text:
Shell has signed an agreement with the Technip Samsung Consortium (TSC) to enhance collaboration on the design, engineering, procurement, construction and installation of future floating LNG (FLNG) facilities, the companies said on Thursday.The agreement builds on the existing relationship, formed in 2009, to ensure the parties can capitalize on insights gleaned from the design and construction of Shell's Prelude FLNG facility in Australia and expand the technology offering to the energy market. It will drive a culture of joint delivery, continuous improvement and ensure greater value from the collaboration for all parties, according to project officials.
"Shell's FLNG vision and ambition is gaining momentum and Technip, with its partner Samsung Heavy Industries, is proud to support the additional projects that could be realized under this agreement," said Thierry Pilenko, CEO of Technip. Shell expects global natural gas demand to increase by 60% from 2010 to 2030, reaching 25% of the global primary energy mix and within that, strong growth in LNG. "This heads of agreement will enable Samsung, together with partners, Shell and Technip, to further strengthen its reputation as a definite leader in the floating LNG business with the successful completion of FLNG projects to come," said Dae Young Park, CEO of Samsung Heavy Industries. "I am very confident that Samsung is ready to construct multiple FLNGs at its Geoje shipyard and is fully committed to achieving the highest quality and on-time delivery of Shell's FLNG facilities in accordance with the spirit of the partnership," he added.Floating LNG enables the development of gas resources ranging from clusters of smaller more remote fields to potentially larger fields via multiple facilities where, for a range of reasons, an onshore development is not viable. That can lead to faster, cheaper, more flexible development strategies for resources that were previously uneconomic or constrained by technical risks, helping to bring more natural gas to the market. "Shell is leading the industry in the development of FLNG," said Dr. Matthias Bichsel, director of projects and technology for Shell."Together, Shell and TSC are forging a strong alliance to help ensure we are well positioned to deliver innovative FLNG solutions across a wide range of opportunities in the future," he continued."Central to this portfolio expansion are technology designs that cater for a wider range of gas fields.In locations where liquid production is low, for example, Shell's FLNG Lean technology would be able to process additional gas and produce more LNG, opening up new business opportunities for countries looking to develop their gas resources."
Shell and TSC are already working together on the world's first FLNG project, Prelude FLNG, which will be moored 200 kilometers off the northwest coast of Australia in the Browse Basin. As their experience grows, Shell and TSC said they believe there are many more opportunities ahead.


text:
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - Georgia used its depth to get balanced scoring in another easy win.
Jasmine Hassell, Jasmine James and Erika Ford scored 12 points each as 11 players scored in the sixth-ranked Lady Bulldogs' 80-38 victory over Mercer on Tuesday night.
Georgia (10-0) is off to its best start since opening the 2009-10 season with 16 victories, and has won by an average of 27.3 points a game.
"I really like the way our team is playing right now," freshman guard Marjorie Butler said. "Nobody on the team is selfish and everybody is going out there and playing hard every game. That's hard for any team to play against us when you have nine and 10 people going out there every game and giving their all."
The Lady Bulldogs had 10 players log between 11 and 25 minutes against Mercer. For the season, nine players are averaging between 16 and 24 minutes.
"I think we've done a really good job thus far," James said. "Having five freshmen and then having the class (of seniors) that we have, we've done a really good job of jelling together."
Georgia struggled early against Mercer (4-3), even trailing four minutes into the game. But the Lady Bulldogs took control the end of the first half and then dominated the second half.
They led 34-21 at halftime before scoring the first nine points of the second half.
That started a 25-5 run that extended the Lady Bulldogs' advantage to 59-26 with 9:43 left in the game.
Georgia shot 59 percent from the field (20-of-34) in the second half and was 9 for 15 (60 percent) on 3-pointers.
"Georgia hit a lot of threes," said Mercer coach Susie Gardner, who played for Georgia coach Andy Landers from 1982-86. "I don't think that's necessarily their M.O., but they hit a lot of 3s on us, and they're bigger, quicker, stronger and faster than us. They're very, very good, and I think they'll go far in the NCAA tournament this year."
Hassell and James combined to score eight of Georgia's first 11 points of the second half.
That gave the Lady Bulldogs a 45-23 lead, which reached 54-25 on Ford's 3 with 12:35 remaining.
Georgia had 18 steals and forced Mercer into 28 turnovers. The Lady Bulldogs also had 22 assists and only eight turnovers.
"I thought we came out and executed beautifully in the half court (in the second half)," Landers said. "We put the ball in the right person's hands at the right time, and that person finished every single time. It was just beautiful execution to take what was a 12- or 13-point lead and to turn it into more like a 25- or 26-point lead."
The Lady Bulldogs' lead increased to 46 points on Danielle Bennett's 3 with 1:41 left in the game.
Kendra Grant scored 16 points to lead the Bears, who are playing without their two leading returning scorers from last season.
They shot 29 percent (15 for 52) from the field.
Briana Williams, who led the Atlantic Sun Conference in scoring the past two years, is out for the year with a torn ACL and Ry'van Buchanan is out with a meniscus injury. They combined for more than 28 points a game last season.
Khaalidah Miller added 10 points for the Lady Bulldogs and Butler established her career high with nine points.
Fellow freshman Shacobia Barbee had five points, but added six rebounds, six assists and six steals.
"I really do think that depth makes a difference for us because you don't have anybody really going out there and playing 40 minutes or 30 minutes," Butler said. "Everybody is playing 16 to 25 minutes, so it keeps everyone fresh and everyone playing hard."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Why wouldn't the NFL want me to write an annual check to my cable provider for their product?
Some of the smaller cable outlets will not meet that criteria, let alone be able to afford the NFL fee that would be required.
Other than DTV and DishNetwork (maybe TimeWarner Cable), are there any other outlets that have a national reach?
I don't know the answer to that.
DTV paid a huge premium for the exclusive rights of the ticket.
And don't you find it surprising that none of these other outlets are screamining anti-trust and unfair trade pratices to the FTC about DTV's exclusive agreement?
I haven't heard of one complaint yet.
DirecTV doesn't know where their hardware is located. All they know is the billing zip code, and that's what determines which programming you receive. Simply change the billing address to a friend in New York, give DirecTV a credit card for recurring payments, tell them to suppress all bills and phone calls, done.
And, as a bonus, not only will you get all the Jets games on all the networks but you'll get SNY for post game shows, Mets, Yankees, Rangers, Knicks, Devils, Islanders, Nets, and Giants too. The only downside is you'll get local NY news, but that's not a big deal for most.
My first 3 years down here I had DTV and had the bill sent to an old neighbor in Hyannis. Had the basic DTV package for $29.99/month and got all the Pats games along with the local Boston news.
Then one night, MrsPatsFanTx decides she wants to watch some girlie-girl movie on DTV pay-per-view and plugged in the phone cord to order the movie.
Still pissed off about that to today.
With an enormous number of household having "cable" TV, it seems unlikely to me that the Direct TV "exclusive" fee would be larger than the total fee that could be had from a non-exclusive fee.
What is Direct TV's market share? 10%?
I think the fact that they do Sunday Ticket with a satellite provider may have something to do with the fact that cable and satellite are different - in that cable pays 'franchise fees' to the local government, which is basically the rent for using and altering their infrastructure. So they're essentially in business with the local government, as are the local affiliates of the networks. So I would think adding Sunday Ticket to a cable provider might affect the NFL's agreement with the network and their local affiliate in a way that the non-geographically specific/tethered satellite doesn't.
Or not.


text:
You do requests! That's amazing! How do you do it?
You do requests! That's amazing! How do you do it?
If you can get clips of David Charvet from a film Seduced and Betrayed I will be eternally grateful. Also, Luke Perry in a film with Ashley Judd i think it is called Normal Life. Thank you I think others on here will enjoy these clips too!
Thanks for taking the time to do all this! I've long ago jerked to the Daniel Craig in Love Is the Devil video
I have many many dvds! That's how I do it! LOL
thanks so much! if i could tell you how many times in my life i have watched that jason preistly clip and lost my load... lol
really great theard..... thanks for ur hard work ....very hot clips
This thread is so freakin' awesome!!
Brendan Fletcher in Rampage:
Underwear Scene From Toy Soldiers (Keith Coogan's HUGE Bulge):
Man! your rock.......Thanks a lot for this awesome videos!..................
Yeah, it is one of the best threads ever.
Great thread!
That Trammell clip was so hot! I wonder if he got a chubby when she kept rubbing her leg on his cock. LOL
BTW: I asked this several pages back, but is there some way to enlarge the screen? I tried to click to the left of where it says "vimeo," but nothing happens. Same when I double click and click "Full Screen."
James McAvoy from the Last King of Scotland deleted scenes?
I put in my share of videos with a FRONTAL of Shia Laboeuf!
weird movieclip but around 0.40 it should be there
James McAvoy in The Last King of Scotland:
Shia LaBeouf in Music Video (MY SPECIAL EDITED VERSION):
Pierce Brosnan in Nomads:
Bump it up
Your "special" version of that music video with Shia LaBeouf made me laugh. It was the best version I have seen.
thanxss!!!! from Spain!!!
thanks for sharing!
These are great! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
tboy26, awesome job of hunting and gathering these clips for us to enjoy. hands down one of the best posts on JUB in a while. a gold star for you!
Michael Fassbender in Shame:
Am I the only one who cannot enter the password?
Even when I type 1212, it does not show,
but then when I hit enter after that,
"Invalid Password" shows up.
Can anyone help me out?
wow reallly nice Michael Fassbender!
jhero, what toddnnelson said. After you type 1212 and press enter, on the bottom left should be the play triangle. Hit that and the clip will play.
My only problem is trying to make it full screen. Does anyone know how I can do that?
tboy26, these are amazing! thank you for your time and for making this awesome thread!
this is a great thread!! thanks for all the hard work and for sharing!!
1212 then un pause
Thank you for all of these
Jason Biggs in American Reunion:
how do u watch these videos?
never mind i figured it out lol :P
oh thank you thank you soo soooooo so much.
Great thread. Keep it going......
frustratingly still not out.
Loved the frontal of Jason Biggs......yet another reason to like him.
tboy26, This is amazing collection. Bravo!
awesome thread
I use to be known as ignorancehater1975. You can't be judging me unless u r god, and u r not god so u can't be judging me!!!
tboy is the best.
thanks a lot for all of your videos!! would you happen to have Viggo Mortensen in a History of Violence?
I love the scenes from OZ, love that SHOW!


text:
- The Guardian, Friday August 22 2008
The Israeli foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, said yesterday it was unlikely a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians would be reached this year and warned that pressure to hurry negotiations could lead to violence.
Livni, 50, the chief Israeli negotiator for the current talks with the Palestinians, is the favourite to replace Ehud Olmert as prime minister when the ruling Kadima party holds leadership elections next month.
The latest peace process, launched in Annapolis in the US in November, was originally intended to produce an agreement by the end of this year.
"I think that any attempt to bridge gaps that maybe it's premature to bridge, or to reach something that is not the comprehensive agreement that we want to reach, can lead to doing it wrong just because of the pressure," she told a news conference in Jerusalem. "This can lead to clashes, this can lead to misunderstandings, this can lead to violence as we faced after Camp David 2000 and the circumstances in a way are similar."
In the months after the failure of the Camp David talks in 2000, the second Palestinian uprising, or intifada, broke out. Since then more than 4,800 Palestinians and more than 1,000 Israelis have been killed in the conflict.
Livni said all the issues of dispute between Israel and the Palestinians were up for discussion, but she gave no indication of what, if anything, had so far been agreed in months of discussions between the two sides. However, she ruled out any prospect of a right of return for Palestinian refugees to Israel and said refugees would return to live in the future Palestinian state.
Talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders have been under way for several months, but there has been no sign that any concrete agreements have been reached, even in private.
Although Livni is expected to win the Kadima leadership next month, it is not yet clear if she will be able to form a coalition government.
She said she would like to try to lead a coalition, or to form a unity government. She said that would be decided by other coalition parties.
If she fails to form a coalition there would be early general elections. Recent polls have suggested the rightwing opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu, of the Likud party, would win. However, a poll in yesterday's Ha'aretz newspaper put Livni and Netanyahu as equal frontrunners.
Olmert, the current prime minister and Kadima leader, has promised to step down after the primary election next month. He is still being questioned in a series of corruption investigations.
Tags: Ehud Olmert, Israel, Palestinians, peace talks, Tzipi Livni


text:
Linked by David Adams on Fri 22nd Oct 2010 16:24 UTC, submitted by shaneco
Look at you Windows 7! One year old and making everybody forget Vista was ever born. To mark the occasion, we highlight Windows 7 rollout lessons learned in CIO.com stories featuring BMW, Continental Airlines and more.


text:
Becoming the world's largest video game publisher is no easy task, demanding tough decisions in a constantly evolving market. Behind many of those savvy (and arguably unsavory) decisions are people like Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing. His recent interview with Joystiq illuminates some of the company's recent decisions, some which attracted the ire of the gaming community.
Perhaps the most unpopular of those decisions was the one to shutter Bizzare Creations. However, Hirshberg explains that their demise was a product of their specialty. "The thing that Bizarre is best at and what they're known for and what their signature is is in the racing world," Hirshberg said. "And the decision had as much to do with our assessment of what was happening to the racing genre as it had to do with anything specific to Bizarre. We just didn't think that was the best place for us to put our competitive energies. The racing genre had shrunk, pretty precipitously."
Unsurprisingly, the disappointing sales of Blur contributed to the closure as well. "It was a big investment in marketing. And sometimes you pour the chemicals into the beaker and nothing explodes. There are these big, very well established franchises that we would be competing against, fighting for a shrinking opportunity."
True Crime: Hong Kong was another attempt to make a marquee brand for the company. Activision ended up pulling the plug when that ambition fell through. "The game had been delayed twice; the budget had been increased twice; and it had ballooned to a size where it was going to have to be a pretty incredible success in order to be worth the investment that it was taking to get it done," he said. He reiterated that the game wasn't bad, but it "was not going to be at the top of that genre."
The company's annual music games were also put on hiatus. "The Hero brand is still incredibly powerful and potent. It's one of the best known entertainment brands in the world," Hirshberg said. But now, Activision is looking to "generate meaningful innovation and meaningful reinvention" to bring Guitar Hero back. "What we couldn't afford to continue doing was putting out iterative improvements of the same idea because that idea had run out of gas in the marketplace."
DJ Hero suffered a similar fate, due to a "smaller audience." And while some licensed tracks were cheaper than the big-name rock songs found in Guitar Hero, tracks from artists like Lady Gaga and Eminem drove up costs, as well as the game's conceit of mashing up two tracks at a time. He says DJ Hero "had every opportunity and it didn't succeed. At the end of the day, we've got to take a clear-eyed look at that."


text: North Carolina embodies the quintessential South. From the quaint mountain towns of Asheville to the diverse city life of Charlotte to the secluded beaches of Wilmington, it offers visitors nearly every flavor of American life. North Carolina comes alive in the deep drawl of the locals and the tang of Creole cooking; in the cropped grass of Pinehurst golf courses and historic neighborhoods of Raleigh; in the awe-inspiring Blue Ridge Mountains and the cozy pubs in Chapel Hill. As the locals say, "from Murphy to Manteo," North Carolina offers endless variety.


text:
Enjoy some treats and kick up your feet as Santa's Helpers take care of your gift wrapping on Black Friday.
Bradley, Illinois (PRWEB) October 27, 2014
Heritage Woods of Watseka, a BMA affordable assisted living community, will offer free gift wrapping from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Nov. 28.
The community, which is located at 577 Martin Ave. in Watseka, Illinois, serves older adults of all incomes, including those on Medicaid, who need some help to maintain their independence.
"After you're done shopping on Black Friday, be sure to stop by Heritage Woods of Watseka," said Loretta LaBrec, Director of Marketing at Heritage Woods. "Enjoy some treats and kick up your feet as Santa's Helpers take care of your gift wrapping."
For more information about Heritage Woods, call 815-432-4560.
The Heritage Woods of Watseka affordable assisted living community combines residential apartment home living with the availability of personal assistance, help with medications and a variety of convenience and support services.
"We provide a wonderful alternative to a nursing home or to struggling alone at home," says Hardy.
Residents live in private apartments that they furnish and decorate to their tastes. Each of the studio and one-bedroom floor plans includes a kitchenette, spacious bathroom with shower and grab bars, individually-controlled heating and air conditioning, and emergency alert system.
Certified nursing assistants, working under the direction of a licensed nurse, are on-duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Meals, housekeeping and laundry are among the included services.
"Residents also benefit from all of the opportunities that are available to socialize with friends and neighbors and participate in activities and special programs," says Hardy.
Heritage Woods of Watseka is the only community in Iroquois County that is certified to operate through the Illinois Supportive Living program. The affordable assisted living community is managed by BMA Management, Ltd. of Bradley, Illinois.
BMA Management is the largest provider of assisted living in Illinois.
"Our focus is to provide the residents of Heritage Woods of Watseka with the love, compassion and dignity they deserve and the help and assistance they need," says Rod Burkett, President and CEO of BMA. "Our emphasis is on helping each resident to achieve and maintain as much independence as possible for as long as possible."
Communities managed by BMA Management include the Bowman Estates affordable assisted living community in Danville, the Eagle Ridge affordable assisted living community in Decatur, the Heritage Woods affordable assisted living communities in Charleston and Manteno, and the Prairie Winds affordable assisted living community in Urbana.
For more information about BMA Management, the assisted living, senior living and memory care communities that BMA manages; and the company's management, development and consulting services, visit http://www.bma-mgmt.com or call 1-877-882-1495 toll-free.


text:
It should have been over years ago, and if police hadn't buggered it up so badly it's impossible to know whodunnit, it could have been.
It should have been over this year and, but for Judith Collins's decision to promote competing reports, it would have been.
Welcome to another year of discussing a case that started in 1994.
You want the idiot's summary of the idiotic extra-judicial stoush about the Bain reports? Here it is.
Fisher Binnie Idiot's Summary (I am the idiot) – DIM POST
Collins's real problem with the Binnie report? Here's a clue: "anger and simple upset over the conduct of the police force. [Jurors] had always considered the police above reproach. They found they were wrong.
David Fisher: Bain report shines spotlight on police mistakes – NZ HERALD
Word of the Year? Word of the Decade?
Public Address Word of the Year and Word of the Decade - the Vote! – HARD NEWS
"If the two parties fail to come to a deal by Jan. 1, taxes on the average middle-income family would rise about $2,000 over the next year. That would follow a 12-year period in which median inflation-adjusted income dropped 8.9 percent, from $54,932 in 1999 to $50,054 in 2011."
And that's if you don't believe official inflation figures understate how much value dollars lost over those 12 years.
U.S. politics in two sentences – MARGINAL REVOLUTION
Fresh from his eponymous inquiry, Lord Leveson visits Australia to talk about cracking down on blogs and tweets. "Lawlessness in one area may infect other areas," says Leveson. "The bottom line is this: Leveson is an enemy of free speech as these clips makes clear" …
Leveson is in Australia – Sinclair Davidson, CATALAXY FILES
Seems the loony Lord just copies and pastes from Wikipedia.
Lord Leveson copies out Wikipedia – LISTENER
The global warming game has changed, admits the UN's IPCC in their next alarmist report on global warming—leaked this week one year ahead of its scheduled release. Leaked, because it admits that the sun's activity in recent decades has had more effect on warming that previously allowed, or understood—and the leaker thought you should know taht. "The admission of strong evidence for enhanced solar forcing changes everything [says the leaker]. The climate alarmists can't continue to claim that warming was almost entirely due to human activity over a period when solar warming effects, now acknowledged to be important, were at a maximum. The final draft of AR5 WG1 is not scheduled to be released for another year but the public needs to know now how the main premises and conclusions of the IPCC story line have been undercut by the IPCC itself."
IPCC AR5 draft leaked, contains game-changing admission of enhanced solar forcing – WATTS UP WITH THAT
The big profits of Australian banks is not all good. "Australia has an oversized banking sector for its economy and the banks remain over-leveraged and heavily invested in residential and commercial real estate."
The Australian Banking Behemoth – Dan Denning, DAILY RECKONING
"Politics has become a big game for the amusement of those involved, which considering the scale of the challenges facing this country it really shouldn't be." All too true.
Unwittingly, Maria Miller's Spad has done her country a favour – Iain Martin, TELEGRAPH
More evidence "Don't be evil" means "Be capitalist": Google chairman says "We are proudly capitalistic. I'm not confused about this."
Google's tax avoidance is called capitalism, says chairman Eric Schmidt – TELEGRAPH
How anti-vaxxers see the world:
"We now have the announcement that Ben Bernanke's US Federal Reserve will buy $45 billion a month in treasuries, QE4, until unemployment reaches 6.5% or his version of inflation exceeds 2.5%… The next announcement may well remove the $45 billion monthly limit. Then he will be able to finance the government with as much fairy dust money as he likes."
There He Goes Again – Hunter Lewis, CIRCLE BASTIAT
"Counterfeiting is a crime. There is an act of Congress that allows the Fed to get away with it. Still, a banker from an earlier era would have only done it in the dark of night. In the time of Edward II, a banker who clipped his coins would have his balls cut off…
"The gist of the Fed's new plan is to print up US$85bn per month and use it to buy mortgage-backed securities and US government debt. This is supposed to increase 'demand', and thereby get the economy moving faster. The important thing is that the Fed has no money with which to buy these things. It has to create it out of thin air. A lot of it.
"At that rate, the Fed will be adding to the nation's monetary base - the Fed's assets - three times faster than the US economy creates new goods and services…"
The Outrageous Behaviour of the US Fed – Bill Bonner, DAILY RECKONING
This throws the US dollar over the currency cliff, says Peter Schiff:
"So between this and QE 3 which was announced just two and a half months ago, the Fed will be printing $85 billion per month," just as Treasuries look like they're starting to crumble. "If Treasuries begin to collapse at a time when the Fed is buying up over 70% of debt issuance, then the Great Treasury Bubble is finally about to burst… Take out Fed support … and interest rates will be soaring." And no government anywhere can afford that, not to mention every over-extended borrower. "We'll have to wait to see how this plays out, but we're getting dangerously close to a US debt crisis that will make 2008 look small in comparison."
And That's Checkmate Bernanke – Graham Summers, ZERO HEDGE
The reaction of Treasury bond buyers "demonstrates that although the Fed may be capable of managing inflation expectations, its ability do so is no longer to be reckoned in months or weeks, but in minutes."
Fed Losing Its Grip on Our Expectations – Rick Ackerman, ZERO HEDGE
Even central bankers were concerned, Reserve Bank of Australia head Glenn Stevens describing quantitative easing as potentially harmful and Bernanke's approach as "ultimately inimical to financial stability and hence macroeconomic stability."
The Central Bank Backlash: First Hong Kong, Now Australia Gets Ugly Case Of Truthiness – Tyler Durden, ZERO HEDGE
Meanwhile, back in Japan…
Japan in recession – MACROBUSINESS.COM.AU
Fortunately, making money from central-bank money printing has become increasingly difficult. "The fact is the world has been turned on its head for the past four years. People and investors have forgotten the real driver of prosperity and wealth. It's not central bankers or governments that create wealth, it's entrepreneurs, business people, and individuals…each acting in their own selfish interest." Which is why each round of money printing has received an increasingly cold shoulder.
Central Bank Prints More Money — No One Cares – Kris Sayce, MONEY MORNING AUSTRALIA
"The Fed is now forthright that it is targeting the unemployment
rate. The problem is that it doesn't control the unemployment rate."
- Gerard O'Driscoll
So, what's the difference between altruism and benevolence?
Attractive little nooks for reading and sleeping. (Because '"reading" often means falling asleep, and drooling heavily, after the first five pages. A bright shade of paint can keep you awake for at least the first chapter.')
Create Lovely Little Nooks for Reading & Sleeping – APARTMENT THERAPY
Ravi Shankar, who died this week, called hippy fans of his sitar playing at Woodstock and elsewhere "strange young weirdos… shrieking, shouting, smoking, masturbating and copulating – all in a drug-crazed state…" He was right, you know. Interesting that he and Ayn Rand would agree on that.
In truth, Ravi Shankar couldn't stand the hippies – TELEGRAPH
ARC's Yaron Brook revisits "Apollo and Dionysus" – ARC
Help is at hand for Apple Users who want to know where the f**k they are.
Google Maps Returns To iOS, Now With Voice Guided Turn-by-Turn Navigation – FORBES
Alleged architect Frank Gehry can't handle a real artist.
What Happened with Frank Gehry on the Eisenhower Memorial – SABIN HOWARD SCULPTURE
I'm pretty sure this news of "an Objectivist XXX Porn Parody" is satire, but you never can tell. After all, Alan Greenspan might well have said, "This is the first porn parody that celebrates Rand's ideals of objectivism and rational egoism."
Aynal Architecture: "This Ain't The Fountainhead" – GRAM PONANTE [Very NSFW]
Joe Maurone is right. Dedicate 2013 to the best within you:
Here's Charles Mingus…
…and Mario Lanza …
…and Freddy Kempf, who I'll wager you foolishly missed at the Town Hall last week:
[Hat tips Pharyngula, Marginal Revolution, Whale Oil, Daniel Wahl, TakingHayekSeriously, Eric Crampton]
Have a great weekend!
PS: Make mine an Epic Message in a Bottle please:


text:
MANHATTAN, Kan. (WIBW) -- Two Kansas State University students charged with setting a deadly fire at a Manhattan apartment complex appeared before a judge for the first time Monday.
Patrick Scahill, 20, of Manhattan, and Virginia Griese, 19, of Manhattan, were arrested Friday for Felony Murder and Aggravated Arson in connection with a fire that led to the death of 34-year-old Dr. Vasanta Pallem at an off-campus apartment complex.
The fire broke out just before midnight last Thursday at the Lee Crest Apartments at 820 Sunset Avenue. Most of the occupants in the building, which is adjacent to K-State's campus, are university students.
Crews had extinguished the fire and were doing a search of the building when they found Pallem in medical distress.
She was rushed to Mercy Regional Health Center where she died from smoke inhalation.
Pallem, a postdoctoral researcher who worked in the university's chemical engineering department, lived in an apartment on the top floor of the apartment complex.
No one else was injured in the fire.
Sources say the suspects chose the apartment building at random and set fire to the hallway on the bottom floor of the complex, killing Pallem in the process due to heavy smoke buildup.
Patrick Scahill and Virginia Griese made their first court appearance Monday at the Riley County Courthouse via closed circuit TV from the Riley County Jail. They were officially read their charges and their next court appearance was set for February 26th at 1 PM.
Members of the the Riley County Police Department, the Manhattan Fire Department, the State Fire Marshal's Office, ATF, Kansas Bureau of Investigations and the Pottawatomie County Sheriff's Office are investigating the fatal fire.
Scahill and Griese are being held in the Riley County Jail on $1,000,000 bond. Further details regarding the investigation are not available. A motive is not known.
Mug shots of the suspects are not available. The Riley County Police Department does not release booking photos from their jail.
According to Kansas State University's website, Scahill and Griese are both students. Scahill is listed as a freshmen in Arts and Sciences and Griese is listed as a sophomore studying Biology.
Officials said it is possible that the case could be prosecuted at the federal level because of the involvement of the ATF. That will be up to the U.S. Attorney's Office in coordination with the Riley County Attorney's Office.


text:
Spin Master Games is the No. 3 Games Manufacturer in Annual 2012, according to The NPD Group, and has recently acquired the worldwide rights to Perplexus.
Spin Master will be releasing a slate of new games for fall, including Perplexus Rookie, Perplexus Epic, Boom Boom Balloon, Hedbanz Act Up, and Logo Party.
For more information, visit www.spinmastergames.com.


text:
Despite predictions that West Virginia will finish in the bottom half of the standings, West Virginia coach Bob Huggins says the Mountaineers will "be all right."
Great reporting and writing from David Ubben of FOX Sports Southwest on Texas Tech freshman quarterback Davis Webb.
After a personal tragedy, Baylor defensive coordinator Phil Bennett credits Kansas State coach Bill Snyder with keeping him in coaching.
Managing expectations a challenge as TCU and West Virginia continue adjusting to being members in the Big 12 Conference.
And along those lines, this article in Forbes explains how TCU's move to the Big 12 has benefitted the school.
Kansas State is still trying to become bowl eligible, but the Wildcats are on their way to setting attendance records this season.


text:
THE Gonski legislation contains no legally enforceable obligations on the states or school sector, a draft shows - but the government says they will be added later.
Opposition education spokesman Christopher Pyne, who distributed a leaked copy of the draft legislation yesterday, dubbed the draft legislation ''all foam and no beer''. ''This is not an act, it is inaction,'' Mr Pyne said. ''Nothing in it is binding.''
Fairfax revealed on Thursday the draft legislation would not contain specific details about the level of funding and the indexation the education sector would receive, as well as how much the states would be expected to pay. Victoria said it could not support the legislation in its current form.
A spokesman for Education Minister Peter Garrett said: ''Details of the reforms and funding arrangements will be added to the bill as negotiations with education authorities progress. Once that takes place the legislation will be legally enforceable.''


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Zen Titan 2 Review: Honest Review, Huge Discount with Special Bonuses You might have heard of a few affiliates are making money with amazon. They just pick a hot product… get free traffic… and earnings affiliate commissions. With over 256 million products to promote and 300 million dollars in daily …Read More »
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USA Onions/Weber grill products "Get Grillin'" football bowl season retail display contest kicked off Dec. 15, and produce managers across the country have received their custom logo-emblazoned black Weber Kettle grills as well as plenty of Spanish Sweets from the Idaho-Eastern Oregon onion-growing region.
The contest, which runs through Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 3, provides produce departments the opportunity to increase their onionsales and win great prizes simultaneously.
Sherise Jones, marketing director for the Idaho-Eastern Oregon Onion Committee, said that pairing Spanish Sweets with football parties was a perfect fit.
"The homegating and tailgating theme was really a natural choice for the promotions," Ms. Jones said, adding that USA Onions are perfect for grilling, whether on the backyard barbecue or in a stadium parking lot.
She said that retailers are encouraged to use the NFL playoffs and Super Bowl as their themes to create displays, which must be in place for at least one week before Feb. 3. Displays must also be located in produce departments and must include Idaho-Eastern Oregon onions bagged, bulk or both that clearly show the IEO name.
Photos of the entries must be submitted by Feb. 28 to qualify for a Weber's Time to Grill cookbook as well as a chance to win Kettles and bigger Weber grills, and the grand prize — a Summit S-470 gas grill and $1,000 cash. The grand prize package includes a rotisserie with infrared burner, smoker box and sear station.
Other prizes are the Genesis gas grill, the Performer Platinum charcoal with gas ignition, the Smokey Joe Gold portable charcoal grill and kabob sets and accessories. Winners will be announced by March 31.
Point-of-sale materials provided at no cost to retailers consist of recipe cards, "All-American Winners" posters, sweepstakes tear-off sheets, Weber/USA Onions grill posters and USA Onion merchandising tips. The use of QR codes that direct consumers to the USAOnions website are also encouraged.


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I am designing an RPG in flash. I started with a turn based battle system, and I wanted to make a battle menu that can be controlled by the keyboard rather than the mouse. After many hours of work, I managed to make a system that works, but when I go to bring up the second menu (the menu used to choose the attacks) I honestly have no idea how to go about making flash move from the main menu to the submenu I added. I'm not sure if I'm explaining this very well, but does anyone have any ideas?
my menu uses tellTarget mostly, but after a selection is made, I want it to move to the sub menu that will appear after the original selection.
SWF preview.JPG
menu 5.fla
feel free to edit any code you need to. I just need this to work


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BSN Gerald Levert Commentary
Sadly, Gerald Levert had just returned from a trip to South Africa where he met with Nelson Mandela. His passing has come as a shock not only to his family, but also to the entire music world.
(The legend lives through his music)
R&B legend Gerald Levert died as a result of a heart attack on Friday. He was only 40 years old.
Ironically and sadly, Levert, the son of legendary R&B king Eddie Levert of the O Jays, was also working on a reality TV program, which dealt with weight loss. "We are overwhelmed by the generous outpouring of love, condolences and support from the many friends, fans and admirers of Gerald's life and legacy,� his family said, in a statement obtained by The Black Star News.
"As everybody knows, Gerald was a man who loved and breathed music. To his family and friends he was a man of strong character, who had an infectious personality and a zest for life. For his fans, his greatest love was touching the hearts and souls of all people through his music. At this very difficult time, we thank you for your prayers and hope you will understand our need for privacy.�
Gerald Levert came to prominence in the mid eighties with the family group Levert. The group scored a hit in 1987 with "Casanova.� In 1991, Gerald Levert embarked on a solo career in which his solo debut album "Private Line� went to #1 on the R&B charts. This year he had been working on another solo album, which is due for release in 2007.
Sadly, Gerald Levert had just returned from a trip to South Africa where he met with Nelson Mandela. His passing has come as a shock not only to his family, but also to the entire music world. He will be sadly missed and The Black Star News family sends condolences and wishes of strength and fortitude to his family.
Ocen Allimadi is The Black Star News' music editor. Send all review materials including CDs, tapes and DVDs to Ocen Allimadi, 16 Curran House, Lucan Place, London SW10 3PG U.K.
To subscribe to New York's favorite Pan-African weekly investigative newspaper please click on "subscribe� on the homepage or call (212) 481-7745. For advertisements or to send us a news tip contact email@example.com "Speaking Truth To Empower,� is our motto.
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Sobol, Ron
Randy Rhoads: The Quiet Riot Years (Book Review)
July 2013
Released: 2013, Red Match Productions
Rating: 4.5/5
Reviewer: JP
Red Match Productions recently produced a book and movie companion set about the late, great Randy Rhoads and the early years of the legendary Metal band, Quiet Riot. The book is a large size, hard cover coffee table book and is printed on high quality glossy paper. There are many bonus features as well. there is a full Randy Rhoads era, Quiet Riot tour history covering 1975-1980. The book also comes out with a fold-out poster. The whole package is very well put together. There are a number of interviews and interviews and/or commentary from various people who knew, worked with and loved the members of Quiet Riot.
90% of the photos are from Ron's collection and there are a staggering amount of really cool shots of the band from back in the day, casual and formal. Ron had pretty much unfettered access so there are lots of historic shots. The layout and design are big and bold so you can get a really good at the pictures on a large scale. Even though the book bears the title Randy Rhoads I appreciate the fact that the book was about the band as much as Randy. Not many people know the early history (pre-Metal Health) of the band and this is as comprehensive as you will get. There are tons of notes and points and interesting shots from all facets of the band, even down of to photos of the rough sketches from the fashion designer, who helped define their look in the beginning. There are old newspaper articles and even the 'Quiet Riot' record company tour schedule of the publicity stunt developed by the fan club to petition the various record companies to get the band signed. There is a wealth of material inside. Kevin DuBrows eulogy is also included at the end of the book which reminds us that Quiet riot that exists today has no original members left. I feel fortunate to have seen Kevin with the band in the early 90's.
This is just as impressive as Rosen's Randy Rhoads book, which is not surprising because Sobol lent material from his private collection to Rosen for his book. At times my book reviews tend to be long-winded as I analyze and dissect but in this case RANDY RHOADS: THE QUIET RIOT YEARS is pure quality and there is not much left to say! For fans you want to get this and the movie too.
For more information about the book feel free to check out my interview with Ron Sobol in the June 2013 interview section, here at Metal-Rules.com
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Hollywood Plagiarists & The Freemason Degrees
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Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 2
Hollywood Plagiarists & The Freemason Degrees
Looking for people interested in helping me bust the Hollywood celebs. And why? Because theyre frauds! Im pretty certain about it myself, but thought Id get some experts to try to have a crack at this and tell me if Im right or not.
To make a long story short, if any of you cryptography or theology nuts out there have ever bothered to read Steganographia (you should), being the first book ever written about cryptography and very much about theology, Im wondering if I am the only one whose noticed that almost every movie Ive seen in the last ten years appears to be a rip off of this book.
I got into it about a year and a half ago, just because its written in several different styles of Latin, and since Im more into dead languages than cryptography, I decided to give translating it a shot. In any event, what I find in it, is actually a much different story about the life of Jesus than the bible portrays, which is very strange, since Trithemius was a Catholic abbot.
However, to make a very, very long analysis of the actual message in this book short, Trithemius was explaining that Christianity is little more than glorified versions of the Greek Mythology. After about a years worth of translating, and deciphering attempts at his conjuration paragraphs, Ive actually written a little book on what it actually is.
I also discovered that the clear majority of Hollywood scriptwriters, have been strip mining this book endlessly. What they are doing (George Lucas is clearly the worst for it, as far as I can tell, the entire Star Wars trilogies are all carbon copies of this book with the mandatory Hollywood Spin used), is translating the book, rearranging the chapters, and then using the Kabala to alter the names of the characters. If you know anything about Kabala, its about using letter substitutions to create similarly associative words.
A perfect example of George Lucas methods are as follows, keep in mind the character Count Grievous from the newer Star Wars movies:
Book I Chapter I Table I
Oriens. Pamersiel. 1000. 10000. 100. 0.0.
Subsolanus. Padiel. 10000. 200000. 10. 0.0.
Eurus. Camuel. 10. 10. 10. 10.0.
Euroauster. Aseliel. 10. 20. 10. 0.10.
Auster. Barmiel 10. 20. 10. 20.0.
Austafricus Gediel. 20. 20. 10.0. 10.0.
Africus. Asyriel. 20. 20. 120. 10.
Fauonius. Maseriel. 30. 30. 10.0. 0.10.
Occidens. Malgaras 30. 30. 0.30. 210.
Chorus. Dorothiel. 40. 40. 0.40. 30.0.
Subcircius. Vsiel. 40. 40. 0.30. 0.0.
Circius. Cabariel. 50. 50. 80.0. 80.0.
Septentrio. Raysiel 50. 50. 80.0. 0.80.
Aquilo. Symiel. 10. 1000. 10. 100.
Boreas. Armadiel. 1000. 180. 810. 00.
Vulturnus. Baruchas
. 10. 180. 810. 00.
There are numerous little methods employed by the Hollywood writers, but this is an example of what George Lucas was doing;
1) Take the last entry Baruchas
2) Chop the word in half Baru-Chas
3) Take the first letter of the first entry P from P-amersiel
4) Stick that letter P into the middle of the last entry Baru-P-Chas
What you get is the word/name
, which is actually a Greek word
meaning Grievous. This is where he gets the name, nature and general role of his Count Grievous character. Now keep in mind, in episode 3, the ship piloted by Count Grievous is covered in Vulture Bots. So again, look closely at the entry preceding Baruchas as being Vulturnus.
Now, do similar tactics for the rest of the entries in that table (you have to play around, the Hollywood types have made millions, so they like to get tricky about it keeping their tactics concealed) and what youll eventually get, is a large number of the characters found in the Star Wars storyline. Then, translate the chapter its in, and youll see exactly what I see. That every single one of those six books/movies is taken right out of Steganographia. Keep playing around, and you'll find that almost every major motion picture you or I have seen in decades has been ripped right out of this Steganographia.
Another popular method Hollywood is using is as follows:
1) Take those numbers in the right hand columns
2) Substitute those with Hebrew/Greek numerical equivalents (Gematria)
3) 10. 180. 810. 00 = I. AP. ChI. Q
4) You can randomly use those use to add throughout the entries, to keep making new characters or titles.
What the Hollywood types are doing, is basically taking this old book on Cryptography and Kabala, and for lack of a better term, raping the hell out of it. Theyre basically just changing the order that the story goes in, and doing the mandatory Hollywood Spin to just keep pumping out slightly different storylines about it.
Freemasons also use this book, for their strange rituals of hazing and using degrees. They actually use each of the 31 chapters in book one as the traditional 31 degrees of testing each other. They call it shaving or scraping in the sense of scraping your pride away. Freemasons want their secrets kept secret, and for very good reasons. Every chapter in this book describes an excruciating act or acts of suffering about what Jesus and other religious folks go through. What the Masons do, is when one of their members breaks a rule of membership, or its time to advance forward, they spin it like a wheel, and whatever chapter it lands on, is the punishment used, including references to people wives being sexually assaulted.
Ive actually written an interesting book about it, using my translations, and various deciphering methods, however, not surprisingly, my books are being black listed and banned, by Freemasons. It seems that since Im not part of the Hollywood club, or Freemasonry, I dont get to be published. So what Im hoping is that some other Cryptography or theology hobbyists might give me a hand, playing with the tables and scrambled paragraphs to see just how many of the fat cat plagiarists we can bust.
You can see Steganographia at
Printed on the webpage.
A great read if youre into things like that (and can get through the obscured Latin). Further research Ive done, has revealed that all of those supposed magicians and black magic guys into spirit worship, were really just trying to carry on knowledge about Greek mythology being related to Christianity, and since people were regularly burned alive in town squares for such ideas at the time, they used Kabala and cryptographic methods to obscure it.
Cheers, and good luck!
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The one that earned an estimated $165 million last year even after taking a $125 million pay cut, of course. As unbelievable as it sounds, Oprah Winfrey had that much money to lose and still took top honors on Forbes' list of the highest-paid celebrities, released Monday.
(MORE: Asia to Lead the World's "Rich List")
Her loss reflects her tumultuous year, one that saw the inimitable talk show stumble slightly after she ended her eponymous 25-year-old show to launch the OWN Network with the Discovery Channel. The venture has struggled, but losing the income from her show didn't spell the end of Winfrey's fortune. Forbes reports that diversified holdings like her magazine, spin-off shows (Dr. Oz, et al) and a Sirius radio deal leveled the losses between May 2011 and May 2012.
But the pay cut wasn't without consequences. Oprah beat the second-richest celebrity, Michael Bay, by a meager $5 million. Bay owes his year's fortune to money he milked from his Transformers cash cow.
The rest of the list reads like a who's who of daytime shows (Dr. Phil), reality television (Simon Cowell) and blockbuster films (Jerry Bruckheimer). Add a little Manny Pacquaio, number 16 who made $67 million, and viola! A virtual mosaic portrait of Rich Uncle Pennybags. But perhaps the most unexpected entry of all came straight outta Compton. Dr. Dre, the fifth richest celebrity, made $110 million in the past year. The 47-year-old rapper made most of his money from the Beats by Dr. Dre headphones seen dwarfing people's heads everywhere.
Click here for the full list.


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BRISTOL, Tenn. – Jason Seymore's layup while fighting through traffic helped put King University up by a single point and a missed free throw on the other end opened the door to victory in Thursday night's dramatic 76-73 victory over the Limestone Saints. The Tornado fought off a balanced Limestone attack and overcame them with help from Eddie Piccinini's team-high 18 points and Jason Seymore scoring the most important three points on the game in the final 34 seconds of the game.
King (13-3, 8-2) and Limestone jostled for the lead through the entire second half. The Saints held the largest lead of the half by a mere five points but was erased by the eight-minute mark with help from back-to-back three pointers by sophomore Logan Lyle (Unicoi, Tenn.) and senior Eddie Piccinini (Orlando, Fla.). Piccinini's three gave King a 65-63 lead with 8:14 to go with the drama just starting to unfold.
The final eight minutes featured four lead changes and three tie scores before King outlasted the Saints. Limestone took its final lead when PJ Foster worked off of a screen and found an opening at the top of the key to hit a three pointer, giving the Saints a 73-72 lead with 1:12 to go. Limestone called a timeout immediately to set up for the King attack, but mattered not. The Tornado worked down the court and as junior guard Michael Fortune began a charge into the lane, the Beckley, W.Va. native found Jason Seymore (Powell, Tenn.) with a tight pass down left side of the lane, in stride. Seymore put home the go-ahead layup with 34 seconds left to give King a lead and rile the KU crowd to its feet.
Limestone had a glimmer of hope when Piccinini was called for a blocking foul, King's ninth team foul, as PJ Foster raced into the frontcourt, sending him to the line for a one-and-one opportunity and a chance to tie or take the lead. Foster missed short and right on the front end of his trip and Seymore snatched the rebound out of the air before immediate being fouled. Seymore swished both of his free throw attempts as King rested in the double bonus, increasing the lead to three points, 76-73.
With chants of the newly minted K-U chant ringing through the Student Center Complex gymnasium, the defense clamped down for one final stand against the Saints offense. Foster fought through some pressure at halfcourt but failed to get a shot off before the final buzzer rang, declaring King the victor.
Seymore finished with eight points and nine rebounds but no larger were his final four points that also served as the Tornado's last scores of the game to go-ahead and seal King's eight Conference Carolinas victory of the season to keep pace with conference leader Barton College.
Eddie Piccinini started the game strongly by scoring King's first four points and six of their first eight of the game. The senior co-captain finished with a team-high 18 points and shared the team lead in assists (4) with Michael Fortune.
Fortune was part of a trio of Tornado players with double-digit scoring efforts, finishing the night with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting, including a pair of three pointers.
King possessed a lead that topped out at 16 points in the first half but the Saints slowly chopped into the lead over the final 5:21 of the opening stanza, beginning with a three-point play by Phillip Moultrie. The Saints finished the first half on a 14-2 run, eight points of which coming from the Saints' leading scorer Charles Blue. PJ Foster capped the half with a three as time expired to trim King's lead to three points, 46-43.
Limestone's three-point shooting in the second half (5-10, .500) kept them level with King through the duration of the second half as King cooled offensively but nine Saints turnovers lead to seven free points for the Tornado. In addition, King's inside defense helped keep the Saints from building upon their early second-half lead and stole opportunities away from them late in the contest. Freshman Malcolm St. Louis swatted away Charles Blue's runner attempt to maintain a 70-70 tie and a swarming press forced Phillip Moultrie to turn the ball over, taking away another possession from the Saints.
The Saints (13-3, 8-2) were paced by Charles Blue, whose game-high 19 points came from a 7-for-13 shooting night. PJ Foster (12) and Joe Raga (10) joined Blue in double-figure point totals. Raga led the Saints with nine rebounds, one short of achieving a double-double.
With the win, King keeps pace with Barton at the top of the Conference Carolinas standings. Barton (8-1) holds a half-game lead over King (8-2) in league play with their only loss coming at the hands of the Tornado earlier this year.
In addition to the win on the court, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) at King University scored a major win for a local youth who attended Thursday night's game. As part of SAAC's Make-A-Wish Foundation project, young 'Kellan' was "adopted" and a special effort was made to make her wish of going to one of the family-friendly Disney theme parks a reality. After a successful fundraising mission was initiated that included the selling of 'Support Stars' and Make-A-Wish t-shirts, SAAC announced that the recorded count at game's end was $2,231, all of which will be donated to Kellan and her family to make that wish come true.
The Tornado will play their next two games on the road at Coker College (Jan. 26) and at North Greenville University (Jan. 30). They will host Barton on Feb. 2 in the Student Center Complex before celebrating Solid Blue on Feb. 6 with a home game against Erksine College.


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Beef Sate
Sate can be made with a variety of foods. In fact, practically anything served on a bamboo skewer is a "sate." Pork and chicken are the most common on restaurant menus, but here, thin slices of beef are given a flavorful marinade and are grilled. The grilled Beef Sate is served with a flavorful dipping sauce.
The sate make a great appetizer as part of an Asian buffet, and can also be served as an entrée with sides of steamed rice and stir fried vegetables.
Dipping Sauce
Combine the remaining marinade with the peanut butter and water in a small bowl. Set aside until ready to use, or cover and refrigerate overnight.
When ready to serve, heat indoor or outdoor grill. Thread the beef onto skewers and grill for 1-2 minutes per side, basting with the marinade once on each side. Serve immediately with the dipping sauce.
Makes 8 appetizer servings or 4 entrée servings.


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Nick Markakis was in the Orioles lineup as usual for Wednesday's game with the Royals, but as the designated hitter and not the starting right fielder. Markakis made his third start as the DH, with Chris Dickerson taking over in right field and batting ninth. For Markakis, it's a bit of a break, but something he adjusts to when it happens. "It's different. You've just got to stay loose, stay stretched," Markakis said. "It's good -- it gives me time off, gives me a chance to get my feet back under me. It's a different mindset, but it's good every once in a while." Markakis said manager Buck Showalter had told him earlier this season that he'd be the DH at times just for that reason -- getting a little break. Showalter is going to rotate players in the DH spot from time to time to give various people a break, something often needed over a 162-game season. "It's tough to go out there and play every day, especially for a long time over years," Markakis said. "Like I said, it's good for you every once in a while just to get your feet back under you, and kind of get your head on straight." Markakis is off to a good start so far in 2013. The veteran right fielder entered Wednesday with a .270 average, three homers and 15 RBIs.
MLB Headlines
Markakis gets breather as designated hitter
MLB.com | May 8


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Book Review: The Circle 85
|The Circle
|Dave Eggers
|Nick Kolakowski
|Sharing content with people online is a poor substitute for having real-life experiences
The book's eponymous tech firm earns untold billions of dollars off the Unified Operating System, a portal through which virtually the entire world accesses the broader Web. The OS bans anonymous identities; all social information is posted out there for anyone to peruse; currencies such as Bitcoin have been discarded in favor of online banking accounts irrevocably linked to real identities. The Circle itself is headquartered in the Bay Area, on a playful campus that caters to its employees' every material whim, so long as they're willing to work twenty-plus hours a day.
That the world would accept something like the Circle's omnipresent software without debate, of course, is the most far-fetched of the book's assumptions. But Eggers needs that exaggerated scenario to support his larger theme of how we're slowly but surely letting our privacy slip away from us in exchange for digital baubles, and how online interactions—clicking "Likes," viewing posts—is an imperfect substitution for real life. As one of his characters (who acts as the doomed Voice of Reason) states early on:
"Judgments like 'like' and 'dislike' and 'smiles' and 'frowns' were limited to junior high. Someone would write a note and it would say, 'Do you like unicorns and stickers?' and you'd say, 'Yeah, I like unicorns and stickers! Smile!' That kind of thing. But now it's not just junior high kids who do it, it's everyone, and it seems to me sometimes that I've entered some inverted zone, some mirror world where the dorkiest shit in the world is completely dominant. The world has dorkified itself."
The Circle's employees, of course, have little problem with that world (until the end, of course, when another major character attempts to bring the whole system crashing down). Even if Eggers gets the technology wrong, in order to service his broader point, he perfectly nails the spirit of hubris and incessant self-congratulation that's gripped many startups and tech behemoths in this era of easy VC money, huge app audiences, and massive acquisitions. That bit of software that makes all the world's information easily accessible, he's whispering in the background, is totally missing the point of what constitutes a real, lived-in existence.
In other words, The Circle isn't much of a cautionary tale for the broader world, as no single commercial firm will ever (hopefully) eradicate our privacy to the degree that the company and its characters accomplish in the novel (although it's clear that some tech giants will do their level best). But on another level, the text can still act as a cautionary tale to the current generation of developers and entrepreneurs" who think their software will effortlessly change the world for the better.
You can purchase The Circle from amazon.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews (sci-fi included) — to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.


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Lady Monarchs End Season with 82-73 Loss to Wildcats in WNIT
By ODU Athletics
March 21, 2013
Post-Match Press Conference:
NORFOLK, Va. - The Old Dominion University women's basketball team fell to Davidson in the first round of the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) on Thursday evening at the Ted Constant Convocation Center, 82-73.
The Lady Monarchs were making their third appearance in the WNIT in the last four seasons and 20th postseason appearance in the last 22 seasons. Old Dominion ends the season at 19-12 overall and finished in fourth place in the CAA. The Lady Monarchs added eight wins to their total from a year ago while going 9-4 in non-conference action.
Sophomore Shae Kelley tied her career-high with 21 points while adding six rebounds, three steals, and an assist. It was the eighth straight game that Kelley scored in double figures and the 22nd time overall this season while recording her fourth game of 20 points or more on the year.
Davidson (22-12) used a 57-34 rebounding advantage and 27 points and 11 rebounds from two-time Southern Conference Player of the Year Sophia Aleksandravicius to power their way to victory.
The Lady Monarchs jumped out to an early lead and held a 25-24 advantage with 9:44 remaining in the first half but the Wildcats closed on a 17-4 run to take a 41-29 lead into halftime.
Old Dominion was able to close the gap on a few occasions but could get no closer than nine points in the second half despite forcing 19 Wildcat turnovers in the contest. Davidson shot 44.6 percent (29-for-65) while the Lady Monarchs were at 40.8 percent (29-for-71).
ODU had a 14-4 fast break advantage and collected 11 steals as junior Stephanie Gardner tallied 15 points and set a career-high with three steals while matching her career high in assists with four. Freshman Galaisha Goodhope registered a new career high with eight rebounds to go with 11 points and five assists and a steal.
For the Wildcats, Dakota Dukes scored 15 points and added seven rebounds with four assists while Laura Murray chipped in 16 points, four assists and seven rebounds.
Davidson advances to play Charlotte in the second round of the WNIT this weekend.
Follow Old Dominion women's basketball on Twitter at twitter.com/ODUWBB and find them on Facebook at facebook.com/LadyMonarchsWBB.


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ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- The Dolphins are the better team today.
Anyone looking at the rosters sees that.
Anyone looking at the list of injured players sees that.
Anyone looking at the teams line up sees that.
Anyone looking at the scoreboard isn't quite so sure.
The Bills and Dolphins are tied 7-7 going to the third quarter. Miami's offense has looked good in flashes but has been inconsistent. A red zone turnover also hurt when Ricky Williams threw an interception from his own 2 yard.
The Dolphins defense yielded a strange 31-yard touchdown run by Ryan Fitzpatrick ... the Buffalo quarterback.
So we're tied at halftime. The second half should be interesting. The live blog should be interesting, too.


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The orbit of the exoplanet Beta Pictoris b – The first peer-reviewed article with GPI
Following our very successful first light observing runs in late 2013, the first publication based on Gemini Planet Imager observations is now complete! It has been accepted for publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesas part of a special issue on exoplanets, and is now available on Astro-ph. We report in this publication the performance of the Gemini Planet Imager based on the first light tests. The first scientific result demonstrates that right from the start, GPI has been performing well enough to yield new insights into exoplanets: Our astrometric observations from November 2013 gave us important new information on the orbit of the planet Beta Pictoris b.


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FREDERICK -- Trash rates went up a little and water rates a lot for Frederick residents Tuesday night.
The town's board voted Tuesday to raise household trash collection rates by a dollar (to $10.65 a month) and overall water rates by 20 percent. The trash charge passed unanimously; the water increase passed 4-1 with Trustee Rafer Burnham against and Trustee Jim Wollack absent.
Burnham said he knew rates needed to go up, but that he wanted to see a discount for those who conserved water, and not just higher rates for heavier users.
"I'd be happier ... if we went to more of a carrot-and-stick-nature system rather than a stick-nature system," Burnham said. The actual increase to a water bill depends on how much water is used. Someone who used 17,000 gallons a month -- the average usage in the summertime, according to town officials -- would see bills go up from $45.75 a month to $56.60. Someone who used only 5,000 gallons would get a nudge from $28 a month to $29. A 40,000-gallon user would go from $94.75 a month now to $139 a month next year.
The increase would first appear in the late-January or early-February water bills.
Frederick hasn't raised its water rates since 2005. Town manager Matt LeCerf said the town needed to catch up on accumulating expenses and to start saving toward its share of the Northern Integrated Supply Project, a project to bring 40,000 acre-feet of water to 15 partners in the northern Front Range, including Dacono, Firestone and Frederick. The town plans to pay $6.2 million toward NISP design and engineering.
Without the increase, LeCerf said, the water utility fund will be in the hole by 2017. "We're getting behind the ball, so to speak," he said.
The trash increase helps sew up a leaky budget pocket for the town. In April, Frederick's trash hauler, Waste Connections, raised rates but the town didn't. Since then, the town has been losing 27 cents per customer per month; by the time the new rate comes into effect next March, that loss would total about $8,900.
The one-dollar increase also lets the town cover another rate increase by Waste Connections next spring, with some room to spare. The company will charge Frederick $10.32 per household, beginning next April.
"The fact is, costs continue to go up," LeCerf said. "We have to cover them."
Scott Rochat can be reached at 303-684-5220 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Atlanta airport tops list of most gun confiscations | News
ATLANTA -- A record number of guns -- more than 1,500 -- have been found by airport security screeners this year, and 85 percent have been loaded, the Transportation Security Administration reports.
As of last Friday, the TSA had found 1,527, of which 1,295 were loaded, NBC News says. That's the most since the agency was created after the Sept. 11, 2011, terror attacks.
By Friday, the week's finds are expected to push the total beyond 1,550.
PHOTOS | They tried to get WHAT through security?!
Between Dec. 14 -- the day of the Newtown, Conn., school massacre -- and Dec. 21, TSA screeners spotted 34 handguns that passengers tried to bring aboard their flights. Only two were unloaded. The week before, 29 guns -- 21 loaded -- were found at checkpoints.
The first week of December was even busier. Screeners confiscated 41 firearms, 40 stun guns, four grenades -- and a rocker launcher. "No Partridge in a Pear Tree," the TSA mused on its blog.
The most commonly detected gun? A .380 semiautomatic pistol.
So far in 2012, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport head the list of gun confiscations (90), followed by Dallas-Fort Worth (78), NBC reported. Five Texas airports are in the top 11.
Besides firearms, passengers have also tried to bring a variety of other weapons in their carry-on bags this month. Some recent finds:
* A speargun. It was discovered at George Bush Intercontinental in Houston -- armed with one spear.
* Concealed blades. A cane featuring a hidden sword was found in Kahului, Hawaii, while a cane with a secret 8-inch knife was detected in Baltimore.
* Ammunition. A Bismarck, N.D., passenger was carrying a magazine loaded with five .17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire rounds in his pants pocket.
* Shotgun shell Christmas lights were found in Newark.
What happens when TSA screeners find weapons?
"We don't have detection authority," TSA spokesman David Castelveter told NBC. "The immediate procedure is to call the local authority."


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E. Ray Gallimore, 84, of Gallimore Road, Denton, died Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012, at his residence.
A funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Gravel Hill Baptist Church by the Revs. Danny Hosler and James Draughn. Burial will follow in Gravel Hill Baptist Church Cemetery.
The family will see friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Briggs Funeral Home in Denton and other times at the residence on Gallimore Road.
Mr. Gallimore was born in Davidson County on Dec. 4, 1927, to Edmund Gallimore and Lillie Beatrice Dunning Gallimore. He was a retired employee of Burlington Industries, Denton Plant and a member of Gravel Hill Baptist Church. He was married to Eddith Snider Gallimore, who died March 30, 2012. He was also preceded in death by an infant daughter, Lorie Ann Gallimore; a brother, Reece Gallimore; and by sisters Jessie Franks and Mildred Nance.
He is survived by a daughter, Donna G. Lowe and husband Sydney of Asheboro; grandchildren Bradley Lowe and wife Anissa and Jeffrey Lowe and wife Mendi; three great-grandchildren; brother Robert Gallimore of Linwood; and sisters Virgie Jackson and Jeweldean Franks and husband Leo of Denton and Gladys Metters of Lexington.
Memorials may be made to Hospice of Randolph County, P.O. Box 9, Asheboro, NC 27204.
Online condolences may be sent to www.briggsfuneralhome.com.
Ray Gallimore
E. Ray Gallimore, 84, of Gallimore Road, Denton, died Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012, at his residence.


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Development Aid Falls Short, While Other Financial Flows Show Rising Volatility
New Worldwatch Institute trend examines international aid flows.
Michael Renner is a Senior Researcher and co-director of State of the World 2014.
Cameron Scherer is a program associate at Internews.
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As the world approaches its 2015 deadline for achieving the Millennium Development Goals outlined in 2000, development aid by the 26 members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development declined in 2012 for the second year. Preliminary data indicate that official development assistance (ODA) totaled $128.4 billion (in 2011 dollars) that year, down 4 percent from 2011's $133.7 billion. The 2012 figure marks a 6 percent decline from 2010, when global ODA peaked at $136.7 billion.
The United States provided the largest amount of ODA, with a total of $29.9 billion in 2012, which was 23.3 percent of the DAC total. Trailing the United States are the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Japan. When tracking ODA as a percentage of gross national income (GNI), however, a different picture emerges. Since 1970 the United Nations has set 0.7 percent of GNI as the target for ODA: in 2012, only Luxembourg, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark exceeded this target. In comparison, the U.S. figure was only 0.19 percent. Not surprisingly, given the severity of the Eurozone crisis, the 15 European Union members of DAC decreased their assistance by a total of 7.4 percent, with the most severe cuts coming from Spain, Italy, Greece, and Portugal.
It should be noted that DAC governments are not the only ones that provide development assistance: according to a 2012 UN report, non-DAC countries donated a total of $7.2 billion in development aid in 2010, with Saudi Arabia providing almost half of the total. Furthermore, assistance from private sources was estimated at $56 billion that same year, but reporting on such flows is much weaker than for government funds.
Humanitarian assistance, or short-term aid provided in response to disasters and humanitarian crises, is a numerically small but highly visible portion of ODA. Preliminary data indicate that in 2012 assistance provided by governments for such purposes fell 6.5 percent from the previous year, from $13.8 billion to $12.9 billion. (When including non-governmental sources, humanitarian aid fell by 7.7 percent.) This decline is not totally unexpected, as many of the world's leading economies are still recovering from the financial crisis. Also, in 2012 the United Nations categorized 76 million people as in need of humanitarian assistance, fewer than the 93 million in 2011.
ODA is far from the only mechanism of international capital flows to or from developing countries and emerging markets. A multitude of vehicles—private and public, bilateral and multilateral—fill the global finance landscape. And against this broader canvas, ODA involves relatively small amounts of money.
Among public funds, outflows have actually exceeded inflows into developing countries and emerging markets for most of the past decade. According to the International Monetary Fund, net outflows of more than $180 billion in 2006 turned into net inflows of close to $140 billion in 2009, but by 2012 there was once again a net outflow of close to $42 billion.
Among private flows, the largest amounts are accounted for by foreign direct investment (FDI). Net FDI rose from under $100 billion per year in the 1980s and early 1990s to a peak of $480 billion in 2008. The financial crisis then caused a dip to $335 billion in 2009, but 2011 saw a recovery to $473 billion. The bulk of FDI flowing to developing countries is going to Asia and Latin America. In East Asia and South Asia, almost 90 percent of FDI goes to China and India; in Latin America and the Caribbean, about half goes to Brazil. Only 10 percent of global FDI is destined for Africa.
In general, FDI is more stable than other forms of private investments, especially where "greenfield" investments in new productive capacity are concerned, FDI is usually undertaken with a longer time horizon in mind, and happens mostly where macroeconomic conditions are stable. In contrast, portfolio investment and cross-border interbank lending are often driven by short-term considerations such as changes in interest rates.
However, the United Nations points to evidence that a growing portion of FDI in recent years is going to investments in financial companies or to intra-company debt. Also, a considerable portion of FDI relates to mergers and acquisitions—and thus represents a transfer of ownership rather than fresh investment. These shifts imply that capital can be moved more easily among countries, and indeed the share of short-term and more volatile financial FDI flows has increased.
Further highlights from the report:


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A glance at five top storylines for Sunday's Cardinals-49ers game at University of Phoenix Stadium:
- The Gore point
Only one rusher has cracked the 100-yard barrier this season against the Cardinals' No. 1-ranked run defense. That's San Francisco's Frank Gore, who had 101 when the 49ers beat the Cardinals in October. Bruce Arians said the Cards' defense learned something that day from Gore and the punishing drive the Niners used to salt the game away following
- Let's get physical
If it wasn't already clear that winning in the NFC West started with being physical, it was driven home with last week's trip to Seattle. The Cardinals held up at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball against the Seahawks. And it's what they couldn't do for 60 minutes in San Francisco the first time the teams met. Arians challenged his team to be the more physical team last week, and there is little question the Cardinals have understood the concept of the new NFC "Best."
- Keep your hands on the ball
The Cardinals have beaten the 49ers just once since 2009 began, and the theme to many of those losses have come through turnovers – including the crucial fumble by wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald one what should have been the go-ahead scoring drive back in their October meetings. The Cards turned the ball over four times (and had just two takeaways) and in nine games (and a 1-8 record) against the Niners, the Cards are a minus-21 in turnover ratio (28 Arizona turnovers to just seven for the Niners.) Painful anyway you slice it, and something that needs to be overcome. It's probably safe to say the Cardinals couldn't overcome a second straight week of four
- On second thought
As the Seahawks found, the Cardinals are a different team than the one they played in October. The 49ers are different themselves – it's notable that wide receiver Michael Crabtree is playing again -- but the Cardinals now have settled down on the offensive line, have created a better run game and have without question upped the level of defense they are playing. The Cardinals started 0-3 in the division, but have a chance to finish 3-3 with a team wholly improved since the first time through.
- But it goes to 11
The Cardinals can still make the playoffs, as long as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are able to deliver a win in New Orleans no one expects. But that only works if the Cards can win – and in the end, that's all the Cardinals can control is that drive for an 11th victory. It will be hollow to an extent if the playoffs aren't reached, but for a franchise that has never won 11 games since moving to Arizona, it's still a significant achievement. Few expected such a season in Arians' first year. Beating the 49ers to do so would make it even more special.


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CLINTON — Heckard "Fran" Francisco Krauss, 96, of Clinton went to be with his Lord on Sept. 24, 2012.
Fran was born Nov. 11, 1915, at the family farm in Morristown, Tenn., the son of Ira Jacob and Minnie Lee (Kimbrough) Krauss. On April 17, 1938, he married his school sweetheart, Lydia Studenka, who preceded him in death in 2010.
At age 2, Fran's family moved the family farm to Midland, Mich., and then to Swanton, Ohio, four years later. Fran attended a one-room country school for third-eighth grades, graduating from Swanton High School. In 1934 he started working for Standard Oil of New Jersey (now ExxonMobil) as a laborer, welder, machinist, mechanic, operator and E&M technician until his retirement in 1980. During the 1940s he instructed French and Canadian Navy personnel in maintenance repair on marine diesels. After his retirement from ExxonMobil, Fran focused on his hobby and passion in farming on his property in Manchester until 1993. Fran was also a member of the Clinton United Methodist Church.
Fran is survived by his four children, Karen Samonek of Walnut Creek, Calif., Gary Krauss of Clinton, Mich., David Krauss of East Lansing, Mich., and Linda Winchester of Auburn Hills, Mich.; 13 grandchildren, 33 great-grandchildren and 19 great-great-grandchildren, in addition to many nieces and nephews. In addition to his loving wife, Lydia, he was preceded in death by his parents, brother Howard; sisters, Beulah Dunbar, Pauline Topping and Lucille Croxton.
At Fran's request, cremation has taken place. A memorial service to celebrate Fran and Lydia's lives will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 12, 2012, at the Clinton United Methodist Church, with Pastor Faye McKinstry officiating. A memorial gathering will take place from 10 a.m. until the time of the service.
Memorial contributions may be offered in Fran's memory to Hospice of Lenawee or the church. Arrangements by Handler Funeral Home.
Heckard 'Fran' Francisco Krauss
CLINTON — Heckard "Fran" Francisco Krauss, 96, of Clinton went to be with his Lord on Sept. 24, 2012.


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TEN years ago, the Aussie music scene was in rude health.
As evidence, Musicology tenders this list of the best Down Under albums of 2002.
And yes, we have included a New Zealander, partly because they were based in Australia for a while and also because we antipodeans need to stick together, right bro?
Highly Evolved - The Vines
THESE Sydney garage-rock revivalists, led by erratic frontman Craig Nicholls, barrelled snotty punk attitude, grunge dynamics and psychedelic beauty together and deservedly (but only momentarily) became the biggest alternative band in the world. Their later work drifted towards two easily defineable categories - screaming riff-rockers and dreamy quieter pop - and there are touches of that here. Highly Evolved, Get Free, Outtathaway! and Ain't No Room are the former, while Autumn Shade, Country Shade and Mary Jane are the latter, but there are more elements of middle ground and pure insane inspiration on this fiery debut. Subtle screams and epic distortion underscore the delicate picking and falsetto-ing on Country Yard, while Factory is in the middle of the spectrum, closer in spirit to Ob-Li-Di, Ob-La-Da (but good). Whether Nicholls is howling and thrashing through the electrifying Get Free or intoning his love of weed (Mary Jane) or the '60s (1969), it's engrossing and fascinating. Part of the attraction is that it seemed like it could tip off the deep-end at any minute, thanks to a loose delivery (vocally and musically), but the key was Nicholls and his Cobain-like ability to mould catchy dazzling melodies onto solid riffs. More than one critic suggested it was "Nirvana meets The Beatles" so what's not to love?
Diorama - Silverchair
AFTER battling anorexia and depression on Neon Ballroom, Silverchair frontman Daniel Johns took a year off after the band's touring commitments were over. Johns became a happy hermit, disappearing into his own world and coming out the other side with a range of songs that upped the spectacle but added a hitherto unseen upbeat attitude (as well as an even greater level of lyrical crypticism from Johns). The Greatest View was a dazzling blend of the Newcastle trio's rock-riffing and melodic pop skills, but Across The Night and Luv Your Life took them sweeping up to new levels of orchestral balladry. They could still chug out a heavy riff (One Way Mule, The Lever) but Silverchair were now painting in technocolour, courtesy of Van Dyke Parks' arrangements bringing Johns' musical ideas to life. Piano was also a major focus in places, particularly on the beautiful closer After All These Years. Diorama gave the band their fourth consecutive #1 on the ARIA album charts, won them five more ARIAs, and boasted four top 30 singles.
New Detention - Grinspoon
The Lismore trio's debut went double platinum, while the follow-up Easy was a critical and commercial disappointment, despite being their most consistent work and a fan favourite. But it was the string-laden ballad Chemical Heart that shoved them into the mainstream in 2002 and the album that followed, New Detention, remains their biggest seller. The band's guitarist, Pat Davern, told Musicology a few years back that the record wouldn't have become their best-seller if not for that single. "It's the Grinspoon classic," he said of New Detention. "Easy is metal and grating but this is nice. Chemical Heart sold the record at the end of the day. That song connected with radio, that's for sure, but I still love this album to be honest. It was a good moment in time. It's a bit more ear candy, but we wanted to do that, we wanted to be a bit more adventurous." The more polished sound did put off some fans more used to the band's gritty post-grunge but it's a solid record that boasted four top 50 singles. Grinspoon wrote 50 songs for New Detention, Davern said - "there were so many songs to choose from - we demoed so much beforehand and I think that's why it was a quality record". Lost Control was a highlight, as was the light-and-shade non-single Make It Happen, while the hillbilly-metal of 1000 Miles was a surprise hit and one of the more peculiar songs in the band's oeuvre.
Polyserena - George
BUILT around the angelic voices of the Noonan siblings - the operatic Katie and Jeff Buckley-esque Tyrone - George were a band that could be jazzy, funky, rocky, poppy, groovy, and even electronic. Their debut album, which landed at #1 on the ARIA charts (they were only the 10th Aussie band to do so with their first record), combines all those elements beautifully. Their technical skills are evident but never get in the way of their hook-laden and dynamically powerful songs. Part of the album's success was the canny move of including songs that had already turned heads as singles or on previous EPs. Sell Out was reworked from their debut EP, the stunning Spawn was their attention-grabbing lead track from the You Can Take What's Mine EP, and Bastard Son was the title track of their third EP. And then there are the four singles - Special Ones, Run, Breathe In Now, Breaking It Slowly - which all went into the top 50 in Australia. All great songs, and yet it was the effortless time signature-switching opener Release which got the most votes in Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2002 (Breaking It Slowly also made it in that year). Special Ones and Run had made it into the countdown the previous year, while Bastard Son and Spawn made the 100 in 2000 - all building the anticipation for the album. Polyserena didn't disappoint - it's a lush masterpiece that combines virtuosic musicianship, an uncanny knack for hooks, and those two beautiful Noonan voices. The only mis-step was that the album didn't included perhaps their best song - the track Polyserena, which instead just learnt its name to the record.
Pacifier - Pacifier (aka Shihad)
THE quality of this album got lost in the kerfuffle around that name change. Born in the close-knit New Zealand metal scene as Shihad in the late '80s, the quartet flourished over three albums, with the lead track (Home Again) off their third propelling them across the Tasman. Record number four - the awesome hard-rocker The General Electric - threatened to push them out of their adopted Australia and into the US, but one thing was standing in their way according to the Americans. In the post-September 11 world, the name Shihad was just too close to the word "jihad" for them. Thus they became Pacifier (after a General Electric single) to, err, pacify US labels and promoters and released a self-titled album. Back in Australia and New Zealand, Pacifier sold almost as well as The General Electric, but their momentum stalled in the face of a backlash and the cries of sell-out. Two years later, having failed to crack the American scene, they reclaimed the name Shihad and tried desperately to put the episode behind them. And this is what people remember about the Pacifier album - what they forget is that it's actually pretty damn good. Opener Comfort Me is a quintessential Shihad (sorry, can't bring myself to keep calling them Pacifier) song, opening on a grinding riff before hitting a stadium-ready chorus. In fact, this album really came to life live, especially mammoth-sounding singles like Run and Bullitproof. The polished hard rock sound is very much of its time, and threatens to dip into Limp Bizkit territory at times, but Pacifier always manages to stay on the right side of rocking.
Honourable mentions: Choose One - 1200 Techniques, hey you. yes you - Ben Lee, Shoot This - Motor Ace, Plastic Skies - Bodyjar, Jebediah - Jebediah, Torch The Moon - The Whitlams, Stealing Chairs - 28 Days, Hello Stranger - Darren Hanlon, Strange Bird - Augie March, Deliverance - You Am I, I'm Already Home - Waikiki, Paging Mr Strike - Machine Gun Fellatio, Barricades & Brickwalls - Kasey Chambers.


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The Sixth Court of Appeals in Texarkana on Wednesday upheld the murder conviction of former Upshur County jailer Sharon Anne Maxwell, who received a life sentence from an Upshur County jury which convicted her in 2012 of killing her 10th husband.
Mrs. Maxwell, now 46, was convicted of the Aug. 30, 2011 shooting of 46-year-old Gordon Lynn Maxwell at their home near Ore City. Although his charred body was found in his burned pickup outside the home, an autopsy showed he died of "homicidal violence," and testimony brought out he was shot four times.
The 115th District Court jury convicted Mrs. Maxwell Aug. 24, 2012, before sentencing her to life three days later. She had pleaded not guilty and did not testify, but tapes presented at trial showed she had given three conflicting stories of events surrounding the shooting.
In a news release announcing the appeals court's decision, Byrd said Mr. and Mrs. Maxwell had argued inside the home on the day of the slaying and the state theorized he was planning to leave her because he had learned she was committing adultery.
"As he was the sole source of income for Sharon Maxwell, she pulled a .22 caliber revolver and shot him four times as he fell and laid on their bed," Byrd wrote. "She then drug his body across the floor on a comforter out the back door, across a deck attached to the rear of the house, and then drug him inside his truck she had driven closer to the back porch.
"She then backed the truck up close to a shed in the back yard and poured gasoline inside of the truck and over the outside."
Before setting the vehicle afire, Byrd wrote, "she threw several different caliber bullets into the cab to make the resulting fire appear as the cause of the bullet wounds she knew were inside his body. The autospy did not reveal any smoke inside his lungs, indicating he was dead prior to the fire being set."
Although Mrs. Maxwell admitted on tape that she doused the truck with gasoline, the prosecution presented audio and video tapes showing the ex-jailer drastically changed her accounts of events surrounding the shooting.
She first said she did not know where her husband was when his truck was afire. Later, she claimed the shooting accidentally occurred while her husband was attacking her with the gun, but she then said her son shot him.
Tapes of two 911 calls showed her reporting that her husband's truck was afire, that she didn't know his whereabouts, and that bullets were spraying from it.
But later that day, she told then-County Fire Marshal Paul Steelman that Maxwell had put a gun in her mouth, attempted to kill her, and slammed her down on a bed before the gun somehow discharged while her son was asleep at the home.
Then in March 2012, Mrs. Maxwell told sheriff's investigators that her son James Potter, 19 at the time of the incident, shot her husband in a bedroom. She had initially said her son was asleep at the home at the time.
Potter testified he didn't shoot Gordon Maxwell, and denied his half-brother's testimony that he had admitted it. Potter tesitified he told investigators he was asleep when Maxwell was shot, and he also testified he was under medication after kidney surgery and couldn't move easily.
Medical records were produced at trial to show he had been hospitalized before the shooting
The half-brother, a convicted felon, had testified that James Potter first said his mother shot Mr. Maxwell before admitting he himself did it, as the victim had supposedly been beating the woman.
The state also produced testimony to show Gordon Maxwell had a life insurance policy naming the defendant as beneficiary, and a co-worker said he had seemed depressed before his death.
Byrd speculated at trial that Mrs. Maxwell killed her husband because he told her he was going to divorce her. A man testified he had a sexual encounter with her 15 days before Maxwell's death, and that she had bitten his arm when he ended their relationship during a prior affair in 2009.
Related to that, the state presented an expert witness (who had not examined the defendant) to say she exhibited symptoms of BorderlinePersonality Disoder, which results in rage when someone feels abandoned. In a news release, Byrd said the expert summarized such people's attitude as "you don't leave them. They leave you."
Mrs. Maxwell's attorney at trial, Gilmer lawyer Matthew Patton, criticized the "incompetent" investigation of the case, telling jurors "there's not any evidence that directly connects" his client to the crime.
According to Byrd, Gilmer attorney Dwight Brannon, who appealed the conviction, argued the expert witness's testimony, and the testimony of the man who said he had affairs with Mrs. Maxwell, should not have been admitted at trial.
Byrd prosecuted the case, but Assistant District Attorney Natalie Miller filed the state's brief rebutting the appeal.
Byrd told The Mirror the case could be appealed further to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, but that it is "unlikely it will succeed." In the news release announcing the appellate court's decision, he said that "by all accounts, Gordon Maxwell was a very good man" and that "The jury's verdict was justice."
He also praised the various law enforcement agencies that investigated the case, including the Upshur County Sheriff's Office, a Longview Police Dept. investigator, and personnel from state agencies.


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February 2002
Volume 40, Number 2
Contents of the online edition
Editor: Pillarisetti Sudhir
Assistant Editor: David Darlington
From the President
- Has Professionalization Gone Too Far?
by Lynn Hunt
- Partial Release of Reagan Presidential Papers Announced
by Bruce Craig
- Henry Louis Gates Jr. to Deliver 2002 Jefferson Lecture
- Essay on Scholarly Publishing Generates Debate
- Portfolio Assessment for History Majors: One Department's Journey
by Susan Leighow Meo
- Contact: Historians and Filmmakers Communicate at World Congress
by Robert Brent Toplin
AHA Activities
- Report of the Nominating Committee on the 2001 AHA Election
by Sara T. Nalle
- CGE Update: How Good Are Today's Graduate Students?
by Phillip M. Katz
Issues in Graduate Education
- Disciplinary Associations and Contingent Academic Workers
by Marcus Harvey
- Beyond Bread and Butter: Graduate Student Organizing in a Right-to-Work State
by Michael D. Innis-Jiminez
In Memoriam