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Almost three years have passed since the rains returned and Texas emerged from a historic drought. Yet there still isn't enough water.
The impact of record-breaking heat and years of little or no rainfall can be felt long after a dry spell passes, and Texas is now struggling with the brunt of a historic yearlong drought that crippled the state's lakes, agriculture and water supplies.
"It's been a doozy of a drought," said Mark Svoboda, a climatologist with the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. "It's cumulative so that system has not recovered."
The latest news from around North Texas.
Officially, the drought that parched Texas starting in 2011 and its lingering effects are not as severe as the yearslong, record-making "drought of record" that stretched through the 1950s. That drought has since been the foundation of all water planning in the state.
But a combination of factors — including a rapidly expanding population, more upstream diversions to meet those growing needs and years without a major tropical system — have in some ways made this dry spell worse.
"More people, more straws in the drink, so you don't necessarily need a drought as in the `50s to see impacts worse than in the `50s. So that's what we're seeing," Svoboda said.
As a result, local authorities have lakes that have little to no water. That is forcing officials to prioritize how to distribute the dwindling water supplies while rushing to find new resources and rapidly building the necessary infrastructure in time for the next big drought, which climatologists say will become more of a norm due to global warming.
The Texas legislature, and then voters, approved taking $2 billion from a rainy-day fund to pay for water infrastructure projects to mitigate the effects of the 2011 drought to a degree. But more than 50 percent of Texas is still in some level of drought.
The situation is especially dire in the Highland Lakes. The series of Central Texas reservoirs supply water to Austin and its suburbs, while also providing important freshwater supplies to bays on the Gulf Coast and irrigation for rice farmers. In the 1950s, a few flood events helped replenish the lake to some degree.
This time, there have been no floods. Two significant lakes, Buchanan and Travis, are only 38 percent full, and water flowing into the reservoirs is at a record low. And for the third consecutive year it is likely no water will be released downstream.
The authority that oversees the lakes, the Lower Colorado River Authority, prioritizes its users. The most important being people and industrial customers, such as power plants that need water to make electricity. Downstream rice farmers who need the water for irrigation, and the salty Gulf Coast bays that require freshwater inflows to maintain healthy ecosystems, can be cut off during years of drought, as has happened since 2012.
"The paradox of environmental impacts of drought is: precisely the time when the environment needs the water the most is when the human users are least likely to give it up," said John Nielsen-Gammon, Texas' state climatologist.
Conditions are so poor along the Colorado River basin, which feeds the Highland Lakes, it constitutes a drought event that happens only once every 20 to 50 years, Nielson-Gammon said, referring to the drought map released Feb. 6 by the National Drought Mitigation Center.
"That's how dry it is in that area," he said.
And that is what Ryan Rowney, executive manager of water operations at the Lower Colorado River Authority, faces. As winter ends, the lakes he oversees are at lower levels than they were last year at this time. Releasing water downstream is out of the question, and now his goal is keeping the lakes at a level that would prevent it from falling into an emergency state that would force 20 percent cuts on all users.
So the authority has asked the state to grant an emergency request that allows them to raise the trigger at which they can halt downstream releases. That has pitted urban and suburban dwellers — who relish their boating, golf and lake tourism — against rural farmers and environmentalists. The authority's request for emergency stopgap measures indicates conditions are worse than they were in the 1950s.
For Rowney, it is the present and the future that concern him.
"We're living this drought right now. What we know is this is a severe, significant drought. We're managing the water supply wisely, but we don't know when or how it's going to end," he said.


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Paul McCartney's Letter to Mystery Drummer Offered Beatles Gig Up for Auction
The Beatles' Pete Best could have missed his chance to be the band's first drummer!
A handwritten letter Paul McCartney wrote on August 12, 1960, offered an unidentified drummer an audition just a few days before the Beatles departed for their legendary two-month stint in Hamburg, Germany, reports CBS News.
McCartney reportedly wrote the letter in response to an advertisement — "Drummer_Young_Free" — he spotted in the Liverpool Echo newspaper. The letter from McCartney told the recipient that if he was to join the Beatles, he would be required to travel to Hamburg almost immediately.
"Expenses paid 18 pounds per week (approx) for two months," McCartney wrote. "If interested ring Jacaranda club."
Bruce Spizer, author of several books about the Fab Four, said that the band was on an urgent deadline to find a drummer and ended up choosing Best because he had a drum kit and was the son of a woman who ran a nightclub where the group had played.
Ringo Starr was certainly not the drummer to whom McCartney wrote, said a Christie's spokeswoman. Starr was a successful drummer with the Liverpool band Rory Storm and the Hurricanes before he joined the Beatles.
McCartney and his new wife Nancy Shevell are on their honeymoon so Christie's auctioneers have not contacted him about the letter.
A spokesperson for Christie's said the auction house expects the letter will bring bids in excess of $11,000 when it is auctioned on Nov. 15.
The letter was found by an undisclosed collector who regularly checks yard sales for items.

subset: commoncrawl


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TUSCALOOSA | The Tuscaloosa County Commission on Wednesday approved its participation in a four-year, $20.2 million facilities upgrade plan for the Tuscaloosa County Park and Recreation Authority. The plan consists of a 50-50 split with Tuscaloosa City Hall on $3.1 million worth of shared community projects, a 75-25 share on $12.8 million of upgrades and new construction at Munny Sokol and Bowers parks — with the city handling the 75 percent — and $4.4 million in work that the County Commission will fund exclusively.
TUSCALOOSA | The Tuscaloosa County Commission on Wednesday approved its participation in a four-year, $20.2 million facilities upgrade plan for the Tuscaloosa County Park and Recreation Authority.
The plan consists of a 50-50 split with Tuscaloosa City Hall on $3.1 million worth of shared community projects, a 75-25 share on $12.8 million of upgrades and new construction at Munny Sokol and Bowers parks — with the city handling the 75 percent — and $4.4 million in work that the County Commission will fund exclusively.
"The key to me is to try to provide a real quality of life to the people who live here by using the taxpayers' money as wisely as possible," said Commissioner Stan Acker, who made the motion to approve the plan.
The commission's action shifts the conversation back to the Tuscaloosa City Council, which in September voiced its support for a five-year, $12.1 million plan presented by PARA to upgrade parks and facilities inside and outside the city limits.
The Tuscaloosa Tourism and Sports Commission teamed up with PARA to present the plan, which both agencies said would bring in additional revenue to the city and county governments through tournaments and other events that the city is now unable to host.
Since then, however, additions and modifications — some suggested and proposed by the County Commission — inflated the plan to $15.3 million, then $18.8 million until, finally, the $20.2 million plan that was approved on Wednesday.
Whether the Tuscaloosa City Council will go along with the plan remains to be seen. Under the plan, the city would foot more than half of the overall bill — $11.1 million to the county's $9.1 million.
"I think the city is pleased to see the County Commission put forward an offer," said Mayor Walt Maddox. "I look forward to reviewing what was passed and discussing with members of the commission the reasons behind their recommendations.
"It's an exciting day. It's a step in the right direction. I'm not sure there's going to be unanimity in terms of all the recommendations, but I think we're getting closer to an agreement."
The council's next meeting will be May 28.
Also, the city of Northport, which has a far smaller stake in PARA's funding, may also be asked to contribute.
The commission arrived at its decision after weeks of debate.
On Wednesday, that debate continued for more than an hour and at times grew heated.
A key sticking point was over a proposed $4.5 million, six-court basketball facility to be added to the Jerry Belk Activity Center in Bowers Park.
Commissioner Reginald Murray defended the project, saying it would be used for more than just basketball and that the space could host gymnastics tournaments and other events.
"Anyone with a sound mind can see you wouldn't build something of that magnitude and have it open only (to one sport)," Murray said, adding that he believes it can be used for tournaments year-round.
Gary Minor, PARA's executive director, told the commission that he believes such a facility would generate a significant amount of new revenue. He stopped short of saying it would pay for itself — no PARA facility operates at a profit, he said — but he said he was confident it would bring in new events and tournaments to the area.
"We're going to do everything we can to fill it if y'all decide to build it," Minor said. "I believe it's going to be fairly heavily used."
The other commissioners didn't sound as confident, and Commission Chairman Hardy McCollum questioned whether the county's investment would be worthwhile.
McCollum said he requested a group of University of Alabama graduate students examine how much benefit would be brought to the county and other governmental agencies from sales, lodging and other taxes on a standard weekend sports tournament.
According to the data, for a family of four spending a weekend in Tuscaloosa and spending $520, Tuscaloosa County would receive $1.28 in benefits.
The city of Tuscaloosa would gain $30, the county and city boards of education would earn $3.32 and $2.44, respectively, and the city of Northport would receive 32 cents.
Acker said that not all of the PARA facility upgrades — restroom improvements and baseball field lights, for example — can be weighed against how much the county will earn off the money it spends.
But McCollum pointed to the insistence of PARA and the tourism and sports commission that these expenditures would be returned by outside visitors that Tuscaloosa County is now unable to attract.
"If the basis of spending those dollars is to attract outside dollars, then you have to look at it with a return-on-investment approach," McCollum said. "A 75/25 (cost share) is fair distribution and it's generous on our part in participating in some of these projects."
Commissioner Jerry Tingle, who voted in support of the PARA spending plan, said he was opposed to any proposal that did not include amenities for District 2, which he represents. He took issue with the city of Tuscaloosa's expectation for the county to participate in projects that would not directly benefit all commission districts.
Reach Jason Morton at email@example.com or 205-722-0200.


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£1,390.80 inc VAT
(£1,159.00 ex VAT)
Width: 1,600mm
Height: 950mm
Weight: 125KG
Nominal Capacity: 1,251 litres
The 1200ITE is supplied with the following features:
- Electronic oil monitor
- 32mm Gauge fitting point
- Bottom outlet fitting kit / top outlet fitting kit
- 2″ fill point
- 4″ lockable inspection point
- Lockable manhole access
- 1″ BSP (F) outlet connection
- Vent
- LRC failsafe overfill prevention probe
- Anti-theft tank sticker, displaying the message 'THIS TANK IS ALARMED!'
- Description
- Additional information
- Reviews (0)
Every tank is bunded, i.e. comprising of a twofold walled plan. This twofold divider ensures your oil in case of the inward tank part. The external skin of a bunded oil tank can contain 110% of the inward tank's ability. Before obtaining an oil tank, dependably guarantee that you have picked a bunded alternative.
Harlequin offers two assortments of tank: – HQi (Standard Bunded) and ITE/ITT (Code ITE for base outlet and code ITT for top outlet). HQi Tanks come complete with standard tank fittings, while ITE tanks come complete with a scope of fittings and adornments, the most imperative one being an electronic oil screen for fuel administration and security.
Every oil tank inside the ITE range comes complete with an electronic oil screen as standard. What's more, these oil tanks are likewise supplied with: significant outlet fitting pack, 2″ fill point, 4″ lockable review point, lockable sewer vent top access, 1″ BSP (F) outlet association, vent and a high perceivability, hostile to robbery sticker, showing the message 'THIS TANK IS ALARMED!'
ALL Harlequin iTank Evo warming oil tanks are bunded as standard.
Additional information
|Oil Tank Size
1,001 – 1,500 Litre
There are no reviews yet.


text:
BOSTON (AP) — In the U.S. Senate race, Democratic congressman Edward Markey has tried to take his Republican opponent's chief criticism of him — that he's an entrenched Washington insider — and turn it on its head.
Markey has argued that while he may not be the freshest face in Massachusetts politics, he's served long enough in the U.S. House to know the ins and outs of Washington and can use that to the state's advantage.
When Republican Gabriel Gomez, a businessman and former Navy SEAL, tried to portray Markey's 36-year tenure in the House as ineffective during their first debate in the special election, he charged that Markey hadn't authored any laws in the past two decades.
Markey, 66, quickly ticked off bills he'd worked on that were signed into law, including legislation to help those with diseases such as Parkinson's stay at home and another designed to find a path for a cure for Alzheimer's disease.
"That's now the law. That's my bill," Markey said, adding that he also "passed a bill that created an on-ramp to the wireless world for the deaf and the blind in our country. And why did I do that? I did it because of the Perkins School for the Blind."
On the campaign trail, Markey's supporters have helped drive home the virtues of experience.
At a rally in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood, Democrat Thomas Menino, the city's longest-serving mayor, defended Markey's long record, saying he's helped the economic recovery.
"They criticize him for being in office so long," Menino said, joking that "being in office a long time is a good thing."
Longevity hasn't been Markey's only sales pitch in the run-up to the June 25 election to fill the Senate seat John Kerry vacated to become U.S. secretary of state.
He's drawn sharp distinctions between his positions and those of Gomez on gun control, health care, abortion rights, the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline and corporate tax policies — in each case casting Gomez as aligned with conservative Republicans.
Markey also has enlisted his party's heavy hitters, including President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and former President Bill Clinton.
On Wednesday, Obama traveled to Boston to give Markey a full-throated endorsement.
"Here in Massachusetts, you have a long history of sending smart, tough, hardworking leaders to the Senate," Obama said. "Nobody is better suited to carry on that legacy than Ed Markey."
Markey, who introduced Obama, again portrayed Gomez as beholden to his party.
"My opponent says he is a new kind of Republican, but he backs the oldest, stalest Republican ideas from the past," Markey said.
Casting himself in a long line of Massachusetts Democrats is a natural instinct for Markey, an Irish Catholic kid from Malden who grew up in the 1960s enthralled with the rise of President John F. Kennedy.
"People said he could not win that because he was Irish and Catholic and from Boston," Markey said in an interview. "That was a very powerful message that said Irish Catholics were not fully accepted in the country."
Kennedy's win "not only inspired me but inspired a whole generation to think of public service," Markey added.
Markey came from humble roots. His father drove a truck for the Hood Milk Co. Markey attended Malden Catholic High School and helped pay his way through Boston College by driving an ice cream truck. He was the first in his family to graduate from college.
While still in law school, Markey was elected to the Massachusetts House in 1972.
When he bucked the powerful Democratic House speaker by pushing through a bill abolishing a system that allowed Massachusetts judges to maintain private law practices, he found his desk reassigned to a hallway.
Markey, then running for Congress, seized the opportunity. He launched an ad that showed him standing before his desk using the tagline: "The bosses can tell me where to sit, but nobody tells me where to stand."
Markey took his seat in Congress in 1977 and was assigned to committees overseeing health care and energy by a fellow Massachusetts Democrat, former U.S. House Speaker Thomas P. "Tip" O'Neill.
For the next three decades, Markey built a legislative portfolio that included work on energy, telecommunications, national security and the environment.
He wrote legislation to set minimum safety standards for the construction and operation of liquefied natural gas facilities and helped persuade then-President Clinton to block the importation of inexpensive Chinese semi-automatic assault weapons.
He also pressed for the breakup of the monopoly that AT&T Corp. had on phone service, wrote legislation to increase competition in the cable television industry and collaborated on the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
Markey also has fended off critics who point to the home he owns in Chevy Chase, Md., to suggest that he's gone from political firebrand to Washington insider. But Markey insists his true home is his family's house in Malden.
Markey and his wife bought the house in 2001 following his father's death.
"I have lived in the same house in Malden for more than 60 years," he said.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.


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from The Yanomamo by napoleon chagnon [pgs. 126-27]:
"Women must respond quickly to the demands of their husbands and even anticipate their needs. It is interesting to watch the behavior of women when their husbands return from a hunting trip or a visit. The men march dramatically and proudly across the village and retire silently into their hammocks, especially when they bring home desirable food items. The women, no matter what they are doing, hurry home and quietly but rapidly prepare a meal. Should the wife be slow at doing this, some irate husbands scold them or even beat them.
"Most physical reprimands meted out take the form of blows with the hand or with a piece of firewood, but a good many husbands are more severe. Some of them chop their wives with the sharp edge of a machete or ax or shoot them with a barbed arrow in some nonvital area, such as the buttocks or leg. Some men are given to punishing their wives by holding the glowing end of a piece of firewood against them, producing painful and serious burns. The punishment is usually, however, more consistent with the perceived seriousness of the wife's shortcomings, more drastic measures being reserved for infidelity or suspicion of infidelity. It is not uncommon for a man to injure his sexually errant wife seriously and some men have even killed wives for infidelity by shooting them with an arrow.
"Women who are not too severely treated might even measure their husband's concern in terms of the frequency of minor physical reprimands they sustain. I overheard two young women discussing each other's scalp scars. One of them commented that the other's husband must really care for her since he has beaten her on the head so frequently!
"A woman can usually depend on her brothers for protection. They will defend her against a cruel husband. If a man is too severe to a wife, her brothers may take the woman away from him and giver her to another man. It is largely for this reason that women usually abhor the possibility of being married off to men in distant villages; they know that their brothers cannot protect them under these circumstances. Women who have married a cross-cousin have an easier llife, for they are related to their husbands by cognatic ties of kinship as well as by marriage. Bahimi is, for example, Kaobawa's Mother's Brother's Daughter (MBD), and their marital relationship is very tranquil. He does punish Bahimi occasionally, but never cruelly. Some men, however, seem to think that it is reasonable to beat their wife once in a while as if the objective is 'just to keep her on her toes.'"
yanamamo men married to their mbds (or any cousin) will prolly physically hurt their wives less, on average, than men not married to theirs since the man+mbd couples are more related to one another than the non-cousins couples. wouldn't make any sense for lots of excessive (i.e. lethal) violence towards very close relatives to have been selected for. (although see below.)
however, the fact that there is quite a bit of violence towards women in yanomamo society (yes, i know that there's a lot of violence in yanomamo society in general), and the fact that yanomamo women prefer to marry close to home, reminds me of arab/middle eastern/maghrebian/ mashriqian/south asian muslim societies where very close marriage (fbd marriage) is the preferred form.
very close marriage is also preferred in yanomamo society, albeit of a different form (the preferred form is not parallel-cousin marriage like the arabs, but cross-cousin marriage to a mbd, but since two clans usually exchange brides exclusively — or that's the ideal anyway — a man's mbd is also often his father's sister's daughter [fzd] as well. i'll explain it in a later post — for now, see here.)
my impression is that when you have a lot of very close marriage, you get what i've (jokingly) dubbed inclusive-inclusive fitness behaviors like honor killings and the like — extreme forms of "altruistic" behaviors in which even family members can be sacrificed for the benefit of the remaining family members. weird, but true (i think). i think the killing of unfaithful yanomamo wives by husbands who are usually relatives of some sort is another example of this. on the other hand, maybe it's just that the yanomamo have an extremely strong violent streak.
more on the yanomamo anon!
see also: Domestic violence gets evolutionary explanation
(note: comments do not require an email. yanomamo girl.)


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Five-Spice Duck with Onion-Mango Marmalade
|Poultry, Vegetables, Fruits
|Day Part
|Cuisine Type
Tender slices of duck breast aromatic with five-spice-powder top a spicy mix of rice noodles and spinach. Onion-mango marmalade adds a sweet touch to this flavorful meal.
3 tbsp. olive oil
6 mangoes, peeled, cubed
3 red onions, large dice
3 hot green chile peppers, seeded and diced
3 tbsp. olive oil
3 tbsp. butter
6 large Vidalia onions, cut into 1-in. rings
3 tbsp. honey
6 tbsp. white wine vinegar
3 tbsp. Thai red chili paste
3⁄4 cup rice wine vinegar
6 cups rice noodles, soaked
12 cups spinach, chopped
12 duck breasts
Five-spice powder, as needed
- In skillet, heat oil and sauté mango until caramelized. Add red onion and green chile; sauté until soft; reserve.
- In a separate skillet, heat oil and butter; caramelize onions over low heat, 30-45 min. Stir in honey and vinegar; reserve.
- In a bowl, combine red chili paste and rice wine vinegar. Drain rice noodles; toss with vinaigrette and spinach.
- Lightly coat duck breasts with 5-spice powder. In a skillet, sear breasts until brown; finish in a preheated 350° F. oven, about 5-6 min. until done.
- Place noodles on a plate and top with duck breast and onion-mango marmalade.


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Photo: At Adama's Shavuot festival in 2008, dancers gathered around for an aerial dance workshop.
While some dancers and movers will gather at Vertigo Dance Company's Eco-Art Village for the Hagiga festival during Shavuot, others will journey into the Negev desert for a different event: Adama's Hagiga Levana (White Festival or White Celebration).
Adama is a unique dance center run by choreographers Nir Ben-Gal and Liat Dror (more on them and the center soon, I promise!). Last year, their Shavuot festival was called Dance in the Desert and was a collaboration with the Amuta or Choreographers Society. I attended the festival and made a photo journal called "Dance in the Desert" for The Winger; you can check it out below.
This year's Hagiga Levana will be a smaller and more intimate festival than Dance in the Desert, but it should be no less warm and celebratory. Attendees can participate in workshops as well as find time for themselves to reflect in the peace of the desert. They'll also enjoy a performance of the Adama company's latest work. You can visit Adama's website for more information on this Shavuot event, which will run from May 28-30.
* * *


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February 9, 2011 1:00 PM CST
Report of the MCAA Marketing Committee
By Damian Lang
About the Author
Damian Lang is a mason contractor in southeast Ohio and inventor of many labor saving masonry systems and products. Lang has served as the Marketing Committee Chairman for the Mason Contractors Association of America. He is also author of the book Rewarding and Challenging Employees for Profits in Masonry. To network with Damian on contractor tips or tips you have and would like published, contact him at email@example.com or 740-749-3512.


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8,342 Acre Upper Michigan Recreational / Prime Timber Property For Sale.. This property is located in north-central Luce county, in the eastern part of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. This county has 30 miles of Lake Superior shoreline and many miles of rivers and streams. These features, which...8,342 Acres : $5,450,000
Hiawatha's Playground Mls 37738
Newberry : Luce Co : Michigan
Great Lakes and Land Real Estate Co


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Lil B Of The Pack On The Hunt For The New Boyz: Threatens New Boyz With Some Green Laser + Victory Freestyle
B reports "LIL B THREATENS THE NEW BOYZ WITH A LAZER FROM JAPAN!!!! ALSO CLAIMS THAT HE HAS WON IN THE VICTORY BETWEEN THEM BOTH"
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10-year Sentence in Missouri Sweepstakes Scam Case
PERRYVILLE, Mo. - A Florida man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for a sweepstakes scam that cost an eastern Missouri couple more than $250,000.
Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster announced Thursday that Patrick Percival Wilson pleaded guilty to two felony counts of exploitation of the elderly, one count of stealing by deceit and one count of unlawful merchandising practices. The attorney general's office was appointed special prosecutor in the case.
Koster says an elderly couple from Perryville was scammed into believing they won a sweepstakes of $85 million. Wilson and his colleagues convinced the couple to send money to pay taxes and fees for their winnings.
Wilson told authorities that he received at least $67,000 of the money. The rest was sent to Jamaica.


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The hair, up close, is peppered with tiny strands of blond. Chestnut brown and so finely trimmed, mellifluous, smooth, and feathery, it could almost be a weave, the Platonic ideal as imagined by the Hair Club for Men. Along with the piercing blue eyes, slashing V-shaped smile, and a shimmering burgundy shirt tucked into stonewashed Levi's resting low on the hips, the hair completes the man: John Edwards, a populist Adonis, a golden god of a Southern Democrat.
But on a spring Friday in sleepy Adel, Iowa, as Edwards stands surrounded by pale, stern-faced farmers in plaid shirts and modestly coiffed housewives, the hair is looking a little too good. The news that he paid $400 to have it trimmed by a Beverly Hills stylist broke yesterday and now wafts across this makeshift meeting hall in a pizza joint. For the campaign, it's an unwelcome reminder of what people suspect to be Edwards's main weakness: a certain lightness of being that dovetails all too well with that viral YouTube video of the candidate preening for two minutes before a TV appearance. It's especially unfortunate given that the 54-year-old former senator from North Carolina is here to explain his plans for rural America, the things he'll do as president of the United States to make life better for working farmers and farm families. It's the hair versus the message and, at this moment, it's hard to know which will win.
Edwards paces the small platform, explaining how he'll fight corporate farming, funnel capital to rural schools and businesses, and expand broadband access to out-of-the-way places. The rural South is where he's from, after all—the town of Robbins, North Carolina, population 1,200. In America, he says, "people like me can come from nowhere, the son of a mill worker…and now be running for president of the United States and pay $400 for a haircut!"
The Iowans erupt in laughter, a great gale of relief. "You like that, do you?" Edwards says, grinning. A white-haired 56-year-old named Marilyn, who had noted beforehand that $400 haircuts are "harder for people from the Midwest to understand," turns and gives a furtive thumbs-up. "He's good!" she whispers. Indeed he is. By the time he's updated the crowd on his wife Elizabeth's battle with cancer and uttered his can't-lose, heat-seeking campaign line—"It's time for Americans to be patriotic about something other than war!"—Edwards has won over the room, totally and completely. Asked about the haircut by the Iowa press afterward, Edwards, hand on hip, eyes squinting in the sun, says, "My whole life has been spent standing up for people who have no voice, and I'll do that as long as I'm alive. It's a ridiculous amount of money for a haircut. I'm actually embarrassed by it."
The honesty is disarming, especially since the Beverly Hills stylist Joseph Torrenueva has already said that Edwards is a "longtime client"—it's no accident that he got a $400 haircut; he just got busted. But whatever: Edwards has transformed embarrassing news into a punch line and a moment of plainspoken humanity. For now, the message has won.
Less money, less star power
With less money and less star power than Democratic front-runners Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, Edwards may look like a long shot to win his party's nomination. That's why he's been putting all his chips on the Iowa caucus, where a primary win in January 2008 could give him enough momentum to push through any possible Super Tuesday scenario on February 5. Again and again, I watch Edwards get thronged by moon-eyed supporters in Iowa — veterans, housewives, students, and union workers moved to goose bumps by his speeches, trying to touch the hem of his suit or look him in the eye with a personal message about Iraq or health care (a look Edwards returns with eyes narrowed earnestly, head cocked slightly to the side). He has by far the most established campaign organization in Iowa of any of the candidates, having first surged to national prominence there in 2004 and made 23 visits since then. By May, he was still number one in the Iowa polls, with 27 percent of Democrats supporting him.
What the Democrats of Iowa want, of course, is someone who can win in a general election. The dark cloud of Elizabeth's returning cancer has added Oprah-worthy drama—and a shade of uncertainty—to the campaign. But as Edwards has said, it's no reason to vote for him (or not to vote for him). As much as he declares himself the antidote to George W. Bush, it's what he shares with the Texan—known for whacking brush in Crawford and using Lone Star State grammar instead of what he learned at Andover and Yale—that could be his best hope for winning: Southern authenticity.
It's the "thang," as Edwards pronounces it in his hickory-smoked twang, that he believes lends him the innate credibility to connect with regular folks. It's also crucial to his strategy: As a guy who grew up going to a Baptist church, spent summers sweeping the floors of the Milliken textile plant where his dad once toiled for $35 a week, lettered in football in high school, and graduated from North Carolina State, Edwards promises he can peel away stubborn electoral votes from the Republican-dominated South—a feat that centrist Bill Clinton barely managed in the nineties with a Southern running mate. (Clinton won Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Tennessee, and Georgia in 1992 and won those states again minus Georgia in 1996.) Before that, you have to go back to Jimmy Carter, who in 1976 swept every state in the region except Virginia.
During a campaign stop in Charleston, South Carolina, where he spoke to the local longshoremen's union, Edwards tells me it was "impossible" for Massachusetts senator John Kerry to win in the South in 2004, given Bush's Southern bona fides. Edwards says he has that same advantage now. "And on the other side, it looks like at this moment, very likely, not somebody from the South." (That is, if Republican Fred Thompson of Tennessee and Law & Order hasn't entered the race.) That's no small selling point: If Edwards were to win the same states he and Kerry won, plus either Ohio or Florida and just one other Southern state, the Democrats would retake the White House.
But in the South, Edwards's good looks and polished oratory can sometimes obscure what's credible about him. And as Edwards himself observes in Four Trials, his 2004 book about fighting courtroom battles for children and families with personal injury, juries "rarely miss a trick, and probably never when it really is a trick. They take in every movement, fact, word, hesitation, and glance." Add to that $400 haircuts—not to mention the palatial house that he and his wife recently finished building outside Chapel Hill. With Edwards polling third among Democrats in South Carolina, where he was actually born (he moved to North Carolina when he was 12), he needs to prove he's got more than just a genuine accent—that, in fact, the heartfelt message and the perfect messenger are one and the same.
Dixie confidence?
History hasn't always borne out Edwards's Dixie confidence. It's been hotly debated whether he would have won reelection to the Senate had he run again in 2004, given the pervasive resentment in North Carolina that he used his seat as a way station for national ambitions. While Edwards did well in the South Carolina Democratic primary in 2004, the Kerry–Edwards ticket not only didn't win a single Southern state, it didn't win Edwards's home state, his home county, or his hometown of Robbins. Edwards says people vote for a president, not a vice president, and he and Kerry have been at each other's throats over the finer points of that debate since they ceded the election to Bush. Edwards has openly blamed Kerry for not fighting back hard enough against the Swift Boat attacks, while Kerry's people have accused Edwards of failing to deliver Southern votes (though Kerry ignored the South until he chose Edwards as his running mate).
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Edwards likes to call himself the "transformational" candidate, the right man to radically change the country after the dark years of the Bush administration. But he is also, as a few weeks on the campaign trail make clear, the transformed candidate: In appearance and message, he's more combative, mature, and left-leaning than the one-term senator of 2004 whose image Edwards himself has dismissed as "plastic." Edwards says he's "evolved," freed now from Senate politics, focused and toughened by his wife's mortality.
He spent the last two years launching a volunteer group called One Corps and a poverty center at the University of North Carolina while honing his foreign-policy chops on tours of the Middle East, Africa, Russia, and China. Since he announced his candidacy in December 2006, sleeves rolled up and shoveling dirt in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, Edwards has tacked ahead of Clinton and Obama in Iowa by rolling out remarkably detailed policy positions on health care, the environment, and rural poverty, delivering more substance in a couple of months than his two main rivals combined. Recent polls have shown Edwards beating all Republican rivals in a theoretical Election 2008, outpacing Rudolph Giuliani 49 to 43 percent, and leading all candidates among likely Democratic caucus-goers, who feel he is their most "electable" contender for the White House.
By apologizing for voting in 2003 to allow President Bush to invade Iraq, Edwards has made candor his presiding virtue, positing himself as the antidote to the prevarications of the Bush era (while giving himself a stick with which to wallop Clinton, who hasn't quite budged on her vote). He's also become much more stridently protectionist on trade, courting the labor vote by hiring campaign manager David Bonior, a former congressional majority whip and longtime union advocate who worked with Dick Gep-hardt on the congressman's 2004 presidential run. (Labor might help Edwards in key primary states, like Nevada and Bonior's home state of Michigan.) Edwards confessed to Bonior that his 2000 Senate vote supporting free trade with China was, like his war vote, a "mistake." Bonior says, "I don't want to compare it to religious conversion. But he obviously had all these pieces in him, these sensitivities and values, and they just needed to blossom and to grow."
Not changed as a human being
Edwards is careful, though, not to take the evolution narrative too far. "I certainly haven't changed as a human being," he tells me at his campaign headquarters in Chapel Hill. "My values are exactly what they've always been. I think the world has evolved. I think we live in a different world than we did in 2000, 2001. I think we live in a world where small, incremental change will not solve our problem. I think bold, transformational change—" He sits up and points to a handwritten poster on a wall meant to motivate telemarketing volunteers doing fund-raising. It reads: together we can transform our country. "That came from me!" he says.
One thing that has been consistent since Edwards began crafting a national message for the presidency in 2001 is his focus on poverty. Political consultant Bob Shrum convinced him to turn his stellar career as a trial attorney—he was legendary for his ability to convert arcane medical cases into Shakespearean melodramas, claiming the biggest settlement in North Carolina history—into a political tool rather than a black mark, an advertisement for a life spent fighting on behalf of the poor and infirm against faceless insurance companies and incompetent doctors. Edwards's focus on universal health care and raising the minimum wage is part of his appeal for black voters, who are crucial for winning the Democratic nomination, especially in South Carolina. The conventional wisdom is that no candidate ever talks about poverty unless he or she really means it. And it does seem that Edwards means it, even if, in early 2006, before he announced his run, he accepted a $55,000 honorarium to speak on the subject at the University of California, Davis, and received a $500,000 consulting check from a Wall Street hedge fund—two paydays that, some observers contend, threaten to undermine his poverty-fighting message.
Edwards's populism is also part of an aggressive strategy for winning the South, where he hopes to follow in the path blazed by Virginia's new Democratic senator, Jim Webb. During his 2006 run, Webb hammered the populist economic theme, and his victory has become a call to arms for a new Democratic charge at the South. "His message is not much different than mine," Edwards points out. "I campaigned for Webb, and his message sounded very similar."
How to win the gut voters
But Edwards admits he's depending on a segment of the population—white, working class—that's notoriously difficult to pin down. "I think a lot of these voters are what I call gut voters," he says. "They're not going to study the third level of your health care plan, you know. But they see you and they hear you and they think, 'I like that guy, I trust him.' Or they don't. I think the cultural connection is important in that regard. It creates a much easier bond of trust."
To help create that bond, Edwards has hired the same "rural liaison" Webb used — David Saunders, a bald, gravel-voiced Virginian who chain-smokes filterless Camels and goes by the nickname "Mudcat." Saunders — who also consulted on Mark Warner's successful 2001 bid for governor of Virginia — hires friends like bluegrass pickers Del McCoury and Ralph Stanley to play hay-bale campaign stops in the rural South, old-school barnstorming meant to connect with out-of-the-way voters. (Edwards's rural rollout started in Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, the former home of the Grand Ole Opry, in April.) Saunders serves as the undiluted id for the Edwards campaign.
"We're going to get some white males," he declares in his pungent accent. "The other candidates I've seen are looking at that same 19-state strategy. We're well into the twenties on our strategy." (In 2004, Kerry won 20 states, losing to Bush by a mere 34 electoral votes.) Saunders—rangy and loose-limbed with sun-baked skin and a perpetual grin—brands as "immoral" the idea of strategically bypassing the South to win the White House, as Clinton and Obama are likely to do, a move advocated in the 2006 book Whistling Past Dixie: How Democrats Can Win Without the South. Its author, Thomas Schaller, argues that moral issues simply trump economic interests for working-class Southerners. "I can give you two examples of people who whistled past Dixie," Saunders yells. "President Gore and President Kerry!"
Webb v Edwards
But Merle Black, an expert on Southern politics and co-author of Divided America: The Ferocious Power Struggle in American Politics, says that poor and working-class whites—the main target of Edwards's populist message—constitute only about a fifth of the population in the South. Two-fifths of Southern voters now live in suburbs, he says, and "these are the people that Edwards has been suing. They don't look on him as the solution." And there's a crucial distinction between Webb and Edwards: Webb has a military background. A decorated Vietnam veteran, he was once secretary of the Navy under Ronald Reagan. (Edwards got a draft number in 1973, but the lottery had ended the year before.) When Republican mouthpiece Ann Coulter attacked Edwards with her "faggot" slur last March, the implication was that he doesn't possess the manly fortitude to protect America from danger. And surely Clinton will question his backbone as the campaigning gets bloodier. After all, she didn't apologize for her Iraq vote.
I ask Edwards how he'll convince voters—especially Southerners, for whom military culture is sacred—that he's strong enough to lead in the era of Al Qaeda and a looming nuclear Iran. "Strength comes from what's inside you," he says, dropping into a low, serious whisper. "Strength comes from people having a comfort with you, that you'll do the right thing under difficult circumstances, that you have the right value system, that you have the capacity to lead. 'Strength' is the word—not 'tough' or 'braggadocio' and all that chest-thumping. I think we've figured out that doesn't work. But I think a true internal strength, I think it matters in a leader."
Bob Kerrey, the former Nebraska senator who recruited Edwards for the North Carolinian's first Senate run in 1997, is skeptical of Edwards's view of strength: "You're not going to defeat them by showing them your inner strength," he told me. "You're going to defeat them by showing them your outer strength." Edwards maintains that fighting Islamic radicalism will be a top priority of his administration, but as part of a larger, more holistic view of American leadership that includes fighting global poverty through a $5 billion educational program. He would also strike the phrase "war on terror" from the U.S. foreign-policy vocabulary, criticizing the phrase as "high-level rhetoric" used by the Bush team "to enflame the American voters to support them." Edwards says his global travels in 2005 gave him "a depth that didn't exist before. I think when you combine them with the other things I've been doing and the things that have happened in my personal and my family's life—especially Elizabeth's trials, our trials together, her breast cancer—I think they've created an evolution, that I've continued to evolve and become stronger."
Elizabeth Edwards' role
If anything makes the often enigmatic candidate more palpable to voters, it's his wife, Elizabeth. As every female supporter in Iowa says to me, if Edwards is married to a woman as smart and resilient as she is, then he must be a decent guy. When the two walked into the sunny courtyard of the Carolina Inn in March to announce the return of her cancer — after a 24-hour standstill at campaign headquarters, where staffers smiled forlornly at me and Edwards's senior adviser, Jennifer Palmieri, broke down in tears—it was the most unfiltered view of any presidential candidate that anybody is ever likely to see. "It was totally unrehearsed; it was just us," Edwards tells me, sitting in a hotel lounge in Des Moines prior to a speech before local Democrats. "We have a private world, but the us that the world saw at that press conference—that's us. That's who we are when we're just us. The conversation that Elizabeth and I had about her situation when she was diagnosed—if the whole world had seen it, they would have seen the same thing they saw at the press conference. I mean, that's who we are."
At 58, Elizabeth is more than Edwards's wife. She's the core of his political life. The two met in the early seventies at the University of North Carolina law school, where Elizabeth, the sophisticated, well-read daughter of a naval officer stationed overseas, was seen by classmates as much more likely to succeed than her husband. "I think she helped shape him politically," Shrum says. "She is a progressive, and I think he was much less political when he started out." Edwards, whose father is a Republican, rarely voted before running for office, although he says Robert Kennedy was an early political hero because he traveled through Appalachia addressing poverty and admitted he was wrong on Vietnam: "I think all of those were indications of maturity." As Edwards's key political adviser, Elizabeth is a major force behind the scenes, micromanaging details down to which tie he will wear and how he should respond to press questions. When Kerry joked during the 2004 primary campaign that Edwards was still in diapers while he was fighting in Vietnam, Elizabeth suggested heavy retaliation. (Her husband talked her out of it.) According to a former campaign staffer, she once dressed down an aide who questioned Edwards's judgment during a campaign meeting and fired three traveling chiefs of staff in a matter of a few weeks. It was she who pushed for a more sophisticated Web presence for the 2008 campaign, including the hiring of two bloggers who quit after coming under fire for their comments about religion. "Are we going to mess up and try things that don't work?" she told me in February in New Hampshire. "Yeah, we're going to, but it's because we're trying."
Elizabeth underplays her influence. "I just do mom things," she says of her official campaign duties. "John was home for several days, so I tried to cook the things he liked and stuff like that." I thought she might tell me her secret chicken-fried-steak recipe, but when pressed, she has a hard time remembering exactly what she cooked for him. That same afternoon, Edwards calls her up on stage during a town hall meeting to help explain an arcane point about environmental policy she told him in the car on the way to the rally.
To those concerned that Edwards won't be able to focus on running the country if Elizabeth falls seriously ill, he cites the death of their 16-year-old son, Wade, who was killed in 1996 when his Jeep flipped over on a highway near their North Carolina beach house. In the wake of the tragedy—the creation story of his political career—Edwards famously poured himself into his work, winning $25 million on behalf of nine-year-old Valerie Lakey, who was disemboweled when she sat on an open swimming-pool drain. It was the largest settlement in North Carolina history and one of his last cases. He was urged into politics by Elizabeth, who, after a long period of mourning, revived her own sense of purpose by undergoing hormone treatments in her late forties and having two more children, Emma Claire and Jack. (The oldest Edwards daughter, Cate, graduated from Princeton in 2004 and now attends Harvard Law School.)
"History is the best proof," Edwards says when I ask him what he has to say to voters who worry he won't be able to lead the country if his wife should die during his first month in office. "A few months after my son died, I tried probably the biggest case of my life and had to be completely focused, working 18 hours a day. Elizabeth was diagnosed with the recurrence of breast cancer—two, three weeks ago. The day after she was diagnosed, we went out of the spotlight and talked about it, and she and I both have been campaigning since that time. That's the best evidence of how I'll respond to personal challenges—what I've done in the past."
Edwards's response to his wife's terminal cancer—an unprecedented event in presidential campaign politics—cuts two ways, of course. Skeptics feel his and Elizabeth's ambition has trumped any sense of reality. The illness has lent his bid a faint air of now-or-never desperation, along with a kind of touchy-feely opportunism. "Well, I don't think we have all the time in the world to do what we want to do," Edwards admits to me. "But we both believe that this is what we're supposed to do with our lives. And so we're going to spend whatever time each of us has on this earth doing it."
Edwards is sipping on a jumbo-size soda from Bojangles' Famous Chicken 'n Biscuits in his Chapel Hill headquarters when I ask him if he truly believes a Democrat can win in the South, given how the white working class tends to vote. "Oh, I'll win more than one Southern state," he tells me. "I will win more than one Southern state. You remember we had this conversation."
According to Mudcat Saunders, the campaign isn't just aiming at poor rural whites in the South—but at poor rural whites across the country. "There's not a 50 cent difference in Bubba in Buncombe County, North Carolina, and Iowa or New Hampshire or wherever else. We are all from basically the same set of circumstances, and a rural campaign is not just a Southern campaign. It's about the heart and soul of rural America. And John believes strongly in it." There's also a largely unspoken asset to Edwards's candidacy, though it has gotten some play on the cable-news shows. In a general election, he has in his favor the simple fact that he is the white male Democrat — a safe alternative to any reservations that America — South, North, East, West — might have about a black man or a woman as president.
Resentment at home
But his message doesn't always play where it's meant to play, starting with his family seat. Many people in Robbins, North Carolina, resent Edwards for using the tiny town as a prop for his campaign, feeling he hasn't served their interests over the years. What would a hometown be without a little grousing? Wayne Gross, president of the Candor Hosiery Mills in Robbins for 20 years until it was shut down in 2005, would seem to be a prime target voter for Edwards's message. He employed Edwards's father, Wallace, for five years as a consultant ("He's a real nice guy," Gross says), and his factory jobs were shipped off to China and Pakistan, leaving a smoking crater in the local economy. Despite Edwards's protectionist stance—not to mention a relatively conservative view on gay marriage and a call for Mexican immigrants to learn English—Gross, a registered Republican, simply doesn't buy Edwards. Asked if he thought Edwards was a real small-town North Carolinian, he says, "I think the accent's real."
The fact is, Edwards is a very specific type of real Southerner, a cultural and political world apart from somebody like Gross, whose own path from a hardscrabble housing project to mill president was less socially mobile. Edwards—who majored in textile sciences in college but then went on to law school in Chapel Hill—is a product of the economic booms of the past 20 years in places like Raleigh, Charlotte, and Atlanta. After two decades as the most successful trial attorney in North Carolina state history (with a net worth as high as $60 million), Edwards has a decidedly New South profile, a peculiar blend of country flavor and newly minted wealth. He prefers white wine with his NCAA March Madness, imported suits with his GMC truck.
No regrets over new home
Fairly or not, to critics and many locals, Edwards's new estate—a 28,200-square-foot, $6 million affair a few miles outside of Chapel Hill—has become a potent symbol of hypocrisy when placed against his political message of personal sacrifice, environmental conservation, and economic division. Top aides were furious that the Edwardses decided to build it just as they were launching the campaign. Elizabeth has said she has no regrets; she worked closely with an architect to design the house, down to the wide-plank pine floors and soapstone fireplace. (It also has a 1,762-square-foot room called "John's Lounge," two performance stages, a pool, and basketball and squash courts.)
Edwards's close friend and former law partner, David Kirby, who was his neighbor in an upscale section of Raleigh in the nineties, says the family built the house out of a desire for privacy, a reprieve from the fishbowl of political life. "Every Southern kid's dream is to have the country estate," he says. "You have your 40, 50 acres and you've got your own little private world there." Saunders adds, "It's done swank. He built it as his final house. And he can afford it. If he wants to build him a fine house, what's that got to do with anything?" "I've lived the American dream," Edwards explains when I ask him about it. "No one ever gave me anything, and I'm proud of what I've been able to do." Then he adds: "And I'm particularly happy for Elizabeth's sake now, that she has a nice place to live."
The strange thing about Edwards is that he can seem more real onstage than he does in person. Unlike Bill Clinton, of whom Edwards was once thought to be the second coming, Edwards doesn't exude jocularity or bathe you in Bubba love. But by our third meeting, he seems determined to prove he's spontaneous. "I do have to admit that the haircut line came out of nowhere," he tells me the evening after his speech in Adel, Iowa, guffawing at the thought of it. "I was literally in midsentence and I thought, 'What about that?' I was just saying it. It got a good response from the crowd, though. I think anytime you're yourself, you're better."
Connecting with people
Edwards's greatest talent, his ability to connect to groups of people in contained, jury-like settings, is what he clings to. Gordon Fischer, a lawyer in Des Moines who chaired the Iowa Democratic Party in 2004, remembers Edwards wowing Iowans in living-room house parties during the last election, as he surged from nowhere in the caucus. Still, Fischer says, "I got to know all the candidates pretty well—except Edwards. I got the sense that he was guarded. He was extremely nice, but I just felt I never got to know him."
When I ask Edwards if there's a side of him the public can't see, he says, mindful of the $400 haircut and the massive estate, "I think less and less so. I think three or four years ago that wouldn't have been true, but I think there's not much of me they don't see now." In other words, that was the real Edwards in Adel, stripped of artifice. It's the point he's continually trying to hammer home in 2007: There is no difference between the message and the man. I ask whether he's overcome the perception of him as a Ken doll. "Probably not 100 percent," he says.
For now, Edwards has only to convince the Democratic primary voters in Iowa. With the format of the primaries potentially recalibrated—many states are proposing to push their primaries to within a week of the Iowa caucuses—Iowa's importance only seems to grow. Bob Kerrey, despite his criticisms, thinks Edwards can win it all. And when I mention that money might determine who wins in the primaries, Edwards scoffs. "Will it?" he says. "I've been through a presidential campaign, as you know, and I've been through a campaign where I didn't win and I was outraised, but I didn't lose to the person who outraised me."
In 2004, Edwards was outraised by former Vermont governor Howard Dean, whose burst of popularity didn't last. Edwards came out of that with the highest positive polling numbers of any candidate who passed through Iowa, and won 32 percent of the vote there after Kerry's 38 percent. And he never left. He might not get the huge throngs that Obama and Clinton get. But the Edwards crowds aren't just starry-eyed gawkers—they're diehards. They're believers, come hell or high-priced haircut.
The day after the speech in Adel, at a house party in Indianola, 30 miles south of Des Moines, Edwards uses his haircut for a punch line again—"We're not against people doing well; we want people to do well—maybe well enough to pay $400 for a haircut!"—and it goes over like gangbusters. He thanks the crowd for thinking of his family during Elizabeth's health trials. He says the line about being patriotic about something other than war.
The message wins again. For now.
Copyright © 2013 Mens Vogue


text:
Day 13 jury deliberations over in Kilpatrick trial
Jury in trial against former Detroit mayor to resume deliberations Friday
DETROIT – Another day of deliberations is done in the Kwame Kilpatrick federal corruption trial and still no verdict in sight.
Aside from the late afternoon activity outside the Theodore Levin US Courthouse in downtown Detroit involving people protesting Gov. Rick Snyder's implementation of an Emergency Financial Manager for the city, day 13 of jury deliberations inside the courthouse proved to be an otherwise very quiet day.
Sightings of Kwame Kilpatrick and his lawyer James Thomas at the courthouse Wednesday as well as the jurors ending deliberations almost an hour and 1/2 early that same afternoon had many wondering if a verdict wasn't imminent today.
Read more: Kwame Kilpatrick courthouse sighting sparks speculation
There were also no further questions for Judge Nancy Edmunds and the trial attorneys.
Although the jury has asked to see many exhibits, they have only interrupted deliberations twice for questions.
The first, on the third day of deliberations, had to do with Count 3 Extortion pertaining to an amendment to DWSD sewer lining contract 1368. The second question, on the sixth day of deliberations, sought to clarify similar wording in Count 1- RICO-Racketeering Conspiracy and Count 7 Extortion on Outfalls contract DWS 849.
The three defendants in this case are charged with running a criminal enterprise through the mayor's office to enrich themselves. Jurors are deliberating a verdict on charges that include racketeering, extortion, bribery, mail and wire fraud, attempted extortion and filing false taxes.
Kwame Kilpatrick is facing 30 counts, Bobby Ferguson faces 11 and Bernard Kilpatrick faces 4.
Jurors will return to the courthouse Friday morning to begin day 14 of deliberations at 9 a.m.
Copyright 2013 by ClickOnDetroit.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


text:
|Submitted By:
|Steve McCormick
|Prayer Request:
|Please Saint Martin, intercede for me NOW!!
Ask God TODAY to favorably grant ALL of my
prayer requests SOON, especially regarding
Susan Keaton!! Help me NOW great saint!!
Thank You Saint Martin!!
Thank You Jesus!!
* Prayers submitted through the Prayer Request Form will be moderated prior to publishing, to ensure the bona fides, as best as possible, of the submitter are genuine. St Martin Apostolate reserves the sole right to select/list prayer requests on this website.


text: "[Rieff is] indisputably one of the most powerful American intellects of the past century, a man of almost staggering erudtion who developed a faith-based critique of modernity and postmodernity that we ignore at the peril . . . of our souls." —BookForum "A compelling diagnosis of our condition." —The Wall Street Journal"Magnificent. . . . Few intellectuals of recent decades have a better track record of identifying blind spots in the higher common sense." —The New York Times Book Review"Subtle and convincing." —The New York Sun


text:
There's nothing better than a new pair of sunglasses! Whether you need multiple pairs to suit your many moods or have broken your most recent specs, Brigada has the shades you need to stand out. Founded by infamous skate label Bakerboys Distribution, Brigada began making its way onto store shelves in 2007. Believe this when we say it because we speak the truth: there's a perfect pair of Brigada sunglasses for every personality. Featuring black and iridescent lenses, Brigada's Pro Signature models have propionic frames and the company's emblem on the outer temples. Also showcasing a selection of iridescent lenses, their Lawless specs are available in solid color and animal print frames. Looking for sunglasses that prevent the most glare? Brigada Mid Town's have smoke lenses with polycarbonate frames. Brigada Big Shot models also block glare effectively with their polarized lenses. All Brigada sunglasses are designed to protect your eyes 100% against UVA and UVB rays. Sunglasses aren't just meant to be worn at the beach. From skateboarding to running errands, everyone needs a pair of shades for daily activities. Stay safe, be comfortable, and show off your unique style with Brigada!
As styles change, so does the Brigada selection. No matter what trend you follow, you're going to look awesome in a pair of Brigada sunglasses.
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Skateboard Hardware Sets
Skateboard hardware is used to connect the skateboard trucks to the skateboard deck. Skateboard hardware refers to the bolts and locknuts used when building a board. The bolts can have an Allen or Phillips head. Skateboard hardware comes in many different lengths, and often includes one different colored bolt so that the rider can mark the nose of their board.
Each skateboard hardware set includes 8 bolts and 8 locknuts needed to assemble one skateboard.
What size hardware do I need to put together my skateboard?
The width of your truck axle should closely match the width of your skateboard deck, usually within 1/4".
For additional info visit ourSkateboard Trucks Buying Guide
Truck height is measured from the bottom of the truck's baseplate to the center of the axle. In general, a mid-sized truck works well for most skateboarders, but high or low trucks may be preferred for different styles of skaters.
LO - Provides extra stability for flip tricks, designed for small wheels (50-53mm wheel size recommended).
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The hanger is the truck's T-shaped aluminum alloy grind area. It makes direct contact with rails and curbs. The hanger holds the axle on which the wheels are mounted. Hangers weigh about 10-13 oz, with lighter ones available. The width of your truck axle should closely match the width of your skateboard deck, usually within 1/4".
Construction refers to the material(s) used in fabrication or the specific brand technology.
For additional info visit ourSkateboard Buying Guide
The average width of a skateboard deck is 7.5"- 8.25". Width is influenced by the size of the rider and the type of riding. Bigger riders and those skating ramps typically prefer a wider deck. Street skaters usually choose a smaller deck. Choose your skateboard deck according to the width, not length. Here are some general guidelines:
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For additional info visit ourSkateboard Decks Buying Guide
Deck type refers to the size or style (shape) of the skateboard deck. If you are a beginner, choose your deck according to the width, not the length. The width you need depends on your size, skating style and personal preference. Here are some general guidelines:
Cruisers, Old School, Freestyle, Longboard and Downhill all refer to a skateboarding style and the corresponding shape.
Length is measured from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail. Average board length is 28"- 32" and longboards can range 32" and larger, but length is only referred to by advanced skaters.
Wheel size or diameter - All Skateboard wheels are measured in millimeters (mm). The smaller the number, the smaller the wheel. Smaller wheels are slower; bigger wheels are faster.
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88a-95a - Slightly harder and faster with a little less grip, but the grip's still good. Street; rough surfaces.
96a-99a - Good speed and grip - an all-around wheel. Great for beginners skating street, skate parks, ramps and pools. Smooth surfaces.
101a + - Hardest and fastest wheel with the least grip. Ineffective on slick and rough surfaces. These are pro wheels.
83b-84b - Wheels using the B scale are extremely hard, measuring 20 points lower than the the A Scale in order to allow the scale to extend another 20 points for harder wheels.
The laws for skateboarding helmets vary from state to state. Many states require that skaters wear a helmet under a certain age, and some states like California make all skaters under 18 wear a CPSC Certified helmet at all times. CSPC skateboard helmets usually have an EPS protective liner that meets the safety standards for skateboarding. Make sure you check your state's regulations before ordering.
CPSC Certified Helmets: California requires that all skateboard helmets must meet the requirements of the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Section 890.4 of the Streets and Highways Code enforces these standards in California and will not allow Warehouse Skateboards to ship non-CPSC Certified helmets to California.
For additional info visit ourSkateboard Helmets Guide
Unsure of the size you need?
Visit our Clothing Sizing Charts
Most bearings are measured by an ABEC rating. The higher the ABEC rating, the more accurate and precise the bearing will be. This rating system includes grades 1,3,5,7 and 9. The closer you get to an ABEC 9 rating, the faster and less friction you will have when skateboarding.
Many companies do not use the ABEC rating scale. They brand their own specific technology.
For additional info visit ourSkateboard Bearings Buying Guide
Note: Each brands skateboard helmet size will vary; therefore, it is best to measure your head and refer to the sizing chart specific to each brand of helmet. In order to properly measure your head, follow these steps:
Wrap a soft tape measure around your forehead, just above your eyebrows and ears. Keep the tape measure level from the front to the back of your head. Your skateboard helmet should sit low on your forehead.
If you do not have a flexible tape measure, try marking a string and measuring it against a ruler.
If the helmet is a gift or you cannot measure the skater's head, measure the inside of a current helmet or hat they wear.
Within each skateboard helmet product page there are specific measurements for each skate brand. Use that information, along with your head size, to determine your correct helmet size before placing your order. This will ensure that you receive the best fit.
For additional info visit ourSizing Skateboard Helmets


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The Republicans bashed California, but in the end, a former California mayor and state parks commissioner provided the best speech -- perhaps the only memorable moment -- of the GOP's national convention.
That former California state parks commissioner is named Clint Eastwood, and on Thursday night, he was a surprise speaker.
The speech has been panned by commentators and pundits and supposedly serious people as bizarre or strange. Some have suggested it was a failure.
U.S. & World
The people saying these things are colossally wrong. Indeed, you could call them punks.
Eastwood's speech may be the only thing we remember from the convention. His trick of conducting a conversation with an empty chair to represent President Obama is an instant classic. Overall, the presentation deserves immediate induction into the Louvre -- it was a work of art.
Still not convinced? Here are five reasons why Clint's talk was brilliant.
No. 5 -- Clint's talk shined a bright light through a sea of sameness. Outside of his speech, the Republican convention consisted of nothing but the same glossy, polished speeches offering the same dumb talking points that are really nothing more than devices for pushing the buttons of certain voter demographics. Then up to the stage comes Clint and his chair.
His talk was clearly planned, but it was also clearly unscripted. He talked, rambled, joked -- like a real person. The talk was dramatic, as the 80-something Eastwood stumbled over some words and created -- I suspect this was intentional -- real interest in whether he'd make it to the end. He conducted a conversation with an empty chair as though said chair was President Obama. The 11+ minutes for which this went on was simply the most compelling political television in ages.
No. 4 -- Clint's talk resonated culturally. It's already more than a political story, and that will give his talk the kind of long life that few political speeches have. Comedians are already talking about little else -- and that will continue for a while. People are "Eastwooding" on the Internet -- staging conversations with empty chairs.
Part of Clint's genius here was to recognize he could have that effect. Another part of what made the speech work was tone: it was both vaguely vulgar, in a middle-brow American way, and not too serious. Indeed, Eastwood was one of the few speakers who didn't seem to be taking the proceedings too seriously.
No. 3 -- Clint snuck in some real content: joblessness, Guantanamo Bay and the detainees there, and Afghanistan (he called, in an elliptical way, for the immediate end of that war and the immediate withdrawal of troops). There was more foreign policy in the speech than in either Paul Ryan's or Mitt Romney's more formal, more conventionally serious addresses.
No. 2 -- Clint overshadowed Romney's acceptance speech. This is being described by political professionals as the problem with having Eastwood: his chair overshadowed Romney's speech.
That's one way to look at it. But here's another. Romney is an uninteresting, boring figure. The former Massachusetts governor doesn't have much to say -- there wasn't one new idea or thought in his entire speech. So it's probably a good thing for Romney that people are talking about the empty chair, and not how empty Romney is.
No. 1 -- Clint picked the perfect metaphor. Whether you're a Democrat or Republican, or whether you don't follow politics, can you really disagree with the idea that the chair of leadership in this country is empty? No one is in charge in Washington, D.C. No one can get anything done. No one can govern. An empty chair really defines the American problem right now.
This is all true of California as well. Clint Eastwood lives here. This state needs a director, someone who can figure out a way to govern the ungovernable. After Thursday night's performance, Californians should be chanting: Run, Clint, Run.
Lead Prop Zero blogger Joe Mathews is California editor at Zocalo Public Square, a fellow at Arizona State University's Center for Social Cohesion, and co-author of California Crackup: How Reform Broke the Golden State and How We Can Fix It (University of California, 2010).
Send us your thoughts via Twitter @PropZero or add your comment to our Facebook page.


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alaska earthquake
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake jolted some residents of southeast Alaska awake on June 4, 2014.
(U.S. Geological Survey)
JUNEAU, Alaska — An earthquake shook some people awake Wednesday morning in southeast Alaska.
The U.S. Geological Survey reports a magnitude 5.7 quake occurred just before 4 a.m. and was centered about 94 miles west-northwest of Juneau. It was 45 miles west-southwest of Haines.
At KINY in Juneau, news director Lynn Campbell said there are no reports of damage or injury. He says it shook the building for about 20 seconds.
Campbell says the station received more than a dozen calls from listeners. Some said they were shaken awake. One said a humming bird feeder was sent swinging.
Meanwhile, the Cantwell area of Alaska was hit with a smaller magnitude 2.7 jolt about two hours later on Wednesday, according to USGS. Cantwell is about 116 miles north-northeast of Anchorage.
— With OregonLive.com staff reporting


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About Zerona
Contact Us
ZERONA® is a non-invasive body contouring procedure using the Erchonia® Laser Scanner. The multi-site clinical trial conducted by Erchonia® to validate the process focused on the abdomen, hips and thighs. The Zerona low-level laser therapy is approved for use on these target areas. At Laser Body Slimming, we have the patient lie on a comfortable table for 20 minutes on each side while the five lasers are applied to the target areas simultaneously.
Thousands have tried this procedure, and have lost an average of 3.64 inches around the waist. Imagine going from a large to a medium, or a medium to a small, just by relaxing for forty minutes, a few times a week.
For a noninvasive, alternative medical solution to the traditional fat removal procedures and surgeries, consider use of the ZERONA® laser procedure. Contact Laser Body Slimming for more information.
Zerona Laser in Self Magazine August 2012
Visit MyZerona.com
For More Information
"You work out, eat smart and dropped 10 on the SELF diet. But you can't shake that last trouble spot. If you're fit otherwise -and willing to spend - new noninvasive methods offer a kind of "lipo lite" Exhibit A: Zerona, which uses low-level lasers, applied in multiple sessions, to create a temporary hole in fat cells so what's inside can leak out. But because the fat is broken down as it leaves the cell, it won't up your cholesterol. It's safer than old-school lipo and a lot less painful (as in, not at all), says James Heskett, M.D. of New York City."
Zerona in Cumming, GA
Laser Body Slimming
104 Colony Park Drive
Suite 300
Cumming, Georgia 30040
Appointments: 678-208-0189
Copyright 2020 © Laser Body Slimming. All rights reserved.
Website Created
Edge 4


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I'm looking for a solution that would enable me to publish a presentation inside WordPress.
I do not want to attach a PPT file or embed a Flash plugin for that, I'm looking for a HTML solution.
I would be preferable to be able to use PowerPoint to create the presentation but this is not a hard requirement, more important is to output a nice presentation for the users, one with auto-play.


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PL1603 God Bless America
PL1603 God Bless America
- Porch Leaner Project - 11" x 48" solid pine board. Create one side and then come back during a daytime class and paint the other side with a different design for only $15.00
- Available During Pick Any Project Evening and Daytime Classes
- To Sign up for this project; Note The Design Number at the Top of the page and project/size you would like. Click READY TO BOOK - Find a date and register. See you at the workshop!
Pallet Painting Parties. Paint and Sip. Wood Painting Party. DIY Workshop. Wood Sign Party. Painting Party. Bradenton, Fl., Sarasota, Fl.. Girls Night. Nightlife. Date Night. Birthday Party. Team Building. Things to do in Bradenton. Things to do in Sarasota.


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How to Run a Progressive & Collaborative ISP - Alfredo Lopez
- Title:
- How to Run a Progressive & Collaborative ISP - Alfredo Lopez
- Description:
more » « less
Alfredo Lopez, founder of May First/People Link (MF/PL), shares his experience running a progressive and collaborative ISP. at OpenITP Techno-Activism Third Monday at CUNY Graduate Center NYC on May 20, 2013
May First/People Link - https://mayfirst.org/ - is a membership-led and driven organization comprised of about 450 organizations and another 400 individuals making for a total of nearly 3,000 people in the organization. It is a politically progressive organization, democratically run, and organized in both the United States and Mexico
Alfred explains
* Why you should care about what type of ISP you have
(Hint: They can see and share your online traffic)
* Why MF/PL was setup as a unique alternative Internet provider.
* How their infra-structure is different than most ISPs (support, server maintenance, and staffing) and why.
* How democracy works in MF/PL and the success and challenges they have had.
* The political challenges they face including lack of diversity in technology.
* How other movements, such as the Climate Change movement, interact and enrich the members of the collective.
OpenITP #TA3M: http://hacktivism.eventbrite.com/
OpenCUNY: http://opencuny.org/
Camera: Jennifer Baek
Video produced by Internet Society New York Chapter.
Webcast support: NYI http://nyi.net
- Duration:
- 43:56
|ISOC-NY added a video: How to Run a Progressive & Collaborative ISP - Alfredo Lopez


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Jenny Craig Weight Loss Centres
No matter how you participate in Jenny Craig you will have a personal weight loss consultant handpicked to meet your unique needs. Your program will focus on the three cornerstones of your lifestyle change: Eat Well, Move More and Live Life. Your consultant will teach you about menu planning with healthy foods, provide motivational techniques for stressful situations like social gatherings and dining out, and share ideas for fun ways to incorporate activity on a daily basis. Most importantly your consultant at Jenny Craig Chula Vista Center will be a part of your success, cheering you on as you reach each weight loss milestones.
With over 450 locations in North America and Jenny Craig Anywhere available to you, Jenny Craig offers a personalized weight loss experience wherever you are. Choose from any one of our local weight loss centers to talk to a personal weight loss consultant and learn more about our program with a FREE consultation.
Millions of people have found success with Jenny's programs. With many ways to customize the experience we can help you develop a flexible plan that will help you reach your goals. Call today to set up a FREE consultation at Jenny Craig Chula Vista Center, and learn how to get started today. If there is no Jenny Craig center nearby, or you prefer more privacy, ask about our At Home option where meals are delivered right to your door and you can talk to a personal consultant on the phone every week.


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Black Friday. Small Business Saturday. Cyber Monday. Die-hard shoppers have a lot to look forward to this weekend, and now they can add one more day to their list: Gray Thursday.
Black Friday. Small Business Saturday. Cyber Monday. Die-hard shoppers have a lot to look forward to this weekend, and now they can add one more day to their list: Gray Thursday.
Every year more retailers — usually national chains — are choosing to open on Thanksgiving, and stores in Henderson County are no exception. For the 12th year since the Walmart Supercenter was built here in 2001, the store will be open around the clock Thanksgiving Day, according to Holiday Event Coordinator Lynn Odom. In fact, the 24/7 store only closes on one day a year: Christmas.
Thanksgiving morning "usually starts off slow, with people stopping in to get cranberry sauce or batteries they forgot, but once the Thanksgiving meal is over and people want to stretch their legs, really business picks up," Odom said.
The store's Black Friday sales start at 6 p.m. Thursday. A second sale kicks in at 8 p.m. A third "manager's special" sale is scheduled for 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday that includes 30 percent off on Christmas trees, wreaths and holiday decor.
"This year is the largest sale event that we've ever had. We have all sorts of items from electronics to clothes to toys. This year we have 22 items on sale with a one-hour guarantee that the items will be in stock for at least one hour," Odom said,
Customers are "usually thrilled to death" that the store is open on Thanksgiving, she added.
A mile down Four Seasons Boulevard at the Blue Ridge Mall, stores will begin to open at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving, according to Kayle Hutchins, a marketing analyst for mall owner Hull Storey Gibson, based in Augusta, Ga.
The mall will stay open all night Thursday, finally closing at 10 p.m. on Black Friday. Last year the shopping center opened at midnight, but this year, "Some stores have wanted to open at 8 p.m., so we're giving them the opportunity. Maybe it's a tradition to get up early on Black Friday and go shopping, and maybe that's becoming a new tradition for Thanksgiving for people to start shopping on Thursday night."
JCPenney, Belk, Sears, rue21, Hibbett's Sports and the new Toys 'R Us Express, a temporary store that will close in mid-January, will open at 8 p.m. Claire's and Bath & Body Works will open at midnight. All other stores will open at 6 a.m. on Black Friday.
Belk Store Manager Hugh Halpert remembers last year's midnight opening but said that "a lot of stores are opening at 8 p.m. this year," so Belk made the switch.
"We're already getting phone calls asking us what time we're opening on Thanksgiving," he added.
The department store is giving away 250 gift cards, valued between $5 and $1,000, starting at 8 p.m. Thursday. "We have more than 300 stores, and one lucky person at each store will win a $1,000 gift card," Halpert said.
Halpert said he doesn't mind working extra hours over the holidays. "It's actually exciting. We're expecting a big crowd. Customers can still enjoy — and we want them to enjoy — their Thanksgiving meals, but they want to come shop when they're finished."
Smaller retailers like Mast General Store on Main Street at Sixth Avenue in downtown Hendersonville won't be open on Thanksgiving Day, but they do plan to offer extended hours on Black Friday.
Manager Richard Crandall said Mast will be open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday — one our earlier and two hours later than usual — to give shoppers the opportunity to get a head start on their holiday gift-buying. On Saturday, the store will follow the same pattern and then revert to its normal Sunday hours of noon-6 p.m. to close out the weekend.
Lance Norton, outdoor and floor manager at the store, said Black Friday is usually "very busy — it's hard to describe unless you're here." The day is "definitely one of the busiest days of the year for us."
Although Mast doesn't have customers lining up in the wee hours or the morning to wait for the doors to open as shoppers do at some national retailers, Norton said customers start showing up in droves by mid-morning and "then it's usually a steady stream of business through the weekend."
Small Business Saturday
A few blocks down Main Street at Wickwire Fine Art/Folk Art, between Third and Fourth Avenues, owner Shirley Hill said she plans to spend Thanksgiving with her family, but the gallery will be open 10 a.m.-8 p.m. on Black Friday, two hours later than usual. She'll revert back to regular hours for Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and Sunday, 1-4 p.m.
She and her husband and co-owner, Dave, are most excited about Small Business Saturday, a shop-local initiative launched by American Express a few years ago to encourage shoppers to include small businesses on their holiday shopping lists.
The company gives card members the opportunity to get a $10 statement credit when they enroll their eligible American Express card and then use it to spend $10 or more in a single in-store transaction at a qualifying small business location on Saturday. But cardholders need to register online by 9:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time Saturday, and there are a limited amount of enrollment slots. (American Express doesn't divulge how many.)
The Hills have been a participating retailer in Small Business Saturday since its inception. "I love Small Business Saturday and think it really brings attention to small businesses," Shirley Hill said. "It conveys that we need to shop locally, help our community and by extension our nation. When you shop with a small business, you're going to get customer service that you won't get anywhere else and the mix of merchandise is so unique – you can get that anywhere else either."
Hill added that while she welcomes the support of American Express, customers with any type of credit or debit card can shop on Small Business Saturday "to declare their support for their community's small retailers. Small Business Saturday is an opportunity to help small businesses that there has really been no help for throughout the recession. Small Business Saturday is a chance for shoppers to directly support their local businesses."
Reach Tanker at 828-694-7871 or email@example.com.


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A pre-recap disclaimer: I loved "The First Time."
If you hated it, if you were coming here hoping for a lot of
Also: If first love really could be like this, I'd happily
We open with Artie
It turns out he's going to be directing two of his actors to
He says the song – the entire musical – is about sexual
Blaine and Rachel shift from foot to foot and do their best
A relieved Rachel says, "Yeah, me, too," and then
Artie shakes his head. "As your friend, I accept your
Later, in the halls of McKinley, Finn is still trying to decide who to vote for, but he's putting up
"You can't do this with your brother," Rachel
"Not unless you live in Kentucky," a breathless Finn says when
Finn is also excited about an Ohio State
Then Finn invites her over to the house while the folks are
Kurt and Blaine
Kurt, lounging on Blaine's
"Are you crazy? You're the single most interesting kid
"I mean, like… sexually. I mean, we are playing it
"I thought that's what we wanted." (Blaine, by the way, is
"It is. I'm just wondering… do you ever have the urge
"Ah, yeah," Blaine
Kurt shifts uncomfortably. "It's a little hot in this
"Hey, I'm serious," Blaine says, laughing and climbing on the bed
Kurt does this whole darling little shrugging, lash-dropping
"Because of the layers," says Blaine with a grin. Then
I just love them. I don't know who wouldn't, other than


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Im trying to find the best way to control multiple storyboards presentation. I have a set of 10 storyboards that have to be played in sequence by clicking forward key on a keyboard. I can play them in forward sequence without problems with this line of code:
else if (clip_number == 1)
Storyboard myStoryboard = (Storyboard)TryFindResource("Storyboard_01");
myStoryboard.Begin(this, true);
My problem is that when I want the user to go back by clicking back key then the storyboards did not start from Zero time point. I believe that I need a code that will set storyboard to 0 and then play it.
Please let me know if you have any useful information on it.
I am highly appreciate any advice.


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International Film Trust will launch sales on the Croisette on the Jerry Lewis drama Max Rose. ICM Partners represents US rights.
Lewis will fly in to Cannes for the premiere of his first film since Funny Bones 18 years ago. He plays an elderly jazz pianist who embarks on a quest to learn whether his marriage to his late wife was a sham.
Lawrence Inglee and Garrett Kelleher produced the Lightstream Pictures film and Paul Currie, Matthew Malek, Charlie O'Carroll, Gaston Pavlovich and William L Walton served as executive producers.
Daniel Noah directed from his original screenplay and the cast includes Claire Bloom, Kevin Pollak, Kerry Bishé and Mort Sahl.
"To have a title in the Official Selection as part of our debut sales slate at Cannes is a wonderful start for IFT," said Ariel Veneziano, president of sales at the Los Angeles-based company.
"Our goal is to be a supplier of quality driven feature films across all genres with clear commercial appeal for the right distributors. Max Rose ticks all those boxes."
Lewis also appears in a restored screening of The Ladies Man that will play in the Cannes Classics strand.


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A Nepali woman is re-united with her daughter after a major earthquake hits Kathmandu. "I live right over there. My house has a big crack in it."
Casualties in Kathmandu.
Civilian Earthquake Support
Passersby relay bricks to a pile in the search for injured or dead people in the rubble of a fallen building in central Kathmandu, an hour after the April 25 earthquake.
Outside of the hospital, doctors, nurses and volunteers set up makeshift medical services.
Bloody rags and used medical supplies.
An injured man sits near the hospital after receiving medical treatment.
Thousands take to the streets for safety away from buildings.


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Helping a fellow cop after an SBC
What can you do to help support a fellow officer in the aftermath of a suicide-by-cop event?
An SBC is a traumatic event, and that officer involved will be impacted by it. Just as when the body experiences a traumatic physical injury requiring some type of physical recovery, the same is true for trauma to the mind.
Unless you're a medical professional or physical therapist, you're going to be a cheerleader on the sidelines as your fellow officer recovers from a physical injury. But in the event of an SBC, you can take a much more active role in your colleague's recovery process.
So, what can you do to help support a fellow officer in the aftermath of an SBC event?
Just Being There
One of the most important things may simply be making oneself available to talk and "be there" if you're needed, according to Dr. John Azar-Dickens, an Associate Professor of Psychology and a sworn LEO in the state of Georgia.
"Officers need other officers during these times. While psychologists, therapists, and counselors, can be of value, the most important resource for an officer is the supportive ear of other officers. It is important for officers and the department as a whole to be supportive and let the officer know they are there for support if needed," Azar-Dickens told me.
Azar-Dickens — who serves as a presenter for the Force Science Institute, providing seminars nationwide on behavioral science issues involved in use-of-force incidents — added that it's important to remember the officer will need some time.
"It may take the officer involved in the SBC some time to reach out, but it will be important to let him or her know support is available. Helping the officer understand that everyone in this type of situation is going to experience some distress — and encouraging them to talk about what they are experiencing — is important," he added.
Appropriate Recovery
One of the most-typical reactions an officer will have after an SBC is to jump back into work and deny any personal distress, according to Azar-Dickens.
"Often they think that admitting to any distress is a sign of weakness so they will rush back in and try to appear tough," Azar-Dickens stated.
Consequently, the department and other officers should stress the importance of rest — a few days off to recover — and a reasonable transition back to duty.
"If the officer had a physical injury on the job nobody would think twice about taking time off to heal. With a traumatic event however, officers tend to see it as more of something they should quickly get over and as such, they often do not take the time to recover and heal.
So, encouraging the officer to rest and recover appropriately is important.
While all traumatic events impact people differently, the bottom line there will be consequences from an SBC. Those consequences can include:
• Emotional distress
• Nightmares and/or trouble sleeping
• Repetitive thoughts about the incident
Further, an officer involved in an SBC incident can experience changes in body functions, such as aches and pains, fatigue, as well as increased urination/defecation.
"Helping the officer understand the SBC event for what it is — a traumatic event that will have an impact but which can be overcome — will be of value as the officer struggles with the emotional and psychological aftermath."
Knowing what to expect after an SBC event occurs can help you help the involved officer move through it.


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Jim Pepper & The Evolution of Environmental Studies at UC Santa Cruz
Jim Pepper: The Evolution of Environmental Studies at UC Santa Cruz
For the complete text [PDF] of Jim Pepper: The Evolution of Environmental Studies at UC Santa Cruz (E-Scholarship). Note: Due to editing by the narrator and the Project, there may be minor differences between the audio recording and the transcript. Please quote from the transcript as the record and not the audio. Audio will be found under "Supporting Material."
2007, 68 pages
Copyright Restrictions
PLEASE NOTE these interviews are provided for research purposes only. All uses of these manuscripts are covered by copyright agreement between the interviewees and the Regents of the University of California. All the literary rights in these manuscripts, including the right to publish, are reserved to the University of California, Santa Cruz. No part of these manuscripts may be quoted for publication without the permission of the University Librarian of the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Recruited by the visionary geographer Richard [Dick] Cooley to join the new environmental studies program at UCSC, Pepper arrived in Santa Cruz in 1972. This oral history is part of the Regional History Project's VERIP series with professors who retired in the early 1990s. In these two interviews conducted by former Regional History director Randall Jarrell and current director Irene Reti, Jim Pepper describes UCSC's environmental studies program as one that "had both a theoretical dimension to it and an applied dimension, a program . . . that integrated theory and practice." Pepper brought to this nascent department his practical experience and background as a professional landscape architect and planner, as well as his probing interest in the philosophical and ethical questions at the heart of environmental issues. Between 1972 and his retirement in 1994, Jim Pepper helped to build a flagship program in environmental studies at UCSC. Outside of academia, Jim Pepper has enjoyed a 45-year distinguished career in environmental planning, site planning, and urban design. His projects included the formulation of an earthquake recovery plan for downtown Santa Cruz after the Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989.