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This transcript originally appeared on Seeking Alpha.
Title: Alliant Energy Corporation's CEO Discusses Q1 2014 Results - Earnings Call Transcript
Symbol: LNT
Call Start: 10:00
Call End: 10:33
Alliant Energy Corporation. (LNT)
Q1 2014 Earnings Call
May 2, 2014 10:00 AM ET
Susan Gille - Manager, IR
Pat Kampling - Chairman, President and CEO
Tom Hanson - SVP and CFO
Robert Durian - Controller and Chief Accounting Officer
Andrew Weisel - Macquarie Capital
Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc
Steve Fleishman - Wolfe Research
Andrew Levi - Avon Capital Advisors
Welcome to the Alliant Energy's First Quarter 2014 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions). Today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to turn the call over to your host, Susan Gille, Manager of Investor Relations at Alliant Energy.
Susan Gille
Good morning. I would like to thank all of you on the call and on the webcast for joining us today. We appreciate your participation.
With me here today are Pat Kampling, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer; Tom Hanson, Senior Vice President and CFO; and Robert Durian, Controller and Chief Accounting Officer, as well as other members of the senior management team. Following prepared remarks by Pat and Tom, we will have time to take questions from the investment community.
We issued a news release this morning announcing Alliant Energy's first quarter 2014 earnings and reaffirming 2014 earnings guidance. This release, as well as supplemental slides that will be referenced during today's call, are available on the Investor page of our website at www.alliantenergy.com.
Before we begin, I need to remind you that the remarks we make on this call and our answers to your questions include forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks that could cause actual results to be materially different. Those risks include, among others, matters discussed in Alliant Energy's press release issued yesterday and in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We disclaim any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
In addition, this presentation contains non-GAAP financial measures. The reconciliation between the non-GAAP and GAAP measures are provided in the supplemental slides which are available on our website at www.alliantenergy.com.
At this point, I'll turn the call over to Pat.
Pat Kampling
Good morning and thank you for joining us today. The first quarter certainly goes down as one of the most memorable for those of us within, in the middle of the Polar Vortex. I must thank our men and women, who tucked it out and go to work each and every day and never lost focus on providing exceptional customer service.
I'm pleased to report that our first quarter earnings that we are discussing today are the highest in company history. Driven mostly by the reduction nuclear capacity payments and realizing increased electricity and gas sales from both economic growth in our service territory and the weather.
Tom will provide more details on the financials, but in summary those three items alone increased earnings by $0.31 per share over the first quarter of last year. However, we do recognize that this winter was typical for some of our customers. Especially in dealing the entire utility bill.
Earlier this year, we contributed $3 million to the Hometown Care Energy Fund to help our income eligible customers with their utility bills. We have also expanded our customer outreach efforts and are working with customers to help them other funds of the systems and payment plan options.
On a positive note, we are trying to continue to improve in our service territory, unemployment rates are below the national average, with Iowa's rate now at 4.5% and Wisconsin's at 5.9% five year both for the State.
Some of the trends we are experiencing include our modest increase of number of retail, electric and gas customers. Continued expansion by our industrial customers and a slight increase in the used per customers. This is certainly encouraging and we will continue to monitor sales and determine if the weather normalized sales growth experienced in the last quarter of 2013 and the first quarter of this year represent a sustainable growth trend.
We have incorporated our first quarter weather normalized sales growth and chartered by 2014 sales forecast. We are now forecasting 1.7% in retail weather normalized, electric sales for challenging your 2014 over 2013.
Now let me update you on our regulatory activities. We have made the regulatory filings proposing retail electric base rate freezes, through the end of 2016 in both Wisconsin, Iowa and have proposed low rate gas base rate in Wisconsin for 2015.
For WPL electric customers, we've proposed that retail electric base rate, which was set in 2011 we may have their current levels through the end of 2016. We also requested that retail national gas customer base rate will reduce by $5 million in 2015 followed by a freeze on those rates through 2016.
We are pleased that we are able to offer set of deductibles with a input from the Citizens Utility Board, Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group and PSCW staff. The WPL's approval includes return off and on the significant investments made in our Michigan folks office, at Columbia and Edge Water as well as in industrial and electric and natural gas system.
To recovery of these investments, is to be offset with changes in the amortization of the Energy Efficiency Regulatory Liability. We expect to have $64 million in the Electric and Gas Energy Efficiency Liability at the end of 2014 and we're hoping $17 million of it for 2015 and $32 million of it for 2016.
We've also proposed the continuation of the 10.4% ROE, a common equity ratio of slightly above 50% and the ROE sharing mechanism established in the last rate case. The Commission has requested comments on the proposal by no later than Tuesday, May 20. We anticipate the PSCW will make a decision regarding our request in the second quarter of this year.
The two monitoring level will be addressed outside of this proposal and mostly changed to be set annually. We expect to make a few only filing for 2015 in the next 90 days. In March, we're announcing unanimous retail, electric base rate settlements between IPO. The Office of Consumer Advocate, Iowa Consumer Coalition, and the Large Industrial Group to freeze retail electric base rates for Iowa customers through 2016.
This settlements includes customer billing credits of $70 million for 2014, then $25 million for 2015 and a final credit of $10 million for 2016. We have agreements from all the parties in the IUB and again to credit customer bills as of yesterday.
The credits are subject to a true up based on the IUB's final decision. We anticipate a decision on this proposed settlement on the second quarter of this year. If this settlement is approved, it will extend the retail electric base rate set in 2011, through the first quarter of 2017.
The settlement allows for continuation of the Energy Adjustment Clause, the Transmission Rider and the Electric Tax Benefit Rider through 2016. The settlement are based, are maintained in the current authorize your term equity in common equity ratio and earning a return off and on the 2014, year in Iowa Retail base rates of approximately $3.1 billion.
Rate base additions include investments in the emissions patrols, performance improvements at a Ottumwa, George Neal, Burlington and Prairie Creek as well as investments made in our distribution systems.
Pending IUB's approval of this settlement is arguably but the next retail base rate case will be filed in the first half of 2017. The 2017 case will be a request to recover the cost associated with the Marshalltown Generating Station, which we anticipate with a place and service in the second quarter of 2017.
Let me provide a quick update on our Marshalltown Generating Station. We've recently received the air permit and have filed all the permits with the IUB and our request for the Issuance of a Generating Certificate, which we anticipate by the end of May.
The community is very excited about this project and we currently expect to be in construction in July. As a reminder, the IUB approved a return on common equity of 11% to the 35-year depreciable life of the facility and a use of 10.3% on common equities for the calculation of AFUDC.
In order to establish $920 million cost cap, including AFUDC and transmission upgrade cost. Recently that the cost cap is sufficient to complete the project including the transmission upgrade that we anticipate ITC will self-fund. We expect that ITC will build IPL directly for the relevant climate, related to the Marshalltown transmission upgrade, once the line is in service and expecting the cost to go through the transmission rider.
Now let me quickly brief you on a current emission control construction activities. This is year that the majority of our emission and coal projects will be completed. In Wisconsin, construction of the baghouse and scrubbers at Columbia units 1 and 2 is 98% complete on time and below the original budget.
Units 2 equipment was placed in service last month and preliminary test results indicate that performance guarantee are being and achieved. We anticipated in service 6 for Columbia unit 1 is in July.
Also construction has already started on scrubber and baghouse with an expected completion in 2016. The installation of baghouse and scrubber for our Ottumwa facility is on budget and anticipated to be placed in service in November 2014.
In addition, MidAmerican is installing baghouses and scrubbers at Neal units 3 and 4. The Neal 4 project was placed in service at the end of 2013 and the Neal 3 project is expected to be placed in service, this month.
In addition to the progress we are making on transforming our Tier 1 units. We are also making progress on preparing our Tier 2 units to be compliant with the utility mercury and air toxic standards by the April 2015 deadline.
We are currently installing low-cost controls at our Prairie Creek and Burlington generating stations and are converting the ML Kapp generating station from coal to gas. Through year end 2013, we spent $20 million on these facilities and our 2014 to 2017 capital expenditure plan includes additional investments of approximately $35 million.
We believe, we are well positioned to ensure a balance, flexible and environmental environmentally generating fleet that will serve our customers well into the future. Late last year, we noted planned capital expenditure, starting 2016 for additional generation of WP&L. our current forecast indicates, a need for capacity and energy in 2019 during by the plan retirement of three coal units and by sales growth.
As part of our long-term planning resource efforts, WPL is investing a feasibility study of resource options. We plan to issue a request for proposal in the second quarter of this year to determine what available options exist in the region. Following analysis of the ARP results, we anticipate making the regulatory filing with the PSCW in late 2014.


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We have updated our Privacy Policy and encourage you to read it by clicking here.
Probably one of the hardest things for a network admin, especially an SMB network, is tracking inventory and managing a help desk. Manpower is usually very limited. At the Hospice I support, there are two of us to manage 2 sites, 14 servers, 100+ computers, etc..
We ran into Spiceworks late last year. Haven't had a chance to really evaluate it, but it sure looks worthwhile and IT'S FREE!!
"Manage Everything IT…for Free! Spiceworks is the complete network management software, helpdesk, network configuration & IT reporting solution designed to manage everything IT in small & medium businesses."
I ran into this article on IT News by Ann Bednarz. She quotes a LOT of quotes from folks who use it. If I wasn't already sold, this sure did it for me. Check it out.

subset: commoncrawl


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Today we invite everybody to test the Secunia Corporate Software Inspector (CSI) integrated with Microsoft WSUS for 3rd party Patch Management.
During the past month of private beta testing by hundreds of users we've received a lot of fantastic feedback which has helped us eliminating bugs, and improving features and usability as well as documentation.
All feedback is most welcomed and highly appreciated, please use our forum to post feedback and get support.
We would appreciate feedback both on the software inspection, results, reporting, Microsoft WSUS integration, repackaging, setup and implementation, usability, and so on.
I'm looking forward to reading your feedback.
Patch and Stay Secure,
IT Development Manager


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This is an argument to stop the practice altogether, by the way, not an assertion that you as an individual should just stop tipping. Don't do that. No one is living closer to the edge of insanity than someone who has waited tables for years, and no one wants to be killed by a normally perky girl named Brenda outside a Ruby Tuesday's. Overall though, it's high time the custom of tipping was reevaluated.
5 Lawsuits
4 It's Already Happening
3 It's Unfair
2 It's Discriminatory
1 Too Much in the Hands of the People
Trying to get better service? Have a look at the Best Ways to Get Faster Service before your next dining experience.
If you're not nice to your servers, though, you leave yourself open to the startling things these Fast Food Employees do. Gross!


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Craft Active Bike Socks - Mens - Road Bike Shop
Road Bike Shop
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|Craft Active Comfort RN Base Layer - Long Sleeve - Men's
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|Craft Active Comfort RN Base Layer - Short-Sleeve - Men's
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|Craft Active Comfort RN Base Layer - Women's
Some would say cycling is at its best on sunny, crisp mornings when you can just see your breath in the air, when your regular routes turn into rides through tunnels of red and gold leaves. We have to assume that Swedish-born Craft agrees with us -- after all, the brand became famous for its base...
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|Craft Active Extreme 2.0 Brilliant Crewneck Reflective Baselayer - Men's
We love kit that serves multiple purposes, especially in the winter when it's easy to get bogged down under overlapping pieces. Craft once again demonstrates its expertise in crafting baselayers for high-intensity workouts in the cold with the Men's Active Extreme 2. 0 Brilliant Crewneck...
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On September 14th, 2017, we published revised versions of our Privacy Policy, Terms of Service and Website Use Policy and published a Cookie Policy. Your continued use of Lynda.com means you agree to these revised documents, so please take a few minutes to read and understand them.
Colleen Wheeler |
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
In this week's free Deke's Techniques video, Deke McClelland shows you how to create a Spirograph-style pattern from a single, continuous path in Adobe Illustrator. Yes, it's true, two weeks ago, Deke showed you a similar technique, but the fact is, although that project was legitimately a Spirograph-esque design, it was not a legitimate unbrokenhypotrochoid. Those of you who may remember using a Spirograph know that the magic of it involved creating the design without ever lifting your pen from the paper. And Deke has discovered two ways to achieve that continuous line effect with Illustrator, which he demonstrates in this week's episode:
The first step involves squishing a standard circle shape into this unassuming ellipse:
That ellipse is then duplicated 11 times using the Rotate tool to make copies, and each copy is turned 30 degrees from the previous copy's opposite anchor point. Once the entire rotation is complete (and this is admittedly tedious), you can delete all the center anchor points and join the remaining half-ellipses to make a single path. After converting all the outer points to smooth points, you're left with this regulation hypotrochoid:
The second approach Deke demonstrates in the video also starts with an ellipse. But in this case, rather than duplicating whole ellipses and then efficiently cutting half of them away, Deke creates an open shape (like a lowercase cursive letter l) by cutting the shape open with the Scissors tool, then slightly rotating half of it:
Once you have this open shape, it can be duplicated and rotated using Transform Effect:
With either approach, there are a few fine tuning tweaks needed to perfect the shape, which Deke demonstrates in the video. In the end, you can combine the two shapes and apply the Multiply blend mode to mix the ink colors for a nostalgic, single-path Spirograph-like piece of artwork.
For members of lynda.com, Deke also has a third approach for this kind of effect called Scaling circles into complex patterns, where he shows you how to use the Scale tool to make very intricate, lace-like designs.
Deke will be back next week with another free technique!
Interested in more?
• The entire Deke's Techniques weekly series on lynda.com• All Illustrator courses on lynda.com
• All courses by Deke McClelland on lynda.com
Suggested courses to watch next:• Illustrator CS6 One-on-One: Fundamentals• Illustrator CS5 One-on-One: Fundamentals• Illustrator Insider Training: Drawing without the Pen Tool
Tags: Deke's Techniques
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Better law-making agreement adopted by the Council
Päivikki Ala-Honkola
Press officer
+32 22818648
+32 479955086
The Council, the European Parliament and the Commission will cooperate more closely to ensure a better delivery to European citizens and businesses. That is the main purpose of a better law-making agreement adopted by the Council on 15 March 2016.
"This agreement is not just about how the EU institutions operate, it will actually deliver very real benefits for citizens and companies. Laws will become simpler to understand and implement. That will make the life of citizens, businesses and the administration easier", said Bert Koenders, the Foreign Minister of the Netherlands and President of the Council.
The agreement improves the way the EU legislates in a number of ways:
- Each year, the Council, the Parliament and the Commission will discuss the EU's legislative priorities and agree common top priorities for the upcoming year. This will allow the three institutions to work more closely together to tackle the big challenges which lie ahead
- Impact assessments of new initiatives will become more comprehensive by taking account a wider range of aspects, including the impact on competitiveness, in particular for SMEs, administrative burden and the cost of not taking action at EU level. This will be done in full respect of the principle of subsidiarity. The aim is to ensure that EU laws are always based on well-informed decisions
- The three institutions will evaluate existing EU laws with a view to simplifying them and avoid overregulation and administrative burdens, including through an annual burden survey. This is to make sure that EU laws are fit for purpose and do not put an unnecessary burden on citizens, companies and public administrations
- A joint database on the progress of legislative files will be set up. This will enhance the transparency of the work of the three institutions and make it possible to the public to follow more easily the legislative procedure
Next steps
The agreement now needs to be signed by the Presidents of the three institutions. It will enter into effect the same day.


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Cracks in the Wall
The Co-op was excited to welcome back Nutty Steph's founder Jaquelyn Rieke for a talk on relationships in business. The event was held in the seating area downstairs and the casual atmosphere allowed for a fluid discussion of each attendee's experiences in the business world. Jaquelyn shared her own experiences as a business owner and the obstacles she faces turning her business into a worker cooperative, while also sharing tasty samples of her chocolate. Check our calendar for upcoming events!
Robert Rockwood of Replenish Plus
Last Wednesday Robert Rockwood, of Replenish Plus skin care, stopped by the Co-op to give an informative talk on commercial beauty products. He shared his experiences with the processing side of the skin care industry, most especially the lack of regulations in the industry and how companies are able to skirt around the few regulations that do exist, easily including hundreds of toxic ingredients in every bottle and jar.
He explained why lipsticks are allowed to get away with 65 times the amount of lead that is legal for paint, and why sunscreen actually increases your chance of getting skin cancer. I'm sure you're dying to know the logic behind that, so I'll tell you. In order to be effective at all you would have to apply half a bottle of sunscreen every half an hour. Otherwise the heat from the sun breaks down the chemicals in the lotion turning them into free radicals, you know, the things that cause cancer. When you apply just a thin layer, the UV rays aren't being blocked, plus the chemicals turn into free radicals more quickly!
If you're bummed you missed the talk and you'd like to be notified the next time we offer a similar one just leave a comment at the bottom. Robert is also working on a book about all the dirty secrets of the skin care industry, so keep an eye out for that!
SuperWorker Appreciation Day!
Our SuperWorker Appreciation Day was a success! Thank you to everyone who came, and especially to the staff and SuperWorkers who brought food for nibbling on. The Co-op lives on the shoulders of the community; staff, SuperWorkers, and patrons alike. Thank you to everyone who contributes to holding up the Co-op, you are truly appreciated.


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KitchenAid Can Opener - Red
The KitchenAid Can Opener is a stylish and useful item worthy of being inside your kitchen. You can grab other KitchenAid items to create a full collection.
This can opener is great for stubborn tin cans. It's made from both plastic and stainless steel so you can bet it's sturdy. It also comes with a good grip so it won't slip from your hand.
Materials Used: Stainless Steel, Plastic
Size: 22 cm
Product information
- 624
- Kitchen utensils
- 5413184125158
Delivery and returns
This item is sold and dispatched directly by Red Candy.
|Delivery cost
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This holiday season we received a very special gift and are now the proud foster parents of Murera, an orphaned elephant who now lives happily at The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya. Here is the story of little Murera, from how she was found, to her rescue and final adoption by On The Go.
In February 2012 a two-and-a-half year old elephant was discovered injured and alone in Meru National Park in Kenya. Weak and frightened, this young orphaned calf was rescued and transported to The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT) in Kenya, where she would begin her recovery.
Here she was given the name Murera.
The morning following her arrival at the DSWT Murera collapsed from exhaustion and was put on life-support. Finally the keepers were able to properly tend her wounds. It was now clear that Murera had become injured after stepping on poisoned spikes placed underneath the soil of an elephant trail – a cruel, yet common, tactic used by poachers. Three deep puncture wounds were disinfected and packed with green clay on one hind leg, while the extensive internal tissue damage due to a fall were deemed healable with plenty of rest.
In her rescue story it is said that the other nursery residents would crowd around her stable giving her love and encouragement to recover. One particular inmate, Orwa, developed such a strong bond with Murera that he had to be moved to the stable next door as Murera would become distressed when he left for the evening. After two weeks of healing Murera was finally allowed to join an orphan herd, where she continued to show signs of improvement every day.
It is thought Murera was orphaned when her mother was killed for her ivory as poaching continues to be rife in Africa. The majority of the young elephant orphans in the care of the DSWT are victims of poaching, many losing their families to the ivory trade. The DSWT ensure they are on hand around the clock to rescue orphaned and injured wildlife who have fallen victim to the ivory trade or human-wildlife conflict issues. Through their campaign website www.iworry.org. the DSWT are raising global awareness of poaching and calling for a complete ban on the trade in ivory.
As brand new foster parents we will continue to hear about Murera, her development and growth at the DSWT and her hopeful final release back into the wild.
Find out more about the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and their work visit their website here.


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Dani in Toronto
Member since 8/7/2012
- 1 total post
- 1 review
Reviews & Stories
Microdermabrasion - Great Results! - Toronto, ON
I am in my 30's and had a dull complexion with a little bit of sun damage. Dr. Gidon advised a series of microdermabrasion treatments and I am so pleased with the way my skin looks now. She recommended a sunscreen for me to use every morning and Retin A cream. I plan on having a microdermabrasion treatment every 6 weeks or so to keep up my results. READ MORE


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Men's Hoops Opens Conference Play at Home against CBI Champion Tulsa
Tip-off set for 7 p.m. at Reed Green Coliseum.
Jan. 6, 2009
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - After closing its non-conference schedule with a 9-4 record, Southern Miss opens its conference slate, Wednesday, January 7, when it hosts defending CBI Champion Tulsa at 7 p.m. at Reed Green Coliseum.
Wednesday night's game is "Family 4 Pack" night at Reed Green Coliseum, which consists of the purchase of four tickets, four hot dogs and four drinks, all for only $40.
Southern Miss enters its Conference USA opener with a 9-4 record. The Golden Eagles are looking for their sixth straight win after defeating in-state rival Ole Miss, 78-59.
Southern Miss and Tulsa will meet for the fourth straight year and the seventh time overall. Through six meetings, the series is tied 3-3. This is only the second time that the teams will meet in Hattiesburg. Southern Miss won the only other meeting in 2007. Last year, the Golden Hurricane defeated Southern Miss, 78-63, in Tulsa.
The Golden Eagles are 8-5 in Conference USA openers. This is the second straight year that they will open C-USA play at home. They are 9-4 in conference home openers.
Against Ole Miss, Southern Miss had five players in double-figures led by double-double efforts from Courtney Beasley (19 points, 10 rebounds) and Craig Craft (13 points, 13 rebounds). The Golden Eagles also got 17 points from Jeremy Wise, 14 from R.L. Horton, and 12 from Andre Stephens.
Jeremy Wise is sixth in the conference with 18.4 points per game, while also bringing down 4.0 rebounds. Beasley is averaging 13.2 points and grabbing a team-high 6.5 rebounds, while R.L. Horton is adding 12.1 points.
The Golden Eagles are averaging 68.3 points per game, while allowing 59.8. Southern Miss is hitting 74.0-percent of their free throws, which is first in Conference USA, and grabbing 37.8 rebounds.
Tulsa enters tonight's Conference USA opener with a 9-5 record after defeating Northeastern Oklahoma State, 67-44, Saturday afternoon.
Junior guard Ben Uzoh leads Tulsa with 15.6 points while dishing out 3.6 assists. Junior center Jerome Jordan averages 11.9 points and leads the team with 8.9 rebounds. Senior forward Ray Reese contributes 9.4 points and 4.0 boards.
As a team, the Golden Hurricane is shooting 45.0-percent while holding its opponents to just 39.9-percent. The Rebels are scoring 66.6 points per game while allowing just 59.6.
Head Coach Doug Wojcik is in his fourth season at the helm of the Tulsa men's basketball program. He has compiled a 65-46 (.586) record during his tenure as head coach.
The Golden Eagles will then have a week off before going on the road to play Tulane, Wednesday, January 14 in New Orleans.


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Author | Asit Ranjan Mishra | Saturday, Sep 09,2006 8:36 AM
The Government has decided to bring both television and films under a unified content code when the Committee, which is now in the process of creating a content code for the broadcast industry, submits its report, I&B Secretary S K Arora said at the Assocham Conference on the Broadcast Bill.
"The sub-committee has submitted its report on the content code and now the Committee is in the process of detailing. The principles and rules will be the same for both television and film industries. However, as it is impossible logistically to preview all the programmes of 250 channels running 24 hours a day, television channels will have to do self-regulation. If self-regulation fails, we are considering whether to follow an ASCI model or a Chartered Accountants' model."
When asked whether the Government was considering doing away with the Censor Board with the new unified Content Code in place, Arora answered in the negative.
The Government has formulated a Committee for content code consisting of representatives of civil society, the media industry and government bodies.
Later in the day, the Committee for the Content Code met at the Ministry. It was proposed that ASCI, IBF and cable operators would create Consumer Complaint Cells (CCCs) to hear advertising, broadcasting and consumer related complaints, respectively.
Giving a patient hearing to the panelists on the Broadcast Bill, Arora observed that all their views could be easily accommodated in the present Draft Bill. "There is not a single point which is intractable," he said, adding, "The Draft Bill will undergo several refinements. The Government is entirely open to suggestions for fresh ideas. After receiving all comments and finalising the draft, we will consult all other concerned Ministries. At present, we are in the middle of the Innings."
Confessing that the present Draft addressed the issues involving the broadcast industry in the traditional sense of the term and did not preempt the convergence issues, Arora sought suggestions whether convergence issues should be addressed in the present Bill.
Arora reiterated that the Government had no intention to intrude into the freedom of press. "It is the Government's resolve not to trample with the freedom of the press. Whatever restrictions are proposed will be under Article 19(2) of the Constitution."
Clearing the confusion in some quarters that in case of criminal jurisprudence the management of the broadcaster will be taken over by the Government, Arora stressed, "No such provision is there in the proposed Bill. Criminal prosecution will happen only in case of completely unlicensed broadcast, if the channel is not registered, or in case of a national emergency situation."


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Size Matters
Lenicia B. Weemes Elementary School sits tucked away on a densely populated block of apartment complexes a short walk from the USC campus. As inner-city public schools go, Weemes is not a bad place to be: It boasts better test scores than other local schools with similar demographics, an energetic principal and a host of enthusiastic teachers. But in many of the classrooms here, as at many Los Angeles schools, enthusiasm -- and whatever skills they can pick up in a hurry -- is just about all the teachers have. Nearly a third have no state credentials and little formal training or experience. They, and the children they teach, are part of an enormous social experiment thats been quietly taking place over the last three years, since the statewide reduction of class size in some grades exacerbated an already urgent need for qualified teachers, particularly in low-income areas. Whether its results will be as damaging as some critics fear wont be evident for years, but the winners, no one should be surprised, will almost certainly be affluent, white suburbanites, and the losers the black and brown children who fill the classrooms at high-poverty schools like Weemes.
In a first-grade classroom, its walls covered with posted classroom rules and the letters of the alphabet, Kim Kameoka leads her students in a writing lesson. Lets say it together: eagle, she says. Now write eagle. The kids dutifully labor over their es. Its mid-February, but Kameoka started working as a teacher just four weeks ago. Weemes principal Annette Kessler, standing in the back of the room, explains, One teacher left and then another teacher left, so shes got a real challenge here. The original teacher moved back East in October, and her replacement, like Kameoka new to the job and working on an emergency teaching permit, fell apart after a month. And this kid in the green, Kessler says, pointing to a child seated at a desk in a far corner of the room, chewing on the drawstrings of his sweatshirt, hes enough to drive you to drink.
Kameoka is among the 29 percent of the teachers at Weemes working on emergency permits, temporary teaching licenses issued to teachers who dont meet the states mandated requirements for the profession, which include a bachelors degree, graduate-level course work in pedagogy, a year of supervised student teaching and the passing of subject-matter exams. (All thats required for an emergency permit is to have a bachelors degree and to pass a basic literacy test.)
Another 10 percent are similarly unlicensed but are working toward their credentials in district or university-sponsored internship programs. Among them is Jody Feldman, who started at Weemes two weeks after Kameoka. Her second-grade class, Kessler explains, had been taught by a former T.A. who came in as an emergency, but he really wanted to be an actor. He resigned shortly before Feldman started. Now Feldman, who has never taught before, has to try to catch her kids up without any of the necessary materials. They dont know the clock, they dont know money, they can barely write their names, she explains. Were starting from scratch.
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The challenges faced by Kameoka and Feldman -- and, more important, by the children they teach -- are not unusual in Los Angeles, or in large urban districts in the rest of the state. Over a quarter of the teachers now working in the L.A. Unified School District (LAUSD) are not fully credentialed. Some have taught before in private schools or in other contexts, but most, like Kameoka and Feldman, are learning on the job, and more will be as the state is forced to hire more than a quarter of a million new teachers to meet an increasingly urgent demand over the next 10 years.
In growing districts with teacher-turnover rates as high as L.A.s, the need for qualified educators is nothing new, but it has exploded since 1996, when Pete Wilson signed a bill encouraging schools to shrink first-, second- and third-grade classes to no more than 20 students per teacher, a move which at $1.5 billion per year may be the largest state education reform in history. As a direct but unintended consequence, a major redistribution of educational resources took place: The most qualified teachers were pulled to the richest -- and whitest -- districts, and poor, urban, largely black and Latino districts like LAUSD were left to scrounge for whomever they could find. Today, less than half of the teachers at some schools in L.A.s poorest neighborhoods are fully credentialed.
How well new teachers educate the next generation of kids will depend largely on how much support and training they receive from the district. Thus far, optimism seems premature.
In 1996, California had the highest average class size in the nation. No one opposed changing that. Teachers were for it, parents were for it, and some limited aresearch suggested that smaller classes would particularly benefit poor and minority students. Early that year, the California Teachers Association (CTA) started a statewide television ad campaign pushing for class-size reduction. And in 1996 the number of uncredentialed teachers for the first time in years, the state ran a budget surplus, a large portion of which, in accordance with Proposition 98, had to be spent on education. Wilson, who still fancied the possibility of his name on a Republican presidential ticket, was looking for something big and flashy. The states per-pupil spending was among the lowest in the country, an embarrassment even to Wilson. But if the governor released funds to school districts to spend at their discretion, they might use them for purposes undesirable to a conservative executive, like raising teacher salaries. Randy Ross, vice president of the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project, puts it bluntly: The governor wanted to do his damnedest to keep those bucks out of the pockets of teachers. So, in the words of United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) president Day Higuchi, as a way for him to lock up money into a single program, Wilson said Lets give [CTA] what they want in a way they wont want it.
After a brief battle in which lobbyists for CTA and school districts pushed for increased flexibility in the program, class-size reduction was approved by the Legislature. The state would henceforth give schools $650 per student in each class from first to third grade with 20 students or less, plus a $25,000 grant to build new classrooms. (Those figures went up to $800 and $40,000 the following year.) The budget was passed in the summer of 1996, giving districts a mere six weeks to find the extra space and additional teachers. In a reasonable world, asserts Higuchi, you would have made sure there were enough qualified teachers to fill the classes. In this case Wilson just sent in the kids, often into nonexistent classrooms. LAUSD, which already had serious staffing and housing problems, was left scrambling to hire 2,000 new teachers and to find room for the extra classes.
Predictably, not all the freshly hired teachers were fully qualified. Statewide, for grades 1 to 3 the number of uncredentialed teachers jumped by a factor of 12 in just one year. But the crunch was not evenly felt. Because class-size reduction was implemented all over California, it opened up teaching positions everywhere, in affluent suburban districts as well as in the inner city. The result was, as one district official puts it, a raid on L.A.s qualified and credentialed teachers. More desirable districts had their pick of the states best-trained teachers, while larger and poorer districts struggled to find bodies to put in the front of each classroom. The wealthy foothill community of La Cañada now boasts only eight teachers on emergency permits in its entire school district, a small fraction of the number employed at Weemes Elementary alone.
The same dynamic functioned within large districts as well. A map showing the percentage of uncredentialed teachers in Los Angeles schools would work equally well as a map dividing the city by socioeconomic status, or by ethnicity. School Board Area 1, which includes Crenshaw and much of South-Central, contains 25 schools staffed by more than one-third emergency-credentialed teachers; Area 4, on the Westside, contains none.
At the same time, a recent report on the effects of class-size reduction prepared by the conservative think tank RAND and the more centrist American Institutes for Research found that, in low-income and high-minority districts, the extra funds from the state often failed to cover the costs of the shift, which instead were met by taking money from the schools general operating budget. Meanwhile, whiter and wealthier districts were more likely to find that the program left them with a surplus of cash. The surpluses . . . subsidized many of the same things that were being cut in less fortunate districts -- maintenance, libraries, computer labs, early literacy and staff-development programs, the report concluded.
If paring down class size is in principle hard to criticize, its real-world effects are equally hard to measure. The same study found that third-graders test scores have risen slightly since 1996, but cautioned, Yet unknown is whether the positive difference in student achievement will be sustained or will grow and whether it is even the [class-size reduction] program that was a cause of this gain.
Critics of Wilsons implementation of class-size reduction, including Higuchi and some district officials, insist that its effects were easily foreseeable. But foreseen or not, its lasting legacy has been a wide-scale shifting of educational resources, including but not limited to qualified teachers, from the impoverished districts that need them the most, to the white suburban middle and upper classes, who also happen to have been Wilsons natural constituency. Ross concludes: The class-size reduction program, whether by intent or not, has resulted in the proliferation of dysfunctionality in inner-city schools. The state ought to be held liable for whats happening in these schools.
If many are alarmed by this turn of affairs -- a somewhat hysterical report prepared by the Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning warns, If we dont [take extraordinary steps], the crisis in Californias schools eventually will claim far more victims than all of the past centurys natural disasters, and school-board member Julie Korenstein frets, It is a major crisis. A teacher who doesnt know how to take roll, much less keep discipline and teach reading, has to have an impact on the kids -- not everyone is convinced that a mass infusion of fresh blood into L.A. schools is necessarily a bad thing. While some principals say they would always hire credentialed teachers if they had the choice, others, like Kessler, consider less quantifiable characteristics, like enthusiasm and flexibility, to be more important. Lloyd Houske, principal of the highly reputed Cahuenga Elementary School in Koreatown, positively gushes over his new, inexperienced teachers. Some of them are wonderful, he says, recalling his delight with an inexperienced kindergarten teacher who taught her class to read, because she didnt know that they werent supposed to.
Interim Superintendent Ramon Cortines has gone on record in support of emergency-credentialed teachers, as has school-board member David Tokofsky. Both began their careers in education on emergency permits. Its a way to get very talented people in the schools, Tokofsky says. You just have to find incentives to keep them teaching, and train them in a way thats not intellectually degrading. There, of course, is the rub. For years, uncredentialed teachers were on their own. LAUSD took what Day Higuchi calls the cannon-fodder approach: Give people a basic literacy test and a box of chalk, and say, Go teach. All that was required of teachers on emergency permits was that they take six semester credits of university course work each year toward their credential. Most did so through the Cal State system, which many complained was overcrowded and bureaucratically complex. District support and guidance was negligible, and the process could drag on almost indefinitely. It took me five years, and I wanted to get a credential, says one seven-year-veteran English teacher at Marshall High School. You hit all these people -- in the district, at school, at Cal State -- who are doing anything but encouraging you to be a teacher.
The district has now taken steps to train and support its new teachers. Before they start teaching, all teachers on emergency permit must now take a 40-hour pre-service class. Since last July, all elementary teachers and secondary English and math teachers have been required to enroll in the districts Pre-Intern Teaching Program, which includes classes one evening a week and the assignment of an experienced mentor teacher to help out at the school site. Teachers stay in the program for a year or two until they can pass their subject-matter exams (the MSAT) and move into an internship program, which in turn usually lasts two years and is administered by either the district or a university.
Most new teachers interviewed for this story were grateful for the preparation they received in the 40-hour class, which for many is the only training they receive before setting foot in a classroom. Others were less enthusiastic and some were highly critical, but very few had many positive things to say about the pre-intern program, which they complained consisted of a lot of busywork, largely oriented toward preparing them for the MSAT and offering very little of what they craved most: practical information they could immediately apply on the job. As one teacher puts it, You want to know how to deal with the kid whos peeing in the classroom.
Teachers complaints about the pre-intern program -- which, in its first year, is very much a work in progress -- generally had their roots in the quality of instruction. The classes are taught by veteran LAUSD teachers, and their usefulness depends largely on the skills of the individual instructor. In this respect, the pre-intern program is caught in the same bind as the rest of the district: There are not enough good experienced teachers to teach L.A.s children, let alone its teachers. Lillian Utsumi, who administers the program for the district, admits that she has had trouble finding qualified instructors, and estimates that she hired about 90 percent of the teachers she interviewed. The same challenges plague the pre-internship programs mentoring component: We have some schools, Utsumi says, where no one is qualified to be a mentor, because no one has the experience.
The district internship program, which accepts new teachers who have already passed the MSAT, has gotten better reviews from teachers, though they too gripe that it is disorganized and the quality of the teaching is haphazard.
As a result, many new teachers say they still get their most valuable support informally from helpful colleagues or administrators, often by running to a neighboring classroom for a quick piece of advice. Exhausted by the effort of trying to meet their students needs while learning the profession, most admit to feeling terribly unprepared. Although new teachers often compare themselves favorably to their more experienced but sometimes more burned-out co-workers, theyre up-front about their own failings. As one first-grade teacher who was assigned to a class made up entirely of English-language learners without having received any training in teaching ESL says, Some days I feel like Im a disservice to my kids. This lack of preparedness worries even someone as open to the potentials of unqualified teachers as Weemes principal Kessler: Each teacher is taking a year of a kids life. Two years of bad teaching and a kid will never recover.
Proposed solutions abound, from Gray Davis home-mortgage incentives for teachers, to UTLAs and the CTAs insistence that teacher salaries get a significant hike, to a district-sponsored program that would begin training interested students to be teachers in high school, to many new teachers desire for far more intensive and structured mentoring. Whatever plans are ultimately adopted, though, will likely have little effect on the real problems behind the teacher-shortage crisis: the glaring social inequities that turned a possibly well-intentioned if politically motivated program -- class-size reduction -- into a vast and cruel experiment conducted on the states neediest children.
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These sessions are designed to assist parents and students with the filing of the FAFSA form. Parents and students will sit down at a computer with Office of Financial Aid personnel there to assist. Everyone will be guided through the steps to completion, and personnel will be available to answer any questions that may arise during the process.
Bring the following items with you to assist you during the FAFSA Completion Session:
• Social Security Card for student
• Student's 2015 Federal tax return and W-2 Forms
• Parents' 2015 Federal tax return and W-2 Forms (if dependent)
• Other records of money earned
• Untaxed income (such as child support, workers compensation, etc) (if applicable)
• Bank statements (current)
• Investment information (if applicable)
• If not a U.S. Citizen, alien registration card/permanent resident card
Anyone taking part must comply with the University's computing acceptable use policy.


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In a Fight Hub TV classic clip, Josh Barnett shares a little story about a trip he took two years ago to the land of the rising son. With out releasing names, Barnett recounts some crazyness happening at a karaoke bar he entered with some un-named fighters. As mentioned in the story, beers and booze were flowing as a more than likely stocked mini bar lead to some pretty hilarious moments.
Though we do not know of the details of what songs were sang, we are sure Barnett squeezed in a little bit of death metal for the hell of it. Other probable songs that could of potentially been sung could of one of the following:
Ninja Rap-Vanilla Ice
Bounce with me-Dj Ozma
Sugar Pie Honey Bunch- The Four Tops
It certainly would of been a site to behold as well as comedy gold. As for the fighter unnamed that mooned everyone in the bathroom, we gotta do a little research but we are probably way off. If according to calculations the Karaoke fest occurred two years ago, which could of coincided with two of the Sengoku events that Mr. Barnett participated in. Sengoku First Battle and Sengoku Second battle both occurred with in a few months of each other. Some notables on those two cards that we would be familiar with would be Nick Thompson, Evangelista Santos, Fujita, Takanomi Gomi, Jeff Monson and Kevin Randleman.
So yea, it could of been any one of those guys are someone who was cornering someone else at the time, so really there is no way to no who the flash bandit is. If you had to make a guess out of those fighters and have a little bit of fun with it, we would make a totally random guess and say our "flash bandit" is…..Nick Thompson.
Why you may ask? Well Thompson is a member of the Theta Delta Chi Fraternity so it is plausible that with a little sake and good warm fun that the inner greek in Thompson could of came out for a drive by mooning.
We are probably totally and completely wrong though, enjoy the quick story!


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On Thu, 18 Mar 2004, Tom Lane wrote: > Robert Treat <xzilla(at)users(dot)sourceforge(dot)net> writes: > > I'm just guessing the behavior was changed to keep form emails from > > being delayed via non-subscribed emails trying to post to the list? > > Dunno, delay was never a problem with the old implementation. I think > Marc may have some special case in place in the mail list software > to allow bug-form reports to pass through. Marc? Actually, I'd have to open up the list completely to any postings ... the only thing I can really base things off of us the From address ... ---- Marc G. Fournier Hub.Org Networking Services (http://www.hub.org) Email: scrappy(at)hub(dot)org Yahoo!: yscrappy ICQ: 7615664
Next: From: Bruce Momjian Date: 2004-03-18 18:40:21 Subject: Re: bug message not CC'ing poster Previous: From: Tom Lane Date: 2004-03-18 18:34:05 Subject: Re: bug message not CC'ing poster


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After about 4 years of happily (VERY HAPPILY) using ubuntu I am facing a wall.
My company has changed the network configuratin, now we use a proxy with user name and password authentication. I get a "firstname.lastname@example.com" username for that proxy.
Firefox configuration was easy and works ok.
Configuring system proxy is a nightmare because of the "@" in the user name. I have try to escape it several ways and in several files but still no success. Now, I can navigate the internet, but I cannot do apt-get install, update, etc ...
Please, help!


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The chills in The Three (Little, Brown, May), Sarah Lotz's debut novel written on her own and under her own name, begin with the scary description of a plane crash in Japan. Three more crashes of commuter planes around the world occur in quick succession, and in three of the crashes a child survives. Soon, speculation is rampant about the significance of "the three," especially as the children begin to show increasingly disturbing behavior. Are they harbingers of the apocalypse, as one character insists?
"My career was made because Stephen King read the book and wrote a blurb for it," says Lotz, "He's my writing hero."
The Three plies its eeriness using multiple voices and varied formats. As Lotz describes it, the main narrative is presented in the form of a book within a book—a nonfiction work by a sensationalist journalist who presents interview transcripts, first-person accounts, blog posts, and editorials that progressively reveal the ongoing investigation into the four air disasters, as well as the daily lives of those caring for the child survivors and the growing paranoia of those involved in the "conspiracies" that spring up in the wake of the catastrophes.
Getting the different voices to ring true proved the most challenging aspect of the novel. "There's nothing worse than if they don't sound right," Lotz says. "I got people to read and double check that I wasn't making mistakes."Lotz says she's always wanted to write about plane crashes and the media's obsession with them. The 1985 crash of JAL 123, among the most devastating in history, was one of her inspirations. "People had enough time to write messages while the plane was going down," she says. "It was incredibly tragic."Lotz has written many books before, but always in collaboration and using a pseudonym: young adult fiction with her daughter, who is 22; horror thrillers with Louis Greenberg, who writes under the name S.L. Grey; and erotic fiction with a few other women. The experience of going it solo was exhilarating, she says, and she has just finished a second novel. But collaborating is wonderful and she will definitely continue. "You can talk for hours about plot and characters with your collaborators and you don't have to worry about boring them."
Lotz, who calls herself "flight phobic," braved the flight from her home in Cape Town, South Africa, to participate in BEA. She will be signing her book at Table #TK in the autographing area today at 1 p.m.


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A CHATBURN woman is set to hit the roads of Manchester in memory of her best friend who died suddenly of meningitis.
Dannielle Catterall, 17, from Blackburn died in 2009 when she returned home from Blackburn College suffering from a migraine.
Mum Toni Burford became more concerned when she vomited and started to become unresponsive, and dialled 999.
When paramedics arrived they detected a small red mark on her stomach and took her to hospital, by which time the rash had covered her body.
Just hours after being diagnosed with meningitis B, she had died.
Now her best friend, Olivia Clarkson, 21, is aiming to raise £1,500 for charity Meningitis Now having already reached her original target of £1,000.
The Downham Road resident met Dannielle in 2009 while they were both studying at Blackburn College and quickly became close friends.
Olivia, who is studying criminology at Blackburn College University Centre said: "It was devastating to lose Dannielle.
"She was so bubbly and was always smiling and laughing.
"It's amazing that I've already raised so much money for the charity.
"I miss her all the time and the feeling of loss has never left me.
"It's really important to raise awareness of meningitis because it doesn't get as much attention or coverage as other illnesses."
Dannielle's mum, Toni, 39, said: "Olivia was a very good friend to Dannielle.
"I'm going to cheer her on the day.
"It's nice to know that Dannielle's memory is still living on even though she is no longer with us."
For more information or to sponsor Olivia, who will run the Manchester 10k on May 18, visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/OliviaClarkson


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Forecasters' guesswork 'troubling'
Business briefs: UPS declares jump in year's net income
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Business briefs: UPS declares jump in year's net income
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Tune in tonight for an exclusive report you can't afford to miss! Expect to hear more of that starting Thursday as local television stations roll out the special segments for the February ratings period known as ``sweeps.''
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In private, Norman is down to earth
Police track fugitives
When Richmond County sheriff's Deputy Danny Clark is on a warrant search, he acts as cautious as he would on a routine traffic stop. Only he can't see or hear what's going on inside the homes he's visiting.
An article in Sunday's editions incorrectly stated that Rick Bernardi of North Augusta had carried and flown a Confederate flag in Vietnam.
Variances issue hits planners' nerve
County seeks fund method for highway
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Computer problem delays shuttle launch
Birds that stalled road leave nest
SAVANNAH, Ga. -- In 1997, two nesting eagles forced Chatham County highway engineers to reroute Truman Parkway.
Congress members lobby for dam solution
Jury selection begins in Hill slaying case
Enforcement comes from military
School crime down in Aiken County
COLUMBIA -- Aiken County School Superintendent Linda Eldridge received confirmation Monday that her zero-tolerance approach to school violence works.
Across the area: Convicted killer sentenced to die
BRUNSWICK -- A 51-year-old McDonough man was sentenced to death Sunday in the Jan. 12, 1998, slaying of Laurens County Deputy Sheriff Lyle Dinkheller.
Former officer pleads guilty
NEWBERRY, S.C. -- For the longest time, Edward J. Fallen Jr. denied the crime that nobody wanted to believe he'd committed.
Across the area: Convicted killer sentenced to die
Wintry conditions freeze roadways
Across the area: State suspends Augusta lawyer
The Georgia Supreme Court has suspended Augusta attorney Wayne P. Thigpen from the practice of law.
Across the area: State suspends Augusta lawyer
Jury selection begins in Hill slaying case
YORK, S.C. -- The weeklong process of selecting a jury began Monday in the death penalty trial of an Aiken County man accused of shooting three state social workers.
Evans sophomore earns wings
For four years, Jamail Larkins' age prevented him from reaching his dream of becoming a licensed pilot. And for one day, winter weather stopped him.
Doctor perishes in blaze
Embers from a fireplace caused the Sunday home fire that claimed the life of a local doctor, according to investigators.
Congress members lobby for dam solution
Augusta's congressional delegation is mulling changes in federal law to compel the Army Corps of Engineers to finance repairs at New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam.
County seeks fund method for highway
AIKEN -- If Augusta's Bobby Jones Expressway is to get jump-started northward beyond the roadblock at the Savannah River, it will be up to Aiken County to do it.
Final minutes empitomize improbability
Wintry conditions freeze roadways
The wintry weekend didn't drop much snow or ice on Augusta, but it was enough to give some local pupils a break from class Monday morning.
Enforcement comes from military
EDGEFIELD, S.C. -- Fisher Strom went to Kosovo with a yearlong mission to restore law and order to the war-torn land. He has returned home six months later, deflated of energy, shaken by the experience and frustrated with the lack of support by the United Nations.
Warner's game is no fairy tale
Man shares testimony with addicts
It wasn't an enemy's weapon that caused Marvin Bowen to become paralyzed from the waist down while serving in the U.S. Army.
School crime down in Aiken County
Variances issue hits planners' nerve
The 19 inches finally did it. One house in one Columbia County neighborhood crossed a setback line by 19 inches, touching off a brouhaha over variances that could change the way homes are built.
Man shares testimony with addicts
Crew unearths inert weapon
An Atlanta military bomb squad arrived in Augusta on Monday afternoon to investigate what was first believed to be a live explosive excavated from Augusta State University soil. But officials later learned that object was an inert practice round.
Jordan makes first move from afar
Tennessee falls one yard short
Final minutes empitomize improbability
Titans establish seat at front table
One play, one tackle puts Rams over the top
One play, one tackle puts Rams over the top
Super Bowl Sunday is No. 1 party day
Warner's game is no fairy tale
Super Bowl scores with 43.2 rating
Wilkins drills three field goals for Rams
Rams celebrate franchise's first NFL title
Titans' last-second march comes up inches short
Missouri legislators are overwhelmed by Rams win
Mrs. Azerene Bussey
BELVEDERE -- Mrs. Azerene Hacker Bussey, 92, of Teresa Avenue, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at her residence.
Mrs. Mildred Dockins
WARRENVILLE -- Mrs. Mildred W. Dockins, 87, of Goldfish Lane, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at Brian Center-St. Andrews.
Mr. Roland Whittle
SALUDA, S.C. -- Mr. Roland Wesley Whittle, 61, of Yarbrough Road, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at his residence.
Mr. Vernon Ogletree
Mr. Vernon Allen Ogletree Sr., 72, of Wilkinson Circle, died Thursday, Jan. 27, 2000, at Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center.
Mrs. Shirley Black
Mrs. Shirley M. Black, 67, died Monday, Jan. 31, 2000, at her residence.
Ms. Tyra Trotty
Ms. Tyra LaWanda Trotty, 27, of Morgan Road, died Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2000, at University Hospital.
Mrs. Virginia Dunn
SPARTA, Ga. -- Mrs. Virginia Christelle Foster Dunn, 92, of Route 3, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at Putnam General Hospital.
Mr. James Hendley
Mr. James V. Hendley, 70, died Friday, Jan. 28, 2000, at Doctors Hospital.
Mrs. Mamie King
WASHINGTON, Ga. -- Mrs. Mamie Elizabeth Callaway King, 88, of Lexington Avenue, died Monday, Jan. 31, 2000, at Wills Memorial Hospital.
Mr. Willie Johnson
WARRENTON, Ga. -- Mr. Willie Edward Johnson, of Meadow Road, died Friday, Jan. 28, 2000, at Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers, Augusta.
Ms. Donetta Wright
Ms. Donetta Wright, 56, of April Drive, died Thursday, Jan. 27, 2000, at University Hospital.
Mrs. Sarah Cowan
BATH -- Mrs. Sarah Marlar Cowan, 71, of Railroad Street, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at University Hospital.
Mrs. Annie Smith
LOUISVILLE, Ga. -- Ms. Annie Sellars Smith, 83, of Georgia Highway 24, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at University Hospital, Augusta.
Mr. Horst Ehntholt
Mr. Horst A. Ehntholt, 69, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at Doctors Hospital.
Mr. John Tompkins
Mr. John W. Tompkins, 77, died Monday, Jan. 31, 2000, at his residence.
Jamarvus Lewis
WARRENTON, Ga. -- Jamarvus Jaqua Lewis, infant son of Tim Lewis and Salantria Walker, died Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2000, in Milledgeville.
Mrs. Sarah Tutt
Mrs. Sarah Bennings Tutt, of Blount Avenue, died Thursday, Jan. 27, 2000, at St. Joseph Hospital.
Mrs. Cora Steele
HAMPTON, S.C. -- Mrs. Cora Lee Steele, 80, died Friday, Jan. 28, 2000, at Hampton Regional Medical Center, Varnville.
Mr. John Dominick
BATESBURG, S.C. -- Mr. John Frank Dominick, 83, of Mount Willing Road, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at his residence.
Mr. Robert McKane
AIKEN -- Mr. Robert H. McKane, 85, of Aiken, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at Aiken Regional Medical Centers.
Mrs. Louise McGahee
STAPLETON, Ga. -- Mrs. Louise McGahee, 88, of Georgia Highway 296, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at University Hospital, Augusta.
Mrs. Linda Briggs
GROVETOWN -- Mrs. Linda Gail Briggs, of Eisenview Drive, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at St. Joseph Hospital.
Mr. John Alfred Harper
BELVEDERE -- Mr. John Alfred Harper, 74, of Audubon Circle, died Monday, Jan. 31, 2000, at Aiken Regional Medical Centers.
Mrs. Ester Groat
Mrs. Ester R. Groat, 95, of Evans, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, in North Augusta.
Dr. Thomas Blanchard, 65, Augusta urologist
Dr. Thomas Walter Blanchard, a urologist in Augusta for 30 years, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at his residence. He was 65.
Mrs. Louise Sayer
Mrs. Louise B. Sayer, 80, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000.
Mr. Reuben Robinson
RINGGOLD, Ga. -- Mr. Reuben Allen Robinson, 75, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000.
Rev. Henry Walker
WHITE PLAINS, Ga. -- The Rev. Henry Grady Walker, 85, of Liberty Church Road, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at St. Mary's Hospital.
Ms. Janice Coleman
SWAINSBORO, Ga. -- Ms. Janice Coleman, 44, of Overstreet Road, died Monday, Jan. 31, 2000, at Emanuel Medical Center.
Mrs. Bertha Videtto
FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. -- Mrs. Bertha W. Videtto, 73, of Nectarine Street, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at The Jane Adams House.
Mr. Jerry Garner Sr.
TENNILLE, Ga. -- Mr. Jerry Lee ``Bill'' Garner Sr., 76, of Stephens Road, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at Johnson County Nursing Home, Adrian.
Rev. John Evans
COVINGTON, Ga. -- The Rev. John W. Evans, 76, of Newton Ridge Road, died Thursday, Jan. 27, 2000, at Newton General Hospital.
Mrs. Helen Bilton
Mrs. Helen McCormick Bilton, 70, of Norfolk Street, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at University Hospital.
Mrs. Esther R. Groat
Mrs. Esther R. Groat, 95, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, in North Augusta.
Mrs. Ernestine McCanna
NORTH AUGUSTA -- Mrs. Ernestine Barnes McCanna, 81, of West Summit Avenue, died Friday, Jan. 28, 2000, at National Health Care.
Mr. Walter Offermann
DEARING -- Mr. Walter Offermann, 73, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at University Hospital.
Mrs. Ruby Thomas
NORTH AUGUSTA -- Mrs. Ruby Griffin Thomas, 87, of West Five Notch Road, died Saturday, Jan. 29, 2000, at National Health Care.
Dr. Thomas Blanchard
Dr. Thomas Walter Blanchard, a urologist in Augusta for 30 years, died Sunday, Jan. 30, 2000, at his residence. He was 65.
Dr. Thomas Blanchard, 65, Augusta urologist
Defends right to fly Confederate flag
Re Ken Gott's Jan. 26 letter. S. F. Chance, Perkins
Rejoices Fonda was converted
I'm overjoyed concerning the good news that Jane Fonda came to know Christ personally. Surprised? No.Donna Boland, Waynesboro
Hits rhetoric of Confederate flag flap
The rhetoric behind the Confederate flag is malarkey. Is this outcry over the flag being used for political gain, to promote votes? Is it election time once again? This is a state issue, not a federal issue to be used as an aid for an election. S. Tool, Hephzibah
Tighten Senate ethics
The Georgia House approved an ethics code earlier this month. Now it's the Senate's turn, and that body has even a larger responsibility to OK a tough ethics agenda in the wake of last year's convictions of two senators for misappropriating state money.
Fund Ga. charities
Why not let Georgians decide in a statewide referendum if they want any of their tax money to be spent on faith-based charities that help the needy?<
Feds now help smoking
In the name of saving the nation's children from a fatal addiction, the Clinton administration has waged war against tobacco -- most recently filing a lawsuit that could cost the industry billions.
Rips military leaders over vaccine case
The article on Maj. Sonnie Bates indicates how out of touch military leaders are with the troops. The Department of Defense is out of control. Bob Cipperly, Evans
Say 'no' to scalping
Before this session of Georgia's General Assembly ends there is a good, albeit deplorable, chance that a scalping bill will be sent to the governor's desk. The measure passed the lower chamber last year by a whopping 159-14 margin and the Senate is expected to follow suit this year.
Sees opportunity to bridge racial divide
We have lived in South Carolina for about 30 years and in Georgia for about 30 years; therefore, we write this letter with a considerable amount of experience and knowledge. Paul and Anne Cook, Augusta
Wants several politicos committed
If Atlanta Braves pitcher John Rocker is forced to take some sort of Rorschach or TAT psychological exam because of some politically incorrect comments, then Al Gore, ``Louis the Lip'' Farrakhan, ``Queasy'' Mfume ... and Al ``Dullton'' (Sharpton) should be institutionalized, given Thorazine and placed on a one-to-one watch indefinitely. Mike Henchy, Hephzibah
Seeks protection if lock and dam closed
River Plantation, a painting done sometime around 1855 by Thomas Addison Richards hanging in the Morris Museum of Art, depicts a broad shore-to-shore Savannah River at the very site where the museum is now located on the Augusta Riverwalk. It was not in ``riverine'' condition. Since that time, great alterations to the river have been made as people transformed not only that landscape but landscapes all over the globe. Gloria R. Greenbaum, Augusta
Wants libraries to stay open longer
Recently you had a page on families doing things together. It also had suggestions for what parents could do with their children. One was to take small children to area libraries and listen to their storytime. Heather Powers-Snyder, Martinez
Is this Cuba?
The year is still young, but not so young we can't present to Georgia House Speaker Tom Murphy, D-Bremen, the award for the most petty, vindictive action of the year. He muzzled the 1999 national teacher of the year, Augusta's Andy Baumgartner!
Likes McCain
It's so sad to see the Republican Party make the same mistake again. Gov. George W. Bush is a bought-and-paid-for candidate. Witness the gross amount of money that's backing his candidacy. Larry Jarrett, USAF Retired, Warrenville
Laments loss of liberty in dam debacle
I wonder if anyone who has suffered extensive damage by the actions of the Corps of Engineers now feels we are living in the land of the free and the home of the brave? I have serious doubts that they do. Jessie B. Hitt, Augusta
Calls for 'lending a hand' to river
Thank you for your latest editorial regarding the future of our Savannah River. I am certainly in favor of doing what we can to save her and maintain her depth. Deborah Tudor, Augusta
Blasts governor's `alliance' on schools
Georgia and its illustrious Gov. Roy Barnes are at it again. A typical Barnes response to a problem is, when in doubt, throw more money at it and maybe it will goaway. I recently read the article on the governor's crony-filled organization called the ``Breakthrough Alliance'' and its million-dollar ad campaign to push education reform in the state. Steve Grinstead, Martinez
Lashes NAACP 'quest for power'
The actions of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in the flag uproar plainly show that it is not concerned with whether the flag stands for slavery, which of course it does not, but rather its undying quest for power. William C. Myles, Hephzibah
Wants national teacher of year allowed to speak
Kudos to Andy Baumgartner! Debra Samples, Wrens
Favors decommissioning lock and dam
At the public meeting regarding the lock and dam, it was obvious that riverside property owners, and many others in the community, want to have their cake and eat it, too. Wesley Ross, Augusta
Says Rooney's remarks crossed line
The remarks by Andy Rooney on 60 Minutes on Jan. 23 about symbols crossed the line on objective reporting. The Confederate flag is a banner representing states' rights for a generation of my ancestors who possessed a will to fight for personal beliefs. Jack I. Ramage Sr., North Augusta
Lauds lawmaker; jabs old opponent
This letter is in reference to the Jan. 26 article ``Lawmaker quits House for new job.'' Richard A. Wilson, Aiken
Finds cursing to be bad manners
Well, now we have another excuse to use bad manners and no self-control. Dr. Timothy Jay, ``a cursing expert,'' says it's ``more democratic and less oppressive.'' Give me a break! Joanne Paulos, Augusta
NCAA's evolving eligibility rules test coaches, players
Overtime: McEnroe subs 2 ailing pros for Davis Cup
Coach's son enjoys positive experience
Georgia withdraws scholarship offer to Respert
Broken promise shatters player's Division I dream
Rocker hit with MLB suspension
Therapy improves recovery
Radiation after angioplasty prevents future blockages in most patients, a process that University Hospital is hoping to help prove effective.n
Hi-tech video recorders gaining consumer attention
WASHINGTON -- Loren Finkelstein, a self-described ``big TV watcher,'' was never home to enjoy his favorite shows. Instead, he relied on a stack of videotapes to capture them.
Congress moves to improve electronic food stamp program
WASHINGTON -- People using electronic food stamp accounts could obtain groceries in every state under legislation that passed the House on Monday and goes to President Clinton for his signature.
MP3 files become a decoder ring for music fans
If you're even a casual music fan, you probably have a collection of compact discs. The problem is that they're usually at home, and you're not. But if MP3.com has its way, you'll be able to play those CDs from any computer with a connection to the World Wide Web.
NASA declares Endeavour's engines safe, aims for Monday launch
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- With only hours remaining before liftoff, NASA on Sunday declared space shuttle Endeavour's engines safe to fly despite lingering uncertainty over two fuel pump seals.
Computer trouble, bad weather delay launch
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Computer trouble and bad weather forced NASA on Monday to delay the launch of space shuttle Endeavour on a quest to create the finest map of Earth ever produced.
Internet ads, commercials pitched at women mark Super Bowl telecast
NEW YORK -- TV's priciest commercials had Internet companies digging deep in their wallets and a few messages to an audience that Super Bowl advertisers have seldom addressed -- women.
Freed scholar returns to America on flight from China
PHILADELPHIA -- A college librarian held in China for nearly six months on charges of smuggling state secrets returned to the United States on Saturday.
Scientists to 'rediscover' Earth with shuttle's map mission
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- To produce the consummate map of Earth, NASA will attempt a new feat: extending a boom from the space shuttle that's longer than the shuttle itself.
FDA approves first digital mammograms
WASHINGTON -- The nation's first digital mammograms -- computerized breast X-rays to hunt breast cancer -- were approved by the government Monday.
School badges become part of the problem
OK, you all know the drift by now. Wear the badge ... or else. Since the beginning of the school year, students in Columbia County have been wearing ID badges. Some students at local schools have worn them even longer than that. The issue may be old now, but the feelings are still there.
Identify yourself
What's in an ID badge? Not much, according to some teens who attend area schools. Identification badges now are required in most schools as part of stricter dress code policies instituted in the summer in response to last spring's Columbine High School shootings in Colorado.
School badges just another rite of passage
School badges just another rite of passage
Teen-agers across the area are riled up due to one of the newest styles to hit our generation.
Your Style
Caroline Kobe, 13, an eighth-grader at St. Mary on the Hill Catholic School.
Relationship should be built on dual trust
``I have a problem with this girl. She thinks I'm cheating for no reason. I love her with all my heart, and I would do anything for her. But she's always spying on me or thinking that I'm doing something wrong.'' -- 16-year-old Augusta boy
School badges become part of the problem
Relationship should be built on dual trust
Computer trouble, bad weather delay launch
NASA declares Endeavour's engines safe, aims for Monday launch
Internet ads, commercials pitched at women mark Super Bowl telecast
Hi-tech video recorders gaining consumer attention
MP3 files become a decoder ring for music fans
FDA approves first digital mammograms
Scientists to 'rediscover' Earth with shuttle's map mission
Congress moves to improve electronic food stamp program
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In the course of conversation yesterday Mr J. T. Sullivan (Inspector of Sea Fisheries) was asked by a member of our staff to express his opinion on the question of establishing a municipal fish market. In reply, Mr Sullivan said it was a much larger question than appeared on the surface.
''Take the following consignments this week,'' he said.
''Monday, 101 casks assorted fish; Tuesday, 80 casks assorted fish; Wednesday, 143 casks assorted fish, with an average weight of 250lb per cask, or a total of over 37 tons. Representatives from 18 leading retail shops and 22 hawkers who tour the surrounding country attend the market daily, and are assisted in their vocation by the aid of smoke-houses and canning and freezing works. Still the risk in the formation of a fish mart is great on account of what is really a most serious and troublesome problem - namely, the unsold fish. It is astounding to learn from statistics what a small amount of fish is consumed in Dunedin in warm weather, even when it is offered at a very low figure. Sixty-one casks of the choicest fish were left unsold on Wednesday, and this had to be taken in hand professionally and prepared for future sale or other markets, which entails a great deal of extra labour.''
As an illustration, Mr Sullivan took the quantity of fish on the market on Wednesday morning, which amounted to over 14 tons. If this quantity was to be consumed, over 16,000 people would require to make an average purchase of 2lb.
• The new National Bank of New Zealand is a striking edifice. The scaffolding is now being removed, and the fine four-storey frontage of the building, with its pleasing lines, is being brought into view. The style of architecture is the modern Renaissance. The long perpendicular lines afford a very graceful effect, and carry the eye to the top, where the feature is a splendid cornice and scrolled pediments. The whole front is indicative of dignity and simplicity. The upper portion is constructed of Pyrmont stone from Sydney, and the lower portion of trachite, a form of granite obtained from the same locality. The banking chamber will be opened for business in February.
• The children's playground in the Woodhaugh Gardens has good patronage on fine days when school is out, and the swings and see-saw are kept fully occupied. Care, however, should be taken by the children as to how they avail themselves of the means of amusement afforded. There is a habit growing up of using the boys' swing as a springboard for the purpose of seeing who can jump the farthest from it while it is in motion. Needless to say hard falls are frequent. - ODT, 13.12.1912


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Family tree▼
Facts and Events
Uilleam (or William) III of Ross was the fourth successor of Ferchar mac in tSagairt, as Mormaer of Ross (1333/6-1370).
Uilleam came into his inheritance at a torrid time, his father Aodh dying at the Battle of Halidon Hill. Uilleam temporarily lost many of his lands. However, he returned from Norway in 1336 and regained them. Uilleam cultivated the friendship of the Stewarts, and was rewarded by being appointed Justiciar of Scotia. Uilleam's reign was marked by continued strife with his nominal vassal, Ranald MacRuadridh (Lord of Skye). In 1346, Uilleam killed Ranald with eight of his men at the nunnery of Elcho.
Uilleam married Màiri, the daughter of Aonghas Óg MacDomhnaill. They had an heir, Uilleam, but he died in 1357. Uilleam's lands were forfeited by King David II in 1370. Uilleam died in 1372, and the Mormaerdom was given to his daughter Euphemia with her husband Sir Walter Leslie, thus ending the dynasty started a century and a half before by the great Ferchar. The dominions eventually passed to the MacDonald Lords of the Isles.


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Banks widen gap between revenue, GDP
A six-fold increase in the amount owed to banks by households and businesses has dramatically increased the ratio of bank income to GDP since 1994.
For every three dollars New Zealand has added to its GDP since 1994, bank incomes have jumped by a dollar.
Reserve Bank figures show that GDP rose by $51.3 billion in the period from the end of 1994 to the end of 2011, while bank incomes rose by $14.9b over the same period.
Once again, bank profits are in the headlines, this time following a study by Massey University showing that the return on equity of banks is not excessive compared to that of many companies listed on the NZX stock exchange.
That led Bankers Association chief executive Kirk Hope to issue a statement saying it felt there were "a lot of views on bank profitability which were overstated".
But while the returns on equity may not be unusual, even former Reserve Bank governor Alan Bollard and Finance Minister Bill English have spoken about the high levels of profitability of our banks.
A mortgage debt splurge, similar to those that left many Western economies struggling, has been the main driver of bank income growth as a ratio of GDP in New Zealand.
The country's debt boom really took off around 2002 (see chart). Bank income to GDP peaked in 2008, breaching 20 per cent compared to 1994 when it was just 10 per cent of GDP.
Since then, global interest rates have crashed as a result of extreme weakness in the European and US economies.
Bank incomes dropped from $31.9b in 2008 to $23.5b last year, though the banks have continued making record profits as these are largely determined by the size of their loan book and the net interest margin between the rates they borrow at and the rates they charge to borrowers.
The decline in income pushed the bank income to GDP ratio back down to 17 per cent at the end of 2011, and in the process gave households a window of historically low interest rates in which to pay down debt.
It's an opportunity, English told Parliament earlier this month, that households were using wisely.
In answering a patsy question from a National backbencher, he said: "Treasury advises that after 10 years of households spending more than they earned, savings turned positive last year, with a modest savings rate of 0.2 per cent of household disposable income. This is expected to steadily increase over the next three years to around 3 per cent of disposable income being saved by 2015.
"This process may be assisted by the increase in KiwiSaver contribution rates on 1 April, 2013. As a result of better savings behaviour, household debt has fallen to 90 per cent of GDP this year from a peak of 97 per cent in 2010."
But while we are paying down debt, the country does not appear to be on track to return to the pre-2003 position of mortgage debt being lower in total than banks "other" forms of lending.
At the end of 1992, there was $8.5b more "other" debt than mortgage debt.
However, at the end of June, there was $37b more mortgage debt than "other" lending. The total lending on bank books was $54.7b at the end of 1992 compared to just under $309.5b at the end of June.
Loan volumes are continuing to rise, but the cost of loans is going up.
For borrowers the easy money and massive volume increases resulted in a dramatic drop of the real cost of mortgages, the net interest margin gap between the price the bank paid to borrow its money, and the price it was willing to lend it to property-buyers for.
Banks competed furiously, and gave away net interest margin in return for greater levels of business. Traditional mortgage terms were extended from 25 years to 30 years and more.
But as lending volumes have dropped, the Reserve Bank figures show a trend for banks to earn more off their loans.
In 1995 the net interest margin of the banks, according to Reserve Bank data, was 3 per cent. A bank borrowing at 3 per cent, say, could lend at 6 per cent.
By 2009 the net interest margin of the banks had dropped by nearly a third to 2.02 per cent, though as lending volumes have dropped and risk-averse investors have squirrelled their money away in bank deposits, banks have been able to gradually lift their net interest margins again.
At the end of 2010 it had risen to 2.13 per cent. By the end of 2011, it was at 2.23 per cent, and by the end of June this year, it was at 2.27 per cent.
Dr Claire Matthews, from Massey University's Centre for Banking Studies, said the study of bank returns on equity puts greater perspective around bank profits which were playing a bigger part in people's lives.
"The relationship is getting bigger because people have more money and also because of things like internet banking," she said.
Borrowers had increasingly moved to floating rate loans, and traditionally banks had earned higher margins off floating loans, she said.
Sunday Star Times


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Franken-Lin: Building Jeremy Lin from NFL Quarterback Spare PartsFebruary 17, 2012
Since New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin exploded from anonymity to a sports and media phenomenon, he has been drawing comparisons to Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow.
While Linsanity and Tebowmania share certain undeniable qualities, Lin's story is more compelling than Tebow's and would take a Frankenstein's monster of quarterback tales to find its equal.
Let's build that monster from quarterback lore.
We will need four parts Tebow to construct a quarterback story comparable to Lin's. Both athletes are unconventional sizes for their respective positions: Lin is 6'3" and 200 pounds (big for a point guard) and Tebow is criticized for being too muscular to pass the football effectively.
Each athlete receives attention for uniqueness outside of sports as well. Lin's race and Tebow's religion pique the interest of casual sports fans.
Both men developed devout fanbases in short order, move jerseys, sell tickets and are ubiquitous on the Web.
Most importantly, both Lin and Tebow play each game with the emotion, will and joy that we all wish we felt about any one thing. Still, the comparison is imperfect.
Sports fans first became infatuated with Tebow while he was the quarterback at Florida, where he won two national championships. We were all intrigued with who would draft him when. After the Broncos selected him, Denver fans clamored for him to play. They chanted for him at training camp; Tebow had the full support of Bronco fans before he took an NFL snap.
We saw Tebow coming. Lin was a complete surprise.
Tebow's success was receiving a bonus you expected; Lin's success is winning the lottery. Thus, we need a stronger element of surprise to construct our Franken-Lin.
We need one part Kurt Warner.
Warner went undrafted out of the University of Northern Iowa, just as Lin was undrafted out of Harvard. After being released by the Green Bay Packers in 1994, Warner famously worked in a grocery store. It's not as humbling as sleeping on his brother's couch, but it's close.
Like Lin, Warner did not get his shot until a teammate when down.
Lin has been asked to make up for Carmelo Anthony's production, but Trent Green was the Rams' starting QB until he was lost to a torn ACL in 1999. Like Lin, Warner took control of his team immediately. He threw three touchdowns in each of his first three NFL games, and by season's end he had thrown for over 4,300 yards and racked up 41 touchdowns.
Lin has had an auspicious start to his NBA career. In February, since he first played significant minutes, Lin is averaging over 20 points and eight assists per game.
We have almost built a Jeremy Lin from spare quarterback parts, but he's not alive yet. We have Tebow's size, off-the-field interest, fanbase and emotion. We have the rags-to-riches story of Warner. Still, neither Denver nor St. Louis is the media pressure-cooker New York is, so our monster is incomplete.
To finish him off, we need one part Tom Brady.
Like Lin and Warner, Brady made a huge splash when the starter in front of him—Drew Bledsoe—was lost to injury. However, what Lin and Brady have that Warner does not is intense media scrutiny.
Playing in New York and Boston means that every move of Lin's and Brady's will be a headline, and they handle it masterfully. Brady has avoided any major media gaffes in over a decade of playing in New England, and Lin says all the right things to New York's rabid sports media.
If you only listened to his interviews, one would think he is a seasoned pro.
Jeremy Lin's story is too unique to compare to just one other athlete.
He combines the best elements of Tim Tebow, Kurt Warner and Tom Brady, three of the most intriguing athletes of the last 15 years. If you stitch parts of their stories together, you create an NFL edition of Lin. It's alive, yet not complete.
Even our creation falls short, because Lin is just getting started. Who knows where Lin and the Knicks go this season, let alone next season.
One thing is certain: Lin will be monstrous fun to watch.