text:
Department of Marketing (MARKETING/AØ) Forfattere "Knubben, Evelyn"
Viser 1-1 af i alt 1
Different Perceptions of a Place Brand by Diverse Target GroupsZenker, Sebastian; Knubben, Evelyn; Bechmann, Suzanne C. (Frederiksberg, 2010)[Flere oplysninger][Færre oplysninger]
Resume: compete strongly with each other for attracting tourists, investors, companies, or talents. Place marketers therefore focus more and more on establishing the city as a brand and to promote their city to its different target groups. But the perception of a city (brand) can differ dramatically between those groups. Thus, place branding research should emphasize much more the city brand perceptions of the different target groups and develop strategies for cities on how to build an advantageous place brand architecture vis-à-vis its stakeholders. In this regards, we show in two empirical studies – 40 qualitative in-depth-interviews (Study 1) and an online qualitative open-ended-question survey with 334 participants (Study 2) – using network analysis the important discrepancies between the city brand perceptions in the mental representation of different target groups for the example of the city of Hamburg. Furthermore, practical implications for place marketers are discussed. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/8266
Filer i denne post: 1
Viser 1-1 af i alt 1


text:
Beckham 'considered Brazil switch'
David Beckham was interested in moving from the Los Angeles Galaxy for a stint in Brazil during the summer, according to former Botafogo defender Carlos Alberto.
Beckham signed a two-year contract extension with the Galaxy in January, while Botafogo landed their top transfer target Clarence Seedorf following his departure from AC Milan.
However, Carlos Alberto insists he was in the Netherlands while the Seedorf deal was being finalised, and says it was revealed to him that the former England captain was keen on joining Botafogo.
"When the negotiation was about to close, I spoke with the president - he and I have a pretty cool relationship," Carlos Alberto told ESPN Brasil.
"I was in Amsterdam in May and an influential businessman, a famous player, came to me at the hotel, saying there was a player interested in playing for a year in Brazil: David Beckham. If it did not work with Seedorf, he had this player to come to Brazil."
Botafogo president Mauricio Assumpcao later confirmed that Beckham was prepared to leave the MLS outfit in order to play for at least one season in Brazil.
"That's exactly what happened, there really was this interest," Assumpcao told Lancenet.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Bohemian Crystal Eye Pendant
Bohemian Crystal Eye Pendant
8 Different stone colours with the eye colour always the same. Gold chain
One size
Stone, Zinc Alloy
We have a very basic shipping system in place because nothing beats simplicity.
Shipping times will vary depending on where you are located and your order. Generally our shipping times can be anywhere in between 15-27 working days, excluding processing time which is around 1-3 days. The reason for these shipping times is because your items are being sent to you directly from our suppliers :)
Please also note, that if you order different items, there is a chance that your items will arrive in separate packages. This is completely normal as they are coming from different manufacturers!
Will will always try to provide a tracking number with every order but please make note that with some individual items, and to some countries, tracking is not always available.
The three main points!
- We ship to almost every single country in the world. No worries there.
- If your order total is over £20 then you will receive FREE worldwide shipping.
- If your order total is under £20 then you will have to pay a small flat fee of £3.99.
If you require more information about shipping you can visit our contact us page and send us a message :)


text:
Ken Fedele needed a new other design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 44 designs submitted by 12 freelance designers.
On the Rocks
On the Rocks is the name of my boat/fishing team. We fish primarily in South Florida & the Bahamas. We fish all types of tournaments, including the upcoming sailfish series which has huge sponsors and lots of prize money. Although we do it mostly for the thrill. We also are looking to make shirts for girls, bikinis, etc. I choose the name "On the Rocks" as the obvious double meaning. Drinking which is a big part of what we do on the boat, as well as fishing on the reef (rocks) below.
Fisherman & Boaters
Would like the name as well as a sailfish incorporated in the logo. Would like the option for the logo to be multi-functional. This is a private hobby, and don't want to have to redesign logo a bunch of times. Should work well on t-shirts (typically fishing shirts have a small logo in top left corner, and large in center on back, sometimes name down the long sleeve), any color, hats, visors, stickers, etc. Would like the option to add "Miami, Fl", as well as "Fishing Team" on the bottom. Girls shirts may even have the wording "I was On the Rocks".
http://www.sailfishseries.com/teams.htm (other teams logos in south florida sailfishing tournaments)
Uploaded our current logo.
Also uploaded a sailfish I like. Although cannot use exact one. It is "Calcuttas" sailfish.


text:
Giant Waterproof Handlebar Bag
Keep your essentials at hand with Giant's Waterproof Handlebar Bag. This hard-shell bag is completely waterproof so you can store your maps, snacks, and important electronics safely and within easy reach. There's a detachable map holder that mounts to the top of the bag, compression cord for spare clothes, and adjustable foam compartments for your phone or camera. Giant's tool-free mounting system is fast and easy to operate and the removable shoulder strap makes it a cinch to carry this bag with you off the bike.
Volume: 3 liters
Part Numbers
Read 1 ReviewsWrite a Review
Reviewed by 1 customers
Sort by
Nice quality bag. have not had it in the rain yet so I could not give it a 5. I like the easy access and lots of storage. takes a little to get used to not seeing your front tire. I would like to purchase a second handlebar bracket to use on my other bike. it would be great to transfer everything you need in one snap off one snap on.


text:
NJ Transit Resumes Most Service Following Signal Problem
New Jersey Transit has most service after earlier signal problems but with 60 minute delays.
The only unaffected line is the Northeast Corridor which is operating on with 10 minute delays.
WABC TV reports that NJ Transit's Rail Operations Center had a problem with their servers that run their rain Management and Control System (TMAC) all control of all signals was lost putting passenger safety at risk. The railroad says their equipment was fully powered during the disruption.
They are cross honoring rail passes with light rail, bus, private carrier and PATH trains.
This is a breaking story. Check back for additional details.


text:
Simon Ludgate's Blog
Simon Ludgate has worked at numerous game companies, including Strategy First, Electronic Arts, and Gameloft, as well as a journalist and radio personality with GameSHOUT Radio. He recently obtained his Master of Information degree from the University of Toronto iSchool, with a focus on Knowledge and Information Management. His areas of expertise are broad, though he has a particular interest in massively multiplayer online games, both subscription- and micropayment-based. He currently maintains a blog at soulrift.com and can be contacted through that site.
Twitter: @SimonLudgate
Expert Blogs
Simon Ludgate's Comments


text:
Sometimes it is good to state an obvious thing.
A Karate instructor should avoid the use of foul language in the dojo, particularly in the presence of minors. People who constantly curse need to increase their vocabularly and learn better ways to express themselves. A Karate instructor should not be crude or vulger.
Karate training should make gentlemen (and ladies) of us all.
Charles C. Goodin
Teaching Karate 11 -- Foul Language
Sometimes it is good to state an obvious thing.
Posted by Charles C. Goodin on Tuesday, July 10, 2007


text:
Every time we read Scripture and are convicted of sin, we are experiencing the prophetic ministry of Christ. Whenever we receive comfort from the Bible, we who trust in Jesus are benefitting from His prophetic office. As we are comforted ...Read More
Jesus comes into the world as the covenant prosecutor par excellence. His exposition of the Law (Matt. 5–7) makes clear the extent to which we have violated the terms of the covenant. But this Prophet not only predicted judgment ...Read More


text:
Follow RFF News on your cell phone. Text follow rff to 40404 you will receive txt messages with RFF News
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
only seeing keesha sleeping nowI hope Memphis stop talking about family so they would switch back to HOH
Page created in 0.072 seconds with 41 queries.


text:
Selecting your vehicle's make, model, and year allows us to display only parts and items specific to your car's model and year.
Part# SV01250
Be the First to Review
OPGI Price: $219.99
Part Type: (R) = Authentic reproduction of the original GM product
Years: 1971-1972
Sold As: PAIR
Complete and ready to install. We offer an extensive line of reproduction sun visors that are manufactured utilizing new steel and polished rod holders and rods. All colors are available to match our authentically reproduced headliners.
NAPPED COTTON - Beige, black, dark green, dark taupe, gray, ivory, light green, maroon, medium blue, red, taupe or turquoise
RECESSED STAR - Black, beige, light blue, light green, red, saddle, silver, white or turquoise
PREMIER PERFORATED - Black, brown, buckskin, dark blue ('73-77 - navy blue), dark green, light blue, medium blue, maroon, red, sandalwood or white
MADRID GRAIN VINYL - Aqua, black, dark blue, light blue, light saddle, maroon, medium blue, off-white, red, saddle or white


text:
Name: Rachel
Gender: Female
I just met someone online and I'd like to maybe try my hand at being a dominatrix, but not really sure where to begin. He emailed me some questions he wished me to answer, I was wondering if you could maybe help with a couple of ideas/suggestions on how to answer them just to get me started. I'm having a hard time finding people to contact about this. Oh and by the way am a sugar baby, it would be a sd/sb relationship (sugar daddy/sugar baby) which I thought might be the perfect way to start a BDSM relationship because I would like to adopt an alternate personality anyways. I'm really hoping not to be judged by anyone for any of this. I'm really having trouble getting started; maybe I need to just get into character? Think you can help me?
I kinda think being a dominatrix is a whole lot more than role-playing or getting into character, darlin', unless, of course, you are simply a dilettante. And if that's all you're really interested in, it really doesn't make a difference how you play this out. You can be as silly as you want.
Think of this as being something similar to mastering a new language. Curiously enough, there are a lot of similarities between these two efforts. Just like leaning a few words and phrases in a foreign tongue doesn't make you proficient in that language. So too donning a leather bustier and smacking a ridding crop against your leg doesn't make you a dominatrix. Get it? Got it? Good!
However, if you really want to get into the life, there's a considerable amount of remedial work ahead of you. Before you can claim the title "dominatrix" you will have to make an intensive study of what this entails. This is best done under the tutelage of another reputable Dom. Of course, not every pro-Dom is gonna want to take on an novice and show her the ropes, as it were. It's no wonder you're having problems connecting with others who might help you. But if you're lucky, you might find a kind soul out there who will give you a break. And just so you know, these lessons will not come cheaply.
I also encourage you to approach others in the life with a good deal more deference and thoughtfulness then how you approached me. If they get a sense that you are simply an airhead twit, you'll be out before you are even in.
Finally, I suggest that you listen to any one or all of the interviews I've done with real professional Dominatrices. I think you will find them both enlightening and informative. Here's Mistress Katherine, Mistress Matisse,
Eve Minax, Lady Lydia, Lady Hotchkiss, Claire Adams, and Cleo Dubois.
Good luck


text:
Job B: senior counsel, m&a/transactional, pays a little less
1. Crazy to pick B over A? You hear inhouse people complain about flat structures and unclear advancement opportunities...
2. Once people go inhouse do you ever see them change sectors?(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34195498)
Generally, the stuff people really care about is actual work experience in the area they are hiring for. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34195584)
job B further pigeonholes you, and for less pay(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34195661)
With CT, the work is more varied and negotiated whole cloth but the downside is that BD guys tend to be more invested in making the deal happen at any cost so they can rattle off achievements at their next review and accordingly treat legal as scribes. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34196030)
A) At least in large places, the CC and CT (M&A and such) people are in totally different groups. I've never seen CC people work on CT work.
B) I've done a few early/late CC calls/meeting on mega-deals. For large CT transactions, it is that PLUS a bunch of weekend calls.(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34195971)
"Senior role" - except, there are a bunch of senior roles reserved for specialists. While there are more "generalist" senior roles, the competition is much greater too.(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34195793)
you: flat structures and unclear advancement opportunities
mean looking motherfucker next to you at the bar: geez, pal. i thought i had it bad.(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34195993)
I started as a fund attorney but now work in a different area of the financial world and my boss and company are paying for me to attend cybersecurity seminars bc I expressed an interest and my boss is a great rabbi. Take the job where the boss or company has an interest in your development. Although, it is more about who is your boss than which company you work for. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3729636&forum_id=2#34196708)


text:
Guest Post -- Michelle from Gold-Hearted
posted on: February 15, 2012
8 comments:
That is truly gorgeous! I love it.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousFebruary 16, 2012 at 8:16 AM
i'm always surprised how dark walls can make a room actually look pretty great. the light floors and bedding definitely brighten everything up. it's lovely!ReplyDelete
What a beautiful space!ReplyDelete
Lovely interior. Definitely crucial to have lighter bedding colors so as not to drown the room in darkness. In this case it really works. Can't wait to see your finished room.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousFebruary 17, 2012 at 5:44 AM
I think i´m gonna come back very very soon :)ReplyDelete
Michelle, your rope necklaces are so cute! And Jennifer, thanks for visiting my blog. I'll be stopping by yours a lot more often nowReplyDelete
I love the design of this post...very coolReplyDelete
The dark walls really set apart the interior pieces. So beautiful:)ReplyDelete
Happy weekend!
I ART U All rights reserved © Blog Milk Powered by Blogger


text:
FORT WORTH (AP) – TCU and coach Gary Patterson are finding out just how difficult a Big 12 schedule is.
Even so, the Horned Frogs (6-3, 3-3 Big 12) have already obtained bowl eligibility in their first season in a BCS league.
The Frogs are home Saturday night against third-ranked Kansas State, Patterson's alma mater and where he started his coaching career. He was a graduate assistant for the 1982 Wildcats team that was the first in school history to go to a bowl.
Led by Heisman Trophy front-running quarterback Collin Klein, the Wildcats (9-0, 6-0 Big 12) are in the thick of the national championship chase. They are the highest AP-ranked team to visit Fort Worth since 1970.
After K-State, TCU still has to play 19th-ranked Texas and No. 14 Oklahoma.
(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
Also Check Out:


text:
Playing at the Mead on Saturday, December 1: Sweet Dreams main content.
by AMNH on
The documentary Sweet Dreams, playing at the Mead Film Festival on Saturday, December 1, is a story of firsts: the formation of the Rwanda's first and only all-female drumming troupe, Ingoma Nshya, and the group's effort to open Rwanda's first ice cream shop, in some cases introducing the treat to people who have never before tasted ice cream.
There is palpable exuberance in both efforts as an energized group of women strive to break through traditional barriers with their musical performances and prove they are capable of founding and running a business, aided by a Brooklyn ice cream maker, who is drawn in after a serendipitous meeting with the music troupe's founder.
But the story does not stop there. Running through this exhilarating narrative is a somber reality: the scars of the 1994 genocide in which 800,000 Rwandans died at the hands of their own countrymen. The women in this film are determined to heal those wounds by allowing anyone who is qualified to join, regardless of their role in the conflict. In a moving scene of reconciliation, widows and orphans perform beside relatives of those who killed their loved ones. Individual stories, heartbreaking in the telling, add poignancy to this amazing story of hope—and the sheer happiness of making music.
To kick off the screening of Sweet Dreams at the Mead, the Museum will feature the Camden, New Jersey-based Universal African Dance and Drum Ensemble, performing in the spirit of Ingoma Nshya in a special program at 4 pm in the Hall of Birds of the World (free with Museum admission.)
For the screening of Sweet Dreams, held at 6 pm on Saturday, December 1, audience members will be joined by filmmakers Rob Fruchtman and Lisa Fruchtman, who will hold a discussion after the documentary.
The film screening is co-presented by the Museum for African Art.
Ticketholders for the 6 pm screening will receive ice cream courtesy of Brooklyn's Blue Marble Ice Cream.
Click here to purchase tickets.


text:
Transform your photos into one-of-a-kind, hand painted masterpieces!
Boundary: Bleed area may not be visible.
Click and drag to re-position the image, if desired.
by Jimi Bush
Case Style
Image Size
The image is near the edges of the product but doesn't cover the entire product. Some of the background color may appear around the outside edges of the image.
Background Color
Smoke galaxy s8 case by Jimi Bush. Protect your Galaxy S8 with an impact-resistant, slim-profile, hard-shell case. The image is printed directly onto the case and wrapped around the edges for a beautiful presentation. Simply snap the case onto your Galaxy S8 for instant protection and direct access to all of the phone's features!
Ships Within
1 - 2 business days
There are no comments for Smoke. Click here to post the first comment.
Protect your Galaxy S8 with an impact-resistant, slim-profile, hard-shell case. The image is printed directly onto the case and wrapped around the edges for a beautiful presentation. Simply snap the case onto your Galaxy S8 for instant protection and direct access to all of the phone's features!
Average Rating (5 Stars):
Judith Wilk
February 22nd, 2019
Nancy Janonis
February 21st, 2019
Joseph Beardsley
February 20th, 2019
Charles Contant
February 19th, 2019
Richard Allen
February 18th, 2019
D Wayne Addis
February 17th, 2019
image1.jpeg Sent from my iPad On Feb 16, 2019, at 11:00 AM, Fine Art America wrote: Okay you ask I bought the T shirt and phone case both from your company because I have had this old painting for 38 yrs not knowing the artist until a friend saw it on the internet. I was told 38 yrs ago it was circa 1650 Sounds like a tv show I've never seen but honestly paid $200 for the frame at a junk/antique shop and painting was in it but damaged and I had it repaired . Total price $200. Murillo had several people copy his work in the 1700s and 1800s but I've had this one carbon dated 1654 three times! He would have been 37 yrs old and no one yet was copying or he not that recognized.An art expert in N.Y. is telling me it's not original but radio isotopes don't lie. Scratching my head now of what to do . Wayne
Jimi Bush, also known as The Celestial Painter has emerged from the vast unknown to become one of the 21st century�s most prolific and colorful artists. Beginning his art career only a decade ago in March of 2008, a life changing experience has helped The Celestial Painter to now create over 1,000 pieces of sheer beauty over the last 10+ years. From �Sorting out Our Differences� to �Torn and Tattered�, the ever evolving style of The Celestial Painter has touched the lives of many. Since his first public showing at the prestigious Holiday Inn Palms in historic downtown Ft. Myers The Celestial Painter has provided collectors on all seven of the seven continents with colorful decorating bliss created under deep contemplative...
Our return policy is very simple:
If you're not happy with a purchase that you made on FineArtAmerica.com, for any reason, you can return it to us within 30 days of the order date. As soon as it arrives, we'll issue a full refund for the entire purchase price. Please note - Fine Art America does not reimburse the outgoing or return shipping charges unless the return is due to a defect in quality.
Fine Art America sells thousands of pieces of artwork each month - all with a 100% money-back guarantee. We take great pride in the fact that hundreds of thousands of artists have chosen Fine Art America to fulfill their orders, and we look forward to helping you select your next piece!
All galaxy s8 cases ship from our production facility within 1 - 2 business days of your order.


text:
Freedom in the World
You are here
South Africa
South Africa
2012 Scores
Freedom Rating (1 = best, 7 = worst)
Civil Liberties (1 = best, 7 = worst)
Political Rights (1 = best, 7 = worst)
The passage by the lower house of the controversial Protection of Information Bill in November 2011 underscored recent threats against media rights and freedom of information in South Africa. Laws and practices dealing with asylum seekers and illegal immigrants—including the renewed deportation of Zimbabwean immigrants—were toughened in 2011. A series of strikes by public-sector and other workers, along with a continued rise in protests over the scope and pace of service delivery, increased fiscal pressures on the ruling African National Congress. The year also saw a number of corruption scandals and legal actions involving high-ranking government officials.
In 1910, the Union of South Africa was created as a self-governing dominion of the British Empire. The Afrikaner-dominated National Party (NP) came to power in 1948 on a platform of institutionalized racial separation, or "apartheid," that was designed to maintain white minority rule. Facing growing British and regional pressure to end apartheid, South Africa declared formal independence in 1961 and withdrew from the Commonwealth. The NP went on to govern South Africa under the apartheid system for 33 years. Mounting domestic and international pressure prompted President F. W. de Klerk to legalize the antiapartheid African National Congress (ANC) and release ANC leader Nelson Mandela from prison in 1990. Between then and the first multiracial elections in 1994, almost all apartheid-related legislation was abolished, and an interim constitution was negotiated and enacted.
The ANC won the 1994 elections in a landslide, and Mandela was elected president. As required by the interim constitution, a national unity government was formed, including the ANC, the NP, and the Zulu-nationalist Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP). A Constitutional Assembly produced a permanent constitution, which was signed into law in 1996. The ANC claimed almost two-thirds of the vote in 1999 elections, and Thabo Mbeki, Mandela's successor as head of the ANC, won the presidency. In 2004, the ANC won an even greater victory, taking nearly 70 percent of the national vote and majorities in seven of nine provincial legislatures. Mbeki easily secured a second five-year term.
In late 2007, former deputy president Jacob Zuma defeated Mbeki in a heated battle for the ANC presidency, and Zuma's allies were elected to a majority of ANC executive positions; Mbeki had sacked Zuma in 2005 after he was implicated in the corruption trial of his financial adviser, Schabir Shaik. Relations between the ANC and Mbeki's government were strained throughout 2008, and in September—after a High Court judge set aside the remaining corruption charges against Zuma due to prosecutorial misconduct—the ANC's national executive committee forced Mbeki to resign as state president. The party nominated its deputy president, Kgalema Motlanthe, to serve as interim state president, and he was quickly confirmed by the National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament. After Mbeki's ouster, recently resigned defense minister Mosiuoa "Terror" Lekota quit the ANC and formed the opposition Congress of the People (COPE) party; he was joined by a series of ANC leaders, nearly all of them Mbeki allies.
Despite new competition from COPE, the ANC won another sweeping victory in the April 2009 elections, taking 65.9 percent of the national vote, 264 seats in the 400-seat National Assembly, and clear majorities in eight of nine provinces. The Democratic Alliance (DA) retained its status as the largest opposition party, winning 67 National Assembly seats and outright control of Western Cape Province. COPE won 30 seats, and the IFP took 18. Zuma was easily elected state president by the National Assembly the following month, winning 277 of the 400 votes.
May 2011 municipal elections—marked by relatively high voter turnout—saw the ANC win 62 percent of the vote and the DA win just under 24 percent, including outright control of Cape Town and 11 of 24 municipalities in the Western Cape. The ANC won the vast majority of municipalities in every other province. The IFP won just over 3.5 percent of the vote, and COPE took just over 2 percent.
In November 2011, the National Assembly passed the Protection of Information Bill, 229 votes to 107, despite vociferous protests from the private media sector, most opposition parties, and a raft of civil society organizations. The bill allows state agencies to classify a wide range of information on extremely vague bases—including "all matters relating to the advancement of the public good" and "the survival and security of the state"—as in the "national interest" and thus subject to significant restrictions on publication and disclosure. It mandates prison terms of 3 to 25 years for violations, and does not allow a "public interest" defense. The bill's debate and passage was met with frequent demonstrations in Cape Town, Durban, and Johannesburg. It still required approval by the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), the upper house, at year's end.
Some 5.5 million South Africans, about 11 percent of the population, are infected with HIV. A 2008 Harvard University study claimed that 330,000 people had died between 2000 and 2005 as a result of the Mbeki government's skepticism about the link between HIV and AIDS and resistance to supporting the use of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs). State-funded access to ARVs has since expanded greatly, and prices of the drugs have halved. In June 2011, 1.4 million South Africans were taking ARVs, 400,000 of whom had gained access in the previous 12 months. The government also appeared to have met its goal of testing 15 million people a year, while mother-to-child transmission fell to 3.5 percent in 2011.
South Africa is an electoral democracy. Elections for the 400-seat National Assembly are determined by party-list proportional representation, and the 90 members of the NCOP are selected by the provincial legislatures. The National Assembly elects the president to serve concurrently with its five-year term.
The ANC, which is part of a tripartite governing alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the South African Communist Party, dominates the political landscape. Factionalism within the ANC and COSATU, as well as tensions between the alliance partners, increased significantly in 2011, tied generally to the upcoming ANC elective conference in December 2012. In November, ANC Youth League president Julius Malema was suspended by the ANC for "sowing divisions and bringing the party into disrepute." The DA is the leading opposition party, followed by COPE and the IFP.
Several agencies are tasked with combating corruption, but enforcement is inadequate. Public servants regularly fail to declare their business interests as required by law, and the ANC has been criticized for charging fees to business leaders for access to top government officials. In several instances, the tender process for contracts associated with the 2010 World Cup was alleged to have been corrupt or nontransparent. In October 2011, Public Works Minister Gwen Mahlangu-Nkabinde and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Sicelo Shiceka were replaced, and police chief Bheki Cele was suspended; all three had been implicated in corruption. Political motivations have tinged a number of government-sponsored corruption investigations. Following a Constitutional Court challenge calling for an independent inquiry into a 1990s "arms deal" scandal, the government in September reopened an official inquiry into the affair. Between 2005 and 2009, current president Jacob Zuma had been charged with corruption three times in connection with the scandal, but was cleared of those charges on procedural grounds. In October, the government released the long-awaited Donen report, detailing findings of corruption by top ANC and government officials—including potential Zuma rivals Tokyo Sexwale, the minister of human settlements, and Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe—related to the UN oil-for-food program in Iraq in the 1990s. South Africa was ranked 64 out of 183 countries surveyed in Transparency International's 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index.
Freedoms of expression and the press are protected in the constitution and generally respected in practice. A number of private newspapers and magazines are sharply critical of powerful figures and institutions. Most South Africans receive the news via radio outlets, a majority of which are controlled by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). The SABC also dominates the television market, but two commercial stations are expanding their reach. Internet access is unrestricted and growing rapidly, though many South Africans cannot afford the service fee.
The government is highly sensitive to media criticism and has increasingly encroached on the editorial independence of the SABC. Government critics have been barred or restricted from SABC airwaves, while a number of documentaries and special programs produced by the broadcaster have been canceled due to political considerations. The make-up and financing of the SABC board have become increasingly politicized in recent years. The government has recently enacted and proposed a series of potentially restrictive laws. In November 2011, the Constitutional Court accepted a multiparty legal challenge to the 2009 Film and Publications Amendment Act, which requires any publisher not recognized by the press ombudsman—or any person who wishes to distribute, broadcast, or exhibit a film or game—to submit potentially pornographic or violence-inciting materials to a government board for approval. The law also allows for the banning of such materials, which are broadly defined. In June, the government announced a R1 million ($148,000), cabinet-approved advertising budget to be spent at newspapers that "assist the government in getting its message across"; the government's media advertising operations were also consolidated within the Ministry of Communication. In November, a Mail & Guardian report on alleged corrupt dealings by Zuma's spokesman Mac Maharaj was censored by legal order, with the newspaper and two reporters charged with illegally accessing documents.
In September, Malema was convicted of hate speech by a Johannesburg High Court for leading crowds in singing a song containing the lyrics "shoot the boer," which the court alleged promoted the killing of white farmers.
Freedom of religion and academic freedom are constitutionally guaranteed and actively protected by the government.
Freedoms of association and peaceful assembly are secured by the constitution. South Africa hosts a vibrant civil society. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) can register and operate freely, and lawmakers regularly accept input from NGOs on pending legislation. A recent trend of protests over the pace and extent of public-service delivery—including housing, electricity, and water—continued in 2011. In April, a man in Ficksburg in Free State was killed after police beat him during a violent service delivery protest; two officers were later charged with murder, and four with assault. In August, thousands of protesters opposed to an ANC disciplinary hearing for Malema clashed with police.
South Africans are free to form, join, and participate in independent trade unions. COSATU, the nation's largest trade union federation, claims about two million members. Strike activity is very common. In July 2011, a series of large strikes by workers in the metals, engineering, chemical, and energy sectors resulted in widespread petrol shortages for at least half the month. The National Union of Metalworkers SA workers won a 10 percent wage increase, while counterparts in the chemical, paper, and pulp industries won wage increases between 8.5 and 10 percent. Zuma and the ANC remain under heavy pressure by COSATU to raise workers' salaries, deliver better social services, and improve economic performance to help reduce the country's high levels of unemployment.
Judicial independence is guaranteed by the constitution, and the courts—particularly the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court—operate with substantial autonomy. Nevertheless, judicial and prosecutorial independence has come under pressure in recent years amid the Zuma corruption cases, prompting several instances of both judicial and political misconduct. Zuma's September 2011 appointment of Judge Mogoeng Mogoeng as chief justice of the Constitutional Court was contentious. An ordained minister who has expressed controversial opinions on homosexuality and rape, Mogoeng's nomination was opposed by numerous legal advocacy groups, as well as by COSATU. Judicial staff and resource shortages undermine defendants' procedural rights, including the rights to a timely trial and state-funded legal counsel. While pretrial detainees wait an average of three months before trial, some wait up to two years. The lower courts have proven more susceptible to corruption than the higher panels, and there have been reports of violent intimidation of judges and magistrates.
In advance of the 2010 World Cup, the government set up a number of "dedicated courts" to deal with tournament-related cases. The courts were widely lauded for their efficiency, and the justice minister announced that some elements of the temporary system would remain intact, though details were pending at year's end. The government also hired and trained an additional 40,000 police officers, who remained on the job after the World Cup to bolster the undermanned police force.
Despite constitutional prohibitions and government countermeasures, there have been many reports of police torture and excessive force during arrest, interrogation, and detention. According to the Independent Complaints Directorate, there were 257 deaths in police custody between April 2010 and March 2011, 64 of which were linked to injuries sustained while in custody. The Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons investigates prisoners' assault allegations but has limited resources and capacity. Prisons often fail to meet international standards and feature overcrowding, inadequate health care, and abuse of inmates by staff or other prisoners; both HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis are problems. Recent inquiries have found that corruption, maladministration, and sexual violence are rife in the penal system. In August 2011, the country's first prison unit for mothers and their babies was opened near Cape Town.
South Africa has one of the highest violent-crime rates in the world. However, in 2011, rates of murder, attempted murder, and carjacking declined significantly, though rape and sexual assault rates increased. The Zuma administration has given the police more latitude to use force against criminals. Mostly due to police incapacity, vigilante activity is a problem.
The constitution prohibits discrimination based on a range of categories, including race, sexual orientation, and culture. State bodies such as the South African Human Rights Commission and the Office of the Public Prosecutor are empowered to investigate and prosecute cases of discrimination. Affirmative-action legislation has benefited previously disadvantaged groups (defined as "Africans," "Coloureds," "Asians," and as of 2008, "Chinese") in public and private employment as well as in education. Racial imbalances in the workforce persist, and a majority of the country's business assets remain white-owned. The government's Black Economic Empowerment program aims to increase the black stake in the economy, mostly by establishing race-based ownership thresholds for government tenders and licenses.
Increased illegal immigration, particularly from Zimbabwe and Mozambique, has been met by a rise in xenophobic violence by police and vigilantes, and sporadic attacks have continued. In May 2011, residents in two Port Elizabeth townships attacked scores of Somali-owned shops, causing about 200 Somali immigrants to flee the area. In July, the African Peer Review Mechanism gave South Africa the lowest possible rating for its handling of xenophobia in the country.
The number of foreign nationals in South Africa is contested, with estimates ranging from two to seven million, including between one and three million Zimbabweans. In general, South Africa receives the largest number of asylum applications in the world; according to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, over 400,000 were present in the country by year's end 2011, mostly from Zimbabwe. In March 2011, Parliament passed the Immigration Amendment Bill, which reduces the period asylum seekers have to make a formal application at refuge reception centers after entering the country from 14 days to 5 days, along with other restrictions. In October, the government resumed deportations of Zimbabwean migrants, halted in 2009. According to the International Organization of Migration, only 275,000 of an estimated 1.5 million Zimbabweans had applied to have their status regularized through the government's Zimbabwe Documentation Process, which ended in July 2011. Only half of the applicants received permits to remain in South Africa.
Separately, the nomadic Khoikhoi and Khomani San peoples, indigenous to South Africa, suffer from social and legal discrimination.
South Africa has one of the world's most liberal legal environments for homosexuals. The 2006 Civil Unions Act legalized same-sex marriage, and a 2002 Constitutional Court ruling held that homosexual couples should be allowed to adopt children. Nevertheless, societal bias remains strong. Homosexuals are routinely subject to physical attacks, including an increase in instances of so-called "corrective rape," whereby lesbians are raped by men seeking to change their sexual orientation.
The state generally protects citizens from arbitrary deprivation of their property. However, some 80 percent of farmland is owned by white South Africans, who make up 14 percent of the population. As a result, thousands of black and colored farmworkers suffer from insecure tenure rights; illegal squatting on white-owned farms is a serious problem, as are attacks on white owners. The government has vowed to transfer 30 percent of land to black owners by 2014; however, only about 6 percent of land had been transferred by the end of 2011, and about 90 percent of the redistributed farms had failed or were failing, according to the Ministry for Land Reform and Rural Development.
Equal rights for women are guaranteed by the constitution and promoted by the Commission on Gender Equality. While the constitution allows the option and practice of customary law, it does not allow such law to supersede women's rights as South African citizens. Nevertheless, women suffer de facto discrimination with regard to marriage (including forced marriage), divorce, inheritance, and property rights, particularly in rural areas. Despite a robust legal framework, domestic violence and rape, both criminal offenses, are extremely grave problems. South Africa has one of the world's highest rates of sexual abuse, which increased further in 2011. More than 56,000 women reported having been raped from March 2010 to March 2011, with many more cases likely unreported. Women are also subject to sexual harassment and wage discrimination in the workplace, and are not well represented in top management positions. Women are better represented in government, holding 45 percent of the seats in the National Assembly and leading five of nine provincial governments. The main opposition DA party is led by Helen Zille, the premier of Western Cape Province.


text:
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Pumpkin Pecan Bread
You know how some days just cry out for baking? Well, it is gray, rainy and 40F here. And I happen to have pecans in the freezer and a can of pumpkin in the pantry. This recipe is from one of those little paperback cookbooks that are at the end of the checkout line at the grocery store. I have made it umpteen times. It comes out perfect every time, freezes really well, stays moist. Makes a great gift. It makes 7 mini loaves, if you prefer ( I've donated them to charity fundraisers). Gotta go, I just heard the timer!
Pumpkin Pecan Bread
2 1/2 c. flour
1c. whole wheat flour
3 c. Sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 c. oil
2/3 c. water
4 eggs
2 c. pumpkin puree
1 c. chopped pecans
Heat oven to 350F. Grease bottom only of 2 bread pans. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. In large bowl, combine both flours, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg; mix well. In a medium bowl, combine oil, water, eggs, and pumpkin. Mix well. Add to flour mixture; beat for 1 minute at medium speed. Fold in pecans. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake at 350F for 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes; remove from pans and cool on wire rack. Makes 2 loaves.
Pillsbury, Fall Baking Cookbook, 1988.
5 comments:
- Bevson said...
Oh, you know to put foil over the pans if it starts to get to brown, right?
- October 25, 2008 at 11:44 AM
A c is a cup, isn't it? I found a converter. It even has pecans 1 c = 99 g. - Think I'll make that 100g. ;-)
- October 25, 2008 at 12:12 PM
- Bevson said...
Yep. C. is a cup and tsp is a teaspoon. Sorry wasn't thinking.
- October 25, 2008 at 12:33 PM
- deejbrown said...
I love all your recipes and will now include this one!
You have been tagged for Ghost It Forward. Come on over if you would like to play.
- October 25, 2008 at 1:32 PM
- Shellmo said...
This sounds delicious - never thought about adding pecans before. Thanks for the recipe!
- October 25, 2008 at 5:28 PM
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Cabins Coupon
Looking for a great gift? Get a Discount Coupon for a cabin, room or dinner!
Guests can enjoy fine wines and northwest brews in a relaxed setting, with a plate of complimentary cheeses and fine crackers.
Besides fine accommodations, our guests are treated to homemade biscotti to go with their complimentary coffee. Guests can even purchase a package of this treat to take with them!
A military discount (10%) for all active service personnel as well as retirees. Being a retired Air Force family ourselves, we extend a warm welcome to those who know what it's like to serve our country!
Your dream getaway is only minutes (or a few hours) away!! You don't have to travel a distance to reach the perfect spot to relax in ultimate comfort, warm hospitality, fine meals, and beautiful surroundings!
Custom planning, wonderful food, fine service, in a festive setting,
Just call us! (208) 476-7570
Minimum of 6 guests for a private dinner party, up to 40!
Welcome to anglers who appreciate the finer comforts of fishing and relaxing! We are close to the Clearwater River, Dworshak Dam, and local guides! We'll even prepare a sack lunch for you to take along for your day of fishing and a fine dinner can be waiting on your return!


text:
While the High Line may look pretty cool from far away, it seems it looks just as good up close and personal. Adrian Gaut, a photographer whose work has been featured in the likes of GQ, recently turned his lens on the High Line and came away with some beautiful abstract shots. For a quick game, see if you can find where on the High Line each of these shots was taken!
Check out his Web site here.
Filed under: Photography |


text: If you're searching for a romantic, island destination that's a million miles away from the cares of everyday life, then North Stradbroke Island is the wedding destination for you. For over fourteen years Stradbroke Weddings (now Two Little Rows) has been the one stop shop for weddings, event, styling, hire & floristy. While our name may have changed, our clients can still expect the same fast, efficient, warm and friendly service that has become our trademark over so many years of committed service and an aspect of our work on which are clients often commend us.


text:
Search results for: Trisha Both Room Seen
Trisha Both Room Seen
My Parlor Room (Rating: 0) , Votes:Offers a wide selection of parlor room decor, such as bar globes, furniture, telescopes, planes, model ships and more, to customers online.https://www.myparlorroom.com/
Walkin wardrobes - Builtin wardrobes (Rating: 11) , Votes:Walkin Wardrobes is the very latest totally flexible dressing room system. You can convert a whole room, or part room, into a dedicated wardrobe that you can physically walk into. Wardrobes designed for any room.http://www.walkinwardrobestore.co.uk
Inventory Tracking (Rating: 1) , Votes:NetSimplicity simplifies day-to-day office administration tasks with easy-to-use and easy-to-buy software specifically designed for scheduling meeting rooms, and equipment and resources.http://www.netsimplicity.com/products/vam/index.asp
Modern Furniture | Modern Living Room Furniture | Modern Bedroom Furniture | Modern Dining Room Furn (Rating: 3) , Votes:Let Modern Furniture Warehouse furnish your home with our unmatched collection of modern furniture. Modern office furniture, modern kitchen furniture, modern kids furniture, modern living room furnituhttp://www.modernfurniturewarehouse.com/
Helpful ideas on home decorating (Rating: 2) , Votes:Learn about home decorating and interior design, how to use color schemes, furniture arranging and practical room by room suggestions with photos.http://www.ideas-for-home-decorating.com
Furniture in Southern California & Nevada (Rating: 0) , Votes:Discount Furniture at Furniture 2 Go: Free Shipping and Delivery in Southern California and Nevada. Quality furniture for the entire home with. Price match guarantee.http://www.furniture2go.com
Stash Furniture Store in Memphis TN | Bedroom & Living Room Furniture (Rating: 0) , Votes:Stash Home is a home furniture company in Memphis TN. Our store has bedroom, living room, and dining room furniture sets for sale.http://www.stashhome.com/
Avetex Furniture San Francisco (Rating: 10) , Votes:San Francisco retailer of contemporary home and office furniture. Offers modern bedroom furniture, dining room set and living room collections.http://www.avetexfurniture.com
Amish Furniture (Rating: 4) , Votes:Each piece of Amish Furniture is built to order and crafted to last generations. Heirloom quality furniture construction for your entire home.http://www.amish-furniture-home.com
B&B Faronhof - Venice (Rating: 13) , Votes:English family run Bed and breakfast close to the center of Venice, Italy. Services offered are Sat TV, internet access and bike hire. Low prices for a double room with private shower (2 persons).http://www.faronhof.comCategory: Directory/Europe/Italy
Serviced office space, virtual office and meeting room hire from Abbey Business Centres (Rating: 3) , Votes:Find office space rental from Abbey Business Centres a UK serviced office, virtual office, and meeting room provider with locations across the UKhttp://www.abbeyoffices.comCategory: Directory/Business/Real Estate
Memphis Restaurant & Bar - Lafayette's Music Room (Rating: 0) , Votes:Located in Memphis, TN, Lafayette's Music Room is a restaurant with delicious food and live music.http://lafayettes.com/memphis/Category: Directory/Shopping/Food & Drink
Tooth Fairy Pillows by Kenna & Company (Rating: 0) , Votes:Kenna & Company is dedicated to making quality TOOTH FAIRY PILLOWS. Fairies faces are hand painted and all pillows are stuffed with non allergenic material. They make great gifts and wonderful, unique room decorations.http://www.kennaandcompany.caCategory: Directory/Shopping/Babies and Children
Moroccan Furniture Imports (Rating: 2) , Votes:Casbahdecor offers a wide selection of armoires, lamps, tea glasses, lanterns, doors & ceilings, tiles & mosaics, ceramics and pottery, living room sets & sofas.http://www.casbahdecor.com
eRoomService: Modern Furniture (Rating: 15) , Votes:Features high-end modern and contemporary furniture from world's most renowned designers. eRoomService specializes in unique contemporary designs from top Italian and European designers. Including bedroom furniture, dining room furniture, living room furniture, home office furniture and children's furniture.http://www.eRoomService.com
Regus office space (Rating: 1) , Votes:Regus UK provides serviced office space, virtual offices and meeting rooms in business centres across London, Birmingham, Manchester and all of the UK.http://www.regus.co.uk/Category: Directory/Business/Real Estate
Walkin Wardrobes UK (Rating: 5) , Votes:Wardrobes manufacfurer and suppier of luxury walk-in wardrodes to change your bedroom look and feel, used by top bedroom designers for the modern home bedroom dressing room.http://www.walkinwardrobestore.com
Unique Gifts (Rating: 2) , Votes:Spencer's is the ultimate shop for edgy, humorous, collectible, novelty and gag gifts. Our stores carry the latest trendy clothing and accessories as well as room decor, lighting and electronics.http://www.spencersonline.comCategory: Directory/Shopping/Gifts
Click Discount Hotels (Rating: 0) , Votes:Trying to find a discount on a hotel room can be difficult, but there are some tips and tricks that can save you some big money. Knowing where and how to shop for accommodations can be the key to saving you money.http://www.clickdiscounthotels.com/
The Saatchi Gallery (Rating: 67) , Votes:Contemporary art in London where you can showcase your art to thousands of visitors every day.http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.ukCategory: Directory/Arts & Humanities/Galleries
Indiana and Ohio Amish Furniture (Rating: 1) , Votes:Amish Furniture hand crafted by the Amish of Ohio and Indiana from solid northern hardwood on display in our showroom. We stock Everything from Dining Room Tables and Chairs to Solid Wood Officehttp://www.amishdirectfurniture.com
The Furniture Loft (Rating: 3) , Votes:Offering a wide range of modern and designer furniture, The Furniture Loft features exclusive European sofas and sectionals, as well as timeless designer classics. Unique and innovative products are available to decorate nearly any room in your home.http://www.thefurnitureloft.com
Online Amish Furniture (Rating: 5) , Votes:Offers a complete line of solid oak, 1/4 white sawn oak, maple and cherry amish furniture made by 180 amish craftsmen in Ohio and Indiana. We have a large selection consisting of bar stools, amish bedroom furniture, benches, dining room furniture, kitchen furniture, entertainment centers, rockers, gliders, tables, chairs, corner nooks, hutches, buffets, sideboards, plasma stands and more.http://www.onlineamishfurniture.com
Room Elegance (Rating: 7) , Votes:Furnish your house with vintage homeware, explore gorgeous country homes, learn beautiful decorating ideas and fill your interior rooms with your personality.http://www.roomelegance.com
Discount Home Decor Gifts - Home Decorating (Rating: 6) , Votes:Unique home decor gift ideas for house decorating with discount sculptures, dragon decorations, Merlin items, fairies, eagle statues, lawn & garden gift baskets, kitchen products and family clothing.http://www.valuebuy.net/
Property rentals in London (Rating: 5) , Votes:Place property rental adverts free, Landlord/agent then pay 1 months subscription to get responding homeseekers contact details. The site is aimed at the London, Uk real estate rental market.http://www.rent-a-flat-in-london.co.ukCategory: Directory/Europe/United Kingdom/London
Memphis Screen Rooms, Patio Covers & Sun Room Installation (Rating: 1) , Votes:Marshall Brothers offers screen rooms, patio covers, sun rooms & replacement windows in the greater Memphis TN Area.http://www.marshallbrothersconstruction.com/
Cadre Building - Memphis Party & Event Venue (Rating: 0) , Votes:Located in downtown Memphis, TN, the Cadre Building is a building full of rich history and architectural details perfect for events and parties.http://www.cadrebuilding.com/Category: Directory/Arts & Humanities/Events
Beautiful Interior Design in Virginia Beach at Willis Furniture (Rating: 3) , Votes:Willis Furniture is a Virginia Beach fine furniture store that offers 100,000 square feet of showrooms, 150 different room settings, a team of in-house designers, and extensive facilities for other local designers to work with clients within Willis' showroom space.http://www.willisfurniture.com/design-services.inc
Live Online Chat (Rating: 8) , Votes:Chat live online with people from all over the world in our free video chat rooms. No registration or software is required to start chatting with other webcam users, however, to take part in the community and to unlock all chat room features, registration only takes 2 minutes and is well worth it.http://www.liveonlinechat.org
Free chat - Free chat rooms for adults, singles, and teens (Rating: 353) , Votes:Free chat rooms including adult chat rooms, teen chat rooms, college chat, singles chat, video chat, sports chat, music chat, general chat. Includes chat etiquette, smileys, abbreviationhttp://www.usachatnow.com
Modern Furniture & Contemporary Sofas (Rating: 10) , Votes:Provides the latest designs in modern furniture, contemporary furniture, leather sofas and other products. Wholesale prices to public.http://www.modernlinefurniture.com
Bookkeeper Certification (Rating: 6) , Votes:Search online for account bookkeeping services. Account bookkeeping is the heart of good business practices. Keeping track of debits and credits is basic to entrepreneurial success.http://www.bookkeeping.netCategory: Directory/Business/Services
Modern Furniture, Sofas, Bedroom Furniture & More (Rating: 0) , Votes:Modern Furniture, sofas, bedroom furniture, patio furniture need great attention when it comes to interior decorating. Kmp Furniture Store has a variety of modern furniture such as bedroom furniture,http://www.kmpfurniture.com
Furniture Store (Rating: 13) , Votes:Offers living rooms, bedrooms, dining room sets, rugs, office furniture & more.http://www.furniturestorenyc.com
Free Online Chat Rooms For Adults (Rating: 206) , Votes:Offers free online chat rooms, uk chat website with chat rooms for adults, music chat rooms, forums and profiles, includes England chat, Scotland chatrooms.http://www.worldofchat.co.uk
Ready made vertical blinds (Rating: 9) , Votes:Quality made-to-measure and ready-made vertical blinds at cheap prices. Our Vertical blinds come in a wide choice of colours and patterns ranging from pastel shades through to charcoal and can offer a soft diffusion of light or a blackout effect. [br][br] The versatility of our Vertical blinds make them suitable for any room and any sized window. You can also design your own roller blind by uploading a photo or using an image from our extensive catalogue.http://www.web-blinds.com/
Wall Water Fountains (Rating: 1) , Votes:Soothing Walls offers a large selection of Wall Fountains. Indoor wall water fountain add serenity to any room or office.http://www.soothingwalls.com/wall-fountains.html
Modern furniture store (Rating: 12) , Votes:Modern contemporary furntiure store offers collections of european furniture, modern platform bedroom sets, contemporary italian living room sets as well as traditional italian furniture.http://www.lafurniturestore.com
Bathroom Suites & Shower Enclosures (Rating: 17) , Votes:Bathroom Suites, Baths, Shower Enclosures & Shower Trays.http://www.bathroomtrade.co.uk
Home Furniture & Decor (Rating: 6) , Votes:Online Furniture Store where you can buy Furniture Online. New York furniture outlet for accent furniture, living room furniture, home decor.http://www.tycrodepot.com
Cheap Hotels (Rating: 3) , Votes:Cheap Hotels and flights are the two fundamental elements for planning cheap holidays successfully. Find information about a refined selection of cheap hotels in the worlds most popular travel destinations. The Internet offers extensive resources to research for your any cheap travel to cities like New York City, London, Paris, Rome, and Amsterdam. However when we talk about cheap hotels what we expect to find is not just a cheap hotel room sold for little money but good value accommodation.http://www.cheaphotels24.co.uk
Budget Hotels in Amsterdam (Rating: 2) , Votes:Budget Hotels in Amsterdam: The there are a handful of budget accommodation in the city centre of Amsterdam. Most popular places of interest worth to book hotel room close by are the Red Light District, Dam Square, Damrak, Leidseplein, Van Gogh museum, Rembrandt house, Rijksmuseum, and Ann Frank house. Amsterdam has over 100 budget places in the city centre including hotels, hostels, bed and breakfast and holiday apartments.http://www.budgethotelsinamsterdam.comCategory: Directory/Leisure & Travel/Budget Travel
Modular Elevator Manufacturing, Inc (Rating: 1) , Votes:Builds and installs custom commercial modular elevators including hydraulic, MRL elevators & prefabricated hoistways.http://www.modularelevator.netCategory: Directory/Business/B2B/Construction
Free Chat Rooms For Everyone (Rating: 343) , Votes:Free chat rooms including singles chat, people chat, adult chat, video chat, friend chat, chat community and many other features in are online chatrooms.http://www.planetlivechat.comCategory: Directory/Entertainment/Humor & Fun
Dunelm Mill - Rugs (Rating: 1) , Votes:UK home furnishings retailer Dunelm Mill supplies a wide range of carpet rugs and other room accessories - including throws, cushions and beanbag chairs. All accessories are available in a wide range of colours and styles.http://www.dunelm-mill.com/shop/rugs/
Avanta Office Space (Rating: 2) , Votes:Find serviced offices, virtual offices, meeting rooms and training rooms in London. A UK provider of professional serviced office space services for businesses.http://www.avanta.co.uk/Category: Directory/Europe/United Kingdom/London
Laptop and Hard Drive Data Recovery - Xytron (Rating: 40) , Votes:Specialists in data recovery services from hard drive, laptop, RAID, failed media, software and associated peripherals.http://www.xytron.co.uk
The Coolest Bean Bags On The Planet - Bean Bags R Us America (Rating: 3) , Votes:For the Coolest bean bags anywhere online! We carry a large selection of high quality beanbags suitable for indoors, outdoors and the pool!https://www.beanbagsrus.us
Baby Gifts - Jellybabys (Rating: 86) , Votes:Unique baby products and baby gifts including boys & girls baby clothes, baby shoes, we also sell amazing baby jewellery, Wodehouse's, designer cots and much more. We have free baby advice, baby name tool and lots of recipes and nursery rhymes all for you and your children's pleasure, so why not pay us a visit today!http://www.jellybabys.co.ukCategory: Directory/Shopping/Clothing
Related searches:
Webotopia provides a business directory designed to promote Trisha Both Room Seen companies, products and services whilst helping it's users find the Trisha Both Room Seen information they need. Webotopia business directory, with the help of it's dedicated support specialists and reviewers, enables delivery of Trisha Both Room Seen quality content, excellent customer support as well as value added services such as content publishing and press releases for it's users.


text:
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
"Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." - Matt. 7:13-14What does this mean?
And yes, I would be interested Gabriel, but only if it's not too much trouble.
Page created in 0.082 seconds with 25 queries.


text: Josh Hall sat down with Vancouver Giants centre Anthony Ast (from different computers of course) for this exclusive twitterview. Anthony, born in Richmond, dreams of being an NHL'er and by the sounds of it, will do just about anything to fulfill that dream. The 17 year old is on the right track. He says, "I want this to be my life because I can't imagine doing anything else." – Perfect answer!


text:
|Photo courtesy @james_in_to's peerless Flickr stream.
The Crowded Roster, Part 1: As I waited for a ride yesterday afternoon, I offered up my downtime to answer whatever was on the minds of my Twitter followers. In a fairly predictable turn of events, the most commonly offered query had to do with the roster machinations that will be required once José Reyes returns from injury next week.
(Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith has a nice rundown of the possibilities here, if you hadn't already read it.)
There really shouldn't be any angst or downside to the return of Reyes, who was by far the Jays best player in his 10 games at the start of the season. But given the unusual attachment that people have developed towards Munenori Kawasaki, the prospect of losing him from the 25-man roster seems to have created some distress.
It also offers fans an opportunity to take a running start at booting Maicer Izturis, Emilio Bonifacio or even Mark DeRosa in the ribs.
There's certainly some argument for keeping Kawasaki around, mostly fueled by his team-best 13.4 per cent walk rate. He might not hit the ball hard or often, but a .337 OBP will certainly do for a player in a bench role or a part-time second baseman. His weighted on-base average (wOBA) has been slightly above league average for shortstops (.294 versus .289), so there is certainly some value to keeping him on the roster.
While, both Izturis and Bonifacio have looked much better in the field over the past month, both continue to languish offensively, sitting at the bottom of the heap in wOBA over the past 30 days (.255 for Izturis, .242 for Bonifacio versus .289 for Kawasaki.)
What keeps this from being an easy call is the three-year deal that the Jays signed with Izturis in the offseason. The Jays obviously can't demote Izturis without designating him for assignment. The most likely situation if that were to happen - and I still think it is highly unlikely - is that no other club would step up to acquire him, and Izturis would reject a minor league assignment. At that point, any other team could step in and sign Izturis for the MLB minimum without giving up so much as a bag of balls to the Jays in return.
Meanwhile, the Jays would be stuck with paying out the remaining two-and-half years and $10 million to Izturis in the hopes that the two-month samples of both Kawasaki and Izturis portend their future value. That's something of a gamble.
If the Jays were to go the unpopular route of sending Kawasaki back to Buffalo, it would mean keeping all of their assets, and not having to worry about who the next infielder in their depth chart might be if they run into injury trouble again.
The Crowded Roster, Part 2: There's another simple solution to the conundrum above, and that's to finally - FINALLY! - do away with the 13-man pitching staff and send a reliever packing.
After all, a week or two of decent starting pitching performances has meant that some of the relievers are having to shake of dust and cobwebs from under their arms when they go to warm up. And while lefty Juan Perez would seem to be the most likely candidate to be cast off, his performance has been good enough that you almost hate to lose him.
Meanwhile, the Jays will soon find themselves in a position of finding roster spots - and rotation slots - for J.A. Happ and Brandon Morrow, should an extended period of good health ever find them. Moreover, the Jays will have to decide whether if Drew Hutchison or Kyle Drabek will get Major League innings as part of their recovery from their respective Tommy John surgeries in the later stages of the season. There is also Luis Perez, who suffered a set back last week but is likely to be the first of the TJ'ed pitchers back on the big league roster.
Having too many arms is a nice problem to have, and good lord, haven't the Jays needed the extra help over the past two years. The simple solution with controllable players like Hutchison and Drabek would be to leave them in the minors until September 1st, then shut them down for the year.
Perez - that's Luis, you understand - might pose a more difficult problem, as they may be put into a situation where his rehab time comes to an end and they need to find a way to wedge him back onto the roster.
A week ago, I might have suggested that sending Darren Oliver to a contender might be a smart way to uncloud the picture...but who really wants to give him up now, with the Jays back in a place that sort of resembles contention?
A Big Week: I don't want to put too much stock in the results over the next week, with the Jays finally squaring off against AL East counterparts. But a good result - let's say 6-4, depending on how you slice up the wins and losses - could go a long way towards mixing up the playoff picture in the division.
After years of hearing people moan longingly for "meaningful games", I hope that fans realize that the incredibly tight state of this year's AL East - coupled with the Jays' lousy start - means that almost any divisional series becomes something akin to a three or four game playoff.
If you only care about meaningful games in September, then fine...enjoy your summer off. But for those who are geared up, this could be as much fun as a Jays fan has seen in years.
Just try to contain yourself.


text:
Uses 1141 incandescent bulb (included) or LED bulb # 74281 (sold separately).
Restore illumination at your RV entrance for safer entry and exit. 12-volt.
If you wish to share feedback with us about product selection, pricing, ordering, delivery or other customer service issues, please do not submit this feedback through the Question & Answer Service. Please contact Customer Service at 1-888-626-7576.


text:
Popular Beer Recalled After Chemical Contamination
Beer lovers are being warned to check their beer after a popular brand of Stone & Wood was recalled following a chemical contamination.
According to the brewers, a batch of the 330ml Pacific Ale was contaminated with chemical cleaning fluid.
The products affected were for sale in Queensland and Northern NSW with a best before date of 25 February 2017.
In a statement, the company said they decided to do a voluntary partial recall so that customers could be confident in their beer.
"We've taken the precautionary measure due to an isolated incident that may have affected a small number of Pacific Ale bottles in a single batch," they said.
"No other Stone & Wood products or batches of Pacific Ale are affected."
Customers have been warned against drinking from the contaminated batch.
"Consumers should not drink this product as cleaning chemicals may cause illness if consumed," the Government's Food Standards site has warned.
"The product can be returned to the place of purchase for a full refund. Stone & Wood's customer care team can also be contacted directly to arrange a full refund or replacement, and collection."
TRENDING NOW: This 8-year-old just hit the most amazing shot ever!


text:
Free Audio to download from Carrigaline Baptist Church.
You can either play the audio directly in your web browser (requires flash plugin to be installed) or else click on the 'download' link to save it to your computer.
Sermons (1)
|Jesus is Lord
|Colossians 1:1-29 (Part of the Guest Speaker series).
|Preached by Daniel McAllen on August 7, 2011 (Sunday Morning).
Powered by Sermon Browser
Carrigaline Baptist Church Audio by Carrigaline Baptist Church is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.


text:
Third in a series
MILWAUKEE, Wis. - Douglas Konecny loved everything about manufacturing. He loved the roar of the machines and the hum of the factory walls. The vibrations. The smells. Even the feel of the fans blowing against his damp skin on midsummer days when it was 10 degrees hotter inside the seven-story building than outside.
He could tell when things were going right and when they were going wrong. Even when he wasn't there.
"You actually feel it like your own blood pumping," Konecny, 49, says of the work that gave him satisfaction and a comfortable, middle-class life for nearly 30 years. "Manufacturing made me feel really good. I felt good about what I did."
A chatty, personable Wisconsin native with graying blond hair, a mustache and the Scandinavian lilt of the Midwest, Doug had started out as an inventory clerk five factory jobs ago and risen to plant manager at the Allen D. Everitt Knitting Co. At Everitt, which produced hats, gloves and scarves for stores like Lord & Taylor and Sears, he supervised a staff of nearly 100 - including his wife, Carole, and their two college-age children, who all worked there part time - and earned $56,000 a year plus bonuses.
But when the company closed its doors nearly two years ago, after losing more and more of its sales base to foreign competition, the manufacturing man realized that, like the crumbling, century-old factory buildings by the Menomonee River that will soon become condominiums and lofts, he had to remake himself for the new economy.
Konecny, whose education had ended with high school, nervously went back to school and took business courses at Milwaukee Area Technical College toward an associate's degree. Carole, 52, with a high school diploma and some cosmetology classes behind her, enrolled in computer courses.
The family collected unemployment - which covered their living expenses once they cut back on gas, walking or riding bikes as often as possible, and eliminated gifts for family and friends, trips, restaurants and "anything that was fun," Carole says.
But health insurance, at $1,150 a month, was "the killer," says Doug, who is diabetic and suffered a mild heart attack six years ago. "We realized if we didn't have health insurance, we're destitute if something should happen," he says.
To pay for coverage, they took out a home-equity loan and dipped into their savings. The two children offered to drop out of college.
All the while, Carole and Doug looked aggressively for work, sending out five to 10, sometimes 20, resumes apiece each week, hoping that at least one of them would quickly find a job with health benefits.
But for weeks and months - in Doug's case a year and a half - the job hunters grew increasingly frustrated at what they were finding in the paper and on the Internet: low-paying jobs, part-time jobs, jobs without benefits.
"We've worked hard," says Doug, who shares with his wife a quirky obsession with all things Disney, including the 4-foot-tall Disney characters adorning the front of their home and their Mickey Mouse toilet seat. "We don't live in the suburbs or have the best house. But every year we've made little increases, investing in the house or things that we did. Each year was a little bit better than the year before."
Until the past two. Until the close-knit, hardworking, coupon-clipping family sunk to just above the poverty level. Until, as they see it, President Bush let manufacturing crumble, let jobs disappear, let the economy plummet, the deficit soar and let hardworking Americans like themselves come dangerously close to losing their place in the middle class.
"There may be jobs, but they are jobs without benefits or jobs without much of a future," Doug says, puffing on a Bronco cigarette as he and his wife, both wearing Disney-themed clothes, rock in matching La-Z-Boy loungers. "They are jobs at McDonald's or Wal-Mart - not that they're bad companies. But the jobs that Bush is reporting, they're not jobs for a family."
The view from Michael Gibbs' new office cubicle at InPro Corp. couldn't be more different.
At this fast-growing company that manufactures architectural trim such as handrails for commercial buildings, the 39-year-old father of two young boys sees a bustling business, a promising future, even perks like a state-of-the-art gym at the office with a personal trainer, who Michael hopes will help him lose 20 pounds.
He had joined the company in the Milwaukee suburb of Muskego seven weeks earlier, taking a $10 an hour job in the shipping department to supplement a part-time nursing job he held at a crossroads in his career.
The company was doing so well that after his first week, he received a $100 bonus in his check. At the end of the quarter, he took home an extra $450.
When a sales position opened up at InPro, where a gardener tends to the petunias outside the sprawling plant in a suburban industrial park, the college graduate applied for and got the job. He now earns $34,000, plus commission, which, if all goes well, should put him in the neighborhood of at least $45,000-$55,000 in his first year.
His wife, Kristin, 36, who met Gibbs when both were students at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, has also been feeling flush. A manager at J.C. Penney who designs the floor plans and signage for merchandise, she has doubled her salary in the past seven years and is making more than $50,000.
"Now we have more money than we need," Michael says, sitting on the deck of his three-bedroom home in suburban Muskego while their 2- and 6-year-old sons watch TV in Scooby-Doo pajamas. "We're very blessed."
The Gibbses share some of their good fortune, giving 8 percent of their gross income to the nondenominational Christian church they helped build in their community and to other charities.
In contrast to the Konecnys, Michael and Kristin Gibbs credit Bush for much of their success. Without the administration's tax breaks to small businesses - which reduced rates for companies that pay taxes at the individual income rate - Michael's new employer would not be thriving as it is and would not have been able to hire Gibbs and 17 other employees in the past nine months, he says.
What's more, Michael figures his family saved about $1,600 on its taxes in the past few years, thanks to Bush's two rounds of tax cuts. The savings helped them buy a new computer and put hardwood floors in their kitchen and foyer.
"We put money back in the economy, put people to work, bought something to help us educate our kids and added value to our house," Michael says. "Now we're looking to put in granite countertops when I get my first big commission check from InPro. We're living very nicely and comfortably."
The presidential election will be decided around kitchen tables across the country, where families like these two - the Gibbses, who say they are better off "by far" than they were four years ago, and the Konecnys, who say they are not - take measure of their lives.
Unlike the classic liberal/conservative split in the electorate, most evident on cultural issues, the economic debate cuts along a slightly murkier axis - with voters often willing to cross over to the other side if they feel their own financial well-being is in peril but generally sticking with their party and their candidate as long as they perceive the economy in general is on an upswing.
The economy has been improving in the past year - about 1.7 million jobs were added after big job losses during the previous three years, reducing the net loss of jobs during the Bush presidency to about 900,000.
But the massive dislocation of workers in the very parts of the country where the election will be won or lost - the battleground states of the Midwest - has scrambled the political equation, weakening the president's ability to capitalize on economic progress and offering John Kerry an opening.
In Wisconsin, as well as Michigan, Missouri and Ohio, the combination of increased productivity and globalization has resulted in the loss of tens of thousands of well-paying manufacturing jobs since Bush took office. Even in Wisconsin, among the industrial states where the past year's recovery has been the strongest, 52,500 factory jobs have been lost since January 2001.
These were the jobs that for decades enabled those with a high school diploma, or less, to live securely and proudly and support families in middle-class style, jobs that workers stayed in for 40 years, jobs that employees saw their fathers and even grandfathers retire from.
The region, and the nation, has struggled to replace those jobs and retrain workers for a post-industrial age. But the transition has accentuated one of the clearest fault lines in the new economy and led to a heightened sense of winners and losers. College graduates like Michael Gibbs are finding new and better opportunities, while others, like Doug Konecny - one of the more than 70 percent of adults without a four-year degree - are finding little to match previous livelihoods.
The changing economic landscape has left a vast middle class highly polarized around issues of taxes, health care, trade and the role of government.
Both presidential candidates, who have made numerous trips to Wisconsin, which voted narrowly for Al Gore in 2000, have seized upon the economic vagaries of the industrial Midwest to appeal to voters' concerns about jobs and wages, globalization, and their futures.
Kerry has used the frequent plant closings and substantial job loss in the state to slam Bush on his economic policies, calling the president's record on job creation "the worst record since Herbert Hoover."
The Democrat argues that most of the jobs created in the past year are low-paying, such as those in leisure and hospitality. And he finds surefire applause lines in his vows to cut taxes for businesses that create jobs in the United States, end tax breaks for businesses that move jobs overseas and refund payroll taxes for companies that hire new employees.
Bush, for his part, has had a more difficult task portraying the economic outlook as a sunny one, especially in regions like this, where plants sit vacant and retraining centers are full. "The economy has improved, but it's still in catch-up mode, particularly in the industrial Midwest," says Diane C. Swonk, chief economist for Bank One in Chicago. "That's a challenge for an incumbent."
But making the case that the loss of jobs is part of a decades-long trend toward globalization and greater efficiency of factories, Bush has found success stories like InPro Corp., where entrepreneurs have benefited from his tax policies and expanded their businesses on his watch.
Michael Gibbs had a business administration degree and a series of jobs working in computer operations, cable installation and then customer service that, combined with his wife's income, paid well enough to enable the couple to buy a house for nearly $200,000 five years ago.
But he had always wanted to be a nurse.
The son of a Coast Guard technician and stay-at-home mom, Michael liked the idea of helping people. In fact, before he went to college, he had spent a year at a Bible college toying with the idea of becoming a pastor. A tall, burly man with the kind of "can-do" spirit he associates with Republicans, he has a knack for dealing with people.
After nearly 15 years of high-tech jobs, the past two years without a pay raise or any hope of career advancement as the economy went into recession, he decided to make his move. He got a part-time job at Elmbrook Memorial Hospital as a nursing assistant last year and planned to enroll in nursing school in the summer.
His parents had been against it. They didn't think men and nursing went together.
His wife, too, had been against it. "I'm ready for the second half of my life," Kristin says. "I want to go on vacations. I want to start redoing the house. I want to go out to dinner."
Even with her full-time job, his $20,000 salary at the hospital wouldn't get them there.
So Michael scanned the papers for a job to supplement his hospital work. He came across the warehouse job at InPro Corp., maybe a five-minute drive from their home. In less than two months, he was plucked out of the factory and promoted to a lucrative sales position.
To the delight of his family, he left his hospital job and dropped his plans for nursing school. He booked a family trip to Disney World for the fall. Kristin started making plans to remodel the basement.
They don't understand all the "doom and gloom," as Michael says, coming from the Democrats.
As they see it, the Republican economic policies that started with Ronald Reagan and have been embraced by George Bush - primarily tax cuts and support for business - have enabled Michael to move around in the job market, even dabble in nursing, and still land on his feet.
Aside from the money they saved in taxes thanks to Bush, they refinanced their home at a lower interest rate several years ago and went from a 30-year to a 20-year mortgage.
"We're right where we want to be," Michael says. "We're saving for retirement and college."
Michael resents the fact that Democrats blame Bush for the loss of jobs and the sputtering economy. He argues that the economic downturn started at the end of the Clinton presidency and was exacerbated by Sept. 11 and the war in Iraq, which he supports. He believes Bush is a man of convictions and has done a good job of helping to bring the economy back.
As for the drastic loss of manufacturing jobs in Wisconsin and other industrial states, he points to the North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada that Clinton championed and signed.
"Wouldn't you think Bill Clinton's to blame for a lot of this, too?" Michael asks. "If you freed up free trade to go down to Mexico and pay somebody $1 an hour, versus paying somebody here $8 an hour to do a job, companies are going to choose to do business where they feel like doing business."
Growing up in families of Reagan Democrats, the Gibbses bristle at what they see as needless and wasteful government spending of their tax dollars and expensive government assistance programs they believe people take advantage of. "I am not a big fan of handouts," Michael says. "I like the idea of self-empowerment."
Michael sees the issue of taxes and the size of government as the chief difference between the parties. "The Democrats treat us as needy individuals," he says. "They don't let us do things for ourselves."
The couple fear that a President Kerry would raise the minimum wage, increase funds for workers compensation and, as the Democratic nominee has indeed promised, spend more money on health coverage for the uninsured by raising taxes on the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans.
"It killed me to hear John Kerry say, 'I'm going to take back those tax breaks that President Bush gave to the so-called rich,'" Michael says of the Democrat's acceptance speech. "If the rich are rich, they usually own companies and/or businesses, so that allows them to put more capital into their business maybe or into hiring more employees. So if they're going to take more money from the rich, to me that's just slowing down the economy."
For their part, they believe they should be the ones to decide how to spend their own money. They embrace Bush's proposal to create private investment accounts for Social Security beneficiaries.
Social conservatives who listen to talk radio, and watch Fox News and the Christian Broadcasting Network, they especially resent their tax dollars going to a public school system that teaches about the "homosexual movement," Mike says, or that doesn't allow studies of creationism. But, with his oldest son just starting kindergarten, he says he will give public schools a try, with parochial schools the fallback.
In this solidly Republican county, the newly trained salesman who wears a black polo shirt with a company logo finds many a kindred spirit at work, especially at the top.
Steve Ziegler, an accountant who bought InPro Corp. in 1993 and turned it from a $10 million to a $44 million business, is such a fan of Reaganomics that he recently offered to donate $60,000 to any local school district that would rename one of its schools after the late president.
A Bush supporter with a "W '04" sticker on his black Lincoln Navigator, Ziegler says he knows from running his own factory that improved technology is the cause of the sharp decline in jobs, not anything George Bush has done. "The people who used to do these jobs - you need to do something else," he says, walking through his plant, where sprawling machines turn plastic pellets into handrails with minimal manpower.
"Unfortunately, some individuals are stubborn and don't want to do something else," Ziegler says. "So they go on unemployment and they blame Bush and they complain, 'My job was lost.' The job wasn't really lost; it was taken over by technology."
He points to his recent hire, Michael Gibbs, as Exhibit A in the new economy, someone who rose out of the warehouse ranks to a more lucrative position, one that gives him financial security and the kind of family life he and his wife covet.
"We both like coming home at 5 o'clock and having a family dinner and going out with the kids, and doing all those things," Kristin says. "We want to be able to take family vacations, and we want to be able to do fun things. And yet we don't want to be at our jobs 80 hours a week, where you can't enjoy any of those things. And so this is perfectly comfortable for us.
"It's exactly where we want to be."
The Konecnys once had all that. Dinners around the table with Carole's pot roast and potatoes. Children running in and out of the house. Family vacations (to Disney World, of course). In fact, the Konecnys liked to think of their family as the Cleavers - as close as you could get to the TV ideal living in an urban bungalow bordered by a freeway overpass, railroad tracks and a cemetery.
But with the four of them suddenly jobless, the comfortable, traditional 1950s-style life they had clung to seemed as much a relic of the past as Beaver's soda shop slang.
"It was devastating," Carole says of the loss of their work and the change in their lifestyle.
After taking out a home-equity loan - which has set them back five years in paying off the $32,900 house they bought in 1981 and remodeled, they stripped their budget to bare bones. Shopping was confined to the dollar store. Dentist visits were canceled because the health insurance they bought didn't cover dental. Their son Daniel switched from Claritin to a cheaper generic version of the allergy medicine, which he says is not nearly as effective.
For six months, Carole, a high school graduate with a cosmetology license and much typing and office experience, searched the newspaper and the Internet for work. She says she went on roughly two interviews a week, including six interviews at Palermo's Pizza, which never got back to her. Finally, she found an entry-level clerical job, with benefits, at a health insurance company.
It took Doug longer, a year and a half, before he found a job that wasn't too drastic a cut in pay or too humiliating a cut in responsibility.
"You hear people say, 'I'll dig ditches for a job,'" says Doug, who has worked since age 11, when he had a paper route. "You go down quite a ways in what you'll do."
When he did find a management job, he was competing against former CEOs, he says, or hundreds of applicants, most with college educations. He realized that his lack of a college degree put him at a severe disadvantage. As a former supervisor himself, he knew that employers always made two piles when collecting resumes - degree, no degree.
"My resume was always in the wrong pile," he says.
Which is why he and his wife were insistent that their two children - who were paying their way through college with the help of partial scholarships and their jobs at Everitt Knitting - stay in school, even though they talked about dropping out. "There was no way we would let them do that," Doug says of his son and daughter, who both live at home. "We said, 'We'll figure out something.' Like every parent, we wanted the best for them - better than what we had."
As it turned out, Megan, 23, who graduated last May from Marquette University, and Daniel, 22, a student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, were eligible for tuition assistance through a federal program attached to NAFTA because the family had lost its employment because of foreign import competition.
The assistance program was enacted before the Bush administration, Doug is quick to point out.
Finally, in the middle of the summer, Doug was hired as an office administrator for Batzner Pest Management, a local exterminator company based in the suburb of New Berlin.
There is no factory hum, no product to inspect at the end of the line. Doug's work world is now a small, noiseless, blue cubicle with bookshelves, a computer and his Mickey Mouse mug.
He is making $45,000 - respectable but little more than he made when he started out at Everitt Knitting nearly a decade ago. Still, a 49-year-old manufacturing man with only a high school diploma, he considers himself one of the lucky ones. "It's less income. It's a lot of hours. But it's a job," he says. "I took this job. I will do this job. It has to work."
With Carole's full-time job, they are earning close to what they once did. But the Konecnys mourn the loss of the traditional home life that was important to them. "We're about where we were financially," says Doug. "But it's totally destroyed what we had as a family."
They had resisted the lure of the suburbs all these years and stayed in their small city house so they could afford for Carole to be home part time. When the children were younger, she had been so active in their lives that the school principal joked that she had a better attendance record than some of the students.
The parents feel the choices they made paid off - both children graduated from public school at the top of their classes, lettered in sports, and won numerous academic awards and scholarships.
They don't think such a lifestyle is possible in the middle class today.
"We achieved something good because I worked hard all my life and my wife was able to stay home and do nice things with the kids," Doug says. "I think that's gone."
In fact, Megan recently announced to her family that she did not plan to have children because she wanted a career instead. She doesn't think both are possible. "She saw how we struggled," Carole says with much sadness. "She said, 'I don't want to do that.'"
The products of Democratic working-class families - Carole's parents are strong union people who still make sure the clothes they buy are American made - the Konecnys believe Bush has failed hardworking middle-class Americans like themselves. "I don't feel we've received any benefits from the Bush administration whatsoever," Doug says. "Everything I see he's doing is for the rich."
He blames Bush for the rush of jobs out of the country. "He's ruining the good country that we have," Doug says. And he believes John Kerry - really, the Democrats in general - would do more to protect the interests of families like his, who only go to restaurants in their discount book and split a burger four ways when they go to Disney World.
Mostly, they like Kerry because they believe his health care plan comes closer to their ideal of universal coverage. "If we had that when this happened with the job market, we at least would not have had such a weight on us," Doug says. If they had their druthers, in fact, Hillary Rodham Clinton, who led her husband's ill-fated attempt to provide universal coverage, would be the nominee.
Consumers who have always paid off their credit cards each month, something they believe saved them from losing their house when they were unemployed, they are dismayed at the rising deficit - especially because they believe the costly war in Iraq was misguided. "If Bush was going to raise the deficit that bad, he could have done an awful lot here at home," says Doug, who voted for the deficit-minded Ross Perot in 1992. "Our country needs help."
The money could have been invested in education, he says, helping to offset skyrocketing college costs that forced Megan to leave the University of Alabama after one year and head home to Marquette, which offered her more assistance. The money could have been invested in health care. And child care. And helping the homeless.
In fact, since their brush with unemployment, the Konecnys have a deeper empathy for the people they see on the streets. "Some of them have had basically what we've had happen to us - and just went down and never recuperated," Doug says. "We're struggling. We're positive people. I feel we're going to make it."
But again, says a man who goes to sleep every night beneath a Mickey Mouse bedspread and adorns the front of his home with Donald and Goofy and Mickey and Minnie to make people smile, he feels he's one of the lucky ones.


text:
'Rayudu showed that one should never lose hope'
Former India ODI captain Ajay Jadeja feels that Ambati Rayudu's international debut will be an inspiration for all those "eternal hopefuls" who want to don the national colours.
"If I can remember, Rayudu started playing first-class cricket when I was playing for India. It took him 10 long years to finally make his senior international debut. This shows that in every aspect of life, one should never lose hope," Jadeja told PTI on the sidelines of a prize distribution ceremony of TERI.
"I don't think many people would have thought that Rayudu will manage to play for India although his talent was unquestionable. He played in ICL which was an unsanctioned league and then changed states.
"Once you have gone through all these, there is a tendency of selectors not to pick you. What went in Rayudu's favour was his experience at first-class level and a solid game that he possesses," 42-year-old Jadeja, who played 196 ODIs and 15 Tests for India, said.
Image: Ambati Rayudu
Photographs: Bikash Mohapatra
'Pujara has the game and the temperament'
Jadeja is also hopeful that Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara will also prove his mettle in the shorter format.
"It's not for me or you to judge whether Pujara is in the scheme of things for the 2015 World Cup but he certainly has the game and the temperament.
"But most important thing is what selectors think about Pujara. He has shown at the domestic level that he can play the shorter version also. I don't see any reason why Pujara won't be successful in ODIs," he said.
'Shikhar has started off brilliantly and will only improve'
Talking about Shikhar Dhawan, the stylish right-hander of 90's felt that the Delhi opener will only get better with time.
"Great players are those who improve and get better with passage of time. Shikhar has started off brilliantly and he will only improve as he works on his flaws. Even Sachin Tendulkar had flaws and he has continuously worked on them," Jadeja said.
On whether playing too many horizontal bat shots can cause him trouble, Jadeja said, "If he is a puller, it's good but if he is a compulsive puller, it's not good.
"Anything done out of choice is good but not out of compulsion."
'The basic grammar of finishing the game is still the same'
Asked whether the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli have changed the definition of a finisher in ODI cricket, Jadeja, who himself was a fine finisher in his time, explained, "The basic grammar of finishing the game is still the same."
"Earlier, the game's pace was dictated by the 22 players but now it is about the rules which govern the game.
"You have two new balls, lesser number of fielders in the circle, mandatory Powerplay by 35th over. These things certainly have become a factor."


text:
helenb needed a new logo design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 66 designs submitted by 8 freelance designers.
simple 2 or 3 colour cardboard inlay for clear box
design on 2 sides.
the card will fold, a base, back folding up and 2 side pieces top corner to bottom corner angle.(triangle ish shape)
back with name address and design.
base with underneath side with ingredients list on
a little cake for you
i want a inlay for a small box, that will catch the eye and you can tell that is a cake in side the box. the cake will be a gift cake for one. they will be displayed on a small 3 tired shelf so you will be able to see the sides from a distance and the cakes themselves will able to be seen when closer.
I'm a small bakery based in western australia, wanting to expand my business with these cakes. i can make great cakes but have no idea about product design so open to great ideas
- good colour
- standout
- simple and easy to recognize
- modern design
- baby colours
Find out how a design contest works or learn more about our logo design services.