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by Lenka Murova
The phrase 'liberal snowflakes' has been thrown around a lot recently, assigned to those who are pushing their 'extreme liberal agenda' and are easily offended and unable to face reality. It appears that by asking for equal rights, these 'snowflakes' are overreacting and infringing on the rights of others. There are loud opinions voiced from each side every day and many have strong views on the topic and refuse to budge.
More often than not, 'liberal snowflake' gets thrown in with 'safe spaces'. There are those who mock the entire idea and deem it as 'pussyfying' the nation, claiming that the liberal agenda is going too far and trying to create a bubble that does not mesh with reality.
By definition, a safe space is "a place or environment in which a person or category of people can feel confident that they will not be exposed to discrimination, criticism, harassment, or any other emotional or physical harm."[1] I don't know about you, but nothing in this definition sounds like something we shouldn't strive towards in our society. So why do people get so angry when someone claims they want a safe space?
University campuses are often brought up in the debate concerning the need for safe spaces. As universities are places for debate and learning, many argue that safe spaces go against that very idea, infringing on the right for free speech. Their claim is, how can you freely express your opinions if you have to act according to the rules of safe spaces? However, these same people are often unaware of how skewed their perception of free speech is. If someone wants to play the 'devil's advocate' and argue that many women lie about being assaulted and thus should not be taken seriously when they report it, they're simply perpetuating wrongful 'facts'. Rehashing the same argument over and over in academic debates and perpetuating this viewpoint only validates people outside these academic circles to use it as 'alternative facts' to win arguments. Narratives like these cause real damage to victims of such crimes by spreading false information. This has nothing to do with protecting free speech, it only excuses abusive behaviour.
What many do not understand is that safe spaces are meant to provide reassurance and a sense of belonging for those who are still not widely accepted in society. Rudo Ellen Kazembe lists all the ways that these safe spaces help people work towards improving their lives. LGBTQIA+ people are one of the main groups who are criticised for needing safe spaces. However, Katie Dupere points out the harsh reality that there is no real safe space for queer people. The danger of physical or verbal assault is still an everyday reality for many. That is why we continuously seek others who are a part of our community, so that we can be surrounded by people who understand what we might be going through. The pursuit of safe spaces is based on this idea, wanting to be around others who understand and accept you for who you are. It's about knowing that you have a place that you can turn to, a place where you don't feel threatened.
But all of this is just the ideal, perfect version of what a safe space should be. More often than not, though, reality doesn't match up. Undeniably, there are many marginalised groups which have to struggle in their everyday life in a way that privileged people are not even aware of. It is those who have to fight for equal rights that deserve to have somewhere they can turn to when the outside world is too hostile. The LGBTQIA+ community is a minority that has been constantly fighting for equal rights and their place in society. However, even the LGBTQIA+ community is guilty of overlooking certain issues and allowing stereotypes to fester. There are reports about trans women of colour being physically assaulted and killed on a daily basis in the US, yet there is not enough activism devoted to this issue. The recent UK election made trans people who were registering to vote jump through multiple hoops, which many found discouraging. Recently, black and brown colours were added to the original pride flag during this month's Pride events in Philadelphia. While they did this to show support for people of colour in the community, they received an immense amount of backlash.
Safe spaces lose their meaning if we exclude certain minorities from our communities. Safe spaces only make sense when they are safe for everyone in the community, not just the select few. There is more than one colour of the rainbow on the flag for a reason, the reason being that the community is immensely diverse. It is hard to argue for the need of safe spaces for marginalised groups in view of the harassment they are subjected to, especially when it happens within our very own community. Being hypocritical does not provide much legitimacy, not to mention that it also hurts the common cause.
That is why we have to work harder on improving our own community, why we have to uplift and highlight the voices that have been silenced for so long. Equality means equality for all. It is necessary to create safe spaces where everyone can express their thoughts and share their experiences without fear. These spaces should provide an opportunity to recharge after a constant battle against discrimination. Spaces that give people within the community strength to venture outside and create a safer world. This requires constant work, discussion, improvement, listening to each other and working towards making change and being critical of our own community and ourselves.
It is necessary to focus on providing a platform for those who are continuously denied their representation in the mainstream. The publishing industry has this opportunity to amplify voices that many in the commercial media view as too risky and unmarketable (with particular emphasis on profitability). Through publishing work that reflects the personal truth of the marginalised, it is possible to create safe spaces where people can affirm that they are not alone in their experiences. A publisher can be seen as a 'gatekeeper' – someone who makes the crucial decision of who and what can and cannot be published. That is why it is necessary to have a publishing house dedicated to giving a voice to underrepresented sections of the public. By publishing the work of writers whose stories reflect diverse communities, it is possible to bridge gaps in people's understanding of others and their experience of life.
[1] https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/safe_space
Written and researched by Lenka Murova


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It's been a busy 2019 so far. Here are some of my most exciting gigs coming up. Mar 29th. West Coast Jazz Orchestra Pat's- Pub April 26th. Legacy Jazz Orchestra Pat's-Pub April 27th. Motown Meltdown- Commodore Ballroom May 9th. Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra Featuring Frank Carlberg, Noah Preminger, and Michael Sarin. May 10th/11th. In the studio recording our first record.… Read more →
Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra live at Shapeshifter Lab in Brooklyn. August 30th
Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra Live at the Lilypad in Boston August 29th
Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra Live at Cafe Résonance in Montreal August 28th
Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra Live at The Rex August 27th
Vancouver Jazz Composer and Trumpet Player teams up with Two NYC heavyweights and a band full of Toronto's Best for an evening of original music at the Rex. "This is a band full of my musical heroes, people whose record's I've been listening to since I was a teenager." Frank and Noah have a staggeringly beautifully musical chemistry and a… Read more →
Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra Live at Pat's Pub August 10th
A Beautiful Night For Vancouver's Music Community
You will have to forgive me for the gauche title, but I'm still riding the high of a special evening. Professionally it was an evening of several milestones, the biggest crowd yet, my first foray into writing for strings, and nine new completed musical arrangements. As satisfying as that was, it is thoughts of community that have been front of… Read more →
Looking back on 2017 ( a DH inaugural blog post)
2017 was an inspiring, challenging, and deeply rewarding year. I was thrilled to be a part of several musical projects, both as a trumpet player and as a composer-arranger. I am deeply grateful to be a part of a professional music scene in Vancouver filled with warmth, positivity, and immeasurable talent. I routinely get to share the stage with my… Read more →
Nov 10th – DHJO w/ Strings Feat: Jennifer Scott Live @ Pat's Pub
Pat's Pub – 403 E Hastings November 10th | 8:00PM $20 Door | $15 Students Online Ordering is now closed. Tickets will be available at the door. Please print out and bring ticket purchase confirmation. Please note that seating is first come first serve, please come early for best seats! All ticket sales are final Read more →
May 12th @ Pat's Pub – Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra Feat.Frank Carlberg
Friday May 12th the Daniel Hersog Jazz Orchestra will be featuring NYC pianist and composer Frank Carlberg. The ensemble will perform music off Carlberg's acclaimed new album "Monk Dreams, Hallucinations And Nightmares." Also featured, will be New compositions from Hersog, written specifically for this evening. The band features Vancouver's top jazz and improvising musicians. This is an evening not to… Read more →

subset: commoncrawl


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MU opens -1 vs. KSU by robmufan
[Today at 04:26:46 AM]
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[Today at 01:16:28 AM]
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[Today at 12:14:09 AM]
Marquette performance log by The Thing
[December 06, 2019, 11:47:08 PM]
Remember when the Wojo defenders asked if we'd rather have the DePaul program? by Johnny B
[December 06, 2019, 11:27:51 PM]
Upsets! / Surprise results. by BM1090
[December 06, 2019, 11:08:14 PM]
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Topic: Man do I love the Hausers (Read 28884 times)


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MDRT study shows most Americans have never hired a financial professionalBy The IJ Staff | March 22 2017 01:30PM
Photo: Freepik
A new study commissioned by Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) found that 79 percent of Americans have never hired a financial professional, 38 percent of whom say this is because they are capable of managing their finances alone.
However, Americans who have hired a financial professional showed more confidence than do-it-yourselfers with respect to the sight of complex financial terminology. For example, those who have worked with advisors were confident with terms such as long-term care insurance (41%) and annuities (49%), indicates the study, which was conducted online by Harris Poll. The results were announced March 22 by MDRT.
"The importance of planning"
Meanwhile, roughly half of Americans who have never hired a financial professional feel confident with traditional terms such as "life insurance"(51%), however the proportion of those who feel confident seems to drop when it comes to more complex areas such as "long-term care insurance"(31%) and "annuities"(28%).
"These results further emphasize the importance of planning for a healthy financial future," said Mark J. Hanna, CLU, ChFC, MDRT President. "Consider working with an advisor like hiring a professional builder to renovate your home. While you may be able to paint the walls on your own, your overall knowledge wouldn't enable you to replace your pipes or build new cabinets in your kitchen."
Unprepared for retirement
Of the Americans who have never hired a professional, less than half (46 per cent) have a retirement plan or emergency fund, only 19 per cent have a long-term financial plan for the future and 46 per cent have life insurance.
In contrast, the 21 per cent of Americans who have hired an advisor are much better prepared. Seventy-seven per cent have a retirement plan or emergency fund, half have a long-term financial plan for the future and 63 per cent have life insurance.
Why not hire an advisor?
The study asked those who have never hired a financial professional, why not? The reasons given were: they don't have enough assets or money to need one (44 per cent); they are capable of managing their own finances (38 per cent) and it would cost too much money (36 per cent).
To learn more, view MDRT's full study results.


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Ponds and lakes can be difficult and time consuming for many individuals to effectively manage. Let us help you choose the right product for the job
Since 1966, Aquatic Control has been providing high quality products, services, and staff for managing lakes, ponds, and other water resources. Our professional staff includes: fisheries biologists, factory trained fountain specialists, and licensed aquatic applicators. Our services include vegetation management plans, treatment programs, fountain/aeration system installations, fish population surveys and mapping.
418 West State Road 258
Phone: 812.497.2410 - 800.753.LAKE
Email: email@example.com
Copyright © 2019 Aquatic Control. All Rights Reserved.


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The LASIK vision correction procedure is so easy that in minutes your eyesight can be clear and sharp, almost like you have regained your natural vision. The surgical procedure typically takes between five and fifteen minutes for both of your eyes and you are aware for the entire procedure. Most LASIK eye surgery patients will notice a dramatic improvement in their vision immediately after the LASIK procedure.
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Fast screening process:
International journal of Aquatics Research(IJAR) applies a fast screening process upon receiving submissions to assess if manuscripts have the merit to be sent out for peer review. Submissions with problems related to the following may be rejected outright and not considered for resubmission:
1. Topic and its treatment should be within the scope of the journal and include novelty on the issue.
Types of paper
Types of contributions: Research articles, review papers, and commentaries. Research articles should be succinct, high quality research results that improve the state of the art of the topics treated by the journal. The work reported should be technically sound and sufficiently unique, with the conceptual foundations of models or ideas properly documented. It is important to report on model or concept performance against data and other considerations, and the relevance to user needs. Review papers provide an extensive overview of recent developments in specific areas that fall within the scope of the journal. These kinds of papers are expected to have an extensive literature review followed by an in-depth analysis of the subject matter, and identify challenges for future research. Commentaries are short articles commenting on published work in International Journal of Environmental Resources Research and on topics of interest to the wide readership. They can be submitted after discussion with the Editor-in-Chief.
Contact details for submission
If you are not able to submit your paper to IJERR electronically, please contact the Editor-in-Chief, Dr. R. Ghorbani at: email@example.com
Conflict of interest
All authors are requested to disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest including any financial, personal or other relationships with other people or organizations within three months of submission that could inappropriately influence, or be perceived to influence, their work.
Submission declaration
Submission of an article means that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture or academic thesis), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where the work was carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere including electronically in the same form, in English or in any other language, without the written consent of the copyright-holder.
Changes to authorship
This policy concerns the addition, deletion, or rearrangement of author names in the authorship of accepted manuscripts and only before online publication: Requests to add or remove an author, or to rearrange the author names, must be sent to the Journal Manager from the corresponding author of the accepted manuscript and must include: (a) the reason the name should be added or removed, or the author names rearranged and (b) written confirmation (e-mail, fax, letter) from all authors that they agree with the addition, removal or rearrangement. Requests that are not sent by the corresponding author will not be considered.
Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement'. Acceptance of the agreement will ensure the widest possible dissemination of information. An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript together with a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' form. Subscribers may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of articles including abstracts for internal circulation within their institutions. Permission of the Publisher is required for resale or distribution outside the institution and for all other derivative works, including compilations and translations. If excerpts from other copyrighted works are included, the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright owners and credit the source(s) in the article.
Role of the funding source
You are responsible to acknowledge the role of the funding body in your paper.
Open access
This journal offers you the option of making your article freely available to all via the Gorgan University's webpage platform. To prevent any conflict of interest, you can only make this choice after receiving notification that your article has been accepted for publication. Whatever access option you choose, as an author you retain the right to post a revised personal version of your article on your own website.
Language and language services
Please write your text in good English (American or British usage is accepted, but not a mixture of these).
Submission to this journal proceeds totally online and you will be guided stepwise through the creation and uploading of your files. The system automatically converts source files to a single PDF file of the article, which is used in the peer-review process. Please note that even though manuscript source files are converted to PDF files at submission for the review process, these source files are needed for further processing after acceptance. All correspondence, including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for revision, takes place by e-mail removing the need for a paper trail.
All manuscripts are sent to at least two independent reviewers to ensure both accuracy and relevance to the journal. Authors should therefore provide the names of up to 5 potential reviewers upon submission.
Use of wordprocessing software
It is important that the file be saved in the native format of the wordprocessor used. The text should be in single-column format. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. Most formatting codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article. In particular, do not use the wordprocessor's options to justify text or to hyphenate words. However, do use bold face, italics, subscripts, superscripts etc. When preparing tables, if you are using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for each row. If no grid is used, use tabs, not spaces, to align columns. Note that source files of figures, tables and text graphics will be required whether or not you embed your figures in the text. To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the 'spell-check' and 'grammar-check' functions of your wordprocessor. Article structure Subdivision - numbered sections
Divide your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections should be numbered 1.1 (then 1.1.1, 1.1.2, ...), 1.2, etc. (the abstract is not included in section numbering). Use this numbering also for internal cross-referencing: do not just refer to 'the text'. Any subsection may be given a brief heading. Each heading should appear on its own separate line. Do not use more than three subdivisions.
State the objectives of the work and provide an adequate and focused background, avoiding a detailed or irrelevant literature survey or a summary of the results.
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Provide sufficient detail to allow the work to be reproduced. Methods already published should be indicated by a reference: only relevant modifications should be described.
Results should be clear and to the point.
This should explore the significance of the results of the work, not repeat them. A combined Results and Discussion section is often appropriate. Avoid extensive citations and discussion of published literature, but justification of the significance of the results in light of other studies is encouraged.
The main conclusions of the study may be presented in a short Conclusions section, which may stand alone or form a subsection of a Discussion or Results and Discussion section.
If there is more than one appendix, they should be identified as A, B, etc. Formulae and equations in appendices should be given separate numbering: Eq. (A.1), Eq. (A.2), etc.; in a subsequent appendix, Eq. (B.1) and so on. Similarly for tables and figures: Table A.1; Fig. A.1, etc.
Essential title page information
• Title.
Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulae.
• Author names and affiliations.
Where the family name may be ambiguous (e.g., a double name), please indicate this clearly. Present the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lower-case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name and, if available, the e-mail address of each author.
• Corresponding author.
Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, also post-publication.
Ensure that telephone and fax numbers (with country and area code) are provided in addition to the e-mail address and the complete postal address. Contact details must be kept up to date by the corresponding author.
• Present/permanent address.
If an author has moved since the work described in the article was done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address' (or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work must be retained as the main, affiliation address. Superscript Arabic numerals are used for such footnotes.
Abstract A concise and factual abstract is required. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. For this reason, references should be avoided, but if essential, then cite the author(s) and year(s). Also, non-standard or uncommon abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself.
Graphical abstract
A Graphical abstract is optional and should summarize the contents of the article in a concise, pictorial form designed to capture the attention of a wide readership online. Authors must provide images that clearly represent the work described in the article. Graphical abstracts should be submitted as a separate file in the online submission system. Image size: Please provide an image with a minimum of 531 × 1328 pixels (h × w) or proportionally more. The image should be readable at a size of 5 × 13 cm using a regular screen resolution of 96 dpi. Preferred file types: TIFF, EPS, PDF or MS Office files.
Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of 6 keywords, avoiding general and plural terms and multiple concepts (avoid, for example, 'and', 'of'). Be sparing with abbreviations: only abbreviations firmly established in the field may be eligible.
Define abbreviations that are not standard in this field in a footnote to be placed on the first page of the article. Such abbreviations that are unavoidable in the abstract must be defined at their first mention there, as well as in the footnote. Ensure consistency of abbreviations throughout the article.
Place acknowledgements in a separate section at the end of the article before the references. List here those individuals who provided help during the research (e.g., providing language help, writing assistance or proof reading the article, etc.).
Math formulae
Present simple formulae in the line of normal text where possible and use the solidus (/) instead of a horizontal line for small fractional terms, e.g., X/Y. In principle, variables are to be presented in italics. Powers of e are often more conveniently denoted by exp. Number consecutively any equations that have to be displayed separately from the text (if referred to explicitly in the text).
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Electronic Artwork
General points
• Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your original artwork.
• Save text in illustrations as "graphics" or enclose the font.
• Only use the following fonts in your illustrations: Arial, Courier, Times, Symbol.
• Number the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
• Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files.
• Provide captions to illustrations separately.
• Produce images near to the desired size of the printed version.
• Submit each figure as a separate file.
Regardless of the application used, when your electronic artwork is finalised, please "save as" or convert the images to one of the following formats (note the resolution requirements for line drawings, halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below):
EPS: Vector drawings. Embed the font or save the text as "graphics".
TIFF: color or grayscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi.
TIFF: Bitmapped line drawings: use a minimum of 1000 dpi.
TIFF: Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (color or grayscale): a minimum of 500 dpi is required.
Please do not:
• Supply files that are optimized for screen use (like GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); the resolution is too low;
• Supply files that are too low in resolution;
• Submit graphics that are disproportionately large for the content.
Color artwork Please make sure that artwork files are in an acceptable format (TIFF, EPS or MS Office files) and with the correct resolution. If, together with your accepted article, you submit usable color figures then IJERR will ensure, at no additional charge that these figures will appear in color on the website of the Gorgan University regardless of whether or not these illustrations are reproduced in color in the printed version.
For color reproduction in print, you will receive information regarding the costs from IJERR after receipt of your accepted article. Please indicate your preference for color: in print or on the Web only.
Please note:
Because of technical complications which can arise by converting color figures to 'gray scale' (for the printed version should you not opt for color in print) please submit in addition usable black and white versions of all the color illustrations.
Figure captions
Ensure that each illustration has a caption. Supply captions separately, not attached to the figure. A caption should comprise a brief title (not on the figure itself) and a description of the illustration. Keep text in the illustrations themselves to a minimum but explain all symbols and abbreviations used.
Number tables consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text. Place footnotes to tables below the table body and indicate them with superscript lowercase letters. Avoid vertical rules. Be sparing in the use of tables and ensure that the data presented in tables do not duplicate results described elsewhere in the article.
References Citation in text
Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list (and vice versa). Any references cited in the abstract must be given in full. Unpublished results and personal communications are not recommended in the reference list, but may be mentioned in the text. If these references are included in the reference list they should follow the standard reference style of the journal and should include a substitution of the publication date with either 'Unpublished results' or 'Personal communication'. Citation of a reference as 'in press' implies that the item has been accepted for publication.
Web references
As a minimum, the full URL should be given and the date when the reference was last accessed. Any further information, if known (DOI, author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.), should also be given.
Reference style Text:
All citations in the text should refer to:
1. Single author: the author's name (without initials, unless there is ambiguity) and the year of publication;
2. Two authors: both authors' names and the year of publication;
3. Three or more authors: first author's name followed by 'et al.' and the year of publication.
Groups of references should be listed first alphabetically, then chronologically.
Examples: 'as demonstrated (Ramsey, 2002a, 2002b, 1999; Ulanovic and Tapia, 1999).
Chouduray et al. (2010) have recently shown ....' List: References should be arranged first alphabetically and then further sorted chronologically if necessary. More than one reference from the same author(s) in the same year must be identified by the letters 'a', 'b', 'c', etc., placed after the year of publication.
Reference to a journal publication: Van der Geer, J., Hanraads, J.A.J., Lupton, R.A., 2010. The art of writing a scientific article. J. Sci. Commun. 163, 51–59.
Reference to a book: Strunk Jr., W., White, E.B., 2000. The Elements of Style, fourth ed. Longman, New York.
Reference to a chapter in an edited book: Mettam, G.R., Adams, L.B., 2009. How to prepare an electronic version of your article, in: Jones, B.S., Smith , R.Z. (Eds.), Introduction to the Electronic Age. E-Publishing Inc., New York, pp. 281–304.
Journal abbreviations source
Journal names can be preferably abbreviated according to
Index Medicus journal abbreviations: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/tsd/serials/lji.html;
List of title word abbreviations: http://www.issn.org/2-22661-LTWA-online.php;
CAS (Chemical Abstracts Service): http://www.cas.org/sent.html.
Submission checklist
The following list will be useful during the final checking of an article before sending it to the journal for review. Please consult this Guide for Authors for further details of any item.
Ensure that the following items are present:
One author has been designated as the corresponding author with contact details:
• E-mail address
• Full postal address
• Telephone and fax numbers All necessary files have been uploaded, and contain:
• Keywords
• All figure captions
• All tables (including title, description, footnotes) Further considerations
• Manuscript has been 'spell-checked' and 'grammar-checked'
• References are in the correct format for this journal
• All references mentioned in the Reference list are cited in the text, and vice versa
• Permission has been obtained for use of copyrighted material from other sources (including the Web)
• Color figures are clearly marked as being intended for color reproduction on the Web (free of charge) and in print, or to be reproduced in color on the Web (free of charge) and in black-and-white in print
• If only color on the Web is required, black-and-white versions of the figures are also supplied for printing purposes
One set of page proofs (as PDF files) will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author. If you do not wish to use the PDF annotations function, you may list the corrections (including replies to the Query Form) and return them to us in an e-mail. Please list your corrections quoting line number. If, for any reason, this is not possible, then mark the corrections and any other comments (including replies to the Query Form) on a printout of your proof and return by fax, or scan the pages and e-mail, or by post. Please use this proof only for checking the typesetting, editing, completeness and correctness of the text, tables and figures. Significant changes to the article as accepted for publication will not be considered at this stage. We will do everything possible to get your article published quickly and accurately – please let us have all your corrections within 5 days. It is important to ensure that all corrections are sent back to us in one communication: please check carefully before replying, as inclusion of any subsequent corrections cannot be guaranteed. Proofreading is solely your responsibility. Note that IJERR may proceed with the publication of your article if no response is received.
The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail. For an extra charge, paper offprints can be ordered via the offprint order form which is sent once the article is accepted for publication. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use.
For inquiries relating to the submission of articles (including electronic submission) please visit this journal's homepage. Contact details for questions arising after acceptance of an article, especially those relating to proofs, will be provided by the publisher.


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Are you interested in watersports? Do you want to add more fun and leisure to your water activities? Our Underwater Scooter can help navigate you through the water whether you are swimming, suba diving, or snorkeling. Save air, stay underwater longer and get more out of your diving experience! This Underwater Scooter can be used in oceans, lakes, rivers, and pools for depths up to 65ft and speeds of 3.5 to 4 mph. Get your underwater thrills with one of our Underwater Scooters!
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Can be purchased from www.i10Direct.com


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Early risers may enjoy morning workouts and breakfast in the Clubhouse Terrace Restaurant every Saturday and Sunday during the summer season. From 7:30 to 9:30 AM, visitors will be able to view morning workouts, dine in the open air restaurant and learn behind the scenes info from horsewoman and racing broadcaster Michelle Yu.
To attend, park in the main lot off Jimmy Durante Blvd., then proceed through the Clubhouse entrance to the second floor. There is no charge for admission to the event, but a $10 parking fee* applies.
*Those spending $25 or more in breakfast purchases will have the parking price deducted from their bill.


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white sands
we pulled into the roadrunner rv park in alamagordo new mexico yesterday at around 3pm. here's the good news: hot showers!!! can I get and amen? the water was hot and the soap never smelled so good. here's the even better news, wi-fi access. we had a chance to delete about 200 spam emails and deal with some business. then we hooked up with my parents and were able to web cam. it was cool and the first time I've tried something like that. the world is becoming more and more connected. once wireless access and compression barriers are broken, there will be very few limits. I think there are very few limits now actually, I just think access is being spoon fed to everyone at the moment.
this morning was cold, cold, COLD… I think this was the coldest morning so far. "welcome to the new mexico desert" was what the RV park attendant told me. we decided this would be a good morning to eat breakfast out. ? so we headed out and found a denny's… twenty-four hour goodness… except they were closed for "maintenance" and the truck was in a really tight parking lot. fun, fun, the adventure never ends. so I pulled a dukes of hazard style hairpin turn and got out of the parking lot. lucky for us the waffle shoppe was open right next door. mmm… mmm… the place was hoppin'. I think in these small desert towns there is probably only one or two places to eat breakfast, so it's kinda like a church gathering, everybody bumps into everybody else. lot's of "hey slim" and "hola jose" comments going on. we were clearly out-of-towners. quick glances and whispers. news travels fast in a small town. and I think they noticed the moving truck, probably trying to figure what was going on. so I had a Belgian waffle, two eggs and hash browns with a relished cup of coffee. nancy had a vegetarian omelet with toast, hash browns and a glass of water, of course. I do have to mention when I ordered the waitress looked at me and said "you don't want any meat???", with a certain disbelief. hahaha. so breakfast was good and we headed out for white sands.
white sands was very white, as promised. the terrain changed very rapidly as we entered. all around alamagordo and just outside the entrance gate, it's the usual desert scrub brush and cacti. soon after entering the gate you start to see very high mounds of white sand with different kinds of vegetation thickly clinging to it. the further you make it into the park the more the vegetation thins out until only the most rugged survive. the landscape turns into an undulating sea of pure white sand dunes piled as high as thirty to fifty feet or more. in the depressions between dunes small eco systems of vegetation develop. some shallow pools of water also surface in these areas feeding the local system. my first hike out into the dunes was a big adjustment. I was immediately blinded by the sun reflecting off the white surface. it was disorienting actually. I had to stop and close my eyes to stop the pain. I also noticed how dry my throat was after only one quarter mile of hiking. but the seductive beauty of the dunes were not to be denied. it was the largest expanse of open dunes I had ever seen. somehow the rugged desolation and pure white expanse was liberating. the external emptiness forces you back inwards. I see why many religious texts have stories of enlightenment in the desert. I thought my feet would be burned by the hot sand, but once I tested it out, it was actually quite cool, even downright cold at times. i think it's partly due to the white color of the sand reflecting the heat instead of absorbing it, and partly the cool water hidden below the surface in the depressions. the nights get sub-zero here and the sand and water are slow to change states. it's an interesting juxtaposition. at the heart of the sands we took a long hike out into the interior. we used a snow peak mountain off in the distance as a navigation point back. once crossing a few mounds it becomes extremely disorienting. everything looks exactly the same. I see how it could be extremely dangerous getting lost here. we spent about two hours out in the sands before we made it back. we both downed water liberally and felt much better for it.
we headed out of the park around 3pm and headed for our overnight destination, Aguirre Springs campground about an hour or two south. the campground is located at a much higher elevation in the mountains. the mountains separate the city of Las Cruses from the white sands area. I didn't mention it before, but the white sands national monument is actually located in the middle of the white sands missile test range. basically it's a huge expanse of land with natural mountain barriers on all sides that contains a large military base and open expanse of land for missile testing and fighter pilot training, etc. there was another big boarder patrol check point here. we went through one of these in Arizona as well. it's scary stuff. sniffing attack dogs, agents with lots of guns, large signs with "threat level high", etc, etc. they ask lots of questions and see how nervous you are in response. I'm not sure this was all just border patrol related, I'm sure homeland security was at work as well. anyone coming close to a big military complex must make the military nervous these days. well, I don't want to go off, but if we avoided this disastrous course of action our country has pursued over the past years things might not have to be like this. we also need to address immigration issues as a nation. taking harsh border control measures and xenophobic actions are only going to make things worse for us in the end.
back to Aguirre springs now. as we climbed up the narrow road to the campground we saw only snow covered peaks with our destination at the base. oh boy! another cold night? the terrain was beautiful, large rock boulders and cacti with trees and various other shrub plants. the mountains were towering in the background covered in snow, a beautiful place. at three dollars per night, it's a bargain. to my surprise the temperature was ware and there was almost no wind. from the high elevation you could see the wide open country below starting from the white sands missile testing facilities stretching out to the vague outlines of white dunes in the far distance. as night fell you could see the glow of city lights in alamagordo far off in the distance. tomorrow we leave for the Guadalupe mountains national park in texas.
One Response
Hi DavidGreat photos!! My ftirovae was the first one the blue sky and clouds with the sand dune just make for a very interesting shot!!!I like photography myself but still not so good at it. Most of mine tend to be from Tibet rallies here in NYC so each year they seem to improve. Just hard to do with constant changing lighting and always on the move to the next rally point HA HA but they do improve as I learn new tricks!!Dave


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Biotech Terminates IPO
The Israeli firm Vascular Biogenics withdrew its initial public offering after six days of trading.
Aug 15, 2014
Jyoti Madhusoodanan
WIKIMEDIA, KLIP GAMEOnly a week after its NASDAQ debut on August 1, biotech company Vascular Biogenics terminated its initial public offering (IPO) last week (August 8) after key investors withdrew payment for shares they had promised to buy.
Dubbed the "IPO that wasn't" by The Wall Street Journal, the firm traded 5.4 million shares at $12 each for six days before announcing that no shares would be issued. The company's underwriters, Deutsche Bank and Wells Fargo Securities LLC, ended the IPO agreement "due to an unexpected situation in which a substantial existing U.S. shareholder did not fund payment for shares it previously agreed to purchase in the offering," according to a company press release.
The situation is unusually thorny because public trading continued after the settlement date, so regulators will likely need to reverse the trades, according to CNBC. "IPO watchers I talked to are scratching their heads over this one," wrote CNBC stocks editor Bob Pisani. "There have been cases where an offering was priced, traded and then cancelled—but before the first trade settled so there was no changing of ownership, or money exchanged."
The Israeli biotech firm is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on cancer and anti-inflammatory therapies; its public offering was part of a growing wave of smaller biotech IPOs.
Based on a July 29 regulatory filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bloomberg Businessweek reported that the company had not commercialized any products or generated any revenue in its 14 years. Business Insider reported that the company had accumulated a total deficit of $109.8 million as of December 2013. "We have incurred operating losses in each year since our inception," the company said in its SEC filing. "Our recurring operating losses raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern."


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The Novel
Hey there everyone. I have been working very hard to reproduce Terracewood in novel form, and on this website I placed the first 5 chapters. Enjoy.
Chapter 1
It was a starry night, and the moon shined so bright it was like a spotlight through my windows. I stared at my clock and realized how late it was. It was 12:36, especially on a school night. I panicked for a moment, and turned off the TV and got under the covers. Every sound made me worry for some reason. I felt like any second my mom would barge in and yell at me for staying up so late. I closed my eyes and was just about to fall asleep when- It happened. The ground began rumbling, and the glass of my window broke. It was an earthquake. I stood up, and tired walking to my parent's room, but the ground was shaking so hard I wasn't able to stand. I fell down and twisted my ankle, regretting I stood up. Oh, sorry. I should have introduced myself. My name is Ryan. I am 13 years old, and I live in Londonderry, in Pinear, in North America. Never heard of Pinear? It is a very small island country between America and Canada. It became a country after world war three when the east coast was demolished from nuclear war. I stopped thinking and realized the earthquake is over. Stood up, and my foot hurt badly. My Mom came through the door and seemed relived when she saw me.
"Ryan! Thank god you're okay!" She came over and hugged me.
"I am not really that okay…" when I pointed to my foot.
"Oh that's nothing." She said. "We'll just put some ice on it and you will be fine."
I hoped I would be. I walked to the kitchen and got some ice out of the freezer, and put it on my foot. It felt better almost instantly. I grabbed my favorite hoodie and stepped outside our condo. There were at least fifty people out there freaking out over the earthquake. Over a few houses I saw blue and red flashing over the houses. The police were there. Something bad had happened. I was suddenly tapped on the shoulder and almost had a heart attack. I turned around, and saw my best friend Sean, but he liked to be called Slingshot for some reason. He was dressed as he usually was, white jacket and a blue shirt with jeans.
"What happened!?" I said a little too loud.
"Dunno. It'll be awesome if this gets school cancelled tomorrow though." He replied. "C'mon, let's check it out! I bet it is something like a robbery, or even better, aliens!"
He was obsessed with aliens for some reason. I never understood why.
"Dude, there is like a million police cars there! We will never be able to see!" I said with my teeth clenched. Even though he was my best friend since we were little, he was sometimes ridiculous.
"No, look." He pointed at the lights over the houses. "That's the abandoned factory. I know a ton of ways in there. Remember when we played hide and seek, and you could never find me?"
It was a faint memory, but I remember. I would always find him in places I checked in a million times, and saying he came here from his "Secret" hiding spot. Well I just found out what it was.
"Umm… Yeah?"
"Yep. I know a tunnel through the sewer to get in. Follow me!"
Yes, I know he said sewer. If I didn't know Slingshot, I definitely would've said no. But I have known him forever, and I have been in the sewers with him before. It was not as bad as you think. You can get by the smell in a few minutes, and the rats were sleeping during the day. But this was night. I was scared, but I decided to go anyways, and picked up the grate and jumped in.
We wandered around for a few minutes, shining the flashlight around looking for a specific ladder Sling said was just around here. After about 5 minutes of walking, we found the ladder. It was rusty, and had a green mark with WASTE DUCT stenciled on it. We climbed up into a kitchen that has probably not used in ten years. I placed the grate on the floor beneath the sink, and looked around. It was nasty. The walls were peeling, and the room still smelled like all kinds of foods that were burned. Feeling kind of thirsty, I turned the faucet on the sink. Nasty brown slime blasted out and I quickly shut the faucet off. I turned around to see Slingshot with his finger on his lips telling me that I should be quiet. I nodded and put my finger on my lips telling him that I know I should be quiet. He creeped towards the kitchen door with the foggy glass window were you could see the chefs cooking. I tip-toed towards and I saw the weirdest thing.
Some middle aged guy, was surrounded by miners with dirty faces as if they have been digging for hours. The middle aged guy had some weird smirk on his face as he held up some wooden plank he had. I quickly realized it was a mask, with different colors panted on it and glowing eyes. He took off his latex gloves covered in coal and slowly touched the mask to his face. He started thrashing around on the ground, and then got up and took the mask off. He took a deep breath, as if he just inhaled a drug or something. I looked back at Sling and he was staring in disbelief. Sling did the "Be quiet" sign again and opened the door a crack. Are you crazy! I thought, my heart pounding out of my chest. We could now hear what the strange man and all of the miners were saying.
"The power… I have it" The man said, grinning manically.
"Well, was it worth it?" A miner said sarcastically like he felt this whole thing was a waste of time. The middle aged man frowned, and stepped towards the miner slowly. The man suddenly began smiling again, like a shark. I could tell the miner was cared out of his wits, like he did not know what he is dealing with. The man rolled up his sleeves.
"I'll let you find out."" he said. The man took out a gun and shot the miner in the foot. The miner yelped and fell to the ground, moaning with pain. Slingshot must've got scared, and he screamed when the bullet was shot. The middle aged man turned around and saw us. It was over. We were dead.
"GET THEM!!!" The middle aged man yelled, as all of the other miners ran after us as he stayed behind to torture the miner he shot. I tried to pry open the grate below the sink, but the weird slime glued it shut. I ran through the other door in the kitchen hoping to find an exit. We ran into this strange small area, with wood as the floor. Slingshot ran onto it. I knew I was screwed. The old wood snapped because of our weights combined and we were left hanging over a balcony. I looked down where Slingshot dropped the flashlight and saw the old assembly room. If we fell, we would break a leg if we were lucky. I knew this was the end. I tensed, and knew this was my time. I stared at Slingshot, and said,
"We drop on three."
I closed my eyes and let go of the balcony, falling forward the floor.
Chapter 2
I opened my eyes, in an area next to Slingshot that looked like Londonderry before the war. It was extremely green, and not a single crater in the hills the apartments were on. I stepped forwards, trying to see if it was real.
"Well well well, look who got saved. I turned around to see an old man resting in a chair. He had a raspy dry voice that sounded like a snake, hissing as he spoke. I blinked to see if this was real life, and sure enough it was.
"What the heck?" Slingshot said in disbelief. He was blinking too; to try and make sure he wasn't imagining this.
"I am Izod, protector of the mask of love."
"So… What is this place?"
"It is the land of the first memory, Nevertheless. What do you see?"
"I see the beach I was with my grandfather at." Slingshot blurted out. He told me this a million times. His first memory was him playing on the beach with his grandfather.
"I see… Old Londonderry" I said, not sure of what I am doing.
"Those are interesting memories." Izod said. "You are lucky I saved you."
"You… Saved us?" Slingshot said.
"Yes, you should be dead after falling off that balcony. I only saved you because I saw potential. You know that man with the mask you ran from?"
"Yes…" I said, still nervous.
"He was taking what was rightfully mine. Say, have you ever heard the tale of The Three Masks?"
Of course I have. The story was hundreds of years ago when Pinear was first settled, an explorer married a woman who was accused of witch trials. They had three kids who were… different. They had masks glued to their heads, right when they were born, and nobody had any clue why they had the masks at birth. So the explorer released his children into the wild and never saw them again. But this story wasn't real. Or was it?
"Are… you one of the strange children?" Slingshot said like he was scared.
"Yes Sean. I am the protector of the mask of love. I can easily get any woman or man I want to marry and he or she will love me forever." Izod said. Slingshot seemed kind of annoyed that Izod didn't call him by his nickname, but Izod didn't care. "I want you to get my mask back from that man. His ambition is to get the three masks: The mask of love, the mask of truth, and the mask of life and death. He will use the power of all three masks combined to do anything for his selfish, evil needs."
"Sir… I will do this for you. Where is he?" Slingshot said, trying to be respectful to Izod in some way. Izod was now choking. I took another long look at him and he was only skin and bones. I ran up, scared. I didn't want Izod to die!
"The man… is… in… Elleaf…" Izod said, now barely breathing. I started to have tears running down my cheeks.
"Don't die Izod!" I said, without breath.
"Don't worry… I-I will be reincarnated…" Izod said, now basically a skeleton. "Goodbye… And I gave you magic… I will tell you when you need it…" Izod turned into dust and I had my arm on his shoulder. I blinked, and I wasn't in Nevertheless anymore. I was back in the kitchen, with my hand on the faucet. Light showed through the foggy window we watched the man shoot his miner through.
"Whoa." Slingshot said, with his eyes wide open. "Did that just happen?"
"Yeah. We need to get down to Elleaf. This guy must be stopped." I replied. We walked down into the square room where the miners where digging. We saw holes everywhere, and trucks. This is the room they shipped stuff out of the factory I supposed. We found the one miner who was shot on the ground, his leg soaked with dried blood. We approached him.
"He-help me" The miner said pointing at his foot. Slingshot took off the miner's boot and sock and he saw the bullet stuck in his foot. Slingshot took a roll of gauze from his first aid kit and wrapped the miner's foot with it.
"Who was that middle aged man?" I asked as Slingshot was wrapping the miner's foot.
"Orrville Numbrus, code named Zero. What was he looking for here?" The miner said, suddenly feeling as if he was better.
"A mask. He can take over the world with it, and he needs to be stopped. Oh, and what is your name?" Slingshot said.
"My name is Atom. A-T-O-M Atom." The miner said, as he slid his foot back on and brushed off his pants. "I work at the local convenience store in Londonderry, The Corner Store. I couldn't refuse Orrville's offer to mine here. He said he would give me five grand, and it was a deal. Now I regret ever seeing him." We began walking to the door and Atom was limping. I opened the door and I was blinded by the light of the sun. The police were still there, and they spotted us as soon as we opened the door. The tallest officer approached us and was angry with a red face. He pushed Slingshot and I against a wall.
"YOU!" The police officer said. "YOU PUNKS BETTER BE SORRY! I WAS UP ALL NIGHT BECAUSE OF YOU!"
"It… wasn't us!" Slingshot said.
"It wasn't them." Atom said, as the police officer shoved Sling and I to the ground. Sling and I quickly rushed away as the police officer started arguing with Atom. When we began walking through the woods and then onto a different street, I took one last look at my apartment. I closed my eyes and silently prayed that this will not be the last time I see it, and then walked towards the bus stop with change in my pocket, ready to go.
Chapter 3
The bus ride was pretty short, considering Elleaf wasn't that far away from Londonderry. The second we arrived I knew this was a trashy city. It had garbage all over the ground, and a newspaper was at my feet. I picked it up and saw the front headline:
Earthquake Hits Londonderry
Last night, citizens of Londonderry felt a high magnitude tremor at about 1:25 am. Go to page E6 for more info.
I just stuffed the newspaper into my pocket. Sling and I began searching around the city for a guy who matched Orrville Numbrus's details. Finally, we came across a cemetery across the town. It was barren, with one boy in it. The boy was dressed in expensive clothes, a brown shirt with a plaid vest. The only non fancy part about him was his jeans, with holes so you could see his knees. I walked closer, and the boy turned and I saw tears running down his face. Slingshot and I walked closer and we saw the grave.
The dates were etched off, and the boy seemed upset.
"Is that your mom?" Slingshot said. The boy nodded and sat back down against the grave again. We walked closer and the boy finally spoke.
"She always was the best. She always will be." The boy said.
"How long has she been dead?" I said, nervous like he was going to kill me.
"Five years. Sadly I had to witness it." The boy replied. "My name is Sully. Nice to meet you."
"I am Ryan" I said. What was he trying to do?
"You can call me Slingshot." Sling said.
"The police left me with my dad, the mayor of this town. I had to deal with him for years now, and I am done." Sully said, angrily. I noticed he had a can of soda next to him and he crushed it, throwing it over the graveyard fence. "You guys have to help me. You're the only ones that care." I stared at Slingshot, and he nodded.
"Let's go." I said, ready to take something down.
We arrived at Sully's house, and stood in front of it. Sully took a bat out of his bag and handed it to Slingshot.
"You look strong. Break the door." Sully said. Slingshot stopped for a second, then shrugged. Sully was the owner of this house technically, and Slingshot just got his permission. Slingshot took the bat and smashed the door until fell off its hinges. All three of us walked in and saw the beauty of the house.
"Grab anything. This guy needs payback."
Slingshot rushed into the kitchen and started breaking drawers and taking pots and pans. I ran upstairs and grabbed some backpacks and stuffed them with clothes. Sure, it felt wrong, but we got permission. Plus nobody knew who we were in this town. I slung a backpack onto my back and rushed downstairs. I saw Sully in the living room grabbing strange weapons in a glass container.
"Hey Sully." I said, about to throw a backpack full of clothes. "Catch." I threw the backpack and he caught it, beginning to put the weapons into it. I walked into the kitchen and tossed Slingshot the backpack, and he stuffed the pans, knives, and food into his backpack. I went into Sully's garage, just about to leave, when I saw a big sledgehammer. It was huge, with "OL' GLORY" carved into it. I picked it up, and then stuffed it into my backpack. I looked back inside and saw Slingshot fix the door back and head toward me. We got outside, with backpacks slung on our backs as we began heading down the street, looking for Orrville Numbrus.
Chapter 4
It didn't take us long to find him. In fact, Orrville Numbrus was right at the town common, making a speech. I thought too many people were there watching him. Sully started getting mad and began charging towards him, and we had to grab his shirt to stop him.
"That is him! That's the jerk that left me with my dad!" Sully screamed. I had to put my hand over his mouth to make him stop talking. We paused for a moment, completely silent. Orrville was making a strange speech, something we've never heard about.
"I will promise to end any war that begins, and that is why you should elect me to be the WWS." Orrville said, as everybody started cheering like crazy. I looked closer at Orrville and- That dirty cheater. He had the mask of love behind him, and he was obviously forcing these people to like him so they will vote for whatever he is going for.
"What is the WWS?" I said, confused. Slingshot and Sully looked at me like I had three heads.
"You don't know what that is!?" Sully said in disbelief.
"After world war three, every country in the world decided that there should be a World War Supervisor. Each country will vote for a candidate, and all of the candidates will go to a final election of the century! Honestly, have you been watching the news lately?" Slingshot said, like I was an idiot. I tried to change the subject.
"Look at him. He has the mask of love behind him, and he is forcing them to like him." I said, sighing. We needed to get that mask back from him. As I turned back around Orrville Numbrus did his last wave and the curtains around the common stage closed. People began to clear away. I tensed, and walked up to the stage with Slingshot and Sully. We walked closer to the curtains and then looked through. There Orrville was, looking at the mask and pouring himself some wine. All three of us hit the floorboards of the stage and Orrville Numbrus turned to us and smiled.
"I thought you idiots were dead." He said, taking a sip of wine. The wine stained his teeth, and looked like they were regularly red. "Oh, and who is that with you?! Oh, it can't be… It is! Ha-ha! It is little old Sully!" Orrville stumbled towards Sully, and grabbed his chin. "Nice revenge on you for your dad winning against me isn't it?" I suddenly hated this person so much.
"What do you even want with theses masks?" I said angrily.
"It's called power kid. It is just human nature to want it."
"You can already get the power you want if you just become the WWS!"
"Ha-ha, that's not what I am looking for." Orrville put his glass of wine on the mini able next to him and lit a cigarette. "See, I know you found out about the masks. I mean, it is just an inference."
"Tell me, what are you looking for!" Sully yelled as he flipped the mini table and broke the wine bottle and glass.
"Whoa boy, don't get so angry" Orrville said as he took the cigarette out his mouth and blew a perfect ring of smoke. "See, I want trust. What I didn't know is that the mask of love doesn't do as much power as I thought. It will only technically work well to make the love of your life once, and every other time you try it will only make them sort of- just like you." Orrville said as he tossed the mask into the puddle of wine. "They won't really get into effect until you put on all three. So that's why. Any more stupid questions?"
"Umm… Can we have the mask?" Slingshot said slowly.
"Sure, go ahead." Orrville said with a toothy wine stained smile. He tossed his lighter into the wine puddle and it immediately caught fire due to the alcohol. "Fetch boy." I ran forward to get the mask before it lights and was pulled back by an extremely strong guy. I looked up and realized it was one of the miners from the factory." I began to choke and looked back at Orrville, smiling as he threw the cigarette he had into the growing fire. "Have fun!" Orrville said as he got up and left the burning stage.
Use the magic… Concentrate… A voice said in my head.
Okay? I said back through my mind. I concentrated as hard as I could, and soon I saw the coolest thing. Three spiraling electric lines in the shape of DNA were coming out of my hand and going into the evil miner. He let go of me and fell to the floor. I saw that Slingshot and Sully had miners choking them too, and I yelled, "Slingshot! Concentrate!" Slingshot closed his eyes and the same three beams came out his hand too. Soon, all three miners were paralyzed on the ground, and let go of Slingshot and Sully. I went over to the mask in the fire and grabbed it. I expected it to be searing hot, but it was cold actually. It felt like any kind of cold metal. All three of us jumped off the stage and saw the stage burning down to the ground. It was now midday, and the sun was at full point. A ton of people were watching the fire and crying.
We went into the woods and back into the other side of the town. I was starving. We got the food out of Slingshot's backpack and ate all of the food. THAT was a bad decision, not knowing that was all we had. Sully said he had enough money, and we didn't have to worry. I trusted him, and Slingshot did too. We set off downtown and towards the town hall. The bells were ringing, because it was noon.
"What are you doing?" I said, as he began to go up the stairs.
"I am going to tell my dad I am leaving with you guys. Come with me. Even if he does care, I will still go. I just can't leave without telling him." Sully said fast, like it was none of our business. Sling and I shrugged, and then head up the stairs.
Chapter 5
We came into the office to see a fat balding man with a handlebar mustache and glasses lying in a chair eating a cheeseburger.
"What do you want Paul." The fat man said angrily.
"I am leaving this place." Sully said, like he has been rehearsing this for years. Sully's dad chuckled.
"Oh no you aren't. You won't stand a chance three feet from home. You mine as well drown yourself in the bathtub." Sully's dad said. I understood why Sully hated him.
"Oh really? Well I will come back and everyone will recognize me as a hero." Sully said.
"You know what? Go ahead. You were always Mariana's boy. It would be better because I won't have to buy you food. Now scram, or I'll call the cops." We rushed out of that area in a flash, and Sully was staring down at the ground.
"I hope you understand why I hated Numbrus for leaving me with that jerk." Sully said looking up to the sky. "My parents were divorced, and I was living with my mom. She was the nicest woman in the world." Sully had tears in his eyes now "One day we were walking, and a car came right into the crosswalk. She pushed me aside, and took the hit. Numbrus was at the adoption area, and he sent me to my dad instead. I always thought he didn't know they were divorced, but now I know he did it on purpose." Sully was bawling. "That is the crosswalk where she died…" He pointed at the crosswalk right next to the town hall. Slingshot seemed upset too, and he took a flower out of the town hall garden, and put it on the crosswalk. Wind blew, and cars drove over the crosswalk like nothing happened.
"I… I feel sorry for you." I said to Sully.
"Its- Its okay…" Sully responded we walked across the crosswalk into a convenience store. I grabbed a crumpled 5$ bill I found on the street, and grabbed a coke from the freezer. Sully took some money out his backpack and grabbed a bag of Cheez-Itz, and Slingshot picked up a Mountain Dew and went up to the register next to me. I saw the cash register guy, who had scraggily blond hair and braces. I saw his nametag, and it said, HELLO, MY NAME IS TIM on it.
"Will that be all?" Tim said as he dropped the soda and Cheez-Itz into a bag. I have definitely seen this guy before.
"Have you ever been to Londonderry?" I said, as Sully and Slingshot looked at me like an idiot.
"Yes?" Tim said, like I was a weirdo. Slingshot started laughing. He probably found out who it was.
"You- You were that weird kid! Ha-ha-ha-ha! Remember Ryan! He was that guy who was two grades ahead of us, and worked at The Corner Store!" Slingshot said. Tim was embarrassed, and he looked down. I remembered Tim though. One year he just disappeared saying he was looking for "Fairies" everybody thought he was a weirdo.
"Shut up kid, what if I am! I came here to put everything behind me, and I am over it! Now get out!" Sully did not get any of this, because he didn't know us until today.
"Did… You ever find the fairies?" Sully said. Now Slingshot and I were staring at him like he was an idiot. Tim hesitated.
"Just… Get out." He had a cold stare, and I could tell he was hiding something from us.
"Let's… Just go." I said. We came out of the store, and started eating/drinking our snacks. I took the mask out of my bag, and it looked as if it was wood, but felt like steel. It was shaped like a heart, and colored red green and yellow. I put it back in my bag, and wondered what we are supposed to do now.
"What should we do now?" I said, after I finished my coke.
"Should we set up a tent or something in the woods?" Slingshot said. I thought it was a good idea myself. But the problem was: we had no tent.
"Guys?" Sully said, annoyed we weren't listening to him." I have a tree house I built with my mom in the woods. I haven't been in there for a while, but it would be a great place to spend the night." All of us thought that was a great idea, so we head down through a trail behind Sully's house. Then, there it was. A tree house hung high in a tree, with a rope ladder hanging from the door. We climbed up it and sat down by the walls. For the rest of the day we told stories and jokes, and soon fell asleep.


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Friday 3rd June at the opening of the International Criminal Court of Ratko Mladic in Le Hague, Judge Orie outlined the charges against the Serbian General. Included in his opening remarks the Judge reminded Mr Mladic that it was his right to examine or have examined all witnesses against him in his forthcoming trial. His remark prompted me to reflect back to the recent Miscarriage of Justice seminar held in Queen's University Belfast three weeks earlier. The seminar dealt exclusively with the case of republican Michael McKevitt who was convicted in Dublin's non-jury Special Criminal Court in 2003. The clear suggestion emanating from those in attendance was that Mr McKevitt's trial in 2003 and the subsequent civil case stood firmly within the category of 'miscarriage of justice'. Those who followed the case will recall how Mr McKevitt's conviction relied exclusively on a prosecution witness David Rupert who was paid a massive financial inducement to testify at the trial. Although the 2003 trial was not connected to the Omagh bombing the evidence from that trial was used against McKevitt in the Omagh civil case in Belfast. Mr Rupert refused to give evidence to the civil case but the court relied exclusively on his evidence from the Dublin trial, thus denying Mr McKevitt the right to examine or have examined all witness against him in the Omagh civil case.
The case of Michael McKevitt for obvious reasons appears to prick the minds of so many people within legal circles, even all these years later. I was always of the opinion that the trial in 2003 of Michael McKevitt was one of the most blatant injustices in recent years and how the evidence from that trial was used to shore up the Omagh civil case is just mind-boggling. I am not at all surprised almost 10 years later that some young law students are examining the McKevitt case again. I came away from the seminar not just convinced but firmly of the opinion that this was now a double Miscarriage of Justice.
Queen's University seminar
Dr Vicky Conway (QUB) outlined many similar cases including that of Nicky Kelly and the Birmingham Six case of injustices and the remedy open to miscarriage of justice. Human rights group British Irish Rights Watch claimed that "Mr McKevitt had not received a fair trial" in 2003. Solicitor Peter Corrigan (Belfast) claimed that the main prosecution witness in McKevitt's trial was paid upwards of five million dollars in his evidence and wasn't a credible witness by any stretch of the imagination. The seminar also heard that the judges in both the 2003 trial and the 2008 Omagh civil case conceded that Rupert, the main prosecution witness, was someone with a shady past. Mr Corrigan also pointed out that "A proper legal system where verdicts are reached by evidence is needed – not a witch-hunt." Mr Corrigan concluded that he had no doubt McKevitt's sentence would be overturned by the European Court.
Michael McKevitt's wife Bernadette was also in attendance and outlined the details of the case against her husband who she described as a 'political hostage'. The evidence was outlined in graphic detail and can only be described as horrifying. She identified and outlined what she called 'the facts' of the stictch-up against her husband including how the Gardai contradicted themselves on a Rupert file which they had in their possession but said that there wasn't one. It was alleged in Rupert's statement to the Gardai that he had attended an IRA Army Council meeting and Michael was present, yet a Garda surveillance report revealed that they observed Michael on the same date and time at a completely different location. That Garda report was withheld from the defence only to be disclosed on day 22 into the trial and after Rupert had left the jurisdiction, according to Bernadette. The charge of 'directing terrorism' was introduced in the aftermath of the Omagh bombing in 1998 and apart from Michael McKevitt it has not been used against anyone else since.
Many legal aspects to McKevitt's conviction do not make good law and that is the reason why it keeps being revisited by people who view it as one of the most controversial Miscarriages of Justice in recent times. Many from the legal profession will say that from the outset of the 2003 Dublin trial the issue of non-disclosure of material,l which would have assisted the defence, ultimately cast a huge shadow over the conviction. The non-disclosure of material was clearly in violation of the Strasbourg case law on the 'equality of arms' principle on the pre-trial and trial disclosure of evidence as set out in the European Commission's decision in Jespers v Belgium (1981).
Conflicting Garda Evidence
During the 2003 trial, the defence was anxious to obtain all the material outlining the relationship between An Garda Siochana, and David Rupert the main prosecution witness. Unfortunately, the defence was disadvantaged after being informed by the Garda that there was not a single document in existence recording Rupert's dealings with Chief Superintendent Jennings (Rupert's Garda handler.
In 2008 during the cross examination of Chief Superintendent Jennings in the civil case, he told the court that a file on Rupert had been retained by the Irish police from as early as 1996. This evidence was a clear contradiction of earlier evidence given by a senior Garda Martin Callinan (now Commissioner) during a pre-trial hearing in October 2002. Mr Callinan told the court on that occasion that the Gardai retained no file or other documentation on David Rupert. Calinan's evidence revealed a clear contradiction between the two senior Garda officers and one of the most disturbing revelations throughout the case.
Other disturbing information emerged in 2008 during an investigation by Mr McKevitt's defence team in the Omagh civil case. Mr Peter Corrigan (defence solicitor) interviewed 4 senior police officers from the Messena area in Upstate New York. Each of the police officers highlighted a number of conflicts with Rupert's testimony to the trial court in Dublin and each one identified him as being an untrustworthy person who had been involved in criminality all his adult life. They also confirmed that he had been a 'snitch' from 1974 after offering his services in exchange for non-prosecution in a number of fraud cases which Rupert had denied during evidence in 2003. It is alarming to note how the New York Police officers confirmed in their statements that they had not been asked by the FBI or the Gardai to give evidence in the Dublin trial in 2003.
However, what is even more bizarre about the New York Police officers' statements was how such information was not uncovered by McKevitt's legal team in the lead up to the 2003 trial. One can only suggest at this point in time that something was seriously amiss throughout every aspect of the McKevitt trial in 2003 including the contribution from his own defence team.
Jurisdictional issue
The unfairness in relation to disclosure issues was not exclusive to the 2003 trial. Before the trial took place in 2002 during a disclosure application at Dublin's Special Criminal Court, Senior Council for MI5, Simon Dennison QC and the FBI representative James Krupkowski both confirmed that they had not reviewed all material pertaining to David Rupert. Here was another clear contravention of Article 6 of the Human Rights Convention obligation that all potentially relevant material be disclosed to the defendant. Once again the defendant was disadvantaged by the different jurisdictional issue in which, the main prosecution witness operated as an informer. To ensure fairness and equality of arms principles as in any criminal trial, the judge should have directed during the trial that Rupert's evidence would not be admissible until all relevant material on his credibility was disclosed to the defence. Even though he had no inherent jurisdiction to direct the American Authorities and the British Authorities to disclose the material, the judge had the ultimate sanction of stating that he would not rely on the evidence until all such material was made available to the defence.
Other important evidence wasn't served on the defendant until the main prosecution witness David Rupert had completed his evidence and had left the jurisdiction. The late disclosure of the material included a Garda surveillance report showing McKevitt was at his home at the time and date when Rupert said that he was in attendance at a meeting in Greenore on 17 February 2000. It also included an email dated 17 February 2000 which also contradicted Rupert's evidence (The email was disclosed from the outset). The Garda surveillance report makes it clear that Mat Mr Mckevitt didn't attend an Army Council meeting in Greenore. This was marked contrast to the statement that he had provided the prosecution authorities for the purposes of court. (The statement clearly said that McKevitt attended and said certain things. The Garda surveillance report was only disclosed on Day 22 in the trail). At the outset of the trial when the defence highlighted the conflicts in the email and the statement the prosecution said that the statement was correct. This assertion misled the defence and damaged the defence preparations. The email dated 17th February 2000 illustrates the dangers of relying upon untested documents, which may have the appearance of authenticity. The detail in the actual email looked convincing until it was examined in conjunction with the Garda surveillance logs on that day. It is similar to another email to David Rupert which appears to be written on 19th October 1999 but when one reads the content it is referring to an event that is in the future which is to happen on 18th September 2000.
The FBI Material
The defendant attempted to obtain material from the FBI outlining the relationship that they had with their agent David Rupert. The FBI refused to disclose material voluntarily in the case. However, the defendant attempted to obtain the material by invoking an application under the Hague Convention. The FBI responded to the application refusing to deal in any substantive way with the queries raised. The main point of objection centred upon Rupert's rights to privacy. In the circumstances, such a stance is, incredulous, bearing in mind the nature of the allegation faced by Mr McKevitt.
It also outlined that the defendant Mr McKevitt went to exhaustive lengths to attempt to obtain material from the different organisations that would assist his defence and at every stage he was prevented from obtaining this material.
Omagh Civil Case
Despite the fact that David Rupert gave evidence at the trial in Dublin without any logistical difficulty, he didn't give evidence at the civil trial in Belfast. The offer of giving evidence by video link from the US was also turned down by Mr Rupert the main prosecution witness, thus avoiding subjecting himself to cross-examination. Mr McKevitt's Article 6 Rights were again undermined by the Judge's Ruling that the seriousness of the case didn't merit the proceedings being made equivalent to criminal proceedings. This Ruling was very important because in civil proceedings the defendant doesn't have the right to effectively cross examine the main witness against them, whereas in criminal proceedings he or she would.
It is central tenet of any adversarial system that a defendant has the right to challenge any fact alleged against him. The right to mount such a challenge must be exercised in a way that is meaningful. At the heart of the common law system is the right to confront ones accusers and challenge them by way of cross examination as outlined by Judge Orie at the International Criminal Court in Le Hague in June 2011. This right had been set at nought in the Omagh civil case and resulted in the second miscarriage of justice against Michael McKevitt.
The only conclusion that could be drawn from Mr Rupert's non-cooperation in the civil case was out of concern that any cross-examination in the case would not have stood the test and would have led to the overturning of Mr McKevitt's 2003 conviction and the ultimate collapse of the Omagh civil case against him.


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Sebaceous Carcinoma
Sebaceous carcinoma is a rare malignancy that is seen in periocular region (75% of cases, given the abundance of sebaceous glands in and around the eye) and extraocular regions (comprising the remaining 25% of cases). The periocular variant was believed to be more aggressive than the extraocular variant but recent studies have shown no difference in overall survival between the two groups. PERIOCULAR VARIANT: Sebaceous carcinoma is the most common malignancy of the eye after basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. The median age at diagnosis is in sixties and it is more common in Asians. The usual location is in association with Meibomian glands of the upper eyelid. It presents as a slowly growing non-ulcerated nodule that is clinically often mistaken for basal cell carcinoma, chalazion, or chronic blepharoconjunctivitis. EXTRAOCULAR VARIANT: The extraocular variant makes up about 25% of all cases of sebaceous carcinoma. The most common location is head and neck. Less frequently it involves the trunk, thigh and genitalia. The median age at diagnosis is 7th decade. It presents as a slow-growing firm nodule which may be ulcerated. The tumor shows irregular lobular, trabecular, or diffuse sheet-like growth patterns in the dermis. The overlying epidermis is usually involved (as seen here) and there may be infiltration into subcutaneous tissues and skeletal muscle. The periocular variant is frequently associated with intraepidermal (pagetoid) spread and bowenoid carcinoma-in-situ.


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Very fast setup. Great 5 GHz throughput. Decent 2.4-GHz throughput. Simple setup great for newbies.
Some performance degradation with use. Throughput drops off quickly with distance.
Bottom Line
This router's best assets are its ease of setup and throughput at the 5 GHz band. It's best for those wanting to cover smaller spaces, however, as its long-distance performance isn't stellar.
The Cisco Linksys E2000 Advanced Wireless-N Router ($119, list) is a solid router for first-time home network admins who just want to get up and running fast. If you plan to use it in the 5 GHz band, it's super fast, too, as long as you're not planning to use it at great distancesthroughput drops off rather quickly. If you're a power user, it's not the router for you, however, as it lacks some higher-end management features.
Similar Products
Instant Install
Setting up the E2000 is remarkably simple. The router (which features four Gigabit Ethernet ports and 3 internal antennas with a 2x3 transmit/receive rate) comes with an installation disk and simple instructions. I just popped in the installation disk and followed the installation wizard. Setup illustrations demonstrate how to physically connect the router, which makes for a near fail-proof install (except in a few cases, listed below). In fact, my total set-up time (from plugging in the router to accessing the Internet) was just 2 minutes and 14 secondsnot bad! Like the Cisco Valet Plus ($149.99 direct, ), the E2000 does the configuration heavy-lifting by automatically establishing the SSIDs (for both the primary and guest connection), passwords, channel, and security.
By default, the router sets itself to operate on the 2.4 GHz band. I used Meraki's WiFi Stumbler (Free, ) and Nuts About Nets' NetSurveyor ($34.95 direct, ) wireless networking monitoring tools to confirm the E2000 selected wireless channel 11. Both utilities confirmed that the E2000 did not choose the least utilized channel in the testing area, which is too bad, but this may be by design, due to the 802.11x standard and issues like channel overlap. Both did utilities report very good or strong signal strength.
I had a second computer connected to the E2000 within minutes. Doing so required inserting a USB drive into the first laptop that was connected to the E2000 and using the Cisco Connect software to create the setup key in a simple series of steps. When I inserted the USB drive into the second laptop, the software launched a "Create setup key link." Then I clicked the "Connect to your Linksys Router" popup that appeared. And that's it.
Set Up Caveats
Although the Cisco Connect software makes setup simple, there are still a couple of situations where problems can arise. For instance, by default, the router is set to recognize the Internet Connection Type as "Automatic Configuration-DHCP." That's fine if the connection type is a residential cable modem service, but not for DSL users. DSL modems typically use PPOE, so if that setting isn't changed in the router, you will be unable to access the internet.
You'll also need to know which 802.11 wireless standards the adapters on your network support. The Cisco Connect software will be unable to connect a laptop to the E2000 if the notebook's Wi-Fi adapter only supports B/G, but the router is set to N. The E2000 software doesn't offer much help if the connection fails, other than suggesting to move closer to the router or reboot it.
Performance Results
When I tested in the 2.4 GHz band, I set the security the highest level (WPA/WPA2 Mixed Mode), the channel width to "Auto," and the Network Mode set to "Mixed." I tested 5 GHz band at the highest possible security setting (WPA2 Personal), with Network mode set to "N-only," and the Channel width on "Auto."
The dual band E2000's 2.4 GHz throughput results were on a par with the Valet Plus, which is a single-band router. Maximum throughput for the E2000 reached a passable 37 Mbps. The E2000 failed to retain decent throughput as I moved farther from it; by the time I got to 30 feet away, throughput had dropped to 21 Mbps. That's fair, but I'd prefer that the router had a more robust signal, especially in the 2.4 GHz band, which is typically more forgiving across longer ranges than 5 GHz.
The 5 GHz results were much more impressive, with a top throughput rate of 84 Mbps at 10 feet away. Still, there was a precipitous drop at greater distances at 5 GHz, too, as you can see in this chart:
|Band (in Ghz)
|Distance From Router (in feet)
|Maximum Throughput (in Mbps)
5 Ghz is known to cover less area then 2.4 GHz, but this is quite a drop in a relatively short distance. Also, although the E2000's 5 GHz throughput was great, its performance (on both bands) wasn't reliable. I noticed that the connection would drop to just 2 or 3 bars, (down from 4 or 5 bars a few hours before) resulting in slow performance. A reboot of the router seemed to do the trick. Perhaps there's a firmware upgrade in the near future.
The E2000 is sufficient for consumer and light-business usage, as it offers a guest SSID, has an SPI firewall, and supports VPN traffic. If you like to have ultimate control of your wireless network, or if you have a device-laden home LAN with media and print servers or NAS devices, you might want to consider a router with a heftier feature set. The E2000 lacks, for example, weightier features like the ability to change the router to work as a bridge or access point, the ability to granularly manage multiple SSIDs, and the ability to set up VLANs. These shortcomings are forgivable since Cisco is marketing this as a home router and not as a business-class product.
The Cisco Connect software is a lightweight interface to the standard management console. It handles very basic tasks like configuring Guest Access, setting Parental Controls, and connecting additional devices to the router.
Advanced Options
You'll find more advanced setting options in the management interface such as Dynamic DNS, the ability to setup up static routing, NAT, and Dynamic Routing. There's also support for single port forwarding, port-range forwarding, and DMZ and QoS (for apps, games, and voice devices).
The Parental Controls menu displays a list of connected devices on your network and asks you to select one to setup for the extra layer of security (you can only choose one a time). You can block Internet access at a specific time (the software has "School Nights" as a default option for M-F between 9:00 PM and 7:00 AM) or you can block by keyword.
I blocked a specific URL and it worked well, blocking the site instantaneously when I tried to surf to it. A "Blocked Site" page loaded, requesting me to enter the parental controls password. Entering the password makes blocked websites and content available for one hour. There's no sophisticated content management like blocking all porn or violent sites, so it's limited when compared to third-party parental control software .
Cisco Linksys E2000 Advanced Wireless-N Router is a respectable router. It's mostly very easy to set up, and the 5 GHz band delivers greater performance, though it drops off fairly quickly with distance. If you're in a small home or only plan to cover part of a larger home, this probably won't be much of an issue. My larger concern is the reliability of the throughput, which can tail off after a few hours of use. Still, if you don't mind giving the E2000 a kick in pants every now and then with a reboot, it's decent networking device. But given that Cisco's own Valet Plus is such a great router (and our Editors' Choice), if you can swing the extra $30, that's definitely the home router I'd recommend.
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