text:
Time square was evacuted around 6:30 pm on Saturday, May 1, 2010 due to what police discovered was a failed bombing attempt. There was a man reportedly Middle-Eastern in appearance running from the scene, but there is no name of a suspect available at this time. No injuries are reported at this time.
A firefighter saw a "flash", and smoke coming from what was described as an SUV, and a man running away.
Here is his quote from a Reuter's article @ Yahoo! News:
"Another New York City firefighter who said he arrived early on the scene described the vehicle as a dark-colored SUV, and said it was parked at the corner of 45th Street and Seventh Avenue. He confirmed the vehicle was smoking and also said he saw "a flash" from the back of the SUV. The firefighter said a "mini-explosion" occurred around 6:30 p.m." ~ NY Times Sq. Evacuated After Failed Car Bomb ~ Reuter's
Due to scheduled and historic protests today, some speculation in the blogosphere is addressing the issues of International Workers' Day (a labor holiday observed by Socialists, Communists, Marxists, Stalinists, and Anarchists worldwide), as well as being the day that Pro-Illegal Immigration Rallies were planned to occur in 70 cities (reportedly turnout for the latter was down compared to the protests in 2006). Reports of someone who is Middle-Eastern looking brings up the subject of Islamic Terrorism. Most people speculate that those may be the top 3 suspected sources for this attempted terrorist attack in the heart of The Big Apple.
Since the bomb was being detonated at 6:30 pm, it would have been targeted at the Matinee Crowd attending many top Broadway Shows in the area, and tourists.
NY Times Sq. evacuated after failed car bomb ~ Reuter's @ Yahoo! ~ May 1, 2010
Bomb Fears Shut Down Times Square ~ The Wall Street Journal ~ May 1 , 2010
THREADS WITH MORE COLLECTED INFORMATION AT FreeRepublic.com:
Times Square Block Shut Down [Bomb Squad Summoned] @ FR ~ May 1, 2010
NY Time Sq. Evacuated after failed car bomb @ FR ~ May 1, 2010


text:
So my new blog posting process is to compose fully in WLW (at least that works). Then copy/paste into the Blogger WYSIWYG editor. Using anything but Chromium. We'll see how that works.
So what I was trying to post is that these past two days have been filled with struggling against a series of random events during normal pc maintenance around the Valca home.
I spent several hours last night working on updating Lavie's Dell Inspiron laptop; mostly Windows updates and third-party browser updates. Then I went through her "Programs & Features" and worked though each of those seeing if they had updated versions. Many did. So I took care of those.
I discovered that while the WiFi was working normally again under Win 8.1, the "Dell Wireless WiFi + Bluetooth Driver" install package listed in "Programs and Features" was corrupted. I couldn't remove it. I wanted to be sure I had the installer package on hand in case a future Win 10 upgrade borked it again. Luckily I both found it - Dell Wireless 1703 WiFi+ Bluetooth Driver Driver Details – and was able to use it to do a repair/reinstall to get it on clean again under Win 8.1.
Of course, iTunes wanted to be updated, so I used the Apple Software Updater but it complained about the "iPod Service" not being able to start so the install kept failing. I then tried to download and run the iTunes package rather than using the updater but that failed at the same point.
I found this post Service 'iPod Service' (iPod Service) could not be installed... over in the Apple Support forums and followed "rickybpta" steps.
That did the trick and it went on without any other fuss.
- close SysInternals's Process Explorer ( if you have it and it's open )
- close all Task Manager(s)
- close Windows Services console ( services.msc )
- close all command prompts ( cmd.exe )
- open a cmd.exe as Admin
- run: sc create "iPod Service" binpath= "C:\Program Files\iPod\bin\iPodService.exe"
- close all command prompts ( cmd.exe )
- open Windows Services console ( services.msc )
- look for "iPod Service", see if it's not Disabled. If so, start it
- close Windows Services console ( services.msc )
- Run iTunes.msi again ( previously downloaded via the Apple Software Update's Only Download function )
While I was doing all this work Lavie's laptop seemed sluggish. In fact it has seemed that way to me for some time (Lavie shrugs) and I've been considering upgrading it to a SSD drive. I was monitoring the performance using System Explorer's process tree and Task Manager graphs but not really seeing any clues.
Then I opened up Resource Monitor and focused in on the file activity. I was shocked to see that the process that was doing all the file reads/writes was Classic Shell. To see if this could be responsible I closed out Classic Shell and the system sprang to life again. It seemed much more responsive and snappy again.
Lavie is going to see if the system seems better with Classic Shell after all the clean up work and then with it turned off before she considers letting me disable/remove it.
I've also followed this tip to add a semblance of a Start – All Programs list to the task bar. It's a great tip and one I like to do for our Win 8.1 tablet users.
However, I ran into a new round of issues on my workbench laptop this morning.
First off, VMware Workstation Player offered me an update to 12.1.0. Sure.
Only the installer failed and left me with an error that ""Service VMware Authorization failed (VMAuthdService") could not be installed. Verify that you have sufficient privileges to install system services."
I tried a few more times with no success.
I then downloaded the setup file directly from VMware and tried an install with the /clean switch but it said it couldn't find an installed version.
Checking the Windows Services found a series of VMware related services that were "present" but looked like they were marked for deletion.
I walked though this VMware KB: Cleaning up after an incomplete uninstallation on a Windows host KB but wasn't finding any remnants at all of the previously working installation. So it looked like it had been taken off ok.
So I just rebooted the system and indeed the VMware service items were gone. I tried the installer again with fingers crossed and the installer went on smoothly and the app ran again with no issues.
And no sooner had I completed that task than GlassWire wanted to update to a new version as well.
So I went though the download/install process and it seemed to go on OK, but when it opened up it could not reconnect to the Glasswire service.
When I checked the Windows Service for it again it also showed marked for deletion.
So I uninstalled Glasswire, rebooted reinstalled Glasswire but again it could not attach to the service.
I checked the service again. It was present and set to Automatic but stopped. When I clicked "start" the service launch crashed with an error I didn't capture.
Rinse-repeat-same result.
The updated Glasswire version 1.1.36b was doing fine on the upgrade process on Lavie's laptop and my other Win 7 x64 laptop so I'm not sure what was the issue here.
Next I found an even newer version 188.8.131.520b. Same issues.
Finally I found the original Glasswire version 1.1.32b on one of my duplicated (but not recently sync'ed) USB drives.
That installed fine. The Glasswire service started automatically, and the app reconnected with no issues. So I'm leaving it there for the moment on this system.
Claus Valca.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
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This is the Blog for William O. Beeman, Professor and Chair of Anthropology and specialist in Middle East Studies at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis-St. Paul Minnesota, formerly of Brown University. It includes current publications on Middle Eastern affairs, especially Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf region; anthropology; linguistics; performance; opera; things Japanese and Central Asian. Email: email@example.com


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1st Question asked about islam
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Posted: 09 May 2008 at 1:59pm
1. Definition of Polygamy
Now coming to the original question, why is a man allowed to have more than
2. The Qur'an is the only religious scripture in the world that says,
Many Hindu religious personalities, according to their scriptures, had multiple
In earlier times, Christian men were permitted as many wives as they wished,
Polygyny is permitted in Judaism. According to Talmudic law, Abraham had
(*Interesting Note:- As per the 1975 census of India Hindus are more
Let us now analyse why Islam allows a man to have more than one wife.
3. Qur'an permits limited polygyny
"Marry women of your choice, two, or three, or four; but if ye fear that
Before the Qur'an was revealed, there was no upper limit for polygyny and
In the same chapter i.e. Surah Nisa verse 129 says:
"Ye are never able to be fair and just as between women...."
Therefore polygyny is not a rule but an exception. Many people are under the
(i) 'Fard' i.e. compulsory or obligatory
4. Average life span of females is more than that of males
During wars, there are more men killed as compared to women. More men die
5. India has more male population than female due to female
6. World female population is more than male population
7. Restricting each and every man to have only one wife is not
Suppose my sister happens to be one of the unmarried women living in USA, or
8. Marring a married man preferable to becoming 'public property'
Thus the only two options before a woman who cannot find a husband is to
There are several other reasons, why Islam has permitted limited polygyny, but
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GOD's first intentions: man didn't listen.
Genesis 2
24 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
John 3
16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Senior Member
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Tariq has touched on a subject that is very important when it comes to understanding Islam. It is used to scare people specially woman here in the west if they are getting close to a Muslim man in relationship. " be careful, he is Muslim, they have many wives".
Tariq has done a good job.
Anyway that quote of yours does not say anything about having one or more wives. I can tell you that it was "a nothing out of ordinary practice among the O/T prophets and their people" as I have found proof of such in my own study of the Bible.
I will give some quotes from the Bible that prove my claim. I find the followiing quote to be very convincing that having more than one wife was a very ordinary practice then, and I find no place where its forbidden or even restricted to a certain number. And remember these were God's guided prophets who are quoted here.
1) Exodus 21:1 "These are the laws you are to set before them:........
10 If he (a man) marries another woman, he must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights.
That is exactly in line with the Islamic teachings.
And here are only some of the prophets and their many wives as recorded in the Bible. Remember that Christians honor them as well as name their kids after them (except those who were taken from the maidservant):
Genesis 35: 22.......Now the sons of Jacob were twelve: 23 the sons of Leah were Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun; 24 the sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin; 25 the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, were Dan and Naphtali; 26 and the sons of Zilpah, Leah's maidservant, were Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Padan Aram.
So, Jacob here is recorded to have Leah, Rachel, Bilhah, Zilpah.
So believer if we count, that is four wives!!!!
In Genesis 36:
1 Now this is the genealogy of Esau, who is Edom. 2 Esau took his wives from the daughters of Canaan: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite; Aholibamah the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; 3 and Basemath, Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajoth. 4 Now Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, and Basemath bore Reuel. 5 And Aholibamah bore Jeush, Jaalam, and Korah. These were the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.
I see three wives of Esau mentioned here. There are many many more examples, Abraham, David, Solomon and so on that did have many wives. And remember these were man of God, practiced what God approved and taught them to preach and practice.
Edited by honeto - 16 May 2008 at 6:55pm
39:64 Proclaim: Is it some one other than God that you order me to worship, O you ignorant ones?"
Ron Webb
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honeto, I'm not sure what you're trying to prove here. Judaism did indeed permit polygamy thousands of years ago, but it no longer does; and mainstream Christianity never did. Every Jew and every Christian knows this, and so does just about everyone else. Do you really think you can convince anyone otherwise just by citing a few polygamous patriarchs?
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what I did is to show refrances from the source that is claimed to be 'devine source' of those two believes (Christianity and Judaism). And that source does not teach against polygamy.
If now those people have made new rules that is fine with me. I am not arguing that.
believer have suggested that it was not a practice approved of God. I am a man of reason and I do my own homework on what I post. And according to my own studies those who are mentioned in this book (the Bible) practiced it as a normal way of life. The were teachers and Prophets who are followed and refrenced on other issues yet on this one you say, "no longer does".
If it was not for the man made laws, for example here in the US against ploygamy, many Christians of various sects (Mormons in particular) as well as other would have practiced it without making a fuss, and they do not say what you say.
If you put your trust in that book for guiding you into this life and you trust it enough to put your hereafter at risk, why is it that when it comes to matters like this you distance yourself from its teaching. Don't you have full belief and trust on this book and its teachings and practices??
Edited by honeto - 17 May 2008 at 9:21am
39:64 Proclaim: Is it some one other than God that you order me to worship, O you ignorant ones?"
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Could you please provide a source? I am interested. I would have thought that the reason we don't see much Jewish polygamy is because the Torah is not (at least not yet) the law of the Land (of
Edited by Servetus - 17 May 2008 at 11:07am
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I repeat: GOD's first intentions: man didn't listen.
Genesis 2
24 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
GOD did not will multiple wives but he did allow it. Big differance here.
1 Timothy 3
2Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
12A deacon must be the husband of but one wife and must manage his children and his household well.
Titus 1
6An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient.
John 3
16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Ron Webb
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Well, I don't know much about Judaism myself, but you can find out just about anything you want from Google.
Polygamy was banned for Ashkenazi Jews in the eleventh century by Rabbi Gershom ben Judah. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbenu_Gershom) Technically his ban extended only to Ashkenazi Jews (currently about 80% of all Jews); but most other Jews abide by it as well. For all practical purposes, polygamy is no longer permissible in Judaism.
The thing you need to understand about Judaism and (especially) Christianity is that they are living, progessive religions. Although the basic values, traditions and framework of belief are defined by scripture, the specifics are continually re-appraised and adapted to different times and places. There are certainly "fundamentalists" who resist change and insist on a literal interpretation of ancient scripture (and who may still cling to polygamy), but they are small minority.
In Islam, on the other hand, it seems to me that the fundamentalist viewpoint is mainstream, and progressives are the minority. Muhammad was the last prophet, the "door to ijtahad" is closed, and every detail of life was frozen for all time back in the seventh century.
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text:
This recipe was submitted by GKC friend and fan, Yael Seruya.
1 box Duncan Hines Yellow Cake Mix
1 cup flour
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons water, approximately
Filling Suggestions: Favorite Jams, poppy seed or prune filling (from can), chocolate morsels, white chocolate chunks, colored sugars, chocolate and rainbow sprinkles, marshmallows, chopped candy bars, gummy bears, candy hearts, or any other fun treat you dare to try!
Coat two cookie sheets with shortening or vegetable spray. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In large bowl, combine cake mix, flour, beaten eggs, and water until batter is well moistened, and holds together. If dough is dry and crumbly, add water a few drops at a time. (Hint: After starting with a fork, I used my hands to finish mixing and added one teaspoon more water.) On flour surface, roll out dough to one-eighth thickness. Cut circles with four inch round and/or two and one-half inch round cookie cutter or cup, to make both large and small hamantashen. Place circles on prepared cookies sheets and spoon fillings or candies in center of each. (Hint: the more you put in the center, the trickier it is to get folded corners to hold together during baking-but we do it anyway!)
Fold into triangles by pinching tops together first, then bottom. Make sure top corners of triangle lean inward over filling so they won't come apart during baking. If dough is dry, moisten hands with a few drops of water while working or spray dough sparingly with water mister. After folding, sprinkle edges with more toppings or chocolates, as desired.
Bake for 5-7 minutes, until slightly golden. Do not over bake. Smaller hamantaschen take less time. Remove from tray to cool.
Servings: 10 four-inch, and 17 two-and-one-half inch from one batch.
Serving Suggestions: Eat and share all day on Purim!


text:
|Neil Young, solo and soulful in Chicago
NEIL YOUNG: Neil Young, solo and soulful in Chicago (Toledo Blade, 5/11) He is 68 years old, but in overdrive. He introduces his corporate sponsor: water. And notes that the glass that holds it is brought to us by two other "great products" — fire and san
Neil Young, solo and soulful in Chicago
By Keith C. Burris, Columnist for the Blade, 5/11/14
CHICAGO — Neil Young walks onto the stage of the ancient, elaborate Chicago Theater with an easy, slouching gate. The crowd begins the night on its feet — instant standing O. Mr. Young nods, bows a bit from his waist, his hands folded like a yogi, and he claps a bit back at the audience.
He sits down in a circle of six acoustic guitars and one banjo. To his left is a grand piano; to his right an upright piano; elevated and to the back of the stage is a pipe organ. There is at least one harmonica. Mr. Young dips the harmonica in water and then flicks the water out before he plays — a trick he says he learned from the jazz musician Sonny Terry.
Also present is a cigar store Indian, there for all of Mr. Young's shows. He will pretend to consult with him at various points in the night.
No other musicians will appear on the stage.
Without greeting or ado at the April 22 show, he plunges in. He begins with "From Hank to Hendrix," as in Williams and Jimi. Mr. Young owns Hank's old guitar. He made his way to Woodstock with Jimi.
"From Hank to Hendrix, I walked these streets with you. Here I am with this old guitar, doing what I do." His eyes are shaded by a black fedora, and they are often shut, just as Marian Anderson and Billie Holiday closed their eyes to better disappear into the music. His legs sway spastically as he plays. He scowls and grimaces. In the most tender-hearted of Neil Young songs there is a hint of menace and in the hardest, toughest song, tenderness. He is always working so damn hard trying to find it. "It" being the sound, the payment to the muse, the feeling.
Ushers have warned us that the first three songs are a "hold" — if you get up to leave you will have to wait for song four to reclaim your seat. The artist has begun to paint. The priest is setting the altar.
In another song he sings: "Come a little bit closer. Hear what I have to say."
Mr. Young is loose and (for him) talkative this night. His voice is in exceptionally fine shape. He is 68 years old, but in overdrive. He introduces his corporate sponsor: water. And notes that the glass that holds it is brought to us by two other "great products" — fire and sand. He tells a story about one of his guitars (given to him by Stephen Stills): It has a bullet hole in it. And this segues somehow to a reimagined "Southern Man.""There came gem after gem. Less well known ones like "On the Way Home," and "Mellow My Mind," and the sublime "Philadelphia," which has never been recorded. There was a wonderful, weird song from the album "Freedom" called "Someday" — as well as the biggies like "Harvest," "After the Goldrush," and his masterpiece "Cortez The Killer."
His set list was a dream set for old Young hands. But the amazing thing is that he sang so many of his old songs as if for the first time, tinkering with keys and modulations, helping us, the listeners, hear them as new.
Mr. Young calls these concerts recitals. They are certainly not rock concerts. Bob Dylan once asked David Crosby: How does Neil do that?
He closed with "Heart of Gold" — a song written as a youthful anthem of aspiration which has now become an adult prayer.
People react differently to a Neil Young concert. Some women just scream. A few young men yell out incongruously during the concert: "Neil!," or "Love You Neil." He evokes this very personal response. I found myself audibly mumbling, "my gosh," or "wow," after almost every song — each delivered with such musical force and percussive power that, as my daughter once said to me, the experience is somehow symphonic.
Emmylou Harris once said Neil Young should have his own section in record stores: rock, folk, classical, jazz, blues, Neil Young.
By the end of the show, the ushers at the theater stood in the doorways, transfixed.
We all knew it was a special night.
Mr. Young himself seemed amazed at it all. At this concert, he actually thanked his audience, which I have never seen him do so expressly, saying, and then laughing: "Without you I am singing to an empty hall."
Why do we come?
I think it goes back, in a sense, to the man's work ethic — that snarl and grimace and attempt to dig to the essence of the music and the poem. "It." The heart of gold.
Also, I once read that Neil Young's dad said: "He sings in a way that twists my heart."
Keith C. Burris is a columnist for The Blade.http://www.toledoblade.com/Keith-Burris/2014/05/11/Neil-Young-solo-and-soulful-in-Chicago.html#7Jh7VJ3ApDfuMbgT.99


text:
An app guide to the best night out in London
London is a big city with a rich history, containing a population of more than 13 million people. I fell in love with it when I worked there as a motorcycle dispatch rider for more than 15 years, and it's a love affair that continues today.
Even though I haven't lived in London since the late '90s, I still know where to go on a big night out. But so do a lot of other people who don't have the same understanding of the city - all it takes is a smartphone with the right apps.
See also:The 20 Best Apps for a Big Night Out
This seems a betrayal of the city it took me years to learn, but one has to move with the times. While these apps won't necessarily find a word-of-mouth backstreet bar that is perfect to hit before a gig, they will give you a great experience when going out in London.
If you want an enjoyable afternoon before you go for a night out on the town, a handy tool is Gems of London, a $1 app that turns your mobile phone into a history lesson. Deliberately steering away from tourist regulars such as Buckingham Palace or Big Ben, this app burrows down back-alleys and even has a feature that depicts certain locations as they appeared centuries ago.
One of the best things about London is just walking around and letting things find you, so London's Best Coffee is a great $3 app if you find your energy fading. Comprehensive and continually updated, it features more than 150 independent coffee shops around the city.
After culture and coffee comes the preparation for the night out, and the first port of call is a restaurant. London used to be an awful place to eat out, but when Terence Conran opened the seminal Quaglino's restaurant in 1991, cuisine in the capital changed forever.
In the past 20 years, the city's food choices have been transformed, and keeping up with the latest restaurant opening is a challenge. One very popular local app is toptable, a UK guide to restaurants with a heavy slant on London. Toptable features the best restaurants, discounted prices and, most importantly, new places to eat.
Then there are personal social networks that operate from the phone itself, and are best accessed after eating (when you're ready to party). One popular and free app is Howl, which you can access from the contacts on your phone. It works on the wolf pack mentality - a "pack leader" checks into a bar then lets other members of the pack know where they are. A simple slide of the screen lets the leader know whether people are coming or not.
So, the crew is beginning to assemble and it's much too early to call a taxi - that comes later - so what about public transportation? One of the best things about London enjoying the sights from the top of a London bus.
One fabulous free app for this is Citymapper, which combines the city's extensive bus network with London's underground Tube system. Originally set up in London, it now covers Berlin and New York, and allows people to compare fare prices by travel option - but I recommend using the bus in London every time.
Then, it's the night out itself. A simple Google search of "London nightlife" will throw up umpteen suggestions for the visitor, but pay particular attention to the emerging app Lamppost. It's a nightlife and entertainment guide based on a user's location, which covers gigs, events and DJ nights.
Another more established app is London Nightlife, which compiles the best bars and clubs in the city. Songkick is a great London app that lists all gigs on a given night, and even helps you find where to buy tickets.
But the night is soon over and in this particular instance I have no regrets about the march of technology: I love taxi apps.
Apart from the obvious app suspects, the most popular London taxi app is by Addison Lee, a minicab service that I remember from my dispatch-riding days when its business was delivering only parcels, not people. If you're of the mind to follow your route home on your phone, the app does that as well.
If all else fails, just start your night off at Bradley's, a small Spanish bar just off the main concourse of Oxford Street in the West End. It has the best jukebox in London, and everyone and every night is different and beautiful.
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
This article originally appeared on Mashable .


text:
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Read More About Sandie


text:
The global Video Game Industry is expected to climb to $55.6 billion
by 2008 with more than $9 billion of that spending attributed to North
America. What was once seen as a niche market for a small demographic
is now the fastest growing sector in the entertainment industry.
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Online Games
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Aww, look at this! It feels like 2008.
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The best part is that the link goes to a CNET page.
Behold my works, ye mighty, and despair.
Behold my works, ye mighty, and despair.
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BUCHAREST, Romania – NATO's latest security worries go far beyond Taliban fighters or al-Qaida extremists: They include computer hackers, threats to global energy supplies and climate change profiteers.
World leaders gathered in Bucharest for this week's NATO summit are debating what role the trans-Atlantic alliance can play in containing "cyberterrorists," "hacktivists" and other emerging menaces that experts concede are untraditional, but still potentially lethal.
NATO needs to gear up for "iWar" — systematic attacks on the Web that could disrupt commerce worldwide by using crippling computer worms to shut down consumer online services such as Internet banking — warns Johnny Ryan, a researcher with the Institute of International and European Affairs.
"iWar will proliferate quickly and can be waged by anyone with an Internet connection," Ryan cautioned in an analysis for NATO.
"In the short term, iWar poses a gathering threat to NATO members," he said. "NATO must approach the problem as an immediate threat and strive to develop practical defensive cooperation."
NATO member Estonia suffered a series of paralyzing and economically devastating cybercrime attacks last year that it blamed on Russia, which has denied involvement.
The attacks "raise questions about the alliance's ability to protect its newest members," said Stanley Kober, a research fellow at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.
Securing vulnerable energy infrastructure may be an even more pressing concern, NATO officials said Wednesday as the summit got under way.
NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer has been pushing for a new "strategic concept" that would define the alliance's role in dealing with the threat.
"Many of these challenges will not trigger a classical military response. But they will require allies to support each other — politically, economically, and perhaps also militarily," de Hoop Scheffer told a security forum in Brussels, Belgium, last month.
His spokesman, James Appathurai, told reporters Wednesday that the 26 NATO allies hoped this week to lay the groundwork for a new blueprint on how to tackle evolving security challenges.
Energy has also become a worry for NATO as Russia tightens control of its most important natural gas fields. Gazprom, Russia's state-controlled energy monopoly, controls key pipelines that supply gas to Western Europe.
The U.S. is prodding NATO to take a larger role in energy security — something Washington considers a major post-Cold War menace.
"I think there's an increasing recognition in the United States that these are growing issues," said Stephen Larrabee, a senior security analyst for the RAND Corp. think tank.
Climate change — already a major concern on a wide range of fronts — is starting to preoccupy NATO as well.
De Hoop Scheffer says the alliance may have to be ready to protect food and water supplies if global warming makes them scarce and tensions create enough economic or political instability to nudge nations to the brink of war.
EU foreign affairs chief Javier Solana gave a bleak assessment in a March 3 report warning that climate change threatens to undermine international security.
"It is important to recognize that the risks are not just of a humanitarian nature — they also include political and security risks that directly affect European interests," the report says, warning: "Unmitigated climate change … will lead to unprecedented security scenarios."
But any attempt to push the new threats to the forefront likely will run into resistance from allies pressing NATO to get back to basics, said Julianne Smith, Europe program director for the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
"Many countries would like to see NATO return to its core mission," she said. "I just find it hard to believe that NATO is going to be able to reach consensus on any of these issues."
NATO's core function is defined in its 1949 founding treaty, which states that all members will come to each others' aid if any are attacked by an outside power.


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Magento modules
by, 07-19-2014 at 03:43 AM (17314 Views)
Magento is always highly appreciated and known as the best choice to develop an ecommerce site at the global scale together with perfect customer care and support solutions which are attentively provided by 100% experts possess professional skills. Our assistance services include installation, upgrade development and consultancy in accordance with your demands and preferences. Magento can be used to develop online stores with high levels of features and functionalities catering to the needs of all kinds of stores from niche online stores to mega stores. Most of these features are powered by diversity Magento modules that ease development process and allow developers to achieve functionalities.
Magento has a huge community that provides more than 30 extensions that give your store extra functionality. All of Magento extensions which have been developed in accordance with Magento standards and can be installed even on highly customized stores are impressive with high quality and get the e-business customers satisfaction. These Magento extensions are compatible with the latest Magento versions as we keep updating all our products regularly. Browse through the variety of Magento extensions, read in-depth descriptions about their features and functionality and the reviews that fellow customers have written. When you are convinced that a product is right for you, simply buy it and download it from your customer account. Thus, Magento saves you so much time and effort on the technology side of things that you might want to reconsider your priorities.
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Content management: Cms Pro, Easy Blocks, Layout editor, etc.
Free extension group
magento one step checkout | one step checkout magento | magento abandoned cart extension | magento store credit | magento abandoned cart


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Product 1/40
A crocheted African Violet never needs watering, never dies, and is always in bloom. It's the perfect thing to brighten up your office desk, or to give as an unusual and thoughtful gift. Everyone appreciates a bit of colour, especially in the middle of winter!
African Violets is an original crochet pattern by June Gilbank.
Pattern includes full instructions to mix and match your own lifesize crocheted African Violets. With two plant sizes, two pot sizes, and two flower patterns, you can create your own custom violets in your favourite shades.
Yarn: worsted weight yarn in several colours - this pattern is a great way to use up your scrap yarn!
Hook: US E / 3.5mm
Large violet approx 5.5" (14cm) wide by 4.5" (11.5cm) tall (including pot)
Small violet approx 4.5" (11.5cm) wide by 4" (10cm) tall (including pot)
All reviews are entered into a monthly draw to win a pattern of your choice! More information and past winners


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flight patterns.
karen white.
Publisher NAL.
Publication Date: May 24,2016
Genre: Southern Fiction|Suspense.
Format|Pages: Hardcover|416.
Source: Goodreads|Library.
Georgia Chambers has spent her life sifting through other people's pasts while trying to forget her own. But then her work as an expert of fine china—especially of Limoges—requires her to return to the one place she swore she'd never revisit...
It's been thirteen years since Georgia left her family home on the coast of Florida, and nothing much has changed, except that there are fewer oysters and more tourists. She finds solace seeing her grandfather still toiling away in the apiary where she spent much of her childhood, but encountering her estranged mother and sister leaves her rattled.
Seeing them after all this time makes Georgia realize that something has been missing—and unless she finds a way to heal these rifts, she will forever be living vicariously through other people's remnants. To embrace her own life—mistakes and all—she will have to find the courage to confront the ghosts of her past and the secrets she was forced to keep...
Engrossing, beautifully written story. A story that will pull you in from beginning to the end, and you find yourself unable to put it down till the end.
I have been a fan of KAREN WHITE for few years now and there haven't been a book of hers that I didn't fall in love with. White has a way that will suck you into the story when you read the first sentence, after that you might want make sure that you have a lot free time on your hands. Last night I ended reading till 1:00am due to how addictive it was, one chapter turned into five more. Out of all her books that I have read through the years, FLIGHT PATTERNS has been one of my favorites, at least so far . It was a bit different then her previous novels but I fell in love with story, the characters fast. There was this feeling that I was there along with Georgia, Maisy, Birdie, James, Becky and Lyle. Those characters became like my friends and I know that they are fictional, and at first they were and while I read the story, they became real. I tend to get attached to characters that I read about. What I loved about this novel, was the mystery behind it, those are my most favorite type of novels. That will keep you turning the pages, eager to see what will be discovered.
FLIGHT PATTERNS was unlike other book I read, at least in story sense. Plus the descriptions, the images I would get while I was reading the book, it was beautiful. While reading it, there were part of me that I felt that I was there and once I finished reading the book, I wished that I was there. Afterwards I couldn't seem to get out of my mind, I wanted to go there even if it was fictional. Besides I love small towns, I lived in one before. The feud between Maisy and Georgia and their relationship seemed more of love hate relationship and of course I wondered the reason behind it. Once the truth came out, I wonder if things could possibly go back to way they were, if Maisy could ever forgive her and they could go back to being sisters. I was happy to see that at the end they seemed to work out things and at least try to get back to way that the things were.
James, I am not sure what it was about him. You know how you come across that one character that you can't help but love? James was one of those characters for me. He also seemed to bring the best in Georgia and she in him. The two of them had a connection, even if she refused to acknowledge it. Georgia did what she always did when she faced a situation that scared her, she ran away, or at least tried to. I wanted to talk some sense into her, James is what she needed and what he needed, especially after what happened. Georgia was one of positive things in his life. I hoped that she would come to sense and not run away like she ran away from everything else. As you can probably guess, I was happy with how things turned out between James and Georgia, I couldn't help but smile.
FLIGHT PATTERNS a beautiful story about family, friendships, second chances, forgiveness, and love. A story that will stay with me. Now I am excited to see what KAREN WHITE has in store next.


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Professional Community for Car Dealers, Marketing, Advertising and Sales Leaders
Written By: Rebecca Chernek
AutoNation USA, the #1 publicly-owned automotive retailer, opened its doors as a mega "one pricing" pre-owned operation in 1997. It built elaborate showrooms; county records show one was 218,000 square feet. The showrooms included a café, a playroom and an aftermarket display platform.
Kiosks with computers were placed throughout the store enabling consumers to efficiently check out in-stock inventory or to submit a loan application. Customers were…Continue
Added by Garry House on March 26, 2013 at 7:00am — No Comments
If you haven't already done so, it's that time to review your 2012 performance in detail. In what areas did you fall short of your goals and why? Where could you have generated greater gains and how? Don't allow January to slip by without these facts in writing and a discussion of how you can best move forward in 2013.
A common F&I pay plan in the automotive industry is known as the grid. It compensates managers based on their per vehicle retail performance and products sold…Continue
Added by Garry House on February 1, 2013 at 12:50pm — 1 Comment
© 2020 Created by Ralph Paglia. Powered by


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FAQ | Mailing List | Email | 888.464.1875
Ken, Just wondering if you have any updates on those Ranger Canteens you were testing??
Sadly, I do not. I know my buddy that owns the company was working through the process to get the military to buy them and also for a US factory. They are still available at rangercanteen.com in their current form. I like mine a heckuva lot.
I tried ordering 2, no luck.
Yep...you are exactly correct. I tried to do the same thing. I'll get into contact with my buddy ASAP to find out what the problem is. Stand by...I will get answers.
Just got in touch with my buddy that makes the canteens. He is currently in the process of getting all production moved to Tampa, Florida. It's going to take about 60 days to get everything up and running again. Once things are US based and rolling, he is going to launch a brand new website, along with availability to purchase...which will become USA made models. I also let him know that many folks would like to see a 1.5 quart model, as well. He apologized for the inconvenience to potential customers, and isn't sure why the current website won't allow purchase of existing stock. At any rate, it is probably best to get USA made models, once available. I'll post up as soon as I catch wind that the new website is ready.
Yes....they are the same.
Any pictures? Since their site has been in maintenance mode for a while...
Here are some images I pulled from a Google search.
WHAT!?! I first saw a canteen like this back in Feb 2002 while in cold weather survival training and have been looking for one ever since! Wow, it's about time someone makes these. I've even asked Nalgene to consider making an Oasis with a wide mouth.
Do these fit in the HPG canteen holders? My assumption is yes, but confirmation would be good.
I just recently got an update from my buddy that owns the Ranger Canteen company. He just finished sorting out a deal for a US company to manufacturer them.....all 100% USA made. He should be up and running in a month. He plans to do an initial run of 2000 canteens. I hit him up about eventually producing a 1.5 quart version, which would have the same shape as the 1 quart, but maybe a wee bit taller. If all goes well with his initial run, he'll likely get those made. I am fairly certain he will sell out that initial 2000 pretty quick, because there has been quite a bit of interest in them here on the Forum, as well as folks I've run into while carrying them. Hang in there, folks! I'll make sure to get word out about them as soon as I know he is ready for orders.


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Best Gorillaz Workout Songs
PaceDJ lets you use iTunes and Amazon to create the perfect Gorillaz workout playlist. The PaceDJ exercise app can automatically select music by Gorillaz that matches just the right beats per minute (BPM) for your workout, ensuring you find the best Gorillaz workout songs for your pace. All you need is to add music to your library or playlist, start moving, and let PaceDJ do the rest!


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« Obama's Preschool Pitch: Vague, But Welcomed | Main | Intense Debate Continues On Federal Role in Preschool »
With Obama Bid to Expand Preschool, Expert Weighs In on Research
When President Obama said during Tuesday's State of the Union address that an investment of "one dollar in high-quality early education can save more than seven dollars later on," he was likely citing some of the research of James J. Heckman. A Nobel laureate in economics, Heckman has studied early childhood and is closely tied to the notion of high-quality preschool as an investment in the most disadvantaged youngsters that pays off in reduced crime, better health, better job prospects, and other societal benefits.
So he is understandably pleased that early-childhood programs are now getting a strong push from the White House, though the details remain fuzzy. In an interview, Heckman shared his thoughts about the benefits of preschool for the neediest youngsters, the importance of high-quality programs, concerns about studies that indicate that the academic effects of these programs "fade out," and where the federal government should go next.
On concerns that long-term studies of preschool effectiveness have been focused on small, "boutique" and hard-to-replicate programs such as Perry Preschool in Michigan and Abecedarian Project in North Carolina: Heckman said that the small size of the samples in those studies actually would tend to make any effects small. But in these studies, the effects of early interventions were large and apparent. "I think the hints are that going to scale is wise, if we can do it well."
On the importance and definition of "high-quality:" Heckman said that low-quality programs have been shown to have neutral or even harmful effects on a young child's development. Some quality indicators are having well-trained educators working with small adult-child ratios--sometimes no more than six 3- to 4-year-olds per adult.
On the costs of the programs: Heckman said, "You can talk about the costs, but I'm an economist—it's costly to build a Hoover dam, it's costly to build a road, it's costly to do research on building a more fuel-efficient automobile. The question is, how much is the return?" He added that the costs are not high "in terms of the opportunity costs of not doing the program."
On Head Start "fade out:" Heckman said that some Head Start programs are likely not providing the kind of high-quality care that is best for the most disadvantaged kids. But he also notes that Head Start studies are likely measuring children who attended Head Start with children who attended another preschool or daycare program. Those control group children "didn't sit in isolation, they went to other programs." And those programs might have been better than or just as good as the local Head Start provider. He added that a Head Start model is not the only way to think of high-quality early-childhood education, nor should early-childhood experts think that they need to recreate a Perry Preschool-type program on a larger scale. It's a good example of one type of program, "but they're not the end of our thinking."
Heckman mentioned the Harlem Children's Zone, which integrates social and educational services, as one approach to early-childhood intervention that may be promising.
On the likelihood of passage: Heckman said that he's no politician. Yet, he said that some money the government currently spends could be redirected (he held up the $1.6 billion JobCorps program as one where the return on investment is "zero.")
"We know we're in a stringent time with budgets," Heckman said. "But we can still ask, 'How do we spend the money we're spending?' " That critical assessment has been lost, he said. "The real question is if we can afford not to do this if we think about the welfare of the country in the next 10 or 15 years."
Early Years is on Twitter! Follow @EarlyYearsEW.


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Babywise: Lessons from the delivery room
I had my baby last week. I'm tired. But not too tired to recognize management issues during labor. There were three management styles among the people in the delivery room:
1. The micromanager
That was me, ordering my husband around, even when the contractions were so strong that I couldn't stand up. I'm sure he wanted to tell me to shut up, but no sane man snaps at his wife when she's in labor.
One of the more harsh insurance company rules is that when you're in labor you have to call to get permission to go to the hospital. So my husband started dialing the phone. I said, "You are not going to be on the phone when I'm having the baby. Put down the phone."
My husband said we wouldn't be covered and we would have the most expensive baby in New York City.
But no one at the insurance company was answering the phone, so I started troubleshooting: "Dial zero... ignore the phone tree options... say you're a doctor."
My husband said, "I think I can handle calling the insurance company. You just worry about the baby."
At some point I stopped harassing my husband, not by choice, but because the contractions were too strong.
2. The coach
About half way through labor I asked for an epidural. At that point, I was in severe pain. For those of you who have not had an epidural, it's a totally magic infusion of drugs that numbs the body from the insane pain of pregnancy without knocking you out. The epidural is not small peanuts. It's a shot into the spine. I had to sit very still, while coping with sharp pains, and I had to sign a form that acknowledged the risk of death.
Meanwhile, I was at a teaching hospital, so the attending physician (read: real doctor) was coaching the resident (read: still-learning-to-be-a-doctor doctor). Behind my back, literally, I heard the attending using the Socratic method: "How much are you going to use?" and "Why would you go up there when you already found a spot down here?" This coaching is not what you want to hear when it's your spine, but I see how it's preferable to say, me screaming at my husband about how to navigate a phone tree. And, frankly, the attending did a fine job because the pain ended.
3. The trusting, encouraging manager
When it's time to actually push the baby out, the doctor finally comes in, ready to go. The doctor and nurse together were watching what looked to be about six machines simultaneously. And they were watching me, and the baby, whose head was visible by now. The doctor was definitely in charge, but she almost never gave orders. There was a clear and strong trust between the doctor and nurse that each person knew what the other was doing and that they were each doing a fine job. There was a calmness and efficiency that I wish I had in my life.
Which is what made me think, initially, about management. When I saw the doctor and nurse trusting each other, I trusted them. I didn't trust the resident, but the attending was so respectful of the resident that I trusted that the attending would guide the resident to do a good job.
And then there was me, micromanaging. In hindsight I see that managing someone so closely that they want to strangle you is in fact sign of weakness; because either you're meddling where you needn't, or you're surrounded by incompetence. In either case, it's a statement about yourself. Competent people are not surrounded by incompetence. Rather, incompetence attracts incompetence.
I think about that and I think, "Of course my husband can function without me meddling. He's smart and capable." And this is how we should feel about people we work with, too. Or we should wonder why we're attracting incompetence. There is never one crazy person in a marriage, and there's never one crazy worker in an office or company.
My excuse was that I was in labor. But you probably don't have such a good excuse. So if you don't trust the people you work with, ask yourself why. You need to either trust them to do their job or trust them to improve with respectful coaching. If you can't do either, then adjust their job so that they will succeed. Or else you will not succeed.
Side note: It's a boy. We're thrilled.


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The worst thing is that another economic shock could take us back to the brinkby George Magnus / September 10, 2018 / Leave a comment
This coming Saturday, 15th September, marks the 10th anniversary of the day Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy. It was a seminal moment that I remember well. The build-up to and speculation about the Lehman crisis had been going on for some time. I recall walking around the main fixed income (or bond) trading floor the previous Friday—normally a boisterous and noisy place—but this time, you could hear a pin drop, such was the tension and the angst on the floor. I have other personal reflections, as an economist, partially successful soothsayer, and now also one of many trying to figure how we got into the mess we are in today.
At the time of the crisis, I was a senior economic adviser at the investment bank UBS, having been Chief Economist until 2006. Though I have made many errors of economic judgment in my career, the extra research freedom allowed me to spot the oncoming financial crisis in late 2006. US home prices had peaked in July that year, and the consequent unravelling effects on the real estate market, financial institutions, and the banking industry's loan, funding and collateral structure were rapid and remarkable.
By the beginning of 2007, some discussion was growing around a so-called Minsky Moment. This was named after the US economist Hyman Minsky, who figured rarely if ever in university economics syllabuses, but whose principal teaching was about the recurrent causes of financial instability. Minsky taught that leverage accumulates in "good times," culminating in a third and final phase when borrowers are dependent on new loans to amortise and service debt. Once the main asset(s) on which the leverage depends rolls over, chaos ensues. For Minksy, systemic financial crises were endogenous to (but not only to) capitalism. To mitigate or avoid them requires rethinking the role of banks in society and what we prioritise in the economy, for example jobs, investment, and income inequality.
I emphasise Minsky to underline that it isn't true that no one saw the crisis coming. I know people who were working at the time in the IMF and Bank for International Settlements who were on the case. Some economists who you may know such as Paul McCulley, Raghuram Rajan, Nouriel Roubini and Steve Keen were also prescient in their warnings, as well as several major…


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Your Choice of Auto Junkyards in San Mateo, CA
Sell your car to an auto junkyard in San Mateo California by browsing the below list and contacting them. This is an updated list of auto salvage yards nearby to make it easy for you when selling your junk car for cash in San Mateo. Feel free to browse the list and contact them, or give us a call to get the best service and price in the industry.
Auto Junkyards in San Mateo, CA Near You Current Listings
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We have opened the ICONS_L mailing list for discussing issues related to the International Conservation Networking System (ICONS), a relational database management system in support of networking on biodiversity and conservation issues, and for information management by indigenous and community-based organizations.
ICONS provides basic structures for the management of bibliographies, organizational and expertise directories, projects and events, laws, geographic areas, species information, Internet resources, indigenous and local communities, data custodians, acronyms and topical discussions and definitions in an encyclopedia. The software also provides a number of look-up tables that can be used to provide authoritative information in the other databases.
This list is intended to serve the community of people and organizations using the ICONS software by providing technical support, and to encourage others to help us improve the software through critical evaluation and positive suggestions. The list can also be used for
introductions and notices about similar community-based projects, and to propose ways in which the ICONS Project might create partnerships with these efforts. Because the ICONS Project works with local and indigenous communities and involves data sharing, it raises issues about computer standards, intellectual property law and ethical guidelines for information exchange. These issues also have a place on this list.
We will use the questions posed to this list to construct a set of frequently asked questions (FAQ), which we will make available on the
ICONS Web site (http://www.iucn.org/icons). Over time, this can provide a knowledge base for answering many of the technical and data exchange issues for ICONS.
The ICONS software is available for free download for non-profit and Educational activities at:
To subscribe to the ICONS_L mailing list, send the following request to
subscribe Icons_L or join Icons_L
If you ever need to leave the list, send the following request to
unsubscribe Icons_L or leave Icons_L
We hope you find the list useful, and we look forward to your active participation!


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Brandon Lloyd hasn't signed with a team after being cut by the Patriots this past offseason, although he's had at least six suitors. Instead of returning to the NFL, though, Lloyd's taken up acting, and his debut looks fantastic.
Daniel Baldwin—they couldn't get Stephen, I guess—stars in After Effect, and Lloyd plays the role of Sgt. Chuck Lloyd. The clip features Lloyd doing sergeant-like things while looking for something. You can really get a feel for the film in that 50-second clip.
The film's synopsis, per IMDB:
When college students sign up for what seems a simple paid research study, they soon realize their lives are in danger. Unfortunately they've unknowingly volunteered their bodies as human collateral in an ongoing U.S. Military experiment.
Zombies? Probably zombies.
After Effect comes out Oct. 8, in case you find yourself in the deep end of the Netflix horror category.


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A BJP legislator in Rajasthan wants the state government to prohibit private schools from making girls wear skirts as uniform, citing it as the reason behind increased cases of sexual harassment.
Banwari Lal Singhal, in his letter to the chief secretary, demanded that girl students be made to wear salwar suits or shirts and trousers as uniform to reduce chances of their being subjected to lewd comments or harassment.
Singhal is a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator from Alwar city constituency, around 150 km from here.
"Girls either walk to school or wait for school buses at various points in Alwar. That is when they face lewd comments from mischievous elements," Singhal said.
He argued that most private schools in the city had skirts as part of the uniform.
"It should be prohibited keeping in view the rise of social crimes against women. The school should have pant-shirts or salwar suits as uniforms for girl students," Singhal said in the letter.
He said the proposed school uniform would save the students from extreme weather conditions too.


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NETGEAR for
802.11n, 4-port, Desktop
Move with ease knowing your wireless laptops and mobile devices will now stay connected even in the far corners of your home. Boost your WiFi coverage and bring WiFi connectivity to wired devices like Smart TVs or game consoles.
N300 WiFi Range Extender boosts your existing WiFi home coverage and allows you to connect up to 4 wired devices like Smart TVs, gaming consoles to your wireless network. It works with any standard router or gateway and enables a better WiFi connection for laptops, home theater devices, smartphones and more.
Improve the range of your existing N300 WiFi network.
Connect up to 4 wired devices like Blu-ray® players, game consoles, smart TVs or streaming players to your WiFi network.
Easy installation using any web browser on laptops, PCs or tablets. No CD required.
† Data throughput, signal range, and wireless coverage per sq. ft. are not guaranteed and may vary due to differences in operating environments of wireless networks, including without limitation building materials and wireless interference. Specifications are subject to change without notice.
1 Works with devices supporting Wi-Fi Protected Setup® (WPS).
The product may not be compatible with routers or gateways with firmware that has been altered, is based on open source programs, or is non-standard or outdated.
ATTENTION: Due to EU law, the country settings must be identical to the country where the device is operating (important due to non-harmonised frequencies in the EU).
For indoor use only. Valid for sale in all EU member states, EFTA states, and Switzerland.
This product is backed by a NETGEAR limited 2-year Hardware Warranty.
24/7 basic technical support provided for 90 days from purchase date, when purchased from a NETGEAR authorized reseller.
Mobile devices like smartphones and tablets give you more freedom to rove around the house. So boost your WiFi range to keep a strong, steady network connection.
Kick up your older 802.11 b/g/n router with more range for more connected devices. Compatible with all previous WiFi standards.
How strong is your WiFi signal? Use the NETGEAR WiFi Analytics app to get advanced analytics to optimize your existing or newly extended WiFi network. Check your network status, WiFi signal strength, identify crowded WiFi channels and much more!


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Dent May: Do Things
A simple and warm sequence that isn't diverse or memorable enough to really matter in the long run.
Dent May
Do ThingsLabel: Paw Tracks
US Release Date: 2012-05-12
UK Release Date: 2012-06-11
Artist Website
If you listen to enough music, you'll realize that certain albums convey certain atmospheres and settings. For example, Agalloch's The Mantle is the best auditory representation of winter I've ever heard. Dent May's newest release, Do Things, is also a fine example of this. With its dream-pop foundation, warm harmonies, and feel good vibe, it's a nice album to welcome in summer (albeit a bit early). While it's not memorable enough to deserve residency in your collection, it's quite enjoyable while it lasts.
Sometimes credited as Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele, the Mississippi native cites Prince, Serge Gainsbourg, and Lee Hazlewood as vocal influences. During his high school years, he performed synth pop with the Rockwells, and after a brief stint at NYU's film school, he formed a country-rock outfit, Cowboy Baloney's Electric City. His debut solo album, The Good Feeling Music of Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele, earned him significant attention within the indie community. With Do Things, May mixes the beloved influences of 1960s California pop with DIY production. The end result is a superficial slice of musical sunshine that, unfortunately, doesn't contain anything special enough to carry longevity.
The album starts off with the delightful "Rent Money", which combines the optimistic harmonies of Phideaux's "Rainboy" and the danceable funk of Bing Ji Ling. While the composition is relatively simple -- he basically piles synths, guitars, and vocals over a drum track -- it's still pretty impressive that May performs everything himself. "Fun" is a bit more exciting and varied thanks to its more vibrant timbres, and "Tell Her" feels like a beginner's take on the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds with Gruff Rhys singing.
"Best Friends", which has been released as a single, carries the same catchy color as most of the Flaming Lips' records. May's vocal range is especially impressive on "Don't Wait"; his falsetto layers sound great. "Parents" is one of the more experimental tracks on Do Things, as May uses some odd effects and manipulation, and "Find Out" features a cascade of childlike sounds that combine into endearing melodies. The album closes with "Home Groan", which is arguably the albums most direct and fully realized song. May sings about a common theme in the indie music industry: the nostalgia of home towns and the disapproval of new locations.
Although there is a lot to like on Do Things, there is one major flaw: it all sounds so much alike. Granted, May is a one-man band with few instruments and only so much ability to brings his ideas to fruition, but the fact still remains that there's a level of sameness to it all, and May seems content to follow largely the same formula throughout the record. One could argue that this helps give Do Things heightened cohesion, but really, it's just a lack of diversity, plain and simple.
Do Things is a pleasant enough experience while it plays, but it's quite forgettable overall. Again, May accomplishes a lot by himself, but art is judged primarily on the end result, not the ambition and process behind its creation. He definitely has talent and a relatively unique style (even though comparisons can run rampant), and if he works hard at making sure each track offers something truly different, his next release will be something worth talking about.


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About 6 weeks ago we had a fire scare. It involved a kiln, some mistakes made, an angry son, and a near-miss. Thankfully, all was well after that scare, but it shook Spencer up quite a bit. It was just a silly mistake, but it could have cost our home or some lives. We were immediately sure that we had been blessed because we paid our tithing (it's interesting what the Holy Ghost can tell you); and my dad said that the kiln-turn-off angels' names are probably Bessie and Layne.
This week I had put some beans on the stove to simmer so we could have taco soup for dinner. I didn't think anything of it, since Bri was home. Briana ended up running out the door for a work shift without thinking about the beans. But it was OK because Ashtyn was home (sick again). Ashie, however, fell asleep (it's what sick people do). The next thing she knew, Bella was licking her face (a BIG no-no) and would not stop, even when she tried to push her away. Bella was coughing like crazy. When Ash finally woke up enough to really get after Bella, she realized that the house was FULL of smoke. Not a single one of the 8 smoke detectors in our house went off. But when she ran upstairs, from the top of the stairs she could not see our kitchen table, about 5 feet away, the smoke was so thick. When she got to the stove, the pan was flaming. She was able to turn off the stove, get the lid on the stove, and get the house opened up; but it scared her more than anything else in her life. It scared me terribly, too, when I think what might have happened to Ashtyn if Bella had not been there.
And now our house smells like one huge ashtray.
If we had lost the house and/or the other stuff in the house it would have been sad and tragic. But if we had lost Ashtyn we would never get over it.
So we are in the midst of disaster recovery. We're cleaning all surfaces in sight. The laundry is literally a mountain.
I came to work the next day and hung up my coat on 2LL, then went up to 8. When I came back downstairs, the office smelled like a campfire--so sorry! I was telling Mike (one of my wonderful managers, and the group manager over plumbing and mechanical services) what had happened, and he said, "They make charcoal filters to help get the smell out. Let me see if I can locate a residential filter." He came back out and said he'd been talking to Kim (the mechanical shop lead), who said, "Why don't we find her an ozone machine?" So Kim called the vendor, who said, "Come pick it up. She can take it home for the weekend." Kim asked how much it would cost, and the vendor said, "I trust you. If you trust her, then there is no charge." So Mike sent one of the men to the vendor to pick up an ozone machine for us to use.
We locked Bells out of the house and took off ourselves for several hours while we ran the ozone machine. It helped immensely. That, along with more cleaning and some baking of goodies made it so Ashie felt like she could have her friends over for their Sweethearts pity party. Some can smell smoke instantly (one of Ash's friends came in and said, "Ashtyn, no offense, but your house smells like a casino") and others think we're just cooking something.
A couple of thoughts:
1. Who is going to take care of me when I leave 2LL? (Yes, there were tears of gratitude.)
2. How many strikes do you get with fire scares? Three, and you're out?
Good news is that Landon has left the "fire drawer" (where we keep matches, lighters, and candles) COMPLETELY alone since our first scare. Better news is that everyone is safe.
And--in spite of still needing to replace flooring in the bathroom--Bella has redeemed herself!
Monday, February 15, 2010
Guardian Angels on Overtime
About 6 weeks ago we had a fire scare. It involved a kiln, some mistakes made, an angry son, and a near-miss. Thankfully, all was well after that scare, but it shook Spencer up quite a bit. It was just a silly mistake, but it could have cost our home or some lives. We were immediately sure that we had been blessed because we paid our tithing (it's interesting what the Holy Ghost can tell you); and my dad said that the kiln-turn-off angels' names are probably Bessie and Layne.
Posted by wjmom at 9:18 AM
Labels: fire scare, guardian angels
5 comments:
- Amy said...
I love Mike. And Kim. And whoever that vendor was. And whoever picked it up. And Ashtyn for being calm enough to not let your house burn down! (I probably would've just run away....she's amazing.) So glad everything is OK.
As for fire chances...I'm pretty sure the rule is that if you pay your fire insurance/tithing, you're good to go. You can be rescued 70 x 7, right?
- February 15, 2010 at 11:04 AM
- Coles Fam said...
Oh my gosh, how scary. How wonderful is Ashtyn?! I would have been freaking out and not thinking, especially after just waking up. I'm glad everything turned out ok and that everyone was safe.
- February 15, 2010 at 7:39 PM
- Ann said...
Oh i'm so glad you're okay!
- February 16, 2010 at 8:35 PM
- Jacqueline said...
I just want you to know that the night after I read your blog...I had a dream that MY house caught on fire!!! AHHH. It was pretty scary so I can only imagine how Ash felt. And you!! I'm glad that everything is okay!!
- February 17, 2010 at 12:56 PM
- Amy said...
I turned on your blog to listen to the tunes and Ricky Martin was the first up on the shuffle. Once again you have me laughing out loud and it's only 9:42am! :D
I love you.
- February 18, 2010 at 8:42 AM


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As a writer, it is my opinion that how authors view the film adaptation of their own work is irrelevant and inconsequential to the quality of the adaptation itself. For example, whether Stephen King appreciates Stanley Kubrick's The Shining fundamentally does not make it a lesser film. This is the central question presented in John Lee Hancock's Saving Mr. Banks.
The story recounts Author P.L. Travers (Mary Poppins), writer of Mary Poppins, reluctantly meeting with Walt Disney (Tom Hanks), who seeks to adapt her book for the big screen. As they are collaborating on the film adaptation, Travers reflects on her childhood growing up in Australia with her father (Colin Farrell), revealing her own personal attachments to the Mary Poppins story.
Emma Thompson breathes a great inner life into P.L. Travers, humanizing a role that is greatly restrained and otherwise very unlikable. Tom Hanks, combining his star persona and natural ease, gives us a living and breathing Walt Disney. Hanks makes everything look so easy. Colin Farrell turns an affecting performance as Travers' chronic alcoholic father Travers Goff, and also props to Annie Rose Buckley as the young P.L. Travers. The heart of the story lies in the flashback segments, as we see P.L. Travers' past with his father in Australia and it shows that P.L. Travers essentially wrote Mary Poppins as wish fulfillment.
Director John Lee Hancock balances the material perfectly. Even though I fundamentally disagree with Travers' persnickety demand of complete faithfulness, I empathize deeply with why she was so overprotective of her own material. It makes for much of the laughs as we watch the gloom Travers single-handedly killing all the child-like enthusiasm of the staff at Disney.
It is probably best to see Mary Poppins first to get a more wholesome experience, as seeing the numerous classic scenes and songs that Travers could have prevented from ever being created gives a whole other level of tension. Also, stay for the credits for a surprise easter egg.
Despite probably being overshadowed in terms of awards recognition, Saving Mr. Banks is a very enjoyable experience. Audience will find laughs and tears, as it is a well-made feel good movie.


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What a difference half a century makes. When, in 1958, Shelagh Delaney's debut play, A Taste of Honey, was first staged (at Stratford East, by Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop), it was as if its bold portrait of working-class lives in Manchester had burst, insolently, into the drawing room of a Terence Rattigan drama. Now its kitchen sink naturalism could almost be a comfortable companion piece to a play such as The Winslow Boy. Like a once-rebellious teenager, Delaney's opus has, over time, lost both its teeth and its agility.
The past five decades have ushered in gentler attitudes towards many of the play's themes, such as mixed race relations, pregnancy outside of marriage and homosexuality. So, how does one re-energise Delaney's piece for the 21st century? The Lyceum is a very British repertory theatre, so there is no question of director Tony Cownie opting for a radical, continental resetting (the Schauspiel Frankfurt's transportation of Tennessee Williams's The Glass Menagerie to a working class living room in the Seventies stays in the memory). All he can do is tweak the emotional volume on the play's characters.
In the case of the love-hate relationship between Jo, the older-than-her-years teenager (played by Rebecca Ryan of Channel Four's Shameless fame), and her boozy, man-hunting mother Helen (Lucy Black in an outrageous blonde wig), the result is a lighter tone than one might expect. This certainly allows for a greater degree of subtlety, not least in the characterisation of the negligent Helen.
However, what this feisty theatrical pas de deux gains in nuance, it loses in bleak savagery. There are similarly subtle performances from Adrian Decosta (as the young, black sailor who, unknowingly, leaves Jo pregnant) and Charlie Ryan (whose unerringly decent Geoffrey steers gratifyingly away from camp caricature). There is precious little scope for such delicacy in the case of Peter (Helen's libidinous, alcoholic "fancy man"), and so Keith Fleming goes the whole demonic hog, with vile and hilarious consequences.
Although it is finely acted and well designed (in Janet Bird's part-naturalistic, part-impressionistic revolving set), one can't help but feel that this production is hamstrung by a combination of the passage of time and a very British insistence on faithfulness to the text. Consequently, like the play's disappointed survivors, the audience gets only a taste of what it craves.
Until Feb 9. Details: lyceum.org.uk


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Top leaders agree on posts ahead of China congress
BEIJING (AP) — China's top leaders circulated a list of future government officeholders who will be appointed at the annual legislative session that starts next week and completes a once-a-decade leadership transition in the world's most populous nation.
A draft of an administrative reform plan to be discussed at next week's National People's Congress session was also distributed at Thursday's meeting of the ruling Communist Party's Central Committee, which includes the country's top 200 officials.
March's annual NPC meeting — the highlight of China's political calendar — will see new Communist Party leader Xi Jinping appointed as state president for the first of an expected two five-year terms.
Others to be appointed next week include the head of the NPC and its advisory body, the head of the supreme court and top prosecutor, and government ministers, including those responsible for overseeing fiscal policy and commerce. Urbanization, emission cuts and improved public services are also expected to be among the themes of the session.
"We should deeply promote the separation between government administration and corporation management and build a government with a nature of service that is ... highly effective and loved by people," said a communique issued at the close of the Central Committee meeting chaired by Xi, who rose to the party's top spot at its national congress in November.
While the NPC session is largely an afterthought to the party congress, observers have been closely scrutinizing it for indications that Xi plans to lead China in a new direction. So far, there have been few such signs, with the 59-year-old career party official hewing to his predecessors' stance of promoting rapid economic development while maintaining rigid one-party political control.
China's top leaders are almost all drawn from among the most experienced and politically reliable of the party's more than 82 million members. While NPC members are allowed to vote to approve leading appointments, they are given a choice of candidates and no open hearings are held.
China credits its system with maintaining order and economic growth, although liberal scholars and civic activists say slowing growth and increasing anti-government protests may make the system untenable. Government expenditure on domestic security already outstrips the national defense budget, and huge swathes of restive western China that are home to the Tibetan and Uighur minorities are under lockdown.


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When I pulled into the small parking lot adjacent to the marsh, the first thing that struck me was the absence of other vehicles.
When I pulled into the small parking lot adjacent to the marsh, the first thing that struck me was the absence of other vehicles. It was only 5 a.m., but it was the first week in January � the peak of the waterfowl season � and a time when there would normally be hunters climbing into their chest waders, shouldering bags of decoys and gathering other gear needed for a day of duck hunting.
But, this morning it was quiet except for the rustling of reeds along the canals and the distant honking of tundra swans that had spent the night rafted up on the Pamlico River. There was a reason it was still, however. A cold front had moved down from the northern plains a few days before, bringing a few inches of snow and temperatures in the teens. Most folks assumed that nearly all quiet water in the area, including the shallow impoundment where I was headed, had frozen solid. It�s a known fact that ducks and geese like cold weather. But it�s also a given that they like their water to be liquid and when it�s not, they tend to pack up and move farther south. So, while I was out and about on what would probably be a classic wild goose chase, other hunters were snuggling farther down in their bed covers. As it turned out, I made a good choice.
After sliding an aluminum canoe down to the impoundment (an easy task on the coating of snow), I discovered that the shallow pond was frozen over but only with a thin skim of ice. By pushing the boat ahead of me, I was able to clear a path to the far side of one of the nearest ponds and then rock the craft around and around until there was open water about one-fourth the area of a basketball court. Then, I tossed out a couple of dozen decoys and hid in the bushes. As first light came, so did the ducks. Gadwall, widgeon, pintails and even a few late-migrating teal came swooping down as singles and small flocks. They had not moved out yet and were apparently overjoyed to see my little �pond� in the frozen impoundment. Even with my questionable shooting skills, I managed to bag a limit of six ducks by 7:30 a.m. and spent another hour just sitting and watching others sail over the marsh and into the decoys.
The most significant thing about that day involved where I was hunting. It was not, as might be imagined, a private, high-dollar gun club that most of us can only visit in our dreams or on the pages of a magazine. It was public land and was accessible to anyone with a state hunting license, a federal duck stamp and a $5 permit issued by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC). It was a state-maintained waterfowl impoundment located on part of the Wildlife Commission�s Game Lands system.
North Carolina has over 2 million acres of wildlife habitat that is managed by the NCWRC and is, with a few restrictions, open to hunting by the public. Funded at least in part by the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, these tracts vary in size from 528,000-acre Nantahala National Forest in the mountainous west to the 100 acres in Onslow County that make up the White Oak River Impoundment Game Land. They consist of all kinds of terrain but the habitat that is of greatest interest to some hunters is the wetlands that are managed specifically for ducks, geese, swans and other waterfowl.
The NCWRC�s Game Land system offers waterfowl hunting on a number of sites but there are 19 where a special-use permit is required. Most of those are impoundments, shallow ponds where shelter and food attract migrating waterfowl and provide year-round habitat for native species such as wood ducks. Others are in areas such as the Currituck National Wildlife Refuge and Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge. Special rules apply there. In the latter, for example, the Wildlife Commission issues a limited number of permits but the refuge controls access, sets hunting guidelines and enforces regulations. A few game lands have impoundments where special permits are not required. Some are the Catfish Lake Impoundment in Croatan National Forest, Gull Rock Impoundments in Hyde County and on Holly Shelter Game Land in Pender County.
The best duck and goose hunting on the game lands, however, is at the permit-only sites. In fact, some of those are among the most productive waterfowl hunting areas in the state, public or private. In order to obtain a permit, sportsmen need to apply. A logical starting point is to log onto the NCWRC web site (www.ncwildlife.org), click on the �Hunting� tab and then download the Permit Hunting Opportunities booklet on the right side of the page. It explains where permit hunting opportunities for all species exist, how to apply and other information. Applications can then be made online, by phone at 888-248-6834, or by visiting a Wildlife Service Agent. The NCWRC began accepting applications on Sept. 1 and the deadline for most permits is Oct. 1
Hunters should be aware that there are a few changes related to hunting on the NCWRC�s waterfowl impoundments this year. One is that no applications will be accepted for the Rhodes Pond Game Land. Problems with the dam require that the pond be drained so repairs can be made. Also, in response to suggestions from waterfowl hunters, the Wildlife Commission has created a system of blinds on the North River, J. Morgan Futch and Spring Creek impoundments. Floating blinds have been constructed and are being installed. The blinds, which accommodate up to three hunters and feature a dog porch, will be located in areas typically used by hunters in the past. While the application process for these three impoundments will remain the same, applicants must select a specific blind in their hunt choices.
According to Tommy Hughes, NCWRC Coastal EcoRegion Supervisor, the blinds will be an asset to hunters. �It will eliminate folks being too close to one another and keep hunters from feeling like they have to be at the site by 4 a.m.� He pointed out that having the established blind sites will reduce disturbance before sunrise so waterfowl won�t be flushed from the area before hunting times. �This should benefit hunters as well as waterfowl,� Hughes said.
The sportsmen of North Carolina are fortunate to have dedicated professionals like Tommy Hughes working to protect and enhance wildlife habitat in their state. Hopefully they appreciate the fact that they are members of one of the best waterfowl hunting clubs in North America.


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Much More Work To Be Done
Now that the 40 year reign of terror has apparently ended with the death of the despotic Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, and the hope of the world is for a fair and democratically led free Libya for these long suffering people, one can only dream that such a fate is soon visited on another well known leader of death,..... Sir Robert Mugabe. That the long suffering people of Zimbabwe will soon be able to overthrow this megalomaniac and return their country to what was long considered the "breadbasket of Africa".
Hopefully the likes of the United Nations to the Royal Family of Great Britain and even our disgraced former Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, will think twice before ever endorsing such evil again and referring to these tyrants as statesmen?
Godspeed and let's all remember (in prayer if you like) the many thousands of freedom loving Libyans and Zimbabweans who have made and continue to make the ultimate sacrifice for freedom, democracy and justice in their lands and never take for granted what we have inherited here.
Friday, October 21, 2011
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I'm getting to be a big boy...
Jake is about 50 pounds now at 6 months...and is finally getting a little less "mouthy," which is good because I was getting tired of playing the part of tasty drumstick.
Right now I'm working on getting my paperwork together to take the licensure exam for clinical social work here in Tennessee. I think if you can figure out their paperwork, you should automatically pass the test. Getting my graduate school paperwork together made more sense. Nothing like red tape to chap your ass. My job is not what I thought it would be--at least not yet, but I'm not going to jabber about that here...maybe later when things are more in order there.
But back to Jake...he is so different from our other dogs. He is a fearless goof...and always chomping on poor Pepper's neck, who eventually has enough and reads him the riot act in capital letters. Two minutes later, it starts all over again. But he's getting less wild and more lovable now--thank goodness. You can see a bond when he looks at you now, rather than "man, your arms and ankles look mighty tasty!!" I know we'll look back when he's a lazy old man and miss his craziness, but sheesh, I'm hoping all of our beautiful woodwork isn't gone by then.
Going from two dogs to three dogs is like going from two dogs to 10 dogs...it's complete chaos in the house unless they are asleep. Monster puppy is bounding through the house chasing poor Yuki and Peanut, Pepper is barking because Jake won't respect her space, and Petey just gets fed up with Jake landing on him because he's such a goofy clutz. If Petey and Pepper start barking at the same time, they'll team up on Jake (which doesn't phase him in the slightest) and if Jake starts running after the cats, they all decide to run after the cats. It's getting better, but good Lord...sometimes I shove bones in their mouths to get 5 minutes of peace. Oh, and forget watching TV...they can be silent all day and do nothing but wrestle and fight for the 1 hour of programming you've waited on all week--like True Blood. Thank God for DVRs.
With all that said, you'd think I'd be ready to give them away, but I wouldn't change a thing. Woof!


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Canes Agree to Terms with Alexander Seminby Terrell Williams / Carolina Hurricanes
"We have done a lot of research about Alexander, and discussions about his fit with our team have included people at many different levels of our organization, including players, coaches and staff," said Rutherford. "What's been clear throughout this process was his commitment to wanting to play in the NHL, and compete against the world's best players.
"Alexander's elite skill level and ability to score from the wing fill an important need on the ice, and we hope that a fresh start in Carolina will serve both Alexander and our team well."
Semin, 28, completed his seventh NHL season in 2011-12, ranking second among Washington Capitals skaters in goals (21), assists (33) and points (54), and tied for fourth in plus/minus (+9). The Krasnoyarsk, Russia, native earned three goals and one assist (4 points) in 14 Stanley Cup playoff games for the Capitals, as Washington topped Boston in the first round before falling to the New York Rangers in seven games. Following the playoffs, he joined Russia at the 2012 IIHF World Championship, tallying five points (2g, 3a) in three games, including two goals and one assist during Russia's gold-medal game victory.
"I'm very happy to be a Carolina Hurricane," said Semin. "It's a great fit for me. I look forward to playing with great players, and putting together a winning season."
Selected by Washington in the first round, 13th overall, of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, Semin (6'2", 209 lbs.) has totaled 197 goals, 211 assists (408 points) and 450 penalty minutes in 469 career regular-season games with the Capitals. He is one of 18 NHL players to have averaged 30 goals or more per year over the last six seasons, with 187 total goals in that period of time. Semin netted his 197th career goal on April 5 against Florida, moving into fifth place on Washington's all-time goal-scoring list. He has a career plus/minus rating of plus-65, and his plus-92 rating over the last four seasons ranks fifth among all NHL players.
Semin has represented Russia in nine major international competitions, including the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. He helped Russia capture gold medals at the 2008 and 2012 IIHF World Championships, and also won medals at the 2002 U-18 World Junior Championship (silver), 2005 IIHF World Championship (bronze) and 2010 IIHF World Championship (silver). Semin's career statistics are below.


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Sefton Primary Care Trust has sent thousands of staff records to four organisations it is refusing to name.
Staff details including dates of birth, national insurance numbers, pensions and salary details were sent accidentally to four separate organisations. Sefton PCT will not name the four companies, which were bidding for work with the trust, because of "commercial confidentiality". The four companies were bidding for work within Sefton's Sexual Health Department.
Dr Leigh Griffin, chief executive of Sefton PCT, has written to all staff apologising for the gaffe. More from the BBC here.
Union Unite is calling for an investigation and recommending members change their passwords and check all bank accounts.
Unite's national officer for health, Kevin Coyne, said: "This is a clear breach of the data protection law and if it was an accident, an inquiry must be launched into how and why such sensitive information was passed on to so many external organisations."
Dr Griffin said in a statement: "I am treating this incident extremely seriously and I am confident that we have acted swiftly to protect our staff.
We have had assurances from all the organisations who were wrongly sent the information that it was promptly destroyed."
Griffin sadi the information did not include any financial information.®


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DAWs are fundamentally linear systems that obey time. You have music, it goes from 0:00 to 3:50 or something. You have a movie, it goes from 0:00 to 1:50:00 or something. In those projects you have one big session you're working on. You edit the dialog, location sound, foley, mix all together, until everything fits the picture perfectly. All feeds into one linear timeline from 0:00 to X:XX.
- But I wonder how people work who do the individual sound effects for those movies. People who create Sci-Fi sound libraries like this one http://www.asoundeffect.com/sound-libra ... e-weapons/
- Or people who do specific sound effects for a movie and deliver them to the guy who lays them out in a scene. Like different laser guns in a big fight scene for a Star Wars movie.
- Or in games, where there's no linear time at all and all is just individual sound effects triggered at the right time based on the player's actions.
- Having all files in one big session, then you end up with a huge session whose sound effects are largely not related. You need to create a group for every sound effect to have control of the overall sound and EQ. Thus you end up with dozens and dozens if not hundreds of tracks and groups, making overview a huge mess.
- Categorizing sound effects and putting all fire magic sounds in one session, wind magic sounds in another session, and enemies in a third session and working like that. Still, depending on the amount of effects, overview is a mess. Exporting is a hassle, you end up with many tracks because you need to tweak individual layers of one particular sound effect anyway, so you have one track for each layer of one sound.
- I've tried one session per sound effect but then it's hard to quickly profit from sounds you already did. Many wind magic sounds should sound like being from the same class, so you end up sharing specific elements between each other. But now that you have one project file per sound effect, you have to have dozens of projects open and jump between them.
I'd think it would be great if there was a workflow mode to get rid of the singular linear timeline for sound effects and have one project with individual elements, or folders. Each of those elements is a sound effect that can have multiple tracks, each with its individual effects, EQs, plugins.
Because I was thinking this problem is NOT specific to game sound. It's also everybody working on sound effects libraries, and everybody creating sounds for films who's not mixing the whole session but really creating the sounds, ending up with hundreds of sound effects in the end.
Is anybody of you working in this fashion, how do you cope with this? Do you have one big session, smaller sessions with multiple sounds, or does each sound has an individual session file? How do you work?