text:
Google will be told on Tuesday to unravel the controversial changes introduced in March to its European privacy policy, legal sources have told the Guardian.
The French data protection commissioner, the CNIL, will be holding a press conference on Tuesday to announce the results of its deliberations together with the data protection chiefs of the other European Union countries.
As exclusively revealed by the Guardian last week, they have determined that Google's changes breached EU law because they did not give users any chance to opt out of the changes.
Next, the CNIL – one of the more aggressive European data protection commissioners – will tell Google to undo those changes, and recreate the setup that existed before, said Chris Watson, a partner and privacy expert at the London law firm CMS Cameron McKenna.
"By putting the CNIL in charge of this, the EU was going for blood," said Watson. "It was a declaration of intent."
The UK's ICO, he suggested, would have taken a softer line with Google. "The point is that Google is an international company which is leveraging its power in the browser and its other services in a way that affects national businesses all over the EU. There's great political importance in the data protection commissioners doing something, because if they think there's a breach and they don't do anything about it, what's the point of having them?"
Bradley Shears, a US-based lawyer who specialises in digital privacy law and has campaigned for increased privacy for users of services including Facebook, said he expects the CNIL to find that Google broke EU privacy law, and to oblige it to unwind the changes.
Shears told the Guardian: "Since Google had the technical capability to combine the data of all of its users' accounts it should have the ability to reinstate the previous barriers that acted like a digital Chinese wall between its services that better protected user privacy."
He added: "Since Google refused to heed the EU's prior warnings that changing its privacy policies may violate data protection laws it would not surprise me if restrictions are placed on how Google may utilise the user data profiles it has created since the new policies went into effect. This [EU] decision may restrict Google's ability to fully monetise its users' personal data across its platforms and may cost Google tens of millions of dollars in lost revenue."
Shears noted that "The EU's decision may create a domino effect and lead regulators in the US and other parts of the world to impose similar restrictions on Google's ability to intermingle and monetise user data." In the US, Google had to agree in October 2011 to privacy oversight by the Federal Trade Commission for 20 years after being accused of violating its own privacy policies and using "deceptive practices" in setting up its Buzz social network.
In the changes, trailed in January and then carried out in March, Google brought together separate "silos" of data collected from services such as its search service, YouTube and Maps into a single datastore so that it could tailor adverts and content more closely.
Google said then the new policy would simplify the user experience, and said it was confident it had obeyed "all European data protection laws and principles".
But it was warned by the justice commissioner Viviane Reding that the changes might breach EU law.
There have been suggestions that trying to separate the data back into individual services would be like "unscrambling an egg".
Watson said that he believes that Google will in fact be able to do that: "To suggest that they couldn't would be like Microsoft's defence when it was accused of using its Windows monopoly for the Internet Explorer browser – that it couldn't separate them. It could. If Google's defence is that they can't, they're going to have a fight on their hands."
Google declined to comment on the forthcoming CNIL report, but said: "We are confident that our privacy notices respect the requirements of European data protection laws."
Separately, Google has been in intensive talks for months with the European Commission's competition arm. It is accused of anti-competitive behaviour in the way it orders its search results, uses other sites' content, and controls some elements of advertising.
Reports last week said that Google has offered to "label" its own services where they appear in search results – though early reaction from affected companies suggested that would not be enough.


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If you produce the oil that powers the engines, why not own the whole damn car? Or at least a good slice of it? Turns out, the Kingdom of Bahrain's purchase is not unprecedented as Abu Dhabi owns 5% of Ferrari and 15% of Spyker. What does this mean for lay pistonheads like us? Just that F1 will continue to be cash-flush and innovate like mad until Ferrari's manettino gets a sixth-setting in the eventual F430 replacement. Even still, we'd love to own part of an F1 team. Mel Brooks was right; it's good to be king.
Bahrain buys into McLaren [F1 News]
Windows 2.4-Liter: McLaren and Microsoft Officially Team up on ECU for F1 [Internal]

subset: commoncrawl


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Be sure we shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods or lives or the fruits (of your toil), but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere, Who say, when afflicted with calamity: "To Allah We belong, and to Him is our return":-They are those on whom (Descend) blessings from Allah, and Mercy, and they are the ones that receive guidance. (Surat al-Baqara, 155-157)
"How amazing is the affair of the believer! Everything which happens is good for him. And that is for no one except the believer. When he encounters good times and ease, he gives thanks and that is good for him and if he encounters hardship he is steadfast and that is good for him." (Muslim)
He said Let me have charge of it".." By this, the Qur'an draws attention to how merciless and cruel the capitalists will be, raving people, savage capitalism in the End times, how it could be in the End Times. That means the Qur'an draws attention to the small capital being swallowed by the big capital; the Qur'an implicates that some big capital owners will be very merciless and cruel and that there will be such a merciless system in the End Times and that the system of the anti-christ will be supporting this raving system. That is a concise and terse explanation depicting Capitalism. (A9 TV, MAY 16, 2012)
When Something Troubles You, Think Immedıately About The Troubles Muslims Face In The World. Then You Will Better Understand How The Things You Think Of As 'Great Problems' Are In Fact Just Irrelevant And Minor Details...
The billions of people in the world all lead different lives. Not one person's life resembles that of another. Yet when they encounter problems or troubles, each one thinks that he has 'the worst troubles in the world.'
Sometimes, people who fail an exam, who cannot buy an article of clothing they want, who had a bad hair day, who cannot lose weight or who have to work alongside someone they dislike, imagine that they are facing serious troubles. In the same way, people who take offense at something someone says, who fall out with their best friend, who imagine they have been treated unfairly, who are suspicious of someone else or who imagine they are not loved or respected sufficiently also say, in their words, that 'their lives are falling apart.' They go on about the matter for days on end, telling everyone how wronged they are, how difficult things are for them and how much they are suffering.
However it is perfectly clear that none of these things are actual 'troubles'. Actually nothing people face can be considered as 'trouble.' What is more, even if these people were to encounter far graver difficulties than the present ones, their lives would still not 'fall apart.' They might face a serious health issue, major surgery, or have crippling debts, or be unemployed or work under difficult conditions or have family problems. But none of these could be a reason for them to see themselves as 'the most troubled person in the world.'
First and foremost, nothing in this world is a 'trouble' for someone who knows the moral values of the Qur'an. There are just events created by Allah, events created with wisdom. There are tests created by Allah to judge that person's faith, trust in and devotion to Allah and that person's moral virtues. In one verse Allah mentions: "We test you with both good and evil as a trial. And you will be returned to Us. (Surat al-Anbiya, 35)
In addition, thinking about what is happening to Muslims all across the world will be instrumental in someone, who imagines that he is facing a huge problem because of something that has happened to him, realizing that his troubles are in fact quite mundane and can easily be resolved. He will more quickly realize that, compared with the oppression and troubles facing Muslims in East Turkestan, Palestine, the Crimea, Kirkuk, Moro and many other parts of the world, the worries preoccupying him are quite trivial.
The conflict, strife, oppression and cruelty that have been going on for decades in Islamic lands have cost the lives of thousands of innocent Muslims, crippled tens of thousands and forced millions more from their homes. The majority have also been detained for their beliefs and ideas. Young girls, children and old people are subjected to terrible oppression in East Turkestan, just because they are Muslims. People are ruthlessly executed and tortured for no reason. People who attend mosques have their salaries cut and Muslims are denied permission to perform religious observances. With the massacres taking place after 1965, over the last 60 years, 35 million Uighur Muslims have been subjected to genocide. In East Turkestan, in July last year, 796 MUSLIMS were executed and martyred without even being able to offer a legal defense. These people were even denied funeral rites. During those same days when the streets were full of bodies, 10,000 MUSLIMS DISAPPEARED IN A SINGLE NIGHT AND 100,000 OF OUR UIGHUR MUSLIM SISTERS WERE TAKEN FROM THEIR HOMES BY FORCE. These sisters of ours are forced into illicit relationships under the threat of death. The fate of the 10,000 Muslims who disappeared overnight is still unknown. There is a strong likelihood that these innocent people have been martyred. China has never accounted for the fate and whereabouts of these 10,000 Uighur Muslims and our 100,000 Uighur sisters.
A Muslim will always think along those lines, even if he is tested with the most difficult conditions or if he enjoys countless blessings. He will think about the blessings he is given and thank Allah. Even if he is in East Turkestan, or Palestine, or subjected to persecution, oppression and torture, he will still give thanks to Allah. He will always be content with Allah and the things he faces, because Allah gave him reason, faith and conscience, allowed him to know and love our Lord, and gave him the means with which to seek His approval.
That is because whatever form of test Allah ordains for any person is always the best for them. And Allah will definitely reward those who have patience in their moral virtues, in this world and in the Hereafter, insha'Allah.
The Invalidity Of The Claim That ''Transitional Forms Do Not Mean Deformed Living Things''
After the fact that 99% of mutations are harmful, one of the most difficult and problematic subjects for Darwinists is the total absence of the fictitious fossils known as transitional forms.
Darwinists have sought to explain the absence of transitional forms in other ways, in order to neutralize this fact that is so embarrassing for them, and say instead that "transitional fossils are different to what you imagine."
HY, if species have descended from other species by insensibly fine gradations, DO WE NOT EVERYWHERE SEE INNUMERABLE TRANSITIONAL FORMS? WHY IS NOT ALL NATURE IN CONFUSION INSTEAD OF THE SPECIES BEING, AS WE SEE THEM, WELL DEFINED? . .1
For more detail regarding the invalidity of the concept of transitional forms, see:
For the invalidity of the claim that lunged fish are transitional forms,
1 Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species, pp. 172, 280
The Occupation Of Afghanistan
Pity poor Taliqan [a region in Afghanistan]. At that place are treasures of Allah. These are not of gold and silver, but consist of people who have recognized Allah as they should have. They are the Mahdi's servants. (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi `Alamat al-Mahdi, p. 59)
Pity poor Taliqan…
The hadith may refer to the invasion of Afghanistan during the Mahdi's time. Indeed, the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979 (1400 ah – according to the Islamic calendar), the beginning of a new Islamic century. The hadiths state that the Mahdi will appear at the beginning of a new Islamic century. The fact that many portents coincided with this particular date shows that these dates are an important sign of the Mahdi's coming.
… at that place are treasures of Allah. But these are not of gold and silver …
This hadith also draws attention to Afghanistan's material riches. Today, large oil deposits, iron basins, and coal mines that have not yet been commercially exploited have been detected there.
2012-07-08 19:00:22


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During the small group instruction that happens prior to the literacy block, all the students were working on language and vocabulary development to enrich their background for our poetry writing unit.
Teaching Point: Students will write a particular type of poem by selecting a name and then character traits that describe the person in an acrostic poem.
First thing in the morning I asked the students to come up to the rug with their writers' notebook with their "I Remember" poems from yesterday. I asked for volunteers to read their poems. Students were excited to share their poems. Students gave each other specific compliments on their poems.
After students shared, I showed Poetry is Art to continue to build the idea that writing poetry is a way to create art. I was building on the ipad commercial and the you tube clip from the dead poets society from yesterday's lesson. I overheard a few students yesterday say that they didn't like writing poetry- so I am being strategic in how I sequence my lessons so that all students are successful and revise their thinking about poetry. So they can have an opportunity to change their mind.
I will start the lesson with students at their desks. "Who has written an acrostic poem?" I'm anticipating that several of the students will know what they are and remember writing one. Then I will say, "Today you will practice writing several acrostic poems."
I have decided to use the leaders in each of my 7 cooperative table groups to impart the learning task to their teammates. "Leaders, please come up and see me. Students at your desks please get out your writer's notebooks and a pencil." Once the 7 leaders have gathered, I will hand each one a copy of task card #1 . I will have the students stand in a circle and select one student to read the first sentence on the card and continue going around in a circle until each of the sentences have been read. I will say, " Now we are going to read the directions again together, so when you go back to your groups you will know how to explain the task to your teammates. Have students reread the task card. Ask for a couple of students to rephrase what the task is. Ask if there are any questions. Next, I will send the students back to their seats to lead their cooperative groups in task #1.
I will send the leaders back to their tables to share the task card with their group members. I will observe the leaders in their roles and coach where necessary. I am anticipating the leaders will either read the task card or tell in their own words what the task is. I will tell students they have 10 minutes to write an acrostic poem. As students are working, I anticipate they will need some support with certain letters. I will have dictionaries and thesauri ready. I will also have a list of character traits on hand. I will pass them out as needed.
I will monitor student progress, and if students finish before the ten minutes, I will encourage them to add to their words or start a new poem.
When most students are finished and when the ten minutes is up I will quickly gather the leaders on the rug in a standing circle. This way I can keep one eye on the class as I hand out task card #2 to the leaders. I will lead this same as task 1 and send leaders off to explain second task.
Students will write a second acrostic using the word respect. After students have finished their second poem I will bring students to the rug to share.
I will bring students to the rug to sit in a circle to share their poems. Students may put their poem under doc cam and read it or just read it. (Sometimes a student is shy to put their writing under the doc cam because of their spelling, handwriting, etc.) I make sure that I allow students to share in a way that is comfortable for them. Students will be listening for specific details to compliment each on.
I'll soon have a new baby sister!
Compliment students:
Say, "Students, today you did a great job writing your name acrostic poems. It was smart of you to use the character traits resource to find just the right character trait the person you wrote your poem about! On the second poem you wrote about respect, you showed that you really understand what the word means."
Pre-exposure for tomorrow: Tomorrow you will write another acrostic poem. We now what the word elaboration means, right? ( kids will say yes..it means to add more words..)
Tomorrow when you write your acrostic poem, I want to encourage you to write more- elaborate each line to be a phrase or sentence. Today, a ot of you wrote just one word. Tomorrow I want you to elaborate and add more words!
You will write a topic acrostic. When you write a topic acrostic you think of a topic or a person that you are very interested in and then research that topic using an ipad. You know how I love learning about the clipper ship era and clipper ships, right? Let me show you my TOPIC ACROSTIC: Clipper Ships!!
Read Poem to students.
"Now think of a topic or person you would like to research tomorrow to write a topic acrostic poem using facts you learn in your poem. After think time, call on students to share their topics.


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Searched for "Featured capacity 4"
You selected:Gauge: 0.45 Clear All Refinements
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Hello all, and welcome to another exciting installment of Let's Look at Comics!
Today we'll be looking at Marvel's, "Avengers West Coast #99 – Time to Kill."
For those who are unaware, The Avengers are essentially Marvel's answer to DC's Justice League; a team of heroes comprised of their respective universes most powerful and highest profile characters.
If you don't know what the Justice League is, then you can consider yourself a waste of flesh, and a waste of my motherfucking time.
Seriously, get the fuck out.
Anyway, The Avengers have always been a fucking deal over at Marvel due to the fact that it's roster has often included "The Big Three," AKA Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man.
The basic concept behind the formation of The Avengers was, and always will be: to give the writers an excuse to play Ocean's 11 with the Marvel universe.
Nah, just kidding, The Avengers exist to combat threats that no single hero could combat on their own.
Truth be told, I've never really been an Avengers fan, largely due to the fact that the opposition they are required to face in order for the battle to seem at all competitive, are the kind of villains that are outrageously overpowered to the point in which deus ex machina is often required to defeat them.
In all, I'm not really a "team" fan.
The Justice League is dull for the same reasons The Avengers are.
The X-Men are cool, but have the most impenetrable continuity in all of continuities.
The Fantastic 4, well… unless Sue Storm's wearing her 90's uniform, I really don't care.
Seriously though, I get more satisfaction out of taking a shit than I do reading their stuff.
Getting back on track, at some point during the 80's Marvel had the bright idea to try their hand at expanding their readership by creating a spin-off series based on The Avengers called The Avengers West Coast.
As is always the case, breaking up the band proved to be a bad idea.
Despite this, DC was kind enough to follow-suit and rip them off a few years later with the launch of their own Justice League spin-off, Justice League International.
Oh yeah, did I mention that it sucked too?
The problem with Avengers West Coast, and most spin-offs in general, was the fact that the entire premise was based around constructing stories and conflicts using the spare parts of a stronger, pre-established property.
In example, let's take a look at some members of the West Coast roster:
Hawkeye is alright, seeing as he was a former Avenger and he founded the West Coast team.
Basically, he has no super powers, but he's a good archer, and oh yeah, he's a dick, so he gets Ice Man points.
Mockingbird is Hawkeyes' equally powerless woman.
They fucked, she died, end of story.
War Machine = Iron Man if he shopped at Ross. Nuff' said.
U.S. Agent = Captain America if he was in the UFC.
And Spider-Woman, well she's definitely no Spider-Man, and more importantly, she's not the sexy Spider-Woman.
Azn Badger likes him some Sexy Spider-Woman…
With all of that out of the way, I think you can understand when I say that Avengers West Coast was a mediocre team that was involved in mediocre storylines, fighting mediocre villains I.E. The Grim Reaper.
And guess what?
Today we're gonna' be taking a look at an issue from one of those crappy stories, so fasten your seat belts boys and girls, it's gonna' be a hot time in the old town tonight!
The issue opens with a full page spread of U.S. Agent walking in on a Renaissance fair as he looks for the nearest Honey Bucket.
Turns out, these Ren fair patrons are in fact the real deal, and as it so happens one of them is choking on some poisoned wine, like you do; served to him by the deadly and beautiful…
… Okay, thanks comic, now I feel kind of dumb for not knowing who that is.
According to my 30 seconds of Google research,
was the daughter of a Valencian noble, who would often marry her off to men, only to have those men meet grisly ends.
That's the historical version, in this comic she's just a bitch with a funny hat.
Anyway, after witnessing the wine poisoning, U.S. Agent storms in, bein' all like, "The white woman done it! I seen it!"
This of course, leads to Agent having to put the hurt on some Carnies.
Or at least trying to.
After a few more panels of Agent beat-down,
saunters up and force feeds him some of her patented poison wine.
Cue full-page acid trip:
After that artistically confusing unpleasantness, U.S. Agent awakens in a hospital, delusional and in a state of shock.
I'm sure waking up to this had nothing to do with that:
As is typical of her, un-sexy Spider-Woman has some incredibly deep and thoughtful insights to provide
As U.S. Agent gets his bearings, the rest of the Avengers West Coast proceed to spew exposition back and forth amongst one another.
From these exchanges we learn that U.S. Agent got his ass pwned in the previous issue by a nefarious team of villains called the "Lethal Legion."
Of course, U.S. Agent, being the meathead that he is, decides to throw a hissy fit and begins to argue with Hawkeye.
The Hangman that Agent mentioned above is the ringleader of the Lethal Legion, a third-rate villain that serves as a virtually unbeatable antagonist to our team of super goobers.
After a solid 2 pages of bitching and moaning, and a Cap'n Crunch ad, our story finally picks up again.
But not before serving us with another ad:
Following this, our heroes decide to split-up in their search for the Hangman.
Un-sexy Spider-Woman and War Machine set out to investigate a Stella Houston's beach house, presumably so un-sexy Spider-Woman can find a way to sexify herself.
Upon entering the residence of the Hangman's former flame, our heroes are greeted by this crazy bitch:
Seriously, that's her name.
Anyway, uh, Ms. Violence tears into our heroes like they were, well, like they were a bunch of mediocre superheroes.
As it turns out, Axe of Violence's axe is laced with magic which, based on War Machine's cry of "ARRRRRRRRRR", seems to be bad news for the Avengers West Coast.
With War Machine proving to be less than helpful, and Axe of Violence proving to be an expert in pun crafting and axe fighting, un-sexy Spider-Woman decides join in the fight by literally hurling herself into the fray.
During the confusion that follows, Ms. Violence makes mention of someone named Satannish, a demon who is apparently the true force behind the Hangman and the Lethal Legion.
As War Machine and un-sexy Spider-Woman back Axe of Violence into a corner, she suddenly turns tail and runs off, leaving them a parting gift in the process:
Thankfully, our exceedingly powerful and skillful Avengers West Coast manage to…
Jesus fuck, The Avengers West Coast suck-ass…
You see, that's the fuckin' problem with these guys!
Someone throws A FUCKING AXE and you don't even so much as TRY to get out of the way!?
ARRRRRRGH!!! They should call these pansies the fuckin' Avengers Triple-A…
ANYWAY, mental giant that she is, un-sexy Spider-Woman proceeds to diagnose her MAGICAL AXE WOUND as being "not deep" and therefore, not a cause for concern.
With Axe of Violence gone, War Machine and un-sexy Spider-Woman proceed to discuss the Lizzie Borden nursery rhyme and it's connection to their recently departed opponent.
You know, superhero stuff.
With that, we head on over to the Hangman's former residence, where Hawkeye and the Scarlet Witch are poking around for clues.
Unfortunately, that crazy bitch,
decides to show up and make things difficult for our heroes.
Although I must say, she must've spent the past couple of days gettin' Smurf STDs, 'cause she's lookin' a little, well, blue.
Fortunately, she made the mistake of trying to ambush the Scarlet Witch AKA THE MOST BROKEN-ASS CHARACTER IN THE MARVEL UNIVERSE.
You see, the Scarlet Witch's powers involve probability manipulation, which in comic book terms, translates to BEING ABLE TO DO ANY FUCKING THING SHE WANTS.
In this case however, the writer was kind enough to tone down her powers so as to make her opponent seem to be a credible threat.
Trust me, you don't wanna' see what kind of stupid shit happens when the writers go nuts with the Scarlet Witch's powers *cough!* House of M *cough!*
With Hawkeye's help, (Haha! Yeah, sure…) the Scarlet Witch manages to subdue the Smurfette, however, before they can question her, the Hangman decides to crash the party by snagging Hawkeye with his noose.
Not only that, but he takes the time to show the Scarlet Witch who wears the motherfuckin' daddy pants.
With that, Hangman makes his way out the nearby window, an action that Hawkeye's neck definitely would not appreciate.
*Ahem!* Cue Scarlet Witch and her broken-ass powers, as well as an insane amount of thought bubble text:
Scarlet Witch does indeed manage to literally save Hawkeye's neck just before it's snapped in half, whereupon our heroes proceed to ponder over
and her connection to the crazy Smurfette.
I wonder, do these guys ever get tired of being boring and inept?
We then find ourselves back at the hospital, where Hawkeye's wife, Mockingbird, is checking in on U.S. Agent.
She tries to tell Agent that she's going to quit the Avengers West Coast in favor of starting a family.
Unfortunately he's busy downing a protein shake, getting an outlandish tattoo, and hating his father, so her words fail to reach his 'roided out ears.
Oh yeah, that and some robot fucker named Coldsteel decides to show up.
Well, U.S. Agent and Coldsteel proceed to throw down while Mockingbird hangs back and pretends to be useful.
Yeah, she's just as worthless as her husband.
During the battle, U.S. Agent comes to the conclusion that Coldsteel and the Lethal Legion are hunting the Avengers West Coast as some sort of competition.
As if to put an exclamation point on his theory, another member of the the Lethal Legion, Zyklon, shows up and proceeds to interfere with Coldsteel's assault.
During the ensuing chaos, Mockingbird has hallucinations similar to the ones U.S. Agent had earlier, more specifically the ones dealing with Nazi gas victims.
Likewise, Agent appears to have drunk the bong water, again, 'cause he's seeing things again as well:
So, if we are to believe U.S. Agent's cracked out visions, Coldsteel is Josef Stalin.
Right, then naturally, that would mean that Zyklon is:
That's right folks, Mockingbird has a vision of Zyklon actually being Heinrich Himmler.
Before things can get awkward though, Zyklon/Himmler takes Mockingbird hostage, apparently just to piss off Coldsteel/Stalin.
Fortunately, Coldsteel still has U.S. Agent to beat on, so he does just that.
Before things can get out of hand though, War Machine decides to show up and… well, you'll see.
After the dust has settled, the rest of the Avengers West Coast meet up at the hospital.
A shit ton of bitching and arguing follows soon after, with Hawkeye being all pissy on account of his wife getting snatched, and U.S. Agent being all down on himself 'cause he's finally coming down from his caffeine high.
Eventually, the team get their shit together, and the Scarlet Witch offers to use a tome of deus ex machina to open up a portal to Satannish's realm.
The fact that the double-size, issue #100 was just on the horizon as this comic was being written, seems to serve as the only explanation as to why the deus ex machina book didn't come into play earlier in the story.
Anyway, the Scarlet With reads from the book, and un-sexy Spider-Woman once again has some brilliant commentary to offer:
Despite un-sexy Spider-Woman's doubts as to the deus ex machina book's capabilities, Satannish is kind enough to promptly show himself, thusly rendering her objections pointless, and yes, un-sexy.
Satannish proceeds to gloat from his twin mouths, calling the Avengers West Coast mean things like "weak", "dumb", and "un-sexy."
When confronted on his motives for kidnapping Mockingbird, Satannish responds with something the lines of :
"'Cause I'm all 'bout dah' bitches!"
Anyway, the issue draws to an end as our heroes stand around with their thumbs up their butts, only to have the great lord of the underworld himself, Mephisto, show up and offer his aid in battling Satannish.
Well, that was Avengers West Coast #99.
Now you finally understand why I don't read team books. (well, outside of Secret Six and The Thunderbolts, they're fuckin' awesome)
They're muddled, confusing, and more often than not their plots center around watching the heroes get their asses kicked until God himself descends from the heavens and grants them a sudden, and often, unwarranted, victory.
Goodnight ladies and gentleman, I am officially off writing until…. sometime tomorrow morning.
Let's have one more picture of Sexy Spider-Woman before we say goodnight, shall we?
Filed under: Comics, Uncategorized, Avengers, Avengers West Coast, Axe of Violence, Captain America, Coldsteel, Comics, DC, Fantastic Four, Hangman, Heinrich Himmler, House of M, Hulk, Ice Man, International, Iron Man, Jessica Drew, Josef Stalin, Justice League, Lethal Legion, Lizzie Borden, Lucrezia Borgia, Marvel, Mephisto, Mockingbird, Satannish, Scarlet Witch, Secret Six, Spider-Woman, Thor, Thunderbolts, Top Gun, U.S. Agent, War Machine, Wasp, x-men, Zyklon


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Grass Roots Art and Community Effort
Grass Roots Art and Community Effort
We are now accepting new workshop contracts!
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The Old Firehouse is open 3 days a week, Tuesday 9am – 4pm, Wednesday and Thursday 10am-4pm.
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59 Mill St Hardwick, VT 05843
Phone: 802-472-6857
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When you're dog wants to say Hello & Goodbye with a little bit of Peace thrown in... this sweatshirt is for you! These comfy & stretchy hooded dog sweatshirts with quality silk screened lettering are completely machine washable.
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Before the Storm
The climate adaptation plan developed by Hamin and her students for the coastal town of Marshfield, Massachusetts was so well received by the community that the town incorporated it into their master plan—one of the first towns in the region to do so.
Hamin, who leads the Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, has gone town-to-town with doctoral student Ana Mesquita to interview regional planners along the east coast. This field research made it clear to Hamin that many communities are ill-prepared for the kind of damaging weather that continues to persist. She finds that this general lack of preparedness is not because of a lack of political will, but rather due to planners not having enough information and resources at their disposal.
"The planners can't be the ones to figure out what the risks are…it's beyond the scope of what a non-expert can do. One of the things they need to move forward is some sort of officially sanctioned projections," says Hamin.
In their efforts to normalize resilience in the face of climate change, Hamin and her colleagues work with communities to identify new priorities. As part of the Regional Planning Studio (which Hamin taught for several years), the class partners with a different municipality each year to help them fine-tune their master plan. They begin by collecting information about the town's geography, population, societal trends, geology, and cultural divides. They then layer these data, along with climate trends and municipal zoning, into one aggregated map to identify emerging trends and future scenarios if these trends continue. Students also meet with key decision makers and hold public workshops to discuss community concerns. Environmental justice, Hamin explains, inevitably comes into play during the process. Major coastal cities like New York and Boston can often more easily harness the necessary resources to protect susceptible areas while communities with fewer resources remain vulnerable. Recently, Hamin and her students worked with the coastal town of Marshfield, Massachusetts on a climate adaptation plan. The plan was so well received by the community that the town incorporated it into their master plan, acknowledging the need for surge protection and hurricane preparations—one of the first towns in the region to do so.
"That's sort of where we want to end up…climate change and resilience are not exotic," says Hamin.
To share what she and her colleagues have learned, Hamin is collaborating with UNHabitat on web-based training modules to be shared with teachers around the globe. To develop the modules, Hamin worked with colleagues in South Africa and Australia to compile relevant climate adaptation information and organize it into an accessible online format. The aim is to provide pedagogic content that teachers can readily draw upon as they work towards adaptive solutions to the impacts of climate change. Hamin also serves as a co-principal investigator on the campus's Offshore Wind Energy Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), where she is helping to train the next generation of wind energy leaders. Her specific focus is with one of the three major research thrusts of the program—understanding the intersection of public acceptance and technological effectiveness of proposed wind farms.
With new NSF funding, Hamin is expanding her field research beyond the east coast, working with co-principal investigator and civil engineer Don DeGroot (Civil and Environmental Engineering). For the project, they will develop a network of planners, researchers and policy experts from the northeast to the Caribbean. The goal is to devise a framework for climate change resiliency that improves coastal infrastructure planning and mitigates the impacts of fast-onset disasters (such as hurricanes and tsunamis) while incorporating plans for slow-onset issues (such as sea-level rise).
Hamin's road to regional planning was not a direct one. Fresh from business school, she began her career in real estate development. She enjoyed the planning element of her work, but soon began to question the morality behind certain projects that encroached upon open space and special environmental areas. She decided she wanted to help communities make decisions for themselves, and changed her academic path.
"I thought I could use some of what I learned for the forces of good. I was interested in how to empower communities and work with them to achieve their own goals," says Hamin.
Amanda Drane '12
Photo courtesy John Elder Robison


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Label: Bonzai Progressive
Release date: 2013-06-10
Catalog number: BP2902013
Zolex aka Frank Struyf returns to Bonzai with "Assault" and is backed up with a slew of quality remixes. The vocals come courtesy of Nikkie aka Jade 4 U who had great success with many projects notably Praga Khan. Frank gained notoriety with his Zolex project back in the nineties under Bonzai Records and through his many residencies in Belgium's top clubs. He went on to create his own Zolex Records with many successful releases. Frank is still very much in demand for his DJ skills and now also for his production skills, we are sure to see a lot more from this man.
The original mix intros with a very ethnic guitar theme before the very unique vocal comes through. Super solid drum arrangements build up a steady rhythm and the track takes on an almost Indie rock vibe which breaks down into a strong progressive groove. The kick and percussion section drive through with Nikkie's vocal becoming much more powerful and raw. What a great comeback from Frank, sure to be a big hit with jocks everywhere.
Danish producer Soren Aalberg is first up to remix duties. Soren has seen releases on Bedrock Records, Mindtrip Music and more, his sounds have been played by the likes of Richie Hawtin and Len Faki. Here Soren takes the track to its basics with a minimal approach, much deeper vibe on the bass and chunky kicks and brilliantly crafted percussion. A sinister sounding string fades through while Nikkie's vocal is used to perfection to round of a top class remix.
Soren also provides us with his Add Lips remix which takes on a clubby vibe, cool, crisp and sharp hats are prominent and the kicks add a nice thump. Deep basses are accompanied by an intense fading in string that builds the track up to a climax superbly, big big tune for the floors!
Guss Carver is up next with his remix. Guss has been producing since the nineties and seen many releases across a host of quality labels. He produces many different genres as he loves all dance music and he has his own label called Hypnocat. Guss's remix entrees with a nice solid kick, hat, snare combi over a deep droning bassline. On the break a rising synth thunders into a stunning hook while the vocal is perfectly slotted in at all the right places, just brilliant.
Belgian DJ and production duo Jean Delaru & DJ Philip swing by with their Dubbel XX remix. Both these guys hold residencies at some of Belgiums top rated clubs. Jean has seen releases on a few labels while DJ Philip would be considered a veteran on the scene with releases as far back as 1997 on labels like XTC – Music For The Mind, Tripomatic and Black Hole Recordings. The remix intros with subtle percs which soon build up to a pumping groove. As the track progresses the sweeping bassline adds depth with the reverbed vocal adding extra weight. On the break a real cool melody pans out before we get right back to that powerful bassline and tough groove.
Heading deeper into prog with Nocturno and his remix. Superb bass's intro this track with FX work helping to build up the sound to an all out progressive monster. The kick and bass combi forms most of the track and keeps the deep vibe flowing throughout. On the break a simple melody transforms the setting and the bassline morphs into a hypnotic groove with Nikkie's vocal holding everything in place, seriously tough tune that will be on many lists for sure.
Finally we have a short version of the original mix which would be perfect for a radio slot.


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Sen. Blumenthal nominates 36 Connecticut students to military service academies
HARTFORD -- Kaden Batzinger of Wallingford, a student at Lyman Hall High School; Patrick Coyle of Ansonia, a student at Emmett O'Brien Technical High School; Zachary Royal of Bethany, a student at Amity High School; and Mackenzie Thompson of Shelton, a student at Shelton High School, have been nominated by Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.
Daniel Ziebell of Milford, a student at Jonathan Law High School, has been nominated to the U.S. Naval Academy.
And Christopher Masi of North Haven, a student at North Haven High School; and Daniel Lyons, Madison, Daniel Hand High School, have been nominated to the U.S. Air Force Academy.
"These impressive young leaders are stepping forward to serve, and assure that our nation has the armed forces it needs to fight for our freedoms and democracy," said Blumenthal. "I'm proud to nominate some of the next greatest generation - smart, tough, dedicated men and women who are volunteering to risk and commit all. I thank them and their families for their service."
Each year, Members of Congress can nominate candidates for appointment to four of the nation's U.S. service academies: the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York; U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland; U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado; and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York. Graduates are commissioned as officers in the active or reserve components of the military or Merchant Marine and serve for a minimum of five years.
Senators are allowed a maximum of five appointees to each academy at one time. Nominees are chosen by Blumenthal's nonpartisan Selection Committee made up of service academy graduates and retired military personnel.
Also nominated by Blumenthal for the Class of 2017 were:
U.S. Military Academy: Zachary Bodner, Ridgefield, New York Military Academy; Matthew Favazzo, Norwalk, Norwalk High School; Colin Moore, Avon, Avon High School; Christopher Murphy, Woodstock, Trinity-Pawling School, N.Y.; Umberto Ocasio, Torrington, Torrington High School; and John Sheehy, New Milford, Canterbury School.
U.S. Naval Academy: Blaise Boullianne, Brookfield, Brookfield High School; James Calcagini, Darien, Marine Military Academy; Louis Hiza, Canton, Canton High School; Stephen LeBreton, Greenwich, Greenwich High School; James Manganiello, Old Greenwich, Greenwich High School; Maria McGeary, Bolton, East Catholic High School; Robert Motley, Woodstock, Pomfret School; Matthew Parrino, New Canaan, New Canaan High School; and Annelise Steele, Greenwich, The Dalton School.
U.S. Air Force Academy: Zachary Clement, Ledyard, Three Rivers Community College; Julia Davis, Sandy Hook, Westover School; Dane Grauer, Danielson, Killingly High School; Amber Hill, Windsor Locks, Windsor Locks High School; and Emily Troelstra, Westport, Staples High School.
Merchant Marine Academy: James Colella, New Fairfield, New Fairfield High School; Kristin Conneely, Monroe, Masuk High School; Peter Fahan, Simsbury, Kent School; Robert Harris, Hartford, University High School of Science Engineering; Gregory Matunas, Marlborough, RHAM High School; Connor McMahon, Norwich, Norwich Free Academy; Jaden Reale, Coventry, Coventry High School; Andrews Rogers, Tolland, Tolland High School; and Brendan Welsh, Washington, Shepaug Valley High School.


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World Bulletin / News Desk
Danone SA'smedical nutrition unit Nutricia has started an internal investigation after a Chinese newspaper published a report alleging it had bribed more than 100 doctors in Beijing to boost sales, the company said on Wednesday.
It was the third time in two weeks that a division of French food group Danone has had to respond to accusations of bribery by Chinese media, after its infant milk formula group Dumex was twice the subject of bribery allegations reported by China's state television.
China is a magnet for foreign milk powder makers, with a $12.4 billion market that is expected to double by 2017. But foreign firms are under scrutiny after recent media reports alleging corrupt sales practices in the industry. Authorities last month also fined a group of mostly foreign milk powder producers $110 million for price fixing.
Nutricia, which makes Karicare milk formula, bribed doctors at 14 hospitals in the Chinese capital with kickbacks, gifts, funded-travel and complementary show tickets between 2010 and 2013, the 21stCentury Business Herald said on Wednesday, citing an unnamed whistleblower who claimed to be a student doctor.
The whistleblower had 52 documents detailing payments from Nutricia, the largest portion of which were to Beijing Aerospace General Hospital and Xuanwu Hospital Capital Medical University, according to the paper.
Nutricia had paid a sum of 300,000 yuan ($49,000) to a dozen doctors at the two hospitals over a three-year period, it said.
"We only saw the report this morning, so we've only just started an internal investigation into the matter," Zhao Qinghua, a spokeswoman for Nutricia in China, told Reuters.
"At the moment we still don't know the details... We need to wait to see the outcome of the investigation before we can make our next plans."
The two hospitals at the centre of the allegations did not immediately respond to telephone queries about the report.
Corruption in China's pharmaceutical industry remains widespread, fuelled in part by low base salaries for doctors at the country's 13,500 public hospitals.
The 21st Century Business Herald said the documents also showed that sales representatives had made bribes through more unusual means, such as cleaning doctors' fish tanks and organising strawberry picking trips for staff.
In the milk powder sector, hospitals are an important sales and marketing channel because a recommendation from medical staff can help persuade new parents to choose a particular brand, which they often stick with, industry insiders said.
Milk powder firms typically spend close to 5 percent of their revenue "opening" medical sales channels, a separate recent report in the 21st Century Business Herald said, citing a China-based former employee at a foreign milk powder brand.
International guidelines used in China say doctors should promote breastfeeding unless there are medical reasons not to.
Recent salvos against international milk powder companies - allegations of widespread corruption, pricing probes and strong official reaction to a food scare at New Zealand dairy producer Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd - suggest global formula makers may face a more competitive playing field, analysts said.
A statement from China's health ministry last week said it would crack down on hospital sales tactics and punish staff who accepted bribes.
This could result in a slowdown of sales and marketing activity in hospitals for infant formula and hit sales performance, said Katherine Wang, chief China life sciences advisor for law firm Ropes & Gray.
Recent investigations into bribery in the pharmaceutical sector have hit sales operations and dented revenues for Chinese and international drug firms.
"I think (the corruption probes) will definitely create a sense of threat and also probably prevent regular interaction between the healthcare services providers and sales reps of the infant formula manufacturers," said Shanghai-based Wang.
"Because of the public oversight and the government scrutiny, I suspect within the infant formula manufacturers there's going to be an enhanced wave of internal compliance control investigations and audits."
Whistleblowers have made a beeline for the 21st Century Business Herald, with the paper publishing allegations against drugmakers Eli Lilly and Co, Novartis AG and Sanofi SA. The newspaper has declined an interview request from Reuters on why whistleblowers keep speaking to it.
In Wednesday's report, it said that under the direction of the Ministry of Supervision, Beijing and other cities had set up teams to look into the recent spate of anonymous whistleblowing, and would check the authenticity of the latest allegations against Nutricia.
($1 = 6.1210 yuan)Last Mod: 25 Eylül 2013, 13:34


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Personal loans in Stratford
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Venerable Andrew Rublev the Iconographer - Troparion & Kontakion
Troparion — Tone 3
Shining with the rays of divine light, / O venerable Andrew, / you knew Christ the wisdom and power of God. / By means of the image of the Holy Trinity / you preached to all the world the Holy Trinity in unity. / And we, with amazement and joy, cry out to you: / As you have boldness before the Most Holy Trinity / Pray that the Uncreated Light / may illumine our souls!
Kontakion — Tone 2
Like a trumpet, you clearly sounded the sweetness of divine hymns, / and were revealed as a brilliant beacon shining on the world with the light of the Trinity. / Therefore, we all cry to you, venerable Andrew: / "Unceasingly pray for us all."


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UCONN WOMEN: Huskies Moriah Jefferson making an impact
STORRS >> Moriah Jefferson was still a couple months away from partaking in her first official practice as a member of the seven-time national champion UConn women's basketball program, but the learning process was already in full swing.
The UConn coaches haven't been architects of one of the most dominant programs in women's college sports history by accident. Nary is a motion made that isn't meant to better the Huskies, so it was not a coincidence that they had Jefferson, a promising freshman point guard, rooming with All-American guard Bria Hartley over the summer.
Hartley's mentoring did not stop when they went back to living with their normal roommates. Whenever the two guards were on the court during Tuesday's game at Providence and there was a break in the action, Hartley could be seen counseling her younger teammate.
"I think we have built a pretty good relationship where I could talk to her, give her advice," Hartley said. "If she needs anything she comes up to me, if I need anything I can talk to her so we have been working on our relationship.
"Moriah, she is a hard-working kid so if you say something to motivate her, give her advice, she is going to listen. She is quick. She can always create a shot for herself, and I think she adds another piece, a quicker piece to our team."
Jefferson showed off those skills against the Friars with a career-high 13 points. Now she looks to build on that strong effort when the third-ranked Huskies play at Rutgers today (4 p.m., SNY).
One of the biggest challenges Jefferson has faced is staying aggressive and looking for her own shot while running the Huskies' offense.
UConn coach Geno Auriemma challenged Jefferson at halftime against Providence to stop dribbling the ball laterally and use her blazing speed to attack the basket.
"I think I have to find a balance of when I am either attacking, or be able to pass the ball, too," Jefferson said. "I have to find the balance of being able to get my teammates shots and actually get myself shots too."
So what suggestions has Hartley been offering?
"Knowing what offense to run, so she helps me a lot during timeouts and free throws. She is there to let me know I am doing all right, keeping me going," Jefferson said. "Bria is a good friend, and she helps me out a lot."
Hartley was shown the ropes by Tiffany Hayes when she arrived at UConn. When Hayes was a freshman, she tried to learn all she could from All-American Maya Moore. So the Hartley/Jefferson partnership is merely the most recent example of how the UConn veterans are entrusted with making sure their younger teammates understand everything that goes into playing for the Huskies.
"(Senior guard) Caroline (Doty) does that in practice on a daily basis, and she is teaching Bria now how to do it. So it is something that is passed down, and has been since I remember playing here," UConn assistant coach Shea Ralph said. "You have to teach the younger guys, otherwise they are not going to know and they are not going to learn quickly enough to help you.
"The hope is that she can become what she can become, which is a great hybrid of Bria and Caroline because Bria is not a point guard. She can play point guard, but she is a scoring point guard where Moriah is a point guard. We need her to (display) leadership and have the ability to move people around like Caroline does but also have the offensive mind that Bria has. I like that both of them are trying to help her because she needs to learn from both of them and not just one."
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced its 12 finalists in contention to be part of the 2013 class. Former UConn star Rebecca Lobo was previously nominated as part of the class, but she did not make the list of finalists. The only women's basketball candidates still in contention are North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell and former University of Virginia All-American guard Dawn Staley.


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Patio Cleaning Berinsfield
No matter how well a pavement has been laid, and no matter how much was spent on all of the materials, all pavings from the best to the worst, require some basic maintenance to keep them looking their best. Maintenance makes sure your paving is in prime condition: and a lack of maintenance allows the paving to deteriorate.
Even if it's just a basic wash done with some with soapy water, all types of paving will look 100x better from it. However, certain types of paving tend to need a bit more care and attention to get them looking as good as they were when new. The good news is that cleaning is normally pretty straightforward and with a bit of TLC, all paving, no matter how old, worn or neglected, can be given a new lease of life again.


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FRISCO, Texas – FC Dallas has acquired veteran defensive midfielder Adam Moffat from Seattle Sounders FC, the club announced today.
In return, Seattle receives allocation money and the rights to negotiate a contract with Kenny Cooper, who prior to the trade would have been available in the MLS re-entry draft as Dallas was unable to come to terms with the veteran forward.
Adam Moffat MLSsoccer.com player page
WATCH: Moffat scores amazing volley
Moffat, 27, set career-highs with 26 appearances, 24 starts and three goals for Houston in 2013 before the Dynamo traded him to Seattle in mid-September. After joining Sounders FC, he played six games, starting the final four matches of the regular season and all three playoff matches for the club.
The Scottish midfielder won the 2008 MLS Cup with Sigi Schmid's Columbus Crew and started in the 2011 and 2012 MLS Cup final with Houston.
A seven-year MLS veteran, Moffat has made 116 appearances with 12 goals and six assists for Columbus, Portland, Houston and Seattle. He first joined MLS in 2007 when Schmid signed him to the Crew as a discovery player. He made 44 appearances over four seasons with Columbus, scoring five goals with one assist. Moffat also has appeared in 21 MLS playoff matches, notching an assist in the 2012 MLS Cup final.
Moffat made 12 starts for Houston in his first season and was named the club's 2011 Newcomer of the Year.


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By Jeff Stoffer – May 14, 2014
As new allegations of secret waiting lists and manipulated appointment records were popping up across the country, Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., was in Jackson, Miss., Tuesday to see what kind of progress is being made at one VA medical center where whistle blowing employees have revealed numerous problems to federal investigators.
The Jackson hospital and regional office have also been the focus of American Legion scrutiny and site visits. Miller and American Legion Executive Director Peter S. Gaytan learned in Jackson that improvements are slowly being made after 70-percent turnover of top managers at the 225-bed facility, which serves about 45,000 veterans a year.
"There have been issues that date back several years at this facility, and I see a movement in the proper direction," said Miller, chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, after he met with Joe Battle, director of the G.V. Sonny Montgomery VA Medical Center, and other VA officials. "Are they there? No. Will they be fixed tomorrow? Probably not! There is a very large cultural shift that has to be made."
To that point, Miller sent a letter Tuesday to President Barack Obama requesting that he appoint a bipartisan commission to conduct a head-to-toe study of the entire VA system to recommend improvements and to help restore fast-eroding trust among veterans. More than 6.5 million U.S. military veterans receive health care at VA facilities, several of which have been under fire in the last year for failing to see patients in a timely manner and, in recent weeks, for covering up delayed appointment times. As many as 40 veterans may have died waiting for long-delayed medical appointments at the Phoenix VA Medical Center, which was the subject of an American Legion-led town hall meeting Tuesday in Arizona.
Accompanied by Rep. Gregg Harper, R-Miss., in whose district the Jackson medical center is located, Miller learned that in addition to numerous leadership changes at the facility in the last two years, other employees are receiving disciplinary actions for inadequate performance, and year-end bonuses are growing more difficult to achieve. The medical center has been under investigation for understaffing, long waiting times, poor sterilization procedures and patient misdiagnoses, all of which are being corrected, Battle told the chairman. The list of problems identified at Jackson mirrors other facilities around the country, including Phoenix, Seattle, Pittsburgh, Chicago, St. Louis, Atlanta, Cheyenne, Wyo., and Fort Collins, Colo., where appointment delays have reportedly been kept secret from VA Central Office, and have been blamed for veteran deaths in some instances.
Appointment-time performance is frequently among the criteria for executive bonuses at facilities. In most cases, such as two doctors who spoke out about the Phoenix hospital, employee whistleblowers have brought to light problems and accusations of cooking the appointment-time books at VA facilities. The American Federation of Government Employees, the nation's largest union of federal employees, released a statement Tuesday seeking protection for VA whistleblowers and "calling on the Department of Veterans Affairs to end the culture of fear that has plagued the agency and negatively impacted veterans' care. As recent headlines suggest, some management officials have been 'gaming the system' to artificially inflate performance statistics in their medical centers. What is not so recent is the widespread cover-up culture that pervades the VA."
Miller addressed with Battle, director at Jackson for two years, the issues of employee and executive accountability, transparency and whistle blowing.
"I got assurances from him that those who are raising questions can be heard," Miller said. "When you rise to the level of a whistleblower – and you attain that status – obviously there is a concern that sometimes retribution might take place. I don't expect to see that here. If we do, we will be back to talk about those issues. I know that under the past administration, it was a little bit difficult, to say the least, for people to be able to express exactly what they feel. I would hope that what was told to us today is, in fact, the truth, that they will listen to people and not have any retribution."
One challenge raised by VA officials in the meeting and later recognized by Miller is the difficulty recruiting health-care professionals after a facility's problems have been made public.
"One of the toughest things to do, especially when there is negative publicity about a facility, is to recruit people," Miller said. "What we don't want to do is scare away veterans. What we don't want to do is to scare away qualified nurses and physicians and other support staff. There continues to be an out-of-balance situation when it comes to nurse practitioners and physicians. That needs to be corrected."
Miller, Harper and Gaytan visited the VA regional office attached to the Jackson medical center, where they were told that the inventory of undecided claims has been reduced by 30 percent and the average age of a claim has fallen from 290 days in January 2013 to 196 days today. Harper said the Jackson visit by Miller was deeply appreciated, a step along the road to recovery for one VA facility whose problems were diagnosed early in what is threatening to become an epidemic.
"We want to make sure that now – and in the future – our veterans get the care they deserve," Harper said.


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MACON, Ga. (AP) - A man pleaded guilty Friday to robbing a south Georgia bank and firing an assault rifle into the ceiling during a 2011 crime spree with his brother and sister than began with a Florida police chase and ended in a shootout in Colorado.
Dylan Dougherty Stanley, 27, almost derailed the plea deal when he told a U.S. District Court judge he disagreed with one part of prosecutors' narrative of the crime - that all three siblings threatened bank employees in Valdosta during the robbery on Aug. 2, 2011.
'I never threatened anybody,' Stanley of Zephyrhills, Fla., said after telling the judge that prosecutors' version of the crime was '99.9 percent' correct. 'Everything else was exact and that does not negate the fact that I was in the bank with a firearm.'
Judge Hugh Lawson made prosecutors and defense attorneys amend the paperwork before allowing Stanley to enter his plea.
Stanley's siblings - Ryan and Lee Grace Dougherty - pleaded guilty to similar Georgia charges last month. Terms of their deals with prosecutors were not disclosed in court. All three will be sentenced Dec. 17 in Valdosta. The bank robbery charges carry up to 25 years in prison, while the gun charge is punishable by 10 years to life to in prison.
Stanley delayed his hearing about 20 minutes after asking to speak to his lawyer alone, but he went through with the plea deal.
During court, he laughed out loud when the judge asked Stanley if he had discussed possible trial defenses with his attorneys, then added, 'I'm not suggesting you necessarily have any.'
'We went over that, your honor,' Stanley replied, still chuckling.
The suspect also interrupted the judge at one point to ask: 'Would you mind referring to me as Mr. Dougherty?' Then he added: 'I'm sorry judge.'
Lawson had been calling him 'Mr. Stanley.' His attorneys explained that's his legal name, one he got from adoptive parents. But they said he prefers Dougherty, his birth name. The judge honored his request.
The siblings became wanted fugitives on Aug. 2, 2011, when they fled from a police officer who was trying to pull over their car for speeding northeast of Tampa, Fla. The chase reached speeds of 100 mph and at least 20 gunshots were fired from the fleeing car at the pursuing officer. The suspects got away after a bullet burst a tire on the police car.
A few hours after the chase and 210 miles away, the three fugitives put on masks and sunglasses before storming into the Certus Bank in Valdosta, Ga. Security cameras recorded Stanley, armed with an AK-47 style assault rifle, and his sister, with a machine pistol, firing one shot apiece into the ceiling.
Their brother, meanwhile, stuffed $5,168 from the teller drawers into a tool bag and the three escaped. No one was injured in the robbery. All of them admitted to their roles during their plea hearings.
The hunt for the Dougherty siblings drew national attention as their photos were plastered across electronic billboards throughout the Southeast. Their mother, Barbara Bell of Palatka, Fla., encouraged her children to turn themselves in, while authorities warned the public to steer clear.
The manhunt ended eight days after it began when two retired law officers in Colorado spotted the suspects in the San Isabel National Forest. The fugitives again tried to escape, leading police on a 20-mile chase on Interstate 25 that ended in Walsenburg, about 150 miles south of Denver.
Shots were fired at the officers before troopers used spike strips to puncture the tires of the suspects' Subaru. Lee Dougherty bolted from the crash on foot. An officer shot her in the leg after she pointed a pistol at him, authorities said.
All three siblings pleaded guilty to Colorado charges last August. Ryan Dougherty got 18 years, Lee Dougherty received 24 years and Dylan Dougherty Stanley got 32 years in prison for those charges.
They still face charges in Florida, stemming from the police chase that kicked off the crime spree.


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Record-Breaking Thread
- Updated
good morning everyone, just tried to post a youtube link and system bounced it, balls !
This is the lighthouse I was talking about above... Cape Forchu lighthouse in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.
Sorry - this was from a while back. I'd have to look for the non-watermarked pics.
Well, as of 7:54 am, I have submitted my letter of resignation. I've worked here for 7 years and it's the only job I've held related to my career, it was a scary thing to do. But, now that it's done, I'm excited and looking forward to what the future holds while enjoying my last two weeks here.7 Replies
wow, what made you do it, working conditions, pay ? hell of a way to start the week !
I started working for a small (3 offices about 20 people) engineering firm in 2006. I enjoyed the team, enjoyed the work, everything was good. In 2009 I pitched a proposition to my boss that involved me starting an office in northern BC and became the branch manager of that office. In 2011, we were bought out by a very large firm (approx. 25,000 employees spread across the globe). I gave it the old collage try, but after 2 years, I decided it wasn't worth it anymore, it's a no win situation (they overload you with paperwork and then crap all over you cause your chargeability is low, so you start stacking the paperwork on the side of the desk, starting hitting 90% chargeability, then start crapping on you cause you haven't completed the paperwork, and there is alot). I've got a position, similar to the one I have now lined up with a much smaller engineering firm in Red Deer. The pay is lower, alot lower, as right now I'm entiteled to (with housing, performance bonus, contract bonus etc.) about $154k/year till the end of 2014. However, living expenses are lower in Alberta, the price of gas alone is about $0.50/l cheaper.
I do ok. I live in Fort Nelson though and guarentee that 95% of you wouldn't move here for that wage. The next closest town is 400 km away and we are 132 km south of the BC/NWT border, it's a bit remote.
That's what you call in the middle of nowhere. And you do ok for always being online.
I was just thinking of my own job experiences too earlier, and there was a guy that asked me about how I got started working a my job. almost a long story, but I tried to keep it as short and sweet as possible. it was also a bit difficult not to say too much too, because of the stuff I dealt with.
and yeah, fight the man Trochu!
(sorry, somehow I was up before 3 am, and I'm still awake...)1 Reply
How can this be a good idea?
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=4225452 Replies
they had a game here in our baseball park on new years day this year and a team from up north i think took on the flyers, and of course the fliers lost......


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This is one of my favorite methods of essential oil application for many acute conditions. It is very useful to allow essential oils to penetrate in a particular area of the body.
1) Mix 6 drops of essential oil(s) and 1 tablespoon salt in an empty bowl
2) Fill bowl with hot or cold water
3) Soak a piece of cloth, wring it out and cover the affected area
4) Repeat this process for 5 to 15 minutes, as needed.
For alternate compresses fill one bowl with very warm water, and the other one with iced water .
Here are some examples:
KIDNEY STONES:Years ago we were invited to a family party, the moment we arrived my sister started to scream out of pain, she had an awful kidney stone that started to bother right at that moment. Luckily for her, I carried my essential oils with me. I asked the host of the party to give me two bowls.
I mixed 3 drops of Grapefruit essential oil and 3 drops of Fennel essential oil with 1 tablespoon of regular salt and added to one bowl.
I created another mixture and added to the other bowl. One bowl was filled with hot water, the other one with iced water.
Fennel and Grapefruit are said to be litholytic which means they can dissolve stones. [1]
She was crying and initially would not even allow me to touch her. I applied one compress at a time, first the hot one, then the cold one for about 15 minutes.
The pain subsided, she literally woke up and went to the bathroom, expelled the stone and went to dance!
After the party I made a massage oil with orange, grapefruit, fennel and other detoxing oils, she applied it on her lower back and lower abdomen every day and never complained about a kidney stone again. I have recommended this method to many more friends and clients, they have always reported great results.
Aromandina's recommendation: Detoxing Body Oil
MENSTRUAL CRAMPS – DYSMENORRHEAI'm one of those lucky women who hasn't had a problem like that, but since I have worked in several spas I knew how my fellow coworkers felt on one of those days when they could not do a treatment out of the pain they were feeling. The essential oil that have worked very well for me are:Frankincense if the pain is excruciating. I remember that every time I applied these compresses I could feel their organs moving, almost like dancing, like stretching.
After 10 minutes, the pain was gone!
I then recommended them to use a massage oil with the same oils on a regular basis in order to not only address the symptoms but also to start regulating their bodies and hormonal system.
Aromandina's recommendation for compresses: RADIARE Essential Oil, for massage oil: Woman's Help Body Oil
MIGRAINESWhen my husband suffered from migraines, I used cephalic and analgesic essential oils, to stimulate circulation. I applied the alternate compress method and again, it only needed 10 minutes for him to feel great again. The following essential oils are very useful:Memoria Blend, for daily application: Headache Begone Roll On
NOTE: Headaches and migraines are usually symptoms of many other conditions. This is just a method to help with the pain, but I highly recommend visiting a holistic practitioner who can help you get to the root of the causes.
FEVERSI always tell my students and clients that my son, in his 13 years of life has had only 5 infections. He doesn't remember if he ever had a fever, and yes, his last fever was when he was 8 years old where he had an ear infection.
For fevers, think about cool oils like Spearmint and Lavender.
Apply cold compresses on the forehead, abdomen and feet.
OTHER USESMuscle Pain: peppermint, rosemary, lavender, marjoram, birch – cold or hot compresses
Stomach Cramps: ginger, cardamom, fennel, cinnamon [1]
Aromatherapy for Health Professionals (Price, Aromatherapy for Health Professionals)


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The ''foreigners'' he is talking about are the troops from the United States and various Nato countries in Europe that have been in Afghanistan for the past dozen years. They will almost all be gone by the end of next year. Can Mr Karzai seriously think that the Taliban bombs in Kabul and Khost last Saturday, which killed 19 people, were meant to get the Americans, British, Germans et al to keep their soldiers in Afghanistan longer?
If he were the leader of al Qaeda, you can imagine him saying that. It was always al Qaeda's goal to get Western military forces entangled in military occupations in the Muslim world, in the belief that that would nurture popular hostility both to the West and to the local leaders who collaborated with it. But Mr Karzai IS a collaborator, parachuted into Afghanistan after the American invasion in 2001.
He may have won the first presidential election in 2005 legitimately, but by the second election in 2009 he was so unpopular that he was only re-elected thanks to massive vote rigging, tacitly condoned by the United States. And when the Americans leave, he had better leave with them.
So what is all this nonsense about the Taliban bombs being an attempt to persuade the ''foreigners'' that they have to stay, and to ''intimidate'' Mr Karzai and his cronies into letting them stay? It can best be explained as a manifestation of the ''Najibullah syndrome''.
Mohammad Najibullah was the communist leader who ruled Afghanistan during the latter stages of the Soviet occupation and immediately after the Russians left. When the Taliban finally took Kabul in 1996, he was tortured, castrated, dragged through the streets behind a truck and then hanged from a traffic light. It can be safely assumed that Mr Karzai and his cronies, when they contemplate the forthcoming American departure, are acutely aware of this precedent.
This leads to various flailing attempts by members of the regime to distance themselves from the American occupation forces who originally boosted them into power. Mr Karzai has been increasingly vocal in criticising the Nato forces in Afghanistan, as if he had nothing to do with their presence in the country, and didn't owe his presidency to them.
Let's deconstruct that remarkable statement of Mr Karzai's. The message is that he is an Afghan patriot who is trying to make the ''foreigners'' go home, whereas the Taliban are trying to keep the Americans and their Nato allies in the country to further their own nefarious purposes. It makes no sense whatever, but what else can he say? That the Taliban are winning, the Americans are getting out and he is doomed?
He's not really doomed. Since the constitution does not allow him to run for the presidency again, he can easily leave the country for ''health reasons'' or whatever before the foreign troops depart. He must have salted away enough money abroad to live quite well in exile, as have almost all the other members of the regime. So why does he act as though he might have a future in post-occupation Afghanistan?
The Najibullah precedent is instructive here, too. The former collaborator with the Soviet occupiers stubbornly believed that the Taliban would understand that his motives had been pure, and after all he was a Pashtun like them. He refused to leave Kabul before the Taliban took over, even though numerous friends implored him to. Mr Karzai apparently suffers from the same delusions, and may eventually suffer the same fate.
This is not to say that the Taliban will overrun all of Afghanistan after the Nato forces leave. They will undoubtedly gain control of the Pashtun-majority south and east, and they will probably take Kabul. They didn't gain control of the Tajik, Hazara and Uzbek minority regions in the north of the country last time, and they may not do so after this bunch of foreigners leave either.
The likeliest post-occupation outcome in Afghanistan, therefore, is a reversion to the situation that prevailed there before 2001. Mr Karzai will either leave or be tortured and killed, as will most of his senior collaborators. Pakistan will be the dominant influence in Taliban-controlled parts of the country, and the minorities will have to fend for themselves.
If this is the final outcome, what have the ''foreigners'' been doing in the country for the past 12 years? Several thousand of their soldiers have been killed, hundreds of billions of dollars have been spent and things will be about the same after they leave as they were before they arrived - apart from the al Qaeda terrorist training camps, which were dealt with before the end of 2001.
For the Nato alliance, which has been searching for a new role ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Afghan operation at least helped to justify its enormous budget. For the United States, it never made sense from any point of view. And for Afghanistan, it was merely the continuation of a disaster now more than 30 years old.
Gwynne Dyer is an independent London journalist.