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What do Chris Johnson, Roddy White, Mike Williams, DeAngelo Williams, Percy Harvin, and Matt Ryan have in common? Wait, I'll get back to this in a second.
First I'd like everyone to pull up a chair for a fireside chat. I want to talk about procrastinating. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines procrastinating as: To delay or postpone action; put off doing something. We've all done it. We all do a lot of things: We all run stop signs when no one is looking, we all pray no one sits next to us in the empty aisle seat… and we all order water at Taco Bell but casually go pump Sprite in that cup at the drink station, as if it were an oversight. Wait, scratch that last one.
Procrastinating… it's like the national pastime. The USA knows that what could be done today is better done later. I happen to have the all-time greatest procrastination story ever and I'm going to share it with you.
Back in Summer 1991 I was at University of Tennessee and finishing up a glorious four- (okay, five-) year college career filled with academic discovery, great friends, parties, and beer. There was also a lot of beer. But before I graduated I was forced to take a nasty liberal arts course called "Political Science 370: American Political Thought". It was a monster course that half the students failed because of the stodgy professor – I can't remember his name – and I begged my advisor to let me substitute in "Sociology 382: Circles of Sexuality"… but to no avail. So I'm locked into the Poli-Sci class and struggling for weeks to maintain a passing grade due to daily pop quizzes that I never seemed to awake for in time to experience. Fast forward: Last week of the semester, crunch time, and the final assignment is a 4,000 word essay on a political topic of your choice. It counts 40% toward my final grade and if I blow it there's a chance I'll have to re-take the course – my final course at Tennessee before I walk the line. That would mean another autumn in college just to take one more course. Actually, that is football season and I wouldn't mind… Nope, gotta graduate.
The paper was assigned on Monday and due on Friday. I laid around all week semi-gazing at a few library books, listening to Jane's Addiction's 'Ritual De Lo Habitual'…and day-dreaming about a brunette named Wendy I met at a mixer. I totally procrastinated until Thursday afternoon when I finally gathered my resources and sat down to write. My topic was something like "Socialism & Global Markets"… really cutting-edge stuff. My roommate – let's call him "Huey" because he's a teacher now and I don't want to get him in trouble – is in the same class and under the very same essay deadline. Only he hasn't done a shred of research. In fact when the evening rolled around he was half into a 12-pack of Milwaukee's Best; and kept sticking his mouth in this little ceramic vase (?) only to come up coughing painful billows of smoke. "Huey, you gonna get started dude? It's 8:30 man," I asked. "Nah, I'm good," Huey wheezed.
Midnight. I'm in my room plugging away. Huey is too. He's in the den guzzling Maker's & Pepsi while cranking our Pixies CDs, singing every word out loud: "Gouge away, you can gouge away, stay all day – if you want to!" I finished my paper at 5:00 am, slumped back in my chair and looked over at my fun-loving pal. He's sleeping the sleep of the undead with a half-eaten slice of pizza nestled under his armpit. The air is gassy around him. "Oh well," I thought. "If you don't know where you're going, you're never lost."
10:00 am. I awoke to the sound of someone beating on the front door. Glance at the clock, we both have to be in class in 30 minutes and we're off campus so it involves driving and seeking a parking spot. Yikes. Bam-bam-bam goes the door again, and just as I'm coming down the hall to grab it, Huey springs off the couch, hair sticking straight up, smiling ear-to-ear. He opens the door and pumps his fist in front of a delivery guy (?). Some money is exchanged, then a high-five or two, and now I'm really curious: "Who the hell was that and what's that package you're holding?" Huey unwraps it and lays a seven- or eight-page packet on the table. "It's my essay, dude. 4,300 words on Thomas Jefferson's American Foreign Policy. Let's get ready to motor, boyeee!!" This fool had already pre-ordered a custom-written essay for $120 from some company's ad he saw in the back of Rolling Stone. Game, set, and match.
I got a C- on my paper after 12 sweat-soaked hours of reading and typing. But I passed. The supreme procrastinator Huey got a B+ after a quick phone call on Monday, a week full of booze n' chicks, and the only time he sweated was because of the jalapenos on his pizza.
The lesson here? There's not one. I just thought you'd like the story.
What do Chris Johnson, Roddy White, Mike Williams, DeAngelo Williams, Percy Harvin, and Matt Ryan have in common? Procrastination.
Chris Johnson – 1st round, Roddy White – 2nd round, Mike Williams – 3rd round, DeAngelo Williams – 4th round, Percy Harvin – 5th round, and Matt Ryan – 6th round: They all procrastinated this season. They waited until the last minute to get it done, and sadly many of you are out of the running because of it. Week after week you would cross your fingers and hope this was the week he breaks out. A lot of us – myself included – own two or three of them, or at least one of them across multiple squads (I have Roddy on all 4 fantasy teams) and it was frustrating because there was no reported injury to offer an excuse. Sure, there was some teasing here and there: Matt Ryan threw 4 TDs against Philly in Week 2 and we thought everything was going according to plan. Nope: 5 TD passes in the next 5 games, only avoiding complete disaster by sneaking in a couple goal-line TD runs. Chris Johnson was God-awful in the first 3 games (which I totally expected because September was his preseason) but somehow eked out a 101-yard game at Cleveland in Week 4, just enough to draw a little saliva from fantasy owners so they'd keep starting him. The real damage occurred from Weeks 5-9 when CJ1K was the 25th-ranked fantasy RB. Ditto for Mike Williams, DeAngelo Williams, and Percy Harvin. It was weekly waterboarding… enough to make you want to quit fantasy football forever.
But all 6 of them are back. They are all in a particular groove now. Stop asking why/where they've been and start them in your fantasy playoffs for as long as you (they) still have a pulse. Forget the misery, the embarrassment, and the tension they caused because the vibe is good now. Sometimes it all works out in a magical kind of way, like when Stillwater serenaded their acid-whipped guitarist Russell Hammond in Almost Famous.
Chiefs QB Tyler Palko has 0 TD passes, 6 INTs, and a 46.1 QB rating in the last two games. Kansas City travels to Chicago. If I had nice RB depth I'd trade Ryan Mathews or Reggie Bush for the Bears defense right now just to get a crack at Palko. Dead serious.
The Chargers have lost three starting offensive linemen, including LT Marcus McNeill to a season-ending neck injury. Philip Rivers isn't hurt folks, his bodyguards are. You'd be having on off year too. I don't know what deal Rivers made with the devil last year but that contractual agreement expired. It doesn't help that Malcom Floyd and Ryan Mathews can't ever play two healthy games in a row, Antonio Gates' career is trickling away, and Vincent Jackson lives with 7 nagging injuries.
Miles Austin (hamstring) is going to miss another game. Frankly, I wouldn't care if he was active, I'd start Laurent Robinson anyway. He's the apple of Tony Romo's eye.
To give you an idea of how hot Marshawn Lynch has been, the guy has scored in eight straight games, averaging 17.9 fantasy points over that span. If you extrapolate that pace into 16 games it's 286 fantasy points. That mark would have ranked him as the No. 2 RB last year.
I calculated this year's projected RB fantasy point totals and laid them against last year's final totals. It's a little tricky projecting guys like Lynch, DeMarco Murray and Michael Bush's point pace going forward because half their season was spent on the bench or in a rotation. For those three guys I used a projected pace similar to their recent antics.
** Obviously I left off Fred Jackson and Darren McFadden. For the record they were on pace for 279 and 245 fantasy points, respectively.
From Kerry Byrne at SI.com: "QB career percentage of touches that result in a TD:
Tim Tebow -- 6.0 percent, Aaron Rodgers -- 5.7 percent, Peyton Manning -- 5.5 percent, Tom Brady -- 5.1 percent, Drew Brees -- 4.7 percent, John Elway -- 3.9 percent. Wow. Tebow may not pass the ball effectively. But he's produced an incredible 22 touchdowns (13 passing, nine rushing) in just 368 touches (225 pass attempts, 121 rush attempts, 22 sacks). Nobody in football gets the ball in the end zone more often."
Ben Roethlisberger played through a broken right thumb and squeaked out a win over Kansas City. In yesterday's practice he apparently aggravated the injury when he "caught the thumb wrong on a snap" but said he should be fine. Roethlisberger will be sure that every media outlet picks up his thumb story, and then he'll show off a special hand brace for CBS cameras in pre-game warmups. What a dork. I have the distinct feeling that Ben and I would not get along one bit.
RB leaders in carries inside the 10-yard line: Michael Turner 26, Ray Rice 26, LeSean McCoy 22, Cedric Benson 21, BenJarvus Green-Ellis 19, Frank Gore 19, Arian Foster 18, Adrian Peterson 17, Michael Bush 17 (in only 5 starts), Rashard Mendenhall 17, Mike Tolbert 17, Maurice Jones-Drew 17.
Alexis Bellino. There is no substitute.
One of my biggest influences in my fantasy football career has been Mike Sando. He covered the Seahawks for the News Tribune for 9 years then got snapped up by ESPN because his Seahawks Insider blog was getting 250,000-500,000 unique visitors per month. Nice! Sando constantly amazes me with his "digging." You know, going deep for stats that were unofficial or unrecorded – then parlaying them into a table or grid for all of us to study. He tracks the salary cap, average ages of teams, touchdowns & big plays negated by penalties, etc., delivering all his information with seamless style. Remember my JUMbo motto? "Tell 'em something they don't know." Sando gets it, man. His work is living and breathing in my columns every week. Follow him @espn_nfcwest and tell him the JUMbotron sent you.
--Roddy White has 11 of Atlanta's 20 drops.
--DeSean Jackson has 10 of Philly's 23 drops.
--Greg Little has 9 of Cleveland's 23 drops.
--Dwayne Bowe has 8 of Kansas City's 18 drops.
It ain't happening for Sam Bradford this year. He just had a setback on his ankle so I would yank him out of my lineup right now. I don't care if he manages to start this Sunday, he faces the brutish 49ers and simply cannot get a rhythm going. Even if he was completely healthy his WRs are a merry-go-round of injuries, PUP'ers, and free agents. The only constant is Brandon Lloyd and even though he's scored in 4 of his last 5 games he's yet to top 80 yards as a Ram. I would start Matt Hasselbeck, Rex Grossman (yes, against the Jets), or even Matt Moore over Bradford this week. Christian Ponder? Sure, stick him in. He's a gunslinger. I also have to apologize, five weeks ago I touted Bradford's marshmallow schedule – Arizona, Cleveland, Seattle, Arizona – as a chance for him to make retribution and help get some fantasy W's. Yikes, in those Weeks 9-12 he averaged 198 passing yards with only 3 TD passes. Sorry if I steered you into a ditch.
As if things weren't bad enough for the San Diego Chargers, SI's Don Banks weighs in with his latest column entitled, "The Curse of Takeo Spikes." Uh, ok. Slow news week, Donnie? He's apparently been following Spikes' career a little too closely, pointing out that the 2-time Pro Bowler has never been in the post-season. "Now on his fifth team, having played on both coasts and points in between, Spikes has yet to suit up in a single playoff game. His 198 career regular-season games without a playoff trip rank first in that dubious category among active players, as the wild-card round, divisional round and conference title game have all been beyond Spikes' grasp, year after frustrating year." I'm sorry but this is just lame. I can picture Banks holding the rough draft of the Spikes piece last week, praying that Broncos K Matt Prater nails that kick to effectively eliminate the Chargers – and getting the green light from SI to run this "Curse" nonsense. Dude, Spikes spent half his career in Buffalo and San Francisco. That was the curse.
JUMbotron Advice from The Huddle Forums:
SNOWBOUND33 asks: Percy Harvin or Vincent Jackson?
Like I pointed out above, Harvin has been procrastinating but he's gotten down to business and his recent body of work is more reliable than Jackson's. He and Christian Ponder have had 6 full weeks of practice reps together and it's showing on the tape. For the first time ever Harvin's been targeted 8 times in 3 straight games. OC Bill Musgrave is also diggin' on the idea of Harvin in the backfield, giving him 17 carries in the last 4 games. Meanwhile Vincent Jackson is doing his usual yo-yo routine. H's a top-10 fantasy receiver but it sure doesn't feel like it; and that's because 67% of his points have come in three games! And what's even worse is that many of you gave up on Jackson in Week 9 when the bomb went off – 7 catches, 141 yards, 3 TDs – because in his previous 3 games he had 7 catches for 98 yards and 0 TDs combined! The Broncos will probably be without sparkplug LB Von Miller, who's been the catalyst for their stellar defensive play of late – I'd roll Harvin on the carpet at home this week.
Peoplehater asks: Mendy or Sproles? (PPR):
I'm probably as stubborn a Sproles fan as there is, so I'm going to try and make a case for him. It's going to be hard though. In his last 3 games Sproles only has 25 touches and 1 TD. Mendenhall has 50 touches and 3 TDs, though 2 of those came in the Week 10 game vs. Cincinnati. The difference between the two couldn't be more pronounced: Sproles is the home-run threat who doesn't get his mitts on the ball enough, while Mendenhall is the plodder who probably gets more touches than he deserves. New Orleans is at home vs. Detroit's banged-up and Suh-less defense, Pittsburgh is at home vs. Cincinnati's 5th-ranked rushing defense. The Bengals stuffed Chris Johnson, Frank Gore, and Marshawn Lynch pretty good – and those backs run the same off-tackle plays over and over like Mendenhall. I've always said go big or go home so I'm leaning toward Sproles in PPR, on the hunch that Sean Payton turns him loose a little more this week. (Sproles also gets a few more opportunities to score via the return game)
ThatDude asks: DeAngelo, Jacobs, or Beanie? (PPR):
The sudden emergence of DeAngelo (another one of my procrastinators) puts him squarely on the radar. I'll get back to him in a second. Jacobs? No way. Wells? Look, normally a back coming off a 228-yard game is a mortal lock in Week 13, but this is Beanie Wells we're talking about. The knee has obviously been an issue from time to time, and yesterday Mike Jurecki of XTRA 910 said Wells needs surgery right after the season (which means he needs it now). Jurecki hits and misses like any other homer radio guy, but he's the one who broke the story that Arizona would offer CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie for Kevin Kolb. In a nutshell, I'm terrified that Wells will leave you hanging this week. He faces Dallas, who got shredded on the ground earlier in the season but stiffened up lately vs. Washington and Miami. As much as my gut says DeAngelo is your pick, I have to lean toward the 228-yard guy and say Wells here. Off topic a bit: I would bench Wells for Willis McGahee, LeGarrette Blount, maybe even Roy Helu (!) in PPR.
LeSean McCoy has 15 total touchdowns, the most by an Eagle since RB Steve Van Buren scored 18 in 1945. McCoy has an extra few days to rest his toe before a road game on the soft Miami grass. Everything's going right for Shady and his fantasy owners.
Jennifer Aniston… Then… and… Now… and still… Now. She is all woman.
Quote of the Week: "It was so disappointing from my perspective that as I watched it on Monday and watched it the next day, it was one of those games that you want to bury. The energy level, what we did, it baffled me, OK. It baffled me. You're supposed to have answers, but sometimes you can't explain a game like that." – Giants DC Perry Fewell after the 49-24 to New Orleans. The Giants allowed 577 total yards, the 2nd most they've allowed in 87 years. They play the Packers this week.
JUMbo "Swing For the Fences" Picks in Fantasy Playoff Week 13:
Not all of you are cruising in on the back of Aaron Rodgers or Arian Foster, screaming Yippee and about to lasso your opponent like a freaked-out calf. Some of you slipped into the fantasy playoffs by the skin of your teeth. Maybe you're scrambling to even field a viable, healthy starting lineup. This section is for you:
1. QB Matt Moore: Three weeks ago I predicted Moore would have a big game and I was right – a week early! Moore didn't throw a touchdown that week vs. Washington but he came back in Week 11 and tossed 3 TDs vs. the Bills. If you're hurting this week at QB (you're really gonna start Alex Smith, Sanchez or Freeman? Really?) I suggest picking up Moore and giving him a whirl at home vs. Oakland. He's only averaged 27 attempts per game since Week 7 but they are quality attempts. Moore has hit 66% of his passes in that span and had two different 3-TD games. Think of him as a poor man's Matt Ryan. I like the matchup at home even though the Raiders defense has been pretty mean lately: Reason being, they have to travel to the East Coast and then trudge out there in startling 79-degree weather. I just couldn't put my fantasy playoffs in the hands of Mark Sanchez or some other proven … That's really what I'm trying to say.
2. RB Kevin Smith: His ankle might just be ready after all and we all know what he can do with the football. The cart took him off on Thanksgiving but maybe the Cinderella story isn't over just yet. Smith's status might be known until Sunday night (NBC flexed in the Lions/Saints to replace Colts/Patriots) so it's a tricky call, but something tells me that full day of treatment and rest will allow Smith to go. All he needs it 15-17 touches to sustain your desperate flex spot – and he could get 18-22 touches if the ankle is numbed up real good. New Orleans isn't especially brutal on opposing RBs – one of 11 defenses to allow 1500 total yards and 8+ TDs to RBs this year – so if the Friday afternoon practice report sounds good I'd consider using Smith. Remember, he's chasing a new contract: You'd be amazed what effect that has on a sore, puffy ankle.
3. WR David Nelson: The lustre of his Week 2 breakout (10-83-1) sort of faded and Nelson has been spotted on waiver wires all over the country. He's only owned in 30% of ESPN leagues. If you're one of those nail-biting owners of Hakeem Nicks, Julio Jones or Andre Johnson and just want a clean, healthy wideout to give you his best – try David Nelson. He's scored a TD in three of his last four games. Chan Gailey has some special Nelson love in his playbook too, because he's 2nd in the NFL with 5 red-zone TDs: Only Burress, Welker, Megatron, Gonzalez and Gronkowski have more. Tennessee travels up to Buffalo and you just know CB Cortland Finnegan will be locked on Stevie Johnson all day. Plus the weather's supposed to hold up nicely at 50 degrees with a slight chance of rain. For those of you scrambling your rosters I can't think of a better WR grab-start than Nelson in 10- or 12-team leagues.
JUMbo Cheerleader Series:
Let's unload 10 never-before-seen pics from my vault!
Cowboys, Chargers, Cowboys, Patriots, Chiefs, Cowboys, Bucs, Bucs, Bucs, Saints
Good Luck This Week!
Aw c'mon, you knew I couldn't get outta here without one Meagan pic!


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Leader: Amazon Web Services
Amazon was first to figure out how to package and deliver cloud IaaS services in a simple, easy-to-consume fashion and, for this, it has been rewarded with a dominant status in the marketplace.
Strengths: AWS currently is using more than five times the compute capacity of all the other 14 cloud IaaS vendors in the Magic Quadrant combined, Gartner said.
"It is a thought leader; it is extraordinarily innovative, exceptionally agile and very responsive to the market," Gartner said of AWS in the report.
Amazon's aggressive pricing, as well as its huge technology partner ecosystem and its geographically dispersed data centers, are also advantages, Gartner said in the report.
Cautions: Though Amazon's pricing is low, it charges extra for things that other cloud IaaS providers have bundled into their services. For example, enterprise-grade support costs extra. So, figuring out the real costs of AWS can be tricky, Gartner said.
Amazon also sells a wide range of compute instance "families" and that can make it tough for customers to figure out which ones they need to meet performance goals, Gartner said.

subset: commoncrawl


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Rising Family Homelessness in NYC: What Can the New Mayor Do?
Archive Center for New York City Affairs
Wednesday, November 20, 2013 from 8:30 AM to 10:00 AM (EST)
Event Details
Rising Family Homelessness in NYC
Rising Family Homelessness in NYC: What Can the New Mayor Do?
Presented by the Center for New York City Affairs at
The number of homeless families and children in New York City has reached levels unseen since the Great Depression. There are more than 52,400 homeless people, including 12,500 families with 22,100 children, sleeping each night in the municipal shelter system. Families are the fastest growing segment of the city's homeless population. Despite the severity of the current crisis, New York City has a strong legacy of successful approaches to family homelessness that the new mayoral administration can build upon. Join us for a discussion about strategies to stem the tide of rising family homelessness.
Moderated by:
Admission is free but you must RSVP.
This public policy forum is made possible thanks to the generous support of the Milano Foundation and the Sirus Fund.
wednesday, november 20, 2013
The Center for New York City Affairs is an applied policy research institute based at the
Center NYC on Facebook
When & Where
The New School's Theresa Lang Community & Student Center, Arnhold Hall
55 West 13th Street
(between Fifth and Sixth Avenues), 2nd Floor
New York,
Wednesday, November 20, 2013 from 8:30 AM to 10:00 AM (EST)
Add to my calendar


text:
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- Abstract:
- Effective customer contract management is vital to the success of any business?especially where long term service agreements are involved. Learn how a global transportation company leveraged failure forecast modeling techniques to address high contract costs resulting from frequent part failures, resulting in a reduction in part consumption by 43% during the life of the contract.
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In version 10.7 of Mac OS X (Lion), the powers that be decided that we needed the Library folder hidden. I don't know about you, but I'm in that folder all the time.
It turns out there is a simple shell command to reveal the Library folder which is chflags nohidden ~/Library/
Great, but I can never remember that command, so every time it gets hidden again as dot update releases seem to do, I have to go search the Internet for the command again, open up terminal, paste in the command and finally my Library is back!
Well I'm way too


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It wouldn't surprise me if Cobb ends up playing at WR for a significant portion of his UK career... wherever he does play, I do know this: that kid will win a bunch of games for Kentucky before he leaves Lexington.
As a true Freshman he really showed me something against Georgia. I love how he was mad at himself after the INT to seal the win for Georgia. Even though he had absolutely nothing to be ashamed of--he was the only reason UK was within 4 points of Georgia in the first place--the kid still wanted more. He's a fierce competitor and I love that.


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Minister Mohamed Salem,
Minister Max Ahoueke,
Representatives of the private sector and international organizations,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is an honour for me to welcome you to UNCTAD on the occasion of the presentation of the ICT Policy Review (ICTPR) of Egypt. This is, indeed a special occasion: the very first such Review carried out by the UNCTAD Secretariat in response to the mandate we were given in Accra.
It is no coincidence that Egypt is the focus of this Review. The Government of Egypt recognized the importance of information and communication technologies (ICTs) for its economic and social development at an early stage. Ever since its first national ICT master plan formulated in 2000, the potential of ICT has remained high on the political agenda. The high-level representation from Egypt and the close cooperation and support during the preparation of this Review further testifies to the strong commitment of the Government to the Policy Review process. It has been an enriching experience to work together on the Review, which was funded by the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology and UNDP. I would also like to thank the Ambassador of Finland for taking the time to chair this meeting as well as for his Government´s generous support of our work on ICTs.
I am very pleased to see such strong interest from other member States here today. The purpose of our meeting is to present and discuss the main findings and recommendations of the Review. It is also an opportunity for the Government of Egypt to reflect on the recommendations and to share its views on what´s next in the ICT strategy.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Egypt has a unique set of circumstances and strengths that make it a key player in the information society. Since the 1990s, the Government of Egypt has created multiple institutions and designed several strategic plans to support the adoption and use of ICTs by the public and private sectors. In this context, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology concluded that an evaluation of the impact of the most recent strategy was desirable. In response, it requested the UNCTAD Secretariat to carry out this review.
UNCTAD´s policy review framework draws on our ongoing work on ICT policies and on ICT measurement for economic development and trade. The core aim of the Review is to assess the implementation of national ICT strategies by examining how ICT and e-business development issues have been operationalized in development strategies and to identify policies, programs and implementation mechanisms that favour the development of the information economy.
The Review documents the progress made to date in five priority areas, identifies the key challenges ahead for creating a more inclusive information economy, and makes specific policy recommendations. Where appropriate, reference is made to international best practice that could help the Government stake out its next medium- to long-term strategic ICT objectives and policy options.
The UNCTAD Review stresses that the next strategy must be considered against the background of the ambitious goal set by the Government to make Egypt a frontrunner in the information and knowledge society. It is essential that it builds on achievements already made, addresses areas in which progress has been less pronounced, and keeps up with the continuous technological and market changes occurring in the global ICT landscape. The Director of our Division on Technology and Logistics, Ms Anne Miroux, will present the main findings and recommendations of the Review in a minute.
Before concluding, let me encourage you to make use of the platform that UNCTAD is offering and to engage in a frank dialogue, exchange of experiences and sharing of best practices. I know that many countries nurture similar aspirations and face similar challenges as Egypt. In this context, I am very pleased to welcome the high-level presence from UNCTAD member States as well as distinguished participants from the private sector and other international organizations. I look forward to an engaging discussion.
Thank you very much.
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
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text:
2007-04-04 / Opinion
Public Commentary
With "Friends" Like the Republicans Who Needs Enemies?
The Constitution Party the third largest political party (www.ballot-access.org) strongly denounces what is shaping up to be a wholesale sell-out by Republican Senators on course to reward illegal aliens by okaying AMNESTY.(S.9, S. 330) There are 49 Republicans in the U.S.
You must be an online subscriber to view this story.


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COOKEVILLE, Tenn. --Basketball Hall of Fame member Earl Lloyd,
who became the first African-American to play in the NBA on October
31, 1950, visited Tennessee Tech Wednesday to share stories with
the Golden Eagle men's basketball team and special guests of
head coach Mike Sutton.
Lloyd revisited his experience as a young player making a basketball career in a racially divided era, and talked about the evolution of the game in the time since. Lloyd played for the Washington Capitols from 1950-'51, before joining the Syracuse Nationals from 1952-'58, where he won the 1955 NBA championship. He finished his career playing with the Detroit Pistons from 1958-'60.
Lloyd was one of three African-Americans to enter the league in 1950, but made his debut one day before Chuck Cooper and four days before Nat Clifton. In 2003 Lloyd was inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame.


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Sorry. For some reason, the data did not load properly.
Come check out the Northeast's largest Reptile Expo, with more than 250 vendor tables! Save big on a huge selection of quality reptiles, amphibians, arachnids, cages, racks, reptile supplies, and more!
$10/adults, $5/kids 7-12, under 7 free
Bruce Lowder
We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of this information. However, you should always call ahead to confirm dates, times, location, and other information.


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A statewide grand jury indicted Robert Allen Zickefoose of Colorado Springs last month on seven counts of securities fraud and theft for selling unregistered oil and gas investments in Adams County.
According to a press release issued Monday from the Colorado Attorney General's office, Zickefoose allegedly defrauded investors of $3.2 million, mostly raised through "cold calls" to people in Colorado Springs and other locations.
Zickefoose, 48, sole owner and president of Springs-based Zickefoose Reserves LLC, allegedly sold interests through that company and Choice Energy Group LLC to at least 14 investors from 2009 to 2011 in two wells called Ruby #1 and Ruby #2 in the Wattenberg field of Adams County. The interests entitled investors to 45 percent of the profits from the wells' production, but he never owned or acquired the interests he was selling. The wells were owned by Star Ryder Energy LLC, a company based in Sedalia and set up by Kenneth Clark.
Instead, Zickefoose allegedly spent most of the money he raised on personal expenses, cash withdrawals and payments to employees. The attorney general's office said he also used the money to repay some past investors and cover other expenses unrelated to the two wells.
Zickefoose Reserves was organized by Robert Zickefoose in 2009 and voluntarily dissolved in December. Choice Energy was set up in 2011. The Colorado Division of Securities began investigating Zickefoose in 2011 based on a call made to a Colorado investor by a Choice Energy representative. Zickefoose was ordered by Denver District Court Judge Herbert Stern III in October to provide sworn testimony in connection with the probe after he repeatedly failed to show up for appointments with division investigators.
Zickefoose faces up to 12 years in prison on each count. He was arrested June 17 and remains in the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center with a $500,000 bond and is scheduled to enter a plea Monday during a hearing before 4th Judicial District Judge Thomas Kennedy.
Contact Wayne Heilman: 636-0234 Twitter @wayneheilman
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text: This looks like a really good site. I've been reading posts and learning. I have a teacup yorkie that is the love of my life. She's 2 years old now and is my 4 legged little baby doll. I got her from a wonderful breeder Dianna Currie puppaws.com . I drove to her house to pick her up and I was super impressed with her knowledge and set up at her house. Even though she sells for several breeders she travels and knows all the puppies that are listed. I'm thinking about getting a little male from her now. But I think my baby is to small to have puppies. Thats what Dianna told me. I'm wondering if she's right or can I get a really small male ? My little Angel is 3 and half pounds. If anyone has any suggestions I'm open. I'm going to try to figure out how to upload my babies picture on here.


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CINCINNATI (AP) — Ohio's Democratic candidate for governor says LeBron James' return to Cleveland boosts more than the Cavaliers' title chances.
Ed FitzGerald, chief executive of Cuyahoga County, which includes Cleveland, said Friday that after James left for Miami four years ago, it cost the county millions in revenues because of reduced attendance and downtown activity that hurt restaurants, hotels and other entertainment venues. The northeastern Ohio native's return will help businesses and taxpayers, he said.
"This is very good news for Ohio, and northeast Ohio in particular," FitzGerald said in an interview. "It really does help drive traffic and visitors into the Cleveland area."
He said James' return, announced Friday, keeps Cleveland's momentum going, with the NBA superstar's decision coming days after it was announced that Cleveland was the top choice to host the 2016 Republican National Convention. FitzGerald said he doesn't expect the newly improved outlook for a Cavalier playoff run to scuttle plans by the Republicans, who were interested in a June 28 start date.
"There are ways to try to work around that," said FitzGerald, who was in Cincinnati on Friday to launch weekend campaigning in southern Ohio.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for his Republican opponent, Gov. John Kasich, saw economic benefits in James' decision, too.
"It's been a week of great news for Cleveland, and it is, of course, great to see Ohio create yet another job," Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said.
When Kasich was running as the GOP nominee before James's first decision, in 2010, he said he was more worried about thousands of Ohioans who had lost their jobs than what James was going to do.
"I'm not singing any chorus for LeBron James," Kasich said in a radio interview, referring to a music video in which Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland joined Cleveland celebrities in appealing for James to stay. Kasich said he hoped James would remain with the Cavaliers, but the Ohio Democratic Party responded by lumping Kasich with "Ohioans Against LeBron."
Then, as governor, Kasich declared the Dallas Mavericks honorary Ohioans after they delighted bitter Cavalier fans by defeating James' Heat team in the 2011 finals.
His resolution praised MVP Dirk Nowitzki's loyalty in foregoing his free agency to stay in Dallas, and said "the proud city of Cleveland and the entire state of Ohio share in the excitement of Dallas Mavericks fans everywhere."


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At the River Bend Print
At the River Bend Print
This custom illustration celebrating the beauty of nature and the Great Blue Heron was created using pencil, pen and ink, watercolor, and digital mediums.
The artwork is a limited edition of 50.
Printed on 100lb premium glossy paper with archival inks to best enhance color and longevity. Each print is sized at 11in x 17in and signed, numbered, and dated by hand.
All orders are shipped within 1-3 business days of purchase via USPS first class mail, which generally takes 3-5 business days for shipping within the US, and 7-14 business days for international.
*Within the US: prints ship flat inside a clear plastic sheet for protection with mat backing and bubble wrapped packaging.
*Outside the US: prints larger than 11in x 11in will ship rolled inside a clear plastic sheet for protection inside a thick cardboard tube. (tubes provide more guaranteed protection when prints have to travel further but feel free to contact me if you'd prefer flat shipping for international orders)
Please feel free to contact me with any other questions at email@example.com and thanks for visiting the shop!


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Four former Yale women's rowers – Ashley Brzozowicz '04 (Canada, eight), Tess Gerrand '10 (Australia, eight), Jamie Redman '08 (USA, spare) and Taylor Ritzel '10 (USA, eight) – will be at the 2012 Olympics in London. In the days leading up to the Games, yalebulldogs.com will profile each of the four.
Taylor Ritzel's path to success with the Yale women's crew was anything but typical. Ritzel, who had been a swimmer growing up in Colorado, didn't start to row until she learned there was a spot on the women's crew team waiting for her when she arrived at Yale.
"Literally, the day I was told by [then assistant coach] Kate Maloney that the program wanted me, I sat on an erg and pulled a 2K," Ritzell says.
It sure worked out well. Ritzel, who graduated in 2010, was a four-year member of Yale's varsity eight, won three NCAA championships and is now in London preparing to represent the United States in the women's eight at the Olympics.
"Taylor is the total package, physically gifted, physiologically gifted, coordinated, disciplined and getting more and more mentally tough every day," said Yale head coach Will Porter. "When Taylor first arrived at Yale, she had about one month worth of rowing experience, and I put her right in the varsity eight. I remember shoving them off to race in the Head of the Charles thinking this is either going to be really good or a big mistake. It turned out pretty good."
Ritzel, the granddaughter of former Denver Broncos coach Red Miller, had always dreamed of swimming in college but an illness in her junior year of high school derailed that plan. So her mother arranged for her to meet with rowing coaches during her college visits, which included a number of Ivy League schools. When the Yale coaches agreed to take a chance, Ritzel went all-in to learn the new sport.
"I, with the help of my mom, contacted everyone I could in Colorado who knew anything about rowing," Ritzel said.
That led them to Nat Jackson, a former rowing coach at a Canadian university, who helped Ritzel prepare for what lay ahead at Yale.
"While I was skeptical about making a change at that point, I was intrigued by the intricacies of the sport and fell in love with it," Ritzel says. "Rowing can be the most brutal thing you'll ever put your body through, but at the same time create a unified rhythm and balance that is indescribable."
Success came almost immediately. In her freshman year, Yale went undefeated and captured the program's first NCAA title. The next year, Ritzel earned the first of three All-America awards and the Bulldogs repeated as NCAA champions. Her outstanding career concluded with another NCAA title as a senior in 2010.
Ritzel first became involved with US Rowing following her junior year at Yale. She won a silver medal with the eight at the 2009 Under-23 World Championships and then won a gold medal the following year shortly after graduating. Since then, she has been a mainstay with the national team, culminating with her selection to the Olympic team.
"Competing in the Olympics is something I have dreamed about since I started competing in sports at the age of five," Ritzel says. "It is only the elite of the elite that make it to the Games, so to be able to call myself an Olympian is a huge honor and one that I am greatly humbled by."
Two of Ritzel's former teammates will be joining her in London. Jamie Redman '08 is a spare for the U.S. team, and Tess Gerrand '10 will row in the Australian eight. Gerrand, Ritzel's classmate, was with her in each of the three NCAA championship boats.
"I am so proud of Tess and can't wait to see her," Ritzel said. "She has worked very hard to get to where she is, and I respect the effort and determination it took more than she knows."
There's one person, though, who won't be in London with Ritzel. Her mother, Lana, who played a huge role in her decision to take up the sport, passed away in November of 2010 after a courageous battle with breast cancer.
"My mom is my constant inspiration and someone I think about all the time," Ritzel says. "Her strength, grace and absolute unwillingness to ever, ever give in are traits that I aspire to day in and day out."
Those traits could very well earn Ritzel a medal. The U.S. is the defending world and Olympic champion.
"I can't wait to see what our team as a whole can do," she says. "I am so excited to be rowing in London."
Ritzel photo courtesy of US Rowing
Story by Tim Bennett, Yale Sports Publicity


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St. Jude Children's Research Hospital has appointed senior physician and internationally recognized radiation oncologist Dr. Larry Kun as its new clinical director and executive vice president.
Kun has served as chair of the St. Jude Department of Radiological Sciences and will remain in that position.
"It's a phenomenal opportunity," said Kun, who has worked at St. Jude for 29 years. "I think I bring an intense understanding and perspective of St. Jude to now being in a position to mobilize people, both faculty and staff, towards identifying areas where we can further improve what we are doing in the context of patient care and the entire clinical operation."
He succeeds Dr. Joseph Laver, who accepted a position at Stony Brook University Hospital in New York.
In his new role, Kun will oversee all aspects of patient care at St. Jude, which treats approximately 7,800 patients per year. Responsibilities will include developing patient care policies, managing physicians (including consulting physicians and other clinical staff), as well as planning and managing clinical space and systems.
Kun is one of a very small group of doctors in the world that has focused exclusively throughout his career on pediatric radiation oncology.
"My major areas of interest over the time that I have been at St. Jude have been in childhood brain tumors and advancing our understanding and treatment of childhood brain tumors, exploring some of the functional changes that occur in children in their mental, physical and hormonal capacities, etc., that follow the types of brain tumors they have had and the types of treatment that have been required," said Kun, who has more than 35 years of academic and patient care experience.
His goal is to optimize radiation therapy for all types of cancers in children and adolescents, but he maintains a focus on brain tumors, which make up 20 percent of all childhood cancers.
Areas of emphasis right now are the ability of the hospital to deliver high care for high acuity patients, the structure and effectiveness of some of the academic departments, and the availability of clinical data.
"St. Jude also has six regional affiliates in cities that are several hundred miles away from Memphis that have always been an important component of our clinical enterprise, and we are looking at strengthening and enhancing those relationships," Kun said.
Kun said he is excited about the current construction of a new proton therapy center at St. Jude that will be one of only four in the world when completed. The first piece of equipment arrives this week.
"We're in the midst of building the world's only pediatric proton therapy center, and it will probably be the most technologically advanced center anywhere internationally," said Kun, who explained that the new technology is particularly beneficial for growing children and developing adolescents. "We are much better able to target the tumor, with much greater ability to spare the normal tissues that are important for normal development, growth and function in children and adolescents."
The approximate cost of the center is $105 million, with $65 million for equipment and another $40 million for construction.
Kun joined St. Jude in 1984 to establish a department to treat cancer with radiation therapy and to initiate the multidisciplinary brain tumor program. Under his leadership, the department has grown into the largest pediatric brain tumor research program in the country.
"Under Dr. Kun's leadership we will continue to enhance our patient care programs and accelerate momentum in developing and delivering innovative new treatments for children with cancer, sickle cell and other catastrophic diseases," said Dr. William E. Evans, St. Jude director and CEO, in a prepared statement. "Along with outstanding clinical skills, Dr. Kun has proven his ability to organize and lead complex, multi-institutional collaborations, such as the national Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium."
Kun has also held leadership positions in the Pediatric Oncology Group, the Children's Oncology Group, the American Society for Radiation Oncology, the Society for Neuro-Oncology and the American Board of Radiology. He is a founding member of the Alliance for Childhood Cancer, and has published more than 340 scientific articles and won numerous honors.
The Philadelphia native and avid hiker/cyclist spends his time away from work with his wife of 42 years, Donna, and their two daughters and five grandchildren.


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that's kind of funny, since "Unfortunately postage stamp cost fifty Korean currencies or $10,000 American Dollars " is way off.
I think yesterday when I got some korean won out of the atm, the exchange rate was about 1176won to 1USD. 50 won is barely enough to have change for...
That's not got much spam in it.
You forgot about our legislators.
(Scorethem:3, A Joke)
Maybe they get lonely out there and spam almost seems like someone cares to send them a message.
When I first moved to Idaho, I commented to a local about the high proportion of pregnant teenage girls in the high school. Her comment was "It's Idaho, there is nothing to do but your neighbor."
When I first moved to Idaho, I commented to a local about the high proportion of pregnant teenage girls in the high school. Her comment was "It's Idaho, there is nothing to do but your neighbor."
Not necessarily a bad way to spend your time, but my understanding is that if you really want to blend in, you'll want to take your neighbour four-wheeling, and then add shooting rodents (prairie dogs?) to mix.
No prairie dogs that I saw. Moose, elk, dear, black bear, brown bear, wolves, coyotes, foxes, big horn sheep, turkey and almost every other game animal in the lower 48. And we actually did go four-wheeling with the neighbors. I didn't mention I own a tricked-out Jeep Scrambler...
Why did you get so "lucky" as to move to Idaho? I've driven through that state. I saw lots of cows, but not much humans.
The panhandle, up near Coeur d'Alene, is gorgeous country. If you like outdoor activities: skiing, hiking, boating, hunting, fishing, 4x4ing, etc. it can't be beat short of Alaska.
Shhhhh..... That is best kept a secret friend.
(hops in car) - Idaho Panhandle here I come!
No, stay away! Ever since some big magazine (Forbes IIRC) published some big article about Idaho being one of the top X places to live, we've had droves of people who drive like they're in California. They even have Obama bumper stickers. (The Idaho liberal is typically a lonely or an institutionalized person. And being in college is being institutionalized.)
No, you da ho!
When you think high tech, well networked states, you don't tend to think of there.
I once received a magazine subscription offer, from "Time" if I remember correctly, that asked the question, "What would you do if they built a nuclear reactor near Idaho Falls".
You probably won't understand why I laughed about this without this link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idaho_National_Laboratory, or the quote from that article "INL has 52 reactors, three of which are reportedly still operating". I suspect they are probably underestimating both those numbers.
Idaho has a lot of farmers, but also has
Yes - Idaho is a filth-encrusted hole of pestilence and misery. You don't want to move here.
(We have to say that to keep all the Californians out.)
Yes - Idaho is a filth-encrusted hole of pestilence and misery. You don't want to move here.
(We have to say that to keep all the Californians out.)
Gosh... I own a house in Idaho, and was planning to sell it, but maybe we should just move there!
(What's the job market like in Gooding?)
MessageLabs unveiled a list of the top U.S. spammed states, with surprising results - the spam capital of the US is Idaho with 93.8 percent of spam, far exceeding the global spam rate for September 2009 of 86.4 percent.
...what sort of poorly-stated metric is "percent of spam"
yeah... I actually read TFA because I figured the summary was just garbage. But no, that's how the article puts it, too, without EVER explaining what on earth they're trying to say.
Higher percentage of "noob" users. Idaho came to the table pretty late
Not sure if you're trying to be funny but it's more likely that Idaho has a smaller population than most states (1.5 million?) and therefore if they get the same amount of spam as another state, it's going to skew their percentages. I'm guessing spam is sent in indifferent loads to companies and spam targeting companies is probably common. I guess usage of Gmail or Hotmail wouldn't skew this but I'm betting we're seeing an outlier because of the low population in Idaho. Not because they're any more 'n00b
Not to defend the GP, but there are plenty of other low population states, and none of them even made the top ten. In fact, most of the rest of the top-listed are among the most populous states.
It seems much more likely to me that it's as an AC above posted--the data are bullshit. It reads like a survey released by a security software company to sell more copies of their tools. In a word, spam.
I have evidence. My son's elementary school newsletter this week has a notice in it that as of next week they're "going paperless" and will only be posting future newsletters and other correspondence to the web site. A great idea that will probably help a bit with the budget shortfall. It says at the end, "Please contact us if you do not have web access so we can keep you in the loop." Really. In 2009.
Idaho has 93% of spam. No.
Spam comprises 93% of emails in Idaho. Very big difference.
I'm guessing that's what they meant also, but really, there's no confirmation of this theory anywhere in TFA. It's simply the most sensible interpretation of their fumbling attempt to discourse.
You want to know the real reasons Idaho is one of the most spammed states?
Higher percentage of "noob" users. Idaho came to the table pretty late, and a disproportionate number of people in Idaho don't yet know basic ways of reducing spam.
Or possibly, people in Idaho are more likely to fall for spam advertising.
I doubt it's either of these. A very low percentage of emails give much geographic information about their associated users, so even if Idaho was the Spam Sucker Capital of the Universe, the spammers wouldn't know how to target Idahoans. And I think that, even if it's true that Idaho adopted email later relative t
Whenever someone asks me about a spam email and whether the email is true, I respond with "No legitimate business uses spam, unsolicited email, or whatever you want to call it. They are all scams - no exceptions."
Start educating people that that email in their inbox is a scam. Period. And maybe, just maybe, one day those crooks will stop this shit.
Their state of the art weaponry can be seen here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHUyKrJeNv0 [youtube.com]
its not like I am going to NOT move somewhere because they have a lot of spam (unless you are talking about the "food" variety).
So you avoid Hawaii like the plague?
I don't get why a cooking article is on
The difference can be attributed to the resilient and aggressive botnet market as well as a higher volume of global spam that has ensued since the beginning of the credit crisis toward the end of 2008.
Um... no, those two facts can perhaps help to explain the overall increase in spam, globally. They do absolutely nothing to explain why Idaho, specifically, has jumped up the list of being spammed more often per capita.
Please enlighten us, could we have your full email address, to verify your spam percentage?
How would they know that those email addresses belong to someone in Idaho?
Perhaps they are able to figure it out based on the location of the ip address that is connecting to your email accounts...
That depends on how they read the data, doesn't it. I mean if more useless gits respond from Idaho...
I'm pretty sure that Hawaii [viamagazine.com] is the national span capitol.
>The difference can be attributed to the resilient and aggressive botnet market as well as a higher volume of global spam that has >ensued since the beginning of the credit crisis toward the end of 2008
In the mid USA where most hicks live and breed, is where you will find the most success spreading the Nigerian scams
where most people living on the coast (east or west) would have seen this scam coming a mile away.
Seriously though, you WILL find more success where there is less tech presen
Thus spake the master programmer: "When a program is being tested, it is too late to make design changes." -- Geoffrey James, "The Tao of Programming"


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[Romney] believes that market incomes in the United States are a perfect reflection of merit. Far from seeing his own privileged upbringing as the private-school educated son of an auto executive-turned-governor as an obvious refutation of that belief, Romney cites his own life, preposterously, as a confirmation of it. ("I have inherited nothing. Everything I earned I earned the old fashioned way.")...There are plenty of conservatives who will celebrate all of that. Not the "sneering plutocrat" part, but the Paul Ryanism.
The revelations in this video come to me as a genuine shock. I have never hated Romney. I presumed his ideological makeover since he set out to run for president was largely phony, even if he was now committed to carry through with it, and to whatever extent he'd come to believe his own lines, he was oblivious or naïve about the damage he would inflict upon the poor, sick, and vulnerable. It seems unavoidable now to conclude that Romney's embrace of Paul Ryanism is born of actual contempt for the looters and moochers, a class war on behalf of his own class.
Chait is demonstrating how Democrats can stir up antagonism to Romney, but much of that antagonism will be felt by people who were never going to vote for Romney... like Chait himself. I have never hated Romney, he says. Yeah, you didn't hate him because he seemed so bland and ineffectual, and you didn't think he'd win. But Paul Ryan and his crisp conservatism — that, you hate. I'd say Romney ought to avoid sucking up to Chait. That's the McCain mistake: You get liberals to like you, but they don't vote for you, and the conservatives lose interest.
Chait gives it all away when he brings up Ryan and portrays him as contemptuous. "Sneering plutocrat" is a great phrase, and I expect Democrats to take advantage and plunge forward with that meme. But Ryan is no sneering plutocrat. He brings youthful vitality and intelligence to the conservative cause. If Romney seemed like Ryan in the secret video, that's a useful revelation.
IN THE COMMENTS: Crimso said:
Did Chait actually suggest it is wrong to have contempt for looters and moochers?And edutcher said:
When you've lost Jonathan Chait...
you've really started to scare the Lefties.


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Posted: Friday, October 31, 2008
The Minnesota Court of Appeals is celebrating its 25th anniversary on November 6, 2008. The court, created by a 1982 constitutional amendment, has been nationally recognized for its excellence in case management, commitment to written opinions explaining the reasons for its decisions, opportunity for oral argument in every case, and consistent issuance of opinions within 90 days of case submission.
The forces that combined to create the court developed primarily between 1957 and 1982 when filings submitted to the Minnesota Supreme Court increased more than 70 percent- from 213 to 1,682. The rapidly growing backlog created havoc in the performance of all the state's courts and the inevitable conflict between volume and quality became apparent.
To cope with the increased workload, the Supreme Court attempted a number of initiatives that included increasing its size from seven to nine, hearing arguments in panels, issuing summary affirmances, and relying more heavily on staff. But the court ultimately concluded that these methods were not working and that the quality of all Minnesota courts had been significantly eroded. As a result, the Supreme Court, the Minnesota Citizens Conference to Improve the Administration of Justice, and the Minnesota Judicial Council recommended that a constitutional amendment be adopted to create an appeals court.
The Minnesota House Judiciary Committee passed the appeals court bill in February 1982, closely followed by the Senate Judiciary Committee. The amendment was placed on the November 1982 ballot and was supported by 77 percent of general election voters.
The Court of Appeals has honored the commitment of the people of Minnesota who worked to create the court- it has decided more than 55,000 cases since November 2, 1983; continuously provided the opportunity for oral argument in every case; issued detailed written opinions in all cases; issued virtually all of its opinions within 90 days of submission to the panel; heard cases in courthouses around the state; and provided the final decision in approximately 95 percent of the 2,200 to 2,400 appeals filed every year. In recognition of this achievement, the court has planned this quarter-century celebration.
The celebration will include a day-long symposium in conjunction with William Mitchell College of Law and an evening event at the Landmark Center where the first members of the court were sworn in on November 2, 1983. The November 6 symposium will feature remarks by Edward Toussaint, Chief Judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals; remarks by Eric Magnuson, Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court; a panel assessing the court's impact on specific areas of Minnesota law, moderated by Marianne Short, a former Court of Appeals judge and current managing partner at Dorsey & Whitney; a luncheon address by Judge Harriet Lansing, one of the original members of the Court of Appeals, entitled "Twenty-Five Years of Doing Minnesota Justice." The symposium will also feature a replicated oral argument to a Court of Appeals panel and an unusual opportunity to observe a court decision-making conference following the replicated oral argument. Because decision-making conferences are not public, this is a rare opportunity to observe the inner workings of court processes.
The evening event at the Landmark Center celebrates the Court of Appeal's history with a screening of a film produced by Lightshed Productions entitled, "Doing Minnesota Justice." Professor Sherrilyn Ifill, a law professor at the University of Maryland and a nationally recognized speaker on fair and impartial courts, will deliver the keynote address.
For more information, please contact Chief Judge Edward Toussaint, Judge Harriet Lansing, or visit the William Mitchell website, www.wmitchell.edu. For general information on the Court of Appeals please visit the Minnesota Judicial Branch website, www.mncourts.gov.
William Mitchell College of Law Symposium Schedule


text:
The ISP in question is Canadian.
I attended a talk by Michael Geist, where he said that 30% of Canadian ISPs comply with DMCA takedowns. This figure was presented by some pro-copyright lobby as "shocking" evidence that Canada is a lawless place where copyright isn't respected.
Geist agreed that it was shocking - but for a different reason. He said it was shocking that 30% of our ISPs caved to a law from a foreign country, and complied with a request they had no legal requirement or authority to obey.
Some 'Canadian' ISPs, such as PEER1, are actually based out of the US.
Throws a bit of a monkey wrench into the caving in to a law from a foreign country...
That Boing Boing was able to get us the skinny on this.
(bkspc) (bkspc) (bkspc)
I was going to say something about the impartiality of the judges and legislating from the bench, but I've reconsidered. I'm not touching this skeleton with a size 0 dress.
The U.S. Congress should ban the use of Photoshop and other digital manipulation for photos used in advertising. In fact all they really need to do is amend the "truth in advertising" laws.
The U.S. Congress should ban the use of Photoshop and other digital manipulation for photos used in advertising.
I don't know how easy it would be to do. You shouldn't just have a blanket banning of Photoshop, because it can be used to reproduce a lot of valid darkroom techniques, such as color adjustments, contrast, levels, dodge and burn, etc... things that are legitimate and need to be done to most photos.
It is awful the digital manipulation like this is used, however... and it just looks flat out FAKE. You can tell when someone has been over-Photoshopped because they just look "off" somehow.
I have an idea, how about making sure that the ORIGINAL unedited version is available upon request, with a link in the advertisement to the source of the original.
Kind of like, Open Source for Photography?
Have fun clicking that link in print.
Because, you can't, you know... type it into a web browser. They could also implement a QR barcode you could take a picture with using your phone. Seems like a semi-reasonable idea to me.
or, hey, a bar code you can swipe with a cat-shaped thing, and make another company go bankrupt!
Well, where can I get the original source? I mean the model. I'd like to do some code checking.
Agreed, banning photoshop is nonsensical. It's not the tool, it's the use to which it is put.
This sounds like a job for the swarm. There's a lot more people out there with photoshop experience, able to spot these kinds of manipulations, than these companies could hope to pursue. Let's not leave it just to Photoshop Disaster. If a few thousand geeks pursue them relentlessly, we could see real results.
I worked in a Print Shop for several years. Don't give me any of that dark room crap please. On one hand, you are right but you are intentionally blind to the exploitation that *will* take place giving *any* leniency to those in marketing and advertising. Their habitual lies resemble that of a heroin addiction in that, only a fool would suggest they might have any restraint.
I'm tired of looking at advertisements. Of all the hamburgers I have ever eaten, not on has every looked remotely close to any of t
I worked in a Print Shop for several years. Don't give me any of that dark room crap please.
Good for you. My late father owned his own commercial photo studio and print lab for about 23 years, in which I spent a great deal of time. I have also shot photography professionally, so I know good and well about "darkroom crap" as well as clever tricks that can be pulled off during the photo shoot itself, without any after-manipulation.
Here is how I see it: yes, it's gross and dishonest when advertisers try and use these tricks to pull a fast one on consumers. However, I think the problem is that we need to redefine what a photograph is.
Only in print journalist (and not even there sometimes) is a photograph a literal slice of a moment in time. Most every other photograph needs to not be look upon as literal truth, but as an idealized version of reality.
Think of all those photos of friends and family smiling, posing for a photograph. Is that how life is all the time? No, it's a posed photo, an idealized version of that point in time. I personally see photography much the same way, and try not to take it personally when a hamburger in an ad looks different than the one on my plate. It's fucked up, but that's how it is, in my view.
It is awful the digital manipulation like this is used, however... and it just looks flat out FAKE. You can tell when someone has been over-Photoshopped because they just look "off" somehow.
It is pretty sickening that Madison avenue has so distorted our view of how women should look that they're starting to move INTO the uncanny valley.
You couldn't ban digital manipulation of photos used in advertising.
Advertising speech gets first amendment protection, albeit not as much protection as policical speech, for example. But it does get protection.
One obvious First Amendment problem that you run into is overbreadth.
There are a lot of good uses for Photoshop in advertising--like making really cool surrealistic advertising videos, for example. Such videos are not misleading and there is no legitimate interest in regulating them. Any law that would bar their production merely because they were digitally created would violate the First Amendment.
While they're at it, how about creating a "truth in News reporting" law.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto#In_USA [wikipedia.org]
I work in design and have done more Photoshop work than I care to recall. It certainly is an extremely useful tool and can't be banned outright, however, they could impose very clear limits on retouching photos of people.
I personally see two problems. The first is covering up imperfections, freckles, beauty marks, lumps, etc. The second is thinning out individual body parts and in some extreme cases taking the entire person and making them more narrow.
There's a big drawback here, however. This wont address the use of heavy makeup, creative lighting or photography. And movies have always used all sorts of techniques to make actors look amazing. Celebrities are sometimes virtually unrecognizable in person because of how heavily they're done up for movies. And agencies will likely push models to lose even more weight. Photoshop ultimately is one small part of the larger problem of creating very unrealistic expectations of how people should look.
I've had friends who couldn't be with a girl if she didn't have the perfect complexion and body type depicted in the media. I've also known many girls who lament how terrible they supposedly look compared to celebrities. But how the hell do you change these attitudes in a culture so addicted to celebrity culture? And it's not a problem unique to the US either. It's bad enough in Europe, and probably even worse than the US in Asia.
[Photoshop] certainly is an extremely useful tool and can't be banned outright, however, they could impose very clear limits on retouching photos of people.
Who is "they" and how would they impose these arbitrary limits on photo retouching?
The problem isn't necessarily with the advertising agencies who are trying their best to fool us that their client/product is "better" than they actually are. That's what they've always done and that is what they will continue to do.
The problem is with the increasing number of people in our society who lack critical thinking skills and don't question what is presented to them.
What's nefarious about this particular DMCA take down notice is that its only purpose is to squelch critical opinion on advertising techniques. (It is also just another example of how the DMCA has little to do with copyright protection and is more about handing over control of our culture to the media companies).
Hideously disproportionate. Lauren's response was a pumpkin on a fencepost. Jack Skellington after lent. Comet Hyatuke.
A mushroom-shaped tantrum, one may say.
They are just starved for attention.
Ralph, I'd like you to meet Barbara...
It is kind of sad to think that some people will think she looks perfectly normal. Event though they have never seen someone like that, just other adds, tv, etc.
That would have been my ideal woman when I was young. These days I like 'em a bit softer. Notice how she looks like a Barbie doll? I'm surprised Mattell hasn't sued Ralph Lauren. Maybe that's why they want to keep the picture secret?
I loved this quote: "Dude, her head's bigger than her pelvis"
There's a hooker here I called "Bighead" [slashdot.org] in one of my journals. She looks a lot like the model in the photoshopped photo, except that a woman that skinny has no shape. Actually, the model's arms and legs aren't as skin
Skinny is one thing, but there's not enough room in her lower torso to hold a spinal column, much less a stomach, liver, kidneys and other assorted gizzards. If someone really looked like that, they'd be long dead...
Don't get me wrong, I'm not against skinny (although heroin chic is kinda spooky), but this picture takes spooky to a whole other level. This is less of a "Schindlers List" and more of a "someone cut my belly open, removed all of the contents, wrapped my spinal column in pressure tape, then co
The DMCA needs to be updated to have two points in it:
1) Filing a claim that isn't supported by copyright law is fraudulent under the good faith premise of the filing process
2) No guilty intent on the part of the filer is necessary for it to be civilly or criminally actionable.
If you're some dumbass who files a report that is incompatible with the law, without knowing what the law says, no matter how right you thought you were, you should be guilty.
This is one of the few areas where my instinct says that a guilty mind should not be necessary at all to punish someone.
This is one of the few areas where my instinct says that a guilty mind should not be necessary at all to punish someone.
I wouldn't agree that a bad claim should in all cases be punishable. I would think, however, that there could be some level of due diligence required on the part of someone filing a DMCA claim. If they file an unsupported claim and it's later found that they didn't do anything to make sure they actually had standing to make the complaint (or whatever the correct legal terminology would be) that perhaps there should be some kind of punishment or liability.
There are cases where the law punishes negligence
At least in the U.S., law is set by judicial precedent as much as by legislation. Therefore, if a copyright holder wins a lawsuit, even when it greatly exceeds the scope (or even makes a travesty) of written legislation, the suit is supported by law, because the judgment makes new law. And therefore, a duck. No, wait. And therefore, not fraudulent.
In other words, if you can convince a jury, all bets are off. Before the law, a douchebag who wins is not a douchebag.
This is one of the few areas where my instinct says that a guilty mind should not be necessary at all to punish someone.
Your instinct isn't wrong. Courts have long upheld judgements that ignorance of the law is not a shield from it. Lawyers know this better than anyone but they make routine (ab)use of the fact that non-lawyers frequently aren't aware of their own rights and responsibilities.
Additionally, you *can* go after someone who makes a false DMCA takedown claim. The problem is, the DMCA does not allo
The problem is, the DMCA does not allow you to dispute the takedown notice until after the "infringing" material has been removed.
This is not true. The DMCA sets no limits on when you can dispute a takedown notice. It just doesn't require the service provider to notify the user until after (though "promptly" after) the material has been taken down, in order to remain in the safe harbor against liability to the user. Provided that it didn't interfer with the providers ability to "expeditiously" disable acces
Publishers are often extremely careless about sending out scattershot DMCA notices. For example, I'm the author of a free and open-source calculus textbook. My book is available on my own web site, and also on some other sites such as lulu and scribd. I got an email today from one of the folks at scribd saying they'd received the DMCA takedown notice below. The takedown notice is so vague and sloppy that it's hard to tell what they're even claiming. Are they claiming that scribd is violating my (Ben Crowell's) copyright? If so, then what business of it is theirs? (Macmillan isn't my publisher, and I've never heard of Attributor, Inc., until today.) Or are they claiming that my book contains content that infringes Macmillan's copyrights? (It would seem not, since they list "Original Work: Calculus," as if it's the entire book whose copyright is being infringed.)
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <email@example.com>
Date: Wed, Oct 7, 2009 at 6:14 PM
Subject: Unauthorized Use of Macmillan Publishers Material
To: email@example.com
*** Sent via Email - DMCA Notice of Copyright Infringement ***
Dear Sir/Madam,
I certify under penalty of perjury, that I am an agent authorized to act on
behalf of the owner of the intellectual property rights and that the
information contained in this notice is accurate.
I have a good faith belief that the page or material listed below is not
authorized by law for use by the individual(s) associated with the
identified page listed below or their agents and therefore infringes the
copyright owner's rights.
This notice is sent pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA),
the European Union's Directive on the Harmonisation of Certain Aspects of
Copyright and Related Rights in the Information Society (2001/29/EC), and/or
other laws and regulations relevant in European Union member states or other
My contact information is as follows:
Organization name: Attributor Corporation As Agent for Macmillan Publishers
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Phone: (650) 306 9474
Mailing address:
Attributor, Inc.
1775 Woodside Road, Ste 100
Redwood City, CA 94061
Infringing page/material that I demand be disabled or removed in
consideration of the above:
Original Work: Calculus
Infringing URL:
Infringing URL: http://scribd.com/doc/240367/calculus-by-benjamin-crowell
My electronic signature follows:
Attributor, Inc.
You own the copyright and they are representing themselves as your agent under penalty of perjury?
It sounds like they should be in trouble. The question is who it is up to to sue them.
Well there was, in the BB thread, an opinion put forward that the ad (as it was presented to Photoshop Disasters and then to Boing Boing) is a hoax and the result of a photoshop perspective transformation. In that thread, the poster shows the result of the reversal of this and the model looks far more 'human'.
If you notice, the black bars down the side of the image in the story link become thicker at the bottom of the image.
Please mod my parent post down - as the other replies point out, events have moved on:
http://extratv.warnerbros.com/2009/10/blog_and_ralph_lauren_fight_over_skinny_model_ad.php [warnerbros.com]
"On Thursday, Polo Ralph Lauren released the following statement about the retouched ad: "For over 42 years we have built a brand based on quality and integrity. After further investigation, we have learned that we are responsible for the poor imaging and retouching that resulted in a very distorted image of a woman's body. We have addressed the problem and going forward will take every precaution to ensure that the caliber of our artwork represents our brand appropriately."
I propose that photoshop-skinnying models is probably analogous to heavily salting food: the more you do it, the more desensitized you become to it, until you reach a point where it still seems natural to you but ridiculously overdone to everyone else.
Oh I don't know. Seems more like free advertising to me. The clothes looked pretty even if the model was modded.
I think that if my healthy, athletic, 13yo daughter saw that picture you would get a Duane Johnson-esque eyebrow and a lifelong aversion to anything with the Ralph Lauren label.
I'm sure there's some medical/advertising standards authority that'd like to rip them a new orifice for popularising morbid anorexia in this way.
I'm sure there's some medical/advertising standards authority that'd like to rip them a new orifice for popularising morbid anorexia in this way.
Anorexia won't make your head bigger than your pelvis.
The real WTF is that they're making fun of people with macroencephaly!
Unfortunately, we have nothing like the ASA in the US. And the first amendment to the Constitution says you can publish damned near anything that isn't covered by somebody else's copyright.
One of the BB posts, noted that falsely issuing DMCA notices might be construed as abuse of process. If any real lawyers are lurking out there, could this be used as a counter tactic? What is the likely hood that you could make such a charge stick to the plantif or their counsel?
The DMCA itself provides for penalties, both civil and criminal, for false takedown notices - it's perjury, and probably tortious interference with a business relationship. However, this case is not so clear-cut. They reproduced the ad in its entirety, unmodified. The fact that they subsequently ridiculed it may or may not really make this fair use. Most likely it does, but arguments exist both ways. Thus, there is enough law to make the takedown notice non-perjury.
The ISP is in Canada? Why should they comply with a US law?
The ISP is in Canada? Why should they comply with a US law?
Is that you, Michale Geist [michaelgeist.ca]?
Of course the really funny is that is the image is *advertisement* which presumably means Ralph Lauren *pays* people to display that image.
Someone page Sir Mix-a-Lot.
Baby Got Jack
I like small butts and I cannot lie,
You honkies can't deny,
When a girl walks in with an itty bitty waist
and a big thing in your face I get Sick,
cuz I like a toothpick
I'll beat that booty with a stick
Even the jeans she's wearing, her pants
are almost tearing
No, baby I want a flat booty,
That's tootie fruitie, while honkies tried to warn me
that butt you've got is, oh, so corny ooh Chicken
smooth skin you say you wanna get my olds,
well peck me,
peck me, cuz you ain't that average chickadee.
Hell with r
blind obedience to words written by the social elite only keeps the populace oppressed.
I was, however, surprised to find that Rob Liefeld [progressiveboink.com] was now working for Ralph Lauren.
Look at it. Body parts which were obviously mixed and matched from several different mannequins, a spine that has to travel through another dimension to reach her pelvis, and no feet. Throw in a couple belts covered with pouches and you've got every Liefeld girl ever drawn.
Found the link in a BoingBoing comment
http://www.ralphlauren.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3558821&camp=affiliate_k108283 [ralphlauren.com]
She looks more human here.
don't work for anything fashion related, but in the same area in NYC. i see some of the models going in and out of the building and i swear in real life it's like they are auditioning for Schindler's List 2
Schindler's List 2: This time, he's checking it twice
That's a horrible Photoshop paste job. Does that head even go with that body?
There's a wry New Yorker article [newyorker.com] about Pascal Dangin, the leading photo retoucher for the New York fashion industry. The print version of that article has before and after pictures. He's much better than whomever did that botched Ralph Lauren ad.
Dangin is much more subtle. Although he's been criticized for slimming down Madonna's arm muscles.
I have always considered RL to be one of the greatest American designers and I am impartial to some of his stuff. However, this law suit makes me question my beliefs. And if you want to avoid prosecution next time, take a screen shot of the desktop that shows the ad.
Do propel actually find such a figure attractive?
I'm asking because I'm disgusted by it more than anything. It's right smack dab in the middle of the uncanny valley in my eyes.
Yes, the DMCA is stupid.
Now, can I ask WHY people buy T-Shirts, undies, etc from big designers?
I just don't see why you would buy something for $100 from a designer label when you can buy something without a name on it for $4. I mean, the amount of marketing that has to go into this must be insane! It would be one thing if the big fancy labels used legitimate, well-paid, non-sweatshop labor to make these things, but I don't see that happening.
You might as well ask why peacocks display their plumage.
The sad thing is that the famous blogger above has both every right to criticize the ad, and also he may gain further popularity in doing this. The only way for him to avoid being a pawn in the game is to ignore the whole argument, and that gains him nothing. It's an almost self-sustaining system, be prepared for more in the future.
1 Angstrom: measure of computer anxiety = 1000 nail-bytes


text:
Battalion Chief McLaughlin receives international professional designation
Battalion Fire Chief James McLaughlin of the Warwick Fire Department has been awarded the professional designation of Chief Fire Officer (CFO). The Commission on Professional Credentialing (CPC) met on March 4 to officially confer the designation and Chief McLaughlin is one of currently only 874 CFOs worldwide.
The CPC awards the CFO designation only if an individual successfully meets all of the organization's stringent criteria. The program uses a comprehensive peer review model that includes an assessment of the chief's educational experience, professional development, technical competencies, contributions to the profession, and community involvement. In addition, recipients of this designation are required to identify a future professional development plan.
Chief McLaughlin has a rich knowledge of the emergency services profession and has far surpassed critical core competencies for personnel serving in senior fire officer positions. McLaughlin, who has been with the Department since 1988, received his BS Degree in Fire Science from Providence College (1988) and MA Degree in Emergency and Disaster Management from American Military University (2012). He also completed the John F. Kennedy School of Government Senior Executives in State and Local Government program at Harvard University as a Fellow in 2010.
The Commission on Professional Credentialing, an entity of the Center for Public Safety Excellence, Inc. (CPSE), administers the CFO Designation Program. The CPC consists of individuals from academia, federal and local government, and the fire and emergency medical services profession.
Chief McLaughlin has been a member of the Warwick Fire Department for 25 years and currently resides in Warwick with his wife and son.