text:
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Stride Mega Mystery
Flavor: One of Stride's two new flavors for Winter 2009/2010 is the gimmicky "Mega Mystery." Stride must really have a lot of brand confidence, as they're expecting consumers to buy this gum on brand alone, without even knowing the flavor. I've never been good at "Guess The Flavor" games the products play (Doritos is famous for this,) but Stride Mega Mystery isn't really a mystery at all. On first chew you're blasted with a fantastic fruity medley that I would describe as Tropical Punch. It's a lot less melony than Trident's tropical varieties, but very heavy on the pineapple. Blended with hints of mango and citrus, it's like a tropical drink in stick form. Delicious. Unfortunately, Stride's claim of being the longest lasting flavor falls short with this one, and it becomes bland and tasteless within 10 minutes.
Texture: Soft and smooth at first bite, never disintegrating or softening. Perfect for cracking and snapping, and even blowing pretty decent bubbles (especially if you're a two-piece chewer like I am.) This is a great chew.
Overall: A friend of GumAlert alerted us to this new flavor a couple months ago, and since then I'd been on a frantic search to find it. Imagine my joy when, in the checkout shelves in A&P the other day, a rogue pack of this was stuck in with the Stride Nonstop Mint. I snatched it right up and have loved it since, and it's pained me to save the two sticks to do this review. I'm generally pretty neutral when it comes to Stride, but this one is a home run, and I hope it sticks around.
Rating: oooo (four gumballs)
Labels: four gumballs, fruity flavor, novelty, samples, Stride
119 comments:
- Anonymous said...
Yay! I've been waiting for this review! i didn't particularly enjoy the gum, i'd like it better if it was longer lasting.
- February 26, 2010 at 10:02 AM
- Anonymous said...
It tastes exactly like the zebra stripes gum only the flavor lasts a lot longer, but if you havn't tried the zebra stripes, you should. It's amazing(:
- March 7, 2010 at 9:07 PM
- Anonymous said...
Tastes like some kind of rasberry/strawberry-lemonade. But, I'm awful at guessing flavors.
- March 16, 2010 at 2:52 PM
- Anonymous said...
i think its like watermelon
- March 20, 2010 at 1:24 AM
- Anonymous said...
This helped Thankyou its so hard to find a legitiment answer! lol
- March 22, 2010 at 10:59 AM
- Holly said...
Actually, it's strawberry daiquiri. ENJOY!
- March 22, 2010 at 5:28 PM
- Shannon said...
Strawberry Daiquiri? Holly, are you with Stride, or is that just a guess? As I said, I'm pretty bad at the "guess the flavor" games but I NEVER would have guessed that one!
- March 22, 2010 at 7:55 PM
- Anonymous said...
I'm going with passion fruit & guava
- March 23, 2010 at 1:09 PM
- Shelly said...
I was thinking pear :)
- April 2, 2010 at 10:27 PM
- Anonymous said...
Naww I think that this stride tastes sort of like "lush" from 5 gum.
- April 5, 2010 at 10:31 AM
- Anonymous said...
Naww I think that this stride tastes sort of like "lush" from 5 gum.
- April 5, 2010 at 10:31 AM
- Anonymous said...
I agree with the review, however I believe it is more of a pomegranate flavor....very good, none the less.
- April 10, 2010 at 11:49 AM
- Anonymous said...
i love love love this gum its soooo good mmmmmm :)
- April 10, 2010 at 3:48 PM
- Anonymous said...
i wish they had more in stock :(
- April 10, 2010 at 3:51 PM
- Anonymous said...
It tastes like a minty flavor and a fruity flavor mixed together!
- April 13, 2010 at 2:13 AM
- Anonymous said...
I second that it taste like zebra gum. Zebra striped gum is alot more fun though, who doesn't want a temporary tatto of a zebra skateboarding?
- April 17, 2010 at 7:49 PM
- Anonymous said...
it tstes like passion fruit! i was so excited when i got it but later relly bumed because i knew the flavor when i took of the plastic seal around the gum pack!
- April 19, 2010 at 5:58 PM
- Anonymous said...
Tastes exactly like dragonberry
- April 19, 2010 at 10:56 PM
- Anonymous said...
I was totally thinking it was gummy bear flavored.
- April 29, 2010 at 2:03 AM
- Anonymous said...
Zebra stripes all the way
- April 29, 2010 at 7:10 PM
- Anonymous said...
It's Eternal Melon. If you look at the ingredients, they are almost exactly the same (except for some coloring agents).
- May 7, 2010 at 11:48 AM
- Anonymous said...
i am chewing it now, and it kinda tastes like watermelon. or some other fruit, but like a lot of people, i am a HORRIBLE guesser:)
- May 7, 2010 at 2:23 PM
- Anonymous said...
I think it kind of tasted like mountain dew.Does anyone else think so?
- May 8, 2010 at 11:34 AM
- Anonymous said...
I agree with Fruit Stripes, Strawberri Daiqari? No I dont think so.
- May 9, 2010 at 8:37 AM
- paige said...
Nom nom. I'm chewing a piece right now and it is a delight!
- May 12, 2010 at 12:28 PM
- Anonymous said...
It's pomegranate.
- May 12, 2010 at 10:44 PM
- Anonymous said...
For god sakes, I have to correct you people. It was called Fruit Stripe gum, but yes it did have a Zebra theme. Their forever fruit flavor really tasted like Fruit Stripe to me, and so does this, I think it's a slight deviation honestly.
- May 13, 2010 at 2:58 PM
- Annabella said...
I personly think this gum is a wonderful evrlasting taste. i think this gum is so wonderful i fell in love with it the flavor is anonymous. i think the flavor is lme gatorade but this is anonymous i love gatorade so i can now enjoy chewing it in my mouth for ever
- May 13, 2010 at 7:11 PM
- Anonymous said...
There is no mystery to the gum each peice is a diffrent flavor its so stupid it can go to the bon fire HAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
From: Bryan Stout Elmwood Middle school 6th grade teacher in bloomdale on jerry city road in ohio
- May 17, 2010 at 2:01 PM
- Anonymous said...
Mango. I swear it tastes like a mango.
- May 28, 2010 at 9:08 PM
- Anonymous said...
Whatever it is, I don't care for it, it reminds me of salt and vinegar potato chips that are too vinegar-y; it just leaves a weird acidic feeling in your mouth. Love the Stride mint flavors, that's why I fell for this!
- May 31, 2010 at 12:32 PM
- Anonymous said...
I agree with the vinegar comment, the piece I chewed practically took the enamel off my teeth.
- May 31, 2010 at 12:34 PM
- Joshua said...
thanks! i was wanting to know what it was! our moms aunt bought it for us and we just couldnt nail it. thanks again! :)
- June 4, 2010 at 4:18 PM
- Anonymous said...
im chewing this gum right now as i type this comment. it DOES taste like tropicle punch and citrus, although at the store were i bought it (WALL-MART) this is the price tag, STRIDE MYSTERY FLAVOURD GUM MELON FLAVOUR. i looked at it and was like wTF? DONT GIVE THE FLAVOUR AWAY!
- June 8, 2010 at 8:08 PM
- Anonymous said...
When I first tried this gum, it tasted like Fruit Stripes, which I know, everyone has heard. For me, it kind of started out sour, but it was good. After about a minute or two, it turned sweeter, still good, and continued getting sweeter. I can't identify what this flavor tastes like exactly, but it seems like a mix of different fruits. It's pretty good.
- June 12, 2010 at 10:07 PM
- Anonymous said...
its strawberry daiquiri... oh no there gona find me!!!
- June 13, 2010 at 4:17 PM
- Anonymous said...
I think Stride's Mega Mystery gum is a blend of the Sweet Bery Flavor and the Forever Fruit Flavor. The Mega Mystery is a blend of both berry and citrus flavors that go really well together. I just think the Mega Mystery gum is a combination of two already popular flavors combined together secretly to make a profit.
- June 17, 2010 at 12:46 AM
- Anonymous said...
I do think it really depends on your personal thoughts. That is, until Stride tells us the flavor. I think it tastes a bit like the strawberry daquiri coldstone jellybelly jellybeans.
- June 17, 2010 at 11:10 PM
- Anonymous said...
I don't think it's fruit punch (but good guess, anyway.) I think it is a mix of all the different stride flavors, excluding the minty and cinnamony ones. I'm not sure if Uber Bubble is in there or not...but think about it...Always Mandarin...Sweet Berry...Forever Fruit...Chew It! Taste It! CAN YOU FEEL THE MEDLEY OF STRIDE FLAVORS EXPLODING IN YOUR MOUTH?! Yeah, I know, I'm right. Boo ya!
Otherwise, it tastes similar to the new Orbit Mist Raspberry Lemon Dew gum. So, I'm thinkin' maybe raspberry-mango lemonade. Am I right? Am I right? I'm right. But I still think I'm right for the mix of all stride flavors. I wish I had had a piece of Zebra Stripes gum because I've never had it and I don't see it sold anywhere.
I'm so right on this one guys, so right.
- June 25, 2010 at 2:56 PM
- Anonymous said...
To the person who said it's Eternal Melon...CHECK AGAIN. All of the ingredients for pretty much all the flavors are the same except the coloring! And anyways, the Mega Mystery tastes NOTHING like just plain melon, does it? NO. Sure, it might have a hint of melon IN it, like, mixed in with the fruity citrusy stuff, but it is NOT plain melon. Unless there's something wrong with your tastebuds....you might want to go to a doctor for that one, honey.
- June 25, 2010 at 3:02 PM
- Anonymous said...
- June 30, 2010 at 3:33 PM
- Kayla said...
I've been thinking its pomegranate and mango. I work in a very small grocery in a very small town, and we have just now gotten this gum in. I am totally in love with it. Don't know how I survived without this flavor.
- July 19, 2010 at 9:05 AM
- Anonymous said...
I thought Mountain Dew, and then Fresca...but I'm old and my tastebuds nmay be deteriorating. LOL It sure didn't last as long as the other Stride flavours, though!
- July 21, 2010 at 2:57 PM
- Anonymous said...
tasted like grapes or a white wine or some light red...
- July 24, 2010 at 11:59 PM
- Anonymous said...
stride mega mystery gum is the flavor mandarian orange. it taste just like that orange stride gum test it out yourself
- July 28, 2010 at 7:18 PM
- tasha_hodges said...
it tastes like GUMMY WORMS
- August 1, 2010 at 8:04 PM
- Anonymous said...
Strawberry daiquiri is what i think.
- August 18, 2010 at 3:36 PM
- June said...
well...It's a strong debate at our house the vote is split between...pineapple or pink Grapefruit.
- August 18, 2010 at 11:01 PM
- Anonymous said...
Holly, I'm sorry but I would deffinately disagree. If you try any virgin strawberry daqueri drinks, like the one sobe makes, you can plainly see that's not it. I will agree with a tropical punch but I can deffinately taste the passion fruit, and many of my friends agree. However it is also clear that it is much more than that and I have from an inside source that many companies when trying a "mystery flavor" use leftover flavorings from other types of their gum.
- August 26, 2010 at 2:48 PM
- Anonymous said...
All you guys must have wacked taste buds or you just don't eat enough variety of fruits. ALL your guesses are WRONG.
It's actually mango. Idiot!
- September 13, 2010 at 2:08 PM
- tablo said...
This tastes the same as 5 React Fruit, except it has xylitol and less aspartame and doesn't taste gross.
- September 26, 2010 at 4:47 PM
- Anonymous said...
When I tried it, I could have sworn it tasted like Bubblicious's old "Cherry Coke" flavor they discontinued years ago
- October 3, 2010 at 10:33 PM
- Anonymous said...
It's strawberry daiquiri. I was searching around on the internet, and i saw a Stride employee who spilled the beans. so there you go.
- October 4, 2010 at 10:01 PM
- Shannon said...
Thanks to the most recent anonymous commenter who said they saw "on the internet" that the real flavor of this was leaked. Whew, we can all breathe a sigh of relief that this mystery has been solved... because everyone knows that everything that you read "on the internet" is true.
- October 5, 2010 at 10:40 AM
- Anonymous said...
When I first tasted it, I thoght, citrus!
- October 25, 2010 at 6:14 PM
- Anonymous said...
You all are idiots. Stride Mystery Gum flavor is the old scrapes from all the previous gum batches. Why do you think mystery flavor only comes out as a limited edition. This is not a Mom and Pop shop its a freaking corporation.
Take a minute to think about it.
- November 17, 2010 at 2:07 AM
- Anonymous said...
Holy Molly I apologize for my previous comment. I'm a little tipsy from some wine. Can't delete I am so sorry.
- November 17, 2010 at 2:39 AM
- Anonymous said...
definitely Zebra/Fruit Stripes!! You can tell even from smelling the package.
thanks for the post- fun to read!
- December 1, 2010 at 12:02 AM
- Terry Edmondson said...
I know the flavor. It is a Chinese Fruit know as "The Longan Fruit" It is delicious.
- December 1, 2010 at 12:05 AM
- Anonymous said...
tastes like a margarita
- December 1, 2010 at 9:28 PM
- Anonymous said...
With coconut too!!!
- December 5, 2010 at 12:00 AM
- Anonymous said...
while i admit those are good guesses, the flavor is obviously mandarin oranges. there, i said it. no weird ostrich police came to kill me....HOLY CRAP THERE THEY ARE!!
- December 5, 2010 at 10:35 AM
- Anonymous said...
It's called guarana people go taste it lol even though it's hard to find..go to brazil xD
- December 10, 2010 at 12:09 AM
- Anonymous said...
Looky here what someone else posted
It's Guaraná. I participated in its flavoring. Figured i'd put all of the questions to rest.
Guaraná, Paullinia cupana (syn. P. crysan, P. sorbilis) is a climbing plant in the maple family, Sapindaceae, native to the Amazon basin and especially common in Brazil. Guarana features large leaves and clusters of flowers, and is best known for its fruit, which is about the size of a coffee bean.
Flavor is also mixed with the flavoring from the fruit Theobroma Cacao. This fruit is where the world gets its chocolate from. The fruit contains a large quantity of seeds the size of quarters. Each seed is coated with a white slimy membrane. This membrane is the part of the fruit that can be eaten immediately once the outer shell of the fruit is opened. It's freaking delicious, unfortunately there isn't much available. So, underneath this membrane is the Cacao seed. During the cocoa powder process. This cacao seed or more widely known as cocoa, is crushed into a fine powder. The raw powder is then taken and mixed with a myriad of different flavors and additives to make the chocolate we buy and eat and love.
But so anyway, yea the flavor in this Mystery gum is taken from the combination of flavors from both of those incredible fruits.
- December 10, 2010 at 12:12 AM
- Anonymous said...
is it differnet every pack? becuase i got mine and it tasted liek grapefruit! it was so nasty!
- December 16, 2010 at 8:22 PM
- Anonymous said...
its taste like peache plum favior!!
- December 20, 2010 at 10:13 AM
- Anonymous said...
I pretty much tasted the same things, in the same order, only I tasted a bit of Citrus (Lemon-lime) for the first 1.4 seconds before the Tropical flavors kicked in. It also has a plethora of more subtle flavors. It's more-or-less a mix of every gum flavor (with the exception of original Bubble Gum of course) in existance.
Though if you ask me they went just a bit too heavy on the mint.
But still pretty good gum overall.
P.S It so good to see other people who aren't afraid of being attacked by bussinessmen riding ostriches. That's a rare find these days.
- December 30, 2010 at 6:08 PM
- Anonymous said...
Haven't seen it in my area yet but Juicy Fruit has released its own sugar free Juicy Secret on the Stride Mega Mystery coat tails.
- January 30, 2011 at 7:27 PM
- Anonymous said...
I work at stride and it is Strawberry Daiquiri
- February 20, 2011 at 3:10 PM
- Anonymous said...
it´s gum tasting like gum xD
- March 7, 2011 at 6:46 PM
- Anonymous said...
it is wild berry my friend said
- March 18, 2011 at 8:27 PM
- Anonymous said...
This gum is awesome, but I aggree that it looses flavour too quick. I think it has a little hint of everytthing including citrus, pineapple, lemon-lime, wild berry, and even a little fruit punch in there. It's pretty good.
- March 20, 2011 at 5:46 PM
- Anonymous said...
I've always thought it was pink lemonade with kiwi mixed in.
- March 21, 2011 at 7:33 AM
- Anonymous said...
kind of reminds me of fruit rollups:)
- March 21, 2011 at 9:34 PM
- Jack said...
It tastes like lemon
- March 27, 2011 at 9:48 PM
- Amanda said...
I think its mixed berry!!! its soo yummy
- April 11, 2011 at 11:28 AM
- Anonymous said...
i seriously think the flavor is: SNOWCONE
- April 24, 2011 at 8:04 AM
- CORRECT ANSWER!! said...
All guesses are right except for the ones that say it is all of the flavours mixed, even mint and cinammon.
Most people guess it is:
-any fruits
-any berries
-tropical drink
-pink lemonade
Some even say it is Strawberry Daiquiri which I think may be one of the possible flavours. But I think everyones opinion is different and think it is different then everyone elses...
- May 1, 2011 at 10:09 PM
- Anonymous said...
Agreed. It definitely tastes like zebra stripes gum. I think its like pink lemonade or iced tea or something summery. Whatever flavor it is, its really good!!! :)
- May 2, 2011 at 4:49 PM
- Anonymous said...
It Taste like Iced Tea With a Hint of Tropical Punch
- May 5, 2011 at 3:53 PM
- Anonymous said...
it reminds me of a lipgloss I bought last year XD lol lets just say it's so good i cant explain the taste :)
- May 7, 2011 at 8:53 PM
- Anonymous said...
I think it tastes like a tropical- minty thing, and also this blog thing was posted on my birthday lol :3
- May 8, 2011 at 12:01 PM
- Anonymous said...
Tropical Fruit
- May 31, 2011 at 10:38 PM
- Anonymous said...
I think it tastes like Raspberries and Ginger Ale mixed together. Im chewing it right now and I love it so much! I'm totally addicited!
- June 5, 2011 at 1:18 PM
- Anonymous said...
it's deff nestea flavor BOOM!!!!!
- June 7, 2011 at 12:30 AM
- day dream said...
i LOOOVVEE THIS STRIDE MEGA MYSTERY! it tastes like guava and maybe strawberries
- June 16, 2011 at 12:31 AM
- Jordan said...
It tastes like jackfruit.
- June 22, 2011 at 12:44 PM
- Furhand said...
I definitely think it has some lemon flavouring in it.
- June 28, 2011 at 12:03 PM
- Anonymous said...
Gum that is fruity should NEVER include mint! THIS IS GROSS!
It's mango and mint and it lasts 3 minutes. It does not stay soft and hurts the jaw after a while.
I will NEVER buy this again! it is awful!!!!!!!!
- July 12, 2011 at 2:11 PM
- Anonymous said...
why ive been buying this and like ive been guessing and guessing and its NOT A MISTERY THIS IS WASTING MONEY!!
- August 16, 2011 at 3:37 PM
- Anonymous said...
Josh said...
Its Miracle fruit.. Google it.
- October 14, 2011 at 11:14 PM
- Anonymous said...
I've been told it's strawberry kiwi...
- November 3, 2011 at 8:42 PM
- Anonymous said...
It's PEACH.
- November 5, 2011 at 2:36 AM
- JoachimV said...
Mine tasted instantly like Guava or Guava/PassionFruit blend.
Given the varying comments, I wonder if there are actually multiple flavors labeled as "Mega Mystery" to enhance that "you don't know what you're going to get" idea.
- November 21, 2011 at 3:36 PM
- Jules said...
Zebra Stripes with a hint of mint. It's the longest lasting flavor of gum I've ever chewed!
- January 8, 2012 at 4:20 PM
- Anonymous said...
It's celery seed flavor in the mix that makes it really unique and interesting.
I like it. CCM
- January 10, 2012 at 9:18 AM
- Anonymous said...
What I.think about the mystery flavor.would be peach.mango I thought that cause there was a drink that tasted exactly like it
- February 18, 2012 at 3:12 PM
- Anonymous said...
I find it more like strawberry jam and a hint of citrus.
- February 19, 2012 at 8:23 PM
- Anonymous said...
Zebra stripe gum!
- February 28, 2012 at 1:38 AM
- Vicman said...
I just bought this gum at a Mega Coop store here in Norway. I had never tried this gum when I lived in America, I had seen it but not tried it, but now that I've discovered it here I will definitely buy it again. It is sold here under the brand Stimorol, and it doesn't say Stride anywhere on it, but I did recognize it because the box has the same rainbow with a question mark, and the name "Mega Mystery" is the same.
- March 10, 2012 at 6:41 AM
- Tom in Portsmouth, NH (USA) said...
Whatever it is, it's gross! Won't buy again.
- March 12, 2012 at 9:46 PM
- tikoveach said...
- April 6, 2012 at 11:16 PM
- tikoveach said...
- April 6, 2012 at 11:16 PM
- Jessica said...
Just Found it today, It's awesome at first I thought Citrusy.... then a fruit punch blend. It tastes different the more you chew.
- April 9, 2012 at 3:50 PM
- Anonymous said...
I say Key Lime Pie
- May 15, 2012 at 4:15 PM
- Anonymous said...
Alright, lets make this easy for everyone- Apricot, Passionfruit, Pineapple. I dont see how anyone doesn't get the immiediete apricot flavor, and as there is something citrusy added, it could be anywhere from passion fruit to orange, but im leaning towards passion fruit (its becoming more and more popular lately as it is becoming cultivated on larger scales, and companies tend to like to go with trends, passion fruit is in).
- June 10, 2012 at 2:02 AM
- Anonymous said...
mystery stride is now my favorite gum it tast like pinapple straberie charrey butt mostly amazing54
- July 19, 2012 at 12:07 AM
- Anonymous said...
It tastes like lemon-placenta.
- September 11, 2012 at 12:39 PM
- Anonymous said...
Tastes like Key Lime
- October 24, 2012 at 4:14 PM
- Anonymous said...
Taste like some strawberry and some pinapple
- November 14, 2012 at 9:11 AM
- Anonymous said...
Tastes like li hing mui. If you're from Hawaii you know what I'm talking about.
- November 26, 2012 at 11:12 PM
- Ronica Li said...
the first time i tasted, it tasted like coke
- February 24, 2013 at 4:03 PM
- Anonymous said...
tastes like coke to me
- February 24, 2013 at 4:04 PM
- Anonymous said...
i think it tastes just like cranberry
- March 10, 2013 at 9:29 PM
- Anonymous said...
good but could last longer i think it is tropical
- April 1, 2013 at 8:08 PM
- Anonymous said...
i love this gum!!!
it think it is lime,orange ,and a dash of strawberry. i would love it more if it was longer lasting, but it is amazing!
- April 13, 2013 at 8:49 PM
- Anonymous said...
it can really taste like any fruit if you really put your mind to it...
- June 28, 2013 at 10:37 AM
- Anonymous said...
oh my God guys. no offence but i think the flavour was a peachy berry flavour with hints of pinnaple here and there. the flavour lasts for 8 minutes and 17 sec i timed it! it is not long lasting at all! how is it a mystery?! but it was right that we would keep guessing but we found the answer! lol i am chewing it right now!
- June 29, 2013 at 7:39 PM
- Anonymous said...
hm ive never really liked the gum. to me it sorta tasted like grape and orange juice. yuck. anyways, love this blog!!! :D
- October 6, 2013 at 10:43 PM


text:
BERLIN – Dire predictions of drastically low sales during the 2008 holiday shopping season appear to not be coming true for local retailers, with several reporting solid sales.
Business at the Harry and David store at the Ocean City Factory Outlets is as strong as ever, said store manager Bonnie Oliverio.
"Things are going great. It is our season," Oliverio said. "It was slower than usual getting started, but it's doing fine now. We're holding our own."
The store did two times as much business one day last weekend as it did on the same day last year, and business is increasing as the Christmas holiday approaches, Oliverio said.
Victorian Charm owner Debbie Frene said business in Berlin has been good for her store.
"We've done really well. There's a lot of traffic," said Frene. "People still have to buy Christmas presents. I don't know what it'll be like after the first of the year."
Others are having a more mixed season.
"It's hit or miss. Some days are better than others," said Nicole Hazzard, a supervisor at Carter for Kids clothing store at the outlets. "Black Friday was amazing. We couldn't have asked for better business. All in all I think it's going well."
"It's been all right. We're down compared to last year," said Bernell Fisher, a keyholder at Nautica clothing store in the outlets.
Business has picked up slightly in the last few days, but not much, said Fisher.
"It's a little slower than last year but we're not having as drastic a reduction as some companies are having," said Robin Taylor, manager of Dress Barn at the outlets.
In Berlin, traffic appears high on the weekends in particular with sales increasing as the holiday approached, according to one merchant.
"It's certainly down a little bit from last year, but you have to expect that in these times. We're happy with where we are," said Judy Fisher, co-owner of J. J. Fish Studio and Fine Crafts Gallery in Berlin. "We're seeing less people. They're not spending less."
Many stores are offering more sales to attract customers. For example, the normal price for Harry and David signature pears has been reduced, Oliverio said, and the store is giving out substantial coupons. "Our company is reacting to the economy and trying to make things easier for our customers," said Oliverio.
"We are running constant sales. We're constantly giving out coupons," said Taylor. "That's helping a little bit."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Dear Crabbit
Below I have pasted the rejection I received from literary agent [redacted] yesterday having read my full manuscript. I am not in the slightest bit bothered by the rejection in itself.
What bothers me a great deal is the link she sent me to a service that will edit, provide a cover and convert the whole thing into a Kindle e-book for just under £1000! Surely I could hire a proof-reader and do it myself for far less (or am I being naive?) I have studied their website in depth and it does not inspire confidence. I have no idea who they are or anything that gives me confidence in their abilities. It strikes me as amateurish and maybe even exploitative.
So what do you think? Is this value for money? And what do you think of this growing trend where agents seem to be "monetizing (horrid word) the slush-pile"?
Thank you. Your thoughts based on your experience of e-publishing would be appreciated.
I want to pick up on the other aspect, though: whether it's better to use a package or to handle each part of the process separately. It is my personal view that a self-publishing author is better served by keeping proper control and separately outsourcing each aspect that he or she cannot or does not wish to handle. I am against the idea of packages as I don't think they usually serve the writer best. I just think that if you're going to self-publish (as I have done) you are better off properly self-publishing, keeping full control and doing as much as possible yourself.
I would always want to commission an editor and proof-reader I trusted (which might be different for each book); a cover designer I trusted; a formatter I trusted (if I couldn't do it myself or didn't want to). I'd definitely insist on writing the product description on Amazon etc myself; and no way is it necessary to get someone else to upload for you - it takes no longer to do it yourself than it would to email the docs to the company. The company in question doesn't offer the marketing - and quite right, too, as this is best done by the writer, perhaps with some paid-for back-up publicity or the assistance of clued-up friends.
[Edited: I previously listed the costs I incur when I've self-published a book, but, following Meg's comment, I realised that because my editing costs are unusually low this was pointless, though it wasn't offered as advice and my advice has always been to get your work properly edited. My editing and proof-reading costs are very low because a) the books are short non-fiction and the final draft by me is clean and accurate and has been through beta-readers b) I have expert friends, including a fully-trained proof-reader who charges me "mates rates". I do not want to suggest that you shouldn't pay a proper rate for editing stages. However, even if you paid a substantial amount of money, I still believe that it is better to choose an editor yourself, rather than taking editing as part of a package from a company, when you haven't seen the editor's work. This is the point of my post - not how much it costs but how you choose who will help you.]
The only two hard bits are a) writing the book and b) selling it, and the company mentioned, and others I've seen, are not offering either. (Thank goodness!)
I would stress that it may well be that the recommended company does a fantastic job. I'm just saying there's nothing on the website that would lead me to think they will do a better job than an author outsourcing the necessary bits.
I'd be perfectly happy if the agent had said, "I think this is a book that could work well as a self-published novel, but I recommend that you go into this with eyes wide open and get lots of advice on the various parts of the process from those who have done it."


text:
Longtime LPGA Tour star trying to regain her fully-exempt Tour status this week after a rough 2012 season.
DAYTONA BEACH -- Unlike the vast majority of players in this week's LPGA Tour qualifying final, Christina Kim had never teed it up in an LPGA qualifying tournament of any sort prior to Wednesday.
She may have been new to it all, but she was fully aware it's not the definition of a fun golf outing at LPGA International.
"It starts with F, but doesn't end with N, though," she laughed after a hard-fought 72 to open the five-round Tour's qualifying final.
She's a qualifier "rookie" because, unlike all of the other 120 players in this week's field, Kim has fully established herself as an LPGA contender, winner, earner and, importantly for the Tour, a recognizable face and personality.
This past season, however, put a big dent in all that. After winning more than $4 million in her first nine full seasons on the LPGA Tour – two wins, three Solheim Cup teams, top-10 finishes in every major championship – she slipped to No. 110 in 2012, with a best tournament finish of 49th. The career slump coincided with Kim's public airing of her recent battles with depression, fully examined in the current issue of Golf Digest.
Kim, who now lives in Orlando, maintains a level of exemption due to her high level of play from 2003-2011, and even her No. 110 money finish garners some privileges, but finishing outside of the top 90 last year cost her a complete "no-questions-asked" exemption for 2013.
"The biggest thing coming here this week is getting in those early tournaments (next winter) that are limited-field events," she said. "I don't want to have to rely on trying to get a sponsor's invite, or Monday-qualify if I don't have to. I'm always gonna have some status, but you want to be fully exempt."
Kim's Wednesday's 72, which included four birdies and four bogeys on a windswept Champions Course, has her tied for 24th after 18 holes of the 90-hole final, which is played on the Champions and Legends courses the first four days, then the Champions alone for Sunday's final round.
She visited LPGA International a few times in the past month to familiarize herself with the course – "fortunately, today wasn't the worst weather conditions I've played in at this course," she said.
Kim Welch, Kathleen Ekey and Moriya Jutanugarn shared the 18-hole lead at 4-under 68. Jutanugarn, from Thailand, was medalist at the Stage I qualifier in September at LPGA International. In Janauary, while still an amateur, she won the Sally Championship in Ormond Beach. In 1990, Katie Peterson won the Sally and later that year was medalist at the LPGA Tour qualifying final, held that year at Ormond Beach's Plantation Bay.
Two former area college standouts – Daytona State's Mitsuki Katahira and Stetson's Alex Buelow – both shot 1-over 73 Wednesday and are tied for 40th. Jessy Tang, former University of Central Florida golfer who now lives in Daytona Beach, shot a 4-over 76 and is tied for 79th.
The field is cut to the low 70 and ties after Saturday's fourth round, and the top 20 finishers Sunday earn their full-time status for the 2013 LPGA Tour season.


text:
We sell pipe, valves, and fittings (PVF), as well as general oilfield supplies to customers all over the United States, and all over the world through our affiliated company Basin Supply. We operate a chain of supply stores, pipe yards, mobile trailers, as well as an online website, and represent the top brand names in the industry. Because of our size, we buy most products directly from manufacturers, offering highly competitive pricing. We service everyone from single well operators to major national E&P companies through long-term MRO agreements.
W-B Supply has built a strong brand by being committed to our customers for over 40 years. If you are an existing customer, we thank you for your business. If you are not, we hope you will become one soon.
International operations: Our affiliated company, Basin Supply, distributes products throughout the world in emerging as well as well as established oilfields. To learn more, please visit www.BasinSupply.com
111 North Naida Street | Pampa, TX 79065 | P: (806)-669-1103 | F: (806)-669-0369 | firstname.lastname@example.com
© 2017 WB Supply. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Statement | Terms of Use


text:
Seven Blackhawks score in win against Flyersby Brian Hedger
CHICAGO -- The Chicago Blackhawks have officially kicked their offense into high gear.
Even with their top two goalies sidelined with injuries, the Blackhawks have three straight blowout victories to their credit after routing the Philadelphia Flyers 7-2 Wednesday night at United Center.
Former Blackhawks goalie Ray Emery was the latest to get a firsthand look at the Blackhawks' powerful offense, when six different players scored against him on 18 shots. Patrick Sharp (one goal, two assists) became the seventh Blackhawks player to score when he beat Steve Mason at 9:33 of the third to cap a power play and push it to a five-goal margin.
"I don't think it's something we ever talk about," Chicago defenseman Duncan Keith said of his team's firepower. "I think it's just that quiet confidence knowing that we have the ability to score goals and generate offense."
After defeating the Florida Panthers and Dallas Stars by identical 6-2 scores Sunday and Tuesday, Chicago (23-6-5) scored five times in the second to continue its offensive tear against the Flyers (13-15-3).
Keith, Andrew Shaw, Michal Handzus, Kris Versteeg, Jonathan Toews, Brent Seabrook and Sharp scored for the Blackhawks. Rookie goalie Antti Raanta, playing in place of injured goalies Corey Crawford (lower body) and Nikolai Khabibulin (lower body), made 28 saves.
Along with Sharp's three-point night, Marian Hossa finished with three assists and Patrick Kane picked up two assists to bring him within a point of Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby for the NHL scoring lead (43-42).
The Blackhawks also improved their record against Eastern Conference teams to 9-0-2 and 4-0-0 against the Metropolitan Division.
"We just stuck to our game," Shaw said. "They [started] running around and I think we took the game over. We've got a lot of skilled players, a lot of players who want to play and a lot of guys who are going to work and go to those gritty areas and find those greasy goals. We're working together as a team right now and everybody's contributing."
Jakub Voracek and Steve Downie scored for Philadelphia.
Raanta improved to 5-0-1 with the win. He made a number of solid saves, but his efforts to thwart breakaways by Brayden Schenn and Michael Raffl in the third, separated by 20 seconds, were his best Wednesday.
"I don't think we need to make it easier on him," Shaw said. "He's a great goalie. He's held us in games when we've needed him to, and he's done great for us."
Chicago led the NHL in goals scored (122) and topped the League with 13 games of five or more. The 14th happened after the Blackhawks logged six shots in the first period and trailed 1-0.
The Flyers outskated the Blackhawks in the first and got the game's first goal by capitalizing on one of two power plays. Voracek beat Raanta to the far side of the net at 12:31 with a shot from the right circle for his fifth goal of the season and second in as many games.
It added to the season-long frustrations for the Blackhawks while shorthanded. Chicago came into the game having killed 10 of 10 power plays in wins against the Panthers and Stars, but was ranked last in the NHL in penalty killing on home ice (69.8 percent).
"I guess we shouldn't talk about [it] going into the game," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "I know today we were talking about [having] two successful games in a row, and it ends up right off the bat we're chasing it."
Chicago answered in the second period and took a 5-2 lead into the third.
Keith, Shaw, Handzus, Versteeg and Toews beat Emery in a variety of ways to turn a defensive-oriented game into another scoring bonanza.
The goals by Keith and Shaw came 39 seconds apart, each on a power play, and gave the Blackhawks the lead 1:22 into the second. Keith scored his second of the season off a shot from the left point, and Shaw beat Emery with a wraparound he slid into the far side of the net.
Handzus made it 3-1 at 5:27 of the second by directing a pass from Marcus Kruger past Emery to cap a shorthanded 2-on-1 rush. Downie brought the Flyers to within 3-2 at 6:11 with a power-play goal before Versteeg and Toews scored to make it 5-2.
"We go into the second with the lead and, just kind of a funny one, I've got to make a save and pucks are kind of bouncing around a bit," Emery said. "But you can't make excuses. As a whole, we've got to play better in the second."
Versteeg ripped a snap shot into the top right corner off a feed by Brandon Saad below the goal line at 9:44 for a 4-2 lead, and Toews was credited with his goal at 14:15 when Sharp blasted a slapper off Toews' left arm into the net.
"Well, he missed the one the shift before, when I passed it to him ... he missed it on purpose, so I tried to hit him with that one," Sharp said, jokingly. "That was a big goal for Johnny. That's a typical Jonathan Toews goal, driving the net, getting hit with the puck and scoring a goal."
Seabrook's goal, scored off a slap shot from the blue line, is the one that chased Emery. He was replaced by Mason and proceeded to watch his teammates get called for six more penalties before the final horn sounded.
"You're going to be frustrated [with a game like that]," Emery said. "It's the old saying, 'You show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser.' I want to play with sore losers. I don't want guys who are content playing like that."


text:
You, Improved
It's a crazy, mixed-up world. Here's how to be a better person in it.
by Christie Chisholm, Weekly Alibi, January 19, 2012
After exiting the holiday season and getting back to the regular course of your life, you're likely looking around and thinking: Things could be better. It's OK. You're normal.
The new year grants a symbolic opportunity to examine yourself, to figure out if there's anything that could be discarded or improved upon. Last January, we helped by relaying guidance from experts on how to sharpen your intellect, whittle your waistline and thicken your wallet ["Intelligent Life," Jan. 13-19, 2011].
We've returned bearing brand-new niblets of advice. A pair of experts on mindfulness told us about finding inner peace. A master of communication gave us the keys to getting a point across. And to help you get organized, we took down tips from a simplicity specialist.
Here's to 2012 being your best year yet!
Be Centered
Katja Lauterstein, marketing coordinator and yoga instructor at High Desert Yoga
Brad Braden, administrative director at Kadampa Meditation Center
Lauterstein and Braden both think the best way to find a little more peace in your life starts with community—whether that be through a yoga class, a meditation session or some other avenue. But they still had some tips that even the shy (or skeptical) can employ at home.
Follow your breath. Both agree that one of the best things you can do for yourself is take five minutes at the beginning or end of your day to just sit and breathe. Simply closing your eyes and paying attention to your breath can have huge calming affects on the body, recentering the nervous system, says Lauterstein. "Breath is one of the things we can live without the least in life," she says. You can last a little while without food and water, but "you can only live a few minutes without breathing."
Make a space. Braden says while breathing exercises can be done anywhere, it's best to look for a comfortable, relaxed place in your home where you can sit without distractions. To help keep your mind from racing, try concentrating solely on the tip of your nose. Concentrating on one fixed point or intention is called single-pointedness. "As we learn to hold our focus single-pointedly," he says, "our mind automatically gives rise to a more calm, peaceful experience."
Come back to the calm. You can bring this technique into your work day as well, says Braden. Before going into a stressful meeting, take a couple of minutes to breathe and ground yourself. "If we can back away for a moment," he says, "it helps you to know what it feels like to be calm" so that you can return to that feeling at times when you may be provoked.
Advanced inhaling. A more engaged way of breathing comes in alternate-nostril breathing. While sitting in a relaxed position, try this: Make sure your jaw is relaxed and let your tongue rest on the bottom of your mouth. Take your right-hand thumb to your right nostril and your ring finger to your left nostril, with your pointer and middle finger resting on your third eye (basically, your forehead). Start by closing your left nostril with your finger and exhaling out your right nostril. After fully exhaling, inhale through the right nostril, then close it with your thumb and exhale through the left nostril. Repeat these steps on the other side, inhaling through the left nostril, then pressing against that nostril with your finger and exhaling through your right nostril again. That makes one full round of breathing, starting and ending with an exhale through your right nostril. Doing that three to five times can have a calming affect on the body.
Small is good. If you're feeling stressed, little changes can make a big difference. Substituting even 20 minutes of TV or computer time in the evening with taking a walk or reading a book can improve your psychological health, says Lauterstein. She cites one of her favorite quotes, from Sydney Smith: "It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do a little. Do what you can."
Find your crowd. Lauterstein says if you decide to attend meditation or yoga classes, it's important to find a teacher you resonate with. So when you start going, shop around until you find someone who makes you feel absolutely comfortable.
Look inside. One of the philosophies that stems from Buddhism is that, out of ignorance, "our happiness arises on dependence upon external things," Braden says. That could be a job, partner, house or car. "Because we don't know otherwise, we try again and again and again to manage all the elements in our life to achieve lasting happiness from all of these conditions outside of ourselves."
Accept change. Temporary contentment can often be found in these things, but humans attach themselves to them and are disappointed when they change. "In reality, everything is impermanent—our job changes, partners change, bodies change, our age changes." Buying a new car, for example, can make you feel happy, like you've solved a problem. Down the road, though, that same car could cause happiness. "It makes us angry, despondent, frustrated when it breaks down. But didn't we expect that it would one day? We experience stress over something completely predictable."
Redefine happiness. The solution to this problem is to understand why you're angry or sad about something and change your expectations. "Stress is a direct result of our mistaken expectation that we can control all of these external factors," he says. Happiness, then, can be found in learning to "view things more appropriately."
Talk Pretty
Dr. Heidi Murphy, communication studies instructor at Central New Mexico Community College
Murphy teaches courses in interpersonal communication, public speaking and intercultural communication. In other words, she's an expert on how to better understand people—and have them better understand you.
So, how might adopting new strategies in the ways you get your point across benefit you? Murphy says that one of the biggest advantages is employment: Bosses pick candidates with good communication skills over those who don't. On a day-to-day level, saying what you mean—and doing it in a way that's well-received—helps you achieve goals. She also says that more satisfying relationships and improved health are other benefits. "People who live solitary lives live with more disease and illness and die earlier than their social counterparts," she says.
There are three areas that folks struggle with the most, Murphy says. Changing these behaviors can make an immediate difference in the way others perceive you.
Not listening. "All humans want to feel valued, to feel like they matter in the world," she explains. "Listening in itself validates another human being."
Defensiveness. She says it's hard to "own up to something we know we can do better." Instead of talking about it, we "push it away" and blame it on others.
Not considering your audience. If you don't tailor your delivery to who you're speaking with, your message will be less effective.
Whether you're trying to talk to a boss about a raise, resolve a conflict with a co-worker, discuss an issue in your relationship with your partner, or ask your parents for more respect or trust, there are some simple factors you'll need to take into account.
Power or status differences between yourself and the person you're talking to. When talking to a boss, for example, you'd want to be particularly conscious of not being defensive.
Cultural differences. What's considered normal behavior in one culture could be offensive in another. Know your audience.
Gender differences. "Males and females aren't as different as we might think," says Murphy, "but there are some basic communication style differences that—when understood—can improve effectiveness." She says women tend to use communication to bond, as well as build and maintain relationships. Men more often use it to try to solve problems or give advice.
When you find yourself at odds with others, use these communication strategies to help resolve the conflict.
Figure out what's really bothering you. Many arguments can stem from getting upset over symptoms, not the root problem. "We argue about the fact that 'I did the dishes yesterday, so you have to do them today,' " says Murphy. "And 'Yeah, but I walked the dog, so that counts and now you have to do the dishes.' What these two are really arguing about is the equal distribution of tasks and who has decision-making power." The problem isn't the dishes, it's trying to establish power, control and, ultimately, respect in a relationship.
Adopt a problem-solving solution. Instead of arguing for the sake of arguing, approach a discussion with the goal of solving whatever problem has brought you to a disagreement. A small example Murphy gives is two roommates who fight because one wants a clean kitchen and for the garbage to go out every night, while the other doesn't want to take out the trash that often. With creative thinking, the problem could be resolved by simply buying a bigger trash can. A larger example is a couple with a new baby. One partner wants to quit his or her job to stay home, while the other is concerned about money. By moving into a smaller home, both can get what they want.
Stop talking and listen. Don't jump in when you have something you want to add; wait your turn. Ask clarifying questions. Paraphrase what you've heard to make sure you understand.
Use "I" language. Instead of saying "You make me mad" or "You hurt my feelings," talk about how an action or event makes you feel. "Expressing how you interpreted something and reacted to something is more likely to be well-received than blaming another person for your thoughts and feelings."
Be aware of your short- and long-term goals. It may feel good to unload during an argument, but you can't truly take back anything you say. Remembering what you want in the long run will help you keep an even temper.
Empathize. "Try to view the world through someone else's glasses." Everyone has their own unique set of experiences that create the lens through which they see the world. Try to imagine how someone else would interpret what you're saying.
Go further. If you're interested in exploring any of these scenarios more thoroughly, Murphy suggests taking a class. She also recommends The Seven Challenges Workbook by Dennis Rivers. The 100-page workbook is available for free as a downloadable PDF or printed copy here:bit.ly/7CWorkbook.
Clean Up
Miriam Ortiz y Pino, certified professional organizer and simplicity expert, owner of More Than Organized
Ortiz y Pino's work stems from a straightforward philosophy: Everything you do is connected. By freeing up physical space, she believes you can open mental space as well.
Decide what you want your space to be. This goes beyond the obvious I want this to be a kitchen. Do you want to cook more and eat more healthfully? Is it important for your kitchen to be a communal space or a personal one? Figuring our how you want a space to function to meet your needs is the first step in understanding how to organize it.
Stop feeling guilty. If your space is in disarray, think about what factors went into it becoming that way. Have you been sick for awhile or taking care of someone else? Has there been a big change in your life that made it easier to lose track of day-to-day maintenance? By knowing how you got somewhere, you can let go of your guilt and focus on how to fix your habits.
If you're procrastinating, change the order around. You know that teetering stack of papers you've been avoiding for months? Turn it upside down or shuffle it around and then sort through it. Since you've been looking at it for so long, you've likely come to associate a lot of daunting emotions with its appearance. By changing your literal perspective on it, you can erase some of the symbolism you've attributed to it.
Baby steps. If you feel overwhelmed by how dirty or disorganized your house or office is, start with something small, like the pantry or laundry room, "something a little more task-oriented," says Ortiz y Pino. "It's a lot easier to get someone to understand that putting canned goods on that shelf and snacks on that shelf is better." More stressful activities, like coming up with a filing system for your paperwork, can come later, after you're feeling good about accomplishing something smaller.
Move disorganized items into a clutter-free space. Sort them out there, then put them back. Oftentimes you'll think more clearly in a clean area.
Ask a friend to help you clean your closet. Have them hold up items, and you can decide if you want to keep it from across the room. "We have a different emotional response to something tactile," Ortiz y Pino says. This exercise can help you be more objective.
Be willing to throw things away. Ask yourself if an item serves your current vision for your life. "Does it make sense to keep the chips and cookies when your New Year's resolution was to lose weight and be healthier?" she asks. "So, great, you wore this suit five months ago, but you just retired. Will you ever need 12 suits again? Keep your favorites."
Make some rules for yourself about when a task is truly completed. Grocery shopping isn't finished until everything you bought is put away. Your laundry isn't done unless your clothes are folded or hung.
Create a schedule for when tasks should be completed. Instead of continually trying to remind yourself to take in the dry cleaning, just decide that every Thursday is dry cleaning day.
Ultimately, your space should fit your needs; you shouldn't work to fit your space. If something seems unmanageable, change it so it molds to you.


text:
Latest News
Watchdog group pushes to get Big Macs and fries out of hospitals
A national watchdog group is demanding that the nation's hospitals -- including Jackson Memorial and Broward Health Medical Center -- kick McDonald's restaurants off their campuses to "to help curb the epidemic of diet-related disease and to stop fostering a food environment that promotes harm, not health."
The move this week by Corporate Accountability International is one of a growing number of aggressive campaigns combat the fattening of America, where two-thirds of the population is overweight or obese, creating medical problems that cost the country more than do cigarette smokers.
McDonald's spokeswoman Danya Proud said the company is proud of its evolving menu, which offers a wide variety of options, including many that are low in fat, sodium and calories. "It's not about where you eat," she said. It's about "how much a person chooses to consume." Of the 14,000 McDonald's restaurants in the country, only 26 are on hospital campuses, she said.
It's those hospital eateries that Corporate Accountability is targeting. In a letter to the facilities, the group asked them to be leaders in improving the nation's health. "Experts do know that reducing junk food consumption can significantly improve the health of kids. Scientific evidence also confirms what common sense has told us for decades – that environments laden with fast food restaurants and junk food marketing have profoundly negative impacts on children's lifelong eating habits and well-being."
Last year, more than 1900 healthcare professionals signed a letter sponsored by Corporate Accountability to McDonald's Chief Executive Jim Skinner, asking that he "stop marketing junk food to children." Among the signers of that letter was Janine Sanchez, director of the Pediatric Diabetes Program at the University of Miami. On Thursday, Jackson spokesman Edwin O'Dell said, "McDonald's is part of Jackson Memorial's retail campus, which includes several other restaurants. The contracts of each of these facilities are reviewed at the end of each contract period." He said visitors and employees have "a variety of good options where to eat."
Broward Health spokeswoman Jenny Mackie said her institution had a "long-standing relationship with McDonald's, including an on-campus Ronald McDonald House," which provides housing to the parents of sick kids through a foundation associated with the fast-food company. "Their support was instrumental in funding the opening of our Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and they have been active members of our Community Relations Council."
Jackson Memorial also has a Ronald McDonald House.
In its letters to hospitals, Corporate Responsibility said: "It's really no surprise McDonald's sites stores in hospitals. After all, for decades, McDonald's has attempted to co-opt the health community, to deflect blame for the epidemic of disease that it has helped drive, and to pose itself as part of the solution."
Sriram Madhusoodanan, a spokesman for Corporate Responsibility, said Thursday three hospitals have already responded to the group's letter, vowing not to renew the McDonald's leases. "We hope South Florida Hospitals ... will be next in line."
He said that the group was doing the McDonald's campaign very much in the style of its efforts in the past to stop Big Tobacco from advertising to youths with such cartoon figures as Joe Camel.
"Predatory marketing to children was the hallmark of Big Tobacco nearly two decades ago," Madhusoodanan wrote in an e-mail. "McDonald's and the fast food industry have taken a page right out of Big Tobacco's playbook and are driving an epidemic of diet-related diseases by getting kids addicted to their junk food at a young age and building brand loyalties that last a lifetime."
Fighting McDonald's is not easy. Toby Cosgrove, a heart surgeon who is chief executive of Cleveland Clinic, has made masterful strides in expanding the organization nationwide, including growing its operations in Weston, but he failed miserably against McDonald's.
In 2004, when he was named head of the clinics, he announced grandly he was going to oust the McDonald's restaurant on the Cleveland campus.
The community erupted in a "firestorm," Cosgrove told a Herald reporter in 2007.
"It turned out the owner of that McDonald's was an African American. McDonald's played the race card. It got difficult,." Cosgrove said. Upshot: the McDonald's owner said he would add carrots and apples. Cosgrove retreated, even though he said he knew most persons would continue to order fries and Big Macs. "We were not particularly interested in having open warfare with McDonald's."
Read more at the miamiherald.com


text:
|TidBITS#36 19910114
by Mark H. Anbinder -- firstname.lastname@example.com
For those of you who couldn't attend, and as a recap for those of you who could, here are some of the high points - and a few low points - from Macworld San Francisco '91. There seemed to be no overriding theme at the Expo this time around, which is just as well; most of us are tired of the Mac buzz-words of the eighties. In any case, there were some noteworthy items.
Slickest Display: SuperMac Technology's booth featured a wall covered with video displays, showing a fast-paced series of still photographs accompanying Billy Joel's song, "We Didn't Start the Fire," to promote their SuperSqueeze still-image compression technology. If you were curious, they weren't decompressing all that material on the fly, as they did with the full-motion video compression display last August; it was a canned demo being run using XCMDs under HyperCard 1.2.5, and the multiple monitors were being handled by a Dynair video image amplifier and splitter. This wall almost, but not quite, managed to overshadow SuperMac's new dual-mode monitors.
Best T-Shirt: Much more creative than Apple's shirts, with their inspirational Sculley quotes on the back, are CE Software's "Connecting people and productivity" shirts. No doubt it's better in person, but the back of the shirt is a two-by-two matrix, with "Productive" and "Unproductive" across the top, and "Fun" and "Not so fun" down the side, like so:
Productive Unproductive (a whole bunch Fun of CE product icons) Tetris Not so Fun Tupperware Tetanus
Deepest Sigh of Relief: WordPerfect Corporation finally shipped WordPerfect 2.0 for the Macintosh on the first day of the Expo. This long-awaited upgrade offers a far-more-Maclike user interface than the company's first Mac offering, but still has optional interface features for those who really DID like the original WordPerfect Mac (all two of them). A $100 price hike for the new version, and some drastic changes for the worse to the way WordPerfect handles educational sales (more on this later perhaps), may put this product out of the reach of some, but it is certainly a strong contender in the diverse Macintosh word processing market.
It's About Time: Just a few weeks before the show, Rodime Systems introduced a new version of its driver software for the Cobra series of hard drives. This driver is finally compatible with the free Disinfectant antivirus utility. The new software is available to Cobra drive owners, directly from Rodime, or from Rodime dealers.
Neatest Product: The WristMac, from Ex Machina (published by Microseeds Publishing), is a Seiko wristwatch that stores up to 80 two-line "screens" of data, such as phone numbers, appointments, and to-do lists, complete with an interface cable that connects to a Mac serial ports, so you can use the included HyperCard 2.0 stack to enter and manipulate the data. You can even have the watch's alarm function alert you of the appointments that you've entered into the database.
Smartest Acquisition: Connectix Corporation - the brash bunch that has brought us Virtual, Optima, and Maxima (an assortment of system-enhancing memory utilities for the Mac) and has laughed at System 7.0's virtual memory for the last two years - announced the purchase of Fred Hollander's HandOff II the day before the show. HandOff II, which received an Honorable Mention in this year's MacUser awards in the Best Utility category, offers an application-launching menu like that provided by OnCue, but also document-grouping "briefcases" and application categories, as well as application substitution (assigning a specific application to handle specific file formats, such as having SuperPaint launched when a MacPaint document is double-clicked). It's especially useful for all those MacWrite documentation files for those of us who don't have MacWrite around.
Best Upcoming Innovation: CE Software introduces yet another invaluable extension to the Macintosh interface, with their "Tiles" product, to be released sometime this year. Tiles product manager John Pence started writing the utility three years ago, but only started actively developing it as a product last year. This handy gizmo can best be described as an extension of both the NeXT icon dock and HandOff II. It allows launching of applications or opening of documents simply by clicking on "tiles," which are basically labelled pictures. Tiles can also hold "projects," or groups of documents created by any number of applications, that can all be launched together; as well as any kind of QuicKey action or sequence.
Biggest No-Shows: The Mac rumour mill isn't always right, of course, and this year's Expo proved that at least twice. One product that didn't make it under the wire is Apple's revised Macintosh Portable. The improved machine is rumoured to offer a backlit LCD screen, and a lighter battery assembly. The release has been postponed indefinitely; it's not clear what effect that may have on the upcoming joint Apple-Sony project. Not to be underdone, Radius has refrained from introducing a color version of its flippable Pivot monitor. Instead, they are offering a new Pivot that works with the built-in video circuitry in the Mac IIsi and IIci.
I-wouldn't-do-this-to-MY-drive category: Iomega drew people to its storage-products display booth by attaching a Bernoulli Transportable removable cartridge drive to a rotating machine that lifted it up and thumped it back down about once a second. All the while, an attached IIfx was reading large color images from the drive, without interruption. This shocking demo, which prompted one viewer to wonder, "If they don't want the thing, why don't they just give it to me?!" was intended to illustrate the drive's ability to withstand shock forces of 1000 G.
Cutest Give-away: Visitors to the Bay Area might not understand, but the "Have a drink on Mainstay" promotion actually provides a service. Mainstay, the publishers of such things as MarkUp, MarcoPolo, and a prime candidate for biggest non-product of the industry, AntiToxin, handed out Coast Guard-approved foil pouches of emergency drinking water. These 125 ml pouches (of which you need four per person per day) might be handy in the event of another earthquake (or a San Francisco Water Department four-hour shutoff that affects your hotel late one night during the Expo...).
Biggest Non-Product: What the heck, I might as well explain that. Mainstay's AntiToxin is an antivirus utility with two parts: an application that repairs files infected with known viruses, and an INIT that notes the presence of known viruses and prevents infected files from being opened. Sounds good, except that when I asked how it compared to John Norstad's free Disinfectant utility, the Mainstay rep I spoke to agreed with my assessment that the product didn't quite live up in terms of features, and added that it is not updated as quickly as Disinfectant. Oh well, thanks for the water, Mainstay.
CE Software, Inc. -- 515/224-1995
Mainstay Products, Inc. -- 818/991-6540
Iomega -- 801/778-4494 -- 800/456-5522
Radius Inc. -- 408/434-1010
Microseeds Publishing, Inc. -- 813/882-8635
Connectix Corp. -- 415/324-0727
Dynair Electronics, Inc. -- 619/263-7711 -- 800/854-2831
SuperMac Technology -- 408 245-2202
Rodime Systems, Inc. -- 407/994-5585


text:
Getting the perfect fit for your Chevy Caprice
Most people make the mistake of ordering for tires without confirming the tire size of their vehicle. Although, it might come as a surprise to some, the Chevy Caprice has different tire size you can find in the table below.
So, how do you select the best Chevy Caprice tires?
Once you've assessed the tire size of your vehicle, then you can progress to the next stage – selecting the right tire. We all want tires that will endure through various weather condition and high level of abuse. So, how do we select the best tires for our Chevy Caprice?
Considering the fuel economy: Yes, tires can impact on the amount of fuel that your vehicle consumes. It is mostly advised to purchase a similar tire to your previous one.
Selecting tires based on thread wear: The longevity of tires is dependent on so many factors like road conditions, driving habits and climate conditions. It is therefore imperative to select a tire with great thread marks that can withstand high abuse.


text:
In terms of CSP plants, Southern California Edison recently reached an agreement with BrightSource Energy for 1,300 megawatts (MW) of solar power, which qualifies as the world's largest solar power deal to date. The agreement calls for a series of seven projects, starting with a 100-MW CSP plant that could start operating near Ivanpah, Calif., in early 2013.
BrightSource Energy employs power tower technology, in which a field of thousands of flat mirrors, called heliostats, focuses sunlight onto a boiler mounted at the top of a tower. Steam produced in the boiler is piped to a turbine, which drives a generator to produce electricity.
A commercial power tower was recently built in Spain, but only demonstration plants have been built in the United States. In addition, NRG Energy Inc. signed an agreement with eSolar to develop three solar projects totaling as much as 500 MW, also using solar power towers.
For PV power plants, California's Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) appears to be taking a leadership position, as the utility announced in late February that it plans to develop and own up to 250 MW of solar power facilities, while buying power from another 250 MW of solar power owned by independent developers. The California Public Utilities Commission has also approved two previous large contracts PG&E has signed with solar power developers, including a contract for 550 MW of thin-film solar PV from Topaz Solar Farms on the Carrizo Plain in San Luis Obispo County, as well as another contract with High Plains Solar Farms for 210 MW of silicon solar panels.
SunPower Inc. owns the latter project, and the former project was owned by OptiSolar Inc., but First Solar Inc. just bought out all of OptiSolar's projects, including the PG&E project. In the fourth quarter of 2008, First Solar managed to cut the manufacturing cost for its thin-film solar modules to 98 cents per watt, breaking the $1-per-watt cost barrier. The company's annual production capacity is expected to exceed 1,000 megawatts per year by the end of this year.
While California has a definite lead in solar power development, utilities in other states are now pursuing megawatt-scale solar PV projects. In New Jersey, the Public Service Electric and Gas Company has proposed to spend $773 million to support the development of 120 MW of solar PV power through many projects located throughout its service territory.
In New York, Governor David Paterson announced that the Long Island Power Authority is planning to support 50 MW of new solar power, including 13.1 MW of smaller projects developed by enXco and 36.9 MW to be installed by BP Solar in two large projects at the Department of Energys Brookhaven National Laboratory.
Down in the Sunshine State, Florida Power & Light has just broken ground on the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center, a 25-MW solar PV facility that should be completed by the end of the year.


text:
- Family Tree
- Search
- Memories
- Indexing
- Help
|This article describes a collection of historical records available at FamilySearch.org.
Access the records: Germany, Mecklenburg-Schwerin Census, 1867 , Germany, Mecklenburg-Schwerin Census, 1900, and Germany, Mecklenburg-Schwerin Census, 1890.
Title in the Language of the Records
Deutschland, Großherzogthum Mecklenburg Volkszählungen 1890
This collection of census records pertains to the census of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin conducted in 1867, 1890, and 1900. Mecklenburg censuses were conducted intermittently from 1636 to 1939.
This is a collection of censuses of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Germany.
The 1900 census consist of two forms: the individual forms (Zählkarten), which lists information about each person, and the household lists (Haushaltungslisten), which identify the members of a family and their relationship to the head of household. Both forms are filed by place. These places are then arranged alphabetically by each manorial district or city (Ritteramt, Domänenamt, Klosteramt, Stadt).
A name index and images for a portion of The 1890 census consist of a name index arranged by towns under their enumeration district. Two types of forms are found for each town: Zählkarten and Namenslisten. The Zählkarten list individuals and give the date and place of birth, occupation, residence, gender and marital status, etc. The Namenslisten list the inhabitants of a given household and show relationship to the head of the household. Most of the census did not survive.
Census of citizens of Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin as of 2/3 December 1867. Authorized enumerators, went from house to house in their appointed areas, recording in a "household list" of each person who was present at the time in the apartment or house. Household members who were not physically present at the time of the census were recorded in an addendum. The following information was recorded about each person: first and last name, gender, year of birth, religious affiliation, marital status, occupation or social standing, citizenship, the reason why visitors were in the census area, and distinguishing physical characteristics. Based on the 1867 census, population of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was determined to be 560,668. Of those, 193,882 people lived in the cities.
For a list of records by date or locality currently published in the Germany, Mecklenburg-Schwerin Census, 1867 collection, select the Browse link from the collection landing page.
The censuses cover territory controlled by the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. For the 1900 census, takers went to each house in each of the 2,559 districts and recorded all the inhabitants as of December 1, 1900, therefore covering about 95 to 98 percent of the population living in Mecklenburg-Schwerin in December of 1900.
The original records are preserved at the German State Archives in Schwerin. The Family History Library has copies on microfilm also. For a list of records by date or locality currently published in the Germany, Mecklenburg-Schwerin Census, 1890 collection, select the Browse link from the collection landing page.
For a list of records by date or locality currently published in the Germany, Mecklenburg-Schwerin Census, 1900 collection, select the Browse link from the collection landing page.
The following citations refer to the original source of the data and images published on FamilySearch.org Historical Records. They may include the author, custodian, publisher, and archive for the original records.
This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections.
Information about creating source citations for FamilySearch Historical Collections is listed in the wiki article Help:How to Create Source Citations For FamilySearch Historical Records Collections.
The key genealogical facts found on most census lists are:
Next to parish registers, census records provide more family information than any other Mecklenburg record for the time period. You must know how to read German Gothic script. You also need to know at least the name of your ancestor and the approximate place of residence at the time of the census.
The censuses were taken to assess military and taxation capacity, as well as for religious, occupational, and language background.
Census information was provided by any member of the household. If some information was incomplete, the census taker had to return to the houseold to complete the information. Each record was signed by the census taker as verification of its accuracy.
|We welcome user additions to FamilySearch Historical Records wiki articles. We are looking for additional information that will help readers understand the topic and better use the available records. We also need translations for collection titles and images in articles about records written in languages other than English. For specific needs, please visit WikiProject FamilySearch Records.
Please follow these guidelines as you make changes. Thank you for any contributions you may provide.
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.
A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the wiki article Help:How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.


text:
Hanson Singles in Both Games to Extend On-Base Streak to 31 Games
WEST HAVEN, Conn. — One streak came to an end, while another is still alive after Yale snapped its 12-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory over Harvard in the opening game of Saturday's doubleheader before seeing a rally fall just short in a 7-6 loss to the Crimson in Game 2 at Yale Field on Saturday.
Yale moves to 7-25-1 overall, 1-9 in Ivy League play, while Harvard moves to 7-24 overall, 3-7 in the Ivy League. Yale will have a chance to move into a tie with Harvard in the Rolfe Division standings with a sweep when the two teams meet again for another doubleheader on Sunday.
Yale Sophomore shortstop Cale Hanson went a combined 2-for-8 in the two games with a single in each game to keep his on-base streak alive, extending it to 31 straight games.
The Bulldogs' losing streak came to an end in a come-from-behind victory in extra innings in the opening game of the afternoon. After Harvard broke a 1-1 tie game with a run in the top of the seventh inning, Yale responded with a run in the bottom of the inning and another in the bottom of the eighth to pull out a 3-2 victory.
Harvard broke the 1-1 tie with a sacrifice fly by Ethan Ferreira that drove in Jeff Reynolds with the go-ahead run.
In the bottom of the inning, Yale faced a do-or-die situation needing to score a run to extend the game or watch the losing streak push to 13 games. After Yale loaded the bases with no one out, senior Charlie Neil hit a sacrifice fly to left field that drove in Jacob Hunter to tie the game at 2-2.
Harvard managed to push a runner to third base in the top of the eighth inning after Kyle Larrow led off with a walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Robert Wineski, and was pushed to third on a groundout to first base by Mike Martin. Senior pitcher Eric Shultz (3-1) forced Jack Colton to ground out to third base to end the Crimson threat.
In the bottom of the inning, freshman pinch hitter Joe Lubanski belted a triple to lead off the inning and scored on a sacrifice fly by Hunter, lifting Yale to its first win since a 4-1 win over Hartford on March 24.
Despite falling behind 7-2 in the second game of the afternoon, Yale had its chances to complete the doubleheader sweep.
Harvard used three hits and two Yale errors to jump on top 2-0 in the first inning with Martin scoring the first run from second base on a throwing error by Yale third baseman Chris Piwinski. Jake McGuiggan's RBI single with two outs drove in the second run of the inning to put the Crimson on top 2-0.
Yale didn't wait to respond. In the bottom of the inning, the Bulldogs loaded the bases with one out before Neil belted a two-run single to tie the game at 2-2.
Harvard bounced right back to take a 3-2 lead in the top of the second on an RBI single by Colton. The Crimson then jumped ahead 7-2 with two runs in the fourth inning on a two-run double by Colton and two more in the fifth on a run-scoring fielder's choice by Carlton Bailey and an RBI single by Larrow.
Despite the five-run deficit, Yale never folded. The Bulldogs scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning with two runs scoring on another two-run single by Neil and a two-run single by Lubanski.
The Bulldogs had their chances to tie the game in the latter innings, stranding a pair of runners on base in the seventh and eighth innings. Reliever Conner Hulse didn't let that happen in the final inning, striking out all three Yale batters in the ninth inning to end the game and saving the victory for Harvard.
Neil powered the Bulldogs' bats, combining to go 2-for-6 with five RBIs and a run scored, driving in four of them in Game 2. Six other players each added two hits, with Hunter scoring three runs and driving in another.
Report filed by Jon Erickson Jr., Yale Sports Publicity


text:
Think it doesn't snow in Arizona? Think again!
You and your vehicle must be prepared for driving in wintry conditions, including snow, ice and freezing temperatures.
Make sure your vehicle is in good working condition by paying special attention to the battery, ignition and exhaust systems, thermostat, defroster, heater and brakes. Take these precautions as well:
If the electric vehicle has a thermal heating pack for the batteries, keep the vehicle plugged in when not in use. If it has a preheat function to warm the interior, set it to warm the passenger compartment before you unplug it in the morning. Always make sure your tank has fresh gasoline.
Never drive into snowy, icy or cold conditions without a fully-charged cell phone, drinking water and winter coats, warm blankets or both. Consider keeping these items available too:
If possible, do not stop in or near travel lanes. Stop in a safe area where the vehicle can be serviced or removed. Do not stay in or close to a disabled vehicle.
Where does it snow in Arizona?
Know Snow by the Numbers
Before you go...
Know Snow
Take a look through our blog archives to see how ADOT keeps the roads clear during Arizona's snowy season. On the ADOT Blog, you'll also find infographics, statistics and snowplow videos from previous years...
Arizona Department of Transportation
Contact Us
Copyright © Arizona Department of Transportation – All rights reserved.


text:
Posts Tagged 'Lexcycle'
Internet Archive Launches BookServer Project
The Internet Archive has launched the BookServer project: an open system for finding, buying, and borrowing digital books over the Internet.
At our launch event on Monday, the Internet Archive demonstrated how the BookServer ecosystem could be used to deliver books several e-book readers, including the OLPC laptop, the Amazon Kindle, the iPhone, the Sony Reader, and the Humanware VictorReader Stream, a talking eReader for the blind and print-disabled.
The Internet Archive also announced it was making all 1.6 million public domain books on archive.org available in EPUB and Daisy talking book formats, to better support e-book devices.
To help develop BookServer, the Internet Archive partnered with OLPC, Aldiko, ThreePress, Pixel Qi, Inkmesh, FLOSS Manuals, University of Toronto Libraries, LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Shortcovers, Feedbooks, O'Reilly Media, Adobe, Bluefire Productions, Humanware, Ingram, Lexcycle, author Katie Hafner, and many others.
We were pleased that so many partners could join us on Monday for the BookServer launch party. For those who couldn't attend, the Follow the Reader blog has an excellent article detailing the BookServer launch.
Resource Shelf has an extensive overview of BookServer media coverage. Thanks to everyone who helped develop and launch the BookServer ecosystem! If you are an author, publisher, book seller, device maker, library, or a reader, please help us in building an open ecosystem for online books!


text:
A close friend sent me a cute French electronic card for Bastille Day 2016. And what a Bastille Day it turned out to be, eh? Think about it!!! A third massive attack on the French people in about a year… But… Cui Bono? What is an attack but an invitation to a counterattack? So if you're going to start a war, your attack should always be something that weakens the enemy in some regard, right? But NONE of these stupid Muzzies seem to get that, do they? They always attack innocent civilians—everywhere they go, or at the most they attack government bureaucrats….What kind of logic is that? You attack people to prod them into attacking you, but all of your attacks seem carefully designed to arouse ire and anger among the populace while leaving the infrastructure of war that will be used against you completely intact and untouched. Is it just me or is there something wrong with this picture? It's almost like the people making the attacks ONLY want to make the people MORE willing to counter-attack them back? How is that logical?
Holidays are very important, especially those with fireworks. I have never lived in France or Quebec, but by the time I was 18 I had lived in London, Dallas, Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Honduras, and whether it's New Years' Eve, Guy Fawkes' Day, the Fourth of July, the 15th of September, or the Queen's Birthday, fireworks celebrations are really great. So I try to imagine what would have happened if there had been a bombing during one of those holidays in any of the places I ever habituated…. and what would have been the purpose.
And what of the Quatorze Julliet? My grandmother was a Francophone and Francophile native of Louisiana and my Texas-born grandfather's life took him from Galveston to "the City" on a regular basis, plus I took French in High School and College, and several of my professors were Francophones and Francophiles at Tulane and during those years—including Archaeologists Harvey Bricker and Cynthia Irwin-Williams who had both studied under Hallam Movius, and from them all, I obtained a love for and habit of celebrating July 14, Bastille Day.
Terrorism, traditionally understood, is a species of poor-man's war or revolution. As such, it is inherently secretive and illegal. War is open and honest: Austria declared war on Serbia, so Russia declared war on Austria, Germany was required by treaty to go to war with Russia to defend Austria, Britain was required by treaty, etc., and so the Great War of 1914-1918 began. BUT EVERYBODY KNEW IT.
When terrorist organizations claim responsibility after the fact for their crimes… they are doing just that, they are claiming criminal responsibility… and when criminals claim responsibility for anything, you have to wonder: why?
And so I think to myself, what do the April 1995 Bombing of the Oklahoma City Federal Building, 9/11/01 in New York City and Washington, 7/7/05 in London, Dylan Storm Roof's murderous assault in Charleston last June 17, Charlie Hebdo in France, and now this latest atrocity in Nice all have in common?
Well, they neither advance any coherent revolutionary plan, nor weaken the countries they attack. They all happen either on days with interesting numbers or anniversaries. But the truck bombing that took out 84 yesterday, including two American tourists apparently, just "takes the cake" on Bastille Day—which now joins Guy Fawkes Day and 9/11, 7/7 and 6/17/15 anniversary of the collapse of Denmark Vesey's 1822 slave uprising in Charleston as "false flag" or stage events of terrorism.
Bastille Day was already a slightly fictitious holiday because, as Louis XVI wrote in his diary, on 14 July 1789, "Nothing Important Happened." A mob knocked down an old prison with one prisoner, but the embattled King with a short life-expectancy didn't even notice, under his peculiar circumstances. As my son likes to say—the 14th of July was really a tragedy for the future of French Tourism—the Bastille, Mediaeval relic fortress that it was, would have been a major attraction had it survived… But the French know how to make a good party out of a bad deal—and very few American Fourth of July Cookouts EVER equal the average 14 July party in France or among Francophile/Francophones worldwide… the comparison of the food and wine alone…. oh well, never mind.
But I keep trying to think to myself: if I were an Islamic Freedom-Fighter or would-be Caliph, would attacking innocent people over and over again at random make any sense? What would I be hoping to accomplish? What would be my goals? What good TO ME AND MY CAUSE could possibly inure from committing such crimes?
A sophisticated and coordinated attack in the United States followed by a similar attack in London, and then a decade later two similarly "low tech" attacks in France, and a bunch of random attacks in the meantime… scattered around the world. Shootings at Fort Hood in Texas, connected or not? Who knows? The Boston Marathon whatever it was, connected or not? Who knows? The Chattanooga, TN veteran shooting, connected or not? Who knows?
What is absolutely certain is that SOMEONE wants to create the image of Islamic terror as a world-wide phenomenon that requires coordinated security and response. If I were an Islamic Freedom-Fighter or would-be Caliph, would this kind of premonitory strategy seem like a good idea to me? The answer is NO.
Revolutionary terrorism needs to be targeted on ONE government, one regime, one power structure—and it needs to be consistent and persistent enough to destabilize a society or at least an elite. The pattern of Islamic Terror since the original 1993 World Trade Center bombing is NOT THAT. The movement around the map, the focus on NON-STRATEGIC, NON-MILITARY, NON-INFRASTRUCTURE targets is very consistent.
The murder of innocent people was an integral part of Timothy McVeigh's and Dylan Storm Roof's approach in distinctly non-Islamic terrorist events in the United States—and their two attacks had no more coordinated relationship to any ideological goals than the long line of supposed Islamic terrorist events. Even my dearly departed, mild mannered, deeply religious late mother said, way back in April 1995, "if they call themselves Patriots and wanted to make a meaningful statement, they really should have bombed the IRS." And if Dylan Storm Roof were really a racist White Supremacist, the LAST associations he would have wanted to make were the killing of elderly black people during a prayer meeting at a conservative African Methodist Episcopal Church on the 193rd anniversary of the Suppression of one of the most famous Slave Rebellions in U.S. History: this sort of symbolism all plays for the OTHER side—and so does bombing the French Riviera during Bastille Day celebrations.
IF you want to make sure to build your enemies' anger and take every step possible to ensure that NOBODY has any sympathy for your cause, (a) make sure nobody knows what your cause is and (b) do things in random places but on important days to make sure people remember the randomness.
In short, to my mind, there is absolutely ZERO chance that the Nice attack on Bastille Day was organized by anyone sincerely to advance the Islamist cause. You want to bomb a target on a holiday? If you're a real revolutionary, you seek a target like an electrical power plant or water pumping station or even a sewerage processing plant where you can disable your opponents entire city and infrastructure in some really inconvenient and expensive way. Osama bin Laden was a structural engineer and IF he had been in charge of 9-11, as a plot against the United States, I've always said his targets of choice would have been the undefended dams along the Colorado River, in order to cutoff the water supply to evil sinful cities like Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and the California "Inland Empire."
So none of these attacks, my friends, are about an Islamic agenda for World Domination or even in revenge for the (indisputable) wrongs suffered by the Arab and Islamic people generally at British, French, and most recently American Imperialist hands….
WHO WANTS TO DIVIDE AND CONQUER THROUGH TERROR? The Radical Islamic World? Or Powers, Princes and Potentates MUCH Closer to Home!
All these attacks, in my opinion, reflect a "tough love" strategy of the United States, French, and British Governments to "soften up" the people and by long-term repetitive pseudo-Pavlovian conditioning make them (i.e. US, the free and responsible people of America and Europe) willing to accept an all-encompassing, eternal "Thousand Year" Police State—exactly what Strom Thurmond predicted was the goal in his "Dixiecrat" Platform of 1948. They want to impose the police state for our own good and our own protection, don't you understand? That's why modern government false-flag murder is just TOUGH LOVE. And if you don't like it, well, tough s__t, you know, my fellow Americans: "We have to break a few eggs here and there to prepare for you our New World Order of Omelette—-they're all for you, you know! But we know you're too stupid to want this wonderful highly organized Police State where we can organize and regulate all of your lives, so we have to scare you into it."
In other words: Tales of Terrorism function for the modern media motivated masses exactly the way Perrault's or Grimm's Fairy tales did in days of yore…. scary stories are INSTRUCTIONAL! You need to scare the children by telling them about the BIG BAD WOLF and what he did to Little Red Riding Hood, or about what the Witch did to Hansel & Gretel with her candy house, so that they will live in constant fear of strangers and of attempting to strike out on their own. FEAR! FEAR! FEAR! "You've got to be taught to hate and fear, it's got to be taught from year-to-year, it's got to be drummed in your dear little ear, You've got to be carefully taught."
The Dallas Police Murders last week, which suspiciously took place on the now recurring date of 7/7, were not Islamic either, but they served the fear purpose and the "Divide and Conquer" purpose to a degree unmatched in any other attack. Black people killing black cops—a recipe made by Machiavelli in Hell….
Peaceful black protesters complaining about police brutality were forced to hide behind the police lines when one or more black gunmen murdered 5 and injured 7 more. DID THIS ADVANCE THE CAUSE OF "BLACK LIVES MATTER"? No, but it was a boon for American Renaissance (and I write this as a regular reader of and a subscriber to AmRen).
To feed the ignorant white suburban paranoia of blacks attacking whites was a simple stroke of Genius on the part of the Obama administration—all of a sudden, we have forced a portion of the black population into making a choice: either they act out the worst fears of the white middle class suburbanites or they support the Police. Obama, as usual, was totally two-faced, but two-faced is how the supporters of the police state need to be: they need to FOMENT inter-racial violence on the one hand and then condemn murder on the other, because THIS STRATEGY SUPPORTS INCREASING THE POWER AND THE EFFICACY OF THE STATE.
The way to satisfy the Black Lives Matter movement is to suppress white-conservative expression and culture and desires to be left alone in an essentially segregated society. To satisfy the White AND Black Middle and Upper Classes, the government must enlarge (a better word might be to engorge) the police state and enhance the power of the police to protect them from the rising black tide.
Now I read AmRen and similar publications and websites because I support what I perceive as their key long-term goals, namely segregation of the races to maintain cultural continuity. Strangely enough, many black civil rights advocates share these goals, and I wholeheartedly support those who do. BUT I HATE INJUSTICE, UNFAIRNESS, and OPPRESSION and the way the POLICE STATE MAXIMIZES all three. And the only thing that all the terrorist murders of the past 21 years since Oklahoma really have in common is: they justify oppressive measures and unfair oppression.
I totally disagree, then, with the advocacy of increased police power and authority which the reaction to Dallas has engendered both among the White and Black Middle Class. Whites may believe that the police are on their side, but my experience in life is quite the opposite. The calibre and IQ of men (and women) who opt for a career in law enforcement are not the highest, and police ONLY support the "side" that pays them directly (namely the State and City power structures, and the banks and other large institutions who support those) AGAINST ALL THE PEOPLE, REGARDLESS OF RACE CREED, OR COLOR.
One feature of modern society that deeply distresses me is the increasingly lack of respect among people. The police do not respect anyone's rights, as can be seen from countless examples in various fields of law enforcement, from domestic relations to enforcement of judicial foreclosures. But ordinary people, too, do not respect each other's rights, space or property, and depend for all protection on the police or state power generally as arbiters of everything. Individuals need to take responsibility for all things, including their own protection and that of their loved ones and property.
Concern over lack of respect is, I think, a unifying theme in both the radical White and radical Black Lives Matter movements.
Quatorze Juillet (Edith Piaf)
Il me vient par la fenêtre
Des musiques de la rue.
Chaque estrade a son orchestre.
Chaque bal a sa cohue.
Ces gens-là m'ont pris ma fête.
Je ne la reconnais plus.
Dans ma chambre, je me chante
L'air que nous avons valsé.
Je regarde la toquarde
Où tes doigts se sont posés.
Tu m'as dit : "Tu es si belle."
Et tu as, l'instant d'après,
Ajouté : "La vie est bête.".
J'ai compris que tu partais.
Si tu ne reviens jamais,
Il n'y aura plus de quatorze juillet.
Il me vient par la fenêtre
Un murmure qui s'éteint,
Les chansons d'une jeunesse
Attardée dans le matin.
N'allez pas troubler mon rêve.
Allez rire un peu plus loin.
Que m'apporte, que m'apporte
Cette joie de quelques heures ?
Je suis morte, je suis morte
Et je t'ai déjà rejoint
Et mon corps est près du tien
Mais personne n'en sait rien…
The 14th of July
He comes to my window
The music in the street
Each stage has its orchestra
Each dance has its crowd
These people took my celebration
I don't recognize it anymore
In my room, I sing to myself
The air that we waltzed in
I watch the infatuation
Where your fingers encountered mine
You tell me "you are so beautiful"
And you after a moment
Added "life is stupid"
I understood that you left
If you never come back
There will not be another 14th of July
He came to my window
A murmur that has extinguished
The songs of youth
Lingering in the morning
Don't go troubling my dream
Laughing one step further away
That brings me, that brings me
The joy of a few hours
I'm dead, I'm dead
And I already reached you
And my body is close to yours
But nobody knows anything…


text:
Man Watching Porn Gets His Door Kicked In By His Neighbor With A Sword!
"A news story about a guy watching an adult movie and his downstairs neighbor kicks in his door wielding a sword because he thinks the guy is raping a chick in his apartment.". Shout out to hiphopnews24-7
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


text:
Do you have a guitar? Do you like both Coldplay and Lynyrd Skynyrd? Well have we got the product for you.
BandFuse: Rock Legends announced itself yesterday, promising that you'll be able to plug in a real! guitar and play your favorite hits, assuming those hits include both "Harder to Breathe" by Maroon 5 and "Breakin' the Law" by Judas Priest.
The rhythm game comes with an adapter that you plug into the guitar and an Xbox 360. The game "animates real guitar tablature in a simple and intuitive format allowing you to take your music wherever you go." It also lets players plug in a mike and "sound like a rock legend." A career mode is included.
The game is being developed by Realta Entertainment Group and will be published by Mastiff, the label behind last year's Heavy Fire: Afghanistan and Major League Eating: The Game. It
should have been will be released sometime during the Bush administration this year.