text:
Thursday Edition
[Chris Nel wrote this piece for the April 2007 Tom Peters Times newsletter, and it got such a great response that we decided to reproduce it for our blog readers.—CM]
As an adult, I have lived and worked in three types of organisations. In the military as an officer, in a large corporation as an area then regional operations manager, and now in a small consulting firm as ... well ... a jack of all trades! Only one of the three, in my experience, has suffered significantly from a disabling lack of clarity of purpose ... I believe there is a link between this and the fact that most large corporations "Fail to achieve their potential."
As the father of a three-year-old boy, I dread the day he announces that he wants to invest his talent, time, and energy into—a large corporation. I believe that "large" is doomed to mediocrity not due to size, but because of the inherent inability of "large" to generate a strong sense of common purpose in the organisation beyond making money for its stakeholders.
I believe that we as humans search for a meaningful purpose in everything we do. We are at our very best when we find it. My simple business hypothesis is based on the fact that when humans are at their best (i.e., are purposeful) they run/work in extraordinarily successful businesses. So it turns out that the leader's primary job is not to be a clever strategist or a brilliant technician (let alone control freak) but to help people find a clear sense of purpose (not revenue targets!) in the work that they do. Profit will follow from this, not lead it.
For many, despite the material perks and relative comfort, corporate life adds up to the kind of purposeless existence that I would hate anyone I cared about to live in. (Doubt this? Please read The Living Dead: Switched Off, Zoned Out—The Shocking Truth About Office Life by David Bolchover.) Abraham Maslow would say that in the absence of a stronger sense of shared purpose, self-interest (i.e., anything from survival to self-actualisation) prevails in decision making. You may well observe this in the behaviours of those around you? The converse of this is illustrated for us daily in a terrifying way by the suicide bombers.
If you believe, as I do, that everyone comes to work wanting to do a good job, you have to question why they (we!) tend to underperform as leaders in getting people to strive for a common aspiration. Unsurprisingly, I get a strongly defensive reaction when I talk about this to business leaders. A typical retort is "Yes, but who is leading me?" To me this reply brought into sharp relief the burden of leadership. As a leader you have to be a self-starter on purpose. Finding meaning where none is apparent. You can't inspire unless you are inspired. So, if you are not inspired it's your duty as a leader to discover it or disappear.
If you can't/won't do this, the vacuum of purpose caused by your poor leadership will be rapidly filled with the self-interested behaviour of those around you. Their purpose at work becomes self-promotion by playing the corporate game. Winning looks like promotion/pay raises. Their colleagues become "the enemy." Their boss (you) becomes a gatekeeper to be manipulated. (When did you last hear the unvarnished truth from them?) Talking a good game, burying the truth, diverting blame, not making the decision, exercising the power of the org chart, etc., etc. Of course, I'm exaggerating to make the point. But not by much. Strip away the thin veneer of civility by announcing post-merger job losses, for example, and unleash the dogs ...
Here's another reason "large" is doomed. Large corporations are ideally structured to insulate the individual from any sense of anxiety about the market in which they operate. That's always someone else's problem. In doing so they fritter away one important opportunity to align their people. Making the competitor threat feel more real will drive people to be more collaborative & entrepreneurial. They will start to fear the competition more than the boss. That's a good thing.
I'm not suggesting we should align people with fear. History has proved this to be a short-term strategy. For centuries, politicians have exaggerated the threat (nuclear annihilation and terrorism to name two contemporary examples) to their nation at the same time as offering a solution to that threat. It makes us malleable subjects, not free citizens. However, we eventually rebel. Watch out, George II, Tony, Gordon, et al.
Far more powerful and enduring is to align people with a purpose beyond profit. A hope that their endeavours at work are meaningful in the big scheme of things. It's not as if we are short of opportunities to make positive changes to our world, is it!
This is a brilliant piece which echoes that which I have so often presented to teams I had the pleasure of leading over the years.
Well done, concisely stated and inspirational!
P.S. It reminds me as well, of the story about the boy on the beach:
Posted by Tom O'Leary at April 4, 2007 5:29 PM
This is a brilliant piece which echoes that which I have so often presented to teams I had the pleasure of leading over the years.
Well done, concisely stated and inspirational!
It reminds me as well, of the story about the boy on the beach: http://www.messagingtimes.com/blog/?p=269
Posted by Tom O'Leary at April 4, 2007 5:30 PM
Great post, Chris. Two things that struck me...
I agree that most big companies are too far gone and that the real juice (for me at least) comes in working with smaller, often more closely held, companies that are "doing it better.†If you look at business as an art form in itself, there are no better words to hear from a CEO than "we could grow bigger and faster, but that would compromise our ability to run company in a way that meets our vision and principles - and who wants to work at a place like that?â€
Second, you mentioned at least twice that you wouldn't be able to bear it if people close to you went to work for a big corporation. You recognize the suffering (even with the corner office and the new beemer) inherent in doing that and you, as someone who has seen the light, want to help others avoid it. Buddhists have a word for this sort of worldview called "bodhicitta,†which I guess makes you a sort of modern day Bodhisattva.
Keep up the good work.
Posted by Adam Brucker at April 4, 2007 5:32 PM
Chris and Tom, thanks for the thoughts. As the owner of a smallish graphic design and communications firm that recently moved to a four-day workweek, I've been giving 'purpose' and 'values' a lot of thought. Here's my most recent version of a purpose/values statement. My company's name is Element:
Sense of purpose...
Element exists to make a positive change in the world. We directly fund meaningful non-profit work, we provide work for free or reduced charge for a small group of clients who share common goals, and we seek clients who share our values.
We're also committed to providing the best possible work environment for our own people. Competitive compensation, a casual work environment and four-day work weeks contribute to the happiness of our staff, which, in turn, contributes to the quality of our work.
Sense of place...
We don't want to be a New York design firm. We don't want to live in LA. We love Columbus. We're a responsible, involved member of the local business community. We believe in local businesses, and are committed to helping them succeed.
Sense of humor...
We're serious about what we do, but we don't take ourselves too seriously. We're committed to having fun, and to making the process as much fun as possible for our clients and vendors.
Sense of hospitality...
Element isn't just a 'company,' it's a venue, a place for our friends, family members, clients, vendors and colleagues to chat, to grab a cup of coffee, and to be both inspired and inspiring. As the owner and principal, I see myself more as 'host' than 'CEO,' and will continue to invest myself in that role as Element grows.
Posted by John McCollum at April 4, 2007 8:04 PM
This post is a little disappointing. All big companies are bad? Everyone that works for a large company is a slug with no motivation?
You wrote, "Large corporations are ideally structured to insulate the individual from any sense of anxiety about the market in which they operate." I almost fell of my chair. You're kidding, right? Everyone is sales, manufacturing, services, etc. all have targets with extreme pressure to deliver quarterly results often measured week-to-week. You say you worked in a large company; it must have been a real winner!
You miss the point that everyone doesn't have the same motivaions or enjoy the same types of rewards. There are large companies that allow you to do amazing things that you can only do with the resources available at that scale.
There are small companies that offer wonderful environments as well.
If you need to be led by the nose, there is no large or small company that will be rewarding. If you are motivated, you can have a rewarding experience in either. It isn't the size of the company but the size of your heart that matters.
Posted by Jeff at April 5, 2007 4:57 AM
Right on Jeff. C'mon, the rest of you, pull your heads out. It's up to YOU, not someone else. Three choices in a bad situation (big company or small): cry about it--easiest; run away and blame everyone and everything else for your failure--easy; change the situation from within--hard but most rewarding.
And seriously, the last thing the world needs are more "companies" run by corporate failures "designing" and "marketing" non value-added junk on their laptops while sitting in Starbucks all day.
OK, I put the target square on my forehead, so go ahead and beat me up!
I got work to do,
Posted by Red Island Rhodes at April 5, 2007 6:19 AM
Red, Jeff, you both make good points. Generalizations lend themselves to scrutiny, and inevitably they will fail (Google is pretty big, and they're consistently rated as one of the best places to work - great environment). However, I feel that the real theme of this post rings true.
Regardless of the size of the company, one needs a reason to show up to work. Money is a great motivator, and enough for some. However, individuals with some other motivating factor are more inclined to put something else of themselves into their work ("work that matters" anyone?). I agree with Red that changing something from within is incredibly difficult (and rewarding), but why would anyone bother with the effort required without some strong motivation? Someone sitting in a cubicle at ReallyBigCorp might realize that the ROI on their effort is simply not worth it. However, with some "purpose beyond profit," that individual might contribute a little more elbow grease.
On one hand, building a personal Brand You! portfolio could be sufficient for some, but leadership can make all the difference in the rest of the workforce. If a leader has a vision of their purpose that they can convincingly share with others, then individuals may be more inclined to exert the extra effort to see that vision through. The knock on (most) big companies is really an observation of their seeming inability (unwillingness?) to drive towards a goal other than profit.
Posted by Nick Adams at April 5, 2007 7:51 AM
I take your point, but I think you missed mine ... Why would I struggle for those quarterly targets? Why would I give the extra 10% effort that is the differentiator for my business? I did earn a lot of money in my ex-large corporation, but it was not enough. My point is that most developed western societies are beyond the bottom three rungs on Maslows hierarchy and we are looking for more than material reward for a lifetimes effort. We all know too many unhappy "comfortably welll off" people.
Actually, you have illustrated my point well in that you, as many business managers do, appear to be confusing quarterly targets and the like with meaningful sense of purpose.
Posted by Chris Nel at April 5, 2007 8:10 AM
One of the important points here is that most small businesses are run by the owners of that business. They have a different motivation for running their business than most of the big guys.....
Someone made a point about Google being a great place to work. The company is being run by the founders of that company and it still has their pesonality stamped on it. My bet is that Google will become much less fun after the founders step out and "professional managers" step in. In my experience that's when big companies become less fun.
I find that it is not so much the size of the company, but is the founder or owners still running the company. If that is true, you often have at least a double if not triple bottom line. If the founder or owners (and by owners I mean controlling owners) don't run the company, then these companies have a tendency to become a single bottom line company. And, that is where they become less fun.
Posted by Josh Patrick at April 5, 2007 8:35 AM
Chris, I completely agree that it is most often NOT about money. You wrote, "Actually, you have illustrated my point well in that you, as many business managers do, appear to be confusing quarterly targets and the like with meaningful sense of purpose."
I didn't confuse quarterly targets with a meaningful sense of purpose. I was responding to your comment that people working at large companies are "insulated from any sense of anxiety about the market in which they operate." Not the case at all. These sales, manufacturing and services people live in the market and must deliver results, not sit around in some ivory tower (not that those don't exist!).
People work for many reasons (i.e. what will provide them with a sense of purpose?). You can find that in a large company or a small one. You are assuming everyone on earth has the same criteria as yours. It is simply not true.
Can you imagine how cool it would be to have worked at Bell Labs with all the tools, capabilities and investment funds that only a large company can provide?
If marketing/advertising tickles your fancy, can you imagine working with a $100M budget on a global campaign? Not often a small company opportunity.
If working on society's ills turns you on, the government competes with anyone on providing you with a place to really make a difference. As frustrating as the bureauracy might be, there are some things only governments can do. How about working on solving cancer or AIDS at the US National Institutes of Health.
Is the desire to meet people from other cultures something that would enrich your life? Try working for a large firm that operates around the globe with today's collaborative technologies allowing you to get to know people in India, China, Brazil,and Australia (Obviously for a US worker. I think the Aussies already know themselves).
I could go on forever. It's not the size of company but the opportunity you make for yourself. Some folks prefer to work in a small environment where you know everyone and there is little bureaucracy. That's terrific! But it doesn't float everone's boat.
Posted by Jeff at April 5, 2007 8:47 AM
Excellent point Josh. When the owner is leading the company, their vision is driving them. If they are a good leader, that vision is shared by others, who in turn want to work hard to accomplish it. In the absence of that additional motivation, the only driving factor becomes the money. When the "professional managers" step in, the original vision and motivation can all too easily be lost. I think that that makes a very strong case for the necessity of leadership development and a succession plan. When the owner hands over the reins, wouldn't it be great if it was to someone that shared the same values/vision/motivation that were originally so important?
Posted by Nick Adams at April 5, 2007 8:47 AM
This is an excellent post. We highlited it today in my Mid-Week Review of the Business Blogs at
There are two important points. One is that people like to have a purpose beyond profit and that the purpose can be the driver.
Second, is that the purpose needs to be clear to people in the group. Obviously, the bigger the group, the harder it is to do.
Posted by Wally Bock at April 5, 2007 10:11 AM
Still, however good small business may be, which is not my experience, is it not the case that large organizations, especially government organizations, from the Army to the DOJ, inevitably will exist, and must work with some degree of effectiveness and efficiency, including how they treat their employees?
Posted by wmmbb at April 5, 2007 10:30 AM
Chris - I think your point about purpose is broadly correct. However, I'm not so sure that it needs to be some kind of altruistic, "we're improving mankind" purpose. Also, I think you're being very naïve and idealistic when you say, "...everyone comes to work wanting to do a good job…" Leaving aside that some people really are lazy, malcontented or even disruptive the point here is that there are many people who, at best, want to come to work, put in 8 hours and then get away as quickly as possible without doing too much.
There's a theme running through some recent postings which goes, "Get out of the low-value work and focus on value-added, creative, cutting edge stuff." Fine, I've no argument against this - to an extent. Because wherever you live, someone's still got to stack the shelves in your local supermarket and someone's got to drive the delivery truck and someone's got to sweep the streets and someone's got to empty the bins and someone's got to process your credit card application etc etc etc. A lot of these folk simply won't accept that sweeping the road etc is all about, "...make(ing) positive changes to our world…" but they'd probably accept that if they're treated with some basic decency and given targets that are applicable to their own jobs and they're shielded from the corporate waffle then they'll have a bit of pride in doing a good job and providing the sort of service they'd expect from others.
A purpose beyond profit? Yes: for many people it's simply about doing a decent job, being treated decently and being paid decently. It's about dignity.
Posted by Mark JF at April 5, 2007 10:42 AM
I think that motivation and purpose is fueled internally for the most part. There is no denying though, that the processes that Big Cos require often cause lethargy and fatigue in their employees. Our individual motivation in process-controlled environments might very well wither over time; and many who entered service with aplomb often become monotonous cogs over time as they themselves become entwined in the process. The lifer with GM begins to accept business as usual after 15 years, often as a result of the bureaucratic processes implanted to make large organizations as efficient as possible.
This is changing now I think. Perhaps because of the love that new technologists have for the technology that they have a hand it creating (i.e. Google). Assembly line work has its place in the history books, although there are still some big cos that still incorporate assembly line leadership methods.
I know that for many of my colleagues in the USAF between 1992-1999, flying below the radar was a game often played; and it was easy to hide your slacking in such a large organization. But was it the Big Co. that sucked the motivation out of these people or was it their individual ethic nurtured over time within themselves? Can Big Cos or Small Cos for that matter fulfill an individuals basic needs, required, as Maslow says, before reaching self actualization? You can bring a horse to water...
In my international experience, I often witnessed that organizations which live by regulations often die by them.
I see both sides. But I tend to conclude that it is more difficult for Big Cos to foster a purpose-driven environment. Then, it might just have to do with the inherent difficulty of effectively communicating a vision and purpose to the masses. Our country is divided as a result of this difficulty. Consensus is more difficult to achieve in large groups.
Posted by Tom O'Leary at April 5, 2007 12:26 PM
Interesting post and thread. I tend to agree with most of what Jeff has said here. Generalization are dangerous. Enterprises whether they are large or small, commercial or nonprofit, church or state, can be good or bad.
Strong Leaders in any type or size of organization will create and communicate the vision that makes people want to be part of the enterprise and contribute to its success. Passion for a shared vision and a common purpose whether making widgets, teaching children or curing cancer is the effective driver. It's obviously tougher in a larger organization but this is Leadership.
Back in January Tom posted an audioblog entitled Excellence in Motion wherein he marvelled at the artistry exhibited by a Ralph Supermarket delivery man. http://www.tompeters.com/entries.php?note=009523.php
"Excellence" can be found at all levels of an enterprise and in any type of job. The "purpose" the we are talking about here is sometimes as simple as being driven by personal pride and a desire to perform professionally as we assume Tom's deliveryman was doing.
I also agree with Mark JF, it's about dignity.
Thanks all for the interesting thread!
Posted by Peter A. Mello at April 5, 2007 10:29 PM
I agree Peter. Good leaders can effectively communicate a vision and even inspire a purpose-driven environment in both big and small companies. The larger the company, though, the higher number of ears upon which that message falls flat. Just human nature and the nature of mass communication and inference. The larger the crowd, the more opposing views, critical voices, personality conflicts, etc.
Leaders in large public corporations with shareholder voices in the background will have their shareholder purposes to consider as well, and for most shareholders, that purpose has to do with the bottom line. Not saying that good leaders can't balance both, but there is no denying that a 'true value' purpose is more difficult to achieve or communicate properly with shareholder noise in the background.
Posted by Tom O'Leary at April 6, 2007 12:39 PM
Tom - picking up your point, I'm convinced that a significant reason for the failure of large-company communication is that the stated purpose is often too vague or too removed from everyday life. "Generate world class returns" or "Provide shareholder value" might mean something to the C-suite and corporate execs (even if "world class" and "value" isn't defined!) but it's hardly an inspiring rallying call to the helpdesk or the warehouse that's 2,000 miles away or even on a different continent / culture.
More often than not, success boils down to local management providing an environment in which local staff feel a sense of purpose and which allows them and the company to flourish. Trying to find a value that everyone can unite around becomes more difficult the larger and more disparate an organisation becomes but picking a value that is focused on serving your customers strikes me as usually the best. If it means leaving out all the usual corporate bull about returns, value etc etc - good. A CEO needs to decide if he wants to send a message to umpteen thousands of people he's never going to meet or to a group of Directors and shareholders he will get regular opportunities to talk with. Let everyone realise that you've got to get happy, paying customers on board before all that other stuff kicks in sets the right tone for me.
Posted by Mark JF at April 6, 2007 4:01 PM
The story I'm reminded of is another old motivational chestnut: The bishop goes to the site of his new cathedral to see how work is progressing. He asks a bored-looking mason what he's doing, and the man says "Laying bricks." He asks a grumpy construction foreman what he's doing, and he replies "Trying to get these lazy @#$%s to do their jobs." After dozens of such conversations, he spots a kid who's hauling mortar; he's dirty, ragged, and doing a back-breaking job, but he has a big smile on his face. The bishop asks what he's doing, and he replies "Building a cathedral!"
I want to work for that kid's manager.
Posted by Paula at April 6, 2007 4:44 PM
Nice one Paula. Such attitudes are more than likely not fostered by some self-prescribed "good" leader, but by an internal positive outlook on life that was nurtured over years of gracious living and being appreciative for what life has to offer. That sort of outlook doesn't occur as a result of an in-house training seminar. If only we could bottle it!
Posted by Tom O'Leary at April 6, 2007 6:59 PM
This is the CORE..I am working alot on purpose now.
Posted by Raimo van der KLein at April 13, 2007 5:42 PM
Before blogging became all the rage, Tom was posting book reviews and Observations (essentially early blog posts) to this site. You can find the archives below.
What we're talking about
on the front page.


text:
Average Review Rating:
based on 10 reviews.
Excellent trip, two of my must do list in one holiday.
The trip lived up to expectation and was one of a lifetime. The ruins in Peru were breathtaking and…
A fabulous trip. Well balanced and full of interest with excellent walks and snorkelling.
Exodus also recommends for you...
This is your wishlist, a place to store trips you are interested in to help you navigate around the site.
Login above to retrieve a previously saved list or
Click on 'Add to wishlist' to pin trips here.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Teen Arrested After Police Pursuit
16-Year-Old Arrested On Evasion, Hit-And-Run Charges
Posted: 08/21/2012
Last Updated:
472 days ago
A 16-year-old boy is under arrest Tuesday after leading San Diego police on a chase through Grant Hill.
» Sign Up For Breaking News Alerts» Like Us On Facebook» Follow Us On Twitter
The chase happened after midnight when the driver failed to stop as police tried to pull him over for driving without headlights on."One of our officers was trying to initiate a traffic stop on a vehicle that was driving without its lights," said Sgt. John Harberth of the San Diego Police Department. "The vehicle took off on the officer, sped down L Street, ran several stop signs, actually rear-ended another vehicle, turned around and came down eastbound on Imperial where both the driver and the passenger ended up bailing from the car."The teen, along with another juvenile, jumped out of car while on the 3100 block of Imperial Avenue and fled towards some homes, according to a source.The car, which was left with the engine on, rolled down the street before crashing into a fence.Police used a helicopter and a K-9 unit to search for the teens, according to a source.The driver is currently being held in Juvenile Hall and is facing felony evasion, hit-and-run and curfew violation charges.Copyright Do you have more information about this story? Click here to contact usCopyright 2012 by 10News.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


text:
New Cadillac CTS-V Coupe For Sale Near Boston, MA
Don't see what you're looking for?
Order a customized vehicle from a dealer near you!
By submitting this form, I confirm that I have read and agree to CarGurus' Terms and Conditions of Use and Privacy Policy, and provide my electronic signature consenting to being contacted by the seller of this car via various means including by phone at the number provided, text message, email, automatic telephone dialing system and/or an artificial or prerecorded voice. This consent isn't required as a condition to purchase services or products.
1Exact Matches
Price Range $75,140
Olsen R C Cadillac
Woburn, MA (10 miles)
9 reviews
Latest Olsen R C Cadillac User Review
Top New Cadillac CTS-V Coupe Matches from Olsen R C Cadillac
2014 Cadillac CTS-V Coupe Base Used Cars in Woburn, MA 01801
Price: $75,140
Location: Woburn, MA 01801
Average time on market:
51 days
Transmission: Automatic
Color: Black Diamond Tricoat
New 2014 Cadillac CTS-V Coupe Base for sale
- $75,140 with Light Package,
Leather Seats,
Ambient Light Package,
Navigation System


text:
The Sound of Music Tour & Show by GRAY LINE Salzburg Sightseeing
Book this tour
To get started, choose an available date below to see prices.Why Book With Us?
- Secure your Seat! Confirmed Online Reservations.
- Read Reviews of our Tours & Activities by customers who have experienced them.
- SMS confirmation of your Tour Booking.
Tour Itinerary
Our bus company (Albus) was involved in the making of the film guaranteeing you first hand information on our most unique Sound of Music tour. Maria took our bus - how about you?
Relive with us the true story of the von Trapp family which was filmed as the "Sound of Music" in the Salzburg area. The tour has been Salzburg's most popular tour since 1972 and is a combination of this historical city itself and the beautiful Lakes & Mountains area.
We show you the highlights and film locations:
Palace of Leopoldskron: the family had pink lemonade on the terrace where Baroness Schröder and Maria danced with the Baron on the balcony. The children and Maria were on the boat and fell into the water of this lake.
The gazebo at the Palace of Hellbrunn: Liesl and Rolf sang "I am 16 going on 17" and Maria and the Baron sang "Something Good". The gazebo is in the garden of this hunting castle, built in the first half of the 17th century.
The Abbey of Nonnberg: Was used in the movie to perform the song "Maria" and in the scene when the children came to the gate to ask Maria to return to their home. Maria and the Baron were married here in 1927.
St Gilgen/Lake Wolfgang: Scenery shown at the beginning of the film. The village is situated on the north-west lakeside on the Wolfgangsee. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's mother was born here.
The collegiate church of Mondsee: The enormous church of Mondsee was the scene for the wedding of Maria and the Baron in the movie. Inside this wonderful church Maria, together with Liesl walked down the aisle to meet the Baron on the staircase.
In the evening, enjoy the Sound of Salzburg Show with the Salzburg Sound of Music-Singers!
Free hotel pick up service (for tour only)!


text:
Internet Telephony Magazine Click here to read latest issue Subscribe for FREE - Click Here
CUSTOMER Click here to read latest issue Subscribe for FREE - Click Here
Cloud Computing Magazine Click here to read latest issue Subscribe for FREE - Click Here
M2M Evolution Magazine Click here to read latest issue Subscribe for FREE - Click Here
August 2000
New Products For Voice, Recording And E-Commerce
Multimedia communications. Growing volumes of e-mail. Click-and-run browsers who could have been satisfied customers. With these types of concerns daily impacting the conduct of e-business, it may be forgotten that the original goal was generating a bottom line in black ink. The challenge is not simply to provide more channels of communications, but to effectively control and manage online communications that both attract and retain customers.
Brightware, Inc. recently launched Brightware 2000, described by the company as a more intelligent approach for helping both Web site visitors and online businesses establish and maintain effective relationships on the Web. The Brightware 2000 suite unifies Brightware's Web Assistance, Email Assistance and Live Assistance products. It incorporates an intelligent self-service hub with a fully integrated, multichannel contact center, designed to support e-commerce interactions across all online touchpoints. Brightware's automation technology is designed to provide accurate and consistent responses to e-customer inquiries by leveraging intelligence gathered from customer profile information, the nature of the inquiry and customizable business rules to provide cost-effective interactions. The intent is to balance the needs of customers against the costs of serving them through each online channel.
Coinciding with the release of Brightware 2000, the company unveiled two new products, Brightware Concierge and Brightware Converse. Concierge is a Web-based customer assistance hub designed to guide customers to information or resources on a Web site or escalate an inquiry through the most appropriate and cost-effective channel. It integrates to a Web site through a simple "Ask A Question" button. Among its capabilities, Concierge displays existing Web site content that is relevant to an inquiry; can dynamically compose Web pages to answer common questions and integrate information from third-party applications; engage in automated dialogs that can recommend an appropriate product or solution for the customer; and escalate the inquiry to the contact center and select the online service channel based on the company's business rules.
Brightware Converse, an integrated live chat product, works in conjunction with Brightware's Web and Email Assistance products to provide a unified desktop for customer service representatives. The product is designed to furnish robust routing and blended queuing functions for managing e-mail and live chat interactions while leveraging the same resources. It contains pre-composed responses routed to agents as well as automated responses for routine questions that are sent to the customer. Converse also features a shared knowledge base and customer interaction database, common business rules, a supervisor desktop and several reports. No. 525, www.ccsmag.com/freeinfo
[return to the top]
In May of this year, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) acknowledged the submission of the VoiceXML specification. Its future adoption by the W3C should accelerate and expand the reach of the Internet through voice-enabled Web content and services. VoiceXML was created by the VoiceXML Forum and is supported by more than 150 companies, including AT&T, IBM, Lucent Technologies, Motorola and Nuance.
Nuance Communications announced the availability of V-Builder 1.0, a software development tool for building VoiceXML-based speech recognition applications that can be accessed over the telephone. With its intuitive, graphical, drag-and-drop development environment, V-Builder is designed for professional Web and speech developers to create high-quality voice Web sites. Using V-Builder, developers can combine the simplicity of VoiceXML with SpeechObjects (Nuance's open, reusable speech components) to create complete speech applications that can access databases and Internet content. V-Builder enables developers to drag and drop VoiceXML objects and SpeechObjects into an application and customize them without writing code. A graphical grammar editor and prompt management system are included to simplify the definition of valid input into speech applications and the prompts that are played to callers. The resulting voice sites can use Nuance's speech recognition and voice authentication software to enable telephone access to a broad range of applications. V-Builder will be available at no cost through the Nuance Development Network (NDN) at www.nuance.com, along with the speech recognition software to develop and test applications on the desktop. V-Builder runs on Windows NT and can be integrated or bundled with third-party tools such as interactive voice response (IVR) tools and Web development tools.
Nuance also announced the Voice Site Staging Center, a 24-by-7 interactive testing center that aids developers by allowing them to test their voice Web applications over the phone using the Nuance Voyager voice browser. The center is intended to expedite time to market by providing the necessary deployment infrastructure for testing, allowing developers to focus their efforts on application development, and reducing the cost of development equipment. The Voice Site Staging Center is a free service to members of the Nuance Developer Network (NDN) and will be hosted by Interactive Telesis through a partnership with Nuance. No. 526, www.ccsmag.com/freeinfo
An integral part of any call center is its recording system: it is used for training agents, ensuring quality across a campaign, legal compliance and more. ASC, which has been producing recording and communications devices for more than 35 years, has released its MARATHON product suite, which is designed to fill the recording needs of a wide spectrum of industries.
MARATHON systems provide an expanded hard disc drive for extended record and replay capability and the system may be equipped with DVD, MOD or DAT (DDS 1, 2, 3 and 4) archive drives to provide thousands of hours of storage capacity. They are also designed to be integrated into almost every user network supporting TCP/IP, allowing thousands of networked channels to be accessed via LAN/WAN.
All MARATHON systems can be operated locally using a mouse and keyboard or remotely from a networked PC Workstation. Each recorder can accommodate various channel configurations with the ability to network multiple units in any combination with other recorders within the MARATHON suite. Additionally, an API is available to allow you to integrate playback into an existing application.
Transactions, inquiries and other important activities can be accessed quickly by capturing the customer number, account number, calling party ID and/or user ID and integrating it with the audio. Call information from the ACD, PBX or IVR can be obtained via the CTI link or the customer database. This information is then stored in the database of the MARATHON as well as the CTI server providing additional search criteria.
The architecture of the MARATHON is fully compatible with digital (E1, T1, PCM, ISDN) and analog communication systems, most turret systems, PBXs, LANs and ACDs. This integration allows for the capture of the call-related data pertinent to the recorded voice.
ASC provides three versions of the MARATHON. MARATHON PRO was designed to handle high volume professional environments that require a reliable and secure system. An easy-to-use interface with integrated track-ball mouse is available on the front panel of the PRO to allow for local control and redundancy in high volume applications. Each recorder can support from 8 to 128 channels with the ability to network thousands of channels.
MARATHON ADVANCED can be installed in a 19" rack or as desktop unit. This system can be operated locally using a mouse and keyboard or remotely from a PC Workstation. The scaleable design can accommodate from 8 to 64 channels with the ability to network multiple units within the MARATHON family of recorders, to support thousands of channels.
MARATHON COMPACT is housed in a PC tower. The system can be operated locally using a mouse and keyboard, or remotely from a networked PC Workstation. Each recorder can accommodate 4 to 32 channel configurations with the ability to network multiple units in any combination with other recorders from the MARATHON suite. No. 527, www.ccsmag.com/freeinfo
[return to the top] [ return to the August 2000 table of contents ]


text:
ANHRI repeats the call: Release El Bagadi
Cairo 17 April 2012
ANHRI repeats its call upon Saudi authorities to release opinion prisoner Mohamed El Bagadi who is poisoned in Al Ha'er prison since 21 March 2011 and recently was sentenced by 4 years imprisonment and a ban from travelling for 5 more years. El Bagadi went on hunger strike since 21 February to protest against the ill-treatment in prison.
SCC of the Ministry of Interior on 10 April, ruled an imprisonment for a period of 4 years and a travel ban for 5 years against the human rights activist "Mohammed bin Saleh Al Bagadi" (34 years), accused of several charges, including incitement against the regime, and supporting the uprising of Bahrain, and distribution of prohibited publications. Al Bagadi before, had joint a sit-in in front of the Interior Ministry demanding the release of detainees without trails in Saudi prisons as well as assistance to the families of these detainees, while Saudi authorities considered what he did a crime punishable by law so he was arrested from his home in the city of "Buraida" in Qassim on March 21, 2011, till the judgment was ruled against him.
It is worth noting that Al Bagadi who is one of the founders of Arabia political and civil rights organization (Hasm) – has started an indefinite hunger strike on 21 February protesting against the continued detention to date and ill-treatment in prison, and he refused to recognize the court considering his case for lacking a minimum of justice and impartiality expressed in not allowing him to bring legitimate agents for his defense. His strike was escalated on the seventh of April to a drinking strike too which made him repeatedly falls fainting threatened by death, while the Ministry of Interior denied the news and confirmed that he is in good health and eats regularly!
ANHRI said: "The case of Al Bagadi is the same of many detainees within the Kingdom, who have been suffering years of arbitrary detention without a fair trial, therefore the Saudi authorities should drop all charges against El Bagadi and release him immediately without conditions in order to preserve the life of a human rights activist, who faces death in Saudi prisons."
"Saudi government should respect the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees every citizen the right to hold political opinion and to express it without fear of exposure to bodily harm or psychology by his government." ANHRI added.
Related Information:
Saudi Arabia: ANHRI demanding the release of human rights Muhammad El Bagadi.
Also available in : العربية


text:
Complete Test Bank & Solutions Manual for Textbooks
solution manual for Financial reporting, financial statement analysis, and valuation: a strategic perspective, 6th edition, clyde p. Stickney | paul brown | james m. Wahlen,
Instructor Instructors Solutions Manual Solution Manuals Test Banks Bank Answers Answer Book Textbook eBook eBooks eTextbook e-textbook International Global Edition
solutions manual Fundamentals Accounting Principles Wild Shaw Chiappetta twentieth edition
Accounting for Governmental and Non-Profit Entities Wilson 15th Edition Solutions Manual
Accounting Tools for Business Decision Making Kimmel 3rd Edition Solutions Manual
Essentials of Statistics for Business and Economics Anderson 5th Edition Solutions Manual
Financial Accounting Tools for Business Decision Making Kimmel 5th Edition Solutions Manual
Intermediate Accounting Kieso 13th Edition Solutions Manual
Intermediate Accounting Spiceland 5th Edition Solutions Manual
Use coupon below to get discount at eCampus.com!
$3 off textbook orders over $75
$4 off textbook orders over $90
$5 off textbook orders over $100
Copy the coupon code before clicking the button!
Merchant | Format | Price | |
eCampus | Paperback |
Prepared by Mark Dugopolski, the Student's Solutions Manual contains complete worked-out solutions to all of the odd-numbered exercises in the text. It also contains solutions for all exercises in ...
Student Solutions Manual for Mckeague's Introductory and Intermediate Algebra
Student's Solutions Manual for use with Intermediate Algebra
Student's Solutions Manual for use with Intermediate Algebra
Student's Solutions Manual for use with Intermediate Algebra
Complete Solutions Manual for McKeague's Basic College Mathematics: A Text/Workbook
Core Concept for McKeague's Intermediate Algebra
Instructor's Resource Manual for Kaseberg's Intermediate Algebra, 3rd
Complete Solutions Manual for Kaseberg's Introductory Algebra, 3rd
Digital Video Companion for McKeague's Intermediate Algebra, 7th


text:
- This charming French cafe is true to its roots; the entire restaurant could be set down in Paris and no one would know it was an import. In addition, many of the servers are French. Chef and owner Didier Bloch creates splendid dishes, including the excellent Shrimps Provecale prepared with olive oil, garlic and personally blended "herbes de Provence." Want to experience just the ambiance? Stop in for a cup of cappuccino or a dessert. Reservations are recommended for parties of five or more.
- © wcities.com 2013
Ask a local about Café des Beaux Arts
Ask Palm Desert Locals about Café des Beaux Arts
- Details
- visit website
- tel: +1 760 346 0669
- send email
- 73-640 El Paseo
- Palm Desert, CA 92260
- Call for seasonal hours
- User Rating


text:
I need to sell my size 5 viking drysuit due to it is just too large for me. It has internal suspenders, dry gloves, latex Surveyor style dry hood, carry bag, repair kit. Red and Black. Like new, no patches, no wear marks, seal excellent. Totally dry. Asking $1200 for entire set. Please see 14 pics at my pictures on my portfolio.
This suit will fit a person up to 6'6" and probably 300 lbs or so. It is the largest suit Viking makes.


text:
PSP Holster for 9 oz Bear Spray or 16 oz Magnum Pepper Spray
Product #: 814958
Suggested Products
- Real Avid Zipwire Pistol Cleaning Kit .22 Caliber to .45... $29.99 Available
- KA-BAR TDI LDK Knife 1-5/8" Stainless Steel Blade and Handle... $14.99 Available
- TOPS Knives Survival Whistle Polymer Black Pack of 5... $12.00 Out of Stock, Backorder OK
- "The Combative Perspective: The Thinking Man's Guide to... $10.99 Available
- Streamlight Key-Mate Flashlight Green LED Aluminum Black... $11.29 Available
Others Bought
- Coghlan's Lightstick Assortment Pack of 4... $5.99 Available
- Nite Lite Tracker Rechargeable Headlamp Package 80,000 Candle... $104.99 Available
- Mountain House Granola with Blueberries and Milk Freeze Dried... $4.49 Available
- Coghlan's Four Function Whistle Black... $3.99 Available
- Wise Food Creamy Pasta with Vegtables and Chicken Freeze Dried... $5.99 Available
- 5ive Star Gear Mil-Spec Wateright Matchbox Polymer Olive Drab... $1.99 Available
- ScentBlocker Men's WindTec Fleece Jacket... $34.41 Select Options
- Natural Gear Long Sleeve T-Shirt... $13.99 - $14.99 Select Options
- GHG Hooded Sweatshirt Cotton... $49.99 - $54.99 Select Options
Product Information
The PSP BNH9 Pepper Spray Holster is designed to accommodate the 16 oz. Magnum Pepper Spray can and the 9 oz. Guard Alaska Bear Spray. The holster features durable nylon construction with a Velcro flap for securing the pepper spray. The belt loop will fit most belts.
Know someone who may like this? Email this Page to a Friend
Customer Reviews
The statements and opinions expressed within Customer Reviews reflect each author's personal perspective and do not imply endorsement by MidwayUSA, its Employees or any other organization. Customers should in no way infer that MidwayUSA has validated review information as safe, accurate or appropriate.
NOTE: Prices, specifications and availability are subject to change
without notice.
We reserve the right to correct typographic, photographic and/or descriptive errors.
We reserve the right to correct typographic, photographic and/or descriptive errors.


text:
When it comes to search engine optimization, many people have preconceived ideas about the whole thing.
The truth of the matter is that the field is constantly evolving. What works today may not be valid tomorrow.
If you are living in Google's past, rather than the reality of today's Google, you could be in for a disappointment. To help you better get the differences between Google today and yesterday, here are four faulty assumptions about SEO:
- "We can outsource link building"
- "The opinions of our site users doesn't impact search rank"
- "Content with our keywords is more important than engaging our users"
- "Gaining a top ranking is our priority"
Everyone Knows SEO Status Quo – Exploit Online Demand.
Content Curator Cendrine Marrouat
Cendrine Marrouat is a journalist, reviewer, blogger and author located in Canada. She is also the founder of Creative Ramblings, a social media blog focusing on entrepreneurs and small businesses, and teaches classes on social media 101. Her latest release, "The Little Big eBook on Blogging: 40 Traffic Generation Tips," is a comprehensive resource that provides bloggers of all levels with essential information and precise guidance to attract quality traffic to their blogs.


text:
- Age / Gender:
- 19, Female
- Location:
- New Zealand
- Joined:
- 1/12/08
- All Stats >
Hey I'm Sophia, just got back on here.
User Statshot
- Community Stats
Level 11 Blank Slate
Normal Whistle
Ranked as Safety Patrol
Recent Game Medals
Taste Pain
5 Points
Drink a whole bottle of Chilli Sauce, and eat the actual bottle too.
Medal Stats.
5 Points
Take a break and have something to eat outside of battle.
Medal Stats.
Slime Cat King
25 Points
Find all the Slime Cats, and rule the world map.
Medal Stats.
Level 30
10 Points
Reach level 30. Should be strong enough to take on the final boss. Almost.
Medal Stats.
NPC Servant
10 Points
Complete 20 quests for NPCs. Saving the world can wait.
Medal Stats.
Leet Hacker
25 Points
Defeat the glitch on any difficulty.
Medal Stats.
Power of Courage
10 Points
Survive a powerful attack with 1HP.
Medal Stats.
5 Points
Save up 1,000,000 chocolate coins.
Medal Stats.
Death Penalty
10 Points
Kill a foe with an instant-death attack.
Medal Stats.
Keen Eye
25 Points
Discover 30 secrets. There's actually way more than that though.
Medal Stats.
Total Medals Earned: 1,030 (From 162 different games.)
Latest Shared Creations
My Pumpkin
Added to pumpkins for Carve n' Share Nov 18, 2010.
Load Level
My Pumpkin
Added to pumpkins for Carve n' Share Nov 18, 2010.
Load Level
Favorite Movies
An Unfortunate Girl:ONE
Rated 4.3741 Stars
The story of a young girl who lives in dark, rainy town.
Rated 4.3177 Stars
The world faces their first contact with alien life.
Comedy - Original
Where You Belong
Rated 3.1553 Stars
A bear falls off from his desk away from his friend, he needs to find his way back.
~ Life ~
Rated 3.7804 Stars
a new perspective of how life in romance can be..
Favorite Games
Epic Battle Fantasy 3
Rated 4.4201 Stars
Travel a vast world, collect equips, learn powerful skills and slay legions of foes!
Adventure - RPG
Elephant Quest
Rated 4.4217 Stars
Go on an adventure to reclaim your missing bowler cap!
Adventure - RPG
Glory hole hentai RPG
Rated 4.3244 Stars
Earn money for college by sucking guys off through a glory hole!
Simulation - Dating
Fallen From The Moon
Rated 4.1709 Stars
There was once a boy who lived on the moon. Until the full moon.
Adventure - Point 'n Click


text:
In this article, I will show you some of the important tips that may be small but can be very fruitful for your exercise workouts. You can follow them not only to improve your muscle building but for your safety as well. These tips are as under:
1- If you are a starter, try to have a friend of yours who can help you in doing your exercises and lifting weights. It is important because in the start you are new to bodybuilding and weight lifting and may fall a victim to any injury. Another important point is that you must make sure that you perform your exercise correctly and at correct angels. A friend with you in the start can ensure all this.
2- Try using gloves while lifting weights. You can use leather gloves to achieve this. These gloves help you to grip the rods and dumbbells and also prevent you from getting infection through the rust on the training equipment. During the exercise it normally happens that your hands start sweating and you start losing the grip. Therefore gloves can help you getting your workouts done correctly with a solid grip.
3- Always warm up your body before doing exercise. It is very important because when you warm up your body, your muscles and tissues get ready for having workouts and undergoing heavy weightlifting. If you start doing the exercise right away, there is every chance that you may get any sort of injury or muscle cramp. Always warm up for 2-3 minutes before exercise.
4- Take pre and post workout supplements to get maximum out of bodybuilding. Pre workout supplements ensure that your body has enough energy and stamina to perform repetitions during workouts and undergo extensive exercise. Post workout supplements are meant to provide the energy that is lost during the exercise workouts. They provide energy to your body and hence help muscles to grow and recover.


text:
Located on the grounds of the Cemetery, Our Lady of Sorrows Chapel (also known as Our Lady of Dolours) is a municipally registered heritage property. On August 31, 1843, nearly 2000 volunteers marched from St. Marys Basilica on Barrington Street and, under the direction of Archbishop Walsh, built the structure in a single day. It is reported that the work progressed rapidly, efficiently, and cheerfully.
This simple chapel is built of wood on an ironstone foundation. It has a square tower at the front, a semi-circular apse and gothic-inspired windows. The east window of the chapel is made of stained glass with roundels considered to be of Flemish origin brought to Halifax possibly in the 1850s. The window on the south aisle has a single roundel of Our Lady. Inside the chapel there is a simple altar of pine and pews for sitting and kneeling also made of pine. The chapel seats a congregation of seventy.
At the base of the Chapel's altar are fiberglass replicas of rare medieval sculptures depicting three scenes from the Passion of Christ. It is believed that the original wooden sculptures were brought from Europe by Archbishop William Walsh and installed in the Chapel in the late 1840's. The originals, which adorned the Chapel until approximately 1980, are now part of the permanent collection of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia.
Catholic Mass is celebrated at the Chapel once yearly, on September 15 which is the Catholic feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows.
Read period accounts of the construction.
Related Link:
Archbishop William Walsh [Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online]


text:
BOGOTA (Reuters) – The Galeras volcano in southern Colombia erupted on Saturday, shooting rock and ash and prompting authorities to order the evacuation of about 8,000 people.
Brazil death toll from floods, mudslides rises to 64
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – Rescue crews on Saturday intensified the search for victims at a plush Brazilian beach resort ravaged by mudslides and flooding that have killed at least 64 people in three states.
U.N. climate talks end with bare minimum agreement
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – U.N. climate talks ended with a bare-minimum agreement on Saturday when delegates "noted" an accord struck by the United States, China and other emerging powers that falls far short of the conference's original goals.
Obama: Copenhagen paves way for action on climate
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama on Saturday defended an international climate accord reached in Copenhagen as an "important breakthrough" but stressed that it was only a step toward curbing global carbon emissions.
U.N. climate meeting aims to agree new pact by the end of 2010
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – A U.N. climate meeting in Copenhagen committed on Saturday to try and complete its work on agreeing a new global pact by the end of 2010.
Some developing nations slam climate accord
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Several developing nations lined up on Saturday to reject a deal worked out by U.S. President Barack Obama and major emerging economies to help fight global warming at the end of a U.N. summit.
Merkel, Brown accept Copenhagen deal, wanted more
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown accepted a Copenhagen climate deal on Saturday, but said they had wanted more.
Coral climate crisis puts 250 million at risk: U.N.
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – More than 250 million people risk losing their livelihoods because of dying tropical coral reefs in what a senior U.N. environmental economist said on Saturday was part of a double climate crisis facing the world.
Farmers must earn carbon market rewards: report
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack said on Saturday farmers worldwide must be rewarded for fighting global warming, for example using carbon markets which would add to public climate cash.
Australians walk to pressure Copenhagen
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Thousands took to the streets of Australia's main cities on Saturday at the start of an international day of action to pressure the U.N. conference in Copenhagen for strong action on climate change, organizers said.


text:
Windows dominoes game software: Play a different game dominoes on your pc, A networked dominoes game, up to four players, Try this challenging collection of 20 games! and more.
Related popular searches: best windows xp dominoes game, free windows dominoes game, windows dominoes game freeware, best dominoes game, dominoes 42 game freeware
KARIBINO Dominoes Plus 4.0.17
(not rated)
Platforms: | Homepage: http://www.karibino.com | ||
Type: Shareware | Releases: Feb 03, 2007 | ||||
Cost: $14.20US | Developer: HIBIS GAMES | ||||
Karibino Dominoes Plus is a realistic and challenging collection of 20 dominoes games such as Bergen, Block game, Muggins, Five Up, Sebastopol, Sedma... The game also features 3D graphics, players with their own tactics and voices, original and custom sceneries, music from CD or from audio files. If you thought dominoes were a too simple and boring game, you were wrong! |
file size: 7044k | Keywords: Dominos games, game, dominoes games, freeware, dominoes games online |
Domino Dilemma 1.2
(not rated)
Platforms: | Homepage: http://www.sapphiregames.com | ||
Type: Shareware | Releases: Aug 20, 2002 | ||||
Cost: $10.00US | Developer: Sapphire Games | ||||
In this perplexing puzzle, a set of dominoes will be laid out before you. There are 28 unique pieces (rectangles consisting of 2 squares) with pips from 0-0, 0-1, ..., to 6-6. Easy? Unfortunately, the dominoes' outlines are not displayed, and it is your job to work out the correct positioning of each domino. The game contains music, sound effects and true color graphics. It works in full screen mode at 800x600. |
file size: 1018k | Keywords: Domino, Enterprise, dominoes, free, game |
Dominoes For Windows 5.2
(not rated)
Platforms: | Homepage: http://windsweptsoftware.com/ | ||
Type: Shareware | Releases: Jan 15, 2001 | ||||
Cost: $14.95US | Developer: Windswept Software | ||||
The fun & addicting game of Dominoes. You get the two most popular games in the US & the UK, Sniff and Fives & Threes. With Sniff you drag and drop bones and score when the ends total a multiple of 5. If you can't make a play you draw from the bone pile until you can. With Fives & Threes you score when the ends total a multiple of 5 or 3. To make things more challenging there is no bone pile to bail you out and you must "peg out" exactly. |
file size: 2564k | Keywords: network, five, and, three, games |
Recent searches:


text:
The moment you catch the aroma of freshly baked cookies, see our warm, modern decor and meet our friendly staff, you will know that you have chosen the right hotel. The Country Inn & Suites Forest Lake, MN hotel provides quality accommodations, premium service and convenient amenities that make it ideal for business and leisure travelers alike. Enjoy premium amenities like free high-speed Internet, heated indoor pool and complimentary breakfast. In addition, our Forest Lake hotel is conveniently located near the area's best attractions, golf courses, shopping, dining, entertainment, business and cultural venues.
100% non-smoking facility
All of our hotel rooms in Forest Lake feature these convenient amenities:
Our Forest Lake, Minnesota hotel's free breakfast offers the following tasty items:
For lunch and dinner, Country Inn & Suites is near several local eateries, including:
Rooms: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Adults: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Children: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8


text:
Infosecurity Virtual Conference: featuring the great and the good and me
Mark this day and keep it clear: Tuesday 27 September. That's this coming Tuesday. It's the day of Infosecurity's Autumn Virtual Conference. And it's packed full of goodies: secure software development, responsible breach disclosure, tablets in the enterprise, governance and compliance, e-crime, a career in security and, of course, APTs.
And the speakers! Marc van Zadelhoff, Director of Strategy at IBM Security Solutions; Professor John Walker; Microsoft's Jeremy Dallman; Raj Samani, Strategy Advisor for the Cloud Security Alliance and CTO EMEA at McAfee; Chenxi Wang from Forrester; Paul Simmonds, co-founder of the Jericho Forum; and many more.
Oh yes. And me. E-crime. 11:00am. 27 September. Be there.
2011 UK Infosecurity Virtual Conference – Conference Programme
2011 UK Infosecurity Virtual Conference – Registration
The European Data Protection Supervisor is like Cnut facing down a tide of bureaucratic encroachment into our privacy
I should preface this post with two comments:
- My degree is in English Language and Literature. This leaves me sadly unqualified to understand European legalese, for which the minimum of a two-one in Contorted Logic is required.
- I like Peter Hustinx. I respect the European Data Protection Supervisor. But I cannot see him as anything other than a latter-day Cnut merely demonstrating that nothing can stop the tide of bureaucratic incursion into our personal privacy.
It is with this background that I looked at his latest 'Opinion' on the Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on European statistics on safety from crime. I own that I struggled as much to understand it as I did to stay awake; and had little success with either.
Article 8(2) to (4) of Directive 95/46/EC and Article 10(2) to (4) of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 contain exceptions to the prohibition of processing these categories of data. In the present case, Article 8(4) of Directive 95/46/EC and Article 10(4) of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001, which allow the processing of such data for reasons of "substantial public interest", could apply.
So I readily admit that I have not a clue what this Opinion is about, other than it appears that the EDPS is exhorting the EU to obey EU laws. And that might be the problem. EU law is a complex, contradictory mess. It can be accepted by most people that personal data can be kept private by making it anonymous. If data cannot be associated with any particular individual, then that personal data is confidential and effectively remains anonymous.
The problem is, the EU doesn't seem to understand what this means.
As regards the possibility of identifying data subjects, two different notions are relevant in the EU legislation on statistics: "confidential data" and "anonymous data". According to Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, data which allow statistical units (which might be natural persons, households, economic operators or other undertakings) to be "identified, either directly or indirectly", are considered "confidential data" and are therefore subject to statistical confidentiality. However, Regulation (EC) No 831/2002 defines confidential data as data "which allow only indirect identification".
Throughout this Opinion, poor Mr Hustinx has continually to specify which piece of EU legislation to which the EU should, in his opinion, adhere. That much is simply a farce. But the actual definition of legal anonymity beggars belief:
…the definition provided in Recital 26 of Directive 95/46/EC and Recital 8 of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001, according to which personal data are "rendered anonymous" when the data subject is "no longer" identifiable, taking into account "all the means likely reasonably to be used either by the controller or by any other person to identify the said person"
I have no idea what this means. But this is what it sounds like to me: anonymous does not legally mean anonymous, it means obfuscated. And obfuscation can be described as anonymous if the process of clarification would defeat the script kiddie in his bedroom. This means that data is still defined as legally anonymous even though it is not anonymous to the supercomputers of our own and/or foreign law enforcement or other agencies; or any other person or organization willing to use more resources than is likely reasonably to be used. In short, anonymous is meaningless.
So the moral of this little post is simple. If any European agency asks for your personal data and promises anonymity, don't give it up. Europe lies in the classic Orwellian fashion: it redefines the truth.
The worst enemy of women in business is women in politics
I've commented on Neelie Kroes' and Viviane Reding's EU desire to get more women into the higher echelons of business (Net neutrality and business gender neutrality in the EU) and absolutely endorse the intent. Here in the UK we have our own poor man's (sorry about the sexism) Kroes/Reding double act in the Harman/Cooper comedy pairing.
Tomorrow, with thanks to Guido pointing to the excellent WomenOn blog, Harman/Cooper will be hosting a ladies-only meeting + Ed Miliband. Guido, of course, sees the funny side of things:
…Harriet Harman and Yvette Cooper are hosting a 'What Women Want' meeting tomorrow at Labour Party conference. What they apparently don't want is men at the meeting. However Mrs Dromey and Mrs Balls are giving Ed Miliband a sex change for the day and making him an honorary woman so that he can address the meeting of the wimmin.
Ed Miliband to Have Sex Change Tomorrow
WomenOn sees the tragic side:
This is an outrage… It makes all those involved look out-of-touch, but more importantly, it does untold damage to the cause of equality for women. Why should men support equality for women if they are treated in this way?
Men, know your place! Harriet Harman doesn't want to hear you
And that's what it is: funny and tragic. The tragedy is that serious businessmen will continue to consider women as a lunatic fringe. All the good work done by Kroes/Reding, and indeed WomenOn, will be undone by the absurdly funny Harman/Cooper double act.


text:
Product Type: Boss tuners
Newest Review: ... turned the tuning key on my guitar and I played the guitar the needle on the Boss TU-80 screen moved to the centre indicating the right ... more
BOSS TU80 - Tuned to perfection!
Boss TU-80 Tuner and Metronome
Member Name: McBeer
Boss TU-80 Tuner and Metronome
Date: 23/09/10
Advantages: Cheap, reliable, two features in one
Disadvantages: Not great in low lighting
The Boss TU-80 is another of Boss' fantastic tuners!
Since playing guitar I have gone through a huge number of tuners. I used to easily lose them either at gigs or at practices. This is one tuner however that when I did lose I went straight back to the shop to buy exactly the same one!
The tuner itself is small in size making it perfect to fit into cases so whenever you need to travel its never a problem. Mine has travelled with me wherever I have been! The buttons are small but a good size to use and come in a bright orange colour making them easy to notice in dark areas.
I mainly use this for my electric guitar which is very simple to use. Simply plug in my cable between the tuner and the guitar and hit a string. Its very easy to identify when the string is out and what you need to do to tune it exactly. When you do get the correct pitch you hear a noise from the device letting you know.
I've also used this tuner several times with my electro-acoustic and find it just as easy to use. Not only can this tuner tune 6 string electric and acoustic, it also has the ability to tune bass and 7-string guitars making it very versatile.
Not only is this only a tuner however, it is also a metronome. A lot of musicians (mainly guitarists) I find don't seem to see why they would need a metronome at first. This comes clear after trying to practice with them in a band and seeing they have no timing what so ever! The metronome comes in very handy as it is built in. Before this I was always having to take a seperate tuner and metronome to practices! The beep is quite loud so easy to hear whilst playing.
The only disadvantage for this is that it isnt easy to use in venues where there is low light such as gigs. For this I purchased the Boss TU-2 which is a pedal and is easy to read from longer distances on stage.
For £15 however this tuner is definately a reccommendation.
Summary: A fantastic portable tuner and metronome
Processing/Quality: | ||
Reliability: | ||
Ease of use: | ||
Reception quality: | ||
Sound quality: |
More reviews in the field of Tuner
- Boss TU-80 Tuner and Metronome - it tunes and metronomes!
- Best basic tuner on the market!
- Basic is best for this Cambridge Audio DAB radio
- Pitch Perfect
- Denon quality at an affordable price.
- Boss TU80 Chromatic Tuner and Metronome
- A true design classic
- Murphy's singing has never sounded so good.
- Pricey but worth it
- Great Sound Quality & Simple to Use Make it Worthwhile


text:
Modern Pulic School - Lucknow
Modern Public School Gomti Nagar Lucknow Rubina Raza Schooling- Loreto Convent Lucknow.
SKATEISTAN - To live and skate in Kabul
Skateboarding in Afghanistan? Absolutely. As soon as Australian skateboarders Oliver Percovich and Sharna Nolan dropped their boards in Kabul in 2007
Rethinking Afghanistan: Care & Educate Children
In a year when the news from Afghanistan was full of conflict, when rulers and aide agencies scrambled
Environment Climate Change
Climate change is a long-term change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods of time


text:
Harvest Festival
Keep tradition going this season of giving thanks with a festival full of games, feasting, and music. Satisfy you stomach with hearty southern barbecue, fresh kettle corn, and cold drinks while the kids enjoy hayrides, pumpkin decorating, and lasso demonstrations! Relax on a warm blanket and soak up the cool fall weather next to friends and family. Mullet Hall Equestrian Center, 2662 Mullet Hall Rd., Johns Island. Saturday,11am-5pm. $5; free for child under 12. (843)795-4386, www.ccprc.com
November 3, 2012 - 11:00am - 5:00pm
Mullet Hall Equestrian Center


text:
When planning where to stay in Dubai for our holiday, we were overwhelmed with the positive reviews for this hotel. We were looking for a relaxed stay, with excellent service in a quiet environment and this hotel did not disappoint. The villas were beautiful with a private butler service and private pool. The service was outstanding. I would particularly like... More
- Reservation Options:
- TripAdvisor is proud to partner with Booking.com, Expedia, Asiatravel.com Holdings, Hotels.com, Agoda, Amex, Jumeirah International, Travelocity, Otel, Olotels, Priceline, Cheap Tickets, Orbitz and Tingo so you can book your Dar Al Masyaf at Madinat Jumeirah reservations with confidence. We help millions of travelers each month to find the perfect hotel for both vacation and business trips, always with the best discounts and special offers.
- Also Known As:
- Dar Al Masyaf At Madinat Jumeirah Hotel Dubai
- Dar Al Masyaf At Madinat Jumeirah Hotel
- Dar Al Masyaf


text:
Are you a terrorist?
I still can't really believe this is kosher. Has anyone heard it on the radio? I don't listen to TalkSport because I'd rather shut my face in a waffle iron, pounding the lid down repeatedly on my melting skull, so I have no idea whether this is true or not.
Paying with cash... keeping the curtains closed... keeping yourself to yourself... they don't seem much by themselves, but when put together... it's just about every fucking person in the world you fucking numbnuts. Seriously. Is this what the finest brains of MI5 have cooked up? People who close their curtains and aren't particularly sociable, or who - gasp - pay with cash? What kind of ludicrous profiling is that? I could shop half the elderly people on my estate. (Actually, that's not such a bad idea. I might be able to get to the front of the bus queue every now and then.)
Still, it does say "If you suspect it, report it". I suspect this is a massive fucking waste of time and taxpayers' money, so I report that whichever joker dreamt up this total crock of shit should be kicked down the fire escape with a bin-bag and a P45.
All I need now is a quote from some angry-sounding wanktank to flesh out the article, and we're done, so here goes.
Anton Vowl, of the Campaign To Stop Our Government From Pointlessly Scaremongering About Terrorism In A Way That Doesn't Fight Terrorism But Merely Ramps Up Fear Of Terrorism, said: "This is quite bad. I don't like it at all. Ooh, nasty."
Spotter's badge: @chickyog
Related posts:
This describes me, apart from I don't have curtains but a huge blind.
Talk Sport is the Daily Fail of the airwaves but that ad is too subtle for its listeners, they needed to chuck in: "and looks like a P*ki."
Clever. Very clever. These are all very innocuous behaviour patterns for English Little Old Ladies, but very, very suspicious for certain other groups. It leaves the beardy/brown/house-smells-of-foreign-food unsaid, but everyone knows what you mean.
Well, I'm Muslim, I'm not very socialable, and I usually pay in cash because I have a Building Society account (I give the interest to charity, btw) instead of a bank account. When can I expect the battering ram at the front door?
The blinds at Larrington Towers haven't been opened since well before 7/7. I am expecting a visit from the Arrest-O-Bots before the end of next week.
Surely this isn't real! Has it really come to this? I wonder is there's a new innovation in bettering ran technology I can take advantage of to start a new business?
My five year old keeps lowering the blinds claiming that he "can't see the television properly when the sun's shining"
And I have rarely seen him with a credit card…


text:
Last updated on 12/21/13 UTC
Shreve Overview
Coldwell Banker Helps You Learn More About Shreve, Ohio Real Estate
Shreve, Ohio is located in Wayne. Nearby cities and towns include Holmesville, Jeromesville, Millersburg, Nashville and Wooster. Shreve is a rural community with a population of 1,564. The median household income in Shreve is $43,564. 61% of residents are married and families with children reside in 30% of Shreve households. Half the population of Shreve commutes 19 minutes or more to work, with 70% of residents holding white collar jobs and 30% residents holding blue collar jobs.
The median age of homes in Shreve, OH is 40 years, with 64% of those homes owned, 24% rented and 10% not occupied. In the previous year, 0 Shreve properties were sold. The median sale price of a home in Shreve in the previous year was $60,550. Find a Coldwell Banker real estate agent in Shreve, Ohio today.
Homes for Sale around Shreve
200 Highland Blvd
Ashland, OH 44805
4 Beds, 1 Baths -
13487 Portage
Doylestown, OH 44230
2 Beds, 1 Baths -
288 Ridgeway Court
Howard, OH 43028
4 Beds, 2 Baths -
974 Smith
Ashland, OH 44805
3 Beds, 1 Baths -
460 Main St.
Wadsworth, OH 44281
3 Beds, 1 Baths -
29338 Township Road 30
Warsaw, OH 43844
3 Beds, 2 Baths -
Sullivan, OH 44880
3 Beds, 1 Baths -
12980 Hametown Road
Doylestown, OH 44230
2 Beds, 2 Baths
Ohio Demographics Data
Shreve Demographics Data
Ohio Real Estate Statistics
Shreve Real Estate Statistics
Shreve Real Estate Offices
Real Estate Careers Near Shreve
Sales Associate,
Coldwell Banker Ward Real Estate, Inc. |
Ashland, OH
Coldwell Banker Ward Real Estate, Inc., located in Ashland, OH A career as a real estate agent can provide both personal and financial rewards to self-directed individuals who are entrepreneurial, technologically resource...
Sales Associate,
Coldwell Banker Mattox McCleery, Realtors |
Mansfield, OH
Coldwell Banker Mattox McCleery, Realtors, located in Mansfield, OH A career as a real estate agent can provide both personal and financial rewards to self-directed individuals who are entrepreneurial, technologically resource...
Shreve Real Estate Agents


text:
Step 1: Supplies
1 Altoids Tin (empty)-this will be used to store all the items in the kit
1 Large Trash Bag-this have many uses including a poncho, shelter, or whatever else you can think of
5 Rubber Bands-3 will be used to wrap around the trash bag, 1 for the fishing line, and 1 for the cord
4 Fish Hooks and 20 Ft. of fishing line- these can be used to make a fishing rod, with which you can catch fish to eat
10 Ft. of Cord- this can be used to help make a shelter, keep food out of reach of bears, or whatever else you might need it for
1 BSA Hot Spark-this is flint and steel combination that serves as a fire starter if your matches won't lite
5 Matches-used to start fires
1 Match Striker Piece-used to strike matches on
1 Birthday Candle-this can be used to coat the cotton balls in wax to make them waterproof or as a temporary light source
2 Cotton Balls-great for starting fires especially in coated with wax or petroleum jelly
Lets get started!
Step 2: Rubberbanding and Placement of Trashbag
Step 3: Putting in some other stuff
1-40 of 239 | Next » |
I just uploaded my kit. I always find it amazing how many different ideas are out there for these kits.
Great kit for Scouts to carry!
I use a "trick" birthday candle in mine, as they relight if they are blown out.
Also, I replaced the striker for my hot spark with a P38 can opener.
@locofocos, N=awesome.
1-40 of 239 | Next » |


text:
Quick Jump Daily Digest
Thank you for your interest in the Quick Jump Daily Digest. Get notified of all new content on QJ in our free Daily Digest. To subscribe, enter your email address below and click the subscribe button.
Disgaea 3 Trophy patch finally comes to Europe, will be retroactive |
Listed in: PS3 Tags: NIS America
It took a bit of a while coming, but European gamers will soon have their hands onthe Tropies for Disgaea 3. NIS America not only confirmed the arrival of the Trophies to the Euro version of the game, they also revealed that yes, it will be retroactive.
The patch arrives to Euro shores on May 13th, 2010. From hereon out, you guys can now load up on your old saves, instantly unlocking the Trophies, FOR AS LONG as you've met the Trophy requirements.
Now all your hard work can finally be rewarded, albeit belatedly. Have fun!
Via [Gaming Union]
Related Articles:
100% of voters think this story ROCKS! |
RE: Disgaea 3 Trophy patch finally comes to Europe, will be retroactive —
2010-04-22 03:59
you guys should be happy! you're finally getting it!
sorry to hear that —
2010-04-22 04:38
i am disapointed to hear it will be retroactive, which i hope to hear is just a error... I dont see this going well for anyone =\
I understand —
2010-05-03 05:05
I waited just in case it was not retrospective but for those that have played it at least they don't have to start all over again... anyway I am still going through disgaea 1&2 lol so not much of a big issue for moi


text:
Why does the layout of cities matter so much in mobility?
Harvard's Raj Chetty says he and the other authors of the study were struck by the amount of variation in mobility across areas.
— marketplace.org
Perhaps you have noticed that commercial architecture lining roads in Maryland and Virginia looks more or less the same and not much different from strip malls and boxy stores lining roads in Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Texas, Ohio or Oregon. [...] Why do housing developments and retail shopping facilities look so much alike, given how much Americans value individuality, freedom of expression and independence? — washingtonpost.com
Current tag:
SUBMIT NEWS: submit in 60 seconds!


text:
You are not logged in | Login
Uploaded 2558 Days Ago by lbimaging - 5 comments
Photo © lbimaging (Dennis Rogers) - 500px.com/lbimaging
Unauthorized reproduction not permitted.
JIMJIM said 2558 days ago:
I don't understand the cigaret on the right ??
kadenajack said 2558 days ago:
I like the extreme angle and depth of field choices you made. Is this a boundary for a basketball court or is it a parking space?
Aryk said 2558 days ago:
good handling of the depth and intensity of the white
lbimaging said 2558 days ago:
This is the "end" of two lines on a tennis court. I desaturated everything but the leaf on the right (it's not a cigarette).
Relevance, however, has been scored low on this one. Not "end" enough for some folks I guess . . .
Ana said 2557 days ago:
You could comment on this photo if you were logged in.


text:
Agent Only Login
Answer Center
Contact Us
New Membership Sales:
Membership Services:
About Us
In the News
Industry Recognition
Travel Partners
Why Global Travel
Agent Training
Agent Support Site
Making Money
Saving Money
How It Works
Signing Up
Logging On
Doing Business
Getting Paid
Compare Programs
Private Labeled Consumer Site
Agent Support Site
GTI Gives Back
Join Now
Our Video
Travel Agent Info.
Private Labeled Site
Agent Support Site
You are Here:
> Agent Support Site
Even though you're working from home and may be miles away from our home office near Orlando, Florida, you'll always be connected to us. Our comprehensive password protected Agent Support Site will amaze you. In one convenient location, you'll have access to a multitude of tools offered through Global Travel's Agent-Only Support Site. It's your one-stop resource for everything you want or need to know about GTI and your membership.
You can:
Access Your Account
Register For a Seminar
Select a New Banner Ad for Advertising your Site
Read the E-News
Sign up for a Teleconference
Customize E-Cards For Your Clients
Refer a Friend and Earn Quick Cash
Make a reservation for a FAM trip
Read the GTI Manual
Access Your Discount Shopping Services
Discover a GTI University Training Opportunity
Learn how to Offer and Sell Travel Insurance
Track Your Commissions
Order Business Cards, Stationery and GlobalGear
Get Your Questions Answered
Purchase a Hotel Directory
Sign up for a Webinar
Download a New Form
Take Advantage of the Additional Benefits like - Prescription Benefits, Wireless Discounts, Attraction Tickets, Movie Tickets and Dining Certificates
The robust tools and information centers found on the Agent Support Site are virtually endless and available only to our agents to use to get a competitive edge on their desktop!
My Account
Instant access to your account is available to every GTI Independent Travel Agent through the Agent-Only website. This is the place to go for submitting a Commission Tracking Form, viewing commissions, administering your personal ResMax travel business website and updating personal information.
Marketing Center
Use GTI's online Marketing Toolkit to grow your travel business. With a few clicks of your mouse, you'll have access to professional travel-marketing tips and tools that will grow your business. The GTI Marketing Toolkit can supply you with colorful promotional postcards, as well as customizable press releases and compelling testimonials from satisfied clients. The Marketing Toolkit is very user-friendly and is an indispensable resource for building and promoting your business!
FREE Email Marketing
Exclusive to all GTI Independent Travel Agents is GTI's FREE Email Marketing system. This unique service allows you to dramatically increase your ability to sell travel and earn commissions every week! It's fast and easy to use. You provide GTI with your clients email addresses, and GTI will email them special travel offers every week from preferred suppliers. The emailed offers will contain your GTI Agent PIN and contact information for commission tracking. GTI does all the work and you get paid.
Get the opportunity and the advantage with GTI University. Our Independent Travel Agents have access to unparalleled training opportunities designed to maximize knowledge, skill, PROFITS and membership benefits, including the following:
Global Tutor Program
Global Travel International offers a comprehensive program of Free and Pay-As-You-Go sessions that offer great insight into the world of Travel as well as how to get the most out of your GTI Membership and Travel Business.
The Global Tutor Welcome Sessions are complimentary online tutorials that provide all the fundamentals of being a GTI Independent Travel Agent. Quick, easy-to-use audio sessions are packed with everything you need to jump start your business. Best of all, you can listen at your own convenience.
Global Tutorials Training On-Demand Series is designed to help build business success for our Independent Travel Agents. These informative modules incorporate the use of Audio, Video, PowerPoint, and On-Screen facilitator and a comprehensive Participant Guide to provide a variety of hands-on training activities. Plus, each training module comes with 24-hour a day viewing access for 30 days, so you can train at your own pace.
Familiarization (
) Trips
Expanding your travel horizons is one of the most exciting benefits of a GTI Membership! GTI Independent Travel Agents can enhance their travel expertise via industry-sponsored Familiarization Trips, or FAMs. These fun and informative trips enable you to visit a variety of destinations, hotels and resorts worldwide at a fraction of the cost, allowing you to gain the firsthand experience that can help you sell these products with a minimal investment.
Ship Inspections
Selling cruises is a snap when you match your client with the right ship. Even if you've never cruised before, GTI Ship Inspections let you gain the expertise you need to excel by experiencing a variety of vessels firsthand, without ever leaving port. Each tour lets you sample life onboard a particular ship by visiting individual staterooms, public areas, dining rooms, recreational facilities, entertainment venues and more.
Take a cruise, see the world and learn. GTI offers numerous opportunities to get onboard a cruise ship at a special rate and enjoy the experience of cruising while learning about the cruise ships, the industry and how to sell cruises. You'll travel with vendor representatives from the cruise line and GTI's own staff members. It's a fun and informative way to sail your way into earning more commissions.
GTI Independent Travel Agents can easily keep up-to-date on what's happening in the exciting world of travel through lively, informative and FREE Teleconferences with GTI's industry partners and travel suppliers. These telephone sessions let you interact with vendor representatives to learn how to market and sell their products as well as to receive expert answers to your questions right on the spot.
Intensive training from the comfort of your own home may sound too good to be true. But with GTI's exclusive Webinars, in-depth information on marketing, selling and succeeding is literally at your fingertips! These beneficial programs offer GTI Independent Travel Agents invaluable opportunities to maximize their knowledge and earning potential - without even having to leave the house.
About GTI
Why Global Travel
Program Benefits
How it Works
GTI Gives Back
Contact Us
Site Map
*Some restrictions may apply. Price does not include a one-time, non-refundable activation fee of $19.95. Monthly payment option requires a 12-consecutive-month commitment of service. This membership term will renew automatically for your convenience unless you or we elect to discontinue the membership in accordance with the Membership Terms and Conditions. Cancellation refund will be less any shipping, handling and if applicable, application or activation fees. Commission percentages are calculated from Base Commission, which ranges from 5 - 10% of the price of travel, excluding any applicable taxes, charges and fees.
Copyright © 2013 Global Travel International - All Rights Reserved.
Terms and Conditions
Privacy Policy
| Seller of Travel:FL #ST20734 CA#2043947-40


text:
Vacation Rentals in Jackson, Michigan
Search vacation deals on homes, villas, cabins, cottages, apartments and condos in destinations all over the world. Click the "rental results" tab to browse Jackson, Michigan vacation rentals and inquire about your favorites. If you cant find what youre looking for, consider nearby destinations, or come back for a visit - vacation home rentals in Jackson are added and updated every week!
Compared to hotels, Jackson vacation rentals are much more family-friendly and flexible, offering a lot more space, a lot more savings, and a lot more amenities - like private pools, gourmet kitchens, and pet-friendly accommodations! Tip: Save money by taking advantage of cheap weekly rates.
Jackson, Michigan Vacation Rentals and Tourism
Jackson things to do
Cascades Falls Park
Jackson's most famous landmark - in operation for 80 years. Wow! What a great place to visit in the evening hours! A perfect place for a romantic...read more
Sandhill Crane Vineyards
For $5 you can taste all the wine you want? Really?? Where am I?!?! My parents and I went here on a recent weekend and tasted several wines and had a bite...read more
Ella Sharp Museum
This is a nice museum! Free admission on Saturdays. Individual galleries that feature world renowned artists on a rotating basis, plus permanent displays...read more
Michigan Theatre of Jackson Inc
We saw the Rocky Horror Picture Show here. It's a beautiful old theatre from 1930, run by a nonprofit corporation. Seats 1500, with a balcony, giant...read more
Carmike Plaza Cinemas 8
Someone from Jackson needs to help me understand this movie theater anomaly that exists in this town. There are two theaters, right across the street from...read more
Airport Lanes Bowling
Went here on a Saturday early afternoon for a child's birthday party.. The staff was extremely helpful, polite, and well organized. We enjoyed some bowling,...read more
Suburban Bowling Lanes
I will admit it right now, I have a bias towards Suburban Lanes, it is the place where I first played Ms. PacMan. They used to have a huge game room and I...read more
Planet Fitness
The gym is FAR too small for how many people attend. At peak hrs, you end up waiting 15min between sets just for a machine or treadmill to be...read more
Jackson 10
Best popcorn and seats of the three Jackson movie theaters. Would LOVE an IMAX or stadium seating, though. The frequent movie goers card is completely worth...read more
Dahlem Environmental Education Center
A great hidden gem in the Vandercook Lake, MI area. They are an eco-friendly park/garden with great walking trails and flowers to boot. Even though they are...read more
Jackson Community College
I haven't played the course in a couple of years, & it looks like it's in need of a good clean-up, but as far as the individual holes are concerned, this...read more
Get Mountain Fit with Jen & Bill
Jen is really wonderful about dedicating her knowledge and time to her clients. She offers accountability and support that is the key to success in health...read more
Cherry Creek Winery
I have been to this winery a couple of times on a wine tour. The wine is awesome - especially the cherry wine. They also sale other items like fudge,...read more
Clark Lake Golf Course & Driving Range
Hits and misses....we ate here twice for dinner during a recent trip to Michigan. Hits: beef ravioli with marinara sauce which seemed homemade and was...read more


text:
Photo by Anne Fishbein |
Forest Whitaker is talking heatedly about hip-hop. The actor and director best known for a screen persona that is at once affable and introspective, cerebral and gently solicitous, is sitting in a Beverly Hills hotel suite passionately detailing his idea that hip-hop is the latest manifestation of the black American search for a personal and collective history that has been wiped out by slavery. Whitaker believes that while traditions were erased from black collective memory, the yearning to connect to meaningful tradition has remained, like the ache of a limb that has been long amputated; hip-hop, with its language and dress codes and often crude but distinct internal logic, is a reach back not only to Africa, but to Asia and other cultures girded by ancient creation myths. For those and other reasons, hip-hop is the music to which the movie Ghost Dog is set, although it is mournful and elegiac in a way you'd never expect. Then again, Whitaker has spent a career confounding expectations.
"For me, the hip-hop culture has really aboriginal roots," says Whitaker, who tends to grow more animated the more serious he becomes. "Blacks are reaching for those roots because they're lacking that space that says, 'We come from kings.' They're trying to get to that. They want to be able to say, 'We have our ancestry, we can quote our ancestors back and back and back.' Slavery took away the religion, took away the family, disseminated people. They're still trying to put themselves back together, you know what I mean?"
Whitaker, 38, relishes a good discussion of wounded but determined spirits — he's played a few, though none to such hypnotic effect as Ghost Dog, the lead character in Jim Jarmusch's new film of the same name. Like Whitaker, Ghost Dog is a philosopher and boundary crosser who connects wildly different cultures (in the movie, hip-hop, feudal Japan, small-time Mafia) simply by being the dense character that he is. Unlike Ghost Dog, Whitaker is completely accessible, warm and enthusiastic, visibly nervous talking to the media even at this late stage of celebrityhood. It's a shopworn phrase in Hollywood reportage, but Whitaker comes off as a regular guy, though he's also exactly what you'd expect from a man whose modest teddy-bear bulk and downturned eyes are his most impressive physical features. Even at his most menacing in Ghost Dog, Whitaker retains a core sweetness that makes his thoroughly postmodern samurai a study in contradictions.
After building a reputation for lighting characters from within, no matter how small the part or how large the studio releasing the picture — in movies such as The Color of Money, Platoon and Good Morning, Vietnam — he burst into mainstream consciousness in 1988 playing jazz legend Charlie Parker in Bird. The through line in most of Whitaker's performances, what makes him incandescent but never glaring, is an earnest wonder at the world, and an urgency to set things right in his own inimitable way, to his own drumbeat. This sense of the individual is rare among actors and virtually nonexistent among black actors; Whitaker seems surprised, then humbled by the suggestion that he occupies rare earth indeed. He likes the idea of his characters embracing contradictions, but doesn't think doing so is artistically heroic. The contradictions are not his, but the world's.
"Ghost Dog is just a hodgepodge," says Whitaker. "Look at his office in the movie — it looks Buddhist, but there's an African god sitting right next to a Japanese one. He wears a uniform to pay homage to the samurai culture, a warrior uniform, and it happens to fit the uniform of the hip-hop zone. You might say he puts tattoos on his arms to pay homage to the brothers in the jailhouse, but most religions use body markings. It's all from a common source."
The origins of Ghost Dog are as improbable as its title. Whitaker met Jarmusch by chance in an L.A. camera shop. They recognized a chemistry and decided to do a project together, one that Jarmusch would write with Whitaker in mind. The script evolved from conversations the two had over the course of a year about what form a Jarmusch-directed, Whitaker-headed movie might take. The actor says their discussions — which would go on for three or four hours at a time — centered mainly around spirituality, tribal and aboriginal culture. Jarmusch gave Whitaker the Hagakure, the ancient handbook of samurai, to read. "But I was pretty familiar with that philosophy," he points out. "I've read about samurai since I was about 10 or 11. I'd read [Sun Tzu's] The Art of War, things like that. I've always been attracted to different spiritual disciplines." Save for one elaborate sword-sheathing move, Ghost Dog's nimble martial-arts choreography was all Whitaker's, something else learned in a youth largely spent in the South Bay burg of Torrance and adjacent neighborhoods.
None of this quite explains how the Texas-born, Southern California–reared, nice, relatively unassuming and intellectual-leaning black actor has made it in the business — long-term — without the benefit of broad comedy, leading-man looks or the brooding, black-man-against-the-white-world angst that pigeonholes everybody from Denzel to Don Cheadle. Even when you make it through the pigeonhole, these folks will testify, there are precious few worthwhile projects on the other side. Whitaker is that rare phenomenon, an eccentric who is allowed his eccentricities onscreen, and who is black. He is a character actor who has never been bound by a recurrent character. Can you imagine anyone else who could have given us the guileless Jody in The Crying Game and the tortured, hook-armed father in Smoke?
Join My Voice Nation for free stuff, film info & more!


text:
1802 Shepherd
Houston, TX 77007
Category: Restaurant > Tex-Mex
Region: Heights
1 user reviews
Write A Review |
Save to foursquare |
Most chiles rellenos at Mexican restaurants are stuffed with a ground beef mixture, but at the Cadillac Bar (1802 Shepherd, 713-862-2020), there's a seafood-stuffed chile relleno ($11.99) that will make you forget all about the meat version. A large poblano pepper is filled with a delectable mixture of crab, shrimp, crawfish, scallops and white fish, then battered, deep-fried and topped with a delicious white wine sauce and lots of Monterey Jack cheese. Served with traditional sides of Spanish rice, refried beans, charro beans and slices of avocado, it's one of Cadillac Bar's most popular dishes, according to the manager. And it's easy to understand why.


text:
Beaver Scouts are for children 6 - 8 years old and meet on Tuessday evenings from 5.30pm till 6.30pm.
Cub Scouts are for children 8 years old to 10˝ years old and meet on Tuesdays from 6.30pm till 8.00pm.
Scouts are for children aged 10˝ years old to 14 years old and meet on Thursdays from 7.00pm till 9.00pm.
So that the Leaders of the Section and the Group Scout Leader can concentrate on running the Sections, the group has a Group Executive Committee which meets monthly to deal with all other matters.
This page has been visited times.