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About the Episode
If you haven't eliminated paper from your processes yet, it's time to evaluate why. Is status quo delaying you from making digital progress? Are you struggling to get leadership to see the problems with paper? In this episode, Denise Davis of Emory Healthcare shares how paper erodes efficiency, negatively impacts workers, and fails to deliver on customer expectations. As someone who has helped an organization of 28,000 employees and 250 locations eliminate paper, she's seen the impact of going paperless. Spoiler: it's well worth the effort.
Episode Highlights
Meet Our Guest
Corporate Director, Marketing Technology & Operations is kind of a mouthful. Instead, Denise Davis likes to refer to her role at Emory Healthcare as Chief Marketing Mechanic. In this position, she's charged with creating an excellent digital experience for patients across the continuum of care. Over the last decade, she's succeeded in this mission by helping Emory eliminate paper, build better digital processes, and create experiences that lead to happier and healthier patients.
Episode Transcript
Lindsay McGuire: If I'm allowed one soap box in life, this topic may be the one that I choose eliminating paper, because it sucks. I have endless stories about the inefficiencies I've experienced as a customer of organizations who haven't moved past paper processes yet. And I know you probably have some too think about it. When was the last time you went to the doctor's office and didn't have to fill out some sort of paperwork, even if you've been a patient there for years or even decades, you know, some people like their doctors a lot. That's why I couldn't be more excited to have Denise Davis here with me. Denise is the corporate director of marketing technology and operations at Emory healthcare, a Georgia based healthcare system with 11 hospitals in more than 250 provider locations. One of Denise's largest efforts at Emory has been eliminating paper processes in order to improve the patient experience in this conversation. She's sharing exactly how her team is doing it, how you can start and why this is crucial for you to think about now, here's Denise. Tell me a little bit about your role at Emory healthcare. I know you've been there for nearly a decade. Now.
Denise Davis: I am the corporate director of marketing technology and operations. I am the first in the marketing department to hold this specific role. And I often refer to myself as the chief marketing mechanic, cuz it's a little easier for people to get their heads around. I have absorbed the web team and I also pull together budget operations and project management and CRM and have been weaving the ties between CRM and web and getting people to think about the interactivity that they are not two different sides of the house, but they are actually combined very powerful tools. So that's been a lot of the work that I've been doing over the past four years.
Lindsay McGuire: I really appreciate the breakdown of the marketing mechanic, cuz yeah, titles can be arbitrary and confusing and hard to understand. Why do you think Emory healthcare decided to have a role like this?
Denise Davis: I think in part they felt that CRM was the direction we needed to go to level up on marketing to start moving towards one to one personalization. But also I know for a fact that my boss, the vice president of marketing saw CRM as a way to really grab data. The marketing department did not have access to itself. We were usually reaching across aisles, usually to operational or clinical teams who are very busy and most healthcare organizations, they get it, but they don't quite appreciate the nuances and the subtle differences in marketing data versus clinical and operational data. The idea that we just asked the call center for call data is fine, but their tools are aligned to or built to measure service levels and volume. They're not built to track campaign tactics, driving those calls in. And so when you start to show people what you can capture through web forms and call tracking software and then match it up to patient records, you can start showing these really interesting stories, not only ROI and contribution margin, but how people are flowing in and how they're behaving. We would not be able to help the organization make better decisions about its marketing without showing them our data, not data siphoned and repurposed from other areas.
Lindsay McGuire: So I know Emory has done a lot to eliminate paper and make that a priority. So can you talk a little bit about why Emory has been on a mission to eliminate paper?
Denise Davis: Yeah. And extends well beyond marketing, it comes down to scale at a certain point, there just aren't enough human hands to lay on all the paper we could possibly produce and also data integrity. The transfer of that data just very time consuming it, uh, introduces opportunities for errors in the data to make it impossible to report off of because you have so many different ways. And we spent a ton of time normalizing our location addresses because straight spelled out versus St. Period, when you start pulling those into software, those are different locations unless you've got really, really superior AI software that can come through that. So it became again, a way for us to better serve our patients and our referring physicians. By freeing up the time our people spend letting them work at the top of their licenses. If they're doing data entry, then they're not nursing, right.
Or if they're doing data entry, then they're really not being that smiling face at the front desk can, can help the patients navigate their appointment or make them feel comfortable when they walk in the door, definitely in our call centers, if they have to re-key referral forms that are coming in from other physicians, there's a tremendous amount of downtime that produces in their agents and they can't facilitate the actual referral appointments. You know, the world got really big and we consolidated a lot of small practices into really big health systems. And it's just the sheer volume of data coming in is completely impractical on paper.
Lindsay McGuire: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. And in our 2022 state of digital maturity report, we actually found that more than two thirds of organizations have an initiative to eliminate paper. Like you've said, it just causes so many issues both internally from like an employee experience standpoint, but also from a customer experience standpoint and causing those other issues that can trickle down into your business. Were there any, either really big trends you saw over across your different locations and organizations or was there just one instance where you're like, now's the time we need to do this? Was there a light bulb genius moment for you to be like, this is enough?
Denise Davis: Yeah. I will say COVID. So every piece of paper that was touched was a potential transfer, right. Even though they said that it was really not transferable, let's not leave it up to chance, but also in COVID our organization at least took the opportunity or made the decision to really enhance our electronic medical health record system. And that forced a commonization. We had a lot of deviation in the forms we were producing. We have like hundreds of pages on our website with PDF patient questionnaires and not one of 'em were the same. And they were all asking for the same information. And I think that was where we, as an organization said, okay, let's stop. And let's not make our patients fill out their name 15 times we know their name by now. So I think we hit a critical mass where we just had to make the shift and in becoming more patient centric and developing this sense that we know our patients to not repeat questions. We should already know the answer to, which is easier when you commonize forms digital or paper, but much easier in a digital format.
Lindsay McGuire: When I'm trying to think about the scope of the work that Emory had to do, what was the first priority on your lists when you decided now is the time to digitize now is the time to rid ourselves of paper.
Denise Davis: I think the push started and it really started in the operational teams. Some of our chief clinical directors really, I think heard their patients a few years ago. I think we've been trying to do this for a while, but again, in our organization, the shift in our core software opened up an opportunity to say, no ma we're ending paper as much as possible is there's always gonna be an analog backup where you have people who can't do digital, but that opened a huge window of opportunity to get, I think, executive backing plus to empower the clinical teams to really enforce level of commonization, but also to really think through not just that, but really think through asking those questions because on paper, I think you could ask a question in a way that you can't in a digital, you gotta be very concise and you gotta let them click a button. You can't do a lot of free text, right. And open ended questions, which is what, where some of the arbitrary answers, or maybe the misinformation comes in and you can't report on these wide open, free text boxes or self as attestations. It really helps speed up the form if it's a yes, no, if it's a multi-select so not just making the forms digital, but streamlining what we're asking and really being judicious about how many questions we're confronting them with.
Lindsay McGuire: Yeah. That has been a common theme. This season really narrowing down what data is crucial to your systems and processes and customer, but I'm interested in when you started realizing, oh, now is the time to not only go digital, but beyond that, when you started thinking about how can we streamline these, how can we make them more efficient, make it so that we're asking only what we need, who was in on those decisions? How did you decide what data was relevant and what really was unnecessary?
Denise Davis: Again, I'll give huge props to the clinical directors in our physicians group practice and in the hospital systems, as they, I think they suffered through the pain and had to hear it firsthand from the patients, what they were frustrated with. We have a patient family advisor group who regularly gives us feedback based on here's what my experience was in your health system. Here's what I think you should change. But I think it was just enough data that they went out and learned from others who went ahead of them. This whole idea of at least 60% of the people who are gonna complete your firm are gonna do it on an iPhone or on some mobile device. And how easy is it to complete that form on a phone versus at a desktop with full keyboard. So I have to give them a lot of credit for listening to the patients doing due diligence, really looking across the universe of the other health systems and getting best practices and just leaning into good UX design. They just pulled the right people together, a lot of cross functional teams together. So it's been a labor of love over a number of months and years, but I think it's really gonna pay off for everybody involved.
Lindsay McGuire: That's a really powerful story. And I think a really strategic way to go about that. And I also really love that you brought up the idea of standardizing questions because especially with larger healthcare organizations, you can have one chain here, one branch here, one location here. And if that standard of care varies across those locations and those nurses and doctors and frontline staff that can cause some churn. And if you have an unsatisfactory or a different experience at one location compared to another being able to have some control over that. And I think in a way that probably a lot of people might not be thinking of the impact of just standardizing something as simple as a form can have a huge impact. Would you agree with that?
Denise Davis: Absolutely. We're an academic medical system. So there's a lot of data we want to capture to analyze and help inform the next generation of treatments in healthcare and clinical trials. And if those forms, if that intake is not consistent, we lose the opportunity to really look across the population we treat. And again, population health and healthcare is a big deal. And again, data hygiene is huge. And it's also, when you look at the cost of healthcare, the cost of opportunities lost in data that isn't clean and the cost of rework or additional work because the data isn't there in an accessible format that all adds up. And again, the customer experience, if I don't have to answer that question five times, I'm a happier person. We get closer to, we hope a Hilton or Delta experience where it really feels like we know them. We should know them, we should know this stuff about them.
Lindsay McGuire: So how have you kept momentum either on your team, your department, across your organization, as you've done some of these bigger digital transformation projects?
Denise Davis: I think I've watched on our clinical teams that as they've been going through their transformation, the realization of how much bandaid bubble gum and bailing wire, they have put in place to accomplish a thing versus making the change. And they're starting to see like, oh my God, this could be easier for everybody. That is a nice thing for them to see on the horizon, every change introduces hiccups, headaches, hearts, and hernias. But the reality is that these changes are probably a renewing, a lot of painful practices. We just kind of coped with my team. It was, I think, now that we're able to tell these great data stories, and I think that will happen too elsewhere in the organization. Let's clean up one more time. Let's see what else we can shift into this so that we can do more, better, bigger, better in this direction.
Lindsay McGuire: Sometimes it can be hard to visualize if you can't see it or demo it or even feel it depending on what situation you're trying to achieve or solution you're coming up with. But I will say you should copyright that bubble gum phrase, cuz that was genius. I loved that. I don't know if that's a common phrase or not, but like yes, yes. That is a great way to talk about going back to this idea of these paper systems that I think people get comfortable in them because they're the way we've done them for forever. We know they work quote unquote, but they don't necessarily work well. But a lot of the times we just don't take the time to consider how could it work better? How could we reimagine this? What is wrong with the system that worked for 20, 30, 40 however many decades and years. So going back to that, how have you seen paper processes get in the way of efficiency?
Denise Davis: Oh, it comes down to data entry, right? And it comes down to, it's really hired over an institution of 28,000 people to commonize a thing like we're gonna write straight out or we're going to abbreviate at St. Period, or we're gonna abbreviate suite ASTE. And when it's left up to physically writing this out on paper or even typing it into a interactive PDF form, which are great, they're lovely. They really are, but they're still almost an intermediary between paper and the actual digital form. You just get so much unclean data and inconsistency. The beautiful thing about these form builders is that they can enforce some of those data entry standardizations. And that just takes the noise out of what you're collecting and what you're trying to analyze. I'll give you an example in locations, when we're setting up our practice locations, we'd have all kinds of different variations of how those locations were entered in. So when we tried to create a automated system that pulled those locations in, from a database, they had been entered into that database. So many different ways that we went from 250 locations to like 2000 locations because there were that many variations in the spelling of street avenue, suite, a Atlanta GA versus a Atlanta capital GA <laugh>. You know, so that was the cost. That was the cost of not being able to automate because data was keyed in or entered in, in a non-standardized way often because a piece of paper was filled out first.
Lindsay McGuire: That is absolute insanity. I will start off with. And I don't know how you went through it and survived and are here talking with me right now. <laugh> but I think it's those small things that you just don't think about in the context of how will this have an impact on this process or system, but once it's started and begun, it can spin out into this huge issue. And I mean, that is so much cleanup on the backend. So being able to put those processes in place that can act as guardrails and for the paper advocates, I don't know if there are any out there and if you're listening and you are a paper advocate, just have a conversation with me, please tell me your case. But for the paper part of it, you can try to put as many rules and steps and directions as possible in that paper. But a lot of the time, these situations, people are late or they don't really want to read all of these things on this piece of paper. So they're just gonna put down the data they think you want, and you're still not gonna be able to control it. But as you said, having those instances through digital processes and systems and tools where you can actually state yes, it has to be this way and control it to only be that way. That's so powerful.
Denise Davis: I will say that the software manufacturers have come a long way in making this type of digitization and this move away from paper easier for people who were reluctant to do it. My team never liked building forms. And now we get into our tool and we're like, oh my God, this is fun. Let's play in here. And so it really makes us think about how we can use that tool to even solve other business problems that aren't even just forms, but are a way to programmatically trigger a thing through a web interaction. So we talk about getting away from paperless forms, but the form is pretty powerful interface tool in a digital experience platform, which is what we're really building now with websites.
Lindsay McGuire: So first off I wanna point out, she said, form building can be fun. So everyone pay attention. It can be fun. You do bring up a really funny point, which is the, probably some listeners might not even know any of this backstory, but Formstack was founded more than 15 years ago because our founder Aday realized that people had such miserable experiences building forms. It was tedious. It was time consuming. It was not fun. And so he way back before no code quote was even an idea or a topic had the idea to make a no code form builder. So it's interesting to see how far we've come since that point in time. But yet that still is the crux of a lot of organizations making the switch away from paper and coming to a tool maybe somewhat like form stack because it does relieve so many of those other barriers to entry, like you said.
Denise Davis: Yeah. Even when we did printed forms, no graphic designer loved to build forms, right? <laugh> so translate that to the web world and nobody really loved to build forms, but I will say that these tools allow you to think more about the problem you're solving and less about haven't code. Every little thing I like to say marketing is business and we are in the business of solving business hurdles. And these types of tools really empower us to help solve things that we haven't been able to do in the past easily.
Lindsay McGuire: And I wanna dig into that just a little bit, because I think one thing that we talk a lot about is this idea of how can you innovate and truly innovate. And especially in healthcare, I think we see a lot of innovation as far as what you can do in surgeries and recovery, but then when you go into that customer experience, the patient experience, there's still a lot of realms that I think organizations can innovate. So how has Emory been able to innovate by moving away from paper and into a more digital front door environment?
Denise Davis: Well, in this predated form stack, and of course there are a lot of form intake systems that aren't form stack that are used on the clinical system, just to be fair in transparent. But we in developing the CRM through form building helped with the COVID vaccination efforts at Emory teaming up with our clinical teams and our patient access team, that ability to build forms quickly that could send data in and we could match people up and get people appointments. And we're using the forms also in areas like population help, gap closure. And again, it's as simple as capturing the level of interest. Yes. Please call me back about this. The interesting thing is you can schedule online, but sometimes online scheduling doesn't allow you to ask the questions you need to ask. So request, appointment form is still necessary. So there are a lot of, I don't even think we think through things all the time.
Denise Davis: I think we are now working with a couple of clinical teams to figure out how to build forms, to help them fit patients who need availability in certain programs and help them guide them better. So they're not playing a long game of phone tag with the system. It's interesting. When I came into healthcare marketing and the call centers didn't talk much, but now this ability to capture interest either in leads or I'd like to talk to somebody of an appointment, starts to bring us together to create this connected digital experience that didn't exist. It's pretty mind blowing for people coming in from outside of healthcare, but it's been a relatively recent effort in a lot of healthcare systems to merge these two business units together.
Lindsay McGuire: Yeah. Uniting those two areas can have such an impact, not only internally with how you are able to have that data access, and they're able to see how you are communicating and interacting with patients. But also just thinking from, if I were to call my customer service line at my doctor's office and them being able to connect the dots across my patient journey, that can be a huge game changer, whether it's a healthcare organization or any other industry or vertical for an organization that is trying to eliminate paper is early in their process of eliminating paper. Or maybe even hasn't started, cuz there's a lot out there. How would you guide that organization and getting started
Denise Davis: Sometimes it's as easy as we've got a real near term problem we have to solve. And you start with that near term problem, or you have an opportunity to sit down and take an inventory or do a value stream analysis of how much time you're spending doing it in a paper format. And then you can look at tools out there like form stack that can help make it far easier to take your work streams out of paper. But I think it's really listening kind of like when we say listen to your body, you start to know when something's not right. You can sort of stop and listen to your processes and know there's a better way to do this. It really shouldn't take this long. I often tell people like, if it feels like it should take 20, 30 minutes and it's taking two to four hours, then stop and examine the process.
Denise Davis: Right. But then do your due diligence on your tools. What tools are gonna be the best fit for you and your organization in terms of ease of use and cost of entry and total cost of ownership and very important. I mean, one of the reasons why we went with form stack is its interoperability with our CRM and the ability to write a lot of hooks into other systems. So even if you're building a form that spits into an Excel file, that Excel file has to go somewhere, right? So you really have to think about how you connect your data and what your connection points really need to be. Look for what we call the, the minimum viable product. Don't try to boil the ocean, but look for your use cases that you can most easily take down, but then make a significant impact. If you could just carve out space to make that change. What you will free up over time is going to be huge. You're gonna get such benefit out of it.
Lindsay McGuire: And how do you make that more of a habit? I think that's something you need to train yourself to do. And a lot of people probably struggle with,
Denise Davis: We do a lot of continuous improvement. I don't think everything needs a fish bone analysis or a value stream analysis. I mean, you can make those incremental improvements, but I do think we stop and say what's working well, what isn't and try to build in time to one, really assess the problem and think through what are the simple tweaks we can make. Sometimes it's really easy. Sometimes it's the paperclip solution. Sometimes it just requires people outside of buzz. And that's where you have to start doing your cross functional negotiations. And socializations we look at probably on a weekly to monthly basis. And especially at the end of every project, what worked, what didn't work? What could we do better? What do we need to train people on? Hey, we keep having this QA problem. What can we do to prevent that problem from happening? It's as much a routine of you don't wanna be in a constant change state because then that's destabilizing as well. But you do want to have an open mind and be constantly curious is what I would say. And I will say my team is extremely good at that. I made them be good. I hired them to be here <laugh>
Lindsay McGuire: And it means you're a good hiring manager as well. And the curiosity fuels optimization, I believe. And on that note, that relates back really to this idea of practically genius and that there are people all throughout organizations who have these maybe tiny sparks of ingenuity. And then they're able to go and figure out a way to implement that throughout either their team, their department, their whole entire org. What do you think drives those people? What do you think enables them to have these practically genius moments?
Denise Davis: I think it's the drive to have an impact. And some people just love to problem solve. Some people like to stay in the pattern, but some people just really like to, they look for those opportunities to find a better way. And if you're looking to initiate these kinds of changes, you wanna make sure you do have people like that on your team, or find people who you can bring onto your team who just wanna innovate and who wanna see if they can push it further.
Lindsay McGuire: Thank you so much for joining us for this great conversation with Denise. If you wanna keep the conversation going, join me and my co-host Ryan for next week's episode of practically speaking, where we'll be diving in with some data-driven insights around why the most optimized organizations are limiting paper. And as always, you can find your next practically genius idea at formstack.com/practically-genius.


text: Last week a John a friend of mine was in town visiting, so I organises a last minute studio shoot. Tanja had only been to the studio once before when I was blogging the lightblaster, so this was a great chance to work together again. She was accompanied by Sarah who I quickly dragged into the shoot and she also was a great help setting up the scarves we used, so a special thanks the the girls.

subset: commoncrawl


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Thursday, October 05, 2006
Sometimes your wildest dreams can come true!
Quick Tamale Casserole
365 Favorite Brand Name Hamburger Copyright 1997
1 ½ pounds ground beef
¾ cup sliced green onions
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies, drained and divided
1 can (15 ¼ ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (10 ¾ ounces) condensed tomato soup
¾ cup salsa
1 can (2 ¼ ounces) chopped pitted ripe olives (optional) I added these
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
4 slices (3/4 ounce each) American cheese, halved I used Longhorn cheddar
4 corn muffins, cut into ½-inch cubes I crumbled them
Mexican Sour Cream Topping (recipe follows)(optional)
In skillet, brown ground beef with green onions. Drain. Reserve 2 tablespoons chilies for Mexican Sour Cream Topping, if desired. Stir in remaining chilies, corn, tomato soup, salsa, olives, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder and garlic powder until well blended. Place in 2-quart casserole. Top with cheese, then evenly spread muffin cubes over cheese. Bake at 350 degrees F for 5 to 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with Mexican Sour Cream Topping, if desired.
Mexican Sour Cream Topping
1 cup sour cream I used lite sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped green chilies, reserved from above
2 teaspoons chopped jalapeño peppers (optional) I added these
2 teaspoons lime juice
Combine all ingredients in small bowl; mix until well blended.
Sometimes I like to take a break from reality and imagine what things would be like in a 'perfect' world. I could eat anything and not gain weight. I'd never have to clean up after myself. I could buy as many groceries as I'd like. People would send me cookbooks out of the blue.
Well, most of that is pure fantasy but my online friend Tammy (Mickey15 to my KT friends), contacted me and asked me if I wanted some cookbooks she was getting rid of, fulfilling at least part of my dream. She sent me this book, a local cookbook, a couple of Pampered Chef cookbooks (I think the stoneware one has the pizza dip recipe that I've been looking for), a couple of Christmas cookbooks. Oh, a crockpot book too. Thank you Tammy!
I have a smaller Favorite Brand Name Hamburger cookbook that only has a small portion of the recipes in this book. This book has recipes for all the ground meats, not just beef. I know this cookbook will be used heavily. I had some Cornmeal Cheddar Muffins in the freezer and a can of condensed tomato soup in the pantry so this recipe caught my eye right away. My son loved it. I loved it too. The sour cream topping was great but not necessary since the casserole isn't very spicy. You could turn up that heat if you'd like to. This could be played around with quite a bit - beans would be great in it too.
A Blast From The Past: Tex-Mex Cavatappi from February 2006. Great stuff.
Question of the Day: I have a single pastry pie crust I need to use up - what should I do with it (what would you do with it)?
8 comments:
- MommyProf said...
It's fall, so I'd do an apple pie with a streusel top.
- Heather said...
I have one of those too. I am going to make a pie and donate it to a fundraiser here in town.
- Annie said...
I just recently saw a really simple way to use a store bought pie crust. It was on Real Simple on cable.
They just filled the unbaked crust with thawed frozen peaches, cinnamon, sugar, etc. and folded up the sides around the peaches-free form. Then brushed with egg wash and sprinkled with sugar and baked. It looked great! - 9:50 AM
- Unknown said...
This looks really good. I may try it later with ground turkey. Mmmm.
If it was summer, I would make a strawberry pie. Right now...quiche or pecan pie. You could also make little cinnamon sugar snacks by cutting the crust into little pieces, brushing with butter, sprinkling with cinnamon-sugar, and baking until browned. These are good and I have done this with crust scraps. It's also useful when you buy a pie crust and it is torn before you even touch it (RRRRRGGGG!). - 10:54 AM
My Mother made these "pie crust cookies" when I was a child and I continued with my children and grandchildren. When you make your own pie crusts, there are always scraps left. Now that I use the Pillsbury roll crust, I don't have the opportunity as often, but when I do, it's a treat. I put the cinnamon and sugar on first, then a bit of butter.
Jan - 11:42 AM
Pumpkin pie or a berry cobbler...Mmmmmmmmm. Pumpkin pie just screams "Fall" to me. Just wish our temps would be more fall-like!
- DancesInGarden said...
Seeing as it is the Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend, I second the vote for pumpkin (even though I don't eat it LOL). If it were me, I would be more likely to go the quiche route. Or an open-faced tourtiere type pie.
Brown ground pork with salt and pepper and poultry seasoning, onion powder (or a finely minced onion). Add chicken stock, pork stock, or water to make a gravy and simmer for at least 10 minutes (to flavour it). Add 1/2 cup thereabouts of whole wheat bread crumbs, and stir well. Let the crumbs thicken the juices and let them bubble for a bit.
Taste for seasoning. I would prebake the shell to just done but not browned, pour in the meat filling, and bake together until the edges are browned.
Eat with brown gravy, or add extra broth at the beginning and drain some off to make gravy with while the pie is baking. - 2:20 PM
When I have an extra crust I spread it with mayo grate lots of parmesan cheese on top of it then top it with thin slices of tomato and some slivers of onion or little pieces of broccoli. It is a flaky delicious starter or snack.


text:
Yardage Sale Starts July 8
Shipping delays on yardage sale orders
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text:
A long-term care insurance company recently cancelled the insurance coverage of an elderly woman who accidently wrote the wrong amount on her premium check. The case illustrates the need for policyholders to pay attention to the details.
Madeleine Maldonado, of Concord, Massachusetts, had a long-term care insurance policy through AIG. According to an article in the Boston Globe, when Ms. Maldonado wrote a check to pay her $3,399.91 long-term care insurance premium, she put down the correct amount in the number box, but she accidently wrote out "three thousand three hundred and 99/100 dollars."
Under banking and finance rules, if a check has contradictory terms, the words are considered the correct amount. Therefore, Ms. Maldonado's premium payment was $98.92 short. AIG sent the 81-year-old Maldonado a past-due invoice for the amount she owed, and when Ms. Maldonado did not respond, they cancelled her policy. Ms. Maldonado's daughter appealed to the company to accept a late payment, but the company refused. Her mother now has dementia and no long-term care coverage.
This incident illustrates the need to be extra careful when dealing with long-term care insurance companies. You need to make sure all your I's are dotted and your T's are crossed because small mistakes can lead to huge problems. It is also important not to ignore letters or notifications for payment from the insurance company.
For more information about Ms. Maldonado's coverage loss, click here.
For more information about long-term care insurance, click here.


text:
A. The headlight on high beam.
A. The headlight on high beam.
B. The right turn indicator.
C. The tail-light.
When learning to ride your bike start in quiet streets with little traffic. Build up your confidence before you take on motorways and busy urban streets. Learn the characteristics of your bike and develop your reflex actions so that you are braking, accelerating, indicating and cornering without having to think about how to do them.
As you build up your skills your ability to concentrate for longer will improve. But be aware of fatigue, alcohol, medication and illegal drugs as they will all have a negative impact on your ability to ride.
Riding a motorbike is more tiring than driving a car. Use the correct riding posture - a relaxed riding position - to reduce fatigue and improve control. Sit on the bike so that you can reach the handlebars with your arms slightly bent - this will allow you to have fast effective control without affecting the balance; sitting too far back will affect the weight distribution and make the steering feel light. Look directly ahead of you where you want to go, not down at the road immediately in front of you.
Sticking your knee out when cornering is not a good or effective riding style for the road. It increases your wind resistance and you are at risk of catching your knee on uneven tarmac and injuring yourself. This technique should only be used on the race track where the tarmac is smooth and you can wear a knee slider.
You must not carry pillion passengers until you are on your P2 licence and have held a licence for at least 12 months, and then only if your motorbike has the right fitments to accommodate a pillion passenger. It will need separate footrests and a pillion seat. You must be able to ride the motorcycle in your usual position when carrying the pillion passenger, and your bike must be capable of maintaining open road speed. Read our guide to carrying a pillion passenger here.
Pillion passengers must sit astride the bike, not sideways, and be at least eight years old. Passengers must not operate the controls of the bike.
Only one extra passenger is allowed to be carried on the motorbike itself. If you have a sidecar then you can carry a passenger (or passengers if there's more than one seat) in the sidecar, too. Children under eight are allowed to travel in the sidecar.
It is the law that pillion passengers must wear an approved helmet (here's an article about helmet standards).
The pillion passenger should lean with you around corners otherwise you will find it difficult to turn and it will make your bike less stable while turning.
When braking, the front wheel provides between 75-90% of the braking force. When you start to brake you should apply the front brake before the rear. The rear is more likely to lock because there is less weight over it as the weight shifts forward during braking. Normal braking involves both the front and rear brakes.
As motorbike tyres only have a small contact patch with the road, braking should be done upright and in a straight line. This is because in a corner the tyres have to deal with cornering forces. To add cornering and braking forces together increases your risk of having an accident.
The same applies for changing down so that you are using engine braking. Engine braking applies retarding force to the rear wheel. If you are already braking and then change down the extra braking force on the rear wheel makes the wheel easier to lock. For this reason you shouldn't change down in the middle of a corner - do all your gear changes on the straight. As you slow down to a stop, downshift before stopping as downshifting helps with braking and ensures you're in the right gear if you need to accelerate again.
A helmet is compulsory and it's the law that you must wear an approved helmet. Other protective clothing such as a jacket with strong fabric and spine and kidney protectors, tear-resistant pants, gloves and boots with shin and ankle protection aren't compulsory but are recommended for your safety as they will reduce your chances of serious injury in an accident.
If you wear glasses or sunglasses you should also wear a protective visor because glasses and sunglasses are not strong enough to protect your eyes if a stone is thrown up at speed from a passing vehicle. You risk being blinded if you don't take adequate measures.
Protective clothing should be comfortable without being loose. Loose clothing can be dangerous if it gets in the moving mechanisms of the motorcycle. Very tight clothing could restrict your movement.
Protective clothing should also keep you warm as hypothermia can be a risk in colder areas with the wind chill of travelling through the air at speed. This reduces your reaction times.
Bright or fluorescent clothing is best for visibility.
If you are riding a new motorbike then you must familiarise yourself with the controls before you set off, and allow extra stopping distance as you won't know what the braking performance is.
Always check that your front and rear lights and front brake are working before you set off.
Your mirrors should be set so that you can see over your shoulder and back up the road. You will have blind spots - the mirrors won't cover everywhere. You should be able to see about half the lane behind you and as much of the lane next to you as possible.
Quickly check that the throttle isn't sticky. If the throttle does stick, you can simply pull in the clutch lever, turn off the engine at the cutoff switch and apply the brakes.
When following a car position yourself so that you can be seen in the car's rear view mirror and so that you can see ahead. Don't follow too closely. You will be able to see through the car's rear window, and you'll need to keep an eye on its brake lights.
Stay in the centre-left of your lane to give you a bit of a buffer against oncoming traffic, unless you are passing a row of parked vehicles, in which case you should move to the right of the lane in case a door is opened in front of you. Only move to the left of the lane if there's a wide vehicle coming towards you or if you could be more visible to traffic that might turn across in front of you.
When you are being overtaken stay in the centre-left of your lane, but be careful of large vehicles as they can create buffeting in their slipstream, and they also might shelter you from any crosswind temporarily, and once past you could be hit with a crosswind that unsteadies you.
Cancelling your indicators is important on a bike as if you leave it on after a turn a vehicle could think you are going to turn and could pull across in front of you.
You should always perform a head check (turn your head) before you change lanes or turn into a side street or driveway so that you can see if there's anything in your blind spots.
On wet roads painted lines and manhole covers will be extremely slippery. You may also experience spray which reduces your vision through your visor, and glare off wet bitumen. Stopping distances will be longer in the wet, and it will be more easy for you to wheelspin, especially in low gears.
If it hasn't rained for a while a layer of rubber, dust, oil and dirt builds up on the road. When water first falls on this, it forms an extremely slippery layer until it's worn or washed away, so be extra careful in these conditions.
The centre of the lane will be more slippery than where other vehicles drive.
When there's sand or gravel on the road, slow down by braking in a straight line otherwise your front wheel could wash out from under you. Keep your feet firmly on the footpegs and your centre of gravity low to help control any skids, but be prepared to put a foot down to act as an outrigger if you need it. Don't make any sudden manoeuvres as this can cause you to skid.
When riding on bumpy roads, keep a tight hold of the handlebars. Rise in your seat slightly. Don't worry about the bike moving about underneath you too much - let it move a little and don't try to fight every little movement.
If you are riding at speed and get a high-speed wobble, close the throttle and allow the bike to slow down naturally; you will regain control. Don't hit the brakes as this could cause an accident.
Other vehicles find it more difficult to judge the position and speed of motorcyclists in the dark because there's only one point of light as a reference. Also, your view of obstacles and the road is reduced, therefore it makes sense to take it easy at night.
If you have a blowout or puncture the first thing to do is close the throttle and let the bike coast to a stop. Keep a firm hold on the handlebars and try to avoid turning. Don't let the bike control you - stay in control. If the rear tyre blows then you will be able to use the front brake to help you slow down, and if the front tyre blows you will be able to use the rear brake. But don't brake heavily unless you need to to avoid an obstacle or scrub off enough speed before a corner. Braking heavily on the rear wheel can cause a skid quite easily.
In the case of a front wheel puncture, keep your weight more on the back wheel. At low speeds you will notice that the steering will feel heavy. If you try to turn, the tyre could roll off the rim and the bike will slide from underneath you.
In the case of a rear wheel puncture the first thing you will notice is that the back end of the motorbike will want to slide from side-to-side. Rear-wheel slides are not that difficult to control unless you let them get too far around, in which case they can highside you (flip you off the bike).
To keep yourself appraised of the situation ahead, use scanning. Scanning means you are constantly looking for potential hazards, keeping your eyes moving and checking all areas. You will be looking in the distance, at the road surface, to your left and right, and regularly at your mirrors and instruments. This will give you the best chance of responding in time to any changing traffic conditions. The usual reaction and response time to a change in traffic conditions is around three seconds, which is why it's safest to stay three seconds behind the vehicle in front. A low risk rider is one that uses scanning and checks mirrors frequently to assess their position.
Always look to create a buffer between yourself and any other vehicle on the road.
If you are the rider approaching this junction and waiting to turn right, it's best to stop and let the car turn first because the car blocks your view of oncoming vehicles.
If you are passing straight through, slow down and move left in your lane to increase your visibility of the situation and give you an extra buffer - more time to react if the vehicle pulls in front of you.
Riding a motorbike is all about being as visible as possible. When you are merging and pulling onto another road, your indicator will be visible on the side of your bike and will attract the attention of other road users.
If an oncoming vehicle seems like it might turn across in front of you, check your mirrors, move left in your lane and slow down. You should check your mirrors because you might need to take evasive action and knowing what's either side of you and behind you improves your options.
If you are taking a left curve plan to finish in the left-hand part of your lane. This gives you some margin of error - you don't want to be crossing the centre line into the path of oncoming traffic.


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Root and Install TWRP Recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro
Here this article regards to those guys who like to explore with android. We are talking about those guys who don't like to be bounded with limited features. When we talk about Rooting an Android device that means you will get full access on your android device. So here in this guide we Updatemydroid will guide you that how easily, safely and quickly you can Root and Install TWRP recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro. So let's begin….
Huawei Mate 10 Pro Features:-
- Display:- 6.00-inch
- Processor:- 1.8GHz octa-core
- Front Camera:- 8-megapixel
- Resolution:- 1080×2160 pixels
- OS:- Android 8.0
- Storage:- 64GB
- Rear Camera:- 20-megapixel
- Battery Capacity:- 4000mAh
What is Root Access on Android Device
If you are aware of jailbreak on iOS platform then you will easily understand about the root access. Basically, Root access is advanced access by a user on its android device. By root access you have control on every single part of your device. As usual, everything that exist in this world has both sides for example benefits and disadvantages. You can Root and Install TWRP recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro
Advantages of rooting an android device:-
– You get full access on every part's functionality of your android device.
– You can install custom recovery like TWRP or CWM.
– You can taste custom ROMs.
– Install custom kernels.
– Install Audio Mods.
– Enhance battery life.
– Remove bloatware.
– And much more.
Disadvantages of rooting an android device:-
– Your device's warranty will be void.
– Lack of correct procedure or not followed a procedure accurately may hard brick your device.
What is TWRP recovery
After rooting an Android device a user perform is to install a TWRP recovery. A TWRP custom recovery let a user install various Mods on its android device. You can flash custom ROMs, custom kernels, custom audio Mods, flash Xposed framework and much more. Know about how to Root and Install TWRP recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro read below article.
– This guide is only for Huawei Mate 10 Pro.
– Make sure to have a complete backup of your device.
– You must have installed minimal ADB and Fastboot on your computer.
– You must have installed all Huawei Mate 10 Pro USB drivers on your computer.
– Make sure to charge your device more than 75%.
– A USB cable.
– We will not responsible if you brick your device.
– Working internet connection to download the file.
– Have patience and working mind.
Root and Install TWRP Recovery on Huawei Y5 II
Download and Install Lineage OS 15.1 on Huawei Honor View 10 (Android 8.1 Oreo)
How to Install TWRP recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro
Download TWRP recovery for your Huawei Mate 10 Pro
Steps to Install TWRP recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro:-
– First of all make sure you have completed all steps of prerequisites.
– Now power off your device.
– Now boot your phone into fastboot mode by press and hold Volume Down + Power button simultaneously.
– Now connect your device to your computer through a USB cable.
– Now navigate to ADB and Fastboot folder.
– Here, press and hold Shift Key and right-click on the empty space inside the folder.
– Here select Open PowerShell window here or Open command window here.
– Now type below command to verify your device is connected properly:-
Window users:- fastboot devices
Mac users:- ./fastboot devices
Note:- Here your device will be listed if you have connected your device properly. If it does not list your device than replace the USB cable and try again.
– Now type below command to boot your Huawei Mate 10 Pro into Fastboot mode:-
Window users:- adb reboot bootloader
Mac users:- ./adb reboot bootloader
– Now type below command to flash TWRP recovery:-
Windows users:- fastboot flash recovery recovery.img
Mac users:- ./fastboot flash recovery recovery.img
– Now type below command to reboot your device:-
Mac users:- ./fastboot devices
Widows users:- fastboot devices
– Congratulations!! You have successfully installed TWRP recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro. Enjoy!!
Download latest Magisk.zip
Download Magisk Manager apk
Guide to Root With SuperSU Zip
Steps to Root Huawei Mate 10 Pro (Using Magisk):-
– First of all make sure you have completed all steps of prerequisites.
– Here move the above downloaded Magisk.zip in the root of your SD card.
– Now power off Huawei Mate 10 Pro.
– Here boot your device into TWRP recovery mode by press and hold volume down + power key simultaneously.
– In TWRP recovery, select Install then browse and select Magisk.zip file.
– Here swipe to confirm the installation.
– Now select reboot option to reboot your device.
– Congratulations!! You have successfully rooted Huawei Mate 10 Pro with Magisk.
Comment below friends if you face any problems while root or install TWRP recovery on Huawei Mate 10 Pro. Stay tuned with Updatemydroid to get regular updates on Huawei Mate 10 Pro development. Enjoy!!!


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I can't tell you how excited I am to be here, today. Project Mayhem is one of my favorite middle grade blogs, so it's so much fun that I get to come hang out with you guys. I promise I will try not to break the awesome around here!
I've been asked to talk today about 5 books I loved as a kid--which is awesome because dude, I LOVED books growing up. But it's also like--AHHH HOW CAN I POSSIBLY LIMIT MY LIST TO FIVE?????????????????
I've forced myself to be good though, so here they are (in random order because I refuse to pick favorites)
by Frances Hodgson Burnett
What little girl DOESN'T love this book? There is just something so timeless and endearing about it. I love every word. THE SECRET GARDEN is equally amazing. But A LITTLE PRINCESS was the one I read over and over and over.
by Robert Lawson, Florence Atwater
I know they recently made a movie out of this, and I have yet to see it and find out how much they changed it. But I hope not a lot because I thought this book was pretty much perfect as a kid. And yes, I may have tried to convince my parents I needed a pet penguin.
by Lynne Reid Banks
I loved the whole Indian in the Cupboard series (what kid doesn't want a magic cupboard that brings their toys to life????) but this one was my favorite because it takes readers back in time and history to find out how the cupboard came to be. And she had quite a few tricks up her sleeve with that!
by: Beverly Clearly
I read and adored pretty much everything Beverly Cleary wrote, but my two favorite characters were Ramona Quimby and Ralph S. Mouse. I mean, look at his little helmet--DO YOU GET MORE ADORABLE THAN THAT??? I think not.
by: Louis Sachar
Okay, I know this is a collection of short stories instead of a novel, but dude, I loved each and every one of them. I actually loved all the Wayside School stories, but I will never forget Mrs. Gorf and her evil ability to turn her students into apples. If you haven't read this book you NEED to.
Gah--there's so many more I want to feature--but I'm trying to be a courteous little guest author, so I will stop right there. But feel free to tell me about the books you loved in the comments.
And thank you so much to Project Mayhem for having me. I will now hand your blog back to you, and let you guys get back to the mayhem causing! *waves* *blows kisses*
By: Shannon Messenger
Published by: Simon & Schuster
To Be Released on: October 2nd, 2012
Purchase from:
Simon & Schuster
Barnes & Noble
SIGNED Copies from Once Upon a Time (Must order by October 2nd)
The Book Depository


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Wednesday, February 8, 2012
"Waiting On" Wednesday: The World Without You
This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:
The World Without You
By Joshua Henkin
Publication Date: June 19
From Amazon:
It's July 4th, and the Frankel family is descending upon their beloved summer home in the Berkshires. But this is no ordinary holiday; the family is gathering for a memorial. Leo, the youngest of the four Frankel siblings and an intrepid journalist and adventurer, was killed one year ago while on assignment in Iraq. His parents, Marilyn and David, are adrift in grief, and it's tearing apart their 40-year marriage. Clarissa, the eldest, is struggling at 39 with infertility. Lily, a fiery-tempered lawyer, is angry about everything. Noelle, a born-again Orthodox Jew (and the last person to see Leo alive), has come in from Israel with her husband and four children and feels entirely out of place. And Thisbe--Leo's widow and mother of their three-year-old son--has arrived from California bearing her own secret. Over the course of three days, the Frankels will contend with sibling rivalries and marital feuds, volatile women and silent men, and, ultimately, with the true meaning of family.
What's your "waiting on" pick this week?
Want to participate? Grab the logo, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave your link below!
47 comments:
- Unknown said...
Great pick this week! I haven't seen this one before but now I will totally have to go check it out.
You can see my WoW pick here.
Dreaming In The Pages ∫ Enter My Giveaway - February 8, 2012 at 12:13 AM
- Unknown said...
Wow this book sounds like a emotional tear jerker from begging to end. So I might have to give this one a miss, but still its a great WoW Jill. Thanks for sharing :) Natasha @ Paranormal Goddess Blog - Waiting On Wednesday Post
- February 8, 2012 at 12:39 AM
- Kriston Johnson said...
This is my second Waiting on Wednesday. Thank you for giving us a place to share what we are excited to read!
- February 8, 2012 at 1:18 AM
- Unknown said...
Oh wow! Another title I hadn't heard about. It sounds really good, though it isn't my usual kind of read.
Here's my WOW - February 8, 2012 at 1:26 AM
- Jessirae said...
Awesome pick this week. Never heard of it, but sounds really interesting :]
- February 8, 2012 at 2:05 AM
- Carly said...
Great Pick, you always pick one I haven't heard of. Thanks for sharing.
My WOW:
Carly :) - February 8, 2012 at 2:17 AM
- Madigan Mirza said...
This sounds like a depressing book, but I have to wonder - what is Thisbe's secret??
You always choose such interesting things. - February 8, 2012 at 3:14 AM
- Mardel said...
Sounds sad and intriguing all at the same time.
I'm posting my first WOW in a while - been slacking again. :)
Hope everyone has a great reading {and other wise} week. Wishing lots of laughter to all, no matter what! :) - February 8, 2012 at 3:44 AM
- Tina's Blog said...
I love the cover and this book sounds wonderful!
- February 8, 2012 at 3:59 AM
- Emma said...
This book sounds really good and potentially heart breaking.
Check out my WOW.
Emma @ Lost in a YA book - February 8, 2012 at 4:40 AM
- Mandie said...
Looks great! Thanks for sharing!
- February 8, 2012 at 4:55 AM
- The Reading Enchantress said...
Great pick! I had not heard of this one, but it sounds very interesting! Thanks for sharing :) My WoW
- February 8, 2012 at 5:19 AM
- Mimi Valentine said...
Fireworks!! Ohh, Jill, I'm so in love with this cover! And the book itself seems so sweet -- even without reading that last line, the synopsis sounds like a very touching, family-oriented novel, which I really love! <3
Another awesome pick for another awesome Wednesday, Jill! Thanks so much for sharing! :) - February 8, 2012 at 5:42 AM
- (Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...
I like the sound of this, but it seems like way too many characters??
- February 8, 2012 at 5:56 AM
- Ange said...
This one is new to me, good one! Here's our WOW
- February 8, 2012 at 6:03 AM
- Fall Into Books said...
Great pick. This sounds really interesting!
Here's my WoW - February 8, 2012 at 6:43 AM
- Julika said...
Interesting choice. Family "drama" is often a really nice read if it isn't your own.
This week's WoW at BookVenturers. - February 8, 2012 at 7:14 AM
- Laurel-Rain Snow said...
Wow, yours looks awesome, as usual. Thanks for tempting me!
- February 8, 2012 at 7:19 AM
- Blook Girl said...
This book sounds heart-breaking and inspiring all at once. It's interesting how the events of life and of death can bring people together - or tear them apart.
I think I will add this to my TBR List - and pass it on to my mom :)
My WoW can be found here here. - February 8, 2012 at 7:37 AM
- Amy said...
Great pick! This one sounds like it'll be an awesome read, it's so being added to my TBR list - thank you for sharing! :)
Here's mine:
http://amylunderman.blogspot.com/2012/02/waiting-on-wednesday-9.html - February 8, 2012 at 7:41 AM
- Amy said...
This sounds like a very emotional and deep book. Thank you for sharing.
- February 8, 2012 at 7:52 AM
- The Reading Salon said...
Such a good pick. Sounds really interesting. ^_^ ~Victoria
- February 8, 2012 at 7:52 AM
- bermudaonion said...
Isn't he the author of Matrimony? That should be great!
- February 8, 2012 at 7:58 AM
- Bonnie said...
This sounds like a great family drama! I hadn't heard of it before now but I definitely think its worth checking out! Have a great week!
Bonnie @ www.handsandhome.ca - February 8, 2012 at 8:02 AM
- Book Sp(l)ot said...
I haven't heard about that book before but it sounds very interesting - great pick :)
My WOW post - February 8, 2012 at 8:40 AM
- Jennifer said...
Love the title for this book! Thanks for sharing :)
- February 8, 2012 at 8:43 AM
- joyh82 said...
Wow you always find great book discussion type reads. Have a great week and I hope you are liking the book you are reading now.
- February 8, 2012 at 9:03 AM
- Mary @ BookSwarm said...
That book sounds really sad--like I'd need a whole box of kleenex to read it!
- February 8, 2012 at 9:14 AM
- Rywn said...
Finally managed to participate in this again! I'm excited to check out a bunch of other people's picks. :)
- February 8, 2012 at 9:31 AM
- Unknown said...
Never heard of it, but now can't wait to read The World Without You! Great pick!
My WoW pick: http://bookstoconsider.blogspot.com/2012/02/waiting-on-wednesday-3.html - February 8, 2012 at 9:51 AM
- Lovey Dovey Books said...
Great choice sounds like a very emotional read!
Candace @ Lovey Dovey Books
Check out my WOW post :) - February 8, 2012 at 10:08 AM
- Eve Quinn said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- February 8, 2012 at 11:39 AM
- Eve Quinn said...
Great book, I never heard o fit before. It sounds very dynamic. That's the first word that popped to mind.
Here's my Wow
Eve :)
Sign up for my February Giveaway - February 8, 2012 at 11:44 AM
- Mandy: Less is Bore! said...
Hi, it's my 1st time participating in WoW! Don't you have a picture WITH link I can post on the sidebar of my blog? Or is the picture in the WoW entry with link? Sorry, sometimes I'm still a bit behind when it comes to computers... ;)
Anyways, here's my WoW - February 8, 2012 at 12:00 PM
- Hollie said...
Great pick, not something I'd normally read. Thanks for sharing! :)
- February 8, 2012 at 12:52 PM
- Gina @ My Precious said...
I haven't seen this one before. Thanks for highlighting it.
- February 8, 2012 at 1:49 PM
- Kristin A. said...
This is my first WoW looking forward to doing more in the future!
- February 8, 2012 at 2:26 PM
- Valerie said...
Wow.... what a simple yet powerful cover!
What an awesome title as well!
See my pick here - February 8, 2012 at 3:21 PM
- Freak-YA-tastic said...
It's the kind of book that I love to read but not read often. It sounds promising.
My WOW is about YA, but your pick makes me wonder if I'll not add this to my to-read list. - February 8, 2012 at 3:45 PM
- Jo said...
I love this event! I like seeing what other people are excited to read next.
Thanks for this great idea! I just joined in today. Here's my WoW:
tinybooknook.blogspot.com - February 8, 2012 at 3:56 PM
- Jessi said...
It only took all day but my site finally returned from the dead!
Happy WoW!
http://www.otherwhere.co/lists/waiting-on-wednesday/i-want-it-wednesday-12 - February 8, 2012 at 5:06 PM
- Tiffany Drew said...
Haven't heard of this one but I'll be watching for it :)
- February 8, 2012 at 6:18 PM
- Mel said...
Another book to add to my list!
- February 8, 2012 at 6:28 PM
- Lark Andrea said...
Sounds like an interesting read!
- February 8, 2012 at 7:42 PM
- Bidisha said...
This sounds good. Family sagas are such tearjerkers, though.
- February 8, 2012 at 9:47 PM
- Joie said...
wow, your pick sounds really great! Thanks so much for creating this meme! Here's my WOW
- February 9, 2012 at 12:29 PM
- Think said...
Hi! You have been awarded the One Lovely blog award. I enjoyed your blog so thought I would share it. Hope you don't mind! Here is the link to my blog to check it out.
http://thinksbooks.blogspot.com/2012/02/blog-two-awards.html?showComment=1329183063675#c6782614640927184478 - February 13, 2012 at 7:39 PM


text:
PARIS, April 29 (UPI) -- Right-wing protesters said they picketed the Miss Black France pageant because they oppose special treatment for minority groups.
Riot police kept an eye on the weekend rally in Paris by about 30 members of the New France movement, who said the nation should not be divided along ethnic lines.
"Why should Asians and Africans come here and have more rights than us?" one demonstrator who declined to be identified told Radio France Internationale. "This is why we are demanding a Miss White France."
New France maintains the Miss Black France pageant flies in the face of equality, a founding premise of modern France.
At the same time, pageant organizers said there is a significant element of inequality in the nation's famed fashion industry that has left models of color out in the cold.
"All the black models tell me they can't find work in France, so they are going to London and New York," said Frederic Royer. "French magazines also never feature black women on their covers."
RFI said Saturday's first annual Miss Black France pageant featured 22 finalists culled from about 1,000 from about 1,000 entrants. The winner was Mbathio Beye (photo) a 21-year-old student who was born in Senegal.
SOURCE: UPI.com, 4/29/2012


text:
Shall We Dance, 4pm / Movie Guide, 11pm, 10-15-04
- 10-15-04
Use and Access to Collection
This collection is open to the public and must be used in the Special Collections reading room. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.
This collection contains audiovisual materials. Items that cannot be used in the Special Collections reading room or are too fragile for researchers require that a digital copy be made prior to use. If you would like to access these materials, please contact us prior to your visit.
Library Details
Part of the Special Collections and University Archives
University of Maryland Libraries
Hornbake Library
4130 Campus Drive
College Park Maryland 20742


text:
I know I am speaking for tens of thousands of my fellow Montanans and tens of millions of my fellow Americans when I write what I'm about to write.
The "red flag" laws that are sweeping the country violate every principle of liberty upon which our country was founded. There is no due process associated with "red flag" laws. A judge's order to seize the firearms from an American citizen who has not been accused of a crime, charged with a crime, convicted of a crime—or who never even threatened to commit a crime—based on the accusation of a single individual is anything but due process.
Our accuser could be a disgruntled employee, a bitter ex-spouse or relative, a vengeful neighbor, an anti-gun liberal or even an anti-gun policeman. By definition, "red flag" laws use mere suspicion of what one "might" do as justification to seize a person's firearms. Tactics such as these have been used in virtually every despotic regime of history. In the name of protecting society, the rights and liberties of individuals were denied. Eventually, these repressive governments included political or religious persuasion as triggering "red flags," which led to their disarmament—all in the name of public safety, of course.
You know as well as I do that when the rights of ONE American are abridged, the rights of ALL Americans are abridged. This is not yet a communist nation where the rights of the state—or even the rights of a majority of citizens—supersede the rights of the individual.
Furthermore, it is a fallacy to suggest that a mental health diagnosis, by itself, indicates that someone is automatically a threat to himself or others. Dr. Ann Bukacek, a highly respected medical doctor in the community in which I live, recently wrote:
Mental health diagnoses given by physicians or other mental health care workers do not predict firearm violence. As a physician for over 30 years who has treated many patients with mental health diagnoses and some autistic spectrum patients, I have not had one of those patients commit an act of gun violence. I did have a patient who bludgeoned a man to death with a blunt object, and that patient carried no mental health diagnosis. Psychopaths with no conscience, especially the more intelligent ones, usually escape detection and/or a particular diagnosis.
This doctor's examination of the issue reflects reality.
Besides, under these "red flag" laws, exactly who is it that determines that someone is "crazy"? Is it one judge, who bases his or her conclusion on the accusations of just one individual? Is it up to politicians or government bureaucrats to define who is and who is not "crazy"?
There are some people who believe that anyone who would even own a firearm is "crazy." Others believe one's political or religious beliefs qualify him as "crazy." Heck! We have all read the documentation of various governments (local, State and federal) that have assigned all kinds of "crazy" (even "dangerous") definitions against people based on their interpretation of Bible prophecy or their association with political candidates such as former Congressman Ron Paul or their opposition to politically correct ideologies, etc.
Does the judge who issues a warrant to seize a person's firearms under a "red flag" law provide the accused with an opportunity to defend himself BEFORE violating his constitutional and Natural rights? No. Does the judge provide an opportunity for a close examination of the accusations against the accused (including investigating the accuser) BEFORE violating his constitutional and Natural rights? No. Does the judge allow the accused to face his accuser BEFORE violating his constitutional and Natural rights? No.
"Red flag" laws turn the Bill of Rights and the fundamental legal doctrine that a man is innocent until proven guilty completely upside down. "Red flag" laws are a mockery to every constitutional principle of liberty since the Magna Carta. Seizing a citizen's firearms by force (and thereby rendering him defenseless) without a crime being committed—or even the accusation of a crime being made—is old-fashioned TYRANNY. Such an act presumes a person is guilty until proven innocent.
Then there is this: After the guns are seized, it could take years for the victim to prove his innocence (or competence) and have his guns returned—and in what condition would they be when (and IF) returned? Furthermore, will you legislators, judges and police officers who collaborate to strip an innocent person's ability to defend himself accept any responsibility when the real bad guys take advantage of this person's vulnerability and invade his home and bludgeon or rape or even kill his family? Of course you won't. But mark it down: You will be held responsible in the eyes of Almighty God—and in the eyes of the citizens you have victimized.
And are you really going to try and tell us that police officers are more competent and mentally stable than the rest of us? Are you kidding? The examples of improper, unsafe, careless and even homicidal acts of cops with guns are ubiquitous.
It was an FBI agent who was armed at a nightclub in Denver and then started gyrating and dancing like a madman until his handgun fell on the floor, discharged and wounded a fellow patron. But no official even questioned this officer's fitness to possess a firearm—even AFTER that event took place.
Then there is the case of the Dallas police officer who walked into the wrong apartment and shot and killed the man who lived inside. Where was the "red flag" regarding this officer? And what about the two police officers in St. Louis who used a revolver to play Russian roulette, and one of the two wound up shooting and killing the other one? Why wasn't a "red flag" raised about these nincompoops? These stories could go on forever.
Where are the "red flag" laws for the policemen and sheriff's deputies in this country? The only difference between them and the rest of us who are being victimized by these draconian "red flag" laws is that they wear badges, and we do not—and the other difference is the vast majority of private citizens who carry firearms are not nearly as stupid and incompetent as the policemen mentioned above.
So much for equal justice under the law.
It has taken many of us a lifetime of hard work and labor to be able to obtain our gun collections; we have successfully passed FBI background checks and local and State requirements and obligations for responsible gun ownership, yet our guns are going to be confiscated overnight on the word of someone (an anonymous someone, at that) who claims we "might" be unsuitable to own a gun? Again, such an act turns American history and our Bill of Rights upside down.
Kris Kobach is the former Secretary of State of Kansas. He is a former professor of constitutional law at UMKC School of Law. He wrote an excellent analysis of the constitutional violations of these "red flag" laws:
1. The seizure of guns without any hearing at all. The laws all contain an ex parte provision that allows the state to temporarily seize a person's guns without even notifying the gun owner or giving him a chance to be heard. This is the quintessential denial of due process. The Fourth Amendment makes clear that a person cannot be denied of liberty (to exercise one's constitutional right to bear arms) without due process of law. This confiscation is "temporary," but it can easily lead to long-term or permanent confiscation.
2. Based on the testimony of one unrelated person. The confiscation order can be based on the testimony of only one person claiming that the gun owner poses a risk to the safety of himself or others. The law [proposed in Kansas] deceptively says that it has to be the testimony of a "family member." But "family member" is defined to include "former dating partners" and anyone who has ever lived with the defendant. So a jilted former boyfriend or girlfriend, or even a roommate from years ago, could easily set in motion the disarming of a lawful gun owner.
3. Using a very low standard of proof. The standard for obtaining an ex parte order against a gun owner is absurdly low – one need only show "reasonable cause" to believe that the person may pose a risk. That's even lower than the "probable cause" standard for obtaining a search warrant. In addition, the judge is forced to rush his decision and issue the confiscation order on the same day of the ex parte hearing. Within two weeks of the ex parte hearing, a hearing with the gun owner present must occur; the purpose is to put in place a long-term confiscation order. But even at that hearing, the standard of proof is far below the "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard used in criminal trials. Rather, it need only be shown by "a preponderance of evidence" that the person poses a risk of injury to self or others. What kind of evidence? Things like the "reckless storage" of firearms and drinking habits can be considered. If you keep a handgun in the bedside table and drink beer regularly, you may [be] in trouble.
4. Shifting the burden of proof to the gun owner. The long-term confiscation order lasts up to a year, but may be renewed indefinitely. Once it is in place, it becomes very difficult to remove. To have the confiscation order lifted, the gun owner must prove he does not pose a threat to himself or others. Proving a negative is nearly impossible. Adding insult to injury, the bill even authorizes local law enforcement to charge the gun owner a storage fee for confiscating and storing his guns.
The implementation of "red flag" laws (at any level) is unconscionable and totally unacceptable. And I am here to warn you that there are millions of Americans who will never submit to such oppression. None of us wants to see acts of violence committed against law enforcement personnel in America, but when law enforcers begin carrying out these draconian "red flag" laws, they will begin lighting the matches of resistance in the hearts of freedom-loving people in this country like hasn't been seen in over 150 years.
We have already heard about Gary Willis, the Maryland man who was killed by police officers in his own home as they attempted to carry out a "red flag" order to seize his guns. This man had committed no crime; he had not been accused of committing a crime; he was given no hearing and no due process. Mr. Willis did not attempt to harm the officers; he merely resisted their efforts to disarm him, and he was killed on the spot—in his own home—by police officers who had taken an oath to protect the liberties of this poor innocent man.
I assure you, Mr. Willis will not be the last American to resist the attempted confiscation of his firearms.
Do you legislators, judges, county sheriffs, chiefs of police, sheriff's deputies and city policemen not realize that "red flag" laws are tantamount to a declaration of war against the American people? Are you so far removed from "the laws of Nature and Nature's God" that you cannot see this? Do you not realize that in spite of all of Great Britain's abuses of power, our colonist forebears did not openly rebel against the Crown until King George sent troops to Lexington and Concord to confiscate the colonists' firearms? You do understand that, right? And you do understand, do you not, that the blood of the colonists flows in the veins of we Americans?
At what point do the American people come to believe that you truly do NOT wish to honor your oath to the Constitution or behave in a manner that truly honors America's Second Amendment and the heritage of liberty that we all share as Americans? At what point do we Americans lose all respect for our civil magistrates and peace officers? For many Americans, that point will come when policemen bang on their doors at 5am and attempt to seize their guns.
Do you not realize that every single instance of an innocent person being subjected to a "red flag" gun confiscation order will only magnify and strengthen the resentment and animosity in the hearts of the community against these laws—and against the ones who are creating and implementing them? Do you not understand that this is a powder keg that could explode into all-out rebellion at any time? Do you want that? I don't want that! I don't want that for my wife and me, my children and grandchildren, my friends or my community.
Why would you legislators, judges and policemen even think about doing such a thing?
In the name of all that we hold dear, in the name of the brave men at Lexington Green and Concord Bridge, in the name of every American who has given his life in defense of the principles contained in our Declaration of Independence, our Constitution and our Bill of Rights—including many of our brave police officers and sheriff's deputies—and in the name of the Natural Laws of our Creator, please STOP this madness before you literally tear our communities and our country apart.
As a legislator, you must not pass any semblance of a "red flag" law; as a judge, you must not issue a gun confiscation warrant on the basis of a "red flag" law; as a sheriff or chief of police, you must not order your officers to confiscate a citizen's guns on the basis of a "red flag" warrant; and if you are a sheriff's deputy or city policeman, you must not obey an order to confiscate your fellow citizens' guns on the basis of a "red flag" law.
I beg you to realize what you are doing. I beg you to refuse to participate in this madness. I beg you to join your fellow churchmen, clubmen, neighbors, friends and townsmen and help us turn back this dastardly attempt to transform our constitutional republic into another repressive regime that, in the end, would require The People to tear it down.
"Red flag" laws are on the wrong side of history, the wrong side of our Constitution, the wrong side of liberty and on the wrong side of the laws of God.
Again, I beg you to think about what you are doing, about the pain you are causing, about the lives you are ruining and about the potential harm you are inflicting on our country. Please think this through.