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EAU CLAIRE, Wisc. (WEAU) - When a suspect has a gun, police officers have a split second to make a life and death decision.
Last Friday, an Eau Claire Police officer shot and killed a man who lead officers on a high speed chase.
Following the shooting, some questioned whether shooting and killing gunman Christian Peterson was the right move.
A determination of whether the officer's actions were appropriate will be made after the Department of Justice delivers its report to Eau Claire County District Attorney Brian Wright.
"Ultimately, it comes down to whether the use of force in self-defense of others was reasonable (to determine if the action was appropriate)" Wright said.
Police haven't said whether Peterson pointed the gun at officers or the driver whose car he was trying to get into, or where on Peterson's body he was shot.
Former Madison officer and Chippewa Valley Technical College Emergency Services Associate Dean Eric Anderson said aiming for other parts of the body are less likely to eliminate a threat to safety and law enforcement students said they understand the risks involved.
"Officers are not trained to shoot to kill. We make that very clear. The terminology is to shoot to stop. The most effective way to stop a threat immediately is to shoot for the central nervous system," Anderson said. "If we were to try to shoot a gun out of somebody's hand, or if we were to shoot a person in the leg or arm, the chances of that round missing its target are very high."
"You have to expect to be both the caretaker and enforcing the law with things such as deadly force," CVTC student Jenaye Pearson said.
Eau Claire Police said target practice requirements vary between agencies but that it requires officers to practice on the range at least six times each year.


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Union president Lynch sues New London, Ackley claiming retaliation
New London — One day after the city police union filed a complaint with the state labor board, union president Todd Lynch sued the city and Police Chief Margaret Ackley, alleging that Ackley punished Lynch for being an outspoken critic.
The 44-page lawsuit, filed Thursday, cites emails sent from Ackley's personal email account to support its allegations that Ackley "retaliated and disciplined" Lynch because of things he said and because of the people with whom he associated.
The suit asks for more than $15,000 in damages.
Also on Thursday, Mayor Daryl Justin Finizio discussed the ongoing turmoil in the police department, saying some members of the city's police union are using paperwork to act as "obstructionists" when it comes to changes Ackley has made in departmental procedures and policies.
He said Ackley, who became police chief in June 2009, has worked to implement a community-policing based department, a change some officers who would rather "crack some skulls" have resisted.
"I don't believe that is the appropriate way to do community policing in the 21st century," he said.
Those who disagree with the changes are free to leave the department, Finizio said.
The suit alleges that the "adverse employment actions" used by Ackley constitute a violation of state general statute 31-51q, which was enacted in 1983 to protect employees from discipline or discharge based on the exercise of First Amendment rights in the workplace.
Another count alleges violation of a federal statute, Section 1983, which covers violations of civil rights, and a third claims Ackley sent libelous emails to "known political gadfly" Kathleen Mitchell, a city resident.
Lynch, who joined the department in 2007, was elected union president in November.
"It's regretful that any of these complaints have to be filed," said Gordon Videll, whose partner, Christine Synodi, represents Lynch. "However, this was the only way left Todd could address these issues."
Three decades later, Desiree Michaud's friends and family still seek closure
Full game: Stonington 12, East Lyme 10 in ECC girls' lacrosse final

subset: commoncrawl


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byKen Presti on
New Developer Tools For Google Play
The company rolled out several new APIs to the developer community. Most of these involve Google Play Game Services, which can be used to build games with increased interactivity, such as the ability to challenge friends who are also members of Google Plus, develop leader boards, and save games for later review or continue later, perhaps even on other devices. In addition to supporting Android, the capability with also support Apple iOS.


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Billy Marks and Josh Harmony may be embarking on an east coast Etnies trip on the way to the Tampa AM contest. Where Billy will probably win. I wouldn't be at all surprised!
Nate Broussard and Ed Templeton will connect with Billy and Josh at the Tampa AM. Where Nate is rumored to be entering the contest.


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- Biochemie und Chemie (1)
- Medizin (1)
- Bacterial porin disrupts mitochondrial membrane potential and sensitizes host cells to apoptosis (2009)
- The bacterial PorB porin, an ATP-binding beta-barrel protein of pathogenic Neisseria gonorrhoeae, triggers host cell apoptosis by an unknown mechanism. PorB is targeted to and imported by host cell mitochondria, causing the breakdown of the mitochondrial membrane potential (delta psi m). Here, we show that PorB induces the condensation of the mitochondrial matrix and the loss of cristae structures, sensitizing cells to the induction of apoptosis via signaling pathways activated by BH3-only proteins. PorB is imported into mitochondria through the general translocase TOM but, unexpectedly, is not recognized by the SAM sorting machinery, usually required for the assembly of beta-barrel proteins in the mitochondrial outer membrane. PorB integrates into the mitochondrial inner membrane, leading to the breakdown of delta psi m. The PorB channel is regulated by nucleotides and an isogenic PorB mutant defective in ATP-binding failed to induce delta psi m loss and apoptosis, demonstrating that dissipation of delta psi m is a requirement for cell death caused by neisserial infection.
- Bim and Bmf synergize to induce apoptosis in Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection (2009)
- Abstract: Bcl-2 family proteins including the pro-apoptotic BH3-only proteins are central regulators of apoptotic cell death. Here we show by a focused siRNA miniscreen that the synergistic action of the BH3-only proteins Bim and Bmf is required for apoptosis induced by infection with Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ngo). While Bim and Bmf were associated with the cytoskeleton of healthy cells, they both were released upon Ngo infection. Loss of Bim and Bmf from the cytoskeleton fraction required the activation of Jun-N-terminal kinase-1 (JNK-1), which in turn depended on Rac-1. Depletion and inhibition of Rac-1, JNK-1, Bim, or Bmf prevented the activation of Bak and Bax and the subsequent activation of caspases. Apoptosis could be reconstituted in Bim-depleted and Bmf-depleted cells by additional silencing of antiapoptotic Mcl-1 and Bcl-XL, respectively. Our data indicate a synergistic role for both cytoskeletal-associated BH3-only proteins, Bim, and Bmf, in an apoptotic pathway leading to the clearance of Ngo-infected cells. Author Summary: A variety of physiological death signals, as well as pathological insults, trigger apoptosis, a genetically programmed form of cell death. Pathogens often induce host cell apoptosis to establish a successful infection. Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ngo), the etiological agent of the sexually transmitted disease gonorrhoea, is a highly adapted obligate human-specific pathogen and has been shown to induce apoptosis in infected cells. Here we unveil the molecular mechanisms leading to apoptosis of infected cells. We show that Ngo-mediated apoptosis requires a special subset of proapoptotic proteins from the group of BH3-only proteins. BH3-only proteins act as stress sensors to translate toxic environmental signals to the initiation of apoptosis. In a siRNA-based miniscreen, we found Bim and Bmf, BH3-only proteins associated with the cytoskeleton, necessary to induce host cell apoptosis upon infection. Bim and Bmf inactivated different inhibitors of apoptosis and thereby induced cell death in response to infection. Our data unveil a novel pathway of infection-induced apoptosis that enhances our understanding of the mechanism by which BH3-only proteins control apoptotic cell death.


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|2004-05-04, 00:38
|Link #362
Disheartened and Retired
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: 加拿大
Age: 32
I consider this premise more as a setup than as a "plot". Hmm...how can I compare this to. It's like The Simpsons. There's this average American family of 5. What's the plot of the Simpsons? I don't know, but pretty damn funny to watch about them. Same idea applies: There's this tough boy with a girl on his right hand. What's the plot? I don't know...but it's pretty damn funny to watch about him too. Oh wait, I guess the plot is Midori's love for Seiji, and romantic conflicts between them.
|2004-05-04, 05:00
|Link #364
Join Date: May 2004
Age: 34
Episode 5.... some entertaining moments, but nothing else... along with episode 4 I think they have been the weakest episodes of the series... I think we need more mixture between action and romance instead of plain romance and comedy... at least that's what I liked from the first few episodes
|2004-05-04, 08:43
|Link #365
Join Date: Apr 2004
Plot isnt always required for a successful show. case in point Galaxy angel. its going on a 4th season in Japan and there really isnt a plot to speak of!
What carries showsl ike this are likeable characters, and the characters in midori no hibi are fun to watch.
|2004-05-04, 14:21
|Link #366
Team the box!
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Badside
Bummer. I like the way the pullup thing was done in the manga better.
And why a friggin fever episode? Always with the fever episodes. Don't Japanese ever get any other ailments like a runny nose, projectile vomiting, or explosive diarrhea?
What happened to Ayase's friggid outer shell? Boooo. I liked her acting all tough and stuck up. She was all goofy in this episode.
|2004-05-04, 17:44
|Link #367
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2003
BTW, I agree with you. I liked the pull-up thing in the manga better too, and then when they get home Seichi's hand is injured and it leads to another situation...
|2004-05-04, 18:38
|Link #368
Join Date: Jun 2003
Age: 35
Episode 5 just lacked the charming atmosphere that most of the first episodes of the anime and the manga have. It was... dry. They made Seiji too sweet, too soon, Ayase went from bitch to giggly school girl with as close to no actual segue as humanly possible, and Midori... well, I never really liked Midori all that much, anyway, but I still don't like her in the anime.
|2004-05-04, 19:14
|Link #370
annoying white bat
Join Date: Jan 2004
I thought the first half of episode 5 was funny but the second half was a drag. It's nice when Seishi is kind to Midori, but it just doesn't last because she is so goopy. And yeah, all in all "charm" certainly wasn't in it.
Given that the last two episodes were half-decent I am even more annoyed about episode 3, which was hard to watch and didn't really do anything for the story.
|2004-05-05, 00:12
|Link #372
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: houston, tx
|2004-05-05, 00:29
|Link #373
Join Date: Apr 2004
woah woah, the critics have spoken. i agree that the whole pull up scene wasnt handled very well in the anime... maybe the timing was off or the whole thing was dragged out/overdramatized but still, i think they have done a great job on the anime. go ayase go!
|2004-05-09, 01:20
|Link #376
Join Date: Jun 2003
Just finished up to 5 with this series
You know, the good anime series I have seen usually have pretty much a normal setting with one twist, (in this case, a girl becomes a guys right hand twist) It is the most entertaining series I have seen thus far.
Though, 4 and 5 seems to me that yeah the pull up thing maybe out of place (though i didnt even took a second thought at it) maybe its because the different subbers and their context.
Definitely looking forward to the next eps and interested to see how things go with the other girl in class.
|2004-05-10, 03:20
|Link #378
*Kyuuketsuki Otaku*
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Somewhere in Hawaii
|2004-05-10, 04:19
|Link #380
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2004
The 5th Manga for it just released in Japan I believe. But I'm guessing like most other titles, the Manga version would longer and much more detailed to related to the characters that appear in it, and the story for the Manga is way ahead of the anime.
That's why we got so many critics here saying the anime is not as good as the Manga, but still none the less the anime is good for passing time and a laugh.....it might not be as fun to watch for those that already read the Manga and know where the story is heading for.
I mean if you look back on series like Ramma and Love Hina, the anime never did cover to as far as where the Manga ends.....I'm guessing there is a chance that Modori No Hibi would be the same as well.
|Thread Tools


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Skip to comments.Ten myths about gay marriage
Posted on 10/19/2012 5:42:47 AM PDT by IbJensen
October 18, 2012 - The Prime Minister David Cameron wants to redefine marriage to allow gay couples to marry. Thus far over 600,000 people have signed a petition launched by the Coalition for Marriage(C4M) against these plans which reads simply as follows:
I support the legal definition of marriage which is the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others. I oppose any attempt to redefine it.
I have previously written on this issue and have published 24 articles on all aspects of the debate. One of these, Ten reasons not to legalise same-sex marriage in Britain, gives an overview of the main issues.
This week, however, the Coalition for Marriage has published a new leaflet titled Ten reasons why the government is wrong to redefine marriage which is available in pdf format on the C4M website.
It outlines ten myths about the redefinition of marriage.
I have reproduced the text below.
Ten reasons why the government is wrong to redefine marriage
Myth 1 - It will promote marriage
Evidence shows that redefining marriage actually undermines support for marriage in wider society. Neither has it delivered the promised stability for same-sex couples. In Spain, after gay marriage was introduced, marriage rates across the whole population plummeted. In the Netherlands too there has been a significant fall in the marriage rate since marriage was redefined. Same-sex marriage does not promote marriage.
Myth 2 - Marriage has always evolved
Marriage between a man and a woman is not a recent social invention. Everyone knows that marriage predates law, nation and church. It goes back to the dawn of time. Yes, matrimonial law may have been tweaked over the years, but the law has never fundamentally altered the essential nature of marriage: a lifelong commitment between one man and one woman. Samesex marriage would rewrite hundreds of years of British legal tradition and thousands of years of cultural heritage.
Myth 3 - Its all about equality
Same-sex couples already have equality. All the legal rights of marriage are already available to same-sex couples through civil partnerships. Equality doesnt mean bland uniformity or state-imposed sameness. If the Government genuinely wants to pursue equality, why is it banning heterosexual couples from entering a civil partnership? Same-sex couples have equal rights through civil partnerships, but they dont have the right to redefine marriage for everyone else.
Myth 4 - No impact on schools
The current law requires schools to teach children about the importance of marriage. If marriage is given a new definition, it will be endorsed in schools. According to expert legal advice, any teacher who fails to endorse same-sex marriage in the classroom could be dismissed. Parents will have no legal right to withdraw their children from lessons which endorse same-sex marriage across the curriculum. Already supporters of gay marriage are recommending books for use in schools which undermine traditional marriage, and call on schools to get children to act out gay weddings. The effect on schools will be polarising and divisive.
Myth 5 - It wont be a slippery slope
If we redefine marriage once, whats to stop marriage being redefined yet further? If marriage is solely about love and commitment between consenting adults, whats to say we shouldnt recognise threeway relationships? Its already happened in nations that redefined marriage. In Brazil, a three-way relationship was given marriage-like rights by a judge because of civil partnership laws. A similar situation has existed in the Netherlands for several years. In Canada after marriage was redefined, a polygamist launched a legal action to have his relationship recognised in law. When politicians meddle with marriage it all starts to unravel.
Myth 6 - Opponents are just bigots
This slur is meant to shut down debate and stop people thinking for themselves. Nick Clegg landed in hot water over a draft speech which called opponents of redefining marriage bigots. He later retracted the word, but theres no doubt that many who support this radical agenda think anyone who disagrees is not worthy of respect. However, support for traditional marriage has come from many respected academics, lawyers, politicians of all parties, and religious leaders. They all know that redefining marriage would have a profound impact.
Myth 7 - Gay couples want to marry
Polling shows that only a minority of gay people (39 per cent) believe gay marriage is a priority. And according to the Government only 3 per cent of gay people would enter a same-sex marriage. A number of gay celebrities and journalists are themselves opposed to gay marriage. Latest official data shows that only 0.7 per cent of households are headed by a same-sex couple. Not all of them want, or will enter, a same-sex marriage. So, why is such a monumental change being imposed throughout society?
Myth 8 - The public supports it
Seven in ten people want to keep marriage as it is. Other polling which purports to show public support for gay marriage fails to tell respondents that equal rights are already available through civil partnerships. When people are told this crucial fact, most people say keep marriage as it is. MPs say their postbags have been dominated by public opposition to redefining marriage. Ordinary people want the Government to concentrate on reviving the economy and providing better public services, not meddling with marriage.
Myth 9 - Just a modest change
Since we already have civil partnerships, isnt same-sex marriage just a small logical next step? No. Rewriting the meaning of marriage will have a far-reaching impact on society. Over 3,000 laws make reference to marriage. The Government has already admitted that official documents will need to be rewritten to remove words like husband and wife. In France the Government is eradicating the words father and mother from all official documents. The Church of England has warned that it could lead to disestablishment and a constitutional crisis.
Myth 10 - Conscience will be respected
Its not even being respected now. A housing manager from Manchester was demoted and lost 40 per cent of his salary for stating, outside work time, that gay weddings in churches were an equality too far. Conferences and symposiums in support of traditional marriage have been thrown out of venues. Adverts in support of a 600,000-strong public petition in favour of traditional marriage have been investigated as offensive. And all this has taken place before any change to the law has taken place. What will it be like if the law does change? A leading human rights lawyer has outlined the devastating impact of redefining marriage on civil liberties.
Simply, it's abnormal. It is like trying to eat food through one's nose! God made marriage and not man; God set the standard and not man. The Bible shows us continually what happens to those who promote and indulge the sin of homosexuality. Why do people want to rebel against God? That's what sin causes people to do. The only cure is Jesus Christ. The clueless corporate entities that sign on to this sinfulness are doing themselves a horrible disservice. They're stores will suffer from the loss of the business of decent Americans.
This is like saying if we all just printed money in our basements/garages, the economy would be strengthened.
The first myth of "gay marriage" is that it exists.
It doesn't exist any more than calling a dog's tail a "leg" will lead to an explosion in the population of five-legged dogs.
There have been variations on this concept occasionally over the millenia, but one thing has never changed - all marriages have included at least one man and at least one woman.
"Gay marriages" are outside that pattern.
Myth #1 is utterly rediculous. It takes genuine maturity, responsibility, and commitment to make marriage actually work, i.e. to go ahead and actually bother despite the price tag assigned to being married. Seeing the declining attitude that people seem to have toward actually growing up and getting a life, it's rediculous that something as simple as a few people having what they deem to be marriage would have much, if any, effect on the maturity of the populace, which has declined, and has little incentive to actually rise, given the decay of the general economy, decline of religion, and the rise of the welfare state.
this is about legalizing immorality and bad health. There is no way that the human body was intended for the activities the adherents of homosexual "marriage" practice.
The goal is the criminalization of Christianity to the point where government force can be used against those expressing or holding Christian beliefs.
The homogenda is the main vehicle towards this goal today.
and there it is, it's about the battle against the church, people of faith. WOE TO THOSE THAT CALL EVIL GOOD AND GOOD EVIL
Worse, it's an attempt to redefine "normal," to replace God with the State as the arbiter of right and wrong.
The idea is that by redefining literal marriage to include same genders - and which are rampantly non-monogamous - it effectively redefines it to include the joining of anything, and thus, like grade inflation, it reduces its uniqueness and the meaning of marriage and morality, thus promoting non-committal cohabitation.
Behind this is the implicit religious underpinnings of marriage, and which esp. in Scripture Christianity, only and specifically define marriage as being btwn opposite genders of humans, and condemn homosexual unions by precept and in principle, by design and decree. That is good enough for me, while abundant evidence testifies to the deleterious nature of homosexual activity.
See http://peacebyjesus.witnesstoday.org/Homosex_versus_the_Bible.html
On one hand gay "marriage" is a symptom of the rejection of traditional Judaeo-Christian values which was greatly manifest beginning in the 60's sexual revolution which it is part of, while on the other hand its acceptance promotes the same devaluing of these transcendent values - to the collective hurt of all, and which liberalism works to promote.
>It is like trying to eat food through one's nose!<
Worse actually, and while the contrary nature of homosexual activity is not restricted to the physical, for God made man and women uniquely compatible and complementary (even in a symbiotic ways) in more ways than physical, yet putting your gas pump into the exhaust pipe of another is neither right nor healthy, no matter how much you love your car and like the perverse thrill you get from the smoke,
Freedom not Sodom!
There's freedom in America, the land of the red white and blue;
but there still must be laws, things you just can't do.
You can't marry your sister, your brother, or the family pet;
a sheep, or a goat - at least not yet!
That how is it with homosexuality, what the Bible calls sodomy;
men lying with men as with women, is perversity!
That they're not designed that way, tis easy to perceive,
but yielding to sinful desires, man is soon deceived.
A moral wrong is not a civil right; like the sin itself, that's confusion;
calling evil good and exchanging light for darkness, is sure delusion!
History tells us where this will lead, from societies now in dust,
When a nation casts off the laws of God, and follows it's own lusts.
Promoting a sin which sends one to Hell from an early grave,
dishonors God and robs man of the Life He gave.
There's but one answer: the Risen Jesus gave Himself for our sins;
Repent and believe, then truly follow Him!
Your argument is void of any logic. Adding homosexual sex premised couplings does nothing but cheapen real marriage. Libertarians need to stick with fiscal issues as they are morally clueless and can not defend what they can not even hope to understand.
Just say this, its this simple: Marriage between one man and one woman is a REAL marriage. Any other form of "marriage" by definition not a REAL marriage.
Stop giving the fascistic politicians nor the idiot leftist the pleasure of accounting their terms. Simply tell them that what they are trying to call marriage is not a real marriage and there is nothing anyone or anything can do about that.
This will likely pissed them off but that is precisely the point, when they prove to the world that they can't live with just the State's lying that they have to force other people to acknowledged that lie their position will be weakened.
Most importantly of all this is about preserving in our mind, hearts, and couture the concept of what a real Marriage is, and therefore a notion of its propose.
This is the war, but this particular battle should be defined as simply: "Real Marriage v.s. 'Gay marriage'"
Because that is precisely what this conflict is about, the institution and the truth which is inextricably linked to the propose of that institution. Family(reproductive) unions.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.


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Honeywell Defends Against AOG at Houston's Big Game
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Jeremy is a Senior Channel Marketing Specialist in the Business and General Aviation division of Honeywell Aerospace. Jeremy joined Honeywell in October of 2015 and has a background in copy writing, digital marketing, sales and social media in the financial industry.
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These are the friendships you'll treasure for the rest of your life. Remember them all with this pocket-sized album, featuring an embossed silver foil cover. So that you never lose touch, the Photo Name Card Album includes an address/email book for storing contact information. Nameplate sold separately.
- Holds 32 wallet-sized photos, status cards and name cards
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text:
Cirque du Soleil ofrece dosieres de prensa de sus distintos espectáculos e información sobre la empresa.
Patrice Besombes started out studying drama in Tours, France, before discovering lighting as his métier and dance as the world he wanted to bring it to.
As Technical Director of the Maison de la Danse de Lyon, the self-taught Patrice developed his approach through the work he did with the emerging – and varied – generation of French choreographers of the early 1980s, including Catherine Diverrès, Dominique Boivin and Kitsou Dubois. He designed the lighting for Benjamin Millepied's On the Other Side for the New York City Ballet, as well as Triad and Amoveo for the Paris Opera. He also worked with the American choreographer Carolyn Carlson, whose Signes is still in the repertory of the Ballet National de Paris.
Patrice participated in the International Dance Festival in Montpellier and the Vienna Jazz Festival, joining Philippe Decouflé's company DCA in 1993, first as stage manager on Petites pièces montées and Decodex. He slowly gravitated toward lighting with such DCA productions as Denise, the ceremonies of the 50th Cannes International Film Festival, Marguerite, Shazam!, Triton, Solo, Iris, Sombreros and Octopus.
When he creates tableaux of light for the theatre, Patrice makes extensive use of cinema techniques. Inspired by the book Des lumières et des ombres by Henri Alekan, one of the greatest French cinematographers, Patrice loves to work on faces – sculpting them with light to capture their expressions.
"Light is essential to the image and its propagation, especially in entertainment and film," says Patrice, who is working with Cirque du Soleil for the first time. "What's new in IRIS is the way the artists light themselves by carrying their own lights."
Patrice Besombes was born in Saumur, France.


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Sunday, August 23, 2009
Taking my ball and going home. . .
First of all, I guess it is the normal stage of events on a PvP server, when people get bored with raiding, they look for "world PvP". That normally means running around ganking other players. I don't like it but normally it doesnt get in the way so bad. Last night I was doing the Argent Tournament quest that involves going and getting a sword. I went and got the flowers, flew to the complete other end of northrend, landed in the water, started the quest, and a gnome rogue ganked me right as I was about to complete it. Pardon my language but what a worthless piece of shit do you have to be to sit there and fuck with people just to piss them off? It succeeded. Unfortunately, I think there will only be more of this in the future.
Now, I will likely lose my heirloom shoulders in the transaction (which is a shame), but oh well. They don't have paid faction changes yet and I don't want to pay $50 to switch faction AND server. I've been thinking about a different solution.
I have a 74 pally on Azuremyst. I'm heavily considering "recruit a friend" to start up a new account, power level a couple characters, grant some levels to my existing characters, and get everyone to 60.
Its all hypothetical at this stage, and it's an awful lot of wasted time and effort, but its better than being pissed off all the time and/or quitting the game which is what happened last time. Having played enough endgame, I've come to a few conclusions. A) I have no desire to raid, it seems like a waste of time. B) If I have to PuG everything anyways, whats the difference? C) I really just prefer playing alliance, I prefer humans, draenei and night elves.
Anyone have any experience with recruit a friend power leveling? It seems like a pretty good deal, triple XP all the time, gear drops from instances, no hassle, levels granted for other characters on the account.
8 comments:
WoW man sounds like you have some issues in the game. Let me ask you this, why do you play the game? Is it to spend time with friends or waste time to avoid facing reality? I do not mean that harsh, but you clearly stated you hate PVP and you have no desire for eng game playing. You also said that you like playing because you can talk with your friends, but sounded angered because you end up PuGn everything and even had "always" stand out.
I know I am just an outside observer here and don't get mad at my comment here, but one death sent you over the edge? I may be way off basis but I always considered the term "ganking" to be along the lines of corpse camping. Something that is unmerciful. Sure it sucks to get "ganekd" but did you ask for help?
As far as the whole PuGn stuff, did you ask friends for help and were online when they were or did you log on and see no one on and just figure "ah shit, I'll do it myself?" Because if you do not wait for the friends, then it is your own fault for PuGn shit.
I would say find a toon you enjoy playing as well. Because in past posts you talk about the Pali and that he is semi-retired. You also talk about all these "problems" that you have had in many different roles. You seem to have a solid understanding of the game, but fail to be able to apply that to your playstyle. I see a lot of people on here, including your guild mates, coddle you and tell you they got your back or it is not your fault. However, I ask you, maybe it is your fault? Are all these groups so terrible or is it you?
Don't shoot the messenger here but I just see a lot of anger and confusion in some of your posts and unfortunately the blogging community will always coddle you and tell you it is not your fault. Sure there are times where it is not your fault, but there are also times where it is your fault. I think some self reflection is needed and I think you need to learn to stick with something. I would say do not leave the server, but rather get in there and get help from these so called friends. I know it sucks, but I have found running with my own friends to be much better than trying two or three fail groups and it is cheaper on repair costs.
I hope you hang in there and stay on the same server. No ganking/corpse camping should be worth spending real world dollars on a damn game. Good luck buddy and I will look forward to seeing how this all turns out.
- August 23, 2009 at 1:05 PM
- Edyion said...
I normally don't say anything anything when you post these types of things but this is as good a time as any to i suppose. Seeing as you don't like the end game, only wanna run the crap out of uk/up (forgive me it gets old trying to the same damn instance all the time), dont like pvp and get the most joy out of leveling alts maybe it is time you move on. the spine is a pvp server and of late its been kinda slack on it but still its gonna happen just part of being on a pvp server. You suck it up and you keep on trucking. Why let somebody still your thunder? We all get pissed about it its what you do after that maters.
I got no problem with you having your alts man I enjoy them too, but think about this not all of us have a toon on ever level range to run with you. We are a small group as is thats kinda asking alot. As far as bigger instances go dude i cant speak for us all but i get pretty sick of running the same things over and over after a while without some sort of variation.
I dunno what to tell you about raiding since i personally enjoy and look forward to it with the friends i had made. Wipes and all. I enjoy putting the work in to getting better at what i do so we can down something we haven't done before or something we have better. I think i said that right.
Now the pvp i can sympathize with a bit cause I am not particularly fond of it myself. I do understand that i cant get away from it all the time and even sometimes I like doing it cause sometimes it just feels good to be on the giving side once in a while. People are gonna be assholes in game just as there are people that are asses out of game just more visable in a pvp environment.
That said i think its just time for you to sit yourself down and think what it is thats the problem and what you want from this game for yourself. Do you want the people you know or do you want to solitude and safety? Do you wanna fight a bit longer through the not so fun stuff to get to the better or do you wanna sink deeper into the comfort zone of nothing ventured nothing gained?
hmmm I seem to have lost my train of thought....ah well i leave you with this.
Suck it up and fight or move on.
- August 23, 2009 at 4:26 PM
- Everwrath of Silvermoon said...
To be honest, it's not that hard to start afresh. Pick a pve server, make a level 1, have a poke around in guild recruitment and the auction house, see what's going on and if you like the atmosphere of the server, level a character or three.
With the new mount changes and the speed you get through content (nerfing group quests etc.) you'll soon have a couple of 80s and you can always go back to your old server if you change your mind without paying out and without having to wait days for the transfer.
I got a ret pally to 80 in 11 days played without heirlooms or spending a fortune on ah blues. In the same time I got mining to 450 and have accumulated 2K gold and have 2 full zones of Northrend quests untouched (read as: 200 quests at 13G each)
Of course, I was only playing on rested XP and got a hunter to 74 at the same time, but that's just extra gold and leather/arctic fur for cash when I need to start buying enchants for my epic gear.
Join a social levelling guild and quest in teams. It's REALLY fast xp and you cruise through instances with people you quickly learn to trust - as most people in levelling guilds are long term players looking for quick progress to provide their guilds with surplus toons.
Oh, and remember, you can always start a deathknight at 55, be in outland in 3 hours and northrend in a couple of days...
- August 23, 2009 at 4:38 PM
- Ruhtra said...
Well, I do not know what to say after reading the posts and reading the comments. I guess I will take everything seperately. So let's talk about your post. God knows we have talked about stuff at work in regards to this sort of thing. I understand the frustration of PVP. I do trust me. I also accept the fact that I rolled on a PVP server and some things are bound to happen no matter what.
I am not going to say stay or go. I think you know my thoughts well enough from lunches we have had in the past. What I am going to say is that only you know what you really want. I know you despise melee fighting. It requires a lot of moving and are not fond of it. You enjoyed AoE tanking, but found out that tanking at the end of the game is somewhat different mechancially, but then again you have never tanked a raid that I am aware of (at least one that is still relevant). I know you love casting and I think you enjoy the healing on your brocoli.
Here is the trick, leveling another toon to 80 on a PVP server where you will get ganked. It is a pain. One of the reasons I have not leveled any of my other toons, well that and the fact I am bored at the thought of leveling. I think the big issue is that you want to run some content and PuGs have not been kind. I have told you that I will run with you through anything. Whether you need the big guns or the not so big guns. The problem is that unlike the rest of the guild you do not come and go at a set time. Often times you log on when no one else is on or five minutes after a group has formed to run something. I would happily give you my spot in runs as I really do not need anything on my main.
I think the trick here is that you and the guild are not always on at the same time, which there is nothing wrong with. However, there is not much noted on forums for when you need to run stuff. I noticed you through up a general announcement on the guild calendar. I apologize but I rarely get on early in the day and when I am on it is usualy on an alt so I typically do not see the MAS announcements as my alts are in my other guilds.
What I would say is that I think you need to do some soul searching and really think about what you want to do. You know that MAS is a casual guild and probably barely even casual. A lot of the members are geared and therefor sometimes we feel that others should gear as we have. However, I understand that not everyone is willing to suffer a bad group to get a chance at gear. You let me know in-game what your decision is and what I can do to help you, other than rolling as an Alli on a PVE server, hahaha!
- August 23, 2009 at 5:19 PM
- Ruhtra said...
Well I see some points you have there. Kind of rough around the edges but you do point some truths. Sometimes people in a community or a group do tend to try to make someone feel better about certain situations, but that is more out of loyalty for the person. While I may agree with some of what you say, I do believe there should be some tact.
@ Edyion
It is funny you say this about wanting to run the same content all the time. To be honest I think that someone who wants to collect badges should not care about the content ran to get the badges, especially if it heroics. I can agree with running low level content, but I think that as a guild we should help our own. Hell, if I didn't feel this way there would be a lot of stuff that does not get run, because no one wants to heal. That is apparant. Just ask all the members who removed their healers from the guild. I think that if anyone needs help then we should try to help them. I mean the same could be said for you wanting to run ZG every week with a certain tank. He does it to help, not because he loves the content. So try to think of it from that perspective.
@ Ever
Yes it is very easy to start on a new server. However, Fish does not need to do this. He was established on a PVE server already and honestly if he is going to switch, I would say go back to that server. No matter the server they are all the same. You have ass holes, village idiots, the elite, the nubs, and the confused.
Sorry for the wall of text Fish, but I felt it needed to be responded to. Hollar at me at work or in-game dude.
- August 23, 2009 at 5:19 PM
- Edyion said...
Yeah i know what you mean about that I dont think i got what i meant in that statement completely across. I guess the best way to say it is this. How do you know you don't like the end game if you haven't actually done it. Might be more fun if you branch a bit
at least i am thinking thats what i ment...my mind was trying to wander with the smell of meatloaf conversating with my tummy while i typed that.
The more important point i wanted to get at was Fish ya need to sit down and think about just what it is that makes you happy in this game and go do it. If thats with us awesome if thats with your allies thats awesome too. Its your game make it what you want.
- August 23, 2009 at 5:57 PM
@ Edyion
I tend to agree with you more than anyone else who has posted on here; however, I looked up the folks who post on here (have to love pugchecker) and honestly, there is nothing you need to run anything for that is useful to others. So I am somewhat confused over some of your statements. Short of running Ulduar and ToC 10 man, anything you run is going to be for badges. So why not run the instance to help players who seem to want to improve? Maybe I just didn't get the whole point of what you were saying with the wandering off topic and all.
@ Ruhtra
You seem to be an enabler. You say you will help him but tend to never be on. You say you won't tell him to stay or go, but you give an underlying message that says stay. Kind of screwed up. I was not trying to be mean with the OP but to point out that maybe his problems are not based in the game but in his own head. Read his posts objectively, they tend to not be consistant. In one he may talk about wanting to help or ideas for leveling and then he gets killed on one simple daily and starts crying foul. Perhaps he needs to examine if he likes this game at all. No offense meant to anyone, but c'mon start being honest with yourselves before you try to be honest with him.
- August 23, 2009 at 6:05 PM
I don't see what the big problem is. Aren't you on a pvp server? What the fuck is the big deal? If you suck that much at pvp then just take your butt fucking like a man and move on. Your guildmates seem to really like you and enjoy your presence but you do a shit ton of complaining, bro. I usually try not to say too much about things like this, especially not on Horde bloggers. Alliance ftw! Something about your comment just kind of set me off. Think about it, the game has servers designed specifically for those who don't like ganking. Make use of this. Otherwise, save yourself some time from crying in the corner, or wherever you do your blogging, log back in and get your revenge. If I were in your guild I would definitely not tolerate you sitting around all butt hurt about fail groups and ganking. L2P or go home.
- August 25, 2009 at 5:38 PM


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The greatest regional rugby ticket in town are on public sale at the customer service desks of over thirty Tesco stores representing all four rugby communities*.
Tickets will be available across all price categories (£25 for adults, £10 for U18s and £50 for families; 2 adults, 2 children) so that all regional rugby supporters can enjoy the most convenient and cost-effective route to Millennium Stadium tickets.
WRU Head of Sales and Marketing Craig Maxwell is delighted to launch Judgement Day tickets at Tesco, after thousands of fans snapped up tickets to Wales' Autumn Internationals at the popular supermarket chain earlier this season.
"Rugby fans across Wales have been buying their international tickets at Tesco stores for a number of years and I'm pleased that we are continuing to work with the local supermarkets to bring Judgement Day tickets directly the local communities of all four Welsh rugby regions," said Mr Maxwell.
Tickets are also available at wru.co.uk/tickets and via Newport Gwent Dragons and Cardiff Blues (both playing their home fixtures at the Millennium Stadium) yet for rugby supporters in the Ospreys and Scarlets regions, Tesco stores may well be the most convenient ticketing source.
He added: "We want all regional rugby supporters to come to Cardiff for the first Judgement Day event on Saturday 30 March and so it's important that tickets are available across Blues, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets regions. I urge everyone, East and West, to take advantage of the Tesco stores initiative as well as the WRU website and ticket offices at Cardiff Arms Park and Rodney Parade."
Participating stores according to region: ABERDARE, BARRY, CARDIFF EXTRA, CARDIFF PENGAM EXTRA, CULVERHOUSE CROSS EXTRA, MERTHYR TYDFIL, PENARTH, PONTYPRIDD EXTRA, ST MELLONS, TALBOT GREEN EXTRA; CAERPHILLY CROSSWAYS, EBBW VALE, NEWPORT GWENT EXTRA, NEWPORT SPYTTY EXTRA, PONTYPOOL, RISCA EXTRA, YSTRAD MYNACH; BRIDGEND BREWERY LANE, BRIDGEND EXTRA, MAESTEG, NEATH ABBEY, PONTARDULAIS, PORT TALBOT, SWANSEA CADLE EXTRA, SWANSEA LLANSAMLET EXTRA, SWANSEA MARINA, YSTRADGYNLAIS; AMMANFORD, CARDIGAN, CARMARTHEN EXTRA, HAVERFORWEST EXTRA, LLANELLI EXTRA, PEMBROKE DOCK


text:
Colin Smith: These places are the dinosaurs. They get eaten.
If they get eaten, it's by bigger dinosaurs. Meanwhile, they're crushing the tiny little herbivores under their enormous stump-like feet by the dozens.
Even if they're slow, the only things that can really take down the biggest dinosaurs are old age, starvation, and lightning.
Or to look at it from another direction, the actual creative part of the process, coming up with new ideas, works well. However when it comes to MBA types getting their head out of their arse for more than two seconds at a time, if all falls down. Somehow its supposed to be the responsibility of the person who came up with the idea to force the uptake of it through, against opposition from those same MBAs, and to receive nothing from it at the end of the process if they happen to be successful.
You want the
"Ideas are - in some ways - the easy part."
I know plenty of people who come up with crappy ideas but who can market them effectively. In the best case scenarios, those ideas only waste the resources that were diverted to fund them. In the worst case scenarios, those ideas hurt everyone who were tricked or forced into embracing them. So yes, coming up with ideas is easy. Coming up with good ideas is hard.
"Of course, to make the above work, the researcher would have to get down and dirty and actually
Or do you expect employees to develop and market innovative ideas on their own time without support from management?
I don't expect them to do full-scale marketing, but I do expect them to do more than many of them do now, with or without the support of management. If a researcher said to his/her boss "I'll be away from my desk today talking to the users or marketing to find out what the real problems are", few bosses would object. And if they do object, then the employee should either do it without askin
"If a researcher said to his/her boss "I'll be away from my desk today talking to the users or marketing to find out what the real problems are", few bosses would object."
Actually, virtually all would. First, most communications with the customer are done through specific channels, primarily to avoid pissing off the customer (most people would not like it if they got dozens of phone calls from random employees from a company they just bought something from), casting the product in a bad light (if you we
"When talking to customers, naturally one goes through marketing or whoever handles the customer. But what's wrong with them saying to a customer "we want to take you out to lunch and have one of our researchers talk to you about your concerns"?"
Having marketing carefully arrange meetings between customers and research and development is one thing. An engineer suddenly announcing to their boss that they are taking the day off to go bug customers (like you suggested they do) is completely different.
"No, they aren't. If your idea isn't worth your time and investment, it sure as hell isn't worth theirs."
First of all, as has been pointed out several times in this thread, I can't profit from the idea at all, only the company can. So arguing whether or not it is worth my time is just dumb. It is quite likely something that could increase the company's profits by 10% would not be worth it to me to give up my weekends for the next 6 months in an effort to pursue it, but certainly would be worth it for t
The US standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches. That's an exceedingly odd number.
Why was that gauge used?
Because that's the way they built them in England, and English expatriates built the US Railroads.
Why did the English build them like that?
Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the pre-railroad
Goals are over rated. Some of us still value the process and the effort.
If this is truly the case, come work for me for no paycheck. We'll see how long you truly desire the effort with no reward.
While you may not be the exception to the rule, the fact stands that when the process has some type of reward (versus your no reward), we wind up having more of it. That way it doesn't matter what your intentions are, sheerly that it got done (where 'it' in this case is more innovation).
The goal of running a business is to make money.
No, the goal of a business is to have a fun, interesting and worthwhile life. Money is just an, albeit important, tool to that end.
It's not piracy, it's sharing. Didn't your parents teach you to share?
Technically I'm not even interested in the deliverables, because I'm not a end user and scientific research is something the rest of the world can do. I just want to know how much this will affect my bottom line - if it makes or saves money.
Just so. And this is what makes America great.
Or so I'm told.
Every single company I interview with doesn't care what my aptitude is, or what I can do to help the business use technology to give them a great ROI on technology while solving their problems.
Amazon cares. Sure, we want people to know java and c++, but we hire for basic smarts and aptitude, because we've internalized that today's hot! new! thing! is tomorrows awful legacy product. Projects are approved based on ROI to the company, so being able to tell your potential boss how you saved your last gig $50
At Boston Scientific the new mantra is efficient innovation, brought to you by people who grossly overpaid to purchase innovation (Guidant), to the ruin of all.
Reality check 101: a CEO's job is to maximize profits. That's all, folks.
So anything that doesn't bring-in a fat bottom-line right now can't stand a chance.
This is not a good thing. We need more blue sky deep research - research with NO profit motive - its where the real ground-breaking stuff happens. Keep science away from bean-counters. They will eviscerate it the same way they gutted the Arts and Humanities.
The goal of innovation is to make or save money, and IT should never lose sight of that central fact.
Even if IT doesn't, the customer can. I have one customer...a government entity...that I've worked pretty much the same way I'd treat a private side customer, with an eye toward efficiency and the bottom line. It's bought me nothing there. They spent a million dollars to take a working application developed by three people and give it to a team of 7 from another company to maintain. No fail over, they
"It takes all sorts of in & out-door schooling to get adapted to my kind of fooling" - R. Frost


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Aerial view of Paranal Observatory
On the left of this image is the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) atop Cerro Paranal. The VLT consists of an array of four giant 8.2-metre Unit Telescopes (UTs), that can observe together or individually, and four 1.8-metre Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) dedicated to interferometry. The buildings of the four UTs are distinguishable on the platform, together with the 2.6-metre VLT Survey Telescope (VST), on the left edge. In the lower right of the image, on a neighbouring mountain peak, is the 4-metre infrared survey telescope VISTA. VISTA is the most powerful near-infrared survey telescope in the world. The Paranal Observatory is located at 2600 metres altitude, in the Taltal district, some 120 km south of Antofagasta, in the II Region of Chile. In the background is the "sea of clouds" which typically covers the Pacific Ocean, only 12 km west of the observatory. This phenomenon is due to the fact that the cold oceanic stream keeps the thermal inversion layer very low, making Cerro Paranal one of the best sites in the world for ground-based astronomy.Credit:
J.L. Dauvergne & G. Hüdepohl (atacamaphoto.com)/ESO
About the Image
|Release date:
|28 July 2010, 13:41
|3500 x 2342 px
About the Object
|Cerro Paranal, Paranal
|Unspecified : Technology : Observatory
Image Formats


text:
Smart Use of Aquatic Resources About to Launch in Siphandone
The four-year project, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the WWF Network, will be implemented by WWF-Laos in collaboration with DLF and Champasak Provincial Agriculture and Forest Office in the largest wetland in Southern Lao Landscape, Siphandone, within Khong and Mounlapamok Districts.
This project aims to improve the local livelihoods that mostly rely heavily on fisheries and aquatic natural resources in Siphandone by engaging local communities and other beneficiaries with management and sustainable use of resources.
"At the end of the day we hope the developed management plan for the priority wetland site, Siphandone, of global significance along the Mekong River will be approved and implemented", said the Country Director of WWF-Laos, Somphone Bouasavanh. "This will not only be smart use of resources, but also help save the Mekong icons, Irrawaddy dolphin, which currently recorded only 6 threatened individuals left in the trans-boundary pool within Siphandon."
In 2011, this small and isolated group of river dolphins, which drew about 20,000 tourists to Siphandone islands and generated income to local communities who live around the site, the boat owners, restaurants, hotels and guesthouses for instance, are now threatened by gillnets. From January to April this year WWF recorded almost 200 gillnets floating close to the dolphin pool.
"This project will strengthen and improve the system of monitoring river-related activities in the area and will define regulation for fisheries and aquatic natural resources to support law enforcement in order to ensure sustainability in the Siphandone," said the Director General of Department of Livestock and Fisheries, Dr Bounkhouang Khambounheung.
The project also aims to diversify local livelihoods and enhance environmental awareness in order to strengthen communities' capacity to adapt to continuously changing environmental conditions. This is to support local communities to establish the community fisheries organizations that will establish, and manage the fish conservation zones. These zones will allow fish and aquatic species to breed and increase the number of population.
This project will ensure at least 700 households, who rely heavily on aquatic natural resources, fisheries for instance, to benefit from complementary income activities.


text:
When looking for an expert on small- and mid-cap stocks, TheStreet didn't have to look any further than Bryan Ashenberg. With more than 15 years of investment experience, Bryan previously provided generalist research coverage for the U.S. Small and Small/Mid Cap Growth Equity Portfolios at UBS Global Asset Management, was a technology analyst at Columbus Circle Investors, and served as a generalist at Stechler & Company.
Today, Bryan is a portfolio manager at TheStreet where he shows investors like you how to invest safely and profitably in small- to mid-cap stocks with his Growth Seeker service. He has appeared on PBS's Nightly Business Report, WRKO's Lunch Money, and KFXR's The Wall Street Shuffle. He is a CFA Charterholder and regularly contributes to Jim Cramer's Speculative Friday picks on Mad Money.
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The mid-$60s level has attracted investors, and relative strength is improving.
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WMT, VIAB, SNHY, FNGN and ROLL were all downgraded this week by TheStreet's Quant Ratings.
Foot Locker: Alive and Kicking
Momentum is bullish, and the stock has outperformed in the retail space.


text:
The heaviest precipitation from a one-two punch winter storm is over, but more than 200,000 people remain without power in South Carolina and many could be in the dark and without heat for several days.
As of 10 a.m. Friday, the state Office of Regulatory Staff says over 224,000 customers remain without power statewide.
South Carolina Electric & Gas officials say customers in more populated areas will see power restored throughout today and the weekend. However, rural areas could be without power for as much as a week.
Officials said Thursday morning most of its 72,000 outages are in rural areas, so they are moving crews out of cities to help.
SCE&G crews and contract lineman from several states plan to work through the weekend to turn the lights and heat back on for thousands in the state.
If you are an SCE&G customer and you need to check power outages, click here.
"Let us know. You can phone us. Our outage reporting number is 888-333-4465. You can also send a text," said Eric Boomhower with SCE&G. "It could be a while (before service is restored) depending on how badly we're hit."
Boomhower added that to send a text message to SCE&G to report an outage, customers must register their cell phones with the company via its web site.
"We've got crews that have been working and will continue to work until we get everybody's lights back on," Boomhower said Thursday morning. "We appreciate the patience of our customers. Unfortunately I can't give you specific times. We have about 1200 of our employees working on this and we have about 300 crew members from places like Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio who have come in to help us."
The number of power outages increased significantly overnight in Orangeburg, where the Department of Public Utilities says their outages went from 2,000 Wednesday night to about 10,000 Thursday morning.
The Electric Cooperatives of South Carolina say as of 8 a.m. Thursday, they are working to restore power to nearly 138,000 customers statewide, with significant outages in the Aiken and Santee cooperatives.
About 21,000 customers total are without power in Sumter County. 18,000 customers were blacked out in Orangeburg County. In Lexington County, 17,649 lost power and the SCORS reports 3,400 customers lost power in Richland County.
The Orangeburg Department of Public Utilities received outside help to get power back on.
"We brought in additional crews," said Director Randy Etters with ODPU. About ten crews are working to restore power.
"They worked all through the night and they will work all day until everybody's back up and running."
"With an event like this, when you have limbs across lines, it generally impacts a large area of people," Etters said. "But once you are able to de-energize the line, clear the limb or the tree from the line, and check the circuit, then we're able to get a large group of people. So you're not doing ones or twos, you're doing 200, 300, 400 at a time."
Lineworkers from five Tennessee electric cooperatives are helping restore power to winter storm victims in South Carolina.
According to the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, 41 line workers are either en route or readying for departure and 50 more are on standby. Crews from Tennessee will be assisting Santee Electric Cooperative in Kingstree.
The crews are from the Chickasaw Electric Cooperative, Cumberland Electric Membership Corporation, Duck River Electric Membership Corporation, Plateau Electric Cooperative and Sequachee Valley Electric Cooperative. Cooperative Association General Manager David Callis said the Tennessee crews are glad to help and know that the assistance will be repaid one day.
If you are a customer of an electric cooperative, click here for a list of numbers to report a power outage to your cooperative.
In January 2004, three-quarters of an inch of ice left 250,000 customers without electricity statewide.
Copyright 2014 WIS. All rights reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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2008-09 Men's Basketball
Bluffton 88, Trine 52
Beavers clicking on all cylinders in 88-52 win over Trine
By: Brandy Bidlack, sports information assistant
November 25, 2008
Click here for box score
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men's basketball team jumped on top early and never looked back against Trine University as the Beavers dominated the Thunder, 88-52, on Tuesday, November 25, 2008. Bluffton improved to 2-1 while the Thunder fell to 2-1.
Bluffton center Josiah Stober (Spencerville) sparked the Beavers' offense with a jumper at the 19:21 minute mark. On the next play, Aaron Taylor (Antwerp) came up with a steal and he hit Josh Eichar (North Baltimore) who got the ball right back to Taylor for his first of consecutive triples. Just before the 16-minute mark Justin Rufenacht (Wauseon/Pettisville) added a layup following his offensive rebound, giving the Beavers a quick seven-point edge, 10-3.
The Beavers continued their offensive jag with two treys from Eichar as well as a smooth jumper from senior Nick Wilson (Continental). With nine minutes left in the first half, Stober added a putback which made the score 26-10. Senior sharpshooter Colt Cunningham (Powell/Worthington Christian) got into the action with a layup and a basket from behind the arc, increasing the Beavers' lead to 31-12. Another Stober layup and two freebies from freshman guard Nick Lee (Mt. Blanchard/Vanlue) gave the Beavers a commanding 41-20 lead at the break.
Rufenacht opened the second stanza with a layup before three-pointers by both Stober and Cunningham increased the margin to 51-28. At the 14:30 minute mark, freshman guard Clayton Leimeister (Lima/Temple Christian) went 2-for-2 from the charity stripe. Taylor continued the assault with a pair of hoops and with less than eight minutes to play, Stober sank another trey to increase the Beavers' lead to 25 points (67-42).
Following a wide-open Leimeister trifecta, freshman Mychal Hill (London/Jonathan Alder) canned a trey. Cam Saylor (Belle Center/Benjamin Logan) continued the three-point streak with one of his own which made the score 81-52 in favor of the home squad.
Junior Chris Singleton (Wapakoneta/Ada) put down his first dunk of the season after slicing along the left baseline at the 1:13 mark. With seconds ticking down on the clock, junior Tyler Braidic (Pandora-Gilboa) drilled a jumper and Singleton added two more points on a layup that finished the scoring in Bluffton's 88-52 win over previously undefeated Trine University.
Josiah Stober paced the Beavers with 16 points, including two three-pointers, and four assists, as well as four boards. Aaron Taylor added 14 points, three assists, one steal and he swatted away one shot. Colt Cunningham chipped in with ten points, two assists, one rebound, and one steal. Josh Eichar finished with eight points, three boards, two assists and two steals in the contest. Junior Jordan Pothast (Ottawa/Ottawa-Glandorf) had two blocks and two assists in the victory.
Andre Patrick led the Thunder with 11 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals. Randall Harris added 10 points and teammate Chris Mislin tallied nine points, three rebounds and one assist in the loss.
All 15 players once again saw action in the win as Bluffton shot 28-of-57 (49.1 percent) from the field, including a solid 11-of-24 (45.8 percent) from distance. The Beavers hit 21-of-24 (87.5 percent) from the charity stripe, compared to 13-of-19 (68.4 percent) for the Thunder. Trine committed 16 turnovers in the contest while Bluffton took care of the ball to the tune of just eight miscues.
The Bluffton men return to action on Wednesday, November 26, when the Beavers host Kalamazoo College. The contest is slated to start at 7 p.m. in Founders Hall.


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NATO's chief says the economic crisis could threaten the national security of members of the military alliance, and he's urging them to maintain defense spending to close gaps in their military capabilities.
Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told reporters in Brussels that "our security rests on our prosperity: you can't be safe if you're broke. But in turn, our prosperity rests on our security."
One concern in NATO's annual report is the impact of national austerity measures on defense capabilities within the alliance. Total defense spending by NATO members is dropping while that of emerging powers is rising.
Fogh Rasmussen says "if these trends continue, we could face serious gaps that would place NATO's military capacity and political credibility at risk."


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|A very minor adjustment adds just 2,000 or so seats to Temple Stadium.
OK, technically they call it Lincoln Financial Field but, if I had an extra $200 million or so laying around, instead of investing it in an on-campus stadium, I'd purchase the naming rights from the Lincoln Financial Group (they only paid $139.6 million for it for 20 years) and rename the place Temple Stadium.
|If, by some miracle, Temple could attract just 1/3d
of its 130K living alumni and on-campus students to
home football games,
the AAC might put the Temple '][' in its logo.
Photo by John Van Wert
Could you imagine Brent Musburger or Al Michaels doing a Monday Night Football game there with this opening:
The school could spend $100 million in advertising and not get quite the bang for the buck as a few of those openings would deliver.
I've soured on the idea of an on-campus stadium after attending the Temple basketball game against UNC Charlotte.
I turned to three friends from my high school days and asked: "Where is everybody? This place is empty."
The university has a nationally known basketball program but not a nationally known following.
Those who demand an on-campus stadium say that attendance would go up if the uni built one, say, at 15th and Norris between 16th on the West and Montgomery Avenue on the South.
I did not get that feeling in a half-empty state-of-art Liacouras Center back in February nor do I feel the fans who attended the home games against Canisius, St. Bonaventure or Duquesne got that feeling as well.
To me, the best upgrade for "Temple Stadium" would be fans putting down their remotes and getting off their couches and going to home games. TV ratings for Temple home games in the nation's fourth-largest market are off the charts high, so you know there are enough Temple fans interested in watching. The challenge is getting them into cars and onto the subway.
It's not like the place is in the middle of nowhere, ala UConn.
It's a 10-minute subway ride for 12,500 students living on campus and a one-hour ride for 130,000 living alumni.
Winning will bring the fans, for sure.
Got to hope that winning, combined with an exciting brand of football the Owls will be playing for the next few years, will bring enough "Temple people" so that the nation is impressed.
The fans will get a chance to vote with their two feet.
THEN maybe we can talk about an on-campus stadium.
Not before.


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no one answered
Student or Learner
I am writing an e-mail as an HR to other departments that the new trainee staff will be coming to your department for training, a draft of an e-mail is below;
"As per in-house rotation program for trainees, please note that the following staff from accounting department will be coming to your department for training;
Name Period
Mr. 07/07/2012 to 18/07/2012
While we trust the above period is convenient for you, we request your fullest cooperation and interest."
Kindly assist if this is enough or something to be added to make it more presentable.
no one answered
Remember - if you don't use correct capitalisation, punctuation and spacing, anything you write will be incorrect.
Thanks emsr2d2.


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BATAVIA – Batavia fire officials are reminding residents about the dangers of fireworks after a man was injured last weekend in a fireworks-related accident.
The Batavia Fire Department on Saturday night responded to a report of a Batavia resident who was burned after using professional-grade fireworks.
"He had nonlife-threatening injuries," Batavia Deputy Fire Chief Randy Banker said.
Banker said fireworks not only are dangerous, but they also are illegal in Batavia. That includes sparklers, he said.
"The temperature of a sparkler can reach 2,000 degrees," Banker said. "It is very dangerous."
He advised residents to leave the fireworks to the professionals.
Batavia's fireworks show will be at 9:30 p.m. on the Fourth of July and can viewed from Engstrom Park at Millview Drive and West Main Street.
There is additional space on the Batavia High School athletic fields on West Main Street.
Information is available at www.bataviafireworks.org.


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Funeral service for James A. Marcellus will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 27, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Mallard. The Rev. Neil Hayen will officiate.
Burial will be in Ellington Cemetery, Mallard. The Martin-Mattice Funeral Home in Emmetsburg is in charge of arrangements.
James A. Marcellus, son of John Peter and Lucille (Ambrose) Marcellus, was born on April 3, 1923, in Humboldt. He attended country school and graduated from Rodman High School in 1942.
On Aug. 14, 1949, James was united in marriage to Betty Reese.
James and Betty raised their children on a farm near Rodman and West Bend, where James did grain farming and had livestock. Along with his love of farming, James had a great interest in tractors and was especially fond of Allis Chalmers. He never missed the opportunity to attend the Albert City Threshing Bee.
James was a member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Mallard. He enjoyed traveling throughout the United States and overseas. He wintered in southern Texas for many years.
James passed away Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012, at PARC Hall in Emmetsburg, at the age of 89.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Betty; and a sister, Betty Green.
He is survived by his children John Marcellus (Jane) of West Bend, Val Tomkins (John) of Mallard, and Kelly Grethen (Jerome) of Ashland, MO; 14 grandchildren; 11 great grandchildren; and a dear friend, Winona Loomis of Ayrshire.
Condolences can be left at www.martinmatticefuneralhome.com


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Paul Doherty, a senior staff scientist at the Exploratorium, Paul Doherty, sets up telescopes for observations of the 2001 total solar eclipse in Zambia. This year features an annular solar eclipse in May, a transit of Venus in June, and a total solar eclipse in November.
Over the next several weeks, skywatchers will thrill to a couple of astronomical wonders playing out in daytime skies: a solar eclipse on May 20 — and then, on June 5, a "micro-eclipse" of the sun that involves the planet Venus.
As senior staff scientist at San Francisco's Exploratorium, Paul Doherty will be keeping a careful eye on both of those wonders (with appropriate eye protection, of course). He'll let you in on his eclipse-chasing secrets on Wednesday night during a "Virtually Speaking Science" chat on BlogTalkRadio and in the Second Life virtual world. I'll be the host for the hourlong show, starting at 9 p.m. (6 p.m. PT/SLT).
Doherty says the solar eclipse and the micro-eclipse will be well worth chasing.
"By all means, go out of your way to see 'em," he told me this week. "They are rare events ... You'll have things to talk about for years after."
Each event offers a special kind of rarity: This month's eclipse is of the annular variety, which means that the moon's disk isn't quite big enough to cover the sun completely. At its darkest, the moon's black circle will be surrounded by a spectacular "ring of fire." That sight can be seen only along a narrow track running along Earth's surface, from China across the Pacific to the western United States. But a partial solar eclipse will be visible across a much wider swath of territory. It'll take about three and a half hours for the moon's umbral shadow to race across Earth's surface, from 6:06 to 9:39 p.m. ET.
Next month's micro-eclipse, more formally known as a transit of Venus, is even rarer. The planet's tiny black disk will march across the sun over the course of several hours (roughly from 6 p.m. ET June 5 to 12:50 a.m. ET June 6). Most of the world will get in on at least part of the show, but the best viewing will be had once again from the Asia-Pacific region. This will be the last transit of Venus most of us will ever get a chance to see: The next one is due in the year 2117.
Even if you're not in the viewing zone, or the skies are cloudy, you can still get in on these events via online presentations that will be sponsored by a variety of organizations — including the Exploratorium, of course. The combination museum and science center is planning a webcast of the transit as well as a Second Life teach-in timed to coincide with the annular eclipse. Doherty will be in on all the action — in Nevada for the eclipse, and at San Francisco HQ for the transit.
Jeroen Frans
Second Life residents watch a virtual presentation about eclipses on Exploratorium Island, in an image by Jeroen Frans (a.k.a. Frans Charming) of VesuviusGroup.com.
Over the past 40 years, Doherty has been chasing astronomical events in locales ranging from Cape Cod to Zaire. In this first of two postings about the coming attractions, Doherty discusses the appeal of eclipses and transits, plus a little bit of the science behind them. Here's an edited transcript of the Q&A:
Cosmic Log: You've been in on a number of solar eclipses in your time — what is it that draws someone to become an eclipse-chaser? A lot of people talk about how sun-observing satellites have come so far that eclipses aren't as crucial for scientific observations as they used to be. So what's the appeal?
Paul Doherty: It's certainly true that an eclipse is not a scientifically significant as it was a century ago, but I will tell you there's something special about the experience of an eclipse — even a partial eclipse. You'll be outdoors, looking around, and you'll notice that the light is getting very strange. There's a beautiful clear sky, and it starts to get dim. Your body knows that something really different is happening. It's great for people to know what's causing that feeling: The moon is blocking the sun. (But don't look at it directly with your unprotected eyes.)
Then, for totality, you have the experience of seeing a clear sky go dark at midday, so that the brightest planets and stars are visible. You see that black disk where the sun should be, surrounded by bright rays like big fat spider legs of white around the sun. That will set the hair on your back standing up, even if you're a scientist and you know what this is. It is just so awesome to see it.
So I look at modern eclipses as places for people to come in contact with a great event in our solar system, and it shouldn't be missed.
Q: Do you find that it's an inspirational experience? Do eclipse-chasers go on to "harder drugs" in astronomy?
A: I've met so many eclipse-chasers who are already into the harder stuff. You just can't tell which came first. But I'm sure that the sight of a total eclipse just inspires them. I've seen eight solar eclipses myself, and I keep running across the same people. I know that they're inspired to really take time out of their lives, and take money out of their bank accounts, and invest it in these few minutes of a great experience, surrounded by an hour of interesting shading in the sky, surrounded by days of travel to wonderful places on Earth and meeting people with the same passion they have.
Q: What are the differences between a total solar eclipse like the one in November, and an annular eclipse like the one this month?
A: The moon is in an elliptical orbit around the earth. When the moon is at its farthest point from the earth, its angular size in the sky is a little smaller, and when it's close to the earth, it's a little bigger. Also, the earth is in an elliptical orbit around the sun. It gets smaller and bigger. When the moon is farthest from the earth, it's small enough in the sky that it cannot totally block the bright part of the surface of the sun called the photosphere. That's where the bright light comes from on the sun. At that point, the rim of the photosphere shines around the edge of the moon. That light is so bright that it can damage your eyes if you look at it without eye protection. It overwhelms the dim light coming from the chromosphere and the corona of the sun.
But during a total solar eclipse, the moon is big enough in angular size to block out the photosphere completely, and with your naked eye you can see this million-degree gas glowing in the corona, like rays reaching out quite a ways from the sun. You can see the red chromosphere quite near the edge of the moon. You can even see prominences reaching out from the sun and moving during the course of the eclipse. The total eclipse offers many more things to see than the annular eclipse does.
Jan. 15, 2010: Astronomers believe this rare solar eclipse seen across Africa, Asia and the Indian Ocean may be the longest annular eclipse in more than 1,000 years. Msnbc.com's Dara Brown reports.
However, an annular eclipse provides you with a bright circle of the sun. Let's say that sunlight is streaming through the leaves of a tree, and you look at the ground. Normally, you'd see round circles of light at your feet. During an annular eclipse, those all become the letter "O." That is really something, to look at the ground underneath a tree and see it covered with bright Cheerios.
If you're not on the center line of annularity, and it's a partial solar eclipse, then those images become the letter "D," or a really nice letter "C."
There are more total solar eclipses than there are annular eclipses, because it takes this special combination of the moon being a little farther away from the earth than average, and the sun a little closer, to create this annular eclipse opportunity.
Q: It seems as if people in the know are getting as excited about next month's transit of Venus as they are about the eclipse. Why is that?
A: Well, the transit of Venus is a much rarer occurrence. And it is kind of a micro-eclipse. Venus is one-thirtieth the diameter of the sun in angular size, and it's moving across the sun's disk in this stately procession that lasts six hours. It happens in this amazing pattern: There'll be one transit, and then eight years later there'll be another one, and then it's 121.5 years, then eight years, then 105.5 years. It's a really weird pattern.
June 8, 2004: Stargazers around the world got a special treat when Venus passed between Earth and the sun. MSNBC-TV's John Elliott talks with NASA's Phil Plait about the event, which will be repeated in June 2012.
You wouldn't even notice a transit was happening unless someone told you. The light on the ground is not going to change. You're not going to see anything. But it's different if you know it's happening, like Jeremiah Horrocks did in 1639. He noted that Johannes Kepler, his hero, missed the calculation that Venus was going to transit the face of the sun. Horrocks actually set up a telescope to project the sun's image into his darkened room, and became the first person ever to see a transit of Venus and record it.
Now, knowing what we do, we can tell you that on this day, at this time, if you project an image of the sun safely or use a sun-viewing filter, you can see this tiny black disk going across the face of the sun. That's interesting — but what's really interesting is that in 1761, they used the transit observations to measure the size of the solar system. Good old Halley, of Halley's Comet, figured out how to do that. They did it kind of roughly, during transits.
Q: And even today, astronomers are using alien transits to learn about new planets beyond our solar system...
A: That's right. In 1761, a Russian astronomer named Mikhail Lomonosov discovered the atmosphere of Venus during a transit. He noted that as Venus approached first contact with the sun's disk, it was completely surrounded by a bright glow, which was the sunlight being refracted by Venus' atmosphere and being sent to Earth. That's how scientists first detected Venus' atmosphere. And during the transit eight years ago, scientists used the sunlight going through the atmosphere of Venus to measure its composition.
We're doing that exact same thing with exoplanets. We're studying the light going through the atmosphere of those exoplanets, and we've actually found the constituents of the atmospheres of some of those exoplanets. They've found water vapor, and carbon dioxide, and sodium gas. We're using the very same techniques we used on Venus to study the air of exoplanets.
On Wednesday, we'll talk about some of the best places in America to see this month's annular eclipse, how to pick out an advantageous viewing spot near you, and how to make sure you see the eclipse and the transit safely. Then, be sure to tune in "Virtually Speaking Science" on BlogTalkRadio or in Second Life — and bring lots of questions. Paul Doherty (a.k.a. Patio Plasma) and I will be at the StellaNova Small Auditorium, courtesy of the Meta Institute for Computational Astrophysics, starting at 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT/SLT) on Wednesday. If you miss the live event, don't worry: It'll be archived by "Virtually Speaking" on BlogTalkRadio as well as iTunes.
On Friday, head on over to the Cosmic Log Facebook page for our weekly "Where in the Cosmos" picture puzzle. If you're the first to solve the riddle, you'll be eligible to receive a pair of sun-viewing safety glasses for this month's eclipse and next month's transit. In the meantime, check out these podcasts from previous episodes of "Virtually Speaking Science," plus links to eclipse-related resources:
- Veronica Ann Zabala-Aliberto on spaceflight and Yuri's Night
- JPL's Dave Beaty on the search for life on Mars
- Shawn Lawrence Otto on science and politics
- Ig Nobel impresario Marc Abrahams on silly science
- Rocket scientist Robert Zubrin on Mars exploration
- Propulsion expert Marc Millis on interstellar spaceflight
- Sean Carroll on the puzzling frontiers of physics
- Rand Simberg on the private-enterprise vision for spaceflight
- Martin Hoffert on the future of energy policy
- George Djorgovski on science in virtual worlds
- Alan Stern on suborbital research and NASA's mission to Pluto
- Col. 'Coyote' Smith on the outlook for space solar power
- Tim Pickens on rocket ventures and the Google Lunar X Prize
More about eclipses:
- Interactive graphic: What causes a solar eclipse?
- 12 must-see skywatching events in 2012
- All about solar eclipses on msnbc.com
Alan Boyle is msnbc.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter or adding Cosmic Log's Google+ page to your circle. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for other worlds.


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A classic error for anyone studying history is to judge the acts of a previous age by the knowledge made available through the perspective of time. That is true even if the event being studied is only 10 years old, as is the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
It is all too easy today to forget what Iraq was like under the rule of Saddam Hussein. Iraq had invaded two nations, including a brazen incursion into Kuwait that had required the U.S. to intervene. During that first Gulf War, Saddam had fired SCUD missiles into the heart of Israel in an effort to goad a wider regional conflict that would have forced the rest of the Arab world onto his side. Since that time, he had led the United States and U.N. weapons inspectors on an endless cat-and-mouse game, making it look as if he was hiding what much of the world believed was a program to produce weapons of mass destruction.
Saddam was not a quiet dictator. He was constantly agitating. He continually violated no-fly restrictions put in place after the first Gulf War and tried to play assurances he would finally abide by those rules against the easing of U.N. sanctions. He had attacked ethnic Kurds with chemical weapons and boasted of his support for anti-American factions. When U.S. intelligence agents felt sure he possessed weapons of mass destruction, they were supported by intelligence experts in Europe and Russia. Indeed, it was later learned that even Saddam's closest government and military leaders believed he possessed such weapons — part of an elaborate hoax he perpetrated in an apparent attempt to strike fear in the region. Intelligence agents were intercepting conversations between those leaders.
Reasons to criticize the war in Iraq are plentiful. The United States miscalculated the aftermath of its successful invasion, underestimated the amount of troops needed to keep the peace, proved itself embarrassingly misinformed about cultural, ethnic and sectarian divisions among the Iraqi people and was naive about the forces that would seek to fill power vacuums and attempt to overwhelm democratic efforts. But the invasion itself was entirely understandable, and the world should not understate the importance of removing Saddam Hussein.
Nor should the world believe the mistakes were confined to one administration. President Barack Obama's decision to withdraw U.S. forces in December of 2011 was premature and left the nation in an unstable condition. His decision was said to hinge on Iraq's refusal to grant immunity to U.S. soldiers. Some experts, notably Max Boot, a senior fellow at the Council of Foreign Relations, believe the administration overplayed this disagreement by demanding that Iraq's parliament approve the immunity, just so the president could pursue the popular course of withdrawal.
True, the American people were tired of the conflict and wanted their soldiers home. Since then, however, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has pursued his political enemies and inflamed sectarian violence.
Iraq's tenuous peace was underscored by insurgent violence this week, with a wave of deadly bombings across the country meant to coincide with the exact anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion.
The lessons of Iraq are many. They require a bit of careful analysis to truly understand, however. They lie less in the decision to invade than in the need for cultural understanding, a sober analysis of the true costs of victory, including required troop levels, and a realistic assessment of the forces and factions that will stand in the way. There are lessons, as well, about the need for candid debate among policy makers and other experts. Even the media could be faulted for not playing a more critical role.
Given the prevailing mood of the nation today, few people would want to repeat the invasion. But 2013 is not 2003, nor is it the future. The true history of the invasion of Iraq remains to be written. It will require the perspective of much more time.


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The study concludes that Caltrain modernization, which includes electrification and the installation of an advanced signal system, would create almost 9,600 job-years of new employment, generate immediate economic activity of almost $1 billion, boost property values near rail stations by another $1 billion and produce a variety of other economic benefits totaling up to another half-billion dollars. A job-year is the equivalent of creating one full-time job for one year.
The study looked at both the near-term benefits of project-related construction, as well as the longer-term benefits to property values, reduced commute times and increased tax revenues for state and local governments. The study indicated odernizing Caltrain would make the system faster, quieter and cleaner. The improvements would also help the agency meet growing ridership demand. Caltrain has experienced 21 consecutive months of double-digit ridership growth and is approaching all-time record levels in the number of riders and revenue. Modernization will increase the capacity of the system and help accommodate regional job and population growth.
By speeding up Caltrain, modernization will reduce commute times, resulting in an overall time-saving value of up to $370 million. The report also suggested the project would have additional benefits of supporting new, smart-growth development along the rail line.
"Our region needs this investment, our construction industry needs this, our environment needs this and frustrated drivers on Highway 101 need this. The state Legislature must approve this investment," said Jim Wunderman, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council, "Caltrain serves one of the most economically productive corridors in California and the nation and one of the busiest and most congested commuter corridors in the Bay Area region. Electrifying this vital transportation system will boost ridership, clean up our air and remove thousands of cars a day from Highway 101. At the same time, it lays the foundation for high-speed rail to come to the Bay Area."
More than $700 million in funding for the Caltrain electrification and modernization project would come from an early investment by the California High Speed Rail Authority, whose trains eventually would share the tracks with Caltrain under a "blended system" running between San Jose and San Francisco through Silicon Valley and along the Peninsula.
Whether and how soon the Caltrain modernization project moves forward will be decided in the coming weeks as state lawmakers consider the fate of $6 billion in voter-approved high-speed rail bonds. Also at stake are billions of dollars in federal matching funds for high-speed rail. The high-speed rail authority included funding for Caltrain and similar regional rail transit services in Southern California to help reduce the overall cost of the high-speed rail system and reduce the time needed for construction.


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Adoption: A Step-by-Step Guide
Information courtesy of the Child Welfare Information Gateway
Are you or someone you know thinking about adopting a child? Read these important steps, outlined below, to familiarize yourself with the various adoption options possible for you.
Step 1: Educate Yourself
What You Should Know
At times, the adoption process can seem complicated, time consuming, and frustrating. However, many resources exist to help prospective adoptive parents educate themselves about adoption.
Local community colleges, adoption exchanges, adoption agencies, hospitals, religious groups, and other organizations may offer adoption preparation programs.
Adoptive parent support groups often are willing to assist people considering adoption. In addition, regional adoption exchanges, local agencies, and State adoption specialists can send you information to help get you started.
There are also many books, magazines, and Websites on this topic. See the resource list at the end of this factsheet for more information.
Some Places to Go
To learn more about what to expect when pursuing specific types of adoption, see the related Child Welfare Information Gateway factsheet Adoption Options: A Fact Sheet for Families and companion chart Adoption Options at-a-Glance, as well as the resources listed at the end of this article.
The National Foster Care & Adoption Directory, available from Information Gateway, provides lists of adoption resources in every State, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, to assist families in their pursuit of adoption.
Step 2: Understand the Law
What You Should Know
State laws and regulations govern U.S. adoptions. Learning about the adoption laws in your State, or any States involved with your adoption, can help avoid frustrating situations.
Some Places to Go
The State Statutes Search highlights specific adoption-related topics and provides a quick overview and comparison of laws across the States. Information regarding who may adopt, timeframes for consent and revocation of consent to adoption, and termination of parental rights laws are provided in the database, and can be searched by State, territory, or region.


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It is not clear where the money will come from, or when, but the word from the European Commission to thousands of European students planning to study abroad in the near future is: don't change your plans.
It is much-needed advice as the budget for the Erasmus student exchange programme is again under threat. (...) - University World News, Alan Osborn, 15 November 2012, Issue No:248