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ESA to certify first Galileo position fixes worldwide
To mark the first anniversary of Galileo's historic first satnav positioning measurement, ESA plans to award certificates to groups who picked up signals from the four satellites in orbit to perform their own fixes.
In 2011 and 2012 the first four satellites were launched – the minimum number needed for navigation fixes.
On 12 March 2013, Galileo's space and ground elements came together for the first time to perform the historic first determination of a ground location – the Navigation Laboratory of ESA's Technical Centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
From this point, generation of navigation messages enabled full testing of the entire Galileo system – not just by ESA and its industry and institutional partners but also by any entity with a customised satnav receiver.
ESA's Galileo team heard about position fixes carried out by organisations and companies all over Europe and beyond, including as far away as Vietnam.
A year on, ESA will recognise these Galileo pioneers with commemorative certificates to the first 50 entities who document their achievement of a past or present fix. Details of how to apply are provided here.
The first Galileo services are scheduled to begin later this year, as more satellites are delivered into orbit.
The next launches will occur in the second half of this year, each with two satellites aboard a Soyuz ST-B. They will take place in close succession to build up the constellation.
Many satnav receiver chips are already technically 'Galileo ready', requiring only software upgrades from their manufacturer to begin working with Galileo signals along with the US GPS and other international satnav systems.
Provided by European Space Agency


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Need to Boost Your Library Of Emoticons? Here!
Do you ever feel like you're not using your full emoticon potential? I do.
To emote in text and email, I usually default to the quick and easy ones like these:
Everyone else seems so much better at cyber emoting! So I decided to do a little research to get better with the cyber winks, and I decided to share what I found. You may be all over these already.
I have an Android phone, and here's what I found to work on my phone:
:-$ (Puts dollar signs for eye balls. Be sure of the message you're sending with that one!)
:O (Jack-o-lantern eyes that look sort of devilish)
<3 (Puts hearts for eyeballs and one of them is bigger so it looks like you're winking)
B-) (Looks like you're cool and have shades on)
:-* (Lips puckered like a big fat kiss)
:-P (Sticking your tongue out)
=-O (Mouth wide open)
If all else fails, we can go to the App stores and look around for emoticon help for our keyboards, and then the cute smileys and winks are right there at the ready. Search the Play Store for Messaging, and quite a bit will pop up.
Have a great weekend! ;-)

subset: commoncrawl


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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — New number, new day, new time, same result for Hendrick Motorsports.
Alex Bowman and William Byron swept the front row Wednesday night in qualifying for the Daytona 500, giving Hendrick its 14th pole and sixth in the last seven years. Rick Hendrick's engine-building wing has seven straight poles because it powers Ricky Stenhouse Jr., last year's pole-winner.
"I think it means a lot to Mr. H — he wants to win everything, like every category, he wants to be top of the list," Bowman said. "Here it really just comes down to who built the fastest race car. And I think it's important for Hendrick Motorsports to come up and prove that they're the ones that did that."
Bowman posted a lap at 191.261 mph to earn the top starting spot for the second time in his career. It's the fourth consecutive year Bowman will start from the front row, but he's got a completely new look this time.
Bowman in the offseason was moved from the No. 88 into the No. 48 vacated by seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson. He inherited sponsor Ally, which has committed to backing Bowman and helping him develop his brand.
"It's really hard to sit here and be like, 'I did it and I did this and that and that's why we are on the front row for four consecutive years,'" Bowman said. "It's more about the people that make it happen. I floored it, but I'm pretty sure everybody else did, too. I'm just appreciative to have a fast car."
Greg Ives, Bowman's crew chief, has put one of his cars on the front row for five consecutive years dating to Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2017. Ives has never had a car start lower than third since he became a Cup crew chief in 2015.
"We put a lot of time and effort into our speedway program. It's a show car. It's the pinnacle of the hotrods that we bring out of our race shop," Ives said. "There's a lot of pride in every piece, every car, just from the paint job all the way down to the last nut and bolt."
Bowman drove his Chevrolet more than 1 mph faster than teammate Byron, who qualified second with a lap at 190.219 mph. Only the front row was set Wednesday, the first time Daytona 500 qualifying has been held at night under a condensed Speedweeks schedule.
"Hendrick always gives us great cars to come down here and qualify well and also race well, so you never know which guys are going to have the speed out of the four of us," Byron said of the four-car Hendrick stable. Chase Elliott was 11th and Kyle Larson 15th to complete Hendrick's lineup.
It's the ninth consecutive year Chevrolet won the pole.
The 40-car field is determined through both time trials and a pair of Thursday night qualifying races. NASCAR sold 36 charters that guarantee those owners slots in the field, which leaves eight drivers vying for four "open" spots in the Super Bowl of stock-car racing.
Two spots were earmarked to the fastest "open" cars in time trials. David Ragan and Ryan Preece earned those berths.
Preece had a charter last year with JTG-Daugherty Racing, but the team no longer holds its rights and there's concern the car won't attempt to make every race if it doesn't have early success.
Preece said he wasn't nervous before attempting his lap, but did panic when the qualifying session was delayed for a power issue and Preece noticed he was wearing the wrong firesuit. Preece said he ran half-a-mile before his qualifying lap to change his suit.
Derrike Cope, the 1990 Daytona 500 winner and oldest driver in the field at 62, could not get his car started and did not make a qualifying lap. His car is locked into the race, though, because it has a charter.
The No. 62 driven by Noah Gragson for Beard Motorsport failed pre-qualifying inspection three times, did not get to attempt a qualifying lap, and lost a crew member.
Beard has to forfeit a team member as penalty, but Gragson can race Thursday night and attempt to qualify for his first Daytona 500.
Bubba Wallace, fastest in Wednesday' afternoon's practice, briefly sat on the pole in his new 23XI Racing entry owned by Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin. Byron bumped him first, then Bowman topped Byron. Wallace wound up fourth on his first day in his new car.
"I'm pumped and I know that all the resources are there. Everything is in place," Wallace said. "My motto is, 'No more excuses.'"
Hamlin, who is trying to become the first driver to win three consecutive Daytona 500s, was 12th. He said it was emotional to see the team he helped build get its car on track.
"I've always said for a long time, for the last couple months, when I see the car on the track, that's kind of when it will be real for me, and it definitely was," Hamlin said.
Source: Read Full Article


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Programmatic Thinking
According to Webster's Dictionary, the word "programmatic" was first used in the late 19th century. Despite its long tenure in our lexicon, the word was an obscure one until recently. If you aren't familiar with it yet, if it hasn't permeated your corner of the business universe, just wait. Programmatic thinking might soon join the pantheon of 21st century buzz words, alongside big data and cloud.
The current industry being transformed by programmatic thinking is the advertising industry. A few years ago, software entrepreneurs began to realize that as advertising started to go digital, there was an opportunity to apply algorithms to media buying decisions. Instead of having a 27 year old neophyte designing your media plan over a three martini lunch, have the world's most powerful machines do it for you "auto-magically", leveraging all your best data – and streams of other's best data – to inform the decisions. And the best part? The machines learn how to make better and better decisions with every purchase.
The speed with which programmatic advertising has taken over the industry has been breath-taking. From nowhere a few years ago, $12 billion of advertising was purchased programmatically in 2013 and the forecast for 2017 is $33 billion (Magna Global report). 86% of advertising executives and 76% of brand marketers are using programmatic techniques to buy ads and 90% of them indicate they intend to increase their usage by half in the next 6 months (AOL survey). Companies like AppNexus, DataXu (a Flybridge portfolio company), MediaMath, RocketFuel and Turn are among the leaders in the field.
The next industry to be transformed by programmatic thinking is financial services. Decisions to underwrite loans have historically been based on a few simple data points such as the lender's zip code, credit score and job history. With the application of big data techniques and sophisticated machine learning algorithms, underwriting decisions are becoming programmatic. For example, Flybridge portfolio company ZestFinance evaluates thousands of data points in credit applications (even trivial ones, such as whether the applicant uses capitalization properly) to make loan underwriting decisions programmatically. Like other programmatic-based businesses, ZestFinance sees a powerful network effect: the more data they inhale and the more decisions they make, the smarter their decisioning algorithms become.
What other industries might see programmatic thinking ripple through? Once I put the programmatic lenses on, I can see dozens of industries being affected. Just think about all the decisions consumers and businesses make, and whether programmatic thinking could automate and enhance those decisions. For example:
- Navigation decisions: my navigation behavior follows clear patterns, as does that of millions of others. Navigation software in cars and phones will soon become more programmatic in anticipating where I might be going and the best routes to get there based on real-time data and experience.
- Hiring decisions: evaluate thousands of data points to evaluate the best candidates and then watch their performance and make better decisions next time.
- Security decisions: evaluate thousands of possible threats and patterns, watch the outcomes, and design algorithms that learn from these experiences to reduce acts of fraud and terrorism.
- Investment decisions: One of our portfolio companies, MatterMark, evaluates thousands of data points to determine private company performance, and then seeks to tune those algorithms for more and more accurate predictive investment decisions. Today, their service is being used by hundreds of investment firms.
Some might object that all this automation and machine learning designed to replace human judgment is going to be bad for society - making humans less relevant and eliminating jobs. But in fact, many researchers believe the advent of machine learning will generate new kinds of jobs - where a hybrid of automation and common sense is applied. MIT's David Autor presented a paper a few weeks ago that argued:
Many of the middle-skill jobs that persist in the future will combine routine technical tasks with the set of non-routine tasks in which workers hold comparative advantage — interpersonal interaction, flexibility, adaptability and problem-solving."
So don't be afraid to put those programmatic glasses on. I think they're pretty rose-colored.


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There's a community-wide conversation going on in Kansas City, Mo., that should also be taking place around the country. It has to do with high school kids' use of drugs and alcohol. The discussion revolves around the question: How can adults adequately convince a teenager that drinking too soon or using narcotics can, literally, cost them their lives?
At Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, the Jesuit leadership has answered that question with, "You can't." You can't fully convince or trust teens not to drink or experiment with drugs. So, later this year at the all-male Rockhurst High, they will begin to randomly drug test the student body by taking 60 hairs from the head of each teen.
This will be repeated every 90 days. One of the Rockhurst faculty members, someone with a background in barbering, will collect the sample hairs and send them out for testing. Lab techs will look for traces of marijuana, cocaine and other illegal drugs, as well as alcohol consumption.
Human hairs are sort of like tree rings, storing the residue from drugs and booze in the shaft of each strand. As the hair grows out, the pattern remains on the hair shaft, and lab techs can detect not only what substances a person has used, but how much of it and approximately when it was ingested. The longer the hair, the more information they can glean.
As shocking as it sounds — making it mandatory for a minor to give up part of themselves for scrutiny even though they may have done nothing wrong — this plan is not illegal because Rockhurst is a private school. When parents decide to enroll their sons at Rockhurst, they agree to abide by the six-page drug and alcohol policy of the 100-year-old Catholic school.
Public schools could never get away with plucking students' head hairs and sending them out to labs for random testing because that would be classified as an "unreasonable search and seizure" under the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Even the local ACLU legal director in Missouri can't come up with a challenge to the Rockhurst plan, although Doug Bonney did tell the Kansas City Star he thought the idea was "a colossal waste of money." By the way, the cost of each $50 test will be borne by fees collected from parents for student activities.
Gee, I remember when student fees went to pay for things like sock hops and field trips.
As you can imagine, there has been both applause and jeers for this get-tough drug-testing idea. On local Missouri websites reporting the story, reader comments offered a wide range of opinions.
Someone calling themselves Frank Frankly wrote: "It's a private school, they can do what they want. If you don't want your child to be subjected to it, then put them in public school."
Mike Jensen agreed. "It's not about infringement because there is a choice involved. The school is trying to ensure that its students receive a quality education and stay clean."
But an emailer with the handle Dagmstr sees something more ominous afoot. "They start with the schools, then what's the next step? Adults — maybe through the DMV (or) the Social Security program or Obamacare?"
And reader Metamax warned about the future threat to Rockhurst students who break the rules: "The parents had better give this a second thought, as this can come back and bite their kids later for college and jobs. False positives can be a one-way ticket to the court system and charges. Government abuse of rights starts just like this."
I bothered to read the whole six-page policy, and it is not about calling in the cops or making a negative permanent record for the substance-using student. The school says information gathered under the program will stay within and never be disseminated to colleges or potential employers.
Rockhurst's plan is a three strikes policy, and positive test results are followed by a quiet confrontation between guidance counselor, parents and the offending teen. No disciplinary action is taken immediately, but the student must follow the school psychologist's rehab recommendations. Only after the third strike will a student be dismissed permanently.
You know, when I first heard about this idea of randomly taking hairs from school kids for drug testing, I was aghast. I thought about my own daughter and what I would have done if her Catholic school had suddenly demanded access to her bodily samples. Back then, I surely would have balked. I might have reactively yanked her out of the school.
But now I realize if we really want to make sure our kids get the best education and the greatest leg up in this competitive life, why wouldn't we want to keep them on the healthiest path possible? Isn't it better to learn about a problem early on, rather than after it has been left to fester into a lifelong millstone?
Some will say this type of program diverts an important parental responsibility and hands it over to schools. I don't agree. I think it includes schools into today's very complicated business of raising good and healthy kids who will, hopefully, never be on the wrong side of the law.
At the very least, it has sparked a much-needed conversation that I hope spreads to every household with children — beginning tonight around the dinner table.
Rockland resident Diane Dimond is a syndicated columnist, author, regular guest on TV news programs, and correspondent for Newsweek/Daily Beast. Visit her at www.DianeDimond.net or reach her via email [email protected].


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Brian Duffy
Brian Duffy is an American astronaut who was born on June 20, 1953, in Massachusetts. Before he became an astronaut, Duffy was a test pilot for the Air Force. He has logged over 4000 hours of flight time in 25 different aircraft.
Duffy became an astronaut in 1986. He has spent over 667 hours in space on three spaceflights.
Duffy made his first spaceflight in 1992 aboard STS-45. The crew studied the Earth and the Sun during this mission. In 1993, he flew aboard STS-57. The crew conducted several experiments on materials and life science research. Duffy commanded STS-72 in 1996.


text:
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has been assembled by volunteers of the World War I Military History List (WWI-L).
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U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2000 - Italy
- Document source:
26 February 2001
Italy is a longstanding, multiparty parliamentary democracy. Executive authority is vested in the Council of Ministers, headed by the president of the Council (the Prime Minister). The Head of State (President of the Republic) nominates the Prime Minister after consulting with leaders of all political forces in Parliament. The current Parliament was elected in free and democratic elections in April 1996. The judiciary is independent, but critics complain that some judges are politicized.
The armed forces are under the control of the Ministry of Defense. Control over the Carabinieri, a military security force, was transferred in March from the Ministry of Interior to the Ministry of Defense; however, the Ministry of Interior retains authority over this force in matters of internal security. Four separate police forces report to different ministerial or local authorities. Under exceptional circumstances, the Government may call on the army to provide security in the form of police duty in certain local areas, thereby freeing the Carabinieri and local police to focus on other duties. For several years, the army supported the police in Sicily and in the province of Naples, areas with high levels of organized crime. The army left Naples at the end of 1997 and Sicily in 1998 but was redeployed back to both locations for a short period in 1999, during which time special actions were in progress against organized crime. In September the Government sent an augmented force to Naples of 500 police and Carabinieri, some of whom wore military-style camouflage battle dress uniforms, to combat criminal violence in the city. Amnesty International (AI) reported numerous allegations that the police used excessive force against individuals, often Roma, refugees, and, increasingly, women, at the time of arrest and initial detention.
Italy has an advanced, industrialized market economy, and the standard of living is high. Small and midsized companies employ from 70 to 80 percent of the work force. Major products include machinery, textiles, apparel, transportation equipment, and food and agricultural products. The Government owns a substantial number of enterprises in finance, communications, industry, transportation, and services, but privatization is moving forward at a measured pace.
The Government generally respects the human rights of its citizens, and the law and the judiciary generally provide effective means of dealing with instances of individual abuse; however, there were problems in some areas. There were isolated reports of police abuse of detainees; such accusations are investigated by the judiciary. Prisons are overcrowded. The pace of justice is slow, and perpetrators of some serious crimes avoid punishment due to trials that exceed the statute of limitations. Lengthy pretrial detention is a serious problem. The Government has taken steps to combat violence against women and child abuse; however, they remain problems. Societal discrimination against women and discrimination and sporadic violence against immigrants and other foreigners continue to be problems. Child labor, mainly involving immigrant children, persists in the underground economy but is investigated actively. Exploitation of clandestine immigrants is widespread. Trafficking in women and girls to the country for prostitution and forced labor is a growing problem, as is trafficking in children.
1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no reports of political or other extrajudicial killings by government officials.
On May 20, 1999, Massimo D'Antona, a senior adviser to the Minister of Labor, was shot and killed outside his home in Rome. The Red Brigades, a terrorist movement, claimed responsibility for the killing. A suspect detained by police in Rome in May subsequently was released, and the investigation continued at year's end.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The law prohibits torture and cruel or degrading punishment; however, there were reports of isolated incidents in which police abused detainees. Amnesty International, the U.N. Human Rights Commission (UNHRC), the U.N. Committee Against Torture, and the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture regularly assess the country's judicial and prison system. The nongovernmental organization (NGO) Antigone, which is composed mainly of lawyers, magistrates, and academics, promotes the rights of detainees, works closely with the European Commission for Prevention of Torture, and monitors the prison system.
According to a report issued by AI in June, there are numerous allegations of the deliberate use of excessive force against individuals detained in connection with common criminal offenses or in the course of identity checks. Allegations of mistreatment relate to the time of arrest and first 24 hours in custody and concern both citizens and foreigners, with an increasing number of women appearing as alleged victims. A high proportion of the allegations received by AI concern foreign nationals (many of them from Africa), as well as Roma. In a May letter to penal authorities, AI expressed concern over suits filed the previous month by inmates of the Sassari District Prison, who had been subjected to cruel and degrading punishment. In a separate communication, AI referred to allegations of mistreatment at newly established temporary detention centers for aliens (see Section 2.d.).
Overcrowded and antiquated prisons continue to be a problem. The prison system has a capacity of 35,000 but holds over 53,000 detainees, of whom 3,500 were added in 1999 alone. Older facilities tend to lack outdoor or exercise space, compounding the difficulties of close quarters. Approximately 54 percent of detainees are serving sentences; the other 46 percent consist mainly of persons awaiting trial or the outcome of an appeal. Nearly one in three pensioners has been jailed for a drug violation. One in four is an alien. Of drug users, almost 10 percent are HIV positive. Over 80 prisoners died while in jail in 1999; 53 committed suicide, with a reported 920 unsuccessful suicide attempts and some 6,500 acts of self-mutilation.
In the spring these conditions led to protests both by prisoners and guards. A 2-day guard strike in Sassari that left inmates without food or water led to a prisoner riot in March, which was followed by retaliation by prison guards in April. In early May, 82 Sassari guards and wardens were arrested in connection with the April abuses. These arrests provoked sympathy strikes and demonstrations by prison guards across the country, who protested their low pay, long hours, and the conditions of tension and risk under which they work. During the same period, prisoner protests broke out at several jails and the Parliament debated proposals for decriminalizing certain crimes, the shortening of sentences, alternative punishments to imprisonment, and the expulsion of non-EU nationals who are sentenced to prison terms. The Pope's call in June for a Jubilee-Year clemency increased the pressure on parliamentarians and raised prisoner expectations; however, proponents of such measures could not obtain the necessary two-thirds support in each chamber. The Government and opposition forces were unable to agree, and no action was taken by year's end.
The Government permits the independent monitoring of prison conditions by parliamentarians, local human rights groups, the media, and other organizations.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
Detainees are allowed prompt and regular access to lawyers of their choosing (although occasional lapses in this general rule have been alleged) and to family members. If detainees are indigent, the State provides a lawyer. Within 24 hours of being detained, the examining magistrate must decide whether there is enough evidence to proceed to an arrest. The investigating judge then has 48 hours in which to confirm the arrest and recommend whether the case goes to trial. In exceptional circumstances, usually in cases of organized crime figures, where there is danger that attorneys may attempt to tamper with evidence, the investigating judge may take up to 5 days to interrogate the accused before the accused is allowed to contact an attorney. The U.N. Human Rights Committee, the treaty monitoring body for the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, recommended that this 5-day period be reduced and that all detainees have access to legal advice immediately upon arrest.
Preventive detention can be imposed only as a last resort, or if there is clear and convincing evidence of a serious offense, such as crimes involving the Mafia, or those related to drugs, arms, or subversion. In these cases, a maximum of 2 years of preliminary investigation is permitted. Except in extraordinary situations, preventive custody is not permitted for pregnant women, single parents of children under 3 years of age, persons over 70 years of age, or those who are seriously ill. Preventive custody can be imposed only for crimes punishable by a maximum sentence of not less than 4 years.
Magistrates' interrogations of persons in custody must be recorded on audio tape or videotape to be admissible in judicial proceedings. Prosecutors are required to include all evidence favorable to the accused in requests for preventive detention. The defense may present any favorable evidence directly to the court.
There is no provision for bail, but judges may grant provisional liberty to suspects awaiting trial. As a safeguard against unjustified detention, panels of judges (liberty tribunals) review cases of persons awaiting trial and rule whether continued detention is warranted. Persons in detention include not only those awaiting trial, but also individuals awaiting the outcome of a first or second appeal (see Section 1.e.). The Constitution and the law provide for restitution in cases of unjust detention.
The law prohibits punishment by internal exile or exile abroad.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary and the Government respects this provision in practice. The judiciary provides citizens with a fair judicial process.
There are three levels of courts. A 1998 law that aimed to restructure and expedite the judicial process established that a single judge would hear cases at the level of courts of first instance. Implementation of the measure's civil provisions began in June 1999, while changes in criminal proceedings took force in January. At the second level, separate courts hear appeals for civil and penal cases. Decisions of the Court of Appeals can be appealed to the highest court, the Court of Cassation (Supreme Court) in Rome, but only for reasons related to correct application of the law, not a case's merit.
The law provides for trials to be fair and public, and the authorities observe these provisions. The law grants defendants the presumption of innocence. Defendants have access to an attorney sufficiently in advance to prepare a defense and can confront witnesses. All evidence held by prosecutors normally is made available to defendants and their attorneys. Defendants can appeal verdicts to the highest appellate court.
Both domestic and European institutions criticize the slow pace of justice in the country, which is due in part to cumbersome and frequently changing procedures, unclear or contradictory legal provisions, and an inadequate number of judges. In April the National Statistical Institute (ISTAT) reported that the average trial lasts 35 months; appeal procedures can add another 59 months. The length of trials varies by region; those in the north tend to be shorter than those in the south. The European Court of Human Rights noted the high number of complaints filed against the country in 1999 and the number of adverse decisions (44 of 120) that the court rendered. These decisions almost always centered on excessive trial delays. In June the Council of Europe's (COE) Committee of Ministers reiterated to the COE parliamentary assembly that excessive delays in the administration of justice constituted "an important danger, in particular for the respect of the rule of law." While noting that Italian authorities shared these concerns, the ministers observed that the trend in the number of new cases referred to the Court had not changed.
Excessive trial delay has also complicated the outcome of judicial processes involving "clean hands" investigations of corruption launched in 1991. Public prosecutors uncovered numerous instances of illegal arrangements between businessmen and political figures, including illicit financing of political parties, as well as ties between elected officials and organized crime. Over 1,300 persons were either convicted and sentenced or accepted plea bargains. Those sentenced to prison terms, generally for periods of 3 years, were able to benefit from a legal system that allows alternative punishment for persons whose sentences do not exceed 4 years. Thus few individuals served jail sentences as a result of the trials. The most sensational cases involved multiple accusations against two former prime ministers, Giulio Andreotti and Silvio Berlusconi. With regard to the latter, two cases ended at the appeals level (following lower court convictions) when judicial delays and maneuvers caused the trials to exceed the statute of limitations. Berlusconi won acquittals in two other appeals cases, however, as well as one at a lower court level, and cited these outcomes as vindication, signifying that the original charges had been an effort by elements in the judiciary to achieve political objectives through prosecutorial means. Milan's chief public prosecutor retorted that Berlusconi's criticisms were aimed at undermining the legitimacy of investigating magistrates. In the case of (now) senator-for-life Andreotti, prosecutors relied heavily in two separate trials on testimony by turncoat Mafia witnesses ("pentiti"). These trials ended with court criticisms of both the prosecution and defendant. The court stated that prosecutors failed to produce concrete evidence backing up vague and contradictory testimony by the pentiti. Other court observations, which asserted that Andreotti had lied at the trial, fell short of resolving doubts about his conduct.
There were no reports of political prisoners.
f. Arbitrary Interference With Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
The law safeguards the privacy of the home, and the authorities respect this provision. Searches and electronic monitoring may be carried out only under judicial warrant and in carefully defined circumstances. Violations are subject to legal sanctions.
2. Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The law provides for freedom of speech and the press, and the Government respects these rights in practice. An independent press, an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system combine to ensure freedom of speech and of the press.
However, courts are sensitive to criticism and impose fines for "defamation." In May Member of Parliament Alessandra Mussolini was sued for $600,000 (1.2 billion lire) by two judges on the highest appeals court. Mussolini had criticized as a "killer sentence," a court ruling that failed to consider the pregnancy of a rape victim as an aggravating factor, warranting a heavier penalty. In July a court levied a $27,000 (55 million lire) fine against weekly magazine Panorama for a 1997 article that defamed anti-Mafia prosecutors in Palermo.
Academic freedom is respected.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Government does not restrict the right of peaceful assembly, including protests against government policies, except in cases where national security or public safety is at risk. Permits are not required for meetings, but organizers of public demonstrations must notify the police in advance.
Catholic Church authorities strongly opposed gay community plans to hold a world pride week in Rome during the first week in July, calling it a provocation and an affront to the Church's Jubilee Year. However, the event was held, with the cooperation of national and municipal authorities.
While allowing general freedom of association, the Constitution and law prohibit clandestine associations, those that pursue political aims through force, that incite racial, ethnic or religious discrimination, or that advocate fascism. Professional associations organize and operate freely.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government respects this right in practice.
Roman Catholicism is not the state religion but it is the dominant one, in the sense that most citizens were born and raised under Catholic principles, which form part of their culture. Roman Catholic religious instruction is offered in public schools as an optional subject. Students who do not opt to attend can elect to take an alternative course or, in some schools, have a free class period. A 1929 agreement between the Catholic Church and the Government, which was revised in 1984, accords the Church certain privileges. For example, the Church can select Catholic religion teachers, whose earnings are paid by the State. This privilege has led to charges of unconstitutional discrimination.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The Constitution and the Law provide for these rights, and the Government respects them in practice. Citizens who leave are ensured the right to return. The Constitution forbids deprivation of citizenship for political reasons. Parliament has not yet repealed the XIII transitory provision of the 1947 Constitution, which forbids male heirs of the former king, Umberto I of Savoy, from entering the country. For this reason, in December 1999, royal descendant Vittorio Emanuele IV filed a suit in the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg challenging the validity of this constitutional bar. In March the European Parliament voted against including a reference to the Savoy case in its human rights report.
Political asylum is obtained according to the provisions of the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. However, the country still lacks a specific law on political asylum; such a law has been pending before Parliament since 1997. The Government cooperates with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees and other humanitarian organizations in assisting refugees. It provides first asylum to refugees fleeing hostilities or natural disasters. Such refugees are granted temporary residence permits, which must be renewed periodically and do not ensure future permanent residence.
In 1999 the Ministry of Interior approved 912 asylum requests and disapproved some 12,000 others. (In 1998, 7,674 persons applied for asylum, of whom 1,045 were found eligible.) Nationals of Yugoslavia, Iraq, Turkey, and Iran accounted for over half of the approvals. An immigration law passed in February 1998 levies high fines and penalties for land, air, and sea carriers that board passengers without documentation. There is a huge influx, mainly by sea, of Albanians, Serbs, Kurds, North Africans, Chinese, Nigerians, and other West Africans, many of whom enter the country intending to transit to other member states of the European Union. In April the Government approved a migration accord with Albania (similar to previous such accords with Tunisia and Morocco) aimed at promoting regular annual emigration of 5,000 Albanians. More aggressive coastal patrolling helped reduce illegal immigrant landings in the south. A total of 16,100 illegal immigrants landed in the first 7 months of the year, compared with 35,200 in the same period in 1999 (due largely to the conflict in Kosovo). Some 37,200 such entrants were repatriated over the first 7 months of the year, compared with 34,800 in 1999.
Most illegal migrants paid fees to smugglers; some risked death, as smugglers unloaded their human cargo at sea to avoid capture by patrol boats. Others were forced to engage in illegal activities, were paid substandard wages, or forced to work as prostitutes to pay off debts incurred for their passage (see section 6.f.).
There were no reports of the forced expulsion of persons having a valid claim to refugee status.
3. Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government
The Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully, and citizens exercise this right in practice through periodic, free, and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage. There are no restrictions on women's participation in government and politics; however, few women hold elected office: women hold 4 of 24 cabinet positions, 24 of 325 Senate seats, and 69 of 630 seats in the Chamber of Deputies.
In October the Senate gave final approval to a constitutional change allowing an estimated 3.9 million Italians abroad to vote, and seting aside 12 seats in the 630-seat Chamber of Deputies and 6 in the 315-seat Senate to represent them. However, the law's implementation required administrative action that did not take place by year's end.
4. Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
A wide variety of human rights groups operate without government restriction, investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases. Government officials are generally cooperative and responsive to their views.
5. Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability, Language, or Social Status
The law prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, sex (except with regard to hazardous work), religion, ethnic background, or political opinion, and provides some protection against discrimination based on disability, language, or social status. However, societal discrimination persists to some degree.
Violence against women remains a problem. A 1998 ISTAT survey (the first one nationwide) reported that at least 9.4 million women between the ages of 14 and 59 had experienced some form of sexual violence during their lives. The NGO Telefono Rosa which provides a hot line through which abused women can obtain legal, medical, and other assistance, reports that nearly half of all complaints it receives nationally involve physical violence, much of it at home.
Legislation to protect women from physical abuse, including by family members, was updated and strengthened in 1996. The revised law makes the prosecution of perpetrators of violence against women easier and shields women who have been objects of attack from publicity. The law treats spousal rape in the same manner as any other rape. Law enforcement and judicial authorities are not reluctant to bring perpetrators of violence against women to justice, but victims sometimes do not press charges due to fear, shame, or ignorance of the law. Telefono Rosa notes that the entry of more women into the police force has contributed greatly to an increased willingness of female victims of violence to cooperate with police. Acting on behalf of local government administrations, some 60 local women's associations maintain and run shelters for battered women.
In December 1999, the Labor Ministry and major trade union confederations agreed on a code of conduct regarding sexual harassment in the workplace. The code, which follows a 1991 EU recommendation, is to be attached to national sectoral labor contracts as they are negotiated. Telefono Rosa reports that previous ad hoc labor contract sexual harassment provisions have worked as a deterrent to workplace harassment both in the public and private sectors.
Trafficking in illegal immigrant women and girls for prostitution and forced labor is a growing problem (see Section 6.f.).
Women enjoy legal equality with men in marriage, property, and inheritance rights. Males and females enjoy equal access and treatment with regard to education, health, and other government services. Many NGO's actively and effectively promote women's rights. Most are affiliated with labor unions or political parties.
A number of government offices work to ensure women's rights. The Ministry for Equal Opportunity is headed by a woman. In addition, there is an equal opportunity commission in the office of the Prime Minister. The Labor Ministry has a similar commission that focuses on women's rights and discrimination in the workplace, as well as equal opportunity counselors who deal with this problem at the national, regional, and provincial government levels. However, many counselors have limited resources with which to work. A decree approved in May requires civil service recruiters to explain in writing their motives for hiring or promoting a man rather than a woman as a manager. The rule was designed to promote women's access to the higher echelons of public administration and is to apply in offices where women managers number less than a third of the total.
In February 1999, the European Union directive regulating night work for women was incorporated into the law, thus amending the 1977 law that had prohibited night shifts for women. With some exceptions (if pregnant, the mother of a child below 3 years of age, or the mother of a disabled person), women now are allowed to work at night. Liberal maternity leave, introduced to benefit women, adds to the cost of employing them, with the result that employers sometimes find it advantageous to hire men instead. A March law on parental leave, which grants mothers and fathers an equal right to take leave when a child is sick, is aimed at offering equal opportunity without penalizing women at work.
According to research conducted by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Commission, women's salaries are 23.5 percent lower than men's for comparable work. They are underrepresented in many fields, such as management and the professions. According to a recent report based on ISTAT data, women account for 36 percent of the labor force, with yearly growth in female employment of 2 percent (compared with 0.2 percent for men). The National Council for Economy and Labor (CNEL) reported that in 1998, 3 percent of executives in large firms were women, a figure that rose to 5 percent in mid-size firms and 8 percent in small firms. In 1999 women occupied 19.1 percent of public offices, 11.3 percent of teaching positions, and 3.8 percent of media executive positions. Employed women are more likely to have a high school diploma (34.7 percent) than employed men (28.5 percent). The comparable figures for a university degree are 13.8 percent for women and 9.4 percent for men. Unemployment figures show that women still are lagging. In 1999 male unemployment was 9.6 percent, while female unemployment was 16.8 percent. Youth unemployment (ages 15 to 24) was 30.2 percent for men (53.5 in the south) and 39.0 percent for women (66.9 in the south).
The Government demonstrates a strong commitment to children's rights and welfare. As of academic year 1999-2000, schooling became compulsory for children from age 7 to age 18; those unable (or unwilling) to follow the academic curriculum are allowed to shift to vocational training at age 15. This reform was intended to reverse the middle and secondary school dropout rate, which had been high.
Abuse of children is recognized as a societal problem; an estimated 90 percent of violence against minors is committed within their own families. Social workers counsel abused children and are authorized to take action to protect them. The NGO Telefono Azzurro maintains two toll-free hot lines for reporting incidents of child abuse. Research conducted on behalf of the Government by a private institute estimates the number of minors involved in cases of violence (including prostitution) to be 10,000 to 12,000. There are 1,880 to 2,500 minors who work as street prostitutes, of whom 1,500 to 2,300 were trafficked illegal immigrants (predominantly Albanians, other eastern Europeans, and some Nigerians), many of whom were forced into prostitution (see Section 6.f.). Social Service International (a domestic NGO) assists in repatriating unaccompanied immigrant minors.
Several laws and government programs enhance the protection available for minors. In 1996 minors offices staffed by trained police (often women) were established in police stations around the country to offer emergency help for minors and families in distress, as well as counsel in dealing with other government social and judicial entities. A 1997 law established an information gathering network to collect data on the condition of minors. A 1998 immigration law formalized an office in the Ministry of Social Affairs that protects the rights of unaccompanied immigrant minors. (In 1997 this office screened and authorized entry permits for nearly 48,000 minors and 3,000 accompanying adults.) In 1998 the Parliament enacted a law to combat pedophilia, child pornography, the possession of pornographic material involving children, sex tourism involving minors, and trafficking in children (also see Section 6.f.). The law established a special police unit to monitor and prosecute Internet sites devoted to promoting pedophilia.
People With Disabilities
In January a new law replaced previous legislation that forbade discrimination against disabled persons in employment, education, or the provision of state services. The new law requires companies having 15 or more employees to hire one or more disabled workers: those with 15 to 35 employees must hire 1 disabled worker, those with 35 to 50 must hire 2 , and, for larger companies 7 percent of the work force must consist of the disabled. Companies hiring the disabled are granted certain benefits, including lower social security contributions, while the cost of worker training is borne by the Government. The new law also provides for more severe sanctions against violators.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Some traditional minorities, including French and German speaking Alpine communities in the north and a mixture of German and Slovene speakers in the northeast, enjoy special autonomous status. The special rights of these areas (respectively the Valle d'Aosta, Trentino Alto Adige, and Friuli Venezia Giulia) include use of non-Italian languages in government offices and public schools in the former two.
Roma are another traditional minority, but without a specific geographic base. Of a national total of 115,000, some 70,000 are citizens – most of whom can trace ancestry in the country to the late fourteenth century. Most of these Roma live in the center and south, in conditions indistinguishable from those of other Italians. Roma in the north, whose numbers have swelled with the arrival of 40,000 immigrants from the former Yugoslavia, live in more precarious conditions. Although many municipalities are building permanent settlements, poor housing, limited employment prospects, and inadequate educational facilities remain problems. With limited income and job opportunities available, some turn to begging or petty crime, generating in turn repressive measures by police authorities. Roma communities complain that their language does not enjoy the same privileged status as that granted to minority languages in the autonomous regions.
6. Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
The law provides for the right to establish trade unions, join unions, and carry out union activities in the workplace. The unions state that they represent between 35 and 40 percent of the work force. Trade unions are free of government controls and have no formal ties with political parties. The right to strike is embodied in the Constitution and is exercised frequently. In April following a period of multiple land, sea, and air transport sector strikes, a new law changed provisions of a 1990 measure that restricted strikes affecting essential public services (e.g., transport, sanitation, and health). The new law defined minimum service to be maintained during a strike as 50 percent of normal, with staffing by at least one-third the normal work force. The law established compulsory cooling off periods and more severe sanctions for violations. Besides transport worker unions, the law also covers lawyers and self-employed taxi drivers. In May a Transport Ministry regulation required all national labor contracts involving employment sectors covered by the law to adjust contract provisions to the new rules. These changes were backed by the three major national trade union confederations, which sought to avoid inconvenience to tourists and the traveling public alike during the Catholic Church's Jubilee Year.
Unions associate freely with international trade union organizations.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
The Constitution provides for the right of workers to organize and bargain collectively, and these rights are respected in practice. By custom, although not by law, national collective bargaining agreements apply to all workers, regardless of union affiliation. The law prohibits discrimination by employers against union members and organizers. It requires employers that have more than 15 employees and who are found guilty of antiunion discrimination to reinstate any workers affected. In firms with less than 15 workers, an employer must provide the grounds for firing a union employee in writing. If a judge deems the grounds spurious, he can order the employer to reinstate or compensate the worker.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The law prohibits forced or compulsory labor, including that performed by children, and generally it does not occur; however, some illegal immigrants and children were forced into prostitution (see Section 5), and trafficking in illegal immigrant women for prostitution and forced labor, as well as trafficking in illegal immigrant children, are problems (see Section 6.f.).
d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment
The law forbids the employment of children under age 15 (with some limited exceptions). There also are specific restrictions on employment in hazardous or unhealthful occupations for men under age 18, and women under age 21. The enforcement of minimum age laws is difficult in the extensive underground economy. Estimates of the number of child laborers differ, ranging from 30,000 to 300,000 children (the most probable figure may be in the area of 50,000). Most of these cases involve immigrants, but instances involving Italian children also have been reported. Illegal immigrant child laborers from Northern Africa, the Philippines, Albania, and especially China have entered in record numbers every year since 1989, and the influx from China is rising. According to the Carabinieri, an estimated 30,000 illegal Chinese work in sweatshop conditions near Florence, with many minor children working alongside the rest of their families to produce scarves, purses, and imitations of various brand name products. Many of these factories, which face threats of infiltration or coercion by Chinese organized crime, are equipped with escape tunnels to thwart labor inspections. Carabinieri officers who work on child labor developed a videocassette program to educate schoolchildren on child labor laws, their rights as specially protected workers, and workplace hazards.
The Government, employers associations, and unions continue their tripartite cooperation on child labor. Their periodic consultations, begun in 1997, cover such matters as better enforcement of school attendance regulations; programs to reduce the number of school dropouts; faster assistance for families in financial difficulty; further restrictions on exceptions to the minimum wage law; and canceling economic or administrative incentives for companies found to make use of child labor, whether domestically or abroad. The Prime Minister's office provided a toll-free telephone number to report incidents of child labor. The footwear and textile industries have established a code of conduct that prohibits the use of child labor in their international as well as national activities; the code is applicable to subcontractors as well. In 1999 a child labor clause was attached to the national labor contract in the health sector, whereby the parties committed themselves not to use surgical tools produced by child labor. The law forbids forced or bonded labor involving children, and the Government generally enforces this prohibition effectively; however, some illegal immigrant children were forced into prostitution (see Sections 5 and 6.c.), and some of them were trafficked (see Section 6.f.).
The Government ratified International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 182 prohibiting the worst forms of child labor following completion of parliamentary action in May.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Minimum wages are not set by law, but by collective bargaining agreements on a sector by sector basis. These specify minimum standards to which individual employment contracts must conform. When an employer and a union fail to reach an agreement, courts may step in to determine fair wages on the basis of practice in comparable activities or engagements, although this rarely happens in practice.
A 1997 law reduced the legal workweek from 48 hours to 40. Most collective agreements provide for a 36- to 38-hour workweek. The average contractual workweek is 39 hours but is actually less in many industries. Overtime work may not exceed 2 hours per day or an average of 12 hours per week.
The law sets basic health and safety standards and guidelines for compensation for on-the-job injuries. For most practical purposes, European Union directives on health and safety also have been incorporated into the law. Labor inspectors are from the public health service or from the Ministry of Labor. They are few in number, given the scope of their responsibilities. Courts impose fines and sometimes prison terms for violation of health and safety laws. The Workmen's Compensation Institute reports that there were a million accidents in 1999, involving 1,309 deaths. Accidents occur with the greatest frequency in the underground economy, which employs between 3.5 and 5 million workers. Workers have the right to remove themselves from dangerous work situations without jeopardizing their continued employment.
f. Trafficking in Persons
Although the law does not address specifically trafficking in persons, it can be prosecuted through application of provisions of a 1958 law on prostitution and other articles of the Penal Code. Trafficking in women and girls for prostitution and forced labor is a growing problem.
Trafficking in women and girls for purposes of sexual exploitation involves vulnerable, illegal immigrants, most of whom come from Nigeria and Eastern Europe. The country is also a destination for trafficked women and girls. Varying estimates suggest that nearly 20,000 foreign women – from Albania, Nigeria, Romania, Moldavia, Ukraine, and other countries of Eastern Europe – are involved in prostitution, of whom some 1,500 (according to the social research institute Parsec) may be trafficked forcibly. For some, Italy is only a point of entry, and their ultimate destinations are elsewhere in Western or Northern Europe. Trafficking in children for sweatshop labor is a particular problem in Tuscany's expanding Chinese immigrant community, where children are considered to be part of the family "production unit" (see Section 6.d). The Chinese consulate in Florence cooperates with Carabinieri in persuading families to enroll their children in school.
The Ministry of Equal Opportunity leads an intergovernmental committee charged with monitoring trafficking and coordinating government activity to combat it. Other members include the Ministries of Social Affairs, Justice, Interior, and Foreign Affairs, as well as a special anti-Mafia prosecutorial unit. Major lay and Catholic NGO's concerned with trafficking, among which Parsec and Caritas are the most active, cooperate with this body.
While most prostitution involves women fleeing economic destitution in their home countries, those who are trafficked forcibly are often unable or reluctant to contact the police for help. A 1998 immigration law, for which implementing regulations were completed in November 1999 and assistance programs established in February, provided temporary residence/work permits to such women who seek to escape their exploiters. The legislation permits a temporary stay for victimized women. During this time, victims are provided with shelter, benefits, and services such as counseling and medical assistance, in cooperation with NGO's. They also may be permitted to work or study. If the victim agrees to cooperate with law enforcement and judicial authorities, the residence permit and services are extended for the length of the criminal proceedings. In July the Government set up a toll-free telephone number to help victims take advantage of this program and in its first month of operation received 7,000 calls for help. As a result of these and related policies, almost 750 women were able to benefit from these programs in their first weeks of operation, and significant increases in witness testimony and successful prosecution of traffickers were reported. In October the Ministry of the Interior hosted an international conference on trafficking in persons to focus attention on the issue.
In August 1998, a law was passed to combat abuses against children, including trafficking in children. The NGO, End Child Prostitution, Pornography and Trafficking (ECPAT), was a main advocate for this law, which criminalizes prostitution or pornography involving minors, even if committed abroad. In conjunction with other concerned NGO's, ECPAT has worked to ensure that police treat juvenile prostitutes as victims of trafficking, not criminals. In May ECPAT and components of the tourism industry (tour companies, travel agents, computer reservation system personnel, airline companies, airport authorities, and trade unions) initiated a voluntary code of conduct designed to impede sex tourism.
This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.


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Show All Answers
If there is a current public hearing proposal, you can comment on the Better Together Edina page.
Group homes of 6 people and under are a permitted use in the R-1 and R-2 district.
To request a zoning letter please contact Liz Olson, Administrative Support Specialist directly at [email protected] or 952-826-0465. Zoning letters require a payment of $175.00 per address. Checks can be made payable to "The City of Edina" and mailed to Edina City Hall (Attention Liz Olson) at 4801 W. 50th St., Edina MN 55424.
Short term rentals like VRBO and AIRBNB are not allowed in Edina. Single-family residential properties are to be used as the residence of an owner or tenant of the unit. If the owner does not reside in the unit, a tenant may reside, but for a period of not less than 30 consecutive days.
For more information, contact the Planning Division at 952-826-0369.
Tips and hints for locating corner property irons:
View The City of Edina's interactive zoning map and view by address.
There are no setbacks for driveways located on Single Dwelling Unit and Double Dwelling Unit lots. The driveway can go up to the property line; however, vehicles are required to park 5 feet from the side property line and 15 feet from the traveled portion of the street. To discuss if a curb cut permit is required, please contact the Engineering Department at 952-826-0371.
A shed constructed in the rear yard entirely behind the house is required to maintain a 3-foot side yard and 3-foot rear yard setback, including any overhang.*
A shed located in a side yard is required to maintain a 5-foot side yard setback.*
If you have a corner lot please contact the Planning Division at 952-826-0369 for further information.*
Sheds count towards the total building coverage for the lot.
*In all the above cases if a shed is larger than 200 square feet a building permit is required. You can contact the Building Inspections Division for further information at 952-826-0372 .
Recreational vehicles, boats, ATVs, snowmobiles, special purpose trailers or other vehicles designed or used for off-road purposes may be parked or stored in a garage or lawfully erected building, or may be parked or stored outdoors as follows: Sec. 26-338
The Edina Planning commission regularly meets the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month unless otherwise indicated.
The application deadline is 30-days prior to each meeting date.
You can view the online City of Edina meeting calendar here.
Yes. As of November 2019, rental owners or property management must apply for the rental license annually. The license will be effective on date applied/approved for. For more information on rental licensing, contact the Health Department at 952-826-1656.
Short-term rentals, such Airbnb and VRBO, are not permitted in Edina. For more information on short-term rentals, contact the Planning Department at 952-826-0369.
Residential pool rentals are not allowed in Edina. Single-family residential pools are to be used by the owner or tenant of the unit.
For more information, reference Sec. 36-1254 or contact the Planning Division at 952-826-0369.


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The offer is valid for bookings made on www.europcar.com/panoramaclub throughout Europcar network except car rental picked up in USA and Canada.


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I have three gym bags. I don't always take them all with me. On swim days, I just take my swim bag.
My swimming bag is the biggest bag I have. I bought it at the Nike outlet mall for $20. It's big because I have to have a lot of stuff with me when I go swimming.
I need shampoo, conditioner and soap for the shower afterward. I have a cosmetics bag with a hairbrush, Q-tips, Vitamin E Oil, deodorant and various lotions. The chlorine water dries my skin out and makes me itch. I use the Vitamin E oil on my body first, then put on lotion. It helps a lot. I usually stick with lotions that are unscented and aid in "itch" relief. Definitely an essential! Can't go without my lotions and oils post-swim.
I have two towels, swim suit, various swimming caps in various stages of decay (I need new ones, some are old and stretched out). I also have earplugs and noseclips for when I swim.
The biggest stuff that takes the most space are my hand paddles and my buoy. I can swim without them but I like to take them with me whenever I go to the pool. So these items are essentials in my bag.
Finally, I have a lock for the locker. If you aren't locking your stuff at the gym and just trusting people to be honest–don't. I once had my gym stolen from the gym locker. It was six months of HELL trying to get it all taken care of. Spend the $5 on a lock!
The other two bags are my gym bags. One is simply where I keep all my workout clothes and running shoes. I take this with me to
SHOES. I keep my newest pair of running shoes in the bag and only use them when running or working out at the gym. I want to keep them good as long as possible and not wear them out early. My Brooks Ravenna shoes are most definitely an essential item. I can't run in anything else! In that pair of shoes I also have the heel lift I MUST have when I run (to prevent my IT Band issues).
PHONE CLIP. I have a special clip I can put on my iPhone case so I can attach it to my shorts. It's so much easier when I workout and listen to music. I don't have to worry about dropping my phone.
BONDI BAND. I have three Bondi Bands I use when I workout or run because it keeps the sweat from dripping on my face. When I run outside I often switch to using a running hat.
In my smaller gym bag I carry a few essential items that I need when I workout in the gym. I carry this tiny bag with me in the gym as I work out.
GLOVES. The must have item is my weight lifting gloves. I use an old pair of cycling gloves because they are comfortable and padded. I get calluses really easily on my hands and gloves prevent that. You don't have to spend a lot of money on weight lifting gloves, either.
TOWEL. I use the REI special wicking towel. I have a small one for my gym bag and a large one for my swim bag. It's super absorbent. It's literally the best towel I've ever purchased. It dries really fast and is lightweight. I use the small one when I'm in the gym to wipe off my sweat.
SNACKS. I've learned the hard way that I need to have some easy snacks in my gym bag. If I don't eat them during my workout, they are handy to have right afterward. I currently have a small ziplock bag with dried apricots in it. That keeps the crashes at bay.
WIPES. My gym is awful about having wipes or sprays handy to wipe down machines. I've started carrying my own. Yes, I'm a germa-phobe but I'd much rather buy a few packs at the Dollar Store than get sick from the gym.
QUESTION: What are your gym bag essentials?
A-Abstinence * B-Balance * C-Calories * D-Vitamin D * E-Emergency * F-Fast Food and Fine Dining *


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Dan Savage and Pro-gay Christians Launch 'Not All Like That' Website to Reach out to LGBTs
A group of several pro-LGBT Christian groups along with outspoken gay rights advocate Dan Savage have launched a website devoted to reaching out to LGBT youth.
Known as the NALT Christians Project (NALT being short for "Not All Like That"), the site was launched Wednesday and features video testimonies from Christians supporting gay rights.
"The purpose of the NALT Christians Project is to give LGBT-affirming Christians a means of proclaiming to the world-and especially to young gay people-their belief and conviction that there is nothing anti-biblical or at all inherently sinful about being gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender," reads the About section.
John Shore, author and NALT Christians Project cofounder, told The Christian Post that the website was launched "because the time for it has come."
"So many Christians…are struggling with…the idea that they must essentially choose between their faith in God--which in many real ways is to say their belief in the Bible as the word of God--and their natural loving compassion," said Shore.
"The NALT Christian Project proves that dichotomy is an illusion. One needn't choose between the Bible and the acknowledgment that there is nothing at all inherently sinful about same-sex relationships. Some people are born gay. Some people are born straight. Neither is any indication, either way, of morality."
According to the NALT website, which already has over 40 videos uploaded, the Project is deemed a "joint venture" between Truth Wins Out, Johnshore.com, and Savage's It Gets Better Project.
Several religious pro-LGBT groups are involved, including Reconciling Ministries Network, Methodists in New Directions, Dignity USA, and the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists.
"Before we launched the website we reached out to those organizations, and told them all about what we were doing," said Shore.
"We did some dialoguing with each of them, and were gratified when each signaled their support for The NALT Christians Project."
Conservative Christian groups have taken issue with the newly launched website, including its portrayal of their intentions and the connection to Savage.
"Our position is entirely motivated by Christian love," explained Peter Sprigg, Family Research Council's Senior Fellow for Policy Studies in an interview with The Christian Post.
"But love does not require that we allow people to do whatever they want (and subsidize it). Love requires that we seek the best for people, and work to bring that about," said Sprigg.
"We sincerely believe that it is in the long-term best interests of such people to abstain from engaging in sexual relationships with others of the same sex, and therefore love requires that we encourage such abstinence."
The FRC has also expressed concern about the NALT Project regarding Savage, given his past statements toward Christians.
Last year, at a journalism convention Savage called parts of the Bible "bull****", prompting a large group of Christian high school students to leave in protest. As they did, Savage called them "pansies."
Later on, Savage would apologize for calling the students names, but reaffirmed his negative view of the Bible.
While involved in an online Christian project, later this month Savage is scheduled to receive an award from the Freedom From Religion Foundation at the atheist group's annual convention.


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Deer Season Debuts with Archery and Muzzleloader
Hunters are always encouraged to refer to the 2013 Kansas Hunting & Furharvesting Regulations Summary before hitting the field
For some, the beginning of fall is heralded by leaves changing colors, for others it's cooler temperatures and shorter days, but for hunters fall is marked by the start of deer season. In less than two weeks, hunters will take to tree stands and blinds throughout the state, bow in hand and powder horn packed.
The 2013 muzzleloader season will begin Sept. 16 and run through Sept. 29. New this year, hunters are allowed to use muzzleloading rifles, muskets and pistols, .40 caliber or larger.
The 2013 archery season will begin Sept. 16 and run through Dec. 31. New this year, crossbows are legal archery equipment for all archers. However, anyone who hunts big game or turkeys with a crossbow must obtain a free Crossbow Survey ID Number available online at www.ksoutdoors.com.
Hunter orange, a hat and vest, must be worn by all hunters during the muzzleloader season, and shooting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset.
The next deer season will be the new two-day Pre-rut Whitetail Antlerless Only season from Oct. 12 – Oct. 13, 2013, followed by the Regular Firearm season Dec. 4 – Dec. 15, 2013.
To download an electronic version of the 2013 Kansas Hunting & Furharvesting Regulations Summary, visit www.ksoutdoors.com and click "Hunting/Hunting Regulations."
Printed copies can be found at local license vendors and at any Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism regional office.


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Location: Hillsboro
SALARY: $30-$70 per HOUR
Field of activity: Professional Services
Job type: Permanent
Posted: 2024-02-27
Hamre Enterprises Inc working in industry of Professional Services. They are located in Hillsboro
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Over the years we have recruited the best workers in the field of Business Consulting Services, NEC. They are all certified Business Consultants, with over 23 years of experience in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services industry.
Where can you find us Hamre Enterprises Inc?
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Let's Twist Again
← Previous comic | Navigation in US release order | Next comic → |
Let's Twist Again | |
US Publish Number | 28 |
UK Publish Number(s) | 45 |
Written by | Ian Boothby |
Art by | Mike Kazaleh |
Title caption | Please Read Responsibly |
Published (US) | 29 November, 2006 |
"Let's Twist Again" is the twenty-eighth comic issue, which was released 29 November, 2006 in the US.
The Story
Act I
Zoidberg steals Hermes' sandwich so Hermes chases him. Fry, Bender and Leela watch The Scary Door and Professor Farnsworth announces that they will make a delivery to The Scary Door offices. It is revealed that there is only one writer who gets his ideas from a parallel universe where everything is ironic. Bender attaches a cold fusion generator to where the parallel universe is viewed and Fry, Bender and Leela are transported to the universe. The Planet Express crew are split off from each other. Leela goes to a diner and meets Death who is actually very handsome and she has dinner with him.
Act II
Bender sells his legs for beer and replaces them with chicken legs. Fry meets a talking doll who tries to prove she is more evil than Bender but ends up getting hit by a train along with Fry. Bender is offered a million dollars and steals it. Fry is in the afterlife and gets everything he ever wishes for. Bender takes his money to a pawn shop and buys a watch that stops time. He discovers that nuclear missiles are headed for earth and tries to disarm them. Death proposes to marry Leela but the nuclear missiles blow up ten billion people and Death has to leave Leela. Bender heads to an adult bookstore and his eyes fall out. The people in the afterlife try to prove to Fry that he is in hell not heaven and it's boring getting whatever he wants. Fry wishes that he, Bender and Leela can go home but they end up in a zoo along with Zoidberg.
Additional Info
- Starting with this issue, UK comics became bimonthly again with the full story
Doll: I pushed my last owner's daddy down the stairs.
Fry: One time, Bender pushed me down an escalator that was going up. I was falling down it for almost an hour.
(In alphabetical order)
- Bender
- Debut: Death
- Debut: Doll
- Fry
- Hermes
- Leela
- Professor Farnsworth
- Sal
- Debut: The Scary Door writer
- Zoidberg
Comic Credits
- Inks
- Scripts
- Colors
- Pencils
- Letters
- Editor
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loose leaf tea is my thing. i love anything with a good spice and citrus taste. love beer . i love wine . i love coffee. rock and roll and hip hop. my little 10 month old pumpkin cake, Saydee is what keeps me going. i love my job. i love my family. have a cat named Picasso. love to learn anything i can and meet new people. follow me on tumblr.
Grand Rapids, MI


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Wide analysis bandwidth is an essential requirement for certain modern communications testers—notably, for systems based on multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) antennas. Unfortunately, conventional test tools like spectrum analyzers provide only limited analysis bandwidths. To create a solution for such challenges, Agilent Technologies (www.agilent.com) recently introduced a wideband MIMO PXI vector signal analyzer (VSA). Essentially a test system in the modular PXI format that is capable of providing an analysis bandwidth as wide as 780 MHz, it is ideal for evaluating new IEEE 802.11ac wideband wireless-local-area-network (WLAN) systems. The modular test system operates over a frequency range from 10 MHz to 26.5 GHz.
The PXI VSA (see figure) was just one of many test solutions from Agilent on display at the recent 2012 IEEE International Microwave Symposium (IMS) in Montreal, Canada. The PXI mainframe includes a model M9362A-D01 four-channel frequency downconverter module, one M9202A 12-b digitizer per channel, an M9302A local-oscillator (LO) module, an M9168C RF attenuator, and an M9352A intermediate-frequency (IF) amplifier/attenuator module.
This PXI-based modular test system provides four-channel vector signal analysis to 26.5 GHz across analysis bandwidths as wide as 780 MHz for MIMO testing.
The wideband four-channel VSA is made possible by the M9362A frequency downconverter module. It is based on the PXI Express (PXIe) backplane format. With a frequency range of 10 MHz to 26.5 GHz, the frequency downconverter can simultaneously translate four channels with instantaneous bandwidths as wide as 1.5 GHz. This makes it ideal for wideband signal capture. Frequency downconversion is performed with the aid of the model M9302A LO, a two-slot 3U PXI module that generates stable output signals at levels to +16 dBm from 3 to 10 GHz.
At RF/microwave frequencies, signal levels are controlled by the model M9168C programmable PXI step attenuator module. It provides an attenuation range of 0 to 101 dB in 1-dB steps from DC to 26.5 GHz with attenuation accuracy of ±0.4 dB at 26.5 GHz. The manufacturer quotes impressive 0.03-dB insertion-loss repeatability throughout each attenuation section for an operating lifetime of 5 million cycles. The insertion loss is only 2.5 dB through 6 GHz, 4.0 dB through 18 GHz, and 5.0 dB through 26.5 GHz.
Once signals have been downconverted to the IF range, they can be processed by the single-slot model M9352A four-channel PXI hybrid IF amplifier/attenuator. It has a frequency range of 10 MHz to 1 GHz, offering 31.5-dB attenuation in 0.5-dB steps and a 31.5-dB gain range in 0.5-dB steps. The unit is linear, with a third-order intercept point of +43 dBm, and features a low noise figure of 3 dB. Isolation between channels is better than 60 dB.
At that point, they are ready for conversion to the digital realm, achieved via the M9202A single-slot 12-b 3U PXIe digitizer. It features a 1-GHz-wide bandwidth (with 30-MHz nominal instantaneous bandwidth) and sampling rates to 2 GSamples/s. The digitizer is backed by 512-MB on-board memory and powered by a Virtex-6 field-programmable gate array (FPGA) from Xilinx (www.xilinx.com). It uses the PXIe backplane for fast data streaming and achieves a spurious-free dynamic range (SFDR) of typically −60 dBc with 9-b effective-number-of-bits (ENOB) performance.
The modules are housed within a model M9018A PXI/PXIe chassis and orchestrated under the command of a controller module. Working with Agilent's 89600 VSA software and an additional display screen, the software-defined system provides flexible measurement capabilities—allowing for testing communications configurations as large as 4 x 4 MIMO systems.
Agilent Technologies, Inc.,5301 Stevens Creek Blvd., Santa Clara, CA 95051; (877) 424-4536, (408) 345-8886, FAX: (408) 345-8475, e-mail: [email protected],www.agilent.com.


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Mount Massive Climber's Log
Foxy Long Bottoms - Jun 20, 2005 6:09 pm
Route Climbed: Colorado Main Range Trail Date Climbed: 7/02One of my favorites so far. I like the long hikes.
km_donovan - Jun 10, 2005 9:25 am
Route Climbed: Southwest Slopes II Date Climbed: July 1, 2001This was my fist time to go solo. A harbinger of many more to come. I want to go back and do all 4 summits of Massive someday.
ktiffany22 - May 15, 2005 11:14 pm
Route Climbed: North Half Moon Creek Date Climbed: August 14, 2004A fun adventure! We camped at the base, then had a great time hiking it! We were the first to summit:-) Very enjoyable and easy!
Mike N - May 14, 2005 1:09 pm
Route Climbed: Halfmoon Creek Date Climbed: July 2003This is a slogfest. Great views of the whole valley. Save your knees on the way down.
mdavenport2 - May 14, 2005 9:11 am
Route Climbed: Mount Massive Trail via Colorado Trail Date Climbed: August 7, 2004Climbed with two friends from work. Made the summit and it wasn't crowded at all. Snow squall chased us off. Camped the night before along Halfmoon Creek and was kept awake by all-night party goons.
Brian Kalet - Apr 6, 2005 5:44 pm
Route Climbed: Mount Massive Trail Date Climbed: August 8, 2004I got off to a late start and lucked out with not running into any afternoon storms.
easleygone - Apr 4, 2005 1:29 am
Route Climbed: North Halfmooon Creek Date Climbed: Sept 1993A long and high attitude gain. The valley west of Massive is just gorgeous and drew me back several
times to camp and climb Mt Oklahoma and Deer
alpine master - Apr 3, 2005 11:06 pm
Route Climbed: SW Slopes Date Climbed: Oct. 18 2002I took the Halfmoon Creek Trail. This sucked. I was sliding back as much as I moved forward. Scree from hell. The trail was kind of hard to follow. Coming down was just as bad, falling on my ass the whole way down.
Old Ickabod - Mar 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Route Climbed: Colorado Main Range Trail Date Climbed: May, 2003Second attempt on Massive. First attempt failed via Willow Creek/East Slopes. A good hike ending in success!
altitude14er - Mar 20, 2005 7:24 pm
Route Climbed: North Halfmoon Creek Approach Date Climbed: 10/18/2004The winds were gusty but snow wasn't too bad, My climbing partner Mark was involved in a minor a slab avalanche but escaped unscathed
Asphazell - Mar 1, 2005 11:19 am
Route Climbed: S. Halfmoon Date Climbed: October 2004What made this climb interesting was the snow. Had a small slab release on the summit ridge after my partner had crossed over and I was halfway accross. Made for some interesting verbage and slip n' slidage. Was nice to see Elbert again, one of my first 14'ers.
Ratballs - Feb 21, 2005 9:08 pm
Route Climbed: Up Colorado Trail, down Mount Massive Trail Date Climbed: June, 2002Got totally turned around from the get-go, ending up on the wrong trail, which I discovered when I could see Leadville from treeline. Still, it was a remarkably fun day on what is otherwise an unremarkable hump in the sky, or collection of humps. I bopped along the top from South Massive to North Massive, visiting all summits and sub-summits between. I believe I descended a scree-filled gulley and intersected the Mount Massive Trail for a quick trip down. Honestly, though, I probably wouldn't bother with Massive again.
pebblehopper - Feb 21, 2005 4:03 pm
Route Climbed: Standard Date Climbed: August 22, 2004Nice climb!. Raced the thunderstorms down, but none the worse for the wear. View was great!
ungerfeld - Feb 18, 2005 7:41 am
Route Climbed: Willow Creek Date Climbed: January 16 2005I turned around at 13,900 ft running out of time and strength in strong winds and poor visibility. To know more, see Scott's report below.
Scott - Feb 11, 2005 1:17 pm Date Climbed: Jun 22, 2013
MassiveJanuary 15-16 2005
All Summitpost winter trip. Two of us made it, two of us got very close-but didn't reach the summit (including me), and one still got up really high. Great trip and great company. TRIP REPORT. Will go again next winter to attempt entire traverse!
June 21-22 2013
June 21
Shaylee, Kessler and I left for climbing Mount Massive. We wanted to get an earlier start, but after being too tired to pack the night before and after waiting for Pizza Hut in Leadville, we didn't get that early start. I thought it would be more pleasant to camp on the mountain than by the vehicles. We started the trail just after 7:30 PM and walked less than an hour before setting up camp. We camped at South Fork Willow Creek.
While I was filtering the water, Arthur and his dad walked up the trail. We were supposed to meet them at the campsite, so we all camped in the same place before heading to bed.
June 22
Our group of five woke up with a temperature of 33F. We quickly packed up and started up the mountain.
The trail up Massive is steady uphill, but never extremely steep. We made good progress up to the 13,900 foot saddle. After that there was some scrambling, but it was a straightforward climb to the summit.
It was Shaylee's (9 years old) highest summit to date.
Arthur and his dad when to climb the other 14er summits (unranked) of Mount Massive, but Shaylee, Kessler, and I only went to Massive Green as far as extra summits goes.
I was afraid that we would be beat if we tried them all in a day.
After climbing Massive Green, Shaylee, Kessler, and I went back over the summit of Massive and back down to camp. We took a nap while waiting for the other two.
When Arthur and his dad met us, they were beat. We hiked the short distance down the mountain and ate in Leadville. Because they were understandable tired, we cancelled the next day's climb and headed back home.
It was a great trip.
ColoradoScott - Feb 1, 2005 11:32 am
Route Climbed: Southwest Slopes Date Climbed: August 14, 1988After a previous attempt on the east slopes route in September of the year before, when we had to turn back due to snow conditions above 13,500, we returned for the steep haul up the shorter route.
Richrat - Jan 30, 2005 6:16 pm
Route Climbed: Mt. Massive Trailhead Date Climbed: August 2004Due to trail repair, there was a slight detour on the trip.
bc44caesar - Jan 17, 2005 1:41 pm
Route Climbed: Mount Massive Trail from Half Moon Road Closure Date Climbed: 16 Jan 2005Reached the summit with Henrik (hmronnow) as part of the all-SP team also including Scott Patterson, Emilio (ungerfeld) and Joel (photo61guy). Started from the road closure on Half Moon Road and headed west into the woods. After six and a half hours of tedious trail breaking through consistently knee-deep powder we had only covered 1600' and about three miles, making camp just below the Colorado Trail. While camp was being set up Henrik, Joel, and I helped break trail up to treeline to speed the next day's ascent. The next day the wind was strong above treeline, but Henrik and I made the summit in the clouds after 4.5 hrs. Joel turned around just below 13000' while Scott descended with a fatigued Emilio after nearly reaching the 13900' saddle. The descent to camp took only 2 hours and with a still-broken trail the descent to the car only took 1.5 hrs! A fantastic trip on a challenging climb with great partners! Now's the time to climb Massive though with a veritable highway to the top - hurry before the next snow!!
Natasha - Oct 14, 2004 3:41 pm
Route Climbed: North Half Moon Creek Date Climbed: August 22, 2004Had a great hike, but boy did we make it tougher than it should have been. Totally missed the "large rock cairn" marking the turn on the trail...not sure what we were looking at, 'cuz it was large and tough to miss!
mr_g - Oct 12, 2004 8:57 am
Route Climbed: West Slopes Date Climbed: October 14, 2000A very long day on this mountain. We missed the cairn so ended up hiking up the entire basin and climbing the scree slope to the ridge. We then had to traverse the ridge over the minor summit. Alot of wind at the top too! Spent over 9 hours on this mountain, which would have been quicker had we turned at the cairn.


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Matthews misinformed on Iraqi election
Written by Andrew Seifter
MSNBC host Chris Matthews and General (Ret.) H. Norman Schwarzkopf falsely claimed no insurgent attacks occurred at polling places on election day in Iraq. In fact, attacks on Iraqi polling places were widely reported during the January 30 elections. Matthews also claimed that Senate Minority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) responded to the election by "calling for a rapid withdrawal of U.S. forces" from Iraq; in fact, Reid has explicitly opposed a timetable for withdrawal.
During Matthews' interview with Schwarzkopf on the January 31 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, both men wrongly claimed that the Iraqi voting process had been free of violence:
SCHWARZKOPF: It's just interesting that these [Iraqi] people, in the face of death, in the face of being told that they would be killed if they participated, in the face of being told that they were going to be blown away and -- at the voting places and that sort of thing, and none of that happened. I mean, it just didn't occur.
MATTHEWS: Do you know General -- do you know [Major] General Richard Kramlich?
SCHWARZKOPF: The name is familiar. But that's about it.
MATTHEWS: He's a Marine -- he was a Marine general over in Iraq. And I was so impressed last week. He said to us on the program -- I said, "Are you worried about people being able to not be bombed when they go to vote?" And just like an iron man, he said on the show, "No one will be blown up as they go to vote. There will be no bombing of any of our voting lines." He just said that. And it turned out to be the case. So I guess something went right, in terms of the perimeters there, able to set up apparently multiple perimeters around these voting stations, General.
SCHWARZKOPF: Yes, absolutely.
The Washington Post reported on February 1: "Insurgents made good on their repeated threats to attack Iraq's polling stations on election day, unleashing car and suicide bombs, mortars, rockets, small-arms fire and grenades in 109 separate attacks, according to U.S. officials." That followed similar accounts on January 31 by Knight Ridder and the Associated Press, among others. A list of election-day attacks on CNN.com that resulted in deaths or injuries includes descriptions of attacks at polling places, including one in which "suicide bomber detonated explosives while standing in line at the Maysaloun polling station," killing three and wounding nine.
Two U.S. Marines were among the 45 people killed in Iraq on election day, including a Marine killed while guarding an Iraqi polling station, as The Cincinnati Enquirer reported on January 31 (and in more detail on February 1). The Los Angeles Times noted on January 31: "Seven U.S. soldiers were injured when an insurgent lobbed a hand grenade over the wall of a polling site in northwest Mosul, just after the gates had closed for the day."
Later in his interview with Schwarzkopf, Matthews misstated Reid's position on the continued presence of U.S. troops in Iraq:
MATTHEWS: Let me ask you, as a military man, in all seriousness, as you watch this partisan debate that has already begun, with Harry Reid out there, the Democratic leader of the Senate, Ted Kennedy, others, calling for a rapid withdrawal of U.S. forces, how do you read that as a military person, not as a politician?
SCHWARZKOPF: Well, I think it is dumb. That's the only -- to come up and say that based upon what happened.
But, as the New York Times reported on February 1, Reid expressed opposition to setting a timetable for U.S. withdrawal in a January 31 press conference: "As far as setting a timeline [for withdrawal], as we learned in the Balkans, that's not a wise decision, because it only empowers those who don't want us there, and it doesn't work well to do that." While Reid stated that "we need an exit strategy so that we know what victory is and how we can get there," he also emphasized that President Bush "needs to spell out a real and understandable plan for the unfinished work ahead to defeat the growing insurgency, rebuild Iraq, increase political participation by all parties, especially Iraq's moderates, and increase international involvement."