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Opening Statements: Applying Rules of the Road to Employment Cases. John A. Beranbaum
- Marianna Mosley
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1 NELA/NY Fall 2014 Conference Opening Statements: Applying Rules of the Road to Employment Cases John A. Beranbaum The book, Rules of the Road: A Plaintiff Lawyer s Guide to Proving Liability (2d Ed. 2010), by Rick Friedman and Patrick Malone, addresses the problem of proving one s case where the standard of liability is vague and/or open-ended. This is a problem faced by personal injury lawyers who in order to prove negligence must show that the defendant failed to use a reasonable standard of care; or, in a malpractice case, that a doctor failed to act as a reasonably competent practitioner; or that a manufacturer made an unreasonably dangerous product; or an insurer breached its duty of good faith and fair dealing. Friedman and Malone warn plaintiff lawyers of the perils of such ill-defined standards of liability. Jurors may become confused in understanding the meaning of reasonable and may invent their own standards; defendants will exploit the ambiguity by making the definition overly complex or adding caveats and escape clauses. To guard against the three evils of Confusion, Complexity and Ambiguity, Friedman and Malone urge plaintiff attorneys to concretize open-ended standards of liability by breaking them down into a set of rules. These rules, according to the authors, can come from a variety of sources: Statutes and regulations Case law Contracts between relevant parties Court rulings in your case 1
2 Testimony of each side s experts or lay witnesses Policy and procedure manuals Admissions in pleadings Textbooks and articles from the professional literature Industry guidelines or mission statements Ethical codes of guidelines Common sense or moral imperatives Rules of the Road at The rules themselves, write the authors, should have five attributes: 1. A requirement that the defendant do, or not do, something. 2. Easy for the jury to understand. 3. A requirement the defense cannot credibly dispute. 4. A requirement the defendant has violated. 5. Important enough in the context of the case that proof of its violation will significantly increase the chance of a plaintiff s verdict. Id. at 22 At first blush, it is not clear whether the Rules of the Road will be especially helpful in employment cases where liability standards generally are defined by statute and are not so indefinite as those set by common law. But just by scratching the surface a little, it is easy to find ambiguity lurking within the statutory, regulatory and case law s liability standards in employment cases. For instance, under Title VII, an employer will be liable for a supervisor s sexual harassment if it failed to exercise reasonable care in preventing and correcting sexual 2
3 harassment. See Faragher v. City of Boca Raton, 524 U.S. 775, 807 (1988). Or, in a retaliation case, a plaintiff establishes liability by show[ing] that a reasonable employee would have found the challenged action materially adverse, which in this context means it well might have dissuaded a reasonable worker from making or supporting a charge of discrimination. Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. White, 548 U.S. 53, 68 (2006). At this year s NELA National Conference, Dennis Egan, longtime NELA member and trial attorney par excellence, told the audience that he has been using Rules of the Road in his employment cases since 2009, and swears by its teachings. Dennis described how he used Rules of the Road in a sexual harassment trial, Carla Ingraham v. UBS Financial, which resulted in a $10.6 million verdict. Dennis culled Friedman and Malone s list of rule sources for the ones most applicable to an employment case. They are: policy and procedure manuals; statutes and regulations; case law and jury instructions; and admissions. Dennis then recounted that in Ingraham, for his opening, he showed the jurors a hardboard with the following Rules of the Road written on it: Employers like UBS have the legal responsibility TO MAINTAIN a workplace FREE of discrimination and harassment that means PREVENT IT from happening in the first place. UBS policies state: All members of management and employers are responsible for ensuring that harassment DOES NOT occur. All employees have the right to work in an environment FREE of discrimination and harassment. All employers who KNOW or SHOULD KNOW that discrimination is happening no matter how it comes to their attention have the legal responsibility to immediately root it out and destroy it. 3
4 UBS like all employers, has the responsibility to protect from retaliation their employees who report possible discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. Two things stand out from Dennis s Rules. First, each one is inarguable. In the 21 st Century, no employer is going to deny employees have the right to work in an environment free of discrimination and harassment. Second, those policy and procedure manuals, so often used against plaintiffs (e.g. you never complained about the harassment to your manager or to HR, even though the employee manual which you received a copy of says that if you are harassed, tell your manager or HR, did you? ) are here put to good use setting the stage for showing that the employer made a promise to all of its employees to not tolerate any workplace of bias and harassment, and broke that promise. Dennis then explained how, when examining the employer s witnesses, he uses the hardboard with the Rules of the Road. When a witness confirms the validity of one or more Rule, Dennis then marks the Rule with a T, for True, and the witness s initials. By the time of the closing, according to Dennis, the jury is so familiar with the Rules he doesn t have to repeat them and saves his energy for showing how the defendant violated them and for damages. In 2011, NELA/NY member Margaret Macintyre and I represented a social worker, Liz Siracuse, in a disability discrimination/fmla case. Ms. Siracuse had worked for a social service agency for 16 years. She received excellent performance evaluations, held a M.S.W. degree, and, all agreed, was absolutely devoted to her job. Ms. Siracuse was diagnosed with cancer, resulting in her taking short leaves of absences for treatment. Eight months after her diagnosis, an opening arose for a supervisor of counselors. The agency passed over Ms. Siracuse for the job in favor of a candidate who was less senior, lacked an advanced degree and who was herself surprised that she got the promotion over Ms. Siracuse. 4
5 The case was tried to a jury, and we received a verdict on the discrimination claim -- somewhere south of $10.6 million. See Siracuse v. Program for the Development of Human Potential, 07 CV 2205, 2012 WL (E.D.N.Y. Apr. 30, 2012). Margaret and I did not have the benefit of knowing about Rules of the Road when we prepared the opening statement. Instead, we prepared a traditional opening statement, describing the evidence in the most persuasive way without crossing over into argument. Had we followed the precepts of Rules of the Road, here is what we may have said in our opening: At the trial, you are going to hear a lot about workplace rules, rules that an employer, like PDHP, must follow. These are rules that both side agree should be followed. The First Rule of the workplace is: An employer should promote the most qualified candidate for the job. The evidence shows that PDHP violated this rule when it did not promote Ms. Siracuse to the supervisor job, and, instead, promoted a less qualified candidate. The Second Rule of the workplace is: In deciding who is the most qualified candidate, an employer needs to consider whose education, job performance and professional experience is superior. The evidence will show that had PDHP followed this Second Rule, it would have selected Ms. Siracuse for the job because she had worked for the agency for 16 years, while the person who got the job had been there only four years; she had a Master s degree in Social Work while 5
6 the successful candidate did not have an advanced degree; she had vast experience in counseling, while the person selected by PDHP had very little. The third rule is that in making a promotion decision, an employer should abide by its own workplace guidelines. The evidence shows that PDHP violated this rule too. One of PDHP s guidelines PDHP is that all of its supervisors must hold an advance degree. Yet the person chosen for the Coordinator job did not have an advanced degree while, as noted, Ms. Siracuse, held a Masters in Social Work. The fourth rule is, an employer, in deciding who to promote, should not hold it against a candidate having taken a medical leave of absence against her. The evidence will show that after she received her diagnosis of cancer, Ms. Siracuse continued working, but some days did not come in because of radiation treatment. However, by the time PDHP made its promotion decision, Ms. Siracuse s doctor had given her a clean bill of health. The evidence will show that PDHP officials, despite what Ms. Siracuse s doctor said, believed she would continue to miss work because of her illness and denied her the promotion. And the fifth and final workplace rule is: An employer may not deny someone a promotion because she has had a disability. None of PDHP s managers would dispute this rule; in fact, PDHP s employee manual states that it is prohibited to discriminate against someone because she has a disability. At the trial, besides hearing that Ms. Siracuse was the more qualified candidate, you will hear testimony from two PDHP managers involved in the promotion decision admitting that when speaking to the Executive Director, Eileen Dwyer, about who to promote, they told her of their concerns about Ms. Siracuse s health. 6
7 The Rules of the Road, first presented during the opening, lays the foundation for a compelling summation. Once again, counsel may take out that hardboard, and go through each Rule, saying to the effect: I told you during the opening that we would prove that defendant violated each of these Rules, and we did. And, then, after demonstrating how each Rule was broken, you mark each one with a decisive check. Using the Rules of the Road goes a long way in resolving the Confusion, Complexity and Ambiguity that the jury experiences when determining whether the defendant discriminated against the plaintiff. By convincing the jury that the defendant violated basic rules of the workplace, the defendant is confirmed to be the wrongdoer. From there, it is only a short step for the jury to conclude that the defendant also broke the law. 7
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Jayne Casey from Big in Japan
Not sure what the source is here, but I like it! Looks Guy Bourdin-ish
Normally I don't really get into Louboutin, but this bag is kind of kicky. I think it depends how large it is though, because if it's oversized, it might push it over the edge.


text:
The more I think about it, the less I see the purpose of Carlos Beltran being ready by Opening Day.
Today and tomorrow he'll be in simulation games. Maybe another DH stint in a minor league game this weekend. That would leave less than a week's worth of minor league games to get ready, and who knows how many would be in right field?
The Mets need Beltran healthy for the purpose of dealing him at the trade deadline because he won't be re-signed, and realistically, will they really be a contender this year?
The plan they devised for Beltran yesterday makes sense to the degree that he won't lose extra games on the DL because they would back date it only the last 10 days of spring training, but in actuality he won't be ready regardless. Plus, with the wet turf and cold weather in early April, the odds are really good of him being re-injured.
The Mets are in position of trying to salvage what they can out of Beltran. He's barely been healthy the past two years and won't get much better in the next week.


text:
I mentioned on Facebook a few days ago I've been working on refashioning a pair of my shoes, and they're done now so I'm going to share them with you!
I love these shoes. They're just inexpensive, cloth shoes that are made kinda in the TOMS style but without the price tag. I think TOMS are really cool; and the mission behind them (giving a pair of shoes to someone who needs them for ever pair that is bought) is awesome but I don't have fifty bucks to drop on a pair of shoes.
These were $10.99 at Ross, which is more up my alley.
Anyway, as any cloth shoes do, they were bound to wear out.
I seem to have a pointy big toe and wear out all of my socks in the toe first, and that's what happened to these sad suckers as well. (is this just me, or does everyone's toes do this?)
I've actually been meaning to fix them for a while, but just hadn't gotten around to it....
then one day I decided: that was the day I'd start fixing my shoes!
I have some fabric that is kind of water-proof feeling...not completely, but it's one of those fabrics you'd make an outdoor tablecloth or something out of.
I just put my shoes on the fabric and cut around the toe and the heel and then had to cut another set of toes and heels out because the first ones were too small when I tried to fold the edges under.
(so maybe you should measure??) ;)
This is a project you can do even if you DON"T have a sewing machine, because these babies were sewn entirely by hand. It didn't take too long either, about an hour a shoe and that's with refereeing kids and fetching snacks every 10 minutes or so.
I got some black thread and my scissors out and just started sewing, folding a tiny bit of edge under as I went for a nice finished look.
I decided to sew fabric around the sole inserts too since it had worn off about two weeks after I bought the shoes. (I never said they weren't cheap...) and I did use my sewing machine for that, but you could do it by hand as well. I just folded the fabric around the foam insert and then sewed around it and cut off the excess fabric.
|The underside of the sole insert
|The top of the sole insert
I really like the way they turned out, although I wish I"d have thought about making them less cool and artsy and more 'match with everything-y'. Oh, well.
I have a few more months at least before the rainy fall/winter season so I'll enjoy my artsy $11 Refashioned shoes from Ross until then...when they'll probably wear out just in time for boot season. :)
Speaking of which...if I had $$$ and $328 to blow...ahem invest on in a pair of boots, I'd get these:
Frye Melissa Button Boots in Cognac Vintage....they are just so pretty.
So are virtually any other boots by Frye. I stumbled across them last spring and still think they're beautiful.
A girl can dream, right? ;)


text:
A Florida-based developer has submitted a proposal to build a six-story, 210-room Hilton hotel in downtown Burbank, city officials said.
At roughly 40,000 square feet, the proposed Hilton Garden Inn for the corner of South San Fernando Boulevard and Verdugo Avenue would replace an existing retail building, auto repair shop and an auto sales lot.
According to the application submitted by FPG Development Group, the hotel would include a restaurant and bar in the lobby, and a pool and fitness center on the second floor.


text:
Bits & Bytes (v23n1)
Tiny Triumph
Marking a major milestone in the field of nanotechnology the science of manipulating matter at the submolecular level, scientists at the TechnionIsrael Institute of Technology have used DNA to create a self-assembling nanoscale transistor, according to a report in the journal Science. Researchers have attached a carbon nanotube to a specific site on a DNA strand and then constructed metal nanowires out of DNA molecules at the ends of the nanotube. Proteins on the DNA strands and nanowires bind to each other without human intervention. The resulting device is a transistor that can be switched on and off by applying voltage.
Technion researchers have cautioned that building working devices from self-assembling transistors will take time. Meanwhile, several futurists, including former Sun Microsystems scientist Bill Joy, have written of the peril that could come from devices that can build themselves.
Cuffed and Stuffed
Marking an international cybercrime sweep that involved everyone from U.S. Secret Service agents to police officers in Africa, U.S. attorney general John Ashcroft announced in November that 125 Internet crime suspects were arrested. The crimes ranged from hacking to attempting to sell stolen goods on eBay. Millions of dollars of allegedly stolen funds were collected.


text:
NewsGator (news, site) has released a couple of new tools for SharePoint. Technically they are for their Enterprise 2.0 solution Social Sites, which is built on top of SharePoint, but close enough.
Connecting to SharePoint via your iPhone
The iPhone is a mobile client for Social Sites, allowing users to do things like:
- Send status updates and view updates from others
- Upload videos and photos
- Comment on updates
- View notifications if someone comments on your updates
- Participate in discussions
- Look up contact information for other users
Along with the iPhone client, there will also be an iPad client available -- with all the same capabilities -- when that product hits the shelves.
Back in December we talked with J.B. Holston, NewsGator CEO and President, about the future of social computing. When we talked about predictions for 2010, Holston said that enterprises will have to directly confront mobile.
With the increased popularity of the iPhone and the new buzz -- no not Google Buzz -- around the upcoming iPad, it makes sense that NewsGator would provide clients to its SharePoint solution as one of their first steps in the mobile access arena.
Microblogging in the Enterprise
One of the other things Holston talked about back in December, was that NewsGator would be releasing enterprise microblogging capabilities for SharePoint as well. Back then, we were told to expect it before the end of the year, so it's a little late arriving.
NewsGator's microblogging suite is integrated into Social Sites offering functionality such as:
- A global conversation page showing all updates for everyone
- The ability to send messages to specific people or a community
- The ability to view community streams and conversation modules
- Hashtag support
- The ability to offer feedback via a "like" button
- Emails for updates and notifications like comments or "likes"
- Standard and custom filtering
- Inline viewing of attachments like photos or videos
In addition, the NewsGator microblogging suite offers new APIs to integrate consuming and publishing activity information in other applications.
It's all available Now
If you are using Social Sites, both the iPhone client and the microblogging suite are available in version 3.1 today. Otherwise, head over to NewsGator's website and check out all the functionality included in Social Sites 3.1 to see how SharePoint has been leveraged to provide an enterprise social computing solution.


text:
4.12 The Data Privacy Set of rules
The following set of rules deals with privacy-related issues. Many content providers offer pay-per-view channels as part of their services. From a technical point of view, this implies having a Key Server that ciphers the stream with a symmetric encryption key and delivers such key to authorized members only. However, this is not enough: it is crucial that the Key Server renews the encryption key after the expiration of a peer's authorization period so the stream can not be decrypted any more by the peer (this feature is called forward secrecy). In addition, if we want to play on the safe side then the Key Server should renew the encryption key after a peer purchases an authorization period (if the key remained the same then the peer might decrypt previously captured stream packets for a later viewing). This renewal process is not trivial and is carried out by a secure multicast protocol. In order to alleviate the overhead incurred by avalanches of peers entering and leaving the authorized group (for example, at the beginning of a high interest event such as The Olympics) key renewal can be performed on a batch manner, i.e. renewing the key at a given fixed frequency rather than on a per arrival/exit basis. Finally, key renewal messages should be authenticated by means of a digital signature or other alternative methods [20].
Many secure multicast protocols protocols exist in the literature, for example [25, 15, 28, 27]. Here we suggest the implementation of a protocol by Naranjo et al [18]. On it, every authorized peer receives a large prime number from the Key Server at the beginning of its authorization period (this communication is done under a secure channel, for example SSL/TLS). For every renewal, the Key Server generates a message containing the new key to be used by means of algebraic operations: all the authorized primes are involved in this message generation process, and the key can only be extracted from the message by a peer with a valid prime. This protocol is efficient and suits P2PSP architecture in a natural way: every splitter can act as a Key Server for its own team. Hence, the stream would be first transmitted among splitters (possible encrypted by a different key, shared by the splitters). Within each team, its corresponding splitter would control the encryption and key renewal process.


text:
Magazine article The Christian Century
Standard Deviation
Article excerpt
WHEN ALFRED Charles Kinsey was hired as an assistant professor of zoology at Indiana University in 1920, he began a two-decade study of the gall wasp, collecting over 1 million samples. He loved the gall wasp, he said, because each one was totally different from the others. In 1938, at the behest of curious students, lie taught a course called "Marriage" that was designed to dispel the sexual myths that were confounding and frustrating young people. ("Is it true that oral sex can cause problems getting pregnant? Will excessive masturbation lead to impotence?")
Kinsey gave the students what they wanted, and then some. Soon his students were taking a written questionnaire about their sex lives. Then he designed a 350-question interview process, and within two years Kinsey and colleagues were traveling across the country conducting thousands of interviews. They discovered that when it came to sex, each subject was totally different from the others.
Kinsey, written and directed by Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters), is in many ways a traditional Hollywood biopic. What makes this tale intense is the degree to which Kinsey's life was his work--not only in the amount of time he spent at it, but also in the way he used his research to explain and exorcise the demons in his own life.
In developing that point, Condon employs a fascinating and comprehensive expository device: he has Kinsey (Liam Neeson) detail his life through the very interview process he invented. (The film begins with Kinsey off-screen, castigating a member of his team for shoddy interviewing technique.) Together with appropriately placed flashbacks, this Q-and-A format allows us to learn about Kinsey's lonely and sickly childhood, his mastery of the outdoors (in 1913 he was one of only 77 Eagle Scouts in the U.S.), and his difficult relationship with his dogmatic and demanding father (John Lithgow), an engineering professor and Methodist preacher who would howl about the sins of lust. (In one sermon, he bemoans the invention of the zipper, which "provides every man and boy speedy access to moral oblivion.")
We also learn about his marriage to his onetime student, Clara McMillen (Laura Linney); the birth of his three children; his insatiable curiosity about all things scientific; and his frustration at the sexual ignorance that surrounds him. …


text:
"Dr. Hyman, I recently read how endocrine disruptors like environmental toxins can interfere with your hormones," writes this week's house call. "I'm really freaked out. I feel like my house is full of toxins. How can I minimize their impact?"
Unfortunately, today we've become exposed to a greater number of environmental toxins than ever before. Sadly, many experts fail to connect the dots between toxicity and diabesity, which has hit record numbers.
Environmental toxins can feed cancer, interfere with glucose and cholesterol metabolism and induce insulin resistance and obesity through multiple mechanisms including inflammation, oxidative stress, mitochondrial injury, altered thyroid metabolism and impaired central appetite regulation.
As a result, we see a dramatic increase in obesity among newborn babies. In 2006, scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health found obesity rates in infants less than six months old rose an alarming 73 percent since 1980.
This obesity epidemic among six-month-olds is not related to diet or lack of exercise. After all, babies live on breast milk or formula and love. They don't say, "Hey, Mom, take me out for a 1,200-calorie fast food breakfast or a giant tub of buttered popcorn."
Likewise, watching too much television is not a risk factor. What's going on instead is probably due to environmental toxins in their little bodies.
The average newborn has 287 chemicals in the umbilical cord blood, 217 of which are neurotoxic. They include pesticides, phthalates, bisphenol A, flame retardants and heavy metals such as mercury, lead and arsenic. These chemicals have a broad range of negative effects on adults, so just think how badly they affect babies.
Toxins to Remove Today
To minimize this detrimental impact, look through a few of the Environmental Working Group's (EWG) Dirty Dozen Endocrine Disruptors. These hormone disruptors lead to huge challenges, so you want to watch out for them. Let's briefly look at a few:
- Bisphenol A (BPA) – found in plastic water bottles and canned foods, BPA is a synthetic hormone that imitates estrogen in the body. Studies link BPA to breast cancer, reproductive challenges, obesity and heart disease. To minimize BPA exposure, stay away from plastic. Use stainless steel or glass instead, and look for BPA-free canned foods.
- Phthalates – also in plastic food containers. Some children's toys also contain phthalates, so you want to be careful especially if your children are young and teething. Many makeup products also carry phthalates, so avoid products that contain "fragrance." Stick with all-natural products that have only a few familiar ingredients. Phthalates also wreak hormonal havoc. Studies link phthalates with cancer, birth defects and thyroid issues. Check out EWG's skin deep database to see where your cosmetics rank on the toxicity scale. If you wouldn't eat it, you shouldn't put it on your skin because everything gets absorbed into your body.
- Glycol ethers – household cleaning products, cosmetics and paints contain glycol ethers which can damage fertility, lead to birth defects and worsen allergies and asthma.
I could go on with others like mercury, lead and arsenic, yet you get the message: All these toxins can create major diseases and should be avoided when possible. That's why it so important to eat clean, organic, grass-fed meat and plant-based foods.
While avoiding all of these toxins might become overwhelming, following these eight strategies help you reduce your burden:
8 Strategies
- Maximize your phytonutrients. Eat whole, real foods, especially cruciferous veggies like broccoli, bok choy, kale and Brussels sprouts to maximize your dietary phytonutrients and increase your body's ability to detoxify. Choose foods high in antioxidants like dark, green leafy veggies and berries. Garlic and onions can also help you detoxify. My 10-Day Detox program can help you incorporate these and other delicious, phytonutrient-packed foods.
- Avoid plastics. I recommend stainless steel water bottles and glass containers like Pyrex to store leftovers. Instead of buying water in plastic bottles, install a filter at home. I like reverse-osmosis filters. You can find great ones online.
- Detox your home. Stick with natural, simple products. Thrive Market, my favorite online market, carries the best cleaners from Seventh Generation and other eco-friendly, non-toxic companies. Check out EWG's skin-deep guide. They also have a great guide to reduce toxic household cleaning products. You can even make your own body products using coconut oil and other ingredients. If you can eat it and also put it on your skin, that's even better!
- Stop eating mercury. Stick with small, cold water fish like salmon that have lower mercury levels. Choose organic fruits and vegetables to minimize environmental toxin exposure. The EWG also has a list of fishwith low mercury levels. Use their Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 lists of fruits and veggies to help you cut out toxins from your food.
- Exercise and sweat. Exercise and sweating help rid your body of toxins. Get moving and try a sauna or steam bath.
- Take quality supplements to support detoxification including zinc,vitamin C and vitamin B Complex, as well as special glutathione-boosting compounds such as n-acetyl-cysteine, alpha-lipoic acid and milk thistle.
- Get chelated. Medical therapy with heavy metal chelators can lower mercury, lead, arsenic and other toxic metals. You'll want to work closely with a Functional Medicine practitioner if you suspect heavy metals are an issue.
- Address toxicity in your home. If you suspect lead or other poisons in paint or floors, consult an expert to remove these safely.
You can't eliminate toxins, but you can definitely reduce exposure to these endocrine disruptors. It simply involves investigative work, switching to safer products and following the above eight strategies. Once you get the hang of it, you can live clean and green without much effort.
11 pounds in 22 days?
baking soda
Is it REALLY possible to lose 11 lbs. of fat in 22 days? Actually yes… BUT only when you're a level 4 fat burner. Unfortunately, most people are stuck as level 1 fat burners. So, how do you become a level 4 fat burner to lose up to 11 lbs. in 22 days? Simply eat these foods daily:
==> Lose up to 11 lbs. in 22 days by eating these foods daily (upgrades you to level 4 fat burning status)
In April, 2009, researchers stunned the medical community when they reported chronic inflammation as the root cause of several major diseases.
See, every year 610,000 people in the U.S. die of heart disease. Cancer claims another 584,000...stroke 130,000...Alzheimer's disease nearly 85,000 — and the list goes on.
Truth is, we now know... chronic inflammation is responsible for 7 out of the top 10 leading causes of death in the United States! Hundreds of studies and scientific reviews prove it.
Fortunately, newer research shows you can prevent-even reverse-most major diseases by "turning off" inflammation. And in our new book, we show you how to do just that.
If you or a loved one is suffering from a debilitating condition-and you"re not sure what the culprit is-now's the time to find out...while you can still do something about it!
Get the Free Inflammation Book
--> Grab your FREE copy of this groundbreaking soft cover book today (while supplies still last.)
The #1 "bodyfat-eating" hormone...
To begin, I apologize for the dark nature of today's email.
However I promise what you'll discover today will be completely worth it.
Imagine a rotting corpse draped over your body from head to toe...
...suffocating tissue, restricting blood flow, damaging joints and infecting your healthy cells.
Shockingly, that nightmare is a reality for most:
64% of women and 74% of men carry too much body fat according to the National Institutes of Health.
It's choking their organs, assaulting their metabolism and sucking their energy dry.
But here's the worst part:
For most, this bodyfat has become "calorie-resistant":
It's completely unaffected by even the strictest diets... and most intense exercises.
This zombie fat is essentially... "dead tissue".
That's important for those who have 10, 25 or 50 or more pounds to lose...
AND for those who aren't technically overweight, but have what's called "pocket obesity"...
...unsightly patches of fat that cling to specific places, like:
just above your hips, lower belly, where your butt and legs meet... and even arms, neck and face.
However, there's good news:
Obesity researchers have now discovered a "metabolic jumper cable":
It jolts dead bodyfat back to life.
This allows your metabolism to burn it as calories and re-energize your entire body.
First though, here's the #1 reason why bodyfat becomes calorie-resistant:
It lacks blood flow. This has 3 effects:
- Not enough oxygen or nutrients reach fat cells, so they become unresponsive..
- Released fat can't be sent to other tissues to be burned, so fat cells suck it back in...
- 3) Metabolic hormones carrying the "burn calories" message don't reach the fat cell...
All this means one thing:
Your body can't transform into energy, the 135,000+ of calories the average person stores as fat!
You become a metabolic zombie: NO energy to think. NO energy to move. NO energy to motivate.
Update: calorie-resistant bodyfat can be now removed...
The discovery of this "metabolic jumper cable" can now reverse this process:
- It wakes up un-responsive bodyfat with a powerful calorie-burning hormonal jolt....
- It pops open fat cells, sucks out the fat, sending it off before its yanked back in...
- It shuttles fat to your brain, heart, lungs, kidneys - even your bones - to be burned as energy.
Not only do those layers of "zombie fat" start coming off, but your entire body just works better.
Plus, as your whole body burns more calories, those patches of pocket obesity whittle away.
This "metabolic jumper cable" isn't any exercise, machine or pill.
It's a little-known, calorie-burning hormone we all have... just waiting for the right spark to come alive.
It's not thyroid, leptin, ghrelin, insulin, adiponectin, HGH or any other "fat loss" hormone you may know.
And on this next page, you'll find out precisely how to unleash its calorie-burning power:
==> How to Activate Your #1 "Bodyfat-Eating" Hormone...
How to Activate Your #1 "Bodyfat-Eating" Hormone
PS - Studies show that not only can healthy levels of this powerful calorie-burning hormone devour bodyfat and fortify soft muscle, but it can also reduce your risk of diabetes by 53.7%, a heart attack by 83.3% and stroke by 51.4%. Here's more of the scientific proof...
#1 muscle that eliminates joint and back pain, anxiety and looking fat
I bet you can't guess which muscle in your body is the #1 muscle that eliminates joint and back pain, anxiety and looking fat.
This "hidden survival muscle" in your body will boost your energy levels, immune system, sexual function, strength and athletic performance when unlocked.
If this "hidden" most powerful primal muscle is healthy, we are healthy.
Is it…
a) Abs
b) Chest
c) Glutes
d) Hip Flexors
Take the quiz above and see if you got the correct answer!
--> Which muscle makes you look fat?
P.S. Make sure you check out the next page to get to know the 10 simple moves that will bring vitality back into your life!
I Can't Help Showing This Off...
If you haven't heard of Claude Davis yet do yourself a huge favor and watch this video. He's going to be the talk of 2016.
One of the smartest guys I ever had the pleasure of meeting, Claude set-up a unique system that changed his life forever.
I already tried it myself and let me tell... you I was completely blown away... His surprising tactics could make your life easier and give you the peace of mind you deserve.
Don't just take my word for it... watch his short video and decide for yourself.
Is Bread Really the Staff of Life… or the Stuff of Disease?
For most us, there are few foods more comforting than bread.
Fluffy biscuits, crusty baguettes, flaky croissants… even a simple slice of toast topped with melted butter can taste like heaven.
And that smell… few scents are quite as pleasant as fresh bread baking in the oven.
But there is a lot of confusion as to where bread fits into a healthy diet.
The Bible practically commands followers to eat it: "Give us this day our daily bread…" The government put it at the base of the food pyramid. And for centuries, it has been called "the staff of life."
Of course, there are some who disagree…
Well-known cardiologist, Dr. William Davis, calls wheat "the perfect chronic poison."
And for a poison, we sure eat lots of it…
The average American consumes 55 pounds of wheat flour every year, making refined flour the #1 source of calories in the American Diet – a situation that nutrition expert Chris Kresser describes as, "a public health catastrophe."
So, what is the truth about bread and wheat?
- Is it the perfect poison… or an essential daily food?
- Is "gluten-free" bread better for you than regular bread?
- And can you still eat bread… while maintaining a lean body and optimal health?
The answers to these questions may surprise you!
The 5 dangerous lies about bread…
Be sure to read #5 – the biggest surprise of all!
Do You Know Your Body's Most Important Weight Loss Secret?
Recently, Doctor of Naturopathy, weight-loss expert and best-selling Amazon author Liz Swann Miller, creator of the Red Smoothie Detox Factor, revealed 2 of the secrets to easy, steady weight loss. Secrets the big food corporations do their best to hide from us.
Secret #1: Enjoy real food. Don't fall for the lie that you have to deprive yourself to lose weight.
Secret #2: stop eating out. You will automatically eat less without even noticing.
Then start detoxing your body with tasty, nourishing smoothies that are just as easy on your wallet as they are easy to make.
Because a single day of enjoying Liz' smoothies demonstrated the radical power of her superfood-packed red smoothies to make me feel incredibly good.
Now prepare yourself for one of the biggest weight loss secrets there is. A secret that, when you use it properly, can transform your body and your health.
You probably know most of us eat too much processed food. What you may not know is that it's full of toxic chemicals and substandard, dirt-cheap ingredients designed to make you eat more…and force you to gain weight.
Here's how it works.
"That stuff is just a lot of calories your body can't use," Liz told me, "Some are poison. And all these foods are stripped of the anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatories that help your body detox. The result? Your body expends huge amounts of calories to eliminate some toxins—the rest, it stores in your fat to protect you. This is why most people are hungry all the time. They're not getting energy they need."
"So… what's going on with me? Why am I losing weight but not going hungry?"
Liz paused, then dropped the bombshell.
Your body is designed to burn fat. You just have to let it.
"What? I thought we were designed to store fat?!?" We were Skyping and I was practically shouting. Then I heard Liz say…
What good is a fat reserve if you can't burn it?
Mind blown.
Liz continued: "You're drinking smoothies packed with phytonutrients, anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatories that pull toxins out of you like a tractor beam. Allowing your body to burn those toxin-filled fat stores… and releasing tremendous amounts of stored energy."
So that's why I'm losing weight without going hungry.
Watch Liz' free presentation. It's packed with revolutionary weight loss information—information that works. Because it's based on how nature.
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Sponsored Health Resources
In the years that I've been working on this website project I've come across some amazing resources by some very special people. I'd like to share them with you here.
NOTE: I update these links often so please check back to see what's new!
1) Everyone knows green smoothies are healthy right? Have you heard of a "red" smoothie? If not, check out this story…
--> "Red" Smoothie Helps Alabama Girl Shed 80lbs!
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3) This "hidden survival muscle" in your body will boost your energy levels, immune system, sexual function, strength and athletic performance when unlocked.
--> #1 muscle that eliminates joint and back pain, anxiety and looking fat
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--> Your Birth Date + Name - Free Report
5) Turmeric is amazing. The problem is - It's hard to absorb!
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6) Wonder why your stomach still sticks out even though you're hammering the core exercises every day? It's a common myth that bulging belly is due to weak abdominal muscles.
--> Why Some People LOOK Fat that Aren't
7) Even if you're the most active of athletes, you may still suffer from tight hip flexors due to the amount of time you spend each day planted to a chair.
Enjoy! Let me know how these work out for you. And if you run across anything I've missed please let me know.
Rick D.


text:
The accessories are not available
It is not available. Please contact the authorised service center
Sandwich Maker with a Triangular Baking Surface
More info >
Prepares 4 triangular sandwiches, grilled meat or waffles
Sandwich Maker, prepare 8 triangle sandwiches
Prepare 4 triangle sandwiches
3-in-1 Sandwich / Waffle Maker and Grill
Suitable for grilling meat, paninis, vegetables, etc.
Prepares 2 square-shaped sandwiches
Sandwich Maker


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Representatives of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) made comments about accounting for income taxes during a recent conference.
Also, the SEC recently issued comments about taxes to SEC registrants.
Read a March 2018 report [PDF 84 KB] prepared by KPMG LLP: What's News in Tax: SEC and FASB Comments on Accounting for Income Taxes
The KPMG logo and name are trademarks of KPMG International. KPMG International is a Swiss cooperative that serves as a coordinating entity for a network of independent member firms. KPMG International provides no audit or other client services. Such services are provided solely by member firms in their respective geographic areas. KPMG International and its member firms are legally distinct and separate entities. They are not and nothing contained herein shall be construed to place these entities in the relationship of parents, subsidiaries, agents, partners, or joint venturers. No member firm has any authority (actual, apparent, implied or otherwise) to obligate or bind KPMG International or any member firm in any manner whatsoever. The information contained in herein is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavor to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act on such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the particular situation. For more information, contact KPMG's Federal Tax Legislative and Regulatory Services Group at: + 1 202 533 4366, 1801 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20006.


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Sky has nowhere to turn. Only one man can keep her safe, but he's the most dangerous of them all. Her only choice is to put herself in Jax's hands. Even if it destroys them both.
Note: "All of You" is a standalone hot contemporary romance. It's one of four "All In" novels, which can be read in any order, with some crossover characters
AVAILABLE: May 24, 2017
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
**I received an ARC from Sassy Savvy Fabulous PR in exchange for a honest review.**
Twitter: www.twitter.com/alyseypoo21
Bloglovin': https://www.bloglovin.com/alyseypoo21
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+AlyseNovak
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/alyseypoo21


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YapStone Marketing Team Recognized as a 2017 MarCom Gold Award Winner
November 15
YapStone's marketing team was recently recognized as a MarCom 2017 gold award winner for the "Under One Roof – A Collection of RentPayment Stories" marketing campaign. The MarCom awards honor excellence in marketing and communication. The Under One Roof campaign was a resident promotion for RentPayment that ran from March 2017 – October 2017. RentPayment is a service of YapStone and the leading payment solution in the multifamily industry.
Learn more about the MarCom awards HERE.


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61 photos
$450,000 37 acres 18042 County Road 1310, Anadarko, OK 73005 - Caddo County
PRICE REDUCTION --- Custom Built Lake Home (2700 sq. ft MOL) w/37 Acres MOL
Custom Built Lake Home (2700 sq. ft MOL) & 30x40 Shop w/? 37 Acres MOL?CADDO COUNTY OKLAHOMA This SUPER NICE 37-Acre Waterfront Property is ready for the person who likes to fish or hunt. This Custom Home was built in 2013. Sit out on your covered patio and overlook a beautiful Corp of Engineers lake that normally would never come up for sale. It is pavement all the way to this property. You will own largest portion of the lake (the body). Only the tributaries are owned by other parties. The entire dam is located on your property. It has complete pavement frontage. This 37 Acres MOL is For Sale in Caddo County Oklahoma! It is located north of Anadarko just off Highway 281. This would be a retirement home or a weekend warrior, spo
Robbie Potts Mossy Oak Properties of the Heartland Midwest Farm and Land


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We know you are here, our brothers and sisters . .Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook
Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run.
Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . .
There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it's his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her.
When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.
Publication Date: February 8th, 2012
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Country: United States
Original Language: English
Age Group: Young Adult
Genre: Dystopian/Post-Apocalyptic/Romance
Source: NetGalley ARC
Buy the Book: Amazon
Lootability: Grab it and Go!
Pure is the new dystopian novel, and the first book in a new series by Julianna Baggott. Set in northern America after an event known as the 'Detonations', the world has been decimated and the survivors have had to adapt to their world in strange and terrifying ways. Many people were fused to strange objects thanks to the radioactive effects of the Detonations, while others have been changed into strange creatures of stone and dirt known as Dusts.
There are, however, a number of those who survived the detonations untouched. Protected by the dome, is an entire civilisation is safe from the poisoned earth, and undamaged by the detonations, they are known as Pures.
What I liked: I was fascinated by the fusings. It was confusing to begin with; I didn't really understand that these objects had fused into their skins and become a part of them. It is eventually explained and when it is...mind blown. It's the most amazing consequence of an apocalyptic world I've ever come across.
Pressia and Partidge both grow exponentially as characters; they start off quite naive, and let their experiences mature them.
The plot is confusing in some parts, but begins making sense as things go along. It is complex and engaging story that kept me desperate to read more (and distracted me during work!)
What I didn't like: As I've said, there were a lot of confusing aspects of the story that almost had me giving up. Fortunately, the characters were so engaging that I couldn't help myself. A lot of the talk of the Detonations and the evil plans of the Pures got a little too overbearing, and much too technical for me. Especially with all the talk of engineering, genetics and coding. I know there needs to be a history to the story but sometimes they get a little confusing.
|Grab it and go!


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Huffington Post
The man charged with killing one student and wounding two others at a small Seattle college last week had stopped taking his medications because he "wanted to feel the hate," and he detailed his plans in a handwritten journal for two weeks before the attack, a prosecutor said Tuesday.
"I just want people to die, and I'm gonna die with them!" Aaron Ybarra wrote the day of the shooting, King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said.
Satterberg released new details of the allegations as he filed charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder and assault against Ybarra, 26. Satterberg is seeking a sentence of life in prison.
Authorities say Ybarra has been held without bail and is on suicide watch at the county jail since a student pepper-sprayed him and ended the rampage Thursday at Seattle Pacific University.
Ybarra's lawyer, Ramona Brandes, has said her client has a long history of mental issues but is aware of the trauma caused by the shooting and is sorry. She said Tuesday that no decision has been made yet on whether he will seek a mental-illness defense.
"We have to look at his symptoms he manifested in the past, his treatment and his jail records to determine whether his mental illness arises to the level of a defense. These are choices he's going to be involved in," Brandes told The Seattle Times. "He wasn't on his meds and he committed an action that is incomprehensible. Had he been on his meds, would this have happened? We'll continue asking that for all time."


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Oct 8, 2007. Ooh la la.
Why can't I get the images to align the way I have chosen? Back to the FAQs.
ps this is the restaurant where Mr Bean had the langoustine and oyster incident in Mr Bean's Holiday
My son hates dressing up and he earlier this year earned the nickname UndieMan for preferring undies and singlet to a costume. But we recently coaxed him into this Batman outfit for a friend's fairy party. Yes, you read that correctly – it was fairies/princesses and pirates but our only options were fireman, Batman or ninja. We felt it safer to leave the nunchucks at home so Batman it was. Alas we couldn't get him to stick with the cape and mask. Isn't he the skinniest superhero ever?
This film review first appeared in The West Australian Newspaper
Rated M
Starring Travis McMahon, David Lyons, Bryan Brown
Directed by Jocelyn Yuen-Carrucan
2.5 stars
The tedium and isolation of driving thousands of kilometres through the Australian outback is hammered home almost a little too effectively in this low budget debut feature from writer-director Jasmine Yuen-Carrucan.
An hour in and two questions spring to mind: are we there yet or are we on the road to nowhere?
Cinematographer Florian Emmerich captures the vastness and desolation of this wide brown land but splendid landscapes do not compensate for the stilted interaction between the lead characters for much of their journey.
The film opens with a violent kidnapping in Sydney. The city lights quickly fade into the distance as John Kelly (Travis McMahon) takes to the open road in his 1970s Ford Fairmont XA.
Dispensing with set-up, Yuen-Carrucan leaves the audience for much of the film unsure of where John's going, who his bound and gagged passenger is or his motivation.
What we do glean is that John seems suspicious of Holden drivers and is probably a family man given the stuffed toy on the back seat and other subtle paraphernalia.
During a moment of inattention John veers in front of a police car but it seems it's his "lucky" day.
Instead of writing John a ticket or worse still, popping the boot, grizzled country cop Rosco lets him off with a warning to not cause trouble on his patch. Rosco is feeling generous because tomorrow he's giving up cigarettes for his wife's birthday and will be in one hell of a bad mood.
Screen veteran Bryan Brown, who served as the film's executive producer, has the small but pivotal role of Rosco.
The drive continues with the kidnap victim, a professional gambler called Eli (David Lyon's from TV navy drama Sea Patrol) now in the back seat.
Eli has upset a few people with a bogus footy tipping competition but that's not why he has been kidnapped. As the kilometres tick over, Eli slowly and provocatively chips away at John's silence.
Eli's sometimes dangerous line of questioning reveals how much John has been paid for the job. He hits a raw nerve when he asks if the cash-strapped man's family has any idea that he is out committing such a brutal crime.
The slow-drip of information may have been part of the writer's plan to build psychological tension but it limits the audience's ability to bond with captor or victim when it comes to the crunch.
Suspense finally builds in a flurry after a road train driver (Shane Jacobsen) stumbles across Eli, locked in the car with The Wiggles' Hot Potato on repeat as punishment.
The fateful encounter causes John's supposedly straight forward plan to rapidly unravel, changing the dynamic between captor and captive.
It is at this point that the road movie/hostage thriller finally gets us to sit up and pay attention by hurling at us the concepts of good and bad luck, morality and justice.
Alas it feels like too little, too late.
This review first appeared in The West Australian Newspaper
Rated M
Starring Kevin Spacey, Jim Sturgess, Kate Bosworth
Directed by Robert Luketic
3.5 stars
Movie makers love Las Vegas and Las Vegas loves the camera. The fountains of the Bellagio, the panoramic aerial shots of the casino strip, the neon lights, even the seedy underbelly have becomes staples of the cinema and more recently television.
I can't play cards to save my life but Australian director Robert Luketic (Legally Blonde) succeeds in making Vegas look so darn appealing even I wanted to get on the next flight.
Alas this seductive allure comes at a price and that's the sacrifice of character development.
The transformation of maths genius Ben Campbell (British actor Jim Sturgess) from straight-A student nervously stuffing wads of cash in his pants to confident Las Vegas party animal living it up in bars and strip clubs is lightning fast.
So fast that when the chips are down, it's a little hard to empathise with Ben's won it all then lost it predicament. Ben and his buddies are brainiacs and with or without money they are going places.
Ben is a math student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology whose potential is spotted and preyed upon by professor Micky Rosa (a predictably malevolent Kevin Spacey).
Studious Ben lives in a dorm room, works part time in a clothing store and spends his spare time working on a robot project with equally nerdy mates.
But Ben's life changes the night he is summoned by Rosa to view his team's unusual but profitable extra curricular activity; card counting to make a killing at blackjack.
Rosa's gang spend weekends living it up in Las Vegas penthouse suites and running their card counting operation using disguises and a sophisticated series of code words and signals.
Sensible Ben has no interest in joining until he receives a persuasive visit from Jill Taylor (Kate Bosworth, who get to look gorgeous and not a lot else), the hot chick he has long admired from afar. He figures he will give it a go but will quit as soon as he has the $300,000 he needs for medical school.
The film was inspired by Ben Mezrich's best-selling novel Bringing Down the House, in which the lead character Kevin Lewis was based on the exploits of Asian American MIT student Jeff Ma.
What a pity the filmmakers weren't brave enough to cast an Asian actor as the lead rather than relegating the Asian cast to stereotypical parts as high rollers and proprietors and patrons of a seedy gambling den.
Even the lead Asian character Choi (Aaron Yoo of Disturbia) seems to have been cast purely for comic value. That said it's hard to think of any young Asian actor with a high enough profile to fit the bill.
Ben's world comes crashing down like the proverbial house of cards when he breaks Rosa's golden rule. That's also about where Luketic starts pushing his luck with the audience, making the film a good 20 minutes too long and throwing in a Hollywood revenge twist.
Although card counting is not illegal it is not exactly welcomed by Vegas casino bosses. Enter old school security expert Cole Williams (Laurence Fishburne), who is not beyond dishing out a bit of biffo to end a suspicious winning streak.
He's a man about to be made redundant by new surveillance technology but for now is the one thing that stands between Ben's team operating unfettered.
I never did get my head around the count counting caper so guess I'll continue working for a living, although it's an entertaining notion that brain power not just luck or cheating could make you rich in Vegas.
Ok, the image has reappeared but the text is so small it can't be read by anyone but ants. I'm working on it. I think I like this new theme, I was never keen on the old one's green hues. Not sure why there seem to be so many text sizes and a mix of fonts.
Hmm, long time between entries. I have even taken the web address off my signature, for fear of people seeing how few and far between the updates have been.
I just tried to change my header image and the whole thing has vanished; something to investigate tomorrow.
All that is about to change; I am going to write more often, and write in Word first.
I had been considering joining the 100 Words website and figured I'd be better served making more of an effort to write 100 words to publish myself!
I've also changed my attitude to this whole blogging thing. I think I'll just write whatever takes my fancy and whatever pops into my head; within reason. After all, I don't fancy defending myself on a defamation charge!
While I am still not actively promoting this blog's existence, I do hope anyone stumbling upon this or visiting it intentionally are amused, inspired, perplexed but hopefully not peeved!
I'm also planning to upload more photos. Not having the Fuji Finepix 6500 for a whole month really took the fun out of taking photos. I'm also looking into upgrading from the Sony Ericsson k750i to a 3-5 megapixel camera, perhaps a Nokia. Still researching that one.


text: These turned out so great! So colorful and creative. First, students painted background papers. Second, they used geometric shaped cardboard cut outs for their tree houses and traced them. Third, they colored their houses. Next, we talked about trees, their textures and tinted and shaded trunks with bumpy lines. Some students added tissue paper leaves with veins. The children's personalities' shine in these artworks!


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Contrary to the preamble to the Charter of the United Nations which emphasises the determination of the United Nations to reaffirm faith in "…. the equal rights of men and women", African women and girls face multifarious challenges among which are limited access to education, job scarcity, discrimination at work place, physical assault including sexual assaults, rape, sexual abuse of children, and child marriage and pregnancy. It is therefore not surprising that African Union made a strong call at its latest summit, held in January, for the integration of African women in societies as part of 2063 goals.
Nigeria does not have a comprehensive data on cases of abuse of women and domestic violence because of the silence of victims in most cases. They prefer to stay silent because of societal stigma, and the consequences that publicity may cause to their career and family. Women assault is also common among married women and ability to remain silent in the face of assault is considered as one of the hallmarks of humility in marriage.
I went to this length in unravelling the plights of women and girls in Africa so that as the world celebrates womanhood today, a reminder may be sent to the women society reminding her that the world must have a cursory look at the welfare of women in the 21st century Africa because the WELFARE of African women (being the most marginalised) speaks volume of the welfare of women across the globe.
In a recent Google+ pool coordinated by James Novak; Arizona Criminal Defence Attorney and one of the co-owners of Plus Attorneys and Friends Community, majority of the voters shared their sentiments on why they think that death penalty should be abolished, majority of those who voted in support of death penalty placed particular emphasis on it with regard to offences that has to do with rape.
While I reflected on this, I had cause to consider the abduction of the Chibok girls in Borno, Nigeria, and I allowed my mind to freely think over whether it was not best that a terrorist who has masterminded possible sexual abuse of young girls be prosecuted for crime against humanity? The abduction of the Chibok girls remain the most grievous injury to the celebration of womanhood in the 21st century Nigeria, and nobody knows if those girls will come back as women or the girls that they were when they were kidnapped!
The above narrative represents some of the dilemmas faced by women in Africa, but in the face of it all, I cannot but agree with Annie Lennox that the essential goals of feminism should be the attainment of a world where every female can actually realise her right to live free from violence, to go to school, to participate in decisions, and to equal pay for equal work.
.... To be continued.
*Eyitayo Ogunyemi is an Associate at Falana & Falana's Chambers. He is the Initiator of "The People's Parliament"- a forum committed to imparting the society with the knowledge of their constitutional rights and duties. Eyitayo is passionate about instilling legal knowledge in the masses and is a core advocate for a knowledge based Economy. Questions may be directed to email@example.com (+234-806-0623-454) or asked directly in the comment box below.


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To the Editor:
I am writing this letter to address the mayor's proposed 1 percent sales tax increase to fund the upgrades to the water treatment plant, the new sewer lines and water lines for the city of Paris.
Mayor, your plan affects families from Midway to Ratcliff — all the people who shop in Paris. But those of us in the outlying areas get only the benefit of the upgrades to the water treatment plant.
Everything else goes to the citizens of the city of Paris.
I have a plan much fairer to all the citizens of the area.
Raise the electric and water rates in the city so they are equal to what the rest of us outside the city have to pay. That's fair to everyone. Rather than giving the citizens of Paris a $144 a year bribe (and yes, it is a bribe), raise the trash rates by $1 a month and put a $1 a month sewer tax on their property tax. Raise sales taxes by 1/4 of a percent to fund the upgrades to the water treatment plant.
We all benefit from that so we all should pay for it.
This is a much fairer plan for all the citizens of the area. Those receiving the most benefit (those inside the city limits), pay the most. Those receiving the least benefit, pay the least.
But Mayor, if you won't consider my plan, how about giving me a $144 a year bribe, too? You can take it off my property taxes.
Robert Thurman
To the Editor:
I am writing this letter in defense of Rita Eckart.
I've been a Paris library patron for 28 years. Never have I seen a better librarian than Rita and I think she should be reinstated.
Pat McHughes, Pat Lowder and Betty Humphrey said it very well, better than I could have.
One of my concerns is that no reason was given for the firing and no one was even allowed to ask why at the meeting. Is this not still America?
Personally, this whole thing stinks. It's our library and everyone should have a voice.
It's not my intention to hurt anyone involved here. I just think things wrong should be made right.
Marie Appleton


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Let's say that you built your platform the right way. You have a nice blog, a Twitter account, a Facebook page, all that. You have, what some might call, a following.
And maybe you're not happy with the exposure you're gaining from doing all this stuff (which, let's face it, takes a lot of time.) So you want to earn a few extra bucks while you're at it. Here are some of the ways you can do that.
1. Advertising
The most obvious choice.
WordPress.com sites don't allow for Google AdSense or other advertising programs, but you can use WordAds (apparently you need a custom domain to be eligible.) There are several options in terms of ads placement, and you get paid around $1 per thousand views. Which isn't bad.
You can also sell banners/ads directly. Some self-publishers even make their own media kit and all that.
Another option is to use Feedburner to add advertisements to your RSS Feed.
You can even go as far as Advertorials and Product Reviews. You can use sites like PayPerPost or ReviewMe.
I have a mixed feeling about all this. Honestly, I've considered this option, especially using WordAds. I get a decent amount of traffic on this website, but there are still drawbacks to consider, no matter how good the pay might be.
One of them is that those ads/banners/whatever are competing with your own ads (the ones you're using to promote your books.) Furthermore, I feel that people might not like it. My site is still young, and I don't want to irritate readers/potential followers, so I don't want to rush into anything too early.
2. Affiliate Marketing
Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and a bunch of other retailers pay you to promote products on your site. You get paid a certain percentage of the price of that product.
I've played a bit with Amazon Associate and I find it quite intriguing. You can set up an e-store type of thing, create banners, widgets, and all kinds of other cool stuff.
3. Paid Subscriptions
There's no secret that information is a highly valuable asset, so if you've established yourself as an authority in your field and you've gathered a nice following, you can sell exclusive content, such as webinars, guides, essays. If you have an Amazon Payments account, you can use MailChimp.
4. Services
I've seen some self-publishers offer formatting/editing services. Some might offer cover and book interior design. This way you can earn some extra money by helping other self-publishers.
My advice to all this: try to find a balance. There are websites out there that offer incredible amounts of information, but are just flooded with ads to the point that my laptop crashes. The key is to find the perfect balance between banners/ads, affiliate links, and other stuff.
If you're primarily a writer, your website should be a place where you showcase your books. Too many ads and no one's going to click on your covers.
As with paid subscriptions or services, the quality is very important. Be honest with yourself and try to set up a price that's right for your followers. A fair price attached to a quality product/service is going to earn you a lot more money in the long haul.
I have a couple of questions for you:
- How do you feel about advertisements? Have you used them? Why? Why not?
- What other options have you tried/considered trying? Any you would recommend?


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Join Online Now!
Allied membership is $3,000 annually.
Allied members are organizations with a vested interest in the lodging industry, who use AHLA as a platform to grow their industry knowledge, while networking and conducting business with other members. Primarily comprised of key decision makers in the lodging industry, our members have the power to sign your dotted line, and we take strides to make our Allied members visible to this niche community.
Generate leads with access to the AHLA Data Center, which includes:
- The Directory of Hotel and Lodging Companies, produced by Smith Travel Research
- The STR Pipeline Outlook
Raise your visibility with:
- A free listing in Lodging magazine's annual printed buyers' guide and online directory, the AHLA Hotel & Lodging Guide
- Sponsorship opportunities
- Discounted advertising in Lodging magazine
- Free use of the AHLA Allied Member logo to use on your marketing material
Become an industry expert through:
- Ability to earn the Certified Master Hotel Supplier certification free of charge
- Free use of AHLA Research, answering any industry-related inquiry
Join Online
Allied membership is $3,000 annually.
Click here to see a list of AHLA Allied members.
If you have any questions, or would like to request an invoice, contact us!
For those in the Eastern US email Debbie Gutierrez or call her at (202) 431-2322.
For those in the Western US email Char Gross or call her at (623) 376-0700.