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So, are y'all enjoying February so far? I sure am, despite the currently dreary, wintry (for here) weather. Although I have work deadlines as usual, I've made a vow to start blogging more frequently again, since I have so much to write about, and especially since it appears that, as per usual, there are evil people who are fiercely determined to shut me up. (As my pal Salty Droid might say, Suck it :: evil people who want to shut me up!) Anyway, although I have more info to share about some of my favorite snargets (snark targets), such as jailed serial scammer Kevin Trudeau... his ex-b.f.f. (the stupidest man in Scamworld)... Joe "Mr. Fire" Vitale... and numerous others, I thought I'd take a little detour with a long-overdue post.
I was inspired to do so because recently a couple of people wrote to me asking a question that I've been asked many times throughout the years that this blog has been in existence (it was born on July 27, 2006; here's my post about its eighth birthday). Since I've never gotten around to doing a FAQ – though I probably should have done one years ago – I thought it might be a good thing to write a post to which I can direct people when I get asked this question again, as I inevitably will. Here's the Big Question I've been fielding for years in various forms, and which I've been asked again recently:
define a 'scam' or a 'scammer?'"
There have been times when the questioner sounded a little bit exasperated, framing the query in a more negative manner: "Is everything a scam to you?" Others didn't even frame it as a question but simply scoffed, "Well, you think everything is a scam and everyone is a scammer." This has often been followed by some variation of the opinion that I'm not credible or worth listening to because I just don't "get it" -- or because I'm a broke and jealous loser (or "looser," as an amazing number of critics of critics put it), who has never accomplished anything in life.
This type of conversation is played out over and over and over again, probably thousands of times a day, all over the Interwebz. It's not just a Cosmic Connie/Whirled Musings thing. Critics of selfish-help/McSpirituality/New-Wage/alt-health gurus are often criticized for being lacking in some manner. Those who slam the industry's critics with ad hominem attacks, egregiously defamatory lies, lawsuit threats, or death threats are all too common.
But there are some people who don't resort to those tired old tactics, and are simply expressing a seemingly genuine concern that said critics can't seem to find anything good to say about anyone. And I understand that perspective: sometimes it probably seems that we can't find anything good to say about anyone. (The short rejoinder to this point is that a critical blog or other forum doesn't exist to promote or blow smoke.)
A related question to, "How do you define a scam/scammer?" is this: "Where do you draw the line -- is the person automatically a scammer if he or she makes any money at all from his or her shtick, or do you draw the line at specific monetary amounts?"
Good questions, all, and people who ask these questions in sincerity deserve sincere answers. I'll address the money issue at the end of this post, but for now let's take a closer look at the first question: How do you define a scam or scammer?
Definition, schmefinition.
To begin with, dictionary definitions of "scam" are not all that useful, except as a possible starting point for discussion. Not that this has prevented some folks from waving dictionary definitions in my face and arguing that their guru of choice isn't a scammer, and I am unfairly categorizing him or her as such, and that by golly, I should be sued for "slander," arrested and charged, or possibly killed. I've heard it all.
I am thinking, though, that in the real world that exists outside of the dictionary, each person probably has his or her own definition of "scam" and "scammer." (There are specific legal definitions of fraud, no doubt, but this isn't a legal discussion.) Some folks are more hardcore in their parameters than I am, believing that a scammer is simply someone who takes your money and runs without delivering anything. By that definition, if Guru A uses hype to promote a "breakthrough" book that costs $20.00 or $200.00, and the book turns out to be just recycled crap that you could find for free or cheap in scads of other places, Guru A is not a scammer. After all, you paid him $20.00 or $200.00 and you got a book. A crappy book, maybe, but a book. The point is that Guru A didn't just take your money and run without delivering some tangible something. Of course if he doesn't have some sort of money-back guarantee, that takes it to a new level, scam-wise.
Some people have very stereotyped ideas of what constitutes a scammer or a scam. For instance, they may think of scammers mainly in terms of hucksters who get on the phone at dinnertime and trick vulnerable elderly people out of their life savings. Or perhaps they envision a scammer as someone such as Bernie Madoff, who clearly cheated many people out of millions and millions of dollars with his Ponzi schemes. By these definitions, many of the people/schemes I've written about on this blog over the years are not scammers/scams.
For my purposes on this blog, however, scamming comes in many flavors. Granted, some of the flavors are subtler than others, and I also recognize that in many cases, one person's scam may be another person's satisfactory customer experience. Keep in mind, too, that despite my research and care to include sources and links whenever possible, my blog is primarily an expression of my informed opinions, which may very well differ from yours.
And that's something you're just going to have to deal with. You are, however, welcome to argue with me on this blog, or privately. I'm happy to publish dissenting opinions.
From my perspective, it's not the method of scamming that defines a scammer, it's not the money or the amount of money, and it's not even necessarily a conscious intention to scam. I think it's more complicated than that. In the following sections I will attempt to define scams and scammers as I see them. Maybe it will help you understand this blog better, if you don't understand it already. And maybe you will also find the list helpful for your own purposes when trying to determine if someone is selling you a bill of goods.
To be sure, this is not a comprehensive list and isn't intended to be. And I'm sure there are plenty of other similar red-flag checklists available online. But this one is based mainly upon my own years of observation. It is also heavily grounded in content that I wrote a few years ago for a nascent group project in which I was involved (and which may still come to fruition at some point).
Identifying Frauducts and Flopportunities
Once again I have to thank Salty Droid for coining those terms. The following are traits and techniques that characterize questionable products and opportunities – or "scams," if you will. By extension, those who use these techniques could be "scammers" by my definition.
The medium is the message.
Many critical blogs such as Salty Droid's, and to a lesser extent my blog, have focused on individuals who use the Internet (web sites, social media, email blasts, and other online forums, including mobile apps) as their primary promotional means. But it is important to understand that frauducts and flopportunities are promoted across many media channels today as a means of establishing credibility – or what passes for credibility in Scamworld. Apart from an online presence, common media being utilized include (but are not limited to):
- TV (infomercials; pay-for-play appearances on talk shows, "reality" shows, or fluff "news" segments)
- Radio (ads; pay-for-play appearances on radio talk shows)
- Print media (newspapers (particularly to advertise their "free" seminars); ads or advertorials in in-flight magazines (if any of those still exist – wait, I guess they do); business magazines, and other periodicals)
- Direct mail (junk mail) – old-school, but still in wide use
What to watch out for
No matter where or how the promotions appear, a person/company might be a scam/scammer if they meet some of the following criteria…
- Product or opportunity sounds "too good to be true": the copy promises or strongly implies extraordinary results with little effort and/or no prior experience. (Generally there are disclaimers, either on a separate page or in very fine print at the bottom of the sales page, but they are played down in comparison to the hype.)
- The promotional content either blatantly or subtly appeals to various emotions, desires, or traits. Some of these are positive emotions, some are negative, and some are a combination of the two. These emotions/desires/traits may include:
- Fear (of poverty, loss, missed opportunities, uncertainty, future instability (apocalyptic/survivalist marketers specialize in the "scary future" scenarios))
- Guilt (Are you really providing for your family – or yourself – the way you should? Don't they and you deserve better?)
- Greed (More is always better, especially if you're talking about more money!)
- Narcissism/sense of entitlement (You are more special than those around you, and you deserve the best of everything. It is your birthright; you were born to be a Champion!) [Narcissism and a sense of entitlement are two separate things, but they often tend to be pandered to together, particularly in New-Age/motivational marketing.]
- Elitism/snobbery/competitiveness: (You owe it to yourself to join this group of elites or Champions who know the secrets to wealth/health/happiness. It will give you a real edge over your friends, neighbors, colleagues, and/or it will make them envy you. Even gurus who preach that "the only person you are in competition with is yourself" often resort to playing the elitism card, particularly when faced with criticism from outside forces. The guru may peg the critics as jealous losers who don't know the secrets to being a Champion or an elite, or who are perpetual outsiders looking in and consumed with envy.)
- Desire for "forbidden" or "secret" knowledge (All of the information "they" don't want you to know about. Often goes hand-in-hand with elitism. Kevin Trudeau is of course the all-time master of things "they" don't want you to know, and so was Rhonda Byrne with The Secret.)
- Envy (Don't you want to be just like the guru pushing the product (or the enthusiastic, successful-looking people providing testimonials), so you too can enjoy the opulent lifestyle, the McMansions, the expensive sports cars and other toys, the privilege of lolling on the beaches of the world?)
- Loneliness/desire for sexual or emotional fulfillment (This is the bread and butter of relationship "experts," PUA (pick-up artist) gurus, and the like.)
- Sense of inferiority or feelings of failure
- Laziness (Not all products exploiting human laziness are bad, of course; it's often been said that laziness, rather than necessity, is the mother of invention. However, if the seller promises that the product or opportunity will allow the purchaser to become healthy, wealthy, or otherwise miraculously transformed with virtually no effort, that should be a huge red flag.)
- Spiritual hunger, desire for transcendence or for a sense of magic and wonder
- A desire to "make a difference," help others, change the world for the better, or be a part of something larger and grander than one's self
- Borderline or vague emotions or traits such as discontent, boredom, lack of direction. (Clever marketers seek to transform these into stronger emotions: fear, guilt, envy, etc. Even if you're fairly satisfied with your life, they attempt to make you feel guilty for "settling" and/or being an underachiever.)
You can see that not all of the emotions, traits, and desires listed above are negative ones; some are actually quite commendable, even noble. The shrewdest and most skillful scammers – e.g., Kevin Trudeau through his massive scheme GIN (the Global Information Network) – have managed to appeal to both the noblest and the basest desires in the human heart. Many people joined GIN to help "change the world" and be part of something big and important. Contrary to what I used to believe before I got to know some wonderful ex-GIN members, not all who joined GIN did so out of greed (spurred by promises of great and effortless wealth through GIN's now-defunct MLM program), or out of a desire to be part of an "elite" society that looked down on all of the sleeping sheeple.
Of course, all advertisers and marketers use emotional appeal; however, the types of gurus targeted on this blog are more in-your-face about it – actually promising, or strongly implying, that purchasing their product or opportunity will directly result in the achievement of the purchaser's desires or goals. Apart from the fact that beer and cars are tangible products (unlike "success" or "happiness" or "wealth"), an ad for a lite beer or a car is generally more subtle than the promotional efforts of Scamworld gurus. Most emotionally appealing ads for "real" goods merely invite the viewer or reader to associate the product with a pleasant scenario or outcome; they generally do not go so far as to specifically promise that buying the product will result in the realization of one's deepest hopes and dreams.
Moreover, many of the Scamworld gurus on whom this blog focuses work very hard to influence their clients' emotional/psychological/physical state, sometimes with deadly results. The same generally cannot be said of someone trying sell you a new mini-van.
As it happens, the above is a summary of an argument that I've had numerous times with self-help industry apologists who insist that self-help, motivational, or pop-spirituality marketers are no different from someone selling beer or cars or cosmetics. Well. Yes, they are different. I elaborated a bit about this in a May 2010 post based upon conversations I'd had with Trudeau's former marketing guy, Peter Wink, who more recently allied himself with the stupidest man in Scamworld.
For that matter, cults use many of the emotional-appeal strategies listed above… but that's a whole other subject.
Let's get back to the list of red flags to watch out for…
- The promotional copy cites impressive-sounding "authorities" and "experts," and/or "research" in some field of expertise, with vague or nonexistent references, thus making it difficult or nearly impossible for the prospective customer to verify the claims. The gurus themselves, or some of those whose testimonials or endorsements they list, may also claim to have professional-sounding degrees or credentials that are either commercial products of "diploma mills," or are impossible to verify. New-age marketers in particular like to utilize pseudoscientific research and claims to make the product or opportunity sound more impressive -- while at the same time they're often willing to disavow science or "reductionist"/Western thinking when it suits their marketing needs or when they're called on some of their nonsense. ("Science doesn't have all the answers!" "Doctors make mistakes!").
- The advertiser brags about his or her own success in the field, implying that he or she is revealing the secrets to success out of a sense of altruism or a desire to "give back," or some other noble reason. While there is nothing wrong with offering products or events that teach real skills, and teaching itself is an honorable profession, one has to wonder why, particularly in highly competitive industries such as real estate or marketing, a guru who was truly successful would be spending the bulk of his or her time and energy grooming potential competitors.
- The product or opportunity is promoted via blanket emails from several different sources, giving the impression that it has been vetted and endorsed by people who have actually had success with it – when in fact the endorsements are affiliates and the product or opportunity is of negligible value. The tighter FTC regulations that took effect in late 2009 really didn't seem to have much effect on this practice.
- The advertiser offers an almost too-good-to-be-true money-back guarantee, usually within a specific time frame, but the refund policy is sometimes framed as something that the buyer would have to be crazy – or at least a hopeless malcontent – to even consider.
- There is an abundance of supportive hype. Often, a product is released and immediately receives many glowing testimonials, leading one to believe the launch and product were successful. However, the testimonials tend to be very slanted (positively), but a little research reveals that the party offering the testimonial is connected in some way to, and stands to benefit from, the offer -- either through reciprocal support/promotions, or affiliated in cross-channel sales of some variety. Look to networks and syndicates that support each others' efforts through published testimonials, and look for heavily biased reviews (often from reviewers who only publish one review, ever) as a warning flag.
So let's say you fall for the relentless or clever promos and you end up forking over. Here are a few signs, post-purchase, that you've been had…
- Failure to even come close to living up to the hype. The product or opportunity is considerably more complex and/or much less of a sure thing than advertised. Far from being something that can be mastered in three or five or seven simple steps by anyone, no matter his or her level of experience…far from allowing the purchaser to get rich while he or she sleeps… the product comes with lots of caveats, and few real money ops. (This is true of many of the Internet Marketing scams that Salty Droid has written about.) Alternatively, the product or opportunity is basic and minimalist, lacking in substance, offering little in the way of new or useful advice.
- Constant upselling/attempts to suck the buyer further into the marketing funnel: Rather than offer support (or a refund) for what has already been purchased, the seller continually pressures the purchaser to buy more products, tools, or training, and/or to attend expensive workshops and other events in order to achieve the results promised in the initial product/opportunity.
- Forced continuity. Despite FTC regulations, many sellers are still sneaking these deals into seemingly simple one-time purchases, and a customer thinking that he or she is purchasing one item may actually be authorizing the seller to dip into his or her bank account or credit card every month for "membership fees" or other "benefits." Some customers find it almost impossible to extricate themselves from these deals, and end up having to cancel their credit cards. Kevin Trudeau, anyone?
- Incompetent or nonexistent customer support/refund problems. These can vary. Sometimes the above-mentioned upselling is what passes for customer support. The product doesn't work? Okay, no problem: here's a more expensive one! Should the buyer decide he or she wants a refund, some sellers make it as difficult as possible by offering only a narrow window. They may refuse to issue a refund before, say, 30 days are up, even if the customer has decided he or she wants a refund after only a few days. Then after the 30 days are up and the customer asks for a refund, he or she may be told that it is too late. Other sellers are slow to issue refunds or refuse to do it, saying the customer is not eligible, or blaming the customer for not using the product correctly, not working hard enough, not wanting to be successful, etc. Alternatively, the seller offers a two-week or 30-day money-back guarantee, but the product or opportunity is so complex that it takes more time than that to determine its effectiveness (or lack thereof).
- Untoward reactions to, or ignoring of,
complaints or criticism. Some of this is related to
incompetent or nonexistent customer support, but it also
may apply to the bad gurus' reactions to criticism from
outside sources. Rather than attempt to clean up their
business practices, the gurus instead simply ignore what
the critics are saying, and/or they attempt to silence,
discredit, or threaten the critics.
(For the most part my own snargets have chosen to ignore my criticism, but as you may also know if you've been reading this blog (or the Salty Droid blog, or Bernie's GINtruth blog, or Omri's Glancingweb blog) for any length of time, a few subjects have chosen the "attempt to silence" etc. strategy.)
Before I wrap this up, I want to address the big issue that seems to come up the most frequently when people either sincerely question my motives for blogging, or accuse me outright of "hating" money. First off, while I can't speak for any other blogger, I can say that I don't hate money, and have even made a couple of lame attempts to "monetize" this hobby blog over the past few years. I can say that as far as I've ever been able to see, Salty Droid is not making money from his blog; he has never run ads on it and he doesn't even have a donation button. He has been very careful to keep his blog "pure" in that sense.
But the first thing I did (in utter naivete) to monetize was to sign up for the free, default, you-don't-have-to-do-anything version of Google AdSense. But it was more like AdSenseless for me. Not only did some really objectionable ads pop up – some of them for the very things that I snark about – but from the time I signed up in May 2009, through my final payment in November 2014 (that's four-and-a-half years, folks), I made less than $210.00. That's right: there are no zeroes missing there. I made less than two hundred and ten bucks in four-and-a-half years.
Granted, I never made even the weakest attempt to do anything to increase the effectiveness of the program. Even so, that is an embarrassingly paltry amount of revenue, or it would be embarrassing to me if I had been driven by any sort of profit motive. But I'm not. In any case, I finally suspended the AdSense program earlier this year.
Then there was my decision to start asking for donations, which I didn't initiate until March 2010, when I had been blogging for nearly four years. It embarrasses me to ask for money, so I tried to make light of launching my donation button by writing a silly poem, based upon Lewis Carroll's classic nonsense poem, The Hunting of the Snark. The donations have trickled in now and then, but as is probably the case with the overwhelming majority of bloggers, if I depended upon donations to keep me going I'd be living on the streets. (However, once again I will say that donations are always appreciated, and needed now more than ever. I'll tell you more when I can.)
My point – and my answer to that corollary question I mentioned towards the beginning of this post – is that I do not automatically deem someone/something a scammer/scam just because the potential exchange of money is involved. I believe that people should be paid for their creative content, even if I find that content snarkworthy or I simply don't agree with it. I'm actually a big believer in capitalism (tempered by fairness); I'm just not a very effective capitalist myself, when it comes to this blog. At some point I will probably get some Amazon thing going and have book ads here. That's much more my style.
But it's stuff and nonsense to declare that all who criticize Scamworld gurus (or, for that matter, all those who criticize plutocracy, inequality and social injustice) hate money and the people who make it. That's simply a straw man argument. I wrote about that topic on this May 2011 blog post: http://cosmicconnie.blogspot.com/2011/05/burning-question-what-happens-when-fire.html.
As you've now seen, I do not have an easy, one-sentence answer to the question, "How do you define a scam/scammer?" (And truly, did you ever know me to have an easy, one-sentence answer to anything?) But I hope this helped a little.
Further reading:
Another huge red flag for a scammer/scam is a disparity between the marketer's public and private behavior. Here's a November 2009 post about why this matters so much:
Here's a March 2010 post about my thoughts on whether or not there should be more regulation of the selfish-help industry. This was written before infamous "sweat lodge" killer James Ray's trial and imprisonment and release. I still basically feel the same as I did back then about the issues under discussion:
Tin Promises: A two-part look at the dark side of MLMs, posted on this blog but written by a guest blogger:
Part 1
Part 2
I've Gotta Find Me a Scam: A lighthearted tribute to the types of scams and scammers that are the focus of this blog:


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Many people confuse church doctrine for Bible principle this is not necessarily so. Church doctrine is just like the rules in a neighborhood that has a Homeowners Association (HOA).it varies from place to place. The reason I prefer a non-denominational church and living in a non-HOA community are one and the same: God has enough principles for me to live as He wants me to and the government has enough laws for me to live so as not to offend my neighbors. Many of the people I am friends with prefer their denomination and though not as many I have a few friends who prefer to live in a HOA community.
How much of an individual can you be? If you live in a community that has a Home Owners Association there may be guidelines for lawn maintenance, house painting, parking and such. Whereas, if you leave in an non-HOA community you cut your grass when you feel like, paint your home the color of your choice, and park according to the laws of the county. Homeowners Associations discourage individuality and promote conformity.
It is easier to determine which are HOA rules and which are federal, state, and municipal laws than it is to determine which are church doctrines and which are Bible principles if you have not studied your Bible. For example: Which day of the week should you attend services? Adventist and Jewish individuals honor the Sabbath on Saturday. The Bible declares:
"So don't let anyone stand in judgment over you and dictate what you should eat or drink, what festivals you should celebrate, or how you should observe a new moon or Sabbath days- all these are only a shadow of what shall come. The reality, the core, the import, is found in the Anointed One." Colossians 2:16-17 THE VOICE
Like moving into a community with a HOA people join a church without fully appreciating the ramifications of the rules. I had a friend that painted her house the color she thought was required except it was slightly different, barely noticeable to the naked eye. This friend was cited because she had not purchased her paint from the designated store who had a contract to sell a particular color of paint to those homeowners. Another friend joined a church and was shocked to discover another member was told she could no longer be considered part of the church because even though she gave it was not ten percent of her income. The woman with who lived in the HOA did not have to repaint her home because she had an advocate point out their were homes that were not painted and other homes who had not maintained their property according to the guidelines. The other friend left the church.
"Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as In my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." Philippians 2:12-13
Church doctrine are guidelines the particular group of believers will follow just like the Homeowners Association has guidelines for the homeowners to follow. Most people will read the rules of the HOA before purchasing a home they would never move into a community that has rules that go against local, county, state or federal laws. Very few people will read the church doctrine, their statement of faith, and compare it to what is written in Scripture.
Philippians 2:12-13 tells us that salvation is an individual responsibility. Read the Book!

subset: commoncrawl


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This year, Georgia lawmakers weren't able to advance a measure that would have prevented the state's 650,000 public employees from using their insurance plans to cover abortion services. It ended up failing to win enough votes to pass on the final day of the legislative session. But that isn't stopping the state's anti-choice officials from trying to force it through anyway.
Georgia's Department of Community Health voted 5–3 on Thursday to approve a plan that will eliminate abortion coverage in public employees' health plans — virtually the same measure the legislature rejected. The Augusta Chronicle reports that the abortion restrictions "surfaced as a surprise benefit change this week."
After the insurance coverage ban failed, Gov. Nathan Deal (R) vowed to use his executive power to enact it anyway. Now, he seems to be getting his way. Deal praised the board's vote, saying it will help ensure "that state taxpayers aren't paying for a procedure that many find morally objectionable."
State health boards — which are supposedly nonpartisan — are becoming increasingly politicized around the issue of reproductive rights, often enacting new abortion restrictions that elected officials can't pass on their own. In Virginia, the health board passed controversial regulations on abortion clinics that are already forcing them to shut down. Ohio, which passed some of the most stringent anti-abortion measures in the country this past year, has been quietly stacking its medical board with prominent members of the state's Right to Life chapter. In Iowa, the anti-choice governor spent the past two years replacing all ten members of the state's medical board with abortion opponents — and now, they're mulling over new rules that would threaten reproductive health access for rural women in the state.
Limiting insurance coverage for abortion is popular anti-choice tactic to segregate abortion services from the rest of women's reproductive health care. It ultimately creates barriers to abortion access by making the procedure more expensive for the women who need it.


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Congratulations are due to Adrian Holovaty for scoring a US$1.1 million Knight Foundation grant to develop a new business "that focuses on making local news and information useful".
There were a stack of other worthy winners, but ever since Holovaty came to prominence with chicagocrime.org he has been watched closely by anyone looking for clues as to where the combination of software and data might take journalism.
And now that he has quit Washingtonpost.com you can bet his new venture EveryBlock will be the focus of a lot of interest.


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First things first. I think you're probably wondering why on earth I'm clutching a book. I've never before been seen to advertise literature of any sort. You would be correct in questioning this! The good news is that I can read and I don't actually spend all day at home catching up on reality TV. Just in case you were thinking that's the kind of gal I am. In fact, there is nothing I love more than sinking my teeth into a good book. So, after discovering my latest speed read, I thought I might share said passion with you, because, well, I don't believe people talk enough about books these days. I find it's the only hobby that slows me down and makes me truly practice the art of focusing - not an easy task at all these days. This isn't an ad. I'm just sharing because I love it.
So I'm pairing my mellow yellow dress with Fake Plastic Love by Kimberley Tait. And if you are at all into well written books and also have a passion for blogging, bloggers or a good blogging tale, this combo is right up your alley as the book is about, amongst other things, a fashion blogger. I read the synopsis and nearly dropped the book in the store. It's exactly the sort of reminder we need of what's happening in the digital world and how it's having a serious impact on the "real world." So yeah, I had to share because the author is a real talent and she's a London local! So go forth and read. I promise you'll enjoy.
What I'm Wearing:


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Many questions about what candidate Donald Trump had in mind for the federal workforce were answered soon after he was sworn in as President.
Among the first formal actions of his presidency was to order a general hiring freeze, as promised. What had not been explicitly promised, but was signaled, was that the freeze would be just a first step of a wider plan to downsize the government, something not done since the Clinton administration.
Other signs followed: federal operations would be examined for "efficiency" — a byword for cuts — and that federal employee pay and benefits should be "reformed" to bring them in line with private sector trends of recent years. (From an employee's perspective, those trends have pointed downward.)
Add to that several "my way or the highway" messages to the workforce: curbs on agency communication with the press that had some employees scrambling to understand the laws regarding gag rules and what they might do in response. A warning that employees not willing to get on board with the administration are welcome to leave, etc.
Holman Rule Revived
Meanwhile, the House revived a long-dormant internal rule called the Holman rule that allows a member of Congress to target the pay and jobs of individual employees through an amendment to a spending bill.
While it's questionable how often that would be attempted, much less enacted, revival of that rule sent an undeniable signal to the federal workforce—which was exactly the intent.
At the same time, the Republican majorities in the House and Senate see in the Trump administration an opportunity to get legislation enacted that the Obama administration had thwarted.
For example, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee announced plans for a broad review of the civil service system. That is to include relatively uncontroversial topics such as ways to speed up the hiring process as well as thornier issues such as revamping how federal jobs are classified (read: paid) and disciplinary and appeal rights.
Also on the table for the panel are labor-management rights and the two pillars of federal employee benefits: health insurance and retirement.
That is not to say that such changes will be achieved easily, or even at all. Federal employee unions for the most part oppose all such changes, and their allies in Congress will play a key role. That is especially true of Senate Democrats, who are numerous enough to block most legislation there under rules that require 60 votes, not a simple majority, for passage.
A group of more than a dozen of them—large enough to deny that 60-vote margin, if they stick together—has vowed to block any legislation that they consider would erode fair compensation and benefits, union representation rights, or employee due process rights.
However, blocking legislation is far different from gaining a sufficient majority to overturn White House actions, and with a blizzard of memos and orders still coming, the Administration has made it clear it's willingness to take action from the Oval Office.
Hiring Freeze Details Emerge
One of the Trump administration's first executive actions was to order a general federal hiring freeze, effective as of January 22, two days after it took office. A memo barred filling any vacancies in the executive branch that existed as of noon that day, as well as creation of new positions except in limited circumstances except for positions necessary for public safety or national security reasons or certain other exceptions.
It took three sets of follow-up guidance to pin down the implications for current federal employees and the scope of the exceptions.
Employees already on board are still permitted: internal career ladder promotions, but not competitive merit promotions; conversions to career status in programs such as the Veterans Recruitment Act and Pathways Program; placement with job restoration rights (such returning from injury compensation status or returning from active military duty); details to other positions, under certain circumstances.
Defining exactly which positions met the exclusions for national security and public safety was up to individual agencies, and they took different approaches to the task.
The Defense Department and the Homeland Security Department, for example, allowed lower level components to pick occupations based on general descriptions of the duties. DoD allowed exceptions for those directly supporting active military operations; those required for cybersecurity, intelligence or space operations; positions involving direct medical care, communicable disease prevention and similar activities; and positions involved in enforcing treaties, providing child care to children of military personnel, and prevention of sexual assault, domestic violence or suicide, among others.
DHS was not even that specific, adding that even going into the review stage it expected that most of it occupations would be exempt.
The Veterans Affairs Department meanwhile took a top-down approach, issuing a headquarters-level memo interpreting the "public safety" exception to cover some 100 occupations, including not just front-line health care positions that make up most of its workforce, but also occupations including technician, security guard, food service, pest control, mechanic and cemetery laborer.
Those steps, by the government's three largest departments that together employ about two-thirds of all federal workers, fell in line with an earlier prediction by the Congressional Budget Office that a freeze with such exceptions would apply only to about two-fifths of federal employees.
For the longer run, the memo ordered OPM and OMB to produce by late April "a long-term plan to reduce the size of the federal government's workforce through attrition." The memo didn't say what such a plan should include, but prior Republican proposals have called for filling one of every three vacancies in positions not excepted, until the workforce was reduced by 10 percent. Significantly, one of those plans was proposed by Trump's choice as OMB director, Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C.
Whether a reduction could be achieved by normal turnover, as the Trump memo anticipates, is to be seen. Reductions in force may be needed, as well—along with, on the more positive side for workers, buyout and early retirement offers.
Aside from that plan, administration officials signaled that continued pressure on the workforce was ahead. Said a spokesman, "When it comes to the spending side, again, you're looking at a whole-of-government approach at how we look at every department, every agency, every job . . . are these positions necessary? Are they duplicative? Are we using taxpayer money in the best possible way? . . . He's looking at everything and figuring out if we can make it more effective and efficient."
Hiring Freeze Exceptions, from A to R
OPM-OMB guidance on the federal hiring freeze lists the exemptions in this way:
a. Military personnel in the armed forces and all Federal uniformed personnel, including the U.S. Coast Guard, the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service, and the Commissioned Officer Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
b. Filling of positions under programs where limiting the hiring of personnel would conflict with applicable law.
c. Nomination and appointment of officials to positions requiring Presidential appointment, with or without Senate confirmation.
d. Appointment of officials to non-career positions in the Senior Executive Service (SES) or to Schedule C appointments in the Excepted Service, or the appointment of any other officials who serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority (i.e., "appointed" positions of a political/non-career nature).
e. Appointment of seasonal employees and short-term temporary employees necessary to meet traditionally recurring seasonal workloads, provided that the agency informs its OMB Resource Management Office in writing in advance of its hiring plans.
f. Hiring by the U.S. Postal Service.
g. Federal civilian personnel hires made by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
h. Appointments made under the Pathways Internship and Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) Programs (this does not include the Recent Graduates Program). Agencies should ensure that such hires understand the provisional nature of these appointments and that conversion is not guaranteed.
i. Conversions in the ordinary course to the competitive service of current agency employees serving in positions with conversion authority, such as Veteran's Recruitment Act (VRA) and Pathways Programs.
j. Appointments made under 5 C.F.R. § 213.3102(r) (time limited positions in support of fellowship or professional/industry exchange programs) provided that the total number of individuals employed under this authority does not exceed the number of employees onboard (hired under this authority) on January 22, 2017.
k. Placement of persons with restoration rights accorded by law, such as restoration after absence with injury compensation and restoration after military duty.
l. Job offers made prior to January 22, 2017, for which the individual has a confirmed start date on or before February 22, 2017. Those individuals should report to work according to their respective designated start dates.
m. Job offers made prior to January 22, 2017, but for which the individual has a confirmed start date that is later than February 22, 2017 (or does not have a confirmed start date), should be decided on a case-by-case basis and must go through an agency-head review. The agency head should review each position to determine whether the job offer should be revoked, or whether the hiring process should continue. Agency heads should consider essential mission priorities, current agency resources, and funding levels when making determinations about whether or not to revoke job offers.
n. Internal career ladder promotions.
o. Reallocations (i.e., noncompetitive reassignments and details) of current Federal civilian employees within an agency to meet the highest priority needs (including preservation of national security and other essential services) are not affected. Details (reimbursable and non-reimbursable) between agencies are also not affected; however, agency leadership should ensure that any reimbursable details between agencies are not being used to circumvent the intent of the hiring freeze.
p. Term and temporary appointments of existing Federal employees may be extended up to the maximum allowable time limit, consistent with the conditions/requirements of the legal authority originally used to appoint the employee.
q. A limited number of voluntary transfers of current SES between agencies, as necessary to secure the leadership capacity of agencies, and where needs cannot be met by reallocation of resources within an agency's current workforce; however, filling of such vacancies is subject to OPM approval.
r. The head of any agency may exempt any positions that it deems necessary to: i. Meet national security (including foreign relations) responsibilities, or ii. Meet public safety responsibilities (including essential activities to the extent that they protect life and property). Agencies may refer to longstanding guidance, which provides examples of such activities in OMB Memorandum, Agency Operations in the Absence of Appropriations, dated 11/17/1981.
OPM may grant additional exemptions from the hiring freeze for "critical situations" at an agency's request, with a showing of the need and why it cannot be filled in another way.
Pay and Benefits in Cross Hairs
The Trump campaign had said little on the topic of federal pay and benefits, other than campaigning on a platform that held to the general GOP view they are too generous, but its characterization of the general hiring freeze as just the first step in what it intended for the workforce was more specific.
It said: "Federal employee health and retirement benefits continue to be based on antiquated assumptions and require a level of generosity long since abandoned by most of the private sector. Those costs are unsustainable for the federal government, just as they are proving to be unsustainable for state and local governments with similar health and retirement packages."
While the administration offered no further specifics, there was a general expectation that it would look to proposals raised by some Republicans in Congress and the conservative community for years. These include raising the required contribution toward retirement for all current employees, basing future annuities on the highest five consecutive salary years rather than the highest three, basing retiree COLAs on a less generous inflation index and reducing the payout in the TSP's most popular fund, the government securities G fund.
All of those would produce budgetary savings in the relative short-run, a key consideration in the congressional budget process, which focuses on one-, five-, and 10-year timeframes.
Another option on retirement that has come to the fore, is to eliminate the defined benefit annuity for employees hired after a future date, providing them with only the TSP – possibly with a more generous government contribution than FERS employees receive today.
House GOP leaders on civil service issues have increasingly moved toward that TSP-only idea and while the White House hasn't been specific, and that could become an element of a larger civil service reform package. (As part of a budget bill it would have little impact because most of the savings to the government would happen far in the future.)
On health insurance, the most commonly raised idea by Republicans in Congress has been instituting a "voucher" system for the employer contribution toward FEHB premiums. Currently, the government share is calculated according to a two-part formula that results in the government paying about 70 percent of the total premium cost.
Under a voucher system, there would be a dollar amount employer contribution, which would be increased annually only by the general rate of inflation, not the usually much higher rate of inflation in health care.
Such an idea could be tied to a budget bill, or potentially to legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare.
Pay for Performance
Another expected emphasis of the Trump administration regarding the federal workforce is a closer link between performance ratings and both basic salary and awards, a long-standing theme of Republicans regarding the civil service.
The Bush administration gained passage of laws to install pay for performance systems in two major departments, DHS and DoD, but the former never got off the ground before being canceled even during his administration and the latter operated only a few years before meeting the same fate early in the Obama administration.
During that time these pay systems were commonly derided by employees who saw favoritism behind ratings and awards, so handling that perception will be critical if the Trump administration takes a crack at it.
Regardless, attempting to revive such major programs could be a long and difficult process, given the opposition of unions and Democrats in Congress. However, such an effort might start on a smaller scale. One idea circulating in Congress would ban an employee who does not receive a score of four or five out of five (or an equivalent rating) on his or her latest performance review from receiving a pay raise.
Also, the White House could act on its own to steer various types of incentive payments to only the top performers. Republicans have criticized agencies in recent years for paying awards on an overly broad basis, suggesting that agencies are not making distinctions between levels of performance.
VA Could be Test Case on Appeal Rights
The VA has been something of a poster child in recent years for what is allegedly wrong with the federal employee disciplinary and appeals processes. Numerous bills have been offered – usually with Republican – in the wake of a scandal there that never seems to end, involving manipulation of patient wait time records and the dearth of penalties for employees at all levels involved in it.
The Trump campaign took up that same theme, calling for legislation to shorten the notice and appeals processes, and early in 2017 such legislation was again introduced in Congress.
Those proposals long have been viewed as a model for potential application across the government after being tested there for a time, but other bills already are pending to do much the same government-wide.
Under one for example, an agency could take a personnel action including firing against an employee for performance or conduct reasons with as little as seven days but no more than 21 days of notice, the employee would have only seven days to file any appeal at MSPB, and the MSPB hearing officer would have to issue a decision within 30 days or else the agency's action would prevail by default.
Further, during an appeal, the MSPB generally could not stay any removal and in that time the individual could not receive any pay or other form of compensation.
Official Time
Also under scrutiny already is "official time," which is on-the-clock working time that employees serving as union officials can spend on certain union duties. Republicans have pushed for years to end that practice, which unions—and their Democratic allies in Congress—stress was placed in law to make up for the obligation of unions to represent all bargaining unit employees regardless of whether they pay dues. Eliminating it thus would require a change in law.
Much easier to reverse would be the Obama administration executive order telling agencies get unions involved before certain workplace decisions are made, to collaborate more over workplace practices, and to bargain over areas where negotiations are at management's discretion. A similar Clinton administration executive order was overridden by the Bush administration in its early months and the pattern is likely to continue here.
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XXL Sugar canes food replica 5 pcs 40 cm
Item number: 609.951.01
Sweet candy cane! Sugar canes are decorative and can be used in multiple ways. As an unusual Christmas tree decoration, for scattering and decoration in vases, ... › More
- colour: red/white
- length: length 40 cm
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click & collect
Collect your order in-store R15 or FREE for orders over R150
Clicks Afri True Anti Breakage Treatment Creme 125ml is an anti-breakage treatment creme which contains vitamins E and A and argan oil. It has been specially formulated to help protect and nourish hair, reduce breakage, promote growth and give a beautiful shine to your hair.
Clicks Afri True Anti Breakage Treatment Creme 125 ml
Detailed Description:
True to African hair: Infused with deeply nourishing argan oil and high quality ingredients, the Afri True range has been specially formulated to help protect and nourish hair, reduce breakage, promote growth and give beautiful sheen to your hair. Go on, make every day a great hair day with Afri True. Anti breakage treatment creme: Afri True anti breakage treatment creme is enriched with a hair moisture complex, coconut, jojoba and argan oils and vitamins A & E to moisturise, condition and help prevent hair breakage for strong, healthy-looking hair. Feel the tingle as it works. 125 ml. Clicks promise: If you are not entirely satisfied with this product, please return it for a full refund as per our returns/exchange policy. Paperboard carton. Talk to us... 0860 254 257. www.clicks.co.za.
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125 ml
Quantity in pack:
Marketing description:
Clicks. Afri True. True to African hair. Anti breakage treatment creme. Prevents breakage. Daily moisturiser. Strengthening. Vitamin E & A & argan oil.
Afri True
Package type:
Usage instructions:
Directions for use: Apply directly to scalp in a gentle massaging motion. Leave in and style as usual.
Water, Paraffinum Liquidum, Petrolatum, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitan Stearate, Glycerin, Stearalkonium Chloride, Lanolin, Cetyl Alcohol, Propylene Glycol, Glycereth-26, Cera Alba, Glyceryl Stearate, Acetamide Mea, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethiconol, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Menthol, Fragrance, Tocopherol Acetate, Disodium EDTA, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Triethanolamine, Dimethiconol Panthenol, Hydrolyzed Hair Keratin, Hyaluronic Acid, Linoleic Acid, Linolenic Acid, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Oil, Sorbitol, Retinyl Acetate, Diazolidinyl Urea, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.
I bought the anti-breakage cream because every time I comb my hair, I would have a comb full of dry unhealthy hair. I used the product for two weeks and I haven't seen hair on my comb ever since.


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|PATHS Mind Energetics - Revolutionary Subconscious Mind Empowerment Technology. The Premier Self-Help Technology.
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I have not contacted Larry yet. Just has not seemed like the right time.
On another note...it is still exciting to see all the daily synchronicities that are occurring with those using the Sycnchro Mod.
Last night I was talking with a friend and he was freaking out.
He had just moved a program from one computer to another. When he went to install it, he needed a key code.
He had no idea where to find it....he had bought the software over a year ago.
He logged into his email program to begin a search....hopefully he had not deleted it, and it would not take too long to find it....
the VERY FIRST EMAIL in his inbox was from the company he had bought the software from.
It had arrived 1 hour before.
It had all the information he needed.
Talk about things lining up just right!!!
PATHS For Healing
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On Friday, the No. 7 Harvard Radcliffe Women's Rugby club opened its season with a 61-0 blowout win against No. 9 West Chester University in West Chester, Penn. The victory gives the Crimson a 6-0 series history, a 2-0 series history at West Chester, as well as a season opening win for the second consecutive year.
"We were feeling pretty good walking in," sophomore Dominique Cantave said. "We had been working on a new attack plan, and we were really excited about testing it out against a team in our league. I was personally excited to see the team chemistry at work, because we have a couple of new players that have integrated seamlessly into our dynamic."
The game began with a tense and scoreless first ten minutes before Harvard broke to open scoring with junior tighthead Akweley "Q" Okine earning her first try of the season, bringing the Crimson to 5-0. Sophomore flyhalf Delia Hellander then converted to bring the score to 7-0.
"First 10 or 15 minutes were definitely hard fought," sophomore Emily Prentice said. "We were pretty evenly matched. Our prop Akweley Okine made a great 50m break by working off the ball and receiving a good offload which turned the pace of the game offensively. And two of our freshmen on the wing, Sabrina [Kim] and Milan [Roberts] had great speed on defense and some big hits in the first few minutes that set the pace for defense."
With the Crimson rolling on all cylinders, the team didn't look back as the scoring continued when sophomore Dominique Cantave maneuvered to earn a try, her first of two during the match. The team unsuccessfully attempted a conversion, keeping the score at 12-0 Harvard. As the Crimson continued to add to its lead, its offense was able to expand along with strong defensive support, opening up the opportunity for more players to begin scoring.
Junior flanker Ginny Miller fought out of a lineout maul to score a try to bring another five points for the Crimson, 17-0. Hellander secured a try heading into the half, but Harvard was not done scoring before the break as freshman wing Roberts opened her Crimson scoring sheet with a score before the whistle.
With four different players scoring in the first half, Harvard headed into the halftime break with a 27-0 advantage over the Rams.
"In rugby each phase is like starting over," senior captain Learned said. "Each phase is a new opportunity to test what we have been practicing. Focusing on that aspect of rugby keeps us all very focused throughout the game."
After halftime, the Crimson maintained that focus from the first half to continue dominating the game. Cantave scored her second try of the game to bring the score to 32-0, leading the Crimson's scoring with ten points.
With the flood gates open in the second half, Learned earned a try, and was followed by junior Caitlin Weigel scoring a successful conversion to bring Harvard to 39-0. Weigel then added to the Harvard tally with a score and a conversion for 46-0 Harvard. The Crimson continued to find holes in the West Chester defense as Okine scored from an offload without a successful conversion for 51-0. T
he final score of the game was capped off by freshman wing Kim to give Harvard a 61-0 victory over the Rams.
The Crimson defense ended the match with a blank sheet after the strong display against West Chester prevented even a single score against the Crimson. By the end of the game, ten different Harvard players contributed to the scoring effort with six different players scoring in the second half alone
"It gives us a good platform to build off of this season," sophomore Camille Bean said, "and it's a great confidence-booster for the team."
—Staff writer Kim Arango can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com
Read more in SportsMen's Water Polo Snags Three Victories at Princeton Invite
Recommended Articles
University Calendar.First day of the Second Half-year. Semitic Conference. The Arabs in Spain. -Ethics of their Education. Mr. F. D. Chester.
Greenough Resigns After Eight Years as Dean of College--Hanford SucceedsAlfred Chester Hanford has been appointed Dean of Harvard College to succeed Dean Chester Noyes Greenough '98, who-has held that
Women's Rugby Takes Second at Crimson 7's TournamentAfter playing their first two sevens tournaments of the spring season, the Harvard women's rugby team has made two things abundantly clear: the team's underclassmen are strong, and the Crimson's defense does not give up many points.
Women's Rugby Finishes Second in Crimson 7s TournamentShutting out their first four opponents in the Harvard hosted tournament, the women's rugby team fell short in the championship match up against Quinnipiac.
Women's Rugby Falls to Quinnipac in AIC Invitational SemifinalsMaking the relatively short trip to western Mass. to participate in the AIC Invitational at American International College, Harvard won its pool and quarterfinal matchup relatively handily before getting knocked out in the championship semifinal, 39-0, against the two-time reigning national champions.


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Richard Herrera
VP Estimating
Richard Herrera serves as the Vice President of Estimating for Moe Plumbing. Having more than 33 years of experience estimating, he brings a wealth of knowledge to each project he bids. He has worked with H.L. Moe for about 23 years and has been part of some of the larger projects that Moe has been awarded including Los Robles Hospital. Focused on the quality and preciseness of the work of him and his team, Richard incorporates the latest technology in estimating including BIM and 3D CAD.


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Cassutt Pylon Racer
Pima Air and Space Museum Aircraft
Cassutt Pylon Racer
Formula One pylon racing began in 1947 when the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company sponsored the event at the National Air Races. The sport quickly became a favorite of the fans because the two-mile rectangular closed course brought the action right in front of the spectators with the planes racing at 50 feet off the ground, often wing tip to wing tip. Planes were restricted by wing size, weight, and engine displacement so that all were evenly matched. Aircraft design was very important and most planes were designed and constructed by individuals. Tom Cassutt, a pilot for Trans World Airlines, designed and built his racer in 1958. He quickly issued plans for it hoping that more people would build racers to expand the competition. Few Cassutt racers have been built exactly according to the plans; most incorporate some changes desired by the person building the plane. However, Cassutt based planes have been quite popular and successful in Formula One racing and more than 800 have been built.


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In the words of another classic from the late 80s: "I take two steps forward, I take two steps back" ("Opposites Attract" sung duet-style - Paula Abdul & a cartoon cat. How weird was that video, btw?)
We made serious progress last year in passing the RTA. Awesome. That's two HUGE steps forward.
And now, as SEMCOG is proposing $2.7B (yes, that's a B) to expand our roads and highways over the next 15 years. Two steps BACK, perhaps?
I am sure there are some legitimate road projects in this plan - especially those around fixing our already crumbling roads. And as someone that finds traffic to be the most consistent and yet I'm-totally-at-it's-mercy frustration in my life, one would think that I would support wider roads. However, studies have shown that if more roads are built, more cars will fill the roads. Simply stated, 'roads cause traffic'. The study also says that 'transit expansion' doesn't help congestion or travel times either, which I thought was interesting and worth noting. Ok, I can actually see that. It takes me longer to bus/bike than it does to drive/park, but oh lord, my sanity. There is NO price that I can put on my sanity, the health boost I get from riding my bike or the joy obtained by the amazing people/stories we come across (oh yeah - or this blog wouldn't exist. TRAVESTY.). Transit wins!
Here's a great blog post and explanation to the study:
SO. Back to Michigan.
Ugh, wider roads again? What can I do about this?
Luckily, our friends at Transportation Riders United have put together some actions this week:
Come to the SEMCOG Meeting this week Thursday and speak up during public comment before they vote on the new plan (2W4W is working to shift some schedule conflicts to make it):
More info here: https://www.facebook.com/events/148572431994388/
If you aren't able to make it on Thursday, please speak out online:
Together, we can work to make sure we continue to take two steps forward as a region! We should not accept our fate as described by Paula Abdul and that cartoon cat dancing up and down some stairs. Seriously, whose idea was that video?


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For all skin types, especially normal to oily and acne prone skin. A unique ultra-light oil-free gel-lotion moisturizer that leaves no stickiness or oily residue. Helps to soothe with azulene and aloe vera. Rich with anti-oxidant vitamins A & E. Also recommended for normal to shiny skin which requires added moisture. Excellent relief for temporary dryness that accompanies acne treatment programs.
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Aloe Vera – Helps soothe and hydrate skin
Vitamins A & E – Anti-oxidants help protect against free radical attack
Net Weight: 50 ml / 1.7 oz.


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Ground-breaking research reveals that a class of agricultural pesticides is the likely culprit in the deaths of hundreds of millions of birds. Worse still: Canada continues to market neurotoxic chemicals with the full knowledge of their impact
by Paul Webster
The cormorant's brilliant green eye is flecked with yellow pinpoints, and just above the pupil, a shimmer of cerulean blue reflects the early summer sky over Hamilton Harbour. Braced in the crook of Shane de Solla's arm, the large black waterbird seems calm. But de Solla, a wildlife biologist with Environment Canada, has studied big birds long enough to know better than to relax his hold, especially not when taking a blood sample. To do so, de Solla has to push back the downy black feathers under the cormorant's wing to reveal a tiny patch of pink skin. Once a few millimetres of blood have been extracted using a syringe, Jim Quinn, a McMaster University molecular ecologist collaborating with de Solla's research team, says the bird looks thirsty. "Some Gatorade might be in order," he suggests.
Bad chemistry
When the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) banned the pesticide Carbofuran in May, lovers of migratory birds cheered. Carbofuran is in a class of pesticides that act as neurotoxins, inhibiting brain activity. The chemical has been widely used in North America since the 1970s on crops such as corn, barley, onions, peppers, raspberries and strawberries.
Studies have long suggested Carbofuran is linked with the devastation of bird populations in North America, which have caused wildlife researchers to call for bans. Now that the United States has done so, Health Canada seems poised to follow.
The word "bird," however, does not appear in the 104 pages of tightly reasoned scientific justification the EPA provided for the ban (see www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/reregistration/carbofuran/carbofuran_noic.htm). The main reason cited is that the levels of Carbofuran in drinking water and food represent a risk to infants and children.
Paul Webster
Quinn and de Solla are spending several months here this year and next as part of a study probing the impact of airborne toxins on cormorants. The work is painstaking, but wildlife researchers across Ontario say such field research is increasingly urgent. In recent decades, populations of migratory birds have declined dramatically around the province, which traditionally hosts billions of birds during the summer months. Three songbird species were added to Canada's list of species at risk last year alone, notes Bridget Stutchbury, a York University biologist specializing in birds that migrate between Central America and North America. And although lab studies have shown elevated exposure to pollutants such as pesticides, solvents and flame retardants to be lethal, their real-world impact remains poorly understood. Recently, attention has focused in particular on a class of pesticides that some scientists are fingering as likely culprits in the deaths of hundreds of millions of birds.
Perhaps the most vigorous voice in this group is that of Pierre Mineau, the Canadian government's top expert on pesticides and birds. Through research going back to 1978, he has helped prove that many pesticides used in the past were wreaking ecological havoc on wildlife – especially on large migratory species that consumed smaller prey contaminated with the chemicals. But, as regulators in Canada, the United States and Europe stepped in to ban compounds such as DDT, Mirex and Chlordane, chemical companies introduced a new generation of products.
These pesticides, with names such as Carbofuran, Fonofos, Diazinon and 2-4D, are based on smaller chemical components that degrade faster in the environment. Governments anxious to phase out DDT and its more persistent brethren approved these pesticides for sale, says Mineau, who spent 1982 to 1996 reviewing the new chemical formulations for Environment Canada. The great majority of safety studies limited their focus to how laboratory rats reacted to eating the chemical pellets. "Unfortunately, they were required to do only limited testing on birds," says Mineau. Since then, research by Mineau and others has shown that these new compounds are acutely harmful to birds and other wildlife. Birds appear to be "exquisitely sensitive" to the pesticides, which scramble their nervous systems. And yet, he says, "we went on marketing and developing these neurotoxic chemicals with the foreknowledge they were very toxic to birds."
Reviewing pesticide applications in Environment Canada laboratories in Ottawa, Mineau grew increasingly worried about the lack of data on the new chemicals' effects on wildlife in the fields and forests sprayed with them. So, in the early 1990s, he decided to head back into the field. In a dazzlingly prolific series of studies – he has produced about 100 publications since 1990 – he went on to report disturbing findings about these chemicals and their effects on birds, as well as insects.
In the case of the pesticide Carbofuran, made by Philadelphia-based FMC Corporation and used on crops ranging from potatoes to canola, Mineau estimated that, at the peak of its use in the 1980s, the chemical killed as many as 90 million birds, comprising some 45 species, every year in the United States alone. In the same decade, Mineau estimated, the chemical caused between 244,000 and 1.3 million songbird deaths in western Ontario per year. Carbofuran (along with the insecticides Fonofos and Terbufos) was also implicated in a large number of bird deaths in British Columbia's Fraser Delta in the 1980s and 1990s.
Researchers not only saw evidence of birds dying after ingesting pellets of the chemicals, they also uncovered more subtle effects, seemingly the result of mere contact with sprayed pesticides. Neurological changes appeared to be reducing the ability of birds to feed themselves and their young, eventually resulting in death. In a 2000 study in southern Ontario led by one of Jim Quinn's PhD students, Christine Bishop, where Mineau sat on the academic committee, it was found that tree swallows in apple orchards were starving, because the chemicals both exterminated the insects that the birds feed on and depressed the birds' brain activity, diminishing their ability to hunt. The study linked pesticides to a drop in the number of eastern bluebird and tree swallow nestlings that survived to maturity and found thyroid, endocrine and immune system damage in young birds exposed to pesticides in the orchards.
The focus on apple orchards was deliberate. According to Mineau, of all the agricultural lands in the province, the 12,000 hectares devoted to growing fruit are treated with the greatest number of types and applications of pesticides – including such new-generation insecticides as Azinphos- methyl, Diazinon, Phosalone and Phosmet. As the 2000 study revealed, individual nests of bluebirds and tree swallows, which commonly breed and forage in apple orchards, were exposed to as many as seven pesticide applications and up to five pesticide mixtures. By focusing on these two species in orchards, Bishop was able to establish that pesticide use depressed mature birds' brain activity by about 40 percent. Nestlings' brains were even harder hit. The scientists found that the chemicals did not kill the birds directly. Instead, they were losing the ability to find food and raise their young.


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Jewelry displays are one one of the most often overlooked elements of a successful tradeshow. We caught up with Tracy of Tracy Arrington Studios in Apopka, Florida to uncover her secrets for creating award-winning tradeshow booth displays as she travels across the U.S. introducing her jewelry lines to new buyers.
Tracy started her business in 2011 after working for over a decade as a buyer and merchandiser. She only sells wholesale, which means tradeshows are her biggest marketing opportunities. She regularly attends the American Made Show, NY Now, JA, and IJO shows. Currently, Tracy has over 150 clients carrying her jewelry throughout the country and internationally.
The Challenges
Tracy's greatest challenge is finding ways to get her delicate jewelry noticed inside a mammoth building filled with her competition. She has to stand out from the crowd. Tracy was recognized early on for her talents in designing unique and eye-catching booths when in 2012 she received the Temporary Visual Display Award at AmericasMart Atlanta.
Aside from layout of the booth, her decor ideas must not be too complex to set up and take down, nor too expensive to ship from one destination to another.
An Inviting Space
"I always want people to walk into my booth and feel like they are in a very special store, Tracy says. "I want it to feel relaxing, soothing, and energizing all at once. A place they enjoy visiting and can feel pampered in."
Tracy is fanatical about three things in her booth:
- Good lighting, and lots of it. She uses white LED spot bulbs because they consume little energy and don't make the space uncomfortably warm. In a 10′ x 20′ booth, she usually has 8-10 tracks with 5-6 lights on each. Additionally, decorative lights hung over displays make the space feel cozy and inviting.
- Jewelry items have to be at the right height. The absolute minimum for Tracy's displays is 32" and she prefers to be closer to eye-level at 42".
- Make it easy for customers to linger. Tracy is available in the background to answer questions but otherwise lets people have all the space and time they need to think about how her line will fit in their stores. She offers bottled water, splurges on specialty chocolates and provides a place for people to sit.
Display details
"Displays should cause someone to make a purposeful decision to step into your booth to see more," Tracy says. "The overall impression entices but doesn't tell the whole story. They have to walk in to see the whole story!"
Tracy purchased her first display pieces from Rio Grande. She decided on linen props and feels it was a smart investment because the pieces are high quality and durable. There's nothing worse than showing beautifully crafted work on dingy, fraying, or dirty displays.
Always careful not to overcrowd groupings, Tracy incorporates a decent number of jewelry items on each prop. Layering multiple pieces on a bust is acceptable as long as each one stands out enough to be seen on its own. She adds pops of texture and contrast to keep everything from blurring together into one large, monochromatic space.
Lately, she has opted for a limited range of display styles but uses a greater quantity of each. She generally sticks to three sizes/types of busts, a couple of earring and pendant holders and lots of risers to create interest.
Return on Investment (ROI)
Tracy knows the time, money and energy she invests into her booth pays off. The number and size of her orders continues to increase and the average price per item goes up when customers see her work in person. Tracy believes there is something magical about holding the work in your hands and feeling the quality for yourself. The feedback she receives from customers is that her booth is always a surprise and they love to see the changes she makes from year to year.
With that in mind, she knows her booth design will never be finished. It is always a work in progress and she will continue to evolve her displays as her business grows and customer needs change.
The Displays Tracy Loves
Natural Linen Easel Necklace Display
I use with these boards for every show. They allow me to quickly and easily pack my necklaces for travel. I stack display boards with bubble wrap between the layers and then I secure the bundle with stretch wrap. The entire stack fits into my carry-on luggage.
I provide these trays and pads to my customers so they can gather pieces as they create the unique story for their stores. The trays are elegant and really show off my jewelry well.
Natural Linen Full-Size Display Pads


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MONROE, La. — If you're going to buy something with a forged cashier's check, don't misspell "cashier's" or use an FBI office as your shipping address.
C'mon — what's not to like?
Hoof it over to Facebook to join the weird news herd.
- C'mon — what's not to like?
Police in Monroe, La., say they arrested a 44-year-old man from Memphis, Tenn., after he did both. He was held Friday on two counts of forgery and as a fugitive from justice in Georgia, where he is accused of a similar scheme.
The FBI called police Thursday after a Minnesota cell phone distributor called the bureau.
The company had sent 50 phones to the address for the FBI office Monroe, only to discover its $2,359.45 payment was a "cahier's check".
FBI agents saw the suspect wave down a delivery truck driver outside the bureau later Thursday, stopped the transaction and waited for police.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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Scalp Care with Lynda
I don't know about you but I don't like being a slick chick! In order to get the best grip out of my gripper here's how I take care of my scalp and Gripper™!
Every night I wash the silicone perimeter of my Gripper™ using a mild shampoo, cloth and warm water. This will rid the silicone of any oils and dead skin cells accumulated during the day. I use this same technique on my scalp every day. Taking care of your scalp is very important! I use Clinique exfoliating daily scrub on my scalp each time I shower.
Here is my daily routine:
1. It's important to apply exfoliator to wet skin, so exfoliating in the shower or bath is best.
2. Never use a body exfoliator on your scalp, they are too harsh. Instead pick a facial exfoliator to use.
3. Apply exfoliator to your scalp and gently rub in circular motions to buff off dead skin cells.
4. Rinse well
In the morning I start with a quick wipe of my scalp with Clinique's skin toner to rid my skin of excess oils.
Why toner?
It gives your skin pH balance. Our skin is naturally acidic, normally with a pH balance of between five and six. After cleansing, due to the alkaline nature of soap, the pH balance of skin gets disturbed. When this happens your skin needs to work overtime to restore the balance and that may result in oil, but using a toner helps to restore this balance quickly.
Lastly, although it may sound strange I also put a small amount of antiperspirant on my head every morning.
These steps with give you continuous grip throughout the day!


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Course description
But what about my videos!?!?
"But, I have all of these videos! What do I do with them??" This is the question I hear most from people that want to document their memories and the lives of those they love.
For years, I've dreamed of a quick and easy way to put photos and videos together and with the most recent update by Apple to the Pages app (free app),
In just a few taps on your compatible iPhone or iPad, you can have an iBook with ALL of your memories:
photos AND videos TOGETHER!
You can also export the book to print with your favorite printer. I will show you exactly how! Do the work ONE time and have the best of both worlds!
Maybe you are like me and have been creating QR codes and adding them to your photo books. For a printed book, that is still the best option, but in our digital age, there is an easier way to bring photos and videos together!
In this class, I have done all of the work for you and created THREE different template sets that are preformatted for your photos and videos to easily be added in a tap.
What if you already have a lot of completed digital pages? Or maybe you've finished a bunch of Chatbooks! There are two template sets that will work perfectly for you! Just add your completed pages or large photos (from your Chatbook) and your videos and you are ready to go!
If you would like to build your pages directly in the Apple Pages App, there is a 22 page square template set with preformatted spots for your photos and videos!
In this class you will learn:
- How to use the Pages app on an iPad or iPhone to create an iBook with photos and videos.
- How to import the templates I created for you into the Pages app and add them to the template library.
- Apple Pages App navigation tips
- Apple Pages App workflow tips for creating your book quickly.
- How to customize your iBook through colors, borders, and icons.
- How to export your book into the iBooks app for viewing.
- How to export your book for high quality printing.
Course Content:
- 12 video lessons
- 1 square 12x12 Pages App template that is ready for your completed digital pages with additional pre-formatted media spots for video that you can layer on top ($5 value).
- 1 landscape Pages App template with 11 page layouts ready for your media - completed digital pages, photos, and videos ($10 value).
- 1 portrait Pages App template with 11 page layouts ready for your media - completed digital pages, photos, and videos. ($10 value).
- 1 square 12x12 Pages App template with 22 different layouts ready for your media - photos and videos. ($20 value).
- 1 PDF Template guide for the square Pages template that will help you know which template design is best for your photos ($5 value).
- Captions option on all videos.
- Any future updates for this course.
5 research-based reasons you want your photos, videos, and stories together:
- Studies show recalling happy times from the past increases happiness now.
- Hearing a story (beginning, middle, and end) releases the chemicals in our brain that allow us to connect, empathize, and make meaning.
- Studies show the more children know about their family's history, the stronger their sense of control over their lives, the higher their self-esteem and the more successfully they believed their families functioned.
- Studies indicate that telling and listening to personal narratives increases physical and mental health.
- Research shows that telling our story causes reflection and introspection and change.
This course is for you if:
- You want a way to have your photos and videos together and easily accessible.
- You have a compatible iPhone or iPad (see compatibility below).
- Having a way to bring your completed digital pages OR photos from your Chatbook and videos together would be an AMAZING thing in your life!
- Doing the work one time and having an iBook AND a printed book would be a dream come true.
- Having your memories in a digital iBooks format would be a dream come true.
This course is not for you if:
- You would not want to look at your pages in an iBooks format on your iPad or iPhone.
- You don't have a compatible iOS device (see compatibility below).
The Apple Pages version 4 app is compatible with (this course will work with these devices):
Requires iOS 11.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone SE, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X,
iPad Air, iPad Air Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad mini 2, iPad mini 2 Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 2, iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad mini 3, iPad mini 3 Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad mini 4, iPad mini 4 Wi-Fi + Cellular, 12.9-inch iPad Pro, 12.9-inch iPad Pro Wi-Fi + Cellular, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, 9.7-inch iPad Pro Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (5th generation), iPad Wi-Fi + Cellular (5th generation), 12.9-inch iPad Pro (2nd generation), 12.9-inch iPad Pro Wi‑Fi + Cellular (2nd generation), 10.5-inch iPad Pro, 10.5-inch iPad Pro Wi‑Fi + Cellular, and iPod touch.
Steph has been a personal story teller and documenter since the age of 6 (that's a lot of years) and mastered a process that has helped her create over 500, album-ready, pages of photos and stories EACH YEAR, for the past two years; and it was all done on her phone.
She has been helping others with their personal photographic journeys since she was a teenager sharing tips, tutorials, inspiration, and encouragement with thousands of people. Steph is here to help guide you through your journey to find simple photo solutions that fit your life right now.
Helping you discover ways to automate your organizing and backing up of your phone photos, your memories, and your stories in SIMPLE ways that don't rob you of your time. It's time to get started telling your story! Steph will make learning how to use your phone and technology, not only less intimidating, but doable for anyone.
"I did the free course and am now using Google Photos. Then did the Memory Management course and I love, love, love Trello. And finally took the leap and took the HOPF course. It didn't disappoint! I have made lots of notes (haven't quite finished it yet) and know that it is going to make my workflow so much more efficient and that my photos will be backed up safe and secure! Thanks so much Steph." - Merridy (a happy customer)


text: Hey. Been lurking for awhile. I have an OG Droid and was able to do an early upgrade to get the Droid 3 yesterday for $199 plus $20 early annual upgrade fee plus taxes. I am the main line on my family plan with 2 other lines on it (one other OG Droid not eligible for upgrade and one non-smartphone (mother)). I'm aware of the BOGO deal and even asked if I could do it, even though the other 2 lines aren't up for upgrade. They told me no (this was also the Retentions department as I have trouble with Cust. Serv. so I asked to talk to them). Anyone have any options for me on what to do? Would it be wise to just add another line for $9.99 a month to my family account just so I can take advantage of the BOGO D3? I would then give that free D3 to the other OG Droid on my family line, and then just have that 4th line not in use? Do you guys think it's worth it? Thanks in advance, I love all the advice, tips, etc. I've read on here over the last year.


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- Keep Source Formatting
- Merge Formatting
- Keep Text Only
The first option makes plenty of sense to me, the other two behave in ways that may belie their names. Here's what they really do.
We'll start with this text.
Keep Source Formatting will keep the original formatting of your copied text and change the target text if you paste inside the paragraph.
Merge Formatting keeps some of the copied text's formatting, but doesn't change the original, target. Microsoft says (http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word-help/paste-options-HA101831692.aspx) that it changes the formatting so that it matches the text that surrounds it. Well, kinda. Here is the results of my test
Keep Text Only is the one I use the most. It actually does what merge formatting seems to describe. The copied text will lose all its original formatting and adopt the formatting of the target text. It's the one I use the most because I'm usually copying text from a document whose formatting served that document's purpose, but not the one I'm now creating.


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Bartley Ridge Floor Plans
Condo Launch Floor Plans
Please kindly see the below for the floorplans of the units available in Condo Launch. Various floorplans are available to suit your family needs. Kindly take note that the floorplans are subjected to changes from the developer.
Condo Launch Floor Plans
Condo Launch consist of 3,4,5 bedroom units available. Typically, there are 2 types of facing. Sengkang West Way or Sengkang Avenue facing. As a general guide, units 6th floor and above are able to get a unblock view.
Please do not hesitate to contact us should you require detailed information on the unit. A full copy of the floorplans is also available upon request. Please read our disclaimer for usage of Condo Launch floorplans.


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Aug. 22, 2001
NEUQUEN, Argentina - The Canadian senior men's basketball team, led by former Santa Clara star Steve Nash, took another step closer to advancing to the 2002 World Championship of Basketball by defeating Uruguay, 101-77. This was Canada's second game in round two action after defeating Venezuela 108-100 on Tuesday.
Canada came out strong right from the opening tip as Steve Nash (Victoria, BC) scored seven of their first nine points taking a 14-4 lead midway through the first quarter. Canada took advantage of poor transition defence by the Uruguayan squad all game, beating them down the floor for uncontested lay-ups.
In the second half, Canada continued their dominance combining solid defence with great shooting to take a 30-point lead into the final quarter. In the fourth period, head coach Jay Triano used his bench extensively as they cruised home with the win.
"We continue to improve with each game," said Triano. "Today we played great half-court defence and had our best shooting game of the tournament (68% from 2 and 40% from 3).
"Players are feeling more comfortable with each other as the tournament goes on. I like the way we are playing heading into our next game versus a very tough Argentina team."
Nash led Canada with 21 points. Andrew Kwiatkowski (Cambridge, ON) followed with 15 points while Prosper Karangwa (Montreal, QC) recorded 14.
Canada's third of four round two games will be played Thursday, August 23, 2001 against the home team Argentina.
Against Venezuela in the first game of the second round on Tuesday, Canada surged out to an early 12-point lead in the first quarter, consistently beating the Venezuelan defenders off the dribble. Nash dished out 10 assists in the first half as Canada went into the locker room with a 58-50 at the midway break.
Todd MacCulloch (Winnipeg, MB) and Mike Meeks (Brampton, ON) were the primary beneficiaries of Nash's passes, with 15 and 12 points respectively after the first 20 minutes of play.
In the third quarter, Venezuela cut Canada's lead down to two, 60-58. But a 15-2 Canadian run gave them some breathing room and a 92-70 lead after three quarters.
Venezuela made one last run in the final period, closing to within six points, 98-92. But MacCulloch hit back-to-back buckets and Nash nailed a three to end the threat.
"We played our best game of the tournament," said head coach Jay Triano. "We were able to execute our game plan by beating them off the dribble and penetrating the lane and on the defensive side forcing them to take tough shots.
"I'm also pleased at our bench play which extended our lead late in the third quarter from 12 points to 22."
MacCulloch led Canada with 23 points and 10 boards. Nash also finished with a double-double with 20 points and 13 assists. Meeks and Andrew Kwiatkowski (Cambridge, ON) recorded 18 and 17 points each.


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Next Issue
Appearing in "Ride the Savage Land"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Nightwind
- Mr. Dawson [stage owner]
- Tom Dawson [Dawson's son]
- gang of stage robbers
Other Characters:
- Red Rock; Collinsville
Synopsis for "Ride the Savage Land"
The Kid rides shotgun on a stage, and is sent to escort Tom back to his father; Tom appears to be a coward when men steal from the stage, but in the end, he helps the Kid defeat them.
See Also
- Write your own review of this comic!
- Discuss Rawhide Kid Vol 1 85 on the forums
- 1 Images from Rawhide Kid Vol 1 85
|Like this? Let us know!
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.


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I can't believe I have been blogging for 7 months and I have 7,000 Facebook fans and my family is getting ready to be on House Hunter International tv show that airs on HGTV on the 28th of August, so why celebrate with an AMAZING giveaway that is being co-hosted by
Yes, We Coupon! & Mamal Diane – keeping it simple
One of the great things I love about living here is the AMAZING handmade things they make here… food, jewelry, pottery, paintings and needlework, just too name a few. I have teamed up with some GREAT Polish women who sell their handiwork on Etsy to help celebrate my 7,000 Facebook fans. I have placed their Etsy shop links in each of their pictures, so please take a moment to look at these great shops!
Here is what we will be giving away to 1 lucky winner:
$50 in Paypal cash AND these wonderful handmade pieces
(what I have received so far):
This giveaway is from 8/27- 9/15 and is open worldwide!!!
Want to enter? Just fill out the entry form below.