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Sunday, 18 March 2012
Penhaligon's Ormolu: A "Wormhole" Scent In A Tutu
No, it is the other two who are top of mind for me: Penhaligon's in particular, because of the interesting way it has reinvented itself in recent years, since entrusting the development of its perfumes to the ubiquitous "hot nose on the block", Bertrand Duchaufour. Recent launches such as Juniper Sling are thematically rooted in the past while appealing to modern tastes, making for a winning blend of brand heritage and contemporary flair. In fabric terms, this fusion of eras might perhaps translate as moleskin hipster trousers or a drapey, asymmetric wrap-around top made out of tweed. Bizarrely, I actually have one of those - it is Japanese and came from Spitalfields market, so go figure... It has a sort of cummerbund belt thing going on, and really does look quite nice on, in a vaguely Borg-like way. The lapels really are rather pointy...
a Perfume Studio workshop two years ago before becoming a sales associate myself for a while - gave me nine Penhaligon's samples plus a mini of Ormolu that he had come across whilst having a clear out of his flat. So how did he come by the mini of a femininine scent, you may ask, and what's with the "Wormhole" reference in the title?
Well, no actual habitats of worms are involved, though goodness knows I am well acquainted with these, after handling dozens of the beggars during a marathon lawn laying session the other weekend to help out a friend. This also meant digging up the tatty remnants of the existing lawn first, and carefully rehoming the not inconsiderable worm diaspora which were unearthed in the process. By the end of the afternoon I could pick up a worm in my gloved hand, instead of coaxing it gingerly - and to not much effect - with a floppy twig.
And though the precise name of the scent may remain lost in the mists of time, Beetmoll clocked and liked it enough to ask Rustici what it was. Rustici also mentioned that this scent was a favourite of Winston Churchill's, no less! Now I wouldn't have instantly associated a guitarist in a rock band with the stiff upper lip Britishness of distinguised Prime Ministers or the Penhaligon's brand (certainly as it was back then), but there again the perfume world is full of such surprises. Plus Beetmoll tells me that Corrado Rustici was immaculately dressed, and come to think of it Italians are famed for their keen/sharp sense of style.
You should perhaps also know that Beetmoll himself doesn't fit any of the profiles people might associate with the typical Penhaligon's customer - he is no young fogey or dapper metrosexual, for example. Rather, he dresses top to toe in black utility clothing, and sports a glorious long mane of flame-coloured hair that would make Jane Asher weep.
Then he reckons he bought the samples by mail order out of the company's catalogue, again in the early 90s - they served as a "discovery set" (as we might term it today) for his further exploration of the line. The mini of Ormolu is decked out in copious swathes of pale yellow netting, for all the world like a tutu. After some concerted memory-dredging, Beet reckons he may also have bought the mini out of the catalogue, with the idea of giving it to a girlfriend. Instead, it wound up in my possession, two decades later!
Here is the blurb inside the lid of the box:
"Ormolu is a rich perfume. Like the ground gold decoration after which it is named, Ormolu enhances what is already fine. Sophistication is not easily acquired. Equally it takes time to appreciate the complex character of this warm, floral fragrance."
Of course I had to google "ormolu" to find out a bit more about it...As ever, Wikipedia has the scoop. I was especially concerned to read about the gilders' poor life expectancy:
"Ormolu /ˈɔrməluː/ (from French or moulu, signifying ground or pounded gold) is an 18th-century English term for applying finely ground, high-carat gold in a mercury amalgam to an object of bronze. The mercury is driven off in a kiln (leaving behind a gold-colored veneer). ...Due to exposure to the harmful mercury fumes, most gilders did not survive beyond 40 years of age."
The choice of name and the sales copy both point to this being a rich, rather "ornate" perfume, and so it proves.
Top Notes - Armoise, Camomile, Bergamot
Middle Notes - Jasmine, Rose, Violet, Ylang
Base Notes - Sandalwood, Musk, Moss, Amber
The (small sample of) two reviewers on MUA are not overly enthusiastic it must be said, giving it an average rating of 3 out of 5. That's a "meh", pretty much, or slightly better. One is aged 19-24, admittedly.
Then there is a lone review of Ormolu by Foetidus on Basenotes, who confirms that the sweetness and powder don't let up for him, and he was not sorry to learn that it was discontinued.
And I must say it isn't really my thing either, but I don't dislike it. With its slightly spiky opening, Ormolu segues into a full-on powdery oriental which manages to smell oldfashioned but not in a kickass retro way, like Le Parfum de Therese or Onda. It reminds me a bit of Guerlain Mayotte or one of the many Carons with "Aimez" in the title, but it has a mossier, more herbally aspect, at least initially, which fights with the floral notes. I wouldn't call it overly sweet though - perhaps my skin amplifies the mossy note. It almost has the vibe of a Grossmith, in fact, though it errs the right side of out-and-out sneezefest, unlike most of that line to my nose. As it wears on the powderiness mutes down, but it doesn't smell distinctly of a particular flower to me at any point, and I can really take it or leave it, to be honest.
Quantum Demonology, is based (Type O Negative)!
Sadly, as this Hamman Oil continues to elude us, I cannot give you a note listing for Beetmoll's first perfume love and purchase. But here is the lowdown on Hammam Bouquet, which he went on to own, and which was created by William Penhaligon in 1872.
Top notes: lavender and bergamot
Middle notes: Bulgarian rose, orris root, jasmine and cedar
Base notes: sandalwood, amber and musk
I wouldn't say Beet is on the cusp of being afflicted with full scale fumeheadonism, but he does enjoy his Penhaligon's colognes (Opus 1870 is the current favourite!), and for my own part I am delighted to have inherited his tutu-clad Ormolu mini and its unexpected "back(stage) story"...
Hold on, could that by any chance be a touch of ormolu on that chandelier?
Photo of Corrado Rustici album from lyrics.wikia.com, photo of Hammam Bouquet from lenonma.ru, photo of Zucchero Fornaciari from Jeangagnon via Wikimedia Commons, other photos my own
10 comments:
Hi Vanessa. So you say Ormolu you could take or leave, but now I'm very curious (and I'm sort of suggesting a post idea for you): I get the impression from reading your comments elsewhere on the blogosphere lately that your tastes in perfume have been changing, and I was wondering what you've been loving lately that might be on the more daring side for you. I loved your Dior lippie post, by the way (that shade looks very pretty on you), and I guess I'm just wondering if you've been wearing any vavoomy or new-to-you fragrances to go with your updated new look. Or am I being too nosey? (No perfume pun intended). :-)ReplyDelete
I have no comments about the perfume - I barely familiar with either of two cornerstone brands of the British perfumery. But I enjoyed reading the story and also wanted to share that as a child (9-10 years old) I had no problems picking up earthworms. No gloves involved! (together with a no-cover iPhone it should picture me living a life of danger ;) ).ReplyDelete
Hi Suzanne,ReplyDelete
You're not being nosey at all, and it is a good question...
I did enjoy the drydown of Ormolu more when the powderiness had dissipated somewhat; it just didn't move me I guess, as some retro classics can, like Le Dix or Vol de Nuit - or Apres L'Ondee most of all!
On the va-va-voomy front, let me think what I have discovered that might fit that category, given that the lovely Heure Promise you sent me - and Santal Massoia which I also love - are on the quiet and understated side!
I adored Chantecaille Petales that you also sent me and will be reviewing it soon - that counts as quite feminine, if not as "out there" as the likes of Fracas, say.
And Honour Woman is a fairly new, fairly "big" floral I have discovered. I like Mona di Orio Tubereuse too, so it could be that I am having a bit of a white floral moment...And it is not even that far into spring yet!
Hi Undina,ReplyDelete
Naked iPhones and naked worm handling, the latter from a very early age - my respect for you just leapt up another notch. Daring woman indeed, you are!
White florals, yay!! I haven't yet tried Honour Woman or MdO Tubereuse (funny, a while ago I ordered the newest MdO scents but skipped that one, which was kinda stupid since I love tuberose). So happy to hear you love Heure Promise and Chantecailles Petales. :)ReplyDelete
Hi Suzanne,ReplyDelete
Well, I wouldn't have even called myself a fan of the note in the past, but may be having a change of heart. If not a 180 exactly, a 90 degrees for sure. My Petales review is imminent, but still "brewing" if you know what I mean! We "read" this one in just the same way, I sense. : - )
Or - thinking back to that 50s video Birgit posted at the weekend - do I mean "see", haha?!
Hi Vanessa,ReplyDelete
Ormolu sounds like what I would wear to bed! I actually really like powder in a perfume and the 'spikiness' of the opening seems like something interesting! Too bad it's discontinued.
Lovely read, in any case!
Hi Joshua,ReplyDelete
Are you by any chance coming along to the Leather Event on Thursday, because I could bring the mini along for you to try, if so? Or failing that, to a future talk we will both be at? It has a tiny stopper, so unfortunately it would not be an easy task to decant a sample that I could send you, which would be my normal suggestion in such circumstances!
Fascinating post!ReplyDelete
I find the fact that a rocker/musician is wearing Penhaligon's most interesting.
I think your tastes are definitely changing or expanding lately. I look forward to hear what appealed to you at the leather event.
Hi Olfactoria,ReplyDelete
I must say the contrast intrigued me too, and I think you are right about my tastes expanding: tuberose, a touch of oud, big white florals, acceptable levels of civet, the odd retro chypre...where will it all end? : - ) I even sniffed my bottle of Cabochard the other day and it wasn't nearly as bad as I remembered!


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Martha Tarry Simpson has been selected as a Senior Star by the University of Kentucky Sanders-Brown Center on Aging. Simpson will be honored at an Oct. 13 luncheon in Lexington. Throughout her life, Simpson brought arts and refinement to the children of Henry County and Eminence as a public school teacher. Following her retirement in 1978, she continued to be active in community organizations, including the Eminence Literary Club, Smithfield Garden Club, Historic Drennon Storytelling and Crafts Festival and the Eminence Presbyterian Church.
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|Hamburger Soup Recipe
The Recipe: Comfort food at its best, a hearty soup with chunks of meat and a cornucopia of bright-colored vegetables. I've been making this soup for, what, thirty years? Yikes!
The Conversation: The neighborhood of my childhood, where every family called the kids to dinner with a different sound. How does your family call everyone to the table?
"... it was sooooo good!" ~ Dana
"... this is very good and my kids also liked it." ~ Crystal
The playground of my childhood was fifteen acres of woods and riverbank, rounded out with a treehouse, a cattle culvert and a cave; three gullies, boat docks and vegetable gardens; a makeshift baseball diamond, a chicken-coop-turned-clubhouse and a raspberry patch.
But we just called it "the neighborhood", home to six families in seven houses, three owned by brothers. The year I started kindergarten, my mom used to recount, 21 kids got on the schoolbus. Within the neighborhood, we kids knew no boundaries. On the other side of the river was Ontario. Immigration? We'd swim over, boat over, skate over, depending on the season. My mom was big on yard games: in summer, we played endless rounds of croquet in the front yard then switched to badminton matches in the back. One winter, the river froze rough so my dad flooded the front yard for an ice rink.
Come suppertime, we kids could be anywhere. To call us home for dinner, each family had a distinctive sound. The Andersons had the jingle of a bell, one of the Holte families the gong of a triangle. My dad pursed his lips around a conch shell horn, summoning my sister and me with a deep-bass bellow.
These days, my sister calls her boys to supper with the "tink" of a text message. It's modern, not quite so nostalgic, but it works. And you, how are you calling your family to dinner these days?
Time-to-table: 75 minutes
Makes 12 cups
- Splash of water
- 1 pound ground beef, turkey, elk or other meat
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 3 ribs celery, trimmed and chopped
- 15 ounces canned diced tomatoes
- 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1 cup frozen corn (no need to thaw)
- 4 cups beef broth
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (may need less or more depending on saltiness of the broth)
- Generous grind of black pepper
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- "Other" - see TIPS
- 1 cup dried pasta
In a large pot or Dutch oven, cook the meat in the splash of water, breaking the meat up as it cooks, letting each piece get a little "burn" on it before turning over. Add the onion, pepper and celery as they're prepped and cook until the vegetables are beginning to soften. Add all the remaining ingredients except the pasta, cover and bring to a boil.
Turn the heat down to maintain a slow simmer and let cook until the vegetables are cooked. (If serving later, stop here, let cool, refrigerate. Return to a boil before proceeding.)
Add the pasta and cook for 10 - 15 minutes until pasta is fully cooked. Serve and savor!
To reheat leftovers, you may need to add more liquid as the pasta sucks up the broth.
A Menu
More Hamburger Recipes
Shop Your Pantry First
~ bell peppers ~
~ tomatoes ~
~ carrots ~
~ corn ~
~ ketchup ~
~ All Recipes, By Ingredient ~
~ How to Save Money on Groceries ~
© Copyright Kitchen Parade 2009, 2014, 2015 (repub) & 2016


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by Paula M. Riley
Want WiFi everywhere? If you're a Comcast customer, you might be surprised to know the company literally has hot spots everywhere, including Chestnut Hill.
As part of Comcast's Xfinity WiFi initiative, Comcast Xfinity Internet customers now have the ability to access thousands of outdoor and indoor WiFi hotspots for no additional fee. Xfinity WiFi hotspots have been launched throughout the greater Philadelphia area and its suburbs.
These hotspots, Comcast representatives explain, are located in areas where customers spend time working, commuting, relaxing, shopping and socializing. Chestnut Hill's mass transit stops, Pastorius Park and Germantown Avenue were natural candidates for hotspots. Other hot spots across the region include SEPTA's Suburban and Market East stations, train platforms along the Paoli/Lansdale Line (formerly R5) and the Manayunk/Norristown Line (formerly R6), the Wells Fargo Center and the South Street shopping district.
Earlier this year, Comcast announced a roaming agreement with Cablevision and Time Warner Cable, whereby Xfinity Internet customers can also enjoy thousands of Xfinity WiFi hotspots in the Greater New York Tri-State area, also for no additional fee.
"With the explosion of wireless Internet devices, new platforms and apps, consumers are increasingly looking to enjoy entertainment and communications on the go," said Cathy Avgiris, senior vice president and general manager of communications and data services for Comcast Cable. "We offer some of the fastest Internet speeds in the home and, by offering Xfinity WiFi, we're also providing a fast wireless Internet experience for our customers when they are outside the home," she said.
As evidenced by the map, hot spots are fairly evenly placed across the city. The goal is to position them in high activity areas – train stations, parks, along shopping districts. Just as in other parts of Philadelphia, Chestnut Hill's high traffic areas are Xfinity WiFi hot spots. Customers can enjoy the same internet access and speed on their laptop, handheld or iPad while out along the Avenue as they enjoy at home.
"In addition to launching WiFi, we've increased speeds for customers at no cost, we offer the fastest speeds in the marketplace, we offer a staggering amount of online programming content that our customers can view wherever they are, at home or on the go — to name a few benefits," said Jeff Alexander, Comcast representative.
The Xfinity WiFi service is open – at no cost – to all Comcast Xfinity Internet customers. All they need is a WiFi-enabled device and a comcast.net username and password. Many popular devices, including the iPad and the iPod touch, require password entry only once. Once you've entered the password, your device will recognize the network wherever it detects the signal.
For more information or to view a map of hotspots, visit http://comcast.cellmaps.com/wifi.html. You can zoom in to see exact locations – just enter 19118 to view all the hotspots in and around Chestnut Hill.


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Contact info- firstname.lastname@example.com
January 24th, 2015.
I just wanted to let everyone know that I will no longer a part of Silent
Horror. I apologize to everyone who supported me in this band. I'm sorry if I
let you down. I tried, if not for your sakes alone, to reconcile a way to remain
in the band, but unfortunately reached an impasse with the other members. I
won't go into much great detail, but will offer those who have supported me at
least a fraction of the lengthy explanation I owe them. I was asked by Silent
Horror on at least two prior occasions to join their band as their singer. After
getting a promised commitment from them Upon their last request, I joined. We
were originally going to be a project that only released CDs and play very few
shows. It was agreed that we would go into the studio and I would re record
vocals for an album that they wrote with their old singer who quit years prior.
Half of the material of the CD I appear on was material that had already been
released in the form of an ep. The other half, the majority of the album was
material that was never actually released. We would do this album first, and in
th meantime continue to work on new songs for a new album together. Somewhere
along the way, things just shifted on their own into us becoming an actual
functioning band and we all went with it. That means, I went ahead and made us a
facebook page, set us up a store, linked it to a website domain that I purchased
for the band. The whole nine. Not long after the album release we got an offer
to do a tour of Europe this upcoming May. After weeks of consideration the band
agreed to do it. The tour began being booked soon after that. Recently, amidst
discussions around other disagreements the subject of European tour came up. I
was told by the other members of the band that they do not want to do the tour
and they did not to begin with. Since it was already being booked and nothing to
this effect had been brought up sooner we got into an argument. Later I was
contacted by the band and told that this band had never intended to play shows
and This was established in the beginning so that was enough reason to cancel
it. I was told that the only way the band would continue on Was as a band that
plays only a select few shows a year, and releases only music and merchandise
online. My terms were that I would agree to this only if we had the option to
tour Europe at least 6 weeks out of the year. A week went by with no
communication until I was called by the band telling me they had decided to get
a different singer and go on without me. In an effort to be professional I did
not argue but tried to be as civil as possible. The conversation ended with me
thinking that had been achieved. We had agreed that they would take the trip out
to my place to pick up their gear next week and at that point we would start
shutting down all of our networks, (facebook, Instagram, our online music
distribution site, and website) together. There were certain things in light of
being essentially ejected from the band that I felt I was owed. Nothing crazy or
outlandish. Just plain and simple ethics. In conversation these things were even
agreed upon as basic and doable. I woke up this morning to find out that I have
been deleted off of the facebook page I created and made the other members
admins of. I have been locked out of our digital album sale site with no way of
knowing what sales are coming in. I was locked out of PayPal so I couldn't get
the 33% of the owed money leftover after taking my startup costs back earlier
last week. ive been locked out of our Instagram, Twitter, the store I created
has been deleted. Everything gone. I emailed the band asking what was going on
and later this evening I got a phone call from the band telling me it's their
band, those are their things, and I have no claim to any of it. All of the
things we agreed to do collectively in an effort I thought to move on amicably
was revealed to be a total farce. All last week I had access like they did to
all of the above mentioned accounts I did not tell them I would work with them
professionally as possible for the fans sakes on this matter, turn around and
sneak into all of those accounts and do what was done to me while I was asleep
in bed last night. Basically I've been told that if I want to do anything about
it I'm free to consult a lawyer. I'm speechless guys. Many of you know me very
well. A lot of you reading this might not like me, but one thing you cannot say
about me is I am not professional. I Show everyone that shows me Respect and
dignity the same in return. I learned a lesson today about how hurtful and
dishonest people who claim to be your friends can be. I have given 17 years of
my life to this thing. This thing we call Horrorpunk I call my life. I feel
completely used and discarded. I came in, worked my ass off, did everything I
could to help this band succeed by giving it my contacts, my networks, my love
and my endorsement. Now that these are all in place there seems to be no more
need for me in Silent Horror. I Really do apologize for having to go so far as
to do this and make this post. It goes against everything I stand for. I'm the
type of person to just face adversity, accept problems and focus on my own work
and moving forward. Though I am still of that mindset I feel completely and
utterly betrayed. This isn't a way for me to put people on sides. It's just the
honest and simple truth and unfortunately it's dirty. I have never once in my
life posted anything negative about anything, much less anyone ever on facebook.
Ever. I challenge anyone to prove me wrong. The fact that I am now is something
I want to serve as a testament to not only how much I love this genre, but also
each and every one of you who support me as an artist. I promise you guys, I
will move on and be bringing you new music soon. just please be aware of the
many dishonesties you may support in your life. Thank you.
As we make our return home from our farewell tour we want to take the opportunity to thank everyone who was key and instrumental in it's success. Thanks to Tom at Weird World Booking, Dan at the Pantheon Agency, Chris Schaeffer, Stefan Loerchner, Marko Stockheim, Barb Dunkelmann, JV Bastard, Andrew Stripes Winter, Jeff Frumess at Video Business Media, Stephen Nacy, Nomads of Prague, Willy B's Tees, Ghouls Night Out Fest, Lufthansa Airlines for having awesome in flight programming, all of the clubs, promoters, and venues that accommodated us, our friends, families for their patience and support, and most of all the fans for making it a memorable event for all of us here in Blitzkid from day one to this our final moment. It's with a heavy emotion that we say goodnight, but with a light heart in which we deliver it unto you. These have been some of the best days of our lives that we close a chapter on and have nothing but positive feelings for even having been given them to begin with. All we ask is that you will remember us, pass us on, and continue to validate our years by playing us loud over whatever mood you may find yourself in each day. We've been Blitzkid, and now you are though you always have been whether you knew it to be so or not. Thank you, good night, and LONG LIVE THE HORROR!
Argyle Goolsby


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Here's the New Edition of the must-have reference in sports medicine! Covering all athletes throughout their lifespan, this 2-volume reference explores the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of the full spectrum of sports-related injuries and medical disorders. It provides the most clinically focused, comprehensive guidance available in any single source, with contributions from the most respected authorities in the field. Thoroughly revised and updated, youll find state-of-the-art coverage in an all-new full-color format and access to the complete contents online, with video clips and more!
- Encompasses imaging techniques, the management of both adult and child/adolescent injuries, and sports-related fractures to help you meet for every clinical challenge.
- Includes coverage of important non-orthopaedic conditions in the management of the athlete for a complete guide to treatment.
- Integrates coverage of pediatric and aging athletes to help you meet the unique needs of these patients.
- Covers rehabilitation and other therapeutic modalities in the context of return to play.
- lDelivers new and expanded coverage of arthroscopic techniques, including ACL reconstruction, allograft cartilage transplantation, rotator cuff repair, and complications in athletes, as well as injury prevention, nutrition, pharmacology, and psychology in sports.
- Offers unprecedented reference power with access to the full text online, with links to PubMed, an image library, self-assessment material, and more.
- Includes video clips demonstrating arthroscopic and open surgical techniques on the website to enhance your mastery of essential skills.
- Offers a new full-color design and format including over 3000 superb illustrations, intraoperative and clinical photos, and boxed and color-coded text features to clarify key concepts, diagnostic landmarks, and operative techniques.


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5 of 5 stars
I've read all the Barbara Marr mysteries and "Saturday Night Cleaver" is the best one yet! Poor Barbara - all she wants is a nice quiet existence in Rustic Woods and for her husband, Howard, to be well again. He was injured on his last assignment before retiring from the FBI. He's been moping around the house while his leg has been healing and he's been falling down on his husband duties. This does not make Barb happy and to work out some of her frustration, she takes the family dog for a walk in the woods behind her house. What happens next sends Barb on another rollicking adventure!
Ms. Cantwell has a true comedic voice that shines through Barb. Some of the passages had me laughing out loud. It's also good to see some of the regulars from Rustic Woods make an appearance in this story. I especially love Barb's Mom. She's quite a character and Barb's reaction to some of the things her Mother does is just priceless. If you're looking to escape into a fun and thoroughly entertaining mystery, this book is just what the doctor ordered. Highly Recommended!


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Is Washington Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett doing a favor for a couple of his New Orleans Saints draft picks from a decade ago?
The Redskins announced Wednesday the signings of veteran wide receivers Donte' Stallworth and Devery Henderson.
Stallworth was a first-round selection by the Saints in the 2002 NFL Draft. Henderson was plucked in the second round two years later. Both players attracted scant interest on the open market as free agents.
Although Stallworth has experience in the offense of Mike and Kyle Shanahan from 11 games with the Redskins in 2011, he went unsigned last season until the New England Patriots picked him up as a December flier.
Once a deep-threat specialist with questionable hands in New Orleans, Henderson saw his role with the Saints gradually scaled back over the past few seasons. The Redskins already have a younger, faster version of Henderson in Aldrick Robinson.
Neither Stallworth nor Henderson is a good bet to crack the final roster, but the Redskins will have them on speed dial if Pierre Garcon and Leonard Hankerson suffer through another season of nagging injuries.
Follow Chris Wesseling on Twitter @ChrisWesseling.


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One of the biggest health care issues of the upcoming session will be Governor Peter Shumlin's plan to reduce the benefit package for some of the participants in the Catamount Health Care program at the beginning of 2014.
This has become an issue because the state's current subsidized health care programs; the Vermont Health Access Plan and Catamount Health, will be eliminated at the end of 2013. Roughly 30,000 low income participants will be enrolled in the Medicaid program and the remaining 17,000 people will purchase their coverage directly from Vermont's new Health Care Exchange.
The Medicaid group will see little change in coverage but people who enter the Exchange will face substantially higher out of pocket expenses because their benefit package won't be as comprehensive as their existing coverage.
For instance, an individual making roughly $28,000 would see their out of pocket expenses rise from $1,800 to more than $5,000.
The Governor says he's looking for a solution but he says the state simply doesn't have the money to deal with this issue.
"We won't really know what it's going cost until we figure out what proposal we're going to come up with that helps to close the gap" said Shumlin. "The entire cost if you were going to replace everything is upwards of $15 to 17, 18 million so obviously we don't have that kind of money around."
And Shumlin says the current benefit package is probably too comprehensive.
"There are parts of our existing program that are more generous than they need to be."
The outcome of this debate will directly affect Dan Dinolo of Lincoln. The 62 year old was laid off recently and now receives his health care from the state. He thinks it's counter productive to increase co-pays and deductibles on folks who are struggling to get by.
"I think there would be a lot of cases where you would defer to have something done or not do it at all and then you'd deal more in crisis management but bottom line if I need the care I'm going to go get it and then that's going to come out of savings or whatever."
This entire issue has caught the attention of House Health Care chairman Mike Fisher.
"I have believed for some time that we're going to have to find a way to minimize that exposure if we're really trying to reduce the number of Vermonters who are under-insured."
Fisher says part of the solution could be to transfer some of the state's existing health care subsides to a new program that would augment federal subsidies that will be available when the Exchange begins to operate in January of 2014.


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More on Geothermal WellsMonday, September 22nd, 2008
In response to the comment on the last post, Ron Tola, director of facilities management, tells me that the two units are ground source heat pumps, with one unit for the second floor and another for the third floor of the residence. The lines are buried about 70 feet deep in a "cone" configuration with about 8 vertical members for each unit.
Want to know more about Haverford College's geothermal wells? Ask the green squirrel.


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First came the 700w running Windows Mobile (reviewed here). Today, we got our hands on the Palm Treo 700p, the latest iteration of Palm's smartphone, running the Palm OS. This 700p is not available in the UK yet, but previous Treo models such as the 650 (reviewed here) have been offered by Orange. In the US, it is available from Sprint, and is also due to be handled by Verizon, which is already selling the Windows Mobile-based 700w.
As I found from my first few hours of hands-on with the unit, the revamped Palm-based Treo 700p has many fine attributes. Palm has made numerous refinements to its Treo 650 design. For Palm users, the biggest change on the Treo 700p is a most welcome one: More on-board memory. Like the 700w, the 700p has 128 Mbyte total memory, 60 Mbyte available to users, as compared with 32 Mbyte total, 23 Mbyte available to users on the Treo 650.
Greater memory led to greater speed and response time in my experience. In handling, I found the Treo 700p was dramatically faster than my Treo 650, at everything from loading and viewing media to scrolling through files on a 1 Gbyte SD card, and switching among applications. Even scrolling around within applications - including Documents to Go 8, preloaded on the unit - was noticeably faster than on a Treo 650.
Blazing speed is also in play when you use the Treo 700p for Internet access. The unit supports the EvDO 3G networks in use in the US, and the speed makes browsing sites (using the pre-loaded Blazer browser) a real pleasure. No more hand wringing while you wait for a page to load: Instead, blink, and you may miss how fast it really is.
The media interface to the camera and to captured media has been overhauled, and the results are mostly impressive. It's much faster to access and organize media files. The integrated 1.3-megapixel camera and camcorder has a 1280 by 1024 resolution, up from the 640 by 480 resolution optics in the Treo 650.
I also found a slew of interface enhancements to the 700p, both overt and subtle. For example, in the Web browser, you can now see full, long URLs, as opposed to being limited to a one-line display; and, as you enter a password, it shows you the last letter you entered, before turning it into an asterisk - a useful tweak that makes it easy to catch a typo. Also, when you reactivate the unit from sleep, the keyguard prompt now provides the date and time, too - convenient if you rely on your phone as a timepiece, as I do.
My one gripe with the new look: You can no longer change image or video resolution from the main interface itself - something I often do so I can send an image to a friend's phone which doesn't have as much space as a smartphone. To do so now, you have to press the menu button, then change the resolution and press ok - two additional steps to do the same task.
The 700p, as expected, has virtually the same physical design as the Treo 700w, which runs Microsoft's Windows Mobile 5 operating system. The unit has buttons on the left for volume control (instead of the rocker switch found on the Treo 650); larger, more squared-off keys that make typing easier; a bigger, roomier, easier-to-press five-way navigational button; and six larger, more clearly-positioned navigational buttons - for phone, calendar, email, and home, and for power (red) and send (green).
The new send button functions like the send button in plain vanilla cell phones. Press it when you've dialed a number, and it initiates the call. As critical as those functions are, having a separate button from the phone navigational button is wasteful and redundant. This new send button occupies prime real estate, taking the place of the home button on the Treo 650. And many of its functions, including accessing the call log, dial pad, and recently-dialed calls, used to be ably handled by the dedicated phone navigational button, which now only takes you to the phone application (but, obviously, could have continued doing those functions). Meanwhile, the new position of the home button, way off to the far right of the unit, feels awkward and unfortunate, considering how integral this button is for day-to-day actions on the Treo.
Aside from having its four navigation buttons keyed to the Palm OS's integrated apps, the Treo 700p's design differs from the 700w's in one other noticeable respect: On the lower row of the keyboard, the 700w has a second shift key on the right side, just like the Treo 650's keyboard; on the 700p, that second shift key becomes the menu button.
The unit comes from Sprint with a slew of software. For starters, you get the very visual On Demand software, which delivers localised information to your fingertips at no charge - from weather to TV listings, maps, news updates, sports, and phone directories.
Also included is
- My Treo, for helping you to make the most of the device (including a full user guide);
- the standard version of Pocket Tunes (which replaces the Real Player software on the Treo 650). For full Windows DRM and Plays for Sure support, you'll need to step up to the Deluxe version;
- Dataviz's Documents to Go 8, for reading and creating Microsoft Office files and PDFs; and
- Sprint TV, an interface for purchasing streaming media content optimised for the Treo (program offerings span the gamut from Sirius radio to ESPN sports and Looney Toons cartoons).
Although using Sprint TV's streaming was easy enough, the device is more hit and miss with support for other streaming media sites on the Web, due to the limitations of the Blazer browser and the Pocket Tunes player. I was frequently stymied by sites such as The New York Times and Youtube.com, whose design for streaming video required Macromedia Flash Player, or other features not supported by the Blazer/Pocket Tunes combo.
I found some faults with the Treo 700p's design, and I can't say it's perfect. (It didn't crash when I used it, but it did reboot twice when our editor-in-chief Harry McCracken tried to use it.) Nonetheless, as a dedicated Treo 650 user, I found a lot to like here. In fact, the speed and memory improvements alone are enough to make me consider upgrading (even though I'm not necessarily ready to abandon my GSM-based carrier and its family plan service). The Treo 700p's other niceties and enhancements only sweeten the deal.
For a Treo 650 user who wants access to 3G, this will be a sensible upgrade (though it's not clear when it will be available in the UK).


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How cells change gears
Bioinformatics researchers from UC San Diego just moved closer to unlocking the mystery of how human cells switch from "proliferation mode" to "specialization mode." This computational biology work from the Jacobs School of Engineering's bioengineering department could lead to new ideas for curbing unwanted cell proliferation—including some cancers. This research, published in Nature Genetics, could also improve our understanding of how organs and other complex tissues develop.
The UC San Diego bioengineers are part of a Japan-based global research consortium, the Genome Network Project, which generated one of the first close-to-comprehensive looks at a human cell's entire network of proteins called "transcription factors." Each human cell contains approximately 2,000 transcription factors, which are proteins that bind to specific locations on the cell's DNA. Once bound to DNA, transcription factors work to either encourage or prevent "transcription"—the process by which messenger RNA is generated from DNA. These messenger RNA strands then travel to cellular factories called ribosomes which churn out proteins based on the specifications of the mRNA.
"Transcription is one of the most important events in the cell…it determines cell morphology and cell function," said Timothy Ravasi, a UC San Diego research scientist from the bioengineering department and author on the new Nature Genetics paper.
Researchers have long understood that most transcription factors in human cells do not work alone, but studying the entire network of transcription factors within a cell has been difficult until now. In the new study, the researchers used a series of computational and integrative biology approaches in order to look at how the activity of the network of transcription factors in a myeloid leukemia cell line changes over time.
"Leukemia" refers to a variety of pathologies involving uncontrolled proliferation of white blood cells. Understanding the role of the transcriptional network during differentiation in leukemia cells could offer a glimpse into the cause of leukemia, or offer possible approaches for treating leukemia, according to Ravasi.
During the laboratory phase of the project, researchers introduced a compound that stopped cell proliferation in the myeloid leukemia cell line. Next, they collected as much information as possible regarding the activity of the transcription factor network during the processes of differentiation and maturation into immune cells known as monocytes and macrophages. Computational work performed at UC San Diego after all the laboratory data had been collected allowed the researchers to identify specific subnetworks of transcription factors that were activated at particular time points.
Integrative Biology
The UCSD researchers were challenged to integrate different but related data sets in order to tease out real signals from noise. This is known as "integrative biology."
"We take lots of measurements of the same thing…we integrate them together," which leads to higher confidence in experimental results, Ravasi explained. Measuring both messenger RNA and protein levels, is one example. Detection of both signals provides two independent data points indicating the presence of the same protein.
"Getting to be the first to analyze and make sense of this large and fascinating data set was a huge opportunity," said Ravasi. The UC San Diego bioinformatics team working on this project included Ravasi and two post-doctoral researchers from Trey Ideker's bioengineering laboratory, Ariel Schwartz, now at Synthetic Genomics, and Kai Tan, now an assistant professor of internal medicine and biomedical engineering at the University of Iowa.
By monitoring the activity of the transcriptional network one hour after the onset of differentiation, the researchers identified a gene that appears to play an important role in cell differentiation in white blood cells. "It's a long shot, but if you found a compound that inhibits this gene, you could make the cells begin to differentiate towards a normal monoblast line rather than continue unchecked cell proliferation," said Ravasi.
Resilient and Redundant
Based on the new research, it appears that the network of transcription factors from the human myeloid leukemia cell line is redundant and resilient, explained Ravasi.
The researchers turned-off or "knocked down" 52 transcription factors, one at a time, in order to study their individual role within the network. Most of the single knock-downs did not result in changes to cell differentiation or cell shape.
"The transcriptional network for this cell type appears quite redundant which likely makes the network resilient to mutations or environmental agents that could interfere with transcription factor function," said Ravasi. "My guess is that we will find similar redundancy in the transcription networks of other cell lines, and in the transcription networks that regulate other aspects of cell function, but we can't say that from these data."
Source: University of California - San Diego (news : web)


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Search Our Collection
Computers, Software, Equipment
@ the Main Library
The Main branch at WCPLtn features 87 public access computers: 8 pre-school and 8 internet accessible in the children's department, 22 in the adult / reference department, 24 in the computer lab, 6 in Special Collections, and 8 in the teens department.
Most computers are equipped with MS Office 2003. MS Office 2010 is installed on two Reference computers, and all the computers in the Lab. All machines offer printing capability and free online access to all of our databases and the internet.
Public computers are available to all patrons with a valid WCPLtn library card in good standing, and are available for all hours that the library is open with no reservations necessary. Visitors may apply for a 30 day computer pass while visiting the Main, Fairview or Nolensville libraries.
The Adaptive Technology Center equipment includes two ADA computers with adjustable workstation desk height, 19 inch flat panel monitors with swing arms, 1 touchscreen monitor, flatbed scanner, headphones (available upon request), BigKeys LX and KEYS-U keyboards, oversize Infogrip ball mouse, ExpertMouse ball mouse, standard 3 button wheel mouse as well as one handed keyboard, Glidepoint Adesso touchpad and a switch adapted joystick (both available upon request).
Software: FS Reader, JAWS screen reader, Laureate Educational, Magic screen magnification, Office suite 2003, OpenBook in combination with a scanner reads items scanned, Photoshop Elements, and switch friendly games.
Optelec Clear View document magnification device
Includes a picture and reading mode, reverse reading mode, adjustable image brightness and 3 display modes including full video, computer and split screen between computer and Optelec.
Low vision reader. Magnifies items placed under the camera and displayed on the monitor.
Two photocopy machines are available for all patrons - 1 is located on the 1st floor across from the circulation desk, and the 2nd one is located in the Reference Department. Photocopies are 10 cents a page.
Flat bed scanners are available in the Adaptive Technology Center, Reference area and Special Collections. The scanners can accommodates letter and legal size documents.
Microfilm / microfiche readers are available in the Special Collections Department.
Free WiFi is available at all branch libraries.


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This BFS diagnosis really is taking over my life and it sucks. It's all I think about now.
My latest symptom is officially the scariest I have had yet...
Lately I have been waking up to find my entire body trembling or shaking. Very disturbing. Moving around in the bed doesn't stop it. I had to get up and walk a bit then it went away.
Has anyone experienced this type of experience?


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Salazar unable to shake early-season issues
CLEVELAND -- This was not supposed to be an experiment for the Indians. Putting young right-hander Danny Salazar in the Opening Day rotation was supposed to be the arrival of a future ace, an arm capable of carrying Cleveland back to the postseason.
That all might prove true, but Salazar is clearly a work in progress.View Full Game Coverage
CLEVELAND -- This was not supposed to be an experiment for the Indians. Putting young right-hander Danny Salazar in the Opening Day rotation was supposed to be the arrival of a future ace, an arm capable of carrying Cleveland back to the postseason.
That all might prove true, but Salazar is clearly a work in progress.View Full Game Coverage
On Tuesday night, Salazar's early-season struggles continued in another abbreviated outing -- this one coming against the rival Royals. The righty teased with three no-hit innings out of the gates, but then fell apart in the fourth and was gone in the fifth, sending the Indians on their way to an 8-2 loss at Progressive Field.
"I don't always want to put it on youth," Indians manager Terry Francona said, "because this is a kid we gave the ball to in the playoff game [last year]. But I do think, with health and experience, he's going to learn how to do this better. I think right now he's having a tough time and he's getting tested a little bit."
The kind of sequence experienced by Salazar on Tuesday has been somewhat of a common occurrence for him this month. Three starts might not be enough to declare it a trend, but the 24-year-old starter has seemingly hit a wall midway through his recent outings. After looking crisp for the first three frames against Kansas City, Salazar was hit hard by the visitors.
Salazar suffered a similar series of events Thursday in Detroit, where he gave up one run through four innings before then yielding a four-spot in the fifth. Over his past three starts, the righty has been hung with 15 runs (14 earned) on 19 hits in just 12 2/3 innings, in which he's piled up 19 strikeouts against seven walks.
"It's a short sample size," Francona said. "We can't forget last year when he was pitching, he was on a pretty strict limit for health reasons. So now he's starting to get stretched out a little bit. It's been a while since he's done that. He's never done it at the Major League level, so sometimes you have to be patient."
Against the Royals, Salazar allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings, marking the third straight start he has not been able to log at least five. He ended the evening with six strikeouts, two walks and 89 pitches (52 for strikes), sitting around 93-95 mph with his fastball.
"I'm out there competing the whole game. I guess some pitches didn't work," Salazar said. "I've been feeling great -- strong. I'm aggressive out there compared to last time I pitched. Today, I just felt like every pitch, I was totally focused on throwing it and on being aggressive."
Kansas City's rally against Salazar was ignited by back-to-back singles from Eric Hosmer and Billy Butler to open the fourth. The pitcher appeared poised for an escape when -- two batters later -- he struck out Salvador Perez, who flailed badly and lost his grip on the bat, which helicoptered down the third-base line as the crowd roared.
Mike Moustakas quickly brought on a stunned silence by ripping a 1-1 changeup from Salazar down the right-field line for a three-run home run. The home run -- the third on the season for the Royals third baseman -- put the Tribe in a 3-1 hole.
After reviewing video, Salazar said he believes he might have been tipping his pitches, especially his changeup.
"With my changeup sometimes, I open up my glove too much," Salazar explained. "That's the only thing I've noticed. Sometimes, I just try to, when I'm going to throw my fastball, I try to open my glove, too, just to try to confuse. I think sometimes I forget."
Alcides Escobar followed with a base hit, stole second and advanced to third on the play thanks to a throwing error by catcher Yan Gomes. Jarrod Dyson brought Escobar home with a perfectly placed bunt single that skipped down the first-base line.
Salazar avoided further harm in that frame, but the Royals struck for one more run off the starter in the fifth courtesy of consecutive doubles by Hosmer and Butler. The two-base hit off the bat of Butler carried to deep center field, where it bounced off the glove of leaping outfielder Michael Bourn at the wall.
"He made a very good attempt, just didn't quite get it," Francona said. "That'd have been a heck of a play."
Complicating matters for Cleveland was the fact that Royals right-hander James Shields was turning in an admirable performance. The Indians scored one unearned run in the second (Bourn contributed an RBI single to capitalize on a fielding error earlier in the inning) and plated one more run in the sixth, when Gomes delivered an RBI double.
Beyond those two missteps, Shields was solid for Kansas City, striking out nine and walking just one in his six innings.
"Unfortunately, he's pretty much the same every time you see him," Francona said. "He pounds the strike zone, very difficult to run on. He can cut his fastball, he can throw it in to lefties, he can change speeds off of it and he competes. That's why he's one of the best."
That is the kind of top-of-the-rotation effort that Cleveland hopes to see consistently from Salazar. His rise through the Minors last season was impressive, convincing the Indians to hand him a job, trust him with the start in the American League Wild Card Game last fall and reward him with a spot in the rotation this year.
So far, Salazar has shown that he still has plenty of work to do.
"It's growing pains," Indians first baseman Nick Swisher said. "This is his first real go-around. We have the utmost trust in him. He has plus stuff. When he figures it out, it's going to be a lot of fun to be on this side. He's a young cat. He's going to figure it out."
Jordan Bastian is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Major League Bastian, and follow him on Twitter @MLBastian.


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Product Categories
Birth Year T Shirts
Domestic shipping is usually within 7-14 days from order depending on the product ordered, but in some cases can be as long as 21 days.
International shipping will typically take 28 days but can vary by location.
Welcome To Our Products Page
We have a large range of T Shirts and Hoodies, in a selection of styles and colors for men, women, boys, girls and babies.
We are adding new designs every week, in fact almost every day. If there is anything that you would like to see on here, then just contact us and we'll see what we can do.
You may choose a product category from the folder selections on the left, or see all of our current products in the section below that.


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Spare Snakewood
Most people who have been in the shop know I have a bit of a wood problem. There is wood everywhere, hanging off the walls, leaning against the walls, tucked under the tables of the jointer, under the tablesaw and just piled in the middle of the floor. I don't throw much out either - many of the little bits get saved and given away to friends or find their way into scrap boxes - you just never know when you are going to need 'em.
I have a growing collection of smallish pieces that are just big enough for the smallest planes, and the introduction of the K4 has made many of these perfectly viable.
Some of it is very old Snakewood - offcuts from a violin bow maker. They are less than 6" long, but have exquisite color and pattern to them, not to mention they have been properly seasoned. I have only used Snakewood once before and was dying to use it again.
There was one piece in particular that was large enough for a couple of K4 sets. There is one small rectangular off-cut, but otherwise, the entire piece was used. It felt great to have so little waste. I decided to make another 'spare' along side the commissioned plane.
These 2 planes are identical other than one has a bronze lever cap and screw, and the other has a stainless steel lever and screw.
They are 4-1/2" long, have a 52.5 degree bed angle and a 1-1/4" wide, high carbon steel blade.
(click on any of the images for a larger view)
The K4 with the bronze lever cap and screw is already spoken for but the other is available.
The K4 with the stainless steel lever cap and screw is $2,100.00 Cdn + actual shipping costs (and applicable taxes for Canadian customers).
In other news, I will be at the new Lee Valley store in Vaughan on Friday May 23rd and Saturday May 24th demonstrating planes along side Dan Barrett, Rob Lee and Doug Orr. I will have several infills with me so if you want to try any of them out please stop by and say hello.


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HeyWhatsThat API - Developers
The service provides a scaled view of the horizon and terrain from a specified location, defined as a map point on Google Maps. It calculates a 'viewshed' from the location based on local terrain contours and depicts a view from the location highlighting mountains in the distance. It is intended to answer questions like, "Hey, what's that?" when viewing a horizon. API methods support submission of a location, either as a panorama query or as a latitude/longitude. Methods adjust for day and time, and for atmospheric refraction, which changes the view of distant terrain due to bending of light through air.


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Science Friday® is produced by the Science Friday Initiative, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Science Friday® and SciFri® are registered service marks of Science Friday, Inc. Site design by Pentagram; engineering by Mediapolis.
|A major earthquake struck off the northeast coast of Japan on Friday, causing destructive tidal waves on the Japanese coast and tsunami warnings across the Pacific. Ross Stein, a geophysicist with the USGS, explains the connections between quakes and tsunamis.


text: What's the best and biggest College Football rivalry? It probably depends on where you live and who you follow, but from a national stand point, Ohio State – Michigan and Alabama – Auburn usually stand out as the most fierce. Rivalries also produce magical moments, in turn producing magical pictures. More


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Assisted-living community opens
More than 100 dignitaries, executives and guests showed up for the grand opening of the assisted-living community in Ashton Plantation Jan. 9
Schonberg & Associates partnered with St. Charles Parish Hospital to build Ashton Manor Assisted Living & Memory Care, a first-of-its-kind residential Alzheimer's and Dementia care community, 270 Ashton Plantation Blvd., Luling.
Ashton Manor is located on six acres in Ashton Plantation and consists of 60 one-bedroom private suites with multiple floor plans. The residential community is divided into three distinctive neighborhoods occupied by residents with shared abilities. For example, one neighborhood is exclusively reserved for memory care.
The residential community is equipped with staff that is trained in Alzheimer's and dementia care and offers support to those with memory loss and their families.
The Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce will host a Business2Business networking luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 1 at the Courtyard by Marriott, 142 Library Drive, Houma.
The luncheon offers a networking opportunity for chamber members and their employees as they will be able to promote their business and hand out marketing materials to the guests at their table. Before and after the event, attendees will have time to network with the anticipated 60 guests.
Registration is required in advance. The deadline for reservations and cancellations is noon Jan. 30. You can register at www.houmachamber.com or by calling 876-5600. Registration fee is $15 per person paid in advance or $20 per person at the door for anyone who has not pre-registered.
The Terrebonne Economic Development Authority will host How to Create Noteworthy, Extraordinary Service, part two of JoAnn Keegan's customer service workshops, from 9-11 a.m. Wednesday at Buquet Distributing in its Eagle's Nest Room.
This session will offer easy to implement, practical strategies to create noteworthy, extraordinary service and loyal customers.
The class schedule can be found on the calendar of www.tpeda.org. Email Brandi Roach at firstname.lastname@example.com or call 985-873-6890 to register.
Buquet Distributing's Eagle's Nest Room is at 100 Eagles Nest Court, Houma.
A Thibodaux resident was recently honored with a health care award.
Sheri Eschete, MT (ASCP), Six Sigma Master Black Belt at Thibodaux Regional Medical Center, earned designation as a certified professional in healthcare quality by the National Association of Healthcare Quality.
Eschete earned certification by passing a written exam administered by the association, demonstrating competent knowledge, skill and understanding of program development and management, quality improvement concepts, coordination of survey processes, communication and education techniques and departmental management.
Eschete has worked at Thibodaux Regional for 29 years and has been working in performance improvement for the past eight years.
A local Thibodaux nurse earned a new certification.
Laura Gros, patient care coordinator at the Cancer Center of Thibodaux Regional Medical Center, was recently designated as the certified breast care nurse by the Oncology Nursing Certification Corp. This certification is a validation of an individual's knowledge of breast-care nursing.
Gros was tested on her ability to practice competently within the breast-care nursing specialty. The exam included topics such as breast cancer prevention and detection, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship and end-of-life care.
Toby J. Lafont, an independent financial adviser and co-founder of DL Wealth Management at 255 Corporate Drive in Houma, was recognized as a top adviser and named to Chairman's Club.
This distinction was givien by LPL Financial LLC, the nation's largest independent broker-dealer, and is awarded to less than 2 percent of the firm's approximately 12,800 advisers nationwide. The distinction was based on a ranking of all registered advisers supported by LPL Financial.
David Beach, a certified financial planner, has joined Whitney Bank's trust and asset management team in Baton Rouge as a vice president and trust administrator.
His work will include providing wealth management services in Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes.
The Baton Rouge native graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and served in the military for more than five years, achieving the rank of captain, U.S. Army and Field Artillery, during his time served.
Before joining the bank, Beach spent more than seven years in the financial services industry helping families, nonprofit organizations and businesses manage their investments, trusts, credits, retirement plans, insurance and cash management needs. He also worked locally for two national financial institutions as a private banker and financial adviser.
Beach is a board member for numerous community organizations in Baton Rouge, including the Louisiana Arts and Science Museum, the Family Road of Baton Rouge, St. Aloysius Men's Club and Baton Rouge Leadership.


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Green Bay Packers cornerback Tramon Williams is expecting to see the "old Randy" Moss when he faces the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. No, not a creaky version of Moss.
"I think that's what everybody in the secondary is going to be expecting -- the Randy who's done it at such a high level so many years," Williams said, via the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. "You can't look past that. Once a guy puts that on film year in and year out in the league, you can't look past that."
Moss put up lousy film for three different teams in 2010. He didn't put any film in 2011. His potential effectiveness for the San Francisco 49ers is one of the great mysteries of this upcoming season. It's been a while since Moss was truly dangerous.
Packers safety M.D. Jennings remembers one particular moment, back when Jennings was 16 years old.
"I can remember him wiping his butt on the goal post. I can remember that," Jennings said. "I was excited to see that happen. When you see someone do things like that, it's crazy."
We'd find it even crazier if Moss was in position to celebrate in the Packers' end zone again in Week 1.Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.


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Financial Aid
Welcome to MSU-Northern's Financial Aid web site.
If you have any questions please give us a call at 1-800-662-6132 ext 3787. Our Office is located in Cowan Hall Room 213, stop in and see us!!!!
If you are a first-time borrower on or after July 1, 2013, please familiarize yourself with the new federal regulations regarding a limit on the maximum period of time (measured in academic years) that you can receive Direct Subsidized Loans. In general, you may not receive Direct Subsidized Loans for more than 150% of the published length of your program of study. For more information, please review the U.S. Department of Education's Federal Student Aid announcement concerning this time limitation.
Our goal is to provide information for you the student, to enable you to meet your educational objectives and long term goals.
Policies and procedures governing financial aid programs are subject to change at any time without prior notice or publication due to changes of policy by federal and state governments.
MSU-Northern is an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution that does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sexual orientation or preference, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, creed or political belief, religion, or veteran status.


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Stephen Colbert Causes Chaos on Wikipedia, Gets Blocked from Site
On Monday night's episode of The Colbert Report, Stephen Colbert addressed the online resource Wikipedia, the encyclopedia that anyone can read or edit. Colbert praised Wikipedia for "wikiality," the reality that exists if you make something up and enough people agree with you - it becomes reality. Colbert's subsequent examples to prove "wikiality" would cause chaos on the site, and lead an administrator to subsequently block his account.
In the segment, Colbert logs on to the Wikipedia article about his show to find out whether he usually refers to Oregon as "California's Canada or Washington's Mexico." Upon learning that he has referred to Oregon as both, he demonstrates how easy it is to disregard both references and put in a completely new one (Oregon is Idaho's Portugal), declaring it "the opinion I've always held, you can look it up."
Colbert goes on to declare that he doesn't believe George Washington had slaves.
If I want to say he didn't that's my right, and now, thanks to Wikipedia *taps keyboard* it's also a fact.
Here's the fun part - Colbert actually did this. The Wikipedia articles on his show and George Washington were both edited by the user Stephencolbert to reflect the changes he declared on air as he tapped at his computer around 23:35 UTC - which is 6:35pm on the East Coast, during the taping of his show, hours before it aired.
It gets better.
Colbert then urged his audience to find the Wikipedia entry on elephants and create an entry that stated their population had tripled in the last six months, a fact he freely stated to not know if it was "actually true," with his sidebar stating "it isn't." Guess what happened next?
Scores of internet users took Colbert's bait, repeatedly vandalizing approximately 20 articles on elephants before all being placed under a lock. The move also subsequently caused Wikipedia administrator Tawker to block Stephen Colbert from the website, reportedly to verify his identity. Either Tawker is incapable of checking the above log times that corroborate Colbert, or, more likely, he just wants to be mentioned on Stephen's show (as evidenced by his notes on the block and blog entry).
All this trouble over a man who, as his user page noted, is a 'defender of truth.'


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Walgreens Presents Growth Strategy at 2013 Annual Shareholders Meeting
Walgreens Presents Growth Strategy at 2013 Annual Shareholders Meeting
Company leadership outlines purpose to help people get, stay and live well,
and vision to be the first choice in health and daily living
DEERFIELD, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Reviewing a challenging but strategically important year for Walgreens (NYS: WAG) (NAS: WAG) , Chairman James A. Skinner, President and Chief Executive Officer Gregory D. Wasson and Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and President, International Wade D. Miquelon today outlined how the company is positioned for growth in fiscal year 2013 at Walgreens Annual Shareholders Meeting. Addressing more than 2,000 shareholders in Chicago, company leadership discussed the substantial progress Walgreens is making toward its vision to be the first choice in health and daily living in America - and beyond.
Wasson said, "With a strong foundation and the right strategies, structure and talent in place, and with many of last year's headwinds becoming this year's tailwinds, Walgreens is well-positioned to ensure its market leadership, growth and profitability well into the future on behalf of its customers and shareholders."
Having reached new, multi-year agreements with pharmacy benefit managers Express Scripts, Optum Health and others, Walgreens is focused on three areas of opportunity ahead:
- Delivering a complete Well Experience by transforming the customer experience across all of the company's touch points, channels and formats
- Transforming the role community pharmacy plays in health care by offering unparalleled access to innovative, high quality and affordable health and wellness services
- Creating an unprecedented and efficient global platform through its strategic partnership with Alliance Boots GmbH
"We are taking a multi-pronged approach to delivering the Well Experience," Wasson said. "We are combining leading-edge design with enhanced products and services, increased engagement with team members and customers, and an omni-channel approach that blends our brick-and-mortar stores with e-commerce and mobile commerce. We are deliberately blurring many retail channels to fit how consumers shop today."
To that end, Walgreens has continued to expand its product offerings, including:
- Expanded grocery items and fresh food in stores for on-the-go consumers with quick, convenient pickup, and a growing selection of healthy food choices that are important to underserved food desert communities.
- Substantial investment continues in private brands, including Walgreens, Delish, Nice! and many more that have led to a 2 percentage points increase in private brand penetration year-over-year to 22 percent.
- Enhanced beauty departments that now include an array of niche and prestige brands not found in traditional drugstores, including the introduction of Boots No7.
- And mobile device capabilities that have expanded in the past year to include prescription refills and transfers by scanning the pill bottle; QuickPrints, an application that enables users to print photos directly from their devices to any Walgreens store; and in-store maps that allow customers to use a digital shopping list to map and locate items in a store.
Walgreens efforts to transform the role community pharmacy plays in health care begins with its pharmacists, who are seen more and more by patients as health care partners. Wasson said, "Walgreens pharmacists have administered more than 5 million flu shots in each of the past four years and today we are the largest retail provider of immunizations and vaccinations in the country, which validates that the public appreciates, wants and values what community pharmacy can do to support their health."
Walgreens is expanding services available at its pharmacies and Take Care Clinics to include additional immunizations; chronic care management; primary care; Medicare wellness visits and member assessments; and health testing.
"With nearly 70 percent of the U.S. population either without a primary care physician or not utilizing one, and more than 30 million people gaining insurance coverage in 2014 under health care reform, we are well-positioned to fill the void in care," Wasson said.
Throughout 2013 and beyond, Walgreens will be creating an unprecedented and efficient global platform through its strategic partnership with Alliance Boots. "We are bringing together two iconic brands with a lot in common," Wasson said. "Boots is to Europe as Walgreens is to the U.S. In addition, with Alliance Boots bringing an integrated wholesale business to the table, we believe there is significant opportunity for supply chain efficiencies. The global pharmaceutical market continues to grow, particularly in emerging markets where there is increased demand for vaccines and self-medications. Together we are well-positioned for growth as we create the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise."
During the meeting, the company also reviewed key highlights and milestones over the past year. Walgreens generated record cash flow from operations of $4.4 billion and returned $1.9 billion to shareholders in the form of dividends and stock repurchases. That included the largest quarterly dividend in the company's history and the 37th consecutive year in which the company has raised its dividend.
In addition to closing on its first step in the strategic partnership with Alliance Boots, Walgreens also announced and later completed its acquisition of drugstore chain USA Drug in the mid-South region of the country, opened its 8,000th store with a new location in Hollywood, Calif., and launched its Balance Rewards loyalty program which has seen more than 50 million people enroll since its introduction.
Wasson concluded, "During the last several years we have worked to transform the company from the great foundation that our predecessors gave us. With our three strategic growth objectives in place, Walgreens is now positioned extremely well for long-term growth."
Nominees to Walgreens board of directors include:
- David J. Brailer, MD, PhD, Chairman of Health Evolution Partners
- Janice M. Babiak, former Partner at Ernst & Young
- Steven A. Davis, Chairman and CEO of Bob Evans Farms Inc.
- William C. Foote, Retired Chairman and CEO of USG Corporation
- Mark P. Frissora, Chairman and CEO of The Hertz Corporation
- Ginger L. Graham, President and CEO of Two Trees Consulting
- Alan G. McNally, Retired Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Harris Bank and Former Chairman of the Board of Walgreen Co.
- Dominic Murphy, Partner at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.
- Stefano Pessina, Executive Chairman of Alliance Boots GmbH
- Nancy M. Schlichting, CEO of Henry Ford Health System
- Alejandro Silva, Chairman and CEO of Evans Food Group, Inc.
- James A. Skinner, Retired Vice Chairman and CEO of McDonald's Corporation
- Gregory D. Wasson, President and CEO of Walgreen Co.
Chairman Jim Skinner added, "I would like to offer special appreciation to David Schwartz, who has retired from the board after 12 years of service to Walgreens, and to Al McNally for his four years of service as lead director and non-executive chairman of the board. We are grateful that Walgreens will continue to benefit from Al's leadership and vision on the board.
"I also want to welcome our two newest members, Stefano Pessina and Dominic Murphy, who joined our board following the launch of the strategic partnership between Walgreens and Alliance Boots."
Ten of the 13 board members are independent, consistent with the requirement in the company's governance guidelines that a majority of its board be independent.
Preliminary voting results were announced at the meeting. The final voting results on all agenda items will be disclosed in a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed by Walgreens with the Securities and Exchange Commission after certification by the inspector of elections.
About Walgreens
As the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2012 sales of $72 billion, Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) vision is to become America's first choice for health and daily living. Each day, Walgreens provides more than 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility and mail service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public sector. The company operates 8,061 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Take Care Health Systems is a Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:Statements in this document that are not historical are forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.Words such as "expect," "likely," "outlook," "forecast, "would," "could," "should," "can," "will," "project," "intend," "plan," "continue," "sustain," "on track," "believe," "seek," "estimate," "anticipate," "may," "possible," "assume," and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements.These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, assumptions and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the changes in vendor, payer and customer relationships and terms, competition, industry consolidation and the effects thereof, changes in economic and business conditions, risks associated with new business and business retention initiatives and activities, failure to obtain new contracts or extensions of existing contracts, risks associated with acquisitions and divestitures, the ability to realize anticipated results from capital expenditures and cost reduction initiatives, and outcomes of legal and regulatory matters. These and other risks, assumptions and uncertainties are described in Item 1A (Risk Factors) of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is incorporated herein by reference, and in other documents that we file or furnish with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated or anticipated by such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. Except to the extent required by law, Walgreens does not undertake, and expressly disclaims, any duty or obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement after the date of this report, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise.
Michael Polzin, 847-315-2920
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The article Walgreens Presents Growth Strategy at 2013 Annual Shareholders Meeting originally appeared on Fool.com.Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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text:
Mesmers are not controlled; a Mesmer does the controlling, which is probably why this video for the final Guild Wars 2 class slipped out a few days earlier than planned. Mind control!
Master of illusion and control, the Mesmer class perfectly fits the promises made earlier this year by ArenaNet that the final class revealed for Guild Wars 2 would be a complicated one. It's certainly not the sort of character class for folks that want to show off impressive acrobatics, flashy spells, or big damage numbers. No, the Mesmer is all about finesse, and achieving true mastery of the class requires a true MMO maestro.
Of course that's the original Guild Wars Mesmer. What's changed in Guild Wars 2? I guess some things still have to wait until Wednesday.
Guild Wars 2 - Mesmer Reveal Trailer [YouTube - Thanks Dylan!]


text:
Forestone Black Bamboo Soprano Sax H
Reed for Soprano Saxophone
- Strength: H (hard)
- The Black Bamboo reeds contain an equal amount of bamboo fibres and a special carbon mixture
- This increases resistance and ensures great projection
- The reeds are long-lasting and resistant to changes in temperature, humidity and dehydration
- Perfectly balanced sound
Further Information
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website is no longer available.
Jews For Life was an organization created to reflect the traditional Jewish pro-life perspective on abortion. The purpose was to provide visitors with the facts about the consequences that have befallen women and our culture since Roe v. Wade was enacted into law. Jews For Life maintained that life, both born and unborn, is sacred and worthy of protection and that the current 'pro-choice' position of mainstream liberal Jewish organizations is antithetical to the traditional teachings of the Jewish faith.
sponsored by: OfficeQuest ...


text:
Catherine`s Palace
Birth of The Palace
The Catherine`s Palace, in Pushkin (Tsarskoe Selo), ranks as one of the masterpieces of the world architecture and art. First build by Braunstein, it has been given in 1710 by Peter the Great to his wife Catherine.
Bartolomeo Rastrelli`s Baroque
Later on, it has been enlarged and modified following the exquisite baroque style
of the famous Italian designer Bartolomeo Rastrelli.
Imperial Residence
Until the Revolution, the Catherine`s Palace "was used as the summer residence of the Imperial family". Its grandiose lurquoise, while and gold facade stretches 978 feet. And its most spacious room, the Great Hall, covers 860 square meters. The park enhances the splendour of the Palace with its charming pavilious such as the Grollo pavilion, the Hermitage and the Chinese Pagoda.


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Successful students maintain power over their academic progress by staying current on their course work and using their time wisely. Time management is a lifelong skill that mutates with each stage of life; and meeting the demands of college is a huge leap from high school.
College requires more refined study skills, independent thinking, and persistence as well as the ability to delay gratification. Many students discover the need to develop some of their study skills and discover new ways to mange their time. These online resources contain helpful tips and strategies for everyone:
Some students prefer to have a one-on-one meeting with the director to develop their time management and study skills. Students with this preference may use the online reservation tool (unavailable during summer hours) to schedule an appointment.
Time Management Tools
Weekly Schedule
Weekly Progress Report
How do you spend your time?


text: Hey Andrew, Did you have a look at: http://www.arachnoid.com/satfinder/ -Philip Andrew Hakman wrote: >Has anyone else noticed that the USALS algorithms being used in both >the vdr-rotor plugin and MythTV aren't accurate for moderate distances >away from south (or north)? Has anyone else tried to get the real >algorithm from STAB? I've e-mailed them a few times and they seem >reluctant to release the algorithm - they have a good system, but it's >pretty f'in useless without the correct algorithm. What exactly are >they trying to protect? > >I haven't worked out all the trig in the formula being used in vdr or >myth, but it generates almost identical numbers (the differences are >in the thousandths of degrees which is irrelevant anyways) to a much >simpler algorithm I found being used in the DiseqcU plugin for ProgDVB >which uses very simple trig, the diamater of the earth, and the height >of the satellites to calculate the rotation angle. The further away >from south (or north) you calculate the angle for, the more you have >to re-correct back towards south (or north). I haven't put a lot of >thought into it, but a first guess at the problem I think could have >to do with the angle present at the motor shaft. If anyone else has >also noticed this and put some thought into what might be wrong, I'd >sure like to get this figured out. > >As an example, for the furthest east satellite I can see just above >the horizon, DiseqcU and the algorithm used in vdr-rotor and myth >gives an angle of 75.46 degrees, whereas a real USALS receiver >configured with the same reference location and same satellite >location gives a motor angle of 70.4 (which considering how much >further west I have to go from 75.46 to actually get that satellite is >probably correct). > >Andrew Hakman > >_______________________________________________ >linux-dvb mailing list >linux-dvb at linuxtv.org >http://www.linuxtv.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/linux-dvb > >


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Freedom in the World
You are here
2012 Scores
Freedom Rating (1 = best, 7 = worst)
Civil Liberties (1 = best, 7 = worst)
Political Rights (1 = best, 7 = worst)
Kazakhstan received a downward trend arrow due to new legislation restricting public expression of religious belief and the right to form religious organizations.
President Nursultan Nazarbayev, 71, won a new five-year term in an April 2011 snap election, reportedly receiving 96 percent of the vote. Many potential challengers had been disqualified or boycotted the election, leaving three mostly symbolic opponents. After the country suffered an unusual series of minor attacks that were blamed on religious extremists, the government pushed through a new law in October that stepped up state control over religious groups and restricted public religious expression. The president dissolved Parliament in November and scheduled early legislative elections for January 2012. In December, police fired on striking oil workers in the western city of Zhanaozen and the city erupted in rioting, leaving at least 16 people dead and triggering a state of emergency.
Kazakh Communist Party leader Nursultan Nazarbayev won an uncontested presidential election in December 1991, two weeks before Kazakhstan gained its independence from the Soviet Union. In April 1995, Nazarbayev called a referendum on extending his five-year term, due to expire in 1996, until December 2000. A reported 95 percent of voters endorsed the move. An August 1995 referendum, which was boycotted by the opposition, approved a new constitution designed to strengthen the presidency. Nazarbayev's supporters captured most of the seats in December 1995 elections for a new bicameral Parliament.
In October 1998, Parliament amended the constitution to increase the presidential term from five to seven years and moved the presidential election forward from December 2000 to January 1999. The main challenger was disqualified on a technicality, and Nazarbayev was reelected with a reported 80 percent of the vote.
Progovernment parties captured all but one seat in 2004 elections for the lower house of Parliament. International monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) found some improvements over previous polls, but criticized the lack of political balance on election commissions, media bias in favor of pro-presidential candidates, and the politically motivated exclusion of other candidates.
The president again secured reelection in 2005 with 91 percent of the vote amid opposition allegations of fraud. An international monitoring report found intimidation and media bias in favor of the incumbent.
Political violence flared in 2005–06, with the suspicious suicide of opposition leader Zamanbek Nurkadilov in December 2005 and the murder of Altynbek Sarsenbayev, a leading member of the opposition coalition For a Just Kazakhstan, in February 2006. The investigation of Sarsenbayev's killing pointed to the involvement of state security officers but left many questions unanswered.
Constitutional changes in May 2007 removed term limits for Nazarbayev, reduced the terms to five years, and eliminated individual district races for the lower house of Parliament, leaving only party-slate seats filled by nationwide proportional representation. Elections under the new rules in August produced a one-party legislature, with the pro-presidential Nur Otan party taking 88 percent of the vote and no opposition parties clearing the 7 percent threshold for representation. Opposition protests foundered, and the government ignored a critical OSCE report. No opposition candidates participated in the October 2008 indirect elections for the upper house of Parliament.
Although Nazarbayev rejected a proposal to hand him the presidency for life in 2009, a constitutional amendment in 2010 gave him immunity from prosecution and made his family's property effectively inviolable. In January 2011, at Nazarbayev's request, the Constitutional Council blocked parliamentary proposals for a referendum that would have extended his current term through 2020. A snap election was called instead, with the necessary constitutional changes rushed through in February. After Nazarbayev's only genuine opponents were disqualified or decided to boycott the race, he was left with three little-known competitors, all of whom publicly expressed support for him. Nazarbayev ultimately won 96 percent of the April vote. OSCE observers found that the election failed to meet democratic standards.
Also during the first half of 2011, the country was shaken by a number of minor bomb attacks that were blamed on religious extremists. The government responded in October by enacting new legislation that broadly restricted religious freedoms. Later during the year, an extended strike by oil workers in the city of Zhanaozen turned violent in December, resulting in at least 16 deaths and prompting Astana to declare a state of emergency. Meanwhile, Nazarbayev dissolved Parliament in November and scheduled early legislative elections for January 2012.
Throughout the year, Astana maintained good relations with China, Russia, and the United States, which continued to ship supplies for its operations in Afghanistan through Kazakh territory.
Kazakhstan is not an electoral democracy. The constitution grants the president considerable control over the legislature, the judiciary, and local governments. Under the current constitutional rules, President Nursultan Nazarbayev may serve an indefinite number of five-year terms.
The upper house of the bicameral Parliament is the 47-member Senate, with 32 members chosen by directly elected regional councils and 15 appointed by the president. The senators serve six-year terms, with half of the 32 elected members up for election every three years. The lower house (Mazhilis) has 107 deputies, with 98 elected by proportional representation on party slates and 9 appointed by the Assembly of Peoples of Kazakhstan, which represents the country's various ethnic groups. Members serve five-year terms.
Parties must clear a 7 percent vote threshold to enter the Mazhilis, and once elected, deputies must vote with their party. A June 2007 law prohibited parties from forming electoral blocs. These rules effectively prevented opposition parties from winning seats in the August 2007 parliamentary elections and 2008 Senate elections, producing a legislature with no opposition representation. The ruling party, Nur Otan, is headed by the president, and his nephew was named party secretary in 2010. A 2009 electoral law amendment guarantees the second-ranked party at least two seats in the Mazhilis if only one party passes the 7 percent threshold. However, Ak Zhol, the opposition party thought to have the best chances in the next parliamentary elections, was taken over in 2011 by a prominent member of Nur Otan who had resigned his membership in the ruling party only the day before.
The country's broader law on political parties prohibits parties based on ethnic origin, religion, or gender. A 2002 law raised the number of members that a party must have to register from 3,000 to 50,000; modest amendments in 2009 lowered the number to 40,000.
Corruption is widespread at all levels of government. Rakhat Aliyev, Nazarbayev's former son-in-law, issued allegations of corruption among top officials after falling out of favor with the regime in 2007. His claims were accompanied by some documentary evidence and matched reports from numerous other sources. Kazakhstan was ranked 120 out of 183 countries surveyed in Transparency International's 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index.
While the constitution provides for freedom of the press, the government has repeatedly harassed or shut down independent media outlets. Libel is a criminal offense, and the criminal code prohibits insulting the president; self-censorship is common. Most media outlets, including publishing houses, are controlled or influenced by members of the president's family and other powerful groups.
As in previous years, independent media suffered attacks, arrests and pressure from authorities in 2011. The proposal to extend Nazarbayev's term until 2020 sparked a wave of critical coverage from independent media that was quickly put down by local authorities. In January, thousands of copies of the weekly paper Golos Respublikii were seized by police on charges of carrying "illegal content." In Uralsk, six journalists were arrested for protesting the planned referendum and fined up to 15 months' salary. Separately, journalists from the popular news site Stan TV were repeatedly harassed by authorities during coverage of the extended oil workers' strike in the western region of Mangystau. In October, cameraman Asan Amilov and reporter Orken Bisenov were brutally attacked by unknown assailants using bats and rubber bullets as they traveled to cover the strike. As the strikes erupted into violence in December and protests spread to neighboring cities, police used special powers granted under the state of emergency to arrest or detain journalists attempting to cover the protests. The government shut down access to social media outlets, local internet service providers in the affected areas, and some web-based independent news outlets in an attempt to prevent the spread of news about the violence and demonstrations.
The government has a record of blocking websites that are critical of the regime. In August 2011, the popular blogging sites LiveJournal and LiveInternet.ru were blocked along with some 20 other sites on the grounds that they contributed to "terrorism." In July, a new independent news site, Guljan.org, reported suffering a complex denial-of-service cyberattack shortly after it opened.
The constitution guarantees freedom of worship, and many religious communities practice without state interference. However, laws passed in 2005 banned all activities by unregistered religious groups and gave the government great discretion in outlawing organizations it designated as "extremist." Local officials have harassed groups defined as "nontraditional," such as Hare Krishnas, Protestant Christians, and Jehovah's Witnesses. Legislation enacted in October 2011 required reregistration of all religious groups, gave the government unprecedented authority to regulate the activities and organization of religious communities, and forbade prayer or religious expression in government institutions.
The government reportedly permits academic freedom, except with respect to criticism of the president and his family. Corruption in the education system is widespread, and students frequently bribe professors for passing grades.
Despite constitutional guarantees, the government imposes restrictions on freedom of association and assembly. Unsanctioned opposition gatherings are frequently broken up by police. Nongovernmental organizations continue to operate despite government harassment surrounding politically sensitive issues. Workers can form and join trade unions and participate in collective bargaining, although co-opted unions and close links between the authorities and big business make for an uneven playing field.
Beginning in May 2011, oil workers in Aktau and Zhanaozen held months-long strikes involving as many as 15,000 people to protest low pay and other grievances. Although the strikes were allowed to continue, hundreds of workers were fired in retaliation; several strikers or their close relatives allegedly committed suicide or were murdered; and journalists, lawyers, and politicians faced government harassment and other repercussions for reporting on, representing, or meeting with the strikers. On December 16, police fired into a crowd of protestors, killing at least 14 people. At least two more civilians died and dozens were injured as protests spread to neighboring towns.
The constitution makes the judiciary subservient to the executive branch. Judges are subject to political bias, and corruption is evident throughout the judicial system. Conditions in pretrial facilities and prisons are harsh. Police at times abuse detainees and threaten their families, often to obtain confessions, and arbitrary arrest and detention remain problems. In August 2011, control of prisons was transferred from the Penitentiary Committee to the Interior Ministry, which oversees police forces and conducts criminal investigations. This move transfers funding for prisons to the same agency that makes arrests, potentially creating conflicts of interest and eliminating important external oversight in the criminal justice system.
In June 2011, at least 28 ethnic Uzbeks and Tajiks who had been denied asylum were repatriated to Uzbekistan despite warnings from human rights organizations that they could face unfair trials and torture.
Members of the sizable Russian-speaking minority have complained of discrimination in employment and education. The Russian and Kazakh languages officially have equal status, but in 2011, newly rigorous Kazakh language testing for candidacy in the snap presidential election eliminated many opposition candidates, several of whom noted that the early vote left them unable to prepare adequately. The standards for the tests were unclear, and the scoring methodology was reportedly subjective and opaque.
While the rights of entrepreneurship and private property are formally protected, equality of opportunity is limited by bureaucratic hurdles and the control of large segments of the economy by clannish elites and government officials. Astana residents whose homes have been demolished to make way for large construction projects have said they were denied legally guaranteed compensation.
Traditional cultural practices and the country's economic imbalances limit professional opportunities for women. The current Mazhilis includes only 17 female deputies. Domestic violence often goes unpunished, as police are reluctant to intervene in what are regarded as internal family matters. Despite legal prohibitions, the trafficking of women for the purpose of prostitution remains a serious problem. The country's relative prosperity has drawn migrant workers from neighboring countries, who often face poor working conditions and a lack of legal protections. A 2010 Human Rights Watch report detailed the exploitation of migrant workers and the use of child labor in the Kazakh tobacco industry.