the most part, North Americans are alcohol users, and alcohol is our most frequently used mind-altering drug, with the exception of caffeine.
Alcohol (ethanol) in beverages basically comes in three forms: wines, beers, and distilled beverages. Wines are made from fermenting the juices of a variety of fruits, honey, and some grains such as rice. Beers are made by fermenting more complex sugars such as grains, hops, corn, and potatoes after the starch has been broken down by such substances as malts. Distilled spirits such as gin and whiskey are made by distilling the alcohol from the wines and/or beers. Fortified wines such as sherry and port are wines in which some distilled alcohol has been added. Liqueurs (cordials) are made in a similar way, with the addition of sugar and spices to give them a thick and syrupy consistency.
Most beers in North America contain from 2 to 6 percent alcohol by volume; wines contain from 12 to 21 percent alcohol by volume; and distilled spirits contain 40 to 50 percent alcohol by volume. Proof is designed as twice the percentage of alcohol by volume. There is approximately the same amount of alcohol in the average twelve-ounce bottle of beer, five-ounce glass of wine, and shot of whiskey - a little less than three quarters of an ounce of ethanol. In the process of fermentation and distillation, small amounts of substances such as ketones, aldehydes, and acids are formed. These chemicals are called congeners, and their presence causes the characteristic taste and odor of a particular distilled beverage.
Alcohol is sometimes considered a food, and each gram of pure alcohol contains seven calories. However, these are often called "empty calories," as they contain no other nutrients. A half ounce of alcohol contains about 100 calories, but the various sugars found in most drinks, especially beer and wine, give higher calories to each average-sized drink. A bottle of beer (twelve ounces) contains about 170 calories, two ounces of whiskey contain approximately 140 calories, and eight ounces of wine contain about 270 calories.
Cultural Use
Recreational. The drinking of alcoholic beverages is considered customary in many social situations today. About 85 percent of all North Americans who drink do so without any harmful effects to themselves, their families, or society. As in the past, drinking is done to celebrate social occasions such as parties with friends, births, weddings, and family get-togethers, and with meals. Alcohol beverages are used for political occasions such as state functions and the making of war or peace, and the use of alcohol is common during and after recreational activities such as bowling, skiing, and golf and while watching sports events. At present, beer is the most popular drink among both adults and university students, with distilled spirits coming in a close second, followed by wines.
Wines tend to be drunk with meals or in the form of sherry as a before-dinner drink and in the form of port as an after-dinner drink. Beer tends to be drunk at sports events and at out-of-door gatherings or when meeting friends at a corner tavern. Beer is also popular with pizza and other informal foods. Distilled spirits are popular at the cocktail hour, when visiting friends, before diner, and at adult parties. University students tend to drink beer more than any other alcoholic beverage on most occasions.
Medicinal. Alcohol in one form or another has long been used as a medicine. It was used in surgery, in childbirth, and as an anesthetic in ancient times. Whiskey was popular for curing colds and treating snake bites, although it helps neither of these conditions. Wine was thought to build up the blood, and brandy was used to relieve fainting. Any alcoholic beverage was used to treat sleeplessness and over excitement, and many spirits were used to clean wounds and were added to various cure-all tonics during the latter part of the nineteenth century. A drink was, and often still is, prescribed to stimulate sluggish appetites, as a sedative to induce sleep, as a vasodilator in arteriosclerosis, and to relieve the vague aches and pains that beset the elderly. Women used to drink to relieve premenstrual tension and cramping from menstruation. Many research reports have found a correlation between one or two drinks a day and decreased heart disease and increased longevity.
Alcohol today, with the exception of use for the elderly, is rarely prescribed. It is, however, found in many over-the-counter medicines, especially in sleep aids, mouthwashes, and cough syrups.
Religious. Perhaps one of the earliest uses for alcohol was in religious ceremonies. In Greco-Roman culture, the cults of Dionysus or Bacchus, the wine god, were the most popular. Red wine, symbolizing the blood of life, ultimately passed from these religious customs into Christianity. The records of Egyptian and other Middle Eastern civilizations show that drinking went from almost exclusive use for religious ritual to common practice for social occasions. The early Hebrews drank wine for various rites of passage such as circumcision, marriage, death, religious holidays, and the weekly Sabbath.
Other religious groups, however, developed abstinence beliefs as part of their religious practice. In Arabia the followers of Muhammad and in China the followers of Buddha forbade the consumption of all alcoholic beverages. Abstinence sects developed after the Reformation, and in the United States the religious temperance movement became popular at the beginning of the twentieth century.
Although most people drink alcoholic beverages in a mature and responsible manner, many use alcohol in an irresponsible manner, thereby causing problems for themselves, their friends, their families, and society.
Alcohol abuse or problem drinking is usually defined as acute intoxication or binge drinking that results in problems with family, friends, job, or the law. Problem drinking is similar to alcoholism, with the exception that the person abusing alcohol is often too physically dependent upon the substance. The rate of problem drinking also is apt to be higher in the 15-to-24-year-old age group. Alcohol abuse is often defined in relation to alcohol-related problems such as fighting, crime, and driving while intoxicated. Surveys find that the persons who are most likely to be problem drinkers are males under 25, white, city residents who have moved from rural areas, whose childhoods were disrupted by a broken home, who are Roman Catholic, and who are single or divorced. This profile is characteristic of many university students. Alcoholism, on the other hand, is usually defined as loss of control of drinking and is more often found in older groups. However, even among university age students, about one in tn who drink may be alcoholic.
Physical Effects of Excess Drinking and Irresponsible Alcohol Use
Hangovers. More than half of all college students have reported a hangover, and 70 percent have reported nausea and vomiting from drinking too much within the preceding 12 months. Hangovers, which are thought to result from an excessive intake of alcohol, are characterized by upset stomach, fatigue, thirst, headache, and sometimes trembling. The basis of hangovers is not clear, but they are thought to be related to congeners found in many alcoholic beverages. Fatigue and tension and stress while drinking may contribute to hangovers, and some people feel that hangovers might be caused by slight withdrawal symptoms. There is no safe way of curing a hangover. Sleep and perhaps aspirin will alleviate some of the discomfort of a hangover.
The Heart. Heart disease is the principal cause of death in this country, but alcohol is not a significant risk factor associated with coronary heart disease. It has been found that small amounts of alcohol - up to about two to three drinks per day for men and one to two for women may prevent heart disease. The incidence of coronary heart disease has been found to be lower in individuals who were light drinkers compared to those who abstained or who were former drinkers in many studies. On the other hand, there is a direct relationship between heavy drinking and cardiomyopathy - a disease of the heart muscle. This condition results in congenital heart failure and elevated diastolic blood pressure. Because heavy drinkers are often heavy smokers, it is thought that the higher incidence of heart disease in alcoholics and heavy drinkers is probably caused by smoking and not by the alcohol in itself.
The Central Nervous System. Alcohol works as a depressant on the central nervous system, depending upon the amount consumed. Chronic excessive drinking, along with these effects, can cause serious damage to the central nervous system. Wernicke's encephalopathy is the first serious manifestation of heavy chronic drinking. The person exhibits nystagmus (uncontrollable eye movement), jerky and unbalanced movement, and mental confusion. The next step in nervous system damage is Korsakoff's psychosis, in which there are defects in retentive memory, apathy, and inertia. Alcoholic polyneuropathy can occur, in which there is weakness and pain or numbness in the legs and arms. Alcoholic pellagra causes mental and nervous confusion, and diarrhea and skin eruptions can occur. Some of these diseases, however, may be caused by deficiency in B vitamins, as alcoholics often are malnourished.
The Liver. Cirrhosis of the liver is a major cause of incapacitating illness and premature death among alcoholics. However, an excessive intake of alcohol by itself is not sufficient to produce cirrhosis, and it is thought that poor nutritional states contribute to this condition. The most common effect in the liver after continued high alcohol intake is the development of fatty liver, in which lipids or fat accumulate in the liver. Deaths can occur suddenly from this problem, and it is considered an important cause of death in individuals age 25 to 44 who are heavy drinkers. After the onset of this condition, alcoholic hepatitis can occur. It involves an inflammatory reaction of the fatty liver and has a mortality rate of up to 30 percent. This condition usually occurs after a bout of heavy drinking causing an alteration in the structure of the liver. Continued drinking then leads to scarring cirrhosis, in which the liver is unable to detoxify alcohol and other toxic substances, and in which there might be a sudden hemorrhage. In some cases, poor nutrition is thought to contribute to general liver deterioration in chronic heavy drinkers. On the other hand, a small daily amount of alcohol is thought to help prevent gall bladder disease.
Cancer. The risk of developing cancer of the mouth, throat, and other parts of the body having direct contact with alcohol appears to be increased by chronic heavy drinking. The risk is especially increased if heavy drinking is combined with heavy smoking. Primary liver cell cancer, while not common in North America, is more often seen in persons with heavy alcohol consumption, perhaps because of altered metabolism of carcinogens in the liver. Chronic heavy drinking is thought to irritate tissue so that carcinogenic substances in cigarettes or in the congeners present in alcoholic beverages may make these individuals more susceptible to cancer. Malnutrition Associated with chronic heavy drinking may cause weakness in the mucosa so as to enable carcinogenic substances to react more readily with the damaged tissue. Much research is still being done in this area of alcohol in relation to cancer.
Sleep. Too much alcohol before bedtime decreases the amount of REM sleep. After drinking for a while before bedtime and then stopping, a slight REM increase occurs, which is a rebound phenomenon. The greater the dose of alcohol, the more prolonged the block in REM sleep. The usual consequences of deprived REM sleep are impaired concentration and memory as well as anxiety, irritability, and fatigue.
Withdrawal. As with other depressants, abrupt withdrawal from alcohol can cause serious consequences. In the case of alcohol, death may even occur from convulsions unless the person is hospitalized. With someone who has built up tolerance and a dependency upon alcohol, abrupt withdrawal after eight to nine hours produces tremors, insomnia, lack of appetite, hallucinations, and sometimes mild seizures. After two to four days, delirium tremors (D.s.) may occur, in which there is severe agitation, fever, rapid heartbeat, sweating, delusions, hallucinations, profound mental confusion, and severe convulsions. Death can occur during this stage from continuous convulsions unless other medications, usually tranquilizers or barbiturates, are administered.
Alcoholism/problem drinking is a complex, chronic process with many definitions. It is North America's most serious drug abuse problem and causes serious health consequences for the individual, his or her family, and society in general. About one in ten persons who drinks becomes an alcoholic. Most alcoholics are not "skid row bums." Only about 5 percent fall into this category, whereas the rest are your relatives, friends, teachers, doctors, and boy and girl friends. Alcoholism tends to be more common in individuals past their late thirties, but it appears to be increasing among younger individuals. Alcoholic persons have both a physical and psychological dependency upon alcohol and usually -
- 1. have a loss of control over their drinking. They find that they are drinking when they did not intend to drink or drink more than they planned.
- 2. have functional or structural damage with social, economic, or domestic problems. There are often job and family problems among alcoholics, along with various alcohol-related illnesses.
- 3. use alcohol as a way to escape from various problems that threaten to deteriorate their lives.
- 4. continue the negative drinking behavior even though it causes problems.
Alcoholic persons usually deny they have a problem with their drinking. They often go through changes of personality, drinking patterns, and serious health and social problems such as job loss and divorce still denying that alcohol is the basic cause of their problems. As stated previously, alcoholics are usually middle-class individuals, with only about 3 to 5 percent being "skid row bums."
In the 1950s, E.M. Jellinek proposed phases and stages in the development of alcoholism based upon several thousand males undergoing rehabilitation for late stage alcoholism. However, these stages may not occur among all problem drinkers.
1. Prealcoholic Phase. During the prealcoholic phase, the individual is usually engaged in controlled or cultural drinking. He or she may use alcohol for occasional escape from tension, but drinking is starting to become more purposeful. Next the individual may begin to drink more and more to escape from tensions and start to develop a tolerance to alcohol.
2. Early alcoholic or Prodromal Stage. Blackouts or temporary alcoholic amnesia occurs in which the person cannot remember what happened and may wake up in a strange bed in a strange place. This is a serious sign, and at this point serious consideration to one's drinking patterns should be considered. Along with blackouts there is often a preoccupation with alcohol. The individual may feel guilty and attempt to abstain from alcohol for a time, or to change drinking habits such as time, place, or types of alcohol consumed.
3. Middle Stage. The alcoholic loses control of his or her drinking and is unable to stop when he or she wishes during the middle stage. Jobs and personal relationships begin to deteriorate. At this point the person may begin to neglect food and begin to have morning tremors and engage in early morning drinking to remove them. There may also be a decrease in alcohol tolerance and physical debilitation.
4. Late Stage. During the late stage, the individual suffers from impaired thinking, physical and mental damage, and complete obsession with drinking. If drinking is not continued, Dts will occur. The person usually neglects food, and most interpersonal relationships are all but destroyed. Benders are common, in which long bouts of drinking occur.
There appear to be several different types of alcoholism, which may have different causes. Moreover, there is much debate as to the nature of the different types and how they should be classified. In general, alcoholics can be grouped into four broad categories.
1. Physiological. This type of alcoholic is common in alcohol-producing countries such as France and Italy, where alcohol is considered to be an essential part of the meal. Over the years the individual who drinks several glasses of wine per day may become physiologically dependent upon the substance and may go into withdrawal symptoms when deprived of alcohol. The individual may not have family, work, psychological, or legal problems.
2. Psychological or "North American." This type of alcoholism is common in the United States, Canada, the British Isles, and the Scandinavian countries. The person starts off as a social drinker, and over a period of several years he/she gradually begins to drink more and more, especially when in a negative psychological state. Family, job, and legal problems generally begin to occur.
3. Primary. In primary alcoholism, the condition develops rapidly, usually while the person (generally a male) is in his teens or early twenties. There are often serious problems in the family, including alcoholism or other addictions, legal problems, and child abuse. The individual may have been hyperactive as a child.
4. Secondary. Individuals with secondary alcoholism generally have an underlying condition such as schizophrenia, cyclic depression, or manic depressive reaction. They use alcohol to medicate themselves. Once the underlying cause is treated, the alcohol abuse often goes away. Only a small percentage of the population is considered to have this type of alcoholism.
Over the years there have been many theories as to the cause of alcoholism and what it is. In the past it was considered a sin, moral weakness, or lack of willpower. Today it is considered a disease, chronic condition, or addictive behavior or disorder. Alcoholism, like cancer, is probably a number of different illnesses and conditions, and different things may trigger the condition in different individuals. At present, various research reports suggest that alcoholism is caused by physiological, psychological, and sociological factors with no simple answer as to its etiology.
Physiological Theories
Genetic. Some types of alcoholism appear to run in families and are thought to be genetic in origin. As mentioned previously, studies in Denmark showed that when sons of alcoholics were adopted by non-alcoholic families, they were just as likely to become alcoholic as those reared by their biological families. It is estimated that about 25 percent of the alcoholic population may have inherited a behavioral propensity that increases their risk for alcoholism. Individuals manifesting this propensity are often rebellious, attention seeking, manipulative of people, impulsive, egocentric, and liable to abuse or overdo all types of substances and activities.
Stress. Some types of alcoholism are thought to be an adaptative mechanism in the response to stress. An individual under stress often feels anxious, tense, angry, lonely, bored, and/or nervous. Drinking alcohol sometimes appears to reduce these negative feelings. This may then lead to a pattern of using alcohol in order to reduce these uncomfortable feelings when the individual confronts a negative experience.
Abnormal Metabolites in the Brain. A theory of the cause of some forms of alcoholism is that some individuals have an abnormal metabolite in the brain that may produce the addictive state in response to consumption of alcoholic beverages.
Genetictropic Theory. Genetictropic theory combines the concept of genetic trait and a nutritional deficiency. It is postulated that because of an inherited defect of metabolism, some people require unusual amounts of some essential vitamins. Since they do not get these amounts in their normal diet, these people have a nutritional deficiency that results in an abnormal craving for alcohol by those who become acquainted with it. Some research indicates that when rats are fed diets deficient in the B vitamin group, they prefer alcohol to water.
Endocrine Theory. Endocrine theory suggests a dysfunction of the endocrine system. Similarities between alcoholic patients and patients with endocrine disorders suggest that some failure of the endocrines might be related to the onset of alcoholism. Experimental clinical evidence does not provide much support for this theory.
Psychological Theories.
Psychoanalytic Theory. Psychoanalytic theory in a Freudian framework explains the cause of alcoholism as self destruction, oral fixation, and a latent homosexual struggle for power. The view that alcoholism develops as a response to an inner conflict between dependency drives and aggressive impulses is also considered a cause by other psychoanalytic writers. There is some evidence to suggest that frustrated ambitions may play a role in the development of an alcohol problem, as alcohol provides a sense of power and feeling of achievement. However, few studies have been carried out that confirm these theories.
Learning Theory. Learning theory explains alcoholism as being a learned behavior strengthened by reinforcement. Alcohol ingestion is considered a reflex response to some stimulus as a way of reducing boredom, anger, anxiety, loneliness, or depression.
Personality Trait Theory. Some research has attempted to define the causes of alcoholism in terms of an "alcoholic personality." Some of the characteristics found among alcoholics are low frustration tolerance, feeling of inferiority, fearfulness, and dependency. Much research has attempted to identify an underlying personality disorder. However, being able to predict alcoholism by personality characteristics is still difficult.
Sociological Theories
Cultural Theory. Most cultures have used alcohol, yet different groups have higher rates of alcoholism than others. North Americans, northern French, Poles, Russians, Swedes, Swiss, and Irish, who tend to drink for the sake of drinking, have high rates of alcoholism. Chinese, southern French, Greeks, Italians, Jews, Portuguese, and Spaniards, who tend to drink in religious celebrations or with the family, tend to have lower rates of alcoholism. It is thought that the attitude toward drinking held by a culture, the degree that the culture provides suitable substitute means for satisfaction, and the degree to which a culture operates to reduce inner tensions or acute needs for adjustment for its members may influence the rate of alcoholism.
Deviant Behavior Theory. Alcoholism is viewed as deviant behavior by some. According to this theory, the alcoholic is a person who through a set of circumstances becomes publicly labeled as deviant and is forced by society's reaction into playing a deviant role. In societies in which drinking customs, values, and actions are known and agreed upon by all members of the group, there is a lower rate of alcoholism than in societies in which there is no consensus of opinion on what constitutes responsible drinking.
Heredity Plus Environment Theory. This theory postulates that an individual is born with a genetic trait to become an alcoholic, and depending upon the family environment, he/she may or may not develop the condition. This is different than the "genetic" theory in that environment has an influence upon whether the person will become an alcoholic. Individuals brought up in a warm, supportive emotional environment may not develop the condition, whereas persons raised in psychologically abusive or stressful family environments may readily develop the disorder. In summary, there is no generally agreed upon single cause of alcoholism, or, for that matter, of any other addictive behavior. See Section Nine for details concerning other addictions.
Since alcoholism is often considered a family disorder, disease or dysfunction, a highly debatable condition called co-dependency has been suggested by some. Others feel that we are all co-dependent and this so called condition is a passing fad. The co-dependent may be a spouse, parent, child, or close friend. Co-dependents are thought to have emotional problems of various degrees of severity. They develop these problems from long-term interaction with the alcoholic individual, especially as a child(See Appendix A for the CODE test).
Pregnancy. The fetal alcohol syndrome, in which babies born to women who are chronic heavy drinkers or alcoholics are deformed, has become widely discussed during the past few years. The defects include mental retardation, small head, tremors, and other abnormalities. It is estimated that if a woman consumes below 2 ounces of 100 proof whiskey a day during her pregnancy, the chances of her drinking causing birth defects in her child are low. If, however, she drinks between 2 and 4 ounces a day, the risks are 10 percent, and if she drinks 10 ounces a day or more, the danger of producing a child with abnormalities could be 50 percent or higher.
MACDUFF: What three things does drink especially provoke?
PORTER: Marry, sir, nose-painting, sleep, and urine. Lechery, sir, it provokes and unprovokes; it provokes the desire, but it takes away the performance...
William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act 2, Scene 3.
Sexual Activity. The drinking of small amounts of alcohol can lower inhibitions and make the person more relaxed and more apt to engage in social and sexual activities tht he or she might not engage in while not intoxicated. However, too much alcohol in males causes an inability to maintain an erection. In persons with chronic alcoholism, there is degeneration and dysfunctioning of the sex glands and increased sex problems in both men and women.
Responsible Choices Concerning Drinking
We are a nation of drinkers. About 80 percent of university-aged individuals reading this book drink at least once a year. Drinking, like eating, or any social activity, has some guidelines to help the participant get more enjoyment out of the activity. Gobbling down half a chocolate cake at a party would not be considered responsible eating or even polite. The same goes for drinking. Responsible choices concerning drinking may mean not drinking, such as when a person is sick, taking medications or being the designated driver. Responsible drinking means that you never have to feel sorry for what has happened while you were drinking. Basically, this means not becoming drunk. The following are some hints to help you drink responsibly and derive more enjoyment and pleasure from drinking if you choose to drink.
1. Know your limit. If you do not already know how much alcohol you can handle without losing control, try it out one time at home with your parents or roommate present. Explain to them what you are attempting to learn. Most people find that no more than a drink and a half per hour will keep them in control of the situation and avoid drunkenness.
2. Eat food while you drink. It is particularly good to eat high protein foods such as cheese and peanuts, which help to slow the absorption of alcohol into the circulatory system.
3. Sip your drink. If you gulp a drink for the effect, you are losing a pleasure of drinking, namely tasting and smelling the various flavors. This is particularly true for wine.
4. Accept a drink only when you really want one. At a party if someone is trying to force another drink on you, ask for ice or drink an alternative beverage.
5. Cultivate taste. Choose quality rather than quantity. Learn the names of fine wines, whiskeys, and beers. Learn what beverage goes with what foods.
6. Skip a drink now and then. When at a party, have a nonalcoholic drink between the alcoholic one to keep your blood alcohol concentration down. Space your alcoholic drinks out to keep the desired blood alcohol concentration.
7. When drinking out, if you must drive home, have your drinks with dinner, not afterwards. This allows time for the alcohol to be burned up and for it to be absorbed slowly into the circulatory system.
8. Beware of unfamiliar drinks. Such drinks as zombies and other fruit and rum drinks can be deceiving, as the alcohol is not always detectable, and it is difficult to space them out.
9. Make sure that drinking improves social relationships rather than impairs them. Serve alcohol as an adjunct to an activity rather than as the primary focus. Have a German night party rather than just getting together to drink beer.
10. Appoint a designated driver. Have someone available who will not be drinking and will drive all drinkers home.
11. Use alcohol carefully in connection with other drugs.
12. Respect the rights of individuals who do not wish to drink. It is considered impolite to attempt to get people to drink who do not wish to. They may abstain for religious or medical reasons, because they are recovering alcoholics, or they just may not like the taste and effect it has on them.
13. Avoid drinking mixed drinks on an empty stomach on a hot day. This might produce hypoglycemia, which can cause dizziness, weakness, and mood change.
Responsible Hosting
Most people love to go to parties, and most find that parties are fun to give. The following tips for being a responsible host will give more pleasure to you and your guests.
1. Plan people movement. Make sure that people can move around and meet each other. If it means putting the sofa in a corner, do so.
2. The bartender. If you plan to have a friend act as bartender, make sure that he or she is not an eager pusher who uses the role to put an extra shot in every's glass.
3. Pace the drinks. Serve drinks at regular, reasonable intervals. A drink-an-hour schedule usually means that good company prevails.
4. Don't double up. Many people count and pace their drinks. If you serve doubles, they will be drinking twice as much as they planned. Doubling up is considered rude.
5. Push the snacks. Make sure that people are eating along with drinking.
6. Don't push the drinks. Let the glass be empty before you offer a refill.
7. Serve nonalcoholic beverages also. Remember that one out of five university-aged individuals chooses not to drink. Make sure that you have something nonalcoholic to drink. If you are having a kegger, also include soda pop on ice.
8. Closing the party. Decide, in advance, when you want your party to end. At this time, stop serving alcohol and serve coffee and a substantial snack. This provides some nondrinking time before your guests drive home.
Alcohol has been used by most cultures and if you do chose to drink, please do so in a responsible, safe, and healthy way.


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I didn't know the word at the time, but the boys in our first-grade class shaved our heads in "solidarity" with Paul. He was my best friend, so my mom took me to the hospital to visit. When I entered the room, I became upset because it wasn't him- his black hair was really gone in a way mine wasn't- black shadows surrounded his eyes- he was the most tired person I'd ever seen- his voice was different because he had to whisper.
My mom sat me down at the table next to his bed and left the room. I put together the plastic pieces of Connect-Four and split the chips into two piles, red and black. Paul coughed and something inside of him rattled like a can of spray paint. I told him about school and our field trips to the pond and post office. I told him about my last hockey game, how I scored two goals and two assists, not enough for a hat trick but that's four points, I said. I became angry with him because he wasn't paying good attention.
After a few moves, Paul said it would be better if I put in his pieces for him. He handed me a black chip and pointed to the third column from the right. I dropped his chip for him; it fell with a click. Then I sat on the edge of my seat and shot my own red chip down the center column and told Paul about the ride I took on a tractor pulling a wagon full of hay and big orange pumpkins you could sit on. I made it clear to him how Fall is the best season, because my birthday's November 11th. He kept falling back onto his pillow.
Eventually, I had it so no matter where he went I'd win. I told him so. He chewed this over and said nothing. He stared at the game. Then he stared through it, through me, like he saw something far away. I peered behind me, twirled back to Paul and repeated myself- he could go anywhere… I'd still win. He shut his eyes, so I went ahead and chose his move for him, to block my three-in-a-row, but it didn't matter because I could put my chip on top of that and connect-four, anyway. I felt happy when I won. But right after, I considered Paul boring because he wasn't competitive.
The next game, when he handed me his chips, I was afraid to touch his hand because I thought I'd hurt him. I didn't try as hard as before and kept looking to the door. Every move, he seemed to make a life-or-death decision yet didn't care. I got real nervous and didn't like visiting Paul. My mom came in, I put the game in its box, and Paul fell asleep. I said bye to Paul and his eyes opened but I don't think he was awake.


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Demat Account Must Read1) What is a Demat Account?
2) How to open a Demat account?
3) Benefits of Demat account?
4) Documents required for opening a Demat Account?
5) Charges to open a Demat Account?
What is Demat Account ?
Demat account is mandatory for trading and investing of shares. Demat refers to dematerialized account. Demat Account is a safe secure and convenient way where you can buy and sell the shares without any paper work and all the things will be taken care by the DP (Depository Participants).If you have demat account you need not to show any kind of physical certificate that you have these shares. They held automatically in your account. DP will also provide you monthly statement of your transaction just like a bank statement
How to Open a Demat account?
To open a Demat account you have to approach DP and he will be guided you the official procedure to open an account.
To see who the register DP is, you can visit NSDL and CDSL website .You can choose the DP of your own choice. On opening a demat account, a unique BOID (Beneficial Owner Identification) Number is allotted, which should be quoted in all future transactions.
You can open a Demat account with no balance of shares, there is no minimum balance is requiredDocuments required for opening a Demat Account? ?
1) To open a demat account you have to fill demat request form
2) One Passport size photograph, proof of address like Voter ID card, electricity bill or Ration Card, Employee ID Card, Bank attestation and Latest IT Return
3) Submit the DRF & share certificate(s) to DP. DP would forward them to the issuer / their R&T Agent.
4) Deface the share certificate(s) you want to dematerialize by writing across Surrendered for dematerialization
5) After dematerialization, your depository account with your DP would be credited with the dematerialized securities.
6) You have to Submit the PAN Card as a proof of identity .As of April 2006 it is mandatory, if any person want to open a demat account should have a PAN CARD (Permanent Account number) . Without a PAN CARD you are not be eligible to open a Demat account
Benefits of Demat Account
- Nomination facility is available in Demat account
- You can purchase ,hold and sell shares in electronic form
- You can save a transaction cost with quick transfer
- Shares are credit automatically in Demat account ,no paper work is required
- It is quick, easy, safe and secure, it reduces time taken during trading and avoiding the problem like signature mismatch and loss of certificates and the risk due to fire and theft
- Demat account holders need not pay stamp duty posted.
- You can even sold one share as per your choice
- You can open as many account ,there is no limit on that, and you can open your account before you buy your first security
- You can open a multiple demat account, which can be operated by multiple holders
Few banks will not charge you the demat account opening fees, but there is some annual maintenance charges as well as transaction charges on Demat account
Custodian fee
Custodian fees depends on the number of securities and this fees is charged monthly (international securities identification numbers — ISIN) held in the account. It generally ranges between Rs 0.5 to Rs 1 per ISIN per month.
DPs will not charge custody fee for ISIN on which the companies have paid one-time custody charges to the depository.
Transaction fee
On a monthly basis transaction fees is charges for crediting/debiting securities from the account. The fee also based on the kind of transaction (buying or selling). Some DPs charge only for debiting the securities while others charge for both. The DPs also charge if your instruction to buy/sell fails or is rejected.
In addition, service tax is also charged by the DPs.


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Condoleezza Rice, the former U.S. Secretary of State; Nikki Haley, the Governor of South Carolina; and Susana Martinez, the Governor of New Mexico, were all announced as speakers at this month's convention in Tampa—all but ruling them out as Mr. Romney's choice for vice-president.
None of the three women were thought to be likely choices but all had been floated as possibilities—especially by those urging Mr. Romney to pick a woman in order to improve his standing among female voters.
The convention speaking slot announcements are closely monitored by political observers as they often yield clues to the candidate's selection process. The running mate is always given a prominent speaking slot at the convention and it would be highly unusual for Mr. Romney to pick someone who had already been assigned a speaking time.
As the convention draws nearer, the chorus of speculation about Mr. Romney's pick has swelled. Pundits have focused on Rob Portman, a safe if somewhat unexciting senator from Ohio; Tim Pawlenty, a former governor of Minnesota who ran against Mr. Romney in the primary but is now a loyal surrogate; and Paul Ryan, a young Wisconsin congressman who is best known as the author of the Ryan Plan—a ferociously conservative budget that would slash government spending.
Other possible contenders include Marco Rubio, a Cuban-American senator from the swing state of Florida; and Bobby Jindal, the Indian-American Governor of Louisiana.
Mr. Romney has a reputation for caution and deliberation but could still shock the political establishment by picking a relative unknown, as John McCain did with Sarah Palin in 2008.
Mr. McCain will speak at the convention in support of his 2008 primary rival, as will Mike Huckabee, the former Governor of Arkansas and a leading figure on the Christian Right.
The Republican Party has still not announced who will make the coveted key note address, which is usually reserved for a rising star. Chris Christie, the outspoken Governor of New Jersey, has been repeatedly cited as a possible choice.


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Everyone knows that working out can help improve your both your fitness and overall health, but not everyone agrees on..
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Pam Barnett on 18 MayWith Botox, Chesapeake VA Residents Can Look And Feel Better
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Stress is a real killer. A lot of people suffer from too much stress, and you can see it in their face.


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WS08 Series Water Sensor
The Pall WS08 Series water sensor provides precise and reliable measurement of dissolved water content in industrial process fluids. It is ideal for in-line monitoring of moisture in hydraulic, lubrication and insulation oils, contributing to the predictive maintenance of plant and machinery. Specifically designed for harsh industrial environments the WS08 Water Sensor features a modular housing concept and simple on-site adjustment.
• A sensing probe immersed in the fluid to directly monitor dissolved water content and temperature
• Water content expressed as % saturation or PPM and temperature in °C or °F
• High temperature sensing
• Simple to operate
• Robust modular housing and sensing probe designs
• Available with or without display
• Included PC configuration software with RS232 communication cable
• Two relay outputs standard (except if RS485 output is ordered)
• Optional RS485 output (not available with relay outputs)
• Two freely scaleable and selectable analogue
outputs, 4-20 mA, 0-5 V or 0-10 V (factory default setting is 4-20 mA)
• Simple and flexible installation
WS04 Series Portable Water Sensor
Water contamination in fluids can cause numerous problems such as additive depletion, oil oxidation, corrosion, reduced lubricating film thickness, accelerated component wear rates, microbial growth, and reduction of dielectric strength. These problems can be averted with periodic monitoring so that timely action can be implemented.
The Pall Water Sensor measures and displays the relative water saturation of the fluid. It can be used as a monitor to indicate the water content of the fluid, providing the customer with meaningful information on which to base their service and maintenance procedures.
- Max pressure 150 psi
- Accuracy +/- 2% (including hysteresis, linearity and repeatability)
WS07X Series Portable Water Sensor
Water in fluids can cause numerous problems such as additive depletion, oil oxidation, corrosion, reduced lubricating properties, accelerated component wear rates and microbial growth. Such problems can be averted with periodic monitoring so that corrective actions can be implemented immediately. The Pall WS07X Water Sensor can be used as a monitor to indicate the water content of a fluid, expressed as percentage saturation and provide meaningful information on which to base service and maintenance procedures. The Pall WS07X Water Sensor may be permanently installed to monitor critical applications or used for routine condition monitoring of various fluid
systems. The Pall WS07X Water Sensor meets ATEX requirements and complies to the health and safety standards of intrinsically safe machinery corresponding with the following standards: EN50014, EN 50020 and EN50284. The sensing probe and sensor driver units are approved intrinsically safe standard II category 1/2 G-EEx isgroup IIC T6 (Zone 0 for the sensing probe/ Zone 1 for sensor driver unit), whilst the supply and evaluation unit is approved for use in non-hazardous areas only.


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I chose to use the sweet A purrfect Day Digi image and some papers from NitWit Collecions to create my card.
I coloured my image with Spectrum Noir Illustrator Pens and added a Craftwork Cards sentiment.
The flower is a Tattered Lace die and the buttons and twine are from my stash.
Make sure you pop over to Di's Digi Designs and check out the fabulous new website.
I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Cute
WordArt Wednesdays Weeks 268-269 - Anything Goes
Thank you for visiting today, don't forget to take a look at the Di's Digi Designs Challenge blog to check out the fabulous DT inspiration and join in with our Include an animal challenge.


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If you're looking for privacy, this is it. 5.5 acres with the Hettenshaw Valley view in the front and the Hettenshaw rock right behind you. Only 13 miles from Ruth lake, 14 miles to the school with bus service, 19 miles to Dinsmore store. Lots of water and a nice flat above the home to build on. All that and PG&E you're ready to go.
All 20 Photos


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Men spotted wearing military gear, carrying rifles and shouting
Los Angeles, Calif. (KTLA) -- Two men spotted carrying rifles and wearing military gear in Inglewood overnight were taken into custody following a traffic stop Tuesday morning.
Police received reports about some armed men in the area of Crenshaw Boulevard between West Century Boulevard and Imperial Highway just after 11 p.m. Monday, said Lt. Held with the Inglewood Police Department.
Video from the scene showed the men walking around in camouflage, carrying rifles and shouting messages about racism.
Police arrived at the scene and monitored the men as they walked around the neighborhood.
"Right now we are giving a peaceful demonstration. Nobody's being shot. Nobody's being brutalized. We're out here just exposing racism, white supremacy," one of the men told KTLA.
Both men then showed their rifles on camera before putting them, apparently unloaded, into the back of a black vehicle. The men then got into the vehicle.
It was unclear if the firearms were loaded at any point during the incident, but police remained on alert.
"We don't recommend anyone to walk around in public, day or night, with a firearm in plain view," said Inglewood police Sgt. Geoffrey Meeks.
At about 7 a.m., police pulled two men over in Lakeview Terrace, aerial video from Sky5 showed.
The men were believed to be the same two who were walking around in Inglewood earlier, said Los Angeles Police Department Officer Liliana Preciado.
One of the men removed his shirt and sat down on a curb with his pants around his ankles before being apprehended, video showed.
The second man was struck by a rubber bullet and then taken into custody, Preciado said.
Police were going to question the men, but it was unclear if any charges would be filed, Preciado said.
KTLA's Alberto Mendez contributed to this report.


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Segovia is an enchanting city with a picturesque Old Town and a number of historic sites that has earned it the distinction of being named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In the very center of town visitors can marvel at a Roman aqueduct that was built in the 1st C. and is considered one of the Roman Empire's most impressive works of engineering. You can also tour a 16th C. Gothic cathedral that was the last one built in Spain, and wander through a 12th C. castle that looks like it came straight out of a fairy tale. It is said that the Alcázar was one of the inspirations for Disney's Cinderella Castle.
The best way to explore this city is to take a walking tour with a local guide who will tell you about Segovia's history, including how a Roman aqueduct built in the 1st C. without any mortar can still be standing today.
On this 4 hour private tour you can explore the main sites in this historic city, including the iconic Aqueduct and Alcázar Castle. Your guide will customize the tour to include the sites that are of most interest to you. A suggested itinerary could include visits to the following sites:
- Roman Aqueduct
- Alcázar Castle
- Gothic Cathedral
- La Muralla (ramparts)
- Iglesia de Vera Cruz
- Iglesia San Esteban
- Iglesia de San Martín
- Judería (Jewish Quarter) and the old Main Synagogue
- Plaza Mayor
- Casa de los Picos
2019 Prices (for up to 8 participants) and other info:
- US $370 – Monday through Friday (start time from 9:00-10:00am or 2:00-3:00pm)
- US $430 – Saturday, Sunday and Holidays (start time from 9:00-10:00am or 2:00-3:00pm)
- Price includes a tour with an official licensed guide for 4 hours
- Price does not include entrance fees and transportation costs (if any), which are extra
- Tours with more than 2 participants: Multiple taxis will be needed to get to the city center
- Common languages available: English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese and German
- Gratuities are not included and are at the discretion of the client
- Prices are subject to change
Segovia is well known for its cuisine and signature dishes such as Cochinillo Asado (roast suckling pig), giant broad beans from La Granja, and Sopa Castellana (garlic soup), so be sure to ask your guide to recommend some of their favorite restaurants to you.
For more information and reservations, contact us.
Photo credit: Bernard Gagnon
As usual, thanks for reading. Please visit International Lodging Corporation at our home page.


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Vibrant, Juicy, Contemporary: or, Why I Am a UU Pagan
by Margot Adler
When I was five, I asked my father what religion we were. An atheist from a nominally Jewish background, he told me, "We believe in the brotherhood of man." Now, this did not cut it for a five-year-old, particularly when my best friend got to put on her white dress and have holy communion. Feeling she was getting a much better deal, I demanded that my father start to read me the Bible. And I wanted to be a Catholic.
Meanwhile, my mother was also saying, "You're Jewish," and my father was saying, "No, we're not." So I come from a background of religious confusion and even conflict. My father, although Jewish, had actually been brought up in a Lutheran household. He had never been circumcised, and he celebrated Christmas--a tradition my family continued.
Then two things happened that really affected me spiritually. First, when I was ten years old, our entire class went out very early on May 1 to the country house of our teacher's sister. We had learned all these medieval May Day carols, and as the sun rose, we started singing them and picking flowers. We took armfuls of flowers back to New York and threw them around the school, singing the medieval May Day carols. Then we danced around the maypole. And I became a ritual junkie for life.
Then we studied ancient Greece for the entire seventh grade. This was in 1957, and there weren't a lot of powerful images of women in the society to help young girls think about who and what they wanted to be. But I was reading about Artemis and Athena, these incredible Greek goddesses. I decided way down deep I didn't want to worship them, I wanted to be them. They were the most powerful images of confidence and inner strength I had seen in the society I was growing up in.
But by the time I was fourteen, I realized you do not go around worshiping the Greek gods or pretending you are them without ending up in a mental hospital. So I hid this stuff in psychic storage, you might say, and went on with my life.
Then, in 1970, right around the time of the first Earth Day, I started reading the nature writers--Thoreau, Loren Eiseley, Rene Dubos, and Rachel Carson. Although I found myself excited and energized by the ecology movement, my response to these writings was not entirely political. As I read these writers, I was having what I can only describe now as religious feelings. I saw that this literature was about our whole relationship to the universe; it showed that everything was interconnected. It helped me understand my place in the universe in a way I had never understood it before.
Soon after that, I came across two essays that profoundly affected me: "The Religious Roots of Our Environmental Crisis" by Arnold Toynbee and "The Historic Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis" by Lynn White. These two essays said to me--although I'm simplifying greatly here--that there was a problem with the command in Genesis to "be fruitful and multiply and have dominion over the earth." This notion put human beings above nature, thereby giving us license to destroy the earth. The essays also talked about the older Pagan, animistic traditions and their different notions of the divine--that it was present in everything and that everything was alive and vital. I began to think that this older perspective gave one a more sacred sense of the planet and a reluctance to destroy the earth. I thought, "That's what I have always believed." And I started looking for an ecological religion.
I did really silly things. I went to England, and I looked under "Druids" in the telephone directory. Actually, there was a Druid Order, a masonic-type group that would go to Stonehenge and parade around on the solstice in white robes. But they were not exactly what I was looking for.
But slowly I became aware of an entire movement--which, for better or worse, I will call the earth-centered traditions--including anything from indigenous traditions to contemporary Pagan forms, to people who are reviving the goddess spirituality movement, to Wicca, to people who are reviving Nordic religions, to people who are looking at what their ancestors were involved in 3,000 or 4,000 or 5,000 years ago and trying to create that again in a contemporary form.
Through a fluke I got a book contract, as a result of which I ended up going around the country and finding all sorts of Pagan groups. Of course, Paganism today is a minority religious tradition, and it will probably never be a majority tradition in this country. It doesn't even see itself as being the religion for everyone. Instead, it sees itself as one among many jewels. But it has certain insights that are useful for anyone about living in this world.
Now, it's easy to grow up in the United States and think of religion as what I call the Big Five: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism. Most religions we're familiar with have many similarities. They have, for example, written scripture. They have, for example, prophets--wise men, usually--who've come down to tell humans about how to live their lives. They have rules, and many of them--definitely Christianity and Islam--see themselves as universal religions--that is, as appropriate for all people and places. In fact, certain traditions within Christianity and Islam believe it's a duty to proselytize because their religion is the universal truth, appropriate for everyone. I think we've grown up thinking these characteristics--things like scripture, creed, rules, and prophets---are what makes up a religion.
But the traditions I'm talking about don't have any of these characteristics. They don't have written scripture. They don't have a very well-formed creed. Rather, these religions, which were the religions of our ancestors 40,000 years ago, are based on practice, as opposed to belief. They are based on experience. What do we do to make the crops grow?
Indigenous religion, like Judaism, is not universal; it's based on place. Native American nations and cultures have their sacred mountains, their sacred spots, just as Jews have the land of Israel. Indigenous traditions don't get involved in proselytizing because they don't assume that other people should be part of their religious tradition. This is a huge notion, because if you don't proselytize, then how can you have a religious war?
Another thing I found was that, because these traditions were not universal, were based on oral tradition and not the written word, they were much more metaphorical and theologically more flexible. There would never be a creationism-vs.-science dispute in Paganism. The Pagan point of view would be, "Well, yes, there is that dream reality of my creation myth, and then there's modern science, and well, yeah, they're multiple realities--both are real. But they're different parts of my reality. I can dance around a bonfire at night, and then the next day, I can go to work as a computer programmer." It's a more metaphoric than literal notion of reality, very different from religions that are tied to scripture.
But as I get older, I no longer believe in almost any "either-or." I now believe almost everything is "both-and." Many dichotomies are nonsense when you think deeply about them: male and female, dark and light, material and spiritual. Any mystic knows that. Take Teresa of Avila. She knew that when you wash the dishes, that is part of a spiritual experience. Even the whole notion--here's something I shouldn't say as a good liberal--the whole notion of church-state separation is ridiculous. At least cognitively. Of course, it's important because I wouldn't want to be a non-Christian in a Christian nation, so maybe we have to do it politically. But the idea that religious reality and political reality are separate? Ridiculous!
The same goes for the idea that humor and religion don't mix. If you visit the Kung bushmen, you might see a ceremony in which they're trance-dancing for two days, and then in the middle of the ceremony someone might make a joke with some sexual connotations about the man dancing, and he makes a little comment and then goes right back into his trance--and there's a sense that there's no difference. I once went into a Zen garden in Japan, and suddenly a loud troop of Japanese schoolchildren came romping through, and I thought, "They're ruining my mystical experience, these children!" But then I backtracked and said, "I'm wrong! This, too, is part of sacred reality."
Consistent with the lack of separation between the sacred and profane is the earth-centered traditions' understanding of deity as immanent, in everything. This means that not only is the mind holy but the body is holy, sexuality is holy, everything is a piece, and it's all part of the sacred reality. All this boils down to what I would call an ecological perspective on religion. One-crop economies always fail, and a healthy meadow, a healthy forest always has multiple species living interdependently. It may be heretical and subversive, but I think spiritual reality should be like that--that, again, we're all not supposed to arrive at one answer, that maybe the world could be richer, deeper, more interesting because, in fact, there are many answers and that only if we each seek out our own answers will we be able to chart a path through the dark days that seem to lie ahead.
Another thing attracting me to earth-centered traditions goes back to what I said about my early attraction to the Greek goddesses. So many women are coming to the goddess spirituality movement. This is happening both outside and inside organized religion, and it's happening in Judaism and Christianity, as well as Paganism.
For example, the United Church of Christ came out with a prayer book a couple of years ago that included words like "O, God, from the womb of your being. . . ." Within Judaism, women are holding "New Moon circles" and doing serious research into the feminine aspect of the divine, the pre-Canaanite goddesses and their roles. In our own Unitarian Universalist Association, there is, of course, the study guide called Cakes for the Queen of Heaven that started going around about ten years ago. This look at the ancient goddesses and what they mean has transformed Unitarian Universalism from a heady, sometimes over rationalist group into a group that is more open to exuberant ritual.
Why has this movement taken on such force? Why are there hundreds of books being published on goddess spirituality? Why are so many women finding themselves attracted to it? What is going on here? I think the main reason women are coming to Paganism is that, in many denominations, they've been left out. They've been robbed of their chance for ministry. There are so many frustrated would-be Catholic priests in the goddess spirituality movement, it's amazing.
But the history of the women's spirituality movement goes back to the women's consciousness-raising groups of the 1960s and early 1970s. Think about what happened there. In the group I belonged to, we sat in a circle and spoke on a topic that was decided the week before--things like high school, my first menstruation, my mother, sexuality. Ten, twelve women sat around a circle. Each one spoke for, let's say, seven or eight minutes, and no one interrupted--that was very important because twenty-five years ago a woman couldn't sit on a park bench and read a book or sit in a restaurant alone and not be interrupted.
So this was the first time many of these women could actually speak from the inner self without being interrupted. The big idea that came out of the consciousness-raising groups was that the personal was political--that from your personal experience--with high school, your mother, the men in your life--came an understanding of the world and politics.
When that point had been made, women started doing other things. They said, "Well, if the personal is political, maybe the personal is spiritual, too," and so women started spiritual groups, where they talked about their dreams in the same way they'd been talking about politics, and they asked: "Why are women always called witches? Why are they always seen as evil?" They looked into the history of midwife persecution and the devaluation of women's wisdom and healing. They said, "Well, maybe because these people were on the outs with society and were independent-minded, they got called witches, but really they were just doing their own things in their own way. Maybe that's what we are, and maybe if I just say, 'I'm a witch, I 'm a witch, I'm a witch' three times, I'm really a witch and that's all it means." So the first women's witch covens started.
Meanwhile, there was a revival of Paganism that came from people in the folklore movement and people who were researching their own ancestral traditions. It had thousands of followers, which is very small compared to any other religion in America, but it was growing.
It was all in reaction to what I would call our white bread culture. Most of us do come from traditions that are vibrant and juicy. That's for a good reason: our parents, most of them, were immigrants to this country. Many fled oppression. Others were forcibly brought here against their will, in chains. Or they were the native people who were forced into conversion. So, in a sense, we all had earth-based traditions ripped from us. Of course, some of those traditions were fairly oppressive. In my mother's tradition, boys got the 50-cent Hebrew instructor who taught you meaning of the words, and girls got the 25-cent Hebrew instructor who taught you to mouth the syllables. But these traditions, for all their shortcomings, did have a juicy relationship to the earth. They had songs, they had stories, they had lullabies, they had ceremonies, they had dances. Very often, by contrast, the religion we've been brought up in is fairly white bread. You know, you sit there in the pew and some minister or rabbi lectures at you.
So there's a huge religious revival in our country--Christian, Jewish, Pagan, whatever--that's partly due to a hunger for the juice of ecstatic spiritual experience, a hunger for a deeper relationship to the earth, family, community, etcetera. You may search for those roots in many ways. A Christian might look for an ecstatic, evangelical relationship to Christianity, or you may say, "I am Welsh, and my ancestors were Pagans, and I would like to research that and create new ceremonies for that."
So a lot of the Pagan movement today, including a lot of the Wicca movement, is based on going back to our ancestors' traditions or creating them anew--since many of these traditions have been lost. It's an attempt to create a vibrant, juicy contemporary culture based on old sources, on what our ancestors were doing, or at least part of what they were doing, or at least a tiny slice of what they were doing thousands of years ago, but it's also an attempt to bring these traditions into contemporary reality, in ways that are in keeping with democracy and freedom.
Now that I've told you how wonderful these earth-centered traditions are, you may be wondering why I became a Unitarian Universalist. If the Pagan and Goddess traditions were giving me so much, why did I need an official religion, let alone a church! Goddess help us!
To be truthful about it, not everything comes from personal experience and revelation. There are times when gut and heart and intuition are not enough. Remember Freud's famous saying "Sometimes a cigar is only a cigar?" As I grow older, I realize I'm still very much a child of my skeptical, rationalist upbringing. I'm still very much a materialist. I believe the things of this world and this existence matter, that matter matters, and that the sacred resides in the here and now. I love the fact that Unitarian Universalists have a good many atheists and humanists among them. After all, it's important to have a reality check, to have people who will bring us down to earth and say, "Stop all this intuitive garbage and look at the reality: this is a ceiling, this is a table, this is a floor. And by the way, get out of that trance: look at that homeless guy lying in the street."
I guess I chose UUism because I need to live in balance. I can do all those wonderful, earth-centered spiritual things: sing under the stars, drum for hours, create moving ceremonies for the changes of seasons or the passage of time in the lives of men and women. But I also need to be a worldly, down-to-earth person in a complicated world--someone who believes oppression is real, that tragedies happen, that chaos happens, that not everything is for a purpose. Unitarian Universalism gives me a place to be at home with some of my closest friends: my doubts. Of course, there are many rationalists within the earth-centered community, but somehow I feel more centered in this denomination. And I think, in turn, the Pagan community has brought to UUism the joy of ceremony, and a lot of creative and artistic ability that will leave the denomination with a richer liturgy and a bit more juice and mystery.
Margot Adler, New York bureau chief for National Public Radio, chronicled the emergence of contemporary Paganism in her 1979 book Drawing Down the Moon. She is a priestess of Wicca, an elder in the Covenant of the Goddess, and a member of the board of advisers of the Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans.
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All material on this page copyright © 1996, Unitarian Universalist Association.
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Dr. Steve Friend, medical director of U.S. HealthWorks in West Sacramento, spends his days taking care of patients, and at the end of the day he heads home to perform care-taking of a different kind – tending to a farm of alpacas.
His wife, Michelle, is a veterinarian, and the two have been raising and breeding alpacas for about 14 years. Michelle has been treating alpacas exclusively for more than 18 years.
The Friend family owns a five-acre ranch in Granite Bay, California – a suburb of Sacramento – and is currently raising about 30 alpacas. Steve and Michelle have two young children, a son and a daughter, who help with the daily care for the alpacas, which includes feeding, watering, cleaning, sheering, vaccinations, dental care and general herd health maintenance.
Dr. Friend grew up on a farm, and he thinks it's important to instill the value of hard work in children at a young age.
Recently, a reporter with GoodDay Sacramento, the morning show for Sacramento's CBS affiliate, visited the Granite Bay alpaca family farm to interview Steve and Michelle about their farm. Steve's children were excited when the TV truck and TV cameras arrived at their farm.
"It's a lot of work, but very rewarding in many ways," Steve said. "It really is a blessing to be involved in the care of these amazing animals."
A few weeks ago, the family found a beautiful black cria (the term used for baby alpacas) by her mother's side in the pasture, and they have had two more baby alpacas born since then.
To learn more about the alpaca farm, you can visit their website: .


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Photos, stories and advice about Sosua and local Dominican women you can meet when you are here. Read the latest news in Sosua. If you love Dominican girls, this is the website to visit until you get back here. Dominican Republic women rule!
Well family orientated in the sense no one starves. the mindset that we all eat. Im sure 90% of this board would NOT care if their neighbor ate or didnt eat.. What you are talking about is single parent homes.I mean that is worldwide, not just DR... If you ever get the chance step out to the campo/barrio and see how they treat each other. Everyone is family and how many people do we know that would raise another persons kids forever? This is the norm down here.I call that family orientated.
@ TMBTS Reality check, without WIC,AFDC, FOOD STAMPS, SECTION 8 HOUSING, ALIMONY , State enforced Child Support done electronically nowadays, if Prostitution was LEGAL every major city in America would be like Sosua. In bigger cities women are already selling their ass on back page and out of strip clubs. Should not judge others unless in their shoes.
@ vpchill.....let me ask you question based upon u saying a typical comment from a gringo, what ethnicity are u?
You are right about that bro. But we can definitely judge, and we should. We have common sense, and we have JUDGEment to judge what is right and what isn't.I don't have to be in the shoes of a rapists to understand and judge that it is wrong to rape.Simple.