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There's nothing new under the sun (or clouds, as it were here in the Seattle area) when it comes to New Years Resolution blog posts.
Do a quick search and your brain will run through a gamut ranging from inspirational, make a list and conquer diatribes to let it slide and be happy with yourself zen posts.
I guess I'll add my own two cents. I'm a blogger. It's what I do.
By Kimberly Loomis
If you know yourself, then set yourself up for success.
Okay, that's it! Have a great day!
Just kidding.
An example: I suck at follow through. I get all excited about something, for instance, exercise, well...now...okay, I've never really gotten excited about exercise...more like...driven.
Okay, so I get all driven (grammar nazis give me a break here) about exercise for a short while and then the driven-ness wanes and suddenly I realize I've gone 22 weeks without doing what I had set out to do on a regular basis.
I'm no rocket engineer (my father in law is though, so I occasionally get to hang out with one, so that's cool) but exercising once every 22 weeks doesn't exactly qualify as "on a regular basis".
What happens there?
I'm not a psychologist, either, in fact I am a chronic mis-speller of any word with psy- at the beginning of it. However, at 33 I'm learning to understand myself a little bit at least.
What happens is that I set myself up for failure.
For me, and please tell me I'm not the only one, making a resolution, no matter how solemnly, is like blowing bubbles.
I reverently dip that little plastic wand into the soapy mixture, purse my lips and gently release a stream of air I filtered through my very own lungs specifically for this moment.
A magic little ball of rainbowy goodness emerges, carefully separates from the wand and floats in the air like a chubby little fairy.
I stare in awe. It's simply magical.
It's gone.
Now, I can just go on and make another one, right? But that one bubble, the one I created all by myself, is gone. Never to return. I can make a million like it--soap is cheap, as are promises, but none of them are going to last more than a few, fleeting moments.
As are my "resolutions".
So, what's a girl to do?
Know thyself.
I'm an extrovert. I NEED other people around me to get inspired, energized and to keep me from falling into the deep dark abyss of depression.
No pressure, friends. :D But, seriously, I need to be around people. Like, people who aren't my little people, who don't need me to wash and feed them and keep them from falling off the top bunk and breaking their own arms or throwing their siblings from top bunk and breaking their arms.
So, if my goal is to do more writing/art/photography stuff, I need to make sure I'm hanging out with people that inspire me. Go to shows (if only I knew some awesome local musicians to partake of...) go to parties, hang out with my inspiring friends...get out of the freaking HOUSE! It's so much easier to stay home, especially when I've been working out of the house a lot. But if I spend more time feeding others and not feeding myself, I'm going to starve.
If my goal is to get healthy, I need a partner. Now, I love my husband, but he is never going to tell me not to eat that ice cream at 10 o'clock at night, or to get off my butt and go for a walk, even if I ask him to. It isn't his nature, and if I stake my success in something that is against my own nature based on input from him that is against his nature I am now setting us BOTH up for failure. Not good.
I have a friend, you can find her here who is going to help me this year with my health goals. That's what I need. Not to forge on this road alone or with someone who isn't the 'coaching' type, but with someone who has been through my struggle, can relate, understand and has the ability and drive to cheer me on. Yippee!
And so it goes, my friends.
What do you want to do? What do you need to make that happen?
If you're like me, and a list on your bathroom mirror will just serve to make you stop using that particular bathroom to avoid the guilt an unfulfilled list gives you, are we stuck feeling crappy about ourselves?
I think not.
Though our current culture values guys like Tony Robbins, I'm not the dog-eat-dog type. I'm not going to claw my way to my goals. And it isn't that there is something wrong with me, it's that there is something wrong with that advice for me.
I don't wear lipstick because I don't think it looks right on me. I prefer tinted gloss. I've had plenty of people disagree with me and tell me how great a dark shade of maroon brings out my eyes or cheekbones or nose hairs or whatever. I just can't stand the way lipstick feels on my mouth. Whenever I see myself in the mirror with it on I get a little startled. Does that mean there's something wrong with me? Of course not.
Same with achieving goals.
There are many paths to the same destination, carved out for people of differing abilities and personality types. There are also many paths that are open to some and closed to others. I doubt I'm ever going to be able to afford the toll on the Personal Trainer & Nutritionist road. That's okay, though. My path is slower, it's going to take me longer to get where I'm going, and I'm okay with that.
Know thyself.
It's a great start.
Photo by me, no you can't have it but you can use it if you ask permission and give me credit. :)


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June 6, 2004 marks 60 years since the fabled Allied invasion known as "D-Day." Lost amid the self-congratulatory orgy is the minor detail that by the time of the D-Day invasion, the Soviets were engaging 80 percent of the German Army on the Eastern Front. Oops…
Alexander Cockburn has called D-Day a "sideshow," explaining that WWII had already been won "by the Russians at Stalingrad and then, a year before D-Day, at the Kursk Salient, where 100 German divisions were mangled. Compared with those epic struggles, D-Day was a skirmish…Hitler's generals knew the war was lost, and the task was to keep the meeting point between the invading Russians and Western armies as far east as possible."
Of course, this doesn't fit the "good war" myth (more than just a good war, NBC newsman Tom Brokaw has deemed WWII "the greatest war the world has seen."), so it's down the memory hole.
To borrow from the World Bank protestors, I say 60 years is enough.
Faced with a perpetual war against evil and presidential election pitting one Yale war criminal against another, the time has never been better to challenge the "greatest generation" hype. The next time someone you know speaks of WWII in hallowed tones, remind them that:
* The U.S. fought that war against racism with a segregated army.
* It fought that war to end atrocities by participating in the shooting of surrendering soldiers, the starvation of POWs, the deliberate bombing of civilians, wiping out hospitals, strafing lifeboats, and in the Pacific boiling flesh off enemy skulls to make table ornaments for sweethearts.
* FDR, the leader of this anti-racist, anti-atrocity force, signed Executive Order 9066, interning over 100,000 Japanese-Americans without due process…thus, in the name of taking on the architects of German prison camps became the architect of American prison camps.
* Before, during, and after the Good War, the American business class traded with the enemy. Among the US corporations that invested in the Nazis were Ford, GE, Standard Oil, Texaco, ITT, IBM, and GM (top man William Knudsen called Nazi Germany "the miracle of the 20th century").
* While the U.S. regularly turned away Jewish refugees to face certain death in Europe, another group of refugees was welcomed with open arms after the war: fleeing Nazi war criminals who were used to help create the CIA and advance America's nuclear program.
The enduring Good War fable goes well beyond Memorial Day barbecues and flickering black-and-white movies on late night TV. WWII is America's most popular war. According to accepted history, it was an inevitable war forced upon a peaceful people thanks to a surprise attack by a sneaky enemy. This war, then and now, has been carefully and consciously sold to us as a life-and-death battle against pure evil. For most Americans, WWII was nothing less than good and bad going toe-to-toe in khaki fatigues.
But, Hollywood aside, John Wayne never set foot on Iwo Jima. Despite the former president's dim recollections, Ronald Reagan did not liberate any concentration camps. And, contrary to popular belief, FDR never actually got around to sending our boys "over there" to take on Hitler's Germany until after the Nazis had already declared war on the U.S. first.
American lives weren't sacrificed in a holy war to avenge Pearl Harbor nor to end the Nazi Holocaust. WWII was about territory, power, control, money, and imperialism. What we're taught about the years leading up to the Good War involves the alleged appeasement of the Third Reich. If only the Allies were stronger in their resolve, the fascists could have been stopped. Having made that mistake once, the mantra goes, we can't make it again.
Comparing modern-day tyrants like Saddam Hussein to Adolf Hitler and invoking the A Word (appeasement) activates the following historical façade: After whipping the original axis of evil in a noble and popular war, the US and its allies can now wave the banner of humanitarianism and intervene with impunity across the globe without their motivations being severely questioned…especially when every enemy is likened to Hitler.
But it wasn't appeasement that took place prior to WWII. It was, at best, indifference; at worst it was collaboration…based on economic greed and more than a little shared ideology.
U.S. investment in Germany accelerated by more than 48% between 1929 and 1940, while declining sharply everywhere else in Europe. For many US companies, operations in Germany continued during the war (even if it meant the use of concentration-camp slave labor) with overt US government support. For example, American pilots were given instructions not to hit factories in Germany that were owned by US firms. As a result, German civilians began using the Ford plant in Cologne as an air raid shelter.
The pursuit of profit long ago transcended national borders and loyalty. Doing business with Hitler's Germany or Mussolini's Italy proved no more unsavory to the captains of industry than, say, selling military hardware to Indonesia does today. What's a little repression when there's money to be made?
This is where the most relevant similarities between Hussein and Hitler exist. Despite committing atrocities, both murderers received overt and covert support from the U.S…in the name of profit and capitalism. Make no mistake: The U.S., with its stockpile of lethal weapons and no shortage of bi-partisan leaders dying to use them, has never been in the business of appeasement.
When President (sic) Bush says, "You are either with us or against us," he's merely selling old wine in a new bottle.
The first step toward smashing that bottle is to "just say no" to the myth. The 20th century has been called the century of genocide, but it was also a century of propaganda (partially to justify the genocide). Little has changed in the way foreign interventions are aggressively packaged and sold to a wary public…except the technology by which the lies are disseminated.
More than 100 years ago, anarchist Emma Goldman described the national mood at the beginning of the Spanish-American War: "America had declared war with Spain. The news was not unexpected. For several months preceding, press and pulpit were filled with the call to arms in defense of the victims of Spanish atrocities in Cuba. It did not require much political wisdom to see that America's concern was a matter of sugar and had nothing to do with humanitarian feelings. Of course there were plenty of credulous people, not only in the country at large, but even in the liberal ranks, who believed in America's claim."
If the working class is kept unaware of what is being done in their name, rebellion is unlikely. If the average citizen in inundated with images designed to demonstrate that the U.S. government has always acted in a benevolent manner, rebellion appears unnecessary. As a result, justification is crucial for those in power.
Films like Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan are popular attempts at such justification. Even if war is hell and the good guys sometimes lose their way, these vehicles teach us that there is still no reason to question either the morality of the mission or the stature of that particular generation.
Tom Brokaw's best seller informs those who came of age during the era of Reagan and Rambo that those who came of age during the Depression and WWII were indeed "the greatest generation any society has ever produced."
Thanks to the seductive power of myth, millionaire celebrities like Brokaw, Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and others gain further wealth and prestige by playing the role of corporate/military propagandist to an audience deceived and pacified by jingoistic hysteria and the solace it often provides.
Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels said, "It is not enough to reconcile people more or less to our regime, to move them towards a position of neutrality towards us, we want rather to work on people until they are addicted to us."
Thus, it is our moral obligation to see through our own propaganda and kick the addictive habit of lazy thinking. We must address the many uncomfortable truths about WWII by recognizing on the public relations and media propaganda used by Western corporate states to transform a conflict between capitalist nations into a holy crusade.
In 1941, revolutionary pacifist A.J. Muste declared, "The problem after war is with the victor. He thinks he has just proved that war and violence pay. Who will now teach him a lesson?" Precisely how and when such a lesson will be taught is not known, but it can be safely assumed that this lesson will never be learned from a standard college textbook, an insipid bestseller, or a manipulative box office smash. The past 60 years have also shown that without such a lesson, there will be many more wars and many more lies told to obscure the truth about them.
Ending this cycle begins with each of us deciding we will no longer buy what's being sold. Debunk the "Good War" myth and the tenets behind the "War on Terror" will crumble. As Bob Marley sang, "Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery; none but ourselves can free our minds."
MICKEY Z. is the author of four books. For more information, please visit: http://www.mickeyz.net

subset: commoncrawl


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Investment Outlook For 2013 Clouded By Uncertainty
Usually by early December, investment professionals have mapped out their outlook for the next year.
But such forecasting has been made difficult by the "fiscal cliff" – the confluence of spending cuts and higher taxes that kick in automatically in 2013 if politicians in Washington can't reach a deal.
Some experts are waiting for the dust to settle on a compromise before outlining a 2013 investment strategy.
But others say if it isn't the fiscal cliff, it would be the debt ceiling or some other Washington-manufactured crisis to worry investors. They recommend that investors look past the immediate policy crisis and think long term. After all, they say, most investors are saving for college or retirement – goals that are many years off.
"There is life after the fiscal cliff," said Craig Fehr, an investment strategist with Edward Jones in St. Louis.
Even with all the uncertainty now, some experts feel comfortable making a few predictions for the new year. The economy, they say, will continue to grow at a modest annual rate of 2 percent to 2.5 percent. Interest rates will remain low, a challenge for savers and bond investors.
The U.S. stock market will post a gain, but not as much as in 2012. The S&P 500 index, a broad measure of market performance, is up more than 12 percent in 2012. The market will go up by 6 percent to 10 percent, forecasters say.
And no matter what kind of resolution Congress and the White House reach on the fiscal cliff, higher taxes and lower government spending in the coming year are a safe bet.
"The debate in Washington now is what magnitude and who gets hit," said Wayne Lin, portfolio manager with Legg Mason Global Asset Allocation in New York.
Here are other observations for the 2013 outlook:
U.S. Stocks:
Several signs bode well for the stock market here.
"A lot of corporations are loaded with cash. They have not spent it. They have not hired new workers," said Jerry Scheinker, an executive vice president with Janney Montgomery Scott's Baltimore office. "The economic numbers are better. The housing numbers are better. Clients are finally more positive about investments, instead of keeping money in CDs and Treasury bills and bank accounts."
Chicago-based Morningstar tracks 1,500 stocks, mostly in North America. Under a formula that takes into account future cash flow and current stock prices, Morningstar concluded that the median stock going into 2013 was mildly undervalued. In other words, at least half the stocks are selling for less than they're worth.
Lin also leans toward U.S. stocks, rather than international equities. He noted that currency volatility puts investors at exchange-rate risk.
Some investment professionals recommend stock in companies that regularly increase their dividends, even though the tax rate on this income is set to go up.
"Over time, those are the best performers," Fehr said. "We don't think that track record changes because tax rates change."
Scheinker added that even if investors must pay more taxes on dividends, that's still better than earning meager interest on a certificate of deposit and paying taxes on that.
International Equities:
For the past couple of years, investors have been wise to stick with the U.S. stock market, which has shown more stability than markets elsewhere, said Rick Vollaro, chief investment strategist with Pinnacle Advisory Group in Columbia, Md. But for 2013, he suggests that investors set their sights overseas.
"We've already dipped a toe in Europe," he said. His firm put money in exchange-traded funds that follow a European stock market index and one that tracks the Italian stock market, which is down by more than 70 percent since 2007 recession.
Europe is still digging out of its fiscal problems, but if the economies there merely stabilize, that would be good news for investors, he said.
Vollaro said his firm also is raising its position in emerging markets, particularly China.
"China is attractive compared to the United States," agreed Brenda Wenning, principal of Wenning Investments in Newton, Mass. China's stock market isn't even close to hitting its highs, she said.
Wenning acknowledged that some of the economic data coming out of China is mixed, but added that the country appears to be growing, particularly in trade and manufacturing.
"China is in a position to emerge as the world's largest trading giant," she said.
This is one sector that could shine in 2013, experts say. Businesses have been sitting on piles of cash for a long time, waiting for clarity on spending cuts and tax increases.
Once that happens, businesses can plan their spending and likely will make technology updates that they had been putting off, experts say.
Many tech companies, including Apple, Microsoft and IBM, are holding a lot of cash, said Doug Ober, CEO of Adams Express Co. and Petroleum & Resources Corp. in Baltimore. He expects some will buy back their own shares, thus increasing the value of stock held by their investors.
This sector looks undervalued, largely because of what's been going on with natural gas, said Paul Larson, chief equity strategist for Morningstar. The marketplace has been flooded with a supply of natural gas, thanks to discoveries of new sources and developments in drilling methods. The price of natural gas has fallen by about two-thirds in the past four years, he said.
Larson predicts that natural gas prices will return to normal levels in the next couple of years. Indirectly, that would benefit Chicago-based Exelon, which acquired Baltimore's Constellation Energy in 2012, Larson said.
Natural gas is used to generate electricity. And as gas prices go up, the cost of electricity will go up for consumers, and that will mean higher Exelon earnings, Larson said.
Health Care:
As the number of older Americans continues to rise, so does their use of health-related products and services. This should benefit a wide range of health-related businesses, such as hospitals, pharmacy management companies and drug makers, particularly those making less-expensive generics, Ober said.
Health insurers also will benefit from having millions of new customers when the Affordable Care Act takes full effect in 2014, he said.
But not all health care-related companies stand to gain as the United States grapples with the rising cost of health care. Hospitals that have many patients on Medicaid and Medicare, the government programs that pay for health care for the poor and elderly, could see their payments reduced through federal spending cuts, Ober said.
BONDS: "It's going to be boring" in 2013, said Dick O'Brien, a bond expert and senior executive vice president at Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas brokerage in Hunt Valley, Md.
Federal Reserve policymakers plan to keep short-term interest rates low until employment and the economy pick up, so yields on bonds will remain low, he said.
"We will end (2013) very close to where we are presently," O'Brien predicted, "unfortunately for investors and savers."
O'Brien said some clients have been so disappointed in bond yields that he recommended high-grade common stocks that pay dividends, such as Microsoft, ExxonMobil and Johnson & Johnson.
"This is heresy for a bond person," O'Brien said. But Microsoft's 10-year bond in December had a yield of about 2.2 percent, while the dividend yield on its common stock was 3.38 percent, he said.
Investors often consider bonds safer than stocks, but some experts warn against forgetting the big risk to bonds – rising interest rates. When rates rise, the price of bonds falls.
Fehr of Edward Jones said long-term rates – those affecting 15- to 30-year bonds – might begin to tick upward in 2013. That would be bad news for the many investors who purchased long-term bonds seeking higher yields.
"It's nearly impossible to project when interest rates will move and where they will go," Fehr said. But at this stage, he added, rates are more likely to go up than down.
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In February, 2012, CAIR produced a 38-page legislative lobbying kit to help Muslims lobby against "American Laws for American Courts" legislation that is being considered in 22 states. It can be downloaded from the Internet at: http://www.cair.com/portals/0/pdf/CAIR-Securing-Religious-Liberty-Handbook.pdf
CAIR's recommended tactics and talking points reflect an effort to obscure the true nature of Sharia Law and, instead, to smear the proposed legislation as a violation of their religious freedom and a racist or bigoted attack on Muslims. CAIR also accuses sponsors of "American Laws for American Courts" legislation of tapping into public fear in order to score political points. Those opposed subordinating American laws in the United States to ancient tribal customs can learn a great deal about how to formulate effective countermeasures by reading the CAIR document, primarily through penetrating the fog and forcing the proponents of Sharia Law to discuss its actual content and implications.
CAIR'S MOTIVES: The title of CAIR's handbook, "Securing Religious Liberty," implies that somehow their First Amendment right to freedom of religion is being threatened by the American Laws for American Courts initiatives. The United States is one of the most religiously tolerant countries in the world, and people of all faiths are allowed to build houses of worship, proselytize openly, and perform their religious rites in private and public without government or public interference. Sharia Law, however, goes way beyond religious practices. It allows young women to be married without their consent; it allows men to marry up to four wives; it allows men to beat their unruly wives; and it denies women numerous legal rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and state laws. Most of Sharia Law, as a matter of fact, has nothing to do with religious worship or practices.
To understand CAIR's true motivation for opposing legislation that would reaffirm the supremacy of U.S. laws, one needs to understand how Islam developed into a world-wide religion. The prophet of Islam, Muhammad, began preaching his new cult in Mecca in 610 A.D. For twelve years he preached and tried to convert people to Islam, but gained only 50 to 100 followers. Finally, when he lost the patronage of his uncle Abu Talib, those opposing his religion threatened him so much that he took flight with his band of followers to Yathrib (Medina). With no resources or income, his followers began robbing caravans for their livelihood. Taking booty and raping captive women was not only sanctioned by the God of Islam, but the criminal activity attracted hundreds of new followers. During the next ten years, the number of Muslims grew from 100 to over 100,000, and their divinely sanctioned terror and pillage allowed them to expand their territory with impunity. In short, Islam was spread and maintained by the sword, and without violence or the threat of violence, Islam would probably die off in a generation. That is what CAIR is concerned about with the ALAC legislation.
It is not the religious aspects of Sharia Law which CAIR and other Islamic organizations need to defend, because those are for the most part righteous and humanitarian in their intent. After all, what civil society would pass laws against prayer, giving alms, fasting, or making a pilgrimage to Mecca? Rather, Sharia Law is critical to CAIR and other Islamic organizations for sustaining the religious following – including everything from ensuring submission of family members and the community through violence and the threat of violence to intimidating and preventing any criticism of Islam by non-Muslims through the same tactics – often called jihad. Here are the key elements Sharia Law uses to enforce compliance and respect, as spelled out in the classic manual of Islamic Sacred Law, Reliance of the Traveler:
- Obligation to Command the Right and Forbid the Wrong -- Muslims are obligated to discipline others. If censuring with harsh words, breaking things, or intimidation does not work, Muslims are obligated "to directly hit or kick the person, or use similar measures that do not involve weapons." (Section q5.8)
- Wife beating – "[A husband] may hit her, but not in a way that injures her, meaning he may not break bones, wound her, or cause blood to flow." (Section m10.12)
- Honor killing – "The following are not subject to retaliation: a father or mother for killing their offspring, or offspring's offspring. (Section o1.2(4))
- Killing an apostate – "There is no indemnity for killing an apostate. Or any expiation, since it is killing someone who deserves to die." (Section o8.4)
- Obligation to engage in Jihad – "Jihad is a communal obligation upon Muslims each year." (Section o9.1) The objective of jihad is: "The caliph makes war upon Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians until they become Muslim or else pay the non-Muslim poll tax." (Section o9.8) Those paying the poll tax are called dhimmis, and they are "protected" provided they do not marry a Muslim woman, lead a Muslim away from Islam, or mention anything offensive about Muhammad, Allah, or Islam. (Section o11.10)
Critical to CAIR's defense of Sharia Law is to obscure what Sharia Law entails. CAIR does not even use the expression "Sharia Law," and they insist that it merely "informs how Muslims pray, eat, and defines their obligations to the greater society." By calling it "a dynamic set of interpretations" they avoid all discussion of the specific provisions of Sharia Law. For U.S. legislators, this vagueness over what constitutes Sharia Law is like the proverbial "pig-in-a-poke" -- they can neither defend it nor oppose it without some idea of what it is. Furthermore, the implication of "interpretations" means that different jurists at different times could make different interpretations – because there is no system of judicial case law connected with Sharia Law. This makes those "interpretations" ad hoc, and therefore arbitrary. By contrast, secular laws in the U.S. are based on the Roman principle of nulla poena sine lege – no punishment without [clear] law.
In truth, Muslims are obsessed with replicating exactly what is commanded in the Quran and what Muhammad did or said 1,400 years ago. Historians wrote detailed biographies of Muhammad, and scholars collected thousands of hadith (actions and pronouncements of Muhammad). There are today five different schools of Islamic law which emerged in the 8th and 9th Centuries – Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki, Hanbali, Ja'fari. Except for the Ja'fari school which is Shi'a, the other schools are identical in 75% of their legal conclusions. The rulings were codified and documented by Ahmad al-Misri in the 14th Century into a Shafi'i manual for use by Muslims who were far from the Islamic centers. That manual is called 'Umdat al-Salik, or in English, Reliance of the Traveller. Not only does the English version of the manual have the approval of the world's center of Islamic jurisprudence – al-Azhar University in Cairo – but it is also endorsed by the International Institute of Islamic Thought (Herndon, Virginia) and the Fiqh Council of North America, which stated that Reliance of the Traveler inspires "the consciousness of the non-Arabic-speaking Muslim with a sound understanding of Sacred Law."
In view of the above, there can be no productive discussion of Sharia Law in the United States without reference to the written laws laid down within the pages of Reliance of the Traveler or some other reputable manual of Sharia Law. Not only do such manuals provide a measure of the complete scope of Sharia Law, but they also establish a benchmark for the validity of "dynamic interpretations" contained in fatwas (rulings by Islamic religious scholars) and other legal pronouncements by imams and mullahs. (More about that later.) You will find citations in Reliance of the Traveller throughout this document.
The Quran asserts the supremacy of Allah's laws over secular laws. "Is it pagan laws that they wish to be judged by? Who is a better judge than Allah for men whose faith is firm?" (Surah 5:50) This view, of course, contradicts the U.S. Constitution, which states in Article 6: "This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any state to the contrary notwithstanding."
The CAIR document states on page 19, "Sharia is compliant and consistent with the U.S. Constitution. Sharia mandates that Muslims respect the law of the land in which they live." This statement is a falsehood confirmed by Reliance of the Traveler, Section w43.5: "Because areas where Muslims reside and there is a remnant of Islam's rules – even if this is limited to marriages and what pertains to them, for example – are considered Muslim lands… In the light of which, it is clear that there is virtually no country on the face of the earth where a Muslim has an excuse to behave differently than he would in an Islamic country, whether in his commercial or other dealings." (Section w43.5)
The Islamic goal of subverting the U.S. legal system was documented in a religious ruling (or fatwah) distributed in 2008 by the Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America, which stated among other things: 1) Authority to legislate rests with Allah alone; 2) a Muslim judge must do everything in his power to enact laws that allow the Muslims to practice their Sharia; 3) Muslim judges are not permitted to take this job except to serve Islam and Muslims; 4) Muslims must judge by the rulings of Sharia as much as possible even if by ruse; 5) a Muslim on a jury could be successful in co-opting some of the other jury members to agree with him on the ruling, whereby the Islamic ruling gains a majority of the votes; 6) it is required for a Muslim to be hostile to courts which rule by man-made law and to dislike them; and 7) if you are wronged and demand your rights guaranteed by Sharia, you have no recourse but to go to man-made courts as long as you have hatred in your heart for the courts. (Source: http://www.translatingjihad.com/2012/03/assembly-of-muslim-jurists-of-america.html )
CAIR's legislative strategy is to portray themselves as merely correcting the misunderstanding caused by widespread "Islamophobic" fear that Sharia will ultimately prevail over American law. This is a red herring to trivialize the concern over Sharia Law. The question is not whether all American rulings will someday be based on Sharia Law, but whether any rulings would be based on it. The Fourteenth Amendment to the constitution guarantees all citizens equal protection of the laws. Unfortunately, hundreds of court decisions based on Sharia Law have already meted out unequal justice in the United States. Sharia Law dispenses justice unequally based on race (Sections m4.2(1), o25.3(e)), gender (Sections o4.9, L6.7, o24.7(2)), religion (Sections m6.7, o4.9), economic status (Sections m4.2(3), o24.3(3)), and even chastity (Section m3.13(1). Furthermore, Sharia Law sanctions marital rape (Section m5.1), polygamy for men but not women (Section m6.10), taleq divorce (by saying "I divorce you" three times) for men but not for women (Section n2.1), male custody of children regardless of his economic or moral qualifications (Section m13.4), and honor killing of children and grandchildren (Section o1.2(4)). Eighty percent of Quranic rulings are devoted to regulating marital relations and the conduct of women. (Source, Jan Goodwin, "Price of Honor: Muslim Women Lift the Veil of Silence on the Islamic World.")
CAIR's lobbying handbook makes much of the use of the "Lemon Test" to suggest that American Laws for American Courts legislation would be unconstitutional. This test evolved from a Supreme Court case in 1971, Lemon vs. Kurtzman, where Rhode Island and Pennsylvania had programs to supplement the salaries of teachers in religiously based, private schools who were teaching secular subjects. The test had three parts: 1) The statute must have a secular legislative purpose, 2) The principal or primary effect must neither advance nor inhibit religion, and 3) the statue must not foster an excessive government entanglement in religion. Clearly, the public financial support of religiously based schools involved problems with all three tests, but in other cases the "Lemon Test" has been ruled inapplicable.
The most prudent way to pass the "Lemon Test" with regard to legislating a mandate of American laws for American courts statutes is to avoid any mention of religion. The driving motivation behind the legislation should be that selective use of foreign laws in contradiction with U.S. laws does not ensure the equal protection guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment. This is evident by looking at the specific provisions of Sharia Law, which, of course, CAIR wants to obfuscate. In numerous Sharia court cases in the U.S. which were overturned on appeal, the appellate judges ruled that the foreign Sharia laws were in conflict with state laws or that they denied the appellant due process of law. The U.S. appeal process does not adequately protect victims of Sharia Law, however, because it is rarely used and for a Muslim to challenge a Sharia ruling would be an act of apostasy, punishable by death. (See Section o8.7(14).)
The First Amendment states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." This does not mean that the U.S. government cannot take an interest in aspects of a religion are repugnant to state and federal laws. Statehood for Utah was delayed 47 years until the Utah territorial government statutes that reflected Mormon ideology permitting polygamy and slavery were abolished. The racial discrimination against African-Americans by the Mormon Church was also abandoned in 1978 because it violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 1990, the Supreme Court ruled that the government may prosecute those who use illegal drugs as part of religious rituals. It said such prosecutions were not a violation of the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom. So the "free exercise" of religion does not extend to acts and determinations that violate other U.S. statues. Otherwise, the First Amendment would allow licentious and criminal behavior under the guise of religion.
The CAIR document also quotes from a Fiqh Council fatwa which supposedly proves that Muslims reject terrorism. A fatwa is a formal religious opinion issued by a recognized religious authority. In recent years, fatwas have been instruments of political Islam. "Sheikh" Osama bin Laden issued a fatwa in 1989, "Declaration of War against the Americans Occupying the Land of the Two Holy Places (i.e., stationing troops Saudi Arabia during the First Iraqi War)." The fatwa was 26 pages long, and it contained 18 citations from the Quran and numerous other citations from reliable hadith. This fatwa provided the religious justification for the attacks on New York and Washington, D.C., on September 11, 2001. More recently, the Fiqh Council of North American issued a fatwa against terrorism. (http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/fiqh_council_of_north_america_issues_fatwa_against_terrorism/) This fatwa was merely two pages long and contained the deceptive use of Surah 5:32 to imply that Islam condemns killing while the verse actually applies to Jews only. As if to add credence to their flimsy fatwa denying terrorism, the fatwa listed the 18 members of the Fiqh Council and 145 Islamic organizations, mosques, and imams who presumably endorsed the fatwa. Of course, the Fiqh Council omitted a much more relevant citation from the Quran – Surah 8:60 – "Muster against [the unbelievers] all the men and cavalry at your command, so that you may strike terror into the enemy of Allah and your enemy." They also overlooked Muhammad's own words from a reliable hadith, "I have been made victorious with terror, and while I was sleeping, the keys to the treasures of the world were brought to me and put into my hand." (Bukhari, Vol. 4, Number 220). Notably, many of the organizations endorsing the Fiqh Council fatwa are affiliates of the Muslim Brotherhood, whose motto includes the statement, "Jihad is our way. Dying in the way of Allah is our highest hope." The relevance of a particular fatwa is not based on the number of signers, but rather its consistency with relevant Islamic sacred texts.
Rather than address the specific provisions and implications of Sharia Law, CAIR lists a number of tactics under "What Worked" revealing that their Sharia campaigns is a game of deception and intimidation rather than a discussion of what is right for America.
- Personally defame David Yerushalmi, the attorney for the American Freedom Law Center who has been working with state legislatures on the drafting of statutes to make the use of foreign laws illegal.
- Tie ALAC legislation to an "anti-Muslim hate group such as Act! For America."
- Mobilize large numbers of partners from business, interfaith, and progressives.
- Work behind the scenes because any public debate will energize the Islamophobia movement.
- Dig up dirt about groups supporting American laws for American courts.
Supporters of American laws for American courts legislation must keep the debate focused on the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and on the non-religious provisions of the well-documented Sharia Laws. The advocates for Sharia Law must not be allowed to be vague or dismissive about the many clear injustices reflected in Sharia Law. Above all, the discussion of Sharia Law must be rooted in facts and data, and not deception and victimhood. Nobody is interfering with Muslims' freedom of religion, but we cannot allow that freedom to erode the provisions of the Constitution or deny basic civil rights to our Muslim and non-Muslim citizens.


text:
Please note, GPX Data is not refundable! Please examine the sample data on the device of your choice before purchasing GPX data packages. More information about GPX Data files can be found here.
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This section includes many amazing sites including Devils Tower, Mt. Rushmore, the Badlands, plus traversing the hilly Black Hills. The Needles Alternate is a spectacular mountain highway, and consists of stiff climbs and descents, narrow tunnels, highway loops and a potential conga-line of cars creeping along to take in the amazing views. The Sage Creek Alternate offers a remote backdoor to Badlands National Park along unpaved Sage Creek Rd. Midland, South Dakota, is in an area of mixed-grass prairie.
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text:
I'm David Wright
I'll be your captain
My club is the Mets
They're not a nightmare I'm trapped in
My best's what I'll give
As I've always been doing
From the day I arrived
And met Joe McEwing
This is a great honor
No, I don't need a "C"
But a little help in the outfield?
Well, that's not up to me
My face is familiar
From my time in New York
Please don't call me "our Jeter"
You sound like a dork
I once Captained America
The world was my stage
Though that was before
I strained my rib cage
The injury's fine
It's no big concern
Yet watching from the bench
Is a tough task to learn
When Terry can't use me
I sit and I stew
Then I look at our lineup
And I sometimes ask, "Who?"
Ike's on first
I Don't Know's the rest
Spring games don't count
Which is all for the best
Taken from the top
Byrd's leading off
A promising start!
(Cough cough cough)
Tejada at short
Don't mind him a bit
As long as he remembers
That he knows how to hit
Then we've got Davis
Who's healthy and hale
If he's hurt again
This season's a fail
Our power today
Comes from cleanup man Lutz
Plus he's handling my sack
Let's hope he's no klutz
Duda bats fifth
And then dons a glove
When fly balls are aimed there
Seek help from Above
Behind the plate
Crouches John Buck
He's got loads of experience
If not timing or luck
Fleet of foot
And sure of hand
Meet Matt den Dekker
As I'm sure you had planned
Playing second base:
Omar Quintanilla
Making a fraction, no doubt,
Of what Fred's paying Bonilla
Hefner's the pitcher
He's still standing straight
Between Johan and Marcum
That alone's pretty great
Our rotation's not bad
It can go fairly deep
But listening to Niese
Tends to hasten team sleep
There's much more to the Mets
We're on our way up
I'll bet I get to hoist a trophy
Before Jordany remembers his cup
I dig all my teammates
I'm happy they're here
Yet why do I suspect
Another long year?


text:
- Detailed description
- Additional information
Boutis : the Nobility of White by Kumiko Nakayama
Kumiko is a Japanese artist, French by adoption, who is utterly passionate about Boutis, which she discovered over twenty years ago. Carrying on an ancestral tradition, she imparts all its nobility and beauty to this art of white in this book where some fi fteen projects are described.
120 pages / Book in English AND French / Ref.: KN
15 projects
Meet Kumiko Nakayama at the 2018 "Pour l'Amour du Fil" show in Nantes, France:
Additional information
Weight | 1 kg |


text:
Michigan State University has been awarded $1 million from a joint U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Agriculture program to develop hardier switchgrass, a plant native to North America that holds high potential as a biofuel source.
If switchgrass could better endure northern United States' winters, the plant could be an even better source for clean energy. To that end, Robin Buell, MSU plant biologist, will work to identify the genetic factors that regulate cold hardiness in switchgrass.
"This project will explore the genetic basis for cold tolerance that will permit the breeding of improved switchgrass cultivars that can yield higher biomass in northern climates," said Buell, also an MSU AgBioResearch scientist. "It's part of an ongoing collaboration with scientists in the USDA Agricultural Research Service to explore diversity in native switchgrass as a way to improve its yield and quality as a biofuel feedstock."
One of the proposed methods to increase the biomass of switchgrass is to grow lowland varieties in northern latitudes, where they flower later in the season. Lowland switchgrass is not adapted to the colder conditions of a northern climate, however, and merely a small percentage of the plants survive. It is these hardy survivors that are the subject of Buell's research.
"Dr. Buell's investment in this collaborative project will identify important genetic elements in switchgrass that control survival over the winter and can be used to breed better adapted cultivars to meet biomass production needs," said Richard Triemer, chairperson of the plant biology department.
By studying switchgrass' genetic composition, Buell hopes to identify alternative forms of the same gene that is responsible for cold hardiness. These could then be applied in breeding programs for switchgrass that can thrive in northern climates.
The research is an extension of Buell's involvement in the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, a collaborative enterprise between MSU, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the U.S. Department of Energy that works to meet the nation's need for a comprehensive suite of clean energy technologies.


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The multidisciplinary team comprising the Leucégène research group, a major project headed by Dr. Guy Sauvageau of the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) at the Université de Montréal and Dr. Josée Hébert of Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital (MRH), has just published a series of important observations on the genetic and molecular characteristics of two leukemia subtypes in the prestigious journal Nature Genetics. The results of the study also suggest the possibility of a new combinatorial therapeutic approach for certain leukemias.
The goal of the Leucégène project is to develop new tools for a more detailed classification of patients suffering from acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a view to improving outcomes and more effectively guiding the choice of available treatment options. AML is a highly aggressive blood cancer that kills close to 1,000 people a year in Canada. Because this is a very complex cancer, current prognostic tests are imprecise in assessing risks and treatment choices in most patients.
This study constitutes convincing validation of the chemogenomic approach developed by IRIC researchers and their colleagues.


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text:
Bruno Mars Is Smoking In 'Flaunt' Magazine
Hope you're not tired of looking at Bruno Mars' beautiful face (and really, how could you be?), because the pop star isn't just InStyle's "Man Of Style", he's also on the cover of Flaunt magazine. The black and white pictorial, photographed by Hunter & Gatti, portrays the Unorthodox Jukebox crooner like a total boss, smoking cigarettes, making it rain, setting money on fire and even chillin' with a beautiful babe hanging around his neck. In the article, Bruno is described as the hypothetical offspring of James Brown and Prince. We wonder what the late Father Of Soul and The Purple One would have to say about that.
Bruno's cover issue of Flaunt is on sale now. Will you be picking up a copy?


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"Institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution." ~ Clay Shirky
You know the slavery Kool-Aid is working well when those who are oppressed petition their oppressors for more of that which helps keep them oppressed.
For instance, public education is a tool that was designed–specifically and directly–as a means of controlling the hoi polloi.  The educational system of compulsory public education championed by Horace Mann, chock-full of multiple-choice testing perfected by Frederick J. Kelly, feeding into statistical models based upon the work of (eugenicist) Sir Francis Galton, was (and is) designed to fulfill the need for employees who are primed and ready to inhabit factories where efficiency can be measured in ways developed by Frederick Winslow Taylor. (The fact that so few of such factories currently exist in America should also be telling, but that's a different discussion.) Mann believed "universal public education was the best way to turn the nation's unruly children into disciplined, judicious republican citizens." The whole thing was designed to produce a seething throng of people ready to take orders, stand in line, ask few questions, and install bumpers all day–accepting the interminable boredom of such a life–while their over-lords made a ton of money.  Free and compulsory public education was never intended to create inquisitive, risk-taking, leaders. Or entrepreneurs and/or business owners.  Or frankly, owners of anything! Yet, people clamor that "education is a right" and "we need more funding for our schools" despite the inescapable fact that these same crap holes are doing their best at producing children incapable of independent thought and unable to read a book (or a blueprint), solve a simple mathematics problem, or devise a new strategy.  It's damned sad, really.
A similar conclusion can be drawn regarding government job creation. Throughout the current election season, you'll hear people clamoring that Obama will do all he can to create jobs while Romney won't, or some such simplistic foolishness. Any president who claims to create jobs, uses tax dollars and government debt to pay people wages that are too high, for work that otherwise likely would not be done. In other words, the money is wasted on boondoggles. This action has at least two negative side-effects.  One, it takes money from those who produce it and gives it to someone else. (That's the taxation piece.) That might sound good to the recipient unless he realizes that he is only getting the proverbial fish that feeds him for a day, if that long. Secondly, this stolen–they call it stimulus nowadays–money results in those at the top having more real income than the supposed beneficiaries of those government-created jobs. (That's the inflation piece.) The people who think they benefit from the government-created-jobs are worse off in the long term, despite all appearances to the contrary in the short term. Ludwig von Mises spoke of this phenomenon in, "On Current Monetary Problems" with:
The advocates of annual increases in the quantity of money never mention the fact that for all those who do not get a share of the newly created additional quantity of money, the government's action means a drop in their purchasing power which forces them to restrict their consumption. It is ignorance of this fundamental fact that induces various authors of economic books and articles to suggest a yearly increase of money without realizing that such a measure necessarily brings about an undesirable impoverishment of a great part, even the majority, of the population.
An injection of money into the economy by the government generally results in a transfer of wealth towards the top—real income transferred from those who can least afford it to those who already have plenty. (I already noted some time ago that this phenomenon seemed to get rolling in 1980.  The chart below is instructive.) One might even suppose this state-facilitated income transfer is the reason why statists in power so strongly support government control of the money supply, but that's another discussion. Bottom Line:  Those who clamor for a president who cares about them get the same treatment and results as they would from some random bastard who openly scorned them. (No offense to the random bastard you support!)
And yet, here we are at election time, and the clarion calls continue to go up, from both sides of the ostensible aisle.
Cross-Posted at LRCBlog.


text: I have a table with more than 60mio records, where every month I have to add about 2-4 milions. It's not insert only table, I need to read from it and update recently added rows (status changes, etc.). I have spotted some of my SELECT queries begun to ommit indexes because of number of rows to be searched using criterias. Therefore I want to archive records older than 6 months. Is there any good way to do this? Only thing I got in mind is manual copying data to archive db and remove at master. Perhaps there are some good practices or mechanisms to do it?


text:
It's happened to you, no doubt.
You are somewhere public, trying to complete a simple task. Perhaps you are eating in a Dennys. Perhaps you are buying something at Costco. Perhaps you are just driving along on the highway. Then it happens:
Some stupid moron causes a problem. They put their trivial life ahead of your own existence, and as a result they move, however briefly, from the position of 'faceless drone' to 'obstacle'.
The waiter messes up your order. You can't get a refill of coffee because they're "too busy", despite the fact that the restaurant is empty. Some jerk cuts you off with their cart and there's no way around them now. That asshole who is coming up on your tail, flashing his brights, decides to cut around you on the right at about 90 mph just as you start signaling to get out of his way, and he honks wildly as though you're the one endangering everyone on the road.
And you think to yourself: This person must die.
The Scorched Earth Party is here to tell you: Yeah. Go for it.
Here at the Scorched Earth Party, we are dedicated to a few simple principles:
True happiness will never be yours unless you rise up with us. Join the 10% with the lead pipes. Help save the world through random, messy violence, and then wallow in carnal pleasure among the ruins.
Still with us? Good, little worm. It is good to see the light of fascination in your once-dull eyes. You've begun to recognize the truth in what we say. You want to understand your part in all this. Or perhaps you aren't convinced yet, but you accept that our viewpoint is a refreshing change from the drooly, witless mumblings so typical of the current power structures of the world.
The following links should prove enlightening.
Page maintained by firstname.lastname@example.com


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The First National Brand of Marijuana Coming Soon from Seattle
Washington state businessmen who say they're trying to create the first national brand of marijuana received some heartfelt support Thursday from the former president of Mexico, Vicente Fox.
Fox appeared at a news conference in Seattle, where he recounted how the war on drugs has ravaged his country and praised the states of Washington and Colorado for voting to legalize the recreational use of marijuana last fall.
At the news conference, former Microsoft manager Jamen Shively discussed his plans to launch a new marijuana brand named for his great-great grandfather, Diego Pellicer. He says his company is joining forces with a Washington state chain of medical marijuana dispensaries run by John Davis, of the Northwest Patient Resource Center, as well as dispensaries in Colorado and California.
Shively's planned investment will total $100 million over three years, according to The Stranger, a Seattle-based publication.
"This historic step today is to be observed and evaluated closely by all of us, because it is a game changer," Fox said. "I applaud this group that has the courage to move ahead. They have the vision, they are clear where they're going, and I'm sure they're going to get there."
Fox, a former Coca-Cola executive who was Mexico's president from 2000-06, specified that he's not involved in the venture. He appeared at Shively's invitation. The two first met 13 years ago, when a company Shively formally ran was opening a computer center in Sinaloa and Fox appeared at the inauguration, Shively said.
Shively described grand visions for his pot brand – hundreds of millions of dollars in investments, tens of millions of customers, more than 1,000 jobs just at Diego Pellicer's Seattle headquarters.
"Yes, we are Big Marijuana," he announced.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission last March, the company wrote that it had raised $125,000 of an anticipated $625,000.
Shively suggested those numbers were outdated, but did not provide different figures.
Washington and Colorado expect to begin allowing marijuana sales to adults over 21 at state-licensed stores beginning next year, but marijuana remains illegal under federal law, and the Justice Department has repeatedly said it can continue to prosecute large-scale, privately owned marijuana operations even when they comply with state law.
It isn't clear how Shively's plans for a national marijuana brand might be accomplished without running afoul of federal laws regarding the distribution of an illegal substance or conspiracy to distribute an illegal substance. He and Davis said no money from their business will travel interstate, nor will the marijuana itself, but neither of those factors would necessarily shield them from arrest.
Shively insisted that his deals with the dispensaries are structured in such a way as to minimize any risk of federal prosecution, but neither he nor Davis would explain how. Shively said he had acquired certain "rights" related to the dispensaries and made the plan sound like a marketing agreement by which the stores, beginning next month, would be re-branded as Diego Pellicer.
"Neither Diego Pellicer nor our investors are exposed to any significant risk, in terms of criminal risk," Shively said. "In terms of criminal risk, that is vastly mitigated… We're making strategic investments, but we're making them in such a way that they are not in violation of either federal or state law."
Asked how his plan didn't constitute a federal conspiracy to distribute marijuana, Shively described his operation as "a conspiracy to obey the law."
His securities lawyer, Mike Moyer of the prominent Seattle firm of Dorsey and Whitney LLC, declined to elaborate.
Fox urged the reporters present to maintain a focus on the important issues at hand: the failure of the drug war, the thousands of lives lost and the better alternative offered by legalization. He noted he'd rather be sitting at a table next to Shively than the notorious cartel leader Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.
"This is a much better option, no doubt," he said.


text:
Skyfall is getting great reviews. Some people, prone to hyperbole, are even proclaiming that Skyfall is so great, it qualifies as the best Bond ever. They'll be fighting over that forever. Let's just agree then that Skyfall is better than the disappointing Quantum Of Solace and returns to the standard of Casino Royale which (come on, can we not fight about this one?) was awesome.
Here are Daniel Craig, Berenice Marlohe, and director Sam Mendes in Berlin today promoting the film. Skyfall has already opened in several overseas markets with a very strong showing -- approaching $100 million on the strength of a record-breaking UK box office. Right now they're projecting that Skyfall will total over $200 million in North America overall. So, obviously, they're already working on Bonds 24 and 25.


text:
The Oregon Ducks Were Quacken and Attacken at the Fiesta Bowl in the Dominating Win Over the Wildcats
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) – DeAnthony Thomas returned the opening kickoff 94 yards for the first of his two touchdowns, Marcus Mariota accounted for three scores, and No. 5 Oregon raced past No. 7 Kansas State 35-17 at the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday night. Oregon (12-1) jumped out to a 15-0 lead behind Thomas' opening return and 23-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter. Kansas State (11-2) tried to bull its way behind Heisman Trophy finalist Collin Klein, only to get overwhelmed by the speedy Ducks, who got some help with an obscure 1-point safety on a blocked extra-point kick. Mariota added a 24-yard touchdown pass to Kenjon Barner in the second quarter and ran for a 2-yard score in the third to give Oregon its second straight BCS bowl win after beating Wisconsin in last year's Rose Bowl. Klein threw two interceptions and had 30 yards rushing on 13 carries.


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Whole Wheat Roasted Red Pepper + Fontina Pizza with Balsamic Glaze.
I know. I hate when people say that too.
But seriously? You look like you need it.
No offense or anything. It's just that it's the end of the first week of the new year. Like… stress city. You totally deserve pizza.
This pie is loaded with caramelized shallots (!), roasted red peppers (double !), tons of crispy bacon (!!!!!) and lots of cheeeeeeese. And my undying love, of course. Oh… and hunger.
I'm pretty sure my entire soul melted away with the fontina and parmesan as I took a bite. HO.LY.FLA.VOR.
I mean, I used to think that fontina was really good, and that bacon was incredible, and that roasted red peppers were super. But then… then I added a balsamic reduction on top and I'm pretty sure I died. Like I'm dead right now. I'm talking to you from the heavens. I hope. But maybe not. I have this little problem called gluttony… sooooo there's that.
Whole Wheat Roasted Red Pepper + Fontina Pizza with Balsamic Glaze
makes one pizza
dough: (my go-to recipe)
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast
3/4 cup warm water
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
In the bowl of your electric mixer with an attached dough hook, combine warm water, yeast, honey and oil and mix with a spoon. Let sit for 10-15 minutes until foamy, then add in flour and salt. Mix on low speed until just combined, then turn to medium speed to knead the dough for 5-6 minutes. If it seems to sticky, add a bit more flour 1 tablespoon at a time.
Brush a separate bowl with olive oil, add dough, turning once, then set in a warm place to rise for 1 1/2-2 hours. Cover with a damp towel.
2 slices thick-cut bacon
2 shallots, thinly sliced
2 roasted red peppers, cut into strips
1 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
6 ounces freshly grated fontina cheese
2 ounces freshly grated romano cheese + more for topping if desired
1 1/2 cups balsamic vinegar
Right before dough is almost finished rising, heat a skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until crispy and fat is rendered. Remove with a slotted spoon, then add shallots and stir to coat. Cook for about 10 minutes over low heat, or until shallots begin to caramelize. Set aside. While shallots are cooking, make sure that red peppers are patted dry (if from a jar). If you'd like to make your own roasted red peppers, see here.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Once pizza dough is ready to go, roll/press into desired shape and brush the surface with olive oil and top with minced garlic. Sprinkle on 4 ounces of fontina cheese, then top with shallots, red peppers, and bacon. Sprinkle remaining fontina and romano evenly on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly.
While pizza is baking, heat vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Allow to come to a boil, then let simmer and cook for about 15-20 minutes until reduced to about 1/3-1/2 cup. Set aside to cool for at least 10 minutes to thicken. When pizza is finished baking, drizzle glaze on top and serve.
The only thing that could be better here is if that glaze was chocolate syrup. I know you thought so too.


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Marshall SL-5
This is my review of the Marshall SL-5 amplifier, which was designed with and approved by Slash. A great amplifier, very versatile and probably one of the best practise amps available with tubes and attenuation feature. Continue reading
Categories: Guitar Gear
Tags: 1 watt, 5 watt, AFD-100, amplifier, Apatite for Destruction, Celestion, distortion, EL34, Gibson, Guns'n'Roses, Les Paul, Marshall, Reverb, SL-5, Slash, tube
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