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Inside Politics
Gore Claiming Credit for the Strong Economy; Clinton Administration and Republicans Sparring Over Cost of Prescription DrugsAired June 13, 2000 - 5:00 p.m. ET
AL GORE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I want to make this election about the big choices we have to make to secure prosperity and progress for a new American century.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Al Gore firmly hitches his presidential prospects to the state of the economy.
BERNARD SHAW, CNN ANCHOR: But, will Gore's focus on prosperity actually help George W. Bush? We'll consider both sides of the coin.
ANNOUNCER: Hemlines are down. Down with hemlines, up with Bush. Sorry, Al, that's the rule.
WOODRUFF: Our Bill Schneider on the ups-and-downs of unscientific election forecasts.
ANNOUNCER: From Washington, this is INSIDE POLITICS, with Judy Woodruff and Bernard Shaw.
SHAW: Thanks for joining us. We begin with Al Gore's bid to convince voters that he had a hand in the nation's economic growth, and perhaps more importantly, that he is the man to keep the prosperity going.
WOODRUFF: Gore kicked off that effort today with some additional "oomph" in his delivery, and with the song "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" as his anthem.
We have two reports on Gore's new strategy, beginning with Chris Black, covering the vice president in New York.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CHRIS BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Seeking to reframe the political debate, Vice President Al Gore invoked Ronald Reagan's famous question...
GORE: Are you better off than you were four years ago? Let me go even further: Are you better off than you were eight years ago?
BLACK: Gore launched his so-called "prosperity and progress" tour as the happy warrior, with an upbeat look at the government's role in an unprecedented era of economic good times.
GORE: Those who say that prosperity has achieved its full reach, I say, "just watch us."
BLACK: He drew the contrast to the proposals of his rival, George W. Bush, by inference.
GORE: Here is what I will not do: I won't be profligate with your money. I won't spend money that we don't yet even have on a huge tax cut our economy can't afford in ways that could end our prosperity and progress.
BLACK: Former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, a Wall Street baron, vouched for Gore's role in the economic policies of the Clinton administration.
ROBERT RUBIN, FORMER SECRETARY OF TREASURY: I worked with the vice president for 6 1/2 years. He was deeply involved in every major economic decision we made.
BLACK: Gore says he would use the budget surpluses to build a stronger America, by creating a Medicare lockbox to safeguard Medicare money from regular government spending, setting up tax-free voluntary savings accounts to supplement social security, and by creating three new national trusts to finance programs for education, health care and the environment.
Gore defended the Clinton administration record, saying the economic boom was no accident, but the result of a deliberate strategy.
GORE: ... that unlocked the full potential of our people. Balancing the budget, paying down the debt, and investing in the best enterprise of all: people.
BLACK: Chris Black, CNN, New York.
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is John King at the White House.
The timing of all this was no coincidence. Al Gore's week-long focus on prosperity and spending priorities was carefully orchestrated, designed to give the vice president a chance to frame the campaign debate before the White House releases new figures showing a mushrooming federal budget surplus.
New estimates due out in the next few weeks will raise this year's projected surplus from $167 billion to well in excess of $200 billion, and add as much as $1 trillion to the projected surplus over the next decade.
It's a windfall that already has a legacy-minded president urging Congress to think big when it comes to creating a new prescription drug benefit for the elderly.
WILLIAM J. CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We can afford to do this right.
KING: But the politics of prosperity could cut two ways. A bigger surplus could make it harder for Gore to argue that the big tax cut pushed by Republican George W. Bush is too risky.
ROBERT REISCHAUER, URBAN INSTITUTE: It takes away one of the clubs that Gore was using to beat Bush over the head with. He'll have to use it much more gently. He'll have to say, "Let's be prudent."
KING: Governor Bush will call the bigger surplus numbers more proof there's room for a tax cut, and more proof Gore is a textbook liberal.
ARI FLEISCHER, BUSH CAMPAIGN SENIOR ADVISER: If we let it all come to Washington, the politicians will surely spend it on bigger and more government, and that's not a good way to provide for the future.
KING: Top White House aides warned the Gore campaign several weeks ago that the new surplus numbers could change the campaign debate over taxes and spending. And senior administration officials helped the vice president draft a response that will continue to argue against a broad-based tax cut.
Instead, Gore will push more spending on popular domestic programs, doing more to pay down the long-term national debt, and additional targeted tax cuts aimed at lower- and middle-income Americans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So it's not that the Democrats are saying no way to any kind of tax cut. The Democrats are talking about the tax cuts that appeal to the majority of voters.
KING: Now, most Republicans begrudgingly give the president credit for selling that targeted tax cut approach and turning the public against an across-the-board tax cut like that favored by Governor Bush. The Republican hope now is that the vice president doesn't have the political skills evidenced by his boss -- Bernie.
WOODRUFF: All right, John -- actually it's Judy.
And we're joined once again by Chris Black.
Chris, let me come back to you for just a moment. When you talked to the Gore people, are they aware, do they talk about the fact that there may be pitfalls with Gore associating himself with the economy if it were to take a downturn?
BLACK: They don't really see that in the immediate horizon, Judy. Right now, the president still gets very high marks for job performance and all the economic barometers are still pretty solid. A bigger problem to the Gore campaign is convincing voters that a president matters, because voters seemed to be convinced that nothing's going to slow down this economy. In fact, recently we saw during the China trade debate, that organized labor gave up making the economic argument because nobody would believe that trade or anything else could slow down the economy.
WOODRUFF: And John, a question to you. What is -- when you talk to the people at the White House, what do they -- how do they explain the fact that we have this enormous surplus, and Gore isn't benefiting necessarily in the polls, that many people still feel lukewarm about him?
KING: Well, one of the stunning things to White House aides and the Gore campaign, recent polling showing that the vice president has just a slight advantage, almost even with Governor Bush. When voters are asked about who would handle the economy best, that's one of the reasons we see this tour the vice president pushing now.
But it's largely skepticism. White House officials and pollsters in both parties say after 15 years of hearing about deficits, the public is just not convinced yet that these surplus numbers are real. So while they're enjoying a strong economy right now, they don't trust the politicians when the politicians tell them there's so much money now here in Washington left to spend, or as Governor Bush would argue to give back in the form of a tax cut.
WOODRUFF: And, Chris, to you again. When the Bush people, I mean -- sorry, when the Gore people talk about the so-called "progress and prosperity" tour, do they really think something like this can make a difference for them?
BLACK: Well, they certainly do, Judy. They would never say that this was a turning point because they would argue that the vice president is doing pretty well for this point in the campaign for a vice president, for an incumbent vice president.
But it's important to set the terms of the argument, because it's easier to win the argument if you do that. And they think it's important for the vice president to set out his marker and to show his vision for the future. They think they can win this argument.
WOODRUFF: And John, on a slightly more political note, we -- you and others have been reporting criticism from the White House of the Gore campaign. Does this fact, that they seem to be working together, mean that this is going to continue, this kind of coordination? KING: Certainly on economic policy they say there is much more coordination. Think back to Elian Gonzalez, other cases where White House aides have been caught off guard by what the vice president is going and harshly critical of it. In this case, they say the treasury secretary, Larry Summers, the president's top economic adviser, Gene Sperling, these are two people working very closely behind the scenes, they would say in free time, with the vice president's staff on this matter.
So when it comes to economics, there is no divide between the White House and the vice president, at least so far in the campaign. White House officials saying the president will support the vice president and try to help him now when these new surplus numbers come out, try to make the case that even now the country still can't afford a big tax cut.
WOODRUFF: All right, at the White House, John King. Chris Black reporting with vice president Gore. Thank you, both -- Bernie.
SHAW: Now to another issue that is getting play in this election year: the rising cost of prescription drugs. The Clinton-Gore administration and congressional Republicans jockeyed for a position on the subject today.
CNN medical correspondent Eileen O'Connor looks at some proposals on the table and the politics behind them.
EILEEN O'CONNOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It is the issue seniors arguably care the most about: how to afford the prescription drugs they take. That's why, with seniors voting in disproportionately higher numbers, senators, House members, the president, and most importantly, the presidential candidates, are all promising ways to provide relief.
ANNOUNCER: They're using money and lobbyists to stop progress in Washington. Al Gore is taking them on, fighting for a Medicare prescription drug benefit for seniors.
O'CONNOR: But Republicans are laying claim to the issue, too. GOP leaders Tuesday offered details on their own proposal to subsidize private insurance plans.
REP. BILL THOMAS (R), CALIFORNIA: It is a Medicare prescription drug program, a benefit and entitlement inside Medicare. It will be voluntary and it will be universal.
O'CONNOR: The White House is offering a more expensive proposal: a standard drug benefit for all seniors who use the Medicare program. The president argues private insurance is unaffordable to many. WILLIAM J. CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We can afford to do this right, and we must not pass a plan that claims to offer something to everybody and is a false hope to most, and therefore inadequate.
O'CONNOR: The administration and its supporters call the Republican plan nothing more than political cover for the campaign trail.
RON POLLACK, FAMILIES USA: It's going to get raised over, and over and over again, and undoubtedly, what we're going to hear is the Republicans saying, well, we offered a proposal, we really care.
Republicans have enlisted the senior equivalent of "Harry and Louise," likening Clinton's plan to nationalized medicine.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Millions of seniors could lose the coverage we have now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our coverage?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And end up in a big government plan.
O'CONNOR: Meanwhile, candidates nationwide have seized the high cost of prescription drugs as an issue to run on -- candidates like Democrat Brian Schweitzer, running for the Senate in Montana against GOP incumbent Conrad Burns. Schweitzer is making the issue the centerpiece of his campaign, escorting senior citizens across the border to Mexico, where even U.S.-manufactured drugs are less expensive than back home.
UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Join Brian Schweitzer's crusade to embarrass Congress into action and lower prescription prices.
O'CONNOR (on camera): But with so much disagreement and so much politically at stake, any action to lower prescription drug costs or to provide a prescription a Medicare benefit is likely undoable, at least in this election year.
Eileen O'Connor, CNN, Capitol Hill.
SHAW: And still ahead on INSIDE POLITICS:
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Watch out Yankee fans, old and new, you root for the Yankees, you're rooting for George W. Bush!
SHAW: Bill Schneider on baseball as a political barometer. How a world series win might predict the next president?
WOODRUFF: George W. Bush is spending another day at his family's retreat in Kennebunkport, Maine, working on plans for the GOP convention. One item still on the Bush agenda: selecting a vice presidential running-mate. Former Senator John Danforth has removed his name from consideration for that post. He says that he called Bush last week and told him that he wanted to remain in Missouri near his family. Danforth is the special counsel investigating the government's handling of the 1993 Branch Davidian Standoff in Waco, Texas.
SHAW: Choosing the right running-mate may be key in a tight presidential election, and this race shows every indication of being very close. But that's not stopping some folks from picking a winner.
Bill Schneider joins us now with a report on some things they look for -- Bill.
SCHNEIDER: Well, Bernie, maybe you haven't noticed, but the presidential election is over. Academic forecasters from very important universities claim they can predict the outcome based on impressive looking equations. What goes into those equations? Oh, the condition of the economy, the incumbent president's job rating, obvious things like that. Well, the economy's strong, and Clinton's still very popular, so what do the forecasts show? Gore. Tough luck, Mr. Bush. You can't argue with the numbers. Or can you? We've consulted our soothsayers and found out there's more than one way to say the sooth.
SCHNEIDER (voice-over): Hemlines, for instance -- here's the rule: hemlines up, Democrats win; hemlines down or unchanged, Republicans win. Why is that? Let's ask a Democrat.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like them as short as possible.
SCHNEIDER: And you madam?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, traditionally always one inch below the knee, and I never change it.
SCHNEIDER: Obviously a Republican. But does the rule work? Let's see. Hemlines went up in 1960, 1964 and 1976. Democrats won all three years. They went down or didn't change in 1952, '56, '72, '84 and '88, all Republican years. Pretty good record. But has the rule ever failed? Yes, a few times. Hemlines went up in 1968 and 1980, and the Democrats still lost. Hemlines went down in 1992, but Bill Clinton still got elected. You'd think he at least would pay attention to hemlines.
So the hemline model has been successful in eight out of 11 elections. Hey, not bad. This year, hemlines are down -- down with hemlines, up with Bush. Sorry, Al, that's the rule.
Here's another model: If it's a good year for Bordeaux wines, the Democrat wins; a poor vintage, it's a cinch for the GOP. Three years saw good Bordeaux and Democratic victories. Five years saw lousy wines and good Republicans. The rule didn't work in 1988, when the Bordeaux was good, but the Dukakis went bad. In 1960 and 1992, Democrats won even though the wine was bad. This rule may not have worked during prohibition, but it has a pretty good success rate for the last half century -- eight out of 11 predicted right.
What about this year? Well, the grapes are still growing, so we don't know the quality of the wine yet, but we intend to conduct comprehensive and thorough tests on a large sample. We'll let you know.
How about this rule? If the National League wins the World Series, the Democrat wins. If the American League takes the title, the Republican wins. It's worked for the Democrats three times and for the Republicans five times. But the National League won in 1980 and 1988, and so did the GOP. And three times both the American League and the Democrats came out on top. The success rate for the World Series rule is not quite as good -- eight out of 13 correct predictions. But the implications are clear: If the Atlanta Braves win the Series this year, Gore gets in. A CNN bias, perhaps? But watch out, Yankee fans, old and new, you root for the Yankees, you're rooting for George W. Bush.
SCHNEIDER: Now here's an interesting model devised by author Pete Nelson, writing in Slate.com. He claims that it's correctly predicted the winner of every election since the first Super Bowl in 1967. The model says that DV, the Democratic share of the two-party vote, depends on two things: One is SBLP, the number of points scored by the losing team in the Super Bowl. If the losers have a high score, that pumps up the Democratic vote. OB stands for "Olympic boycott." If a superpower boycotts the Olympics, that hurts the Democrats. Notice the minus sign. Well, we're not expecting an Olympic boycott this year, and the Super Bowl was a pretty hot game. So plug in the numbers and what do you get? Gore wins, narrowly.
The Tennessee Titans may have lost the Super Bowl, but they scored enough points to deliver the election for their own Al Gore.
SCHNEIDER: Now, remember the 1998 midterm, when all the experts forecast that the Democrats would lose seats in the House? Well, the rule was that the president's party always loses House seats in a midterm election, except in 1998 when they didn't.
So remember "The Schneider Rule": Forecasting models always work except when they don't work. Or maybe the Yogi Berra rule: "Never make predictions, especially about the future."
SHAW: And it ain't over until it's over.
SCHNEIDER: That, too.
SHAW: Thank you, Bill Schneider.
WOODRUFF: But I'll make a prediction: Hemlines down this year, but they'll be up next year.
WOODRUFF: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) presidential elections.
SHAW: Write that down.
WOODRUFF: Much more ahead on this edition of INSIDE POLITICS.
SHAW: Still to come...
BRUCE MORTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: From sign on to sign off, your television airwaves are deluged with political ads during the election season.
SHAW: Our Bruce Morton on money, television and the endangered status of local political coverage.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Voters in the land of dot.coms and microchips can't always be counted on to swing to the left or to the right.
WOODRUFF: Rusty Dornin on a competitive race to represent Silicon Valley.
And later...
SHAW: The candidate from Metropolis? A comic book look at the presidential campaign.
WOODRUFF: We'll have more of the day's political news coming up, but now a look at some other top stories. The governor of Colorado declares a state of emergency as two major wildfires burn out of control. The fires erupted yesterday southwest of Denver. The two fires have burned more than 5,500 acres. Hundreds have fled their homes.
SHAW: Now to Los Alamos, New Mexico, where last month's devastating wildfires may have led to the misplacement of two computer hard drives containing nuclear secrets.
CNN's Greg LaMotte reports.
GREG LAMOTTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Los Alamos Laboratory officials speculate confusion caused by last month's devastating fires here may have caused someone to misplace extremely sensitive classified information regarding nuclear weapons. The classified information was found to be missing May 7th when fires were burning on the laboratory's property. But for some unknown reason, laboratory officials weren't told about it until May 31st.
The classified information was stored on hard drives that were said to be clearly marked.
GENE TUCKER, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF SECURITY, LOS ALAMOS LABORATORY: I can't rule out espionage nor can I say specifically espionage is at the heart of it. We do know that the vault in question was secure, that the people who entered the vault were authorized to enter the vault. There was no evidence that the vault had been tampered with.
JOHN BROWNE, DIRECTOR, LOS ALAMOS LABORATORY: We turned this lab upside down. We had people looking in every conceivable place, and we did not find anything. So we ran into a brick wall and asked the Energy Department and the FBI to come in and help us.
LAMOTTE: Every employee with access to the vault where the classified material was taken has been interviewed. This incident comes on the heels of the arrest of a former lab scientist, Wen Ho Lee, who's accused of mishandling classified materials.
(on camera): The classified information is said to be on hard drives, two of them, each about the size of a deck of cards. Laboratory officials say they do not believe there is any connection between this incident and the arrest last December of Wen Ho Lee. He was a scientist who was accused of mishandling classified information. The Department of Energy and FBI are currently involved in the investigation.
Greg LaMotte, CNN, Los Alamos, New Mexico.
WOODRUFF: A nationwide search is on for the son of basketball Hall of Famer Dr. J. His family says 19-year-old Cory Erving has been missing for 16 days and may be in danger. Today, Julius Erving made a public plea for help. He is offering a $25,000 reward for his son's return.
SHAW: Pledges to work toward one united Korea set off today's historic summit in Seoul. Hundreds of thousands gathered around televisions to watch the event. This is the first time leaders from the North and South are meeting since the Korean War, nearly 50 years ago to the week.
An emotional day in Syria climaxed with the burial of President Hafez al-Assad. Leaders from around the world as well as thousands of mourners turned out for the funeral procession. The crowd chanted its support for Bashar al-Assad, who is set to assume the presidency.
When INSIDE POLITICS returns, two views of the way local TV news covers, or does not cover, the candidates.
WOODRUFF: Advocates of political reform often decry the huge amount of cash spent on campaign ads, particularly in presidential and Senate races. Well, there's new evidence today of the big money being poured into campaign commercials and why many voters rely on those spots to get information about candidates.
In his "Campaign Journal," our Bruce Morton looks at the dynamic between television commercials and political news coverage.
MORTON (voice-over): From sign-on to sign-off, your television airwaves are deluged with political ads during the election season. In fact, according to a new study in the 75 top media markets, local TV stations took in $114 million -- a record -- for playing 151,000 political ads in the first four months of the year.
Jon Corzine, who won the Democratic Senate primary in New Jersey, is the poster boy of this trend...
NARRATOR: Two-hundred-and-eighty-thousand people lost their jobs.
MORTON: ... thirty-seven-hundred-eleven ads on four New York and Philadelphia stations. You have to buy those markets to campaign in New Jersey. Viewers, the study says, were 10 times more likely to see a Corzine ad than a political report on local news. Corzine, a rich unknown, spent mostly his own money.
As for political coverage, 30 days before the local primary, the Annenberg School of Communication at the University of Southern California surveyed coverage on 19 stations in 11 cities: three, WCBB in Boston and WMAR in Manchester covered New Hampshire, and WEWS in Cleveland gave more than three minutes coverage a night. The other 16 provided an average of 39 seconds. To be fair, that's a sound bite from the candidates and doesn't count stories about campaign strategy, who is ahead and so forth.
(on camera): Many assignment editors believe and some surveys indicate that a lot of Americans aren't very interested in politics. These new studies should probably be read along with a Pew Foundation Report released Monday which shows Americans less interested in news and increasingly turning to the Internet for the news they want.
(voice-over): Virtually all news organizations -- newspapers, networks, and so on -- have Web sites; so do virtually all campaigns and a lot of special and public interest groups: labor unions, the NRA, and so on. Television may be doing less and may be watched less in politics. The Internet is certainly doing more.
Bruce Morton, CNN, Washington.
SHAW: Joining us now, Martin Kaplan, associate dean at the Annenberg School For Communication, which conducted that study of political news coverage on local television stations; and Dan Bradley, news director of WFLA-TV in Tampa, Florida.
Martin, first to you, how did you determine the average 39 seconds of news coverage nightly?
MARTIN KAPLAN, ANNENBERG SCHOOL OF COMMUNICATION: We had volunteers taping the shows from 5:00 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., and then using time codes went through and scored for all the times that candidates were shown speaking on the news programming, and then the stations were ranked and grouped and averaged and statistically cross checked.
SHAW: Can you say that in some major cities as diverse as Philadelphia and Tampa, Florida, that some averages were six seconds a night?
KAPLAN: Yes, that's true, but I do want to say in the case of WFLA in Florida, for example, measuring how much time candidates' sound bites are on the air may not indicate the full range that a station is doing. In their case, voices of the voter was a pioneering effort to put the voices of ordinary citizens on the air, and it counted for a good chunk of programming.
That's not the same thing as having candidates on the air and it's also not the same thing as having three or four or five more hours a night of campaign coverage, as some other stations did. Nevertheless, there are stations that are trying to do something innovative.
SHAW: Point well taken.
And to you, Dan, what's your basic reaction to these findings, given your market there?
DAN BRADLEY, NEWS DIRECTOR, WFLA-TV: It's not -- it doesn't surprise me too much, but I appreciate the doctor pointing out the fact that we don't specialize in just chasing the candidates around and putting their stump speeches on TV, because quite frankly, they don't differ that much often times from the advertising.
We try to keep our political coverage very focused on the issues that through our own polling we have determined the people in our market are interested in and concerned with, and we feel our role is to kind of dissect the politician's message and allow the viewers to kind of understand where the various politicians have voted in the past, what their activity has been in the past on the issues that have meaning and impact on their lives within our own market, and that's not necessarily accomplished by taking sound bites off podiums where they make stump speeches at the airport.
SHAW: Well, given these national findings, what do you think it would take, Dan, for local stations to cover politics, political news more?
BRADLEY: Well, I think you have to work very hard to put the coverage in a -- in the context of each local market. I think the coverage has to be relevant and it has to be important, and that does not necessarily mean just turning the microphone over and letting the sound bites start rolling. I think you have to focus it on the issues that are important.
All politics is local. I don't care if you're running for president, or you're running for circuit judge, the only thing that the people in Tampa, or St. Petersburg, or Sarasota care about are the issues that are important to them, and that's often detached from what's going on in Washington. That's why we focused our coverage primarily on issues and away from the candidates.
We are going to participate with the campaign for better elections, though, and we will be providing free time within our newscast for candidates for statewide and federal office to state their positions, and we'll do that in an unedited manner.
KAPLAN: Which is a phenomenal thing, and you should be applauded for it, as should be the other news directors who are in competition, murderous pressures for ratings, still trying to do something in addition to crime, traffic, sports and weather. So, the fact that you're going to incorporate that into your fall coverage is amazing. The more stations that can follow your lead, the better we are.
SHAW: Yes, but, Martin, you know and Dan knows, our viewers know that Dan's station is the exception, it's not the rule.
KAPLAN: And so, what we are in the midst of doing, thanks to a new grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts, is to take best practices and make them available around the country, and give...
SHAW: All right, let me -- I'm sorry. Let me ask...
KAPLAN: Go ahead, Bernie.
SHAW: No, please go ahead, finish your point. KAPLAN: The -- there are terrific things going on in newsrooms all around the country that other newsrooms are hungry to find out about. They are dying for the tools and they don't have the money, they don't have the resources to hire political reporters, they don't have political producers.
SHAW: Let me ask this question of Dan Bradley. Why are local news executives so afraid to walk the plank and extend five minutes of free air time to local candidates?
BRADLEY: Well, Bernie, that has the potential of being a deadly five minutes of television and we are talking about an audience that often times has an attention span in large part because of the way that we've trained them of about a minute and a half to two minutes at best.
And so, it's going to be important that if we do this -- if every television station in the country could turn over five minutes to everybody running for office, and if most of the viewers changed the channel or turn it off, what have we accomplished? I'm not certain that just giving a free microphone and free podium to allow them to keep the same basic stump speech going is the answer.
BRADLEY: I think the answer is addressing the issues that people care about.
KAPLAN: On the other -- but on the other hand, WCBB in Boston and WEWS in Cleveland managed to bring in politicians and bring in reporters doing analysis as part of produced pieces, and they were the number one in their markets before, during and after they did this.
SHAW: And very quickly...
BRADLEY: And we are going to do much of the same thing. And I'm not concerned about whether it's going to hurt the ratings. I am concerned about our mission to the community that we have. We have an obligation to provide a community service and part of that is making sure that the electorate is informed and educated when they go into the booth to make their choices, and we have to do that...
SHAW: And let...
BRADLEY: And just putting more sound bites on the air is not the solution. Coming up with ways to cover important issues is where the coverage has to go.
SHAW: And quickly to you, Martin Kaplan, did candidates always accept free air time?
KAPLAN: No, indeed, front-runners notoriously don't want to take it. The truth is that the Gore Commission, which looked at what the public interest responsibilities of broadcast stations should be, decided that candidate discourse, sound bites were a good measure and that five minutes was a good idea. Some stations were able to figure out what to do with that.
SHAW: OK, Dan Bradley, WFLA-TV news director in Tampa, Florida; and Martin Kaplan, director of the Norman Lear Center, University of Southern Cal., and the associate dean of the Annenberg School of Communication, very interesting conversation, gentlemen. Thank you.
KAPLAN: Thank you, Bernie.
BRADLEY: Thank you.
SHAW: Quite welcome.
And just ahead: Who will represent California's high-tech district? A look at the candidates and their fight for voter support.
WOODRUFF: With Democrats needing to pick up just six seats to take control of the House of Representatives, open seats are crucial to both parties: that is, seats without an incumbent running. That is the case in California's 15th district, where a close race is shaping up.
Rusty Dornin reports.
DORNIN (voice-over): Voters in the land of dot.coms and microchips can't always be counted on to swing to the left or to the right. Silicon Valley is known for its political crossovers: one reason why the 15th congressional district race will be a tight one.
TERRY CHRISTENSEN, SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY: A lot of money is going to come in from around the state and around the country because this is such a key seat.
DORNIN: Key for the Republicans to hold power in the House; key for the Democrats to gain control. Moderate Republican Tom Campbell is giving up his seat to run for Senate against Democratic incumbent Dianne Feinstein. Democrat Mike Honda, a longtime grass-roots politician, faces Republican Jim Cunneen, a former high-tech executive who casts himself as a leader for the new economy.
JIM CUNNEEN (R), CALIFORNIA CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: At least I'm a guy who's actually been to Beijing on behalf of a high- technology company, and Shanghai and Taipei. I've been all over Asia in the role of a high-technology worker.
MIKE HONDA (D), CALIFORNIA CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: Certainly he's paying attention to a lot of the captains of the industry. I've paid attention to the needs of the folks who work, and you know, support the captains of the industry.
DORNIN: Paying attention to both candidates are Washington's movers and shakers. President Clinton personally asked Mike Honda to run and Cunneen has gained Republican endorsements from George W. Bush and John McCain.
Democrat Mike Honda has more name recognition here. Democrats outnumber Republicans by 8 percent. Honda easily won the primary, but Republicans say he is a labor Democrat and member of the old guard.
HONDA: Latin America and Asia are going to be the two major new areas. I'm bilingual in Spanish. I've got an Asian face. I've got an Asian culture. And I'm American, too. So you get three in one.
DORNIN: Both are state legislators. Both are pro-abortion rights and strong environmentalists. Cunneen bills himself as a moderate on social issues, but a fiscal conservative who wants to create an environment where high tech will flourish.
CUNNEEN: Silicon Valley is a special place, and who represents this area needs to understand its role in the new economy and its place in the global economy.
DORNIN (on camera): Silicon Valley, home to the new economy, may also be home to a new breed of politics, one where party lines don't necessarily define the candidate.
Rusty Dornin, CNN, San Francisco.
SHAW: And then we have this story from Michigan: Republican Senator Spence Abraham's attacks on his Democratic opponent, Congresswoman Debbie Stabenow, have attracted the attention of a well- known snack cake company. McKee Foods, the makers of Little Debbie snacks, says Abraham's "Liberal Debbie" logo is a trademark infringement. The company wants Abraham to pull the image based on its Little Debbie logo from Abraham's LiberalDebbie.com Web site. McKee Foods says the look-alike logo also mistakenly suggests the company endorses the senator's bid for re-election.
The Abraham campaign will consider the request, but a spokesman says they don't feel they've done anything wrong.
WOODRUFF: Up next, George W. Bush and capital punishment, Al Gore and the economy. We'll ask Mary Matalin and Bill Press for their perspectives.
WOODRUFF: Mary Matalin and Bill Press of CNN's "CROSSFIRE" join us now.
Mary and Bill, great to see you both.
BILL PRESS, CO-HOST, CNN "CROSSFIRE": Good afternoon.
MARY MATALIN, CO-HOST, CNN "CROSSFIRE": Hello, Judy.
WOODRUFF: Questions being raised in the last few days about Governor Bush of Texas and the implementation of the death penalty in his state.
Mary, is this an issue that he is going to be and should be worrying about right now?
MATALIN: Well, I don't see how it can become an issue in the presidential race. It's not being raised by his opponent, Al Gore. Why is that? Because they agree on everything. They're both pro- death penalty. They're both against a moratorium. They're both for DNA evidence.
The difference between George Bush and Al Gore is that George Bush is taking a leadership stand on this. He is the only person in this race who has been in a position to make those hard decisions and to implement those hard decisions, and Al Gore won't even speak to the issue.
So I don't know how it can become an issue other than the absence of leadership on the part of the vice president.
PRESS: I think it already is an issue. I think George Bush is already the executioner in chief. I mean, since he's been governor, 131 executions in the state of Texas, Judy. And unfortunately for George Bush, there are 18 more scheduled between now and election day.
Now, I would agree with Mary. I'm not sure -- I don't see how Gore, unfortunately, can use this against George W. Bush. But I think it's an issue that people can raise to question George Bush's sincerity and to question the phrase "compassionate conservative." I mean, you simply cannot say that all 131 of those people were -- he knows that they were guilty. He cannot make that statement.
MATALIN: Here's how he can say it, if I may, because this is one of the states in the Union which has a nearly impeccable procedure. On average, a convict who is sentenced to death goes through at least, at a minimum, 23 appellate processes. The error rate in Texas is well below the national average. The system works in Texas. When George Bush says he's confident of the innocence, or the lack thereof, of those who have been executed, he means it. And he knows it because his system works.
WOODRUFF: So despite this investigative piece in the "Chicago Tribune," you're saying there's nothing there?
PRESS: No. The system in Texas is one of the worst in the country. They have no...
MATALIN: They have done what?
PRESS: Pardon me, pardon me, I didn't interrupt you. They have no public defender system in the state of Texas, for example, which means that judges appoint the drunken local attorney who happens to be their buddy, like Ronald Mock that The New York Times profiled the other day. There's so many -- and he's one of the guys, you know, who's been proven incompetent in the courtroom.
And you have this system where these guys who -- their defense attorneys are asleep in the courtroom. They don't make the arguments. They don't bring on witnesses. It's a sham, and George Bush has presided over it.
MATALIN: Judy, I must again answer that. When there is incompetent counsel -- that's why I interrupted you, because you say it's the worst in the nation based on nothing -- it's one of the best systems in the nation. If there is incompetent counsel, which is frequently the case, that's a problem in the system. That is grounds for a new trial. Twenty-three, on average, appellate processes before this -- that error rate in Texas, I will repeat again, is way below the national average. If you want to make that case at large, fine. If you're just trying to make a political case and you want to use yet another case to attack Al Gore -- George Bush...
PRESS: I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I know the death penalty. I know the processes. You cannot defend the Texas system. There's so many people -- Ronald Mock, incompetent attorney, has so many people on death row, they've renamed death row "Mock Wing." Explain that to George Bush. It is an issue.
WOODRUFF: All right, let's turn the corner to Al Gore.
Mary, he's on what they're calling a "Progress and Prosperity Tour," likening himself to how well the economy is doing; smart move on his part?
MATALIN: Well, you can change your issues. You can change your hair. You can change your clothes, but you can't change the fact if you're Al Gore, that he has a problem with his candidacy. He is weak. He shows weak leadership. This is -- what? -- his sixth incarnation? He first was chasing George Bush around. Now, he's trying to run on an issue that isn't his to run on. Alan Greenspan and anybody who knows, including the American people, understand that the productivity -- or the progress and prosperity that we enjoy is the result of increased productivity of the American worker, not something Al Gore did.
PRESS: Here's something I find very funny, Judy. When there's a Republican president: always get credits for any economic good news. When there's a Democratic president: deserves no credit at all. And that's just baloney, Mary. I would give Ronald Reagan some credit. I give George Bush some credit. He -- "Read my lips," right? He still raised taxes, and that was a good move.
But Bill Clinton, seven out of these nine years have been under Bill Clinton, starting in 1993 with his economic recovery plan, with not one Republican vote in Congress. I think it's the worst-kept secret that this is the best economy we've known, and Al Gore should be taking some credit for it, and he should get credit for it.
WOODRUFF: But Mary, can Al Gore make the case that under George Bush, things would necessarily get worse?
MATALIN: Well, how can he make that case if the economy is the result of an unexpected surge in technology, which is what Alan Greenspan says, if it's the result of workers making use of that technology to increase their productivity? What George Bush would do is keep the economy growing by giving people more of the money they earned back. He would also give then people more control over their own lives, their own retirement, their own education, their own health care. That's the difference between Bush and Gore.
PRESS: Here's the challenge, Judy, that George Bush has to prove: It ain't broke, but we've got to fix it anyway. That's a tough challenge. What Al Gore has to prove is: We're doing great; we put Alan Greenspan in; we kept him in; we cut the deficit -- eliminated the deficit -- we cut the budget; we have this huge surplus; and we have to spend it wisely.
WOODRUFF: But right now, he's not reaping the benefits of that.
PRESS: That's true. And you know why? Because they haven't tried. He and Clinton have not reached out to try it. I think it's about time they did.
MATALIN: I would love for Al Gore to talk about leaving the money here and spending it wisely. It doesn't even matter if there's a conservative congress. Money kept in Washington is never spent wisely. The riskiest thing to do is keep more of that money that we're -- it's our money, it's not the government's money doing it here. Go ahead, go for it.
PRESS: Fixing Social Security, fixing Medicare, paying down the national debt is spending the money prudently and wisely.
MATALIN: All a wish, which Bush is supporting with better policies than Gore.
PRESS: Not with a big tax cut, he's not.
WOODRUFF: Bill Press, Mary Matalin, thank you both. Great to see you -- Bernie.
SHAW: Well, first Doonesbury, now D.C. Comics. Lex Luthor, of the "Superman" comic book series, will make a bid for the White House this election year. Superman's nemesis will announce his candidacy tomorrow in the latest issue of the "Superman" comic. Luthor, who has reformed his evil villain ways, has the distinction of being the only person to have saved both Gotham City and Metropolis. In case you're wondering, Lex Luthor is running on a third party ticket.
And Judy, that means we have yet another race to follow.
WOODRUFF: And where would Bill and Mary come down on him?
SHAW: Well, that's all for this edition of INSIDE POLITICS. We'll see you again tomorrow, when our Chris Black will be with the vice president in Pennsylvania as he continues his -- quote -- "Progress and Prosperity Tour" -- unquote. And of course, you can go online all the time at CNN's allpolitics.com.
WOODRUFF: And this programming note, Republican Senate candidate George Allen of Virginia, and California Democratic Governor Gray Davis will be discussing capital punishment tonight on "CROSSFIRE." That's at 7:30 p.m. Eastern.
I'm Judy Woodruff.
I'm Bernard Shaw.
"WORLDVIEW" is next.
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A Fun Day at The Fun Dome
In the timeless poetry of Trooper, the sun can't shine every day. And while I am busy stockpiling ideas for wintery day activities with my children, chances are I'm not actually going to create elaborate obstacle courses with hula hoops and yarn. Every morning ...Read More

subset: commoncrawl


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(Was it worth it, Canon Kearon? Welcome to the club.)
For a look at what really went on at the meeting of the Executive Council, we can take the official press accounts only as a point of departure, and then fill in the gaps. When one takes the effort to do this, the picture that emerges is very different indeed from the one ENS tries to sell you.
Here is the ENS account of what took place on the opening day of the meeting (June 16):
The Episcopal Church's Executive Council began its three-day meeting here June 16 by hearing about the efforts to rebuild two dioceses: Haiti and San Joaquin. . . .
And now, for some reality: as the largest of all of the dioceses affiliated with ECUSA, Haiti serves to point up why San Joaquin is not a diocese, either in canon law or in fact. According to ECUSA's latest available statistics, the average Sunday attendance (ASA) for Haiti went from 15,807 in 2007 to 16,631 in 2008; in contrast, San Joaquin went from 3,965 in 2007 to just 896 in 2008. In other words, it would take almost 20 "San Joaquins" to equal just one Haiti. San Joaquin is on a par with Eau Claire (892 ASA in 2008), Northern Michigan (653), Quincy (935), North Dakota (804), and Western Kansas (801) -- all dioceses which are struggling to survive.
Back to the ENS story:
Bonnie Anderson, president of the House of Deputies and council vice president, yielded the majority of her time for opening remarks to Diocese of San Joaquin Provisional Bishop Jerry Lamb who updated the council on the work to rebuild the central California diocese since the group met there in January 2009.
"I want to tell you clearly and loudly that the clergy and laity of the Diocese of San Joaquin are committed to the Episcopal Church and to the Episcopal sense of what it is to be God's people," he said.
He said that the Episcopalians who remained after the former leadership and a majority of its members joined in December 2007 the Argentina-based Anglican Province of the Southern Cone have tried to reconcile, revive, renew and rebuild. Lamb said that efforts to reconcile with those who left "bore very, very little fruit" . . .
Let me see, now -- why might that be, Bishop Lamb? Could it be your arbitrary and uncanonical deposition of sixty-one San Joaquin clergy? No? Oh, I know -- it's your systematic campaign of lawsuits filed against now five of the largest incorporated parishes. Yes, that would certainly make "reconciliation" very, very difficult. . .
. . . but that 21 worshipping communities have reformed and 18 of them have shown "significant but slow growth."
"They are becoming much, much stronger," Lamb said.
"Much, much stronger," Bishop Lamb? Then why did you come to the Executive Council Meeting -- just to tell them this? It wasn't to ask them for more money, was it?
He said he has recently experienced "a palpable shift" of attitude in many congregations from survival mode to how to be active in mission and ministry in their wider communities. "We truly are a missionary diocese in San Joaquin," he said.Whoops -- "a missionary diocese": wrong choice of words, Bishop Lamb. Very bad for ECUSA's litigation strategy. For example, take a look at what ECUSA recently alleged in its lawsuit against the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth (emphasis added):
26. The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth is not a Missionary Diocese. The Constitution and canons of the Church do not provide for or permit the release, withdrawal, or transfer of any diocese that is not a Missionary Diocese.
No, you definitely want to stay away from the concept of a "missionary diocese", Bishop Lamb. Missionary Dioceses are permitted under the canons to join another Province of the Anglican Communion (and many revisionists use that point as an argument from silence -- a very weak silence, to be sure -- to contend why regular dioceses may not do so).All those depositions, and all those lawsuits on the burner certainly can wear one out. And what better time to pull out, before anything has been decided against you? That way, your successor will have to deal with any consequences of all the lawsuits you have filed. But meanwhile -- there is that little matter of money, isn't there? Because, as you hinted above, litigation can be enormously expensive and lengthy. However, the ENS story about San Joaquin ends at this point, and we have to look elsewhere to see what happened at the Executive Council Meeting.
The diocese had to be rebuilt from "nothing but a commitment to remain in the Episcopal Church," Lamb said. Much work needed to be done and still needs to be done to teach the basics of the Episcopal expression of the Christian faith as well as its polity and tradition, and leadership skills in general, he said.Yes, all that litigation you initiated can be very distracting from the main goals, can't it -- unless the "main goals" of your outfit are to sue every Anglican church in sight to get their buildings and bank accounts. And we shall see more about your "main goals" as this story unfolds.
The diocese has created an equality commission to look at ways to incorporate women, gays and lesbians and people of color into the church and "to renew that sense of the church as a wide tent," he said.Whenever possible, turn something as basic as equality over to a commission to produce a report, which can be filed away. That's the American way.
Property litigation "has been enormous and extremely lengthy" and even though the state courts have consistently ruled in favor of the diocese and with the wider church, "yet we are quite a bit behind where we thought we would be" in the effort to regain property, he told the council.Quite a bit behind where you thought you would be, Bishop Lamb? Could that be because the "state courts" in San Joaquin have not exactly "consistently ruled in favor of the diocese," as you say, Bishop Lamb? Given that to date, there has been only one such decision in your favor, by a trial court in Fresno -- whose decision is even now under review by the Fifth District Court of Appeals? Aren't you stretching things a bit, Bishop Lamb?
Lamb also said that he had recently asked the diocese and Jefferts Schori to begin a search for a second provisional bishop. He said he realized earlier this year that "I was wearing out and I needed a break." Lamb has been the diocese's provisional bishop since March 2008. He said he has only had a few months off since he retired from the Diocese of Northern California in January 2007.
Let's go to this report by ENS of all the actions approved by the Executive Council over its three-day session. There we find, buried in a long list of measures adopted, that the Council:
Supported the Diocese of San Joaquin in its protection of diocesan properties and continuing operations by making available for loan $500,000 for legal actions, drawable at any time through 2012; and $350,000 for operations, drawable during calendar year 2011 (loan terms, which may include deferral of interest payments, to be determined in consultation between the diocese and DFMS treasurer, the presiding officers and the chief operating officer) (FFM024). (DFMS refers to the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society of the Episcopal Church, the legal name of the church in the United States.) [Bold emphasis added.]
Now let's do some math. According to those statistics quoted earlier, San Joaquin had just 2,246 members in 2008, of which an average of just 896 went to church each Sunday. And what Bishop Lamb just did for them, as his parting act, was to commit them to repayment of a further $850,000 in loans, in order to finance litigation and the operations needed to be carried on while the litigation is making its way through the courts. And that is on top of $125,000 previously borrowed from the DFMS, and $420,000 previously received from the DFMS -- the latter apparently as a "grant", which perhaps means it will not have to be repaid.
Add those numbers up: the total comes to one million, three hundred and ninety-five thousand dollars in grants and loans to a diocese of just 2,246 people: that is over $620 for every man, woman and youth in the diocese (or nearly $1,600 for just those coming to church). That is a humongous subsidy for such a small part of ECUSA; on a per capita basis, it dwarfs the amounts paid by ECUSA to subsidize any other diocese. (Nor does this take into account the other ways in which ECUSA uses its trust funds to prop up its Potemkin diocese, as we shall examine in the next part of this post.)
Of course, looked at the other way, that is an enormous debt with which to saddle any group in the Church -- with zero results to show after Bishop Lamb's more than two years in office, and in the face of the many shortcomings and inadequacies to which Bishop Lamb admitted. In a second installment of this post, I shall examine the religious and social dimensions of such a huge gamble, and what it entails for persons like Bishop Lamb and groups like the Executive Council, who should be acting as fiduciaries to the people who elected them.


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Password: tdats
Welcome to The Day After The Sabbath volume 99, approaching the full century! This episode brings you heavy rock and prog that uses violins. Hearing that, some of you may be thinking of making a quick exit, expecting a lot of country and folk. While there is some classical and folk influence here, I have looked also for tracks where the riffs are rock-styled, but played on violins. Showing the international appeal of the instrument, this set includes a wide spread of nationalities, including the UK, The US, France, Germany, Spain, Belgium and even Argentina.
What has the violin brought to rock music? It is certainly an instrument famed for conveying emotion, especially those of a maudlin or introspective nature. Conversely, one of the stirring qualities of violins is how they can promote speed and vitality. A versatile instrument indeed, with many available techniques like picking, bowing and strumming. Some violin runs are played so fast that they can compare easily to the most technical parts in progressive rock, or even the fastest of technical and thrash metal. Let's get fiddlin!
miguelcantilo.com.ar | metal-archives.com
gremmy-guitar.com | progarchives.com
|Saint-Preux - 'le piano sous la mer'
|Sinto - Right On Brother LP
We move on to Sinto. They were a German (München) fusion band fronted by jazz violinist Hannes Beckmann that started in 1971. They included members of krautrockers The Rattles (see Vol49), Embryo and Between. With a diverse mix of ethnicities in the band, German to African to Cuban members that Hannes met while playing in a Brazilian ballet orchestra, they made fast music with the violin taking a leading role in the riffs. "Things I See" is a great example with it's violin shredding right up front.
|Darryl Way
Asgaerd were one of the first bands to be signed by the Moody Blues' label Threshold. The "Asgard" of ancient North European mythology means 'castle of the gods'. The band consisted of guitarist/vocalist Rod Harrison (ex-Please and Bulldog Breed - see Vol74), vocalist James Smith and drummer Ian Snow (who were both in the excellent 'Stonehouse' - Vol29), vocalist Ted Bartlett, bassist Dave Cook and violinist Peter Orgil. One of Rod Harrison's songs, "Austin Osman Spare'', was actually recorded separately by Bulldog Breed and Asgaerd.
|In The Realm of Asgærd LP (1972)
|It's a Beautiful Day - David LaFlamme (L)
While being a very commercial sounding band, they rocked now and again, the best example being some tunes on side one of their third album called 'Choice Quality Stuff / Anytime". This is where "Creed Of Love" is taken from, David LeFlamme's roaring distorted violin sounds great over the funky riffs of guitarist Billy Gregory and the rest of the band.
|Cuentos de ayer y de hoy LP
|Carlos Molina José
|Ñu - Jean François André
|Jud's Gallery
An interesting side story regarding this band is that Jurgen Winter successfully sued Gary Moore for plagiarism, accusing him of copying the guitar solo from their "Nordrach" track and using it on his 1990 hit "Still Got The Blues". The justification for this claim was that Gary's roadie, live-mixer and good friend at the time William Hindmarsh, did work with Jud's back on live shows in the seventies.
The Jud's Gallery violinist was Hannes Greminger, he was also in a band called Open Voice which made an album in 1984. On 'Catch The Fly' he does an amazing job of creating all kinds of spacey sounds over the band's hard krautrock, with different techniques like picking, this tune is a real trip.
|Tennent & Morrison
Joe Soap
The folk influences from some of this impressive lineup come through, but mostly the album is upbeat, fun and immediately likable rock, and rock it does in many places. Mik Kaminski's violin is not mainly at the forefront, but grooves away in perfect unison with McCulloch's cocky riffs to make it impossible to sit still listening to tracks like "Come Out From Under", which integrates the violin in a similar way to East of Eden on tracks like "Northern Hemisphere" (See Vol74).
|Zoo - Hard Times, Good Times
single (1972)
By 1975, due to a lack of the success they had worked for, Zoo had been finished for a while. Brothers André Hervé (keyboards) and Michel Hervé (bass) started Z.O.U. with two further brothers Joel Hervé, Stephan Hervé, along with singer Maria Popkiewicz. After this André, Michel and Maria all had a spell in the afore-mentioned Magma.
|Raymond Vincent
|Metronomics LP
|Miguel Cantilo y Grupo Sur
|Miguel Cantilo & 'El Bolsón'
|String Driven Thing - Heartfeeder LP inside
The violinist of String Driven Thing is Graham Smith, who was also in a brief incarnation of Van der Graaf Generator simply called 'Van der Graaf', and contributed on the UK folk-prog Greenslade album "Spyglass Guest".
Taken from the band's third album, our closing track is called 'Heartfeeder', and that was what Chris intended the name for the album to be too. It is a harrowing track, that uses the skills of Graham Smith to beautiful, emotional effect with the ever-longing pathos of the violin. Unfortunately the record label were not happy with the disturbing direction that the music had taken compared to previous work, and the LP's title was changed to "The Machine That Cried". They also insisted that the longer track's play times were edited down. There is an interview with Chris Adams and Graham Smith here at psychedelic baby webzine: http://psychedelicbaby.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/string-driven-thing-interview.html
Thanks for listening! Rich
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EAST LANSING, Mich. —The Clinton County Road Commission, in partnership with the City of East Lansing, will hold a public information meeting for the upcoming Coleman Road Extension Project.The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at the East Lansing Department of Public Works, 1800 E. State Road.The meeting will provide an overview of the project, including the extension of Coleman Road from West Road to Wood Road, infrastructure improvements and installation of sidewalk and bike lanes. East Lansing residents can expect the project to be constructed this year, with tree removal taking place prior to March 31 and the majority of construction taking place June-September.The funding for this project is provided by a state appropriation from the State of Michigan.


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Bukh, Nikolai Konstantinovich
Bukh, Nikolai Konstantinovich
Born Nov. 6 (18), 1853, in Kaluga; died after 1934. Russian revolutionary Narodnik.
In 1873, Bukh entered the Academy of Medicine and Surgery, joined the revolutionary movement in St. Petersburg, and participated in "going out to the people." In the middle of the 1870's he was a member of the so-called Southern Rebels group. From 1879 he was a member of Land and Liberty and then of People's Will. When the printing press of People's Will was smashed, he offered armed resistance. Bukh was sentenced to 15 years at hard labor in 1880 at the "trial of the 16"; he served a 15-year term of forced labor on the Kara River. He returned from Siberia in 1895 and remained a member of the Socialist Revolutionaries until 1917.


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The King's Army of the English Civil War Society will be commemorating the execution of Charles I with their customary march down the Mall, parade on Horseguards and march back up the Mall on Sunday morning. The march usually starts around eleven.
It is a little self-indulgent in some ways, but who's going to turn down the chance to have any sort of event in that location?
Come along - it's a chance for some decent photos if nothing else!
At a loose end in London Sunday 27th?
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Economics & Finance
BOFA-MERRILL LYNCH says Venezuela issues most debt in Latin America
The Chavez Administration has resorted to borrowing abroad to increase the government's cash flow to boost the economy. In its latest report on Venezuela, Bank of America Merrill Lynch states that this year the country issued US dollar denominated bonds for U$D 7.2 billion, which is 46% of all debt placed by the major economies of Latin America. The financial institution forecasts that in 20012 Venezuela will continue to be Latin America's largest issuer of foreign debt to cover its fiscal deficit, due to the policy of increased spending in the midst of an election year. (El Universal, 12-29-2011; http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/111229/venezuela-is-the-country-that-issues-most-debt-in-latin-america)
FITCH projects expanded credit and liquidity in the Venezuelan banking system
In a report analyzing tendencies within the Andean region's banking system FITCH says Venezuela will continue increasing credit. "FITCH expects that the overall portfolio will continue to expand in real terms during 2012 as the expansive fiscal policy supports economic growth". More in Spanish: (El Universal; 12-29-2011; http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/111229/fitch-proyecta-expansion-del-credito-y-amplia-liquidez-en-la-banca)
Government held banks increase financing to Government up to 106%
The Finance Ministry is relying more on state controlled banks as a source for public spending. The Ministry sells bonds and Treasury bills on a weekly basis to these banks in order to increase cash availability. The Bank Superintendent reports that bond and bill portfolios increased by 106% from November 2010 to November 2011, from VB 24.388 billion to VB 50.255 billion. The main activity of government held banks is to purchase financial instruments from the Ministry. More in Spanish: (El Universal, 12-30-2011; http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/111230/banca-publica-eleva-106-financiamiento-al-gobierno)
Chavez creates Advisory Council on arbitration, expropriations
President Hugo Chavez created councils to advise the government on international arbitration cases and the expropriation of assets here. Chavez, who has seized assets from 1,045 companies since coming to power in 1999 according to Venezuelan manufacturing association CONINDUSTRIA, will receive a monthly report from the boards, according to two decrees published in the Official Gazette. (Bloomberg, 12-27-2911; http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-27/chavez-creates-advisory-councils-on-arbitration-expropriations.html)
Chavez claims 2011 GDP will be close to U$D 300 billion
According to President Chavez, 2011 GDP will be close to U$D 300 billion, up from less than U$D 100 billion a decade ago. He also claims per capita GDP is over U$D 10,000, up from U$D 4,000 during the same period. More in Spanish: (AVN, 12-29-2011; http://www.avn.info.ve/contenido/pib-cerrará-este-año-cerca-300-mil-millones and http://www.avn.info.ve/contenido/chávez-pib-cápita-supera-10000-dólares-al-cierre-2011)
PDVSA's accounts receivable mount to U$D 10.7 billion
Energy agreements are hitting the finances of the Venezuelan oil industry. Financial statements from the state-run oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA) for the first half of 2011 show that the accounts receivable stood at U$D 10.7 billion. The report underlines that such accounts are related to PDVSA's oil supply agreements with other nations. But these obligations have soared up from U$D 7.4 billion at the end of the second half of 2010. (El Universal, 12-28-2011; http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/111228/pdvsas-accounts-receivable-amount-to-usd-107-billion)
Chavez: Venezuela will be world's top oil exporter
Venezuela, which has the world's largest certified reserves of petroleum, will become the top oil exporter within the next 10 years, says President Hugo Chavez. He has recently said: "We will reach (exports of) around 10 million barrels (per day) in the next decade". The Andean nation was the globe's No. 1 oil exporter from 1925 to "nearly 1970" and remains among the leaders, "but the Arabs – Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran (sic) – surpassed us," Chavez said. (Latin American Herald Tribune, 12-28-2011; http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=456802&CategoryId=10717)
Shortages of basic food items hits consumption in 2011
Poor food supply hit Venezuela throughout 2011. AS in previous years, Venezuelans had to spend more time and money to buy the basic basket of foodstuffs. Products with controlled prices were the most seriously affected. Essential food items such as powdered milk, edible oil and beef were hard to find during most of the year. Other items such as coffee, precooked corn flour and margarine were scarce during the second half of 2011. According to economic research firm DATANÁLISIS, the shortage index ended this year at 24.8%, according to their latest survey, compared to 8% in January this year. (El Universal, 12-28-2011; http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/111228/shortage-of-basic-food-items-hits-consumption-in-2011)
FAO reports food inflation lower in region, persists in Venezuela
According to the UN's FAO general inflation remained stable in Latin America for the fourth consecutive month in November, as foodstuffs slowed slightly from the previous month. Annual foodstuff inflation in Latin America fell from 8.4% in October to 8.2% in November. The same reports says the annual food prices inflation increased by a percentage point in Chile, Panamá, Perú, Uruguay and Venezuela. More in Spanish: (El Universal, 12-30-2011; http://www.eluniversal.com/economia/111230/inflacion-en-alimentos-baja-en-la-region-pero-persiste-en-venezuela)
International Trade
Venezuela buying more weapons from Russia
Russia has approved credit worth U$D 4 billion to Venezuela to reinforce its military mainly in weapons. "Without the Russian readiness it would have been impossible for us to reach the training level and equipment we have now," says President Hugo Chavez, and adds that Venezuela will continue receiving air, land and sea defense equipment from Russia next year. According to Ígor Korotchenko, director of the Center that analyzes international weapons traffic, (TsAMTO), Venezuela took first place as a buyer of Russian army weaponry during 2011. Russian press agency RIA NOVOSTI reports that this year Venezuela boughtT-72B1 combat vehicles, BMP-3M infantry combat vehicles, BTR-80ª armored vehicles, artillery, missile launchers, anti-aircraft systems and other equipment. (Bernama, 12-29-2011; http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsworld.php?id=637108 and more in Spanish: El Universal, 12-30-2011; http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/111230/en-2011-venezuela-encabezo-compras-de-armas-rusas)
Chavez says Chinese banks to extend U$D 8 billion in financing
President Hugo Chavez said that Chinese banks will provide U$D 8 billion worth of loans next month for development projects, adding to the more than U$D 30 billion in financing since 2007 that is being repaid in oil. The Industrial & Commercial Bank of China will lend Venezuela U$D 4 billion, while the China Development Bank Corp. will loan another U$D 4 billion, renewing a bilateral investment fund, Chavez said today on state television. Bilateral trade between China and Venezuela will be about U$D 17 billion in 2011 and may reach U$D 20 billion next year, and Venezuela has increased its imports of household appliances from Qingdao Haier Co. and heavy machinery from XCMG Construction Machinery Co. using the credit line. (Business Week, 12-27-2011; http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-12-27/chavez-says-chinese-banks-to-extend-8-billion-in-financing.html)
Chavez muses on US Latin America cancer plot, US calls comments "horrific"
President Hugo Chavez has questioned whether the US has developed a secret technology to give cancer to left-wing leaders in Latin America. Treated for cancer this year, Chavez spoke a day after news that Argentina's president had the disease. Fernando Lugo of Paraguay, Dilma Rousseff of Brazil and her predecessor Lula have also had cancer. Chavez said this was "very strange" but stressed that he was thinking aloud rather than making "rash accusations". "Would it be strange if they had developed the technology to induce cancer and nobody knew about it?, Chavez asked in a televised speech to soldiers at an army base. He said the Central Intelligence Agency was behind chemical experiments in Guatemala in the 1940s and that it's possible that in year to come a plot will be uncovered that shows the U.S. spread cancer as a political weapon against its critics. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland called the comments "horrific and reprehensible", and said they were not worthy of further response. (BBC News, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-16349845; http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-1635906; Bloomberg, 12-28-2911; http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-28/chavez-u-s-may-be-behind-s-america-leaders-cancer.html; and Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/29/us-venezuela-usa-cancer-idUSTRE7BR14I20111229)
Iranian president to visit Venezuela, Cuba
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is to visit Venezuela and Cuba as part of a four-nation Latin America tour in the second week of January 2012, an official said Wednesday. Ahmadinejad will also visit Nicaragua and Ecuador on the trip, his international affairs director, Mohammad Reza Forghani, told the official news agency IRNA. (AFP, 12-28-2011; http://news.yahoo.com/iranian-president-visit-venezuela-cuba-131516559.html)
The following brief is a synthesis of the news as reported by a variety of media sources. As such, the views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of Duarte Vivas & Asociados and The Selinger Group.


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About two years ago I was browsing through Death Valley Jim's website and came across a beautiful rock art site in Mojave National Preserve. Called Counsel Rocks, I decided I had to find this site and visit it.
The Counsel Rocks site is a smattering of boulders at the base of a mesa. The main boulder, "Womb Rock", has a natural round window. Its polished floor hints at many people having passed through the opening.
The walls of the main boulder are decorated with petroglyphs and pictographs of various fertility symbols.
A bit of internet sleuthing and applied Google Earth skills led me to the site in time for our 2014 Thanksgiving visit to the park. In the interest of keeping this undamaged site pristine, I'm not providing any information on where it is or how to get there. It was (and could continue to still be) a sacred spot to the Chemehuevi, so if you do find your way there please treat the site with respect.


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Ghiassee, Barham (2010) The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty: forty years of international peace & energy security. Nuclear Future, 6(6), pp. 337-341. ISSN (print) 1745-2058Full text not available from this archive.
|Item Type:
|Research Area:
Town and country planning
|Faculty, School or Research Centre:
|Faculty of Art, Design & Architecture (until 2017) > Real Estate Research Centre
Faculty of Art, Design & Architecture (until 2017) > School of Surveying and Planning (from October 2008)
|Depositing User:
|Katrina Clifford
|Date Deposited:
|19 May 2011 10:26
|Last Modified:
|22 Feb 2012 11:19
Actions (Repository Editors)
|Item Control Page


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Wind damage to your roof can be costly to repair, and your best defense against such an unfortunate event is first-rate construction designed to withstand the elements. To be sure the roofing materials you choose are adequate, consider the weather conditions in your area. How badly can a hurricane, tornado or blustery day batter your roof, one of the most important components of your home's structure?
How Does Wind Damage Occur?
Wind sweeping over your roof will affect certain areas more than others. The parts of your roof most susceptible to damage are the edges. Pressure is higher at each corner of your roof, whereas the center section does not experience as much stress. If the roof has a loose shingle, the wind may catch and rip the material away from the roof deck. As soon as the wind gains a foothold underneath the roofing materials, the damage can escalate, ripping the shingles and membrane away from the plywood.
Wind damage may not occur all at once. In areas with frequent high winds, it is important to always be on the lookout for loose or missing shingles and make immediate repairs. If the underlying membrane is torn, the roof is exposed to moisture which can lead to rot, deterioration and mold.
Damage may not always come from the wind directly; it might result from falling objects. Dead tree limbs are a risk to a roof, especially if they are situated directly above it. Monitor your trees and have dead wood removed before it can fall and do any damage. After a violent wind storm, make sure no flying objects have marred the shingle covering.
Shingle Wind Resistance
Shingles are wind resistant up to 60 mph. It is possible to install shingles with a higher wind resistance, up to 130 mph. These types of shingles are more expensive, mainly due to the need for six installation nails as opposed to four, along with an extra dose of roofing cement. When counteracting the effects of wind on a roof, the orientation of the home in relation to wind patterns and the angle of the roof's pitch will play key roles also, but the primary way to extend a roof's life is by ensuring secure, thorough installation of all roof components.
Preventative Installation Guidelines
Proper nailing technique when attaching shingles is essential. If nails are sunk in too deeply, the head cuts into the shingle and creates a weakness in the asphalt. Another common mishap is to drive nails in at a crooked angle. Nails should be driven straight into the shingle firmly and securely, but not too deeply.
If the shingle sealant strip was not placed cleanly on the roof, the shingle will not continue to adhere in severe storms. It is also important for roofers to ensure the sealant is not dirty when installed, so as to maximize adhesion, and additional sealant should be applied by hand in high-wind areas where a more significant chance of wind damage is possible. Always depend on a trusted local roofing contractor like Knockout Roofing to properly install and maintain your roofing in order to limit wind damage.


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1. Heat the oil in a large pan.
2. Add in the peppers and onion and fry for about 4 minutes over a high heat.
3. Add in the whole pack of spice mix and keep frying for another minute stirring occasionally.
4. Then add the can of kidney beans and heat it until it bubbles.
5. Serve with the remaining elements of the fajita kit, fresh avocado and grated cheese if you're feeling adventurous.
6. Make sure your dinner is fully cooked and piping hot before serving it up.
Recipe courtesy of The co-operative food


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These woodpeckers are Melanerpes formicivorus - Acorn Woodpecker.
This is a female, easily identified because males do not have the black band
between their white face and red topknot.
Beautiful! The shots of them on the flowers is amazing! They love my suet feeder, it's so fun to watch them!ReplyDelete
Candy, these are beautiful photos of this woodpecker. I've never seen on up close like this. ~ SarahReplyDelete
We hear them but I've never seen one upclose. Your shots are superb. I'd blow them up and put them on the wall. What gorgeous and fascinating creatures. Jane F.ReplyDelete
Gorgeous photos or such a pretty bird! I've never seen one before, except for Woody Woodpecker or course! He's a cutie :)ReplyDelete
wow. Those pictures are really impressive. I don't think I've ever seen a wood pecker like that. I have seen some woodpeckers in my yard and wouldn't mind encouraging them to come back. What do you put out for them to eat?ReplyDelete
Those are just beautiful! I'm fascinated with woodpeckers right now...come over and see my downy woodpeckers eating from a hummingbird feeder. Visiting from OWReplyDelete
Reminds me of the cartoon! But really, you captured that woodpecker beautifully.ReplyDelete
Love his little red 'yarmulke'. The woodpeckers I've seen in Michigan always seem to wear their head feathers in a Mohawk fashion.ReplyDelete
Beautiful pictures, thank you for sharing!
Wonderful photos of this woodpecker! I can never get to the camera in time.
Becky K.
love those birds! never seen them on my melianthus, what a treat! i was sitting by my feeders the other day, camera in hand for some great shots not even 10' away, dead camera battery... treat to see yours~ReplyDelete
Great pics~ I haven't seen that variety before!ReplyDelete
Wow what amazing pictures!
Great photos! I love to watch the birds in my yard. We only get woodpeckers in the winter. Thanks for sharing!ReplyDelete
I join all the others and just say WOW those are awesome photos. Have a great week. DebbieReplyDelete
These are truly magnificent shots. So good for you that they have become so brave.ReplyDelete
The Melianthus major is so strong, it doesn'tbend over with the woodpecker's weight.ReplyDelete
Thanks to all of you for stopping by to bird watch with me! These guys are just too cute for words and are very social and talkative. They live here year round in social groups, where only certain pairs breed and the whole community looks after the nest and new chicks.


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Scarlett Johansson has been in the film business for 20 years, making her big debut at the age of nine as John Ritter's daughter in the 1994 movie, "North." She then went on to star in "Manny & Lo," "The Horse Whisperer" and "Ghost World," before nabbing her breakout role in Sofia Coppola's 2003 film, "Lost in Translation," for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award.
Now 29, Johansson has expanded her resume, appearing in movies that range from rom-coms to action-adventure. And speaking of those latter features, Johansson has slowly taken on the title of the "it-girl" when it comes to playing strong (ahem, kick-ass) female characters. After starring in a handful of Woody Allen films, Johansson put her husky voice to good use once again as she took on the iconic role of Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films, proving that she's perfectly fit to play a superhero.
Her latest performance in "Lucy" also sets her up for world domination. In the action-drama -- directed, written and edited by Luc Besson, the visual guru behind "The Fifth Element" -- Johansson goes from your average Joe to superhuman after a drug implanted in her body by the mob accidentally leaks into her system, allowing her to use more than the normal 10 percent of her brain's capacity. (Yeah, it's as crazy as it sounds).
Johansson spoke with HuffPost Entertainment about this unique character, her career and the rumors surrounding her role in the latest Coen Brothers movie, "Hail, Caesar!"
What drew you to playing this role in "Lucy"?
I first met Luc when the script was sort of a work in progress. I was doing a play in New York at the time and Luc had come to see it. Normally, I probably wouldn't have taken a meeting while I was doing a play -- just because it's so hard to think about the next project while I'm already on one -- but I was really interested to hear what he was doing next as a director. And he really came with this passion for his project that he's been developing for 10 years. I think he needed to meet with me to sort of describe the story and his vision for it because it's pretty abstract. Even reading the eventual script, it was pretty sparse. It was accompanied by a huge visual dictionary of sorts that he had put together because I needed those references to know exactly what he was imagining. This project is a conceptual one, maybe even more so than some of his previous work, it's really coming from his visual kind of world that he's known for and that he lives in.
I guess it was the challenge of the project itself that drew me into it. It was me having to put trust in Luc and him having, in turn, put trust in me. We had to weed each other into finding the core of the character and the story.
Johansson in 2014's "Lucy."
I saw the movie and, yes, it's abstract in many different ways. There are so many visual effects, which I'm sure you're used to working with in the Marvel movies, but how did you get in character for all those scenes that would eventually be dominated by visuals?
I guess as an actor you're not always reacting to things that are right in front of you or that are really tangible. Sometimes you're already kind of existing or free-floating in a story that you've constructed for yourself and the character. I mean, it's always nice to have the actual tangible thing to react to, but you're already coming from a place that doesn't really exist. Your emotions are there for what you created for the character, but it's a "make believe world," in a sense -- that's a silly way of saying it, but it's true. And I think the next step in that is [realizing] it doesn't really matter what you have in front of you, or whether the things are real or not, because you're in the reality of the emotion that you created. And, of course, more and more actors get to channel some level of imagination because there is so much production work in movies now. But I wouldn't say it's more challenging than doing an improv class where you don't have all these physical tools. It's part of being in the moment, I guess, and you trust your instinct about something and it appears! [laughs]
This year you had "Under the Skin," "Captain America 2" and "Lucy," and "Avengers: Age of Ultron" is currently filming. Have you enjoyed playing these strong, kick-ass female characters? Is that, sort of, your "thing" now? Because, hey, you're very good at it!
Oh, thank you! Those characters are so different, of course. My experience shooting "Under the Skin" was so different than playing Black Widow in "Captain America 2" or "Avengers" and doing "Lucy" brought its own sort of challenges. The character of Black Widow is a person with a history. She's someone who's hardened and flawed and she's a superhero with quite a complex emotional vocabulary. And Laura in "Under the Skin" is not a person at all -- she's a different species and there's no vocabulary for the emotion that she feels because she doesn't have any feelings that we can, at all, relate to. She's walking around with a different set of very primal instincts. And in "Lucy," the character's challenge is that she's in a constant state of transition. At any given moment, something extraordinary is happening inside of her and she's having this incredible insight, but it's a constant change. So what's she's desperately holding onto is any kind of remnants of the person that she was that she can still connect back to humanity in some way.
So all the characters of those films, they're different, but they are all sort of survivors, I guess in a way. Maybe that's what you mean by strong -- they have a drive for a specific purpose, and it's kind of a selfless one. If you find a purpose in the character that you're playing, that's the key. I look for a character that has some purpose as apposed to can this character kick ass -- although, that's nice too! That comes with it, I guess.
Johansson in 2014's "Captain America: The Winter Soldier."
"Horse Whisperer," "Lost in Translation," "Match Point," "The Other Boleyn Girl," "He's Just Not That Into You" -- you've been in so many genres of movies and played so many roles. Is there any specific film, character or experience you can remember where you thought, "Wow, I want to be an actress for the rest of my life"?
It's hard to say because I've been working for 20 years and that has changed over different periods of time. Like, when you have more choices in the work that you're doing, you understand why you're doing what you do -- it's clearer to you. But then, there are other times where you might struggle to find the work that you connect to and you can question your purpose as an actor, like, "Why am I doing this? What am I looking for? What work would be satisfying to me? What does this job mean?" And then all of the sudden you'll have some breakthrough -- a challenging role that really inspires you -- and you say, "Hey, this is why I'm an actor! I love my job! I feel fulfilled."
I think every artist has a career that sort of flows in that way. Mine, I've had those kind of moments of profound satisfaction at different points. Certainly doing theater has excited me and fueled my drive, my passion and my curiosity for what I do. When I did "A View from the Bridge," it came at such a wonderful time and it was kind of perfectly placed in my life and in my career -- I needed that challenge to help me understand myself better as an actor. And that's happened at various times over 20 years. It would be hard to pinpoint a specific one. Even doing "Girl with a Pearl Earring" when I was 18 was such a wonderful experience for me. Shooting that and having the ability to work in such a quiet and nuanced way, I felt very deeply connected to that project. And at that time they were still using film and camera and you could hear and enrich the experience. So, there have been different challenges along the way that have reignited that flame that I have for what I do.
Johansson in 2003's "Girl with a Pearl Earring."
Speaking of career-defining moments, there are rumors floating around that you are going to be in "Hail, Caesar!" -- the new Coen brothers movie. Can you speak to that?
No, not really, but I know the project and I think there are talks of working that out! I would love to be able to work with the Coen brothers again -- it's been a decade or more [since "The Man Who Wasn't There" in 2001] -- and I'm always grateful for the opportunity to collaborate time and again with someone. I see that as a compliment. And it's another opportunity to try and get it right, so hopefully that will come true, that will happen.
"Lucy" hits theaters July 25.
This interview has been edited and condensed.


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U.S. Drought Monitor Update for May 17, 2016 According to the May 17 U.S. Drought Monitor, moderate to exceptional drought covers 13.9% of the contiguous U.S.
Assessing the Global Climate in April 2016 The April 2016 global temperature was the highest on record for the month of April.
Assessing the U.S. Climate in April 2016 During April, the average contiguous U.S. temperature was 53.2°F, or 2.2°F above the 20th century average.
NPS and USCRN in the U.S. Great Plains In the Great Plains, three U.S. Climate Reference stations are located within National Park Service protected areas.
Updating the U.S. Climate Atlas We've updated the U.S. Climate Atlas and created a new interface to provide you easier access to it.
View a complete listing of the upcoming products and services.
State of the Climate in 2014 Report Released
We're announcing the release of the State of the Climate in 2014 report, an assessment of the world's climate system.
2014 Products and Services Guide Available Online
The 2014 Products and Services Guide provides an overview of the wide range of products and services we offer. A free PDF copy of the guide is available for download.
By harnessing the enthusiasm of people like you, citizen science is advancing our understanding of weather, climate, and geophysics.
We will be participating in the 2016 Mountain Science Expo on Saturday, April 9, at the North Carolina Arboretum.
On April 4, 2016, the White House released an assessment of the impacts of climate change on human health in the U.S.
Based on 30 years of climate records, our map shows when you can expect to see temperatures dip to 32°F or below for the last time.
Our scientists use a specific index to help determine how much precipitation a location needs to end drought conditions.
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Tuesday, April 11, 2017
Author: Bishop Julius Okarike
Verse Of The Day: And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4 : 7
LISTEN: Absence of the peace of God in one's life is the reason for personal crisis. Nothing can truly calm a troubled soul like the peace of God. God's peace is not like the 'peace' of the world that comes from human achievements and possessions; when those possessions and achievements are gone, peace evaporates with them. But the peace of God is a mystery to those who do not know God. Because it is peace that surpasses all understanding. A kind of peace that calms the troubled soul in the midst of crisis. Peace that is not base on what we have, but on God who knows us better than ourselves.
Beloved, it is a waste of time to look for peace outside God. Nothing in this world – money, fame, academic qualifications, family, wealth, marriage, children, etc., can give you the God kind of peace. Most times, all those can be your sources of sadness when they are gone, but the peace of God can keep you strong and calm in the midst of adversities. However, unless God dwells in our hearts we cannot achieve lasting peace in our lives. The absence of God's peace in our families, conversations, workplaces, communities, states, nations, etc., is the reason for endless crisis we are experiencing today. Properties and lives are lost everyday because people chose to abandon the peace of God.
Beloved, if we can be sincere to ourselves, we will certainly attest that we need God.
Peace comes from God, not from wealth or achievements. In the midst of wealth and achievements, there could still be endless crisis and war. Lasting peace is God's gift to those who acknowleges His sovereignty. My dear, are you in any form of crisis? Is your life negatively affected by internal and external crisis? Has peace left your life, family, community, state or nation? Call on the God of peace. Cast your cares to him and his peace will guard your heart. I want you to know that a life without God is a life without peace; and a life without peace is a miserable life. Do you need peace? Seek it in God and surrender to Him. (See Philippians 4 : 6 – 7 ; Romans 16 : 20).
Having read today's devotional, what is expected of you?
1. Commit the crisis of your life to God and allow Him to bring peace into your life.
2. Do not seek peace in your wealth and achievements, rather seek peace in God.
3. Do not forget that God is ready to bless you with peace if you are ready to submit to Him.
4. Always remember that you cannot experience a lasting peace until you encounter God.
Daily Task: Never attempt to go through life without the peace of God, for it will mean confusion, frustration and calamity for you. Do not find peace anywhere other than God.
Daily Reflection: A life without God is a life without peace; and a life without peace is a miserable and hopeless life.
Daily Prayer: Blessed Father, the God of peace, I ask for peace over my life, family, career, business, etc., in Jesus' name, amen.
Daily Prophetic Declaration: Today, I prophesy over your life, whatever situation that may have stolen your peace is arrested now by fire, in Jesus' name.
Daily Quote: Nothing can truly calm a troubled soul like the peace of God.
Today In History: April 11, 1991 The United Nations Security Council issues formal ceasefire with Iraq.


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Whether this is your first time in Las Vegas or your fifteenth, you've never truly done Vegas right until you've done it on a Las Vegas party bus. Wondering what occasion warrants a party bus? Here are a few:
We know the Vegas nightlife industry inside and out and use that knowledge to create a unique party experience all about you! When you rent a party bus in Las Vegas through Turnt Up Tours, you will:
We know every group is different (and we're pretty sure we've seen it all), which is why we offer flexible package options to truly make your day or night one you won't soon forget. You can customize your party bus tour in Las Vegas with any or all of our premium add-ons, including a professional photographer to capture all the most memorable moments, a ride home to ensure everyone makes it to the after party, and a bigger bus to share the fun with more friends.
If you think you can handle getting turnt up with us in Vegas, then start building your private tour using the form below. You can also give us a call at (702) 843-0525 to book a private party bus tour in Las Vegas.
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