text:
Sunday, January 16, 2011
An Open Letter To Santa Monica City Council Regarding Bicycle Registration Ordinance Changes
I've thought a lot about bike registration and I have a few concerns with keeping the ordinance as suggested in the staff report, as well as some questions about the nature of how the program and database are implemented.
If it is to be kept in some form I think the program should be opt in. Making it mandatory, even if only for residents, still places most local cyclists in a position of violating the law by default, who despite increased efforts to promote bike registry, often do not know it exists or is required. The inability to enforce bike shops to register bikes guarantees more bikes will be circulated without being registered. The idea of mandatory obligation to register is extremely worrisome to me unless there is a serious effort to really register every bike, which would undoubtedly take more resources than is spent currently on the program.
Since it would be residents only and not people passing through, how will the police distinguish between resident and someone passing through?
To date I have not seen any data or reason to believe city bike registry really cuts down on bike theft or has resulted in many bikes returned. The police saying it helps is not real information to me without further elaboration and supporting data. Even if it has had some successes, since this program does not even come close to paying for it self as the staff report indicates, we are all paying to have it in place. Might there be other ways such resources could be more effectively used to reduce bike theft?
There are also outside resources and programs such as nationalbikeregistry.com which register bikes more efficiently at less cost to the cyclist and without needing subsidy to administer. Santa Monica PD, along with many CA departments are already listed as participating police departments with access to their data base. Why not simply encourage people to register with National Bike Registry since it is cheaper for cyclists and the city, and the SMPD already has access to that database? Bikerevolution.org also offers bike registration and stickers for free. Also what if someone has already spent money to register with the National Bike Registry (their sticker and registration form kits are sold in some bike shops)? In that case in order to meet Santa Monica's requirements, they would essential have to double register even though SMPD has access to the registry they already paid for.
Speaking of database, how is the Santa Monica local bike registration program handled. Where does that data go, and can other departments access the data? If someone were to steal a bike in Santa Monica and go sell it in Venice, does the LAPD have easy access to Santa Monica bike registry data? If the sticker were removed from the bike, would the LAPD know to inquire further and cross reference Santa Monica serial number data.
For people with multiple bikes like myself, registering costs can add up. For my wife Meghan and I to register all of the many bikes we own at $4 each per year would cost $36 dollars a year. That's a lot more than we would pay for getting a permit for parking a car on the street in our residential zone. I don't think it's fair to charge people who own multiple bikes with fines greater than someone taking up valuable street space. If the idea is to encourage people to ride bikes in Santa Monica, I don't see how adding mandatory extra fees and bureaucracy to the process is beneficial.
Based on following the police reports on the SM Daily Press involving cyclists, it seems to me laws like this are more a pretense for busting certain kinds of characters and pursuing drug searches, more than the intent of the law. I think the burden of proof is on the police department to show having this bike registration program is worthwhile for it's intended purpose. Until such time I have heard any convincing reasons to keep it, even if it would technically comply with state requirements, I cannot support keeping the law.
The state grants cities the ability to have bike registration programs, with some restrictions, but it does not require it, and unlike the misleading suggestions on the Santa Monica website, it is certainly not state law that all bicyclists in the state must be registered. The Santa Monica website quote "The State of California requires a bicycle license for any bicycle used on any street" is entirely false, nothing in the C.V.C. suggests this. This literature with false statements can be found in fliers around town as well. I have brought this to staff attention before on multiple occasions, but it does not appear to have been addressed.
Many cities which created such laws in the 70's and then forgot about them for 30 years are going through this same debate as cycling goes mainstream again. Many of these cities are doing away with the programs all together or are making them optional because they are finding the administration of keeping them is not worth it. Los Angeles has already eliminated their bike registry program. I believe Santa Monica should follow suit.
As it currently exists, as well as under proposed changes in the staff report, I primarily see this program as being an unnecessary use of resources, redundant with more efficient programs offered online by third parties, and a tool to discourage bicycling. I urge that the council vote to eliminate the Santa Monica bicycle registration ordinance. As part of efforts to address bicycle theft, cyclists should still be encouraged to register their bikes, but instead be directed to third party registration services.
-Gary Kavanagh
2 comments:
- Briand Beausoleil said...
Dear Gary,
The bike registration model if flawed as it stands. Registered bikes mean more recovered bikes (stats back this up) and more tagged bikes mean less bike thefts. The difference between NBR and Bike Revolution is two-fold: BR is an open database. We aggregate as many databases as possible so SMPD doesn't just have access to stolen bikes in SM, but in all of California or for that matter, North America. Bikes are transported for sale elsewhere, for online and terrestrial resale so having a global database makes sense. Also, the tags BR offers are QR tags, which are readable by anyone with a smartphone. BR also offers municipal govt, law enforcement services and other entities a wholesale program, so there is revenue share on each tag sold. There is also no admin needed as all is held in the BR database, with each sector (SMPD) firewalled, yet accessible to that specific organisation. The entire system is meant to allow everybody to access ALL bikes, not just those in that area. In addition, stolen bikes and stolen bike alerts are geo-tagged, meaning SM public will only get info on stolen SM bikes, rather than bikes from Portland. Should you have other questions regarding this area, feel free to contact us at Bike Revolution.
- January 17, 2011 at 5:39 AM
- Jerald said...
Heya¡my very first comment on your site. ,I have been reading your blog for a while and thought I would completely pop in and drop a friendly note. . It is great stuff indeed. I also wanted to ask..is there a way to subscribe to your site via email?
Used Bikes
- January 22, 2011 at 9:22 PM


text:
Food & Drink
Roam with the bison in North Dakota
Matthew Casey, Special to CNN • Published 18th July 2013
View Gallery
12 Pictures
Editor's Note — CNN.com's weekly Summer in the Park series turns to rangers at the United States' most popular national parks to get insider recommendations for your visits, whether you have just one day or can stay longer. The series will run through Labor Day.
A herd of hulking American bison huddles to keep warm during a prairie blizzard in Theodore Roosevelt National Park. It's an image that's as vintage Americana as a Norman Rockwell painting.
The bison, often referred to as buffalo, teetered on the brink of extinction in the 19th century.
But the bison's destiny changed in 1883 when a young
Theodore Roosevelt
first came to
North Dakota's
Badlands for the sole purpose of hunting one.
Though Teddy eventually got one for his trophy case, the lessons from that trip became his inspiration to ignite a conservationist movement that would help save the bison and pave the way for the national park system to evolve into an important American institution.
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
serves as a monument to a president who had the foresight to preserve and protect this country's pristine wilderness. It's also a testament to his ability to make such places accessible to all.
Park stats:
The park was established in 1947 as Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park, but it was not officially designated as a national park until 1978. Its two busiest years were 1972, when it was about 1,100 guests short of 1 million for the year, and 1976 during the Bicentennial, when it again flirted with 1 million visitors. The park
has averaged
slightly less than 600,000 visitors per year since 2008.
The location:
Theodore Roosevelt consists of more than 70,000 acres in the North Dakota Badlands, which are not to be confused with the
Badlands National Park
in South Dakota. The difference, according to park ranger Valerie Naylor, is North Dakota's Badlands are older, look different and have heavier vegetation.
There are a number of ways to
access the park
, which is divided in three parts: North Unit, South Unit and Elkhorn Ranch Unit. Medora is the entrance to the South Unit and is about a two-hour drive from
the state capital, Bismarck
. The North Unit entrance is about 14 miles south of Watford City and is about three hours from Bismarck. The two Badlands are not contiguous, she says.
The Elkhorn Ranch Unit is 35 miles north of Medora, but the only road access is on gravel roads. The park service recommends speaking with a ranger and getting a
before driving out to
Elkhorn Ranch
. If you are feeling more adventurous, you can access the ranch from the east by fording the
Little Missouri River
If you go:
Entrance fees are $10 for private noncommercial vehicles. Individual passes (hikers, cyclists and people on horseback) are $5. The park offers a
variety of events, places to visit and outdoor activities
The park is open every day except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Parts of the South Unit Scenic Loop Drive and North Unit Scenic Road
during winter.
There are three visitor centers: North Unit, South Unit and Painted Canyon. South Unit and Painted Canyon are open seven days a week. However, the North Unit visitor center is only open on weekends from September 2 to May 31.
Meet our ranger:
Valerie Naylor, 55, was born in Portland, Oregon, and says she knew in high school that she wanted to be a naturalist.
In 1973, she passed through Theodore Roosevelt on one of many vacations she took with her parents. But her mother didn't share Naylor's immediate interest in the park and they quickly moved on.
"I was enthralled with the landscape in this park," she says. "But I thought, 'That's OK, I'll come back here someday.' "
She returned in 1979 as a volunteer for a student conservation association. She then worked as a seasonal park employee for two years and later used the park as a research laboratory for a master's degree in biology at the University of North Dakota.
Naylor became a full-time National Park Service employee in 1985 and returned to her "home park" in 2003 as superintendent.
"The Little Missouri River, the prairie and the wildlife make it exceptional," she says. "It also has the history of Theodore Roosevelt, who was a great conservation president."
Naylor has also worked at
Colorado National Monument
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument
, Badlands National Park,
Petrified Forest National Park
Big Bend National Park
Scotts Bluff National Monument
For a day trip, don't miss:
Hiking the Caprock Coulee in the North Unit. The park
website lists
the 4-mile trail as moderate to strenuous. Less experienced hikers can take the Caprock Coulee Nature Trail, a 1.5-mile shortened version. Be sure to go in the early morning or late evening to maximize the chance to see wildlife, says Naylor.
Favorite less-traveled spot:
Elkhorn Ranch Unit
. Naylor says the 218 acres are the most historically significant part of the park because it's where Roosevelt built his second ranch.
Roosevelt's first ranch was centered around the
Maltese Cross Cabin
, which has been moved from its original site and is now a museum. He made a second trek to North Dakota's Badlands in 1884 after his wife and mother died on Valentine's Day
With one cattle ranch already established in North Dakota, he chose a trek of land next to the Little Missouri River for the Elkhorn Ranch.
"It's a beautiful unspoiled place along the Little Missouri that is much like it was when Roosevelt first found it in 1884," she says. "And we're trying very hard to keep it that way."
Favorite spot to view wildlife:
Prairie dog town in the South Unit. In addition to prairie dogs, the park is home to a several species of deer, a variety of birds, coyotes, bobcats, beavers, badgers, rattlesnakes, elk, wild horses and bison.
"Prairie dogs provide food and shelter for so many animals that they are a great place to see other wildlife," says Naylor.
Naylor says prairie dog holes are used by snakes, amphibians, burrowing owls and insect. The holes also cause vegetation changes, which provide grazing for bison.
Most magical moment in the park:
In the summer of 1979, when Naylor spent her first year as a volunteer working in the visitor center conducting programs and sharing park history with guests.
"I did not intend to make it a career," she says. "But after spending the summer working at a national park, I had no other aspirations. And it was this park that did it for me."
Funniest moment at the park:
Seeing a bison calf become confused about his mother's identity.
"I once watched a bison calf run across the prairie to mom -- fast as he could go," she says. "When he got about 15 feet, he stopped, turned 90 degrees and ran to another one. That was one of the most amazing things I have seen. It was both interesting and funny."
A ranger's request:
The park is home to a
variety of wildlife
. Understand that the bison are the most dangerous animals in the park, even though they look docile and calm.
"They can run faster than a horse and turn on a dime," she says. "Generally, if an animal reacts to your presence, you are too close. They (bison) do charge humans."
Another park she'd like to visit:
Lava Beds National Monument
, California. Located in the high desert of Northern California, it is known for Native American cave art and as one of North America's most continuously occupied geographic areas.
Naylor says her goal is to visit every national park and estimates she's been to more than half of them.
"I like large, wide-open landscapes, and it sounds like a fascinating place," she says. "I like to go anywhere I haven't been before."
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
How to (Almost) Painlessly Troubleshoot Your Client Sites
UX Design 2016: Too Many Hunters – Not Enough Gatherers?
Does Your Landing Page Target Prospects but Forget Customers?
The Trolley Problem: Will Our Cars Grow up to Be Heroes?
Is Sympli the Design Collaboration Tool That Developers Won't Hate?
Adobe XD Repeat Grids Tutorial: Importing Assets Pain-Free
4 Ways Uber Wins UX by Killing Friction
SitePoint/Flippa Hack Day: Hacking our First IoT Project
The 4 Unique Design Challenges of IoT
How the Humble Speech Bubble Will Transform Our Future UIs
Are Colors Born Bad or Do We Make Them That Way?
5 Bankable UX Lessons from Brick and Mortar Store Design
5 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About Conversational UIs
Conversational UIs, R2-D2 and Avoiding the Uncanny Valley
What was the first 'killer phone app'? I'm talking about first non-voice offering that had droves of people buying mobile phones for the first time just to use it?
Was it Google Maps? Maybe the YouTube app? Bejewelled? Facebook?
No - as important as they were, I think the original killer app has to be SMS (or texting). Sending little notes to each other doesn't sound very innovative or exciting, but from the early 90's onwards, SMS drove the adoption of cellphones and provided an obscenely lucrative revenue stream to phone network providers.
People seemed to like SMS for three reasons.
- It was private
- It was simple
- It felt familiar
We all probably passed notes in class and stuck them on the refrigerator door. SMS just let us pass them across the world.
Many of the first big online services for desktop computers used the same chatty approach - ICQ, Yahoo IM, AIM, and MSN Messenger.
Even today Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp Twitter, and Slack have billions of users every day tapping out short text messages to each other.
What can we say? Humans really like this format.
Birth of the Conversational User Interface
The last two years have seen the rise of a new kind of user interface. Slack were one of the first companies to realize that this 'human-to-human' chat format might work just as well for human-to-app interactions.
Instead of using a standard account creation sign-up form, Slack used their 'Slackbot' like a welcoming hotel concierge.
And it made so much sense. They want you to chat - why not start chatting from the first moments you use the app? The idea has been reproduced many times since.
Quartz: Chatty News App
Quartz is a new news app (currently iOS only) that takes the idea of conversational UIs to a new level.
While Slack was a chat client just expanding where it chatted, Quartz jams news events into an SMS-like format. It's a bit like having a friend SMSing you newspaper snippets to read on the train. You can ask your friend for more detail on the story or tell them to move on.
While I'm not totally convinced yet that Quartz is a winner, it is a brilliantly original way to think about presenting news. It's loose and informal and easily the most clutter-free news UI you've ever seen. Each time you read a new message and make a yes/no decision - Quartz handles the rest. Interesting.
One interesting little UI touch is the 'typing' indicator that appears just before Quartz posts a new message to screen – three drumming dots inside a speech bubble (see the animation below).
We're all familiar with this idea. In real world conversations, we can signal with body language that we're about to speak. In chat apps from ICQ in 1996 to Slack today, we get a visual indicator that the other person is in the act of replying. It's a useful protocol.
But this is an app speaking to us - not a friend or colleague.
Now let's be frank: We all implicitly understand that this is all 'UX theater' for our benefit. Even my 10-yo daughter immediately picked it. There's nobody banging away at a real keyboard.
So, how do we feel about that?
I'm not sure about you, but I've been surprised by my own gut reaction. My designer brain tells me I should be dismissive and snarky. "Bah! How dare you slow down my experience with such feeble parlor tricks!" (yes, my designer brain sounds like Professor Moriarty)
But my UX-self started grudgingly liking it - and I couldn't understand why at first.


text:
Spectrum 10th Anniversary
From Spectrum
This wiki gives current Spectrum scholars and Spectrum alumni the ability to collaborate in the planning of Spectrum's 10th Anniversary.
Spectrum Events Calendar
- 2007 Spectrum Leadership Institute, June 20-22, 2007, Marriott Hotel Crystal Gateway, 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Virginia 22202. For schedule, featured speakers and travel information, please visit the 2007 Spectrum Leadership Institute wiki.
- Spectrum Advisory Committee Business Meeting, Friday, 3:30-5:30pm, JW Marriott, Cannon Room
- Many Voices, One Nation: Washington D.C., Friday, 7:00 pm - 10:00pm, JW Marriott, Salon I & II. Free, no registration required.
- Spectrum Scholar Interest Group Business Meeting, Saturday, 8:00 am - 10:00am, Renaissance Mayflower, Senate Room
- The Original Wireless Connection: Involvement and networking within professional organizations, Saturday, 1:30 pm - 3:30pm, Madison Hotel, Dolly Madison Lower. Sponsored by Spectrum Scholar Interest Group.
- ALA/ProQuest Scholarship Bash, Saturday, at 8:00 pm, Hilton Washington International Ballroom
- Spectrum 10th Anniversary Luncheon featuring Nikki Giovanni, Sunday, June 24, 11:00am - 1:00pm, Capital Hilton, Presidential Ballroom. Tickets: $55
- 10 Years Later—Where Are They Now?: Spectrum Scholars Shining in the Field, Sunday, 1:30-3:30pm, Capital Hilton, Congressional. Sponsored by Spectrum Scholar Interest Group.
- DIVERSIONS tour of Washington D.C., Monday, 8:30am - 3:30pm, SOLD OUT. Participants please meet in the L Street Lobby area outside of the Washington Convention Center between 8:10-8:25 and look for the bus marked DIVERSIONS. The bus will depart promptly at 8:30pm. Proceeds benefit the Spectrum Scholarship endowment.
Spectrum Event Volunteers
Colleagues, please follow the linked event name to see your volunteer responsibilities. If you have signed up, we need you to attend! Thank you.
Anniversary Activities by Planning Group
Spectrum 10th Anniversary Committee Projects
- Spectrum 10th Anniversary Luncheon
- Auction/Raffle/Gift Bags
- DIVERSIONS Tour
- Spectrum Video
- Additional Off-Site Event
- Planning Committee
Spectrum Scholar Interest Group Projects
Spectrum Awareness and Publicity
Midwinter 2007
- Barrera, Ofilia. "The Spectrum Connection". Cognotes (January 20, 2007, p. 24)
- Anniversary Balloon Drop-Offs
Annual 2007
- Recognition of Spectrum at ALA ProQuest Scholarship Bash
- Spectrum presence at ALA Membership Booth on Exhibits Floor for Meet 10 at 10!
- Spectrum Scholars Attending ALA Annual
- RUSA Update, Summer 2007 features article on Spectrum
- Flier for Distribution
- Official Spectrum 10th Anniversary logo (Web-friendly)


text:
Flush with cash, Democrat Barack Obama has spent months trying to expand the battleground in the 2008 presidential elections. Ad buys in normally Republican states like Montana, North Dakota, and Alaska signaled a bold effort to turn the usual 10-or 11-state map of swing states into a 20-state contest.
Now, following a whirlwind two weeks of back-to-back conventions and a stunning vice presidential pick by Republican John McCain, both nominees have consolidated their bases of support. And the likelihood is that, with a few exceptions, the 2008 battleground will look similar to 2004.
"We're probably talking about a race that is very much about the Great Lakes and Mountain West regions," says Evan Tracey, a political media specialist and founder of Campaign Media Analysis Group in Arlington, Va.
Demographic shifts have nudged traditionally Republican Colorado and Virginia onto the map, with the campaigns planning plenty of appearances in both states. But a look at the 11 states in 2004 that were decided by a margin of victory of fewer than 6 points provides a basis for assessing 2008. Of those 11 states, Democratic nominee John Kerry won six: New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Oregon. President Bush won New Mexico, Nevada, Iowa, Florida, and Ohio.
In 2008, Oregon is on no one's list of battlegrounds, and is expected to go for Obama. Of the others, pundits disagree on the degree to which various states are in play. Michigan, for one, with its deeply struggling economy, should be in the Democrats' back pocket, but Senator McCain has played well there in the past. Same goes for Pennsylvania.
McCain's choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a cultural conservative with a charismatic persona, could help the GOP ticket in the rural portions of those two states. But the degree to which independent and swing voters are receptive to her persuasion remains uncertain.
"Rural Pennsylvanians are Republican," says Byron Shafer, political science chair at the University of Wisconsin. "Republicans are going around scooping up Republicans. In order to carry Pennsylvania, you have to win a big chunk of the Hillary vote."
In the end, he adds, it's a stretch to see many supporters of Sen. Hillary Clinton, who beat Obama soundly in Pennsylvania's Democratic primary, being swayed by Governor Palin, whose policy positions hold little in common with Clinton's.
Florida, the final battleground of 2000, is another question mark in 2008. Susan MacManus, a political scientist at the University of South Florida in Tampa, views her state as still very much in play. Democrats have the edge in voter registration, but she discounts self-identified Democrats in the Panhandle, since many vote Republican for president. So essentially, voter registration is even there.
McCain's military profile makes him strong in Florida, which has a large active and retired military presence. But South Florida remains a Democratic stronghold, with a large Hispanic population and many transplants from the Northeast.
Still, Mr. Tracey, the media analyst, notes that Obama has spent millions of dollars in Florida – $9 million from mid-June to right before the conventions – "without moving the needle." It's possible that, without such spending, Obama would have fallen behind in Florida, but as Election Day gets closer, he will have to decide where he gets the best value for his money.
"Obama is up in the Tampa and Orlando markets," says Tracey. "Those are the biggest undecided markets in the state. But obviously, if you're trying to win a state, you need more than those markets."
The most intriguing battleground, in some ways, is Virginia, which has gone from solid R in the presidential race four years ago to a toss-up on many pundit lists – the result of a population explosion in the moderate northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.
Four years ago, the state had two Republican senators. Now, it has one Democratic senator, Jim Webb, and looks likely to elect its second, former Gov. Mark Warner. Those two men, plus popular Democratic Gov. Tim Kaine, give the state's Democrats a sense of momentum.
Independent pollster John Zogby is looking to Virginia as a possible bellwether in November. Right now, the average of major polls, as calculated by RealClearPolitics.com, shows an absolute tie in Virginia between Obama and McCain.
"If either candidate starts to pull away in Virginia, and we get clarity in Virginia, we'll get clarity in a lot of those other states," says Mr. Zogby.
Another big factor heading into the fall is money. Obama is not taking federal financing, and his funding juggernaut has shown no signs of slowing. When McCain announced Palin as his veep pick – a move to court conservatives that alarmed the Democratic base – millions of dollars flowed into Obama's coffers overnight.
McCain is sticking with the federal presidential funding program, which limits the amount of money at his disposal. If the Republican Party and sympathetic independent groups can make up the slack, McCain may be able to match Obama's ads in key states. But if not, Obama could outgun McCain in the battlegrounds, and push him back in some of the outlying states he is still hoping for, such as Georgia and North Carolina.
By the end of this week, says Tracey, as the race settles down from the conventions, the battlegrounds should be clear. But for now, with the overall horse race showing Obama up by an average of fewer than 2 points, this one is too close to call.


text:
Bob Forrest is known for a lot of things in Carlsbad, a quiet city of 25,000 on the edge of New Mexicos empty, endless Chihuahuan Desert. He was mayor here for 16 years. Hes chairman of the local bank and owns the spanking new Fairfield Inn, which sits next to the new Chilis and the new Wal-Mart.
And he helped bring 200,000 tons of deadly nuclear waste to town.
Thats not a bad thingat least not here. Unlike thousands of other places in America, where the thought of trucking in barrels of radioactive garbage from atomic weapons plants would lead to marches, face paint and, invariably, pandering politicians (witness Nevadas stalled Yucca Mountain project), Carlsbad has a different take. Its really a labor of love, says Forrest. Weve proven that nuclear waste can be disposed of in a safe, reliable way.
This attitudeYes in my backyard, if you willhas brought near permanent prosperity to this isolated spot that until recently had no endemic economic engine. Unemployment sits at 3.8%, versus 6.5% statewide and 8.5% nationally. And thanks to this projecteuphemistically known as the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPPNew Mexico has received more than $300 million in federal highway funds in the past decade, $100 million of which has gone into the roads around Carlsbad. WIPP is the nations only permanent, deep geologic repository for nuclear waste. The roads have to be good for the two dozen trucks a week hauling in radioactive drums brimming with the plutonium-laden detritus of Americas nuclear weapons production.
Before WIPP the areas economy was mostly limited to potash mining, oil and gas drilling, and a passel of tourists stopping on the way to Carlsbad Caverns, an hour south. The Department of Energys $6 billion program created 1,300 permanent jobs, many of them high-paid engineering positions. Energys annual budget for WIPP is $215 million, much of which stays in the community as wages. The leaders of neighboring Lea and Eddy counties have doubled down on the nuke biz, establishing a 1,000-acre atomic industrial park. Already uranium fuel maker Urenco Group has built a $3 billion fabrication plant there, employing 300. More amenities followed, too: In November Carlsbad inaugurated the Bob Forrest Youth Sports Complex. We are not blinded by the jobs, says John Waters, director of the department of economic development for Eddy County. We know what we have. We know the risks. We have a very educated public.
But if Carlsbads story showcases the upside of being willing to do the nations dirty work, it also demonstrates how difficult it can be to get the chance to do so. Since opening in 1999, WIPP has operated so smoothly and safely that Carlsbad is lobbying the feds to expand the project to take the nuclear mother lode: 160,000 more tons of the worst high-level nuclear waste in the countrythings like the half-melted reactor core of Three Mile Island and old nuclear fuel rodsthat are residing at aging nuke plants a short drive from wherever youre sitting right now.
Yet thanks to politics even more radioactive than the material itself, it hasnt happened yet and might not happen anytime soon. Though taxpayers have already spent some $12 billion mining out and engineering Yucca Mountain, 90 miles from Las Vegas, power brokers in Nevada fought the congressionally approved project from the get-go. Bowing to Nimbyand Nevadas powerful Senator Harry Reidtwo years ago President Barack Obamas Administration declared Yucca DOA. Contractors have since laid off some 1,000 workers there.
To seek some common ground Obama then set up the Blue Ribbon Commission on Americas Nuclear Future. The BRC, as its known, is tasked with looking at all the options. It likes WIPPa lot. According to its draft report last summer the BRC will insist that a consent-based approach be applied to any future site selection. WIPP, it wrote, is a model of how that can be done.
Cue the politics. New Mexico, in agreeing to WIPP, required that Congress enshrine in law a promise that the feds would not send high-level waste into the state. WIPP wont be the next Yucca unless that issue is wrangled, and reversed, by Albuquerque, Washington or anyone else with skin in the game. If they pay any attention, that is. Im absolutely incredulous that so few opinion makers even know that WIPP exists, says former New Mexico Senator Pete Domenici, who sits on the BRC and is a friend of Forrest.
Photograph: Chip Simons
Still, science appears to be on the boosters side. Carlsbad has a Goldilocks geology that is the best solution yet found for entombing nuclear waste safely. Yucca Mountains volcanic tuff is prone to cracks and faults from seismic activity, which might, over thousands of years, let water seep in. Salt, on the other hand, is nearly impervious to seismic activity, quickly healing any cracks or faults and remaining completely impermeablewith no way for any water to get in or for any radiation to escape. Carlsbad sits atop the biggest salt deposit in America, stretching from New Mexico clear to Kansas. It was deposited 250 million years ago in the Permian period, when the seas receded from the shore of the ancient continent Pangea. The salt has lain undisturbed ever since.
In the 1970s the Department of Energy floated the idea of mining out a nuclear repository in the salt under centrally located Lyons, Kans. The people didnt want it; Three Mile Island didnt help. Carlsbad made more sense; its 3,000-foot salt layer is the thickest in the country. And the state has a nuclear history as home to the Manhattan Project. The Los Alamos and Sandia national labs continue to do a lot of nuclear work. Whats more, the people of Carlsbad know salt; theyve been mining it since 1930 to go after seams of potasha mineral in high demand as fertilizer.
Carlsbads current mayor, Dale Janway, worked for 30 years as a safety director at the Intrepid mine, which he describes as an underground city with a claustrophobic warren of tunnels and rooms. All told, Carlsbads potash mines hold more than 1,000 miles of tunnels covering 100 square miles. Compared with going after potash, says Janway, digging a spacious mine to hold drums of waste is easy. The miners were all for it.
Forrest and other Carlsbad leaders saw what billions in federal investment could do for their townand their businesses. Forrest moved to Carlsbad in the 1940s; his father started a chain of tire shops, Forrest Tires. Today, in addition to the Fairfield Inn, his family owns the aging Best Western hotel nearby and controls Carlsbad National Bank, of which hes chairman of the board. Having grown up selling tires, says Forrest, Ive been a salesman all my life, and WIPP is something Ive sold. He rejects the idea that hes the face of WIPP. We dont really have a face; our whole group supports it so heavily. Dinner with Mayor Janway and dozens of other pro-WIPP Carlsbadians on steak night at the Elks Lodge backs him up.
Still, it wasnt easy to sell WIPP to the rest of the state. Folks in Albuquerque and Santa Fe didnt see why they should allow trucks to traverse their roads with other states waste. When Forrest in 1990 took busloads of Carlsbadians to Albuquerque for hearings on the plan, protesters threw rocks at the bus. A common sign at the time in the windows of Santa Fe and Taos art galleries: Another business against WIPP.
To win them over, the Energy Department brought its custom-built waste-hauling canisters to Albuquerque for punishing tests. Dropped from 30 feet onto concrete slabs, smashed into steel spikes, broiled for 30 minutes in a jet-fuel infernonothing fazed them. New Mexicos then Representative Bill Richardson (later governor) dragged his feet on WIPP; Senator Domenici pushed for it in Washington. At last Energy agreed, and Congress decreed that no high-level waste would be brought to WIPP. No big deal: Congress had already ordered that stuff sent to Yucca.
Forrest says Carlsbad and DOE have contended continuously with 15 different oversight groups throughout the construction and operation of WIPP. We were in a fishbowl. They were consulted on anything that happened at WIPP, says Forrest. I dont have a problem with it, but you couldnt run a business like that.
On Mar. 26, 1999 the townsfolk of Carlsbad gathered to cheer the first truck to deliver waste to WIPP. Then, as now, it passed through barbed-wire gates and armed guards to deposit its load in one of a series of giant hangar buildings, the most secure of which has concrete-reinforced walls 4.5 feet thick. Inside, past the airlocks, I was half-expecting workers in moon suits, but its just jeans and steel toes. The drums they handlefilled with scraps of machinery, rags, sludge and clothing contaminated with plutonium have been packed at the Energy Departments labs in Idaho and South Carolina. You can stand next to most drums without concern. Others are so hot they can only be handled by heavily shielded machines.
The drums final resting place is down an elevator 2,150 feet into the salt. Its dark, dusty, dry. Unlike Carlsbad Caverns, there are no stalactites or stalagmites and no dripping water. WIPPs tunnels and rooms have 15-foot ceilings, enough to stack drums three high. So far its swallowed 10,200 shipments totaling 200,000 tons impregnated with 5 tons of plutonium. To get that stuff to WIPP drivers have logged 12 million miles with loaded trucks and 10 million miles empty. Drivers work in pairs when hauling full loads and cant get hired if theyve ever had a traffic violation. There have been three accidents in 13 years. In the worst, a driver jackknifed with an empty load. The waste container performed as designed, detached from the truck and rolled to a stop. No damage.
Photograph: Chip Simons
Likewise, only a few mishaps down in the salt. In 1995 a worker broke his leg in an electric cart accident. In 2008 a forklift operator gouged an inch-long gash in a drum. No radiation escaped the thick plastic bag inside. None has escaped WIPP, either. All the air that circulates out of the WIPP buildings passes through HEPA filters. Carlsbads monitoring center picked up heightened levels of radioactive iodine in the air weeks after Japans Fukushima disaster but hasnt yet sniffed any leakage from WIPP.
WIPPs salt tomb is a simple, passive solution to a tough problem. Contrast that with Yucca, which requires active engineering to work. Though the mountains volcanic tuff is three times stronger than concrete, it features lots of cracks and faults that could allow water to slowly trickle through. Over thousands of years those trickles could pick up radiation and carry it into groundwater. To cope, Energy Department engineers designed a drip shield that would deflect the water. To resist thousands of years of corrosion, however, the shield would have to be made from titaniumso much titanium that it could be irresistible to future scavengers. One person who has worked on both Yucca and WIPP says the titanium solution would negate a primary objective of a repository: ensuring that people leave it alone. If its 1,000 years from now and the U.S. doesnt exist, and I dont know what that titanium is protecting, Im gonna go get it. In contrast, even if future generations wanted to dig down a half-mile, theres nothing at WIPP worth poking around for.
Whats more, building out Yucca to hold 100,000 tons of high-level waste would cost on the order of $80 billion, figures Jim Conca, a consultant with RJ Lee Group who previously worked as director of repository science for the Energy Department. Entombing the same waste in a WIPP 2.0 would cost less than $30 billion. The feds have already collected nearly that much from nuclear reactor owners for the Nuclear Waste Fund. Only in salt is the annual revenue from the fund sufficient to accomplish this program without additional taxes or rate hikes, says Conca.
Even if the moneys there, and the will, theres still a lingering question of how the salt would react when in contact with canisters of high-level waste, 600 degrees hot. New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez has said she tentatively supports expanding the mission of WIPP but only on the condition that science must be the decision maker. What could go wrong?
Trapped within the salt are microscopic pockets of 250-million-year-old seawater. Because heat increases the solubility of salt in water, the more heat, the more salt dissolved. One theory suggests that high heat will attract nearby water toward the waste canisters, potentially corroding them. Ned Elkins, Los Alamos labs chief salt repository scientist, who works at WIPP, says all current modeling indicates that neither the heat nor water should pose any significant problems, but we have to let the science speak for itself, to erase all doubt. The DOE has begun a $40 million study to prove it out, but conclusive results will take at least three years. I sure hope it doesnt take that long, says Senator Domenici. So close and yet so far.
Good thing Forrest and crew have plenty to work on while they wait. Theyve already attracted Urenco and its fuel plant to their nuclear industrial park. Now theyre seeking to build a surface-level facility to store used nuclear fuel rods in 100-ton, 15-foot-tall steel-and-concrete casks. Many reactors already use these dry casks to free up room in their cooling ponds. Theyre impervious to attack; crashing a plane into one would be as effective as throwing an egg at a fire hydrant. If the counties manage to guide that project through regulatory hurdles, their next dream is to attract a reprocessing plant, which would take the 95% of energy still left in old rods and turn it into new ones. France and Japan do this, but the practice is banned in the U.S. because it yields tiny volumes of ultrabad waste that could be devastating in the wrong hands.
Congressman Steve Pearce (RN.M.) remains more circumspect, reflecting the doublespeak that Nimby coerces: Im supportive, but everything said today might have to be unsaid tomorrow. Theres the politics of the nation, politics of state, politics of local, and all have to align.
Pearce says hes focused on making sure theres enough funding for WIPP to do its original job. The Energy Departments budget for the project has fallen in recent years from $250 million to $215 million; last year WIPP contractors shed 130 workers; those who remain are handling fewer shipments and less waste than before.
Does this make any sense? Once its here and down that hole, the storage costs at other facilities go down dramatically, says a Department of Energy official, pointing to the 21 nuclear facilities across the country that have been cleaned up entirely after their waste was shipped to WIPP. There are nine sites left. They should save money for the nation by sending us stuff as quickly as possible.
Forrest finds the whole thing ridiculous. Its the obvious choice. We want this to be the next Yucca Mountain; we are tired of waiting, he says. The way he sees it, WIPP has proven itself to be an ideal resting place for the stuff, while the people of Carlsbad have proven that theyre comfortable with it. The federal government, he says, should jump at the chance to shut the book on Yucca. We are addressing a national issue, says Forrest. Why is this such a hard sell?
On JAN. 18 FORBES contributor Joel Kotkin wrote
Two Americas, At War With Each Other
America has two economies, and the division increasingly defines its politics. One, concentrated on the coasts and in college towns, focuses on the business of images, digits and transactions. The other, located largely in the Southeast, Texas and the Heartland, makes its living from agriculture manufacturing to fossil fuel development. Traditionally these two economies coexisted without interfering with each other. Thats changing. The Obama Administrations move to block the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico is a classic expression of the conflict. The Nimby model suffers severe limitations. For one thing, these highcost areas lag in creating middle-skilled jobs; New York and San Francisco, for example, have suffered the largest percentage declines in manufacturing employment of the nations 51 largest metropolitan areas. Indeed with the exception of Seattle, the Nimby regions have all underperformed the national average in job creation for well over a decade. If the Nimby regions want to maintain their values, that should be their prerogative. But stomping on the potential of other, less fashionable areas seems neither morally nor socially justifiable.
MACWELL RESPONDS Americans have allowed a small minority to dictate what the rest of us can eat, drink, smoke, where we can go and how we must live. Its because of career politicians. These so-called representatives of the people, who only care about their next election, trade votes like so many baseball cards regardless of how their votes affect Americans.
DWAINWR RESPONDS Joel, while I agree with everything that you say about America having two different economic cultures, that has little to do with Obamas decision to block the Keystone pipeline. Obama blocked it primarily because it would cross through the Ogallala Aquifer, predominately in Nebraska. There were substantial objections to the pipeline from farmers and ranchers in Nebraskahardly a group of postindustrial urbaniteswho were concerned about water contamination.
MICHAELSONDERGARD SAYS I see it as an economic war between those who want the United States to fail and those who want to see the United States succeed. Plenty of people in this country are embarrassed about our wealth and success. Our power and influence in world affairs needs to be diminished. Our military is too large. For decades weve plundered the worlds resources and polluted our precious Earth. Weve been BAD! Our current Community-Organizer-In-Chief falls into this group.
PJSAUBER SAYS Wow, you buy the Obama socialist antibusiness redherring lies line hook, line and sinker.
When it comes to doing the countrys dirty work, Carlsbad is hardly alone. Hard-pressed areas across the country are coming to the grown-up conclusion that they will never become hotbeds for venture capital or attract Stanford or
The dichotomy is biggest in states enjoying oil and gas booms brought about by the hydraulic fracking revolution. Since 2009 Pennsylvania has seen gas-drilling jobs explode from 60,000 to 160,000 and related economic activity jump from $4.7 billion to $13 billion a year. North Dakota has an unemployment rate of just 3.5% (lowest in the U.S.), and in the past year has seen oil and gas employment increase 39% and construction jobs 20%. In contrast, in New York State, where the state budget is an annual apocalypse and the economy is ever more beholden to Wall Streets boom-and-bust cycles, politicians still cant muster the will to shoulder the risks and allow gas fracking, though studies show it would create 40,000 jobs in some of the states most depressed regions--for 30 years. California could solve its fiscal problems if it unlocked its oil and gas, but just try to permit anything in Santa Barbara, says Kotkin. Not everyone in America is afraid to get their hands dirty. Here are five Yimby capitals:
Boom Town for the Bakken Shale, Williston is drawing workers from all over the nation. Oilfield hands make more than $100,000 a year. The number of drilling rigs is up fivefold in two years.
Laissez-faire zoning laws make it easy to tear down old and build new. Houstons port complex hosts massive refineries, while busy factories build the gear that feeds the shale gas boom.
It might be better named Penal for its half-dozen privately operated prisons that employ thousands. The ranks of the unemployed are swelled by families of inmates who move nearby. The county is also wooing
Governor John Kasich is a fracking fan and booster for gas drilling in the Utica Shale. Shell Oil is thinking of building a world-scale petrochem plant there, while Vallourec and
A cap-ex boom has followed in the wake of destruction left by Hurricane Katrina. Steel giant


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Learn more about Confederate Monuments
In 2017, several protests erupted in Charlottesville, VA after the City Council there voted to remove a statue of Robert E Lee. The statue was built in 1924 as a tribute to Lee who was the commander of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia from 1862 to 1865. After the protests cities Wisconsin, North Carolina, New York City and Kentucky all voted to remove confederate statues. Opponents of the statue's removal argue that the statues are a part of Civil War History. Proponents of their removal argue that the statues are racists since they idolize individuals who fought to keep slavery in the U.S. See recent Confederate Monuments news


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Ratings & Reviews
The Hill was unfairly subjected to ridicule by the more obtuse "critics" of 1965 who harped on the fact that it starred Sean Connery and, unlike Connery's Bond pictures, had no women in it. Bypassing these cretinous comments, it must be noted that The Hill is an above-the-norm entry in the "military prison" genre. The film takes place during World War II, in a Libyan stockade for incorrigible British soldiers. The camp's brutal Sergeant Major (Harry Andrews) puts his charges to work on grueling, monotonous and pointless projects to break their spirits. When one rebellious inmate dies due to this treatment, the Sergeant Major is reprimanded by Joe Roberts (Connery), who has been appointed as the prisoners' spokesman. The result is that Roberts is likewise subjected to the most demeaning and humiliating of prison chores -- but his spirit, and that of his comrades, is not so easily crushed. Based on a TV play by Ray Rigby, The Hill should never be seen in any form other than its dusty, parched original black-and-white; the currently available colorized version is a crime against humanity. One problem: The British dialects in the first 20 minutes are so thick that an American viewer practically needs subtitles (British critics chalked this problem up not to elocution but to poor sound recording). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Cast & Crew
- Sean Connery - Joe Roberts
- Harry Andrews - Sgt. Major Wilson
- Ian Bannen - Sgt. Charlie Harris
- Alfred Lynch - George Stevens
- Ossie Davis - Jacko King


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Last weekend, Apple sold over 5 million iPhone 5's according to a press release they issued. Currently the iPhone 5 is available in the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, and Australia. On Friday it's expected that Apple will release the iPhone 5 to 22 more countries.
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Turn your backyard in the neighborhood's hottest restaurant with the ProFire 36" Grill with Rotisserie Side Burner and Grids - LP! The removable Sear Magic cooking grids will make your steaks and burgers look as delicious as they taste while the commercial-grade stainless steel construction will ensure your ProFire grill will be the last grill you ever need to buy!
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Jennie Grillo, assistant professor of Old Testament at Duke Divinity School, has received a 2014 Manfred Lautenschlaeger Award for Theological Promise and also a W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research fellowship to conduct research in Israel.
Grillo was one of 10 recipients of the Lautenschlaeger Award for her first book, The Story of Israel in the Book of Qohelet: Ecclesiastes as Cultural Memory, published in 2012 by Oxford University Press. The book challenges the widespread understanding of Ecclesiastes as a book in the Bible that secularizes and denationalizes the concept of God. In Grillo's account, reading Ecclesiastes as a learned essay in processing Israel's cultural memory reveals its strong ties to the rest of Jewish and Christian Scripture.
The Lautenschlaeger Award is given annually to 10 scholars from across academic disciplines. Previous winners have included Duke Divinity School Professors Kavin Rowe and Anathea Portier-Young.
This year's winners are based at institutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Israel, and Finland. They also include Matthew Thiessen, a graduate of Duke University's Ph.D. program in religion who is now an assistant professor of New Testament at St. Louis University.
The 10 award recipients will receive $10,000 each at a ceremony in May at the University of Heidelberg in Germany.
In the second award, Grillo was selected by the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem as the George A. Barton Fellow for 2014-15 to conduct research in Israel for her new book, a study of centuries of Jewish and Christian interpretation of the longer Greek text of the book of Daniel in the Bible. The institute provides a base for a broad range of American-led scholarly research projects in Near Eastern studies from prehistory to the early Islamic period in the Middle East.
"I have loved working on both of these projects because each allows me to look closely at a tightly-compressed, beautifully-wrought piece of Scripture," said Grillo, "although that is very often a way into much larger questions."
Grillo noted the importance of being able to read the Bible in company with the Jewish and Christian communities that have received it as their scripture. "In my work so far, that has mostly been through early Christian exegesis or rabbinic texts, but I am excited about having the chance to spend time in Israel to look too at material culture. I hope that the responses to the book of Daniel I will see there in ancient mosaic and stone can enrich my own reading and writing about the text."


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Sunday, 14 September 2014
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A documentary by
Hannah Weyer
US, 2002, 53 minutes, Color, DVD, Spanish/English, Subtitled
Order No. W03773
There are over 800,000 students enrolled in migrant education programs in the United States and, of those, only 45-50% ever finish high school. ESCUELA, the sequel to Hannah Weyer�s critically acclaimed documentary LA BODA, personalizes these glaring statistics through the honest portrait of a teenage Mexican-American farm worker, Liliana Luis.
ESCUELA is a clear-eyed view into the lives of contemporary Mexican American migrants and their struggles to educate their children while obtaining employment. Centered around the life of Liliana, a daughter entering her first year of high school, Hannah Weyer follows the back-and-forth movement of the family between their home in Texas near the borderlands and the California agricultural fields. Despite the best efforts of the school systems to accommodate students like Liliana, the social and emotional life of this young woman is constantly in flux. This is an important work revealing the difficulties of girl life on the border in a way that no textbook could. - Joe Austin, Popular Culture Studies, Bowling Green University
A 2003 Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) Selected DVD for Young Adults
San Antonio Cine Festival - Special Jury Prize
South by Southwest - Special Jury Prize
Double Take Documentary Film Festival - MTV/News/Docs Award
Dallas Video Festival
Chicago Latino Film Festival
Cine Accion San Francisco International Latino Film Festival
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Broadcast Nationally on P.O.V.
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"Escuela's calm, candle-like vigilance is remarkably illuminating and deeply affecting. More important, it opens viewers to the lives of people some of us may never come in contact with, and makes us care. "
Belinda Acosta
The Austin Chronicle
"In her 2000 documentary La Boda...Hannah Weyer skillfully opened a window onto a family of Texas migrant workers...It did not overtly pull on heartstrings. In fact what was remarkable about the Luis family was the way in which it handled its plight without bitterness or self-pity....Weyer takes us back inside the Luis household, this time to focus on Elizabeth's younger sister and the impact the family's poverty is having on her education."
Mike McDaniel
Houston Chronicle
�Speaking as a veteran migrant educator, the film accurately depicts the plight of highly mobile migrant teenagers who strive to finish high school in spite of the many challenges they face.�
Pamela G. Wrigley
National Migrant Education Hotline
"Director Hannah Weyer's haunting "Escuela,"...lays out the problems of such a peripatetic life through the eyes of Liliana Luis. Rather than make sweeping statements, the hour long film simply and effectively presents Luis' experience, as her Mexican American family bounces between Texas and California."
Scott Sandell
Los Angeles Times
"Classroom shuffle. In 'Escuela,' documentary filmmaker Hannah Weyer evocatively tracks the complicated high school life of teenager Liliana Luis."
Mike Duffy
Detroit Free Press
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is included in the following Special Collections.
Both Sides of the Border
EDUCATION: Equity in Education
LABOR: Globalization, Labor and Women's Lives
A Place Called Home: Immigrants in the US
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Birth on the Border
Don't Tell Anyone (No Le Digas a Nadie)
The Learning
Maria in Nobody's Land
Ni Aqu�, Ni All� (Neither Here, Nor There)
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"Escuela" Study Guide for Teachers
A guide for those using "Escuela" in the classroom - includes with questions, extension activities and assessment standards for students.
P.O.V.'s "Escuela" Website
Includes an interview with Hannah Weyer, extensive resources on migrant workers and ways in which you can get involved with organizations working on behalf of migrant workers and migrant education.
"Escuela" Guide for Trainers
A guide for individuals training those working in migrant eduction, including counsellors, teachers, state directors of migrant education.
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It is possible that the main title of the report Sakati Syndrome is not the name you expected. Please check the synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and disorder subdivision(s) covered by this report.
Sakati syndrome is an extremely rare disorder that belongs to a group of rare genetic disorders known as "Acrocephalopolysyndactyly" (ACPS). All forms of ACPS are characterized by premature closure of the fibrous joints (cranial sutures) between certain bones of the skull (craniosynostosis), causing the top of the head to appear pointed (acrocephaly); webbing or fusion (syndactyly) of certain fingers or toes (digits); and/or more than the normal number of digits (polydactyly). In addition, Sakati syndrome, which is also known as ACPS type III, is associated with abnormalities of bones of the legs, structural heart malformations that are present at birth (congenital heart defects), and/or other findings. Sakati syndrome is thought to be caused by a new genetic change (mutation) that occurs randomly for unknown reasons (sporadically). This mutation is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait.
Children's Craniofacial Association
13140 Coit Road
Suite 517
Dallas, TX 75240
Tel: (214)570-9099
Fax: (214)570-8811
Tel: (800)535-3643
Email: email@example.com
Internet: http://www.ccakids.com
FACES: The National Craniofacial Association
PO Box 11082
Chattanooga, TN 37401
Tel: (423)266-1632
Fax: (423)267-3124
Tel: (800)332-2373
Email: email@example.com
Internet: http://www.faces-cranio.org
Forward Face, Inc.
333 East 30th Street, Lobby Unit
New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212)263-6656
Fax: (212)263-7534
Tel: (800)393-3223
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Internet: http://www.forwardface.org
Let's Face It
School of Dentistry / Dentistry Library
1011 N. University
Concord, MA 01742
Tel: (360)676-7325
Email: email@example.com
Internet: http://www.dent.umich.edu/faceit
Post Office Box 751112
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Tel: (702)769-9264
Fax: (702)341-5351
Tel: (888)486-1209
Email: email@example.com
Internet: http://www.ameriface.org
National Foundation for Facial Reconstruction
333 East 30th Street, Lobby Unit
New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212)263-6656
Fax: (212)263-7534
Internet: http://www.nffr.org
Genetic and Rare Diseases (GARD) Information Center
PO Box 8126
Gaithersburg, MD 20898-8126
Tel: (301)251-4925
Fax: (301)251-4911
Tel: (888)205-2311
Email: http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/GARD/EmailForm.aspx
Internet: http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/GARD
This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc. ® (NORD). A copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html
The information provided in this report is not intended for diagnostic purposes. It is provided for informational purposes only. NORD recommends that affected individuals seek the advice or counsel of their own personal physicians.
It is possible that the title of this topic is not the name you selected. Please check the Synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and Disorder Subdivision(s) covered by this report
This disease entry is based upon medical information available through the date at the end of the topic. Since NORD's resources are limited, it is not possible to keep every entry in the Rare Disease Database completely current and accurate. Please check with the agencies listed in the Resources section for the most current information about this disorder.
For additional information and assistance about rare disorders, please contact the National Organization for Rare Disorders at P.O. Box 1968, Danbury, CT 06813-1968; phone (203) 744-0100; web site www.rarediseases.org or email firstname.lastname@example.com
Last Updated: 2/12/2008
Copyright 1994, 2001, 2008 National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.
This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.


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Today I wanted to have fun and experiment with unconventional items to use as accessories around a hair bun. I used yellow wrapper Chupa Chups lollipops, my father's vintage bow tie, costume sunglasses, a POP swatch watch and finally a sequins patch that I bought from Spotlight. This is how it all turned out!
Hope you enjoy the pics and have a wonderful week!


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Washington, DC — The Campaign for America's Future's co-director Robert Borosage said that today's jobs numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of 120,000 new jobs shows that while we are heading in the right direction, much more needs to be done to assure a full recovery that includes Americans getting back to work at jobs that pay a living wage. He urged investing in transportation infrastructure.
Statement from Robert L. Borosage co-Director of the Campaign for America's Future:
"The March jobs report should set off alarm bells. Yes, the economy continues to grow which is a good thing. But growth at this rate barely keeps pace with new people coming into the labor market. Some 24 million people are still in need of full-time work. Incomes are not keeping pace with rising costs.
"Washington should be focused on jobs, not cuts. Yes, the stock market is up, corporate profits are up, CEO pay is soaring. But wages are losing ground, housing values continue to sink, and foreclosures are rising. The recovery has come for the few, but not for most Americans. And with youth unemployment at 25%, the young are graduating from school into the worst jobs market since the Great Depression.
"Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke was right last week when he said the economy does not have the foundation for growth at a rate that we want – and these disappointing jobs numbers illustrate that. We need action now; instead we see a Republican Congress intent on stifling the little recovery we have. With interest rates near record lows, the construction industry on its back, and our decrepit infrastructure increasingly costly, we should be launching a major project to rebuild America and put people to work. Instead, the Republican Congress can't even pass a modest transportation construction bill. With young people idled at the beginning of their work lives, we need direct government programs – a jobs corps, a green corps, an urban corps – to put them to work.
"Washington seems dangerously close to repeating the mistakes of 1937, moving prematurely to reduce deficits and constrict monetary policy, when the economy has not yet gained sufficient momentum to continue to grow. In 1937 that folly pushed the economy back into recession. In today's Europe, austerity has had the same effect. We should not ignore the lessons of history and experience."


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One woman's attempts to keep her family on an even keel financially in a time of rising prices and changing rules.
Note: I do not accept compensation from or for any company or product mentioned here. Anything I mention is from my personal experience.
Lots of freebies this month DW. Good going.God bless.
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4 User Reviews of Wind Cruise Ship
Our Silver Wind cruise from Las Palmas to Rio De Janeiro was our first experience with Silverseas. We were not impressed. We expected more from a "5 star" cruise line that is a Relaix Chateau member and recommended by Andrew Harper. The cruise was full and it seemed like the staff and the air conditioning could not keep up with all the passengers. The housekeeping staff was excellent but that was the only thing that excelled on this ship.
Our room, a vista suite at the front of the ship was spacious but a little worn. The housekeeper kept it spotless and even made me a little elephant made out of towels for my birthday. However, sometimes you could hear the anchor banging against the ship during agitated seas.
The laundry facilities are terrible. There aren't enough for all the passengers that want to do laundry so you end up waiting in the little hot room all day. This might be alleviated if they purchased new dryers. The dryers took up to 2 hours to dry a few socks and pieces of underwear. So, people were lined up waiting for dryers.
The shopis ridiculous. While things like shampoo seemed reasonable, a t-shirt cost $546 USD. Now, I don't care who designed this simple red cotton t-shirt, $546 is just too much. Thank God I didn't need to buy a sweat shirt!
The air conditioning was seriously lacking on this ship. While our cabin stayed fairly cool, everyone else was complaining. All common areas were warm and the work out room was almost unbearable if you actually wanted to work out.
The work out room is very small, hot, and lacking in variety of equipment. If all you need is an elliptical, bike, stepper, or treadmill you are set. Despite that Pilates was advertised, there was no equipment and the mat class was a joke. Clearly geared for oldsters. My beginning Pilates class was harder than their class. Also, the class times are terrible.
In the restaurant at dinner, the wait staff seemed short staffed. When we asked, one staff member told us that storage for certain items was on another floor and that was why it took so long to get a beer or sparkling water. I'm still not sure why it took so long to get tea. My poor beer drinking husband was hoping to have some good beers on this trip. Despite that the ship was filled to the rafters with Germans (wouldn't you stock up according knowing this?), they ran out of imported beers early on. At the end there was only Budweiser and Heinecken to choose from. Very gourmet. As a wine drinker, I didn't think their complimentary selection was very impressive (a lot of the wines were the ones I drink every day at home) but it was plentiful.
The tours were mediocre at best. We took 3 on this cruise. The Fernando de Noronha Archipelego tour was the best of the 3. The Lanzarote camel ride was ok but the Gorree Island tour was terrible. It seems like they could train a staff member to give that tour rather than paying a company. We had to sit through 3 translations of a very short speech that ended up taking up all our time on the island. What a waste. Also, the travel desk had lousy maps and very little information about what to do a the various ports. If you didn't do a little research first, you would have no idea what to do or where to go. The shuttle just dumped you off wherever the tourist trap crafts market was. In some places, this happened to be well located for the sites. However, in Ilheus, it wasn't all that close to the colonial town or the gorgeous beaches. In a beach town don't you think the shuttle should go there? We did.
The entertainment at night was mixed. The jazz pianist Judy Carmichael was excellent but some of the other entainment was amateurish at best. There wasn't much else to do on the boat. The disco music - featuring the very worst American disco was the awful. Amadeo, was just awful. The work out room had better music than the disco. A variety might have been nice - more modern stuff mixed in with the worst of American disco would have been easier to digest.
All in all, I didn't think it was worth the money.
My husband and I have sailed on both Silver Wind and Silver Cloud. Prior to this, we have sailed on Crystal and Princess. But we've grown to love this cruise line most of all, and try to take a cruise once per year.
They are small, carrying 290 passengers, which means you meet so many fellow shipmates. Both ships are nearly identical and just stunning in decor. They are warm ships, with mosaics and lovely paintings. The staff is very efficient, but there is always a smile.
What I love the most are the ships' suites, cabins large enough that I am always comfortable and feel right at home. There's a lovely walk-in closet and large bathroom; bathtub has jacuzzi. Crystal's penthouse suites have larger bathrooms and a separate shower as well.
The pool area is large enough for passengers, plus there's a small casino (three tables, a few slots) and two bar/lounges. I understand that the cruise line now uses a South African firm to run it's spas, a big improvement over the previous spa company I imagine.
We have yet to sail on one of Silversea's National Geographic cruises, when a writer orphotographer from the magazine is aboard, but that must be very special. On my last cruise (the Baltic) I was disappointed to find there were no on-board lecturers to make the ports more meaningful. Just a man who talked about pearls.
We've cruised in the Baltic and Mediterranean with Silverseas and both cruises were perfect. We visit some of the traditional ports and a few that are smaller, but charming and unspoiled.
The food is very, very good and the service is warm and very friendly. We found one seating at dinner and met new friends throughout the cruise. For lunch and breakfast, many chose to dine in the more casual Veranda restaurant, which has buffet. The made-to-order pasta was outstanding. Several nights after particularly long and tiring days ashore we chose to dine in our stateroom. It was served splendidly -- the small coffee table in our cabin folded out into a good size dining table and the steward served us course-by-course. Afterward, we had brandy on the balcony as the waves lapped against the ship. I don't think I've ever been so happy or serene.
Could not understand why there were no reviews on this line. Just came back from the Silver Wind Fall Foliage Cruise and yes we did have one complaint. Which is not bad considering how much there is to complain about. Our Complaint? Ah yes the problem was that the leaves hadn't turned yet!!!! We have been on 19 different cruises and Silverseas came as close as possible to a 10 which I refuse to give because no one is perfect!
I should add that the other passengers were great (nearly all seniors) and they wanted to keep it a deep dark secret as nearly all had been on 3 or more Silversea cruises!
I had an enjoyable, and in some ways memorable, cruise on the Silver Wind from Villefranche to Piraeus, June 8 to 15, 2003. The food was usually good and some was excellent, the wines and wine stewards were an education, and the Silver Wind's people were top notch, but the organization of the service let me down. I found I had to make allowances for overworked room stewardesses and there were failures in the embarkation/debarkation.
Embarkation and debarkation.
This was the weakest area of the cruise. About three or four days before the start of the voyage the port authorities in Nice declared that dock space would not be available for the Silver Wind. Silversea shifted the port of embarkation to Villefranche, but I and most passengers traveling independently did not find out about the change and went to the Quai du Commerce Cruise Terminal in Nice. Silversea ran a bus from another part of the port to Villefranche, and a number of passengers had problems getting from the Quai du Commerce to the Silversea bus. There was no assistance from Silversea in getting to the bus, and even at the sitewhere the bus would stop there was only an awning and chairs. The temperature was in the upper 80s, there was nothing to drink, and there was and no help with the baggage until the bus pulled into Villefranche. The passengers banded together to assist one of our number who was recovering from a stroke.
After arriving in Villefranche (where Silversea personnel worked full time, one-on-one, with the passenger who was recovering from a stroke) we left our luggage on the bus and walked with our hand baggage to the cruise terminal. Passengers who knew of the change in port and went to Villefranche directly told me there was no one from Silversea to help them with luggage on their arrival. We sat in Villefranche without refreshments until being loaded on tenders. Silversea took our luggage from the bus and sent it out to the Silver Wind by tender. On the Silver Wind, and after a long pause, champagne and snacks appeared in the Terrace Cafe, but there were far too few staff to serve efficiently. A senior staff person on the Silver Wind described the embarkation as a "nightmare," and he enlightened a group of us to another problem the Silver Wind had to contend with: Unloading previous cruise passengers and luggage by tenders.
The disembarkation procedures were the normal ones. Passengers were asked to wait in the public rooms until their groups were called. But the public address system did not function in one of the public rooms, the 5th deck bar. The passengers there did not find out that some of their groups had been called until one of the passengers inquired at the disembarkation desk, which was aware there were problems with the public address system in the bar and at other locations. Once ashore things went smoothly..
I attribute the embarkation/disembarkation problems to a crew unused to working together. I believe that the next time something like this happens someone will think of getting more people in the cruise terminals to redirect passengers and to handle their luggage. Someone will think of providing refreshments - at least water and juice - at the terminals and possibly on the bus. And the crew will have food and drink ready when the passengers arrive aboard.
The Silver Wind
The Silver Wind is a lovely ship. It is small enough to get around in easily. There is only one bank of elevators and the ship doesn't need more. Furnishings, rugs, curtains and so forth were not replaced during the dry dock period that ended earlier this year, but they are all well-maintained. There are signs at the free self-service laundry asking passengers not to loiter there or be noisy out of respect to fellow passengers in neighboring cabins. I did not notice a problem, but I would try to avoid a cabin in this area since I assume there have been complaints in the past. The gym has been relocated to deluxe accommodations on the 8th deck facing a bank of floor to ceiling windows. There are three treadmills, three traditional stationary bicycles, two reclining bicycles, and a full range of free weights, but only one fixed-weight machine for upper and lower body workouts. I would like to see more machines for arms, legs, abs, and pectorals.
by my standards the Vista cabins are spacious, with a walk-in closet, a bathroom with full bath, a sitting area with a desk, sofa, table and chairs, and a sleeping area with a vanity, end tables, and beds. There is fresh fruit in the room every day, and the mini-bar is stocked any way you want it. The corridors in the cabin areas have been planned to avoid the perspective-monotony of large ships, where the view is of converging corridor angles and rows of diminishing doors. Putting the doors at an angle to the corridor helps avoid the institutional view. The public rooms are tastefully done. The Restaurant is pleasant and welcoming, the Terrace is well laid-out, and the 5th deck bar has the right atmosphere and music for the pre-dinner drinks I appreciate.
Food and drink
Before sailing on the Silver Wind I spent four days in Nice, dining at well-recommended restaurants, two of which have a single star from Michelin. On some nights dinner aboard the Silver Wind beat the best of those restaurants. On two nights it was not as good. From what I had, or could cadge off other's plates, I would rate the quail, wild boar, and swordfish as excellent, with the roast veal only a little behind them. The duck did not work; either the sauce or attempted glaze was poor in my opinion (and that of other diners). One night I had lobster and it was tough. The soups, and particularly the creamed soups, compared well with anything on land as did the bread and baked goods. Possibly the desserts lagged in comparison with the Nice restaurants I ate at, but I can see that persons with slightly different tastes might well disagree with me and, in any case, I had cheese and port two or three times.
The cognac served after dinner was Courvosier VSOP, and the port was Sandeman's tawny and ruby red. Sherry was Harvey's, and included Bistol Cream. Other cognacs, ports and sherries were available for a fee. I am not much of a champagne drinker, but what I had of the Philippnnat Royal Reserve seemed good enough. Other passengers I spoke with were indifferent to the recent change in champagnes by Silversea since their preferences were for yet other champagnes such as Krug or Piper-Heidsieck, or for a line of Moet other than the one formerly served free on Silversea. No one suggested Philipponnat Royal Reserve was inferior champagne.
The wines served with dinner were for the most part new to me, and I profited from the experimentation. Of even greater benefit to me, however, were the comments from the wine stewards. They were uniformly well informed, and the cruise's Dutch sommelier was awesomely knowledgeable. He could match the best of the sommeliers I have spoken with ashore.
The best coffee and espresso aboard was served in the restaurant in my opinion. I thought the Terrace Café coffee was weak enough that I drank tea when I was at the Café for breakfast. I had espresso at the Terrace Café once and one in the bar, and as far as I was concerned once was enough in either location. The espresso was one of the reasons I did not go back to the Terrace Café, the other being that I thought the food in the Restaurant was as good as the theme food in the Café.
The level of service on the Silver Wind was high, but not better than I have received on other lines. The major lapse in service involved organization of the embarkation/disembarkation and was noted above. Due to the number of cabins the room stewardesses had to handle, they did not usually get around to my room until after 11:00AM. The stewardesses were hard working and, I felt, possibly overworked.
The bridge tour by Captain Gennaro Arma is not to be missed. This is for the captain's delightful personality as much as the tour. Colin Brown is a standout as a Cruise Director. He is always around, always available, always informative. Antonio, the Maitre d'Hotel, recalled the tables I preferred and saw that I got them. How he did that for an entire ship I don't know. Our dining room stewards were excellent, and other stewards were efficient in giving away drinks at the pool, the bar, and the theatre.
Every cabin was taken on this cruise, but not every bed, and there were about 250 to 260 passengers aboard. I liked my fellow-passengers. They ranged in age from minus a few months (we had at least one pregnant passenger) to around 80. We had about half a dozen teenagers and so far as I could see they were well behaved. There were plenty of 20- and 30-somethings, but the typical passenger was in the late 50s or around 60 I would guess. A plurality of passengers came from the United States, but not, I think, a majority. The United Kingdom had the next largest share of passengers. There were many from Australia, and lesser numbers from Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Spain, and Switzerland. I was surprised as how few Canadians were aboard.
Women dressed pretty much the same on casual and informal nights: dresses, blouses and slacks, and some pantsuits. On informal nights men wore jackets but most did not wear ties. On formal nights about ninety percent of the men were in dinner clothes, and the rest were in dark business suits. Most women wore cocktail dresses on formal nights but there were plenty of dressy pantsuits balanced by evening gowns.
I don't expect much in entertainment on cruises. On this cruise I found Colin Brown to be the entertainment highlight. He put on a one-hour program of piano music by Beethoven, Schumann, and other composers. It was a comfortable time, like listening to an old friend who is also a fine pianist. On one piece, I think it was by Grieg, Colin was accompanied by a guitar player who appeared solo on other nights. The piano and guitar combination was terrific. I think it was a mistake to squeeze Colin's program into the beginning of the dinner hour on the last night of the cruise. He should get prime time on a better night.
I walked out on dance duo called the Argentinian Devils.
Katakolon Misinformation
The cruise was originally scheduled to stop at Katakolon, the port for Olympia, but we were told the historic sites in Greece were closed for a few days by a guides' strike. Katakolon is an uninteresting destination in itself, and I was hoping we would get an extra day in Sorrento instead of a stop in Katakolon. The Captain told me there was some concern the passengers would be bored by another day in Sorrento (possibly the first time that bored and Sorrento have appeared in the same sentence). Silversea redirected the Wind to Pylos, Greece which has some interest, including an old fort. It was a good effort by Silversea to make the best of a situation beyond its control, but in Athens the next day all the sites were open except for the National Archeological Museum, which was in the midst of being refurbished for the 2004 Olympics. No one I spoke with had heard of a guides' strike or of the historic sites being closed. I think someone misinformed the staff on the Silver Wind, which dutifully misinformed the passengers.


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Pennsylvania artist Daniel Kornrumpf took his already emotive painting to the next level by translating it into a craft not normally give the high art treatment: embroidery.
Check out a few of his embroidered portraits and then go browse his portfolio. Don't leave without checking out his paintings.
Photos from of danielkornrumpf.com, post via GOOD Magazine.


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From MeritBadgeDotOrg
Revision as of 22:03, October 20, 2007 by Scoutersig (Talk | contribs)
- For the Sea Scout rank, see Quartermaster Award
The Quartermaster is to maintain the troop's equipment in good condition; to create and update inventories of said equipment, and to issue and collect it when necessary.
- Keep records on patrol and troop equipment.
- Keep equipment in good repair.
- Issue equipment and see that it is returned in good order.
- Suggest new or replacement items.
- Work with the troop committee member responsible for equipment.
- Regularly attends troop meetings, troop campouts, and troop events during his service period.
- Set a good example.
- Enthusiastically wear the Scout Uniform correctly.
- Lives by the Scout Oath and Law and the OA Obligation .
- Shows Scout spirit
Chair: Senior Patrol Leader
Members: Patrol Leaders, Assistant Senior Patrol Leader(s), and Troop Guides
Other Members May Include: Instructor(s), Quartermaster(s), Scribe, and other Positions of Responsibility
Advisors: Scoutmaster, Troop Committee Chair, Assistant Scoutmasters