text:
Boston, MA Pop a pill or be poked by a needle? Being able to orally deliver microscopic particlesknow as nanoparticlesloaded with medicine is a simple, convenient way to treat patients for various diseases, such as cancer or diabetes. But so far, nanoparticles can only be given via injection since they have trouble being readily absorbed by the intestine, which limits their usefulness.
Now a study led by researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is the first to report in the field of nanomedicine a new type of nanoparticle that can be successfully absorbed through the digestive tract. The findings may one day allow patients to simply take a pill instead of receiving injections.
The study will be published online November 27, 2013 in Science Translational Medicine.
The nanoparticles developed by the researchers are decorated with antibodies that attach to receptors found on the cell surfaces that line the intestines. Once attached, the nanoparticles gain entry past the cellular barriers in intestinal walls and into the bloodstream. According to the researchers, this type of drug delivery could also be useful in developing new treatments for conditions such as high cholesterol or arthritis.
"The novelty of actively being able to transport targeted nanoparticles across cell barriers can potentially open up a whole new set of opportunities in nanomedicine," said Omid Farokhzad, MD, director of the BWH Laboratory of Nanomedicine and Biomaterials, senior study author. "The body has receptors that are involved in shuttling proteins across barriers, as is the case in the placenta between the mother and fetus, or in the intestine, or between the blood and the brain. By hitching a ride from these transporters the nanoparticles can enter various impermeable tissues."
Until recently, after being injected into the body, nanoparticles travelled to their destination
|Contact: Marjorie Montemayor-Quellenberg
Brigham and Women's Hospital


text:
Theresa Ross
Afternoons 2PM-7PM
Hi, I'm Theresa! I've been doing this radio thing since the mid 90's working in places all over from Las Vegas to Jacksonville. The web guy wanted me to answer a few questions, so here goes…
1. Tell us about your family?
I'm married to Terry (he's a fabulous cook too!) and mom to two beautiful kids Johanna's 16 and Jordan's 15 (btw, that's one girl and one boy!)
2. Any pets?
Jack Russell Terrier named JOJO and a Min Pin named BAXTER
3. Favorite foods?
chocolate!! (isn't that a food group?), chips and salsa (fresh salsa with cilantro), mexican food YUM, cookout food...anything my hubby cooks...i love to eat... AND THEN THERE'S THE GYM (lol)
4. Favorite bible verse?
I have two... Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.
and Jeremiah 29:11-13 For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.
5. What artist makes you turn it up?
TOBYMAC...who else... :)
|Contact Us
|Submit a PSA
|Contest Rules
|Submit an Event
|Terms of Service
|Job Opportunities
|Privacy Policy
|EEO Annual Report
Copyright © 2013 WPLL-FM. All Rights Reserved. Internet Development by Triton Digital Media

subset: commoncrawl


text:
YORK, Pa., Nov. 22, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Unilife Corporation ("Unilife") (NASDAQ: UNIS, ASX: UNS) today announced that all of the proposed items for its 2013 Annual General Meeting of stockholders were approved by the Company's shareholders.
The Company also announced changes to the Board of Directors and management team, including the appointment of Alan Shortall to Chairman of the Board of Directors, following Slavko James Joseph (Jim) Bosnjak's decision to step down from the position for both personal and professional reasons. Mr. Bosnjak will remain on the Board as Deputy Chairman and Lead Independent Director. Mr. Shortall will retain his role as CEO of Unilife. Dr. Ramin Mojdeh was appointed President of the Company, and will retain his position as Chief Operating Officer.
The Company has posted a complete audio archive of the meeting, along with the slide show presentation from Unilife CEO Mr. Alan Shortall focusing on the Company's commercial pipeline on its website at http://ir.unilife.com/events.cfm.
"I have tirelessly worked with Jim to accomplish great things for Unilife. And I speak for everyone at the Company, including the other members of the Board, when saying that we are lucky to have convinced Jim to remain with us as Deputy Chairman," said Mr. Shortall. "I would also like to thank the members of the board of directors for their confidence and appointing me Chairman. I believe that being Chairman and CEO will have some clear, near-term benefits in the negotiation of contracts."
"I would like to congratulate Ramin on his appointment to President. He has been a driving force behind our rapid ascent to the top of the drug delivery systems business and his work ethic, experience and leadership have bee
|SOURCE Unilife Corporation
Copyright©2012 PR Newswire.
All rights reserved


text:
After such a busy and impressive week, the awards show itself, on Sunday night, was quite a surprise, a barely controlled TV special which began with the most disastrous pairing of presenters (small bespectacled oriental man, tall amazonian woman) since The Krankies. However, whoever they were � and the French don't translate � they had good news for the British production Control, the touching and very human story of the life and death of the former singer with Joy Division, Ian Curtis. Control's director, rock snapper Anton Corbijn, didn't win the Camera D'Or but at least he got a special mention, a close-up on the TV screen and an offer from the Weinstein Company for the North American rights. After that, the awards splintered off in various directions, reflecting the stong nature of the selection, with acting awards (male) for Russia's The Banishment and (female) for Korea's Secret Sunshine (Angelina Jolie's showpiece, A Mighty Heart, unspooled out of competition and was therefore ineligible).
Still, as nice as those Jury Prizes and Special Mentions are, there's only one award people really care about, and that's the Palme D'Or. By the final Sunday afternoon there are usually so few people around it's pretty easy to work out why a well-known face would stick around for the closing ceremony, and even as we walked into the Salle Debussy to watch a live feed we'd heard that director Julian Schnabel (The Diving Bell And The Butterfly) was still kicking around, while the Coens were already back in New York. A big close-up of Gus Van Sant (Paranoid Park) during the telecast also set our minds whirring. As it was, the big prizes were spread very deservingly.
Schnabel, a big, blustering bear of a man who wouldn't leave the stage, won Best Director for his affecting and beautifully acted true story of a man left paralysed by a stroke. Van Sant won a special made-up prize, both for the wonderful skater-juve dream-poem Paranoid Park and his entire career, and the Grand Prix most unexpectedly went to Japan's, er, �stately' death drama The Mourning Forest. OK, we'll admit it: we didn't see that one.
So the big prize? Well, nowt for the Coens, who were the biggest hitters at the festival and perhaps too obvious to win. Instead, the jury, headed by UK's Stephen Frears, made exactly the right choice, dropping da bomb on Cristian Miungiu's terrific Four Months, Three Weeks And Two Days. Known on the Croisette as "The Romanian abortion drama" (because that's what it was), this sealed the rise of Romanian film in recent months, following the success of The Death Of Mr Lazarescu two years ago and making a double whammy for the land of stray dogs � Cristian Nemescu's California Dreamin' had posthumously won Best Film in the Un Certain Regard section the day before. The story of two girls trying to procure an abortion under Ceaucescu's reign in 1987, 4...3...2... is serious without being stony and features two stupendous performances. Like the Dardennes brothers' Palme D'Or winner L'Enfant (but better), this handsomely made and passionate film fully deserved a) its reputation (unusually for a Palme D'Or winner, it screened in the first week of the festival) and b) its prize, which was announced by Frears, a normally scruffy bastard who, for once, had made a bit of effort on the tux front. "I'm told by you people who come here every year that this has been a terrific festival," Frears deadpanned. "On behalf of the jury, I'd like to say that the films have been a pleasure to watch."
A fitting salute to arguably the best festival in recent memory, and a tempting taste � hopefully � of things to come.
We needn't have worried. Those who saw the "Joseph Brenner & Associates" redux cut will see that all the scenes that seemed to be missing really do exist and have been slotted back in accordingly � principally with Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell), the psycho fall guy who gets his kicks by running purty ladies off the road and into their graves. In its finished form, Death Proof still retains some of the Grindhouse trimmings: there are blips and scratches, and there's even an entire sequence in black and white, but far from being distracting, these details become integral to the atmosphere � Death Proof is a teasing film from back in the day but made now, causing a neat disjunction between the conventions of the story and the modernity of its characters (with the exception of Mike, of course, but we'll come to that later).
Much has been made � here at least � of this being Tarantino's most linear film yet, which is true� ish. Death Proof is a film of two halves, but it's by no means a portmanteau. Half of the fun is in Tarantino's manipulation of our expectations; from the title alone and the lurid poster ("These 8 Women Are About To Meet 1 Diabolical Man!"), we're expecting something dark, so, Tarantino's own slasher-movie talk notwithstanding, its tempting to read this solely as a serial-killer flick. But like Jaws, Death Proof is a film about anticipation, and after a menacing Jack Nitzsche-scored credit sequence the film takes its time getting these girls done with. The flavour here is female, as Austin DJ Jungle Julia (Syndey Poitier) reunites her girl posse and celebrates her birthday with a night on the town. Mike is circling them but Tarantino takes his time, and the film really benefits from more time with Vanessa Ferlito as Arlene, the typical �last girl standing' from slasher lore. It's only Arlene that gets the measure of Mike's madness, but in true grindhouse style her gorgeous foreboding all but flies out of the window when the film suddenly lurches from horror pic to sleazerama, with a great barroom lap dance that leaves audiences and Mike alike grinning from ear to ear.
We'll skip what Mike gets up to later: suffice to say that Mr Icy Hot is nice, not, but the real revelation of the new, long version is what happens in the second half. Although some of the controversial lengthy dialogue scenes remain untouched, Tarantino has reinstated scenes that introduce a second girl group and takes more time establishing Mike's interest in the new arrivals, which adds a whole new dynamic, like a purring engine, revving quietly while the director indulges his trademark love of dialogue. Two other elements have been added here: more screentime for Abernathy (Rosario Dawson) and, later, in the film's powerhouse home run, Kim (Tracie Thoms), with scenes that round out their characters so much, by the time they and their stuntgirl friend Zoe (Zoe Bell "as herself") become a Switchblade Sisters/Truckstop Women-style rampage of revenge, the previously rushed transition suddenly seems scarily plausible.
Full plaudits go here, of course, to Kurt Russell, who motors through the film with a deceptively subtle brilliance, portraying Mike as, alternately, a dope, nice guy, a washed-up hasbeen, a cool guy and a pussy � like Javier Bardem in the Coens' No Country For Old Men, this is about to become one of the definitive movie crazies. But however attached we get to Stuntman Mike, Tarantino's not allowing us to get too close, and with the final, euphoric ending he subverts the slasher-flick formula with a bravura climax that sent the Cannes audience whooping and clapping into the night. OK, one person booed, some older people moaned, and a woman from Turkey didn't get it AT ALL. But Death Proof is the film it set out to be, the film Tarantino had in his mind on the day we watched him shoot it. This is seriously entertaining American filmmaking in its prime and most definitely not the only-half-serious pastiche it could have been. There's no seatbelt, nor airbag, no nuthin', this is just Tarantino driving wildly under the influence. Just hang on and take the ride.
Aside from the Coens' No Country For Old Men, the big story is the Romanian film Four Months, Three Weeks And Two Days, a dazzling but grim abortion drama that has been described as an eastern European Vera Drake, without the endless cups of tea. In other strands, we're hearing excellent things about The Band's Visit, a laconic, Jarmusch-esque comedy, and The Orphanage, a Spanish chiller produced by Guillermo Del Toro.
In fact, we're hearing (and seeing) a lot of good movies, which, believe us, is so often not the case in Cannes. Today was a cracking double bill, starting with the 8.30am screening of Gus Van Sant's latest, Paranoid Park.
Cast via myspace and starring a cast of unknowns, this adaptation of Blake Nelson's novel is just beautiful. If you don't like Van Sant, hated Last Days and thought Elephant was a crock, save your money for Pirates 3. That's not a sniffy, condescending remark, just a way of saying that Van Sant has a singular eye, and if you don't like it (note: 'like', not 'get') you won't enjoy it. However, to his fans, and they aren't legion it must be said, Paranoid Park is a lyrical wonder, shot by genius DoP Chris Doyle in Portland, Oregon. The story is slight but its impact profound: a young skater is implicated in the murder of a security guard at a nearby train depot. Echoing Elephant's hallucinatory repetition, and filled with roving shots of gnarly, carving skater dudes, the film soon reveals itself as a modest but elegant meditation on guilt and loneliness. If Larry Clark was less of a perv and more of a Catholic priest, he might make something as thoughtful and lovely as this.
Going straight out to come back in, we found ourselves sitting in exactly the same seats for Michael Winterbottom's new film, A Mighty Heart, a true-story-slash-biopic set in Pakistan and starring some American bird called Angelina Jolie. Filmed on the hoof in India, but shot so stunningly you'd swear they'd closed down the whole country for the shoot, the film tells the story of Daniel Pearl, a Wall Street Journal writer who was kidnapped by jihadists, on suspicion of being a CIA and Mossad operative, then viciously beheaded in the first of many militant video statements issued in the wake of 9/11. Jolie plays his widow, Mariane, but she isn't always the focus, sometimes sliding into the background whenever Winterbottom's film morphs into United 93-type reconstruction. Anyone who doubts her acting talent will be hard pushed to find fault with her performance here; the French accent and (controversial) dusky looks are very convincing indeed, but if there's a fault to be found it's perhaps that the film lacks a little in subtext. Then again, it seems churlish to say that: Winterbottom finds terrific flavour in the backstreets, and there's a poignant sense of camaraderie to counter the cruelty.
Anyone expecting something explicitly political from the defiantly left-wing Winterbottom might be surprised at the film's sensitivity and its refusal to paint an easy picture of the situation in Pakistan. But if it's unsubtle politics you're looking for, head straight to Leonardo DiCaprio's The Eleventh Hour, a choppy, noisy, moany film that bashes you over the head for 90 minutes while not actually telling you much. Where An Inconvenient Truth was a paternal, authoritative seminar from an avuncular former Vice President, The Eleventh Hour is a hectoring, sometimes shrill sermon that goes on off so many tangents it's hard to see who it's aimed at. DiCaprio's fans won't have much use for its advice on how to build an eco-friendly high-rise, "sustainable" isn't a word that's likely to be in their lexicon, and after seeing so many memorable performances recently, during his infrequent to-camera monologues they're more likely be reminded of an aircraft safety video than his brilliant work in The Departed or Blood Diamond. Still, it was an aberration. Showing out of competition, The Eleventh Hour was simply a blot on an otherwise clear landscape: as everyone agrees, although interviews and press conferences are getting harder to get (and sometimes even sit through, this really has to be the strongest Cannes in a long, long, long time.
Brolin is pretty amazing as the gnomic Moss, but as the cold-blooded Chighur, Javier Bardem is fan-fucking-tastic. If you think you've seen what he can do in the likes of Live Flesh, Before Night Falls and The Sea Inside, just wait till you see what he does here, sporting a tasty pudding-bowl haircut and lugging a metal canister with a sinister purpose that soon becomes horribly clear. It's a plain enough trajectory but Joel Coen directs with a pure visual genius echoed by Carter Burwell's ambient non-soundtrack, which lends the film an eerie sense of calm. A calm that can, and will, be shattered in the most shocking and unexpected ways. Drenched in blood and featuring gory scenes that will tax even some of the hardest stomachs, No Country For Old Men is a film so good it really hasn't sunk in yet: in years to come people will look back and say, oh man, why don't they make 'em like THIS any more?
And, hey, there's even more good news. Arriving cloak-and-dagger style from a secret location, Michael Moore's new documentary Sicko unspooled to a VERY warm reception. Kicking off with the obligatory swipe at Bush, Sicko is a more mellow film than we're used to seeing from the less-lardy-than-usual firebrand. Perhaps a little too obvious targeted at a domestic audience (Moore says "we" a lot when he means "we Americans"), it offers his take on the American healthcare system and how lives and limbs are being lost in pursuit of profit. Less hectoring than his usual style, Moore's film really swings into focus during a conversation with Tony Benn, who talks about the two means of control that a government has at its disposal: fear and demoralization. It doesn't take a genius to work out that both these subjects have been tackled before, and Sicko is the film that truly reveals Moore as an auteur, binding these two issues together to question the Bush administration on moral grounds as well as political. The final stunt is pure Moore � rounding up some heroes from Ground Zero, the filmmakers takes them to Guantanamo Bay, where members of Al Qaeda are receiving the kind of medical treatment that most Americans can't afford. Moore's laconic plea for "no more or less than the evildoers are receiving" will go down in cinema history as one of his most effective gestures, tying up the government in its own red tape. Interestingly, Moore seemed very subdued at the press conference and was not relishing the results of an official investigation into his trip to Camp X-Ray, which resulted in a diversion to Havana, Cuba, still very much a no-go area for US citizens. He has ten days to respond to the White House's questions, and that time expires on Tuesday night. He's at the festival for a while yet, so we'll keep you posted as to whether the 2004 Palme D'Or winner is likely join Paris Hilton in jail...
Better known as the photographer whose monochrome portraits captured not only the young Joy Division but perhaps more famously the rising Depeche Mode, Corbijn has switched to the moving image with surprising dexterity.
Surprising in that, although the images are as clean, composed and beautiful as anything he's done in static form, Corbijn has completely nailed the dry Mancunian wit that surrounded the city's music scene from the outset. Often portrayed as a troubled, depressive loner, Curtis is shown here as just a lonely boy whose success and talent outstripped his ambitions, trapped in a marriage that he embarked on too young but couldn't bring himself to end.
Though the film painstakingly re-enacts the band's rise to cult success, Control isn't simply a dolled-up rockumentary; the final half of its two-hour running time is largely given over to not-so-bizarre love triangle the singer found himself in after falling in love with a Belgian music fan while away on tour.
Now, if only the after party had been as enjoyable. Miles down the Croisette, in the little-used Palm Beach club, it was one of the festival's hottest tickets, with rumoured appearances by Bono, New Order and Madonna.
They were going to 'jam', we heard, but did they fuck. Instead, a few random liggers assembled to glare at the empty VIP area while dancing to the most atrocious music you and I are ever likely to hear. Poor Ian Curtis died this very day (May 18), 27 years ago, and was thus spared the horrors of what has become known as The 80s Disco. We were hoping to hear some cool guitar music, and instead we got Dire fucking Straits. Ian, man, forgive them. They knew not what they did.
Still, enough griping. Much better was a chic little cocktail soiree that Harvey Weinstein threw to show us that the movie mogul is still very much in the game, having given over much of the last 12 months to dabbling in other businesses, including the fashion trade. Reading from a set of prepared notes that he soon abandoned, Weinstein kicked off with his thoughts on Grindhouse, full admitting that "we fell on our asses � big time". Speaking candidly, he revealed that he was always against the idea of a double bill but respected Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's wishes (as well he might, since the directors pretty much founded Dimension Films and Miramax respectively). However, he maintained that The Weinstein Company is still committed to the idea of grindhouse with a small g, having bought a back catalogue of schlocky movies to release under the banner. He also claimed that the although the two films, Planet Terror and Death Proof, would be released separately, the fake trailers by Edgar Wright, Eli Roth and Rob Zombie would be appended in slightly longer form to the upcoming stand-alone release of Rodriguez's blood-spattered zombie flick.
Weinstein was most jazzed, though, by his upcoming rumble with the US government, who are currently investigating Michael Moore's TWC-produced healthcare doc Sicko, in particular the final 20 minutes, in which Moore takes some 9/11 workers to Cuba for treatment. Turning the tables under the Freedom Of Information Act, Weinstein is forcing the government to reveal the circumstances leading up to the investigation, which is making a lot of important people Not Very Happy. In fact, so severe is the threat that Moore faces a possible 10 years in jail and the film itself could be impounded, which is why the print is currently under lock and key well outside of US jurisdiction. Weinstein refused to be drawn on its exact whereabouts, though he did remind us that the US was the country that couldn't find those pesky weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. "I could probably tell you which country it's in, and they still wouldn't find it," he joked.
If only all press calls were like this, and not like the boring audience with Wong Kar-Wai this morning, in which the gnomic director, Jude Law and Norah Jones gathered to discuss things like "the process" and other nonsense. Nodding off during long-winded questions about nothing in particular, we perked up only when a foreign journalist told Law he looked like famous Turkish leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (bet he's never heard THAT one before!) and another made an even more bizarre comparison, prompting Law to announce, "I'm too handsome to play the Pope!" That was it, really. Oh, we learned Norah Jones bought a guitar during the shoot but was too busy to play it. And then we found her pink Gucci sunglasses, which we dutifully handed in. Really, it was that eventful a morning...
However, for the first 20 minutes at least, My Blueberry Nights wavers on the borders of self-parody. Filmed on location, it evokes a gorgeous, hallucinatory (and largely twilight) world, but where Wong's dialogue once seemed so cute and rarefied in Cantonese, it now seems a little on the clich�d side. Similarly, Law and Jones don't quite muster up the screen chemistry that made Wong's Hong Kong hits so adorable, and the offbeat detail that once worked so perfectly (in one scene, Jones and Law both sport bloody noses) comes across as contrived.
That's the beginning, however, and the minute Elizabeth begins her American odyssey the film starts to pick up speed. First port of call is Memphis, where Elizabeth takes two jobs (one in a caf�, one in a bar) to earn money to buy a car. Fittingly for a Wong Kar-Wai movie, the bar is where the action is, chiefly a love-soaked, cuckolded cop (David Strathairn) whose young hellcat wife refuses to reconcile with him. Strathairn's performance is remarkable and injects the film with some much-needed human blood, with Rachel Weisz on good form as the troubled ex who can't handle a man who wants more than she can ever give him.
This, though, is just a warm-up to the film's main attraction: Natalie Portman as a Vegas card-sharp who enlists Elizabeth's friendship and takes her on a road trip to find more money that will keep her in business as a gambler. Portman has shown her natural talent in films as diverse and good/not good as Garden State and Closer, but here she really shows a new side to her abilities, playing the hard-bitten, careworn Lady Luck with genuine balls and an unexpected frailty. It's a shame, then, that the film never quite plays up to its players: Wong shoots and directs his cast with an understated sensitivity, but the story itself never quite marshals all the moments he gathers on screen. Still, as opening films go, this is one of Cannes' better choices, a striking, recognizably individual offering from an artist whose work offers everything that typifies the spirit of the auteur � style, thought and through-lines. Die-hard fans might be disappointed but newcomers may be converted, and the back catalogue is there on DVD for both sets to go back to. And really that's what film festival are all about: the nexus of the old and new. Shame there wasn't a dog flying a plane in it, though.
As the French Riviera prepares for the annual invasion of moviemakers, studio-shakers and probably the odd troublemaker, the films vying for a coveted gong at this year's Cannes Festival are beginning their campaigns today, as the sojourn by the sea beings its 2007 celebration.
One such movie is Wong Kar Wai's first English-speaking feature My Blueberry Nights, which has already been given the hallowed task of opening the proceedings later tonight. With an all star cast that includes Jude Law, Rachel Weisz, Natalie Portman, Tim Roth, Norah Jones and David Strathairn, interest in the Chinese director's (and former Cannes Jury President) latest offering is extremely high. So with just hours to go before the film officially premieres, you can now watch the trailer online by clicking here. And remember to stay tuned to Empire for up to the minute news from the world's biggest film festival.
This year the organisers are taking the bold step of opening with the new film by Wong Kar-Wei, the Hong Kong maverick whose last film, 2046, turned up a full day late for its festival debut. This year, however, Wong's film is firmly in the can, starring Norah Jones as a woman on an odyssey across America, visiting New York, Memphis and Vegas. Wong's first film in English, it boasts a terrific supporting cast � Rachel Weisz, Jude Law, David Strathairn and Natalie Portman � and promises just the right mix of star wattage, intelligence and mood to set the festival on its course.
The Competition will be interesting this year. As far back as December, while the film was still shooting, Quentin Tarantino told us of his intention to put Death Proof, the full version of his half of the Grindhouse double-bill he co-created with Robert Rodriguez, into the official selection. Although we've seen and approved of Grindhouse, and also read the original script, we've yet to see the full version of Death Proof, complete with its missing lapdance scene. Also interesting will be the Coen brothers' 'comeback' of sorts: their adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's novel No Country For Old Men, a violent western saga starring Javier Bardem and Tommy Lee Jones.
The American side of things is backed up by David Fincher's criminally underrated Zodiac, a loose, open-ended serial-killer drama that flopped in the US but looks likely to galvanise European audiences with its atmospheric restaging of a crime spree that gripped the west coast. And although his style has become increasingly less American in recent years, there's also Paranoid Park, the latest from Gus Van Sant. A murder story set in high school, it stars an all-new cast (recruited from MySpace) and features prominent skateboarding � and any more than that we just don't know at this stage.
Which is the beauty of Cannes � most of the films opening here are world premieres, and as well as the obvious commercial highlights, there are unexpected goodies from all over the world. Van Sant, for example, will be competing against The Man From London by Bela Tarr, the Hungarian director whose drawn-out style inspired Van Sant's Gerry and, latterly, his rock movie Last Days. This is Tarr's first time in the big league, and the same goes for Russia's Andrei Zvyagintsev, whose sophomore film The Banishment will pique the curiosity of fans of his excellent 2003 debut The Return. And speaking of curiosity, it'll definitely be interesting to see if Mexico's Carlos Reygadas is intending to top his last Cannes competition entry, the sexually explicit Battle In Heaven (2005), with Silent Light, a hot-blooded tale of infidelity and guilt.
All this and we haven't even scratched the surface: elsewhere, Cannes features the latest upset from Bush-basher Michael Moore (Sicko), Leonardo DiCaprio's attempt to follow Al Gore into the political movie arean (The Eleventh Hour) and, of all things a screwball comedy from Abel Ferrara, director of The Driller Killer (Go-Go Tales). And in other strands, there's Gael Garcia Bernal's directing debut (Deficit), Anton Corbijnb's biopic of Joy Division's Ian Curtis (Control), and a gory-looking thriller with a blood-spattered Beatrice Dalle (Inside) to be going on with. All these movies and many more will come under Empire's scrutiny between tomorrow and next Saturday (May 26) when the festival officially ends. Keep checking the website for news, reviews, clips, insight and gossip. And remember, all you aspiring filmmakers, that although we've got appointments with Clooney, Scorsese, Angelina and Tarantino to keep, if your little British movie has a dog flying a plane in it� we're there.


text:
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- The District at Green Valley Ranch is buzzing today with people taking advantage of sales, spending gift cards Santa brought them, and returning items that just didn't work out.
Lots of returns come from online orders. Some people got the wrong size clothing or ended up with gifts that just didn't live up to the picture on the website.
But shop owners say most people are opting for exchanges rather than returns, so it's not hurting sales numbers. They say lots of people end up buying more when they come in and see end-of-the-year sales as shops gear up to bring in new inventory and lots of those purchases are being made with gift cards as well.
Retailers say after-Christmas discounts are even deeper than those offered on Black Friday. Shop workers tell Action News they offered 15 to 20% off leading into the holiday season, but now they're clearing off the shelves with up to 40% off regular items, and up to 75% off anything holiday related.
- Latest


text:
Fusion have to settle for 2-2 draw with Fuego
The Ventura County Fusion succeeded only in stopping the celebration from occurring on its home field.
Saturday night's 2-2 draw with the Fresno Fuego at Ventura College all but confirmed the Southwest Division title will be returning north up Route 99.
The Fusion (7-1-4) kicked itself for not becoming the first team to beat Fresno (9-0-2) since another Ventura County team, FC Hasental, knocked the Fuego out of the U.S. Open Cup in May.
In the final seven minutes, Fusion striker Kennedy Chongo was denied a game-winning goal by an offside flag and a potential game-winning penalty kick.
But Fusion coach Rudy Ybarra was more aggrieved by the series of missed chances his team piled up after going down 1-0 in the early moments.
"I thought the referee was a little harsh on us," Ybarra said. "But putting the referee aside ... if we capitalize on our opportunities in the first half, nobody mentions the referee.
"We missed five balls that should have been in the back of the net."
The game wasn't just a showdown of the top two teams in the division standings, they've also combined for the past three division titles.
Fresno took the lead in the 10th minute when Gaston Cignetti curled a 20-yard free kick into the top corner.
The Fusion leveled just three minutes later, when Johnny Lopez's deflected shot completed a full-field move.
From there, Ventura County piled on the pressure. A bobble off the turf foiled a Chongo breakaway. Steve Palacios headed just wide off two corner kicks.
Probably the best opportunity of the first half was created by a low cross from Anthony Salciccia, which Lopez was set to head home before he was taken out from behind by a Fresno player.
No penalty kick was awarded. A similar scenario played out in the 90th minute, when Chongo was hammered in the penalty area. He had to be helped off the field after a long delay.
"There's two PKs he didn't call for us," Ybarra said.
The Fusion took the lead on midfield Matt Lagrassa's stellar 30-yard screamer in the 48th minute, set up by Palacios' square ball. But Fresno equalized from the penalty spot eight minutes later after striker Tyler Reinhart was felled by Sam Hayden as the two stretched for a backpass.
Both teams had opportunities to grab a winner in the final half hour, but it didn't materialize.
The result leaves the second-place Fusion, who have dropped points in three straight matches and four of six, just three points ahead of the third-place L.A. Misioneros, who have a match in hand. The teams will meet in the season finale July 19 in Ventura, which now looks like it may serve as a postseason play-in match.
"We've put ourselves in that situation," Ybarra said.
Subscribe to the Ventura County Star
Need Help? Call us at 1-877-710-6182.
Monday-Friday: 6am-3pm / Saturday: 6:30am-10:30am / Sunday: 7am-11am


text:
The State of Homelessness
Renowned urban thinker Anthony Downs wrote: "No jurisdiction is an island. Every suburb is linked to its central city and to other suburbs." But intra-regional social and economic dynamics can sometimes make it appear as though there are actual oceans separating jurisdictional boundaries. The intra-regional social dynamic of homelessness is no exception.
Are there actually homelessness disparities within a region? If so, how large? I examine these questions in this article using the specific case of the national capital region.
But first, some background.
In The State of Homelessness in America 2012 (SOH12), we included an appendix with 2011 homelessness data for the 100 largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), as measured at a point-in-time. This includes data on nearly all of the metro areas in the country with populations over 500,000 people. Homeless point-in-time counts are reported to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development at the geographic level known as the Continuum of Care (CoC), which is a local planning network designed to facilitate and encourage coordination of local efforts to address housing and homeless assistance. These CoC boundary lines are organized based on numerous local decisions of which the primary consideration should be to design a system that will most effectively meet the needs of the homeless population.
CoC boundaries may or may not reflect other demographic patterns or economic realities that shape how people interact in the physical environment. MSA boundaries, on the other hand, are determined by commuting to work/employment patterns and, therefore, are more likely to reflect the full human ecosystem. But the truth about MSA boundaries is that they are not representative of an incorporated jurisdiction, like a city or a town. Instead, MSAs are simply a statistical measurement instrument used by the U.S. Census and researchers alike to more effectively comprehend regions.
I'm going a long way to describe CoC and MSA boundaries here for two reasons. The first reason is so that I can say that coming up with estimates for metro areas required some spatial analysis work of matching CoC with MSA boundaries since point-in-time counts data are only reported at the geography of the CoC.
But the other reason I expounded on and on about the geography of the data was to show the value of work that derives estimates for metro area homelessness. And the value is that with such data we can have a more nuanced picture of the regional shape of homelessness in any particular metro area, especially when we take into account other factors, such as the general population. By taking population into account, we can look at rates of homelessness and make comparisons. More specifically, we can identify geographic disproportionality by comparing the rate of a single CoC to the rate of the whole MSA, or the rate between CoCs within an MSA. [1]
Data on the Washington metro area homeless population show that an estimated 13,205 people were homeless at a point-in-time in 2011, which ranks the area as the 8th highest total homeless population in the country. The area's homelessness rate is 24 homeless people per 10,000 in the general population (~5.5 million people). Though ranking in nationally at number 8 in overall homeless population, D.C.'s homeless rate ranks as the 21st highest in the country. D.C.'s rate is lower than many major metropolitan areas, including Boston (ranked 20th), New York (13th), San Francisco/Oakland (12th), Los Angeles (6th), New Orleans (2nd), and Tampa/St. Petersburg (1st).
The more interesting data on Washington metro area homelessness, I believe, are found when you look at the geographic distribution of the population in the region (see the map above and table below). Nearly half of the metro area's homeless population lives in the District of Columbia. Fairfax-Falls Church has 12 percent of the population, followed by Montgomery County (9 percent) and Charles, Calvert and St. Mary's Counties (9 percent). Prince George's County is the only other jurisdiction with at least 5 percent of the metro area's total population. The remaining 15 percent of the population lives in the 6 other CoCs.
But when you take the general population data into account and look at rates of homelessness within the metro area, you can see the disproportionality among the jurisdictions. Four of the eleven CoCs in the Washington metro area have rates of homelessness that are higher than the national rate of 21 per 10,000. These four CoCs are: Arlington (22 per 10,000); Alexandria (30); Charles, Calvert, and St. Mary's Counties (34); and the District of Columbia (109), which has a rate over 4 times that of the region as a whole and more than 5 times that of the nation as a whole.
The jurisdictions with the three lowest rates of homelessness in the region are: Prince George's County (9 per 10,000); Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania and Stafford Counties (7); and Loudon County (5).
There are certainly a number of regional and CoC-level dynamics that account for the variation in the rates of homelessness in the Washington metro area—such as differences in housing affordability, jobs, etc.—but one thing that's clear is that there is significant variation in the available data.
[1] One thing to note about the analysis of all the jurisdictional variation is that when making comparisons across CoCs, caution should be used as jurisdictions' methodologies for estimating their population counts do vary. But, still, the rates of the point-in-time counts of people experiencing homelessness do provide us with a method for making reasonable comparisons.
Data, Oh How I've Overlooked You! Data you may have missed in The State of Homelessness in America 2012
Hello fellow homeless advocates, policy wonks, and friends of data!
It's been just over a month since the Alliance released The State of Homelessness in America 2012 and in that time the report has been picked up by numerous national and local media sources.
The report's one-sentence take-away—that homelessness has decreased by one percent nationally from 2009 to 2011 and that this decrease is in large part explained by HPRP, a program funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009—has been the main story line in many of the media articles.
While the national decrease and the reason behind the decrease in homelessness are in the headlines for a reason, I thought it'd be useful to spend some time pointing out some of the data nuggets that you may have overlooked when you paged through the report last month. (And if you haven't taken a look at the report yet, knock yourself out.)
Today's data nugget: Homelessness in Metro Areas.
Homelessness in America is disproportionately found at higher rates in metropolitan areas of the country. Nearly 70 percent of the homeless population lives in the 100 largest metro areas, while a comparatively smaller percentage of the general population lives in these areas (65 percent). In Appendix One of the report, overall homeless population data are provided for the 100 largest metropolitan areas for the year 2011. In addition to a look at how many people are homeless in a given metro area at a point-in-time, homelessness rates were calculated.
For this blog post, I put together a "top 20 list" of metro areas with the highest rates of homelessness. While places such as New York, Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco, and Seattle are each on the short list, none are at the top.
The five metro areas with highest rates of homelessness belong to (1) Tampa, FL, (2) New Orleans, LA, (3) Fresno, CA, (4) Las Vegas, NV, and (5) Honolulu, HI. All of the top five metro areas have rates that are more than twice as high as the U.S. rate of 21 people per 10,000 in the general population.
You might be surprised to see some of the other areas that made the short list and some that are noticeably absent. One notable trend is that among the top 20 list there is not a single metro area from the Census Bureau's Midwest region (i.e. not Chicago, Detroit, St. Louis, etc.).
Take a look at the table below for a list of the 20 highest rates of homelessness. If you have any thoughts about the list or want to know more, let us know in the comments and I'll try to respond to you as soon as I can.
Metropolitan Areas with the Highest Rates of Homelessness, 2011
Source: HRI calculations based on data from HUD and 2010 ACS 1-Year files.
Rate of Homelessness is x homeless people for every 10,000 in the general population.
A few days ago, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said that he wasn't concerned about the very poor because we have a social safety net – and, when prodded, he said he would mend the safety net if necessary.
The candidate has been hounded by news outlets since the misstep. The Daily Beast, the Washington Post, and the TakeAway have all pointed out that the Romney should, in fact, show concern for the [growing] very poor population in America. The New York Times even ran an editorial on "the darkening tone of the primaries," specifically citing this gaffe.
Needless to say, we here at the Alliance are very concerned about the very poor.
As has been widely reported, a full 15 percent of Americans live below the poverty line (which is $18,530 for a family of three) and 6.7 percent of Americans live in deep poverty (defined as half the poverty line.) Half of all Americans are either poor or low-income, living at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty line.
While the last few years have, as the candidate notes, been hard for middle-class Americans, it has been a troublesome time for low-income and poor Americans as well. Recessionary times can be especially difficult for those households with little to no financial resources who suffer the same challenges as middle-income Americans including unemployment and housing crises. Unlike middle-income Americans, however, low-income and poor Americans often do not have the resources to buttress or recover from such economic hurdles. Without substantial savings or other assets, these hurdles can leave low-income and poor households facing very difficult circumstances, even homelessness.
This can be seen in our latest report, The State of Homelessness in America 2012. Severe housing cost burden for poor households* rose 6 percent from 2009 to 2010 (as it has steadily for decades) and the number of people living doubled increased by 13 percent**. While overall homelessness in the country stayed fairly steady between 2009 and 2011, the indicators associated with homelessness – including unemployment, poverty, housing burden, and the like – paint a picture of a low-income and poor community in need of – at the very least – concern.
*severe housing cost burden is defined as households paying 50 percent of more of their monthly income on housing.
**"doubled up" refers to a low-income individual or member of a family who is living with friends, extended family, or other non-relatives due to economic hardship.
On Wednesday, January 18, the Alliance released The State of Homelessness in America 2012. The second in a series, this year's report finds that the slight decrease in homelessness between 2009 and 2011 can be largely attributed to the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP), the stimulus-funded program aimed at curbing homelessness resulting from the recession. Moreover, the report found that indicators associated with homelessness, including severe housing cost burden and doubled up households, increased.
The story is basically this: homelessness is down mainly because of HPRP, and risk of homelessness still looms as HPRP funds diminish and risk indicators rise.
A breakdown of major findings:
- The nation's homeless population decreased 1 percent, or by about 7,000 people between 2009 and 2011; it went from 643,067 (2009) to 636,017 (2011). Most of the examined subpopulations, including families, chronically homeless people, and individuals, experienced a decrease in population. The only increase was among people who were unsheltered.
- The largest decrease was among homeless veterans, whose population declined 11 percent. The number of homeless veterans went from 75,609 in 2009 to 67,495 in 2011, a reduction of about 8,000.
- Chronic homelessness decreased by 3 percent from 110,911 in 2009 to 107,148 in 2011. The chronically homeless population has decreased by 13 percent since 2007. The decrease is associated with an increase in the number of permanent supportive housing units from 188,636 in 2007 to 266,968 in 2011. Permanent supportive housing ends chronic homelessness.
- The number of poor households that spent more than 50 percent of their incomes on rent – defined by HUD as households that are "severely housing cost burdened" – increased by 6 percent from 5.9 million in 2009 to 6.2 million in 2010. Three-quarters of all poor renter households had severe housing cost burdens.
- The "doubled up" population (people who live with friends, family or other nonrelatives for economic reasons) increased by 13 percent from 6 million in 2009 to 6.8 million in 2010. The doubled up population increased by more than 50 percent from 2005 to 2010.
So the work ahead is far from done. The heartening decrease in homelessness, especially in the face of a recession, indicates that the federal intervention to curb and prevent homelessness did what it was supposed to do. But now, as HPRP ends and budgets grow tighter and tighter across all levels of government, people are left still at risk and soon without resources. Without intervention, homelessness could rise in the years to come, as we've predicted.
Tell us what's happening in your neighborhood and if these findings are true for you.
The State of Homelessness can be found on Alliance website: http://www.endhomelessness.org/content/article/detail/4361.
Today's guest post comes to us from Pete Witte, research associate at the Alliance.
I wasn't surprised while reading the recent report, America's Rental Housing: Meeting Challenges, Building on Opportunities, by the Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) of Harvard University. Among other things, the paper points out that there is a substantial—and growing—gap between the number of very low-income renters and available affordable rental units. But though the report is unsurprising, it's disconcerting nonetheless.
In the State of Homelessness, we found that from 2008 to 2009, the number of poor, severely housing cost burdened renter households increased by 9 percent to nearly 5.9 million households nationally (severe housing cost burden = households paying 50 percent of their monthly income or more on rent). Families are finding it difficult to afford rents and the recent JCHS paper points out that, in part, rents are rising due to a lack of supply and increasing demand.
These factors reveal that there are more and more people at increased risk of homelessness When households pay such a great majority of their monthly income on rent (50 percent or more, in the case of severely housing cost burdened households), they have little money left over for other expenses, including transportation, healthcare, education, and food. The scarcity of resources means that that any unforeseen financial hurdle – a large bill, car breakdown, hospitalization – could jeopardize the household's housing situation.
The JCHS paper also predicts that "Given the long lead times needed to develop new multifamily housing, a sharp increase in demand could quickly reduce vacancy rates and put upward pressure on rents." The authors call the growing problem an "affordability crisis."
And I agree.
As the U.S. population continues to grow, so will the number of renter households. JCHS estimates that growth of renter households could number as many as 470,000 annually. How many of these new renter households will be severely housing cost burdened? Will the affordable housing supply gap continue to grow? How many people will find themselves doubled up or in shelters because they can't find or keep housing that they can afford?
Solving the problem of creating more affordable housing is not an easy one. I can tell you that from my past experiences, when I worked as an urban planner, the question of how to increase the level of affordable units in any particular community is always challenging to answer.
JCHS mentions that one solution is through policy. Public policy can encourage the expansion of affordable housing stock by using tax and regulation breaks to encourage investments in affordable housing. Providing incentives for including affordable units in new development is a practice that a number of communities (for example, locally in Montgomery County, Maryland), and I think this is one way to help keep the gap from growing.
Policymakers could also further invest in housing vouchers. JCHS points out that only 1 in 4 of the lowest-income renters eligible for housing assistance are provided federally assisted housing. Clearly, providing financial assistance in the form of vouchers would go a long way toward closing the affordability gap. And since people with vouchers do not become homeless, we know that vouchers also will also help end homelessness.(The Alliance produced an eviction prevention series highlighting the utility of vouchers earlier this month.)
We want to know what's happening in the field! Are you experiencing a rise in rental prices? Do you think housing vouchers can make a difference? Are you concerned with the growing dearth of housing affordable to low-income people and families? Let us know in the comments.
Last week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released national data showing that the number of homeless people was essentially unchanged from 2009 to 2010.
The number, based on counts conducted by localities and states across the nation in January 2010 (called point-in-time counts), increased one percent, rising from 643,067 to 649,879. There was a three percent increase in the number of homeless people who were unsheltered and a 1.5 percent increase among families experiencing homelessness. Chronic homelessness declined by 1 percent, continuing a downward trend begun in 2005.
The 2010 PIT counts were the first to reflect the impact of the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP), the $1.5 billion stimulus-funded program aimed at curbing homelessness resulting from the recession. Housing inventory data released in conjunction with the PIT counts showed that, at the time of the 2010 PIT counts, the stimulus program was funding 19,842 homeless assistance beds.
In 2009, the Alliance projected that without effective intervention, homelessness would increase dramatically as a result of the recession. These numbers show that our investment in homelessness prevention and housing-based strategies averted what could have been an alarming increase in the number of Americans experiencing homelessness, according the to Alliance.
Still, the recessions' full impact on homelessness has yet to be seen. In 2010 the Alliance report The State of Homelessness in America noted that certain key economic factors associated with homelessness were on the rise. These included the number of poor households doubling up, unemployment, and severe housing cost burden. Homelessness is a lagging indicator of economic tides and although the HPRP funds will be available to communities for another year, upward pressures on homelessness will also continue.
To access the 2010 HUD PIT counts data, please visit their website (PDF). You can look up state-by-state numbers here.
You can also find our press release on our website.
Image courtesy of Jenny Leigh.
In The State of Homelessness report, Alliance research staff examined some of the economic indicators of homelessness, including severe housing cost burden, real income, unemployment, and foreclosure.
A report authored by the National Low-Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) – called Dark Before the Storm echoes some of the findings of The State of Homelessness report, specifically as it pertains to severe housing cost burden.
Using the Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy (CHAS) data, made available by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), researchers at the NLIHC examine housing affordability for low-income (LI), very low-income (VLI) and extremely low-income (ELI) renters. What they find is that, even before the recession began, these low income populations were experiencing a pronounced shortage of affordable housing only exacerbated by the recession.
Some of the report's key findings:
- 63 percent of ELI renters and 28 percent of VLI renters paid more than half their monthly income on rent and utilities (paying more than half of monthly income on rent is characterized as "severe housing cost burden").
- In ten states, 65 percent or more of ELI renters experienced severe housing cost burden.
- The West was the most difficult region for ELI renters to find affordable housing; 10 of the 13 states in the West had fewer than 35 affordable and available units for every 100 ELI renter households.
The report also suggests that housing affordability problems climbed the income ladder in the years before the recession, affecting VLI and low-income households at higher-than-usual rates in addition to ELI renters more commonly affected by housing unaffordability.
People experiencing severe housing cost burden or other housing problems are at increased risk of experiencing homelessness. When such a significant proportion of monthly income is dedicated to rent, there are few resources left for transportation, health care, education, and other necessities. Moreover, such a scarcity of resources leaves people with few options should they have unexpected financial obstacles.
The solution is more available, affordable housing. These economic trends suggest that more people have become low income renters and the demand for affordable rental housing will continue to rise. There is, however, no indication that the supply of long term affordable rental housing will meet this rising demand…", according to NLIHC.
As colleagues in the homeless assistance community, we agree with our friends at NLIHC. If homelessness is the result of a lack of affordable, permanent housing, the solution to homelessness is the procurement of affordable, permanent housing (it sounds obvious but often isn't).
You can find the full NLIHC report, The Dark Before the Storm one their website and you can find our own State of Homelessness report on our website along with accompanying tools and maps.
Let us know: do you know people struggling to afford stable housing? Are rents rising in your community? Do you think it's time for a concerted, national investment in affordable housing? We want to hear from you!
Today's post comes from the Director of the Homelessness Research Institute, Bill Sermons.
As a researcher, my work can be boiled down to a combination of sharing what I know and learning new things. My time at the National Low Income Housing Coalition's 2011 Annual Housing Policy Conference last week was a excellent chance to do a little of both.
On the sharing side, I gave a presentation in a workshop on Monday entitled, What Do We Know About Homelessness. There, I was able to share many of the findings of HRI's most recent major publication, The State of Homelessness in America. When asked by an audience member preparing for last Wednesday's lobby day for a particular finding that congressional leaders might find compelling, I pointed to the portion of The State of Homelessness that illustrates the high odds of experiencing homelessness faced by young adults aging out of foster care (1 in 6 annually), doubled up individuals and families (1 in 10 annually), and people released from jail or prison (1 in 11 annually).
On Tuesday, it was my time to learn something new. I attended a presentation by Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba of the Children's Health Watch given during the Connecting Housing to Food Access and Children's Health Issues workshop. She presented on a new study of the negative impacts on health and food security of being behind on rent. Some of the results were not that surprising. They found, for example, that stably housed families are better off than either homeless families or families behind on rent in terms of health and food security. However, I was surprised to learn that the families behind on rent were considerably more likely than homeless families to experience food insecurity and to make trade-offs to pay medical bills or to forego health care. While I was fully aware that high rent burdens place families at risk of homelessness, this result highlights the health and well being toll faced by cost-burdened families.
For more information, please visit the website.
This week the news media has focused on the essentials of our field: housing, data, populations, and public policy.
Let's start right in the District. In her column, Michelle Singletary cited our own report to discuss people spending more than 50 percent of their monthly income on rent – what is called a "severe housing cost burden" – a situation that can put people at risk of homelessness.
From Tiffin, OH, the Advertiser-Tribune discussed a sticky situation concerning data collection, showing that data collection methodology should be examined as it affects count accuracy. Perhaps a dry topic for a news article, but methodology is a central component of learning about homelessness, especially at the community level.
Then there was a flurry of reports about different populations experiencing homelessness.
Both the Sacramento Bee and CNN covered veteran homelessness. The Bee zoomed in the challenges specific to women returning from combat and CNN took their turn examining the potential ramifications of federal budget cuts to vulnerable veterans (stay tuned). The Medill News Service also took a crack at state budgets and the potential impact reductions will have on homeless youth. (They're projecting pronounced increases). And New America Media traveled to the other end of the spectrum writing about elderly people living in poverty, at risk of homelessness, while raising their own grandchildren. (Which comes as no surprise.)
Predictably, there were scant few articles about solutions but there does seem to be good buzz from community leaders about the awareness of and dedication to the issue. An editorial from Maine shared some good notes about HPRP, the Associated Press reported that RI will reconvene the state's Interagency Council on Homelessness to address the issue, and MA Governor Deval Patrick said he'll commit nearly $40 million to overhaul the state's emergency homeless assistance program.
Not a bad week, all things considered. Did we miss anything in your town?
Have you ever heard the saying, "Homelessness can happen to anyone, it can even happen to you!"? Well, I have, and it seems a bit unhelpful and vague. Can homelessness really happen to a guy like Donald Trump? Probably, the answer is no.
To me, the way to bring the discussion down to earth—from "homelessness can happen to anyone"—is by analyzing the at-risk populations with a bit of data. By doing so, we know that some people are at increased risk.
As an American, your odds of experiencing homelessness in the course of a year are 1 in 200. But if you are an individual who is poor, you are at an increased risk, with odds at 1 in 25. These odds are alarming. And to me, these odds also helpfully demonstrate the very reality that homelessness is largely a problem explained by economics.
While the relationship between economics and homelessness exist (and it's something we have discussed before), it is important to note that there are also people who are at increased risk of experiencing homelessness based on other demographic factors.
People who are at increased risk are those who are living with friends or family for economic reasons, or doubled up people (odds of 1 in 10), people discharged from prison (1 in 11), and people who have aged out of foster care (1 in 6).
When the odds of experiencing homelessness increase so dramatically based on these demographic factors, you can see why we paid particular attention to these populations, along with the population of people who lack insurance, in the State of Homelessness in America.
The doubled up population, which had an increase of nearly 12 percent from 2008 to 2009, is the demographic factor where conditions have worsened the most, with more than 635,000 people doubled up in 2009. Among the other three factors, changes were all under 2 percent increase.
While working on data analysis for the demographics included in the State of Homelessness, it became clear to me that, in addition to the recessionary effects that have increased the populations who are at-risk of homelessness due to economic reasons, the populations at- risk of homelessness based on demographic factors have also increased, or, at best, these populations have remained constant.
On the other hand, it is also clear that the central component to the solution of ending homelessness is housing (or permanent supportive housing). It's possible, and it's necessary, to increase access to affordable housing for all people. The worsening economic and demographic conditions point out that the need to increase access to affordable housing is increasingly urgent.
Top photo courtesy of Kate Dreyer


text:
Gov. Mary Fallin said Thursday she will continue to pressure lawmakers to take steps to repair the state Capitol.
"What I want to do is get the Capitol fixed," she told a gathering of members of the Oklahoma Press Association. "Because the longer we delay fixing the Capitol, the more it costs."


text:
Photos taken in The Bay of Plenty, 6th December 2011
Pre-Diocesan School Ball, hosted by the Burridges
Moss Vale NSW - Australia
Diocesan School at the Federation Cuo, Christchurch, 2010
... well, it has been raining for some time ...
photos taken following the 2009 Maritime Law Association of Australia & New Zealand's conference in Queenstown, South lsland, New Zealand.It's Melbourne next year ...
Photos taken on Auckland's west coast
King's Pre-Ball at Bronwyn Fletcher's house
album for off-camera flash
December 2008 & January 2009 - Bay of Plenty
created 28th December 2008
U16 Premier Hockey Tournament - Porritt Park, Christchurch - July 2008
Rowing photos taken at the North Island Secondary Schools Championships at Lake Karapiro. King's parents, relatives and rowers - please download any 'original uploaded photo' after clicking on a thumbnail photo. These photos are e-mail size. Ignore any 'order prints' etc. - these are free downloads.The slideshow feature is a good way to view if you have the time.
Rowing photos, taken principally for boat sponsors. King's parents, relatives and rowers - please download any 'original uploaded photo'. These photos are e-mail size. Many of these are cropped from a 60mb 16-bit TIF file generated from Nikon RAW camera file. (An 8-bit JPG generated from the full RAW file might be approx. 10mb; these uploaded JPGs are about 20% of that size).
... none of the race itself but getting there and back!
Photos in this collection are freely available for download and private use. The photographer reserves copyright in these images, in particular for any commercial purpose. This includes publication in any media that is either purchased or displays advertising.
Auckland Rep. team and supporters
... north North Island Schools rowing regatta, Lake Pupuke
... mainly bodysurfing
... family holiday with the Booths
King's College - at Blue Lakes regatta, 21st - 22nd January 2006
... a three day trip down the Whanganui River
King's College - at Karapiro regatta; 10th & 11th December 2005
King's College - novices' regatta at Mercer, Waikato River - 4th December 2005
3 day trip down the Whanganui River, January 2005.
A good weather trip up Mount Egmont, starting in the evening of the 10th with a climb to Syme Hut from Dawson Falls. Up early the next morning for the ascent.
first trip with the NZ Alpine Club (Auckland Section)
Photos taken on Franz Joseph Glacier - McKelvie and Burns families
Photos taken in France, September 2004. [c] John McKelvie but files are to free to download and use for non-commercial purposes.
Kaikoura Whale Watch visit. These photographs are [c] John McKelvie but can be downloaded and used for non-commercial purposes.
General photos. All are [c] John McKelvie but can be used for non-commercial purposes
Photos taken on Ruapehu / Paretetaitonga
These are photographs taken in and around NZ, with a marine content. Most photos are Nikon DSLR NEF RAW files.
© 1998-2015 FOTKI INC or its affiliates.


text:
Lanka takes big lead over Proteas despite Amla's ton as day 3 of second Test concludes
Sri Lanka has taken a big lead in the first innings despite South African captain Hashim Amla's ton as the hosts bowled out the visitors for a total of 282 as the third day of the second Test came to an end.
South Africa currently trail Sri Lanka by 150 runs with 10 wickets still remaining to bat for the hosts. The third day concluded with Sri Lankan openers Upul Tharanga and J K Silva batting for the hosts at their individual score of six and five respectively.
The Sri Lankan bowlers wrapped up the South African batting line up in the first innings. Amla remained unbeaten at his individual score of 139. Vernon Philander was bowled out by the hosts' offbreak bowler Dilruwan Perera for his individual score of nine.
Former Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara caught Dale Steyn for his individual score of 30 and Tharanga caught Imran Tahir for his individual score of 15. Both the players were bowled by Rangana Herath.
Morne Morkel went out for a duck as Silva caught him on Perera's bowl.
Perera claimed five wickets, while Herath claimed four of the South African batsmen.
Sri Lanka will resume batting on Sunday as the fourth day of the second Test will resume with Tharanga and Silva facing the South African bowlers.
(Posted on 26-07-2014)
Free Yearly Horoscope: Select your zodiac sign
Pisces | Aquarius | Capricorn | Sagittarius | Scorpio | Libra | Virgo | Leo | Cancer | Gemini | Taurus | Aries


text:
It looks a bit...empty...have you not started on props or...?
Insanity is a 1st-person horror shooter. The player takes control of a male character with a mental illness. He always strolls between his good and evil personality. The story takes place in the dark and crazy mind of the main character where he is able to use supernatural forces to fight against his enemies.
Long time ago since our last update. Currently we are working really hard on our animations and our vertical slice. But today is our last school day this year (we are looking forward to our christmas party which is starting in 40 minutes ;P) and so we decided to present you the next update from our project Insanity, including our textured enemies and four screenshots of our first WIP Level.
Posted by LiVe on Dec 19th, 2008
It looks a bit...empty...have you not started on props or...?
first WIP Level.
Of course its empty.
The enemy with chains is cool!
can i steal ur animator ? ;) ... but yea keep it up guys!
Ok; I tracking it now.
Impressive, and wow.
Nice looking characters. I hope that I have a good enough PC to run crysis once this is out. Keep it up!
Creepy. Great work on those monsters!


text:
My Account: Log In | Join | Renew
Already a member, certified, or existing customer?Then please log in. Cookies must be accepted to Log In.
First Time Visitors
To register to attend meetings or purchase products, or create your author profile, you'll need to create an account. Create Account
Existing or Past Members and Customers
Before registering, check to see if you are an existing member or customer by using the "E-mail Password" feature. Check for Account
Join the Societies
Connect with the people you want to know and access the information you need. Members enjoy special discounts on subscriptions, page charges, webinars, and meetings. Join today.


text:
New Fire Homegrown Chris Ritter talks his young soccer career in the Chicagoland area
Mon, 01/13/2014
New Fire Homegrown signing gives first interview on Monday's All-In Podcast
Mon, 01/13/2014
After standout NASL season, Reynish ready for new MLS challenge with the Fire
Sat, 01/11/2014
2013 NASL Golden Glove Winner Joins Men in Red
Fri, 01/10/2014
MAC Hermann Trophy Finalist Joins Men in Red After Championship Season
Thu, 01/09/2014
Latest Fire Homegrown acquisition thrilled to join first team
Thu, 01/09/2014
RELEASE: Chicago Fire Foundation to Hold 16th Annual Season Kickoff Luncheon and Unveil New Primary Kit on Tuesday, March 4
Online ticket sales for Tuesday's Season Kickoff Luncheon close Monday at noon CT
Tue, 01/07/2014
Magee motivated by January USMNT camp opportunity
Fri, 01/03/2014
Former Fire PDL midfielder emerges from field of 160, invited to preseason phase one
Thu, 12/19/2013
Rolfe delighted to re-sign, looking forward to working with Yallop and C.J. Brown
Wed, 12/18/2013
Rolfe agrees new deal with Fire, set to play eighth season in Chicago in 2014
Wed, 12/18/2013
YALLOP: "I want to get out on the field, booting around with the guys."
Wed, 12/18/2013
Rolfe, Pause forego second phase of Re-Entry as club works to renegotiate deals
Tue, 12/17/2013
A week on from MLS Cup, Palmer excited to join Fire, relied on former players for advice
Fri, 12/13/2013
Frank Yallop speaks on the decision to trade Daniel Paladini to Columbus
Thu, 12/12/2013


text:
It was a smash summer hit that ruled the charts for many weeks, but it has now been established that Shakira's version of "Loca" might have been inspired by another musical creation from a man who never got any credit for it.
Billboard reports that a Manhattan federal court judge has ruled that Shakira's famous song "Loca" released in 2010 was ripped-off from another song, a Spanish track released in 1998 and called "Loca con su Tiguere" by a Dominican songwriter by the name of Ramon Arias Vasquez.
Shakira's version of the song sold over 5 million copies all over the world at the time it was launched, so there is a lot of money at stake here, especially since the song keeps getting royalties. Vasquez testified before a judge that "Loca con su Tiguere" was inspired by the relationship between his sister and her street tough boyfriend.
The word "tiguere" is often used in the Dominican Republic to refer to such street toughs and Vasquez claims that he met with Dominican rapper Eduard Edwin Bello Pou also known as El Cata, and it was him who copied his work.
Obviously, Pou denied this version and claimed in court that the song was inspired instead by his relationship with his wife.
Shakira's version was released both in English and Spanish, but the lawsuit mainly focuses on the Spanish version of the song, which means that only SonyATV Latin and Sony/ATV Discos are being called into the lawsuit, leaving out parent company Sony.
It has to be said that while copyright claims lawsuits are common, it's rare that a judge rules in favor a plagiarism claim, simply because it often very difficult to prove that one song copies another. But in this case, the judge thought that the issue was pretty clear.
"These hooks play a similar function in both songs. Similar rhythm in both hooks drive the songs. The repetitions are slightly different, but the differences do not affect the song," writes the judge in the official ruling.
The conclusion of the judge was that "There is no dispute that Shakira's version of the song was based on Bello's version. Accordingly, I find that, since Bello had copied Arias, whoever wrote Shakira's version of the song also indirectly copied Arias."
The trial will now seek to determine what damages should be paid to the accusing party. At the moment, there is no word from Shakira or her camp on the court's decision.


text:
Temporary water outage in KauaiUPDATED 6:50 PM HST Aug 31, 2014
A traffic accident left people in Kalaheo, Kauai Saturday night without water temporarily.Video Transcript
A traffic accident last night damaged a fire hydrant, cutting off water to some Kalaheo residents. Water was restored to residents on Papalina Road between Puu Road and Maka Road this afternoon.
More Video
CommentsThe views expressed are not those of this site, this station or its affiliated companies. By posting your comments you agree to accept our terms of use.blog comments powered by Disqus
Latest from KITV
AdvertisingWhat's Up Hawaii


text: Malcolm McCornick | IBDB: The official source for Broadway Information IBDB: The official source for Broadway Information Official Broadway League sites: - sites - broadway.org broadwayleague.com broadwayfanclub.com kidsnightonbroadway.com stagespecs.org tonyawards.com Quick Search For: In This Category: All Show People/Org. Theatre Season Malcolm McCornick Designer Male Productions ProductionsDate of ProductionsMary Stuart[Play, Revival] Costume Design by Malcolm McCornick Nov 12, 1971 - Dec 18, 1971 Find out where Malcolm McCornick and are credited together © 2001-2015, The Broadway League, All Rights Reserved. (Copyright and Disclaimer)


text: http://androidforums.com – I have been using Samsung Galaxy y for 2 weeks and I must say it's a pretty good phone, however this problem has been nagging me for long. Sometimes the phone just hangs out and says that the SD removed unexpectedly WTH. I just can't figure out why as eveything looked fine till that point. Then after around 5-10 minutes it says scanning and everything becomes fine. Please help me with this problem. Cheers !!! (General)


text: Vegas' storied Sahara casino reborn, transformed Canadian Press, The Canadian Press 0 Comments| August 23, 2014 Add to favourites LAS VEGAS - That's no mirage. The Las Vegas Strip has a new casino in business on the foundations of the old Sahara.A $415 million pleasure palace called the SLS Las Vegas — short for "Style, Luxury, Service" — opened Saturday with midnight fireworks and a party for 3,600 guests as the Strip's tired north end continues to enjoy a post-recession renaissance.Nearby, visitors will notice that an end of the Strip long associated with empty lots, low-budget motels and frozen construction cranes is expanding once again.A Malaysian conglomerate has announced plans to fold the half-finished Echelon casino into an Asian-themed Resorts World Las Vegas. Australian casino giant Crown Resorts has purchased land where the New Frontier casino once stood. An open-air concert venue set to house the massive Rock in Rio USA music festival next spring is in the works."Global gaming companies with deep pockets are investing in the north end of the Strip," said Michael Paladino, a Fitch Ratings analyst.A new chapter in Vegas life is replacing memories of the Moroccan-themed Sahara, which once hosted Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and the Beatles. Its owners shuttered the 59-year-old casino in 2011 after years of keeping only one of its three hotel towers open and hawking rooms for $1 per night over Twitter. Everything from the slot-machine chairs to the camel lamps were auctioned off in a fire sale."There were some dark days," said Sam Bakhshandehpour, president of Los Angeles-based SBE, which owns many hotels, nightclubs and restaurants as well as the SLS. "But we held on."While $415 million may sound like a lot, it's not for Vegas. A typical Strip casino overhaul includes a dramatic implosion of the old building, but SBE kept the Sahara skeleton. This meant the work cost about one-tenth of what a ground-up rebuild would have.The casino floor is back, but it's smaller and spills into the same trendy restaurants that SBE develops in Southern California.This restaurant-centric focus looks like a winner. Analysts say Las Vegas visitors have awakened from their recession slumber less inclined to gamble, but hungry for fine food. They'll find it at celebrity chef Jose Andres' Bazaar Meat, gourmet burger joint Umami and The Griddle Cafe, a Los Angeles staple whose larger-than-life pancakes attract epic lines for Saturday brunch.Rooms starting at around $100 a night are airy and modern, with white sofas under windows, mirrors on walls and over the bed, and whimsical details such as monkey prints on the ironing boards.The battered Vegas economy remains an undeniable feature of the Sahara's SLS rebirth. Bakhshandehpour says they received 117,000 applications for 3,400 positions."It was absolutely humbling," he said. Tags: BUSINESS Rate this article v Usefulness Clarity Credibility Log in required to rate this article.


text:
Heyman: Mets to Spend on LF, not Lackey
Jon Heyman of SI.com believes the Mets will not try to sign soon-to-be free-agent RHP John Lackey.
Instead, he feels the team's big-ticket target will likely end up playing left field.
…hey, how you doin' Matt Holliday…
Of course, if asked to choose between the two, 69 percent of MetsBlog readers said they prefer the Mets sign Lackey to Holliday.
To read more from Heyman, follow him on Twitter, here, as well as at his Daily Scoop column for SI.com, here.


text:
Getting involved
Parents, students, artists, educators, or anyone interested in keeping culture alive in our area: 6 On the Square would like to be a thriving arts presence in our community but we need your help. Here are some ways to get involved.
Please indicate what you'd be interested in doing and/or your special skills to better help us determine where you'd be the best fit..
To be considered for performing at 6 On The Square, please see the above link for more information.
To be informed via e-mailings about upcoming events/happenings, sign up for our mailing list .
©Copyright 2007-2015: 6 On The Square. All Rights Reserved.
Woollybear Web


text:
Godspeed, brothers and sisters. You fought the good fight. Now rest in peace…
Officer Down: Lieutenant Greg JonasOfficer Down: Lieutenant Greg Jonas - [Centreville, Illinois]
Age: 58
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Lieutenant Greg Jonas was shot and killed while patrolling an apartment complex in Centreville.
Lieutenant Jonas was on patrol when he was shot in the 4700 block of Tudor Avenue, when he was shot in the head and killed. It is believed that he was questioning at least one individual at approximately 2:00am at the time of his murder.
Lieutenant Jonas had served with the Centreville Police Department for 15 years and is survived by his wife.
Has an officer fallen in your department or local area? Submit news articles and information on the incident to the PoliceOne site.
Denotes officer was a registered member of the PoliceOne Community
Latest Police Jobs
Support the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and help honor America's law enforcement officers – especially our fallen heroes
COPS (Concerns of Police Survivors) provides resources to assist in the rebuilding of the lives of survivors of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.
TASER Foundation
The TASER Foundation's mission is to honor the service and sacrifice of local and federal law enforcement officers lost in the line of duty by providing financial and edcuational support to their families.
More Officer Downs
[ Forest Acres , South Carolina ]
[ Tennessee ]
[ Shalimar , Florida ]


text:
It is going to be a long search, most likely a fruitless one.
With Watergate closing in, Nixon fired Haldeman and Ehrlichman in a fruitless effort to insulate himself.
Let's wait to see if both top diplomats make it to that table before declaring diplomacy a fruitless exercise.
The latter had had a lovely if fruitless game, running rings around the U.S. defense but failing, repeatedly, to score.
Further investigative activity," the state concluded, "would have been fruitless.
Finally, worn out by his fruitless exertions, he fell asleep.
I must thank you that I did not take a fruitless journey into Bristol.
After a long but fruitless talk around the council fire, the English rose to go.
It was mere sophistry, and deceiving, fruitless, and unprofitable.
They ran out just as the boys came up, and the fruitless chase resulted.


text:
And they're completely customizable.
9 Stylish Ways To Make Your First Apartment Feel Like Home
In the Southampton, New York, living room of Reed Krakoff and his decorator wife, Delphine, the sofa is flanked by 1940s armchairs, and the throw pillows are covered in Pucci scarves. The paintings are by Ludwig Sander, the Ring cocktail table is a Garouste and Bonetti design, and the ostrich sculpture is by Diego Giacometti.
Too Many Books? Here's How To Display Them


text:
Our TV Shows
Enter your Zip Code
Got a Tip?
Call TMZ at (888) 847-9869 or
Click Here
Sign In
Luckiest Pedestrians
In The World!!
25 Sexy Cooper Helfet Shots
To Tackle Your #MCM Needs!
TMZ's Top 10 Celebrity Car Videos (Part Two)
30 Wild Whiskered Looks
Get Grizzly with the World Beard and Mustache Championship!
Demi Lovato
This Is Me Naked ... And I'm Cool with It
Marc Maron -- Selfie With Obama ... In His Garage
Kendall Jenner -- Still Calling Caitlyn ...'He'
Andre Berto -- If Mayweather Wants to Fight ... Let's Fight!
Candy Barr's Profile
Candy Barr
2843 days ago
My Comments
Around The Web
TV producer Marc Johnson questioned after death of mother-of-three in New York City
'Sister Wives' star admits she had online affair with woman
Tom Bergeron off 'Dancing With the Stars' to be at sick dad's bedside
Grab a box of tissues before you watch this one (Video)
Orphaned Raccoon is rescued by family, thinks she is a dog (20 Photos)
When the weather gets cold, we want Keilih Stafford to keep us warm (30 Photos)
Claudia Alende Is The Brazilian Megan Fox And Other Fine Things To Ogle
Pepsi To Sell "Back To The Future II" Commemorative Bottles For $20
Odeya Rush vs Halston Sage Hot Young Starlets At "Goosebumps" Premiere
MTO SHOCK EXCLUSIVE: Sevyn Streeter And Her RAPPER Boyfriend B.o.B. Are 'ON…
AWWWWWWW!! Yandy Smith Releases A Pic Of Herself BREAST FEEDING Her Baby . . . On…
Good Samaritan CONFRONTS Texas Man BEATING HIS GIRLFRIEND . .. In The Parking Lot .…
Travis Barker Says Girlfriend Rita Ora Is "Stunning" and "Hot!"
Will Smith Reveals He's Going on Tour With DJ Jazzy Jeff in 2016
Louis van Amstel: 25 Things You Don't Know About Me (I Coached DWTS Pros Maks and…
Is Taylor Swift a Baseball Curse?
Serena Williams' Getaway With…Colton Haynes? Wait, What?
Love or Loathe: The Kardashian/Jenner Cosmo Cover
Janet Jackson & Husband Wissam Al Mana Make Rare Public Appearance
Tom Daley & Dustin Lance Black Emerge After Announcing Engagement!
Claire Danes Discusses Controversial Billy Crudup Scandal & Reveals If They're…
New Aritst Reviews: Mleo
Bridge of Spies Premieres at the New York Film Festival
The One Movie You Should Absolutely See This Month


text:
Ricotta Cheese and Almond Paste Cheesecake
Almonds are synonymous with the region of Puglia just like hazelnuts are common to Campania This almond paste and ricotta cheesecake is simply sublime. The crust is made with store bought amaretti cookies so it is a snap to put together. You can also use leftover cookie crumbs.
Makes 1 cheesecake (9-inch)
14 amaretti cookies
1/3 cup whole almonds
1 tablespoon sugar
1/3 cup melted and cooled butter
1 cup almond paste, cut into bits
Two 8 ounce packages cream cheese or 16 ounces mascarpone cheese or 8 ounces each mascarpone and ricotta cheese, at room temperature
4 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup light cream
1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
Pinch salt
Preheat oven to 325F.
Whirl the cookies in a food processor. Add almonds and sugar and whirl until the almonds are in small pieces. Pulse in the butter until the mixture comes together. Press the paste into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch spring form pan. Place the pan on a large sheet of aluminum foil and crunch the foil around the outside of the pan. Set aside.
Beat the almond paste with cream cheese and or ricotta cheese until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat in the sugar and light cream until well blended. On low speed beat in the flour and salt.
Pour into the prepared shell and place in a larger baking pan. Fill the sides with hot water to come half way up the sides of the pan. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the filling is set. Remove cheesecake from the water bath. Cool. Cover loosely with foil and refrigerate overnight.
Remove sides, place cake on cake stand and cut into wedges to serve.
Want More Recipes? See My Latest Book:
Ciao Italia Family Classics
Mary Ann returns to her family's humble beginnings to bring us a treasure trove of more than 200 time-honored recipes.
Buy it now from Amazon for just $24.00
A Testimonial From Mario Batali:
This collection epitomizes the tradition and love that goes into all of Mary Ann Esposito's cooking. Like her award-winning TV series, this book will live on for years with all of those who cook her delicious recipes. My kids love everything Mary Ann cooks!"


text:
The Craft of Journalism: "Google will not replace shoe leather."
Soccerlens editor Steve Amoia recently had the opportunity to interview respected investigative journalist and film maker, Mr. Andrew Jennings, whose recent book, "Foul! The Secret World of FIFA: Bribes, Vote Rigging and Ticket Scandals" painted FIFA in a hue that many at the world governing body would have rather not seen. Mr. Jennings is one of the few journalists who have written extensively about the inner workings at FIFA.
What follows is Part 1 of the hour-long interview, where Andrew and Steve talk about football journalism and Andrew has some hard-advice for aspiring journalists and bloggers. Parts 2 to 4, which deal with the inner workings at FIFA, are present on Soccerlens (along with the full audio of the interview).
Steve Amoia: Mr. Jennings, welcome to Soccerlens. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to speak with you today.
Andrew Jennings: Pleasure to be with you! Let's go.
SA: Where did you grow up, and when did you decide to become a reporter?
AJ: Well, it was a very long time ago, I was born in Scotland, and grew up very near London. Reporting occurred to me in my early twenties, I thought it was what I wanted to do, we don't know what's going on, and I want to find out what's going on and tell people. That was somewhat naïve, but that what has powered me for the last 41 years in Britain, I have wanted to tell people what is going on. Which is why I became a research journalist a very long time ago.
SA: In the introduction to "Foul!" you said that "Sport belongs to the people. It's part of our culture, the social cement that holds us together." Have you always had an interest in sports, and which football team did you support as a child?
AJ: I have to be honest. I wasn't very good at soccer/football, but was a very good cross country runner. I had stamina. And that has certainly helped me as an investigative reporter because you have go a long time, against all kinds of threats, etc. to get the story. The club I supported, most have never heard of it. It is in East London. It's now called Leyton Orient. It used to be called Clapton Orient. My grandfather played for them a long time ago. I never supported one particular club. I support good sport, athletic sport, I don't care which football or rugby team, I don't care, as long as they're doing it honestly and with panache, it's good for me.
SA: You began your career in the traditional print media. Are new programs such as the Chelsea Journalism Centre reflective of how quickly the Internet changed sport journalism and has fueled the demand for a different skill set for writers in this genre?
AJ: I don't think that many of the skills have really changed, for example you must honestly investigate the potential story, and then you must learn to present it to your readers, whether it is print, Internet, visually, or in a television program. I think that no reader or viewer should think 'This is really boring. I think the nicest praise I get for my books is when people say 'I couldn't put it down.' Even though it's investigative journalism based upon vast amounts of documentation that are indexed at the back… I don't bore you with every document in the text itself. What's interesting at the Chelsea School is that I've helped changed attitudes there because most of their teachers are out of print journalism.
Print journalism has been in decline due to the current economic climate. There is decline in advertising revenue. I won't call it the death of ad revenue. I like to tell the kids, as I call them, I try to rouse hope in them. I say 'Do you want to go tell interesting stories? and they go, Yeah.' I then talk about technique.
It hasn't been a good economic situation. Hasn't been for a long time, never mind the recent problems with the banks and the shares, but I tell them, 'You are the luckiest young journalists ever!' And they look at me because all they hear is about print journalists losing their jobs.
But I tell them, you are free from what Mr. Murdoch wants you to be, you don't have to be like Fox News, the New York Post, the Sun or any of these newspapers. You are free to spend $300 dollars on Dreamweaver or the software of your choice, you can have an Internet site. People will find you. If you learn how to investigate, how to write attractively, how to make your own videos, people can teach you some technique, and I think you'll get better.
I think it is very exciting time. They might have to wait tables but what's wrong with that? Journalists are overpaid, anyway. I could do with more, please send money! But earning a living is not why you go into journalism. You go in because your heart is in it, your guts are in it, what makes you vibrant is in it, and you hope to pay the rent. You might get a bit lucky if you write a book. You go into it to find out what they, authority, doesn't want you to know, and tell it to people. That's the joy in it. That applies to my work now over the last 20 years with international Olympics and FIFA.
SA: As a follow up to the last question, could you please elaborate on this quote?
"Google will not replace shoe leather."
AJ: Google has its uses. But let's get serious. It is a fine research tool, but it doesn't do what a journalist is supposed to do… Shoe leather is cheap. That's how I get the story. If you walk down any suburban street, there is a story behind every door. There are people who work in factories, good people, that bad things happened to, and they are waiting for a knock on the door… If you knock on their door politely and say 'I'm Andrew Jennings, I'm a journalist, I'm very interested in asbestos poisoning' for example, that is where your story is from.
Many journalists think you get it from the Presidents or press releases. You get it from the janitor, the concierge, the guy who is a driver to Mr. Enron. It's ordinary people who want to talk about it because they have to earn a living, but it's shoe leather. Google can help, but you have to go out to get the story, and get people to trust you. Whether it is in any type of journalism: economy, sports, etc, people have stories. You have to persuade them.
If you read my book "Foul," you'll realize there are thousands of FIFA's confidential documents in there, and you'd never guess where I got them from. If you do, I've gone wrong. And the bad guys tap my phones, they follow me, put detectives on me, but I don't think they have figured out where I get my documents.
SA: What were your initial motivations to launch Transparencyinsport.org, along with your goals for the project?
AJ: Well, I still work in the traditional media, and I present investigative documentaries in Britain and around the world for the BBC, but I wasn't really sure what to do about the Internet… Then I realized that people all over the world wanted to know about the stories I'm doing. It seems that if they hear about your work, they immediately do a web search to find you. So I started to put my articles on Transparencyinsport.org, and if people wanted to contact me, and it's been quite a response from around the world, and I've made even more friends in every culture, every ethnic group, and every language. It's been satisfying to find out there you are going in the same direction as the guys at the very top. But with morals. That's what binds us together.
Parts 2 to 4, which deal with the inner workings at FIFA, are present on Soccerlens (along with the full audio of the interview).
Steve Amoia is the author and editor of the World Football Commentaries blog. He has written for AC Cugini Scuola Calcio, Keeper Skool, and Soccerlens.


text:
So I'm trading a Dragonfable account with the following:
Lvl 50
490k Gold
All weapons of doom
AQWorlds Member Account (Dont care how long the membership is, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year) (Any level, I dont care, even lvl 1) A decent amount of Adventure coins.
- If the offer I gave you is not enough, I am trading my Lvl 17 Mechquest account + Lvl 75 Guardian in Adventurequest.
To contact me for trading or more info, add me in hotmail at:
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]
Thanks. (If your gonna say this is the wrong forum to post, post the place I have to post, please, :) THX!)


text:
white and gold ceramic 'J12 Classic' beveled second diamond watch
designer's notes
Timeless, elegant and oh-so-chic, watches by Chanel are like no other. Show off your impeccable style with the exquisite materials and covetable styles of these classic timepieces.
color: White / Gold High-tech ceramic 38mm case with 18k gold accented fixed bezel; logo, 'J12' and 'OH 64308' engraved on back White face with 11 diamond hour markers and second markers around beveled edge; magnified dated display at 6 o'clock 18k gold screw down crown at 3 o'clock High precision quartz movement High-tech ceramic link 15mm band with stainless steel double butterfly deployment closure Water resistant up to 660 ft / 200 meters / 20 ATM All measurements are approximate Limited 1-year Chanel warranty included 14 Day Return Policy; returns must be received within 14 days. No returns will be accepted on international orders. See FAQ for more details. Ceramic / 18k Gold / Stainless Steel / Diamond; Imported; style# 321234401