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Gas Delivery Service in Alexandria
When you find yourself gasless, Always Towing & Recovery INC has you covered. Our team is proud to provide stranded drivers in Alexandria with speedy and reliable gas delivery services. No matter your location, our technicians can be by your side in no time.
Get in touch with us at (202) 342-1444.
Call Now!Rapid Gas Delivery to Your Car
Running out of gas can really slow you down, that's why at Always Towing & Recovery INC, we are committed to providing speedy gas delivery when you need it most. When you call us, let us know where you are and what type of gasoline you require. Whether it is premium, regular, or diesel—we have you covered.
We will dispatch one of our drivers to pick up gasoline and meet you at your exact location without delay.
If you're out of gas, don't put yourself at risk by walking alongside the road to the gas station. Get on the phone and receive the support you need right away.
Car Gas Delivery at Competitive Rates
Always Towing & Recovery INC is committed to providing clients with competitive pricing for our gasoline delivery. This means that we'll only charge you for the cost of the gas plus a small delivery fee. So whether you need a splash to get you to the gas station or enough to get you through the day, you can count on us to provide affordable, reliable services.
We are also more than happy to provide you with the total cost of the service before we arrive, just ask us and we'll provide you with your options at various price points.
Providing clients with transparent rates is one of the ways we strive to be one of the most trusted roadside companies in the area.
The Most Trusted Gasoline Delivery Service in Alexandria
For years, our professional team has been trusted by drivers in the area to deliver comprehensive gasoline delivery services. Locals know that when they need to fuel up and get on with their day, we are the go-to choice.
When you enlist the help of our highly trained and experienced team, you can expect:
- Flexible availability
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Our commitment to client satisfaction allows us to stand apart from the competition. If you are stuck in a bind, don't settle for anything less than the absolute best, call us.
Get in Touch with Always Towing & Recovery INC for Speedy Gas Delivery Today!
You can trust Always Towing & Recovery INC's experts to deliver the most reliable gasoline delivery service in the area. Not only will we respond to your request in a timely fashion, but we will also ensure that you are getting the gasoline you need and help to administer it safely so you can get back on the road as soon as possible.
We understand that every driver has unique needs when it comes to roadside assistance, and we will do what we can to not only meet but exceed your expectations, time and again. See for yourself and call (202) 342-1444.


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Spirax Sarco are a leading provider of total steam system solutions, across a wide range of industries, including Food and Beverage, Pharmaceutical and Hospitals.
Our global network of skilled OEM engineers are passionate and knowledgeable about steam. They take the time to understand your needs, and those of your customers, to provide the right end-to-end steam engineering solution for you.
As part of a global network, you've got the backing of over 1,300 dedicated engineers worldwide in 40 operations.
Tailor-made, engineered systems designed to meet your customers' needs.
With over 40 training centres across the world you can enhance your steam knowledge so you can fully support your customers.
Working with a global provider of high quality, reliable products means your customers are assured that they will achieve maximum plant performance while minimising the risk of unnecessary system downtime.
Our design solutions comply with local regulatory and health and safety standards, as well as meeting environmental goals.
Global access to technical product and steam expertise means you have the support you need through the specification, design and structure of your solution.
Nine manufacturing sites across four continents worldwide which support your local or global purchasing, design and production processes.
Local stock is backed by responsive and reliable aftermarket supply, wherever and whenever your customers need it.
With their deep steam knowledge, Spirax Sarco are able to offer the global support required to help me and the Tetra Pak business throughout our solutions' lifecycle - from design to supply, to commissioning and aftermarket services.Lars Hansson – Global Product Manager, Tetra Pak Processing Systems
Robust and high-performance controls to meet pressure, temperature and safety requirements, from simple self acting controls to complex systems.
Improve your operating efficiency with our condensate recovery solutions, designed to remove, recover and reuse condensate.
Efficient heat transfer and clean steam generation solutions to improve system productivity and steam quality across your system.
Spirax Sarco tailors steam engineering solutions to food and beverage processes: blanching, peeling and cooking to extrusion, pasteurisation and shrink-wrapping.
Spirax Sarco can provide technical expertise for using steam in hospital and healthcare processes, including sterilisation, humidification and air handling.
Spirax Sarco steam engineering solutions can help pharmaceutical plants ensure compliance, improve process control and reliability and increase energy recovery.
Explore our most comprehensive range of steam engineering tools, including steam tables, CAD drawing and model libraries, calculators and sizing tools.
Van Aarsen make and sell state of the art machinery for the production of animal feed. They were seeking a new partner to reduce maintenance costs, improve delivery times and provide a fit for purpose solution.
Spirax Sarco has recently worked with Valmet on a project for a new board machine. With a wire width of 11,700 mm and design speed of 2000 m/min, it will be one of the world's widest and fastest board machines after start-up in 2021.
Spirax Sarco and The Sanmartin Group in Argentina are developing and delivering cost savings and energy efficiency as a part of their collaboration.

subset: commoncrawl


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Complications of Spine Surgery
A Patient's Guide to Complications of Spine Surgery
With any surgery, there is the risk of complications. When surgery is done near the spine and spinal cord, these complications (if they occur) can be very serious. Complications could involve subsequent pain and impairment and the need for additional surgery. You should discuss the complications associated with surgery with your doctor before surgery. The list of complications provided here is not intended to be a complete list of complications and is not a substitute for discussing the risks of surgery with your doctor. Only your doctor can evaluate your condition and inform you of the risks of any medical treatment he or she may recommend.
Anesthesia Complications
The vast majority of surgical procedures require that some type of anesthesia be done before the surgery. This is so that you will not feel, or be aware of the procedure. The simplest form of anesthesia is local anesthesia. Local anesthesia is done by injecting a medication (usually Novocain) around the area of the surgical procedure that "numbs" the skin and surrounding tissue. The most complex form of anesthesia is general anesthesia. General anesthesia is where you go completely to sleep during the surgical procedure. Medications are given by intravenous lines (IVs) to put you to sleep. Special machines breathe for you, monitor your vital signs, and alert the anesthesiologist to any problems while you are asleep. You are kept asleep during the operation by a combination of medications given through the IV line and "anesthetic gases" that you inhale through special machines controlling your breathing. Most spinal operations require general anesthesia. A very small number of patients may have problems with general anesthesia. These can be problems due to reactions to the drugs used, problems arising from your other medical problems, and problems due to the anesthesia. Be sure to discuss these complications with your anesthesiologist.
When blood clots form inside the veins of the legs, it is referred to as Deep Venous Thrombosis (DVT). This is a common problem following many types of surgical procedures. It is true that these blood clots can also form in certain individuals who have not undergone any recent surgery. These blood clots form in the large veins of the calf and may continue to grow and extend up into the veins of the thigh, and in some cases into the veins of the pelvis.
The risk of developing DVT is much higher following surgery involving the pelvis, and surgery involving the lower extremities. There are many reasons that the risk of DVT is higher after surgery. First, the body is trying to stop the bleeding associated with surgery, and the body's clotting mechanism is very hyperactive during this period. In addition, injury to blood vessels around the surgical site, from normal tugging and pulling during surgery, can set off the clotting process. Finally, blood that does not move well sits in the veins and becomes stagnant. Blood that sits too long in one spot usually begins to clot.
Why do we worry about blood clots? Blood clots that fill the deep veins of the legs stop the normal flow of venous blood from the legs back to the heart. This causes swelling and pain in the affected leg. If the blood clot inside the vein does not dissolve, the swelling may become chronic and can cause discomfort and swelling permanently. While this may seem bad enough, the real danger that a blood clot poses is much more serious. If a portion of the forming blood clot breaks free inside the veins of the leg, it may travel through the veins to the lung, where it can lodge itself in the tiny vessels of the lung. This cuts off the blood supply to the portion of the lung that is blocked. The portion of the lung that is blocked cannot survive and may collapse. This is called a pulmonary embolism. If a pulmonary embolism is large enough, and the portion of the lung that collapses is large enough - it may cause death. With this in mind, it is easy to see why prevention of DVT is a serious matter.
Reducing the risk of developing DVT is a high priority following any type of surgery. Things that can be done to reduce the risk of developing DVT fall into two categories:
- Mechanical - getting the blood moving better
- Medical - using drugs to slow the clotting process
Blood that is moving is less likely to clot. Getting YOU moving so that your blood is circulating is perhaps the most effective treatment against developing DVT. While you are in bed, other things can be done to increase the circulation of blood from the legs back to the heart. Simply pumping your feet up and down (like pushing on the gas pedal) contracts the muscles of the calf, squeezes the veins in the calf, and pushes the blood back to the heart. You cannot do this too much!
Pulsatile stockings do the same thing. A pump inflates these special stockings that wrap around the calf and thigh every few minutes, squeezing the veins in the calf and thigh pushing the blood back to the heart. Support hose, sometimes called TED hose, are still commonly used following surgery. These hose work by squeezing the veins of the leg shut. This reduces the amount of stagnant blood that is pooling in the veins of the leg - and reduces the risk of that blood clotting in the veins. Finally, getting you out of bed walking will result in muscle contraction of the legs and keep the blood in the veins of the leg moving.
Drugs, which slow down the body's clotting mechanism, are widely used following surgery of the hip and knee to reduce the risk of DVT. These drugs include simple aspirin in very low risk situations, and heparin shots twice a day in moderately risky situations. In conditions that have a high risk for developing DVT, several very potent drugs are available that can slow the clotting mechanism very effectively. Heparin can be given by intravenous injection, a new drug called Lovenox can be given in shots administered twice a day, and Coumadin can be given by mouth. Coumadin is the drug of choice when the clotting mechanism must be slowed for more than a few days because it can be taken orally.
In most cases of spinal surgery, both mechanical and medical measures are used simultaneously. It has become normal practice to: use pulsatile stockings immediately after surgery, have you begin exercises immediately after surgery, get you out of bed as soon as possible, and place you on some type of medication to slow the blood clotting mechanism.
Lung Problems
The success of your surgery includes taking care of your lungs afterwards. It is important that your lungs are working at their best following surgery to ensure that you get plenty of oxygen to the tissues of the body that are trying to heal. Lungs that are not exercised properly after surgery can lead to poor blood oxygen levels and even develop pneumonia (an infection in the lungs).
There are several reasons that your lungs may not work normally after surgery. If you were put to sleep with a general anesthetic for your surgery, the medications used for the anesthesia may temporarily cause the lungs not to function as well as normal. This is one reason that a spinal type anesthetic is recommended whenever possible. Lying in bed prevents completely normal function of the lungs and the medications you take for pain may cause you not to breathe as deeply as you normally would.
You can think of the lung like a large sponge. All the small air pockets where the blood receives oxygen are like the small holes in a sponge. If the small holes collapse, or squeeze together, no air can get into the holes to supply oxygen to the blood. When we breathe deeply, the lungs expand and all the individual holes of the sponge fill with air. Coughing does the same thing because we increase the pressure of the air coming into the holes of the sponge. Lungs that have collapsed areas not only do not move oxygen into the blood, they cannot remove the fluids and mucous normally produced by the lungs. This can create an area that is ripe for developing bacteria that can grow and produce a lung infection, or pneumonia.
After surgery, you will need to do several things to keep your lungs working at their best. Your nurse will encourage you to take frequent deep breaths and cough often. He or she will be there to coach you. Getting out of bed, even upright in a chair, allows the lungs to work much better. Therefore, as soon as possible, you will be allowed to get into a chair. The respiratory therapist has several tools to help maintain optimal lung function. The incentive spirometer is a small device that measures how hard you are breathing and gives you a tool to help improve your deep breathing. If you have any other lung disease, such as asthma, the respiratory therapist may also use medications that are given through breathing treatments to help open the air pockets in the lungs.
Any time surgery is performed, there is a risk of infection. However, infections occur in less than 1% of spinal surgeries. An infection can be in the skin incision only, or it can spread deeper to involve the areas around the spinal cord and the vertebrae. A wound infection that involves only the skin incision is considered a "superficial" infection. It is less serious and easier to treat than the deeper infection. Surgeons take every precaution to prevent infections. You will probably be given antibiotics right before surgery - especially if bone graft, metal screws, or plates will be used for your surgery. This is to help reduce the risk of infection.
If the surgical wound becomes red, hot, and swollen and does not heal, it may be infected. Infections will usually cause increasing pain. You may run a fever and have shaking chills. The wound may ooze clear liquid or yellow pus. The wound drainage may smell bad.
Contact your doctor immediately so the wound can be treated and antibiotic medication can be prescribed if necessary. The superficial wound infection can usually be treated with antibiotics, and perhaps removing the skin stitches. The deeper wound infections can be very serious and will probably require additional operations to drain the infection. In the worst cases, any bone graft, metal screws, and plates that were used may need to be removed.
Hardware Fracture
In many different types of spinal operations, metal screws, plates, and rods are used as part of the procedure to hold the vertebrae in alignment while the surgery heals. These metal devices are called "hardware". Once the bone heals, the hardware is usually not doing much of anything. Sometimes before the surgery is completely healed the hardware can either break - or move from the correct position. This is called a "hardware fracture". If this occurs it may require a second operation to either remove the hardware or replace the hardware.
Implant Migration
Implant migration is a term used to describe the fact that the implant has moved from where the surgeon placed it initially. This usually occurs fairly soon after surgery - before the healing process has progressed to the point where the implant is firmly attached by scar tissue or bone growth. If the implant moves too far, it may not be doing its job of stabilizing the two vertebrae. If it moves in a direction towards the spine or large vessels - it may damage those structures. If you have a problem with implant migration, your surgeon may have to perform a second operation to replace the implant that has moved. Your doctor will check the status of the hardware with X-rays taken during your follow-up office visits.
Spinal Cord Injury
Any time you operate on the spine, there is some risk of injuring the spinal cord. This can lead to serious injuries to the nerves or the covering of the spinal cord - the dura. The spinal cord is a column of nerves that connects your brain with the rest of your body, allowing you to control your movements. The nerve fibers in your spinal cord branch off to form pairs of nerve roots that travel through the small openings (foramina) between your vertebrae. The nerves in each area of the spinal cord connect to specific parts of your body. Damage to the spinal cord can cause paralysis in certain areas and not others, depending on which spinal nerves are affected.
Persistent Pain
Some spinal operations are simply unsuccessful. One of the most common complications of spinal surgery is that it does not get rid of all of your pain. In some cases, it may be possible to actually increase your pain. Be aware of this risk before surgery and discuss it at length with your surgeon. He or she will be able to give you some idea of the chance that you will not get the relief that you expect.
Some pain after surgery is expected, but if you experience chronic pain well after the operation, you should let your doctor know.
Sexual Dysfunction
The spinal cord and spinal nerves carry the nerve signals that allow the rest of your body to function, feel sensation - and even have sex. Damage to the spinal cord and the nerves around the spinal cord can cause many problems. If a nerve is damaged that connects to the pelvic region, it could cause sexual dysfunction.
Transitional Syndrome
One of the interesting things about how the spine works is that it behaves like a chain of repeating segments. When the entire spine is healthy, each segment works together to share the load throughout the spinal column. Each segment works with its neighboring segment to share the stresses imposed by movements and forces acting on the spine. However, when one or two segments are not working properly, the neighboring segments have to take on more of the load. It is the segment closest to the non-working segment that gets most of the extra stress. This means that if one or more levels are fused anywhere in the spine, the spinal segment next to where the surgery was performed begins to take on more stress. Over time, this can lead to increased wear and tear to this segment, eventually causing pain from the damaged segment. This is called a transitional syndrome because it occurs where the transition from a normal area of the spine to the abnormal area that has been fused.
The term "pseudo" means false and "arthrosis" refers to joint. The term "pseudoarthrosis" then means false joint. A surgeon uses this term to describe either a fractured bone that has not healed or an attempted fusion that has not been successful. A pseudoarthrosis usually means that there is motion between the two bones that should be healed, or fused, together. When the vertebrae involved in a surgical fusion do not heal and fuse together, there is usually continued pain. The pain may actually increase over time. The spinal motion can also stress the metal hardware used to hold the fusion. The screws and rods may break, leading to an increase in pain. A pseudoarthrosis may require more surgery to try to get the bones to heal. Your surgeon may add more bone graft, replace the metal hardware, or add an electrical stimulator to try to get the fusion to heal.
Copyright © 2003 DePuy Acromed.


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Pink Pet Sweater
Custom Order
If you click on our affiliates/advertisers links, we are going to receive a tiny commission. AND… Most of the time, you will receive an offer. Win/Win!
The products that we advertise are the materials we've used in making our creations. Full disclosure.
Additional information
Custom Orders Available
If you are interested in special sizing, colours or pattern, please place an inquiry here.
If an item is marked sold, we can make one for you. Just fill out a custom order form.
Hand Crafted Products
All of our products are hand crafted with only the finest quality yarn. We have a multitude of different patterns available. We can make a custom pattern upon request.
If you would like a different size than the one pictured, please fill out a custom order request. Custom sizing is available upon request. Custom orders are made at the time the order is received. Pricing and timing will be determined by the current market prices for yarn.
Products are available for local pick-up, or shipping to the United States and Canada.
Gift Ideas
These hand knit products are a fantastic gift idea. We also have gift certificates available to purchase as well.
Please view our Refund and Return policy.
Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.


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How ZiMAD Acquires High Quality Mobile Gamers with Liftoff and Appsflyer
Acquiring high-quality users at scale is not easy or simple. In the case of ZiMAD, they wanted to drive new installs with a strong 90-day retention rate for their Magic Jigsaw Puzzles iOS app.
The Challenge
Founded in 2009, ZiMAD is a mobile gaming studio based in San Francisco. ZiMAD's unique approach brings revolutionary concepts and ideas to life while redefining conventional mobile gaming. But like many mobile game publishers, acquiring high quality users at scale can be a challenge.
ZiMAD was already using AppsFlyer for their mobile attribution and marketing analytics, which made partnering with Liftoff a breeze. Using pre-configured integrations, ZiMAD synced their AppsFlyer user-engagement data with Liftoff. We then used their customer engagement data to build initial lookalike profiles of ZiMAD's most active Magic Jigsaw Puzzles players on iOS. This multi-dimensional profile used an array of identifying key characteristics such as user behavior trends and related apps installed.
Liftoff then A/B tested several creatives across native, banner, interstitial and playable ads. We optimized each campaign to improve retention rates, lower their CPI and increase user engagement (total puzzles completed per user). Thanks to the AppsFlyer integration, Liftoff received automated real-time postbacks as users engaged with the campaign and the app. In turn, our machine learning system used this data to optimize our user targeting and ad impression bidding in real-time, acquiring players with higher retention rates at ZiMAD's target CPI.
Within 6 months of launching the campaign, Liftoff delivered over 21 million highly targeted ad impressions, 82 ad creative A/B tests, a significant volume of game plays and increased 90-day user retention. The results were impressive. Liftoff's impression-to-install rate improved by 590%, a result of extensive creative A/B testing and careful optimization. At the same time, ZiMAD's average monthly installs increased by 315%. To top it all off, more than 15% of puzzle solvers acquired by Liftoff remained active after 90 days.
Increased Budget, Increased Scale
Because Liftoff-driven users had such high retention rates, ZiMAD increased their ad spend on Liftoff campaigns by 5x. By continuously syncing their user engagement data via AppsFlyer, ZiMAD provided Liftoff with fresh, real-time data for ongoing campaign optimization. This allowed us to scale these campaigns. At one point, 50% of Magic Jigsaw Puzzles' monthly app opens came from Liftoff-acquired users.
Liftoff's success with Magic Jigsaw Puzzles on iOS led ZiMAD to expand their user acquisition efforts to Android, as well as new Liftoff campaigns for four additional game titles.
"Liftoff is one of our premium partners, consistently meeting or exceeding our quality and scale performance goals. Furthermore, Liftoff's deep integration with AppsFlyer has made our user acquisition more efficient and more scalable, with very little effort needed. Liftoff consistently meet or exceeds our performance goals and deliver high quality mobile users at scale." – Olga Ivanova, Mobile Marketing Manager, ZiMAD


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CyBase is managed at the Institute of Molecular Bioscience IMB, Brisbane, Australia.
The database and computational tools found on this website may be used for academic research only, provided that it is referred to CyBase, the database of cyclic proteins (http://www.cybase.org.au). For any other use please contact David Craik (email@example.com).
David Craik
Conan Wang
Quentin Kaas
Last updated: Tuesday 23 July 2024


text: Do not let drug charges destroy your future. Experienced Houston Drug Lawyer Charles Johnson will expertly defend drug charges in the courtroom. If you're struggling with misdemeanor or felony drug possession charges for a drug arrest in Texas, safeguard your legal rights and future. Contact the Finest Attorney in Houston now for a free initial consultation. He will talk to you about your case anytime, day or night. He will take your call directly now at 713-222-7577.


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Today is the feast day of St. Wenceslaus, who is regarded as a patron Saint of Czech brewers.
St. Wenceslaus, duke of Bohemia, was born about the year 907 at Prague, Bohemia (now the Czech Republic). His father was killed in battle when he was young, leaving the kingdom to be ruled by his pagan mother. Wenceslaus was educated by his grandmother, Ludmilla, also a saint. She taught him to be a Christian and to be a good king. She was killed by pagan nobles before she saw him king, but she left him with a deep committment to the Christian faith.
Throughout his life he preserved his virginity unblemished. As duke he was a father to his subjects, generous toward orphans, widows, and the poor. On his own shoulders he frequently carried wood to the houses of the needy. He often attended the funerals of the poor, ransomed captives, and visited those suffering in prison. He was filled with a deep reverence toward the clergy; with his own hands he sowed the wheat for making altar breads and pressed the grapes for the wine used in the Mass. During winter he would visit the churches barefoot through snow and ice, frequently leaving behind bloody footprints.
Wenceslaus was eighteen years old when he succeeded his father to the throne. Without regard for the opposition, he worked in close cooperation with the Church to convert his pagan country. He ended the persecution of Christians, built churches and brought back exiled priests. As king he gave an example of a devout life and of great Christian charity, with his people calling him "Good King" of Bohemia.
His brother Boleslaus, however, turned to paganism. One day he invited Wenceslaus to his house for a banquet. The next morning, on September 28, 929, as Wenceslaus was on the way to Mass, Boleslaus struck him down at the door of the church. Before he died, Wenceslaus forgave his brother and asked God's mercy for his soul. Although he was killed for political reasons, he is listed as a martyr since the dispute arose over his faith. This king, martyred at the age of twenty-two, is the national hero and patron of the Czech Republic. He is the first Slav to be canonized.According to BeerHistory.com, the Saint's protection of local hops earned him much regard.
Because Bohemian hops were so valued, Wenceslas ordered the death penalty for anyone caught exporting the cuttings and obviously endeared himself to the local hop growers and brewers. He became the patron saint of Bohemia and Czechoslovakia and his crown became the symbol of nationalism for the Czechs. By extension he became a patron saint of Czech brewers.King Wenceslaus is the inspiration for the Christmas carol, Good King Wenceslas.
So let's raise a glass of fine beer to the Good King, Saint Wenceslaus.


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Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) software helps you analyze, understand, and report on your business. EPM refers to the processes designed to help organizations plan, budget, forecast, and report on business performance as well as consolidate and finalize financial results (often referred to as "closing the books"). EPM solutions are primarily used by CFOs and the office of finance, while other functional areas, such as HR, sales, marketing, and IT, use EPM for operational planning, budgeting, and reporting.
While often tied to enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, EPM software complements ERP by providing management insights in addition to top of operational data. In other words, ERP is about operating the business—the day-to-day transactional activity—and EPM is about managing the business—analyzing, understanding, and reporting on the business.
Today, EPM software is considered to be critical for managing all types of organizations by linking financial and operational metrics to insights—and ultimately driving strategies, plans, and execution. With EPM software, managers can drive improved performance across the organization by monitoring financial and operational results against forecasts and goals and using analytics to recognize key trends and predict outcomes.
In an environment of constant change, new competitors, and economic uncertainty, EPM offers a tool for organizations to manage their agile businesses. With finance at the helm, EPM business processes (strategic modeling, plan, consolidate and close, report, and analyze performance) can help organizations understand their data and use it to make better business decisions.
The key to surviving disruption is flexibility. Whether the disruption comes from outside forces (such as new regulations or global weather events) or market realities (one product skyrockets to success while another flops), organizations that respond quickly are able to stay ahead of the curve. A modern EPM solution enables you to understand how, when, and where to adjust to disruptions.
The concept of EPM has been around for decades. Before computers, EPM processes and solutions were managed manually via meetings, phone calls, and discussions. In the 1970s, the first EPM software applications became available and accounting solutions began collecting budgeting and financial information for reporting purposes. Spreadsheets were introduced in the 1980s with software such as Lotus1-2-3 and VisiCalc. Spreadsheets allowed finance teams to automate budget and report creation and replace manual worksheets. The availability of email in the 1990s allowed people to share spreadsheets, which led to better collaboration and collection of budgeting and reporting data. Around the same time, the first EPM software packages began to automate the financial consolidation and reporting process. These products included: IMRS Micro Control (which later became Hyperion software), Hyperion Enterprise for financial consolidation and reporting, and Hyperion Pillar for planning processes.
Over the past couple of decades, EPM software platforms evolved from Windows-based client/server systems to internet-enabled, web browser-based applications. Today, there's an increasing demand for cloud-based EPM software, also known as software as a service (SaaS). When EPM software is "in the cloud" it simply means that the application is housed on a network of remote servers, instead of at a company's location.
The cloud offers a more affordable alternative for EPM that lowers both operational expenses (OpEx) and capital expenses (CapEx), because it eliminates the need for companies to purchase software and hardware or hire additional IT staff. With no costly infrastructure to support, resources can be invested in growth opportunities, while employees can focus on more value-added tasks instead of managing IT.
Lotus 1-2-3 and VisiCalc to automate budgeting.
Hyperion, one of the earliest successful EPM software companies.
EPM software moves from Windows-based to web-browser-based.
Cloud-based EPM becomes the new standard.
Historically, EPM systems have focused on transitioning finance from spreadsheets to more robust solutions that let teams spend less time on low-value tasks such as data manipulation and reconciliations and more time on high-value tasks like analysis. But even after making the move from spreadsheets, there's still too much time between analysis and action.
Enter the next generation of EPM, which has new capabilities that incorporate emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning. These technologies are powerful decision-making tools because they close the gap between analysis and action. They help improve the quality of decisions made by finance managers and executives by detecting hidden patterns and insights in historic data. The impact on decision-making is widespread, from tactical (which vendor to pay first) to operational (budget reallocations) to strategic (mergers and acquisitions).
Beyond decision-making, these technologies can automate routine tasks to eliminate manual labor and reduce the likelihood of errors. There are many tasks in the financial close and reconciliation process that fall into this category. This type of automation will free up valuable time for finance professionals to engage with operations and spend more time providing the forward-looking guidance that management needs to capitalize on the next opportunity.


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In my opinion, it is slightly misleading, at least to humans, to use
the term "error" as the name of the error
function. A better
term would be "cancel". Strictly speaking, of course, you cannot
point to, much less rotate a pointer to a list that has no length, so
from the point of view of the computer, the word "error" is correct.
But a human expects to attempt this sort of thing, if only to find out
whether the kill ring is full or empty. This is an act of
From the human point of view, the act of exploration and discovery is not necessarily an error, and therefore should not be labeled as one, even in the bowels of a computer. As it is, the code in Emacs implies that a human who is acting virtuously, by exploring his or her environment, is making an error. This is bad. Even though the computer takes the same steps as it does when there is an error, a term such as "cancel" would have a clearer connotation.


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The Tailor by Pietro Longhi |
I guess a lot of you are very busing today, but as I'm Swedish I had the big day yesterday and today I'm working. The joys of irregular schedule- trains have to go every day. I hope you have had or are having a great day! My Christmas Eve was very nice and I think everyone was pleased.
I'm sitting here and thinking of next year's sewing projects. I have continued my sewing room cleanout and have sorted all my A projects into a cupboard, all my B projects are sorted into individual zip lock bags and stored together on a shelf and all C projects have been packed into a large bag and been packed away a bit better. I still need to buy some lidded boxes for sewing notions, but just sorting my projects have made a big difference!
The Tailor's Shop |
I have been thinking of trying to give myself deadlines to try to finish things properly. First I was thinking one project every week but felt that was a bit too ambitious and decided on one thing finished every fortnight instead. Funnily enough I decided this and then went blog-reading and found the Dreamstress 2013 challenge; The Historical Sew Forthly.
For every two week there will be a challenge and it's up to each one who participate to decide if they want to make each and every one of them, or just a few. She draws the line for historical at 1938 which means my 40's wardrobe falls outside the frame, but most of my projects do fit, so I will jump on board. If you want to start at once there is a bonus challenge to finish something before December 31, otherwise the first challenge due 14 Jan. Sew something from __13, whether it be 1913, 1613, or 13BC. I don't think I have anything that fits into that challenge, so I will do something from my 40's wardrobe instead and try to finish my raincoat instead.


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Ignatieff will use the winter outing to take direct aim at vulnerable rival MPs.
All 20 ridings Ignatieff is scheduled to visit are currently held by the Conservatives, NDP or Bloc Quebecois.
They are among the top ridings Liberals believe they can steal away in an election, which could come as early as this spring.
Insiders say the tour will mark a more aggressive stage of Ignatieff's pre-election sorties, what one strategist called "taking the fight to our opponents."
A bit of moxy, a bit of swagger, why the hell not- they're laughing at us anyway, so no danger on the perception front. I find it striking, that while everyone is digesting big, nonsensical ramifications relating to the nothing cabinet shuffle, the Liberals hatch a tour which is REAL and has clear intentions. It's sort of a "cold shower" moment, because while we talk of vulnerable seats, nobody has bothered to realize it's a TWO WAY STREET. Why in Ontario alone, there are around 20 seats the Liberals placed second, by less than 10%. In other words, TONS of seats in play, on all sides, this notion that Liberals sit idly while the Conservatives pick us off requires a tin ear. Factor in the volatility seen now for years in Ontario polls, and the one side arguments all the more suspect and intellectually lazy. I'm not suggesting for one second that vulnerabilities don't exist, that the Liberals sit precariously, only that any seasoned observer knows elections are peculiar and much is in play, risk for all participants.
I love this line:
As the strategist put it, Ignatieff intends to hammer away at a simple message: "If you vote NDP or Bloc to send Harper a message, you get Harper and he doesn't get the message. So, if you want to get rid of Harper, you have to vote Liberal."
I note, this angle is drawing the ire of all the other party supporters. That reaction confirms to me that this strategy is quite sound. Every party is trying to siphon off from others, so any "take offence" opinion from other partisans a bit rich to be honest. I commented early that it is shrewd to define the parameters of the next election early and often, as opposed to the hail mary "stop the Conservatives" message Liberals normally deliver in the closing days of a campaign. Get this frame out there, sell it hard, put the seed in voters minds, use succinct and pointed lines like the above, and I predict you might get some traction.
To take an offensive posture is also refreshing. That Ignatieff will also show off his campaigning stamina, another signal that should calm nerves about election abilities. Pull this tour off, after a mostly seem less summer tour, and one starts to have confidence that we will run a well oiled campaign. As far as I'm concerned, it's about time we started to "take the fight to our opponents", as one who firmly believes nothing every comes to you, you MAKE your opportunities.
This tour won't set the world on fire. This tour will probably be largely ignored in terms of certain narratives and now established mindsets. All that aside, I think this strategy, particularly the early message timing and required repetition, might well prove to be something we look back on as a key development.


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Parent Tardiness Lands Kindergarten Student in Detention
Brooke Loeffler was put in detention after her parents dropped her off late to Olympia Elementary School in San Antonio for a third time. Brooke is a 6-year-old kindergarten student.
Brooke's parents, Brad and Erika Loeffler, who both work full-time and have a newborn baby with medical issues at home, say they both thought that it was unfair to punish a small child for something she has no control over.
In fact, Erika Loeffler says she offered to volunteer at the school doing anything from working with kids to cleaning tables, instead of giving Brooke detention. "I'll do the time," she said.
"We tried to explain the situation to the vice principal and principal," Erika Loeffler said. "They were very cold and not understanding of the circumstances."
Steve Lindscomb, director of public information at Judson Independent School District (ISD), says that the tardy policy has been in effect for approximately three years, and each parent signs off on it when their child enrolls.
"Each year, parents are asked to look over the policy and sign it," Lindscomb said. "We have the document that they (Brian and Erika) signed off on, and they also signed for the detention to go on."
Olympia works with parents to make detention more doable. In the Loeffler case, Brooke Loeffler was allowed to split the hour detention into two days during the lunch period because she couldn't stay after school when detention would normally take place. Also, she did not sit by herself either day. Her father sat with her the first day, and her grandmother sat with her the second day.
"I'll say that it sounds too young for detention, and that's why we worked with the students and their parents, Lindscomb said. "But we do need to have some level of consistency because some parents would be upset that some people got a little attitude and some did not, but we do make allowances for age appropriate treatment."
According to Ericka, a second grade elementary teacher, Judson ISD was untruthful in their Facebook post about working with them.
"They were not working with us," Erika said. "They first told us it would not count if one of us sat with her."
The Loeffler's told ABC News that the school has no absence policy, only a tardy policy, and that they might consider having to make Brooke skip a full day of school rather than be late and risk another detention. This, she says, is not a choice parents should have to make.
Kelly Reid, treasurer of the Parent Teacher Organization at Olympia Elementary School, warned that the Loefflers could face legal problems if they keep their daughter out of school.
Reid cited the school district handbook which states, "a court of law may also impose penalties against both the student and his or her parents if a school-aged student is deliberately not attending school." That clause can be invoked if a child misses 10 days in a six month period or three days in a four week period.
Erika Loeffler says that as an educator, she understands the tardiness rule, but she suggested implementing a positive reinforcement approach instead. In other words, instead of punishing late students, they could reward the ones who are consistently on time.
"She's a very good student," Brad Loeffler said about his daughter. "She never causes any trouble at school. According to her teacher, they use a color system to rate their performance of the day, and she [Brooke] always gets the top color or the one right below it. She's very polite and shy to people she doesn't know. I don't think she has ever caused any trouble at all."
However, Lindscomb explains that the policy is effective in reducing tardiness at Olympia.
"Definitely since the rule was put in place about three years ago they've cut tardies down from 90-95 percent, but that doesn't mean we don't work with each student in terms of age-appropriateness and family situation"


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Wonder if Teaser will ever be done?
"Tea For the Tillerman" at 45 rpm From Analogue Productions
Yes, it does sound better at 45rpm: more open, dynamic and not slightly pinched on the inner groove area since it's stretched out to two LPs and the sides don't have to go as far towards the center of the record. If you already have the 33 do you need the 45 set? Only if you are absolutely fanatically dedicated to this record. Then you won't regret the purchase. It will become a collectible so you really can't go wrong.
What's below was originally published on musicangle.com back in 2011, when the QRP pressing plant was about to launch, with this title at 33 1/3 as the pressing plant's first project (a few outdated references have been removed here).
Poor misunderstood Steven Demetre Georgiou/Cat Stevens/Yusef Islam. Like Bob Marley or Barack Obama, he's a "hybrid" and subject to misinterpretation and fear-mongering.Born of a Greek-Cypriot dad and a Swedish mom, he was half Greek Orthodox and half Baptist and now he's a devout Muslim.
In between, he's had a remarkable and tumultuous career as a pop star. He's had backup artists on his albums ranging from Peter Gabriel to Biff Rose. He's cited influences as wide-ranging as the Gershwins, Leonard Bernstein and Muddy Waters.
He dated Carly Simon ("Anticipation" was about him, not the difficulties involved in coaxing Heinz Ketchup from the bottle) and his songs were featured in the unforgettable cult film "Harold and Maude" starring the great Ruth Gordon and Bud Cort.
He almost died twice: first, before his career took off, from a bout with Tuberculosis in the UK and later in 1976 he almost drowned in the ocean off of Malibu. When he sings "But I might die tonight," he sings from experience!
Without going into all of the details, let's just agree that his first great album was Mona Bone Jackon issued originally on Island Records in the UK and A&M in America.
His follow up, Tea For the Tillerman also originally on Island and A&M is considered by most to be his greatest record as well as a Top 10 Billboard hit. Like all true classics, the cover art (drawn by the then Mr. Stevens) is a perfect fit for the music.
Acoustic Sounds/Analogue Productions' Chad Kassem chose the album as the first release pressed at his new Salina, Kansas state of the art Quality Record Pressings pressing facility. Some on-line grumbling asked "why this?"
The answer is simple: it remains a great, enduring piece of folk/rock, brilliantly performed and recorded. Original pink label Island pressings are still much sought after for both sound and the superior gatefold presentation.
There have been a few reissues including a Japanese JVC pressed Mobile Fidelity issue and a flat profile UHQR edition. Though the master tape had been lost since it was last used for a 1999 CD reissue—part of a Cat Stevens reissue series overseen by the original producer, Paul Samwell-Smith and mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound—Kassem was determined to find it and use it for his first vinyl release.
Thanks to a lot of leg and detective work, the pristine original analog master tape was found and used by George Marino, who cut lacquers at Sterling Sound, the mastering house where it was originally cut by Sterling Sound founder Lee Hulko, for both the U.S. and UK first editions. Hulko's original mastering notes were on file at Sterling and used as a reference by Marino.
The original was cut using a Telefunken M10 playback deck and a Neumann VMS 66 lathe and SX68 cutter head. Marino used an Ampex ATR-102 deck, Neumann VMS80 lathe and SX74 cutter head.
Despite starting with the same cut, the pink label edition sounds vastly superior in every way, evidently because of superior plating and pressing quality, even though indie A&M was among the more meticulous, sound conscious record labels at the time.
Kassem was also determined to reproduce as closely as possible the original gatefold packaging featuring a laminated outer jacket and an opaque, cloth-like inner one that was used only for the first pressing. Subsequent ones featured lamination inside and out.
What makes this music special and capable of enduring through the decades? For one thing, the songs have memorable melodies, even the ones built upon two chord vamps like the opener, "Where Do the Children Play," a prescient, still relevant song about the environment, overdevelopment and whatever else you wish to read into it. The production and sound remain spectacular and the arrangements, combining strummed acoustic guitars, strings arranged by Del Newman, stand up bass and drums sets the perfect stage for Stevens' simultaneously tender and gruff vocalizing.
The impeccably orchestrated arrangements include syncopated and dynamic flourishes played out on drums and strings that were and remain unusual for this musical genre.
Speaking of being misunderstood, when I was on the radio in the early 1970s, the hit "Wild World" was actually banned from the progressive rock station as being "a sexist break-up song" because of it's supposed general condescension and lines like "I'll always remember you like a child, girl." Supposedly it's about his breakup with girlfriend Patti D'Arbanville (sung about on Mona Bone Jakon).
But in retrospect, the only line that would lead one to believe it was a "break-up" song is the ambiguous opening line "Now that I've lost everything to you," and indeed, perhaps it is a sexist break-up song, but it could just as easily be about a song to a daughter venturing out into the world for the first time. Considering the cover art, and another song on the album, "Father and Son," that's an equally probable interpretation—it certainly is a better one in 2011!
There's melancholy in "Sad Lisa," and majestic spiritual yearning (a hint of what was to come) in the "Miles From Nowhere."
There's not a second wasted on the first side and so many arrangement nooks and crannies to be discovered on this superbly dynamic, spacious and detailed re-mastering and pressing. Side two begins with the short "stop and smell the flowers" of "But I Might Die Tonight," followed by "Longer Boats," another song with both hippie and religious overtones and then comes the exquisite "Into White" that sounds inspired by the imagery of The Incredible String Band. "On the Road to Find Out" returns to the search for spiritual fulfillment but that's followed by the settled satisfaction of the old man's message on "Father and Son."
The title song is a short, joyous gospel-influenced denouement to end an endlessly entertaining journey that holds up fully every play forty-one years later!
I remember buying my pink label Island copy at a small record store called The Depot, next to a train station in a small suburban Boston suburb, the name of which escapes me.
Upon taking the expensive record out of the jacket I was disappointed to see the same STERLING stamp and LH marking on the inner groove area as on my A&M copy. I consoled myself with the far superior packaging and that iconic pink Island label.
The first play on my Dual 1219 brought gasps because the sound was so far superior to the A&M. It was razor sharp in the best sense of the word, with black backgrounds and a dynamic thrust missing from the lackluster American pressing. Wow!
And wow again listening to this impeccably pressed on 200g vinyl reissue. The attack of the pick on the guitar strings is astonishingly clean and detailed. Depth is pronounced and because of both the blackness of the backdrop and the precision of both the state of the art plating and the technological breakthroughs achieved in the retro-fitted presses, the resolution of low level detail reveals a host of details that are either buried or glossed over on the other versions I've heard and own.
If you have the UHQR edition, you'll find this similar in one way: there's nothing "mellow" about the overall production and when the music gets loud (and Marino lets it get so) it can get a bit hard, but better that than to soften it and lose the clarity, focus and detail of this superb recording, especially in the quieter passages where the resolution of low level detail is astonishing.
If your system is bright, this may sound a bit bright, especially if you can't get the bottom octaves, but as your rig gets better, this record will only keep sounding better and better.
As for Cat Stevens, he went on to record a string of equally fine records, similar in tone and formula to this one, including Teaser and the Firecat, that contained more hits ("Peace Train," "Morning Has Broken," and "Moon Shadow") than did Tea for the Tillerman, and Catch Bull at Four, followed by a few more albums that were somewhat less distinguished.
Audio Fidelity issues a twenty song, two LP live set of his 1976 "Majikat" tour (AFZLP2 040) containing many of his most well-liked tunes. It was his farewell to the world as Cat Stevens and listening makes it clear that he was dispirited and going through the motions much of the time, though there are sparks of the old Cat there too.
A year later he converted to Islam, taking the name Yusef Islam and forsaking his pop music career, though he did do a benefit for UNICEF at Wembley Stadium in 1979 and has been involved in charitable work ever since.
Controversy followed as he was accused of aiding the terrorist group Hamas, which he denied and he is reputedly said to have been okay with the fatwa issued against Salman Rushdie, but again he denied that, saying he was "joking" and his comments had been improperly edited.
After 9/11 he condemned the attack and he sang an a cappella version of "Peace Train" during the "Concert For New York" pre-concert show that was an unforgettable moment (among dozens during the concert proper) for his fans.
He was ridiculously put on the terror watch list and in 2004 the commercial plane he was on bound for Washington D.C. was diverted to Maine where he was escorted off and sent back to the U.K. Since then he's become more active in the secular music world but his piety seems to inhibit his expression, though his live performances have been generally well-received.
He made a bizarre and somewhat uncomfortable appearance at the Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear" where he performed "Peace Train" tentatively while Ozzie sang "Crazy Train" with the O'Jays finishing up with "Love Train." You had to see it to believe it.
None of that takes away from his rich period between 1969 and the mid-seventies when he produced some of the most memorable and enduring folk-rock records of the rock era.
Tea For the Tillerman is a great choice for an inaugural album to launch a new pressing plant in my opinion, and if this release is any indication of what we can expect from Chad Kassem's new venture, we're in for some great vinyl!!!!!.
I can understand how this album has remained popular for the last 44 years. Wonderful songs, and Cat Stevens is at the top of his game here. The many re-issues is a testament to its staying power.
Unfortunately, from a musicianly standpoint, the backup playing on these tracks is way too sloppy. Listen to Harvey Burns' drumming, particularly the 3rd verse of Where Do The Children Play. The backup on most of the tracks, while decent, is just too under-rehearsed..and it shows. It kind of spoiled my enjoyment right from the first time I heard this album.
Also, unless one has top-notch playback equipment, this recording is bound to sound a bit harsh in places. This may lead some people to wonder why the audiophile press would consider it so highly, sonically and otherwise.
"unless one has top-notch playback equipment" the very definition of an audiophile level recording, the better your system gets the better it will sound
melted my ears back in the 70's, but sure maybe it was because my system was average back then. But Michael, to now read that you use magical and wrong at the same time regarding LH's mastering of Tillerman, the world has come to an end. As good as they have been since their first issue of Tillerman loyalty to QRP can still have its limits.
This is one of those audiophile records that I burned out on at a certain point, but after a long break from it, can now enjoy again. I had, among the many copies, a UHQR that I bought new when it was released. I then bought a copy from a homeless guy in the Village, some Euro-pink rim, older pressing. It wasn't as spectacular as the big old Mo-Fi, but it was very coherent, and 'of a piece.' Eventually, I broke down and bought a first press UK pink label, which has been my 'go to' for a while. I didn't buy the first Chad re-do; i gather there was some controversy over it at the time- it wasn't quite as 'warm' sounding or something. I never heard it, so can't say much on that, but I'll be interested to hear the 45. It is a great record, Island was a brilliant label at that time- some adventurous music, some great sounding records, and the ever charming Mr. Blackwell at the helm.
Lee Hulco and the original Pink Label! After all these years? Not to disparage the late great Marino but he cut this one way too loud. I would love to try the 45 version of this but after the rough patches on the 3-31/3 that even AS said was not flawed there's no way. The gargling with the voices and the acoustic guitar sounding like its played underwater are not on the tape I don't care what the stature of the person is that says AP got this right. I am not angry in case this sounds like it, but just adamant that there was a serious issue with the 33 1/3 Tillerman that no one has addressed (except some long forgotten forums I read at the time). Sure, 70% of it sounds 5-star fantasic, but the mistakes in the cut (or pressing) are just too glaring to have been released. I have played it on three turntables in two different locations in my house and it gets the same funny looks from people when I play those passages. I would be glad to share a snippet in a digital file with anyone interested. Also, if I am wrong I would be happy to send my AP copy in a trade to anyone with a VG++ or higher pick label Island and I'll throw in some cash since the AP is apparently so great. Or maybe Chad would take $30 plus my trade in for a new 45 copy.
is the end of On the Road to Find Out and let it play through Father and Son. The lead guitar has the flutter here and there throughout. The most obvious flutter in the voice is during the sustained note in the first syllable of the phrase "ordered to listen" in Father and Son. That's the worst part that I would think would be a show stopper in releasing it. There is also something wrong in the piano of Sad Lisa and some other parts of side one.
After my post I Googled and although I didn't find some of the forums I had read back in 2011 I did find a few posts about the same problem, at least one of which talked about getting a replacement that didn't help. Someone wondered if the bad ones were a batch that got out by mistake from that release delay AP had but it was only speculation. The sad thing is because its Tillerman I am beginning to get tempted to buy the 2 LP set anyway but the thought of spending $90 on two copies with the same problem is too much to think about. So far I have found no posts anywhere from someone who had a bad 33 but a good 45.
I have a pressing from 1989 I just bought a few years back. Sounds pretty good to my ear. Pressed and lacquered at PDO in Germany. I am not sure if they had access to the analog masters or not. Less than $20 3 years ago.
I have a brown label and a gray label pressing. I'm pretty sure the brown label is the older A&M label. It has a darker sound to it where the gray label is brighter in sound. I was amazed at the big difference between the two.
Would either of those be somewhat close to this pressing? I am assuming the brighter one might be a bit closer no?
Mine will arrive Thursday from Acoustic Sounds
Surprised it wasn't pressed on the highly touted "Clarity" vinyl.
of TFTT that I stumbled across years ago. It always sounded a bit on the soft side to me compared to my Island pink label pressing and another early A&M pressing. It would be interesting to do a comparison with this new release.
...number 227. Beautiful packaging! The cover is very glossy like a high quality picture. Vinyl looks great also. Won't be played until Saturday night during the weekly listening session at high volume!
Listened to this and was very impressed (VPI Classic3, McIntosh components). Perfect pressing - no noise at all, amazing clarity. This and Dream with Deam (also in 45) sound fantastic.
I have the Canadian Brown Label A&M pressing with "Sterling and LH" in the runout groove. It sounds great, and easily beat my UHQR. I don't know how it may compare to the U.S. Brown label or the Pink label UK version. What plating and pressing did Canada use???
RCA handled the pressing in most cases.
For whatever reason, Canadian records often sound far superior than their U.S. counterparts.
I did a comparison between the Capitol Canada Beatles "Twist And Shout" and the new 180 gm remasters, recently. There wasn't a huge difference.
Last year at a gathering of my audio club friends a guest compared his his $4 original issue of Tillerman to the host's $50 AP remastered reissue. None of those in attendance went out to get the AP copy after that.
Granted, many of these old and large production originals have variations in mastering and pressing plant (sound quality) and there are some very good AP issues. However, I've heard far too many of these 40-50 yr old reissues from AP that can't keep up with the inexpensive original, in fact, they're 200 grams of pure mediocrity.
Nothing wrong with AP producing these. They're running a business. I've just found many reasons to be careful when buying AP reissues.
but I must say that is the only bad pressing I have ever gotten from AP as far as I can remember. I have been pretty floored with the classical releases I have bought, and pop/rock stuff too, although maybe not going back quite that far.
For example, AP's 45 rpm pressings of the Doors albums are, excluding the first lp, outstanding. The first self-titled is bettered only by an original gold-label stereo pressing since the master tape was no longer available for AP. Stevie Ray Vaughn's 45 rpm box set is to die for.
Wow Sticky Fingers gets an "8" for music and this, this gets a 10. To quote The Birds (no "y") (who are better than The Who) "How Can It Be?"
I don't care how great the edition, pulp is pulp.
Wow Sticky Fingers gets an "8" for music and this, this gets a 10. To quote The Birds (no "y") (who are better than The Who) "How Can It Be?"
I don't care how great the edition, pulp is pulp.
Hi Mike,
Did you adjust the VTA when playing the 200 gram re-issue or did you use the same setup as when you played the original pressing?


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David VanDrunen
Ordained Servant: June–July 2013
Also in this issue
A Pastor's Grief, and How to Cope with It
by Gordon H. Cook Jr.
Addressing Issues: A Cordial Response to VanDrunen
by Ryan McIlhenny
by John A. Muether
God's Glory in Salvation through Judgment
by David A. Booth
by George Herbert (1593–1633)
I thank Ryan McIlhenny for his response to my review of Kingdoms Apart. His response is indeed cordial, thought-provoking, and helpful for promoting constructive, Reformed conversation about these issues. I regret that my contribution here must be very abbreviated, due to space constraints.
Since McIlhenny's response is not primarily focused upon the strengths and weaknesses of Kingdoms Apart but on a variety of issues related to Two Kingdoms/neo-Calvinism debates, it is appropriate (and agreeable) for me to address the latter rather than to rehash the former. But I do note that I was puzzled by McIlhenny's statement that "central to VanDrunen's criticism is that the book [Kingdoms Apart] treats him 'as the chief proponent of the two kingdoms perspective.' " This is not the case, and I am not sure why McIlhenny has this impression. I noted that I was (implicitly) treated as the two kingdoms perspective's chief proponent only to explain why my review speaks so much in the first-person singular and to alert readers that I am very much an interested party in these discussions. I was honored by the attention to my work. But I did fault Kingdoms Apart for its frequent misrepresentation of my views and arguments. In my judgment, the book lacked "collegiality" not because it disagreed with me but because of these misrepresentations. Having clarified this, I am now eager to engage the substantive matters McIlhenny raises.
I wish first to address two topics that McIlhenny discusses separately, but which I think he'd agree are aspects of a larger issue. His questions to me regarding "sphere universality" and the interpretation of 2 Peter 3 seem to express concern that, though two kingdoms proponents have helpfully reminded the Reformed community about the need to make proper distinctions among institutions and activities and to distinguish this age from the age to come, they have not given proper due to the overarching unity of God's work and the elements of continuity between this world and the next. A forthcoming book of mine discusses these issues in some detail,[1] but here are a few thoughts for the present.
I think it proper to say that the new creation is the consummation of this present creation. From the beginning, before the fall, God designed the present world not to remain in its initial form forever but to be consummated in an eschatological new creation. Scripture doesn't teach exactly what this means in detail, but it means at least that the new creation was not to be another creation ex nihilo; the new creation was to be the consummation of this present world. That remains true after the fall. The story of salvation in Christ ends with the same eschatological new creation that was the first creation's original destiny. The present creation, however, is surely not brought to consummation in its entirety, without loss. The destiny of damned angels and humans in hell proves that when Scripture speaks of all things being renewed or reconciled in Christ it does not mean that every individual thing that has participated in God's original creation will be incorporated into the new creation. Such biblical statements point instead to the idea that the new creation is the consummation of the original creation as a whole, in general.
Some reviewers have read page 66 of my book Living in God's Two Kingdoms as asserting that every material thing in this present creation except human bodies will be annihilated at Christ's return.[2] That was not my intent, though I understand why they have this impression, and I now wish I had stated some things differently. What I wished to defend, over against certain popular neo-Calvinist writers (from whom McIlhenny also seems to dissociate himself), is that Scripture gives no reason to hope that any particular thing in this world—whether natural or the product of human culture—is going to adorn the new creation. To say that this beautiful mountain, this pristine river, this lovely sculpture, etc., will adorn the new creation is extra-biblical speculation. The only particular thing in this creation that Scripture teaches will keep its present identity through the coming fire of judgment is the resurrected human body. It is not that other particular things will be annihilated, but that I cannot expect to enjoy this mountain, this river, or this work of art in the new creation. This claim is consistent with Romans 8 and doesn't depend upon how one resolves the textual question in 2 Peter 3:10.
How do these considerations bear upon common institutions such as family or state? How do common institutions relate to the church now and to the new creation to come? Common and special grace are aspects of a unified plan of God for human history, and this helps us to appreciate how God uses the family, for example, to bring covenant children into the church and how he uses the state to provide physical protection for the church (or how he uses economic life to provide financial means to support the church's ministry, etc.). These common institutions do not exist only to serve the church; I agree with Abraham Kuyper that we also ought to acknowledge independent purposes of common grace. But God's putting common institutions/activities to the use of his church seems to be one important way for us to recognize sphere universality.[3]
Yet, in the context of sphere universality, McIlhenny writes that all things remaining part of God's good creation groan for redemption. Does he mean by this that all such things are redeemed? If so, I must strongly disagree. Take marriage as an example. God instituted marriage at creation and upholds it for the entire human race through his common grace. It remains part of his good creation. But marriage relationships end at death, and there will be no new marriage ceremonies in heaven. Marriage will not exist in the new creation—this is why Scripture never speaks of marriage as an institution of the redemptive kingdom of Christ. If this is the case, we should not speak about marriage being redeemed. Redemption is an improper category to apply to marriage. We hope that redeemed people will carry out their responsibilities as husbands and wives better than the unredeemed, but the institution of marriage itself is not being redeemed—only preserved. And similar things must be said about the state and other common institutions. I think this is one of the great benefits of the two kingdoms doctrine: it provides a way to say, with Scripture, that common institutions such as marriage are good and honorable, but also temporary—designed for this world.
McIlhenny asks some questions about natural law and its relation to a Christ-centered perspective. To try to answer them briefly I believe it is crucial to make a basic distinction between, on the one hand, natural law itself as an aspect of God's objective natural revelation and, on the other hand, the subjective response to natural law on the part of sinful human beings. As objective revelation, natural law is sufficient for the purposes for which God gives it. The same is true for all divine revelation: whether special or natural, God's revelation is sufficient for the purposes for which he gave it and insufficient for other purposes. One purpose of natural law, I think we'd all agree, is to hold all people accountable before God's judgment for their violations of his moral law. This is explicit in Romans 1 and implicit in many other biblical texts, such as Amos 1. This means that the substance of the moral law is revealed in natural law; otherwise, many people could stand before God's judgment and legitimately claim excuse for their sins. Therefore, natural law must objectively reveal sufficient moral knowledge for a human being to live a blameless life in the present world. But immediately one must add that, subjectively speaking, no sinner could possibly respond to this revelation blamelessly. Natural law reveals God's perfect law but does not convey the ability to respond without sin. Fallen sinners distort the truths that they know through natural revelation, as Romans 1 also teaches. So in response to McIlhenny's questions regarding an advantage for Christians: Christians do not have, objectively, an information-advantage with respect to the moral law; Scripture reveals the same substance of the moral law that natural law reveals.[4] But Christians may be said to have a moral advantage in that Scripture clarifies many aspects of natural revelation for our dull minds and in that Christians' sanctified hearts should be less prone to distort natural revelation.[5]
McIlhenny also raises a number of interesting issues concerning the identity of neo-Calvinism, its relationship to the two kingdoms, and the similarity of some of their characteristic ideas. With the very little space remaining I offer a few thoughts.
One question he asks is whether I am a "partial neo-Calvinist." The suggestion has a certain logic to it: If Kuyper is regarded as a neo-Calvinist, and if I express considerable appreciation for Kuyper's thought, then it seems I'm a partial neo-Calvinist. The more expansively a term is used, however, the less useful it becomes as an identity marker. If "neo-Calvinist" can describe nearly everybody in the broader Reformed community then it may not serve a helpful purpose. As I'm sure McIlhenny would agree, it's ultimately not terms that matter, and it's unfortunate when terminological confusion causes unnecessary disagreement. At the same time, it's also difficult to proceed efficiently in academic discussion without having terms to identify views and schools of thought, and so it's understandable that we speak of "neo-Calvinists" and "two kingdoms proponents" and hope these will be useful shorthand for capturing certain convictions.
What is most important to me is that the Reformed community reaffirm the basic distinction between God's two kingdoms—his common providential rule and his special redemptive rule—whether or not one agrees with all the ways I personally apply this distinction in exploring the Christianity-and-culture issues. This distinction is biblical and has very deep roots in the Reformed tradition. I would deem it a great blessing from God were the Reformed community as a whole to re-embrace it, and I see my efforts to defend the distinction as something I can do to serve the Reformed churches I love. The thing is, I struggle to think of any contemporary figure I have read or spoken to who either calls himself a neo-Calvinist or is commonly identified by others as a neo-Calvinist who does not speak of God's kingdom in the singular. Possibly my own experience is just quirky, but ever since I began thinking seriously about this I have understood a one-kingdom view to be of the essence of what "neo-Calvinism" is. Thus I do not consider myself a neo-Calvinist. To me, the thought of a "two kingdoms neo-Calvinist" is like the thought of a "libertarian socialist." It's paradoxical, even contradictory.
But that doesn't mean there aren't other features of neo-Calvinism that are consistent with maintaining a two kingdoms distinction, at least potentially. I can think of many (and have identified some in previous writing). McIlhenny suggests that the familiar neo-Calvinist idea of sphere sovereignty is similar to the two kingdoms idea. I appreciate his raising this issue, and I am sympathetic to his thoughts. The ideas of two kingdoms and sphere sovereignty are indeed both concerned with making proper distinctions among institutions and activities in this world. Yet I see the two kingdoms distinction as addressing a foundational biblical issue, while I see the idea of sphere sovereignty as working out a more detailed social theory (which requires intellectual labor beyond theology and biblical exegesis). A theory of sphere sovereignty is indeed very useful, I believe, as long as it is anchored in a two kingdoms doctrine.[6]
Again, I thank McIlhenny for his cordial and thoughtful response. I hope that this exchange will be of some small use to the Reformed community and be a positive stimulus for productive discussion in the future.
[1] David VanDrunen, Divine Covenants and Moral Order: A Biblical Theology of Natural Law (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, forthcoming 2014), especially chapters 1 and 9.
[2] E.g., Keith Mathison in his review of Living in God's Two Kingdoms; see http://www.ligonier.org/blog/2k-or-not-2k-question-review-david-vandrunens-living-gods-two-kingdoms/.
[3] Some writers seem to assume that I do not see God's common grace or common institutions as (at least in part) serving redemptive purposes, which in turn fuels accusations about the bogeyman "dualism" and about a failure among two kingdoms proponents to appreciate the holistic character of God's work in this world. Cornelis Venema, for example, sees my appeal to the Noahic covenant, as the formal establishment of the common kingdom, as "an interesting illustration of the lack of integration in its conception of the relation between creation and redemption." Though acknowledging with me that the Noahic covenant was "a covenant of preservation," Venema seeks to counter me by claiming that "it is not a covenant that is wholly unrelated to the covenant of grace and God's purposes in redemption," for it "serves the purposes of redemption by maintaining the creation order, and also by sustaining the nucleus of the new humanity redeemed through Christ." See "One Kingdom or Two? An Evaluation of the 'two Kingdoms' Doctrine as an Alternative to Neo-Calvinism," Mid America Journal of Theology 23 (2012): 116–17. But where have I ever denied that? Of course the Noahic covenant serves the purposes of redemption in these ways. To say that the Noahic covenant is not a redemptive covenant (which I have said and continue to affirm) is not equivalent to saying that God does not use the Noahic covenant to serve redemptive purposes, in fulfillment of his larger plan for world history. God puts all sorts of common things to use as he builds his church through the covenant of grace.
[4] As Francis Turretin puts it, the natural law and moral law are the same as to "substance" and "principles" but differ in "mode of delivery." See Institutes of Elenctic Theology, vol. 2, trans. George Musgrave Giger, ed. James T. Dennison, Jr. (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 1994), 6. These sorts of statements do of course require further nuances in order to be most helpful and accurate. For example, careful distinctions need to be made among different covenantal contexts within which the moral law is revealed and at times differently applied.
[5] In some other recent pieces evaluating my writing on the two kingdoms there is a lot of speculation, presented as fact, about what my constructive view of natural law is, particularly with regard to its relationship to special revelation, its function governing the common kingdom, and unbelievers' response to it. I have actually published very little on these subjects; Living in God's Two Kingdoms does not discuss natural law at all and Natural Law and the Two Kingdoms is a historical work and does not present my own constructive views in any detail. Yet Jeffrey Waddington and Cornelis Venema, for example, think they know a lot about my views and offer bold critical comments; see Waddington, "Duplex in Homine Regimen: A Response to David VanDrunen's 'The Reformed Two Kingdoms Doctrine: An Explanation and Defense,' " The Confessional Presbyterian 8 (2012): 192–93; and Venema, "One Kingdom or Two?" 106–11. I'll mention just one issue among several they raise: the unbeliever's ability to profit from natural law. Waddington (193) states: "Clearly Dr. VanDrunen's understanding of the efficacy of natural law/natural revelation is significantly different from the clear and unambiguous statement made in the Canons of Dort [3/4.4]." Similarly, Venema (108-9) also implies that I am at variance with Canons of Dort 3/3.4 and writes: "in the two kingdoms paradigm, non-believers are almost as apt as believers to profit from their discernment of the natural law." Neither of them cite a single example from my writings to prove these claims; nor could they, I am quite sure. I agree entirely with the statement in Canons of Dort 3/4.4 and have never argued against it. And I cannot think of where I have said anything along the lines of Venema's charge.
[6] This is an issue on which I'm hoping to do a lot more research and writing in the years to come. I am eager to hear more constructive thoughts on this issue from McIlhenny and others with interest in the topic.
David VanDrunen, a minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, is the Robert B. Strimple Professor of Systematic Theology and Christian Ethics at Westminster Seminary California. Ordained Servant Online, June/July 2013.
Contact the Editor: Gregory Edward Reynolds
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Ordained Servant: June–July 2013
Also in this issue
A Pastor's Grief, and How to Cope with It
by Gordon H. Cook Jr.
Addressing Issues: A Cordial Response to VanDrunen
by Ryan McIlhenny
by John A. Muether
God's Glory in Salvation through Judgment
by David A. Booth
by George Herbert (1593–1633)
© 2024 The Orthodox Presbyterian Church


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The "Harry Potter" author said Tuesday she wrote the fairy tale for her children as a bedtime story over a decade ago. Set in an imaginary land, it is a stand-alone story "about truth and the abuse of power" for children from 7 to 9 years old and is unrelated to Rowling's other books.
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"In keeping with established practice, FDA does not review or approve products for the purpose of lethal injection. FDA has not reviewed the products in this shipment to determine their identity, safety, effectiveness, purity, or any other characteristics."
This is the statement now imprinted on shipments of lethal injection drugs that are brought into the country from foreign sources. Now, a group of six death row inmates is suing the Food and Drug Administration, claiming that the agency's decision to allow one execution drug across U.S. borders without FDA approval is "manifestly contrary to law and amount[s] to an abdication of the obligations imposed" by the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938.
The prisoner's lawsuit stand to throw a serious monkey wrench into the machinery of death. Sodium thiopental, an anesthetic, is one component of the three-drug death cocktail used by most death penalty states–and it is now seriously hard to come by in the United States. This fact has already delayed executions or changed execution protocols in several states.
Hospira, the only company approved to make sodium thiopental for use in the United States, suspended manufacture in 2009 because of a shortage of raw materials, and supplies were already running low in 2010. Last fall, Hospira announced that it would be making the drug only at its plant in Liscate, Italy. But Italy, like most of Europe, eschews capital punishment. As the AP reported in December, "Italy's Radical Party brought a motion to Parliament, which passed overwhelmingly…, requiring Hospira to ensure that the drug would be used only for medical purposes and would not find its way into prisons." In January, Hospira announced that it would simply stop importing sodium thiopental to the United States.
In the face of shortages, several states were already casting around for other sources. They included California, which just christened a new $900 million execution chamber at San Quentin in the hopes of overcoming a court-imposed ban on executions. According to KALW's blog The Informant, documents obtained by the ACLU of Northern California "shed light on California's frenzied scramble for lethal injection drugs," in "a search that would eventually take them through Texas, Arizona, England, and Pakistan."
Along with several other states, including Arizona and Tennessee, California ended up ordering sodium thiopental made in Britain, through a West London pharmaceutical supplier that doubles as a driving school, according to the BBC. That supply was soon cut off as well under a British government ban, but not before states received their first shipments of the drug, with the tacit cooperation of the FDA.
It's these shipments that are at issue in the lawsuit filed last week against the FDA by the high-powered D.C. law firm of Sidley Austin. According to The Informant, "many death penalty watchers have raised questions about the quality and legality of those drugs–saying that if the drug malfunctions, inmates could experience tremendous pain while dying, which they say violates the Eight Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment." It is the FDA's job to make sure that drugs imported to the United States are safe and effective, the lawsuit claims, and their actions with regard to the execution drug is illegal. (The full text of the suit, filed in U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C. on behalf of six inmates from Arizona, California, and Tennessee, can be found here.) The plaintiffs in the civil suit are seeking a declaratory judgement. If they succeed–or even if their case simply takes its time making its way through the courts–they could delay executions in several states.
That's unlikely to happen, however, in Oklahoma and Ohio, which have begun using a substitute drug–pentobarbital, the drug commonly used to euthanize animals. In December, Oklahoma became the first state to execute a prisoner using pentobarbital, in place of sodium thiopental as part of a three-drug cocktail. In January, Ohio announced that it, too, would use pentobarbital–but alone, and in one massive dose. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, "Ohio is on pace…to set a modern-day state record for executing the most condemned killers in one year." On Tuesday, the Ohio Supreme Court set execution dates for nine condemned prisoners–approximately one a month through October–and may yet add more. These men will, quite literally, die like dogs.