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Toiling with Tools
by Richard Rouse III
Since 1994, when I started working professionally in game development, a world of change has come about in the tools developers use to create games. The main impetus behind this change has been the transition of game engines from 2D to 3D. As the 3D engines in modern games have become orders of magnitude more complex than their 2D brethren of five years ago, so too have game development tools become major development undertakings. These days, many game development teams find that they have to allocate one programmer primarily to tools creation, if not multiple personnel in the early stages of a project. And when it comes to game-world design the quality of the tools a game designer has at their disposal will be directly proportional to the quality of levels they are able to create. Generally speaking, game creation tools are not so extensive and all encompassing and powerful that a team can discard their copies of 3D Studio Max or Softimage. When developing the tools, the team is face with a quandary. Practically speaking, no amount of time spent working on a modeling tool is going to make it as nice and feature rich as an off-the-shelf package like 3D Studio Max. But then at the same time, there are many advantages to working with a tool which is tailored not to the creation of 3D art in general but to game levels in particular. Specifically in a level editor, the ability to see the game-world the designer is creating using the actual 3D technology that will render it in the game (the game's own rendering engine instead of an art package's) while working on the level results in greatly simplified world creation. And in the final analysis simplified world creation leads to better levels in the game, as designers have more time to make their levels fun instead of just making them work. Furthermore, being able to quickly jump into the game and test out sections of a level while editing it, a function many of the best level editors include, has a significant payoff in terms of well-balanced gameplay. Each of the four projects I've been involved with has used an established technology and tool-set that existed before I started working with them. In some cases the technology was licensed, in others the company I started working with had developed the technology prior to my arrival. So I've never gotten the chance to design my idea of the perfect level-editor. But one might ask would I have known what the perfect editor was? Certainly when I started working in gaming I had no idea what an editor should do to make for the most pleasant level design experience possible. Even now, having used four different level editors, I'm still not sure I could make the perfect tool set. But I have a better idea, and looking back on the four projects I can get a sense of what each tool did right as well as where each was lacking. 2D Beginnings: Odyssey My first project was Odyssey - The Legend of Nemesis, a 2D role playing game with a classic Ultima style view of the world. For those who might not know what "Ultima style" is, in that classic computer role playing game the player sees the world from a bird's eye, top-down view. Not even three-quarter or isometric, but strictly top down. The technological origins of Odyssey lay with another game, Minotaur: The Labyrinths of Crete, one of the first published games from a very young company called Bungie Software. They were hoping to turn Minotaur (which had been a network-only dungeon battle game) into a full blown RPG. But when other, more promising opportunities presented themselves the company put the RPG on the back-burner. I happened along and was eager to finish the game for them. At this point the level-editor had already been created. Though I made some additions to it as I worked on the project, these were minor. Before writing this article, I looked at the Odyssey editor, called Zoner, and was astonished how simple it was. After years of working with 3D level editors, I was amazed at how easy it was to create a top-down, 2D level. The world of Odyssey is made up of a set of tiling textures on a grid, with special transition textures between different types of terrain, such as from grass to sand, or from sand to water. The editor is smart enough to automatically transition between these different types of terrain, so making levels is as easy as painting with some grass, then clicking and dragging with the mountain tool. The game automatically knows which type of materials the player can walk over and at what speed: full speed on grass and slow over mountains, with water being impassable. So there's no need for the level-designer using the Zoner tool to specify where the player can and cannot go: it's already set up by the terrain they lay down. The game also features "overlays" which can be placed on the landscape. Items such as chairs, trunks, or bushes can be plopped down over the terrain to spice up the player's environment. Though 2D games are far less prevalent than they were when Odyssey was in development, many games still use 2D worlds, such as the recent hit strategy game Starcraft. (The colossal commercial success of which suggests that maybe gamers don't care that much if a game is 3D or not. But that's a topic for another day.) And setting up the architecture for these levels is still really easy compared to creating a 3D environment. That's not to say that making a level that's going to be fun, well balanced, and appropriately challenging is trivial, merely that the level designer has to worry a lot less about the level's physical architecture. First Step into 3D: Damage Incorporated Damage Incorporated was my first 3D project, and made use of the Marathon technology, also licensed from Bungie, which at that point had been used in their games Marathon and Marathon 2, and would later be used in Marathon Infinity and a number of other licensed games. At the time I remember being blown away by how impressive the editor was. Called Vulcan, the editor was good enough to be released in a commercial incarnation called Forge along with Marathon Infinity. (I remember talking to the programmer who was responsible for getting Vulcan "good enough" to sell to the public, and he commented on how much of the code had to be rewritten to get the bugs out. What was supposed to be a simple undertaking had sucked up months of time. One thing about proprietary tools in the gaming industry is that they're often riddled with bugs, and until the level designers learn to work around the crash-bugs their work will be severely hindered. Of course bugs that can't be worked around end up getting fixed. But why fix a particular problem if all the designers can just agree not to do whatever it is that causes the crash? The public, however, expects better quality software than professional game designers. Which is maybe backwards, if you think about it.) Levels in the Marathon engine consisted of a collection of lines making up convex polygons. Each polygon has a floor and a ceiling height. Players could then move between polygons that shared a line and whose floor and ceiling heights lined up appropriately. Any structure that appeared to be solid in the game-world, such as a girder in the middle of a room, actually consisted of space where there wasn't a polygon, so I always thought of designing a level as working with "negative space" to create structures. The technology was limited in that one couldn't have a structure such as a bridge, where a player could go both under and over it. All of the objects one would see in the world that weren't made up of these polygons were sprites. These included weapons, enemies, pieces of furniture, and other decorative objects. In order to not look funny as the player walked around them, these sprite objects had to be cylindrical. This resulted in lots of light bulbs sticking out of the ceiling, trash cans, and barstools. Objects that moved, such as the enemies the player battled, could be drawn from multiple viewpoints, and the engine would then switch to whichever viewpoint best accommodated the angle the player was looking at them from. The Marathon engine is quite similar to the technology used by the mega-hit game Doom and its sequels. The Vulcan editor provided nice tools for creating and manipulating lines and "filling" them to become polygons, all from a top-down view. The top-down view couldn't be rotated in any way (so as to provide a side-view, for instance). Since there was the potential for polygons at one elevation on top of others at different elevations in the top-down view, Vulcan allowed the user to show only the polygons within a given height range. In the top-down view one could also see the placement of all the aforementioned sprite-objects: scenery, monsters, or items. The best aspect of the Vulcan editor was its ability to let the designer jump right into the level and navigate it as they would in the game. Though the user couldn't battle the monsters or fire their weaponry from this "View Mode," they could run around the levels as they would in the game, using the same physics the player would experience during gameplay. This allowed the designer to test out jumps and to really get a feel for how the level would play. From this 3D view the user was also able to place textures from a texture-palette. As with Odyssey, the textures were still square, tiling textures, and could be applied to walls and ceilings, and then dragged around with the mouse so the designer could line them up exactly as they wanted. The one major drawback here was that one couldn't manipulate the 2D top-down view of the level while in the 3D view, merely because the editor was never designed to handle that functionality. Outdoor Environments: Centipede 3D When I came on board at Leaping Lizard Software to work on Centipede 3D, the rendering technology and editor were largely completed, and not much changed technology-wise during my tenure on the project. The technology had been used in a previous game called Raider and was thereby called the Raider engine, with the editor remaining unnamed and just called "the editor." The Raider technology had many differences from my prior experience with the Marathon engine, as Raider and Centipede were set in outdoor environments, while Marathon and Damage Incorporated were what is commonly referred to as "corridor" games, since most of the gameplay takes place in small, confined, interior locations. The Raider technology was also fully 3D, allowing for all of the ambient objects and enemies one found in the game to be arbitrary 3D Studio Max created models. As a result of the outdoor nature of the technology, creating the geometry found in the levels in Centipede 3D was a wholly different experience from Damage Incorporated. The geometry for all of the levels in Centipede were made by 32 x 32, 256 shade grayscale height-maps. Each pixel on these height-maps represented a vertex on the landscape, which was made entirely of triangles. If one had four pixels in a square on the height-map, all at the same height one would see a square, flat plateau in the game. If two adjacent heights differed, one would see a slope between them. This technology allowed for a continuous flowing terrain. This terrain was then enhanced by the objects the artists would create in 3D Studio Max and which could then be imported into the game. Bridges, plants, houses, and all manner of architectural objects were incorporated into the game-world in this way. The engine and editor also supported limited "instancing" of these objects, which allowed them to be scaled and rotated in various ways. This meant that, though there might be only one flower model being used in the level, the player would perceive a wide variety of different flowers. A very nice feature of the Raider editor allowed the user to see a top-down view of the level they were editing on their main monitor, while they could see a 3D view of the level on their second, 3D-accelerated video card powered monitor. One could then make changes in the 2D view and instantly see them reflected in the 3D world. Another plus was being able to hit the "Go" button and instantly be playing the game from the 3D view. Since the monsters and other active objects in the world moved around while one was playing, the state of the level would change so that you couldn't save it any more, since the monsters and other objects would no longer be in their proper starting locations. If the designer wanted to make changes after having clicked "Go," they would have to quit the editor and rerun it, reloading the level in the process. Fortunately this was a fairly quick process, and didn't prove to be unduly frustrating. An interesting note is that when the Centipede 3D project was started, the height-maps used by the landscape were not actually editable in the editor. They were created in Photoshop, and then the designer could run the editor to see how the height-map looked in the game. Midway through the project the functionality to edit the height-maps was added to the editor, and the maps began looking better almost immediately. One can really tell the difference between the early, flat, and somewhat more blocky levels, and the smoothly undulating terrain of the later levels, which were made after designers could easily massage the terrain in the editor. Here is a case where, though a designer could technically make a level without the ability to edit the height-map in the editor, the absence of this feature had the direct result of making the levels worse. Since a designer could still make levels without this feature, this removed the urgency of having the feature added to the editor, which explains why it was so long before it was finally implemented. The Raider engine is the only system I've worked with that did not involve tiling texture sets. Instead, a Raider engine level used a giant texture map which is stretched over the entire terrain. This has the tremendous benefit of allowing for any sort of customizing of the landscape texture that the designer had in mind, including unique winding paths and completely non-repeating textures. The disadvantage is that, due to a limited amount of memory, Raider engine levels can't be very big before the texture gets stretched, blurry, and unattractive. As a result, all of the levels in Centipede 3D were on a 32x32 height grid, though the engine could support any power-of-two square (64x64, 128x128, and so on). This texture map was not created in the editor however. Designers and artists had to work on these outside of the editor in Photoshop, and then run the editor to see if they had lined up the texture to the terrain properly. They could then go back to Photoshop to make adjustments as necessary. Techniques were developed by the team for simplifying this process, and surely implementing a texture editing system with anywhere near the robustness of Photoshop would be a daunting task and perhaps even a foolhardy undertaking. A Very Sophisticated Tool-Set: The Riot Engine In June of this year I started working at Surreal Software. Surreal completed their first game, the 3D dragon-riding action-adventure Drakan in August. The technology that game uses is titled the Riot engine, which includes the Riot level editor, and the Riot modeler. I was hired as a designer on their next original project, which is still a secret and won't be done for at least a year, so I can't discuss it specifically. I can say that my project will use a new revision of the Riot engine, including many added features and improved functionality. In the time I've been at Surreal I've become quite familiar with the technology and its editor, even though I haven't yet finished a game using the tools. The Riot engine is, like the Raider technology, an outdoor engine, designed to create rolling terrains. The concept of a height-map and its correlation to the terrain one sees in the game is actually quite similar to that found in the Raider engine, but the Riot engine takes it one step farther. In a Riot engine level, you can have as many layers of arbitrary dimensions as you would like, and as a result the levels don't have to be square. Furthermore, multiple layers allows for ceilings as well as floors, allowing for the creation of caves and other enclosed spaces. By stacking layers on top of each other vertically, designers can create complex architecture, including such tricky structures as spiral staircases. What's particularly impressive is the massive tool-set available for sculpting the terrain into whatever the level designer envisions. Many of these different sculpting tools aren't used very often or by all of the members of the design team, but one can't help but be awed at the range of brushes and options the Riot editor provides for molding the landscape. The texturing is again done with tiling texture sets, making it significantly different from the Raider engine, lacking the unique customizability of a Centipede 3D landscape texture. But, on the other hand, the levels in the Riot Engine can grow to be enormous without exhausting the texture memory. When I arrived at Surreal, the textures did not automatically transition from one terrain type to another, as the old Zoner editor for Odyssey did. At my suggestion, I was given the task of adding that functionality to the editor, and now texturing a level is a quite simple process. What's telling here is that, though at first glance the Zoner editor is completely out of date and the features contained in it would seem inapplicable to creating a 3D world, in all this time the texturing techniques used are the same. I was able to take something the Zoner did well and apply it to the vastly more sophisticated Riot Level Editor. The Riot engine is probably the most professional looking in-house tool-set I've ever seen, and is in such good shape that Surreal was able to release it to the public to allow fans to make add-on levels for Drakan. Similar to the Raider level editor, designers are presented with a top-down view of their level, along with a 3D view from a camera position, which they can easily move to whatever part of the level they like. Unlike the Raider engine, the Riot engine only makes use of one monitor, and shows both the 3D view and the top-down view on the designer's main monitor . The 3D view is fully 3D accelerated (indeed, Drakan requires 3D hardware acceleration), and in order for the 3D card to simultaneously draw the top down view and the 3D view, the designer has to have a very powerful 3D card in their machine. The Riot engine level editor doesn't have the "Go" functionality of the Raider engine's editor; instead designers can hit a hot-key which runs the game and automatically loads the level they are working on. This is a fast enough process that it's just as practical as the Raider engine method, but saves the designer the trouble of having to quit and re-load their level. The drawback of the Riot Engine in its current incarnation is that designers are limited to creating layer geometry. This is fine for creating a rolling landscape, but doesn't allow for the creation of right-angled structures like man-made buildings or their interiors. Basically, everything that the Marathon engine does well (corridors), the Riot engine doesn't do at all. Currently, all buildings and interior structures are created in 3D Studio Max by artists following a designer's specification, and then imported into the editor by way of the Riot engine modeler. This problem is currently being addressed as one of the technology improvements, and soon designers will be able to create all of their levels' gameplay areas in the editor itself. Of course, importing 3D Studio Max models will still be available and necessary for creating a fully detailed level. Outdoor vs. Indoor The difference between creating indoor and outdoor environments is almost more of an engine issue than a level editor one. For real-time rendering of a 3D environment on PCs or console gaming systems, in order to get the speed necessary for fast-action gameplay, the game engine needs to know what type of environments it will be rendering and be optimized accordingly. A recently released game in which the developers wanted both indoor and outdoor environments, Descent 3 ended up actually using two separate rendering engines for the different types environments found in the gameplay. Descent 3, interestingly enough, also allowed the designers to create their levels in 3D Studio Max or other 3D packages first, and then import them into the game's editor where they could be further manipulated. This gave the designers the ability to access the rich feature set of professional modeling packages, while still allowing them to tweak the levels in a proprietary tool which would give them a better sense of how the level would play in the game. Of course the danger is that someone will come up with the bright idea that, hey, you don't really need an editor, you can probably do everything in 3D Studio. This person will probably be a programmer, most likely one who's trying to get out of some work. (Being a programmer myself, I can say that.) A surprising number of development teams have tried to dodge having to make a level editor, but for more complex games this can lead to truly disastrous results. Just look at Trespasser, a game that is widely hailed as one of the worst in recent memory. The development team on that game were stuck with using 3D Studio as their only world-creation tool, and in the amount of time they spent overcoming bugs associated with using a modeler as their level editor, they could have written their own tool, and probably ended up with better levels as a result. (If you want to read about the Trespasser development team's arduous trials and tribulations while creating that game, go read the game's "Post Mortem" for the game published on the Gamasutra web site, http://www.gamasutra.com.) The Final Analysis As the tools necessary to create a "cutting edge" game become that much more sophisticated, the motivation to license engines becomes even greater. Usually with licensed technology one can expect a fairly robust, well-debugged editor, which will greatly facilitate game creation, and get production on your game up-and-running almost immediately. The number of companies who have licensed the Quake or Unreal engines is amazing, especially considering that five years ago nearly everyone was still "rolling their own." A company called Multigen will even sell you their Multigen Creator package, which provides you not with an entire engine but just with a sophisticated 3D-world editing tool. Their ad testifies to the fact that a significant number of console developers for the Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation have been using Creator for the majority of their games. Looking back over the various level editing tools I've used, two rules of thumb seem to present themselves. First, level editors are most important because they allow designers to set up their levels while keeping track of how they will look and play in the game. The better editors will allow users to move objects in 2D while seeing their movement in a 3D world, and will allow the designer to quickly try out a section of a game to see how it will play. Second, putting features into the editor directly correlates to better levels in the final game. Often programmers don't want to spend their valuable programming time on the tools, since the tools won't actually make it to the end-user, and are thereby seen as less important. But if the levels get better because of a more sophisticated and easy to use tool, the person who made that tool work so well should be able to feel a certain authorship role in the superior levels it generated. |


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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In January, President-elect Barack Obama and his family will make history, becoming the first African-American first family to move into the White House -- a house with a history of slavery. In fact, the legacy of American presidents owning slaves goes all the way back to George Washington.
A wood engraving of handcuffed and shackled slaves passing the U.S. Capitol, depicts a scene circa 1819.
Twelve American presidents owned slaves and eight of them, starting with Washington, owned slaves while in office. Almost from the very start, slaves were a common sight in the executive mansion. A list of construction workers building the White House in 1795 includes five slaves - named Tom, Peter, Ben, Harry and Daniel -- all put to work as carpenters. Other slaves worked as masons in the government quarries, cutting the stone for early government buildings, including the White House and U.S. Capitol. According to records kept by the White House Historical Association, slaves often worked seven days a week -- even in the hot and humid Washington summers.
In 1800, John Adams was the first president to live in the White House, moving in before it was finished. Adams was a staunch opponent of slavery, and kept no slaves. Future presidents, however, didn't follow his lead. Thomas Jefferson, who succeeded Adams, wrote that slavery was an "assemblage of horrors" and yet he brought his slaves with him. Early presidents were expected to pay their household expenses themselves, and many who came from the so-called "slave states" simply brought their slaves with them.
Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, Andrew Johnson and Ulysses S. Grant all owned slaves but not during their time in office. James Madison, Jefferson's successor, held slaves all of his life including while he was in office. During the war of 1812 Madison's slaves helped remove material from the White House shortly before the British burned the building. Michelle Obama uncovers slaves in her family »
In 1865 one of Madison's former slaves, Paul Jennings, wrote the first White House memoir: "A Colored Man's Reminiscences of Life in the White House." In the book, Jennings called Madison "one of the best men that ever lived" and said Madison "never would strike a slave, although he had over one hundred; neither would he allow an overseer to do it."
There were other presidents who treated their slaves less kindly.
James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, John Tyler, James K. Polk and Zachary Taylor all owned slaves while they were in office. The last of these, President Taylor, said owning slaves was a Constitutional right and he said slave-owners like himself would "appeal to the sword if necessary" to keep them. The Civil War, of course, put that opinion to the test.
Now, the Obamas are moving into the White House.
"The apple cart has been turned over here when you have the Obamas -- the first African-American couple -- now actually management and you are having in some cases white Americans serving them," says presidential historian Doug Brinkley.
Michelle Obama learned this year that one of her great-great grandfathers was a slave who worked on a rice plantation in South Carolina. She says finding that part of her past uncovered both shame and pride and what she calls the tangled history of this country.
For many, the historic election on November 4 marked a new beginning.
Though Michelle Obama's ancestors had to come through the ordeal of slavery, "Her children are sleeping in the room of presidents," said Brinkley. "It's a very great and hopeful sign."
All About Michelle Obama • The White House • Racial Issues

subset: commoncrawl


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I talk quite a bit about guns. Today's shooting in Newtown, Connecticut — where a twenty year old assaulted an elementary school and killed 26 people, 20 of them kids — just leaves me dumbstruck. The only thing I can bring myself to say is, what will it take before people start treating these mass shootings as something more than isolated incidents?
This interactive map shows what I'm talking about quite well. A snapshot:
Since 1999, there have been 45 shootings in schools worldwide; 31 were in the States. Mass shootings are almost a daily occurrence in your country, and each seems to be going for a high score over the last. They are a much realer and more immediate threat than death by terrorism, or plane crashes, or bear attacks. Why are you as a nation so numb to this? Why is your immediate recourse as a nation to demand that people have readier access to guns, to demand that everyone go armed, to put more guns into the hands of more people who might for some reason feel oppressed and take it out on a school full of children?
Meanwhile, in China, children suffered a knife attack in an elementary school. 20 children were injured. Injured, not killed — which would almost certainly not be the case if the attacker had a gun. And people are talking about China having something rotten at its core. Why is nobody saying the same about America and the gun culture that would ignore such trending data?
Other posts you should read:
Kate Donovan: When you tie shootings to mental illness
Miriam Mogilevsky: If not now, when? On politicizing tragedy
Both of these posts lead me to the same conclusion: there is something larger going on here and the more we sweep it all under the rug and repeat the drumbeat platitude of "more guns", the deeper into the delusion rabbithole we go.
And another: Greta Christina: The Newtown shootings: It is not too soon to start talking


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He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.
In no particular order, here are some of the questions (the questions in italic and color; answers in normal font).
No, there is not one single manuscript which is THE preserved, perfect text. We agree. But, if no manuscript is EXACTLY the same, how is it that, despite the differences between the earliest known MS and the received text, it is the received text which is the correct one?
We know that copies were not made of the earliest known manuscripts, which is why they are in the minority.
Thomas Ross adds: Actually, there has been, as far as I am aware, no actual objective dating method for aleph and b. It is simply internal evidence that is used to say that they are the oldest—so maybe they aren't even the oldest. Furthermore, codex w has the received text in large portions of the gospels, and it is, according to unbelieving textual critics, equal in age to aleph and b. Furthermore, the oldest papyri have received text readings in them (see Forever Settled by Jack Moorman, which is on the web).
Furthermore, the reason there aren't any perfect copies is because when one copies something by hand, it will never be exactly the same. The printed text under the KJV is perfect. Before that time, copies were available and the words were available, but they were not all in one location. Today, if the words under the KJV are not the right ones, we cannot have certainty, but God promises certainty (Matthew 4:4; Rev 22:18-19; Prov 30:5-6; etc.).
I continue: Believers have rejected the minority manuscripts. God has promised availability (Isaiah 59:21; Matthew 4:4; etc.), and the minority were not generally accessible. The churches agreed on the TR. The Holy Spirit is guiding believers (John 16:13). God has promised preservation. We look at what God did and we see it was the TR. We trust God. This is not an "academic" approach based upon "scientific" principles, but based upon biblical ones. That's how we walk by faith, that is, by obeying God's Word.
Thomas Ross adds: I don't have a problem calling this method scientific. I think it is scientific and academic, in the true sense of the words. It is not unbelieving science, etc.
The TR was what was available when the printing press was invented. There is not a basis of saying that men used just a few manuscripts to consolidate the words into one printed edition. Richard Capel, the puritan, expresses the historic (and my) position, when he writes (Capel's Remains, London, 1658, pp. 19-43):
[W]e have the Copies in both languages [Hebrew and Greek], which Copies vary not from Primitive writings in any matter which may stumble any. This concernes onely the learned, and they know that by consent of all parties, the most learned on all sides among Christians do shake hands in this, that God by his providence hath preserved them uncorrupt. . . . As God committed the Hebrew text of the Old Testament to the Jewes, and did and doth move their hearts to keep it untainted to this day: So I dare lay it on the same God, that he in his providence is so with the Church of the Gentiles, that they have and do preserve the Greek Text uncorrupt, and clear: As for some scrapes by Transcribers, that comes to no more, than to censure a book to be corrupt, because of some scrapes in the printing, and 'tis certain, that what mistake is in one print, is corrected in another.
And if they do not agree perfectly, then how can God be said to have perfectly preserved the actual words of the autographs?
The words were available even as they were consolidated into a printed edition. You can't prove otherwise, so why not go the direction of faith and not doubt, perfection and not errors. Our position is that God promised to preserve the very Words and Letters of the original manuscripts. He didn't promise to preserve ink and paper. God knows what the Words are so He made sure that we had them. He performed a miracle to do so.
Thomas Ross adds: I don't see why the God who works all things after the counsel of His own will could not have sovereignly made it happen without the kind of direct intervention in history that was the same as the kind that makes blind men see, Christ rise from the dead, etc.
I continue: I can explain the miracle, but I can't fully understand it because it is a miracle. The alternative is not believing God and having errors in Scripture, which is acceptable to textual critics and many modern MVO people.
Thomas Ross adds: I would like to hear the MVO people explain the certainty verses.
I don't believe that true churches settled on the Vulgate. As well, the Vulgate is not Greek and Hebrew. Scripture presents original language preservation.
Thomas Ross adds: The medieval Baptists used the received text--but because printing wasn't invented yet, when they copied it there were errors in copies. However, all the words were still available. In the ancient church period, as long as the autographs were around, all the words were obviously preserved and available (and the autographs were around a while, as far as we can tell, as I demonstrated in my essay on the subject on my website). Once the autographs were gone, the true words were available and preserved by the true churches. True churches did not agree on Jerome's Latin Vulgate--the Waldenses, for example, continued to use a version of the old Latin instead of the Catholic Vulgate. By the way, the Greek TR was called the "Greek Vulgate," and it was, through God's sovereignty, copied by the Greek Catholic Church, so believers in that area didn't even need to fight with the Catholics over the Bible, since the unconverted monks were copying the truth that they did not know.
Do you ascribe to the following statement made by Francis Turretin: "Although we give to the Scriptures absolute integrity, we do not therefore think that the copyists and printers were inspired (theopneustos), but only that the providence of God watched over the copying of the sacred books, so that although many errors might have crept in, it has not so happened (or they have not so crept into the manuscripts) but that they can be easily corrected by a collation of others (or with the Scriptures themselves). Therefore the foundation of the purity and integrity of the sources is not to be placed in the freedom from fault.of men, but in the providence of God, which (however men employed in transcribing the sacred books might possibly mingle various errors) always diligently took care to correct them, or that they might be corrected easily either from a comparison with Scripture itself or from more approved manuscripts. It was not necessary therefore to render all the scribes infallible, but only so to direct them that the true reading may always be found out. This book far surpasses all others in purity."
In what substantial way does the textual criticism behind the KJV differ from the tc behind the newer translations?
Those men didn't apply modern evolutionary principles of textual criticism. They also believed in a perfect Bible and in perfect, Divine preservation of Scripture. What they did is not the equivalent to 19th century textual criticism, when the words "textual criticism" actually came into existence. I understand the point that CT and eclectic people want conceded, but it can't be conceded historically or definitionally, and they should admit that themselves. They won't because they want "providential preservation" to mean "textual criticism." Those two are not the same. Look at Capel's quote above and I can give many others like that to show that this was not their attitude.
How do you defend Erasmus' choice to include the very questionable rendering in 1 John 5:7-8 in spite of the textual evidence in the Byzantine manuscripts which argues vehemently against this?
Much good defense is written for the preservation of 1 John 5:7.
Thomas Ross add: On my website I link an excellent defense of 1 john 5:7 on evidential principles. Also, the CT people are not very consistent when they pull their hair out over receiving 1 john 5:7--which was also in the medieval baptist bible, and was received unanimously by baptist confessions for hundreds of years--when there are many, many places in the ubs/ct where they follow only one manuscript and don't even footnote it!
I continue: Consider what Gill says about 1 John 5:7:
That is, that Jesus is the Son of God. The genuineness of this text has been called in question by some, because it is wanting in the Syriac version, as it also is in the Arabic and Ethiopic versions; and because the old Latin interpreter has it not; and it is not to be found in many Greek manuscripts; nor cited by many of the ancient fathers, even by such who wrote against the Arians, when it might have been of great service to them: to all which it may be replied, that as to the Syriac version, which is the most ancient, and of the greatest consequence, it is but a version, and a defective one. The history of the adulterous woman in the eighth of John, the second epistle of Peter, the second and third epistles of John, the epistle of Jude, and the book of the Revelations, were formerly wanting in it, till restored from Bishop Usher's copy by De Dieu and Dr. Pocock, and who also, from an eastern copy, has supplied this version with this text. As to the old Latin interpreter, it is certain it is to be seen in many Latin manuscripts of an early date, and stands in the Vulgate Latin edition of the London Polyglot Bible: and the Latin translation, which bears the name of Jerom, has it, and who, in an epistle of his to Eustochium, prefixed to his translation of these canonical epistles, complains of the omission of it by unfaithful interpreters. And as to its being wanting in some Greek manuscripts, as the Alexandrian, and others, it need only be said, that it is to be found in many others; it is in an old British copy, and in the Complutensian edition, the compilers of which made use of various copies; and out of sixteen ancient copies of Robert Stephens's, nine of them had it: and as to its not being cited by some of the ancient fathers, this can be no sufficient proof of the spuriousness of it, since it might be in the original copy, though not in the copies used by them, through the carelessness or unfaithfulness of transcribers; or it might be in their copies, and yet not cited by them, they having Scriptures enough without it, to defend the doctrine of the Trinity, and the divinity of Christ: and yet, after all, certain it is, that it is cited by many of them; by Fulgentius (z), in the beginning of the "sixth" century, against the Arians, without any scruple or hesitation; and Jerom, as before observed, has it in his translation made in the latter end of the "fourth" century; and it is cited by Athanasius (a) about the year 350; and before him by Cyprian (b), in the middle, of the "third" century, about the year 250; and is referred to by Tertullian (c) about, the year 200; and which was within a "hundred" years, or little more, of the writing of the epistle; which may be enough to satisfy anyone of the genuineness of this passage; and besides, there never was any dispute about it till Erasmus left it out in the, first edition of his translation of the New Testament; and yet he himself, upon the credit of the old British copy before mentioned, put it into another edition of his translation.
Ipsissima verba is clearly taught in Scripture. It is affirmed every time the NT states Christ "said" something. God means what He says, and if the declaration that the Lord said certain Words does not mean that He actually said them, language no longer has meaning. When the Bible declares, "these words spake Jesus" (John 8:20,30; cf. 8:31,37,43,47), who dares conclude He did not say those Words, but some "vox" paraphrase of them? The retort that the Words of the gospels are the Holy Spirit's Words, so they are authoritative although Christ did not speak them, neglects the fact that He is the Spirit of truth, so He would not inspire a "Jesus said . . .," which Jesus did not say. Indeed, ipsissima verba is essential to spiritual growth, for the saints cannot live by His Words if they don't have them (Mt. 4:4). God's people must hear the Words of the Son (John 12:47), receive His Words (John 12:48; 17:8), keep His Words (John 14:23), have His Words abiding in them (John 15:7) and remember His Words as from the Father (John 14:10). Furthermore, were Christ's Words not in the gospels, the declaration of Matthew 24:35 (and Mk. 13:31 & Lk 21:33) would be false. The penalty for being ashamed of Christ's Words (Mk 8:38) would be irrelevant to today if only His "voice" was preserved. How horrible to say that the wonderful prayer of John 17, which begins, "These words spake Jesus . . ." (v. 1) is really only the words of John the apostle, who paraphrased to give the "genuine voice" of the Great High Priest! Of course, were this the case, the fact that the Savior, in that prayer, said, "I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them . . ." (John 17:8) would be irrelevant, since it would only be John's paraphrase of something else Christ actually spoke, which is now irrecoverably gone. Peter asked, "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life" (John 6:68). A vox position means that those invaluable Words of eternal life are gone, replaced by whatever the human writers of Scripture apparently thought better met the needs of their community than the actual Words of the Christ of God. Peter's recorded recollections of Christ's Words are verbatim (Mt. 26:34,75; Acts 1:5; 11:16). John 21:15-17 provides an indisputable example of Christ repeating teaching several times with different Words. If He can do it here, why can He not have actually spoken the same teaching on either the same or different occasions? Christ promised that the Spirit would bring to the minds of the writers of Scripture "whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14:26).
While it is important to seek reconciliation of the gospel accounts for exegetical and apologetical purposes, to argue for a vox position because it makes reconciliation of the synoptics simpler is to come at the issue from an improper perspective. The saint must first see what Scripture teaches, and evaluate everything else from the presupposition of the absolute truthfulness of everything found in the Bible; to take the "evidence" first and try to accommodate Scripture to it is to live by sight, not by faith (Hab. 2:4), and to suppose that "facts" can exist and be evaluated independently from the truth of the God of Scripture—essentially an unstated presupposition of atheism. Furthermore, traditional non-redactive methods of harmonization are able to solve problems in Scripture without compromise on Biblical statements on inspiration. Scripture records clear instances where Christ repeated Himself in different words within individual gospels on what can hardly be viewed as amalgamations of different sources (cf. Mk. 10:23,24; Jn. 21:15-17); why cannot verbal differences among the synoptics be instances of the same sort of repetition, so that the gospels at times record different sets what are with equal truth the Words of Christ?
A good article that will answer this question is at: www.tms.edu/tmsj/tmsj12d.pdf
How can you hold to the theory that Jesus was merely translating from the Hebrew behind the MT tradition when there are times when His quotations differ significantly enough from the Hebrew Text so as to make it such that a literal translation of the Hebrew would not have made His point? Specifically, I would ask you to deal with the passage I reference above - Matthew 13:14-15.
You could translate the Hebrew text of Isaiah 6:9 in the imperative or in the future. The Old Testament text renders them in the imperative and the New Testament quotation, an accurate one renders them in the future. Since the words may be understood the way they were used in Matthew 13:14, this vindicates this citation of them. Many Jewish commentators actually render the OT text in the future just like the NT text does in Mt. 13. This is an English translation of a Greek text rendering of a Hebrew text. We shouldn't be surprised when they are not exactly the same.
Thomas Ross adds: Why not just say that the NT is "targumming" or paraphrasing, rather than intending to give a direct, word for word translation? We do this all the time: "the bible says that if you don't get saved you will be eternally lost," etc. "The Bible says to obey the pastor, Hebrews 13:17." Why can't the gospels do this as well?
I continue: By the way, when I satisfy the demands of a question, does that mean a person is now willing to believe instead of continuing questioning? At what point should I require faith in God's promises of preservation and availability, Scriptural presuppositions, before we continue?
How do you defend a very literal reading of Mt. 5:18 that not one jot or tittle will pass from God's Word in light of the fact that prior to Erasmus (the vast majority of the church age) there was no agreement as to any 'preserved text' to the degree of 'jots and tittles' having been preserved?
I don't have evidence there wasn't agreement. Have you ever seen evidence besides reading Metzger and Ehrman? My Capel quote above states the positions that God's people have taken.
Thomas Ross adds: Actually, you don't have Baptist churches questioning what the words were before the Reformation era. There was agreement on the words. The words in the mss that the churches had became the printed TR. Notice that the NT never, ever says something like "manuscripts of the OT have been corrupted here" or something like that. The received OT was perfect, in that all the words were available and God's people could know where they were to live by them. And, based on Scripture, the received NT was also always perfectly available.
In what way had God preserved 'jots and tittles' in the NT manuscripts prior to Erasmus and the Textus Receptus?
My assumption, based upon my presuppositions, is that the Words were available. I haven't said that they were all available in one place at one time. I can't prove they were or they weren't. We don't possess the exact physical copies that were available to them at that time, and we never will. What we might find today doesn't represent what they had. I believe all the Words were generally accessible. I believe God's Word is perfect. I believe God promised preservation of every one of them.
Thomas Ross adds: We aren't responsible to know how a Waldensian church in the 1100's knew where the Words of God were. We are responsible to know where they are today. Scripture says we can know, so we can know. We don't even know how the Waldenses managed to not all get killed, but they did somehow--we can see that they were still around in the 1600s.
Did He preserve a little in this text and a little in that text prior to Erasmus putting them together in one? If so, in what sense is this a preserved text at all?
I would answer this the same way as I did the previous question.
Some are not satisfied with these answers, I'm sure. I am. They are answers based on Scriptural presuppositions. I won't stagger in unbelief at the promises of God.
Here are some questions for anyone else:
How can you add or take away from something that isn't settled? In other words, what difference does Revelation 22:18, 19 make?
How is the Bible considered perfect if there are errors in it? If the errors aren't related to the words, then what difference does verbal inspiration make? What is the Scriptural basis for errors in the Bible?
Where does the Bible say there would be sixty-six books? If it doesn't say, then how do we know there are not more or less?
As a Professor in a Theological Seminary, it has been my duty to make a special study of the Westminster Confession of Faith, as have I done for twenty years; and I venture to affirm that no one who is qualified to give an opinion on the subject, would dare to risk his reputation on the statement that the Westminster divines ever thought the original manuscripts of the Bible were distinct from the copies in their possession.


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This article is more than 1 year old
Carder linked to TJX hack jailed for 30 years by Turkish court
Ukrainian boards Midnight Express
A Ukrainian fraudster linked to the infamous TJX hack was sentenced to a 30 year prison sentence in Turkey on unrelated charges this week.
Maksym Yastremskiy (AKA Maksik) was found guilty of hacking into the computer systems of 12 Turkish banks, as well as committing computer fraud against them, according to local reports. The court also reportedly fined Yastremskiy $23,200.
Yastremskiy was arrested by police in Turkey in July 2007, after visiting a nightclub in the beach resort of Kemer, in an operation US law enforcement agencies soon realised was key to unraveling the TJX hacking case.
It emerged within weeks that Yastremskiy was fencing hundreds of hundreds of thousands of credit card numbers linked to hacking attacks at US retail outlets, including TJX, through various underground carders forums. Yastremskiy was charged last August with trafficking in stolen credit card information harvested from a string of retail firms including TJX, OfficeMax, Barnes & Noble, Forever 21, DSW, and Marshall's, among others.
Alleged ringleader Albert "Segvec" Gonzalez of Miami allegedly conspired with ten other suspects (including Yastremskiy) to hack into the insecure networks maintained by the US retailers and lift 40 million credit and debit card numbers. Since the heist against TJX alone affected 45.6 million customers alone these colossal figures are, if anything, a possible underestimate of the possible extent of the crime.
US investigators alleged that Yastremskiy, 25, was responsible for fraudulent losses running into millions, which he used to finance a jet setting lifestyle.
Yastremskiy, of Kharkov, Ukraine, and Aleksandr "Jonny Hell" Suvorov, of Sillamae, Estonia were charged in the US with fencing the stolen credit card numbers obtained by the American co-conspirators, as well as aggravated identity theft and hacking offences. Yastremskiy allegedly made $11m through card fraud and money laundering.
US authorities filed extradition papers against Yastremskiy, but he still ended up standing trial in the Turkey over separate offences, where he received one of the longest cybercrime sentences ever handed down. If he ever makes it to the US it's a reasonable bet that he'll become a star witness for the prosecution, possibly in exchange for assurances of a shorter spell behind bars in a comparatively comfortable US prison. ®


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Most people would agree that a high school diploma should mean something. It should mean that the person holding the diploma possesses certain academic skills such as the ability to read or do basic math. Unfortunately, in an increasing number of instances, a diploma means no such thing.
A September 2000 study from the Mackinac Center for Public Policy quantified how much money Michigan institutions of higher learning and businesses spend to accommodate the lack of basic academic skills among high school graduates and employees. The bad news: At least one-third of Michigan students require remedial education after they've left the K-12 schools. It's costing the state's businesses and universities more than $600 million annually to address this widespread lack of reading, writing, and arithmetic skills.
The study did not condemn K-12 schools. But it should serve to encourage districts in Michigan to guarantee their communities that they are equipping students with basic academic skills. Study author Dr. Jay P. Greene recommended that districts: a) adopt a test that students must pass before receiving diplomas; and b) hold themselves financially liable for graduates who need remedial education.
Are any school districts addressing the concerns raised by the study? I am proud to report that Rockford Public Schools recognized the importance of, and need for, accountability measures long ago and implemented an innovative program to guarantee that our graduates possess basic academic skills.
In fall 1989, the Rockford Public Schools Board of Education surveyed the community to determine what expectations residents and district employees have for their school system. One of the questions asked if students should be required to demonstrate proficiency in basic reading and mathematics prior to earning a high school diploma. Over 94 percent of the respondents said yes.
In 1991, following a comprehensive pilot program, our Board of Education implemented a competency testing component as part of the requirements for a high school diploma. This component requires students to take mathematics and reading tests during the spring of their freshman year. If a student fails either or both of the tests, he or she must select one of several options for remedial training. Successful completion of both tests is a prerequisite for earning a high school diploma from Rockford Public Schools.
Students completing all course work and other requirements for a diploma except for passing both competency tests are issued a "certificate of completion" in place of a diploma. Students may return after their senior year and retake the tests and, if successful, are only then issued a diploma.
If an employer who hires a Rockford graduate believes that the former student does not possess the basic reading and writing skills necessary to do his or her job, the employer is encouraged to contact me with those concerns. I will then offer the graduate remedial classes in the area in which he or she is deficient, free of charge, through our adult education program. Information on this service is prominently displayed on each diploma, and is communicated throughout the greater Grand Rapids area.
The competency testing initiative was implemented with the ninth grade class of 1991, having a direct impact on the 1995 graduates. The class of 2001 will be the seventh senior class required to meet the competency testing requirement for a high school diploma. I am unaware of any other Michigan school district that offers such a program or that otherwise guarantees the real meaning of its diplomas.
Since the initial community-wide questionnaire in 1989, three additional surveys have followed, each including the competency testing questions. Results continue to be overwhelming: Parents strongly support maintaining this requirement for a diploma.
The testing initiative is not intended to be punitive in nature. It was developed instead both to encourage students to be active participants in their education and to promote the community's and employers' confidence in local schools.
I encourage all public school districts in Michigan to hold themselves accountable by adopting competency testing that reflects the expectations and desires of their local communities. Doing so would ensure that the diplomas they grant are truly representative of academic achievement.
Our communities and children deserve nothing less than a quality education from every public school in our state. It is time we all stood behind our diplomas.
(Dr. Michael S. Shibler is superintendent of Rockford Public Schools in Rockford, Michigan. More information on education reform can be found at www.mackinac.org. Permission to reprint in whole or in part is hereby granted, provided the author and his affiliation are cited.)
The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a nonprofit research and educational institute that advances the principles of free markets and limited government. Through our research and education programs, we challenge government overreach and advocate for a free-market approach to public policy that frees people to realize their potential and dreams.
Please consider contributing to our work to advance a freer and more prosperous state.


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The Road Home Part 2: The Tennessee Two-Day
From North Carolina we moved on to Tennessee to explore the town of Chattanooga. In particular, this was because I was reading book American Gods by Neil Gaiman and two Chattanooga tourist attractions play a prominent role in the book: Rock City and Lookout Mountain. We had hopes of visiting the attractions but found them to be out of our budget. Instead, we enjoyed checking out the cool bridges, architecture, graffiti, and relaxing to the cool vibe we felt from the people of the city Read more


text: Your name is Angelo Mortalli. Your brother is trapped behind enemy lines and on the verge of — no. That's not right. Your name is Raymond Garrison. You've retired from the dangers of the field, but a desperate plea from your oldest friend plunges you into a vicious firefight that — no. That's not right, either. You are Bloodshot. You are the shade of gray that freedom requires. The perfect confluence of military necessity and cutting-edge technology. A walking WikiLeaks that is a reservoir of dirty secrets that could set the world on fire. And you've just been captured.


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I was provided an interesting solution to the AMC appraisal issue from Tony Pistilli, a certified residential appraiser who has been employed for over 25 years in the appraisal area, at governmental agencies, mortgage companies, banks and has been self employed.
He wants appraisers to get the word out. His solution is compelling.
Anyone who reads Matrix knows what I think of the Appraisal Management Company and the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) problem in today's mortgage lending world.
Here's a summary of the his article before you read it:
* Appraisers, Realtors, Brokers HATE the HVCC.
* AMC's and Banks LOVE the HVCC.
* Regulators are disconnected from the problem just like they were when mortgage brokers controlled the ordering of appraisals during the credit boom.
* Appraisers and borrowers are paying for services the banks receive.
* Banks should pay for the services received from the AMC's.
* Appraiser's fees should be market driven.
* Banks should be held accountable for the quality of the appraisal.
AMC/HVCC appears to violate RESPA (Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act) since a large portion of the appraisal fee is actually going for something else coming off the market rate fee of the appraiser.
>(RESPA) was created because various companies associated with the buying and selling of real estate, such as lenders, realtors, construction companies and title insurance companies were often engaging in providing undisclosed Kickbacks to each other, inflating the costs of real estate transactions and obscuring price competition by facilitating bait-and-switch tactics.
The Ultimate Solution for the Appraisal Industry
by Tony Pistilli, Certified Residential Appraiser and Vice-Chair, Minnesota Department of Commerce, Real Estate Appraiser Advisory Board, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Since the inception of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) in May 2009, there has been much discussion, and misinformation, about the benefits and harm caused by the controversial agreement with the New York Attorney Generals office and the Federal Housing Finance Agency. This agreement, originally made with the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, requires Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to only accept appraisals ordered from parties independent to the loan production process. Essentially, this means, anyone that may get paid by a successful closing of the loan cannot order the appraisal.
In the past 6 months while the Realtors© and Mortgage Brokers associations point fingers at appraisal management companies for their use of incompetent appraisers who don't understand the local markets, appraisers are complaining that banks are abdicating their regulatory requirements to obtain credible appraisals by forcing them to go through appraisal management companies at half of their normal fee.
Banking regulations allow banks to utilize the services of third party providers like appraisal management companies, but ultimately hold the bank accountable for the quality of the appraisal. Unfortunately, the banking regulators have yet to express a concern that there is a problem with the current situation.
I need to state that appraisal management companies can provide a valuable service to the lending industry by ordering appraisals, managing a panel of appraisers, performing quality reviews of the appraisals, etc. However, banks have been enticed by appraisal management companies to turn over their responsibility for ordering appraisals with arrangements that ultimately do not cost them anything.
The arrangement works like this, the bank collects a fee for the appraisal from the borrower; orders an appraisal from the appraisal management company who in turn assigns the appraisal to be done by an independent appraiser or appraisal company. During this process the appraisal fee paid by the borrower gets paid to the appraisal management company who retains approximately 40% to 50% and pays the appraiser the remainder. So for the $400 appraisal fee being charged to the borrower, the appraiser is actually being paid $160-$200 for the appraisal. Absent an appraisal management company the reasonable and customary fee for the appraisers service would be $400, not the $160 to $200 currently being paid to appraisers.
Rules within the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) have allowed this situation to occur, despite prohibitions against receiving unearned fees, kickbacks and the marking up of third party services, like appraisals. RESPA clearly states, "Payments in excess of the reasonable value of goods provided or services rendered are considered kickbacks".
Banks are allowed to collect a loan origination fee. This fee is intended to cover the costs of the bank related to underwriting and approving a loan. Ordering and reviewing an appraisal is certainly a part of that process. Understanding that banks ultimately have the regulatory requirement to obtain the appraisal for their lending functions, why is it that borrowers and appraisers are paying for these services that are outsourced to appraisal management companies? Does the borrower benefit from a bank hiring an appraisal management company? Does an appraiser benefit from a bank hiring an appraisal management company? The answer to those two questions is a very resounding, no! Clearly the only one in the equation that benefits is the bank, so why shouldn't the banks be required to pay for the outsourcing of the appraisal ordering and review process?
It is here where I believe the solution for the appraisal industry exists. Since banks are the obvious benefactor from the appraisal management company services, the regulators should require that the banks, not the borrowers or appraisers, pay for the services received. This one small change in the current business model would allow appraisers to receive a reasonable fee for their services and in turn they should be held more accountable for the quality and credibility of the appraisals they perform. Appraisal fees would be competitive among appraisers in their local markets, much like the professional fees charged by accountants, attorneys, dentists and doctors. Appraisal management companies would suddenly be thrust into a more competitive situation where their services can be itemized and their quality and price be compared to those of competing providers. This will ultimately lead to lower fees and improved quality of services to the banks. The banks will then have a very quantifiable choice, do they continue to outsource their obligations to an appraisal management company and pay for those services or do they create an internal structure to manage the appraisal ordering and review process? Either way, the banking regulators need to hold the banks more accountable at the end of the process.
When all of the previously discussed elements are present, I believe the appraisal industry will be functioning the way it was intended. Appraisal independence will be enhanced and borrowers will be rewarded with greater quality and reliability in the appraisal process. This is exactly the change that is needed, in addition to the HVCC, to stop the current finger pointing and address the poor quality and non-independent appraisals that have been and are still rampant in the industry.
5 Comments
[…] course. Jonathan lays it out in a couple of recent posts on his blog Matrix. (Click here and here to read […]
[…] HVCC and AMCs Violate RESPA?] Here's a possible solution – Holding the banks more accountable, This is long fairly dry post, but worth the ready. The […]
[…] Here's a possible solution – The Home Valuation Code of Conduct has been controversial within the mortgage industry as it has shifted a considerable amount of power to appraisal management companies (AMC) to control the appraisal process. Loans don't happen without appraisals and the people that order them want to put them in the hands of appraisers they trust. The AMCs put a protective layer in between to ensure that undue pressure is not exerted on the appraiser to inflate the value of the property. Loan originators and real estate agents have accused the AMCs of pocketing significant portion of the appraisal fees and using less-expensive and allegedly less competent appraisers. So the author of this article calls for the lenders to pay for the appraisals since they are ultimately who really wants the information an appraisal provides. Beyond the obvious problem of lenders not wanting to advance money for an appraisal if the loan is going to be killed because of it, two of the biggest AMCs are owned by Bank of America and Wells Fargo who are also two of the biggest mortgage lenders around. So this may not seem like a bad idea on its face, but it's never going to become reality. […]
The Ultimate Solution for the Appraisal Industry. Mr. Pistilli has hit the nail on the head. Great Job!
OK. Do it! Just git er done!
The logic is compeling so who could possibly object to the conclusion?
It occurs to me that the banks may object to the the Pistilli solution, but surely their objections can be overcome, don't you think?
Sorry for the tongue in cheek, but it isn't gonna happen in this mortgage cycle or any other so long as appraisers even consider competing with BPOs.
The final solution is to just absolutely refuse to work for these types. We may starve, but the short term pain will bring about a stronger profession and one we might then seriously consider a legacy for our sons.
Comments are closed.


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Book News: Judge's Comments Bruising To Apple's Price-Fixing Case
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly.
- U.S. District Judge Denise Cote, who will hear the Justice Department's e-book price fixing case against Apple, hinted at her initial leanings during a pretrial hearing: "I believe that the government will be able to show at trial direct evidence that Apple knowingly participated in and facilitated a conspiracy to raise prices of e-books, and that the circumstantial evidence in this case, including the terms of the agreements, will confirm that." Reuters adds: While she stressed that the view was not final and that she had read only some of the evidence so far, her comments could add to pressure on Apple to settle the lawsuit, in which the Justice Department accuses the company and five publishers of conspiring to fix e-book prices." The trial is set to begin June 3.
- One of the publishers accused of e-book price-fixing, Penguin, has now settled with consumers and the Attorneys General of 33 states for $75 million, after settling with the Justice Department last December.
- Poet Mary Karr speaks to the addiction and recovery website The Fix about the fallacy of the "tortured artist": "I think being tortured as a virtue is a kind of antiquated sense of what it is to be an artist." She also touches on her friendship with David Foster Wallace: "I think we kept each other alive to some extent, for a period of time when we were trying to quit using and it was all but impossible for each of us to do that."
- In reaction to the news that Amazon will begin selling fan fiction, Melville House's Dustin Kurtz writes some (mildly racy) fan fiction featuring Gossip Girl's Blair Waldorf and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos: " 'It's important you listen to me, Blair.' Jeff ran his hands over his gleaming scalp."
- Maria Semple — screenwriter, amphibian enthusiast and the author of the brilliant novel Where'd You Go, Bernadette — tells The New York Times about her reading habits. She said, "My favorite kind of book is a domestic drama that's grounded in reality yet slightly unhinged. So Jonathan Franzen is my big daddy." She also notes, wisely, that "I steer clear of any novel that gets billed as a 'meditation.' I've seen 'moving meditation,' 'elegiac meditation,' even 'angry meditation.' To me, this is code for: Run! There's no story!"
- Alberto Manguel writes about dreams for The New York Review of Books: "In literature, dreams often serve to bring the impossible into the fabric of everyday life, like mist through a crack in the wall."
- The silence surrounding the resignations of senior editors at the literary magazine and publisher Granta has finally been broken. Editor John Freeman, who recently announced his departure, told The Guardian that owner Sigrid Rausing "decided a while back she wanted to run the magazine and books on a very reduced staff," and that he "didn't want to be part of that change."


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So what would cause pain in the heart of this young mother? Their young daughter was born with a cleft lip. No words can describe the Song's heartache. Mrs. Song said it was her mother-in-law who persuaded them not to give up hope that somehow, someway, someone would help.
This is a mom who trusted medicine would change things. But she believed that somehow their daughter would make a way in this world.
Mr. Song said he spent every penny he had, and borrowed money from anywhere he could to get corrective surgery. The doctors took their money, then said they could not repair the lip.
When people are in hopeless situations they are looking for someone, just one person, to come along and say God can make a way. And that mother-in-law said "there will be an answer" And God did make a way!
That happened when Mr. Song heard that an organization called CBN-china was arranging cleft lip surgeries with top surgeons in Beijing, for free! This determined father set off for the city with a song of hope in his heart, and a picture of his daughter clutched in his hand. He traveld 700 miles by bike, boat, train and on foot to ask CBN for help. The answer was yes! CBN said to bring his family to the city right away!! Doctors would perform Yating's surgery.
"This is a big blessing to my family, we are really happy!" says Mr. Song.
The big day arrived. The morning progressed smoothly and then, it was time.
"It's hard to wait," says Mr. Song as the family anticipated the outcome of the surgery.
They've been to other's who said they'd do something and then they didn't. Their hopes have been dashed and this is the last shot. Needless to say, their emotions are on edge because this is the chance and the opportunity that they've spent every moment hoping for.
Finally, Yating emerges. "She looks wonderful!" says the Songs.
It was difficult to tell what the final outcome would be but the swelling was already subsiding and the stitches and tubes would come out in a week!
And Mr. And Mrs. Song asked if they could accept Jesus as their Savior. It was the perfect ending to a very long day.
To the CBN partners who helped make this surgery happen: you have truly been "music to the ears" of the Songs who held onto hope when there didn't seem to be any hope. You are ones who said yes, we will help! Thank you.
Outreaches like this are made possible only with your help. Thanks to you, people like Yating and her family have seen the love of Jesus in action. And it doesn't stop there. Your faithful gifts are helping to feed and clothe children here and abroad, are providing medical care to those in desperate need, and are helping share the tangible love of Jesus to people all around the world. If you are not a partner with CBN, please join now.
A caring friend will be there to pray with you in your time of need.


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Hailing from Philadelphia, PA, Norman Porter is the brainchild of two brothers, Michael and Dave Stampler, and their close friend John. The company itself is thenamesake of the Stampler brothers' grandfather, the illustrious Norman Porter.
The team strives to produce denim that can stand the test of time while also keeping a fashionable, modern fit. To keep to their own high expectations and standard too, the three men do everything themselves; from making each pair of jeans by hand to keeping all other necessary work in-house.
When constructing their jeans as well, the men employ raw selvedge denims from a variety of locales ranging from Japan to the US. Each pair is made of 100% cotton denim ranging in weight from 12.5 to 16 oz. and is sewn, riveted and hemmed all within their workshop in Philadelphia.
Sizes run from 28 – 36 and come in Japanese Indigo 14 oz., Cone Indigo 12.5 oz., Japanese Green 12.5 oz., and Japanese Grey 14 oz. The jeans only come in their "standard fit" and as described by the Norman Porter website fit between a straight and slim cut.
For Norman Porter, jeans are about personalization, an ideal they believe in so much so that each pair of jeans purchased from them is custom hemmed to the customer's length. This custom fit even comes at a reasonable price of $250 per pair.
Aside from producing tough as nails denim, they also specialize in leatherwork and bag production; offering a variety of hand cut, sewn, and stained wallets and belts all ranging in price from $100 – $150.
As far as bags are concerned, Norman Porter offers two styles that are not only sustainable in design but also serve as a piece of Americana history in their own right. One style is tote-oriented, made from repurposed vintage canvas UPS bags; while the other is a handmade waxed canvas built to withstand the rigors of daily life.
To top it all off, Norman Porter even provides repair services for just about any problem you could encounter with a pair of raw denim. From darning to hemming and even alterations, the guys can do it all.
Keep your eyes fixed on Norman Porter – Mike, Dave, and John are running a company and label in grassroots, homegrown fashion and making the best quality products that they can offer.


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For once, Cork was not visited by some terrible natural disaster on the eve of its annual tournament, as it has been in recent years. The 2011 UCC Weiqi Tournament was won by Kim Ouleween (left), a professional artist from Amsterdam who's done some game commenting on EuroGoTV. His 5-game sweep kept the tournament in Dutch hands for the second year in a row. In second place on tiebreak was KGS star Ian 'Javaness' Davis, who collected more SOS than Spain's Matei Garcia. Also winning 5/5 was Thomas Shanahan from Galway. The 23 players were all grateful for organiser Justyna Kleczar's hard work.
Click here for full results and a photo album
photo: Kim Ouleween (left) Cao Tong Yu (right)


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In fact, when you install a userscript in Chrome, it actually installs as though it's a regular old extension. That means, as the original Greasemonkey developer and Google employee Aaron Boodman points out on the official Chromium Blog, that Chrome users now have roughly 40,000 more extensions to add to the list.
Some scripts won't work with Chrome just yet because of differences between Firefox and Chrome, but it looks like that number is somewhere around 15-20%. Not bad, Chrome. It's getting more and more tempting to consider Chrome as a viable Firefox alternative every day.
The improved support for userscripts should work on any Chrome version over 4, which includes the stable version on Windows and both of the beta versions on OS X and Linux. If you'd like to try out a few good userscripts—for Chrome or Firefox—our list of the top 10 Greasemonkey user scripts is a good place to get started.
40,000 More Extensions! [Chromium Blog]


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While most people are clinched into a worldwide debate about aliens, discussing UFO sightings in space, on Earth, and the sheer number of whistleblowers who have come forward saying that we aren't alone in the universe, the FBI has a very interesting document posted on their website.
The declassified document states that not only have we've been visited by ET, apparently we've been visited by "beings from other dimensions."
However, it is noteworthy to mention that the document itself DID NOT ORIGINATE within the FBI. The document –which is an extract from a 69-page document called ufo1.pdf— was written by a former university head.
Related: Dying Ex-CIA Worker Has Nothing To Lose And Reveals Dark Secrets About Area 51 & Aliens [Video]
Nevertheless, the document was treated with great importance by the FBI, which is something I find VERY interesting.
The official link from the FBI vault can be found here: vault.fbi.gov
A rewritten copy of the report can be found below. (NOTE) some words in the original text are illegible due to the numerous notations and stamps.
The document, which was received on July 8, 1947, states:
This memorandum is respectfully addressed to certain scientists of distinction, to important aeronautical and military authorities, to a number of public officials and to a few publications. The writer has little expectation that anything of import will be accomplished by this gesture. The mere fact that the data here-in were obtained by so-called supernormal means is probably sufficient to ensure its disregard by nearly all the persons addressed: nevertheless it seems a public duty to make it available. (The present writer has several university degrees and was formerly a university department head).
A very serious situation may develop at any time with regard to the "flying saucers". If one of these should be attacked, the attacking plane will almost certainly be destroyed. In the public mind, this might create near panic and international suspicion. The principal data concerning these craft is now at hand and must be offered, no matter how fantastic and unintelligible it may seem to minds not previously instructed in thinking of this type.
- Part of the disks carry crews, others are under remote control.
- Their mission is peaceful. The visitors contemplate settling on this plane.
- These visitors are human-like but much larger in size.
- They are not excarnate Earth people but come from their own world.
- They do NOT come from a planet as we use the word, but from an etheric planet which interpenetrates with our own and is not perceptible to us.
- The bodies of the visitors, and the craft, automatically materialize on entering the vibratory rate of our dense matter.
- The disks possess a type of radiant energy or a ray, which will easily disintegrate any attacking ship. They reenter the etheric at will, and so simply disappear from our vision, without a trace.
- The region from which they come is not the "astral plane", but corresponds to the Lokas or Talas. Students of esoteric matters will understand these terms.
- They probably cannot be reached by radio, but probably can be by radar. if a signal system can be devised for that apparatus.
We give information and warning and can do no more. Let the newcomers be treated with every kindness. Unless the disks are with-(illegible) a (illegible, illegible) with which our culture and science are incapable of dealing. A heavy responsibility rests upon the few in authority who are able to understand this matter.
Addendum: The Lokas are oval-shaped, fluted length, oval with a heat-resisting metal or alloy not yet known, the front cage contains the controls, the middle portion a laboratory; the rear contains armament, which consists essentially of a powerful energy apparatus, perhaps a ray…
Read after: Apollo Astronaut Edgar Mitchell Says Aliens Prevented Nuclear War On Earth To Ensure Our Survival


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1 firefighter killed, 2 seriously hurt in San Antonio fire
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - A San Antonio firefighter has died and two others are seriously hurt after a fire swept through a local shopping mall, where parts of the building collapsed and forced crews to retreat.
San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood says firefighters entered the strip mall Thursday evening because there were still people inside. Witnesses said people fled the flames and firefighters pulled back as the building weakened.
Authorities later learned that one firefighter, Scott Deem, was missing. The six-year department veteran was later found dead among the debris.
About 100 firefighters stood in salute as an ambulance carried his body away early Friday.
Officials say another firefighter suffered critical injuries and a second was seriously hurt.


text: Creating a Powerful Custom Hotcakes Commerce Skin/Theme Object Using the Server-Side API Please raise your hand if you've ever wanted to display some dynamic Hotcakes Commerce data in a specific spot and in a specific way within your overall website design layout? And besides that, you really didn't want to give administrators the option of changing its placement within site? November 5, 2015By David Poindexter DNN Topics, General API, Custom, DNN, Hotcakes Commerce, Server-Side, Skin Object, Theme Object Loading Disqus... Read More »


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In 1967, a tripartite National Manpower Board comprising representatives of the government, employers (Industry) and workers (Labour) was established in order to plan effective development and utilization of human resource in accordance with the expected socio-economic development of the country. After a comprehensive study of the country's manpower needs and the existing facilities for skill training, the Board requested for assistance from the United Nations development Programme Special Fund (UNDP/SF) in establishing a national vocational training programme. The first phase of the project which was of four years duration was approved in June 1968 with a total UNDP input of seven hundred and five thousand , four hundred dollars (705,400) and Ghana government counterpart contribution of three hundred and seventy-four thousand cedis (374,000). The UNDP input provided for 240 man-month of expertise in addition to equipment and fellowships.
The plan of operation was signed on 23rd October, 1968 and commencement of operations was authorized on 25th October, 1968, with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) as the executing agency and the Ministry of Labour, Social Welfare and Co-operatives now Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment as the co-operating agency. An Act of Parliament 351 of 12th January 1970 was passed to legalize the establishment of the Institute.
The Institute operates thirty eight (38) vocational centres dotted all over the country training the youth in some twenty-eight (28) skill areas.
Application Forms are obtained at the Apprenticeship Department of NVTI Head Office, Zonal Offices and the Regional Coordinators� Offices.


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Create a Website Account - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more.
A pro se is an individual who has not hired a lawyer and appears in court to represent himself and no other person or entity.
Show All Answers
The law does not allow the Judge or any of his employees to give any advice. The Judge's office can help you with any setting questions, but not with any questions in regard to the facts of your case. You should consult a private attorney for legal advice.
Both County Court at Law Judges and the County Judge have jurisdiction to hear Probate and Guardianship cases. However, County Court at Law Number 2 will primarily hear all Probate and Guardianship cases. Hearings are set by the Coordinator of the Court in which the case is filed.
To obtain a setting, you must contact the appropriate Court Coordinator:
Yes, in most situations. Please refer to the Pro Se Notice (PDF) on the Forms page.
As executor of a decedent's estate, you don't represent only yourself. An executor represents the interests of beneficiaries and creditors. This responsibility to act for the benefit of another is known as a fiduciary relationship. It gives rise to certain legal obligations and responsibilities that require legal expertise. The attorney you hire represents you in your capacity as executor and assists you in representing those for whom you are responsible.
Yes. One need not be a lawyer to serve as an executor, administrator or guardian. However, the executor, administrator or guardian must be represented by counsel.


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Starbucks, Staples plans draw fire
November 22, 2007
By JOHN FLOWERS
MIDDLEBURY — A standing-room crowd packed the Ilsley Public Library meeting room on Monday to urge the Middlebury Development Review Board (DRB) to reject proposed Staples and Starbucks stores that would be sited in, and adjacent to, The Centre shopping plaza off Route 7 South.
Some of the more than 60 residents, one of whom presented the DRB with a petition bearing more than 1,000 names, told DRB members the new stores would be out of character with Middlebury and could substantially weaken already established family-owned stores in the downtown.
The developer Myron Hunt Inc. — which owns The Centre — is proposing both stores. The 14,600-square-foot Staples would be built next to the Hannaford Supermarket in The Centre. The 1,700-square-foot Starbucks would be erected on an adjacent parcel now occupied by the former Middlebury Car Wash.
Chris Hunt, a principal of Myron Hunt Inc., represented the company at Monday's hearing. He said he believes neither of the two stores would put a dent in Middlebury's current retail scene.
"We realize that without a healthy, vibrant downtown economy, we can't exist," Hunt said. "It is purely a question of striking the right balance and we do not want to cause an imbalance."
Hunt pointed to the proposed Staples as an example of a store that could help bring a better balance of stores to Middlebury, thereby giving shoppers less incentive to shop in the commercial hubs of Rutland and Chittenden counties.
"The Staples is a store that has been designed for the smaller town," Hunt said. "It is roughly 10,000 square feet smaller than their average store. It's in fact smaller than many of the drugstores we've seen."
Staples, according to Hunt, has been looking to establish a store in Middlebury for "the past several years."
He said the Staples would offer office supplies and furniture, electronics, faxes, scanners — but not stationary.
"This is a category (of merchandise) that is not currently available in the downtown," Hunt said of Staples' offerings. "This is a category where people are going to other towns to purchase these items. This is a way we feel we are able to complement what is already in existence within the smaller local market."
John Tenny of Mill Bridge Construction, hired by Myron Hunt Inc. to help design the project, noted the Staples would be located within an existing shopping center.
"This represents a consolidation of development within an existing resource or infrastructure," Tenny said. "This adds a store to a shopping center that has a parking network, traffic control network that serves shopping needs well. (The Centre) has enough parking to serve this store, as well as the other stores."
The proposed Starbucks and Staples would add an estimated 107 new vehicle trips to Court Street during the morning and an estimated 76 during the evening, according to a traffic study commissioned by Myron Hunt Inc. and submitted to the town on Monday.
Hunt said the Starbucks store — which would feature drive-through service — would not have a franchise look, but would be built in an architectural style more harmonious with a small town. He added the Starbucks would create more orderly traffic flow in and out of the site and would supplant a current eyesore — the now-defunct car wash, though several people in Monday's crowd questioned why the company hadn't taken it down already.
Hunt said the Starbucks would be screened from its southerly approach.
Christian Keidel, a district manager for Starbucks in South Burlington, said the company's Middlebury store would likely employ 17-20 people, who would qualify for medical benefits at 20 hours per week.
DRB member Nancy Malcolm asked Hunt if he had tried to accommodate Starbucks within existing storefront vacancies in The Centre. Hunt said he had, but Starbucks officials said they wanted their own store.
"This is their preferred model — to be a free standing store," Hunt said, adding "I don't think there would be a store without a drive-through."
Members of Middlebury's Design Advisory Committee (DAC) were also on hand at Monday's meeting. Some of them gave a less than glowing appraisal of the proposed stores. Natalie Peters, a member of the DAC, said she was disappointed developers had not taken an opportunity to site the stores in a more inviting manner to residential developments springing up near The Centre. She and others noted the two new buildings, like the rest of The Centre, are oriented toward Route 7.
"I don't hear you addressing what's happening around you and how you would address it," Peters said. "I wonder how you want to address your place in context with what's coming up around you."
Glenn Andres, another member of the DRB, agreed.
"It seems that with these buildings, we should see a much more coherent vision of how The Centre is planned," Andres said.
Many other residents also voiced their concern about the two stores.
Frank Burkle, a former owner of the Computer Alternatives store in Middlebury, took issue with Hunt's assertion that Staples and Starbucks would not harm current businesses in town.
"There are seven … pretty strong morning café situations here," Burkle said. "Let's keep that real."
He added there are several small computer businesses in the Middlebury area that could be hurt by a Staples.
"I don't want it going in the (meeting) minutes that there are no computer places here and no stationary places here when there are," Burkle said.
Former town planning commission Chairwoman Susan DeWind, among others, referenced several passages in Middlebury's town plan that discourage large-scale retail ventures outside of the downtown.
Those passages include:
• "Any new development must reflect and relate to existing settlement to the north and east, and should relate to and complement the existing downtown uses. Because the continuing economic vitality of our downtown so directly shapes the character of our community, development (on Court Street/Route 7) shall not overshadow the downtown area as Middlebury's business, civic and cultural center."
• "A fundamental objective of this town plan is to maintain Middlebury's image as a traditional Vermont town and to prevent incremental change to 'Anywhere U.S.A.' Therefore, the plan and zoning provide for careful review of all development with special emphasis on preserving the approaches to Middlebury. High-traffic generating uses, big-box retail or commercial strip development and franchises and stereotype architecture do not conform with this plan. Franchises of a small scale nature may be permitted on a conditional basis provided that they are low traffic generating and designed to conform to the character and scale of traditional historic buildings in Middlebury and Vermont."
• Applications for new or expanded commercial or institutional projects located outside of this downtown area must demonstrate that there will not be an unmitigated, undue adverse impact on the cultural and economic vitality of the downtown."
"Many businesses that might suffer from this new development are essential to the balance of economic diversity necessary for downtown health," DeWind said. "If we allow our businesses that serve local needs to be undermined by the expansion of this shopping center and more strip development, we no longer have a healthy, functioning village, which is fragile already."
Ripton resident Michelle Fay presented the DRB with a petition bearing the names of 1,072 people asking that the town reject the two store applications, in part due to the potential impacts on downtown stores like Main Street Stationary and Carol's Hungry Mind Café.
Fay asked the DRB to require that the developers commission an economic impact study — done by a local firm — to determine potential affects of the Starbucks and Staples on local businesses.
Barbara Tomb, co-owner of Main Street Stationary, urged the DRB to take stock in the town plan as it evaluates the Starbucks and Staples applications.
"It's like our Constitution," she said of the town plan. "This is the time to stand up for what was written."
Greg Tomb, also co-owner of Main Street Stationary, noted slim profit margins for many downtown business owners who don't have the same financial supports as large corporate entities.
"There is no big brother looking over your shoulder helping to write checks," Tomb said. "There are no deep pockets here."
The DRB will give Myron Hunt Inc. time to present more evidence — including an economic impact study — before scheduling the next hearing on the two store applications.


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The Broadway musical "Annie" is enjoying another revival on Broadway. The show opened during the Carter administration when America was in need of some optimism. "The sun'll come out tomorrow," sang Annie, and with the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980, for a while, it did.
Now we're back in "Hooverville," the name given to shanty towns that popped up during the Great Depression. It isn't that bad yet, though the Obama administration is forecasting gloom and doom if Republicans don't cave on another tax increase.
"We'd like to thank you Herbert Hoover for really showing us the way," sang the fictional residents of "Hooverville" in "Annie." Now, I think we need an updated song that reflects what this administration has given us and so I offer these original lyrics to be sung to the tune of "Margaritaville." All together now:
Millions on food stamps
Finding jobs? No chance
Government spending has put us in hock
Taxing and spending
Without any ending
If we go on like this we'll all be in shock.
Wasting away today in new Sequesterville
Searching for some honest pols in D.C.
Some people claim that just one party's to blame
But I know the real problem is we.
Yes, the real problem is that too many of us send these politicians from different parties to Washington only to then complain about the gridlock. It's because too many of us haven't made up our minds what we want government to be, what we should expect from it and, more importantly, what we should expect from ourselves.
The entire sequester scenario is about delivering the House of Representatives to Democrats in 2014. The Washington Post last week exposed that strategy. "Obama, fresh off his November re-election," writes the Post, "began almost at once executing plans to win back the House in 2014, which he and his advisers believe will be crucial to the outcome of his second term and to his legacy as president. He is doing so by trying to articulate for the American electorate his own feelings -- an exasperation with an opposition party that blocks even the most politically popular elements of his agenda."
Furloughing people from government jobs is part of the process, but unnecessary. According to projections from the Congressional Budget Office, tax revenue could hit $2.7 trillion in 2013. Government doesn't lack revenue. Government lacks restraint.
On Monday, the first regular workday under sequestration, federal agencies posted more than 400 job ads. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is predicting long lines at major airports due to anticipated furloughs and yet, according to CNS News, the Transportation Security Administration spent $50 million late last month on new uniforms, some of which will be manufactured in Mexico.
The government is not so broke that it can't find $250 million in aid to send to Egypt.
Jim McElhatton of The Washington Times discovered federal purchasing records that show "The Environmental Protection Agency spent nearly $40,000 on a portrait of Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, while a painting of Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley will cost $41,200. ... The price tag for a 3-by-4-foot oil portrait of Agriculture Department Secretary Thomas J. Vilsack: $22,500."
In a digital age when photographs can be made to look like oil paintings, the government could have saved a lot of money by taking a high-resolution picture of these "public servants," or even better, asking them to pay for their own portraits.
Voters had better pay attention to this stuff, otherwise liberal politicians will cause them to fall for more lies. Remember the judge and jury in the musical "Chicago"? Shyster lawyer Billy Flynn explained how to win them over, singing:
"Give 'em the old razzle dazzle
Razzle Dazzle 'em.
Give 'em an act with lots of flash in it
And the reaction will be passionate
Give 'em the old hocus pocus
Bead and feather 'em
How can they see with sequins in their eyes?
..Razzle dazzle them and they'll never catch wise."
Thus ends this mixed musical metaphor tribute to the phoniness that consumes Washington, as we waste away in Sequesterville.