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Sketsa is a cross platform vector drawing application based on Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG). The visual design tools allows designer to select, draw, and edit objects easily, while the integrated SVG XML source editor allows you to hand edit SVG source code for greater control.
Citra FX is a photo filter effects for digital images or photos. It allows anyone, regardless of experience, to turn digital images into unique artistic looks. Citra FX comes with many prebuilt filter effects. It is well suited for everything from simple to advanced digital photo filtering.
Alkitab is an open source and free desktop Bible study software. It supports parallel view, commentaries, dictionaries, lexicons, daily devotions, with powerful search capability. Alkitab features rich and user friendly tools for Bible study.
Ekspos is platform independent Java image viewer program. It support most popular image format: JPEG, PNG, and GIF. Additional image format can be added through Java ImageIO plugin. It allows you to quickly view and browse your image collection.
Geser is a classic sliding tile puzzle that challenges a player to slide usually flat pieces along certain routes to establish a certain end-configuration. It is also called fifteen puzzle.
Pencerahan Brightness is an android application, which allows you to easily adjust screen brightness. It is also great for saving battery life.


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Ingles reports positive Q4, full-year results
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Ingles Markets recorded key increases in its fourth-quarter and full-year results for fiscal year 2011, the retailer announced Monday.
For the fourth quarter ended Sept. 30, net sales increased 5.8% to $905.8 million, compared with the year-ago period, while comparable-store sales (excluding gasoline) rose 2.2%, compared with the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010.
Meanwhile, net sales for the full year reached $3.56 billion, a 5% increase from fiscal year 2010, marking the retailer's 47th consecutive year of record sales. Comparable-store sales (excluding gasoline) saw an increase of 2.3%.
"We are proud of both increased sales and profits, reflecting a fitting tribute to the way my father built and ran this company," Ingles CEO Robert Ingle, Jr., said. "We have a great group of managers and associates that continue to drive excellent results."

subset: commoncrawl


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All conforming programs must obey the following constraints, which are designed to minimize the observable differences between compiled and interpreted programs:
This implies that subtype/supertype relationships of type specifiers must not change between compile time and run time.
Conforming programs should not be written using any additional assumptions about consistency between the run-time environment and the startup, evaluation, and compilation environments.
Except where noted, when a compile-time and a run-time definition are different, one of the following occurs at run time:
If the compiler processes a function form whose operator is not defined at compile time, no error is signaled at compile time.


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Isle of Canes is the epic account of a multi-racial family in Louisiana that, over four generations and more than 150 years, rose from the chains of slavery to rule the Isle of Canes. Historically accurate, this first novel by eminent genealogist Elizabeth Shown Mills is a gripping tale of cultural and racial conflict, economic triumph and ruin, and unyielding family pride told against the backdrop of colonial and antebellum Louisiana.
Buy Your Copy Today!
Copyright © 2007-2013, Ancestry.comCopyright © 2014, Elizabeth Shown Mills


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iPhone: Reading on your iPhone typically needs to be a pretty simple experience. You don't want a bunch of pictures, ads, or bloat getting in your way. Unread is a RSS reader that understands that, keeps things simple, and provides you with a ton of gestures so you can get around the app quickly.
On the surface, Unread is a very minimal RSS reader without a lot of options, but as you start to use it you'll realize it has pretty much everything you need. You can sign in with your Feedly, Feed Wrangler, or Feedbin account, and then Unread gives you a list of all your stories. From there, you'll use gestures to get around the app and it's surprisingly intuitive to use. Within a couple minutes you'll be swiping and pulling your way through it without a though. The main focus here is reading, and Unread does a great job of using custom fonts to present text in a readable way. Text is big, easy to focus on, and you can switch between day and night reading modes. Unread doesn't have the feature-set of our favorite RSS reader for the iPhone, Reeder, but it does provide a new and interesting way to read through your feeds.
Unread ($2.99) | iTunes App Store


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NASA dominated American human spaceflight for more than 50 years, but in the 21st century private spaceflight companies are building new space taxis to launch more people into orbit. SPACE.com looks at the major players in the commercial spaceflight race in our week-long series: The Private Space Taxi Race. Part 1 of the series looks at the driving force behind SpaceX.
With NASA's oldest and most-flown space shuttle now delivered to its museum retirement home, the commercial future of American human spaceflight is taking center stage.
On Thursday (April 19), NASA delivered the shuttle Discovery — the fleet leader with 39 space missions under its belt — to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. Discovery will help teach visitors about the nation's manned spaceflight past, which promises to be much different than its future.
NASA is now looking to the private sector to ferry its astronauts to and from the International Space Station, and it's hoping that at least two companies have orbital taxis up and running by 2017. The hope is that competition can bring costs down, helping open up the final frontier for further exploration and exploitation.
"We look to keep competition for as long as we can, to service space station with crew and cargo as soon as possible," NASA deputy chief Lori Garver told reporters last week. "We want to fly the space station longer than 2020; people have talked about this with our international partners. But we need to get the costs of servicing it and operating it down." [Top 10 Private Spaceships Headed for Reality]
Filling the shuttle's shoes
NASA retired its space shuttle fleet in July 2011 after 30 years of orbital service. The United States is now dependent upon Russian Soyuz vehicles to ferry its astronauts to and from the station.
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Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!
But NASA intends this dependence to be temporary. The agency is encouraging a handful of American private spaceflight companies to develop their own manned spaceships. Over the past two years, NASA's Commercial Crew Development program has given a total of $320 million to four American aerospace firms: SpaceX, Blue Origin, Sierra Nevada and Boeing.
SpaceX is using its share of the money to upgrade its Dragon capsule, which NASA also wants to make robotic cargo runs to the space station. In fact, Dragon is slated to launch on an unmanned demonstration mission next Monday (April 30), during which it will berth with the orbiting lab and offload some cargo — a first for a private spaceship.
If the flight goes well, Dragon could begin making bona fide supply runs to the station later in the year, SpaceX officials have said. The company holds a $1.6 billion NASA contract to fly 12 such missions in the coming years.
SpaceX has said that a crewed version of Dragon, which is designed to carry up to seven astronauts, could be operational within three years. Its progress will likely be accelerated by the robotic version's supply missions, according to company founder and CEO Elon Musk.
"Because there are so many similarities between the cargo version of Dragon and the crew version of Dragon, we're learning a great deal about crew transport when we do a cargo mission," Musk told reporters last week.
SpaceX will use its own Falcon 9 rocket to blast Dragon — in both its manned and unmanned configurations — into low-Earth orbit. [Photos: Dragon, SpaceX's Private Spacecraft]
The other contenders
Like SpaceX, aerospace giant Boeing is developing a capsule, which it calls the CST-100. This vehicle will also be capable of carrying seven astronauts, and company officials say it should be ready to go by 2015 or 2016. At least initially, the CST-100 will be carried aloft by an Atlas 5 rocket, built by United Launch Alliance.
Blue Origin, which was established by billionaire Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, is working on a biconic craft called the Space Vehicle. The SV can hold seven crewmembers, and the secretive company has said the spaceship should become operational sometime between 2016 and 2018.
Blue Origin also plans to rely on the Atlas 5 at first, but it hopes to transition eventually to a rocket of its own design. This launch vehicle would include a reusable first-stage booster that returns to Earth via a vertical, powered landing.
Sierra Nevada's entry in the space taxi competition evokes the space shuttle, but on a much smaller scale. The Dream Chaser is a small space plane designed to carry a crew of seven and launch atop an Atlas 5. The mini-shuttle is on track to begin operations by 2015, according to Sierra Nevada officials.
Funding issues
NASA had originally hoped to transition to private astronaut taxis by 2015. However, Congress gave the agency just $406 million for commercial crew development in 2012, less than half the $850 million that NASA requested.
This budget shortfall pushed NASA's timeline back two years, and another delay may be in the offing.
NASA asked for $830 million for commercial crew in the 2013 budget, but it appears unlikely to get anywhere near that amount. Bills recently approved by committees in the House and Senate would give just $500 million and $525 million, respectively, to NASA's commercial crew efforts.
"We feel quite strongly that we require as close to $830 million" as possible, Garver said last week, "in order to reduce that gap of time that we are outsourcing our space transportation of our astronauts to Russia."
You can follow SPACE.com senior writer Mike Wall on Twitter: @michaeldwall. Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: email@example.com.
Michael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, "Out There," was published on Nov. 13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist. He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor's degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.


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Re-Play 20 oz Bowl
Re-Play 20oz bowls are sized just right - big enough for an adult's meal portion, perfect for cereal, soup or salad!
Re-Play 20oz Bowls are:
- Made in the USA from recycled polypropylene that are safe for food contact
- Available in Re-Play's vibrant color palette
- Made with deep sides and sloping walls to sit solidly on the table
- Stackable for easy storage - 12oz bowls stack inside too!
- BPA/BPS, melamine, and surface coating free
- FDA tested and approved
- Dishwasher safe
- Microwave safe in 20 second intervals*
Capacity: 20 fluid ounces
Dimensions: 5.75" x 5.25" x 2"
Dimensions: 5.75" x 5.25" x 2"
*Microwave may cause staining
**Red sauces and certain foods can stain plastic - we recommend washing with a grease cutting dish soap, like Dawn, immediately after use. Should you develop a tough stain, we recommend mixing baking soda and vinegar into a paste and using a good scrubbing tool with grit.


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Iran rejects any change to nuclear deal
TEHRAN – Agence France Presse
Iran on Jan 13 rejected any modification of its nuclear deal with world powers after US President Donald Trump demanded tough new measures to keep the agreement alive.
Iran "will not accept any amendments in this agreement, be it now or in the future, and it will not allow any other issues to be linked to the JCPOA," the foreign ministry said in a statement, using the 2015 deal's technical name.
Trump again waived nuclear-related sanctions on Jan. 12 -- as required every few months to stay in the agreement -- but demanded European partners work with the United States to "fix the deal's disastrous flaws, or the United States will withdraw".
He said the new deal should curb Iran's missile programme and include permanent restrictions on Iran's nuclear plants, removing expiration dates due to kick in after a decade.
But Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the 2015 deal could not be renegotiated.
"JCPOA is not renegotiable: rather than repeating tired rhetoric, US must bring itself into full compliance -- just like Iran," Zarif tweeted immediately after Trump's speech.
The statement from his ministry further criticised new sanctions on 14 individuals announced by the US Treasury on Friday over human rights issues and Iran's missile programme.
In particular, placing judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani on the sanctions list "crossed all red lines of conduct in the international community... and the government of the United States will bear responsibility for all the consequences of this hostile move".
Iran argues that continued US sanctions on non-nuclear areas such as human rights and missile testing have effectively barred Iran from gaining many of the financial benefits expected from the deal.
Zarif has said Trump's aggressive stance on the deal and Iran generally have also violated the commitment to "refrain from any policy specifically intended to directly and adversely affect the normalisation of trade and economic relations with Iran" in the accord.


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PALMDALE – Attorney General Kamala D. Harris announced the arrest today of three suspects in a foiled murder-for-hire plot commissioned by a Tijuana drug cartel.
Dozens of special agents from the California Department of Justice armed with a search warrant conducted the early morning raid at a residence in Palmdale, California.
Arrested there without incident at 6:50 a.m. were Jorge Ernesto Sillas-Rocha, 27, and Victor Manuel Magana Gonzalez, 24, for conspiracy and murder-for-hire. Agents also seized two AR-15 assault weapons, more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition and an estimated $20,000 in cash.
Agents later arrested Daniel Ceballos, 34, at a Starbuck's coffee shop in Palmdale.
Also to be charged in the case is Juan Francisco Sillas-Rocha, 33, known as "Ruedas," who is a lieutenant in the Tijuana cartel called the Arrellano Felix Organization, a vicious gang of drug traffickers responsible for violent murders in Mexico.
"This case sends a message to the border drug cartels trying to do business here: Justice will be swift and certain when you cross into California," Attorney General Harris said. "I applaud our agents and law enforcement partners for their good work in uncovering and thwarting this murder-for-hire plot."
Ruedas Sillas-Rocha was identified by investigators as soliciting individuals to assassinate victims in California who owed the cartel large sums of money. Ruedas Sillas-Rocha directed these individuals to carry out the murder of five family members in a simulated home-invasion robbery. Ruedas Sillas-Rocha was willing to pay the would-be assassins thousands of dollars for committing the murders.
Earlier this month, agents with the Department of Justice received information about a possible murder-for-hire plot targeting victims who reside in California and who have ties to the Arrellano Felix Cartel. The targeted victims were said to have owed the cartel a large sum of money, believed to be the proceeds from drug sales. Agents used sophisticated investigative techniques to track the suspects to Palmdale, northeast of Los Angeles.
The investigation also implicated Fernando Sanchez Arrellano, the boss of the Arrellano Felix Cartel, in the California murder-for-hire plot. That investigation is ongoing.
Jorge Ernesto Sillas-Rocha, Gonzalez, and Ceballos are being held in the San Diego County Jail. They will be prosecuted by the San Diego County District Attorney, who is also expected to issue a warrant for Ruedas Sillas-Rocha's arrest.


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Plant Foot & Vertical Body (Instructional Video Snippet)
by Mike HollisDescription
Kicking and Punting are very intricate skills and require incredible attention to detail! Many relate kicking motions to the golf swing and there are very close similarities. However, kicking and punting involve full body movements which make these skills even more difficult to master than even golf! So, we've come up with a very unique analogy to relate a different sport most comparable to the way we believe kicking and punting really are! Learn how we use the mechanics of "Horse Polo" to teach proper kicking and punting fundamentals!Having experienced playing at the highest level of football for 9 years and being chosen to play in the Pro Bowl in Hawaii, I know first hand what it takes to be an All Pro Kicker in the NFL! I have learned the proper fundamentals from my long time mentor, and senior ProForm Kicking Academy Coach, Jim Gaetano. Coach Gaetano and I have also helped develop NFL athletes like kicker Nick Novak of the San Diego Chargers and All Pro Punter Brian Moorman of the Buffalo Bills, as well as a number of AFL and Division 1 college level kickers and punters!Here at ProForm Kicking, we are extremely detailed in our technique philosophies and we are very prideful in the success we've had, not only with our personal achievements, but our coaching as well! We take on a much different approach to the "common sense" type of kicking as we focus on a process which allows the athlete to take advantage of 100% of their body kicking the ball, which ultimately leads to more power and consistency using a much more "smooth" technique!There are hundreds of kicking and punting instructional videos on the market today, developed by a variety of athletes who have played at various levels of football. Because of the level of personal kicking and coaching success, and our different philosophies, ProFormKickingAcademy offers a variety of video clips that are unlike any others out there! Learn the most productive and efficient way to kick and punt, with "Pro" Form Kicking!
The Coach
Coach Mike Hollis began his kicking career back in 1985 serving as the kicker on his junior high school football team and continuing throughout high school, college and eventually the NFL. After high school, Coach Hollis chose to play at the community college level and eventually walked on at the University of Idaho (Division 1-AA). He began his professional career in 1994 with the San Diego Chargers (pre-season only) and retired in 2003, spending 7 years with the Jacksonville Jaguars, 1 year with the Buffalo Bills, and 1 year with the New York Giants. During that time Coach Hollis: * Connected on 200 of 250 field goals (80%)* Scored 879 points* Had a consecutive streak of 20 field goals* Was voted AFC Special Teams Player of the Week 7 times* Was selected to the 1998 Pro Bowl after leading the NFL in scoring with 134 points* Had his best season in 2000, converting on 24 of 26 field goals (92.3%), even when he missed 4 games after his second of 3 back surgeries. Mike presently holds some very impressive rankings in NFL history. He is in the top 5 of highest percentages in field goals over 50 yards (13/19, 68.4%); top 10 in accuracy over 40+ yard field goals (63/92, 68.5%); top 5 in field goal accuracy in the playoffs (16/18, 88.8%); and top 20 in overall field goal accuracy (80.0%). Throughout his career, Mike has been in the presence of many legendary kickers and punters. He has learned from these individuals and even worked with a number of them as well. Bryan Barker (Punter, Pro Bowl '98, 16 years, retired), Chris Hanson (Punter, Pro Bowl '02, 11 years, retired), Brian Moorman (Punter, 2 time Pro Bowler '06, '07, 9 years, active), Jeff Feagles(Punter, Pro Bowl '09, 22 years retired), Todd Peterson (Kicker, 12 years, retired), John Carney(Kicker, Pro Bowl '95 & '09, 21 years, retired), Darren Bennett (Punter, 2 time Pro Bowler '96 & '00, 11 years, retired), Joe Zelenka (Snapper, 11 years, retired), and David Binn (Snapper, San Diego, 17 years, retired), are just a few of the very successful specialists that Mike has worked with. Mike has created the reputation among many NFL kickers and coaches as having one of the most efficient and smooth kicking forms during his career.
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Less than three months after Vladimir Putin was cast as a pariah over Syria at the last big meeting of world leaders, the Russian president has glimpsed a chance to turn the tables on Barack Obama.
The U.S. president's dilemma over a military response to an alleged poison gas attack in Syria means Obama is the one who is under more pressure going into a G20 summit in St Petersburg on Thursday and Friday.
Yet at a G8 summit in Northern Ireland in June, Putin was isolated over his backing for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and scowled his way through talks with Obama, who later likened him to a "bored kid in the back of the classroom".
Putin has ignored the jibe and stood his ground over Assad, dismissing Obama's allegations that Syrian government forces carried out a chemical weapons attack on August 21.
Buoyed by growing pressure on the U.S., French and British leaders over Syria, the former KGB spy has also now hit back in comments referring ironically to Obama as a Nobel Peace laureate and portraying U.S. global policy as a failure.
"We need to remember what's happened in the last decade, the number of times the United States has initiated armed conflicts in various parts of the world. Has it solved a single problem?" Putin asked reporters on Saturday in the city of Vladivostok.
"Afghanistan, as I said, Iraq … After all, there is no peace there, no democracy, which our partners allegedly sought," he said during a tour of Russia's far east.
Denying as "utter nonsense" the idea that Assad's forces would use chemical weapons when they were winning the civil war, Putin looked steely and confident.
After months of pressure to abandon Assad, he is sending a message to the West that he is ready to do battle over Syria in St Petersburg and sees an opportunity to portray the United States as the bad boy on the block.
"Of course the G20 is not a formal legal authority. It's not a substitute for the U.N. Security Council, it can't take decisions on the use of force. But it's a good platform to discuss the problem. Why not take advantage of this?" he said.
"Is it in the United States' interests once again to destroy the international security system, the fundamentals of international law? Will it strengthen the United States' international standing? Hardly," he said.
There was an element of grandstanding in Putin's first public comments on the dispute over the poison gas which killed hundreds of people in areas held by Syrian rebels.
One of his aims is to deflect criticism at this week's meeting of the 20 developed and emerging powers, including all five permanent members of the Security Council, at which Syria is likely to overshadow talks on the global economy.
Putin also seems intent on taking a swipe at Obama, who pulled out of a Russia-U.S. summit that was planned for this week after Moscow defied Washington by granting former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden a year's asylum.
Putin still risks facing criticism over a law banning "gay propaganda" at the summit, and is accused abroad of clamping down on the opposition to reassert his authority following the biggest protests since he was first elected president in 2000.
But the tension over possible military strikes on Syria has ensured Obama has been the focus of world attention, rather than Putin, in the run-up to the G20 – which will consider issues such as economic growth, unemployment and financial regulation.
There has been no repeat of the sentiment expressed by Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on the eve of the G8 summit. Upset by Russia's position on Syria, he said the G8 group of industrialised countries was in reality the "G7 plus one".
Any hopes in the West that Russia would shift stance because of the use of chemical weapons now look to have been frustrated.
Russian officials have reiterated that Moscow, an important arms supplier to Assad, has the right to deliver such weapons and that their sale does not break international law.
Moscow, which has blocked earlier efforts at the United Nations Security Council to condemn Assad and tighten sanctions on his government, has also made clear it is not about to support moves against Damascus at the United Nations.
Putin says the attack may have been a provocation by rebels fighting Assad, intended to hasten U.S. military intervention, and has used criticism of Washington over Syria to whip up anti-American sentiment and shore up support among Russian voters.
"From Russian officials and certainly the Russian media, there continue to be allegations that the United States has an agenda focused on regime change (in Syria), that the United States is driving tumult in the Middle East for its own ends," a senior U.S. administration official in Washington said.
"There is also a cynical element where anti-Americanism has been successful to rally public opinion."
Putin, in fact, seems emboldened as Obama's problems pile up and some of his allies face difficulties over Syria.
British Prime Minister David Cameron is under pressure after parliament refused to back military action and Obama's decision to seek Congress' approval for strikes has put French President Francois Hollande under pressure to let deputies have a say.
Putin said the British parliamentary vote last Thursday was a sign that even people in countries closely allied to the United States were drawing conclusions from what he depicted as Washington's foreign policy mistakes.
"Even there, there are people who are guided by national interests and common sense, people who value their sovereignty," Putin said.
Any prospect of "shaming" Putin into a change of tack over Syria is also increasingly seen abroad as unlikely to work.
"I don't get the sense that Russia is overly concerned about its international image in this regard," said the senior U.S. administration official. "It takes pride in being independent … Russia is not timid or bashful when it comes to Syria support."


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Mark Evans
Managing Director
Converge Labs, LLC
I identify market opportunities and build value around them, dedicating myself relentlessly to connecting the right people to the right ideas and deriving tangible, winning business outcomes.
For the past 12 years, I've provided skilled and practical guidance as a market researcher, analyst, business development professional and entrepreneur, serving as founder and Managing Director of Converge Labs and Bancroft Group, LLC.
Clients include: Rackspace, Microsoft Advertising, ATT Interactive, Hewlett Packard, Mashery, CityGrid (Citysearch), ATK (Aerospace), Localeze, and more.
Converge specializes in assembling big brands, agencies, investors and entrepreneurs in new technologies, launching the highly successful Geo-Loco Conferences in 2010. Events that focus on the business perspectives of new tech and markets, i.e., monetization, challenges, and opportunities, and bringing buyers and sellers together.
Bancroft is a market intelligence firm assisting executives and business teams track their competitive, industry and market landscapes. Bancroft delivers customized market intelligence reports (Dossiers) to clients ranging from tech giants like Hewlett Packard to aerospace and defense companies (ATK), and to consumer product companies including Xango.
I served as President of the San Francisco American Marketing Association and, prior to starting Bancroft, was Director of Sales and Business Analysis for Business Design Corp.(BDC), developing and implementing new growth strategies for both BDC and its clients.
To sum up what I do professionally, I build and manage relationships and have a deep passion for doing it; relationships are the engine that power and drive business.
Connecting people, and as Paul Grahm says, being "relentlessly resourceful".


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From vintage films, to antique book collections, historic maps, old time radio shows, and more, there is something here for every history buff. From the American Revolution to the Civil War an onward to the Atomic Age; from Native Americans to American Presidents; and everything in between, you're sure find something you will enjoy or will be the perfect gift.
These products can be very useful for geneology research, home-schooling, historical fact finding, and just pure entertainment.
Click on individual categories/topics below to narrow your view of available DVD's and CD's.
Made in the USA.


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Other Resources
The Archive houses several digital cameras that students are able to checkout and use to produce any course-related work. Uses of the equipment range from basic site and model documentation to the making of films for Design Studio projects.
As a compliment to the holdings of the Architecture Study Collection located on the 7th floor, the Archive also houses many rare edition books, magazines, and limited edition portfolios. These are accessible to all students and faculty.
The Archive also contains a small, but growing assortment of films that can be viewed in the office, by appointment. Some of these works have been used by faculty members in conjunction with their respective courses. Others were acquired from a recent film series supported by the Architecture Student Council, as well as the first Cooper Union Alumni Film Festival.
All School of Architecture publications currently in print – many of which are coveted documents of academic significance – are offered for purchase through the Archive. Students receive a 10% discount on all books. Funds from these sales support future publication projects. Click here to view publications available for purchase.


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One of the things that makes knitting and crocheting so appealing is their portability. You really don't need much to keep a project with you as you're about town. Hooks or needles, a ball of yarn, the work in progress and a bag to carry it in if you are worried about it mixing around in your purse.
I am going to share the supplies I keep on hand for crocheting at home and on-the-go, including a review of the new and very versatile Jordana Paige Crafter's Tool Butler. There's a GIVEAWAY for a Crafter's Tool Butler too! If you can't settle on just one form of handiwork this may be just your thing (and who wouldn't love a "butler"?!).
Click below to read the details and enter the giveaway.
For years now I have carried around this fuchsia faux patent bag to doctor's appointments, on plane trips, and shoved into my checked baggage on holiday visits. My sister, Sarah, gave it to me a few years ago for Christmas and it never fails to earn a double-take. It's funny because I have a few other better looking and higher quality bags but this one always gets the compliments. I guess it's hard to miss.
I've loved carrying it around because it's the perfect size for a medium sized knit or crochet project and a few skeins of yarn. I've been known to carrying around a few baby hats in progress or one or two scarves. It also has two zippered pockets for stashing some of the other essential supplies too. I have purchased a bag designed specifically for knitting and crocheting supplies but keep coming back to this one for its simple open compartment. If you are looking for a bag I would recommend starting out simple. My good friend Sue still prefers a reusable shopping bag with a drawstring at the top for similar reasons.
Whatever your pick for a bag, you'll need to consider a way to carry around a few other little tools, namely:
- the hook, or hooks, required for your project (I'll talk more about hooks in a subsequent post)
- a small pair of scissors for clipping yarn when you finish (I have a blunt pair and a little capped pair of Fiskars, which I love)
- a tapestry needle for weaving in the ends (these are blunt with large eyes for threading yarn)
- safety pins or stitch markers for marking your place for pattern changes, counting, or for help in seaming your project correctly
- sewing needle and thread for sewing on buttons
I used a little pin box (came with the purchase of some straight pins) to hold a couple tapestry needles, safety pins, and a sewing needle and thread. I have a few straight pins in there too. You never know...
When not in active use I've been storing my other crochet hooks and knitting needles in a small cabinet, which used to be my grandmother's. It's been fun to use it as she did but it's also the perfect height for toddlers to play in and it's been difficult to keep track of my inventory. Seems I'm often more likely to find the hook I need under a girl's bed than where it should be. So I was excited when the Jordana Paige company contacted me about her new Crafter's Tool Butler. The name is just perfect! Who couldn't use some help keeping her crafting supplies organized?
This case is designed to store supplies for all your handicrafts: crochet, knitting, embroidery, cross stitch, probably many other things you could imagine too. I love the fact that it caters to those of us who can't pick just one thing to do with our hands! It measures 10.5" x W 2" x H 6.5", is made of "vegan leather" (are you up on this latest term for PVC?), and has multiple compartments for all your stuff.
I loaded mine up with all the crochet hooks that had been tossed in a drawer and quickly saw that I have four "J" hooks and am missing a few others. There's even a little inventory card for keeping track of this sort of thing. How would it be to know at a glance what you have and what you don't? I put my small scissors and tapestry needle in small zippered pouch by the needle pockets. I like the fact that it's mesh so I can easily see what I've got.
Then into the large zippered pouches (also mesh for easy seeing!) I stashed all sorts of things, which hadn't had a logical place before, such as: stitch holders for knitting...
To enter to win (multiple entries possible):
- Take a look at the Crafter's Tool Butler and leave me a comment. How would you use it?
- If you don't already, follow Aesthetic Nest (and let me know in a comment)
- "Like" the Facebook page for Aesthetic Nest (and let me know in a comment)
- Learn more about the Jordana Paige company and let me know what you like about this success story.


text: As a partner in Deloitte's New Zealand member firm, I am enthusiastic about helping my public and private sector clients create more value by unlocking or improving business performance. I do this by working with them to find the high leverage points that will make a real difference to their success, and then develop and implement strategies to exploit those opportunities. My focus is on the defense, health care, retail, and consumer products sectors although I have wide experience in a variety of other industries.


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2008 is shaping up to be the election year that we finally get to have the Great American Healthcare Debate again. Harry and Louise are back with a vengeance. Conservatives are rumbling around the talk show circuit bellowing about the socialist threat to the (literal) American body politic. And, as usual, Canada is once again getting dragged into the fracas, shoved around by both sides as either an exemplar or a warning — and, along the way, getting coated with the obfuscating dust of so many willful misconceptions that the actual facts about How Canada Does It are completely lost in the melee.
I'm both a health-care-card-carrying Canadian resident and an uninsured American citizen who regularly sees doctors on both sides of the border. As such, I'm in a unique position to address the pros and cons of both systems first-hand. If we're going to have this conversation, it would be great if we could start out (for once) with actual facts, instead of ideological posturing, wishful thinking, hearsay, and random guessing about how things get done up here.
To that end, here's the first of a two-part series aimed at busting the common myths Americans routinely tell each other about Canadian health care. When the right-wing hysterics drag out these hoary old bogeymen, this time, we need to be armed and ready to blast them into straw. Because, mostly, straw is all they're made of.
1. Canada's health care system is "socialized medicine."
False. In socialized medical systems, the doctors work directly for the state. In Canada (and many other countries with universal care), doctors run their own private practices, just like they do in the US. The only difference is that every doctor deals with one insurer, instead of 150. And that insurer is the provincial government, which is accountable to the legislature and the voters if the quality of coverage is allowed to slide.
The proper term for this is "single-payer insurance." In talking to Americans about it, the better phrase is "Medicare for all."
2. Doctors are hurt financially by single-payer health care.
True and False. Doctors in Canada do make less than their US counterparts. But they also have lower overhead, and usually much better working conditions. A few reasons for this:
First, as noted, they don't have to charge higher fees to cover the salary of a full-time staffer to deal with over a hundred different insurers, all of whom are bent on denying care whenever possible. In fact, most Canadian doctors get by quite nicely with just one assistant, who cheerfully handles the phones, mail, scheduling, patient reception, stocking, filing, and billing all by herself in the course of a standard workday.
Second, they don't have to spend several hours every day on the phone cajoling insurance company bean counters into doing the right thing by their patients. My doctor in California worked a 70-hour week: 35 hours seeing patients, and another 35 hours on the phone arguing with insurance companies. My Canadian doctor, on the other hand, works a 35-hour week, period. She files her invoices online, and the vast majority are simply paid — quietly, quickly, and without hassle. There is no runaround. There are no fights. Appointments aren't interrupted by vexing phone calls. Care is seldom denied (because everybody knows the rules). She gets her checks on time, sees her patients on schedule, takes Thursdays off, and gets home in time for dinner.
One unsurprising side effect of all this is that the doctors I see here are, to a person, more focused, more relaxed, more generous with their time, more up-to-date in their specialties, and overall much less distracted from the real work of doctoring. You don't realize how much stress the American doctor-insurer fights put on the day-to-day quality of care until you see doctors who don't operate under that stress, because they never have to fight those battles at all. Amazingly: they seem to enjoy their jobs.
Third: The average American medical student graduates $140,000 in hock. The average Canadian doctor's debt is roughly half that.
Finally, Canadian doctors pay lower malpractice insurance fees. When paying for health care constitutes a one of a family's major expenses, expectations tend to run very high. A doctor's mistake not only damages the body; it may very well throw a middle-class family permanently into the ranks of the working poor, and render the victim uninsurable for life. With so much at stake, it's no wonder people are quick to rush to court for redress.
Canadians are far less likely to sue in the first place, since they're not having to absorb devastating financial losses in addition to any physical losses when something goes awry. The cost of the damaging treatment will be covered. So will the cost of fixing it. And, no matter what happens, the victim will remain insured for life. When lawsuits do occur, the awards don't have to include coverage for future medical costs, which reduces the insurance company's liability.
3. Wait times in Canada are horrendous.
True and False again — it depends on which province you live in, and what's wrong with you. Canada's health care system runs on federal guidelines that ensure uniform standards of care, but each territory and province administers its own program. Some provinces don't plan their facilities well enough; in those, you can have waits. Some do better. As a general rule, the farther north you live, the harder it is to get to care, simply because the doctors and hospitals are concentrated in the south. But that's just as true in any rural county in the U.S.
You can hear the bitching about it no matter where you live, though. The percentage of Canadians who'd consider giving up their beloved system consistently languishes in the single digits. A few years ago, a TV show asked Canadians to name the Greatest Canadian in history; and in a broad national consensus, they gave the honor to Tommy Douglas, the Saskatchewan premier who is considered the father of the country's health care system. (And no, it had nothing to do with the fact that he was also Kiefer Sutherland's grandfather.). In spite of that, though, grousing about health care is still unofficially Canada's third national sport after curling and hockey.
And for the country's newspapers, it's a prime watchdogging opportunity. Any little thing goes sideways at the local hospital, and it's on the front pages the next day. Those kinds of stories sell papers, because everyone is invested in that system and has a personal stake in how well it functions. The American system might benefit from this kind of constant scrutiny, because it's certainly one of the things that keeps the quality high. But it also makes people think it's far worse than it is.
Critics should be reminded that the American system is not exactly instant-on, either. When I lived in California, I had excellent insurance, and got my care through one of the best university-based systems in the nation. Yet I routinely had to wait anywhere from six to twelve weeks to get in to see a specialist. Non-emergency surgical waits could be anywhere from four weeks to four months. After two years in the BC system, I'm finding the experience to be pretty much comparable, and often better. The notable exception is MRIs, which were easy in California, but can take many months to get here. (It's the number one thing people go over the border for.) Other than that, urban Canadians get care about as fast as urban Americans do.
4. You have to wait forever to get a family doctor.
False for the vast majority of Canadians, but True for a few. Again, it all depends on where you live. I live in suburban Vancouver, and there are any number of first-rate GPs in my neighborhood who are taking new patients. If you don't have a working relationship with one, but need to see a doctor now, there are 24-hour urgent care clinics in most neighborhoods that will usually get you in and out on the minor stuff in under an hour.
It is, absolutely, harder to get to a doctor if you live out in a small town, or up in the territories. But that's just as true in the U.S. — and in America, the government won't cover the airfare for rural folk to come down to the city for needed treatment, which all the provincial plans do.
5. You don't get to choose your own doctor.
Scurrilously False. Somebody, somewhere, is getting paid a lot of money to make this kind of stuff up. The cons love to scare the kids with stories about the government picking your doctor for you, and you don't get a choice. Be afraid! Be very afraid!
For the record: Canadians pick their own doctors, just like Americans do. And not only that: since it all pays the same, poor Canadians have exactly the same access to the country's top specialists that rich ones do.
6. Canada's care plan only covers the basics. You're still on your own for any extras, including prescription drugs. And you still have to pay for it.
True — but not as big an issue as you might think. The province does charge a small monthly premium (ours is $108/month for a family of four) for the basic coverage. However, most people never even have to write that check: almost all employers pick up the tab for their employees' premiums as part of the standard benefits package; and the province covers it for people on public assistance or disability.
"The basics" covered by this plan include 100% of all doctor's fees, ambulance fares, tests, and everything that happens in a hospital — in other words, the really big-ticket items that routinely drive American families into bankruptcy. In BC, it doesn't include "extras" like medical equipment, prescriptions, physical therapy or chiropractic care, dental, vision, and so on; and if you want a private or semi-private room with TV and phone, that costs extra (about what you'd pay for a room in a middling hotel). That other stuff does add up; but it's far easier to afford if you're not having to cover the big expenses, too. Furthermore: you can deduct any out-of-pocket health expenses you do have to pay off your income taxes. And, as every American knows by now, drugs aren't nearly as expensive here, either.
Filling the gap between the basics and the extras is the job of the country's remaining private health insurers. Since they're off the hook for the ruinously expensive big-ticket items that can put their own profits at risk, the insurance companies make a tidy business out of offering inexpensive policies that cover all those smaller, more predictable expenses. Top-quality add-on policies typically run in the ballpark of $75 per person in a family per month — about $300 for a family of four — if you're stuck buying an individual plan. Group plans are cheap enough that even small employers can afford to offer them as a routine benefit. An average working Canadian with employer-paid basic care and supplemental insurance gets free coverage equal to the best policies now only offered at a few of America's largest corporations. And that employer is probably only paying a couple hundred dollars a month to provide that benefit.
7. Canadian drugs are not the same.
More preposterious bogosity. They are exactly the same drugs, made by the same pharmaceutical companies, often in the same factories. The Canadian drug distribution system, however, has much tighter oversight; and pharmacies and pharmacists are more closely regulated. If there is a difference in Canadian drugs at all, they're actually likely to be safer.
Also: pharmacists here dispense what the doctors tell them to dispense, the first time, without moralizing. I know. It's amazing.
8. Publicly-funded programs will inevitably lead to rationed health care, particularly for the elderly.
False. And bogglingly so. The papers would have a field day if there was the barest hint that this might be true.
One of the things that constantly amazes me here is how well-cared-for the elderly and disabled you see on the streets here are. No, these people are not being thrown out on the curb. In fact, they live longer, healthier, and more productive lives because they're getting a constant level of care that ensures small things get treated before they become big problems.
The health care system also makes it easier on their caregiving adult children, who have more time to look in on Mom and take her on outings because they aren't working 60-hour weeks trying to hold onto a job that gives them insurance.
9. People won't be responsible for their own health if they're not being forced to pay for the consequences.
False. The philosophical basis of America's privatized health care system might best be characterized as medical Calvinism. It's fascinating to watch well-educated secularists who recoil at the Protestant obsession with personal virtue, prosperity as a cardinal sign of election by God, and total responsibility for one's own salvation turn into fire-eyed, moralizing True Believers when it comes to the subject of Taking Responsibility For One's Own Health.
They'll insist that health, like salvation, is entirely in our own hands. If you just have the character and self-discipline to stick to an abstemious regime of careful diet, clean living, and frequent sweat offerings to the Great Treadmill God, you'll never get sick. (Like all good theologies, there's even an unspoken promise of immortality: f you do it really really right, they imply, you might even live forever.) The virtuous Elect can be discerned by their svelte figures and low cholesterol numbers. From here, it's a short leap to the conviction that those who suffer from chronic conditions are victims of their own weaknesses, and simply getting what they deserve. Part of their punishment is being forced to pay for the expensive, heavily marketed pharmaceuticals needed to alleviate these avoidable illnesses. They can't complain. It was their own damned fault; and it's not our responsibility to pay for their sins. In fact, it's recently been suggested that they be shunned, lest they lead the virtuous into sin.
Of course, this is bad theology whether you're applying it to the state of one's soul or one's arteries. The fact is that bad genes, bad luck, and the ravages of age eventually take their toll on all of us — even the most careful of us. The economics of the Canadian system reflect this very different philosophy: it's built on the belief that maintaining health is not an individual responsibility, but a collective one. Since none of us controls fate, the least we can do is be there for each other as our numbers come up.
This difference is expressed in a few different ways. First: Canadians tend to think of tending to one's health as one of your duties as a citizen. You do what's right because you don't want to take up space in the system, or put that burden on your fellow taxpayers. Second, "taking care of yourself" has a slightly expanded definition here, which includes a greater emphasis on public health. Canadians are serious about not coming to work if you're contagious, and seeing a doctor ASAP if you need to. Staying healthy includes not only diet and exercise; but also taking care to keep your germs to yourself, avoiding stress, and getting things treated while they're still small and cheap to fix.
Third, there's a somewhat larger awareness that stress leads to big-ticket illnesses — and a somewhat lower cultural tolerance for employers who put people in high-stress situations. Nobody wants to pick up the tab for their greed. And finally, there's a generally greater acceptance on the part of both the elderly and their families that end-of-life heroics may be drawing resources away from people who might put them to better use. You can have them if you want them; but reasonable and compassionate people should be able to take the larger view.
The bottom line: When it comes to getting people to make healthy choices, appealing to their sense of the common good seems to work at least as well as Calvinist moralizing.
10. This all sounds great — but the taxes to cover it are just unaffordable. And besides, isn't the system in bad financial shape?
False. On one hand, our annual Canadian tax bite runs about 10% higher than our U.S. taxes did. On the other, we're not paying out the equivalent of two new car payments every month to keep the family insured here. When you balance out the difference, we're actually money ahead. When you factor in the greatly increased social stability that follows when everybody's getting their necessary health care, the impact on our quality of life becomes even more signficant.
And True — but only because this is a universal truth that we need to make our peace with. Yes, the provincial plans are always struggling. So is every single publicly-funded health care system in the world, including the VA and Medicare. There's always tension between what the users of the system want, and what the taxpayers are willing to pay. The balance of power ebbs and flows between them; but no matter where it lies at any given moment, at least one of the pair is always going to be at least somewhat unhappy.
But, as many of us know all too well, there's also constant tension between what patients want and what private insurers are willing to pay. At least when it's in government hands, we can demand some accountability. And my experience in Canada has convinced me that this accountability is what makes all the difference between the two systems.
It is true that Canada's system is not the same as the U.S. system. It's designed to deliver a somewhat different product, to a population that has somewhat different expectations. But the end result is that the vast majority of Canadians get the vast majority of what they need the vast majority of the time. It'll be a good day when when Americans can hold their heads high and proudly make that same declaration.
Next week: More mythbusting on common conservative canards about efficiency, innovation, and competitiveness.


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Swiftech's new H20-320 Elite kit is designed with many new improvements that should help with performance, functionality and even fitment. Now let's take a closer look and see if Swiftech has taken another step toward offering the best custom liquid cooler in a single kit.
Introduction – Swiftech H20-320 Elite
Swiftech has been in the enthusiast PC cooling market for over a decade now. Back in early 2000 they made their way into the enthusiast PC cooling market with the MC370 line of heatsinks, and have been an industry leader ever since. Swiftech has made many innovations in the world of PC watercooling which allows for better performance and easier installation. Today we are looking at the newest addition to their product line: the Swiftech H20-320 Elite kit. Some may remember back when we reviewed the H20-220 Edge kit; and then after that the H20-320 Edge HD Kit. Both of these kits impressed us greatly so we were very excited to hear that there was a new revision ready for testing.
Here we can see the configuration as displayed on the Swiftech page although some items are not shown to give a more clear and concise representation of your kit. The Elite kit includes many new features such as the new Helix 120mm PWM fans, Rev 2 QP-RES radiator and the stand out in the crowd would be the Apogee Drive II block/pump combo.
The following pages we will look into the components and performance of the Swiftech H20-320 Elite water cooling kit and does it justify the $279.95 MSRP.
Pump Specifications
Motor Type |
Electronically commutated, brushless DC, spherical motor
Nominal voltage |
Operating voltage range |
9 to 13.4 VDC
Max. nominal power (@12 V) |
Max. nominal current (@12 V) |
Max. nominal head (@12 V) |
14.7 ft (4.4m) |
Max nom. discharge (@12V) |
Maximum pressure |
Temperature range |
Up to 140 °F (60 °C)
Electrical power connector |
Molex 4 pin |
PWM + RPM Signals |
4-pin connector
RoHS |
Port thread standard |
50,000 Hours
The pump is PWM controlled and directly mounted to the CPU cooling block which hels get direct flow to the CPU but will also help with radiator fitment and compatibility. This is a big plus in my book as this means Swiftech has been listening and using feedback from end users to further improve their product offerings. This is great as many may well know that this is something sorely missing in modern PC enthusiasts offerings.
Radiator Specifications
- 2-pass, single row construction
- Slim form factor (34mm)
Brass body and tubes, louvered copper fins
Optimized fin-density for maximum heat dissipation at low noise (12 fpi)
M3.5 threaded fan and case-mounting holes
G1/4 threaded ports
High-durability acrylic paint finish
ROHS compliant
The radiator is very similar to the one we saw in the 'HD kit with the L shape reservoir in place making it unnecessary to use a bay or cylinder reservoir as the radiator has a extra tank capacity for the liquid cooling system to help keep the system and lines free of air. The end tank for connectivity has the standard in/out ports but it has them on both sides to ensure top or bottom mounting or however it is configured a fitting can be placed for efficient routing. This is very similar to the mounting we have seen on the MCR Stacker series radiators which have fittings on both sides which allows stacking the radiators for a massive cooling setup. The fins are not super tight which means they can be used with lower speed fans with less noise and still cool efficiently. This is great for those looking for a nice cooler without the excess noise from other radiator models with very tight fin density causing the need for higher pressure/speed fans which in turn make more noise.
Waterblock Specifications:
Precision-machined polyacetal housing
Precision-machined copper base plate with 225 µm (0.009″) micro structures
Mirror finish mating surface with the CPU
Base plate dimensions: 62x62mm
G1/4 threaded ports
Universal hold-down plate for socket 775, 1155, 1156, 1366, 2011
The block is not really just a block anymore. It is not a lighted pump assembly with the block buried deep below. But seeing the internals we feel safe with the assumption that performance should be excellent as it utilizes the same super thin pin matrix design which gave such great performance we have seen before. Also on top is a POM housing holding the pump impeller to which feeds the coolant to the baseplate and keeps everything running nice and cool. At the top of this assembly is a cooling heatsink directly mounted to teh pump to help dissipate heat as the pump under extended usage in this position im sure can get a bit warm.
This just goes to show that many things have been considered and real world solutions put into place to ensure a great user experience for anyone looking to pick up this kit.
Fan specifications
Model | HELIX-120-BW-PWM |
Voltage | 7.0 ~ 13.8 VDC |
Current | 0.2 A |
Maximum Speed | 1800 RPM +/- 10% |
Maximum Static Pressure | 2.29 mmH20 |
Maximum Air Volume | 54.55 CFM |
Maximum Noise | 33 db(A) |
Bearing | Z-Axis |
Connector | 4 Pin PWM |
Tach Output | Yes |
MTBF | 60,000 Hours |
The fans are totally new from Swiftech. The H20-X20 kits used to come with a standard fare design. These fans are more of a deep curve twisted blade design that tens to push decent airflow with quite little noise. These specific ones included in the kit are PWM models which means that they are adjustable automatically and easily from a set reference to ensure quiet when you want it and cooling power when you need it.
Lok-Seal Compression Fittings
Swiftech includes their new Lok-Seal model compression fittings in the elite kits to ensure not only virtually leak-proof installations but also a fit and finish that is really tough to beat. The previous kits offered standard barb fittings which are very nice by their own right but the look of the compression fittings installed just have a very neat and clean look when installation is done.
One thing worth noting is that unlike many fittings we have seen which use a knurled finish, the Lok-Seal fittings have flat edges so that a wrench can be used to properly tighten them. We would avoid using something like pipe wrenches or pliers as they can mar the finish and just make them look bad.
8-way PWM Splitter
Swiftech has really innovated something here in their 8 way PWM splitter which is simply a 8 fan header block taht can be mounted anywhere. It feeds PWM/RPM feedback from the position 1 to the motherboard PWM control and all of the connected fans or pumps with PWM control can all be throttled via a single PWM value which in teh case of a Liquid cooling installation where fans can be numbering well over 3 or 4 trying to get all of these fans to sync if PWM controlled can be a real headache.
This device also pulls its power from a standard 4 pin PATA connector so lack of power should never be a real issue.
Unboxing & first impressions
Once opened there is a lot going on here. Here is all that comes in the box.
- MCR320-QP Res R2 3x120mm radiator
- 3x Helix 120 PWM Fans
- 4x Lok-Seal Compression fittings
- Apogee Drive II Waterblock (mounting for Intel 775, 1155/1156, 1366 and 2011 mounting)
- Clear Tubing (approx 6 ft)
- Installation paper manual
- 1/2L Bottle of premix HydrX coolant
- 8-Way PWM Splitter
- Fill port finishing Hardware
- Funnel
- Multiple mounting hardware sets
With 6 feet of tubing included it is instantly clear that this kit is made to expand to whatever liquid cooled components we want to add, and also even other radiators if so desired. Lastly, one thing we really like is the premixed coolant offered now, as opposed to the first H20-220 kit, which contained a small bottle of coolant concentrate which had to be mixed with liquid. This inevitably would leave us questioning and hoping the water used was of upmost purity to avoid any sort of issues down the road, but with the premix now being included any worries are gone as there is Swiftech quality control over every aspect including the coolant.
Here is the Apogee Drive II and everything that comes with it. It comes with mounting for virtually any Intel socket currently available and also AMD kits upon request. Also included is one of new favorite TIM in the Swiftech Tim-Mate thermal paste. Also included are different color plastic fillers that go into the top heatsink of the waterblock so that when lit can light up any of the 3 colors you choose (red, green or blue) which once again speaks well to the attention to detail and Swiftech keeping a mindful eye on what the enthusiasts community wants to see.
Here is the baseplate of the waterblock which is 62x62mm square and as you can see utilizes the ultra fine micro structure matrix which allows for good liquid flow while also maximum thermal transfer capabilities. Also note that the mating surface is mirror polished and super flat to match up nicely with your CPU IHS.
The water has to go somewhere to cool off and that's where the radiator comes into play. This unit has a very capable radiator for our task of keeping our review motherboard/CPU cool. The unit used in the Elite kits is a high performance QP series which has a reservoir built in by way of a enlarged radiator end tank for a larger capacity and also a place for air to trap rather than in the lines. One major difference versus the previous Edge HD kit we had tested is that this radiator has the more standard in/out ports and lack of onboard pump which is nice and makes hose routing and mounting a bit easier.
The Radiator comes pre fitted with the Lok-Seal Compression fittings in place but there are ports on both sides so that they can be located however is necessary for your cooling loop.
Testing & Methodology
Testing this cooling unit we will compare it to some of the top end air coolers we have for testing as well. This should provide a direct comparison to the performance you get for what you pay. The testing we will try to max load the CPU for an extended period to see how well it not only handles a load but ensure that the cooler does not heat soak or become overloaded during extended loading periods. Most of our previous testing was done at 4.8GHz on this chip so we decided to re-run the tests as many factors have likely changed and that could have a affect on the test and the performance result.
We really hope other manufacturers will soon get us some kits to review as well so we can have a real shootout here since so far these are the only high end liquid coolers we have seen come through. We are more than happy to put any liquid cooler head to head with these units given we can get our hands on them.
Test Rig
Test Rig | |
Case | Test bench |
CPU | Intel Core i7 2600K |
Motherboard | Gigabyte Z68X-U3H-B3 |
Ram | 8GB Gskill (2x4GB) 2133MHz (9-11-10) |
CPU Cooler | Swiftech H20-320 Elite |
SSD | Kingston HyperX SATAIII/6G 240GB |
Optical | ASUS BD-Rom |
GPU | ASUS Matrix HD 7970 |
PSU | Thermaltake Toughpower XT 1475W |
Mouse | Tt eSPORTS Black gaming mouse |
Keyboard | Tt eSPORTS MEKA G1 Gaming Keyboard |
Testing Method
We do understand that Linpack programs provide maximum heat output for thermal testing but we do not go that route as we have seen far too many component failures due to overstress situations and therefore we choose a more appropriate load such as video encoding, multiple back to back Cinebench runs or just full threaded Wprime runs to simulate full system load without the excess that can cause damage. We run a full spectrum of different real world programs that users would normally run and even productivity apps that keep the CPU at full tilt for long periods of time to ensure the loop and all coolers get a full heat soak and the highest temperature possible. The reason the test is done over a long duration is to ensure that we test performance when the temperature stays high, and not just at aberrant spikes.
Here you can see that the performance is virtually the same minus possible minimal variations but this speaks well to the new Apogee Drive as it holds right there with the Apogee HD in the previous Edge HD kit we tested. It literally was side by side with it in comparison, and of course being a full custom loop you going to blow away even the best air coolers but then again this is at stock.
Next we will put the fire to our chip and see how the coolers perform running full tilt at near 5GHz overclocks.
When overclocked the Elite kit once again is right next to the Edge HD although very slightly better with approximately 1 degree better at idle and load. Once again this shows major promise since the apogee HD is no joke and one awesome block so to be able to match it with a heat generating pump on its back thats no easy task. Needless to say the lead above air coolers grew with teh higher heat load especially during extended testing as the air coolers simply could not keep up.
The Swiftech H20-320 Elite is one hell of a liquid cooling kit. We do use the word kit loosely as many think of kits as a combination of cheap parts thrown together to give you something easy to use. This is not one of those kits as it uses top quality parts all matched to make for a great performing and functioning cooling solution.
There have been many advances and not one we can point out as being the best. They are all awesome from the Apogee Drive block, to the Lok-Seal fittings and even the PWM fans are all excellent additions to an already powerful offering. Add to this the major innovation in the way of the 8-Way PWM splitter and I'm sure you can see that there is some real possibility built into this one part alone. Just in the ability to match all fans on a radiator to the same PWM signal is a huge plus in my book.
Moving the pump to the block from the radiator will go a long way in the convenience side of things as we have installed a few H20-X20 kits now and with the pump on the radiator it could be a little tough at times to maneuver in the chassis while mounting. Even more so when considering you also had to fit the tubes onto the pump.
Anyone looking to get into the high end liquid cooling game without having to search for each component and just hope they match the H20-X20 series is sure to be a hit as its all there just waiting for you to snap it in and start the engine. There really is no other kit like it on the market we would say that offers this level of performance along with such an easy installation.
OUR VERDICT: Swiftech H20-320 Elite | ||||||||||||||||||
Summary: The Swiftech H20-320 Elite offers a load of new features, excellent performance and overall easy installation. For this it earns the Bjorn3D Gold Bear Award. |


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Sony Cassettes
Cassettes from the legend that is Sony
About Sony:
Sony Corporation (ソニー株式会社 Sonī Kabushiki Kaisha, /ˈsoʊni/ SOH-nee, stylized as SONY) is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Kōnan, Minato, Tokyo.[9][1] Its diversified business includes consumer and professional electronics, gaming, entertainment and financial services.[10] The company owns the largest music entertainment business in the world,[11] and is one of the leading manufacturers of electronic products for the consumer and professional markets, and a leading player in the film and television industry.[12][better source needed] Sony was ranked 97th on the 2018 Fortune Global 500 list.[13]
Sony Corporation is the electronics business unit and the parent company of the Sony Group (ソニー・グループ Sonī Gurūpu), which is engaged in business through its four operating components: electronics (AV, IT & communication products, semiconductors, video games, network services and medical business), motion pictures (movies and TV shows), music (record labels and music publishing) and financial services (banking and insurance).[14][15][16] These make Sony one of the most comprehensive entertainment companies in the world. The group consists of Sony Corporation, Sony Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan, Sony Mobile, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment Japan, Sony Financial Holdings, and others.
Sony is among the semiconductor sales leaders[17] and since 2015, the fifth-largest television manufacturer in the world after Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, TCL and Hisense.[18]
The company's current slogan is Be Moved. Their former slogans were The One and Only (1979–1982), It's a Sony (1982–2006), like.no.other (2006–2009)[19] and make.believe (2009–2014).[20]
Sony has a weak tie to the Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) keiretsu, the successor to the Mitsui keiretsu.[21]
Sony produced the world's first portable music player, the Walkman in 1979. This line fostered a fundamental change in music listening habits by allowing people to carry music with them and listen to music through lightweight headphones. Walkman originally referred to portable audio cassette players. The company now uses the Walkman brand to market its portable audio and video players as well as a line of former Sony Ericsson mobile phones.
Sony utilized a related brand, Discman, to refer to its CD players. It dropped this name in the late 1990s.
Sony Cassettes


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Photo: Doug Schweitzer, Danielle Larivee, Travis Toews, and Mo Elsalhy.
Former United Conservative Party leadership candidate Doug Schweitzer defeated past city council candidate Chris Davis to secure his party's nomination in Calgary-Elbow on September 13, 2018. As noted last week, Schweitzer is a lawyer who briefly considered running for the PC Party leadership in 2017 before dropping out and endorsing Jason Kenney. Only a few months later, he ran against Kenney for the UCP leadership, where he placed third with 7.3 percent of the vote. He served as CEO of the Manitoba PC Party from 2008 to 2009 and was manager of Jim Prentice's campaign for the leadership of the PC Party in 2014.
Calgary-Elbow has a long-history in conservative partisan lore, having been represented by former premiers Ralph Klein and Alison Redford and past deputy premier David Russell, but it has also been a marginal district at times.
Klein only narrowly defeated Liberal Gilbert Clark in 1989 and the district would abandon the Tories for Liberal Craig Cheffins in the 2007 by-election to replace Klein. Redford retook the district for the PCs in 2008, but her disastrous tenure in the premier's office certainly contributed to Alberta Party leader Greg Clark (son of Gilbert) winning in Calgary-Elbow in 2015.
Schweitzer will face Clark and likely New Democratic Party nominee Janet Eremenko in the 2019 election.
Danielle Larivee was nominated as NDP candidate in Lesser Slave Lake. Larivee was first elected in 2015 and currently serves as Minister of Children's Services and Minister for the Status of Women. Before her election Larivee worked as a Registered Nurse in public health in northern Alberta.
Former president of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association Travis Toews defeated Sexsmith town councillor Kate Potter to secure the UCP nomination in Grande Prairie-Wapiti. Toews had the endorsement of former Grande Prairie PC MLAs Walter Paszkowski and Everett MacDonald in this district currently represented by retiring UCP MLA Wayne Drysdale.
Registered Nurse Hannah Presakarchuk defeated Rafat Alam, Shaun Collicott, and Laine Larson to secure the UCP nomination in Edmonton-Rutherford.
Former Liberal MLA Mo Elsalhy was nominated as the Alberta Party candidate in Edmonton-South West and Marvin Olsen has been nominated as the Alberta Party candidate in Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville.
Upcoming Nomination Meetings
Former PC MLA Janice Sarich, past city council candidate Karen Principe, and real estate agent Gordon Reekie will compete for the UCP nomination in Edmonton-Decore on September 20, 2018.
Sarich represented this district from 2008 until 2015 when she was unseated by NDP candidate Chris Nielsen. Principe placed a strong third in the October 2017 city council race that saw incumbent councillor Dave Loken unseated by Jon Dzadyk. Reekie had previously been a candidate for the UCP nomination in the neighbouring Edmonton-Castle Downs before withdrawing from that contest before the vote was held.
NDP MLA Marlin Schmidt is expected to be nominated as his party's candidate in Edmonton-Gold Bar on September 20, 2018. Schmidt was first elected in 2015, earning 68 percent of the vote in the 2015 election. He now serves as Minister of Advanced Education and will face a rematch against UCP candidate David Dorward, who Schmidt defeated in 2015 and placed a strong second against in 2012.
Edmonton-Gold Bar is a former Liberal Party stronghold, having been represented by party heavy-weights Bettie Hewes from 1986 to 1997 and Hugh MacDonald from 1997 to 2012, though support for the party collapsed to an abysmal 3.1 percent in the 2015 election.
Lacombe City Councillor Thalia Hibbs will challenge UCP MLA Ron Orr in a nomination contest in Lacombe-Ponoka scheduled for September 21, 2018. It was announced at a forum in Lacombe that nomination candidate Rita Reich has dropped out of the contest, though no reason was given.
Orr was first elected as a Wildrose Party candidate in 2015, winning a close three-way contest between himself, New Democrat Doug Hart and PC candidate Peter DeWit. Orr currently serves as Official Opposition critic for Culture & Tourism and in November 2017, the former Baptist pastor suggested that the legalization of marijuana in Canada could lead to a communist revolution.
Hibbs has served on Lacombe City Council since October 2017 and previous to that served as a trustee with the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Schools from 2010 to 2017.
Four candidates are seeking the UCP nomination in Calgary-Glenmore: Christopher Grail, Whitney Issik, Michael LaBerge and Phillip Schumann.
Issik is a long-time party activist, having worked as a campaign manager for Jim Prentice's brief run for the federal Progressive Conservative nomination in Calgary-Southwest in 2002, as a constituency assistant to former Calgary-Mountain View MLA Mark Hlady (who is now seeking the UCP nomination in that district), and as policy co-chair of the federal PC Party during the 2000 federal election. LaBerge is president of Channel Energy Inc. Schuman is an insurance company account executive and until July 2017 was the Media Coordinator for United Liberty, the political action committee created by now-Freedom Conservative Party MLA Derek Fildebrandt.
Maureen Zelmer had been seeking the UCP nomination in Calgary-Glenmore until it was revealed she had posted a series of Islamophobic comments on Facebook.
Past Wildrose Party candidates Kathy Macdonald and Jeremy Nixon are seeking the UCP nomination in Calgary-Klein on September 22, 2018. MacDonald is a retired Calgary police officer and was the Wildrose Party candidate in the 2014 by-election in Calgary-Foothills and 2015 Wildrose candidate in Calgary-Mackay-Nose Hill. She also ran for the Wildrose Party nomination ahead of the 2015 by-election in Calgary-Foothills. Nixon ran in this district under the Wildrose banner in 2012 and 2015. He is the brother of Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre MLA Jason Nixon.
Macdonald is endorsed by former Calgary police chief and 2015 PC candidate Rick Hanson. Nixon is endorsed by Calgary Conservative MPs Michelle Rempel, Len Webber, City Councillor Sean Chu, and UCP MLAs Nathan Cooper, Todd Loewen, Angela Pitt and former UCP MLA Dave Rodney.
Deron Bilous is expected to be acclaimed for the NDP nomination in Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview on September 23, 2018. Bilious has represented this district since 2012 and was re-elected in 2015 with 73.8 percent of the vote. He currently serves as Alberta's Minister of Economic Development and Trade. This district has deep NDP roots, having been represented by former city councillor Ed Ewasiuk from 1986 to 1993 and former party leader Ray Martin from 2004 to 2008.
Here are some of the latest updates to the list of candidates running for party nominations ahead of the 2019 Alberta provincial general election:
Camrose – Brandon Lunty is seeking the UCP nomination. Lunty was the Wildrose candidate in Calgary-South East in the 2015 election, placing third with 29 percent of the vote behind PC MLA Rick Fraser and New Democrat Mirical Macdonald.
Calgary-Falconridge – Christopher Steeves has withdrawn from the UCP nomination contest in this new east Calgary district. He served as a councillor with the City of Chestermere from 2005 to 2017.
Sherwood Park – Sean Kenny is the fourth candidate to enter the UCP nomination contest in this suburban Edmonton area district.
If you know any candidates who have announced their intentions to stand for party nominations, please send me an email at firstname.lastname@example.com. I will add them to the list. Thank you!


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Being "Lutheran," our congregation accepts and teaches the Bible-based teachings of Martin Luther that inspired the reformation of the Christian Church in the 16th century. The teaching of Luther and the reformers can be summarized in three short phrases: Grace alone, Faith alone, Scripture alone.
Grace Alone
God loves the people of the world, even though they are sinful, rebel against Him and do not deserve His love. He sent Jesus, His Son, to love the unlovable and save the ungodly.
Faith Alone
By His suffering and death as the substitute for all people of all time, Jesus purchased and won forgiveness and eternal life for them. Those who hear this Good News and believe it have the eternal life that it offers. God creates faith in Christ and gives people forgiveness through Him.
Scripture Alone
The Bible is God's inerrant and infallible Word, in which He reveals His Law and His Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. It is the sole rule and norm for Christian doctrine.


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US Government & Press Lie Constantly, with Total Impunity
The lies are usually about the most important policies and actions of the United States government regarding international relations — foreign policy matters such as wars, treaties, and economic sanctions. In the past, they were lies about matters such as that North Vietnam had attacked the USS Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, and that Chile's President Salvador Allende opposed democracy, and that Iraq's President Saddam Hussein was «six months away from developing a [nuclear] weapon», and that Russian President Vladimir Putin's «conquest of land» regarding Crimea had happened, and is the basic reason for the economic sanctions the US has placed against Russia.
On August 2nd, US President Donald Trump signed into law increased sanctions against Russia, which had been passed 98-2 in the Senate and 419-3 in the House. This new law stated in Section 211, «Congress makes the following findings» as the basis for greatly hiking the economic sanctions against Russia:
(6) On January 6, 2017, an assessment of the United States intelligence community entitled, «Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent US Elections» stated, «Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign in 2016 aimed at the United States presidential election». The assessment warns that «Moscow will apply lessons learned from its Putin-ordered campaign aimed at the US Presidential election to future influence efforts worldwide, including against US allies and their election processes».
In other words: because of this alleged hacking of the 2016 US Presidential election, the sanctions that were originally (and entirely falsely) based upon «conquest of land» regarding Crimea, are now being greatly increased.
The 6 January 2017 document that the 98 Senators and 419 Representatives were relying upon there, «Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent U.S. Elections», was signed by just one of the 17 U.S. intelligence agencies: President Obama's Director of National Intelligence (James R. Clapper), who served at the pleasure of the then-President (Obama). The portion of it titled «Russia's Influence Campaign Targeting the 2016 US Presidential Election» was additionally signed by the NSA, FBI and CIA. The entire document was built upon an earlier document, dated 7 October 2016 and issued in anticipation of Hillary Clinton's becoming the next President; and that earlier document had been signed by two of the 17: the office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the office of the intelligence service for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The public part of this earlier document was titled «Joint Statement from the Department Of Homeland Security and Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Election Security». It opened:
The US Intelligence Community (USIC) is confident that the Russian Government directed the recent compromises of e-mails from US persons and institutions, including from US political organizations. The recent disclosures of alleged hacked e-mails on sites like DCLeaks.com and WikiLeaks and by the Guccifer 2.0 online persona are consistent with the methods and motivations of Russian-directed efforts. These thefts and disclosures are intended to interfere with the US election process.
It was signed with the seal of the Department of Homeland Security and the seal of the Director of National Intelligence — those two seals or official signatures being co-equals in authority. They were two of the 17 offices of the US federal government's Intelligence Community
According to Wikipedia's article «United States Intelligence Community», «The IC [Intelligence Community] is headed by the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), whose statutory leadership is exercised through the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI)». The 17 members of the IC are shown there in that Wikipedia article, along with the official seal for each one (because a «finding» is officially «signed» with that seal, not with the person's signature); and the 17 are:
Eight are under the US Department of Defense (DOD). These offices are the respective intelligence-offices for: Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Geospatial Intelligence Agency, and then 3 stand-alone ones that also are under US DOD: National Reconnaissance Office, Defense Intelligence Agency, and National Security Agency.
Two intelligence-offices are at Department of Homeland Security: Office of Intelligence and Analysis, and Coast Guard Intelligence.
Two are at Department of Justice: Office of National Security Intelligence, and FBI Intelligence Branch.
One is at Department of Energy: Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence.
One is at Department of State: Bureau of Intelligence and Research.
One is at Treasury Department: Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.
There are two entirely independent stand-alone intelligence offices: CIA, and Director of National Intelligence. Each of those two officials reports directly to the US President, not via a Cabinet Department.
That's all 17 of them.
The Director of National Intelligence (DNI) is authorized to represent each of the other 16, and not only himself. He is authorized to do that even if some (or all) of the other intelligence offices disagree with him in opinions that he expresses — if they disagree, they just don't sign it (their official seal then doesn't appear on the «finding»). The DNI may express an opinion that's contradicted by any or all of the other 16. However, his opinion is not superior to the opinion of any of the other 16 top intelligence officials: he is instead considered to be one among the 17 — not superior to the other 16 — but nonetheless to express, in some purely official sense, «the Intelligence Community».
However, if he expresses an opinion that contradicts the opinion of the sitting President, he may be fired by the President. None of his 16 Intelligence Community colleagues can do that — officially represent «the Intelligence Community» regardless of what its other 16 persons might privately support. The basic law that defines the DNI's authority is Sec. 102. [50 U.S.C. § 3023], and states (on page 37) that he is at all times «Subject to the authority, direction, and control of the President». In other words, when the DNI speaks, the President of the United States is actually being expressed. Whether any other of the 17 top US intelligence officials is also being expressed is therefore irrelevant. The system was set up this way so that the President would officially have «the Intelligence Community» supporting whatever publicly endorsed «facts» or findings the President backs. Any dissenting members of that 17 simply don't sign, that's all. The purpose of this arrangement is to keep the findings — the public 'facts' — in line with the President's policy on the given matter, no matter what.
Each of the 17 top intelligence officials has an official seal of office. No document that lacks the official seal of a particular one of these 17 offices is officially approved by that office. The lack of that person's seal means one of two things: his agency was not consulted on the given matter, or else he had been consulted and declined to sign the given document or «findings».
Thus, only two of the 17 US intelligence agencies signed the «Joint Statement from the Department Of Homeland Security and Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Election Security».
On 19 October, 2016 occurred the last one of the three US Presidential debates between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump; and Clinton said: «We have 17 intelligence agencies, civilian and military, who have all concluded that these espionage attacks, these cyberattacks, come from the highest levels of the Kremlin, and they are designed to influence our election». She was referring to that «Joint Statement from the Department Of Homeland Security and Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Election Security». That night, Politifact headlined «Hillary Clinton blames high-up Russians for WikiLeaks releases», and rated Clinton's assertion there «True» because:
The October statement … said «The US Intelligence Community (USIC) is confident» in its assessment. As we noted in the article, the 17 separate agencies did not independently come to this conclusion, but as the head of the intelligence community, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence speaks on behalf of the group.
That's not really true, but it is officially true: if the DNI signs to a «finding», then any dissenting member of the 17 must simply keep quiet, say nothing publicly about the matter. To Politifact, the refusal of the other top 15 US intelligence officials to sign the October 7th document meant nothing, and was irrelevant; the only signature that mattered to Politifact was the DNI's (the signature of the person who, at all times, is in fact by law «Subject to the … control of the President» — which then was Obama) — even the DHS signature (which was on the document) meant nothing to Politi'fact'. Politi'fact' didn't say two signed it; but instead said that all 17 did — which was false. Politi'fact' too lies, in order to make the 'facts' fit the government's policy.
Then, on 21 October 2016, USA Today headlined «Yes, 17 intelligence agencies really did say Russia was behind hacking», and wrote — in this 'news' report, this wasn't published as an opinion-piece but 'news':
The fact-checking website Politifact says Hillary Clinton is correct when she says 17 federal intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia is behind the hacking.
«We have 17, 17 intelligence agencies, civilian and military who have all concluded that these espionage attacks, these cyber attacks, come from the highest levels of the Kremlin. And they are designed to influence our election. I find that deeply disturbing», Clinton said during Wednesday's presidential debate in Las Vegas.
Trump pushed back, saying that Clinton and the United States had «no idea whether it is Russia, China or anybody else».
But Clinton is correct. On Oct. 7, the Department of Homeland Security and Office of the Director of National Intelligence issued a joint statement on behalf of the US Intelligence Community. The USIC is made up of 16 agencies, in addition to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence… The agencies all issued the statement together.
That 'news' report was influential: it had 45 thousand shares online. Its statement that the Department of Homeland Security was authorized to speak for any other intelligence agency than itself was entirely false. And the fundamental Russiagate narrative itself is almost certainly also a lie, which might help explain why Obama couldn't get the other 15 US intelligence services (or at least the ones such as the CIA and NSA and FBI, which clearly possessed relevant intelligence about the matter), to attach their seals to it at the time.
An alternative narrative explaining the Wikileaks information-releases exists, and is supported by all of the available relevant evidence, and it doesn't entail any hacks at all but, instead, leaks: both of the information-releases resulted from leaks by insiders instead of from hacks by outsiders. This doesn't necessarily mean that nobody hacked anything, but just that neither of the information-releases came from a hack.
Strong evidence exists that Craig Murray, a British friend of Julian Assange (both pictured), picked up from a Democratic National Committee insider on 24 September 2016 in Washington DC a thumb drive or other physical embodiment of the data that soon thereafter became leaked, and that he delivered it to the Wikileaks founder inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London.
Furthermore, according to investigative journalist Seymour Hersh speaking on 1 August 2017, an earlier leak from a different DNC insider had produced the June 2016 DNC computer-data release by Wikileaks.
Furthermore, the technical evidence regarding the 'hacking' indicates there was no hack; that it was only (at least one) inside leak(s).
The charge that Russia had 'hacked' 'the election' is the core 'justification' given for the 98-2 Senate and 419-3 House passage of the great hike in anti-Russia economic sanctions. Clearly, this Congress — both Parties in it — are determined to squeeze Russia harder and harder until it's conquered. Maybe the reason why Trump signed this bill into law (which would have easily passed over his veto if he had vetoed it) is so as not to give Congress an additional 'reason' to impeach and replace him by Mike Pence, whom both Parties in Congress seem to prefer.
America invaded Vietnam on the basis of lies. We invaded Iraq on the basis of lies. We've done much else — in Libya, Syria, and Ukraine etc. — on the basis of lies. Are our leaders preparing to invade Russia on the basis of lies? (If so, those lies started on 24 February 1990.) How much longer will the American public continue rewarding (instead of demanding prosecution of) the liars who are promoting Lockheed Martin and the rest of the US military-industrial complex and destroying countries one after another? America isn't being ruled by the military; it's being ruled by the Military-Industrial Complex. To understand the MIC, the «revolving door» is essential. Without that revolving door, America could be a democracy. But that revolving door is controlled by billionaires; and, by means of it, the billionaires control the US government. The divisions within the US government are only superficial, as is clearly shown by that virtually unanimous vote (98-2 and 419-3) in Congress, for lies. It's now become almost lock-step, in Washington. The US aristocracy controls the US MIC, by controlling both the government and the press. The only way to become a serious contender, to win a seat in Congress, or especially to win the Presidency, is to be acceptable to billionaires — Republican, Democratic, or otherwise. And America's billionaires are virtually unanimous in their determination to conquer Russia.
This is not likely to end well. Robert Mueller (pictured) has now impanelled two grand juries in order to find some crime by the President that's part of his Russiagate investigation, so that Trump can be criminally charged, then impeached, and then replaced by the hard-right neoconservative Mike Pence. At the present stage, it's an «investigation in search of a crime», and probably one or more crimes will be found on which Trump can be prosecuted; but, why weren't Barack Obama's crimes even searched for (I could name several he could almost certainly have been indicted for, including his aiding and abetting the American public's actual enemies in his policies on Honduras, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Ukraine, and elsewhere — and his protecting mega-banksters whose frauds had produced the 2008 economic collapse, and he even told them privately «I'm protecting you»), much less investigated at all? Obviously, America's aristocracy detest Trump, though he's one of them. Trump is trying to give them almost everything they want, but that's clearly not sufficient. He's not bad enough to satisfy them, and they're in control. Most recently, the lies they are pumping out have focused against Venezuela. Only ignoramuses and fools still trust the honesty of the US government, and of its sycophantic press, which is controlled by the same aristocracy — both Parties of it. Some 'democracy'!
Original article
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About the author
Investigative historian Eric Zuesse is the author, most recently, of They're Not Even Close: The Democratic vs. Republican Economic Records, 1910-2010, and of CHRIST'S VENTRILOQUISTS: The Event that Created Christianity.