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S. Korea human rights body urges probe of abuse of vagrants
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean commission on Thursday urged lawmakers to investigate the enslavement and mistreatment of thousands of people at a vagrants' facility during the 1970s and '80s.
The country's dictators ordered roundups to "purify" the streets, sending the homeless, disabled and children to facilities where they were detained and forced to work.
No one has been held accountable for the hundreds of deaths, rapes and beatings The Associated Press documented at the now-closed Brothers Home, a huge mountainside compound in the port city of Busan that had the largest of dozens of those facilities. The AP report in 2016 was based on hundreds of exclusive documents and dozens of interviews with officials and former detainees.
The National Human Rights Commission on Thursday recommended lawmakers pass a special law to initiate an investigation and also called for the government to sign and ratify a United Nations convention against forced disappearance.
Many if not most of the Brothers inmates were brought to the facility by police and city officials amid aggressive drives by Seoul's then-military leaders to beautify city streets by removing undesirables as they prepared to bid for and host the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Many former inmates say there were held at Brothers without the knowledge of their families, claims backed by government and police records that show authorities exercised little discretion in whom they chose to confine at Brothers.
At the time, officials justified the confinements by a 1975 government directive that instructed police and local officials to round up vagrants. However, the commission on Thursday said that even under the legal standards of those times, the government clearly failed to protect the fundamental rights of inmates because the directive was in violation of the constitution.
Brothers was shut down months after a prosecutor exposed the facility in early 1987.
The former prosecutor, Kim Yong Won, who now runs a Seoul law firm, told the AP that high-ranking officials blocked his investigation, in part out of fear over an embarrassing international incident on the eve of the Olympics. Kim wasn't able to indict the owner of Brothers, Park In-keun, or anyone else for the widespread abuse at the Busan compound and was left to pursue much narrower charges linked to embezzlement and construction law violations.
Park served 2 ½ years in prison and continued to earn money from welfare facilities and land sales before his death last year.


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No matter where your political affiliation lies, I think you would have to agree with this statement: The solar and wind power generation sectors should both benefit from the results of this election. The re-election of President Obama, along with a large percentage of congressional members of both parties that have been champions of tax credits and incentives of this technology, sparked renewed optimism within the renewable community. Both the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) seemed pretty pleased with the outcome of the election.
The AWEA believes the results from this election will probably lead to a renewal of the renewable energy tax credit before it expires at the end of the year. According to a recent AWEA press release, "Overall, AWEA sees continued bipartisan support in Congress for extending the Production Tax Credit (PTC) to incentivize $15 billion a year in private investment in U.S. wind farms, with support steady in the Senate and a net increase in announced supporters in the U.S. House." If the PTC is renewed this year, the industry would probably start to see a lot of new projects secure financing in the second half of 2013. This would also help offset the huge drop off in wind turbine installations that's projected if the PTC isn't extended.
A recent statement from Rhone Resch, president and CEO of SEIA, was also pretty upbeat. "To date, the Obama Administration has created and supported pro-solar policies that have been vital to the success of the industry. Policy certainty is crucial to continue the growing role of solar in America's energy mix. Stable policy frameworks at the federal and state level, including maintaining and expanding commitments to renewable energy initiatives, spur and leverage private sector investments in the solar industry to meet our nation's future energy needs."
Like it or not, there's no denying the fact that the Obama Administration has been a strong supporter of these renewable energy markets since he first took office. And many indicators still point toward continued government support on the technological development and tax credit/incentive fronts. This is obviously good news for the manufacturers of wind and solar power equipment. It's also good news for anyone who designs, installs, and maintains these systems.
But even with continued government support, the installation of these subsidized systems — especially solar — still relies heavily on the potential investment component of this financial equation. As noted in our cover story this month ("Solar Coaster" by Tom Zind, starting on page 10), the players on the consumer side of the market continue to put new twists on leases, third-party ownership, and power purchase agreements. On the developer side, they've turned to project bonds, asset securitization, and master limited partnership arrangements. Creative and cutting-edge financing have continued to hold investor attention up to this point in time, but the question in my mind is for how long?
Let's all hope these newly elected members of government can quickly compromise on a budget plan to keep the country from falling off this so-called fiscal cliff. If they don't, you can bet this newfound enthusiasm by those in the renewable sector will quickly wane.

subset: commoncrawl


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The Wrecky Infamy is Spreading
Here's a report sent in from the front lines by brave Wreckporter Mrs. Tantrum:
"I wanted to let you know that I attempted this morning to discreetly take a photo of a spider cupcake wreck at my local [name removed to prevent possible lynching] store with my phone. Apparently the bakery manager and store manager are on to the Cake Wreck Blog, because I was shouted at by both of them "NO PHOTOGRAPHING OF THE CAKES!" I told them I was sending the photo to my husband to see if it was the one he wanted for the party today, they replied "No you aren't, you're going to send it to that cake wreck blog like everyone else."
YES!! The power! The absolute power! The universe is mine to command, to CONTROOOL!!
[picking self off floor] Whoops - sorry 'bout that, Mrs. Tantrum; just took a little power trip there.
SO... anybody else get the spider-wreck photo? :)


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Since Debora Spar was officially inaugurated as president of Barnard College in October, she has brought her vision for Barnard to alumnae near and far, and returned to Morningside Heights with news of the vitality of our regional communities.
Recent receptions in Washington, D.C., Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco were standing-room-only gatherings with alumnae having the opportunity to get acquainted with the new president. Hosted by Elizabeth Wylie Galvin '74, Lois Champy '67, Linda Levinson '62, and Toby Levy '72, respectively, these receptions were lively events where the president took questions from alumnae on a broad range of topics: Barnard's place in Morningside Heights and the president's goal of an international community radiating from the College, the progress of the Nexus construction, art on campus, women in leadership roles, attracting an even stronger coterie of talented and diverse faculty members, and ensuring that our students have access to financial aid.
President Spar took a historic tour of Asia this spring as Barnard proudly hosted the Kang Tongbi Commemorative Symposium: Women Changing China, in Beijing. The symposium on women's leadership in China was named in honor of the first Chinese woman to attend Barnard more than 100 years ago. Moderated by President Spar, the symposium featured esteemed panelists Wu Qing, Yan Geling, Yang Lan, and Ruby Yang, and attracted more than 200 attendees, including alumnae, diplomats, parents, prospective students, university professors and officers, and many members of the media.
Prior to her stop in Beijing, President Spar went to Hong Kong where she visited with alumnae at a reception hosted by Eizelle Taino '95. After the symposium, Spar became the first Barnard president to visit Korea. While in Seoul, she met the first Korean students to attend Barnard, Choon-Nan Lee Yoon '51 and Ok-Yul Kim '55 at a reception hosted by Young Ja Kim Hur '72.


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TEHRAN, May 23 (UPI) -- U.S. statements on the Iranian election process show a profound misunderstanding of the country's political system, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
The 12-member Guardian Council in Iran announced this week that eight of the more than 650 registered candidates were qualified to compete in the presidential campaign. The election is June 14.
U.S. State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said the vetting process was unfortunate.
"We think that the lack of transparency makes it unlikely that the slate of candidates represents the will of the Iranian people, who should be given every opportunity to choose a president who best embodies their views," he said.
Reformer and former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, an ally of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, were among those excluded from the final list.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Araqchi said Ventrell's statement showed a lack of knowledge about Iran's political system.
"Flawed judgment on the basis of poor knowledge and misinformation about the electoral process in Iran, is not only interference in the Iranian nation's (domestic) affairs and in contradiction with basic international laws, but offends the political maturity and awareness of Iran's discerning people," he was quoted by the semiofficial Fars News Agency as saying.


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The hits keep coming for the Baltimore Ravens.
|Baltimore Ravens with and without Ray Lewis
|Win-loss record
|Points allowed per game
|Yards allowed per game
|Rushing yards allowed per game
|Takeaways per game
Coach John Harbaugh announced Monday that All-Pro linebacker Ray Lewis will miss the rest of the season with a complete triceps tear suffered in Sunday's costly win over the Dallas Cowboys.
"Ray has a triceps tear. A complete tear. So he'll be out for the season," Harbaugh told reporters. "We just found that out in the last five minutes."
Harbaugh also confirmed cornerback Lardarius Webb suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament against the Cowboys and is done for the year.
Lewis was injured near the end of the game and sat out the final few drives, not something Ravens fans are accustomed to seeing from the man who has started 226 games since the team made him the 26th overall pick of the 1996 NFL Draft.
It's unclear what the future holds for Lewis, who turns 38 in May. After 13 Pro Bowl campaigns, Lewis hasn't been himself this season. Neither has Baltimore's defense, which ranks 23rd against the pass and has allowed a brutal 200-plus yards on the ground two weeks running.
Lewis is due to make $5.4 million next season as part of a seven-year, $44.5 million contract that runs through 2015. The money is deep background -- the pressing question here is if Lewis will play another game for the franchise with which he's so deeply intertwined.
It's not a matter of age with Lewis. He has accomplished too much to be counted out, but this wasn't the plan in Baltimore.
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.


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The Caves of Belize: Explorations on the Edge of Ecotourism
The Caves of Belize: Explorations on the Edge of Ecotourism
Leafy cohune palms blocked out the tropical sun, cooling the air around the thatched roof cabanas that made up Ian Anderson's Caves Branch Adventure Co. and Jungle Lodge. As I walked down the drive, a small yellow and black bird fluttered past me and settled on a drooping frond. To my left, I could hear the Caves Branch River trickling through the jungle's thickness.
But the peace of the surroundings did not extend into the wooden, open-air lodge, where guests were beginning to help themselves to the evening's buffet dinner. When I stepped up onto the patio, little did I know that I was walking into a brewing conflict over the future of tourism in Belize.
I had hoped to chat with the owner, Canadian-born Ian Anderson, over the meal to learn about the issues he faced as one of the country's most successful ecotourism entrepreneurs. But he had other problems on his mind. Every few minutes, he would excuse himself and duck into the kitchen, leaving the wooden saloon-style doors swinging behind him. From the patio, I could hear him speaking intently into his mobile phone.
It didn't take long to learn the cause of the commotion. The Belize government had just shut down the guide operation at the nearby Jaguar Paw Resort, another expatriate-owned outfit that offers tours through some of Belize's most dazzling tourist attractions-its crystal caves. Several local operators had complained that the owners at Jaguar Paw were restricting public access to the network of pristine caves situated near their private complex, and things had begun to get violent. Anderson, afraid that he was next on the list, was frantically calling around to hire security guards and dogs to head off any potential unrest.
I had arrived in Belize two weeks before to learn about this tiny country of 250,000 inhabitants that in the last few years had become one of the world's top ecotourism destinations. Earlier that day, I had taken the water taxi from Ambergris Caye, an overbuilt tropical island 60 kilometers east of Belize City, which had been so inundated with tourists that it was the farthest thing from "eco"-tourism I could have imagined. I hoped to find a little more calm and relaxation inland, where, according to my guidebook, tourism was developing at a more leisurely pace. At Caves Branch, however, I found relaxation but not necessarily calm.
Ian Anderson, who once worked in the hotel industry, was among the first people to recognize the tourism potential of Belize's caves. In the early 1990s, he organized a handful of tours and built a lodge and some cabanas on a lush jungle site in the Caves Branch valley in the center of the country. Today, much of the surrounding landscape has been cleared to make way for neat rows of citrus trees, and the oranges grow in such profusion that locals are allowed to pick them for free to prevent the crop from going to waste. Enclosing the valley are the foothills of the Maya Mountains, their slopes carpeted with the jagged chaos of trees that have never been clear-cut, at least with the tools of modern man.
Tourists began visiting Caves Branch soon after Anderson set up shop, hearing about his operation mostly through word-of-mouth. But it took him nearly a decade to turn a profit. Today the pace has definitely picked up, especially since early March, when one of Anderson's cave tours was featured on a steamy episode of Temptation Island, a Fox Television "reality TV" show in the United States.
By then, the troubles had already begun. Local resistance to the Caves Branch outfit, and to other private cave tours in the area, has intensified in recent years. Critics complain that tourist operations owned by expatriates are squelching indigenous efforts at ecotourism, by denying local people access to the caves so they, too, can make money from them. The income generated by tourist visits to the caves is by no means small change: guests at Caves Branch-70 percent of whom are from North America-pay anywhere from $70 to $95 for a day's cave visit.
I had heard rumors of rising tensions even before arriving at Caves Branch. Carlos, a Belizean snorkel guide I had met on the islands, raised his eyebrows when I mentioned Anderson's name. "Ian is a bad man. He thinks he can stop the locals from going places," he told me. Others, too, had similar reactions when I mentioned my destination, though no one would go into more detail.
I soon learned that the situation was a bit more complicated than this. Under Belizean antiquities law, neither Anderson nor any other private individual can "own" the country's caves and bar people from using them. This is because the government has official jurisdiction over all archaeological sites-whether they are situated above or below ground. The bulk of Belize's caves, which are rich in Mayan pottery and other artifacts, therefore fall under government control.
However, the entrances to most of the caves that Anderson uses for his tours are located on private land-the 23,500-hectare Caves Branch Estate, owned by a business partner. The easiest way to access many of the caves is by crossing over this land. "This is private property, and people need to respect that," Anderson said in defense of his operation. "I have never tried to restrict public access to the caves from other points. For instance, people are free to follow the river, a public waterway, to reach some of the entrances."
But some local residents resent what they feel is Anderson's exclusive access to the caves. And lately, this opposition has intensified. In one incident, unidentified assailants threw large rocks down the walls of a 100-meter sinkhole that a group of Anderson's guests were rappelling into, barely missing them.
The government, fearing greater trouble, has stepped in to look more closely at the controversy. Anderson's competitor, whose operation was shut down the day I arrived, was the first casualty in a dispute over private property and public resources.
Similar conflicts over tourism and resource ownership are playing out across the developing world, as traditional resource-extractive industries like mining or timber lose ground to the booming tourism economy. Travel to these regions has surged dramatically. Today, 1 out of every 5 international tourists travels from an industrial country to a developing one, up from 1 in 13 in the mid-1970s.
Tourism has the potential to generate needed foreign exchange, but with less environmental destruction than is inevitable in traditional resource extraction. But some of the same dramatic clashes prominent in the extractive industries are also prevalent in the growing tourism sector. Like transnational mining companies or timber barons who vie over the fate of a country's forests or minerals, private tourism interests can wield a great deal of influence, sometimes at the public expense.
Large-scale investors and foreign interests often determine the direction of a country's tourism industry, bringing a flood of expensive hotels, restaurants, and tour operations that earn high levels of revenue yet repatriate the bulk of their profits back home. Typically, local residents appreciate the jobs and income that these enterprises bring, yet lament the negative side effects-cultural "mainstreaming," a boost in living costs, and often, environmental destruction.
Belize has not escaped these problems. The 23,000 square kilometer country, bordered by Mexico and Guatemala, is rich in natural and cultural attractions. These include not just caves, but beaches, jungles, mountains, and native cultures-among them Creole, Mayan, and Garifuna (the descendants of African slaves and Carib Indians). Since 1985, international tourist arrivals to the country have more than tripled, to more than 350,000 annually. Tourist dollars now bring in about $112 million a year, accounting for one-fifth of the GDP and a quarter of total foreign exchange earnings. Today, approximately one of every four jobs is tourism-related.
Foreign investors have scrambled to capitalize on Belize's tourism potential, and their presence in the country has remained strong. Erlet Cater, a delegate at the first Caribbean ecotourism conference, held in Belize in 1991, estimates that at least half of the 350 participants at the time were either expatriates or based in the United States, and many expressed interest in starting an operation in Belize. In 1992, expats comprised roughly 65 percent of the membership in the Belize Tourism Industry Association, an industry group that includes representatives from leading hotel, tour operator, and transport associations.
Today, foreigners who do not have a development permit from the government can only own small parcels of land in Belize. Even so, an estimated 90 percent of the country's coastal development is in foreign hands.
In Belize, as in much of the developing world, growing numbers of hotels and tour operators are billing themselves as "ecotourism" enterprises. They hope to cash in on surging global interest in nature-related travel, including trekking, caving, snorkeling, and other "soft" adventures-a market that has grown by as much as 30 percent a year in recent years.
In practice it can be difficult to decide what, exactly, qualifies as ecotourism. The Vermont-based International Ecotourism Society defines it as "responsible travel to natural areas which conserves the environment and sustains the well-being of local people." But few tour operators actually meet these criteria well-including those in Belize. For instance, I saw sprawling, luxury resorts on the islands billing their scuba operations, which are dependent on gas-guzzling motor boats, as eco-tours.
But I also encountered more than enough local Belizeans who were committed to more responsible tourism. They included "Chocolate" Heredia, the 72-year-old fisherman-turned-snorkel guide who had spent 30 years of his life convincing the government and his fellow guides to protect dwindling manatee populations off Belize's northern cayes. There was Basilicus, a 17-year-old Mayan who helped his parents and 14 siblings run jungle tours and a tourist homestay program in one of Belize's poorest villages-and who someday hoped to work for an international organization on sustainable development issues. And there were many others.
Anderson steered away from using the word ecotourism altogether. Instead, he called his operation a "life-changing adventure" tour. "I don't know what ecotourism is-it's just a buzzword, a marketing tool," he told me. "But I know what it should be: one, it should include grassroots indigenous involvement. Two, it should be small scale with minimal impact. Three, activities should be planned in a low impact way."
I wouldn't have called Caves Branch a "grassroots" operation, given that the outfit wasn't started up by the local community. But benefits for Anderson's 37 full-time employees, most of whom came from the immediate area, seemed good. He explained that his cave guides earned as much as five times the average valley salary of roughly $9 to $10 a day. In addition, they earned a bonus share of the profits from the December-to-Easter high season, usually no less than $400 each per year. And several of the staff had been with the company long enough to become legal shareholders, which they would remain as long as they stayed there.
For the most part, the site was designed and run with sensitivity to its ecological impact. The lodge, 10 cabanas, and "jungle showers" were constructed using local wood beams and thatch, and all guest spaces were lit by kerosene lamps.
But I wondered whether Anderson, with his business experience, greater understanding of the expectations of foreign tourists, and permission to access caves on his partner's land, wasn't crowding out local efforts to capture the tourist market. In passing, he had mentioned that an attempt within the community to start an alternative, locally run cave guide association had fallen apart, not long before I had arrived. It wasn't clear to me exactly why.
Anderson had his own explanation. "They claimed I was shutting them down," he told me. "But it was really because of a lack of professionalism. The problem is, there is little cooperation in this society....They didn't want to start a village operation, really. They didn't want to put in the time and effort that I've had to for the past nine years. They just wanted to take the Caves Branch name and milk off that." He pointed out that his offers to provide free training to local guides, and to help them find alternative cave tour locations, had fallen on deaf ears.
It was hard to tell whether or not Anderson's apparent lock on a rich public resource like the Caves Branch caves was fair. But it was clear that he went to great lengths to protect the ones that I toured. The publicly accessible caves, on the other hand, had not fared so well.
Some 200 million years ago, present-day Belize was a cluster of small islands in the tropical ocean separating the two American continental landmasses. Over the next 60 million years, the skeletons of countless ocean creatures accumulated in layers beneath the surface, forming the rich limestone ridges of the Maya range. When sea levels fell, exposing the skinny Central American land bridge, the Maya Mountains stood bare against the elements. Wind pummeled the rocks, and rain and other surface water seeped through the porous limestone of the hills and valleys, carving uniquely shaped caverns and tunnels through the subterranean landscape. Today, as one local put it, "Belize is like Swiss cheese."
Nine of us at the adventure lodge had elected to go on Anderson's most popular cave tour, the "River Cave Expedition." This included several hours of floating through underground tunnels on large inner tubes, the route lit only by the beams of our headlamps. Drifting through the cave entrance, I sensed immediately that these were not like any caverns I had seen before. There were no metal handrails and wood walkways, or walls laced with cables and large spotlights. None of the looming formations had been smoothed and darkened by the touch of thousands of grasping fingers.
No, being inside these caves was like floating through the interior of a jewel. In every direction, stalactites and stalagmites-ranging in size from soda straws to broad tree trunks-formed shiny moist columns. The flowstone rippled softly down the walls, and the snowy rock crystals twinkled in our lamp beams, as if sparked by an intense chemical reaction.
Further in, we parked our inner tubes on a sand bar and prepared for a short hike in the cave. Our guide, Marcos, wouldn't let us advance until he had pointed out exactly where to put our hands and feet, something that would have been nearly impossible to regulate had our group been any larger. This was not just a safety precaution-any misstep would, within seconds, transform million-year-old crystals into dull brown patches.
All of Belize's tour guides are required by law to take a series of 12 set courses to gain basic knowledge of subjects like guiding, first aid, environmental law, Mayan culture, marine biology, and local flora and fauna. But Marcos explained that Caves Branch guides receive instruction in all these topics and more-including cave ecology and rigorous training in cave and wilderness rescue, an invaluable skill in the darkness and unpredictability of the underground world.
Almost everywhere I turned-on the ceiling, along the walls, underfoot, hanging off ledges-I saw cave formations that put every "crystal" or "cathedral" cave I had ever visited to shame. I marveled at the difference between these caves and the ones I had visited back home in the States-the U.S. caves seemed like mere tourist traps in comparison. I held my breath as I squeezed past long-legged, blind spiders that scuttled into cracks when I neared, and strained my neck to peer into the foot-wide pockmarks overhead, hollowed out by centuries of acidic bat guano.
After about an hour of hiking and crawling, Marcos instructed us to aim our beams toward the corner of a long chamber. There, clustered on the floor, lay remnants of broken pots, some with decorative twine designs imprinted around the neck. Nearby, a pile of charred wood and ashes gave testament to an ancient fire. It might have been set only yesterday, were it not for the reflection of my lamp beam in the petrified remains. Marcos passed around bits of jade and obsidian that had been discovered nearby, perhaps the beads of long broken necklaces or other adornment.
The ancient Maya, whose ruined cities lie buried deep in the jungles of Mexico and Central America, have left clues to their presence throughout present-day Belize. At the height of their empire, between 300 and 900 a.d., up to a million Mayans-50 times today's population-inhabited the territory, building elaborate pyramid-style ceremonial centers and plying the network of cave passageways. The Maya are thought to be among the earliest cultures to develop the mathematical principle of zero, and they formulated the 365-day calendar along with a highly sophisticated art and religion. This glory began to crumble around 850 a.d.-when cities and ceremonial centers were abandoned, artistic activity stopped, and the powerful ruling elite vanished. The reason for the collapse remains unknown, but theories suggest it may have been religious or cultural conflict, rebellion, or environmental factors like drought or agricultural failure.
But archaeologists do know that caves, like the one Marcos led us through, played a vital role in these ancient lives. Clay pots have been found calcified to the cave floor under stalactites, suggesting they had been left there to collect dripping water during the long dry season, when surface streams evaporated. Larger pots, discovered in the drier caves, contain remnants of the grain that may have been stored in them during more humid months.
Mayan legend suggests that caves also represented sacred portals into the dark and watery Mayan underworld, known as Xibalba. Because of their importance, they were the sites for many ancient rituals. One cave not far from Caves Branch, Actun Tunichil Muknal (Cave of the Crystal Sepulchre), is named for the chamber where archaeologists discovered the remains of a young woman, a sacrificial victim. The cave also contains two rare altars where ancient Maya elites cut themselves to collect their blood and offer it in homage to their gods, according to archaeologists.
Anderson and his crew have explored roughly 63 caves on the Caves Branch property, many of which contain pottery and other artifacts, as well as breathtaking crystal formations. But only six are open to tourists, and some have been put out of commission to avoid overuse.
"We're starting to gain an understanding of why we have to preserve our environment, of how it will benefit us in the long run." said Walter, a Honduran-born guide who used to work as a factory operator in a citrus grove, as I waited to get on the rusty cattle truck that would transport us to our next tour. "We get benefits, from income and from jobs. People are no longer hunting for their income. Now they work for tour companies as guides."
The day after my cave tubing adventure, I ventured with a friend to rappel into the 100-meter "Black Hole Drop," unswayed by the stories of rock throwing and intimidation from the night before. We were the only tourists on the trip, which made me slightly nervous, but two Cave Branch expert guides accompanied us. When we reached the rim of the sinkhole, they spent a full hour preparing the ropes, wrapping them around hefty tree trunks and tying several backup anchors as a precaution. Before I stepped over the lip, committing my life to the ropes, they explained how I was supposed to lower myself down. To my surprise, I was remarkably calm as I descended, suspended above the canopy of the forest below.
I soon had a glimpse of the alternative to a Caves Branch tour. Before I had left for Belize, Anderson's wife Tangie had suggested in an e-mail that I visit St. Herman's Cave, a publicly run cave nearby. "It would be a great opportunity to compare the difference in our caves with one that has been opened to tourists with no guides or even instructions on safety, proper gear, and preservation of the cave," she had written. That was enough to pique my curiosity.
St. Herman's was just down the road from the Caves Branch entrance, located in the Blue Hole National Park, a nature reserve run by the Belize Audubon Society-one of the few local conservation groups that is actually controlled by native-born Belizeans, at least at the board level. Just to the right of the gravel parking lot, a newly constructed wood hut served as the visitor information center.
The uniformed warden greeted me and my friend Jenn as we entered, and I unzipped my money belt to pull out the $8 to pay for us. "No, no, don't worry about it," he said, shaking his head. "It's late in the day. You're probably the last ones....I'm leaving soon anyway."
I insisted that he take the money. After months of ecotourism research, I was well aware that entrance fees, modest though they often are, are one of the few ways national parks can support themselves, particularly in the developing world. Managing protected areas and protecting them from loggers, poachers, and other outside incursions can rapidly drain government resources. In a country like Belize, where nearly 40 percent of the land area is under some form of legal protected status, every tourist dollar counts.
But for whatever reason, the warden wouldn't take our money. He just asked us if we had flashlights and, when we nodded, gestured toward the trail.
The cave entrance, a 60-meter wide sinkhole, towered above our heads like a gaping mouth, with vines dangling from its upper lip. The entrance formed a misty weather front where the sultry humidity of the tropical jungle met the cool subterranean air. We made our way cautiously down the concrete staircase that covered the rough stone cuts the ancient Maya had hewn into the rock. The path was slippery in our sandals, and we realized we should have followed the Caves Branch recommendation to wear boots.
Ten feet into the cave, we pulled out our flashlights. I had a key chain penlight that stayed lit only as long as I pressed the button with my thumb, emitting a very faint beam. Jenn had a small metal flashlight that fared somewhat better, but was nothing compared to the headlamps that had been provided to us at Caves Branch. Neither of us carried extra batteries. We were unprepared and sorely underequipped.
We followed the trail, a muddy path marked by small orange reflectors mounted on wooden posts or on the rock wall itself. Looking around, it was clear that earlier visitors had not felt compelled to stick to the path, which at times dissolved into a route as wide as the ledge we were following. The path was dotted by the occasional gum wrapper or discarded cigarette.
The cavern formed a wide tunnel overhead, and in the darkness below us, we could hear the trickle of a stream running below the ledge we were following. It may have been the weakness of the flashlights-or my cynical preconceptions-but no spectacular cave formations leapt out at me. I saw no glittering crystals, spiders, or broken pottery. (Indeed, if there had ever been any Mayan remnants in this part of the cave, they had been long since looted.)
About a half-mile in, we encountered a small wooden sign, warning that we should "go no further without a guide." Not that anyone would have stopped us, I thought. For all we knew, the ranger had long gone home.
Increasingly nervous to be so alone, we decided to head back, again following the reflectors. After a few turns, Jenn stopped, saying she had lost the trail. I turned off my flashlight to conserve the little speck of a battery inside. After a few minutes of searching, we could no longer tell which direction we had come from. We paused to assess our flashlight and water situation, and checked our watches to determine how long it would likely be before the next visitors showed up.
After a little more wandering and more than a few skipped heartbeats, we found the reflector. A massive rock that extended out into the trail had blocked it from our line of sight. Frustrated by the experience, we moved quickly back to the entrance.
Back at the visitor's center, I told the warden about the poorly placed reflector. Without looking up from packing his bag, he said "You have to look carefully."
Admittedly, had we brought stronger flashlights, or perhaps paid closer attention while making our way through the cave, our experience would have been less terrifying. And perhaps we would have seen more crystal or other formations if we had hired a local guide with the proper equipment, instead of opting to explore on our own (though we saw no opportunities for doing this).
But what unsettled me most was the state of the cave. The difference between St. Herman's and the Caves Branch explorations was like night and day.
I left the Blue Hole park that day overwhelmed by thoughts of the uncertain future of Belize's caves. The promises and pitfalls of tourism that I had read about in books were playing out before my eyes. Places like Belize need to develop their tourism from within, because if local people do not have a stake in a resource, there is no incentive for them to preserve natural features like caves or forests. But without the training and ecological awareness of people like Anderson, it is possible that these assets, which are increasingly rare to come by, could be lost before they are ever really found.
After two more weeks of traveling, many more tours, and countless interactions with tour operators and guides, I left Belize for home. Without question, ecotourism in the country was struggling to come into its own. And it was clear that everyone wanted a piece of it-the locals, foreign investors, government treasurers, and of course, the tourists themselves.
Lisa Mastny, a staff researcher at the Worldwatch Institute, traveled to Belize in March 2001.
Note: The Belizean government has since reopened the Jaguar Paw caving operation, in accordance with the country's private property laws.


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Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon Climate Control
I have something caught inside the heater fan, I think a may be a leaf. I had the same problem before when the truck was under warranty so the dealer removed it. Now I would like to get some info on how to remove the fan and get the object out.
whl Posts: 1When my a/c is turned on the compressor will only stay engaged for 4-8 seconds before disengaging even if inside truck temperature is over 100 degrees. It will stay disengaged for 6-8 seconds then engage again. It cools OK the 4-8 seconds compressor is engaged & will eventually cool down the cab. But the compressor is constantly kicking in or out every 6-8 seconds. The expansion valve & temperature sensor have been replaced. After trying to fix my truck 3 times dealership says I don't have a problem. Even though it is only cooling 4-8 seconds at a time regardless of inside cab temperature, it is getting cold & is doing its job. Can my Low side pressure of 15-17 lbs cause this problem? I compared my pressure against another truck just like mine, his Low side pressure would vary between 30-38 lbs. The dealership will not tell me what the Low side pressure is suppose to be. I found info on a 2007 GMC Canyon that says Low side pressure @ 85 degrees should be 30-39 is the 2007 & 2008 Canyon have the same a/c system?0
captained Posts: 6BAD LOW SIDE. IF THE DEALER CANT SEE THAT GET A NEW DEALER.. LOW SIDE SOULD BE OVER 30 COMPRESSOR MAY BE LOW ON GAS. THAT IT THE NORMAL CAUSE OF LOW READINGS. IF NOT YOU HAVE A BAD COMPRESSOR.0
acking Posts: 6There could be a few things wrong. Suction reeds in the compressor could be sticking or cracked, the receiver dryer could be plugged or evaporator coil could be restricted. The pressures will vary with temperature, what is the ambient temperature of the air outside? High side pressures? Vent temperature? and Low side pressures? All these factors must be considered when trying to diagnose this problem, the dealer is full of crap because you sound like a problem exists. Whether the system is short cycling, kicking out on high head pressure or consists of a low charge, something is wrong. Consult a pressure temperature chart for 134a to verify what your head pressures should be.0
andyjag Posts: 1I have had similar problems , not only on a Cadillac I owned ,but also on my 2007 Colorado.
Low side pressure reads25-30 PSI ,High side reads 350 PSI but spikes higher when low side drops.
On my cadillac the compressor was internally self destructing & filling the system with tiny flakes of Chrome & other metallic particles which blocked the expansion valve.
as for the Colorado , since it is still under waranty I will see what the dealer I bought it from can do about it.
( I've been a mechanic 25 years so it should be fun to see what answers they offer )0
buuba116 Posts: 1My 2005 Canyon: With the air on, compressor running, everything cooling, when I press the recirculate switch, the light comes on but there is no change in fan speed and whatever air redirect is supposed to take place doesn't. That is---press the recirculate switch and nothing happens. Could this be a relay?0
I have islolated a problem with a nonfunctioning blower motor to the switch, I think. I took the motor out and jumped 12 volts to it and it worked fine so I assumed it was the resistor. Wrong. New resistor did nothing. I got a wiring diagram and it showed that on high speed the switch put the orange wire on the blower motor plug straight to ground. so I place the motor and the resistor on the floor board and stuck a wire in the back on the blower motor plug and grounded it. Bingo. The motor ran. Then I grounded each tap on the back of the resistor to ground and it changed speeds. Am I missing something or does the switch sound like the culprit? The wiring diagram does show a ground in the right side of the engine compartment but it is common to other circuits which are working. If you folks are in agreement that the switch is bad please tell me how to get to it. How do you get that panel off that holds the radio and swicth panel.0
capfsu Posts: 1Hearing a loud click when turning knob from cold to hot and back. A/C works great, but no heat. There is tension until the click, then after, there is no tension. Does anyone have any knowledge of the inner workings of the climate control area for a 2004 GMC Canyon? is this an easy fix for myself or do I need to get an entire new control system? Thanks for any input.0
crewser1 Posts: 1My '05 began experiencing issues days out of warranty. It started with the AC Blower but has developed into a mess.
AC Blower was intermittent on several speeds but High always worked. Local dealer owed me a favor for a service issue on wife's G6. I believe they pulled th dash to fix it and did me no favors in doing so. Motor worked properly for a while aftrwards, but ac began freezing up despite proper freon levels, suspect an airflow problem. Found the existance of an "GM Engineering bulletin" on the blower but never found the details. Now, have experienced similar intermittent electrical within the truck to include: Cruise Control, Stereo, Wipers...suspect a larger ground or harness issue. Very disappointed with the engineers at GM, quality and dependability in electronics should be far greater then this. Despite loving this truck, I am nearing the decision to let Car Max send it to la-la land. If anyone else has been through this and has a solution, please advise.0
ok - i went thru this same issue last summer. The problem is a poorly designed electrical connector between the blower motor resistor board and the wiring harness.
All of these things can be assessed without taking the dashboard apart.
Find the blower motor resistor and remove it to make sure that the resistor is not fried, if it is you can get one a NAPA for $20. If it isn't then just look at the female and male ends of the connection and check to see if it has been burned up. If so replace harness, if not all you have to do to get the intermediate fan positions to work is to take a small screwdriver and slightly bend the "male" connectors so that they better contact inside of the female end of this connection. Very easy and cheap
if you need more info let me know
breakerplaya_0 Posts: 1hi i was wondering if you would be able to tell me where the resistor is located?0
it is located under the dash on the passenger side.
look for the blower motor and it is part of that assembly area
there are two bolts holding the resister block into the assembly
look for the connector ( white in color )
good luck --- i hope this helps0
dkroubetz Posts: 1I have a 04 colorado, the ac compressor cycles on and off. I took it to the dealer, they said it had a bad schrader value, and low on refrigerant. $260 later it still acted the same. Took it back, they said they got a bulletin from GM. saying there is a sensor behind the dash that is bad. $841 later it still acts the same, they said it is to cold out now so it is going to cycle on and off.0
Happster Posts: 33Sure you're all set by now, but others may need the answer and I have it. The plastic clip that holds the cable head to the switch housing is weak and poorly designed, causing it separate from the housing when pressure is applied. The more it happens, the easier it comes out, as the prongs wear. I fixed mine by taking the bezzle off, removing the switch housing and clicking the cable head back in. Then I wrapped a solid, 16 gauge wire around the two prongs that the cable head clips into so that they could no longer separate and let the cable head slip out. Been fine for 3 years now. It used to happen a few times per month. Another bullseye from the GMC engineering department.0
hey, read your message iam having the same problem,i just bought a new resistor yesterday installed it and nothing happened no fuses blown,but the connection looks fried female end,so iam going to try your solution to see if it works,if not i may just get rid of the truck i have had all the problems with this truck that people have listed on this site and i mean all of them!. thanks for the info.0
hi,went through the removal of my blower fan last year it seized up,its pretty simple except for one screw,there are 4 small 1/4 inch screws holding the blower on,if you look up under the dash on passengers side you will see the blower(extreme right side)look for the screws and remove them there is the above mentioned screw in the far right corner against the floorboard/firewall its hard to get to i pulled my carpet down it helps some,make sure to unplug the electrical connection and it will come right out you should be able to remove your leaf,i did not reinstall the hard to get to screw mine works fine! good luck.0
jbdesign Posts: 1I have had that harness replaced or spliced and taped more than you could imagine, I had no air as much as I ever had air that worked. Several times we could smell the wiring burning before it went to working only on high on my 04 colorado and they are just now recalling it within the next few months. My mechanic called and they said the replacement harness is out and you should qualify for a refund if you don't want to wait, fix it now. It is nice after all this time!0
marinewolfohbc Posts: 1Hey folks,
I'm having a problem similar to capfsu had. Had the clicking noise, but kept trying the knob. I guess I twisted it a bit too much and a piece of plastic on the back snapped. I had to replace the whole system, but now, after I hooked up the heating control cable, the knob on the new one will only turn so much. I get resistance at a certain point when going towards a warmer temperature and if I keep pushing, the retaining clip will pop out, meaning I have to pull the whole panel off again and reattach the clip. So now the wire will only go in so far and the temperature will only get so warm (not warm enough sometimes!).
Is there anything I can do to this wire to get it to push further in, like it should? I'm pretty sick of all these Colorado problems. Have this issue, the blower issue, and now the valves on the head are going bad and I'm past warranty...
Thanks for the help on the wire.0


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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2012B-0103
PI: Edo Berger, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, email@example.com
Address: 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
CoI: Kathy Roth, Gemini Observatory
CoI: Alicia Soderberg, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Ragnhild Lunnan, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Ian Czekala, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Ryan Chornock, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Armin Rest, Space Telescope Science Institute
CoI: Ryan Foley, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Laura Chomiuk, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Raffaella Margutti, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Title: Unveiling the Explosion Physics of Nature's Most Luminous Supernovae
Abstract: For nearly a century two primary classes of optical transients - nova eruptions and supernova explosions - have been studied in great detail. These events occupy narrow luminosity ranges around -8 and -18 mag, respectively. However, new dedicated surveys such as Pan-STARRS are now revealing new types of optical transients, the most extreme of which are ultra-luminous supernovae (ULSNe) approaching -24 mag and extending to z 2. The origin of these events is hotly debated: we do not know if they result from unusual explosion or energy extraction mechanisms, and whether their progenitors require unique properties in terms of mass, binarity, or environment. Pan-STARRS provides an unprecedented opportunity to explore these new phenomena over a wide redshift range thanks to its unmatched depth and multi-band photometry. Here we propose to continue our successful TOO spectroscopy of Pan-STARRS ULSNe to decipher their underlying energy source and evolution. Our Gemini program already uncovered the most luminous transients to date (-21 to -24 mag at z=0.5-2), and moreover demonstrated their potential to probe the interstellar medium of distant galaxies (much like GRB afterglows). Pan-STARRS will continue to provide detailed light curves for ULSNe, and Gemini spectroscopy will determine their origin.
National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360
NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2012B-0103


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Subscribe To Nicole Kidman's Grace Of Monaco Runs Away From Oscar Season Into 2014 Updates
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Well, that was a short-lived mystery. We had been wondering for weeks why there was no actual trailer for Grace of Monaco, the biopic in which Nicole Kidman plays Princess of Monaco and Hollywood icon Grace Kelly. It seemed like the production was troubled, or at least not ready, and now The Weinstein Company has possibly confirmed both theories by bumping the film to a spring release. According to The Hollywood Reporter Grace of Monaco will be pushed to a spring 2014 release, and also positioned "more as a commercial entry than an awards play," which means Kidman is unlikely to be angling for her second Oscar with this one.
A bump from a plum fall release to a spring date is almost always a sign that a film is giving up on its Oscar chances, but it only sometimes means trouble. In recent years both Martin Scorsese's Shutter Island and Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby avoided the crowded fall season and became hits early the next year (the fact that they both starred Leonardo DiCaprio probably helped). Then there are movies like Gangster Squad, which was pushed back partly due to unpredictable tragic circumstances but which also gave up on its awards buzz by opening in January the next year (the fact that it turned out to be not that great certainly helped confirm that).
But what separates Grace of Monaco from Shutter Island and The Great Gatsby is the level of spectacle-- which is to say, Grace of Monaco doesn't really seem to have any. Even in the Oscar season the film seemed to be entirely about Nicole Kidman's performance, because there's nothing you can do to get more awards attention than playing a real, famous person. With a spring release, and no awards buzz to surround it , it's hard to know how Grace of Monaco will sell itself-- the chance to see how Grace Kelly helped avert a war between Monaco and France over tax laws? Beautiful Mediterranean scenery? Kidman is a huge talent, obviously, but she's rarely a single-handed box office draw--even critical successes like Rabbit Hole and Margot at the Wedding couldn't cross the $5 million mark, and the last film she was in to remotely qualify as a financial success was Adam Sandler's Just Go With It, which I'm sure she'd rather us forget about. Listen, we love Nicole Kidman, but the idea of positioning her Grace Kelly biopic as a commercial hit is… insane.
Check out the teaser trailer below for the best look we'll have for a while at Grace of Monaco.


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yeah I was looking into it for the joggler.
Just need to integrate Navit into it or something else under wine.
Has anyone tried this out ?
Been using it on my joggler and its very nice.. just needs a skin with a bit more of a 'car feel' and some way of using sat nav and it would be a perfect front end for use in the car!
yeah I was looking into it for the joggler.
Just need to integrate Navit into it or something else under wine.
Scouse, don't know if you have already seen these but very useful;
http://malus.exotica.org.uk/~buzz/joggler <- Mint Linux
http://joggler.info/forum/viewtopic....7080550e042ad5 <- Ubuntu Lucid
Both working very nice, and Canola2 is a simple PPA install away on both :)
Not sure how skin-able Canola is though.. and taking inspriation from another thread I saw I guess it would be possible to use two virtual desktops - one for satnav, the other for all mediabased stuff (Canola)..
oooo. We have a Joggler section these should go in.
Beezers system looks very nice but he hasnt posted any more info
Done :)
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Life Choices: A 20th Century Book in a 21st Century World
November 19, 2011 § 1 Comment
by ELENA
Are you a white, cisgender, educated, New Agey, feminist woman? If so, then Linda Weber's book Life Choices: The Teachings of Abortion (published by Sentient Publications) is an excellent book for you. If you are not, then Linda Weber has very little to offer. Weber, a prominent feminist and counselor wrote Life Choices using her experience as an abortion counselor at a women's clinic in Boulder, Colorado. While Weber's intentions were good, the execution is far from it.
Like many "second wave" feminist leaders who rose to prominence in the 1970s (I'm looking at you, Gloria Steinem), Weber follows a cissexist, binarist point of view throughout the book when she repeatedly writes about women's unique/magical/etc ability to bear children. Could someone please inform Ms. Weber that not all women can get pregnant? And that some men can? And that sex and gender is not nearly as cut-and-dried as she makes it out to be? Weber missed a great opportunity to write about special issues and concerns of nonbinary individuals seeking advice about abortion — an issue that is not mentioned enough in our current reproductive rights dialogue.
Weber does make some good points: a crisis pregnancy and/or abortion can be an opportunity for personal growth and development, and this perspective is refreshing. In writing about the history of the pro-choice movement, she makes a very important point about the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision: Roe had more to do with establishing physicians' rights than it did with protecting the health, well-being, and bodily autonomy of people seeking safe abortions. Unfortunately, these passages get lost among her New Age navel-gazing. I have no issues with those who enjoy meditation and/or worshiping The Divine Feminine, but if your spiritual habits are not of the "woo-woo" variety, you're not going to enjoy this book. Weber's message alienates both Christians (surprise: some Christians are feminist!) and skeptics alike. Some of her advice is simply not practical: while I can't deny the possibility of abortion via soul-to-soul communication between a fetus and its carrier, I do not think that this a realistic or practical method to recommend to anyone.
Legislators in Colorado, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Virginia, and Michigan have introduced anti-choice legislation, from increased restrictions to abortion access and funding to even more disturbing proposed "personhood amendments" that would also outlaw most forms of birth control.
Rick Snyder, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, et al want to restrict our bodily autonomy, and bring us back into a world where, like a teenaged Weber, we would have pretend to be married so we could receive an abortion via IUD implantation, and risk an infection. They are not interested in going on a vision quest. They don't care if we meditate. They are not going to listen politely to us. The personal stories in Lie Choices are touching, but out of place in an increasingly hostile political and social environment.
Now is not the time to get in touch with our inner goddess. Now is the time to hurl bricks.
§ One Response to Life Choices: A 20th Century Book in a 21st Century World
This passage was truly enlightening, however, when I happened upon the "woo-woo" comment, I have to admit it left a bad taste in my mouth. The way you write about New Age belief systems sounds very condescending, which us New Agers will shy away from. We get that treatment enough, to be honest.
Also: often, finding that inner goddess goes hand-in-hand with finding the courage to hurl bricks.


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Sep 11, 2011
MINI John Cooper Works Convertible will debut at small premium world's fastest convertible at the Geneva International Motor Show in March 3, 2009. And 'the center of things happening, and is sold in the United Kingdom from March 28, 2009, at a price of 23 £ 470 OTR.
The newcomer is the gas station is a significantly revised version of the 1.6-liter turbo unit found in the models in the MINI Cooper S and the same as in the MINI Challenge race car. The engine is lighter, stronger, and comes with a larger intake of air and an exhaust system specially designed John Cooper Works cars.
Transmission gearing has confirmed an agreement with the largest available power, the power that makes the car a significant power of 132 hp per liter, but still be able to offer an incredible 39.8 mpg.


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Skiboard Forum Skiboard FAQ Need Skiboard Help?
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City's For Sale
Hi Ive got a pair of city's i used twice, they have revol8 non-relese bindings(blue). im selling them bec. my doctor thinks snowboarding is better for my knee problem. my loss is your gain im selling the set for $375 with the Messia bag if your interested please feel free to call me 8458250729
Got it..
Hi Greco,
I've got a dumb question.. what does the junior skiboarder desiccation mean? and how does that change?
Thanks, Rick
Hey G,
Could you send me the USPS tracking # for my order?
It feels like xmas eve, Santa is on his way and I want to track where he is. lol
Hey G, i was wondering if the ALPs/DAVE LPs are the most popular board in the r8 lineup yet (maybe with ktps?) I'm Just curious to see how they are doing....because I remember when i started riding them barely anyone was on them and they didn't sell well. Hope they are doing better!
I'm doing my part in making sure they take over the world!
Any word on 2011 Revel8 models?
thanks man
G, do you anticipate there being a decent amount of boards available after the presale orders are shipped out? I do plan on picking up some condors but it may be as late as January when I order them.
Send an Instant Message to Greco Using...
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Extreme price volatility forces shifts in how farmers market
The wild price swings in recent years are driving producers to make big shifts in how they market, particularly in regard to the tools they use. Ed Hegland, by nature a conservative marketer who doesn't try to hit the peaks, started using options this year. He has also signed up with a marketing service that gives him direction on when to lock in prices.
"My goal is to sell in the top third of the market and live to farm another year," says the Appleton, Minn., producer.
Flexible Marketing. In addition to put and call options to protect both upside and downside price risk, Hegland's marketing approach includes using forward contracts to sell his corn and soybeans 5% and 10% at a time, sometimes more.
He compares his break-even costs with marketing opportunities and sells when he can lock in a profit. Easy to say, hard to execute, but it helps that he has found a way to largely keep the emotion out of his decisions. Options tools help him accomplish that, he says.
Hegland is not opposed to selling more than one year's crop in advance. In July, for instance, he used hedge-to-arrive (HTA) contracts to lock in 7% and 10% of his 2012 crop when attractive pricing opportunities presented themselves. "I use HTA because basis here in western Minnesota can be pretty significant," he says.
"Before using options, I just used futures contracts," he adds. "Options are another tool that leaves the upside open. I will still forward contract, however."
Hegland's motivation for making a marketing change this year is based on the extreme price volatility of the past five years. "I've been farming for 18 years. It used to be that 5¢ per bushel was a big market move. Now that's considered a flat market," he says.
|Using futures and advice from a marketing consultant, Saybrook, Ill., producer George Jones is able to make competitive marketing moves.
Competitive Edge. Until this year, Saybrook, Ill., producer George Jones remained focused on selling in the cash market.
"I knew that if I was to stay competitive with other farmers, I needed to use more futures," he says. "I've rarely used futures. I knew just enough about them to get myself in real trouble."
With direction from a consultant, Jones has put calls in place to capture the upside on the crop he has already sold in the cash market. He's also installed a put option strategy to cover any downside risk on the cash crop.
For half of the 2011 corn crop he did not sell in summer 2010, Jones used a put option strategy. On the new crop, he bought put options to protect what he hadn't sold. On 30% of the corn he had sold, he sold calls he had bought to take advantage of the market upside. Such strategies are a sharp departure compared with what he was doing even a year ago, when he was largely a cash seller.
Cheap Insurance. Jones says that options are cheap insurance. "They can protect me. If corn goes up to $10, we have calls in place that will give me pricing opportunities on what I sell in the cash market," he explains. "When it comes to marketing, if you have to think about it, you're a week late." That's another benefit of using options.
Options don't mean Jones doesn't make cash market sales. His general cash selling strategy is to have 50% of new crop corn sold by the middle of June, with 25% to 30% of that sold to a local elevator. By the end of the following spring, Jones' strategy calls for selling another 20% to 25% of his new crop corn.
"That leaves only 25% to 30% to be sold between Nov. 1 and Jan. 15, when I need the cash," he says.
Help Along the Way. Hegland doesn't consider himself a great marketer, which is one reason he decided to hire a consultant who can give him expert advice on a timely basis. "Other aspects of farming I feel I do pretty good, but when it comes to marketing, not so much," he says.
In addition to advising when to market his corn and soybeans, Hegland's consultant shares daily and weekly updates on market movements to help him understand what's going on and why.
"Prior to hiring the consultant, I got caught up in trade and international markets, looking at production forecasts," he explains.
Hiring a marketing consultant has also helped Jones increase his basic understanding of marketing and, as a result, boost his bottom line.
"He's taught me things I didn't know, such as what put/call spreads are and their value," he says.
Jones credits his success with newfound marketing tools to finding a consultant with a style and marketing strategy he likes.
He talks with his consultant at least once a week to help keep the emotion out of his marketing decisions.
"It's easy to buy the rumor and sell the fact, but what rumors are you listening to?" Jones asks.
Now that he knows what his base costs are, Jones' goal is to try to make a profit above that level.
"I'd rather sell 15,000 bu. all the way up the price scale rather than worry about trying to hit the top. I have not hit the top."
More Emphasis on Strategy, Less on Outlook
Many producers could greatly improve their marketing by shifting their focus, says Scott Stewart of Stewart-Peterson. Focus on strategies that manage both opportunities and risks instead of focusing on a market outlook, he says. "Avoid being an information junkie—no amount of information available will tell you what the market is going to do. It is better to have a thorough strategy that covers all the possibilities."
Stewart has developed a marketing approach that he calls "market scenario planning." The approach allows producers to focus on what to do in all price scenarios, rather than what direction the market might move.
Stewart-Peterson's research has found that the majority of producers (more than two-thirds) say they do not sell enough in a bull market. Furthermore, more than two-thirds of producers say they do not sell fast enough in bear markets. So too much crop is still held when prices are depressed, Stewart says. With today's increased volatility and price swings, these can be costly mistakes, he adds. "It is no wonder that 80% of farmers find marketing stressful."
This Way and That. The solution is simple, Stewart says. A marketing strategy must be constructed to cover all possible directions that the market might move. It must be a comprehensive strategy that looks at the unpriced crop, the priced crop, all futures and option positions and both old and new crop.
A producer's objective should be to have 70% of crop owned when the major trend is up and 70% or more priced when the trend is down. This can be accomplished by incrementally selling and using a variety of tools such as minimum price contracts, forward contacts, futures hedges and options. Stewart points out that in this age of volatility, the more tools that producers have in their toolbox, the greater the odds are that they will be able to manage both the market opportunities and risks.
Power Hour: Corn Consumption Slowing, but More Rationing Needed
Evening Report (VIP) – September 6, 2012


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The cupboard door kits use a sturdy main hinge arm that supports the weight of the door, paired with a stabilizer arm that helps regulate movement. The hinge arm attaches to the inside door face with a mounting plate that allows minor adjustment in three axes to fine tune the door position.
Both models are suitable for door panels 40cm to 90cm (15-3/4" to 35-7/16") tall and weighing up to 12kg (26.5 lb). The small version is for doors from 52cm to 60cm (about 20-1/2" to 23-5/8") wide with a minimum clearance of 27.5cm (about 10-7/8") in front of the door, while the larger model supports doors 82cm to 90cm (32-5/16" to 35-7/16") wide and requires 41.5cm (about 16-3/8") of clearance.
The kit for closets, pantries and wardrobes uses two hinge arms and a stabilizer arm, plus a vertical rod linking the two hinge arms to keep the door rigid and vertically aligned in travel. Mounting plates allow minor horizontal and vertical adjustment of the door position. For doors up to 50kg (110 lb), 78cm to 88cm wide (about 30-3/4" to 34-5/8") and 160cm to 260cm tall (63" to 102"), the kit requires a minimum clearance of 41.5cm (about 16-3/8") in front of the door.
Largely made of powder-coated steel with sturdy plastic parts, each hinge kit comes with all components and mounting fasteners required for one door, and can be installed for right- or left-handed opening.
Made in Italy.
These products are not stocked at our retail stores, but can be ordered for pick-up at our stores.


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Designed for the rider who requires both performance and comfort, the RT-1000 features a taller head tube, sloping top tube, and shock-absorbing rear "H" stays for all-day comfort and stability . Touted as one of the fastest endurance bikes on the market, the RT1000 is the perfect blend of comfort, aerodynamics, and carbon technology that only Kestrel knows how to provide.
|Kestrel Talon RT-1000 Shimano ULTEGRA Road Bike 2013


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The economic news of the week isn't just that giant automaker General Motors is about to enter bankruptcy. It's also that the US government is the one who will be guiding the firm through the process.
In a country that prides itself on free-market capitalism, this will be an unusual politically orchestrated bankruptcy.
The government intervention could have good results. It may prevent a prominent industry from collapsing at a time when the nation is already reeling from recession. It appears to be helping to expedite the needed restructuring of GM and another struggling Detroit carmaker, Chrysler. An Obama task force has helped push various stakeholders toward tough choices – a pattern highlighted Friday as the autoworkers union announced that its GM labor force had voted 3 to 1 for a pay-cut plan.
At the same time, President Obama and his automotive task force are entering politically difficult terrain by trying to save the industry.
For one, the rescue will be costly to taxpayers – an estimated $50 billion and counting. For another, critics say the federal government, in its effort to resolve the companies' problems swiftly, is upending tried-and-true legal traditions that have underpinned the economy since America's founding. And at the end of the day, thousands of industry jobs will still be lost.
"They've opened themselves up to a lose-lose situation," says Don Grimes, an economist at a University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Voters could end up being angry that their money is being used to prop up private corporations that failed, and also angry about job losses at dealerships or factories where they live.
Meddling vs. hands off
Still, Mr. Obama's decision to buttress the industry – and to draw limits around that support – is appropriate, he says. For all the political risks and the dangers of government meddling in private industry, the damage to the US economy without government support could be large.
"I have to give him some credit, maybe a lot of credit," Mr. Grimes says. "He did realize that the economy in its fragile state really couldn't go with [an automaker] liquidation phase right now."
Detroit's troubles stem from both decades-old competitive challenges and the very recent sharp downturn in the US economy.
With auto sales plunging in recent months, private investors were unwilling to pump in the money that would be needed – even to finance a radical downsizing of the firms. So President Bush stepped in late last year with bridge loans to the two carmakers, and Obama has grappled with how to put together a government-financed restructuring.
Obama's 'pragmatic business people'
The goal is now for a quick bankruptcy for GM, probably starting on Monday and ending in two or three months. Chrysler is now partway through its own Treasury-financed bankruptcy process.
So far, the political "meddling" appears designed to achieve the same aims that any private-sector investor would have in the same role: restoring the firms to competitive viability.
"They all seem to be very pragmatic business people," says auto analyst Aaron Bragman, referring to members of Obama's auto-restructuring task force.
In his view, what's happening is "quite the opposite" of a politicized rescue. Yes, a lot of taxpayer money is being committed with the goal of saving jobs. But task force members have approached their job in a hard-nosed way, trying to ensure that public money will be spent only if it has a realistic hope of making the carmakers viable.
All parties have been asked to sacrifice or recalibrate their goals. Executives have been told that their restructuring plan didn't cut deeply enough to create a viable new firm. The CEO has been replaced. Despite Obama's ties to organized labor, the United Auto Workers have been asked to take new hits. On Friday, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger announced that GM workers had approved a plan that would freeze wages, simplify work rules, and pledge no strike before 2015.
Government ownership ahead
By providing the money to help GM restructure, the government intends to end up owning most of the firm – with the Canadian government possibly taking a small stake alongside the US. The government will also have a stake at Chrysler, but a smaller one.
Investors who currently own the firms' debt (bonds), however, complain that the government is riding roughshod over their legal rights. If the government succeeds in winning rapid court approval for a restructuring that wipes out most GM and Chrysler debt, it would sideline creditors who might otherwise be in the driver's seat of any bankruptcy process.
The bondholders' anger is justified, says Mr. Bragman, a Detroit-based auto analyst at the consulting firm IHS Global Insight. The Obama administration counters that its quick-bankruptcy plan – and its money – offers the firms the best hope of surviving. With a 10 percent stake in the new GM, those bondholders won't be left high and dry.
New uncertainty among private investors
Although the task force seems focused on profitability, that doesn't mean questions about government ownership will end. Some economists and business leaders worry that federal interventions during the recession may do unintended damage. At the very least, private investors feel uncertain about where rescue efforts and regulations are headed.
The Obama administration could face pressure from various interest groups – representing labor, consumers, or localities with assembly plants – to use its ownership stake to influence how GM and Chrysler are managed.
"You'll hear a lot of squalking" Monday, Grimes says, when GM announces the locations of more than a dozen factories it plans to close.
GM said Friday that one of those plants will be retooled to produce the company's smallest-ever US-made car. GM has not determined which plant will get the new cars, a person briefed on the plans told the Associated Press.
For his part, Obama has expressed the goal that US carmakers will lead the world in green-car technology. But he has also said he doesn't want to micromanage the companies and hopes the government will exit its ownership stake as soon as possible.
The railroad precedent
This won't be the first time a giant industrial firm has restructured under the wing of the federal government. In the 1970s and '80s, railroad operations for much of the northeastern US operated under government control, before the firm Conrail was finally sold back into private ownership with a stock offering.
In that case, Grimes says, Congress laid out specifics of the restructuring and appropriated funds to keep Conrail going. President Richard Nixon signed the legislation.
With the Detroit carmakers today, the Obama administration is calling key shots on its own (using the pool of congressionally authorized rescue money known as the TARP), and Grimes says the government's role is "more ad hoc."


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monkfish needed a new other design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 34 designs submitted by 16 freelance designers.
ScratchBack.com is looking for a new, fun and fresh widget design.
Accepted File Formats:
Layered Formats (.psd or .tiff)
Read the details here.
 http://www.scratchback.com/blog/contest-can-you-design-a-better-scratchback-widget/Â
Official Contest Rules
- Have fun and be creative!
- Grab the psd file from this page
- Size must be same as existing widget (200px wide), guides on the .psd file
- Middle content area must remain white background
- Widget must contain 3 parts (top piece and two bottoms graphics)
- All graphics you use (if you use them) must be royalty-free
- Color doesn't matter, get creative!
- Text on widget can be modified, but should keep similar theme
- Design must be generic enough that all ScratchBack users can use (no personal information) Â
That's about it. Just modify the file here and send it back to us. We'll take all the entries and post them up for our users to vote on. Entries will be posted as we get them, and voting will begin at the end of January 2008.


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Those who choose to get help for drug abuse or drug addiction from a treatment center that offers particularly high quality, individualized, evidence-based treatment are more likely to recover than those who attempt to recover on their own. Have you ever tried to implement a new exercise regimen? Wouldn't you be more likely to succeed at making that change if you had a team of caring and skilled experts to support and guide you than if you did it on your own? Treatment is no different. If you can find a drug rehab facility that boasts a team of industry leading professionals, your chances of recovery soar.
Why is Drug Rehab so Important?
Addiction recovery is a major undertaking. It requires a complete life change. If addicts could change on their own, they would. No one wants to throw their life away or live the sad and lonely life of an addict. No one wants to hurt and disappoint their family and friends the way addicts do. But without professional help, few addicts are able to recover. In treatment, addicts are given the safety, security, and support they need to change. First, in detox, the addict is safely separated from his drug of choice by industry-leading professionals. This process should never be done alone or without the help of a medical professional. With the right help, detox can be made comfortable and the side-effects and symptoms of withdrawal managed. Next, with the help of a dedicated psychotherapist and other caring professionals, the addict is provided the resources necessary to face the underlying causes of his/her addiction and learn the skills required to recover. The need to use simply fades away. As the addict's life becomes filled with new purpose and loving relationships, the desire to use diminishes. Recovery is built with support and community.
Where Can You Turn?
You know you or someone you love needs help, but where do you turn? How do you choose a treatment program that is best for you? As you read through the brochures and the websites, you'll find that while every treatment center talks about what it can do for you, they say very little about their actual success rates. Which program does what it says it will? Is any treatment program anything other than a revolving door?
Cliffside Malibu will put an end to your search. We are an elite, high-end treatment center that has proven results.
What Questions Should I Ask When Looking into Treatment Programs?
It has been said that people spend more time choosing their next car than they do choosing an addiction treatment program. Some people choose a treatment program solely from looking at a website or seeing a television commercial. This occurs in large part because people don't know what questions to ask. But choosing a treatment program is a big deal. This is the program that is going to be the foundation for the rest of your life, the program that will, if well chosen, save your life. Don't pick at random. Invest in yourself and the quality of life you want for the next thirty, forty, or fifty years.
View questions to ask Drug Rehab Facilities
Will my Loved One Require an Intervention?
An intervention may be necessary if an individual is unwilling to go to treatment without the love and support of the important people in his/her life. Generally, addicts who are resistant to treatment have one of two worldviews. They might be in deep denial, unaware of the extent of their problem. In this case, they need the support of loved ones to gently open their eyes to the need for treatment. Alternatively, addicts may believe they are too far gone for help, that treatment cannot help them. These addicts need to hear that they are loved and that there is hope. In either case, a professional interventionist is required to help the family know what to say and how to approach the addict in order to get them into treatment. Our intake specialist will help you decide whether or not an intervention is needed for your loved one.
Rehab Costs: Why is Quality Addiction Treatment so Expensive?
Quality drug treatment can be expensive and many families get sticker shock when they hear how much treatment costs. Remember, recovering from addiction is a life decision. If your loved one had cancer, would you make your treatment decisions based on cost? Addiction treatment is no different. Choose the best treatment available for the optimal chance of recovery.
While certainly not the most expensive treatment center, Cliffside Malibu is "expensive." What are you paying for at Cliffside? We offer the highest quality protocol provided by the industry's leading treatment professionals. Your treatment will be individualized so that you will get the care you need to recover, not low-cost groups to fill your day. We also keep a full-time addiction researcher on staff, to review the latest findings in psychology, medicine, neuroscience, and complementary medicine to ensure that we are incorporating the best science into our treatment protocol. Further, we take care of your needs. You will not be forced to make your bed at a certain time or engage in communal chores. Instead, you will live in comfort so that you can fully focus on recovery. In other words, you're paying for the opportunity to succeed. We only want to treat you once. Less expensive treatment centers that don't meet your needs can cost you far more in the long run.
Undoubtedly, cost is a consideration when choosing a treatment center. So when you are choosing, consider the future costs of drugs not purchased, nights spent sleeping instead of worrying about your loved one, cars not crashed, emergency room visits that will not be necessary, and the potential to spend decades with someone you love. That's the real cost consideration when thinking about addiction treatment.
What Does the Drug Rehab Process Look Like at Cliffside Malibu?
From the moment you call Cliffside Malibu, you will be welcomed as part of our family. In an intake phone call, we'll discuss with you the nature of your or your loved one's problem. We'll decide together whether or not an intervention is called for and will make decisions to quickly get you or the one you love into treatment. You've suffered enough. The time for recovery is now.
Once at the treatment center, you will experience an environment of care and support. First, you will experience a safe, comfortable medical detox.
Once you have been successfully separated from your drug(s) of choice, you will integrate into our treatment program. This will be created just for you by your personal therapist. You will work with your therapist to uncover and work through the root cause(s) of your addiction and gain life skills so that you won't need to use again. Additionally, you'll participate in a wide range of complementary therapies including but not limited to: acupuncture, massage, yoga, meditation, personal athletic training. All the while, you'll be in a luxurious home, complete with maid service, chef-cooked nutritious meals, and every amenity to make your stay comfortable.
When you are ready to leave treatment, to step down to a lower level of care and resume a drug-free life outside of treatment, we will work with you to create a complete aftercare program, incorporating all the treatments that helped you recover in the treatment center and which need to be continued outside the treatment center. Remember, recovery doesn't "end" when you leave treatment. This is a lifestyle change that will be part of the rest of your life. We are with you until you no longer need us to maintain your recovery on your own.
Why Cliffside?
The answer is simple. We want you to go to treatment once and recover for good.
View Our Facility
View Our Facility
Cliffside Malibu is a beautiful luxury estate, situated on two acres, overlooking Zuma Beach.
Life at Cliffside
Life at Cliffside
Treatment programs at Cliffside Malibu have been designed to facilitate a full recovery from addiction.
Life After Cliffside
Life After Cliffside
The goal of treatment is to create within you the skills and ability to remain clean and sober at home.


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Making Connections
Where can I find BETTY BOOP printed fabric?
Judith K.
J & O Fabric Center stocks more than 20 Betty Boop novelty prints. Nostalgic designs of this popular 1930s cartoon character include "Biker Chick,""Lucky Ladies Club," "Showtime,""Hog Heaven,"and colorful hearts, circles and squares.This 44"-wide 100% cotton plain-weave fabric is also available in a soft flannel version. For ordering information, visit jandofabrics.com, or call (856) 663-2121.
Where can I find LIGHTWEIGHT SEPARATING DRESS ZIPPERS? Many formal dress patterns call for these zippers, yet fabric shops don't seem to stock them.
Lynn P.
Custom Zips specializes in making custom zippers in the style and length you need.The lightweight coilseparating zipper used in prom dresses, wedding gowns, and tops of bustiers and two-piece dresses is available in more than 150 colors. Black and white can be made up to 100" long; colors up to 36" long. For the best color match, send a swatch of your garment fabric along with your order. For more information, call (203) 866-1540, or visit customzips.com.
I'd like to locate moccasin-type SLIPPER SOLES in different sizes appropriate for knitted and crocheted slippers.
Pat U.
Patternworks stocks suede slipper soles in sizes ranging from infant (4" long) to men's XL (13" long).The soles cover the slipper bottom, come up the sides approximately ¾" and have punched holes along the upper edge. They're available unlined in gray or with a faux fleece lining in brown. Call (800) 438-5464 for more information, or visit patternworks.com.
Do you know if anyone makes a TAPE MEASURE to help figure out CORRECT BRA SIZE?
Colleen E.
The Flattering Me Tape Measure developed by Coco Abadi is available from Clotilde Inc.This fiberglass tape is a bra tape measure on one side and a regular 60" tape measure on the other.To determine the best fitting bra, first measure your torso just under the bust for your bra size (32 to 46); then measure around the fullest part of the bust for your cup size (A to DD).To order, call (800) 772-2891, or visit clotilde.com.
Where can I find a pattern for a REUSABLE SHOPPING BAG that's small and compact when not in use?
Stephanie M.
The Tukaway Tote pattern (NR-12), designed by McKenna Linn, is a roomy 20"x 22" shopping tote with handles that fold into a pouch-size front pocket. When made from tightly-woven lightweight fabric, such as cotton batik or nylon ripstop, this easy-to-make tote is strong and packs away neatly.To order, send $10 postpaid to QuiltWoman.com, Dept. SN, 42 Nichols St., Spencerport, NY 14559, phone toll-free (877) 454-7967, or visit quiltwoman.com.
I'm searching for a pattern to make PADDED SATIN HANGERS.
Carol F.
Susie Gay of Berryhill Heirlooms has designed an elegant Covered & Padded Hanger pattern (P01) that can be used to cover a new hanger or refurbish an old one. Included with the step-by-step illustrated instructions is information on how to size the hanger to fit a small child's garment up to adult-size clothing, plus creative ideas for customizing the hanger.The company also sells a flat, lacquered hardwood hanger with a chrome hook. It's the ideal style for a padded hanger and can be cut down to the size you need. For more information or to place an order, visit berryhillheirlooms.com.
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This week's episode of the Connected Kingdom Podcast has Tim responding to my challenge to talk about about reading fiction. You've got two options: You can read the transcript below or you can listen in by clicking on the audio player. If you listen in, you'll be able to hear the two of us interact. Download here.
There is power in story. Christians have long realized this and today, perhaps more than any other time in the history of the church, believers speak of the whole sweep of Christian theology as a story—a story that has its beginning in the Creation of the world and a story that will close with the consummation, with God renewing this world and raising us to join him in it. This is the story that will go on and on forever, the story of all stories. Jesus himself used story in powerful ways, sharing amazing and important truths through parables, short stories designed to both hide and reveal truth—to hide it from those who would not hear and to reveal it to those who longed for it. It is worth noting, of course, that much of the Bible comes in the form of story and that the bestselling Christian book apart from the Bible—The Pilgrim's Progress—is a story.
I confess that I usually enjoy fiction only in short batches. Every year or two I will pick up a few novels—a few that have been nominated for a Pulitzer prize, perhaps, and I will read them through. They transport me to strange places and, more often than not, make me uncomfortable. But I almost always benefit from them. They give me a glimpse into someone else's mind, someone else's world or worldview. And as often as not they also tell me what other people, the people around me, are thinking or feeling, or what they will be thinking or feeling soon enough.
In some ways fiction tends to be just very slightly upstream from culture, which is to say that the kind of fiction that deals with ideas and not just stories or passion or action, puts into words the times, the thoughts and feelings that pervade the culture or will soon pervade the culture. These works of fiction ask the questions so many are asking.
I have heard it said that the purpose of fiction is to ask questions while the purpose of nonfiction is to answer them. That may be an over-simplification, but maybe it is not too far off the mark. At least that has been my experience of fiction. Fiction introduces ideas and evokes feelings and arouses emotion. These feelings demand answers or make us long for them. There are many questions I have been asked in fiction that I've had to go to the world of nonfiction to answer.
Cormac McCarthy's novels ask if there is hope even in a world like this one, a world of darkness and depravity. John Piper has rightly said that Cormac McCarthy is to the American literary canon what the book of Judges is to the biblical canon. McCarthy portrays the darkness of humanity and asks us if there is hope even here. It doesn't offer answers—just questions, questions brought about by deep feelings of pain or revulsion or sadness. Answers must be found elsewhere.
The recent novel The Snow Child asks, Is it worth loving if we can love for only a short time? Where do we find our hope and our joy? It makes us hope and long and wish and maybe even believe. But it asks questions that it cannot answer.
Olive Kitteredge, a recent Pulitzer Prize winner, asks what value there is in life and what joy can be found in growing old. What do we do about the sins we committed so many years ago? Do they still matter? And how can two souls remain knit together even after so many years and through so much hurt and sin?
Tom Clancy…okay, never mind. His books just tell some action-packed stories.
But how about The Lord of the Rings, a true and lasting classic? Here is a novel that transports us to a world of such clear good and evil. It asks us what we will give to defeat evil and what value there is in the deepest kind of friendship. Born out of Tolkien's experiences on the front lines of the First World War, this is a novel that seeks to give a very different take on this kind of a world—a world in which good and evil do battle to the death.
We could speak of C.S. Lewis and his Narnia series, which begins with the story of the Bible and then wonders, how would a story like this be told if there was a very different land in which it was always winter but never Christmas and where the Lion of Judah was actually a lion? But like most other fiction, it asks questions more than it answers them. It hints at something more, points to something beyond itself.
I am convinced that to truly enjoy fiction we need to have a knowledge of what is true and fixed and unchanging, which is to say, we need to know the Bible. So many questions are asked in the pages of books that can only be answered in the pages of The Book. The Bible interprets and refines and answers. It gives hope where fiction is hopeless, it gives light where fiction is dark, it gives joy where fiction is depressing. Fiction gives us stories of the world as it is or the world as someone images it; an author takes his experiences and hopes and desires and dreams and wraps them in a story. The Bible takes that story and makes sense of it. It tells us why the world is this way, why this author's experience of the world has been so painful, why there is still hope even in a world like this.
That is what I love in fiction; that is why I love fiction that probes the deep questions and asks the tough questions. If I did not have access to the answers through God's Word I would despair. But the Bible skillfully parries each blow and patiently, carefully answers each question. The fixed and unchangeable Word of God is the interpreter.
So I encourage Christians to read fiction—to read it carefully and discerningly and while listening to conscience and to allow it to asks its questions—but to always read it with the Bible as the source of answers.
If you'd like to give us feedback or join in the discussion, go ahead and look up our Facebook Group or leave a comment right here. You will always be able to find the most recent episode here on the blog. If you would like to subscribe via iTunes, you can do that here or if you want to subscribe with another audio player, you can try this RSS link.


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