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Steak Cuts Explained
Report shows widespread abuses, including murder, rape and forced labor.
DUBLIN, January 19 (CDN) — Burmese soldiers are systematically using forced labor, torture and rape to persecute majority-Christian residents of Chin state in western Burma, according to a report released today.
Entitled, "Life Under the Junta: Evidence of Crimes Against Humanity in Burma's Chin State," the report by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) documented "extraordinary levels of state violence" against the Chin ethnic population in Burma, also called Myanmar.
Due to the influence of U.S. missionaries last century, the Chin are estimated to be 90 percent Christian, and the study indicates that it is therefore difficult to separate religious attacks from ethnic and other human rights abuses. Persecution of Christians is reportedly part of a wider campaign by the Burmese junta to create a uniform society in which the only accepted religion is Buddhism, according a 2007 government memo circulated in Karen state giving instructions on how to drive Christians out of the state.
Respondents who were specifically targeted for their Christian faith and ethnicity said soldiers had threatened them with the destruction of their homes or villages and threatened to harm or kill family members. A total of 71 households from 13 of 90 villages and towns surveyed also said government authorities had destroyed their local church buildings.
The most brutal attacks included the forced conscription, abduction or murder of children under the age of 15, and the rape of men, women and children. Burmese soldiers, locally known as the Tatmadaw, also confiscated food, livestock and other property and forced families to grow the cash crop jatropha, used to produce biofuel, instead of food crops required for basic survival. The study states that this caused many Chin to flee across land borders to India or Bangladesh.
Burmese soldiers were responsible for 94.2 percent of all specifically ethnic and religious incidents in the survey, supporting claims by advocacy organizations such as Christian Solidarity Worldwide that the military government is systematically working to "cleanse" Burma of ethnic and religious minorities.
Government agents also placed votes for Chin residents during national elections last November, warning them that soldiers in a nearby camp were ready to arrest them if they complained, and ordered a church to close after the pastor refused to wear a campaign T-shirt. (See "Burmese Officials Order Closure of Chin Church," Nov. 18, 2010.)
When asked why the Burmese army acted as it did, 15 percent of respondents answered, "Because we are Christians." Another 23 percent replied, "To persecute us," and a further 23 percent said, "Because we are Chin."
The report confirms evidence submitted to the United Nations for Burma's Universal Periodic Review, to take place in Geneva from Jan. 24 through Feb. 4, that holds the ruling military junta responsible for widespread abuse of its citizens.
'Crimes Against Humanity'
PHR and five partner organizations, including the Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO), used scientific methods to carry out the survey in the early months of 2010, training 23 local surveyors to question a random sample of 621 households across all nine townships in Chin state. PHR identified the households only by survey number to protect their identity.
Those interviewed reported a total of 2,951 incidents in the previous 12 months, of which 95 percent were carried out by the Tatmadaw, local government officials, Burmese police or border security forces.
The report made a clear distinction between internationally recognized "crimes against humanity" and general human rights violations. Of the crimes against humanity, the most prevalent was forced labor for 91.9 percent of those surveyed, followed by ethnic-religious persecution at 14 percent. After these crimes came arbitrary arrest, detention or imprisonment at 5.9 percent, abduction at 4.8 percent, torture at 3.8 percent, rape or other sexual violations at 2.8 percent, murder at 1 percent and miscellaneous abuses at 0.2 percent.
As for lesser human rights violations, 52.5 percent of households surveyed reported livestock killed, 50.6 percent were forced to give food, 42.8 percent forced to give money, 12.8 percent had property attacked or destroyed, 11.2 percent had family members beaten and 9.1 percent had family members wounded from gunshots, explosions or deadly weapons.
In many cases, people suffered from the full range of human rights violations.
Six households, or 1 percent of those surveyed, reported family members killed by the Tatmadaw in 2009, with two households reporting multiple family members killed, and two of the victims being under the age of 15. Three of the six households believed they were specifically targeted because of their ethnicity and Christian faith.
An elderly grandfather who spoke to PHR in March 2010 said he felt depressed and helpless after a year when the Tatmadaw killed an 18-year-old family member and forced others in the family to build roads, porter supplies and carry weapons, threatening to kill them if they refused. The military also stole livestock, demanded food supplies, and forced the family to grow a single crop rather than food crops needed for basic survival.
"We dare not refuse the Tatmadaw, as even mothers with little children are beaten," one respondent said.
Burmese soldiers tortured more than one person in the family of a 46-year-old man, while local government authorities forced them to relinquish livestock, food and money. Seventeen percent of torture victims and 29 percent of rape victims were under the age of 15.
A 36-year-old father of five in Paletwa township said Burmese soldiers had raped more than one member of his family at knifepoint within the past year, arbitrarily detained another member of the household at gunpoint, conscripted a family member into the army and burned down the church that once stood in his village.
In a foreward to PHR's report, Richard Goldstone, a PHR board member and former U.N. chief prosecutor, and the Rev. Desmond Tutu of Chairman of The Elders, an independent group of prominent global leaders, urged that a U.N. commission of inquiry be established to investigate reports of human rights violations in Burma.
"It is unconscionable that suffering as dire as that of the Chin people under Burma's dictatorship should be allowed to persist in silence," they wrote.
They also urged Burma's immediate neighbors and trade partners to use the occasion of Burma's Universal Periodic Review to discuss the violations committed in Chin state and elsewhere in Burma, and work towards an alternative 'roadmap' to democracy for the Burmese people.
Report from Compass Direct News
Muslims protest West Java congregation as it worships.
JAKARTA, Indonesia, November 19 (CDN) — More than 50 people from Islamic groups demonstrated against a church in West Java on Nov. 7, chanting for it to stop worshipping during its Sunday service, according to Muslim online news site Arrahmah.com.
The King of Glory church of the Christian Congregation of Indonesia denomination (Jemat Kristen Indonesia or JKI) was worshipping in the Graha Mulia (Planet of Glory) Multi-purpose Building in Karasak village, Astanaanyar district of Bandung City, when the protestors gathered. Chanting "Allahu akbar [God is greater]," the crowd claimed the building was not approved for worship purposes, according to another Islamic Web site, Hidayatullah.com.
Protesting members of the Karasak Muslim Citizens Communication Forum, the Islamic Congregation Front and West Java Islamic Reformation Movement (GARIS) said the church did not have permission from area residents, although church leaders said an area official had given permission since 2005.
With 100 police officers on hand to maintain order, the poster-waving crowed chanted for an hour before slowly dispersing. During the protest, Muslim Citizens Communication Forum leader Fikri Saeful said, "The citizens reject church activities in this area because there is no permission from local citizens," according Hidayatullah.com.
Fikri added that the church had reached out to area residents with free medical clinics and distribution of basic food items.
Agus Nugroho, a leader of the JKI church and an administrator of the Graha Mulia building, told Compass that the church had permission from the local area official known as a ward captain. The church submitted an application for a permit at a higher governmental level in 2005, he said. Church permit applications are often stalled in Indonesian government offices, opening the way for Muslim groups to accuse them of worshipping without official permission.
"We have been worshipping here since 2005 because we had trouble finding a place to worship," Agus said. "We do have permission from the local government for worship."
According to Agus, that permission did not have an expiration date. Moreover, he said, neither the building managers nor the church leaders have ever received a written complaint about the worship services.
"There have never been any problems between the citizens and the building managers or with the church," Agus said.
He said that there was no regulation against using a multi-purpose building for worship services.
"We managers have no objections," he added.
Anyone with objections to the use of a multi-purpose building by a church should pursue legal remedies, he said. The Graha Mulia building is also the location for the JKI Raja Kemuliaan Church.
GARIS leader Surayana Nurfatwa, however, told Compass the church his organization had received complaints from area residents, and that the church had no official permission for worship from them.
"We have received many reports from citizens who objected to these worship services," Nurfatwa said, adding that the church's continued worship would disrupt "religious harmony" and could result in conflict with the Muslim majority.
Report from Compass Direct News
Hindu nationalists continue to oppress Christians in Kandhamal district, report says.
NEW DELHI, November 11 (CDN) — More than two years after losing relatives and property in anti-Christian violence, there is no sense of relief among survivors in India's Orissa state, as many are still ostracized and pressured to "return" to Hinduism, according to a private investigation.
"Despite the state administration's claim of normalcy," the preliminary report of a fact-finding team states, "a state of lawlessness and utter fear and sense of insecurity" prevails among Christians of Kandhamal district, which saw a major anti-Christian bloodbath in 2008.
The team, consisting of local attorney Nicholas Barla and another identified only as Brother Marcus, along with rights activists Jugal Kishore Ranjit and Ajay Kumar Singh, visited four villages in three blocks of Kandhamal on Nov. 5.
In Bodimunda village in Tikabali, the team met a pastor who said he has been closely watched since Hindu extremists forced him to become a Hindu. The pastor, whose name the report withheld for security reasons, said he had to convert to Hinduism in 2008 "to save his old mother, who could not have escaped the violence as she was not in a position to walk."
He is still closely watched in an effort to prevent him from returning to Christianity. While the attorneys and activists were still at the pastor's house, a man who identified himself as from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS, India's most influential Hindu nationalist conglomerate) came to inquire about his visitors. The pastor felt compelled to tell them that they were "bank officials."
In the same village, Hindu nationalists have also imposed a de facto ban on any private or public vehicle to ferry Christians or their belongings, said the report.
The team met the family of a paralyzed Christian, Bamadev Pradhan, whom auto-rickshaw drivers refused to take to a hospital when he recently ran a high fever. Eventually a Christian driver took him to the only hospital in Tikabali, around eight kilometers (nearly five miles) from his village of Bodimunda, but as the Christian was driving back, some local men confiscated his vehicle.
With the help of the auto-rickshaw union, the driver (unnamed in the report) got the vehicle released after paying a fine of 1,051 (US$24) rupees and promising that he would not transport any Christians in the future.
Another Christian said area Hindus extremists prohibited Christians from procuring basic necessities.
"We are not allowed to bring housing materials or food provisions or medicines, and nor are we allowed to buy anything from local shops," he said. "We do not have any shop of our own. Here, we are struggling to live as human beings."
The team also met a Hindu who had to pay 5,000 rupees (US$112) to get his tractor returned to him, as he had transported housing material for the construction of the house of a Christian.
In the house of a Christian in Keredi village in Phulbani Block, the team found a picture of a Hindu god. The resident, who was not identified in the report, explained that he had to display it in order to protect his family from harm.
The team found pictures of Hindu gods also in the house of a Christian in Gandapadar village in the Minia area, Phiringia Block. A woman in the house told the team that local Hindu nationalists had given her pictures of Hindu gods for worship.
"We have kept them, as they often come to check whether we have reconverted to Christianity," she said.
Almost all Christians the team met complained that the local administration had done little to protect them and suspected that officials colluded with area Hindu nationalists.
Released on Nov. 8, the report asserts that Christians have been barred from taking water from a government well in Dakanaju village, under G. Udayagiri police jurisdiction in Tikabali Block. The village head, Sachindra Pradhan, has promised to take action "at the earliest," it added.
Violence in Kandhamal and some other districts of Orissa state followed the assassination of Hindu nationalist leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati on Aug. 23, 2008. The rampage killed over 100 people and burned 4,640 houses, 252 churches and 13 educational institutions, according to estimates by human rights groups.
The spate of attacks began a day after Saraswati's killing when Hindu nationalist groups blamed Christians for his murder, although Maoists (extreme Marxists) active in the district claimed responsibility for it.
John Dayal, a Christian activist in Delhi, told Compass that "the apparatus of 2008 remains undisturbed." The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was part of the ruling state alliance with the regional Biju Janata Dal (BJD) party at the time of the violence. Although the BJD broke up with the BJP in 2009, blaming it for the violence, the former cannot be excused, said Dayal.
"While the BJP is mainly to be blamed, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is not entirely innocent," Dayal said. "Not just that he allowed the BJP and RSS cadres to run amok when they were part of his government, turning a blind eye to their very visible anti-Christian activities, but he was his own home [interior] minister and cannot really shirk command responsibility for the carnage together with his BJP ministerial colleagues and senior officers."
Kandhamal district Magistrate Krishan Kumar, who was on a tour at press time, could not be contacted for comment despite repeated attempts.
Of the 648,201 people in Kandhamal district, 117,950 are Christian, mostly Dalit (formerly "untouchables" in the caste hierarchy in Hindu societies), according to the 2001 Census. Hindus, mainly tribal people and numbering 527,757, form the majority.
Report from Compass Direct News
Katin chief says previously expelled Christians will be shot if they return.
DUBLIN, November 9 (CDN) — Officials in Katin village, southern Laos have ordered six more Christian families to renounce their faith or face expulsion in early January, advocacy group Human Rights Watch for Lao Religious Freedom (HRWLRF) reported today (Nov. 9).
The Katin chief and the village religious affairs officer, along with local security forces, recently approached the six families with the threat after having expelled 11 Christian families, totaling 48 people, at gunpoint last January. The six families now under threat had become Christians since the January expulsion.
The eviction last January followed months of threats and harassment, including the confiscation of livestock and other property, the detention of 80 men, women and children in a school compound and the death by asphyxiation of a Christian villager. (See http://www.compassdirect.org, "Lao officials Force Christians from Worship at Gunpoint," Feb. 8.)
Immediately after the expulsion, two more families in Katin village became Christians despite the obvious risk to their personal safety, according to HRWLRF. The village chief allowed them to remain in Katin but warned all villagers that their own homes would be "torn down" if they made contact with the expelled Christians.
In the following months, the expelled villagers suffered from a lack of adequate shelter, food and water, leading to eye and skin infections, diarrhea, dehydration and even the death of one villager. Katin authorities also denied Christian children access to the village school. (See http://www.compassdirect.org, "Christians Expelled from Village Suffer Critical Illnesses," May 14.)
District officials in early May gave the Christians permission to return to Katin and take rice from their family barns to prevent starvation, said another source on condition of anonymity. Some families then tried to cultivate their rice fields to avoid losing them completely, but the work was extremely difficult as authorities had confiscated their buffaloes, essential to agriculture in Laos.
Threat to Shoot
In July, officials from the Saravan provincial headquarters and the Ta-oyl district religious affairs office met with the evicted families in their shelters at the edge of the jungle and encouraged them to return to Katin, HRWLRF said.
The Christians agreed to return under five conditions: that authorities designate a Christian "zone" within Katin to avoid conflict with non-believers; that all forms of persecution end; that their children return to school; that Christians must be granted the right of burial in the village cemetery; and that the village award compensation for six homes destroyed in the January eviction.
When higher-level officials approached Katin leaders with these terms, village officials and local residents rejected them, insisting that they would only allow the Christians to return if they gave up their faith. The higher officials invoked Decree 92, a law guaranteeing the rights of religious minorities, but village heads said they would shoot every Christian who returned to Katin.
Shortly after this discussion took place, a further four families in Katin became Christians, according to HRWLRF.
A communist country, Laos is 1.5 percent Christian and 67 percent Buddhist, with the remainder unspecified. Article 6 and Article 30 of the Lao Constitution guarantee the right of Christians and other religious minorities to practice the religion of their choice without discrimination or penalty.
Report from Compass Direct News
ChinaAid (www.chinaaid.org ) reports that after blind human rights defender Chen Guangcheng was recently interviewed by a Chinese radio reporter, media lost direct contact with him and his wife, reports Michael Ireland, chief correspondent, ASSIST News Service.
However, says ChinaAid, one of their friends, Zeng Jinyan, mentioned in her blog that she had contacted Chen and his wife on September 23. Since that date, there has been no word from them.
Radio Free Asia reporter Zhang Min interviewed Chen on September 13 and provided the information to ChinaAid.
Since then, ChinaAid reports, family friend Zeng Jinyan wrote in her blog, "Chen Guangcheng's mother-in-law recently visited Chen in his home. When she arrived, she was physically searched by government-paid guards keeping Chen's family under house arrest. A few days before, on the September 20, the local communist leader of the town invaded Chen's home with at least 4 policemen and over 20 guards. They stayed there for six hours."
ChinaAid says the guards on watch currently have free rein of Chen's house, intruding any time they wish. Not only have they invaded the family's privacy — they also threatened them, saying, "Don't you really know who holds your little life in their hands?"
ChinaAid went on to add that the local government forced Chen to cut off all external communications. The guards do not allow Chen or his wife out of their house. The family relies on Chen's 78-year-old mother, the only one who is allowed to go out, to buy their food. The guards have even forbidden Chen's 5-year-old daughter from going to school.
ChianAid explained that Chen Guangcheng and Gao Zhisheng, both Christian human rights defenders who continue to suffer for their work, were nominated for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.
The award was made on October 8, 2010, to imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, who was honored for "Struggle for Fundamental Human Rights." He was given the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for "his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights" — a prize that enraged the Chinese government, which had warned the Nobel committee not to honor him. China officially denounced the award as "Blasphemy."
In a year with a record 237 nominations for the peace prize, Liu had been considered a favorite, with open support from winners Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama and others.
In the case of Guangcheng, ChinaAid "insists that the local authorities cease their invasive control of Chen and his family," and asks concerned Christians to join them in praying for their freedom and safety.
ChinaAid had also prayed the Nobel Peace Prize would be awarded to Chen Guangcheng or Gao Zhisheng, who have both suffered under the hands of Chinese authorities.
ChianAid had earlier said: "Such an award would be an incredible encouragement and source of hope to every human rights lawyer in China."
Report from the Christian Telegraph


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Agent Ratings for Eric Jesperson
Eric Jesperson
REALTOR® Lic. #1197608
Overall star rating: 4.9
Past 3 months: N/A
Closed clients: 4.9
Past 3 months: N/A
Closed clients: 4.9
Ratings Breakdown:
5 stars(9)
4 stars(1)
3 stars(0)
2 stars(0)
1 stars(0)
Showing All Reviews (10) Show only: 5 stars| 4 stars| 3 stars| 2 stars| 1 star| show all
Meredith M.
Home seller in Santee
Eric became my realtor because he was the one who responded to my searches. After one phone call, which was from a family getaway weekend, he continued to stay in touch with me EVEN during a family emergency trip to Canada. While he was dealing with family issues during a very difficult time, he never stopped getting in touch with me to update me on my status as both seller and buyer!! He is a devoted family man as well as a conscientious and dedicated realtor. I will forever appreciate Eric's willingness to persevere in spite of family emergencies and my pickiness!! He's the best!!!
Anton S.
Prospective buyer
Hello Eric, We have been dealing in real estate for 50 years we have never met a more responsive agent to represent us. Thank you for your courteous and most efficient way of handling our offers. Judy and Anton Schultz
Response from Eric
Hi Anton and Judy, Thank you, for your very kind review. I am glad to be your Realtor. Respectfully, Eric
Jack L.
Home buyer in Santee
Eric is great ! Thanks Eric !
Response from Eric
Hi Jack, Thank You for the review! I am very glad that you now have the right home with the schools you wanted. Also, I look forward to helping you and your family with your next investment in real estate. My Best, Eric
Brian R.
Home buyer in Ramona
Eric showed us about a billion houses.... He new the areas very very well. We are new to San Diego and he had so much information. It helps to grow up in the area you are selling in. He was so flexible when showing us houses and even brought flashlights when we wanted to see a house in the late evening. Truthfully It was a less than exhilarating experience to buy our house, due to the sellers, but it was nice to have Eric to call and ask questions and have him reassure us. I don't ever again want to go through the blood, sweat and tears it took to buy this house, Brian and I would get worked up too, :-) BUT, if I do buy again.....I will give Eric a call and give him time to escape out of the country! I am sure he will be ready....with lots of coffee and chocolate!
Response from Eric
Hi Reed Family, Thank You, for the review and also staying the course to get the right property! I am so glad that you now have the country home that you wanted with enough usable land for fruit trees and or horses. Best Regards, Eric
Condo buyer in Chula Vista
Applying for a home loan these days is extremely frustrating and aggravating. Eric was very patient and helpful throughtout the process.
Jason K.
Home buyer in Spring Valley
Courteous is something that stands out when I think of Eric. He goes out of his way rain or shine to get you want you want. Now I am underway and I know thanks to his work my wife and baby are in a nice safe house and area.
Condo buyer in Lakeside
Eric really went the extra mile - I wanted to see the condo many times and show it to many other people and he was always willing to open it up for us. He took care of everything so that it was all easy, even for a first timer like me!
Chuck H.
Home buyer in Santee
Eric assured I was fully protected in all aspects of my recent short sale purchase. It was nice to know I was working with someone who truly had my best interest as his priority and was not just worried about collecting their fees. He is a good representative for Zip Realty.
Home buyer in Santee
Eric was quick to respond to all our questions and his assistant Yvonne was very helpful as well.
Home buyer in El Cajon
Eric was always friendly and willing to work with us. He listened to what kind of house we wanted and was willing to take us to any house we were interested in. He gave us great insight into how to rate houses that would or wouldn't meet our needs/wants. My husband and I loved working with him and would ask him to be our agent again anytime we would need a realitor in the future.

subset: commoncrawl


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Happy varmahalakshmi festival to alll...
Asked by pinky chinni, 27 Jul '12 11:00 am
Earn 10 points for answering
Answers (3)
Varalakshmi Vratam is a festival to propitiate the goddess Lakshmi, the consort of Vishnu, one of the Hindu Trinity. Varalakshmi is one who grants boons (Varam). It is an important pooja performed by many women in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamilnadu and Maharashtra.Answered by Psycho, 27 Jul '12 11:09 am
Thnk u very much n same to u tooAnswered by vedprakash sharma, 27 Jul '12 12:39 pm
Thanks but i dont know anything about this festival.Answered by harpreet, 27 Jul '12 11:00 am


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Vis Villa Rental Photos and Description
Unique Seaside Villa, intimate charm, elegance and style on chic Island
Villa Tempera **** is one of the finest privately owned waterfront villas in Croatia. Villa Tempera - Where elegance and luxury meets leisure and relaxation.. A perfect sanctuary for families or a romantic getaway for couples travelling together. You are right on the beach...!!!
The unique Architecture and Style of the Villa, together with the spectacular location , sets it apart of the other rental properties around the Croatia and makes it the perfect setting for your Vacations or the celebration of your special events. This is a house with intimate charm,elegance and style, without compromising the needs of a modern,contemporary house.
Exclusively designed, situated at the edge of the Adriatic Sea, the villa is exquisite, perfectly located in mid of great sandy beach area, for you to discover untouched Mediterranean Island Lifestyle & enjoy in many delicious local gourmet restaurants with organic eco food. You will come back again and again!
Luxurious LifeStyle Destination: Villa Tempera **** is a stunningly beautiful property and offers an extraordinary setting for a dream vacation. The distinctive combination of breathtaking views, artistic elements , modern amenities, privacy, luxury and comfort makes this villa an exceptional vacation spot. You will be swept away by our spectacular and unique location on Vis island - Villa Tempera is situated at the heart of the beauty and excitement that Magical Island of Vis offers. Villa Tempera welcomes with the gracious look, guests delight in highly comfortable accommodation, style and the warm island hospitality. Villa Tempera is tastefully decorated with antiques and art pieces and special attention paid to every detail. The lighting both in the day, but also at night seems almost magic,unexpected and dramatic and makes the house very cosy and romantic and the perfect stage for entertaining.
Elegance ,Leisure and Relaxation: Seaside residence, to enjoy the sun and sea with family and friends, pristine coastline with sandy beaches, all at one of Croatia's most beautiful and unspoiled locations, the magical island of VIS. Villa 'Tempera" is located in an exceptional spot, first row directly to the sea with private sea access, just few meters through the villa lavender and olive garden path to the small flat stone beach below the villa, with stair access to the crystal clear Adriatic Sea, with private mooring for the small boat. Looking after our guests extends to their day at the beach with complimentary umbrellas and loungers for the exclusive use of our guests. All our guests really enjoy enviable beach front location, quite and private sunbathing and great swimming just few steps below their villa. Our HomeAway from Home is designed to take maximum advantage of sea views from every room. Let the majestic Adriatic sounds lull you to sleep in complete relaxation.
A Slice Of Paradise: We would be more than happy to help you to discover the untouched Mediterranean island lifestyle at Vis , the Secret garden of Croatia, to explore the amazing sailing routes of the Island of Vis, where definitelly a must would be to visit nearby small Biševo island with famous Blue Cave , or just nearby our villa to swimm in theGreen Cave, Stiniva Bay, Budihovac Beaches, and many many more ... Or daily to explore the island true lifestyle in small and beautiful stone inland villages on the hills, wineyards , olives and citrus gardens , with great local small restaurants serving excellent home made gourmet food, the ancient Towns of Vis and lovely fisherman village of Komiža with the famous fishermen museum and beautiful churches , lot of art galleries, good wine cellars .... our list is never ending .... We have good and reliable contacts for you at the island and would be happy to share with you our recommendations ..........
- Suitability:
- Events Allowed
- Groups
- Long-term Renters Welcome
- Low Allergen Environment
- Minimum Age Limit for Renters
- children welcome
- non smoking only
- pets not allowed
- wheelchair inaccessible
About Petra, on behalf of Family Siric, owners
Croatia is for Lovers. My name is Petra, Croatian , I was born and raised in the 1700 years old City of Split, recognised as one of ten most alluring world heritage places to live in, azzure blue of Adriatic Sea at my footstep, surrounded by all the riches of Croatia and the amazing Dalmatian Coast. My family - my Dad Vladislav, my Mum Sanja and my Sister Andrea - we are like a small group of travel enthusiasts deeply and personally involved in travel, sailing, excellent food and recreation throughout Croatia, constantly searching, tasting for authentic experiences of traditional heritage , gastronomy and culture. Since my early childhood the most beautiful family memories were connected to Vis, our Secret Island, and now also Villa Tempera my second home and place I always try to escape to.
Why Petra, on behalf of Family Siric, owners chose Vis
Life in the slow lane on Vis - The moment your ferry pulls into the Vis Port, you are facing your private Sanctuary. No big hotels, no fuss, no hubbub; Vis is really 'the Mediterranean as it once was' - an island of fishermen and winegrowers, loved for its beautiful beaches, nature, ecological agriculture, traditional architecture.
But it's best attributes are the leisurely pace of life, its most relaxed and easygoing inhabitants and beautiful landscape… 'Pomalo' (meaning slowly, or little by little) is the word exchanged between locals doing their daily routines in the relaxed, timeless atmosphere. Yes, there are other beautiful parts of the Adriatic. But Vis is The Special One: for the ancient Greeks as ISSA, sailing route to Venice for millenia, an army base in former Yugoslavia, being off limits to all visitors for the last 50 years, its natural beauty and lifestyle survived intact, which sets Vis apart from the mainstream of holiday destinations.
What makes this villa unique
There is a well-known saying: 'Those who visit Vis once will always return to it!' My family is the best example of how this saying is completely accurate. All that I have found during the many years spent in the company of this special island has encouraged me now to welcome you at Vis at our home - I am so enthusiastic to share with you a true spirit of our island, it's traditions and culture. The beauty of Vis can only be enjoyed by taking your time to absorb all of its beauty... as they say in these parts 'Pomalo'....(meaning slowly, or little by little)
Guestbook comments from the owner
5 out of 5 Review Submitted: 13-Jul-2011 Date of Stay: Jun 2011
I do not normally write reviews but this place was just so awesome that I had too. Without a doubt this is the most beautiful Villa on the island.( If you are lucky enough to stay here you will know what I mean.)The view is beyond fabulous, the decor is tranquil, calming, serene, very peaceful. The lavender and herb gardens, the butterfly's, the crystal clear blue sea, it really feels like it's own little oasis. Private but close enough to explore the cool nearby towns. Our hostess and host truly made us feel at home in ever way, we left with two new friends. Our vacation was everything we could have asked for thank you Sanja and Vlado! We will definitely be back.:)
Angela Salidis
Recommended for: Age 55+, Adventure Seekers, Girls Getaway, Sightseeing, Families with Young Children, Romantic Getaway


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Option FundamentalsSource: Orion Futures Group, Inc.
The Fundamentals of Commodity Futures OptionsOptions on futures have the same fundamental characteristics as stock options except that the underlying asset is a futures contract involving a commodity or financial instrument, rather than shares of stock. An option on a futures contract gives the buyer or owner (also called the holder) the right, but not the obligation, to buy (in the case of a call option) or sell (in the case of a put option) the underlying futures contract, at an agreed upon price (known as the strike price), on or before the option expiration date. Options on futures are traded at the same exchanges that trade the underlying futures contracts and are standardized with respect to the quantity of the underlying futures contracts, expiration date, and strike price (the price at which the underlying futures contract maybe bought or sold). An option has a limited life and is considered to be a wasting asset its value declines as time passes. It may even expire worthless, or the holder may have to exercise it in order to recover some value before expiration. Of course, the holder may also choose to sell the option in the marketplace prior to expiration.
An option owner (or holder) who invokes the right to buy or sell the underlying futures contract is said to exercise the option. Call option holders exercise in order to go long the underlying futures contract, whereas put holders exercise to go short. The option holder may exercise the option at any time after purchasing it, right up to the last trading day, but he or she does not have to wait until expiration date before exercising. Whenever an option holder exercises an option, somewhere an option seller (or writer) is assigned the obligation to fulfill the terms of the option contract. Thus, if a call holder exercises the right to go long the underlying futures contract at the strike price, a call writer is assigned the obligation to sell at this price. Conversely, if a put holder exercises his or her right to assume a short position in the underlying futures at the strike price, the put writer is obligated to assume a long position at that price.
Out of the Money, In-the-money, Intrinsic Value and PremiumA Call option is said to be out-of-the-money if the underlying futures contract is trading below the strike price of an option. (For example, Corn Futures are trading at $9 a bushel and you buy a $9.50 call) A call option is in-the-money if the underlying futures is trading above the call options strike price. (For example, you buy a $9.00 corn call and the underlying futures is trading at $9.30/bushel) Put options work in the exact opposite fashion: A put is out-of-the-money if the underlying futures is trading above the options strike price. (For example, Corn Futures is trading at $9.30/bushel and you buy a $9.00 put). An in-the-money put is one whose strike price is greater than the price at which the underlying futures is currently trading. (For example, you buy a $9.00 put and the futures is trading at $8.90/bushel.
The intrinsic value of an in-the-money call option is the amount by which the underlying futures exceeds the strike price. If the call is out-of-the-money, its intrinsic value is zero. Puts work in the opposite fashion. The intrinsic value of an in-the-money put is the amount by which the options strike price exceeds the current price of the underlying futures. If a puts strike price is lower than the current futures price, the put is out-of-the-money, and its intrinsic value is zero.
The premium is the price at which an option is trading in the marketplace. The premium is comprised of time value + intrinsic value. If an option is out-of-the-money, then it has no intrinsic value, and the entire premium will consist of time value. (For example, If corn futures are trading at $9.00 and you buy a $9.50 call option). An option normally has the greatest amount of time value when the underlying futures is trading at or very near to the strike price. As an option becomes deeply in-the-money or out-of-the-money, time value shrinks considerably. An option is said to be trading at parity with the underlying futures contract if it is trading for its intrinsic value, with no time value.
Four Factors That Determine Options PricesAn Options price is the result of properties of both the underlying futures and the terms of the option. The 4 major factors that determine an options price are as follows:
1: Strike price of the option
These factors are the major determinants of an options price, but the relationship between the futures price and the options strike price is criticalif the futures price is either far above or far below the options strike price, the other factors have little influence. Its dominance is obvious on the day the option expireson that day, only the relationship between the futures price and option strike price determine the options valuethe other factors have not bearing at all. At this time, the option is worth only its intrinsic value.


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Genres of Indian Commercial Cinema - Informative & researched article on Genres of Indian Commercial Cinema
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Genres of Indian Commercial Cinema
Genres of Indian Commercial Cinema includes Mythological Films, Devotional Films, Social Drama and Erotic/Romantic Genre.
Genres of Indian Commercial Cinema comprises number of significant themes and subjects that find repeated expression. Romantic love, male friendship, motherhood, renunciation, fate, respect for tradition, social injustice are some of the most compelling among them. As with the genres so with the themes - a distinctively culture-specific approach is adopted, giving these Indian commercial films a characteristically Indian outlook. So when examining what is unique about Indian commercial cinema we need to pay particular attention to questions of theme and genre.
Mythological Film Genre
Mythological films constitute a very important segment of
Indian commercial cinema
. They have their roots in the ancient past in that they deal with characters and events taken from the distant past, very often as inscribed in the epics and scriptures. They depict the actions and interactions of gods, demons and superhuman powers. But they are not merely historical; they portray the interface between the past and the present.
Apart from the Hindi film industry Telugu films based on mythology were also made in the earlier eras. Sita Kalyanam, Bhisma Pratigna and others were quite popular with the audiences.
Debaki Bose
`s Seeta was one of the early mythological films in India.
Devotional Film Genre
One of the best films in this genre is
Sant Tukaram
(1936) directed by V. Damle and S. Fatehlal, which became the first Indian film to win an award at the Venice film festival. It is about a poet-saint who lived in the seventeenth century and who holds the villagers enthralled by his songs of devotion. His wife is somewhat perturbed by his behaviour, and urges him to become more practical and attend to family matters. Tukaram has also to contend with an envious priest and aspiring saint, Salamalo, who hatches various plots against him. Divine intervention results in the saving of Tukaram and the villagers from various catastrophes.
As time passes, great leaders come from long distances to sit at the feet of the poet-saint. He is offered wealth and other material blandishments; he rejects them. When the time comes for Saint Tukaram to leave, a divine vehicle is sent for him and he invites his wife to join him. She says she is quite happy with her home and children and she decides to stay on earth. Through a series of intrigues against the low-caste village poet by the high caste temple performer Salamalo, the story is transformed into a memorable film with devotion at the centre.
Genre of Social Drama
This genre figured prominently right from the beginning of
Indian commercial cinema
. What is distinctive about the social dramas is the way that social issues are treated with a characteristically Indian flavour cinematically. Achut Kanya, made in 1936, is an early exploration of an important social issue that had been highlighted by leaders such as
and Nehru. The film deals with the love between a Brahmin boy and an untouchable girl. Through this tragic film the filmmakers call attention to the problem of untouchability. Films on similar themes were also made later.
Bimal Roy
`s Sujata is one film that stands out amongst these.
This is also true of recent films in this genre. For example, in the film, Bombay (1995),
Mani Ratnam
explores a highly sensitive issue - relations between Hindus and Muslims in India. The director has highlighted the self-defeating nature of extremist thinking and xenophobia and stressed the need to take a more rational approach to the whole question of religious loyalties and ethnic affiliations in the context of multiracial, multi-religious India.
There are other films as well that deal with sensitive social issues.
Mother India
, Salaam Bombay, Arjun,
Chak De India
Dil Se
, Mahanagar, Seemabaddha, Jana Aranya,
, Traffic Signal, etc. are perfect instances of social dramas where the film either focuses upon a particular contemporary problem or portrays the social degeneration.
Romantic Genre
Romance and eroticism have always featured strongly in Indian commercial cinema. As with most traditions of cinema in the East and the West, romantic films are extremely popular in India and have been so from the very beginning of Indian cinema. Here again, one sees very clearly the shaping hand of culture. Unlike in Western films, overt sexuality is prohibited in Indian films; so much is conveyed through suggestion, innuendo, coded signs and symbols. Songs and dances play a crucial role; eroticism and sexuality often are being closely linked with song and dance numbers. In these romantic films, the sentiments expressed and the ways of expression is rooted in traditional culture. Indian film historians observe that in order to understand the true meaning of Indian romantic films we need to reconnect them with tradition.
As far as the romantic films are concerned the `Laila-Majnu` and `Radha-Krishna` traditions are important. In the Laila-Majnu tradition, love is seen as the essential desire of God; earthly love is regarded as a preparation for heavenly love. The absolute devotion of the woman to the man, marital fidelity, loving secretly but without guilt is important aspects of this tradition. The `Radha-Krishna` tradition, on the other hand, emphasizes the here and the now, the desire to capture the joy of each moment as it passes. Love is seen not as tragic but as tender and joyous. In some commercial films such as Barsaat (1949) and Andaaz (1949) both traditions are present. Love on the silver screen is also epitomized by
Jodhaa Akbar
One person who had epitomized romance on the silver screen is director-producer,
Yash Chopra
. Be it Silsila, Kasme Vaade or
Veer Zaara
, love and beauty acquired new dimensions with
Yash Chopra
. Indian cinema comprises of a long list of films that fall into this genre. Another landmark film that cannot be missed is
Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge
. In the recent past this genre has undergone sea change. Films today deal with subjects, such as, infidelity, extra marital relations, separation and sexuality is no more a taboo.
Patriotic Film Genre
Patriotism is a common emotion that binds India, a multi lingual country. From the very beginning there had been films that were made with national sentiments. Early
patriotic films
include Kismet, Shaheed, Vigathakumaran, Balan, Kunjali Marakkar, Purab aur Paschim and others. Recent films include Kalapaani,
, Legend of Bhagat Singh,
and several other films.
Animation in Indian Cinema
The trend of animation films has become very popular in India. With corporate sectors ready to invest such films are now being made by the leading production houses in India. Well known stars are also lending their voices for the
. On the other hand several Hollywood films are being dubbed in Hindi for the audience. Films like Hanuman,
and others are quite popular with the audience.
Action and Thriller Genre
action films
came largely into vogue in 1970s and 80s with the rise of the concept of angry young man. Bollywood actors, such as,
Vinod Khanna
and of course,
Amitabh Bachchan
were the popular action icons. Down south it was Rajnikanth who set the trend and
Kamal Hassan
, Zanjeer, Shahenshah, Agneepath, Ramana,
, Run (Tamil), Indian,
, Satya,
Sivaji: the Boss
, Billa, Ek Haseena Thi, Dasavatharam,
, Race, Dus and several others. Some of the popular action stars of all times are Amitabh Bachchan,
Suresh Gopi
, Ajay Devgan,
Akshay Kumar
Sunny Deol
Kamal Hassan
and the list goes on.
Comic Genre
In Indian cinema, comedy as a genre took a while to carve a niche. While
history of Hindi cinema
tells us that in the earlier times, cinema typically concentrated on mythology, melodrama and stunts, it was the utter need to laugh in order to relax, paved the way for the comic genre in. Comedy in movies was then merely for comic relief.
Comedy genre
truly developed in 1930s, when the comic duo of Ghory and Dixit coupled to restore an Indian version of Laurel and Hardy. That was just the beginning and soon, comedies became a staple in Bollywood movies.
Bollywood started producing movies with comedy as central theme at regular intervals.
Indian film comedians
Johny Walker
, Tuntun, Mukri,
Rabi Ghosh
Santosh Dutta
, etc. gradually earned a name for themselves. The year was 1950 and
witnessed the first full-fledged mainstream comedy "Chalti Ka Naam Gadi" which invariably coifed the stage whilst setting it for the arrival of
Kishore Kumar
as a comedian in Hindi cinema. From 1950 till 60s he delivered many good comedies. In the hands of
Manmohan Desai
the traits of comedy in Hindi films got a shot and his Amar Akbar Anthony became a true representation of an ideal comedy. The 70s witnessed the comedies by
Hrishikesh Mukherjee
Basu Chatterjee
. Comedy is still popular and
comedians in Bollywood
have worked hard to achieve that. The comic genre has perhaps gained its fuller shape in the recent times with the Munna Bhai MBBS and its sequel,
Lage Raho Munnabhai
. For the greater interest to forget the tears, agony, pain and fears comedy in movies is therefore indeed important. Down south actors like Vivek are popular comic stars.
Horror Genre
horror films
in India are still at the nascent stage. However there are several films that have helped in establishing the horror films as a genre in
Indian cinema
. Directors like
Bimal Roy
, Ram Gopal Varma,
and others have successfully explored the horror genre.
(Last Updated on : 16/07/2012)
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[XML-DEV Mailing List Archive Home] [By Thread] [By Date] [Recent Entries] [Reply To This Message]
My proposal: Implicit namespaces
Here is my suggestion for namespaces and HTML. Because 1) the purpose of namespaces is disambiguation, but when we start with HTML we rarely find that elements with the same local name are used, and certainly not in the exactly the same context, and 2) the namespace URI is used as a symbol to connect to schemas etc, but when we use HTML we find that browsers operate by built-in knowledge that does not require extra resolution of the URI, we can simplify our lives by saying "namespaces in HTML are only ever needed for non-standard customized fragments." In other words, if you want to put in SVG into an HTML document, there are not name clashes (in context) so there is no purpose served by namespaces. All the HTML committee needs to do is say something like "These are the standard vocabularies: HTML, SVG, RDF, etc etc, if you find an element belonging to them, that starts a new branch." In formal terms, you could see it as having a notional name-rewriting step (which could be specified in ISO DSRL by the way) that goes from bare names to qualified names. The advantages: * HTML keeps plain and simple, and no-one has to worry about namespace markup * people who want to add custom bits can do so, and can use namespaces and so on using the current mechanism. * XHTML can continue on without change * mixed convention documents need not be distrupted * no big effort for defining a new syntax, which may be an exercise in shifting verbosity from one location to another, would be required (Another way of achieving much the same thing would be to allow multiple namespaces as the default, with a schema-linked mechanism where the namespace URI can be chosed by matching the local name in context with unambiguous choices in a list of schemas. Not less defaulting, but smarter!) Cheers Rick Jelliffe
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The development of drugs for brain-related conditions is not an efficient process; only 8% of candidate drugs that enter clinical trials gain FDA approval. A key reason for this low success rate is a lack of preclinical tests that accurately predict drug efficacy and detect unwanted side effects. But now, Jeremy Nathans and colleagues, at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, have developed a new preclinical approach that they hope can be used alongside current strategies to guide more efficient drug development for brain-related conditions.
In the study, Nathans and colleagues show that a wide variety of psychoactive compounds sedatives; antipsychotic, antidepressant, and antiseizure drugs; and drugs of abuse, such as cocaine, morphine, and phencyclidine induce characteristic alterations in eye movements in mice and that monitoring these changes can be used to rapidly and quantitatively assess the response of mice to these compounds. An example of the utility of this approach was demonstrated by its use to monitor disease progression in a mouse model of the neurodegenerative condition Huntington disease; the results suggest that it could be used to assess the effectiveness of candidate Huntington disease therapeutics.
TITLE: Preclinical assessment of CNS drug action using eye movements in mice
Jeremy Nathans
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Phone: 410.955.4679; Fax: 410.614.0827; E-mail: email@example.com.
View this article at: http://www.jci.org/articles/view/45557?key=a22a0c604ac5a632a271
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


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Who Can Apply
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We just took a look at perhaps the most morbid report we've seen this year, with about 100 pages detailing how children died in Arizona in 2011.The Arizona Child Fatality Review Program released its 19th annual report today, and it includes a whole lot of statistics and trends, including the fact th ... More >>
Leslie Lysy tells New Times that the Santa Cruz Sheriff's Office is refusing to return about $10,000 they impounded along with the Yukon she and her boyfriend were traveling in when he shot himself in the head with a 9mm Glock. That was on April 10, 2011 -- a traumatic incident made worse with how ... More >>
It appears the Arizona Department of Corrections has two suicides on its hands -- and they happened within 24 hours of each other.The DOC announced this morning that inmate Karot Phothong, 37, was found unresponsive in his cell at the ASPC-Florence on Saturday. DOC spokesman Bill Lamoreaux says i ... More >>
An Arizona State University student who jumped off the Arizona Republic building in downtown Phoenix last night in an apparent suicide attempt was an intern at the newspaper, sources tell New Times.The student lept from the roof of the Republic's parking garage at Second and Taylor stree ... More >>
The County Medical Examiner determined that Phoenix Sergeant Sean Drenth committed suicide. Phoenix police aren't as convinced.The Maricopa County Medical Examiner's Office today will issue its official ruling in the October 2010 shooting death of Phoenix Sergeant Sean Drenth.As we reported last ... More >>
An officer-involved shooting in Chandler earlier this week has been ruled a suicide -- turns out the victim shot himself in the head before getting shot by police.According to the Chandler Police Department, about 6:45 p.m. Monday, 39-year-old Adam Buckner pointed a gun at one of his neighbors in ... More >>
Rebecca Zahau's family doesn't believe her death was a suicide.The body of Rebecca Zahau, the girlfriend of Jonah Shacknai, the CEO of the Scottsdale-based pharmaceutical company Medicis, will be exhumed so a private pathologist can conduct a second autopsy to try and determine whether her bizarr ... More >>
Alleged Phoenix scammer Donald Lapre, the owner of the company The Best Vitamin in the World, was found dead in his prison cell in Florence yesterday morning in what authorities say was an apparent suicide.Lapre, who was indicted in June for fraud, was found unresponsive in his cell in a federal ... More >>
Rebecca Zahau's bizarre death was ruled a suicide earlier this month by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. Jonah Shacknai, the CEO of Scottsdale-based Medicis pharmaceutical company, has asked the California attorney general to review the San Diego County Sheriff's Department's finding th ... More >>
New info casts doubt on the theory that Rebecca Zahau's death was a suicide. The bizarre death of Rebecca Zahau -- the girlfriend of Scottsdale-based Medicis CEO Jonah Shacknai, whose death was ruled a suicide last week -- just got more bizarre; the results of Zahau's autopsy make it seem even le ... More >>
Rebecca Zahau committed suicide, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.The San Diego County Sheriff's Department today released its findings on the bizarre deaths of both the girlfriend and son of Scottsdale-based Medicis CEO Jonah Shacknai.The death of Shacknai's son Max, 6 -- w ... More >>
Rebecca Zahau committed suicide, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.The San Diego County Sheriff's Department today released its findings on the bizarre deaths of both the girlfriend and son of Scottsdale-based Medicis CEO Jonah Shacknai.The death of Shacknai's son Max, 6 -- w ... More >>
Sergeant Sean DrenthThe Phoenix Police Department held a press conference this afternoon to discuss the findings of the soon-to-be-released report on the investigation into the death of Sergeant Sean Drenth, who was found shot to death near the State Capitol last October.The report, as Phoenix po ... More >>
An eight-person jury will start its deliberations today in a difficult case involving a suicidal Phoenix woman and a national right-to-die organization.Will the jury be able to unanimously decide this one?Superior Court Judge Paul McMurdie is presiding at the manslaughter trial of co-defendants L ... More >>
The death of Jeff Ahlers was reportedly a suicide.Frequent New Times readers know that we've spent a good part of the last eight months covering the mysterious death of Jeff Ahlers, a Tempe man whose bullet-riddled body was pulled from a canal last June.It turns out, the death has now been ruled ... More >>
Saturday's shooting rampage in Tucson, which left six people dead and 14 others injured -- including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords -- is just the latest in at least 30 documented rampage shootings in American history.Listed below are 10 of the deadliest:
The same week the Peoria Police Department issued a friendly reminder that residents shouldn't kill themselves, it turns out a woman who told police she was shot by an unidentified white male actually shot herself."[Her story] was so vague we knew it wasn't true right away," Mike Tellef, spokesma ... More >>
Jeff Ahlers was found shot to death in a Tempe canal in June. Last week, a gun possibly used in his death was found less than a mile from where his body was discovered. Last month, following the New Times article linked here, the Tempe Police Department reportedly had a canal -- in which the body ... More >>
www.amazon.comA message from the Peoria Police Department.The Peoria Police Department has a message for residents: don't kill yourself.In a 24-hour period starting at about 5 p.m. last Friday, three people in Peoria committed suicide. That, the Peoria PD says, is a lot. "This is a time of the ye ... More >>
Jeff AhlersThe mystery over who killed 47-year-old Jeffrey Ahlers is shaping up to be a regular "who done it" and Tempe police say there is no new information in the case the department can share with the public.There are suspects, though -- it was either Ahlers himself or somebody else.
Jeff AhlersIt's been nearly three weeks since a man was found dead in a Tempe canal with a gunshot wound on his body and Tempe police still haven't determined whether he was murdered or committed suicide -- or they're not tellin' anyone about it if they have.If 47-year-old Jeff Allen Ahlers, of T ... More >>
Tempe Police Department Jeff Ahlers was found dead in a Tempe canal last week.Tempe police still don't know whether the gunshot wound discovered on the body of a Tempe man found dead in an irrigation canal last week was self-inflicted or the work of a cold-blooded murderer. Temp ... More >>
Mohave County Sheriff's OfficeThis car is packed with explosives, which, thankfully for James Pierson, never went off.A Washington man apparently tried to kill himself this morning when he crashed his car -- packed with all sorts of explosive materials -- off a cliff near Oatman.Seemingly to his ... More >>
Arizona Department of CorrectionsJesus CotaFor the second time in less than a month, an inmate at the Arizona State Prison Complex-Eyman at Florence has committed suicide, or, to put it in prison-speak, he "hung it up."Corrections officials announced today that 28-year-old Jesus Cota was pronounc ... More >>
www.asu.eduMookesh Patel, the ASU professor whose office was the scene of an apparent suicide Monday by one of his students Arizona State University police have released the audio of the 911 call made after a graduate student shot himself in his professors office Monday.You can listen to it here. ... More >>
This just in: Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas is about to announce the issuance of search warrants in the 2006 assisted suicide of a mentally ill Phoenix woman. The case, which involved volunteers coming to town to help 58-year-old Jana Van Voorhis kill herself, was firs ... More >>
County Attorney Andrew Thomas didn't answer many questions at his press conference a few hours ago about Phoenix's "assisted suicide" case, the story we broke in an August 2007 piece entitled "Death Wish." What he did tell those assembled in the crowded conference room of his eighth-floor ... More >>
Passed polishing the bishop? So speculates one former pal. (UPDATE: Since this was written, David Boyer, Director of the County Medical Examiner's Office has announced the cause of death in the Schmidt case to be hanging. The manner, suicide. No surprise there. Further details are pending.) Did Da ... More >>
The Final Exit volunteers call it assisted suicide. Prosecutors may call it manslaughter
Perspectives on suffering
It's up to Governor Janet Napolitano to make sure history doesn't repeat itself that is, boldly reform juvenile corrections. Or at least make sure someone's watching
Rescuing George Reeves
Methamphetamine is number-one with a bullet when it comes to violent death in Phoenix
Letters from the issue of Thursday, June 16, 2005
A county psychiatrist's indifferent treatment of a disturbed inmate leads to a courthouse hanging
There's a difference between justice and vengefulness -- something that's lost on Sheriff Joke.
A federal investigation documents serious abuses at the Arizona Department of Juvenile Corrections
Agency insiders say conditions are continuing to deteriorate at ADJC
Another death at a state-run youth detention facility has advocates worried
State officials say boy died playing around, despite his recent suicide threat
Insider claims state hid suicidal behavior


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Egg : 2
Chicken breast: 1
Onion: 1
Green chilli : 2
Crushed ginger: 1/2 table spoon
Crushed garlic: 1/2 table spoon
Red chilli powder: 1/2 tea spoon
Turmeric powder : 1/2 tea spoon
Pepper powder: 1 tea spoon
Coriander powder: 1/2 tea spoon
Oil: 1 table spoon
Ghee: 1 table spoon
Curry Leaves
Coriander leaves
Once the chicken is cooked shred it into bite size pieces removing the bones. Do not put in a mixer and mince the chicken
Do not throw the water in which the chicken is cooked.
Pour this batter to the chicken mix and mix well


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Maximize Your ROI with Google Pay-Per-Click
One topic we've received a majority of questions about is Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC) and the best ways to achieve the maximum ROI from services like Google AdWords. As PPC becomes more competitive among real estate agents, the need for optimized bidding, carefully-selected keywords, and strategic campaign management continues to increase.
In this installment, you'll eavesdrop on an actual Google AdWords consultation call between me and SuccessWebsite® member Keri Shull.
The call provides a valuable real-world insight into Keri's business, and how she keeps new leads coming down the pipeline to feed her growing team of agents. Even better, you'll see how her website integrates with her AdWords campaign to convert her ad traffic into leads – valuable information that's often missing from other PPC educational resources.
Master the Google AdWords Networks
Whether you're just getting started with Google AdWords, or you're a seasoned veteran,
regular review and optimization of your ad campaigns is important to ensure you're getting
the most website traffic and highest-quality leads for your budget. Monitoring your ad reports helps you identify key factors that can impact your performance.
One such factor is Google's Display Network. Many agents don't realize that Google distributes your ads in two different ways: via the Search Network, which includes the Google search engine and partner websites, and via the Display Network, which presents ads on blogs, merchant sites, and any other sites that subscribe to it. Search ads are presented in response to search terms entered by the user, while Display ads are essentially the same as banner ads, presented at random. And due to its much larger size, most ads generate far more impressions on the Display Network.
Display ads can sometimes be effective, but it's clear that that Search ads usually drive more and higher-quality traffic to your website. In today's AgentSecrets video event, we look at this important difference, and show you how to fine-tune your campaign settings to generate more ad impressions on the Search network. If you've been less than satisfied with your AdWords performance, this actionable content could give you the boost you're looking for.
SPECIAL OFFER for a limited time for AgentSecrets members:
Sign up today for the 30 Day Test Drive of the SuccessWebsite® Solution, and we'll give you a $100 credit towards your first month of advertising on Google. Our AdWords-Certified specialists can help optimize your current campaigns, set up new ones, answer your questions, and get your Pay-Per-Click marketing on the right track. To get started, please contact me at firstname.lastname@example.com for more information on our Google AdWords Management program.
Maximize Your ROI with Google Pay-Per-Click
One topic we've received a majority of questions about is Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC) and the best ways to achieve the maximum ROI from services like Google AdWords. As PPC becomes more competitive among real estate agents, the need for optimized bidding, carefully-selected keywords, and strategic campaign management continues to increase.
In this installment, you'll eavesdrop on an actual Google AdWords consultation call between me and SuccessWebsite® member Keri Shull.
The call provides a valuable real-world insight into Keri's business, and how she keeps new leads coming down the pipeline to feed her growing team of agents. Even better, you'll see how her website integrates with her AdWords campaign to convert her ad traffic into leads – valuable information that's often missing from other PPC educational resources.
What do you think about Pay-Per-Click? Do you have any ideas, tips or success stories to share? Please add your feedback and questions to the comments below!
Your Best Social Marketing Strategy is You!
I may be preaching to the converted, but who here often finds themselves floundering when it comes to getting results from Social Media?
Despite all the positive benefits of developing a Social Media presence, many agents continue to resist blogging, Facebook, and Twitter. The reason I hear the most is "I don't have enough time", but I think secretly they fear they won't know what to write about. I say this because, in fact, that's the second most common reason I hear!
This seems odd, since talking to people and giving opinions on real estate matters is basically the successful agent's job description. Yet it's amazing how such personable and outgoing folks become wallflowers when it comes to getting social online.
I recently interviewed real estate broker, coach, and longtime SuccessWebsite member Danny Griffin on this topic, and together we came up with a list of the top blog entries every agent should post to get started on the right track. Though there are many other topics you could write about, strictly for their SEO benefits, these are important to introduce you, set a friendly tone, and demonstrate your expertise. Here are the top three on our list:
1. About You: Who you are, why you got into real estate, your service philosophy, etc. When people visit your blog, they want to identify with you. Show them what you're all about.
2. Answer the most common question(s) you are asked by your clients: This will begin to establish you as an authority and trusted adviser. Ask for your audience to participate and post more questions or comments for you to respond to.
3. Warn people about the most common mistake(s) you see in real estate: How can you save someone from making the same mistakes by reading your blog. Share stories to illustrate how these mistakes could have been averted. This type of sharing makes you more personable and will make it easier for your audience to connect with you.
Seems simple enough, and you probably could have figured them out by yourself, but where do you go after this?
Today, we're releasing our latest no-cost-or-obligation edition of our AgentSecrets.com Video Series titled "Top Social Marketing Strategies for Real Estate". The first installment is the interview with Danny, and it's the most exciting and inspirational talk I've heard on these topics in a very long time. Danny talks about connecting with your passions, the very things that you love most about your career, to find an endless stream of topics to write about, as well as the energy to keep going when it feels like no one's listening.
There's lots of practical information in this interview. Danny lays out simple strategies for getting started with your blog, including shooting and posting video entries. And we give you more of those top blog posts every agent should write, along with reasons why they are so effective.
So get out there and join the social media party! The benefits to your business are well worth the effort.
How To Maximize Your ROI with Google Pay-Per-Click
Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC) is intimidating to many agents, and it's not hard to see why. There's a whole different mindset involved in moving to a paid advertising model, especially when you've been relying solely on referrals or working with free online classified services like Craigslist. Return on investment (ROI) suddenly becomes a much bigger consideration.
As a SuccessWebsite® Google AdWords Specialist, I spend a lot of time discussing ROI with agents, and optimizing their accounts to improve it. I recently recorded an interesting call between myself and SuccessWebsite member Keri Shull. Keri has a growing team that is hungry for leads, so it's imperative that she keeps them coming down the pipeline. As usual, I applied our unique keyword selection and budgeting strategies to help her get the most traffic from her marketing budget. But, in addition to that, while reviewing the landing pages linked to her ads, we also discovered that Keri's IDX page was actually bleeding potential leads away from her website!
This example points out something very important. While the benefit of PPC is that you get guaranteed traffic to your website, remember that traffic doesn't necessarily equal leads!
There's more to this process than just fine-tuning AdWords – your website needs to be optimized as well, to make sure you get the name and contact information from all those visitors. Put more simply, your PPC campaign is bigger than just the search engine it runs on.
I find this point is overlooked by most PPC training. In my opinion, the best resources are the experiences of actual real estate agents, like Keri, who can show you how they're using PPC in their businesses, and give you ideas on how to do it in yours. That's why I'm happy to introduce our latest AgentSecrets Video Series entitled "Maximize Your ROI with Google Pay-Per-Click".
Part 1 of this FREE limited-release goes live tomorrow, Wednesday March 7th, at 2pm EST.
Click here to register.
In the first installment, broadcasting this week, you'll eavesdrop on my call with Keri, and see exactly how we worked on her AdWords account, and improved the lead capture of her landing pages. Even better, we've included the follow-up call, and how the changes we made to Keri's campaigns improved her results (and ROI).
Then, over the next three weeks, we'll expand on these PPC tactics, going further into keyword selection, optimizing your ad budget, ad targeting, and tracking your results with Google Analytics. And because Google isn't the only game in town, we'll also extend these ideas to other PPC services, Facebook, LinkedIn and Bing.
We had an excellent response to our previous series on Craigslist, and this one is going to be bigger and better! Join us and find out how you can make Pay-Per-Click click for you.
Got The Right Personality for Online Success?
After reading an article by Steve W. Martin from the HBR Network on the "Seven Personality Traits of Top Sales People", it struck me why some people are almost born to sell. They garner trust and authority by having the right mix of modesty, knowledge and confidence. And because I specialize in helping real estate agents market their services online, I've devised an online strategy that will assist you in using those personality traits to gain trust and influence from your online audience
1. Modesty. "Contrary to conventional stereotypes that successful salespeople are pushy and egotistical, 91 percent of top salespeople had medium to high scores of modesty and humility. "
I can't tell you how many real estate sites I see every day that have "John Smith Realtor – #1 In Sales Worldwide!" plastered right across the top of their homepage. Yes, it took a lot of blood, sweat the tears to get that distinction, but does it need to be the first thing people see when they visit your site? This kind of accolade is best suited for an awards page or a page that is specifically about you that people can visit if they wish.
2. Conscientiousness. "Eighty-five percent of top salespeople had high levels of conscientiousness, whereby they could be described as having a strong sense of duty and being responsible and reliable."
When leads come through your website follow-up! Call them back and send follow-up emails. In a perfect world, everyone would pick up the phone and call you to let you know that you're the one for the job. But that's not realty. Every time you get a lead through your website, especially if there is a valid phone number, there is no better way to show you are a responsible and reliable individual than to follow up and provide more information to the prospect. In fact, over 75% of home buyers and sellers end up working with the first agent they speak too.
3. Achievement Orientation. "Eighty-four percent of the top performers tested scored very high in achievement orientation. They are fixated on achieving goals and continuously measure their performance in comparison to their goals. "
When developing a web marketing strategy, the first step is to set your goals. Most of you may just want a website that magically generates leads with little effort or cost. Some of you would even ask if we could do the follow-up calls! However, I do have quite a few clients that are genuinely interested in learning more about how to market their website to generate more leads and are very diligent about making sure they learn what is required to meet their own personal goals. These clients end up being the best ones because they make a personal choice to take the time to learn and always benefit from their achievement. Always set goals and devise an action plan that will help you meet them.
4. Curiosity. "Curiosity can be described as a person's hunger for knowledge and information. Eighty-two percent of top salespeople scored extremely high curiosity levels. "
One of the things I love most about Realtors is they're hunger for knowledge. The fact that there are probably more coaches and training in real estate than any other profession is a good indicator of that. You love to soak up information and learn more and more until you feel your head will explode. This is great if it's coupled with action. If all you do is learn and never act, you're at a standstill. I always encourage my clients to learn new things and then put them into action right away.
5. Lack of Gregariousness. "One of the most surprising differences between top salespeople and those ranking in the bottom one-third of performance is their level of gregariousness (preference for being with people and friendliness)."
This is an interesting one. You are in the people business right? You should be the most friendly, personable mover and shaker around. Wrong. Top salespeople acquire a level of dominance that encourages obedience. If you are too friendly with your clients you are at risk of loosing that. This becomes a real issue when it comes to things like facebook and twitter. It is extremely important to use these social media platforms to establish your position and share your knowledge and expertise. Therefore, when the time comes to represent them, you will already be in a position of authority and power.
6. Lack of Discouragement. "Less than 10 percent of top salespeople were classified as having high levels of discouragement and being frequently overwhelmed with sadness. Conversely, 90 percent were categorized as experiencing infrequent or only occasional sadness."
The power of positivity can go a long way. Yes, there will be days when you make phone calls and people don't want to talk to you. Having a follow-up plan and sticking to it is your best strategy for remaining positive. Using an effective follow-up script can get you through those tough calls and give you that extra boost of confidence. I like to provide my clients wit a follow-up script that is designed specifically for web leads and getting them to the next level.
7. Lack of Self-Consciousness. "Self-consciousness is the measurement of how easily someone is embarrassed. The byproduct of a high level of self-consciousness is bashfulness and inhibition. Less than five percent of top performers had high levels of self-consciousness."
Most of the top performers that I work with are not afraid to ask for things or tell people about their business. You have to be willing to go out and ask for those testimonials, hand out those "Just Listed" cards, tell people about your website and how great it is. If you wholeheartedly believe that what you have to offer is valuable and unique, it will be much easier to sell.
Put The LOVE Back Into Your Craigslist Relationship
Happy Valentine's Day! Today is the perfect day for me to share with you my LOVE of Internet Marketing and some useful information that could help you capture a lot more leads.
Craigslist is a great (and FREE!) service for promoting listings and special programs, but it can be quite tricky to get quality leads from your ad posts resulting in a LOVE/HATE relationship for many real estate agents. You're not only competing for eyeballs with a huge number of advertisers, but you also have to struggle with Craigslist's mysterious enforcement policies, which can lead to your ads being "flagged" or "ghosted". So, in the spirit of Valentine's Day, I am going to change that paradigm and show you how to put the LOVE back into your Craigslist relationship.
To this end, we must first understand that it IS possible to generate good quality leads and website traffic using Craigslist, if you stick with it and are consistent. The key is to develop a strategy that works for your market. Of course, Internet Marketing Specialists like my colleagues and I can help you with this, but wouldn't it also be great to talk to other agents who are doing well on Craigslist, and find out what they do? How much time, trial-and-error and effort do you think their experience would save you?
This week, SuccessWebsite® Video Seminar Series is launching "Craigslist Ad Secrets Revealed", a new part of our AgentSecrets program. In these live events, I interview some of our top-producing members about how to advertise effectively on Craigslist. These agents are getting stunning results with their lead generation, despite many of them being fairly new to Internet Marketing. They're ordinary people who have discovered what's working, and are eager to share how they achieved their success because they wish this information had been around when they were starting out.
And it's about more than just Craigslist too, because most of these strategies can be applied to ANY online classified ad service, including eBay/Kijiji, Backpage, OLX, and even Facebook Marketplace. You'll get new ideas on using these other services to drive more traffic and capture more leads.
I'm excited to get started with this new series, and I know it will help you learn to LOVE Craigslist!
The Real Estate Web Marketing Checklist
I love Realtors! And as a tech support representative for a web design and marketing company, you would assume a statement like that was steeped in affectation or sarcasm.
But I do honestly love working with Realtors. Yes, there are common traits that some of you possess that I do have to deal with on a daily basis (i.e. ADHD, extreme fear of computers and technology, lack of patience etc.) but for the most part, I find you all to be highly entertaining and personable human beings who have a real thirst for knowledge and a genuine appreciation for good customer service.
Yet, I can't help but think of what it would be like to be in your shoes. How would I use my web marketing knowledge to run online campaigns and attract new customers?
Here is my top 10 list of things that I would do if I were you.
1. I would make sure that I had a website that was optimized for lead generation with a clear call to action on each page so by the time I get my ads in place, my website is already setup up and ready to go. My website would be ready to notify me when new leads come in so I can follow-up right away.
2. I would start a blog to target my ideal audience. My first post would be about why I chose to be a realtor and the reasons I do what I do other than just to make money. This information "About Me" helps to boost loyalty and trust.
3. I would start to collect information and write about my prime areas to build keyword rich content that will attract new visitors to my website. This information would be in the form of community pages, blog posts along with lots of great photos of the area.
4. I would use social media channels like facebook, LinkedIn and twitter to build my target audience. Once my facebook business page was setup and optimized and my Twitter and LinkedIn accounts were setup, I would place links like the ones below on all of my correspondence (i.e. email signature, website homepage, newsletters etc.) These links would include their own Call To Action and provide compelling reasons why people should find me and follow me on these channels.
5. I would network with local businesses and setup affiliate links and pages within my website. I would also regularly tweet and post messages on my blog and facebook page to bring more attention to these businesses and help to empower them and build their web presence.
6. I would shoot interviews with local builders and business owners to increase their profile online and provide valuable video content people in my community
7. I would gather as many video and written testimonials as possible from the people I've helped and worked with, and then post this content to my website, blog & YouTube channel. Then I would drive traffic to this content from my Twitter and facebook accounts.
8. I would plan open house tours to bring as many people in my community as possible together to show them what is available in my marketplace.
9. I would get a professional photographer to take my photo and make sure it was not from 1982.
10. I would stay focused on two things: Building my presence online by doing all of the above plus some local print advertising like Just Listed postcards and brochures to increase awareness offline & generating a steady stream of new leads to my website through PPC services like Google AdWords, Bing & Facebook.
I would not be threatened by what other agents in my market are doing, but rather be inspired and try to learn as much as possible from those who are clearly making it work.
And lastly, I would not focus on the "what" or the "how" of what I do, but the "why". And the why should always include a genuine passion for helping people achieve their goals and get the best deal possible when buying or selling their home.
But that's just me.
Kristie Filion has been with SuccessWebsite for that past 10 years developing and designing web systems for Real Estate professionals. Helping clients generate high quality leads is her specialty.
December 2010 Release… Improved Site Interactivity.
Our web development team has just released some new optional features for your SuccessWebsite.
The NEW Related Content Search Tool provides quick links to different reports articles based on the common words and phrases that appear throughout your website. For example, a prospect reading a report on how to obtain a mortgage might see an information symbol beside the word "mortgage" – moving their mouse pointer over this symbol will pop up a box listing your other reports about mortgages on the site.
This allows the site user even more ways to self direct their navigation. The related content is automatically ranked by relevancy based on the currently viewed content. Filtering can also be applied based on current buyer and/or seller preferences making it easier to interactively find exactly the best content for their situation. You can also cross link between multiple sites in the related content.
In addition we have increased both the content and interactivity of your website, further positioning you as the most knowledgeable and qualified expert in your sales area. Highlights include:
- NEW Special Reports on a range of topics, including Investment Properties, Vacation Homes, and Renovating.
- NEW Graphics on page headers and in special reports, conveying more information and visually distinguishing different pages.
- NEW Audio Summaries of reports, presenting the information in a different form.
You can review these features here. This link will take you to an example of our NEW Real Estate Glossary page, where you can see the Related Content tool in action, and quickly navigate to reports to see the new graphics, audio and reports.
As always, we invite your feedback in the comments below.
Feedback from Today's Coaching Call with Steve and Craig Proctor
Thanks to all who joined us for today's coaching call. We hope you found it informative and inspiring.
We want your feedback! Remember, we are committed to your success – and that begins with an understanding of what you need and what's working (or not working) for you.
Please submit your questions, comments, thoughts, success stories, and ideas, to the comments below.
The NEW Internet Search You MUST Know About!
Okay, you've been working diligently at optimizing your website on search engines like Google. (What's that? You haven't? Well then, you might want to look at some basic info on search engines, then come back and read this post.)
You'll probably have realized two things by now:
- Unless your search keywords are localized (ie. "real estate Sarasota" versus just "real estate"), you're probably competing with everybody on the Internet instead of just businesses in your area. Not only that, but a lot of your site visitors will probably be from out of town.
- If your keywords aren't focused (ie. "foreclosure properties" versus the more general "real estate"), you probably get a lot more "junk results" in your search. Again, this is because you're competing with all the other "real estate" people out there, as opposed to just the ones who specialize in "foreclosure properties".
These are legitimate concerns, and things you must take into account when promoting your website online. A prospect in your area is probably more useful to you, and easier to convert, than somebody in a different city, so it's in your best interest to create optimized searches using local, focused keywords.
But… what if I told you there was also a way to improve your search results with general terms, and virtually guarantee those visitors are local to your area?
Plus!! This method also lets you provide more information about your business, including customer reviews, special offers, and local news, inside the search results, before they even get to your website!!