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Manhattan Beach Contractor Puts Heavy Duty Wheel Loader to Work
Manhattan Beach, California is a prime location for those looking for the true experience of living in an oceanside community: mere blocks from the beach, it offers the best of California weather and culture. It's almost always sunny, and rarely are heat or air conditioning required. Construction isn't the first thing you think of when in Manhattan Beach, but when you do, you think of Casner Construction.
"The term 'Casner Quality' is synonymous with high-end residential quality in the South Bay area," says Art Jurado, sales consultant with Sonsray Machinery in Southern California. "People ask for Casner homes by name because they know each home is crafted with care and built to the highest of standards while also offering a distinct California style."
When a Casner home goes on the market, the offers come in quickly – and often above asking price as bidding wars ensue. "Usually within a day or two, I have anywhere from three to 10 offers on the house," says Craig Casner, who has been in the home-building business in Southern California since the 1960s. He earned his license in 1974, and his two sons, Jeremy and Josh (licensed in 2000) now work in the family business and carry on the "Casner Quality" legacy.
With his homes in high demand, Casner places emphasis on being a good neighbor, and completing as much of the heavy earthwork required for each new home as quickly and efficiently as possible. With that in mind, the company added a new CASE 1121F wheel loader to its fleet in 2013, and the results have been encouraging.
"The last job we did here in Hermosa Beach, we had to export 500 or 600 yards," says Jeremy Casner. "It was a hillside job. The cut of the grade had to be flat with the street in about 80 feet, so we had some 10-foot verticals. This machine hogged the dirt out faster than any other machine I've ever seen."
Big Production on Small Sites
While it is the second-largest wheel loader available from CASE and Sonsray, the 1121F fits nicely into the sitework performed by Casner. As the company began looking for a new wheel loader, size, speed and power were important. The 1121F weighs in at 59,191 pounds and offers 320 horsepower (net) and 56,310 pounds of breakout force. Casner outfitted this machine with a six cubic-yard bucket and added radial tires and heavy-duty axles for greater traction and more robust lifting capabilities. The added strength and power were required as the earthmoving here is rarely a day at the beach.
"Some jobs you encounter clay or adobe material, the more expansive soil, very dense, very heavy, very wet," explains Jeremy Casner. "It's definitely more difficult to work in and you definitely need a heavier-duty machine to work in that material."
"We have jobs like these where we have to move thousands of yards of dirt, and a backhoe will do it but it does it in a lot more time than this (wheel loader)," says Craig Casner. "My son Jeremy is into grading, demolition, dirt hauling and dirt moving, and this machine just does the job three- or four-times as fast as using a backhoe."
"The power, the strength of the torque, the breakout power that the machine has as far as hogging into a hillside and going into stockpiles to load trucks, it kills it," confirms Jeremy Casner. "I've been an equipment operator for probably 15 years on and off. I ran scrapers, I ran excavators, I ran wheel loaders and this machine by far blows those other pieces of equipment out of the water."
Tier 4 Engine Technology Reduces Emissions, Noise and Maintenance
Part of being a good working neighbor in these tight-knit oceanside communities is bringing ecologically friendly equipment to the jobsite. California is at the forefront of emissions regulations, and the 1121F fits in nicely. The machine uses selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology to meet Tier 4 regulations in reducing NOx and particulate matter (pm) emissions.
"The older machines that are belching out giant clouds of black smoke are not really friendly to the neighbors or the area," says Craig Casner. "That equipment has slowly been (replaced) for newer pieces of machinery like this loader, and these new ones are completely environment-friendly."
SCR is well suited for wheel loaders because it's an after-treatment system that let's the engine do what it's is designed to do: generate power at varied engine loads. The technology, which has been accepted for several years for on-highway diesel applications throughout North America and Europe, also doesn't require the use of regeneration to burn off accumulated particulate for faster throttle response time. The end result is full power and breakout force when needed. Additionally, SCR engines are optimized to create an efficient combustion process. The technology can actually improve performance because the engines breathe more freely, which in turn, results in significant fuel savings.
The machine also helps reduce another byproduct that is particularly sensitive to working in residential neighborhoods: noise pollution.
"It's far quieter than any other machine of this size that I've ever driven or operated," says Jeremy Casner. "Being inside the cab with the door closed, you feel like you are not in a piece of equipment because it is so quiet."
Optimum Visibility for Working on Tight Sites
The company recently put the wheel loader to work on a 100-foot-by-100-foot lot. Although the jobsite was small, Jeremy Casner says the 1121F is a safe performer in tight quarters. Key to those efforts is visibility.
"The cab of the machine is very open, very spacious, glass from ceiling to floor," he says. "You can see the ground really well, you can see on both sides of the machine, you can see between the front wheels and the bucket when the bucket's in the air. When you put it in reverse, the backup camera comes on. You can see what's behind the machine, if anyone's back there. When you are backing up, you know when you are getting close to something."
A new, wide-angle lens provides optimal visibility to the rear of the machine through the back-up camera. The wheel loader also features the lowest and narrowest rear hood in the industry.
"Overall, the visibility is very good."
An Excellent Partner
Casner worked together with Sonsray Machinery's Santa Fe Springs branch to select and spec out the 1121F. With the assistance of sales consultant Art Jurado and the backing of the company's service department, Craig Casner knows he has a partner in helping him optimize uptime and productivity.
"I have a great relationship with Art going back to the 1980s," he says. "I've always had great deals with him. I have bought a lot of equipment from him over the years. 20 or more pieces, including backhoes, skip loaders, skid steers and wheel loaders. I have always been satisfied."
Casner Quality – From Earthmoving to the Finished Product
Taking everything into account, Casner believes the 1121F fits in nicely to his primary goals of being a good neighbor and performing premium work. If he's able to do it a bit faster with equipment like the 1121F, that helps contribute to an equally important quality: profitability.
"It's time versus money," says Craig Casner. "The longer a project takes, your profit margin is spread over the number of days you invest in a project. If you're in and out of a project in 8-10 days, that's a premium versus a project (that takes longer) because you're going to make the same amount of money. It just took you twice as long to make it."
"This machine here, it'll do all what we need in half the time or one-fourth the time that the smaller machine will need."
At the end of the day, it all culminates into a total package that Casner is happy to bless with his family's name.
"Everything has to be premium, because when my name goes on the presale list they use the (phrase) 'Casner Quality'. They expect everything to be first class. That's what I give them."
Source: http://www.casece.com/en_us/News/Pages/Manhattan-Beach-Contractor-Puts-Heavy-Duty-Wheel-Loader-to-Work.aspx


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2012 Shirley Povich Symposium
Our Sports: A Look at the Area Sports Scene
The 2012 Shirley Povich Symposium feature a wide-ranging discussion of the future of sports in this region, as well as a nostalgic look at our sports history.
The panel included Gary Williams '68 (former Maryland basketball coach), Scott Van Pelt (ESPN's SportsCenter and "The Scott Van Pelt Show"), Randy Boe (Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Monumental Sports and Entertainment), Kevin Byrne (Senior Vice President for Public and Community Relations, Baltimore Ravens), Mark Ein (Owner, Washington Kastles), Lara Potter (Vice President, Managing Director for Communications and Brand Development, Washington Nationals), Jill Sorenson (Commentator, Comcast SportsNet) and Tony Wyllie (Senior Vice President, Communications, Washington Redskins).
The event was moderated by Maury Povich.

subset: commoncrawl


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Did you catch Taraji P. Henson on SNL this past weekend? We have all that and more in this week's news round up.
Tag: swan lake
Dancing in My Sleep and Other Bedtime Mysteries
I tilt my head back gracefully, swan-like, and lift my arms high in the air. I bring one hand down and gently graze my arm with my fingers, then repeat the same movement with the other hand; over and over, in a languid, ballet-like dance. Read More Dancing in My Sleep and Other Bedtime Mysteries


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EXCLUSIVE: Shanna Moakler Reveals Why She Doesn't Want Her Daughter Following in Her Playboy Footsteps
Former Playboy Playmate Shanna Moakler's daughter, Atiana De La Hoya, won't be hopping in her footsteps anytime soon.
The former Miss December 2001 recently opened up to ET about why she hopes her 18-year-old daughter will keep her clothes on while modeling.
"I would suggest she not [pose nude], only because I think as an actress, you have more weight and more value, I guess, when you don't show everything," the blonde beauty explained. "If later on in life she goes, 'You know what, this is something I want to do,' I'll support her. But I would like to see her maybe take a different path than I did. But I like my path -- I just don't necessarily think it's the right path for her."
Though Atiana concurred that nude modeling likely isn't in her future, Shanna gushed that she would "definitely shoot with [Playboy] again."
"I love the company and I'm really proud to be a part of it, and I can look back when I'm 90. I'll be like, 'Look how good your grandmother looked!'"
The mother-daughter duo is currently appearing together in the Lifetime reality series Growing Up Supermodel, centered around young, aspiring models who also have famous parents. Atiana's father is professional boxer Oscar De La Hoya, and her stepfather is Blink 182 drummer, Travis Barker.
"A long time ago, I tried getting her into the entertainment industry, and she was kind of like, 'You know what, Mom? It's just not my thing, I'm not into it,' so we stopped. And as she got a little bit older, she said, 'You know what? I think I want to give it another go.' So, it's been really fun the chance to do it together, it's very special," Shanna gushed.
Growing Up Supermodel documents Atiana's rise to fame as a model, with Shanna guiding her along the way, as the former Dancing With the Stars contestant is hopeful her daughter will learn from her career missteps.
"I don't think you have enough time on this program to hear all the mistakes that I made," Shanna laughed.
"I think I put a lot out there on social media and I shared probably more than I should have," she added. "My ex [Barker] and I would breakup and we would have arguments on Myspace. It's just things that you just don't do. You don't need to air your dirty laundry, you don't need to trust everyone. Make sure you set yourself up properly."
Shanna is no stranger to reality TV. She first made waves on Meet The Barkers in 2005, chronicling her journey to the altar, and later hosted Bridalplasty and appeared on Hollywood Exes, but she's excited to get back to her true passion: acting.
"Scripted [television] is what I started out in and what I really love to do," she explained. "I think reality television has definitely hindered that. It's really hard once you do reality to kind of get out of that stereotype. I'm hoping to break that."
RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Shanna Moakler on Coping With Daughter Alabama's Cyberbullies: They Said to 'Drink Bleach and Die'
Shanna told ET she's currently working on a sitcom pilot alongside comedian Eddie Griffin, but we couldn't help but ask about her first on screen gig in 1998's The Wedding Singer, where she played the first-class flight attendant in the final scene.
"The Wedding Singer was my first role ever! It took me, like, 20 takes to say my one line," Shanna recalled, laughing. "I went home and cried! I came on set the next day andAdam Sandlersang one of his little songs, and he was like, '16-Take Shanna!' It was really embarrassing!"
Growing Up Supermodel airs Wednesdays on Lifetime.
For more from Shanna, including the secret to co-parenting successfully with Barker, watch the video below.


text: After showing petite teen schoolgirl Alina West how in physics our cock will stand hard and long with just the scent of her young pussy dripping wet. Alina bent over swallowing our bone to the back of her throat getting us rock hard. Our cock barely squeezed inside her hot pussy that it didn't take long, before we covered her teen tight pink hole, full of cum.


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Why advertise with us?
Targeted distribution
StreetWise is a digital, general interest monthly magazine available online at a monthly subscription. Because is it digital, its reach is wide ranging and your brand can reach a wide geographic area.
Advertise your business and be part of something worthwhile
StreetWise has a unique mission – to donate its profits to helping homeless individuals become empowered to leave homelessness behind. There is no other publication like StreetWise and its unique appeal is set to prove popular with the socially conscious with disposable income. Your business will benefit from the positive reinforcement of supporting a serious social issue.
Why advertise in a magazine?
Magazine readers are more likely to flick through every page of a magazine, meaning you stand a better chance of reaching your target customers than any other advertising medium.
We can also feature advertising features. Is your business celebrating a milestone? Has it achieved something remarkable? Have you employed specialists you want to showcase?
How much will it cost and will it be worth it?
We are lucky to have minimal overheads as we don't rent swanky offices or have big salaries to pay. The only people who get paid are the great freelancers who write our content as their skills count towards keeping readers engaged and will consequently increase the chances of your adverts being noticed and remembered.
We try and keep our advertising fees as competitive as possible and run discounts and promotions to help you keep your costs down. If you tell us what your budget is, we can advise you on what we can do for you.
When we lay out an edition, we place advertisements in relation to the content, giving them an increased chance of being noticed and remembered.
What do I need to do?
Once you decide on the size of advertisement you want to place and provide us with a print-ready PDF file so we can slot it into our layout.
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Decide what you want to promote about your business and how long you want your promotion to run for. If you need your advertisement designed for you, we can arrange this for you or refer you to a designer. Once you are happy with the cost and design, we can go ahead and get it finalised for you. You can run the same advertisement on a repeat basis, or make changes to it as your business needs change.
Call us on: +44 (0)7508 016481
Or e-mail us at: firstname.lastname@example.com


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Course: B.TechGroup: ThermodynamicsAlso Known as:Engineering Thermodynamics, Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics, Thermodynamics and Hydraulics, Applied Thermodynamics, Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics, Metallurgical Thermodynamics and kinetics, Theory of Plates And Shells, Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics II, Automotive Thermodynamics, Basic Thermodynamics, Thermodynamics of Biological Systems
It is the branch of physical science which deals with relation between heat and energy from like electrical mechanical and chemical. It describes HOW thermal energy is converted in to other from of energy. The initial application of thermodynamics to mechanical heat engines was extended early on to the study of chemical compounds and chemical reactions. - Thermodynamics, TD Previous year question solutionsSimilar Links:


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A small, beautifully decorated gîte, ideal for an overnight stay, but also suitable for a couple with two young children.
This is a pretty little gîte, ideal for a family with young children who can sleep in a small room adjoining the main bedroom (with a bunk bed). The sleeping area is upstairs, as well as a bathroom with a shower and toilet. A separate toilet is also available on the ground floor.
There is a fully-equipped kitchen which opens onto a small living area with sofas, armchairs and a television. Step outside, and the swimming pool, sauna and the numerous paths that run through the estate are all close at hand…
Sheets / towels : 15€/ single bed -20€ double bed
These services are subject to an additional charge.
Utilities (water, electricity, gas):
Water included – Electricity 8Kw / h per day – GAZ 16Kwh/day
Surcharges will be charged at the end of the stay based on meter readings
Pets : case by case
cleaning option 80€
Deposit: 20% of the total amount
Security deposit (on site): 500€ + temporary residence tax
Minimum 3 nights: 330€ (low season only)
High season: 950€/week
The rest of the year : 800€/week
The entire domaine can be rented out, sleeping 25/28 (10/11 bedrooms plus a mezzanine).
Special rates apply:
High season: 6900€/week
Middle season: 6100€/week
Low season: 5700€/week


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Timothy James Stewart was jailed for more than 30 years in November 2017 after he was found guilty of preying on one young girl relentlessly before she was even a teenager, videoing the horrific acts for his own pleasure.
She endured four years of vile degradation from her stepfather, a man she should have been able to trust.
Stewart once told his young victim it would destroy her family if it ever got out, but she spoke out regardless.
In a column published in the Sydney Morning Herald, the unnamed mum told of how she realised her husband of 12 years was a "monster".
She said her daughter started refusing to call him dad and told her mother she didn't know who he really was.
"The minute she said it, I knew. A pit opened up in my stomach. I told him, 'Everything she says, points to you being inappropriate with her'," the mother said.
She is telling her story after she spent almost four years trying to get justice.
"Because of the legal living hell my life became for the next four years, I do have times where I wish I'd found him and, instead of taking the legal route, pushed him off a cliff," she said.
"I remember the detective telling us the case would take two years and I said, 'No way'. I would gladly take two years now because it took double that."
Living in southwest Sydney where the closest family court is over an hour away, the mother said during the legal battle she lost her job as her contract was not renewed because she had to miss so much work for court proceedings.
She is supporting a campaign by the Law Society of NSW, backed by locals councils, the NSW Police Association and the Greater Sydney Commission, to build a justice precinct in southwest Sydney.
If you or somebody you know is struggling contact Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636, Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Do you know more or have a story tip? Email: firstname.lastname@example.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter and stay up to date with the latest news with Yahoo7's daily newsletter. Sign up here.


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Total number of HDUs in FITS file
N = getNumHDUs(fptr)
N = getNumHDUs(fptr) returns the number
of completely defined HDUs in a FITS file. If a new HDU has just been
added to the FITS file, then that last HDU will only be counted if
it has been closed, or if data has been written to the HDU. The current
HDU remains unchanged by this routine.
This function corresponds to the
(ffthdu) function in the CFITSIO library C API.
import matlab.io.* fptr = fits.openFile('tst0012.fits'); n = fits.getNumHDUs(fptr); fits.closeFile(fptr);


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Model who assaulted cops had also brutally attacked 80-yr-old in Kolkata
Days after Versova police were attacked by a 35-yr-old model, they learnt of this past case of assault; frustrated cops said they have not arrested her because senior officials stopped them
Three days after the Versova police were humiliated at the hands of a drunk model who had abused and assaulted several of the officers, they have learnt that the woman has another assault case registered against her in Kolkata.
In August, Devdutta Banerjee had allegedly assaulted her tenant until she fell unconscious and had to be admitted in hospital
mid-day had reported yesterday ('Drunk model abuses, assaults hapless cops') how the 35-year-old repeatedly attacked the officers as they took her to Versova police station, while they did not even attempt to restrain her.
The police were wary of retaliating as the commissioner had recently sent a circular asking cops to be on their best behaviour with citizens, especially women. They did not even arrest her, as senior officials had instructed them to let her go after filing an FIR.
Watch Video: Woman creates scene outside Mumbai police station
However, a disgruntled policeman from the Versova police station told this paper, "Even though she hit some of our officers, we couldn't do anything. We should at least arrest her for humiliating us in such a manner, but senior officials told us to let her go after filing a complaint."
This incident had happened late on Friday night, as the model, Devdutta Banerjee got into an argument with her landlady over the rent for her apartment. She has been living in a flat at Inlaks Nagar Co-operative Housing Society for the past six months but had not paid the rent in a while.
When the landlady went to ask her for the money, she allegedly began to abuse her. This is when the cops turned up to break up the fight.
Violent history
However, the tables were turned in Kolkata, where Devdutta was the landlady arguing with an elderly tenant. In August, Devdutta and her boyfriend visited her home in Jodhpur Park, Gariahat.
Watch Video: Woman guzzles beer, abuses, threatens cops inside police station
An 80-year-old — a Manju Kajtogi — had been renting one of Devdutta's apartments there for over 40 years, but the model wanted her to vacate the premises. The matter had already been lodged in a court dispute for four years, but the two women had a heated argument on August 20, after Devdutta cut off the water supply to the flat.
When the older woman complained about it, Devdutta allegedly hit her on the head and kicked her several times, till the elderly lady fell unconscious and had to be admitted in hospital. An FIR was lodged against Devdutta at the Lake police station in Kolkata under relevant sections of the IPC.
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Salem VA Medical Center
Extended Care and Rehabilitation
About the Program
Geriatrics and Extended Care (GEC) provides a spectrum of services for eligible Veterans enrolled in the system. An interdisciplinary team - comprised of physicians, registered nurses, social workers, dietitians, clinical pharmacists, occupational and physical therapists, and psychologists - work together with the Veteran to determine their goals and needs with a goal of maximizing function and independence. Care, treatment, and services are provided in both inpatient and outpatient settings, with the majority of care, treatment, and services provided in outpatient programs to support the wishes of the Veteran to live at home or in their communities as long as possible.
Services Offered
Inpatient Care:
- Community Living Center (CLC)
The Community Living Center (Wards 2-2 and 2-3) provides care to eligible Veterans with chronic stable conditions and to eligible Veterans requiring rehabilitation or short term specialized services following amputation, stroke, injury, surgery, or chronic mental health or medical illnesses The goal of the CLC is to restore the Veteran to maximum function, prevent further decline, and maximize independence.
The Hospice and Palliative Care Unit, which is embedded on CLC Ward 2-3, provides care for terminally ill Veterans in a supportive environment staffed with nursing, psychology, chaplaincy, social workers, recreational therapists, and provider specialties. Hospice and Palliative Care collectively represent a continuum of comfort-oriented and supportive services for persons with advanced disease. Programs emphasize the comprehensive management of the physical, psychosocial, social, and spiritual needs of the patient and include bereavement care for the family. Call extension
- Respite Care
Respite Care is a program providing temporary relief for caregivers, thus supporting caregivers in their ability to maintain the chronically ill Veterans in the home. The respite care benefit provides respite services to eligible Veterans for up to 30 days in a calendar year.
Home and Community Based Care:
- Home-Based Primary Care
Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) provides comprehensive interdisciplinary in-home primary care for Veterans with complex medical, social and behavioral conditions for which routine clinic-based care is not effective.
- Community Adult Day Health Care
The Contract Adult Day Health Care Program is a therapeutic day care program, which provides medical and rehabilitation services to disabled veterans in a congregate setting. Adult Day Health Care is part of the basic benefits package. Veterans must be enrolled in the VA system for their health care and meet the clinical admission criteria.
- Community Nursing Home Care
The Community Nursing Home Program is designed to assist the Veterans and their families in making the transition to the community from hospital care, CLC, or domiciliary care. For many, placement will represent an interim period of care pending completion of arrangements to return to their own homes, community residential care facilities, or homes of relatives or friends. Others may need to remain in the nursing home indefinitely.
- Purchased Skilled Home Care
Purchased Skilled Home Health is short-term health care services that can be provided to Veterans if they are homebound or live far away from VA. The care is delivered by a community-based home health agency that has a contract with VA.
- Home Respite Care
Home Respite Care is a service that pays for a person to come to a Veteran's home or for a Veteran to go to a program while their family caregiver takes a break. The respite care benefit provides respite services to eligible Veterans for up to 30 days in a calendar year.
- Home Hospice Care
Hospice Care is comfort care provided to Veterans who have a terminal condition, with less than 6 months to live, and are no longer seeking treatment other than palliative care.
- Community Residential Care
Community Residential Care (CRC) is the monitoring, supervision, and assistance, in accordance with a statement of needed care, of the daily living activities of referred Veterans in an approved home in the community by the facility's provider. CRC is not a required service under the VA Medical Benefits Package but offers an alternative to institutional placement for some Veterans. The Veteran is responsible for paying any charges by the community residential care facility, but VA provides the quality and safety oversight through a CRC program coordinator and one or more case managers.
- Homemaker/Home Health Aide Service
A Homemaker or Home Health Aide is a trained person who can come to a Veteran's home and help the Veteran take care of himself and his daily activities. Homemakers and Home Health Aides are not nurses, but they are supervised by a registered nurse who will help assess the Veteran's daily living needs. This program is for Veterans who need skilled services, case management and help with activities of daily living. Examples include help with bathing, dressing, fixing meals or taking medicines. This program is also for Veterans who are isolated or their caregiver is experiencing burden. Homemaker and Home Health Aide services can be used in combination with other Home and Community Based Services.
- Home Telehealth Care
Home Telehealth involves the ongoing monitoring and assessment by Care Coordinators (Registered Nurses) of selected Veterans' medical conditions through telehealth technologies to enhance Veterans' health and prevent unnecessary and inappropriate admission to institutional care - including nursing home placement.
Visit the Guide to Long Term Care: http://www.va.gov/GERIATRICS/Guide/LongTermCare/index.asp
Contact Info
Salem VA Medical Center
Inpatient Care: Building 2, 2nd and 3rd Floors
Home and Community Based Care: Building 12
Contact Number(s)
- 540-982-2463 Ext. 2502
- 888-982-2463 Ext. 2502
Hours of Operation
- Mon-Fri 8:00am-4:30pm


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Posts Tagged: Training Your Pet
Crates are Great! Why Crate Training Your Pet is Important
Whether you've just adopted a sweet little puppy or your adult dog is ready for additional training, crate training is one of the best methods of instilling confidence and good behavior in your pet. When your pet is properly trained, crates provide a sense of safety and security and are an invaluable tool when house-training your pet.
While the team at Oakhurst Veterinary Hospital highly recommends crate training for both cats and dogs, there are a few things you should know beforehand. Keep reading to learn more about crates and their purpose and how to get your pet to cozy up to his or her own little "den."


text: I'm leaving tomorrow morning for my yearly trip to the Dragon. Last year I was on a Triumph Thruxton (which I owned for, oh, about 6 weeks), this year I'll be on something a little more suited for the long trip up there, my H-D Road Glide. Just got the bike cleaned up...packing as I type this...I can't wait!!


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Here is an article that I read from February of this year.
Panic Does Not Make for Good Policy
Roger N. Lancaster, a professor of anthropology and cultural studies at George Mason University, is the author of "Sex Panic and the Punitive State."
Sexual violence, like other forms of violence, is traumatic and devastating. The question is not whether the state has an interest in preventing such harm, but whether current laws are appropriate and effective.
The U.S. legal landscape was reshaped by federal laws passed in the mid-1990s, in response to heinous but statistically unusual crimes involving stranger abduction, rape and murder. The Wetterling Act required convicted sex offenders to register with local authorities, and Megan's Law required law enforcement to notify neighbors about the presence of a sex offender in their community. As a result, all states now post searchable online lists of at least some categories of registered sex offenders. The U.S. Department of Justice links all the states' registries in a single searchable site, available to neighbors, employers, landlords and the public at large.
Just laws are supposed to deter crime, apply proportionate punishment and rehabilitate offenders. U.S. sex offender laws fail on all three counts.
These public lists do include some violent repeat offenders, which was the original aim of the laws. But the registries have grown rapidly — to nearly three-quarters of a million registrants at latest count. Culpability and harm vary greatly in the offenses for which people are registered. Some states require exhibitionists and "peeping Toms" to register. By best estimates, a large majority is registered for conviction on first offenses involving neither violence nor coercion (or even, in some cases, physical contact). Many registrants would not be classified as criminal under European laws, which set lower ages of consent than do American laws. Registrants even include minors who had consensual sex with their high school sweethearts, or who traded self-taken sexually explicit photos with their peers ("sexting").
Other laws go further still. Civil commitment procedures allow for the indefinite detention of sex offenders after the completion of their sentences. Many states require some sex offenders to be monitored for life with electronic bracelets and global positioning devices. A 2006 law, the Adam Walsh Act, established a federal pilot program to use global positioning to keep an eye on sex offenders.
Meanwhile, "child safety zone" laws in more than 20 states and hundreds of municipalities restrict where a sex offender can live, work or walk. California's Proposition 83 prohibits all registered sex offenders (felony and misdemeanor alike) from living within 2,000 feet of a school or park, effectively evicting them from the state's cities and scattering them to isolated rural areas.
Such provisions were promoted as applying to the "worst of the worst," like child rapists and violent repeat offenders. In practice, they turn expansive classes of people into pariah outcasts who can never be reintegrated back into society: adults who supplied pornography to teenage minors; young schoolteachers who foolishly fell in love with one of their students; men who urinated in public, or were caught having sex in remote areas of public parks after dark.
According to classical precepts, just laws are supposed to deter crime, to apply determinate punishments in proportion to real harm, and to rehabilitate offenders. U.S. sex offender laws fail on all three counts. They violate basic legal principles and amount to excessive and enduring forms of punishment.
What is to be done? We could start by repealing the most excessive punishments. Child safety zone laws, in particular, are tantamount to practices of banishment. Courts have already blocked implementation of these laws in some locales, and state legislatures or city councils have modified them in others.
Sex offender registries, which were opposed by civil libertarians from the start, are probably here to stay; so, too, the civil confinement laws, which allow the government to lock up individuals after their sentences. Both have been upheld by the Supreme Court.
But we could revisit the registries' public notification clause — which, studies show, is costly, ineffective and may even encourage recidivism by shutting ex-offenders out of employment and housing and giving them "nothing to lose."
Closed registries, available only to law enforcement professionals and social workers, could be substantially scaled back, to exclude minor offenders and focus on repeat offenders who have committed serious offenses. (This is essentially the way the British system works.)
Slowly, piecemeal, we can begin to revisit our tendency to criminalize broadly and to punish excessively. Over time, we can work out an approach that avoids the Scylla of sex panic and the Charybdis of rampant child exploitation.
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People need to realize and understand that these laws are not fair. Where there is no "real victim", when there is no violence, laws have to be readjusted. We need to put the focus back on serious offenses and give people a chance. Especially when their punishments are unfair to begin with.


text:
Defending Mrs. Halas
|When school officials replaced Valerie Halas as the adviser to a hard-hitting high school newspaper, her students went to court to get her back.
"It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." So wrote Supreme Court Justice Abe Fortas in Tinker vs. Des Moines Independent Community School District, a landmark decision from 1969 that guaranteed public school students a right to symbolic, nondisruptive political expression.
Mary Beth Tinker was an 8th grade student in 1965. She and four other students decided to wear black armbands to protest the war in Vietnam. The school district, however, enacted a policy forbidding students to wear armbands for that purpose. The students did so anyway and were promptly suspended. Tinker challenged the district's policy, arguing that it violated the free speech clause of the First Amendment, and, in a 7-2 decision, the high court agreed. "School officials," Fortas wrote, "do not possess absolute authority over their students."
In 1988, however, the Supreme Court changed course, ruling that school administrators could legally censor certain articles that appear in school-sponsored newspapers. Stu-dents at Hazelwood East High School, near St. Louis, had prepared a package of stories focusing on teen pregnancy, divorce, and the plight of runaways. But the school's principal objected to the articles and blocked their publication. Three of the students sued, saying their First Amendment rights had been infringed. The case--Hazelwood School District vs. Kuhlmeier--eventually made its way to the Supreme Court, where, in a 5-3 vote, the censorship was upheld. "We hold," Justice Byron White wrote, "that educators do not offend the First Amendment by exercising editorial control over the style and content of student speech in school-sponsored expressive activities so long as their actions are reasonably related to legitimate pedagogical concerns." Despite the vagueness of its language--what exactly are "legitimate pedagogical concerns"?--Hazelwood became the law of the land.
Thirty years after Tinker and 10 years after Hazelwood, four high school students in Blue Springs, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City, have filed a federal classaction lawsuit claiming their First Amendment rights--and those of all students at Blue Springs South High School--were infringed by the actions of school administrators. But Jon David et al. vs. Board of Education of Blue Springs is quite different from those earlier cases. While Tinker and Hazelwood involved specific acts of censorship, the student plaintiffs in this case are making much broader allegations. David, the 16-year-old editor of the Jaguar Journal, the Blue Springs South student newspaper, and three of his fellow students--Rick Raven, Kandace Callwell, and Matt Sevart--claim that their rights were violated when administrators removed the paper's longtime faculty adviser, Valerie Halas, and replaced her with another teacher who, the students allege, exercises considerably more control over what can be published. Under Halas, Journal staff members made all of the decisions about what went into the paper. Halas, a veteran teacher and former attorney, encouraged them to write about events and topics beyond the walls of the school, and they often pursued controversial stories--stories that the principal didn't like. Removing Halas from her job, the students argue, was a form of censorship, a way for administrators to control the content of the paper and make it a public relations vehicle for the school.
Says Raven of Halas, "As long as the stories were well-written, she'd let you print them. But that's not true anymore. Now, if it's a story that makes the school look bad, it's not going to get published."
The students' claims are unusual, says Mike Hiestand, a staff attorney with the Student Press Law Center, an advocacy group based in Arlington, Virginia. "Typically, students file suits when a spe-cific article is censored. But the courts have made it clear that school officials are not allowed to do indirectly what they can't do directly. Unfortunately, the courts have also made it clear that they don't like to second-guess administrators."
In the suit, the students are asking for at least $10,000 in actual damages, unspecified punitive damages, and attorneys' fees. Initially, they sought to have Halas reinstated, but at a preliminary hearing in December, the judge presiding over the case refused to do that. If Halas wants her job back, he said, she'll have to wage her own battle. The school district, which denies the allegations, has won a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, but the students are planning to appeal the ruling.
Whatever the outcome of the Blue Springs case, it reflects the fundamental tensions of teaching student journalism in the post-Hazelwood era. Since the court's ruling in that case, journalism advisers have increasingly found themselves caught between the demands of school officials, who generally don't want to see controversial or "negative" stories published in the school newspaper, and students, who are often more than willing to fight for their First Amendment rights. Many administrators assume that Hazelwood gives them carte blanche to control the content of school newspapers, and advisers who encourage students to practice tough but fair journalism risk losing their jobs. "As a result of the Hazelwood decision," Hiestand says, "the amount of protection you get as an adviser depends completely on whom you work for. I have a lot of admiration for these folks. They really put their jobs on the line."
Halas, who continues to teach English at Blue Springs South, says, "I think that I would still have my job as newspaper adviser if I had said, 'We're going to print nothing but happy talk.' But I know I couldn't live with myself."
Sitting at a conference table in the office of their lawyer, Jon David and Rick Raven seem like students any teacher would want in his or her class. They're bright, articulate, and well-informed. Both say they get mostly A's and B's on their report cards. David is the more soft-spoken of the two. When he speaks, however, his words are laced with sarcasm, giving him the air of someone much older. Short and thin, with close-set eyes and straight brown hair, he's dressed casually in baggy dark-brown pants and a beige long-sleeve shirt. Raven, 18, is more talkative, but he seems less cynical about the whole affair. He's wearing blue jeans and a blue-plaid flannel shirt. Both have large bright-blue class rings on their right hands.
Halas, they say, was a great teacher and a great adviser. "She taught us about real journalism," David says. "We made all content decisions in the paper. She said, 'It's your paper. You do what you want. I just advise you, make suggestions.' She prepared us for the real world."
Halas, 44, has been teaching for 17 years. An intense but engaging woman with curly brown hair and piercing hazel eyes, she has a law degree and practiced law for several years before returning to the classroom. She began teaching English and journalism at Blue Springs South in 1990, and she is certified to teach journalism in Missouri. As newspaper adviser, Halas taught two classes: beginning and advanced newswriting. Students in the advanced course produced the Jaguar Journal, although Halas allowed some students not enrolled in the class to work on the paper.
|"I think when you do not provide legitimate sources for students' voices," says Valerie Halas, "they find illegitimate sources."
The teacher encouraged Journal staff members to write not only about school news but also about larger societal issues. She insisted, however, that such stories be "localized"--that is, focused on how the issues affected the local community. And it was one of those stories, David and Raven say, that first brought the ire of school administrators.
In the spring of 1996, Journal staff members attended an American Cancer Society press conference in Kansas City on the dangers of smoking. Among other things, they learned how easy it was for minors in Missouri to buy cigarettes, even though such sales were illegal. When the students returned to school, they decided they would see just how easy it was.
Jeremy Gates, then editor of the paper, told Halas they wanted to do an undercover investigation in which students would attempt to buy cigarettes from local businesses. The resulting story would be part of a special edition of the Journal devoted to the topic of smoking.
"I said, 'Let's not, OK?' " recalls Halas, who was worried that the school's principal, Dennis Littrell, might not support such a story. "They said, 'Oh, Mrs. Halas, it's a really great idea.' Well, I knew it was a really great idea. So I told them to go ahead and do it." But first, she says she informed one of the school's assistant principals--who now says that never happened. Halas also contacted the local police to make sure it wouldn't be against the law for her students to purchase cigarettes. It wasn't, she was told; it was only illegal for businesses to sell them to minors.
"We got our parents to sign permission slips," says Raven, a 15-year-old freshman at the time, "and then we went out to buy cigarettes." Raven was accompanied by Gates and 16-year-old Missy David, Jon's older sister. (Both Gates and Missy David have since graduated from Blue Springs South.) "Of the eight stores we went to," he says, "two of them, Hy-Vee and Price Chopper, sold cigarettes to us."
When Littrell found out about the story, he refused to let it run. Now the district's director of secondary education, Littrell would not comment for this article. But at the preliminary hearing in December, he said he killed the story because he did not know about it beforehand and because he was concerned about students at Blue Springs South "participating in an illegal activity as part of a class project."
Halas appealed Littrell's decision to deputy superintendent Paul Kinder. "He said the story could run," she recalls, "but only if we took out the names of the businesses that sold the cigarettes." Kinder, according to Gates, "left us with the impression that he didn't want to hurt the school's relationship" with the two businesses because they had donated money to the school.
But Gates and the other Journal staff members wanted to use the names. And they decided that if they couldn't do that, they would, Gates says, "make a statement" by printing the headline "Two Area Businesses Sell Cigarettes to Minors" above a large blank space in the paper.
Halas told the students it was their call. "She made it clear that she would stand by us no matter what," Raven says, "but she wouldn't influence our decision in any way."
Meanwhile, the students contacted Mark Goodman, executive director of the Student Press Law Center. "We didn't think the school could get away with censoring the article," Goodman says. "We strongly encouraged them to go public with the incident, to go to the local media."
Halas recalls, "The students were livid, absolutely livid. Well, I was too. I was so angry I couldn't see straight." But she had reservations about the students taking their story to the press. "I told them, 'You may win the battle but lose the war.' And that turned out to be a prophetic statement. I said, 'This stuff may get published, but then they'll remove me and put somebody else in. So let's just think about this.' I was pushing for running it without the businesses' names, which was kind of chickening out. But when I look at the situation now, maybe that's what we should have done."
The students, however, had already made up their minds. They sent out copies of the newspaper, along with press releases saying they had been censored, to local news outlets. Reporters soon descended upon the school, which suddenly found itself at the center of a most-unwelcome controversy. "School Paper Locked in Censorship Battle," read the April 9 headline in the Kansas City Star. The local Blue Springs Examiner went so far as to name the two businesses that had sold cigarettes to the students. With that, the school district relented and allowed the Journal to publish the story in full. The stated reason? "The information"--that is, the names of the two businesses--"is already out there," district spokeswoman Yvonne Evans told the Star.
To the Journal staff members, it was a clear-cut victory. "Instead of allowing the school district to censor the article without question, we stood behind our story until it was finally published," wrote Jeremy Gates in the Bolt Reporter, an online newspaper for teenagers that publishes stories censored by high school administrators. Gates and Missy David, who co-wrote the cigarette story, each received a $500 scholarship from the American Cancer Society. Gates won an additional $1,000 from the organization for an editorial he wrote about the affair. And the Student Press Law Center honored the Journal with its annual Scholastic Press Freedom Award.
But Halas suddenly found herself being scrutinized by the administration like never before. And it became increasingly clear that Littrell, the principal, was dissatisfied with what he was reading in the Jaguar Journal.
A bout two weeks after the cigarette article appeared, Halas was informed that she would be evaluated in her role as newspaper adviser. "I thought everyone else was going to be evaluated, too," she says, "but it turned out that I was the only one. None of the other teachers were evaluated in their extracurricular capacities." Over a period of one month, she was evaluated three times by the school's activities director.
Halas received top marks in all but two categories. In the bureaucratic language typical of such reports, her evaluation in those areas said that she "usually maintains a successful public relations program" and that she "usually maintains appropriate program supervision." (If she had received top marks in these categories, the evaluation in both cases would have dropped the qualifier "usually.") In the report's comment section, the activities director wrote: "[Halas] does not always keep the administration informed of developments within the program. . . . Parent permission slips need to be used for all activity trips where transportation is not provided."
Halas, however, had met the district's "performance expectations" in seven other categories, and her contract was renewed. About the same time, she also received tenure.
For the next two years, Halas continued to teach journalism the way she always had, giving her students discretion in determining the content of the Journal. "I tried to impart principles of sound journalism," she says. "I believe it is the students' newspaper. I believe we gain nothing by attempting to control what the students cover. I think when you do not provide a legitimate source for students' voices, they find illegitimate sources. But some people were unhappy with some of the articles in the paper."
Last spring, when a teacher at the school resigned, the Journal staff members decided to write a story. Littrell caught wind of it and asked Halas to come to his office. "He wanted to know why we were doing a story on a teacher leaving," Halas recalls. "And I said, 'Well, it's news, and this is a newswriting class, and this is a newspaper.' And he said, 'What do you mean it's news?' And I said, 'Well, you don't usually have teachers leave in the middle of the school year.' And he said, 'Oh, it happens all the time.'
"Well, it doesn't happen all the time. He said, 'If you have to do a story on it, why do you have to mention that the teacher's leaving? Why can't you just write about the new teachers coming in?' But that was what was interesting--this teacher was being replaced by two new teachers. He said, 'I just don't want to open up the newspaper and see 'Teacher Resigns' on the front page.' "
The story ran. "It was innocuous," Halas says. "But looking back, I think that was the death knell for me."
About the same time, the Jaguar students wondered why the German club wasn't being allowed to visit a local middle school during school hours to perform skits and recruit club members for the following year. "I thought they were making a mountain out of a molehill," Halas says, "but I told them, 'Well, just go ask. I'm sure there's a perfectly logical reason.' " So the students made some phone calls. When Littrell found out about the story, he fired off a memo to Halas asking the teacher why the Journal students seemed "continually on the search for subject matter that they can build into a controversy?"
"It would appear to me," he wrote, "that 'dirt' is the criteria for a Jaguar Journal article. Whatever happened to the idea that a high school paper should highlight all the positives that the students are involved in?" Then he proceeded to list a number of stories that he thought the newspaper should be covering, stories mostly about Blue Springs South students that had been honored for one reason or another. He told Halas that he wanted to see a "more positive slant to our student paper. . . . We do not need to be the Enquirer." He encouraged the teacher to "take some time and seriously consider a change in the current philosophy of the paper."
At the preliminary court hearing, Littrell said, "My concerns were not necessarily [about] the articles that were written, but my concern was the articles that were not being written." He cited an instance when the paper ran only a back-page photo of a student receiving a certificate to note the fact that more than 30 seniors were about to graduate with 4.0 grade-point averages.
Littrell went on to explain that he had conveyed to Halas his concerns about the paper, but that she had reiterated her belief that the Journal is the students' paper and that "they had the right to determine what was in that paper and what was not." To the principal, that was like "a history class where the students decide not to study the Depression because it's not interesting and they want to just study World War II." Nonetheless, he and Halas "agreed to disagree" on the matter.
Then, last spring, Halas was told that she would be evaluated as newspaper adviser again. This time, the evaluator would be Littrell himself. The principal gave Halas top marks in eight of the nine categories. However, he concluded that she "usually maintains a successful public relations program"--instead of simply "maintains"--and added, "Parents, staff, and administration are kept informed of developments within the activity [but] there is no link between paper and administration to maintain a successful public relations program." He noted that he "would like to see more appropriate guidelines for supervision and decisionmaking." He also implied that, under Halas, the journalism program had an "insufficient number" of students but that the teacher does a "good job with small numbers."
"I thought it was his parting shot at me before he left," Halas says of Littrell, who was about to take a central-office position with the district. "I thought it was an unfair evaluation, and I told him so."
On June 25, Halas met with Littrell and Carole Gran, the district's assistant superintendent for human resources. Littrell told Halas that he was recommending that the teacher's "extra duty" contract as newspaper adviser not be renewed. According to Halas, Littrell said his decision was based not only on his evaluation but also on his dissatisfaction with the content of the Journal. "He said, 'Why does there have to be anything negative in the newspaper?' "
Indeed, at the preliminary hearing, when Scott Turner, the students' lawyer, asked Littrell if Halas was removed from her position because of the "tone and content of the newspaper," the principal replied, "That would be correct, yes."
Halas left the June 25 meeting feeling "empty and shocked."
"I couldn't believe this was happening," she says. "I knew I was the most qualified person in our building to teach journalism." She drove straight to the office of her husband, a lawyer in Independence, and told him what had happened. Then she went to the library, where she checked out a book called My Mother Lost Her Job Today. The Halases have two children, a 5-year-old son and a 1-year-old daughter, and she hoped the book would make it easier to explain to the boy what had happened.
At first, Halas kept the news to herself and her family. She sent a letter to Littrell and Gran asking for a second chance. "I outlined everything I had done since that first below-expectation performance evaluation," she says. "But I got a very terse response back from Carole Gran saying that the decision had been made."
Eventually, Halas' students found out they had lost their adviser, and they were furious. David and about 15 others planned to hold a protest rally at the next school board meeting, on August 17. Armed with homemade signs that said "Reinstate Mrs. Halas" and "Don't Shoot the Messenger," the students marched in front of the Blue Springs administrative offices, shouting, "Bring back Mrs. Halas, bring back Mrs. Halas." When the meeting started, they took their case inside. Former Journal editor Monica Moreland and two parents spoke on behalf of the teacher. One of the parents, Raymond Moore, said, "This smells of vengeance. It smells of retribution." But board President Dale Walkup called the matter a "dead issue."
"Her replacement has been hired," he said.
Meanwhile, the students had been contacted by Scott Turner, a 32-year-old lawyer based in Independence. Turner had never worked on a First Amendment case--he and his partner, Patrick Campbell, specialize in personal injury and criminal litigation--but as a third-year law student at the University of Missouri at Kansas City, Turner had written his thesis on the Hazelwood case. Now, as he read news accounts of the dismissal of Valerie Halas, he concluded that the students at Blue Springs South were the victims of indirect censorship.
"I thought they were being treated unfairly," he says. "This wasn't a pure personnel issue on behalf of the school district. It was an attempt to suppress what the students had to say. And I just thought that was wrong. Knowing that the students probably didn't have many legal avenues to pursue, I offered to help them out." He adds: "It was obvious to me that the motive behind removing Mrs. Halas wasn't because she was a poor teacher. It was because they didn't like what was being printed in the newspaper which she was in charge of."
A few weeks after the rally, David and some of the other Jaguar Journal staff members met with Turner at his office. "I told them that I thought they had good grounds for a lawsuit," he says. "I went over what I thought some of the pros and cons might be and that it was their decision to make." If any of the students decided to sue, Turner said, he would handle the case at no cost to them.
About a month later, he got a call from David. The Jaguar Journal editor, Rick Raven, Kandace Callwell, and Matt Sevart--with the blessing of their parents--had decided to take Turner up on his offer.
F iled this past November in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, the nine-page lawsuit accused the school district of "suppressing and prohibiting the speech of plaintiffs by removing faculty adviser Valerie Halas," and it asked for a temporary injunction reinstating the teacher to her adviser post.
But at the preliminary hearing in December, Judge Dean Whipple denied the request. "The students have no right to any particular teacher," Whipple ruled. If Halas wants to bring suit against the district, he told Turner, she's free to do so. But "these students don't have any standing to bring that request."
Turner also asked for a court order designating the Journal as a "public forum for student expression." It is a crucial distinction, because, according to Hazelwood, student newspapers that are so-deemed--even those that are part of a school's curriculum--are entitled to stronger First Amendment protection. Turner called to the stand David, Raven, Littrell, and Kimberly Mauck, Halas' replacement as journalism adviser, in an effort to prove that the Journal was no longer being run as a public forum, as he believed it had been under Mrs. Halas.
Under questioning, Littrell admitted that since April 1996 the Journal's masthead had stated, "The Jaguar Journal is a public forum for student expression. Student editors make all content decisions." (The students had added the language after the cigarette imbroglio.) But Littrell said he never noticed the change until more than a year later; and, besides, the paper was not a public forum because he had final authority over it. In an affidavit, Littrell had said that one of his duties as principal was "to review, when necessary, final drafts of the Jaguar Journal prior to publication." On the stand, however, Littrell admitted, "I chose not to do that."
Raven told the court that, when Halas was ad-viser, Journal staff members were "the eyes and ears of the school," and they would vote as a staff to decide what stories ran in the paper. "Now," he said, "we bring it and we vote and then we're not sure if it's going to be published or not sometimes."
Turner asked, "Has Ms. Mauck ever refused to let you run a story that you have offered an idea for?"
Yes, Raven replied. Last fall, the school board approved a policy that would limit open discussion of personnel issues at board meetings. The policy change seemed to be a direct result of the August 17 meeting, at which parents and students protested Halas' removal. Raven and other Journal staff members thought the new policy would make, in Raven's words, "a really good news story."
"We voted. . . . and I don't remember if it was unanimous or not," Raven said, "but [Ms. Mauck] told me basically that we couldn't run it."
Mauck, however, testified that the students had voted not to run the story.
David cited another example. At the beginning of the school year, he had wanted to write a news story about what had happened to Halas. "I wanted to do an article," he testified, "but I knew that Ms. Mauck's job was on the line because she is not tenured, and so I didn't want to [get her in trouble]. So I decided to make it an editorial. . . ." The staff, he said, voted unanimously that the editorial should be published.
"After we took the vote," he said, "I showed it to Ms. Mauck, and I let her read it, and she told me that she would not let it go in. She said it wasn't timely. It had happened over the summer, so it didn't matter. But that was our first issue, and everything in it was about things that had happened in the summer."
A few days later, however, according to David, Mauck "had a change of heart and she said it could be a tribute to Mrs. Halas if I took out everything about the administration."
David rewrote the piece, but Mauck told him that it could only run as a commentary with David's byline and not as an unsigned editorial. At the end of his piece, David had written, "[Mrs. Halas] should be acknowledged for her efforts. Yet she has been reprimanded for doing so." According to David, Mauck cut the last line, so before the newspaper went to press, he put it back in. The teacher, he said, then called the printer and had the line taken out again. "She told me that it wasn't the tone that we were striving for, and she just said she couldn't trust me anymore, and if I did [something like that] again, I'd be pulled as editor."
Mauck defended her action. "We discussed [the piece] for some length," she told the court, "and. . . I said, well, why don't you maybe commend [Mrs. Halas] on her accomplishments because there were so many, and so he agreed, and we changed the last line." When she saw that David had put the line back in, "I changed it to what I had approved." (In her affidavit, Mauck wrote, "Since I became faculty adviser, there has never been a student-written article which has been refused publication by myself or any other administrator.")
To Turner, this was an obvious example of censorship. But Shirley Keeler, a lawyer for the district, argued, "This is a school-sponsored paper, and under Supreme Court decision and under the law as it stands today, there is final authority in the teacher of that class and principal of that building to exercise reasonable educational control. . . . Changing the masthead did not make this a public forum run by the students."
Judge Whipple agreed with Keeler. He ruled that the Journal was, in fact, not a public forum because it was part of the school's curriculum. Therefore, the district was within its rights to exercise editorial control over the paper. "I've seen no evidence . . . that any actions the school has taken haven't been for legitimate educational concerns," he said.
After the ruling, the district promptly filed a motion to get the case thrown out of court. About a month later, Judge Whipple did just that. On February 3, he ruled that the actions by school administrators met the Hazelwood test, saying they "clearly are related to 'legitimate pedagogical concerns.' " The students, he added, failed to demonstrate "any offensive policy or practice" by the district and "did not produce any evidence that [the administrators] acted unreasonably in the exercise of their educational obligations."
Blue Springs officials hailed the ruling. "We didn't think this thing had any merit to start with," says Julius Oswald, a district lawyer, "and the judge apparently agreed."
A disappointed Rick Raven said he and the other three student-plaintiffs will appeal the decision. "I don't think the judge heard enough evidence to make a ruling," he says. "The district said [the suit] was frivolous, but it wasn't. If we don't appeal, we're just caving in. And we don't want to do that."
Halas, meanwhile, won't comment on whether she intends to file her own lawsuit. "I'm weighing a variety of options," she says. Should she decide to sue the district, the teacher faces a tough battle, according to Mike Hiestand of the Student Press Law Center. "The courts," he says, "tend to give all the breaks to the employers, not the advisers."
Though Halas deliberately kept her distance from her students' lawsuit, she's proud of them. "You've got to admire kids who'll stick their necks out like that and say, 'We just don't think this is right.' "
I ronically, if Valerie Halas taught journalism just a few miles away, on the other side of the Missouri River, she would probably still be advising young reporters. That's because Kansas is one of six states to have a law protecting the free expression of students. And the law, known as the Kansas Student Publications Act, not only protects students, but also their advisers. Such employees, the law states, "are responsible for teaching and encouraging free and responsible expression of material and high standards of English and journalism. No such adviser or employee shall be terminated from employment, transferred, or relieved of duties. . . for refusal to abridge or infringe upon the right to freedom of expression conferred by this act."
Five other states--Arkansas, California, Colorado, Iowa, and Massachusetts--have similar laws. For the last six years, Bill Hankins, chairman of the Freedom of Expression Committee of the Missouri Interscholastic Press Association, has tried to get a similar law passed in Missouri. He'll try again this year. Meanwhile, Hankins, the longtime newspaper adviser at Oak Park High School, in Kansas City, is speaking out on behalf of his friend and colleague, Valerie Halas. "In my opinion," Hankins wrote in an op-ed in the Star last fall, "the Blue Springs administration is trying to censor the students through the firing of the adviser."
Like Halas, Hankins has always encouraged his students to practice "real" journalism. He calls the Journal's cigarette story "good, solid journalism," not unlike an investigation his students did about 20 years ago. Staff members of the Northmen's Log wanted to see how easy it was for minors to purchase alcohol, so they decided to go to liquor stores and find out. Hankins, aware of the potential legal problems, insisted that the students be accompanied by parents. The adults lingered in the background but stepped in when some of the stores sold the teens liquor. "I tell my students that there's no story they can't do as long as they do it well," he says, adding that he is fortunate to have the support of his principal. "Ultimately, you have to have a principal who's willing to stand by your side."
Gary Marx, spokesman for the American Association of School Administrators, believes that most school districts keep their hands off student-run publications. "When Hazelwood came down," he says, "we said--and we still say today--that while some school administrators may welcome the latitude to intervene in the operations of student newspapers, they should do so sparingly." And, he adds, "one of the best things schools can do to avoid problems is to employ good journalism advisers."
S ince the beginning of this school year, Jon David and his fellow staff members have published five editions of the Jaguar Journal. The December 22 issue featured a cover story about Blue Springs South students helping out needy families. Also on the front page was a story about a teacher who had recently adopted a 2-year-old Romanian boy. Inside, there were movie reviews, a review of R.E.M's latest album, a humorous commentary about substitute teachers, a story about how people from different cultures celebrate winter holidays, and a profile of varsity basketball coach Gil Hanlin. About the only hard-hitting story was a piece by Joey Dennis and Matt Sevart on the health dangers faced by wrestlers who go on crash diets to stay in their weight divisions.
Dennis Littrell, although no longer principal of Blue Springs South, is impressed by the new Journal, which now comes out once a month instead of every two weeks, as it did before. Last September, after the first issue appeared, he wrote Kimberly Mauck a memo. "You have captured what I always believed a high school paper should be," he wrote, "a paper about student accomplishments, student opinions, and student activities." The current principal, Keith Maxey, says he's satisfied with the newspaper.
But David and Raven say morale is low, especially among staff members trained by Halas. Kandace Callwell recently quit. David says, "I don't enjoy working on the newspaper at all anymore. I almost quit this week. We all did. But we decided to stick with it. The quality of the paper is awful, though."
"All the stories I've helped write or have written this year," Raven says, "I could have written in 15 minutes by walking around the halls for 10 minutes and writing for five. In the past, I'd have to do in-depth research, whether it was getting background information, statistics, or calling people all over to get their opinions. But that's not happening now."
Raven, who is also co-editor of the yearbook, hasn't lost his enthusiasm for journalism. He hopes to major in the subject in college, either at the University of Missouri or the University of Maryland. He's currently writing for the Blue Springs Examiner's teen page. "I love it," he says. Sevart, now the Journal's sports editor, also plans to go into journalism, and he says it's because of his former adviser. "Mrs. Halas was the best teacher I ever had."
David, on the other hand, doesn't think journalism is in his future. "Maybe if I had had Mrs. Halas for a couple of more years," he says. "But I don't think I want to. Now I'm thinking about law."
Halas says the Journal is "markedly different" this year. "It's very geared toward what's going on inside the four walls of the school," she says. If she were still adviser, she says, she would have urged her students to write about the impeachment and Senate trial of President Clinton. "I don't believe there's been anything about that this year," she says.
Although Halas continues to teach at Blue Springs South, school just isn't the same, she says. "It's sad for me sometimes." She misses the late nights working on deadline and the camaraderie of the journalism students. "My son said early this fall, 'When are we going to see Jon again?' He and the other staff members used to come to my house all the time. And that's just painful to think about."
"Last summer," she says, "before school started, my grandma said, 'You just go in there and hold your head up high. You didn't do anything wrong.' And I don't think I did anything wrong. I really don't." The administration, she believes, "didn't like the newspaper, so they said, 'Well, we'll just remove the adviser.' And I think that's censorship. I truly do."
Vol. 10, Issue 6, Pages 29-33Published in Print: March 1, 1999, as Defending Mrs. Halas
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As part of the Orlando Magic's continuing commitment to the fan experience and technology, the Magic, Chase and E15 Group (the tech and analytics subsidiary of Levy Restaurants), have integrated Apple Pay into the Amway Center. (Apple Pay is a new category of service that transforms mobile payments with an easy, secure and private way to pay.) The Magic became the first team in the NBA to offer fans access to Apple Pay, which debuted in Amway Center when they hosted the Utah Jazz on Friday, December 19.
Magic CEO, Alex Martins, said:
The Magic are committed to our fans and their experience, and are continually looking for ways to innovate in order to make that experience legendary. We are thrilled to join our partners Chase and Levy Restaurants to be the first NBA team to integrate Apple Pay into its home venue and specifically the Amway Center, the most technologically advanced arena in North America.
As of December 19, 2014, the Apple Pay option will be available at several Levy concession and Magic retail locations throughout Amway Center. Additional locations will be added throughout the season. In addition, patrons who use their Chase Card with Apple Pay will also have the opportunity to receive special offers and win Magic prizes.
Security and privacy is at the core of Apple Pay. When adding a credit or debit card with Apple Pay, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on the device used. Each transaction is authorized with a one-time unique dynamic security code, instead of using the security code from the back of the card.
Apple Pay will work with iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and Apple Watch, upon availability. Within apps, Apple Pay is compatible with iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3.
The Magic's commitment to the fan experience and engagement were recently enhanced through the team's technology efforts. In addition to Apple Pay, those efforts include the announcements of its new mobile application, which is currently available for download; the launch of iBeacons technology installed throughout Amway Center to provide fans the ability to receive instant communication and updates the moment they enter the arena; and the re-launch of OrlandoMagic.com to be more responsive to mobile and tablet applications. The Magic are also the first NBA team to sign a deal with FanDuel.com in the Fantasy Sports category.
For more information on Apple Pay, visit: https://www.apple.com/apple-pay/
Orlando's NBA franchise since 1989, the Magic's mission is to be world champions on and off the court, delivering legendary moments every step of the way. The Magic have seen great success in a relatively short history, winning five division championships (1995, 1996, 2008, 2009, 2010) with seven 50-plus win seasons and capturing the Eastern Conference title in 1995 and 2009. Off the court, on an annual basis, the Orlando Magic gives more than $2 million to the local community by way of sponsorships of events, donated tickets, autographed merchandise, scholarships and grants. Orlando Magic community relations programs impact an estimated 100,000 kids each year, while a Magic staff-wide initiative provides more than 7,000 volunteer hours annually. In addition, over the last 24 years more than $18.8 million has been distributed to local nonprofit community organizations through the Orlando Magic Youth Fund (OMYF-MFF), a McCormick Foundation Fund since 1994, which serves at-risk youth. Ticket highlights for the Magic's 2014-15 season in the Amway Center include: 2,500 seats priced $20 or less, 8,000 seats priced $40 or less and 9,000 seats priced $50 or under. For ticket information log on to www.orlandomagic.com or call 407-89-MAGIC.


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Mumbai: 5 gunmen still on loose
FIVE of the Mumbai gunmen may be planning further attacks after escaping, it was feared yesterday.
Security sources revealed that the gang who killed 188 people and wounded nearly 400 others may have had five more members than first thought.
Police originally believed they had killed nine of the 10 fanatics and arrested one, 21-year-old Pakistani Azam Amir Kasav.
But they discovered personal possessions including 15 jackets and 15 toothbrushes in a boat used by the gunmen to enter the city by sea.
The twist came as it emerged that the group which claimed responsibility for the Mumbai carnage has issued threats of further atrocities.
Intelligence officials have received an email from the Deccan Mujahideen warning of an attack on Delhi, targeting the international airport and three railway stations.
Details emerged amid anger over the security services' handling of the massacre and growing tension between the Indian government and Pakistan.
India said it had proof linking its nuclear rival Pakistan to the massacre and warned that it would raise security to a "war level".
But Pakistan's president, Asif Ali Zardari, appealed to its neighbour not to blame it for the three days of bloodshed.
In an effort to ease the tension, the White House said US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will travel to India tomorrow.
Ms Rice, in London yesterday to meet Foreign Secretary David Miliband, said countries had to do more than condemn terrorism – they had to help to root it out. It remained unclear yesterday whether the gunmen belonged to the Deccan Mujahideen or Pakistani-based Kashmiri separatists Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Mr Zardari said: "We live in troubled times where non-state actors have taken us to war before, whether it is the case of those who perpetrated 9/11 or contributed to the escalation of the situation in Iraq.
"Now events in Mumbai tell us that there are ongoing efforts to carry out copycat attacks by militants. We must all stand together to fight this menace."
The Indian government was forced to admit that, nine days before the attack, security services had a tip-off that Mumbai was to be targeted from the sea.
Intelligence officials say it was passed to the navy, coastguards and police, but the agencies claim they did not receive it. Some sources even said the Mumbai authorities were told in writing of a possible attack on the Taj Mahal hotel, scene of much of the bloodshed.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced a wide-ranging overhaul of the nation's counter-terrorism capabilities yesterday.
The state's chief minister offered to resign. His deputy has already gone, together with the home minister and national security adviser.


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Project Description
Match Details
Where: Forest Lake Sportsmen's Club
When: Wednesday April 25th
Match Fee: $20
Format: 3 Gun : Pistol / Rifle / Shotgun
Divisions: TBD
Rules: TBD
Registration: Walk On
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Match Brief
HAWKEYE IGNITE MATCHES are held at the Forest Lake Sportsmen's Club. Their MINI-3-GUN MATCHES are held on Wednesday nights and usually have 3-4 stages. Setup begins 3:30PM, shooter registrations begins at 5PM, match begins at 5:30PM (if set-up is complete), the match fee is $20. It is always recommended to bring 100 rounds for each gun plus 10 slugs (NO STEEL CORE AMMO). These matches use 3 Gun Nation Rules. They also host "not so ordinary" multi-gun matches such as the TREKKER and 3-MAN 3-GUN. Match contacts are Mark Stevens and Adam Maxwell.


text: URMC / Encyclopedia / Content Search Encyclopedia How Much Do You Know About CPR and Defibrillators? Sudden cardiac arrest is one of the leading causes of death in adults in the U.S. Knowing CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) may help you save the life of someone who goes into cardiac arrest. Learn more about CPR by taking this quiz, based on information from the American Heart Association (AHA). 1. When was CPR first developed? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is Although the technique of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation was used in biblical times, it was forgotten until the late 1950s, according to the University of Washington. In 1960, several doctors discovered that pressing on a person's chest could help circulate the blood in the body. The two techniques—mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compression—were then combined as CPR. In 2008, the AHA revised its guidelines to include hands-only CPR. This version uses only chest compressions. A. 1920B. 1942C. 1960D. 1971 2. How does CPR help when a person goes into cardiac arrest? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is When a person goes into cardiac arrest, the heart stops beating, or stops beating effectively. This halts the flow of blood, according to the AHA. CPR helps a small amount of blood to continue to flow to the heart and brain until the emergency medical help arrives. When done correctly, CPR can double or even triple a person's chance of survival. A. It starts the heart beating againB. It helps the blood flow to the heartC. It helps blood flow to the brainD. B and C 3. What's the first thing you should do before beginning CPR if you see an adult collapse and the person is unresponsive? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is According to the AHA, you should yell for help and call 911 before beginning CPR on an adult. Ideally, have someone else call 911 and get an AED while you begin CPR. If the victim is an adult who has been underwater, suffered trauma, or is intoxicated, begin CPR first, then call 911. Do CPR for about 2 minutes before calling. This is about 5 cycles of chest compressions and rescue breathing. Also follow this approach for babies and children. A. Remove the victim's beltB. Check the victim's mouthC. Call 911D. Call the victim's doctor 4. After calling 911, what is the next step in CPR on an unresponsive adult? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is The AHA says the next step is to begin chest compressions, pressing hard and fast in the center of the victim's chest. The recommended chest compression rate is 100 to 120 per minute. If an AED is available, use it. Continue until the person revives or help arrives. Give rescue breaths if you are trained in conventional CPR (chest compressions plus mouth-to-mouth breaths) and you are confident in your ability to give this type of help. If you are confident, do cycles of 30 chest compressions then 2 rescue breaths. Otherwise, do chest compressions without stopping. You don't need to check for a pulse before beginning CPR. A. Check for a pulseB. Check for breathingC. Begin chest compressionsD. None of the above 5. The faster that CPR begins, the better the chances of a victim's recovery. What is the critical time for CPR to begin? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is If you know CPR and stay up to date with your training, you'll be able to help a person within that critical time frame. A. Within 2 minutes after a person collapsesB. Within 5 minutes after a person collapsesC. Within 8 minutes after a person collapsesD. Within 10 minutes after a person collapses 6. How does an automatic external defibrillator (AED) help a person who is in cardiac arrest? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is The most common cause of sudden cardiac arrest is ventricular fibrillation (VF), according to the AHA. A heart in VF quivers and can't pump blood. A person in cardiac arrest needs CPR and defibrillation (shock to the heart). An AED and other forms of defibrillation stop the VF and allows normal heart rhythm to resume. A. An AED pumps bloodB. An AED shocks the brainC. An AED restores normal heart rhythmD. An AED helps the victim breathe 7. Who can use an AED? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is The idea behind the AED was to enable non-medical people to help in the rescue of someone in VF cardiac arrest. An AED is about the size of a laptop computer. You attach the AED to the victim, and the device automatically analyzes the heart rhythm. If a shock is needed, the AED makes that decision and tells you to stand away from the victim so the shock can be delivered. The AED gives verbal prompts to guide you through the resuscitation process. A. Police officerB. Emergency medical responderC. FirefighterD. Security guardE. All of the above 8. When should you stop doing CPR on a victim? You didn't answer this question. You answered The correct answer is If a person moves his or her arms or legs, the person most likely no longer needs CPR. Once emergency medical help arrives, they will take over the care of the victim. A. When the person begins to moveB. When emergency help arrivesC. When you are exhausted and unable to continueD. All of the above Your score was: Medical Reviewers: Fraser, Marianne, MSN, RN Perez, Eric, MD


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Merry Christmas!
I hope you are having a good one!
Yesterday (After I spent most of the morning cleaning my room, of course) I dressed all of my dolls in Christmassy (Or wintery, I only have so many red doll pieces.) attire. I was going to post about it last night, but didn't get a chance.
So first of all I undressed all the dolls thinking random thoughts like "I thought this was Abby, why am I doing Joy?" "How did I get so many dolls?" "Where is Mckenna? And Hope, and Faith, and…Oh, I forgot to get that shelf of dolls." Etc. Then I put the clothes away. Then I picked out sixteen Christmassy or winter outfits. (Actually I counted first. How did I get so many dolls?) Then I laid them out and dressed one doll at a time, picking an outfit for the doll as I dressed it.
And now here they are.
First of all, here is all of the dolls along one of the purple walls in my room. (We repainted last summer, and I love the walls being purple.)
As you can see, not all of the dolls are in red or green. I only have so many pieces of red and green doll clothing.
Now here are pictures of each doll next to my mini Christmas tree. It's blue, so not all of the outfits match, but whatever. The dolls are in no specific order, just the order the computer chose.
Here is Riley. I love the red of her hair against the outfit. (And the tree, and the wall, and the floor, you get it.)
This is Olivia. She is a doll I randomly got at the thrift store one day. I had a bunch of dolls I was going to give away, but that might not happen. Her dress came on an also thrift store doll, but it's perfect for Christmas.
Mia's outfit is kind of random, and I'm not sure I like it, but it's okay. She's wearing a tree skirt from the dollar store I bought a few years ago. It looked bad the first year, (It kept falling down, and there are probably pictures you could find of Mckenna in her underwear,) but I finally got it to stay, and it doesn't look bad now.
Mckenna refused to wear a skirt, or really anything nice, but she agreed to wear the green shrug. She wouldn't change into matching shoes, insisting that it was Christmas and she should be allowed to wear comfortable shoes.
In person Maria's shirt and skirt and shoes match, but not in pictures I guess. And her shirt looks a lot more like pajamas than I would like. It's festive at least…
Ooh, I love this picture. Nothing about Lea is Christmassy, but she looks nice.
The dress Kaitlyn is wearing I made a long time ago. I don't like it as much as I used to, but the fabric is perfect for Christmas.
Joy isn't looking at the camera, but I love this one all the same. She kind of looks like a dancer, which she's not, she's a writer, but it looks nice all the same.
Ha! I knew this dress would be useful for something someday. Jenny doesn't care if she looks old fashioned.
And, Hope is wearing rain boots. Why? It snowed here! (For the first time I can remember we got a white Christmas!!!)
I love this one. Grace is all blue. Even her earrings are blue, though you can't see them. And her shoes match the hat, which sparkles everywhere, and the sweater.
Callie! I love Callie. For Christmas, my little cousin received a doll from our Grandparents. Callie. My Grandma had asked advice from me on which one to get, and I told her that as far as off brand dolls go, I love the Journey Girls. So now my cousin has Callie too!
Kierra wanted to be in a picture with her sister. Her outfit doesn't match at all, but she insisted on wearing the leggings so she "wouldn't be cold." I don't know why she can't wear shoes, but no shoes for Kierra.
I finally have given up on Faith being older than the rest. She doesn't look like it, and none of my doll clothes make her look older.
For Eileen's outfit, it was the same as mine yesterday. Last year I made myself a red and green plaid skirt, and a doll one to match. Since Eileen is my mini me, she wore it, though the proportions are better on mine. Her outfit is mostly the same, except I had a black turtleneck, a necklace, and headband (Which was actually a necklace, and kept falling down, but was otherwise cool.)
And now Abby. Normally I don't like Abby's outfits or pictures very much, but I like this one a lot.
So there are my dolls in their Christmas outfits this year. I hope you enjoyed.
Merry Christmas!