text:
Watercorlor Grays
Posted by Chic Aeon in shopping on Tuesday, November 30, 2010
The dress includes a sculpted, high waisted skirt in two versions, one with a built in AO. Optional leggings are included and indeed the dress looks great with them. Being a pants gal I was attracted by the jumpsuit possibilities. Layering is always fun and with so many wearing options in this set it was difficult to decide what to show you. So in a rare Photoshop moment, I give you Chic as twins. The slight of hand of the graphic magic wand and three inworld photos combine to feature two distinct looks. One could easily leave off the prim puff sleeves and wear the jumpsuit under a jacket. I am guessing it would look wonderful with my new LeLutka Matusalen jacket.
Find this impressively versatile dress at Baiastice. It hangs calmly on an interior wall, beautifully serene in its watercolor grayness.
Hair: MIEL TUE HAIR - brown
Skin: []::Tuli::[] Jade (tone 4/bl) :: 10a
Clothing: Baiastice_Bisnya dress; WEiRD.DESiGNS Trashy Victorian Doll Socks
Shoes: Lya - Valentina *plain*Calf (silver) and Bax Coen : LE.LOOK! la femme - Boots
Accessories: Maitreya Leather Belt - Dirty White
Poses by: aDORKable
Midnight Mist
Just out from BLUEBLOOD a set called Lisbeth (my RL mother's name interestingly enough). The set comes in all the colors you would expect including a white based version. While red was my first color of choice today, I knew that I wanted to take photos at Drill Factory which is primarily in the blue hue family so I opted to show you the teal version of the new release.
Also featured in this post are additional poses from the new Diesel Works Kalli set. The theme is a mixture of femininity and attitude and that works well for me.
The Drill Factory is an interesting place for photos. Lots of glow mixes with a galactic core theme. There is a colorful puzzle piece installation that I hope to feature soon. I just need the right attire.
The Lizbeth set includes a skirt and you can also wear it without shrug and prim shoulder pads. So it is actually several outfits in one pack.
Malfean Visions. They come with both invisiprims and alpha 2 layer. They really make this outfit pop so get over there!
Hair: A&A Cookie Hair Black Onyx (new)
Skin: []::Tuli::[] Jade (tone 4/bl) :: 10a
Clothing: +++BB+++ Lisbeth TEAL (new)
Shoes: BAX Prestige Boots Black Leather and :{Strapped In}: Left Periwinkle from Malfean Visions (free)
Poses by:Diesel Works (new)
117 Prims and Luxury
My top is one of the new Nomi Jean dresses from WoE. I used the undies to tuck into my Miseria jeans (I so love that sock extension) and left off the prim skirt. The dresses come in a variety of mixed colors. The pattern is somewhere between distressed and watercolor. I am wearing the prim edging that includes a bust prim piece -- the first I have seen or tried. It gives the effect of fabric stretching across your breasts and it works great for me of tiny boobs. I am not sure how well it would work for the DD gals, but there is a prim part sans the stretch panel so everyone should be safely covered. The detailing on the belt is simply gorgeous.
Happily I included my new gloves from Paradisis and some cute new hair from Alli&Ali in the outfit of the eve. A blond version of this hair is the voting present and a ruby version is a dollarbie on the marketplace. This concludes the fashion portion of our post.
The house and garden news is this low prim furniture from --- LOW PRIM FURNITURE. OK, one more time -- it is really Low in Prims for Furniture and you can buy it at PrimSavers! Texture change, fully mod, nice animations and -- drumroll please -- one and two prims per piece. That is not a typo, even the couch is only two prims. The couch, loveseat and chair are each two prims. The darling tables with drop sections in the middle and very fancy legs are one prim. The tall lamp in the back is also one prim.
The sculpt work is pretty amazing. The designer, Floyd Mistwalker, bills this FARAH Livingroom Set as the "Best low prim livingroom in SL bar none" (yep that is the name on the folder). I am admittedly a tough judge as well as a simple blogger, not an expert on all things furniture; still, he may have a fair claim. I am impressed. There are twelve different textures to choose from; the couch and loveseat will hold multiple avatars.
The set includes an extra matching chair (not shown) as well as this bookcase.
Other newness in this decor styling includes the wall decal in the book area, the vintage Playboy magazine and the small triple photos (hunt item), all from [croire].
The striking abstract painting is from [.:F&D:.] Furniture & Design. I won it on a lucky board, but you can also buy it at an extremely reasonable price.The rug is a new release from Prime and is both texture change and shape changing. LOTS of variations. Books and plants are from Garden of Dreams. Other accessories from The Loft, Fancy That and stores no longer in business.
Like my new poses? They are from the Kalli set just out from Diesel Works. So many of them fit me, I am in heaven.
I have thirty more posts to reach 1800 and about as many days. My goal it to hit 1800 on my rez day which is also the last day of 2010. So posts may be longer and I may take an extra day off from time to time. Well see how my timing works out.
Hair: A&A Beliza Hair 3
Skin: []::Tuli::[] The Dressing Room :: Gina 04
Clothing: :. WoE .: Nomi Jean Dress Mud; [Miseria] Delirium Jeans - Coal 2; PARADISIS Nanasa : Gloves brown
Shoes: Bang Bang - Stingray leather gaiter booties brown
Accessories: *Ticky Tacky* My Girl Likes to Grapple Earrings - Silver
Poses by: Diesel Works
Horray for Hollywood
Posted by Chic Aeon in color challenge, shopping on Saturday, November 27, 2010
I attended the Baiastice fashion show last weekend. This top was one of the featured items. Not perhaps the fanciest or the most memorable but definitely the most "me". The fashion show stylist or Sissy Pessoa had paired it with some copper pants and it was striking. But it is PLUM week after all and happily I like purple, so I chose these pants to accompany the look.
The Soda shirt is a mix of several fully saturated hues along with lots of neutrals. A lovely print it could go with many accessories. I found three versions of this shirt when I visited the Baiastice main store, but this was still my fav. Now the pants are really too dark to be called plum -- at least if we go by Luna's color swatch, but they are in the same family and relationships do count. Putting the outfit together was fun and it enabled me to wear a few items that I love but that seldom make it out of inventory. My G Field shoes never looked so good. I should let you know that the pants have some extremely realistic creases that don't show up in my foggy California morn Windlight settings. The sculpty cuffs also are extremely sleek and work well with most any shoes.
The top dips daringly, not in an X rated way and on some days I will probably wear it sans undershirt, but including an underlayer was good for my modestly the other day when I shot these photos, AND it let me add some more plum to the mix. I tinted this old and favorite tank as well as the band on my hair. My earrings actually have some plum in them too, but they mostly act as a counterpoint to pick up the teal in the top. All in all I love this look. A little Boho, a little Trust Fund Baby and very much Retro Hollywood.
This is my color challenge post of the week of Plum. I have decided to make a static page that links all these posts in order. It will be fun to see them easily over time. I hope to continue to the end. We will see.
Hair: [LeLutka]-RUSH hair - AuburnHaze
Skin: []::Tuli::[] The Dressing Room :: Gina 04
Clothing: Baiastice_Soda shirt-mod 1; Baiastice_Brinka trousers-purple
Shoes: *GF* Knot Wedge Sanal
Accessories: ::.Flugeln Brise.::Mah_jade
Poses by: Everglow, Diesel Works, LAP
My Two Cents
Posted by Chic Aeon in comment on Friday, November 26, 2010
I must be feeling a little feisty tonight as too many thing are rubbing me the wrong way.
*At least one hunt is specifying that bloggers MUST blog all items sent to them as well as additional items sent from retailers in the hunt. They didn't get many takers.
*At least one hunt is asking that vendors "pay" the bloggers for blogging their hunt items with additional gift cards or other recompense.
Hopefully bloggers are doing their thing because it IS their thing. They enjoy taking pictures and seeing themselves in different outfits. Some enjoy hunting. Some enjoy shopping. We don't need COMMITMENTS and we don't need PAY. If we aren't doing what we love doing, we simply shouldn't be doing it and we don't need rules other than those we make ourselves.
I'm not sure how the new "there are only so many copies" theme is going aside from tons of folks trying to get in to see what the prices ACTUALLY are, but it seems to be producing a fair amount of disgruntled customers. In a time a bad economy there is desperation and new marketing schemes are needed. But the large majority of folks (here's hoping) are not sheep. They are smart enough to realize that paying four or five times the normal "non sale" price (and there aren't that many of those these days) is absurd. That's the word amongst the masses. I am staying out of the fray. I haven't bought designer for a long time in real life so I am definitely not in the "I must have one of these" crowd. :D.
Here is my plan.
Feature things that are high quality, creative, original and worthwhile.
Do the best job you can and enjoy every minute of the process.
Leave the drama and the "gottas" behind.
Posted by Chic Aeon in comment
Speed. Most of us want it. Whether it is moving though life or being able to navigate the virtual version. I ordered a new graphics card today and I am a happy gal. Assuming all goes well I should have CLARITY and possibly shadows in a week or so.. I am on Imprudence which uses Open JPG. There are some issues inherent with that, but I am making do as there are so many things I like about the viewer. Imprudence does do shadows, apparently one of the few Open Jpg viewers that manages. So we'll see. Only through experience do we learn.
So to celebrate the upcoming improvements to my virtual life, I convinced Benicia to take me for a ride. She has the fast bike; mine is simply pretty. It was good to see Benicia. It was good to visit the Mother Road and it will be good to install my GeForce GT 240 1 GB DDR5, the fastest card my computer can handle. This is me with my virtual fingers crossed that all goes well. It was fun to have an legitimate reason to use windy zoom blur *wink*.
Benicia is wearing a dress by Poison as a top over jeans along with some Lazy Places boots. My outfit will be revealed in all its glory tomorrow.
24 Hours - Autumn Skybox
Posted by Chic Aeon in design
A bit of late breaking news here. If you have been reading this blog for a long while, you may remember that I used a futuristic skybox from Gentlemen Bastards as my studio for many months. One of the "gentlemen" contacted me oh so briefly this morn to let me know that there is a super special 24 hour deal on his brand new release, an Autumn skybox.
From the notecard:
The Autumn Skybox is the perfect way to chase away the winter blues. With cosy couches and chairs, a bed to snooze on, a warm fire and lights, a clock that keeps SL time, beautiful artwork and decor, and warm texturing all-round, it's the ideal home to snuggle up in over the next few chilly months.
The skybox has a footprint of 20m x 30m and three rooms separated by dividers. Among other things, it features warm local lighting in the lamps and the fireplace, several couches and chairs featuring multiple poses, curtains that open and close with a click, and is fully-modifiable. Total prim count is 219.
For a limited 24-hour period, running from 12 noon SLT on Saturday November 27th to 12 noon SLT Sunday November 28th, it will be available to buy for 90% off (and it is VERY inexpensive). Head to the rezzed build (sorry it moved - fixed now) and find the buy box inside, or buy it from SL Marketplace (the link is in my profile: search inworld for Skell Dagger and check the Web tab).
This is a roomy spot and could easily, sans furniture, be a nice shop somewhere in the SL atmosphere. The curtains do close for privacy and the wall textures are yummy. There is a coordinating bed in one room.
That's the late-breaking news. Special thanks to Piedra for being part of this post.
A CLICK Christmas
The holiday season has officially started, for me anyway. Thanksgiving is my personal marker. Time to break out the tinsel and decorations whether real or virtual. CLICK has a holiday photo prop out that makes these times especially cheery. Indeed, it is pretty difficult to feel like Scrooge when surrounded by presents and shining ornaments.
Taking solo, couple or group photos is a breeze and ohsomuch fun. The details are fantastic. You really need to click on these photos to see things up close and personal. Go on - you know you want to!
The Christmas Living Prop set come in two versions -- with and without the holiday decorations. Additional hand props are included, even some transfer ones for your friends in the photos.
It looks like a real home, complete with windows and hall. There is even mistletoe in the doorway. But ---
it actually has transparent sides.
You can walk around and take your photos from many angles. One way transparent walls let you see in from afar and take photos unavailable in close spaces. To be fair, this will work best for those with great camming skills, but if you are seriously looking at this professional prop, you most likely have those :D.
The prop comes with a rezzer and a hud. You can add other prop sets to the hud and have them all together if you wish. Just drop the rezzer where you want the 15 meterish building and use either the hud or the rezzed equivalent. The CLEAR button derezzes the structure and pose boxes.
The two boxes on the ground at the right contain the poses, both solo and couple. Children's poses are included also and the pose names are designated M and F or child with the area of the house they pertain to. This makes picking a pose much easier (yeah). Use the menu to try on poses and /1a to adjust.
The full Christmas version is 388 prims, so plopping down on a 512 isn't in the cards of course. I rezzed in a friendly private sandbox with scripts and that worked just fine. The low prim (think New Years Day football as there is a bigscreen in that version) is 184. Both regular and lite models come in a coalesced version with no rezzer should you be old school. The details are quite remarkable and many of the items are separate (or could be unlinked if you have a few building skills) and could be used in your home for the holidays as well. Dual duty is always a good thing.
The poses worked well and having the props modify makes it simple to adjust for odd shaped avatars. For instance the ground sit pose worked fine for me but the present was too large (that extra long arm thing) so I simply stretched the present smaller and repositioned a bit and all was well. You are of course not limited to the poses provided. That step stool was calling me and so I sat and then found a pose in my inventory that had no offset. Perfect.
After a fun time taking these photos I ventured over to the shop to see what else might be available. There are other nice props including an outdoor cafe that I seem to remember seeing on the feeds awhile back. There are also some impressive looking prefabs. Best of all for both you and me, there is a present under the tree by the TP spot. The greeter message said to be sure and pick up your free elevator. Well of course I did. It turned out to be this great Deco lobby prop. You can walk into the elevator and there may be poses in the loveseat; I didn't try sitting. So zip on over, you great photographers and pick this up. There is a demo area for the new Christmas prop as you come in the door.
Happy Thanksgiving
Posted by Chic Aeon in comment on Wednesday, November 24, 2010
For those of you in the USA who plan to eat your turkey or Tofukey, catch up with family and be thankful -- have a wonderful holiday.
Hair: >TRUTH< Melinda - carrot
Skin: []::Tuli::[] The Dressing Room :: Gina 04
Clothing: *Solange!* Mademoiselle in Green
Poses by:the turkey platter by Concrete Flowers (2009)
Light, Shadows, Story
I ventured over to the latest installation by Bryn Oh, Standby. The third and final chapter in the Rabbicorn story, I wanted to be sure and see it soon. I have no faith in longevity these days. I am pretty sure the IBM hosted exhibit will be around awhile, but I am crossing favorite places off my list daily. They are simply no more.
I didn't get too far into the exhibit before I found this shadowbox. Actual lighting makes this both a dramatic and challenging place for photos. I am not sure that I actually "get" the message here, but the shapes, colors and shallow water are enticing -- and the perfectly colored backdrop for my newly released outfit from Paradisis. The Nanasa outfit comes with the tiniest of bra tops and some brief skully panties (imagine them hiding under my skirt). The stars of the set -- in my mind at least -- are the gloves and socks. Short zippers and the most intricate rips I have seen, they are amazing to behold. Both socks and gloves are finely ribbed. A variety of colors are available.
Hair: *SHOP SEU* GIFT --kurukuru hair Long [brown:pattun]--
Skin: []::Tuli::[] The Dressing Room :: Gina 04; CyberStar BodyArt CSBA full body MEHNDI 3 - upper - faded 2
Clothing: PARADISIS Nanasa : brown (new); *Solange!* Missy skirt brown
Shoes: [Sassy Kitty Designs] Catch Me Outfit Shoes
Poses by: Everglow, estetica and Nigotine
Where Does Plum Begin?
E! Eclectic has some new releases out and it only took about three seconds to know this was my favorite. Of course I will be wearing this new Daringly Sweater (that's its official moniker) with pants, but today I am feeling the good little blogger and so you get to see the dress as it was designed.
All layers are included for easy mix and matching. Two sizes of collars and skirt prims make fitting fairly easy. I am on record as not being a fan of skirt prims but this one is a bit special with the wide band continuing into the prim. You might want to add leggings or stockings to keep your legs warm, but this is definitely a release about style, not warmth *wink*. With many colors to choose from, you will likely find your favorite available.
And that segues nicely into a reflection of my morning thought process. This is the PLUM version of the Daringly Sweater. No, I am not jumping the gun on next week's color challenge, although I have to admit I opened this color primarily because I was on the lookout for all things "plum". Now my vision of the color plum is fairly close to this shade, maybe a little lighter. That is the color that I think of when the word "plum" is used.
Most folks doing Luna's color exercise know that our next color is in the purple family. A sharper look at the announcement shows that Luna's idea of plum is very pale. I suspect this may be an official designer designation or perhaps Pantone's scale. Whatever, that is the color I am aiming for. I may fall a bit short, but I'm a gonna try.
Interestingly enough I read a color theory book long ago that told the tale of a study on our perceptions of color. The findings of that study were interesting. Participants were told to think of "RED" and then pick out the color that they perceived as being their personal red. With so many thousands of choices, virtually everyone picked a different color.
Whether you call this dress plum or purple or dark violet; whether you see it as grape, wine or amethyst, it is still a very lovely wearable.
Hair: A&A Cookie Hair Nuts (new)
Skin: []::Tuli::[] The Dressing Room :: Gina 04
Clothing: e! Daringly Sweater - Plum (new)
Shoes: #OC# Melanie- Black Leather
Accessories: Acid & Mala .:A&M:. Messed Memory Wire
Poses by:estetica and Amacci
I have to admit that I haven't spent much time on my pottery lately. The Cheeky Pea wheel has become part of the backdrop of the mesa -- pretty, but unused. Today with two upper body items to share with you, it seemed time to get back to creating.
First up -- hair! This is Cookie from Alli&Ali. This Ruby color is the in store group gift, a brown version is the voting present ( find it by the voting wall) and there are even more colors in the Midnight boards. Now, I am not normally a fan of big hair *wink*, but this one works for me. Lots of curls, they blow gently in the wind. If you are in the "it must look real" camp, it may not be for you. Cookie uses the hand drawn texture set, hence a bit of fantasy takes over.
My second bit of newness is the set of rings from MOOD (formerly ala Mood and in a close by but different location). I went over to peruse and saw the Diamond Is Mine hunt sign. It took me awhile to find the glowing diamond, but I was rewarded with these unisex rings. I don't wear rings that often, but these go so well with my biker garb, I made them part of the outfit. One must of course take off their rings before throwing pots, but I get extra points for this shot. It wasn't easy :D.
There seems to be a lot of new guy jewelry at the shop. Since it resizes down nicely, I plan to return and check that out. Hunting took over last eve and I got sidetracked. It happens.
As an aside, I decided on a new graphics card rather than a new machine. My oldie has been the most stable system I have had and I hate all the setup and moving over a new machine takes. I am not sure I will be able to do shadows, but the upgrade should make photos even more fun to take and hopefully sharper for you to look at. We'll see.
Still in my biker gear. See earlier post for link.
Poses by:the potter's wheel.
3 to 25 Linden
Posted by Chic Aeon in comment on Sunday, November 21, 2010
Baubles will be closing for good after the Peace On Earth hunt. Until that time, all items are marked down to 25% or LESS of their original price. No item is marked over $25. Some items will be on the Marketplace after closing.
That's the lead. Here is the backstory:
Notice that I am color coordinated with my closing sign *wink*. The color counterpoint wasn't with forethought, it is simply habit. And that is part of the story. Anyone who reads this blog knows that my first love is taking photos. I admit I have been lusting after a new computer. I see some of the great photos on the feeds and it is obvious what a premium graphics card can do in the right hands :D.
So there is that. Then there is the general business climate of SL (fairly dismal for most folks) mixed with a week of really tough and really great events. Wrap them all up and I am ready to bid the retail life ado.
Not a bad thing. In fact I had a great time setting up this photo and redecorating the shop. I used the new textures from yesterday's Hotshots contest courtesy of Insight Designs to give the place a whole new look. I have a long To Do list of fun things including some shopping for next week. After I close the stores, I will be retrieving my prims for personal use. If I have learned one thing from the contest, it is that you can do amazing things with 200 prims!
There is more to the story of course, but the details don't really matter much except to me.
So stop by sometime if you are in the mood for some good deals on jewelry. It was a great experience. I had a good time and I made a few bucks. And that works.
See this post for clothing notes.
Suitcase and paintbrush from duboo
Poses by:duboo
MHOH5 Be Real
Posted by Chic Aeon in hunts on Saturday, November 20, 2010
The latest Make Him Over Hunt has started. A quick post this eve highlights the very nice skin from Be Real. This is for my friend EE who called in real time to commiserate with me over my fairly horrible showing at Hotshots :D. So I owed him one and promised I would check out this skin that I saw on the MHOH blog. It seemed to be perfect for him, and indeed it may be. So "LOG ON sometime this month and go find the orange male symbol". It can't be all that difficult! The body is one of the nicest I've seen. The eyes are a little scary so I wore shades. That works.
The jeans shown are from Poison in the same hunt.
Hair: Amacci
Accessories [Gos] Custom Eyeware v3.3 - INTUITION
Poses by:Diesel Works


text:
Health-care reform in Massachusetts has helped to improve credit scores, reduce debt and even cut the number of personal bankruptcies by 20%, a new study finds. Taken as a test case, some experts say this could bode well for Obamacare's impact on the financial health of American households.
There are many similarities between the health-care reform in Massachusetts in 2006 and President Obama's 2010 Affordable Care Act. Both aim to achieve near-universal coverage by combining a mandate for individual insurance with insurance market reforms and a broad expansion of subsidized coverage for low- and middle-income households, according to "The Effects of the Massachusetts Health Reform on Financial Distress" by economists at the Federal Reserve of Chicago and the University of Notre Dame. "The context of our study is a major state-level reform that closely resembles the Affordable Care Act, making this analysis highly relevant for the ongoing debate surrounding the current federal program," economists Bhashkar Mazumder and Sarah Miller concluded.
The impact of reform on personal bankruptcy, delinquency and even credit scores was far more pronounced for those whose credit scores were lower before the reform. But those with higher credit scores before the reform—and better access to credit—experienced a larger relative decline in total debt, the authors found after analyzing credit report data that covered one-fifth of the Massachusetts population. "Ideally, full implementation of federal health care reform will lower the out-of-pocket costs of health care enough to cause a similar decline in medical debt, one of the leading causes, along with layoffs and divorce, of bankruptcy filings," says Ed Mierzwinski, consumer program director for the non-profit U.S. Public Interest Research Group.
"This is the first study on health care reform to extend to measures of bankruptcy," says Jonathan Gruber, a professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who was also a principal designer of Massachusetts' health-care overhaul and consulted on the Affordable Care Act. It confirms findings from a randomized expansion of Medicaid in Oregon, which showed enormous reductions in financial stress, Gruber says. (In that earlier study, "The Oregon Health Insurance Experiment," published in 2012 in the "Quarterly Journal of Economics," Medicaid recipients who gained health insurance coverage in 2008 through a lottery reported less financial strain and fewer medical bills than those who didn't receive any coverage through the lottery.)
But others doubt that the Affordable Care Act will have the same effect. "Since Obamacare is extending Medicaid in 25 states, we would expect fewer medical bankruptcies amongst persons with incomes at or near the federal poverty line," says Stephanie Woolhandler, professor of public health at Hunter College in New York. "For the non-Medicaid-eligible population, the effect of Obamacare on medical bankruptcies is likely to be minimal. Even insured people may end up with ruinous out-of-pocket costs if they experience a prolonged or expensive illness." Woolhandler co-authored a 2011 study on bankruptcy in Massachusetts, which found that medical bankruptcies eased only slightly to 52.9% in 2009 from 59.3% in 2007, but it only surveyed 199 bankruptcy filings.
Americans also face some strong headwinds. Although it's slowing, health-care inflation is still running at a faster pace than stagnant wage growth, says Steve Wojcik, vice president of public policy at the National Business Group on Health, a membership group for employers. "That's a big threat to financial security," he says. Obamacare will also reduce the total number of hours worked by about 1.5% to 2% from 2017 to 2024, according to data released this month from the Congressional Budget Office. "The Massachusetts study factored in unemployment rates as a variable to be controlled for rather than being affected by what they're measuring," Wojcik says. To be sure, the CBO report refers to labor supply and participation—meaning new job opportunities could also be created—not actual jobs.
Obamacare will certainly help those who in the past would have declared bankruptcy and could not afford health care, says Wendell Potter, a former vice president of corporate communications at health insurer Cigna. It puts limits on how much insurers can charge people because of their age, provides subsidies for those with low incomes and prevents insurers from denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. Additionally, people under age 26 are covered under their parents' insurance. It won't protect them entirely, however. "The sad reality is that even with the protections in the Massachusetts law and Obamacare, people who are in low paying jobs and high deductible plans are still at risk of bankruptcy if they get sick or injured," Potter says.
Also see:
Not enough young people bought Obamcare
Obamacare fix brings new complications

subset: commoncrawl


text:
After millions of fans watch Katniss Everdeen battle for her life in The Hunger Games, we're sure the sold-out crowds and enthralled fans emerge from the darkened theater with one thought: Doesn't District 12 look like a nice place to live?
Well, probably not, but that's what the owner of the property that stood in for District 12 in the blockbuster film is hoping. He has seized upon Hunger Games mania and listed the property for sale at a price of $1.4 million, which is just a sliver of the $152 million in box-office sales the film made in its opening weekend.
(MORE: The Ratings Game)
Wade Shepherd, the owner of the 72-acre Henry River Mill Village, told the Associated Press that the area is getting bombarded by fans driving by and taking photos "day and night." So he decided to seize the opportunity to sell the land near Hildebran, N.C. where the movie was filmed. After all, until recently, the village wasn't exactly a tourist destination. According to CNBC, the was once the company town of the Henry River Manufacturing Co., but after the mill burned down in 1977, the village became deserted. Then The Hunger Games picked the desolate spot as the perfect location to echo the poverty-stricken slums of District 12, and suddenly everyone was very interested in Shepherd's property. Hopefully so interested that they will be willing to fork over Shepherd's hefty asking price.
Luckily for Shepherd, there's a good chance that investors will be interested in purchasing the property. After all, The Hunger Games is just the first film in an extremely popular trilogy. With two more films to go, and fans eager for as much Katniss, Peeta and Gale as they can get, the fictional teens' hometown will surely be a tourist destination. In fact, the North Carolina tourism site VisitNC.com already offers a four-day "Hunger Games" itinerary, which includes Henry River Mill Village. Anyone want to start a Kickstarter campaign to buy a village?


text:
Self-publicist Zlatan Ibrahimovic — football's Ricky Gervais, the millionaire's Peter Crouch, the vagrant's Curtly Ambrose — put a small portion of money where his mouth is yesterday.
Via Dirty Tackle
This post, written by Josh Burt, is republished with permission from The Spoiler. Go there often if you like soccer stuff.


text:
Posted by Editor on 07/23/09
We spoke with Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Slipstream) yesterday evening after stage 17 of the Tour de France - the hardest of the race. Hesjedal - Canada's only rider in the Tour this year - finished a strong 26th on the stage.
Canadian Cyclist: So you made it through the toughest stage, and had a pretty good result.
Ryder Hesjedal: Yeah, it was pretty good. I just made sure that I was there for the guys for the second to last climb, when all the fireworks started to happen. After I had done my bit, I just settled into my own rhythm, and managed to hook up with a group for the rest of the stage. It was a good day.
CC: How does the Tour this year compare to last; with Lance Armstrong there are you noticing any differences?
RH: As a team, we are riding as one of the best in the race, which is pretty awesome. So it's a different race when you are at the front every day, and you have important objectives. The team is at a higher level this year, I think the racing is harder and the terrain is pretty epic.
There are a lot of people [spectators] for sure, they're everywhere, but I can't really say that they are noticeably bigger crowds than last year.
CC: You were in a strong break Sunday, which looked like it had some staying power for quite a while.
RH: It was a hard day, for sure. We went into the Alps, with a hilltop finish. It was crucial that we had representation in the break, and that was my main role. The group was solid, and the only thing that messed it up was Astarloza (Euskatel-Euskadi), because he was too much of a danger [on GC]. It would have been nice to battle for the stage, but it wasn't to be.
CC: Going into the Tour, the team leader was Christian Vande Velde, but it has turned out that Bradley Wiggins is your top guy - is that a bit of a surprise?
RH: There have certainly been signs, indications that Brad is moving up to that level, but to be podium level is a bit unexpected. He is obviously a big talent, and the signs were that he was turning into a road racer. The team gave him the opportunity, and it has taken the pressure of Christian after his non-optimal preparation [a bad crash and fractures at eh Giro earlier in the season].
CC: What about your role? Is it developing the way you expected?
RH: I help out all day, however I can. It could be getting bottles, or to be in a break. The team looks to me to be there as late as possible in the race, when it really starts throwing down.
CC: When we spoke before the Tour, you said the team was planning to be opportunistic, going for stage wins. Has that all changed with Brad sitting so high?
RH: We are focussing on the GC. With a guy hovering close to the podium for almost three weeks after getting third in the opening time trial, that's an obvious decision. But we are still looking for stages, with Tyler [Farrar] finishing in sprints as close as possible to Cav [Mark Cavendish], it means we can look to individual stages, GC and everything in between.
CC: Tomorrow [Thursday] is the longest time trial, what are your expectations?
RH: I'll just try to do the minimum, and recover for Saturday, which is the final big day [up Mont Ventoux].
CC: So has the Tour been virtually conceded to Alberto Contador?
RH: Unless he has a horrific day on the bike, I think it is over. He was able to handle the Schleck tag team today [Wednesday], and it's clear he can't be beaten in the mountains. But until anyone stands on the podium at the end in Paris, nothing's for sure.
|Return to Canadian Cyclist homepage | Back to Top


text: kitzg Posted December 17, 2002 Brown-Forman, which owns leading whisky brand Jack Daniel's, has filed a lawsuit against its former UK distributor Diageo. BF said the lawsuit was to gain judicial confirmation that it has no legal obligation to renew the distribution arrangements.Diageo Great Britain was the exclusive distributor of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey in the UK until July 31. According to BF, Diageo had an option to renew the agreement on two conditions: the meeting of predefined performance targets, and the payment of a renewal fee. BF says that Diageo has done neither of these things so it is not obliged to continue the arrangement. However, Diageo is making a counterclaim. The former distributor says it has the right to renew and is claiming for lost profits of $54-66 million. BF said that, according to its legal advice, Diageo's lawsuit would not hurt its financial position. The revelations were made in an SEC filing last week. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


text:
B.J. Hoeptner Evans
Manager, Media Relations and Publications
Phone: (719) 228-6800
E-Mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (May 5, 2011) – It's another week of updates on U.S. Men's National and A2 Team players competing around the world.
Jayson Jablonsky (Yorba Linda, Calif.) and Olympiakos swept Iraklis, including U.S. opposite Brook Billings (Santa Barbara, Calif.) and outside hitter Ryan Owens (Evanston, Ill.), in three straight matches to win the Hellenic league title.
After winning the first match, 3-2 on April 27, Olympiakos won the second match, 25-17, 25-23, 35-33. Jablonsky scored six points on five kills and one block. Billings led his team with 21 points on 20 kills and one ace. Owens added nine points on nine kills.
Olympiakos took the title on May 3 with a 25-21, 26-24, 25-19 victory. Jablonsky scored five points on four kills and one block. Billings led his team with 15 points on 13 kills and two blocks. Owens added three points on two kills and one block.
Zenit Kazan, the Russian Super League team of U.S. setter Lloy Ball (Fort Wayne, Ind.) and outside hitter Reid Priddy (Richmond, Va.), is 1-1 in the best-of-five league finals against Dinamo Moscow.
Kazan won the first match on May 1. Priddy scored 17 points on 14 kills (0.64 hitting percentage), one block and two aces. He was also credited with 25 receptions, 48 percent positive and 28 percent excellent. Ball scored two points on two kills and set the team to a 0.49 hitting percentage.
To view photos from the match, click here.
Kazan fell in the second match, 25-12, 25-23, 25-22 on May 2. Priddy scored eight points on seven kills (0.31 hitting percentage) and one block. He was credited with eight receptions, 75 percent positive and 38 percent excellent. Ball did not score and set the team to a 0.38 hitting percentage.
To view photos from the match, click here.
The third match of the series will be played May 6.
U.S. outside hitter Scott Touzinsky (St. Louis, Mo.) and his German league team SCC Berlin are down 0-2 in the best-of-five finals of the Germany playoffs against VfB Friedrichshafen and U.S. middle blocker Matt Denmark (Edmond, Okla.).
On April 30, SCC Berlin fell to VfB Friedrichshafen, 25-19, 27-25, 17-25, 29-27. Touzinsky scored 13 points on 13 kills (0.40 hitting percentage) and was credited with 18 receptions, 50 percent positive and 33 percent excellent. Denmark played as a substitute.
On May 4, VfB Friedrichshafen topped SCC Berlin, 25-22, 25-17, 23-25, 18-25, 15-9. Touzinsky scored six points on six kills. He was credited with 22 receptions, 64 percent positive and 36 percent excellent.
The next match is scheduled for May 7.
Unicaja Almeria, the Spanish league team of U.S. middle blocker David Smith (Saugus, Calif.), is 1-1 in its best-of-five playoff final series against CAI Voleibol Teruel.
On April 29, Almeria defeated Teruel, 23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-19. Smith scored nine points on two kills, a match-high six blocks and one ace.
On April 30, Teruel came back to win 25-18, 25-22, 25-21. Smith scored six points on four kills, one block and one ace.
The teams are scheduled to play again on May 7.
U.S. setter Brian Thornton (San Clemente, Calif.) and outside hitter Eric Vance (Camarillo, Calif.) and their French B league team Chaumont fell to Avignon in their first semifinal playoff match, 21-25, 25-18, 25-20, 22-25, 15-13 on April 30.
Vance scored 18 points on 17 kills (0.59 kill percentage) and one block. Thornton scored three points, including an ace, and set the team to a 0.50 kill percentage.
The teams will play again on May 7 in a best-of-three series.


text:
I had the best intentions of writing a Fitness Friday post last week and then our Anniversary Getaway took over and I decided to postpone my Fitness Friday and MPG Sport Giveaway until today. I did post my May Fitness Follow Up and June Goals earlier this week so you can head over to that post to get all the details. So far we are only 3 days into June and my workouts have included:
- Wed-June 1: C25K Week 6 Day 1
- Thurs-June 2: 30 min cross training
- Fri-June 3: 20 min AM yoga; C25K Week 6 Day 2
Mondetta Performance Gear (MPG), a Winnipeg based active wear company, contacted me a few months back about doing a review and giveaway. I decided that they would be a perfect fit for the blog and a great review/giveaway for a Fitness Friday post. MPG allowed me to choose two items to review and provided me with the link to their Fit Guide to help me decide which size would be best. I decided to go with:
Top: Savvy
Sparkle jersey workout tank with contrast laser cut details.
- Nylon-spandex blended jersey
- Four-way stretch, moisture wicking, quick dry
- Self fabric taping details
- Ergonomic performance seams
- Contrast laser-cut sonic welded inserts
- Built in Coolmax bra liner with removable cups
- Full support
- High visibility logo
RECOMMENDED FOR: Light to heavy workouts, yoga, training, general exercis
Bottom: Stance
Performance capri legging for all types of exercise.
- Polyester-spandex blended jersey
- Four-way stretch, moisture wicking, quick dry
- Breathable mesh leg panels
- Zippered storage pocket
- Built in gusset
- Adjustable draw cord in waistband
- Semi-low rise, fitted throughout, 21″ inseam
- High visibility reflective logo
RECOMMENDED FOR: Low or high impact workouts, yoga, dance, running
The Stance capri leggings are now easily one of my favorite bottoms to run and do yoga in. I love them so much that I am planning on getting another pair after I finish writing this post. They fit perfectly just below the waist (on me) and have a nice adjustable draw cord which is really beneficial for runs. I also love the breathable mesh leg panels. I am not a short wearer so the breathable mesh leg panels allow my legs to be covered but not over heated when I run. The other thing I love is the zippered storage pocket on the back; it is perfect for keeping a single key and ID.
The Savvy top was nice but not a favorite top of mine. I love the color and the material but although it is described as having full support I didn't find that it provided full sport when I was running. However this may be a case that I require a large top and my bust requires a medium. However, I found that it did provide good support for yoga.
Overall I was impressed by the items I tried from MPG. They are high quality items at a reasonable price. I have washed and worn the items a number of times since I received them in April and they still look brand new! In addition to making impressive active wear MPG is also involved in charitable activities, the Mondetta Charity Foundation (MCF). Our founders were all born in the East African countries of Kenya and Uganda and have decided to support an an orphanage in the former and a school in the latter. Most of the children directly benefiting from the MCF's efforts have either lost their parents to AIDS or are themselves living with the disease that has ravaged most of the African continent. One percent of total MPG sales are contributed to the MCF, which is a completely separate entity from the parent company, Mondetta, meaning all operating and administration costs are covered by the company and all donated funds received go directly where they should: to help those in need.
To learn more about the foundation and its initiatives, please check out the link below.
- Charity foundation: http://www.mpgsport.com/about-the-mcf
- Blogging site: http://www.mpgcliq.com/
Also, 1% of every MPG garment sold goes to the foundation. For more info on the charity please check out Mondetta Gives Back.
So the best part about this review is that MPG has agreed to giveaway one of their products to a Cook.Vegan.Lover. reader. For the giveaway, MPG would like to offer one reader anything from the website in both active and lifestyle tops and bottoms. Additionally, I would like to mention that MPG makes both active and lifestyle tops and bottoms for men and women so guys don't forget to enter!
To Enter Giveaway: Open to US and Canadian Residents. Winner is Ashley! Congrats!
You must head over to Facebook and "Like" MPG Mondetta Performance Gear and then come back here and leave a comment letting me know you did so by June 8th, 2011 at 8pm EST.
Lastly, MPG is providing Cook.Vegan.Lover. readers with the following discount code to receive 25% off a one-time purchase that expires 6.30.11: veganloverlovesmpg
Want to read more? Head over to Brittany's MPG review at her blog Eating Bird Food.


text:
Document Actions
Klaus Grohmann, Ph.D.
Professor (Emeritus) - Organic Chemistry
Contact Information:
office 1401N (tel 212-772-5333), lab 1402N (tel 212-772-4637), dept fax 212-772-5332, email firstname.lastname@example.com
Ph.D. University of Heidelberg, Post-Doctoral Research: California Institute of Technology
Research Summary:
The goal of our research is the synthesis and characterization of theoretically significant molecules. The results of their structural, chemical, and spectroscopic investigation will provide experimental tests for theoretical predictions as well as broaden our understanding of important concepts in organic chemistry. Most of our research centers around the various aspects of "aromaticity" or the lack of it. Some representative structures under investigation are shown below.
Semibullvalenes. The study of semibullvalenes, compounds which are characterized by the lowest activation energy for the Cope rearrangement, is aimed at further lowering this barrier until it becomes zero or negative, thus crossing the bridge between valence tautomerism (Eact>O) to resonance (Eact<O). A new general synthesis for substituted semibullvalenes has been developed.
13-Methylphenalene. This long sought after molecule and its benzo derivatives, possessing a rigid nearly planar 12n-perimeter, are expected to show a very strong paramagnetic ring current. Several synthetic approaches are under investigation.
Sulfur heterocycles/organic metals. The synthesis of heterocycles containing two or more sulfur units in conjugated 7- to 10-membered rings and in related polycyclic systems will be undertaken in order to determine th aromaticity as well as their reactivity with regard to sulfur extrusion and complex formation with transiti metals. The study of charge transfer complexes derived from these systems with respect to their potential as "organic metals" is part of our research program.
Selected Publications
"Supramolecular squares of porphyrazines" Cheng, K.F., Thai, N.A., Teague, L.C., Grohmann, K., Drain, C.M. Chem. Commun. 2005, (37): 4678-4680
"Porphyrins linked directly to the 5,5 ' positions of 2,2 '-bipyridine: A new supramolecular building block and switch" Cheng, K.F., Drain, C.M., Grohmann, K. Inorg. Chem. 2003, 42 (6): 2075-2083.
"A Facile Entry into the Ring System of Sativene" Karimi, S., Petersen, B., Grohmann, K.G., (1998) Tetrahedron Letter 39, 2689
"1,2,5 Trithiepin: A 10pi Electron Heteroaromatic System" Ueng, S.N., Blumenstein, M., Grohmann, K.G., (1997) J. Org. Chem. 62, 2432
"Intramolecular Ring-Opening of Cyclopropanones by Enolate Anions," Karimi, S., Grohmann, K.G., and Todaro, L., (1995) J. Org. Chem. 60, 554
"2,4,6,8-Tetracarbomethoxybarbaralane,"Win, W. W. , Grohmann, K.G., and Todaro, L., (1994) J. Org. Chem. 59, 2803.
"Semibulivalenes IV: 2,6- and 2, 8-Trapping of the Bicyclo [13.3.0]octadienyl Diradical with Oxygen" lyengar, R., Pina, R., Grohmann, K.G. and Todaro, L., (1988) J. Amer. Chem. Soc. 110, 2643.
"Semibulivalenes II: A MNDO Theoretical Study of the Rearrangements of Semibullvalenes and Several of its Derivatives," Miller, L.S., Grohmann, K.G. and Dannenberg, J.J. (1983) Amer. Chem. Soc. 105, 6682.
"Semibullvalenes I: Synthesis and Crystal Structure of 1.5-Dimethyl-2, 4, 6, 8-tetracarbomethoxytricyclo [184.108.40.206] octa-3.6-diene - A Donor-Acceptor Substituted Semibullvalene," Miller, L.S., Grohmann, K.G., Dannenberg, J.J., Todaro, L. (1981) J. Amer. Chem. Soc. 103, 6249.


text:
Transformers: Dark of the Moon used the real-life historical moment of the Apollo 11 moon landing to tie it into the events surrounding the Cybertronian aliens making their way to Earth. In next summer's Transformers 4, Michael Bay intends to continue the story in a world where now the world knows of the Autobots and Decepticons.
The new cast taking over the series includes Mark Wahlberg, Jack Reynor and Nicola Peltz as its three leads along with Stanley Tucci in an unspecified role. We can now add Kelsey Grammer to the list.
Deadline has the scoop which indicates that Grammer, most well-known for his long-time role as Frasier Crane in Cheers and his own self-titled series Frasier, will be playing the human antagonist of Transformers 4. His character's name is Harold Attinger and he's described as a "counter-intelligence" agent.
Transformers 4 takes place four years after the events that shocked the world in Dark of the Moon. There's no hiding the existence of sentient life on other planets or the fact that Transformers are present on Earth. The film is not a reboot as it continues from where the trilogy left off, but it does feature a new cast along with new designs for all of the robots. Bay:
"We're going to start off smaller. There's a brand new cast. To freshen the franchise we've redesigned everything from top to bottom. The history of the first three movies is still there, we start four years later and there's a reason why we're meeting a new cast."
A leaked synopsis – which Paramount Pictures claimed was unofficial but asked us to take down anyway – indicated that the film's plot would see businessmen and scientists logically trying to benefit from the alien Cybertronian incursions, attempting to learn from and adapt the technology. It also hints that there may be more events from Earth's past (beyond Apollo 11) that the Autobots, Decepticons or some other Cybertronian faction may have been involved in, in addition to the Hoover Dam of course.
The secretive Sector 7 organization factored into the plot of the first Transformers and tied other elements of Earth's path with alien discovers so it's safe bet similar elements will carry over as the most fascinating parts of the films' lore are how the writers creatively tie the events of our past to those of the fictional Transformers characters.
Sector 7 was of course shut down, but with the events of Transformer 3 - where Autobots and the military already work together – and the all-out attack on Earth, similar organizations from governments around the world will naturally be created as a response to the alien invasion. We can expect Kelsey Grammer to be involved in one such group as someone trying to benefit from the Cybertronians.
The biggest question is who the alien villains will be and just how drastic the Hasbro-focused redesigns will be. Is it time for the Dinobots?
Rob Keyes blogs at Screen Rant.


text:
Shiny new businesses pop up on graffitied and decrepit street corners of the new "East Williamsburg," and over-priced organic grocery stores and restaurants with a new trendy run-down façade are moving into some of the most historically dangerous neighborhoods in Brooklyn.
The pilgrimage of artists and skinny-jeaned "hipsters" has dug deeper and deeper into this urban society, and with them have come new business, a new class and new hope for the neighborhood. However some not-so-old world habits still persist.
Last December, police nabbed 41 members of the TBO (True Bosses Only a.k.a. Team Bang Out) that openly brandished guns and terrorized Bushwick streets for several years, but street fights and gang violence still sporadically break out among the now-heavily patrolled parks like Maria Hernandez on Knickerbocker and Irving Avenues.
The trek along the L and M train lines, carrying artists away from their incubator in the Lower East Side, has forcibly pushed a new era into the heart of Brooklyn. Today, investors are seeking out which neighborhood is next in line for a quick market turnaround and a fast buck.
Neighborhoods like Williamsburg, Carroll Gardens, and Park Slope have become exceedingly expensive, where the median real estate prices are now reaching and surpassing $700,000, while other portions of communities like Sunset Park and Crown Heights have become the next in line.
Today the push into neighborhoods like Bed-Stuy towards East New York has also become apparent, but let's hope that the gentrification of Brooklyn means a better life for all of its residents, including the ones that have lived there for generations, and not just for those who can afford to pay the luxury prices.
Because the way that it's going, in the not-so-distant future you're Bed-Stuy brownstone won't have to star in the next Spike Lee film to fetch over $1 million.


text:
Presentation slides will be made available after the session has concluded and the speaker has given us the files. Check back if you don't see the file you're looking for—it might be available later! (However, please note some speakers choose not to share their presentations.)
Reach business leaders and technology influencers at the Web 2.0 Summit. Call Kristen Nicasio at (415) 947-6283 or email email@example.com
View a complete list of Web 2.0 Summit contacts.


text:
You are about to access: http://www.winzip.com/prodpagewz.htm
Our website has many links to other organizations. While we offer these electronic
linkages for your convenience in accessing transportation-related information, please be
aware that when you exit our website, the privacy and accessibility policies
stated on our website may not be the same as that on other websites. If you have any
questions or comments, please E-mail BTS.


text:
The blood test is, when you think about it, a remarkable thing. With the prick of a needle, the molecules coursing through your veins can be extracted, centrifuged, and translated into a stream of digits, units, and acronyms. Blood becomes data, and in these numbers lies knowledge about your current health, your risks for disease, and your potential response to treatment.
Of course, you yourself would have a hard time deciphering any of this. The typical blood test report is an exercise in obfuscation, a document that needs to be translated by a lab technician or physician, and that's if you somehow manage to see a copy of your results. In many US states, it's illegal for a laboratory to send test results directly to a patient—a regulatory puzzle that leads some labs to simply deny direct results to any customer, anywhere. The blood may be yours—but the information it contains is not.
But lab reports don't have to be unintelligible. With some thought and design-minded thinking, tests can be as informative to patients as they are to physicians. With a little context and color, we can make sense of the numbers. And with a bit more understanding, patients can become participants in their own health.
On the next few pages, Wired has given the lab report a makeover. We consulted with Lisa Schwartz and Steven Woloshin, physicians at the Dartmouth Medical School Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice and experts in communicating data to patients, to make sure the right information gets onto the forms and the irrelevant stuff stays off. And we tapped three exceptional designers to reimagine how this information can be presented—limiting them to one printed page per report. Consider these a proof of concept, a refutation of the argument that ordinary people can't handle their health (and inspiration, we hope, for the medical establishment).
It's your body. It's your information. Now it's yours to understand.
The Basic Workup
The standard blood workup takes more than 30 measurements and can go on for more than four pages. All sorts of things can turn up in the report; the challenge for physician and patient alike is to find the signal within the noise.
Make It Easy
Listing various "reference ranges" on the right of the page, separate from the results, forces the eye to scan back and forth as you evaluate the numbers. We add charts that depict clearly and succinctly where you fit along the spectrum.
Make It Relevant
Information is useless without explanation and a call to action. So we augment this patient's results with the relevant health risks and offer guidance about what the patient might do to improve her health.
Make It Simple
This printout is just the first of four dense pages. The original lists dozens of measurements, potentially too many for even a doctor to comprehend. We summarize the more esoteric tests, focus on the most relevant numbers, and add an overview at the top of the page.
Make It Clear
Doctors presumably know what high or low numbers might mean. But there's no reason not to augment the data with qualitative interpretations for all results above and below "normal." Are your numbers a little low or a lot low? We explain.
Make It Colorfull
The ubiquity of color printers, email, and PDFs means there's no excuse not to use one of the most effective tools in information design. We adopt a familiar green-yellow-red palette to make it easier to identify what needs immediate attention.
Click on the document below to view a larger image of the basic workup makeover.
Results redesign: Mucca Design
Blood report photos: Garry McLeod
The Heart Disease Test
Alongside cholesterol tests and high-blood-pressure monitoring, the c-reactive protein, or CRP, test is widely used to spot people at risk for heart disease, the leading cause of death in the US.
Personalize the Risk
The phrase relative cardiovascular risk has little meaning without some context. An online calculator can combine the patient's CRP result and lipid profile to estimate their specific risk. And we give them the URL to let them use it themselves.
Point to the Next Steps
The results are in. Now what? The original report buries advice on retesting in the fine print. We emphasize the point, explaining how a change in behavior (like eating better or quitting smoking) can reduce a patient's risk of heart disease.
Give the Context
A doctor typically orders a CRP test based on the results of a lipid panel (which shows cholesterol levels)—then often orders the lipids again along with the CRP test. The two measures are used jointly to suss out a diagnosis or assess risk. So why not put them together on one sheet of paper? We do.
Describe the Test
The CRP test was invented by Paul Ridker, a Harvard medical professor, to measure c-reactive protein in the blood. High levels indicate inflammation, which can be a sign of infection or cardiovascular disease. Though there's space galore on the page, this report makes no effort to explain the link between CRP and actual heart disease.
Click on the document below to view a larger image of the makeover of the heart disease test.
Results redesign: David McCandless
The Prostate Test
Short for prostate-specific antigen, the PSA test is one of the most common workups for men over 40—even though its reliability as a predictor of prostate cancer is controversial.
Keep It in Perspective
Even if he has a high PSA level, our patient's chance of prostate cancer is just 25 percent. And even if he has the disease, there's a 75 percent chance he'll live 15 or more years—and a near certainty he'll be alive in five years.
Give Specifics
Since the prostate produces more PSA as a man ages, some researchers argue that reference numbers should vary by age to avoid unnecessary biopsies. So while the original report shows just one range (0.0 to 4.0), we tailor the risk to our patient's age group (50 to 59). Any lab could do the same.
Use the White Space
The original printout leaves most of the page blank. We put this fallow ground to use, adding more information and context.
Know the Controversy
Ablin called the overuse of the PSA test a "profit-driven public health disaster" in a recent New York Timesop-ed. He says PSA screenings often lead to unwarranted, dangerous, and expensive biopsies. That won't stop the test from being used—but patients should know that the results are often ambiguous.
Understand the Limitations
As the original report states, "PSA levels, regardless of value, should not be interpreted as absolute evidence of the presence or absence of disease." (Even Richard Ablin, the doctor who discovered PSA in 1970, says the test is "hardly more effective than a coin toss.") That's why our revision includes helpful statistics (for example, 65 to 75 percent of men with a high reading do not have prostate cancer). We also list some of the many alternative reasons for an elevated PSA level.
Click on the document below to view a larger image of the prostate test makeover.
Results redesign: Jung + Wenig


text:
Photo: C.B. Schmelter / Associated Press
The calendar says it's fall. Somewhere in the country kids wait at the bus stops, bundled up against the chilly morning air, trees change colors while leaves fall and a thousand other Rockfeller-ish cliches.
Houston doesn't really know anything about that.
We've gathered a few of our favorite signs that the horrible oppressive heat and ominous threat of hurricanes is on its way out. You can see them above and we'd love to hear yours. Leave them in a comment below.


text:
Bobby Collins: New Yorker trapped in California unleashed at Lake Tahoe
Bobby Collins only comes to Harveys Improv during the winter months in part because he loves to ski.
He also incorporates his family when booked up here to make it a working vacation.
Part host, part radio guy and part travel agent, we do what we can. We get a lot of inquiry about Bobby, and if it snowed up here in July trust me, he'd be here twice a year.
Although he resides in southern California, Bobby is a New York native through and through. He has the original take on East Coast/ West Coast sensibilities and can do an hour just on that. Bobby's fan base is pretty solid and he adds admirers every time he performs. I think Bobby's insights on everyday life touches a thread with everyone because sooner or later we all experience similar situations hence we get to laugh at the foibles of being human.
Collins has done specials on Showtime, hosted VH1's "Stand-Up Spotlight" and has opened for such acts as Cher, Dolly Parton, Julio Iglesias and Tony Bennett. He was nominated for a CableACE Award as well as for the American Comedy Awards "Stand-up Comic of the Year." His first CD, "On The Inside," showcased his wide-ranging observational material and his second CD, "Out of Bounds," earned him a Grammy nomination. His other four CDs include "You're Not Coming With Us," "Mr. New York," "I Wanna Go Home" and most recently "I'm on the Boat." His DVD "Bobby Collins: Live from New York City" is one that I have. It captures the best of his standup performance. Bobby has also appeared in five feature films and numerous television shows.
Bobby was destined for a career in comedy when his father named him after his favorite comedian, Bob Hope (good thing it wasn't Phyllis Diller). Bobby told me that he'd never seen the legendary icon but, "When I was appearing in Philadelphia for the first time, a newspaper reporter from New York City caught my act and liked it so much he put me on the entire cover of the paper's weekend section. Lost in the cover's corner was a tiny picture of Bob Hope. While I was visiting with friends at the club, a black limousine pulled up and the driver handed me a manila envelope. There was a signed photo of Bob Hope inside along with a handwritten note saying 'How dare you get top billing on a weekend' with a happy face drawn at the bottom. That's probably one of the best tributes I've ever heard from one comic to another, especially when that comic just happens to be a legend."
It reads like an old joke. How does a Jewish, half-Israeli comedian get to Afghanistan? Practice, practice, practice.
Born in Nahariya to American parents, Avi Liberman has been doing standup comedy in Los Angeles for more than a decade. He has regular spots at all the hottest clubs down there in addition to rooms in New York, Las Vegas and yes, Lake Tahoe. What's really interesting is that in addition to his standup career, Avi has kept his position as a substitute teacher, which must take both his students and school district by surprise sometimes. Then again, Avi has always been bi-vocational.
When not filling in as a teacher in the classroom you might have seen him on CBS' "Late Late Show" with Craig Ferguson, Comedy Central's "Premium Blend" and "Make Me Laugh" as well as on NBC's "Friday Night!" His acting credits include "Dave's World" on CBS, "Boston Common" on NBC and "Andytown U.S.A." on Comedy Central. Avi can be seen regularly on E! as one of their frequent guests on the very popular countdown series.
He has guest starred on "Movies at Our House," as well as having shot a pilot titled "Through the Keyhole" both on AMC.
He's also been heard on radio stations across the country.
A successful commercial actor, Avi has appeared in spots for "Mercedes," "L.A. Cellular," "Miller Lite," "Starbucks" and "Net Zero." He has appeared at the prestigious Montreal Just for Laughs Festival and booked comics on his own for tours to Israel donating all of the proceeds to different charities.
Avi's observations on life experiences and topical issues are more than enough to keep his comedy plate full. And as mentioned earlier, Avi does plenty of shows non-stop overseas entertaining both civilians and military personnel alike.
Support Local Journalism
Support Local Journalism
Readers around the Lake Tahoe Basin and beyond make the Tahoe Tribune's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.
Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.
Your donation will help us continue to cover COVID-19 and our other vital local news.
Start a dialogue, stay on topic and be civil.
If you don't follow the rules, your comment may be deleted.
User Legend: Moderator Trusted User


text:
- 7+ years related network engineering and customer support experience, they must have architecture, design and deployment experience with Palo Alto Network Firewall and hands-on Experience with Checkpoint firewall and Cisco ASA will be a plus.
- 7-8 years of architecture, design and deployment experience with Cisco ISE and Network Admission Control (NAC)
- 7-8 years of working with security tools such as NAC, Antivirus, Firewall, IDS/IPS.
- 4-5 years of Data Center experience.
- Extensive experience securing PCI CDE environment·
- This person will have project management, Problem Solving, Expert LAN and WAN Knowledge, Complex Network Design and Implementation, Network Troubleshooting, Network Hardware Configuration, Network Performance Tuning, People Management.
Email your resume to email@example.com
Saicon Consultants, Inc. is committed to the principles and practices of equal employment opportunity and reaffirm our intent to comply with federal, state, and local laws and regulations prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, gender identity, transgender status, national origin, ancestry, disability, genetics, protected veteran status, or any other protected classes".


text:
This year, Shirek said, his fastball velocity has picked up just a bit — from 91 mph to 92 or 93. And he said he went to work on a cutter during spring training that has complemented his other pitches.
"Our pitching coach (J.R. Perdew) said I should work on it," Shirek said. "I'd never thrown one before, but it's become a good pitch in games where my fastball isn't doing what I want and I need another pitch to get out of a jam."
May 25, 2010
Charlie Shirek increases his velocity, working on a cutter
1 Comment »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI


text:
Mini pita bread - new taste for breakfast. This bread is similar to chapatti in term of appearance and way of making. However, chapatti does not contain yeast and it is thinner.
Original recipe from My Resipi.
Ingredients (8 x 5"):
200gm bread flour
50g all purpose flour
150g warm water
5g sugar
5g salt
15g olive oil or cooking oil
2.5g dry yeast
- Dissolve yeast in warm water, add sugar and cooking oil.
- Sift in flours and salt, knead well to form soft dough.
- Cover dough with damp cloth and let rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Punch down dough and divide into 8 portions. Shape each portion into small ball, and let rest for 10 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 230C.
- Roll out dough on slightly floured surface, make a 5" wide circle and let rest for another 10 minutes.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 4-5 minutes.


text:
Do you own a 1963-66 Wagonaire? If so, join our registry so fellow Wagonaire enthusiasts can see what other Wagonaires are on the road!
Register Now
Location: Port Hope, Ontario Canada
Serial #: 63SC 5163
Current Mileage: 93,500
Exterior Color: Burgundy
Interior Color: Burgndy
Engine Type: 6 Cylinder
Transmission: Automatic
If you own this Wagonaire and need to make an update to this listing, please click the link below.
update listing
If you wish to contact the owner of this vehicle, please use the form below or email the webmaster at firstname.lastname@example.com. He will pass your message and contact details on to the owner.
« back to registry table
If you would like to get in touch with the owner of this vehicle, please fill out the form below and the webmaster will pass your message and contact details on.


text:
My given name, Jaban, is derived from the name of the king of Hazor, who commanded the iron chariots. This website struck a chord with me immediately, as it highlighted the irony of what my parents had named me. It was a sort of coup de grâce for religion.
Life and religion[edit]
I was raised as a Jehovah's Witness. From the age of 20, I worked toward the goal of becoming a full-time preacher, studying the New World Translation (The Bible, as edited by Jehovah's Witnesses) and other pseudo-scientific sources to more effectively argue my point to non-believers.
I was fairly ineffective as a preacher, as I honestly attempted to understand why my opponent thought what he did (at least sometimes) and correct it, instead of simply dismissing those who made valid points. Invariably, I eventually started to recognize various inconsistencies in the teachings of my church.
Why I Believed[edit]
I was raised with the belief from when I was born. But I also have the best reason I think anyone could have for believing...
When I was sixteen, I got very sick. I eventually ended up in the hospital, and was diagnosed (by real doctors) with stage IV Ewing sarcoma. It was a very aggressive cancer in a late stage, and a tumor was wrapped around my spine such that they couldn't operate on it. An oncologist from a hospital nearby was asked to come in to give a second opinion - he came in, talked to the doctors, redid the CT scans and blood tests, and confirmed the diagnosis.
Without immediate chemotherapy I wouldn't survive more than a few days. Even with it, they expected I'd only extend my life to a few weeks (5% survival was 8 weeks; it's far higher nowadays). I could go home and spend some time with family, or stay in the hospital and perhaps be one of the lucky ones. My parents and I decided to try treatment.
I prayed that night, of course. I promised that if I lived through treatment, I'd spend the rest of my life doing whatever I could to spread the word.
The next morning, after several friends had a chance to come say goodbye, I was sent to a hospital better equipped to deal with aggressive treatment of children. At that hospital, the doctors monitored my temperature, did a few blood tests, hooked up an IV, but didn't do anything major. The next day they did a short CT scan and hooked up another IV (it was blood thinners), but still no cancer treatment. On my third day there, my mom finally got in touch with the doctor in charge of my case and asked when I was starting chemotherapy.
The answer was, "why would Jaban need chemotherapy? He doesn't have cancer."
The nurse at the first hospital didn't send my chart along with me. They did some tests because I had been sent there in an ambulance as if it were urgent, but they didn't have a clue what they were looking for. They had determined the first day that I had a blood clot in my leg (thus the CT scan) and that the flu had caused an infection in my blood and spine. Both were caused by serious, chronic conditions, one of which had only been published a month before, but neither was life-threatening. Some blood thinners and antibiotics and I'd be home in a few days.
So there we are. An aggressive cancerous tumor in my spine, and a confirming second diagnosis made by a more qualified doctor. It wasn't a self-diagnosis, it wasn't a quasi-qualified doctor making a common misdiagnosis, and it wasn't cured by medicine but attributed to God. I wasn't likely to live whether I got treatment or not. I asked God to let me live, and the next morning I didn't have cancer anymore.
So I believed.
To those who would try to convince me with their own story:
My experience is more convincing than any other faith healing story I've heard, and I no longer consider it evidence enough to believe. You can imagine how I feel about the story of God healing your back pain.
The Path to Disbelief[edit]
My doubt about their divine inspiration started with the church's regulation of Internet use, which in my view was driven by a fear of technology and of the unknown (I had been using the Internet long before they learned about it; I knew their claims against it were baseless). As I looked into inconsistencies further, the pseudo-scientific information I had been fed was slowly corrected, from the history of my own church, to the history of the Bible's authorship and compilation, to how scientific investigation is done, to the profound explanatory power of the Theory of Evolution.
So their baseless fear and misunderstanding of technology (and subsequent regulation of it) led me to question them, which led me to other sources of information, and resulted in my eventual dismissal of religion as a whole. So, in the end, them acting on their fear of technology led to exactly what they feared the technology itself would lead to. Sweet irony.
The breaking point[edit]
At about the age of 25, when I no longer believed in the divine inspiration of of the church's leaders and teachings, but still thought religious belief useful, I started to realize that the method of teaching was very manipulative.
Potential recruits seemed very susceptible to having their questions "changed", in that the answer was delayed until the teacher had manipulated them into thinking their question was something else. A straw man, of sorts. Convince the person that they asked a different question than they did, and answer that one instead. This wouldn't work on everyone, but it worked on the type of people they wanted to recruit.
I also saw that the teachers themselves did not (usually) realize they were doing it. Instead, the books produced by Jehovah's Witnesses for studying with non-members are written as such. They are designed to present information in a particular order, often over the course of several months, to accomplish it. Preachers are taught to avoid answering certain things until they come to the chapter that answers it.
With some consideration, I concluded that this could only have been intentional. And, in short order, I came to realize how intellectually dishonest the religious organization was, and how destructive their method of teaching was to otherwise honest inquiry.
This realization is what eventually led me to finally end my involvement with the church.
My beliefs today[edit]
Seeing that is an important part of who I am now.
I am an atheist, and have become somewhat of a pessimistic skeptic (I try to avoid denialism, but it's sometimes a fine line). I outright disbelieve any claims of supernatural intervention, and am highly skeptical of seemingly unfounded claims and positions (refer to the "Baloney Detection Kit") regarding nutrition and health, alternative medicine, some environmentalist movements, even skepticism itself.
Beliefs on the supernatural[edit]
I am an agnostic atheist, in much the same way Richard Dawkins describes. I cannot remain intellectually honest and say that I know with certainty that there is no god. But I also can't say that I know with certainty that I do not live in the Matrix or that the sky is blue or that there are no flying reindeer. But to the degree that I do not believe the infinite number of other possible things I have absolutely no reason to believe, I do not believe there exists anything supernatural.
I base my acceptance of supernatural claims on the famous words of Tim Minchin: "Throughout history, every mystery ever solved has turned out to be not magic."
In fact, I might even say that I believe in the supernatural slightly less so than many other possibilities, because the supernatural ideas come with a historical baggage. We know approximately where the idea of Yahweh came from and how it has changed throughout history. Gods 'exist' only due to the history of belief in different gods. I think that makes their actual existence less plausible.
Basis in practicality[edit]
I see many arguments fail to move forward due to a lack of distinction between absolute and practical certainty. So I'd like to make that distinction here.
Practical certainty is when an idea fits into a logical model which does not also allow the acceptance of ideas which, if accepted, would necessarily falsify the body of more rigidly tested ideas. In other words, one can say he is certain of an idea, for practical purposes, if it does not require he accept any other ideas known to be untrue.
The failure, then, is when one creates an imprecise logical model to allow the acceptance of an idea, and does not test the model thoroughly enough to see if it requires the acceptance of contrary ideas.
Here is an example:
First, let's state some ideas.
- Mordor is a real place.
- Marduk created humanity from the blood of Kingsu, as servants of the gods.
- Yahweh created the first man from dirt, and the first woman from a rib.
- Homeopathic solutions have a medicinal effect greater than that of a placebo.
- Santa Claus delivers gifts on a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer.
- Jesus walked on water.
- Poseidon causes hurricanes.
- A future discovery could correctly conclude that supernatural phenomenon exist.
If one accepts that Jesus walked on water, the logic used must necessarily be imprecise enough to allow him to also accept that there are flying reindeer. And accepting that would be a rejection of the existing knowledge that flying reindeer were invented in an 1823 poem by Clement Moore. Not to mention that both would falsify the entire body of observations and theories in physics and biology, in turn allowing him to also accept the Marduk-blood idea, the Yahweh-dirt idea, and the Poseidon-hurricane idea.
So any logical model which would allow the acceptance of any of these ideas, if applied honestly to the others, would require (or allow) their acceptance too - at least some of them - plus the rejection of a huge body of existing observation.
Keep in mind that I am speaking practically. Theoretically, one could create a logical model which allows for Jesus to walk on water but which is not so imprecise that one could also use it to accept that Poseidon causes hurricanes. But given the history of failed attempts, there is no reason to think anyone ever will.
If someone argues that I cannot possibly know that Jesus didn't walk on water, I concede. They mean for knowledge to entail absolute certainty. All I have is practical certainty: if I accept that he did walk on water, my logical model would allow the acceptance of all claims, including conflicting ones. It is much more practical to reject the claim that he did.
I remind my opponent that his definition renders the word "know" meaningless. We might just as well stop using it and come up with a new word. Also, he should recognize that conceding that an idea is not an absolute does not put it on level ground with the contrary idea. Accepting that my "knowledge" of the non-existence of flying reindeer is a practical certainty only, not an absolute one, does not mean that is just as valid to believe that they do exist.
That may be why it's difficult for fundamentalists to change their view on any aspect of their religious belief:
- They see practical certainty as equivalent to uncertainty. If the contrary opinion cannot be proven to an absolute certainty (which is impossible), then it is viewed as equally valid to any opinion.
- Their definition of certainty requires that, if they reject the idea that Jesus walked on water, they must reassess everything they believe.
So there you are. My two cents.
Copyright Release[edit]
All contributions made solely by me (e.g images I post) are dedicated to the public domain with no rights reserved. Moral rights granted me by the Canadian Copyright Act are waived. They may be used for any purpose, without condition or limitation. No attribution is required.


text:
The Redis open source database has reached what its development team calls a "major milestone", with an "endless" list of new features in the first stable release of its version 2.0.0 iteration.
Described as a "persistent key-value" database with built-in .NET interface written in ANSI-C for Posix systems, the new version includes the MULTI/EXEC family of commands which allow developers to fulfill the need to execute multiple commands as a single atomic block.
This means that if another thread is executing concurrently, it will not interrupt the single block's status -- although each operation will deliver the results of its operations at the same time.
According to the Redis Wiki, "Because all commands inside a MULTI/EXEC block are serialized and executed sequentially, it is not possible that another client request is served in the middle of executing this block. All commands are executed one after the other when EXEC is called, which makes sure either all or no commands are executed, independent of the state of the client connection."
You can download Redis here.


text:
Perhaps you'll find your fear in my book,
It's my second collection of critically acclaimed Supernatural and Drama Horror Thriller short stories with all of the Weird Sex, True Love, Monsters and Mayhem, you've come to expect (or should by now). Available in paperback for $8.00 or in Kindle for only $1.99. Buy the paperback at Amazon and the Kindle eBook is free! The tales will last you longer than latte!
Wish to hoard horror? My book
PERPETUAL BULLET: A Science Fiction Collection.
Is a veritable trove of previously published Science Fiction Horror Thriller tales – plus bonus stories
Featuring: Weird Sex, True Love, Monsters and Mayhem!
Now on sale for $9.00 in Trade Paperback and in eBook for $1.99 and available for your Android Tablet, iPad, Kindle, Nook, and every other "E"!
Find it at (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Diesel, !ndigo, iTunes, KoboBooks, Smashwords, WHSmith, and more).
Buy the paperback at Amazon and the Kindle eBook is free!
Enrich your library with frights!
Look for my story Cedo Looked Like People, in the anthology, FEAR THE REAPER, edited by Joe Mynhardt. Available from Crystal Lake Publishing and available in Print for $12.99 or eBook for $2.99.
Drink from the well of scares!
Also available from Crystal Lake Publishing, the film making guidebook, HORROR 201: The Silver Scream. Reap the rewards of movie making experience from the likes of Myself, as well as John Carpenter, Tom Holland, Jeffrey Reddick, George A. Romero, Keith Arem, Richard Gray, also the late Ray Bradbury, Wes Craven, plus many more. $19.99 in Print or $3.99 in eBook.


text:
DAB Radio Deluxe. DAB Deluxe Radio. Portable DAB/FM Radio featuring on screen text information, 10 DAB and FM station pre-sets with auto channel scan and two alarm settings with snooze and a built in FM tuner. Supplied in a white Avenue Gift Box. ABS Plastic.
The cookie settings on this website are set to 'All Cookies' so that you have the best online experience possible from our site. Without changing this setting you consent to this. If you wish to opt out click on the 'change cookie settings' link.


text:
I have seen that many reciters during taraweeh while reciting in hafs an 'asim recite madd munfassil with 1-2 counts...
As salaamu alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh,
I have seen that many reciters during taraweeh while reciting in hafs an 'asim recite madd munfassil with 1-2 counts, so if some one recites madd munfassil with 1-2 counts, are their any more changes in the way of Hafs 'an 'Aasim ? like some words to be pronounced differently?? or all other rules remain same? or is a person mixing between Shaatibiyyah and Tayyibah? and is this allowed?
Wa alakum assalaaam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,
Usually if the imam reads with two vowel counts for
in the riwaayah of Hafs he reads four vowel counts for
, as this is the most common tareeq of At-Tayyibah for qasr of
The medd al-munfasil cannot be less than two vowel counts.
The rules for some special words when reading Hafs 'an 'Assim min tareeq at-Tayyibah when reading qasr of
and four vowel counts for
are found in following PDF link:
We need to follow these rules so we do not mix two tareeq together. One should not mix them intentionally.


text:
Releaser Info : -=!LoveGuru!=-
Movie: TNA iMPACT Wrestling 29-12 (2016)
Category: WWE And TNA [Raw And Smackdown]
Release Date: 29 December 2016
Star Cast: WWE Stars
Genre: Sports Entertainment
Language: English
Description: Impact Wrestling (formerly known as TNA iMPACT) is a professional wrestling television program produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). Starting in 2015 the show began to air weekly on Destination Americain the United States.
Duration: 1 Hour 24 Mins
Quality: HDTV
Home » WWE And TNA [Raw And Smackdown] »


text:
True, but this also prompts the question of why the GOP decided to shut down the government in a futile attempt to dislodge Democrats in the Senate and Barack Obama from their dream legislation. As Marco Rubio says, it's going to collapse of its own weight, and probably a lot sooner than anyone expected. Why not force Democrats to vote down a delay — we already had 39 repeals on the record that Democrats ignored — and set the markers for the 2014 election?
It's water under the bridge now, and Rubio wants to cheer up the troops:
We have missed a golden opportunity to do something about it. But we haven't given up the fight. The one thing I want people to understand is: They should not feel depressed about this or discouraged about the long term of it. We are going to prevail on this issue. It is just a matter of time. We will prevail because ObamaCare is going to be a disaster. And it won't be long before many people in this town will be scrambling to try to fix it.
How so? Well, Gabriel Malor points out that the exchange itself is a disaster that will keep lots of people from complying with the law, and will badly miss the White House's own expectations:
Obama Admin predicted that 494,620 people would sign up for health insurance by Oct 31. http://t.co/BkrWs38eer We're at ~36,000.
— Gabriel Malor (@gabrielmalor) October 17, 2013
In the memo, officials estimated that 494,620 people would sign up for health insurance under the program by Oct. 31. And that was portrayed as a slow start.
"We expect enrollment in the initial months to be low," said the memo titled "Projected Monthly Enrollment Targets for Health Insurance Marketplaces in 2014."
A big jump was expected after Thanksgiving, since Dec. 15 is the last day people can sign up so their coverage will take effect Jan. 1. Starting in the new year, the health care law requires virtually all Americans to have insurance or face fines. At the same time, insurance companies will be forbidden from turning away people in poor health.
That's just the mechanism, which is bad enough. Worse yet for Democrats — and as we've discussed for years at Hot Air — the voters who will get skewered the worst are those in the big progressive demographic of twenty-somethings. Heritage unveiled a study yesterday that shows, unsurprisingly, that the young workers will carry twice the burden while getting nearly nothing from the benefits:
The Obama Administration is desperate for younger people to enroll to prevent an adverse selection death spiral. As pointed out by Sam Cappellanti at the American Action Forum, "The enrollment of these low cost young adults…is essential as they are required to subsidize the costs of insuring the elderly and chronically ill."[6] However, young adults face a penalty for not enrolling that is projected to be far less than the insurance coverage they could receive.
Our findings confirm that younger populations see larger percentage increases in premiums. A state that exhibits this clearly is Vermont, where the increase for 27-year-olds is 144 percent and the increase for 50-year-olds is still 60 percent, but far less. All states exhibit this relationship.
Many individuals will experience sticker shock when shopping on the exchanges. It is clear that many policies and cross-subsidization within Obamacare will lead to upward shifts in premiums. These policies include the health insurance tax, essential health benefit and actuarial value regulations, less allowed age variability in premiums, community rating, and guaranteed issue.[7] However, real uncertainty, amidst a rocky start, surrounds what enrollment will look like in the exchanges.
Obamacare will leave many people paying more for their health insurance. The healthcare.gov website is learning to crawl, with additional data trickling in. However, based on information already released by HHS, states, and insurance plans, the claims of savings on premiums for the average participant is a fantasy.
Kevin Glass notes that premiums for this demographic more than double in eleven states. It's not much better for 50-year-olds, either. Only in five states do premiums decline, largely because the ACA replaces worse regulation in those states. The same is true for families of four, although the increases are not as sharp, and the decreases in the five states are all less than 7%.
This kind of sticker shock will be epic, and it won't just occur at the point of sale. That's why my column for The Fiscal Times today on the lessons of the shutdown ends on an optimistic note, too:
4 – Cheer up. Despite the undeniable flop of this strategy and the embarrassment of staging a two-week shutdown with nothing to show for it, it's not the end of the world for Republicans. By avoiding the debt limit and potentially crossing the Rubicon of a default (and there is considerable doubt as to whether that would actually be the case), the damage to the GOP will be minimal. The 1996 shutdown did less damage to Republicans than conventional wisdom holds, and in this case the next election won't have an incumbent President on the top of the ticket.
Instead, the focus can now shift to the disastrous impact of the ACA itself, which voters left in place with their choices in 2012. It's not just the federal exchange, which will eventually get fixed. Premiums have skyrocketed . Americans will now have to spend thousands of dollars more on health care whether they receive subsidies on the exchanges or not. The sticker shock on the premium prices will crescendo over the next few weeks, and the out-of-pocket expense growth will continue all year until the midterm elections.
By that time, it won't matter whether we had a partial government shutdown for a couple of weeks, or who won or lost this skirmish. What will matter is that the electorate will finally realize that the so-called Affordable Care Act turned out to be anything but affordable, and that nothing will change as long as Democrats remain in charge. That will give Republicans a chance to incrementally improve their position and prepare for the possibility of a repeal in 2017 – if the coalition on the Right can keep from savaging itself over strategies and tactics in between.
The only path to dismantling ObamaCare is to win elections in 2014 and 2016. That will require the Right to keep its political guns turned outward rather than inward.


text:
It's that time of year again, time to look back at a year of new apps and highlight the ones we liked the most.
So we'd like some help from you, gorgeous Cult of Mac readers – who are all looking particularly good today, might I add? We need to draw up a shortlist of candidates, apps that made a splash on your home screens during the last 12 months.
Which ones delighted you? Which ones entertained you? Which ones left you giggling like a little kid? What about the free apps you wished you could pay for? Or the paid-for apps that you thought were ridiculously cheap? Which were the apps you rushed to tell your friends about, because you were so excited?
Help us out – post your thoughts and suggestions in the comments. Next week we'll round up your suggestions, mix in a few of our own, and run a poll in which you can vote and decide the winner.
Thanks folks! We're looking forward to seeing your recommendations.