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There is much residue left (or maybe 'preserved' is the better word) by each spent year; not at all like the dessert crumbs dismissed by a profligate man but rather like dew on leaves or water soaked in soil after a night's thick rain. Such residue is also man-made - penned, collected and captured in photos. Recorded.
Indeed this is the finest form of self-preservation. As one watches time sprint past in its running shoes, headed towards the negative axis of time, one jogs on, looking back and trying to memorize its fast-fading back. Not too devotedly as to lose track of one's own path or trip over an obstacle, but there are old threads we keep anyway and knit into our present. There are old violin strings I keep, untangled and coiled, so that they may be restrung again to deliver the concertos I played last year.
In most of us, there is probably a desire for reuse and recycle - a welcoming of time's relentlessness. Remembering the past is therefore a conscientious form of timekeeping, I like to think. It is the regular recognition of one's past selves and memories that conglomerate to feed the present self, which in turn will carry on to the future self - all of which snuggle within the heart-chambers of one person.
Thus the advent of each coming year chimes like the tick of a metronome, marking the scheduled notch of measured time; this is where one might slow down to a walk, turn back and marvel (or regret?) at the distance covered before turning around and picking up pace once more, climbing the linear line of life.
All I can do is take comfort in the likelihood that "I have miles to go before I sleep."
"...if this life of ours
Be a good glad thing, why should we make us merry
Because a year of it is gone? but Hope
Smiles from the threshold of the year to come
Whispering 'It will be happier.'"
- Alfred Lord Tennyson


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As-Built Condition
Concrete Block
Drain Tile
Expansive Clay Soils
Horizontal Cracks
Palmer Valve
Plumb Line
Poured Walls
Radon Gas
Steel Restraints
Step Cracks
Stone Backfill
Sump Crock
Sump Pump
Wall Drainage Board
Wall Deflection
Wall Irregularities
Wall Slide (Base Shear)
- As-Built Condition -
- A basement wall with No Defects as constructed immediately following either installation of the concrete masonry or poured concrete wall before backfilling. The wall can be said to have no defects if the corners and/or the walls were constructed out of plumb with no cracks or movement. Additionally, the wall is not defective if repair has been done 10 years or more prior to the time of inspection and there are no cracks or movement. Shrinkage cracks with no movement of the wall are not considered a structural defect. Measurement of a wall is done by averaging the measurements of both corners compared to the measurement at the center of the wall. [top]
- Backfill -
- Material used to fill in an excavation. [top]
- Bleeders -
- Concrete or plastic pipe that is installed through the footing or foundation wall to allow transfer of water from the exterior drain tile to the interior drain tile. [top]
- Concrete Block -
- Concrete masonry unit used in basement wall construction. Concrete block is commonly used in nominal 8", 10" or 12" widths and is typically 8" tall by 16" long with 2 open cells in the block. The concrete blocks are stacked with alternating vertical joints using mortar between the joints to hold the block together. [top]
- Downspout -
- Aluminum or galvanized steel pipe that directs water collected in the rain gutters down to the ground and away from the building. [top]
- Drain Tile (Interior or Exterior) -
- Concrete or plastic perforated pipe used underground to collect water and direct it to the sump crock. Exterior drain tile is placed on the outside of the building at the elevation of, or on top of the footing, consistent with existing conditions. Interior drain tile is placed around the inside perimeter of the building just below the floor slab. Drain tile is encased in clear aggregate to allow for water drainage to the pipe. [top]
- Efflorescence (Scale Stains) -
- White mineral deposits showing on the face of masonry due to water leaching through the masonry to the dry surface. [top]
- Epoxy -
- Material used to repair cracks in concrete or masonry. Epoxy is a material that can be injected into wall cracks and when cured forms a very strong bond with the base material. Epoxy can be used for the structural repair of walls. [top]
- Expansive Clay Soils -
- Expansive soils contain minerals that are capable of absorbing water, which enables the soils to increase in volume. Expansions of 10 percent or more are common. This change in volume can exert force on a building or other structure causing substantial damage. [top]
- Grade -
- Reference to the pitch of the exterior ground surface adjacent to the building. [top]
- Horizontal Cracks -
- Usually associated with bowing or displacement of masonry walls that are not plumb vertically and/or horizontally. [top]
- Level -
- Instrument used for measuring the plane of a vertical or horizontal surface. [top]
- Palmer Valve -
- Storm-water discharge valve typically located in the side wall of the floor drain, designed to prevent back-flow of sanitary sewer into storm-water system. [top]
- Pilaster -
- A projection of masonry or a filled cell area of masonry for the purpose of bearing concentrated loads or to stiffen the wall against lateral forces. [top]
- Plumb Line -
- Tool for measuring deflection consisting of a weight and string. The string is attached at the top of the wall and the weight is at the end of the string located near the floor providing a straight vertical reference line. Measurements are taken from the string to the wall to determine the amount of horizontal deflection in the wall. [top]
- Poured Walls -
- Solid concrete walls that are constructed by setting concrete wall forms, installing steel reinforcing bars and pouring concrete into the forms to create a wall. [top]
- Radon Gas -
- Odorless and colorless slightly radioactive gas that can seep into basements through floor or wall cracks. At certain concentrations Radon Gas is considered a health hazard. For more information on Radon Gas, refer to www.epa.gov/radon. [top]
- Seepage -
- Water infiltration through masonry walls or floor slab. Seepage is evidenced by damp or wet masonry walls or concrete floor and is an indication that the basement drainage system is overloaded or not functioning correctly. [top]
- Steel Restraints -
- Wall reinforcing used to prevent further movement in basement walls. Steel restraints are typically composed of steel tubes placed vertically against the basement walls at a 32" or 48" spacing. [top]
- Step Cracks -
- Cracks in masonry walls that follow the vertical and horizontal joints in the masonry in a stepped fashion. Step cracks can be due to horizontal wall deflection, foundation settlement or shrinkage of concrete masonry. [top]
- Stone Backfill -
- Clear crushed aggregate ¾" to 1" diameter used to backfill excavations. Stone backfill allows for water to migrate easily towards the drain tile located at the basement footing elevation. Additionally, stone backfill will have minimal settlement around the perimeter of the building after backfilling. [top]
- Sump Crock -
- Concrete, steel or plastic basin placed below the floor slab in the lowest area of the building for collecting water from drain tile. Top rim to extend minimum 1" above floor. [top]
- Sump Pump -
- Submersible or upright pump located in sump crock to pump water out and away from the building. [top]
- Tuckpoint -
- Term used for the repair of cracks that occur in the joints in masonry walls. Tuckpointing involves the removal and replacement of the mortar between masonry units where cracking along the joints has occurred. [top]
- Wall Drainage Board -
- One piece corrugated or ribbed plastic panel that is placed to form an angle on top of the wall footing and against the masonry wall. The panel extends a minimum of 1" above the floor slab elevation. The wall drainage board is used to drain water from the cores of concrete masonry walls to the interior drain tile. [top]
- Wall Deflection -
- The amount of horizontal movement in a basement wall at any given location with respect to its vertical plane. [top]
- Wall Irregularities -
- Masonry wall corners or ares in the wall that have thickened sections. Example of wall irregularities include foundations for masonry fireplaces and wall pilasters. [top]
- Wall Slide (Base Shear) -
- Horizontal movement of basement wall, usually occuring at the bottom section of the wall. [top]

subset: commoncrawl


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Serving in a leadership role at a housing provider, as a Board Director or an Officer of the corporation, is an important undertaking. By agreeing to be a Director or Officer, one assumes a number of responsibilities for the behaviour and actions of the corporation you represent. However, some Directors and Officers (D&Os) are unaware […]... Read More
Salus Clementine Passive House (Photo: Ottawa Salus Corporation) The 2016 HSC Energy Forum will feature an exciting Passive House case study. Lisa Ker, Executive Director of Ottawa Salus Corporation, will share the story of Clementine, the first Passive House multi-residential affordable housing project in Canada. The Salus Clementine project is a 42-unit, 4-storey apartment […]... Read More
Tackling energy and water consumption in your buildings isn't only about retrofits or equipment upgrades. One area where you can have big impacts on your utility costs is in your operations and maintenance practices. By improving your O&M, you can reduce wasted energy, save time and money, decrease tenant disruption, and avoid early equipment replacement […]... Read More
What is EOA? The end of operating agreements or "EOA" marks the end of the federal funding that has previously flowed through the province to Service Managers. EOA involves the end of operating agreements, mortgages, and debentures for all housing providers administered by Service Managers, and funding for housing providers will have to be paid […]... Read More
Housing providers are facing increasing utility costs as rates increase and support programs such as the Ontario Clean Energy Benefit expire. One sure way to tackle high utility costs is to lower consumption. To achieve cost-effective and long-term results, housing providers can benefit from taking a strategic approach that includes an Energy Management Plan. What's […]... Read More


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With this in mind, just how can you believe what they tell you when the science refutes their position, especially on their new attack on pomegranate juice.
At the same time the attacks go against real food, the nutritional status of food is decreasing rapidly and the need for more antioxidant intake comes from the mouths of FDA paid pundits who really seem never to read the plethora of available science.
You have to guess that they do not think the science is good if they are always on the attack, or that they only want certain sources to produce the science.
Sounds like "bait and switch" to me.
In defense of antioxidants, from such sources as pomegranate, how about digesting this science -
A report published online on September 1, 2010 in the British Journal of Nutrition revealed a protective effect for a number of antioxidant nutrients against all-cause and disease-specific mortality in older individuals over a 13 year average period. "The purpose of the present paper is to explore the predictive significance of a selection of biochemical indices for nutrients that are believed to mediate redox-modulatory (antioxidant or pro-oxidant) functions in living tissues," the authors write. "Evidence that subsequent all-cause mortality may be predicted by vitamin C intakes and/or status has been obtained in several previous studies, and similarly for carotene and selenium."Researchers at MRC Human Nutrition Research in Cambridge and University College in London evaluated data from 1,054 participants in the British National Diet and Nutrition Survey, which enrolled men and women aged 65 and older from 1994 to 1995. Blood samples obtained upon enrollment were analyzed for plasma vitamin C, retinol, alpha-tocopherol, gamma-tocopherol, carotenoids, zinc, copper, iron, selenium and a1-antichymotrypsin, a serine protease inhibitor that is increased during inflammation. Four day dietary records were analyzed for the intake of these nutrients and energy intake. The participants were followed through September, 2008 and the causes of any deaths were documented.Seventy-four percent of the men and 62 percent of the women enrolled in the Survey died over the course of follow-up. Increased plasma vitamin C, alpha-carotene, selenium, zinc and iron were signficantly associated with a reduction in all-cause mortality, as was the dietary intake of vitamin C, carotenoids, zinc, copper and total energy. These patterns remained fundamentally similar when deaths from vascular, cancer and respiratory diseases were separately considered, however, increased dietary vitamins C and E were found to confer a significant protective effect against cancer, and dietary vitamin E protected against respiratory disease in males (while carotenoid intake was protective in women). An association of elevated plasma copper and a1-antichymotrypsin levels with increased mortality was explained by the fact that a1-antichymotrypsin and a major copper-containing plasma protein increase during inflammatory states."A number of baseline nutrient status indices with 'redox-modulatory' connotations appear to predict all cause, primary vascular disease, cancer or respiratory disease mortality in older British adults," the authors conclude. "Future studies should attempt to determine, first, which nutrients are the most frequent predictors of all-cause and specific-cause mortality in different populations, and second, whether these predictions can imply causal relationships, such that dietary or other interventions might promote disease-free longevity."
from Natural Health News
Apr 22, 2010
Pomegranate Enhances sunscreen protection Lowers "bad" cholesterol Fights prostate cancer. Pumpkin Protects joints against polyarthritis Lowers lung and prostate cancer risk Reduces inflammation. Raspberries Inhibit growth of oral, ...
Mar 02, 2009
The anti-prostate cancer effects of pomegranate and its extracts may be related to stopping an enzyme in the liver that processes environmental carcinogens, according to a new study. Pomegranate, a rich source of antioxidants, ...
Nov 05, 2008
A few days ago I make a smoothie with pomegranate juice, goji juice crystals, plums, and Concord grapes, plus all my hemp protein and other nutritionals I add in. I even shared a little of this thick, velvety purple blend with my Golden ...
Apr 11, 2009
Red: Lots of Red Onions Skins (boiled), Canned Cherries with Juice, Pomegranate Juice, Raspberries. This information is provided by Creating Health Institute through our Health Matters(c) project.
Oct 01, 2008
Vitamin D, pomegranate, and curcumin may help promote breast health and reduce breast cancer risk. * These foods contain an abundant variety of polyphenols, healthful compounds that regulate cell growth and metabolism. ...


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"Worthy but bland". "Same sausage, different sizes". "Jacked-up Avant models". Audi's crossovers have been called many things by their detractors over the years, though it never prevented them from selling very well. Eventually, though, Audi got fed up and said "Enough!", promising that going forward it would develop a distinct design language for its Q-series models. The Q7 was the first test, and it's pretty much universally agreed-upon that it was a test that Audi failed. So it was with mixture of anticipation and fear that everyone waited for the new, "adventeruous" Q2 to be revealed. Finally, the curtain fell, leading many to proclaim: [Read more…]
Archives for March 2016
European car sales analysis February 2016 – brands
Car sales in Europe continue their double digit growth in February, after a short interruption in January. Sales are up 13% to 1.077.352, the best February score since 2008 and the 30th consecutive month of growth for the European car market as it continues to slowly recover from the severe crisis. As in January, the gains are across almost all of Europe, with only Greece (-32,4%) and The Netherlands (-15%) contracting. The latter is due to a change in taxation of fuel efficient vehicles, which artificially boosted registrations in December, so the Dutch market should normalize as the year proceeds. The big winner is again Italy (+27,3%), once again larger than France (+13%) and now even the #2 market behind Germany (+12%) as the UK (+8.4%) traditionally has a weak first two months of the year as customers await the bi-annual license plate change in March, which usually pushes the UK to the #1 spot that month.
The love is also spread across all manufacturers, as all show growth in February, and the biggest volume loss at brand level is just 1.200 sales. As Italy is boosted, it's not hard to guess which manufacturer is benefiting the most from this growth: FCA is the biggest winner, as it was in January, followed by Volkswagen Group and PSA Peugeot-Citroën. Skoda and especially Audi are boosting the VW Group, as Volkswagen and Seat are among the losers, albeit with small figures. In terms of relative growth, Lotus owner DRB-Hicom once again shoots up, followed by Mahindra&Mahindra thanks to their SsangYong brand, and Lada as its renewed distribution in Germany and Hungary marks the official starting point of a new mission to conquer Europe. [Read more…]
Post-retirement in China, part 3
This is our third installment of our series on car models which continued to be produced under a new owner and a new name in China after having been retired from their original market. In part 1 we discussed the Seat Toledo, Seat Ibiza, MG ZT, MG TF, Rover Streetwise and LDV Maxus and in part 2 the Volkswagen Jetta, Audi 100, Daihatsu Move and Austin Maestro/Montego. In part 3 we'll look at Zotye, a small auto maker based in the Zhejiang province in China that's presently best known for blatantly copying foreign car designs. But Zotye hasn't always taken illegal inspiration from Western designs, they started off large scale production by legally acquiring a number of obsolete platforms and designs from Western automakers, some of which never even made it into full production.
Suzuki Alto 2nd generation (1984-1988) -> Zotye Jiangnan Alto (1988-2013)
The second generation Suzuki Alto, produced in Japan between 1984 and 1988 has proven to be a true evergreen. After its short first life, production moved to no less than four different manufacturers, two of which still continue to sell the model today. The first one was Maruti, Suzuki's own branch in India, which has sold the model as the Maruti 800 from 1986 to 2003. In neighboring Pakistan, Suzuki's local branch Pak Suzuki started production of the Alto in 1988 and still continues to do so today as the Suzuki Mehran.
In China, Suzuki licensed production of the Alto to two manufacturers. Changan Auto, Suzuki's manufacturing Joint Venture partner, produced the Alto from 1988 until 2008 as the Changan SC7080. Simultaneously, Jiangnan Auto produced their own version of the Alto, called the JN Auto. Jiagnan also exported CKD (Complete Knock Down) kits to PSA in Tunisia for local assembly as the Peugeot JN Mini (just over 7.500 assembled until 2003) and to Iran Khodro until 2000 for assembly as the Iran Khodro Alto, to compete with the Saipa Nasim, which was a locally assembled Kia Pride/Mazda 121. Jiangnan was taken over by Zotye in 2009 and the car was renamed Jiangnan Alto or Jiangnan TT. It was marketed at the end of 2010 as the cheapest new car in the world, with a price of 18.800 yuan, or US$ 2,830 at that moment's exchange rates, close to the price of India's Tata Nano. Production is said to have ended in 2013, but new registrations are still reported in 2016. Reportedly as a replacement to the TT, Zotye started production of the Z100 in 2013, which is "coincidentally" a carbon copy of the 7th generation Alto, the one produced from 2009. They've even made an all-electric version of the car: the Zotye Z100 EV. Zotye doesn't have the license for this design, as it's already produced by Changan-Suzuki, but so far they've gotten away with it, which unfortunately supports their decision to stop buying licenses and just copy existing designs. [Read more…]
New York Auto Show 2016: Hits and Misses [w/ poll]
The 2016 New York Auto Show has started, and while it's not as important as the show in Detroit, nor as West-Coast flashy as the show in LA, a handful of automakers still picked it to reveal their new or updated models, or concepts of upcoming models. We've picked the 7 most significant ones and compared notes. Let us know what you think of them in the comments below.
Acura MDX facelift
Bart: Miss
I'm glad they finally ditched the chrome shield in the grille, but the downside is that the MDX has become even more anonymous than it was before. Acura's design is apparently going the complete opposite of that of Lexus, who are getting more extreme with every launch. That probably makes the MDX the perfect minivan-that's-not-a-minivan, so they'll probably continue to sell a ton of them. They also have a hybrid now, with the same system as the NSX. The MDX surely has a lot of good things going for it, otherwise it wouldn't be the #2 of its segment. And yes, the Q7 is shockingly awful and Mercedes hasn't gotten the styling quite right in any of the ML/GLE generations, but I think the X5 beats the MDX in styling, even if for the simple fact that it actually gets noticed.
Kriss: Hit
It's funny, you say "Miss", but I read a lot of good things: "ditched the chrome shield grille", "perfect minivan-that's-not-a-minivan", "hybrid with the same system as the NSX". I had a soft spot for the MDX Mk II, and while the new model is not quite as muscular-looking as that, I think the facelift makes it into a rather handsome car, better-looking than any of the German trio (Q7, X5 and ML). In my mind Acura would do best to emulate the inoffensive Audis of late 1990s/early 2000s, and this fits the bill perfectly.
Post-retirement in China, part 2
After showing you that the first car built by Chery was a first-gen Seat Toledo for which the Wuhu government bought the rights and production line without knowledge of Volkswagen management and without a license to produce cars from the Chinese government, we'll continue with part 2 of our series of cars which continued production in China under a new owner and new brand after they retired in their original market. We'll start with one more SAIC product, one that had already been briefly mentioned in the first article. And that's also one of the reasons why I included it here (also because I just liked the story), even though it doesn't really belong here because it didn't change owner after retirement in Europe and the US.
Volkswagen Jetta II (1984-1992) -> Volkswagen Jetta (1995-2013)
Volkswagen has been the most successful foreign car brand in China, thanks to being one of the first players in the market, as early as 1978. And in 1984, Volkswagen beat Peugeot-Citroën in to set up the first passenger-car production Joint Venture in China when it closed a deal with SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp.) to assemble Santana sedans, a model that would continue uninterrupted production for 30 years. A few years later, in 1990, VW started a second Joint Venture in China, this time with the oldest local car maker FAW (First Auto Works). Because of plunging gasoline prices in North America in the 1980s, US demand for the Volkswagen Rabbit (Golf), Rabbit pick-up and Jetta had decreased sharply. As a result, Volkswagen's Westmoreland Assembly Plant near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was operating way below capacity and a huge loss-maker for the company. The plant was shut down in 1988, and VW subsequently moved the production line to Changchun, China and started production of the Jetta at the end of 1991. The Jetta became famous in China for its bullet-proof durability, helped by the proven 1.6 liter 8-valve engine that would power every Chinese Jetta until 2013. After 21,5 years of Chinese production (29 years since its original launch) and three exterior facelifts the Jetta II was finally replaced by an all-new China-only version that year. [Read more…]
Post-retirement in China, Part 1
We recently wrote about how some Chinese car makers still can't resist the temptation to simply copy existing car designs, a practice that may work in the short term, but won't do their brand perception any favors in the long run. To build a brand beyond a certain threshold, and especially if you're looking to export, you'll need to develop a style of your own. And although foreign car makers are required to work with a local partner if they want to produce cars in China, they'll be less likely to co-operate with a partner known for stealing intellectual property rights. Therefore, not all copying is done illegally. Some Chinese auto makers have bought the design license and sometimes even the entire production line from obsolete foreign models after those ended their original life cycle and production abroad. This practice has happened a lot in the past and continues today, not always with entire designs, but also with platforms, the most expensive part in the development of a car. I'll try to make an as comprehensive list as possible, if you have any more input from platforms I may have forgotten, please let me know!
Seat Toledo I (1991-1999) – > Chery A11, a.k.a. Fengyun or Windcloud (1999-2006), later updated to Chery A15 a.k.a. Cowin, Flagcloud or Amulet (2006-2015)
One of the most interesting stories involves Chery, now a 500.000 annual volume car maker, and Spanish brand Seat. Chery was founded in the mid-1990s by the government of Wuhu in the Chinese province of Anhui. At the time, the central Chinese government restricted the issue of licenses to produce cars to new players, but they would allow the production of engines. But the Wuhu government was determined and had acquired the production line of an outdated Ford engine and moved that from the UK to their province. However, they didn't have any customers to purchase and use those engines, so they decided to contact Yin Tongyao, a former engineer at the FAW-Volkswagen Joint Venture who had worked on the FAW-Volkswagen Jetta. Tongyao struck a secret deal with Seat, whose first generation Toledo (Seat's first model developed under VW ownership, built on the VW A2 platform of that same Jetta, the European Jetta II) was near the end of its life cycle. [Read more…]
Poll result: Audi Q2 was your most disappointing production car of Geneva 2016!
To no one's surprise our readers have named the Audi Q2 the most disappointing production car of Geneva 2016. Of course, this is not the same thing as calling the Q2 a "bad" car – Audi is probably incapable of making a car that's outright bad right now – rather, it's a car that could have, or even should have been so much better. With a styling that's both conservative and seemingly under-resolved, a standard 5-door body and size that positions it alongside the older, but arguably more attractive Q3, and a complete lack of a "want it" factor, the Q2 seems like a giant missed opportunity for Audi to, for once, get ahead of their arch-rivals at BMW and Mercedes-Benz. [Read more…]
Is the US ready for a true value brand? [w/ poll]
For a while us here at Left-lane.com have been in awe of the success of Dacia, the first true dedicated "value" brand (re)started by a major car manufacturer. Sure, Skoda was arguably the first attempt by a major manufacturer to buy a lowly brand and have it slot in at the bottom of its brand hierarchy, but it was never truly positioned as a "bargain" brand. Notwithstanding the Felicia, itself a re-skinned Favorit, all its models have been basically current VW models for some 20% less cash – that's cheaper, but not really cheap. When Renault bought Dacia, on the other hand, it created a line-up of dedicated cars that were based on tried and tested platforms whose R&D costs have long been recovered, thus allowing the models to be sold at a very low price point. Add to that a simplified construction, long-travel suspension that was both sturdy and comfortable, minimal styling and a spartan interior and the first Dacia model, the Logan, was ready to do battle with both more expensive western, as well as long-obsolete homegrown models in the Eastern European markets. But what followed was a success story that exceeded all expectations Renault may have had for the brand – Dacia models became a mainstream hits in Western Europe as well, including in über-demanding markets such as Germany and England.
[Read more…]
China car sales analysis February 2016
Car sales in China are up 3% in February to 1.348.856 units, after growing 11% in January. However, as the week-long Lunar new year holiday moves between January and February, it can influence car sales in those months. Therefore most analysts prefer to compare combined January and February sales to the year before, as it gives a more realistic picture of the direction of the market. And that direction is still up, helped by the continued tax cut on small vehicles (up to 1.6 liter engines). In the first two months of 2016, the Chinese car market has grown 7,75% to just over 3,5 million vehicles. The share of local brands continues to reach record levels, now at 44,84%, up from 39,14% in February 2015 and from the previous record of 43,29% last month. The other trend we've witnessed in the last year also continues: SUVs gain 55% to 1,27 million sales and MPVs add 14% to their volume to 436.000 sales, while sedans drop 13% to 1,78 million sales. If this trend continues, SUVs will outsell sedans sometime in the next year or so.
The Volkswagen Lavida (excluding Gran Lavida) is the only import brand model in the top-5 and trails the perennial leader Wuling Hongguang by a mere 338 units in February, but is still way behind in the first two months. The Haval H6 is under continued pressure from the Baojun 560 for the title of China's best selling SUV, while the GAC Trumpchi GS4 moves into third place of that segment and 10th overall, making it 5 Chinese models in the top-10. The renewed Buick Excelle XT and GT are the fastest growing models in the top-10 and the Buick Envision is the fastest gainer in the top-20. [Read more…]
Poll result: Alfa Romeo Giulia is your production car of Geneva 2016!
When we asked you what your top production cars of Geneva 2016 were we knew the Alfa Romeo Giulia would be somewhere close to the top, but given that the car had been shown a while back (albeit in Quadrifoglio form) we did not think it would top the list. So color us surprised when the Giulia not only took top spot, but was the only car to have figured in more than half of the respondents' top-5 lists! Now, it will be fascinating to see whether all this anticipation translates into success in the marketplace. [Read more…]


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**Creative concept** Because weaving process takes time ... Few people have used this technique to create ... And I, do not want to go with the tide ... Just want to continue this ancient craft !! There are different names, wishing bands, friendship bands, Brazilian bracelets around the world .... With a variety of colors, to create their own unique wishing bracelet ~ Before wearing, make a wish in heart: career, love, health, exam, friendship ... etc When fortunate enough to rope off, that is the wish, the dream come true the moment ... Of course, wishing rope can be worn in addition to the blessing on the wrist, but also worn on the ankle to make modeling extra points! In addition can also be used as a key ring, hair accessories, or tied to the bag when the decoration, both good-looking and practical! 【Production】 The works are customized products, please understand about the need for**7 days of working days (excluding holidays)** 【Feeling error】 This work will be because of the thickness of the line and feel different error, the error range of about plus or minus 1 ~ 2mm 【Material】 France DMC embroidery thread / cotton [Manufacturing methods] pure handmade / Taiwan handmade by black honey horse 【Usage】 Both sides of the spike hit two dead knot can be fixed 【Length】 Within 21cm, the length exceeds the required fee (for each additional 1cm need to charge 15 yuan manual material fee) 【Width】 mm [Color] green, blue Origin / manufacturing methods MIT
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If you're planning to make a New Year's resolution of your own in 2020, you might want to read this first.
Puppies are good for the soul — and for the heart, it turns out.
"Health risks in the future are dire without urgent action," wrote the American Medical Association and dozens of other health organizations.
People who eat more fiber lower their risk of chronic diseases.
Heart disease has long been considered a man's disease. Experts weigh in on how we can change that.
Experts explain how stress, your period, your tastebuds and more affect your salt intake.
11-year-old Sophia Sanchez received news she is finally getting a heart transplant. This comes a week after a surprise hospital visit from Drake.
"You gotta do what you gotta do if you're going to save a squirrel's life."
Austin Eggleston was born with congenital heart defects and needed a heart transplant to survive. After four months on the waiting list, the "Star Wars" fan got good news from a very special Wookie.
Ellen DeGeneres revealed to Jimmy Kimmel that she dedicated a room on the Heart Institute floor of Children's Hospital Los Angeles in honor of his son, Billy.
Which doctor is right? It depends.
"I've broken down I don't know how many times."
Mayo Clinic researchers show that hysterectomy with ovarian conservation is associated with a significantly increased risk
I cannot profess to know why ketogenic diets are the flavor of the week, other than the fact that there always is one of
Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD Physician-in-Chief The Mount Sinai Hospital Director of Mount Sinai Heart New U.S. guidelines for
Comedian Jimmy Kimmel brought his son Billy onstage at the start of his show to make an emotional plea for the future of the vital Children's Health Insurance Program.
Yes, even if you're healthy.
Guest hosts will fill in on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" while he takes time off to be with his family.


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The events that took place in Egypt between January 25 and February 11, 2011 shocked the world, if only because of the veneer of stability created by ex-president Husni Mubarak's regime. When examined carefully, however, the Egyptian uprising that led to Mubarak's ousting and the dissolution of his National Democratic Party (NDP) reveals itself to have been a long-term project. As internet and social media usage rates increase worldwide, more groups and individuals will find themselves in the position of the Egyptians - a people with a newfound ability to express opinions contrary to those of a small ruling elite.
While the role of the media, specifically social media, in the Egyptian uprising has been hotly contested by pundits, the arguments have tended to be too general to accurately judge the value of new media in aiding the uprising. In my article, I wish to better understand the concept of the public sphere as it applies to the modern world. The media landscape has gone through a number of profound changes since the invention of the internet, and the current focus on interaction and participation in the media seems to fit well with the tenets of the public sphere. A society in which exist a healthy sphere for reasoned discussion and civil society can help to expand citizens' political role. If Facebook, along with other social media platforms, was able to expand the public sphere in Egypt, it would represent a crucial political development, as well as strengthen the public sphere theory.
In order to evaluate the role of social media in the Egyptian uprising, I attempt to mine the value of the Facebook group 'We are all Khaled Said,' analyzing the deliberation surrounding one note posted by Wael Ghonim before Mubarak's announcement of resignation. I will filter my analysis through the lens of the public sphere as constructed by sociologist and political scientist Jürgen Habermas in his monograph The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere. Focusing solely on the notion of the public sphere, I look through the comments posted on Facebook and seek out similarities between Egyptians' use of social media and the media Habermas wrote about in his analysis of social movements in Europe, as well as the updated, internet-specific model presented by Yochai Benkler in The Wealth of Networks.
I argue that Facebook does have the necessary components of becoming a place for considered debate and a virtual public sphere, but that users' inexperience with the platform has severely limited this capability. Before looking at Facebook and the public sphere, however, I establish the political and social contexts of the uprising. I focus specifically on the past decade of flawed economic and political policies put in place by Mubarak and his ministers and how this atmosphere was able to make two previously unknown men - Khaled Said and Wael Ghonim - the symbols of the uprising. I then turn to Habermas' conception of the public sphere as outlined in The Structural Transformation, comparing his historical narrative to the virtual public sphere (if it may be so called) created by the Egyptians on Facebook.
Egypt's Economic and Political Regression
The liberalization of Egypt's economy began in the late 1970s by Anwar Sadat in order to spur slowing economic growth rates (Africa News 2010). The next two and a half decades saw privatization of state assets and an abandonment of policies that had supported workers and peasants (Dahi 2010). While bread riots did erupt in Egypt on numerous occasions, as they did throughout the region, the authorities were able to subvert dissident activities by dividing the opposition and cracking down on radicals. Though liberalization and foreign investment in the mid-1980s and early 1990s did help the economy (and especially the military, which was the main beneficiary of foreign investment), the growth rates once again began to fall in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The economic liberalization decreased the power of NDP and the military. As more wealthy businessmen profited from the new economic policy, the state grip on the economy withered, becoming confined to "judicial, legislative and security - rather than economic - issues." (Africa News 2010)
In order to counter its diminishing influence over the economy, the Mubarak regime attempted to consolidate power in other ways. The November 2010 rigged parliamentary elections serve as an example of the NDP's falling legitimacy and the desperate measures the party had to resort to in order to stay in power. Traditionally, voting had been a way for NDP to retain its façade of popular approval. By giving the voters a choice - flawed though it may have been - the regime was able to sacrifice a small number of local seats without threatening the large parliamentary majority it had expected to enjoy. Though the rigging may have deepened Egyptians' disillusionment in previous elections, the blatantly fixed vote of late 2010 came alongside "rising food prices, growing economic disparity, a media crackdown, and a citizenry fed up with police brutality." (Topol 2010)
As the government became more and more detached from the population, cooperation among opposition groups - or, at least, tolerance of one another - grew. This made the state weaker: it became harder to exploit the differences among the secular and Islamist opposition groups. It also made the opposition stronger, as it presented a unified and coordinated front against the regime and made it clear that the stereotypes perpetuated by the regime were nothing but gross propaganda.
Much of this anti-government cooperation has taken place online. Internet usage in Egypt increased in 2002, when the government privatized the sector and ended its monopoly over internet service (Bahgat 2004). Blogging became a popular medium of voicing opinions around 2004 and 2005, and it helped to forge the Kifaya movement - an alliance of opposition groups which called on Mubarak to leave and was against the succession of Mubarak's son to the presidency (Hirschkind 2011). As Charles Hirschkind (2010) noted, "while many of those who write and within the blogosphere are involved in Islamist organizations, and identify themselves on their blogs as members of these organizations, the political language they are developing online departs radically from that used within these organizations."Put simply, the Kifaya movement and the bloggers who supported it played an important part in creating a culture of unified resistance against an authoritarian government that had been able to impose emergency laws for almost three decades. It is little wonder that when the government declared January 25 a national holiday to honor the police - freeing up the population to voice its displeasure - tens of thousands of Egyptians marched in protest.
The protests continued across Egypt for over two weeks, making famous the names Khaled Said and Wael Ghonim. They also raised questions among commenters on the media about the power of social media, specifically Facebook, and communicative action in closed societies. Said's death became a rallying point for many Egyptians, who initially saw his case as a humanitarian (not political) issue that the government had to deal with, but failed. This was the sentiment that Ghonim captured in his posts as the administrator of the Facebook group 'We are all Khaled Said.'
That 'We are all Khaled Said,' along with other Facebook groups and other forms of media, played an instrumental role by helping to organize, document, and publicize the uprising is clear. What my article examines is the role of Facebook beyond that, looking at its potential impact on the public sphere in a country that has experienced decades of political repression and media censorship, limiting critical debate and communicative action. By highlighting the relevant aspects of Habermas' conception of the public sphere, I establish a loose standard to which a forum should adhere, if it is to be considered a space for rational debate.
The Public Sphere, Then and Now
In 1962, Jürgen Habermas wrote The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere, the manuscript that helped to launch a new field of political theory. In his book, Habermas essentially "asks when and under what conditions the arguments of mixed companies could become authoritative bases for political action," (Calhoun 1992: 1). The private individual was a product of a new social order that became possible due to the "emergence of early finance and trade capitalism," (Habermas 1989: 14) which enabled a bourgeois class to separate itself from the individuals ruling the state and dominate certain parts of the economy. This eventually led to the development of civil society, which "came into existence as the corollary of a depersonalized state authority," (Habermas 1989: 19). Market forces helped to solidify the private realm by encouraging interactions outside of state control. They also helped to mold "news itself [into] a commodity," (Habermas 1989: 21) creating a way to popularize ideas that did not necessarily go along with (and in many cases went against) the agenda set by the ruling class.
As Habermas notes, the "medium" of the deliberation between the public and the state was "peculiar and without precedent: people's public use of their reason," (Habermas 1989: 27). It was the best ideas - regardless of the identity of the speaker - were the ones that held the most clout. Opinion was considered, not common, and the participants scrutinized every proclamation. They attempted to distill from a plurality of selfish interests those that were the most universal - "general, abstract [and] depersonalized," (Calhoun 1992: 14). Disagreement, skepticism and criticism were meant to improve the strength of the argument to make it palatable to even the most ardent disbelievers. Habermas goes on to say, however, that this does not mean the transformation of public discourse into a sort of market for ideas, which would imply that some were producers and others consumers, and that some had a disproportional wealth to promote certain ideas - the "laws of the market were suspended as were the laws of the state," (Habermas 1989: 36).
Forums for debate also presupposed "the problematization of areas that until then had not been questioned," (Habermas 1989: 36). When information became, at least in theory, available to all, it also became available to all interpretations, not a single one formulated by the ruling class or the church, thus challenging the status quo. Related to this was the tenet establishing the public as "inclusive in principle," (Calhoun 1992: 13). Habermas does not mean to say that the public sphere was composed of all members of society, but that the availability of information via the market made it theoretically available to all, thus making inclusiveness a necessary (though elusive) condition of the public sphere.
Egypt's public sphere and civil society were weak before the fall of Mubarak, but they were not hopeless. The factors that allowed for the creation of the private individual were present in Egypt, as well. Many people were able to make monetary transactions outside of the realm of the state, but the government still controlled a large part of the economy. Indeed, the most lucrative positions and the ones that offered the best way for advancements - the military and the bureaucracy - were still tied to the state. Only the entertainment industry offered as good of an opportunity for advancement for middle-class Egyptians (Khalil 2012). The class comparable to Habermas' conception of the bourgeoisie was thus within the state, not outside it. Still, Egypt was developing a middle class that, in a way, leapfrogged the Egyptian economy and was establishing itself in the global market; Wael Ghonim typifies this demographic (National Public Radio 2011).
The role of the media in shaping the Egyptian public sphere was important even before the social media explosion. While Habermas 'disapproved' of the mass media, it is important to highlight it here to help understand the Egyptian context. Before the January 25 uprising, Egypt's national channels and newspapers were not actively censored, providing an outlet for those dissatisfied with the regime. This enabled the administration to keep a semblance of legitimacy in the eyes of the international community, which would have condemned outright censorship. However, the regime subjected the media to more subtle pressure and censorship. In 2010, for example, the state-controlled Nilesat company stopped airing 12 private satellite channels that supported the opposition Muslim Brotherhood a month before parliamentary elections (Committee to Protect Journalists 2011). International channels like Al Jazeera (based in Qatar) and Al Arabiya (based in Dubai, owned by Saudi Arabia) are not directly affected by such censorship, though the government decided to black out Al Jazeera's coverage in Egypt during the January 25 uprising (ABS-CBN News 2011).
Despite its seemingly rigid, one-to-many format of information dissemination, broadcast media actually helped to open up debate and promoted various viewpoints. Egypt is a regional broadcasting hub, and it has the highest number of households with televisions in the MENA region (Allam 2010). El Moustafa Lahlali (2011: 66) writes, "the wide range of programmes offered by the Arab media has encouraged debate and rational criticism, which has been missing for so long in the Arab public sphere."Hirschkind's writings support this analysis. He writes that blogging, which emerged several years after Al Jazeera became popular, "allowed for the possibility of linkages, the articulation of shared interest and desires that otherwise would remain hidden, or at least fail to find institutional expression within existing forms of affiliation and political action." (Hirschkind 2010)
The internet allowed for many more people to express their opinions, which often lay contrary to the opinions of the state, but it was not the first medium that allowed for the expansion of the public sphere. In addition to promoting publics and critical-rational debate, television also promoted education and literacy. Habermas does not single either of these out as a positive contribution of mass media, though - especially for illiterate Egyptians - popular media was one of very few sources of education. Before the uprising, the internet and broadcast media, even if they were not acting as a space for rational debate, began to alter the practices of the opposition and invited more deliberation among the citizens.
Though Habermas provides a good starting point for discussing the public sphere, applying a theory that was originally conceived in the context of bourgeois European societies to today's Middle East does not come without a set of challenges. For one, "the terms 'public' and 'private' are conceptualized distinctly in the Western discourse and the Arabic discourse," (Zayani 2008: 71). This is especially true in the case of religion, which Habermas assigned to the private realm, "denying it sufficient visibility within the public sphere," (el-Nawawy, Khamis 2011: 236). Furthermore, though the public sphere theory "rests on a degree of tolerance for difference... the co-existence of different traditions and viewpoints does not always produce symmetrical relationships whereby the better argument prevails," (Zayani 2008: 71). This is true in Egypt, a society marked by old traditions and drastic divides among its people. On top of that, it is unclear whether an Egyptian public with a stronger voice will necessarily demand democracy. As Zayani points out, "the emergence and consolidation of an Arab public sphere does not necessarily herald democracy."
While these are important critiques that the reader must be aware of, I do not deal with them directly in this article. My goal here is to determine whether and how the tenets of public sphere manifest themselves in the specific Facebook group I am examining. It is not inconceivable that a certain aspect of a country's public sphere behaves differently from the rest, and I wish to determine the traits of the public as it manifested itself on Facebook.
Public Sphere and Facebook
In many societies, Egypt included, citizens have been unable to build healthy civil society groups and to engage their peers in rational public debate. Online media are only one aspect of a vibrant society, but they occupy an important place due to their appeal to the middle class and their emphasis on participation, not consumption. I analyze the discussions of the Facebook group 'We are all Khaled Said,' looking specifically for the factors that Habermas deemed to be crucial to the public sphere. Key among these are difference of opinion which leads to considered, not common, goals; a production of cultural as well as political commodities; a disregard of status among the participants and inclusiveness as basic tenets; common interest in truth or right policy; and an attempt to distill personal desires into abstract, universal ideals. I add to this list an important tenet of Yochai Benkler's, that the networked public sphere provides a way for readers and users to verify or refute claims made by their peers, what Benkler calls the "linking and 'see for yourself'" advantage of a virtual public sphere, (Benkler 2006: 219).
In order to conduct my study, I have chosen to analyze a note written by Wael Ghonim and 100 comments to the note. I will begin by looking at the content of the note, moving to the comments thereafter. I decided to focus on the minutia and take a bottom-up approach, drawing cautious conclusions only after having analyzed a specific conversation on Facebook. Looking at a small sample of comments has its limitations, and my research is by no means conclusive. Yet focusing on the details and conversations is required to better answer questions about social media's effect on the public sphere.
Tension in Egypt had been brewing over the course of late January and early February. Ghonim wrote the note that I analyze at 3:00 p.m. on February 11, several hours before Omar Suleiman's brief statement announcing Mubarak's departure. The protesters' demeanor had begun to turn markedly sour after a speech made the night before by Mubarak, in which he announced his desire to stay in power, blamed the unrest on foreign elements, and called on the protesters to go home. The mood in Tahrir and elsewhere was "difficult to define - equal parts deflation, determination, and a mounting sense of pure rage," (Khalil 2012: 259). The sense of blind defiance extended to the pages of 'We are all Khaled Said,' which by that point had evolved from an apolitical call for the investigation of Said's beating to a more directly anti-regime movement; some users began to question Ghonim's allegiance to the revolution due to a misunderstanding.
A rumor began to circulate on the group's wall that Ghonim supported Mubarak staying on in an honorary figurehead position - anathema to those whose demands explicitly included Mubarak's resignation and a promise that Gamal would not succeed his father. This myth came about due to misreporting by the Middle East News Agency, which claimed that Ghonim called on the protesters to leave after Mubarak's speech, when Ghonim actually said this before the speech, thinking that Mubarak was announcing his resignation (Ghonim 2012: 60, 284). The pressure being exerted on him, combined with the fact that he wrote many of his messages emotionally and spontaneously, resulted in a note that was raw and evocative, but also somewhat jumbled. It not only highlighted the divide between new and old forms of media - Ghonim did not clarify his statements in an interview, but chose instead to speak directly to his readers - but also bridged the gap between the virtual and 'real' worlds.
Ghonim (2011) begins by proclaiming that "Egypt is above all," affirming his patriotism, which was questioned by members of the group. He continues to highlight his fight for the revolution up to that point, reminding the readers of his activism for Egypt's freedom and the imprisonment he suffered because of it. His third point speaks directly to the publicness of the group and the concentrated effort of all Egyptians, not just one individual, in the success they protesters had had thus far: "the voice of the people is stronger than the voice of any one person... The people are stronger [than any leader] and the people are now in the streets fighting for their points of view regardless of the point of view of Wael Ghonim."
That Ghonim commends the collective over any individuals is encouraging, but he neglects to mention his readers and the users on 'We are all Khaled Said' as contributors to the revolution. While many Egyptians writing on the page's walls and commenting on each others' posts were also likely to be partaking in the street protests, it is clear that at least some of the people were participating in the uprising solely by expressing their opinions online. This would have been the case with Egyptians (and other Arabic speakers) living abroad. Ghonim's neglecting to acknowledge the role of the individuals who are willing to express their opinion online speaks to the way their contributions are perceived vis-à-vis those actually partaking in the protests.
Ghonim is at once shaping opinion and stating that the opinions of others deserve to be respected, playing the role of the moderator that is reasonable but impartial. As the group's creator, he has the responsibility to encourage a plurality of ideas and establish the ideal that the group's publicness is inclusive in principle. That he promotes his own opinions while also encouraging others' is in itself not damaging to the freedom of the public sphere, as long as those who oppose him are able to voice their opinions. The note's visibility as the main text, however, allows for Ghonim's opinion to be buttressed by the structure of the forum itself. This is problematic but not entirely disqualifying the group from being a virtual public sphere - the pamphleteers and publishers that were important to Habermas were also acting as moderators and filterers of information while (either directly or indirectly) establishing their own opinions on the subjects they discussed.
Facebook's Structural Inhibitions and Benefits
By 3:30 p.m., only thirty minutes after Ghonim published his note, 3031 of the 6003 responses had already been appeared - a rate of around 100 comments per minute, or 1.67 comments per second. This is a huge response and it indicates the importance of the page as a forum. By default, Facebook shows the 50 most recent comments, though users can click and open up the 'pages' of older comments, 50 at a time. At such a rate, those whose comments take five minutes to formulate and type would be ten 'pages' - 500 comments - ahead of where they began typing. The commenters, thus, would have a hard time, 1) identifying where in the conversation they began typing and what was said before the comment that led to their idea; 2) finding any responses to their comments; 3) keeping up with the ideas posted before during the time it took them to write the comment; and, thereby, 4) sustaining a back-and-forth conversation with (especially) one, or more, individuals. Keeping track of all the new comments - if that is what one intended to do - would be nearly impossible during the time the conversation was taking place, making it difficult for all opinions to surface and have a chance to be debated.
Of course, not all comments were analytical enough to take five minutes to compose, the seemingly most common being expressions, "Enough, Wael!" or "I am/we are all with you, Wael." They offer no explanation as to why, or whether, the user either opposes Ghonim or supports him, nor do they reference any of Ghonim's ten points, making it impossible to understand what exactly the commenter's position is on the issues at hand. Those users looking to circumvent the speed issue reposted their messages several times into the comments. This made their viewpoints more prominent by appearing more frequently, which helped to mitigate the issue of speed, as well as the issues created by the overall number of comments, discussed below.
If speed is to be scrutinized, however, its benefits must also be mentioned. Never before in Egypt - or any other place, for that matter - could such a multitude of opinions be recorded in so little time. Had the regime chosen to censor or punish those spreading heretical opinions, the task would have proven Sisyphean. Its monitors would be lost not only in the high numbers of responders, but also at the speed with which the responses were coming in. Recording and deciding which comments were the most egregious requires time - this time may not be long, but it is certainly longer than the seconds it took for new comments to appear. Indeed, targeting the top echelons of online dissent, Ghonim and internet access itself, seems to be the only sensible (but, in hindsight, misguided) solution.
The sheer number of comments presents its own challenges, which are magnified by the speed at which they appear. This criticism is often described as the 'Babel objection' (Benkler 2006: 10). Benkler pinpoints this criticism into three arguments, 1) that large sums of money will have to be spent in order to promote one's opinion, despite the low entry costs to digital publishing; 2) that the readers will fragment and "individuals will view the world through millions of personally customized windows that will offer no common ground for political discourse or action, except among groups of highly similar individuals who customize their windows to see similar things;" and 3) that discourse among these "highly similar individuals" will damage deliberation by polarizing the discourse (Benkler 2006: 234 - 235). As Benkler shows, some scholars have responded to this criticism by highlighting the centralizing power of the internet, in which power law - the tendency for few sties to attract many visitors, and many sites to attract very few visitors - prevails in shaping and few sites are able to draw large numbers of readers. For a central group like 'We are all Khaled Said,' however, the problem of too many voices reemerges once again, on an individual-site scale, rather than internet-wide scale. Examining if and how the three points highlighted above surfaced in the comments of 'We are all Khaled Said' is important, as much of the scholarship pertaining to internet and the public sphere takes them into account.
Regarding the issue of money dominating discourse, the government was one entity with a budget large enough to shape the discourse. It is impossible to tell just how heavily the state monitored the internet, or how much resources the government spent on promoting its own point of view. However, the regime's point of view was not highly prevalent on social media, creating a negligible effect, if any at all. Grassroots campaigns like 'We are all Khaled Said' were not commercially driven. While it takes some amount of time and money to create a group or participate in its discussion, throwing more money at the group's comments would have had little effect on its discourse. If it became apparent that somebody was 'spamming' for his or her own commercial or political benefit, the other users would either oust the party responsible or move their conversation to another group. The readers of the group found the site, despite the fact that Ghonim spent very little money to promote the page and decided to contribute because of their solidarity with the group, not because of a commercial incentive.
The fact that Ghonim began his group as a civil and not political one allowed him to gather more followers than most of the overtly politicized opposition groups. By focusing on a commonality among the Egyptians, Ghonim was able to at once deal with the two other problems proposed by the 'Babel objection.' The initially non-political nature of the group enabled it to recruit politicized individuals of different opinions. It brought them in contact with one another for a common cause, serving as important training that would unite the country during the January 25 uprising. As we will see, the range of opinions expressed on the page did not lessen as the uprising gained steam and Ghonim became more firmly anti-Mubarak. As the political situation in the country became more volatile, the group's members began to express their opinions more clearly and unabashedly. With such a number of competing ideas, it would have been difficult for any user to become more polarized and radical in his or her thinking. Whether or not these ideas were actually 'competing' against each other and judged by the readers on their credibility and strength of argument is the topic of the next section.
Comment Analysis
The comments I have chosen to analyze for what they add to the public sphere are not an entirely random sample. Not knowing the content of the comments, I had no way of being prejudiced in order to support my hypothesis. However, I did decide to look at comments written over an hour after Ghonim's initial post in order to mitigate the effects of the speed problem outlined above. The comments also passed the 'eye test' in terms of their length - there were a few long comments and not as many single-line, simplistic statements either affirming the commenter's solidarity with Ghonim or saying "Enough!" to the protests. The average comment was around 50 words long, enough to formulate a measured response to either Ghonim's note, or to an earlier comment. Of course, those who wanted to express their opinion in a fuller way had the option of doing so and did - the longest of the comments was by user 'Sisters of Saudi Arabia,' who voiced her frustration with Ghonim's interview in 665 words.
The comments showed a wide range of opinions on a long list of issues, from Ghonim himself, to the Egyptian military, to foreign intervention. Of the 100 comments, 35 supported Ghonim, 22 antagonized him, 17 referred to Ghonim but did not make clear whether the user was in support of him or not, and 26 did not address Ghonim at all. 'Shehab Elgendy,' for example, wrote, "The lives of those who are being harmed and those who will be killed in the coming days will be on your neck Wael. It is your fault that this sedition is being spread everywhere. Just stop this already." Others were more specific and less malicious in their criticism. 'Dr. K. Kamal,' for example, wrote, "Wael you are playing with our minds. You need to pick a direction to follow, go either right, or left. But you cannot say one thing and then later on, say something else." Others supported Ghonim. 'Mohamed Nabil Ali,' responding to one of the prevalent themes in the comments, wrote, "Wael, I urge you to ignore those idiots that say that America and Israel will enter our country because they are simply idiots who do not understand anything."
These inflammatory phrases and name-callings, however, did not have an effect on the commenters as they continued to express a wide view of opinions. This is likely due to the detachment from the conversation caused by the medium. The difference between a mass media environment in which the vast majority participate by consuming and one in which they are also able to publish their opinion is stark. In pre-revolutionary Egypt, the detachment from the real world - unrepresentative and authoritarian - only served to encourage ideas and participation in the public debate. There was little government-sanctioned space for any dissent, so it had to move either out of the country, as demonstrated by satellite channels, or online.
Curiously, user 'Rabab Farouk,' after chiding those who claimed that the achievements of the protests to that point had achieved enough, wrote, "So please, if you are simply too lazy to go out and protest, leave it to the bravery of those out on the streets to get us our rights back." The irony in him writing this statement on Facebook is unmistakable, but it is a significant proclamation as it distinguishes between the 'brave' protesters on the street who are calling for more reforms and those who are content with Mubarak's concessions. Farouk, it seems, does not mean to say that all those on Facebook are 'lazy.' He is encouraging people to out to the streets, but his statement makes it clear that it is possible to participate in both spheres, and as long as the message for Mubarak to step down is being promoted.
During the uprising itself, some, though certainly not all, users participated in the protests, creating a bridge between the real and the virtual worlds. The majority of protesters would likely have gone to the January 25 protests had they been active on social media or not. However, the group 'We are all Khaled Said' was instructive and inspired its readers to participate in real-world campaigns. Aside from educating its readers, it also helped to promote cultural production, which the Mubarak regime was previously a patron of. Ghonim often posted pictures of graffiti and cartoons on the group's wall, as well as short YouTube videos and songs. The group became not just a place for expressing opinions, but also a cultural center that resisted Mubarak's rule in its totality. This cultural and opinion production helped the group to have a closer immediacy to the real world than a public sphere shaped by mass media alone.
Calling someone a khain (traitor) seems to be one of the few ways of interaction among the Facebook group's commenters. Indeed, for Habermas a key tenet of the public sphere is that it does "not merely [promote] sharing what people already think or know but [that it is] also a process of potential transformation in which reason is advanced by debate itself," (Calhoun 1992: 29). I found few signs of furthering of ideas and deliberation in the comments I analyzed. Structurally, Facebook's continuous stream of comments - unlike threaded commenting that is prevalent on news websites and blogs - makes it hard to organize and pacify the speed and number problems outlined above. It also makes it nearly impossible to understand who a user is referring to.
The users' online skill level and understanding of Facebook's commenting platform also undermined the potential for a coherent discussion forming. One commenter, 'Aisha Gamal Ibrahim,' for example, wrote simply, "I agree with the opinion you wrote to Wael, but not the comment," apparently referring to another commenter. A more advanced user decided to copy and paste the name of the person to whom he was responding in English, which would theoretically make it easy to find both the original commenter and any subsequent follow-ups. The substance of his reply, however, left much to be desired: "Mohamed Faisal, You are an ignoramus." Faisal did not comment again on Ghonim's note, despite having initially written a relatively lengthy post praising the administrator.
Indeed, the disappearing persona seems to be a recurring theme in Facebook comments. One of the first responses to Ghonim's note was by a man named Sofien. The comment must have been either extremely insightful or inflammatory, as it prompted a number of responses that voiced support for the Egyptian military. As one of the few comments that incited such commotion, I was anxious to read it; unfortunately, it was not there. Perhaps, Sofien did not like the attention he was getting and deleted it; perhaps, he deleted his Facebook account altogether - or was kicked off the website. Another comment, a relatively harmless one written by 'Dr. K. Kamal' had disappeared over the course of my study. Another user, who originally went by 'Tarek Mohamed,' had since changed his name to the more ambiguous 'Commandos Force,' and began toting Gamal Abdel Nasser's photograph as his profile picture.
The group's commenters were also not very keen in returning to the conversation - 477 users contributed more than one comment. The vast majority of those posted only two different comments. Only five individuals posted ten or more unique comments. Overall, of 6003 comments, 79.7% were by users who posted only one unique response (some users copied and pasted the same comment, which increased the comment's visibility but did very little to advance discussion). I do not mean to imply that there were no comments that responded to someone else. The majority of comments that did refer to someone directly, however, were targeted at Ghonim.
Some users did decide to post their opinions to things other than Ghonim's statement, leading to at least the potential for debate of these tangents. While very few people responded to specific users, many more responded to categories of users at a time - "Whoever says that Wael will take the first flight out of Egypt if Israel attacks us...," "To all those who took part in this revolution for the sake of change and for the sake of bringing down corruption...," "How interesting it is that all of sudden people are asking others to calm down..." Due to the large number of comments, the users appear to be keen on targeting strands of ideas and multiple individuals at once. Thus, one user responds to many, in a way replicating the mass media model of the public sphere. Of course, on Facebook, the 'many' can respond, though there seems to be little desire among the commenters of 'We are all Khaled Said' to have back-and-forth conversations. While some did attempt to spur discussion, such efforts were mostly futile, as most readers only posted once and the number and speed of the comments made it difficult to keep up with the conversation.
One way to encourage discussion amid the commenters would be 'electing' representatives who argue on behalf of the masses. This would allow for ideas to be deliberated among few individuals, representing large groups of followers; this structure is the backbone of representative democracies worldwide. While Facebook as a platform does enable 'Likes' - a simple voting tool that does not reveal any insight, but could be used to single out the authors of the top comments - these were not used effectively and tended to favor the earliest comments to Ghonim's note. As the frequency of the comments increased, it became simply too time-consuming to look back into the comments, as the new comments were coming at torrential speeds. Had there been a feature to sort the comments by the number of 'Likes,' it may have been possible to sort out the best arguments and establish the several users whose input was valued the most by his/her peers. Since no such function exists, however, the most liked comments to Ghonim's note are currently hidden among several thousand others.
Complicating the idea of an elected representative is the fact that few people seemed willing to distill their comments to the most basic and agreeable tenets in order to help the discussion. While some did distinguish between personal beliefs and the best course of action for the country, the majority of comments either reflected personal opinions or collective opinions not necessarily backed by the reality of the wide range of viewpoints represented in the group's comments. There is a distinct difference between forming an opinion based on personal experience that can be discussed among many people and assuming that one's opinion applies to all; the overwhelming majority of the 100 comments I analyzed fell into the latter group. Supporting one's opinion with an argument based on established facts - what Benkler called "linking and 'seeing for yourself'" - did take place, but was also underdeveloped.
While linking is theoretically possible in Facebook comments, the practical use of the feature has not kept up to its potential. Ideally, it should provide evidence for arguments, move the discussion forward, establish writers' credibility, and protect against fragmentation. There are only 150 links in the 6003 comments to Ghonim's note, and many of those are the same links 'advertising' other Facebook groups and pages, and YouTube videos. In fact, there were only eight unique links that referred readers to sites other than Facebook and YouTube. Of these eight, five linked users to blogs or forums. Those looking to provide support for their arguments or to educate their peers, therefore, only linked to six articles published in three established organizations, The Guardian, Al Masry Al Yaum, and Al Yaum As Saba'. Few links were used in context, as many of them were posted on their own or with only a sentence or two - hardly enough space for a genuine critique of the contents.
Egypt's economic, communicative, and political developments over the past decade created conditions in which an alternate, underground political sphere would not only thrive, but would be essential for expressing opinions in a non-violent matter. The brutal beating of Khaled Said stood in stark contract with Egyptians' non-violent calls for change in the country and enabled Wael Ghonim to create a virtual space in which people of various political affiliations could unite for a humanitarian, not political cause. As the Egyptians' conditions deteriorated, the group became more politicized - not necessarily backing a specific candidate (even though Ghonim was a supporter of El Baradei), but opposing the current regime. Ghonim's marketing prowess, as well as the structure and the comments on the Facebook group 'We are all Khaled Said,' have shown that while some problems of the mass-media public sphere are scaled back in a networked environment, new ones arise.
As constructed in the comments to Ghonim's note, the most significant benefits of the virtual public sphere that I examined are: 1) the inclusive atmosphere which is impersonal and anonymous enough to encourage responses; 2) the creation of a virtual 'community' that generates not only educational but also cultural products; 3) the ability to use various forms of media to support one's argument, including pictures and video; 4) the ability to see others' opinions on a mass scale; 5) the capability to push a story into the mainstream; and therefore 6) the feeling of contribution to a national dialogue that, in the past, had been limited to only a few individuals.
However, serious drawbacks are also apparent: 1) the speed (as well as the number) of the comments makes it nearly impossible to sort out any continuous thread of ideas; 2) the difference in the level of understanding of the medium makes less advanced commenters incapable of using the platform's full range of tools; 3) the contentious nature of the topic made various personal opinions hard to distill into relatable similarities among the Egyptians, which, while did not fragment the users, made the vast majority of comments too specific or too presumptuous to encourage reasoned debate; 4) the benefit of relative anonymity, which encouraged comments, also made commenters likely to not follow the discussion or read reactions to their post; and 5) the ideal of linked, fact-backed discussion was hardly apparent, as the few commenters that used outside sources linked only to several places.
The benefits and drawbacks outlined above do not fit neatly into the Habermasean tenets of the public sphere. To be sure, there was a considerable variety of opinion expressed among users posting in the comments, both regarding Ghonim and the uprising itself; cultural as well as political ideas were expressed; there was an interest in doing what was best for Egypt and its citizens, though the course of action varied differently; and inclusiveness was a well-established fact, though some users certainly did not express the utmost respect toward those whose ideas were drastically different. On the other hand, there were few attempts to distill personal opinions and desires into universal goals; few used the linking feature and the links that did appear were homogeneous; ideas were rarely debated; and very few people trying to engage their peers into a conversation.
Structurally, Facebook can be an apt platform for a virtual public sphere, but it is not without its limitations. Linking is easy, which gives users the potential to buttress their opinions with credible sources. Facebook also enables readers to vote for the best arguments by 'Liking' them, giving any comment the potential to stand out. However, the problem of the 'disappearing persona' is a keen one. It reduces the amount of trust the users have toward each other and damages the inclusiveness aspect of the public sphere. While the tools for publishing an opinion are relatively cheap and accessible to many Egyptians, the fact that every user is able to delete his or her comment, instead of attempting to support or elaborate it when it is questioned by others, undermines any chance for a coherent debate taking place. This is especially true if the deleted comment was a controversial one, which seemed to be the case with 'Sofien's' missing post. Another structural flaw the constant stream of comments makes it nearly impossible to engage someone in a structured debate. There are ways to circumvent this problem (by copying and pasting someone's name into the comment, for example) and several users did use the platform to its fullest advantage in order to stimulate discussion. The vast majority, however, did not. The detachment from the chaos of Tahrir could have been beneficial to the users; for most, however, it was not, as their (understandably) emotional and rash comments hurt the prospect of deliberation in the comments.
User indifference was hardly an issue, as a range of opinions was expressed and at times quite forcefully. The main issue inhibiting the commenters, I believe, was their inexperience with the medium. While some users left comments that encouraged responses or themselves responded to opposing viewpoints, the atmosphere in the comments was hardly one in which "reason is advanced by debate itself," (Calhoun 1992: 29). The conversations that took place were largely stuck in several simple narratives, with users mainly avoiding confrontation with others' ideas, choosing instead to label them traitors if their opinions were too unorthodox. This atmosphere may have been encouraged by both the violence on the streets of Egypt, as well as the decades of seeing government libel against its opponents in the mass media. It seemed, ultimately, as if the users were looking to broadcast their messages to the greatest number of people, instead of standing behind each comment and attempting to advance the debate by resorting to a rational discourse. It should not come as a surprise that Ghonim - a marketing executive at Google, after all - was perhaps the ideal internet user in engaging the virtual Egyptian public sphere. The way he and co-administrator Abdel Rahman Mansour moderated the page, filtering the news and cultivating a culture of disbelief of the status quo, allowed it to become a virtual community.
But Ghonim can also be criticized for not doing more to shape the community into a sphere for deliberation and for not responding to the users in order to set an example of a back-and-forth conversation. Ghonim's prominence as the note's writer of the certainly allowed his viewpoints and opinions to be the most visible; however, the same was true of the writers and pamphleteers 250 years ago. The difference between the Facebook administrator and the European writers is the medium that they use to spread their ideas and beliefs. Ghonim did encourage some participation, through voting or commenting, and repeatedly stated that his opinion is not the opinion of every protester. He may have been more effective, however, by using Facebook's tools to interact with his readers in a back-and-forth manner, not just creating more lively debate, but also providing an example to the other users.
How Egyptian public sphere will adapt to the post-Mubarak era remains to be seen. While Facebook is a promising tool that may be used for genuine deliberation, it is not yet widespread or familiar enough to influence the country's public sphere at large. It does, however, provide a unique set of tools to the few individuals who are interested in encouraging political discussion. If these individuals can lead by example and promote rational critical debate, Facebook's effect on the public sphere at large, in Egypt and elsewhere, will become more pronounced.
ABS-CBN News 2011. Al Jazeera Shut down in Egypt, Signal Cut. January 30. http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/global-filipino/world/01/30/11/al-jazeera-shut-down-egypt-signal-cut, accessed August 14, 2012.
Africa News 2010. Egypt: Economists Blame 'Neo-Liberalism' for Woes. June 18.
Allam, Rasha 2010. Media Landscape - Egypt. European Journalism Centre. November 8. http://www.ejc.net/media_landscape/article/egypt/, accessed August 14, 2012.
Bahgat, Hossam 2004. Egypt's Virtual Protection of Morality. Middle East Research and Information Project. Spring 2004. http://www.merip.org/mer/mer230/egypts-virtual-protection-morality, accessed August 14, 2012.
Benkler, Yochai 2006. The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom. New Haven, Conn.: Yale UP.
Calhoun, Craig J. 1992. Habermas and the Public Sphere. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Committee to Protect Journalists 2011. Attacks on the Press 2010: Egypt. February 15. http://cpj.org/2011/02/attacks-on-the-press-2010-egypt.php, accessed August 14, 2012.
Dahi, Omar S. 2011. Understanding the Political Economy of the Arab Revolts. Middle East Research and Information Project. Summer 2011. http://www.merip.org/mer/mer259/understanding-political-economy-arab-revolts, accessed August 14, 2012.
Ghonim, Wael 2011. Tawdih kamil li-mawqifi al-shakhsi wa ijabah 'ala kull al-tasa'ulat. [We Are All Khaled Said]. http://www.facebook.com/notes/%D9%83%D9%84%D9%86%D8%A7-%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF-%D8%B3%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF/%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%B6%D9%8A%D8%AD-%D9%83%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%84-%D9%84%D9%85%D9%88%D9%82%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B4%D8%AE%D8%B5%D9%8A-%D9%88%D8%A5%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%A9-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D9%83%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%A4%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%AA/202438139770014/, accessed August 14, 2012.
Ghonim, Wael 2012. Revolution 2.0: The Power of the People Is Greater than the People in Power. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Hirschkind, Charles 2010. New Media and Political Dissent in Egypt. Revista De Dialectologia Y Tradiciones Populares 65(1):137-154.
Hirschkind, Charles 2011. The Road to Tahrir. The Immanent Frame. February 9. http://blogs.ssrc.org/tif/2011/02/09/the-road-to-tahrir/, accessed August 14, 2012.
Khalil, Ashraf 2012. Liberation Square: Inside the Egyptian Revolution and the Rebirth of a Nation. New York: St. Martin's.
Lahlali, ElMustapha 2011. Contemporary Arab Broadcast Media. Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP.
National Public Radio 2011. Muslim Middle Class Plays Role In Egypt Uprising. February 18. http://www.npr.org/2011/02/18/133860407/The-Middle-Easts-Middle-Class, accessed August 14, 2012.
El-Nawawy, Mohammed and Sahar Khamis 2011. Political Blogging and (Re) Envisioning the Virtual Public Sphere: Muslim - Christian Discourses in Two Egyptian Blogs. The International Journal of Press/Politics 16(2):236.
Topol, Sarah A. 2010. Elections Boost Mubarak. Newsweek, December 20.
Zayani, Mohamed 2008. The Challenges and Limits of Universalist Concepts: Problematizing Public Opinion and a Mediated Arab Public Sphere. Middle East Journal of Culture and Communication 1:71.


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Ginger plants are members of the Zingiberaceae family with more than 1,300 species native to various tropical areas worldwide. Ginger is often grown as ornamental plants in gardens and along borders with its green foliage and colorful blooms. It is also grown for culinary purposes. The flavorful roots found most often in grocery stores are from the variety Zingiber officinale. Ginger can be planted outdoors or in containers and, with proper care, will thrive.
Keep the soil where ginger is planted moist, but not soggy from spring until fall. Watering ginger one to two times a week with an inch of water will usually suffice. If the ginger is in a container, water until the water drains out the bottom and discard any extra water that accumulates in the drainage container.
Fertilizer container-grown ginger only. Use an all-purpose houseplant fertilizer and read the dosing instructions on the label. Repeat monthly. Water immediately after fertilizing.
Relocate ginger out of full sun and into partial shade if its leaves are yellowing. If ginger is planted in the garden, plant a tall plant, such as an ornamental grass, about 2 to 4 feet away on the northwest side of the ginger plant.
Move potted ginger indoors to a sunny location before the first frost in USDA zones 8 and colder. In zones 9 and warmer, you can keep container ginger plants outdoors.
Protect garden gingers in zones 8 and colder during the winter months. If you have a garden ginger in zone 8, lay approximately 2 to 3 inches of mulch, such as leaf mold, grass clippings or bark mulch, around the base of the plant to keep it warm. In colder zones, gently dig up the rhizomes after the first fall frost and store them covered in pine bark mulch in an area, like a garage, that is around 55 degrees F. Plant again in the spring after the last frost.
Things You Will Need
- Water
- Fertilizer
- Mulch
More Articles
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- Plant Ginger in Zone 5
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- Care for a Red Ginger Plant
- Care for a Caladium Plant in the Winter
- Grow Curcuma Plants
- Plant Pink Ginger
- Keep a Lotus Berthelotii Plant Green & Healthy


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Statewide Mercantile Services Pty Ltd, (Statewide) ACN 123 231 934 takes our obligations to protect personal information under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) seriously.
The purpose of our Privacy Policy is to explain how we manage personal information, including:
The interaction we have with individuals will be specific to an account and relates to personal information so we need to identify individuals before we can engage in further discussions, correspondence or advice. You will not be able to interact with us anonymously or by using a pseudonym unless the interaction is a general inquiry only and does not in any way relate to an account.
We will not adopt, use or disclose any tax file number, pension number, Medicare number or any other government agency identifier as an account number, but we will assign a customised job number. We will ask for the job reference number every time we interact with you and we will ask you to confirm your personal information before discussing any matter.
Personal information will not be used for the purpose of direct marketing.
Statewide is the field service division of Australian Receivables Limited (ARL) and we collect personal information from our clients, service providers, field agents, public records, customers, solicitors and authorised representatives.
The type of personal information we collect and hold may vary depending on the nature of our interactions and the businesses we deal with and in addition to name and contact details, may include financial information, credit related information, transaction and repayment history information, banking details, employment information, and other identification information.
Statewide will collect and hold name and contact information of all individuals we deal with together with any of the above types of information which are reasonably necessary to provide our services. In order to satisfy our business obligations we may need to retain information after a transaction or interaction has ended. However, we will not retain identifiable personal information longer than is reasonably necessary and permitted under Australian law.
We will only collect sensitive information with the consent of an individual or when permissible under Australian law and will only use this information for a legitimate purpose where this is reasonably necessary.
Personal information is collected from our clients, service providers, field agents, public records, customers, solicitors and authorised representatives we deal with. During our interaction with an individual we will confirm the personal information is correct directly with that individual through the completion of a field services report.
In addition to personal information provided by our clients or that held in public records we may also collect personal information from a third party in circumstances where it is not practical for us to collect it directly from the individual. The type of third party who might provide information to us will vary depending on the nature of the business we deal with and interaction we undertake. It could include:
We understand the importance of protecting the personal information we hold and have taken steps to ensure personal information is free from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access or modification by:
We collect, hold, use and disclose personal information for the lawful purpose of Field Services, such as, but not limited to, process serving, skip tracing, field calls, and repossessions.
Individuals are entitled to access their personal information we hold. Requests should be submitted in writing to ensure we fully understand and are able to respond accurately to the request.
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If for any reason we are unable to agree to a request for access to personal information we will advise in writing. Some examples of why we may refuse a request for access include a request is frivolous or vexatious or, where providing the information:
We aim to keep personal information accurate and up to date. To assist us with this, clients, service providers, third parties and individuals need to provide true, accurate, complete and current information to us. We may also check personal information against public records to try and verify correctness or currency.
If information we hold is incorrect we would like to know so that we can promptly correct the personal information.
In certain situations we may not agree to a request to correct the personal information. If this occurs, we will advise in writing and provide our reason for not agreeing to the correction request.
If you want to make a complaint about our handling of personal information we ask that you contact us first.
We will then follow our Internal Dispute Resolution (IDR) process and endeavour to respond within 20 days. If the matter proves to be more complex we will advise of a revised response timeframe in writing.
Statewide will undertake to work towards impartially resolving the complaint but if you are not satisfied with the resolution provided, the matter may be referred to:
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In order for Statewide to provide our services to our clients we may also disclose personal information to businesses that provide services to us. We require all of these businesses to comply with strict confidentiality requirements and the APPs.
If the nature of our business requires us to disclose personal information to an overseas credit provider, representative acting on an individual's behalf, other service providers and agents, or credit reporting bureaus involved in the business interaction with Statewide , the information will be disclosed in accordance with our obligations under Australian privacy law. It is not practical to list every country in which these recipients may be located.
For statistical purposes, we may collect information on website activity such as the number of users who visit our websites, the date and time of visits, the number of pages viewed, navigation patterns, what country and what systems users have used to access the site and, when entering our website from another website, the address of that website. This information is obtained through the use of 'cookies' (refer below for more information about 'cookies').
Our website may also contain links to other sites. While these links are provided for convenience, if you are navigating these sites please be aware that the information handling practices of the linked websites may differ from ours. While we try to link only to sites that share our high standards and respect for privacy, we are not able to guarantee the privacy practices of other websites.
Whenever personal information is sent via our website we use high security levels to protect it. The security level of a web page can be viewed by clicking on the internet browser's padlock or key icon.
All personal information collected through this site and other sources will be kept private and held with the utmost care. Statewide may use your IP (Internet Protocol) address to help diagnose problems with our server and to administer our website.
Statewide will analyse website logs to improve the relevance of the content featured on the site. While the website logs are IP identifiable, no attempt is made to link them with any individuals that browse the site.
For more information, please see the help section on 'cookies' in your browser software.
A 'cookie' is a packet of information that allows a website to identify and interact more effectively with a computer. Cookies do not identify you, but they do identify your browser type and Internet Service Provider.
Your browser can be individually set to accept all cookies, reject all cookies, or notify when a cookie is sent. If cookies are rejected, there may be limits on how our websites can be used. To evaluate the effectiveness of our website, we may use third parties to collect statistical data. No personal data is collected on these occasions.
This Policy is not a static document. We may make changes and update this Policy from time to time. The current Policy will always appear on our website.
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Restylers, Oppers, Thrift Shoppers, Upcyclers, Vintage Shoppers and Bargain Hunters… this #PFF post is for YOU!!
For those of you who have been AndAndrea Followers for sometime, you know my long-term passion for Opping! You've also seen many of my fab Opping treasures in past posts!! So, this #PFF Runway show might inspire you to head out Opping soon!
This year, the #PFF/Lotterywest Restyle initiative, saw seven of Perth's bloggers go on a month long Op Shopping BINGE! Their challenge was to find 31 oufits…one for each day of the month!
This year to make it even more challenging, the bloggers were given daily prompts such as, Day 17/Neon or Day 30/Jungle Fever. Loads of other Opping devotees joined in the fun and posted their own pics on Instagram and Facebook too. It was a hugely successful lead up to #PFF and a great support to charities such as Anglicare, Vinnies, Red Cross, Salvos and Sammys.
MC Tracy Vo, compared this upbeat show. She was styled in a $24 outfit from Vinnies Retro in Northbridge!
The bloggers wowed the cheering crowd. So, let's take a peek at a few of their favourite outfits on the runway…
Miss Nadine…Modern Girls In Vintage Pearls
Miss Angeline …Lovethread
Miss Adelle… Where The Styled Things Are
Miss Claire… The Harbour Master
Miss Monique… Little Miss Monbon
Miss Brighita…The Kids Are In Trouble
Miss Emily…Vintage Chic
Restylers strutting their stuff!!
Afterwards it was big congrats and hugs all round with special girlies Miss Angeline and MC, Tracy Vo.
If you're enjoying this blog, please share the AndAndrea love. Ta Ta aa xx