text:
Équipe rédactionnelle/Editorial staff, July 10, 2006
To mark the event, Canada's first bilingual webzine devoted to global design threw a fabulous bash. Hundreds of invited guests gathered at Bonaldo in Montreal for their first peek at www.egodesign.ca's wide world of architecture and art, as well as interior-, industrial- and fashion design.
Check us out for yourself! Have a look at www.egodesign.ca's monthly rotation of cutting-edge features and columns, all presented in design-related sections (architecture, design, fashion and art). Take
advantage of useful info in sections like The Agenda and Boutique Hotels, or browse our international
design updates or subscribers' newsletter. Log in to find out more!
Photos_Karina Cinnante
www.egodesign.ca: an immediate online success! Over 15,000 visits in only 3 days!
And we've only just begun!
Expect the very best from www.egodesign.ca. Our goal: to set the standard in providing newsworthy, challenging, inspiring and ground-breaking content from the ever-growing world of design. If you're one of those people for whom design is not "something that other people do, our weekly newsletter" will keep you up-to-date on the hottest global issues and events. Guaranteed.
Maria, Jaime Boujaglo_Karina Cinnante, Zanoah Bia
Photos_Karina Cinnante
Photos_Karina Cinnante, Zanoah Bia
- Ara Güler, Lost Istanbul: 1950s and 60s
- Warwick Saint, A Boy + The Girls...
- Josef Hoflehner, Mystery and Sensuality of Black & White
- Barkley L. Hendricks, The Birth of the cool and the death of the master
- Christian Coigny, IN PROCESS...
- Gyula Halász, Brassaï in the night
- Basquiat, SAMO the shooting star.
- Seydou Keita, 50 Works
- Alexis Aliocha Peskine, Twenty things you should know about Alexis Peskine...
- Howard Schatz, Liquid Light Series
- Helmut Newton, The SUMO. Must be readed.
- Daphne Odjig, Pow Wow at Wikwemikong
- Ezra Stoller, An quiet Architect-Photographer
- Nick Brandt, Living on Earth...
- Richard Long, A Walking Sculptor
- Oleg Dou, Subliminal photographs
- Herb Ritts, A self-taught photographer
- The Heroic Africa, Philippe Bordas, The Essence Photographic
- Jacek Jarnuszkiewicz, Man is a thinking reed No3
- Wangechi MUTU, The Anthropological Art
- Michel Comte, Empathic & Emblematic
- The Dashanzi, Displays contemporary art in the Bauhaus style
- Brian Finke, The Flight Attendants
- Pierre Soulages, Painter of black and light
- Gérard Uféras, States of Grace
- YAYOI KUSAMA, Fireflies on the Water
- Frida Kahlo & Diego Rivera..., Passion, Politics and Painting
- Louise Bourgeois in Canada..., Sculptor of timeless sculpture
- Gabor Szilasi, The Eloquence of the Everyday
- Arthur Elgort, Le Dandy de la photographie
- Norbert Wagenbrett, Die Neue Sachlichkeit
- Anish Kapoor, The Metaphysical thinker...
- Los Angeles (1865-2008), This Side of Paradise
- Brendan Lee Satish Tang, Remix Generation
- Göksin Sipahioglu, Sir Sipa, photographer
- Controversies, A legal and ethical history of photography
- Champ de Vision, Damián Ortega Part 2
- Manuel Vason, The man beyond The Encouters
- Esther Shalev-Gerz, Regarding Your Image Regarding Me
- Laurent Grasso, THE HORN PERSPECTIVE
- Valérie Belin, Creative obsession of the image
- Frida Kahlo, Mexican Estridentism and Realism
- Thomas Nozkowski, The Revolutionary painting
- Mario García Torres, Red + Black + Sound...
- Abraham-Louis Breguet, An Apogee of European Watchmaking
- MILES in MTL..., We Want Milles: Jazz Face to Face with its legend
- Robert Rauschenberg, Gluts
- Le Mouvement, From Cinema to Kinetics
- Gerhard STEIDL, Fine art of Steidl book + Last Impressions
- UUTURAUTIIT, Cape Dorset celebrates 50 years of printmaking
- THE NUDE, In Modern Canadian Art, 1920-1950
- Sirine Fattouh, Lost - Won + The Remake
- Languages of Futurism, The artistic expressions of Futurism
- Frank Lloyd Wright, From Within Outward
- Denise Colomb, And the West Indies (1948-1958)
- BEYOND KIOSK, Modes of multiplication
- Ferdinando Scianna, Geometry + Passion
- Vanity Fair Portraits, Photographs 1913-2008
- Cai Guo-Qiang, I Want to Believe
- Nikolay Polissky, Large Hadron Collider
- Graffiti, Born in the streets
- Picasso Cézanne, Picasso looks at Cézanne
- Milton Glaser, The Modernist
- Philippe Parreno, VOICE-OVER
- NOMADS, Nomadism in Vancouver
- CARLO VALSECCHI, Lumen
- The Space of Words, Heterogeneous relationships between words and space
- The Jazz Century, I Love Jazz!
- MONA HATOUM, Measures of entanglement
- THE TAG, An Gallizia collection at The Grand Palais
- Andy Warhol, WARHOL TV
- FIFA 2009, The splendour continues!
- Sophie Ristelhueber, Temporal + spatial + Images
- Shilpa Gupta & Mahzarin Banaji, While I Sleep
- Ray Caesar & Kosta Kulundzic, The Outsiders
- William Eggleston, An American in Paris
- Beatriz Milhazes, Natural forms + rigorous geometry
- Erich Salomon, The King of the Indiscreet, 1928-1938
- Valérie Belin, La peau des choses
- Raymond Depardon + Paul Virilio, Native Land - Stop Eject
- Roman Cieslewicz, A man with a strong vision of creativity
- OCEANIA, Signs of ritual, symbols of authority
- Picasso and the Masters, Pictural dialogue
- Balthasar Klossowski, Balthus - 100th anniversary
- 4 Days in Mongolia, Glimpses of life...
- Jules Kulein, Desire + Graphism + Provocation
- Steven Meisel, Makeover Lightness
- H BOX, H as Hermès
- Juan Muñoz, A narrator sculptor
- Thomas Scheibitz, About 90 elements/TOD IM DSCHUNGEL
- Geoffrey James, Utopia/Dystopia contrasts ideal society with a world gone awry
- Club of 8, The 2008 Governor Generals Awards in Visual and Media Arts
- Robert Mapplethorpe, Lisa + Milton + Thomas & Ken
- China Power Station, PART III
- César Baldaccini, An Anthology by Jean Nouvel
- Floriane de Lassée, Inside Views
- Monsengwo Kejwamfi Moke, Father of the Popular painting movement in Congo
- Alexander Rodchenko, Revolution in photography
- Richard Avedon, Photographs 1946 - 2004
- Alec Soth, L'espace entre nous
- The 1930s at The MBAC, The Making of
- Patti Smith, Land 250
- Keith Haring, A Summer with Jean-Michel Basquiat
- Andrea Branzi, Open Enclosures
- Glenn Ligon, I Am A Man
- ¡CUBA!, A voyage through this Islands Art and History, from 1868 to today
- Michael Craig-Martin, Father of Brit-Art
- Lee Bul, On Every New Shadow
- 20 Creative People for 2008, Who are changing your world - 2008
- Richard Serra, Master of the tectonic nature of sculpture
- Eija-Liisa Ahtila, The House Sculptures
- Gerda Taro, A revolutionary photographer in the Spains war
- Ray Caesar, A Toronto, les chats sont gris la nuit
- De Superman au Chat du Rabbin, From the Shtetl to the devouring metropolis
- Takashi Murakami, The mass-market machine man
- Albert Watson, A provocative testimony
- Daphne Odjig, "Picasso's grandmother" + The Indian transition
- Yin Xin, The western most Chinese painters
- Carlito Dalceggio, Anatomy of the invisible
- Graffiti is art or bullshit ?, A brief history of graffiti movement
- TaTa Sam Bejan, A Tribute to an humanist photographer
- Edward Steichen, Master of Photography
- Pierre and Gilles, Double Je (1976 - 2007)
- Five Nights at the Museum, The union of Art with Architecture
- What the World Eats ?, Have a dinner !
- Le Tour du monde de la Pub, Broken course of the history of advertising
- The Situationist International (19571972), An Bauhaus imaginiste
- Kurt Wyss, Photographic Encounters
- Zhu Yunwei, Opened / closed eyes, awoken dream of a photographer
- David Lynch, The Air is on Fire
- FIFA : A quarter-century of pure splendour!, 25th International festival of films on art
- Twenty things you should know about Eva Van Den Bulcke..., Schlof project
- Shomei Tomatsu, Skin of the Nation
- Centre Pompidou, 30 years of world culture!
- 35 New Photographers 2007, Photographers of tomorrow, selected by Getty Images Bank
- Valérie Belin, The anthropometric method: Metamorphosis or transformation?
- The Event,, Images as protagonists of history
- Nacho Lopez, Revelations and Miracles
- A History of Advertising: Photography in France, from Man Ray to Jean-Paul Goude
- Desiree Dolron: Exaltation - Gaze - Xteriors, The mystic photography
- Paris celebrates international photography, Paris Photo celebrates its tenth anniversary with a sparkling selection of Nordic talent
- Lee Friedlander, -
- NRC Scientists Help Solve the Mysteries behind the Mona Lisa, -
- Digimart - Take 1, Global Digital Distribution Summit
- Joel Meyerowitz, Out of the Ordinary, 1970-1980
- J. Shulman, Modernity and the Metropolis, July 2006 / NBM, Washington D.C
- Nicolas Ruel, Inox
- Art Home


text:
[Full disclosure: Friday the 13th 1980 is the only film of that series that I know I've seen. I may well have watched one or two of the sequels but I can't place them. Though I vaguely remember a lunatic going mayhem on a spaceship… Surely not?]
King Kong Vs Godzilla 1962. Alien Vs Predator 2004.
USA Vs . I haven't seen the first one but the other two were disappointing. When Freddy Vs Jason 2003 was released I ignored it and avoided it until one day Channel 4 interrupted my surfing on the couch. If it hurt I always had the commercials to entertain me. USSR
The notion had been pandered for years and New Line resurrected it for the fanboys. It's the first film in the franchise Robert Shaye didn't produce but he made sure he had his customary cameo in it. Sean S. Cunningham[1] did the honours. He had also produced (and directed) Friday the 13th.
To watch Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film 2006[2] is to enjoy Cunningham's affability. Friday the 13th started with a marketing campaign. There was no script. There was no story. There was no money. Despite its exploitation origins the film had a coherent story. It also has the best ending in horror.
Although Cunningham has directed a number of features[3] his day job is producer. Indeed one of his first gigs was The Last House on the Left 1972 directed by Wes Craven. They would work together again (uncredited) on A Nightmare on Elm Street 1984 and again on The Last House on the Left 2009.
Wes Craven was not involved with this sequel.
In a break with tradition the director of this film is Ronnie Yu. The tradition of
Elm Street is hiring new and young directors. Yu was neither new nor young. He was a Hong Kong action cinema veteran when he directed his first American feature. At 48 he shot Bride of Chucky 1998 – the most successful film of that franchise[4]. At age 53 he helmed Freddy Vs Jason.
make money now – apologise later
Friday the 13th shows that Cunningham has form. Sell the idea: sell it to investors. Sell it to the public. There may well be a screenplay to this film but there's no story. There's not even a plot. There's a concept – and that's in the title. To try to understand this movie is to throw away the mythology created in the previous seven films – as risible as some of them were. This film stands alone – despite and not because of Jason – in its own carpetbagging avarice fantasy.
In 2003 Kelly Rowland was a bigger star then than she is now. Destiny's Child, the biggest selling all-girl group, was on hiatus and Kelly's solo album was an international hit. Someway somehow she did not negotiate top billing in a horror movie. That prize went to Monica Keena.
The lead actress. Something Heather Langenkamp didn't receive in 1984.
Kelly's positioning in the film is inexcusable. Her role is that of mammy[4.5] complete with ghetto name and accent. She's the hottest chick in the film - she's the hottest chick in the franchise – yet she's the only girl not to have a boy slobbering after her. In the opening scene after the credits she sets up two white girls with two white boys while she feeds her face riding the fifth wheel.
In a later scene she complains about her nose. She wants a nose job. Fact: no black person complains about their nose. The only race that is obsessed with rhinoplasty is whites (Michael Jackson, La Toya Jackson and Janet Jackson haven't been black since the 70s).
There's more; at the party scene Kelly gets lambasted by the school nerd. Her pal laughs at her. Kelly doesn't mind though. She starts dancing with nerd. All she needed was a good put down. Then of course if anyone hitherto missed the point even Freddy becomes racist. He describes Kelly as "dark meat". Not a phrase he used to describe Kincaid, Sheila, Yvonne or Doc. In the 21st century even dream demons lurch to the far right.
I've written before how I've grown to trust the
Elm Street series for its abstinence of racism. This film is an anomaly. It's an anomaly in continuity, in narrative, in concept, in tone. There is no irony in that the only non-white to helm an Elm Street film directed this picture of hate; Cunningham greenlit the script.
Kelly Rowland deserves the harshest sentencing. In 1987 Robert Townsend directed Hollywood Shuffle[5] precisely aimed at her type of behaviour. For Rowland – a huge star – to submit to this type of portrayal sent a message to every young African-American female actor.
It was ignored[6].
apology pending
Given the state of the script the actors made chicken vomit out of chickens hit; there wasn't much else to make. Robert Englund cell phoned in his now typical mooning performance. The signal was all pantomime and gurning. The kills were more Jason than Freddy and the dreamscapes were hackneyed. The trick ending gives resonance to how prostitutes use the word.
Freddy Vs Jason is the most box-office successful movie of the franchise[7]. The good news is they didn't make another. Even more good news; after only one other movie Rowland's
Hollywood career is over.
Regardless of its financial success most fanboys rate it 8th out of 8. Though I must disclose my man Reznor over at Koopaskeep[8] differs. Read his take to end this on a high note because as far as I'm concerned this film is best expunged from memory. It should be expunged from the canon. The first time I saw Freddy Vs Jason was on television. At least I had the commercials to entertain me. The second time was for this critique.
Never again. .
Read more Thrill Fiction: A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's RevengeTechnorati Tags:freddy vs jason, sean s cunningham, kelly rowland, robert englund, freddy krueger, jason voorhees
Generated By Technorati Tag Generator

subset: commoncrawl


text:
- 710 N Buchanan St
- $825,000
- 2 Bed, 2 Bath, 1115 SqFt, 0.15 Acres
- Residential
Brandon Village Homes for Sale
Real Estate Questions?
Text or Call Carolyn!703 477-6022
Homes for sale in Brandon Village
Carolyn Capalbo, REALTOR Reviews
"I was very satisfied with Team Capalbo's services. They sold our rental property in VA while I'm in Europe, without having to fly back. Carolyn's knowldge of the area helped price the house well (more than I expected) and was sold in less than a week. She provided very useful advice from start to finish. Her team had contractors ready to bid for some repairs and I was provided with a couple of bids for my approval. The electronic signing of the documents was easy and efficient. Her team was very responsive, knowledgeable, and professional. I highly recommend this team to anyone"
Amy Harper via Zillow
The listing content relating to real estate for sale on this web site is courtesy of MRIS. Listing information comes from various brokers who participate in the MRIS IDX.Properties listed with brokerage firms other than Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc. are marked with the MRIS Logo and detailed information about them includes the name of the listing brokers.The properties displayed may not be all the properties available. All information provided is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified.All listing information copyright MRIS 2020.
Listing information last updated on June 2nd, 2020 at 8:50pm EDT.


text:
Latest News
MAGNUM & TURBO Motors & Shooting video - WOW! (2006-09-06)
Brand new Systema motor is a breakthrough product for the AEG airsoft gun industry. Delivering faster rotations and greater torque in one package, this new motor takes your high powered Automatic Electric Gun to the next level!
In the past, super high speed and ultra high torque were complimentary features that you could not find in a single motor. You could either get a high speed motor, or a high torque motor. Recognizing a major need for a motor that could provide both, Systema embarked on a year long design that finally brings both these features in one package. Employing a break-through design, the new high torque motor, called the MAGNUM, will be equally at home in high-speed or high-torque setup, while beating the performance of all previous generation motors - even those specifically tuned for high-torque or high-speed applications. RedWolf's inhouse test of the MAGNUM motor have been impressive, with the new motor pushing M170 to M190 springs comfortably! This new motor is so full of torque that it compresses the spring more powerfully which actually generates a slight increase in FPS simply by installing this motor in a pre-existing upgrade setup. Despite the high torque, the motor still retains incredibly high speed and on a 12V battery, it shoots an M170 spring as fast as any regular AEG on a large 8.4V battery. That is an incredible feat!
Technical highlights of this new Systema motor include:
- Superior neodymium magnets provide unprecedented torque in AEG motor history
- Hand-wound rotor coils deliver over 80% of maximum torque instantly (at zero RPM / start up)
- Newly designed brush & brush case provide greater contact area for higher current flow without unnecessary surface friction
- Individually balanced commutator, meticulously aligned bearing inserts, and new CNC-machined aluminum end bell combines to ensure rotor stability at extreme speeds.
- Capable of powering gearboxes with spring rates of M170 at over 20 revolutions per second! (in conjunction with Systema Helical Super Torque Up Gears and 12v 2400mah battery
For those of you who seek for ultra-high rate of fire performance, Systema's TURBO version delivers 30 revolutions per second (which far surpasses the current performance of the Marui EG1000). This performance can be attained in conjunction with a 9.6v 2400mah battery and standard ratio gear set. The TURBO motor trades speed for torque, and therefore can only be used in gearboxes with springs that are rated M135 or less. In our in-house tests, we installed the TURBO motor in a 400fps upgraded M4 running a 12V battery. The results were so impressive we had to hang our mouths open. The rate of fire is like nothing we have ever seen and it felt like we were shooting a garden hose, spewing out a constant column of plastic. The BB's come out so fast and so powerfully that we could cut cardboard boxes in half within seconds. This TURBO motor will force many people to buy auto-winding magazines given how fast it can empty a standard or wind-up high capacity magazine. Truly impressive!
Now in stock at Redwolf!
Take a look at the new Systema motors:
Turbo Motor:
for AK47/AUG/Thompson
for PSG-1/SG550/SG551
for M16/M4/MP5/G3/P90
Magnum Motor:
for AK47/AUG/Thompson
for PSG-1/SG550/SG551
for M16/M4/MP5/G3/P90
M170 Complete Mechabox Set Building on the high performance of it's MAGNUM motor, Systema is able to push the limits of its complete MECHABOX design and take up to an M170 spring for massive power delivery well over 500fps! The new mechabox comes with a MAGNUM motor to make this possible!
Introducing the new Systema Mecha-Box and Motorset, comprising of the latest and finest parts from, including the latest Systema motor, which is a breakthrough in motor design and sets a new standard benchmark for motor performance. The Mecha-box is a pillar of strength, with a really rigid structure, thanks to the innovative design of the casing, and the parts are of the highest quality.
1. Concept
As you know, Systema have developed, manufactured and sold MARUI electric gun parts. SYSTEMA parts are our main goods that boast the variation of 317 items now. We offer our products that our most important purpose is captured electric guns custom itself as a hobby as our most important purpose.
However, on the other hand, an electric gun is a gun so that some customers have a first policy to make improvements of three elements of: power, accuracy and operationally as a gun as much as possible. In short, we can?t ignore the needs that they would like to obtain only the performance of SYSTEMA power easily.
In order to respond to those customers needs positively, we achieved a conclusion that general F.T.K. (Full Tune Up Kit) would not be sufficient. Now we manufactured this new product SYSTEMA COMPLETE MECHA BOX (SYSTEMA INTEGRATED MECHA BOX).
The concept of the product is very simple. Everybody can enjoy the SYSTEMA parts fully without specific techniques or knowledge. A tool you need is only one plus driver. We hope you make fuller better use of live-firing performance of ultimate custom parts.
2. Performance
It goes without saying that MECHA BOX is a core of function of MARUI electric gun and at the same time, the outside dimension is a pillar of rigidity of the whole gun. So it is important not only to trace accurately and manufacture it, but also to devise various ways to improve the function. For example, increasing wall thickness of part that comes in contact with the tappet plate corrects twist or deflection and control jamming on driving with high speed.
It is rare to use a gear in the structure of a real gun. In short, we think noise generated by the gear should be inhibited as much as possible. A noise generated by a pair of gears engaged correctly may be certainly comfortable, but we are willing to strive to inhibit even that noise by increasing wall thickness of the case as much as possible. As an inevitable consequence, the rigidity of case itself is secured at the same time.
In this product, there are eight bearings are selected and placed adequately as each usage. Especially, the radial bearing for the gear brings out a performance of our specialty high accuracy gear as much as possible by strictly controlling the set measurement.
Some people say 'I replaced a custom MECHA BOX, but when I used a strong spring, it was damaged'. The reason of this damage is covered with a case structure. The case of SYSTEMA MECHA BOX is no different in it's manufacturing method from other products as it is also die-cast. However, it is required to have draft in each part of the case for being die-cast. In general, only a tiny part of periphery of the cylinder head comes in contact with the case due to the draft on a front of the case where the case comes in contact with the cylinder head. If you give a strong impact on this part from backward, a power trying to separate will add to right and left cases. This is the cause of damage. As a countermeasure, it is designed that this part's draft is zero, so the strong impact from the piston will be received by whole area of the case and be attenuated. That's the reason of Systema's excellent durability of the MECHA BOX case.
SYSTEMA switch device is a best seller item that protects the terminal from excessive current which flows into the switch, by a very simple structure. However, the board itself needs a power supply structurally, which some people have issues with regards to the wiring. However, this time only a kit installed M150 spring can be delivered with completed wiring. In this case you can enjoy the dynamic shooting taste of ahigh rate spring by installing a Systema Mecha-box.
Take a look at the brand new Systema Mechabox and Motor sets:
Turbo Sets:
for G3-A3/SG-1
for MP5-A4/SD5
for SR16-M4
for M16-A2
for M16-A1/VN
Magnum Sets:
for G3-A3/SG-1
for MP5-A4/SD5
for SR16-M4
for M16-A2
for M16-A1/VN


text:
We ship to worldwide
You have no items in your shopping cart.
Professional Hair Care Products -From glossy shine sprays to frizz fighting keratin products
We provide you with the power - To achieve salon quality styling.
products can prevent or treat hair loss - in both men and women
We offer the best skin care products - treatments, anti aging creams, natural skin care and much more.
UglynBeauty Deals - find the coupons and promotions for over 100 major brands and 3,000+ great products
Shop the best of the best with us! - shop with confidence.
Only registered users can write reviews. Please, log in or register
Use spaces to separate tags. Use single quotes (') for phrases.
Availability: In stock
With this product, you earn 44 loyalty point(s). 44 points = $0.88.


text:
Manufacturer: RMC & Ox-Yoke LLC
Part Number: RMC-OX1428Description: Easy ..Neat...Clean...Effective...Economical. Give your rifle a Traditional Hot Water Wash!! Nothing could be easier or more effective than the flush, pump action hot water wash, just screw the hose into your nipple or touch hole socket. The flush system comes with Instructions, a brass nipple attachment, 27" (69cm) long hose, 10 x 2.5" (6.5cm) diameter cleaning patches, and 10 x 2.5" (6.5cm) diameter Wonder Lube 1000TM treated patches to protect your rifle until the next use.
There is currently 2 of this item in stock.


text:
Description of the illustration sca_osr3.gif
This image shows the Advanced Mode dialog. At the top are the bread crumbs Home > Publish WSDL document > Advanced mode. Below this are the Browse, Search, Publish, Profile, and Manage tabs. Below this are the Publish, Subscriptions, Custody transfer, WSDL, XML, XSD, and XSLT tabs. Below this is a navigational tree. To the right is the Advanced mode section. With buttons for do not publish mode, new mode, and rewrite with user defined key mode. Below this is the Select service key button.


text: If you have to borrow $100,000 to pay for college, then you need to come up with Plan B. By Janet Bodnar, Editor-at-Large November 5, 2012 Whether you call it a bubble or a bomb, the rapid increase in student debt has become a hot topic in the news, with media stories inevitably focusing on those who have accumulated $100,000 or more in college loans. Straight off the bat, it should be said that six-figure debt isn't typical. "Most undergraduate students graduate with an affordable amount of debt, with less than 10% of college graduates having total student-loan debt exceeding their annual income," concludes Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid.org, which provides resources on paying for college. Average debt at graduation in 2011 was about $27,000, says Kantrowitz—about the cost of a new car. SEE ALSO: 7 Smart Ways to Pay for College Sponsored Content His analysis adds welcome perspective to the issue. But there's no doubt that college debt is rising, and it appears to be part of a vicious cycle: Studies indicate that the very loans that are supposed to help students pay for college also contribute to driving up costs, and that prompts students to borrow even more. While policy wonks debate solutions to this Catch-22, students and families are faced with a practical problem: How do you pay for college—and make the most of student loans, if necessary—without getting in over your head? It's a subject Kiplinger's has covered extensively. In our October issue, senior editor Jane Bennett Clark, who heads up our college coverage, warned parents not to assume that stretching for a prestigious school will pay off down the road. (See 7 Pitfalls to Avoid When Paying for College.) "Choosing the right major and making the most of every opportunity have more impact on future earnings than a school's prestige," says Jane. Advertisement So step one is to choose a school you can afford. This month we expand on that theme with our annual list of the best values in private colleges. Our rankings heavily weight financial aid packages—excluding loans—and give extra credit to schools that hold down average debt and get kids out in four years. Do the math. If I could give families just one piece of advice, this would be it: Run the numbers to see how much it will cost to repay college loans. FinAid.org has a simple loan-repayment calculator based on the average starting salary in chosen professions. One rule of thumb is to limit your borrowing to no more than your child's expected annual starting salary. I also like the recommendation of Carol Stack and Ruth Vedvik, authors of The Financial Aid Handbook, to limit the amount of borrowing to $32,000—the maximum most undergraduates can borrow in federal Stafford loans, plus $1,000. In its annual College Savings Indicator study, Fidelity found that some parents are encouraging their students to focus on certain majors in hopes of landing higher-paying jobs. Tops on the list: computer science, nursing, engineering, psychology, biology and accounting (see our choices of the most—and least—lucrative college majors). Kantrowitz's study showed that students majoring in theology, architecture and history were more likely to graduate with six-figure debt, while those majoring in computer science, mathematics and health care were less likely to do so. Students who are interested in a subject with low pay prospects should consider combining that major with something more marketable—say, a foreign language along with English, or computer skills with journalism. Regardless of major, if you have to borrow $100,000 to pay for college, you need to come up with Plan B. Our lists of top college values can help you find an alternative. This article first appeared in Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. For more help with your personal finances and investments, please subscribe to the magazine. It might be the best investment you ever make.


text:
Funny man Ricky Gervais is set to make a return visit to Springfield this fall in a guest turn on "The Simpsons," according to Entertainment Weekly.
The cheeky Brit both penned and stared in a 2006 episode of the show called "Homer Simpson, This is Your Wife," in which he played a beaten down husband who make an appearance with Marge and Homer on a reality show.
In the forthcoming episode, Gervais plays himself when Bart and Homer visit Los Angeles for the Oscar awards.
U.S. & World
Gervais, a co-creator and star of the original "Office," is one of a long line of big-name celebrities lined up for season 22 of "The Simpsons." Jon Hamm of "Mad Men," Paul Rudd, Daniel Radcliffe, Hugh Laurie and Martha Stewart are all slated to lend their voices to the show this year.


text:
Charles Edwin Lamb, an architect of forward-looking, modernist structures and a founder of the RTKL firm, died of complications of Parkinson's disease Dec. 12 at the Heron Point Retirement Community in Chestertown. He was 87 and had lived in Baltimore and Annapolis.
A winner of national design awards, Mr. Lamb designed the Greater Baltimore Medical Center, a John Deere distribution center in Timonium and the Edward A. Garmatz Federal Court House on Lombard Street. He was involved with early plans for downtown Baltimore's Charles Center, Goucher College's Kraushaar Auditorium and the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer.
"He was clearly the design skill in the original partners," said Bernard Wulff, an Annapolis resident who worked with Mr. Lamb for several decades.
Born in Annapolis, he was the son of Reginald C. Lamb, the civilian chair of the Naval Academy's math department, and Ruby Moore Lamb, commissioner of the Anne Arundel County Girl Scouts. Mr. Lamb was a 1943 graduate of Annapolis High School and attended Georgia Tech. In 1944, he joined the merchant marine at Kings Point, N.Y., and crossed the Atlantic three times.
"While in Europe, my father saw examples of architecture he never forgot," said his son, Peter Lamb of Earleville in Cecil County. "He landed at Calais, and while Europe was beaten up by the war, he was inspired."
While earning his degree at the University of Michigan School of Architecture and trying unsuccessfully to get work with master architect Eero Saarinen, he asked two Annapolis architects, Archibald Rogers and Frank Taliaferro, for a summer job. They agreed.
The expanding partnership eventually outgrew Annapolis and later Baltimore until the business had 1,100 employees and 10 offices from London to Tokyo.
"In 1950, his mother as Girl Scout commissioner prevailed upon him to take on what became one of the most important projects of his early career," his son said.
Mr. Lamb conceived a round lodge building with a soaring roof at Camp Woodlands off Riva Road. It had a retractable chimney and pie-shaped tables housed within a complicated wood structure.
"It started with a circle," Mr. Lamb recalled in a 2012 article in The Baltimore Sun. "I knew that a circle offered the greatest potential for [carrying out] the Girl Scout customs of campfires and saying grace and singing songs. ... It was nonhierarchical, too."
He designed the roof "like a shell, a big eggshell." He also compared the circular shape to a Native-American tepee.
His father persuaded fellow Naval Academy teachers to spend weekends building the lodge, which opened in 1954 on a budget of $16,000. Before the lodge was complete, Mr. Lamb met his future wife, Marilyn Elizabeth Asplin, who taught swimming at the camp.
The lodge took national honors from the American Institute of Architects and caught the eye of Italian architect Pietro Belluschi, who was chosen to design an addition to the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer in North Baltimore and Goucher College's Kraushaar Auditorium. Mr. Lamb and his colleagues worked closely on the design of these structures as Mr. Belluschi's local agents. He also worked with developer James Rouse on his early enclosed shopping center, Harundale Mall on Ritchie Highway.
"He was an excellent designer and a pleasant person to work with," said George Kostritsky, the surviving member of the firm's founders. "In those days we collaborated on projects. Charlie was our architectural designer."
The soaring roof form that Mr. Lamb employed at the Girl Scout lodge similarly served him on a 1967 John Deere warehouse in Timonium. It won a first-place award from the American Institute of Architects.
"It was a warehouse and had a tent-like concrete roof secured on one side by large cables anchored in the ground," his son said. "And after a very heavy rain, there was fear the roof might collapse. My father and engineers got up on the roof and drilled a hole to let the water out. They modified the design after that."
Mr. Lamb wanted his structures to be practical. His Greater Baltimore Medical Center included a small railway track for delivery of medical supplies to different wings.
Not all of his buildings were happily received.
Federal judges complained about his Garmatz Court House, whose entryway included a sculpture by George Sugarman.
"He was not afraid of taking on challenges," said Harold Adams, former RTKL chairman. "Charlie stood up and fought for the Sugarman art piece. It's still there."
Mr. Lamb lived on Merrymount Road in Roland Park until he moved to Eastport on Spa Creek in 1985.
"My father was a solid citizen. ... What he enjoyed most was getting a bone in his teeth and getting to work. Our dining table was more often used as a drawing table, many times until the wee hours of the morning. I loved to watch him draw," his son said. "He had a personality that emanated acceptance and trust. He was not judgmental, yet one understood that he had a very shrewd sense of what was going on."
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Jan. 25 at the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, 5306 N. Charles St.
In addition to his son, survivors include three daughters, Lisa Anderson of Ridgely, Karin Lamb of Eureka, Mont., and Regina Lamb-Hurd of Inglewood, Calif.; a brother, Harold Lamb of Camden, Maine; seven grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren. His wife of 61 years died in 2010.


text:
UV sterilizer light is an effective tool for eliminating microorganisms such as viruses, bacteria, mold and yeast in the air and impurities in water. You can use this UV light bulb for your aquarium, refrigerator, air purifier, micro-wave oven, etc. This UV lamp is perfect for places like hospital, office, school, swimming pool and more.
- Great UV sterilizer lamp tubes generate 254nm UVC rays
- Used to kill bacteria and viruses in aquarium, kitchen, bathroom, restaurant, etc
- Quartz glass tubes, 2G11 base
- Overall Length: Approx. 8.5 inch
- Watts: 18W
- Power: 110V / 220V
Note: This UV lamp must be used with an external ballast which is not provided here.
Package Includes:
- 1x UV Lamp Tube


text:
If you remember, this was my soup and what I created. I've already sold the bracelet, so I'm going to be giving away the pendant. It's an amazing handmade lampwork glass bead with tons of Swarovski crystals dangling beneath and a sterling silver bail at the top, and it'll accommodate nearly any chain. Wouldn't it be great for fall (I'm really, REALLY looking forward to fall right now!)
Just leave a comment, and if you have a blog, post about it on your blog as well. You don't HAVE to be a follower, but wouldn't that be cool?
Good luck, and have an awesome, beadful day!
Lori Anderson makes jewelry for Lori Anderson Designs and also writes the blog An Artists Year Off.


text:
Fired For Beanie Sigel, Lil Wayne & Cassie Backlash? Charlamage Tha God Speaks On Gettin Fired From The Beat 100.3
Charlamagne Tha God known for going in on artists. Calling Lil Wayne the devil, dissing Cassie for leaked nude pics and more talks About Being Fired From The Beat 100.3
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


text:
I started my spring cleaning early this year! Over the past couple weeks I gathered up stuff we hadn't been using and "clutter" that we just didn't need. I tool all this stuff to Goodwill. I estimate I had well over 200 pounds of stuff. Between the over 100 books, television, toys and clothes I feel like a big weight is out of our house! We don't have a big house to begin with so it was nice to have some room spared up by donating our clutter!
I'm proud to donate my clutter to the Donate Movement by Goodwill. My used items will help generate a revenue to allow others to the knowledge and information to obtain a job. Want to be involved? Make a commitment to de-clutter, make a difference in your community and help create a healthier planet. Donate your gently used clothing and household items to Goodwill a few times this year.
The key questions that I ask myself that help me evaluate what to donate:
Do I really need this?
When is the last time I used this?
What do I need this for?
If I get rid of it, will I really miss it?
These mantras have really helped me get rid fo stuff because truthfully, I may be a borderline hoarder (confession). Because I am comitted to have a clutter free house, I will continue to donate to the mission or at least make the effort to do my evaluations of what I need to keep and what I need to donate!
On Wednesday, Feb. 2, from 9:30 – 11 p.m. EST Goodwill will be teaming up with Lorie for a "Think Spring Cleaning!" Twitter party at hashtag #donateclutter. We'll be giving out some great organization prizes and sharing tips about organizing, spring cleaning and donating. You can register in advance for the event here for a chance to win the grand prize pack: http://conta.cc/GWTPTSC.


text:
Copyright 2014 House On The Falls
A warm highland welcome awaits you from Donna and Andrew Long who run House On The Falls Bed & Breakfast. Their family home is on their family croft surrounded by stunning scenery in the tranquil township of Peiness, near Portree.
The guest accommodation is beautifully appointed and all located on the ground floor for easy access. The two spacious guest rooms consist of a Double Room and a Family Room (4 persons). Both rooms have their own private modern en-suites. You are invited to relax in the large and impressive guest lounge or step out on to the decking area to enjoy the panoramic views. A perfect room to relax in front of the fire after a busy day exploring Skye.
House on the Falls is an excellent location for walking, fishing, golf, horse riding - yet is only a 10 minute drive to Portree, the capital of Skye. Portree has many award winning and specialty seafood restaurants and a variety of shops.
The Long family will make you feel very welcome, including Donna & Andrew's young children, their very friendly collie dog Mac, and of course, Oscar the cat. If you're lucky, you may even get the chance to feed breakfast to one of Donna's horses or meet one of the newborn lambs.


text:
Good comeback by Yardy tbf. Could have had Akmal twice.
And now he gets Misbah - end of a very good spell.
Good comeback by Yardy tbf. Could have had Akmal twice.
And now he gets Misbah - end of a very good spell.
Last edited by wpdavid; 06-05-2010 at 08:33 AM.
That's how to put away Broad's idiotic round the wicket tactic. Hopefully that'll put an end to that plan for good.
Originally Posted by CricinfoOriginally Posted by Cricinfo
Yeah much like with his strategy with the short ball. Not a quick learner.
Tendulkar = the most overated player EVER!!
Beckham = the most overated footballer EVER!!
Vassell = the biggest disgrace since rikki clarke!!
Another one for Yardy. Been impressed by his bowling, has gone much better than many were expecting.
How has Sidebottom retained his place? He's ****ing dreadful.
Brilliant. Sidebottom's back to ruin all the good work done by the spinners. If he still plays after this effort then he must be doing 'favours' for Andy Flower.
Sidebottom not capable of pitching it up?
Lovely catch from KP. Just a shame it earnt Sidearse a wicket really. Sure that one'll secure his place for the rest of the tournament.
Unibrow Alam gone too. This is going surprisingly well.
What's the pitch like? Only just got back. Quick skim suggests a few instances of giveaway runs (no-ball free hits, endless short tripe etc.) yet Pakistan only have 123-7 at the moment.
World Scrabble Champion 2014. National Scrabble Champion 2009, 2015.
Author of Word Addict
Countdown Series 57 Champion
King of the Arcade
ECB - you are a complete ****ing disgrace, #FTECB
Seriously, Sidebottom, just go home.
Oh, what a surprise. He picks up another gimme wicket at the end of an over leaving him with 2. He'll be playing the rest of the tournament then.
**** me, useless again from Sidebottom.
And as I type that, gifted a wicket.
Razzaq is just an absolutely unbelievable player in this format. Pity he comes in so late.
**** off Sidearse.
Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself,
(I am large, I contain multitudes.
Walt Whitman
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)


text:
WASHINGTON - It's the earthquake that rocked the GOP.
In a year when mainstream Republicans have mostly bested tea party-backed challengers, a little-known and little-funded tea party challenger in Virginia's 7th Congressional District pulled the upset of the year, defeating House Majority Leader Eric Cantor by 10 percentage points.
The victory by economics professor Dave Brat gives the tea party an instant jolt of energy, sends shock waves through Capitol Hill, shakes up the GOP House hierarchy -- as Cantor was seen by many as the next Speaker -- and effectively kills any chance of immigration reform passing through the House any time soon.
"I think this is a scale eight earthquake. I think it will shock the Washington establishment; it will shock the House Republicans," former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said.
"It certainly upsets the balance of power inside the Republican conference. And combined with the results last week in Mississippi, it sends a pretty strong signal that while money matters, voters may matter more, and people have to have a little respect for the right of the voter to have attention paid to them, and the right of the voter to throw people out if they're not happy with them," added Gingrich, a 2012 Republican presidential candidate and co-host of CNN's "Crossfire."
Cantor becomes only the second member of Congress running for re-election this year to go down in defeat in the primaries, following 91-year-old Republican Rep. Ralph Hall of Texas. Longtime Sen. Thad Cochran of Mississippi may soon become the third. He's fighting for his political life as he faces a primary runoff election in two weeks against a tea party-backed state senator who narrowly edged him in last week's primary but not by enough to win outright.
"This victory is the 'Pulp Fiction' equivalent of the adrenaline needle plunged into the chest of the tea party," said GOP consultant Ron Bonjean, who served as a top strategist and adviser to House and Senate Republican leaders. "They had largely conceded most of the Republican primaries to the establishment."
Brent Bozell, an anti-establishment leader and "ForAmerica" chairman, proclaimed that "Eric Cantor's loss tonight is an apocalyptic moment for the GOP establishment. The grassroots is in revolt and marching."
How Cantor lost
In the primary's closing days, aides close to Cantor said they expected the majority leader to win around 60% of the vote in his primary. He didn't come close.
"Obviously, we came up short," the seven-term congressman told supporters as he conceded the race.
Cantor apparently didn't read the pulse of conservatives in his Republican-dominated district, which is anchored in the Richmond area but stretches some 100 miles from the Tidewater to the outer reaches of the Washington exurbs.
"My sense from talking to people in the 7th is that he had lost touch with the base of the Republican Party there, and by the time he realized it and tried to make amends, it was too late," Virginia political analyst Quentin Kidd said.
"The real problem that the (tea party) base had with Cantor is that they got to where they didn't trust him," added Kidd, director of the Wason Center for Public Policy at Christopher Newport University. "The issue that broke the bank for him was immigration. They saw him say one thing in Washington, then say something else to them, and it caused deep distrust in the district."
Cantor's campaign shelled out more than $1 million in television and radio ads to send its message that Cantor was "a strong conservative." It outspent Brat's by nearly 10-1.
In his victory speech, Brat told supporters, "Dollars do not vote -- you do."
Brat framed his challenge as another case of a grassroots conservative taking on the GOP establishment, a major theme in Republican contests this year. And Brat made immigration reform the central issue and said Cantor's position would hurt the economy.
"The amnesty issue is the symbolic powerful expression about the difference between Eric and I on jobs," Brat said.
Cantor has publicly supported proposals allowing children of those who enter the country illegally -- so-called "Dreamers" -- the ability to obtain some type of legal status. But Cantor opposed the bill passed by the Senate last year that included a pathway to citizenship for most of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country.
Cantor's team pushed back, calling Brat, a "liberal college professor."
That worked against him, Kidd said.
"His negative turn played into this narrative that Cantor couldn't be trusted...that he was out of touch with the conservative principles of the district, and was using Washington-style campaign tactics to beat his opponent down."
Brat's victory may have also been fueled by popular conservative talk radio host Laura Ingraham, who was an early supporter.
"The seeds for Brat's upset were sown on right-wing radio talk shows, particularly Laura Ingraham's," CNN Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter said. "This time last week Ingraham was busy headlining a giant rally for Brat. On Tuesday her website implored fans to vote for him."
Two pieces of irony: Cantor's defeat comes just three days after Virginia Republicans, meeting at their state party convention, nominated Ed Gillespie -- the poster boy for "inside the beltway" Republicans -- as the party's U.S. Senate nominee. And Cantor's loss also came on the same night that GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a frequent target of conservatives, easily bested six primary challengers from the right.
Aftershocks on Capitol Hill
In his 13 years in Congress, Cantor has rocketed up the ranks, all the way to majority leader, the No. 2 spot in the House Republican leadership. And Cantor was seen by many as biding his time until the eventual retirement of House Speaker John Boehner.
Now that succession is upended, and Cantor's defeat will only embolden the powerful tea party wing in the House. Conservatives will most likely demand that Cantor be replaced with someone on the right.
"It's going to speed up the process of tea party members positioning themselves for a leadership run. This stunning news could be the first shot in an all-out war between the establishment and tea party over leadership control," Bonjean said.
The No. 3 House Republican, Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, is popular among members and has chits from many of the freshman and sophomores he helped elect. But because he's part of the current GOP leadership lineup, many tea party groups and members on the right of the conference don't trust him as a solid conservative. He is likely to want to move up to Cantor's post, but could draw a challenge.
Some are floating House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan's name, but a source close to the 2012 GOP vice presidential nominee calls those rumors "baseless and unfounded" and notes Ryan batted down questions about his interest in any run for the top spot.
But because the news of Cantor's defeat is still sinking in, members are still calling around and testing the temperature for what should happen next.
Cantor's defeat also effectively kills any hopes that the House will pass an immigration reform bill.
"It's going to be a tough case to make that immigration is going to be brought to the House floor anytime soon," Bonjean said.
CNN Senior Political Analyst David Gergen agreed.
"For Cantor to be knocked off by a tea party conservative over his efforts to push for immigration reform and his earlier efforts to lift the debt ceiling, I think it will send shock waves through Republican ranks."
Look at the price he paid for doing things the majority of Americans support," said Gergen, a senior adviser to both Democratic and Republican presidents.


text:
Indians aren't stuck in middle with relief corps
Francona pleased with bullpen work to get to back end of Perez, Pestano Smith
KANSAS CITY -- The Indians knew what they had coming into this season in closer Chris Perez and setup men Vinnie Pestano and Joe Smith. The unanswered question was whether the middle relief would do its part to bridge the gap to that solid trio.
So far, Indians manager Terry Francona has been pleased with the results.
"I've been a part of teams where you have guys that you're trying to get to," Francona said, "and you maneuver it around. So often you've heard me say it, 'If you get to the bullpen before you want to, it has a chance to blow up.' But we've been going to guys like Cody [Allen] or Bryan Shaw early, and they give us a chance to win.
"It's good and it's deep, and we intend to keep it that way."
The middle-relief situation was an issue at times last season for Cleveland. If you remove Perez, Pestano and Smith from the equation -- they posted a 3.01 ERA combined a year ago -- the rest of the Indians' bullpen turned in a 4.56 ERA in 2012. The Tribe went 52-8 when it had a lead after six innings last season, but ended with 94 losses overall.
Through 19 games this season, Perez, Pestano and Smith have again been stellar, combining for a 0.83 ERA (two earned runs in 21 2/3 innings). Excluding the emergency relief appearance by starter Brett Myers on April 9, the rest of Cleveland's relief corps (Allen, Shaw, Rich Hill, Nick Hagadone and Matt Albers) have combined for a 2.65 ERA (10 earned runs in 34 innings).
Entering Friday, the Indians' bullpen was riding a streak of 19 consecutive scoreless innings, marking the fifth-longest run of its kind for the ballclub dating to 2000, and tied for the longest current streak in the Majors this season. Over the last 10 games, Cleveland has lowered its bullpen ERA from 5.14 to 2.73.
"Not having a traditional long man in the 'pen," Pestano said, "just speaking for myself, I didn't really know how things were going to shake out down there having a couple guys that have mostly gone strictly one inning the past few years. But Albers and Shaw and Cody have shown that they've been able to go multiple innings and do a great job of keeping those games close.
"If we get our starters to go at least five strong innings, and keep the game close, we have to cover one inning and then it's me, Joe and C.P. I'll take those odds all day long."
Francona is doing his part in trying to keep the odds in the Indians' favor.
"We have a good bullpen and part of a manager's responsibility is to keep a bullpen in order," Francona said. "Every once in a while, you have to take your lumps. But if you do that, you keep good pitchers healthy and they have a better chance of being productive. That's the whole goal."


text:
Watch as Andrew Cuomo makes the State Senate into a no-lose proposition
Someone from Cuomoland contacted me this morning with a complaint about the subject line in my morning email newsletter, which referred to a "Cuomo coalition" now running the State Senate.
Shortly afterward, Cuomo released an op-ed to the Albany Times Union endorsing the coalition, which he presents as the best oppotunity for a functional Senate.
Cuomo talks in the piece about how Democrats "squandered the opportunity" when they ran the State Senate, and says that "The Democratic Conference dysfunction was legendary and the current leadership has failed" to keep some members from defecting.
Cuomo, the governor and functional leader of the New York State Democratic Party, went on to say that "rather than base my support on amorphous and often misleading political labels" he'll wait to see how this new coalition works before supporting or opposing it.
It's a characteristically deft political play.
For one thing, Cuomo is making the endorsement of the deal between Jeff Klein's breakaway Democrats and Dean Skelos' Republicans conditional, so he can take credit for the coalition arrangement if it's seen to be working and abandon it if the arrangement breaks down or otherwise becomes unseemly in the eyes of the voting public.
For another, Cuomo is taking the opportunity to make explicit his expectation that the Senate will work to implement his agenda, which he presents here as a "litmus test" that reads as broadly progressive but divergent from the union position on taxes and education reform. A present and future campaign platform, essentially:
Specifically, the "litmus test" for my support starts with support of the following ten issues:
1. The property tax cap that has finally imposed fiscal discipline on local governments and provided relief to taxpayers
2. Campaign finance reform
3. Increasing the minimum wage
4. Reform of New York City's "stop and frisk" policy
5. Environmental protection and initiatives that address our changing climate
6. The education and Medicaid budget rate formulas that provided fiscal predictability and sustainability
7. The tax cuts that brought taxes on the middle class tax to the lowest rates in 58 years
8. Education reforms – like teacher evaluations – that bring more accountability to our schools and continued improvement to our SUNY system
9. Protecting a woman's right to choose
10. Limited and highly regulated casinos introduced as economic development generators
And, preemptively addressing one of the great potential problems with this posture—Cuomo is a loyal Democrat who thinks his party is useful and great except when doesn't—the governor essentially makes his position on the Senate a carve-out, applicable in this instance because of the close division between the parties in the chamber and in particular because of the poor track record of the Democratic conference in the past.
Cuomo writes: "With margins this close, I expect the leadership situation to be fluid and subject to influence for some time. I can offer the people of the state my opinion at any time over the next two years, when practice has provided clarity."
So Cuomo does own this Senate coalition, politically. And he will continue to own it right up until the moment he decides not to.


text:
Until the Arabs came, this was the end of the world. Everything to the west was monsters and mystery; everything to the south was sultry, secretive and uncivilised. To the Syrians and their Berber hordes it became a new frontier, and a potential route to the domination of Europe, but until that moment, for the people they were about to conquer, it was the edge of the known. For some it still is of course – Europeans are in plentiful supply who would willingly go no further.
Sitting on a bus and looking at the back of someone's head can be a bracing business; we never see the back of our own heads and it's probably just as well – this evening's guy has hair cropped short with salt and pepper flecks and a line of imperfections along the rim of his ear (spots or old wounds of some sort) that he continually rubs and picks at. He has a way of sneezing that makes me wince even though he's doing it in the opposite direction: a series of near silent convulsions after which he checks his hands, his jacket and the window for mucous. My hand's been resting on the miserly ledge at the bottom of my window and just behind his seat; I pull it back a little and breath as shallowly as I can, impatient to get off and suddenly conscious that a blemish at the back of my own ear may be disgusting someone at this very moment, grey hairs involuntarily counted, greasy collar disapproved of. More


text:
NASHVILLE --- The Tennessee State University women's basketball team imposed its defensive will against Belmont Saturday night as the Lady Tigers defeated the Bruins, 64-51, in the Gentry Center.
Tennessee State (6-12, 3-2 OVC) held Belmont (7-13, 4-3 OVC) to 16 first-half points and led by as many as 25 points in the win.
Rachel Allen led all TSU scorers with 13 points while Alana Morris added 12 points, six rebounds and four assists. Brianna Lawrence chipped in 11 points for the Lady Tigers. Although Chelsea Hudson was held to eight points she pulled down a team-best 11 rebounds in the contest.
Jordyn Luffman led Belmont and recorded a double-double with 16 points and 13 boards. Frankie Joubran also posted a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Tennessee State shot 34.3 percent from the field in the game, including 40 percent from long range. TSU only connected on 56 percent of its free-throw attempts but held the advantage in rebounds, 51-48.
Defense was the theme of the first half as the score was tied, 6-6, at the first media timeout. Over the next seven minutes, TSU held BU scoreless as the Bruins went 0-6 from the field.
In the meantime, the Lady Tigers posted 10 straight points to go ahead, 16-6. At the 7:35 mark Belmont finally was able to score on a couple free-throws. The Lady Tigers, however, responded with a 7-4 run to increase the advantage to, 23-12.
TSU went into the halftime break leading, 26-16, after holding BU to a .259 shooting percentage (7-of-27) and forcing the opponent into nine turnovers. The 16 points was the lowest TSU has held an opponent to in the first half.
An old fashioned three-point play from Rachel Allen got TSU on the board in the second half. Following a free-throw from Chelsea Hudson, Alana Morris scored to put TSU on top, 37-21, with 16:12 on the clock.
With about 13 minutes left to play, The Lady Tigers stretched their advantage to, 47-22, after Brianna Lawrence buried back-to-back three-pointers.
TSU was leading, 50-26, when Belmont posted six straight points to make the score, 50-32, in favor of the home team.
With 5:49 remaining in the game, Alana Morris found Chelsea Hudson in the paint to make the score, 56-36.
Although Belmont went on a 12-3 run and outscored TSU, 22-10, over a span of 10 minutes, the Lady Tigers maintained a double-digit cushion the rest of the game.
Belmont shot 30.4 percent from the field but only managed to make 1-of-18 from beyond the arc. BU went 8-of-10 from the charity stripe.
Tennessee State will have a short break before returning to action on the road at Jacksonville State. Game time is scheduled for 2 p.m. in Pete Mathews Coliseum.


text:
Atlas - Pillow Covers - 18''
Regular price $34.95
Product Info
- 100% Cotton
- HIGH QUALITY- 100% cotton, woven durable machine washable linen. High end quality canvas textile
- TRENDY DESIGNS - All our products feature trendy designs that are both universal and neutral. We hope our pillow covers can be used in any environment to add a designer touch
- REASONABLE PRICE - We were tired of paying way too much money for designer pillows which is why we designed these high end pillow covers as a 4-pack at an amazing price. We want everyone to enjoy a beautifully styled room without breaking the bank account
- EASE OF USE - Any 18-20'' square pillow can quickly and easily be inserted into our covers to transform your old pillow into a new designer pillow
- MONEY BACK GUARANTEE - At Woven Nook, we design trendy and high end designer pillow covers that are of the highest quality. Each cover is made of durable and long-lasting material that will last wash after wash. That's why our product is backed with a 100% Money Back Guarantee. If you are unsatisfied in any way with this product, we will refund your money with no questions asked. So give it a shot and add it to your cart today!
- Don't know what to buy for yourself or someone else? Pick the perfect gift by purchasing a Woven Nook Gift Card.
What's Included
A 4-pack of uniquely designed Pillow covers (inserts not included). One of each cover pictured are included in this pack.
100% High Quality Cotton
The cotton fabric covers from each set are machine washable. Wash delicate on cold, with mild detergent to avoid fading. HANG DRY ONLY as they are 100% cotton. Some fading of patterns can be expected with repeated washing.


text:
Disclaimer: I haven't raided on the PTR yet, so my understanding of T13 fights is entirely based on rumor and conjecture. However, that rumor and conjecture tells me that many of the T13 fights are one-tank fights, even on 25-man. Whether that's only true for normal modes is yet to be seen, maybe it will be remedied for heroic modes. But it leaves me wondering: why, in an era where we're expected to maintain 2 tanks on the roster, are we getting so many one-tank fights? Where did the interesting 2-tank fights go?
What's so good about two-tank fights?
There are two good reasons for encounters to use two or more tanks instead of one. For starters, it matches the tank-to-DPS ratio of the dungeon finder, at least for 10-man raids. In 25-mans, you would need 5 tanks to match that ratio, of course, which is unreasonable. I can see why the designers don't do this. It's pretty easy to accommodate the extra DPS and healers in a 25-man raid; you can "convert" between 10-man and 25-man by simply increasing the boss's damage and hit points. But it's tougher to add tanks, because the number of tanks is more closely related to the encounter mechanics than to the actual numbers the boss puts out.
But the point remains that designing 5-man content and two types of raid content to require very different population distributions for the different roles creates a problem. No matter what you do, one of the content areas is going to suffer because of it. We see this nowadays in the LFD "tank shortage" and long queue times for DPS players. If there was a consistent 1:1:3 proportion of tanks:healers:DPS required in all content (2/2/6 in 10-man, 5/5/15 in 25-man), that would be greatly alleviated.
The more important reason, in my mind, is the need for consistency in role representation from encounter to encounter. If you expect to need X tanks and Y healers in a given raid format, you design your raid roster around that expectation. People generally want to play as their main spec, and want to gear for that spec preferentially. This is especially true in guilds that use some sort of point-based loot system.
Breaking that expectation causes problems. In most tiers, we have to accommodate fights where we run fewer or more tanks and healers than the usual encounter. In my guild, I generally switch to Retribution for one-tank fights (Majordomo Staghelm, and several fights in Tier 11). And to be honest, I don't mind it, even though I have to compete with our main-spec DPS using last tier's gear during progression periods. It's a nice challenge in a tier full of fairly simple fights to tank, and I enjoy showing up our guild's DPS in inferior gear. But not all player enjoy their off-spec as much as I do, nor do all players play it as well as they play their main spec. And in many cases, the "extra" tank just ends up being subbed out for a main-spec DPS player, which is even less fun.
If that occurs once in a while, it's not too bad. But I don't think it's a healthy thing to do very often, because it can frustrate players who really want to play their role, but have to switch to off-spec or sit out because of an encounter's requirements. For a particularly egregious case of this, look no further than 25-man heroic Ragnaros, which encourages running 3-4 healers in a tier where you're usually bringing 6-7. That's really rough on the roster if your healers aren't awesome at their DPS off-spec.
Especially if content tiers are only going to have 7-8 bosses, I think more than a single one-tank fight is inadvisable. More than that, like we're apparently going to see in Dragon Soul, is really going to irritate tanks that don't enjoy being forced to play their off-spec. And arguably, if over half of the tier is one-tank fights and they're the dedicated off-tank, Blizzard has just made DPS their main spec through encounter design.
OK, so why do we have any one-tank fights?
The main argument against having exactly two tanks, in my mind, is that it constrains the encounter designers. We want them to come up with cool fights, and if we constrain them to require two tanks, that limits what they can do. They can't branch out to a third tank for a council-style fight, or cut down to one for a simple one-boss tank-and-spank. To echo a sentiment I've heard fairly often, you can only use the "taunt when the other tank gets the debuff" mechanic so many times before it gets stale. And to be fair, I agree; the "taunt on debuff" mechanic is in danger of being over-used. However, that mechanic is only one of many ways to solve the problem, "How do I turn this one-tank fight into a two-tank fight?"
A quick review of "+1 tank" mechanics
There are a couple of tried-and-true mechanics one can use to turn a simple one-boss, one-tank fight into an encounter that forces a raid group to use two tanks. Here's a quick list, along with some examples of encounters that utilize those mechanics:
- Taunt on debuff: Ragnaros, Beth'tilac (phase 2), Cho'gall, Nezir, Algalon
- Taunt on boss ability: Baleroc (in theory – in practice many guilds one-tank this anyway), Chimaeron
- Sabre Lash – Blood Queen Lanathel, Mother Sharaz, Patchwerk
- Periodic adds: Maloriak, Nefarian/Onyxia (2->3 tanks in 25-man), Anub'arak, Kel'thuzad, Kil'jaeden
"Taunt on debuff" needs no explanation by this point. It's probably the simplest and most versatile way to accomplish the goal, which is why it gets overused. Taunt on boss ability is slightly more interesting, because it rewards attentiveness and reactions, especially if the ability is randomized.
The Sabre Lash mechanic is arguably the worst of the four categories, because it's the most boring implementation for the off-tank. Blood Queen is probably the worst of the worst, since the off-tank could literally go AFK for the entire fight with the right positioning. I put Patchwerk in this category, because he's also basically a Sabre Lash mechanic. Patchwerk is a slightly better implementation, because his Hateful Strike isn't positional – it's threat and health based. However, he also gives the Hateful target extra threat, so the tank's involvement is still basically over after the first 30 seconds or so.
Historically though, the most common way to extend a one-tank fight is juts to add a few extra mobs, in the form of add spawns. Maloriak is essentially a one-tank fight which has mobs added to give you a reason to bring an extra tank or two. But it's done in a fairly creative way, integrating that into the fight with their own particular phase. You can come up with examples of this type of fight in almost every tier of raiding since Molten Core.
I personally like the "throw adds at them" solution best. Sure, we see it in almost every tier of content, but it never feels as stale as "taunt off the debuff" for some reason. Maybe because adds are more dynamic, or involve more thought and planning than simply hitting Hand of Reckoning. My guess is that because it's a second, independent entity, it feels like you're a necessary part of the team, because the main tank can't be in two places at once. As a result, it feels like a more important job, whereas "taunt off the debuff" and Sabre Lash mechanics feel like babysitting.
If you're so smart, how would you do it?
Keep in mind that the goal is to shoehorn a second tank into what is otherwise designed as a one-tank fight. By definition, that's going to feel a little "tacked-on." The problem with the "taunt off the debuff" solution is that it feels so blatantly "tacked-on" that it ends up looking like the lazy dev's solution. What's needed is to add a mechanic that requires a second tank, but do it in a way that doesn't feel tacked-on, despite the fact that it is. It has to feel like a job that's interesting, important, and worthy of a second tank.
For example, what about a the fight where an add spawns every 30 seconds and has to be off-tanked until it expires? Maybe the add has 3x the boss's hit points, so you can't possibly hope to kill it. You just have to tank it so it doesn't run amok in the raid killing healers indiscriminately. For a heroic version, the adds could spawn faster than they expire, leading to a natural enrage timer when your off-tank gets overwhelmed.
Or a fight where you throw a version of Alysrazor's hatchlings at the raid, but tweaked so that the hatchling is immune to all damage sources except the person being focused? There doesn't even need to be a damage buff, so long as the hit points are balanced appropriately. That sort of design has an additional advantage, in that it gives the tank an incentive to perform his damage rotation well – something we sadly need in the absence of an active mitigation model – so that he doesn't end up having to tank multiples at once. If you want tanks to care about balancing hit/expertise with defensive stats, this is one way to do it. It's an encounter-based way to turn your threat rotation into a survivability benefit!
Or how about an encounter where the boss periodically banishes the tank to a nether realm, where he has to dodge falling rocks, much like the Frostmourne room in the heroic Lich King fight? If the rock-dodging tank gets hit, the boss could receive a stacking damage buff. Meanwhile the second tank picks up the boss and has to cope with that stacking buff.
Or, in another variation on the "banish" theme, the fight where one tank and 1-2 healers are chosen at random and teleported to a separate room, after which endless waves of non-elite enemies start spawning. The banished tank has to do everything he can to survive the onslaught and keep the healers alive until the timed event ends, and the non-banished tank has to handle the boss. Since they're chosen randomly, both tanks and all healers need to be able to do both jobs, making it imperative that every player in your group is capable of handling the challenge.
There are even interesting ways to use the "taunt on debuff" and Sabre Lash mechanics to these ends. The problem with both mechanics is that they're predictable and boring. So make them dynamic. Maybe the boss randomly chooses which tank to debuff, or gives both tanks a debuff (one +50% damage take, the other -50%), so that they actually have to think about who should be tanking next. Maybe the boss's Sabre Lash puts a Living Bomb debuff on both targets, such that the two tanks have to split up afterward to avoid killing each other when they go off (but need to get back together afterwards for the next lash).
Or combine the two ideas: a Thaddeus-like encounter, where both tanks get a polarity and need to stand close or spread out based on their debuffs, but with a Sabre Lash mechanic. The tanks need to rotate cooldowns to survive the Sabre Lash when they're forced to spread, leading to interesting tactical choices ("Ok, I'll tank first and blow my cooldowns, then you taunt when they're over and blow your cooldowns").
I spit most of those ideas out in less than 5 minutes in a conversation with Meloree the other day. I'm sure that the encounter designers, who are way better than I am at this stuff, can come up with many more. So why aren't we seeing them in-game? Where is the insanely cool shit these guys are capable of? Why, instead of neat two-tank fights, do we get a tier of content where one-tank fights are so prevalent?


text:
Dodge says goodbye to NASCAR at Homestead
HOMESTEAD, Fla. (AP) -- Dodge said goodbye to NASCAR on Sunday.
And got the ultimate parting gift.
Dodge driver Brad Keselowski won the Sprint Cup championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway, giving longtime NASCAR owner Roger Penske his first series title and setting off a wild celebration in Victory Lane that surely will carry long into the night.
Penske Racing's rising star finished 15th in the season finale, but he clinched the title when his closest contender, Jimmie Johnson, had a catastrophic gear issue with 43 laps remaining.
So instead of getting one victory lap, Keselowski got about 40.
And no one enjoyed it more than Dodge.
"An amazing accomplishment for everyone for sure," said Ralph Gilles, president and CEO of Dodge's SRT Brand and Motorsports. "Obviously this project wasn't one that started yesterday. This has been an 11-year run with a lot of talented people who spend countless hours to make this championship possible. That's the Dodge way. It's always been the Dodge way.
"The underdogs came up and did it today. Three years ago, people were looking at us sideways when put this deal together. Everybody grew from it. From Brad to Penske to Dodge. To go out on top it makes it all worthwhile."
It was Dodge's first Cup championship since Richard Petty won in 1975.
This one was more surprising and maybe more meaningful since Dodge announced in August it was withdrawing from NASCAR after this season. The decision came in part because Penske announced days after the season-opening Daytona 500 it was moving to Ford in 2013.
"I'm literally conflicted because it wasn't about winning or losing whether we would stay in or not," Gilles said. "Those decisions were made many months ago for other reasons, but this is the best thing that could happen. The best way to look back on this is a feather in our cap. Whether (Keselowski) wins or not tonight, whether he clinches it, it's still an amazing accomplishment.
"This is a Seabiscuit situation in a way."
It sure seemed that way when Keselowski did smoky burnouts after the race, hoisted the trophy in Victory Lane and then started rounds and round of interviews while getting "a little buzzed" on Miller Lite, his sponsor.
Dodge hasn't ruled out returning to NASCAR, possibly in the second-tier Nationwide Series or maybe even in the Cup Series.
There has been speculation that Richard Childress Racing might be in the market for another engine builder. Earnhardt Ganassi Racing decided to lease motors from Hendrick Motorsports starting next season. The move was surprising considering Earnhardt-Childress Racing was formed as a joint engine-building effort between Earnhardt Ganassi and Richard Childress.
"I'm not ignorant to that," Gilles said. "I'm going to watch every race next year. I'm very interested in what's going on in NASCAR."
But if Dodge does decide to rejoin NASCAR, Gilles said it would have to be a situation similar to what the company had with Penske.
"It's very difficult to replicate the Penske situation," Gilles said. "What a team! Nothing but respect for Roger's professionalism, his attention to detail. I think he's brought a formula to the sport that others are probably going to have to start emulating because he's really done a lot with very little. Of course, he's got great resources, but it's laser focus."
Penske will begin a five-year deal with Ford in 2013, with Keselowski and Joey Logano driving for the two-car team.
Given what Penske did in 2012 - especially with the championship - no one will question whether the two-car team will be able to compete with larger organizations.
"It's not how much you put into a race team," Penske said. `It's about the people."


text:
In addition to graduating from Fairmont State University in May, two new alumnae also earned their first salute.
Chelsea Cobb of Dunbar graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing, and Abbey Wilson of Parkersburg graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science on May 10. During a ceremony a day earlier, both were commissioned as Second Lieutenants in the U.S. Army after successfully completing the Army ROTC (Reserve Officers' Training Corps) offered through a partnership between Fairmont State and West Virginia University. As part of that ceremony, the newly commissioned officers received their first salute.
Cobb and Wilson were softball teammates at FSU and started taking Army ROTC classes together. Both made the decision to commit to a future in the military.
New officers are branched to a specific corps in the Army to serve on active duty or in the National Guard or Reserve. They attend an officer basic training course relating to their military occupation and then complete advanced training by attending basic officer leadership courses. Wilson will pursue further training to fly a medevac helicopter and will be assigned to a medevac unit in Williamstown, where she eventually will become a platoon leader. Cobb, who received much of the training needed for her occupation through the FSU School of Nursing and Allied Health Administration, will become a medical surgical nurse in a Charleston medical unit.
Fairmont State students of any major can enroll in Army ROTC courses. First-year and second-year students learn basic Army fundamentals, including the rank structure, how to wear a uniform, customs and courtesies. Third-year and fourth-year students in the Advanced ROTC course learn the fundamentals of leadership, including techniques, ethics, small unit tactics and preparing for commissioning. Students have the opportunity to receive scholarship funds. For more information about Army ROTC at Fairmont State, call (304) 293-2911 or click here.


text:
My friend Scott Holden finished an amazing costume from Return of the Jedi. He's the guy who made the "Luke Skywalker riding a Tauntaun" costume a few years back. This is how he did it:
I hadn't done a big costume since the 2009 Tauntaun and was anxious to do something big for 2012. I decided to do an AT-ST from Starwars. I've seen other people's version of this costume online, but I felt there was room for improvement.
The first step was to model the AT-ST in 3d. I didn't much feel like trying to duplicate the model from pictures, so I ordered a small Snap-tite plastic model from Ebay.
A couple of days later, I had the 6" little model sitting on my desk. There were a few discrepancies between the model and the AT-ST from the films, but I doubted even hard-core fans would notice or care.
Armed with my dial calipers and protractor, I began the tedious task of reverse engineering all the parts. In January of 2012,
I started drawing the mockup model in Solidworks.
I scaled the model by a factor of 20 to get my target size. Along with a scale mockup of my body, drywall stilts and a backpack frame were modeled and inserted into the assembly. With all of the mockup components in one mockup assembly I was able to virtually move the costume to see how the legs would work.
Once I was satisfied with the general design, it was time to get to the specifics. Each mockup component of the mockup assembly (Head, Body, Thigh, Leg, Foot) is copied/referenced and put into a new "Assembly" drawing. Multiple "working" parts are then created around the mockup component.
Because I was using 4mm corrugated plastic (Coroplast ™) which can be bent, each new exterior part was drawn as if it was sheetmetal. After a part is created, with the click of a button, Solidworks unfolds the part into a flat pattern.
After the parts are flattened in Solidworks, the flat pattern is imported into a sheetmetal CNC program. The sheetmetal CNC program generates machine code to run a giant punching machine that nibbles parts out of a sheet.
Coroplast is rigid, but not enough to resist a 30 ton Turret Punch. Instead of punching the coroplast, templates were punched out of 4'x8' sheets of shower board from Home Depot.
The punched templates were then laid over the top of a 4'x8' sheet of coroplast. Flat spray paint was applied to the template, which transferred the cut lines to the Coroplast beneath.
Using a Sharpie, proceed with the most tedious version of connect-the-dots to create the full outline of the parts. The profiles of the parts are cut using a utility knife, and the bend lines were miter cut using a hand-held mat cutter.
The profiles of the parts are cut using a utility knife, and the bend lines were miter cut using a hand-held mat cutter.


text:
Bella Ornate Embossed Framed Wall Mirror Antique Silver Gold Finish
The Bella is a decorative wall mirror that showcases elaborately embossed details inspired by the intricate architectural design from the Baroque era. The Bella wall mirror may be mounted vertically or horizontally in your entryway, living room, vanity or bathroom
- Available in a variety of sizes (overall dimensions)
- Color: Antique Silver Gold
- Frame Width Profile: 2.5"
- Mirror Details: 1.25-inch beveled mirror glass
- Frame Material: Solid Wood
- Equipped with D ring hangers attached to the back
- Hanging Hardware
- May be hung horizontal or vertical
- Premium quality materials, Strong and Durable Frame Mouldings
Custom Sizes Available - Please email us for a custom size price quote.
Premium Glass Mirror - We use only the strongest premium quality glass mirror. This is to ensure that each of our mirrors provides maximum clarity, durability, and distortion-free reflection.
Superb craftsmanship and exceptional commitment to quality...
Our frames and mirrors are built to the highest quality standards, exceptional design and will provide generations of beauty for your home.
Have Questions?Contact Us
Customer Reviews
Beautiful, even better than the picture!
This mirror is stunning! Beautiful, well made, and a nice weight (not flimsy or cheap). Exceeded my expectations!
Awesome product. Looks great! Would order from you again!
When your order ships, we will notify you via email. Included in your email will be a tracking number for your shipment. We encourage you to track your package online or on the phone with the carrier. Standard shipping is FedEx, UPS and/or USPS, depending on the size & weight of your order. Please allow 3-5 business days for your order to process. Your order will arrive approximately 5-7 business days after processing. Delivery time does not include Saturdays, Sundays or holidays. Items purchased together will not necessarily be shipped together. All ship times are on business days.
Easy Returns
If your westframes.com purchase does not meet your satisfaction, West Frames will gladly accept returns within 30 days of your delivery date unless the item is marked as final sale. Once the item(s) is received by us, in the original packaging with no damage, in new condition, we will process a refund to your original payment account. A Return Authorization number is required. Customer will assume the cost of the return shipment and must insured return item(s). We do not accept returns/exchanges on custom-made or special order items. These types of sales are Final Sale and are non-refundable and/or exchangeable.
To start a return request, please click here. All returns will be processed within 3-5 business days of receipt. We will issue a refund to the credit card originally used for the purchase. You will receive an email notification when the credit has been issued. If you have an inquiry, please contact us by clicking here.
Our FAQs answer our most commonly asked questions. Please click on this link - FAQs
Color Disclaimer
We make every effort to provide high-quality images, and measurements to assist you in selecting your item(s). However, the display of product colors depends significantly on the user's computer monitor and we cannot guarantee the level of accuracy achieved on every individual user's monitor.
Sometimes measurements are rounded off, and occasionally they will vary slightly from the description. If precise dimensions or colors are critical to your order we suggest contacting us by e-mail in order to further assist you.


text:
Trust Co. of America announced Tuesday that it has partnered with the compliance firm RIA in a Box to help breakaway brokers in Trust Co.'s Advisor Pathways program decide whether they want go independent, join an existing RIA firm, or sell their practice and exit the market.
Josh Pace, senior vice president of Business Development for Trust Co., says that the Denver-based custodian started talking about forming an alliance with RIA in a Box, based in Manhattan, last December, as "both companies get approached by brokers looking to become independent and looking for help with registration, compliance, custody and technology" issues.
The alliance, Pace says, strengthens both firms' offerings. "Working together, Trust Co. of America and RIA in a Box can offer a package of services to advisors who want to start their own RIA and focus on what each company is good at."
The Advisor Pathways program, Pace continues, "is geared toward those breakaway brokers who are thinking of going independent and are not sure whether to start their own RIA or join an existing RIA. For those who want to join an existing RIA, Trust Co. of America can help match them up with established RIA's on the Trust Co. of America Platform."
For brokers looking to start their own RIA, Trust Co.'s partnership with RIA in a Box will help offer those brokers "a solution to getting registered and working through the compliance process. Once those brokers become RIAs, they have the ability to use Trust Co. of America for their custody and technology platform," Pace adds.
A "handful of advisors" are already interested in taking advantage of the alliance, Pace says, and "we hope to have a few signed in the near future."
The alliance with RIA in a Box is another strategic move Trust Co. is making to help solidify its foothold in the RIA marketplace. In late April, Denver-based Trust Co. announced that it had added eight new advisors to its custodial platform, bringing total assets under custody to $12 billion.
"We're proud of the results we achieved in Q1, particularly in reaching a record level of assets under custody, which is a testament to our clients' success," said David Barry, Trust Co. of America's CEO, in a statement. "In partnership with our RIAs, we will work hard to help continue their momentum and growth."
Check out AdvisorOne's Going Independent channel.


text:
In my inbox this morning from a reader:
I attempted to go to the site and was sent to a "website not found" type redirect from my provider instead of to the United States Sentencing Commission.
It would appear that Anonymous has indeed hacked the site according to a post I found at The Inquisitor:
Anonymous has hacked the US Sentencing Commission's website in retaliation for the suicide of internet activist and Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz, and as of now, the site is still displaying in its compromised state.
There is also a fairly lengthy note from Anonymous published there which refers to engaging 'Operation Last Resort'. They have this video as well:


text:
Compare Products: Check up to four products with to see a side-by-side comparison
If you notice that your commercial appliances aren't working properly, it may be time to check out our selection of replacement equipment motors. Choose from products that are compatible with appliances from various vendors to find exactly what you need. It's also convenient that replacing your current model's motor saves you money, since you won't have to buy an entirely new appliance. For other essential items to have on hand in your foodservice establishment, check out our serving spoons, ladles, and tongs. If you're wondering where to buy ice-o-matic motors, we have a large selection of ice-o-matic motors for sale at the lowest prices.


text:
(The Root) — Last week's Republican National Convention provided a powerful reminder that while most political speeches are rarely memorable, the really bad ones tend to be unforgettable. Actor Clint Eastwood's prime-time conversation with a chair — which he referred to as the invisible President Obama — became an instant Twitter hit, with @InvisibleObama becoming a Twitter handle before night's end. (At last check the account had more than 68,000 followers.)
That speech also turned the long-admired actor known for his tough-guy persona into an object of ridicule. Democrats and Republicans who agree on little else were virtually unanimous: The speech was a dud, the kind that will be remembered for years to come for all the wrong reasons.
But the spotlight that Eastwood and his chair generated raises an age-old question: What makes a good speech? And what does President Obama have to do Thursday night to leave Americans convinced that he made one?
According to Doug Gordon, managing director of FitzGibbon Media, a leading progressive communications-strategy firm, "Convention speeches that break through have grand themes for the audience following at home, as well as memorable one-liners." He pointed to examples such as the late Sen. Ted Kennedy's speech at the 1980 Democratic National Convention, then-Illinois state Sen. Obama's speech at the 2004 convention and Gov. Sarah Palin's speech at the 2008 RNC, which spawned the oft-referenced line, "The difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick."
Some are already predicting that first lady Michelle Obama's convention speech, as well as former President Bill Clinton's may soon join that elite list. Both of their speeches elicited deafening cheers from the crowd and high marks from critics. Clinton's now sterling reputation as one of the greatest speakers in American politics is particularly noteworthy, given that he did not start out that way. His first Democratic National Committee keynote address in 1988, became infamous for its meandering length, and how quickly and angrily the audience turned on him. Though his speeches still sometimes draw criticism for lacking in brevity, today he is universally praised for his ability to grip an audience. His evolution as a speaker could perhaps be attributed to learning one of the fundamentals of a successful speech: make sure it's about the audience, and not about you.
Dan Gerstein, founder of Gotham Ghostwriters, which specializes in helping high-level clients craft and deliver winning speeches, said that there are countless small details that can help make the difference between a winning speech and one that bombs. The most important advice he would give any client, however, is what he called "the oldest speechwriting maxim in the book: Show, don't tell." In the case of President Obama, he said, that means, "Show the public you are thinking about them, their future and what you are going to do to make it better."
To Gordon's and Gerstein's points, history's most celebrated speeches tend to emphasize hopes that extend beyond the person giving it, and a theme that looms larger than the moment in which the speech is being given. Both Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech and President Obama's star-making speech in 2004 emphasized the greatness of America, as well as each speaker's desire to see our country become even greater, for the benefit of all Americans and in the interest of securing a more promising future.
But King's and Obama's speeches also have something else in common: They were delivered by two of history's most acclaimed speakers. Even President Obama's critics acknowledge his gifts as a speaker, with "articulate" being a common adjective used to describe him. But with an entire election at stake, simply being eloquent may not be enough.
Gerstein, Gordon and political consultant Basil Smikle all agreed that the president's speech needs to be inspiring but also substantive in articulating key messages — among them that he has a clear plan for addressing the economy if given a second term. But, Smikle added, "While his speech should be motivating and reassuring to Democrats, it should really be geared toward disaffected voters — especially independents."
This is particularly challenging because, as Gerstein pointed out, people most likely to watch conventions are those most interested in politics and a specific political party, which means in some ways that the president will be preaching to the choir. But Gerstein added that media coverage of a speech's key highlights can have an impact and reach those not watching the convention, something that the heavy coverage, and praise, of first lady Michelle Obama's convention speech this week proves.
According to Gerstein, this leaves the president with quite a balancing act: He must fire up loyal Democratic voters who are enthusiastic about some of his more partisan policies without alienating the very independent voters whom Smikle notes Obama needs to reach.
A tough act, for sure, but not impossible, particularly for someone Gordon dubbed one of "the best orators" there is. But ultimately, the experts agree that speeches don't win elections — a candidate's overall package does. This means that a speech essentially becomes one chapter in the story told of a candidate — albeit an important one.
History is littered with great orators who ran for president and never won, among them the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Sen. Kennedy. But Gordon acknowledged that today's social media landscape means that the impact of a great speech or a bad one can be felt more immediately, and spread virally in a way that did not exist in previous campaigns.
This is why news outlets declared, "Twitter Elects Michelle Obama President of Speeches," after the first lady's convention triumph, while "Eastwooding," in which people took photos with empty chairs, became an instant online meme, and an embarrassing online souvenir of the RNC. So if President Obama delivers the speech of his life — one that inspires the hopes and dreams of Americans while simultaneously reassuring them of his competence in handling the economy, and also drawing sharp contrasts with his opponent — he may not automatically win the election, but he may win the news cycle. Sometimes that is almost as important.
Of course, he has some serious competition to win the campaign communications showdown. And so far it appears that the president might end up losing his oratorical crown — not to opponent Mitt Romney but to his own wife, whose DNC speech this week has many believing that the president may not be the most articulate Obama after all.
Keli Goff is The Root's political correspondent.
Keli Goff is The Root's special correspondent. Follow her on Twitter.


text:
A Sandwich a Day: The Seahog at Bagel on Damen
Reviews of Chicago sandwiches.
New York City has always been considered the bagel Mecca of the United States. Chicago, though, is inching in on NYC's long-standing reign over the title, thanks in no small part to Bagel on Damen. Co-created by Dion Antic, the man who brought Chicago the breakfast hot-spot, Toast, Bagel on Damen is a no-frills morning meal destination that puts some interesting spins on the traditional bagel sandwich.
One of the more adventurous menu options takes form in The Seahog ($8.95), a sandwich featuring a rather unexpected combination of ingredients that's surprisingly delightful. Bagel on Damen starts with a toasted sesame bagel, boiled and baked off site that morning to ensure maximum freshness. An almost excessive dollop of green onion cream cheese is then slathered on both sides of the bagel. And for the filler: lox, bacon, avocado and basil leaves. But rather than the cacophony of flavors that one might expect from such a combination, the sandwich proves to be a rather refreshing. The lox and cream cheese are the dominant flavors, while the bacon adds an extra hint of salt. The basil is uncharacteristically muted, and the smooth avocado slices mix up the texture. All together, it's a crisp meal that's perfectly portable for outdoor grazing in the park on a warm, sunny day.
Bagel on Damen
Wicker Park:1252 N. Damen Ave, Chicago, IL 60622 (map)
(773) 772-2243
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.