text: Is There a God ?Consider this : An archaeologist digs deep into the desert sand and finds a piece of an old clay pot. After his investigations, this archaeologist can tell us, from this little old piece of dusty clay, so much about the civilisation that existed thousands of years ago that produced it; he can tell usabout the types of ovens, temperatues, and dyes that they worked with, the raw materials that they used, and thus assess the level of their artistic skill and technological ability, etc. All this from a small piece of clay lying in the desert. Did this archaeologist ever see the civilisation that produced this pot ? How does he know that it ever existed ? He knows because he saw that the piece of clay was produced by someone who designed it, and shaped it, and had the intelligence to be able to heat it and produce the pot, and not only that, they also had the ability to colour it and make it look beautiful. Design ==> Designer. To the archaeologist the existence and intricacy of the piece of pottery is conclusive proof of the existence, intelligence and ability of the people who made it. Look around you : at the beautiful sunset on a summer evening, at the moon and the stars on a cloudless night, at the water that you drink, at the trees and how they grow from tiny seeds. Think about yourself : your eyes with which you see, your ears with which you hear, your tongues with which you taste and talk, your hands and your feet, your heart and your brain. Consider how these things are so complex in themselves and yet work together in such perfect harmony. From the movement of the galaxies to the complexities of the interaction of molecules, from the dynamics of eco-systems to the intricacies of DNA, all lead to the obvious fact of the existence of the great Wisdom, Knowledge and Power that allows our Universe to exist and function. To any perceptive person the existence and intricacy of creation is conclusive proof of the Existence, Knowledge and Wisdom of the One who creates, organizes and sustains it. Most people naturally recognize the existence of the Creator, and we find reference to the Creator in all cultures and religions. Even the atheists, communists and (disbelieving) scientists cannot avoid this reality, but avoid the term 'creator', for phrases like 'Mother Nature' and 'the amazing way nature has designed...' How strange in the face of this, that many today reject the belief in the existence of the Creator. Perhaps this is due more to fashion and the desire to justify a materialistic attitude to life rather than real observation and comprehension of reality. Something stranger still, and perhaps another reason for the trend to deny the Creator, are those who claim that a man, or men, who walked on the earth, breathed air, who had bodies and souls subject to the Laws of the Universe, are the Creator, or manifestations of the Self-Subsistent One. This is of course a complete contradiction in terms. Something cannot be the Creator and created at the same time, needing air, food and drink and being self-sufficient, being temporary and eternal! If you are one of those who believe that a man such as Buddha, or Krishna, or Jesus is the Creator and Controller, then think again! We were created from a drop of despised fluid, in which was a microscopic sperm, which fertilised a microscopic egg and we grew in our mother's womb in stages predetermined, over which we had no control. We came from our mother's womb, urinating and defecating, needing constant attention and care. Without food we will die, without air we will die ... and then such a one is God? Indeed any intelligent person would recognise exactly how dependant life, the universe and everything is on its Creator. Our dire need for His help makes itself plain in times of great distress. Imagine yourself in an aeroplane and you know it is going to crash... Who do you turn to for help then ? Or on a ship in the sea, thrown helplessly up and down by towering waves ... There will have been a situation at one time or the other in your life when you called upon your Creator alone, forgetting everyone and everything else, hoping, trusting, wishing that the Being you know in your heart and soul that has power and control over all things would help you. The only One you know can save you! O creature of God, contemplate upon these verses: " Behold! In the creation of the Heavens and the Earth; In the alternation of the night and day; In the sailing of the ships through the Oceans for the profit of mankind; In the rain which God sends down from the skies, and the life that He therewith to an earth that is dead; In the beasts of all kinds that He scatters through the Earth; In the change of thewinds, and the clouds which they trail like their slaves between the sky and the earth - Indeed these are signs for a people that are wise." [The Qur'aan 2:164] "It is He who has made the sun a shining glory and the moon a light of beauty and has measured out their stages, that you might know the number of years and their reckoning. Allaah did not create this but in Truth. He explains His signs in detail for people who understand. [The Qur'aan 10:5] "He has created the heavens and the earth with Truth. Far is He above having the "Blessed be He who sent down the Criterion to His servant that it may be an admonition to all creatures. To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth; no son has he begotten, nor has He any partner in His dominion; It is He who created all things and gave them their due proportions. Yet they have taken besides Him gods that can create nothing but are themselves created; that have no control of hurt or good to themselves; nor do they control life nor death nor Resurrection." [The Qur'aan 25:1-3] "Were they created by nothing or did they create themselves?Or did they create the heavens and the earth? No, they have no firm belief." [The Qur'aan 52:36] "He it is who enables you to travel through land and sea, until, when you are in the ships and they sail with a favourable wind and you are glad about that. Then comes a stormy wind and the waves come to you from all sides and when you think that you are encircled by them, you call upon God making your faith pure for Him alone saying :'If You deliver us from this we shall truly be grateful.' But when He delivers you, behold! you rebel in the earth wrongfully. O mankind, your rebellion against God is only against your own selves - a brief enjoyment of this wordly life, then in the end unto Us is your return We shall inform you of that which you used to do." [The Qur'aan 10:22-23] |


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The Environmental Protection Agency and the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing have signed an agreement to raise awareness of environmentally friendly products and solutions to address America's environmental challenges. The agreement will provides NASCAR with EPA technical assistance and environmental expertise, using EPA programs like Design for the Environment and the Economy and Energy and Environment framework to help protect Americans' health and the environment.
"Because NASCAR is followed by millions of passionate fans and many businesses, it can be a powerful platform to raise environmental awareness, drive the adoption of safer products by more Americans, and support the growing green economy," said Jim Jones, EPA's acting assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. "The EPA and NASCAR partnership attests to the progress NASCAR has already made on environmental stewardship through greener fuel choices and multiple recycling initiatives for waste and automotive fluids, and highlights opportunities to further these efforts."
"This MOU is a great example of NASCAR's commitment to green innovation and our role as a leader in sustainability," said Steve Phelps, Chief Marketing Officer of NASCAR. "Even with the largest sustainability program in sports, NASCAR – along with our teams, tracks and partners – continues to create innovative platforms to help reduce the environmental impact of our sport."
One of the areas of focus for the partnership is promoting safer products that have earned EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE) label. The Design for the Environment label helps consumers and businesses identify products that perform well, are cost-effective, and are safer for the environment. NASCAR can make a difference by using DfE products at racing events and conveying to fans that choosing DfE products is an easy choice they can make to protect the health of their families and the planet.
Another example is NASCAR's offer to encourage its suppliers to get an "E3 tuneup"-- to increase productivity, reduce the use of energy and materials, lessen environmental impacts and be better positioned to compete in the global marketplace. The E3 initiative – Economy, Energy and the Environment -- helps promote sustainable manufacturing and economic growth throughout the United States. E3 can help improve the profitability and competitiveness of these businesses, which can help create higher-paying skilled manufacturing jobs.
This MOU will pave the way for other opportunities and areas of focus for EPA and NASCAR such as sourcing more sustainable concessions at NASCAR events, expanding the use of safer chemical products, conserving water, reducing waste and promoting recycling. By working together to foster more sustainable behavior, addressing sustainability challenges and seizing on E3 opportunities, a greener NASCAR and NASCAR supplier network will have positive economic and environmental impacts that extend far beyond the racetrack.
This free educational webinar will provide a detailed process for climate-driven "pre-response" in a variety of key areas including: Supply Chain Disruptions, Employee Safety and Productivity, Regulatory and Compliance Risks …and many more areas.

subset: commoncrawl


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We're a small shop running Google Apps (Enterprise) for our email needs. Love it. Internally, we're using Windows AD (2003). No complaints there either.
I'd like to get some method of SSO going between AD and Google Apps such that AD is the only place my folks have to manage (and periodically CHANGE!) passwords.
I've looked over google's "tfm"s in the past, but I guess I just don't quite get it. Has anyone does this? If so, would you be willing to share how? Can it be done without a huge amount of complexity and expense?


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More information about the Kinsmen Aquatic Centre Activity Guidelines can be found in the current KAC guidelines document (PDF).
For additional information please contact the Aquatics staff by phone at 403-782-1278, or via email email@example.com.
Show All Answers
The following municipal amenities & facilities are OPEN to the public:
The following municipal amenities & facilities are Affected by COVID-19 restrictions:
Residents are encouraged to follow social distancing guidelines (keeping a distance of at least two metres/six feet) from others, and practice good hygiene (washing hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, covering coughs, and not touching your face with unwashed hands).
Find out more on how you can help stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Most City facilities remain closed to the public including the LMC, the Gary Moe Auto Group Sportsplex, the Kinsmen Aquatic Centre and the Lacombe Memorial Centre.
City Hall staff can still be contacted by phone at (403)782-6666 or email at firstname.lastname@example.com
The Lacombe Police Station will be open; however, there is limited public access. Please call the service at (403)782-3279 for general assistance. For emergencies dial 9-1-1.
Residents are encouraged to access City services remotely. If you have a City of Lacombe online utility account you may login and make a payment with:
Your credit card
Property taxes can be paid via:
For information or forms regarding utilities, business licenses, building/development permits or other municipal services, please email:
1. Utility Payment Deferral (3 months) Effective April 2020, the City is suspending late payment penalties on utility accounts. This will give residents and businesses a 'grace period' of three months where utility payments can be deferred, after which they have six months to repay the deferred amount. You only need to contact the City if you are on a Pre-authorized Payment Plan; however all ratepayers are encouraged to pay any amount they can in order to minimize utility carry-over payments. To sign up for the program if you are on a Preauthorized Payment Plan, or for more information, call (403)782-1265 or email firstname.lastname@example.com. 2. Tax Installment Payment Plan System (TIPPS) Property Tax Payment Deferral (3 months) This program will give property owners the opportunity to defer their TIPP payments for a maximum of three months (April, May, June), beginning April 2020. If owners miss the April deadline to defer, they can still sign up and defer their May and June payments. When payments resume in July, they will be adjusted to the appropriate amount needed to have the balance paid off in full by December 31, 2020. To sign up for the TIPPS deferral, or if you have questions about the program, please call 403-782-1257, email email@example.com, or access the form "Tax Installment Payment Plan Deferral Form" online. 3. Property Tax Deadline Deferral (6 months) The City is moving the property tax deadline from June 30 to December 31, 2020, to provide cash flow relief to residents and businesses financially impacted by the pandemic. Please note that property tax notices will be mailed out in May for those wishing to pay by June 30. Please Note: Item number 3 applies only to residents and businesses who pay directly the City of Lacombe after receiving their tax notice. It does not apply to financial institutions that remit property tax payments to the City of Lacombe on behalf of property owners. Those who wish to defer tax payments made with their mortgages need to contact their financial institutions. For more information, please call 403-782-1257 or email email@example.com. Staff are available to answer any questions you may have:
If you have symptoms, recently travelled outside Canada, or were exposed to someone who has COVID-19, stay home and self-isolate, take the COVID-19 self-assessment and call Health Link 811 if instructed. Do not go to the ER or clinic. If you need immediate medical attention, call 911 and inform them that you may have COVID-19.
Together, we can slow the spread of COVID-19 by making a conscious effort to keep a physical distance between each other. Social distancing is proven to be one of the most effective ways to reduce the spread of illness during an outbreak.
This means making changes in your everyday routines to minimize close contact with others, including:
Who should self-isolate?
You must self-isolate for 14 days if you:
If you become sick, you must self-isolate for 10 days from the beginning of any symptoms or until you are feeling well, whichever takes longer. If you have symptoms, like a dry cough, fever, fatigue or difficulty breathing:
The outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) may be stressful for people. Fear and anxiety about a disease can be overwhelming and cause strong emotions in adults and children. Coping with stress will make you, the people you care about, and your community stronger. Here are some links which might help you or someone you know.


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There is a resurgence of activity in Menemsha this summer, and it is all related to getting seafood from the boats to the consumer. Every morning, visitors to Menemsha find fishing boats going in and out of the harbor. In the late morning they return from the fishing grounds laden with product. Boats come in loaded with fluke, also called summer flounder, caught in nearby Vineyard Sound. There are boats coming in with bluefish, caught west of Gay Head. Yesterday, with the opening of the commercial striped bass season, there are now more opportunities to eat locally-caught fish.
Menemsha is always a fairly busy fishing port, but this summer is different. There is a bigger shift in the commerce of moving locally-caught seafood than there has been in quite a few years. Alec Gale and Tim Broderick have turned a corner in their wholesale seafood establishment, Menemsha Fish House, which has been buying and shipping seafood to the mainland for several years. Even they agree this summer is different. They've got more boats delivering a diverse product, and that means they've got more to share with their customers.
During the quiet of last winter, the Menemsha Fish House interior got a facelift, including a new 20-by-15-foot refrigerator and an ice-making machine installed a year ago.
Mr. Gale said the company is growing and now shipping their seafood to the mainland entirely through the use of trucks. They've also hired Ty Rossi, as their business manager, and he's also looking for local outlets here on the Vineyard.
Many of us recall years ago when there were more fish markets on the Island, and they all sold a lot of Island-harvested product. Fish of all sorts were plentiful and there was an equal match of shellfish.
Beginning about 30 years ago, locally harvested seafood dwindled, for a lot of reasons. There were declines in stock and significantly more restrictions on what fishermen could do while they were on the water. Competitive markets from abroad stepped in and offered a different product. Local fish markets made adjustments to keep a consistent flow of fresh seafood: They got seafood from around the globe.
It was reported back then and it can still be said today that more seafood is landed on the Vineyard by the Steamship Authority ferryboats than by our local fishing boats.
But there is again a shift, and local is back. The resurgence of interest in locally-grown vegetables and produce is having a positive impact on the seafood community.
Many fish are either on the road to recovery or are just more plentiful. There appears to be a healthy energetic shift back to locally-harvested Island seafood, and it is occurring with some new additions. Oysters are being raised and marketed by fishermen. Locally raised blue mussels are about to have a bigger part in our local diet. There is a resurgence in local fluke, more recently referred to as Vineyard Sole.
Striped bass are here and in sufficient abundance that you can count on seeing them on ice in every local fish market. The commercial season will continue, hopefully, well into August.
"We want to see more local fish in Vineyard markets," Mr. Gale said on Tuesday after unloading 300 pounds of freshly-caught fluke from one of the fishing boats tied up at the dock.
Mr. Gale's successes are tied to one Vineyard customer at a time. He said more and more restaurants and markets are taking his locally-landed product. "More and more are discovering they can eat good Island fish," Mr. Gale said. Mr. Gale said he is delivering to the Homeport Restaurant in Menemsha and the Beach Plum Inn nearby. He is also delivering seafood to State Road Restaurant of West Tisbury, and Fishbones Grille and Waterfront Cafe in Oak Bluffs, among others.
"I know this sounds crazy," Mr. Gale said, but in the past there were restaurants serving frozen fish from the mainland.
An example of change: The fish house where Mr. Gale operates his business was built nearly 20 years ago by Louis Larsen of the Net Result fish market in Vineyard Haven as a storage facility for locally-caught live lobsters. There were plenty of saltwater tanks. Often times during the season, the lobstermen unloaded more lobsters than could be bought locally. Mr. Larsen's house got a nickname as lobster hotel, a place where lobsters waited until they went to the store. Through the years, the numbers of landings of lobsters dropped.
This summer Mr. Gale reintroduced Mr. Larsen's old idea. There is a small space, considerably smaller than before, where Mr. Gale keeps recently caught lobsters in saltwater tanks for delivery to the markets. "We are starting to take in lobsters that are locally caught," he said. Mr. Gale is getting shellfish, mostly steamers and little necks, from five people. "I am doing shellfish this year," Mr. Gale said.
There is another good sign on the waterfront. Fishermen are coming from afar to catch and to unload their fish in Menemsha.
Capt. David Dutra, 67, of the fishing boat Richard & Arnold, is from Truro and he has been selling his fluke in Menemsha. "I've been coming here for years," he said. The boat is one of the last eastern rig fishing boats around. She was built in 1924 for Frank Parson of Provincetown. The boat is named after his two sons. "He told his sons they couldn't go fishing on the boat," the captain said. Instead, the two went into handling fish. Mr. Dutra has owned the boat for 32 years. He fishes off Cape Cod and in the waters from here to Montauk.
Fluke Fishing Tournament
One-hundred and six fishermen competed in last weekend's fluke tournament, hosted by the Veterans of Foreign War Post 9261. Peter Herrmann, organizer of the event, said that the anglers had a good time, though he said he would have liked to see the fish weighed-in bigger. The weights were not significant.
The following are the results. Teen fishermen: 1, Luke O'Toole, 3.0; 2, David Packer, 3.0; 3, Chris Perry, 2.8 pounds. Men: 1, Roy Hope, 7.3; 2, Jim Choinere, 5.9; 3, Rick Harvey. Women: 1, Bev Bergeron, 4.5; 2, Emily Williston, 2.8; 3, Kris O'Brien, 2.7. Fishermen twelve years and younger: 1, Charlotte Packer, 3.4; 2, Corbin Buchwald, 2.6; 3, Dylan Kral, 2.2; 4, Tate Buchwald, 1.9; 5, Nathaniel Packer, 1.9.
There were special black sea bass awards: for an adult: Jim Choinere, 5.2. for a junior 12 years of age and under: Charlotte Packer, 3.4. The winning team: Todd Stempier, Steve Barron and Jim Choinere.


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My first brew is almost ready for bottling. Winter is pretty much non-existent where I live, so "room temperature" is typically between 74°F and 78°F (23°c to 26°c).
I was planning to leave the bottles in the thick cardboard boxes they originally came in and covering them to keep the light out and avoid shrapnel from any hopefully unlikely bottle bombs.
Can I do this for 2-3 weeks and then start refrigerating whatever I plan to drink soon, or should I really look for a way to keep them at lower temperature throughout the bottle-conditioning phase?


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Lucky Pooch Survives 11 Mile Drive After Being Stuck in Grill of Car
This adorable six-year-old Bichon Frise/Poodle mix named Suzie clearly has nine lives or a guardian angel on her furry shoulders: William Muggle of the East Providence Animal Control tells the harrowing tale of how the little pooch survived an 11 mile drive from Massachusetts to Rhode Island while being stuck in the grill of the car.
Thankfully, the owners have recently been located and Suzie is happily back at home, with the pieces of the puzzle finally falling into place: she escaped from their home, darted out in front of a Toyota Camry going 50 mph on Route 44 in Taunton, Mass., got hit and wedged herself into the space between the license plate and the grill. The driver assumed he had missed her, but it wasn't until another driver got him to stop the car did he realize that he had an extra furry passenger with him.
Despite a stay at the vets and then East Providence Animal Control Center, Suzie is incredibly lucky for the fact that she had no broken bones or internal bleeding. Aside from a minor concussion and a few bumps and bruises, the fluffy little dog has no serious or long-lasting injuries that would affect her quality of life.
In the end, both the owners and Suzie got the happy ending they deserved: when she was reunited with her family, in true Bichon/Poodle fashion she started dancing on her hind legs and giving them kisses. It's a heart-warming ending to what had to be an anxiety-causing tale for her poor owners.


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Consider a planar point process $X$ and call $N_A = \text{Card}\big( X \cap A\big)$ the number of points inside the subset $A \subset \mathbb{R}^2$. If one knows the law of $(N_{A_1}, \ldots, N_{A_r})$ for any sets $A_1, \ldots, A_r$, then the process is completely characterized. I recently learned that it in fact suffices to know $f(A)=P(N_A=0)$ (called the void-probability function) for any set $A$ in order to completely characterize the law of $X$.
Intuitively, I do not understand why such a result is true. Indeed, the knowledge of the function $f$ brings some information in the correlation structure of the process $X$: nevertheless, I still fail to understand how the function $f$ can encode the whole correlation structure of the process. Any thoughts on this ?


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Autolayse + Stretch and Fold
Hi, I have been looking a lot on your site and got excited by the idea of "autolayse". Wheat is naturally water resistant so the idea of letting it sit and soak is great. While trying to fully understand how autolayse works I ran across "stretch and fold" which also sounds wonderful. The idea of slowly stretching and folding rather than the hard work of kneading it by hand (I don't have a mixer). I would like to know how to use these methods with all my bread baking. How can I take recipes that my family and I already like and incorporate the autolayse and stretch and fold methods? Does anyone know more about one or both of these methods. I have been searching the web and all I can find are definations and a several descriptions of how wonderful the bread looks. There must be some basic formulas for both of these methods.


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10 Misconceptions About Our Bodies That Many of Us Still Believe
Ten Countries That Weren't Countries for Very Long
10 Stunning Ancient Ruins to Explore in 2024
10 Landmark Cases of the International Criminal Court
Top 10 Times Sci-Fi Forgot to Use Science
10 Stories That Prove Animals Are True Masters of Mischief
10 Unique Musical Instruments You'll Want to Hear
10 Ungilded Realities of Life in the Gilded Age
Top 10 Best Drumming Performances of All Time
10 Fossilized Animals Caught in the Act
10 Misconceptions About Our Bodies That Many of Us Still Believe
Ten Countries That Weren't Countries for Very Long
Who's Behind Listverse?
Jamie Frater
Head Editor
Jamie founded Listverse due to an insatiable desire to share fascinating, obscure, and bizarre facts. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author.
More About Us10 Stunning Ancient Ruins to Explore in 2024
10 Landmark Cases of the International Criminal Court
Top 10 Times Sci-Fi Forgot to Use Science
10 Stories That Prove Animals Are True Masters of Mischief
10 Unique Musical Instruments You'll Want to Hear
10 Ungilded Realities of Life in the Gilded Age
Top 10 Best Drumming Performances of All Time
Top 10 Zombie Apocalypse Conspiracy Theories
News about the zombie apocalypse is everywhere! It is a subject of discussion all across the Internet and in real life. People are preparing themselves for the first wave and paying close attention to the news for the pending outbreak. On a more serious note, this list looks at some of the many conspiracy theories that have arisen over the years with regards to zombies and the zombie apocalypse.
It is no secret that Nazis, with their modern, "perverted science," as Churchill phrased it, feature prominently in conspiracy theory origins. It is also no secret that Josef Mengele devised some awesomely grotesque, despicable experiments carried out on Jewish guinea pigs. He repeatedly broke children's limbs in the same place to see how long it would take before the bone simply would not heal. He performed irradiation of victims, then vivisections without anesthesia to study organ damage. He also liked to harm identical twins, to study whether one felt the other's pain.
Conspiracy theorists – taking into account these surgeries, as well as Hitler's and Himmler's fascination with the occult and the supernatural – have concluded that there was a cooperative intent on creating zombies out of the captured Jews, Gypsies, et al. The conspiracy theorists believe that the Nazis intended to kill their bodies and most of their minds, leaving only the base functions of the cerebellum intact. Such people would serve two purposes; namely obeying the Nazis' every order without hesitation, and showing the world the apparent inferiority of all non-Aryans. What the Nazis didn't finish, it is understood the U. S. government will, drawing on Nazi research.
Mentioned in detail on a previous list, the Dulce Base is held by conspiracy theorists to be a secret underground medical research facility operated in part by aliens, whom the government allows to do what they want in exchange for advanced technology. Their research involves creating animal hybrids, like the minotaur and the centaur, by sewing dead animal carcasses together and then resurrecting them.
This subset of the theory contends that the aliens are also manufacturing human zombies, like Frankenstein's monster, and that the government is, unbeknownst to the aliens, researching methods for growing either bacteria or a virus that can infect ordinary living humans and turn them into "the walking dead," as it were. The infectious agent ties in with several other entries on this list.
This is no joke. In 1994, the Air Force, possibly in conjunction with the CIA, spent $100,000 of taxpayer money researching the feasibility of using homosexuality as a weapon. Their concept was to aerosol female sex pheromones over an enemy army, which might cause the soldiers to lose control of their libidos and have sex with each other. The U. S. military would then be able to overrun them more easily.
When this hit the Internet, the Air Force was ridiculed, but before you join in the banter – consider the principle behind this fact. Theorists are of the opinion that this idiotic "gay bomb" proposal was desperately idiotic, as in meant to distract the public from even more taxes funding some other top-secret research program. If the U. S. military is willing to investigate the psychoactive effects of human sex pheromones, it is no longer a giant leap to the investigation of infectious, psychoactive bacteria or viruses designed to kill every part of a person except the cerebellar functions. And if word of this investigation leaked, the Air Force could always act the part of the idiots they would once again appear to be.
In the same vein as #8, theorists strongly contend that rabies is the virus whose effects on the central nervous system most closely match the popular concept of the zombie. In fact, 97% of the world's human rabies infections occur via dog bites. It has been all but eradicated in most countries with modern medicine. But the government has stockpiled every disease that has ever existed in varying amounts. This is defended as studying disease mutations to prepare for the worst.
But if we have rabies vaccine stockpiles, why do we bother keeping the disease? There is only one known strain of rabies virus, and it kills by only one method, inflammation of the brain (encephalitis). It is 100% fatal without treatment, and in the lead-up to death, causes the victim to go insane. Violent acts may or may not occur, but the person is no longer himself. He is something else.
If it were possible to keep such a person alive, his brain damage would be irreversible and almost total. Only the cerebellum would remain unscathed. If the cerebellum is inflamed, the person dies. Thus, theorists claim, the very existence of stockpiles of this virus proves the government's intent to weaponize it, and the result can only be the complete "zombification" of human beings.
This is an ancillary theory to the imminent outbreak of the zombie virus. The government's official explanation for the recall of all American military personnel from hostile countries is the de facto end of war on terrorism. "We got Bin Laden," they say. "Why stay any longer? The war's over. We win."
Well, the war is not even close to over. Splinter cell terrorism is global and al-Qaeda, for one, still has its leaders, primarily al-Zawahiri. With Hamas and Iran as open, growing threats to Israel, the U. S. strangely appears to be abandoning its Jewish ally. The real reason for our military's sudden return to full strength at home is, of course, hush-hush. It has to do with the government's knowledge of an infectious agent capable of killing and then reviving humans as mindless cannibals. The troops are abandoning foreign terrorism and being brought back in anticipation of the agent escaping into an urban environment.
Earlier this year, the Social Security Administration touched off a media firestorm when they were discovered to be buying well over 200,000 rounds of hollow-point and hydra-shok pistol ammunition in a single purchase. The SSA has its own, self-governed police force, paid to protect the SSA offices and personnel. Millions of citizens, especially those over 65 years old, demanded to know why. It appeared that the SSA was preparing for a major incident of self-defense, but their official explanation was that their police force required ammunition to practice at gun ranges, that the order had nothing to do with anticipating any impending disaster.
The public didn't buy this answer, remarking that ammunition for target practice is almost always full metal jacket, which is much cheaper. Hollow point ammunition is about $1 per round. Hydra-shok rounds are hollow points with extra barbs inside, and are extremely expensive, averaging about $80 for a box of 50. The two rounds are designed for extra stopping power, and are wasted on paper targets.
Conspiracy theorists, of course, make the next giant leap, claiming that emails were leaked to the SSA from another department of the government concerning an imminent danger of civil unrest. This will be precipitated by the collapse of the nation's infrastructure due to a compromise in the security of a military research program on infectious diseases classified above top-secret. It is understood that many departments of the government are making such preparations and that the SSA is the only one that has been caught doing so.
The most well known type of this viral disease is nicknamed "Mad Cow Disease." There are thousands of strains of encephalopathy, and many of them can be transmitted to humans. Humans are very rarely infected – about 1 in a million per year – but the disease is 100% fatal and there is no known cure, vaccine, or treatment. This is where conspiracy theorists shout, "Military value."
Their claim is that the military has long been hard at work researching methods by which to infect enemy soldiers with any of a number of these encephalopathies. They all operate in the same way, deteriorating the tissue of the brain by eating tiny holes through it. The brain eventually looks like swiss cheese, and the person's mental state consequently degenerates into dementia and quite frequently aggressive violence. If the infection eats through the centers of the brain that control ethics, the person no longer acts like himself, but like a monster. The last part of the brain to be invaded is invariably the cerebellum, thus maintaining life for as long as possible.
And what does human-to-human transmission require? Only a bite.
Stem-cell research is a great idea. In a nutshell, stem cells can divide into any specialized cells and can automatically propagate more cells. Thus, they could, in theory, be used to cure incurable diseases, such as Lou Gehrig's Disease, cerebral palsy, maybe even HIV; and most famously, they can be used to regrow nerve tissue, enabling quadriplegics to walk again. The latter is a reality since 2003, when a simple injection healed a Korean paraplegic; within 3 weeks, she was standing and walking for the first time in 19 years.
But conspiracy theorists are quick to argue that thanks to stem cells, the leap to the undead is just a baby step, given the medical establishment's official boast of immortality by the 2030s. Theorists claim that stem cells are the final step in realizing the horror fantasy of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. In her novel, the only two details missing from the operation to resurrect a dead body are how to reconnect nerve tissue, and how to counteract brain death. A defibrillator can only revive a person if the brain's cells are still alive. To this end, the government is actively researching the value of stem cells in reanimating dead brains.
If stem cells are injected into one, they can assume the form and operations of neurons, most importantly those of the cerebellum, which controls all involuntary functions of the body. Only the centers for walking and balance would be revived, enabling brain life while providing only a single effective target; such a resurrected corpse could be shot in the heart and keep attacking. And if stem cells can be used to cure incurable diseases, theorists maintain that they can just as easily be used to create infectious diseases.
Here is a true story of a zombie, Clairvius Narcisse. He was born in Haiti in 1922. Details of his death or current whereabouts are not widely known, but on 2 May 1962, he was found unresponsive in his home and presumed dead, buried, but exhumed by unknown parties as punishment for breaking a Haitian code of honor.
He was administered regular doses of jimson weed, which causes extreme hallucinations and a form of hypnosis, under which influence the user will obey any order. Narcisse was enslaved on a sugar plantation until the owner and the witchdoctor controlling Narcisse died, after which he was given no more doses of the poison. He eventually regained his health, and reunited with his family.
This is all fact. But no one is certain whether there is any combination of drugs which can render someone dead in all aspects except brain death. The general opinion is that a minute amount of bufotoxin and tetrodotoxin, derived from the cane toad and the pufferfish, respectively, halted all Narcisse's bodily functions except consciousness in his cerebellum.
Conspiracy theorists take this a step further, claiming that the government thought that these toxins in combination with jimson weed would be a great idea for a weapon, went on to fully develop such a weapon, and stockpiled huge reserves of it for the purpose of biological warfare.
On 26 May 2012, Rudy Eugene, a 31-year-old high school graduate with entrepreneurial ambitions, attacked Ronald Edward Poppo, a 65-year-old homeless man, at random on an on-ramp of MacArthur Causeway, under an elevated train. Eugene was seen by hundreds of witnesses and security cameras crossing the bridge, west to east, in his car, where at the east end, it broke down. He began walking back across the bridge around 12:00 PM, taking 2 hours to walk the 3-mile span. The attack began at just before 2:00 PM.
Without provocation, Eugene, having stripped himself completely naked while walking the bridge, tossed away his Bible and assaulted Poppo, who was lying on the cement. Eugene gouged out both of his eyes and stripped off his pants, then choked him into unconsciousness. He then ate Poppo's face, from the beard to the hairline, including one eye and his nose. This assault lasted 18 minutes and was filmed via security camera from the Miami Herald Building, and posted on the Internet. A summoned police officer shouted at Eugene to stop, who growled in response and resumed. The officer shot him once in the upper back with a .40 S&W hollow point, a very powerful pistol round. This had no effect, so the officer shot him 4 more times, killing him.
The official autopsy listed marijuana as the only drug in hs bloodstream, but his actions are inconsistent with marijuana's effects. The popular term "bath salts" was taken up by media around the world as the culprit. "Bath salts" is slang for cathinones, which are psychoactive stimulants similar to methamphetamines. They are more powerful than LSD, and can cause a person to become instantly insane and superhuman, albeit at the expense of destroying the mind and a large portion of the body with only one use.
But the autopsy found no such drugs in Eugene's system, and then the story rather quickly faded into obscurity. Conspiracy theorists argue that the government immediately covered it up, because the government has created a drug or virus which will cause violent, cannibalistic behavior in anyone, no matter how responsible and self-controlled. This is the singular event that has, for most conspiracy theorists, cinched the zombie apocalypse as entirely real and very near.
The fact that Eugene's friends and family all testified that he was thoroughly even-tempered and sociable is a central tenet of the theory. An infectious agent was either accidentally released into Eugene's body, or deliberately tested on him. All evidence of it was either untraceable, or erased from the autopsy. Although he was not "undead," and Poppo has not yet shown symptoms of infection, this was just Stage I of a drug or virus currently under development as a weapon to create zombies.


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Of course, it is possible to use commodity file systems on virtualized systems, like ext2fs or nfs, but there are also other possibilities which ought to be explored.
Linux saw a patch for generic name to handle and open by handle syscalls posted, which in turn can be beneficial for a QEMU emulation of a 9P file system. LWN's Jonathan Corbet covered this open by handle functionality on 2010-02-23.


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How Your Body Knows The Difference Between 100 Calories Of Kale vs. Junk Food
Not all calories are created equal.
Your body processes calories from certain foods differently, depending on whether or not the food (and its ingredients) are nutrient-rich or nutrient-poor. Kelly Hogan, a clinical nutrition and wellness manager at Mount Sinai's Dubin Breast Cancer center, helped explain why certain foods, such as kale, are processed differently in our bodies than a food like sugary cereal. She said it's important to focus on the nutrient density of foods.
"A [100-calorie] bowl of kale with an egg is going to give you high quality protein, fiber and a big variety of vitamins and minerals like vitamins, A, C, K, folate, etc," Hogan said. "A [100-calorie bowl of] cereal that is high in sugar is not going to give you the same quality nutrients. And what's more, the fact that it is low in protein and fiber but high in sugar can set you up for a blood sugar spike and crash, bringing on more cravings for sweets or refined starches throughout the day.
She added, "It's easy to overeat when eating these types of food because of these blood sugar fluctuations and the fact that they aren't typically super filling."
You can tell you're having a blood sugar crash if you start to experience irritability, dizziness, weakness or an intense feeling of hunger, Hogan said.
"This is where the term 'hangry' comes from as well ― when our blood sugar is low and we need to eat something, we often have difficulty concentrating, focusing and are more likely to snap at others," she explained. "The body will physiologically crave something sweet or starchy when blood sugar is low because these are the foods that can raise blood sugar quickly."
To prevent these type of crashes, try eating foods that are nutrient rich, like fruits, veggies, lean proteins, legumes, nuts, seeds, beans and dairy (the Center for Disease Control has a helpful graphic that offers nutrient-dense information for certain ingredients). Hogan likes to call these "whole foods" and you might know some of them by another term ― "complex carbohydrates."
"Complex carbohydrates are carbohydrates that take the body longer to break down into sugar because they have longer, more complex chemical structures compared to sugar," she said. "They are a more sustainable energy source because of this and won't raise blood sugar quite as quickly as more simple sugars."
And no matter what, don't assign foods labels like "good" or "bad."
"Giving food labels like that fuels a diet culture and harmful relationship with food," Hogan said. "In a diet with plenty of these whole foods, there is absolutely room for less nutrient dense but also delicious foods, like cake, for example."
Sounds like a plan to us.
Written by Carly Ledbetter, article and images sourced from The Huffington Post


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St. Francis glow in the dark statue--glowing statue - durable resin construction. Perfect bedside statue since it glows in the dark. (image is stretched, please click on it to see the actual product)
Saints Index Gallery | Contact | Free Stuff | FAQ's | Affiliates | About Us | Home | Copyright © 1996 - JMJ Products, LLC - All Rights Reserved-www.TotallyCatholic.com


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MEXICO CITY – A Mexican cultural center says it is opening the country's first school dedicated to mariachi music.
Mariachi performing has traditionally been something passed down through families. But school director Leticia Soto Flores says there is increasing demand for mariachi instruction.
The Ollin Yoliztli Cultural Center is opening the mariachi school Oct. 8 at the Plaza Garibaldi in downtown Mexico City. The plaza is a traditional site for strolling mariachis.
The school begins accepting applications Monday and will consider 200 applicants for 72 positions in the first class, which will graduate in three years. The school will cost the equivalent of $190 a year.
It will include classes in trumpet, violin and guitar, along with music theory and the history of mariachi music.


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Sports, Exercise, and Diabetes
Did you know that many awesome athletes have diabetes?
Like anyone else, people with diabetes are healthier if they get plenty of exercise. They also have the same chances of excelling at sports. Whether you want to go for the gold or just go hiking in your hometown, your diabetes won't hold you back.
How Exercise Helps People With Diabetes
Exercise is an important part of managing diabetes and staying healthy in other ways. Here are some of the benefits of exercise:
- It helps your body use insulin (pronounced: IN-suh-lin), a hormone that helps your body get the energy from the foods you eat.
- It burns calories and builds muscle, which helps you reach and stay at a healthy weight.
- It strengthens your bones and muscles.
- It reduces your risk of heart disease and some types of cancer.
- It improves coordination, balance, strength, and endurance.
- It can increase your energy level.
- It helps you feel good about yourself and your abilities.
- It relieves tension and stress, relaxes you, and boosts your mood, too.
All exercise is great — from walking the dog or riding a bike to playing team sports — just be sure to be active every day. Changing your exercise habits might be hard at first, but once you start feeling how exercise helps your body, it'll be easier to continue.
Exercise Tips
Your doctor will help you get ready to exercise or join a sport. These tips can help:
- Test yourself. Your doctor will tell you when to test your blood sugar. You might need to do it before, during, and after exercise.
- Take insulin if you need it. Your doctor also might change your insulin dosage for exercise or sports. If you inject insulin, try not to inject a part of your body used for your sport before practice (like injecting your leg before soccer). If you wear an insulin pump, make sure that it's not in the way when you play. If it is, talk to your parents or doctor about what to do.
- Eat right. Your doctor will also help you figure out what to eat to keep going. You might need extra snacks before, during, or after exercise. Aside from that, you can just stick to your normal meal plan.
- Bring snacks and water. Whether you're playing a football game at school or swimming in your backyard, you should have snacks and water nearby.
- Pack it up. If you will be exercising away from home, have a parent help you pack testing supplies, medications, your medical alert bracelet, emergency contact information, and a copy of your diabetes management plan.
- Tell your coaches. If you're playing organized sports, be sure that your coaches know about your diabetes. Tell them the things that you need to do to control diabetes before, during, or after a game.
- Take control. You're in control of your own health. Feel free to stop playing a sport or exercising if you need to drink water, eat a snack for low blood sugar, go to the bathroom, or check your glucose levels. Also, stop if you feel any signs that something is wrong.
What to Watch For
When kids with diabetes exercise, a few things may happen in the body. They can get get low blood sugar, called hypoglycemia (say: hi-po-gly-SEE-me-uh). Or they can get high blood sugar, called hyperglycemia (say: hi-per-gly-SEE-me-uh).
You may have low blood sugar if you are:
- sweating
- lightheaded
- shaky
- weak
- anxious
- hungry
- having a headache
- having problems concentrating
- confused
You may have high blood sugar if you:
- feel very thirsty
- have to pee a lot
- feel very tired
- have blurry vision
If you're starting a new exercise routine, like training for a sport, your doctor might have you change your insulin dosage to prevent these problems. Also, keep an eye on cuts, scrapes, or blisters and be sure to tell your parents or doctor right away if they're really red, swollen, or if they're oozing pus — they might be infected, which can make your diabetes harder to control.
Kids with type 1 diabetes shouldn't exercise if they have substances called ketones (say: KEE-tones) in their blood. When this happens, exercise can make things worse, and you can get very sick. Your doctor will tell you how to figure out if you have ketones, treat this problem, and get back on track.
Your doctor will also write down what you should do if any problems happen. For example, you might need to take a break, drink water, or have a snack. If you notice any of these signs, stop exercising and follow your instructions.
You're All Set!
Your doctor says it's OK and you know how to take care of your diabetes. You're all set to get plenty of healthy exercise. Now get moving!
Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.
© 1995- The Nemours Foundation. KidsHealth® is a registered trademark of The Nemours Foundation. All rights reserved.
Images sourced by The Nemours Foundation and Getty Images.


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As I start, here are some not quite fully formed thoughts (which is appropriate given the not quite fully formed topic) that are somewhat tangential to Taigu's being the flower blooming thread along with some other unclear stuff. Can I be more vague? I will not try.
We spend a great deal of our lives wanting to know stuff. For example, I am addicted to the weather radar. Now that I can view it online, I want to know what the radar says about the weather more than I can actually know (as in experience) it by looking outside my window. In our lives, I think we often substitute knowledge for experience, and this does not seem to be compatible with Zen. Yet we want to know where we are on the Path; we want to know if we are doing zazen correct; we want to know what this sutra or koan means, and so on. Even when we experience something, we come here to find out (know) whether it was important, or not, or what it meant, if anything.
It's not that there is anything wrong with this, because there isn't, but knowledge and experience are two different things. Let me go back to the weather radar. It has been sort of rainy here for the past few days, so when I hear thunder and am on the computer (and sometimes when I am not) I go to the radar to see where's the rain. "Is it here? Is it close? How close?" I want to know! So may times lately I see the radar showing that it is raining and then I go look out the window and see that it is dry on the pavement. "But wait," I exclaim, "the radar says it's raining. What's the matter? Is it the rain or the radar?" I wonder for a second or two or more. Where is the reality? In the radar, in the clouds, on the ground, somewhere between the two, perhaps. I don't know. But I want to know, and that desirous separation leads to some suffering, not much, not bad at all, but expectations dashed into the unknown is dukka.
As a college professor, I am a knowledge geek. I want to know lots of stuff in my field as well as any other field I am interested in. Rather than just experiencing the blooming flower, or this unusual tree near my house that I am curious about, or the rain, I want to know about them. What are their names? How do they grow? What's the radar show? But the more I only grasp for that knowledge the more I miss out on their experience.
As I said, it's been rainy here, so today I sat outside for about a half hour while it was raining, some of that time actually in the rain. It took a lot of effort, but I did NOT look at the radar before I went outside. While out there was just soaking in of the rain; like the ground, so was zazen. But just putting words to that spoils the experience somewhat, a lot like the Path.
What path?


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Today's consumers are using technology in ways that completely change commerce. In fact, purchasing that is influenced by or made online through mobile devices is estimated to make up 86 percent of consumer spending by 2020, more than double the percentage in 2010, according to RetailNet Group.
Small businesses can take advantage of consumer trends by offering convenient, consistent access to the applications they want regardless of whether they are at home, walking down the street, shopping in-store, or somewhere in between.
An example of how this can look is when customers are able to make purchases at an online store then pick up the merchandise at a physical store. Add email or mobile alerts to notify customers when a product or new inventory becomes available, and we are now talking about real time interactions that can drive behavior and provide added convenience.
Even more, new solutions today enable offer publishers to electronically attach deals, eCoupons and loyalty programs to one or more payment cards that can be stored and tracked in their mobile wallet for a streamlined and automated offer redemption process at the point of sale (POS).
This is an example of how the lines are blurring between in-store commerce, eCommerce, and mobile commerce (mCommerce). Consumers want the best deal in the most convenient and personalized way, no matter where they are. They've come to expect personalized access to information and products anytime, using any device. They expect a shopping experience that seamlessly crosses online and offline channels. They expect Universal Commerce.
Today, small businesses are at the crossroads of retail, eCommerce and mCommerce, where countless opportunities exist to create a more integrated and personalized experience for today's connected consumers.
To broaden payment acceptance options and focus on building an integrated, multi-channel marketing program, the following strategies are suggested especially for smaller retailers:
"Mobilize" Existing Payment Programs
With the help of advancements in mobile technology, small businesses can take advantage of mobile wallet capabilities to offer highly targeted incentives that offer value and increase loyalty and retention. With tools like Google Wallet, consumers have a new way to pay which may decrease their use of physical credit and debit cards, checks and cash.
Start the process of integrating branded payment programs, including retail credit cards, loyalty card programs, and prepaid cards, into popular mobile wallet applications. Cards and other payment options that are easily accessed through a mobile wallet may be used more readily than those stuffed in an old-fashioned wallet.
Update Point-of-Sale Equipment
Advanced mobile devices are giving consumers more control over monitoring their finances, making purchase decisions and paying for transactions. While millions of consumers are equipped with contactless-enabled debit and credit cards and other contactless payment devices, adoption among consumers is likely to grow rapidly with the emergence of mobile phone-based near-field communication (NFC) payments.
In fact, the pay-by-phone market will make up $22 billion in transactions by 2015, according to a forecast by research firm Aite Group. Small businesses that plan for this change will find success in mobile commerce.
Small businesses are nimble-enough to adapt quickly and all indications show that contactless payments are the wave of the future. Timing will be critical however as the mobile payments revolution will likely come in small spurts of users jumping on board rather than a mad rush. Proactively investing in smart solutions that work today will ensure that small retailers are prepared for what's ahead.
The good news is that updating POS equipment to accept mobile payments is easier than most business owners think. It may be a matter of adding a peripheral device to an existing system. While some upgrades can be accomplished through software, others (contactless payment, for instance) may require hardware changes, although many newer POS devices are being built with contactless capability as a standard feature.
Create a Multi-Channel Marketing Program
New technologies such as mobile coupons, vouchers, and offers that can be electronically linked to payment cards, enable small merchants to run specialized promotions designed to build new business, increase visits by existing customers, and accelerate sales in targeted product categories.
As noted above, for example, advanced solutions and technologies today allow offer publishers to electronically connect offers while simplifying the redemption process for customers by linking directly to any type of payment card. Offers are redeemed in real time at the merchant's POS with immediate feedback via the payment terminal or smartphone.
Paper receipts of online offers or other coupons are no longer required when redeeming at merchant locations; instead, consumers can link their offers directly to a payment type of choice (credit, debit, or through a mobile wallet) and redemption is automatically applied when that payment card is swiped at the POS.
Specialty offers not only drive business, but they give merchants more information about consumer behavior and preferences in order to create targeted deals that are even more attractive. In addition, merchants can leverage social media channels and traditional gift cards to enhance the in-store experience, providing a well-rounded, consistent buying experience across all channels.
Adopting a Universal Commerce Strategy
There's no right or wrong place to start when adopting a Universal Commerce strategy. It depends on the essential building blocks – smart devices, actionable intelligence, integrated applications and an enabling infrastructure, all accessing data in the cloud.
However, small businesses do not have to address these building blocks alone or take it on all at once. Integration partners are the glue that binds the Universal Commerce strategy. Small businesses can work with a partner or partners that have relationships across the full Universal Commerce ecosystem, and take advantage of today's opportunities to thrive by providing an engaging, consistent, and seamless consumer experience.
Mobile Credit Card Photo via Shutterstock


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Fitch Ratings expects demand for passenger vehicles in India to remain weak through the first half of 2014 because of high interest rates and weak consumer sentiment.
The tepid demand has been evident in the October-November 2013 festive season, which has so far bucked the trend of increased sales seen in previous years.
Passenger vehicle sales fell by 7.1% y-o-y during the January-October 2013 period, largely driven by the 10.5% drop in car sales. Although utility vehicle sales increased 7.6% during the same 10-month period, that was due to strong sales early in the year. Sales of diesel-powered utility vehicles have been declining in the past six months as the differential between petrol and diesel prices narrowed, excise duties in most segments increased, and high interest rates choked consumer borrowing. Utility vehicle sales have fallen in spite of launches of popular new models in the last 12-15 months.
The passenger car segment continues to face challenges from the high cost of ownership and slowing economy, which has resulted in poor consumer sentiment, especially in urban centres. This is reflected in the flat sales registered by the top two car manufacturers that account for about 70% of the passenger car market – Maruti Suzuki Limited and Hyundai Motors India Limited – in the October festive season. Fitch expects the challenging environment to continue to hurt sales in the near term, while rising competition and heavy discounting may erode manufacturers' profitability.
Sales of commercial vehicles shrank 13.5% y-o-y in January-October 2013. Sales volumes for medium and heavy commercial vehicles fell by 28.7% y-o-y over the 10-month period and light commercial vehicles by 3.9%, with the decrease accelerating towards the end of the period. Fitch expects the demand for light commercial vehicles to remain weak through the first half of 2014 and improve marginally thereafter. As a result, the agency expects the earnings and profitability of commercial vehicle manufacturers to be impacted significantly. While the weak commercial vehicle market and increasing competition will impact the standalone financial profile of Tata Motors Limited (BB/ Stable), the strong performance of its subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover PLC (BB-/Stable), which makes premium cars, will mitigate the impact.
Fitch believes that two-wheeler market will be the only segment to register marginally positive demand growth in the near term. Sales of two wheelers increased by 18% in September and October 2013. The recent volume growth has been driven by improving rural demand and stronger demand for scooters in urban centres. The good rains during the year are likely to result in improved agricultural productivity, which will drive growth in rural demand for two wheelers, although sales will likely increase at a slower pace.


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Won't somebody think of the poor, pitiful fundamentalists? They just want to exercise their "religious freedom," you see! This graphic comes from the Ruth Institute, which recently was set free by NOM:
Jeremy points out that these insane comparisons are nothing new for the Ruth Institute, as they also recently compared marriage equality to slavery.


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A Gift from Heaven
IN ANCIENT TIMES, China was known as the Land of the Divine. Everyone, from emperors to the common people, believed that their culture was a gift from heaven. They lived in harmony with the universe and saw a connection among all things. Traditional Chinese culture carried these principles for thousands of years—until this world was lost.
We now invite you to visit this lost civilization. To make this journey possible, we have pushed the boundaries of performing arts. We combine ancient legends with technological innovations, and historically authentic costumes with breathtaking animated backdrops. We let classical Chinese dance do the storytelling, and share with you beautifully diverse ethnic and folk traditions. Filled with an enchanting orchestral sound, this is a mesmerizing experience you won't find anywhere else.
A Lost Treasure—You Cannot See in China Today
The authentic Chinese culture Shen Yun presents can't be seen in another show or even in China. There, the Communist Party sees traditional culture as a threat to its power and for decades has tried to destroy it. It nearly succeeded.
But in 2006, a group of elite Chinese artists came together in New York with a mission—to revive traditional culture and share it with the world. They created Shen Yun and brought this majestic culture back from the brink of extinction.
Join us in this historical moment. It is an unforgettable journey!
Wherever Shen Yun Goes Theaters Are Packed
Some people fly from other countries or drive hundreds of miles to see it. Others see the same show five or six times. Why? Many say there are no words to describe it—you have to see it with your own eyes.


text: A memorable image is what I love to create, whether it is poignant and energetic, or motionless and sublime, to encompass extraordinary aptitude and to brand that one reflection on another's mind, is the pinnacle of my whole creativeness. It's my driving ambition, to transform like a chameleon, to move on and become metamorphic in the imagery I like to create. I love to travel with my thoughts and create pictures which can be remembered. The colourful view in my mind is flamboyant, "you have a vivid imagination", they said. I think that's based on some cruel internal insanity that's not visible from the out side. I dream in vibrant colours and my mind travels at 300 miles per hour. You could say my existence evolves at the speed of ten years, for every one. I was the black sheep, the outsider, cruelly left to my own devices and to be told I was different to every one else, and was treated that way. This was a natural affliction, from when I was a young girl. I grew up in a working class family in London, where every thing was simple. You go to school, you have dinner, you do as you are told and then you get to bed. No wonder I drove my parent's nuts, nothing was ever that simple. When I was being told to do, it was far more complicated to me than it should have been. It was dramatic and I misunderstood, it had to be thought through before I could attempt to do anything. I just didn't get it. Ok so now it's a good thing, I am not singled out any more, and in fact I am hardly noticeable amongst all the other unconventional characters that stand beside me. Where were they all when I was a kid? So now I am not so eccentric after all. I am creative and obsessed with perfection and memorable, or should I say difficult to forget. I know what I want to achieve and I do not stop, especially when I have achieved that ambition. My determination drives me to look at that achieved ambition as the beginning of a dream about to start. This is where I am now. I have enveloped the porn industry I wanted to be complete before I could unleash myself. I love it, I am a sexual being and I am passionate in movement, I feel like a panther stalking in the long grass. My site is full of diverse imagery and I am seeking to develop more. I would love to work with people who want something more than just the obvious side of porn, I love that too, but to develop ideas and work with a film maker who wants to go further than that and experiment is my ideal. Biography Text © www.daisyrockuk.com


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What would luxury apartments in Streeterville, Chicago be like without the hot spots and attractions that fill the area? Flanked on one side by the crowded sidewalks of Michigan Avenue and on the other side, the wide, open waters of Lake Michigan — Streeterville is home to some of the biggest attractions and most visited sites in Chicago. Needless to say, the neighborhood has the best shopping in Chicago with its Mag Mile retailers and flagship department stores.
The local restaurants are among some of the most memorable in the city, too. After all, how could anyone forget a meal at 1,000 feet in the air, on the 95th floor of the Hancock Center?
learn more* Please note that apartment prices and availability changes daily. We regularly update the information on this website, but please contact us for the latest pricing and availability.


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Quam is a legislator in the state of Minnesota:
And given his political allegiances it probably won't surprise you that he has no "quams" about taking away his constituents' freedoms. Indeed, yesterday a Twitterer informed me that Quam has proposed a bill that would require you to take a safety course, obtain a permit, and be older than 15 years old in order to ride in an "urban bicycle lane:"
(b) The commissioner of public safety must establish an urban bicycle lane use permit.
The permit issued must be in the form of an individual card created by the commissioner
of public safety, or as an endorsement on a driver's license or Minnesota identification card
issued under chapter 171.
(c) In order to receive an urban bicycle lane use permit under this subdivision, a person
must: (1) successfully complete the bicycle safety education program under section 171.336;
(2) be at least 15 years of age; (3) register the bicycle with the commissioner of public
safety; and (4) pay a fee of $5 to the commissioner of public safety.
WOW! This will keep people off bikes, kill bike lanes, give police an excuse to stop anybody and everybody, and help round up those dreaded illegals all in one fell swoop!
A helmet law seems positively quaint in comparison.
As for that "safety education program," it sounds wonderfully onerous:
Sec. 3. [171.336] BICYCLE SAFETY EDUCATION PROGRAM.
Subdivision 1. Program created. (a) A bicycle safety education program is established,
which shall be administered by the commissioner of public safety. The bicycle safety program
may be based in part on the motorcycle safety education program under section 171.335.
(b) The bicycle safety program must consist of (1) a bicycle safety course; and (2) a
bicycle safety examination.
(c) At a minimum, both the bicycle safety course and the examination must include:
(1) the legal requirements governing operation of a bicycle, including traffic regulations
under chapter 169 that apply to the operation of bicycles;
(2) best practices for the safe operation of a bicycle on public roadways;
(3) recommended and required bicycle safety equipment;
(4) riding skills and collision-avoidance techniques; and
(5) any other information the commissioner deems necessary to ensure the safe operation
of bicycles.
Subd. 2. Bicycle safety examination. (a) At the conclusion of the bicycle safety education
program, the commissioner must administer an examination on the materials covered by
the bicycle safety course. Individuals who, in the commissioner's judgment, demonstrate
sufficient knowledge to safely operate a bicycle on a public roadway are eligible for the
urban bicycle lane use permit under section 169.222, subdivision 12.
(b) A person who attends the bicycle safety program but does not intend to apply for an
urban bicycle lane use permit under section 169.222, subdivision 12, is not required to take
the bicycle safety examination under this subdivision.
Subd. 3. Appropriation. All funds collected from the fee imposed under section 169.222,
subdivision 12, are annually appropriated to the commissioner of public safety to carry out
the purposes of subdivisions 1 and 2, and to pay the administrative costs associated with
issuance of the urban bicycle lane permit under section 169.222, subdivision 12.
That's almost more than you have to do to drive a car! Ironic, since without any sort of training the vast majority of people on bicycles manage perfectly fine--that is until some moron hits them with a car.
Plus, requiring cyclists to be 15 before riding in a bike lane (which is the safest place to ride, so chew on that one for awhile) is a great way to enourage kids in Minnesota to decide: "Eh, fuck that, I'll just wait three more years and get a permit for an assault weapon."
Anyway, Minnesota is home to one of America's most bike-tastic cities (Minneapolis), as well as QBP and who knows how many other bike-related companies. Therefore, Quam should have an even harder time getting this through the legislature than he does getting his own corpulence through the door of his Hyundai.
Nevertheless, as cyclists we must remain eternally vigilant, because if nothing else it's clear that the forces of stupidity and evil recognize the bicycle as a vulnerable entry point in their mission to undermine freedom, self-sufficiency, and common sense. See, the average American is indifferent or slightly suspicious of people who ride bikes, so disguising anti-bike legislation as a "safety initiative" can be an effective ploy. Then, once they pass that, everybody from the smug commie beardo to the poor and undocumented is fair game for harassment.
Meanwhile, in other uplifting news, if some drunk kills you with their car in Chicago they might have to languish for ten whole days in jail:
Two put that in perspective, depending on how the dates fall, he could have to catch up on as many as two entire episodes of whatever his favorite show is by the time he gets out!
Now that's just draconian.
But at least he'll be out in plenty of time for baseball season:
Prosecutors said San Hamel had been drinking with friends after watching a Cubs game on May 29 when he got behind the wheel of his Mercedes Benz and headed down Clybourn Avenue toward the Loop. He struck Cann in the 1300 block of North Clybourn around 6:35 p.m.
I'm not familiar with Chicago but I looked up the address where this happened and it looks like he was on a bus route and about a ten minute walk from the nearest El station. Instead, he chose to drive. But that's okay, because he's really sorry now:
San Hamel's blood-alcohol level was .15, nearly twice the legal limit, and he had been traveling 50 to 60 mph in a 30 mph zone, prosecutors said.
Before he was sentenced, San Hamel asked Cann's family to forgive him, according to DNAInfo.
"I wish I could change everything that happened but I can't," San Hamel said, according to the website. "I just hope that you can feel some kind of remorse for me or forgiveness in your heart. ... I live with that moment every day, every minute, every time I lay down and try to sleep."
Judge William J. Hooks said he took San Hamel's remorse into consideration. In addition to the 10 days in jail, he sentenced San Hamel to four years of probation and ordered him to cover all of Cann's funeral costs.
Oh, sorry, he also has to pay for the funeral costs.
If some drunk sports bro takes me out please make sure you throw me a 13 trillion dollar funeral.
Alas, all this could have been averted if only he'd had access to cutting edge snack breathalyzer technology:
Yes, that's right, this Super Bowl Sunday you can blow into a bag of chips for confirmation that it's OK to speed home in your SUV:If you have to blow into a Tostitos bag to know if you're intoxicated, for the love of all that is holy, DO NOT DRIVE https://t.co/gnTcIIL7Oj
— Lawrence Police (@LawrenceKS_PD) January 26, 2017
The bag, which is outfitted with mini sensors, is able to detect alcohol in the breath of the holder. If the bag is green, go ahead and head home. If it's red, call an Uber. Not only that, but if the bag turns red, a code for a $10 Uber discount displays as well, although it's only valid on Super Bowl Sunday.
But let's just pretend that someone is so intoxicated that calling an Uber is an impossible task. What then? Have the bag call the Uber for you. The bag has been outfitted with near-field communication tech which will order a ride automatically if you tap it with your smartphone.
If it's green, fire up your machine. But if you see the red underpants call an Uber instead:
"But the bag said it was OK to drive!," your killer will explain when the police arrive to peel you off the hood. Then they'll sue Tostitos and use the multi-million dollar settlement to pay for your funeral.
Now that's a win-win.
Indeed, I can only see one potential downside in trusting your safety to a bag of chips, which is this: Will Tostitos be subject to the wall tax?


text:
Can any original artist play my favourite song?
Professional original artists will often take requests, but you will need to give them plenty of notice. Please also keep in mind that original artists may ask for an small additional fee to prepare songs that aren't already on their song list. You can view the original artist's song list on their Encore profile.


text:
The Normal Hematocrit Trial, conducted in the mid-1990s, was the largest study ever to compare the use of epoetin, a drug that stimulates blood production, to treat dialysis patients, who suffer from anemia, or a below-normal red blood cell count, called hematocrit. In healthy individuals, 39 to 45 percent of their blood is comprised of red blood cells. Severe anemia, a hematocrit below 25 percent, can stress heart function, cause marked fatigue, and require blood transfusions.
Most dialysis patients need some epoetin or a similar drug to avoid severe anemia, and the higher the desired hematocrit, the higher the dose required. The study aimed to compare the effects of standard epoetin doses, which maintain patients' hematocrit around 30 percent, and much higher doses, to raise hematocrit to normal (42 percent). The trial was stopped early in May 1996, just 29 months after it began, because of a trend...
In March 2012, 14 years later, I published my own analysis of the trial based on Amgen's clinical trial report, which I obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. The results were dramatically different.
In 1998, although the risk of death and heart attack was significantly greater among patients receiving the higher doses of epoetin, the NEJM editors reportedly accepted Amgen's position that the statistics should be adjusted because the company and the trials' leaders terminated the trial early based on the recommendation of the data safety monitoring board. Therefore the trial results were reported as showing only a trend toward—and not solid evidence for—increased harm. The 1998 paper did not report the unadjusted statistics, or state that the statistical rules employed required the p value to reach 0.00088 to be considered significant, a much high bar than the traditional 0.05. This was also not appreciated by most experts.
According to the 1998 NEJM publication, the only definitive risk from higher epoetin doses was an increased risk of clotting the fistula from which blood is taken to perform hemodialysis, a common and less severe problem. And the higher dose group benefited by receiving fewer transfusions and enjoying higher measures of the "physical function" component of quality of life.
Thus, while the 1998 NEJM publication discouraged high epoetin doses to target hematocrit to 42 percent because of a trend toward increased risks, it also identified clear benefits of exceeding a hematocrit target of 30 percent—fewer transfusions and better quality of life. Epoetin use had already started to increase following the release of National Kidney Foundation's 1997 KDOQI anemia guidelines, which incidentally, were funded by Amgen. After the NEJM paper was published, epoetin use in dialysis patients exploded, becoming a $2.5 billion a year market in the US alone.
By 2006, new KDOQI guidelines, again supported by Amgen, recommended all dialysis and kidney disease patients should receive doses of epoetin to maintain a hematocrit of 33 to 39 percent based on quality of life improvements—citing as evidence the Normal Hematocrit Trial and some smaller trials.
The results of my own analysis, on the other hand, published this March in Kidney International, showed that the quality of life scores had not improved in the higher dosing arm. The results I found in the Amgen report, filed with the FDA in 1996, showed that bigger epoetin doses to target higher hematocrit did not improve the physical function quality of life component at all, and had significantly increased the risk of death, heart attack, other thrombotic events, and hospitalizations.
The only benefit from higher epoetin doses was reduced transfusions, though the benefit was minor: one needed to treat 10 patients for 14 months at an additional epoetin cost of about $200,000 to avoid one person being transfused. Increased hospitalizations would further increase the total cost of higher epoetin doses.
The strikingly different results were because the 1998 NEJM publication had replaced the predefined outcomes and analyses with statistical adjustments and post hoc assessments, including replacing the total lack of effect of higher doses on physical function scores with the observation that patients with higher physical function scores had higher hematocrit, presumably because healthier patients respond better to epoetin. The wording was sufficiently unclear that even the KDOQI anemia guidelines misread the quality of life results as indicating that higher doses of epoetin to target higher hematocrit had caused an improvement in quality of life, when in fact, the trial results showed no improvement.
The academic authors of the 1998 publication state there was no intent to mislead, claiming the NEJM editors removed from drafts all the adverse results that I reported in 2012. They also state the 1998 publication clearly discouraged targeting hematocrit to 42 percent. What the 1998 publication did not do, however, was make clear, as my report does, that higher epoetin doses carry great risks, while the only benefit was a meager reduction in transfusion risk at great monetary cost.
Of course, even if there was no intentional deception, the effect was to force experts to say targeting hematocrit to about 42 percent using higher epoetin doses improved quality of life and reduced transfusions, and prevented them from saying such management significantly increased deaths, cardiac events, thrombotic events, and hospitalizations. Amgen controlled the debate, and by 2012 had made $37 billion from epoetin sales in the United States alone.
And if the intent was not to mislead, why not just publish subsequent articles clarifying the results, especially the quality of life results? The anemia workgroups that developed the KDOQI guidelines included one of the 1998 NEJM authors. Why not notify the KDOQI organization and other workgroup members that they were misreading the 1998 NEJM results? I cannot imagine what Amgen would have done if they had intended to mislead.
I waited 1,260 days to receive the trial report from the FDA. Two weeks before receiving the report, on June 24, 2011, the FDA released a safety warning and new label advice for use of epoetin in chronic kidney disease. It withdrew the previous recommended dose and hematocrit target of 30-36 percent. The new label states that there is no known safe dose of epoetin, no proven safe hematocrit target, and when using epoetin in dialysis patients, decrease or stop the epoetin when hematocrit exceeds 33 percent. The label now reports the Normal Hematocrit Trial's hazard ratio and confidence intervals for death and heart attack and all-cause death as significantly higher in the higher hematocrit arm, just as I reported them earlier this year.
Finally, as strange as it seems, I am now the sole author of the publication on the predefined primary and secondary results of the largest outcomes trial of epoetin in dialysis patients, and I didn't even participate in the trial. Perhaps the FDA will make the epoetin label cite my paper.
Daniel Coyne is a Professor of Medicine at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri.