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Former U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky discusses the significance of the WTO for China with host Daljit Dhaliwal.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Joining me now is Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky. As U.S. Trade Representative in the Clinton Administration, she negotiated the key trade agreement between the United States and China that paved the way for China's entry into the World Trade Organization last November. Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky, welcome to WIDE ANGLE. Can I start by asking you to connect the dots in terms of what we saw in the film and how it might impact up here in the United States?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, at its most basic level, of course, the United States is interested in China, for its economy and the importance of trade to the United States.
The U.S. is four percent of the world's population. Ninety-six percent of the world doesn't live here. But we hold about 20 percent of the world's wealth. If we want to increase living standards in the United States, let alone maintain our current standard of living, we simply have to have access to the 96 percent of consumers who don't live here. Where do they live? A fifth of the world lives in China. So on purely economic grounds, that market is extremely important to United States economic growth and to increasing our own standards of living.
But at a more fundamental level, when we look at China, what do we see? We see the world's most populous nation. We see a nuclear power. We see a country with the world's largest standing army. We see China as a permanent member of the United States Security Council. We see it increasing in strength as a regional leader in Asia, as a spokesman for developing countries generally. China has long been a presence but China is now a power. And as unthinkable as it would have been for the U.S. to ignore the Soviet Union, or to ignore Germany, or to ignore Japan, it is unthinkable for the United States, in terms of our own security, not just economic, but future security, to ignore China.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Now, you were pivotal in the WTO negotiations. Why was it important for the United States to be on board right from the beginning?
Charlene Barshefsky: They're really three reasons we pursued WTO negotiations with China. The first, of course, was economic. The United States has an extraordinary trade deficit with China. The concern is not so much Chinese imports into the U.S., it is the very little amount of U.S. exports to China. China is still a relatively closed economy; our goal was to open it up. The second reason really has to do with China's internal development. With or without WTO, China was long on a road of economic reform and market liberalization. We wanted to be on the side of that process, strengthening the hands of economic reformers and diminishing the powers of the hard-liners in China. And third, of course, is regional security and stability. China is of a scale almost unfathomable to Americans. If you took the population of all of North America, including the United States, and the population of all of South America, and the population of all of Europe, that's China. If you look at all of the people on our globe, one in every eight is a Chinese farmer. It is critical to global stability, to stability in Asia, that China be brought into the community of nations. That it be subject to the rules and disciplines the major powers are subject to. And we, of course, wanted to assist in that important effort.
Dajit Dhaliwal: China has spent something like 15 years knocking on the door of the WTO. What does it actually mean now that it's been accepted into this club?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, for China, in terms of economic reform, it means that it will continue on the path it began actually 20 years ago. What WTO accession will do for China's reform is probably to change some of the priorities of reform, making some reforms more urgent than others. But the reform process is one that began 20 years ago. I think for China, also being in the WTO means that it has greater predictability with its trading partners, and a way of resolving disputes that is legal. And this is a very important point, because, of course, strengthening the rule of law in China is a key goal.
Daljit Dhaliwal: When you were trying out the negotiations, did you ever feel that there was something of an air of desperation about the Chinese –that they were so keen and so eager to join?
Charlene Barshefsky: I don't think there was an air of desperation or that they were over-eager. I thought, actually, they were very tough negotiators and took relatively measured positions on most issues. But I do think for China it was important to be in the tent, not outside the tent. I think it's important for China and the Chinese leadership to help set the global rules of trade, not merely be subject to them at the whim of individual nations. And, of course, it was in our interest that China be subject to the rules, the same rules the other 144 major trading nations are subject to. So there was a mutuality of interest, and ultimately the negotiations came together, but not really until China was ready to imbed its economic reform program in rules that were enforceable internationally.
Daljit Dhaliwal: I just want to go back to our film a little bit. We saw some of the changes that you've talked about the ways in which the Chinese economy has been transformed beyond recognition over the past 20 years vis-a-vis the economic reforms that have been going on. Why do you think that suddenly the old way of doing things was no longer acceptable? Why did the Chinese leadership want to do away with the state owned industries, which had been serving them so well for so many years?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, I think the general perception in China had been that state-owned industries were a positive force. And in their early years, perhaps so. But what we see is something very different today. We see a state-owned industry sector that produces about a third of the income of the country, but sucks in two-thirds of all the loans made in the country. Meaning that a lot of money, a lot of public finance, is going to support a state sector that isn't producing that much for the economy, or certainly not as much as the money they're taking out of the economy. That's an extremely dangerous situation. It means money is frozen out of other needed priorities including creating a social security system and a social safety net. It means that productive businesses can't get money. It means that the banking system becomes insolvent when state enterprises can't repay the loans because they're unproductive. So reform was absolutely critical. Critical also, if China is going to compete on a world stage. Most of the state enterprises are technology poor, management poor, don't have the necessary expertise and sophistication to compete on a world scale. So both for financial solvency, but also for competitiveness, the Chinese have to modernize and that means, necessarily, they have to deal with a bloated and less productive state sector.
Daljit Dhaliwal: And did these changes take place across the board? Were there any areas which were unaffected by the changes?
Charlene Barshefsky: Changes have occurred, sometimes in piecemeal fashion. The area where change has been, I think, least progressive, is in the rural community. And I think your piece showed this very, very well. We see an agriculture sector in China that's in dire straits. Why is that problematic? China has 900 million peasants. Nine hundred million people live in the rural area in China. But only 10 percent of China's land is arable, suitable for farming. What do you do with 900 million people when only 10 percent of your land is farmable?
Daljit Dhaliwal: Indeed, what do you do with them? Was it a complete and total overhaul? Were there any sectors that were left untouched?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, reform, for the most part, has tended to be sporadic here and there, covering certainly many sectors, although in the area of property rights and property ownership, there's still substantial confusion. But the one area where we have seen, perhaps, less progress and less success is in the rural economy, both agricultural and industrial. China has 900 million peasants, but only 10 percent of China's land is farmable. What do 900 million people do on that 10 percent of the landmass of the country? Plainly, they can't all be farmers.
Daljit Dhaliwal: What is going to happen to those 900 million agricultural workers? What does the brave new world of the WTO mean for them? I mean, they were, after all, the pacesetters of the revolution.
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, you see some of that in your piece. You have a floating population from the rural centers to the urban centers. What needs to happen, of course, is that kind of transition in an orderly way. That is to say, the creation of jobs in the city for people who necessarily must leave the land, the land can't support 900 million peasants, as well as improvement in the agricultural sector itself, movement toward labor intensive crops, not land intensive crops, rural credit, things of that nature. The China you see today looks very much on the basis of many indicators, like Korea in 1970 or Malaysia in 1980. If you look at life expectancy, infant mortality, percent of the population that's rural rather than urban, you see Korea in 1970, Malaysia in 1980. And if you look now 30 years later at Korea, 20 years later at Malaysia, you have some sense of the potential direction of China and its reforms. And those reforms necessarily mean a movement from the rural areas and rural occupation to urban related occupation and increasingly urban areas.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But part of the problem is how do you manage the change. I mean, in an attempt to streamline the economy as a result of bringing forward the changes, what's actually happened is that you've seen mass unemployment. Now, how is the Chinese leadership going to handle the huge problem partly which we have highlighted in our film, not just with the migrants who have moved into the city, but also, to some extent, with farmers as well?
Charlene Barshefsky: This is where economic reform becomes so critical. China has to manage this transition process, as you rightly point out. It needs money to do that, it needs sound domestic policies to do that. It means there has to be a social safety net. It means there has to be job growth in more urban centers. It means increases in housing, increases in education, all of the elements that make for increasing standards of living. And the biggest challenge facing the Chinese leadership is how to manage this transition from a largely rural and peasant society to an industrial society. This is very, very complicated. But we know at least two things. Number one, it takes money. And number two, it takes very sound policy management. If you look at Chinese policies today, you see fiscal policies that drastically favor the cities over the farms. Even though it's the farmers who are putting in substantial funds into the overall tax structure of the country, they don't get that money back. The money goes to the cities. That's got to be rebalanced in an important way. So I think there are many different areas of policy that will have to change in China. But the biggest challenge will be managing this transition process so that it is not as destabilizing and occurs in a very orderly way.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But the problem is that it hasn't occurred in a very orderly way because it hasn't been managed especially well. And part of the problem may be that, as a result of joining the WTO unemployment was inevitable. That it was going to be a precondition of entry. What are your feelings on that?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, unemployment was becoming a substantial problem long before the WTO. In other words, with or without the WTO, China is in a process of modernization that developing countries go through. And with or without WTO, modernization results, for some, in dislocation. In the case of China, because the country is so huge, the numbers we deal with are so huge, the potential for dislocation is equally huge. Perhaps not relative to the size of China's population, at 1.3 billion people, but certainly in numbers to the American ear or to the European ear, the numbers are huge. They're vast. This process, though, is inevitable. For countries attempting to modernize. Which is why the management of that modernization is so important, and you're absolutely right, to date, the management of that process has been, perhaps, not as good as it could be.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But also, one of the other interesting things is that, when you look at the film, you see huge disparities in wealth and in lifestyle. Some clearly have a lot, and the vast majority is barely eking out a living. How do you explain that? Is that just down to sheer entrepreneurial spirit on the behalf of those who have everything? And what about the ones that don't? What happened to them, where did they go wrong?
Charlene Barshefsky: Certainly you see increasing income inequality between the urban centers and the rural centers. Urban poverty rates in China are about two percent; rural poverty rates range from perhaps 20 to 34, 35 percent. So there are massive differences leading, of course, to substantial income inequality between the rural and urban populations. This is not unique to China. The most income unequal country in the world is certainly not China. It's Brazil. China's income inequality is not so drastically different from the United States. So this is not a problem unique to China. But what is unique to China is the scale of the problem, because of China's sheer size. As well as this persistent policy of having always favored city development over rural development. And that has got to be smoothed out.
Daljit Dhaliwal: So how is the Chinese leadership, if I can just come back to this again, how are they going to try and narrow the gap?
Charlene Barshefsky: I think they are probably four or five areas of concentration for them. One is, of course, financial sector reform. Money is a finite resource. You have to put it to best use. And in the case of China, an element of best use is creating a social security system -medical care, pensions, unemployment, so on and so forth.
Daljit Dhaliwal: And to what extent has that been developed? Because there are many, many workers in China who don't have that safety net.
Charlene Barshefsky: You see some indications of sort of a rudimentary social safety net system beginning. But this is very rudimentary, it is not countrywide. It is under-funded. It is under-administered. So this is an area of great importance. We saw during the Asian financial crisis, take Korea, a developed country, we saw that in the case of many Asian nations, there is no social security system at all because the notion was lifetime employment. Your employer was your security. But absent lifetime employment, even Korea had no unemployment insurance. It had none of the elements that Americans tend to take for granted. And so Korea had to go about and create that system. China is so far behind in that area, but it's going to need to catch up. So certainly one area of concentration for the leadership would be financial sector reform. A second area, for the reasons we've already discussed, would be reform of the state enterprises. Third, of course, the rural development, agriculture reform as well as other changes in the rural environment, to make the rural economy mesh better with the urban economy so it's not so fragmented and separate and apart. And then two other areas -corruption, which is a huge problem in China, including among the state-owned enterprises, and development of a rule of law.
Daljit Dhaliwal: And has the issue of corruption actually exacerbated the problems between the haves and the have-nots who are very clearly illustrated in our film, with the woman who's a real estate developer, and people who are eking out a living, cutting logs? How are some able to achieve and others aren't? I mean, is it still very much a situation of greasing the right palms in China?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, yes and no. I mean, I can't comment on any individual case. But one of the things you do see is an extraordinarily flexible population. You see highly motivated individuals. They want a better education. I was completely taken in your piece by the children learning English, by the teenager, perhaps a teenager, who wanted to be a lawyer, she wanted to go to Harvard. This is extraordinary to me, absolutely extraordinary to me. It really points to perhaps the most positive direction in China. And that is, as we see, the teaching of English. So looking toward the West, whether to Europe or the United States, but looking towards the West as, perhaps, something to be emulated. The motivation of these kids was really quite astonishing. But we do know in the rural area, poverty rates have increased. And we know that the biggest problem is wage arrears and illegal taxation, quite apart from what the state does the illegal taxation of the peasant population, often by corrupt officials. This is a huge problem. It is destabilizing to the rural population. It is what led the Ministry of State Security, about a year or two ago, to report almost 200,000 incidents of labor unrest in the rural population. This kind of illegal exaction of taxes and over taxation of the rural population is extremely dangerous for China.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But the labor unrest isn't just a question about illegal taxation. It's also a question about people who have expectations about what their life is going to be about, that they were going to be taken care of from cradle to grave.
Charlene Barshefsky: Yes.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Where does this leave China in terms of its stability, and what does that mean, as a consequence, for the WTO and anybody who chooses to trade with China, the United States being a perfect example?
Charlene Barshefsky: Right. It is very important for the U.S. to see stable China. A disintegrating China is nothing other than a sea of massive instability in Asia. And if you look at the last half-century, we fought three wars in Asia. So it's very important to see stable China. And it is very important for China to get its economic house in order as a basis for that stability. In the U.S. view, in our view, the WTO accession was one element of, perhaps, a broader program of engagement with China, of trying to nudge China in the right direction on economic reform as well as other forms of reform. One of the reasons we put into the WTO agreement with China very substantial transition periods – nothing happens right away under WTO – there are long transition periods for the opening, gradually, of China's economy, was because we didn't want to be destabilizing in any way. Reform was occurring, sporadic, sometimes very dramatic in nature. WTO accession should actually help to even out that process somewhat and keep China moving in the right direction economically. And by right direction I mean a more open, a more fluid environment for China's people. But not in a way to shock the system. As many previous reforms had been. So this was one of the bases on which we structured the WTO agreement, and that was to give China time and to make the transition as smooth as possible, recognizing, if we look again at Korea or Malaysia, this transition is very difficult. We see it in our own history in the United States, moving from the land and farms to urban centers and industry. This is a wrenching, wrenching transition for any country, for most countries. And for China, given its scale, all the more so.
Daljit Dhaliwal: The Chinese premier, Zhu Rongji, said an interesting thing, and I'll just read it to you very quickly. "Everybody's happy about entry to the WTO, but I'm not that elated, because I'm worried." Now, could the disadvantages outweigh the advantages if the situation isn't handled properly?
Charlene Barshefsky: Certainly I think he's reflecting a general concern that China be able to manage the process of economic modernization well. And I think Zhu Rongji is pointing out the fact that China has not always been that successful in managing that process. He is certainly concerned about unrest in the rural community, labor unrest, unrest among farmers. He's concerned about job creation in the cities, not only for the urban population, but for this floating population of people who come from rural areas into the cities. And he's worried about not just keeping pace, but also of creating additional economic growth, and new jobs for new entrants into the labor market, which number in the tens of millions every year. So the task is very, very large. I think that WTO entry is one more challenge in a series of challenges that the Chinese economy faces, but even without WTO, the economy would be facing all of these extraordinary challenges.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But if the economic situation doesn't get any better, and China has to apply the brakes to its reforms, are you worried that it could actually pull out of its WTO commitments, where would that leave everybody?
Charlene Barshefsky: I don't think it will pull out. I can see instances where China might not comply with a given obligation or where China attempts to slow its rate of compliance with obligations, not to breach them, but to slow it down.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Are they doing it already?
Charlene Barshefsky: A little bit, in some areas. We see this a little bit in agriculture, clearly because of a concern about additional rural dislocation. So I think we'll see some of that. But will China wholesale pull out of the WTO? I don't see that at all.
Daljit Dhaliwal: So what is the new contract that the Chinese government has with the Chinese people, if the old one has been torn up, what has it been replaced by?
Charlene Barshefsky: I don't think we know. And I don't think …
Daljit Dhaliwal: That's terrifying.
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, I don't think the Chinese know. They believe they're moving toward a more market-oriented economy, a more competitive economy. They believe they're moving toward greater individual autonomy with respect to job decisions, decisions about education, with respect to where one wishes to live in the country. I think they are moving toward a basis for sustainable economic growth, and I think they are looking for a way to leapfrog development – to absorb technology at a very high rate so as to leapfrog this typically very lengthy development process. Shorten it, and make it, perhaps, less painful in the long run, if not in the short run.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Well, when you were negotiating with your Chinese counterpart, did you ever get a sense of how far they were prepared to go to achieve reform? I mean, did they realize then the sacrifices that the Chinese people would have to make, and if they had known that, would they have taken a slightly different route? Did they have any choices?
Charlene Barshefsky: I think they were well aware of the potential sacrifices. I think the leadership made a series of very difficult economic decisions much as the U.S. in the 1980s made some very difficult economic decisions which were terribly dislocating in our own country. And I think there's something further. That is, there is, to some extent, a tradeoff – between, on the one hand, the leadership wanting to modernize and liberalize the economy and on the other hand, the state retaining iron clad control. There's a tradeoff there, too. That ironclad control gets breached. And I think the leadership knows that as well.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Okay, so here we have China, a country that is going through sweeping and painful changes. But there's a lucrative market out there for American business. What should they be doing to seize the opportunity?
Charlene Barshefsky: Sell. (Laughs)
Daljit Dhaliwal: Everything?
Charlene Barshefsky: American businesses operate best in a stable legal environment. That makes China tough. On the other hand, we see U.S. exports to China, even though the base is small, increasing more rapidly than our exports anywhere else in the world. Agricultural producers in the U.S. are taking advantage of a little bit more open Chinese market for agriculture.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Well, what are they exporting? I mean, are we going to be exporting everything from oranges in California to cars made in Detroit and the Chinese consumer is going to be lapping it all up?
Charlene Barshefsky: Absolutely. Before WTO entry, we sent about 20,000 kilos of oranges a year to China – largely through Hong Kong. Now we send 300,000 kilos of oranges from California – as well as wheat, soybeans, corn …
Daljit Dhaliwal: Rice?
Charlene Barshefsky: Rice is certainly allowed. I don't know offhand if we're exporting much rice. But certainly China will remain, even if it has bumper crops in a given year, it will remain in that agricultural importer because it has so little land, for agriculture. But for the U.S. agriculture, anything technology related, computers, cell phones, anything of that nature, those are important areas. Our services providers, our financial services providers, insurance services, architecture, construction, engineering are tremendous opportunities.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But what kind of companies are we talking about and what kind of jobs will this create in what states in the U.S.?
Charlene Barshefsky: I don't know which states, but the way we structured the WTO agreement, we had our eye on the company that wanted to export to China from the U.S. We did not have our eye as much on companies that had the wherewithal to invest in China, because if they're able to invest in China, they'll do that on their own. We were more concerned about companies on shore in the United States, who would like to export to China, but couldn't get into the market either because of Chinese middlemen, who prevented them from getting in, or because the Chinese economy was so restricted, it was too expensive to get in. And many of the barriers that had come down on WTO accession earlier on, are those that relate to export oriented industries from the United States, whether in the consumer goods sector or capital goods sector or heavy electrical equipment, things of that sort.
Daljit Dhaliwal: So it really was a brilliant deal for the United States, but not such an excellent deal for the Chinese?
Charlene Barshefsky: I think it's a good deal all around. In other words, the process of economic modernization is not an easy process. And as I said earlier, when you compound that with the scale of China and the hundreds of millions of people affected, this is very, very difficult. But surely, our economic policy toward China can't be based on the notion that China's 900 million peasants should remain peasants. So for the United States, the growth of China, increases in stability in China, is important, and we want to be sure that that happens in a way that is sustainable for the Chinese. It's very, very difficult, but I think the deal itself is pretty much a win-win. It helps China's reformers cement reform in an orderly way, in a more methodical way, and hopefully a less disruptive way. It weakens the ability of hard-liners to pull China back. We don't want to see China go backward. We certainly don't want to see China isolate itself from the global community. If we look at China's modern history, those are the periods of greatest repression.
Daljit Dhaliwal: How is the WTO going to deliver all of that? I mean, that is a pretty tall order.
Charlene Barshefsky: Oh, I don't think WTO alone delivers it. But WTO is one facet of what's a broader relationship between China and the West and between China and her neighbors. But as a win for China, WTO, I think, assists in that reform effort in an orderly way. And as a win for the United States, WTO, among other things, helps to provide to American exporters and American companies a market that had been closed and isolated.
Daljit Dhaliwal: You say it's a win-win situation, okay, we have this vast market with over a billion Chinese consumers. But what kind of real spending power do they have? I mean, we saw in our film the huge disparities between the haves and the have-nots who are just barely eking out a living.
Charlene Barshefsky: Right.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Earning something like, what, 35 to 40 cents a day?
Charlene Barshefsky: Right.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Where is this huge market?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, I don't think that huge market is there yet. I think the world has waited for this huge market since Marco Polo. That's a long time to wait. But what we do see is an emerging urban population that is very large and reasonably well off. China's urban population, just the urban population, is the size of the United States. Add the 900 million peasants, and you get all of China. But the urban population alone is very large. You're talking 280 or 300 million people. They have money to spend and over time, will have more money to spend. And with perhaps better income distribution over time, we will see China become increasingly a larger and larger customer. China is already a critical customer for its Asian nations, buying more goods from its Asian neighbors than Japan, which is a far wealthier country, one of the richest in the world. We see China becoming a more important market for the Europeans, as well as for the United States. We're all able to sell there because China's richer today than it was 10 years ago. And 10 years from now, it'll be richer still. Is it going to be a massive market instantaneously? Absolutely not.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Do we have a time scale, do we know how long it will take?
Charlene Barshefsky: I think we're talking generations – at least one, perhaps two. Economies don't change that fast. Growth doesn't happen that fast. Distribution of income on a more equitable basis doesn't happen that fast. We have to look at China at this point as simply one stop on a continuum. Just as Korea in 1970 doesn't look anything like the Korea of today. China is right there at that point. And it'll continue to move. The real test of China's reform process, of WTO, of China's relationships with its neighbors, in Asia in particular, the real test of success will be to look back, not a year from now, not two years, but 10. And then 10 again. And then 10 again.
Daljit Dhaliwal: So what kind of advice would you give to Americans who were looking to go into China and set up businesses there? Do you think that there's some kind of criteria that they need to fulfill?
Charlene Barshefsky: I think businesses that set up anywhere abroad have to always be cautious. Look at the market, look at the requirements of the market. Look at the experience of other businesses that have set up. Look at the legal structure. Look at the political stability and political risk. There are any one of a number of factors, all of which pertain to China. What gives China a special allure for most businesses is the market size, but that alone, also for most businesses, is rarely enough, and most make these decisions on the basis of a variety of factors, and that's exactly right. That is to say, to go in just on the basis that there's over a billion people, but to have no system of contract, no system of law, to have no infrastructure to get your product to market, well, you haven't made a very good deal for yourself. So it's a question of looking at all of the factors, knowing where to locate, in what areas of China, knowing who your customer market is. Who is it that you're trying to serve? Is that realistic? Are those people as per your last question able to buy? Do they have the money? Can the government be of assistance to you, or will they be a hindrance to your operation? All of those things have to be looked at carefully and scoped out well before one would be advised to put an investment in China.
Daljit Dhaliwal: As far as American businesses go, in the short term, which has already benefited as a result of doing business with China? We know about the example of the orange growers. Are there other examples that you can give us?
Charlene Barshefsky: Certainly among the larger companies, whether banks or insurance companies, they have already begun to benefit. If we look at our high tech sector, both large and small specialty companies have benefited because China is in such need of mid-level technology goods, PC related, net related. And there you see a real good mix of large and small companies, some who operate in China, many that operate from the United States to China. Those would be two sets of examples.
Daljit Dhaliwal: And I also wanted to develop the idea about the contract that the Chinese leadership has with the Chinese people. What are your thoughts on that? What is the new contract?
Charlene Barshefsky: I think we don't know what the new contract is. Certainly the Chinese leadership looks on its relationship with the people as one where providing economic growth is the foundation, one where modernization is key to raised living standards. I think it looks on its contract as being complicated by, on occasion, lack of adequate funding and lack of adequate management expertise.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Do you think that the Chinese people are aware of whatever this new contract is, if there isn't one in place?
Charlene Barshefsky: I don't think so. I mean, one has to keep in mind …
Daljit Dhaliwal: Does that worry you?
Charlene Barshefsky: No, I think this is more an evolutionary process. I don't think that China, which wants to move from a command and control economy toward a market economy, and it's been trying to do that now for 20 years, and it will take many, many, many more years for that to happen. I don't think China is in a position to necessarily call that contract by any given name, or any given type. Except that the regime knows that its legitimacy rests largely on a foundation of economic growth and economic improvement for its people. And that's the motivating force. That will be a constant. The question is how best to achieve that growth and how can that growth be spread through the country so that China remains internally stable.
Daljit Dhaliwal: I just wanted to come back to the question of American jobs. Some of the labor unions said that American companies would shut down at home and they would just move abroad to China because it was a lot cheaper for them to operate out there. What are your feelings on that?
Charlene Barshefsky: Certainly American companies, long before WTO, could move operations to China. China's always been quite welcoming, certainly in recent years very welcoming of foreign inward investment, and it soaks in more foreign inward investment than any other country other than the United States.
Daljit Dhaliwal: So that's something that you would encourage?
Charlene Barshefksy: No. All I'm saying is that China has long welcomed that inward investment. So companies have always had the option to do that. I mean, labor was concerned, of course, about any attendant U.S. job loss, but it's very difficult to know what companies would do because of WTO versus what they were, in any event, able to do, and wanted to do, given China's size and its prominence in Asia.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Well, there were some figures that came up for job losses in the United States and the figure that I've managed to sort of glean has been 800,000 over the next few years. What do you make of those figures?
Charlene Barshefsky: Oh, I don't think those figures are supportable at all. I didn't think they were at the time of the debate. Bare in mind, WTO opens the China market. It doesn't alter the U.S. market. It doesn't alter conditions of trade for people in the United States vis-a-vis imports into the United States. Indeed, the WTO agreement protects the U.S. market. We were very conscious of putting in certain protections, lest Chinese exports surge into the United States. Protections for the U.S. and U.S. workers that didn't exist before. Since 1972 when Richard Nixon went to China, we've been saying to China, "Open. Integrate more with the West. Move in our direction. Don't remain isolated." Now when China says, "Okay," should we have turned our back and said, "No?" It's unthinkable.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Well, one of the problems with that, perhaps, is that we know that China has an appalling human rights record. I know that you're very much in favor of engaging China. Is that just economically, or did the aspect of the political engagement come up as well?
Charlene Barshefsky: Well, my job was economic in nature. But one of the reasons I said that WTO was only one facet of a larger picture and a larger means of nudging China in the right direction is that programs, with respect to human rights, religious freedom, worker freedoms, are terribly important. The United States must stand firm on the importance of improvements in all of those areas. This has to be a critical feature of our engagement with China.
Daljit Dhaliwal: There are no guarantees that economic changes are going to bring about democracy in China and that China is going to release its dissidents. I mean, that is speculation.
Charlene Barshefsky: No that is absolutely speculation. I've always been cautious about claims that economic opening leads to democracy. But I'll tell you this, if there is a means of moving China, maybe not to democracy, but to greater political pluralism, if there is a means, it will be economic in nature. It won't come from the political side it will come from engagement, economic engagement with the West. The beginning of Western values in China -the net, and telecom market opening from WTO, where the average Chinese person can get online and get information from anywhere in the world.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But the Chinese government is actually trying to suppress that in some respects.
Charlene Barshefsky: Oh, good luck, good luck. The technology will win on that one. My only point is, if we're to have a hope of not sameness for China with the West, but greater compatibility in economic and political system with the West, it'll come first through economic engagement because that's the form of engagement most dear to the hearts of the average Chinese. They want better lives. And it is the form of engagement most important to the Chinese regime because its legitimacy derives from economic success. And once that economic door's open, and once that information flow, particularly through modern telecom, comes in, and there's exchange then you may have, and no one knows, but you may have the basis for a further opening of the political system.
Daljit Dhaliwal: It sounds like you're almost predicting the death knoll of communism there.
Charlene Barshefsky: No, I would never I would never suppose I know the outcome. Jonathan Spence, who's probably the leading U.S. historian on China, has a wonderful book where he talks about everyone's intentions for China, everyone's designs. And he talks about the Jesuit missionaries. And he talks about the Common Turn agents. And he talks about all of the people, Europe as well, all of the people who thought that they could direct change in China.
Daljit Dhaliwal: But that must be a wonderful American ideal, isn't it?
Charlene Barshefksy: Ah, but they all found that, while they might be able to set certain events in motion, they could never predict the outcome.
Daljit Dhaliwal: That's up to the Chinese people.
Charlene Barshefsky: It's up to the Chinese people. I think former President Clinton used to say it exactly right, that is, we can't make choices for the Chinese people, but what we can do is to try and increase the number of options available from which to choose. That's the role of the United States in this process with China. If we can help to expand the number of options available to people, the number of choices, they will choose whatever it is they decide to choose. But I think we will have contributed to a further opening of this vast country.
Daljit Dhaliwal: How much of a threat could an unstable China pose to its neighbors, and also to the international community?
Charlene Barshefsky: A disintegrating China would clearly be of substantial concern to the international community and to the regional community. Economically, of course, for the region, China has become a major importer of goods. If it's unstable internally, that may lead to economic decline in the region. If we look broader, we see China, the world's largest standing army, a nuclear power. Look at who its neighbors are – India, a nuclear power, Pakistan, a nuclear power and its third neighbor, Russia, a nuclear power. We don't want to see instability in that region let alone instability in the world's most populous country in that region. It's extremely dangerous for the United States and for the world at large.
Daljit Dhaliwal: And also the ongoing situation in Taiwan, as well, would be of tremendous concern to the United States.
Charlene Barshefsky: Absolutely, which is why the United States has always insisted on a peaceful resolution of the discussions between Taiwan and China with respect to Taiwan's position and the One China policy. Peaceful resolution is critical because, again, any additional instability in that region, particularly involving China, can have horrific global consequence.
Daljit Dhaliwal: Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky, thank you very much for joining us here on "Wide Angle."
Charlene Barshefsky: It's been my pleasure.


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American Legend Cooperative unifies the business of mink farmers in the United States and Canada. ALC's marketing tactic is to supply the world's finest mink. The Cooperative is owned by 220 members and was established to better meet the needs of the consumer ensuring quality control across the board as well as more efficient and effective marketing of their mink pelts. ALC has marketing office based in Seattle, Washington, USA. Global representatives are employed in Kastoria, Montreal, Moscow, Seoul, Shanghai, Stockholm and Tokyo.
The company is the world's oldest fur auction house and a global powerhouse at marketing fine fur. American Legend® and Blackglama® are both exclusive to ALC. These products are a symbol of class – a statement of style. European mink, North American Wild Fur, and North American and European farmed fox are also available. It was the first American auction house to offer Russian sable.
Mink are indigenous to North America having been raised there for over a century. An evolution of the art of mink production has given American Legend the right to call it's fur the best in the industry. Scientific research in genetics has led to innovation in the harvesting of minks as more colours and finer quality furs are possible. North America farms 10-12% of the world's mink crop. Mink fur from this region has a shorter nap resulting in a superior quality preferred by the markets.
MORE INFORMATION AT www.americanlegend.com/

subset: commoncrawl


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It may still be a bit chilly for late March here in OKC, but we have two new hot jobs this week to warm you up! Check out these marketing and HR jobs.
Marketing Specialist
American Fidelity's marketing team seeks a marketing specialist with five to seven years of experience and a bachelor's degree in marketing, business or related discipline. This position will conceptualize and produce print and electronic marketing collateral such as brochures, web pages, ads, emails, flyers and presentations. Candidates need both copywriting and design skills from work experience or education.
In addition, this position will manage projects, develop new marketing tactics and assist with branding. Candidates should be proficient in Adobe Creative Suite and Dreamweaver and preferably have experience with HTML emails, web content management and Wordpress.
HR Representative
The HR representative will join American Fidelity's Corporate and Human Resource team and provide expertise on HR policies, procedures, programs and benefits. They will respond to basic questions regarding our HRIS system (UltiPro), assist with special projects and manage Colleague records.
Candidates should have three to five years of office experience with one to three years of HR experience. They should have Customer service skills, maintain composure in difficult situations and treat others with empathy and diplomacy.
Current Openings
Check out American Fidelity's other OKC job openings and field sales positions and learn about our hiring process.


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Enabling environment for sustainable land management (SLM) to overcome land degradation in the cattle corridor of Uganda project
What is the project about
To address the worsening conditions of land resources in the rangelands, UNDP supported Government of Uganda overcome land degradation in the cattle corridor. This project's overall goal was to enhance sustainable land management providing the basis for economic development, food security and sustainable livelihoods while restoring the ecological integrity of the Cattle Corridor ecosystem.
The objective of the project was to provide land users and managers with the enabling policy, institutional and capacity environment for effective adoption of SLM within the complexity of the cattle corridor production system.
This was achieved through:
- Strengthening the policy, regulatory and institutional environment support sustainable land management in the cattle corridor (in particular policy and legislation for sustainable charcoal and the security of tenure strengthened),
- Developing and utilizing knowledge based land use planning forms basis for improving dry lands farming and pastoralism for sustainable economic development,
- Facilitating local economic development facilitated through diversification and access to finance and insurance.
The project was implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries focusing on 2 districts of Nakasongola and Kamuli in the cattle corridor of Uganda.
What have we accomplished so far
The project accomplishments include;
- Five policies relating to institutional and regulatory arrangements for sustainable charcoal have been reviewed and a Policy brief on policy framework for charcoal prepared and presented to energy sector policy makers to guide revision of existing policies.
- Fifteen charcoal producer associations have established constitutions stipulating rules and regulations for managing charcoal production and marketing processes and they are actively enforcing them amongst themselves as part of efforts to control cutting down of trees.
Who Finances it?
A Global Environment Facility (GEF) funded project worth a total of US$ 4,230,730 including US$ 1,830,730 from GEF and US$ 2,200,000 co-financing partly from the Government of Norway through UNDP Dry lands Development Centre and UNDP core resources, the extra USD 200,000 was from Government of Uganda.The project started in 2010 and ended 2013.


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Loopmasters KV Bala Krishnan Tabla Sessions WAV REX | 1.25 GB
Loopmasters present KV Bala Krishnan - Tabla Sessions – the definitive Tabla percussion collection, featuring the overflowing talents of our in house percussion guru. A host of warm, authentic percussion awaits you, bursting with life and perfect for enriching your music productions.
Loopmasters have once again teamed up with renowned Indian percussionist KV Bala Krishnan to put together this supreme collection of Indian percussion. Tabla Sessions brings you the finest collection of traditional Indian instruments, expertly recorded and played by a musician who lives and breathes music and the eternal groove.
You'll hear the sounds of Tablas, Finger Cymbals, Salangai, Dholak, Tambourine and Cabas – as well as pre mixed ensemble loops to bring it all together. With an abundance of construction kits in a variety of musical keys and tempos, you have a world of rhythmic possibilities. Each individual construction kit is tempo-synced and key-labelled for immediate playability within your existing tracks, or as inspiration for something new.
World class Indian percussionist KV Bala Krishnan has delivered another awe-inspiring percussion masterclass - performed with the verve and flair that only a true virtuoso can bring. For producers worldwide looking for authentic royalty free Indian samples to integrate into their productions, this is the pack you need!
In detail expect to find 1.73GB of content with 478 individual 24 Bit Wav files. 478 Loops include 231 Tabla Ensemble Loops, 95 Tabla Loops, 8 Finger Cymbal Loops, 58 Tambourine Loops, 45 Cabas Loops, 8 Shaker Loops, 19 Dholak Loops, 13 Salangai Loops and 1 Triangle Loop. 496 Rex2 loops are also included. This pack is available in various different formats; see the prices for more details.
Home Page - http://www.loopmasters.com/genres/36-Percussion/products/5309-KV-Bala-Krishnan-Tabla-Sessions
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What is the distinction between an audio editorial and a podcast?Nidesoft Video ConverterNidesoft Video Converter is a powerful video exchange software program which could convert video and audio information between both popular codecs corresponding to convert AVI to MP4, MP3 to WAV, WMV to MPEG, MOV to AAC, and so forth.
Below is a Wiki page with some of Stewie's greatest quotes. For precise audio clips, your finest wager is youtube.
You can't, Itunes music is a safe pillar format solely available apple made audio/video gadgets and licensed computer systems.
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BOSTON -- Massachusetts mothers gave birth to 71,484 children in 2015, and while the teen birth rate and other public health indicators are trending positively the Department of Public Health warned in a report released last week that racial disparities remain.
The 71,484 births represented a 0.5 percent decline from 2014 and a 22.7 percent decline in the number of births since 1990, according to the DPH report. Massachusetts mothers also continue to get older - the number of births to women under the age of 30 declined by 3.2 percent while the number of births to women 30 or older increased 1.4 percent, the report said.
For the fifth year in a row the teen birth rate in Massachusetts declined to its lowest recorded level -- 9.4 births per every 1,000 women ages 15 through 19, according to DPH. In 2011 the teen birth rate was 15.4, and the 2015 data represents a 39 percent decline in teen births between 2011 and 2015.
"While this is a significant decrease in a five year time period, disparities remain, with Hispanic teen birth rate more than seven times that of white non-Hispanic teens," DPH wrote in the report.
According to DPH, white non-Hispanic mothers gave birth to 718 babies in 2015, for a birth rate of 4.5 births per 1,000 women ages 15 through 19. Black non-Hispanic mothers gave birth to 286 children in 2015, for a teen birth rate of 14.4 births per 1,000 women ages 15 through 19. And Hispanic women ages 15 through 19 gave birth to 1,044 children in 2015, for a teen birth rate of 32.
A racial disparity also exists with the adequacy of prenatal care. DPH's report found the percentage of black non-Hispanic mothers who had adequate prenatal care decreased in 2015 to 69.3 percent, the lowest level in 20 years.
The percentage of white non-Hispanic women who received adequate prenatal care was 85.1 percent, 82.8 percent for Asian mothers, and 77.6 percent for Hispanic women, according to DPH.
The percentage of women who self-reported that they smoked during their pregnancy declined in 2015, from 6.4 percent of women in 2014 to 5.5 percent in 2015, and DPH noted that smoking during pregnancy was "disproportionately higher" among white non-Hispanic mothers.
Though Massachusetts mothers gave birth to 71,484 babies in 2015, a total of 71,988 babies were born into the Bay State, DPH said. Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston delivered the most babies, 6,428, and 438 babies were born either at home, on the way to a hospital or in a doctor's office.


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What that minigame will look like remains to be seen however. Nintendo Land is a themepark game that features minigames based on many of Nintendo's most popular franchises, from Animal Crossing to The Legend of Zelda.
In the screenshots above and below, you can see that Samus Helmet is used as an icon in the game's main hub, as well as in the list of icons representing each of the minigames contained in Nintendo Land (including several that have yet to be revealed outside of the icon).
Even more blatant is a giant Ridley robot/statue that walks around the Nintendo Land theme park hub, and Samus Starship which flies around the theme park!


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Paul Jones remains Penn State's No. 2 quarterback behind Matt McGloin, though true freshman Steven Bench took a significant step forward in training camp.
Head coach Bill O'Brien said that Bench "definitely closed the gap" on Jones during preseason camp. Bench's performance was strong enough to earn him a co-No. 2 listing on Penn State's depth chart for Saturday's opener against Ohio University.


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Kontak Kami
Bagikan informasi tentang DELL Optiplex AIO 5250 i3-7100 4GB 500GB 21.5 Non Touch LINUX kepada teman atau kerabat Anda.
DELL Optiplex AIO 5250 i3-7100 4GB 500GB 21.5 Non Touch LINUX
Specification :
Dell OptiPlex 5250 AIO / Intel Core i3-7100 (DC/3MB/4T/3.9GHz/65W) / 21.5″ FHD Non Touch with Camera / 4GB (1x4GB) 2400MHz DDR4 / 500GB 2.5inch Serial ATA (7,200 Rpm) Hard Drive / 8x DVD+/-RW 9.5mm Optical Disk Drive / Intel Integrated Graphics / Intel Dual Band Wireless AC 8265 (802.11ac) 2×2 + Bluetooth / USB Optical Mouse & USB Keyboard / Ubuntu Linux / 3Yr ProSupport: Next Business Day Onsite Service
Available with Windows 10 Pro – for a smooth, versatile PC experience.
Brilliant from every angle: Witness stunning clarity from every pixel with a 21.5″ Wide Viewing Angle WLED display with Full HD (1920×1080) resolution.
Operating System: Windows 10 Pro
Feel the difference: The optional ten point multi-touch screen allows you interact with your tasks, so you can pinch, drag, and swipe your way to success.
Created for collaboration: Experience superb collaboration capabilities thanks to integrated speakers, a dual array microphone, and an HD web camera, along with Microsoft Skype for Business certification. Cooperation and communication capabilities for both video and telephone conferencing have never been more seamless.
Power your success: Equipped with up to 7th and 6th Gen Intel® processors for comprehensive Operating System support.
Work remotely, with confidence: Optional Intel® Standard Manageability technology allows for remote out of band management capabilities for increased productivity and support.
The latest technology: With up to 32GB of DDR4 at 2400Mhz memory, a variety of storage solutions, including high performance solid state drives, and optional next generation AMD discrete graphics, the 5250 All-in-One delivers a powerful and efficient work experience.
Less clutter, more versatility: This flexible AIO offers multiple wireless options, while streamlining all connections to one single plug for a cleaner and more functional workspace.
Design your workspace: Articulating and Height Adjustable stand options allow you to alter the position your monitor for optimal comfort and productivity.
Stay connected with ease: Multiple port options improve the way you work by creating an easy and centralized way to connect and share from your devices. Optional Bluetooth and 802.11ac 2×2 wireless LAN enable you to work without wires. Packed with Six USB ports, including a side USB 3.1 Gen 1 with PowerShare that conveniently charges other devices even while the system is powered down. Standard Media Card Reader SD4.0 allows for fast data transfer from a variety of memory cards.
Multiple ways to display: DisplayPort and HDMI ports provide modern digital connectivity for multi-display usage so you can view more information on screen without minimizing or closing applications.
Easy access: With a tool-less design, the 5250 All-in-One is easy to maintain and upgrade, maximizing return on investment.
1. Depth 6.09 cm (2.4″) | 2. Width 52.78 cm (20.78″) | 3. Height 36.30 cm (14.29″) | Weight 6.32 kg (13.90 lbs)
1. Depth 6.01 cm (2.37″) | 2. Width 52.78 cm (20.78″) | 3. Height 36.30 cm (14.29″) | Weight 7.06 kg (15.53 lbs)
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Progress and Gaps in Workforce Diversity
7/10/2013, 9:52 a.m.
Despite a difficult economy, a new report from the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries shows that minority participation rates in apprenticeship programs are holding steady. Though the report shows some promise it also showed that African-American men's registration into the trades and retention levels lagged behind those of white men.
In a statement responding to the report's findings, Oregon Labor and Industries Commissioner Brad Avakian said, "Our state can create a healthier economy by investing in a stronger, more diverse workforce. While it's encouraging to see women and minorities participate in construction apprenticeship programs at higher levels, especially during a difficult economy, there's still a lot more work to be done.
On Sunday, the Oregon House of Representatives voted 59-0 to expand a Career Technical Education Revitalization Grant Fund with $7.5 million, in part with the hope to better close the minority gap in these professions, officials said.


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Last Friday (27 August 2010), we held the first DCU Business School Practicum Day. Starting at 8.30am, students on the MSc in Business Management and MBS in Marketing programmes displayed "research" posters, presented and answered questions regarding their major summer assignment, a group practicum.
A practicum is an assignment designed to give students supervised practical application of previously studied theory. In DCU Business School, we offer MBS in Marketing and MSc in Business Management students the choice of undertaking a individual dissertation, which is largely an academic piece of research, or a group practicum. We source practicums from a wide range of organisations, business and not-for-profit, and initial ideas for projects are presented to students via Moodle in February. The students make proposals for these projects and start working on them in March. A report of work completed is submitted at the end of July. Later in August, student groups present their project for 25 minutes to two assessors who then question them on their project. Feedback is provided on this interview and students then present their "research poster" and present and answer questions from an audience of peers, faculty and other guests for 10-15 minutes.
This year 22 groups presented their projects, which fell in to four main themes:
- Original business plans – business ideas that students have identified, research and prepared business plans for.
- Irish e-Business Marketing – marketing projects for Irish e-businesses
- International Marketing – marketing projects for Irish businesses typically involving an international aspect
- Local Businesses and Projects – marketing practicums for organisations located on the Northside of Dublin
In addition, two MSc in E-commerce (Business) groups presented their original business plans relating to online mannequins and mobile apps. (The MSc in E-commerce (Business) is a jointly offered programme with the School of Computing and has a separate presentation day earlier in August.)
Overall the day was very enjoyable and interesting. It gave students both the opportunity to (i) clarify issues raised or unaddressed from their report and interview and to (ii) see and appreciate the efforts of their peers. As well as students, guests including faculty, industry, other members of the University, incoming students and parents attended. All were impressed with the quality and volume of work. Unlike dissertations, students have the opportunity to address a real-world problem with a live client or indeed pursue their own business idea.
As every business and context was different, approaches and projects varied dramatically and really brought individual competences to the fore including ideation, industrial design and digital marketing skills. The DCU Business School Practicum Programme also gives the Business School an opportunity to engage with the wider business community and forms a central part of our civic engagement strategy.
This year the projects had a strong digital marketing element and the students ably demonstrated their skills in integrating a wide range of activities including:
- online market research
- applying marketing strategy frameworks e.g. STP, SOSTAC etc.
- direct e-mail
- blogging e.g. WordPress, Blogger
- microblogging e.g. Twitter
- social networking e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace
- digital advertising e.g. Google Adwords, Facebook Ads, LinkedIn, Boards.ie
- online PR and social bookmarking e.g. Digg, Reddit, Mixx, Del.icio.us
- social media platforms e.g. Hootsuite, Tweetdeck
- media distribution e.g. YouTube, Scribd, SlideShare, Flickr
However, digital marketing was not the only focus. Work on best practice tendering process, brand communications and sales training featured strongly as well as the financial planning skills inherent in any business plan. All groups presented well and confidently fielding difficult and awkward questions at times. It struck me that from a communications perspective, they had all managed to reduce over 10,000 word reports to 25 minute presentations then to 7 minute presentations and then ultimately one page – no mean feat! And at the end of the day, I certainly was satisfied that these students can hit the ground running in the job market with both the theory and practical skills need in today's economy.
The roll of honour:
Theme 1 – Original Business Plans
- Foodies – an educational toy for teaching good nutrition.
- Online Fits – an 3-D body shape visualisation solution for online clothing retail sites.
- Sample Circus – a circus-themed event-based tryvertising business for the cosmetics industry.
- Dot Dot Dot Fashion Marketing – a digital marketing business for emerging fashion designers.
- Afro Celt Airlines – an airline operating between Dublin and Lagos.
- SmartLED Lighting – a wholesale distributor of LED lighting solutions.
Theme 2 – Irish e-Business Marketing
- Horseplay – digital marketing research, plan and pilot for horseplay.ie, a specialist equidae website.
- Tenderme – digital marketing research, plan and pilot for tenderme.ie, an online tendering site.
- In Loving Memory – digital marketing research, plan and pilot for inlovingmemory.ie, an online memorial site.
- Digitary – digital marketing research, plan and pilot for Digitary, an online qualification validation service.
- HRLocker (UK and Ireland) – digital marketing research, plan and pilot on the Irish and UK market for HRLocker, an online HR software service.
Theme 3 – International Marketing
- Toddler Holidays – digital marketing research, plan and pilot for Toddlerholidays.com, a France-based holiday home rental specialist for families with children under the age of 5.
- HR Locker (North America) – market entry and digital marketing research on the US market for HRLocker, an online HR software service.
- Dabl – market entry and localisation research on the Chinese market for Dabl, an online cardiovascular disease management system software developer.
- DCU Language Services – digital marketing research, plan and pilot on international student recruitment for DCU Language Services, a language school and testing service based in DCU.
- Equinome – a marketing strategy for Equinome, an equine genetic testing service for the bloodstock industry.
Theme 4 – Local Businesses and Projects
- Perigord – online communications strategy research, plan and pilot for Perigord, an online digital asset management service provider.
- Irish Teaching and Learning Festival – marketing strategy for teacher registration for the Irish Teaching and Learning Festival. Check out the Irish Teaching and Learning Festival Blog.
- North Dublin Chamber of Commerce – a social media research, pilot and training for North Dublin Chamber of Commerce.
- DCU Civic Engagement – a marketing strategy for DCU in the Community, a DCU civic engagement initiative.
- Printpac – sales and marketing research and strategy (including tendering) for PrintPac Services, a print services company.
- Timing Ireland – digital marketing research, plan and pilot for Timing Ireland, a precision sports timing solutions provider.


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Harry Reems, an iconic star of adult films who played the male lead in the most infamous XXX movie of the 1970s, "Deep Throat," has died at the age of 65. According to Don Schenk, a close friend of Reems, the actor died after several years of declining health, which included bouts with emphysema, pancreatic cancer, liver failure, and kidney failure. Reems' death comes as his most famous role has been recreated in an upcoming film about the life of his co-star, Linda Lovelace.
Reems was born Herbert Streicher in The Bronx, New York on August 27, 1947. After serving in the Marine Corps, Streicher tried to establish a career as an actor, but while he landed occasional roles off-Broadway, he began making money on the side appearing in low-budget stag movies, using the stage name Harry Reems. Reems also worked as a carpenter and served on the lighting crew for several pornographic pictures.
In 1972, Reems was hired to join the camera crew for a XXX film being shot in Florida under the title "The Doctor Makes A House Call." When a suitable actor couldn't be found to portray a playfully lascivious doctor, director Gerard Damiano promoted Reems from crew to co-star. After the film opened under the name "Deep Throat," it unexpectedly became the most successful adult movie of all time, earning an estimated $600 million. It launched a long career in the adult industry for Reems, who was known for his bushy mustache and knack for playing broad comedy as well as lusty anti-heroes.
Reems' best known film would cause him some serious legal trouble in 1975, when overzealous prosecutors in Memphis, Tennessee attempted to indict him on charges of conspiring to distribute pornography because of his role in the film. It was believed that prosecutors were hoping to stop the production of XXX films by creating a legal precedent that would make it possible to go after the actors who appeared in the movies as well as the producers and distributors. The case became a cause celebre among many in Hollywood who feared increased government interference in the film industry, and Jack Nicholson and Warren Beatty helped raise money for Reems' defense. While Reems was initially found guilty, his conviction was thrown out on appeal.
Reems hoped his new contacts in Hollywood would help him move into mainstream films, and he claimed to have landed in a role in "Grease" before Paramount Pictures demanded he be recast, not wanting the PG musical to be associated with Reems' raunchier work. While Reems never broke through to regular work in the mainstream industry, he would go on to star in well over a hundred adult films, but he fell into severe alcoholism that scuttled his career. In 1989, Reems gave up drinking, experienced a spiritual rebirth, and got married. Reems launched a successful career in real estate in Park City, Utah, and while he never made another film, in interviews he seemed to regard his career in porn as a youthful indiscretion, something he wasn't proud of but didn't regret, either. Reems spoke about his career in the 2005 documentary "Behind Deep Throat" and in the book "The Other Hollywood: The Uncensored Oral History Of The Porn Film Industry" by Legs McNeil and Jennifer Osbourne.
In January 2013, "Lovelace," a film based on the life and career of Linda Lovelace, opened at the Sundance Film Festival in Reems' hometown of Park City; Adam Brody plays Reems in the picture. In an interview shortly before the movie's premiere, Reems, who had yet to see "Lovelace," addressed long-standing allegations that the actress was abused on the set on "Deep Throat."
"I'm hoping it will be very accurate," Reems said "There's enough people alive who know if she was beat on the set. She was never beat on the set. She was not. That's not true. I was there for the 12 days (of the film's shoot)."
Reems also spoke of Lovelace, saying, "I thought she was sweet and wonderful and quiet. But she was just stuck with the wrong guy. He basically controlled her life."


text:
1 Short Title
2 Authorising Corporation to purchase lessee's interest
An Act to empower the Corporation of the Borough of Petone to purchase a Lease of Land for Waterworks Conservation Purposes.
WHEREAS one George Packwood, of Petone, Carter, is the lessee under the provisions of The Land Act 1892, The Land for Settlements Consolidation Act 1900, and The Land for Settlements Amendment Act 1901, of the land described in the Schedule hereto, by virtue of lease number 180, registered in the Lands Registry Office at Wellington, in Volume 15A, folio 160: And whereas the said land adjoins the land of the said Corporation upon which the waterworks reservoir of the Corporation is situate, and affords convenient access thereto; and the preservation of the native bush thereon is desirable in order to conserve the water-supply to the said reservoir: And whereas no power exists under the said Acts enabling the Corporation to acquire the leasehold interest of the said George Packwood in the said land, and it is expedient that such power should be given:
BE IT THEREFORE ENACTED by the General Assembly of New Zealand in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
The Short Title of this Act is The Petone Borough Empowering Act 1905.
The Mayor, Councillors, and Burgesses of the Borough of Petone (hereinafter called "the Corporation") are hereby empowered to purchase from the said George Packwood, his executors, administrators, or assigns (hereinafter called "the lessee"), the lessee's interest in the land described in the Schedule hereto under the above-recited lease, upon such terms and conditions as may have been or may be agreed upon between the Corporation and the lessee; and upon payment of the agreed-upon purchase-money and the signing of the transfer of the lease by the lessee to the Corporation the lessee's interest shall become vested in the Corporation, the provisions of the said Acts notwithstanding; and thereupon it shall not be necessary for the Corporation to observe the conditions of the lease relating to residence and improvements.
"the Corporation"
"the lessee"
ALL that piece of land in the Land District of Wellington, containing by admeasurement 39 acres 1 rood 16 perches, more or less, being Section 29, Block VIII, Belmont Survey District, Maungaraki Settlement.


text:
Table of Contents
in which the clinical trial is performed, as well as the ethical principles that have their origin in the Declaration of Helsinki (whichever provides the greater protection to the clinical
trial participants).
to comply with applicable foreign regulatory requirements may result in, among other things, fines, suspension, variation or withdrawal of regulatory approvals, product recalls,
seizure of products, operating restrictions and criminal prosecution.
Other Healthcare Laws and Regulations
Healthcare providers, physicians and third-party payors play a primary role in the recommendation and use of pharmaceutical products
that are granted marketing approval. Arrangements with third-party payors, existing or potential customers and referral sources are subject to broadly applicable fraud and abuse and other healthcare
laws and regulations, and these laws and regulations may constrain the business or financial arrangements and relationships through which manufacturers market, sell and distribute the products for
which they obtain marketing approval. Such restrictions under applicable federal and state healthcare laws and regulations include the following:


text:
MNopedia Tech Specs
Development of the MNopedia project took many familiar turns, and maybe an unusual twist or two along the way.
Creating a resource like this, from within a large institution like MHS, requires—of course—quite a bit of brainstorming, negotiating, and various forms of communication among the many parties with vested interests.
In addition, with this being a Legacy project—funded by many, many pennies from Minnesotans and others through state sales tax—we were determined to give the public a real role, both initially and on-goingly.
We were also conscious of the need to establish a strong foundation—technically, and in many other ways—so the project (and its partnerships) could grow to the point that the content truly becomes comprehensive enough to be called encyclopedic, and that the resource would be capable of receiving and reflecting many perspectives.
What follows is a technical description of the project written while in production:
The MNopedia was conceived not as a Web site, but as a pure content resource, capable of informing many possible products—the first of which being a browser-readable site for use on desktop and laptop computers, tablets, mobile phones, and any device that enables basic Web access.
By building a flexible, standards-based database and API, MNopedia content can eventually be used in mobile apps, audience- or situation-specific products, as a component in other Web projects, for print publication(s), etc.—whether these products are created by the Minnesota Historical Society or other individuals or entities.
Most text content is licensed via Creative Commons (Attribution ShareAlike), and media (images, audio, and video) is subject to terms already defined and expressed by MHS, and specific to each asset.
With careful consideration of Wikipedia and consultation with the Wikimedia Foundation and Minnesota-based Wikipedia editors, MNopedia content rights and ease-of-citation will allow the smoothest possible flow into Wikipedia, the world's most accessed knowledge resource for encyclopedic information.
With regard to social media and the role of the audience as contributor, several user feedback mechanisms (whether built-in or external) will be used relative to the MNopedia resource, including commenting, forums, suggestion and correction mechanisms, etc. Social Media sharing will be built in, and MNopedia-specific Facebook and Twitter presences will be established and maintained.
The following list contains the essential technological building blocks for the MNopedia, and the initial Web site in particular:
- Database: MySQL
- Metadata Standard: Dublin Core (specifically, DCTERMS) (One set for textual articles, one set for media)
- Web Framework: Drupal (version 7) (an open source, PHP-based content management system and framework)
- Notable Drupal Plugins/Modules: Biblio for importing and managing bibliographic lists, Views OAI-PMH plugin (both developed by a Canadian programmer, and funded in part by the MNopedia project), and Timemap (for displaying both spatial and temporal data through a map interface)
- Search: Using built-in Drupal search capabilities initially, with plans to integrate Solr-Lucene for advanced features
- Geo-tagging: Spatial information for articles (addresses and lat/long coordinates) is being stored in the database's Location field. Media geo-tagging—when available—is tied to each asset in its already-published context (MHS' Visual Resources Database or Collections Online)
- API: Queryable OAI-PMH feed. Future plans are to develop a REST interface to allow access to all content, including images
- Editorial Workflow Tool(s): TBD (currently editing in Microsoft Word for small, initial batch of content). Strong possibility—Open Atrium
One Response to "MNopedia Tech Specs"
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