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Your guide to the best coffee in NYC.
As the city that never sleeps, coffee is key to keeping the Big Apple buzzing, and with more and more expert baristas, skilled roasters and energetic coffee enthusiasts taking root around the city, NYC's coffee scene is better than ever. In our March/April 2012 issue, writer Sarah Karnasciewicz explores the history and evolution of coffee in New York, but we couldn't stop there. From a killer cappuccino to a kegged cold-brew, here are a few of our favorite spots to sip coffee across the city.
Best no-frills coffee: Ninth Street Espresso
Don't expect coffee syrups or flavorings at these three NYC cafés—in fact you won't even spot a mocha on the menu. What you will find are flawlessly executed espresso drinks made with Ninth Street's own house blend of Intelligentsia beans alongside single-origin house coffees brewed via Chemex, urn and cold soak.
Multiple locations around New York City
Most diverse brewing methods: WTF Coffee Lab
Sock pot, pourover, Chemex, siphon, cold brew—for the uninitiated, this Brooklyn café looks more like a chemistry lab that a coffee shop, but each delicious sip, no matter the method you choose, satisfies the inner coffee geek in us all.
47 Willoughby Ave., Brooklyn
Best bagels + brew: Bedford Hill Coffee Bar
It's easy to find good cup of coffee or a tasty bagel independent of each other in New York, but finding the two together can be a challenge. Enter Bedford Hill Coffee Bar, which serves up of Anodyne coffee and espresso drinks alongside toasted toothsome delights from New Yorker Bagels.
343 Franklin Ave., Brooklyn; 718-636-7650
Best-dressed baristas: Stumptown
While t-shirts and jeans tend to be common coffee shop attire, you'll find the dapper baristas at Stumptown inside the Ace Hotel pulling shots of Hairbender espresso while decked out in pageboy caps, collared shirts and even the occasional tie and suspenders.
18 W. 29th St. New York City
Cleverest cold-brew: Upright Coffee
These days you can find almost any imbibable in a keg—beer, wine, cocktails—and now it's coffee's turn. Upright Coffee in Brooklyn cold-brews rotating beans from Brooklyn Roasting for 18 hours before transferring to a keg and hooking up to a chilled draught line for silky-smooth, low-acid iced coffee that's deliciously drinkable any time of year.
860 Manhattan Ave, Brooklyn; 718-215-9910
Most inventive coffee pairing: Beaner Bar
Coffee and tamales? Why not! This Williamsburg café serves up creamy Counter Culture espresso drinks and single-origin pour-overs with deliciously authentic tamales for a lunch that can't be beat.
447 Graham Ave., Brooklyn
Best hole-in-the-wall: Abraço
Blink and you'll miss this teeny East Village coffee counter—though the occasional line out front might clue you in (don't worry, it moves quickly). Order a Counter Culture espresso drink (their cortado is divine) and grab a brioche cinnamon bun to go.
86 E. 7th St., New York City
Tastiest cappuccino and cake: Café Pedlar
Got a sweet tooth? Head to Café Pedlar in Brooklyn where you can score Stumptown espresso drinks and rotating single-origin beans brewed via press pot or Chemex alongside scrumptious sweets like stout or olive oil cake, buttery croissants and even the traditional German sticky buns known as schnecken, all baked at Pedlar's sister restaurant The Bakeshop at Frankies Spuntino. In the mood for something more savory? Try a chewy, salted pretzels or one of their blistery thin-crust pizzas.
210 Court St., Brooklyn; 718-855-7129
Most creative coffee offerings: The Randolph at Broome
Coffee bar by day and cocktail den by night, this Little Italy bar brews up some of the most inventive cups around. Try one of their augmented coffees—like the Fountain Head with sarsaparilla, star anise, birch and cream, or the Holy Cow with curry, coconut and cacao—each of which can be spiked with booze for just a few bucks more.
349 Broome St., New York City; 212-274-0667
Best warm fuzzies: Birch Coffee
Coffee can make you feel all warm and fuzzy on its own, but at this Flatiron café inside the Gershwin Hotel you'll feel even better about your morning cup knowing that a portion of the sales goes to humanitarian aid in the Congo.
5 E. 27th St., New York City; 212-686-1444
Best pre-theater coffee: Everyman Espresso
Tucked into the lobby of the off-Broadway Classic Stage Company theatre, silken Counter Culture espresso drinks and pour-over coffees get the star treatment at this East Village café.
136 E. 13th St., New York City
Classiest coffee kiosk: Blue Bottle
Take a stroll along the lower west side's elevated High Line walkway during the warmer months and you'll spy Blue Bottle's concession cart doling out supreme espresso and coffee drinks, including their New Orleans-style chicory-infused cold-brew.
The High Line may be accessed at multiple spots, go to thehighline.org for details.
Best people-watching: Third Rail
Grab an espresso drink made from a rotating selection of specialty roasters' beans, snag a seat in front of the floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall front window, and watch the hustle and bustle of Greenwich Village and NYU go by. Or take your cup to go and meander through Washington Square Park, which is just a block away.
240 W. Sullivan St., New York City
Best rotating beans: RBC
While most cafés stick to brewing beans from only one roaster, RBC keeps things fresh with seasonal coffees from dozens of rotating roasters around the country. Order a single-origin espresso drink brewed on their prized Slayer espresso machine.
71 Worth St., New York City; 212-226-1111
Best commuter cup: Joe and the Art of Coffee
Commuters needing a little caffeinated kick head to Joe the Art of Coffee in the Graybar passage in Grand Central Terminal for expert on-the-go espresso drinks crafted by some of the best-trained baristas in the biz.
44 Grand Central Terminal, New York City; 212-661-8580
Best blends: Gimme! Coffee
Blending coffee is an art form, and Gimme! Coffee roasts up a handful of showstoppers like the Piccolo Mondo mix of rich Mexican and tangy Guatemalan beans and their super top-secret Leftist Espresso blend—the house bean for their cafés that dot the city.
Multiple locations throughout NYC and Brooklyn
Best place to unplug: Café Grumpy
For many people, the coffee shop does double duty as a remote office, but Café Grumpy's Chelsea outpost pulls the plug on coffee and computing as one of the few cafés around town that doesn't offer wi-fi or a place for patrons to power up. The result? A place where the public can take an actual coffee break (remember those?), replete with farm-direct, house-roasted coffee, fresh-baked pastries and some good old-fashioned coffee shop conversation.
224 W. 20th St., New York City (and with several additional locations around NYC and Brooklyn); 212-255-551
Read about the history of New York coffee in the March/April 2012 issue.


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Taking the Lead
Member-led innovation has students defying labels.
Education reform is not just about raising test scores; it is about raising the success rate for the one in five U.S. students living in poverty who face learning disadvantages from the start. At Glendale Middle School and Kit Carson Elementary School, both targets of the NEA Priority Schools Campaign, teachers and education support professionals are using all of their collective expertise and resources to defy the odds and lead their students to higher levels of success.
Glendale Middle School
Have a Little Faith
Teachers and staff dedicate themselves to transforming a problem-plagued school.
The students at Glendale Middle School in Salt Lake City, Utah, face some formidable obstacles when it comes to learning. Most live in poverty, and many have enormous challenges in their home lives that they can't help but bring to school with them.
But Glendale also has teachers like Greg Mohammed, also known as "Mr. Moe" (pictured left)—the kind of teacher serious enough to motivate his science class, but playful enough to craft a giant, wooden hall pass the size of a butcher block—the only one he hasn't lost.
At Glendale, one of Salt Lake's consistently low-performing schools, Mr. Moe and his fellow teachers are leading the profession in transforming the educational experience for students, and, after making some major changes, they're seeing signs of growth. Glendale made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) last academic year, and it is on track to do so again this year.
Mr. Moe gets emotional talking about the dedication he and his fellow teachers have for the students at Glendale. "It's incredibly touching to me that so many of our teachers have said they'd gladly give up a bonus if it would go to the kids," he says.
Glendale is a designated site of NEA's Priority Schools Campaign (PSC), which works with educators, schools, local associations, and districts to level the playing field for disadvantaged students.
The school won a three-year federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) with a faculty-approved plan that boosts the rigor of the curriculum, extends class time, fosters parental engagement and community partnerships, and increases teacher development—all with staff input and collaboration between the faculty, administration, and district.
"It happened quickly, but the faculty has really gotten on board with the grant," says Susan McFarland, president of the Salt Lake Teachers Association. "There were a few initial struggles, but with the help of the PSC, we're really moving forward."
To kick start the process, Glendale's staff and administration attended training and workshops, including a C.A.R.E. (Culture, Abilities, Resilience, and Effort) workshop led by PSC staff, which offered proven strategies to raise achievement at low-income schools with high English language learner (ELL) populations. The faculty, administration, and district personnel also participated in training on communicating their renewed drive toward greater student success.
Educators Making Decisions Together
As part of their communications training, teachers came up with "dream headlines" for the collaborative effort to transform Glendale. The winner: "Together We Can Make Clear and Effective Decisions for Our Schools."
Already, they've made several effective decisions, and the school day at Glendale looks a lot different than it did a couple of years ago.
The academic year has been extended by 12 days, and 55 minutes have been added to each school day. Students now attend two periods of math and two periods of language arts. There are Extended Learning Program classes for academically gifted students. There's a Newcomers Class for students new to the country, or even to school. Salt Lake City has a huge refugee population, and many students had no formal schooling before arriving at Glendale.
Glendale also offers the AVID (Achievement Via Individual Determination) program, which targets students in the "middle" who have the ability to go on to college but who need extra support and encouragement. Also in place at Glendale: a continuous in-school academic support program, which prepares students for college eligibility and success, and, for ELLs—nearly half the student body—additional class time and support.
"Given their language barriers, these kids are doing fantastically well," says Jeff Sorenson, who used to teach the Newcomers Class but now heads the AVID program. "These kids have challenges. They go home to an empty house, they don't have the support a lot of other kids get, but they are great kids, and we're all so proud of them."
Sorenson knows that he and his colleagues at other low-income, struggling schools are leading the profession in transforming student outcomes, so he tries not to get discouraged by the negative media attention heaped on teachers over the past year.
"There's a real backlash, as if we're not doing our jobs and are just sitting around drinking lemonade," he says. "But the teachers at Glendale are here because we really want to be. We haven't had an increase in years, but we're dedicated to what we're doing and are working in overdrive to serve the needs of all different kinds of students."
We all know they can do it. We just want them to know it.
Like most cities, Salt Lake has a clear divide between the "haves" and the "have nots"—it's even marked by the classic railroad track separating the affluent east side from the low-income west side. Glendale is in the west, and some might say it's therefore on "the wrong side" of the tracks.
Mr. Moe and the other educators at Glendale are working hard to convince the students that they're not on the wrong side of anything. Just because they have a few more challenges, and might not have as much money as the students in other parts of the city, it doesn't mean they can't succeed. He reminds students that he also came from a poor background, but that through hard work, he is achieving his goals.
Sarah Herron, the new library technology teacher at Glendale, said she's been impressed by the commitment of the teachers to raising not only student achievement but also their belief in their abilities.
"They're teaching the kids about respect for themselves and each other, and they're putting in the extra hours and extra time to make the grant work because they know it will lead to these kids' success," she says. "We all know they can do it. We just want them to know it."
Turns out, some of them just might know it already. Like 12-year-old Dakota, who wants to be a TV anchorman or concert pianist when he grows up. "Last year I realized I wasn't really doing the work I needed to, but my teachers helped me realize that I needed to do it for my future in TV," he says.
Then there's Darius, 13, who wants to be an attorney or a doctor. "With all the stuff we've been through, we're still hanging on, and it's because of our teachers," he says. "The teachers encourage us, and make us want to work because they believe in us, so it sort of makes us believe it too."
Kit Carson Elementary
Disproving the "Failing" Label
Educators at a troubled Nevada school commit to raising student achievement.
Kit Carson Elementary School in West Las Vegas, Nevada, is used to being ranked, listed, and labeled, but rarely in a positive way. It's part of the Clark County School District, whose schools rank among the nation's poorest-performing schools. It sits in an aging neighbor-hood that's been listed as one of America's Top Ten Most Dangerous. And 83 percent of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch.
Unemployment in West Last Vegas is around 14 percent, making it among the worst places to find a job, and the state's home foreclosure rate is the highest in the country.
In the face of all that, Kit Carson's educators and staff are undaunted—they are standing strong in the community and using all of their professional training, expertise, and available resources to lead their students to greater levels of achievement.
Kit Carson's teachers and staff have good reason to be optimistic. With the help of the Clark County Education Association (CCEA), the school received its federal SIG in 2009. And one year after implementing the SIG's various requirements and programs, their hard work began to pay off. The school made AYP and demonstrated improvement in every subject area: Forty-one percent more students met or exceeded writing standards, 27 percent more met or exceeded science standards, 19 percent more met or exceeded math standards, and 14 percent more met or exceeded reading standards.
"The stereotypes are there," said Kit Carson principal Cynthia Marlowe. "But once people come on campus, they get a feel for the students, the parents, and the teachers, then they have a different story."
Some Labels Are Positive
Not all of Kit Carson's labels are bad. Besides being a SIG school, it's an Empowerment School, a magnet school, and an International Baccalaureate Candidate School.
CCEA deserves credit for its work with the NEA's Priority Schools Campaign, which led to Kit Carson also being named an Intensive Support Site for the campaign, with additional resources being offered through NEA school improvement programs such as KEYS (Keys to Excellence for Your Schools) and English language learner training.
CCEA also had a hand in Kit Carson's designation as an Empowerment School. The program seeks to improve student performance through collaboration between teachers, administrators, students, families, community members, smaller class sizes, a longer school day and year, and more financial support.
This year Kit Carson also became a magnet school, with an emphasis on college prep, creative arts, and technology. That designation has brought in students from around the school district, expanding opportunities for all students in an area that had been largely isolated by poverty.
While simultaneously fulfilling all these program requirements can be overwhelming at times, teachers and staff are up to the task.
"The teachers at Kit Carson believe in the school, they believe in the community and the parents," said Marlowe. "I think that's the big difference for us. We're all working together toward one goal to not be that school that's labeled as an at-risk school that's failing."
Professional Educators Making a Difference
Although Kit Carson's teachers and staff are grateful for all the help they're getting to turn the school around, they admit that there's a lot of stress involved in helping transform a persistently low-achieving school in a bad economy.
"We're taking on so many new programs right now," said Pamela Muniz, a second-grade teacher at the school. "All of those different elements have different requirements and different things that need to be posted in the classroom, so it's been a challenge. We put a lot more into it than I ever have in my teaching career."
The school day at Kit Carson is 49 minutes longer than the traditional day. Teachers meet weekly for structured planning time and for their professional learning communities. Staff participated in the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program authorized training in addition to dozens of hours spent in job-embedded professional development sessions.
"You have to bring in your experience and then be flexible enough to make changes to fit the turnaround school requirements," said Jonalene Ly, a first-grade teacher who joined the staff two years ago. "It's a lot of work."
Many of the staff at Kit Carson also lead afterschool activities, ranging from tutoring and Chinese classes to martial arts and Zumba. It's not unusual to see staff still working at 7 p.m. on any given school night.
"We are all very excited about making the students the best students they can be," said fifth-grade teacher Michael Lang. "We've set the blueprint for a great, great, great school here."
Tackling the Poverty Factor
While the teachers and staff at Kit Carson focus on raising student success rates, they can't ignore the fundamental needs of the students that must be met to enable them to be ready to learn—fundamentals like clothing, food, and health care.
To help provide a comfortable learning environment, the school has an emergency food pantry, a school supply closet, and a closet with donated backpacks, shoes, and clothing items from sweatshirts to underwear.
Every Friday, a weekend's supply of food is left discreetly outside classrooms in backpacks to be picked up by students in need. Because the teachers and staff foster a culture of respect and empathy, nobody gets made fun of for picking up a backpack.
"It's like a family," said Elsa Flores, a parent of a Kit Carson student. "The teachers are asking what we need, what the kids need, and they help us with everything."
The school has been successful in recruiting community partners to help provide services for students and their families. For example, Big Smiles dental company set up shop at the school and took x-rays, fixed fillings, and cleaned teeth for students without dental insurance, and a local ophthalmologist donates glasses to the students.
Helping Parents Help Their Kids
Kit Carson's Oneta Christian helps provide students and their families with resources to be better learners. She is the school's project facilitator, a position funded by SIG, in the Parent Resource Center, where any day of the week, from 7 a.m. to long after the school day ends, parents can be found helping out teachers with tasks, or taking ESL or computer classes.
When Principal Marlowe and Christian first started at Kit Carson, family involvement at the school was low. So Christian made a point to stand on the sidewalk before and after school to greet parents and personally invite them to the Parent Resource Center.
Last year, 98 percent of the parents participated in parent/teacher conferences.
"The key is to make parents feel like it's their school too, not just ours," said Christian.
Julia Ryan has a first grader and a third grader at Kit Carson, and is the president of the Parent Committee. "The teachers are very involved," said Ryan. "They are here above and beyond for these children, and it's really exciting to see that. One of the reasons I put myself on the Parent Committee is because I see the dedication they have for our children, and I want to be part of that."
Through collaboration among the highly professional staff, the administrators, families, and community partners, Kit Carson has become a bright spot in an area that desperately needed one.
With obvious pride, Muniz said, "I really believe that Kit Carson is becoming a community hub in a sense."
Find out more about how NEA is leading the profession and advancing student achievement. Check out President Dennis Van Roekel's new action agenda for advancing the Association's goals as well as related articles.
Click here for more information on NEA's Priority Schools Campaign.

subset: commoncrawl


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US limited in fight against North Africa militants
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[February 01, 2013]
(AP) -- The United States is struggling to confront an uptick in threats from the world's newest jihadist hot spot with limited intelligence and few partners to help as the Obama administration weighs how to keep Islamic extremists in North Africa from jeopardizing national security without launching war.
The spread of militants across Libya, Algeria and Mali -- many are linked to al-Qaida
-- is in part a natural outgrowth for terror networks that have been pushed out of places like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Yemen. But it also reflects a rise in local extremist movements that have been emboldened since the September attack on a U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens.
U.S. counterterror officials agree that extremists have almost no interest in attacking America at home. However, U.S. and Western interests in North Africa
-- primarily military bases, diplomatic missions and business facilities -- and Americans traveling there are at increased risk.
Government intelligence and analysis gleaned from the region indicate that America's ability to contain, or respond to, threats from North Africa is harder than it was in war zones like Iraq and Afghanistan because intelligence is not as well developed or available, a senior U.S. official said Thursday.
"We do not have the resources, footprint or capabilities that we have in other theaters," said the intelligence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of releasing intelligence analysis. Moreover, the official said, "it's not clear we have a natural partner with whom we can work," meaning that African nations are unwilling or unable to help with counterterror measures.
Since the attack in Benghazi, North Africa has evolved as the Obama administration's latest national security headache, coming on top of conflicts across the Mideast through Asia. Many, if not all, of the extremists there are linked to al-Qaida in Islamic Maghreb, which is rooted in Algeria. AQIM itself is affiliated with al-Qaida's core network, based in Pakistan and headed by Ayman al-Zawahri, an Egyptian who took over after Osama bin Laden's death in May 2011.
None of the North African groups appear to receive direct orders from al-Zawahri or his lieutenants, and most are as motivated by asserting local authority through criminal activity as by anti-Western ideology.
U.S. intelligence officials believe some of the militants behind the Benghazi attack were linked to AQIM. Others within AQIM are suspected of driving overloaded trucks of rifles, mortars and other weapons from Libya to Mali and Niger to arm allies there.
"The stakes have gone up since Benghazi," said Mark Schroeder, an Africa analyst at the private global intelligence firm Stratfor. "It's a conflict zone now."
Algeria and Mali "are the two 'moths to the flame' areas right now," the U.S. intelligence official said Thursday, citing rising concerns about allied extremist groups across North Africa who are sharing resources, manpower, expertise and information.
Islamic militants overran a BP gas plant in Algeria and lay siege with hostages for four days in January. National security forces launched a bloody counterattack, and Washington had to wait nearly a day before it could piece together what had happened. In all, 37 hostages
-- three were Americans -- and 29 militants were killed.
Mali, where the U.S. has no diplomatic or military toehold with the government, is the most likely haven in Africa for militants plotting attacks. Islamic extremists have taken over much of Mali's north, although they were routed from major towns there within weeks of a French military mission that began Jan. 11. The U.S. has not dealt directly with Mali's government since a coup last March that put a junta leadership in power.
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The Pentagon is considering plans to base unarmed spy drones in Niger to boost its ability to see what is happening in the region. But there is no appetite and little funding in the White House to send in U.S. troops beyond a military post already located in Djibouti, in East Africa, and limited special forces teams. A senior U.S. military official who deals with Africa issues said few nations there are willing to let U.S. forces work inside their borders for fear of having their sovereignty trampled.
American lawmakers said they are frustrated with the administration's apparent lack of focus on
-- or, at least, ability to anticipate and respond to -- the burgeoning North African threat.
"Simply playing Whack-a-Mole with allegedly al-Qaida-affiliated terrorists in one region to another around the world is not the answer," said Sen. Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee that oversees Africa issues. "The answer is a better-crafted, thorough strategy that combines development, diplomacy, democracy and security."
Coons added: "You could say that there is no obvious or immediate threat to the American homeland from al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, but they did just succeed in killing three Americans in a hostage-taking in Algeria that had clearly been planned for some time."
Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., another Africa expert, put it bluntly: "If we don't engage, we run the risk of having another Afghanistan pop up one day in the form of North Africa."
White House National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said the administration is "very worried" about the various extremist groups in North Africa but cited "varying degrees of ability and willingness" within governments there to fight them.
"There is a not a quick fix -- these have to be a series of steps we take over the long term," Vietor said. "There is not a narrow military solution that can eradicate bad guys and then we are OK."
The U.S. is already helping fund, train and arm troops from Ethiopia, Kenya, Sierra Leone and other African nations to lead the fight against North African extremists. That would follow the model of international military aid to African forces that have fought and severely hobbled the militant group al-Shabab in Somalia since 2006. Al-Shabab is also loosely linked to al-Qaida.
Yet many North African nations are too consumed by local unrest and security issues to fight militants outside their borders. Nations that have undergone transfers in power over the last few years
-- most notably by Arab Spring revolutions -- now find themselves with weaker counterterror abilities.
That has given al-Qaida and other extremists areas to exploit, one of the senior U.S. intelligence officials said.
"What we're seeing is that our enemy, al-Qaida, is showing remarkable adaptability," Bruce Riedel, a scholar at the Brookings Institute think-tank in Washington, told an audience this week. "They are adapting to a new environment, which is the Arab Spring, and taking advantage of it."
Press; By LARA JAKES]
Follow Lara Jakes on Twitter at https://twitter.com/larajakesAP.
Copyright 2013 The Associated
Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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More than 70 percent of mid-term voters polled in a post-election survey say it is "very important" that Congress takes steps to reduce the national debt. An additional 24 percent say it is "somewhat important," according to the new data released today by MacArthur. Large majorities of both genders and across all political affiliations, all races, all regions of the country, and all income levels agree that it is "very important" for Congress to take steps to reduce the national debt.
"It is rare to see such broad agreement among the American people for legislative action that's bound to gore many an ox," said John Palmer, co-chair of the National Research Council and National Academy of Public Administration's recent nonpartisan committee that produced the report Choosing the Nation's Fiscal Future. "They understand we have to get our collective fiscal house in order for the sake of our long-term economic vitality. Congress should pay attention." Palmer is university professor and dean emeritus of the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.
Sixty percent of those surveyed want Congress to address the national debt "through spending cuts only." According to 35 percent, "a combination of spending cuts and tax increases" is required.
"Our leaders have not candidly described the amount of pain that will be involved making the very large policy changes necessary to get the budget deficit under control," said committee co-chair Rudolph Penner, a fellow at the Urban Institute. "The huge spending cuts, especially those in Social Security and Medicare, necessary to avoid any tax increase at all, seem quite implausible politically. There has to be a compromise involving some tax increases and significant reductions in the growth of spending."
The MacArthur Foundation is committed to informing the American public and policymakers of the fiscal realities facing the country. MacArthur funded the National Research Council and National Academy of Public Administration to convene a nonpartisan expert committee and develop scenarios for long-term fiscal sustainability. The committee's January report, Choosing the Nation's Fiscal Future, offers tax and spending options that would stabilize the debt relative to the size of the economy. The report also provides a set of simple tests to determine whether any proposed federal budget would lead to long-term fiscal stability.
In June, MacArthur joined the Peterson and Kellogg Foundations to support AmericaSpeaks, which organized national town hall meetings in 19 cities during which a diverse group of 3,500 citizens discussed the nation's fiscal challenges. The results of those discussions were shared with the President's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.
Data were taken from the 2010 Penn Schoen Berland National Post-Election poll, which was conducted online among 1,200 Americans who voted in the 2010 mid-term election. The sample was reflective of the overall electorate with 50 percent voting Republican and 44 percent voting Democratic for Congress. The margin of error is +/- 2.83 percent.
The MacArthur Foundation supports creative people and effective institutions committed to building a more just, verdant, and peaceful world. In addition to selecting the MacArthur Fellows, the Foundation works to defend human rights, advance global conservation and security, make cities better places, and understand how technology is affecting children and society.
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A beloved neighborhood diner in Hillcrest served its last meal on Saturday.
Brian's American Eatery, known serving huge portions of home-cooked goodness, shut its doors for good a restaurant staffer confirmed to NBC San Diego.
The restaurant, located at 1451 Washington St., was a popular spots for locals since it was open 24 hours a day on weekends.
Details were not given as to why Brian's suddenly closed. The staff was "completely surprised" by the incident, said a server who did not wish to identify himself.
Calls were not returned to NBC San Diego regarding the closure, and the restaurant phone number has been disconnected.
Follow NBCSanDiego for the latest news, weather, and events: iPad App | iPhone App | Android App | Facebook | Twitter | Google+ | Instagram | RSS | Text Alerts | Email Alerts


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Hey farmer, how are your crops? Since FarmVille first debuted in 2009, it has grown to one of the most popular and well known social games on Facebook reaching more than 3 million daily active users.
Thanks to the success of FarmVille and other games, Zynga has quickly become a leader in the social gaming space and a constant source for hit social games on mobile and Web including Words with Friends, CityVille, CastleVille, Ruby Blast and Zynga Poker, among others.
Today marks a new milestone with the launch of FarmVille 2. In FarmVille 2, Zynga created a next-generation social game that delivers a brand new farming experience through stunning visuals, beautiful animations and new ways to visit and interact with friends.
We're excited that FarmVille 2 is Zynga's first game developed for Adobe Flash Player 11 using Stage 3D technology, and is a significant example of an improved 3D game development workflow. The immersive experiences and optimized performance enabled by Stage 3D allows Zynga to extend the game to more players who are able to forge a deeper emotional connection to the farms they create, and have an even better game experience overall.
Our work with Zynga also incorporated some new technology that's got developers buzzing. Adobe's Project Monocle played a major role for performance optimization during the development of FarmVille 2. With Project Monocle, subtle bottlenecks in the development process were quickly identified and fixed thanks to the level of details and granularity exposed by the cutting edge tool. Soon, we'll be making Project Monocle available to all, and we're already hearing great reports from beta testers on the benefits of using this technology for their games.
Check out FarmVille 2 today on Facebook at http://apps.facebook.com/farmville-two/.
Happy harvesting, and for more information about games built with Adobe Gaming technologies, Stage 3D for Flash Player and Adobe AIR, visit gaming.adobe.com.


text: LACEYVILLE, PA. -- Dolly Tarreto of Laceyville, Pa. has announced the engagement of her daughter, Corey Tarreto of Buffalo, N.Y. to Benjamin Turnpenny. Turnpenny is the son of Sue Rogers of Oneida, N.Y. and Mark Turnpenny of Clinton, N.Y. Tarreto is a 2004 graduate of Wyoming Seminary and a 2008 graduate of Mansfield University. She currently attends Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School in Rochester, N.Y. Tarreto is a pastoral assistant at the Williamsville United Methodist Church in Williamsville, N.Y. Turnpenny, a 2003 graduate of Oneida High School, graduated in 2007 from Clarkson University. He is currently attending the University at Buffalo as a doctoral candidate in chemistry. An Oct. 5, 2013 wedding is planned.


text: Procedures are the courses of action used by health professionals in achieving a result in the care of people having health problems. Procedures are carried out in order to determine, measure or diagnose the condition of a patient. Procedures can also be therapeutic (with the goal of treating, restoring or curing function or structure), including all kinds of surgical procedures. This is the forum for discussing anything related to these issues.


text:
mojom 0.2.36
Placeholder for mojom bindings.
mojom #
This package is a placeholder for generated mojom bindings. It contains a script lib/generate.dart.
This script generates Mojo bindings for a Dart package. Dart packages will be populated according to the DartPackage annotations in .mojom files. Any .mojom files that don't have an annotation will have their bindings generated into a local copy of the 'mojom' package. Annotations specifying the host package will cause generation into the host package's lib/ directory. For every other DartPackage annotation, the bindings will be generated into the named package, either into the global package cache if a package of that name has already been fetched, or into a local directory created under the current package's packages/ directory.
Generated Mojo bindings in other pub packages should be installed into this
package by saying the following after
pub get:
$ dart -p packages packages/mojom/generate.dart
If desired, additional directories holding .mojom.dart files can be specified; their contents will be installed to this package as well:
$ dart -p packages packages/mojom/generate.dart -a </path/to/mojom/dir>
Full options:
$ dart packages/mojom/generate.dart [-p package-root]
[-a additional-dirs]
[-m mojo-sdk]
[-g] # Generate from .mojom files
[-d] # Download from .mojoms files
[-i] # Ignore duplicates
[-v] # verbose
[-f] # Fake (dry) run


text:
GENERAL STONEHAM wrote:AAFitz wrote:GENERAL STONEHAM wrote:AAFitz wrote:
For a long time I acted as an advisor, but didnt really do anything of consequence.
Now that explains things. Thanks for clearing the air.
General Stoneham
Its actually been common knowledge among those who saw the thread I made upon stepping down, or out....
There was really no air to clear. I always laugh at the suggestion that I want to be a moderator, because the great bulk of them came after I actually left because while part of team CC, I felt somewhat constrained and felt I needed to have a more professional voice, simply because of my association, even though I was just a bystander...mostly with an occasional joke for the last year or so. Earlier on, before team CC grew, I did jump in more, but once Andy and Op took over... I knew CC had nothing to worry about...and even if it did... there really wasnt anything I could do about it anyways.
Anyways... for any thinking about becoming a mod, I guarantee you that you will be absolutely impressed with the sheer amount of work that goes on behind the scenes. The number of people giving their time and energy, and all with a positive attitude, is simply encouraging, and a great experience, that I feel very privileged to have seen and in a very small way, have been a part of. It is for this reason that I do spend time supporting the mods when I agree with them. But it is in an effort to thank them, not win their favor as many mistakenly surmise.
..oh boo-hoo, sniffle [as I pull another tissue to wipe the tears] that was beautiful AAFitz, it really did pull my heart strings.
Grown men do cry,
General Stoneham
I was going more for applause and possibly even a donation or two, but if tears are all you can muster, than so be it.


text:
This Flyer is best suited for an live event. No matter if its a club party a live gig or any other type of musical event.
Special offer: With this flyer you will also get an amazing "Massive Attack live photograph" in Hi-res Quality. Also you will get a vector grunge border (set around the flyer) that you could youse for any other project.
Item Informations
The Flyer is a 300DPI print ready files. For your convenience i included the "Bleeding Area" on an separate Layer.
If you want to paste in your own footage, simply copy and paste your image and replace the default image by your image. Feel free to change everything you like. Edit Colours, use different fonts & pictures. The sky is the limit.
All text layers, are full type and can be edited with a click of a button.
Do you have a question?If you have any questions regarding this package, just drop me a line from my graphic river portfolio. Have much fun and success with this package.


text:
Previous Lecture
Complete and continue
Tame Your Finances
Introduction to the course
Why This Course is Different
Goals, Your "Why" & Course Workbook
Private Facebook Mastermind Group
Module 1 -Your Beliefs Are Getting in the Way of Your Financial Success
Module 1 Workbook
The Struggle is Actually Not Real
How Our Self-Worth Affects our Finances
Limiting Beliefs & How They Relate to Money
Discover Your Limiting Beliefs About Money
Eliminate Your Limiting Beliefs about Money
Module 2- Changing How You Think About & Relate to Money is Key
Module 2 Workbook
Fear, Shame & Other Crazy Feelings That Come Up About Money
Recognize the Abundance You Have today
Practice Receiving
Decide to Be Happy, No Matter Where You Are Today
Module 3 - Create a Vision for The Person You Want to Become
Module 3 Workbook
Get Clear on What You Want & Why You Want It
Make a Decision to Go After What You Want
Set Money Boundaries
Design The New Version of You
Module 4 - Seal The Money Leaks
Module 4 Workbook
Clear Out the Clutter
Clean Up Relationships
Get Rid of Distractions
Tie Up Unfinished Money Business
Module 5 - Tame Your Finances
Module 5 Workbook & Spreadsheet
Get Your Information Together
Acknowledge Your Current Financial State
Does Your Spending Reflect Your Priorities?
Create a Plan You Can Stick To
Let's Address the Debt & What to Do About It
Module 6 - How to Save $5,000 in the Process
Module 6 Workbook
Saving $5,000 While You Tame Your Finances
Where Can You Save Money?
Bring In Money in Unexpected Ways
Kick Start the $5,000 Process
Focus is Key - Stay The Course
Module 7 - Putting It All Together
Final Thoughts
Let's Celebrate!
10 Ways to Get Started Making Extra Money TODAY
Monthly Webinar Details
Recognize the Abundance You Have today
Lecture content locked
If you're already enrolled,
you'll need to login
Enroll in Course to Unlock


text: Korean Job Discussion Forums :: View topic - Picture with resume Speak Korean Now! Korean Job Discussion Forums"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Teachers from Around the World!" FAQ Search Memberlist Usergroups Register Profile Log in to check your private messages Log in Picture with resume Goto page Previous 1, 2, 3 Korean Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> FAQ View previous topic :: View next topic Author Message smJoined: 23 Apr 2012 Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2012 3:36 am Post subject: standard Pics on resumes is pretty standard. Also seems standard to have them photoshopped (!). Back to top Display posts from previous: All Posts1 Day7 Days2 Weeks1 Month3 Months6 Months1 Year Oldest FirstNewest First Korean Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> FAQ All times are GMT - 8 HoursGoto page Previous 1, 2, 3 Page 3 of 3 Jump to: Select a forum Forums:----------------FAQJob-related Discussion ForumGeneral Discussion ForumOff-Topic ForumTravel ForumCurrent Events ForumTechnology ForumBuy/Sell/Trade Forum You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot vote in polls in this forum This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling. Contact Dave's ESL Cafe Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved. Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group TEFL International Supports Dave's ESL Cafe


text:
More Pics of Rali Ivanova is 305HipHop.com July Hard Body Model of the Month – courtesy of OTB Photography
305HipHop.com: http://305hiphop.com/hard-body-miami-models/rali-ivanova-hard-body-model-july-2011
What your favorite thing about modeling?
I love everything about modeling! Getting ready for my photoshoots, looking at the final product and to see my pics in magazines is probably my fav!
What's the craziest sexual thing you ever done ? Or want to do?
I haven't done it yet but I wanna try to have sex on a plane. That would be soo hot!!
I'm sure you have plenty of male fans. Do you have lots of females as well ? What do they say to you?
I have some not as many as male fans . I love getting a compliment from a girl it makes my day!! They usually ask me how I keep my figure in shape. One girl couple days ago told my the most beautiful girl she ever seen in her life that was very sweet! and another girl asked me if I wanna go home with her ;)
What's your ultimate goal ? In Modeling, and in Life?
in modeling to create a brand Rali Ivanova and to be on as many, magazines as I can! Goal in Life to be happy and successful!


text:
NEW SERVICE – Seated Exercise – Ascot
February 11, 2021 @ 10:15 am - 11:45 am
|Recurring Event (See all)
An event every week that begins at 10:15am on Thursday, repeating indefinitely
We are pleased to be working with SMILE to offer seated exercise sessions for carers, former carers and people with dementia.
The session will take place on Thursday mornings at;
King Edwards Hall, King Edwards Road, Ascot, SL5 8PD.
Sessions start 1st November
Refreshments at 10.15am followed by seated exercises at 11.00.
Please contact Terrie for more details and download & complete the Assessment Form
Seated Exercise FAQs
Q. What should I wear?
A. Something that allows you to move comfortably. Layers are a good idea as you can remove them once you get warmed up.
Q. Do I need trainers?
A. If you have them, but comfortable flat shoes will do.
Q. Do I need to bring equipment?
A. Exercise bands will be provided. It is advisable to bring a water bottle, especially in the warmer months.
Q. What about if I can't keep up or get out of breath?
A. Go at your own pace. Take rests when you need them and join back in when you are ready. Everyone's abilities are different and it is not a competition.
Q. I have a bad back/knee/shoulders?
A. When you attend the first session you will be given an assessment questionnaire to complete. Please make the instructor aware of any aliments so they can guide you to appropriate exercises.
You should always seek your GP's advice before taking up exercise.
You should always seek your GP's advice before taking up exercise.
Q. Is it very serious. Will there be shouting?
A. The instructors are incredibly friendly & approachable who want you to enjoy coming to the sessions. They are as much about having fun as they are about keeping fit.


text: View Bag Shop >Jewellery >Bead Charms >Murano Glass Southland E16 Meaning This historic region is overflowing with variety, scattered with pretty coastal villages and peaceful inland towns. Naturally appealing, the region is awash with stunning scenery, with a captivating wild and rugged coastline. The rich red base illustrates Southland's traditional colours and the gilded inlay evokes memories of those that travelled to the area to pan for gold. Delivery We currently ship to NZ, Australia, Europe USA & Canada. Free Shipping Offers: FREE Standard shipping on all orders over NZD $150 FREE Express shipping on all orders over NZD $500 Paid Shipping Services: New Zealand - Standard: $6.40 (3-6 business days) Australia - Standard: $9.90 (5-8 business days) Australia - Express: $23.50 (4-5 business days) USA & Canada - Standard: $18.50 (8-12 business days) USA & Canada - Express: $41.00 (7-8 business days) Europe* - Standard: $18.50 (8-12 business days) Europe* - Express: $41.00 (7-8 business days) Japan - Standard: $17.00 (8-12 business days) Japan - Express: $40.00 (6-7 business days) Guarantee Evolve jewellery is designed & handcrafted with care, to the highest standards. We're proud to be a Kiwi owned & operated company & offer a 12 month product warranty* * Products with leather, cotton, resin, elastic or string components have a warranty of 6 months For more information, please view our full warranty terms. Like all quality jewellery, Evolve Products require special care. Please ensure you follow our cleaning & care guidelines to keep your jewellery looking as stunning as the day you bought it. $59.00 NZD incl. GST Quantity: We currently ship to NZ, Australia, Europe* USA & Canada. Find a store Add to Wish List print meaning


text:
Mustad MX nail
Reduce horn displacement
The MX nail has an even slimmer shank than the E-Slim and has been developed to reduce horn displacement. This nail has been specially developed for horses with very sensitive, thin hoof walls.
Ask the expert
Questions about this product?Let us know
Where to buy
Find your nearest dealer
Product summary
- Model
- European style, with rectangular head shape, ultra slim
- Type
- E head
- Sizes
- MX40 (45mm) - MX70 (59mm)
- Terrain
- Turf/Grass
- Stoney ground
- Sand
- Activity
- Barrel racing
- Carriage driving
- Classical dressage
- Combined driving
- Dressage
- Endurance
- English pleasure
- Eventing
- Field hunting
- Fine harness
- Flat racing
- Fox hunting
- Harness racing
- Hunter pacing
- Icelandic equitation
- Leisure
- Pleasure riding
- Polo
- Show hack
- Show hunter
- Show jumping
- Steeplechase
- Thoroughbred horse racing
- Vaulting
- Pleasure driving
- Trail
- Trail riding
Find your nearest dealer
Good to know
- brilliant nail for reducing hoof wall displacement
- great for using in the smaller sections of shoes for example 19x8
- slim blade allows for consistency when driving
- less stable due to having a pronounced head
- not recommended for heavy shoes
Jörgen Nordqvist, farrier in Sweden
I can't stand to see horses with movement problems, knowing this could be prevented
Keeping it in the family - Three Generations of Farriers
The Western Australian Farrier, Phillip SmailesRead story
Old family business, modern vision
Christoph Schweppe, Master farrier and teacher in GermanyRead story


text:
artist: Mark Munroe | genre: alternative, rock | itunes: [itunes link="http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/secrets-lies-single-version/id404623775?i=404623783&uo=4″ title="Mark_Munroe-Secrets_and_Lies_(Single_Version)" text="[object Selection]
Secrets and Lies
Word has recently reached our ears that brothers Mark and Ian Munroe (better known as IM Munroe) have decided to make a musical split. While we're not sure exactly why they have decided to go their separate ways, as anyone who has been in a band can attest, "artistic differences" can usually be fingered as the culprit. Regardless of the reason, we certainly appreciate their music and were honoured to have been given the chance to share it with the Froglix Faithful around the world.
So where to do they go from here? Well, we are pleased to report that at least one of the Monroe's is already back at it and recording new music on his own. Mark's newest single entitled 'Secrets and Lies' explores new areas of sound as he pairs his undeniably unique vocals with more electronic instrumentation than we've heard before. The synths are by no means overwhelming and while they do create a mood than is noticeably different than his previous work with brother Ian, the change is indeed an interesting one and definitely worth a listen.
– Drago


text:
emanate from
emanate from (someone or something)
To come or radiate from a particular source. A: "Who's playing such loud music at this time of night?" B: "It seems to be emanating from a house across the street."
See also: emanate
emanate from someone or something
to arise from or come out of someone or something. A strange smell emanated from the basement. Some kind of eerie light emanated from the eyes of the statue.
See also: emanate


text:
Welcome to the July edition of the ASMR Community Update. This month may or may not have been a little more sparse than we've been used to for most of this year so far, but at least one or two big things happened. So let's get to it!
Among the articles I came upon, was one over on a blog at the Houston Press. This tended to focus more on music-induced ASMR.
Lifehack had a piece which delved in to using ASMR to reduce stress.
The ASMR Film Project, now titled Tingly Sensation: The ASMR Story, landed on Kickstarter this month, and in just a few weeks it has reached its target amount of $9800! So it looks like it's going to be that much closer to being finished and released now that it has the funding. A bigger teaser trailer was released this month to coincide with the Kickstarter launch.
Whispering Weaver and TheWaterwhispers Ilse are in the UK as part of the ASMR World Tour, and would love to invite all those interested to participate in two documentaries, which will be preceded by a meet and greet. A public event page was launched on Facebook, stating that the meetup will take place on Monday, August 5, and the film shoot at the YouTube Studios in London on Tuesday, August 6. A mini-documentary about the ASMR community from the perspective of ASMRtists will be filmed, as well as a shoot for the Braingasm documentary, directed by Lindsey Ragone. This may be followed by a video collaboration if time allows.
Be sure to visit the event page linked to above or contact Whispering Weaver on Facebook if you'd like more information on the event and if you'd like to attend. It's RSVP only, so not just anyone can attend. You have to book a place (it's free to do so) and only then will you be given exact details as far as location, times, and itinerary go.
A national publicly-funded TV station in Sydney, Australia (SBS TV) wants to get in contact with anyone in said city who would be interested in participating in an interview to be used in an ASMR documentary. I'm not quite certain what the progress is on the documentary, but if you're in Sydney, and willing to talk about ASMR, then contact email@example.com for more information.
A survey was created that delves in to not only ASMR, but Frisson and Synaesthesia. It has been translated in to several languages, and last I checked it had a few hundred respondents. When the survey reaches its goal of 1000 respondents, then the results of the survey will be released. Remember that all answers are anonymous, so if you can spare a bit of time, try it out.
A new version of the ASMR iOS app was released, by Sassou Studios. Version 3 (now updated to version 3.1) features a new look, and has 25 HD sounds for you to listen to, as well as the ability to record your own. It also allows you to download any video you watch so you can view it in offline, and videos can even be converted to audio files so you can just listen to your favourite trigger videos if you like. The app is about 52 MB and costs $3.99.
And lastly, Heather Feather, an ASMRtist, underwent surgery this month, so if we could all just wish her well, perhaps by way of sending her an email or a private message, I'm sure she'd appreciate it.
On that note, I'd like to wish you all well for the coming month, and see you back here at the end of it.


text:
Facebook asks popular users to help test new ID verification service
17 February, 2012
category: Digital ID, Government
Facebook is asking some of its popular users to help it test a new accounts verification service by uploading photos of their government-issued IDs, reports TPM.
Facebook wants to be able to verify people's identities for its new "Subscribe" feature and plans to use government ID information to do so, claiming it will permanently delete the information after the verification process.
The types of IDs accepted for this endeavor vary from the the traditional passport and driver's license, to alternative types of ID, including school IDs, library cards, birth certificates, credit cards and even social security cards.
Facebook hasn't said how it will designate verified accounts but it will enable verified users to enable pseudonyms on their Facebook pages.
Read more here.


text:
Beat the Streak Report: Monday, June 22
Today's recommended picks
Albert Pujols, 1B, Cardinals
11-for-27 (.407 AVG) lifetime vs. Mets starter Tim Redding
Derrek Lee, 1B, Cubs
.365 AVG (27-for-74) during 18-G hit streak
Juan Rivera, OF, Angels
14-for-31 (.452 AVG) vs. Rockies pitchers since '04
BTS all-time leader: Michael Karatzia, 49
MLB all-time leader: Joe DiMaggio, 56
Yesterday's results
Front-runner TannerNielsen reached another BTS milestone yesterday, and it had little to do with him officially changing the screen name (wildtanners) that accompanied his rise up the charts.
With Freddy Sanchez's first-inning single against Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa, TannerNielsen extended his season-high hit streak to an amazing 44 games. That "ties" the National League record set by Wee Willie Keeler in 1897 and later matched by Pete Rose in 1978. Only Joe DiMaggio compiled a longer streak in Major League history, and only four contestants have lasted longer in BTS history.
Behind TannerNielsen in the standings, paulcmoss84 extended his own impressive hit streak to 38 games thanks to a 3-for-4 effort from Ichiro Suzuki, while crtownse remained one game behind with his selection of Shane Victorino (2-for-3).
Yesterday's Top 5 most selected players
1. Freddy Sanchez (PIT): 8.7%, 2-for-4
2. Ichiro Suzuki (SEA): 8.1%, 3-for-4
3. David Wright (NYM): 6.2%, 3-for-5
4. Mark Teixeira (NYY): 4.9%, 1-for-4
16 Comments
This kid is very impressive. It's going to be interesting to see how he handles it today. I must say I don't like the idea of changing names while this streak is going on. Yeah I'm a tad bit superstitiious when it comes to baseball I'll admit that.
DLee, Pujols and Wright are the obvious choices for today. I would be surprised if he picked non of these three.
You can cross off Wright and Pujols. Those 2 walk quite a bit. Wright more so by his choice and Pujos by pitcher's choice.
And both of those hitters can be pitched around because of weak hittings in other parts of the line-ups.
Wildtanners always pick weakest pitching so it would be out of his routine go with Lee because of Vazquez.
I think he will think outside of the box for today.
WOW the top 7 people, all streaks over 30 take David Wright.
18 on the first page took him and 5 take Pujols.
I had Wright, but there is something about that game that made me change to D Lee
Holy crap!!!!!!!!! Top 7 Wright!!!! He must be over 20% chosen today.
I went with Chone Figgins. I was close with Wright, but I have seen sooo many games where his final line is 1 for 2 with 2 walks and that could easily be 0 for 2.
Figgins normally gets 4 or 5 at-bats and a 4 AB sample is not large enough for me to worry about his 0 for 4 career recrod against Cook.
Besides, one of the featured picks Juan River is 0 for 3 against Cook anyway and normally that stat is weighed heavily into the "Kings of the Day" picks of the day.
Only downside is that I have to wait for the 1005 start tonight.
I went with Chone Figgins. I was close with Wright, but I have seen sooo many games where his final line is 1 for 2 with 2 walks and that could easily be 0 for 2.
Figgins normally gets 4 or 5 at-bats and a 4 AB sample is not large enough for me to worry about his 0 for 4 career recrod against Cook.
Besides, one of the featured picks Juan River is 0 for 3 against Cook anyway and normally that stat is weighed heavily into the "Kings of the Day" picks of the day.
Only downside is that I have to wait for the 1005 start tonight.
David Wright—–> leadoff single; leader is up to 45 games.
I hope I do not get burned for picking a unique selection!
this streak is just insane.
part of me wants him to get it and the other part doesnt want him to get it because it will end the game
Unreal. It has been very easy picking this month. Hope this nonsense ends very soon. Everyday, the top picks are all coming through. The probability of odds will hopefully catch up and clean up the board within next 10 days.
I am unsure if the contest really ends if he exceeds 56, because in MLB.com Survivor last year, the leader went all the way up to 36 and the contest did not end, when he lost his streak.
But in the Home Run Edition, it ended as soon as the leader's streak ended.
Then again, maybe that is because it only takes 11 or 12 games to win in the Home Run Edition, so there is plenty of time to open another section, whereas MLB.com Survivor and regular Beat the Streak for the leaderboard to even fizzle out.
Pujols is already 0 for 2. If he goes hitless, nearly half of the leaders' streaks are snapped.
That is enough housecleaning for the day.
Well you cannot assume that people will all default back to David Wright again.
Even with only 4 games, he only picked up about 40% of the picks.
I guess its up to Suppan tomorrow to stop the streak. It does not look good. Nor does Pineiro. What is the chance of either of them throwing a no hitter tomorrow?
Well nevermind. Pujols doubled in the 6th so the entire board is +1 for today and all 3 featured picks came through.
I just hope my different pick does not fail…that is the torture of picking in a 1005 start.
What a luck for Wright pickers. That lone "hit" looked more like what should have been a infield ground out. I still think the D. Wright was not a good pick today. Hopefully, easy riders will be dropped soon. How much more luck can one ride on?


text:
Starting over
Hey all, I have been a member of this community for a while and just stopped posting for personal reasons. I was diagnoised with a few autoimmune disorders, fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome, and I let my depression get the best of me and after 3 years of eating vegan I stopped and now I feel worse then ever. I'm going to be honest, I did it more because I felt guilty that my husband had to cook for me and felt like he shouldn't have to cater to my food demands while having to deal with my constantly being in pain and exhausted so much. Recently, I admitted to him how I feel about eating meat again and he told me that I should eat how I want to eat and that he had no problem cooking the way i need him to cook for me. He told me that he could he could cook one meal and just add in what he wanted after I got my portion OR he could cook two smaller meals, no biggy. With that being said I starting back on the path is right for me. I am, however, finding it harder this time and I do beleive it is because of my feeling depressed at how I feel. I could really use some advice, if anyone has any.
Welcome back, KAD!! Your husband sounds like a really amazing dude, and it honestly sounds like you're both doing a really impressive job of supporting each other. It sounds like you just need to trust yourself a little more and believe in your awesomeness -- it sounds like you are on the right path for you, and that's an amazing thing.


text:
Croissants are Good for your smile !
Just another Gameboy emulator
It's been while since the idea of writing my own emulator crossed my mind. I don't know why but I choosed the Gameboy, maybe because it was my first console or because of its simplicity.
Well, after a few weeks I managed to make a few notorious games to work flawlessly : Tetris, super Mario land, pokemon, Zelda, r-type.
I used imgui to make the debug interface and no$gb to compare
7Z , Zophar's Domain and SNESMusic bug
Recently Zophar's domain have updated all its music library (2sf usf psf gsf ...)
All zip have been replaced with 7z archive. It should not be a problem for SnesMusic as 7z is already supported but ...
7z was only supported for a few system like SNES. All others could be imported as 7z but not played.
So after a few people noticed it and reported the problem I made an update to fix this.
7z have good compression but is veeeeeeeery long to decompress when you compare with zip. So I added a recompression step to zip when a 7z file is added in the app.
During the development of the fix I updated the 7z decompression library in order to decrease loading time when playing a file. But I forgot to clean the previous build ... So it worked on my phone during dev but when I generated the official release Xcode made a clean and rebuild all and 7z decompression was broken... I discovered this when the release have been available on the store.
Sorry guys
I'm sending a new update tonight to fix this and I hope that this release will work because I'm going for 3 weeks in Japan.=(^o^)=
Banjoo Tooie music
Nintendo 64 USF support
9 month of work on my free time were needed to add support for usf/miniusf files. It was a huge work as no cross platform library exist to do that. Only "64th note" winamp plugin sources were available, basically a hack of project 64 made for window, all existing set of usf music were meant to be played with 64th note. I think I managed to reproduce 64th note behaviour. Song length is used when available otherwise 2min30 is used. A special case is made for one of my favourite song in Conker's bad fur day : The Great Mighty Poo Song : track 42 ! Voice actor was just awesome and the song last 4 minutes.
A fast device is required : at least iPhone 5 , iPod 5 or iPad 3 and even with that some music won't play because of lack of cpu speed (Mario Golf, ....). It could be optimised but Apple does not allow to run recompiled code on the fly.
If everything goes well with apple validation, the update should be available in a couple of day for Nesmusic and next week for SnesMusic and PsxMusic
PS: Banjo Tooie set of music that can be found around internet is an old version, I asked Zophar Domain to update their file. No answer for the moment... I will try to post the correct one
Porting Rayman Jungle Run to W8 WP8
From November to March 2013 I was porting the IOS game of the year 2012 Rayman Jungle Run to Windows 8, Winrt and Windows phone 8
It's a really good game for mobile device with fantastic graphics
I made the Windows 8 layer of Pastagames' framework and a few modifications where added to support Windows phone 8.
I was a bit scared of Directx as an OpenGL developer but both are very similar and everything went smoothly thanks to the modularity of Pastagames' framework.
It was a great experience to work with big company like Ubisoft and Microsoft to integrate xbox live achievement and leaderboard.
I also met great people like Fabien Delpiano and the whole Pastagames team. Thank you all.
iPhone Solitaire Deluxe Edition
Croissant Production is proud to unleash his very own solitaire The iPhone Solitaire - Deluxe Edition.
If you like Windows Solitaire, you're going to love this app!
End Last but not least : it's free !!! What are you waiting for ? Go get it !!!
Splash !!! Free
Pour ceux qui ne l'ont pas encore essayé faute d'argent ...(seriously ?)
La version FREE de Splash est sorti : au programme le premier monde au complet !
Splash !!!
Finalement après des mois de labeur Splash est sorti !
Le site officiel : http://splash.croissantproduction.com/Je vous laisse le découvrir plus détail Sur l'App store
Warning XXXXMusic new 2.1 Version bug
New version is out , but before updating make a backup of all your music files with itunes, I just found that this update will remove all previously installed music files but a little too late.
I thought it was fixed but I forget a little hidden line of code... At least this is fixed for futur update...
However I hope you will enjoy this version ;)


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Happy anniversary, Starbucks Frappuccino!
To celebrate 20 years of Fraps, Starbucks has unveiled six new flavors that were inspired by their own customers. But only one concoction will emerge victorious and join the menu on a permanent basis. It's the highest honor a caffeinated beverage can achieve.
The new flavors are: Caramel Cocoa Cluster, Cinnamon Roll, Cotton Candy, Cupcake, Lemon Bar, Red Velvet Cake and Insulin Shot. Fine, we made that last one up.
U.S. & World
"Over the years we have seen many creative recipes from our customers, and the six Fan Flavor Frappuccino beverages featured in the Flav-Off contest represent a few of the most popular recipes," Renee Jones, marketing director at Starbucks, said in a statement.
Customers can vote in the Flav-Off from June 19 through June 30, and on July 3 the Frappuccino Fan Flavor beverage will be announced.
NEWS: Even Taylor Swift's mom thought she was singing about Starbucks
Check out the descriptions and accompanying hashtags (yep, that's also a thing) for each new flavor below:
1. Caramel Cocoa Cluster
"A blend of toffee nut syrup, Frappuccino Roast Coffee, milk and ice and topped with a layer of dark caramel sauce, finished with whipped cream and a drizzle of mocha sauce #TeamCCC"
2. Cinnamon Roll
"A blend of cinnamon dolce syrup, white chocolate mocha sauce, vanilla bean, Frappuccino Roast Coffee, milk and ice, finished with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon dolce topping #TeamCinnamonRoll"
3. Cotton Candy
"A blend of vanilla bean, raspberry syrup, milk and ice, finished with whipped cream #TeamCottonCandy"
4. Cupcake
"A blend of vanilla bean, hazelnut syrup, milk and ice, finished with whipped cream #TeamCupcake"
5. Lemon Bar
"A blend of lemonade, vanilla syrup, milk and ice, finished with whipped cream and a sprinkle of caramel sugar #TeamLemonBar"
6. Red Velvet Cake
"A blend of mocha sauce, raspberry syrup, vanilla syrup and Frappuccino chips with milk and ice, finished with whipped cream #TeamRedVelvetCake"


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TOWSON, Md. – Towson men's lacrosse hits the road for the last time in the regular season, visiting the No. 11 Minutemen of UMass on Saturday, April 5 at 12 p.m. at Garber Field.
Opening Face-Off
Hofstra snapped Towson's six-game win streak with a 9-7 victory over the Tigers in a windy and soggy contest in Hempstead, N.Y. on March 29. UMass is coming off a 12-6 win over Hartford. The Minutemen jumped from 14th to 11th in this week's USILA coaches poll.
Updating the Tigers
Despite a career-best four goals from freshman Joe Seider, Towson fell, 9-7, at Hofstra on Saturday. The game was tightly contested until the third quarter when Towson went 17:00 without a goal. The Tigers had a chance to tie it late, but the Pride's Torin Varn scopped a rebounding save and scored for the final margin.
Scouting the Minutemen
UMass has been in the top 15 of the USILA coaches poll since the first week of the season. The Minutemen have ranked as high as ninth and are No. 11 this week. Their only two losses came against then-No. 18 Albany (25-10) and then-No. 19 Fairfield (11-5). Saturday's game is the bookend to back-to-back home games, after last weekend's 12-6 win over Hartford. UMass is 3-1 at home this season. The Minutemen's conference win came over then-No. 5 Penn State (8-6) on March 15.
Towson-UMass Series History
This series is a long one, composed of just a few games. It started in 1963 with a four-goal UMass victory but wasn't revived until 2010. The Minutemen hold a 4-3 advantage in the series and are 2-1 against Towson in Amherst, Mass.
Last Time Out vs. UMass – April 6, 2013 (UMass 5, Towson 9)
Devin Grimaldi posted his first career hat trick, and Andrew Wascavage added a season-high 20 saves as Towson defeated UMass, 9-5, at Unitas Stadium. Aftera first quarter where neither team scored, Towson ran out to a 6-1 lead with three minutes left in the third frame on goals from six different players. Grimaldi tallied two of his three goals early in the fourth quarter – insurance Towson needed later when UMass closed the game on a furious three-goal run.
Greg Cuccinello tied his then-career high with two goals. Ben McCarty and Thomas DeNapoli each posted a goal for the Tigers. UMass had five different players – Kyle Smith, Matt Whippen, Connor Mooney, Colin Fleming and Will Manny – score goals. Zach Oliveri made 10 saves in net for the Minutemen.
Seider Named CAA Rookie of the Week
For the second time in 2014, freshman Joe Seider earned CAA Rookie of the Week accolades. This time, he scored a career-high four goals in a 9-7 loss at Hofstra. His first goal tied the game at 4-4 just before the half. His last goal was an EMO tally that inched Towson to within two, 8-6, with 9:26 left.
Next Up
Towson kicks off a three-game home stand to finish the regular season with a 7 p.m. game against Penn State on Saturday, April 12.


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The moon is full of craters both large and small, but typically they come in only one shape: round. So why are scientists spotting square craters on the moon?
Top image: A square crater on Mars / Shot by UAHiRISE for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter / NASA
The folks over at NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera explained just what's behind the phenomenon. Typically, when an object collides with the moon, the shock wave from that collision is distributed equally around it in a round pattern. If all collisions were on ground that was equally solid, this is the shape we would always see.
But, sometimes an object happens to collide with areas of the ground where there's already an existing network of faults, and when a collision happens on that precise point, its force is no longer equally distributed. Instead, the direction of the shock wave is influenced by the faults, creating the square pattern like you see in the picture below of crater Lavoisier A on the Moon.
What's more, this phenomenon can also be seen on other planets, like the picture of the crater on Mars on top, on asteroids, and even closer to home — like in Arizona's 80-foot Meteor Crater.
Image: Lavoisier A Crater / NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University


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Harnessing Robots to Study Inaccessible Arctic
Scientific American
August 3, 2011
(First in a three-part series.) SUMMIT STATION, Greenland -- The midnight sun is shining on the Greenland ice sheet, and Yeti Robot is out for a spin.
The probe's chunky tires crunch a trail through the snow, then jerk to a stop. A blue plastic sled carrying a ground-penetrating radar crashes into Yeti's boxy black chassis, still tied to the robot by nylon ropes.
Yeti's handlers try to diagnose the problem. The robot is swinging too wide on its right turns, straying from the path programmed into its onboard GPS. The engineers confer. Seconds later, Yeti is again whizzing toward the horizon.
It's the first day of this year's field tests, and the researchers are eager to show off their prize pupil. If all goes well, battery-powered Yeti and its close relative -- a solar-powered version called Cool Robot -- could one day expand scientists' access to Earth's poles and enhance their ability to study how climate change is speeding the melt of Greenland's ice sheet.
The robots are part of a new breed of autonomous rovers, submarines, ocean gliders and unmanned aircraft designed to go places scientists can't, to handle jobs that are too dangerous or too costly for researchers to undertake themselves. ...
"If you see a crevasse, you have a couple of seconds to stop the vehicle," said Laura Ray, a professor at Dartmouth's Thayer School of Engineering who helped create Yeti and Cool Robot. "As you can imagine, that's a fairly fatiguing, stressful job."
Ray and her colleagues say Yeti could help make those supply treks safer. The robot, outfitted with a ground-penetrating radar, could take over the job of scouting for crevasses -- and interpret those data on the fly. The current version of Yeti is constructed from $25,000 worth of parts, including military-rated, ultralight batteries that can travel 10 to 15 kilometers before they need to be recharged.


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Bob Burnquist starting skating in Sao Paulo, Brazil, at the age of 11, before the sport consumed the country and captivated the world. By 14, he had turned pro. In 1995, he showed up, entered and won the Slam City Jam and has been wowing crowds with his skating ever since.
Capable in all disciplines, Bob has set himself apart primarily in Vert and MegaRamp – which could be due in part to the fact that he has a private half-pipe and MegaRamp at his home, which he calls "Dreamland," in Southern California. However, his talents and interests are not limited to skateboarding. Some of Bob's other accomplishments include carrying the Olympic torch, skydiving, BASE jumping, piloting airplanes and helicopters, and overseeing his own organic farm.
Bob's continuing progression has earned him a much-deserved spot at the top of the skateboard hierarchy. Even the great Tony Hawk refers to Bob as his favorite skater. However, it's Bob's passion for living a healthy, humane lifestyle and helping others do the same that he considers to be his top achievement.
Hurley, TNT Energy Drinks, Oakley, Flip Skateboards, Toyota, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Sambazon, Independent, Ricta, Mob Grip, OGIO, Nixon


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We announced that FAB Girl Deidra Shores won 106 and Park's 'Dream Reporter' contest, which gave her the opportunity to cover The Disney Dreamer's Academy. The once-in-a-lifetime event gives young people the opportunity to spend four days immersed in motivational workshops, career seminars, and the opportunity to meet celebrities who encourage them to achieve their dreams.
Youngblackstarz.com has a video of her on 106 and Park, talking about her experience. See it here!
Related articles
- FAB Girl Deidra Shores Wins BET's Dream Reporter Contest (thefabgirls.com)
- 106 and Park Hosts 'Dream Reporter' Contest (thefabgirls.wordpress.com)


text: I have a 14 RSS SE5. The manual states to use API SG, SH, SJ, or SL. And not to use API SM because clutch slippage may occur. A couple weeks ago, I ordered an XPS oil change kit on Ebay from a Can Am dealer. Says it's for a Spyder, but the quarts say API SM on the back. Is it safe for the bike? It's a genuine Can Am kit. Even the box it came in says it's for an SE5.


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The much-touted, state-funded Preschool for All program doesn't really live up to its name, at least not yet.
The much-touted, state-funded Preschool for All program doesn't really live up to its name, at least not yet.
But the program's supporters say that if all goes according to plan during the next five years, any Illinois parents who want to enroll their 3- and 4-year-olds in state-subsidized, high-quality preschool will be able to do just that. Parents retain the option of sending their kids to private preschools or of keeping them out of preschool.
Preschool for All is intended to build on Illinois' long-standing tradition of early childhood education, which many view as important to helping kids have successful experiences in their subsequent formal education.
"We're convinced the benefits (of early education) will play out for kids in our public school systems," said Kay Henderson, early childhood division administrator at the Illinois State Board of Education.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich, a Democrat, proposed the new preschool program in February 2006.
In announcing the initiative, Blagojevich said the state should fund it by spending $45 million a year for three years. That would enable an additional 32,000 children to be served. The existing state early childhood education program already was serving about 75,000 youngsters deemed to be "at risk" for future academic troubles because of factors such as living in low-income households on in homes where English is not the main language spoken.
"Nothing is more important to parents than their children," Blagojevich said in a written statement when he unveiled Preschool for All. "And nothing is more important to a child's future than getting a good education. And that's where preschool comes in."
Not everyone agreed with the governor.
In a column published in the State Journal-Register in March 2006, Collin Hitt of the Illinois Policy Institute cited the claims of some researchers that "early formal education is ineffectual."
"Whether a student attends public or private preschool, whether she enters kindergarten with skills superior to her classmates, she likely will lose that edge by the end of kindergarten," wrote Hitt. "And it is all but guaranteed that that child's prekindergarten education will have been a nonfactor by the time she exits elementary school."
Hitt's position remains unchanged today. He contends the purpose of Preschool for All is political, not educational.
"Preschool for All is about providing free services to middle class voters," he said in e-mailed comments this week. "Preschool for All takes a program designed to serve poor kids and uses it to deliver free services to middle-class families. There is no clear educational benefit to doing this."
But such arguments did not win over the General Assembly, which overwhelmingly voted last year to create Preschool for All. The program now is in its second year.
Lawmakers and the governor authorized $45 million for the program in fiscal year 2007, which ended June 30.
That funding was awarded to more than 100 preschool programs and more than a dozen at-risk infant-toddler programs, all of which were expected to serve about 10,000 additional children in the 2006-07 year, according to a State Board of Education report issued in November 2006.
As the program expands, the first priority will be for programs that serve kids who are at risk of academic problems at school, the report said. The next funding priority will be for families earning up to four times the federal poverty level, which translates to $80,000 for a family of four.
For the present state fiscal year, the second for "Preschool for All," lawmakers authorized $29.6 million. That falls short of the $45 million that was called for when the program was unveiled. It is also nearly $40 million less than the $69.3 million increase that Blagojevich sought, said Justin DeJong, spokesman for the governor's budget office.
The lower appropriation will have an impact, but it won't knock Preschool for All entirely off track, supporters say.
"Did we slow down? Just a little bit. Just a little bit," said Jerry Stermer, president of Voices for Illinois Children and a member of the Early Learning Council that put together the blueprint for what became Preschool for All.
"We're still on the trajectory," Stermer added. "It clearly needs to be fulfilled. And during the next 3 1/2 years, we've got to see the quality increases and the expanded numbers increases happen simultaneously."
He said several challenges remain:
*Ensuring there are enough qualified teachers to meet the anticipated boost in demand for expanded preschool programs.
*Ensuring there is enough physical space for the programs to operate.
*Attracting more bilingual early childhood education teachers to serve the growing numbers of children who live in homes where English is a second language.
Colleges and other institutions of higher education already are working to train more students for careers in early childhood education, Stermer said, and a statewide capital program would ease concerns about adequate space.
Educating some of Illinois' youngest residents was one of the top issues that a dozen Republican women in the House of Representatives heard about in recent days during a "listening tour."
"I was shocked about how many people had a conversation about how they need their children to be well-educated and competitive in the world," said Rep. Sandra Pihos, R-Glen Ellyn. "It was a theme that resounded throughout the state."
"They see the value of early education in helping their children get a good start, and they want it for everybody. That's really it," she added. "So we need to continue to put the resources forward to allow that opportunity."
Blagojevich has yet to reveal his plans for funding early childhood education in fiscal year 2009 and beyond.
DeJong said future expansion of Preschool for All, along with new funding for kindergarten-through-12th grade education, "is certainly something the governor will continue to push for in future years because these investments are critical to the future success of Illinois children."
Stermer said that while nobody knows yet exactly how many young children will participate in Preschool for All once it's fully implemented, "We'll know that we're there when programs no longer have waiting lists."
Adriana Colindres can be reached at (217) 782-6292 or firstname.lastname@example.com
Funding in recent years for state's Early Childhood Block Grant program
Fiscal Year 2008: $347.9 million (a $29.6 million increase)
Fiscal Year 2007: $318.3 million (a $45 million increase)
Fiscal Year 2006: $273.3 million (a $30 million increase)
Fiscal Year 2005: $243.3 million (a $29.8 million increase)
Fiscal Year 2004: $213.4 million (a $29.9 million increase)
SOURCE: Governor's Office of Management and Budget


text:
Lately I've Been…
Knitting. I'm making another Burberrish Cowl.
Crocheting. I finished the front and back of the cushion. Just have to seam it up and make the insert!
Sewing. I made a skirt with an asymmetrical hem (my favorite type).
Planning. This weekend I'll be meeting up with a fellow knitter/blogger and I'm so nervous. I hope I don't say anything stupid, I mean, I already look stupid…I cut off part of my eyebrow when I trimmed my bangs this afternoon! Only me.
June 15, 2012 5:08 am
Oh I LOVE that skirt!!!!
Christie permalinkJune 15, 2012 6:41 am
I WANT the skirt! So gorgeous. Can't wait to see pics of it on.
June 15, 2012 9:27 am
You will NOT say anything stupid. Don't worry! Also I'm pretty excited to see this half-brow, it sounds fashion-forward!!
June 15, 2012 10:36 am
Oh wow that skirt is awesome! Love the color of the yarn for that cushion too. At least eyebrows are short and grow back quick? 🙂
June 15, 2012 10:58 am
It looks like you're doing a little of everything. The skirt is really pretty.
And i have to say that I'm a little jealous that you and Katie and meeting up! I hope you two have fun.
June 18, 2012 1:00 am
Love all of it, especially the cushion!
June 18, 2012 2:46 am
oh no. sorry about your eyebrow…i'm sure you won't say anything stupid. amazing stuff here btw, love the skirt, mad skills.


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The Pay Gap Myth
Frequently in the history of military and security issues the public and policymakers take for granted the conventional wisdom of the day. That is, until it is proven false.
Such was the case with the bomber gap, which was the unfounded belief back in the late 1950s that the Soviet Union had gained an advantage over the United States in deploying jet‐powered strategic bombers. Widely accepted for several years, the gap was used as a political talking point in order to justify greatly increased defense spending. Subsequently surveillance flights by U-2 aircraft indicated that the bomber gap did not exist.
A few years later there was the missile gap, which was used by John Kennedy as a campaign issue when he ran for president. This was the belief in the United States that there was a disparity between the number and power of the weapons in the Soviet Union and U.S. ballistic missile arsenals during the Cold War. The gap only existed in exaggerated estimates made by the Gaither Committee in 1957 and U.S. Air Force in the early 1960s. Eventually the CIA provided figures that were much lower and gave the United States a clear advantage.
Fast forward 50 years and now we have the pay gap. This is the belief that private security contractors are being paid vastly more than regular military forces. This supposedly creates low morale and jealousy in the ranks of the regular armed forces and causes friction between them. It also supposedly is a contributing factor in retaining people in the military, as many of them reportedly leave at the end of their enlistment to take up jobs in the PSC sector.
This is most distressing, if true. Soldiers, marines, airmen and sailors make tremendous sacrifices on behalf of the country. They deserve to be well compensated, both in direct terms and relative to the civilian population.
And, as it turns out, notwithstanding scandals about veterans care, they are. Consider a study on military compensation released by the Congressional Budget Office in June 2007. It looked at all the factors, such as basic pay, housing and subsistence allowances, and associated tax advantages to which each service member is entitled. The Pentagon has used that regular military compensation as a fundamental measure of military pay since at least 1962.
Another more complete, measure includes non‐cash and deferred cash benefits, such as healthcare for current service members and their families, the healthcare and other veterans' benefits that members can receive once they leave the military, and retirement pay and health benefits for members who serve for at least 20 years or become seriously disabled. Military personnel and their families are also eligible for subsidized child care and groceries, the use of physical fitness and recreational facilities, free legal and financial counseling, and other family‐support programs.
Finally, even within the confines of purely cash compensation, service members can receive special pays, bonuses and allowances that are not counted in RMC. Special and incentive pays are usually awarded for particular skills or for hazardous duty, including deployment and combat. Members may also earn bonus payments when they re‐enlist for several more years, especially if they have occupational skills that are in short supply.
But because all of those types of pay are either earned by relatively few specialists or are earned irregularly, they are not generally included in the RMC measure.
Admittedly, it is hard to make exact comparisons, given the inherent differences between military and civilian life, but it appears that regular military forces do not do that badly.
According to the CBO a 20‐year‐old high school graduate with no dependents who had reached the pay grade of E-3 earned about $33,000 in cash compensation in 2006, as well as $28,000 in non‐cash and deferred benefits. A similar member in grade E-6 with 12 years of service received a total of about $96,000 in pay and benefits, and a 40‐year‐old E-8 earned total compensation of about $127,000.
Other studies in recent years have come out with similar numbers. In a 2004 analysis, CBO estimated total compensation per service member at $107,600. A 2004 study by the Center for Naval Analyses estimated average compensation at $94,900 for Navy personnel.
In a 2005 report, the Government Accountability Office estimated that compensation for active‐duty service members averaged $115,500. That higher figure was partly attributable to continued increases in military compensation.
An unpublished Pentagon study from 2005, which included the costs of military training and travel as well as expenditures outside the DoD budget, estimated compensation at $138,000 per service member in fiscal year 2005.
According to Cindi Williams, a former assistant director of the Congressional Budget Office, where she led the National Security Division, overall "job security is better" for regular military forces, given that their career could span 20 years, where a PSC has only a limited contract. She also said that "the benefits package, including healthcare and retirement, is better."
Now consider just a few aspects of the security contractor. He may work for a firm that actually cares about his well‐being, or he may not. If the experience of those who were killed in Fallujah in 2004 while working for Blackwater tells us anything, it says that companies may be more interested in holding down expenses than in giving their employees all the resources (such as properly armored vehicles, required tail gunner) they need. And Blackwater would hardly be the only firm like that.
In that sense PSC and regular military forces may be more alike than they know; they are both examples of the old cliche, nothing is too good for our boys so that's what we'll give them, nothing.
In terms of insurance, security contractors get coverage under the Defense Base Act, a World War II law requiring employees who work on national or international government contracts to be provided insurance, including compensation benefits in the event of their deaths. But some families may not know they are entitled to such benefits and never officially report their family member's death.
Incidentally, back in 2005 the Pentagon amended the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement to address issues related to contract performance outside the United States. Many observers noted that the rule appeared to shift too much risk to contractors. One respondent noted that the use of the term "inherently dangerous" in paragraph (b) of the clause could jeopardize a contractor's ability to obtain insurance coverage under the Defense Base Act and other provisions.
Also, bear in mind that most of the security contractors are not American — even though that is not supposed to make a difference under DBA the reality is that it does. Some companies that employ foreign nationals may neglect to report the injuries or deaths of employees.
If nobody reports the incident to the Department of Labor, and the family does not file a claim, it has no way of knowing what has happened. In short, the system is totally based on the transparency and honesty of the contracting firm to do what the law says it must do.
Some things, however, remain the same. Just like in civilian life the real winners are the insurance companies. As PSC casualties have steadily mounted, insurance rates skyrocketed, from an average of $4 to $8 for every $100 of a company's payroll costs, to $20 for every $100. Insurance for a worker making $100,000 a year — not unusual in Iraq — would cost an employer $20,000. That cost, in turn, would be built into the company's contract with the Pentagon — in effect being paid by U.S. taxpayers.
The increase puzzles U.S. officials because of the reimbursement guaranteed under the War Hazards Compensation Act. The act, also passed in the 1940s, was designed to persuade insurers to write policies for danger zones. The government agrees to reimburse insurers the full cost for combat‐related deaths and injuries, plus 15 percent in administrative fees.
In Iraq, industry observers predict the United States will reimburse hundreds of millions of dollars to the insurance industry. Death claims have routinely resulted in payments of $1.2 million to $1.8 million each, depending on the salary and age of the worker. With more than 300 death claims filed so far, that means U.S. taxpayers may pay more than $500 million to insurance companies.


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8in ATX12V 4 Pin P4 CPU Power Extension Cable - M/F
Extend the reach of your ATX12V power supply CPU power connector by 8in
Product ID: ATXP4EXT
- 4 Pin ATX Male to 4 pin ATX Female
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The ATXP4EXT 4 Pin P4 CPU Power Extension Cable Cable extends the reach of your ATX12V power supply CPU power connector by 8in, making it easier to make the necessary power connection without having to "stretch" the CPU power connector from the power supply.
- Add an 8 inch reach to an ATX12V power supply CPU power connector
The StarTech.com Advantage
- Gives you flexibility to custom build your PC by adding an extra 8 inches to the P4 connector on your Power Supply
- Easy to use and install
- Backed by StarTech.com's lifetime warranty
Product Numbers
Tech Data
Ingram Micro USA
UPC Code
Technical Specifications
|Warranty Information
|Connector A
|1 - ATX 12V P4 Power (4 pin, v 2.x) Male
|Connector B
|1 - ATX 12V P4 Power (4 pin, v 2.x) Female
|Physical Characteristics
|Cable Length
|8 in [203.2 mm]
|Product Length
|8 in [203.2 mm]
|Weight of Product
|0.5 oz [14 g]
|Packaging Information
|Package Height
|0.6 in [15 mm]
|Package Length
|8.9 in [22.5 cm]
|Package Width
|4.9 in [12.5 cm]
|Shipping (Package) Weight
|0.7 oz [19 g]
|What's in the Box
|Included in Package
|1 - 8in ATX12V 4 Pin P4 CPU Power Extension Cable - M/F
Product Support
Data Sheets
Frequently Asked Questions
When you troubleshoot issues with an internal power cable, there are some quick tests that you can complete to rule out potential problems. You can test to make sure that the following components are working correctly and are not the source of the issue:
Power supply
Computer part
Power cable
To test your setup components, try the following:
Use the power supply, computer part, and power cable in another setup to see if the problem is with the components or the setup.
Use a different power supply, computer part, and power cable in your setup to see if the problem persists. Ideally, you should test a component that you know works in another setup.
When you test your cable, it is recommended that you do the following:
Make sure that the cable is firmly inserted into both ends.
The polarity (usually indicated by the color of the cables) matches.
No pins are bent or missing on the power supply cable or header, or the computer part.
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Compliance and Safety
Compliance Letters
Safety Measures
- If product has an exposed circuit board, do not touch the product under power.
- If Class 1 Laser Product. Laser radiation is present when the system is open.
- Wiring terminations should not be made with the product and/or electric lines under power.
- Product installation and/or mounting should be completed by a certified professional as per the local safety and building code guidelines.
- Cables (including power and charging cables) should be placed and routed to avoid creating electric, tripping or safety hazards.
* Product appearance and specifications are subject to change without notice.
* Same day shipping is only available for orders shipping within the United States.
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8in ATX12V 4 Pin P4 CPU Power Extension Cable - M/F
Product ID: ATXP4EXT