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10th Annual Topps Pack Opening Day
For years, as part of my moonlighting as an unpaid consultant for Topps Baseball Cards, I have engaged in a ritual involving a few company executives and a few (brand new) boxes of that year's Topps set. The first box to come off the production line is ceremonially opened, either on television or at Topps HQ, and then we quietly pillage through whatever's available pack-wise.
Today we turned it into a happening.
This started when I ran into my colleague and fellow collector Greg Amsinger at MLB Network two weeks ago. Greg is giddy enough about cards that I once almost distracted him from a Yankee Stadium live shot by advising him that my collection included three Honus Wagners. When the Topps gang and I set the "ripping of the first packs" for today, I asked if I could invite Greg along.
Greg brought a camera crew, Topps put up a display including blowups of the cards of Pujols and Reyes in their new unis and the one-of-a-kind gold card inserts, they assembled the entire 2012 Baseball Production team, I dressed up in my Matt Moore First Win Game-Used uniform, they fitted up a conference room full of unopened boxes, and pizza, and I had to give a little speech, and half of the staff snapped photos on their phones and their tweets out even before I finished talking (insert your own joke here; I actually had to be brief for a change as I'm still under doctor's orders to not try to 'project' with some severely strained vocal cords and throat muscles).
Suddenly we went from four guys sitting in a room going "nice shot of Braun" to a veritable orgy of pack opening. It felt like snack time at Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory and I must say, for something that was made 'bigger' than in years past at least in part to utilize the presence of a tv camera, this organically and spontaneously turned into a really fun ninety minutes in which the pride of the employees – to say nothing of the imminent promise of spring and another MLB season – were in full bloom.
Before we get inside the packs, and a really exceptional effort by Topps this year (to say nothing of a sneak peek at their next issue, 2012 Heritage) a couple of fun images.
The Topps production team all signed the first box that was part of the ceremonial presentation depicted above. They do it at aircraft factories and they do it on the first production runs at Apple – so why not? And on the right is that display I referenced complete with the Pujols and Reyes blow-ups. I have no idea how poor Amsinger, Cardinal diehard that he is, got past this graphic testament to the fact that Albert has surrendered his legacy in St. Louis and is now tempting the curse of Almost Every Angel Free Agent Contract Ever (Amsinger, when I pulled a Mark Trumbo card today: "It should say third base on his card. Where else is he going to play for them?" Me: "First. After you-know-what happens." Amsinger: shakes head dolefully).
Over the last few years, Topps has been steadily improving the photo quality of their base set, but this year a great leap has been made. The photos are better sized and framed, more interesting, more innovative, and with the ever-increasing improvements in the mechanics of photography, crisper and more compelling. The embossing makes the names difficult to scan but the shots here of David Robertson and Jose Altuve are really terrific and virtually every square quarter-inch of the card frame is filled and filled cleanly. There's a design decision here, visible in the Altuve card, to sacrifice the tip of his left foot to minimize dead space – and I think it works wonderfully.
And then come the fun cards. There are SP's (single prints, if you're not a collector – cards that you know going in are much scarcer than the regular 330 cards) that include Reyes and Pujols sent by the magic of computers into their new uniforms. When you consider that as late as 1990 Topps was still airbrushing the caps of traded players – literally hand-painting logos over the original one, not on a photograph, but on a negative measuring 2-1/2 x 3-1/2 inches) – let's give the computer a round of applause.
The flatfootedness in the Reyes card makes it a little clunky but it gives you a pre-Spring Training hint at how the new Miami uniforms are going to visually 'feel' once the rechristened club takes the field.
Two years ago the theme of the SP's were the Pie-In-The-Face celebrations, mostly enacted by the Yankees' A.J. Burnett. This year the premise is celebrations and mascots, and in the case of the former, particularly the Gatorade Bath:
Butler, caught just as the orange goop explodes but before he's lost under it, is a classic card. But, to my mind, the SP version of Mike Morse's card 165 and its suspension-of-the-wave is an instant All-Time Great:
But 48 hours after the cards reached dealers and collectors, most of the publicity has surrounded the short print of #93 Skip Schumaker.
The Cardinals' second baseman is said to be ticked off – and I happened to see Kevin Millar, serious for the first time in months, take unnecessary umbrage at the St. Louis Rally Squirrel squeezing Schumaker out of frame – but remember, for every one of those cards, there are several hundred of the regular one on the right here. Happy? Nice boring five-cent card compared to one that's rather crazily being bid up to more than $200 on eBay?
Players take the baseball card photo a lot more seriously than they would have you believe. Several inscribe cards bearing particularly unflattering pictures with notations about how much they hate the photo. On occasion players won't even sign their cards based solely on the choice of image.
The real trick for the Schumaker SP 93 will be not to get the player to sign it – he's noted for a good heart, I'm sure the charity possibilities will be raised to him and he'll sign a bunch. The problem is going to be getting that Squirrel to sign the card. Incidentally, the squirrel isn't a Topps first; a card of "Paulie Walnuts," a squirrel who occupied a foul pole at Yankee Stadium, was issued in 2007.
I promised a preview of Topps Heritage 2012 and that's coming – but one more aside first. I thought I'd pay off the day I scared Greg Amsinger with my Wagner boastfulness by bringing the famed T206 scarcity to Topps to link up the past and the present. He didn't know it was coming, which is why he's been caught mid facepalm on the right.
And lastly, Heritage. They've done another meticulous job matching up the set celebrating its 50th anniversary, the vibrant 1963 design, in which the glowing colors of '60s Topps were first evident: A lot of star players on this sheet – and forgive the waviness of the photo: it's a sheet.
Two cards in particular jumped out at me: Reyes again in what looks like a photo actually shot at the news conference announcing his move to Miami (although that could easily be a little misdirection) and C.J. Wilson in Angel garb.
One note on deadlines: Chris Iannetta is shown with the Rockies in the Topps set, but has already been updated to his new Angels' uniform in the Heritage issue.
31 Comments
Funny you talk about topps improving the pictures on the cards and then show a sheet of heritage that has 90% reused photos on it..oh well at least they try for one product.
Great thanks for a look inside the world of Topps. For me, it is not the value of the cards, but the stories and memories that they evoke. KO, you were great on early morning ESPN from Conn., great on COUNTDOWN and continue to be great, though, alas, gray, as you share the joy of the game of baseball with us all.
Now 67, this former reporter for the NY Journal-American writes on the Bosox Injection site; think you might get a laugh from this one:
Earl Nash -30-
Is there a place that lists all the cards and players available? I'd like to see which SF Giants to watch for when I pick up my packs this year. 🙂
Thanks for the article- particularly in light of all this pre-superbowl football craziness around town. It's so sweet for me to remember going down to George's Meat Market one early spring morning and plunking down my quarter for my first five packs of 1962 first series.
Hey! I got three Maris' already!!!!
Well I can just go home because I'm not going to read anything better today.
Great Wonka reference. The only thing missing from that table of wrappers and cards, though? The gum.
The 1963 is my second favorite design, after 1960. The 1963 version of this design is also on my top 5 list (and is a fave in my Topps Store Make Your own card gallery). The basic set looks better than the old "deluxe" Stadium Club designs in the '90s. They have done nicely this year. Now if I can find someone who wants my censored 89 Billy Ripkin Fleer card…
p.s. Squirell on Schumacher's card is not as bad as what happened to Aurelio Rodriguez on his 1969 card. Just saying
Thanks so much for taking us with you to the candy store! What larks here! I laughed and cried! I am so thrilled to recognize so many players. It is only because of you and your Baseball Nerd that I have been able to enter that precious window of America's beloved sport! This is so good for my cognitive loss…the memory part. I love that frozen gatorade! I will personally hunt for that squirrel, too! We appreciate enjoying this glorious day with you via technology. I hope your vocal chords get all better, but remember…our most important expressions are always done without words. P.S. Do you have a Paulie Walnuts card?
Hey History! Hugs!
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Kevin Millar unhappy about something involving a baseball card?
Such is the life of a scab.
For the participants, motor coach buses and also rabid supporters regarding children's football the summer season has expired. Ideas utilize basketball because the abrupt cool in mid-air begins invoking views of …baseball
Uhh, Keith. SP stands for "short print".
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Just because you have the technology doesn't mean you should use it. Technically, neither Pujols nor Reyes have taken the field for the Angels or Marlins, respectively. That means their cards could conceivably be considered "fakes." It was one thing for Topps to airbrush a card after a player had moved to another team, as they did many years ago when the cards were distributed by series a month at a time; the higher-numbered cards might reflect mid-season transactions, either with photos of the player in his actual new uniform or via the aforementioned air-brush. Then again, that's why Topps also took heads shots of the athlete without a hat, just in case.
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Wednesday, October 21, 2020
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Ga. Church to Hold Worship Service for Bikers
Ga. Church to Hold Worship Service for Bikers
A church in Georgia is planning to hold a worship service for a group not usually associated with congregations: bikers.
Timothy Baptist Church of Athens will be holding a church service for bikers at noon this coming Sunday, the first that the church has overseen.
In an interview with local media, Timothy Baptist Senior Pastor Tracy L. Boles sought to reach out to the biker community and go beyond the stereotypes associated with them.
"I think many times bikers have a rough image, and once you get to know them, the image you perceived may not be the person you meet. We wanted [them] to know that Timothy is a place where they can come and feel welcome and grow in the Lord like everybody else," said Boles.
"Timothy has been around for a long time, and I want the legacy of the church to continue, and the only way you can do that is to reach out to the community and let them know we're here."
Mike Cook, state coordinator for the Georgia chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association, told The Christian Post that he thought the church service was a good idea.
"We have many churches in Georgia that do Biker Sundays," said Cook. "We have a chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association located in Athens called the Cycle Disciples who will be attending as a group."
Cook also said that another Christian biker group, Cycle Disciples, was planning on attending the service.
"Cycle Disciples will be visiting the church for their services on Sunday and will also have a short ride afterwards," said Cook.
After the service, scheduled to begin at 12:00 p.m. on Palm Sunday, bikers will participate on a ride escorted by the local sheriff on the Athens Perimeter highway and then return to Timothy Baptist for food and fellowship.
"I want [bikers] to know that [Timothy Baptist] is the church that cares, and what that means is that we not only care about those that come every Sunday, but that we care about the community at large," said Boles to the Athens Banner Herald.
"Many times you'll hear within the church community that the church wants to be the church without walls, and we thought this would be an opportunity to put some legs to that statement."
According to the Banner-Herald, organizers for the service expect approximately 500 bikers from 12 different biker clubs.
Timothy Baptist Church did not return comment by press time.


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« In Testimony, Arne Duncan Continues to Distance Himself From Common Core | Main | Is the CORE Waiver in Trouble? Sacramento Bails on NCLB Flexibility »
Washington State Appears Headed for Waiver Revocation, Sources Say
All eyes have been on Washington state since lawmakers there adjourned last month without making a key change to their teacher-evaluation system that would have enabled the state to hang on to its flexibility from the mandates of the much-maligned No Child Left Behind Act.
And now, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is on the verge of yanking Washington state's waiver, several sources say. An official decision is likely by the end of month—and if the waiver is pulled, as expected, the move would make the Evergreen State the first to lose its flexibility.
Duncan called Randy Dorn, the state schools chief, Tuesday to discuss the waiver situation, but the state didn't get official word during that conversation that the flexibility would be pulled, Nathan Olson, a spokesman for Dorn, told my colleague Andrew Ujifusa.
"We'd hoped this phone call would yield a simple yes-or-no answer to the question about whether we'd continue the waiver," said Olson. "We did not get that answer [Tuesday]." In the meantime, the state is proceeding on the assumption that it will lose its flexibility.
UPDATE (4:44 p.m.) Dorie Nolt, a spokeswoman for the department, said in an email:
"We are in touch with Washington officials on the state's request to extend Elementary and Secondary Education Act flexibility. Washington has made us aware that they are unable to meet the state's commitment to create a teacher- and principal-evaluation and -support system with multiple measures, including student growth based on state assessments and other measures of professional practice. The Department has not issued a final decision yet, but we recognize that the state needs to know soon as officials prepare local budgets for next school year."
But, despite support from Gov. Jay Inslee and Dorn, lawmakers were unable to pass a new law that would have called for districts to begin to evaluate educators using only state exams starting in the 2017-18 school year. It's unclear if that law would have made much of a difference anyway, since other waiver states must get their teacher-evaluation systems up to snuff by the 2016-17 school year, at the latest.
It's unclear how a former waiver state would make the transition back to the NCLB accountability system. There are major issues to be worked out, including where schools would stand on the law's accountability timetable, which calls for different interventions based on the number of years a school has missed its goals. More in this story.


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Metallica1554 wrote:Thanks pleh!
pleh wrote:I was just having fun with some gradient features and I thought that looked cool. I guess by ambiguous that its hard to tell where the shot is taken from if you don't know its source?
Metallica1554 wrote:I wanted to make an action sorta banner, so I created a gif banner using the trailers, will it be possible to use something like this?
The file size is big so you might need to wait for it to load and play at normal speed.
Metallica1554 wrote:I certainly like it better than your previous one.
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Northwestern beats Purdue 75-60
Hearn scores career-high 26 points
EVANSTON, Ill. — Northwestern 75, Purdue 60: Reggie Hearn made his first nine shots and scored a career-high 26 points as the host Wildcats led wire-to-wire against the Boilermakers.
Hearn finished 11-of-17 from the field and scored 19 points in the first half as Northwestern (13-10, 4-6 Big Ten) scored the game's first 12 points. Jared Swopshire and Dave Sobolewski added 13 points apiece and Tre Demps chipped in 12 as the Wildcats shot a season-high 53.1 percent and did not record a turnover in the last 25 minutes.
Freshman A.J. Hammons led Purdue (11-11, 4-5) with 19 points and 13 rebounds for his second career double-double. D.J. Byrd hit four 3-pointers and added 12 points the Boilermakers, who shot 33.3 percent and have lost their last two games by a combined 52 points.
After Northwestern's game-opening run, the Boilermakers responded with a 13-3 run that cut the lead to 30-23 with 5:12 left. Hearn hit a 3-pointer on the next possession and scored 10 points in the Wildcats 13-4 half-ending spurt as Northwestern pushed its cushion to 43-29 at halftime.
The Wildcats built the lead to 21 seven minutes into the second half on a 3-pointer by Demps, but Purdue scored the next nine points and cut the deficit to 56-44. Swopshire ended the run by hitting a 3-pointer with 10:32 left. Minutes later, Hearn converted a three-point play to set a career high in scoring and seal the win.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Hearn's previous career high was 23 points against Mississippi Valley State on Nov. 15. Hearn also posted his fifth career game with at least 20 points and set a career best in field goals made. … Hammons was held out of the starting lineup because he was late for the team bus. It was the first time he came off the bench since scoring 20 points against Oregon State on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden. … Demps tied a career best by making three 3-pointers. He had been 2-for-16 from behind the arc in his previous five games.


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11 July, 2013 | (01 hr)
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Nancy Rivard began Airline Ambassadors in 1996 to enable airline employees to leverage their airline connections to help vulnerable children. Each month airline industry volunteers escort children to a location that will provide life-saving medical care. In 2009 in the process of doing this work, Nancy and her colleagues came face-to-face with human trafficking. Once aware, the team began to correctly identify trafficking taking place on flights.
Thereafter Nancy and her colleagues began to advocate to the airlines to train their staff members to spot human trafficking situations. Nancy and other volunteers are working with US Homeland Security to develop a training program and they are continuing to push for an industry-wide awareness campaign for the travel industry.
In this webcast, Nancy Rivard shares how she identified an opportunity to impact the global issue of human trafficking and what she did to implement an employee volunteerism program, Airline Ambassadors.
Audience: Those interested in: corporate social responsibility (CSR), employee volunteerism, philanthropy
Nancy Rivard
Nancy Rivard founded Airline Ambassadors International (AAI) to provide for orphans and vulnerable children and to provide relief to under-privileged communities around the world. AAI is the only non-profit leveraging connections with the airline industry to facilitate humanitarian efforts, and r...Full Bio
Lorrie G. Foster
Lorrie Foster is vice president of foundation relations for The Conference Board. In this role, she is responsible for securing new sources of project funding for the organization. She also leads The Conference Board Initiative on Corporate Philanthropy, which covers the development of a service ...Full Bio


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A One-Man Show
Starring Mike Randall
Mark Twain, America's Greatest Author And Humorist is brought to life through the considerable talents of actor Mike Randall. This Nationally Acclaimed one-man Mark Twain Stage Production has charmed audiences throughout the United States and Canada since 1972!. Appearing Off-Broadway at New York City's ONLY Dinner-Theatre and on college campuses, at Corporate gatherings, Dinner Theatres, Opera Houses, Churches, Schools and in Regional Theatres, the show bursts forth with all the wit and wisdom that was the trade-mark of the "Great Man Himself". From the moment Mike Randall walks on stage there is no doubt that the "Celebrated Humorist" Mark Twain was and continues to be, one of America's greatest natural resources!
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Tuesday, September 3: Watch AT&T, H&R Block
Paul Vigna joins the News Hub with a look at which stocks traders will be watching during market action, including AT&T, H&R Block, and Krispy Kreme. Photo: AP.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... the ... three stocks to looking up this morning I can start to let the rectum ... of less than one percent of all a little bit ... what you are lucky the TT is just how the stock reacts to the Verizon Vodafone news ... because now eighteen T has you know ... Beazley ... because one competitors that were right I mean Verizon wireless in eighteen T are the two big boys in the plot he thought about ... how ... cellphone service providers ... Verizon now has complete control the company is to say in ... how does that go into effect leaking because that's one reason the couple one would hope everybody's side and doubts about my day within a couple of the stuff of us ... while we are looking at ... H R Block ... Scots are really moving it therefore newspaper earnings after the bill so you wanna keep an eye on that one ... any other one is Krispy Kreme ... be drop on Friday was fifteen percent ... stock disappointing earnings disappointed Wall Street ... due to valuation is high high compared to their peers ... has a stock that was opening inning double do yourself has some room to fall the earnings are bitter disappointment ... and yourself up this morning but one half percent ... so you wanna see how they added that stock was fine ... after the fall happened begins on the precipice of squashed by selected honest with you and yes yes great stuff as Royal appliance if only the editor of The will Street


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The people of the ancient world faced numerous challenges. They had to adapt to their environment first and foremost. Once they moved from a hunter-gatherer culture to a more sedentary civilization that relied on agriculture, ancient people had to learn how to sustain their populations. This usually entailed discovering how to irrigate their crops, domesticate their animals, and protect their supplies and resources from enemies and invaders.
The geography of the areas where ancient people settled played a critical role in their ultimate success or failure as a civilization. Those with natural defenses, abundant natural resources, ready access to water, and a mild climate thrived and expanded, whereas those lacking such essential features were easily overtaken. The earliest civilizations settled in river valleys: Mesopotamia, India, China, and Egypt. These civilizations persevered for centuries despite invasion and conflict, both internal and external. Other civilizations arose in different parts of the world, though none was more powerful or more widespread than the Roman Empire, which effectively controlled the entire Mediterranean.
The ancient world came to an end with the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 CE. The eastern half of what had been the Roman Empire went on to thrive as the Byzantine Empire, one of the strongest civilizations the world has ever known. During the first millennium CE, Asian cultures further developed and solidified their identities, and cultures in the Americas were heavily influenced by European explorers and conquerors.
The ancient and early-modern world was ultimately shaped by cultural diffusion, conflict, trade, and war—factors that continue to influence the development of the modern and post-modern world.
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Chronic Gamer Girl Will Make You Hungry for Retro Video Games, Possibly Oreos
Are you looking for a video with junk food, video games, terrible Australian accents, internet cheat codes, reading, more accents, hernias, Zelda, chocolate, Webster, veggie chips, Ron Paul, pickles, cursing at a TV screen and casual cannabis usage? You seem like a man who knows exactly what you like and you're in luck.
Introducing the Chronic Gamer Girl, an adorable young woman who enjoys everything mentioned in the above paragraph.
We're not sure if this is the perfect OKCupid profile video or a terrible commercial idea from the veggie chips people. Either way, we love it.


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Redirecting you to the intended page. Please be patient whilst this action takes place. Here is a story.
For years now the thoughtless inhabitants of Nodiatis have been sacrificing trophies of carnage to mysterious altars in return for miniscule personal gains. Little did they know, that which is sacrificed to unspecified deities is received by those who would do unspeakable deeds to acquire it. Without naming prophets of light the inhabitants of Nodiatis have been feeding the darkness and its power has reached a new level.
In the depths of nether, powerful forces have created the Runes of Descension, a collection of stones with incredibly devious enchantments that give the bearers great power. The powers that be are disseminating these runes amidst the evil creatures of Nodiatis in hopes of forever eradicating what is left of the humans and their allies. Creatures that were once easily dispatched will now have far greater powers due to the ineptitude of the masses.
The only hope for mankind is that he somehow muster the strength to slay these more powerful creatures and harness the power of the runes for himself. But if all continue to sacrifice trophies to godless altars without ritual or prayer then the land of Nodiatis is surely doomed.


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Built to be boundless, the integrity of the vehicle is maintained and all the products are add-ons to keep the modification flexible. Meaning: No welding, drilling or cutting on the original body!
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UnNews:Developing and Underdeveloped Nations do not care about the environment
|Where man always bites dog
|Thursday, October 29, 2020, 10:06:59 (UTC)
|Developing and Underdeveloped Nations do not care about the environment
9 July 2008
TOYAKO, Japan - Recent extortion polls throughout Africa, Asia, and South America have shown that 96% of underdeveloped and developing nations do not care about the environment, or the negative effects that too much pollution could have on it, despite the days of 'persuasion' from the new developed nations group, who call themselves G-8. This plan entitled G-8 to all of the oil, coal, and natural gas that the nations of which they have control over, so that they may 'properly' dispose of them, to keep them from polluting the air.
The G-8 Consist of 9 world leaders from 9 different fully developed nations, who travel around the world, 'persuading' underdeveloped nations and developing nations to comply with their ways, and in return, the G-8 will offer them protection. Most subjects the G-8's targets will comply, but recently they have managed to lose a grip of their countries. Only 4% support the G-8's environmental idea. Recently some leaders and politicians in the developing and underdeveloped nations have begun to speak out against G-8 in general and not just the unpopular environmental idea.
|Developing nations around the world have decided that the environment is a lost cause! If we can see this, and you developed nations cannot, what hope does the world have? Perhaps we don't need your help after all. We want you out of our countries immediately, we can take it from here.
—Rafael Guerida, South American Politician
It seems that the G-8's stranglehold grip on the underdeveloped nations has been loosened with these recent events. How this will effect the industries that G-8 has overtaken in the past months to 'benefit' the nations is undetermined. G-8 has begun scrambling to hold on to their current territories around the world, and have yet to release a statement about the failure of the environmental plan.
- Tom Raum "'We hate the environment!' says developing nations' leaders". Associated Press, July 9, 2008


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Google TV Gets Massive Android Software Upgrade Next Week [PICS]
Google TV had such potential when it launched in October 2010. But for many users, the lack of Hulu — along with the awkwardness of the interface and lack of cooperation from TV networks and content providers — was a huge turnoff. Now Google aims to fix that with a massive overhaul, upgrading Google TV with its Android operating system.
Google announced on its Google TV blog Friday that the platform will be upgraded to Android 3.1 (otherwise known as Honeycomb) for Sony devices Sunday, with the Logitech Revue set-top box getting its upgrade "soon thereafter."
What will you get with this software upgrade to Android? Google says it's "much simpler." Its customization capabilities will go a long way toward alleviating the awkwardness of its first iteration, which Google admits was "not perfect." And the addition of the Android Market will open up a variety of applications, with the promise of more — perhaps thousands more — on the way.
One welcome improvement will be an easier ability to search across all the TV shows at your disposal. With this update, Google's trying to answer that age-old question, "What's on?" If Google can pull that off, it could be a powerful thing indeed.
The company says it has learned from its mistakes with the first version of Google TV and is "committed to find the best way to discover and engage with the high-quality entertainment on your television." So does that mean Google TV will be able to find all the shows from whichever cable or satellite provider you're subscribing to, or from the web via all of the apps within Google TV, such as Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, and HBO Go? Maybe. Of course, Google plans to improve Google TV's search across YouTube, its own video streaming service.
In the blog post, Google also hinted at future software updates (Ice Cream Sandwich, anyone?) and new devices "on new chipsets from multiple hardware partners." Hey, this is getting interesting.
We'll have to reserve judgment until we can install this software update on our Logitech Revue box, but for now, clearly this update has great potential. It makes perfect sense for Google — purveyor of Android, the Chrome browser, YouTube and by the way, the world's search expert — to leverage these powerful capabilities in its TV set-top.
The hurdle Google needs to navigate is not so much a technical or software one, but a matter of negotiating and arm-twisting of content providers. Will the company gain cooperation from TV networks and movie studios, allowing their content to be searchable on the Google TV platform? That's the key to Google TV's success.


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When it comes to working out, SC-23 will really test your power. Combining strength and cardio exercises in quick succession, you'll burn fat, build lean muscle and leave with a smile. There are four stations to conquer; each involving high-speed cardio and slower strength exercises. The challenge is to keep up with both the pace and power for each of the 23 second bursts. In this workout you train on the spot using resistance bands to enhance your workout. There is no shareable equipment or a circuit to follow. All other hygiene rules apply. HYGIENE UPDATES: Following our extensive hygiene protocol, there are no partner exercises and we kindly ask you to disinfect your hands before and after the workout. All material is provided. Our coaches are happy to help you and can give you more information before the class. Our rules for each workout: - Mandatory mask before and after the workout (indoor & outdoor) - A minimum distance of 2m between each person - No physical contact at all - A towel is mandatory - Extensive coach hygiene protocol
Christian is a professionally educated sports teacher, who loves introducing people to the awesome benefits of sports and fitness, so they become happier and healthier. His background is in football and basketball, which he still plays today. Christian pushes people to achieve goals they've set, and discover new goals as they make fitness part of their daily lives.
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Bonenkai season a blast for some, drag for others
'Tis the season to get drunk and candid, at least with your work colleagues. The term bonenkai literally means "a meeting to forget the year," which always sounded inauspicious to us, especially considering it's used to describe a Japanese custom that is supposed to be festive. But bonenkai tend to be associated in people's minds with the companies they work for, and there's the rub.
Protocol dictates that the company bonenkai tantosha (person-in-charge) schedule the party as close to the end of the year as possible and, ideally, just before a holiday or the weekend; which means the peak days for bonenkai this year are Dec. 17 and Dec. 22, since the 23rd is a national holiday and the 24th is Christmas Eve, when a lot of people have plans of their own. Company bonenkai are, of course, paid for by the company, and though no one says so, all employees are expected, if not outright obligated, to show up, since it is considered a part of "company activities," a chance to blow off steam and one of the few settings where an employee can be frank to his superiors and co-workers. "Communication" is supposedly an important element of bonenkai, though the obligatory aspect often just makes people more uncomfortable. According to a survey carried out by Kirin, a company that has a lot at stake in bonenkai, only 33.5 percent of the 6,000 people they questioned nationwide said they were "eager" to attend their companies' bonenkai.
The survey also indicated that companies may be willing to spend more on bonenkai, which should please eating and drinking establishments, where 90 percent of companies hold their year-end parties. December is one of the most crucial business times of the year for the food and drink industry. Kirin found that companies planned to spend on average ¥4,828 per person this year, a ¥45 increase over last year's budget after three consecutive years of declines.
However, the survey also pointed out that many people, mostly those under the age of 40, are now having "private" bonenkai at their homes for friends and colleagues outside of work. Interestingly, 30 percent of the women surveyed said they hosted such parties while only 19 percent of men said the same, thus pointing out that men obviously associate bonenkai with work and not their private social lives. Another aspect that may alarm the restaurant industry is that, according to a report on NHK the other night, more companies are opting to hold their parties on their own premises. They use large conference rooms and hire catering services and even outside entertainers, thus saving money (no "table charges," for one thing) and allowing revelers to revel even longer, since restaurants and izakaya usually limit the time for each party. The main drawback that we could see in this option was the atmosphere that usually comes with a conference room: Those overhead fluorescent lights are a guaranteed buzz kill.
Tags: bonenkai, holiday season


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A collection of scholarly works about individual liberty and free markets. A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.
The Spirit of Despotism, ed. by the Author of "The Political House that Jack Built" (London: William Hone, 1821) 2nd ed. https://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/1016,
|Available in the following formats:
|Facsimile PDF
|This is a facsimile or image-based PDF made from scans of the original book.
An edition from 1821. It was written in 1795 when Britain was leading the Coalition of monarchies in a war against the French Revolution, this is Knox's warning that war against a foreign enemy helps create despotic government at home.
The text is in the public domain.
This material is put online to further the educational goals of Liberty Fund, Inc. Unless otherwise stated in the Copyright Information section above, this material may be used freely for educational and academic purposes. It may not be used in any way for profit.


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Chicago Approach: "Delta 6461, you are climbing out of my airspace. Chicago Center not online. Radar service terminated, frequency change approved. Thanks for flying."
And with those last three words, the simulated flight ends. Breaks in radar coverage are nothing new to Ward, who in real life is a 57-year-old systems engineer for General Dynamics. As a student at the Naval Academy, he logged about 75 hours in different aircraft, but these days Ward spends his time on one of the hottest digital pursuits aloft or on the ground: the virtual airline game.
Virtual airlines mirror real-world airlines. Although it might come as a shock to most passengers (as well as their flight crews) who are plowing through the skies on any given day, there are also, on that same day, hundreds if not thousands of virtual pilots flying the same, though virtual, routes. The Web site Air Seychelles VA and Ocean RIA/Ocean Airways, which AVSIM describes as "a German airline based in Palma de Mallorca." Then there are virtual charter and bush airlines (22 total), virtual cargo-oriented airlines (19), and 57 virtual airlines that don't fit into other categories.
Nor are these outfits merely imaginary entities or complex, extended jokes. Each virtual airline has its own Web page, some of which are detailed, realistic, and sophisticated beyond belief. "There used to be a UPS Virtual," says Terry Eshenour, Delta Virtual Airlines' president and CEO. "They had a cease-and-desist order because they were using [UPS] logos, and it was difficult to differentiate whether you were dealing with UPS or UPS Virtual." (The Web page for today's UPS Virtual Air Cargo, upsvac.com, now includes a disclaimer saying, in part: "This virtual airline is operated by aviation and simulator enthusiasts. All 'real' logos of UPS (United Parcel Service) are copyrighted material for the corporation of UPS (United Parcel Service). We are not affiliated with UPS (United Parcel Service).")
Delta Virtual Airlines' own Web site, deltava.org, also includes a disclaimer ("We are in no way affiliated with Delta Air Lines") but is otherwise hyper-authentic. Here you will find predictable stuff like Delta Virtual Airlines news, a fleet gallery (with images of real-world Delta jets), and a "Who Is Online" link. Further down the page is an archive of Delta VA's inflight magazine DELTA FLY!, a "Water Cooler" forum that logs 300 to 400 posts per day, a pilot roster, and a pilot locator, which depicts a map of the world dotted with teardrop-shaped pushpins, many of them clustered around big cities. Clicking on a pushpin brings up a balloon giving the pilot's name, Delta ID number, and approximate home base. "Approximate" because Delta Virtual Airlines emulates real-world airlines' tendency to suppress and distort certain information "for security reasons."
Even more impressive is the Web site's live map: Based on the real world's Airline Communications Addressing and Reporting System, the map shows the current status of Delta Virtual Airlines' flights, using color-coded pushpins to show whether the flight is on the ground, climbing, descending, or at cruise. Clicking a given pushpin brings up a trove of information that borders on the surreal: the pilot's name, rank, and Delta VA seniority number; the flight number and type of aircraft; its departure and arrival airports; its exact geographical coordinates in degrees, minutes, and seconds; its airspeed, ground speed, vertical speed, and Mach number; heading; percent of rated power in N1 and N2 compressor engine sections; total fuel flow in pounds per hour; autopilot and auto-throttle settings. If you want more, you can superimpose the airplane's current position on a Google Earth map.
While tracking virtual aircraft is easy, knowing the exact locations of flight crews is less so because virtual pilots are not required to remain seated in their virtual cockpits for entire flights. While flying from Atlanta to Tokyo, for instance, Eshenour flew a Delta airliner as far as Alaska, then turned the flight over to the aircraft's flight management system and went to bed. He woke up in time to start the descent and made an on-time landing. Such allowances might seem like cheating, but real-world pilots do almost the same thing, napping in crew rest areas on long-distance flights while copilots take over.
The question arises: Why do a bunch of sane, calm, and levelheaded people go to such extremes to make something essentially fake seem real?
"This is a way to live out the fantasy," says Eshenour. He had always loved airplanes and aviation, but had no desire to learn to fly. Now retired, he had been in upper management at the Coca-Cola Company. He was responsible for introducing the company's Minute Maid brand to Japan, where he and his wife lived for two years. Somewhere back in the 1980s, he bought a copy of Microsoft Flight Simulator and played it on his home PC.
"In Japan I was using this as a personal escape," he says. "You can set up in your mind some goal you want to achieve: You want to go someplace, you want to do things under certain conditions. And when you're pursuing that, you can block out anything around you."


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States Embracing PreK & Full-Day K Programs
Responding to the research, more state policy and political leaders are investing in early childhood education. Public pre-kindergarten programs are proliferating and thousands of children in more than half a dozen states will move from half to full-day kindergarten classes in fall 2007.
Seven state legislatures set aside money for all-day kindergarten - among them Montana, North Dakota and Utah, which don't have state pre-K programs - and a record 29 governors sought and received from their legislatures increased funding for their state preK programs.
In a roundup of state legislative action this past spring, Pauline Vu of Stateline.org reported, "Currently, 39 states have a state-funded preschool program, although the majority of them only cover low-income kids. Only three states -- Georgia, Florida and Oklahoma -- offer voluntary preschool to all 4-year-olds. Illinois last year passed a law to create the country's first universal program for 3-year-olds, as well as 4-year-olds, but the program is being phased in."
According to the report, "It's all part of a push to get more kids learning at a young age when, research has shown, their brains still are developing and they're most likely to soak in information. Advocates also say that students who have attended preschool are less likely to commit crimes later and more likely to attend college, get jobs and pay taxes."
Research Supporting PreK, Full-Day Kindergarten Continues to Grow
Moreover, the research-based evidence of all of the social and economic benefits of expanded high quality preK education continues to roll in.
Effects of a School-Based, Early Childhood Intervention on Adult Health and Well-Being
A longitudinal study of participants in a Chicago public schools program serving preK through third grade students. It reported that at age 24, program participants had acquired more education and were less likely to commit crimes than those who did not receive the same level of service.
Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine (August 2007).
State Fact Sheets from Enriching Children, Enriching the Nation
Fact sheets for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The research shows that quality preK programs that either serve all 3- and 4-year-olds or target children in the poorest families begin to pay for themselves in as little as one year and no more than 13 years, while saving states and the federal government billions over decades.
Economic Policy Institute (EPI) (July 2007)
The Effects of the New Mexico PreK Initiative on Young Children's School Readiness
This study shows that New Mexico's preK initiative is paying off for its four-year-old participants in greater improvement in early language, literacy, and math development.
National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University (August 2007)
Findings of the Chicago study on the long-term effects of early childhood education are similar to results consistently reported by other well-known longitudinal study projects, including:
The latest EPI information on states shows that Texas, for example, could save billions of public dollars over the upcoming decades by immediately investing in pre-kindergarten programs. The research contends the programs would begin paying for themselves within eight years.
According to the Texas data, investment in quality universal preK would generate $75.9 billion in total benefits by 2050. A more targeted preK program concentrated on vulnerable populations, could yield $37.8 billion in total benefits.
PreK Helps Produce More Productive Citizens
EPI says the data shows that "children who participate in high-quality pre-K programs perform better in school, earn higher salaries when they enter the workforce, and engage in less criminal activity.
In its State Preschool Yearbook, NIEER reports the trends in legislative action, which this year include increased enrollment and total spending by state governments.
» Early Ed Gains Momentum in States (June 2007) - Pauline Vu's report in Stateline.org about a roundup of state legislative action.
Related Materials
» Policy Makers Should Consider Full-Day Preschool - A study by the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) finds that the benefits of full-day preschool over half-day programs are significant.
»Taking Steps Toward PK-3 Success (2007) (PDF, 1.66 MB, 16pp) This publication identifies strategies to help improve teaching and learning environments at the PK-3 levels. NEA.
» Full-Day Kindergarten: An Advocacy Guide (PDF, 957 KB, 52pp) - This publication offers Association leaders and staff and other early childhood education advocates tools, resources, and research that will help them in securing full-day kindergarten programs in their states. NEA.
August 2007


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By SARA MOULTON
Associated Press
Like most Americans of a certain age, I ate canned tuna all the time when I was growing up. But when someone first suggested that I try canned salmon? Well, I was horrified.
Why would I even bother with canned salmon when fresh salmon is readily available? But Pacific wild salmon, the most sustainable choice, turns out to be very seasonal. And then very pricey when it is available. So, I decided to give canned salmon a whirl, rationalizing that most canned salmon is of the wild variety anyway.
Well, it turns out that canned salmon is delicious, and perfectly suited to swap in for canned tuna in any of the recipes I love. The only downside is that it can be dry. So for this recipe for fish cakes I had to dream up the ingredients required to make the cakes moist — and still healthy.
I started with sauteed onion, letting it get a little caramelized to add extra flavor. Then I added low-fat mayonnaise, a good moisturizer and not bad tasting, especially if you cut its sweetness with a little vinegar. To bind the cakes I used crushed sesame rice crackers. These little gems are low in calories; 20 of them weigh in at 110 calories. I often reach for them during that late afternoon hour when I'm otherwise ready to eat my hand.
Heat-wise, I went with wasabi, which glorifies fish. At the supermarket, you'll find two main varieties of wasabi: the powdered kind, which is shelf-stable (you just add water) and wasabi in a tube, which must be refrigerated after being opened.
Either will work nicely in this recipe. And if you can't find wasabi in your store, add some bottled horseradish instead.
These salmon cakes are topped off with cucumber pickles flavored with rice vinegar and fresh ginger. The pickle liquid also helps to bind the cakes, while the crunch of the cucumber slices provides a pleasing contrast to the cakes' tender texture.
These little pickles are so quick and easy to make — you're done in 10 minutes — I don't know why I don't make them more often.
• 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced seedless cucumber
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• >1/2 teaspoon salt
• teaspoon sugar
• 4 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil, divided
• 1 cup finely chopped yellow onion
• Two 6-ounce cans boneless, skinless salmon
• 1/4 cup low-fat mayonnaise
• 2 to 3 teaspoons prepared wasabi
• 1 cup crushed sesame flavored thin rice crackers (about 32)
In a small bowl, toss together the cucumber, ginger, vinegar, salt and sugar. Let stand for 10 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
In a large nonstick skillet over medium, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the onion and cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl. Reserve the skillet.
Add the salmon to the onion along with the mayonnaise, wasabi, crushed crackers and 1/4 cup of the liquid from the marinated cucumbers. Form the mixture into 6 burgers.
Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons of the remaining oil.
Add the salmon burgers to the skillet. Cook until golden, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil, turn the cakes over and cook until golden on the second side, about another 3 minutes.
Transfer to 6 plates and top each salmon cake with a mound of the pickled cucumber. Serves six.
Nutrition per serving
• 230 calories
• 120 calories from fat (52 percent of total calories)
• 13 g fat (1 g saturated; 0 g trans fats)
• 45 mg cholesterol
• 15 g carbohydrate
• 1 g fiber
• 2 g sugar
• 16 g protein
• 500 mg sodium
Sara Moulton was executive chef at Gourmet magazine for nearly 25 years, and spent a decade hosting several Food Network shows. She currently stars in public television's "Sara's Weeknight Meals" and has written three cookbooks, including "Sara Moulton's Everyday Family Dinners."


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- Description:
Logic Forest: Two classification ensemble methods based on logic regression models. Logforest uses a bagging approach to contruct an ensemble of logic regression models. LBoost uses a combination of boosting and cross-validation to construct and ensemble of logic regression models. Both methods are used for classification of binary responses based on binary predictors and for identification of important variables and variable interactions predictive of a binary outcome.
- Changes to previous version:
Fetched by r-cran-robot on 2013-04-01 00:00:06.077571
- BibTeX Entry: Download
- Supported Operating Systems: Agnostic
- Tags: R-Cran
- Archive: download here
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About this blog
FLEFF Intern Voices
The Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival from the interns' point of view
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Blog posting written by Chloe Wilson, Television-Radio '14, FLEFF Intern, Ashland, Massachusetts.
Hey FLEFFers!
So I'm going to liveblog a FLEFF session that is for the interns, but I figured all you interested FLEFFers will get a kick out of this info too. This session is focused on The Concert for Microtopias and is hosted by two of the musicians performing...


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07/18/2020 08:15
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BCG's Dynamic Pricing and Revenue Management Tool helps users identify clear actions that lead to opportunities for revenue increases and suggest ways to avoid revenue dilution. The tool features an easy-to-navigate control panel where every component is clickable and links to a page showing a specific module. It helps companies perform accurate demand forecasts along with product and inventory diagnostics. The tool produces a set of suggested actions about pricing and performs reallocation scenarios.
The tool provides an overview and a navigation screen that intuitively displays input data and suggested actions. From there, users can drill down into specific modules, including:


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"Please bear in mind, however, that the concept of yin and yang is relative and that it defines no clear-cut antithesis understood to be absolutely active and positive or absolutely passive and negative.Yin can exist within yang, and yang within yin. The active and passive principles are not merely an arbitrary division of energy, but they are the actual interplay between the elements. All, let it be remembered, is relative."
- Mme. Dr. M. Hashimoto1
In our work with Asian medicine, we develop a professional understanding and respect for the ancient concepts of yin and yang. Originally used to describe the relation of light and shadow, as in the sun's course through the heavens in the daily cycle, yin often represents shade, the moon and the feminine principle; yang is frequently interpreted as bright, the sun and the masculine principle.
Just as the light of the sun shifts throughout the course of the day, yin and yang are continually changing and transforming into each other. The morning's sunny slope becomes the shaded area of the afternoon; there is a perpetual polarity of metamorphosis, a dialectic of contradictions and solutions that results in the unification of opposites. At the point of most extreme night (viz. midnight), morning begins. At the moment the tide is at its lowest ebb, the swell of resurgence commences.
These concepts are rooted in the forces of nature, which are ever-changing. Human beings, as part of the natural world, also reflect the unending cycle of antithesis and synthesis. Charlotte Furth2 writes about the "multi-valence" of yin and yang, which provides a view of nature suffused with gendered attributes that do not depend on the body for their point of reference.
In this context, we are privileged to work with clients who reflect the rainbow of gender identity. One of the primary principles of public health is providing accessible care to all people regardless of age, ethnicity or gender. On a daily basis, gender is often associated with a binary male or female system, such as bathroom delineations; driver's license categories; and male or female check-off boxes on survey forms. However, many gender identities and presentations do not conform to this limited categorization. Activists and advocates have challenged this binary social construct of sex. The resulting response has become a progressive social and political movement. As this article is completed for print, even the national publication People magazine highlights its first mainstream article about transgenderism.
"Transgender" is an umbrella term to describe a person who cannot or chooses not to conform to societal gender norms associated with their physical sex.3 Transgender persons live their lives to varying degrees as their chosen gender and may self-identify as female; male; trans-women or trans-men; nonoperative transsexuals; preoperative transsexuals; transsexuals who have completed surgical sex reassignment; transvestites or cross-dressers; and drag queens or kings, among others. A person's sexual identity is not relevant to this issue.
Intersexuality (formerly called hermaphroditism) involves a set of medical conditions that feature congenital variations of the reproductive and sexual systems. Intersex people are born with "sex chromosomes," external genitalia, or internal reproductive systems not considered "standard" for either male or female. The mere biological existence of intersexuals has challenged the social construct the binary gender system has traditionally reinforced.
A transsexual is a person with an apparently normal somatic sexual differentiation who has the conviction he or she is actually a member of the opposite sex.4 The ICD-10 (International Code of Diagnoses) cites three criteria for this diagnosis: the desire to live and be accepted as a member of the opposite sex, usually accompanied by the wish to make his or her body as congruent as possible with the preferred sex through surgery and hormone treatment. This identity has been present persistently for at least two years, and is not a symptom of a mental disorder or a chromosomal abnormality.
A transvestite is defined by the ICD-10 as an individual who wears clothing of the opposite sex to experience temporary membership in the opposite sex. There is no sexual motivation for the cross-dressing, and the individual has no desire for a permanent change to the opposite sex.
The second part of this series will be published in the July 2003 issue.
A concluding announcement: We hope readers will join us in Boston November 15-16 for the 10th annual meeting of the Society for Acupuncture Research (SAR). Acupuncture professionals from around the country will provide presentations on clinical and physiological research and evaluation, as well for discussions on emerging trends in our profession. Abstracts are due June 30, 2003. Please check SAR's Web site (www.acupunctureresearch.org) for further details.
- Mme. Dr. M. Hashimoto (ed.) Japanese Acupuncture. Dr. P.M. Chancellor. New York: Liveright Press, 1966.
- Furth C. A Flourishing Yin: Gender in China's Medical History 960-1665. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999.
- Gender Education and Advocacy. Gender Variance: A Primer. 2001. www.gender.org.
- Gooren L. An appraisal of endocrine theories of homosexuality and gender dysphoria. In: Sitsen JMA (ed.) Handbook of Sexology, vol 6. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science Publishers, 1988, pp 410-424.
Click here for previous articles by Elizabeth Sommers, PhD, MPH, LAc.
Click here for more information about Kristen E. Porter, PhD, MS, MAc, LAc.


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Blake Griffin was unstoppable in the first quarter, going 7-for-13 from the field. Phoenix regrouped, and turned the game into something more closely rembling Atari's Basketbrawl, and what do you know: it worked. Griffin didn't score another field goal the rest of the game.
The Suns shoved Griffin around all night, including Jared Dudley going chest-to-chest in the third, and culminating in this hard foul from Robin Lopez in the fourth. Dudley, on Phoenix's newfound toughness:
"A lot of pushing and grabbing was going on. Even if you don't think you're getting the calls, you've got to make a stand to a certain point within the grasp of the game. I thought we did that. It just shows you the fight in this team to where we're not just going to lay over and let a team run through us. It was the emotion of the game, me being frustrated with the foul on Kenyon (Martin) and I took it out on him (Griffin). He'll be OK. He's big enough."
Griffin was none too pleased about Lopez foul, which was called a Flagrant Two and a mandatory ejection. He said "there's a difference between a hard foul when you're going for the ball or going for someone's head." His teammates were ready to throw down with Lopez too.
Alvin Gentry told me to tell Blake that they don't stand for that," Chris Paul said. "I don't know what Lopez was thinking. I actually went to the ref and asked if they could keep him in the game rather than not get ejected.… He didn't want to get dunked on so he decided to do something crazy."
It worked, of course. Griffin was kept quiet and the Suns pulled out the win, and as the playoffs come, expect to see a lot more hard fouls on Griffin. It should be a surprise. He's a guy who drives to the basket, hangs on the rim, screams after dunks, and can't shoot free throws. Hack-a-Blake has arrived.
Update: Charles Barkley compared Griffin to Gretzky or Lemieux, and said someone on the Clips needs to stand up and be an enforcer for him. You hit Blake, we'll hit you. DeAndre Jordan, Kenyon Martin, time to get physical.


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Is 'Black Pete' tradition just blackface by another name?
AMSTERDAM A Facebook page seeking to preserve the clowns in blackface makeup known as "Black Petes" that are part of the Netherlands' "Sinterklaas" children's festival has become the fastest-growing Dutch language page ever, receiving a million 'likes' in a single day.
The mushrooming popularity of the "Pete-ition" page reflects the depth of emotional attachment most Dutch people feel to a tradition that seems suddenly under threat, and their annoyance at outsiders who call it racist without understanding it.
"Don't let the Netherlands' most beautiful tradition disappear," the page says.
On Tuesday the chairwoman of a U.N. Human Rights Comission panel investigating whether the festival has racist elements condemned it flatly.
"The working group does not understand why it is that people in the Netherlands cannot see that this is a throwback to slavery, and that in the 21st century this practice should stop," Verene Shepherd told television program EenVandaag.
In the festival's story as it is told to children, Sinterklaas, also known as St. Nicholas, arrives by steamboat in mid-November accompanied by a horde of helpers: "Zwarte Pieten," or Black Petes, who have black faces, red lips and curly hair.
Opponents of the tradition say Pete, referred to in song as a "servant" to the elderly saint, is an offensive caricature of black people. Supporters say Pete is a positive figure of fun whose appearance is harmless. Children are usually told he has become black from going down chimneys.
A public broadcaster produces a daily fictional news program about the doings of Sinterklaas and the Petes that is shown in public elementary schools for several weeks.
Children put out shoes at night to receive small presents or sweets. On the evening of Dec. 5, families read poems and exchange presents. The Dutch-Belgian festival is one of the main sources of the Santa Claus traditions widely celebrated on Christmas.
Discussion about Zwarte Piet has escalated since 2011, when one prominent opponent, Quinsy Gario, was thrown to the ground, handcuffed by police and dragged away for wearing a t-shirt with the text "Black Pete is Racism" where children might see.
Amsterdam's mayor this month responded to multiple complaints asking he not grant a license for the public celebration of the arrival of Sinterklaas in Amsterdam. Eberhard van der Laan said he was willing to think about ways in which Pete's image could be adapted, though it would have to be done gradually.
Organizing committees for the festival and the children's broadcaster followed suit, saying they would also consider changes if people want them.
On Tuesday the man who has played the part of "Head Pete" on the Sinterklaas news program for more than a decade became the latest public figure to speak out, writing an editorial titled "make me less black and less a servant."
Others to question the tradition include Victoria's Secret model Doutzen Kroes, and a number of the country's prominent thinkers, including nearly all black celebrities.
But the overwhelming majority of Dutch people don't want change.
"Message for the U.N.: isn't there a war somewhere, starvation or genocide going on that you could better be concerned about?" Dutchman Peter Udo wrote in a comment on the Facebook page. That comment has received more than 2,000 likes.
Another Facebook page, "Black Pete is Racism" has garnered only 7,000 "likes" since it was set up in 2011.
Asked about the issue, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said it isn't his place to judge a folk tradition, adding "Black Pete just is black, I can't change that."
On the Internet:


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Wikipedia, Reddit, Cheezburger Network and More Sites to Go Dark in Protest of SOPA
Homework will be harder to do and bar bets tougher to win starting at midnight ET on Tuesday, when Wikipedia will go dark for 24 hours in protest of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), anti-piracy legislation under consideration by the US Congress.
On Monday, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales said the site would shut down English versions of the crowd-sourced online encyclopedia, calling the move a "community decision" and pointing to a Wikipedia page on which users can weigh in about the possible blackout until 6:59 p.m. Tuesday night.
Wales hopes to draw attention to language in the bill that he feels is too broad and could hurt free speech and innovation -- and many other sites are joining in the protest.
Reddit and the Cheezburger network -- which includes popular sites like The Daily What and Fail Blog -- also plan to go dark, and the document service Scribd has already made a billion pages go poof. In addition, Craigslist's home page has a notice that reads, "Stop SOPA and PIPA. [The bills] are threatening Craigslist and the rest of your internet. Most of the web sites you use strongly oppose these bills."
The protests seem to be having an effect -- the White House has hinted that it would oppose the current version of the bill, and even key sponsors are backing down from its most controversial aspects.
Be sure to check TheFW regularly for more updates on SOPA and also to quench your thirst for funny animal videos during this difficult time.
[via The Washington Post]


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The unnamed Old Venturas Strip strip club is a strip club in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas located on the southeastern corner of the Old Venturas Strip in Las Venturas, San Andreas. The club is identifiable by the "Top Heavy Girls Daily" and "!Free! XXX Lapdance" text on its marquee. If directed to go there during a Taxi Driver side mission, it is identified as "Topless Girls of Bush County".
The club is perhaps the only inner city strip club in San Andreas, being located within a historical but still bustling portion of the Las Venturas gambling district, which, by GTA San Andreas circa 1992, has partially become a glorified red light district in the city. Being based in a large building, the Old Venturas Strip strip club shares the same roomy interior as the similarly large Pig Pen in Los Santos.
As is with any functional strip club in the game, players can throw money to dancers on the stages or receive private dances in a backroom (see strip club article for details on features).
- Even though it is implied that the women in this club are topless, they are, like in every strip club, not topless.


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LOS ANGELES, Aug. 2 (UPI) -- U.S. writer-producer Aaron Sorkin says he is aware of the negative critical response to "The Newsroom," but is confident his series is on the right track.
The Hollywood Reporter said HBO tried to let Sorkin out of his obligation to participate in a panel discussion at the Television Critics Association summer press tour in Los Angeles Wednesday, but Sorkin insisted on talking to the journalists, many of whom openly expressed their dislike for his show.
During the discussion, Sorkin disagreed with criticism suggesting female characters played by Emily Mortimer, Alison Pill and Olivia Munn were depicted as inferior and, in some cases, incompetent compared to their male counterparts.
"I completely respect that opinion but I 100 percent disagree with it," he said, adding female characters "are shown being good at their jobs. Caring about something other than yourself or reaching higher or being curious, plainly smart, and great team players, those qualities to me are what define these characters. And once you nail that down you can have them slip on as many banana peels as you want. That's just comedy."
The show's star, Jeff Daniels, appearing with Sorkin on the panel, said: "One of the things I like about Aaron's writing -- and then I'll shut up -- all of Aaron's characters have flaws. We come on with these big warts and flaws and I love that about his writing. And, yeah, Emily's character is established and smart and then she keeps screwing up. And that's one of the reasons that [my character] Will loves her."
The entertainment industry trade newspaper said Sorkin also denied rumors claiming most of the show's writing staff had been replaced ahead of the planned second season.
"The writing staff was not fired. And just seeing that in print is scaring the hell out of the writing staff. They're acting very, very strange," he quipped. "They're coming to work early. They're being polite to me."