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Advising a foreign state-owned company on a US$20bn oil-for-loan financing provided by China Development Bank
Michael Zou
With his core focus on general corporate matters, particularly foreign direct investment, banking and finance, project finance, real estate, and mergers and acquisitions, Michael is able to offer his clients' practical and tailored advice to suit their specific needs.
He has been involved in various international commercial transactions,especially in foreign direct investment, project finance, banking and finance, energy, real estate, and infrastructure projects.
Prior to joining Hogan Lovells, Michael worked at a Beijing-based leading Chinese law firm where he represented international and domestic banks and other financial institutions, multinational corporations, and domestic corporations in relation to foreign direct investment, project finance, commercial lending, energy and water projects.
Representative experience
Advising Ford Motor Company in its sale of Volvo Cars to Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Company Limited for US$1.8bn
Advising an international investment fund in structuring a direct investment of approximately US$60m in a five-star hotel project in Shanghai Municipality, China.


text:
Leigh - posted on 02/04/2009 ( 51 moms have responded )
Ok so after years of partying it up at bars and clubs I've settled down and enjoy building snow forts and kite flying. My question is where or how do you meet men that date single moms? I REALLY don't want to go the online dating path but after 4 years I don't seem to be meeting anyone at the playground or the library. I have a strong group of friends but they are 10-30 years my senior and most are unhappily married. Come on girls.. you know who you are.. you found that awesome catch... where did it happen...how did it happen?
- Helpful (155)
- Nice (10)
- Funny (8)
- Encouraging (19)
- Hugs (4)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Three Members of New Haven-Area Drug Ring Plead Guilty
FEB 1 - Steven W. Derr, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England and Nora R. Dannehy, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that three individuals pleaded guilty on Friday, January 29, in Hartford to federal charges stemming from their involvement in a New Haven-based narcotics trafficking ring.
In the fall of 2008, the Drug Enforcement Administration initiated "Operation King of the Hill," an investigation into a narcotics trafficking organization operating in New Haven. According to court documents and statements made in court, the investigation included controlled purchases of heroin, physical surveillance and the use of court-authorized wiretaps on wireless phones known to be used by targets of the investigation. The investigation revealed that the organization regularly obtained bulk quantities of pre-packaged "bundles" of heroin, principally from a New York source-of-supply. The heroin was then distributed through a network of mid-level dealers. Certain members of the conspiracy also distributed crack cocaine.
MICHAEL TORRES, 33, of Elm Street, New Haven pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five grams or more of cocaine base ("crack cocaine"); VICTOR NIEVES, also known as "Bori," of Button Street, New Haven, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin, and AMY WERGIN, also known as "Bella," of High Street, Naugatuck, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin.
Both NIEVES and WERGIN were heroin distributors affiliated with the organization. TORRES distributed "eight-balls" of crack cocaine for the organization and, in pleading guilty, admitted that he possessed firearm during the conspiracy.
NIEVES, WERGIN and TORRES are scheduled to be sentenced by Senior United States District Judge Alfred V. Covello on May 4, May 5 and May 11, respectively. NIEVES faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years, a maximum term of imprisonment of life and a fine of up to $4 million. WERGIN faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years and a fine of up to $1 million. TORRES faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years, a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years and a fine of up to $2 million.
Twenty individuals have been charged as a result of the investigation.
This matter was investigated by the New Haven Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, including DEA agents and officers from the New Haven, West Haven, Meriden, Shelton, Hamden, Branford and Ansonia Police Departments.


text:
A bitter and protracted legal battle between the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (TRF) and the New York Attorney General's office ended at 2:30 p.m. Nov. 19 when a settlement was signed.
The complaint filed by N.Y. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman back in May 2012 was dismissed "with prejudice," meaning the allegations of herd neglect and abuse cannot be asserted against the TRF again, according to a TRF announcement. In exchange, the TRF has agreed to the appointment of three independent directors and the creation of a method for selecting a new paid executive director, who will report to the board chairman and board members of the TRF.
"Our herd—just under 1,000 horses—remains in fine condition as we head into winter, just as it has been through this entire ordeal," said John Moore III, chairman for the TRF in a prepared statement. "We are relieved to have behind us this nuisance suit that the NYAG should be embarrassed to have initiated."
In May 2012, Schneiderman pushed forward with the case based on affidavits from a whistleblower and a veterinarian, who alleged a pattern of abuse spread across satellite farms from New York to Kentucky to Oklahoma. At the time, the TRF reported it had about 1,100 horses under its care.
"New York needs the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation to be fiscally sound and responsibly managed," Schneiderman said in a statement. "Our agreement to remake the board of directors will help put this important charity back on solid financial ground and able to care for the animals it receives—and it gives TRF a shot to reclaim its place as one of America's leading Thoroughbred organizations. As it was previously constituted, the foundation's board proved unable to conduct necessary financial oversight and management."
Schneiderman's lawsuit sought the removal of the responsible directors. Per the conditions of the settlement, Moore and long-time director Diana Pikulski will resign within a year of the new executive director being hired and no later than August 2015, when their current terms were due to expire. Pikulski will also discontinue her service as vice president of external affairs when a new executive director is hired but will move into a position as director of external affairs and will continue at the discretion of the board.
Contacted on Nov. 19, Moore again stressed what he saw as a huge waste of time and money for all involved.
"It is an awful shame that it cost us $750,000 and thousands of hours of wasted management time to roll back a pile of lies," Moore said. "There was never any question about the health of the herd—never. No horses died. No horses starved."
Moore said he was grateful for the pro-bono services of Barry Ostrager, TRF counsel and president of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders.
"The lack of merit to the case is reflected by the terms of the settlement agreement," Ostrager said in a TRF release.
Among the three new board members to be appointed, one will be a veterinarian recommended by the Attorney General's office, one will be recommended by a respected animal rights organization, such as the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and one member will be appointed by a Thoroughbred industry organization, such as The Jockey Club, according to Moore.
"We welcome the new appointments," Moore said. "But the really important thing is that it's over."
The TRF, founded in 1983, is one of the world's oldest and largest equine rescue organizations. Its mission is providing homes and necessary medical care for Thoroughbred horses that have been retired from racing. Hundreds of these horses have been retrained for other horse careers.
When prominent owner/breeder Paul Mellon died in 1999, his estate bequeathed a minimum of $5 million in an endowment to the TRF and added $2 million more in 2001. Today the endowment provides the TRF with 12% of its annual budget (about $3 million). According to public records, the TRF has raised approximately $40 million in charitable donations during its 30-year existence.
Correspondent Tom Precious contributed to this story.


text:
$9.95 T-Shirts - Women'sProboardshop.com is the leading clothing company on the web for Women's $9.95 T-Shirts. All clothing brands in stock for next day shipment with up to 50% savings. 29 years of great prices, selection, and service.
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Size: MediumReg: $29.95 On Sale: $20.95
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Size: Small, Medium, LargeReg: $34.95 On Sale: $23.95


text:
Electrical problem
1971 Ford Torino V8 Two Wheel Drive Automatic 46,000 miles
We have a 71 Ford Torino with a stock 302. When the car is under any kind of load (lights, stereo, blower), there is a noticeable miss and sputter under acceleration and cruise. The Alternator was just tested at my sons school and found to be putting out only 20 Amps (it shows "60 A" on the case of the Alternator).
Would this a reason for the poor performance? Oh - we also have a Pertronix Ignition with a Flame Thrower Coil.
Also - what would happen if we put a 100 amp alternator in it?
ANY help is most appreciated.
have the same problem?
Monday, October 5th, 2009 AT 2:25 PM


text:
Say it with me: "It's not another Diablo clone. It's not another Diablo clone." Okay, on the outside maybe it is a little, and I see why people think that since a few of the same developers who whipped up this hellacious game set in a futuristic
I laugh giddily at those who think it's the same game without even trying it first. You should decide if the game is fun as hell to play and the best way to do that is opening the gates and checking out the Hellgate:


text:
Wine Tasting Experiences, Vineyard and Brewery Tours
8 Items
Grid List
Brewery Tour and Tasting for Two Special Offer
Oxfordshire (Henley-on-Thames)
29% off
Regular Price: £14
Now only: £10
Vineyard and Winery Tour for Two
Oxfordshire (Henley-on-Thames)
Special Offer - 28% off
Regular Price: £18
Now only: £13.5
Vineyard Tour and Tasting for Two
Available at 6 locations£24
Laithwaites Wine Tasting Evening for Two
Available at 11 locations£49
Wine Tasting Class for Two
Shropshire (Shrewsbury)£49
Vineyard Tour and Tasting with Lunch for Two Special Offer
UK Wide (Visit Description Page - For Full List)
29% off
Regular Price: £69
Now only: £49
Wine Tasting Evening for Two
Available at 26 locations£59
Vineyard Tour and Tasting with Lunch for Two
Available at 7 locations£78
Guide to Wine Tasting Experiences
Many of us enjoy a nice glass of wine to help relax of a weekend, whatever your favourite tipple is be it red, white or rosé, there's nothing quite like a refreshing glass of your favourite wine when the moment calls for it. But what if you want to know more about plonk, as it's known in the trade? We have the solution - whether you want to relax, celebrate or treat someone, a wine tasting experience is the perfect way to educate yourself whilst having fun and enjoying a glass or two at the same time.
The variety of wine tasting experiences we currently offer is wide ranging and so there are various options, depending on your preferences. Beginning with our wine and brewery tours, here you will get to sample the best of both worlds when it comes to alcoholic consumption. Tour around some of the most successful combined breweries and enjoy sampling both wine and beer as you go.
Other packages we have allow you to take a self-guided tour around a selection of wines during a specially set up wine tasting evening. With your tokens in hand, you will have the freedom to pick and choose your favourite wines and enjoy sampling them at your leisure. During the tours you will learn about the various key wine making regions around the world and will be able to compare the various reds, whites and rosé coming out of these different vineyards.
Can I visit a real vineyard?
Indeed you can. If you're more interested in the English wine making process, then a tour around one of the many UK vineyards will help you to understand the process required to help make our English wines stand up against their worldly rivals. The majority of the vineyard tours offered also include a tasty extra such as a delicious afternoon tea or a filling lunch, helping to make the tour a wonderfully relaxing experience.
Keep an eye out for the packages that also include a free bottle of the vineyard's own wine which you can take home and enjoy long after the experience has ended.
I'd like to know which wines suit which foods
Maybe you like to host dinner parties for friends and family but struggle to get to grips with that unique art of matching the food with a wine that will complement each course through the evening. We have some experiences which can help you out with this, whether you prefer to cook spicy, sweet or enjoy a cheese board then our Matching Food and Wine Workshops will teach you the best wines to opt for depending on course or taste and also what to look for when ordering wine with a meal when out at a restaurant.
These are fun, informative sessions which will leave you feeling more confident the next time you want to entertain friends and family.
Whichever package best suits you, we all know that anything involving a glass of wine cannot be a bad thing and is always a popular choice when looking for a gift for those who enjoy some of the finer things in life.


text: - The entire finale of The Collection: Arkin lays a long-overdue No-Holds-Barred Beatdown on The Collector before torching him alive. Then, right as he's preparing to Face Death with Dignity after the fire cuts off his escape, Elena basically says "fuck that" and smashes through the nearby water tanks to douse the approaching flames so they can escape together. Then, after all is said and done, it looks like The Collector has once again survived and gone Karma Houdini....until Arkin tracks him down, locks him in his own box and prepares to tear him a new one.


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Pasta with black olive saucePosted: Updated:
1lb. penne
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 lb. white mushrooms, cut into thick slices
2 cups pitted black olives
1 bunch Italian parsley, finely chopped
1/2 cup butter
1/4 tsp. red chile flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Parmigiano-Reggiano, for grating
In a 12 to 14-inch skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat until smoking. Add the garlic and mushrooms and saute over high heat until the mushrooms are browned. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the sauteed mushrooms and garlic, the olives and the parsley and puree. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil and add 2 tablespoons salt.
In the same saute pan, heat the butter over high heat until it foams and subsides. Add the olive puree and chile flakes and cook 5 minutes. Season to taste.
Cook the pasta in the boiling water 1 or 2 minutes. Drain and toss in the saute pan with the sauce. Divide evenly among 4 warmed pasta bowls, grate Parmigiano-Reggiano over, and serve immediately.


text:
tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34970485278216313452018-03-06T05:59:29.698-08:00Goodbye Starbucks, Hello Mint Tea.miainmoroccohttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-68773659601993393592008-12-07T17:06:00.000-08:002008-12-07T17:12:11.841-08:0012 MONTHS LATER.....I figured 12 months from my last post would be an appropiate time to post a new blog:) I'm now making a vow to write in my blog more consistently. Wish me luck. The good thing is.... I'm still here.miainmoroccohttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-35742473675263944352007-12-25T03:35:00.000-08:002008-12-11T14:15:29.810-08:00Merry Christmas or Mbruk l'3id..?

With the lack of internet and alone time in my town, I've had a difficult time keeping up with my blog. Although, in the spirit of Christmas, I've decided to quarantine myself in a room with Xmas tunes, devoting time to emails and a blog entry that I will later post when I get to chance to go to Ouarzazate where there are a handful of cybercafes with somewhat steady internet connections.

A few things that I found interesting in the last four weeks of being in my town:

---Riding in a grand taxi is interesting here. I walk down to the main street from my duwar (village) and stand there where the taxis wait. I notice that people are staring but I just wait until the car fills up with six passengers. If it's a stationwagon-type taxi, I've managed to sit with 13 passengers. It get's quite interesting when you see a man sitting on the left side of the driver. What's even more interesting is when you see a slender man sitting on his wife's lap while there is a sheep going "baaa" in the back and French country music going in the front.

---My counterparts, Rykia and Haja Fadma, along with my host-mother, Mina, a sister-in-law, Ijja and I made a trip to Ighrem N'ougdal. There's a post office, sbitar (health clinic) and the Gendarmes (like the police but not the police), there. They explained to the Gendarmes who they were and what kind of work I would be doing with them so that I could secure a Carte de Sejour (an official identification card). The Gendarmes in Ighrem only speak French or Darija so you could just see how interesting it was with me using butchered Tashlheet. Fortunately, every thing went well and we were done. Both, Mina's baby son and Ijja's baby son had been terribly sick, vomiting for days with a fever. So, afterward, we all went to the sbitar to only find that there was no doctor or nurse there. Rykia, knew of a old woman nearby that does somekind of alternative village medicine. I want to be careful and not label this as anything but all I can say is that there was yarn, leaves, sticky black stuff, smoke and coals involved. She did a number of things I could never explain but when it got too smoky, Rykia, Haja Fadma, and I left the room. I was a bit worried for them. After everything was finished, the babies came out crying with black coal lining their eyes. Two days later, the babies were well and eating again. I had never witnessed anything close to this before except in movies.

---Having the privilege of attending several social gatherings with the married women in my town has been pretty exciting! They seem to really like to separate the married women from the unmarried women and the men from the women at some meals, so it's sort of strange being the only one in the room labeled as a "tafrukt" or girl, but they seem to understand that they are the ones that I need to get to know. One gathering was for a baby, three were just for lunch, one, for an engagement and one–a wedding. It all starts with a greeting that goes around the room right to left as each person enters. Round 1: Sweet tea, nuts and cookies are passed around. Round 2: The host will pass a basin and kettle around for guests to wash their hands. A tagine with meat and sometimes prunes is served. The bread is passed out and we start dipping our bread into the meat juices. A respected woman at the table is then asked to then take the meat and start dividing it up into equal portions–I mean equal–placing the meat on each person's share of bread. Some women will eat it and some will just have a small bit and wrap up the rest to take home to their children. The table is wiped down. Round 3: A heaping plate of some kind of starch is shared; most of the time it's couscous with vegetables. Everyone digs in with their hands. It's kind of sad when the host never gets to enjoy the lunch with her guests. She's busy working the courses. The table is wiped down again! Round 4: A mountainous plate of unpeeled fruits consisting of apples, bananas and oranges is placed in the center of the table with 2 or 3 knives randomly protruded! Man, by this time, I'm ready for a nap. After everyone's finished, the table is wiped down one last time followed by the passing of the water kettle. Lastly to the end the meal, a supplication and beautiful prayer is chanted with open palms by all before getting up to thank the host.

When I experience unique moments like this, I often wonder what everyone is doing back home at the exact time. I guess for now, I'm just dreaming of Christmas lights and trees, ribbon, cookies, and music!

Merry Christmas everyone! Miss you!
Love you Mom, Dad, Nhu An, and Mai-Ly. Thank you for the phone calls!

Here are a few pics: some are from this last week's l'Eid Kibir, which fell on December 21st this year. There is a picture of my family's sheep sacrifice hanging in the kitchen signifying Abraham's substitute sacrifice in the Koran.

miainmoroccohttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-43538719737003385562007-11-30T05:51:00.000-08:002007-11-30T06:01:29.247-08:00Settling in...Hi everyone! Thanks for all the great emails. If it wasn't for the mundane details from your lives, I wouldn't know how to keep myself connected to life back home–everything from having dinner with friends to taking a nap during a rainy day.
It's nice to know that I finally have a permanent site, in which I will not only live for the next two years, but create, and hopefully, carry out my own small business projects with the weaving cooperative and small associations nearby. The town is situated halfway between Marrakech and Ouarzazate in the high Atlas Mountains with mud-homes built into the hillsides.
My quasi-sitemate, Amy, lives in a town about 10km away and about 5 dirhams a cab ride away. I don't know what we would do if we didn't have each other for comfort. I'm sitting across from her right now writing this now! Since we've been allotted two days a week to travel for internet and tutoring, we've designated today as one of our days for errands and internet.miainmoroccohttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-77430031453519818322007-11-18T11:18:00.000-08:002008-12-11T14:15:31.128-08:00

Just finished with a visit to my final site. My home for the next 2 years. Here's a picture of my new little host-sister, Asma welcoming me to my village:) Sort of. Included are other pics that I will talk about soon. In a nut shell, this is my home.miainmoroccohttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-38691327245480634712007-10-23T06:59:00.000-07:002008-12-11T14:15:31.690-08:00sugar

After telling people about my sugar dream, I thought to myself, why not share it with everyone?
And so, it all started the day my host-mother Fadma ran out of sugar from the bucket and had to literally, crack open another cone of hard sugar with a rock the size of a softball. That night, I dreamt about sugar.
"I was in bed, woken up by officials in uniform, knocking at my door. Soon after, I was standing in line with every person from my village. When I reached the front of the line, the man alerted me that I had consumed so much sugar that I had to pay so many dirhams to cover the sugar-consumption tax. I asked them how they could possibly know how much sugar I had consumed. With a look of more disappointment than sympathy, this man, told me that they had been watching me for quite some time, with endless footage of tea, cake, and cookies. This followed with a whisper to my ear, from the woman standing behind me, telling me that sugar indeed, was responsible for not only feeding this country, but also funding the government."
If this dream was real, I'd be financially ruined. With all the readily available sweet confections, I've already caught myself making references to sugar tax. Especially during this particular and very important lEid, which marked the end of Ramadan, I've had numerous opportunities to indulge myself with mint tea and cookies. Christmas memories crossed my mind as my host-family cleaned the house and put on their new garb. What surprised me was that, my host-sister, whom always covers her head, had me curl her hair! It was really interesting to wear a traditional jellaba and walk around our community. I went from house to house with my CBT group visiting families in the morning and then later, with my host-mother, visiting more family and friends. It was funny seeing the looks on tourists' faces when they see Americans in Moroccan attire. What's even more interesting is seeing the look on Moroccans' faces when they see Americans in Moroccan attire. I must have gone to 12 houses that weekend. That weekend was great but exhausting! Oh so back to sugar right? You can just do the math and imagine how many cups of sweet tea and cookies I had.miainmoroccohttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-72271683338860058122007-10-03T09:26:00.000-07:002008-12-11T14:15:32.031-08:00In with the fam...

A pic of our village's famous kasbah!
Somehow, even though it's only been three weeks since I've left the US, it feels like a heck of a bit longer. When people say that it's easier to learn a language when you're immersed in it, I think they forget to mention that it can also be super-frustrating, for lack of a better word. After seven days of learning Tashlheet, (a berber dialect spoken in various regions) I've managed to amuse and entertain my family with my hilarious phonetic pronounciations. However, it's clear that Moroccan television will always come in first in terms of entertainment!
Let me introduce you to my host family. Let's see...there's Fadma, my host mom. She's in one word - amazing. For being just shy of 29, she spends all day cooking, cleaning, taking care of the children and making sure that everyone is fed, which includes sheep, goats and chicken! I will never be half as tough as she is. Her husband, Abdelmalik, is a kind of slender man with bulging cheekbones. Working as a guide at the Kasbah, he's able to communicate in more than 4 languages, which also means that he gets to be the lucky one to translate some of Fadma's fast phrases into pocket English. They have three children--Salua, Zakaria, and Hajar. I absolutely adore these kids. I'm so grateful to have such a welcoming family with such patience and hospitality. So far, my host father has already told me that it would be no problem if I stayed 2 years. We'll see what they think of me at the end of training in two months!miainmoroccohttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-8828616645409107642007-09-19T09:30:00.000-07:002008-12-11T14:15:32.545-08:00Alas, I'm finally here.

Morocco is such a beautiful country. While driving from Rabat to Ouarzazate, I couldn't help but notice the resemblance to Arizona. Once, we passed Marrakech, the roads got more more and more windy. We drove through beautiful mountains and finally came to what everyone can refer to as the DESERT. I couldn't believe that I was in Africa! This was amazing! After the long drive, we were greeted by our Pre-Service Training Staff, that interestingly, introduced us to our first Ramadan break-fast at 6:45pm. It consisted of a wonderful warm soup with meat and vegetables along with various flatbreads and sweets to be washed down with ofcourse, sweet mint tea. This all was to be followed by real dinner at 10pm:)

After being here for a few days, I've realized that my mind and body are so tired and the thought of more reading material and sessions seems daunting. Nevertheless, I embrace the next ten weeks of training! This picture was taken from our hotel just after sunset.
miainmoroccohttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3497048527821631345.post-18047268420625914412007-05-15T21:08:00.000-07:002007-05-15T21:37:08.370-07:00Hallelujah! It's official.Today, I called the Peace Corps office to accept my invitation to serve as a Small Business Development volunteer in Morocco. I'll be leaving for staging in Philadelphia on Sept. 8 and will be landing in Morocco on Sept. 11. It's been a long road and I can't even begin to imagine how much farther it will take me. It's going to be a busy summer and an unforgetable one, to say the least.miainmoroccohttp://firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Report NEP-TUR-2007-10-13This is the archive for NEP-TUR, a report on new working papers in the area of Tourism Economics. Antonello Scorcu issued this report. It is usually issued weekly.
Subscribe to this report: email, RSS or Twitter.
Other reports in NEP-TUR
The following items were announced in this report:
- Item repec:ver:wpaper:42 is not listed on IDEAS anymore
- Cellini, Roberto & Paolino, Alessandro, 2007. "Price of recreational products and the exchange rate: an empirical investigation on US data," MPRA Paper 5194, University Library of Munich, Germany.


text:
Video of Gold's Gym rampage
Updated 7:13 pm, Tuesday, January 10, 2012
COLONIE — A surveillance video released Tuesday shows a 6-foot-1, 235-pound construction worker fly into what would become a fatal rage in Gold's Gym.
In the six-minute tape released by Town Attorney Michael Magguilli, Chad Brothers pulls down exercise equipment and other objects at 6:18 a.m. Oct. 31 while running through the Latham gym.
Brothers, 32, flew into a fit of rage and violence at the gym, causing employees to summon police, who used Tasers, handcuffs and a baton to subdue him. Police shocked the Troy man with four to five times with Tasers.
One of the stun guns shocked Brothers in the chest. At one point, he grabbed the Taser from an officer and appeared to shock himself, according to police.
Brothers went into cardiac arrest and died in Albany Medical Center Hospital.
An investigation showed Brothers died from a medical condition known as agitated delirium, not from police actions, Albany County District Attorney David Soares determined. Toxicology tests also showed steroids in his system, police said.
At the time of his death, Brothers was working construction and attending classes at Hudson Valley Community College to finish a degree in engineering. He grew up in East Greenbush and graduated from Columbia High School in 1997.


text:
Former Long County High School student and 4-H Archery team member Linda Stephens recently took second in her division in the National Collegiate Indoor Archery Tournament at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro.
Stephens, who is a member of the Eagles' archery team, was the runner-up in the recurve women's division. Stephens had a total score of 1090, which was 19 points behind Texas A&M's Kayla DeBord (1109), who took home the gold. Rounding out the top three was Columbia University's Tiffany Kimm, who had 1080 points.
Though Stephens fell short in her quest for the national title, she did post the highest score ever in this event for a GSU competitor.
"Hats off to Linda for an outstanding job and for representing Long County High School," LCHS Athletic Director Karen Swindell said. "Not only does she excel in archery but also in academics. We're all proud of Linda and her accomplishments
Stephens began her archery career as a student at LCHS and a member of the Long County 4-H Archery Team. In 2010, she was one of the key members to lead the team to a state title and a bronze medal in the nation.
Last year, as a member of the Eagle's team, she was an all-American and all-academic performer. She is attempting to make the U.S. Archery Team and compete in the 2016 Summer Olympics.


text: With Red Hat's public release of version 7 Release Candidate, some folks are putting it through its paces. Phoronix has some benchmarks and preliminary remarks. Also, Jay Lyman looks further into the recent Red Hat CentOS cooperation agreement. In other news, a new beginners Linux course has emerged, Shuttleworth named the next Ubuntu, and a review of Puppy Arcade 11 is highlighted.


text:
Your company's cost to provide health insurance benefits will rise by nearly 10% this year.
Part of the reason those costs continue to climb is that some employees use their benefits unwisely.
Inappropriate health care seeking is not surprising, because most people don't know the underlying costs of health care, and almost half of American consumers do not understand the gobbledygook that describes their insurance coverage.
Curb the increasing cost of future benefits -- hire Jane Neff Rollins, MSPH to train your employees about what health care actually costs, and how to work in concert with their health care providers and insurance plans to use health care resources more wisely.
Download Jane's one sheet here


text:
The real race issues in Barbados
The issue of race is ever present in Barbados, and surely underlies the amazing public furore that has arisen over the recent crowning of a white Miss Barbados beauty queen.
And so, we now take the opportunity to revisit the issue of racism in Barbados, and to share with the public a number of pertinent questions that Mr David Comissiong, President of the Peoples Empowerment Party, posed to the Government-appointed Committee On National Reconciliation way back in 1999.
These questions – as relevant today as they were 17 years ago – are as follows:
(1) To what extent does the false notion of Black or African inferiority still infect black, white, and Asiatic Barbadians? If this is the case, how do we correct this state of affairs?
(2) Are there churches, religious practices and theologies in Barbados which foster and/or perpetuate the false and discredited notions of Black inferiority, subordination and dependence on non-blacks?
(3) To what extent is the distribution of land in Barbados racially skewed and inequitable? If this is so, are specific governmental corrective measures required? Is there a need for Aliens Landholding legislation?
(4) Is the education system doing an adequate job of imparting to our students information about the history and achievements of the various racial and ethnic groups which make up our population? Is the news media of Barbados doing an adequate job of providing the majority Black population with news and information about Africa and peoples of African descent?
(5) To what extent are there racially segregationist regulations and/or practices in place in the clubs, beaches, hotels and social institutions of Barbados? Are governmental corrective measures required?
(6) To what extent do businesses in Barbados indulge in racial discrimination in their employment and procurement policies and practices? To what extent is there evidence of race-based business monopolies and unfair, race-based business practices designed to eliminate competition?
(7) What is the precise state of the distribution of wealth in Barbados across race and class lines? Is there a need for new redistributive policies?
(8) To what extent is there evidence that the lending policies and practices of banks and other financial institutions are based on racial considerations? Is there a need for governmental intervention?
(9) To what extent do the major secular institutions of Barbados – the law courts, police force, Office of the Governor General, etc – still retain elements of an institutional culture that is alienating to Black and/or working class Barbadians?
(10) To what extent are the foreign films, videos and music coming into Barbados propagating racially demeaning notions and sensibilities?
(11) To what extent is the racist historical tradition of the stigmatization and criminalization of the business activities of small black business persons still in evidence?
(12) To what extent do we have a sense of consciousness of the great moral wrong of slavery, and of the inhuman cruelties and disabilities that were inflicted upon Black people? Are we prepared to support a campaign for reparations?
(13) Is there the need for a conscious effort to rectify the imbalance deliberately built into our national culture by investigating, re-evaluating and re-appropriating aspects of African culture?
If the current storm in a teacup motivates us to address our minds to these vexed yet very relevant questions, then something positive would have been achieved.
16 Responses to The real race issues in Barbados
Reparations are due , in my opinion , when there is no justice then this cements in the racial stereotypes
And to what extent if any are people prepared to look forward in life and stop this
That is a bit too easy for us as white folks to say tho isn't it?! I have visited Barbados & did see elements of racial discrimination, but of course it is NOT people who look like you & I who suffer from it, Tim!
Hi Guto, I have lived in bar for many years and u are right about there being elements of discrimination . But this constant teaching of hate is the biggest reason it has not come to a end.The level of leadership has been poor ,the country needs the likes of Tom and Barrow back again
Thanks u for admitting the truth as u see it …Let's stop racism! If more people like u speak out …it could be a step forward . Racism can be unlearned since no one was born a racist
i am happy you all have opinions on this situation… but its all good and well to say let's stop racism hoping for instant change, first you must understand racism is a mindset, where people believe that they are more important/above another race, it may be self taught or engrained in ones psychi from parent to parent, but the only way to stop racism is to show those people that they are not more important than you or anyone, how you do it is up to you.
where do you see teachings of hate?
Hi Colette, I am sad to say I have come to believe that racism or sectarianism is almost a part of the human makeup .I know of no country that does not have one group of people hating another for whatever reason (religion ,Politics colour or whatever).Hope I am wrong but the evidence suggests I am not
Agree Tim Barr with your comment. It will always exists and unfortunately it will only get worse with time. I was born and bred in Barbados and know only too well what it is all about being I experienced it first hand. I was fortunate to have a mother who was very open minded, she spoke to me about it at young age, as I recall about the age of six, she taught me well, how not to be racist. I could have easily become racist merely by the racist behaviour directed towards myself, as I recall only from males.
Sorry I am unable to correct my punctuation.
Black people and racism which is help by black people because the confusion which is manufactured for black people…
The confusion has exposed black people to be ever so deceitful and lost .. Things in Barbados is taking a turn as like black (America ) the (USA) with its constitution, with its bill of rights and with the pacifier and conditioning comes the civil rights movement, which given time we will see the same non effectiveness…
@ , Tim Barr , hail, hail that's on the button ..
Black people … this to black women, last year thousands were black skinned this year they have change colour to orange , again very confusing because they cant sun bathe anymore , they have bleached themselves but this doesn't take much to understand they just don't like being black…
How to judge the confusion and the deceit is the issue racism or is it the teaching , black people is wasting away they lives looking forward for this special day when the .. (blonde hair blue eyed Jesus comes to rescue them…
Let us even things up we as blacks have our own black Jesus
Every body knows you are a racist
Its all about "MONEY". Spread it out evenly across the globe and the "race" thing will vanish.
World wide it is all economics that got the people so divided.
In Barbados a few have everything to lose and another set has nothing to lose.
What are the answers to all the questions?
Two questions.
To what extent is Barbados racist?
Is "extent" measurable?


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Originally posted by KowboyKiller:
This was a really great story from a few days ago: a kid in elementary school gathered donations from his classmates for the new stadium and sent a letter to the 49ers telling them he felt sorry about how the season ended. A couple days later Bruce Miller shows up with a few surprises -
Watched that the other day. This organization is a total class act. I watch all the videos and it's nice to see so many with the team helping out in the community. By the way that video was awesome... the joy on the kids face was priceless.


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Expectations have dropped for Live Nation's (LYV) third quarter results in the month leading up to the company's earnings announcement on Thursday, November 3, 2011. The consensus analyst estimate has dropped from 38 cents a share to the current estimate of earnings of 33 cents a share.
What to Expect:
The consensus estimate has fallen over the past three months, from 37 cents. Analysts are expecting a loss of 3 cents for the fiscal year per share.
Revenue is projected to be $1.91 billion for the quarter, 4% above the year-earlier total of $1.84 billion. Revenue is expected to come in at $5.55 billion for the year.
Analyst Ratings:
The majority of analysts (75%) rate Live as a buy. This compares favorably to the analyst ratings of its nearest nine competitors, which average 15.4% buys. Analysts have become more optimistic about the stock recently and the number of buy ratings has risen slightly over the past three months.
Trends to Watch For:
The company has seen rising revenue for the past four quarters. Revenue increased 23.1% to $1.56 billion in the second quarter. Revenue rose 17.5% in the first quarter from the year earlier, climbed 52.7% in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year from the year-ago quarter and 1.6% in the third quarter of the last fiscal year.
Live's profit in the last quarter followed losses in the previous two quarters. The company reported a profit of $13.3 million in the second quarter, a loss of $48.5 million in the first quarter and a loss of $139.3 million in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year.
Live Nation Entertainment is an entertainment company that promotes live music events, operates music venues and produces music festivals. It also sells tickets for third-party clients, such as sports leagues, museums and cultural institutions. It also manages music recording artists and sells merchandise associated with musical artists. One of Live's main competitors in the media industry, Madison Square Garden (MSG), will report earnings on November 4, 2011. Analysts are expecting earnings of 7 cents per share for Madison Square Garden, down 72% from last year's earnings of 25 cents per share. Another competitor in the consumer discretionary sector is World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
Recent Price Movement:


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Counselor gets 103 years for child abuse
Updated 11:04 pm, Tuesday, January 22, 2013
New York --
An esteemed religious counselor in New York City's ultra-orthodox Jewish community was sentenced Tuesday to 103 years in prison for molesting a girl who came to him with questions about her faith.
Nechemya Weberman was convicted in December of 59 counts, including sustained sexual abuse of a child, endangering the welfare of a child and sexual abuse. He testified in his own defense, saying he "never, ever" abused the girl, and maintained his innocence at sentencing.
His trial put a spotlight on the ultra-orthodox community and its strict rules that govern clothing, social customs and interaction with the outside world. Weberman, 54, and the accuser belonged to the Satmar Hasidic sect in Brooklyn.
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The girl's school had ordered her to see Weberman because she had been asking questions about her religion and was dressing immodestly in violation of customs, and he was to help her get back on the right path. Weberman wasn't a licensed counselor but spent decades working in his community.
The accuser, now 18, had testified that Weberman abused her repeatedly behind his locked office door from the time she was 12 until she was 15.
"I clearly remember how I would look in the mirror," she said at Tuesday's sentencing, her small voice shaking. "I saw a girl who didn't want to live in her own skin, a girl whose innocence was shattered, a girl who couldn't sleep at night."
She said she was speaking for others who had been victimized by Weberman but lacked the courage to come forward. Weberman hasn't been charged in any other molestation case.
Judge John Ingram praised the teen's courage, saying he also hoped it would set an example for other victims of sexual abuse.
The teen and her family have been harassed and ostracized, reflecting long-held beliefs that any conflict must be dealt with from within. During the trial, men were arrested on charges they tried to bribe the accuser and the victim's husband to drop the case. The court received dozens of letters from supporters of the defendant. They described his life in the community as a counselor and a father, and many proclaimed his innocence.
Weberman said "no thank you" when asked if he wished to speak.


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Theatre Baton Rouge's Turner-Fischer City Series, formerly known as the Second Stage series, is popular with younger audiences, maybe because the productions deal with some angsty topics that college-age audiences might recognize.
But "The Shape of Things" director Neal Hebert thinks this play, which opens Thursday, July 31, could bridge a theatrical generation gap.
"My grandparents like musicals," he says. "It's what they grew up with, but the younger generation wants something different. They want to see plays that are like the movies they see at Cinemark Perkins Rowe."
"Shape" fits the bill.
Adam, a nerdy English literature major, is in love with Evelyn, a tough, punk artist, and Evelyn might feel the same about Adam.
"I think they both feel the same when they first meet," says Stephen Horne, who plays Adam in Neil LaBute's drama.
Stephanie Toups plays Evelyn the artist.
"There is a time where she's attracted to Adam, but then something happens," she says. "There's a twist in the plot, and I don't want to give away any spoilers."
"The Shape of Things" premiered in 2001 in London's West End Theatre District. The original cast included Paul Rudd as Adam, Rachel Weisz as Evelyn, Gretchen Moll as Jenny and Fred Weller as Phillip.
"It was one of the hottest plays there at the time," says Hebert, who saw the original London production. "When Barry Kyle did the play at LSU in 2003, it was the play's American college premiere, and I was the dramaturge for that."
A dramaturge, Hebert says, is like an assistant director, but they fight for the production staying true to the script.
"They make sure we don't get away from the playwright's intent or words," he said.
Adult language and content are interspersed throughout, earning this story an R rating, but it isn't the R rating that draws younger viewers. "This is realism theater," Hebert says. "Some people don't like realism, but I have no problem with it. These are characters in real situations."
Still, Hebert stresses that audience members should heed the adult content warning.
"Audiences who are looking for something like 'Annie' are going to be disappointed," he says. "And this is definitely not a play that you will want to bring children to. The Turner-Fischer Series is supposed to be different than the Capital Series. It gives us a chance to bring some edgier material to the stage in Baton Rouge, and I'm excited about that."
Horne and Toups are Theatre Baton Rouge veterans, and both were familiar with LaBute's play before auditioning.
"I've always been a fan of role reversals, and this play is sort of about the anti-normal as the main characters," Horne says.
"Yeah, Evelyn is like the anti-ingenue," Toups adds.
Horne describes Adam as insecure, and he falls for Evelyn the moment he meets her.
"He's one of those fall-in-love-on-the-spot guys," Horne says. "He's awkward, and he's never really grown out of that stage. That was me until a few years ago."
Evelyn is the opposite. She's confident and goes after what she wants. But a certain vulnerability is exposed along the way, which changes everything in her attitude toward Adam.
"But to tell about it would be giving away the surprise," Toups says. "Evelyn is different from any role I've ever played. It's been interesting to explore what could be the darker side of me."
- CAST: Stephanie Toups, Evelyn; Stephen Horne, Adam; Michael Hicks, Statue; Alex DiLeo, Jenny; Spencer LaBelle, Phillip.
- ARTISTIC STAFF: Neal Hebert, director; Stephanie McCabe, assistant director; Piper Nosal, assistant director; Sydney Stevens, dramaturg.


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On Mon, 2009-01-05 at 13:13 -0500, Arthur Barstow wrote: > Dan, All - I don't have a direct followup on these minutes but I am > interested in W3C + IETF liaison activity. Besides this e-mail list, > is there any type of charter or working mode document that describes/ > codifies this liaison? Not really. The W3C list of liaisons shows PLH and myself as liaisons to the IETF http://www.w3.org/2001/11/StdLiaison#IETF and likewise the IETF web site shows Mark Nottingham as the liaison to W3C. http://www.ietf.org/liaisonActivities.html We do a certain amount of coordination by email, but for stuff that doesn't get cleared up that way, have these cross-organization meetings by phone 3x/year, typically in preparation for the IETF ftf. We have no technical decision-making mandate or anything remotely like that. We push review requests around and encourage various groups to pay attention to work in other groups... that sort of thing. -- Dan Connolly, W3C http://www.w3.org/People/Connolly/ gpg D3C2 887B 0F92 6005 C541 0875 0F91 96DE 6E52 C29EReceived on Monday, 5 January 2009 20:36:06 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Tuesday, 6 January 2015 19:56:33 UTC


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WASHINGTON -- Heeding warnings that computer crime ``will be the crime wave of the next decade,`` the House of Representatives Tuesday passed a bill making the use of computers for some cases of fraud or theft a federal felony.
The measure covers the use of a computer in another state or one owned by the federal government, a bank or a securities dealer, even in the same state.
The bill also makes it a crime to break into any of those computers and cause ``malicious damage,`` such as destroying programs or making the computer unavailable to its legitimate users.
If action of this sort, either one incident or several, costs the victim at least $1,000 to repair in a one-year period, the crime can be punished as a felony, with a five-year prison sentence. If the losses are smaller, the crime will be treated as a misdemeanor.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. William J. Hughes, a New Jersey Democrat, was approved unanimously by voice vote. The bill is expected to pass the Senate, where it is sponsored by Sens. Paul Laxalt of Nevada and Paul S. Trible of Virginia, both Republicans. The Reagan administration also supports the bill, on which the Justice Department worked actively with the sponsors.
A majority of states now have their own computer crime laws. The federal bill, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986, is designed to supplement state efforts and fill in the gaps by providing federal jurisdiction in particular circumstances. State efforts to prosecute crimes that occur across state lines, for example, are often hampered by complicated extradition procedures.
The bill the House passed Tuesday is part of a bipartisan effort to deal with new technology and its implications for crime, personal privacy and national security.
A computer crime bill that became law last year made it a felony to make unauthorized use of a computer to obtain classified information that might harm the national interest.


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The Contrarian has written an essay that he would like to share with the RTFLC readership. I've agreed to loan him my soapbox.
The views expressed below do not necessarily reflect my own and I reserve the right to argue for or against them in the comments. Please address any feedback to The Contrarian.
Take it away, TC:
Black and Against Obama By James Quentin Clark
I'm a twenty-something Black guy and I'm voting for Mitt Romney. I understand that this is unusual, so I'd like to fully explain my reasons why. Trust me; read on and you'll have something interesting to think about.
The first dumb assumption that people make and occasionally explicitly state is as follows: You are Black. Obama is Black. Why would you not support him?
This is racist reasoning and it holds back the Black community in this country. It is the exact opposite of what Dr. King advocated in his "I Have a Dream Speech", wherein he advocated a society where people are judged by the content of their character and not the color of their skin. To support Obama unthinkingly after simply observing his skin tone is to apply caveman irrationality to a choice affecting the future of a modern technological society.
Other groups get this sort of presumption, but none as bad as Blacks. Women and other minorities are often taken for granted by democrats as natural enemies of republicans. Democratic spokespeople like Eva Longoria feel they can openly ridicule women and non-Whites who vote republican as a result. Still, if you are a woman, Hispanic, or Asian and vote for Romney, it's only a subset of your community that sees you as a sell-out or traitor.
The virulent backlash against actress Stacy Dash after her endorsement of Romney points to just how ingrained is the notion that being Black requires supporting democrats. I could go on a long tangent here on the roots of this type of thinking and irrational anti-concepts like "Oreos", but I shall refrain. Suffice to say White people are lucky to not have to deal with it. It is understood that White people are diverse in their thinking; some are liberal, some are conservative, some are socialist, some are capitalist, etc. We don't get to presume political viewpoint based on pale skin.
So what is my deal then? For one, I'm not a republican. I have voted for democrats, republicans, and third parties in the past. I am an independent voter.
I am also not a religious conservative. Though I am pretty old-fashioned in my personal life, I have no problem with gay marriage or abortion (though I don't like the legal reasoning applied in Roe v. Wade). In fact I agree with Obama on a number of social and civil liberties issues, like closing Guantanamo Bay, humane immigration reform, and marijuana legalization. It is unfortunate that reality has not matched his 2008 campaign rhetoric on all of these issues.
I am not a libertarian ideologue either. Obama's economic policies, properly implemented, can reduce unemployment, and a large welfare state is a workable model as demonstrated by several European countries. What's more, Obamacare can achieve its stated goal of insuring more people, covering people with pre-existing conditions, and leveling the insurance market playing field.
In short, I believe that Obama could be right about everything (though most likely he is not). All of his policies could achieve their desired effects, and everything he predicts could come true. I still would not support him.
I am what you might call a "values voter", though not in the sense that most people understand. It isn't that Romney shares my particular set of superstitions; rather it is that my core values lead me to certain views about society, and my vote is based on which candidate is more aligned with those views.
I believe this is the only rational way to vote given how mendacious and artificial our electoral system has become. Noam Chomsky once said that the way to control what people think is to narrow the range of discussion on important issues to a tiny spectrum, but then to allow for passionate argument within that range to create the illusion of meaningful debate. The democrat and republican parties in collusion with the media have successfully accomplished this, effectively crowding out dissenting voices from third parties and agitators like Ron Paul and Dennis Kuccinich.
Our political system was not spawned on us from some vacuum. It is a consequence of our culture and education system. This means that, even if we were to elect philosopher kings to all higher offices, they would not get very far as they would find that their constituents demand much of the graft, bureaucracy, and corruption we claim to oppose. Government is as big as it is because we demand it, and as corrupt as it is because we tolerate it. Thus the real hard goal, which could take a few generations to accomplish, is to educate our populace – to reform the culture from the ground up. I am proud to say that both my livelihood and my hobbies contribute to this hard work. Only by improving our culture will we get the right people to even attempt running for office in the first place. Until then, two years and five billion dollars worth of campaigning at its best yields us Barack Obama and Mitt Romney.
And what sort of choice is that anyway? In too many important ways, the two parties are two sides of the same coin. Yet this does not, as many cynics believe, imply that elections don't matter. We need to care about the guy in the Oval Office because that individual sets the tone of our political culture and influences the legislative agenda.The efforts of grass roots reformers – the people doing the hard work of trying to educate and fix the culture – can be amplified or diminished based on this legislative tone and the decisions of the Supreme Court.
Thus I base my vote on one question: which candidate will do less harm to the work I am doing now to create the sort of society in which I wish to live? The alternative that most people choose is to base their vote on specific issues.
People who vote based on issues tend to fall into one of two groups; Fixers, and Ideologues. Fixers take a non-ideological approach toward figuring out their vote. They may be registered to one party or another, but they are not married to them. Undecided and independent voters come from this group. They approach the task of voting as though it were a puzzle to solve. One candidate is the right answer and the others are wrong. If they select wrong and the wrong guy is elected, they think, the country will deteriorate.
Ideologues, by contrast, are often very partisan and rarely "undecided". They subscribe to an ideology, like liberalism, conservatism, socialism, or capitalism. This gives them the right answer to begin with unlike the fixers, and so rather than try to figure out the right policies to match with a candidate, they try to match a candidate to their ideology, the ideology of course dictating the right policies. For ideologues, elections are about working to establish their ideology.
The Fixer approach is impractical because candidates are not merely the sum of their campaign promises. At best, once elected, a president is able to accomplish a fraction of their agenda, and only after months of compromises, repackages, and backroom dealing. This is why "single issue voters" are so foolish. You have no way of knowing whether or not the candidate will accomplish something tangible, compromise in some unforgiveable way, or flat out change his position, as Obama did on gay marriage.
Furthermore, Fixers are misguided because elections are not puzzles. There is no right or wrong answer out of context. The question is not "who is the right answer?" but rather "what sort of society suits me?"
Ideologues are even more misguided for the simple fact that modern presidents are militantly anti-ideological. Consider all the Commanders in Chief since World War II. Not one is a consistent proponent of contemporary liberalism, conservatism, libertarianism, or any other "ism", save possibly pragmatism. The partisan, a lower form of ideologue who substitutes a political party for an ideology, forgets the liberal Barack Obama's record on Guantanamo Bay and marijuana, the conservative George Bush's record on spending, all of Clinton's compromises, Reagan's love of interventionism, Nixon's magic eight ball domestic policy, and so on and so forth.
This is not to say that presidents do not advance ideologies. The problem is that the manner in which they may advance an ideology is completely unpredictable. For one, a president's ability to willfully advance an ideology is largely a function of their congress. What's more, modern presidents necessarily have to present themselves as non-ideological centrists in order to get elected. Pursuing an openly ideological agenda can cost a president a second term and his party's control of congress. The president's actions may also end up redefining their party's ideologies in undesirable ways, as many religious liberals and non-interventionist small government conservatives well know.
So how do we vote based on the larger question of society? For me, the question of "what sort of society suits me?" is best framed as a dichotomy between freedom and security.
When I say security in this context, I mean both physical security from foreign and domestic threats, as well as material security in terms of public welfare, healthcare, and other tangible goods. Much as politicians wish to argue the contrary, we cannot have a perfect balance of both freedom and security. A flawlessly administered government can have a lot of both, however in practice we have to live with tradeoffs. If we want the freedom to own guns we have to live with less security from gun violence. If we want the freedom to make our own healthcare decisions then we have to live with less security of being insured and covered for all emergencies. Of the two, freedom is more demanding, requiring an educated populace and personal accountability as an ingrained cultural norm. Security grants "freedom from want" and less inequality, but has the tradeoff of requiring individuals to tolerate authorities making decisions on their behalf.
The ideologue claims that only one side of the dichotomy is "right", (anarchy, communism, socialism, libertarianism, etc.) or that some particular mixture is "right", (liberalism, conservatism, etc.) but this still ignores the question of values – the "ought" regarding an appropriate society. This is a basic problem with subscribing to an ideology. No ideology has a perfect reference to reality. If we study history objectively, we can conclude that some ideologies more accurately describe reality than others. In practice however, ideologues tend to subordinate reality to their dogma, endlessly rationalizing and contorting their minds to make the facts fit.
The capitalist ideologue is wrong to say that socialism cannot work; it works fine in places like Norway, so long as you are willing to take all of the tradeoffs – the loss of freedoms and high taxation – that go with such a system. Finland's socialized education system works splendidly for that society and could work in the United States too, so long as our students, teachers, and parents buy into their culture and tolerate fewer freedoms, such as the freedom to have private schools. Cuba famously has near 100% adult literacy. It also outlaws homeschooling. Similarly the socialist or liberal ideologue is wrong to say that capitalism is fundamentally broken; places like Hong Kong and Singapore show that private enterprise serves the people just fine. In other words, so long as the people accept the system and all of its tradeoffs, it can work swimmingly.
When I think about voting or any work with political implications for my homeland, I think in terms of the larger question of the society I want to see for myself and my children. My values, derived from my education, observation, experience, and reflection, heavily center on freedom. I do not want society to take responsibility for my income, my welfare, my relative wealth compared to others, my health insurance, my retirement, or my education. Individual responsibility for these values is the basic state of all humans, and it requires an act of faith beyond my capabilities to trust the artifices of man's society to remove this responsibility. I intend to raise my children to have the same sense of personal accountability. My wish is to live in a society where this belief is taken for granted – where the idea that it is appropriate to depend on government redistribution and central planning is seen as immoral.
My preference is of course subjective, however there is also a practical reason for opposing a security-based society. Such a political system demands vast bureaucracies at local, state, and federal levels, staffed by hundreds of thousands of government employees. It requires that those bureaucracies be properly administrated and efficiently run. Even if 100% of those government workers are supremely competent and dedicated, the system requires proper political leadership; if the wrong politicians are in office, those bureaucracies can be underfunded, ineptly restructured, improperly regulated, given unrealistic mandates, or all together scrapped in some wave of "reform."
In other words, the security society only works if you elect the right politicians. If you aren't careful a George W. Bush might come around with a bad idea like "No Child Left Behind", and create new problems for large public systems like education. To make things consistently work, you need to keep electing Barack Obamas, each of whom will support the public systems reliably, maintain predictable standards and funding, and, if necessary, cut the red tape and push aside the bureaucracy in times of emergency. The security-society is ruled by men, not law.
What's more, large centrally-managed government systems are extremely slow to adapt and difficult to reform. Unconsciously they come to make justifying their own existence a greater priority than accomplishing their stated objective. This is why when we think of the word "public" to describe schools, unions, and other institutions, we don't generally associate innovation or accountability with the term.
In the security society, reforming or improving government-managed systems is slow and painful. Individuals only get the opportunity to directly influence the management of those systems every two years (elections). The rest of the time, the best they can do is write letters or protest. This is because the services are managed with tax dollars, which are collected coercively.
Say you oppose the pedagogical and hiring practices of your state's education system. You could literally spend decades protesting, voting down budgets, and writing letters, with zero meaningful change. All the while the system happily takes your tax dollars (whether you have kids or not) forcing you to work to support that which you oppose.
With private systems you can immediately and at any time vote for reform and effect change by simply not using the service. Unhappy with how a bank is managing your retirement funds? Switch banks. Unhappy with a private school or insurer? Take your business elsewhere. This is of course impossible with Social Security, where the taxpayers have to hope that the right politicians are elected and that those politicians make responsible decisions with the expropriated funds.
This is the essence of my practical objection to a security-based society. By having the public sector and politically managed systems drive the economy, these societies are, ironically, less secure in a number of ways. This is not to say that the freedom-based society is without flaws. Dealing primarily with private sector service providers demands a great deal of time spent comparing and researching to find the appropriate one for your needs. We take no issue with this for things like food and clothing, where the market has provided abundance at all price ranges. What I wish for is a society that consistently seeks the same level of freedom to choose for most other activities.
This is why I am voting for Mitt Romney. Not because he will magically bring this about, but rather because he will do less violence to my efforts to move society in that direction. Barack Obama, by contrast, consciously or unconsciously, seeks to quickly push us in the direction of the security society. If your values lead you to support the security society, then Obama is clearly the man for you.
Unfortunately the vast majority of the electorate subscribes to the ideologue approach to voting. What's worse is that a large percentage of these voters are partisans. Partisans are worse than ideologues because they do not even really care about ideas and policies but instead just support a party. Partisans are easily identified by their hypocrisy. Republicans who defend Bush's growth of government but criticize Obama for the same thing are a good example. Sadly, a large percentage of Blacks are also partisans.
The fact that the electorate is primarily made up of partisans and ideologues explains why candidates need not even bother campaigning in the majority of states. A more responsible media could do a lot to elevate much of the population from partisan to ideologue status. A better education system could help more ideologues develop the critical thinking skills to identify where their ideology does not accurately describe reality.
But we are a long way off from seeing a strong education system or responsible media. As a result, I am left to choose between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. Polls suggest that Obama will likely win re-election. If this comes to pass, it may push back the dream of a freedom-based society another generation. This will depend on a number of factors. My intention either way is to continue working toward that dream. I have lived abroad in the past, and because of concerns I have about my son's education, I will have to consider living abroad again if Obama's policies become intolerable. Nevertheless I am not ready to give up on what America can be.
That is my reason for voting for Mitt Romney.


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Across UMass-Amherst, ads like the one above trumpet survey results showing alcohol use is less pervasive than students assume. (University Health Services at University of Massachusetts at Amherst)
UMass tackles alcohol abuse
It tries to dispel party stereotype
By Peter Schworm Globe Staff / August 25, 2008
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For years, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst has labored under the stereotype of a party school with a deeply entrenched drinking culture. Deserved or not, the "Zoo Mass" reputation fueled a self-perpetuating problem, administrators say: Some students drank heavily because they believed everyone else was. (Full article: 1040 words)
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Ricky D. "Rick" Newingham
Born in Norway, Michigan on Sep 02, 1958
Died on Jan 17, 2014 and resided in Dunbar, Wisconsin
age 55, of Dunbar, passed away unexpectedly on Friday January 17, 2014. He was born in Norway, Michigan on September 2, 1958; son of Roger and Ruth (Thompson) Newingham. Rick owned and operated Richards Supper Club and Motel in Dunbar. He took great pride in his business and treasured his friends and family. Rick loved people, flowers, gardening and was an excellent carpenter who could build anything. He will be greatly missed.
Rick is survived by his children: Tony Higgins, Stacy Seidel, Tania Newingham, Tabatha Newingham, Jesse Theisen, and Justin Jones; five grandchildren: Sam, Mariah, Hayden, Tabitha, and Keondre; five brothers and sisters: Darryl, Rodney, Kathy, Newingham, Marleen Kuczala, and Jeanine (John) White; best friend, Tammy Newingham; and further survived by numerous friends. He is preceded in death by his parents; infant granddaughter, Amichica; a brother, Roger Schiefelbein; and a sister, Bonnie White.
Funeral Service will be 6 p.m. on Monday January 20, 2014, at Messar-Roubal Funeral Home. Visitation will be from 3 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Monday at the funeral home.
Messar-Roubal Funeral Home of Wausaukee is assisting Rick's Family.
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Sugarloaf Banked Slalom
Sugarloaf Mountain
Saturday, March 10, 2012 from 6:30 AM to 7:00 AM (EST)
Event Details
REGISTRATION UPDATE: If you care to register in person, join us at the Rack from 6pm-9pm to sign up and to participate in the Rider's Meeting. If you are unable to make the Rider's Meeting/Check in at the Rack, please check in and register at the Sugarloaf Comp Centerbetween 8am-9am. Registration will close at 9am SHARP.
Come on out and join the greater Sugarloaf snowboard community for a truly fun, high-fiving event!
Nothing quite beats hanging out with 200 of your local New England shred buddies while you compete in an incredibly fun "ditch" race. Sugarloaf will host the second annual Sugarloaf Banked Slalom on Saturday, March 10th and 11th. Based on the model of the Legendary Mt Baker Banked Slalom, the Sugarloaf Banked Slalom is an open-registration event, featuring a course of banked-turns, winding its way down Sugarloaf's iconic East Coast terrain.
The objective is simple: the fastest rider to the bottom wins.
Changes for 2012
Unlike last year's one-day event, Sugarloaf is hosting the Banked Slalom as a 2-day event in order to open up more spots. Sugarloaf will be opening 175 public spots for the Banked Slalom. We believe our spots will sell out, so be sure to register right away.
Since the event will be a 2-day event, riders will have the chance at 2 runs on Saturday and another 2 on Sunday, taking the best time. Saturday's runs will seed Sunday's run order.
**RIDER'S MEETING/PACKET PICK-UP will take place at The Rack BBQ at 6PM on Friday, the 9th. This meeting is Important for all riders racing in the banked Slalom. **
If you are unable to make it to the Rack on Friday night for the Rider's Meeting, please check in at the Sugarloaf Competition Center between 8am-9am on Saturday morning. The Banked Slalom will begin at 10am Sharp. Course inspection will happen prior to 10am.
Due to the lack of snow on the Double Bitter trail, the Sugarloaf Banked Slalom has been moved to Sidewinder. This new venue is a fantastic location for this event--sunnier, the entire course can be seen by spectators, there's plenty of snow to make a great course, etc. We are excited about the event happening on Sindwinder this year.
The 2012 Sugarloaf Banked Slalom is $60. This does not include a lift ticket. $60 is non-refundable if a rider doesn't make it to the finals round on Sunday.
The Sugarloaf Banked Slalom is open to snowboarders only. Each rider will get one run on Saturday for a chance to qualify for Sunday's two-run finals. Sunday will allow for two runs on the course, keeping the fastest of the two times. Awards will be handed out to the top three overall times, and the top three times in each age category (for both men and women).
Optional practice day on Friday, March 9th, all day.
Saturday course inspection begins at 8:30am
Saturday Qualifer Race begins at 9:30am
Results: 4:00pm (On The Beach)
Sunday course inspection begins at 8:30am
Sunday Finals Race begins at 9:30am
Awards will be held at about 4pm on Sunday afternoon in the King Pine Room of the Base Lodge
The Sugarloaf Banked Slalom course will begin on Double Bitter and finish at the Mini-Pipe in The Stomping Grounds.
Riders will be broken up into the following age catgories:
14 and under
40 and over
You can pregister for the Banked Slalom by ordering here on Eventbrite. Registration will remain open until we have 175 signed up. If there are still openings the night before the race, we will accept registrations that evening and then close it off.
Join us for a Pre-Registration Celebration at The Rack on March 9th at 6pm. Riders who have pre-registered should also plan to pick up their Registration Packets at this time.
All riders should pick up their pre-registration packets at the Pre-Registration Celebration / Riders Meeting. Any packets that are not picked up will be available at the top of Double Bitter at 9:00am on qualifying race day.
There will be another Riders Meeting / Celebration on Saturday at 6pm at the Rack, to discuss Sunday's format, etc.
Sponsors and Prizes:
An awards ceremony will take place on The Beach at 4pm. Prizes will be provided by event sponsors K2 Snowboarding, Capita Snowboards, Bern Helmets and more.
Please download Sugarloaf's release form and bring it, signed, with you. If you are under 21 years of age, your parent or guardian must sign. Download it here.
For further questions, please contact Sugarloaf's Events & Marketing Manager, Ryan Lilly: email@example.com
When & Where
5092 Access Rd
Carrabassett Valley,
Saturday, March 10, 2012 from 6:30 AM to 7:00 AM (EST)
Add to my calendar


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TAMPA - The world's largest indoor skydiving operation is set to open Tuesday, November 22.
The new location is located at 10654 Palm River Rd, next to Top Golf.. It marks the 26th iFLY facility in the U.S. It features a 14-foot diameter wind tunnel powered by four quiet and clean running electric motors.
People of all ages and abilities can experience the human flight in a safe, comfortable and fun environment. Each indoor skydiving facility is a marvel of engineering that replicates the experience of skydiving, creating conditions that allow people to fly on a smooth cushion of air. With the help of iFLY certified flight instructors, customers learn to fly, control their bodies in the air and experience true human flight.
iFLY Tampa is now taking reservations, for more information about iFLY's flight packages and prices and to book your flight time at iFLY Tampa, please visit the website at https://www.iflyworld.com/tampa/.


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Washington Mutual completes its official transition to Chase on June 1, when the branches will all reflect the logo of the new owner.
Some customers have already noticed the changes and they aren't happy, according to reader feedback.
SeattlePI.com reader Andy Royer wrote to me on Wednesday in response to my story on the switch. He gave us permission to share his criticism of the bank.
Royer wrote:
I appreciate the story regarding this bank transfer. I think it would be good to let people know another angle of this story which is of a huge national chain who is taking away local profits while "sanitizing" our local branches.
Here on Vashon the homey little WaMu bank has been uglified since the take-over. Gone are the personal effects that made this branch seem like a place full of friends and neighbors. Gone is the locally made art that adorned the entry-way. Gone is some of the joy of the tellers now that their family pictures (!) must be kept out of the customers (sight).
I've banked at the WaMu out here for about seven years, and many people have done so for decades. Now, instead of walking into a independent- looking branch filled with flowers, art and smiles we have to go into a bank with all the personality of a cardboard box. It's stifling, really. Maybe that's the way of banks in NYC, but out here we feel like we've lost some of our island personality. Tis a shame.
Chase employees are probably not allowed to share their feelings with the media, as is common at most major companies. So, I pinged the question over to Chase.
Chase spokeswoman Darcy Donahoe-Wilmot responded:
We strive to create a consistent, professional atmosphere in our branches because we want customers to know they are dealing with professionals who work hard every day to earn their trust and the right to help them manage their money.
As someone who does most of her banking online, I'm curious about what matters to brick-and-mortar banking customers. Do personal touches at the banker's office matter?
For more context, check out Reuters reporter Felix Salmon's report on whether the terms of the fire sale of WaMu to Chase were necessary.
The FDIC "took a relatively consumer-friendly bank (WaMu) and forced it to adopt the practices of a relatively consumer-unfriendly bank (Chase) — with predictable results: Chase is now telling former WaMu customers that even if they have directed the bank not to let their accounts go overdrawn, the bank can still push the account into overdrawn territory anyway, and, of course, "will assess an Insufficient Funds Fee" for doing so," Salmon writes.


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Obama Seeks Economic Equality in America Changed by King
President Barack Obama, speaking from the same Washington stage where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a defining speech steering a nation's course toward civil rights, said that for all the transformation, work remains in countering growing U.S. economic disparities.
"To secure the gains this country has made requires constant vigilance, not complacency," said Obama, appearing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, where 50 years ago today King called on Americans to make good on the nation's founding promise of equality for all.
Speaking shortly after bells rang across the U.S. in commemoration of the start of King's 1963 address, Obama's remarks served as the culmination of a week-long remembrance of a peaceful "March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom" and a speech that helped galvanize the civil rights movement of the 1960s and became as memorable as Abraham Lincoln's own Gettysburg Address.
Slideshow: Lincoln's Front-Row Seat to History
King, Obama said, did more than advance the cause of equal rights for black Americans -- he changed America.
"America changed for you and for me," the president said today. "And the entire world drew strength from that example, whether it be young people who watched from the other side of an Iron Curtain and would eventually tear down that wall, or the young people inside South Africa would eventually end the scourge of apartheid."
"'What King was describing was the dream of every American," Obama said, "the chance through honest toil to advance one's station in life."
Race Issue
Obama, 52, the nation's first black president, has worked throughout his campaigns and government service to transcend issues of race. Yet this address centered on a problem still confronting a nation riven with economic disparities.
The message was echoed by several speakers -- politicians and performers alike -- throughout the day-long event, including former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, civil rights leaders including Joseph Lowery and Representative John Lewis of Georgia, and King's sister and children.
"This march, and that speech, changed America," Clinton, 67, said of King's 1963 address today.
"They opened minds, they melted hearts and they moved millions including a 17-year-old boy watching alone in his home in Arkansas," he said, in a reference to himself.
Obama's remarks followed a ceremonial ringing in front of the Lincoln Memorial of the bell salvaged from the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, which was bombed on Sept. 15, 1963, less than three weeks after King's speech. Four young girls were killed in the blast.
Florida Case
Today's celebration arrived at a time when race has again risen in the national debate. The 2012 shooting death of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin, and then the acquittal of his killer in July, stoked protests in the black community -- and prompted Obama to make a rare, and personal, public statement assessing the state of race relations.
"When Trayvon Martin was first shot," the president said July 19, "I said this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago."
The anniversary of the 1963 march also comes two months after the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, struck down a key tenet of the Voting Rights Act, which drew pointed criticism from both the White House and Eric Holder, the country's first black attorney general.
Sharpton Comments
The Reverend Al Sharpton, speaking before Obama today, said that just as King had fought "Jim Crow" segregationist laws of the Old South, King's children are fighting Jim Crow's children -- namely a figurative "James B. Crow Jr.," author of laws today that critics say restrict the voting rights of minorities.
"Just like our mothers and fathers beat Jim Crow," Sharpton said, "we will beat James B. Crow Jr."
While more than half of Americans say race relations in the nation are "generally good," 40 percent of African-Americans still see "a lot of discrimination" against blacks, according to a CBS News poll released today.
Obama and his aides had worked to lower expectations for him in the days leading up to his speech, which had as its focus economic and social inequities that the administration has been addressing.
"No one can match King's brilliance, but the same flame that lit the heart of all who are willing to take a first step for justice, I know that flame remains," Obama said in his remarks.
March's Influence
Obama recounted the forces and experiences that brought people of all races to peacefully assemble on the National Mall 50 years ago, as well as the efforts that followed and led to U.S. passage of voting and civil rights laws and influenced communities around the world.
"America changed for you and for me and the entire world drew strength from that example," Obama said.
Along with voting rights being secured, he said, educational opportunity was advanced, city halls were opened to all, "and yes, eventually the White House changed."
For King and his fellow marchers, social injustice was inextricably intertwined with economic injustice.
"We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one," King told the assembled crowd of more than 250,000 then.
Today, as the U.S. economy plods through recovery after the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, economic disparity still is visible.
Unemployment Persists
Unemployment among African-Americans stands at 12.6 percent, while the national unemployment rate is 7.4 percent. Since the June 2009 end of the recession, median income for black households has dropped 10.9 percent, compared with a 3.6 percent fall for white households, according to Sentier Research, an economic-consulting firm in Annapolis, Maryland.
"I think we all know how Dr. King would've reacted to unemployment for African-Americans being almost twice as high as it is for white people," said Carter, 88, who was supported by King's wife, Coretta Scott King, in his 1976 campaign for the presidency.
"Every hug from Coretta got me a million Yankee votes," Carter said to laughs.
While the poverty rate for blacks has improved over the last five decades, it's still greater than one in four -- and almost three times worse than the rate for whites.
Recognizing Progress
Still, Obama said the gains made over that period -- and those who played the integral role in making them happen -- need to be recognized.
"To dismiss the magnitude of this process, to suggest, as some sometimes do, that little has changed, that dishonors the courage and the sacrifice of those who paid the price to march in those years," Obama said.
Much of the week's activities, including a series of speeches from black leaders on the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 24, focused on economic issues, including a push to increase the nation's minimum wage, currently $7.25 per hour.
"We have come a great distance in this country in the 50 years, but we still have a great distance to go before we fulfill the dream of Martin Luther King Jr.," said Lewis, a Democrat who also spoke at the original March on Washington.
To contact the reporter on this story: Phil Mattingly in Washington at firstname.lastname@example.com
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steven Komarow at firstname.lastname@example.com


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What is Wondjina?
Wondjina is the term used by the Australian aboriginal people to
define their Creator Gods of the Dream Time. For the
aboriginals, dream time was the 'real' world while the waking world
was the pale reflection of reality.
This is also the term we use to reach beyond the ordinary into the extra-ordinary. Under normal circumstances organizations begin with the known limitations and then work forward towards possibility. We at Wondjina do things a little differently.
We begin with the assumption that the word 'impossible' is simply a misrepresentation of the word 'difficult'.
read more >


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Situated in an established and prime residential road, just off Englefield Green, with access to the notable towns of Windsor, Egham, Virginia Water, Ascot and Sunningdale, a well proportioned family house in generous gardens of 0.4 acre.
A charming Georgian residence, dating back to c.1790, forming part of the old original parsonage and situated in a pretty road within the heart of Englefield Green. The property offers a private garden of 0.25 acre and gated access.
Due to the fast moving pace of the Short Let market, many of our properties never make it to the website. If you can't find what you're looking for, please give our Short Let team a call as we may have the ideal property for you.


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Roman Catholic Bishop Daniel Jenky of Peoria, Illinois sent a letter to his flock telling them that supporting politicians who support abortion reject Jesus. He also spoke against the HSS mandates that would compel the Catholic Church to adopt policies contrary to their moral teachings. Bp. Jenky wrote: Today, Catholic politicians, bureaucrats, and their electoral supporters who callously … [Read more...]
Roman Catholic Bishop Orders Priests to Read Anti-Obama Letter at Sunday Sermons
November 1, 2012 Posted by: 14 Comments


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Boston Archdiocese Threatens To Stop Offering Employee Health Care
The Archdiocese of Boston says it may stop offering health insurance for its employees if the Obama administration does not relax a new rule that requires many church-affiliated employers to cover the cost of birth control in employee health plans.
In a sharply worded letter sent to parishioners, Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley called the rule a violation of Catholic consciences. Citing the Church's longstanding opposition to contraception, O'Malley wrote:
In its ruling, the Administration has cast aside the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, denying to Catholics our Nation's first and most fundamental freedom, that of religious liberty.
O'Malley's letter was one of many sent out to parishes across the country at the behest of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The debate continued Monday morning when Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius argued in USA Today that the health care policy exempts Catholic churches — thus protecting freedom of religion — but not Catholic-run institutions like hospitals or universities, institutions that often employ non-Catholic workers.
Is this ruling on birth control and health care an attack on religious freedom? We put the question to Father Bryan Hehir, secretary for health care and social services for the Archdiocese of Boston.
- Father Bryan Hehir, secretary for health care and social services for the Archdiocese of Boston
Host Meghna Chakrabarti introduces us to newsmakers, big thinkers and artists and brings us stories of relevance to Bostonians here and around the region. Live every weekday at 3 p.m. and 10 p.m.
- Listen: Weekdays, 3 p.m. on 90.9 FM
- Live Call-In: (800) 423-TALK
- Listener Voicemail: (617) 358-0607


text: As sophisticated as a black tuxedo this black satin Badgley Mischka Costa 4 inch stiletto heel is a sure choice for your next big night. Costa defines style and class with its pleated detailing, lustrous satin, feminine open-toe, and sweet bow. Make your mark and define your style with out saying a word!


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On a relentlessly odd day at Wimbledon, the women's singles again proved they had a disarming, anarchic unpredictability. The first week saw defeats for Li Na and both Venus and Serena Williams; on Tuesday on Centre Court Maria Sharapova, the favourite elect, joined them in making a premature departure. The 27-year-old Russian, seeded No5, lost a gruelling three-set war to Angelique Kerber from Germany 7-6, 4-6, 6-4.
The fact that something very similar happened last year at Wimbledon only fractionally lessens the incredulity at another surprise result. Once more the women's champion may well be a player whom no one suspected – and only serious tennis fans had even heard of – just a week ago.
According to the numbers, this was not such a dramatic upset: Kerber, after all, is the world No7 and a Wimbledon semi-finalist two years ago. But the 26-year-old has never beaten a player of Sharapova's standing on such a grand stage. And this victory demanded that she play that near-perfect, error-free tennis for more than two-and-a-half hours.
It took Kerber seven match points to seal victory and with each one that slipped away, the doubts crept in. Not least with Kerber herself: "You know, when I had three match points in a row and I didn't make it, I was a little bit nervous," she admitted. "But I told myself 'You can do it. She will not make mistakes. If you want to win the match you need to be aggressive. Just go for it.' I'm happy because I don't think she lost the match; I won it. That feels good."
It is easy to underestimate Kerber, who in the second round beat Heather Watson. She has a simpering second serve and is primarily known for her defensive impenetrability. On Tuesday, Sharapova must have felt like her opponent was a wall. Kerber plays like every point should be cherished and she ran down Sharapova's brutal, pulverising groundstrokes as if each one was match point against her.
Over three long sets, Kerber made just 11 unforced mistakes, compared to 49 from the other side of the net. What's more revealing is that Sharapova actually played quite well, hitting 57 winners. "She's a great anticipator of the ball," Sharapova said of Kerber. "She's one of the best. Maybe she hasn't had the best results this year, but she's been in the top 10 for a while now. There's a reason she does that. I don't think she has a very huge weapon, but the fact that she makes you play such a physical match, gets so many balls back, and not just back, but deep and hard and flat. Yeah, it says something."
Sharapova's progress towards a second Wimbledon title, a decade after her first, was starting to feel ordained. Before Kerber, she had won each of her matches easily and the earlier defeat of Serena Williams – who has beaten her 16 times on the spin – made her path to the final far more straightforward.
Off court, Sharapova has been relaxed and confident enough to spend her spare time down at the Sugapova Candy Lounge, her pop-up store in Wimbledon Village. The shop itself is an oddity: it sells small bags of what were called penny sweets for £4. These "gummy candies" have names like Quirky, Cheeky, Silly and Flirty and last year the company shifted 1.3 million bags, with the expectation to double that in 2014.
The weird thing, of course, is that when she plays tennis Sharapova could not be any further from quirky, cheeky, silly or flirty. On court, she is intense and focused - her sweets should really be called "Grinding" or "Fistpump", though she might not sell two million units of those.
Sharapova is also formidably combative, as shown by her refusal to accept defeat against Kerber. "She's the best fighter, the best competitor we've ever seen in women's sports," said Lindsay Davenport as Sharapova saw off another match point.
It is to Kerber's great credit that she saw the victory through. She is clearly resilient, efficient and gracious, with a pleasant habit of conspicuously applauding her opponent's best shots. If she wasn't already German, the country would have to offer her citizenship.
"It was such a tough game, she's such a great player," said Kerber, who might just be the best athlete on the women's tour. "I was just fighting out there."
Kerber faces another test with a quarter-final match against Eugenie Bouchard, the 20-year-old Canadian who many consider to be the most exciting prospect in the women's game. Bouchard won when the pair met Roland Garros in May, but Kerber is trusting that grass will suit her better.
Sharapova, who won the French Open, beating Bouchard in the semi-finals, would not be drawn on who would win the next round. But she was reluctant to concede that her generation's dominance was coming to an end. "The grand slam champions so far this year are myself and Li Na [in the Australian Open]," she said. "We are definitely seeing a younger generation that's driving through, playing exceptionally against the top players. But as far as winning grand slams, I think that's yet to be determined."


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I am from Glasgow, Intl and I've been a Club Horse member for 4 years, 6 months and 24 days
Nicknames: Frankiedoodles
Age: 14 years old
Gender: Mare
Height: 15hh
Color: Bay
Type of Riding: Bareback, Flatwork and jumping
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My Horse's Favorite Things To Do: Eat and jump
Pet Peeves: Wind and plastic bags
My Horse's motto: if you fall, get straight back on!
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