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DEBUNKED: Waterseer
Thunderf00t crushes the Waterseer Project 🙂
Morals and Dogma
In 1871, Albert Pike published a book called Morals and Dogma.
Conspiracists call this book a manifesto, a primary doctrine for Masons and, contained within its pages is absolute proof Albert Pike was a Satanist who wrote secret Satan worship into the degrees of the Scottish Rite.
Who is Albert Pike? What is his book about? What was the extent of his influence? Do Freemasons worship Satan?
Ten Facebook Pages You Need to Stop Sharing From
By Dawn Pedersen via dawnsbrain.com
A friend of mine shared an eyebrow-raising article on Facebook. The linked story was along the lines of "private planes stolen by terrorists in the Middle East, and an attack is imminent". The sensible people among his friends good-naturedly mocked him. They ribbed him about how ridiculous the prediction was. And all you had to do was consider the source.
My friend had shared the story from a notoriously crackpot Facebook page. The post lacked any merit, save a few tenuous and unrelated pieces of actual news. This behavior was typical of this particular page. Often, these types of pages hook you with a kernel of truth, and then wrap it in layers of idiocy.
When confronted, this friend said, "well, we'll see who's right in time." The prediction by Natural News has failed to become reality almost a year later.
The Facebook fan pages below have a habit of spitting scientific inquiry and reason in the eye. They also have an unreasonably high number of fans who share their inanity. Shares from the following pages deserve a serious eye roll and shaking of one's head.
#10 Alex Jones
Facebook fans: 856K
What He Says About Himself
"Documentary Filmmaker, Nationally Syndicated Radio Talkshow & Prisonplanet.tv Host – Free video/audio stream"
What He Really Does
Mr. Jones uses a ton of hyperbole, conspiracy theories, and a loose connection to reality, to whip up fear and loathing in his audience.
Recent Ridiculousness
Whatever your feelings are on using legislation to increase vaccination rates, you won't find any legitimate support for implications that vaccines contain toxic doses of chemical. Nor that there are aborted fetal cells in any of the shots we get.
Sample Fan Comment
World government, population control, fluoride hysteria, GMOs, illegal cancer cures, and chemtrails. This comment has it all.
#9 Food Babe
Facebook fans: 938K
What She Says About Herself
"Vani Hari started FoodBabe.com in April 2011 to spread information about what is really in the American food supply. She teaches people how to make the right purchasing decisions at the grocery store, how to live an organic lifestyle, and how to travel healthfully around the world. The success in her writing and investigative work can be seen in the way food companies react to her uncanny ability to find and expose the truth."
What She Really Does
Ms. Hari, the "Food Babe", parrots Dr. Mercola and cobbles together cherry-picked blurbs from questionable studies and Wikipedia. She uses the term "investigation" to excuse the fact that she often gives medical advice without having any education in the life sciences. She picks the weirdest ingredients to go after.
Recent Ridiculousness
This from the woman who claimed to have cured all her allergies with acupuncture and "clean eating".
Sample Fan Comment
On Facebook, it's only a matter of time before someone pulls out the EO sales kit.
Debunked: Mystery Levitating Cars in China
Have you seen this video of the "mystery force" that levitates vehicles in China? Well, as you might expect, there's no mystery at all.
First, the "mystery force" video:
Here is the real story:
From the YouTube video description:
We take a look at the bizarre accident in China that caused three cars to apparently levitate….
Links to explanation:
Full Video:
Check out my Facebook discussion page:
"Voices Of Reason To Explain X – VORTEX"
Dazzathecameraman on Facebook:
(VIDEO) Banned by Food Babe: The Lady Doth Protest Too Much, Methinks
"Thanks for calling out the troll. I'll make sure to get him"
–Vani Hari, when asked why she's selling products containing the dyes Yellow 5 and Blue 1
I, Mark Alsip, am the troll referred to in Vani Hari's quote (above). We had an interesting encounter yesterday on Periscope. After being encouraged to ask questions, I very politely and respectfully queried Hari on three products she's selling. I wanted to know why certain of her wares contain nearly a dozen different chemicals she's specifically called out as "toxic".
If you're already aware of Vani's tactics, you probably won't be surprised I was banned instantly. However, for those in the Food Babe Army (or the media) who don't believe that Hari censors all dissenting comment and immediately bans those who point out her gaffes, presented below are video, screen captures, links to Food Babe's product labels (with ingredient lists), and more…
View original post 481 more words
The Ultimate Conspiracy Debunker
Via YouTube
Most Conspiracy Theories are stupid. By the power of the internet they spread like wildfire and often poison discussions. But there is hope – we developed a way to debunk conspiracies in just a few seconds…
The 'Food Babe': A Taste of Her Own Medicine
By Mark Aaron Alsip via The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry – CSI
Critical Thinking
Fun stuff.
The burden of proof
Makers of supernatural claims have an inescapable burden of proof.
Chemtrails DEBUNKED: "They didn't look like that when I was a kid"
Suggested by a reader, this is a very good video debunking chemtrails 🙂
By Seeking Truth in the Universe via YouTube
Description from the video on YouTube:
My entry into AtheistAussie's Debunkathon (Chemtrails – 5 minute maximum)
I am not a scholar – which means anyone has access to this knowledge. I learned much during the research for this video and I hope any "chemtrailers" will follow some of the links below to research this for themselves, and not take my word for it.
I recognize that this does not debunk ALL the theories behind chemtrails – to do that you would need MUCH more than five minutes – and so I focused on a single common claim that since the 1990's contrails have changed in their frequency and persistence.
Investigation: Sosatec Wellbalancer (Debunking a quack product)
I just love when this kind of woo quackery gets totally exposed as a fraud. In this case it's a bogus product called Sosatec Wellbalancer. This video features Richard Saunders of the Australian Skeptics.
Enjoy 🙂
By Good Thinking Society via YouTube
Sosatec Bionics Ltd sell pendants and products ("Wellbalancers") to protect against what they claim is harmful radiation emitted by mobile phones and WiFi – claims which are highly questionable. The scaremongering around mobile phone radiation provokes unfounded health fears in the general public. We witnessed David Bendall (CEO and founder of Sosatec) supposedly demonstrating the effects of his product, using physical demonstrations which we felt were, at best, misleading.
We have reported Sosatec's claims to the Advertising Standards Authority.
Read Sosatec's full response and find out more at http://goodthinkingsociety.org/good-t…
World of Batshit – #3: Chemtrailer Trash
Though a bit lengthy (23 minutes) i found this video really entertaining and full of good information.
One caution: There is some occasional use of adult language and humor.
Enjoy 🙂
By CoolHardLogic via YouTube
Freemasons & Satan
Originally posted June 12, 2012.
Enjoy 🙂
|In 1871, a man named Albert Pike published a book called Morals and Dogma.
Conspiracists call this book a manifesto, a primary doctrine for Masons and, contained within its pages is absolute proof Albert Pike was a Satanist who wrote secret Satan worship into the degrees of the Scottish Rite.
Who is Albert Pike? What is his book about? What was the extent of his influence? Do Freemasons worship Satan?
Ancient Aliens Debunked
Vacation Post: By far THE most popular and hotly researched topic here at Illuminutti is the Ancient Aliens section that was originally posted May 2, 2012.
Enjoy 🙂
The information contained in this 8 part series is based on the work at "ART and UFOs? No Thanks, Only Art" by Diego Cuoghi.
If you wish to conduct more investigating into this subject matter i highly recommend visiting ART and UFOs? No Thanks, Only Art. The website is written in Italian, but some pages have been translated into English. The Italian pages are translated using MicroSoft Translator:
- Introduction
- Part 1 (English)
- Part 2 (English via MicroSoft Translator)
- Part 3 (English via MicroSoft Translator)
- Part 4 (English via MicroSoft Translator)
- Part 5 (English via MicroSoft Translator)
- Part 6 (English via MicroSoft Translator)
- Part 7 (English via MicroSoft Translator)
- Part 8 (English via MicroSoft Translator)
Core Truths: 10 Common GMO Claims Debunked
By Brooke Borel via Popular Science
Later this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture may approve the Arctic Granny and Arctic Golden, the first genetically modified apples to hit the market. Although it will probably be another two years before the non-browning fruits appears in stores, at least one producer is already scrambling to label its apples GMO-free.
The looming apple campaign is just the latest salvo in the ongoing war over genetically modified organisms (GMOs)—one that's grown increasingly contentious.
[ . . . ]
But the truth is, GMOs have been studied intensively, and they look a lot more prosaic than the hype contends.
[ . . . ]
So what, exactly, do consumers have to fear? To find out, Popular Science chose 10 of the most common claims about GMOs and interviewed nearly a dozen scientists. Their collective answer: not much at all.
Continue reading: the 10 Common GMO Claims Debunked
Para.Science – Orbs ARE a Load of Balls
For some believers in the paranormal, the site of orbs in a photo is confirmation of a spirit energy. To people like me, orbs are nothing more than something like dust.
For the last word on orbs, head on over to the ParaScience web site. You will never believe in orbs again.
Enjoy 🙂
17 years on Mars, or "How Daily Mirror fell for a fake story."
By The Locke via The Soap Box
Recently the British tabloid Daily Mirror published an article online about this claim made by a alleged former US Marine (a claim that sounds more like a half decent science fiction novel rather than a true account) about how he allegedly spent 17 years on Mars…
The original story was published on a website called ExoNews TV (a UFO conspiracy theorist website) on April 3 of this year. Why the Daily Mail took so long to write up their own crazy story nearly three months after the original crazy story was published, who knows?
Maybe they just found out about it, maybe they were having a slow "news" day (ofcourse the Daily Mirror is not really known for publishing actual news or news that's truthful) maybe they thought that now was the time to publish it.
The original story from ExoNews TV is an account told by a person whom calls himself "Captain Kaye" or "Captain K" (you can listen to him recalling his story here) and whom claims to be a former Marine that spent 17 years of a 20 year military career on Mars.
Now such claims have been made before. Infact several people have claimed to have gone to Mars and back over the years, or claimed to have "knowledge" of bases on Mars. The problem with all of those claims are that the people who made them are either liars, seriously deluded, or both.
I believe this "Captain Kaye" is the first type, and for several reasons.
First he claims that our government has technology that is probably centuries ahead of our current technological level, and yet he gives an audio interview (he never shows his face) to a conspiracy theorist website.
Why the heck would he give an audio only interview and give a fake name and not have a video interview and a give out his real name . . .
Woo Watch: Ouija, Dowsing & Pendulums
Why I Write About (and Debunk) the Chemtrail Conspiracy Theory
By Dennis Mersereau via gawker
In 2003, Barbra Streisand frantically tried to censor pictures of her home in Malibu after someone posted them online. In 2003, millions of people saw pictures of Barbra Streisand's home in Malibu. In what became known as the Streisand effect, attempts to suppress information about something usually backfires and leads to even more publicity for the supposedly secret thing.
There is a strong argument in the weather community that we should ignore the growing number of people who sincerely believe that there is a worldwide governmental conspiracy to control the weather through, among other means, "chemtrails." Bringing attention to their cause, one may argue, only helps to attract more attention and thereby more adherents to this particular brand of anti-science.
While that is probably true for a small number of people, ignoring the conspiracy theorists only makes them scream louder for attention through the Streisand Effect. The best way to remedy a situation isn't to bottle it up and pretend that it isn't happening, but rather to shine light on it and expose the silliness for what it really is.
If you're not familiar with the chemtrail conspiracy theory, let me fill you in real quick. The thin, wispy clouds left behind by high-flying aircraft are known as contrails, short for condensation trails. These clouds are left behind as a result of the warm, moist exhaust of the plane's engines meeting the extremely cold temperatures of the upper atmosphere. It's a similar principle behind why you can see your breath on cold mornings.
Contrails appear and disappear based on the moisture content of the air through which the plane is passing. If the upper atmospheric air is moist, the plane will leave a contrail that could last hours and spread out into a deck of cirrus. If the air is extremely dry, it might not leave a contrail at all.
Since about the mid-1990s, there's a subset of people who believe that these contrails are really chemtrails, or trails of vaporized chemicals being sprayed into the atmosphere by aircraft that are really flying around with with tanks full of chemicals rather than passengers. These alleged chemtrails are the work of any number of groups: governments, companies, Jews, you name it. The ultimate goal differs depending on whom you ask, but the two biggest strains of thought are that the chemtrails exist to control the weather or make the populace sick.
For most people with a basic level of science education, the idea is absurd, but the conspiracy theorists truly believe that these chemicals are being sprayed to control the weather, make the population sick, or partake in other "geoengineering" activities.
Back to the theorists themselves. Take last week's post on chemtrails, for example. It attracted a good bit of attention in the conspiracy circles, and quite a bit of ire directed towards me. Most of it is innocuous, with the typical name calling and impassioned cries of "you're a shill and you're wrong, we have the real truth!"
Underneath the vitriol, you can sense that there's something…wrong, for lack of a better way to put it. For the most part these are not the rantings of people who have mental health issues or who are angry or have an agenda, but rather they are scared. They truly, deeply believe that there are people spraying us from above, and they are scared.
When you're scared, you only accept what you want to hear from people. When the nurse tells you that the needle won't hurt, you smile because that's what you want to hear even though you know it's going to hurt anyway. The conspiracy theorists don't want to hear that their fears are irrational. They want a noble soothsayer to tell them that they're not buying into a bunch of manure and that somehow, someway, it's going to be all right because they have the truth.
Debunked: 'Chemtrail' Conspiracy
Too bad most scientists agree this conspiracy theory is completely bogus.
By Jacob Kittilstad via WHLT 22, Mississippi
Every so often at WJTV NEWS CHANNEL 12 the newsroom gets a frantic emails from someone asking us this: "Why in the world are we not exposing the government for spraying chemicals into the air?"
That is a serious accusation.
Too bad most scientists agree this conspiracy theory is completely bogus. Jacob Kittilstad looks to the sky this MYSTERY MONDAY.
The 'Chemtrails' videos litter the internet. The ones where conspiracy theorists claim the government – or another shady group controlling the world – is seeding the sky with dangerous chemicals.
Reason WHY range from weather control to poisoning the public.
"The notion of it is silly on so many levels," Dr. Andrew Mercer, Assistant Professor in the Department of Geo-Science at Mississippi State University, said.
Dr. Mercer's area's of expertise include expertise in statistical climatology, statistical meteorology, synoptic scale/large scale meteorology, and severe weather meteorology.
"It's not mentioned anywhere in the peer-review literature. It's not ever taught in a weather or climate course. It never even existed prior to the 90's. Nobody had even ever mentioned the term prior to the 90's," Dr. Mercer said.
"And the process that forms the contrails is very well understood," Dr. Mercer said.
Yep – you read it.
Continue reading and more information – – –
Don't believe the hype – 10 persistent cancer myths debunked
Via Cancer Research UK – Science blog
Google 'cancer' and you'll be faced with millions of web pages. And the number of YouTube videos you find if you look up 'cancer cure' is similarly vast.
The problem is that much of the information out there is at best inaccurate, or at worst dangerously misleading. There are plenty of evidence-based, easy to understand pages about cancer, but there are just as many, if not more, pages spreading myths.
And it can be hard to distinguish fact from fiction, as much of the inaccurate information looks and sounds perfectly plausible. But if you scratch the surface and look at the evidence, many continually perpetuated 'truths' become unstuck.
In this post, we want to set the record straight on 10 cancer myths we regularly encounter. Driven by the evidence, not by rhetoric or anecdote, we describe what the reality of research actually shows to be true.
[ … ]
Myth 1: Cancer is a man-made, modern disease
It might be more prominent in the public consciousness now than in times gone by, but cancer isn't just a 'modern', man-made disease of Western society. Cancer has existed as long as humans have. It was described thousands of years ago by Egyptian and Greek physicians, and researchers have discovered tell-tale signs of cancer in a 3,000-year-old skeleton.
While it's certainly true that global lifestyle-related diseases like cancer are on the rise, the biggest risk factor for cancer is age.
The simple fact is that more people are living long enough to develop cancer because of our success in tackling infectious diseases and other historical causes of death such as malnutrition. It's perfectly normal for DNA damage in our cells to build up as we age, and such damage can lead to cancer developing.
We're also now able to diagnose cancers more accurately, thanks to advances in screening, imaging and pathology.
Yes, lifestyle, diet and other things like air pollution collectively have a huge impact on our risk of cancer – smoking for instance is behind a quarter of all cancer deaths in the UK – but that's not the same as saying it's a modern, man-made disease. There are plenty of natural causes of cancer – for example, one in six worldwide cancers is caused by viruses and bacteria.
Myth 2: Superfoods prevent cancer
Blueberries, beetroot, broccoli, garlic, green tea… the list goes on. Despite thousands of websites claiming otherwise, there's no such thing as a 'superfood'. It's a marketing term used to sell products and has no scientific basis.
That's not to say you shouldn't think about what you eat. Some foods are clearly healthier than others. The odd blueberry or mug of green tea certainly could be part of a healthy, balanced diet. Stocking up on fruits and veg is a great idea, and eating a range of different veg is helpful too, but the specific vegetables you choose doesn't really matter.
Our bodies are complex and cancer is too, so it's gross oversimplification to say that any one food, on its own, could have a major influence over your chance of developing cancer.
The steady accumulation of evidence over several decades points to a simple, but not very newsworthy fact that the best way to reduce your risk of cancer is by a series of long-term healthy behaviours such as not smoking, keeping active, keeping a healthy body weight and cutting back on alcohol.
Myth 3: 'Acidic' diets cause cancer
Some myths about cancer are surprisingly persistent, despite flying in the face of basic biology. One such idea is that overly 'acidic' diets cause your blood to become 'too acidic', which can increase your risk of cancer. The proposed answer: increase your intake of healthier 'alkaline' foods like green vegetables and fruits (including, paradoxically, lemons).
This is biological nonsense. True, cancer cells can't live in an overly alkaline environment, but neither can any of the other cells in your body.
Blood is usually slightly alkaline. This is tightly regulated by the kidneys within a very narrow and perfectly healthy range. It can't be changed for any meaningful amount of time by what you eat. And while eating green veg is certainly healthy, that's not because of any effect on how acid or alkaline your body is.
There is something called acidosis. This is a physiological condition that happens when your kidneys and lungs can't keep your body's pH (a measure of acidity) in balance. It is often the result of serious illness or poisoning. It can be life-threatening and needs urgent medical attention, but it's not down to overly acidic diets.
We know that the immediate environment around cancer cells (the microenvironment) can become acidic. This is due to differences in the way that tumours create energy and use oxygen compared with healthy tissue. Researchers are working hard to understand how this happens, in order to develop more effective cancer treatments.
But there's no good evidence to prove that diet can manipulate whole body pH, or that it has an impact on cancer.
DEBUNKED: Myth: Cancer has become more prevalent in the USA
One of the enduring zombified tropes of the junk science world is that the rate of cancer in people is higher today than it was in the past. Depending on the one screaming this myth, this rate of cancer increase is a result of A) vaccines, B) GMO crops, C) pasteurized milk, D) non-organic foods, or E) everything.
To be certain, there are a few things that do cause cancer, like smoking, asbestos, and obesity (and there are a lot of causes of obesity, it might be impossible to link the cause of obesity directly with cancer). Here and there, you might run across a study that mentions one thing or another may or may not increase or reduce the risk of cancer. But most of those studies are one-off primary research, usually using small groups, providing little clinical evidence that you may or may not be able to increase or decrease the risk of cancer. Wait until we can find these studies in large systematic reviews, before deciding that this or that may or may not increase or decrease the risk of cancer.
In the meantime, Joe Mercola certainly can make boatloads of money making such nonsense cancer claims.
Let's go find out what the evidence tells us about the cancer rate. Let's see if there are any real peer-reviewed articles that do a careful analysis of cancer rates over 100 years in the USA. Without much effort, I found one with the obscure and complex title of, "The decline in US cancer mortality in people born since 1925." The paper by Kort et al., and published in Cancer Research in late 2009, reviewed data reported by the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics, was obtained from WHO Statistical Information System (WHOSIS). They examined the incidence (rate) and mortality from various cancers from individuals born in 1925 and after.
What the authors found was that rate of Cancer in each age group is holding roughly constant. However, since society as a whole is aging, overall cancer incidence is increasing slightly.
Well, the results are pretty clear. The rates of cancer for each age cohort appears to be flat, slightly increasing, or slightly decreasing. Overall, across all age groups, the cancer incidence is nearly flat (although the numbers are higher because the US population is larger and older than it was 60 years ago).
Why Are Bankers Killing Themselves in Droves?
by Mike Rothschild via Skeptoid
The idea that "mysterious deaths" circle around major events or people is central to the mythology of conspiracy theories. From the Clintons and Barack Obama to the JFK assassination and 9/11 to whistleblowing journalists and UFO researchers, those with their eyes opened believe the Globalist Controllers have the power to kill anyone, anywhere and make it look like an accident or suicide.
So when a cluster of bankers and major players in the financial industry died within a few weeks 2014, it raised eyebrows. Even more bizarre is that many of them worked for JP Morgan, are of similar ages and died by either unknown or self-inflicted causes.
Nine "banksters" all dying mysteriously and all within the same short span of time. What's going on here? Are loose ends being tied up? Were they about to go public about something terrible? Is another economic crash around the corner or something even worse, like a financial reset, foreign currency scandal or total economic collapse? Did these poor souls know things they weren't supposed to?
When examining these so called "death lists" it's important not to mistake coincidence for conspiracy. It's also important to get past the click-bait headlines and "just asking questions" ethos of websites in need of ad revenue.
Sure, "nine bankers mysteriously dying in a month" sounds weird and creepy. But every death that occurs for reasons other than natural causes is inherently "mysterious" until the reasons for why it happened are determined. So is there something else that explain this string of deaths, other than "they were taken out by the Powers That Be?"
Let's take a look at the lists, and then we can go from there. In the last month, three JP Morgan employees died, all with different positions and in different cities. They are:
- Gabriel Magee, 39, vice president, corporate and investment bank technology, London, January 28, jumped off a building
- Ryan Henry Crane, 37, executive director, New York, February 3, unknown causes
- Li Junjie, 33, finance, Hong Kong, February 18, jumped off a building
Other sources then add a number of names to the list, anywhere between six and nine bankers who dies under "mysterious circumstances." This is the list that's most commonly being used on sites trying to make a connection between the deaths:
- David Bird, 55, Wall Street Journal writer covering OPEC, New Jersey, January 11, went missing on walk
- Tim Dickenson, age unknown, Communications director at Swiss Re AG, London, January 21, unknown causes
- William Broeksmit, 58, former senior risk manager at Deutsche Bank, London, January 26, suicide by hanging
- Karl Slym, 51, managing director of Tata Motors, Bangkok, January 27, death by jumping out window
- Mike Dueker, 50, chief economist at Russell Investments, Washington State, January 31, death by falling
- Richard Talley, 57, founder of American Title Services, Denver, February 4, shot himself with nail gun
- James Stuart, Jr., 70, Former National Bank of Commerce CEO, Scottsdale, February 19, unknown causes
Even just a cursory glance at the list turns the "nine dead banksters" narrative into a shambles. Two of the names, Bird and Slym, had nothing to do with banks or banking, working in journalism and the automotive industry. Two of the others, Broeksmit and Stuart, were . . .
The Science and the Scam of the Séance
It's surprisingly easy to trick someone into believing they've seen something paranormal.
By Katie Heaney via Pacific Standard: The Science of Society
The first time Marthe Béraud was caught faking paranormal activity during a séance, she was 23 years old. She claimed she developed the ability to commune with the dead shortly after her fiancé died, five years earlier, and she began holding séances for the public. During these sessions, a "spirit" named Bien Boa, whom Béraud claimed was a 300-year-old Brahmin Hindu, materialized, sometimes moving about the room and touching people. Photographs of the séances would make Boa look an awful lot like a cardboard cutout, in some cases, and in others, like a living man draped in fabric and wearing a fake beard.
In 1906, a newspaper printed an account of an Arab man known as Areski, then working as a coachman at the villa where Béraud lived and held séances, who copped to having been hired to play the part of Bien Boa. Her hand forced, Béraud admitted to concocting the hoax. Then she changed her name to Eva Carrière (or Eva C) so nobody would know she'd been caught, traveled to Munich, and started holding hoaxed séances again, immediately. She is, without question, my favorite early-20th-century con artist, "fake psychic medium" category.
Like many other so-called spiritualists of the day, Carrière's credibility relied heavily on her supposed production of "ectoplasm," or a spiritual energy that oozes from orifices on the medium's body and takes shape, allowing the medium to interact with said spirit. Peruse the image results for this one (and I cannot recommend doing so enough) and you will see a series of black and white photos of people with a white substance pouring out of their mouths, or their noses, or their ears.
Soon Carrière met a widow named Juliette Bisson, 25 years her senior, and they started both sleeping together and faking séances together. Or, as Wikipedia puts it: "Juliette Bisson and Carrière were in a sexual relationship together, and they both worked in collaboration with each other to fake the ectoplasm and eroticize their male audience." These are two things I would not have thought simultaneously achievable! I am so impressed by this information.
Anyway, one of Carrière's tricks was to give her ectoplasm a face, which she did by cutting faces out of newspapers, drawing on them in an attempt to mask their identities, and attaching them to the typical muslin or a similar white material. But photographs taken during her sessions caught up with Carrière, as some of the faces she used were recognized, and her fraud was again exposed, in a 1913 article in the Viennese newspaper Neue Wiener Tagblatt. Among the famous faces she'd used: actress Mona Delza, King Ferdinand of Bulgaria, and Woodrow Wilson.
IT SEEMS LIKE IT should take more, in this modern day and age, to trick someone into thinking she's seen something paranormal. In a study published in the British Journal of Psychology in 2003, a group of three semi-mischievous researchers aimed to determine what it takes. Participants (who, prior to the experiment, identified themselves as either "believers" or "disbelievers" in the paranormal) were split into groups and made to sit through faked séances in a pitch-black room. In the middle of the room was a table, upon which sat a few objects treated with luminous paint. These were made to move a few inches by researchers, who hid in the dark and prodded the objects with sticks. How they got anyone to believe they'd seen something paranormal this way is beyond me, but somehow, 16 percent of them did. Most of that group identified as believers, but not all.
More interesting still is the fact that roughly 20 percent of the participants (30 percent of believers and a surprisingly high eight percent of disbelievers) reported experiencing additional unusual phenomena during the faked séances, beyond anything that could be attributed to actions taken by the researchers. They reported feeling as though they had entered an "unusual psychological state," feeling cold shivers running down their bodies, sensing an energetic presence, and noticing weird smells. They were thoroughly spooked, and fairly easily, at the hands of researchers who faked the entire thing.
Nothing supernatural about the Bermuda Triangle, NOAA says
By Ken Kaye via Sun Sentinel
Now it's official: The Bermuda Triangle is a bunch of bunk.
For decades, rumors persisted that hundreds of ships and planes mysteriously vanished in the area between Miami, Puerto Rico and Bermuda because it was cursed or patrolled by extraterrestrials.
Most of us already suspected that was a myth. Yet, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration just posted a story declaring the Devil's Triangle, as it's also known, is no different than any other open ocean region — and that foul weather and poor navigation are likely to blame for any mishaps.
"There is no evidence that mysterious disappearances occur with any greater frequency in the Bermuda Triangle than in any other large, well-traveled area of the ocean," the agency stated this month on noaa.gov.
Ben Sherman, spokesman for NOAA's National Ocean Service, said the agency wrote the story as part of an educational program where it responds to readers' questions.
The story was based on information from the U.S. Navy and U.S. Guard, which make no bones about saying the mythological area is so much balderdash.
"The Coast Guard does not recognize the existence of the so-called Bermuda Triangle as a geographic area of specific hazard to ships or planes," the military branch said. "In a review of many aircraft and vessel losses in the area over the years, there has been nothing discovered that would indicate that casualties were the result of anything other than physical causes."
Not everyone is in full agreement, including Minerva Bloom.
She's a volunteer docent at the Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale Museum, which pays homage to Flight 19, perhaps the highest-profile incident involving the Bermuda Triangle. The five U.S. Navy torpedo bombers took off from Fort Lauderdale on a routine training exercise in December 1945, never to return.
"I don't think there are aliens or anything like that, but I do think there's something going on there," Bloom said.
▶ Debunking 9/11 conspiracy theorists part 1 of 7 – Free fall and how the towers collapsed
This is a seven (7) part series by Myles Power debunking the 9/11 conspiracy theory.
This is part 1 – Free fall and how the towers collapsed – in the YouTube playlist.
If you have the time, Myles is worth watching.
Myles Power confronts 9/11 truthers to see if their claims can stand up. In this video he discusses the World Trade Center's Design to withstand airplane impacts, fuel or oxygen-starved fires, how the World Trade Center's Collapse, the twin towers falling at free fall speed and the damage to the lobbies.
Basic maths fail
I said if you triple the speed, you get eight times the energy. That should be nine times!
Obama ordered $1 billion worth of disposable coffins for use in FEMA camps? More BS fear mongering.
By The Locke via The Soap Box
Reblogged from Is that a FEMA Camp?
Recently the old FEMA camp myth has once again reared it's ugly head around internet, this time making it appear that President Obama has ordered $1,000,000,000 worth of "disposable coffins", as you can clearly see from this screen shot below:
And from this article here.
When I was reading the article one of the first things that clued me in that this was just a bunch of BS and anti-government fear mongering were the pictures.
All of these pictures have been spreading around the internet for years now in various conspiracy theorist websites and forums.
Despite what the website wants you to believe, these pictures are actually pretty old. Infact they've been around since the George W. Bush administration, as have these claims.
The pictures were also taken at a storage facility for Vantage, a company that manufactures plastic coffin liners, not some government storage facility.
Why the WTC towers fell at almost free-fall speed
OR . . . Static Versus Dynamic Loading
By Dave Burton via Burton Systems Software – (burtonsys.com)
Some conspiracy theorists are puzzled about why the WTC towers fell at almost free-fall speed on Sept. 11, 2001. They suppose that the speed of collapse is evidence that something or someone must have destroyed the structural integrity of the undamaged lower part of each tower.
After all, they reason, "only the upper floors of the building were damaged, so why did the lower floors collapse, and why did they fall so fast?"
This web page answers those questions, simply enough for even a conspiracy theorist to comprehend (I hope). I do use some simple math and some very basic physics, but even if you don't understand that part you should still be able to comprehend the basic reasons that the towers fell so fast.
What the conspiracy theorists apparently don't understand is the difference between static and dynamic loading. ("Static" means "while at rest," "dynamic" means "while moving.")
If you don't think it can make a difference, consider the effect of a stationary bullet resting on your chest, compared to the effect of a moving bullet striking your chest. The stationary bullet exerts a static load on your chest. A moving bullet exerts a dynamic load.
As a more pertinent example, consider a 110 story building with a roof 1,368 feet high (like the WTC Twin Towers). Each floor is 1368/110 = 12.44 feet high, or aproximately 3.8 meters.
Now, suppose that the structural steel on the 80th floor collapses. (Note: I'm using as an example 2 WTC, which was the building that collapsed first.)
The collapse of the 80th floor drops all the floors above (which, together, are equivalent to a 30 story building!) onto the 79th floor, from a height of aproximately 12 feet.
Of course, the structure of the lower 79 floors has been holding up the weight of the top 31 floors for many years. (That's the static load.) So should you expect it to be able to hold that same weight, dropped on it from a height of 12 feet (the dynamic load)?
The answer is, absolutely not!
Here's why.
Download HD version of this video for reposting: http://tinyurl.com/7rjrsjr
Related articles
- "You Know You Are a Conspiracy Theorist If…" (illuminutti.com)
▶ Building 7 Explained
EdwardCurrent via YouTube
A serious video: The "unexplainable" collapse of 7 World Trade Center is the most compelling case put forth by 9/11 Truthers. But there is more than enough evidence that WTC7 collapsed due to fire — no secret demolition ninjas necessary.
The text below is for people interested in actual inquiry, and are legitimately examining both sides' arguments for inconsistencies, intellectual dishonesty, and logical flaws.
1. Things conspiracy believers do not want you to know:
- WTC7 underwent a slow, internal progressive collapse, plainly observable in the full-length CBS video, which is rarely shown on conspiracy sites.
- WTC7 actually did NOT collapse straight down or "into its own footprint." 30 West Broadway, across the 4-lane Barclay St., was heavily damaged. See photo: http://www.debunking911.com/wtc7pile.jpg
- The 1,500 "experts" at ae911truth.org are mostly electrical and chemical engineers, residential architects, students, etc. with little or no experience in steel skyscraper construction.
- The NIST study was done in cooperation with the SEI/ASCE, SFPE, AISC, and SEAoNY — actual engineering experts in the field, all of whom would have to be in on this conspiracy, even to this day.
- The "explosive traces" or "thermite" claim comes from non-chemist Steven E. Jones, who analyzed samples sent to him privately with no chain of custody. His paper appeared in a journal that charges $800 to publish; Google "CRAP Paper Accepted by Journal" to read about its "peer review" process. Jones, a devout Mormon, also published "evidence" that Jesus visited American Indians; Google "Behold My Hands."
- No "molten metal" was ever collected from WTC7 and analyzed.
- Rigging a large building for demolition cannot be done "over the weekend," nor would such preparation escape the notice of office workers. Demolition professionals laugh at this claim.
- Thermite cannot be used to demolish a building.
- There exist NO peer-reviewed papers supporting controlled demolition, anywhere.
True or False: Only explosives could have caused the buildings to collapse on 9/11.
Download HD version for reposting: http://tinyurl.com/7rjrsjr
Related articles
- 9/11 Truthers are Dummies (DailyKos) (thepeoplesvoice.org)
- The CIA Admits 9/11 was a Metaphysical Catechism (thepeoplesvoice.org)
- Nearly Half of Americans Don't Know About the Collapse of WTC 7 on 9/11 (jeremyrhammond.com)
26 Alex Jones LIES Debunked
Here i go again! Presenting my favorite moron, conspiracist and over all bulls**t artist … Alex Jones …
(You may need to pause the video to read some of the text)
5 Reasons why People keep Believing in Debunked Conspiracy Theories
I've wondered why do people still believe in certain conspiracy theories, even after they have been totally debunked, or proven to be logically improbable.
From my observations of conspiracy theorists, I believe that there are five main reasons why some people still believe in conspiracy theories, even after they have been debunked.
Here are those five reasons:
Keep Reading: The Soap Box: 5 Reasons why People keep Believing in Debunked Conspiracy Theories.
Related articles
- Confessions of a Disinformation Agent: Introduction and Chapter I. (illuminutti.com)
- Resources for debunking 9/11 Conspiracy Theories (illuminutti.com)
- 8 Ways to tell a Conspiracy Theorist is really a Fraud (illuminutti.com)
- Embarrassing Conspiracy Theories: The Pentagon was hit with a Missile on 9/11 (illuminutti.com)
- Embarrassing Conspiracy Theories: BP Oil Spill (illuminutti.com)
- 5 Tools of the Conspiracy Theorist Trade (illuminutti.com)
- Thrive, Zeitgeist and the Illusion of Conspiracy Activism. (illuminutti.com)
- Conspiracy Theory is Now an Art Form, Claims New Book CRYPTOSCATOLOGY from TrineDay (prweb.com)
- Embarrassing Conspiracy Theories: Ancient Aliens Cover-up (illuminutti.com)
Embarrassing Conspiracy Theories: The Pentagon was hit with a Missile on 9/11
One of the 9/11 conspiracy theories that some people believe, is that the Pentagon was hit by a missile, and not a Boeing 757.
Most people who do believe this, believe a missile must have hit, because they believe that with not much piloting training, a person could not actually fly a jumbo jet into the side of a building that's only a few stories high, and that the damage to the building doesn't appear to them as the type of damage that jumbo jet would do.
Keep Reading: The Soap Box: Embarrassing Conspiracy Theories: The Pentagon was hit with a Missile on 9/11.
Related articles
- Resources for debunking 9/11 Conspiracy Theories (illuminutti.com)
- Proof: A Missile Struck the Pentagon on 9/11!!! (illuminutti.com)
- 8 Ways to tell a Conspiracy Theorist is really a Fraud (illuminutti.com)
Confessions of a Disinformation Agent: Introduction and Chapter I.
Hi everybody,
I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce to you a new series of articles being written by a fellow blogger. His name is Muertos and he's one of the most rational thinkers i have come across.
When you get a chance, click the link (below) to his blog and feed your brain some great information!
Mason I. Bilderberg
Posted on July 3, 2012 by muertos:
This story is going to be a history of my experiences with conspiracy theories, including the time when I used to believe them myself. I'll explain what got me into them, why they fascinated me, and eventually why I became a debunker. I have a very strange and complicated relationship with debunking. Sometimes I love it and look forward to it; at other times it's something I hate and want to be finished with forever. Therefore, this piece is a very personal journey.
Keep Reading: Confessions of a Disinformation Agent: Introduction and Chapter I. | Muertos's Blog.
UFO's in Ancient Art Debunked – YouTube
Ancient Aliens Debunked – Part 7 – Now Posted
Ancient Aliens Debunked – Part 7 – Now Posted
|"There are many strange UFO's and Alien beings in ancient art but none as clear as this one."
"You see in the sky an undoubtedly space craft shining down on Christ" … "a disk shaped object … (shining) beams of light down on John the Baptist and Jesus."
Go to the menu at the top of the page and learn the truth!
ChemTrail Believers Unite!
If you believe in ChemTrails and you want to do something about it, there is now a lawsuit you can join!!!
I strongly suggest all ChemTrail believers get involved now and sign up! There is also a facebook page where believers gather to feel important.
As a total non-believer in ChemTrails, i can't think of any better way for the ChemTrail believers to destroy their cause than to put it before a court of law. I will pay to be in that courtroom.
How much do you want to bet this lawsuit never makes it to court? It can't. There are way too many people making way too much money selling the ChemTrail hoax – they can't afford to have this issue heard and decided in a court of law. It's no different than psychics refusing to be tested in a laboratory environment, they can't afford to be put to a real test of evidence.
So please, if you believe in ChemTrails, this is your time to put your evidence to the test. Please join the lawsuit.
Ancient Aliens Debunked
Announcing a new feature here at Illuminutti!
Click the link in the menu bar or the image above to view the latest updates!
Aspartame – Truth vs Fiction
If you believe everything you read on the internet, then is seems that a chemical found in thousands of products is causing an epidemic of severe neurological and systemic diseases, like multiple sclerosis and lupus. The FDA, the companies that make the product, and the "medical industrial complex" all know about the dangers of this chemical but are hiding the truth from the public in order to protect corporate profits and avoid the pesky paper work that would accompany the truth being revealed. The only glimmer of hope is a dedicated band of bloggers and anonymous e-mail chain letter authors who aren't afraid to speak the truth. Armed with the latest anecdotal evidence, unverified speculation, and scientifically implausible claims, they have been tirelessly ranting about the evils of this chemical for years. Undeterred by the countless published studies manufactured by the food cartel that show this chemical is safe, they continue to protect the public by spreading baseless fear and hysteria.
Hopefully, you don't believe everything you read on the internet, and you don't get your science news from e-mail SPAM, where the above scenario is a common theme. While there are many manifestations of this type of urban legend, I am speaking specifically about aspartame – an artificial sweetener used since the early 1980s. The notion that aspartame is unsafe has been circulating almost since it first appeared, and like rumors and misinformation have a tendency to do, fears surrounding aspartame have taken on a life of their own.
Keep Reading: Science-Based Medicine » Aspartame – Truth vs Fiction.
Related articles
- The Low Down on Low-Calorie Sweeteners (thedaintydietitian.wordpress.com)
- Avoiding Sugar with Diet, Low-Calorie, and Sugar-Free Alternatives? Think Again… (foodconsumer.org)
- Artificial Sweeteners May Be Worse than Sugar for Diabetics (foodconsumer.org)
Pssssst! Hey You! Can You Keep A Bilderberg Secret?
Paranoid Conspiracy Theorists (PCTs) consider the Bilderberg group to be but a small part of a bigger worldwide conspiracy known as the New Word Order (NWO), a secretive power elite with a globalist agenda … conspiring to eventually rule the world by replacing sovereign nation-states with an all-powerful, authoritarian world government. (Source)
According to PCT Alex Jones, the "Bilderberg group is responsible for plotting our wars, increasing our oil prices, causng the world economic crash" and causing pretty much everything except making the sun rise every morning.
What does Alex Jones offer up as proof of this NWO/Bilderberg omnipotence? Not much.
For example, PCT Jones and his wacky minions over at InfoWars and PrisonPlanet claim Bilderberg is super top secret, mysterious and all-powerful. Every time a Bilderberg event is reported, Jones and company love to use spooky words and phrases like "leaked", "secretive" and "kingmakers".
So how could I, your humble skeptic of all things unproven, have penetrated this secretive clique of industrialists, bankers, academic leaders and media figureheads to discover, for example, the Bilderberg group met more than 50 years ago on September 18-20, 1959 in Yesilkoy, Turkey? That's very specific information, isn't it? My source also informs me the Bilderberg group met twice in 1955, the first meeting was March 18-20, in Barbizon, France and the second meeting occurred September 23-25. I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "What secret operative within the NWO did he have to meet with, in the shadows of a darkened alley, to acquire a full list of all the Bilderberg participants' names since 2009?" (Because i DO have the list of names!) Or you're wondering, "How much did he pay said informant to leak the list of the entire Bilderberg steering committee?" (Because i have that list too!)
You want answers, don't you? You are demanding to know the name of my informant, aren't you? Well, here is my secret: The Bilderberg group has a website!!!!!! Yes! The super top secret url is www.BilderbergMeetings.org! Quick, write down this military-grade encrypted web address before the Men In Black (MIB) kick in your door and erase your memory.
One of Alex Jones' latest headlines reads "Secretive Bilderberg Group Set To Meet In Virginia May 31st-June 3rd" and these dates were chosen to "coincide with this year's U.S. presidential election." (source)
Hmmmm, were these dates set to coincide with the presidential elections? Let's see. I went back to 1980 and found: 28 of the 32 Bilderberg meetings over the past 32 years were held in either May or (mostly in) June. Now I'm really confused. Did the Bilderberg group time their 2012 meeting dates to coincide with the presidential election or does the Bilderberg group tend to meet the same time every year and this year isn't any different? No. Wait. I know what it is – they meet the same time every year to hide the fact they're meeting the same time this year to coincide with the election. I think conspiracists call this "hiding in plain sight" or, as i call it, "projecting unprovable, unsolvable, end-of-the-world, apocalyptic meaning and hopelessness on to benign facts, patterns and random acts of chance while boasting of your own brilliant ability to decipher and unravel the conspiratorial mess you just created from nothing." But I digress.
On the same Alex Jones page referenced above PCT Jones asserts "Bilderberg displayed their kingmaker status during the last two U.S. presidential elections when they selected Barack Obama's running mate Joe Biden in 2008, as well as picking John Edwards to be John Kerry's VP in 2004."
As proof Bilderberg selected Joe Biden as Obama's running mate, PCT Jones links to another one of his articles from May 23, 2008. Problem is, if you read the referenced web page there isn't a single reference to Joe Biden. Nothing. Nada. Once again, PCT Jones fails to offer any corroborating evidence to support his assertions.
How about Bilderberg selecting John Edwards to be John Kerry's VP in 2004? PCT Jones links to a web page at wnd.com from July 8, 2004 titled "Bilderberg 'performance' key to Edwards VP pick", which does mention John Edwards by name in the same sentence as "the super-secret Bilderberg." If this article from wnd.com was supposed to be evidence of Bilderberg knowing Kerry's running mate before the rest of the world, then how did CNN know – a full two days before wnd.com – that John Kerry had chosen John Edward?
Once again, paranoid conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones come up empty.
Mason I. Bilderberg
©2012 Illuminutti


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Cosplayers in Illinois? :3
View Single Post
King of the Pirates!
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 886
Originally Posted by
Well you're close to all of those cons! Lucky you! Those cons may be doable if I can get something in with my friend's friend, because he travels to cons all over the midwest and has done so for years! Oh god, how did you have the funds for all of those? Well I guess you're close, so you don't really have to stay in hotels. Did you like AMKE? It's the only con I HAVE to go to, besides Acen. I was disappointed that they weren't able to do Anime World Chicago anymore. Last year I couldn't go and I wanted to go this year.
Yeah do as many as you can as long as you have the opportunity to! Ahhh, Illinois would be the perfect place to be con location wise. You're such a lucky duck.
Haha, I work full time so cost wasn't too much of a problem. Also not staying at hotel helps a lot! Although I'm staying at the hotel for Anime Midwest for some reason...From 2008-2010 I only did Acen though. I started expanding in 2011 (went to 3 cons), and this past year has just been trying everything out because I want to cosplay XD Only real far one so far was AMKE and Anime Apocalypse, and still it was just gas money. I'm hoping to go to AMKE either the full weekend or just one day again next year, but that's a while away! Hopefully you're able to do more conventions once you're around here. Rosemont is at least easy enough for you to get to from Chicago. The rest you may need a car :/
Originally Posted by
I live in WI but I can easily take Amtrak to any conventions that are right in downtown Chicago (or I could also drive, it's like a 1.5hr drive, so not too bad). I am wondering though if there are ever any cosplay meetups outside of conventions in downtown Chicago. I couldn't find any Chicago cosplay groups on FB and I found that to be kinda odd since Chicago is a large city and even in Boston (where I go to college) there are a few cosplay FB groups and meetups every week and that is a much smaller city I think.
There are a few meetups that I hear about every now and then, but I never go. Usually they're at Navy Pier. Then there's Soycon which is pretty much a meetup also lol. Besides that, just lots of cons
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subset: commoncrawl


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Active Image Viewer is an image viewer that provides a very efficient way to display multiple images within a small area. Thumbnails are automatically generated and displayed (removing the need to create smaller versions of images). When a visitor clicks a thumbnail, the full size image is displayed within the current page. Each full size image may have a link attached to it which can be set to either open in the current browser window or a new window.
|Internet Web Dynamic Content multimedia Graphics Viewers CGI Tools/Libraries Presentation
|Operating Systems
|Mac OS X Windows OS Independent
Release Notes: Any number of images may be added to the viewer, and the display area can be set to any size required. Alternative and popup text may be assigned to all images. Images can be set to link to any page or URL and open in any browser window or frame. Full URL support was added, including window naming and frame targets. Thumbnails are automatically generated.
A Fluent OpenStack client API for Java.
A TWiki appliance that is easy to use and lightweight.


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A centerpiece of the Randolph business community is changing names after nearly 90 years. Brothers Lee and Doug Jenior have sold their Ford dealership on S.R. 44 to Sarchione Auto Sales of Alliance.
While the name on the building is changing, the familiar faces are remaining. Lee and Doug Jenior are staying on with other employees.
"Everybody's staying," Lee said. "I wouldn't know what to do if I wasn't working."
It's a transition from one long-time automobile family to another, Lee noted.
The Sarchione family started in the car business in 1917 when John Sarchione Sr. started a car lot in Alliance. It has remained a family business.
"We were born and bred in the business," Joe Sarchione said.
He and his brother John became sole owners of the business in August 2010.
Lee and Doug Jenior said they'd been thinking of the future of their business for some time.
"We both have kids but they all went in different paths" than the car business, Lee said.
Doug said the sale came at the right time. "We'd been talking. What if something happened to one of us? It would be hard for one of us to operate (the business) at the same level."
The Ford dealership in Randolph actually started in 1921, but grandfather John A. Jenior bought out two other partners two years later, starting a family-owned business that has been operated by three generations.
"They sold Fordson tractors and Model T's," Lee said. "They picked up crated cars at the Cleveland rail yard and finished assembling them in Randolph," he said.
Before going into the car business, John Jenior owned a grocery store in Akron, Lee said.
John Jenior died in 1950 at age 58. The next year his sons, Lamar and Louis, and daughter Isabel, took over the business.
"Dad (Lamar) ran sales, Lou ran service and Isabel ran the office," Lee recalled.
The new owners, John and Joe Sarchione, often bought used cars from the Jeniors for their large used car operation in Alliance.
"We'd been looking for a dealership to buy," said John. Last spring he was looking at some trades with Doug Jenior and he mentioned they were looking, "And Doug said 'what about this one?'"
The talks culminated in the sale and the transition. Wednesday morning, the dealership was busy inside and out as the Jenior name came off the building and workers remodeled the showroom.
Inside, Joe and John Sarchione, and John's wife Alex, were busy with a marketing representative from Ford.
They will probably have a grand opening early next year, Joe said.
They plan to keep the parts, repair and body shop. They also plan to expand their inventory of new vehicles.
"We plan aggressive prices on new cars, volume sales, Joe said.
The Randolph location will give buyers access to the Sarchiones' extended inventory of used vehicles from their lot on S.R. 62 on the east side of Alliance where they sell about 150 vehicles a month. Lee was impressed with the Sarchiones' strong internet sales program, with buyers looking for and buying vehicles online.
"We didn't have that. We're old school car guys," he said.


text:
Bontrager's Trip 200 bike computer is a wireless bike computer that tracks speed, time, distance and temperature along with average and maximum speed.
- Analog wireless signal
- Current, average, and maximum speed
- Trip distance and programmable odometer
- Clock (12/24-hour) and total ride time with pacer
- Auto start/stop
- Calories burned, backlight, and temperature
- Multi-language user interface (DE, EN, ES, FR)
REVIEW SNAPSHOT®by PowerReviews
Best Uses
Reviewed by 6 customers
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Displaying reviews 1-6
At my level, this product fills my needs.The instruction manual is terrible.The time wasted trying to under stand mounting location,programming computer and computer use is gone.I recommend going straight to YOU TUBE for instructions.
Bought it two years ago, stopped working after about 18 months. Replaced the batteries, made spacing adjustments, no luck.
Best Uses
didn't realize there was a battery in the sending unit and it stopped working just like my trip 100 did after 3 years only this one died after 3 months. changed the A23 sending unit battery and it began working fine. Bought a second battery for my trip 100 and now I have two working computers.
Best Uses
I have owned several cycle computers over the years and most were considerable cheaper than this one. This think since day one has had trouble staying connected. I spent so much time adjusting it to get it to pick up that I finally just gave up. Completely worthless to me.
I have had two of these and each have died after 12-14 months. They are great when they work but totally unreliable after a year. I won't waste my money on them again.
I wanted something that would tell me the estimate calories burned and this was the one. The temp was a plus. I did a lot of searching around for any reviews but couldn't find one. I took the chance anyways and I'm glad I bought this computer. It works great. I want to write a review hope to help someone make that decision. Trust me u will love it just as much as I did. Bought a Bell wireless first but was not accurate. Returned it and bought this one. You get what you pay. The number on it was so readable even my buddy can see how fast I was going.
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Online Extra: High Expectations for Lowe's
By Amy Tsao
The ongoing saga of big-box home-improvement retailing, which stars Home Depot (HD ) and Lowe's (LOW ), has had some interesting plot twists. Starting about two years ago, the stock market began to bet on smaller, faster-growing Lowe's. Shares of Home Depot, the high-growth retailer of the 1990s, weakened so much that its rock-bottom price of just above $20 -- which it hit early last year -- began to look attractive. So, Home Depot has risen 49%, to $36, in the last 12 months, while Lowe's gained 32%, to $53.
Even so, the Wilkesboro (N.C.) Lowe's may still have more wind at its back than Atlanta-based Home Depot. Lowe's beats its rival on a key measure: new-store growth. It plans to add about 13% to 14% more stores -- often in more densely populated markets than Lowe's traditional rural store base -- in the year ending January, 2005, bringing its total to 1,140. Home Depot expects new-store growth closer to 10%, for a total of 1,877.
Ben Friedman, assistant portfolio manager at Milwaukee-based Dana Investment Advisors, figures Lowe's stock can reach the low-$60s range over the next year, for a hike of some 12%. "It's not a home-run stock, but it definitely should appreciate more than the market," he says. (Friedman's firm owns shares in Lowe's.) Others agree, and Lowe's is ranked No. 9 on BusinessWeek's 2004 list of the 50 top-performing U.S. companies. Though Lowe's stock has had a spectacular run of 70% over the past five years, vs. Home Depot's 13% decline in the same period, it may keep climbing.
Bernstein analyst Colin McGranahan wrote in a Feb. 24 report: "We continue to view Lowe's as a solid long-term growth story with quite impressive 19% compounded earnings-per-share growth over the next two years." Despite tougher sales comparisons beginning in the second quarter, he raised his price target on Lowe's to $65, up from $62. (Bernstein or an affiliate may own more than 1% of Lowe's stock.)
This fiscal year, analysts on average expect EPS at Lowe's to rise 15%, to $2.66, while revenues are forecasted to rise 18%, to $36.3 billion. From a valuation standpoint, Lowe's is more expensive than Home Depot. It's trading at nearly 20 times January, 2005, consensus EPS, while Home Depot trades at 17 times EPS of $2.09. Still, "at the moment, I would pick Lowe's because it has the higher growth rate in the two- to three-year time horizon," says Jim Luke, director of growth equity at BB&T Asset Management.
Besides adding revenues through store expansion, comparable-store sales (sales at stores open at least one year) have also been strong. Lowe's reported that comparable sales rose 7.3% for the fiscal fourth quarter ended Jan. 31. For the rest of the year, it's expecting same-store sales increases of about 5%.
Lowe's is "a company that can grow earnings per share over the next three years at 16% to 17%," Luke figures, adding that its stock should rise at a similar pace to earnings growth. (Luke's firm owns both Home Depot and Lowe's.)
Lowe's has also made concerted efforts to cut sourcing costs and lower inventory shrinkage over the last couple of years. That has helped gross margins inch higher every year since 2001. Lowe's recently said gross margins for the current year can increase a modest 20 to 30 basis points. But that may be too conservative, according to Bernstein's McGranahan. "We would not be surprised to see gross margins in fiscal 2004 once again surprise to the upside," he says.
Of course, the stock's performance could take a pause amid a backdrop of confusing economic conditions. Even those who are bullish on home-improvement retailing are somewhat nervous about mixed signals coming from government data. Friedman, for one, likes the sector for the long term but worries about the outlook on employment and interest rates. Economists fear that while low rates should keep the housing market strong, a lack of new jobs -- and fears of losing existing jobs -- could keep Americans from making big purchases. And if the economy does end up picking up rapidly, rates could quickly head higher and hamper spending in general.
However, in the longer term, new-home construction and existing-home sales "should continue at a healthy clip as long as the population is growing," says Lynn Mander of Bryn Mawr Trust Wealth Management in Bryn Mawr, Penn. Her firm owns both stocks on the belief that the robust levels of home buying and mortgage refinancing of 2003 mean there are "dollars to be spent in 2004." Home buyers generally spend on projects for the home within two years, she says, adding that she's more confident that shoppers will spend more at Lowe's and Home Depot than at other consumer-discretionary retailers, such as Best Buy (BBY ).
Lowe's President Robert Niblock expects home-improvement retailing will remain strong with help from demographics as well as the trend, aided by TV home-decor shows, of keeping homes looking stylish. Also, the rising middle-class Hispanic population is increasingly participating in the "great desire for the American dream of owning your own home," he says. That should help keep home sales robust even as borrowing rates eventually inch up. And Niblock expects that even if higher rates keep some consumers from buying a new home, "they'll probably want to still invest in their [current] home."
Certainly, Lowe's is cementing its brand as a fixture in the home fix-it biz. Many analysts see it as a relatively safe bet on consumer spending. Says Dana Investment's Friedman: "Their [prospects] are very visible for us." The economy may not be on the fast track yet, but even that could be a mere blip for this high-growth retailer.
Tsao covers financial markets for BusinessWeek Online in New York
Beth Belton


text:
isn't it so
(Oh, and I'm calling this one Everyday Matters Challenge 164, draw a camera.)
Labels: camera, EDM, ink, Stephen Stills
an online sketchbook
Labels: camera, EDM, ink, Stephen Stills
A date? This is wonderful Andrea, I love it. It took my breath away when I saw it on Flickr just now.
I just wanted to grab the camara!!, wow.... good luck in your date, eh.
This date sounds serious but I have a feeling it is not what I think.
Fabulous camera.
Great job - great detailing.
Wonderful values as always Andrea...Enjoy Steven to the max...I know I always do...um, that sounds naughty... I'm talking about the singer songwriter folks. LOL:)
Lovely, how long did it take?
This camera looks so attractive and plush that I want to hug it. It is more camera-ish than a camera. I love that!
what a beautiful drawing! perfecto as always!
The strap -- oh, the strap. This is another beauty in the series, Andrea. It looks as though it wants to turn its back to us. I love it.
I can't believe we were both drawing a camera again at the same time.
You do such beautiful work with a pen. It's just amazing. Sure you don't want to write a book sharing how you do it?
Another fantastic drawing! The objects you draw always have more personality than the real ordinary object, even if they look almost the same.
Hey, the draw-off continues! Woohoo! Unbelievable drawing, yet again Andrea! Hmmm ... Stephen Stills ... gonna have to email me about that one. LOL.
Now who is Stephen and when do we get a chance to meet this young man? (Do I sound like your mother?)
You've got a thing for this camera too. Very good work.
this camera is beautiful! good luck on your date!
Every time I come to this blog I am just amazed by your beautiful work. Wow.....
Andrea: The more I look at your art work, the more amazed and floored I am... I can't tell you... you've given a new meaning to art appreciation... and my students ADORE IT. I teach literature and writing and I sent my students to your flickr page to look for things to write about! Now they want to do it every week!!! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
a grateful "father" ;-)
This is some gorgeous work! WHat a talented soul you are. I will forward to seeing more.
Wow, you are an inspiration to a lot of folks Andrea ... as you are to me. Loved that comment about the students using your work to provoke writings. YOU ROCK GF!!!!
Thank you all, guys.
When I say 'date', well, that is not strictly true. I just went to see him in concert twice in one week. It's an obscure crush, I know, but I think it's obvious, by now, that I am just a little unusual.
Thanks for such kind words. This camera drawing was a commissioned piece. I hope the owners like it.
JCR, thank you so much. I'm pretty blown away by that. Thanks.
Cheers, folks.
You're so good at drawing! i wish I could do that.. :)


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London - Despite a decline in beer sales, British brewing is enjoying a renaissance, with craft or artisan brewers flourishing in the UK. For thirsty travellers, it means the opportunity to find out what goes on behind the scenes on a brewery tour that will almost certainly end with a taste or two.
It is difficult to pin down what exactly constitutes "craft beer". The Campaign for Real Ale has decided that the term describes "beer with a distinctive flavour brewed by artisans". It is a fittingly vague definition when you consider the range of options. It can be used to describe a microbrewery such as Coniston Brewing Company (conistonbrewery.com), based at the Black Bull pub in the Lake District, and major players such as Meantime (meantimebrewing.com).
The latter has just opened a visitors' centre in its recently expanded Greenwich brewery, which offers a range of tours of its state-of-the art facility, including a Pie and Pint option.
Founded by German-born Petra Wetzel-Stewart, the West Brewery in Glasgow (westbeer.com), is one of the few woman-run breweries in the UK and the only one to produce beer according to the German purity law of Reinheitsgebot that allows only water, yeast, barley and hops.
A 45-minute tour costs £11.55 (about R156), including four or five beer samples.
Grain Brewery in Harleston (grainbrewery.co.uk), Norfolk, has recently been renovated and tripled its capacity. Groups of 10 or more can tour the converted dairy for free as long as you take a bottle or two from the shop home with you.
The Beer School at the acclaimed Lovibonds Brewery, Henley-on-Thames (lovibonds.com) started on September 22.
A two-hour session, led by founder and head brewer Jeff Rosenmeier, includes a tour explaining the brewing process, followed by a tutored tasting of the brewery's beers (£19.50).
Established in 2007, the Association of Welsh Independent Brewers (awib.org.uk) has 32 members, including the award-winning Purple Moose Brewery, Porthmadog (purplemoose.co.uk), whose range of beers includes Dark Side of the Moose and where tours can be arranged in advance (£5).
Discover how Thornbridge Brewery, Bakewell (thornbridge brewery.com), makes its eclectic range of beers that includes the delicious and unusual Kill Your Darlings, a Vienna-style dark lager, during a 90-minute tour (Wednesdays at 1pm and 3pm; £7.50), which concludes with a tasting of two halves of beer. – The Independent on Sunday


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HALTON businesses are being encouraged to sell their goods and services abroad.
An export fair is being held in Runcorn to show firms how they could benefit by developing new overseas markets.
It is the brainchild of Weaver Vale MP Graham Evans who has teamed up with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) to organise the event.
The seminar entitled 'Your Export Journey' will be held on Tuesday, February 7, from 9.30am to 1pm, at The Atrium, Daresbury Laboratory in Keckwick Lane.
Mr Evans said: "Last year, companies in the north west alone exported £26 billion worth of products. The evidence is that exporting is good for your business.
"On average, firms new to international trade experience a 34 per cent increase in productivity during the year they start exporting."
A local company will share their experiences and demonstrate how they export successfully.
Businesses will be shown a tried and tested method of how to export, from the basics through to gaining the first order.
They will discover the importance of being well prepared for market, using research and linking into partner support providers.
Experts will offer advice on financing export trade.
Firms will find out about the wealth of practical support and guidance that is available as they embark on a new exporting journey.
Mr Evans added: "This event is aimed at small and medium sized enterprises which are successful in their own right but have never thought of the opportunities that exporting can bring.
"They will be able to learn about the range of support services available and benefit from practical export knowledge."
Clive Drinkwater, regional director of UKTI north west and Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire David Briggs will be among the guest speakers.
To register, visit exportingcheshire.eventbrite.co.uk or call Nicola Davies on 0161 875 2351 or e-mail firstname.lastname@example.com Graham Evans


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Just Write: Not every conversation should be for all the world to hear
Not necessarily a soft-spoken person, I've grown used to finding my "inside voice" at times.
Whether I'm thumbing through bookshelves at a library, sitting in a doctor's office waiting room or strolling the aisles of a store, I always have found it disrespectful to be loud in a public place that isn't a sporting event or a concert venue.
Perhaps it was my upbringing, as my parents always encouraged me to be respectful of my setting.
At the risk of sounding like someone on the cusp of telling a "When I was your age..." story, it seems being respectful of shared public spaces is a thing of the past.
Last week, while perusing clothing racks at a Macy's, another customer shared his entire conversation with those of us shopping.
I moved away but continued to hear his end of the conversation from several clothing racks away. I knew his plans for Easter and what he was hoping to buy in the store.
His bellowing laugh seemed to ricochet off the walls.
It was as if this man was lounging on his couch at home.
A store isn't necessarily a "quiet zone" such as a church, library or hospital, but it seems even hard-and-fast rules in those places have mellowed.
Once regarded as a place to quietly read and study, many libraries now allow patrons to hold conversations at levels they'd use at home or in restaurants.
Perhaps the most awkwardly loud place was at the last funeral viewing I attended.
I was somewhat appalled to find such a large amount of chatter.
Sometimes these gatherings bring together people who might not have seen each other in quite awhile, but at times, I felt as though I was at a backyard barbecue rather than 30 feet away from paying our respects to a man we all knew.
I'm not out to "shush" the world like the stereotypical librarian we all feared in school, but a little common courtesy knowing that not everybody wants to join your party can go a long way.
Bobby Cherry is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-324-1408 or email@example.com.


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EMILY -- 9-year-old spayed female Pointer mix
Meet Emily, a 9-years-young white with brown spayed female Pointer mix, who is looking for a new home, along with her sister Shelley (a Beagle/Lab mix). Emily and Shelley have lived with the same family since they were puppies, and both girls are gentle, companionable dogs who have grown up with children and cats. Emily and Shelley are used to living outside with their own dogloo shelters, and go on daily walks and hikes. They are easy to walk on leash around the neighborhood, and are good citizens on off-leash trail hikes. Emily and Shelley are easy-to-care for, affectionate pups.
Emily and Shelley's family is relocating overseas for work and the city has size restrictions for dogs. They feel that a new, loving, local home will be in the dogs' best interest. It would be ideal to keep them together, as they are bonded best friends. Emily and Shelley each weigh about 40 pounds, and are healthy and up-to-date with vaccinations.
For more information on Shelley and Emily, please contact Arthur at email@example.com (preferred) or 626-302-3413.
This is a courtesy posting for a family seeking to rehome their dogs.
The statistics are sobering: Together, one unspayed female dog, her unaltered mate and their offspring can produce 67,000 dogs in six years. Even with its prevalent spay/neuter programs, the United States euthanizes more than 6 million dogs and cats each year. Through our Shelter Support Program, we work in partnership with local shelters to reduce this number by raising public awareness about the overpopulation crisis faced by shelters, facilitating rescue and adoption of sheltered animals, and, in the process, bringing identity and dignity to the many lives that would otherwise pass anonymously through an overburdened animal control system.
Across the border, we sponsor a regular Spay/Neuter clinic to provide spay/neuter services to families who could not otherwise afford them, and through our Pererra program work to provide a humane and gentle passing to pets who have no other options.
For pets that are part of our Shelter Support Program at either the Baldwin Park or Downey shelters, you may also contact or visit the shelter directly. For more information on our Shelter Support Program, visit http://www.unitedhope4animals.org/about-us/shelter-support-program/.
For more information about the adoption process of pets that are part of our Shelter Support Program, visit http://www.unitedhope4animals.org/about-us/shelter-support-program/
Thank You!
Your message has been sent to United Hope for Animals LA.
You'll receive a copy, too, at to help you keep track of which pets you've inquired about, and which shelters and rescues you've emailed.
NOTE: Some shelters have physical locations you can visit; some of these shelters may only have pets for a limited time, so please do not wait for a reply—just go visit the shelter! Other organizations are rescue groups run by busy volunteers who may take a while to reply. You can find information about the shelter or rescue group caring for this pet, and their adoption procedures, on the pet's details page on Adopt-a-Pet.com.


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Metal crescent moon shaped spike earrings with hook.
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A DERELICT working men's club which is to be turned into student accommodation in a £11.5 million scheme has already been visited by students.
However the visit from the University of York youngsters was not to pick out their future living quarters, but to assist with their archaeology studies by learning about how a historic building can be brought back to life.
Earlier this year, York based development company S Harrison secured planning permission to redevelop the Grade II listed former working men's club and The Tam O' Shanter public house in Lawrence Street.
The main building has stood empty for almost a decade and work will start next month on transforming it into a 115 bedroom student residence, complete with communal work space and leisure facilities.
In advance of work starting, archaeology students have visited the site and met representatives from S Harrison, CSP Architects, which is designing the scheme, as well as the conservation architect from City of York Council.
Chris Hale from S Harrison, said: "This is a complex project that will safeguard the future of a derelict listed building which is also a very important part of the city's social history, as the family home of Samuel Tuke, the founder of modern mental healthcare reforms.
"It offers a wonderful insight into the practicalities, considerations and challenges involved in bringing such a building back into use.
"As a longstanding development company, we're always keen to share our knowledge and expertise with the future talent of the industry and it's really rewarding to see this development benefitting students now, 18 months before it will be ready for their peers to move into."
Claire Price, a lecturer on planning and conservation at the University of York, who also works as a listed buildings caseworker with the Council for British Archaeology, said: "All the students got a lot out of visiting this development; it was a good opportunity to see the theory, as they learn in lectures, put into practice on a live site and hear from a developer directly.
"It also highlighted many key considerations associated with such a project including listed building consent applications, condition surveys and historic building assessments, so it was very worthwhile."
The development is due to complete in time for the 2017 student intake.


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good ashtray
price, good look,
Call us 7 days a week
Item #: WB245133GN
Sold By: globalindustrial.com
Ships same day. Estimated lead times do not include weekends or holidays. Transit time is determined by shipping method and destination. Orders requiring credit information might take additional time.
|$40.00 ea.
|$38.00 ea.
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Product Specifications
Avg. Customer Rating: (58 customer reviews)
The most favorable review
good ashtray
price, good look,
The most critical review
Outdoor Ashtray
Overall the ashtrays are fine, but they should have a 5 gal. pail inside them for easier emptying them and keeping them clean. *Global Management Comment: Ashtray base is lined with a protective aluminum alloy.*
Outdoor Ashtray
Your review: This is well built and lasts through Michigan winters. We have one on the deck and one on the patio for visiting smokers.
Pros: Never wash another outdoor ashtray. Put in some sand then assemble (very easy).
Cons: My first one was 1 gallon. Couldn't remember so I ordered the 6 gallon, it's a little big for residential but I kept it. It's fine.
good value
Your review: This is an item that is needed at all of our facilities and pavilions. The price made it possible to fill this need.
Pros: I liked the idea that the container itself was lined so that a bucket (which always disappeared) wasn't necessary.
Cons: Was a little disappointed that the lining was more like foil instead of metal.
Your review: Although smoking is more and more un-desirable for the public, I purchased 3 of these for my home! I placed one in basement, one on my front porch and one on the back deck! While having cookouts & gatherings with numerous people gathering, I got tired of single ashtrays or cleaning butts from my yard! Perfect cleanup and most appealing to our decor! In fact, people ask me "Where did you get those?" and yes I tell them the website!! Delivery time was awesome! I received faster than expected!
Pros: Discrete and cleaner for environment! Delivery was very fast and the cost was awesome!!
Cons: I don't have many......only one! I don't like to see smoke coming out of the top....I expected faster extinguishing of the cigarette! But I understand and it's ok...
One more thing
Your review: I forgot to mention in my review that we did find it helpful to put some weight in the butt container to keep the thing from blowing around or tipping over during those stormy days. An old brick did the trick and it still has a ton of space for butts.
Does the Job!
Your review: Can't beat the price. No sense in spending $100 or more when for under $40 this thing satisfies the smokers, looks good and holds a ton of butts. Used to have one of those expensive ones with an internal metal sleeve that was nothing but a pain to empty out. You would have to bang the thing on the ground to loosen up the butts. It eventually fell apart. This one couldn't be easier to empty!!
Does it come in any other color?
Question Asked By: A , May 29, 2015
Since the reviews I read mentioned the unit being light weight and will tilt over; do you recommend putting sand in the bottom for weight to keep from tilting over or do you recommend putting a brick or weight in the bottom? If sand is considered to be used (how much is needed)? I read one of the reviews where one customer added a weight then put a galvinized bucket in the container. Also how much is shipping/handling? If I order and am satisfied with the quality, I probably will order more.
Question Asked By: Donna , Brewton, Alabama , May 21, 2012
How much does this ashtray weigh?
Question Asked By: cathy , June 03, 2011
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The team
Huw Williams is a 42 year old British agriculturalist, traditional signwriter, amateur entomologist, expedition caver, human rights and environmental activist and former shepherd. He has had a lifelong passion for the natural world and spends much of his spare time photographing and documenting the world around him. He has travelled extensively in Africa, and recently cycled solo from the Indian to the Atlantic ocean (Tanzania to Namibia).
Rebecca Sumner (Bex) is a 35 year old writer/blogger/web editor. She has written for the Saturday Telegraph, blogged for Greenpeace UK and won awards for travel journalism and multimedia work. She has travelled extensively by bicycle, including cycling from London to Cape Town in 2001/02, and has worked on conservation and agriculture projects around the world.


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Jenna Fischer Gladiator Heels
Jenna Fischer finished off her look with sleek gold gladiator heels.
Jenna Fischer Cocktail Dress
Jenna Fischer went for simple elegance in a champagne-hued A-line dress by Rubin Singer at the Los Angeles Brady Bear Awards Gala.
Brand: Rubin Singer
Brand: Rubin Singer
Jenna Fischer Buckled Clutch
Jenna Fischer accessorized with an ultra-chic gold clutch with buckle detailing.
Browse: Jenna Fischer | Gladiator Heels | Cocktail Dress | Buckled Clutch
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Now that you've taken the big step toward the American dream of becoming a homeowner, you need to know what tax deductions for homeowners are out there. The good news is there are plenty of home related expenses you can deduct, whether you live in a single-family, town house, condo or mobile home. The bad news is, if you want to take complete advantage of your homes deductions, it can get more completed and you may need the help of a professional.
However, many homeowners believe the effort that goes into itemizing is worth the time. So, if you believe that itemizing is right for your tax situation, we have some homeowner tips for what you can deduct, things you can't and how to get the most from your taxes.
Mortgage Interest
Mortgage interest will be your largest tax break. For most homeowners, the bulk of your monthly mortgage payment goes toward interest. So, it's all deductible, unless your loan is more than $1million. Loans over $1million are limited on tax deductions.
If you refinanced your home or got an equity line of credit for less than $100,000, it is fully deductible. And, if you own multiple properties, your mortgage interest is also fully deductible.
Mortgage Points
If you paid points to get a better rate on your home loan, you will qualify for a tax break. You can deduct the points you paid in the year you paid them if your loan was to maintain a home or build a home. Furthermore, if you paid points to refinance your home loan, you are eligible for a tax break. This will also apply to home equity lines of credit.
Other Big Deductions
Property taxes are another big deduction you can use. In many cases, your property taxes are paid to an escrow account and paid out annually. You should see this amount in your yearly tax statement from your mortgage company. So, as long as you own your home, you can use these taxes as an annual deduction.
If you are still thinking about becoming a homeowner and like the deductions you see here, contact Tom & Bev Herring. Your dream home is only a call away.


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Forking Around With...Lalo Alcaraz
Courtesy of Lalo Alcaraz
Lalo Alcaraz, the mad genius behind the La Cucaracha comic strip, the genius Obama-as-Zapata political cartoon, and too many other to mention, will grace this fair county this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Fullerton Public Library...wait, that's the exact intro to this post. We care about food 'round here, preferably spiked with politics, and Alcaraz has always been a genius at mixing the two. The strip above is but one example; Alcaraz's strips have also dealt with luxe-loncheras, taco empires, and far too much other funniness to mention--just go and find out.
I've hosted Alcaraz at least five times in the past decade, and you'll never guess his favorite meal in la naranja.
Yes, that most-mainstream of bánh mì outposts. The tradition started in 2003, when I took him to the Garden Grove outpost on 17th Street and Westminster Avenue--it was after 10 p.m., he didn't want tacos, and Lee's was the only place open. The following year, I actually had his event catered by Lee's, so obsessed was he with the sandwich. One of these days, I'll take him to Bánh Mì Cho Cu.
Another OC fave of Lalo's?
Taquería Tapatía
This happened last year, after a signing at Calacas in SanTana. This time, Alcaraz wanted some Mexican food and since Taquería de Anda is barely edible these days, I took him to my favorite SanTana taquería. It's tough to impress a Chicano All-Star with Mexican food, given they come from Los Angeles, but Lalo did enjoy his al pastor burrito.
Since we'll be in Fullerton this time, I'm thinking of taking Lalo to El Fortín because it closes a bit late, with a repast at Steamer's for some coffee to beat the chill of the night. Or I should take him to George's for a great breakfast burrito, or at least their chili cheese fries. One place I won't take him to, though? The Fullerton location of Lee's. I REALLY need to take him to Bánh Mì Cho Cu...in the meanwhile, go tomorrow and buy some great Lalo Alcaraz food-related prints!
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Seven Great Days at Sea!: Celebrity Solstice Cruise Review by cruiserjack1
Overall Member Rating
Seven Great Days at Sea!
Destination: Western Caribbean
Embarkation: Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades)
EMBARCATION-- The lines moved, the staff was courteous, and I was on board in matter of minutes. Since I arrived around 1:30 PM, I was able to drop my carry-on in my cabin and head up for a buffet lunch. Flawless!
SHIP OVERALL-- I had sailed on the Solstice before, and have also sailed on the Eclipse. This is a beautiful class of ships, with gracious public spaces, thoughtful artwork, and nice cabins. She is maintained perfectly, and I noticed that spaces were constantly being cleaned.
CABIN-- I had an oceanview cabin on Deck Three. The bedding is very nice, and the storage quite adequate. I appreciated the variety of music available through the TV. While I never watched a film, there are plenty of them available for free. My cabin steward was attentive. I never heard a sound from either adjacent cabin. I had room service breakfast every More morning, and it came promptly as ordered.
DINING-- I singed up for "anytime" dining, and requested to be put at a six-top or eight-top. I generally got to the dining room close to 7 PM. The two couples with whom I dined the first night invited me to join them again two other nights. Service was excellent, and the food was delicious every night. I'm not always keen on cruise ship lobster, but it was very tasty on this cruise. I didn't use any specialty restaurants. The Oceanview Cafe offers quite a variety of foods for the buffet options. Don't miss the brunch in the main dining room on the last sea day-- spectacular!
ENTERTAINMENT-- I love the evening shows, and they were terrific on this cruise. The troupe offers three big shows during a 7-day cruise. One is like a Cirque du Soleil show, another has a Broadway theme and the last is "Pulse", focused on various dance styles. Considering we had some active oceans this week, the dancers did an amazing job staying on their feet! The comedian/juggler was hilarious and talented. Lindsey Hamilton, of London's West End, offered a lovely performance one night. Even our captain got in the act, playing the guitar and singing a couple of times. There were a variety of music soloists or groups playing throughout the ship, day and night.
FITNESS/SPA-- I used the gym every day, and was satisfied with the equipment. I didn't sign up for any fitness class, nor did I have a spa treatment. I used the Persian Garden once; it was OK.
PORTS-- I booked this itinerary for the scuba diving. I've been quite happy with Celebrity's dive excursions, as they are reasonably priced and the sites are incredible. I had done a day of diving in FLL before the cruise, and went diving in Grand Cayman, Cozumel and Roatan. If I didn't dive, I think that the ports would be less appealing. As others have noted, the town on Roatan where the ship docks is not at all attractive for wandering. In Costa Maya, I took a cab to the beach, got a lounge chair, rented a jet ski for a half hour ($30), chatted with other passengers, got a 45 minute beach massage ($20) and hopped back to the ship by cab. A very relaxing day.
SUMMARY-- I wish I were still on the Solstice! Less
Published 03/22/12
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Report NEP-PBE-2004-03-22This is the archive for NEP-PBE, a report on new working papers in the area of Public Economics. Thomas Andrén issued this report. It is usually issued weekly.
Subscribe to this report: email, RSS or Twitter.
Other reports in NEP-PBE
The following items were announced in this report:
- Chojnicki, Xavier & Docquier, Frédéric, 2004. "Fiscal Policy and Educational Attainment in the United States – A Generational Accounting Perspective," IZA Discussion Papers 1040, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
- Aronsson, Thomas & Jonsson, Thomas & Sjögren, Tomas, 2004. "Environmental Policy Reforms and the Labor Market in a Global Economy," Umeå Economic Studies 629, Umeå University, Department of Economics.
- Borck, Rainald & Pflüger, Michael P., 2004. "Agglomeration and Tax Competition," IZA Discussion Papers 1033, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
- Marcus Berliant & John Ledyard, 2004. "Optimal Dynamic Nonlinear Income Taxes with No Commitment," Public Economics 0403004, EconWPA, revised 21 Jun 2005.
- Schneider, Friedrich & Klinglmair, Robert, 2004. "Shadow Economies around the World: What Do We Know?," IZA Discussion Papers 1043, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
- Paolo Savona & Carlo Viviani, 2004. "The Impact of the Stability and Growth Pact on Real Economic," Public Economics 0403003, EconWPA.
- Werner Gueth & Rupert Sausgruber, 2004. "Tax Morale and Optimal Taxation," Papers on Strategic Interaction 2004-12, Max Planck Institute of Economics, Strategic Interaction Group.


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Amelie Michel Artrisans en Provence France Fine Tablecloths and Accessories
Amelie Michel carries the crème de la crème of linnens from Provence. Very well made and beautifully designed, the linnens bring elegance to any table (no kitschy South of France style here). Since they are reversible and stain-resistant, they are suited to daily use as well as more formal occasions. Amelie Michel's herbs and spices are excellent as well.
Scandinavian textile design rocks - simple shapes, clear gentile colors, retro look!Tags: retro, pillows, tablecloths, bed covers, linnen, hme decor, courtains, SweedenAdded 9 Years Ago from Spirainredning