text:
Tim Thomas never even saw the goal that ended the Bruins' season.
He was locked in on Mike Knuble from the moment the puck hit the Capitals' forward in the shinpads and he started rushing toward the net trying to sneak in a scoring opportunity as Boston made a line change.
Knuble had Joel Ward with him on his right side, but he had no intentions of passing it.
"I was going right to the crease with that one,'' Knuble said.
Thomas was waiting for him, sizing him up.
"He had himself in a position - he's a big strong guy - to where it looked like he knew he could cut across the net or he could go both ways, so I had to play him straight up,'' Thomas said.
Thomas played it exactly the way he wanted. He saw Knuble get stuck on his backhand and waited for him to release the puck before he went down to stop it.
"I didn't want him to be able to go up and over my pad,'' Thomas said.
He denied Knuble, but everything after that is black.
Knuble's momentum carried him into the crease, where he crashed into Thomas.
"My head was probably in about his stomach,'' the goalie said.
From there, Ward was just doing cleanup duty.
He poked the rebound by Thomas, giving the Capitals a series-clinching 2-1 overtime win in Game 7.
Thomas never saw it.
"I don't have a picture of it in my head even, because I couldn't stand up,'' he said.
But he could tell just by listening that the plug had been pulled not just on the crowd at TD Garden, but on the Bruins' season.
"You just hear the crowd and you hear them going crazy,'' he said. "So you know something happened.''
It was Thomas's sixth Game 7. He hadn't lost one since 2009, and he didn't see the Bruins falling Wednesday night.
"It's obviously a shock,'' he said. "I really believed we were going to win tonight. I really had a deep feeling that this wasn't the end of the road for us tonight, that this wasn't going to be the last game of the season.''
On a night when he made 25 saves, including 12 in the third period, he was outdueled by 22-year-old Braden Holtby (31 saves), who wouldn't let the moment rattle him.
Holtby had played in just seven NHL games before this series. He didn't even want to look at the upset as a personal milestone.
"I mean, I don't know if it's one-on-one like that,' Holtby said. "I'm proud of our team and how we outdueled the defending Stanley Cup champs.''
The series was the kind that sends goalies to therapists.
Six of the seven game-winning goals came within the final two minutes - or overtime.
The Capitals got to Thomas early when Matt Hendricks deflected John Carlson's shot from near the blue line in the first period to take the lead. But in series of one-goal decisions, it was clear things would even up.
"Both teams battled very hard,'' said Thomas. "They stuck to their game plan. They made it very difficult for us to generate any offense or any momentum with the style that they played. What it says about our guys is they're battlers and they're still champions. They gave everything they had to the bitter end, but unfortunately this is sports and they fell short this time.''
Thomas allowed 16 goals in the series. He's 38 with a year left on the four-year, $20 million contract he signed in 2009, and there's still an abundance of confidence in him within the locker room.
"I think he's a great goalie,'' Johnny Boychuk said. "He's saved our butts a lot throughout the year. Throughout the series, he made plenty of saves and you know he's going to be battling for you every night. And when you have a guy like that behind you, you don't have any worries.''
The issue now, though, is the long summer ahead.
"That's obviously a very difficult thing for me,'' Thomas said. "I had pictured ending up holding the Cup again this year, and I believed that this team still had what it took to get it done.''
Julian Benbow can be reached at email@example.com.


text:
Studio Floor Plan
More and more people give precedence to minimalism and choose tiny studios instead of huge houses and apartments. The decoration of studios should be special as each room has to be used fully. But you do not just want your place to be useful; you also want it to look amazing and perfect. Have a look at HD renders on our website, and you will find that even the tiniest apartment can be unique and magnificent. Bright and dark colors have different effects and change the place dramatically. Develop your own style while choosing or creating your own project with the use of our free Planner 5D online.
Create Your Project

subset: commoncrawl


text:
[Thomas] took a Geiger counter he built on a plane. Why? Because he can, much to the chagrin of airport security.
[Thomas]' Geiger counter is built around an old Russian SBT-10A detector containing ten separate Geiger tubes. This tube was connected to a circuit containing a LiPo battery, a few high-voltage components, and an audio jack connected to the tubes themselves. When alpha, beta, or gamma radiation hits one of the Geiger tubes, an enormous click is sent to the audio jack and into the microphone jack of a small netbook.
Right after boarding a plane in Dublin, [Thomas] booted up his computer, started recording in Audacity, plugged in his Geiger counter, and stored his experiment safely in the overhead compartment. After landing in Prague a few hours later, [Thomas] saved the 247 MB .WAV file and began working on a way to convert clicks in an audio track into usable data.
The audio output on the Geiger counter overloaded the mic input on his netbook, making 'event detection' very easy with a small C app. After plotting all the data (seen above), [Thomas] had a complete record of the radiation on his 2-hour flight.
Because there was far less atmosphere to absorb cosmic radiation, [Thomas]' radiation dose was 9.1 microsieverts. Much more than at sea level, but nothing even air crews need to worry about.


text:
Valorie very kindly let Dan see where she and her colleagues do their creative work for clients. I love the tweedy fabric to the left. You can see the headboard in the background is used as an inspiration board.
Looks like there's a beautiful settee in the making. Then Dan was off to take pics of some of the wonderful things in this store.
Valorie was mapping out the placement of these fab plates on the floor before hanging them up on the wall. Love the all the color and patterns.
A very dreamy swedish clock that has been the topic of some great blogger posts lately.
Love the lights and the narrow mirror over to the left. Isn't the mirror below really unique and interesting?
A preying mantis rocker - so very cool!
Gorgeous fabric.
This red and white chair is one of my favorite things featured in these pics.
Valorie - thanks so much for being such a welcoming host to Dan when he visited the store. You made the whole "Can I take some pictures for my blogger wife?" fun for him.
A leftover from an earlier in the week St. Patrick's Day celebration. This looks like my kind-of city!
Not that my husband wasn't busy enough giving two presentations at a conference - I had one more request for him. Would he please eat dinner one night at Jacque Imo's? But this request I had a hunch would make Dan very happy.
Jacque Leonardi is from the next town over from where I grew up and a long, long, long time ago I briefly dated his cousin. Dan had the alligator cheesecake for an appetizer and the Cajun bouillabaisse for dinner and it was terrific! I can attest to the alligator as Dan put some on ice and brought it home to us - delish!
Here's another pic with the chef who made Dan's bouillabaisse. New Orleans looks like such a great place!!


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I found these today over at The Steamy Kitchen. My fascination with salted confections continues!
Oh how I wish it was strawberry season. Of course you can still get strawberries...I am sure they were grown in a far away land like Chile or Mexico but sometimes you have to go against the principals of eating locally and in season and just go for it. I think pistachios would be a better choice over the peanuts don't you? I don't think they grow pistachios here in NC either. I am really pushing it today!


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The smartphone market grew to about 100 million phones last quarter. The volumes grew sequentially and as a result reached a new record share of 27% of total phones shipped. The chart on the left shows how this market evolved over the last few years.
I've added each platform's contribution.
While much of the focus will be on who had what share, the better question might be who has the better chance to beat smartphone non-consumption? Non-smart devices are still the dominant competitors. Though it's getting easier to win against them, they still have some compelling competitive advantages.
What the chart shows is that Android (and phone versions of iOS) have taken share from direct competitors but have taken more from non-consumption. Rather than focusing on rivalry between platforms, minds should be focused on the shape of the smartphone adoption curve.
The market is largely un-penetrated and yet some argue that "it's too late" to enter or that "the game is over" and winners have already been decided. This is an argument that we are at the beginning of the end. Once the market is predictable it's discountable. Once it's discountable it becomes economically uninteresting.
I've argued that this is far from certain. In a short span of a few years, a decades old business has been re-defined. But that was just the device side of a larger business. Smartphones have been, so far, sustaining to the telcos who capture the vast majority of revenues and are thus the true incumbents.
If and how they will be affected by further evolution of smart devices and new business models around them remains to be determined.


text:
(visited by Alexander Motsny, Vera Glebova, Maxim "Triz" Trofimets, Oleksandr Kharin, Mariya Rubezhanska, Pavel Balandin, Victor Lytvynenko and Inna "Trinka")
20-May-2006 -- This degree confluence is placed in the immense marshy woodlands called Pollissya.
From early May to deep autumn a lot of mosquitoes and midges become ruthless hunters for non skilled tourists. They were the strongest force power for our nonstop marathon through the forest. Roads are well marked on the map, but because of floods and fallen trees it often can not be passed easily. Even if you will have a jeep deep, sandy grounds is not the best road covering for riding here.
That's why 8 guys from velokiev.com had a real adventure to visit it on their cycle bikes.


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Many Glacier Hotel
Browning, Montana
31.9 miles from Cardston, AB
This historic hotel is located in a beautiful national park, and is also rumoured to be haunted by a lady in a red dress in guests rooms and a man in a top hat who appears in corridors. A spectre has been known to phone the front desk to ask ...
Read more » -
Empress Theatre
Fort MacLeod, Alberta
36.5 miles from Cardston, AB
The 1912 Empress Theatre, fully renovated in 1982, puts on stage shows, concerts and first-run movies. It's haunted by a ghost who is believed to be either a former manager, Dan Boyle, or Ed, a former janitor. The janitor theory is the most common, perhaps because apparitions of the man ...
Read more » -
Galt Museum and Archives
Lethbridge, Alberta
40 miles from Cardston, AB
The historic museum was a former hospital, and a patient who passed away there has been heard walking through the hallways of the museum late at night. Doors will fly open by themselves when people walk past. (Submitted by Callum Swift)
Read more » -
Bowman Arts Centre
Lethbridge, Alberta
40.4 miles from Cardston, AB
Bowman Arts Centre is reportedly haunted by a young Chinese girl who can be heard crying out from the women's restroom. Although visitors and staff have gone in to try to help the crying girl, no one has ever found her.
Read more » -
Yates Memorial Centre
Lethbridge, Alberta
40.5 miles from Cardston, AB
Genevieve E. Yates Memorial Centre has a graveled storage area nicknamed Pebble Beach that is frequented by two ghostly little girls. The girls have been seen coming from the storage area and heading for the restroom late at night. Once in there, they vanish. The dressing rooms and green room ...
Read more » -
William T. Ogden House - Stirling Haunted Mansion
Stirling, Alberta
41.2 miles from Cardston, AB
Stirling Haunted Mansion is a privately owned home that's been a popular locale for ghost tours. Owners have reported electrical anomalies as well as several apparitions of a little girl, a teen girl, and an older lady and gentleman. The older man is believed to be William, the original owner, ...
Read more » -
Sperry Chalet
West Glacier, Montana
46.3 miles from Cardston, AB
This historic chalet was built in 1913, and is haunted by at least three apparitions. The first is of the son of the former owner, who has appeared to guests and staff on various occasions. The second is a poltergeist, who has been know to move objects around and speak ...
Read more » -
Lake McDonald Lodge
West Glacier, Montana
47.7 miles from Cardston, AB
There are various reported sightings of guests seeing an elderly woman peering out of the windows of the lodge, as well as people hearing loud argumentative voices when there is no one around. Staff report being touched by unseen presences, and hearing loud knocks and bangs. (Submitted by Callum Swift)
Read more » -
Apgar Village Inn
West Glacier, Montana
55.7 miles from Cardston, AB
Stunning views aren't all that guests staying in this motor inn might encounter. Staff and maintenance workers claim that Room #66 and Room #67 are hot spots for paranormal activity, while an unseen presence has been known to push past people in the hallways. (Submitted by Callum Swift)
Read more » -
Frank Slide
Crowsnest Pass, Alberta
55.8 miles from Cardston, AB
People who live in the town of Frank claim that the site of a devastating rock slide that killed almost a hundred residents of the town is now haunted. Residents report seeing glowing lights and mists in the area where the rocks came down and buried part of the ...
Read more » -
Belton Chalet
Columbia Falls, Montana
57.1 miles from Cardston, AB
Belton Chalet was built in 1910 and is now a National Historic Landmark, rumored to be haunted. Folks say the apparition of a man in a derby hat carrying a satchel has been spotted at the railroad station and at the original chalet, which is now a restaurant. Disembodied sobbing ...
Read more » -
Heritage Inn Hotel
Taber, Alberta
65.8 miles from Cardston, AB
Heritage Inn has a ghost called Charlie who plays tricks on the living. Some storytellers claim Charlie was a guest who died in a fire here in 1979. Others say he's a man who had a heart-attack in Room 125 in the late 1980s. His body was discovered in the ...
Read more » -
Remington Bar and Casino
Whitefish, Montana
71.6 miles from Cardston, AB
This building is haunted by many apparitions, and was formerly lodging for railroad workers. The first is the apparition of an elderly man in an overcoat, who was struck by a train nearby and has haunted the establishment ever since. The second is a young man who has been seen ...
Read more » -
Nanton Auditorium Hotel
Nanton, Alberta
81.9 miles from Cardston, AB
The historic Nanton Auditorium Hotel has a ghost named Rex Irwin, who died in a destructive 1983 fire. Rex is said to move furniture and emit a phantom aroma of smoke and alcohol.
Read more » -
Conrad Mansion Museum
Kalispell, Montana
82.6 miles from Cardston, AB
The 1895 Conrad Mansion Museum is haunted, say those in the know. The ghosts here are Charles Conrad himself, who died in 1902 in his bedroom, and his wife Lettie, who died in the same bed in 1923. Other spirits are thought to linger here as well, and witnesses have ...
Read more » -
Kalispell Grand Hotel
Kalispell, Montana
82.9 miles from Cardston, AB
Third floor, can't recall room #, this was 10 years ago, we were in a room that has a one bedroom suite. I was woken up in the middle of the night 2-3 times. Initially the bed was shaking, the second time the bed was shaking and than ...
Read more » -
Legends Stadium
Kalispell, Montana
83.6 miles from Cardston, AB
We were walking through the town from my house, We decided to go to Legends Stadium because it was not to far. We walked around for a while, exploring. When we got to the locker room, one of the doors (the north one to be exact) was unlocked. We ...
Read more » -
Tamerack Apartments
Conrad, Montana
94.6 miles from Cardston, AB
The building was a former historic hospital, and was abandoned for a period of time before being refurbished as apartments. Screams come out of unoccupied apartments, and residents have seen glowing apparitions flying through the hallways of the apartment block. An evil entity is also believed to reside here, and ...
Read more » -
High River Heritage Inn
High River, Alberta
97.7 miles from Cardston, AB
High River Heritage Inn is believed to have a spirit called Dave, a former manager who committed suicide in his room, Room 203. He has a table in the dining room, Table 12, and has been known to play tricks when someone he doesn't approve of uses his table. Dave's ...
Read more » -
Community Cultural Centre
Brooks, Alberta
113.7 miles from Cardston, AB
Community Cultural Centre has several ghosts, including a young boy with a backpack, an elderly janitor who still cleans the rooms, and an elderly woman who has been seen and heard by children. She reads stories to them. Staff say there's also a ghost boy, age 9, who plays with ...
Read more »
» Cemeteries near Cardston, AB
» Find museums in Cardston, AB


text:
June 18, 2015 in News by RBN Staff
"As we previously highlighted, virtually every major mass shooter was taking some form of SSRI or other pharmaceutical drug at the time of their attack, including Columbine killer Eric Harris, 'Batman' shooter James Holmes and Sandy Hook gunman Adam Lanza."
Source: Infowars
by PAUL JOSEPH WATSON | JUNE 18, 2015
Dylann Storm Roof was taking habit-forming drug suboxone
Charleston shooter Dylann Storm Roof was reportedly taking a drug that has been linked with sudden outbursts of violence, fitting the pattern of innumerable other mass shooters who were on or had recently come off pharmaceutical drugs linked to aggression.
According to a CBS News report, earlier this year when cops searched Roof after he was acting suspiciously inside a Bath and Body Works store, they found "orange strips" that Roof told officers was suboxone, a narcotic that is used to treat opiate addiction.
Suboxone is a habit-forming drug that has been connected with sudden outbursts of aggression.
A user on the MD Junction website relates how her husband "became violent, smashing things and threatening me," after just a few days of coming off suboxone.
Another poster on the Drugs.com website tells the story of how his personality completely changed as a result of taking suboxone.
The individual relates how he became "nasty" and "violent" just weeks into taking the drug, adding that he would "snap" and be mean to people for no reason.
Another poster reveals how his son-in-law "completely changed on suboxone," and that the drug sent him into "self-destruct mode."
A user named 'Jhalloway' also tells the story of how her husband's addiction to suboxone was "ruining our life."
A poster on a separate forum writes about how he became "horribly aggressive" towards his partner after taking 8mg of suboxone.
A website devoted to horror stories about the drug called SubSux.com also features a post by a woman whose husband obtained a gun and began violently beating his 15-year-old son after taking suboxone.
According to a Courier-Journal report, suboxone "is increasingly being abused, sold on the streets and inappropriately prescribed" by doctors. For some users, it is even more addictive than the drugs it's supposed to help them quit.
As we previously highlighted, virtually every major mass shooter was taking some form of SSRI or other pharmaceutical drug at the time of their attack, including Columbine killer Eric Harris, 'Batman' shooter James Holmes and Sandy Hook gunman Adam Lanza.
As the website SSRI Stories profusely documents, there are literally hundreds of examples of mass shootings, murders and other violent episodes that have been committed by individuals on psychiatric drugs over the past three decades.
Pharmaceutical giants who produce drugs like Zoloft, Prozac and Paxil spend around $2.4 billion dollars a year on direct-to-consumer television advertising every year. By running negative stories about prescription drugs, networks risk losing tens of millions of dollars in ad revenue, which is undoubtedly one of the primary reasons why the connection is habitually downplayed or ignored entirely.
Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/paul.j.watson.71
FOLLOW Paul Joseph Watson @ https://twitter.com/PrisonPlanet
Paul Joseph Watson is the editor at large of Infowars.com and Prison Planet.com.


text:
The Federal Reserve basically works like this:
The government granted its power to create money to the FED banks.
They create money, then loan it back to the government charging interest.
The government levies income taxes to pay the interest on the debt.
Excerpts from Chapter One specifically addressing
the creation of the Federal Reserve System.
The secret meeting on Jekyll Island in Georgia at which the Federal Reserve was conceived; the birth of a banking cartel to protect its members from competition; the strategy of how to convince Congress and the public that this cartel was an agency of the United States government.--...were seven men who represented an estimated one-fourth of the total wealth of the entire world.
1. Nelson W. Aldrich, Republican "whip" in the Senate, Chairman of the National Monetary Commission, business associate of J.P. Morgan, father-in-law to John D. Rockefeller, Jr.;
2. Abraham Piatt Andrew, Assistant Secretary of the United States Treasury;
3. Frank A. Vanderlip, president of the National City Bank of New York, the most powerful of the banks at that time,representing William Rockefeller and the international investment banking house of Kuhn, Loeb & Company;
4. Henry P. Davison, senior partner of the J.P Morgan Company;
5. Charles D. Norton, president of J.P. Morgan's First National Bank ofNew York;
6. Benjamin Strong, head of J.P. Morgan's Bankers Trust Company;and
7. Paul M. Warburg, a partner in Kuhn, Loeb & Company, a representative of the Rothschild banking dynasty in England and France, and brother to Max Warburg who was head of the Warburg banking consortium in Germany and the Netherlands.
In 1913, the same year that the Federal Reserve Act was passed into law, a subcommittee of the House Committee on Currency and Banking, under the chairmanship of Arsene Pujo of Louisiana, completed its investigation into the concentration of financial power in the United States. Pujo was considered to be a spokesman for the oil interests, part of the very group under investigation, and did everything possible to sabotage the hearings. In spite of his efforts, however, the final report of the committee at large was devastating. It stated:
Your committee is satisfied from the proofs submitted, even in the absence of data from the banks, that there is an established and well defined identity and community of interest between a few leaders of finance...which has resulted in great and rapidly growing concentration of the control of money and credit in the hands of these few men...
When we consider, also, in this connection that into these reservoirs of money and credit there flow a large part of the reserves of the banks of the country, that they are also the agents and correspondents of the out-of-town banks in the loaning of their surplus funds in the only public money market of the country, and that a small group of men and their partners and associates have now further strengthened their hold upon the resources of these institutions by acquiring large stock holdings therein, by representation on their boards and through valuable patronage, we begin to realize something of the extent to which this practical and effective domination and control over our greatest financial, railroad and industrial corporations has developed, largely within the past five years, and that it is fraught with peril to the welfare of the country.
The purpose of this meeting on Jekyll Island was...to come to an agreement on the structure and operation of a banking cartel. The goal of the cartel, as is true with all of them, was to maximize profits by minimizing competition between members, to make it difficult for new competitors to enter the field, and to utilize the police power of government to enforce the cartel agreement.
In more specific terms, the purpose and, indeed, the actual outcome of this meeting was to create the blueprint for the Federal Reserve System.--
The first leak regarding this meeting found its way into print in 1916. It appeared in Leslie's Weekly and was written by a young financial reporter by the name of B.C. Forbes, who later founded Forbes Magazine. The article was primarily in praise of Paul Warburg, and it is likely that Warburg let the story out during conversations with the writer. At any rate, the opening paragraph contained a dramatic but highly accurate summary of both the nature and purpose of the meeting:
Picture a party of the nation's greatest bankers stealing out of New York on a private railroad car under cover of darkness, stealthily heading hundreds of miles South, embarking on a mysterious launch, sneaking on to an island deserted by all but a few servants, living there a full week under such rigid secrecy that the names of not one of them was once mentioned lest the servants learn the identity and disclose to the world this strangest, most secret expedition in the history of American finance.
I am not romancing. I am giving to the world, for the first time, the real story of how the famous Aldrich currency report, the foundation of our new currency system, was written.--
In 1930, Paul Warburg wrote a massive book - 1750 pages in all - entitled "The Federal Reserve System, Its Origin and Growth". In this tome, he described the meeting and its purpose but did not mention either its location or the names of those who attended. But he did say: "The results of the conference were entirely confidential. Even the fact there had been a meeting was not permitted to become public." Then in a footnote he added: "Though eighteen years have since gone by, I do not feel free to give a description of this most interesting conference concerning which Senator Aldrich pledged all participants to secrecy."--
In the February 9, 1935, issue of the Saturday Evening Post, an article appeared written by Frank Vanderlip. In it he said: "Despite my views about the value to society of greater publicity for the affairs of corporations, there was an occasion, near the close of 1910, when I was as secretive - indeed, as furtive - as any conspirator....I do not feel it is any exaggeration to speak of our secret expedition to Jekyll Island as the occasion of the actual conception of what eventually became the Federal Reserve System....We were told to leave our last names behind us. We were told, further, that we should avoid dining together on the night of our departure. We were instructed to come one at a time and as unobtrusively as possible to the railroad terminal on the New Jersy littoral of the Hudson, where Senator Aldrich's private car would be in readiness, attached to the rear end of a train for the South....
Once aboard the private car we began to observe the taboo that had been fixed on last names. We addressed one another as "Ben," "Paul," "Nelson," "Abe" - it is Abraham Piatt Andrew. Davison and I adopted even deeper disguises, abandoning our first names. On the theory that we were always right, he became Wilbur and I became Orville, after those two aviation pioneers, the Wright brothers....The servants and train crew may have known the identities of one or two of us, but they did not know all, and it was the names of all printed together that would have made our mysterious journey significant in Washington, in Wall Street, even in London. Discovery, we knew, simply must not happen, or else all our time and effort would be wasted.
If it were to be exposed publicly that our particular group had got together and written a banking bill, that bill would have no chance whatever of passage by Congress.--
As with all cartels, it had to be created by legislation and sustained by the power of goverment under the deception of protecting the consumer.--
As John Kenneth Galbraith explained it:
"It was his [Aldrich's] thought to outflank the opposition by having not one central bank but many. And the word bank would itself be avoided."--Galbraith says "...Warburg has, with some justice, been called the father of the system."
Professor Edwin Seligman, a member of the international banking family of J. & W. Seligman, and head of the Department of Economics at Columbia University, writes that "...in its fundamental features, the Federal Reserve Act is the work of Mr. Warburg more than any other man in the country."--
Another brother, Max Warburg, was the financial adviser of the Kaiser and became Director of the Reichsbank in Germany. This was, of course, a central bank, and it was one of the cartel models used in the construction of the Federal Reserve System. The Reichsbank, incidentally, a few years later would create the massive hyperinflation that occured in Germany, wiping out the middle class and the entire German economy as well.--
...A. Barton Hepburn of Chase National Bank was even more candid. He said:
"The measure recognizes and adopts the principles of a central bank. Indeed, if all works out as the sponsers of the law hope, it will make all incorporated banks together joint owners of a central dominating power." And that is about as good a definition of a cartel as one is likely to find.--
...it is incapable of achieving its stated objectives.--
...why is the System incapable of achieving its stated objectives?
The painful answer is: those were never its true objectives.--
Anthony Sutton, former Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution for War, Revolution and Peace, and also Professor of Economics at California State University, Los Angeles, provides a somewhat deeper analysis. He writes:
"Warburg's revolutionary plan to get American Society to go to work for Wall Street was astonishingly simple. Even today,...academic theoreticians cover their blackboards with meaningless equations, and the general public struggles in bewildered confusion with inflation and the coming credit collapse, while the quite simple explanation of the problem goes undiscussed and almost entirely uncomprehended. The Federal Reserve System is a legal private monopoly of the money supply operated for the benefit of the few under the guise of protecting and promoting the public interest.--"
The real significance of the journey to Jekyll Island and the creature that was hatched there was inadvertantly summarized by the words of Paul Warburg's admiring biographer, Harold Kellock:
"Paul M. Warburg is probably the mildest-mannered man that ever personally conducted a revolution. It was a bloodless revolution: he did not attempt to rouse the populace to arms. He stepped forth armed simply with an idea. And he conquered. That's the amazing thing. A shy, sensitive man, he imposed his idea on a nation of a hundred million people.--"
MONEY SLAVES (a reader says that's what we are). Feb 13, 2004. Go to 11.Ministry of Plenty (Starvation) & CASHLESS SOCIETY
Greenspan defends Chicom's trade surplus (resulting in 2.8 million US job losses due to slave labour & floating currency). Wash Times, Dec 11, 2003. Go to 10.Rulers & 8.Classes & RED CHINA & CAPITALISTS
JOHN F KENNEDY vs THE FEDERAL RESERVE (JFK Executive Order 11110 stripped the Federal Reserve Bank of its power...)
THE FED BASICALLY WORKS LIKE THIS: The government granted its power to create money to the FED banks. They create money, then loan it back to the government charging interest. The government levies income taxes to pay the interest on the debt. On this point, it's interesting to note that the Federal Reserve Act and the sixteenth amendment, which gave congress the power to collect income taxes, were both passed in 1913. The incredible power of the FED over the economy is universally admitted. Some people, especially in the banking and academic communities, even support it. On the other hand, there are those, such as President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, that have spoken out against it...
Jackie Jura
~ an independent researcher monitoring local, national and international events ~
email: email@example.com
website: www.orwelltoday.com


text: Mark, if space is not a big deal, why are you even thinking about rack-mount? > 40 nodes is too much. Even if room is spacious, we do not want to mess up with boxes as we did in the past. > > nothing special about Intel twins afaik - AMD twins are comparable. > but it seems even sillier to go with twin systems since you say space is > not tight, and you'd be just creating a hotter hot-spot to cool. > (ultimately, of course, 40 nodes dissipate about the same amount regardless > of formfactor, and you need to find out whether your room > can extract around 40*400W, about 5 tons of cooling. and supply that 16 > kw, of course. I haven't measured many dual-quads yet - the dissipation > might be closer to 300W.) > afaik, their efficiency is maybe 10% better than more routine hardware. > doesn't really change the big picture. and high-eff PSU's are available > in pretty much any form-factor. choosing lower-power processors (and > perhaps > avoiding fbdimms) will probably save more power than perseverating too much > on the PSU... > I checked specs for Supermicro SuperServer 6015TW-INF, it looks very attractive - built-in IB interface. I can see the only objection if two MBs in one 1-U create an additional heat stress inside the unit. If it is not the case, then everything else is irrelevant, because I took care of the good air conditioning and power supply for my new cluster. It also looks like the twins give some money saving. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://www.beowulf.org/pipermail/beowulf/attachments/20080729/a4e26873/attachment.html>


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Polioencephalomalacia (PEM) is an important neurologic disease of ruminants that is seen worldwide. Cattle, sheep, goats, deer, and camelids are affected. PEM is a pathologic diagnosis and a common end point of several conditions. Historically, PEM has been associated with altered thiamine status, but more recently an association with high sulfur intake has been seen. Other toxic or metabolic diseases (eg, acute lead poisoning, sodium toxicosis/water deprivation) can result in PEM as well.
Etiology, Pathogenesis, and Epidemiology of Polioencephalomalacia in Ruminants
Polioencephalomalacia is seen sporadically in individual animals or as a herd outbreak. Younger animals are more frequently affected than adults. Pastured animals can develop PEM, but animals on high-concentrate diets are at higher risk, as are cattle exposed to high levels of sulfur, whether in water, feed (rations with byproducts of corn or beets processing), or a combination. The patterns of PEM occurrence depend on the etiologic factors involved.
PEM has been associated with two types of dietary risks: altered thiamine status and high sulfur intake. Thiamine inadequacy in animals with PEM has been suggested by several types of observations, including decreased concentrations of thiamine in tissues or blood and deficiency-induced alterations of thiamine-dependent biochemical processes (decreased blood transketolase activity, increased thiamine pyrophosphate effect on transketolase, and increased serum lactate). Unfortunately, many of these biochemical features of altered thiamine status are inconsistently observed in cases of PEM, and decreased thiamine status has been observed in diseases other than PEM.
Preruminant animals depend on dietary thiamine. In adult ruminants, thiamine is produced by rumen microbes. Thiamine inadequacy can be caused by decreased or altered production by rumen microbes (such as high-concentrate feed in feedlot steers) or factors that interfere with the action of thiamine, eg, plant thiaminases or thiamine analogues. Thiaminases can be produced by gut bacteria or ingested as preformed plant products. They can either destroy thiamine or form antimetabolites that interfere with thiamine function. Thiaminase I, produced by Bacillus thiaminolyticus and Clostridium sporogenes, and thiaminase II, produced by B aneurinolyticus, catalyze the cleavage of thiamine. The latter microorganism proliferates under conditions of high grain intake.
A neurologic disorder diagnosed in Australia has been associated with the Nardoo fern (Marsilea drummondii), which may contain high levels of a thiaminase I enzyme. Other ferns, such as bracken Bracken Fern Poisoning (Pteridium aquilinum) and rock fern (Cheilanthes sieberi), contain a similar thiaminase I. Although PEM has been produced experimentally by feeding high doses of extracts of such plants, field cases are uncommon, because these plants are unpalatable.
Overall, there is not a linear relation among the presence of ruminal and fecal thiaminase, decreased concentrations of tissue and blood thiamine, and development of disease.
A beneficial response to thiamine therapy by PEM-affected animals is sometimes considered evidence of thiamine inadequacy. This thiamine-responsiveness is often seen if treatment is initiated early in the course of the disease. However, the assumption that this response indicates that deficiency of thiamine is the true etiology should be viewed with caution.
PEM associated with high sulfur intake is recognized with increasing frequency. The basis of sulfur-related PEM appears to be the production of excessive ruminal sulfide due to the ruminal microbial reduction of ingested sulfur. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas, which has the odor of rotten eggs, accumulates in the rumen gas cap. Concentrations can be demonstrated with commercially available H2S detection tubes via percutaneous gas sampling. Although nonreduced forms of sulfur, such as sulfate and elemental sulfur, are relatively nontoxic, H2S and its various ionic forms are highly toxic substances that interfere with cellular energy metabolism. The CNS, by virtue of its dependence on a high and uninterrupted level of energy production, is likely to be significantly affected by energy deprivation.
When cattle undergo a transition to high sulfur intake, ruminal sulfide concentrations peak 1–4 weeks after the change. This pattern is probably due to alterations in ruminal microflora. The occurrence of PEM peaks during the time period when ruminal sulfide concentrations are the highest. Animals with sulfur-associated PEM do not have altered thiamine status.
A variety of sulfur sources can result in excessive sulfur intake, including water, feed ingredients, and forage. Many geographic areas have surface and deep waters high in sulfate. When evaporation occurs, water sulfate concentrations increase. Water consumption by cattle is temperature dependent and increases greatly at high temperatures, leading to increased sulfur intake due to concurrent increases in water consumption and sulfate concentrations in water.
Alfalfa, by virtue of its high protein and sulfur-containing amino acid content, can serve as a significant source of sulfur. Although grasses tend to be low in sulfur, some circumstances can result in high sulfate concentrations. Certain weeds, including Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense), kochia (Kochia scoparia), and lambsquarter (Chenopodium spp), can accumulate sulfate in high concentration. Cruciferous plants normally synthesize sulfur-rich products and serve as important sources of excess sulfur. These include turnips, rape, mustard, and oil seed meals. Byproducts of corn, sugar cane, and sugar beet processing commonly have a high sulfur content, apparently due to the addition of sulfur-containing acidifying agents. PEM has been associated with the use of these types of byproducts as feed ingredients. Corn-based ethanol production has resulted in increased availability of corn byproducts that may vary widely in sulfur content. Wet distillers grains plus solubles have been shown to have sulfur content ranging from 0.44%–1.74% sulfur as dry matter. A high molasses-urea diet has been associated with a form of PEM that lacks altered thiamine status.
Clinical Findings of Polioencephalomalacia in Ruminants
Polioencephalomalacia may be acute or subacute. Animals with the acute form often manifest blindness followed by recumbency, tonic-clonic seizures, and coma. Those with a longer duration of acute signs have poorer responses to therapy and higher mortality. Animals with the subacute form initially separate from the group, stop eating, and display twitches of the ears and face. The head is held in an elevated position. There is cortical blindness with absent menace response but normal bilateral pupillary light reflex. Dorsomedial strabismus may develop. Animals may show ataxia and sometimes a hypermetric gait. As the disease progresses, there is cortical blindness with a diminished menace response and unaltered palpebral and pupillary responses. Dorsomedial strabismus may develop. Head pressing, opisthotonos, and grinding of the teeth may also be seen.
The subacute form of PEM is frequently followed by recovery with only minor neurologic impairment. However, in a few cases, the subacute form may progress to a more severe form with recumbency and seizures. Animals that survive the acute form or advanced subacute form often manifest significant neurologic impairment that necessitates culling.
Gross lesions due to polioencephalomalacia are inconsistent and frequently subtle, especially early in the disease. Acutely affected animals may have brain swelling with gyral flattening and coning of the cerebellum due to herniation into the foramen magnum. Slight yellowish discoloration of the affected cortical tissue may be present. The brains of acutely affected animals may also have autofluorescent bands of necrotic cerebral cortex evident on meningeal and cut surfaces of the brain when viewed with ultraviolet illumination. As the pathologic process progresses, the affected cerebrocortical tissue has macroscopically evident cavitation, sometimes sufficient to result in apposition of the pia meninges to the white matter.
The initial histologic lesions are necrosis of cerebrocortical neurons. The neurons are shrunken and have homogeneous, eosinophilic cytoplasm. Nuclei are pyknotic, faded, or absent. Cortical spongiosis is sometimes present in the early phases of the acute form. Vessel cells undergo hypertrophy and hyperplasia. At later stages, the affected cortical tissue undergoes cavitation as macrophages infiltrate and necrotic tissue is removed. A pattern seen in brains of cattle with early, severe, acute sulfur-related PEM features multifocal vascular necrosis, hemorrhage, and parenchymal necrosis in deep gray matter, including the striatum, thalamus, and midbrain.
Diagnosis of Polioencephalomalacia in Ruminants
Suspected based on clinical signs and response to thiamine; confirmed by necropsy
The pattern of clinical signs should arouse suspicion of polioencephalomalacia. At necropsy, macroscopically evident cerebrocortical autofluorescent areas under ultraviolet illumination provide a presumptive diagnosis of PEM. Characteristic histologic lesions are confirmatory.
Differential diagnoses for cattle include:
water deprivation/sodium toxicosis
Histophilus meningoencephalitis
coccidiosis with nervous involvement
vitamin A deficiency
Differential diagnoses for sheep include:
type D clostridial enterotoxemia (focal symmetric encephalomalacia)
Confirmation of etiology or pathogenesis requires laboratory testing of samples from affected animals or their environment. Assessment of thiamine status is difficult, and results should be interpreted with caution. Few laboratories are capable of routinely measuring thiamine content of blood and tissues, transketolase activity, or the thiamine pyrophosphate effect on transketolase. Demonstration of clinical improvement after thiamine therapy is not adequate evidence for a specific diagnosis.
The possibility of sulfur-associated PEM can be assessed by measuring the sulfur content of the water and dietary ingredients and then estimating the total sulfur intake on a dry-matter basis. The maximal tolerated concentration of sulfur for cattle and sheep depends on the type of diet. For diets >85% concentrate, the maximal tolerable level of total sulfur is 0.3% dry matter. For diets ≥45% forage, the maximal tolerable level of total sulfur is 0.5% dry matter. Because multiple factors are involved in determining the actual risk of developing PEM, these should not be considered as absolute maximal concentrations. Many cattle adapt adequately to sulfur intake levels greater than the maximal tolerable level, although negative effects on performance may occur.
Treatment and Prevention of Polioencephalomalacia in Ruminants
Treatment of PEM is symptomatic and includes administration of thiamine
Dexamethasone may help reduce cerebral edema
The treatment of choice for polioencephalomalacia regardless of cause is thiamine administration at a dosage of 10 mg/kg, three to four times daily, for cattle or small ruminants. The first dose is administered slowly IV; otherwise, the animal may collapse. Subsequent doses are administered IM for 3–5 days. Therapy must be started early in the disease course for benefits to be achieved. If brain lesions are particularly severe or treatment is delayed, full clinical recovery may not be possible. Beneficial effects are usually seen within 24 hours and sometimes sooner; however, if there is no initial improvement, treatment should be continued for ≥3 days. Reduction of cerebral edema can be attempted with administration of dexamethasone (0.1 to 1 mg/kg, IV) or mannitol (0.25–1 g/kg BW, 20% solution IV). However, clinical trials for confirmation are not available. These dosages represent extralabel usage, and appropriate withdrawal intervals must be assigned. Symptomatic therapy for convulsions may be necessary.
Dietary supplementation of thiamine at 3–10 mg/kg feed has been recommended for prevention, but the efficacy of this approach has not been carefully evaluated. During a PEM outbreak, sufficient roughage should be provided. When the problem could be associated with high sulfur intake, all possible sources of sulfur, including water, should be analyzed and the total sulfur concentration of the consumed dry matter estimated. Dietary ingredients or water with high sulfur concentration should be avoided; if this is not possible, then more gradual introduction to the new conditions can improve the chances of successful adaptation.
Key Points
Polioencephalomalacia is a neurologic disease that affects young ruminants and pseudoruminants. It occurs in outbreaks or in individual animals.
Clinical signs include head pressing, blindness, convulsions, nystagmus, dorsomedial strabismus, and recumbency.
Diagnosis is suspected based on signs and response to thiamine administration.
Supplementation with thiamine has been recommended for prevention, but is not fully supported by evidence.


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Bean'z HeatingandCooling
Installation And Service On All HVAC Equipment
When it comes to choosing a reliable Heating and Air Conditioning service, Bean'z Heating and Air Conditioning cannot be over sighted. We are a family-oriented business, proudly serving in Chicago for 25 years. We provide high-quality energy-efficient heating and cooling system, to maximize your comfort in scorching summers or cold winters.Our team of certified technicians is proficient in maintenance checking, servicing, and installation of a new system. We are experts in heating and cooling systems for residential and light commercial, as well as mobile homes.
Chicago ( (listen) shih-KAH-goh, locally also shih-KAW-goh) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and the third-most populous in the United States, after New York City and Los Angeles. With a population of 2,746,388 in the 2020 census, it is also the most populous city in the Midwestern United States. As the seat of Cook County (the second-most populous U.S. county), the city is the center of the Chicago metropolitan area, one of the largest in the world. On the shore of Lake Michigan, Chicago was incorporated as a city in 1837 near a portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watershed. It grew rapidly in the mid-19th century; by 1860, Chicago was the youngest U.S. city to exceed a population of 100,000.
Avalon Park, Back of the Yards, Belmont Gardens, Belmont Heights, Belmont Terrace, Beverly View, Beverly Woods, Big Oaks, Bricktown, Budlong Woods, Burnside, Chicago Lawn, Clearing West, Cottage Grove Heights, Dearborn Park


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Holland Spray Foam Insulation
Spray foam insulation in Michigan can greatly improve your home in a number of ways.
Spray foam insulation in Michigan can make your home a lot more beautiful. Spray foam insulation in Michigan can bring many benefits to your home. If you think that you may need a change from your current insulation, call the team at Holland Spray Foam Insulation today. It takes just a quick phone call to get started on spray foam insulation in Michigan that is more efficient. Before long, you will see the benefits, particularly in terms of energy efficiency. Keeping your home at a more comfortable temperature will be easier than ever. It also means extending the life of your HVAC system, avoiding costly repairs or replacements for a long time to come.
Holland is a city in the western region of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated near the eastern shore of Lake Michigan on Lake Macatawa, which is fed by the Macatawa River (formerly known locally as the Black River). The city spans the Ottawa/Allegan county line, with 9.08 sq mi (23.52 km2) in Ottawa and the remaining 8.13 sq mi (21.06 km2) in Allegan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 33,051, with an urbanized area population of 113,164, as of 2015. Holland is the largest city in both Ottawa and Allegan counties.
Alger Heights, Auburn Hills, Baxter, Beechwood, Belknap Lookout, Black Hills, Creston, Downtown, East Hills, East Muskegon, Eastgate, Eastown, Fuller Avenue, Fulton Heights, Garfield Park


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NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is following dramatic and rapid changes in Jupiter's turbulent atmosphere that will be critical for targeting observations made by the Galileo space probe when it arrives at the giant planet later this year.
This Hubble image provides a detailed look at a unique cluster of three white oval-shaped storms that lie southwest (below and to the left) of Jupiter's Great Red Spot. The appearance of the clouds, as imaged on February 13, 1995 is considerably different from their appearance only seven months earlier. Hubble shows these features moving closer together as the Great Red Spot is carried westward by the prevailing winds while the white ovals are swept eastward. (This change in appearance is not an effect of last July's comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collisions with Jupiter.)
The outer two of the white storms formed in the late 1930s. In the centers of these cloud systems the air is rising, carrying fresh ammonia gas upward. New, white ice crystals form when the upwelling gas freezes as it reaches the chilly cloud top level where temperatures are -200 degrees Fahrenheit (- 130 degrees Centigrade).
The intervening white storm center, the ropy structure to the left of the ovals, and the small brown spot have formed in low pressure cells. The white clouds sit above locations where gas is descending to lower, warmer regions. The extent of melting of the white ice exposes varied amounts of Jupiter's ubiquitous brown haze. The stronger the down flow, the less ice, and the browner the region.
A scheduled series of Hubble observations will help target regions of interest for detailed scrutiny by the Galileo spacecraft, which will arrive at Jupiter in early December 1995. Hubble will provide a global view of Jupiter while Galileo will obtain close-up images of structure of the clouds that make up the large storm systems such as the Great Red Spot and white ovals that are seen in this picture.
This color picture is assembled from a series of images taken by the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2, in planetary camera mode, when Jupiter was at a distance of 519 million miles (961 million kilometers) from Earth. These images are part of a set of data obtained by a Hubble Space Telescope (HST) team headed by Reta Beebe of New Mexico State University.
This image and other images and data received from the Hubble Space Telescope are posted on the World Wide Web on the Space Telescope Science Institute home page at URL http://oposite.stsci.edu/.


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The Infinite Hypocrisy Of The West
By Fidel Castro
13 September, 2010
Although several articles on this subject were published before and after September 1st, 2010, on that day the Mexican daily La Jornada published one of great impact entitled El holocausto gitano: ayer y hoy (The gypsies' holocaust: yesterday and today) which reminds us of a truly tragic history. Without adding or deleting a single word from the information contained in the article, I will quote some lines referring to some events that are really touching. Neither the West nor -most of all- its colossal media apparatus have said a single word about them.
"1496: boom of humanist thinking. The Rom peoples (gypsies) from Germany are declared traitors to the Christian nations, spies paid by the Turkish, carriers of the plague, witches and warlocks, bandits and children kidnappers.
"1710: century of Enlightenment and rationale. An edict ordered that adult gypsies from Prague be hanged without any previous trial. Young persons and women were mutilated. In Bohemia their left ear were cut off; in Moravia, their right ear.
"1899: climax of modernity and progress. The police of Bavaria founded the Special Section for Gypsies' Affairs. In 1929, the section was promoted to the category of National Central section and was moved to Munich. In 1937 it was based in Berlin. Four years later, half a million gypsies died in the concentration camps of Central and Eastern Europe."
"In her PhD's thesis, Eva Justin (assistant of Dr. Robert Ritter of the Racial Research Section of the Ministry of Health of Germany), asserted that gypsies' blood was extremely harmful to the purity of the German race. Someone called Dr. Portschy sent a memorandum to Hitler suggesting that gypsies should be submitted to forced labor and mass sterilization because they jeopardized the pure blood of the German peasantry.
"The gypsies, who were labeled as inveterate criminals, started to be arrested en masse, and as from 1938 they were put into special blocks at the Buchenwald, Mauthausen, Gusen, Dautmergen, Natzweiler and Flossenburg camps.
"In a concentration camp he owned in Ravensbruck, Heinrich Himmler, chief of the Gestapo (SS), created a space to sacrifice gypsy women who were submitted to medical experiments. One hundred and twenty zingari girls were sterilized. Gypsy women married to non-gypsy men were sterilized at the Dusseldorf-Lierenfeld hospital.
"Thousands of gypsies were deported from Belgium, the Netherlands and France to the Polish concentration camp of Auschwitz. In his memoirs, Rudolf Hoess (commander of Auschwitz) wrote that among the gypsies deported there were old people almost one hundred years of age, pregnant women and a large number of children.
"At the ghetto of Lodz (Poland) […] none of the 5 000 gypsies survived."
"In Yugoslavia, gypsies and Jews were equally killed in the forest of Jajnice. Farmers still remember the cries of the gypsy children who were taken to the places of execution."
"At the extermination camps, only the love of gypsies for music was at times a source of comfort. In Auschwitz, starving and infested with lice, they gathered together to play music and encouraged children to dance. But the courage of gypsy guerrillas who fought alongside the Polish resistance in the region of Nieswiez was also legendary."
Music was the factor that kept them together and helped them to survive, just as much as religion was for Christians, Jews and Muslims.
The successive articles published by La Jornada as from the end of August have reminded us of events that were almost forgotten about what happened to the gypsies in Europe. After having been affected by Nazism, they were consigned to oblivion after the Nuremberg trials in the years 1945 and 1946.
The German government headed by Konrad Adenauer declared that the extermination of the gypsies before 1943 was a result of the State's legal policies. Those who had been affected on that same year did not receive any compensation. Robert Ritter, a Nazi expert in the extermination of gypsies, was set free. Thirty nine years later in 1982, when most of the affected persons had already passed away, the government recognized their right to compensation.
More than 75 per cent of the gypsies, whose total number is estimated to be between 12 and 14 million, live in Central and Eastern Europe. Only in Tito's socialist Yugoslavia, gypsies were recognized the same rights as the Croatian, Albanian and Macedonian minorities.
The Mexican newspaper described as "particularly perverse" the mass deportation of gypsies to Romania and Bulgaria ordered by the government of Sarkozy –a Jew of Hungarian descent-; these are the exact words used by the newspaper. Please do not take this as an act of irreverence on my part.
In Romania, the number of gypsies is estimated to be two million.
The president of that country, Traian Basescu, a US ally and an illustrious member of NATO, called a woman journalist a "filthy gypsy". As can be observed, this is an extremely delicate person who speaks in a polite language.
The website univision.com posted some comments about the demonstrations against the deportation of gypsies and the "xenophobia" in France. According to AFP, around "130 demonstrations should take place in France as well as in front of the French embassies in several European Union countries, with the support of tens of human rights organizations, trade unions and left wing and ecologist parties". The extensive report refers to the participation of well known cultural personalities such as Jane Birkin and the film-maker Agnes Jaoui and reminded readers that Jane "together with Stephane Hessel, a former member of the resistance against the Nazi occupation of France (1940-1944), was part of the group that later on met with the advisors to the minister of Immigration Eric Besson.
"'It was a dialogue of the deaf, but it is good that this took place, for it showed that most of the population was enraged at that nauseating policy', said a spokesperson of the network 'Education Without Borders…"
Other news about this thorny issue come from Europe: "Yesterday the European Parliament put France and Nicholas Sarkozy on the spot for having deported thousands of Romanian and Bulgarian gypsies during a tense debate in which the attitudes of José Manuel Durão Barroso and the Commission were described as scandalous and ridiculous for their apparent pusillanimity and for failing to condemn Paris decisions as illegal and contrary to community rights", according to an article by Ricardo Martínez de Rituerto published by El País.com.
La Jornada published in another article impressive social data. Neo-natal mortality among the gypsy population is nine times as much the European average and the life expectancy rate is hardly above 50 years of age.
Before that, on August 29, it had reported that "although there have been plenty of criticisms –from the European Union institutions as well as from the Catholic church, the United Nations and the broad spectrum of pro-immigrants organizations- Sarkozy insists in expelling and deporting hundreds of citizens from Bulgaria and Romania –and therefore, European citizens- using as an excuse the alleged 'criminal' character of these citizens."
"It is difficult to believe that in the year 2010 –concludes La Jornada- after the terrible past Europe had with racism and intolerance, it is still possible to criminalize an entire ethnic group by labeling it as a social problem."
"Indifference, or even consent towards the actions carried out by the French police today and the Italian police yesterday –more European, in general terms- leave the most optimist analyst speechless."
Suddenly, while I wrote this Reflection, I remembered that France is the third nuclear power in the planet, and that Sarkozy also had a briefcase with the keys required to launch one of the more than 300 bombs he had. Is there any moral or ethical rational in launching an attack against Iran, a country condemned for its alleged intention of manufacturing this kind of weapon? Where are the good sense and the logic of that policy?
Let us assume that Sarkozy all of a sudden goes crazy, as it seems to be the case. What would the UN Security Council do with Sarkozy and his briefcase?
What will happen if the French extreme right decides to force Sarkozy to maintain a racist policy, opposite to the norms that prevail within the European Community?
Could the UN Security Council respond to those two questions?
The absence of truth and the prevalence of deception is the biggest tragedy in our dangerous nuclear age.
Fidel Castro Ruz
September 12, 2010
6:57 p.m.


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Contact: Dan D'Ippolito, email@example.com, 718-233-6634
11 City Tour, March–December 2013
Launches in Austin, TX at SxSW Interactive
FEBRUARY 7, 2013, BROOKLYN, NY – Brooklyn Brewery is taking its neighborhood on the road. Collaborating with friends old and new, the Brewery has bundled up some of its favorite events into The Brooklyn Brewery Mash as a benefit for Slow Food USA. Kicking off at SxSW Interactive in Austin, The Mash will drop in 11 cities during 2013 and roll out a roster of parties, comedy, concerts, pop-up supperclubs and readings, all featuring humanity's favorite beverage.
"The Mash is an expression of Brooklyn art, music, food and the cultural links we see with many cities around the world," says Brooklyn Brewery President & Co-founder Steve Hindy. "There is a revolution happening in the world of food and the world of beer, and we are happy to celebrate this revolution with our friends around the US."
NYC food and art organizations have been closely linked to Brooklyn Brewery from the beginning. Be it a beer dinner, cook-off, concert or film festival, the ethos of these happenings has consistently mirrored the consideration and creativity behind the making of The Brewery's beer. Paired with the flavor and flair of Brooklyn, classic nightlife is reimagined as a more interactive experience. During The Mash, participants will enjoy core and rare Brooklyn beers.
Helping color in The Mash, NBNY, the organizers of Brooklyn's Bring to Light festival, will create their immersive installations of light and projection art throughout the tour. Continuing a tradition of giving back, Brooklyn Brewery cooked up The Mash as a benefit to Slow Food USA. Proceeds from every ticket sold will go to Slow Food chapters in each city.
"We're absolutely delighted to have the support of the Brooklyn Brewery as it launches its Mash tour," says Richard McCarthy, Executive Director of Slow Food USA. "Brooklyn Brewmaster Garrett Oliver has been a Slow Food supporter for a long time and we're looking forward to the celebrations in the various local communities."
Chaos Cooking
Wed, Mar 6, 7pm | A stalwart citizen opens their home kitchen to strangers for a dinner party where all guests are cooks. Each attendee brings the ingredients and everyone cooks together. Dishes are passed around, and there's plenty of Brooklyn beer to enjoy. Location is secret – go to ChaosCooking.com for details.
Local 2 Ways
Thu, Mar 7, 7pm; Swift's Attic, 315 Congress Ave, Austin, TX | Multi-course dinner celebrating regional cuisine interpreted 2 ways: by Chef Mat Clouser of Swift's Attic and the Brooklyn Brewery House Chef Andrew Gerson.
Slow Supper, Beer & Books: An Evening with Marcus Samuelsson & Jesse Griffiths
Fri, Mar 8, 6pm; Springdale Farm, 755 Springdale Rd, Austin, TX – $100 | Food Republic, Togather & Brooklyn Brewery present Beer & Books: Marcus Samuelsson and Austin's own Jesse Griffiths in a conversation about technology's effect on the food world. Following is Slow Supper, an outdoor dinner party at this beautiful urban farm benefitting Slow Food Austin co-created by Samuelsson & Griffiths with a helping hand from Brooklyn Brewery's House Chef. Stay for the free Soul Clap & Dance-Off immediately following at 9pm.
NY Night Train Soul Clap & Dance-Off with DJ Mr. Jonathan Toubin
Fri, Mar 8, 9pm; Springdale Farm, 755 Springdale Rd, Austin, TX – Free | America's most popular soul party returns to Austin. Get down to the exquisite 1960s soul 45s of world famous Brooklyn DJ Jonathan Toubin all night long. Join the 11pm dance contest for $100 cash prize and a trip to New York for the Dance-Off championship at Brooklyn Bowl.
Farmers Market Workshop
Sat, Mar 9, 10am–12pm; Cedar Park Farmers Mkt, 11200 Lakeline Mall Drive, Cedar Park, TX
Sun, Mar 10, 10am–12pm; Mueller Farmers Mkt, Browning Hangar, 4550 Mueller Blvd, Austin, TX
The Brooklyn Brewery House Chef will be cooking up some of his favorite finds from the market. And drinking beer. Stop by for a sip and a cooking tip.
The Austin Smoke Experiment
Sun, Mar 10, 1–4pm; Clive Bar, 609 Davis St, Austin, TX – $15 | Austin's top home chefs create their best smoke-themed dish ranging from savory to sweet. Some wear costumes, some pimp out their table, but all come to win over the audience and our esteemed culinary judging panel. The Food Experiments return to SxSW for the third year in a row.
The SxSW Marketing Party
Sun, Mar 10, 7:30pm; Clive Bar, 609 Davis St, Austin, TX – Free | Brooklyn Brewery, Imgur & Found Footage are throwing a party featuring music by Brooklyn bands Prince Rama, Sinkane, and The Dig, odd, rare and outrageous VHS clips from Found Footage Festival, projection art by Nuit Blanche and beer from Brooklyn Brewery.
Every installment of The Mash is custom tailored to the cities it visits.
Go to BrooklynBreweryMash.com for info on the rest of the tour.
AUSTIN, TX: March 4 – 10
NEW ORLEANS, LA: March 13 – 16*
NASHVILLE, TN: April 11 – 14
BOSTON, MA: April 25 – 28
BALTIMORE, MD: May 2 – 5
TWIN CITIES, MN: June 20 – 23
WASHINGTON, D.C.: September 19 – 22
CHICAGO, IL: October 3 – 6*
PITTSBURGH, PA: October 24 – 27
PHILADELPHIA, PA: November 7 – 10*
MIAMI, FL: December 12 – 15
* with Vendy Awards
Slow Food USA is part of a global movement, which believes everyone has the right to good, clean, and fair food. With over 250,000 supporters, 25,000 members and 225 chapters nationwide, Slow Food USA advocates for food and farming policy that is good for the public, good for the planet, and good for farmers and workers.
Food Republic, our media partner, explores the culture of food through stories, interviews, global conversations, and experiences. This is the site for men who want to eat and drink well, and to live smart. Food Republic aims to be the global hub for news and information about the new culture of food across a multitude of media platforms, for a vibrant community of people who put food and drink at the center of their lives.
The Vendy Awards is NYC's premier street food showcase and an intense cook-off between the best sidewalk chefs. The Vendys is a fundraiser for the Street Vendor Project, a membership-based non-profit organization that stands up for vendors' rights.
Togather is a new literary resource that connects authors directly with readers to fansource events and make great cultural experiences accessible to audiences everywhere.
Found Footage Festival is a hilarious event that showcases footage from videos that were found at garage sales and thrift stores and in warehouses and dumpsters across the country.
Nuit Blanche New York (NBNY) designs, curates, and produces installations of light, sound, and projection art. They collaborate with leading contemporary artists to create immersive experiences that uniquely engage audiences. Their nighttime events explore new artistic mediums through site-specific interventions at the intersection of art, technology, and multimedia performance.
The Mash: BrooklynBreweryMash.com
The Mash on Tumblr: BrooklynBreweryMash.tumblr.com
Brooklyn Brewery on Facebook: Facebook.com/TheBrooklynBrewery
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WR: Biedermann Blasts Phelps Away in 1:42.00
Jul 28, 2009 - Craig Lord
Rome 2009, Day 3:
Men's 200m freestyle final:
Paul Biedermann, of Germany, hammered the nail in the coffin of a technology driven sport here at the Foro Italico when he and his arena X-Glide suit crushed Michael Phelps and his Speedo LZR with a 1:42.00 world record in the 200m freestyle.
Phelps (USA) dug deep but could not cope with the plastic that was even more fantastic than his own. He clocked 1:43.22 for silver ahead of a 1:43.90 Danila Isotov, of Russia. Ian Thorpe's textile full body best was 1:44.06 but there is no comparison possible, neither with the past nor the present within the same race.
Biedermann was always ahead. The splits compared:
The race planted the ultimate nail in the Speedo LZR coffin and the whole sad suits saga now inscribed with the words "RIP: Feb 2008 - Dec 2009: Pandora's Box - here rests a suit that enhanced performance and paved the way for the short life of an equipment-based sport."
On the day that the FINA Congress confirmed that the sport will return to textile suits next year and that the bodysuit is in its last season in the water, the first and last world-title race swum with suits that aid speed, buoyancy and endurance confirmed just why the international federation should hang its head in shame. So should those suit makers that delivered this circus to Rome and overshadowed endless hours, days, weeks, months and years of dedication and hard work. Unfair competition was never part of the FINA Constitution and yet it came to pass. And how. The suits help different swimmers in different ways on different strokes and distances.
Phelps won the 2007 crown by getting inside the 1:44.06 world record of Ian Thorpe (AUS). The 2000 Olympic champion, Pieter van den Hoogenband took silver in 1:46.28 ahead of Park Tae-Hwan (Kor), on 1:46.73. Paul Biedermann, 21, was seventh back then, on 1:48.09.
The 1989 world record of Giorgio Lamberti (ITA), at 1:46.69, was still at 10th fastest ever emerging from the Melbourne 2007 world championships. Now, the Italian finds himself at 35th best. In terms of performances, Lamberti's time has took 18 years to slide steadily to 81st. Since April 2007, it has plummeted to 183rd.
Rome 2007:
Melbourne 2007:
The all-time top 10 coming into the Rome final:
And how things looked emerging from Melbourne 2007:


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"We call this a 'WatchList' but it is really a call to action, because the alternative is to watch these species slip ever closer to oblivion," said Audubon Bird Conservation Director and co-author of the new list, Greg Butcher. "Agreeing on which species are at the greatest risk is the first step in building the public policies, funding support, innovative conservation initiatives and public commitment needed to save them."
The new Audubon/American Bird Conservancy WatchList identifies 59 continental and 39 Hawaiian "red list" species of greatest concern, and 119 more in the "yellow" category of seriously declining or rare species. It is based on the latest available research and assessment from the bird conservation community along with data from the Christmas Bird Count and the annual Breeding Bird Survey. The data were analyzed and weighted according to methods developed through extensive peer review and revision, yielding an improved assessment of actual peril that can be used to determine bird conservation priorities and funding.
"Adoption of this list as the 'industry standard' will help to ensure that conservation resources are allocated to the most important conservation needs," said David Pashley, American Bird Conservancy's Director of Conservation Programs and co-author of the new list. "How quickly and effectively we act to protect and support the species on this list will determine their future; where we've taken aggressive action, we've seen improvement."
Despite ongoing challenges and their continued place on the list, the status of some WatchList species is improving, according to the new data, as broader awareness of their plight has spawned effective conservation action. Several species have benefited from federal protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and now show stabilizing, or even increasing populations. Lacking an ESA designation or the political support needed to secure strong protective measures, others continue to decline.
"Habitat loss due to development, energy exploration and extraction, and the impact of global warming remain serious threats for the most imperiled species, along with others on both the red and yellow lists," said Pashley. "Concerted action will be needed to address these threats."
Listed species may seem unfamiliar to many Americans. Unlike those on Audubon's recent survey of Common Birds in Decline, the species on WatchList are often rare and limited in range. In combination with population declines and new threats, these factors make many of them acutely vulnerable to extinction.
Among the most imperiled species on the list that regularly breed in the continental U.S. are:
Gunnison Sage-Grouse (not on the ESA list)
This species is restricted to Southwest Colorado and adjacent Utah. Drought, which is predicted to get worse with increased global warming, is among the factors that have reduced the Gunnison Sage-Grouse population to fewer than 5,000; habitat loss and fragmentation and excessive grazing are other threats. Protection and restoration of contiguous tracts of good habitat is critical.
Lesser Prairie-Chicken (not on the ESA list)
Habitat loss and degradation have restricted this species to a number of isolated populations, many of which are on private lands in Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas. Small population size, changing habitat resulting from drought, and climate change threaten continued survival.
California Condor (protected by the ESA)
Once reduced to nine individual wild birds, this raptor is slowly recovering, thanks to captive breeding and the release of individuals in California and Arizona. There are now 305 individuals, including 148 free-flying birds. Lead bullets are a critical threat to long-term survival, as fragments poison wild condors that eat the remains of hunters' kills. Audubon California and American Bird Conservancy have spearheaded recent passage of legislation eliminating lead bullets in the range of the condor in that state.
Whooping Crane (protected by the ESA)
Unregulated shooting and loss of habitat reduced this species to fewer than 20 individuals around the turn of the 20th Century. Implementation of a recovery plan developed under the Endangered Species Act has resulted in more than a 1000% increase in population to over 200 individuals, and has spawned efforts to establish additional wild breeding populations.
Piping Plover (protected by the ESA)
Protection of this shorebird's beachfront nesting grounds is helping to improve the outlook for this species. Human development along beaches, increased beach recreation, disturbance by pets, and increased predation require constant vigilance. Intensive conservation efforts supported by the Endangered Species Act have helped stabilize populations and allowed populations to increase in some regions of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.
Black-capped Vireo (protected by the ESA)
Suburban development, agricultural conversion, and fire suppression in Texas and Oklahoma have decreased available breeding habitat, reducing both the range and population size of this species. Increased predation near human development has further decreased populations, as has parasitism from Brown-headed Cowbirds, which lay their eggs in Black-capped Vireo nests, out-competing the vireo chicks. Innovative conservation efforts on public and private lands seem to be helping some populations recover.
Florida Scrub-Jay (protected by the ESA)
Suburban-exurban sprawl and agricultural development have reduced habitat dramatically and isolated many populations. Maintaining natural wildfire regimes will be critical. Although ESA status has increased conservation efforts for this species, it has not been enough to stop loss of habitat.
Golden-cheeked Warbler (protected by the ESA)
Breeding is restricted to the Edwards Plateau in Texas, where suburban sprawl and habitat destruction has greatly reduced population size. Winter habitat loss in southern Mexico and Central America may also be affecting populations. Innovative conservation strategies that protect and restore habitat in both the breeding and wintering grounds are underway and needed.
Kirtland's Warbler (protected by the ESA)
Dependent on jack pine habitat in northern Michigan, this warbler species has increased more than 600% since the mid-1980s because of management plans implemented under the Endangered Species Act. Singing male counts in the spring have increased from 200 to almost 1,400 (and some singing males are now found in Wisconsin and Ontario). Wild land fire management, control of the parasitic Brown-headed Cowbird, and protection of wintering habitat in the Bahamas remain essential to long-term survival.
Ashy Storm-Petrel (not on the ESA list)
Breeding populations are restricted to islands off the west coast of North America. Non-native nest predators and increased gull populations threaten breeding birds, and ocean pollution and overfishing threaten feeding birds.
Kittlitz's Murrelet (not on the ESA list)
Breeding and feeding habitat seems to be linked to Alaska's tidewater glaciers, making this species very susceptible to climate change. Oil spills, coastal pollution, and increased disturbance also threaten this species.
Red-cockaded Woodpecker (protected by ESA)
Habitat loss from logging in the Southeast's long-leaf pine forests and suburban and agricultural development have isolated populations and greatly reduced overall population size. Protection strategies developed through the Endangered Species Act are helping populations in many places, but restoration of open long-leaf pine forest is desperately needed.
Spectacled Eider (protected by ESA)
Ingestion of lead shot is believed to be a major problem for this species, along with an increase in nest predation by foxes, mink, gulls, and jaegers in a warming Arctic. In addition, changing sea conditions in winter are affecting the distribution of clams - a preferred winter food. Proposed oil development poses an additional and very significant threat.
Reddish Egret (not on the ESA list)
This species forages along the Gulf Coast and is subject to human disturbance at beaches and at nesting sites. It is dependent on high quality coastal habitat for its food. Human coastal development and decreasing water quality are serious threats.
Black Rail (not on the ESA list)
This species makes its home in shallow, grassy wetlands along the Atlantic Coast, San Francisco Bay, southern Great Plains and the Lower Colorado River, habitat that is vulnerable to human conversion to other uses, including agriculture or other development. A secretive bird, it needs further study to increase understanding of its natural history, ecological role and conservation needs.
Buff-breasted Sandpiper (not on the ESA list)
Traveling each fall from Alaska to Argentina, this species is one of our champion long-distance migrants. Along the way, it faces a great variety of threats, from oil development on its Arctic breeding grounds to grassland conversion to soybean fields on its Argentinean wintering grounds. It needs protected grassy stopover sites all along its migration route.
Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow (not on the ESA list)
This tiny bird is restricted to a narrow band of saltmarsh along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. It is threatened on one side by human coastal developments and on the other by rising sea levels. With even one foot of sea-level rise from global warming, this species will need a lot of help to maintain sufficient habitat for its survival.
Tricolored Blackbird (not on the ESA list)
A highly social species, this bird is found in freshwater wetlands in the Pacific states, mainly California. With loss of this habitat, this species increasingly relies on agricultural fields for nesting, leaving chicks vulnerable to the harvest of hay and other crops. Audubon California and other conservationists are working with farmers to maintain agricultural nesting habitat long enough each season to allow the blackbirds to successfully raise their young - potentially spelling the difference between survival and extinction for this highly specialized bird.
Yellow Rail (not on the ESA list)
Rails are small, secretive birds that winter in wetlands along the Gulf and Atlantic Coasts. This species prefers to breed in wet grasslands across Canada and the northern tier of states from Minnesota to Maine. These grasslands are easily converted to other uses, so protection of high-quality habitat will be essential for this migratory bird's survival.
Xantus's Murrelet (not on the ESA list)
This tiny seabird nests on islands off southern California. Conservationists are tackling the major threat on the nesting grounds - non-native predators like rats and mice. Global warming seems to wreak havoc with the water circulation and availability of food sources in the ocean, causing shortages for this and other coastal seabirds.
Conservation action is also needed beyond the mainland. Hawaii has the highest proportion of native species in peril, primarily because of the state's small land area and wide variety of introduced invasive animal and plant species. In addition, the Hawaiian Islands are particularly vulnerable to global warming. Hawaiian species facing the greatest threats are highlighted in a special section of WatchList.
The combined WatchLists show that imperiled birds - whether on the U.S. mainland or in Hawaii - are vulnerable to many of the same environmental threats, including global warming, habitat loss, pollution, and non-native invasive species. Aggressive conservation action to address these challenges is essential to their survival. "Everyone, from conservation groups to policy-makers and birdwatchers, needs to take a hard look at these lists and use them to inform and hone our conservation approaches and funding priorities while there's still time," says Butcher. "It's astounding that several are so close to the edge but haven't even received Endangered Species Act protection-this list is a reminder that we need to act and act now."
"The WatchList sounds a real warning, but fortunately, when we put our minds and laws to it, as we did with the Bald Eagle, Whooping Crane and California Condor, we can make a difference," said Pashley.
For the complete 2007 WatchList, and information on how to help imperiled birds, visit www.audubon.org/science/species/watchlist/whatYouCanDo.php For press resources, including high resolution photos, contacts for information on how WatchList species are faring in specific states, and information on how to obtain b-roll, visit www.audubon.org/news/pressroom/WatchList2007


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Undersea robots manipulated by engineers a mile above will begin work Saturday removing the containment cap over the gushing well head in the Gulf of Mexico, the first part of a plan that could lead to the containment of all the oil as soon as Monday.
The leak will get worse before it gets better. When the cap is removed, oil will flow mostly unabated into the water for about 48 hours, when a new, more tight-fitting cap can be installed.
The well would still be busted and leaking — workers will funnel what comes out of it to tankers at the surface. The hope for a permanent solution remains with two relief wells intended to plug it completely far beneath the seafloor.
"I use the word 'contained,'" said retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen. "'Stop' is when we put the plug in down below."
Crews using remote-controlled submarines plan to swap out the cap over the weekend, taking advantage of a window of good weather following weeks of delays caused by choppy seas.
The cap now in use was installed June 4 to capture oil gushing from the bottom of sea, but because it had to be fitted over a jagged cut in the well pipe, it allows some crude to escape into the Gulf. The new cap — dubbed "Top Hat Number 10" — is designed to fit more snugly and help BP catch all the oil.
During the installation, the gusher will temporarily get worse. Once the old cap is removed, oil will pour into the Gulf unhindered for about 48 hours while the new one is put in place, Allen said.
BP also worked on Friday to hook up another containment ship called the Helix Producer to a different part of the leaking well. The ship, which will be capable of sucking up more than 1 million gallons a day when it is fully operating, should be working by Sunday, Allen said.
The government estimates 1.5 million to 2.5 million gallons of oil a day are spewing from the well, and the existing cap is collecting about 1 million gallons of that. With the new cap and the new containment vessel, the system will be capable of capturing 2.5 million to 3.4 million gallons — essentially all the leaking oil, officials said.
The plan had originally been to hook up the Helix Producer and install the new cap separately, but the favorable weather convinced officials the time was right for both operations.
"Everybody agrees we got the weather to do what we need," Allen said. He said the calm weather is expected to last seven to 10 days.
In a response late Friday to Allen's request for detailed plans about the new cap, the Helix Producer and the relief wells, BP managing director Bob Dudley confirmed that the leak could be contained by Monday.
But Dudley included plans for another scenario, which includes possible problems and missteps for the installation of the cap that would push the work back until Thursday.
The past 80 days have seen the failure of one technique after another to stop the leak, from a huge containment box to a "top kill" and a "junk shot." The latest approach is not a sure thing either, warned Louisiana State University environmental sciences professor Ed Overton.
"Everything done at that site is very much harder than anyone expects," he said. Overton said putting on the new cap carries risks: "Is replacing the cap going to do more damage than leaving it in place, or are you going to cause problems that you can't take care of?"
Containing the leak will not end the crisis that began when the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform exploded April 20, killing 11 workers. The relief wells are still being drilled so they can inject heavy mud and cement into the leaking well to stop the flow, which is expected to be done by mid-August. Then a monumental cleanup and restoration project lies ahead.
Some people in Louisiana's oil-soaked Plaquemines Parish were skeptical that BP can contain the oil so soon.
"Too many lies from the beginning. I don't believe them anymore," oyster fisherman Goyo Zupanovich said while painting his boat at a marina in Empire, La.
Associated Press Writer Bert Mohr in Empire, La., and Mary Foster in New Orleans contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press


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What goes better with this weekend's French toast and fresh-squeezed OJ than a round-up of compelling links? Nothing, I say!
A collection of stunning infographics, courtesy of the great people at GOOD.
So long to the print edition of Encyclopaedia Britannica. After two centuries of filling bookcases, it will be available only online. My parents bought my sister and me the junior version shown in this Telegraph article about the books' demise. Ever useful, the set is now holding up my parents' shoe shelves.
Freelancers, when a client gives you a compliment, are you milking it for all it's worth? Find out how, courtesy of The Renegade Writer.
Susan Cain, author of New York Times bestseller Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Won't Stop Talking, recently did a TED talk on how we undervalue introverts (and overvalue group work). As an introvert myself, I urge you to watch…and unpack your own "suitcase."
A graphic designer friend told me about WeTransfer.com, a handy website for sending large files — no fees or sign-up required, just the recipient's email address. We've been using it during magazine production this month, whenever sources need to send multiple large image files.
Tax season is a stressful time for many freelancers. To help you ease the pain for next year, I chatted with Sunny Widerman of Personal Tax Advisors in Toronto about the most common tax blunders.
1. Ignoring the taxman.
When I asked Sunny to name the number one screw-up, I wasn't expecting this: "The biggest mistake people make is not reading the letters the CRA sends." Yes, those unmistakable pale-brown envelopes might contain bad news, but maybe not as bad as you think. "You could be in very little trouble," says Sunny. Maybe you forgot to send in a slip, or maybe you're a year or two behind in filing your taxes. Whatever the transgression, "the news will get immensely worse if you don't read the letter," says Sunny. "The government always gives lots of warning: 'If this happens again and we don't hear from you…' and then it escalates. If you don't read the letters and you don't call them, the government feels like it has to bring out the big guns, and that can be very uncomfortable."
2. Not setting aside tax money.
Save yourself a lot of stress by putting aside money year-round (try using a separate bank account). Sunny says that 15% of gross income is sufficient for most freelancers, though it could be higher or lower depending on your situation (how many expenses you have, whether you contribute to an RRSP, if you have kids, etc.). "If you still owe tax at the end of the year, raise the percentage for next year, and if you saved too much, lower it a bit."
3. Keeping lousy records.
I hang on to the receipts for any work-related expense: cab rides to clients' offices, sushi dates with other writers, seminars, Internet service, iPhone apps, etc. It takes a while to get into the habit, but it's worth the effort—you could save a lot at tax time. Many people don't realize what they can write off, says Sunny. "They don't ask me until they come in, but by then they don't have the records of what they spent. For example, screenwriters could write off part of their DVD rentals—that's research." Check out Sunny's handy guide to expenses. (And once you've filed your taxes, don't toss the backup materials—the government says you have to keep your financial records for seven years.)
4. Mixing up deadlines.
Self-employed people (and their spouses or common-law partners) get more time to file: The deadline is June 15. But if you owe money, you still need to pay by April 30 like everyone else, says Sunny. If you take longer, expect to be charged interest. Waiting until June 15, for example, means that about 1% will be added to your tax bill—a trade-off some freelancers are willing to accept in exchange for extra time.
5. Waiting too long to get an HST number.
Most freelancers know about the $30,000 rule: You must register to charge HST once your sales exceed $30,000 per year. What you might not realize is that "year" refers to any 12-month period, not a calendar year. "Most people sign up eventually, but the thing is, that $30,000 line? When you cross it, nobody tells you," says Sunny. "People think, 'Well, I didn't register for it, and nobody's giving me a hard time, so it must be fine'—but it's not. The CRA will give you a hard time years from now, and freelancers must pay for any HST they were supposed to be collecting before they were registered, so it has to come out of their pocket."
Three more reasons to sign up sooner: 1) Without an HST number, you're essentially telling clients that you don't earn very much; 2) When you hit the $30,000 mark, you'll be too busy to learn about HST; and 3) You get to keep some of the tax you collect. Learn more at the CRA website.
Freelance editor Bonnie Zink explains the intricacies of copy editing in a handy fact sheet.
Think before you Pinterest, says this post from ReadWriteWeb (via CyberJournalist.net).
National Grammar Day is March 4 – ready to party?
I heart MagNet. Details for this year's conference are online. Are you attending?
Jaclyn says: | |


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