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With the economy the way it is, we've heard plenty of stories about the heartbreaking requests children are making to Santa. It's so common that as The New York Times reported back in November, one of the premiere Santa schools in the nation is teaching its Santas to "swiftly size up families' financial circumstances, gently scale back children's Christmas gift requests and even how to answer the wish some say they have been hearing with more frequency — 'Can you bring my parent a job?'"
Still, each request tugs at the heart. That's the case in Stillwater, Okla., where 6-year-old Jaelynn Riden asked for "makeup" and a "doll that dances" but opened her letter like this:
"Dear Santa,
"Please can you bring hay for our cows."
As the local paper The Journal reports, the Salvation Army of Stillwater is collecting hay. According to The Journal, Jaelynn is being raised by her grandparents who have faced health and financial problems during the past year, so they've had difficulty feeding the "small herd of Wye Angus cattle."
The paper adds:
"Her grandfather Joe Riden said his father started the herd, which is special to their entire family. The cattle are all very gentle and tame and each one is named, he said.
"'I promised him as long as my mom is alive I wouldn't sell any of them,' he said. 'I don't want to have to sell them off to buy feed.'"
We spoke to the Salvation Army's Sgt. Rob Daniels, who said someone has volunteered a trailer to move the hay, but they still don't have enough of it to feed the herd.
As for Jaelynn, her grandparents told The Journal, they're not surprised by her letter, because it's "not unusual for her to think of others."
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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CPAP reduces risk of death in people with COPD and sleep apnea
A new study suggests that continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy reduces the mortality rate in people who have both chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which the authors refer to as "the overlap syndrome."
"This study adds to the growing body of literature regarding the combined impact of OSA in patients with COPD," said lead author and principal investigator Michael L. Stanchina, MD, clinical assistant professor of medicine at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University and physician at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, R.I. "We have shown that more time on CPAP in patients with the overlap syndrome was associated with a reduced risk of death, after controlling for common risk factors."
The study is in the Aug. 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, which is published by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. It involved a post hoc analysis of 10,272 outpatients. Stanchina's team identified a study sample of 3,396 patients from 2007-2010 who had COPD or OSA. This sample included 227 overlap syndrome patients who had both COPD and OSA. All patients in the overlap group were treated with CPAP therapy, and objective treatment compliance data were collected for the first one to three months of use. Seventeen patients with the overlap syndrome died.
Multivariate analysis revealed that hours of CPAP use at night is an independent predictor of mortality (hazard ratio = 0.71) in patients with COPD and OSA. Results show that overlap syndrome patients who use CPAP have a significantly higher survival than those who do not. Even minimal use of CPAP was associated with some reduction in the risk of death, and this benefit increased with more nightly hours of CPAP therapy.
"We were most surprised to find that any level of CPAP use in this cohort, over no use, was associated with some mortality benefit," said Stanchina.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, tobacco smoke is the leading cause of COPD, a disease that leads to airflow blockage and makes it hard to breathe. The CDC reports that chronic lower respiratory disease, primarily COPD, is the third leading cause of death in the U.S.
The AASM reports that obstructive sleep apnea is a common sleep illness affecting up to seven percent of men and five percent of women. It involves repetitive episodes of complete or partial upper airway obstruction occurring during sleep despite an ongoing effort to breathe. The most effective treatment option for OSA is CPAP therapy, which helps keep the airway open by providing a stream of air through a mask that is worn during sleep.
More information: "Impact of CPAP Use and Age on Mortality in Patients with Combined COPD and Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Overlap Syndrome," Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 2013.

subset: commoncrawl


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The service salesperson has never had it easier. The technology we have today means we can cover more ground, be more accurate, and take more knowledge into a prospect's office. Back in the day, things were VERY different.
As a rookie sales trainee, my first HVAC job was with a corporate giant and it required traveling to the home office for six weeks of training. Much of this training involved estimating. That's when I bought my first sales tool: one of the first electronic, hand-held calculators on the market. The $129 was worth it for this four-function phenomenon. The other 32 guys and gals in my class were estimating with a boxful of pencils.
Today that four-function calculator has been replaced with software that cranks out estimates at the speed of light and, with little more than a key stroke, can change a preventive maintenance quote to full coverage. Annual escalations can be completed in seconds.
Another great tool for salespeople is the digital (tapeless) voice recorder. This device is small, easy to use, and makes it very easy to "take notes" while driving through my sales territory. I can dump the digital voice recordings onto my computer to refer back to as I do my research on potential clients. Very handy.
Once back at the office, the computer is the tool of choice. I type a potential client street address into the mapping software (Google Maps) and, zooming down from an aerial view, I can see the number of rooftop units and their size (I also note the number of condenser fans) on the building in question. I also check for low ambient units, which indicate the building has sophisticated information technology needs.
Next, I pan to the ground and make sure there aren't more units, packaged chillers, or cooling towers. I also look for uninterruptable power sources (UPS). If there's one present, coupled with some upper-end low ambient units, that usually means the computer room(s) are critical and the potential customer could be willing to spend more on maintenance.
While panning around the building, I note any adjoining parking lots. Here's why: parking spaces are typically nine feet wide (other than handicap spots). By counting the number of parking stripes in the front and in a side lot, then multiplying by nine, I can approximate the building's width and depth. This allows me to calculate square footage. For the building height, I just go to "street view" in Google Maps to see how many stories it is. This is obviously only an approximation but it's all that's needed prior to the first sales call.
It is amazingly accurate. Once you have an idea of the square footage, you can divide 350 to 450 sq.ft./ton and get a good idea as to the total tonnage (based upon geographic location and design temperature).
Then, by multiplying the total estimated tonnage by another constant of $1,500 to $2,000 per ton (get this number from the building's operations team), you can estimate the replacement cost of the HVAC systems. Imagine having all this info on your first sales call!
Back at the computer, as long as I'm still in the satellite aerial mode of Google Maps, I can scan the neighborhood to find other interesting buildings and perform the same research on those of interest.
Armed with this info, when I make the initial call and perform the visual survey from the roof or equipment room, I use my smart phone to take pictures of the nameplate on each unit (if you still have a dumb phone there are some great, cheap cameras that fit into your back pocket.)
When I get back to the office, I'll print out the nameplate pictures for our service manager. This provides him with the condenser fan size, type of refrigerant used, the refrigerant charge number, along with the gas-fired information — great stuff to have on record.
Of course, I still take the pictures of dirty coils, broken belts, condensate leaks, refrigerant canisters strewn across the roof and all other indications of a less-than-adequate maintenance program.
Back inside the prospect's building, I make sure to ride the elevator, because the elevator certificate usually provides a contact name. I also get a lot of info from the county tax assessor's web site. This will show the ownership and every permit pulled for tenant improvements.
The technology available to salespeople today is really "da bomb!" Using it lets us work smarter and more importantly, quicker. Just think — someday we might be able to do everything from our cubicle.
Wait, that day is here.
Earl King is the founder of King Productions International, a commercial HVAC
contracting sales consulting firm based in Texas. He speaks to associations and HVAC trade groups, and consults with commercial contractors across the country, in addition to writing this column for Contracting Business.com. Email Earl with any questions or comments at: [email protected] or call him at 515/321-2426.


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This article is more than 1 year old
Lightning strikes Amazon cloud (honest)
The dangers of sky-high computing
Amazon's cloud was struck by lightning earlier this week. And that's the truth.
On Wednesday evening at about 6:30pm Pacific time, some Amazon cloud sitters saw their floating servers disappear - and yes, the company blamed the temporary outage on a lightning strike.
According to a web post from the company, the strike zapped a power distribution unit in one of its data centers, taking out server instances in one - and only one - Availability Zone. Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) serves up on-demand processing power from two separate geographic locations - the US and Europe - and each geographic region is split into multiple zones designed never to vanish at the same time.
"A lightning storm caused damage to a single Power Distribution Unit (PDU) in a single Availability Zone," the company said in a web post at 7:33pm. "While most instances were unaffected, a set of racks does not currently have power, so the instances on those racks are down."
At 9:26, Amazon said power had been restored and the affected server instances were beginning to recover. By 1:20am, the company said the problem had been fully resolved.
While Amazon was correcting the problem, it told customers they had the option of launching new server instances to replace those that went down. But customers were also able to wait for their original instances to come back up after power was restored to the hardware in question.
This was a relatively minor issue compared to the two major outages Amazon's cloud suffered in October 2007 and February 2008. And it's nowhere near as amusing as the time an engineer accidentally deleted Flexiscale's infrastructure cloud. Well, not nearly as amusing except for the lightning bit. ®


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Welcome to the America's Inn, Houston quality destination for leisure and business travelers located 12 miles southwest of downtown Houston.
At America's Inn our continuing mission is to provide superior service and affordable accommodations for today's leisure and business traveler. The convenience of our location allows easy access to all major highways, business centers, malls, restaurants, and entertainment venues.
Place yourself in the center of it all at America's Inn Houston TX. Set in the heart of the business and entertainment districts, our classic downtown Houston Motel is the ideal starting point for exploring all this vibrant city offers. Walk to events at the convention center or Minute Maid Park, enjoy a show in the Theater District, or wander through The Main Event. Hop aboard METRO Light Rail near our downtown Houston Texas hotel to reach the Museum District, the Zoo or the Medical Center within minutes. America's Inn extra ordinary Staff attention to detail, extraordinary amenities and renowned dining create an outstanding choice among Hotels near Downtown Houston TX.
At America's Inn, Hotel in Houston TX you'll experience the comfort style quality being offered by branded hotels with very competitive rates. We offer complimentary services like Continental Breakfast, Local Calls, High speed Internet, Business Room, Swimming Pool, Fitness Room, specious car parking, 24/7 Front Desk services, Laundry. Our specious room are well equipped with 27 flat screen Digital Television with cable network, Fridge, Microwave, coffee Maker, Hair dryer, Iron/ Ironing board, in addition to specious closet.
We look forward to bringing you the best service the America's Inn Houston area has to offer.


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Alan Parker, the celebrated British director whose credits include adored musicals "Fame," "Evita," and "Bugsy Malone" and gritty crime dramas "Mississippi Burning" and "Midnight Express," has died aged 76, the British Film Institute said in a statement on behalf of his family.
Parker's extensive filmography also boasted hits including "The Commitments," "Fame," "Birdy," "Angel Heart," and "Angela's Ashes."
The filmmaker, himself a two-time Oscar nominee, scored a glut of other accolades for his work; his feature films have won 19 BAFTA awards, 10 Golden Globes, and 10 Oscars, according to the BFI.
He died on Friday after a lengthy illness, according to their statement. He is survived by his wife Lisa Moran-Parker, his five children, and seven grandchildren.
"Alan Parker was a chameleon," the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences wrote on Twitter. "His work entertained us, connected us, and gave us such a strong sense of time and place. An extraordinary talent, he will be greatly missed."
"Evita" composer Andrew Lloyd Webber added he was "very sad" to hear of Parker's death. "My friend and collaborator on the Evita movie and one of the few directors to truly understand musicals on screen."
Parker's catalog of screen hits flitted from colorful musicals like "Fame," the cult story of a group of students at a notorious New York City performing arts school, to "Mississippi Burning," a soaring depiction of racial tensions in the Deep South loosely based on the murder of three civil rights workers in 1964.
Those films, and many more from his vast canon, earned Parker a BAFTA Fellowship Award in 2013—the highest accolade given by Britain's leading cinema academy.
"It's as important as anything I have ever been awarded. It means an enormous amount to me," he told BAFTA at the time.
Parker also received the title of Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1995, and then a knighthood in 2002. He was a founding member of the Directors Guild of Great Britain, the founding chairman of the UK Film Council, and chairman of the BFI from 1998 to 1999.
"He brought us joy with Bugsy Malone, The Commitments, Midnight Express, and many more," the BFI said on Friday.


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Top 10 List Of
Police Database Abuses
Law enforcement officers are supposed to protect
and serve,but corrupt cops misuse police databases to
get dates and even plan murders.
By James Hamilton and Steve Blum
Your address, telephone number, Social Security number, date of birth, criminal record -- all this information and more can be accessed by cops if they have basic information about you. Not surprisingly, some cops abuse their privilege and use their database access for less-than-honorable reasons. This week on "CyberCrime" we show you how some corrupt cops used police databases to harass exes, get telephone numbers of pretty girls they see in cars, and even plan murders!
These abuses happen in law enforcement departments around the world. With the help of CopWatch.com and the Detroit Free Press, we've collected 10 stories where corrupt cops have used databases for less-than-honorable reasons in police departments in Michigan, California, Ohio, and even as far away as Australia.
Some groups say that these cases represent a small percentage of the actual number of abuses. Indeed, how many cops do you think are willing to rat out their colleagues when they commit these abuses? Who's supposed to police the police?
Cop Suspected of Using Database to Plan Murder of Ex-wife
A State Police detective whose estranged wife was shot dead at a Michigan zoo admitted using the Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN) to check on his wife and her acquaintances, according to Lansing police search warrant requests. Although the detective is not suspected of pulling the trigger, the Lansing, Michigan, police department says it believes he knows who shot his wife a month after she filed for divorce. Read the full story.
Rookie Cop Checks on 'Potential Girlfriends':
6,900 Database Searches in Only Two Months
An Australian constable new to the beat used the police database to check on potential girlfriends. In just over two months the then 20-year-old policeman performed an unprecedented 6,900 searches on the police database. The counsel assisting the case says that of those 6,900 searches at least 300 weren't connected to official duties. Read the full news story.
FBI Files Sold to Mob and International Criminals by
Nevada Attorney General's Office Employee and Former FBI Agent
Dubbed the "Secrets for Sale Scandal" by the Las Vegas media, an attorney general's office worker and a former FBI agent were caught selling information from the FBI NCIC database to organized crime syndicates and other criminals for more than $100,000.
The office worker and the former agent sold documents containing classified information about organized crime investigations, white collar crime investigations, and investigations involving international alien smuggling. These documents were sold to members of organized crime syndicates in New York and to an FBI informant. One defendant's phone records also shows that he had communications with people in Mexico and Cuba and his passport listed recent visits to the drug cartel cities of Medellin and Bogota, Colombia.
The former agent worked for the Las Vegas FBI for several years and had access to national security and electronic surveillance information as well as data on confidential informants and witnesses stored in the FBI's nationwide computer system. Read the story.
Indiana PD Banned From FBI Database
The Highland, Indiana, police department had its access to the state's FBI database suspended due to misuse. The revocation of Highland's access to the Indiana Data and Communications System (IDACS), the state's portal into the National Crime Information Center, is believed to be the first such suspension in at least a decade. State police auditors claim that local investigators had been using the system to run checks on contractors and door-to-door solicitors in direct violation of IDACS policy, and continued to do so even after being warned. Read the story.
Political Candidates Probed by Police Chief
The city attorney in Eastpointe, Michigan, is looking into allegations that the police chief and city manager violated state law by using the Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN) to check the backgrounds of candidates for an ethics committee. The mayor ordered the investigation after it was revealed that the city manager and police chief may have violated state regulations governing LEIN use by checking backgrounds of eight people considered for a volunteer committee created by the city council. Many people were surprised to find that first-time misuse of the LEIN is not a crime. Read the full story.
Police Investigated for Using Database to
Target Organizers of Sheriff-Recall Campaign
Kansas Attorney General Carla Stovall investigated a county sheriff department after receiving a complaint that the department did criminal background checks on two organizers of a petition attempting to recall the sheriff. Read the full news story.
Prosecutor's Office Uses Database to Smear Prosecutor's Political Opponent
The Butler County Republican Party has asked the county commissioners to investigate allegations that an employee in the prosecutor's office misused a state database to obtain information about his boss's political opponent. Read the full news story.
Police Lieutenant Charged With Abusing Database to Influence Elections
In Maryland, a Charles County sheriff's lieutenant faces criminal charges for misusing the sheriff's computer system on behalf of local Democrats connected with elections. He is charged by sheriff's officials with 102 violations of departmental rules relating to the abuse, according to court documents filed in Charles County Circuit Court. Read the full story.
Cop Uses Database to Find Woman's Unlisted Phone Number --
Gives It to Woman's Ex
A Brisbane, Australia, police officer admitted to giving a local businessman the personal details of his ex-girlfriend. The investigator told the court how the woman, whose name has been suppressed, complained earlier that an ex-boyfriend had called her unlisted home phone number. The senior police constable admitted to providing the woman's personal details. Despite twice denying in previous CJC interviews to handing over the silent number, Constable Crawford changed his evidence.
Cop Fired for Abusing Database, Chief Accused as Well
The town of Atherton, California, has ruled that a former police officer should not get his job back after alleged misuse of the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (CLETS). He is also accused of violating a restraining order and destroying personal property in a case involving his ex-girlfriend, and reportedly using the database to find information about her. The CLETS system, administered by the California Department of Justice, is a database containing information ranging from driving records to criminal records. Following the firing, the officer accused Atherton's police chief of also misusing the CLETS system.
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Woodside Capital is focused on investing in middle market companies that can benefit from strategic re-direction, operational enhancements or balance sheet realignments. Depending on what structure is most appropriate for each opportunity, our ability to commit to a wide range of securities, industries, and investment amounts allows maximum flexibility when structuring transactions. The Woodside team has significant experience in developing creative deal structures to maximize the return to stakeholders in challenging situations. Woodside also manages criticized loan portfolios for third party investors and financial institutions.
Post acquisition, the Woodside team helps drive long-term value by providing the financial, strategic, operational and governance support that our management teams require to make their businesses successful. With a stable capital base and over 20 years of experience managing investments in challenged companies, Woodside has the resources to provide additional capital if required by its portfolio investments.


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BERLIN- For the third straight year, Stephen Decatur's girls' varsity lacrosse team got the best of its cross-town rival Worcester Prep last week, beating the Mallards, 6-2, on Friday, but the contest was much closer than it has been in recent years.
Two years ago, the Decatur girls got their first-ever win against Worcester, beating the Mallards, 16-2 and won by the same score last year. This year, however, the annual grudge match was a defensive struggle that came down to goalie play.
Despite an early assault on the Mallards' goal, Decatur could not get anything by Worcester keeper Melanie Leiner early. However, the Seahawks adjusted and were able to get just enough shots past Leiner and the Worcester defense to come away with the narrow victory in a low-scoring game.
"I believe the key to the game was the goalies," said Decatur Coach Bob Musitano. "Worcester Prep's keeper was very good high and kept us from scoring. Once we figured that out, we shot low and to the off side and it seemed to work."
Meanwhile, Decatur goalie Taylor Phillips was also outstanding, recording 12 saves on 14 shots. Olivia Turner and Alyssa Hardesty led the Seahawk offense with two goals each.


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The Great Barrier Reef is under attack from a range of enemies including climate change effects (coral bleaching, increased severe storms, and ocean acidification), pollutant discharge from the land, coastal development, and damage from fishing.
As a result, coral cover is in severe decline, seagrass has declined dramatically in the last few years, while numbers of megafauna including dugong, turtles, sharks and some dolphins have greatly reduced population numbers.
In particular for coral, analysis of coral cover data from about 1960 onwards suggests that cover across the GBR has fallen from about 50% in the 1960s to about 16% now. As yet unpublished estimates by Dr Glenn De'ath and his colleagues suggest that if current trends continue coral cover could be as low as 5% in 20 years.
Coral-eating crown of thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) (COTS) have caused widespread damage to many coral reefs in the Indo-Pacific over the past five decades as population "explosions" have occurred at regular intervals. On the GBR the greatest cause of coral mortality in recent decades is COTS ahead of other major causes such as cyclones, bleaching and coral diseases. COTS were probably the major cause of coral mortality in the period from 1960 to 1985 also but our data is less complete for this period. Kate Osborne and her co-researchers found that COTS were responsible for 36.7% of the coral damage above all other causes including storms (33.8%), disease (6.5%), bleaching (5.6%) and unknown or multiple causes (17.4%).
There have been three major periods ("waves") of COTS outbreaks on the GBR: 1962 – 1976; 1978 – 1991; 1993 – 2005; and it is now accepted that we are at the beginning of the next wave which appears to have started off Cairns in 2009. Each wave started near Cairns and spread through larval dispersion up and down the GBR generally as far as Princess Charlotte Bay in the north and Mackay in the south. If the current wave moves in a similar way we can expect starfish populations to progress throughout the central GBR over the next 10 years or so.
The impact of outbreaks on the GBR is a major concern to the multi-billion dollar tourism industry. Over a number of years, there was an outbreak on reefs between Cairns and the Whitsundays which was estimated to cost tourism operators, and the Queensland and Australian Governments about $3 million a year for control measures.
The cause of the outbreaks remains a controversial issue despite years of research. Hypotheses have included that (1) population outbreaks are a natural phenomenon due to the inherently unstable population sizes of highly fecund organisms such as COTS; (2) outbreaks are due to anthropogenic changes to the environment of the starfish with a range of possible anthropogenic causes including: removal of adult and/or juvenile predators; destruction of larval predators e.g. corals, by construction activities on reefs; and larval food supply (phytoplankton) enhancement from nutrient enriched terrestrial run-off.
It is now well established that the large scale outbreaks seen on the GBR since 1962 are most likely to have been caused by nutrient enrichment associated with increased discharge of nitrogen and phosphorus from the land due to increased soil erosion and large scale fertiliser use. Increased nutrients drive phytoplankton blooms with increased biomass and also a shift to larger phytoplankton types more palatable to COTS larvae as food. Removal of predators (especially fish) is also implicated as a secondary cause.
There is some evidence that the increase in the area of no-take zones in 2004 has had significant success, as COTS numbers on closed reefs are lower than on reefs open to fishing. Site specific management (through removal) has been successful at a local scale, although it is very labour intensive. With the initiation of the fourth wave of outbreaks now confirmed it is clear that water quality management under the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan (implemented in 2008) has not had time to prevent further outbreaks. However further water quality management will be critical to minimise future outbreaks.
In conclusion we can state unequivocally that COTS remain the greatest threat to the coral of the GBR and thus also indirectly to coral reef fish, although obviously of lesser threat to seagrass, dugongs, and some other megafauna.
Comments welcome below.


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Play of the Game As the game starts, the home team takes the field, while the visitors come to bat. After making three outs, the visitors take the field and the home team bats.
The basic contest is always between the pitcher, who tries to throw the ball so it cannot be cleanly hit, and the batter, who tries to hit the pitched ball with a rounded bat. If the batter hits a "fair ball" into the field of play, the hitter runs to first base and any of his teammates who are already "on the bases" may attempt to advance to another base. If a baserunner is already on first base, they must try to advance or the batter will be out; no two offensive players may ever stay on the same base. The batting team scores a run[?] by advancing a player all the way around the diamond.
If the ball is caught before it bounces, or the ball is fielded and thrown to a base before a runner arrives there, the player is out, and must return to his team's dugout. The initial decision to make first base 90 feet from home plate was an inspired one; it means that no runner, no matter how fast, can beat the throw to first of a ball cleanly fielded and properly thrown to first by a fielder in proper position. But if the fielder is out of position, or hesitates, or throws wide of the base, the play is often razor-close, and quite exciting.
There is also an imaginary area above "home plate" (where the batter stands) between the batter's knees and chest called the "strike zone". (Actually the "strike zone" varies a good bit depending on the league level of the teams and is relatively frequently re-defined by league rules makers.) Any pitch which passes through this area is a "strike", as is any pitch at which the batter swings and misses. If a batter records 3 strikes before putting the ball in play, he is out - called a strikeout. (An exception is if the third strike evades the catcher but this rarely occurs.) Any pitch which is not a strike is called a Ball. A batter who receives 4 balls from a pitcher may walk to first base and cannot be tagged out. This is called a "walk." A batter may also move to first base if he is struck by a pitched ball, unless he puts himself in the path of the pitch and makes no attempt to avoid being struck. In addition, if a player does make contact with the ball but does not hit a fair ball, this is called a foul ball. Whether a ball hit is fair or foul is defined by two lines, drawn to the side of the diamond, and by two poles, located to the left and the right of the outfield. Also, anytime the player hits the ball backward and it leaves the play area, this is called a foul. Fouls also count as strikes, unless the player has two strikes already when hitting the foul, in which case the player must go at bat for one more turn. If a foul ball is caught by a defensive player before it bounces, then the hitter is out.
After 3 outs (a "half-inning") the roles of the fielding and hitting sides are reversed. Usually, 9 innings are played. The aim of the game is to score more runs than the opposing team. If both teams have scored the same number of runs at the end of 9 innings, an extra inning is added to the game. If the score remains tied, another inning is added. This process repeats until the score is no longer tied at the end of an inning. Thus, the team which hits in the second (or "bottom") half of the inning always has a chance to respond to a run scored by the team batting in the first (or "top") half. As there are tactical advantages to this, the home team is always granted the right to bat in the bottom half of the inning. Baseball games end with tie scores only because of weather or lighting conditions have made it impossible to continue play. In the Major Leagues, games in which the score is tied are not counted towards a team's game total (as technically a tie game is considered as unfinished), although statistics are retained as long as the game is of official regulation (five half innings for each team; only four for the home team if the home team is ahead).
Pitching Effective pitching is vitally important in baseball. A pitcher who starts games should be able to pitch for six or seven innings before being replaced by specialist relief pitchers, who finish the game off. For a starter to pitch all 9 innings (a "Complete Game") is a personal achievement, though this was not always so -- the average number of innings pitched has been declining slowly in the professional leagues almost since their inception, and 9 innings was once the norm. Pitching is also physically demanding: a modern-day starting pitcher can usually throw 100-110 pitches with no ill effects, but throwing many more reduces effectiveness, and sometimes serious and permament arm injury. In a major league season then, a club usually keeps a cadre of 5 starting pitchers (known as the "starting rotation") to start games, giving pitchers at least 3 or (preferably) 4 or 5 days rest between starts.
Five to seven more pitchers are employed as relief pitchers or relievers, to pitch the innings not handled by the starting rotation. Today, every team tries to employ one of these pitchers as a closer -- that is, a relief pitcher specifically designated to pitch the final inning of a game in which his team is leading, in order to preserve the win.
The pitcher will try to make the batter miss the ball entirely ("go out on strikes") or hit it so that it can be handled by one of the fielders. This generally involves throwing the ball in a way, or to a location, that the batter is not expecting, causing him to hit it weakly or not at all. Since it is very difficult to do this, the batter will often be able to hit the ball strongly. Good fielders may have some idea of where the pitcher is likely to throw the ball, and therefore where the hitter is likely to hit it (an "outside" pitch will generally be hit to the side of the field that the batter faces, for instance), and may be prepared to field the ball there if the batter hits it well.
Batting The batter tries to hit the ball in such a way that it cannot be cleanly handled by a fielder; good hitters can place the ball where they want with surprising skill. In the early 1900's, place hitting was a high art, and the home run was considered a freakish spectacle. Place-hitting was exemplified by Willie Keeler's axiom, still shouted today: "Hit 'em where they ain't."
In 1919, Babe Ruth broke the standing home run record, and changed fundamentally the way the game was played, becoming a popular sensation in the process. The introduction of regularly changed balls, the new cork-centered balls introduced in 1910 and the banning of tampering with the balls (with spit or by scuffing the surface) made the hitters task easier, and the fresh white balls were easier to see and travelled further, making the home run more likely. It has also been suggested, although there is little evidence, that owners had the baseball "juiced", since this new offensive style was very popular and was helping to redeem the game after it was rocked by gambling scandals. Regardless, ever since, the mighty home run has become the surest way to rouse a crowd. Accordingly, the most common batting style employed today is the free-swinging style of Ruth rather than the place-hitting style of Keeler.
Occasionally, players have been caught using illegally modified corked bats, an action subject to ejection and possible suspension and fines.
The style of play Baseball has an antique, unhurried pace. Both football and basketball use a clock, and fans must watch games end while one team degrades the competitive element of the game by "killing the clock" rather than competing directly against the opposing team. But baseball has no clock; you cannot win without getting the last man out, and a rally can start at any time.
(In recent decades, observers have criticized baseball for this, with some justification as the time required to play a baseball game has increased steadily through the years. One hundred years ago, games typically took an hour and a half to play; today, four-hour nine-inning games are not uncommon. However, this is primarly due to increased commercial breaks more than a decrease in playing speed. However, increased offense and more pitching changes also prolong the length of the game.)
Baseball is a team game -- even two or three Hall of Fame players cannot guarantee a pennant by themselves. In the last years of the 20th Century, a trend toward building teams based on a more even distribution of talent throughout the lineup became noticeable. The Seattle Mariners and the Florida Marlins were two teams that began moving away from the previous belief in building teams around superstars. Team salary caps led to the decision by many owners to pay more solid players decent money rather than surrounding one or two expensive superstars with a below-average set of teammates. It remains to be seen if this strategy will be successful.
Paradoxically, the game places individual players under great pressure and scrutiny one at a time. The pitcher must make a good pitch or suffer reproach; no one can help him throw the ball. The hitter has a millisecond to swing the bat; no one can help him then; he hits a line drive; the outfielder makes a lonely decision to try to catch it or play it on the bounce. Baseball history is full of heroes and goats -- men who in the heat of the moment distinguished themselves with a timely hit or catch, or an untimely strikeout or error.
It is a beautiful, leisurely game on the surface; but sudden and fierce beneath.
Baseball IS leisurely -- for the idle observer. That said, no other sport packs so much into so little. The pitch and swing of the bat can, at any time, change the entire game. And how long is that? Less time than it takes a basketball to leave a shooter's hands, much less arc to the basket and clang around. A microsecond compared to the drop-back, plant, pass, catch of a football.
When all is said and done the agony and beauty of sport is measured in inches, and nowhere is this microcosm as perfect as it is on a baseball diamond. Two out, bottom of the ninth. Runners at the corners. Down by two runs. The home field crowd, to a man, on its feet. The windup. The pitch. Less than half a second later the result. The crowd breathes again. Foul. Start all over. No other sport is that cruel. That pure. That measured.
There is a reason that there is no clock in baseball, mere timepieces are insufficient to measure the beats of the game. Leave the clocks to the sports that are slow and lumbering... the seven foot center gallomping to the top of the key, the 250 pound fullback charging the line. These are the sports where a second or five matter. Not in baseball. There the time slice is far too fine to be caught in mere gears. It is an instant that can only be measured in the skip of a heartbeat or the sudden drop in a stomach. It is the interval between jubilation and despair.
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Delegation of the CID in the 10 de Octubre municipality, honoring Laura Pollan on Human Rights Day
The Cuba Independent and Democratic Party (CID) in the municipality on October 10, paid tribute to Laura Pollan, at 6:00 pm on December 10 at the home of Aimé Cabrales Aguilar, located in the Fonts Street # 143 (interior) between 11 Beales in the Lawton neighborhood, under police surveillance.
The homage included a recitation of the thirty points of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the audience, they rose in prayers for the eternal rest of the late founder of the Ladies in White movement Laura Pollan, they dedicated a bouquet of flowers and lit a candle to her memory, condemned the crackdown unleashed nationally, on this date, against the internal opposition movement and acts of repudiation against the headquarters of the Ladies in White.
At the commemorative event Maikel Jose Suarez Rivero was received as a member of the municipal delegation; he said he would fight in the struggle to demand the rights of all Cubans. "I am grateful that I have been accepted into the ranks of the Independent and Democratic Cuba Party on a significant day, especially when it is dedicated to honor the woman famous for Cuba and the world, Laura Pollan," he concluded.
Katia Sonia Martín Véliz
December 13 2011


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The Galaxy Pocket is ready for worldwide roaming with quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and dual-band 3G with HSDPA download rates of up to 3.6 Mbps.
The connectivity package also offers Wi-Fi (b/g/n), Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP support and USB v2.0. GPS is on the list too, with A-GPS connectivity.
The Samsung Galaxy Pocket packs a generous 3 GB of internal storage but it comes with no memory card in the box. It still supports microSD cards of up to 32 GB.
The 3.5 mm standard audio port completes the connectivity tally. You can use your favorite headphones with the Galaxy Pocket hassle-free.
The Android Gingerbread browser usually offers a great mobile browsing experience. But on the 2.8" low-quality screen you'll need a lot of patience to go through a page or read an article.
The user interface elements are away from sight, which leaves what little screen real estate there is to the web page. Once the page finishes loading, all you see is the status bar on top of the screen as the address bar hides automatically.
The context menu is where a lot of the functionality is hidden. From here, you can open a new tab, switch tabs, refresh the page, go forward, and open bookmarks. The final button reveals even more options (text copying, find on page, etc.).
The Galaxy Pocket's browser supports three zoom methods - virtual buttons, double tap and multi-touch pinch-zooming. The browser also supports text reflow, which is essential on such a low-res screen.
There's bookmark list that shows a thumbnail of the bookmarked page and you also get a "most visited" list in addition to the history.
The Samsung Galaxy Pocket has the YouTube app to partially compensate for the lack of Flash support. Of course, there are plenty of other video sharing sites and sites that use Flash for completely different purposes, but you have to live without them.
The organizing capabilities of Android have soared in the past couple of years. And as with most Galaxy smartphones, the Galaxy Pocket is equipped with all the essential apps.
Starting with the calendar app, it has four different types of view - agenda, daily, weekly and monthly. Adding a new event is quick and easy, and you can also set an alarm to act as a reminder.
The Galaxy Pocket comes with Polaris View preinstalled. It's a viewer-only version of the Polaris Office app found in higher-end Samsung phones. The app can open Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents (both Office 2003 and 2007 versions) and view PDFs too. There's Box.net integration so you can store your docs in the cloud.
There is also a calculator, alarm clock and voice recorder among other apps preinstalled on the Galaxy Y Pocket.
You also get the Samsung-made Notes and My Files apps. The first one has not changed since Galaxy S times and is very comfortable to use - you can scribble notes easily, choose different colors for your notes and more. The My Files application is a file manager that can give you access to the entire file system of your phone.
The voice recorder is another app that comes preinstalled on the Galaxy Pocket. You can record as many sound clips as you like and the only limitation is the memory you have on your device. The list tab shows all of your recordings sorted by date.
Notes • My files • Voice recorder
The Samsung Galaxy Pocket packs a GPS receiver, which got a satellite lock in about under a minute with A-GPS turned off. A-GPS can speed this up, but requires an Internet connection.
Google Maps is the app of choice and offers the latest touch optimizations like the two finger rotation and tilt, it also features navigation, search for POIs and much more. Street view is, of course, part of the package too.
Google Maps comes complete with Navigation, which can do voice-guidance for free. Availability is still limited though (not all countries have the option), and it relies on Internet connection for the initial route planning.
Still, even without Navigation, there is some kind of guidance: your route and current location appear on the screen so you'll reach your destination eventually, but you'll need a co-pilot to read you the instructions for that one.
The Galaxy Pocket doesn't come with a third-party SatNav solution preinstalled but you can easily snatch one off the Android market. There are both paid and free options on offer.
The Samsung Galaxy Pocket has the latest version of the Android Market - now called Google Play. The new name and icon aside there aren't major changes to the look of the app store. In select countries, aside from apps you'll also find music, movies and books.
Upon launch of the Market app you're greeted with the tiled interface of the Featured window. A swipe to the right takes you to the Categories view.
Swiping to the left takes you through Top Paid, Top Free, Top Grossing, Top New Paid, Top New Free and Trending (the ones with growing popularity). New sections are available such as Staff Picks, Editor's Choice and more.
Downloads are easy and won't take more than a couple of seconds. Before you agree to download an app, the Market will show you what features the app requires access to (e.g. Internet connectivity, access to the file system, etc.).
You should keep in mind that not all apps will be compatible with the low-res screen and the relatively old CPU. ICS-only apps are pretty rare for now, so the OS version shouldn't be an issue.


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Were the trucks that Israel targeted at the Lebanese border overnight transporting chemical weapons from Syria to its ally, the Islamic Hezbollah group?
Not necessarily.
Israeli officials have kept quiet since reports of the strike surfaced earlier today, neither confirming nor denying them. Reuters and other news agencies, citing Western diplomats and regional security sources, described a heavy presence of Israeli jets over Lebanon for much of the night. At least 12 Israeli planes took part in the attack, according to the reports.
Israel is certainly worried about leakage from Syria's vast arsenal of chemical and biological weapons, as the civil war there rages on and the regime continues to disintegrate. A top Israeli official said earlier in the day that the Air Force would respond at the first sign the nonconventional weapons were being moved. "Any development which is a development in a negative direction would be something that needs stopping and prevention," Israel's vice premier, Silvan Shalom, told Israel Radio.
But experts and former officials said Israel was also tracking the movement of medium-range missiles and antiaircraft batteries that Russia supplied to Syria over the years and might spring to action even if chemical weapons were not involved.
"The Syrians never dared to send advanced antiaircraft missiles or very advanced Scud missiles to Hezbollah, because they knew it would be a red line for Israel," said Giora Eiland, who headed Israel's National Security Council from 2004 to 2006. "So if one of these kinds of weapons was making its way to Lebanon, that could well have triggered the attack."
He mentioned specifically SA-17s—small and highly mobile antiaircraft batteries that could threaten Israeli drones and other aircraft.
Eiland, now a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, said Israel pressed Russia repeatedly to withhold advanced weapons from Syria because of the fear that they would end up in the hands of Hezbollah—Israel's sworn enemy. Russia always dismissed the concerns, assuring Israel that Syria would never let such sophisticated hardware leave its borders.
Syria has long supplied Hezbollah with other weapons, including missiles and antitank rockets.
Eiland, who emphasized that he had no specific knowledge about the nature of the strike, would not rule out the possibility that the shipment targeted overnight included chemical or biological agents.
Another former official, Itamar Rabinovich, said it wasn't clear yet if embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad intended for his country's nonconventional arsenal to end up with Hezbollah if his regime collapses. But he said Iran, which has significant influence over Assad, might be pushing in that direction. Like Syria, Iran is also a patron of Hezbollah.
"Iran sees that Hezbollah stands to lose its Syrian sponsor. And since it's important to Iran that Hezbollah be the dominant party in Lebanon, it's possible the Iranians are the ones moving these weapons systems to Lebanon," said Rabinovich, who served in the 1990s as Israel's chief negotiator with Syria.
Iran is believed to have hundreds of soldiers and military advisers in Syria helping prop up Assad's regime. The Syrian leader has been fighting a war against a coalition of rebels for almost two years, with a death toll approaching 70,000.
Both Eiland and Rabinovich said Hezbollah, which fought a monthlong war against Israel in 2006, was unlikely to retaliate for last night's assault. Though the group has thousands of missiles that could reach Israel's main cities, they said Hezbollah would not want to risk a broad confrontation with the Jewish state.
Rabinovich also said Iran was not interested in seeing an escalation between Israel and Hezbollah at the moment. "An escalation could provide a very convenient environment for Israel to attack Iran as well," he said, referring to threats by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to strike at Iran's nuclear installations.
At his weekly cabinet meeting Monday, Netanyahu said both Syria and Iran posed a threat to Israel. "It is necessary to look at our surroundings, both at what is happening with Iran and its proxies and what is happening in other arenas—lethal weaponry in Syria, which is steadily breaking up," he said.


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No Age, the noise pop dealing, Smell-dwelling two man zeitgeist are back with this week with new EP Losing Feeling. The first new material from the band since last year's Nouns album the EP is a rip-roaring return from the LA band. DiS caught up with Randy Randall to talk about the band's new material, touring with Deerhunter, Hüsker Dü, Wavves Vs Black Lips, No Age's favourite British bands and the incident literally nobody is calling 'Obama t-shirt gate'.
DiS: Are you looking forward to coming to Britain next week?
Randy Randall: Yeah it's going to be great. We came over twice last year and can't wait to get back because we really love our friends in England.
DiS: You just finished the tour in America with Dan Deacon and Deerhunter. How did that go?
RR: It was amazing, we had such a fun time. We've known Dan and Bradford and the crew for such a long time but never done a proper tour together so it was a great opportunity to spend time with our friends on the road. We also got to collaborate a lot too so we all learnt to play with each other and each others' songs. It was the closest we'll come to collaborating without being 'Jazzbo's'.
DiS: How exactly did the round robin element of the tour work?
RR: Basically there was no headline band and the whole performance was the main attraction. So each band would play a song and then switch so we opened with a Deerhunter song then a No Age song then a Dan Deacon song another Deerhunter before a couple of long songs from Dan again before we finished with a No Age song. It was sporadic.
DiS: Would you like to bring something similar to Britain?
RR: It would be amazing but it's really a matter of logistics. The tour was a short one for America in that it was only ten dates but that could totally work in Britain because that would get you all over. There are no plans as of yet but it's definitely something we'd like to do.
DiS: The new No Age EP Losing Feeling is out this week. When was that written and recorded?
RR: We've been writing in between tours for about a year now for what will eventually become the next full record. We got these songs from those sessions though and liked them, thought they worked well together and decided to put them out as an EP.
DiS: How far along is the next album?
RR: It's pretty much written actually. We like to keep things loose until the final mix so the structures may and probably will change from now and when the record is released but we have the songs ready to record. We're hoping to get in the studio by the end of the year, we want to be tracking it by the start of next year for definite.
DiS: So Summer 2010 is a good estimate for the release date?
RR: I hope so, that's definitely what we're shooting for.
DiS: You performed with Bob Mould earlier this year. How did you meet him and how did you become friends?
RR: Yeah we played with him at ATP in New York and it was amazing. It was so funny for us because we're totally not used to the whole festival scene with loads of bands hanging out together backstage, but we were at Primavera in 2008 and Dean [Spunt, drummer/singer] met Bob there and just kept in touch. He's a really amazing, awesome guy and we emailed each other on and off for a while. Then when we were in San Francisco he was also there and he said we should do a song together as an encore so we did 'Miner' and 'New Day Rising'. After the show he said how he'd had a great time and that we should do it again so we did a few more together- he's an amazing guy.
DiS: Did he give you any advice or have you learnt anything from being around him?
RR: I've learnt so much from him. He has so many amazing stories about touring and Hüsker Dü so me and Dean would just be asking him about things all the time like "What were Black Flag like?", "What about this and that?" y'know? He made a real effort to talk to us about stuff but he has a book coming out that's going to be incredible so some time when we'd ask about something he'd just say "Wait and read the book". So I can't wait to read that book. We talked a lot about writing songs too and he tells me about these amazing songs he wrote when he was like 24 and I'm 28 already and nowhere near his supernova levels of ability- he's just an amazing guy.
DiS: How do you feel about noise pop and lo-fi music at the moment? It seems to be everywhere you look.
RR: I don't really read a lot of blogs or websites so a lot of it passes me by but the thing with No Age and the music we make is that it was never something we set out to so. The reason our early recordings sound the way they did is that we had to use equipment that was free because we had practically no money at all so we had a certain lo-fidelity for that reason. As time's gone on though we've got a little more money and have been able to get in a studio and enjoy both sides of it. I'm a big fan of the shoe-gaze element of the lo-fi music that's around at the moment though, there's something about the whole bedroom recordings that's dreamy and I really like that. When people say 'lo-fi' they tend to mean you're not trying. We like to make records sound as good as they possibly can and as noisy too.
Video: No Age: 'Losing Feeling' (unofficial vid)
DiS: Do you worry that some bands might adopt the aesthetic because it's a good way to get ahead?
RR: I don't tend to worry about other bands too much. If they do decide to do things for that reason then that's their business I don't like to comment on other people unless they cover our music. There was a string band who covered 'Eraser' actually! It was the least lo-fi thing you've ever heard which was beautiful. There was a violin playing the vocal melodies- it was incredible.
DiS: I like your cover of 'It's Oh So Quiet' by Bjork…
RR: That was a lot of fun actually. We don't tend to do covers that aren't punk songs but I enjoyed taking that apart and messing around with it.
DiS: How do you feel when bands from the same 'scene' for want of a better word, start fighting like Black Lips and Wavves and also Psychadelic Horseshit who personally criticised No Age?
RR: It feels more like a hip-hop thing like Biggie Vs Tupac although it's probably not as frightening as that. I think everyone has the right to express their opinion and I enjoy the gossip. I don't know about you but I like knowing which bands don't like each other and it's not like it's a new thing is it? Bands have been hating on each other for ever.
DiS: The view from Britain looking in on America is of a very tight knit group of bands who all know each other and work together in a community. What is the American view of the British equivalent? Do you listen to a lot of UK music?
RR: We're all big fans of Los Campesinos!, we toured with those guys on the Shred Yr Face tour last year which was amazing. There's a label called Upset The Rhythm which has been a big help to our band from the very beginning and what they do is really awesome and we've got to know a lot of people through that. Lovvers are really awesome and there's another great band called PENS we all like too who just did some dates in America with Crocodiles. There's certainly some great bands in the UK right now, I'm just getting into this band Male Bonding too; I think they're coming over here next month to record in Brooklyn.
DiS: Finally, after the whole 'Obama T-shirt gate' last year [Randall was forbidden from wearing a t-shirt in support of the then presidential candidate on a US chatshow last year] how do you feel about people seeing No Age as a political band?
RR: I'm not sure how it's being seen in terms of who I am or who the band is. It's not unfortunate but it's a sign of the times that politics is really affecting all of our lives in a way that it hasn't in recent years. There are a lot of issues on the table right now, things like the healthcare measure, that will have a huge effect on mine and everyone else in America's life. So for anyone to say they're not political it's almost unbelievable. You don't have to be watching the 24 hour news feeds and know everything but some sort of awareness is almost mandatory in my mind, it's certainly a responsibility. We're a 'democratic' society and if you don't play your part you can't piss on it when it all goes wrong. That's my personal view but as far as the band go we're certainly not looking to ruffle Rage Against The Machine's feathers, that's for sure.
Losing Feeling is out now and reviewed here. The band play the following UK and Ireland dates:
19 London, Scala
21 Manchester, Deaf Institute
24 Dublin, Crawdaddy


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Team | Poss | Off Eff | eFG% | FT Rate | OR% | TO% |
Doc Rivers lost it. There's no way of knowing how things would have played out had he not decided, with 6:43 left in the third quarter and Boston up 67-57, to compound the damage done by the flagrant foul called on Glen Davis by flipping out, drawing two technical fouls, an ejection, and creating a bench atmosphere that made it acceptable for assistant coach Armond Hill to get a technical of his own but, in the reality we inhabit, choosing that path didn't help his team. Marvin Williams made one of two free throws and the Hawks didn't score on their possession subsequent to the flagrant foul but Jamal Crawford made all three of the technical free throws. Boston got the ball back up 6, never got the lead back up to 10, and the Hawks tied the game (for the first time since 13-13) before the third quarter ended.
Tom Thibodeau has a reputation as a defensive mastermind but, as acting head coach, he repeated the same mistake Doc Rivers made in Game 4 of the 2008 first-round playoff series: leaving Ray Allen to try and guard Joe Johnson one-on-one. While Boston struggled to score 16 points in the fourth quarter, Johnson got 12 points of his own on just 8 shots. Curiously, Thibodeau also failed to make a single substitution while in charge. Glen Davis was -13 in 27:31 while emergency starter Brian Scalabrine was +9 in 20:54, both numbers seeming representative of their effectiveness to the naked eye.
Mike Woodson didn't lose it and he demonstrated that he may have learned from some recent tactical decisions that haven't worked. Marvin Williams played the final 12:33 of the game and, though he didn't score, defended and rebounded admirably while Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford dominated the ball. Williams made good use of his length and lateral movement to keep Rajon Rondo in front of him (something his teammates had taken turns trying and failing to do for much of the game) for more than one possession late in the game.
The Hawks also turned the predictability of their insistence upon switching on screens into an advantage by repeatedly switching Williams or Jamal Crawford onto Kendrick Perkins or Davis, inviting Boston to play fourth quarter possessions through those two rather than Paul Pierce or Ray Allen. Davis scored nine points in the final quarter but that's a fair trade for Paul Pierce using just 4 of Boston's 19 fourth quarter offensive possessions, even before accounting for those four Pierce possessions resulting in two missed jump shots and two turnovers.
That Boston shot 63.1 eFG% for the game despite a 36.7 eFG% fourth quarter is, perhaps, the tempering factor in celebrating this comeback victory. Just as Hawks partisans rightly considered both Cleveland games and the Nate Robinson game to be lost by the Hawks as much as won by the opposition, one couldn't begrudge Celtic partisans for thinking the same of their team tonight. Boston (collectively) failed to maintain their composure, got away from what built their seemingly secure lead, and failed to respond to adjustments the Hawks made. It's a deadly trifecta regardless of one's perspective.


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Dog Mourns Fallen Navy SEAL
I have seen some of the photos of the dog laying at the casket of his fallen owner, a Navy Seal. They have been circulating around the internet, and on the news. As both a patriot, and dog lover, it just breaks my heart. This is Hawkeye, and he let his feelings be known to all at the funeral of his owner, Navy Seal Petty Officer Jon T. Tumlinson.


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The clear lens / black face traditional series gauges have a bold black face and natural bulb illuminated detail (apart from rev counter) all surrounded by a black bezel. These gauges have a subtle back light making them perfectly clear during the day or fully illuminated at night. The combination of clear detail and illuminated needle make this a very attractive series of gauges.
These gauges offer fantastic quality at a very affordable price.
All gauges are supplied in a presentation box with instructions, oil and water gauges are also supplied with the required sensors.
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This event at CU next week is mandatory for my students. If you are local, you should come too!
The First 300 Days: An Assessment of Obama's Energy and Climate Policy
Thursday, Sept. 3, 7:00pm
Wolf Law Building
Wittemyer Courtroom
Free and open to the public
Directions: www.colorado.edu/law/about/visitus.htm
The Obama Administration has identified energy as one of its top policy concerns, with a focus on promoting clean, renewable energy and addressing climate change. During the first months of the new Administration we have seen a departure from the previous Administration's policies on EPA regulation of CO2, cap and trade legislation, climate change, and renewable energy, among others. Please join the Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute (RASEI – formerly the CU-Boulder Energy Initiative) and our panel of policy experts as we assess the accomplishments of the Obama Administration in its first 300 (or so) days.
LISA DILLING, CIRES Center for Science and Technology Policy Research,
University of Colorado
JOE FELLER, College of Law, Arizona State University; senior counsel to the National Wildlife Federation 2008-09
PAUL KOMOR, Renewable & Sustainable Energy Institute, University of Colorado
JANA MILFORD, Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado
ROGER PIELKE, JR., CIRES Center for Science and Technology Policy Research, University of Colorado
MARK SQUILLACE, University of Colorado School of Law
MODERATOR: Carl Koval, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute Faculty Director


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John Grisham is to literature what Cheerios are to a rushed breakfast, something you buy in bulk and consume without too much thought. Honestly, I'm relieved when a new Grisham book doesn't weigh more than I do.
Yet his newest work, "Calico Joe," is as slender as a Dodgers shortstop. Coming in at under 200 pages, it is a breezy little baseball novel that will probably appeal to many men the way Nicholas Sparks' stories appeal to that other sex.
Strangely, considering the subject matter, it is amazingly unevocative of the game itself. Can a baseball book not leave you with the smell of mustard in your noggin' and brick dust under your nails? This one does. Grisham would've done well to study a little Red Smith or Roger Kahn as a pre-writing warm-up drill.
"Calico Joe" is the first-person account of a fictionalized beaning of a Chicago Cubs prodigy by the name of Joe Castle, by way of Calico Rock, Ark. After being called up suddenly by the Cubs, Castle, soon dubbed "Calico Joe," gets off to a roaring start. After 11 games, he has 12 home runs and 14 stolen bases. He's hitting a ridiculous .725 and leading the Cubs to first place in their division (an accomplishment almost as remarkable as a .725 average).
The baseball world believes it may be witnessing the next Ty Cobb. Or perhaps his better.
His story is told by Paul Tracey, son of Warren, a head-hunting power pitcher for the New York Mets who has more losses than wins and more anger than talent. Warren Tracey would be the one to end Joe Castle's career. While a young Paul watches in the stands, Warren aims a fastball at the head of Paul's boyhood hero, sending him into a coma and to the brink of death. In 1973, the storied career of Joe Castle comes to a tragic close after a mere 38 games.
Warren claims the bean ball was unintentional. Paul, a longtime victim of his abusive father's hate-filled tactics, knows better.
Jump ahead almost four decades and Joe Castle is a barely functional high school groundskeeper back in his hometown of Calico Rock; Warren Tracey is dying of cancer. Paul's dream/goal is to see his father apologize to Castle before he dies, an idea that the gruff old former ballplayer scoffs at.
In vintage Grisham fashion ― few authors can build to a crescendo the way he does ― the story picks up pace. Without revealing a rather satisfying ending, he plays good notes on the power of forgiveness, for the son, the dying pitcher and Calico Joe himself.
Not that this alone makes the book worthy of your valuable time. I was looking forward to this book the way I would a Memorial Day homestand ― as something soothing, as something that uses baseball as a gateway to the American mind. Imagine baseball in the hands of Grisham, an American pastime all by himself?
When it comes to reviewing books, my dirty little secret is to lift excerpts here and there, not just to offer a test drive of the book's rhythms and sensibilities, but to capture the beauty of the words themselves. Can the author write or not? What is his or her special gift? Some authors scribble with such grace ― "Angela's Ashes" author Frank McCourt being one, F. Scott Fitzgerald another ― that I no longer care what happens. Sing to me, baby. Just sing.
So it is rather telling that I did not circle one excerpt in this book ― no mustardy Hi-Liter on the pages, not a single underlined phrase. Not bad, in the sense that I can donate my unblemished copy to the local library in good conscience. Bad in the sense there is no riff or passage worth noting.
I wanted more brick dust. I wanted more about what the tragedy did to Joe Castle's family. Instead, the reader is introduced to some stereotypical Southern newspaper editor and his wife, and learns more about the Ozarks town than about its people.
Call this one a bloop single for Grisham, a slugger capable of much more. And further evidence that, as a writer, he's probably more Minnie Minoso than Babe Ruth. (MCT)
Articles by Korea Herald


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ABOUT Mrs. Sue Backus
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February 28, 2024
Discover the unique 4K and 5K programs at All Saints Catholic School, where early learning meets holistic development. Our play-based curriculum, coupled with a strong foundation in Catholic values, fosters cognitive, social, and spiritual growth, preparing children for a lifetime of learning and virtue. Enroll now for an enriching start to your child's educational journey.
February 27, 2024
Join us in reliving the enchanting Barbie-themed father-daughter night at All Saints Catholic School, Kenosha. Discover how this beloved event celebrates the special bond between dads and daughters with laughter, dance, and unforgettable memories.
ASCS Hub is your comprehensive gateway to important documents, links, and resources for students and parents.
Together we will teach children to see the world through the eyes of Christ and to model the lives of the Saints in a rigorous academic environment.


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DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan – Taliban militants armed with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades battled their way into a prison in northwest Pakistan on Sunday, freeing close to 400 prisoners, including at least 20 described by police as "very dangerous" insurgents, authorities and the militants said.
The raid by more than 100 fighters was a dramatic display of the strength of the insurgency gripping the nuclear-armed country. The escaped prisoners may now rejoin the fight, giving momentum and a propaganda boost to a movement that has killed thousands of Pakistani officials and ordinary citizens since 2007.
The attackers stormed the prison before dawn in the city of Bannu close to the Afghan border, said police officer Shafique Khan. They used explosives and hand grenades to knock down the main gates and two walls, said Bannu prison superintendent Zahid Khan.
"They were carrying modern and heavy weapons," said Zahid Khan. "They fired rockets."
Once inside the building, the attackers headed straight to the area of the prison where death-row prisoners were being kept, he said. They fought with guards for around two hours, setting part of the prison on fire before freeing the 380 inmates, including at least 20 "very dangerous Taliban militants," said Shafique.
One escaped prisoner, Adnan Rashid, was on death row for his involvement in an assassination attempt against former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, said Zahid Khan.
The prison in Bannu housed 944 inmates.
A Taliban spokesman, Asimullah Mehsud, claimed the movement's fighters freed 1,200 of their comrades. The group is known to make exaggerated claims.
Pakistan's military has launched a series of operations against the Pakistani Taliban group in the northwest, where it is strongest and has forged alliances with al-Qaida and other transnational militant movements based there along the Afghan border.
The movement is closely linked to the Afghan Taliban, which is battling U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.
Soldiers and police have killed or arrested hundreds of militants, but the insurgency has proved resilient. Insurgents have carried out suicide bombings and other attacks across the country in retaliation, raising doubts in some quarters over whether the county can survive. Prison breakouts like the one Sunday have been rare.
Bannu city is the main gateway to North Waziristan, the most militant-infested region along the border.


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PQsetNoticeProcessor Control reporting of notice and warning messages generated by libpq.
typedef void (*PQnoticeProcessor) (void *arg, const char *message); PQnoticeProcessor PQsetNoticeProcessor(PGconn *conn, PQnoticeProcessor proc, void *arg);
By default, libpq prints notice messages from the backend on stderr, as well as a few error messages that it generates by itself. This behavior can be overridden by supplying a callback function that does something else with the messages. The callback function is passed the text of the error message (which includes a trailing newline), plus a void pointer that is the same one passed to PQsetNoticeProcessor. (This pointer can be used to access application-specific state if needed.) The default notice processor is simply
static void defaultNoticeProcessor(void * arg, const char * message) { fprintf(stderr, "%s", message); }
To use a special notice processor, call PQsetNoticeProcessor just after creation of a new PGconn object.
The return value is the pointer to the previous notice processor. If you supply a callback function pointer of NULL, no action is taken, but the current pointer is returned.
Once you have set a notice processor, you should expect that that function could be called as long as either the PGconn object or PGresult objects made from it exist. At creation of a PGresult, the PGconn's current notice processor pointer is copied into the PGresult for possible use by routines like PQgetvalue.


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Best Biodynamic Cannabis
for All Sexes
What a difference a year makes! It has for Garden Society, a local cannabis manufacturing company owned and operated by Erin Gore and Karli Warner (pictured, left to right), who spent most of 2018 nailing down permits so they'd be legal. The weekend before Valentine's Day, they gave away cannabis-free samples of their chocolates at Sol, where seniors scarfed them. The cannabis-infused version gets me stoned, and, while it doesn't kick in right away—usually the case with edibles—it keep me stoned for a long time, and makes me feel lusty.
While I'm waiting for an edible to kick in, I smoke one of the pre-rolled Garden Society "rosettes" that come in a nifty box that fits comfortably in a back pocket. A rosette gets me high quickly, but not so high that I can't function.
Garden Society cannabis is cultivated biodynamically in Mendocino County, where permits are easier to obtain than in Sonoma County. The chocolate in the edibles comes from Guittard, a company that deals with "fair trade" cocoa cultivators. Gore and Warner call their products "female-friendly." They're male-friendly, too. The milk chocolates with sea salt, Gore says, will "ensure a good night's sleep," and, while that might be true for some, it isn't always true for me. It can wire me.
If you want an introduction to Gore, Warner and Garden Society, check out their podcast, Garden Society: The Podcast. If Erin Gore's brother-in-law, James—Sonoma County's fourth district supervisor—hasn't heard the podcast, he ought to. He also ought to smoke a Garden Society pre-rolled with me, then kick back and talk about the Warriors, the Republicans and the politics of pot. thegardensociety.com.—J.R.
Best Place to Get High, According
to Grandma
The last time I went to the Grove of Old Trees, it was with my younger sister and grandparents. It was one of those Northern California days in January when the sun is out and the sky is clearer than it is in the summertime, when the air is still crisp and clean from the morning frost but has warmed from the sun. My grandmother had packed us lunch in a picnic basket, one covered in red-and-white checkered cloth. It was in pristine condition; even though she got it in the '70s, there was no indication it had ever been used before. My sister carried the picnic basket and I carried the matching checkered blanket as we walked into the darkness of the towering redwoods, so dense sunlight barely scraped in between their branches. As we walked, forest critters darted in front of us on a dirt path, and the deep sound of a great horned owl (so my grandfather told us) could be heard. Eventually, we got to a grass clearing. The day was beautiful, and the whole field was slathered in sunlight as we spread out our blanket. We unpacked what my grandmother had assembled: the neatly folded napkins, the bundled plates and utensils, four small mason jar glasses and our pasta salad. After we had been quietly eating for a few moments, my grandmother looked around and said, "This is a perfect place to smoke a joint." Grandmothers always know best.
17599 Fitzpatrick Lane, Occidental. www.sonomacounty.com/outdoor-activities/grove-old-trees.—A.M.
Best Way to Rub Weed All Over Your Body
Napa County has been moving slowly on opening up wine country to commercial cannabis cultivation after the passing of Proposition 64. To date, only one medical dispensary, Harvest of Napa, exists in the county, and there are zero recreational dispensaries. That doesn't mean there's no cannabis being cultivated in Napa Valley, of course, and groups like the Napa Valley Cannabis Association are working to make above-board cannabis agriculture and a legitimate cannabis industry a reality in the region. For now, the best legal cannabis export coming from Napa is the topical balms of Napa Valley Cannabalm, whose boutique, handcrafted and doctor-formulated balms are ideal for chronic pain relief and anti-inflammation. The Cannabalms, which come in scents like Rosemary, Peppermint and Lavender, are made with all-organic ingredients like Cannabis Sativa seed oil, grape seed oil, olive oil, beeswax and essential oils, all grown in Napa Valley. When applied to trigger points on the body—the head, shoulders, knees and toes—the balms can relax muscles, reduce aches, increase circulation and soothe inflamed skin. Since the product is made with low amounts of cannabinoids and each two-ounce tin of Cannabalm contains less than 0.3 percent THC, there's no psychoactive effects to worry about, and the balms can be traveled with, shipped to and used in all 50 states.—napavalleycannabalm.com.—C.S.
Best Example of the California Paradox
The California Paradox occurs whenever the state sets out on some ambitious policy initiative that another ambitious policy initiative would render null and void, difficult to achieve or a flat-out joke. Case in point: When the state set out to legalize cannabis, it did so knowing that there's be no legal weed without lots of effort put into making sure nonmedical pot products are child-unfriendly, if not childproof. Given all the infused gummy bears and flavored vape whatnot on the consumer market, that's a fair enough concern. But it also meant that cannabis products for the recreational masses would be enveloped in multiple layers of plastic packaging, a phenomenon which is demonstrably idiotic anytime a consumer unpacks a wildly overpackaged pre-rolled joint. It's like they've got King Tut wrapped in the damn packaging and Steve Martin's about to burst into song about it, but never at dusk. Enter the California Paradox: even as it has legalized weed, the state has also set an ambitious agenda to convert to a 100 percent sustainable-energy model by 2045. That means lots more solar and wind power and less reliance on the petrochemical industry and all of its oleaginous products. You see where this is all going. Petrochemicals are the building blocks of plastic. By the time California gets to 2045, we'll already be drowned under a sea of plastic pre-roll tubes, and the sea will itself lap the shores of a new Central Valley beachhead. So here's to the quick emergence of a robust hemp-plastic industry. It's the only way out of the Paradox.—T.M.P.
Best Cannabis Photo Shoot Gone Awry
You think it's easy, putting together a photo shoot with Marigold's Pineapple Harlequin CDB-rich pre-roll? Well, it's not, as we learned recently. We invited the joint to the Bohemian offices with the news that it had won the award for Best CBD-Rich Pre-Roll That You Can Smoke at Dawn and Still Have a Productive Day at Work, and we arranged for the photographer to show up as well. This stuff takes planning, people. The photographer arrived at the scheduled hour, looking typically jaundiced and frantic, and set up his gear. We put out a spread of cold cuts and cheese, some grapes and wine, to stimulate an artful pose from the pre-roll and to get the photographer to relax. It was his first photo shoot with a bona fide A-lister. We told the photographer that we were going for a tastefully nude approach to the shot, but maybe with some beefcake edge. The model release forms were all signed. The bosses were informed of our intentions. But . . . but . . . when it came time to take the shot, the joint was nowhere to be found. Poof, just like that, puff of smoke. All that remained was the packaging—the green and yellow Marigold box, and the plastic tube that held the pre-roll. We checked everywhere. Under the desk, in the fridge. Everywhere. Seriously, where the hell did that joint go? And why is the intern writing blank-verse poetry with a mythical edge, on deadline day? Fuckin' kids these days.—T.M.P.


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Hannah reflects back on the opportunities she had during her time at Chester and explains why she wants to give something back to current students now she has graduated.
University Blog: The Inside Story
Delve deeper into the Chester story by reading blog posts from HE advisers, lecturers and students. Our blog gives you an insight into the Chester experience, plus guidance and tips to help you prepare for university.


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It's Valentine's Day, and we have some bad news for workaholics: according to new research, you should be prioritizing your love life over your job.
That's not just because it will make your significant other happy; Neal Roese, a marketing professor at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, has found that life's most intense regrets center around personal relationships, not careers.
Roese and colleagues asked 500 U.S. adults about their biggest regrets then analyzed their remorse to figure out what parts of their lives were most directly impacted. They discovered that the most deep-seated regrets focused on personal relationships — including romantic unions, but also interactions with close family members, particularly parents, siblings and children.
"Regrets are actually a window into the concerns and goals most important to us," says Roese. "We are fundamentally social creatures and draw a lot of psychological sustenance out of being connected to others. The regrets we are measuring are a reflection of that."
MORE: Does Online Dating Make It Harder to Find 'the One'?
Study participants were asked to describe regrets that they considered both strong and weak, along with the situation that surrounded the regret. Analysis revealed that regrets involving love — think ending a relationship or cheating — rankle more than those related to less intimate choices such as dropping out of college or quitting a job. The study, published online last week in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science, reported that love regrets outnumbered work regrets by more than 2 to 1 — 56% to 20% — in some of the comparisons. The more intense a regret, the more likely it was to be connected to personal relationships.
That may be because personal regrets such as romantic remorse draw their intensity from their association with a person's desire to belong. After all, who wants to be on the outside looking in?
What that means in general is that being bad at keeping in touch with old friends or forgetting to buy Valentine's chocolates for your sweetie has the potential to make you feel worse — much worse — than making a mistake at work. "As you are thinking about how to feel good about your life, the thing you will feel most strongly about is protecting and strengthening your personal relationships," says Roese.
As for what that means more specifically on a day like today, Roese has some words of advice: "It's alright to let some work stuff slide," he says. And, by the way, don't forget the flowers.
MORE: Romance Novels, Filled With Passionate Love and Torrid Sex, Mislead Women


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1. Oxford: University and City Walking Tour
Join a university-educated guide, with years of experience and local knowledge of Oxford City and colleges. See the dreamy spires of one of the oldest universities in the world on a guided walking tour. Go inside some of the city's most historic colleges, such as New College, founded in 1379 and more recently seen in the Harry Potter films and television productions of Inspector Morse and Lewis. Visit Exeter College, founded in 1314, and another favorite on most tours. Stop by Hertford College, with its romantic façade and Bridge of Sighs, instantly recognizable from Brideshead Revisited. See the University Library and learn about the collegiate system unique to Oxford and Cambridge. Discover famous alumni who studied and taught at the university, including the infamous Dr Spooner, whose portraits hang in New College Dining Hall and whose name is given to the playful linguistic phenomenon of spoonerisms.


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...but at least Chad Billingsley isn't going anywhere. From "Dodgers likely to be patient at Meetings" by Ken Gurnick at Dodgers.com:
[Ned] Colletti again shot down speculation that the Dodgers either want, or are willing, to move Billingsley."I can't trade him," Colletti said. "Where do you find another one? I need more, not less."
The Hot Stove is going to be is going to be powered by a can of Sterno this year. To see how the Dodgers are faring, keep your eyes on what the rest of the division does.
UPDATE: Still, holes need to be filled. Here's an indication of the level the Dodgers are operating at (all links from MLBTR):
- Giants, Dodgers Pursuing Brad Ausmus
- Eight Teams Interested In Carroll
- Pirates, Dodgers, Braves, A's After Kameron Loe
UPDATE: More MLBTR speculation:
and an older item:


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Tuesday, November 07, 2006
SoC versus SotC
However, not everyone will agree with my valuation of the tradeoff. So let's examine some cold numbers.
Let's take a paladin with 1000 AP, a 3.8 speed weapon with 75 DPS, and +300 dmg/heal. Assume she is fighting a mob with 40% damage reduction. Also assume that she is spending all of her time attacking.
Let A be her Attack Power.
Let s be her weapon speed.
Let d be her DPS.
let P be her spellpower
Let R be the percentage of damage that gets through the armor.
Base dps = [d + a/14]*R = 87.9 dps
SoC dps = [ds + as/14]*0.7*7/60 + 0.29*P*7/60 = 55.6 dps
SotC dps = 306/14 * R = 13.1 dps
So basically, the SoC paladin is doing 143.5 dps compared to the SotC paladin's 101 dps. So by going SotC you sacrifice about 42 dps, or about 30% of your damage.
(I am ignoring crits, talents, and time spent not meleeing. Most of this affects both sides equally. I'm also ignoring Judgement of Command, as I don't think it would really be spammed by a melee-healing paladin. It does add another 30 dps or so, if spammed constantly.)
So the tradeoff becomes 30% less damage in exchange for 40% more Light/Wisdom procs, increased chance of renewing Judgements, and added flexibility in chosing when to start a heal.
Given that paladin damage is last on my list of priorities in a raid (though it is still on the list!), it's a tradeoff that I am willing to make.
As an aside, note that in either case, the majority of a paladin's damage comes from her base damage. The numbers seem relatively reasonable to me, though the weapon DPS is a bit high. You can always use your own values in the equations and see how your personal trade-off works. SoC does scale though, while SotC does not, so the better your gear is, the more attractive SoC becomes.
6 comments:
- Anonymous9:16 AM, November 08, 2006
If damage isn't the point, you should be using lasting judgement. You'd stay out of aoe range, and are better able to react to changing conditions (adds, sudden deaths, etc.). Trash mobs rarely last past 30 seconds, too. Also, you then can make better benefit of mostly healing gear.
Naturally, some of this will change in TBC, but this currently the way the game is. The farther out of the action a person is, the more aware of their surroundings they are. I've been there, I know how it is.
I applaud you trying to get into melee range, but you're adding far less benefit to the raid, then if you stood back and healed. Of course, if you don't care about efficiency and other people don't mind carrying your weight in a raid, then go for it.
The whole point to meleeing is to do damage. I've been in MC and had fun meleeing for awhile. If you're serious about being up there, you have to do everything you can to do damage, including spamming consecrate if you have it. Mana runs low? That's what drinking is for. Hang back a bit and drink up while everyone else goes to the next pull.
SotC is good when you're soloing and want to regen mana or life quickly, and don't have time to drink/eat. That's about it.
SoC is good when you're trying to damage, which should be your goal if you're meleeing. And that means having a good 2hander, as equivilant ilevel 1handers do much less damage. I respectfully disagree. In my view, pure healing is an inefficient use of a paladin. Some damage is greater than no damage, and a pure healing paladin just leads to greater overhealing on the majority of fights.
In my experience, fights with melee-healing paladins go faster and smoother.
I've tried both styles of play, and in my opinion, paladin healing from the front lines while meleeing is the optimal strategy. Not to mention the most fun. :)- Anonymous6:44 AM, November 10, 2006
I'd rather have a pally carrying a big stick fighting with me any day. I'll take the aggro, you keep me alive. We'll both pound the crap out of stuff.
ReplyDelete - Anonymous9:02 AM, November 10, 2006
Fun is subjective, of course.
However, efficiency only means as much as progression allows. As long as the mobs go down with a minimum of deaths, there isn't much else that matters. Hence, why some paladins can melee when stuff like MC is on farm.
When you get to places like BWL and AQ40, though, you'll find melee-healing is grossly inefficient. Places there need so much healing, and indeed, count on paladins healing in order to win. Meleeing will only put your raid in more danger, as there is much more damage incoming.
Don't fool yourself; MC is EZ mode.
"a pure healing paladin just leads to greater overhealing on the majority of fights."
To put it bluntly, this only applies to MC on farm. And even then, shit happens. You're merrily meleeing away, oblivious to the 2nd core hound that's coming over the hill, and the hunter that's backing up, right into a surger or a pair of giants. Priests go down, and suddenly, overhealing isn't the issue. It's having enough healing. Because you're in melee gear, your heals are weak, and you can't compensate. People die. Oops, you just wiped the raid because you were more concerned about yourself.
I can keep a tank up by myself in MC. And several DPS people at the same time. True, if we're doing good, I'm not healing much, but I also lead the raid so I can keep a watchful eye on our surroundings - the value of this cannot be underestimated. DPS'ers develop tunnel vision on their target. Healers are watching life bars and playing whack-a-mole.
In short, you could be just like all the rest, or be something more.
Or you can make the mob go down 1-2 seconds faster, which I'm sure is more satisfying on a personal level. Knowing that you're tickling it with a feather, while everyone else is doing your work for you.
Seriously, have you looked at damage meters and seen where you are on it? See how small a percentage you are compared to everyone else? A priest keeping SW:P up is probably doing just as much damage, and still outhealing you. I think you and I have fundamentally different ideas about what it means to melee in raids as a paladin.
You make a lot of assumptions which are simply not true. For example, gear. I melee in my healing gear. I have Cloudkeeper Legplates, but I wear Chitinous Legguards in raids. I use a healing weapon instead of a dps weapon (well, technically I use my Gavel for both right now, but back when I was using The Unstoppable Force and Simone's Cultivating Hammer, I would use Simone's in raids).
As for BWL and AQ40, I've seen all of BWL and first parts of AQ40, and nothing there has made me change my mind. In fact, some fights, like Chrommaggus, you do your guild a disservice by NOT meleeing.- Anonymous11:31 AM, November 15, 2006
Regarding Chromaggus - I know what you're thinking. You can cleanse while swinging a weapon, and thus you think you can get away with meleeing.
This isn't entirely a good idea, for the simple reason that all paladins need to focus on spamming their decurse key. If one person gets all 5 debuffs on them, they get mutated and mind controlled. In that state, all you can do is kill the person (or chain fear them). And a paladin that melees, needs to move in and out of line of sight.
That will detract from your cleansing time. Also, while meele'ing, you are probably going to attempt to judge seals. You can't cast a seal and cleanse at the same time, and believe me, you need all your paladins focused on cleansing. Even with 5 paladins focused solely on cleansing, you can still run into problems with someone getting all 5 debuffs.
I understand where you're coming from, but there are only 2 reasons for you to be meele'ing:
1. To do damage
2. To keep a judgement up
In your healing gear, you aren't doing much damage to affect the raid any, so reason #1 is ruled out. Lasting Judgement rules #2 out. In addtion, on Chromaggus, no one should be taking damage, if they are good at moving in and out. Therefore, no need for Judgement of light. Your healers will forever stay out of line of sight, so need for Judgement of wisdom. That leaves hunters and mages. If they are good raiders, they came prepared with pots and other buffs for this fight (mageblood, major mana pots, etc.). In addition, Hunters can feign and drink up. Mages can evocate, which one evocate during the fight should be all that's needed.
There is no logical reason to melee. Except to have fun, of course. I have no problems with people who say they melee to have fun. I just have problems with people who thing they are being useful while meeling. In the grand scheme of things, compared to DPS classes, you're a minor itch on the big dog's ass.
But if you've seen all of BWL, you know you're not meele'ing Razorgore, Vael, Firemaw, and Broodlord. For AQ40, you're not meleeing Skeram(our guild is just starting AQ40, so haven't been farther than this). And if you've been to each of these fights, you'd know why.
So why are you meeling again?


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Sure, it's easy to walk right past New Saigon Sandwich — its unassuming storefront is nestled between some of Chinatown's flashier Dim Sum staples. But once you've tried their delicious, authentic, and obscenely affordable Vietnamese lunch specials, it's even easier to ignore its ostentatious competition.
When I walked in, the place was completely empty. There's no seating, just a cramped space for standing in line and a few fridges stocked with sports drinks. But it was early — in a few moments it'd be lunchtime, and the inevitable hoards of business-types would wander out of their downtown office buildings, hungry and in search of instant gratification. When that happens, the line at New Saigon often spills out the door and onto the crowded Washington Street sidewalk.
A stack of egg rolls ($1/each) was literally steaming on the counter, so I ordered one of those first. It was packed with shrimp, pork, veggies, and taro, giving it a super-fresh, kind of nutty taste. The main attraction, though, is the bánh mì: an inexpensive, cold sandwich filled with your pick of protein — typical Vietnamese street fare. They've got barbecue beef, tofu, curry chicken, something called "Vietnamese cold cuts," and a ton of other fillings to choose from. I went with the shredded pork ($3.25). It's served on fresh, flaky French bread slathered in a buttery mayo, and stuffed with carrots, chili peppers, pickled onions, and cucumber, and topped off with cilantro. If the chilies aren't cutting it, ask for "extra spicy," and they'll douse the whole thing in a tangy hot-pepper sauce. It adds a definite kick, but it's worth it, especially paired with the sweeter fish sauce in which the shredded pork is soaked.
There are tasty non-sandwich options, too, like a selection of freshly pre-made "box meals." I tried the barbecue chicken box ($3.75) based on the recommendation of an employee, though the tofu spring rolls ($3.75) were equally alluring. The box included chewy chunks of charred meat on top of lettuce and sticky, yellow noodles. Its subtle, hoisin-esque flavoring was so good, it didn't even bother me that it was served at room temperature. I tried a jackfruit bubble-tea shake ($3) for an icy post-meal treat, even though I had no idea WTF a jackfruit was. The verdict? The perfect tropical finish to a satisfying lunch.
NEW SAIGON SANDWICH, located at 696 Washington Street, Boston (Chinatown), is open daily, 8:30 am–6:30 pm. Call 617.542.6296.
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