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Developers making headway in MidtownPublished: Tuesday, February 9, 2010 7:00 am By: Tom Lindley
OKLAHOMA CITY - Saving buildings is hard work these days, but that doesn't mean Midtown revivalists have given up their quest.
Developers Bob Howard and Mickey Clagg, two of Midtown's most ardent disciples, hit the streets early Tuesday to preview three newly renovated residential properties at NW 12th and Francis Avenue and address lingering questions about the future of Midtown.
Unlike four years ago when Midtown's recovery roared out of the gate, this time they didn't bother to shoot off fireworks when a trial balloon seems to be more the order of the day given the uncertainty of the real estate market and the economy.
"We will use these three to gauge what demand is like in the market," said Clagg, president of Midtown Renaissance properties.
Most everyone with a major stake in Midtown agrees that the market has changed. What's harder to predict is when or if Midtown will fulfill Howard's vision of it as a place that feels like a township where "people can live, work, eat and walk like they did 50 years ago."
Apart from the economy, Midtown's future could be influenced most heavily by St. Anthony Hospital's expansion plans and by the amount of interest the former home of the American Red Cross at 323 NW 10th generates among developers along the 10th Street Medical Corridor District.
The original catalyst for Midtown's resurgence, St. Anthony's is developing plans for a new building on the east side of the hospital in 2013 that will house a new emergency department and critical care and inpatient units.
"It's still in the planning stage," hospital spokeswoman Sandra Payne said Tuesday. "That's all we can tell you right now. But we like being in Midtown and part of its growth."
Payne also said there is a possibility that a physicians' group could invest in a new dialysis building near the hospital.
"It's too early to provide any specifics," Payne said.
Midtown also could profit from development of the 10th Street Medical Corridor District.
Russell Claus, Oklahoma City planning director, said a Request for Proposal for the development of the block that housed the Red Cross building has generated a number of inquiries and he expects bids will be submitted for the project this spring.
That might help break the financial logjam that is holding back Midtown, developers say.
Large projects, in particular, are the toughest to sell right now, said developer Chuck Wiggin, which partly explains why the area has trended to smaller commercial and retail space and rental units, rather than condominiums.
One result has been that Wiggin's Overholser Green project at the former site of Mercy Hospital remains on hold with the Urban Renewal Authority and will have to be scaled back to be more compatible with financial market conditions.
"The project as originally designed and proposed is not feasible, but we are still looking for other ways to do a project that is as close as possible to the original project," Wiggin said.
As originally approved, it called for 109 units, spread out among four buildings, starting at about $350,000 per unit.
While the condo sales market has caved in, Wiggin said he is encouraged by Midtown's ability to attract more businesses and the success of those already in operation.
Developer R.D. Smith said he doesn't know what comes next for Midtown, either, although he said the natural barriers provided by St. Anthony's, downtown and Heritage Hills remain major selling points.
Smith, along with his brother, Scott, started buying up Midtown property in the late 1980s when it was what R.D. Smith called a disaster zone.
"It's beginning to mature but there's a lot of development to be done because the economy has put some things on hold," R.D. Smith said.
The Smiths, who operate the Corsair Cattle Co., sold about half of their property to Midtown Renaissance, including Plaza Court, which Smith said has become an important destination point in Midtown.
Today, they are concentrating on developing office space at Midtown Village on NW Seventh and Hudson, where about 50,000 square feet of mixed-use space has been leased.
"We are past the pioneering point," R.D. Smith said of Midtown's comeback. "What will ultimately revive Midtown is that people will want to be around a vibrant core."
The three residential properties Midtown Renaissance will soon have available for lease fit different subsets of the urban experience, from the more traditional style two-bedroom concept at 905 NW 12th to the more open, transitional one-bedroom look at 900 NW 12th, to the edginess of the modern one-bedroom apartments at 1217 N. Francis Ave.
While the units will serve as a test case for how and when Midtown Renaissance develops its other properties, Clagg said work will continue in Midtown in 2010.
Clagg said plans for the Packard building at 10th and Robinson are under review by the National Park Service and administrators of the historic preservation program.
Clagg said Hadden Hall, just west of the Packard, recently received National Park Service approval for rehabilitation as an 18-unit apartment building and that construction should begin this spring on the project. He also said the Osler and the Cline building are in various stages of historic preservation process, while construction plans for 12112 N. Walker are under development.
The Midtown Plaza is about 95 percent occupied, Clagg said, and discussions are under way with other potential tenants.
"We have other properties around the city and the only ones that we get calls on a regular basis are in Midtown," Clagg said. "We've signed several leases in the past few days."


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CREW TV brings you closer to the industry's
most influential leaders and thinkers. Click on the videos below to watch the interviews:
Investors aren't immune to mortgage application mistakes and they make these doozies quite often, sabatoging deals that would otherwise fund. Learn from their mistakes, reports Jemima Codrington.
Video transcript below:
Jemima Codrington: Applying for loans is a step most investors will undertake to gain financing. But some little mistakes can have a costly impact. We take a look at some blunders to avoid on this week's Investor Insight on Crew TV.
When filling out of an application there are certain mistakes and oversights making increased chances of it being declined. So what exactly should investors be mindful of?
Paul Kondakos, President, Realty Hub
Paul Kondakos: The mistakes that investors make when they are filling out their loan application actually begin even before they look at their application and that's not knowing the parameters of the financial institution that they are submitting their application to.
And what I mean by that is that every different financial institution has different guidelines and rules that they operate by, within their own institution in terms of debt ratio that they are looking at and in terms of appetite for financing a particular product. So what investors need to do is before they even get to the application stage, they have to know what parameters and requirements each institution have for that particular investment for their particular property.
Now some of the best ways to get guidance on that is to consult with a mortgage broker, because they are very well versed with the different institutions and their requirements and how to fill out a loan application to make sure that it fits within the box.
Typically you are going to find a lot of the institutions have a box that they need you to fit into neatly. And if you don't fit into that box even by half a percent or .3 of a percent for a ratio, your application will be declined. So what you need is somebody to guide you into that process so that all your ratios are in line and make sense so that your application can be approved by that particular financial institution.
Phil Edwards, Mortgage Broker, MorCan Direct
Phil Edwards: I think that clients can increase the chances of being declined by misrepresenting information or not disclosing information to lenders. These days with the tightening up of the diligence with lenders, a lot of times we find that clients can mess up on their applications in a number of ways.
Number one. Not disclosing the information correctly as regards to their leases like the length of time that tenants might be residing in the property, not really disclosing you know who covers what with the lease and also another big one you will find is that sometimes clients may not disclose the properties that they actually own, whether it's owned by themselves personally or they have their personal guarantee in the field of operation.
Matthew Tynan, Real Estate Investor
Matthew Tynan: Okay, so recently as a small investor we are closing on this property and we found that the mortgage broker wasn't ready to close and it ended up costing us a lot of money and wasted time and a lot of stress. So my tip for that is to always follow up, make the phone call, make sure everybody is ready to go and when time comes to close the property, closes immediately.
Perkins Coie is pleased to announce that Devin P. McComb has joined the firm's Seattle office as a partner in the Real Estate & Land Use practice
Grimsby skyline to be reshaped by tallest buildings in city: two-tower residential complex
Connect Asset Management Challenges the Financial Community to Invest in Downtown Toronto Real Estate for a Good Cause

subset: commoncrawl


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The test program equips SWAT officers with computers and cameras so when out in the field, trauma surgeons can help them respond to critical injuries.
In high-risk incidents involving weapons, serious injuries or casualties, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams are often the first to respond to the scene.
Through a program developed in Palm Bay, Fla., the police department and the Trauma Center at Health First/Holmes Regional Medical Center in nearby Melbourne, Fla., partnered to test tactical telemedicine (Tac-Tel). When SWAT officers are sent into high-risk situations involving trauma injuries, they can use technology to communicate virtually with trauma surgeons in the event they are the first to respond.
The Tac-Tel partnership includes firefighter-paramedics who train with the SWAT officers.
By sending SWAT officers into the field with a laptop or mobile device like an iPad or iPhone, and a webcam, they can connect with the trauma center's secure servers using an encrypted wireless connection. Peter Pappas, a trauma surgeon heading the Tac-Tel project, explained that if a victim is critically injured, trauma surgeons can get a faster look and give assistance to the tactical team before the victim is taken to the trauma center for treatment.
"We're going to be able to see this patient literally within minutes after the injury has occurred," Pappas said. "And the knowledge we can gain from that, that sort of first look at the patient, it can be crucial in terms of helping us better prepare for this patient on arrival."
The program got its start a few years ago, when Pappas – a trauma and acute care surgeon at Holmes Regional Medical Center – met with Palm Bay Chief of Police Douglas Muldoon to discuss technology use in telemedicine. Testing of the Tac-Tel program began in 2011, and full implementation is expected soon.
Muldoon said when firefighter-paramedics and SWAT officers are out in the field during dangerous situations, the connectivity back to the trauma center can provide more peace of mind from a safety standpoint. After all, law enforcement personnel responding to high-risk situations have many other factors to think about when arriving at the scene.
"You already have on your mind all the other things from a safety perspective – the equipment you have to use, the vehicles, weapons, the whole nine yards," Muldoon said. "And then the fact that you're relying on as much intelligence to make informed decisions on how you deploy the officers, what kind of tactics do you use?"
Muldoon said responders are also focused on how to engage the person responsible for causing the dangerous incident, so giving the trauma surgeons a look at the scene and injuries in real time is crucial for assisting with the response.
"It also is there ultimately to give us an opportunity as a trauma center to have a first look at a casualty, to render any expertise as needed," Pappas said. "But above all else to expand the team and to help keep even if it is just a virtual finger on the patient's pulse."
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ProfiMail Go
ProfiMail Go is a complete rework of once popular ProfiMail for Symbian and Windows Mobile systems, now exclusively for Android phones and tablets.
We have reworked every piece of ProfiMail to make it run natively on Android. Now we offer you the result.
With years of experience in developing an email client for mobile devices, we listened to many requests which were asked many times, but could not be incorporated into older version of ProfiMail.
With such amazing mobile operating system as Android, most of requests were possible, and we have added even more.
Free version works for one account. To use with multiple accounts, we offer monthly or yearly subscription for reasonable price.
● Folders tree hierarchy – see all accounts and their folders ina tree view
● Signatures – add your signature to composed message, automatically or manually
● Rules – conditions and actions applied automatically on incoming messages
● S/MIME cryptography – mail encryption and digital signatures
● Combined folder – see messages from multiple folders in oneplace
● Conversations and Threads – see related messages in a conversation in a tree view
● Rich text message composer – add images, colors and smileys toyour messages
● Widget – see new messages on Home screen or lock screen
● Multiple panes – see more on large screens
● Full-text search – find any message on your device
● Integration with X-plore – uses our free file manager for working with images, sounds, and other files
● Tight integration with Android – make calls, open websites, share content, whatever
● Fully automatic or manual work – check mail any way youlike
● Push mail – using IMAP IDLE to connect to any IMAP folders thatyou wish
● Configurable – you choose how much/what/when to download and howto be notified about it
● Attachments – shown in nice list, with icons, images with thumbnails
● Works in background – you can do other tasks while mail is downloaded or sent
Compatibility with Android 8
Connectivity fixes for Android 5.0+
Stability fixes
ProfiMail Go – Email Client v4.20.10 [Unlocked] / Mirror
Older Version:
ProfiMail Go – Email Client v4.20.09 [Unlocked] / Mirror


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The individual mandate: An unprecedented expansion of federal power
The following is an essay for our symposium on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act by Ilya Shapiro, senior fellow in constitutional studies at the Cato Institute and editor-in-chief of the Cato Supreme Court Review. Shapiro has been a leading advocate of the legal challenges to the individual mandate, having filed briefs in the Fourth, Sixth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuits. To read his contributions to our previous symposium, on Arizona's S.B. 1070, see here and here.
What is there to say about this topic that hasn't already been said repeatedly and in every conceivable medium? The arguments on both sides have been debated on TV and radio and spilled across blogs, op-ed pages, professional bulletins, and academic journals (to list the major publication categories in increasing level of technical detail). Then, of course, we have the actual legal briefs and court opinions, as well as the transcripts and audio recordings of the various court hearings.
So really, what is there new to say? The editors here invited us to discuss the likelihood that the Supreme Court would grant the recently filed cert. petition out of the Sixth Circuit "" or, presumably, appeals of any of the cases that will soon be on its doorstep "" and, if it does, how it is likely to rule. Well, ok, I can answer that "" and will do so a bit later in this essay "" but that sort of "expert speculation" seems hardly worth a SCOTUSblog symposium, particularly when Tom Goldstein's proprietary handicapping is available. In addition to that sort of bottom-line response, however, I want to provide an update "" without rehashing all the arguments "" to the reader who is aware of the Obamacare* litigation but (probably to his credit) doesn't follow every twist and turn.
*Before I go further, let me explain that I use the term "Obamacare" simply because people colloquially refer to it that way "" probably because it's easier to say than "PPACA," "Affordable Care Act," or any other more cognate. While thought in some quarters to be pejorative, I've never understood how that is (unless said with a sneer, but by that standard anything can be pejorative). Even the leading academic supporters of Obamacare's constitutionality, such as Yale law professors Akhil Amar and Jack Balkin, use the term, as did Time magazine's managing editor Richard Stengel in his recent cover story about the Constitution. The one semi-accurate criticism I've heard is that the law was mostly written by Congress, not the White House (for which the president got plenty of heat from the left). But that just means it would be better to call it Pelosi-Reid-care, which presumably is no more or less pejorative. In any event, that ship has sailed.
1. Primary resources
In an era when, in response to the excesses of the Bush and Obama administrations, citizens question not simply the wisdom of a given policy but the authority for enacting it, legal commentators find themselves at the center of public discussions that far transcend a think-tank scholar's typical bailiwick. With Obamacare being so central to our politics the last eighteen months or so, therefore, I've spent half my time in that span on this one issue (which is really a microcosm of the overall debate on the scope of federal power): briefs, blog posts, media, cross-country debates""and a law review article that uses these experiences as a prism through which to examine the legal arguments.
While not everyone has the luxury of investing so much time in something like this "" even my distinguished fellow contributors have classes to teach or clients to service "" but you really don't have to sacrifice all your free time (or even be a lawyer) to understand what's going on at whatever level of detail you like. Here and here, for example, are excellent websites that track the various lawsuits across the country, including all the briefs and court opinions. Here is a "primer for nonlawyers" on the anti-Obamacare arguments written by my colleague (and boss) Bob Levy. Here is a similar type of publication from the other side by Simon Lazarus (whom I've debated many times). And here, here, and here are three of my op-eds on the subject. Finally, here is a seminal law review article by Randy Barnett "" whom the New York Times called the "intellectual godfather" of these lawsuits "" that shows why the federal requirement that everybody enter the marketplace and buy a particular product is unprecedented and unconstitutional.
2. State of play
When all this began in March 2010 "" the same day President Obama signed the legislation, both Virginia and the Florida-led multi-state coalition filed complaints in federal court "" mainstream pundits dismissed the challenges as legally frivolous, politically motivated sour grapes. Even many sympathetic to the idea of a federal government that is constitutionally limited to certain enumerated powers were dubious because courts have been circumspect (to say the least) in recognizing these limits.
But these were "" are "" real lawsuits led by experienced counsel (who now include former Solicitor General Paul Clement and renowned appellate advocate Michael Carvin). From their somewhat tenuous beginnings, they have gained steam, such that even the administration's strongest supporters recognize that "" with two district courts ruling against the government "" the cases present serious issues of first impression that will ultimately be a close call for the Supreme Court.
Of the thirty or so cases around the country "" challenging a variety of provisions, not just the individual mandate, on multiple grounds "" five have already reached the appellate level on the merits of the individual mandate issue (a few others have done so on standing and other procedural grounds): those brought by Virginia and Liberty University, respectively, in the Fourth Circuit; by the Thomas More Law Center in the Sixth Circuit; by Florida, twenty-five other states, and the National Federation of Independent Business in the Eleventh Circuit (also challenging the new Medicaid structure as commandeering or otherwise coercing the states); and by a number of individuals in the D.C. Circuit. (Cato has filed amicus briefs, often joined by other groups and Prof. Barnett, in each of these circuits.)
Every oral argument and judicial ruling, going back over a year now, prompts a new round of press releases and re-jiggering of briefs for the next case. Most notably, of course, the Sixth Circuit in late June affirmed, by a vote of two to one, the constitutionality of the individual mandate on Commerce Clause grounds. (The panel also rejected the taxing power argument "" a darling of academia but so far gaining exactly zero votes in the judiciary.)
I stand by my initial reaction to that decision, and especially the pivotal concurrence by Bush-appointed Judge Jeffrey Sutton, as well as the longer critique I published ten days later. The upshot is that Sutton did two fascinating things that initially seem ingenious but ultimately are too clever by half: (1) by rejecting the facial challenge (but remaining open to as-applied challenges once the mandate takes effect in 2014), he fails to understand that these claims were not against the executive misapplying an otherwise constitutional statute but against Congress's power to pass the statute in the first place (in that regard, see Nicholas Quinn Rosenkranz's path-breaking work on constitutional grammar); and (2) by decrying the Supreme Court's inflation of federal power but concluding that it's not a lower court's role to invalidate legislation that goes beyond even the modern warped doctrine "" he essentially challenges the Supreme Court to "put up or shut up" on federalism "" he forgets that it is the decision on whether to expand on existing precedent is precisely that ultimate court's alone.
In crafting such an elegant split of the Obamacare baby, the well-respected Judge Sutton may well have preempted a Democratic filibuster of his potential elevation to the Supreme Court, but in siding with the government he may have simultaneously lessened the chance of being nominated in the first place. Ultimately, each side's spin of judicial votes matters little: the only votes that matter are the nine on the Supreme Court.
3. Scenarios going forward
We know what the next series of developments will be but of course don't know when: the Fourth and Eleventh Circuits will issue their rulings (probably later this summer), the D.C. Circuit will hear argument in September (and probably rule by the end of the year), and the Supreme Court may do something with the already-filed cert. petition. Given how oral arguments went, the Fourth Circuit will almost certainly rule for the government, while the Eleventh is a toss-up and the D.C. Circuit has a panel composition favorable to the challengers.
The government's main goal now is to delay Supreme Court review as long as possible "" and certainly past the 2012 elections "" because a ruling either way hurts the administration (by striking down its signature legislation or allowing a hugely unpopular law to stand and thereby energizing opposition voters). It will thus ask for en banc review in any circuit where it loses while also seeking as long an extension as it can get in replying to cert. petitions (by citing the en banc process and also the development of cases currently pending in the district courts).
While the Court will likely hold all petitions until the Eleventh Circuit rules "" because it probably sees that case, with its twenty-six-state involvement and high-wattage advocates, as the most important one "" I can't imagine it waiting beyond that. And there's little chance of the government succeeding in taking the Florida case en banc because beyond the panel there are only three other Democratic-appointed judges on the court (and the plaintiffs would likely go straight for cert. if they lose). The most likely scenario thus remains that we'll see argument before the Court next spring "" probably during its last sitting of the Term, in April 2012 "" with a decision coming the last week of June, less than a year from now.
4. Bottom line
All the Obamacare legal challenges boil down to Congress's authority "" or lack thereof "" to require people to buy private insurance. Although unfortunately not dispositive of modern judicial decisions, the text of the Constitution demands that the Supreme Court strike down the individual mandate as an unconstitutional exercise of Congress's power to regulate interstate commerce. Finding the mandate constitutional would be the first interpretation of the Commerce Clause to permit the regulation of inactivity "" in effect requiring an individual to engage in an economic transaction.
Moreover, upholding Obamacare would grant the federal government wide latitude to mandate that Americans engage in activities of its choosing. An expansive holding here would fundamentally alter the relationship between the government and the people. If the challenges fail, there will be no principled limits on federal power.
But will the Court go there, striking down such a large and important piece of legislation, the cornerstone of the Obama administration's domestic policy? On the one hand, the Court refrained from striking down such facially unconstitutional pieces of fundamental legislation as Social Security. On the other, that legislation was largely popular and came during a time of great social upheaval. If, as the old saw goes, "the Court follows the election returns," the "shellacking" the Democrats received in November 2010 and Obamacare's continuing bad polling may have steeled the spine of Justices inclined to overturn the law. In particular, if the conventional wisdom is correct that Justice Anthony Kennedy will be the swing vote in a five-four decision "" and I have no reason to distrust that wisdom here "" then he may be swayed by what the American people seem to think is a gross infringement on liberty.
Indeed, I'm more sanguine now about Justice Kennedy's vote than I was when the Obamacare lawsuits were first filed for two reasons "" or, I should say, two cases: United States v. Comstock (2010) and Bond v. United States (2011). In Comstock, the Court invoked the Necessary and Proper Clause to uphold the post-sentence civil commitment of federal prisoners deemed "sexually dangerous." While Kennedy voted to uphold the law, he wrote separately to emphasize the strict requirements that laws invoking the Necessary and Proper Clause must meet "" noting in particular that the government must show something more than "a mere conceivable rational relation" between the law at issue and commerce when it uses the Clause in the context of its power to regulate interstate commerce. Incidentally, Justice Antonin Scalia joined Justice Clarence Thomas's dissent in Comstock, which is one of several reasons why I'm not concerned about his vote "" despite Scalia's concurrence in Gonzales v. Raich. (For more on Comstock's impact on the Obamacare lawsuits, see a recent law review article I co-authored with Trevor Burrus.)
In Bond, meanwhile, Justice Kennedy wrote for a unanimous Court that individuals can raise Tenth Amendment claims that the federal government has overstepped its enumerated powers. In the course of a tight, fourteen-page opinion, Kennedy takes about five pages to elaborate on the idea that constitutional structure "" federalism, separation of powers, checks and balances, etc. "" is there not as a formalistic exercise in political theory but as a means to the ultimate end of our Founding: protecting individual liberty. For example: "The individual, in a proper case, can assert injury from governmental action taken in excess of the authority that federalism defines." Or take this: "Federalism is more than an exercise in setting the boundary between different institutions of government for their own integrity. "State sovereignty is not just an end in itself: "Rather, federalism secures to citizens the liberties that derive from the diffusion of sovereign power."'" There are plenty of good nuggets like that, and they dovetail with what Kennedy said about the Tenth Amendment in Comstock as well.
Now, if Kennedy joins the four "conservatives" in striking down the individual mandate, then I believe Chief Justice John Roberts "" who admittedly joined the Comstock majority without writing separately, likely out of a desire for there to be one opinion commanding five votes "" becomes the swing vote on severability. The Chief is an incrementalist who cares deeply about the Court's institutional reputation and thus "" as he did in the PCAOB case last year "" may not want to risk "rocking the boat" too much by throwing out the entire legislation if he can just excise the problematic provision(s).
That is, despite the absence of a severability clause, if the Court strikes down the individual mandate, it will have to choose how much else of Obamacare must fall with it. The government has conceded, to its credit, that the community-rating and guaranteed-issue provisions are inextricably tied to the individual mandate. The Court could thus go anywhere from that minimum carve-out to knocking out the whole thing "" as Judge Roger Vinson did in the Florida case "" because, in effect, the whole scheme breaks down (and none of it would've passed Congress) in the absence of the individual mandate.
The only precise prediction I'll make is that, whatever the ultimate result is of all this, the Supreme Court will not issue a decision ratifying a more expansive use of the commerce power than it did in Raich. It will either strike down this law or find some way to avoid the merits while effectively allowing the individual mandate to stand.
Recommended Citation: Ilya Shapiro, The individual mandate: An unprecedented expansion of federal power, SCOTUSblog (Aug. 3, 2011, 3:38 PM), https://www.scotusblog.com/2011/08/the-individual-mandate-an-unprecedented-expansion-of-federal-power/


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On the Today Show original cast members celebrating the release of the 40th anniversary Blu-Ray edition of Cabaret
"Forty years ago Liza Minnelli, Joel Grey, Marisa Berenson, and Michael York were just four young people in Germany, defying conventions and creating a ground-breaking film with one of the greatest director/choreographers of our age, Bob Fosse. Today, all four actors have had long, successful careers, but they seem to be just as fiercely in love as they were on screen (as evidenced by their row of clasped hands and giggling couch-cuddles).
Take a few minutes to step back into the Kit Kat Klub with them in this interview from the Today Show and witness Joel Grey singing a variation on "Two Ladies" with his arms wrapped around Minnelli, Grey, Kathie Lee, and Hoda."
Click Image above to link to TheaterMania…… article and video..


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Fighting for Darfur: review & givewaway
As bombs fall over Libya, the Security Council debates what actions to take (or not take) with regards to the civil war in Cote d'Ivoire, and those of us with the luxury of distance debate whether what will happen there might constitute genocide in technical terms (or not), I've spent the last few days reading Rebecca Hamilton's excellent new book, Fighting for Darfur.
Unlike the Cote d'Ivoire crisis, a large, international advocacy movement formed around the Darfur crisis, yet, at the end of the day, the movement was never able to achieve its primary goal of ensuring civilian protection in the region. Hamilton sets out to explain why. After the Rwandan genocide, most advocates, academics, and politicians believed that if a sustained, large, grassroots movement could be formed and maintained to pressure American officials to stop genocide and other crimes against humanity, then there wouldn't be any more Rwandas.
The advocates were wrong. Hamilton, herself a prominent player in the Darfur advocacy movement, provides an analysis as to why that is simultaneously an insider's view and a more detached, analytical take on the question. While highlighting the Darfur movement's successes (including the development of sustained pressure on the US government, a Security Council resolution, and the appointment of a series of special envoys for Sudan), she finds that several dynamics interfered in reaching the ultimate goal of civilian protection. For one, most advocates had difficulty understanding that both the situation in Southern Sudan and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the Darfur crisis had to be addressed simultaneously, difficult as this was. Says Sam Bell, a leader in the movement, "I think one of the biggest missing pieces for the movement initially was context, understanding the context."
This theme of a lack of contextual understanding pervades Hamilton's analysis. Advocates failed to understand that Sudan was not like Rwanda, that the situation in Sudan had evolved considerably by 2007-08, that their insistence on military action could - and did - have negative consequences for humanitarian operations serving Darfuris. But the biggest failure of understanding context came in understanding the role that the United States government could ultimately play in Darfur - or anywhere else in the world for that matter. Hamilton concludes that the advocates took years to finally understand that controlling the situation in Sudan is beyond the full reach of the United States government, the Chinese, or even the United Nations. Quite simply, we can't do everything.
It's a sobering realization, and not one that Hamilton reaches lightly. Fighting for Darfur is an absolute must-read for anyone interested in advocacy, diplomacy, Sudan, and/or grassroots activism. That said, I do have a couple of criticisms. First, the book is a bit uncritical of specific organizations, even while acknowledging the difficulties and constraints that several groups faced (eg, GI-Net was run by college students with little experience in any professional setting for its first few years of existence and thus faced difficulties figuring out how to direct the money it had raised). I understand why Hamilton could not do so - she is, in many instances, writing about her friends and colleagues - but for those interested in learning how to do advocacy better, it would have been nice to have some analysis of the groups' relative degrees of effectiveness. Why was one organization able to attract large numbers of donors and email list subscribers while others struggled? Why were there so many organizations under the Darfur advocacy umbrella to begin with? Would a more coordinated effort have been able to better inform grassroots activists as the situation evolved?
Second, while understanding that Hamilton needed to finish the book and get on with her life, I do wish that the publication had been delayed until after the results of this January's referendum. Hamilton spends a few paragraphs in the book's conclusion articulating the common-among-advocates view that the referendum might have evolved into violence, but of course that didn't happen. (To be sure, the question of what will happen in Abyei and other contested areas remains to be seen.) It would have been interesting to read reactions from those in the advocacy community who predicted - even assumed - that violence was inevitable and to hear them articulate what they thought made a difference. I suspect that the real answer to that question has a lot to do with Khartoum acting in its own self-interest and Scott Gration's insistence on engaging with Khartoum throughout the process, but those dynamics have not been particularly appreciated by Darfur advocates.
All in all, I found Fighting for Darfur to be a fantastic read. I highly recommend it if you are in the advocacy community or want to learn more about those who are. Have you read Fighting for Darfur or were you involved in the Darfur advocacy movement? What do you think?
As a special treat, I am pleased to be able to give away one copy of Fighting for Darfur to a lucky reader. All you have to do to win is leave a comment below before Saturday at 5pm EDT. I'll use a random integer generator to pick the winner, post it here, and the winner will have 48 hours to email me with your mailing address. If he/she doesn't do so in that time, I'll pick another winner.
N.B. I was provided with a complimentary review copy of Fighting for Darfur by the author, but was not compensated for this review, nor was I provided with talking points. All opinions contained in this post are mine alone.
UPDATE: The winner of the Fighting for Darfur giveaway, chosen via a random number generator, was comment #8, Akhila. Congratulations and thanks to everyone who entered. Akhila, please shoot me an email with your mailing address and I'll get the book to you asap.


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Feel motivated to get into helping others learn about PHP topics but aren't sure how? Well, check out this new post from John Coggeshall - he's looking for someone for Zend:
Zend needs, pretty much immediately, a part-time trainer who can do online trainings periodically (generally in two hour blocks starting either at 11am or 2pm EST). Must be able to speak intelligently and authoritatively on various PHP subjects you know and have the time to learn any subjects being taught you might be lacking in.
If you'd like to be considered, drop him an email at john at zend dot com with your contact information and any experience you might have and he'll get back with you.


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In its first season as reigning continental champion since 1995, Real Madrid went up and down in the 2015-16 Turkish Airlines Euroleague, combining brilliant wins with unexpected losses. Madrid started the season with a new title, the Intercontinental Cup, beating Bauru of Brazil. With some of its players tried after a long off-season with their national teams, Madrid did not have a good start of the Euroleague season, winning just 2 of its opening 7 games. That put Los Blancos with their backs against the wall, in need to win its last 3 regular season games to make it to the next round. Madrid downed Fenerbahce Istanbul, FC Bayern Munich and Strasbourg - setting a new assists record in this one, 36 - to reach the Top 16. Three consecutive road wins against Khimki Moscow Region, Brose Baskets Bamberg and Zalgiris Kaunas seemed to give Los Blancos a cushion but three consecutive losses left Madrid facing a do-or-die game against Khimki for survival in Top 16 Round 14. Madrid won 83-70, but it would be its last win in the 2015-16 Euroleague, as Fenerbahce swept their best-of-five playoffs series, dethroning the reigning champs.
Real Madrid comes off another great season in which the team conquered the Spanish double - league and cup titles - and added an Intercontinental Cup trophy for the first time since 1981. Madrid downed Herbalife Gran Canaria Las Palmas in the Copa del Rey final and downed FC Barcelona Lassa in the Spanish League finals without the home court advantage, with Sergio Llull and Gustayo Ayon playing a stellar role for head coach Pablo Laso's team. For more than half a century, Madrid has been a reference in European basketball as it has accumulated a record nine continental titles. Its untouchable cache of 33 domestic league and 26 cup trophies says plenty about its status in Spanish basketball. Moreover, almost every time that Madrid has not played in Europe's top competition, it won a different continental trophy; its trophy case boasts four Saporta Cups, a Korac Cup and a ULEB Cup between 1984 and 2007 – all as stepping-stones back to the big time. Great players like Emiliano Rodriguez, Clifford Luyk, Wayne Brabender, Walter Szczerbiak, Juan Antonio Corbalan, Drazen Petrovic, Arvydas Sabonis and Dejan Bodiroga have turned Real Madrid into one of the most celebrated basketball clubs in the world. Madrid won four Euroleague titles between 1964 and 1968 to establish itself as a juggernaut and added more titles in 1974, 1978 and 1980. Even though it took the club 15 years to win it again, Madrid found success in other European competitions, too; it lifted the Saporta Cup trophy in 1984, 1989, 1992 and 1997 as well as the Korac Cup in 1988. With Sabonis aboard, Madrid won its eighth Euroleague title in 1995 by beating Olympiacos in the final. In 2007, Louis Bullock and Felipe Reyes helped Madrid to a new trophy, the ULEB Cup, and the Spanish League crown for the 30th time by besting Barcelona 3-1 in the finals. Madrid returned to the Final Four in 2011 and, with Laso as head coach, went all the way to the Euroleague Championship Game in 2013 and 2014, but lost against Olympiacos and Maccabi Electra, respectively. Madrid was loyal to its fast-paced, fun-to-watch basketball and gained the experience and toughness required to be almost unbeatable in decisive games in the 2014-15 season, arguably the best ever for Los Blancos. Madrid finally went all the way by downing Olympiacos Piraeus 78-59 to claim its ninth continental crown and its first since 1995. Andres Nocioni was chosen as the Final Four MVP and Felipe Reyes was an All-Euroleague First Team selection, while Sergio Rodriguez, Llull, Jaycee Carroll, Ayon and Rudy Fernandez all played major roles during the season, too. Coach Laso's team also lifted the Copa del Rey and the Spanish League trophies to conquer Los Blancos' first Triple Crown since 1974. Three more titles came in the following 12 months and the next goal is, as always, ambitious - to become the first team to win 10 Euroleague titles, while trying to win every other trophy available, too.


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The Bachelor led to 'drinking problems'
AS a host of new women are locked up in the Bachelor mansion former contestant Lana Jeavons-Fellows has told how she turned to partying after her time on the show.
While 13 ladies are vying for Matty J's affection on the current series, Jeavons-Fellows said despite the show propelling her to national fame, there was a time post filming where she was struggling.
"After the show I was going out a lot, drinking a lot with girlfriends and that can get you into a negative headspace," Jeavons-Fellow said.
"I wasn't a big drinker, but on the show you drink champagnes."
Friends like model and TV presenter Laura Dundovic helped the brunette get back on her feet.
"It took me a while to get back to normal, It took me a good year to get back to feeling good," she said.
Life is now great for Jeavons-Fellows, having recently purchased a property in Queensland and going strong with her boyfriend entrepreneur Jake Meah
"Life is lovely at the moment," she said.
"This year I plan to travel, I turn 29 this year so I want to do a lot before I turn 30," she said.


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*6/29/20 NOTE: We're ramping the calendar back to some level of usefulness, as more events continue being planned, both online and in-person, so let us know if you have something coming up that's open to the public!*
Want your West Seattle event/meeting/etc. to be listed here? Please send basic info to email@example.com – thanks! Please include full details AS PLAIN TEXT IN YOUR E-MAIL, *not* in an attached doc/poster/flyer/etc. A web link for more info helps too. Thank you!
USING THE CALENDAR: Mouse over any entry to show the "plus" sign at right; click it to expand the item for more info without leaving this page; click "read more" for the FULL listing./question.
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12:00 pm Junction Church free community lunch
Junction Church free community lunch
May 15 @ 12:00 pm – 12:30 pm
The Junction Church Free Community Lunch will be a sack lunch until further notice. Every Friday from 12:00 to 12:30 pm. Address is 4157 California Ave SW. Free to all who stop by.Share This
6:15 pm Pay-what-you-can yoga @ Youngstown Cultural Arts Center
Pay-what-you-can yoga @ Youngstown Cultural Arts Center
May 15 @ 6:15 pm
Poseurs Yoga Every Friday at 6:15 p.m. Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, 4408 Delridge Way SW Details: Pay-what-you-can yoga at Youngstown! This is an hour-long, vinyasa-style class. Bring your own mat if you can—there's a limited[...]
7:00 pm Plant for the Planet West Seattle meetings @ Puget Ridge Cohousing
Plant for the Planet West Seattle meetings @ Puget Ridge Cohousing
May 15 @ 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
With the growth of Plant for the Planet (a youth-led climate organization) in Seattle and enough Climate Justice Ambassadors in the South, we have officially kicked off our monthly West Seattle meetings. Every 3rd Friday[...]
9:00 pm Friday Karaoke at Admiral Pub
Friday Karaoke at Admiral Pub
May 15 @ 9:00 pm
Friday Karaoke at Admiral Pub 9 pm Karaoke at Admiral Pub proudly welcomes good singers, bad singers, non-singers, musicians, dancers, wallflowers, high fivers, locals, transplants, singles, couples, tinder dates and a special appearance by anyone[...]


text: Psychogenic diseases can have many severe symptoms such as painful cramps or paralysis but without any physical explanation. These diseases were formerly known as 'hysterical' illnesses. New research suggests that individuals with psychogenic disease, that is to say physical illness that stems from emotional or mental stresses, do have brains that function differently. The research is from the University of Cambridge and UCL (University College London). The research was published today, 25 February, in the journal Brain. Psychogenic diseases may look very similar to illnesses caused by damage to nerves, the brain or the muscles, or similar to genetic diseases of the nervous system. However, unlike organic diseases, psychogenic diseases do not have any apparent physical cause, making them difficult to diagnose and even more difficult to treat. "The processes leading to these disorders are poorly understood, complex and highly variable. As a result, treatments are also complex, often lengthy and in many cases there is poor recovery. In order to improve treatment of these disorders, it is important to first understand the underlying mechanism," said Dr James Rowe from the University of Cambridge. The study looked at people with either psychogenic or organic dystonia, as well as healthy people with no dystonia. Both types of dystonia caused painful and disabling muscle contractions affecting the leg. The organic patient group had a gene mutation (the DYT1 gene) that caused their dystonia. The psychogenic patients had the symptoms of dystonia but did not have any physical explanation for the disease, even after extensive investigations. The scientists performed PET brain scans on the volunteers at UCL, to measure the blood flow and brain activity of both of the groups, and healthy volunteers. The participants were scanned with three different foot positions: resting, moving their foot, and holding their leg in a dystonic position. The electrical activity of the leg muscles was measured at the same time to determine which muscles were engaged during the scans. The researchers found that the brain function of individuals with the psychogenic illness was not normal. The changes were, however, very different from the brains of individuals with the organic (genetic) disease. Dr Anette Schrag, from UCL, said: "Finding abnormalities of brain function that are very different from those in the organic form of dystonia opens up a way for researchers to learn how psychological factors can, by changing brain function, lead to physical problems." Dr Rowe added: "What struck me was just how very different the abnormal brain function was in patients with the genetic and the psychogenic dystonia. Even more striking was that the differences were there all the time, whether the patients were resting or trying to move." Additionally, the researchers found that one part of the brain previously thought to indicate psychogenic disease is unreliable: abnormal activity of the prefrontal cortex was thought to be the hallmark of psychogenic diseases. In this study, the scientists showed that this abnormality is not unique to psychogenic disease, since activity was also present in the patients with the genetic cause of dystonia when they tried to move their foot. Dr Arpan Mehta, from the University of Cambridge, said: "It is interesting that, despite the differences, both types of patient had one thing in common - a problem at the front of the brain. This area controls attention to our movements and although the abnormality is not unique to psychogenic dystonia, it is part of the problem." This type of illness is very common. Dr Schrag said: "One in six patients that see a neurologist has a psychogenic illness. They are as ill as someone with organic disease, but with a different cause and different treatment needs. Understanding these disorders, diagnosing them early and finding the right treatment are all clearly very important. We are hopeful that these results might help doctors and patients understand the mechanism leading to this disorder, and guide better treatments." Source: Eurekalert << Blood Stem Cells Nurtured By Distinct Niches in Bone Marrow European Commission Says Cutting Smoking Saves More in Heal... >> Most Popular on Medindia Find a Hospital How to Reduce School Bag Weight - Simple Tips Noscaphene (Noscapine)