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Education in the Media
Senate ESEA Draft Bill Would Scrap Adequate Yearly ProgressOctober 11, 2011
The accountability system at the heart of the No Child Left Behind Act would be completely reinvented under a draft reauthorization proposal released today by U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
The measure, which is already being decried by civil rights groups as a giant step backwards when it comes to accountability for poor and minority children, would scrap the 10-year-old law's signature yardstick, known as Adequate Yearly Progress or AYP. Instead, states would have to ensure that all students are making "continuous improvement" in student outcomes.
There would be no specific achievement targets, either for entire groups of students, or for particular subgroups, such as minority students, English-language learners, or students with disabilities. In the vast majority of cases, states would decide how—and whether—to intervene in schools.
The long-awaited bill also would:
- Codify the Race to Top, Investing in Innovation, and Promise Neighborhood programs, all top Obama administration reform initiatives.
- Require states to set college- and career-readiness standards, either with other states or alone.
- Largely keep the law's testing system in place, but eliminate the 2013-14 deadline for bringing all students to proficiency in math and reading.
- Require states to develop new teacher evaluation systems.
States also would be required to identify the 5 percent of lowest-performing high schools, as well as elementary and middle schools. There would be more intensive interventions for those schools, as well as for so-called "dropout factories"—high schools with graduation rates below 60 percent.
'Compromises' Made
Sen. Harkin said he would have liked to have had achievement targets in the bill, but scrapped them in part to keep the measure bipartisan. He has been negotiating on the measure with Sen. Michael B. Enzi, the top GOP lawmaker on the committee, for months.
"That was one of the compromises," Sen. Harkin told reporters today. He said the moment is right for a move away from achievement targets in part because nearly all states have signed onto the Common Core State Standards Initiative, which were developed by the Council of Chief State Schools Officers and the National Governors Association. That means that all states will be striving to hit a high bar, he said.
Sen. Harkin also said he was comfortable with leaving achievement targets out of the bill in part because CCSSO has committed to adopt "performance goals" in their statement of principles for next-generation accountability systems.
"There's a subtle shift here," Sen. Harkin. "We are moving into a partnership role with the states." Sen. Harkin said the strength of the bill was that it "focuses on teaching and learning, not testing and sanctioning."
The legislation comes less than a month after the Obama administration released a package of waivers to give states flexibility under the current NCLB law if they are willing to embrace certain reform priorities. The administration said the waiver package was put in place in part because Congress could not reach agreement on reauthorization.
Sen. Harkin said the proposed legislation would work better than waivers, because all states would have the same expectations, rather than being offered flexibility on a case-by-case basis.
Accountability Changes
The draft would keep in place the law's requirement that states continue to report information on specific subgroups of students. And the law's testing schedule for reading and math—grades 3 through 8 and once in high school—would remain the same.
But the draft would permit states to use either one comprehensive test at the end of the year, or interim assessments to measure progress. That would be a shift from current law, under which states generally use just one test each for reading and math.
States also would have to identify the 5 percent of schools with the biggest achievement gaps between subgroup students and other students, and develop a plan for addressing the problem. Districts with achievement gap schools that aren't able to close their gaps would lose the ability to get a leg-up in federal funding competitions.
Schools identified in the bottom 5 percent would be subject to intensive interventions similar to the four options spelled out it in the regulations for the School Improvement Grant program. But there would be some changes and some additional options. For instance, under the strategy known as "turnaround" schools could keep 65 percent of their teachers on the job (right now, it's 50 percent). And under the "restart" option, a school could choose to convert to a charter school or become a magnet school.
Schools also would be permitted to employ a "whole school" turnaround. They would have to partner with an organization that has a proven track record of success, as demonstrated by rigorous research, according to a committee aide.
Teacher Evaluations
The legislation also would direct states to develop teacher and principal evaluation systems based on multiple factors, including student achievement and classroom observations.
Evaluations would not need to incorporate "value-added" testing, but states would need to have at least four levels of ratings.
Schools would have to use the evaluations to inform professional development, but not necessarily to help make personnel decisions. That would be a shift from the administration's waiver package, which specifies that evaluations have to be used for personnel purposes, although the waiver guidance is silent about whether that would specifically entail hiring, firing, and pay bonuses.
Sen. Enzi continues to work with Sen. Harkin and is expecting a bipartisan markup of the ESEA language on Oct. 18. It was unclear, however, whether other Senate GOP lawmakers will vote for the proposal.
A separate ESEA reauthorization bill introduced by Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., would let teacher evaluations be a state and local decision. The National Education Association, a 3.2 million member union, praised that move in a letter sent to Sen. Alexander's office.
Behind the scenes, some Republicans were quick to dismiss the legislation.
"The only reason anyone other than Enzi would support the bill is to get it out of committee and on the floor and away from [Sen.] Tom Harkin," said a senior Republican aide. "Every little itch has been scratched on the Democratic side of the aisle. ... This bill is worse than NCLB. It's different and it's worse."
The Republican aide criticized language in the proposal would require states to strive for "continuous improvement in student progress" for all schools in the state. States would have to submit their accountability plans to the U.S. Secretary of Education. Those plans would have to address both achievement-gap schools and the lowest-performing schools.
That would "essentially keep the federal model, 'We're in charge of all your schools,'" the aide said. "They shouldn't have to send their goals and plans to Washington to get them approved by [civil rights organizations] and [Secretary of Education] Arne Duncan."
The aide added that the Harkin bill would no longer require schools to offer public choice or tutoring, which would mean "getting rid of the only sanctions [under current law] that work."
Civil Rights Groups Concerned
Civil rights advocates are also unhappy with the legislation.
"Clearly NCLB was a kind of high-water mark as far as accountability [for all students]. ... I think we're moving in the reverse direction," said Raul Gonzalez, the director of legislative affairs for the National Council of La Raza, which advocates for students of Hispanic descent and English-language learners. Without strong accountability, "we'll have two education systems, one for poor and minority kids" and one for others.
And one civil rights advocate said that children in subgroups—such as ELLs and students with disabilities—would actually be better off under the administration's waiver package, which calls for more specific actions on the part of states when it comes to closing the achievement gap.
But the measure won good early reviews from some senior committee members. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., helped draft language that would create a comprehensive literacy program, as well as sections of the bill that deal with career pathways for high-school students.
"This legislation builds on what is working in our schools, and it gives states and districts the tools and flexibility they need to offer every student the opportunity to get the education and skills they need to fill the jobs of the 21st century," she said in a statement.
Sen. Murray is planning push for amendments that would improve data collection for at-risk populations, as well as language that would retool provisions for early-childhood education and homeless students.
Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., considered the administration's closest ally on K-12 issues, helped put in place language that would require districts to take teachers' salaries into account when determining Title I allocations for high-poverty schools. He's planning to offer amendments to give states the option of revamping their teacher-education programs, and to help prepare turnaround principles, among others.
And Secretary Duncan gave the draft an early thumbs-up.
"A bipartisan bill will not have everything that everyone wants, but it must build on our common interests: high standards; flexibility for states, school districts and schools; and a more focused federal role that promotes equity, accountability and reform," he said in a statement. "This bill is a very positive step toward a reauthorization that will provide our students and teachers with the support they need, and I salute Senators Harkin and Enzi for their good work and their bipartisan approach."


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…an excellent video from Tom Woods, the author of Meltdown, explaining the depression of 1920 and how the federal government's hands off approach led to a quick rebound. A must watch, with some explanation of the Austrian school of economics.
I agree with Joe, a great presentation by a very good speaker – well worth the time to watch. I will note, however, that I do not necessarily agree with the Misses Institute that a return to "hard money" (the gold standard) is necessary or appropriate.
October 10, 2009 9:37 AM by Thomas E. Woods (49 minutes):

subset: commoncrawl


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kidzsearch.com > wiki Explore:web images videos games
Mathematics, sometimes shortened to maths (in England, Australia, New Zealand and France) or math (in the United States, Canada and Germany) is the study of numbers, shapes and patterns. Mathematicians are people who learn about and discover such things in mathematics. Mathematics is useful for solving problems that occur in the real world, so many people besides mathematicians study and use mathematics. Today, mathematics is needed in many jobs. Business, science, engineering, and construction need some knowledge of mathematics.
Mathematicians solve problems by using logic. Mathematicians often use deduction. Deduction is a special way of thinking to discover and prove new truths using old truths. To a mathematician, the reason something is true is just as important as the fact that it is true. Using deduction is what makes mathematical thinking different from other kinds of thinking.
Mathematics includes the study of:
- Numbers (example 3+6=9)
- Structure: how things are organized.
- Place: where things are and their arrangement.
- Change: how things become different over time.
Mathematics often uses logic, paper, and a calculator. These things are used to create general rules, which are an important part of mathematics. These rules leave out information that is not important so that a single rule can cover many situations. By finding general rules, mathematics solves many problems at the same time.
A proof gives a reason why a rule in mathematics is correct. This is done by using certain other rules that everyone agrees are correct, which are called axioms. A rule that has a proof is sometimes called a theorem. Experts in mathematics perform research to create new theorems. Sometimes experts find an idea that they think is a theorem but can not find a proof for it. That idea is called a conjecture until they find a proof.
Sometimes, mathematics finds and studies rules or ideas in the real world that we don't understand yet. Often in mathematics, ideas and rules are chosen because they are considered simple or beautiful. On the other hand, sometimes these ideas and rules are found in the real world after they are studied in mathematics; this has happened many times in the past. In general, studying the rules and ideas of mathematics can help us understand the world better.
Mathematics has the following main branches.
- Arithmetic
- Algebra
- Geometry
- Trigonometry
- Calculus
- Statistics
- Mathematics includes the study of number, or quantity.
[math]1, 2, 3, \ldots[/math] [math] \ldots, -1, 0, 1, \ldots[/math] [math]\frac{1}{2}, \frac{2}{3}, 0.125,\ldots[/math] [math]\pi, e, \sqrt{2},\ldots[/math] [math] 1+i, 2e^{i\pi/3},\ldots [/math] Natural numbers Integers Rational numbers Real numbers Complex numbers [math]0, 1, \ldots, \omega, \omega + 1, \ldots, 2\omega, \ldots[/math] [math]\aleph_0, \aleph_1, \ldots[/math] [math]+,-,\times,\div[/math] [math] \gt ,\ge, =, \le, \lt [/math] [math]f(x) = \sqrt x[/math] Ordinal numbers Cardinal numbers Arithmetic operations Arithmetic relations Functions
- Some areas of mathematics study the structure that an object has.
- Some areas of mathematics study the shapes of things.
- Some areas of mathematics study the way things change.
Applied mathematics
- Applied mathematics uses mathematics to solve problems of other areas such as engineering, physics, and computing.
- Numerical analysis – Optimization – Probability theory – Statistics – Mathematical finance – Game theory – Mathematical physics – Fluid dynamics - computational algorithms
Famous theorems
These theorems have interested mathematicians and people who are not mathematicians.
- Pythagorean theorem – Fermat's last theorem – Goldbach's conjecture – Twin Prime Conjecture – Gödel's incompleteness theorems – Poincaré conjecture – Cantor's diagonal argument – Four color theorem – Zorn's lemma – Euler's Identity – Church-Turing thesis
These are theorems and conjectures that have greatly changed mathematics.
- Riemann hypothesis – Continuum hypothesis – P Versus NP – Pythagorean theorem – Central limit theorem – Fundamental theorem of calculus – Fundamental theorem of algebra – Fundamental theorem of arithmetic – Fundamental theorem of projective geometry – classification theorems of surfaces – Gauss-Bonnet theorem – Fermat's last theorem
Foundations and methods
Progress in understanding the nature of mathematics also influences the way mathematicians study their subject.
- Philosophy of mathematics – Mathematical intuitionism – Mathematical constructivism – Foundations of mathematics – Set theory – Symbolic logic – Model theory – Category theory – Logic – Reverse Mathematics – Table of mathematical symbols
History and the world of mathematicians
Mathematics in history, and the history of mathematics.
- History of mathematics – Timeline of mathematics – Mathematicians – Fields medal – Abel Prize – Millennium Prize Problems (Clay Math Prize) – International Mathematical Union – Mathematics competitions – Lateral thinking – Maths and gender
The word "mathematics" comes from the Greek word "μάθημα" (máthema). The Greek word "μάθημα" means "science, knowledge, or learning".
Often, the word "mathematics" is made shorter into maths (in British English) or math (in American English). The short words math or maths are often used for arithmetic, geometry or simple algebra by young students and their schools.
Awards in mathematics
There is no Nobel prize in mathematics. Mathematicians can receive the Abel prize and the Fields Medal for important works.
The Clay Mathematics Institute has said it will give one million dollars to anyone who solves one of the Millennium Prize Problems
Mathematical tools
- Tools that are used to do mathematics or find answers to mathematics problems.
- Abacus
- Order of Operations Calculator
- Napier's bones, slide rule
- Ruler and Compass
- Mental calculation


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'Project Origin' (PS3/X360/PC) - 8 New Screens
by Rainier on Dec. 21, 2007 @ 10:01 p.m. PST | Filed under News
Project Origin continues F.E.A.R.'s supernatural suspense story of an escalating paranormal crisis that threatens to destroy a major American city. Alma, whose rage against those who wronged her triggered a chain of events that have spiraled completely out of control, now has free reign, and the consequences will be unimaginable.


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Justin Timberlake
TKO (Black Friday Remix)
Overige artiesten:
J. Cole
A$AP Rocky
Pusha T
I don't understand it, tell me how could you be so low?
(And all in thrilling, new, living sound)
Dammit babe (Dammit babe)
Blood thicker than water, right
Fuck bitches, they all alike
Stand up nigga, not the falling type
Heart blacker than the Harlem Nights til I met you,
They say the devil wear Prada but I doubt it cause the Lord did bless you
Damn look at that body
Short bus shorty, cause you sure is special Cole to the rescue,
Never save a ho
Hoes like to hide their behavior though
Thought you was a down ass bitch
'Til I found that shit a couple days ago, I was home alone
Next thing I know that long ass verse from a song called "Control" was on
The room got nearer, the tune got clearer
That's when I seen the shit playing on your phone
Girl, what is that a ringtone?
Shit, not you too
Man the hype done got you too
Everybody and their momma gassed
Even my momma asked what I'mma do
Decisions, decisions
In case this is war, then I load up on all ammunition
If a nigga want problems, my trigger's on auto
I'll make sure that nobody miss him
Now pack up your shit, you don't believe in me
I don't need you, I got me, bitch
Same nigga moved to NYC, bitch
Got a record deal and a college degree, bitch
Two gold plaques, I produced all the tracks
And I never ever ever lean on Jay-Z, bitch
And after all that achievement
Real nigga never even went and got his teeth fixed
Now you try to play me, bitch?
You try to fuckin' play me? I ought to knock your ass out
I don't understand it, tell me how could you be so low, deo
TKO, you've been swinging after the bell and after all of the whistle blows
Tried to go below the belt, through my chest, perfect hit to the dome
And dammit babe (Dammit babe)
Dammit babe (Dammit babe)
Dammit babe (Dammit babe)
All hail Pretty Flacko, bitch, celebrate it
Had the game on lock, streets serenaded
Now you lame mothafuckas lookin' devastated
Bet you niggas wish you never hated, that's the devil ain't it
Fuck that shit, he rich, fuck that shit, he this, fuck that shit, he that
He black, he don't like blacks, fuck that shit, he wack
Fuck that shit he raps, fuck that shit he spits, fuck that bitch
Fuck that bitch he with, finished talking shit
Get up off my dick
The narcissists synonymous with comments from the blogs about
Menages with the gossips and the bosses, fuck surprises
I'm monogamous and not to mention, in my closet
Is a model chick, grimey gothic fits, trapped inside of it
Besides it I'd deny the shit, shit y'all should stop the shit
I'm the shit, not just kinda sick, the doc prescribed my shit
Cock it, click-click, opposite, stop and droppin' shit
'fore poppin' shit, from popular to poppin' picks to poppin' tits
She pop her pussy, pop a Xanny, popular for compliments
Make it rain, she pop that shit, it boosts her confidence (TKO)
Was supposed to stop this shit but spit like I forgot some shit (TKO)
Forgot the topic, I hope God forgive you, peep my common sense (TKO)
I don't understand it, tell me how could you be so low, deo
TKO, you've been swinging after the bell and after all of the whistle blows
Tried to go below the belt, through my chest, perfect hit to the dome
And dammit babe (Dammit babe)
Dammit babe (Dammit babe)
Dammit babe (Dammit babe) JT this like deja vu right?
All this album of the year talk, niggas claiming they're the best out
I been hot since the Purple Tape and this cuban's poking my chest out
They keep calling on King Push, this beach chair, I'm stretched out
My name is my name, bitch, until I'm gone and it's etched out
I been known to blow a quarter brick on baby hairs and a messy bun
If I make her mine, made her mind, she fall in line and we got somethin'
Memoirs of a millionaire, even better I'm a reallionaire
Alaïa skirt, Fendi work, dress my baby like build-a-bear
Fuck you know about the Tiger of Rollie, fuck you know about blowin' bands
Bezel on it like a grand circle, diamonds in it, holdin' hands
A1 since day 1, I sold dope and my name rung
I sold dope where I came from and it's so dope what I made from it
No lie, know why? Guy Fish in my bowtie
JT up in the 3 piece and we magic baby like showtime
She ain't know, we ain't know, try to trap her but she ain't slow
Once she trap you with the DA flow, it's lights out, TKO, la!
Lyrics licensed by LyricFind


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LEXI Pumps 70
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Massimo goes a few rounds with the ol' science can whup philosophy story.
Oh my, I thought I was done for a while chastising skeptics like Sam Harris on the relationship between philosophy, science and morality, and I just found out that my friend Michael Shermer has incurred a similar (though not quite as egregious as Harris') bit of questionable thinking. As I explained in my review of Harris' book for Skeptic, one learns
precisely nothing about morality by reading The Moral Landscape. Indeed, one's time on that topic is much better spent by leafing through Michael Sandel's On Justice, for example.
I too reviewed Harris's book, and I too thought it was way too dismissive of philosophy and way too short on argument as a result. I thought that as a non-philosopher, of course, while Massimo thinks it as a philosopher (and a biologist too!), but I've read a little moral philosophy here and there, and I found it a lot more enlightening than I found The Moral Landscape.
Shermer proceeds immediately by blaming the is/ought problem as the main culprit for scientists' misguided concession to philosophers (even though I bet dollars to donuts that the overwhelming majority of scientists has never heard of the is/ought problem). Indeed, Michael claims that the problem is a fallacy (I take it he is using the term colloquially, since I don't see that entry listed in the vast catalogue of fallacies that professional philosophers and logicians have accumulated.)
Why is the is/ought problem a fallacy, according to Shermer? Because "morals and values must be based on the way things are in order to establish the best conditions for human flourishing." Let's unpack (as philosophers are fond of saying) that loaded phrase. First off, there is a prescriptive claim ("must") that is not actually argued for. Sounds like Michael is engaging in some a priori philosophizing of his own. Why exactly must we base morals and values on the way things are (as opposed to, say, they way we would like them to be)?
Second, "the way things are" has, of course, changed dramatically across centuries and cultures (science tells us this!). Which point in the space-time continuum are we going to pick as our reference to ground our scientific study of morality? We better not just assume that the our own current time and place represent the best of all possible worlds.
Third, "human flourishing" is a surprisingly slippery (and philosophically loaded!) concept, not at all easy to handle by straightforward quantitative analyses. (If you want an idea of the sort of complications I have in mind, take a look here and here.) And of course it should go without mention that the goal of increasing human flourishing is itself the result of a value choice that cannot possibly be grounded in empirical evidence. Nothing wrong with that, unless you insist on a scientistic take on the study of morality.
I think that's a good sample for seeing why philosophy is useful for thinking about morality, and why just talking about the way things are isn't adequate.
One more sample:
Shermer then goes on to add a market economy to the mix of his favorite ideologies, claiming that "it decreases violence and increases peace significantly" (hardly surprising, coming from a well known libertarian). Once more, without even going to question the empirical assertion, shouldn't we at least admit that "market economy" is a highly heterogeneous category (think US vs China), and that some market economies decrease fairness, do not provide universal access to health care and education, lower workers' wages, and overall negatively affect human flourishing? How should we rank our values in order to make sense of the data? How do the data by themselves establish a guide to which values we should hold? And why should we follow whatever the current science says, as opposed to having discussions about where we would like science and technology (and economics) themselves to go?
How should we rank our values – that's a question that Harris gave astonishingly short shrift in his book.
Read the whole thing; it's long and rewarding.


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Team USA on TV
Figure Skating
* 4 p.m.-6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.-9 p.m. ET Saturday, Universal Sports
* 2 p.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, NBC; 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Sunday, Universal Sports
* 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. ET Saturday, Universal Sports
Winters sports are back in full swing with another figure skating Grand Prix competition this weekend, along with World Cup events in alpine skiing and speedskating. Several other top American athletes are competing around the world in a variety of events this weekend. Check out the Team USA Weekend Preview for all the info.
Skate Canada, Oct. 26-27, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Gracie Gold, the 2012 U.S. junior women's champion and world junior silver medalist, will seek a podium finish in her first senior ISU Grand Prix Series event. She is among nine U.S. skaters who'll compete Friday and Saturday at Skate Canada in Windsor, Ont.
The two-day competition follows up Skate America, held last week outside of Seattle, where reigning U.S. champion Ashley Wagner won gold in the women's competition for the United States.
Caroline Zhang, the 2012 U.S. pewter medalist, will also compete in the ladies event. Ross Miner will be the only U.S. entrant in the men's competition. Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue will compete in ice dancing, and two U.S. teams will skate in pairs: Lindsay Davis and Mark Ladwig and Tiffany Vise and Don Baldwin. Davis and Ladwig are making their Grand Prix debut together, although Ladwig is a veteran pairs competitor and skated in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games with then-partner Amanda Evora.
TV: 4 p.m.-6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.-9 p.m. ET Saturday, Universal Sports
2 p.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, NBC; 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Sunday, Universal Sports
Webcast: 2 p.m. ET Friday, universalsports.com
Also in figure skating:
Cup of Nice, Oct. 24-28, Nice, France
Alpine World Cup, Giant Slalom, Oct. 27-28, Soelden, Austria
Lindsey Vonn, who last season won the overall FIS World Cup, and Ted Ligety will lead the U.S. Ski Team into its 2012-13 World Cup opener this weekend in Soelden, Austria. Vonn, a two-time Olympic medalist, who won 12 World Cup gold medals in four disciplines last year, is the defending champion at Soelden, as is Ligety.
The women's giant slalom will kick off the World Cup season Saturday. The men's giant slalom is scheduled for Sunday.
"Winning in Soelden last season was incredibly special," said Vonn, whose win in Soelden was her first World Cup giant slalom championship. "It set the tone for the year and I went on to score more giant slalom points than I did the first three seasons combined. That was a huge factor in winning back the overall (title) and nearly breaking the World Cup points record.
"It's a new year, and we all start with zero points, but I'm stronger than I ever had been. I've put in all the work that I know it will take to win titles."
The team has been training at its European training base in Soelden since mid-October. Other top U.S. skiers who'll compete this weekend include Julia Mancuso, Mikaela Shiffrin, Megan McJames, Tim Jitloff, Robby Kelley and Warner Nickerson. Five-time Olympic medalist Bode Miller is not in Soelden because he is recovering from knee surgery.
TV: 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. ET Saturday, Universal Sports
Samsung ISU Short Track World Cup, Oct. 26-28, Montreal
J.R. Celski, who broke a world record last week in Calgary, Alberta, will lead the 10-member US Speedskating team into the second ISU Short Track World Cup event of the season in Montreal. The three-day event begins Friday.
Celski, a bronze medalist at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, won the 500-meter race in a blazing 39.937 seconds last Sunday.
The United States enters the competition with three World Cup medals. Celski also earned a bronze in the 1,000 last week and John-Henry Krueger took the bronze in the 500.
Norton National Championships, Oct. 26-27, Lake Placid, N.Y.
Erin Hamlin, a two-time Olympian and 2009 world champion in women's singles luge, will go after her sixth consecutive title in the Norton National Championships this weekend in Lake Placid, N.Y. The event is being held Friday and Saturday at the Olympic Sports Complex, beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET each day.
Among Hamlin's competition will be Emily Sweeney, the silver medalist at last year's competition, and also Julia Clukey and Kate Hansen. Chris Mazdzer, a 2010 Olympian, is seeking to defend his title in men's singles. The teams of Matt Mortensen and Preston Griffall, and Jake Hyrns and Andrew Sherk are expected to be the top medal contenders in doubles. Christian Niccum, a sixth-place finisher at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, will not compete with doubles partner Jayson Terdiman because Niccum is recovering from back surgery and hoping to be ready to compete by late December.
Runs in all three disciplines (women's singles, men's singles, doubles) will be held both days.
Webcast: www.usaluge.org
Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions, Oct. 25-28, various sites
The Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions heads south to perform in three southern states in three nights over the weekend. The tour will perform Friday at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, N.C., followed by performances Saturday at Gwinnett Arena near Atlanta and Sunday at the Tampa Bay Times Forum in Florida. The tour also performed Thursday night at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky. The Kellogg's Tour includes performances by a number of U.S. Olympians, including members of the "Fierce Five" U.S. Olympic women's gold-medal winning team.
ISSF World Cup Finals, Oct. 24-28, Bangkok, Thailand
Four-time Olympian Jason Parker won the ISSF World Cup Final championship in men's three-position rifle Thursday, defeating 2012 Olympic silver medalist Jonghyun Kim of South Korea. The World Cup Finals go through Saturday in Bangkok, Thailand, with competition in 25-meter rapid fire pistol, and 10-meter air pistol and air rifle.
"I have been competing in World Cup Finals since 1998 and dreaming of a gold medal since then. It's finally around my neck and it feels great," said Parker, 38, who finished 30th at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Two-time U.S. Olympian Eric Uptagrafft also competed this week. He placed fourth Wednesday in the men's prone rifle event.
FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour, Oct. 23-27, Bangsaen, Thailand
Jennifer Kessy and April Ross, the silver medalists at the London 2012 Olympic Games, were to face fellow Americans Nicole Branagh and Lauren Fendrick in Friday's third round of the Bangsaen Thailand Open. The tournament is the final women's event of the season on the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour.
Kessy and Ross, seeded No. 2, swept through two matches in the main draw Thursday, defeating No. 18 Gioria Daniela and Laura Giombini of Italy, and No. 31 Ayumi Kusano and Mutsumi Ozaki of Japan. Branagh and Fendrick, seeded No. 7, also went 2-0, defeating No. 23 Emily Day and Brittany Hochevar of the United States, and No. 26 Vilde Solvoll and Cindy Treland of Norway.
The semifinal round will be played Saturday, followed by the medal rounds Sunday.
U.S. Under-17 Men's National Team vs. Paraguay, Oct. 27, Buenos Aires, Argentina
The U.S. Under-17 Men's National Team, which was in Argentina to play in this week's Four-Nations Tournament, will end its trip with an international friendly Saturday against Paraguay. Corey Baird has been one of the team's offensive stars, scoring twice within a six-minute span in a 5-1 win over Chile.
Also in soccer:
U.S. U-15 and U-14 Girls National Team training camp, Oct. 20-28, Cary, N.C.
World Junior Championships, Oct. 26-Nov. 3, Chiba, Japan
A USA Badminton team of 13 will compete in five individual events, plus the team events, at the World Junior Championships, which begin Friday in Chiba, Japan. Leading the United States are Jeffrey Kuo, Alan Shekhtman and William Cheung in boys' singles, and Iris Wang, Christine Chen and Angela Lin in girls' singles.
USA 30km Race Walk Championships, Oct. 28, Valley Cottage, N.Y.
Rockland Lake State Park in Valley Cottage, N.Y., will play host to the USA 30-kilometer Race Walk Championships. The course is also certified for 20km and 50km. The top five male finishers who go on to compete 50km in under 4 hours, 45 minutes, will qualify to represent Team USA at the Pan American Race Walking Cup in Lima, Peru, in February 2013. Dan Serianni is the defending male champion; Darlene Backlund is defending women's champion.
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup, Oct. 28, Plzen, Czech Republic
The second UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup event of the season will be held Sunday in Plzen, Czech Republic. Jeremy Powers of the United States is ranked No. 10 in the UCI Cyclo-cross points standings and Ryan Trebon is 14th. Kevin Pauwels of Belgium won the Cup opener last week in Tabor, Czech Republic.
Also in cycling:
Colorado Cross Cup, Oct. 27, Boulder, Colo.
Boulder Cup, Oct. 28, Boulder, Colo.
Men's and Women's Epée, European Cadet Circuit, Oct. 27-28, Klagenfurt, Germany
The action begins Saturday in a European Cadet Circuit tournament for men's and women's epée. The tournament is in Klagenfurt, Germany. U.S. athletes have already won medals at European Cadet tournaments in saber and foil, including silver in the team saber competition in Godollo, Hungary.
Also in fencing:
Regional Open Circuit, Oct. 27-29, Crescent City Open, La.
Regional Youth Circuit, Oct. 27-28, Chicago
Flanders Cup, Oct. 27-28, Lommel, Belgium
Siblings George and Annie Truong are among eight U.S. young elite judoka who will compete Saturday and Sunday at the Flanders Cup in Belgium. George Truong won a bronze medal in the 60kg weight class earlier this year at the IJF Miami World Cup. Lynn Roethke, a 1988 Olympic silver medalist, will assist coach Brett Wolf. The team will have a three-day training camp following the competition.
Also in judo:
IJF World Championships, team, Oct. 27-28, Salvador, Brazil
U.S. Masters Synchronized Swimming Championships, Oct. 25-28, Sarasota, Fla.
Nearly 300 swimmers are competing in solo, duet, trio and team events through Sunday in the U.S. Masters Synchronized Swimming Championships at the Sarasota (Fla.) YMCA. Duet technical, trio technical and combo competition will be held Friday, followed by trio free, duet free and team technical on Saturday, and team free Sunday. Synchro swimmers ranging in age from 19 to 89 are competing.
Junior/Senior National Championships, Oct. 22-28, Colorado Springs
Competition will be held Saturday and Sunday in the USA Pentathlon Junior/Senior National Championships in Colorado Springs. A training camp for the athletes began Monday.
Story courtesy Red Line Editorial, Inc. Paul D. Bowker is a freelance contributor for TeamUSA.org. Material from various news services and press releases from National Governing Bodies was used to compile this report. This story was not subject to the approval of any National Governing Bodies.


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Hello again
So SO many apologies are owed to my long time committed readers of this blog.
I abandoned you.
I'm sorry.
The belated news is that just over a year ago we actually sold the Kiwi Blog Bus 😦
We were all sad to see it go after having many happy holiday around New Zealand and enjoyed the wonderful convenience of travelling in a bus / campervan.
However – we were still travelling, but in another direction.
We moved to a lifestyle block.
We are the very proud owners of a tiny two bedroom cottage on an acre and a bit of prime NZ land.
Slowly but surely, aided by funds from the sale of the Blog Bus, we are doing up our do-er upper with the addition of some KiwiAnnison favourites: a huge veggie garden, a tractor shed (full of tractors!), a paddock for the miniature horse, a field full of Christmas trees and chooks… etc….
So for all those that may be interested in following the tales of our "Kiwi Good Life" – you can now do so via the new blog I have started 🙂
And for Kiwi Blog Bus fans – I may still dip in here and write up a few travel stories from the good old bus days, or just general NZ travel tales I think you may just be interested in.
I won't finish with a goodbye as hopefully this is the recommencement of something that lots of you will stick by my side on.
See you soon
Finally….. the beautiful Bay of Islands
Since we came to live in New Zealand, and probably even before, I heard so much about the Bay of Islands that it obviously had to go onto our Must-See list (and my personal bucket list).
So on our first trip ever up to Northland and the Far North (is that the opposite of the Deep South?!) I was eagerly anticipating our arrival in the Bay of Islands.
It did not disappoint.
Kawakawa and disappointment
On our approach to the Bay of Islands I noted that we were to drive near Kawakawa.
As this was the infamous home of the Hundertwasser Toilets, I duly prodded the driver and requested (for his benefit of course) that we take a driving break in the locality of this tourist attraction.
I wish I hadn't bothered. Read More…
Three in a boat in Patua
Strictly speaking I cannot say three men in a boat – to be accurate it would have to be three humans in a kayak.
Or perhaps, at times, one human and two dogs – but you get the idea.
We were eager to try out Read More…
We started at Snells Beach…
Our summer trip was underway.
We had packed up the Kiwi Blog Bus with leftover Christmas goodies and collected our Trade Me buy en route (a double kayak – that's actually a 2 person plus room for a little one).
And we arrived at our first night's stopover – Snells Beach just past Warkworth (free camping for self-contained campervans). Read More…
Freedom camping near Horeke Tavern
Just sharing my view from bed this morning…..
I've been out of phone signal lately ( yesterday we went up Cape Reinga at the Northern point of NZ) so I'll have to do full blog posts when I get home.
Last night the Kiwi Blog Bus freedom camped at Horeke, Hokianga Harbour.
We are next to the Horeke Tavern which has been serving beer since 1826 ( that's like real old in New Zealand terms!) and I recommend you all should visit this utterly charming place.
I've had such a peaceful night with just birds waking me this morning to a stunning view.
I have lots more pics to download when we get home but I'll leave you with these:
Next on our plans…. We're actually heading back to the Bay of Islands.
We haven't been over to Russell yet but an invitation was kindly extended to us from Angela & Don of Russell – Orongo Bay Holiday Park to come and stay there.
We met them at the motorhome show in Hamilton last year and it's taken us this long to get up here!
The 14 acre holiday park sounds amazing and i'm looking forward to checking out all the facilities. I'm so pleased we can go with our canine friends on board too!
I'm excited to get over there (on the ferry) and explore historic Russell and its beautiful surroundings.
Stay tuned!
Summers hols continue – Bay of Islands
So we've skipped to night 4 at Paihia, Bay of Islands.
(Night 3 was beachside at Pataua, Whangarei Heads, when a blissful day playing in the water was followed by a noisy rain squall rudely interrupting our sleep at 5am).
The day got off to a wet start and we travelled up to The Bay of Islands with low cloud, no views and my disappointment looming.
However Read More…
Summer roadtrip night no.2
Free park over in Whangerai town centre down near the river
Lovely historic town basin, nicely renovated with lots of international boats moored up
Great, and very handy, playground for the ten-year-old!
Dinner – an excellent veg curry, spot on if I do say so myself
Weather – just cooling off this evening, has been very humid all day with the threat of rain but nothing arriving
Mood – just fine and dandy
Summer roadtrip night no.1
Snells Beach near Warkworth
Free stopover site for self-contained campers
Right by the waters edge
Water is warm and very clear – shall be venturing in further tomorrow but arrived in time for a moonlight paddle.
Dinner – fish and chips
Weather – was wet and humid but then dried up for a beautiful evening
Mood – happy, bordering on delirious
Well, that was Christmas – Hello summer holidays!
Just a brief post as we're almost ready to set off on our New Year trip.
The Kiwi Blog Bus is stocked up and groaning under the weight of all the Christmas leftovers.
The togs, towels & jandals are loaded. The body boards are strapped to the roof.
We've purchased a Read More…


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Kikkerland must have joined a work release program with their local prison. Because what else would explain the inspiration behind this $6 flattened LED flashlight that looks like it's particularly easy to smuggle.
I assume flashlights are considered contraband in prison. So this one could be easily slipped into a ham sandwich, or between the pages of a book, and passed to an inmate. Or, you know, more creative methods of sneaking something past the guards. [Kikkerland via The Green Head]


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Jerusalem Meeting of Patriarch Bartholomew and Pope Francis
On Sunday, May 25, 2014, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Pope Francis will convene at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem to commemorate a meeting in the Holy Land held fifty years ago by their predecessors, Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras and Pope Paul VI.
The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America's Website published a joint statement issued by Assembly Chairman Archbishop Demetrios and Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. "We not only express our appreciation of the work of our North American dialogue, but also our joy that our Churches have increasingly been able to speak with one voice on the pressing issues that our society faces today … we call our people to pray for the success of the upcoming meeting between Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Jerusalem for the glory of God and the promotion of Christianity in our wounded world."
The Apostolic Pilgrimage to Jerusalem Website offers further resources, including photo and video galleries, archival and biographical information for the Pope and Patriarch, and access to a live broadcast of the Prayer Service of Thanksgiving to be offered on May 25.
Source: Pravmir


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The son of the founder of The Hollywood Reporter has elected to confect an apology for the pubication's complicity in what has come to be known as "The McCarthy Era" . . .sort of.
"We live in a country where the First Amendment guarantees Americans protection from discrimination for their religion or ideological beliefs. But the record reflects differently. With the landing at Plymouth Rock, the Pilgrims imported scapegoating from Great Britain in 1620, and during the centuries, it has been refined to an art form. Since that time, witch-hunting (even witch-burning) has become a major part of the American political lexicon. And while pyres and stakes have been traded for printing presses, the parallel between the eras is unsettling: The witch burnings at Salem in 1692
and the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II
share too many similarities. At its very core, scapegoating is the gasoline that fuels power, and every story of power cannot succeed without a good scapegoat. Billy Wilkerson's story is no different."
Do Tell Michelle!
"From 1930 to 1962, Billy Wilkerson was the publisher of The Hollywood Reporter. He also was my father. Before establishing THR, he actively was involved in the film industry, mainly as a producer. In 1927, he had plans to build and own a film studio, but without the help of the studio titans, who owned everything related to film production at that time — from the talent to distribution to the theater chains — it would have been next to impossible for Wilkerson. For whatever reason, the movie brass refused him entry into their "club" and squashed his dream. So he found another one: exacting revenge."
And how did he do this praytell?
"After World War II, the spread of communism began gobbling up Eastern Europe. This presented Wilkerson with a formidable opportunity. In his maniacal quest to annihilate the studio owners, he realized that the most effective retaliation was to destroy their talent. In the wake of this emerging hysteria surrounding communism, the easiest way to crush the studio owners was to simply call their actors, writers and directors communists. Unfortunately, they would become the collateral damage of history. Apart from being charged with contempt, for refusing to name names, none of these individuals committed any crimes. But Wilkerson's 1946 anti-communist campaign, which began as a schoolyard spat with the movie brass, snowballed out of control. In 1950, what I call Hollywood's Holocaust spread nationwide under Sen. Joseph McCarthy, R-Wis., and claimed the livelihoods of thousands of Americans. Calling someone a communist today is almost laughable. But in 1950, it was a professional death sentence. Instantaneously, people lost their jobs, and future employment was, in too many cases, denied."
Here are two blacklist victims I happen to know personally in a picture THR has helpfully provided.
Norma Barzman (seated) was married to an actual former communist — her husband and screenwriting partner Ben. Ben's credits include Joseph Losey's Time Without Pity – the film that re-established the great director's reputation after, rather than face HUAC, he "Got out of Dodge" and in Europe enjoyed the sort of career American directors only dream about.
Marsha wasn't a party member at all. She was a liberal — the true, yet rarely acknowledged — target of the blacklist.
Don't they look lovely?
"The Blacklist silenced the careers of some of the studios' greatest talent and ruined countless others merely standing on the sidelines.
"The real victims of the Blacklist," mused film producer Howard Koch, "were those who had the wrong last names or went to communist meetings just to pick up girls." The U.S. government, which had a great hand in this event, could have prevented it from mushrooming. It did nothing. And no one has ever apologized to the victims of this holocaust. So on the eve of this dark 65th anniversary, I feel an apology is necessary. It's possible, had my father lived long enough, that he would have apologized for creating something that devastated so many careers. On behalf of my family, and particularly my late father, I wish to convey my sincerest apologies and deepest regrets to those who were victimized by this unfortunate incident."
It had to do with a lot more than picking up girls. Moreover in many cases it had to do with picking up boys. For what THR fails to mention is its chief weapon in this political jihaad — columnist Mike Connolly.
A closeted self-loathing gay man, Connolly instigated a virtual reign of terror through his column which ran from 1951 to 1966. So powerful was Connolly's sway that Ezra Goodman in his great book
dared to mention the truth about Connolly only in a "blind item" which read —
"One of the leading 'male' gossipiest in Hollywood was a source for Confidential – the magazine used an unpublished story about this olumnists amorous activities as a journalistic sword over his head."
That was just the tip of the iceberg. For as Val Holley
shows in his great book MIke Connolly and The Manly Art of Hollywood Gossip the creep did a lot more. One of Holley's most important revelations is the fact that Elia Kazan
had originally planned to speak only about himself to HUAC. Connolly made it clear to Kazan that unless he named names a little potboiler he was planning to make called On the Waterfront would never reach the screen.
Yes Gadge, you were a bum. And here to explain why — and a great deal more — is a far more honest Abe than the one Tony Kushner claims to comprehend.
As Wlliam Makepeace Thackeray would say "They are all equal now."
Take it away Lenny


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Click on links below to view information about each PDR.
Wildlife Services reserves the right to revise the current or any past
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presented. Notice of such revisions and their dates will be made on
this site when revised versions are posted.
Table 1
Employment and Expenditures
Animals Freed and Taken and the Control Methods Used by WS
Table 2f
Number of Animals Freed and Control Methods Used by WS
Table 2t
Number of Animals Taken and Control Methods Used by WS
Table 3
Number of Animals Dispersed and Control Methods used by WS
Table 4a
Resource Losses Reported to the WS Program
Table 5a
Number of Technical Assistance Projects (Personal, Telephone, Written Consult)
Table 5b
Number of Other Technical Assistance Projects Conducted by WS Personnel
Table 6
Chemical Products Used and Supervised by WS
Table 7
Chemical Products Distrib., Sold, or Demon. by WS and Whose Use was not Supervised by WS
Table 8
Bird Depredation Permits Recommended by WS for Issuance by USFWS to Cooperators
Table 9a
Equipment and Non-Pesticide Materials Loaned for Cooperator Use by WS
Table 9b
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Table 10
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Drops offer thousands of free patterns, covering their entire range of yarns, all of which are available to download and print out for free from the Garnstudio website - Garnstudio are the manufacturers of Drops yarn.
You can find details of all the free patterns made specifically in Drops Eskimo yarn by visiting the Drops Eskimo pattern section of the Garnstudio website.
|Do Not Bleach
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This was published 7 years ago
The grim tweeter: meet the joker who 'kills' off celebrities online
FIDEL CASTRO, Mikhail Gorbachev and Pope Benedict XVI - Italian Tommasso Debenedetti has killed them all in fake tweets aimed at exposing shoddy journalism that have earned him global notoriety.
The latest victim of Mr Debenedetti's unusual hobby is the British author J.K. Rowling, whose death in an accident he announced from a fake Twitter account purporting to belong to her fellow writer John Le Carre.
''Death works well on Twitter,'' Mr Debenedetti, who is in his 40s and says he teaches literature at a school in Rome, said in a phone interview.
Mr Debenedetti said that when he saw his Le Carre account had 2500 followers including journalists from major British, German and US media, ''I decided to make John Le Carre say J.K. Rowling had died''.
Mr Debenedetti said the tweet was then retweeted hundreds of times and a Chilean television station even gave the false news as fact.
The literary fake artist says his aim in all of this is to ''show that Twitter has become a news agency - the least reliable in the world''.
''Unfortunately, journalism works on speed. False news spreads exponentially,'' he said, pointing out that retweets by journalists lend credibility to rumours even if they are not actually published.
''In the end, everyone forgets what the original source was.''
Among his many claims to internet infamy, Mr Debenedetti boasts of having forced the Vatican spokesman, Federico Lombardi, to deny the Pope had died after sending a false tweet purportedly from the Vatican's Secretary of State, Tarcisio Bertone.
He claims his tweet announcing the death of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad made the price of oil go up and that another one about the demise of Mr Gorbachev prompted someone to update his Wikipedia page with the day of his death.
Mr Debenedetti calls these his ''games'' and appears unconcerned about any unease they may cause, saying that he comes out and claims the rumour as his own invention within an hour of sending the first tweet.
Journalists ''should be more prudent and carry out all the necessary checks, particularly in local media, local radio and internet sites which fall most easily into this trap'' he said.
Agence France-Presse


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Sealant doesn't like the shock cold temps created by the CO2.
Apparently the Effeto Mariposa Caffelatex sealant doesn't suffer from the issue.
... not the right choice for multi-day rides on a road bike.
Schwalbe G-One Speeds with Caffélatex Effetto Mariposa sealant made it round LEL for me with zero incidents. These are *the* tyres for UK roads/weather so far as I am concerned.
Page created in 0.089 seconds with 25 queries.


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A couple of weeks ago, we wrote on the Wall about a quaint church in Beaumont, Texas making international news by calling themselves, "A bunch of jerks."
They addressed the hypocrisy among the faithful, the stigma in the Church and the elephant dropping bombs in the room.
It was a bold move because the biggest cause of Atheism would be Christians who do not reflect Christ. Great idea, right? Apparently so, because it's been cloned according to the Christian Post.
A megachurch [NorthRidge Church] in Southeast Michigan is making a lot of people uncomfortable with its new billboard campaign that proclaims that the church is for hypocrites, losers and liars.
Well, of course, they are making a lot of people uncomfortable… the formula worked once before. Why not do it again?
"The reality is all human beings are the same. They're flawed. We're all the same inside [the church] and outside. We too are failures, losers, … hypocrites," [Pastor Brad Powell of NorthRidge Church] continued.
"Jesus didn't put up higher fences in heaven to keep the bad people out," he said. "Rather, Jesus came down to earth and dwelled among the people. When you look into God's word, He never turns inward. He turns outward."
Don't get me wrong… he's right. Regretfully.
However, just because the word changed from "jerks" to "hypocrites," does not make this an original idea. There's no such thing as an original idea anyway, but at least give it a few months before you poach it?!
It's no secret I don't have much affinity for stereotypical Christian marketing. I mean, how difficult must it be to take a well-known brand and make an evangelism hack job out of it?
Consider God: There was nothing but his idea. He imagined with vivid detail, molded the earth with complete ingenuity and relished in the unique nature of his creation.
He didn't copy a logo. He didn't "borrow" an invention. Everything he did was an original.
And that's why it baffles me that marketing and advertising professionals who love the Lord and have dedicated their lives to him can't at least go about their trade with a tad more originality.
Brands like 'Not of this World' have taken what 'Affliction', 'Silver Star' and 'MMA Elite' has done for the mixed martial artist crowds and brought it to the Church. Bravo.
And then, there is the status quo that believes take what is known, plaster a verse on it and call it "divine providence."
We can do better. We must do better.
Pastor Brad (imagine, he doesn't like being called that) understands this whole "jerk" thing is lightning in a bottle. Everyone is looking at this. Everyone appreciates this. Because everyone agrees with this… except for the folk who are this.
A thought for all pastors: Be unconventional. Be daring. And most importantly, try to be original. You tend to make more news that way.
Just ask the little church in Beaumont, Texas about that one.


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Don't forget how bad things were.
That's the message of President Obama's new reelection video, "The Road We've Traveled." To the millions of Americans disappointed by Obama's presidency, the video says: Things could have been much worse. In fact, they were much worse. They're better now. Be grateful.
The video, narrated by Tom Hanks, begins with images of Obama and his family waving to supporters on election night 2008. "What do we remember in November of 2008?" Hanks asks as the camera pans the crowd's hopeful faces. "Was it this moment? Or this?" With a thunderclap, pictures of economic collapse flood the screen: Stock prices tanking, trading floors in chaos, empty store fronts, foreclosed homes. Hanks asks: "How do we understand this president and his time in office? Do we look at the day's headlines? Or do we remember what we as a country have been through?"
The narration is solemn and elegant. The pictures are transporting. But the object is flatly political. Obama's operatives don't want you to judge him by your unhappiness with your present financial situation. Nor do they want you to judge him by the high aspirations you had for him in the summer of 2008. Forget all that hopey-changey stuff. They want to reset your expectations to the weeks after his election, when the economy was going to hell.
Austan Goolsbee, the former chairman of Obama's Council of Economic Advisers, and David Axelrod, Obama's political strategist, describe on camera how Obama's economic team converged in Chicago that winter. "What was described in that meeting was an economic crisis beyond anything anybody had imagined," Axelrod recalls. Rahm Emanuel, Obama's former chief of staff, cranks up the woe. The auto industry was reportedly "days from collapse," says Emanuel, and the financial sector, the economy's heart, was in "cardiac arrest." Goolsbee says the six months surrounding Obama's inauguration were the worst on record.
The story is dramatic, but the math is simple: Axelrod, Emanuel, and Goolsbee want to push the recession's losses onto the books of the Bush administration. Axelrod recalls Obama's then-economic adviser, Christina Romer, warning the president-elect in late November 2008 that "millions of people are going to lose their jobs." Axelrod remembers Peter Orszag, Obama's incoming budget director, predicting that the economy's weakness would "add trillions of dollars to our debt." Blame the red ink on Bush, not Obama. Hanks goes on to enumerate all the jobs wiped out before our hero arrived: "More than 3.5 million lost in the six months before he took office."
But lo! Obama raised his right hand, and the sun rose. First, according to the video, came the Recovery Act, with money to keep teachers, cops, and firefighters at work. Then came job training, highway construction, and tax cuts for the middle class. Obama's biggest move was the auto bailout. Vice President Biden spins it as a gutsy call in the face of hostile polls. Elizabeth Warren, Obama's former adviser on consumer protection, plays up the risk of failure, noting that the auto companies could have gone under anyway, taking Obama with them. Former President Bill Clinton frets that "people have no earthly idea what would have happened" to the country if the industry had shut down. Again, the message is how much worse things could have been, and how brave Obama was, even if what he did looks in retrospect like a no-brainer.
The story of economic recovery consumes more than seven minutes of the 17-minute video. For the next three minutes, the show moves on to health care, but the economy remains the theme. Hanks reminds us how bad things were before Obamacare: "Health care costs had been rising three times the rate of inflation, crushing family budgets and choking business. And [Obama] knew that he couldn't fix the economy if he didn't fix health care."
Ten minutes in, the scene shifts to Iraq. Obama promised to bring our troops home, and he did. Don't forget that, you ingrates, the video implies. Remember when we were getting blown up over there every day? Then we're off to Abbottabad, Pakistan, for the hit on Osama Bin Laden. Today, we know Bin Laden was in that compound and was killed without U.S. casualties. But Obama didn't know that in advance. Again, Biden milks the suspense: "If he was wrong, his presidency was done." The segment closes with a TV news clip that says the raid could have been "a disastrous failure." But our leader made the tough call.
The next two minutes recount all the good things Obama has done for this or that constituency: health insurance for young adults, drug discounts for seniors, equal pay for women, ending Don't Ask, Don't Tell for gays. The list goes on: stem-cell research, mileage standards, renewable energy, student loans. Hanks credits the president with "raising expectations in our schools."
For Obama, however, Hanks suggests lowering expectations. "While the economic crisis proved to be more severe than experts had predicted, month by month there was progress," Hanks reports. "Over 3.5 million private sector jobs in two years." On the screen, a dynamic chart shows the rate of job losses magically beginning to decline as "Obama takes office." The chart focuses on what improved—the rate of job losses—rather than on what languished or worsened: the net job count and the unemployment rate. The color shifts from red to black at the moment of Obama's inauguration, visually overriding the inconvenient fact that the employment ledger remained negative for more than a year.
In its final scene, the video returns to Obama and his family on election night 2008. "When we remember this moment and consider this president then and now, let's remember how far we've come," Hanks concludes. If you don't think you're better off than you were four years ago, you've forgotten how bad things were.
William Saletan's latest short takes on the news, via Twitter:


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From The Pastry Dungeon: Wild Mulberry Buttermilk Ice Cream
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One of the most important qualities in a successful professional cook is a neverending sense of curiosity and interest in different ingredients. A picky cook is just no fun!
I personally set my long-term vegetarianism aside when I started working in restaurants, and I'm more than happy to try anything. There are very few things I don't actually like. I've even started foraging in my own backyard.
Yes, I do have an actual backyard. And I haven't been hunting mushrooms or snacking on moss. I discovered a literal grove of fruit-bearing trees, and it didn't take me long to realize exactly what they were and that they were absolutely delightful.
Wild mulberries are currently at their peak in Brooklyn, and I have a gold mine of them in my new backyard. Sweet and juicy, they're perfect to eat out of hand, but are also wonderful in ice cream. Buttermilk balances their pure sweetness, making a not-too-sweet frozen treat.
I spent an hour after work yesterday shaking branches and slapping away mosquitoes. With two black and one white mulberry tree dropping fruit left and right, I managed to gather enough gorgeous berries in varying shades for a decent batch of my ice cream. I'll wait a couple of days for more berries to ripen, then it's on to pancakes!
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Wild Mulberry Buttermilk Ice Cream »
About the Author: Anna Markow is a pastry chef obsessed with doing things that no one else does and giving unusual ingredients their time to shine. You can follow her sometimes-pastry-related thoughts on Twitter @VerySmallAnna.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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The Great Raft Invasives Program (GRIP) is an effort to provide public information and education about giant salvinia and other invasive aquatic species in the lakes that were created by the historic log jam on the Red River known as the Great Raft, and in other lakes and streams connected to or affected by them. Because people who recreate, fish, or hunt in any one of these lakes may visit others -- with invasive species potentially hitchhiking on their boats and equipment –- a cooperative, coordinated effort is needed.
In addition to this website, GRIP will encourage Early Detection/Rapid Response actions; Shoreline Watch news alerts; and volunteer Weed Wardens to periodically report on lake conditions.
The six principal lakes in this area are Caddo and Lake O' the Pines in Texas, and Cross, Wallace, Black Bayou, and Bistineau in Louisiana.
Except for Lake O' the Pines, these are called "raft lakes" because they were created by the huge log jam on the Red River that persisted for hundreds of years before removal efforts by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the 19th Century. Although naturally formed, the raft lakes are now maintained by spillways or dams. They still present to visitors a natural environment that is substantially similar to the world inhabited by the Caddo Indians before Anglo-Americans began arriving in the early 1800s.
Although Lake O' the Pines is not a naturally formed lake – it was created by the damming of Big Cypress Bayou near Jefferson, Texas, completed in 1959 – it is included in the Great Raft Invasives Program because of its proximity to the raft lakes and its relationship to Caddo Lake.
Invasive aquatic plants and animals threatening any of the lakes of the Great Raft threaten all of these lakes. Their economic and recreational values are deeply intertwined. In particular, giant salvinia -- because it is a rootless, floating plant -- can easily move from one lake to another when boats and trailers are not thoroughly cleaned before relocating to another lake. A single fragment of giant salvinia can reproduce exponentially. Under conditions common to our area, giant salvinia infestations can double in size and mass in as little as one to two weeks.
Alligator weed, hydrilla, and water hyacinth are other non-native aquatic plants present in the lakes of the Great Raft area that can impair navigation, crowd out beneficial native plants, and spoil habitat for fish and other wildlife. Chinese tallow is an invasive wetlands tree that is rapidly displacing desirable native trees such as the mayhaw.
Through this website, the Great Raft Invasives Program offers a variety of useful tools and information to help residents and visitors to these lakes control invasives that are already present, and help prevent the arrival of potential new threats such as the zebra mussel and the Asian carp. The unique map tracking feature now in use on this site for Caddo and soon available to the other lakes will keep visitors to this website informed with up-to-the-minute information about lake conditions and where chemical and biological invasive plant control measures have taken place.
We hope you will enjoy this website and visit it on a regular basis to learn more and keep up with developments on the lakes of the Great Raft.
If you are interested in learning about the history of the Great Raft, please continue to this page.


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Home > Newsletter > Newsletter n° 90 [ENG]
To His Excellency Mister Lim Sang-woo,
Ambassador of the Republic of South Korea to Madagascar
We have the honor to write you this open letter, which we will send a copy to the authorities and to the Malagasy press.
At the beginning of 2018, quoting parts of your credentials, the website of the Presidency of the Malagasy Republic announced "many projects [that] will be accelerated" as part of the strengthening of the partnership between South Korea and Madagascar : "Infrastructure, energy, and exchange of experiences in new technologies" (1).
Previously, the website of the Presidency had already informed about South Korean actions such as :
-donations to the National Office for Risk and Disaster Management of 22 hydraulic excavators, 22 backhoe loaders, 22 dump trucks, 22 ambulances, 22 firefighting vehicles, with lift arms, 22 large-capacity motor pumps, and 11 command posts and mobile clinics, as well as hardware and IT equipment for the Meteorological Services of the 22 regions ;
- the opening of a center for access to information at the Ecole Supérieure Polytechnique in Antananarivo ;
- and a project entitled "Better Life For Girls", aimed at improving the lives of young Malagasy girls. (2)
Following the courtesy visits that you made to various Malagasy leaders, the press reported the existence of projects in "the mining sector, the fishing sector, agriculture, as well as fishing and transformable energy" , priority being given to the "blue economy", in addition to the resumption of the rehabilitation of the National Road 9 already planned in 2008 (3) and (4)
The list is long, since we do not forget your involvement in Ambatovy mining site and its surroundings since 2005.
Your Excellency Mister Lim Sang-woo, The Ambassador of South Korea,
You recently told reporters that you consider cooperation with countries on "emergence" and development such as Madagascar as a duty and a responsibility and that the challenge is all the more important for you that your country has experienced poverty in the past (..). And you called on the Malagasy people to join forces and roll up their sleeves to develop the country. "(4) and (5)
In addition, a member of the South Korea diplomacy staff stated in an interview in 2013 that "wherever in Madagascar, South Korea has a bilateral win-win relationship with Madagascar and its population (win- win)" (6).
Your Excellency Mister Lim Sang-woo, The Ambassador of South Korea,
Please allow us to ask you to specify the counterpart of these donations and investments as requested from the Malagasy party in the short, medium and long term. In other words, what do you win in exchange in Madagascar ?
We all remember the Daewoo Logistics project - or "Daewoo deal" for Malagasy -, which concerned the 99-year lease of 1.3 million hectares of agricultural land by Daewoo Logistics in 4 regions in Madagascar. Its implementation was suspended as a result of the political crisis in the country back in early 2009 ...
This case is very serious for us, Malagasy. The subject remains sensitive and awakens legitimate fears among the population and civil society.
A manager of Daewoo Logistics declared in March 2009 that the company had fulfilled all its contractual obligations and was in wait for the Malagasy party's decision for the next steps (7).
Hence our question : Should we expect a resumption of this Daewoo Logistics project in any way, as originally planned or in a new form ?
In advance, we thank you for your response that we hope will be totally transparent about the ins and outsresults of South Korea-Madagascar cooperation.
Yours faithfully,
Paris, February 16, 2018
For The Collective for the defense of Malagasy lands - TANY
Mamy Rakotondrainibe, president of the association.
firstname.lastname@example.com ; http://terresmalgaches.info ; www.facebook.com/TANYterresm....
References :
(1) http://www.presidence.gov.mg/revues...
(2) http://www.presidence.gov.mg/madaga...
(3) www.lexpressmada.com/.../par....
(4) http://lalignedemire.mg/article/Kor... ;
(5) Traduction par nos soins d'un extrait de l'article en Malagasy précédent (4)
(6) http://www.nocomment.mg/la-coree-du...
(7) https://af.reuters.com/article/inve...
Collectif pour la défense des terres malgaches – TANY ; MDA 11 - Boîte 89 ;
8, rue du général Renault - 75011 - Paris - France
déclarée aux J.O. Associations le 07/02/2009


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Mae Grant Playground
Mae Grant Park
This park is named for Mae Grant, a local activist and tenant of the Carver houses. Mae Grant served as president of the tenant association from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s. She is best remembered for her giving spirit and fairness.
She served tenants and community members in many ways beyond in her official capacity as tenant association president. People turned to her for help in finding and securing apartments and jobs. Grant established a community food program to assist the less fortunate in the community. In addition to the volunteer work she did, she was also instrumental in bringing entertainment to the Heckscher Theater at El Museo Del Barrio.
The park is located at the center of the Carver Houses, a housing development named for George Washington Carver (c.1860-1943). The Carver Houses are one of the New York City Housing Authority's complexes that also provides services to the community, such as mental health counseling and child care. Carver, the project's namesake was an agricultural scientist, inventor, and educator. A freed slave who earned a Master's Degree from the University of Iowa, Carver conducted research at the Tuskegee Institute. He refined crop rotation methods for conserving nutrients in soil and discovered hundreds of new uses for crops, such as the peanut. In so doing, Carver met his personal goal of helping African Americans and creating new markets for all farmers, especially in the South.
The Carver Houses, located in East Harlem, are surrounded by many outstanding cultural and recreational institutions, such as El Museo del Barrio, the Museum of the City of New York, and the Conservatory Garden and Harlem Meer in Central Park. El Museo del Barrio was founded in 1969 by local parents who wanted to capture Puerto Rican heritage for their children growing up in the modern East Harlem environment. Now it hosts traditional and contemporary artwork from all over Latin America, as well as film, theater, and music events.
This park, located between Madison and Park Avenues on the North side of 104th Street, was acquired by condemnation on February 1, 1951. The park was planned, mapped, and built from February to May of 1953. In late 1958, the park was closed in order to widen 104th Street, and was reopened in February of 1959 when the project was completed. In 1994, the park was renovated with $482,000 in funding from Council Member Adam Clayton Powell. This latest renovation added two colorful metal and plastic play structures, a new set of swings specifically for younger children and a refurbished sprinkler tower with new casing for the water facilities. All the play equipment, including the swings, was outfitted with safety surfacing. Picnic tables were also added, and they sit in the shade of London planetrees (Platanus x acerifolia), which are scattered in and around the park. For older children and adults, the park is equipped with an enclosed basketball court and a double-sided handball court.
Like the giving spirit of Mae Grant, the park that bears her name continues to give to the community. It provides essential recreational facilities for the housing projects and all nearby residents.


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TORONTO (AP) — BlackBerry said Friday that it is committed to completing a series of major changes quickly after posting a nearly billion-dollar loss and a 45 percent drop in revenue for the second quarter.
"We are very disappointed with our operational and financial results this quarter and have announced a series of major changes to address the competitive hardware environment and our cost structure," Thorsten Heins, the chief executive officer, said in a statement.
"We understand how some of the activities we are going through create uncertainty, but we remain a financially strong company with $2.6 billion in cash and no debt. We are focused on our targeted markets, and are committed to completing our transition quickly in order to establish a more focused and efficient company."
The troubled smartphone company reported a loss of $965 million and revenue of $1.6 billion, in line with what it warned when it surprised the market by releasing dismal earnings projections last week and announcing 4,500 layoffs. A year ago, it lost $235 million on revenue of $2.9 billion.
The company had announced Monday that Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., BlackBerry's largest shareholder, is making a tentative $4.7 billion offer to buy the company and is trying to attract other investors.
BlackBerry cancelled its previously scheduled Friday conference call with analysts in light of that overture.
The adjusted loss was $248 million, or 47 cents per share, in the latest quarter. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected an adjusted loss of 16 cents per share.
The head of Fairfax Financial Holdings, Prem Watsa, told The Associated Press this week he has every intention of completing the acquisition of BlackBerry, despite doubts that the deal will go through. Fairfax signed a letter of intent that "contemplates" buying BlackBerry for $9 a share.
Watsa said Fairfax won't be contributing more to the bid than the 10 percent it already owns. The deal is subject to six weeks of due diligence and there is no breakup fee for BlackBerry should Fairfax walk away. The stock has been trading around a dollar less than the $9 bid on fears the deal won't happen.
BGC analyst Colin Gillis said the conditional offer is skewed in Watsa's favor, noting Fairfax is not putting in more equity into the deal and is allowed to bring in other unnamed investors. "He's putting up nothing and he's getting something," Gillis said.
Analysts say that although BlackBerry's hardware business is not worth much, the company still has a smartphone service business where it manages BlackBerrys and competing smartphones on its network. The service business brought in 46 percent of BlackBerry's $1.6 billion in revenue in the quarter. The company also owns valuable patents. BlackBerry is also strong in having total cash and investments of about $2.6 billion, with no debt, though it's burning through that stockpile. In just the past few months, it's spent more than half a billion dollars.
Its shares rose 7 cents to $8.02 in morning trading Friday — nearly $1 per share less than the buyout price suggested by Fairfax.
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