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I believe 100% in the power of setting goals to bring about the results you want to achieve in your business and personal life. My beliefs have been reinforced by seeing goals materialise in my clients' lives, my family's life as well as in my own life. The beauty of setting goals is that you are never too old or too young to start the process and benefit from the outcome.
Whilst I do use coaching within my own family with caution, I have a couple of stories from my own family which are constant reminders to me of the power of goal setting.
Lessons learned with my family when it comes to goal setting have given me insights as a business coach, and this knowledge has proved to be completely relevant when it comes to achieving business goals and objectives too.
My left handed, 11 year old, son who had struggled with hand writing speed through out his schooling, set a goal to "More than double my hand writing speed". With the goal very firmly in mind, he automatically became motivated to take a "d-i-y" hand writing programme. He worked on the programme himself with little in the way of reminders from me. His handwriting speed accelerated, and the goal was achieved.
For 67 years, or as long as she could use a crayon, my son's grandmother, my mother enjoyed art as a hobby. She had reached a point where she wasn't getting very much from her art. I took her through a goal setting session around her art and she established what she wanted to do: Become an Become an Artist of Excellence. She herself realised she was not spending enough time on her art, and became highly motivated and highly focused. At the age of 68, she applied and was accepted to do a BA Hons Degree Course, and has since won prizes for her art. In both cases, it was literally the setting of their own goals which led to these outcomes.
Goals can be used in the moment to dramatically change the outcome. Today I was playing a one set tennis match. I wasn't playing well, and found myself down 5-2 and 40 love down. Unexpectedly I became inspired by the idea of winning from such a place. "Winning from 5-2, and 40 love down" became the goal of the moment, which really excited me. I shared my goal with my opponent. My game changed beyond recognition.. I became very focused, and determined whilst at the same time very relaxed. I started to enjoy the match. Instead of loosing many games to love, I was winning games to love. I finally went on to win 7-6.
Jon Covey tells his readers to "start with the end in mind" – and when we set a goal we are doing just that.
What is the purpose of setting goals?
So many people go through their lives like rudder-less ships – without clear direction, and are literally subject to storms and winds in the sea of life. Lack of direction can often lead to feelings of stress and anxiety, poor concentration levels, lack of confidence, and living life from a place of being reactive rather than proactive. Not only that, but people without goals often have little determination, patience or tenacity. (It is interesting to discover how many business owners run their businesses without inspiring goals, and to see the effect that a lack of goals has on their business.)
When you set and achieve a goal, you have an opportunity to pat yourself on the back. Even if you don't achieve exactly what you set out to do, there are likely to be numerous achievements and learnings along the way that you can acknowledge yourself for. All this helps build self esteem.
For those who are serious about sport, who are running a business or have a senior role within a company, setting goals is an essential ingredient to success. In spite of this not everyone does it. It may take a conversation with a coach, or business advisor to get them thinking along these lines.
Setting goals is not just for sport or work, everyone can benefit from a well-worded goal. I really encourage the entrepreneurs I work with to set personal goals as they really contribute to business success. Whether you seek a new partner, a better relationship with your existing one, a new house, more energy, more abundance, improved health, a stress-free life, or something else, the right goal for you, can make all the difference. Not only does the achievement of personal goals contribute to happiness, but a happier business owner is so much more likely to be successful.
How do you set goals?
Setting goals is a very easy process to do at its simplest level. I spend quite some time designing personalized goals with my clients. I find that it is most effective for people to focus on the top areas of their lives – perhaps their business (if that is appropriate) as well as one or two other areas. Choosing the top areas is an important part of the process. I find clients are most motivated if they are working on the areas of their lives which are going to make the greatest difference to them. It is important to bear in mind too, that what may be important today, but not be so key in a few months time. If you find yourself neglecting an area that you have designated top, one reason may be that it is not now so important. If you find this happening, a great tip is to check in with yourself by asking your self how important it is to have this thing. Answer with a score out of 10 – where 10 is very important and 0 is not important.
There is a balance to be achieved between working on all areas that need attention – and just working on one area. Focusing on multiple areas can be distracting leading to little being achieved. Focusing on one area alone, also has its downsides. Not only can it impact negatively on your work/life balance, but an over-focus can lead to what I call "attachment to the outcome".
You may have experienced a situation where you wanted something so much that it became crucial that you had that "thing" in your life. It could be more business, the new house, or the new partner. When you find yourself attached to a particular result, you may find that it often gets in the way of your ideal result coming about. One way of "letting go" of your attachment is to spread your focus by having one or two other key goals.
Once you have your top two or three areas, the next step is to set a goal that is going to really inspire you in each of these areas. Defining an inspiring goal is a challenging exercise to do alone. A coach who is experienced in working with clients to define really inspiring goals can really help with this process. One of my clients, a Managing Director of a Design Agency, wanted to work on his business. He wanted to realize its potential, become more financially successful, move forward, and be busy. This led to a goal which was really inspiring for him "My business buzzes to the tune of £50K profit per month". This was particularly challenging goal because the business had made a loss for over 9 months. Five months into the coaching and the business is on an upward trend – last month profits were just under £50K – and we still have a month to go with the coaching.
A goal that is hugely inspiring for a client has an energy of its own. I equate it to what happens when a surfer rides a powerful wave. Once on the big wave, all a surfer needs to do is focus and balance and he will be carried to the shore – without the need to do much more. (Of course, if he wants to reach the road from the shore, he will need to take some action).
One of my clients is a singer. Her long term goal is "My first record deal published". Whilst it is hugely inspiring for her, she wanted a goal for the short term. In her case it is to "Perform at least 5 concerts with my own material". At the time she set this goal, she hadn't performed any concerts with her own material. Between the time she set this goal and our next meeting, two weeks later, she left the country to be with her sister, who had just had a baby. She wasn't putting any time into getting her concerts. Yet in the meantime, the goal was working for her. "Out of the blue" she received two invitations to perform concerts with her own material.
Sometimes I work with clients who have a gap in a certain area of their lives, but are resistant to setting a goal in that area. Often they are in the place where they don't want to take action on something, in case they don't get what they want. This can be in situations where they have tried many things without success. I have encouraged them to set a goal, with the explicit instruction that they take no action.
One of my clients had tendonitis for many years which was impacting on her ability to play and coach tennis. She was resistant to setting a goal around healing her tendonitis – she had tried many things and didn't want to do more. I encourage her to set a goal and requested that she take no action. Some months into our coaching relationship, she chose to use some new processes, including visualisation. Her tendonitis healed and she went on to launch a tennis initiative for underprivileged children: Taking them off the streets and coaching them in tennis.
What makes a powerful goal?
Like making a cake, there are several ingredients. With a cake, I would say flour is most essential, and with goal setting, it is inspiration that, for me, is most essential. I take great trouble with my clients to ensure that together we define a goal that scores top marks for inspiration. A goal to loose weight became "Look fabulous in my black PVC cat-suit" for a female client and "Lean, mean, well oiled machine" for a male client.
Given that we are working in a coaching alliance, it is when I am as inspired by a goal as my client is, that the magic really starts to fly.
For the second most important ingredient, I rate succinctness. A really powerful goal can also double up as a mantra. It is easy to repeat as often as possible and it is easy to remember. Getting re-inspired by work can become "Love what I do" and recovering from a difficult patch can become "Sparky, witty Jonny is back"!
I also rate challenging as an important ingredient- alongside inspiration. Getting the level of challenge right is key to the success of the goal. Some clients are truly inspired by challenge – particular if challenge is amongst their core values. For others, too much challenge can be counterproductive. A goal that is too challenging can defer a client from taking action. If a client is determined to stay in the "this will never happen place" then some adjustments are needed: either to their perspective or to the goal. I come from the place where everything thing is possible – and encourage my clients to move into that place. Technology has shown us that things that weren't possible in the past are now today, and most people have had experiences where they weren't initially able to do something, have thought that they never would and have since learnt.
If you are working on your goals without a coach, then it may make sense to go for a goal which is a touch less challenging. If, however, you choose to work with the support of a coach, then in most cases you are paying to be challenged to go further than you can on your own. This usually involves you in going outside your comfort zone. That in itself can be challenging. If you do go where you wouldn't normally, not only will you usually find rich rewards, but also your comfort zone expands. One of my clients put it this way: "Karen has given me the confidence to do things that I have never been comfortable doing. With her help, the uncomfortable became comfortable – and part of what I do. She structured things so that the impossible seemed possible and was possible to achieve".
Nick Duckett, Managing Director, TVMusicUK
A challenging goal doesn't necessarily make it difficult to achieve. An example from my own life: I am naturally someone with an extremely busy mind. In the past, left to its own devices, my mind would mull over both concerns and projects for hours on end – during the day and often at night too. It was draining. I wanted to be able to turn my mind off – whilst still retaining my innate ability to be creative. This led to a goal which was hugely inspiring for me "Be the Zen Master of my on/off switch". The goal started to take on an energy of its own. Coincidentally, I signed up for a spiritual training – which encouraged meditation daily. Meditation was something I had practiced for a number of years in the past. I had stopped simply because I wasn't at that time getting results with it.
This time things were different. Almost from the moment I started to meditate again, I found that my mind became quiet. I was the "Zen master of my on/off switch". A hugely challenging goal was achieved with the minimum of effort.
Classical goal setting will encourage you to go for something realistic within a specific time frame. If making a goal realistic means that some of the inspiration is lost – then go for the inspiration is what I say. I recently started with a client at the stage of transition from full time employment to running his own business. The goal that truly inspires him is "Respected in my outstanding £5 million business". From a standing start, this goal could be considered to be unrealistic within the 6 months of our initial contract. So he has has a signpost goal around his business plan being written and approved by the bank. This gives him a short term focus, whilst the longer term goal is the one that truly excites, inspires and motivates him.
In most cases, it makes sense to frame goals in the positive. That said, there are times when a goal which appears to be expressed in the negative, is more motivating to a client than the other way round. I have had a number of clients who came to me with health challenges. One had pain from a hernia and had used drugs to control the symptoms for 7 years. Prior to our setting a goal, she found that no drugs meant intolerable pain levels. She could have set a positive goal such as "100% healthy" but instead chose "Pain and Drug Free" for her goal. These were the words that did it for her. Within one session, she had given up her drugs this time without pain – and has maintained her drug and pain free state ever since.
Classical goal setting will encourage you to go for goals that are measureable. I would 100% agree with that. Not only is a measure motivational, but both yourself and your coach will know how close or how far you are from achieving the goal, at any point in time. With business and sports goals, it is fairly easy to incorporate a measure. A desire to grow and sustain a business became "My sustainable £30K per month Business Building Business" for one of my clients.
This brings me to what happens if you don't achieve the goal that you originally set. This may be because you changed your mind. What you set out to achieve initially, no longer holds the same interest for you. For the more spiritually minded, it can be useful to include a caveat – to your goal setting, particularly when you find yourself hugely attached to the outcome. This can take the form of a simple sentence which can be added to a goal e.g. "Achieve my goal ….or whatever the grand design has in store for me".
Often, it is only a matter of time until the goal you set becomes yours. There is likely to be many learnings and achievements on your path from the moment you set your goals. I recommend that you keep a note of your learnings and achievements– since, in my experience, human beings are particularly good at forgetting, as well as dismissing their achievements. No matter how valuable goal setting, and whatever the outcome, I find it empowering to remember that "Life is a journey, not a destination".
What are some tips that have helped or are helping you achieve your recent business goals? Share your experiences.
This article was written by Karen Skehel


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on 31-05-2019 08:44 AM
Hello guys,
you are my last chance after TWO WEEKS I've always been in chat with people from support who couldn't have been able to help me. Same on the phone.
By the way, I try to be as clear as possible. Two weeks ago I've bought a prepaid sim in Dublin store in front of St. Stephen's Green as I needed a +353 number as I live in Italy.
After 30 mins the sim has been activated and I could do pretty much anything: roaming ok, whatsapp ok, sms ok and receive calls ok. The fact that is driving me crazy is that I can't make any calls to any number. The message that runs is: "Three information. The number you've called is not correct. Please check the exact number". This is the first time ever I encountered a problem like this. I've tried everything: 00353, +353, nothing at all, switching off the 4g, switching off the automatic country code, everything.
The fact is that I CAN receive calls and I CAN send sms.
And the fact is that NOONE from support has been able to give me any type of answers, as attached.
Thank you guys if you have any clues.
on 31-05-2019 09:57 AM
on 01-06-2019 10:14 AM - last edited on 01-06-2019 03:47 PM by Three_Rachel
Hi @Lorenzo_Jack , I'm one of the Mods here and we've been looking out for a PM from you, as @Mac_n_cheese mentioned. Is your data working? Are you in Ireland or Italy? If you haven't done so already, can you call an Irish number with just the mobile prefix, for example, 083XXXXXXX, 086 XXXXXXX, 087XXXXXXX and so on? Do you have credit to call off network numbers?
on 01-06-2019 10:39 AM
on 01-06-2019 03:49 PM
on 01-06-2019 04:49 PM
on 02-06-2019 11:50 AM
@Lorenzo_Jack Hello, I've added the extra info that you gave me in PM to this investigation. I'll be keeping an eye on it here for you and will update you as soon as I know something 👍
on 03-06-2019 08:10 AM
Hello Deborah,
thank you. Please update me as soon as you know something because I'll be back to Ireland in August and I can't stay without making calls for months.
on 05-06-2019 11:24 AM
Hi @Lorenzo_Jack I'm continuing to keep an eye on the track with our tech team and as soon as there's an update, I'll keep you posted here 👍
on 05-06-2019 11:27 AM
ok thanks. Any clues by the way from your technicians?
Hi and Welcome to the 3Community. Stay awhile and have a look around. If you haven't already registered, now is a good time to do so.
Click here to see a guide on getting started.
Register now >>

subset: commoncrawl


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text:
Spring Grove aims to make walking/biking to school safer; New Safe Routes to School grant provides help
Students who walk or bike to school in Spring Grove sometimes have a tough time getting around town, and that's where a state-funded program steps in to help.
The city of Spring Grove recently received a Safe Routes to School (SRTS) grant that will allow initiatives by parents, schools, community leaders and local government to improve the health and well being of children by enabling and encouraging them to walk and bike to school, according to Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) officials.
The first meeting was a rapid planning workshop on Friday, Nov. 1, which was a short and collaborative meeting that brought stakeholders together to share a diversity of design and planning ideas.
Alta Planning and Design Senior Planner Jimmy Shoemaker said the norm used to be a lot of people walking and biking to school nationally, but it's not quite the case today. Alta is the firm hired by MnDOT for SRTS.
"Most kids are not getting enough physical activity; roads near schools are congested which decreases safety and air quality," he said.
Anyone who's ever tried to cross Highway 44 during a "rush hour" knows it can be tough and sometimes dangerous because drivers do not stop for pedestrians or bicyclists in the crosswalk.
Minnesota as a state falls third nationally in safe routes to school rankings. In addition to federal funding for programs that increase safety, state dollars are also available.
Shoemaker explained the cycle of congestion on roadways starts with more parents driving students to school, which leads to increased traffic around school and in turn that brings rising concerns of traffic and safety and thus, fewer students walking and biking.
This grant will last five years and though a dollar amount was not specified on the grant, it opens up other grant opportunities for the city to develop infrastructure (such as more curb bump outs) or non-infrastructure programming such as "walking school buses" where kids would be escorted to school from specific pick up points.
MnDOT staff said the outcomes should be increased walking and biking, improved safety, improved driver behavior, health and environmental connections, school performance and attention and youth empowerment and autonomy.
The department also uses the six E's to accomplish goals within the five years and those are: education, encouragement, engineering, enforcement, evaluation and equity.
Looking at the data
Many of Spring Grove Public School's 380 K-12 kids live within a half mile of the school building, which means a good deal of them walk or bike to school.
In fact, 30% of kids walk home from school while 24% walk to school in the morning, according to a student travel tally. However, 50% of them are receiving rides from family in the morning, and 42% are receiving rides home from school.
City Councilor Karen Folstad said she usually drove her kids to school and let them walk home on their own, which could echo what many parents do.
It was also understood at the meeting that morning schedules are hectic or parents work earlier or out of town, so they drop their kids off at school on the way to work.
When just looking at elementary data, about 43% received a ride to school in the morning but 30% walked home in the afternoon. Less than 20% of elementary-aged kids walked to school in the morning.
Shoemaker said they typically don't see numbers that high for communities, but Spring Grove has the benefit of having their building in town, whereas other communities are combined or have buildings outside of town.
Principal Nancy Gulbranson said new families often tell her "Spring Grove has a 'Mayberry' feel to it. They feel safe here."
Concerning busing, Spring Grove has four routes in the surrounding townships and two buses that pick up in town. Though some of the buses seem sparse, there has to be enough room for all kids on that route if they were to ride the bus all at one time.
Shoemaker said low bus numbers could also be due to parents wanting to spend extra time at home with their kids in the morning or they could be worried about their kids not making it to the bus on time.
City Councilor Scott Solberg said there are less kids living in the country because there are less farms every square mile.
Houston County Public Health Educator Audrey Staggemeyer agreed and said a lot of young people can't afford property in the country.
Bus routes in town were a different story. When students Jacine Johanningmeier, Ava Olerud, Katie Lamm, Brianna Johnson and Elizabeth Garcia-Holty told officials about how they get to school, Johanningmeier said the bus that picks up on 2nd Ave. SE is packed full of kids.
That leads to the reasoning behind a survey taken by parents and caregivers, where almost 78% said speeding along a route is what keeps their kids from walking or biking to school.
About 65% of those respondents said safety of intersections and crossings also kept kids from walking or biking to school. Only 30% were worried about violence or crime on the way to school.
For the most part, parents agreed the school encourages walking and biking to school, the parents think it's healthy and more than 50% said it was fun or very fun for their students to walk or bike.
Open responses cited concerns about students waiting to cross State Highway 44 and low visibility for pedestrians and drivers. One was also concerned about having a crossing guard by The Little Gnome Childcare Center in the mornings and safety of sidewalks in the winter.
From the students
As previously mentioned, five students gave their input on how they get to school and how safe it is or is not. Most of the girls had lived at least seven years in Spring Grove or their whole lives.
They cited walking to school as calming, getting fresh air and physical activity in the morning as what they enjoyed.
What they did not like was dodging snow piles in the winter, watching out for snowplows and icy sidewalks. Meanwhile in the fall and spring months, road construction could often provide detours that increased traffic.
Garcia-Holty said she avoids the intersection of Main Street and Division Avenue because it's dangerous for pedestrians and drivers.
Additionally, the alley behind Main Street businesses was an area to avoid because of the deteriorating sidewalk and narrow west end of the alley.
They also noticed the crossing by Kwik Trip was a bad place to cross because drivers don't stop for pedestrians. What's more dangerous is people jaywalking across the highway because they can't be bothered to walk down to the crosswalk.
"There's crosswalks but not respected crosswalks," Johanningmeier said.
Other areas identified include 3rd Ave. NW and 1st St. NW (one-way) by the school. They said a lot of students use that road to travel to and from school.
The area by City Hall and the elevator are also a problem due to congestion and oftentimes large and heavy equipment traveling through there.
Lamm added she's noticed that once people are past the school zone, they speed up on their way out of town on the west end.
They were also concerned about younger kids walking. Olerud said she's helped several kids cross the highway by the school in the summer, when the school hosts its breakfast and lunch program.
The girls did say the bike lane during the summer months helps on Maple Drive.
Traffic control
The city is in the works to purchase a "Your Speed" sign, although the official decision has not been made yet. The goal is to slow traffic coming into town.
County Engineer Brian Pogodzinski encouraged the city to borrow one of those signs from another city and test it out. A lot of data can be collected from just a few days worth of having the sign.
Shoemaker showed other examples of traffic control including signals, speed bumps, walk signals, shared use paths, bike lanes and high visibility crosswalks Spring Grove could potentially use.
The city already has high visibility crosswalks and a flashing sign by the school. However, the timing may need to be adjusted on that signal. Solberg said adding a flashing sign about a block or two away from the school on the west end would also give drivers more warning about the school zone.
There are also temporary solutions that could lead to something more permanent. Construction bollards (picture white candlesticks on the road) are often used to stimulate curb bump outs. The reaction to that is studied for a while and then a permanent curb would be installed.
Into the future
The projects surrounding pedestrian and bicycle safety most likely won't happen overnight, but it won't take 20 years either, Shoemaker said.
Several other area cities like Caledonia, La Crescent and Chatfield have received the SRTS grant in the past and have seen improvements around their schools.
Over the course of five years, city and school officials will continue working with MnDOT and Alta to find solutions. The local team leaders are City Clerk/Treasurer Erin Konkel and City Councilor Scott Solberg.
Stay tuned for more information about Safe Routes to School. Visit https://www.mnsaferoutesplanning.org/map/#/ for an interactive map of Spring Grove and give your input.


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Tama, IA
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These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God (1 John 5:13)
Have a prayer request? Please leave it here and we will lift it up to God. Also feel free to ask any question relating to God's word or leave us a comment or suggestion for this site.
But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit
(Jude 1:20)
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)
The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will hoy over three with singing (Zephaniah 3:17)
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)
The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. (1 Corinthians 16:19)
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. (Genesis 2:24)
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy. (1Corinthians 14:1)
He who finds a wife finds a good thing, And obtains favor from the LORD. (Proverbs 18:22)
For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously. (Malachi 2:16)
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." (Proverbs 22:6)
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (Genesis 1:26-27)
Let us as Christians truly study God's Word and see the bigger picture of things. For we need to break away from the stereo type false teachings that have effected the church both in the past and the present.
Then they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem according to the customs of the Gentiles, and made themselves as the uncircumcision. So they fell away from the holy covenant, yoked themselves to the Gentiles, and sold themselves to do evil. (1 Maccabees 1:14-15)


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6334a Sherbrooke St W, Montreal, QC H4B 1M7
Toll Free: 888-369-3569 24hr: 888-369-3569 Local: 514-369-0745Email Us
Posy ArrangementIntercat-2709
Yellow flowers and roses in this posy arrangement, arrive ready for recipient's vase.
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New Product Alert – The Letterfest Christmas Tree!
They're here! We can finally show you our top secret (sort of) Christmas product. James our cardboard guru has designed these brilliant 3-D cardboard Christmas trees that come flat-packed and are easy as pie to assemble. Kids will love to draw / decoupage / glitter / splatter paint / sticker these to their hearts content.
We think adults will love them too. They look very contemporary in their natural state as seen at Letterfest HQ at the moment! They are available in either white or natural cardboard colour and there are two sizes.
The smaller Paint Your Own Christmas Tree is perfect for a childs room as it is a petite 67cm high and 50cm wide. Kids will love having their own tree decorated just how they want it.
The Giant Cardboard Christmas Tree version could be the main tree in a household as it stands at 140cm high and 110cm wide. A great craft activity that the whole family can get involved with (if the kids let you anywhere near it that is..). We hope you love them as much as we do. We'd love to see photos of how you decorate them – email them to us when your masterpieces are done! Click here for more information on the Christmas trees.


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Rick Santorum is winning the hearts of conservative voters with uncompromising social views that, he says, are drawn from the same well as his fiscal and environmental policies: a reading of America's founding documents that stresses their Judeo-Christian underpinnings.
In friendly settings around the country, in hotel ballrooms and public school auditoriums, Santorum has framed the 2012 election as one for the very salvation of the country and its culture.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is about foundational things," he told a Republican gathering in Phoenix on Tuesday, one day before a debate with the remaining GOP candidates in Mesa, Ariz. "It is about whether we are going to be a free people."
By voting for him, Santorum said, Republicans can choose "someone who has a track record of standing up for the foundational pillars of our society: faith and family."
They also would be choosing the candidate with the most conservative views on social issues, which have been the signatures of Santorum's career. Those issues, and the sense that Santorum is the real deal — a leader who isn't afraid to say what might be politically unpopular — have electrified conservative audiences and helped fuel his surge into contention for the Republican presidential nomination.
The question is whether his views could prove too extreme to win a general election campaign, when the electorate is substantially more liberal, on balance, than Santorum.
"That's a considerable danger for him," said Sam Stone, communications director for Arizona GOP congressional candidate Martha McSally, after hearing Santorum speak in Phoenix. "But," he added, "if you don't have the support of your base … the road to the presidency is going to be really rocky."
Santorum has been a national leader in the fight against abortion, which he passionately opposes even in cases of rape or incest. He opposes government funding not only for abortion but for some forms of prenatal testing, such as amniocentesis, which he believes is used to decide whether to abort a child with birth defects. (He and his wife, Karen, have a daughter, Bella, born with a defect known as Trisomy 18, and he speaks emotionally about children who are aborted because they aren't "perfect.")
He has spoken out against contraception, calling it "a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be." (He says he has no desire to ban it.) He has attacked President Obama relentlessly over requiring faith-based institutions to provide insurance coverage for contraception to their workers, calling it a serious challenge to religious liberty, even in its amended form.
He has been quoted as supporting laws against sodomy.
He fiercely opposes same-sex marriage and the Obama administration's policy to allow gays to serve openly in the military, and has compared gay sex to "man on dog" sex.
He takes a hard line on immigration.
On some of these views, Santorum is clearly outside the mainstream of American public opinion — in some cases, far outside.
Americans are divided on abortion, but most fall into a middle ground on regulation that is well short of Santorum's hard-line stance. The overwhelming majority of Americans considers sodomy laws and the opposition to contraception to be relics from another era.
However, a poll by the Pew Research Center shows that the public is sharply divided, largely along party lines, on the Obama administration's contraception coverage mandate. And Santorum is not alone in arguing that the public would have been more likely to oppose the rule had it been framed as an issue of religious freedom, not of healthcare.
The public is also deeply divided on same-sex marriage, but a majority approved of Obama's decision to allow gays to serve openly in the military. And while many people share Santorum's views on immigration, a far larger number support a more moderate approach.
Santorum's views on social issues grow out of his faith as a Roman Catholic and his reading of American history. In his standard campaign speech, he talks about how the nation's founders believed they were protecting "God-given rights," which set the country apart from nations where rights were apportioned by rulers.
To Santorum, that means the United States should have a limited government; that government should protect and nurture religious institutions; and that it should protect life, including that of the unborn.
"This is the heart of American exceptionalism," he said in his Phoenix speech. "This is what makes us a great nation ... because we believe in the power of the dignity of every human life."
Santorum's views may be those of a Catholic, but they play well with Protestant evangelicals. At times, he sounds like one.
"I think Santorum comes out of a very traditional Catholic view of these things," said John Green, director of the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron, who has written widely about religion and politics. But, he added, "a lot of the language he uses is this broader language that traditionalists in a lot of different traditions can get behind."
Santorum appears to bridge any gap that remains between conservative Protestants and Catholics by stressing the social dogma they share, primarily opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage.
"There are more things keeping evangelicals and Catholics together than are dividing them," said Thomas Peters, a conservative Catholic who blogs as the American Papist. He said Santorum's views "absolutely conform with the right wing of American Catholicism."
Can Santorum win over a general electorate with such conservative social views? It depends, said Green.
"On a lot of these cultural issues, the country would appear to be more moderate or more liberal, and in some cases a lot more liberal, than Sen. Santorum," he said. But most liberals wouldn't vote for any Republican, he said, so what matters is Santorum's appeal to those in the middle — who tend to be in the middle culturally as well as politically.
"A lot of swing voters are pro-choice but not really happy about abortion," Green said. "They believe in traditional marriage but don't think it's their business to tell people what to do with their lives.… A lot of these swing voters may not be that close to where Sen. Santorum is, but they're not as far away as the public as a whole."
If the campaign winds up being primarily about the economy, differences over cultural issues will take a back seat anyway, he said.
"I think the senator, if he's the Republican nominee, would face a challenge with swing voters," Green said. "But it's not at all clear to me that he would fail with that challenge."


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Crews called to deliberate fire
- Details
- Wednesday, 29 May 2019 04:32
Grove Park Road, Weston-super-Mare
Three crews from Weston fire station were called to a fire in a residential care home.
On arrival, two firefighters in breathing apparatus used one high-pressure hose reel to extinguish the fire.
They also used a positive pressure ventilation fan to clear smoke from the property.
The cause is thought to be deliberate.