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In the early 1900s, Pontiac had a beginning full of strife and struggle. In fact, the company came about almost by trial and error. It started with the Pontiac Buggy Company located in Michigan. This company was owned by Edward Murphy, who, like so many other buggy makers of the time, wanted to explore the idea of manufacturing automobiles. At this point, Alanson Brush offered Murphy his design for a two-cylinder car. Interestingly enough, Cadillac had rejected the design. Murphy accepted the offer, and together, he and Brush named their creation the ?Oakland.?
As it turns out, the Oakland didn't sell very well, but that didn't stop the duo from trying another design. This time, in 1909, the company offered a four-cylinder car with the capability of 40 hp. Sales increased, and the company began to see a change in its fortunes. It's unfortunate that Edward Murphy didn't get to see his automotive dreams come true. The founder died unexpectedly before the sales improvements were noted.
To this day, Pontiac continues to offer diverse vehicles to the public. The G8 is one of the company's most popular options.
The Pontiac name is known for being the driving and performance division of the GM family. It only stands to reason that the G8, as part of this family, would be known as a powerhouse of a car as well. The G8 line is popular for its large sedan body and impeccable powertrain and luxurious options. While it's suitable as a sedate family or business car, it certainly has the power to make it something far more substantial, especially to the car or driving fan. Most of G8s offer a well-equipped, V-6 engine for energy sufficiency on the road.
In addition to having plenty of power under the hood, the G8 family of cars is also well known for its appearance. There is no questioning the sports car aspects of the G8 when a consumer explores its body style and cabin design. Depending on the trim level, buyers also find the interior to be attractive and comfortable. All of the G8 models are equipped with an easy-to-see and use instrument panel to make driving a more pleasurable experience.
GM and Pontiac offered the G8 sedan one last time in 2009. Like its earlier version, this sedan was fully equipped with all of the precision mechanics Pontiac could conceivably put in it. Body style and interior cabin design certainly weren't lacking either.
In the 2009 model year, Pontiac released the G8 in three trim levels: the base model, GT, and the GXP. The base model offered plenty of extras, such as satellite radio, 18-inch alloy wheels, and a rear spoiler that added plenty of style to the car's appearance.
The GT trim level was impressive as well with even more options to add to the powerful, six-liter, V-8 engine and six-speed automatic transmission. Buyers could choose from a limited slip rear differential, dual zone automatic climate control, and summer performance tires.
The most luxurious of the 2009 G8 family was definitely the GXP edition. This model was every car lover's dream with plenty of power under the hood. The GXP trim level also offered leather upholstery, sunroof, and sport steering wheel options.
Due to hard economic times in 2008, Pontiac was only able to offer the G8 in the 2008 and 2009 model years. Buyers looking for a used model only have those options. In both model years, the G8 cars were designed in a similar manner and both offer plenty of good looks and power for the buyer, but not so much in terms of gas economy.
The 2008 Pontiac G8 features a 3.6-liter, V-6 engine or the larger six-liter V-8 in the mid-level trim option. Neither engine is especially good on gas, but they do deliver quite an impact in regards to speed and performance. In the 2008 model, Pontiac equipped the G8 with a five-speed automatic in the base model, and the upgraded GT offered a six-speed automatic or the option of a six-speed manual transmission system. Thanks to all of the precision mechanics, not only is the G8 known for its speed, it also does well on the road with a relatively smooth, comfortable ride for such a powerful sedan.
2009 Pontiac G8
Midsize, Sedan
2008 Pontiac G8
The 2008 Pontiac G8 is a full-size four-door sedan with serious muscle car ambitions.


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Paul Ryan tells a Washington audience assembled by the National Association of Manufacturers that "earned legalization is an issue I think the House can and will deal with." In other words, as CNBC's John Harwood tweeted, "Paul Ryan tells me House will pass immigration 'path to citizenship.' Despite flak on right, 'House can/will deal with earned legalization.'"
Earlier this year, when comments by Ryan caused me to suggest that amnesty legislation will pass the House, I was told by a good source that, although Ryan is greatly respected by House Republicans on fiscal issues, his views on immigration don't carry much weight.
However, the Democrats probably need fewer than two dozen House Republican votes to pass amnesty. And Ryan isn't among the squishiest two dozen Republican House members. If he's on board for amnesty and a path to citizenship, then it seems extremely likely that the requisite number of Republican votes can be had.
Ryan will also provide a bit of cover for Republicans who may be inclined to back amnesty. This is part of the role Marco Rubio is playing in the Senate.
It's no accident, by the way, that Ryan made his pro-amnesty remarks at a National Association of Manufacturers event. Business — both big and small — desperately wants the Schumer-Rubio legislation, or something along the same lines, passed. Unfortunately, Republicans can't be expected to deprive business of that which it devoutly desires — this just isn't in the Republican DNA.
Finally, I should note that the term "earned legalization," as applied to Schumer-Rubio, is a misnomer. Under that bill, illegal immigrants become legal without doing anything to earn that status — unless you count violating U.S. law. What they then must "earn" — by jumping through a few bogus or largely meaningless hoops — is enhanced status including citizenship.
Thus, Ryan is employing the disingenuous language of Team Amnesty. It's just about time for me to cross him off my list of acceptable Republican presidential candidates.

subset: commoncrawl


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It's been 13 years since Floyd Mayweather Sr. worked the corner as lead trainer for Floyd Jr. The elder Mayweather is back in that capacity and will be in his son's corner Saturday when he defends his welterweight title against Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero. They will square off at MGM Grand in Las Vegas (on Showtime pay-per-view).
Both Floyd Sr. and his brother, Roger, are battling illnesses. Floyd Sr. has sarcoidosis, a disease affecting the lungs. Roger, uncle and longtime trainer to Floyd Jr. until now, has diabetes and apparently is not as healthy as Floyd Sr. Thus, the switch, Floyd Jr. said.
"Well, my dad – of course, he's a boxing wizard and Roger's a boxing wizard – so you can't go wrong with either guy," Floyd Jr. said. "My dad is the main trainer and, of course, like I said before, it's not like I fired anyone. It's just that my dad's a little sick, but he's a lot healthier than Roger is.
"Roger's … health is not at its best right now and my main focus is I want a guy that's in my corner that's sharp and healthy. But he (Roger) still works day in and day out with me every day as far as and keeping me sharp."
Floyd Jr. said his father will be the man in charge of his corner Saturday and that Roger won't even be in the corner.
"No, I don't think Roger will be in my corner," Floyd Jr. said. "I don't need both in my corner, but both guys are my trainers. Of course, my dad is the head guy in my corner."
Floyd Sr. and Floyd Jr. have had a well-known volatile relationship. This move is seen by some as something that could change that.


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Views: 3588
That's because most atheists here still are dealing with the masses of teachings from their former religion, whose first mantra is go forth and procreate. So many atheists keep their religious values and only throw out the god part... that is not a true atheist. In the animal kingdom at large, very few species attain the levels of fertility achieved technologically by Homo sapiens. Our obsession with self reproduction is obscene!
You're certainly not alone.I can't even count the number of times people have looked at me in complete shock when I say I don't want kids.
I don't want kids either.
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Comparing school library perspectives - Principal's versus Librarian's
A partir daqui
Illustration by David Flaherty from SLJ
The school holiday break is providing an opportunity to follow up items I've saved to Instapaper for reading later. This post reflects on Principal's perceptions of school librarians compared to how the librarians saw themselves in research conducted by Tricia Kuon and Holly Weimar. Published in the School Library Journal blog, 12 September 2012, the article is entitled: How does your boss see you?: Proof that principals value librarians.
Having visited school libraries in both the US and Canada over the past two years, I'm aware that, on the whole, we are in a far better position here in Australia. Generally speaking, we have more library staff and better budgets, although both are being closely monitored and library services reduced as in North America. In reading this article from an Australian perspective, I also read the role of 'librarian' as the full range of models from teacher librarian as library manager through to technicians in that role.
Authors, Tricia Kuon and Holly Weimar have explored their evidence to provide a signpost of attributes for librarians to adopt a leadership role within their schools. Principals are looking for that leadership, especially in relation to technology. Marcia Mardis, associate director of the Partnerships Advancing Library Media (PALM) Center at Florida State University says some school librarians don't feel comfortable labeling themselves as leaders—but it doesn't mean they're not acting like ones, "Leaders are as leaders do."
The authors lists of 'Librarian's top 10 tasks' from a Principal's, compared with Librarian's perspective, is particularly significant. The Principal's view is broader and management-focussed, the librarian's is narrower and task-focussed. In these few weeks we have off over the summer Christmas break, it's worth taking time to reflect on our roles. Don't just shut down and wait till we go back and start the year in the same way.
Reflect: What takes up the time in your day? What tasks could you do more efficiently? What could you abandon completely? What does your Principal value most about your role? How does the library team contribute to the discussion? Does everyone have a voice?
To quote (from the article) retired school librarian, Alice Yucht, 'it's important to promote the library, not yourself—and to know the difference between promotion and advocacy. "You cannot self-advocate. You need to create satisfied customers and users who will then advocate for the library."'
So I invite you to join me in reflecting during the break, ready to return to school with a 'plan for action' in 2013. In the week the New York Times Room for Debate topic: Do we still need libraries? stimulates discussion, take time to reflect and plan.
I found this article valuable reading. Thanks Tricia and Holly.
PS: As a benchmark against our own practice, further recommended reading is the School Librarian Evaluation Rubric recently released by the New York State Department of Education (SED) through submissions from Section of School Librarians (SSL) of NYLA and the NYS School Library Systems Association (SLSA)..


text: Jeffrey B. Layton wrote: > The recent emails from rgb and Doug lead me to a question. Has anyone > tested codes running under a VM versus running them "natively" on > the hardware (native isn't a good word and I hope everyone gets my > meaning)? The last word I heard is that performance takes a substantial You have two major types, the heavyweight emulators (VMware, et al) and the lighter weight hypervisors. I have seen studies of various codes that show not a huge hit ... the caveat being that these codes spent very little time in system calls (usually thunked to the host somehow) and most of the time computing. > hit if you are running a code in a VM. Some of the reasons are that the > code has only virtualized access to the hardware (particularly the NICs) > and memory management is a bit more difficult (although Barcelona with > nested page tables should help there). I do remember VirtualIron saying > that they had IB drivers so that the VM had direct access to the hardware. The more layers you have to pass through, the lower your overall performance (of course). > > Thanks! > > Jeff > > _______________________________________________ > Beowulf mailing list, Beowulf at beowulf.org > To change your subscription (digest mode or unsubscribe) visit > http://www.beowulf.org/mailman/listinfo/beowulf -- Joseph Landman, Ph.D Founder and CEO Scalable Informatics LLC, email: landman at scalableinformatics.com web : http://www.scalableinformatics.com http://jackrabbit.scalableinformatics.com phone: +1 734 786 8423 fax : +1 866 888 3112 cell : +1 734 612 4615


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WRIGHT — Authorities say they've seized about 100 live cats from a rural upstate New York home where more than 60 felines were found dead.
Local media outlets report that a raid by police and animal welfare organizations found cats living in deplorable conditions at a home in the Schoharie County town of Wright, 20 miles west of Albany.
Workers at the Animal Shelter of Schoharie Valley say 67 cats were found dead. The rescued animals have been taken to the shelter.
There was no information on any charges and no names have been released. The Schoharie County Sheriff's Office is holding a news conference Thursday morning to discuss the case.


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Wyoming National Guard Plans For Furloughs
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Military Department is planning to furlough more than 430 employees because of federal budget cuts.
The furloughs are scheduled to start April 26 and total up to 176 hours through the end of September.
The majority of the employees affected work in Cheyenne at the Joint Forces Readiness Center and the Wyoming Air National Guard.
Under the plan, Wyoming Army National Guard field maintenance facilities in Cheyenne, Evanston, Laramie and Lovell will be closed on Fridays to save on maintenance and utility costs.
Armory use and other community support functions may also need to be stopped or reduced.
Maj. Gen. Luke Reiner, Wyoming's adjutant general, says despite the cuts the Guard will remain ready to support any missions that arise.


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Arming Military Families with Love, Laughter, and Practical Tools for Deployment (Sesame Street)
Nearly 800,000 preschoolers are separated from a parent serving in the U.S. military.
When we think of war and deployment, we rarely think of the youngest members of our military families.
They often have a difficult time understanding why Mom or Dad needs to leave home, or how things might be different upon their return.
For these children and their families, Sesame Street provides much-needed support and practical education with Talk, Listen, Connect, a multiphase outreach initiative to help kids through deployments, combat-related injuries, and the death of a loved one. Videos, storybooks, and workbooks especially created for this program guide families through these tough transitions by showing how real families — as well as furry monsters — deal with similar circumstances.
In the first installment of Talk, Listen, Connect, families learn about ways to be together, even when they're apart. When Elmo's dad, Louie, is deployed, he creates a new bedtime ritual: No matter where they are, the family will say good night to the same moon.
In the second part of the program, families dealing with injury find ways to heal together. Rosita struggles to accept her father's new wheelchair, saying what many children do: "I just wish things could go back to the way they were." She soon realizes she's not alone. In a primetime television special, children visit Sesame Street to share how they're coping with their parent's amputation or invisible injury, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and their parents describe the techniques they use to explain their injuries to their kids. For the more than 17,000 veterans who lost a limb fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, that's welcome relief.
In the program's last installment, When Families Grieve, parents and kids find comfort by talking about death and keeping memories alive. When Elmo's cousin, Jesse, has trouble remembering her father who died, her mom and Elmo help her remember by doing "small things," such as wearing Daddy's favorite hat or playing baseball as they used to. Most importantly, they help Jesse understand that the small things they shared will always keep Daddy in her heart.
Because this content is relevant to all children who have experienced the death of a loved one, an educational kit for the general public is also being distributed to grief counselors and families across the nation.
Over the course of this wide-ranging initiative, we've disseminated more than 2.5 million Talk, Listen, Connect kits, aired three critically acclaimed TV specials, and created a series of public service announcements in support of military families featuring First Lady Michelle Obama, Dr. Jill Biden, Elmo, and Rosita. What's more, the Sesame Street Muppets have performed for nearly 200,000 families at USO installations all over the world.
That's enough TLC to have reached virtually every U.S. military family with young children. What better way to show our gratitude to those who have given so much?
Iraq Afghanistan Deployment Impact Fund of the California Community Foundation, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, Walmart, BAE Systems, the Department of Veterans Affairs – Vet Center Program, New York Life Insurance Company, Military OneSource, Lockheed Martin Corporation, New York State Office of Mental Health, USO, Military Child Education Coalition, American Greetings Corporation, McCormick Foundation, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Joseph Drown Foundation, BNY Mellon, Oshkosh Defense
- Preschoolers exhibited fewer negative behaviors, such as being demanding and impatient, as a result of the materials, and parents themselves felt significantly less "down, depressed, or hopeless."1
- 71% of caregivers said our military families outreach materials helped their child cope with an injured family member.2
- 83% of caregivers using the When Families Grieve materials feel they now "have more appropriate language to better discuss death with my child."3
1 Russell Research. (2006). Findings from the Talk, Listen, Connect Kit Evaluation.
2 Military Families Research Institute. (2009). Findings from the Talk, Listen, Connect (TLC II-MD) Kit Evaluation; Findings from the Talk, Listen, Connect (TLC II – Changes) Kit Evaluation.
3 Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress, Uniformed Services University, (2011).Preliminary Findings from the Talk, Listen, Connect III: When Families Grieve Kit Evaluation.
Check it out


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My friend RedBarron has a great solution for snoring dogs. Go take a peak at it. I dare ya.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Dog Snoring Problem
Posted by Jeremy Crow at 5:53 PM
This Is Me
I have been bouncing around online for just about 20 years, so I have been there and have done that. It doesn't mean I didn't like it and wouldn't do it again. As most humans, I am a social animal. To be a social animal on the internet it is social media that binds us all together. I prefer Google + and Twitter but have pages on the other ones that I ignore, so you probably should too.
My Blogging
I blog a lot. If you don't like people that blog a lot then I don't know how you got here to begin with. You may want to just move along.
Contrary to popular opinion I hate politics, but have political opinions ..
The easiest way to get under my skin is to apply the "all you talk about is politics" tag. This is a common knee jerk reaction some have when they see something political, and unfortunately I don't hold back sometimes. As a matter of fact, I share more about health, fitness and blogging than politics, which you would know if you weren't busy dismissing me. I actually follow and interact with more people that disagree with me than agree with me politically. The list of "other than politics" seems to be growing everyday and it probably looks a lot like this:
- Blogging (I am a blogger and I blog a lot. Get used to it.)
- Health & Fitness (Avid bodybuilder and diet guru)
- Photography (If I don't know your language now you know why I follow you)
- Android (I love Android, and wouldn't wipe my rear end with an iPhone)
- Humor (If you are funny, I am going to like you)
- Sports (Patriots and Red Sox mostly)
- Music (You'd be surprised how diverse I get here)
- Quotes (I love quotes from historical and hysterical figures)
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by Lou Mancinelli
Right now, Marcos Espinoza is focused on baby steps. For the past three months he has taken the train to and from Penn Station in New York City each day, where he works as a construction estimator.
When he gets home to Chestnut Hill around 7 p.m., he spends time with his wife, Kelly, four-year-old boy and two-year old girl. After the kids are in bed, Espinoza shifts his gears towards running his side business.
Side Project Jerky (SPJ) is artisanal jerky made from free-pasture USDA beef raised in Lancaster County and marinated, dried and packaged at the SPJ kitchen in Manayunk. Think craft beer, substitute the jerky for the beer, and you have the vision of Espinoza and his partners, who first sourced their meat from Rice's in Chestnut Hill.
"It's something that was kind of missing," said Espinoza, 34, who has lived in the area for five years. Usually, all the marketing for jerky is about "the wild west." And remember Macho Man Randy Savage's catchphrase, "Bite into a Slim Jim?"
SPJ grew a few years ago out of an alternative to Christmas cookies, when Espinoza visited his friend Mark Novasack. Instead of the traditional sugar and chocolate chip treats, Novasack, an SPJ partner, had prepared flavored jerky for his guests.
Espinoza and Novasack got to talking. They thought jerky seemed like one of those things people would buy at an upscale market, the way people buy artisan and organic licorice or chocolate. And if it was good, they would buy it again.
Espinoza was already a foodie. His New Mexican family had opened Navajo Hogan, a Native American eatery in South Salt Lake City, Utah, when he was in fifth grade. Espinoza spent many days wishing he could be like the other kids his age and not have to work at the restaurant.
That food upbringing he once wished he could skirt turned into his developing a love for food and food writing, which he chronicles on his blog Fidel Gastro. That foodie side of himself led him to meet Dan Olsovsky in April, 2011, at a food competition hosted by the drummer for the Philly band, The Roots (the house band for Jimmy Fallon's late-night TV talk show). Espinoza sat on the judges' panel alongside a COOK's (a Philadelphia Magazine partner) editor at the event.
Olsovsky became SPJ's art director, and the three worked on branding. What they created was their version of well-bred, hand-crafted jerky, Mongolian and Southwestern. Their logo is a black-and-white sketch of a composed looking bull donning a top hat.
As it worked out, Espinoza had a friend who ran a chic men's store in Brooklyn that "sold anything that seemed cool." So their first client became Hickoree's in the hip Williamsburg neighborhood. Since it started in early 2012, SPJ has grown to the point where it has a waiting list of orders to fill.
While it's "still kind of everybody's side job right now," said Espinoza, the side project is becoming more of a main project. The company officially incorporated in March of 2012 and now sells its jerky at eight locations, including three in Brooklyn, as well as online.
In Philadelphia, they have found their niche at places like The Foodery, a market on 2nd Street in Northern Liberties where you can mix-and-match six-packs of craft beer in an area where hipsters fill the streets like a cornfield in August. It's also available at the Green Aisle Grocery in South Philly and the Trove General Store in the Paoli Shopping Center.
Espinoza and crew are currently looking to find a packager for their product. That would for the most part take the preparation end out of the job and give Espinoza more time to focus on expanding it into a larger commercial enterprise.
"The problem is I can't just drop everything and say I'm gonna go full-time jerky," Espinoza says. "I'll keep my day job as long as I can. And keep pushing."
Fortunately, he recently found a new job in this area, so he will no longer have to commute to the Big Apple each day, come home, do the family thing and then rush to Manayunk to pick up the finished jerky, where it's made five nights a week, in order to prepare the shipments.
Espinoza first came to the east coast to attend the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering in 2001 and moved to Manhattan for seven years. In 2008, he returned to Philly, where he earned his MBA at Saint Joseph's University.
And though he and his partners started SPJ with the aim of something easy to do on the side that they wouldn't "have to jump headlong into," the success of their jerky has grown to the point where Espinoza can see the future possibilities.
And so he "takes baby steps. But it's hard to take baby steps when everybody expects you to take giant steps." And he thinks "it could be a lot bigger."
For more information, email firstname.lastname@example.com or visit sideprojectjerky.com.


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We all knew it was coming! Finally, the United States Men's National Team has accomplished the impossible and advanced in the FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Sunday night, the "Group of Death" didn't seem so bad when forward Clint Dempsey put in the game winner at the 81st minute of the game against Portugal. It was absolutely incredible.
Now I turned the game off at the 92nd minute, but I'm sure we totally won. There's literally no way that we could have blown the lead that late into the game. I can't believe how great the United States played. The USMNT took advantage of a flawed Portugal side, and exploited every crack in their defense. By the end of the game it looked like Portugal might have a slight chance to snatch a second goal, but I turned the game off because I felt that there was zero chance of us fucking up on the last play of the game.The good ol' Red, White, and Blue finally have a system in place to win soccer games, and we are on to the next round of the World Cup.
Watching soccer (football) can be so rewarding, and the U.S. Men's National Team has inspired a nation with their win on Sunday night in Manaus. Now we have to focus on Germany, but after beating Portugal, I'd say that we have a pretty good shot at winning. Good job guys! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
by Danny Dagorn


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Rule #1 - Be Patient - Rule #2 - Don't ask when, if you don't contribute - Rule #3 - You have coding skills - LinuxMCE's small brother is available: http://www.agocontrol.com
I would hold off on an HD capture card at this point. Their support is just now trickling its way through linux - so it would be a good idea to stick to what works well (Hauppauge PVR-150's and PVR-500s for example)
You can record your VCR's output with an analogue capture card (one listed above if you want) so that isn't a problem.
Also, I would suggest spending as much as your budget as you can on hard drive space. I bought 1 500GB drive and 3 1TB drives when I first started - I can't believe how fast I filled them up! Plus, the fewer hard drives, the better - so in that case if you only want 1TB of space, I would suggest doing it with a single 1TB drive rather than 2 500GB drives (trust me, when you want to upgrade later you will be glad you spent a few extra dollars on a single bigger drive). Bottom line is, the fewer disks you have, the less noise, power, heat... etc you have to deal with, along with saving space and ports in your core.
As far as motherboards, I use an Asus M2NPV-VM with an AMD BE-2400 processor and 2 GB ram and I am very satisfied with it. I have 4 MD's total, and have never had a problem with system lag while ripping 3 discs at a time and streaming video to all 4 MD's.
On the MD end, one of my machines is an old Pentium 1.5 GHZ with no hard drive and only 256 MB of ram with an NVidia 5200 -handles 720p like a dream (never tried 1080)


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Monday March 18, 2019; 10:47 am EDT
Master Watershed Stewards may not have super powers, but they are cleaning up their communities
Going down John Dawson's street in Severna Park, you can't miss the rain garden he's planted in his front yard — and that's exactly how he wants it.
To his wife, Dawson is the official "house husband," but to his community, he is the local Master Watershed Steward. Having been a part of the Watershed Stewards Academy's third graduating class, Dawson now works with other local stewards to improve the health of his river, the Magothy. His rain garden shows his neighborhood how a small change in your yard can be a big change for local waterways when a storm blows through town.
"The chief goal of a steward," Dawson says, "is to try to do projects that reduce stormwater runoff."
Stewards work toward this goal in three ways: First, they assess their community, discovering the pollution sources in their neighborhood.
Second, they educate their community. All the information out there can overwhelm the average citizen. Stewards are local one-stop shops of information and connections.
Third, they coordinate action to reduce pollution.
"That can be as simple as helping someone install a rain barrel," he says.
Or, for the particularly intrepid homeowner, the project could be much larger — involving landscaping for conservation or installing permeable pavement. For these projects, stewards can call on a network of contractors and landscape architects with the know-how and equipment to assist.
Doing Something Super
Dawson was worried about his river. He wanted "to do something."
Anne Arundel County's Master Watershed Steward certification taught him how.
This time each year, Anne Arundel County Watershed Stewards Academy invites citizens to train as stewards.
"We have had all different kinds of people take the course," says coordinator Suzanne Kilby Etgen. "The most important thing is that the stewards have the desire to work with their community to affect change."
The certification takes about a year, with five months of classroom learning and field sessions, culminating in a capstone project. This final project challenges candidates to find a problem in their community, educate those around them and take action to improve the situation.
For his capstone project, Dawson put two rain gardens in his front yard. In the process of excavating and planting, he met his neighbors and explained how this simple garden would catch the rain running off his house, keeping the most polluted water from reaching the Magothy.
Since his certification, Dawson has taught pollution-reduction at local schools. Most recently, he helped an eighth-grade science class at Severna Park Middle School to create a conservation landscape on the school's property.
Support continues after graduation. Stewards become part of a larger structure that includes continuing education and a network of professionals, local governments and other stewards.
Seventy active, certified stewards work throughout Anne Arundel, with another 20 about to graduate.
You may not know a steward, but you have been touched by their work. In 2013 alone, these 90 stewards and candidates have planted 5,720 native trees and plants, removed over 6,300 pounds of trash from local waterways and taught more than 3,000 people how they can reduce pollution in their communities.
"Stewards live in the communities where they do their service," Etgen says. "The goal is to get the message into the mouths of every community across Anne Arundel County."
The program has been so successful in its five-year-life that it's being copied in other counties, like Calvert and St. Mary's, and other states — such as New York and Minnesota.
A new class of 20 to 25 begins school in October. You can be one of them. Even better, join with a friend.
Learn more at aawsa.org and attend any of six information sessions: Captain Avery Museum in Shady Side (August 4, 1pm); Arlington Echo Outdoor Education Center (August 5, 6:30pm; August 20, 6:30pm; September 3, 6:30pm; September 10, 6:30pm); and Glen Burnie Town Center (August 12, 6pm).


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NRT - Canvas
I love the canvas, wish it was bigger only because I bought it for a retirement gift for other F/As to sign
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Students with Children
Giving Birth in the U.S.
Pregnancy costs range from $4500 – $25,000 USD. If you have elected to pay the high-option, DTS health insurance prior to pregnancy, you will still be responsible to pay 50% of that total! If the wife arrives in the US when already pregnant, she will be given no insurance, and you will pay the full amount of medical charges. Remember that public Medicaid is not an option for non-immigrant students. Many internationals or at least the mothers return to their homeland briefly for cheaper pre-natal and delivery costs.
Education for Your Children
If you have children and want to put them in a public school, it is important that you check the quality of the schooling before deciding where you live. You can only choose a school that is within a designated area of your home residence.Public schools are free and those in Richardson, Garland, or Mesquite are recommended. Enroll your children at the school of your district as soon as possible as schools fill up quickly.
Christian private schools are an option, though expensive. Some offer scholarships, if applications are made before June. Try to apply before arriving, and send proof of your application to DTS. You can download the Christian Schools list, which shows Christian schools in the area. If you have any questions, please contact the Student Services Department.


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Was talking to a friend earlier today and he had said how funny it would be to wear a costume for the event. Being that it's on Halloween weekend and all , nothing over the top but something funny . Also here are my predictions for this Saturday .
Joey Ryan over Ryan Taylor
RockNES Monsters over B-Boy and Famous B
El Generico over Rich Swann ( I feel like this has the potential for match of the night )
Davey Richards over Sami Callahan ( Really hoping Sami get's the win , just don't see it happening )
Willie Mack over Brian Cage
The Young Bucks over Eddie Edwards and Roderick Strong ( This is the match that i'm most excited for on the night )
Kevin Steen over Ricochet and Michael Elgin
Can't wait for this Saturday


text:
AndresD needed a new button or icon design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 2 designs submitted by 1 freelance designers.
rrripple (http://www.rrripple.com)
rrripple is the result of the hard work of a committed team of people who come from all over the world, and came together around this vision of making it easy and fun to share with groups privately and securely.
We're still in Beta, so our users are diverse (and mostly unknown). However, we're also testing out the Education field, so the age is around 12-30 year olds.
If you look at our website and the attached files, you will see our upcoming Activity Stream and Timeline view. There are several icons and buttons you will see there, and I'd like to have them match the color palette (or at least be color-matched) to strike a nice balance with the rest of the site.
The current buttons, which have arrows pointing to them, I would like completely re-designed with what you think is the most beautiful and delightful way possible, that is both modern, streamlined and functional. You'll see in the 'iphone.jpg' graphic, for example, older icons that need update from a graphic magician. :)
These icons/buttons will be used on both our website, our iphone app AND our new iPad app, all of which are available right now for free, if you'd like to test out our site.


text:
|Version 20 (modified by 9 years ago) (diff),
Project Plan Plugin
- Description
- Software Requirements
- Basic Setup
- Daily Usage
- Example
- Devel
- Known Incompatibilities
- Bugs/Feature Requests
- Download
- Source
- Recent Changes
- Author/Contributors
Project Plan Plugin
Notice: This plugin is unmaintained and available for adoption.
The ProjectPlan plug-in provides automatic visualizations of the ticket set used in the project (filterable). This should overcome the problems that appear while organizing many developers or many tickets. The main contribution of this plug-in is to provide (configurable, graphical) overview of ticket types, states, owners, dates and priorities.
The plug-in introduces three ticket attributes:
- time to assign: by the project plan at the latest at this date the owner of the ticket should start working on the task
- time to close: by the project plan at the latest at this date the ticket should be closed
- dependencies: tickets that have to be closed before the current ticket
These attributes are used to draw, e.g. networks of tickets representing the suggested (topological) order of the tickets. Furthermore, it is a development base for several representations. The architecture enables contributors to add their own visualizations.
- Current Testing Version is 0.70b (beta)
- Features:
- works nearly out of the box
- GraphViz based MPM Network
- GraphViz based hierarchical MPM network
- critical path analysis (simple workload bases)
- sorted reports for delayed tickets and slack times
- other small things
- Known Problems:
- possible unused imports in several modules
- other small things in code and documentation
- Features:
Software Requirements
- Python 2.5 or 2.6 with Python Standard Library
- a recent GraphViz Package
- Trac 0.11 (.1-5)
- XML Template Engine Genshi 0.51 or compatible (it is part of Trac 0.11)
Basic Setup
1. Install the plug-in
- check out the source code (you can also use export instead of checkout)
svn checkout http://trac-hacks.org/svn/projectplanplugin/0.11/trunk
- run on the shell
python setup.py bdist_egg
- deploy the created egg either globally or locally (locally is recommended at this point)
2. Setup Ticket-Custom Fields
- in your projects trac.ini
- For the case, you already have dependency, assign/close date ticket-custom fields
- Add the field names (as long as the format is compatible) with
[pp_options] custom_dependency_field = <your dependency fieldname> custom_due_assign_field = <your assign Date fieldname> custom_due_close_field = <your close Date fieldname>
- This lets ProjectPlanPlugin use these configured fields
- Add the field names (as long as the format is compatible) with
- If you don't have corresponding dependency and date fields, they need to be added as ticket-custom fields
[ticket-custom] dependencies = text dependencies.label = Dependencies due_assign = text due_assign.label = Due to assign due_assign.value = DD/MM/YYYY due_close = text due_close.label = Due to close due_close.value = DD/MM/YYYY
Note: If a standard Trac installation is used, the plug-in should work at this point in time.
3. Basic GraphViz Configuration (needed for networks)
- login with administrative rights, navigate to admin (WebAdmin)
- select the panel ProjectPlan -> General Settings (on the left)
- verify the settings for cachepath and dot_executable
- or set the following options in the projects trac.ini
[pp_options] cachepath = <full path to the cache directory> dot_executable = <path to graphviz binaries>\dot.exe
- restart your web server for configuration reload
- verify access and execution rights for the web server User
- cachepath should be a separate directory for each project, this reduces possible cache collisions
4. Color Setup
- login with administrative rights, navigate to admin (WebAdmin)
- select the panel ProjectPlan -> Color Settings (on the left)
- set HTML color codes and apply settings
5. Image Setup
- login with administrative Rights, navigate to Admin (WebAdmin)
- select the panel ProjectPlan -> Image Settings (on the left)
- select the images, you'd like to use and apply settings
- the smaller images (e.g., 16x16 pixel) can reduce the size of the graphical network representation
Daily Usage
- The cache size can grow quite big because changes in tickets and per user/macro produce a lot of files and images
- it is recommended to either wipe the cache in intervals or setup a daily cronjob to for cache cleaning
Add ticket dependencies and close/assign Times.
- Network Graphics
- Use the ProjectPlan Macro for (mpm like) network graphics with several options enabling project runtime estimation and (workload based) critical path analyses.
- Special Reports
- Use special reports which show delays and slacktimes
- ...
Macro Samples:
- Both networks (hierarchical and non-hierarchical) use critical path analysis. This won't work without ticket times for all tickets (either start, end, or both).
- The critical path analysis won't work with cyclic dependencies
- Dependencies are saved in ticket-custom fields. A dependency line consists of Ticket Identifiers "#<Ticket ID>".
== hierarchical Network == [[ProjectPlan(macroid=1,renderer=gvhierarchical)]] == hierarchical Network with start and end times== [[ProjectPlan(macroid=1,renderer=gvhierarchical,betickets)]] == filtered (milestone=milestone1) == [[ProjectPlan(macroid=filtered,renderer=gvhierarchical,filter_milestone=milestone1)]] == non-hierarchical (full network) == [[ProjectPlan(renderer=gvrender,macroid=2,withbuffer)]] == Network Legends == [[ProjectPlan(macroid=legend,renderer=gvrender,statuslegend,prioritylegend,notickets)]] == Special Reports == [[ProjectPlan(macroid=report_buffer,renderer=report_buffer,limitlines=4)]] [[ProjectPlan(macroid=report_closing_delay,renderer=report_closing_delay,limitlines=10)]] [[ProjectPlan(macroid=report_assign_delay,renderer=report_assign_delay,limitlines=10)]]
Known Incompatibilities
The plugin (in particular
macroid=1 and
macroid=2) does not work with older version of graphviz/dot, e.g.
dot version 2.6 (Fri Jun 16 16:00:18 UTC 2006).
Please update to a newer version of graphviz, e.g. to
dot - Graphviz version 2.20.2 (Wed Jan 27 16:49:48 UTC 2010).
To check the version type
graphviz -V.
An overview of tested graphviz versions is shown here.
Bugs/Feature Requests
Existing bugs and feature requests for ProjectPlanPlugin are here.
If you have any issues, create a new ticket.
Download the zipped source from [download:projectplanplugin here].
You can check out ProjectPlanPlugin from here using Subversion, or browse the source with Trac.
Recent Changes
Attachments (3)
- example_render2.png (90.8 KB) - added by 9 years ago.
example_legends.png (17.7 KB) - added by 9 years ago.
legends available in mpm network representations
example_render2s.png (55.0 KB) - added by 9 years ago.
Example: ProjectPlan(renderer=gvrender,macroid=2?, thumbnail
Download all attachments as: .zip


text:
Saturday, March 06, 2010
Making a Point with Pressure Points
The seminar starts. You watch the guest instructor explain his techniques. He starts knocking out his black belts. Maybe you believe what you see, or maybe you don't. Then the instructor asks for volunteers, and several of your fellow students agree. The instructor knocks them all out, including a student you really trust to not "take a fall" to make the guest "look good." You ask the student "what happened?" and he replies "that dude knocked me out!"
Next the black belts fan out through the class to help teach pressure point techniques. They ask you if you want to get knocked out with a three-strike technique, or if you just want to feel disoriented with a two-strike technique. You decide you're a believer at this point, but you want to see what it feels like to receive a two-strike technique. Sure enough, two rapid strikes later, you're wondering what happened but are still conscious. That's all you need to believe; you're glad you're not lying on the floor, out cold!
The class ends. Several bystanders were watching through the studio's windows. Some of them are laughing. They think the whole class was fake, a joke, or stupid. Some witnesses are curious. They believe what they saw and want to know more. A few ask questions. Others mumble to themselves incoherently, probably intoxicated or mentally ill.
One of the students decides to talk to a famous yet local news reporter about his experience. This widely-read newspaper reports the story the next day, attracting a lot of attention.
With a wider audience, an extended discussion takes place about this pressure-point fighting activity.
One company conducts a Webcast and a spokesperson says "my mom used to knock me out with a frying pan when I was a kid!" He also says there's no difference between pressure-point fighting and getting punched in the face.
Another company decides to register a domain name called "pressurepointfighting.biz" and starts talking about how it works, applying what they know from Western boxing. This misses the mark but uninformed observers can't really tell the difference.
A third company jumps on the pressure point fighting bandwagon, issuing supposedly original research, inventing its own analysis, and integrating the technique into its marketing material. It turns out someone at the company had a confidential agreement with the original pressure point fighting instructor, but unilaterally decided to take a few pages out of his notebook and run to the market to make a fast buck.
A fourth company knows a lot about pressure point fighting. It writes original reporting based on its experience. Critics claim this company is just offering marketing based on the new craze.
Reaction to the news among those without direct experience is mixed, as might be expected.
Some readers are martial artists themselves. They fear being irrelevant. They are afraid their skills are not sufficient. They decide to ridicule anyone who participated in the seminar, or who has knowledge.
Some readers distrust authority. They think these techniques are just a government conspiracy to justify additional police powers. The only reason anyone is talking about such affairs is their need to get greater budgets for their oppressive police powers, man!
Some readers think the whole affair is "fear, uncertainty, and doubt" (FUD). Who could knock out a person by hitting a few pressure points? It's all a lie, or just the latest craze. It must be fake.
Some readers have been learning and practicing pressure point fighting for the last several years. They know it isn't a joke, and it is real. Also, some readers without experience realize they should learn more about pressure point fighting. That knowledge could save their lives, or the lives of those close to them. These like-minded people communicate privately, since the public arenas are now clogged with too many false discussions.
Aside from the fact that advanced persistent threat is an adversary, and not a fighting technique, this story explains the last 6 weeks of APT activity in the security industry. Not all factors are included, but enough to make my point.
Incidentally, the pressure point class is true, at least as far as the class content is described.
21 comments:
Elegantly said Richard.
- Sandro Süffert said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- Jordan said...
About 1/3 of the way through when I realized what you were referring to, I had to scroll back up to see if you had described the pressure technique as: "an Advanced Pressure Technique" because that would have been awesome. ;-)
Analogies are nice and can influence susceptible readers with hidden persuasion techniques leading them down a path chosen for them by the writer, but I prefer reality: http://securityblog.verizonbusiness.com/2010/03/06/im-outta-here/ Dave Kennedy, in my opinion of course, lays out the true state of this matter which for many will be a hard dose to swallow.
The truth of the matter is it is not terribly difficult to cover the news with short snippets, analogies, and opinions, but it is another to roll up your sleeves and do the work. I don't think Richard will disagree with me here, but I could be wrong... as the days of TaoSecurity providing technical insights with actionable content left the building a few years ago. TaoSecurity has become a media outlet focused on security related hot topics and news, which could be compared to the Gleen Beck's coverage of all things related to the Obama administration, but again this is just my opinion. Hmmm, did I just make an analogy?
Don't get me wrong here I don't have any issues with scrutinizing and criticizing companies, security professionals, and/or vendors via a social outlet like this blog, as that is the beauty behind these social outlets. I just hope readers don't base their ideas or make decisions related to these areas based off of analogies and opinions, but instead choose to do the hard research themselves and make well educated decisions for themselves.
Again don't get me wrong I will continue to follow Richard's blog for the same reasons I follow Bruce Schneier's blog... pure entertainment from an outside the box thinker!
- Richard Bejtlich said...
Anonymous: wow, you missed the point on that one. I guess this blog attracts all types. :(
- Richard Bejtlich said...
Incidentally Anonymous, if you want to share any of *your* "technical insights with actionable content," please feel free to wow us.
Until then, I'm pretty confident in my training, books, and other writing.
Sir - good analogy. Having received the demo in my own dojo from the black belts who accompany the master, I am a believer. It has been both amusing and disconcerting to watch the events and hubbub of the past weeks.
Incidentally Anonymous, if you want to share any of *your* "technical insights with actionable content," please feel free to wow us.
Until then, I'm pretty confident in my training, books, and other writing.
wow, I think you missed my point as well. I was not questioning your aptitude or technical capabilities, as you have shown in the past and I am sure you will show in the future that you are a very competent and intelligent individual. I apologize if it came across that way. I can admit I have read your books, several of your technical articles, and even reviewed some of your training, so by no means am I trying to discredit you or your capabilities. I agree with 90% of your writings and I am humbled by my comment sparking the beating of your chest in defense, as my accomplishments are no where in the same neighborhood of what you have done over the years.
Simply put my point in regards to APT and the coverage from your site and many other sites leaves me with the same frustrations as Dave Kennedy so nicely expressed in his "I'm Outta Here".
I guess I am just not all that good at providing constructive criticism in a non-offending manor. I would love to see you expand your coverage of APT from what it is and how no one knows how to deal with it to suggested starting points for dealing with it and what can be done with current capabilities. I am sure Marcus would enjoy this as well. In doing this I would move your content from "News Like/Media Like" coverage to the actionable content category. ;)
"Aside from the fact that advanced persistent threat is an adversary, and not a fighting technique..."
Don't you think that is a pretty important distinction? The root of this problem, I believe, is that the techniques aren't different, at least according to Mandiant (and I believe you've mentioned this in the past as well). So shouldn't your analogy be more along the lines of the best martial artist in the world using known martial arts techniques for which we have known defenses, albeit potentially ineffective?
Is this really a call for action on the vendor side to get better with their products, or a call to action for enterprises to get better at security, or a little of both?
I guess what I am asking is - how should enterprises change their behavior/activities in response to the APT? I don't believe I have seen this yet from you. (I have posted my impressions on my blog).
Pete Lindstrom
I love this analogy because it describes something we see in so many areas. The bystanders and others who don't have first hand knowledge about the subject, are often those spending most time arguing about it in public. And then you have "the Ferengies" who tries to make a profit out of it.
The first time I heard about APT, I believed it to be a new marketing term from someone trying to sell a "security in a box"-kind of product. But I recognized it when I got the explanation about what it was, only that we earlier have used other words to describe it.
I am not going to dive that deep into this analogy in fear of just splitting hairs, although I think it is important to state a few points. Like many of your readers, I have closely observed these discussions from a distance over the last few weeks.
First, I can understand Dave Kennedy's 'tougue-in-cheek' post. Many of us, including me, have had many lighthearted conversations around this same punch-line. In relation, you've mentioned in this post (as well as the past), many readers believe APT to be nothing more than FUD. I can clearly understand and sympathize with this position. Let me explain.
You touched on the fact that several 3rd parties have just jumped on the bandwagon for marketing gain. This is expected and will always happen - nothing new. While I have followed the APT discussions for some time, I believe the reporting that gained traction for many people on APT appeared to contain much of the same marketing-speak and FUD as those 3rd parties. I believe someone else commented on this as well:
Bottom Line: People need the original message (keep in mind your introduction to APT is quite different than most) to be FUD-free. If not, they cannot distinguish the truth from hype and subsequently lump everything into the later category.
I agree with you that many of the debates regarding APT are clearly counterproductive and ridiculous. Personally, I don't care who invented the term or when the term came into existence. What I do care about is, 'Does utilizing the term APT have any value for the parties targeted?'. This is the group I am concerned about. Let's look at this from a risk view point. Clearly you are familiar with the the NIST SP 800-30 guide, given you referenced it in a past post:
For the sake of argument, let's assume what you would call an 'APT-targeted entity' performed a risk assessment sometime in the past. In this process they have defined specific threat sources (i.e. actors, intrusion sets) and one of these these sources goes by the name of 'industrial espionage'. This threat source encompasses the same actors as APT. Motivation for this threat source and threat actions are also identical to APT. At most, APT simply appears to be a sub-category to an already defined threat source. I'm sure the argument will be made that APT are persistent, well-organized, and well-funded. But, isn't most organized parties conducting espionage exhibiting these traits today? This is more a matter of evolution.
Let me be clear, I do see the value of the term APT for LE, CIRTs, and various agencies investigating these attacks. As you have mentioned in the past (http://taosecurity.blogspot.com/2010/01/is-apt-after-you.html), these terms 'keep various parties on the same page when speaking with defense partners.'
For the targets though, their primary concern is protecting their assets - not making sure LE is on the same page. IMHO, introducing yet another term is of no value to them. These targets can already reassess their risk (and they should sooner, than later) in regards to a threat agent (i.e. espionage) already defined. My concern is that if they are expected to introduce every buzzword associated with a specific threat source into their risk assessments, they will quickly loss sight of the big picture. By continuing down the current path of the last 6 weeks, this may already be an issue.
- Richard Bejtlich said...
Hi Anonymous,
Good comments -- thank you.
One minor response. You said "But, isn't most organized parties conducting espionage exhibiting these traits today? This is more a matter of evolution."
The answer is "no."
One major comment. APT is a "proper noun." It's not a vague term. It refers to real actors.
In regards to:
One major comment. APT is a "proper noun." It's not a vague term. It refers to real actors.
I did not mean to misrepresent the term. That is why I explicitly referred to the APT, as a threat source. Not sure where I went wrong? Regardless of the words I choose, there is clearly not the consensus in the media regarding its definition today.
Thanks for the response.
In regards to my comment, ""But, isn't most organized parties conducting espionage exhibiting these traits today? This is more a matter of evolution."
Let me clarify a bit. The coordinated attacks against 30+ firms that have been attributed to APT are clearly impressive. The most impressive trait was the level of target-specific customization and multi-attack vectors that were utilized for entry. While this is the first time this level of sophistication has been observed, others will indeed up the ante in the future. Attacks will always advance as our defenses improve.
Also, what is keeping other organized parties from achieving this level of sophistication? If we consider APT as a business (which is not far from the truth), what are the barriers of entry for these other organized parties? If barriers do not exist, others can easily achieve the same objectives as APT and will in the future. Moving us on to the next wave of attacks; evolution.
- Richard Bejtlich said...
Hi Anonymous,
One other thought. You said:
"The most impressive trait was the level of target-specific customization and multi-attack vectors that were utilized for entry. While this is the first time this level of sophistication has been observed..."
That's not true. That's what the media is printing and what some security companies are writing, but only because they only know part of the story. The worst part of any APT incident is not the entry vector or target customization. The worst part is how deeply entrenched the intruder becomes in the victim.
This is also not the first time this techniques have been used to attack or gain entry to victims. It's common.
Very good analogy. I would have taken it a step further and also said that the 'pressure points' technique has been around for a very long time and is not new, and neither is APT. Other than that, your characterization of the security industry is spot on.
I agree that the term adversary presents the issue in a better understandable light than the advanced persistent "threat of the week" terminology.
I have seen very few discussions regarding what is required to resist such persistent attacks. As an example, would not greater use of high assurance systems at key "puncture points" in a network be one step? What about immutable audit logs to resist anti-forensics tools, if they are involved?
- Richard Bejtlich said...
I find it odd that I am constantly asked what I think we should do about these intruders. Do blog readers think I have been advocating certain defensive measures for the last 7+ years in this blog and earlier, elsewhere, ignorant of the capability of intruders to act at this level?
I recall your posts about trustworthy computers, but most of the discussion elsewhere has been focused on the inadequacies of the "same-old, same-old", which you have written as not being enough, with no proposed alternatives.
In regards to:
"That's not true. That's what the media is printing and what some security companies are writing, but only because they only know part of the story. The worst part of any APT incident is not the entry vector or target customization. The worst part is how deeply entrenched the intruder becomes in the victim."
Obviously, as you have stated, many (including I) have focused in on the wrong areas. Unfortunately, this is easy to do when the facts are fragmented and given to you by 1st and 2nd hand parties.
I do not fault those directly involved. I would like to believe they have shared whatever intel they could publicly and that information has not been skewed. I have experienced firsthand how high-profile investigations can take on a life of their own, once they hit the media - often taken way off track and injected with false information. I'm hopeful additional information from those directly involved will come to light in the long run.
Excellent points and I agree 100%, but you forgot about the old black belt who gets insanely jealous and who must now work twice as hard for self-promotion.


text: Some artists may use oil paint, acrylic, or watercolor as their medium of choice but Matthew Cusick chooses to create his ultra detailed imagery using the medium of maps. Cusick slices and dices maps of all sizes, colors, and regions to create fantastical images that take you down undiscovered routes and send you on an epic visual voyage. Lets hope you don't need to stop and ask for directions?


text:
(WENN) - The Liverpudlian funnyman passed away on Sunday - just days after marrying long-term partner Anne Jones at their house, the same one in which he grew up, on Friday.
"They got the registrar and were married in the house," his publicist Robert Holmes told the Press Association. "He died two days later on Mother's Day. Anne is obviously very upset. To my mind, he was one of the last music hall greats.
"With Ken gone, the lights have been turned out in the world of variety. He was a comedy legend and genius."
The sad news of Dodd's death comes after he spent six weeks in the hospital earlier this year, being treated for a chest infection.
Born the son of a coal merchant in 1927, Dodd began his career as a comedian in 1954. He was most famous for his stand-up shows with his Diddy Men and the tickling stick, and made it into the Guinness World Records in the 1960s after telling 1,500 jokes in three-and-a-half hours. He also had a successful career on television and radio with shows such as The Ken Dodd Show, Beyond Our Ken and Ken Dodd's Laughter Show, and even topped the charts as a singer - releasing his signature tune Happiness in 1964.
Dodd was knighted in 2017 in recognition of his lengthy career and years of charity work.
Shortly after Dodd's death was confirmed, tributes began pouring in for the comedian.
Only Fools and Horses actor John Challis was one of the first to pay his respects, tweeting: "So sorry to hear we have lost Ken Dodd.I met him once and I've never forgotten it. Gawd bless 'im."
And comedian Dara O'Briain wrote: "Ah, Ken Dodd has died. So happy I got to meet him once, and more importantly, saw him do one of his incredible 5-hour shows. He was an education to watch and, afterward, at 1.30 am, he had beers with me in the dressing room and talked showbiz. A privilege, and a loss. RIP."


text:
Teairra Mari - Behind The Scenes Of "Hunt For You" (Feat. Peasure P)
Teairra Mari" Hunt 4 U" ft Pleasure P behind the scenes . Video coming soon
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
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text:
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – New York Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon conceded this afternoon what we've known for months: Matt Harvey's elbow injury greatly impacted the team's offseason plans.
For one thing, the Mets would only need one pitcher and not two at the back end of their rotation.
"Matt getting hurt has taken away unquestionably a guy who looked like he was going to be our ace,'' Wilpon said. "It changes things a little bit. We don't need an extra pitcher if Matt is the guy there. And you might use the resources elsewhere.''
Since Sandy Alderson became general manager, the plan was to compete in 2014 when the contracts for Johan Santana and Jason Bay came off the books. Now, the talk is for 2015 when Harvey is back from Tommy John surgery.
"I don't have an answer. You'd like to say no,'' Wilpon said when asked if the Mets tempered expectations with Harvey gone. "But if he was going to be out there for 200 innings, you'd think the results would be pretty good. Taking away those 200 innings is definitely an issue.''
Wilpon said Anderson isn't restrained by finances, but the Mets haven't moved on Bronson Arroyo, who has been an effective innings eater for years. Reportedly, Arroyo is close to signing with Minnesota. Bringing in Arroyo or Paul Maholm aren't current options. However, re-signing Jeremy Hefner is, although he won't pitch in 2014 as he's recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Alderson said the Mets would be interested in talking to Johan Santana, who just got a $5.5 million buyout from the team. Santana is throwing off flat ground at 150 feet, so he's nowhere close to being an option. There are a half-dozen teams interested in talking to Santana when he's ready. Of course, Santana won't give the Mets any kind of discount. Don't be surprised if Santana ends up where he started, which is Minnesota.
As for a fourth starter, there's a disconnect between Terry Collins and Alderson on Jenrry Mejia. Today Collins said Mejia should be ready for spring training, but yesterday Alderson indicated he might not be ready until after the season started.
The Mets are reluctant to open the season with one of their young pitchers in the rotation, but Collins said: "Somebody has to win Rookie of the Year. Why not one of our guys?''
Your comments are greatly appreciated and I will attempt to respond. Follow me on Twitter @jdelcos


text:
River Huston
A River Runs Through It
On Being Sick
October 14, 2016
Each day starts the same. I wake up in pain; I take some medication. Without it, the pain progresses to agony levels. I have no appetite; there is nothing that entices me, but I know if I don't eat something I will feel worse, so I eat. I go back to bed and meditate, often for hours, and then fall back asleep. I wake up, and sometimes I have to go to the bathroom, and I am my own cheerleader: You can do it! Come on big girl, time for pee pee! I go to the bathroom. I go back to bed. I can do the computer for short periods before it is too painful. If I do too much, I have terrible episodes of spinning and puking.
Loving Myself Too Much to Accept Stigmatized 'Love'
March 26, 2016
I met someone. I felt this instant connection. He responded in kind. Big smiles and little touches that led to kisses. Kisses that led to "fly me to the moon, feel the earth move, curl my toes" kinds of kisses for hours.
Rape in Words and Actions: A Disclosure Story
May 24, 2013
I met someone. I felt this instant connection. He responded in kind. Big smiles, little touches that lead to a kiss, and that kiss led to a fly-me-to-the-moon, feel-the-earth-move, curl-your-toes kind of kiss for hours.
March 20, 2013
In January of 2013 I went to India. I never had a desire to go to India. I was asked and I went. The primary reason was to talk to health professionals about addiction and explain the concept that addiction and alcoholism are a disease not just weakness, lack of will power or bad character.
Does HIV Still Bother Me, After 22 Years?
February 1, 2013
This morning as I was walking my dog, I was doing a mental checklist about what I need to do before I take my upcoming trip to India. I thought I should get some blood work done before I go. Then, as my mind sometimes does, it wandered. I thought Why not get another HIV test? It has been 22 years since I had one. As I continued my walk down to the ocean I started to fantasizing about what it would feel like to receive a negative result.
August 3, 2012
It is the middle of summer in the Caribbean. The cruise ships have slowed down. Everything has slowed down. I have slowed down. For the first time in my life I have taken whole days, even multiple days off to do absolutely nothing. The contest is officially over. I know I will still die in this lifetime but I have lost the urgency I felt for years (28) living with HIV and Idiopathic thrombocytopenia purpura (an acute bleeding disorder).
Bonus Rounds
January 20, 2012
Every morning I feel so fortunate to wake up to another day. I have been calling this time of my life the "bonus rounds," and they are. I live by the sea in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, in an amazing house right on the ocean. It is not for everyone because living here is not at all like taking a vacation here. It is a little rough and tumble. For instance, the other night as I slept I felt something warm and alive plop on my head in the dark.
World AIDS Day Makes Me Sad
November 21, 2011
World AIDS Day makes me sad. For me it is a day of mourning and grief. Even though I will stand up in front of yet another group of students and talk about how this is a preventable disease, I have no delusions after 22 years that my one talk will make much of a difference in their behavior. I might plant some seeds. I might be part of a cumulative message that eventually helps some of the people make better choices. But regardless, I will continue to speak about the need to advocate for better safe sex methods and accessible information for all types of groups around the world. I will write, paint and perform in hopes of finding alternative ways to reach the hearts and minds of the human race when it comes to AIDS education.
Oops, I Did It Again
June 17, 2011
Since moving to Water Island in the Caribbean, I have kept a low profile. Most people here think of me as a painter, and I run a non-profit art alliance called sevenminusseven on St Thomas. I did do a couple of programs for the department of health but they were also low key and on other islands (St. Croix). So when another non-profit art group asked me to do a short performance at their women empowerment evening, I said yes. As soon as I did I realized that I would no longer be under the radar. These islands are like very small towns where no one can leave and the national pastime is gossip.
Jumping Empty-Handed Into the Void
January 14, 2011
Recently my life fell apart financially, emotionally and spiritually. I had hit bottom. I have been in recovery for 25 years but I found a new addiction, or really not so new -- it might have been my first addiction -- and that is control. For the first 13 years of living with HIV infection as well as acute, chronic ITP (idiopathic thrombocytopenia pupura) I came to accept I was powerless. It is one thing HIV, if you are willing, will teach you in spades.
A River Runs Through It
River Huston
River Huston is an award-winning poet, journalist, performer and activist. She travels through the United States speaking on issues related to sexuality, communication, overcoming challenges and change. She has been featured on Good Morning America, Showtime, Nightline, CNN and ABC Up To The Minute. River has written three books of poetry as well as The Goddess: A Guide to Feminine Wisdom and A Positive Life: Portraits of Women Living With HIV. She wrote and performed a one-woman show, Sex, Cellulite and Large Farm Equipment: One Girls Guide to Living and Dying off off Broadway and is currently working on a second show, The Dominatrix Next Door. For more information about River you can go to riverhuston.com.
Subscribe to River's Blog:
Recent Posts:
October 14, 2016 - On Being Sick: A Blog Entry by River Huston
March 26, 2016 - Loving Myself Too Much to Accept Stigmatized 'Love': A Blog Entry by River Huston
May 24, 2013 - Rape in Words and Actions: A Disclosure Story
March 20, 2013 - India: A Blog Entry by River Huston
February 1, 2013 - Does HIV Still Bother Me, After 22 Years? A Blog Entry by River Huston
Articles by River:
Sex, Cellulite and Large Farm Equipment: One Girl's Guide to Living and Dying (October 15, 2008)
I Feel Good! Attaining Survival Through Illness (March/April 2008)
Goddess in a Muumuu: AIDS Changes Sexual Self-Image (December 1999)
A Positive Life: Portraits of Women Living With HIV (October 1999)
Interviews With River:
White Women and HIV (April 1999)
A Brief Disclaimer:
The opinions expressed by TheBody.com's bloggers are entirely their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of TheBody.com itself.


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The Lumia 920 is now appearing in Telstra stores, according to a number of consumers who have attempted to pick one up. Unfortunately, like its online store, Telstra brick and mortars are struggling to meet demand with the limited stock passed along by Nokia. While a familiar story across the board in multiple markets, it does make one consider why it hasn't been resolved yet.
Telstra has experienced higher than expected demand for the Lumia 920, which was revealed on its Twitter account. The limited stock of Lumia 920s sold out within hours after becoming available online. We've been informed that the Telstra Stores may have some stock left for purchase, but consumers will have a hard time locating such an establishment.
via: Reddit; thanks, Gabriel, for the tip!


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American Physical Society Sites|APS|Journals|PhysicsCentral|Physics
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The call for nominations for the Division of Nuclear Physics' Distinguished Service Award will be posted in the November newsletter.
Purpose: This APS Unit Award is intended to recognize those who have made
substantial and extensive contributions to the nuclear physics community through the activities of the DNP.
Nature: The award will consist of a plaque and a certificate with the citation specified by the selection committee and approved by the DNP Executive Committee. Nominees should be active or emeritus members of the DNP. There are no time limitations on contributions that can be recognized by this award. Nominations will remain active for three years. The award need not to be given each year. No more than two recipients will be selected in a given year.
Selection committee: The selection committee will consist of the DNP Chair, Chair-Elect, Vice-Chair, Past-Chair, and Secretary- Treasurer. The DNP Chair will serve as the chair of the selection committee.
Rules and Eligibility: Nominations should be limited to a one page description of the candidate's contributions to nuclear physics through the DNP, plus an optional listing of positions held, major committee memberships, and the like. Duplicate nominations are not helpful.
2015 Robert E. Tribble
"For his outstanding service over three decades on behalf of the Division of Nuclear Physics, for his skillful stewardship of the Division that strengthened its vitality as a unit of the American Physical Society, and for his extraordinary service on the Nuclear Science Advisory Committee, including his leadership of the NSAC long range planning process to the benefit of the Nuclear Physics community."
2014 Bradley M. Sherrill
"For his exemplary service to the Division of Nuclear Physics and his skillful leadership that have enhanced the vitality of the Division as a unit of the American Physical Society, and for his tireless efforts in advocating for nuclear science to a broad audience."
2013 Susan J. Seestrom
"For her sustained contributions to the Division of Nuclear Physics extending over three decades that have enhanced its vitality and strength, and for her skillful leadership of both the Division and the Nuclear Science Advisory Committee."
2012 Robert A. Eisenstein
"For his exceptional contributions to the Division of Nuclear Physics and to the American Physical Society on behalf of the Division, including his crucial role in establishing a lasting mechanism for providing broad community input into the Long Range Planning process via the DNP, and for spearheading the successful drive to fund the Bonner Prize."
2011 John P. Schiffer
"For his decades of exemplary service to the Division of Nuclear Physics which have enhanced the strength and vitality of the Division as a unit of the American Physical Society, for his efforts on behalf of younger colleagues and the Bonner and Bethe prizes, and for his sage advice in faithful service on countless advisory committees and review panels."
2010 A. Baha Balantekin
"For his sustained and extensive contributions to the Division of Nuclear Physics over two decades that have enhanced its strength and vitality, especially in areas such as education and communication, while promoting its relationship with the American Physical."
2009 Warren F. Rogers
"For his tireless effort in initiating and sustaining the Division of Nuclear Physics' Conference Experience for Undergraduates program that has so successfully connected the DNP membership with the undergraduate research experience, enhanced the appeal and visibility of nuclear physics, and inspired undergraduates to continue their education in graduate physics programs at universities throughout the country."
2007 Benjamin F. Gibson
"For his sustained and extraordinary contributions to the Division of Nuclear Physics that have enhanced its vitality, ensured its success, and have always been carried out with professionalism, integrity, and civility."
2006: Noemie Benzcer Koller
"For her sustained and exceptional contributions to the Division of Nuclear Physics and to the American Physical Society on behalf of the Division, for her creative promotion of education and the climate for women in nuclear science, and for her vigorous efforts to develop the Division's initial Nuclear Physics brochure and to fund the Bonner Prize."
2005: B.C. Clark
"For her exceptional contributions to the Division of Nuclear Physics, her leadership of the Division and of the American Physical Society on behalf of the Division, and her tireless effort to promote science and the status of women in nuclear physics, including the initiation of many programs to enhance the participation of under-represented groups in nuclear science."
2004: Ernest M. Henley
"For his exceptional leadership of the Division of Nuclear Physics, his sage advice to the Division and the American Physical Society, his creative efforts in science outreach and his vigorous leadership in the creation of the Hans Bethe Prize and the Nuclear Physics Dissertation Award."
2003: Virginia R. Brown
"For substantial and extensive contributions to the nuclear physics community through her commitment to the Division of Nuclear Physics, particularly for her very successful efforts to strengthen the financial standing of the Division, for building up the divisional archive, and for her role in bringing to fruition the historic first joint meeting of the nuclear physicists of the American and Japanese Physical Societies as the Chair of HAWAII 2001."


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Rumors about Apple releasing iPhones with larger screens and multiple colors aren't anything new. This time Reuters is reporting that it could happen next year due to pressure from the market and rival handset makers, namely Samsung. According to Reuters, sources familiar with the matter say Apple could be looking at 4.7" and 5.7" models as well as up to 6 color choices instead of the standard black and white options.
Apple is looking at introducing at least two bigger iPhones next year - one with a 4.7-inch screen and one with a 5.7-inch screen - said the sources, including those in the supply chain in Asia. They said suppliers have been approached with plans for the larger screens, but noted it is still unclear whether Apple will actually launch its flagship product in the larger sizes.
With Samsung steadibly increasing their smartphone marketshare each year, it makes sense that Apple would at least consider larger iPhone variants to capture back the market that wants larger screens. The Galaxy S4 sports a 5" screen while the Galaxy Note II has a 5.5" screen. Anyone who has seen a Note II in person is probably aware that it borders tablet size.
As far as other colors are concerned, Reuters is reporting that Apple may be looking at 5-6 different colors next year instead of just the traditional black and white options.
While it may make sense for Apple to look at a larger iPhone, we also have to keep in mind that Apple hates fragmentation and that's what different screen sizes will do for developers. iOS 7 will bring with it an all new set of challenges for developers on its own. While a 4.7" or 5" screen may not be out of the question in future revisions, I can't personally see Apple ever making an iPhone that's sporting a 5.7" screen. It would cut dangerously close to cutting into iPad mini marketshare and I'm not sure Apple wants to cannibalize a fairly new product line, at this point anyways.
As for color options, a lot argue that the iPod touch has color options so why not iPhone? A lot of that can have to do with who each product is aimed at. The iPod touch is aimed mostly at a younger audience. Flashy colors attract that audience. iPhones are also sold in much larger quantities than iPods. Carrying inventory for several different carriers and capacities on top of multiple colors drastically increases overhead costs and the inventory each physical retail store must carry for warranty replacements.
Reuters didn't have any information on what would be released this year but logic dictates the "S" upgrade will most likely follow suit with previous updates with a similar form factor that features mainly internal upgrades. That being said, will you be waiting until next year for a larger iPhone that may or may not happen or picking up an iPhone 5s, or whatever they decide to call it, later this fall?
Source: Reuters


text: "Diversity" says it all. A country of immigrants 3,000 miles wide, the United States of America encompasses worlds within worlds. Geography, culture, politics, religion, race—the US has got a little of everything. From tech-savvy Silicon Valley to the Amish country, the liberal leanings of San Francisco to the traditions of the Bible Belt, the dichotomies of the US are at once puzzling and captivating. In the center, the wheat fields and small towns of the Midwest, traditional Americana lives on. The cities—gritty New York, glitzy Las Vegas, down-to-earth Portland—each give you a different taste of contemporary American culture. From the Rocky Mountains to the Grand Canyon, the US has no shortage of outdoor adventures; its deserts, forests, coasts and bayous beg to be explored. Music lovers will head to Memphis, Detroit and Austin, while those wanting to experience the real deal could do no better than a Super Bowl BBQ. Snowboard and surf, eat cuisines from around the world, rub shoulders with the bronzed-and-beautiful or get down at rodeo—it's all in the US, waiting with a friendly smile and firm handshake. From "the redwood forests to the gulf stream waters," from Lewis and Clark to Jack Kerouac, this land was made for traveling.


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4:00 pm
Wild Kratts "Happy Turkey Day" The Wild Kratts are on a mission to defend the honor of the wild turkey and to stop Gourmand, who is hunting for the largest, fattest turkey in the forest. D
4:30 pm
Cyberchase "The Bluebird of Zappiness" Hacker teams with the CyberSquad to stop his nemesis Ledge from finding the cure to Motherboard's virus.G
5:00 pm
Fetch! With Ruff Ruffman "Fetch Finale IV: The Prophecy Fulfilled!" The lost legendary Helmet of Victory is so close Ruff can almost TASTE it! He's just learned that the Helmet is somewhere in Old Sturbridge Village, a town that time forgot. The FETCHers head off to the village, and then undergo a series of elimination trials to retrieve the Helmet. The FETCHer who finds the Helmet will be the Season IV FETCH Grand Champion! But will the Helmet of Victory really make Ruff victorious?. D
5:30 pm
Nightly Business Report Tonight on Nightly Business Report, Wal-Mart names a new CEO, but what does the change at the top mean for shareholders and the retailer's legal issues? And, oil prices dip after Iran agrees to a nuclear deal. But will consumers see a long term impact?. D
5:57 pm
NewsHour Promo NULL
6:00 pm
PBS NewsHour NULL
7:00 pm
Antiques Roadshow "San Diego, CA - Hour Two" Highlights include an 18th-century ivory carved creche that could be worth up to 30 times what the owner paid for it; a beautifully preserved banner from George Washington's inauguration ball; and a circa 1900 Turkmenistan rug, valued up to $150,000.G
8:00 pm
Antiques Roadshow "San Diego, CA - Hour Three" Host Mark L. Walberg checks out early posters of mechanical flight at the Allen Airways Flying Museum. At the convention center, appraisers find an extensive collection of comics, and an original Hortus Eystettensis, the botanical illustrations published in 1613 and valued up to $350,000. Part 3 of 3G
9:00 pm
Globe Trekker "Globe Trekker Special: World War II in the Pacific" The Trekkers explore the epic events of World War II by visiting key locations in the Pacific, a region where great battles were fought and military history was made.G
10:00 pm
Independent Lens "Young Lakota" In a small town in the heart of the Pine Ridge Reservation, Sunny Clifford, her twin sister Serena and a neighbor share a common dream of helping to create a better future for their tribe. When South Dakota passes a law criminalizing abortion, their tribal president challenges it with a threat to build a women's clinic on the reservation, drawing the trio into a political storm that changes the course of each of their lives.G
11:00 pm
Charlie Rose NULL


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Pit bulls are not allowed in the apartment complex where mine stay.
Lance is NOW a Boxer/Terrier mix and Jesse is "just visiting".
Management has never said anything to us about them being there. All of our neighbors have met them and like them. They are always on leash and there have never been any issues. Actually thats a lie.. there was one issue where they were attacked by another tenants dog, but, that dog was off leash and my dogs did nothing back.
Its been sorta a hope and a prayer thing.. IF no one complains to management about your animals, then management will not even check to see what type of dog you have. Crazy, yes, but, they have been there for nearly a year and no one has ever checked. If for any reason management needs to get into the apartment, we make sure to crate Lance in the bedroom and kennel Jesse for that day.
And so far, so good.
Soo, just because your apartment complex says NO to pitties, odds are, IF your a responsible with your dogs, no one will be the wiser if you have them. I make sure to stay away from other dogs, walk them at odd times and avoid the management building at all costs. It may not work for everyone, but it is an alternative to placing them in shelters or the dreaded craigs list.


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The largest newspaper publisher in the United States has ordered "thousands" of iPad 2s and iPhone 4S, according to an internal memo from Gannett newspaper division president Bob Dickey.
The independent Gannett Blog posted the memo Wednesday evening (from an iPhone no less). Writes Dickey:
In every local market, we have the most and the best journalists. These new tools will help our journalists meet the demands of the new news cycle, one that requires agility in real-time reporting, social media and greater emphasis on video storytelling, further increasing our competitive advantage.
Dickey also waxed poetic about the potential the iPhones and iPads have for journalists, saying the new devices will "enable them to do new things we can't even imagine yet." A note to Mr. Dickey: Give TiPb -- heck, any of the Mobile Nations sites -- a read. We'll show ya real quick what can (and has) been done for years.
The phones and tablets will reach newsrooms in January.
Source: Gannett Blog


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February 5, 2011
Wabash suffered a one-point loss in Saturday's tennis match against Augustana. The 5-4 defeat against the Vikings puts the Little Giants even at 1-1 on the season.
The Little Giants opened with two victories in doubles' action. Wade Miller and Daniel Delgado scored an 8-6 (10-8) win at number one doubles, while Evan Bayless and Ian Leonard were 8-5 winners in the third flight of doubles play.
Miller added a straight sets 6-1, 6-4 win at number four singles. Senior Ricky Ritter added a 6-3, 6-1 win at number five singles. Peter Gunderman and Leonard (right) each forced their matches at number one and six singles, respectively to three sets but were unable to score the decisive team point for the victory.
The victory moves Augustana to 3-1 for the season.
Wabash was scheduled to compete against Hanover College in the afternoon session, but bad weather forced a postponement of the match. The Little Giants return to action on Saturday, February 12 at Ohio Wesleyan. Wabash will play the Battling Bishops and the Capital University tennis teams.


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text: Friday, October 14, 2011 Study: Direct Access to PTs Associated With Lower Costs, Fewer Visits A new study suggesting that "the role of the physician gatekeeper in regard to physical therapy may be unnecessary in many cases" could have significant implications for the US health care system, APTA announced in a news release yesterday. Funded by a grant from APTA, the Private Practice Section (PPS), and the Section on Health Policy and Administration (HPA), this study examined non-Medicare claims data and compared self-referred episodes of physical therapy to physician-referred episodes of physical therapy. Published ahead of print September 23, in the journal Health Services Research (HSR), the study found that patients who visited physical therapists directly for outpatient care had fewer visits and lower overall costs on average than those who were referred by a physician, after adjusting for age, gender, diagnosis, illness severity, and calendar year. In addition, overall related health care use—or care related to the problem for which physical therapy was received, but not physical therapy treatment—was lower in the self-referred group after adjustment. Examples of this type of care might include physician services and diagnostic testing. The study also found that individuals were similarly engaged with the medical care system during and after their course of physical therapy care, suggesting that continuity of care did not differ between the 2 groups. In the coming weeks, APTA, HPA, and PPS will be providing more information about this landmark study as a communications plan is rolled out to members, the media, and the public. In addition to the news release referenced above, sample presentations, talking points, and other tools will be developed for members to use in community outreach. Jane Pendergast, PhD, professor of biostatistics and director of the Center for Public Health Studies at the University of Iowa, was lead author of the study. Coauthors of the study were Stephanie A. Kliethermes, MS, a doctoral candidate in biostatistics at the Center for Public Health Studies, University of Iowa; APTA member Janet K. Freburger, PT, PhD, research associate and fellow at the Sheps Center for Health Services Research and a scientist at the Institute on Aging at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; and APTA member Pamela A. Duffy, PT, PhD, OCS, CPC, assistant professor, Public Health Program, at Des Moines University. Comments Outstanding work. Our profession needs to be released from control. We can save the government tremendous money with direct access. Thanks for the hard work. Posted by Gina Ricci on 10/14/2011 6:26 PM Fantastic job! What a great marketing tool as well. We will be posting a blog and pushing it through our social media and PR outlets as soon as those talking points come though. Thanks for your dedication! Posted by Sarah Walmsley on 10/14/2011 8:51 PM What a fantastic idea! I look forward to more news! Posted by Michael Bender -> ?OU`DG on 10/15/2011 12:54 AM A great example of contemporary research for contemporary issues in healthcare! Posted by Gretchen Galschjodt -> AGY[BK on 10/16/2011 5:06 PM This is a great tool! Our organzation continues to focus on areas in which we can directly and positively impact our community. Posted by Kelly Ingram-Mitchell on 10/17/2011 7:15 AM This is a very interesting article based on needed to research but the first thing we need to get changed is for PT's to be able set a medical diagnosis. Why would any insurance and CMS reimburse for seeing a first line provider if that provider is not able to diagnose their own patient. Also, if you are the patient and you are trying to find out what's wrong with you, would you opt for a doctor who can't diagnose? I think this is where the main focus is. We have done plenty of research that shows that PT with their clinical skills can very accurately diagnose a patient and this is done in many countries outside of the USA and it has been proven to be a very important first step in getting true direct access, Jay Posted by J Wijnmaalen, PT,MBA, MTC on 10/17/2011 9:22 AM I hope this will be sent to every legislature in states where direct access is being introduced. Also every insurance company. What percent is the savings? It could also be used in our fight against POPTS and our savings there. Thanks for your work again.!!! Posted by Walt Abbey on 10/19/2011 9:39 AM What's wrong with POPTS? Posted by J Wijnmaalen, DPT, MBA, MTC on 10/19/2011 3:42 PM Conclusion Recognizing the incongruity of POPTS and APTA's Vision 2020 that embraces the autonomous practice of doctorally prepared professionals, the inherent conflicts of interest existing within POPTS, the loss of the patient/client's right to choice of provider, and the increased cost to society identified resulting from POPTS, the American Physical Therapy Association reaffirms its decades-long position of opposition to physician-owned physical therapy services. APTA supports legislative and regulatory measures at the state and federal levels to ban physician ownership of physical therapy services. These efforts include sponsoring efforts to strengthen state practice acts to prohibit POPTS—and gaining direct access to Medicare patients. Posted by M Gibson on 10/19/2011 8:49 PM Fabulous! Will the APTA be posting the full article so we can send it on to our state legislators? Posted by Mary Massery on 10/23/2011 2:08 PM i want afree and sponsor physiotherapy course Posted by mnoorulislam on 2/6/2012 11:42 AM