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Every time I write out my thoughts on racism, I feel self-conscious, presumptuous and self-indulgent as a white person. But writing helps me process my thoughts and move forward. Also, it is clear that white people need to talk about issues of race more. Otherwise, for us, race is the perpetual elephant in the room and nothing will change. In fact, one thing I am committed to is to consistently bring the topic of racism to the forefront with the white people in my world.
So, here goes my latest two cents...
Taking it in
Since my early years in this country, I have been concerned with issues of race and racism, a topic close to my heart, perhaps because some of my strongest initial bonds in the US were with friends and lovers who happened to be people of color, and who opened my eyes to their experiences. As a white person, I have wrestled with trying to grasp how the reality of living in a racist society impacts me and how I can be useful in efforts to counter and not collude with the oppressive system that exists. This process has taken on a special significance for me since I have become a mother of a white child whom I want to raise with an antiracist consciousness. More recently, I have also become a stepmother to a biracial child, and, again after many years, I am now involved in a black-white interracial relationship.
I spend time every day learning about the inner workings of interpersonal and systemic racism and its impacts on people of color, as well as the meaning of whiteness in all this. I listen with an open heart to my friends' and strangers' stories, read about and watch videos discussing issues of race, I participate in interracial dialogues and workshops. I monetarily support community and civil rights organizations I believe make a difference and occasionally attend protests. Last year I completed a human rights fellowship in Europe, listening to and writing about the struggles of people of color there to educate the international community as well as my white circles in deep denial. I need to know how life is for people of color in the motherland, in this heavily stratified society, and in my overwhelmingly white city. I feel the need to compare how other whites grapple with white privilege, and the responsibility it bestows on them, on us. All this in order to grow and be able to be a good ally; to even perceive injustice, let alone challenge it.
While I process all this, I feel the pain of racism people of color share with me deeply, although it will never be first-hand since I am white. Simultaneously, I get frustrated at how invisible and ungraspable the traps of whiteness are to me. I get impatient, often admonish myself for being slow to understand and, moreover, for not doing enough to upset the status quo interpersonally, and on a larger scale, institutionally.
Parenting right
As a white person who hasn't come across many effective everyday antiracist role models, to use the words of Kerry Ann Rockquemore and Tracey Laszloffy in their book, Raising Biracial Children, I am not sure "how to approach parenting in a way that explicitly acknowledges the omnipresence of race in daily life." I want my family to be one in which "active attention [is] devoted to addressing and explaining race, and where children are encouraged to assume an antiracist stance;. . . where [my son] learns the meaning of [his] whiteness and [learns] to critically challenge notions of white supremacy." I certainly don't come from a family with such a conscious upbringing, so this feels like an uncharted territory. But I know there are valuable resources, such as this article on how to talk to kids about race, available for parents.
In order to provide my children with clear guidance that helps facilitate healthy racial identity development, I feel it would be helpful to form a group of those dedicated to our own growth as antiracists and antiracist parents. That is my next task. (One model I found out there is White Noise, a group of white parents with white children who have been meeting for two years to learn together and support each other in ending white supremacy.)
Claiming whiteness
In my own journey towards racial awareness, being of Jewish heritage (specifically, the granddaughter of concentration camp survivors) and an immigrant whose family was poor for many years, I am still having a hard time claiming my whiteness and claiming US history as my own, even though on an intellectual level I grasp the fact that I am now a part of a racial hierarchy stemming from a very particular historical past, from which even I, a white person who didn't grow up here, benefit tremendously.
I only say this to acknowledge my particular vantage point and history; not as a cop out, keeping in mind the words of Bonnie Berman Cushing and Jeff Hitchcock in their book Accountability and White Anti-racist Organizing: "In an increasingly multiracial society, the historic and present baggage of whiteness and white privilege lead many to eschew a white identity. Yet the privilege remains."
On a cognitive level I grasp that. I am familiar with Peggy MacIntosh's Invisible Knapsack of White Privilege. I get that I have advantages in this society because I am white. For instance, I never get racially profiled while driving or walking down the street. I don't stand out visually in most places in my predominantly white city. I don't generally get followed around in stores as a suspected thief or questioned about items I'm returning with or without a receipt. I am not feared or harassed by the police when in public in a group of my white peers. My skin color makes me seem financially reliable when I pay for merchandise. I don't get called racial epithets. Statistically, I can count on better quality health care and more longevity than people of color. I am aware of all that, but, to be completely honest, there is still a resistance in me in letting the reality of white privilege sink in. Why?
Part of the resistance to claiming my white identity stems from the immigrant and the Jew in me having resisted assimilation so strongly in order to preserve my authenticity and sanity, that I have eventually found comfort, even pride in inhabiting that "otherness" ascribed to me here of someone foreign, someone with an accent; about living psychically on the margins of American society. But when it comes to racism, as a white person I am in the oppressor group. I benefit from the system, and like most white people with whom I have had conversations about this, I have a hard time deeply acknowledging that. For me in particular, it is scary to be associated with the WASP (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant), middle class mainstream influence which I have so vehemently tried to filter out of my life and my identity because, in many ways aspects of that culture have felt empty, hegemonic and oppressive. Clearly, this disassociation on my part needs bridging, which can be found, for instance in the commonality that for US-based whites, it is key, even if profoundly upsetting, to acknowledge that in American society, we automatically get the benefit of the doubt while we stand on the shoulders of men and women of color whose land, cheap or free labor and lives were (and continue to be) taken from them, seen by whites as nothing but fuel for this capitalist beast in whose belly we now find ourselves.
What a history to inherit.
Untangling race at home
Now I'm in a relationship with a man of African slave ancestry. I don't know how to make sense of our different histories coming together yet. Conversation about racism is a daily occurrence. I am learning so much from him and at the same time continuing my own work. While it is true that every intimate relationship is intercultural, to a degree, since the partners almost always have differences in backgrounds, communication styles, and world views to meld, in a black-white interracial relationships, the weight of history and the reality of everyday racism sometimes plays itself out in a more pronounced way. This is especially true, I'd venture to say, in geographic locations where people of color are disproportionately outnumbered and highly visible in a perpetual sea of white faces (as one blogger described in her piece, What does an all-white room mean?). As Randall Kennedy writes in his book, Interracial Intimacies: Sex, Marriage, Identity and Adoption, "at the dawn of the twenty-first century, a wide array of social pressures continue to make white-black marital crossings more difficult, more costly, and thus less frequent than other types of interethnic or interracial crossings."
Our most visible differences aside, my partner and I do have some experiences in common. Both of us are immigrants, acutely familiar with being uprooted and on the margins in this society. We are both deeply rooted in our home cultures since we moved to the US as teenagers. We share similar political views. We are "blended culture" people who each speak several languages and are widely traveled. We are both college-educated, both divorced, each a parent to one child of the opposite gender from us. Although race is blatantly salient in our relationship, so are gender, class and culture. All these are so intertwined that it becomes quite a puzzle to try to untangle or isolate them to get at the core of differences or conflict. But it's worth trying. We have overcome several big points of friction already, and excavating the sources of the disagreements has been key.
Longing for healing
But back to the impact and implications of living in a highly racialized society on my experience as a white woman. I have come to recognize that my domain of impact in this life is not organizational or political; it is relational. As law professor and author Randall Kennedy argued when explaining why he chose to write about interracial relationships:
People usually expect talk about regulation of laws at the workplace, the regulation of race with respect to housing markets, the regulation of race with respect to education… People don't think about spending a lot of time on the regulation of race with respect to marital intimacy, sexual intimacy. Though if you think about it, if you think about how people get jobs, if you think about how people conceive of themselves, if you think about how people learn about the world, these sorts of relationships are incredibly important. Friendship as an institution, dating as an institution is incredibly important. One thing that drew me to this subject was the extent to which actually people did not talk about it and thought of these relationships as rather trivial. . . This topic is actually more important in social consequences than some of the other institutions upon which we focus much more time.
The place where I connect most intensely around how racism impacts me as a white person is the pain of loss. I am keenly aware of how racism can cause friendships and close bonds to rupture and fall apart or to never form because of mistrust in the first place. On an emotional level I get how racism divides us. And that is the place that spurs me on; it's the desire for this society to become whole, for us to heal, to find each other alive and breathing under the rubble of centuries of injustice, and to feel the richness, vibrancy and joy in bridging the divide. Only when we come together being our authentic selves, speaking and hearing each other's truths, can we create long-lasting change.
So, I'll keep doing the work of learning and engaging with others … for that; for the love that was, is and that could be.


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Calabash Fire Department is located in Brunswick County, North Carolina which is along the east coast. The Calabash Fire District consists of the towns of Calabash and Carolina Shores and a rural portion of Brunswick County that is unincorporated into any town but does include housing developments. The total Fire District encompasses 29.7 square miles.READ MORE
Our original firefighting equipment consisted of a 1974 Ford, John Bean 750 gallon pumper, a 2.5 ton GMC Army type 1000 gallon tanker, and a half-ton truck for brush and woods fires. Our fleet consists of 9 apparatus, from our Ladder 1260 "Southend Stick" to tanker 1265 "The Redneck" . Many of our apparatus fleet hold great nicknames.READ MORE
The Calabash Fire Department strives to provide the highest level of service possible, prevent, control, and limit damage by Fire in the Calabash Fire District, and elsewhere as may be practical; to render assistance in time of need; to give aid for medical emergencies, and to influence prevention of fire and accidents.READ MORE

subset: commoncrawl


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JSE has the new 40 round p-mags in stock and their not all that pricy either. about $18.90 a pop i think.
i have a few c-product and cmmg 40 round mags i got before the last panic. i have used them some and the seem to work fine --i like the c-products/ASC 40s--
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you know you want one! if for no other reason the democrats/communist and socialist don't want YOU to have um!


text: Group Fitness That Can Change Your Life When Lance Farrell established Farrell's eXtreme Bodyshaping - Minneapolis - North Loop in 2001, his mission was simple: To encourage others to live with power and purpose. That's just what our 10-Week Challenge in Minneapolis does. With its roots in fitness kickboxing, strength training, and nutrition, our 10-Week Challenge will start you on a path to better fitness. Your personal coach and certified instructors will cheer you on — and hold you accountable. You'll begin on a journey you never thought was achievable! You haven't worked out in years? No problem! Looking for an off-season fitness class to build endurance and energy in Minneapolis? Perfect! Wherever you are in your journey, you'll fit in at Farrell's. Fitness Kickboxing ClassesWe're a popular choice for fitness kickboxing. We were one of the first in the industry to add cardio kickboxing into a all-inclusive group fitness program. Our high-intensity interval training (HIIT) cardio kickboxing class is unmatched. Inspired by Taekwondo, our 45-minute cardio kickboxing workouts burn fat and increase your cardiovascular health. In these fast-paced fitness classes, you'll progress in your core strength, your flexibility, and your confidence. And you'll have a blast doing it!Kickboxing Classes Strength TrainingOur focused strength training classes help you adjust your body composition by developing strong, lean muscles. Strength classes switch between upper and lower body days to give your muscles time to build and recover.Strength Training NutritionFueling your body for top performance is crucial to your success. The good news? Learning what to eat isn't hard! We'll customize your easy-to-follow nutrition plan based on your body composition and desired outcomes. You'll develop new, enduring habits with advice and accountability from your coach. From the beginning you'll experience increased stamina and energy.Nutrition $1,000 Challenge Even before you finish your 10-Week Challenge, you'll see big changes in your body, your health, and your attitude about life. What could be better? How about an extra $1,000? Each Farrell's location presents a $1,000 prize each session to the 10-Week Challenge member with the most incredible transformation—some even award two prizes each session!$1,000 Challenge The Farrell's Family On your initial visit to Farrell's, you'll feel the spirit of community. Members say it's their "Farrell's Family." Your Farrell's Family is a big one. Fellow members. Personal coaches. Certified instructors. Head coaches and managers. Even the owners! You'll feel at home at Farrell's. We all remember our first days. You'll find friendliness and aid in our facilities. Your coach will be there to guide you—but everyone here is eager to give you a hand and make you feel at home at Farrell's.


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Self-directed investors are opening up to exchange-traded funds in their retirement accounts, an analysis released Monday by Schwab found.
The institutional SDBA Indicators Report found that self-directed investors with brokerage accounts inside their retirement plan allocated 14% of their total portfolio to exchange-traded funds in the first quarter, up two points from a year ago.
Exchange-traded funds were also the only category to grow in net asset allocation, Schwab found.
Mutual funds are still the leading category, though. The report found 41% of overall portfolio allocation was to mutual funds. About a quarter is allocated to individual equities, while cash fell to 18%.
Average balances in self-directed brokerage accounts grew, too, Schwab found, increasing 1.3% over the fourth quarter and 10.6% over last year to $194,545.
Schwab noted that's in spite of the S&P having its worst start to a year since 2009, confusion over the Federal Reserve's intentions on interest rates and worries about China.
Among exchange-traded funds and mutual funds, investors allocated most of their dollars to large-cap funds, at 30% each. International equity ETFs are another favorite. Schwab found investors allocated 17% to those funds.
Commodity ETFs, however, lost favor. While there was relatively little change in ETF allocations in the first quarter, commodity allocations fell from 11% in the first quarter of 2013 to just 6%.
Mutual fund allocations were similarly stable. The biggest change was in taxable bond funds, which fell to 19% from 24%.
Information technology was the most popular sector for individual securities, followed by financials and consumer discretionary, unchanged from last year. Investors increased their allocation to health care to 11% from 9%.
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The last decade was the decade of social. The coming one will be the decade of games. Over the past years, a few key companies have built, and now maintain, a powerful framework to foster digital connections between our friends, family and colleagues. What comes next is another framework, not another social layer, but a "game layer". And it'll be even bigger. Instead of trading in social connections, the game layer traffics directly in human motivation. It's not about the number of followers you have, or how many people "like" you, but about how you can leverage game mechanics to achieve all sorts of great things. Use them cleverly and they can enhance education, empower local businesses and make your life more fun and more rewarding. Use them incorrectly and well... it's less good. Join Seth Priebatsch, Chief Ninja of SCVNGR, for a deep dive into the coming game layer, what to be excited about, what to fear and why your life is about to become a lot more fun.


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Internships Help Students Prepare for Workplace
Job shadowing also a tactic schools use for career readiness
Internships and job shadowing offer a close-up look at life in the workplace, yet some high school students are so focused on academics that they pass up the opportunity, or they are uncertain about their interests and don't know where to start.
But the push to improve college and career readiness and produce a better-prepared workforce is increasing the pressure on schools to build partnerships with businesses. What's more, educators realize that students are motivated when they see the relevance of what they are learning.
"The central goal is to get students out of the classroom and into the real world so they can feel and see the entire work process," said Randy McPherson, the director of counseling services and college preparation for the Memphis, Tenn., schools and the American School Counselor Association's counselor of the year in 2011. "Otherwise, they don't really grasp what a day looks like or what a job entails."
While there is no agency tracking trends with internships, interesting models are being used across the country, and students often find the work exposure enlightening—even life-changing.
Internships can be set up in various ways. Some are offered in the summer, some on evenings or weekends or during part of the school day. They can last a few weeks or more than a year. Many are unpaid, but some offer a paycheck or grant school credit for the work. With job shadowing, students typically spend a few hours or a full day on a job site to learn about a profession.
Whatever the structure, a work experience can confirm, or rule out, a career choice. It can also help students cope with mistakes when the stakes aren't so high, as later in life.
Learning on the Job
Alex Carroll worked last fall as an unpaid intern at a golf course near his home in Searsport, Maine. The high school senior has a passion for the sport and was considering it as a career, along with mechanical engineering. The golf pro showed him the business side and how to maintain the course.
"I knew a lot of money went into it, but I didn't realize how much. And I didn't realize how much was needed to care for the fairways," said Mr. Carroll, who had to write a weekly blog about his experience for school. After the internship, he decided a two-year golf college wasn't for him. Instead, he's applying to colleges, including the University of Maine, and may try to play golf there.
Recognizing the value of workplace exposure, Mr. Carroll's teacher, Kathleen Jenkins of Searsport District High School, has expanded internships and job-shadowing programs with local businesses, including a solar-energy company, jewelry store, newspaper, and plumbing firm.
Internships at Searsport, like at many high schools, are unpaid. And that can be a barrier for the teenagers who need to earn money to make ends meet or save for college.
But Garrett Miller, a New Jersey-based workforce-productivity coach and the author of 2012's Hired 'Right' Out of College, encourages students not to rule something out because it doesn't pay. "You are being paid in experience," he said. "A recruiter looking at a résumé never asks how much were you getting paid. ... If it looks interesting, he just says, 'Tell me about that.' "
With all the emphasis on grades and college, schools have fostered an "elite" attitude that doesn't always embrace workplace experience, according to Bill Coplin, a professor of public affairs at Syracuse University, in New York, and the author of 10 Things Employers Want You to Learn in College, published in 2012. In addition to academics, students need to develop a work ethic, communication skills, and the ability to work on a team. The high school curriculum is "traditional and very narrow," said Mr. Coplin, which particularly hurts low-achieving students who may not be pursuing a four-year degree but need to develop career skills.
It can be difficult to persuade students to take the time for an internship or job-shadowing day, especially those in Advanced Placement classes, and increasingly, many don't want to work for free, said Cara Kirby, the senior career-experience specialist for the Fairfax County district in Virginia. "They are scared to miss one day of school, even though the opportunity could change their lives. It's a challenge," she said.
Polishing Up Students
The more successful internship programs make workplace expectations clear to students.
"You have to work with students to [help them] understand there is an appropriate dress, way to act, and address people," said Mr. McPherson of the Trezevant center.
In Fairfax County's hospitality program, Pat Edwards teaches juniors and seniors the basics of the industry in the classroom before they spend two days a week in an internship at local businesses. She explains the etiquette of the workplace, but students don't always catch on right away.
One of her seniors, Jermane Whyte, was in an all-day orientation at the Ritz Carlton, Tysons Corner this past fall when he pulled out his cellphone during some down time to text his father. He also missed about a quarter of his internship days the first semester because of conflicts with college interviews and other activities.
The hotel supervisor called Ms. Edwards, who then talked with her student to reinforce the rules. Looking back, Mr. Whyte, 17, said he recognizes his mistakes and is more aware now of his conduct. He continues to intern at the Ritz and has enjoyed rotating among various positions, from the front desk to security. "I had no prior work experience," he said. "This has opened my eyes to work life and team building."
Talking It Over
What's missing from many work experiences in high school is time to reflect, said Mr. Miller. To get the most out of an internship, students should talk about what they enjoyed, what they didn't, and how that translates into their next move, he said.
At Children's Hospital of Colorado, Stacey Whiteside holds weekly group debriefing sessions for interns. "They may see something hard emotionally or physically, and this is where they need to be talking about it. And they are assigned a mentor on the unit," said Ms. Whiteside, who coordinates the hospital's high school internship program aimed at underrepresented minority students.
More than 200 students in Denver apply for the 25 positions in the hospital's two-year, paid Medical Career Collaborative, which includes training, monthly field trips, and internships. At the end of the program, students give a formal presentation to a group of about 70 hospital staff and family members about their experience. "Many families are blown away by seeing their student in a professional role," said Ms. Whiteside. "They have not seen that side of them, and it helps the families buy into college."
Former hospital intern Chisom Agbim is a second-year medical student at the University of Colorado. In 2006, she worked alongside a nurse in the emergency room at Children's Hospital and says it solidified her career choice. "It was exciting to be able to see what was going on … to see how the whole team works," said Ms. Agbim, who noted that the experience gave her a different impression than what she had imagined from watching episodes of the drama "ER" on television. "I had a more realistic sense of what patients are like and what physicians can do."
Now 23, Ms. Agbim says she understands it was rare to get a hands-on opportunity in medicine as a high school student, while she knew of others who just volunteered and got stuck shelving books.
Clarifying Responsibilities
To help students, mentors, and employers understand their responsibility in an internship, Ms. Jenkins of Maine has all parties sign a contract. "It makes it clear who is accountable for what," she said.
Once, Ms. Kirby of Fairfax sent three students to a job site and the chief executive officer asked them to sweep. "They were furious," she recounts. After later talking with the CEO, she learned he had started at the company by sweeping and was trying to convey that to the students. "Even if it is not ideal, you still have to be respectful," said Ms. Kirby.
In Lincoln, Neb., all students at Northeast High School take a career course that includes job-shadowing, and next fall, it will be expanded from one quarter to a semester of instruction. "Every student is required to do job-shadowing. It's the only way for students to make a good decision and be confident in their career decision," said Ruth Lohmeyer, a counselor and the counseling team leader, recently named 2013 School Counselor of the Year by the ASCA.
The district has increased its emphasis on working with the business community, and Ms. Lohmeyer has found employers receptive. "People like to talk about their occupations," she said. The push to make business connections is also fueled by efforts to stem the brain drain from Nebraska and keep graduates working in the area.
As a teenager in Pennsylvania, Meagan Phelan toured a manufacturing plant, bank, and hospital as part of her mother's goal to introduce her to a variety of careers. "It created in me this curiosity," said Ms. Phelan. Learning how various professionals arrived at their jobs was liberating for her because she realized there were many paths to take with a degree.
After studying biology and Spanish in college, she went on to get a master's in science writing and now works as a writer for a firm in Boston, as well as a columnist for the website Prepped & Polished. "Everyone is working hard to get good grades in high school and studying for the SAT," she said. "But not everyone is interning, and so many get to college undecided."
Vol. 32, Issue 19, Page 8Published in Print: January 30, 2013, as Internships Help Students Prepare for the Workplace
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They own me, they can do whatever they want with me,...
Lost childhood29692861
- by Niallerxxx
- Rating:
- Published: 24 Mar 2014
- Updated: 27 Mar 2014
- Status: Complete
Narry fanfic - Niall lose the entire family when he's ten years old. He has no one to take care of him, so social workers sends him to an orphanage, for children without families or future.
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While the US enthusiastically celebrated the execution of Osama bin Laden, one advantageous coder began building a Counter-Strike map based on the bearded bomber's compound. It has been causing quite a stir since its release last week.
The first-person shooter map mimics bin Laden's hidden home and surrounding areas in Abottabad, Pakistan.
Unfortunately for those with a more morbid interest in such matters, the map isn't accompanied by a mission pitching you against the Al-Qaeda chieftain, so no firing through human shields, shooting unarmed terrorists in the face, or carelessly crashing top secret helicopters.
Oh, and finding bin Laden's hidden stash of pr0n is also unlikely. Gutted.
The map's creator, Fletch, started the project one day after bin Laden's discovery and said: "What a lot of people don't seem to understand is that the only thing this map has in common with Osama is location.
"I can see how people would think it is in bad taste," he added, but noted at if you're of such an opinion, you may as well protest against the entire game.
The map was built for the PC game Counter-Strike: Source and can be downloaded free from GameBanana. ®


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I put a driver on the "Hair Length" of a particle emitter and calculate the value using the position of a empty object. The driver works and the "Hair Length" value is updated correctly, but it has no effect on the emitter. Only if I try to change the "Hair Length" value by hand, then the value snaps back to the calculated and the length of the hair also changes in view port, but in an animation this doesn't work automatically. Can someone help me with this issue?
Best regards,
Driver Expression doesn't update
Animation tools, character animation, non linear animation
Moderators: jesterKing, stiv
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United States
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Usborne Coding for Beginners Using Scratch at Usborne Quicklinks
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Websites to visit
A video for kids to watch about online safety
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Websites to visit
Screen time advice from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
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Coding books for kids
My first computer coding book using ScratchJr
A fun, friendly guide to coding on a tablet computer using the free ScratchJR app. Discover how computers work and how to tell them what to do using code, then follow simple, step-by-step instructions to code stories and games including a fairy garden, a pet monster and a space game. Links to websites and helpful notes for grown-ups included!
Rosie Dickins grew up in England and Hong Kong. An avid reader, she always loved making up her own stories. After studying literature at Oxford University, art in Paris and plenty of travelling, she settled in London, where she now works for Usborne Publishing. She has written over a hundred children's books, including award-winning non-fiction.
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Welcome to Atlantic Orthopaedics, P.A.
Atlantic Orthopaedics, P.A. offers the very latest treatment options for orthopaedic injuries and disorders. Our experience and research have led to significant advances in the fields of orthopaedics and sports medicine.
What's New
Dr. Beck named Best at the Beach in Orthopedics/Joint Replacement by Baltimore Magazine
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Birmingham Hip Resurfacing article form Wall Street Journal
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New knee replacement is uniquely designed to provide a more natural feeling and moving knee.
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Press Releases
Atlantic Orthopaedics was featured in the May issue of Metropolitan Magazine. See the interesting write up about the partnership with The Joint Center at Atlantic General Hospital!
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Berlin, MD Surgeon trained to perform Birmingham Hip resurfacing
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About Us
Patient Information
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Atlantic Orthopaedics, P.A.
Atlantic Orthopaedics, P.A.
phone 410-641-1900 fax 410-641-9473
314 Franklin Ave., Suite 105-B
Berlin, Maryland 21811
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It was really nice out so I took some pictures of my horse and a few of the dogs playing -
This one is older, pardon the laundry I had just thrown my clothes onto my bed and had to take a picture. Seth always slides off of the bed.
pitbullmamaliz wrote:Awesome pics! Everybody (including you!) looks fantastic!
TheRedQueen wrote:Great pics...love that sliding off the bed pic...he's a lot like Score in that respect. Does he stop so you can scritch his britches?
pitbullmamaliz wrote:I always do the butt scritches as Inara slides off - she pauses as well and looks over her shoulder at me like, "well???"
madremissy wrote:I love your pups but I always enjoy your horse photos. I love the smell of horses. I know I am crazy.
furever_pit wrote:Dang Seth has some leeeggs!
copperlegend wrote:Horse 'stink' is wonderful. I miss it!
Your animals are all so lovely And oh that Cairo, what a gorgeous girl
Return to Four Legged, Finned and Feathered Family Members
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As a Center of Excellence in Robotic Surgery, the da Vinci surgical team at CAMC has more doctors performing more procedures in more specialties than any other hospital in the state. With da Vinci surgery there is less pain, less risk of infection, less blood loss, less scarring and a faster recovery.
Patients undergoing gynecology procedures such as hysterectomy and fibroid removal; urology procedures such as prostatectomy and kidney and bladder surgeries; and many general surgery procedures such as bariatric, colon and hernia surgery, are potential candidates for da Vinci surgery.
The da Vinci Surgical System is a totally "intuitive" laparoscopic surgical robot. It's not a robot in the sense that you would imagine, but it integrates the latest advancements in robotics, computer-enhanced technology and the skills of surgeons. This system is a part of CAMC's surgical tools, which means the surgeon's hands are at the control of this state-of-the-art robotic device and can perform the most complex and delicate procedures through very small incisions, with unmatched accuracy.
The da Vinci surgical team at CAMC is specially-trained in efficiency to prepare for, assist with and complete robotic surgery cases. The CAMC team is used to demonstrate procedures and train new robotic teams from around the country and around the world, and is one of the many important aspects of this medical breakthrough.
This breakthrough is allowing hospitals everywhere to extend the benefits of robotic surgery to a broader base of patients. Some of the major benefits experienced by surgeons using the da Vinci Surgical System over traditional approaches have been greater surgical precision, increased range of motion, improved dexterity, enhanced visualization and improved access.
Patients routinely travel to receive care at hospitals that offer robotic surgical technology. Since CAMC invested in this technology and now has two da Vinci systems, patients in southern West Virginia don't have to go far.


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Talk to a local advisor for FREE
Assisted living communities provide 24-hour care for seniors who need help with daily tasks — such as dressing, grooming, and medication management — but don't need ongoing skilled medical services. Assisted living facilities offer a maintenance-free lifestyle that includes restaurant-style meals, wellness programs, housekeeping services, and opportunities for social activities and outings. Some assisted living communities also offer amenities such as gyms, beauty salons and barber shops, and space for gardening.
Assisted living facilities come in many styles, from resort-like to smaller, more intimate residential communities. Residents at assisted living communities choose from different rooming options — such as private or shared studio, one-, or two-bedroom apartments, often with private bathrooms and kitchenettes.
Asking yourself and others questions can help determine the right time to transition your aging parent to an assisted living facility. Consider whether your loved one can manage personal care and medications on their own, whether they're safe in their home, and whether they would benefit from a more social and engaging lifestyle. Also weigh your own mental and physical health.
Many families struggle with talking to senior loved ones about leaving their long-time home and moving to senior care. Keep them as involved as possible in the planning process and be sure to let your parent know their safety is your main priority. Key factors to improve the senior care conversation include: emphasizing that you want what is best for your parent's safety, picking an appropriate time and place, and, whenever possible, keeping the senior involved in each step of the planning process.
Assisted living costs vary depending on location, community amenities, apartment size, and how much assistance your loved one needs. You can save money on assisted living costs by carefully weighing the benefits of all-inclusive vs. a la carte care services and asking about move-in specials or other discounts.
While Medicare does not pay for assisted living, there are many financing options to help pay for assisted living, including veterans benefits, long-term care insurance, reverse mortgages, and more.
There are many factors to consider when searching for an assisted living facility for your loved one. Top considerations may include safety, staff expertise and training, location, cultural fit, and available amenities and activities.
An in-person or virtual tour is great way to get a sense of the community. It provides a window into a resident's daily life, allowing you to see or experience activities, meals, amenities, and staff interactions with residents. Ask about community licensing, staff-to-resident ratios, staff qualifications, and emergency procedures.
Moving and downsizing can be stressful, especially when your loved one is leaving a home filled with memories and possessions where they've lived for decades. There are steps you can take to help make the move and transition to an assisted living community smoother.
Hiring a senior move manager to assist with downsizing and coordinating the actual move, and selecting a moving company that specializes in moving seniors to assisted living can help.
Adjusting to life in an assisted living facility after moving may take several weeks. You can help make your loved one's transition easier by setting up their apartment with furniture and belongings from their old home. Creating a plan to stay connected with your loved one after the move will also help them better adjust.
Anger, confusion, and sadness are a few symptoms a person with dementia may experience regularly. Even though you know your loved one's dementia behaviors are symptoms of a disease and not intentional, dealing with them is often emotionally and physically challenging. Learn more about typical dement...More ▶
Are you considering opening a joint bank account with your aging parent? While it may seem like a convenient way to pay the bills, a joint account has drawbacks that could be financially damaging to you both. Weigh the pros and cons here before heading to the bank. Advantages of a joint bank account...More ▶
Most assisted living communities provide residents with medication management services, which can be helpful if family members live far away or cannot check on aging loved ones regularly. For seniors who live at home, understanding steps to managing medications effectively can help keep them safe. W...More ▶


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Weather Blog: New LRC Pattern Check
Thank you for stopping by the Weather Watch 12 Blog! Fall is a season of change, not only because our temperatures cool and the first hint of snow enters the forecast, but because a brand new weather pattern becomes established. A weather pattern theory called the LRC, or Lezak's Recurring Cycle uses the new pattern to help make long range weather forecasts. In today's blog we look at the early signs of what the new LRC may mean for southeast Wisconsin.
First, let's start with the basics of the LRC theory:
- A unique weather pattern becomes established every year between roughly October 1st and November 10th
- The weather pattern cycles, repeats, and continues through winter, spring and into summer. Identifying the cycle length helps tremendously when making long range weather predictions.
- Long term long-wave troughs and ridges become established and also repeat at regular times within the cycle. These dominant repeating features are a clue to where storm systems will reach peak strength, and where they will be their weakest.
- The LRC is a fall thru summer pattern! There is a pattern! It isn't just one long-wave trough, storm system, or ridge. It is a sequence of troughs and ridges that are cycling around the Northern Hemisphere.
To aid in picking out the new LRC we look at 500mb maps. These maps show the middle of the atmosphere and the large scale flow where long term long-wave ridges and troughs reside. The 500mb map below is from Wednesday morning at 7am. Notice the large upper level low over the Great Lakes and Northeast, a ridge over the Plains and Rockies, and another trough digging into the Northwest north to Alaska.
Doing map comparisons to help find the new cycle duration is a challenge, but one that when accomplished can lead to accurate long range forecasts. One map comparison does not prove or disprove the theory. Other factors play into finding the cycle duration, but in today's blog I want to focus on a map comparison.
Remember the map above is from Wednesday, October 31. Going back to September 9, 2012 reveals a pattern very similar at the 500mb level. The archived 500mb map from September 9, 2012 is shown below. Notice the large trough in the Great Lakes and Northwest, ridge in the Plains and Rockies, and trough into the Northwest.
While the new LRC is still developing, it may be possible that these maps align and the new cycle duration is somewhere around 51 days this LRC season. The next two weeks will play a big role in gaining confidence in the new pattern and cycle duration. Taking the LRC and a handful of other factors into account, we will reveal our winter forecast in a few weeks!
Until then please follow along as the new pattern develops and ask questions along the way!
For the latest weather information watch WISN 12 News. Updates are available throughout the day, just follow me on Twitter @jnelsonweather
Have a great day!
Jeremy Nelson


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What are your views and beliefs on end times Bible prophecy, book of Revelation, etc.? Can direct me to a web site or literature about that subject?
I've heard that you believe, like Catholics, that the book of Revelation has already happened with the fall of the temple in Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
You've asked a question on which there is a large difference of opinion, even within the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. I will try to answer according to the differing "millennial" positions first. Then I will give you my own answer as well as some differing views held in the OPC.
Dispensational Premillennialists hold to an "any moment rapture," that is, that (based on their interpretation of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) all the prophecies that can be fulfilled have been fulfilled so that Christ may come at any moment. After Christ's coming in the clouds and the raising of the true church on earth to be with him through the great tribulation and the literal thousand years (the millennium), Satan will be released from his prison in the abyss and wage war against Christ and the saints, followed by the "Great White Throne Judgment," at which time the wicked dead will be raised, judged, and cast into the lake of fire (hell) along with the devil and his angels, followed by the eternal state. All the above takes place sequentially after the "rapture" as set forth in Revelation 20.
The Amillennialists hold that Revelation 20 relates to the whole Christian era from Christ's first coming to His second coming. This position holds to one general resurrection of all the dead, which includes the resurrection noted in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14, further enlarged upon in chapter 5:1-6 and Matthew 25:31-46 and 1 Corinthians 15. They are called "amillennialists" because they do not hold the thousand years of Revelation 20:1-7 as a literal thousand years, but as symbolical of the sinless and perfect state of the souls of the righteous dead of the present age (from Jesus' first to His second coming) awaiting a general bodily resurrection of both the righteous and wicked followed by the judgment of the wicked and the glory of the righteous.
The Postmillennialists also hold to a figurative, as opposed to a literal, thousand year period before the resurrection and last judgment but with this difference: The Postmillennial doctrine advances the idea (gathered from many Old Testament prophecies, such as in Isaiah and Ezekiel) that before Christ comes the gospel will have universal acceptance in a "golden age" of peace, prosperity, and blessing. Then, following a resurrection and final judgment of all mankind, the eternal state begins. And it is the Postmillennial interpretation of Revelation that says that all those prophecies were fulfilled by the time of the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Obviously, for the sake of brevity I have left out much that these three positions include. To my knowledge at the present time, the OPC has no minister advocating the dispensational Pre-Mill position. The reason for that is that our doctrinal standards (the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms) teach one general resurrection of all the dead, followed by the judgment of all mankind—saved and lost.
Premillennialism requires separate and distinct resurrections and judgments more than a thousand years apart, but the Bible clearly teaches the opposite. See John 5:28-29 and Revelation 20:11-15. In the former, this two-sided resurrection is said to be a coming "hour"—not necessarily exactly 60 minutes, but one point in time. The latter says "the dead, small and great ..."
Postmillennialists refer to Matthew 24:34 as saying that all Christ's previous prophecies would be fulfilled before "this generation" has passed away. So, the 40 years between the crucifixion and destruction of Jerusalem could fulfil those words. But the whole chapter (with its parallels in Mark 13 and Luke 11) suggests that Jesus also prophesies the end of this age. And the end of this age has not yet come.
I firmly believe that the majority of OPC ministers hold the Amillennial interpretation. This is my firmly held belief. And I think that it is wrong to hold (with the Premillennialists) that, from chapter 4:1 on, Revelation is all future. And I don't think that the Postmillennialists are correct in assuming that it is all history, from the 21st Century point of view.
Indeed it is difficult to understand Revelation because of its high symbolism, but most Amillennialists believe that the book is cyclical: treating the inter-advental period (between the first and second comings) in ever-deepening phases, so that there are many accounts of the last judgment as there are many accounts of the glory of God's children.
As to the possibility of Christ's coming at any moment, we dare not say that it's wrong to look at His coming in that way. The Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24 and its parallels in Mark and Luke) ends in an earnest appeal for all believers to be ready for His coming. Christ purposely refuses to mention the day or the hour. He even disclaims that He, in his earthly ministry, knew what the Father had kept for himself.
Revelation starts and ends with the statement, "... the time is at hand" (1:3 and 22:10). How can that be true since John heard those words nearly 2000 years ago? My understanding is that each of us, in his/her generation, will die (Hebrews 9:27). Even those living to His coming haven't "all the time in the world" to call upon His name. As we die, so will we be in the day of resurrection and judgment! So ever-readiness is advised!
And another thing: these wonderful prophecies are not always clear as to how and when they will come to pass. One of my seminary professors said, "The only infallible interpretation of prophecy is history." When it comes to pass, then only can we fully know its meaning.
I have omitted giving Scripture for every assertion I have made. It would wear out both you and me. However, if you want more specific Scriptures for particular points, please feel free to return with the questions. I will be only too happy to respond.
P.S. A good book to read on the Millennial Question is The Meaning of the Millennium edited by Robert G. Clouse. It gives four views, argued by those who held those views. There are actually two Pre-Mill views: the "Historical" and the "Dispensational" interpretations. The book is published by InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL 60515. It's been in print for a good many years, but I'm sure it is still available.
"Questions and Answers" is a weekly feature of the OPC website. The answers come from individual ministers in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church expressing their own convictions and do not necessarily represent an "official" position of the Church, especially in areas where the Standards of the Church (the Scriptures and the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms) are silent.
The questions come from individuals like yourself. If you have questions about biblical and theological matters, you are invited to send them by e-mail by using the "Pose a Question" link on the OPC home page or by clicking here.
At least one new question is posted each week, so there should always be something new here for you to read. (For those people who would like to look at previous questions and answers, they will continue to be available as well.)
The purpose of the OPC website's "Questions and Answers" is to respond to biblical and theological questions. Matters of church discipline, disputes, or debates go beyond the scope of our work. We recommend that you present your concerns in these areas to the appropriate judicatory. In most cases this will be to a local pastor, elder, or session. We do not want the website to replace personal involvement in, or commitment to, the local, visible church.
While we will respond to every serious questioner, we are not bound to give a substantive answer to every question, should we deem the question to be beyond the scope of our purpose or our own ability to answer.
You will receive an answer by e-mail. Please be patient as many of our respondents are busy pastors. The response to your question may take up to two (2) weeks. Some of the questions submitted will be chosen to be posted here, along with the corresponding answers.
Note that the "Questions and Answers" posted on the site have been editedall personal references are removed, Scripture references or from some source may be added, and sometimes portions are expandedto make the questions and answers more useful to a larger audience.
|© 2020 The Orthodox Presbyterian Church
Chaplains and Military Personnel


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I appeared on this week's episode of Game Trailers TV with host Geoff Keighley and former Kotaku Editor-in-Chief and current Polygon news boss Brian Crecente.
You're not going to see any of us attacking violent video games, but I think you might enjoy seeing and hearing some level-headed discussion about the topic.
Take a look below:
And, yes, I quoted myself in the headline. A little gauche, I know. But it was a good line!
The Bonus Round: Video Game Violence Debate [GameTrailers.com]


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Congratulations to our grand prize winner, "Rachael B." and our two runners up, "Crystal F." and "Kimberly P." Thank you to everyone who participated, and happy fall wishes to all!
October 11-13
30 awesome romantic suspense authors have pitched in with their printed books to make your fall a special one.
From October 11-13 everyone can FALL FOR SUSPENSE on JRS!
- On October 14th, one grand prize winner will be able to select 10 titles of their choice from the big ole pile of books.
- Two lucky runners-up will receive half each of what is left in the pool! (10 books each!)
BECKY BARKER - On Wings Of Love
GAIL BARRETT - Fatal Exposure
CATE BEAUMAN - Falling For Sarah
ANNE MARIE BECKER - Avenging Angel
KENDRA ELLIOT - Hidden
LORI FOSTER - Getting Rowdy
M.J. FREDRICK - Don't Look Back
ALEXA GRACE - Profile Of Evil
VIRGINIA KELLY - To The Limit
KALLIE LANE - Reckless Abandon
DIANNA LOVE - Honeymoon To Die For
DANA MARTON - My Spy
ANGI MORGAN - Protecting Their Child
CARLA NEGGERS - Declan's Cross
TERRY ODELL - Danger In Deer Ridge
CATHY PERKINS - The Professor
KATIE REUS - Targeted: A Deadly Ops Novel
LISA MARIE RICE - Woman On The Run
ALISON STONE - Plain Pursuit
TINA WAINSCOTT - What She Doesn't Know
DEBRA WEBB - Ruthless
NORAH WILSON - Protecting Paige
REBECCA YORK - Bad Nights
Giveaway ends 11:59pm EST Oct. 13th. Please supply your email in the post. You may use spaces or full text for security. (ex. jsmith at gmail dot com) If you do not wish to supply your email, or have trouble posting, please email firstname.lastname@example.com with a subject title of JRS FALL FOR SUSPENSE GIVEAWAY to be entered. This giveaway is eligible to US and CANADA postal addresses only.


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Due to the vagaries of print magazines, I am writing this on Election Day 2012. Due to the vagaries of Hurricane Sandy, I am writing this from the Jersey Shore where power was restored to my house after seven long and increasingly cold days. I and my family were only inconvenienced by the aftermath of one of the most destructive storms in history, while many more people lost their homes, not to mention their lives.
And yet I'm optimistic about the New York metropolitan area's ability to rebuild and recover. The response to the storm has been informed by lessons learned from the tragedy of New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina. When Mayor Bloomberg of New York City announced the opening of evacuation centers, he made a point of saying that evacuees could take their pets with them to those centers: After Katrina, it became clear that many in New Orleans who should have evacuated failed to do so because they didn't want to abandon their dogs and cats. Leadership at times of crisis takes many forms, but educated leadership learns from the past to make future prospects brighter.
More impressive to me than government leadership has been the outpouring of caring to those areas devastated by Sandy—by individuals, by volunteer organizations, by faith-based groups, by corporations like the makers of Duracell and Tide. That caring won't end when power is restored and homes are repaired—it's long been a part of the American psyche.
In his writings on America following a visit in 1831 to the still-young United States, the French proto-sociologist Alexis de Tocqueville lauded the unique American genius for "voluntary associations" in which like-minded people gathered together without any government or upper-class oversight.
Jedediah Purdy, who teaches law at Duke University's law school, wrote a thoughtful piece in 2009 on the paradox of American life noted first by de Tocqueville. These "supple and pragmatic groupings trained people to take charge of their own affairs and […] fostered the blend of initiative, self-assertion, and mutual respect that makes civic life work." However, Purdy says de Tocqueville "also saw a bleaker face of American community" in which Americans "fixed their attention on their own affairs and the affairs of those closest to them. They became indifferent to the larger community." These Americans, de Tocqueville wrote, "owe no man anything and hardly expect anything from anybody. They form the habit of thinking of themselves in isolation and imagine that their whole destiny is in their own hands."
My hope and prayer is that once the election's storm and fury is over all Americans realize the importance of working together to solve our problems, not least the fiscal issues that bedevil us. What kind of a country, what kind of a people do we want to be in our third century of existence? Our "voluntary associations" will always help define us as a people, but so too will our institutions of law and defense, of governments local, state and federal. Just as with recovery from a natural disaster, we can solve our looming national disaster-in-making by coming together for our common self-interest, for ourselves and the generations that follow us.


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Transocean Ltd. gave its top executives bonuses for achieving the "best year in safety performance in our company's history" — despite the explosion of its oil rig that killed 11 people, including nine of its own employees, and spilled 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
The company said in a regulatory filing that its most senior managers were given two-thirds of their total possible safety bonus.
Transocean noted "the tragic loss of life" in the Gulf when the rig operated by BP PLC exploded last April. But it said the company still had an "exemplary" safety record because it met or exceeded certain internal safety targets concerning the frequency and severity of its accidents, according to the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday.
Safety accounts for a quarter of the executives' total cash bonuses. The total bonus for CEO Steve Newman last year was $374,062.
According to calculations by The Associated Press, the total value the company assigned to Newman's compensation package was $5.8 million.
That figure includes an $850,000 base salary — a 34 percent increase from the prior year; perquisites of $622,057, which includes housing and vacation allowances, among other things; and the $374,062 bonus. Also included in the figure are stock options valued at $1.9 million and deferred shares valued at $2 million when those awards were granted in March 2010.
Transocean's Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion on April 20 in the Gulf of Mexico killed 11 workers and set off the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
A commission appointed by President Barack Obama earlier this year said the explosion was caused by a series of time and money-saving decisions by Transocean, BP and oil services company Halliburton Inc. that created an unacceptable amount of risk.
In the regulatory filing, the company said its bonuses were appropriate as a way to recognize its executives' efforts in "significantly improving the company's safety record" and implementing a new internal planning system.
Those efforts have "enabled the company to maintain its financial flexibility during a challenging period, while, at the same time, positioning the company for sustained growth in the future."
The Associated Press formula calculates an executive's total compensation during the last fiscal year by adding salary, bonuses, perks, above-market interest the company pays on deferred compensation and the estimated value of stock and stock options awarded during the year. The AP formula does not count changes in the present value of pension benefits. That makes the AP total slightly different in most cases from the total reported by companies to the SEC.
The value that a company assigned to an executive's stock and option awards for 2010 was the present value of what the company expected the awards to be worth to the executive over time. Companies use one of several formulas to calculate that value. However, the number is just an estimate, and what an executive ultimately receives will depend on the performance of the company's stock in the years after the awards are granted. Most stock compensation programs require an executive to wait a specified amount of time to receive shares or exercise options.
"Of the 126-member crew, 115 were safely evacuated," Transocean President and CEO Steven Newman said in a message on the company's Web site. "Despite exhaustive rescue efforts, eleven crew members lost their lives, nine of which were Transocean employees.
"Our entire Transocean family has been saddened by this tragic event and our thoughts and prayers remain with all who have been affected by this horrible tragedy."
According to Berniard Law Firm of New Orleans, three of the families of the 11 victims have settled with Transocean.
It's not clear how much those who settled received in total, but according to Berniard's BP Oil Spill Lawyers Blog, "The settlement included a long-term plan for the deceased rig worker's dependents as well as a charitable fund that distributed $130,000 to all the families in July."
"To put this into perspective, an oil rig employee's annual salary can range anywhere between $55,000-$125,000 per year," said the blog post, arguing that the company had fallen far short of its responsibilities.
In a show of respect to the 11 men, 11 stars were imprinted on the well's final cap.
An investigation of the disaster by the Department of Justice is ongoing, and media reports have suggested that criminal charges are possible, most likely aimed at British Petroleum and/or Transocean, which leased the oil rig to BP. According to the reports, the companies or individual officers of those companies could face manslaughter charges for the deaths of the 11 workers, although legal experts say such charges would be difficult to levy.
According to a recent Washington Post report, investigators are also examining violations of environmental laws and whether company officials made false statements to regulators, obstructed justice or falsified tests for key pieces of equipment, such as the rig's failed blowout preventer.
Even if no criminal charges are filed, BP and its contractors are expected to face civil penalties worth billions of dollars.
Separately, BP set up a $20 billion fund for compensating tens of thousands of Gulf coast residents whose livelihoods have been affected by the oil spill. The fund, administered by Kenneth Feinberg, faced with about 500,000 claims, has so far paid out about $3.6 billion to 172,000 claimants.
Feinberg has been criticized for the pace and seemingly arbitrary outcome of claims processing. Fishermen, tourism companies and others have complained that the compensation is insufficient or that they were denied without explanation.
Msnbc.com staff contributed to this report from The Associated Press.
© 2013 msnbc.com


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Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Or have they? That's the question facing several high-profile series entering their sophomore seasons this year. Is New Girl as charming as when we first met her? Did Simon Cowell's complete X Factor overhaul actually pay off? Read on to find out how the sophomore class is shaping up thus far, and what some shows need to do to get back on track:
What's Working: (Almost) as quickly as she crept onto the scene, Emily's completely unhinged yet boring mom Kara (Jennifer Jason Leigh) bid adieu this past week. One down. How many lame, unnecessary secondary characters to go? Speaking of Aiden, seeing him bring out Daniel's ruthless side at Grayson Global has been a pleasant surprise and we can't wait to see these two come to blows over Ems.
What's Not: Where do we begin? The show has been extremely short on actual revenge-ing and heavy on story lines involving the confusing and super-shady organization called "the Initiative" (paging Sydney Bristow!) and the Stowaway, which we couldn't care less about if we tried.
Grade: C+ We've come too far with Emily Thorne to just toss the revengenda out the window and off our DVR, but the writing staff needs to be more liberal with the red pen when it comes to all that Initiative mumbo jumbo.
Losties? Trekkies? Which TV show has the best fans? Vote now!
The X Factor
What's Working: New judges Demi Lovato and Britney Spears, and her dazzling array of facial expressions, have breathed new life into the judges table, but the best addition is the rankings of shame, a surprising twist which changes the game in a big way and makes the oft-forgotten results shows a must-see.
What's Not: Unfortunately, one of the few things left unchanged since Season 1 are the over-the-top live performances, including crazy costumes, distracting dancers and blinding light set-ups.
Grade: B- So far, the positives outweigh the negatives, but someone has got to tell Simon that not everything glitters is gold. And here's hoping new co-host Khloe Kardashian hits a big learning curve.
New Girl
What's Working: TV's most adorkable leading lady has left fans extremely divided. Where some see a strong comedic ensemble not afraid to walk on the weird side, others see repetitive story lines and an increasingly grating protagonist.
What's Not: See above. Also, can we please get Schmidt and CeCe back together like yesterday? His 50 Shades of Grey-esque relationship with his boss feels forced (and not in the good S&M-sort of way).
Grade: B+ It's hard to tell if New Girl will ever able to please everyone, but should it even try? From where we're standing, the weird is working.
Ian Somerhalder? Sofia Vergara? Make your picks for TV's sexiest eye candy now!
Once Upon a Time
What's Working: Once seemed primed to fall trap to a classic TV Season 2 problem — adding too many new characters. However, the much-ballyhooed introductions of beloved characters like Hook and Mulan have been seamless in the midst of doling out answers to fans' burning questions.
What's Not: The only dip came this last week when the focus was put squarely on Red. She's good in small doses, but slowed down the narrative considerably. Next!
Grade: A- As long as this show keeps embracing its fantasy roots, as well as its funny bone, the sky's the limit.
What's Working: After a rocky first couple of episodes, Homeland has found its sweet spot again: putting Carrie and Brody back together..
What's Not Working: That whole hit-and-run story line with daughter Dana and the VP's son. It's finally hitting close to home, and to Brody specifically, but no mopey teenager deserves this much screen time when the country's safety is at stake.
Grade: A Is the bar higher for Homeland? You bet. But so far the producers' big bets have paid off.
Remember when Justin Timberlake had curls? Check out the most dramatic celebrity makeovers
What's Working: Like The Good Wife before it, Scandal has managed to balance intriguing one-off cases with the juicy serialized stories. The "Who Is Quinn Perkins?" mystery seemed an odd closer for Season 1, but the real focus on Season 2 has, thankfully, been on just how Olivia made it disappear so quickly.
What's Not Working: The recent reveal that the Quinn saga is tied to a batch of rigged voting machines in the last election is interesting, but risks delving into overly complicated Revenge-Initiative territory.
Grade: A- Scandal has definitely proven its strong — but brief — must-watch first season was no fluke. But how long can it keep up with its own rapid pace?
What's Working: The show's producers finally got the memo that they're working on a campy, fantasy series. That means a lighter tone in Season 2, thanks to scene-stealers like Nick's big bad wolf friend Monroe and Nick's cop partner, Hank, who finally knows Nick's big secret.
What's Not: Juliette, Nick's boring girlfriend, is still in the picture. But at least the fallout from her memory loss has mixed things up?
Grade: B+ Much improved, but can we just all take a magic potion and forget the girlfriend exists?
Photos: Everyone's posing nude! Check out Rihanna and other stars who've bared all
Up All Night
What's Working: The comedy solved its identity crisis by ditching The Ava Show. Now the series is a much more cohesive look at adults still trying to find themselves as parents and as people.
What's Not: We still miss some of those larger-than-life Ava Show scenes that fully utilized Maya Rudolph's comedic talents. But we know it's for the best.
Grade: B So far so good, but it's best to reserve judgment on this until the comedy comes back this spring as a multi-camera show shot in front of a live audience.
American Horror Story
What's Working: After earning 17 Emmy nominations this past year, the Ryan Murphy thriller wiped the slate clean for Season 2, minus a few surviving cast members. So far, Asylum is just as scary, gory, and completely out-there as Season 1 but with what critics have been calling a more solidified sense of self.
What's Not: Nazis, aliens and amputees, oh my! American Horror Story is all about the shock and awe, but some say this season has been too outrageous to believe, and not in a good way.
Grade: B- It's harder to get emotionally invested in AHS the second time around, but it sure still knows how to make fans jump.
What do you think of the TV season's sophomore class? Which shows are you digging? Which are you ditching? Sound off in the comments below!


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A collection of scholarly works about individual liberty and free markets. A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.
Catalogue of the Guillaumin Librairie (1847) (Paris: Guillaumin, 1847). https://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/2302,
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|This is a facsimile or image-based PDF made from scans of the original book.
This catalogue is 16 pages long and contains an announcement of the massive Collection des Principaux Économistes which was a multi-volume collection of the classic works of political economy, Bastiat's Sophismes économiques and Cobden et la ligue, works by Dunoyer, Say, Ricardo, Smith, and a special section devoted to Free Trade titles.
The text is in the public domain.
This material is put online to further the educational goals of Liberty Fund, Inc. Unless otherwise stated in the Copyright Information section above, this material may be used freely for educational and academic purposes. It may not be used in any way for profit.


text:
About a dozen protesters continuously interrupted Thursday's meeting of the Arizona Board of Regents with outbursts criticizing regents Dennis DeConcini and Anne Mariucci for their ties to a private prison company.
Both regents sit on the board of directors for the Corrections Corporation of America.
This was not the first time members of the audience asked for DeConcini and Mariucci to leave CCA.
In the past, protesters have stated their case one by one during the call to the audience portion of Arizona Board of Regents meetings. This time, however, University of Arizona students and community members stood up on chairs and yelled out in the middle of a presentation. Others chanted "CCA Go Away" and were escorted out.
"We weren't given much of a choice," said Caroline Isaacs with American Friends Service Committee. "We were ordered to choose one spokesperson and that we would be forbidden for giving any more testimony than having one person speak."
The board secretary advised opponents of CCA to have one representative from the group speak during the call to the audience portion of the meeting because the matter was not directly related to the board and policy allows this request, said Katie Paquet, an ABOR spokeswoman.
Dozens of protesters gathered at the UA mall to continue the protest throughout the afternoon. Many, like Isaacs, say the regents' connection with CCA is a conflict of interest, because higher education receives funding from the state and CCA receives payments from the state.
John Huppenthal, the state's school superintendent, asked the regents to have a stricter policy on how to prevent and handle such protests in the meeting room.
"These interruptions are a bullying tactic," he said.
Regent Mark Killian defended the regents and called the protests unacceptable.
"These two regents have served the state very well, and they work very hard on behalf of the students," Killian said.
Mariucci did not address the interruptions and DeConcini was absent from the meeting.


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Traffic sucks, so why not start your morning off with some music? You provide the toast and we'll provide the jams.
By now even the longest of holiday vacations are over, and I'll bet you need a little boost to get you psyched for work today. This jam should do the trick.


text:
You are here
- GoogleScholar
- Microsoft Academic Search
- Elsevier
- NEC Research Index I am at rank 6081 of the most cited computer scientists according to CiteSeer 10000
- Mendeley
Found 4 resultsSort by: Author Title Type [ Year]
Filters: Author is Mehdi Jazayeri [Clear All Filters]
The Social Semantic Desktop – A New Paradigm Towards Deploying the Semantic Web on the Desktop. Semantic Web Engineering in the Knowledge Society.. 2008.
Collaboration on the Social Semantic Desktop. Proceedings of the Ubiquitous Mobile Information and Collaboration Systems Workshop (UMICS 2007), CAISE 2007, Trondheim, Norway.. 2007.
The NEPOMUK Project – On the way to the Social Semantic Desktop. Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Semantic Technologies (I-SEMANTICS 2007), Graz, Austria.. 2007.


text:
Swimming in an ocean, lake, pond or river is different from swimming in a pool. You may have to battle strong currents, big waves, debris, bacteria and bad weather. Protect yourself from these and other swimming hazards with these tips.
Never Swim Alone
Always bring a friend when you plan to swim in open waters. Select a swimming spot with a lifeguard on duty, and stay within their sight. If there's no lifeguard on duty, pack your own flotation device for emergencies.
Survey the Water
Assess the water before you jump in. Look for warning signs posted near the water's edge. Also look for red flags — such as waves, debris, and excessive algae or plant growth — that could hint at hazardous swimming conditions.
Prevent Waterborne Illness
Natural bodies of water aren't chemically treated like pools, so there's a higher risk of spreading bacteria. Don't drink the water, and plug your nose when your head is submerged. Never swim while sick or with an open cut, and always shower after swimming.
Play It Safe
Avoid accidents and injury by taking common-sense precautions. You should always:
- Stay close to land and swim within designated swimming areas.
- Walk into unknown water — never dive. Rocks and other hazards could be just beneath the surface.
- Insist on wearing a life jacket if you or someone with you is a weak swimmer.
- Check the weather Never swim when lightning is in the forecast.
- Take a break if you begin to feel cold, tired or hungry.
Know How to Respond
Be prepared to react quickly to these emergency situations:
- Unconscious swimmer — If you can safely get the victim to land, do so quickly. Begin CPR and call 911.
- Hypothermia — Prevent further heat loss. Warm the victim up slowly and seek medical attention right away.
- Rip current — Swim parallel to the shore until you are out of the riptide, then swim back to shore. If you get tired, float on your back and kick your feet.


text:
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text:
Politicians hope you don't notice when their pay goes back to normal
Six months is a long time, and considering all that has happened since the March 11 earthquake, the past half-year may seem even longer. So it wouldn't be surprising if a lot of people have forgotten that the Diet passed a law shortly after the disaster to cut their own salaries by 30 percent for a period of six months. This gesture was on top of then Prime Minister Naoto Kan's forfeiture of his own special prime minister's allowance, not to mention the 10 percent additional cut in salary for all members of the cabinet as a budget countermeasure, which has been in force since the Yukio Hatayama administration.
Next month things go back to normal, and maybe the lawmakers are hoping the electorate has forgotten, but at least one person, Kenji Eda of Your Party (Minna no To), is determined that people will remember. On Sept. 27, during the budget deliberation talks, he asked Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda whether or not he would forfeit his prime minister's allowance, just as Kan did, for the sake of reconstruction. Noda, of course, is expected to ask for a long-delayed increase in the consumption tax as a means to fund reconstruction, which, over the next decade, is estimated to cost ¥11 trillion. As it turns out, while Noda as a Diet lawmaker has had his salary cut 30 percent like everyone else, it seems he's been receiving his prime minister's allowance, calculated on a daily basis, in full since he took over from Kan. Noda answered that the cabinet would continue with the 10 percent cut but said nothing about his own pay.
This is notable in that one of the items in the ruling Democratic Party of Japan's manifesto was a 20 percent cut in all personnel costs, covering pay and expenses of all government employees, politicians and civil servants alike. Had the DPJ actually carried through with that promise, they could easily come up with the ¥11 trillion needed for reconstruction. Of course, at the time the manifesto was made the savings were envisioned to pay off Japan's debt, so by itself the 20 percent personnel expense cut isn't enough.


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Lil Wayne Out of ICU, Is Now Stable
Weezy fans, it's time to heave another sigh of relief, as Lil Wayne is on the mend. The rapper has been moved out of the Intensive Care Unit at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles and doctors have upgraded his condition to stable.
That's a far cry from Friday night's (March 15) report that last rites were being administered while family rushed to his deathbed, only for Weezy to tweet a sign of life and cause a massive flood of tweets from rappers in his inner circle and beyond accusing TMZ of shoddy reporting.
TMZ, the source of the "OMG! Weezy is dying" false alarm death watch, says that he has been transferred to a regular room at the hospital and is no longer requiring around-the-clock care. He's even walking around his floor, accompanied by security detail, of course. Can't you just picture Weezy in his hospital gown, with Trukfit boxers and tube socks pulled up to his knees, paired with sandals, cruising down the hallways?
His violent seizures are said to be a result of a codeine overdose, but his discharge is imminent.
Let's hope that one of the entourage's jobs is to keep the Sizzurp -- a Weezy-favored cocktail of prescription-strength cough syrup, sugary soft drinks like Mountain Dew and even more sugary candies like Jolly Ranchers -- outta his mits. We get that the Sizz offers a serious high, but we can't even imagine getting a gulp of that stuff down our gullets without hurling. It sounds naaaaaastay.
And after seeing what it did to Weezy, it's a cautionary tale. Stay away from that crap, kids.
Watch the Lil Wayne 'No Worries' Video


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Property Condition Assessment (PCA)
Criterium Engineers reports contain information about the structure and its components vital to investment and finance decision making. The Property Condition Assessment Report provides appropriate due diligence for the real estate transaction.
Our reports comply with industry standards such as those of Standard and Poor and ASTM. Customized or abbreviated reports and formats for special needs or very large and time sensitive assignments have also been developed.
The scope of our investigation is designed to address the unique concerns and risk tolerance of our clients. We provide a list of current deficiencies and areas of deferred maintenance along with the cost to cure these deficiencies. At the end of our report is a table of capital reserve requirements. In our standard report, we evaluate the areas listed below.
- General topography of the area and the site
- Size and shape of the site
- Slope and direction
- Other topographical features (e.g., ravines, banks, and bodies of water, whether natural or man-made)
- FEMA flood zone
- Seismic zone
- Evidence of inadequate drainage
- Signs of flooding
- Effectiveness of storm water management
- Ownership of Streams, ponds, or other natural waterways
- Drainage from other properties
- Drainage affecting other properties
- Issues with regulatory agencies
Paving & Curbing
- General ease of access
- Issues arising from access and number of spaces
- Condition of the materials used
- Cracking of paving, potholes, ponding, missing curbs, or faded striping
- Landscaping on the site
- Natural features
- Signage
- Exterior lighting, type of lighting, and what areas are lit
- Retaining walls
- Dimensions
- Details of reinforcing, and any soil or bearing information
- Settlement, heaving, bowing, out of level or plumb, excessive cracking
- Water penetration problems
- Basic structural system
- Dimensions
- Resistance to lateral loads
- Special seismic considerations
- Misalignment or cracking of nonstructural elements
- Signs of distortion in the building
- Type of materials, construction & finishes
- Flashing, caulking, and sealants
- Bond, mortar joints, weep holes, lintels, and spacing and construction of expansion joints
- Architectural features
- EIFS detail
- Hardboard siding
- Water intrusion through facade
- Fogged double-pane windows
- Balconies, stairways, treads & railings
- Roof slope and drainage
- Type of roof membrane, thickness, age, brand name, and warranty
- Walkways to protect the roof
- Perimeter parapets
- Roof penetrations
- Flashing and counterflashing
- Maintenance
- Signs or history of roof leaks
- Insulation
- System & materials
- General condition
- Quality and workmanship
- History of plumbing problems
- Signs of corrosion and leaks
- Results of spot check of fixtures
- Brand names, capacities, and ages
- Fuel storage and delivery systems
- Cooling towers, controls
- Energy-saving features
- How fresh air is introduced
- Transformers
- Service entrance
- Utility company
- Voltage, amperage, and phase
- Electricity metering
- Watts per square foot
- Major uses of electricity
- Brand names of major panels and switchgear
- Emergency power supply
- Maintenance and testing
- Lightning protection
Vertical Transportation
- Number, type & location
- Brand names, capacities, speed in fpm, and floors served
- Machine rooms and pits
- Type of controllers
- Smooth, level with the floor
- Complaints, maintenance, current elevator certificates
Fire Safety
- Types of alarm systems; pull stations; smoke, CO, and heat detectors; and flow alarms
- Fire control panels
- Fire suppression system
- Specially protected areas
- Current inspection certificates
- Exit signs & emergency lighting
- Devices, fences, key, card, or security guard)
- Type of surveillance equipment
- Unusual measures
- Signs of problems
- Interior finishes and layout
- Floors, walls, ceilings, doors, and other fixed interior elements
- Common areas (e.g., lobbies, atriums, cafeterias, fountains, interior plants, sculpture, and artwork)
- Tenant spaces
- Immediate Deficiencies that represent threats to life, safety or continued use of the element.
- Opinion of probable cost for capital expenditures over the term.
- ADA & FHAA compliance
- Parking, access, restrooms, elevators, drinking fountains, fire alarms, signs, telephones, ATM terminals, corridors, doorways, switches


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Grounding the American-US Airways merger
The best illustration of the virtues of deregulation may be the U.S. airline industry, which Congress liberated from most nonsafety-related rules in 1978. The cost of flying plummeted as a host of new players entered the business to compete with the major national airlines.
But as anyone stuck in coach class will tell you, flying isn't much fun anymore. Airlines cram more people onto planes that offer less legroom. Conveniences that used to be included in the standard ticket price now carry extra fees. And when passengers are stranded by bad weather or mechanical problems, they may be forced to wait hours to find space on later flights that are routinely overbooked.
Such problems could conceivably be solved if competition forced the airlines to pay more attention to customer service. But competitive forces in the industry are weakening, not growing stronger. Despite the lower government barriers to entry, airlines have consolidated dramatically over the last two decades, narrowing consumers' choices and pushing ticket prices back up. There were nine major national airlines as recently as 2005, but only five remain.
That's why it was good to see the U.S. Department of Justice and several state attorneys general file suit Tuesday to try to stop two of the five — American Airlines and US Airways — from combining into the world's largest carrier. The lawsuit alleges that consolidation makes it easier for airlines to "raise prices, impose new or higher baggage and other ancillary fees, and reduce capacity and service." And in this case, it contends, the merger would reduce competition to an impermissibly low level on more than 1,000 routes.
Supporters of the merger note that the industry's challenging economics have driven more than 40 U.S. airlines into bankruptcy since the late 1980s, American being the latest major one. Yet as American executives made clear, they declared bankruptcy because they wanted to cut costs and improve their competitive position, not because they needed a partner to survive. If American combines with US Airways, the revitalized competitor that the bankruptcy process was supposed to create will simply be absorbed into a company that was already profitable.
The main concern of the bankruptcy judge is how to protect American's creditors, such as its suppliers and employees. Those creditors would be well served if the airline faced less competition; what's good for consumers is practically an afterthought in the bankruptcy process. By intervening, the Justice Department and the state attorneys general have put the merger's effects on consumers front and center. It's a welcome upgrade for fliers in the back of the plane.
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text:
The Complete Advocate covers all of the important skills which advocates require to perform effectively in court. It is written with an emphasis on practice in the Commonwealth Caribbean, but is of relevance to advocates in any common law jurisdiction. The skills are basically the same. Novel themes are dealt with here as shown by the Table of Contents included below.
The author has adopted a practical approach to the treatment of the topics. There are numerous examples for the reader to follow. Any person who is involved in making public presentations can find useful material in this book even though it is targeted for lawyers, law students, court prosecutors and persons who present cases at tribunals.


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Rarely does a meatless dish make for a happy husband at the dinner table. But, as Mark has been brave taste-tester and willing participant, he doesn't mind when I change things up a bit, and sometimes even likes the end result.
However, as I was cooking this delicious pasta dinner on Tuesday, I couldn't help but notice his expression go from, "Hot damn, something smells delicious in here!" to "Oh, really?" when I mentioned that there would be no meat involved in that night's meal.
Well, surprise, surprise, the courageous carnivore didn't leave behind a single pine nut on his plate! He gobbled the whole thing up and then went for seconds. Who could blame him, what with the sweet sauteed bell peppers, crunchy pine nuts and tangy capers, topped with freshly chopped parsley, basil and creamy Parmesan cheese. Yum!
The meal was a total hit, totally satisfying and a definite eye-opener for both me and my meat-lovin' man. Maybe I'll try to sneak in some more vegetarian meals and see if he notices before he takes a bite . . . Oh, the possibilities.
In the meantime… It's chicken and steak leftovers for dinner tonight!
Rigatoni Peperonata
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 12 ounces rigatoni
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 bell peppers cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons chopped capers
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
- Grated Parmesan cheese to taste
- Heat oven to 400º F. Spread the pine nuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Cook the pasta according to the package directions.
- Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the capers, vinegar, crushed red pepper, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until heated though, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the pasta and pine nuts to the skillet and cook, tossing, for 1 minute. Add parsley, basil and Parmesan cheese. Serve.
- Enjoy!