text:
The supply chain is evolving at exponential pace. While this promises new channels of growth, most companies aren't equipped or simply haven't realized the immense cost-saving potential of an intelligent system.
Held back by inefficient legacy technology and siloed processes, many of today's supply chains and operations aren't set up to manage the complexities of modern markets and shifting customer expectations. What's more, supply chain and operations executives lack the strategic visibility to deliver hyper-personalized experiences that customers increasingly demand.
With US$14 trillion estimated in cost disruption across the value chain over the next decade, organizations can't afford to miss an opportunity to achieve agility and drive enterprise-wide growth. So, what will it take to decode the new?
Chief Supply Chain Officers will need to radically transform their operating model and processes. That means seizing the right mix of leading-edge technologies to build intelligent and customer-centric supply chain and operations.
Many of today's supply chains and operations are too inflexible to give individual customers the hyper-personalized experience they want. Businesses struggle to compete with emerging players better equipped to handle digital disruption. In fact, only 50 percent of supply chain executives say that "decision-making speed" and "flexibility to respond" are key sources to thriving in modern markets.
Research shows that companies that understand digital transformation earn 26 percent more profit than others. Their supply chains are smarter, more connected, innovative and agile than traditional ones.
That is value companies can't afford to lose.
Intelligent supply chains provide rich, personalized customer experiences that adapt to a business's needs in real-time. The question is: How do you get there?
We partner with organizations to digitally reinvent their supply chain, optimize workflow and streamline operations. The result? Greater visibility, more platform integration and continuous innovation.
We help Chief Supply Chain Officers to:
Identify Inefficiencies
Pinpoint areas where legacy technology is hindering growth within the supply chain, such as: partially digitized processes, limited visibility, poor response time, conflicting priorities and impersonal delivery.
Implement New Technologies
and Tech-Driven Platforms
Develop intelligent supply chain and operations that are fast, flexible and fit for the future by leveraging digital technologies such as AI, blockchain, 3D printing, cognitive computing and machine learning.
Reinvent Industries
Invest in new technologies and tech-driven platforms to seize growth opportunities, optimize innovation cycle-time and improve responsiveness.
Today's Chief Supply Chain Officers have an opportunity to build smart, connected and innovative supply chain and operations, elevating the customer experience to one that is both hyper-personalized and profitable.
Partner with us to transform your supply chain and drive competitive agility in the age of disruption.
Frode Huse Gjendem
Managing Director, Supply Chain &
Analytics Operations
Mo Hajibashi
Managing Director, North America
Supply Chain & Operations, Products
Keith Hausmann
Senior Director of Operations,
BPO Services North America
Chris Johnston
Managing Director,
Finance & Risk
Frank Meerkamp
Managing Director,
Accenture's Artificial Intelligence Strategic Growth Initiative, Supply Chain
Tushar Narsana
Managing Director, Operations,
Supply Chain & Operations
Erik Olson
Global Managing Director,
Supply Chain & Operations,
Eric Schaeffer
Senior Managing Director,
Industrial, Product Industry X.0
Kris Timmermans
Senior Managing Director and
Operations Lead, Accenture Strategy
John Walko
Senior Managing Director,
Accenture's Health Life Sciences, Supply Chain
Invent your future by leveraging the Accenture Innovation Architecture to develop and deliver disruptive innovation.
Learn more about the latest trends and business insights to turn disruption into opportunity.
Transform your enterprise by reinventing key functional areas, with our expertise.
Ready to work together?
Find out how we can digitally reinvent your supply chain and operations.LEARN MORE
Join us
Redefine your career here.


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Multi-Word TagCloud on Web N-gram Now
Check out the tagCloud below, can you see why it is interesting? Please compare the two tag clouds generated from the same text (a text corpus from the title of about 2000 data.gov datasets), and see why they are different.
- Meaningful Visualization. As you may see from the caption, the first one a "MultiWord TagCloud" while the other is the conventional single-word TagCloud. The former joints individual words into popular multi-word phrases. With the former tag cloud, I can have a better overview on what data was published at data.gov.
- Automated Process. The MultiWord TagCloud was not created by human users, but automatically generated by computer program, powered by Microsoft Web N-gram service. We can generate such tag cloud for all existing text document
- Cloud+Crowd. Broadly, this demo shows the value of the crowd and the cloud I mentioned in my earlier blog, now big data can be tackled by the crowd (text from the entire Web) and the cloud (the high performance computational Web N-gram service).
Behind the Scene
The WWW2010 is really inspiring – making me a productive "engineer" although I came as a researcher. Today I picked up Microsoft Visual Studio and write my first C# program. I was an excellent C++ programmer back to my college time (I wrote ton of code using Visual C++ 4.0 10+ years ago). However, today is not about me being a programmer, but rather announce something that is really cool! I would also like to thank researchers, Evelyne and Paul from Microsoft Research for their great support. My demo on data.gov data is powered by Microsoft Web N-gram Service.
Li Ding @ RPI, April 29, 2010

subset: commoncrawl


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|Dell and Avid have partnered together to offer award-winning digital audio and video solutions that can empower you to achieve your creative visions. The media created by these solutions touches millions of people around the world via the web, TV, radio, theatres and more.
By running Avid software on Dell Precision workstations, you can get the speed, ease and openness you need to bring great stories and music to life. Select Dell Precision workstations are certified for the following Avid applications:
- Media Composer Family, the fastest film and video editing software in the industry, including Media Composer for film and video editing, Symphony for high-performance editing and finishing, and NewsCutter for news production
- Pro Tools, software for recording, editing and mixing high-quality music and audio at the speed of your creativity
- Venue, live audio mixing software for unparalleled sound quality, reliability and efficiency
- Interplay, media and production asset management software that can help you automate your ingest, production and distribution processes, and link them to critical business functions such as billing, sales and rights management
Have an expert contact you to learn more about our workstation solutions.
You can also use our Dell Precision Workstation Advisor, an interactive tool that can help you choose a Dell Precision PC that meets your computing needs.


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A more severe form of arthritis is rheumatoid arthritis, which is and results in hot swollen joints. It is an autoimmune disorder that causes the body's immune system to attack the joints. I suspect that infections are common triggers for this attack.
The American College of Rheumatology has defined the following criteria for Rheumatoid Arthritis:
At least four of these criteria need to be met, although patients are sometimes treated despite not meeting these criteria. The childhood form of this disease is called Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis.
In addition to using long-term antibiotic therapy with minocycline in rheumatoid arthritis, it is worth considering dietary changes as well. Diet can play a major role in inflammatory arthritis. A recent study tested the role of diet in 60 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. 30 patients were given a standard American diet and the other 30 an anti-inflammatory diet low in meat and high in fish oil—with supplements given to supply approximately 2 g of omega 3 fish oils daily—for eight months. The patients on an anti-inflammatory diet had a 28 percent decrease in the number of tender joints. In addition, decreasing inflammation by giving borage seed oil (supplying 1.4 g of GLA—Gamma Linolenic Acid) decreased the swollen joint score by 41 percent in the active group vs. a 40 percent worsening in the placebo group. No patients had to withdraw because of side effects.Many other nutrients, including pantothenic acid, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, boron, copper, zinc, and selenium have been found to be deficient and/or helpful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, see the article on inflammation for more information on treating rheumatoid arthritis with diet and supplements. High doses of fish oil (e.g. 1 to 2 Tbsp a day for at least 3 months) have been shown to be especially helpful in over six studies. As always, use fish oil that is mercury and lead free.
As baby boomers begin reaching the age of retirement, the number of Americans developing arthritis-type disorders is expected to soar. This increase will add to already significant arthritis rates. According to the Centers for Disease Control, one out of four American adults has been diagnosed with arthritis and another 17 percent may be suffering from it without having been diagnosed. In 2002, the percentage of those diagnosed with one or more forms of arthritis (including rheumatoid arthritis and gout), lupus, or fibromyalgia ranged from a low of 17.8 percent in Hawaii to a high of 35.8 percent in Alabama. Thirty-six million workdays are lost each year because of osteoarthritis. A CDC (Center for Disease Control) arthritis expert stated that the number of cases of arthritis in America is huge compared to most other diseases. Fortunately, there are many natural and prescription therapies that can be effective.
Natural Therapies
I prefer using natural rather than prescription therapies for osteoarthritis. The most common prescription medications in use (NSAIDs like Motrin®) kill over 16,000 Americans yearly and do not slow, and may actually hasten, the progression of the arthritis. I recommend you begin with a natural treatment program that will decrease inflammation and help repair the joints.


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The Eight Million: Journal of a New York Correspondent
Simon and Schuster, 1942 - New York (N.Y.) - 334 pages
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I spend most of my days (and nights) interacting with some form of technology, which keeps my hands teathered to input devices attempting to communicate my commands and wishes to something that simply isn't human. Here are the devices that store the things I take in and yet, I have no way of talking back aside from textual and gestural commands that strips the emotion and expression out of my communication. I have reason to believe that this era of sterile human-computer interaction and communication is coming to an end.
Some time this year Emotiv Systems will release the Emotiv EPOC neuroheadset. After some light training this device will be able to detect what you are thinking and allow your computer to react accordingly. I don't think I need to go into why this is revolutionary. Watch the video and you'll see what I mean.
It's important to keep in mind the possibility that in the near future buttons won't be the primary form of input, but rather a piece of a much larger puzzle. As the spectrum of input devices gets wider I expect that the interactive and technological spaces we create will flow much more seamlessly into the tangible spaces we surround ourselves with; reacting to us much more effortlessly than they do now.


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Religious Americans participate in charitable or volunteer organizations twice as much as do secular Americans. So says existing research. But a new study suggests that it's not people's religion that prompts them to become model volunteers, but which high school they attended.
According to Calvin College researchers Jonathan Hill and Kevin den Dulk, the type of high school people attend influences them more than any other factor—including religion, socioeconomic status, or family type.
What type makes the most difference? Their study, published this March in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, shows that graduates of Protestant high schools out-volunteer peers from Catholic, secular, public, and home schools—all by significant margins.
The "counterintuitive" findings (researchers expected homeschoolers to be on top) stayed consistent throughout all tests, den Dulk says.
"Educational setting," he said, has a value "beyond religious identity."
The problem is no one knows exactly why Protestant schooling predicts the likelihood of volunteering.
David Sikkink, an associate professor of sociology at the University of Notre Dame whose research has found similar results, believes that somehow teachers implant a sense of civic duty in students' minds.
Protestant schools tend to be strong communities where students get a sense of "collective identity," he said, "and they get practice committing to the common good of the institutions."
One possible explanation is the type of "opportunity structure" for community service that exists for graduates. Hill and den Dulk speculate that Protestant schools may provide better access ...1


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Big Red Makes Two First-Half Goals Stand Up
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – A six-minute stretch midway through the first half doomed the Yale men's soccer team Saturday against Cornell. The Big Red scored twice in the span and then withstood a Yale onslaught in the second half en route to a 2-0 victory at Reese Stadium.
"We dug ourselves a little hole," said Yale head coach Brian Tompkins. "We made a couple of mistakes, and they capitalized."
The Big Red, who extended its unbeaten streak to 11 games, moves into sole possession of first place in the Ivy League with the victory. Both Cornell and Yale entered with 2-0 Ivy records.
"There's still a lot of season left," Tompkins said, "and we still hope to be right in the mix."
Yale (6-5-1 overall) had the better of the play in the second half but couldn't finish. Peter Jacobson was particularly dangerous, getting off three shots. His best chance came with about 13 minutes left. Chris Dennen split the defense, and fed the ball into the box to Jacobson, who turned and fired high from right in front.
The Bulldogs outshot the Big Red 6-3 over the final 45 minutes.
"We had chances. We just couldn't take advantage," Tompkins said. "Credit Cornell's defense. They kept us from getting in a rhythm."
The Big Red grabbed the lead at 19:32 when Regan Tyler broke free along the right wing and fired a shot into the left corner. Daniel Haber took advantage of a Yale turnover to make it 2-0 at 25:17. Jimmy Lannon sent a cross to Haber, who slid a shot inside the near post.
Cornell goalkeeper Rick Pflasterer made four saves to post the shutout. Bobby Thalman stopped two shots for Yale.
The Big Red (8-1-3 overall) had an 11-10 edge in shots in the game. Both teams had five corner kicks.
After playing three straight home games, the Bulldogs are on the road for their next three, starting Wednesday at Sacred Heart. Kickoff is slated for 8 p.m.
Report filed by Tim Bennett, Yale Sports Publicity


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For those wanting to learn more about these 2 kites I had the opportunity to ride theme back to back twice yesterday.
Having used Eclipse kites for 2 years and now riding Slingshot RPM's, Dimitri was nice enough to send me a 6m Epic Renegade for testing so here is a brief summary.
First off all for those of you into freestyle/wake style etc this is a dedicated wave riders point of view !
On the beach : Both kites are very well built and look durable. Slingshot has a good reputation for making solid equipment, for Epic time will tell but construction and stitching looks similar with Best kites which I believe are made in the same factory. Finish and accessories are also very good on both kites, lets just say that the RPM looks (and is) more expensive.
Side by side and although they are both rated as 6m's the Renegade is bigger (more like a 7m) than both, the RPM 6m and also my old Eclipse Kima 6m.
In the air ( 18/22knots small waves, 5'8'' surfboard, 20m lines on both kite, 65kg rider) : First impression the Renegade is more powerful ( but it is bigger) and feels heavier (more bar pressure). Turns on the RPM are faster and the kite is nimbler which is great in waves but perhaps less good for freestylers.
Renegade needs a longer throw on the bar to de-power completely (I needed to stretch my arms all the way) whereas the Rpm's de-power throw is nice and short. Although for me this is an advantage, it also means that the RPM requires more finesse to fly efficiently.
Un-hooked riding, RPM is less likely to stall.
When flying across the window the RPM's power delivery is very smooth and linear (excellent when wave riding), whereas the Renegade has a surge making it better for boosting jumps.
All in all I would say that the Renegade is the most versatile ( better jumping/easier to ride) and should appeal to many riders looking for an all-round kite, whereas the RPM is more specialized (pure wave/wake style) and will excel in the hands of the more experienced riders.
My 2 cents.


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Completely unaided by the colonial British Government the University College of Science and Technology was founded on March 27,1914, by the great visionary Sir Asutosh Mukherjee, the then Vice Chancellor of the University of Calcutta, using the generous donation from Sir Taraknath Palit and Sir Rashbehari Ghosh who together donated nearly thirty seven and half lakhs of rupees and the premises, presently known as, "Rashbehari Siksha Prangan" at 92, Acharya Profulla Chandra Road , Kolkata – 700 009 and "Taraknath Palit Siksha Prangan" at 35, Ballygunge Circular Road, Kolkata – 700 019, owned by Sir Palit. The first batch of teachers included Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray, Sir Chandra Sekher Venkata Raman , Sisir Kumar Mitra and the legendary 1915 M.Sc. batch comprising Satyendranath Bose, Meghnad Saha , Jnanchandra Ghosh , Jnanendranath Mukherjee and others. The College served as the cradle of Indian Sciences winning Noble Prize by Sir Raman in 1930 and many fellowship of the Royal society.
Acharya Ray established the Bengal Chemical and Pharmaceutical works , a step towards self-reliance of our Country. Saha and Ghosh later participated in a big way in National Planning Commission .
UCSTA recently started its further expansion in the Technology Campus at Salt Lake.
Consisting of twenty three departments situated in two campuses:
Rashbehari Siksha Prangan (commonly known as Rajabazar Sc. College) at 92 A.P.C. Road, Kolkata – 700009 and Taraknath Palit Siksha Prangan (commonly known as Ballygunge Sc. College) at 35, Ballygunge Circular Road, Kolkata – 700 019, offers twenty six M.Sc. courses, five M.Phil courses and Ph.D Programmes....
Consisting of eight departments situated in Rashbehari Siksha Prangan commonly known as Rajabazar Sc. College) at 92 A.P.C. Road, Kolkata – 700009,
offers twelve B.Tech courses, one MCA course, eighteen M.Tech. courses and Ph.D. Programmes....
Consisting of six departments under the umbrella of Institute of Agricultural Science situated in Taraknath Palit Siksha Prangan (commonly known as Ballygunge Sc. College) at 35, allygunge Circular Road, Kolkata – 700 019 (Annex Building) and Agricultural Farm at Baruipur, 24 Paraganas (South) , offers six M.Sc. (Ag.) courses and Ph.D Programmes ....
Consisting of single department of Home Science situated at 20B & 20E Judges Court Road, Kolkata – 700 027, offers two M.Sc./M.A. courses, two B.Sc. Hons./B.A. Hons. Courses and four B.Sc./B.A. Major/General courses and Ph.D. Programmes.
Copyright © 2010 - 2011 University of Calcutta.


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The Brandy Alexander/
Because they're most perfect for winter (hello, 27 degrees this morning!), because they're freaking delicious and because I had a Groupon for some Ciao Bella burning a hole in my pocket -- it's Alexander Week over here at the Five O'Clock Cocktail Blog!
For those who don't know, an Alexander is a genus of cocktail that employs a primary liquor, creme de cacao liqueur (white or dark) and
light or heavy cream ICE CREAM!! Yes, damn it, here at the blog -- unlike every cocktail recipe book you might come across -- we do it with ice cream. With rare exceptions, drinking cream not-in-coffee doesn't sit well with me. It's like having chicken for breakfast. (I mean, I suppose I could, I just don't ever want to.) It makes me picture those annoying cream thimbles you get at McDonald's, and frankly, I can't see why I'd ever want cream-cream when I could have ice cream instead.
Plus, the flavors! What flavors does cream come in? Sweet? A smidgen of imagination and a scoop of gelato result in some yummy Alexander combos, ones especially well-suited for cold weather. See, ice cream cocktails may sound like nothing but summer, but to me they conjure cozy sofas, living-room fireplaces, a book, a blanket -- and a good draw of some belly-stoking fire water. When I think about summertime drinking, on the other hand, I want something akin to an astringent gin and tonic. (This cocktail from last week is pretty summerrific, actually.)
Kicking off Alexander Week is the most well-known Alexander, the Brandy Alexander. We'll get to the original Alexander (you'll likely be surprised what's in it!) and others old-fashioned and newfangled later on in the week.
1 ¼ ounces Remy Martin VO
¾ ounces white creme de cacao
About 1 ¼ ounces Ciao Bella cinnamon gelato, plus a small scoop more for a float
Fresh nutmeg, for garnish
Pour brandy and creme de cacao into ice-filled cocktail shaker. Add 1 1/4 ounces of gelato. Shake vigorously. Strain into chilled cocktail glass. Float a rounded spoonful of gelato in the middle of the glass. Grate fresh nutmeg on top.
Tasting Notes:
Don't worry too much about measuring the size of your gelato scoops -- although if you happen to have a melon baller on hand, definitely use that. (Go with the larger scoop, if yours is double-headed.)
Cinnamon gelato struck our fancy for pairing with brandy. What's yours? Experiment!


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Surgery is usually reserved for severe cases of scoliosis with a degree of curvature over 40°-50°.
The goals of surgery are to:
- Stop the progression of scoliosis
- Lessen the curve
- Avoidance of complications in adulthood, such as lung disease due to restriction of a deformed chest cavity
Many types of techniques can be used for scoliosis. These techniques have some or all of the following in common:
- Efforts to restore some symmetry to the torso and pelvic areas.
Supporting the vertebrae.
- This can be done with or without hardware, such as steel rods, screws, or hooks.
- Procedures can be done with or without spinal fusion .
The type of surgery done will depend on your child's age.
Fusion Surgery
Spinal fusion surgery involves joining together adjacent vertebrae to result in growth into one solid bone. This results in permanent restrictions on certain types of movement. The restriction depends on how many bones are fused together. Hardware is used to keep the spine in place while the bones fuse together. Fusion surgery is only considered in children who are older than 8 years of age. It is most likely to be done in adolescents who are close to full growth.
This is one of the most common surgeries performed for scoliosis. This type of surgery is a posterior spinal fusion. A metal rod is attached to each side of the spine by using hooks attached to the vertebral bodies. The spine is then fused with a piece of bone from the hip area. The bone grows in between the vertebrae and holds them together and straight. The metal rods attached to the spine help the backbone remain straight while the spinal fusion takes place.
Small incisions are made for insertion of a thoracoscope and surgical instruments. Thoracoscopic surgery is less invasive, but in some studies surgery and recovery times appear to be longer than conventional surgery. Although there are some benefits to this type of surgery, serious post-surgical complications are possible. If this surgical procedure is an option for your child, be sure to weigh out all the options with the doctor.
Non-Fusion Surgery
Non-fusion surgical procedures are designed to help the curve correct itself over time. These procedures do not restrict movement once the spine has healed. Some of these are somewhat new procedures, and may not be available everywhere.
- Epiphysiodesis —This procedure is designed to stop growth on one side of the spine. The other side of the spine will continue to grow. There will be slow, progressive correction.
- Vertebral body stapling —Staples are used through thoracoscope and insterted into the spine. The staple acts as a clamp to stabilize the spine. Depending on the severity of the curve, a rod may be used to stabilize the spine while it heals.
- Vertebral wedge osteotomy —A wedge-shaped portion of the bone in the spine is cut out on one side of the curve. The open space left in the spine is then closed together. A temporary rod is inserted while the bones heal.
- Magnetically controlled growing rods —A rod is implanted to straighten the spine. Growth adjustments to the rod are done with a magnet, minimizing invasive surgical procedures.
Revision Information
- Reviewer: EBSCO Medical Review Board Michael Woods, MD, FAAP
- Review Date: 05/2017 -
- Update Date: 05/16/2017 -


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Honduran City is World Murder Capital; Juarez Drops for Second Year in a Row
For the second straight year, Honduras' second largest city topped the list of the world's most dangerous cities, according to a Mexican research center.
Drug violence, gang activity and the targeted killing of women all contributed to San Pedro de Sula's top ranking in the list compiled by the organization Seguridad, Justicia y Paz.
"San Pedro de Sula authorities have claimed that the placement of the city in the first place in the rankings hurts his image. They have also argued that our figures are wrong," a statement from the organization noted. "But we rely on official figures regarding the effect on the ranking, which only recognize the reality. This is not damaging the image of the city — the violence and the inability of governments to contain it and reduce it is. Hiding it never resolves problems."
While Mexico still struggles with high levels of violent crime due to the country's ongoing drug war, many of the country's cities known as epicenters of violence have made significant drops on the list.
Ciudad Juárez –which held the top spot in 2008, 2009 and 2010– fell on the list to the 19th place, behind cities like Cali in Colombia (7) and the most dangerous city in the U.S., New Orleans (17). The Mexican government attributed their police and military tactics in the border city to the drop in violent crime, while others claim that the powerful Sinaloa Cartel has finally defeated their rivals in Juárez and wrestled control of the city.
"If you control the city, you control the drugs," a Mexican federal agent told the Associated Press. "And it appears to be [Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán)."
The Mexican resort town of Acapulco came in second on the list and the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, rounded off the top three.
Caracas has seen an escalation in murder rates over the last decade, with 3,400 murders only last year.
In Venezuela, with the state of President Hugo Chávez's health in limbo, crime rate has taken to the back burner. Caracas, however, experienced a record number of homicides last year and Venezuela ranks 27th in the world rankings of privately held firearms, according to GunPolicy.org.
"When it comes to ownership of a weapon, Venezuela stands out: 10 percent of the population is estimated to own a firearm," said Elizabeth Dickinson in an article for the United Nations. "Here, criminal activity may be more to blame than drugs."
Under Chávez, the country has been cracking down on gun sales, with his 2011 disarmament commission that saw 13,000 illegal weapons surrendered and the 2012 resolution that banned the sale of all firearms and ammunition to civilians for one year.
The country's legislature is now considering a new disarmament bill that would raise the minimum age to purchase a gun to 25 and order marking on guns and ammunition to make tracking easier. The bill, however, is stalled as the country deals with other matters.
The report by Seguridad, Justicia y Paz measured murder rates per capita to compile its list.
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When $F = \mathbb{R}, \mathbb{C}$ or $\mathbb{H}$, there are fibrations $$O(k,F)\rightarrow V_k(F^n)\rightarrow G_k(F^n)$$ where $V_k(F^n)$ are Steifel manifolds and $G_k(F^n)$ are Grassmannians. When $k=1$ these reduce to the Hopf fibrations $$S^{d-1}\rightarrow S^{dn-1}\rightarrow FP^{n-1}$$ where $d=\text{dim}F$.
If $S^{dn-1}$ are given round metrics, people make a big deal about the metrics on $FP^{n-1}$ that make the above Riemannian submersions.
You can also describe the metrics on $FP^{n-1}$ with distances between subsets of the round sphere $S^{dn-1}$ that correspond to lines through the origin in $F^n$. This, from what I've read (and agree with), is also the natural metric to put on $G_k(F^n)$ where "lines" has been replaced by "$k$-planes".
I'm being tricked into believing that there should be some nice metric on $V_k(F^n)$ that makes the map $V_k(F^n)\rightarrow G_k(F^n)$ Riemannian and that I must not have been listening when people were making an equally big deal about these metrics on $G_k(F^n)$ as they do for $FP^n$.
Question: What goes wrong? If nothing, why is this not as interesting as the geometry of the Hopf fibrations? If equally interesting, where is a good source to learn more?


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So this season I've shared strawberry pie, strawberry-rhubarb crumble bars and strawberry-rhubarb cobbler...the only left to do is combine some of these things into a strawberry-rhubarb crumble pie! I promise, this will be the last rhubarb recipe of the year!
|Fresh, local ingredients make all the difference in truly great pies!
use your own favorite or try my fave pie crust (it will make enough for two 9-inch single crusts)
Fruit Filling
4 c rhubarb, chopped into 1-inch chunks
3 c strawberries, halve or quartered depending on size
3 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
3/4 c sugar
juice of 1/2 lemon (optional)
2/3 c flour
1/2 c brown sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c butter, unsalted and melted
What to do:(If using your own dough, make it and skip to "preheat oven" - #8.)
1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, sugar and salt.
2. Grate the frozen butter into the flour. (this is a pain but essential)
3. Gently toss the butter and flour until the flour coats the grated butter.
4. Sprinkle the ice water over the mixture and mix with your fingers. In the bowl, knead the dough until it comes together into a ball.
5. Divide the dough into two pieces and place in plastic wrap or a ziploc.
6. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
7. Remove the dough from the fridge and let it sit for 10 minutes to make rolling easier.
8. Preheat your oven to 400° F.
9. Roll out dough to fit a 9-inch pie plate and trim and pinch edges. Place in pie pan and place in refrigerator until fruit is ready.
10. In a large bowl, combine and toss rhubarb, strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, spices, salt and lemon juice if using.
11. Remove pie pan from fridge and fill with fruit mixture.
12. For crumble topping, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl.
13. Stir in melted butter and mix until everything is damp and crumbly.
14. Using your hands, sprinkle the crumble mixture over top of fruit.
15. Place a baking tray under the pie pan and place in oven for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350° F and bake for 40 minutes more, or until fruit filling is bubbling (the pan will catch any runaway juices!). If crust edge is browning too quickly, cover edges with a thin strip of tin foil.
16. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
Feeds 8.
|A little browner on top than I would like but still delicious!


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God has opened a small door for us after we have been praying and waiting for one for the past three years. We'll be moving back to Nebraska shortly after our baby is born. At first we will likely have to live with my parents for a short while, but then we'll be moving to a house only a few blocks away once it is ready for us.
I'm excited to have some of the things I've been missing the past three years of apartment-living -- a yard for Edmund and the baby to play in, a place to take walks with the kids without having to drive anywhere, space for some gardening, and less cramped living quarters! Not to mention ready-and-willing babysitters just a few blocks away. ;-)
Meanwhile, Douglas will have the opportunity to work on some entrepeneurial endeavors. There's no knowing where the next few years will take us, so it is especially a time to trust God for provision, care, and guidance.
Of course, we will miss our Indiana church and friends. We're trying to savor the things we enjoy about living here these last few months. Douglas likes the taller trees that you find in the eastern part of the Midwest. It seems silly, but I'll miss the grocery stores I frequent. :) (Though it will be fun to coordinate shopping trips with my mom or grandma, to have an extra hand with wrasslin' two babes and a shopping cart.)
Be strong and courageous.
Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,
for the LORD your God will be with you
wherever you go."
--Joshua 1:9


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Behind the Headlines
Wednesday March 21 2012
"Taking a low dose of aspirin every day can prevent and possibly even treat cancer," BBC News today reported. The painkiller is already taken by thousands to cut their risk of heart attacks and strokes, but new, widely reported research has suggested it may have a role in fighting cancer that this study used.
In three research papers published simultaneously, doctors and researchers looked at cancer data recorded during dozens of trials testing aspirin for heart and circulatory health. They found that daily use of aspirin was linked to a drop in the short-term risk of developing cancer and could reduce both the risk of cancers spreading around the body and the risk of death due to cancer.
However, given that the trials were not originally designed to see whether aspirin would reduce people's risks of cancer we cannot be sure that the drug's potential cancer-fighting benefits are not outweighed by its known side-effects. For example, aspirin can cause painful stomach irritation and there is a small but important risk of serious bleeds associated with its use. Therefore, until there have been dedicated studies, it is too soon to recommend that people should start taking daily aspirin unless it has been recommended to them by a doctor.
Overall, aspirin is a highly effective medical treatment when used appropriately, but it is not yet a drug that should be taken unsupervised on a daily basis, even at low doses.
Although first created to act simply as a painkiller, aspirin is now routinely used to treat and prevent a range of health problems. For example, in the UK it can be prescribed as a blood-thinner to reduce the risk of clots, but only as a small daily dose, often around 75mg. This is much lower than the 300mg found in a typical aspirin painkilling tablet.
Some researchers have also suggested that the humble household drug can also reduce the risk of cancer, and various studies have looked at the issue over the years. However, The Lancet journal group has today published three related research papers examining the effects of aspirin on cancer incidence, cancer metastasis (spread) and cancer deaths. To examine whether or not aspirin has cancer-fighting properties, researchers conducted three reviews of the body of evidence provided from previous trials that had indirectly examined how aspirin-use related to cancer. In other words, the trials had been looking at issues other than cancer, but had recorded additional data on cancer that the researchers examined.
The reviews were conducted by Peter Rothwell of Oxford University, along with other researchers. Two reviews were published in The Lancet and the third was published in the group's specialist cancer publication, Lancet Oncology. The researchers declared they received no external funding for any of the reviews.
To conduct their review, researchers performed systematic searches of research databases to gather all relevant studies on cancer incidence, cancer metastasis (spread) and cancer deaths. They then used recognised methods to produce three different review papers; the findings of which are summarised below.
Paper 1: Aspirin reduces the short-term risk of cancer incidence and mortality
The first study analysed individual patient data from 51 randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that had compared daily aspirin use with control treatments as a means of preventing vascular events such as heart attacks and strokes. In total, the trials featured 77,549 patients: 40,269 were prescribed aspirin and 37,280 were in control groups and were prescribed either an alternative treatment or no treatment at all.
The study found that aspirin reduces the risk of non-vascular death by around 12% compared with a control treatment. This effect was mainly due to fewer cancer deaths after five years, with the risk of cancer being 37% lower among aspirin users than the control group.
The researchers then considered only those trials examining aspirin use for the prevention of vascular events in people who had not yet had an event such as a heart attack or stroke, a practice known as "primary prevention". Doctors prescribe aspirin in this way when people are considered to be at risk due to factors such as their age, weight and lifestyle.
When examining aspirin as a primary prevention, the researchers found that after three years of use it reduced cancer incidence in both men and women, and in smokers and non-smokers. Aspirin also reduced the risk of heart attack and strokes, but increased the risk of bleeding – a potentially serious side effect that some people experience when taking aspirin. The effect aspirin had on both cardiovascular risks and bleeds decreased with time, although the effect aspirin had on cancer remained.
Paper 2: Aspirin prevents distant metastasis
One particularly serious complication of cancer can be "metastasis", where cancerous cells spread to other tissues and organs. It can make the cancer harder to treat, and with many cancers metastasis can reduce the chances of a patient surviving.
Some theories have suggested that regular aspirin use could reduce the risk of metastasis, perhaps by the actions it has upon the blood. The second review examined this issue by analysing individual patient data to determine how common metastasis is in people who developed a solid cancer, such as stomach cancer (as opposed to a blood cancer, such as leukaemia) and whether their aspirin use had any impact on their risk of it. The patients were participants in RCTs comparing groups taking aspirin daily with control groups, for the prevention of vascular events. This study included patient data from five trials performed in the UK. These trials would have excluded patients with a recent diagnosis of cancer from entry into the study, and therefore only participants who were diagnosed with cancer during the course of the trial were looked at.
In total, 987 new solid cancers were diagnosed among 17,285 participants during the trials. Patients who received aspirin were 46% less likely to have cancer with distant metastasis than those using a control treatment.
The researchers then turned their attention to a particular type of cancer called adenocarcinoma, which can affect a range of different organs in the body. They found that:
Paper 3: The results of observational studies are consistent with the results of RCTs, and show that regular use of aspirin reduces the long-term risk of several cancers and the risk of distant metastases
The third study was a systematic review of observational studies that had reported associations between aspirin, risk of cancer and the outcome of cancer cases. The researchers compared the result with that of RCTs to see if they were consistent across the reviews.
Observational studies provide less evidence than RCTs, and cannot show causation. However, this study found that the results of the observational studies were consistent with those obtained from RCTs, which is that regular use of aspirin reduces the long-term risk of several cancers, including:
Observational studies also supported the finding that aspirin lowers the risk of distant metastasis.
All of these studies were systematic reviews, which are considered to provide a higher amount of evidence, particularly those examining RCTs, as two of these reviews did. However, it should be noted that the RCTs were designed to assess the effectiveness of aspirin as a means to prevent vascular events such as heart attack and stroke, and not as a means to prevent cancer. Given that the studies were not designed to look at cancer, they may have had limitations in the type of cancer-related information they recorded.
For many people at risk of cardiovascular disease, the benefits of taking prescribed daily aspirin under their doctor's supervision outweigh the risks of taking the drug. However, this may not be the case in otherwise healthy people who are not at cardiovascular risk. Therefore, caution should be applied when applying these results to the general population. The authors report that, so far, there have only been a few small RCTs of aspirin for the treatment of cancer, but that two new trials have recently begun.
Although these studies provide compelling evidence, taking aspirin is not yet recommended to prevent cancer and people should not start taking it daily as a precautionary measure. This is because aspirin can potentially cause serious harmful effects, such as a small-but-important increase in the risk of stomach irritation and bleeding (haemorrhage).
The risk of complications also tends to be higher in:
Aspirin can also cause breathing problems in people with asthma. Other common side effects of aspirin include feeling sick and indigestion. Some people have allergic reactions to it.
Given that the potential risks could outweigh any benefits, it is not currently advised that healthy people with no risk factors for cardiovascular disease take aspirin to prevent possible cardiovascular events such as heart attack and stroke. Furthermore, as the evidence for taking aspirin purely as cancer prevention or treatment is even less substantial than for blood thinning, again we cannot be sure that the potential benefits are not outweighed by the known risks.
Before taking aspirin, including for pain relief, talk to your doctor or pharmacist if:
Aspirin should not be given to children under the age of 16 due to the risk of Reye's syndrome, a rare but dangerous condition that can be triggered by aspirin. Aspirin has been removed as an ingredient from all UK child and baby medicines, so they should not carry a risk of Reye's syndrome.
The news has understandably generated a great deal of interest in aspirin as a potential way to cut cancer risk, but it should be remembered that there are many other lifestyle changes that people can make to reduce their risk of cancer, including giving up smoking, which do not have harmful side effects.
Analysis by
Edited by NHS Choices
Daily aspirin 'prevents and possibly treats cancer'. BBC News, March 21 2012
Daily aspirin: Risks and benefits. BBC News, March 21 2012
An aspirin every day 'cuts cancer death risk by 37%' and can stop disease from spreading. Daily Mail, March 21 2012
Aspirin a day cuts cancer risk after just three years. The Daily Telegraph, March 21 2012
Aspirin may halt cancer spread. The Independent, March 21 2012
Daily dose of aspirin can cut cancer risk, say studies. The Guardian, March 21 2012
Take an aspirin a day and you may keep cancer at bay. Metro, March 21 2012
Rothwell PM, Price JF, Fowkes FGR et al. Short-term effects of daily aspirin on cancer incidence, mortality, and non-vascular death: analysis of the time course of risks and benefits in 51 randomised controlled trials. The Lancet, Early Online Publication, March 21 2012
Rothwell PM, Wilson M, Price JF et al. Effect of daily aspirin on risk of cancer metastasis: a study of incident cancers during randomised controlled trials. The Lancet, Early Online Publication, March 21 2012
Algra AM and Rothwell PM. Effects of regular aspirin on long-term cancer incidence and metastasis: a systematic comparison of evidence from observational studies versus randomised trials. The Lancet Oncology, Early Online Publication, March 21 2012
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text:
Pens aim to close out Sens on home ice
The top-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins will try to finish off the Ottawa Senators on Friday when they host Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at CONSOL Energy Center.
The Penguins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in this series before the seventh-seeded Senators got on the board with a 2-1 overtime triumph in Game 3 at Scotiabank Place. However, Pittsburgh answered the call in Wednesday's Game 4 in Ottawa, slamming the Senators by a 7-3 score to take a commanding 3-1 lead in this best-of-seven set.
Wednesday's game began well for the Sens, who grabbed a 1-0 lead on Milan Michalek's shorthanded goal just 2:29 into the game. Ottawa would carry a 2-1 edge into the first intermission, but Pittsburgh would answer with the six unanswered goals to take a stranglehold on both the game and series.
James Neal and Jarome Iginla each had two goals to help the Penguins rout the Senators in Game 4. Kris Letang registered four assists, while Sidney Crosby and Pascal Dupuis each registered a goal and one helper for Pittsburgh.
"I don't think you ever expect a (blowout)," said Crosby. "We did a good job sticking with it. We kept coming and we stuck with things. It would have been easy to get frustrated after the first (period) with how that went and the chances we created."
Tomas Vokoun also made 30 saves to improve to 5-1 in this postseason. The veteran goaltender has been Pittsburgh's starter since taking over for an ineffective Marc-Andre Fleury prior to Game 5 of the opening round against the New York Islanders.
In addition to Michalek's early goal, Daniel Alfredsson and Kyle Turris scored for Ottawa. Senators goaltender Craig Anderson was pulled after allowing six goals on 38 shots, but he will get the start again in Game 5.
The Senators tied a franchise record for most goals surrendered in one postseason contest, after a 7-6 OT loss to Buffalo in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals on May 5, 2006 and a 7-4 defeat to Pittsburgh in Game 4 of an East quarterfinal on April 20, 2010.
"See ya in Pittsburgh. We're going to Pittsburgh and we're coming to play," Ottawa head coach Paul MacLean said in a terse statement to the media.
Alfredsson, the Senators' longtime captain, did not seem as optimistic as his coach following Wednesday's lopsided loss.
"Probably not," Alfredsson said when asked if his team has a chance to come back and win this series. "I mean, with their depth and power play right now, it doesn't look too good for us."
The 40-year-old Alfredsson, who reached 100 career playoff points with his goal on Wednesday, is considering retirement and Friday's game could be the final contest of his standout NHL career.
The Sens are 2-3 on the road in the playoffs and were just 10-11-3 away from Scotiabank Place during the regular season. Pittsburgh was 18-6-0 in the Steel City during the season and is 4-1 at CONSOL Energy Center in the 2013 postseason.
If necessary, Game 6 will be played Sunday in Ottawa.


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'The Three Stooges': How did the Farrelly brothers get here?
It was supposed to turn out differently for the Farrelly brothers. Enduring a cold streak more intense than a Rhode Island winter, the New England filmmakers were supposed to change all that with "The Three Stooges," an update they didn't so much choose to make as believe was their destiny.
The pair watched the shorts, mouths agape, when they were children, fascinated by the effortless physical comedy of Larry, Curly, Moe and Shemp. They began pursuing the rights as far back as 1996, a lifetime ago in commercial cinema. They made plans to start shooting, at the time with Warner Bros., all the way back in 2004.
With an iteration that at one point was to star Sean Penn and Benicio del Toro, a feature-length "Three Stooges" movie was to be the Farrellys' opus. "We've thought about it for 12 years," Peter Farrelly told 24 Frames last year. "I literally lie in bed thinking about every single shot. I've never been more prepared to do a movie in my life."
But this weekend showed that even a lot of desire and preparation can get you a little poke in the eye.
The movie didn't flop. But with $17.1 million, the Fox release was far from even a decisive hit, beaten by a film, "The Hunger Games," that was rapidly losing steam in its fourth weekend. Nor was the PG-rated "Stooges"--now starring Sean Hayes instead of Sean Penn--anywhere close to the kind of cultural event that you'd hope for with a decade-long project based on a classic property. Audiences rated it only a so-so B-, and even generous critics said it was, at best, mindless fun. A not-small number agreed with the San Francisco Chronicle's Mick LaSalle, who called it "the death, burial, putrefaction and decomposition of comedy." The movie received a dismal 41% on Rotten Tomatoes.
How did this happen? Talking to the brothers last year, one got the sense that this was a duo more invested in the game than their last few efforts, "The Heartbreak Kid" and "Hall Pass," might have suggested. Their passion was still there; so was the belief that they could still turn out a standout in the stunted-male-comedy environment they helped create.
But it turns out they're lacking some other important ingredients. The Farrellys don't have the novelty factor anymore--not when figures like Sacha Baron Cohen play the gross-out squirm card as well as they once did, not when Harold and Kumar and "Horrible Bosses" and a spate of R-rated offspring had been watching so carefully, not when Judd Apatow and his gang of proteges have been doing the sweet-raunch thing equally sharply and perhaps more timely (and with more fully realized female characters).
More to the point, maybe they don't quite have the touch anymore. There was always an element of clever plotting in Peter and Bobby Farrelly's movies -- witness the devious chess match between the various suitors at the center of "There's Something About Mary" -- that wasn't (and maybe would never be) in "The Three Stooges." And even their signature sight gags weren't as prevalent as you'd expect. The most memorable scene in "There's Something About Mary" was Cameron Diaz unwittingly walking around with a substance she thinks is hair gel. The most memorable in "Three Stooges"? Well, let's just say there are a lot of objects coming down on a lot of bodies.
Some could argue, I suppose, that the unraveling of the Farrellys' success is cultural, a function of young males no longer ruling the roost at the box office. But it's hard not to point at a filmmaking team that, bopped on the head by a crop of competitors, has endured its own exaggerated, decade-long pratfall.
"Three Stooges" can't stop Hunger Games
"The Three Stooges": Cher as a nun? and Benicio's not out
"The Three Stogges" draws shrugs, rebukes laughs from critics
Photo: A scene from "The Three Stooges." Credit: 20th Century Fox


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When you read about a multinational company or celebrity dodging their taxes, do you ever wish you could get in on the act? Well, you're in luck. I'm going to share with you a fool-proof strategy to avoid thousands of pounds in tax.
If you buy a property for £300,000 (hardly a mansion), you pay a whopping £9,000 in stamp duty. That could easily be the single biggest cheque you ever write to the tax man. But stamp duty makes a pretty limited contribution to paying for schools, hospitals and gold-plated public sector pensions. The £6.9 billion it brought in for the Exchequer last year is a lot of money, but only 1.2 per cent of total receipts.
The problem is obvious: too many young people cannot get on the property ladder; too many families cannot afford the room they need for a growing family; and too many elderly people are avoiding downsizing. People are not moving enough.
That is the simplest tax avoidance strategy out there. You don't need to hire an expensive lawyer or a crafty accountant: just stay put. You would not avoid any more tax if you hid your house with camouflage netting or airlifted it to the Cayman Islands.
You would not be alone in responding to high stamp duty rates by moving less. An LSE study of the most recent duty "holiday" found that a 1 per cent cut in the tax increased the number of transactions by 20 per cent. Most of those extra transactions were genuine, not just people moving a month or two earlier or later due to the temporary tax break.
If more people move when rates are lower, that means the cost to the Exchequer of cutting the tax will be less than the Treasury thinks. An increase in the number of transactions will make up for taxing each transaction less. And more transactions does not just mean more stamp duty, but more income tax and VAT too. When you move, you normally spend a lot of money on everything from solicitors' fees and surveys to new furniture and redecorating.
If politicians are interested in cutting stamp duty, they could get rid of the ludicrous rule whereby you pay the highest rate for which your house qualifies on its entire value. So, at the moment, a property selling for £250,000 incurs £2,500 in stamp duty, but that rises to £7,500 for a property at £250,001, for example.
That is unfair and inefficient. No one wants to buy a house at just over the threshold. If you buy a home for just under £250,000, you can end up stuck in the place until its value increases very substantially, probably until it is worth closer to £300,000.
It would make a lot more sense if stamp duty were more like income tax: nothing until the 1 per cent threshold; then 1 per cent of the value up to the 3 per cent threshold; and so on.
Alternatively, the Government could take a simpler route and halve all of the rates. That, in simple, static terms, would mean the Treasury got half as much revenue. But then a lot more people would move if buying a £300,000 flat meant £4,500 instead of £9,000 in stamp duty.
For some new research published today, Walbrook Economics looked at the numbers and found that you would need 350,000 extra transactions a year for the Exchequer to break even. They expect there would be enough extra transactions to reduce the cost to around £900 million, or less than 0.2 per cent of the Government's annual revenue. Other cuts in stamp duty might even break even.
If politicians want to minimise tax avoidance, they should put in place a simpler and fairer tax system, which the authorities have a decent chance of enforcing. But that is only part of the story. They also need to set reasonable rates.
Stamp duty is only an extreme example, because, for many people, avoiding it is really easy: stay put unless you absolutely have to move. But there is a broader lesson too: if you make paying tax more expensive, you should expect more people to avoid paying tax.
Matthew Sinclair is the chief executive of the Taxpayers' Alliance
More views: Could stamp duty rebates help the housing market?
House price predictions: Get our weekly money email


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Friday wrote:<BrentDroid> Silversong wants me to go nekkid, I think I'm starting to rub off on her.
Okay to be fair, what I suggested was to go as "sexy" Conan the Barbarian, which I still find a hilarious concept.
Tangentially, my school is extending an invitation to Schwarzenegger to come speak here.


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Do you pull out the tags from your clothes as soon as you take them home? No need to do that with these incredible tagless t-shirts.
100% preshrunk cotton (ash is 99% cotton/1% polyester, light steel is 90% cotton/10% polyester) open-end yarn T-shirt. Taped shoulder-to-shoulder. Double-needle stitched coverseamed neck.Double-needle stitched hemmed sleeves and bottom In 19 different colors.
$7.99 (sometimes on special for 5.99)


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1954 Marietta Yellow Pages Es
I don't have many memories of around 1954 about electrical places. But on the first page are some electricity-related companies to stir up someone's memories – maybe.
On the second page of the Es is McGaughey Tractor Company in Elizabeth. I remember that place. They always had some nice looking big tractors on display.
The second part of the second page flows into the Fs. I see Southern Discount Company on Roswell Street listed. Southern Discount sponsored the Little League team I was on for two years (I carefully avoided the words "played on" – I spent almost all my time on the bench drawing in the dirt with a stick).
Under Fisherman's Supplies is Wilson Bros Jewelers. I first wondered why would a jewelry company sell fishing supplies. Reading closer I see they sold fishing lures. Now, it makes more sense. And also throw in that one of the Wilson Brothers were Joe Mac Wilson, future Marietta Mayor, who marched to his own drummer, then it didn't have to make sense.
As you can plainly see, only two Five & Ten Cent Stores are listed. One is Irving's 5 & 10 Cent Store on West Park Square. It seems they were always having a "Going Out of Business" sale – for years. The son, John looked something like Slugo in the cartoon strip Nancy. He went to Marietta High, a couple years ahead of me.
McClellan's 5¢ & 10¢ on South Park Square next to the Book Store is not listed and it was the biggest. I suppose they felt their bigness was all the advertising they needed.
Labels: Marietta, Marietta History


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|London 2012
|Athlete Biographies
Brazil looks to capture 1st Olympic soccer gold
By TALES AZZONI,
Updated August 11, 2012
LONDON (AP) Brazil has a rich legacy in soccer, and some of the best players in the game have proudly competed in its jersey. What it doesn't have is an Olympic gold.
Mexico, which faces the team Saturday in the men's gold medal game, believes that it will need an "almost perfect" game to keep the Brazilians from getting it.
Brazil is the favorite going into the game. The team is counting on Neymar, a 20-year-old seen as the future of Brazilian soccer, to do what many great players before him have tried and failed to do.
"It's our third chance to win this gold and hopefully we will learn the lessons from the other finals we played and didn't win," Brazil coach Mano Menezes said.
Mexico has motivation, too: The team is also trying for its first Olympic title. Mexico coach Luis Fernando Tena loudly praised the quality of the Brazilian team on Friday and said he expects Mexico to have a lot of difficulties to try to win in the final at Wembley.
"They have a (solid) player in each position, I wouldn't even try to point out a weak point," Tena said. "We have to play a great game, almost perfect, if we want to win. It's very important to try to impose our game."
Mexico will be playing in its first Olympic final after a brilliant tournament run. Mexico's previous best showing at the Olympics was at the 1968 Mexico City Games, when it was beaten in the bronze-medal match 2-0 by Japan.
The Mexicans arrived at the London Games with an outside chance to win gold, while Brazil was considered the biggest favorite from the beginning because it brought most of its top players to try to win its first gold. Anything less will be considered a failure.
Mexico has won six of the last 12 matches against the Brazilians since 1999, losing four and drawing two.
Mexico actually beat Brazil in the last time the teams played, winning 2-0 in a game in the United States in June. Some of the Mexican players at the Olympics were in that match too, as were nearly all of the Brazilians who will be in Saturday's final, including young star striker Neymar.
"Neymar does worry us, but the rest of the team too," Tena said. "Brazil is a very strong team. If you look at the squad, you see they have players with great quality everywhere."
The Olympics are also an important test for Brazil's players, most of whom will also likely be in the team trying to help Brazil win next year's Confederations Cup and the 2014 World Cup at home.
Victory would give them an extra boost of morale and show fans the national team is on the right track, while defeat could raise doubts and even cost Menezes his job.
"We all know that we need to win the gold," Menezes said. "Brazil has to win every tournament it plays, it needs to win every match it plays, even if it's a friendly. And this time even more because it's something the nation has never won before."
Brazil is playing in the Olympic final for the first time since the 1988 Games, when the team led by Romario and Bebeto lost 2-1 to the then Soviet Union. Brazil also lost the final four years earlier in Los Angeles.
Bebeto, Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos got the bronze at the 1996 Atlanta Games, and Ronaldinho also finished third with Brazil four years ago in Beijing, when the team lost to Argentina in the semifinals. Ronaldinho also was in the team eliminated by Cameroon in the quarterfinals of the 2000 Sydney Games. Brazil didn't qualify for Athens in 2004.
Coaches who tried and never got the gold include Mario Zagallo in 1996, Vanderlei Luxemburgo in 2000 and Dunga in 2008.
"We came here for the gold and we are one match away from getting it," said Neymar, who has had three goals and several assists in the team's five victories. "We just have to do our job in the final."
The Mexicans won't be able to count on one of their top players, Giovani Dos Santos, who injured his right hamstring in the semifinals.
"It's a shame that Giovani, who is a great player with a great attitude, can't play," Tena said. "It's very painful for him and sensitive for the team, but at the same time this team has shown that it's very mentally strong and can overcome many adversities."
The team will try and overcome that, he said.
"We have the silver in our hands but we are not content with this, we are going for gold," Tena said.
Associated Press writer Luis Ruiz in London contributed to this report.
Follow Tales Azzoni at http://twitter.com/tazzoni


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According to the agreement, signed on 1 June 1 in Beijing, BCEG will serve as the general contractor for the project. The EPC (engineer, procure, construct) contract is worth $3.9 billion. According Xing Yan, manager of BCEG International, it is the wrold's largest EPC project deal.
The project, based in Patagonia, comprises the 1.35GW wind farm and 300km long high-voltage transmission lines. It will be constructed in nine stages in four years and nine months.
BCEG said the project will officially go into implementation at the end of the year.
Xing said that BCEG would develop the Argentina project with China-made 2.5MW full–power variable frequency direct-drive wind turbines, without citing the name of the turbine manufacturer


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The term genioplasty should first be clarified. If you are talking about a procedure known as "sliding genioplasty" in which bone is moved to push the chin forward, then my understanding is that the bone could be moved back and refixated although i do not perform this procedure myself. Alternatively, if you mean that this is a chin implant that you have then it should be removable. some types of implants are easily removed like silicone or silastic, some more difficult like Gore-Tex (expanded polytetraflouroethylene, ePTFE) and some are very difficult to remove like Med-Por.
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The Guardian Society:
A Giving Program for A Kid's Place of Tampa Bay, Inc.It has been a year since we lost our founder and visionary Dottie Berger MacKinnon, but we have continued on in her honor and memory, ensuring th...
A secure online donation to A Kid's Place means that together, we can continue to make a difference in the lives of our foster children.
Items Most Needed:
Our most commonly needed items are basic consumables; these items are always needed for our children at A Kid's Place. We can accept donations of these items anytime.
Holiday Drives:
Birthdays and holidays are an especially difficult time in the lives of foster children at A Kid's Place. Holiday Drives provide an extra boost of hope to our children during these important moments.
Education Initiative:
School supplies are not part of funding allocated for foster children - your donation to our School Supply Drive will give our foster children the tools needed to empower them to learn and grow in the classroom.
Honor Gifts:
Make a donation in honor or memory of a loved one.
Summer Camp Wishlist:
If school is reading, writing, and arithmetic, then summer camp is crafts, games, and science experiments! What are some of the interesting supplies we'll be needing this year?
Stock The Pantry:
A food donation to A Kid's Place allows us to continue providing important nutrition to our family and help our foster children grow, learn and succeed.
Host a Community Fundraiser:
Organizing a community fundraiser is a great way to advocate for A Kid's Place and raise important funds to help our local non-profit organization. From golf tournaments, races, holiday parties, and donation drives, your contributions raise awareness and further our mission.
A Kid's Place in Tampa has many ways for the community to get involved as a volunteer. You can help us with special events, in-kind services, or assist with the many onsite opportunities on our campus.
Donate a Car:
A Kid's Place of Tampa Bay has partnered with Car Program Inc. to provide an easy-to-use, tax deductible process to donate your vehicle. As a charitable contribution, your donation could make a big difference.
Matching Gift - Workplace Giving:
Workplace giving is an easy and efficient way to make tax-deductible donations to charities through payroll contributions. These programs offer the convenience of automatic payroll deductions without losing the tax-deductible benefits of charitable giving.
Host A Drive or Collection:
Hosting a fundraising drive or a collection is a great way for groups to work together to raise awareness and collect important funds or supplies for the foster children at A Kid's Place.
Amazon Smile:
Amazon Smile is a simple and automatic way for you to support your favorite charitable organization every time you shop, at no cost to you.
Planned Giving:
Planned giving is a great way to give to A Kid's Place. We accept donations of stocks or bonds, bequests, life or retirement plan beneficiaries, and even real estate.


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52 Trains from (CNB)KANPUR CENTRAL to (FZD)FIROZABAD
Address: Kanpur Central, Jaipuria Road, Mirpur, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh 208004, India
Station Code: CNB
Station Name: KANPUR CENTRAL
Zone: NCR/North Central
Train Frequency Weekly: 1318
Station Traffic: High
Address: Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh, India
Station Code: FZD
Station Name: FIROZABAD
Zone: NCR/North Central
Train Frequency Weekly: 227
Station Traffic: High
|To Check Ticket Availibility Click Classes
www.wr.indianrailways.gov.in- 2015-05-19
To clear extra rush of passengers, Indian Railways will run 10 trips of Premium Weekly Superfast Special Train between Bandra Terminus and Gorakhpur.
Train No. 02534 Bandra Terminus – Gorakhpur Premium Weekly Superfast Special train will depart from Bandra Terminus at 05:10 hrs on every Saturday from 30th May, 2015 and reach Gorakhpur at 14.30 hrs next day. The last trip of this train will be on 27/06/2015.
Similarly, Train No. 02533 Gorakhpur - Bandra Terminus Premium Weekly Superfast Special train will depart Gorakhpur at 07.00 hrs on every Thursday from 28thMay, 2015 and arrive Bandra Terminus at 17.35 hrs the next day. The last trip of this train will be on 25/06/2015.
The train will have AC II Tier, AC III Tier, Sleeper Class& Pantry car.
The train will halt at Surat, Kota, Kanpur Central, Lucknow and Gonda stations in both directions.
The booking of train no. 02534 Bandra Terminus – Gorakhpur Premium Weekly Superfast Special trainwill open from 21st May, 2015 for the first trip, i.e. 30.05.2015 and rest of the trips as per Advance Reservation Period of 10 days through Internet.
(Sharat Chandrayan)
Chief Public Relations Officer
www.nr.indianrailways.gov.in- 2015-05-18
In order toclear extra rush of rail passengers during Summer Season-2015, Railway has decided to run Special Train No. 02533/02534 Bandra T.- Gorakhpur- Bandra T. Weekly Premium Superfast as per the following programme:
The 02533Gorakhpur- Bandra T. Weekly Premium SuperfastSpecial train will depart from Gorakhpuron Thursday from28.05.2015 to 25.06.2015 (05 trips) at 07.00 a.m. to reach Bandra Terminus at 05.35 p.m. the next day. In the return direction, the 02534 Bandra T.- Gorakhpur Weekly Premium SuperfastSpecial train will depart from Bandra Terminus on Saturday from30.05.2015 to 27.06.2015 (05 trips) at 05.10 a.m. to reach Gorakhpur 02.30 p.m.the next day.
Comprising of one AC II Tier, two AC III Tier, twelve Sleeper Class and two Disabled Friendly Second class cum Luggage Van coaches, the 02533/02534 Bandra T.- Gorakhpur- Bandra T. Weekly Premium Superfast Special train will stop at Gonda, Lucknow, Kanpur Central, Kota & Surat stations enroute in both the directions.
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Rule 1 - This Forum is Serious Business
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That said, we're all friends here. We're here to discuss a topic, not to attack or browbeat each other. No matter what, try to keep things civil. If you don't think you can do that, don't post.
Flames, personal attacks, and general hostility will not be tolerated. Violators will be warned. If it's not reigned in, the Mod Team has the ability to ban users from specific forums. Specific bans from Serious Business may be dealt out for consistently poor behavior.
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Introduce your family to music
A great way to introduce your children to music and the orchestra is to bring them along to one of our concerts or events for families.
From babies to early teens, we have a variety of suitable events including LSO Family Concerts, Early Years Workshops and Musical Storytelling Concerts for Under-5s.
Early Years Workshops
Concerts for Under-5s
Family Concerts
We also run a series of workshops for local children's centres and nurseries which help reach those who might not be able to make it to our homes at the Barbican and LSO St Luke's. Please visit the Early Years Outreach page to read more about this work.
Practical info
Find out more about bringing your family to the LSO on our practical FAQs page.
Other ways to take part
If you are a teacher looking for events and workshops for your pupils, please visit the Schools & Young People section.
Young musicians living around LSO St Luke's can find out about the LSO Discovery Choir in the Singing section, and the DigiTech Group in the Community section.
Families with young children may be interested in attending our Relaxed Performances at LSO St Luke's. These are open to everyone and are often attended by parents with young children, individuals with autism, sensory and communication impairments and learning disabilities. Audience members are free to leave and re-enter the room at any point, and we are relaxed about noise and movement during the music.
Early Years Outreach report
In 2012 Youth Music commissioned LSO Discovery to work with researchers from Exeter University. A report was published on the early years outreach work led by Vanessa King in local Children's Centres and Nurseries. The report was accompanied by short video clips which highlight the different ways in which Vanessa works to draw out the best from the children and carers, both individually and as a group.


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There is more to shooting large products than just backing off your lights. Large products are often not just big; they're also heavy. I had a machine that I had to get into the studio that was so heavy the wheels sank into the asphalt in the parking lot.
If you want to shoot a lot of big products, you will want a big studio. You can also shoot big products on location, but you will need to see the space before the shoot. It can be a big problem if you show up to shoot a product but can't do it well in the space available. Remember that a large light source for a large product needs to be, well, large.
The image below is a heat-sealing machine. It is about 6 feet long and 4 feet high. The important characteristics of the machine are the orange logo color, the client name, the sliding shelf that serves the oven, and the dials. The most difficult thing is the stainless steel, because it reflects the details of the lighting. Remember that the client is coming to us to help him communicate information about the product, so you want to find out what is important. For me, the first step in setting up a product shot is to establish the location of the camera and its orientation to the product.
Stainless steel is hard to light. It reflects everything in the room, so large light sources are essential.
This product was very difficult to move because it was heavy and marked up the seamless backdrop. I used the gauges and the printing on the side of the orange oven to find the right position. Remember, it is important to think your shot through. This saves a lot of time and trouble.
Here is the lighting diagram for the heatsealing machine.
In order to create a shot that will show this product in a good light, I needed a large, soft light source. In this case, I made a large wall from foam core. I bounced the light off the wall to create a gradation on the stainless steel. The reflection off the foam core is very smooth. In this case, I used two light panels, with umbrellas, to light the long side of the product. This ensured that this side was very evenly lit and had minimal shadows. A very large light source can practically eliminate shadows, but only when it is very close to the subject or very large. In this case, the light source was about 7 feet wide and was placed just a few feet from the product.
I also used an umbrella and light panel at camera right. This made the right side lighter than the front of the machine and helped define the shape of the product. Finally, I had light coming in on one side of the background. This created a little gradation on the background. I should mention that I used a 12-foot wide gray seamless background for this shot. It works well when I am photographing large products.
Now, let's move onto another large-product shot. This was the last bike that Steve McQueen (born 1930, died 1980) owned. It was restored for the new owner. The motorcycle is in fantastic shape and was a real joy to photograph.
I thought this shot through before starting. I decided to use a black plastic drop cloth on the floor. I knew that, after moving the bike around, the plastic would look better than seamless paper. I used a 12-foot gray seamless on the back wall. We needed a big background and shoot area for such a large bike.
Before I began shooting, I established the camera-to-subject relationship. I needed to make sure that the background would surround the bike. A slight angle was chosen to highlight the front fender, as the fender design is a distinctive feature of all Indian motorcycles.
A paper wall was set up behind the bike. Setting up a tent like this is difficult.
This is a 1947 Indian motorcycle. Motorcycles have many shiny, spherical parts, which makes them hard to light.
Shooting any motorcycle is difficult because of the shiny spherical surfaces made up of both glossy paint and chrome. These surfaces reflect light directly into the lens. If we were to light the bike with hard direct lights, it would be covered with hard, specular highlights and very dark areas. Obviously, very large, smooth light sources were needed to make this image work.
I used a 9x30-foot piece of white seamless paper to create a wall between the camera and the bike, determined where to cut a hole in it, and then had an assistant cut the hole, keeping the "window" for the camera as small as possible. Next, I spread the light on the new wall. Although seamless paper is usually used as a background, it did the job.
I have several moveable, wooden poles mounted on the ceiling of my studio. I mounted some lights with Manfrotto Super Clamps and compendium arms. The lights were pointed at the white seamless wall, away from the bike. This instantly gave me a very smooth light on the motorcycle! I had essentially made a tent around the bike.
Next, I placed another light behind the bike to create a gradation across the background. This light had a blue filter on it. This light produced a pastel blue light behind the subject, with a circular falloff. The light is pastel because the blue is mixed with the white light reflected from the gray seamless, and the falloff is created by the spot pattern of the light.
I added one more light on the left of the bike to illuminate the ceiling and the left side of the white seamless. This was a case where barn doors were very important. This placement put additional light on the seat and the back fender, both of which needed the help.
The Indian shot is an example of photographing a large reflective object in a large tent. A tent is basically a white container that surrounds the subject. There are numerous ways you can build one yourself, and they are also commercially available. Don't be afraid to get creative: when I am photographing small objects, my tent is actually a laundry hamper from Ikea.
The basic principles behind shooting very reflective subjects, from motorcycles to jewelry, are the same. You need to light what the subject reflects more carefully than you light the subject. If you think about the subject as a mirror, you'll understand why this is the case.
I used this setup to photograph the watches shown below.
There are a variety of ways to light a tent. If you have a small tent, you will light it from the outside. If you are shooting with a large tent, you may actually have the lights inside the tent. If you light from inside the tent, its material doesn't need to be transparent, as you will be bouncing the light off the inside of the tent. You do not have to light a tent evenly; you can light it from one side to create a gradation in your light. Any time you can set up a tent, or even a partial tent, you will be able to use it to shoot a lot of products very quickly.
I was able to shoot these and several other watches very quickly using the same setup.


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All our furniture is made to measure and to your specifications so you'll need to go into a stockist to buy.
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Because we build your chair specifically for you, we need to know exactly what you're looking for. To discuss your requirements with a member of our team please call: 0115 913 3572 or email firstname.lastname@example.com


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Get the lowered stance you want with these professional lowering springs. Why risk damaging your suspension by heating or cutting springs when you can get your desired stance with a set of custom-manufactured "low profile" springs? Lowering your car from its OE ride height and keeping a comfortable ride is a snap with these springs. Lower your car, while saving money and time without sacrificing your ride.
|Make & Model
|Year Range
|Application Details
|Chevrolet Monte Carlo
|Front 3", V8


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We've got some goodies for ya, sex fans, two blissful massagers from the UK. Emotional Bliss is a new company with exceptional credentials. Their approach to product development is simple; maximize pleasure. And in the process they've come up with revolutionary designs, which has form following function.
These products are specifically designed with a woman's body in mind. However, that doesn't mean that a man can't enjoy them, on the contrary. But let's let Jada of the Dr Dick Review Crew take over from here.
Femblossom $99.95
Form does indeed follow function in the two vibes I have before me. (Each will have its own posting) First up is Femblossom.
I had to giggle at the name. Femblossom, what kind of name is Femblossom? Perhaps it's a British term, I don't know. All I can say for sure is, I immediately rechristened it SATISFY. And you want to know why? Because, in my book, name should also follow function.
Femblossom is unique, no question about it. It is a hand-held massager, but it's unlike anything else I've ever seen. It is constructed of a hard plastic with non-slip surfaces on the control pad and on its underside. I really liked the non-slip feature on the control pad. The same on the underside of the vibe, however, made gliding it along delicate skin difficult without the use of lube. Luckily, the package included samples of water-based lube and silicon-based lube. Both can be used on this toy. By the way, that's a very thoughtful addition, Emotional Bliss; thank you and good marketing!
The stylized shell shape of this vibe is a perfect fit to lie astride my vaginal mound. The pointed tip easily slips between my vaginal lips to nuzzle my clit. The vibe is powerful enough to create intense stimulation throughout my whole pelvic area. I hate a wimpy vibe!
I discovered that if I prop myself up against some pillows, place Femblossom on my vulva, and close my thighs on the vibe, I'm able to send amazing sensations all over my genitals. The harder I squeeze my thighs together the more intense the sensations. I can even do kegel exercises this way. And what could be better for sexual health and wellbeing? I found that I don't really need to use my hands at all, except to reposition the vibe from time to time. It's brilliant!
The Femblossom also warms up with use; not so much so that you'll feel uncomfortable or have a sense that the unit is over heating. I was trying to concentrate on the warming sensation, but I couldn't really discern if the warmth of the Femblossom was due to the heating element or my own body temperature. What can I say; I'm hot blooded! But then again, I wasn't using the vibe on high speed.
After using Femblossom on my own several times and liking it a whole lot, I thought it would be nice to introduce it to partner play. My husband took to it right away. He's not one for vibes that look like a penis. I don't suppose I can fault him for that. And, I'm not one of those gals that get off on vibe penetration. That's why we like the Femblossom so much.
My husband liked how the massager fit in his hand. The controls are very easy to manipulate, even with lubed up fingers. Femblossom has nine distinct massage modes. I think that's the greatest variety of pulsation I've ever seen in a vibe.
During our play together, my husband also used the vibe on himself. He placed the Femblossom tip on his perineum and cupped his testicles in the shell form. The handle reached up and touched the root of his penis. He was surprised by the intensity of the sensations and he really liked the warming sensations. He was running it on high speed. This thing has a very powerful motor. And the hard plastic material seems to conduct the vibrations more effectively than do my silicone vibes.
Full Review HERE!


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Unlike many small colleges, mathematics is part of an exceptionally strong Division of Mathematics, Natural and Computer Science. There are two degree tracks, a B.A. in mathematics and a B.S. in Mathematics Education. Mathematic Majors are prepared to enter graduate school, the computer industry, teaching, scientific research and the actuarial field.
In addition, business, psychology and the social sciences depend heavily on mathematically aware persons. Greenville Mathematics Majors are working for companies like Boeing, Caterpillar, EDS, Southwestern Bell, Dow Chemical, American States Insurance and Lockheed-Martin. Many of our students successfully obtain summer research positions with governmental agencies and universities and are offered assistantships in quality graduate schools like Iowa State University and the University of Illinois.
Greenville professors are committed to providing an academic learning environment that allows you to thrive and grow into a highly competent professional. Course work is rigorous and you'll take the same courses as those designed for majors in each of the science disciplines. There are no abbreviated courses simply to meet minimum professional-school requirements. Our faculty takes a personal interest in all our students, both in and out of the classroom and will help you personally figure out your career plans.
And the Greenville University community produces some pretty amazing stories of transformation, character, and service. Learn more »


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Although a spokesman said the Alamo is "neutral in politics and politicians" as a historical site, its battle cry was invoked this week by Texans who oppose abortion legislation.
"A foregone conclusion has never stopped a group of citizens committed to ideals of democracy and liberty from taking a stand and fighting with everything they've got," reads an orange T-shirt that Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, tweeted a photo of on Sunday. "This is Texas, baby. Remember the Alamo."
A friend just dropped off this shirt for me. Ain't it true?! Ain't it great?! #standwithtexaswomen #txlege pic.twitter.com/XWipvlfOhh
— Kirk Watson (@KirkPWatson) July 8, 2013
Watson posted the photo of his "new favorite T-shirt" on his blog Tuesday, but did not say where the shirt came from.
If the color-coded sides of the abortion debate weren't clear before, the proverbial line in the sand has now been unmistakably drawn. Although those who oppose Senate Bill 1 and House Bill 2 have clearly adopted the story of San Antonio's icon as their own, the General Land Office – which oversees the Alamo complex – ensures the Alamo hasn't taken a stand.
From GLO spokesman Mark Loeffler:
"The Alamo has frequently been used as a metaphor in debate, sometimes by opposite sides of the same issue. While it is important that Texans remember the Alamo, it would be best that they remember it for the right reason: a key battle in 1836 that set the course for the future of Texas. Any other reliance on the phrase 'Remember The Alamo' to identify with a modern political cause, especially a divisive one like the pro-abortion movement, should be discouraged. As a historical site, the Alamo is neutral in politics and political issues."