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When you go to buy your first Pointe shoe toe pads, take your time. Let your parent know that you cannot be rushed or pressured in any way. It is very exciting, but you are composed, calm, and have some idea of the challenge of the sizing variations in Pointe shoes, the styles, the brands, and the possibilities of which one will be exactly the right fit for you.
You may already know your foot type and what type of Pointe shoe toe pads you need.
- A wide, shallow box, non-tapered, low wings and medium strong shank.
- A deep box, high vamp, high winds and very strong shank.
- A tapered box, narrow, medium vamp, more flexible shank.
And there are so many more variables! Every Bloch, Sansha, Freed, Capezio (and more and more) shoe have lots of shapes, strengths and styles. Since everyone's foot is anatomically different, even though it belongs to a "type", just try on a lot of shoes.
Your toes may feel constricted, but you should be able to wiggle them. You must be able to do a demo play at first and a small second position, without pain, although this will feel compressed. The wings of the shoes should cover your little toe as well as the other four toes.
You will probably want some type of toe protectors. Gel "ouch pads", lamb's wool, or an individual (for example, for a long second toe, or its neighbor big toe) toe shield may be needed. Padding can be used to equalize the pressure that will bear on the toes, which are always of varying lengths.
Many ballet students worry that their toe shoes will hurt too much for them to dance well. It cannot be emphasized enough that the stronger your sole-of-foot muscles are, the more control over the shoe you will have.
Read also –Aerosol Mary Jane Shoes: Perfect Combined Style And Comfort
If the shoe is not the BEST fit, but pretty close, strong feet will still dance well.
Pointe shoe toe pads are not meant to fit quite like a glove. Snugly, yes, but you must be able to do a demo play in fifth and second position without excruciating pressure on the ends of your toes. On point, the toes should not be loose in the box (too long or too wide) either, or your feet will not be supported.


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- Scar Esthetique® Scar Crème$34.50Scar Esthetique® Scar Crème helps reduce the appearance, size, height, thickness, and color of scars for all skin types and color. Scar Esthetique® works well on both new and old scars regardless of the age of the scar, and can be used on surgical scars, hypertrophic and keloid scars, and other scar types caused by injury, trauma, and burn. Scar Esthetique contains all products within RejuvaSil as well as, several additional products which can help treat skin discoloration. Also, this advanced scar cream contains anti-oxidants, which helps increase the skin's support structure, improve skin tone, and reduce the appearance of imperfections at the cellular level.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Chris Brown Spotted with Rihanna ... or Notby Free Britney at .
Rihanna's appearance at Game Four of the NBA Finals Thursday caused quite a stir, and nearly resulted in a run-in with her embattled ex, Chris Brown, who was a front-row regular at the Orlando Magic-LA Lakers series and throughout the playoffs.
It turns out Rihanna attended the game because she's crushing on Rashard Lewis of the Magic, and she and Brown didn't cross paths, though they came close.
Last night's Game Five, however, was a different story. The two were sitting right next to each other ... or were they? Check out this photo from the game ...
Is this a photo of Chris Brown and Rihanna? Follow the jump and see ...It's not! That's actually Teyana Taylor, one of Pharrell's singer proteges.
Amazingly, RiRi's doppleganger is mad at the AP and Yahoo for misidentifying her at the NBA Finals. Here's what she had to say about it on her Twitter page ...
"omgggg if one more reporter say that im rihanna im gonna go crazzzzzzzyyyyyyyyyyyy ... I wish the AP would do a little research. since wen am i RIhanna ... yahoo and everybody else just did a biggg f***in s**t"
Mmm hmm. How could someone possibly be confused by the girl sporting Rihanna's recent signature mohawk, with Rihanna's recent signature shades, sitting one person away from Chris Brown at an event they were both at two days before?
Makes no sense to us.


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I use Photoshop Elements 5. The Editor Window is the name of the main working window in Photoshop. That is where you will do the work on your picture.
The Photo Bin contains a thumbnail of each picture you loaded into Photoshop. The Layers Bin displays all the layers for whichever photo is in the Main Editor Window.
When you click on a photo in the Photo Bin, it becomes encased in a blue box, displays in the Main Editor Window and all of its layers will display in the Layers Bin. All three are interrelated.
The entire right column, containing both the "Arts and Effects Bin" and the "Layers Bin" is called the Palette Bin.
Refer back to this picture if you are not sure of something when I am directing you to these areas on any of my pages. You can download the picture using right click, save image. That way you can just open it on your computer rather than having to return here.
In Photoshop each picture is broken down into layers. A picture will begin its Photoshop life as a single layer.
As an example; this is the final picture
of this collection of layers.
It began life as the bottom layer. The picture is torn in half. Each side is a layer as well as having an underlying layer. All layers automatically align perfectly. The offset alignment in the above torn bike picture is intentional; not from misalignment by Photoshop.
Also, each piece of masking tape has its own layer. That way I can move them around, change the size and make other custom changes to each one individually.
The highest layer in the Layers Bin is the top layer in your picture. It will obscure whatever is beneath it in the other layers. It works just like having a stack of physical sheets of paper on your desk.
You can change the order of the stack by dragging any layer higher or lower in the Layers Bin. You can show through a layer by making it partially or fully transparent.
Photoshop Effects such as "Old Paper" create an extra layer automatically when you apply them.
Some effects will not allow you to apply them to the "Locked" Background layer. Linear Burn is one of those.
To create a nighttime scene you will use the Linear Burn effect.
The original layer of a picture will be the locked background layer unless you change it. That means many available effects cannot be applied to it. That is for your protection.
When I load a picture into Photoshop, the first thing I do is make a copy and turn off the locked background layer.
I recommend always maintaining one original layer of the photo you are currently editing.
That way you always have a backup just in case. I recommend that you turn off the locked background layer. When it is turned off it will not display in the Main Editor Window, thus you will not make changes to it.
Periodically watch to make sure you are not changing the locked layer. It is your insurance policy. In general the only layer that you are making changes to is the one highlighted in the Layers bin. There are exceptions to this rule. Cropping is an example of an exception; all layers will be cropped to maintain alignment.
You can recognize the locked layer by the padlock on the right side. And you'll know it is off when you do not see the little eyeball to the left. Click in that square and you will see the eyeball change status each time you click.
Don't be fooled, you can still do enough damage to the locked layer to lose it as an original. I stay away from it almost entirely and use it only for emergency backup. And then I make a copy of it rather than make changes to it.
There are exceptions. There are things you can do with it that will not change the layer; those effects will simply duplicate it for other purposes. These things you will learn as you go along.
"Drag and drop" is a term for clicking and holding your mouse button while the cursor hovers over an object you want moved; moving the mouse to a new location and then release. Whatever you clicked on will move to the new location. This is a general computer term.
As you work on the picture you will be creating layers. Some times you will manually create a layer; some times Photoshop creates a layer.
You can manually duplicate a layer in two ways. You can either drag and drop a layer from the Layers Bin to the "Create a New Layer" icon or right click and choose "Duplicate Layer."
You can also create an empty layer merely by clicking on the "Create a New Layer" icon. The stars layer for the above nighttime scene is a good example of a reason to create an empty layer.
The only thing I have in that layer is the stars. When you work your photos this way, should a problem arise, you can simply delete that one layer rather than having to scrap the entire project. I learned this lesson the hard way. :) Now you don't have to.
A Photoshop PSD file is one in which all the layers of a particular picture are saved just as you see them in the Layers Bin. When you're working on a picture with more than one layer and click "File" and then "Save As", Photoshop's default is to save it as a PSD file. You will have to change that when you choose to save it as a jpg.
This is what a PSD which I have saved looks like on my computer screen.
Windows cannot open a PSD file so it does not appear as a thumbnail. That is why I store a thumbnail along with each PSD file. That way I have a visual of what it contains. When you reload the PSD, Photoshop opens it up with all the layers just like you last saw them.
One thing to note is that Control z does not work on a reloaded PSD file. You can only move forward. So before you do a final save to a PSD, realize there is no turning back once you close it out of Photoshop.
If you are unfamiliar with "Control-z" don't worry about it right now. I describe it and its function on many of my pages.
I save the PSD as I go as well as the jpg; that way if something happens you have all the layers safe and sound; not just a jpg file which you would once again have to break down into the layers you had before the catastrophe.
The next day, when I look at any finished picture, I am not happy with it. Having the PSD file I easily reload it into Photoshop, make an adjustment, save both the new jpg and the new PSD and I'm done. Now the picture is perfect - - - until next time I see it. Catch my drift?
That's all I can think of right now concerning layers & PSDs in Photoshop. If you have any questions or suggestions; please go to my contact page and write me. Thank you.
Go to my Home Page. My sitemap is here.
Read about us here. Our privacy policy is here. And our disclaimer here.


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By Iain Blair
With his distinctive, anarchic, immersive style, director/producer/screenwriter David Ayer has always excelled at probing the murky depths of human behavior and blurring the lines between the bad guys and the good guys in such hardcore films as Training Day, Fury, Sabotage, Harsh Times and End of Watch. Now Ayer, whose credits include Street Kings, and the screenplays for U-571, The Fast and the Furious, Dark Blue and S.W.A.T., has made Suicide Squad, a blockbuster without the usual bluster, and a superhero movie without the usual heroes.
With an all-star cast that includes Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman and Viola Davis, and based on the DC Comics anti-heroes, it tells the story of a rogues gallery of outcasts who are assembled into a team, equipped with the most powerful arsenal at the government's disposal, and sent off on a mission to defeat an enigmatic entity.
Ayer's behind-the-scenes stellar creative team included director of photography Roman Vasyanov, production designer Oliver Scholl, editor John Gilroy and visual effects supervisor Jerome Chen. The music is by composer Steven Price. The Warner Bros. film was released in 3D, 2D and in select IMAX 3D theaters.
I spoke with Ayer on the eve of its release about making Suicide Squad and why editing is like a wrestling match.
This is definitely not your usual superhero movie. What was the appeal of doing it, as there're so many superhero films out there now?
Great question. When I did Fury, it was all about historical accuracy and recreating WWII. With this, I wanted to try and create a fantasy world and give it this real and gritty feel that I like as a director, and bring that sensibility to a comic book movie and create multi-dimensional characters through casting amazing actors — and ground the fantastical as much as possible in reality.
What were the main technical challenges in pulling it all together?
In a lot of ways filmmaking is very mechanical, and all the processes are sort of an industrial process. So it was dealing with all the sets and set pieces, the sheer scale of it, and that becomes about logistics — building them, tearing them down, building new sets on the same stages, and how to move all these pieces around and keep your crews running smoothly. It was a massive undertaking.
How early on did you start integrating post and all the VFX?
Sony Imageworks' Jerome Chen — who did the VFX on Fury, and the Spider-Man films as well as Beowulf and The Polar Express for Bob Zemeckis — came in right at the start. We did extremely complex CG characters in this, so we spent a lot of time figuring out how to go about doing it and what were the best techniques. It took a lot of time and work, and we also had to figure out all the computer time and the renderfarms we needed to generate the shots, so all the VFX were embedded in the shoot from day one. We set up witness cameras to record everything the crew did, we had constant telemetry and a ton of data gathering.
Did you do a lot of previs?
Quite a lot. Third Floor did them. It's a very interesting technique, as for certain scenes you absolutely have to have it. You have to go in knowing efficiently where you're going to have to drop that camera on the set, and there are a few scenes that almost exactly match the previs we did. But other times it's not really an essential tool
You reunited with director of photography Roman Vasyanov, who shot Fury and End of Watch. How tough was the shoot?
We did most of the principal photography at Pinewood Toronto Studios, and it was a long and grueling shoot. I was very happy to get to post!
Do you like the post process?
I love post. You know you're going to work every day, that's for sure. We did it all on the lot at Warners. It's always challenging because film isn't logical, it's emotional, and it comes together in strange ways. It's never a linear journey, and you go down blind alleys and try to solve problems, and not every problem wants to yield its secrets.
Can you talk about working with editor John Gilroy, (Nightcrawler, Pacific Rim, The Bourne Legacy, Michael Clayton). Was he on the set?
He set up editorial in Toronto so it was up and running from the beginning. He tried to keep up with the shoot as much as possible as we shot on film, so there's the lag between photography and the dailies reaching editorial.
And you like to shoot, don't you?
(Laughs) I do shoot a lot! Over 1.5 million feet of film on this — so it's a lot of work just to watch it and keep the assembly up to date. Then we did the main editing back on the lot. I love editing even though it's baffling and frustrating and wonderful, all at the same time. The challenge is always that you can make an infinite number of films out of the same footage, and whatever your ideas and dreams are going in, they're going to be shattered along the way — because the movie wants to be what it wants to be, and you can only fight that so much. You're wrestling every day to find the right film.
All the VFX play a big role. Talk about working on them with VFX supervisor Jerome Chen who did Fury for you.
We have this shorthand, and he knows my taste and how I think and what I'm going to want and how I'm going to want it. It's a pretty seamless relationship, and he also has great ideas; he often surprises me. This was a huge job with thousands of VFX shots, and a lot of vendors, but the main ones were MPC and Sony Pictures Imageworks.
What was the hardest VFX sequence to do?
Anything with full CG characters is hard. It's hard to shoot that and block it and hard to edit things you can't see. You end up with this hodgepodge of previs and half-finished shots and slowly the finished VFX stuff gets dropped in.
Where did you do the DI and how important is it to you?
At Shed in Santa Monica, a fairly new company [which runs Baselight's latest Generation VI system with more grading power]. We did the DI with colorist Yvan Lucas, who co-founded the company. He did Fury, but this was my first time at The Shed, and he did an amazing job. The film looks very beautiful. The DI is so important, and it's almost my favorite part of post. I get in there and look at every shot. Yvan and Roman would do a pass and then I'd do one, and we'd keep passing the baton like that until we were all happy.
For me, it's where the film really comes to life. After seeing it in dailies for so long, it's such a pleasure to see it like this. We did everything from the overall look to saturation and contrast matching, and some re-composition now and again. We shot the film in a very precise way and composed shots very specifically, but the DI lets you do some re-comps if needed when you simply don't have the time on the day of the shoot, especially with exterior stuff.
Did the film turn out the way you hoped?
It was mostly what I had envisioned, but the mechanics of how you get there and how to tell the best story were a bit different, and you can't foresee that. It was a great experience, and I can safely say I learned more about filmmaking on this than on any other film I've done. It was a maturing as a filmmaker.
What's next?
I'm doing Bright with Will Smith. We start shooting in the fall.
Will you do another superhero movie?
(Laughs) I'll wait to see how the fans respond to this before I put my neck on the block again.
Industry insider Iain Blair has been interviewing the biggest directors in Hollywood and around the world for years. He is a regular contributor to Variety and has written for such outlets as Reuters, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times and the Boston Globe.


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At long last, Fujifilm has rightfully carried its retro design over to its instant film camera line. The Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic turns its back on the blob-shaped marshmallow-hued shell of its previously launched brethren and mirrors the vintage camera blueprint of the company's X-Series mirrorless line-up.
The Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic comes in a stunning silver and black body. It uses 86mm x 54mm color film and prints out 62mm x 46mm pictures.
What's interesting about the camera, apart from its design, is its double-exposure feature that lets you overlay one shot over another in one frame. It also has macro mode, a "Kids Mode" for shooting moving subjects, "Party Mode" for keeping both the foreground and background well-lit in dark shooting conditions, landscape mode, a self-timer function, plus a bulb mode that lets you shoot 10-second exposures at the maximum. The camera also has brightness controls.
The Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic will be sold in the Philippines at a retail price of PHP 8,980.


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(October 20th)
"Amazing work, Dragonfly. I must admit, you've impressed me. I gave you only a 41% chance of reaching this level of success." Clockwork smiled broadly, leaned back in his chair. "It is nice to be proven wrong."
"Wasn't so hard. Especially since you didn't want me to kill her." Don shrugged easily. "Truth be told, that might have been harder." His helmet had been removed, and was sitting in the chair next to him, and he was casually combing his hair as he glanced around the briefing room. "Now her suit's dead, what's the next plan?"
"For now? Simply train. We have to prepare the next stage of the operation." Standing briskly, Clockwork gestured for Dragonfly to leave. "And welcome to the Oligarchs. You've earned your place."
"Nice." Dragonfly grinned and stood, bowing to Clockwork. The latter waved it off.
"No more of that. You're one of us, now, not a mere disposable minion." Clockwork smiled broadly. "Warzone and I just tend to brainstorm alone." He paused thoughtfully. "Actually, if you don't mind high-level planning…"
"Ehn, that's okay. I need to see the Doc about checking a couple of these systems, anyway. That Tony gave me a bit of a beating." Tossing a wave, Dragonfly grabbed his helmet and strolled out. Clockwork kept his smile fixed a moment longer, until it was clear the door would not hiss open again, and then his face collapsed into rolled eyes and a grimace as he turned to his friend.
"My god, he's predictable. No supervillain should be that easy to play." Shaking his head, he walked over to the whiteboard. "A scrap of affection and he's yours forever."
"He has spirit, though." Warzone shrugged thoughtfully. "And I admire his drive."
"I admire his manipulability." Clockwork waved a hand before the next question could be asked. "No, I wasn't lying about him joining the team. You're right, he has spirit, and he really did exceed my expectations significantly. That doesn't happen often." He sighed heavily, tossing his dry-erase marker from one hand to the other. "He'll do for the position, and we need to bolster our numbers. I just wish we had better material to work with."
Warzone just looked at his companion. After a moment, he spoke thoughtfully. "You're more worried about the Witch Doctor than Dragonfly, aren't you?"
"No." Clockwork hesitated. "Maybe. He's going to need keeping an eye on – I hate to say it about a fellow supergenius, but I don't trust him not to screw things up." He sat back down, tossing the marker to one side. "I miss the old days. Six of us against the world."
"I didn't think you were the sentimental type." Warzone paused, then chuckled low. "Besides, when there were six of us against the world, you complained about Bad Penny and Laughingstock."
"Don't speak ill of the dead, Zone. Penny was okay. I just had a crush on her." Clockwork smiled ruefully, thinking back across the years. "Laughingstock… okay, yeah, he was an albatross around our necks. But I kind of miss him now that he's gone." He frowned a moment, then grinned suddenly. "We do have a necromancer…"
"I know, I know." Clockwork laughed. "It was just a thought. Besides, we have our other operation to deal with, and it is going to be a killer. Any ideas for how we're going to manage?"
"Of course. I am, after all, a tactical genius." Warzone gave an unpleasant laugh. "It will be complex, however. I imagine getting the needed pieces together will take a few months." He stood, arms crossed dramatically. "But afterwards – afterwards, we will control the Handyman's home. One by one, the Champions will fall."


text: Lightweight. Durable. Loud. The BRAVEN Ready Solo™ is the portable Bluetooth speaker prepared to take on the most challenging outdoor activities by your side. An extended range driver and all-direction subwoofer encased in a shockproof thermoplastic housing and aircraft grade aluminum grille produce custom tuned audio with beautiful highs and deep lows. The best part? It lasts for 12 full hours. The Ready Solo has an integrated ¼" thread mount and included action mount that secures the speaker to bicycles, outdoor vehicles and most GoPro compatible mounts. It even stands up to the the most wet, dusty and rugged environments with an IP68 water and debris-proof certification that thrives even in a 30-minute dunk in up to one meter of water. Use the noise cancelling speakerphone to make calls, use voice control to give commands to your mobile device or charge your smartphone from the USB output port drawing power from the 2200mAh battery bank.


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Henri Nouwen preached some incredible sermons at the former Crystal Cathedral in Orange County, California back in the 1990's. He shares some incredible insights on what makes us human, the meaning of life, and the ministry of Jesus.
Nouwen entices us to consider that we are more loved than we could ever imagine and that the Father is waiting for us to relax into his welcoming arms of love. When we embrace our identity as the Beloved of God, then we find our true selves and can authentically be the person we are meant to be. He warns us against valuing ourselves based on what we do, what we have or what people say about us.
Check out the videos here.


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Here's a collection of killer concept art recently posted to the website of Marvel Studios' conceptual artist Rodney Fuentebella, showcasing his various alternative design takes and evolutions of Ultron and his many Minions and Sentries for Avengers: Age of Ultron. Fuentebella's polished visions have been a major influence on many Marvel projects, like The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Man 3, Captain America: The First Avenger and Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Take a look at these gorgeous images of Ultron Prime and his potent army of soaring A.I. drones and tell us if you'd make any alterations to the finished film versions.
(Via Concept Art World)


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REPORTING · 29th December 2012
Walter McFarlane
The meetings took place over two nights, Tuesday December 11th and Wednesday, December 12th. Each started at 6:00 pm. The goal is to have a budget with a tax increase of 2% over the 2012 budget levels. The budget which has been drawn up fits this goal.
The Finance Department has been working hard in conjunction with the various departments to put together a preliminary budget prior to year end. It is our intention to start the budget process earlier this year in order for Mayor and Council to have information ahead of time, before finalizing a budget in March with the bylaws going for approval in April and May. The benefit of presenting the budget now is it gives the public ample time to consider what is being discussed, what major projects are being planned and the potential tax implications involved. The public is encouraged to attend these budget presentations and provide feedback by calling the District office and Via the City Website, we will be posting the preliminary budget online following the budget presentations, said Municipal Manager Ron Poole.
The meetings were straight forward. Municipal Treasurer Steve Christiansen told Council where the changes were in the budget from last year. Following this, the department heads presented their budgets to Council.
Following this was a discussion on community grants, reserves and ending with feedback from Council. They would also bring back projects for pre-approval.
Kitimat wants feed back.....
Comment by
Larry Walker
on 29th December 2012
You really don't want my 2 cents worth on your already agreed upon 2 percent tax hike. You job (if you want to call it that), is to find ways to CUT THE TAX RATE and (if you are any good at what you do)....INCREASE THE LEVEL OF SERVICE.


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Web Developer
We're on the hunt for a local web developer who is looking to join a creative environment. Applicants should have CMS (PHP: frameworks; Drupal; and JOOMLA) and JS/React experience.
We're looking for passionate sales people to help our fast growing brand.
The ideal candidate should have sales experience and be a self-starter.
Freelancer Writers and Photographers
We're looking for talented freelance writers and photographers with a sharp eye for detail and unique voice. We cover a wide range of topics, from the best bun cha in Ba Dinh to over-tourism in Sapa, up-and-coming artists and so much more. If you'd like to contribute to Urbanist Hanoi, please send a completed pitch form to firstname.lastname@example.com and let us know what your vision is.
We accept feature stories ranging from 800-1,200 words, though exceptions for shorter or longer pieces can be made if warranted. Photo essays include about 200 words of intro text and captions accompanying around 15 images. We pay competitively and on time. Before you pitch, be sure to look through our site to make sure your angle hasn't been covered recently. We look forward to seeing your ideas!
Editorial interns can hone their skills and gain plenty of hands-on experience at Urbanist Hanoi.
For editorial interns, we offer a 12-week program for novice writers focusing on writing both short, easily digestible pieces for an online audience as well as developing longer, more in-depth original features. Previous writing experience is not required, however a self-starter attitude and strong English writing skills are a must. Interested applicants should send a cover letter, CV, and English-language writing sample to firstname.lastname@example.com.
Shoot us an email with your CV - firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Your chance to star in this year's panto at the New Victoria Theatre
Oh yes it is! It's that time of year again when the wonders of Panto come to Woking! The New Victoria Theatre, Woking is proud to present the most magical fairytale of them all, Cinderella from Friday 6 December 2013 - Sunday 5 January 2014.
Open auditions are being held to find the stars of the Juvenile Chorus for this year's spectacular panto production of Cinderella.
All you need to do is come to the open auditions which are being held on Sunday 22 September at Woking Leisure Centre from 11am and we are looking for children between the ages of 6 and 16.
There is no need to sign up or fill anything in, simply turn up on Sunday 22 September for your chance to star in the show!
BAFTA award-winning Cbeebies superstar Justin Fletcher will star in the spectacular and magical fairytale pantomime this Christmas. Joining him is Blue Peter and Dancing on Ice favourite Zöe Salmon as the beautiful Cinderella and providing some laughter will be top comedian Hal Cruttenden. With sumptuous sets, gorgeous fairytale costumes, riotous Panto dames, real Shetland ponies, big song and dance numbers, magic and audience participation you're guaranteed The Godmother of all pantos!
Latest News


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A Bag Just Waiting To Get Loaded
- The ideal bag for grocery store, farmers market, food drive donation center promotions.
- Made from durable 70# Recycled Kraft Paper.
- Serrated cut top, a well constructed bottom gusset and 1/7 BBL handle down paper handles.
- Designed to support more weight than standard plastic t-shirt bags.
- Strong bottom gusset allows ease of handling a good deal of product.
- This economical paper bag is a branding super star and a staple item at most grocery store check out lines.
- Seam line is on the front side of the bag.
- Available plain or custom printed.


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Ron Paul Warns Immigration 'Reform' Will Turn the US into a Police StatePolitics / US Politics Feb 05, 2013 - 02:31 AM GMT
Whenever the federal government decides to reform something we can be fairly sure that the problem is about to get worse, especially if they call the plan bi-partisan. The bi-partisan immigration reform proposal launched last week in the US Senate will be no different.
The new plan, introduced by Sens. McCain and Schumer, would provide a path to citizenship for many of those in the United States illegally. This would only begin after the borders are deemed secure and applicants have paid fees for their illegal entry. They must also pay back taxes on their earnings while working here without government permission. Those on a path to citizenship would be subject to background checks and would be monitored while in the US.
The devil is in the details, and the details of the McCain plan are deeply disturbing. To secure the borders he is calling for a massive increase in drones flying over US territory, spying on US citizens along the border - and presumably within the 100 mile "border zone" over which Department of Homeland Security claims jurisdiction. What if these drones detect suspicious activity unrelated to illegal immigration? Imagine the implications for the federal government's disastrous war on drugs. Imagine what's left of the Fourth Amendment completely tossed into the trashcan. The "privatized" prison system in the US that now benefits from the war on drugs and illegal immigration will no doubt look forward to booming business thanks to the army of drones overhead.
Additionally, the McCain/Schumer plan calls for a nationwide, mandatory E-Verify program, which forces employers to act as federal immigration agents, and forces American citizens to prove to the government that they are allowed to work. E-Verify is an East Germany-like program that creates a massive federal database of every American citizen and notes whether or not they are permitted to work.
As Cato Institute privacy expert Jim Harper noted of e-Verify, potentially tens of thousands of American citizens would come up as a false positive for illegal status, denying them the right to work and forcing them to prove to the government that they are not here illegally. He writes, "If E-Verify goes national, get used to hearing that Orwellian term: 'non-confirmation.'"
Harper rightly notes that E-Verify is in fact a national ID card, writing last week that, "the system must biometrically identify everyone who works--you, me, and every working American you know. There is no way to do internal enforcement of immigration law without a biometric national identity system."
Much of the most recent immigration problem of the 2000s was actually created by the federal government. The easy money policy of the Federal Reserve blew up the housing bubble and created enormous demand for labor. This artificial demand was filled largely by workers who crossed into the US illegally. Within a year of the housing market crash in 2008, an estimated one million illegal workers left the United States for Mexico and beyond. Net illegal immigration into the United States last year had fallen to zero.
As I noted in my most recent book, Liberty Defined, much of our immigration problems would be eliminated were the federal government to simply return to sound money practices and end the welfare incentive for individuals to come to the US illegally. Afterward, what remains of the problem would mostly be solved with a far more generous and flexible guest worker program. Whatever the case, turning the US into a police state in order to fight a hyped up illegal immigration "crisis" is a bad deal for us all.
Dr. Ron Paul
Project Freedom
Congressman Ron Paul of Texas enjoys a national reputation as the premier advocate for liberty in politics today. Dr. Paul is the leading spokesman in Washington for limited constitutional government, low taxes, free markets, and a return to sound monetary policies based on commodity-backed currency. He is known among both his colleagues in Congress and his constituents for his consistent voting record in the House of Representatives: Dr. Paul never votes for legislation unless the proposed measure is expressly authorized by the Constitution. In the words of former Treasury Secretary William Simon, Dr. Paul is the "one exception to the Gang of 535" on Capitol Hill.
Dr. Ron Paul Archive
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Bruschetta Chicken – An easy and delicious dinner recipe that has the perfect combination of flavors. So fresh and is one of our favorite summer meals. This chicken bruschetta bake is definitely a must-make!
Chicken bruschetta bake
Last week, I made my favorite bruschetta recipe and it was SO delicious! When summer rolls around, I'm always reminded of how much I love bruschetta and just how tasty it is. We had some of the bruschetta mixture leftover, so what better way to use it up by making a chicken bruschetta bake! If you've never tried bruschetta chicken, it is so simple and the bruschetta compliments the chicken so well. It makes the perfect flavor combination and is one of my favorite meals this time of year!
How to make bruschetta
If you've never made bruschetta, don't worry…it's super easy! Just follow the simple steps below. Click here for the printable bruschetta recipe.
Combine the tomatoes, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic and basil. Salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate to allow the flavors to marinate.
Quick tips about this chicken bruschetta
- If you'd rather grill the bruschetta chicken instead of bake it, you easily can. Just season the chicken and cook on grill until cooked through.
- I like to serve the chicken bruschetta bake on a bed of lettuce and top with parmesan flakes.
- To make your own balsamic glaze, try this recipe.
- This chicken bruschetta would also taste delicious with a piece of mozzarella melted on top. Once chicken is cooked through, just top it with a slice of mozzarella and let melt. Then top with bruschetta mixture.
- You could also turn this into a pasta salad. Cook and dice the chicken and then add chicken, bruschetta and pasta to a bowl and mix. I like this recipe.
- Are you missing the bread that's in the traditional bruschetta recipe? You could easily incorporate it back in! I would cut a a french baguette into 4 pieces (then slice vertically) and add cooked chicken slices and bruschetta on top. It would be extra yummy topped with melted cheese too. :)
Love this bruschetta chicken recipe? You'll like these other easy chicken recipes too:
- Pizza stuffed chicken breast
- Grilled BBQ chicken foil dinner
- One pan balsamic chicken and veggies
- Baked teriyaki chicken bowls
Bruschetta Chicken Recipe
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut in half horizontally)
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups bruschetta
- 1/3 cup balsamic glaze
- 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- Place the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with the Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
- Place the chicken into the pan. Cook for 5-6 minutes per side, or until cooked through the center.
- Once cooked, remove from the heat. Top with bruschetta, parmesan cheese and pour the glaze over top.


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Women's Winter Coat Trends
Guide books for expatriates living or working in Thailand tend to be for males. None of them focus on the fact that a international girl could have bother finding a bra or swimsuit that matches! This lens gives a overseas lady in Thailand assist with that plus just a few more objects which can be easy to overlook to make her stay way more nice. Vivid/bright colors, like red, will make you stand out and be observed by more folks than in case you wear something muted like navy blue or black, which in turn results in getting requested to bop extra. I feel the unidentified piece of jewelry is a holder for a watch or decorative fob, which would hand from the hook at the bottom. Thanks for this useful resource. I do not know whether or not that's an actual vogue mannequin, but it's a horrifying sight. I've identified of girls myself who are ravenous themselves to get more and more skinnier, so it does concern me (especially being the mother to a young daughter) the form of notion of magnificence the fashion people are placing out! Hope it adjustments!!
The costumery would almost certainly reflect the nature of the mission Marvel Lady was assigned albeit in tune with present style developments. Beloved the part concerning the findings and how they're hooked up giving the items age away. Very attention-grabbing lens, nice massive like on this. Heaps extra deliberate for the remainder of the holiday with a sneaky … Read More


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MINDEN, Nev. — Douglas High School is the top-ranked rural high school in Nevada, according to the U.S. News & World … [Read More...]
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By Timothy Farnsworth
In recent years, cyber attacks and the threats they pose have grown in sophistication, from low-level disruption and data theft—which are still a majority of cyber attacks—to high-level espionage and destruction.
Stuxnet, a piece of malware believed to be responsible for destroying approximately 1,000 centrifuges in Iran's Natanz nuclear facility in late 2009 and early 2010, was a game-changer. For the first time, a computer virus was used to destroy a piece of physical infrastructure and the world took notice. The power of such a capability is clear today, but what happens once a wide range of counties and actors acquire equally sophisticated and powerful capabilities and there is no longer a technological gap between the United States, its allies, and the rest of the world?
While the prospect of a sophisticated cyber attack that could cripple critical infrastructure is currently unlikely, the potential is an ever-growing concern for government policy makers and military officials and has prompted a growing public debate about how to deal with the problem.
Should a country rely exclusively on its ability to defend and harden these critical networks against such attacks or should it also invest in new offensive cyber capabilities so that it can preempt or retaliate against such attacks? What can deter a state from launching major cyber attacks? Can states negotiate "rules of the road" for cyber behavior to help mitigate the threat?
Some policy makers and military leaders suggest that some cyber attacks fall under the nuclear deterrence umbrella. However, the threat of nuclear retaliation to a major cyber attack is neither proportional, nor credible, in stopping (deterring) high-level catastrophic cyber attacks against a nation's critical infrastructure by other states, including the nuclear weapons complexes. As a result, nuclear deterrence cannot usefully be applied to the cyber realm and a more practical and effective approach to making cyberspace more secure and stable is needed.
U.S. Cyber Policy
Over the past four years, the United States has clarified its declaratory policy over how it views cyberspace and actions within it by state and non-state actors. In May 2009, President Obama said that cyberspace would be treated as a "strategic national interests" where the U.S. would "deter, prevent, detect, and defend against attacks."
In May 2011, the White House released the International Strategy for Cyberspace. The document said, "When warranted, the United States will respond to hostile acts in cyberspace as we would to any other threat to our country." It went on to say, "[the United States] reserves the right to use all necessary means—diplomatic, informational, military, and economic—as appropriate and consistent with international law, in order to defend our Nation, our allies, our partners and our interests."
In a November 2011 cyber report to Congress, the Defense Department said, "the President reserves the right to respond using all necessary means to defend our Nation, our Allies, our partners, and our interests from hostile acts in cyberspace" and those "response options may include using cyber and/or kinetic capabilities provided by DoD" as long as such responses are proportional and follow international law of armed conflict.
According to the November 2011 report to Congress, "Deterrence in cyberspace, as with other domains, relies on two principle mechanisms: denying an adversary's objectives and, if necessary, imposing costs on an adversary for aggression." Achieving these objectives in cyberspace, however, has proven difficult for policy makers.
Nuclear Deterrence?
Some policy experts have reached back to the Cold War toolkit for ideas and are suggesting that there is a role for nuclear weapons to deter high-level, sophisticated cyber attacks by other nations against critical U.S. infrastructure. In February 2013, a Defense Science Board (DSB) task force released a report that recommended the United States continue to invest in its nuclear arsenal in order to deter highly sophisticated cyber attacks against its critical infrastructure and nuclear weapons systems by other nation states.
The study was commissioned by then-Undersecretary of Defense William Lynn to look at the resiliency of the Defense Department networks and weapons systems to cyber attacks. According to the report, the Pentagon has not kept up with "cyber adversary tactics and capabilities" and is "not prepared" to defend against a sophisticated cyber attack and would take years to build an "effective response" to the threat. It went on to say that the threat is "serious, with potential consequences similar in some ways to the nuclear threat of the Cold War."
Foreign leaders are also comparing the threat of a serious cyber attack to one of a nuclear weapon. China's Chief of the General Staff General Fang, after a recent meeting with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dempsey, said, "If control is lost over security in cyberspace, the effects can be, and I don't exaggerate, at times no less than a nuclear bomb."
The DSB said the only way to deter against such a devastating attack is to invest in cyber, conventional—including investing in Prompt Global Strike—and nuclear weapons. The report is careful to stress the need to invest in better cyber defenses and other, non-nuclear responses, so that a nuclear response is not the only option. However, the report states, "Nuclear weapons would remain the ultimate response and anchor the deterrence ladder."
The DSB recommendation not only contradicts the decades long trend of reducing the role of nuclear weapons in deterring non-nuclear threats; it is inconsistent with the policies established by the 2010 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) report. During the Cold War, both the United States and Russia held a broader definition of the role that nuclear weapons would play in deterring attacks. The two adversaries amassed nuclear weapons to deter and/or prevail in a nuclear exchange; to deter or respond to an overwhelming conventional attack; and to deter or respond to biological and chemical threats.
Over time, the role of U.S. nuclear weapons to deter strategic attack has been narrowed. The 2010 NPR, which lays out the current roles and missions of the U.S. nuclear weapons, came close to stating that nuclear weapons should only be used to deter a nuclear attack.
The NPR states that, "the fundamental role of U.S. nuclear weapons, which will continue as long as nuclear weapons exist, is to deter nuclear attack on the United States, our allies, and partners." The NPR also says that role of nuclear weapons to deter "non-nuclear attacks—conventional, biological, or chemical—has declined significantly." The NPR stated that the "United States will continue to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in deterring non-nuclear attacks."
The NPR makes no specific mention of the use of nuclear weapons to deter cyber attacks by other countries. The NPR states, for the first time, that it "will not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapons states that are party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)."
DSB justified its recommendation by sighting part of the NPR that said, "[the United States] would only consider the use of nuclear weapons in extreme circumstances to defend the vital interests of the United States and its allies and partners;" a catastrophic cyber attack would meet this threshold the report said.
However, the threat of using nuclear weapons to respond to cyber attacks by other states against U.S. critical infrastructure is not a realistic nor an effective response to cyber attack because:
- Cyber attacks lack the destructive and existential threat of nuclear weapons;
- A nuclear response to a cyber attack is not proportional;
- Threatening to respond with a nuclear weapons lacks credibility in adversaries' eyes;
- Cyber deterrence in general is difficult to achieve; and
- The policy would provide a new rationale for nuclear proliferators.
First, cyber attacks do not pose the same catastrophic threat nuclear weapons present. While it has been reported that the United States critical infrastructure is vulnerable to cyber intrusions and potential attacks, the likelihood of such attacks and their potential effects have been exaggerated by policy makers who lack the technical knowledge to predict accurately what effects a cyber attack might have on much of the critical networks.
With the exception of a cyber attack against a nuclear power plant that causes a nuclear meltdown—which is theoretically possible but very unlikely—there is no cyber attack with the destructive force of a "limited" nuclear attack involving less than 100 nuclear weapons, which could kill tens of millions of Americans immediately.
Even if an adversary were able to take down the power grid of the entire East Coast with a highly sophisticated cyber attack, leaving at-risk people populations and transportation systems vulnerable, such an attack would not have the nearly the same impact as the use of a few nuclear bombs on American cities.
This does not mean that there are not real vulnerabilities that need to be addressed before cyber weapons become even more capable and destructive. But for now, they are not. The United States should therefore focus on hardening these networks and working with the international community to establish rules of the road to decrease risk.
In March 2013 National Intelligence Director James Clapper presented the "Worldwide Threat Assessment" before Congress and said, there is a "remote chance" that over the next two years the United States will see a major cyber attack against its critical infrastructure, producing "long-term, wide-scale disruption of services, such as regional power outage." However, it also said China and Russia "are unlikely to launch such a devastating attack" outside a "military conflict or crisis."
Second, the law of armed conflict requires that states respond to aggressive acts of force proportionally. If cyber attacks lack the destructive force of nuclear weapons then responding to one with a nuclear weapon is not a proportional response. If China launched a cruise missile and took down a power plant, it would be disproportional to respond with launching a nuclear warhead at China. Now imagine that instead of a cruise missile, a cyber attack is launched against the industrial control mechanism for the power plant and takes it offline. Does that somehow now warrant a nuclear response? No.
Third, U.S. adversaries are not likely to consider the threat of a nuclear response to a highly sophisticated or catastrophic cyber attack as credible. If, as a policy, nuclear weapons are included to deter any level of attack or behavior, it tends to lower its effectiveness. For the United States, a conventional military response is more appropriate and can more easily be calibrated to respond to highly sophisticated cyber attack and would therefore be seen as a more credible response by any potential adversary.
Fourth, a policy where nuclear weapons are used as deterrent against potential cyber attacks would have a negative effect on preventing nuclear proliferation. If responding to cyber attacks with nuclear weapons becomes an acceptable form of deterrence, it could legitimize other states' nuclear weapons ambitions.
Fifth, deterring cyber attacks, whether low- or high-level, is generally difficult to achieve. The United States is more dependent on its information networks than many of its adversaries are, making it more difficult to threaten retaliation through cyberspace. In contrast to nuclear weapons, there are many more actors, state and non-state, that have cyber capabilities and less is known about these capabilities. And the technological bar for creating highly sophisticated cyber weapons is continuing to drop, allowing even more actors to have the capability of inflicting harm in the networks.
Finally, there is the attribution challenge. It could take months, years, if ever, for a country to definitively find who was responsible for a cyber attack. Now, many experts have stated that deterring cyber threats at the highest level of national security—state vs. state—is not as difficult because it still relies on traditional intelligence gathering and current geopolitical relationships and attitudes. However, traditional intelligence gathering and analysis makes mistakes and attribution often takes time, even against kinetic attacks..
A More Progressive Approach
United States is already investing and should continue to invest in defensive capabilities to build-up the resiliency of its critical infrastructure networks to cyber attack. If critical networks are more difficult to compromise, then adversaries will be less likely to target them. And, the further global integration of information networks makes it less likely that states will seek to disrupt or attack other states' cyber networks because the economic effects would be too great for both countries.
The U.S. should also engage further the international community to establish acceptable "rules of the road" for state behavior in cyberspace. And, it is important that current international law be recognized as a guide for developing these cyber rules and adjusted in order to make sense in the new and different technological environment.
Several states, including the United States, have begun to discuss the establishment of cyberspace norms. The United Kingdom has hosted two international conferences on the subject. In September 2011 Russia and China proposed a code of conduct for cyber behavior. In 2011, the UN re-established the mandate for a group of governmental experts on developments in the field of telecommunications and international security. The United States and China recently discussed the possibility of opening a dialogue on the issue.
The adoption of a policy of using, or threatening to use, nuclear weapons in response to a major cyber attack by other states against U.S. critical infrastructure is not appropriate and is not an effective deterrent. Instead, the U.S. should continue to work with the international community to establish acceptable "rules of the road" that would hold states accountable and help impose some measure of restraint on all states' cyber behavior.


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Embassy Bucharest
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 BUCHAREST 001644 SIPDIS STATE DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/NCE WSILKWORTH E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/25/2015 TAGS: PGOV, PREL, MOPS, MARR, EFIN, OVIP, RO, IZ, military cooperation, flood SUBJECT: ROMANIA REAFFIRMS STRONG CONTINUED SUPPORT FOR CONTINUED TROOP PRESENCE IN IRAQ DESPITE FINANCIAL CONSTRAINTS REF: A. SECSTATE 131524 B. BUCHAREST 1609 C. BAGHDAD 3010 Classified By: POLITICAL SECTION CHIEF ROBERT S. GILCHRIST FOR REASONS 1.4 A, B AND D 1. (S) Summary. President Traian Basescu told an interagency team led by Ambassador Richard Jones, Senior Advisor to the Secretary and Coordinator for Iraq Policy, July 21 that SIPDIS Romania is "unconditionally committed" to a continued troop presence in Iraq. Basescu highlighted the armed forces' financial burdens in light of recent massive domestic flood relief efforts and stated that additional USG financial support for defense reform might permit Romania to increase its contribution in Iraq. Though not a member of the Paris Club, Basescu confirmed that Romania has agreed to Paris Club terms and will forgive 80 percent of Iraq's debts, which total USD 2.6 billion. President Basescu also raised Romania's request to interview security detainee and Iraqi-American citizen Mohammed Munaf, who is a criminal suspect in Romania. Defense Minister Atanasiu reaffirmed the GOR's commitment in Iraq but provided insights into cost saving measures under consideration by the MOD, including possible reductions of overseas deployments in 2006. Senior MFA interlocutors also underscored the GOR's support for a continued GOR presence in Iraq, stressing the importance of a renewed UNSC mandate as well as an Iraqi government request for a Multinational Force (MNF) presence. End Summary. President Basescu: Unconditional Commitment to Iraq --------------------------------------------- ------ 2. (C) Ambassador Jones initiated the meeting with President Basescu, accompanied by State Counselor for National Security General Constantin Degeratu and State Counselor for International Relations Anca Ilinoiu, by expressing gratitude for Romania's steadfast commitment in Iraq. Ambassador Jones singled out Romania's contribution to UN force protection in Basra as particularly significant, given that an abiding international civilian presence in Iraq, such as the UN mission, remains a high priority and constitutes a bellwether for other international organizations of improved security conditions. 3. (C) Basescu stated that the GOR faces deep budgetary problems in the wake of recent severe flooding across Romania (Ref B). He characterized the flood-affected areas as covering a "small surface but having a huge impact," with bridges, railroads and villages destroyed and thousands rendered temporarily homeless. He noted that the GOR has incurred mammoth costs operating an "air bridge" between Bucharest and flood ravaged zones. Naturally, he continued, Romania's armed forces have played a key role in providing relief and organizing cleanup and repair. So far, the Romanian military has spent about USD 60 million and anticipates spending USD 100 million on flood related activities. Flood relief costs have placed tremendous pressures on the armed forces' budget. In addition to limits imposed by fiscal constraints, Basescu said that despite the absence of "signals from the population" opposing Romania's overseas deployments, some journalists could begin to ask "Why not use our troops here?" given the urgency of the flood crisis. 4. (C) Basescu explained that the armed forces face another "major problem" - delays in planned MOD modernization and reform this year and in 2004. "I am really disappointed that reform is not going fast enough, there are still too many conscripts," the President observed. (Note: The MOD's goal is an all-professional armed forces by 2007. End Note.) Basescu asked if it would be possible for the USG to increase support for defense reform. 5. (C) Basescu immediately added, however, "we will not put any condition on participation in Iraq and Afghanistan if support cannot be increased." He promised that Romania will "remain an ally until the end of the mission, we won't play politically." Romania will not put a "question mark" around its participation and "will not in any event diminish participation in Afghanistan and Iraq." Nonetheless, he continued, financial support could permit the GOR to consider increasing its contribution in Iraq. Basescu stated that, in any event, troop withdrawal by the end of 2006 is "optimistic" and "we are mentally prepared for the extension of our presence in Iraq." 6. (C) Ambassador Jones expressed appreciation for Basescu's realistic assessment of the need for a continued Multinational Force (MNF) presence beyond 2006. Both the Ambassador and team member Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, US Army CENTCOM, discussed ongoing efforts to increase the quality of Iraqi security forces, such as embedding MNF teams in Iraqi units, with the ultimate goal of enabling the Iraqis to take over the fight against terrorists and insurgents. BG Kimmitt underscored that on-the-ground conditions rather than an artificial calendar must drive MNF force contributions. Basescu Proposes Possible Gendarme Training ------------------------------------------- 7. (C) Basescu stated he had spoken with the Romanian Interior Minister Vasile Blaga regarding possible additional contributions Romania could make to strengthen Iraqi institutions. He said that Romania "could send trainers to train the gendarmerie in Iraq." BG Kimmitt described the enduring need for a well-trained Iraqi gendarmerie and outlined possible training modalities. Basescu affirmed that although Romania is a small country with "limited resources" it will remain a "solid partner" and contribute in areas where it can, such as gendarme training. Debt Reduction Pledge --------------------- 8. (C) President Basescu stated that following a recent Paris Club agreement Romania has decided to reduce its Iraq debt (which totals USD 2.6 billion) by 80 percent. He noted that Romania is not a member of the Paris Club but voluntarily complied with its debt reduction Recommendation. Ambassador Jones expressed appreciation for Romania's decision to substantially forgive its Iraqi debt, observing that among the three prongs of international support for Iraq - military, political and economic - economic assistance has been the weakest prong. Ambassador Jones noted that Romania is a good example for other creditors, especially non-Paris Club members and nations like Romania that face financial constraints. Romanian Access to Security Detainee Munaf ------------------------------------------ 9. (S) Basescu raised the subject of Iraqi-American national Mohammed Munaf, now held as a security internee by Coalition Forces in Iraq under the authority of UNSCR 1546, asserting that Romanian "prosecutors need to have a discussion with him" because of his suspected involvement in the kidnapping of three Romanian journalists earlier this year. He stated that the GOR continues to seek the approval of American authorities to meet with Munaf for a "four hour discussion." He continued that the GOR believes Munaf can provide key information about the ongoing prosecution of alleged kidnapping mastermind, Syrian-Romanian businessman Omar Hayssam, whom Basescu asserted is suspected of providing "financial resources to terrorists." Basescu promised that the GOR would "respect all procedures" during the interview and would conduct the interview in any location designated by the USG, given that he is a security detainee. He added that, pursuant to Romanian law, his lawyer would "probably like to attend" the interview. In response to a direct query from Ambassador Jones, Basescu said that the interview did not need to take place in the Romanian Embassy as a previous diplomatic note had indicated. Ambassador Jones promised to help facilitate appropriate GOR access to Munaf. Regarding Munaf's final disposition, Ambassador Jones encouraged Romania to engage in a close dialogue with Iraq. Basescu replied that Romania already has an "extremely close" dialogue with Iraq on Munaf and other issues. Committed - But Cautious - Defense Ministry ------------------------------------------- 10. (C) In a separate meeting at the MOD, Defense Minister Teodor Atanasiu, accompanied by State Secretary for Euro-Atlantic Integration and Defense Policy Ion Mircea Plangu and CHOD General Eugen Badalan, began his comments by noting that the GOR has "the commitment to remain until the Iraqi armed forces can take over." Atanasiu asserted that costs related to the recent flooding compel Romania to consider either reducing its overseas deployments or seeking "cofinancing." Absent "substantial financing," Atanasiu continued, Romania "should consider reduction of its troops overseas by 300" in 2006. (Note: According to MOD statistics, about 1700 Romanian troops are currently deployed overseas, with more than 850 in Iraq and 540 in Afghanistan. End Note.) 11. (C) Atanasiu iterated that "we will maintain our forces in Iraq until the Iraqi forces can take over" but Romania must consider various options for its 2006 overseas deployments including "proportional reductions" or "equal reductions." In the latter alternative, Romania would withdraw a total of three companies (i.e. about one hundred troops in each company) from the Western Balkans, Afghanistan and Iraq. Atanasiu added that the GOR is currently weighing whether to withdraw its frigate from participation in Operation Active Endeavor in Mediterranean, with a decision likely this month or in August. Atanasiu and CHOD Badalan outlined several possible cost saving measures, including overseas deployment reductions, "delay in equipment modernization," and cancellation of exercises, before concluding that the MOD will consider a "mixture of options" for cost saving. Badalan interjected that the bottom line is that the MOD must seek a solution to save the 60 million dollars it has already spent on flood relief efforts. Atanasiu explained that the GOR also faces "budgetary concerns" related to anticipated EU accession in 2007, which limit excessive deficits. BG Kimmitt encouraged the MOD and MFA to consult closely with the U.S. before making any changes in Romania's force presence overseas. He emphasized that maintaining the force protection unit for the UN at Basra is and should remain a top priority. 12. (C) The CHOD added that the MOD needs to justify its activities in a post flood environment, which means telling the Romanian people either that money earmarked for overseas deployments comes from external sources (read: donors) or the MOD is reducing its overseas commitments. The Charge noted that the USG is exploring ways to assist with flood relief. The Centrality of a UN Mandate ------------------------------ 13. (SBU) Following a working lunch with MFA officials, MFA Director General for Global Affairs Stelian Stoian chaired an interagency working group that discussed the GOR's continued commitment to a troop presence in Iraq. Key GOR participants were MOD Director General Claudiu Degeratu, External Intelligence Service (SIE) Director General Silviu Predoiu, Internal Intelligence Service (SRI) Colonel Mihai Munteanu, MFA NATO Division Director Mirela Maghiar, and MFA Middle East Division Deputy Director Laura Mircea. 14. (C) MFA State Secretary for Global Affairs Teodor Baconschi, the de facto number two Foreign Ministry official, joined the interagency meeting in progress and reaffirmed the GOR's commitment to a continued presence in Iraq as expressed earlier in the day by President Basescu's "message." He underscored that the GOR supports the "extension of the mandate" authorizing the presence of the MNF, as provided by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1546. MFA DG Stoian stressed that a new UN mandate should be "comprehensive, so that the MNF can defend itself and the people, covering all possibilities." Stoian also asked whether the Iraqi government "is ready to request officially that the UN authorize a military presence in Iraq post-elections?" Ambassador Jones observed that Iraq recognizes that a continued MNF presence there is essential and the USG will engage in "close consultations" with the Iraqis. (Note: UNSC 1546, Articles 9 and 10, provide that the "presence of the MNF is at the request of the incoming Interim Government of Iraq and that the MNF will have the authority "to take all necessary measures to contribute to the maintenance of security and stability in Iraq." Senior GOR leaders strongly seek a continued UN mandate and explicit Iraqi government request for an MNF presence. Additionally, they recognize the importance of robust ROE for MNF participants. End Note.) Engaging Reluctant Europeans ---------------------------- 15. (C) Baconschi asked about the possible impact on USG relations with "new" European states that have "announced their intention to withdraw," opining that Romania and Poland are the United States' "strongest" Eastern European allies in Iraq. BG Kimmitt noted that the coalition remains solid; with the exception of Spain, no other nation in the 62-member coalition has formally announced that it is concluding its activities in Iraq, although some states have reduced or modified their contribution or already carried out their pledged contribution. He continued that the leadership of Romania and Poland has been significant in maintaining the coalition's solidarity. Ambassador Jones pointed out that after nearly two and one half years the coalition remains alive and well. 16. (C) DG Stoian stressed that the GOR, an EU aspirant, now participates in the EU working group addressing the development of an EU common foreign policy. The GOR is working to "generate support" from EU countries for engagement in Iraq and "EU reluctance is not as strong as it was one year ago." Stoian cited the possible engagement of gendarme units in training Iraqi forces as one example of how the U.S. "can count on Romania to try to get more Europeans involved." Baconschi underscored these remarks by promising that the GOR will remain "proactive in the EU and seek a new climate among member states." UN Force Protection ------------------- 17. (C) During the interagency meeting, Ambassador Jones highlighted the importance of Romania's contributions to UN force protection, noting that a successful UN presence encourages the presence of other international organization. DG Stoian praised UN "experience and expertise" in preparing for Iraqi elections and observed that the UN presence boosts the electoral process' credibility. Stoian also solicited the team's views about NATO's role in Iraq. BG Kimmitt responded that NATO provides "value added" in Iraq and that the MNF and NATO complement each other's activities. 18. (C) Comment. The GOR has demonstrated steady progress on its defense modernization efforts notwithstanding Basescu's expressed concerns about the slow pace of reforms. According to a close presidential advisor, Basescu raised the topic in order to suggest a possible source of USG funding support that would, ultimately, allow the GOR to continue, possibly even increase, its impressive troop commitment in Iraq. The Romanians' worries about funding sources in the wake of this summer's flooding are well founded. Over the past several weeks, Romania has faced its most serious humanitarian crisis since the fall of communism in 1989. Humanitarian concerns aside, the financial impact has been devastating, not just in the MOD but throughout the GOR, which is cash strapped at the best of times. Against this backdrop, overseas deployments could "backfire" against the GOR as ordinary Romanians question the presence of Romanian troops overseas when their manpower, know how and equipment are needed to clean up and reconstruct in the wake of the flooding. Under these circumstances, Romania's unequivocal promise to maintain troops in Iraq, its pledge to forgive the lion's share of its Iraq debt and its willingness to help train Iraqi gendarmes even if additional funding support is not available, demonstrate the depth of its engagement to building democracy and fighting terrorism in Iraq. End Comment. 19. (U) Amembassy Bucharest's reporting telegrams are available on the Bucharest SIPRNet website: www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/bucharest 20. (U) Ambassador Jones cleared this cable. TAPLIN


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British lingerie retailer Agent Provocateur has opened a flagship store at Canada's most luxurious retail plaza — The Colonnade at 131 Bloor Street West in Toronto. Agent Provocateur occupies just over 1,250 square feet, next to upscale German women's brand, Escada.
Agent Provocateur is considered to be a luxury lingerie company. It was founded in 1994 by the son of British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood. It operates 89 stores worldwide, including 17 U.S. stores. Of its American locations, 13 are free-standing while four are operated concessions within Bloomingdale's stores. Read the rest of the story via our friends @Retail-Insider.


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ROCKWALL — The Rockwall Economic Development Corporation has brought another great deal to Rockwall with Bimbo Bakeries USA, the largest bakery company in the USA. Bimbo will build a 300,000-square-foot bakery facility in the Rockwall Technology Park. The facility will be located between Discovery Boulevard, Data Drive and Springer Road in Phase II of the Rockwall Technology Park, located just south of Interstate 30 in Rockwall. The bakery is the largest new industrial build-to-suit project in the history of Rockwall.
The state-of-the-art facility will add more than $75M to the Rockwall tax base and bring 130 new jobs, including assembly line and executives. "This is an amazing accomplishment for Rockwall," said Sheri Franza, President and CEO of the Rockwall Economic Development Corporation. "Rockwall is actively recruiting projects of this caliber, and we are especially proud of this deal".
The bakery will turn out products in its bread and buns lines. It will initially operate two large baking lines, but could support additional lines and products as they grow, said Franza. Bimbo Bakeries USA owns the brands Arnold, Ball Park, Bimbo, Boboli, Brownberry, Earthgrains, Entenmann's, Francisco, Freihofer's, Marinela, Mrs. Baird's, Oroweat, Sara Lee, Stroehmann, Thomas', and Tia Rosa.
Groupo Bimbo, Bimbo Bakeries USA parent company, purchased Mrs. Baird's Bakeries in Texas in 1998 and the combined operations were renamed Bimbo Bakeries USA. Bimbo Bakeries USA operates 33 bakeries and employs more than 15,000 associates nationwide.
The Rockwall Economic Development Corporation had this business deal wrapped up the first quarter of 2012. "The project has moved smoothly and quickly through negotiations, and that only happens with cooperation from all parties involved and knowing that the project is right for Rockwall" said Franza.
The bakery will be the first facility to occupy forty acres in Phase II of the Rockwall Technology Park. Phase I is almost completely full with 11 businesses ranging from light manufacturing to corporate headquarters. Phase III infrastructure is currently being considered in planning for the future, as it will be needed to accommodate additional businesses. "We are in the midst of a truly amazing growth cycle in Rockwall, and to secure a business of this size is monumental for our community," said Franza. "REDC's mission is to broaden and diversify the Rockwall tax base, taking a significant burden off the residents of Rockwall. With the value of this project, Bimbo Bakeries will help do just that."
Originally Posted on The Rockwall Herald Banner


text: Masooka says her delivery process went without any complication [Mahmud Hossain Opu/Al Jazeera] Kutupalong, Cox's Bazar – Masooka lay on a bed at the government-run health centre in Kutupalong. She was pale and drained after giving birth to her first baby. Her mother-in-law and husband, looking visibly happy, were staring at the baby sleeping quietly beside her. The 24-year-old said she was feeling happy and relieved because the delivery process went without any complication. "I was surprised at the good services here," she told Al Jazeera. They have yet to name the baby. Masooka's husband, Shafi Alam, said he had not had time to think about the name as they have been struggling to sort out their basic needs since they arrived in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar district on September 16 from Dhankhali in Maungdaw. They are among the estimated 436,000 Rohingya who have fled Myanmar since August 25 when the military launched a brutal crackdown on the majority-Muslim ethnic group. READ MORE: Rohingya children recall horror of losing parents Hundreds of Rohingya villages have been burned down, and more than 400 Rohingya have been killed in a crackdown that the UN has called a "textbook case of ethnic cleansing". Aid agencies have struggled to provide shelter, food and healthcare to distraught people, who are not recognised as citizens by the Myanmar government despite living there for generations. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that out of the nearly 150,000 Rohingya women of reproductive age (15-49 years), approximately 24,000 are pregnant and lactating. Midwives have come to the aid of thousands of pregnant Rohingya women [Mahmud Hossain Opu/ Al Jazeera] Midwives, many of them trained by the UNFPA, have come to the aid of pregnant women and young mothers, who seek the services of health centres such as Kutupalong. Tania Aktar joined the Kutupalong health centre in February as a midwife. She says since the influx of Rohingya people, the centre has been receiving more patients. "We have conducted 12 deliveries in the past 21 days," the 24-year-old told Al Jazeera. "Some of the Rohingya women, who come for delivery, are without food for days, lack proper clothes, and have no money to buy other needs. "They are really helpless. Many of them have delivered babies on the roadside," she said. The health centre, which also caters to the local population, runs 24/7 and provides antenatal as well as postnatal care, Tania informed. Pregnant women such as Arefa Begum had to run for days to escape death. She is nine months pregnant. She arrived in Bangladesh on September 13 from Bolibazar in Maungdaw. "I had to walk for miles and could not take rest. I had no food and rains made things worse. I was so tired, I could not breathe," Arefa, whose feet and hands were swollen, said. "There is no space where I can feel safe back in Myanmar. I feel better here." IN PICTURES: Inside the hospital treating Rohingya refugees Arefa is in the queue to consult a midwife at Kutupalong. "We had no access to a health facility in Myanmar," she said. "I am glad am here." Her husband Serajul Mustafa, she said, has been supportive despite money constraints. Another midwife, Najma Akter, said the drugs and services at the health centre are free. "We visit the community inside the refugee camps and counsel them to avail our services for a secured delivery," she said. Rohingya say the health facilities in Bangladesh are better than Myanmar [Mahmud Hossain Opu/Al Jazeera] "In the camps, mothers have low nutrition level; they are anaemic. They had no access to healthcare previously." Najma, 24, said that the health centre also offers services for general patients, including children and older people. Twenty-year-old Asharu has also come for a check-up. Her baby was delivered six days ago. She is complaining of body pain and dizziness. She said there were no health facilities like this in her village in Sabraguna in Maungdaw. "Am happy at the services here." Dr Mohammad Ashraful Alam, Field Officer with UNFPA, said that his organisation had provided 68 midwives in Cox's Bazar, including the Kutupalong health centre. "We are running four medical camps right now and plan to start four more," he said. Priya Marwah, the Humanitarian Response Coordinator at the UNFPA, said that they were trying to strengthen the services with the help of government and local partners. READ MORE: 'No food, no shelter' - Rohingya suffer in Bangladesh "We provide services and supplies to healthcare providers both the government as well as IOM-run clinics or the UNFPA-run mobile clinics run by our local partners," she said. "Just two days ago we found a woman who delivered on the roadside in the middle of night. She was brought to one of our health centres where our midwives were able to take care of her and the baby. "These kinds of stories are happening on a daily basis." At Thaingkhali refugee camp, about 100 pregnant women have been consulting the midwives at the mobile clinic run by the UNFPA. Priya from the UNFPA said they also focused on menstrual hygiene and supported partners in establishing Women Friendly Spaces, which offer counselling and psychosocial support to many of the traumatised women. "The partners we work on the ground with in Women Friendly Spaces have heard of cases where women have been subjected to gender-based violence, not just sexual violence," she said. But she admitted on the need to scale up operations to reach more women. Tania, the midwife, said Rohingya women are very weak because they have so many children. "We have found many mothers with 7-14 children because they have no knowledge about family planning," she said. "We try to speak to them and convince them to adopt family planning because it is good for their health." Kutupalong health centre offers a wide-range of health services [Mahmud Hossain Opu/Al Jazeera] SOURCE: Al Jazeera News ABOUT THE AUTHOR Saif Khalid Asia Bangladesh Rohingya Myanmar


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The United States Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia Dr. Amy Searight, who visited Sri Lanka between December 17th to 19th, examined the future role Sri Lankan security forces could play in humanitarian assistance, responding to natural disasters, and increasing participation in overseas peacekeeping operations.
A high profile US delegation, met with Defense Secretary Karunasena Hettiarachchi as well as Foreign Secretary Chitranganee Wagiswara to discuss the Sri Lankan government's efforts relating to security sector reform. Training and vetting personnel for United Nations peacekeeping operations was also a focus.
Amy Searight met with the Chief of Defense Staff, and the respective Tri-Service Commanders, to stress the need for land returns, reconciliation and a credible transitional justice mechanism, and to discuss future security requirements.
During the meeting with Commander of Army, Lieutenant General Crishanthe De Silva she exchanged views pertaining to, practical readiness for UN troop deployment, preparedness of Sri Lankan troops for future UN assignments, exchange of expertise in technical fields, present overseas deployments and training for UN assignments, progress of de-mining work and troop training at Kukuleganga Institute of Peace Support Operations Training Sri Lanka.


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When it comes to moving, moving your appliances will be on your list. These could be your larger items, like fridges and freezers, or you may worry about moving your microwave, coffee machine, and halogen oven. Just how can you move them to avoid injury and breakages? Here are four tips to help. Allow a Complete Defrost When moving your fridge and freezer, make sure you allow them to defrost completely before the move. [Read More]
Reducing Chaos On Moving Day
If you anticipate the arrival of a moving company to help with the transport of your items from one home to another, you most likely anticipate a day full of chaos as well. While moving day is an exciting time full of activity, you can keep stress levels at a minimum by preparing for the day in advance. Here are some ways you use to keep moving day productive without too many mishaps in the process. [Read More]
5 Ways to Determine Which Large Items You Should Bring during Your Move
Moving can be a difficult time for practically anyone, regardless of how prepared you may be, due to the amount of items you need to make arrangements for. If you have a lot of larger items that you are responsible for and are interested in moving, such as a refrigerator or flat-screen television, you need to first consider if they are worth bringing along. With the following tips in mind, you can then move forward with getting all of your larger items packed for the upcoming move. [Read More]
How To Avoid Bringing Pests With You During Your Move
If you are planning on moving to a new home, make sure you don't bring along any unwanted guests. Unfortunately, if you are moving a lot of cardboard boxes and pulling items from your storage unit, you might be bringing spiders, bed bugs, and cockroaches with you. Here are some tips to prevent this: Use New Cardboard Boxes A lot of pests will hide in your cardboard boxes, so this is the first thing you should check. [Read More]


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In the city there's heaps of places to explore, things to discover and fun to be had. It seems like every week there's a new burger joint, pop-up store, gallery opening, silent dance party, organic market, food truck, graffiti wall or sculpture trail. And the Volkswagen Polo is perfect for uncovering them all. Features include 15" Alloy Wheels, a nippy and fuel efficient TSI engine, App Connect so you can access some of your favourite smartphone apps on the media display, and a Rear View Camera to help you in and out of the tightest parking spaces.
The Polo comes in 2 standard options - the Urban and Urban+. Both are powered by a turbocharged petrol engine.
Get lost in the joy of the ride, but never on the road with App-Connect and the exhilarating infotainment system. With a colour touchscreen as well as hands-free functionality, your world's at your fingertips.
The Polo is eye-catchingly sleek. Its low, wide stance and strong lines give it an unmistakably sporty, contemporary look. On the inside, the Polo is accented with premium features, handy compartments and a state-of-the-art dashboard.
Substance meets style in the Polo. With the inclusion of technology which feels years ahead of its time, everything comes together to create a car that makes it an absolute pleasure to drive.
Featuring an array of safety features that would satisfy the most conservative driver, it should come as no surprise that the Polo has been awarded a maximum 5-star ANCAP safety rating (tested in 2014).
However you intend to use your Polo, there's an engine up to the task. With the Polo you have two engine options with increasing output: Urban and Urban+.
Keeping your Volkswagen running at the top of its game costs a lot less than you think.
Take a closer look at the information for the Volkswagen Polo.


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text: Now more than ever, ambitious inventors and entrepreneurs worldwide are coming up with radical new ideas all the time. The problem being that in most instances, newcomers comprehensively underestimate the complexity of the patent drafting and patent prosecution process (i.e., the back and forth with the Patent Office to get the patent application allowed). With no prior understanding of the overall patenting process or available patent drafting tools and patent drafting software, they attempt to go it alone and subsequently struggle. Irrespective of the nature of the invention, patent…Read More


text: Hamper includes 12 different bunch of 20 Roses each in a glass vase.Total 240 Roses, Try Different color roses in each vase exp. One with 20 red roses, pink, yellow, orange, white, mixed etc. Please book this order 1-2 days in advance for proper flower delivery. Available in Ahmedabad and Surat and Gandhinagar only.


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Basil and Goat Cheese Bruschetta- 38 calories
Whenever I have friends come over I whip this Basil and Goat Cheese Bruschetta up. All I need to grab is a baguette at the bakery and some goat cheese for a quick appetizer.
They take about 10 minutes and impress everyone, pair with a nice crisp Chardonnay and you have a happy hour perfect for catching up with friends or unwinding after a long day.
Makes 15 Bruschettas-
- 1/2 Sourdough Baguette thinly sliced
- 1 Garlic Clove
- 1 tbsp Good Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/4 cup Goat Cheese
- 1/2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar
- Handful of fresh Basil
Preheat the oven to 350, spread the sliced baguette out on a rimmed cookie sheet and bake for 7-13 minutes, check after 5 minutes and keep an eye on them. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for a couple of minutes, once you can handle them rub gently with the garlic clove on one side.
Move to a pretty plate, drizzle the oil on, then top with goat cheese, spreading it on with a knife. Tear the basil into tiny pieces over the plate and scatter all over the tops, then drizzle on the vinegar and if you like a little salt and pepper to taste.
Each piece contains:
- Calories: 38
- Fat: 2
- Fiber: 0
- Protein: 1.5
- Carbs: 4