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Security Officer in Libya Refers to Post Being Directed to "Normalize" Operations and Reduce U.S. Security Presence
Eric Nordstrom, the former Regional Security Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Libya, told congressional investigators looking into the murder of four Americans in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, that the State Department was eager for the American diplomatic presence in Libya to reduce its American security footprint and to rely more on locals, sources tell ABC News. A senior State Department official denies the charge.
In an email from Nordstrom from earlier this month obtained by ABC News, the former Regional Security Officer referred to a list of 230 security incidents in Libya that took place between June 2011 and July 2012, writing that "(t)hese incidents paint a clear picture that the environment in Libya was fragile at best and could degrade quickly. Certainly, not an environment where post should be directed to 'normalize' operations and reduce security resources in accordance with an artificial time table."
The list - which you can read HERE - concludes that the "risk of U.S. Mission personnel, private U.S. citizens, and businesspersons encountering an isolating event as a result of militia or political violence is HIGH. The Government of Libya does not yet have the ability to effectively respond to and manage the rising criminal and militia related violence, which could result in an isolating event." It continues: "Local officials remain concerned with the chaos and radicalization that could result from protracted civil conflict in Libya. Neighboring countries fear extremist groups who could take advantage of the political violence and chaos should Libya become a failed state."
In addition, Nordstrom has told investigators, they say, that State Department Deputy Assistant Director for International Programs Charlene Lamb told him she didn't want to see the Embassy request another extension of the Security Support Team, the 16-member group of special operations soldiers who left the country in August. On Monday, ABC News reported that the commander of that group, Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Wood, wanted to stay in Libya, and that according to Wood, U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens - one of the four Americans killed - wanted him to stay as well.
The State Department has noted that no Regional Security Officer ever requested for the SST to stay past August, and that there was no net loss of American security personnel after the SST left. A senior State Department official says that Lamb denies ever conveying such a message to Nordstrom. (For more on that story click HERE.)
Nordstrom in the October 1, 2012, email, obtained by ABC News, wrote that the "number of incidents that targeted diplomatic missions and underscored the GoL's " - Government of Libya's - "inability to secure and protect diplomatic missions. This was a significant part of Post's and my argument for maintaining continued DS and DOD" - Diplomatic Security and Department of Defense - "security assets into Sept/Oct 2012; the GoL was overwhelmed and could not guarantee our protection. Sadly, that point was reaffirmed on Sept 11, 2012 in Benghazi."
House Republicans say that U.S. State Department officials were pushing diplomats in Libya to lessen their security and that these documents buttress that argument. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will hold hearings on the matter tomorrow.
"There was a clear disconnect between what security officials on the ground felt they needed and what officials in Washington would approve," House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., said in a statement. "Reports that senior State Department officials told security personnel in Libya to not even make certain security requests are especially troubling. Many American diplomats still serve in dangerous areas and it is important for the Committee to determine if the State Department is taking appropriate steps to address systemic deficiencies."
-Jake Tapper


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A pair of lightweights seeking their first win in the octagon are now official for "UFC 119: Mir vs. Nogueira II."
UFC officials today announced that Steve Lopez (12-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) meets Waylon Lowe (8-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) on the event's preliminary card.
Featuring a heavyweight rematch between former UFC champions Frank Mir and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, UFC 119 takes place Sept. 25 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) previously confirmed the likely addition.
Lopez and Lowe both fell short in their respective octagon debuts. Lowe, an elimination-round castoff of "The Ultimate Fighter 9," filled in for an injured Thiago Tavares and met Melvin Guillard on short notice at UFC 114.
A wrestler by trade, Lowe did all he could to force the fight to the ground but fell prey to Guillard's striking power and took a knee to the body that ended his night.
Lopez also met a division standout in his UFC debut when he took on Jim Miller at UFC 103 this past September. Lopez had lost the first round and was attempting to turn the second round in his favor when he threw a punch and separated his shoulder. He quickly conceded the bout, and a TKO victory went to Miller.
Lopez later had surgery on the shoulder, and the recovery process was slow going.
When he steps inside the octagon in September, it will have been nearly one year since Lopez's most recent UFC appearance. Prior to his UFC layoff, Lopez had an 11-month layoff while waiting to make his octagon debut, so the bout will just be Lopez's second fight in a 23-month span.
For more on UFC 119, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of MMAjunkie.com.
(Pictured: Waylon Lowe)

subset: commoncrawl


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NEW YORK (AP) -- Kim Kardashian says she's gotten more used to pregnancy, is more comfortable in her skin and is no longer feeling the aches and pains of expectant motherhood.
"Now I think I'm past all the awkward phases and stages, and once you feel the baby kick it's a whole new experience," Kardashian said Monday while attending the E! Network Upfront in New York. "I finally really embrace it. I love it now, but it took a minute. It was a lot, you know, a lot of body changes and stuff."
The reality star has received a lot of scrutiny over how she's chosen to dress her baby bump. For a while she avoided maternity clothes, wearing see-through tops and leather pants. The 32-year-old also opted to still wear designer clothing but in larger sizes that maybe weren't meant for an expectant woman.
Kardashian says she's not only feeling better but is pretty calm about giving birth and isn't nervous.
"At the beginning that was what I feared the most, and now, I mean, it's inevitable," she said. "It's gonna happen. I'm really not worried or nervous."
Kardashian and her baby's father, rapper Kanye West, know the gender of their child but are keeping it a secret. She said she's careful when she goes shopping to not give anything away.
"We buy all white," she said, laughing. "Or we'll go and buy both (girls' and boys' clothing), and then no one will know."
Besides Kardashian's belly, the cast of "Keeping up with the Kardashians" is getting bigger. The upcoming eighth season will include stepdad Bruce Jenner's sons, Brandon and Brody Jenner, along with Brandon's wife, Leah Jenner.
Brandon and Brody Jenner's mom is actress Linda Thompson, who was engaged to Elvis Presley.
Kardashian said it only makes sense to feature her step-brothers on the show.
"Our parents got married when I was 10 years old so people don't see that side of our lives," she said, "but they've been in our lives for so long so it's fun to share that with everyone."
Online: http://www.eonline.com/shows/kardashians
Alicia Rancilio covers entertainment for The Associated Press. Follow her online at http://www.twitter.com/aliciar


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Series 2130
Application area
This series is universally applicable, e.g. it can be used as side guide roller.
Quiet, light and robust
The material selected is a particularly impact-resistant polymer. The wheel features a double ball race made of steel, which ensures particularly quiet running. The wheel is especially light and offers a very soft startup.


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2012 is shaping up to be an action-packed year for the Earth -- it's scheduled to end on no less than three separate occasions! If the the black hole and supernova don't obliterate us, the mystical Mayan catastrophe surely will, right? Let's ask NASA.
NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab have produced the video above, featuring Don Yeomans. In it, Yeomans lays out a concise, articulate explanation of the workings of the Mayan Calendar system, the importance of December 21st (the presumed date of the end times), and why thinking that the world will end because of this is about as silly as worrying about the Y2K bug. Or The Rapture. Or Man-Bear-Pig. [NASA via Forbes]


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Our son's Minecraft birthday cake was the sincerest form of flattery - idea stolen from a recent Facebook post from a mother friend.
Usually, my talented sister artistically bakes and decorates all our vegan birthday creations, but this time life got in the way. But she let me use all her gear, for which much thanks.
I searched for a model - one problem is that Minecraft itself has a cake object (mines, cakes, I'm sure you see the link at least as well as I do), and that cubical cake was the most common example. But I wanted to make a piece of the Minecraft block world for my little Minecraft addict.
Sadly, most of the pictures of Minecraft world cakes were messy-looking and not very inspiring. I naturally feared that I was about to add another such example to the Minecraft mixup, but I pressed on.
My son picked the right birthday to love Minecraft - I imagined I could design a 7 into the blocks of the cake. I wouldn't have aimed for any other digit. Except 1, and even in our house, the 1-year-olds aren't hooked on computer games.
I designed the blocks, discussed my plan in a special session with another friend (recently graduated from a short decorating course), then redesigned the blocks.
You could use this basic stepped design for any year. Grass on the ground, 1 level of rock blocks, and one level of grass blocks. My aim was for big blocks and a simple structure.
And the bit I cut out from the first layer could be the second layer! What could be simpler?
I made a chocolate cake, because:
- Chocolate is the only cake worth making
- Chocolate was the dirt for the grass blocks.
And of course, I used the Vegan 101 Easy Vegan Chocolate Cake recipe (good for cake or cupcakes).
I used a professional "snow creme" icing product, and thinned and tinted it (pale gray and grass-green). I knew that you get a better look from pre-formed layered icings, but I wanted it to taste good.
For this big a cake, I used my own medium sized roasting pan (the only one left in my decluttered kitchen because our oven is so petite).
I baked a full day in advance of the party, since I knew that for cake sculpture, cool cake (or even cold cake) is a must. I mixed up loads of chocolate batter and several cups of icing (just in case.
Luckily, each step went pretty well to plan.
Lesson #1 - lots of batter gangs up on you and escapes.
Whew, successfully out of the pan in one piece!
Constructing and Decorating
I didn't take any pictures of these stages, because my hands were covered in icing the whole time. And because I was too busy thinking "Oh sh*t!" and "this looks awful."
Moving the cutout bottom layer onto the presentation platter was a two-person job and was still nerve-wracking.
Lesson #2: The cutout was geometrically simple, but because of the 7, it was structurally very weak (one long skinny arm of cake hangs on by just one cake square). But it survived.
I iced the whole rock level first.
Lesson #3: in shaped cakes, allow for the thick layer of icing that will wreck the measurements of your precision design.
Then I placed the second cake level (the cutout) on top. Scattering chocolate crumbs all over the icing on the first level. I iced the second level and the ground level with green, plus more green from a grass nozzle.
The rest was damage control, adding more and more icing to the rock layer until it looked respectable.
Lesson #4: large spaces of plain pale icing are like white clothes; every spot shows.
The steadier hand got the detail work done.
I had not planned the green grass line around the base of the rock layer, but it was crucial. As well as completing the illusion of the ground grass level beneath the rock, it also drew the eye to the deep colour and away from the many imperfections in the pale rock level. Rock's meant to be a lumpy and spotty, right?
Lessons Learned
While I got compliments on the cake, and it was delicious, I was totally stressed during the process about how many things had to go right for it to work.
Here's hoping big sis is back on the job next year!
Or I might just have to ask Sue Shopland to make me one of her new vegan cake plaques to make my homemade cake look super professional.


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There are no Upcoming Shows listed for this comedian.
Doc Willis
Doc Willis is a stand-up comedian who was born and raised in Detroit, MI. He moved to California in the year of 2000 to pursue his career in the world of television, movies, & stand-comedy. Doc's comedy derives mostly from his past where he talks about when he was in a gang, sold drugs, etc... He has performed at all the major comedy clubs in the Los Angeles area, and will be coming to many more venues in the near future.
Doc Willis's Upcoming Shows
Doc Willis is Known For


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In a system that increasingly favors the wealthy, Catholic teaching calls upon the government to step in and level the playing field.
[Read more from Stephen Schneck on the difficulties of politcal party affiliation as a Catholic.]
Growing up in Clinton, Iowa, Stephen Schneck remembers conversations around the kitchen table that often turned to the pressing political issues of the day—poverty, abortion, and the environment, among others. It was there that Schneck first learned how to look at challenging political questions in the context of his Catholic faith.
"My mom, when she was trying to decide on a political issue, she would think about the saints," he recalls. "What would St. Francis do? What would St. Teresa think about this?"
Schneck has carried that outlook with him through his more than three decades of teaching politics and government, the last two of which have been spent in the nation's capital. As a student of Catholic social teaching, he sees growing challenges for Catholics to remain engaged in the political process without compromising the values of their faith.
"Whether we're on the Republican side or the Democratic side, it is so easy in American politics today to be nudged toward being only half-Catholic," he says. "And the saints? None of them were half-Catholics.
"So if we're looking for some kind of guiding stars to help us through in American politics, the lives of the saints might be the place to turn. I think my mom really had the right idea."
There's a lot of debate over how involved the government should be in people's lives. What does Catholic teaching have to say about the role of government?
The popes in their social encyclicals have always argued that government has a responsibility to step up and to take care of all of its citizens by providing a safety net. Catholic teaching doesn't leave us any room for debate—if charity isn't doing the trick, then the government has a moral responsibility to fill that breach.
That's not an add-on; it's not something that can be subtracted. It is a basic part of Catholic social teaching that government itself has that responsibility to care for people if other means aren't available to resolve these issues.
Why is poverty an issue Catholics should be concerned about?
I've been blessed with a real perspective on the level of need in America, with the poverty that's out there. I actually know people who are poor. I know how they're struggling and how they're looking for work. I know how they're embarrassed to go on public assistance or embarrassed to be at a grocery store paying for their kids' Rice Krispies with food stamps.
I challenge people to think about their neighbors, their friends, and the people down the block who are truly down and out, who require some help to put food on the table for their kids. I challenge any Catholic to honestly be able to say we should cut food stamps and use that money to reduce taxation when looking for a solution to a real person's problems.
When you see people who are struggling in the context of their daily lives, trying to make ends meet, trying to find a way to get out of that situation, then I think you realize that these safety nets are fundamentally important.
Won't people just become too dependent on the safety net?
These safety nets should really act like trampolines. When you fall out of the middle class into these situations of poverty, the safety nets ought to be organized in such a way that they help you put food on your table for your kids and help you to pay your grandma's medical bills. More importantly, they provide a way for you to get back into the ballgame.
Whether it's through education or retraining or job consultation, these safety nets must help Americans succeed in rising from poverty.
Can we afford to keep spending taxpayers' money on these kinds of programs?
I really think that we need to adjust the tax system to create more revenue. The system needs to be skewed in the way that people like Warren Buffet are arguing for: Tax revenue needs to come more from the top earners.
There are a lot of very wealthy people in this country that are paying very low taxes. We saw that Mitt Romney only paid 14 percent in income taxes last year. God bless his wonderful success, but somebody earning so many millions of dollars should at least be paying the top tax rate in this country, which I think is mid-30 percent.
Is it fair to expect some people to pay more taxes? Why not just tax everyone equally?
A flat tax? The idea here is that if all paid the same level of taxation, then it would spur people to earn more, eliminate disincentives on the rich to become richer, and thereby generate more revenue for government. Some claim it might also spur a rising tide in the economy that would raise all boats—even the poor's. That might be an argument that some American conservatives would make in favor of establishing a flat tax. I'm dubious.
I'm not at all willing to say that it couldn't fit within the context of Catholic social teaching. In fact, I think that it could. But in general, Catholic social teaching leans more in the direction of a sliding scale, what tax people often call progressive taxation.
We have to recognize that not everybody has the same capacity to give to the common good. And just as the adage puts it, of those to whom much is given, much is expected. And that's Catholic thinking as well.
Is there anything wrong with some people being so wealthy?
It's the sin of pride if a rich person imagines he's rich because he's earned it. Everything we have is a gift from God. Everything we have is not really ours, and it is surely not ours to do with as we please.
We've been given these things by God and so we only hold them in trust for his purposes. Recognizing the needs of others and the needs of the community are part of the responsibilities that come with that gift.
Why should the tax burden fall on those who earn more money?
Those whom God has blessed with talents and skills and wealth have a correspondingly greater responsibility that goes hand in hand with that. They are called to contribute more to the common good. And I think it is appropriate to expect people who are earning so much to be contributing a little bit more.
To look at it in a different way, a 10 percent tax on a billionaire might cut into his supply of caviar. But a 10 percent tax on somebody who's living on Social Security, that would be cutting into their macaroni and cheese.
So from that perspective, a 10 percent, across-the-board tax on everybody would not impact everyone equally. It would really hurt those macaroni and cheese folks, but the caviar folks wouldn't feel it at all.
How large is the gap between those two groups?
The vast proportion of American wealth can be found in just a tiny sliver of American citizens' pockets. A very small percentage owns the biggest chunk of all the wealth in this country. This is the 99 percent versus 1 percent argument. But if you look at it, it's really more like the top half of the 1 percent that owns so much.
This gap between the rich and everybody else in American society has been accelerating since about the mid-1990s. And it has been accelerating even more over the course of this great recession that we've been going through.
We're seeing in the economic life of 99 percent of Americans an erosion in the quality of most people's lives due to the fact that so much of our wealth is concentrated in fewer hands.
How did the wealth gap get so big?
We sometimes hear that the poor are poor because they're lazy. But anybody who actually works with the poor quickly realizes that lots of people fall into the ranks of poverty from the middle class no matter how hard they work. The system really is rigged.
How so?
How many good schools are in poor neighborhoods? How many poor people have the network of friends and acquaintances to help them get a start-up loan for a new business? Is transportation available for the poor to even get to where the jobs are?
A friend told me about a woman he knows who was a flight attendant for an airline that went belly-up. She looked for a new position for two years. She was doing odd jobs to buy clothes for her kids, and she finally ended up needing food stamps.
After two years of no marketable employment, even when jobs opened up that she was qualified for, she couldn't get hired because people saw those two years of unemployment and they wouldn't give her a second look. She finally lost her home and ended up in public housing.
What happened to the idea that anyone can succeed in America?
It used to be that the United States, out of all of the countries in the world, provided people with the greatest chances to rise from poverty to wealth. If you worked hard and you followed the rules, you could make yourself prosperous. That was a real promise of America.
Now America is no longer at the forefront of that kind of economic mobility. You go to Europe if you want to see that kind of economic mobility. Or you go to Asia. America now is lagging behind other parts of the world in the capacity for citizens to achieve success simply by working hard.
How do you account for that change?
Well, there are a lot of explanations for it. I'm persuaded that some of it is a shift in American values.
I'm from a prairie state. There's this myth, probably invented by Hollywood, that the prairie was tamed by "rugged individuals." That's just baloney. Ask the old folks on the prairie how it was settled and you learn that it was really one big barn-raising. Neighbor pitched in to help neighbor to bring in the harvest, make hay, build the town park, help with calving, and so on.
Today it's all about the selfish individual trying to keep other people off his back and out of his pocket. But that's not how America came to be the great nation it is. It was all of us joining together to help one another, barn by barn, for the common good.
How can we restore opportunities for people to rise out of poverty?
If you look at the way European economies work, and if you look at the way other successful economies around the world work that provide greater economic mobility, one of the things that you see is a very active role on the part of the government in trying to provide people with the tools for success.
You see things like education, support for businesses, and universal health care. Things that we don't provide as a natural course here in the United States are provided there. And they function as infrastructures that allow citizens to then succeed on their own.
These economies are providing their citizens with better tools to succeed than seems to be the case in the United States today. One of the things we have to recognize is that in these economies, government is one of the mechanisms by which those tools are provided.
Does Catholic teaching really say we should rely so much on the government?
Catholic social teaching does include the principle of subsidiarity, which recommends that policies should be done at the lowest effective levels of authority. That's an important teaching, but it can't be separated from solidarity, which recommends that policies be part of a whole.
How does that work in practice?
The way that the church thinks about subsidiarity is not like American federalism. In other words, it's not making an argument that the local is to always be preferred over the national. The Catholic understanding of subsidiarity recognizes that society is naturally organized into parts and layers.
Subsidiarity is making sure that each part plays its appropriate role. It's wrong from the perspective of subsidiarity if the state oversteps its role, but it is also wrong if the local part oversteps its role. This natural understanding of society as corporately composed of parts is at the heart of the theory of subsidiarity.
How do we know when someone is overstepping their role?
Of course, that is a really tough question. The simple answer is that we're supposed to recognize when one of the parts is overstepping its appropriate role when the common good is not being served.
So the measure for a good political order in traditional Catholic thought is this idea of the common good. And if the common good is not evident, is frayed, is eroding, then we can assume there is probably something wrong in subsidiarity. There is something wrong about the relationships of the parts to the whole.
Can you give an example?
I think that the Affordable Care Act is a wonderful example. Obviously we have lots of health care in the United States; lots of doctors, lots of hospitals, lots of medical technology of all sorts. And yet we had huge numbers—we still do have huge numbers—of Americans who have no immediate access to health care.
Sure, we have charitable institutions that have stepped up to try to do their part, and we have local institutions and volunteer organizations that have tried to do their part. But none of them were fully answering the need.
In my estimation that's a pretty good example of the fraying of the common good. Then it is appropriate—not only appropriate, in fact, but maybe it is morally required—for the federal government to step up and fill that need for the common good, in this case by providing more universalized health care than was available before.
But don't programs like those just escalate government spending?
I am not convinced that there's some huge panacea when it comes to government spending. But the government needs to be organized a little bit better. I'm also not one of those people who believe that there's a ton of waste in government, but we are sometimes spending our money oddly.
What would you change?
It would be appropriate to have means testing for Medicare. In other words, 70-year-old millionaires should probably have to pay a little bit, or at least not get as much Medicare coverage as people who are just living on Social Security payments. Means testing for Medicare would go a long way toward resolving the problems that Medicare poses.
You could probably say the same about Social Security. I'm blessed, thanks to my wife's wonderful job, with a pretty comfortable situation. When I retire, I'm sure going to take Social Security if they give it to me, but I probably don't actually need that money.
And I bet that's true for a lot of other people in top tax brackets, so maybe we should have means testing for Social Security, too.
What other areas of spending could be adjusted?
I think we should focus on rearranging our government's priorities in a way to better reflect what we Catholics recognize are the real concerns.
Given the winding down of two wars—the war in Iraq now is officially over, Afghanistan is coming to an end—it's appropriate to start maybe trimming back some of our military spending. There are other areas where I would make some shifts in the budget itself.
Those kinds of cuts, combined with new revenues from that portion of Americans that are doing so well right now, would create a package that could work in balancing our budget.
What would a Catholic solution look like?
In Catholic social teaching, there's an idea called distributive justice that comes into play here. Distributive justice is just a fancy way of saying that our teachings expect that the goods, the opportunities, and also the responsibilities of our public life should be divided fairly.
I don't want to say that there's anything unfair in being rich. But I do want to say that there's something unfair about a system organized in such a way that the very rich can continue to accrue greater and greater wealth at the expense of the rest of us.
How is our current system unfair?
Is it fair that in the current system, more poor kids and middle class kids end up going into military service than rich kids? Or, how about this as an example regarding taxes: Should we allow mortgage tax write-offs on vacation homes, as we currently do?
Distributive justice helps us think about what's fair in such cases. Catholic teaching wants a just distribution of the benefits and burdens in society.
Doesn't that go against our American ideal of capitalism?
Capitalism is compatible with Catholic social teaching, except when it becomes a sort of soulless capitalism. For the last century the Catholic Church has argued that capitalism should not be simply free enterprise. Free enterprise needs to be guided and constrained by a set of values that we as Catholics recognize as being critical for the preservation and protection of the dignity of the human person.
There's nothing wrong with capitalism. But we have to recognize that while capitalism can be a marvelous engine for generating prosperity, it can also—without those kinds of constraints, without that moral framework—be a real threat to human dignity.
Are there examples of that happening?
We see that today in parts of the world where unrestrained capitalism generates huge depredations on human life in slums and grinding working conditions in which people are committing suicide because their work is so onerous.
So capitalism without those values that we Catholics are organized around, capitalism without that kind of value structure that our faith can bring to it to guide and constrain it, without those things it actually just doesn't work.
Does Catholic teaching offer a path toward a fairer economy?
A good example is the extraordinary document that came from the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace last year, which analyzed the moral failing behind the current economic crisis.
What it essentially proposes is the creation of mechanisms to assure that those kinds of Catholic values are in place so that capitalism is not likely to threaten human dignity. It talks about the creation of international institutions that can provide that value framework within the operation of international free trade. I think it is a marvelous idea.
Didn't a lot of Catholics reject that proposal?
I have to say I was shocked at the extent of negative reviews that it got. If anybody had actually compared it to the papal encyclicals, it was not an idea at all contrary to the church's teachings. The arguments that the council puts out aren't novel. These are, in fact, right out of the heart of Catholic social teaching itself, from the first social encyclical, Rerum Novarum, down to the present.
Why were some Catholics so strongly opposed to it?
I think that there is a huge ideological chasm in America today that divides us so very sharply into the left and right, into conservative and liberal, into Democrat and Republican. And on both sides of that chasm, you have Catholics who think that they're completely Catholic, but in fact, maybe they're only half-Catholic.
As Catholics, we're increasingly starting to look at our own faith from the perspective of where we are in terms of that divide. And that's sad.
How can we change that way of thinking?
As a church in the United States, we all need to find a way to step back and realize that being Catholic doesn't fit being a good Democrat or a good Republican. It requires us to be something different than conservative and liberal, than left and right. And how we get there, that's a really good question.
Does the church offer any guidance?
I really love the U.S. bishops' document Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship. I think it's one of the best things the bishops have ever done, but we need to figure out a way to translate that into the language that people talk in around the kitchen table. I don't know how we do that, but that's really a compelling need.
What do you see as the role of Catholics in political life today?
For so many generations here in the United States, Catholics really were second-class citizens. Because of that, the principal effort of Catholics in public life was to try to figure out a way to assimilate so that they could be indistinguishable, so that people wouldn't look at you and know that you were Catholic.
Now we're beyond worrying about assimilation. At least here in Washington among the people that I'm working with, there's a growing recognition of the distinctiveness of being Catholic in the way that we participate in political life. And I see this on both the right and the left.
I'm not saying that the divide I talked about doesn't split us a little bit. But what unites us is a growing awareness that being Catholic is to be somehow distinctive in politics, to be distinctive as an American citizen. Maybe we're seeing the emergence of a new Catholic consciousness in the United States.
This article appeared in the July 2012 issue of U.S. Catholic (Vol. 77, No. 7, pages 18-22).
Image: Photo courtesy of Stephen Schneck


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Hospitality sweet: Kim-Lee and Pleasants make space
When I dropped by Chroma Projects last weekend, I inadvertently walked in on a Japanese tea ceremony in progress. I was worried I had disrupted the event, but resident artist Kris Iden assured me it was "not so formal," and as if on cue, Chroma owner Deborah McLeod called out from her ringside seat to see if I'd like a bowl of tea.
Iden and McLeod made me feel at home, which was appropriate since the gallery's current exhibition, "Homing Devices," centers on generosity and comfort. The two artists showcased in the main gallery, Hana Kim-Lee and Craig Pleasants, represent two complementary aspects of domesticity. Kim-Lee's airy pencil-on-paper drawings of bowls suggest the warmth of home, while Pleasants focuses on structural elements.
Standing in the center of the gallery is Pleasants's "Metaphorical House," which is the latest iteration of his "Octagonal Living Unit," (OLU) a low-cost structure designed to provide shelter with little environmental impact. Pleasant points out that the addition of corner brackets and a roof would make the easily assembled house earthquake- and hurricane-resistant, which is important since the purchase price of the gallery piece–- $50,000–- will fund the shipment of 10 OLUs to Haiti.
The concept is wonderful, and "The Metaphorical House" has its charms, like three separate doorways and an interior painted to look like a blue sky adrift with clouds, leaves, and seedpods. The exterior color, on the other hand, is an odd pale pink, accented with tomato-red spheres and mauve linear patterns. Pleasants envisions actual OLU occupants painting their houses bright colors and using salvaged materials to construct porches, but his chosen palette for the outside is strange, and his brushstrokes have a slapdash feeling.
Hana Kim-Lee's refined "100 Bowls" series balances Pleasant's rough-and-ready aesthetic. Hanging in five horizontal rows of 20 drawings, Kim-Lee's primarily blue compositions offer ethereal interpretations of white vessels, ranging from shallow bowls to small cups. She skillfully manipulates negative space to suggest edges and create volume, letting the page do as much work as her own marks.
From a distance, the series forms a meditative whole, in which the various bowls speak to each other, some faintly, others with more presence. Seen up close, though, Kim-Lee's marks are more colorful and have a chaotic quality that imbues each individual piece with character.
From a teacup to a tiny house, Kim-Lee and Pleasants offer domestic sustenance.
The exhibition, "Homing Devices," featuring Craig Pleasants's "Metaphorical House" and Hana Kim-Lee's "100 Bowls," is on view through December 23 at Chroma Projects. 418 E. Main St. on the Downtown Mall. 202-0269.
Note: The original version of this story gave the wrong price for the "Metaphorical House." It is $50,000, not $10,000, and the story has been thusly corrected.


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The salient issue is not the legacy of LeBron James, who is just 28 and who has a long way to go before he places his sneakers at center court and walks away from the game.
The real issue is Us, You and Me. Are We capable of enjoying the moment?
If we cannot, shame on Us.
Speaking just for myself, I have been privileged to see every great basketball player of the past 60 years. I have been even more privileged to cover some of them and know them. All I can tell you is that I have never seen anything like LeBron James.
I have declared Bill Russell to be the greatest winner in the history of American team sport, and he was. A 21-0 career record in Somebody-Is-Going-Home-Tonight games is sufficient proof of that. But he was a center, and they are in a different category and are not part of this discussion.
I saw Oscar, I saw Jerry, I saw Havlicek, I saw Bird, I saw Magic, I saw Kobe, and you don't have to tell me how many titles Michael won. Each of them had days, weeks, months, and years in which he was the Best Player On Earth.
But there is no question who claims that honor now.
The clear answer is LeBron James, and it is therefore incumbent on each of us as basketball fans to recognize what is going on. Stop with the needless Jordan career accomplishments. LeBron's career is no more than two-thirds over. So may we please postpone the James-Jordan argument? There will be plenty of time for that.
Instead, let's focus on what he does on the floor and how extraordinary an accomplishment it is that the Miami Heat have won a second consecutive championship when the only constant coach Erik Spoelstra could rely on in any of their 23 postseason games was the relentless nightly brilliance of LeBron James
It's really a strange roster, as championship teams go. It's supposed to have three superstars, but we all know better than that. Dwyane Wade is great sometimes and not so great other times, and it's all because of injury. He's going to the Hall of Fame, but the Hall of Fame Wade is a past-tense matter.
Chris Bosh is not going to the Hall of Fame, but he does have value to them because, frankly, he's the only Very Tall Guy they have who can (occasionally) give them the things Very Tall Guys need to do.
Everyone else on the roster is replaceable.
Go ahead. Compare the Miami roster with that of the '86 Celtics, '87 Lakers, or '89 and '90 Pistons or some of Michael's Chicago teams, and it's not even close. K.C. Jones, Pat Riley, Chuck Daly, and Phil Jackson combined never had to do half the mixing and matching and wishing and hoping Spoelstra had to do in order to get this team home.
Are you ready?
Ray Allen was OK, but just OK, with 10 double-figure games out of 23. But he did have one rather large shot, and for that reason should never have to pick up any tabs in South Florida as long as he lives.
Mario Chalmers was pretty blah most of the time, and pretty damaging to the cause a lot of the time, unless you think 18 turnovers and 15 assists in a Finals is a decent point guard performance. But in Games 6 and 7 of the Finals, he had 20 and 14 points, respectively, and that nice little buzzer-beating banked three to conclude the third quarter of Game 7 was a very welcome development, sending the Heat into the fourth up by 2 rather than down by 1.
Chris "Birdman" Andersen did what he does very well, no question. His energy, his rebounding, and his defense were often on display, and how about shooting 35 for 41 in the first 12 games of the playoffs, all, of course, on dunks or putbacks, but all the result of knowing who he is and how to play with good players. And yet he was handed three DNPs in the last two series.
Norris Cole had back-to-back 18s in the Chicago series, but scored a total of only 62 points thereafter and was DNP'd for Games 6 and 7 of the Finals.
Mike Miller did go 5 for 5 one night on threes, but it was in a blowout loss, and in the end he contributed very little on offense while being abused on defense.
Udonis Haslem went 8 for 9 twice in three games during the Indiana series after shooting 13 for 21 in the Milwaukee sweep. He was then DNP'd in Game 6 of the Finals.
Joel Anthony, a starter many times during his Heat career, was DNP'd nine times in 23 games.
Rashard Lewis and James Jones did not matter. FYI: Since dropping 25 on the Celtics in Game 1 in 2011, Jones has scored 75 playoff points total.
And the best for last: Shane Battier.
A starter and valuable contributor in the 2012 championship run, Battier was a Dead Man Sitting as the Finals began, mainly because his famed 3-point stroke was on a long, long vacation. Starting with the fourth game of the Chicago series, Battier clanked 'em up at a 6-for-37 rate, thus earning a seat on the bench that even included a startling DNP.
But he hit a pair in Game 5 of the Finals, and then went 3 for 4 in Game 6. As for Game 7, well, he was the necessary X-factor du jour, hitting his first six shots, all threes (he had only one 2-point field goal out of his 27 playoff makes).
See a pattern here? What with the limitations of Messrs. Wade and Bosh, and what with all these in-and-out guys and all these DNP guys placing Spoelstra in a position of nightly lineup uncertainty, the only thing he could count on was the scoring, rebounding, passing, defending, and competitive spirit of LeBron James.
I said I have never seen anything quite like him, and I haven't. I've never seen anyone with his size and strength combined with such quickness and such a generosity of basketball spirit. It is almost as if he is tortured by the reality of his individual greatness.
Jordan — oops, I said we shouldn't compare — was not comfortable sharing. LeBron is not comfortable doing it by himself. He has learned to take over when it is necessary, but it does not come naturally to him.
Anyway, please, let him play it out. Then we can place him in the proper historical context.
He's right here, right now. He is the consummate basketball artiste. We are truly blessed to have him.
Bob Ryan's column appears regularly in the Globe. He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Official Website: http://coupdecinemamovie.com/
IMDb Page: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1776137/
Trailer: http://vimeo.com/22768170
Before we get started with this review, I'd just like to take a moment to thank the co-director/co-writer/editor/storyboard artist of this film, and good friend of mine, Sean Parker; for allowing me the opportunity to write this review.
From the day I met him back in college, I always thought of him as perhaps the only young filmmaker I'd ever met that really seemed like he was going to "make it."
If a single film must be cited to indicate a young filmmaker's arrival into the realm of having "made it" in the indie scene, I can think of few films that better represent this transition than Coup De Cinema.
Beginning life as a college film project between co-directors and long time partners in crime, Sean Parker and Austin Hillebrecht, only to be completed several years after the matter; Coup De Cinema is a handsomely shot (on a Canon Mk. II if I recall correctly) comedy-heist film that benefits from also being a movie about making movies.
In the fine tradition of films such as Ed Wood and Bowfinger, the creators of Coup wears their love for film on their sleeves; presenting a story told amidst and adjacent to a film-within-a-film.
Shot in Portland, Oregon and Olympia, Washington; the basic plot of Coup De Cinema surrounds a struggling young wannabe filmmaker named Miles Smith, played by co-director and pretty much everything in between, Austin Hillebrecht.
Hard up for work in his chosen field, and frustrated in his "not quite" relationship with his lady friend Caitlyn; (Nomi Summa) Miles' dilemma effectively reflects the plight of the modern recent college graduate.
Eventually, Miles has a chance encounter with a DVD sleeve cover that sets him on a path towards seeking employment at a local film studio, Bourgeois Pictures.
Finding their hiring process to be as exclusive as their namesake, Miles ducks through an open door and follows it to a screening room where he meets Bourgeois producer, Rick Steiner (David Loftus).
Won over (well, slightly anyway…) by Miles' pluck and ambition, Rick grants Miles a job as a production assistant on Bourgeois' current production, "Marauders of the Door of Doom," provided the director of the picture, Adrian Dreyfus (Corey Brunish); signs off on him.
Ecstatic with his success, Miles ducks into the Bourgeois restroom before his first day of work and muses, out loud mind you; about the wonderful possibilities that working at Bourgeois might offer him in the near future.
Unfortunately, as tends to be the case when we say stupid things out loud to ourselves, Miles discovers he is not alone.
Well, it tends to happen when I do it anyway…
Standing in the corner atop a tiny box, hijacking someone else's wi-fi for use on his smart phone; the jaded (and more than a little shady) Bourgeois camera operator, Buster (Dennis Fitzpatrick) quietly eavesdrops on Miles' conversation with himself, making the poor kid feel more than a little dumb in the process.
Despite the awkwardness of this initial meeting, the relationship between these 2 characters warms over time, and goes on to serve as the backbone of Coup De Cinema.
Following this, Miles has his first encounter with the film's primary antagonist, the studio's director Adrian.
Upon first meeting him, Miles is taken aback by Adrian's manic intensity, but after a bizarre (and entirely one-sided) exchange; Miles gets the job.
Initially thrilled with his good fortune, Miles unfortunately makes the mistake of viewing some of Bourgeois Pictures previous films on his own time.
Shocked and despondent over the sheer craptacular-ness of Bourgeois' track-record, Miles quickly becomes disillusioned with the studio and his future with it.
This of course leads to Miles arriving at the conclusion that, based on what he's seen of the studio's past efforts, as well as Adrian's less than stellar conduct as a director; he could do better.
Thus sets in motion the "Coup" aspect of the film's title, wherein Miles and Buster, with the aid of the crew and actors of "Marauders of the Door of Doom" AKA MOTDOD; attempt to rewrite, re-shoot, and re-edit the movie to a higher standard of quality under Miles' direction.
The real difficulty (and indeed much of the fun) of this undertaking comes from the fact that in order for Miles' coup to work, he and the crew must continue to perform their duties on Adrian's production of MOTDOD, while keeping him and Rick unaware of their extracurricular filmmaking activities.
What results is an irresistibly cute film that dips into a lot of moods and textures, but never fails to provide fun on some level.
From the careful attention to detail in lighting, angles, and depth of field, to the delightfully whimsical soundtrack, to the way a select few characters in the story are drawn and acted in broader strokes than others, Coup De Cinema is a film that oozes a cartoony and hyper-real charm.
The film has a wonderful energy and "casually fast" pace that feels organic, never labors or drags, yet isn't afraid to kick it into high gear whenever the story dictates it.
Aside from the central plot device of the actual coup, which is refreshingly clever both in premise and execution; I think the real selling point for the film is the characters.
The film has a rather large cast, which of course results in some characters receiving more screen time than others; but to it's credit, I found myself able to distinguish and keep track of the players with little difficulty.
In that sense, you could say the film was well cast, not only due to the quality of performances; but by the simple fact that every actor was visually distinctive regardless.
On that note, Austin Hillebrecht's turn as the leading man was quite enjoyable, with his bright-eyed enthusiasm and not-quite-confident, half-cocked smile going a long way towards making him a character worth following for an hour and a half.
On a side note, I'm not sure if it was intended, but Miles' "emo" wardrobe during the mid-way romantic crisis of the film had me snickering.
Speaking of romance, the one role in the film that stood out to me as being a little off, was that of Caitlyn, Miles' "sort-of" romantic interest; not so much in terms of performance, but in writing.
In my opinion, it was wise to keep the Caitlyn character and the drama she brought to the table securely on the periphery; but in the end what we're left with amounts to that of a cold fish romance.
Don't get me wrong, the role was well-acted as it was written; but at the end of the day I couldn't help but feel that the awkwardness in her and Miles' relationship was pushed just an inch too far.
Another role that felt a little off to me, was that of Ren Fields (Tony Zilka), the studio editor and minor antagonist of the film.
From what I could tell, the character is meant to be a riff on the artsy-fartsy types of the experimental school of filmmaking.
He's supposed to be socially awkward, and of the belief that he is a misunderstood artist rather than a film school reject.
I'm only assuming that last part, but I defy you to tell me he doesn't seem like the type.
While the character is written this way, in all honesty I felt the performance was a little too restrained.
The verbal quirks were in place, and some of the body language was there, but unlike the romantic subplot; I felt the Ren Fields character would've benefited from being a little extravagant and outrageous.
Speaking of outrageous, Corey Brunish as Adrian seemed like he had a lot of fun chewing every last square inch of scenery in the movie.
If there was one role in the movie that really had no upper limit as to how over-the-top it could it be performed without damaging the integrity of the film; it'd have to be Adrian.
Coming across as some sort of demented, coked-out Dennis Hopper/James Cameron/George Lucas hybrid, I was impressed by the Adrian character both in writing and performance.
I realize I may have just described the single most terrifying and infuriating human being in all of existence; but trust me, it all comes together quite nicely.
While his story arc might get a little out of hand and far-fetched during the film's climax, given the character's personality up to that point; I didn't find his actions to be the least bit jarring.
By the way, watching him casually suggest things like "We'll fix it in post," was a thing of beauty.
Before I continue my gushing any further, I feel I must address my last gripe about The Coup, and I do mean last; that has to do with the character of Wilhelm, played by Rhyan Schwartz.
No doubt named for the infamous Wilhelm Scream, the boom-operator character of Wilhelm had me scratching my head much of the time.
My guess is, the decision was made to give him a quirk, some sort of quickly identifiable trait; in this case a French accent, so as to make him more memorable as a character.
Given that the role was actually very small, this had the result of making the guy standout just a little too much, leading to me thinking of him as "that one French guy" as opposed to an actual personality.
Barrie Wild's character of Tim, an Irishman; also had a noteworthy accent, but also had the benefit of more screen-time and lines in the script, resulting in him seeming quite a bit more fleshed out than Wilhelm.
Oh well, on the plus side Wilhelm's reaction to a throwaway joke regarding the WWII invasion of his homeland is quite precious:
Moving on, while virtually every role in the film was performed ably, there are a few I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge, that of Dennis Fitzpatrick's Buster, and David Loftus' Rick Steiner.
Both of these characters had significant arcs in the film, and as such; felt pivotal to the film's success.
The character of Buster was essentially the rock of the coup, (again, not the wrestler) unwavering in the face of adversity, and quick to rise to the occasion whenever necessary.
Watching him go from a jaded old-timer to an enthusiastic pillar of the group was a pleasant journey, arguably even more so than our sometimes troubled protagonist, Miles'.
While some could say Buster's arc had him getting a little too warm and fuzzy by the end, personally; I found it refreshing.
Steiner's character is one that I'd prefer not to spoil, but I will say this; the man is a joy to watch on a technical level.
I'm not sure if it was good editing or what, but some of Loftus' minor inflections and stumbles in his speech really went a long way towards legitimizing the character in my eyes.
At the end of the day, I'd happily recommend Coup De Cinema to anyone with an appreciation for film.
As mentioned earlier, the film is handsomely shot, stupendously scored, and equally well written and acted.
I've always found myself in awe of the art of filmmaking, and as such, films that take it upon themselves to pay homage to the process; and actually show the audience what goes into it, will always have a special place in my heart.
Maybe it's because I'm a friend of one of the directors, or because I'm actually in the film; (in the BEST 5 seconds of the film *wink wink*) but I really liked Coup De Cinema.
Again, my opinion has nothing to do with the awesomely spectacular image above.
*ANYWAY* from what I've been told, the movie has done well in the local film festival circuits, and is in fact set to appear at the Action on Film Festival, where it was nominated for the best title sequence; sometime this week.
My greatest hope is that the film is received there half as well as it was when it was screened among my family and friends.
That being said, I'd like to take another opportunity to thank Sean Parker and Austin Hillebrecht for giving me the opportunity to view and review Coup De Cinema.
Thank you to all the actor's and crew members involved in the process, I assure you, you did a wonderful job even if I didn't mention you by name!
Filed under: Movies, Uncategorized, Wrestling, Action on Film Festival, Austin Hillebrecht, Barrie Wild, Bowfinger, Canon, Corey Brunish, David Loftus, Dennis Hopper, Ed Wood, film, filmmaking, George Lucas, James Cameron, Marauders of the Door of Doom, Mk. II, Movies, Nomi Summa, Oregon, Portland, Rhyan Schwartz, Rick Steiner, Sean Parker, The Rock, Tony Zilka, Toy Story 3, WCW, Wilhelm Scream, wrestling, WWE, WWF


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Handcrafted Soaps, Bath Bombs, Lotions, Beard Oil, Beard Balm and so much more!
A Best Seller!! A sexy scent with notes of orange, sandalwood, and toasted vanilla bean. Husbands and boyfriends love this fragrance due to the image of a sexy black dress and heels that it depicts.
Each lotion candle holds Approx. 3 oz
How to Use: Simply light your lotion candle and allow a pool of the fragrant skin loving lotion to form. Blow out the candle and enjoy the warm deep penetrating oils and butters anywhere your body needs a little pampering! Your new lotion candle can also be enjoyed as a massage oil or muscle rub to loosen those tired sore muscles.
Ingredients: Soy Wax, Coconut Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Crambe Abyssinica, Avocado oil, Essential/Fragrance oils
WARNING: Burn within sight. Keep away from flammable objects. Keep away from children and pets.
SAFETY: Discontinue use if skin irritation occurs.
Thank you so much for stopping by! We are located in China Grove, North Carolina and we make all of our bath and body products right here in our store. We use only natural ingredients in all our amazingly scented items. Come in and feel free to take a sniff of any one of our beautifully handcrafted soaps, bath bombs, body sprays, lotion, bath salts and so much more! We even have a huge selection of beard oils, beard balms, shave soaps, mustache wax and more for the gentlemen too! We also carry certified, pure therapeutic grade essential oils, diffusers and diffuser jewelry too. If your partial to wax melts, we've got a whole selection of those and warmers too!
Come on in and let your nose choose your favorite scent! You won't be disappointed!
It was easy to order online and the scents available smell amazing! I also like the unscented because it has moisturizer as well. The fact that this place has hand sanitizer is a blessing !
104 S. Main St , China Grove, NC, 28023
Sun & Mon - CLOSED
Tuesday 10am - 6pm
Wednesday - 10am - 6pm
Thursday - 10am - 6pm
Friday 10am - 6pm
Saturday 10am - 6pm


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Classic modular files featuring electrically welded heavy-gauge steel construction, double-thick wraparound corners, integral cap and sturdy inner frames. 5 drawer files store up to 500 sheets per unit active filing, 750 sheets semi-active and 1000 sheets inactive.
1675 points will be rewarded when you are logged in to your account and buy this item.Learn about our rewards program here.
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Main Material : oxidised silver |
Other Materials : 9ct gold |
Fitting Type : hinged bar |
Dimensions (mm) : 11 x 16 x 2 |
One of a Kind : No |
Metal : gold 9ct yellow and silver |
Hallmarked : Yes
If your jewellery becomes tarnished use a soft, old toothbrush (definitely NO toothpaste!!!) and dip in warm soapy water and brush gently. Rinse in cold water and dry carefully (you could use a hairdryer on a low heat setting). If your jewellery has enamel paint on it, use a cloth impregnated with silver dip to clean your jewellery with.


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This chest x-ray shows the affects of a fungal infection, coccidioidomycosis. In the middle of the left lung (seen on the right side of the picture) there are multiple, thin-walled cavities (seen as light areas) with a diameter of 2 to 4 centimeters. To the side of these light areas are patchy light areas with irregular and poorly defined borders.
Other diseases that may explain these x-ray findings include lung abscesses, chronic pulmonary tuberculosis, chronic pulmonary histoplasmosis, and others.


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Facebook Gets Its Mobile Mojo Working
Oct 24, 2012 11:48 AM PT
Facebook delivered a double whammy with its third-quarter earnings report: It came in slightly above Wall Street analysts' expectations, and it illustrated that, yes, it can deliver on its mobile promise.
Although it recorded a net loss of $59 million, revenue reached $1.26 billion, a 32 percent year-over-year increase. Best of all, though, was its report that about 14 percent of its advertising revenue came from ads for mobile users.
Other notable metrics: Facebook posted an increase of 26 percent year-over-year for monthly active users, which reached 1.01 billion as of Sept. 30. Its daily active users numbered 584 million, an increase of 28 percent year-over-year. Also, its mobile MAUs reached 604 million, an increase of 61 percent year-over-year.
It is a better report than many in the industry expected, Andreas Scherer, managing partner with Salto Partners, told the E-Commerce Times.
Even its net loss can be justified as it was due to share-based compensation costs and related tax roll expenses.
"Otherwise, the company posted solid operating margins," Scherer said.
Celebrating Mobile
On the earnings call, CEO Mark Zuckerberg highlighted Facebook's major breakthroughs of the past quarter -- many of which had to do with mobile. He pointed to the mobile MAUs, for instance, and the ad revenue related to the company's efforts in this area, which clocked in at $153 million.
Zuckberberg earned his bragging rights, Scherer said. Besides positive ad revenue, "Zuckerberg made mobile a strong priority for the company. Facebook completed the rebuild of its app for iOS. It improved on the platform for mobile developers by launching new software development kits for iOS and Android, as well as a deeper integration into iOS 6.0."
Facebook needs to maintain its momentum, he said. It's gaining traction with its mobile operations, but the company is still playing catch-up.
"eMarketer estimated the size of mobile at revenue at $2.61 billion this year," noted Scherer. "$153 million mobile ad revenue is just a fraction of the total market opportunity. Investors will keep watching how aggressively Facebook is able to ramp up its mobile business."
Overall Ad Revenue
There are other things to like about Facebook's earnings than its mobile report.
There's the overall average price per ad placement, which rose 7 percent in Q3 compared with the year-earlier quarter, noted Barry Randall, who runs the Crabtree Technology model on Covestor.
"This is important, because it shows that Facebook's advertising revenue growth isn't coming solely from new members, but also from new and more effective forms of advertising, like ads appearing in Facebook's Newsfeed," he pointed out.
And More Challenges
One area where Facebook could have done better was its payment revenue, Randall said, which was below expectations, due primarily to the underperformance of gaming partner Zynga.
"Overall, payments to Facebook from Zynga fell by 20 percent year-over-year, and represented 43 percent of payments revenue, down from 51 percent in the second quarter," he said. "It's not clear what Facebook plans to do to replace Zynga's rapidly declining contribution in the short run.
A Mix of Good and Bad
Taken as a whole, Facebook's earnings report was a mixed bag of positive and negative factors, Randall said.
On one hand, he said, the company now has more than 1 billion users -- that's good. However, about 60 percent of them are regularly accessing the service via mobile phones, which is bad. Mobile ads are cheaper, and so far not as compelling.
Also, while Facebook has shown it can generate revenue from mobile users -- and that's very good! -- most of the mobile users it will attract will be using the service via a non-smartphone, Randall observed, making non-advertising sources of revenue more important.


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Reuters - Teaching teens coping skills to deal with the chronic pain of fibromyalgia may provide them some relief, a small study suggests.
When researchers divided 114 teenagers with the condition into two groups -- one that received behavioral therapy for six months and one that just got information about the condition -- the behavioral therapy group emerged with much lower levels of disability at the end of the study.
"This is the first major breakthrough in understanding how best to treat fibromyalgia in teenagers," said study co-author Dr. Susmita Kashikar-Zuck, a pediatric psychologist at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.
"Because of their pain, these teens have trouble going to school, going out with friends, participating in social activities -- things important to teenagers," she said.
People with fibromyalgia suffer from intense pain all over their bodies. They may feel tired all the time, have trouble sleeping, become anxious or depressed and suffer from other conditions such as irritable bowel and arthritis.
About five million adult Americans have the condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The exact number of kids with fibromyalgia is unknown. Based on past research into rates seen among U.S. school children, Kashikar-Zuck estimates roughly 850,000 kids between the ages of 10 to 19 may have symptoms of chronic widespread pain -- although few seek specialized treatment.
The cause of fibromyalgia is also undetermined, but some researchers believe it may be linked to how the brain processes pain.
"We've come to understand this disorder better, said Dr. Jeffrey Dvergsten, a pediatric rheumatologist at Duke University School of Medicine who was not part of the study.
"It was once thought that people with chronic pain were imagining it all in their head," he told Reuters Health. "But for the past 20 years, we've learned there's a lot more to pain than we previously understood."
At the beginning of the study, all the participants had some limitations when performing daily activities, such as trouble waking up because of fatigue, trouble participating in social activities or physical sports, and difficulty performing chores.
On a scale of "functional disability" where 30 is the most disabled, both groups scored around 20.
Teens who received behavioral therapy learned how to use various techniques to distract themselves from the pain, how to pace their activities so they weren't overwhelmed and how to calm themselves when they felt anxious.
The information-only group got lessons that discussed the disorder, available treatments and lifestyle issues, and they received handouts to take home.
After six months, both groups improved their daily functioning. Teens who learned coping skills through behavioral therapy reached an average disability score of 13 out of 30, while those who got the lessons scored 17 out of 30, according to findings reported in Arthritis and Rheumatism.
"These teens were getting individualized treatment, learning active skills where we're teaching them to include behavioral changes in their life," said Kashikar-Zuck.
Both groups showed slight improvements in mood, despite only minimal changes in their reported severity of pain.
Fibromyalgia treatments can include painkillers, antidepressants, cognitive-behavioral therapy and exercise. No medications are available for children and teenagers, however.
Dvergsten thinks it takes more than just behavioral therapy to manage chronic pain. He suggests that a three-pronged approach -- including behavioral therapy, physical therapy and treating sleep problems -- should be used. But he does see the study as a sign of hope for kids.
"A child dealing with pain doesn't have to grow up to be an adult dealing with pain," he said. "There is help for this."


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As Minimalist Month draws to a close, we thought we'd share some wise words from Swimrun co-founder Mats Skott and his wife, Natasha, and their life in rural Sweden.
"Minimalism for Natasha and me is a learned way of thinking. It is not something that happens over night, instead, it is something you have to work hard towards, making daily changes in your life.
We met in 2003 and at the time were living in Stockholm. After our two kids were born a few years later, we realised that we did not want to live in a city anymore and so bought a farm close to a village called Åre in Jämtland, located in the mountains in the middle of Sweden.
Neither Natasha or I had been farmers nor did we come from farming families - but when we found the farm we knew we wanted to live there and so embarked on a journey to change our way of living to a life closer to nature.
Now Natasha is running the farm and we are becoming more and more self sufficient. We keep sheep, horses and chickens and are growing many of our own vegetables.
Whilst Natasha runs the farm, i'm working on the development of Swimrun, a sport me and my colleague Michael Lemmel invented. Together we started the ÖtillÖ World Series, which holds Swimrun events in some of the most beautiful corners of Europe.
All the time we are trying to live a life that is in harmony, which for us means having the least possible impact on nature and being together as a family. It is an intricate process and we are improving each day as we learn more and more how to live a minimalistic life. This gives us joy and value to our every day life.
Here are a few steps we try to follow to achieve a "simpler" life.
- Spend time together as a family as often as we can
- Prioritise quality over quantity. When buying material things we choose products that sustainable and of good quality.
- Use material things until they break - and when they break, try to repair them.
- Eat naturally and taking time to eat together as a family
- Ask ourselves what is important for us, as a continual reminder not to get distracted by what is not important.
- Continually consider consumption, as a way to try not to over consume.
- See every day as a new day of opportunities
- Be active in making choices that give us a sense of meaning, rather than just adopting to what others might think
- Work-wise, try to focus on achieving a few, select tasks each day so that we can end each day with the satisfaction of completing them
All photo credit to Håkan Wike / Fjällräven
The 4th July weekend marks the opportunity for us to lace up our hiking boots and explore one of the USA's countless awe-inspiring trails.
This week's challenge is all about resetting your internal body clock, otherwise known as Circadian Rhythm - the inbuilt 24-hour cycle that influences the timing of daily routines such as falling asleep, waking up and when we eat.
As a designer, I love objects but ironically, I have very few. Even before I became a designer, I already loved objects. All throughout my childhood I have been collecting model cars, planes, figurines… I've always been interested by...
This week, we challenge you to declutter your life by following these 5 steps towards minimal living. It's a great chance to find a new home for your unused clobber, and to really start appreciating your prised posessions. We're convinced that by the end of the week, you'll be enjoying your new found space - be it under your bed or at the back of your mind!
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Window treatments can range from curtains and draperies to really add some color and style to any room. The companies that work with Powered by the People who deal with window treatments are really known to be the best in the industry and they have been working in the 48153 area for many years now. What you will find is that they are extremely knowledgeable about every style and sort of window treatments available on the market. Some of the window treatments they install are as follows. Blinds, shades, shutters drapes and curtains. All of these window treatments can be installed in any home or business and they all serve a purpose of offering privacy and style.
If your home or business in 48153 has a skylight then they can even add blinds on to them, no window is off limits and there is a solution for everything. As far as blinds go you have many options and finishes. Wood blinds are most popular but aluminum blinds and vertical blinds are also in demand. Faux wood is also used and it can last longer than wood blinds and can be slightly cheaper.
Shades are also very popular with clients looking to get there windows covered. Cellular shades/honeycomb offer light filtering qualities and they can come in a Varity of color. Roller shades are similar in terms of they can provide privacy and black out the sunlight from outside. They also come in custom sizes and are easy to clean. Roman shades come in many fabric designs and are very fashion forward. They can also be made for blackout purposes or light filtering it's up to you. Sheer shades dim the light and add a gentle light filter, they look very modern and elegant and many customers in the 48153 area are picking this look. Bamboo and woven shades give a home a nice look; they come in various styles and finishes and can make a room look great. Pleated shades are also a neat concept and are great to install, the window treatment companies that are found through Powered by the People install a great deal of these blinds. They also install exterior shades so if you have a deck or an area where you would like to provide some shade the window treatment guys can recommend to you some wonderful exterior shades to do the job.
Check out Powered by the People when it's time to have your windows covered with an amazing treatment and we will find a great window treatment contractor to help you out.


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DENVER (AP) — A former El Paso County deputy sheriff has pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money-laundering charges.
U.S. Attorney John Walsh said Wednesday that David Hawkins of Colorado Springs pleaded guilty last week.
Prosecutors say Hawkins collected $1.2 million from his colleagues at the El Paso County Sheriff's Office, other law enforcement officers, friends and relatives for trading foreign exchange funds. Estimated losses to investors totaled about $215,000.
Hawkins faces one count of wire fraud which carries a penalty of not more than 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000. He also faces one count of money laundering which carries a penalty of not more than 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Sentencing is scheduled June 7.
(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)


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How to Get Dewy Makeup
3 Quick Ways to Repurpose Your Makeup For Spring
One easy switch to make for Spring is trading your matte makeup products for traditionally higher-on-shine alternatives. But before you head to the store to stock up on all-new cosmetics, you can get a dewy complexion using the products you already own. Find out how to gloss up your seasonal palette when you read more.
1. For Eyes: If you're looking to wear something other than shimmery eye makeup this season, add a bit of texture with a glossy product. Celebrity makeup artist Fiona Stiles, who has worked with stars like Halle Berry, Jessica Alba, and Jessica Chastain, recommends using a touch of balm or moisturizer on the upper lids as an alternative to a matte finish. Focus the product above the crease for a subtle shine so that it doesn't migrate downward. You can also add a little water to your powder shadow for a more vibrant color and wet appearance.
2. For Lips: Did you know you can make any lip liner into a lipstick? Just apply a dime-size amount of your favorite liner to your hand, use a lip brush to mix in Rosebud Salve ($6) for a cream consistency, and apply to lips for a sheer finish. If something bolder is desired, try drawing the liner directly on the entire lip and top off with balm.
3. For Face: Cream blush is the natural swap for the warmer months, but Stiles explains that cream is actually a bad choice for women with oily skin, no matter the season, because it makes covering blemishes more difficult and is more apt to disappear by the end of the day. Instead, forgo blush and use a radiance-enhancing highlighter like MAC Prep + Prime ($24) on the cheekbone. Just keep the application light-handed, or else you're all about going for a disco-ball effect.


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Live Free or Drive T-Shirt
by Joe Biel Author
We've been raised in a car-centric society where from birth to death our lives operate within metal boxes. But it doesn't have to be this way. We have options and the more time goes by, the clearer it becomes about the benefits of taking this road. Feel the joy of two wheels!
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"In Giving Birth, You Preserved Your Virginity" Icon of the Mother of God
The Icon of the Mother of God "In Giving Birth, You Preserved Your Virginity" ("A Virgin Before Birth and After Birth") was transferred to the Nikolaev Peshkov monastery of Moscow diocese by the Moscow merchant Alexis Grigorievich Mokeev. Around the year 1780 Alexis joined the brethren of the monastery. He had given all of his wealth to the igumen of the monastery, Archimandrite Macarius, and the holy icon remained in his cell.
After Alexis's death, the icon was brought to the archimandrite, who observed that the icon was painted in oil on canvas and not according to the prescribed rules of iconography (using egg tempera on wood), and he installed it over the exit door of the chapel of Saint Methodius, which was on a street not far from the monastery.
The glorification of the holy icon began in 1827, when Captain Platon Osipovich Shabashev, going past the chapel at night, saw an extraordinary light coming from the icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. Another time he had a vision of the icon at a time when he found himself in difficult circumstances. In a dream, Platon beheld the radiant icon of the Mother of God in the clouds above the chapel of Saint Methodius and heard a voice say, "If you wish to be delivered from temptation, pray before this icon." Platon obeyed the guidance of the Mother of God, and the sorrow passed him by.
The pious Platon told the Superior of the monastery about the miracles. He then transfered the holy image into the monastery. When they went to put the icon in a ornamental case, the image of the Most Holy Virgin, painted on canvas, stiffened taut upon a board, on which was concealed a depiction of the Mother of God of finest quality. Numerous miracles are recorded to have taken place from this icon in 1848 during an outbreak of cholera, when many praying before it were healed.
This icon of the Mother of God is of the Hodēgḗtria type.


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Water damage has no respect for people, places, or social standing, and it can destroy your home or business every bit as effectively as fire. Water damage may be as sudden and severe as a flash flood, but a slowly leaking pipe in your basement can do just as much damage if undiscovered for too long. Water restoration is the process of removing all of the water from your property and drying everything out, and it needs to be done as quickly as possible.
Water continues to cause damage for as long as it is allowed to remain untreated, and failure to act quickly and properly can result in long term problems such as mold. Mold can appear rapidly following water damage and may endanger your family's health. If you are seeking water restoration in Geneva, MN, your local provider can be found above.
The water restoration professionals at Water Damage Local.com are on call 24/7/365, and offer emergency response within an hour to Geneva. Our providers will have a technician out to your home to assess the damage and begin restoring the water before it has the chance to cause more trouble.
When it comes to water damage, time is important. Mold can set in within 48 hours, and the clock is ticking. In addition to health hazards, the structural integrity of your property may be at risk. Water damage contributes to the accelerated rotting of wood and rusting of metal, and can make your Geneva home unsafe to live in in no time at all.
The staff at Water Damage Local.com are aware of these problems, offering the fastest response in the industry, and able to completely remove all of the water, dry out and clean your belongings, and have you back in your home as soon as possible. We have providers that provide water restoration in Geneva, MN and can be at your home within 30 minutes in most cases. Our work is guaranteed for one year, providing peace of mind to folks who have already had to deal with more than their share of problems.
We know that water restoration is one job that has to be done right the first time, which is why we do guarantee our work. We stand behind our work done in Geneva with a one year guarantee on all work performed, effective from the date of completion. You can return to your home or business assured that your water damage problem has been dealt with properly.
When it comes to water restoration, it really is "buyer beware", because not all companies or of the same quality and caliber. If you hire just anybody, you run the very real risk of not only coming home to the same problem, but also having that problem made worse. This is one industry where there are no prizes for second best. You need a company that is IICRC certified, with the most up to date water restoration tools and procedures. They need to offer a complete range of services designed to handle all elements of your water restoration needs.
If you choose the wrong company, the damage may be treated improperly and end up causing you more problems in the future. This is why it is imperative that you choose a trusted company that is IICRC Certified, licensed, and insured. Water Damage Local.com providers are all pre-screened and qualified. The video below illustrates the dangers of choosing the wrong company:
Call your local, certified Geneva, MN water restoration professionals at the number listed above for a free on site estimate or phone consultation today. For the sake of your home and your family.
Superstorm Sandy has caused widespread flooding and wind damage in the northeast. If your property ...
It is difficult to know when you can clean up water damage yourself, or when you need to bring in a ...
Frozen pipes are a nightmare to deal with. Learn steps to take to prevent freezing temperatures ...


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Are You Still Managing Your Exchange Server?
Say yes to Microsoft Exchange and no to the cost and headaches of managing it. Our deep Microsoft hosting knowledge is just one reason we're a leading Exchange provider. Plus, with Hosted Exchange 2016 at Rackspace Technology you get huge 100GB mailboxes and 50MB attachments. Starting at A$15.26/mailbox.


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Project Black Sun is an old school 2D sidescrolling game with similar game mechanics which we have seen in classic games like Super Metroid and Castlevania. You play as an ordinary guy how has an accident and he ends up in an abandoned mines. The idea is search the way out of there while learning new skills and beating bosses along the way.
Lots of exploring and collectables
Responsive and presice controls
Retro style graphics
Challenging boss fights
Smooth 60fps gameplay
Amazing music by Jussi Mäkinen
|Starflower Games


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ETX Native George Foreman to Speak in Center, Texas
CENTER- Two-time Heavyweight Boxing Champion of the world, George Foreman, will speak at 7pm on Tuesday, November 5, 2013, at the John D. Windham Civic Center, 146 Express Blvd., in Center, Texas. Mr. Foreman will share his life story and his Christian Testimony. The Master of Ceremonies for the program will be Brad Maule, who starred as "Dr. Tony Jones" on TV's General Hospital for 22 years.
The event is a fund-raiser for Shelby County Outreach Ministries. The organization is involved in a variety of activities to help those in need, including; Senior Nutrition Site, Meals on Wheels Program, Emergency Food Boxes, Emergency Dental assistance, Ensure Program, Emergency Utility Bill assistance, Gas Cards, Annual Free Community Thanksgiving Day Dinner, Angel Tree and Christmans for Needy Children.
Only 600 tickets are available for the event. A ticket and one non-perishable food item are required for admission. Advance tickets are $10.00 each and are available at both Ace Hardware Stores in Center and Baskin's Department Stores in Lufkin and Nacogdoches. Should any tickets remain unsold, they will be priced at $15.00 at the door. For more information or for credit card orders, please phone 888.218.6464.


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There are no Upcoming Shows listed for this comedian.
Dezz White
Oscar Award winner Mo'nique calls him one of the must see comics of the year.
A southern raised comic now living in Los Angeles, Dezz White's unique perspective on being raised by a single mother is hilarious and entertaining. His brilliant outlook on marriage, college, drugs, and world issues will keep you laughing and thinking. Before being sought out as one of the hottest feature acts in the country for headliners like Sheryl Underwood and Earthquake, to name a few, Dezz White entertained the masses on morning radio in Houston. His recently released comedy CD titled My Wife and Her Husband can be heard on Sirius/XM radio. Dezz White is also featured in the DVD Earthquake Presents from The Outhouse to The White House, which was filmed in Washington, DC to commemorate the Presidential Inauguration. With these and other credits to his name, its no wonder Medina Media lists him as one of the quickest rising stars of standup.
Dezz White's Upcoming Shows
Dezz White is Known For
|Earthquake Presents
|BET's Comic View
|HBO's Def Comedy Jam


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At Eddy's Chevrolet , our entire team works together to provide you with the ultimate Chevrolet shopping experience. We are here to exceed your expectations, deliver the best service possible, and make car shopping fun again.
New vehicle pricing includes all offers and incentives. Tax, Title and Tags not included in vehicle prices shown and must be paid by the purchaser. While great effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information on this site, errors do occur so please verify information with a customer service rep. This is easily done by calling us at (316) 689-4310 or by visiting us at the dealership.
**With approved credit. Terms may vary. Monthly payments are only estimates derived from the vehicle price with a month term, % interest and % downpayment.
*Must finance with GM Financial & must trade in an '09 or newer unblemished title vehicle. All offers are plus $499 Admin Fee and Sales Tax.
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For Release in North America: April 2013
Release Number: 185PR13
Cat® Utility Hydraulic Thumbs are compatible with a wide range of hydraulic excavator configurations and are a smart choice for use in fleets with a mix of machines and various bucket and coupler combinations. The design is well suited for light and medium-duty material handling tasks such as handling brush, rocks and construction debris. Controlled and positioned from inside the cab, Cat Utility Hydraulic Thumbs expand the versatility of hydraulic excavators in size classes equivalent to the Cat 311 through 329.
Cat Utility Hydraulic Thumbs mount to the face of the excavator stick, which enables them to work with Caterpillar and other manufacturers' excavators, buckets and couplers. The new thumbs are narrow in width for good visibility, and they are engineered for low weight so that excavators can maintain their loading and lifting performance capabilities. Each utility thumb is easy to stow against the stick and out of the way when not in use.
Cat Utility Hydraulic Thumbs can expand excavator versatility at relatively low cost—no matter what the manufacturer and no matter what the brand of bucket and coupler. For more information about Cat thumbs, contact the local Cat dealer or go to: thumbs
# # #
Note to Editors: Caterpillar rolls-out products and services in each of its territories at different time intervals. Although every effort is made to ensure that product information is released only after Caterpillar has received confirmation from our dealer network, our plants, and our marketing subsidiaries that products and services are available in the relevant region, editors are kindly requested to verify with their local dealer for product availability and specifications.
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Reader Requests


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I was wondering about non-PC platforms. As mentioned in the blog post:
The Windows version will be the first one to be released – we'll reveal more about other platforms later.
So I don't want to pester too much, but it would be great to have an off-the-record answer. What platforms are planned, even if they won't necessarily end up happening? Are there any platforms that are definitely NOT happening?
I liked the Trine 2 demo on Wii U but had no reason to buy either it or Trine Enchanted Edition, as I've already completed both with my friends on PC. But if Trine 3 is released on Wii U, I might just prefer that version over the PC, even if it means waiting a little longer.